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For the past month, when not finishing school, becoming 18, or graduating, I have been working relentlessly as a hermit in my basement on multiple projects for BrickFair, thus staving off the process of once again writing for this blag. So contrary to popular belief, I am not dead, just being productive... during summer. Ugh. Anywho, yesterday I was lucky enough to go to Nathan Sawaya's "Art of the Brick" Exhibit in NYC, and thought that not only would this audience enjoy hearing about it, but it could also get me back into blagging. Who knows, I might actually learn how to post images to show pics of what I've been working on recently. Now I assume you guys know Nathan Sawaya, but if you don't, the image of a yellow LEGO statue breaking open its chest should ring a bell... or whatever the equivalent idiom is that applies to an image, rather than a name or a noise. The exhibition opened up a few days ago in Times Square, and I was lucky to be in the city yesterday and today. So naturally I dragged my mother and my two aunts to go to the exhibition with me. We were greeted by a sign that prohibited the use of cameras for photos or videos, which made me very sadfaecd, as the only place where pictures could be taken was next to a LEGO sculpture of a "man" sitting in a chair. However, that sadness quickly vanished as we entered the exhibition and were greeted by Nathan Sawaya's recreations of famous artworks. Pieces like Edvard Munch's "The Scream", the Lascaux Caves "Horse", and Gustav Klimt's "The Kiss" were recreated in a unique way; while the background of the image (such as Munch's sundown-background and Klimt's brown background) was modeled a-la LEGO mosaic, Sawaya built the main figures in a 3D way, and so, for example, you could examine the screaming face from all angles, and Sawaya's vision of what it would be like if it sprung from out of the painting. In other areas, famous paintings were recreated a-la mosaic. The beauty in these was not the process of recreating the arwtork (PicToBrick can already do that), but rather looking at the original and seeing what colors, building techniques, and pieces Sawaya used to remake the piece of work out of LEGO. My favorite of these was Rembrandt's "1657 Self Portrait", as Sawaya used only a mixture of three different brown and orange colors, built as a side view LEGO mosaic, to accurately portray the shadows created on the human skin in the painting. Later on, we were greeted by Michelangelo's "David" as the next room had famous statues and structures rebuilt in LEGO. The most imposing was a Moai head from Easter Island, to scale. It was quite monumental. Now these pieces were all amazing as they were accurate yet jaw-dropping representations of famous artwork, but then came the part I was truly excited for: Sawaya's own art. Up to this point for my mom, she was just going through another version of BrickFair, where a fan decided to pay homage to something that already existed through LEGO. I cannot hope to describe all of Sawaya's artwork present at the exhibition, mainly because much of it can be seen on the gallery of his website. And we all know how amazing it looks from those pictures. The truly beautiful part of the exhibition was that each piece was accompanied by a little message from Nathan to us about what the piece meant. So while Sawaya built a giant peace sign out of all-colored bricks, he explained that the only way to achieve peace in the world was by joining all the colors of the world together. While Sawaya delighted us with statues of three figures with a sphere, a cube, and a pyramid as a head, he explained that if everyone in the world looked the same it would all be boring, and that he wanted us to consider how the triangle, square and circle, along with the colors red, blue and yellow, were basic components in architecture or colors. In this sense, Sawaya was able to truly transform the already beautiful structures into art with a message, a philosophy. At this point I became aware this stopped being an exhibition for my inner LEGO enthusiast to gawk at and consider all the building techniques and pieces used; now it was a fantastic art exhibition, where each piece of art conveyed a different message about the artist, about human nature, about ourselves. I must admit I was heartbroken when the exhibition ended, and I walked out to purchase a book of Sawaya's art and a t-shirt. But to see how this exhibition had spoken not only to me, but to my family and to the other tourists, was very encouraging. If there's one thing I can take from the exhibition, and that you should too if you cannot attend (though, please, by any means possible try to go at least once), is the very first piece that greeted us in the exhibition officially and which is on the shirt I bought yesterday and am now wearing: a giant grey LEGO hand holding a simple 3x2 red brick, reminding us that it all begins with just one brick. So keep imagining.
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Hi guys, I've been toying around with this for a while now and I finished it! __________________________________________________________________________ Before there was time, there were the Great Beings. They created many worlds, masks, and creatures to inhabit the universe, but there was something missing. They needed someone to watch over these new creations, someone to protect them, someone to love them, and someone for the creations to look up to. Thus they created two rulers. A Toa of Time, Temporus. As well as a younger Toa of Life, Vitarus. They wore no Kanohi, but possessed full control over the gates of time, as well as the key of life. But peace cannot exist without chaos. An ever-present evil, slumbering in the void for eons, had awakened. It possessed no physical form, but existed in shadow. The shadow only existed to kill, deceive, and devour everything in its path. The two Toa fought valiantly against it, but they grew weaker every time they battled. In a final stand against the shadow, Temporus sealed the shadow behind the gates of time, and Vitarus locked it with the key of life. Thus there was peace amongst all of creation. But as mentioned before, peace cannot exist without chaos. Eventually Temporus, once a proud and noble protector, fell to selfish desires. He abused the great creation for his own gain, but he always wanted more. Keeping the shadow locked away in his element was not a wise choice, it made him stronger, yes. But it also corrupted him. Thus Temporus succumbed to the evil that was dwelling inside of him. Vitarus confronted him about it, demanding that he stop what he was doing. But Temporus had fallen too far; he struck down his younger brother and fled to the Far East. Vitarus could not allow his brother to continue his evil deeds. Brother or not, Vitarus had no choice but to kill Temporus. Vitarus walked throughout all of creation one last time. Once it was a beautiful place, but now creation lived in fear of destruction. Vitarus followed his brother’s well concealed trail to the void, the infinite emptiness where the shadow used to dwell. Vitarus called out to his brother one last time, demanding him to stop what he was doing. But the brother that Vitarus loved was no longer there. Now he was possessed by emptiness, shadow, and fear, the three elements that the both of them had battled for so long to purge from the beautiful creation. Seeing that he had no choice, Vitarus made the first strike, he cleaved off Temporus’ left arm. But Temporus paid no mind. Vitarus was releasing the shadow which longed to feast on the lives of others. Every time that Vitarus wounded Temporus, a shadow limb grew in its place. Vitarus had realized what he had done and immediately stopped. The shadow didn’t. It destroyed the last of Temporus’ body and materialized into a body of darkness. The shadow struck at Vitarus and nearly killed him. The shadow then gave Vitarus one chance to join him, but Vitarus believed in the same words that he had learned from the first day of life. Unity, duty, and destiny. Temporus then had an idea, “I stand united with my people!” He declared. The shadow withdrew, clearly weakened by the word. “My duty is to protect my people!” He said. The shadow responded by staggering back and howling in pain. “My destiny is to bring life, where there once was death!” He finished. The shadow was severely weakened by Vitarus’ brief speech. But it was persistent to have his way. The shadow and Vitarus battled fiercely with each other, both gaining a foothold in victory, and losing it abruptly. Mortally wounded by a cut going from his right eye across his chest, Vitarus released his remaining power and shut the shadow away in the void forever, sealing it with the symbol of unity, duty, and destiny. Vitarus perished that day, but the Great Beings immortalized him and his fallen brother in legends and masks. The legends were forgotten and the masks were lost. But one day, the mask of Time and the mask of Life would be found. And both of the Toa would live once again. _______________________________________________________________ Thanks for reading!
