Happy birthdays to the Jaynas, because Jaynas are awesome and have a very good day for birthdays! Happy birthday to you!
That is all.
–Jer
Closing One Door, Opening a New One
October 25, 2007 at 2:31 pm (Uncategorized)
Tags: friends, internet, ramblings, rpg
So…one may notice, if one has been paying attention, that I’ve been quiet here for a while. And apparently, according to my blog stats, a few people at least have been paying attention…it’s weird, it’s like people like to see what I have to say or something. Who’da thunk it? 
So, there are myriad reasons for my recent silence; changing work schedule (and subsequent craziness at work) is a contributing factor. The big one, though, is the fact that I’ve been putting an end to a long, long chapter of my life; my ST’ing at World of Darkness: New York City. For those unaware of the World of Darkness, it’s a roleplaying game set in the modern world, where you play vampires, or werewolves, or modern mages, or so on. And it’s been my online hobby and home for no less then eight years. Over 25% of my life has been spent playing characters and running storylines for players there.
Recently, though (okay, not SO recently; more like over the past year), I’ve lost the fire for NYC. There’s a host of reasons that I could get into, but what it came down to is that I was burned out on the setting, and it’s no longer become the place for me. And so, with a somewhat heavy heart, Monday is my last day as a member of the site. I have so many emotions about leaving the place that’s been my online home; mostly, though, it boils down to one thing: relief. I’m relieved that I’m no longer tethered to the place, and my creativity is no longer stunted by the burnout I feel. I feel free to express myself again, and that is, in itself, an amazing feel. And I almost feel guilty for that, somehow.
I know this may not seem like a big thing to most, and is kind of weird that I have so much invested in something like this. It’s kind of hard to explain. Online RP is, to me, like an interactive sort of writing, a collaborative fiction (just with rules and occasional die-rolling). Writing has always been a passion for me, as well as acting; I believe acting is why I got into RP in the first place, way back when I was in grade school. The idea of getting into a character, reacting in-character to the things that the Storyteller/Gamemaster/whatever you want to call the person who runs the game throws at you is like an exercise in improvisational acting for me.
Regardless, that part of my life, at least on NYC, has come to a close. And I reflect back at everything, all the time spent there, and I remember it fondly. It’s funny, how sometimes, even the bad times seem like good ones (and believe me, there were some very bad times). The sepia tint of an aged photograph covers the memories and gives them a nostalgic feel. It’s almost enough to make me want to stay.
Almost. But not enough.
I’m self-aware to know that it’s not the place for me. Not anymore. I will continue to enjoy online RP, I am positive; it will not be at NYC though, I think, for a long time. And that crossroads…is interesting to me.
On the plus side…hey, I have more free time, now. So expect more ramblings from me.
I leave you with a quote from my new favorite active show, Heroes. It has no relevance to this post, I just love the quote.
“We dream of hope. We dream of change. Of fire, of love, of death… And then it happens – the dream becomes real.”
–Mohinder Suresh, Heroes 1.23: How to Stop an Exploding Man
No one ever said I had to make sense, after all.
–Jer
Meme: 8 Things About Me
July 5, 2007 at 9:05 pm (Uncategorized)
Tags: friends, meme
So, I’ve been intending to write in this, but after the flurry of posts last week, I just felt kinda wordless. Luckily, Ashish has given me a meme to do, and thus, I do it.
8 Things About Me
1. I have a scar on my right side from a bicycle accident when I was 13. The scar was an abrasion so bad, it was nearly a puncture wound. The accident left lesser abrasions all up and down my body, though those didn’t scar. Life sucked for a while, though.
2. I have one item that has stayed with me since I was 19. It’s a fuzzy-ish blanket, tie-dye colored. It has a hole in one end, and I will never get rid of it. EVER.
3. I have a weakness for John Cusack and Johnny Depp movies, and have never considered a single movie either of them have made “bad.” Cusack has the edge over his fellow John.
4. I have an absolute, 100% complete complex about my writing, which is why I don’t show more of it then I do. If I’m not satisfied with it, I won’t show it to most, and I’m rarely if ever satisfied by it.
5. I store my tension in my neck, primarily. Sometimes, my shoulders too, but almost never my lower back.
6. I have a fascination with serial killers, and read everything I can get my hands on about them. One of my favorite books I own is “The Encyclopedia of Serial Killers.” It sat on my desk at my past job for a year and freaked people out.
7. Hanging on the wall next to my computer is the Civilization IV Tech Tree and Specification Chat, a street map of Manhattan, a movie poster for The Zodiac (the direct-to-DVD one, not the one released in February), a saw-edged long sword, and five wrestling posters (of Bill Goldberg, Andre the Giant, Stacy Kiebler, Stephanie McMahon, and Torrie Wilson).
8. Heat kills me. KILLS me. I absolutely wilt in anything over 85 degrees. Thus, I’ve hated the last week.
There you go. I have possibly, upcoming, reviews of Live Free or Die Hard and Transformers, and maybe even Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix after I see it. And maybe more. We’ll see.
–Jer
Chair Shots and Soda For the Morning
June 4, 2007 at 12:28 pm (Uncategorized)
Tags: books, friends, ramblings, wrestling
Morning ramblings from work…ahh, such fun. This is what happens on slow days…I find occasion to spill my thoughts somewhere. So you get ramblings…enjoy.
Over the past week, I’ve spent part of my nights narrating the book Have a Nice Day: A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks over the phone. It’s the autobiography of Mick Foley, multi-time New York Times Best-Selling (and award-winning) author and professional wrestler (better known in the wrestling world as Mankind, Cactus Jack, and Dude Love). I first read the book the week it came out, in October of 1999, and fell in love with it. Foley (who did the book without a ghostwriter or even a computer…760 pages in longhand on notebook paper) writes far better then any man who had his head busted open on a near-weekly basis–sometimes even more frequently then that–should. I put it on my bookshelf, then lent it out and didn’t get it back for nearly two years. Once I got it back, it found it’s way back to the trusty bookshelf until Thursday night. I’m happy to say it’s been a pleasure to rediscover Mick’s incredibly easy-to-read style and his incredible sense of humor. A sample below:
Now, we should probably get something straight. I know you didn’t pay $25 (unless your cheap ass waited for the paperback) to have your intelligence insulted. I will not try to portray professional wrestling as being a “real, competitive sport.” I will readily admit to occasionally stomping my foot on the mat, and always placing a greater emphasis on entertainment value than on winning. I have, however, over the course of fifteen years of blood, sweat, and tears, compiled a list of injuries that I would compare to that of any “legitimate” athlete.
That’s hardly the best part of it, by far, it’s simply the quickest excerpt I could find; however, it shows the man’s sense of humor and forthrightness that shines throughout the book. As my audience for the narration has told me… “I would love to meet Mick Foley.” And after reading the book, you would, too, I bet. It’s a book for wrestling and non-wrestling fans alike to enjoy (although, if you truly despise the industry, then I wouldn’t suggest it), and after you’re done, you’re likely to want to go out and buy his other books. You have my whole-hearted support in doing so.
–Jer
