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Reporting In The Blogs *updated*
Blog Reporting
In the past, before the upgrades and the downtime, reporting things in the blogs was a complicated mess of PMing BlogAlert, linking the content, describing the broken rules, and hoping someone read the BlogAlert account in a timely manner.
NO MORE!
The "REPORT" buttons on comments and entries DO WORK. Before the downtine, they did not. Now they do! Hurray!
So, in short, if you have something to report, click that button, describe the offense, and a blog staff member will receive the report and an automatic link the the offending content. (Please do not use this to report signatures)
This is much easier on us, on you, the general populace, and also on kittens everywhere.
-The Blog Staff
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June Days
Woo, on time! Kinda probably!
So, June.
Started off with my birthday, as Junes do. Wife and I went out for a fancy meal, started playing 007: First Light and started building the LEGO Death Star together with cocktails. All told, a perfectly lovely birthday.
As an aside, when the Death Star was announced, we both really liked the look of it, with the dollhouse-design instead of the ball of old. I was wavering on getting it (a grand remains a lot of money, even with a fairly established career), though the wife was all for it. It's a pile of money, but it's something I like and I'm rigorous in setting aside money for Lego and staying in that budget — why not spend it on something you want. So we walked out of the Lego store with the Death Star the weekend it released. And only just now, near eight months later, are we building it. Because sometimes you gotta wait for the time to build something.
Anyway, I bought Minas Tirith too, so that's next up probably.
Elsewise, June was June.
Oh, the World Cup started too and that's always a delight.
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"The Dream" and Backrooms
We all know "The Dream": walking through the store and seeing, to your surprise, brand new BIONICLE sets on shelves once again. Picking them up and feeling the familiar sound of parts inside. Trying to get to the cashier before you wake up.
One aspect which seems to be unique to me is that my Dreams always concern actual, classic Generation 1 BIONICLE sets being rereleased in new packaging. Of the Dream instances I distinctly remember are Bohrok Va and Metru Nui Matoran (set I vividly remembering going to Walgreens to buy with my grandma when I was seven/eight years old). One common aspect of my dreams (not just "The Dream" dreams but all of them) is that I can't always tell how old I am. Sometimes in my dreams I'm my actual age (30), but sometimes I'll be meeting and interacting with someone I only knew as a kid, or an 18-year-old college student, and they'll be that age, yet we'll still be the same age, except we're not. This applies to my BIONICLE dreams, too. It is usually sets I remember from years ago, on shelves yet again, but the dream itself often feels like it is from 2004 or 2009. I never dream about G2 and in the vague "timeline" or my dream, it feels like G2 never happened.
How interesting it is that we all know "the BIONICLE Dream" specifically means dreaming about going to the store and buying BIONICLE sets, not, for instance, dreaming that you're a Toa or a Dark Hunter. BIONICLE feels designed to make us want to explore its actual universe as the object of our escapism but somewhere along the way the the object of our escapism became being consumers of a product. It's slightly creepy how that aspect of capitalism crept into our action/adventure science fantasy fandom.
It's also interesting (and maybe an indictment on us as a culture) that The Dream never focuses on playing with BIONICLE sets at our own homes, but always purchasing new ones. For me, the main places to buy LEGO were always Toys R Us, Target and Walmart, and my Dreams usually take place in nondescript liminal voids (not unlike the Backrooms for SCP-3008) that bear a similarity to those kinds of stores in general. (Once, I had a Dream of buying BIONICLE sets in a crowded Middle Eastern bazaar, but that was an unusual singular instance.)
Maybe it's because I actually watched Kane Parsons' The Backrooms recently, but more and more I've been grappling with the implications of spending all my time focusing on the past, to the point of it becoming an ouroboros of focusing on the way I focus on the past, like Clark only instead of being a failed architect he was just really into a 2000s children's toy.
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Half-Year Happenings and Mishaps!
What a wonder that it’s already July! The days feel long but the weeks pass swiftly!
As usual, I don’t feel as though I’ve been very productive, even though I’m always spinning in circles/perpetually in motion. This month threw some curveballs and a concussion, so perhaps that contributed. Got a few more drawings stashed away. Sometimes they’re ready six months early, so it’s hard to remember that I’m accomplishing anything. Still working on that same oil painting, my first oil painting and first cityscape. I’m 76+ hours in, but I’m counting it as a learning process. And to be fair, my last painting (acrylic), which was a little smaller than this one, took over 120 hours. And, a few months ago I could not sit upright at desks for any length of time, pre thyroid improvement and figuring out how to elevate feet under desk in wheelchair. Tis such a treat to get to use my beloved old art desk again!
