Woohoo! Videogames do not increase violence in children.

Score one for the gamers...

The Truth About Violent Youth and Video Games - Game Revolution

This quiz means I'm still alive.

My japanese name is 藤原 Fujiwara (wisteria fields) 聖人 Masato (sacred person).
Take your real japanese name generator! today!
Created with Rum and Monkey's Name Generator Generator.

Some people need to believe in something... anything.

Talk about strange. Apparently Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia seems to be in dire need of spirituality as Malaysian Authorities arrest 58 followers of a cult that worships a giant teapot.

Interestingly, this happened after 30-35 people, armed with machetes and Molotov cocktails attacked the cult's headquarters.

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This mildly amusing, and somewhat disturbing news brings up the question as to why cults show up. I think there are people out there which are out to capitalize on other people's needs for spirituality, their desire to seek out meaning gets sidetracked by people professing to know the "true" way.

But what drives them to join a cult? Are these people so conceited that they don't think normal religions will do to help their own needs? Let's not even go to certain credit card run religons that employ celebrities to advertise and promote ideals started by an insane Science Fiction Authors.

Sometimes, what people need are a reason to exist. They feel lost and helpless, and we can't really blame them. Whether this is because they can't cope with the problems in their lives, or if they have deep seated psychological issues.

Sometimes I wish I could go ahead and say something, but in the end it's a matter of people fixing their own lives. The best thing we can do is to offer to listen to them if they want to be heard.

Careful Planning

One of the things that I'm just learning to do well in GMing is planning. In my ongoing L5R tabletop campaign, things are going smoothly, and I'm happy to see that most of my players are pretty excited about what's going on.

My only problem now is coming up with situations to keep the excitement high and the pace quick. The setting for Legend of the Five Rings is pretty complicated in terms of social interaction. Samurai characters are pretty much stuck with loyalty to their Daimyo and superiors, Bushido, and their own personal feelings for a situation. Alex likened it to Fading Suns, and Vampire: the Masquerade two games who are also notorious for their rigid social structures.

So I find myself spending my idle time thinking, and plotting and planning. Admittedly, I'm a quick thinker, but I suck at planning. Insufficient attention to detail always comes back to bite me in the ass. Maybe this is my chance to curtail my habit of jumping into games half-prepared and throwing caution to the wind...

Shoutbox Courtesy

I'd like to direct all of you readers to my shoutbox, where the more regular readers may have noticed a certain Perrin Sy, aka "Piggy" (an appropriate name as any) has decided to make a nuisance of himself.

Last week had been a particularly annoying one, due to many misfortunes that befell me in my three day attempt to recover my last paycheck from the Call Center I worked in previously. Rather than be able to de-stress over the week, I find myself having to deal with a nuisance flooding my Shoutbox with immature, and annoying statements directed at me and my girlfriend.

I've attempted to inform him to stop from making such comments by telling him more than once to quit doing so. The current contents of my shoutbox are a testimony to his inability to process these requests, and failure to respect a person's blog.

While I understand that Perrin believes that this is all a "joke", I feel that it wasn't funny the first time, and it is definitely not funny now. I am very tempted to write some unflattering words regarding him right now, but I will not.

Perrin, in whatever news I've heard of you, I've held you in quiet respect. I read your Piaoling e-mails with interest, and never have I stepped out of the line to harass you regarding the contents of such. I expect you to extend me the same respect and courtesy, and leave my shoutbox alone.

I would have asked for a sincere apology, but I do not wish to set my expectations too high for you to meet.

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With regards to this, I present to everyone the following observation from the webcomic: Penny-Arcade regarding Perrin's behavior.

And no, Perrin, I will no longer recall your name from my posts, even if you ask nicely.

Drug Addicted Kung Fu Bunny Fighters are Go! Film at 11...

I'm proud to say that my 24 Hour RPG effort has been a success!

The 1000 Monkeys, 1000 Typewriters Site has it up alongside the other submissions for the 24 hour RPG Challenge.

For more information on the 24 Hour RPG check out their website:



And now time for some self-congratulating dance, as done by this anime schoolgirl:



I might try this 24 Hour RPG thing again next week, over the weekend. :D

Crack Kung Fu Fighting Bunnies... Go!

For lack of a better excuse than to challenge myself, I tried to make a functioning RPG in the shortest possible time. Because of that, I end up with Crack Kung-Fu Fighting Bunnies... Go! a game of stimulant-fueled martial arts fighting rodents.