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The title says it all. I plan to make a sitcom comic series based off this in the future, but not right now. Right now, I just want to release it in comedy format. Basically, this comic is about two Matoran, one's smart, the other isn't. They have a roommate that no one cares about and they live in a house. Does that sound like a good sitcom? Yes? Alright, let's get this going.I have a GS form for you! Main CharactersSybre- A very inane 24-year-old Matoran of Plantlife. He often does regrettable things and constantly asks Anthony to buy tickets and other stuff online.Vance- A 27-year-old Matoran of Plasma who can barely tolerate Sybre and is smarter, stronger, and taller than him. Vance constantly tries to steer Sybre out of trouble, but always fails.Anthony- Anthony, 30 years old, is a special kind of half-Vahki designed like a better Matoran to carry out assigned tasks, his being tech-related stuff. He is the only one in the house who has a job, which he does at home in the office. He is almost never seen or heard speaking. It's rumored that if he leaves the house, the balance of the universe will release its fury on the world.Episode 1 (The Fast Food Mishap)*Sybre and Vance are sitting on the couch like they do a lot. Vance is reading a magazine, unlike Sybre*Sybre: *loud, bored sigh**Vance is silent*Sybre: *louder sigh*Vance: What do you want!?Sybre: I'm bored! Let's do something!Vance: Well, Anthony told us not to bother him today, so what is there to do?Sybre: Well, I've got one idea, but I'm gonna need a bicycle, a credit card, a Nintendo DS, and a Six Flags pass.Vance: No. Not after the doughnut factory incident.Sybre: Huh. Well, we can drop the credit card...Vance: *standing up* How about we just go get some fast food?Sybre: Okay. Bring me something good.Vance: Why don't you want to come?Sybre: Kind of a long story.*Vance sits down*Sybre: Okay, you see, my mom took me to McDosne's when I was 6. At that time, I was quite the little demon. First, I broke the front door of the restaurant. Then, I bit the clerk on the finger and ate his hat. Then I set my unwanted mayonnaise slab on fire and threw it in the trash can, igniting it. I'm not even even gonna start with the playplace! Last of all, I dumped PowerAde on the nuclear reactor. Dosne told the rest of the fast food industry after Bruce Lee was found to be alive. Now, I'm not allowed at Burger Kivi, Ihu-N'-Okoth, Kanohi Fried Chicken or another fast food restaurant ever again!Vance: Ummmm.....Sybre: Can I have fries with that?Vance: But that was 18 years ago. They could have forgotten.Sybre: Every fast food restaurant that still stands has a picture of me in it.Vance: Why don't we just go to the drive-thru and order our stuff there? You could wear a disguise.Sybre: Well, that box of disguises Anthony bought for me last week should come in a few hours, so I have other ideas until then.Vance: As long as you're entertained. Let's go.*Sybre and Vance drive to the rebuilt McDosne's, where security is tight. The duo is sitting in the car, discussing strategies.*Sybre: Alright, we have to try and avoid going inside unless we use my emergency Metru Huna to snag some pre-made meals.Vance: Not bad, even for you. We could try.Sybre: Let's do it! *puts on Huna, turns invisible, and exits the car*Vance: Be careful. Then again, try your best to die.Sybre: On the contrary! When I come back, there will be value meals in each hand!*McDosne's front doors swing open, but no one is seen walking through*Clerk 1: *shrug* Meh. Could be just the wind.Clerk 2: Just the wind?! There would have to be a tornado for the wind to be able to blow those doors open!Clerk 3: Don't worry about it, guys. We have had a lower budget ever since that rotten kid blew up the restaurant 18 years ago. I mean, we can't even afford hand soap for the employees anymore.Clerk 2: Yeah, maybe you're right.Clerk 1: *calls out* Order #96 is ready! Two double cheeseburgers, sodas, and fries!Sybre: *to himself* Perfect!*he snatches the meals*Clerk 2: Hey, anyone else notice order #96 floating toward the front doors?Clerk 1: *shrug* Meh. Could be just the wind.Clerk 3: *yells into kitchen* Hey! We got a Huna wearer at 12:00!*two employees tackle Sybre before he can reach the door*Sybre: *becomes visible* Hey!Employee 1: Holy spirit of Jovan! It's him!*the two employees back away*Sybre: Yeah, that's right! About time you show me respect!Lumi: No, you fool! Take a look! *Points to Clerk 3*Clerk 3: *pointing Zamor Launcher at Sybre* I'm only gonna say this once: put the meals down and leave quietly.Sybre: Or what? You'll make me clean the fry cooker?Clerk 3: PUT THEM DOWN NOW!!!Sybre: That was the second time you said that.Clerk 3: That's it! I'm gonna end this problem once and for all! *pulls the trigger**Sybre tosses the meals at the Zamor Sphere, causing them to explode*Sybre: Thanks. One burger had tomatoes on it and one pack of fries was actually a pack of onion rings.Clerk 3: Just GO!!!Sybre: Fine. As long as you're not gonna cry and tell your mommy.*Sybre exits the restaurant*Clerk 1: Dude.Clerk 2: What?Clerk 1: His mom passed away last week.*A tear comes to Clerk 3's eye*Sybre: Alright, where did Vance park again?*Sybre looks around*Sybre: Drat. He ditched me. I guess I'd better call him.One hour later.*Vance comes back to the parking lot*Sybre: Hey, by any chance, did you grab the box of disguises?Vance: Yeah. Anthony called me and told me to come back home and get it.Sybre: Perfect! Now let's take my thousand lies and a good disguise then hit 'em right between the eyes.*Sybre rummages through the box and pulls out a Toa Vakama costume*Sybre: Let's try this one!Vance: Are you sure?Sybre: Yeah! Vakama's one of my all-time favorite Toa! *puts on suit*Sybre: How do I look?Vance: Your hips look a little big. Try adjusting the suit.*Sybre fixes the suit*Vance: Alright, get in there.*Sybre enters the restaurant*Lumi: Hey, look! It's Vakama!*Everyone except Sybre starts laughing to the crying point*Sybre (Vakama): Is that what everyone thinks about me?Lumi: *wipes tears from his eyes* Well, yeah!Sybre (Vakama): Wait, you were here for more than an hour without leaving!Clerk 3: He does have a point. Get outta here, Lumi.*Lumi sulkily leaves*Clerk 2: Wait, how does he know that? He just got here and wasn't near the restaurant earlier.Clerk 1: Yeah. What's the deal?Sybre (Vakama): A wild guess?Clerk 3: The real Vakama wouldn't know that. We have an impostor.Makani: Then who are you?*Sybre's head turns to face Makani with the creepiest face imaginable*Sybre (Vakama): *walks toward Makani* Do you really want to know?Makani: I guess.