I’m amazed by people who can quickly churn out creations! What is life like without obsessive perfectionism?
Merely a few makes and mishaps below. Not a lot happens in my little hermit life, for which I’m grateful. ❤️ also, the ugly links here are because I take excessive photos and don’t want to overload the site spamming them and am not sure if my written descriptions cover stuff I’ve not screenshotted. Think I won’t bother next time because UNSIGHTLY. 🙈😆
https://www.instagram.com/p/DZXg4x4EWt3/?igsh=MWZmYmxubGZ6bXg1aQ==A 2x3” 8hr #randomartsofkindness drawing for an old friend of ours, it’s her birthday today! This is their new grandchild. Plus birthday card-doodles in coloredpencil. And other cards sent + life miscellaneousness afterwards. 🌼
https://www.instagram.com/p/DZXjoT8EYkD/?img_index=1&igsh=bTQyZnExNHA5M3Ni🦌 🦌 Visitors. The child’s swing box still needs another coat. The moto’ tag was found by my mom outside our gate.😆. The landscape is getting a bit of love this year, but is very much a work in progress. Tried to paint the concrete things a more clay color, but I mixed it a touch too pink. 🤭I also was paint sponging new bricks to match the existing landscape boarder granite slabs. And I made this coffee can purple beaded “lantern” for the front door to hide where there was damage on the metal doorframe. We then fixed the dear old lamp post! I do hope the Narnians would approve. It’s wounds were as follows: decapitation by our famfriend cutting a tree, 2022 and later, the (former) furnace oil delivery man backing into it and breaking its post/spine (just prior to him rolling and flipping the oiltruck down the hill in our field, 2024). 😂🙈 first, I used picture hanging wire to weave the head back on and removed the zip ties that had been on it the past few years. Then, I covered the tan with this hammered black spray paint (found in the basement), and sewed these faux glass panes for it. I sandwiched a clear plastic fabric between two layers of window screen and handsewed four of these together with Tex 70 thread. It’s held in with twist wire on top and a can lid ring inside near the bulb. Next, my mom and I dug out the base, joined the broken post with epoxy and 6 inch metal braces, then wrapped it all in an oatmeal tube and poured quickcrete around it. Worked perfectly! Mom picked up a few more d retaining stones for the flower bed below. In other garden gossip, I broke the handle off the ancient wheelbarrow when dragging these massive landscape stones in it. 😳🙈They were from the old walkway that my mom is in the process of replacing. So I hand carried them away instead, thus resulting in a couch-stuck flare for a few days. I have no regrets. Have to get stuff done! 😂🪨 🪨 🪨
My mom’s mini garden is coming in nicely. it’s her first time seriously landscaping after 4 years of rebuilding life here. Is it weird that I like to pet and kiss flowers and wish them good morning, noon and night? Probably so! But is that going to stop me? Perhaps not…🙈😆
https://www.instagram.com/p/DZaW4fnEWdZ/?igsh=YWdleHFtNWZjYXJuAnother mostly successful Dollywood Adventure…except my sudden, uncharacteristic worry over being possibly car-less one day became a reality. Also the speedometer hitting something like 06660(?)miles on the way there 😆🙈. Crazy how God mentally preps us sometimes. On the drive home, on highway 40 (an hour from home) In pitch blackness, a giant red boulder/hard debris thing bashed under our car. So hard that it launched my mom’s GPSing phone off the magnetic dashboard. We pulled over and something was leaking clear oily stuff underneath. She got it towed and our famfriend (who’s in his 70s) had to pick us up at midnight. Thankfully, seems like the car is mostly fine, needs tires + adjustments and oil/antifreeze was leaking. We’re so grateful for mom’s coworkers and friends giving her temporary transportation as we’ve no reliable family. She’s picking it up today. Still was such a fun vacay-day. People are so nice and some asked to take pic’s of The Child.👽❤️ Being a ride junkie, I filled up all my accessibility pass time slots again and they had to fetch me another card. It’s not big enough when you’re staying 10-11hrs. 😂Thanking […] for protection!