Check it out if you're curious. ;)

Go to my RPG Page and scroll down to the very bottom. Click on the link there to download the PDF. I'd give you guys a direct link, but Geocities hates those.

Enjoy!

Cybernetic Fish Geekery!

Take a moment to read this little article brought to my attention by Niccomawf:

"SCIENTISTS CREATE ROBO-FISH CYBORG
USING A LAMPREY'S BRAIN … NO, REALLY"by Tom Henderson

That's so cool. In a creepy sort of way. Once scientists are fully able to apply that kind of technology to humans, imagine the weird and wonderful and downright scary stuff that could make.

Biotech things like these could make it far easier for us to interface with computers, kicking off the whole "Matrix" experience, jacking into interfaces that offer true immersion, not by using screens and speakers by by directly stimulating the brain! Combined with research regarding learning and memory, perhaps it could even be reasoned that such technology can be used to "teach" individuals jacked into it.

Looks like Cyberpunk is the way to go...

Little words of online wisdom...

Sometimes what people need is a little moderation, a little peace and a little introspection. In this time where things go awry, people grow short tempered, and nothing seems to go right, it helps to take a step back and refocus.

As a little offering to those interested in reading something calming for once, here's a link to
Lao Tsu's Tao Te Ching Online.

And since we're on the topic of re-centering oneself, here's a quote from Chapter 16 of the Tao Te Ching:

Empty yourself of everything.
Let the mind rest at peace.
The ten thousand things rise and fall while the Self watches their return.
They grow and flourish and then return to the source.
Returning to the source is stillness, which is the way of nature.
The way of nature is unchanging.
Knowing constancy is insight.
Not knowing constancy leads to disaster.
Knowing constancy, the mind is open.
With an open mind, you will be openhearted.
Being openhearted, you will act royally.
Being royal, you will attain the divine.
Being divine, you will be at one with the Tao.
Being at one with the Tao is eternal.
And though the body dies, the Tao will never pass away.

Photoblogging, sorta...

Just giving a few pictures from the camera phone out into the wild for a spin. A couple of these are funny things that I've run into here in the Philippines.

My first pic is a friendly warning over in the Tiangge of Greenbelt 1:



Germs! Germs are Everywhere! Can't you see?!

Well, maybe not, but there are no shops in Greenbelt 1 called Germs, and a quick interview with the security guard merited nothing. Perhaps I should contact the Department of Health.

Either that or it's a ploy by the Healthway Medical Clinic, whose sign is placed so conveniently underneath the offending sign.

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Next up is a silent cry for the state of the Philippine economy.



A single yellow sign. Standing by itself in the middle of a crowded mall, begging for attention. Apparently our Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) really needs help.

For non Tagalog speakers, "tulungan" means "to assist, to aid, to help". The sign pretty much screams, "HELP the BIR!"

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As if that wasn't enough, here's a book that Alex and I stumbled onto in one of the higher class bookstores:


(Alex is here, showing the best expression possible upon the discovery of this book)

Apparently the pornography market is getting really crowded nowdays. Hence, we have to start finding niches, just like what these lesiban horse lovers are doing!

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Finally we have a close shot at a mutant:



What is wrong with that lobster. At first, it seems pretty normal, until you realize that the lobster has it's face on it's back and the face is upside down too... scary.

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Anyway, that's all I've got from my camera phone at the moment. Once I get a bluetooth enabled data transfer thingy for my home PC, expect to see a lot more pictures here really soon.

Quick Post: Backstroke of the West!

Just because...
Backstroke of the West

RPG nightmares

One of the strangest things that can happen to a GM in pen and paper rpgs is to end up with a group of players which are either a) stupid or b) scary. To demonstrate take a peek at this strip from VG Cats.

In a humor oriented game, I wouldn't mind having a character using a Rat Flail as a weapon for his character, but sometimes, it just goes too far.

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Speaking of strangeness in RPGs, I've noticed that my saturday afternoon gaming group tends to come up with strange character concepts. I'm usually okay with character concepts that stray from the norm, but it tends to bother me once people start making really, really, whacked out character concepts.

Take the Legend of the Five Rings RPG for example. My evening group is fine, we've got a good mix of characters that each have a goal and a great group dynamic going on. I'm cool with that.

My afternoon group on the other hand... has weirdness.

One character that boggles my mind is one Scorpion samurai girl who is supposed to be Extremely attractive (character illustration not hers, but rather to stress the point of what scorpions are) but after which is made to be the samurai equivalent of Forrest Gump on crack.

