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One last look
I think I've been on this site for almost seventeen years. In that time I've made a terrible comic series, had some fun in General Art, added a handful of unfinished stories to the library and made a few friends and acquaintances along the way. If any of you here want to keep in contact, my twitter handle is attached to my profile. It's goofy and weird and a bit of a mess, just like my time on this site.
The more time has passed, the more I recognize that the only thing keeping me coming back to this site is my blog. And really all I've used it for lately is to complain about life's frustrations.
I'm tired of being someone who only complains. I know my content used to be goofy and silly and full of... well, more than what it is now.
I've been lucky during my time here. I can't say I've been a victim of any sort of prejudice or attacks. But due to more recent statements, it appears I was ignorant to the other members that had been victims of such actions.
I also feel I haven't always been the most supportive member of the LGBT+ community on here to my fellow LGBT+ peers. I feel I remained silent when I should have spoken out. I feel I was inconsiderate during one or more occasions. If I ever caused any grief, I apologize. Being gay myself is no excuse for instances of lashing out due to internalized homophobia.
This website held a lot of personal milestones for me. When I was nervous about coming out to my family, I sought advice from an openly gay staff member of the site. I came out publicly here before I did to the rest of my family and friends and was mostly met with support. That meant the world to me. I like to think the person I am today was molded in part by the experiences I've had on this site.
However, it would appear bzpower is no longer a place where I feel comfortable or safe. And so I shall be logging off. I hope one day things will be better and I can feel comfortable logging back in again. But I kinda doubt that will happen.
So, for what is perhaps the final time...
GET OFF MY LAWN!
~Tekulo <3
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Some news
Maddison and I got married on October 2nd, 2021 in a very lovely elopement in the same city we live in, at sunset.
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Happy New Year!
HEY GUYS LET'S MAKE 2018 AMAZING. Because 2017 was one of the most exhausting years I've had to contend with.
Between current events, moving six hours away to a new town, a medical withdrawal from college (after attempting to return from a six year hiatus), my dad getting a serious cancer, financial problems (but at least I have generous family and friends to keep me homeless), health still NOT improving, friend struggles, and...I'll just cut the list early there. Suffice to say you get the idea.
It wasn't all bad and I need to remember the good, but yeah, let's not do a repeat of that again. I hope your 2017 was better at least--and if you're struggling like me, let's stick together and hope 2018 is kinder. We can do this!
I haven't canceled CATALYST, but with my health and life situations I've fallen dismally behind. I hope to be back in the groove soon. Either to continue it or have a new plan.
Take care all~
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Firion Wip
Based on his Dissidia Artwork. So far I got the details down right. I just need to give him blue bracers and paint on his bandana. He will have all his weapons.
Or I could take the cheap way out and say the figure is based on the official novel artwork, where he only has a sword and no bandana. But still need blue bracers.
-Omi
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Sawblades
::
::Kind of like Knives.
Knives Chau, that is.
Except his name's actually just Matau. Not Sawblades.
There's also this one if you want an alternate view. He's still a WIP because his back needs filling in and I'm not 100% satisfied with the torso, but I wanted to post something before I'm separated from my pieces for six weeks...
Apparently this is what happens when I finally acquire the Turaga's Kanohi. I don't remember how exactly the idea for his weapons came to be, but it involved the concept of the Toa versions of the Turaga having tools that resembled their staffs. And somehow that turned into giant buzz saw nunchucks of doom. Not that I'm complaining.
Also, it should be pretty obvious that we're ignoring Metru Nui right now. This is a Toa Matau strictly from the jungles of Mata Nui.
Also also, I go back to college tomorrow. Aaaaahh!!
~ ToM
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Latest Entry
General Rambling: BZP Back!? Edition
Hey, folks. Since BZP is back online now, I figured I pop in and give a general life update for those interested (Probably no one...).
And boy, it has been awhile since I wrote an entry. I didn't realized that I kind of drop off the face of BZP since 2018 onward. XD
So where to begin? Well, not a whole lot has changed for me in past two years... Still working at the same job for past nine years and still living with my folks (Yeah, not a great look for a 27 year old... I do pay them rent at least. But yeah, it is something that I needed to work on. XD).
So yeah, not much to share on those fronts, so I won't bored you with that.
