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tcpipHappy (Chinese lunar calendar) new year everyone! ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
severina_242 and I celebrated the arrival last night with dinner at our favourite Chinese restaurant, Wong's on Glenhuntly road. He appreciated our wishing him "happy new year" - I think we were the only customers that mentioned this. He does great food and it's damn cheap too. Also amazing how many women on my friends list have been making comments along the lines "Year of the Cock - I wish!" already... Hmmmm...
The call for players and gaming announcement in my last post has come up with positive results. Ten Thousand Islands is now up to scene four, and I reckon I've pretty well figured out what basic stats I'm going to use for the Mimesis roleplaying system. There has been a lively discussion on the mailing list as well about game design, which is exactly what I want. Also, onstrangedave's suggestion, I've joined in the forums at The Forge and have been stirring the possum there. Finally, caseopaya as a novice gamer has fallen into the clutches of a single-person face-to-face Call of Cthulhu/Nephilim game. I mean, train 'em on the tough circuit, right?
IT life has been very busy of late. At Borderlands, I've been rebuilding their library database from a piece of crap called PrimaSoft to something useful, like MySQL. At Web Prophets I've been building test BSD servers (mail, web and admin), and most recently I've volunteered my services at the Unitarians to be second-on-call if the radio presenter goes awol - which has meant learning Adobe Audition. In addition I have a small mountain of web development that clients have heaped upon me, and to top it off, tomorrow morning I meet with an indigenous landscape manager for a database administrator role. All very interesting.
Other notable events of the past several days include convening the quarterly meeting for Labor for Refugees and setting up (finally) the national email list for said organisation. I've had no luck getting the person who runs the website to update it or pass on management, so setting up a new one seems to be the only alternative.
Last Saturday evecaseopaya and I went to the Astor, Melbourne's most beautiful cinema, to watch the double of Shark Tale and Team America: World Police. The former is NYC as a reef with intelligent fish, with a theme of "it doesn't matter if your really poor as long as someone loves you". Deep, eh? The latter film however was just a brilliant piece of work. A stylistic satire on the Thunderbirds, a thematic satire on US foreign policy and with clever censor-challenging scenes. Parents who are stupid enough to take their kids to this film without checking (a) the ratings and (b) what it includes deserve to be shocked.
The rats went to the Lort Smith Animal Hospital on Saturday. Poor ol' Harlequin, already suffering loss of movement in his back legs, is developing an ulcer or similar on his stomach. Tonight they both go to a vet. I've always considered it metaphysically unfair that intelligent social animals have short lifespans. The greatest thing that anyone can do is increase the lifespan and quality of life of living creatures.
Brain breaker of the week goes todaoistraver. What happens when a Professor of History at the University of Michigan whose specialisation is middle-east affairs decides to take on a hired idiot, like Jonah Goldberg on CNN/NPR over US foreign policy in Iraq? The
results are truthful, insightful and amusing - both times.
severina_242 and I celebrated the arrival last night with dinner at our favourite Chinese restaurant, Wong's on Glenhuntly road. He appreciated our wishing him "happy new year" - I think we were the only customers that mentioned this. He does great food and it's damn cheap too. Also amazing how many women on my friends list have been making comments along the lines "Year of the Cock - I wish!" already... Hmmmm... The call for players and gaming announcement in my last post has come up with positive results. Ten Thousand Islands is now up to scene four, and I reckon I've pretty well figured out what basic stats I'm going to use for the Mimesis roleplaying system. There has been a lively discussion on the mailing list as well about game design, which is exactly what I want. Also, on
strangedave's suggestion, I've joined in the forums at The Forge and have been stirring the possum there. Finally, caseopaya as a novice gamer has fallen into the clutches of a single-person face-to-face Call of Cthulhu/Nephilim game. I mean, train 'em on the tough circuit, right?IT life has been very busy of late. At Borderlands, I've been rebuilding their library database from a piece of crap called PrimaSoft to something useful, like MySQL. At Web Prophets I've been building test BSD servers (mail, web and admin), and most recently I've volunteered my services at the Unitarians to be second-on-call if the radio presenter goes awol - which has meant learning Adobe Audition. In addition I have a small mountain of web development that clients have heaped upon me, and to top it off, tomorrow morning I meet with an indigenous landscape manager for a database administrator role. All very interesting.
Other notable events of the past several days include convening the quarterly meeting for Labor for Refugees and setting up (finally) the national email list for said organisation. I've had no luck getting the person who runs the website to update it or pass on management, so setting up a new one seems to be the only alternative.
Last Saturday eve
caseopaya and I went to the Astor, Melbourne's most beautiful cinema, to watch the double of Shark Tale and Team America: World Police. The former is NYC as a reef with intelligent fish, with a theme of "it doesn't matter if your really poor as long as someone loves you". Deep, eh? The latter film however was just a brilliant piece of work. A stylistic satire on the Thunderbirds, a thematic satire on US foreign policy and with clever censor-challenging scenes. Parents who are stupid enough to take their kids to this film without checking (a) the ratings and (b) what it includes deserve to be shocked.The rats went to the Lort Smith Animal Hospital on Saturday. Poor ol' Harlequin, already suffering loss of movement in his back legs, is developing an ulcer or similar on his stomach. Tonight they both go to a vet. I've always considered it metaphysically unfair that intelligent social animals have short lifespans. The greatest thing that anyone can do is increase the lifespan and quality of life of living creatures.