https://www.instagram.com/p/DZpepZKlkcR/?igsh=MWJhbXp0ZzI0dTNqOQ==
Sweet spring. ❤️ Shasta with the blooming Shastas, my favorite actual, non-fungi flower (but dandelions, daffodils and buttercups are close behind). Their sunshiny shapes seem so joyfully approachable. Roses and orchids, though beautiful, feel frightfully formal in comparison, to me
https://www.instagram.com/p/DZpftEXFtgX/?igsh=cjFrbnRmb2xud2w1
Met this adorable, inky garden friend by my mom’s echinaceas. 🐌The first blooms resemble the wonky “first pancake” from a frying pan. 💜😂 And kimchi restock, we have a spoon every day for probiotics! Recipe by @maangchi . I used molasses instead of sugar. ❤️
https://www.instagram.com/p/DZpiw4kluKD/?igsh=bmN5bmZhYXo1Z3Y5So stoked we accidentally have a mega mailbox now. 📫 😂❤️🩹it was taken out in the 13th, as well, but thankfully on a Saturday afternoon, so we had all of Sunday to tackle this. Really can’t believe Mom and I accomplished this, and how challenging it was. 😭🙏It actually rained for about an hour mid project, and I had to scoop a few gallons of water out of the post hole. 😂 Had fun with it, and love it more than our last one. We’ll either wood fill or caulk and paint it in a couple of months. 🙌🥹 P.S. Sanded cedar sawdust smells so sweet 🪚🪛❤️
https://www.instagram.com/p/DZ0nFg0FqMj/?igsh=NGx5OXUyZDRyMnJ4A fairytale flower frolic🙏💖 💐.
Good June news:
My alarming, fast-progressing neuropathy and pain and numbness in my hands has significantly (almost entirely) improved! I’m able to sleep again, and without wrist braces. It was becoming torturous from accidental months-long b6 over-supplementation with a combo vitamin.
I’m able to cut out a lot of my vitamins now as per the multivitamin is causing overdoses with the separates.
Weird news: Peanut allergy came back after years of eating them. I just had hives, lip swelling and hoarseness, so took charcoal tabs and was fine without ER. So now I have an EpiPen RX even though I have a more recent history of severe epi intolerance/carcinoid crisis type reactions. 😂 So the possible future reaction plan is: get to ER, use epi there, then if it provokes carcinoid crisis-like collapse, they could use octreotide to stop it. 😳 Unpleasant thought process. 😂🙈 Giving thanks for answers though, I already wondered if peanuts could be the trigger for my recurring episodes of enterocolitis. 🙏❤️🩹🤷♀️
https://www.instagram.com/p/DZ0oqOukXde/?igsh=MW1keGR3N29hdTc4YQ==Plants, piano setup & plans to finish my current painting at some point. 🙈
🙏🎨100% lifezeal, %0 brakes = sporadic limp puddle of humanity in between creativechaos ♿️🩰 ✍️🎹🫶🪡
https://www.instagram.com/p/DZ0ptDPEfq1/?igsh=ZzN6N3Y1a3ZuZXQ=
Forgot to post about these for a reason I’ll explain later. Rushed to make these felt, bead and leather flower ornaments. All hand sewn. Made three of them, one for each of mom’s coworkers and friends who gave her rides when our car was out. Plus one for Mom. And this little makeshift belt for her as she needed one. Real leather, but not thick enough to be superb quality.🙈💐💖
(This bit contains a little bit of my religion. I can remove it if that’s a problem, and my apologies! It’s hard to genuinely describe the joy of being alive after a jolt like that. )
On Wed, the 17th, I took a tad of tumble. Thanking God for protection. 😭🙏😳I went out to swingset like I do everyday for 30ish mins (♿️joy) and the plastic side piece broke (guessing sun damage, swing age and how gloriously high I swing). Was all happy, praying and had worship music on and… click..I was thrown backwards into that cinder wall/stairwell. I later measured and I was flung 6 feet back at a considerable speed into the wall. I screamed 3 times but stayed conscious between blackness flickers. My head took the most force and hit first. Messaged and FB called my mom. I was able to get up and inside. My head was profusely bleeding, elbow, hand and ankle hurting. My mom came, left work (4 miles away) and drove me to closest ER. They CTed head and Xrayed limbs. Giant bleeding head hematoma with 1.5/3cm laceration. ER Dr “tied” it up with glue and my own hair. While I bled on everything in every room they took me to.😳 Lying in a CT like this is a painful, puddle producing activity.Small fractures/chips on my ankle and mid finger on dominant hand. So I got a head wrap like this🤕, foot boot/cast and finger cast. 🙈
I definitely feel like I got a concussion from the lasting symptoms. 😵💫So grateful to God I didn’t get serious injury! 🥹 I check the swing hardware frequently because I actually thought “if I ever fall down there off the swing, I’m going to die. God, you know this” Angels are no joke. 🪽🙌My mid body hit nearly nothing. We are definitely moving the swingset in the future. 😂😳 I really thought I’d fractured my skull and might not survive it. 😭🙏 I’m recovering okay ❤️🩹, it’s just hard to slow down/notice injuries with existing chronic pain, so am wilting mid project more often 🙈🥀😆 Hoping wound will seal soon so I can wash hair and get in the infrared sauna daily again. The regular pain management/energy is noticeably worse not using it. Seems like the healing is taking longer due to ehlers-danlos . I’m able to do doubly adaptive ♿️ ballet, still stationary bike with pedal adjustments, and do all the art my heart desires. God is so merciful! Giving thanks and I love you all. ❤️🩹🫶🙏
https://www.instagram.com/p/DaIjelnEWIZ/?igsh=eDQ2MDU1cWc4Z2t0
☀️🌼💛I will never understand why the words “celebration of life” usually means that a life has ended. What if we just celebrated life while we were living it? Celebrating the close calls, the “almost didn’t make it”s and just the sheer joy of waking up another day and feeling the sunlight on your face?