Have I done much LEGO building in the past two years? I mean LEGO sets wise, yeah, I have build an occasion set here and there (I actually have a bit of backlog of sets that I should build at some point. Like I still have Lord of Rings sets from way back still boxed and on a self near me. XD).
I hadn't brought anything recently though or done much MOCing (Mind you, that's not too surprising as I have never been that great at MOCing to begin with). So not much share on LEGO front either.
Thoughts on Bionicle Gen 3 rumors sparked by Christian Faber (that were in news here awhile back)? Well, I am not against LEGO doing another attempt at the theme if they want, especially since I did like the sets from Gen 2.
Moving on from that, I guess I will talk about gaming next. I am going organize this in a list format since that feels like best way of doing this (Note: Not in any particular order)...
- I finished the story for Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch (on PS3) finally. I had a pretty good time with it, although I do regret having so much gaps between playing it since I definitely didn't remember a lot of stuff. Oh, and I am not a big fan of familiar combat in it. People praised that element a lot and I really don't get it (Personally I think Pokemon combat style is much better than it). Also the last bit of game felt really tack on to me (Really it felt like it could work better if it had been flesh out more in a direct sequel). Hm... I might go back to do trophies at late point (Basically if I clear my PS3 backlog out).
- I managed to get all trophies in Journey (PS3). I must say I was surprised there are people still playing it online on PS3 after it being out for like 6 years (I did this in 2018, unless I am remembering wrong.).
- I got all trophies in Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons (PS3). The game still tugs at my heartstrings after all these years.
- I played LittleBIGPlanet 1 (PS3) until I got stuck in the Bunker. I recall finding some of the controls rather annoying and not being a fan of respawn system. It is hard to say if I will go back to it anytime soon.
- I played Ico (PS3), which was definitely more my speed than LittleBIGPlanet 1. The last thing I recall doing it was finding a secret room that gave me a weapon. I didn't finish it since KH3 was on the way to being released at the time, so I took a break from it. I definitely will be going back to this eventually.
- I briefly play Marvel's Spider-Man on my PS4 to test it to make sure it worked. The only thing I did outside of first mission was collect all map points and schoolbags. XD I really wanted to play more of it, but sadly I loan it to my brother awhile back.
- I played KH 0.2 and watched Back Cover in prep for KH3. I really enjoyed KH 0.2. I wish it could been a full game rather than tech demo for KH3. Oh, and I didn't replay KH3D since I just didn't have time since I did this so close to KH3. It is on my to do list to replay eventually.
- I played KH3. I honestly play this game non-stop when it came out. I was that excited for it and I am glad I brought it. While it was far from perfect (I definitely have my complains on stuff), I enjoyed it and I look forward to DLC this winter. Oh, and I didn't get all trophies (I did get all Hidden Mickeys though). I might go back and do them eventually.
- On Nintendo Switch's NES app, I have finished Super Mario Bros 3 and I am currently working my way through Metroid 1. I am really bad at Metroid 1. XD
- I have 100% non-DLC story mode in Splatoon 2. I also finished Octo Expansion in prep for last Splatfest (My Team, Order, sadly lost Splatfest). It is going be awhile before I 100% Octo Expansion because man, it is difficult.
- I completed my goal in Pokemon Crystal (3DS) and got Celebi! Also recently start slowly working on my Pokedex goal for Pokemon Gold.
- And lastly, I am currently working my way through Paper Mario 1 for first time. At the moment, I am on Chapter 5 and I will be continuing that this weekend.
Alright, that's basically a summary of what I been up to gaming wise. I probably miss some stuff, but this list is long enough as it is, so I'll end it there.
The only other thing that I can think to talk about is that I recently went on my first plane trip as I went to Seattle for PAX West last week. It was pretty fun trip. I am glad that I decided to tag-along with my sister for it. I am also not as afraid of planes anymore, so that opens the door at least to consider doing other trips like this in the future (Although planes are pretty cramped, so definitely not doing trips longer than 5 hours.).
My biggest highlight from PAX West was getting to play FF7 Remake demo (I was really lucky on Monday... Also Monday was like the best day. It was so much less intense compared to other days). It was great and I can't wait to play it next year. *hype*
*look at how long the entry is* Alright, I think I rambled enough here. If you like to hear more about my Seattle trip, let me know and I'll take time to write up a summary on the trip for here with some pictures for ya. But anyway, thanks for taking the time to read this rambling entry about my life.