*Sybre grabs Makani by the neck and raises him off of his feet*Sybre (Vakama): I. Am. Your. FATHER!!!*Sybre puts Makani in the trash and leaves*Vance: I guess that one didn't work. Here, try this one. *holds up Toa Nokama costume*Sybre: No way!Vance: What do you want? The meals or your dignity?Sybre: Hand it over.*Sybre puts on the costume*Vance: Hey, you look exactly like Nokama! Ha ha!Sybre: Very funny. I'm going in.*Sybre enters the restaurant*Clerk 1: Finally, an actual customer! Can I take your order?Sybre (Nokama): Yes. I would like two double cheeseburger combo meals.Clerk 1: And what would you like to drink with that.Sybre (Nokama): Sprite, please.Clerk 1: The real Nokama would order water. Get outta here.Sybre (Nokama): Fiddlesticks.*Sybre leaves*Vance: Let's just try another.Sybre: *takes off costume* No, Vance. I've had it.*Sybre walks straight into the restaurant*Clerk 3: It's him again!Dosne: What?! What are you doing here? You're banned!Sybre: *walks into kitchen* I know.*Sybre walks past the staff toward the nuclear reactor*Dosne: Stop him now! Now why did I put another nuclear reactor in here again?Sybre: *smirks and grabs a Powerade* Here we go again.Dosne: NO! Don't do it!*Sybre dumps the Powerade all over the nuclear reactor*Dosne: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! !!!!*The entire restaurant explodes, sending debris everywhere, leaving a huge crater*Sybre: That was fun! And two value meals flew into my hand during the explosion. We've won.Vance: I want to punch you so bad right now.Dosne: I'm gonna punch both of you right now! And that punk destroyed my restaurant again! I'm gonna sue you so hard, you're gonna have to put those value meals in a blender!Vance: Could you please stop saying "gonna"? If you say it one more time, Sybre's gonna use one of those crazy coincidences he always pulls off.*Sybre is singing Top of the World, by The All-American Rejects*Sybre: When the top of the world falls on you!*The roof of McDosne's falls from the sky and lands on Dosne*Sybre: Well, since he looks comfy under that pile of rubble, I guess we should leave.Vance: Another good idea.*Sybre and Vance leave the crater toward home*Word Count (excluding intro stuff): 1374
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Wow, it's been a while since I've posted anything here. I've been busy working on three projects, one of which is now completed, but this isn't it. This MOC was actually something I threw together in the last week or so for that MOCPages contest Chro entered with Endymeron, and I had it done the Tuesday before it was due, but never had the chance to get pictures before the due date. Ah well, I can still show it off here! So, the contest was to build a Toa of Life, Time, or Creation, and I just threw this guy together, and decided he would be a Toa of Life. You could also gain bonus points for 1. Building a custom mask, 2. Adding in a non-ball-and-socket joint, 3. Adding a heartlight, and 4. Adding in cloth elements. I managed to get all but the last one. I later found out that "custom mask" could be just using an armor piece as a mask, but I went ahead and built mine with bricks. You're probably getting tired of me rambling on, so I'll just share a bit of story I came up with. Ignahki was the first, and only, Toa of Life. He was one of the original Toa created by the Great Beings, yet when they realized the power he had, they cursed him, limiting his powers greatly and taking much of his own life. Now reduced to a crippled, aged Toa, he was banished to the Southernmost island in the Matoran Universe, where he found a colony of Matoran holding out against many threats. He gained their trust by reviving one of their dead, and has since been revered by all the Matoran, who attempted to help him walk again by using their limited knowledge of rebuilding. Sadly, they only ever got him to walk a few paces, and so he can never leave the island, yet his fame spread throughout the MU, and many beings make a pilgrimage to see him and his mighty powers. All those brought to him are healed indiscriminately, and so even more come. Eventually, Ignahki was killed in a raid by a jealous rival tribe of his village who never realized what they were doing. Now, on to the MOC!! Front, BackIgnahki isn't nearly as impressive as many of the MOCs entered into that contest *coughchrocough*, but I really like many of the techniques used in him, especially the leg design, the torso, and the Rau on the back, but you'll see more of those later. Here you can also see his big, bulky, silver legs lined with pistons, which was the Matoran's attempt to help him walk again. He also uses that (awesome) staff to balance on and channel some of his powers. Details: Custom Mask, Custom Eyes, Staff, LegsSorry for the terrible pictures. This was the only camera I could find at the time. I never really came up with a power for the mask, but the best I got is "Curse Resistance," which can help him walk much better, but doesn't do much against a curse from the Great Beings. Also, while I was working on the mask, to get more connection points, I made a custom eyepiece which doesn't look as nice as one of Lego's, but I decided for some reason to make his eyes clear, and it looks awesome. The staff is really simple, but looks cool as well. I really like the design inside that joint piece. And one of my favorite parts are the legs. Here's where I used a custom joint I recently tried out on another MOC (which I'm going to post soon), but they work much better on smaller MOCs. Those Bohrok eyes are connected to one of these pieces, which when jammed in there will provide enough friction for some designs to look nice. This one, not so much. I also like that Middle East baggy look, it's very much like something I wanted to use on a Dark Hunter MOC but could never figure out. I'll have to try it now. Skeleton: Front, Side, BackHere you can really see that torso I love so much. For some reason, I've been using a lot of limb pieces as torsos lately, and I really like the shaping it gives, and the Vahki torso flows so well with it. Other than that, not much to say here, besides that I like those legs, and now you can really see those knees working as they should. Poses:Come forth, little onePowers in action!What is this?Since Takua wasn't available (haven't put him together yet, and I don't have his mask), and Hahli has her legs in another MOC, Jaller's third best friend gets the privilege of reviving him: Matoro! Also another peek (first being here) at my finished project I'm probably going to post within the next week. Probably could have done more poses, but I couldn't think of much else. Hope you enjoyed, please comment and criticize. And stay tuned for the posting of Project Reignition!