This was a simple celebration of washing the concussion wound out of my hair. 🤕I’ve always dreamed of wearing a daisy crown like Alice in Wonderland, but never did before. I can confirm that frolicking in a boot cast is risky business (especially when usually in 🦽)but the Plush Pham didn’t mind! 💛😂(Also, yes, not my dress and it’s pinned to pseudo-fit with random garments layered like a crazy cake. 🎂 never too old for dress up 💛. Still waiting for the day that my thyroid medication starts to aid in the metabolic issues+ me not having to semistarve and exercise chronically to try to manage the monster (my body temp is finally in the 98s instead of 95!) Starvation is just something I’m used to with the severe GI dysmotility, but to deal with that while looking normal totally twists ones mind. My self worth is so distorted over these things I can’t control. 🫠 So glad [..] doesn’t care what I look like! ❤️🩹🙈) I also realize it’s the two year survive-iversary of near occult GI bleeding to death 2 years ago. [..] mercy never ends! 🫶🙌
https://www.instagram.com/p/DaIlrOBkfb7/?igsh=MXBlemF3ZTdkajMwcg==
Petted a Persian Silk tree( finally!), and the bachelor buttons are in bloom. So hard not to adopt a bunch of leaves on the occasional frolic.
& enjoyed the sweetness of spared life, summer’s start, Second Mother’s Day & [..] Day. 🙏🫶💐💖☀️🫂Had to hobble to garden runaway a lot lately, not being able to swing stole a bit of my sunshine, so was finding ways to fill it. Fields and forests are great for rest. I feel like I’ve missed on a lot of living for never having laid on the bridge watching clouds and trees above before.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DaMFBr0kQL4/?igsh=aG9yb3I4NzQzamtw
Canyon, 3x4”, 5hrs for a new friend. Big thanks to them for allowing sharing! 🐶❤️#randomartsofkindness
I hope it’s okay that I’ve declassified this project?. Made these 4 pairs in April-May. 🫶 Was I too early? Did I jump the gun? Apologies if so, I never quite know. 🙈 I so wish I could make a set for everyone here. 😭❤️https://www.instagram.com/p/DaQiWyKEX_I/?igsh=MXRnbWZyNnd5ZjNqNg==
I think that’s all! It’s been a little two weeks since the fall. My head wound unexpectedly reopened after a week. Giving thanks that it’s sealed now. EDS wound healing is…interesting. I can’t really tolerate the finger cast, so I hope I’m not doing any damage there. The boot cast is also a sensory disturbance with existing knee braces. I’m trying to wear it as little as possible since I’m mostly in the wheelchair anyway. We are kind of wondering if I also broke the left ankle because it’s been swelling massively. I’m really bad at pain assessment because I’m used to chronic pain. I’m supposed to see an orthopedic at some point? I think the concussion is a bit better! Definitely the worst one I’ve had. I’m not sure how extensively it has impacted my cognitive ability or memory. I’m sorry if there are obvious deficits.
