A quick retrospective
Dear Diary,
I didn't expect time to fly quite this fast. It feels like I just wrote down an entry only a few weeks ago, but...oh well. So much to write about, but where to start? I might as well try to get this stuff done in smaller chunks to get something written down before work, studies and hobbies drag me back.
Due to LJ deciding to be an ass, it reformatted my perfectly fine entry into an unreadable mess, so I'll just have to rewrite it all in a more concise manner. Whether this is Russia getting back at me for being a Finn (due to recent annoying changes in the political climate between our countries and how Putin and his asskissers are being douches on so many levels now that I wonder if the Cold War ever really ended), I'll keep this short. Next time I'll remember to write things down in Wordpad first before trusting on LJ's formatting system... >_>
So, I managed to see both Wreck-It Ralph and Frozen. Both are decent films and fine additions to Disney Animated Canon, but they're not without their flaws. I felt Ralph had a bit too chaotic pace to really let scenes speak for themselves (with a couple of notable exceptions) but it was a solid film overall. Frozen had some nice songs although it needed some script doctoring despite its pretty ideas; the animation is the best out of current generation of Disney animated films, that's for sure, though. The scores in both films had their moments but weren't near the best Disney soundtracks. I'll give Wreck-It Ralph 3½ stars and Frozen 4- stars out of 5.
I recently realized it's been over 10 years since I first registered at tGA, and that tGAWiki now has over 1,500 articles. Funny how quickly time flies. It only feels like I've been a member for a year and how I started out by introducing my troubled thief character into the plot. The years have been a nice learning experience in writing, and I'd like to believe my writing has improved over the years as I've tested different writing styles, both serious and comical (including some rather "taboo" subjects) to see what works and doesn't work in my own "style". It's been fun seeing these characters' stories go on, and how other writers' stories have affected theirs. It's nice to see how tGA's Refan is totally different from the other Refan I've been basing him on, and I'm glad I've had a "test drive" with him and other creative writing characters at tGA first before translating them into written Finnish form.
Thanks to tGA, I've made a few online buddies who I talk to from time to time, and it's been fun swapping ideas with them. Although years have gone by and people have other responsibilities nowadays and less time for chatting, it's still nice whenever they come online and talk even if just for a little while. I guess I should've realized that time has gone by because kids who were born when the Lion King premiered can now legally buy booze in Finland, so yeah. Well, we'll always have our memories, at least.
Still, I hope tGA will stay afloat despite the technical problems we've had. Thankfully Nic, Samuraid, BoB and the like have been of tremendous help, offering their aid despite their schedules, and we've had a small but active player base at the moment who are into the plot and actually contribute to it instead of just following along. I do hope we can attract more people to the forums, but time will tell what'll happen with that. Either way, I'm glad I've been part of tGA's life cycle and how it has helped me hone my writing over this past decade even if said writing has been done in a language I don't master quite as well as I do with my mother tongue.
Anyway, I've been quite busy renovating parents' house. At the moment it's a joint project between mom and I after dad's passing and we've run into some trouble along the way due to damage caused by a leaky pipe which we recently discovered (well, those pipes are originals from 1950, so it's about time those get changed!). The house does look quite good now compared to what it used to be with some very modern yet traditionally-minded colours for floor, walls and ceiling. I had to take a loan from the bak to be able to afford it, but thankfully my job has kept me financially able to continue keeping the house in our family. Working has ended up delaying my studies a bit too much, though, but I hope I can get my B.A. and M.A. theses done ASAP depending on circumstances; right now money comes first, unfortunately, so I'll have to keep working more, which will eat away from my study time. I look forward to the future, though, and it's going to be interesting to see what the next 10 years will hold for me. Hopefully a few more events than the past decade has been (army training and family deaths notwithstanding).
Time's running out on my end at the moment so this'll have to do for now. I've lots of other things to write about; I'll see when I can write my thoughts down on certain contemporary and personal matters at a later date. Hopefully it won't take as long as last time.