Brain breaker of the week goes to
daoistraver. What happens when a Professor of History at the University of Michigan whose specialisation is middle-east affairs decides to take on a hired idiot, like Jonah Goldberg on CNN/NPR over US foreign policy in Iraq? The results are truthful, insightful and amusing - both times.
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no subject
Date: 2005-02-08 10:19 pm (UTC)Ah, you've reminded me...I'll be sending-out a Market Research Survey far and wide tonight/tomorrow.
Do you mind taking a look at it / filling-out one and forwarding copies to some of your contacts/network in my behalf?
What happens when a Professor of History at the University of Michigan whose specialisation is middle-east affairs decides to take on a hired idiot, like Jonah Goldberg on CNN/NPR over US foreign policy in Iraq?
Those pieces on Jonah Goldberg (who I'd never heard of before but I don't doubt that his lousy opinions have had an indirect effect on many of us thanks to the hate and political manoeuvering he's caused) are plain scary.
How does such a fool get his voice heard?
Seems to be more evidence of a hopelessly biased media quoting/publishing who/what they want. :(
no subject
Date: 2005-02-08 10:54 pm (UTC)Ohh, a market research survey? Sure, send it out, and I'll pass it along...
How does someone like Jonah Goldberg get his voice heard? Heck, the same way Andrew Bolt does. It is in the interest of the editor of the newspaper to push a particular political line, regardless of things like experience, knowledge, judgement and so forth. They're hired guns basically.
Wongs. And stuff.
Date: 2005-02-08 10:31 pm (UTC)If it weren't for that slightly unfortunate side-effect, we would eat there more often. As it is, though, Pavarotti's up the road (the other side of Orrong rd) and the Japanese place further up again (on the same side of Glenhuntly Rd, not the new place next to Coles) are very well suitable places to eat. As is the Mexican place a few doors up again. Spoilt for choice, I am.
Nephilim/CoC? 1on1? for a neophyte? You sadist! I thought I liked you. No Kult thrown in? Just for variety?
Re: Wongs. And stuff.
Date: 2005-02-08 10:59 pm (UTC)Never had the problem you've described at Wongs. Not even a hint of it.
Wong is a great guy, but he's harsh on his staff. Probably something due to the fact he works himself into the ground. Last September he took a holiday on the demand of his doctor (first holiday in ten years). Being Mr. Wong, he just had to organise the entire family to go with him - a party of eleven. Some holiday!
Sounds like we should all get together for a dinner one night?
The player may be a neophyte but they're doing surprisingly well. They seem to have an intuitive understanding about what roleplaying is, both as a game, a simulation and a narrative construction tool. Possibly one of the best neophytes I've ever encountered.
Ahhh, Kult... Now that would confuse the issue ;-)
Re: Wongs. And stuff.
Date: 2005-02-09 02:13 am (UTC)I think perhaps you flatter me somewhat.... I just know about narrative structures....
It has been fun - BTW when is round 2 and What is Kult????
Re: Wongs. And stuff.
Date: 2005-02-09 02:29 am (UTC)I'd say round 2 is this Friday, all probabilities considered .... ahhh, make that Thursday (tomorrow!), because Friday we visit
You don't want to know about Kult... Yet...
Re: Wongs. And stuff.
Date: 2005-02-09 02:32 am (UTC)And meet more ratties !!!!
no subject
Date: 2005-02-08 10:55 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-02-09 02:30 am (UTC)Me too... I've just subscribed to his el-jay feed...
no subject
Date: 2005-02-09 02:50 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-02-09 02:53 am (UTC)me three
Date: 2005-02-09 05:33 pm (UTC)anyway, hacker in-jokes aside, thanks for pointing this work out to me. it is very comforting to see the work of journalists help dispel the cancerous lard-valve propoganda that continues to milk this sorrowed/hallowed country of what it should not consider valuable: pain.
much love to your assistance and well written blog. were it not for wonderful young folks like yourself, i would not be able to operate securely dead or alive.
Re: me three
Date: 2005-02-09 07:46 pm (UTC)Me? Young?
Wow, it's been a while since someone's called me that!
Re: me three
Date: 2005-02-20 03:58 pm (UTC)My dad's turning 60 this year and he is occasionally accused of being a young feller.
Re: me three
Date: 2005-02-21 03:34 pm (UTC)Ahh, now. Inner urban. There's actually a few under 30s who regularly turn up.
no subject
Date: 2005-02-09 11:59 am (UTC)Combat Systems
Date: 2005-02-09 01:15 pm (UTC)Only because the standards of proof have been set so high. I have merely - as I have indicated before - tried to make the best negative argument possible.
Actually, looking over it again, I think I'm doing quite well on it.
no subject
Date: 2005-02-09 05:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-02-09 07:45 pm (UTC)Ahh, yes. Tumour. That's the word, not ulcer. Poor wee Harlequin... He's managing OK, however and certainly can have no complaints overthe quality of life. His visit to vet has resulted in some anti-inflammatories which perhaps will give him a little more movement in his back legs. He's certainly dashing around the place today.