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I AM NOW PLAYING OFF I AM AT THE POSTAL OFFICE IN-GAME BUT I HAVE TO GO TO WORK SO I WILL CONTINUE PLAYING TONIGHT I WILL LET YOU KNOW WHAT I THINK WHEN I FINISH SOMEDAY BUT RIGHT NOW IT IS PRETTY GOOD
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Hey, BZPower. Sorry for not being too active this past month. Life's been kind of crazy for me. I suppose before I jump into talking about fun things like MOCs, I should get the important stuff out of the way. School has not been going well for me. I'm in my second semester studying Industrial Design, but my classes have really been a huge source of anxiety, which has at times been crippling for me. I have a couple weeks left here in Boston, but after that I'm going to take a semester off to get some counseling and therapy, perhaps try and get a job, and take time to re-evaluate my life goals, which may not be attainable through the path I'm currently on even if I can get my emotions in check. Now, I've gotten slight relief from various opportunities to visit with family and friends. As I announced in my last entry, I went to Cloudsdale Congress over Spring Break, and it was a phenomenal experience. I definitely plan to attend other My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic fan conventions in the future, because it was really fun and eye-opening (giving me the chance to interact with dozens of other bronies as well as to explore areas of the fandom I hadn't yet indulged in, like the fan music). I roomed with some bronies from my hometown, and I look forward to attending some meetups with them over the summer -- they're very fun people! After the convention I had some time to burn before my mom could pick me up and take me home, so I visited the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. On the way there, I happened to be on the subway with some of the folks from the fan project Double Rainboom, including PKEmi, who voiced Rainbow Dash (A bit of warning, I still haven't seen Double Rainboom, since I'm going to a meetup in Boston to see it tomorrow, so don't spoil it in the comments). We all had a great conversation, and Emi and I have managed to connect via social networks since then, which is great. Always nice to make a lasting connection at an event like this. I spent just a couple days at home before I had to go down to North Carolina to visit my Nana, who has been in the hospital for a few weeks after having a fall. It was good to visit her, even though I'm worried about her. Then I took a plane from New Bern to Hartford, where my uncle from Connecticut picked me up to stay with him for a few days. My aunt and uncle have a fifteen-month-old baby who's a joy to spend time with, and it was great to spend the next couple days there before getting on the bus to get back to school. Since then I spent last weekend with my aunt and uncle again to celebrate my birthday (March 29) and Easter, and I got to see them and my baby cousin once more just last night when my aunt came up to Boston for a conference. It's so wonderful watching my baby cousin grow up and learn to explore the world, and I hope even over the summer when I'm not as close by I can still find time to visit them. Now, as far as LEGO is concerned, I've mostly been working with LEGO Digital Designer lately, since that had a considerable update recently. Most notably, it includes over 600 new decorations, including almost every decoration from Collectible Minifigures series 1-8! However, as is often the case, these were not mapped to the parts that use them in the software's code, meaning that I had to edit them into LXFML files myself. You can download my LXF of Minifigures Series 1-9 here. Note that parts from Series 1-8 which could not be decorated correctly are colored 294 Phosphorescent Green to differentiate them, and that some decoration surfaces like the Small Clown's hat and all decorated minifigure arms distort the decorations placed on them. Additionally, I recently got some major progress reverse-engineering the stunning Hero Factory MOC by Christoffer Raundahl which I mentioned in this entry. You can see my results here: LXF Download Errors include six parts left off of the arms (two shells due to an illegal connection and four hoses due to being too fiddly and frustrating to connect correctly), four substitutions (the custom head, the square shell detail elements on the heels, and the speaker shell detail element on the chest), four parts within the torso build not connected correctly (the shoulder suspension beams, which were giving me a lot of grief, and the hoses that connect the legs to the torso), and finally some parts potentially missing from the back, including whatever parts are meant to connect the wings to the back -- sadly, I do not have any pics of the back of this MOC. The final model would probably contain around 225 pieces and cost $50-60 as a retail model. I have managed to build a considerable portion of this model (the torso, one leg, and one upper arm) in real life to ensure that fiddly parts like the arm and leg suspension work correctly, and it's just as brilliant in its design as I imagined. It has, among other things, revealed to me just how narrow-minded I have been in envisioning uses for the 3M double ball cup (98565) introduced in Stormer XL, since despite its few connection points this piece is an invaluable structural element. Truly I would love to see this model, or a similar model derived from its design, as an official set. Anyway, that's enough rambling for today. Overall, I'm doing my best to maintain a positive outlook and take each week one day at a time. It's been a bit rough but I'm confident that once I'm back home I will have plenty of time to work on putting myself back together and finding a path I'm willing to pursue.
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1. My birthday 2. Pledging $100 to the Dresden Codak Kickstarter to get the $85 reward tier and an extra Dark Science print 3. Missing whatever apparently went down in the blogs because seriously I don't care and please don't explain it to me
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Life is pretty much school, school, school, work, work, work, and try not to be sick right now. I have less than a year before I am finally done with college. Work is really great though. My health might not be the best right now, and I'm on multitudes of medications... yet I am still able to keep up my full-time work schedule. I haven't had to call off or go into work sick. *knock on wood* This upcoming April marks my second year work with Best Buy, and I just had my annual review. I pretty much do everything above and beyond my job, and know I'll be getting another raise beyond the slight increase you typically get. My manager sat down and talked to me, and wanted to discusses further development options for my future career. Right now out of all the Best Buy stores, the store I work at and my department is in the top ten. That's the top ten of all the Best Buy stores. We currently rank at fourth. That's pretty darn amazing. While we were doing my review, he talked about how the other store managers had to contact him to find out what we do differently to perform so well. He continuously talked about me and talked me up to them. He ranted and raved so much, that the other stores were asking him to send me to their stores to help train staff. Like whaaaaaat, seriously? He then went on to say that he could easily see me being a supervisor or manager. Not in the future. Not down the road. Right now. I could go into another store and easily do the job. I have been pretty sick lately... taking two different kinds of immunosuppressants really wrecks your system. This week has been pretty good though! Finding out how highly we rank in the company out of all the stores, having my annual review and getting such high praise (I scored a 4 out of 5, 4 is considered the high mark because 5 is like just flawless perfection and most people get a 3 if that). You get a 2 just for doing your basic job duties. Today was the best day though. Tomorrow is payday and because of the performance... we got a huge bonus. Typically I might see an extra $50-100 on a check if we bonus. I am not going to post the exact bonus amount, but I'm safely able to pay off all my monthly bills, buy my cosplay materials, and put aside money for vacation. Such is life. It might not be the best at the moment, but there are some pretty good things going.