- JMJ 2019
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Mama Punk
I logged into this site for the first time in two years to dig up an old recipe I'd lost...figured I'd post some recent pictures and a plug for my band while I'm here, for old time's sake. For those who don't remember me, let's just say I was once an admin...briefly.
STRANGE LIPS, fronted by yours truly: http://strangelips.bandcamp.com (twitter/IG: @Strange_Lips). If you live in or around New York, come see us sometime; we generally play at least one show a month.
Most-recent picture of me, post-haircut:
Some pics from a gig last month, pre haircut:
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Oh hi there~
Alternative Title: Oh Forgot To Mention This
Hi everyone! How are you all doing~~~~? So, hi, my name's Chloe, everyone knows me as Blade, yada yada yada~.
Well, this is probably going to be a short entry, but....
Oh, by the way, I'm a transgender girl, so, yeah, there's that too~ ^^
P.S. I'm Windy's Lesbian Lover now, so <3
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Taming a Horse in Breath of the Wild
I'm having the worst luck trying to tame horses. Admittedly, part of the problem might be that I've been going after the giant horse that's in the Gerudo section of the map.
I refuse to give up, though. Clearly I just need a lot more stamina potions.
Also, since my last entry was made a while ago, I do in fact have a job now. Not a particularly glamourous job, but it's busy, I have good coworkers, and it's not in downtown Seattle, so there's no traffic to deal with on the way to work. =)
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Final Chapter
Chapter 11 of Mask Maker has been posted, and that's all folks! It's a pretty bittersweet ending...not just for the story, but also for myself, since this is actually the largest piece of Bionicle fanfiction I've completed, and it'll likely be the last (for a good long while at least).
In a sense, this story is an attempt at bringing closure to the somewhat open-ended state in which G1 has remained since 2010, as well as a way of transitioning from G1 into G2 and beyond. That's what it is for me, at least. Thanks to everyone who has read it, and thanks to those who took the time to respond. =)
JRRT
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Whoops, it slipped my mind!
Feb 21 marked 10 years since I joined BZPower! And it completely slipped my mind to pay a visit! I'm so sorry! :'(
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THIS JUST IN:
LEGO FOCUS GROUP STUDIES HAVE SHOWN that bionicle's most popular character is somebody named "orkahm" !!
all over the world, hip young bionicle fans are clamoring for the return of ORKAHM !! will he return in the new 2015 toyline ?? will lego cave into the demands of millions ?? click here to find out
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Bio Nickel 2015
I wasn't excited.
Then gears.
I'm excited.
I would actually just buy a pile of gears at this point.
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Proud of my beautiful children
They are my pride and joy.
See you later
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Wind at Your Back, Lads, Wherever You Go
My elementary-school self is jumping with joy.
One of the ways I've occupied myself this summer was by trying to reconstruct one of the old LEGO Pirate ships, the Black Seas Barracuda. However, I wanted to do it with a twist. I've always loved the sails of the Skull's Eye Schooner, but the yellow/black/white motif of the Barracuda was always my preferred color scheme. Therefore I opted for a mixture of the two.
The sails are, alas, not genuine, but printed sheets of paper cut appropriately. Surprisingly it looks really good in person, but I do want to try printing actual cloth sails in the future.
A keen eye will notice that the bow is modified to be more like that of the Skull's Eye Schooner, and there are still some minor decorative pieces that need to be obtained, but otherwise it looks quite impressive.
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My book covers (plus win a FREE ebook!)
Hello again, everyone. I thought I'd share the covers for some of the books I've published this year. These aren't the covers of all of my books; just the ones I like best. You can also click on each cover to check out each book's page on my website, where you can learn more about whichever book captures your interest.
