hafwit

One of those nights...

Sat, 18 Jan 2014 09:55:02 GMT

You know what it's like when a cyclops throws a cocktail party for giants, and the only reason they ignore you is that you're so small? How you stare up into those grotesquely exaggerated faces and shudder?

And you know how you walk down to the swimming pool, and find that it is full of sad children's ghosts, all gauzy and pale? And then do you know how you convince them to form a huge composite ghost, one that rises from the pool and devours the assembled guests?

I don't either, but I sure dreamed about it last night.

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Five Worlds Dead

Wed, 01 Jan 2014 21:25:28 GMT

The Grey Emperor looms over existence, the specter of despotism and war. He has brought down the Seers of Khaa with schemes as convoluted as any they could ever contrive. They search for hollow knowledge and silent words, their wisdom turning fallow from disuse.

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Tue, 17 Dec 2013 21:50:17 GMT

Today I bought a chair because of a book.

A huge tome arrived yesterday morning (at 2:30 in the morning according to track&trace!): THE TIME TRAVELLER'S ALMANAC: The Ultimate Treasury of Time Travel Stories. It's in hardcover and weighs in at 900-odd pages.
It'll be a treat to read, as you'll no doubt agree. Just look at this stonking table of contents. There's a lot of classics, a lot of newer shorts, and essays about time travel science and fashion (the latter by glvalentine )

With such a wonderful bit of reading material in my hand, I realized that my home was ill equipped for reading it! The book is too big for reading in bed (for fear of getting a mild concussion should I drift off) and my desk is too full of, well, debris of life (as well as computer and speakers). Clearly a new piece of furniture was needed to enjoy this book properly.

Today I took the plunge and bought a good-as-new easy chair from a thrift shop. Had to carry it home though. Now it feels like my arms are floating, but the chair is nice. Now I have a proper place to read and luxuriate.

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Oh mother!

Sun, 15 Dec 2013 23:33:25 GMT

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NaNo

Fri, 01 Nov 2013 17:50:53 GMT

I'm off to a good but not great start. I'm making today's word count, but most likely not much more than that.

I'm four pages into a longer short story, as well as a couple of paragraphs into a shorter one. I'm all about the discipline.

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I'm back!

Sun, 27 Oct 2013 22:40:52 GMT

Back from Essen SPIEL that is

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Unignorable

Wed, 02 Oct 2013 20:18:06 GMT

This is the last page of an issue of the comic Fell (Warren Ellis/Ben Templesmith). After a night shift as a detective in the horrid burg of Snowtown, our hero Richard Fell stands, Batman-style on the roof of an apartment building, watching the sun rise. After a day of dealing with incompetence, perversity and needless cruelty, he writes in his post-it journal: "7 am. This is where I live now. None of you are nothing to me".

It's such a beautiful and grandiose sentiment. To see everyone as people and not just as means, obstacles or moving backdrops. In a series about heinous and misguided crimes, it's almost super-humanly righteous.
It also how I sometimes feel, and sometimes wishes I could act like I felt. I'm terrible at ignoring people. Some part of me needs to keep an eye on them. I gotta know where they are and what they are doing. I imagine where they are going, how they're feeling and other stuff I can't know. None of them are nothing to me. They can't be ignored.

At the same time I often get overloaded by all that scrutinizing, and I need to be alone, and I can't be anything to other people. I just conk out and the world can go whistle. I wish I had more energy to be more present.

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Have you heard the good tunes

Fri, 06 Sep 2013 05:57:47 GMT

Since I love music and lists, and since my birthday is here, I made a list with a favorite song for every year of my life.

Tore's Birthday Compilation

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Sat, 31 Aug 2013 20:11:15 GMT

Held my birthday today, and it was lovely. According to my brother (Mr. Solidarity) I'm "seventy half-years old". Or will be come Friday. No wonder I'm tired.

My mom told an anecdote from her rural childhood. apparently there was a kid in her class who lost his hair from shock after having been gored by cattle. There's always stories and puns when we meet up.

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Sparks

Mon, 26 Aug 2013 19:53:03 GMT

Watched a non-horror movie tonight, Ruby Sparks from 2012. It's the kind of movie that tacks a happy end on a story which would be better served without it.

(There will be spoilers).