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ANDREW FOUND A PICTURE OF HIMSELF HE NEVER RECALLED TAKING. What was more, he couldn't make sense of it. His hair in this picture was just a tad bit longer than he had ever grown it out, which wasn't very far. He never recalled wearing that striped shirt, nor dd he recognize the setting. What was this doing in his father's closet? He heard his father coming. He couldn't afford to be caught rummaging through his drawers. He put the picture in his shirt pocket and hid in the closet. For good measure, he tossed clothes on top of him. It wouldn't make a difference if he covered himself or not, though. If his father opened up the closet, he would be doomed. His father entered the room. There was a groan, the sound of tool being dropped to the ground. The Old Man mumbled and shifted through his stuff. There was a pause. Had he noticed that the drawers were open? Andrew's heart beat. An hour passed, and his father didn't leave the room. Andrew was trapped. He kept on reminding himself to control his breath, and the logical thing to do would be to go off to sleep to keep his nerves down, but if he was caught during a lull of attention he couldn't run out as fast as he could have. He would be vulnerable. Still more time passed. It seemed his father was taking a nap in the afternoon. Why did he always have to do that? Also, there was the question of whether or not he would notice Andrew's supposed absence. There had been no school today due to a teachers' meeting, but Dad didn't know about that, so he assumed Andrew was at school. He should have been home now. He would be making noise. His father was always a creeper who looked inside the room to see how Andrew was doing, whether he made noise or not. Then Andrew heard the sound of floorboard creaking the door opening, and his father walking through the living room. It sounded like he was checking his room. Since Andrew was light on his feet and only a hundred pounds, he cast the clothes off of him and opened the closet door just as he heard his father enter the living room, all the while closing the closet door to cover up his tracks better this time. He had only one chance at this. Father had left the door to his room open, and Andrew managed to make his way out into the living room. His father's back was to him. Andrew slipped through the kitchen and into the breezeway, where he crouched. He listened carefully, but from here he couldn't hear his father's movements. It was safe to assume that if he was careful, his father wouldn't hear him if he slipped through the door, either. Andrew left the house and jumped on his bike, which was hidden in the weeds of the backyard garden. He kicked off with his feet and peddled off, taking the emergency route of the gravel alleyway that ran down the middle of the block, connecting all of the backyards. And then he was far away from home. He took a detour to get to uptown, where his friend Trenton lived in a bright blue house with an actual driveway. He knocked at the door, and Mrs. Van Holland, Trenton's mother, answered the door. "Hello, Andrew!" said Mrs. Van Holland. "Trenton's upstairs playing video games." Andrew thanked her and ran to Trenton's room. It was filled with stuff on the wall and LEGO sets, along with all the coolest action figured. He was sitting on his bed, with his hair wet from a recent shower, and was busy playing a Mario game on his Gameboy Color. "'Sup, man?" said Trenton. "Hey, I have the money to buy that new game, Fallout," said Andrew. He pulled out a couple of Benjamin Franklins from his chest pocket. Trenton set down the Gameboy and leaned forward. "Nice!" It was better than nice. Two hundred dollars could get them several games. The best part was that Andrew's father wouldn't notice a thing, given how disorganized and cluttered his room was. Then Trenton added, "Hey, what's that in your pocket?" Andrew drew up his hand. "It's just a picture of me." "Let me see it," said Trenton. Andrew was hesitant, but he wasn't about to deny his best friend something. It would have been uncool. So he took it out of his pocket and let Trenton look at it. Without hesitation, Trenton said, "You look like a girl!" "I do not!" said Andrew. "Do to!" "Do not!" "Do too!" Andrew checked the picture again and hated to admit that his friend was right. At nine years old, he had a certain androgynous freshness about him and a roundness of face that had yet to mold itself into the features of a grown man. Combined with how this was clearly the longest his hair had ever been before he cut it last spring, he looked like a generic kid, indistinct from a girl or boy. He wished he could be a little cooler and more handsome, like he thought of Trenton, instead of pretty. He put the picture back in his pocket and looked defeated. "Chill, Andrew, I'm only teasing you," said Trenton. "Yeah, well I don't like it," said Andrew. "I'm sorry, man," said Trenton. "I just want to get those video games," said Andrew. "What are we going to do with the extra money?" "I don't know," said Andrew. "I'll save it for later." "Sure thing," said Trenton. "It's your money." They left Trenton's house, went to the local Wal*Mart, bought Fallout, and came back to Trenton's house to try it out. Unfortunately, it was single-player, so they had to take turns playing it and decided that they could spend more time shooting hoops in Trenton's driveway. They went out and lit up the porch light, playing basketball even after the sun went down. After a while, Andrew gathered up a sweat and it was time to stop. Besides, one could only stick to one activity for so long. "Hey Andrew, are you thinking of joining the basketball team when you get to middle school?" asked Trenton. "Sure," said Andrew. "We actually practice. The only question is whether I will be better than you." "No chance," said Trenton. "You'll be following me." "Then I'll be the second best on the team," said Andrew. "And I'll keep you on your heels, because I'm awesome." Andrew got down on his bottom and rested on the grass. He grabbed his sweaty shirt and tugged back and forth at its chest region, using it as a fan. He needed a shower. That really sucked because his father's shower didn't have a water softener and he ended up smelling worse coming out than going in. He was going to have to spend the night at his grandparent's house. Mrs. Van Holland opened the door. "Trenton, you'd better come back in and prepare for bed." "But mom, can I at least have supper?" asked Trenton. The Van Hollands were awesome. Half the time they had pizza for supper. That might have been today, too, except Trenton had gone with Andrew across town to visit Wal*Mart. Andrew really should have waited until the next day so that he could do that in the immediate afternoon instead of during the bad timing that came upon him today, and then he could have had supper with the Van Hollands so long as he lied about having his father's permission. "No, Trenton, now come inside. Andrew! You'd better go home before your father wonders where you're at!" "Alright, mom..."said Trenton, disappointed. "Yes, Mrs. Van Holland," said Andrew, playing the part of the role-model friend. Mrs. Van Holland smiled at him and waved him off on his merry way. He got on his bike, said goodbye to Trenton, and biked off. To the eastern 'burbs, where Grandpa and Grandma Penn lived. They were on his father's side, and they were far nicer than his dad, who was uncool and just plain didn't get him. When he came up to the front porch, he let the bike drop as he ran to the doorbell and rang with one long press of his thumb, letting it go on and on until one of them answered the door. Grandma Penn opened the door. "Andrew, what are you doing out so late?" "I'm sorry Grandma. I just lost track of time." "You're sweating like a bull," she said, and brought him in. Inside, Andrew saw his grandfather, a big, burly man, looking at a newspaper on the living room chair. He thought he was off the hook, but he didn't stand a chance with Grandpa Penn, who said at once the very last thing he wanted to hear. "Does your father know where you are?" Andrew's face flushed. He looked at Grandpa Penn with a dear-in-headlights look that gave away everything. Grandpa set down the newspaper, adjusted his suspenders. Trying to keep his innocence going for him, Andrew made up an excuse, "But I'm going to take a shower here. I don't want to smell in Dad's icky shower. Isn't that a good idea?" "Where have you been?" asked Grandpa. "I was at home with dad," said Andrew. "I was with him the whole time. I just decided to come over here for a shower." "Margaret..." said Grandpa. "Andrew," picked up Grandma. "You do smell. We'll show you the shower, but you can't go running off at night like this. Now for goodness sakes, that shirt smells. Let me remove this." She removed it. Meanwhile, Grandpa leaned over to the phone next to the chair and piked it up to call Andrew's father. Andrew was busted. Then Andrew took his shower, came out smelling nice, and Grandma had a blue shirt out and ironed for him. "And tomorrow's a school day, Andrew. You're going to have to wake up early and catch the bus. Oh, what are we going to do with you?" Grandpa was at the kitchen counter. He was looking down at a crumpled wad of dollars and scattered coins. It was the change left over from the video game. "Where did you get this