I’m very grateful to say my mom has moved the swingset to a non-deadly location. We had picked that questionable former spot simply because our yard isn’t level anywhere else. She dug out an area for it nearby. It’s been such a thrill to swing again! Feels like flying or how running used to. It’s the delight of each day to swing to songs while stargazing after nightfall. 🌌 But as I write this, my mom is removing the temporary cinder block anchors to attempt to install better concrete ones, meaning no swingtime for a while. We wish we could hire someone to do it, but who even installs/anchors swingsets professionally?😆This is an important thing disabled people need for joy purposes! I suppose we can always visit the nearby church swings again in case I need to” get my fix”. 🤷♀️😂I’m a swingset addict and have no plans of recovering from it. 🙌
Happy summer & July! 🫶
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halfway point
I've seen more movies than usual so far this year, so here they are all ranked in a rough numerical order that I have spent as much time thinking about as it takes to write this entry. Everything below the top two could change; everything Scream 7 and above I enjoyed
- Obsession
- Carolina Caroline
- Backrooms
- Project Hail Mary
- All You Need is Kill
- Disclosure Day
- The Furious
- Iron Lung
- Hoppers
- Pressure
- Toy Story 5
- How to Make a Killing
- Send Help
- Supergirl
- Over Your Dead Body
- Scream 7
- Crime 101
- Nirvana The Band The Show The Movie
- Ready or Not 2: Here I Come
- The Super Mario Galaxy Movie
- Power Ballad
- Mercy
& some films I'm looking forward to in the coming weeks:
- The Invite
- Spider-Man: Brand New Day
- The Odyssey
- Moana (just kidding)
- Crossing
- Motor City
- at least two movies with titles I can't put on this site
- The End of Oak Street
- Mutiny (the Avengers Endgame of Jason Statham movies)
- Idiots
- Coyote vs. ACME
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2may 2late
(i know it's june now, that not the point)
more blog slop for the pile! the second half of may was really something, and by something, i mean really not much. i finished my first collage prerequisite class, turning in a 5th paper. This one was one the ethics of retaining confederate monuments, something i feel very strongly about, as i'm very into activism. i bought and modified my next cosplay for an anime convention, and did some more work on my diy project. most of the second half of may, however, was recovering from a night in the er. it's too much to go into here, but it was a very harrowing experience. that's pretty much it.
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Oops
Forgot to blog about May. Mostly uneventful anyways. Got back into playing Overwatch (for whatever reason) and have been having fun. I'm looking forward to Summer Game Fest and Nintendo Direct because I'm desperate for any new news relating to Persona, specifically Persona 4: Revival. P4 is my favorite game in the series, so I'm really looking forward to it.
Anyways, that's all for now. We shall see what this month holds.
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Epic Recommendations
See, I said it wouldn't be long before my next blog post.
Anyway, despite all my years on BZP, I've never really explored the epics forum much. Now having finished reading BZPGOT and most of the short stories forum, I think it's time to rectify that. But here, I'm more unsure where to get started than I was with short stories, so I'm asking for YOUR recommendations on what's worth reading. I'd say completed or in progress stories take precedence over abandoned ones. Feel free to plug your own stuff if you, in fact bonus points for that because it means the author is still active. I'm also willing to accept recs from pre-2011 BZP if they're archived somewhere.
For the feature photo, I'm adding another one of my Scriptorium creations.
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Billund Trip 2026
I am spreading this as wide as I can in hopes of not accidentally missing anyone I might want to see on my trip or anyone that might be offended by not getting looped in. This May 5th-June 13th, I will be in Billund, Denmark for an extended dream vacation around the LEGO Inside Tour (May 20th-22nd).
Spending over a month there means plenty of time to actually do everything and see everything. If you'll be in the area and are interested in meeting up, yes, that includes time to see you. I know during my 2019 trip, I pushed people away because I was really there to see The LEGO House, LEGO HQ, LEGOLAND, the Teddy Bear Art Museum, Loplet, Skulpturpark, etc, etc, etc... but this time, I'll have plenty of time to soak up the art, culture, and history of the place at a more leisurely pace. I've already booked my flights and arranged for lodging in Billund - beyond that, I'm travelling on foot or by transit.
I am open to advice on who/what to see while I'm there - my photos will eventually turn up on Flickr. I'll be packing light on the way out and leaving room for souvenirs, but if there's something you want brought to Billund from the States, let me know and I will see what I can do. My usual interest in autographs will be skimped on (booklets are heavy), but I am already entertaining a few requests for boxes of cereal. While I'm open to bringing some things back, I anticipate needing to ship stuff back beyond what will fit in suitcases (historical finds aside, there are already a few exclusive shopping opportunities lined up).In case you're reading this somewhere I don't check, I am reachable through e-mail at dp316tracking@gmail.com (but might reply from a different e-mail address).
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A Look Into Old BZP
Well, moderately old. I've had some of this screenshots on my computers since 2014ish. Names and avatars of the most controversial ones have been blacked out and don't ask for the originals unless you're also offering a lot of money.
