(no subject)
A lot's happened, but I can only say so much. Like I said before, the website is basically done; I have to do a LOT of meetings/scheduling/stuff next week. It's going to be really busy, especially in preparation for my academics, setting up things with the disability services and hopefully getting a TAship this time around to make some money. I need to do that; I'm hoping to move up near Toronto or into the California area next summer... we'll see how it goes.
The HUGE thing I have to do, besides this drawing project this week and these preparations, is working on a video game. To be precise, I told my teacher that for his graduate class my graduation project would be a platformer game... his class is on video games (Virtual Worlds), and for the graduate equivalent I am supposed to work on a 3d video game (in OpenGL probably). Since I was starting theorizing on a platformer... I offered to make that 3d instead of 2d. But the problem is... that's a HUGE amount of work! Amazingly so! Holy crap do I have a lot to do on it before August ends...
Why couldn't I have offered to work on an RPG instead?
As another bit of news, my brother has got me involved in Warhammer 40k. Not enough to invest money in it (jeebeebers are those armies expensive), but he has a piece of software that's used to play board games online called Vassal. It's free, lets you play online, and isn't "structured" the way a game is... basically, it's an engine that lets you track things, roll dice and share it, chat in a room, and edit the gaming field as you two see fit. Of course, someone can cheat and delete all the pieces or something, but the point of it is that it's not a "game" so much as a "gaming environment". If you know the difference.
I've been borrowing his Codices and Rulebook and putting together a "TAU" army, which apparently he's never seen his friends use. It's going to suck, but I might throw together some variations on the army and see if I can put together anything to overrun his. ;) He's much better at this sorta thing, but I like the premise and what he's described of the tactics... particularly that it's not so much about the army-type or compositions, but how you use it. Everyone has their own unique setups that work for them... at least as far as he's experienced. We'll see how I do.
So! I'm visiting a friend in LA; I haven't had internet steadily in a while, but I got to visit my grandmother and my uncles, including a few relatives I haven't seen in a decade or more. It was fun to do.
I also got to take a drive and walk with my mother, grandmother, and my uncle's daughter (a cousin? I should probably know how that works ¬_¬) through a forest with _Redwoods_. The whole area was impressive; even the hour-drive up to his house was along ridges and hillsides that were framed with large trees on both sides.
Apparently they have a big ecalyptus problem out there; when the trees rot they tend to fall over and even crush houses. They had those in the redwood trail too, but a lot more massive redwoods that must be a good -six stories- tall. It doesn't look it from these pictures... but there was foliage everywhere... it was like walking through a tunnel covered by a canopy towering above in the air... I even heard birds that I swear sound like they should be in a jungle.
The leaves immediately by the trail were gray from all the dust kicked up by cars driving by. It's kind of annoying, but deeper in the forest is incredibly green and lush.
Redwoods 1
Redwoods 2
Redwoods 3
Redwoods 4
Redwoods 5
Redwoods 6
My uncle Rob also has a strange little area in the back of his place that's basically like a garden of bonsais. As soon as I get the pictures together I'll definitely upload them and post a few links up here. Sleeping there was rough, but that's a long story... and it wasn't as rough as staying at my uncle Fred's the next night. Blegh.
Now I'm staying with a friend, as I said. Just hanging out, playing games, watching TV, and just hanging out. I forgot to bring my camera; we are going to go to an aquarium in Monterey tomorrow that I'm looking forwards to. No pictures of it, but it should be fun. I'll share what I can verbally. ;)
I have a drawing project to work on over here before Sunday... hopefully I can get it's basis at least started before it finishes. I'll put it up here too when it finishes! In the meantime, I have tabletop gaming to inflict on someone...
The HUGE thing I have to do, besides this drawing project this week and these preparations, is working on a video game. To be precise, I told my teacher that for his graduate class my graduation project would be a platformer game... his class is on video games (Virtual Worlds), and for the graduate equivalent I am supposed to work on a 3d video game (in OpenGL probably). Since I was starting theorizing on a platformer... I offered to make that 3d instead of 2d. But the problem is... that's a HUGE amount of work! Amazingly so! Holy crap do I have a lot to do on it before August ends...
Why couldn't I have offered to work on an RPG instead?
As another bit of news, my brother has got me involved in Warhammer 40k. Not enough to invest money in it (jeebeebers are those armies expensive), but he has a piece of software that's used to play board games online called Vassal. It's free, lets you play online, and isn't "structured" the way a game is... basically, it's an engine that lets you track things, roll dice and share it, chat in a room, and edit the gaming field as you two see fit. Of course, someone can cheat and delete all the pieces or something, but the point of it is that it's not a "game" so much as a "gaming environment". If you know the difference.
I've been borrowing his Codices and Rulebook and putting together a "TAU" army, which apparently he's never seen his friends use. It's going to suck, but I might throw together some variations on the army and see if I can put together anything to overrun his. ;) He's much better at this sorta thing, but I like the premise and what he's described of the tactics... particularly that it's not so much about the army-type or compositions, but how you use it. Everyone has their own unique setups that work for them... at least as far as he's experienced. We'll see how I do.
So! I'm visiting a friend in LA; I haven't had internet steadily in a while, but I got to visit my grandmother and my uncles, including a few relatives I haven't seen in a decade or more. It was fun to do.
I also got to take a drive and walk with my mother, grandmother, and my uncle's daughter (a cousin? I should probably know how that works ¬_¬) through a forest with _Redwoods_. The whole area was impressive; even the hour-drive up to his house was along ridges and hillsides that were framed with large trees on both sides.
Apparently they have a big ecalyptus problem out there; when the trees rot they tend to fall over and even crush houses. They had those in the redwood trail too, but a lot more massive redwoods that must be a good -six stories- tall. It doesn't look it from these pictures... but there was foliage everywhere... it was like walking through a tunnel covered by a canopy towering above in the air... I even heard birds that I swear sound like they should be in a jungle.
The leaves immediately by the trail were gray from all the dust kicked up by cars driving by. It's kind of annoying, but deeper in the forest is incredibly green and lush.
Redwoods 1
Redwoods 2
Redwoods 3
Redwoods 4
Redwoods 5
Redwoods 6
My uncle Rob also has a strange little area in the back of his place that's basically like a garden of bonsais. As soon as I get the pictures together I'll definitely upload them and post a few links up here. Sleeping there was rough, but that's a long story... and it wasn't as rough as staying at my uncle Fred's the next night. Blegh.
Now I'm staying with a friend, as I said. Just hanging out, playing games, watching TV, and just hanging out. I forgot to bring my camera; we are going to go to an aquarium in Monterey tomorrow that I'm looking forwards to. No pictures of it, but it should be fun. I'll share what I can verbally. ;)
I have a drawing project to work on over here before Sunday... hopefully I can get it's basis at least started before it finishes. I'll put it up here too when it finishes! In the meantime, I have tabletop gaming to inflict on someone...