money?" asked Grandpa. "I earned it," said Andrew. "I mowed Trenton Van Holland's lawn." "And they payed you a hundred dollar bill?" "Their family is rich," said Andrew. "And they really like me." "I'm giving this back to your father," said Grandpa. "And when he comes here, you're going to have to apologize to him for stealing from him." "But I really got that from my friend's house!" said Andrew. "I'm not stupid, you know." "Where is he, by the way?" said Grandma. She was right. Andrew's dad wasn't there yet. "He said to just wait a bit. It would take him a while to get ready. So I'm waiting. And Andrew will have to sit right here next to me." "You're terrible!" said Andrew. "You're just like Dad!" Grandpa took Andrew and put him on his knee. "Your father loves you more than you could know, and you're just too young to see it." "You're just saying that because that's what adults are supposed to say!" Grandpa just held him down while he squirmed, and Grandma went to the front door to wait for his father. He was still taking some time. After he had slowed down and retreated to a mode of skulking, Andrew noticed that his picture was in Grandpa's plaid shirt pocket. It was crinkled up from when it has been in his own while he was playing basketball, but he wanted to reach out and grab it. It felt like it belonged to him. The money maybe wasn't his, but he felt he had a right to the picture. His father didn't have a camera. Nobody ever took any pictures of him. It was special. "Grandpa, can I please have my picture back?" Grandpa reached into his pocket, as if just remembering that it was there. "You might as well." He placed it in Andrew's shirt pocket. Andrew took it out. "That's this, anyway? I don't remember taking this picture. Who was taking pictures, anyway?" he asked. "Nobody takes pictures in this family," said Grandpa. "It wasn't me. But this isn't a picture of you, anyway. This is a picture of your mother." "What? So it really is a picture of a girl?" Andrew now sat on Grandpa's lap in such a way similar to a child listening to a parent reading a story. Grandpa held out the picture so they could both see. "This was Ellen when she was your age. She changed when she got older. You look a lot like her." "That's my mom?" said Andrew. "Yes, you know what she looked like," said Grandpa. "Actually, no, I don't," said Andrew. Grandpa looked confused, and then sad. He sighed and shook his head. "That's right. They never took any pictures together when she was still alive. I believe your grandparents on your mothers side had a few wedding photos before they died, too, but your father wouldn't have any, save for some old stuff from her album. He must have something on hand to cling on to. He doesn't loom so much on the paste, though. He's very internal. I wouldn't expect this to be out much. I'm so sorry. I thought you knew what your own mother looked like." He sighed again. "Well now I just had a revelation." Andrew didn't feel the need to cry. He had never known his mother. The subject wasn't sad for him. However, it did feel odd, once he thought about it. Maybe other people could feel sad for him because they experienced something he had to miss out on. "Do you think I should give this to Dad?" "Maybe," said Grandpa. "Well, in this case, I think it's okay just once for you to take something from your father. Just ask him for it, though. I don't know what the story behind his reason for keeping this is. Maybe it's important that he keeps it. But you should know more about her sometime. I'm sure I have many stories to share with you." Stories. The Penn family tradition. They didn't keep collages of photographs to preserve memories: generations of knowledge passed down by word of mouth. To this day, though, Andrew had always heard of the things on his father's side of the family, and his father never had anything to tell him about his mother. He thought about it and decided he would like to hear them sometime. "The important thing that you know right now, Andrew, was that your father loved your mother, and your mother loved your father very much. She would want you to love him, too." "Do I have to?" "No, kid, but you ought to." From the kitchen window, the lights of Dad's pickup truck came in. He would put Andrew's bike in the trunk. Then his father came in and picked up Andrew off of Grandpa's lap. "Don't touch me..." said Andrew. He hated it when Dad assumed that he couldn't do stuff for himself. "Son," said Grandpa, referring for Andrew's dad, "take care of him. And also, one day you'll have to spend some time with me and your mother, alone. You can send Andrew off to his friend's house. I bet he can mow the lawn to make up for the money he spent, but what I think we really need to have is some of our old father-to-son time so you know how to be a genuine symbol for strength for your son." Andrew left as soon as he could and didn't want to hear the rest of the conversation. It was Grandpa just trying to negotiate a peace treaty. That's all those adults ever did. They didn't care about him, though. He left the house, got into Dad's truck, and cried. Why did everyone always have to side with Dad? Dad didn't care! He looked at the wrinkled picture of his mother at his age. Seeing her for the first time, and seeing such a radiant smile, she looked like the person who would care. He found himself really wishing he had known her mother and had more than just a picture to work with. Who cared about knowing some story when someone could have a whole other important person in his life? Dad got into the truck and drove off. Andrew sat on the far side and made sure he was close to the window. it was silent the whole way home. However, Andrew underestimated the wisdom of his grandparents. They taught his father as a child, and they would continue to teach his father. All he had to do now was to learn the lessons he was given from his late wife, whose story still lived on through him.
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Good news: tomorrow marks one month as a vegetarian! Bad news: I got in my first car accident today. It wasn't my fault: I was driving up the street and a guy parked on the side didn't see me and pulled out ...right into my car. There're a bunch of scratches and dents now, and of course it happened after a really long day when I really didn't feel up to handling it, but in the end it's just a car and while I am fond of it, it's still just a car. In any case, I'm glad to go to bed now.
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Well, it turns out Kit Martello didn't perform too well in the BBC contest, only getting around seven votes in the first round of polling. I don't feel too bad about not winning, since there was a lot of talent in the contest, but it still bothers me that most of my feedback concerning Kit has been largely negative. Regardless, I think Sparkytron's Eris is due a round of congratulations for emerging victorious in the final poll. There are several things I dislike about this MOC, particularly the stand, but it's still a work of art in the end. In other MOCing news, I've posted a topic of my various tablescraps over the past few months. Now, I don't mean "tablescraps" in a negative sense. I'm quite proud of these, and none of them are bare-bones Heromods. But compared to Kit Martello these were all fairly simple endeavors. I anticipate bringing Kit Martello and some of these MOCs (particularly my good buddy Bogwaddle) to Brickfair Virginia this year. I'm hoping to continue modding some of these in the meantime, and perhaps scrapping some of the more basic ones to open those pieces back up for experimentation. One set I've been hoping to get lately, both for its MOCing potential and for its brilliance as a model, is 70500 Kai's Fire Mech from the Ninjago line. But frustratingly, none of the stores around where I'm attending college seem to have it. Still, I'm keeping a sharp lookout for it, and will not be afraid to get it online if double VIP points happen before I find it in a brick-and-mortar store. So that's what's up on the LEGO/MOCing side of things. Schoolwork and other obligations have been keeping me from dedicating long stretches of time to MOCing or building, but I've recently started making progress on my drawing assignments again so hopefully I can get caught up fairly soon.
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Yeah, so tomorrow will mark two weeks of me eating no meat. It's been interesting so far. I've found I've been watching what I eat, simply because I need to make sure I can eat it, and the byproduct of that is that I'm eating healthier things. I've been eating way more vegetables, and I've been getting my protein from soy, eggs, and beans instead of meat. It hasn't been a drastic change, to be honest. Before going pescetarian, I already ate more beans than meat, but that doesn't man it hasn't been difficult. I've turned down some pretty delish stuff (oh bacon why), and even gone hungry once or twice. I'm proud of myself: it hasn't been easy, and it's cool to know that I have the willpower to cut something out of my diet and stick with it. I'm not planning on stopping anytime soon, either. I'll keep blogging too, but I'm switching to weekly updates (the downtime threw me for a loop anyway). Thanks for your support, guys! (and maybe sometime soon we'll start edging closer to vegan. who knows?)