Let's start with the cover for my fantasy novel, The Mage's Grave, first book in my Mages of Martir fantasy series, available in ebook and trade paperback wherever books are sold:
Next is the sequel, The Mage's Limits, which is also available in ebook and trade paperback wherever books are sold:
Then we move on to the third book, The Mage's Sea, which is also available wherever books are sold:
And to finish off the Mages of Martir series, here is the cover for the fourth and final book, The Mage's Ghost, which is ... well, you know the drill:
Next we move onto the covers for my newest (and still ongoing as of this writing) science-fantasy series, Two Worlds. Here's the cover for the first book, Reunification:
And last, but certainly not least, the cover for my newest novel and the second book in the Two Worlds series, Alliance:
All of the above covers are by the brilliant and talented Elaina Lee of For the Muse Designs.
I'd also like to note that the free ebook raffle I mentioned in the last post is still going until Tuesday, September 8th. So if you'd like to enter for a chance to win a free ebook copy of Reunification in the ebook format of your choice, just comment on this post or the last one saying so and I will add your name to the drawing, which will be done completely at random.
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I can't play as Tracer...
Because she takes skill and I'm a scrub.
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Can't believe my luck
Found these lil dudes on facebook marketplace, all sealed! Had to drive an hour to pick them up but I couldn't pass on them. I have probably quadruples of each by now I think? But having some sealed ones is pretty amazing
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Hi
Haven't been here for a few months, whoops. I just don't have the kind of time I used to.
What's been happening?
BTW I retired
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how do i post
where is the box i feel old and i have (1) opinion
everyone else put in life updates so heres mine no one asked for
estrogen made me hot and i have a boyfriend
and a pool, i have a pool
im kinda a big deal -
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Titanfall 2
So, does anybody play this game on PC? My origins friend list is completely empty, so someone else to play with would be nice.
It might at least be better than getting ground to dust alone.
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Storm Incoming
So what will probably be a tropical storm by this coming Friday night is going hit where I live in a couple of days. It won't get a direct hit, but my area will be on the east side of the storm. AKA the dirty side of it. And that means lots of rain and thunderstorms. Yay.
Now as I have been few a couple tropical storms and hurricanes, I'm not too worried about these storms. But I am a little frustrated because I bought a ticket for Pokemon Go Fest and I'll probably have to do half of it sitting in my house. (Which is what many people are doing anyways, so I shouldn't be one to complain)
If anything, I'll probably get at least half the weekend off from work. So I have that to look forward to. I just hope the storms don't get too bad.
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Top Ten Books of 2014
And now for my favorite top ten list—books! So this was a really great year for me, reading-wise, as I (somehow) managed to more than double the amount of books I read in 2013 for a total of 121 books. Granted, a lot of those were graphic novels or other short books, but still. And so picking a top ten was hard as I had about 40 books that I rated 5 stars. So I’ve grouped some together and also made separate lists for novels and graphic novels.
Note: These lists are for books I’ve read in 2014, and has nothing to do with release dates. Unfortunately I only read a couple 2014 releases or so (though I am currently reading The Martian, by Andy Weir, which came out in 2014 and is great so far)
Top Ten Novels of 2014
- Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, by Susanna Clarke. This book is long and dense, but definitely worth it.
- The Silmarillion, by J.R.R. Tolkien. I was expecting to not like this as much, as it’s always been described as basically “a history book of the elves” and, well, I always hated reading history books for school (history is fascinating, but the textbooks on it less so). =P And yes, it is a history of the elves, but written exceedingly well (I mean, it is Tolkien) and not text-book-y. This book was just so interesting, and I really look forward to re-reading it someday.
- Stardust, Neverwhere, The Graveyard Book, Coraline, and Fortunately, the Milk, all by Neil Gaiman. So sort of cheating here, but every single one of his books is absolutely fantastic, and I read all of these this year. My favorite is probably The Graveyard Book, but as I said, each was amazing. Gaiman is definitely one of my all-time favorite authors.
- The Golem and the Jinni, by Helene Wecker. I’d heard so much about this, and it really lived up to all the hype. To put simply, it was really beautifully written, and simply reading each word was just as enjoyable as the plot and characters.
- Skin Game, by Jim Butcher. Butcher is another favorite author of mine, and the Dresden Files is one of my all-time favorite series. They seem to just keep getting better and better, and Skin Game was no different.
- The Bartimaeus Trilogy, by Jonathan Stroud. Can’t wait to read the prequel book, The Ring of Solomon, as this was one of the best series/trilogies I’ve read. The footnotes by Bartimaeus were hilarious.