Let's start with a lighter one:
There was a weird feature that let people link their Twitter (at that time not known as X) to their status updates and this led to some strange updates (I have another saved that it absolutely NSFBZP).
Something you had to be there for, checking BZP one last time before bed and seeing some serious drama starting or rule breaking happening, and then checking in the morning and (if you're lucky) being able to see what led to someone being banned (that's if the posts/blog entries weren't deleted overnight). But for the record, this status update wasn't deleted (probably because it's evidence for law enforcement) so I'm not re-uploading deleted content.
On a happier note, I used to keep track of my posts and views but it includes other old info too. This is from August 2016 apparently.
I got on the front page once!
Finally, one of the few good (?) things about the updates going away is it got rid of a lot of evidence of when I was not okay.
I saved the rest of what I wrote, but since no one reacted to it at the time, it's probably for the best I not share it (but seriously that was a rough time for me).
Kinda wish I had saved more of old BZP but whatever, today is tomorrow's history.
-JAG
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whoa
Has it really been this long? Geez. Do people even remember me?
When I last posted a blog entry, I had just finished college. My grandmother willed herself to live long enough to see my live-streamed graduation, and I started grad school outside of Boston rooming with my best friend from college, an organist looking to get a church gig in a big city who tethered himself to wherever I ended up going.
Grad school was way more intense than I expected. It requires an enormous amount of self-motivation compared to undergraduate work, especially in the humanities. On top of that, the pandemic meant a full 2/3 of it was online—which, in music composition, was a lot of writing music and not too many performances of it. Plus, doctoral programs cut back on admissions or paused them entirely.
2020 is also when I fell in love with the woman who is now my wife, and I have many wonderful memories of our first days together at the end of an otherwise miserable and deeply scary year. Our relationship was long-distance as she was still in grad school in Boston while I moved to Buffalo to begin a PhD. Those two years were my first spent living alone, which in a lot of ways I really liked. I'd always liked the snow (growing up in North Carolina meant we only got a full, fun, sleddable amount of it once every few years), so I've come to really like western New York in a lot of ways, from city life to the suburbs, and even to small towns.
So now I'm in the final year of the PhD, where the piece of music I wrote for my dissertation has been performed, and now all that's left is to defend it. I've been teaching a lot, including a class on the Beatles in the 1960s.
See you in a few more years, I guess? Or maybe I'll stick around. All my Lego is still back in North Carolina and I've only taken a few small trinkets with me on my various moves over the years. Two of our three cats would be absolute menaces with the stuff.
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I have a son
I have a son now. He was born just over two weeks ago.
Just a few more years, and I can tell him about a few things that happened in the time before time…
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a gentle hello
hello, bzp. and a warm hug to you, bzp.
This is going to be a fairly personal post. I've taken down all the other posts here for a variety of reasons, some haven't aged well and don't reflect how I currently feel on subjects, whereas a lot of it was me just being a silly teen.
You may not remember me.
I was never the most active person here, especially outside of my little circle of friends (mostly centered around CeeCee). I was probably most active in completely off-topic forum games, to be honest. For a while most of my actual chatting migrated to Skype, before kinda losing the thread of people I was close to when Discord became the platform of choice.
I've just been missing this site a lot, not just nostalgically, but for what it was. A little microcosm of forum culture mixed with an audience ranging from tweens to adults... all tiptoeing around language and content restrictions, weathering the trends and drama of the internet at large within a fansite for a children's toy line.
I'm a late joiner in terms of a lot of the real old guard, just one of those kids who lurked from around '08-09 to finally making a profile in '12 after G1s end.
-where I proceeded to do what a lot of silly kids do, post a bunch of nonsense and then rapidly attempt to seem older and more mature than I was, haha. Lots of comment begging (in retrospect, something I'm pretty ashamed of) and attempts at being provocative that were filled with angst. I'm still an angsty little ball of gloom and doom, but I think it's been tempered with a desire to just be a lot less acrid about everything. A few years back, I reached out to a few people affected by that contrarianism to just apologize. I pushed boundaries sometimes in ways that were really not appreciative of the space that I had or the people within it.
Recently I thought back on how important BZP and especially certain people on it were for the development of my art style, heck, even my views on some things to an extent. I already threw up a comment thanking probably the biggest influence on me actually continuing to make art (Taka Nuvia, thank you again!)
I wanted to make this post as a way of thanking those who may still be around (and maybe even remember this silly little ball of edge) for the hours of influence this place had on me. This post is for you. Thank you.
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18 years :o
... huh. Missed my anniversary by almost a month.
It's been such a long time, feels quite surreal. I still very much miss the golden days of recurring server messages and popping virtual bubble wrap.