The basic premise is as follows: a best-selling writer with writer's block writes a girlfriend who becomes real. She's the Ruby in the title. What he writes about her becomes true; something he proceeds to abuse.

Pro: The concept is an interesting one. It could be said to be about fiction-writing as wish-fulfillment, or as an excuse for not being a decent person. Or maybe it's about the idea of the non-threatening dream girl as it collides with reality (and a Real Person), and the creepiness that follows.
Paul Dano is good as the soft-spoken yet controlling writer-boyfriend, and Zoe Kazan (who wrote, produced and probably moonlighted as second unit gaffer) pretty much personifies the artsy non-threatening dream girl.
Asif Mandvi and Antonio Banderas have some small but funny roles as Dano's agent and stepfather respectively.

Con: It's unsubtle as fuck. This movie doesn't just make its points, it drives them home with a short-handled sledge. If you missed something, Deborah Ann Woll drops by as Dano's ex, articulating what even the people slurping Pepsi in the back row has grasped: Our main character wants a girlfriend that does not in any way challenge or annoy him.
The greatest sin is the mealy-mouthed happy end though. After writerboy's darkest moment, a sea-changed comes upon him. He writes an apologetic book about the whole thing, complete with self-congratulatory post-script (on a pristine Apple laptop, as if it was the mean typewriter what done it).
Then, of course he meets Ruby, who doesn't remember anything. They have a genuine meet cute, and it seems that romance is in the air. Eugh.
If I had my druthers, they would properly acknowledge writerboy's seriously unpleasant and controlling nature. Instead it's just magic'd away.

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Hafwit's Writing Rules

Sat, 24 Aug 2013 19:38:28 GMT

No one knows the law like the consummate reprobate.

1: Thinking about writing has only slightly greater effect than thinking about running a marathon. I've really thought hard about both.
2: You need to read. Writing doesn't come from nothing. Taste what you read.
3: Sometimes it won't work no matter how much you want it to. You can't let that stop you.
4: You gotta prep for lightning to strike from a clear sky.
5: Having lots of time is no guarantee that you'll get anything done.
6: Know what you write. Be conscious of the process and the ramifications of what you put on paper.
7: Write as much as you can.

Y'all know the rules, we don't fuck with fools man
How the fuck did we get so cool man?
Never ever disrespect my crew
If ya fuck with Wu we gots ta fuck witchu
-- Wu-Tang Clan

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Thu, 15 Aug 2013 22:34:56 GMT

"For thirty years you dreamt you were a hero, and condoned a thousand petty lapses--because a hero, of course, can do no wrong."
-- Sartre

When you feel that you have an enemy, or that you're on the right side of an issue, that becomes a justification in itself. You're not as bad as THEM. Being on the right side has bought you those thousand petty lapses.

Brought on by the (triggery) PZ Myers post.

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Rock!

Wed, 14 Aug 2013 10:28:07 GMT

Praise be to Flying Nun Records! I bought some music from them (the awesome 25th Anniversary Box Set) in MP3 format. Halfway through the dl something FUBARed and I was left with a zip-file I couldn't open and an inactive dl link.
I sent them an email, and after six days of thinking that that ship had sailed, they kindly reactivated the link with no fuss.

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Lovely Friday

Fri, 09 Aug 2013 21:09:49 GMT

Made a terrine with root beets, carrots, apples, onions, zucchini, bulgur and a leetle bacon (as well as some eggs to hold it all together). It turned out tasting great, but it would've been a bit more cohesive if I'd remembered potato.

The rest of the day I did close to nothing. I missed my calling, I shoulda been a plant.

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Bleedin'

Tue, 06 Aug 2013 19:33:50 GMT

So I woke this morning, and something felt wonky. My ear seemed clogged, and my hand came away bloody. There was blood on the outer ear and I could hardly hear anything (the other ear was ok though). It didn't hurt, but had clearly bled a decent amount. I figure my eardrum has burst.

I found out my ear specialist was on holiday, but after a bit of digging I found one who could give me an appointment at 2:20 this afternoon.

Turns out it was just a small blood vessel which had burst (caused by the tube drain in that ear). The loss of hearing was from clotted blood. Unpleasant, but not nearly as bad as feared. Hering's still a bit messed up.

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Ready for hackin'!

Tue, 30 Jul 2013 15:17:10 GMT

Cortex Plus Hacker's Guide (the .pdf) is on my trembling hard drive! Woo! And indeed hooo!