- A Dance with Dragons, by George R.R. Martin. Well, of course. This series is fantastic, and I finally got around to reading the latest novel early last year. Can’t wait for Winds of Winter.
- Einstein’s Dreams, by Alan Lightman. This was just an incredibly interesting read, focusing on the dreams of Einstein as he’s forming his theory of relativity. Really brilliant, not only being fascinating in itself, but also making you think and ponder about it.
- The Princess Bride, by William Goldman. Hilarious and exceedingly fun. Highly recommended to any fan of the film.
- The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. My favorite Sherlock Holmes “book” (counting each collection of short stories as well as the four novels as individual books), as it contains the most of my favorite stories: “A Scandal in Bohemia”, “The Red-Headed League”, and “The Speckled Band”, plus I enjoyed all the others.
Honorable Mentions: A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeleine L’Engle; Ender’s Game, by Orson Scott Card; and The Fault in our Stars, by John Green.
~ :: ~
I’m really saddened it’s taken me so long to read a lot of these, but I really only got into graphic novels and comics fairly recently (basically at the beginning of 2014 when I read Hush and fell in love with them—I’d only read a few here and there before), unfortunately. Better late than never, I suppose.
Top Ten Graphic Novels of 2014
- Watchmen, by Alan Moore. Without a doubt the best graphic novel I’ve read, and one of the best books I’ve read period.
- The Sandman series, by Neil Gaiman. There’s a reason this series is so highly praised, and that’s because it’s fantastic. Tied for my two favorite books would be Vol. 1: Preludes and Nocturnes, and Vol. 4: Season of Mists, followed closely by Vol. 7: Brief Lives because of how hilarious and fun-to-read Delirium is. I've been buying the single issues of Overture (with the Dave McKean covers ^^), but haven't read them yet as I was hoping they'd get on a more regular release schedule first, but it looks like that may not happen...so I'll probably just start reading them soon.
- The New 52 Batman, by Scott Snyder (this being The Court of Owls, The City of Owls, Death of the Family, Zero Year – Secret City, and Zero Year – Dark City, all of which I read this year). I’ve rated every one 5 stars, as Snyder really is an amazing writer and is doing such a great job with Batman. Can’t wait to see how Endgame plays out.
- Batman: Hush, by Jeph Loeb. Just such a great stand-alone Batman story, and it's the one that got me really interested in comics in general. Can't wait to read The Long Halloween, also by Loeb.
- Batman: Arkham Asylum – A Serious House on Serious Earth, by Grant Morrison. First off, the art for this, by Dave McKean, is absolutely amazing, and fits the story perfectly. The story itself is fantastically dark and creepy.
- Deadpool: The Complete Collection – Volume 1, by Daniel Way. Just a blast. I recently picked up the other three volumes of Daniel Way’s run, and can’t wait to read them. Deadpool really is a hilarious character (can’t wait for the film, especially if it’s anything like that leaked clip, as that’s very close to the Deadpool in Way’s comics).
- Hawkeye, Vol. 1: My Life as a Weapon, by Matt Fraction. It's really fun to see Hawkeye in a non-Avengers setting, and just what his day-to-day life is like--great character.
- Captain America: Winter Soldier, by Ed Brubaker. Captain America is my second favorite superhero (after Batman), and this run was a great read.
- Kingdom Come, by Mark Waid. What was fascinating about this was how all the Justice League members were old, and it was great seeing them have to come back.
- V for Vendetta and Batman: The Killing Joke, by Alan Moore. Moore really is the master of comics, and while not as good as Watchmen in my opinion, still two fantastic books.
Honorable Mentions: Batman: The Black Mirror, by Scott Snyder; Batman: Year One, by Frank Miller; and Green Arrow—Year One, by Andy Diggle.
Also shout-out to Wytches, by Scott Snyder, and Rocket Raccoon, by Scottie Young, both of which are currently in-progress but absolutely fantastic and would’ve made it on the top ten list otherwise.
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This is a strange, strange place now.
I come here every few years just to see what happened. It is like returning to a hometown that never existed, and all the people were fictional characters you made up as imaginary friends, and only a few straggling ghosts roam the grounds as though nothing changed.
I post this just to see if the ghosts can hear. The sensation of wandering in here ever since 2013, when I left the staff, has been haunting.
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