But hey, this is one of the last places on the internet I know that lets me use old-school emoticons in peace
, so that alone makes it worth coming back from time to time. That, and the memories, most of them really fond ones, even.
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Bionicle Boys
A couple weeks ago, I got all the Bionicle boxes out of the shed. William - my oldest, who recently turned 5 years old - was instantly obsessed. First, we got out all of the 2015 sets, the Skull baddies, both variants of the Toa, all the Protectors...They learned all about Tahu, Gali, the whole gang, and about how the characters changed and morphed into different variations throughout the Bionicle story. William was mystified. The mythical island of Mata Nui is like a grand, colorful island full of mystery and adventure, and he is eager to explore it. After getting to know the characters, and the island, and the evil Rahkshi and Makuta - also the Kraata "slug," which William fancies to touch the good guys with and turn them evil - I thought it was time to introduce them to The Mask of Light.
William's excitement at the start of the movie was palpable. He was trembling with excitement, and stayed glued to the screen from start-to-finish. Afterwards, he asked me dozens of questions about the movie, the story, the characters...and he and his brother spent the following days pretending to be Kopaka, freezing each other; or Tahu, riding on lava.
William built a couple of Protectors, then challenged himself to build the Bohrok Kal combiner. He was so proud of himself for building the whole thing! More recently, I got together the pieces to build Takadox, which William did with eagerness. He then spent the entire evening putting Takadox in various poses, and proudly showing me each different pose. Later, we built Kalmah, and Toa Ignika. Now I've got Axonn coming in the mail, as well as a Bricklink order which will enable me to build Mantax, Carapar, Antroz, and perhaps a couple others.
Last night, I spontaneously put on Legends of Metru Nui. William was so excited, he ran from one end of the house to the other several times, and was almost vibrating in his seat at the start of the movie. Matau was his favorite, and made him cackle relentlessly. Triston is a little too young to be so infatuated with the toys, but he shares William's interest, and together, we play pretend - I'm Takadox, they're Kopaka and Toa Ignika, or Tahu, or whoever. Triston likes to say "Holy Gadunka!"
We have been bonding a lot over these toys, and I am actually able to share their excitement over the movies, the new sets coming in the mail, the old sets that have been disassembled for over a decade, now coming back together in the hands of a new Bionicle fan. The boys are huge Cryoshell fans, and every time one of the songs starts, William wants to know who the song is about, or for what part of the story it was made. We played some MNOG, and I even let him listen to my "Music of Okoto" album.
He has zero expectation of receiving any new sets, as he understands that it's been discontinued for some time, but I am absolutely getting him Gadunka for Christmas this year!
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BZP T-Shirt Contest 2025 Canceled
Hello everyone. With only 2 votes entered for the design portion of our contest, we've decided to cancel the contest for this year altogether.
There wouldn't be a point in making shirts if no one is interested. That's time and money wasted for the both of us.
I give a big thanks to all those who entered. Perhaps there will be more interest for a shirt next year!
Best Wishes.
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Cyclone no more
This will be my (new) final blog post, as merely deleting entries seems to not be an option. And I may as well use this opportunity to officially close out my activity here on BZPower.
I'll keep it brief. If you knew me back in the day, under the guise of a Toa of.... certain intense weather patterns... well, that person has thankfully been cast into the ether. I'm a much happier and well adjusted individual now. Transing my gender saved my life, as it tends to go.
Anyway, I'm still active in the Bionicle community and am on most of the big servers, so feel free to contact me there, if you care. And with that being said, it's time for me to sign out from this site for the last time. Laters ya'll.
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Big Ole Cold Snap
The polar front jet is taking a bit of a trip down to Texas and through the South letting all that nice frozen air slide right through about 50% of the country. Should be a good time if you like to freeze your booty off.
In other news, writing, working out, and reading is going well. Can't complain there.
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20 years later
Where are you now Conner??? Who did you become??? Did you get fed??? Do you still like Bionicle??? Did you ever think when you made that post, it would still be talked about 20 years later??? Did you ever expect someone to make magnets of your post???
I hope you have a good life!!!
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Fourfold of Fate
Hello, I'm planning to run a space-themed Bionicle RPG on Discord, and I'm looking for some additional players. If you're interested, let me know and I can send you an invite to the Discord server.
