The week!

[unforth]

I'm starting to feel silly saying I've been busy; I'm apparently always busy.


School is stressful. I have a lot of work - tons of reading, which, amazingly, I've managed to do all of thus far. I'm not always so good about keeping on top of that, but I've managed thus far. I hope to continue to manage as the semester continues, but we'll see. I've got a paper due next Wednesday that I'm a little worried about, but hopefully I can get ahead on the other reading so that I'll have the time to write the paper, maybe Saturday.

Work is okay. HEC has me doing a lot of research, which is time consuming, but I rather enjoy it none the less. Meanwhile, I bound no less than 170 pamphlets by hand at the ALF on Tuesday and Wednesday; as a result I have to rather painful blisters on my pinky fingers (binding the pamphlets takes a rather heavy toll in my fingers, because I have to pull knots very tightly with rather tough thread. ;) ). Still, I'm enjoying it. I learned to do some basic repairs and that sort of thing. :)

It's been a fun week otherwise, though I'm very tired - the last two days in particular have been spent busy constantly, both days for more than 16 hours, just going from class to work to some other activity...still, it's all worth it I guess. Saturday night I meant to do a lot of reading, but instead my brain fried and so I sat and started a new cross stitch (I haven't done any cross stitch since the one that was stolen in February...) and watched Pride and Prejudice with dyrecorn, saracariad, and schenker28.
Sunday was Aberrant, which was a great deal of fun. I got to spend a fair amount of time flirting with the occult, and I got to tell off Cain for not repenting! Woot! I'm a bit surprised by the sudden religious turn of my character, but I guess it stands to reason - without her career to motivate her at all, her life has a big vacuum...though she'll be working for Ellison now, it's not quite the same...well, I'm not sure. I'm still parsing out the personality change. Still, I had a lot of good scenes, particularly with folk at Catherine's wedding, and the scenes on plane with the anti-Cain league were great - thanks folks, it was one of my preferred sessions of the game, I'd say. :)
Monday was spent doing school work and dancing, and that's pretty much it. I had my first DDR workout of more than 600 calories (I've now beaten 3 9's! :) ), and then after reading all afternoon, I went to an Irish Step Dance lesson at the Windfall Dancers. It was TONS of fun - when I went, I wasn't sure if I was going to go to more than one - intro lessons were $5 - but I signed up for the rest of the semester as soon as the class was ended. It was hard on my ankle (I bought an ankle brace immediately after class, I may need to go to a doctor about that) but I still liked it tons. Step two three! :) After that, I headed over to the last Tango class given by ninja_turbo, which was a lot of fun, learning some advanced stuff and realizing that I actually sort of get it. We went out for ice cream afterwards, and wished the ninja a great return to Oregon, a safe trip, and assured him of how much we would miss him. :)
Tuesday I did nothing, pretty literally. I mean, I did lots, but none of it was leisurely.
Yesterday, after class and work, I headed over to buzzermccain's, where a variety of Changeling types converged. We had a long talk on the question of long or short, and offered up some various options to deadmanwade, who seemed to take them under consideration, and to like some of them fairly well, though it's not really my place to elaborate. Then I did some sewing while some of the planning-type folk did some prep for the battle ahead...I have high hopes, and a lot of worries. :) I got to do a little scening, including an amusing one with Diezel, who has blown Kathryn's mind by donating a rather large quantity of dross to the defense of the city...who knew? :) And by showing rather sharp concern for Kathryn's safety. Go Diezel go! I'm looking forward to the next game, even though I know it's going to be a chop fest...what a strange dichotomy. ;)
Today, it's work and more work. I'm running out to Hobby Lobby (having already worked for a few hours) and will come home and work more! woot! saracariad and I have a couple costumes we are making in conjunction, including our Halloween outfits which, I think, will either be totally awesome, far to obscure for anyone to figure out, or, I think most likely, both. Hint: look to our personalities as well as our outfits. ;)
Another busy weekend ahead - Buffy and Changeling and more! Still, I think it's going to be lots of fun. :) Hope everyone is having a good week! :)

Comments

[d-c-m.livejournal.com]

Buffy and Changeling and more! Still, I think it's going to be lots of fun. :) Hope everyone is having a good week! :)
How could it not be!! I'll see you at both. :)

And uh, what did you think of my Changeling end idea?

[unforth.livejournal.com]

I thought it had potential; you are not the first to say something along those lines in my presence. I'm just not sure I think it will solve the problem - people won't want to stop playing, I think, while they KNOW that the game is still going on, even if it's technically over...I'm not sure. :) I'd be okay either way - my vote has already been placed (over the ST list instead of the public list) in favor of January.

[morbon-tg.livejournal.com]

Not to sound negative or anything, but people are really arguing over two options, when in reality we know many people who will never stop playing their characters (or at least talking about them and thinking about them even after the game is over.) The actual length of physical game does seem a bit irrelevent to me right now given that most people will come to their own endings in their own time, and many characters really have no ending that is anywhere in sight, so game just seems like a place for others to view people's endings on stage.

I have my favored option, but that is really because Kari's story is an eternal one, and really has no end, so a high point seems like as good a place to move on from him as any. Kari is always going to be a part of me, and as such when and how game ends means very little to him or me.

[morbon-tg.livejournal.com]

And take what I just said as more of a statement, because I really don't want to get into discussions or arguments on your journal about this. Enough is being said over the lists, and I could talk about things in person tonight anyway if that became the case.

[unforth.livejournal.com]

Well, I don't think enough people will read this for the debate to get launched into in full anyway. :) So I will reply, and if somehow the debate does get going, well, I don't really mind and it's my LJ...

When I wrote my reply, on the first day of the debate, and sent it to the ST's, I said that if the game ended in October, I fully intended to run some scenes and resolve a lot of stuff after the game in October. I can't deny that I suspect the same will happen with a January ending, assuming that my character and the characters with whom I want to interact survive that long.