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uuuuuuuuuuuuugh all the food I have needs an additional ingredient to make work properly and I don't wanna go shopping because the drive is a pain guess I'm not getting anything done today also you should still send me questions for the BZPodcast because that's a thing that's happening soon
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Day four! Over halfway through a week of eating no meat! Breakfast was cereal, which I usually don't care for, but I was in a hurry and anyway I'll probably be eating more of it because it's quick and also vegetarian. Lunch was a salad () and a scone. Supper was an interesting affair. I attended a young adult potluck at my church, and brought chick pea curry and rice as my dish (it's vegetarian, so it was my failsafe in case nobody else brought something I could eat). Fortunately, there was plenty I could eat. I had sushi, pasta, curry, fruit and vegetables, and a made-from-scratch cupcake (even the icing was homemade!). I'm finding that this is definitely not as difficult as I was expecting, partly because I've realized that I didn't eat a whole lot of meat before I went vegetarian. However, I'm sort of anxiously awaiting summer, because as soon as it gets warm enough for the propane not to freeze, we Canadians whip out the barbecue, and it stays out until the snow's too high to use it. I'm hoping that, by the time the thaw rolls around, I'll have gotten into the habit of not eating meat, and it will be easier. Funny side note: nobody believes that I'm vegetarian. They all think I'm joking, or say I can't really call myself a vegetarian if I've only been at it four days. That makes no sense: if I'm choosing not to eat meat, I'm pretty sure that makes me a vegetarian, regardless of how long I've been at it. Anyway, I plan to keep this up for a while, so eventually everyone will see that I'm actually serious, and not just playing a prank. So far, so good! (the bacon-wrapped sushi was hardly even a temptation ^^)
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Day three was a good day, by all accounts. Breakfast was ordinary: once again I made an egg with some potatoes. So original, right? Unfortunately, my day always starts earlier than I'd like it to, so I'm usually scrambling to get the door. Hence the quick, simple breakfasts. For lunch I had an egg salad sandwich and a pear scone. Today's temptation was a bowl of Thai chicken soup, which is seriously one of the best things in the world. But I resisted! (the scone helped) Supper was chili and rice -vegetarian chili! My mom told me that she wasn't going to cook for me (which I heartily agree with; this is my decision, after all, not hers), but my family really doesn't eat a ton of meat, and it turns out that the chili was safe. Score! Also I got stat pay for working on a holiday, played street hockey, and wrote a song. A pretty good day, I'd say. WHAT DID YOU DO TODAY
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Day two! Today was a pretty chill day. An egg with some hash browns for breakfast, and beans and noodles for lunch, so there's my protein for the day. Supper was my first real challenge, because we had roast beef and mashed potatoes for the first time in, like, ever, but I managed to stave off the temptation and just took extra potatoes and vegetables instead. Also a huge bowl of salad. Because salad is delicious. P: Changing topics, I'm starting to realize that one of the trickiest parts about my going vegetarian is that I don't like tomatoes (cue horrified gasps). I've never liked tomatoes, for as a long as I can remember. I'll eat ketchup and tomato sauce, and I'll eat tomatoes in a sauce or a chili as long as I can't taste them, but both the taste and the texture of whole or chunky pieces really throw me off. I still try them from time to time, simply because I really want to like tomatoes (they're so versatile! and healthy!), but I haven't seen a breakthrough yet. We'll see what happens, I guess. Thanks to HH and Janus for those huge paragraphs of encouraging advice on my last post. You guys rock! There's not much else for me to write about today (it was a pretty nice, relaxing day), so I'll close it here. A reminder, though: we're coming up to 1,000 comments pretty quickly, and I do have something planned for that! (note that is not an invitation to spam the comments dont kill me deevee)
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So, I've been thinking about going vegetarian for a while now. Not for any particular reason; it's just supposedly healthier, better for the environment, and more responsible as a whole in terms of leaving a footprint. I've been doing some reading on the subject for a while now, and I decided that today would be my day. Again, no particular reason. I've just been putting it off due to life being super busy, and not having the energy to attempt a major change in my diet, but I'll always find excuses if I let myself (even if I don't mean to), and there's no time like the present, right? I'll be chronicling my adventures in my blog, both as a way of keeping a record of my progress, and also as a way of staying accountable. The more people who know of my decision, the less likely I'll be to give up. Day One began with me rolling out of bed and popping upstairs to see bacon in the skillet. Without a second thought, I ate a couple pieces, before remembering my resolution. The days ahead suddenly looked a whole lot darker. Nonplussed, I declared that those two pieces were my last pieces of bacon for the foreseeable future and immediately began making breakfast. Today's my first day off in months (I usually work Monday through Saturday, and do volunteer work at my church on Sundays), so I had time to construct a cheese omelette with sautéd peppers and spinach (sautéd in coconut oil, by the way; I absolutely recommend it), and a dash of hot sauce. But Eyru, you cry. Eggs and cheese? That's not vegetarian! Au contraire, my darlings. It's not vegan. To keep things relatively simple, I'll be starting off as a lacto-ovo vegetarian, which means I'll allow myself to eat eggs and dairy products. As time passes, I may up the ante and begin eliminating those form my diet as well. I also will still consume fish, for various reasons, but I may eventually work my way up to eliminating that as well. So, for now, I'm basically cutting out red meat. My family used to be very much meat-and-potatoes, but thankfully we've gradually shifted over the past few years to a much more multicultural style of dining, so several of our meals are usually vegetarian anyway. I'm hoping this relatively gentle learning curve will help me stick with it. I'll update you tomorrow on my progress (hopefully with pictures!). In the meantime, any good recipes would be appreciated.
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This topic is for celebrating 300 posts here on BZP. Yeah! So here are the links to them. Hope you like him. http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=521667 - Brickshelf (Pics are not in the order that I want.) http://www.mocpages.com/moc.php/352006 - Mocpages (In the order that I wanted.) Backstory: If you read my epic then you know that this is his Toa version. And this one is probably the 5th or 6th generation model that I made of him. Flaredrick really doesn't use his life powers a lot, cause it drains his energy. But he does still use his fire powers from time to time. His weapon was a A.C.R assault rifle with gun blade attachment and laser sight. (It's on my sig.) But now he carries three guns (talk about luggage), any ways they are the shotgun, assault rifle and a blaster rifle. He also carries his fire sword with him and a holo shield in combat (I know the shield isn't transparent but just pretend. It's the closest thing I could get.) So enjoy and comments and critisim are accepted.
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I just/wonder what I could write about... studying physics is still kinda fun, I passed the most crucial exams, two important ones are still ahead of me but that's not really a bad thing ( I bet I'll think differently in a week, but we'll see... then again, I can still worry about it later, right... ^^) My current daily routine is fairly boring, though; go to university, be silly with 'friends' (... whaaat, it takes a bit 'till I consider someone a friend... suspicious Taka is suspicious ><), hear stuff that confuses me (maths), hear cool/interesting stuff(physics), go home, homework, sleep, start over again next day. I guess that also causes the lack of interesting blog entries. :/ What else...eh. Oh right, some minor IRL troubles. Mostly a 'friend' (not one of those I mentioned earlier; someone else.) acting weirdly and doing things that would require AT LEAST a sincere apology to get a bit better again. Yes, I am angry. <.< Apart from that everything's okay, though.
