Merry Birthmas 2019 · 8:10am Jun 17th, 2019
June 16 2019 has come and gone. Father's Day, my birthday, and the day of the Oakland Temple's rededication (which I got to attend). Not bad, all in all, if a little tiring.
Life has continued to be perpetually interesting. Winter Semester at school totally sucked despite having cool and interesting classes due to the worst roommate trouble I've ever had in my protracted college career. (Well, that and being screwed over by management siding against me at every turn. Not going back to that apartment complex ever.) I've been spending Spring Semester at home in CA completing those awesome courses I'd left undone, and I'm making pretty good progress. Almost finished with my data structures course (if I can ever get this freaking map to compile 
), and my data science class is looking eminently manageable when I take a close look at it.
Oh, and I changed my major to data science, because I discovered that I am way more interested in making data make sense to people than I am in how much bullcrap can be crammed into a number line. Just gotta get all of that finished by the end of July, and I'll be on-track to graduate at the end of Spring 2020. It has certainly been a ride...
But enough about school for now. It's not my entire life, though I do on occasion forget that fact.
Probably the best thing about being back in CA is being around my little brother again. As annoying as he can be at times, he's always been one of my best friends. We may not really enjoy the same kinds of games anymore, but we're both huge nerds, and I feel like we get each other.
The trope page for my TCatM series has been thoughtfully populated by HawthornBunny. That particularly tickles me because he's the self-proclaimed nemesis of MetaFour, who did most of the work populating the trope page for my TLH series. (That page is a couple of years out of date, by the way, in case anyone felt like updating it. 
) Speaking of the TCatM series, that plushie commission of Amber Spice that I won half a year ago for submitting Unbalanced Scales to the Sparity contest is finally done and on its way to me. It probably won't arrive until after I'm on my way to Hawaii on a family vacation (during which I'll still be doing my homework, because time waits for no man), and I haven't seen a picture of it yet, but I am looking forward to being able to see Amber Spice in the floof, as it were.
On the actual writing end of things, I'm still working on the next chapter of Desert Spice, though work on it has slowed down significantly since I'm helping edit VikingZX's next SF epic, Jungle. (Said epic is looking pretty, well, epic so far, by the way, and you should all buy it when it comes out </shill>.) I've decided to pull out of the Bronycon bookstore, due to my time currently being a little overcommitted for me to go through TLH for a major editing pass like I did with DS a while back. Maybe I'll join another such bookstore endeavor if it comes to BABSCon or EFNW in the future. I already have plans to do a major edit pass on TLH once DS is finished, after all.
Speaking of Tastes Like Heresy, does anyone here have any favorite memories or passages from that work? Just curious.
In news tangentially related to writing, I've taken up DMing a couple of 5e campaigns set in Ravnica, aka Best MtG Plane. I don't run stuff very often, and most of the stuff I've done has been preconstructed by somebody else, but my players seem pretty happy with how I've run stuff. (I will be putting together something of my own soon, though, with Orzhov intrigue and Simic shenanigans.) I and they both have had a lot of fun with the guild sub-mission mechanic that I've added to the game where every mission gives each player an additional goal they can complete to earn more standing with their guild. (Or did I adapt it from something in the GGR? Unclear.) Sometimes I use these to highlight cool set pieces they might otherwise miss, like a power loader they can take control of. Sometimes I use it to sow some conflict in the party, like where one person is trying to protect a goblin going into witness protection while another party member is trying to silence said goblin permanently. Sometimes I use it to help point players at the plot. And sometimes I just use it to flesh out their relationships with their allies and rivals within their guild. It's a fun time.
I'm also a player in a couple of campaigns. I semi-recently joined one set in Critical Role's Tal'dorei setting as a kobold gunslinger/rogue/artificer (she was just a gunslinger/rogue at the start), and I'm still playing in a Star Wars campaign as a wheeling and dealing sullustan smuggler.
On the video gaming side of things, I'm playing a lot of League of Legends and Warframe. I always seem to loop back to those two games after a while. LoL is way better with friends (especially when you're a support main like me), and being a space ninja just never loses its appeal for me for long.
Well, I suppose I've rambled at y'all for long enough for the moment. It's been a long day, though not a bad one by any means. It's been a long year, though far from boring.
Wiedersehen!
Glad to hear the good bits. Here's hoping everything stays on track for that spring 2020 graduation. (Also, if you're doing that Ravnica campaign online and need another player... Well, do keep me in mind.)
Also, my favorite TLH moment would have to be Amber's final, magnificent "screw you" to everypony who took part in her kangaroo trial. I still find myself hoping she'll return home to see an ongoing rebellion in her name. ("I keep telling you, I'm not the Messiah!")
Happy belated birthday!
5075882
Thanks!
5075785
It happens that one of my Ravnica campaigns is online, and has 5 players currently. If you're interested in being the sixth man in a severely mixed-guild party (we've got two Izzet (fighter and paladin), a Gruul barbarian, a Boros wizard, and a Rakdos abserd), and the next chunk of the campaign should start in early July. Stuff gets organized through Discord (ironic, I know, but the Forces of Chaos have always been better organized).
Spicy's epic final rant (including the verbal love letter to Outta Stock) may well be my favorite part of the novella. It's certainly the most cathartic. And yes, Amber is a very naughty filly. I don't know if there'll be a full-on rebellion when she returns (I'm not certain the unicorns would know how), but rest assured that I have plans for the final showdown. Big plans.
Ah, happy rather busy birthday! :D
Sorry about the roommate trouble, though. Glad that there are a lot of things going well in your schooling, though, it sounds like.
Regarding favorite memories or passages there, I'm afraid none in particular are currently leaping to mind, sorry.
And glad the gaming's been going well.
(And about the good bits in general, as FanOfMostEverything said. :))
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Thanks. I can't accuse life of being boring.
Happy birthday Bugsy!
As for a memorable scene from TLH, the one that I remember the most was the setup with "Here, try these!" as the nobles are enjoying them and you know it's all going to go sideways. The calm before the storm?
I remember that bit the most because you know what's coming.
Edit: What was your major before data science?
5076036
My old major was Mathematical Sciences with an emphasis on Applied Math. This involved work that was far more abstract than the word "applied" implied.
I may have let out some evil laughter when thinking about that scene you mentioned just now.
That recipe.
Significant Other and I managed to bodge something quite tasty from "Amber's" process
Happy birthday too!
5076133
Thanks! It's great to hear that I inspired some real food. Hooray for defictionalization!
Happy birthday!
5076225
Thanks!