Oh well. That's the way it is in RPGs. Us GMs just have to roll with the punches, and make sure that everyone has a good time. :)

Lonely Morning Haze 4

"Go to hell."

I stood there, stunned at the words. They were feeble ones, admittedly, the sudden outburst of one unaccustomed to swearing. Her voice wavered slightly, her conviction shaky and unsure.

And yet, there I was looking completely, utterly shocked.

Her face, still stuck in a scowl that betrayed no small amount of hate, shifted to uncertainty, and then pain. A tear rolled down her cheek as she held the books to her chest, as she bumped past me.

I watched her run, her movements awkward as she broke into a run...

---

"Mark."

Mark looked up from the computer screen at the cafe, "Hmm?"

Anna stood beside him, bag slung over his shoulder, "Let's get out of here, Mark. It's seven already."

Mark blinked, adjusting his eyes from the glow of the monitor to the darkness of the internet cafe. "Alright, just let me save this."

Anna watched over his shoulder smiling, "Still working on that story, huh?"

"Yeah."

"What's inspiring you to do that?"

"Nothing really." Nothing that I can tell you... yet. Mark opened up a browser, posting it up on his website.

"Did you ever think that you could go pro?"

Mark uploaded the file and closed the browser, standing up to head to the counter. "What do you mean?"

"I meant writing for money. Like a real author." Anna pushed her glasses up her nose, "I mean, you seem to have a real knack for it."

Mark shrugged, "Thanks, but I've never really had the ability to really finish anything. I never have what it takes to follow through."

Anna frowned, "That's no good, it's a waste of your talent!"

Mark chuckled as they stepped outside, and began to walk, taking the shortcut through the park. It was a rather wet evening, where the sky was brighter than it should be, the clouds a dull purple haze, the raindrops dancing in the streetlights.

Mark fished into his bag and took out an umbrella, opening it. "Talent..." he mused, as Anna walked beside him, "There's no money in writing." he explained, "Even if I had the talent, there's nowhere for it to go."

Anna frowned, "That's not true! Look at all the people who write novels! There's got to be something there."

"Maybe there is, maybe there isn't," What is she trying to do? Mark shrugged, "In either case, I don't think I'll be a great writer. I'll just be a regular joe schmoe, stuck in a pencil pusher's job, watching the clock and chatting with co-workers by the water dispenser." he smiled at her.

Anna raised an eyebrow, "Wow... that's some ambition you've got there. I can think of like... zero people who consider that the ideal lifestyle."

"You haven't spoken to enough office workers who are too engrossed with keeping their jobs and paying their bills."

"And you have?" Anna huffed, "Come on, you and I both know that's a load of bull." she stuck her tongue out at him.

"Maybe it is." Mark said, "But the point is, writing isn't a stable job, besides, it's underappreciated, underpaid, emotionally draining and requires a measure of commitment reserved for the desperate, the delusional or the religious."

"Then all you need to do is to write about something you like." she said, "Sounds easy enough."

"Easy?" Mark laughed, "It only looks easy."

"Are you saying I can't do it?" Anna had a dangerous tone in her voice.

"Well... no." Mark said, "I'm just saying that writing is harder than it looks."

"I challenge you." she said, pointing at him, her index finger poking the tip of his nose.

"Whuh?"

"We'll both write something, but it has to be a novel." Anna explained, "You write about something that you like, and I'll do the same. And we have to be done with it by the end of the semester."

Mark grinned, "Hah! Challenge me, will you? I know I can do it... but can you?"

Anna winked, "Never underestimate the power of a motivated woman."

---

More slice of life stories. This one isn't something I can say I'm really proud of, but ah well. Might as well put it up anyway. As usual, I'm open to any comments or suggestions on what to do next with this story.

Frustrated Artist.

I could never really draw. I've practiced at times, only to grow frustrated at my efforts, seeing how little I've improved. Surfing around, I've found the perfect picture of how difficult it is for me to follow instructions on "how to draw..." books, or my frustration after listening to friends who draw very well:



(source: Liberty Meadows, courtesy of Frank Cho)

Dammit. :p

Simple games for busy bodies

For those who are holding down a job, and have barely enough time to take a break, I introduce: jay is - jay bibby's rants and raves of flash games and gameplay, a website that I've stumbled upon that provides maximum entertainment for a minimum of time.

I think its time videogame designers remembered why games are games again, instead of obsessing over system specs and "story" that reads like crap. I like story, but I like my game storylines without crappiness.