Thank you, Margaret Weis Productions, Cam Banks and all the contributors. That was a treat to come home to.

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It's Saturday Night...

Sat, 20 Apr 2013 21:15:53 GMT

...and I'm drinking chocolate milk and listening to hair metal. Sigh. What are youse up to?

"'Sister Christian' is nothing but a heavy petting power ballad."

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Is There A Doctor In The House?

Sun, 14 Apr 2013 16:22:17 GMT

So, I'm trying to make a small setting for Doctor Who: Adventures In Time And Space in the small town of Valier, Montana. Strange things happen out there, y'see.

( Read more... )

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Lords of the Dance

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 19:56:16 GMT

These are our leaders. Well, by 'ours' I mean the mayor of my town and those of the surrounding counties. They want to entice creative entrepeneurish people to set up shop in our corner of nowhere. Gangnam Style.

These are the men that govern us.

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Sun, 31 Mar 2013 18:10:28 GMT

Argh! My LJ no longer recognizes my password, and the e-mail they've got on file was hacked and gone the way of all flesh.

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Back in the (unspeakable) saddle

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 22:40:07 GMT

I'm restarting a play-by-post game on rpg.net. Investigative horror/fantasy using Over The Edge rules. I have the best players. They're a joy to read and to challenge.
I stopped the game just before my time in the psych ward (May '11). Well, at the time I was pretty sure I was stopping everything.

Here's the intro:

A year has passed in International Falls, Minnesota, and many things have changed. Even more has stayed the same.

It's March 25th, 2012. It's still colder than a well-digger's ass, and spring seems far away.

Sgt. Mendez walks through Smoky Bear Park. Since she made sergeant she doesn't do walkthroughs like a beat cop, and she sometimes misses it. Sleepless nights like this one are an outlet of sorts, even if they do make the next day hell. It's Tuesday morning, and everything is quiet as falling snow. The moon is full and gives everything a pleasantly eerie aspect. Like the world's more mysterious and meaningful than it ever seems in the sunlight.
Then she stops. Ahead of her there is a shadow. A vast thing that stretches across the sidewalk, the road and the park itself. "It probably stretches across city hall too..." she thinks distractedly to herself.
Sgt. Mendez looks up slowly. The alien structure is a tower, impossibly tall, and gray like ash. It sways gently, and like a doting supplicant, the shadow follows. The tower has several spires, almost like spines on some prehistoric monstrosity.
She gets her phone out from her coat pocket. "This is Sgt. Mendez... Yeah, I'm off duty. I need. Shit, I need a patrol car down here."

The car arrives after eleven silent minutes. Eleven minutes where she expects the impossibility before her eyes to vanish any second. It doesn't. As the sun rises to another cold clear morning, the whole city will know that they have begun a new life in the shadow of the tower.

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Still don't wanna jinx it...

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 17:26:30 GMT

...but I've started writing again. This time I'll finish it before posting bits of it. It's game-stuff, and may be approaching fanfic.

In slightly related news, I've splurged a bit. Through an internet bookstore I've bought:

Doctor Who Adventures in Time and Space: The Roleplaying Game (11th Doctor Version)
Doctor Who: Starships and Spacestations
Doctor Who: The Ultimate Monster Guide

A nerd is me. A happy nerd.

Today I kept two friends company while they were waiting to to go to a funeral. Bought them hot drinks at a café while the snow was blowing outside. Between them they've lost three relatives in the space of four months. They could do with some GOOD fortune now. They did most of the talking. I just listened.

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Cometh the hour cometh Alice Cooper with a Bicycle

Wed, 13 Mar 2013 16:04:54 GMT

I re-watched Carpenter's Prince of Darkness last night. I'm happy and surprised to see how well it holds up. The feel of something unfathomable approaching is brilliantly maintained throughout. in some ways it's the most Lovecraftian movie ever made.

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Illuminaaaatee!

Fri, 08 Mar 2013 14:33:00 GMT

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One of the Few

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 15:29:19 GMT

A while ago I backed my first Kickstarter, the one for the Cortex Plus Hacker's Guide. It's a setting-neutral anthology of ways to use the system. Just now I got my draft manuscript. Woo! I feel all special. I'm guessing that's one of the appeals of Kickstarter.

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