200 years ago, the Spaceship Artakan crashed into the desolate planet of Omega, stranding a population of Agori settlers. Even worse, when they woke up from their cryo-sleep, a malfunction caused them to suffer amnesia, forgetting their mission and their past. With no hope of rescue, they struggled to build a new settlement in the narrow Twilight Band, the only habitable zone of the planet. Currently, their population has grown, but there is unrest between factions of the Agori, and strange earthquakes continue to threaten their new home. A class of recently graduated students now have a chance to further explore their world, to uncover the mysteries of their past and the strange planet around them. This is… Fourfold of Fate: Legacy of the Starship Artakan.
Players will play Agori teenagers, recently graduated and ready to explore and put their talents to use. Players will have access to different mask powers, pets, and eventually all sorts of new tools and weapons, as they uncover mysteries, solve puzzles, and take part in occasional combat encounters. There will be four different routes the players can participate in.
Underwater Exploration: Professor Sufina Blanca has taken an interest in the unexplored ocean beneath the icecap on the Cold Side. She desires to lead a team with a submersible to explore the depths and search for signs of life. This will feature Exploration, Puzzle Solving, and Teamwork.
Underground Adventure: Eccentric technologist Fabarar DeepWood has discovered a radio signal that seems to originate south of the mountains. He wishes to travel beneath the mountains through the mines of Naxos to discover the source, in addition to scouting for new minerals and energy crystals to mine. This will feature Vehicular Operations, Technology, and Exploration.
Investigating the Maze: Esteemed Adventurer Huaju Dolostone wishes to map out a route through the rugged canyons of the Maze to reach the other side of the planet, so they can further explore for more resources. This will feature Combat, Teamwork, and Diplomacy.
Conspiracies and Politics: A lower class radical Eztli Aodh is seeking societal change, hoping to unearth conspiracies to turn the public against the ruling Orchids. She wants to lead a team to the wreckage of the Artakan and dig into the past. This will feature Politics, Investigation, and Espionage.
More details can be found in the Intro Game Documentation. Hope to see you there!
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The comic lives on...
So my 12-year-old recently read through all the comics I made on here back when I was ... what, 16? My main reason for being on BZPower for quite a while.
It was a surreal moment, and sort of embarrassing... 😅 but hey, the half-or-so of them that he understood, he thought was funny - so I guess the comedy works for that age.
Here's to feeling old and decrepit, but also sort of cool.
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oh hey
look at that, there's no delete button for blog entries that you only uploaded to see if your blog still works
guess this one is staying up
oopsa doopsa
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Embers - Project Teaser
I was recently reminded that blogs exist, so I figured that this was as good a place as any to post the first official teaser for an upcoming project that will be releasing later this year.
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Deep down, everyone’s afraid of the dark.
It’s a powerful, primal thing, an instinct born long before any of us were created. In the dark, anything could be waiting.
A ravenous rahi, a roving Rahkshi, Karzahni or Irnakk or Tren Krom or any one of the other nightmares of legend.
But now we know there’s nothing waiting for us in the dark.
Nothing at all.
And somehow, that makes it even more frightening.
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In this alternate reality take on the Bionicle story, the Great Spirit Robot was mysteriously shut down shortly after Teridax took over. In the wake of this second Great Cataclysm, lightstones and heatstones begin to dim and die throughout the universe, dooming its denizens to a dark, cold demise.
Metru Nui – with lifegiving light still seeping through the sun holes overhead, and its cold streets heated by the fires of the Great Furnace – becomes the last bastion for the Matoran species. But when the city’s Toa depart to rescue Matoran still trapped out in the dark of the dying universe, they leave the populace vulnerable to the machinations of an unexpected enemy, and return to a city they no longer recognise…
Work on Embers began in August of 2022. During that time, I was writing for my Farewell To Corpus Rahkshi collaboration, which put me in a nostalgic, inspired frame of mind, motivating me to finally act on some story concepts I’d been toying with for a long time.
Embers was originally envisioned as a trilogy of three “books” that I expected to be ready for release sometime in 2023, but the story ballooned massively in size and scope as I began work on it, expanding to six instalments instead. Due to my nasty habit of starting projects, getting overwhelmed, and not finishing them, I was determined to fully complete a first draft before I began posting anything. I felt that being able to go back and revise the story as a whole would also allow for a more cohesive and consistent narrative overall. As I post this teaser, I’m finishing off the first draft of Book 6. While I’ll still need to carry out a few editing passes (and probably completely rewrite some parts I rushed through), I’ll absolutely be in a position to begin posting chapters sometime later this year.
This is by the far the biggest project I’ve attempted and actually followed through on, and I’ve already got ideas for a possible sequel trilogy if the story is well-received. Keep an eye out on the Epics forum for the official release in the coming months.
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