However, I think the e-mail that moonartemis76 wrote today said it very clearly and simply; indeed, before I read her e-mail I was rather skeptical, but I think she (and others who have proposed related solutions) is on to something: no one is forcing anyone to play their characters past the point where they want to. The nature of this social group is such that anyone who quits and really wants to know what happened in the Changeling game will be able to find out EASILY - it's not like we don't all love to babble about the game to anyone who is willing to listen; I for one even ended up giving my MOM a multiple hour long synopsis (mostly because I showed her a few game pictures and she was curious, but still!)

That said, most of the reasons that I would like to see the game go until January you are strictly selfish. I'm not particularly involved in the metaplot; I have a few things on hold that I'd like to finish, but I could probably finagle finishing them into the October scenario. But here's the thing: I am NOT burned out. I LOVE playing my character. She is a part of me...a part that I enjoy getting to let out. It was like a blow to me head - I was out of sorts for most of the next day - when ancientwisdom let us know that the game would be going only until January, when I had thought we had until the following May. I find ending in October almost inconceivable, because I'm not done yet. And all of that is, in fact selfish.

But think on it - is being a proponent of the October ending less selfish? By favoring a January ending, I get what I want, and I don't impinge on anyone elses desires by doing it - no one is forcing anyone to play longer than October; longer than this coming Sunday, even! But supporting the October ending makes that decision for EVERYONE, regardless of what they individually want.

I think I had more to say, but I can't remember what - I'm sleepy and I really need to get a move on my day - hopefully, I haven't opened the can of worms in my LJ, but if I have, I don't really mind, I'll start a new post and people can post about it until kingdom come for all that I mind...

[unforth.livejournal.com]

I thought of a slightly horrible analogy. Say my mother was dying; I didn't want her to, but my brother was all for it (oh, we can't afford her medical care, etc.). Assume also that it's not like she's in horrible, agonizing pain or anything like that.
The doctors come and tell me she has until May. I think, phew, that's a relief, I still have almost a year with my mom.
Then the doctors come and tell me she has until January. I panic a little, but I still have some months to say good bye, spend time with her, etc.
THEN the doctors come, and tell me that she can live til January, or they can pull the plug early, she'll die in October if they do.
I love my mom! I want as much time with her as I can! Why would I ever pull the plug? But the brother, oh the brother, he says, sure, why not, she's lived a good live, let's pull the plug.
Where does he get off? He could say goodbye to her any time he wanted and then just not go visit her again. It'd be a little lame of him, I guess, but he has that option. Where does he get the right to decide when I get to say good bye?
/tortured analogy
Do you see what I mean? I'm not angry with you or the others who support an October ending; if that's what ends up happening, I'll just suck it up and deal, but it isn't fair, plain and simple.

[morbon-tg.livejournal.com]

I find it a wierd analogy, but one that mostly works.

The one problem I see in that is the fact that the only thing the game would officially be loosing would be an actual game date and ST's to physically run plot. Characters will still go on, personal plot and development is still possible, it just means that all creative control and development is returned to the players of said character rather than being shared with somebody else who is directing the larger story. And, given most people's willingness to talk Changeling and even to run private scenes, I can easily see an extended period of time after the game officially ends (whenever that actually happens) where people will still talk about the game and all the cool things that they had going on. Other than a few people that will just simply reach the end of game and say that they are done, I'm sure that most people will also be willing and will actually desire to continue running scenes as their character. So, finishing personal plots and growing as a character will still be viable.

I guess I have trouble with the analogy mainly because I see my creativity as the mother. I don't see the Story Telling staff and the physical monthly game as the mother. As such, the death of the mother in the latter cast is a great loss, but not the ultimate end and not something that we would have to worry about saying long good-byes to, since the character and creative driving force will still be alive and well.

I know that this isn't fully formed out, but it's the best I can do right now.

[unforth.livejournal.com]

No, it makes sense. But there are things that are facilitated by having a staff...and of course, we don't know how final the end of the world actually is going to be - we may NOT be able to do stuff afterwards, we may find ourselves instead doing retrospective stuff....which I've tried to do before and which isn't all that much fun. :)

If the game ends up ending in October, I'll deal with it...I just would prefer that it didn't. And I don't really hold it against people who do want it to end earlier; god knows it takes tons of energy to play the game, I can't even imagine what it takes to run it, etc. :)

[imnotcrazyjoon.livejournal.com]

You are officially my Live journal friend! Let me know if next weekend you want to have a doggie day. Maybe we can go to the dog park or something?

[unforth.livejournal.com]

oooh! I'll get in touch; I'm not sure I have the time (poor Jonie, she's so neglected, I never have time to take her out for longer than about 15 minutes at a time...) but I'll see what I can do. :)

[imnotcrazyjoon.livejournal.com]

If you ever need someone to walk her just for the sheer fun of it, let me know. I can take her jogging or something. Have a good week if I don't see/hear from you!

[unforth.livejournal.com]

spiffy, thanks! :) You too! (on the have a good week part, anyway...)

[unforth.livejournal.com]

That's about how much I eat, yeah. My metabolism really, really sucks. Even at that I'm barely losing any weight! It makes me sad. :(
And DDR is the bomb for burning lots of calories. ;)

[ultimabaka.livejournal.com]

Two quickie things:
(a) Resting metabolic is roughly 1200 calories a day - anything less than that intake can cause you to be sick. Please be careful with that =\
(b) DDR is slightly optimistic about the calorie count - when you really think about it, how does the PS2 really know, say, how quick you're moving the legs or how hard you're hitting the pad? That's not the point though - what matters is you can do nine-footers now :) $

*huggles*
-- Gerardo