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Spoiler alert: Once you graduate college you suddenly find plenty of time to read books that have been on your list for years, because homework is nonexistent! While I read a lot over the summer, fall and winter, I have only just recently been pushing through books left and right. Being ambitious, I hope to read 40-60 books next year, including, but not limited to: The Cassandra Project NW American Gods Ready Player One Gone Girl Cloud Atlas The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo World War Z Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy Redshirts Robopocalypse Night Circus The Dresden Files Any strike your fancy? What in particular is on your list for next year? -CF (New year's resolutions include the usual: read more and build LEGO more)
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It was amazing. I don't want to put any spoilers here (though really if you haven't seen it you shouldn't have clicked ), so I'll suffice with saying that it was an excellent movie. There are some parts that I would've liked to see done differently, and there are some parts that absolutely blew me away. Aw, whatever, I've gotta get into a few specifics. If you haven't seen the Hobbit, guard yourself and turn away! First of all, I have to say that the opening sequence was easily one of the best parts, if not the best part of the movie. Erebor was portrayed magnificently; every scene of the halls under the Mountain were stunning to the point of breathlessness. Smaug's invasion was thrilling even though the Wyrm himself was hidden, and the war at the gates of Moria was also excellent. Andy Serkis stole the film as Gollum. The riddle-scene was more than I could hope for, and Bilbo's struggle between murder and mercy was brilliant (that reminds me: Martin Freeman did an exceptional job as the titular Hobbit). Overall, it was an excellent movie. There were however, a few downsides: One was the length. At nearly three hours, this movie almost matches each of the three LotR films for length. This isn't helped by the fact that the film drags a bit in parts, especially the first act, which is almost entirely spent inside Bag End. Something else that disappointed me was the license that Peter Jackson took with the book. One of the things I love most about the LotR trilogy is how faithful, for the most part, it is to the books. The Hobbit, in contrast, is not. Some of these changes are nigh unnoticeable; some are appreciated; but some are completely unnecessary. Regardless, I highly recommend the Hobbit. If you haven't seen it, but read through this entry anyway, I encourage you to go buy a ticket and see it for yourself. I loved it,and will probably end up seeing it in theatres at least a few more times. What does everyone else think so far? Favourite scene? Praise? Complaints? Let's hear it!
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When the lightning strikes and the thunders roar I am the waves that rise above the storm I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar I am the fire within, ready to swarm I am the earth, I am body, I am Life. When the earth swallows and covers you I am the life that devours I am that which turned you blue I am one who’s beside you in your final hours I am darkness, I am soul, I am Death. When the unthinkable happens or a memory is lost I am that unexplained moment of pure bliss I am a path that cannot be crossed I am when something is amiss I am hidden, I am confusion, I am Undefined.
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I'm not on the internet for more than 30 minutes before I saw something on my renowned social network and thought this GLORIOUS idea!
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Ah yes...that time of year where the Semester ends and I get to turn off all my alarm clocks. :3 (oh ya and this photo's completely unrelated to the topic. I just thought it was funny!)
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Monday. Everyone hates Mondays. It’s time for kids to go back to school, while their parents go to work. I dropped my children off at the school and I started the long drive to work. My daughter, Anna, is twelve and her brother, Skyler, is seven. They are a couple months into school and they have been doing great in their classes so far. I make my way through the busy traffic of all the adults who are groggy from rushing to get ready to begin the work week. You see them sipping their coffee, biting their toast, and making sure ties and makeup and presentations are perfect and ready. Thankfully I don’t have to worry about all of that, because I am a nurse. I slip on my scrubs, name tag, and stethoscope, and then I’m off. I also carry a pager which I always carry, even to bed, so I’m used to always remembering it. The line of cars finally moved some more. Darn construction. I see my exit and get off on it. I come to a stop sign, where I have to wait for a whole row of cars to pass before I can go, and across the street to the other ramp, I see a man. He is looking for a ride. He has a sign, which reads: Heading to Minnesota. He looks terrible. His face is covered in hair with messy hair on top of his head and clothes that appear really worn and dirty. I always feel bad when I see someone trying to get a ride and it appears they have everything they own in a bag and they have to carry it everywhere with it. I’m sure it gets heavy with all that walking and the weather definitely isn’t always nice. It’s rare that people are willing to actually help such a soul, because you never know if they would still your car and stuff and leave you where they were just moments before. Also, if they would kill you in the process or take one of the passengers with them, so as no one could call the police. It can be hard to tell the good ones from the bad ones, especially if they have kids with them or a cute pet. The cars all pass and there is time for me to go. I drive away, regretting not being able to help him, but thankful I haven’t had to endure such hardship. I get to work and start my shift. I go to see my first patient and check her vitals. They are a mother and daughter, with the daughter having what appears to be a break of a bone in her ankle. I speak with them about what occurred to the daughter. The mother stated that her daughter was outside playing and came inside for something to drink, but when she went back out, she tripped going down the stairs. I check her ankle and try moving it, but the little girl screamed from my very touch. Seems the mother had to carry her into the hospital and into the observation room. I tell her that we are going to have to perform some x-rays, but it definitely appears to be a break. She nods in approval, but then asks what many patients tend to ask me when they come from low-income families. “How much is this going to cost?” Since she was asking, it meant that she most likely didn’t have insurance, but being a nurse, I am still supposed to ask. “Do you have insurance?” I asked. “No,” she replied. I then explained that it would involve many doctor visits and then how much it would cost for the x-rays, doctor visits, and cast placement and removal. Also what it would cost if crutches were necessary as well. She then began to tear up. I wanted to comfort her, so I explained that there are payment plans that we can offer her so she wouldn’t have to pay it all at once. Being a nurse, I have medical insurance through the hospital, so I haven’t had to worry about paying for doctor visits for my family. This made her feel slightly better and she thanked me for offering to help with more than just making her daughter feel better. I then finished my shift and went to pick up my children. My daughter and son were waiting at the front of their schools. I had asked Skyler how his day at school was and he was still talking about it when we picked up Anna and until we got home. We all went inside and they put their bags away in their rooms and got washed up as I went in the kitchen to see what my husband, Kyle, was cooking. He works as a math professor at the local university. So after he is done with his two morning classes, he comes home and does the cooking and I do cooking when I work night shifts or have the day off. I helped him finish cooking and have the kids set up the table while I told him about Skyler’s day at school and mine at work. He then told me about his day at work as well and then we put the food on the table and served the kids and ourselves. Kyle: So Skyler, your mother told me about the girl you like. Skyler: Mommmmm! I don’t like her. Anne: Skyler’s got a girlfriend. Skyler’s got a girlfriend. Skyler: No I don’t. He then starts to tickle his sister, but Kyle picks him and puts him back in his chair, as Anne and I giggle at the situation. Kyle: Alright! Alright! Let’s leave him alone. So Anne, we know about your brothers day, how was yours? Anne: It was awesome! Addy and I beat Sam and Dean in volleyball in P.E. Kyle: That’s my girl! Learn anything interesting? Anne: Oh yea, in Math, we learned more on fractions and in History, we learned about something called The Great Depression. Skyler: What’s a Great Depression? Anne: Well, it’s when this thing called a Stock Market Crash happened, and many people lost all their money, and couldn’t get jobs. Families became homeless and had to live on streets and struggled for food and shelter, even the rich were hurt by it. Skyler: Wow! That won’t happen to us, will it daddy? Kyle: No son. That was a long time ago. Things are different now. You guys don’t need to worry about that. Skyler: Whew! Good! Anne: Yea! We’re lucky. We have a good life, huh, mom? Katie: That’s right hunny! We do have a good life. Katie reaches over and grabs Kyle’s hand as she thinks about all the things that happened today to make her feel like they truly had the good life.