Yours,
Mikko
I didn't expect time to fly quite this fast. It feels like I just wrote down an entry only a few weeks ago, but...oh well. So much to write about, but where to start? I might as well try to get this stuff done in smaller chunks to get something written down before work, studies and hobbies drag me back.
Due to LJ deciding to be an ass, it reformatted my perfectly fine entry into an unreadable mess, so I'll just have to rewrite it all in a more concise manner. Whether this is Russia getting back at me for being a Finn (due to recent annoying changes in the political climate between our countries and how Putin and his asskissers are being douches on so many levels now that I wonder if the Cold War ever really ended), I'll keep this short. Next time I'll remember to write things down in Wordpad first before trusting on LJ's formatting system... >_>
So, I managed to see both Wreck-It Ralph and Frozen. Both are decent films and fine additions to Disney Animated Canon, but they're not without their flaws. I felt Ralph had a bit too chaotic pace to really let scenes speak for themselves (with a couple of notable exceptions) but it was a solid film overall. Frozen had some nice songs although it needed some script doctoring despite its pretty ideas; the animation is the best out of current generation of Disney animated films, that's for sure, though. The scores in both films had their moments but weren't near the best Disney soundtracks. I'll give Wreck-It Ralph 3½ stars and Frozen 4- stars out of 5.
I recently realized it's been over 10 years since I first registered at tGA, and that tGAWiki now has over 1,500 articles. Funny how quickly time flies. It only feels like I've been a member for a year and how I started out by introducing my troubled thief character into the plot. The years have been a nice learning experience in writing, and I'd like to believe my writing has improved over the years as I've tested different writing styles, both serious and comical (including some rather "taboo" subjects) to see what works and doesn't work in my own "style". It's been fun seeing these characters' stories go on, and how other writers' stories have affected theirs. It's nice to see how tGA's Refan is totally different from the other Refan I've been basing him on, and I'm glad I've had a "test drive" with him and other creative writing characters at tGA first before translating them into written Finnish form.
Thanks to tGA, I've made a few online buddies who I talk to from time to time, and it's been fun swapping ideas with them. Although years have gone by and people have other responsibilities nowadays and less time for chatting, it's still nice whenever they come online and talk even if just for a little while. I guess I should've realized that time has gone by because kids who were born when the Lion King premiered can now legally buy booze in Finland, so yeah. Well, we'll always have our memories, at least.
Still, I hope tGA will stay afloat despite the technical problems we've had. Thankfully Nic, Samuraid, BoB and the like have been of tremendous help, offering their aid despite their schedules, and we've had a small but active player base at the moment who are into the plot and actually contribute to it instead of just following along. I do hope we can attract more people to the forums, but time will tell what'll happen with that. Either way, I'm glad I've been part of tGA's life cycle and how it has helped me hone my writing over this past decade even if said writing has been done in a language I don't master quite as well as I do with my mother tongue.
Anyway, I've been quite busy renovating parents' house. At the moment it's a joint project between mom and I after dad's passing and we've run into some trouble along the way due to damage caused by a leaky pipe which we recently discovered (well, those pipes are originals from 1950, so it's about time those get changed!). The house does look quite good now compared to what it used to be with some very modern yet traditionally-minded colours for floor, walls and ceiling. I had to take a loan from the bak to be able to afford it, but thankfully my job has kept me financially able to continue keeping the house in our family. Working has ended up delaying my studies a bit too much, though, but I hope I can get my B.A. and M.A. theses done ASAP depending on circumstances; right now money comes first, unfortunately, so I'll have to keep working more, which will eat away from my study time. I look forward to the future, though, and it's going to be interesting to see what the next 10 years will hold for me. Hopefully a few more events than the past decade has been (army training and family deaths notwithstanding).
Time's running out on my end at the moment so this'll have to do for now. I've lots of other things to write about; I'll see when I can write my thoughts down on certain contemporary and personal matters at a later date. Hopefully it won't take as long as last time.
Yours,
Mikko