tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67035144086241378462024-02-06T19:17:33.122-08:00Random Acts of WritingRandom bits and piecesAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-78234315546573582482016-04-15T15:10:00.000-07:002016-04-15T15:10:36.055-07:00Computer to Console to Computer<div style="text-align: justify;">
This is really a continuation of my previous blog where I noted that I started computer gaming as a substitute for playing Dungeons & Dragons. Of course, that meant I played RPGs. And at <i>that</i> time, it meant that I played western RPGs. During those years in the early 1990's I didn't keep up with everything gaming. I didn't own a console of my own (well, anything newer than an Atari 2600) but I played with friends on their consoles. So, I was surprised when a friend told me about a type of RPG that was played on consoles, one that I hadn't heard of - a JRPG! What?!? Of course I had to try it.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I tried it, and I was surprised that I <i>did not</i> like it. I was as surprised as my friend; it was a highly rated and hugely popular JRPG. I <i>tried</i> to like it, but if you have to try to like something there is something wrong. I just couldn't get over the fact that I couldn't create my own character. That was half the fun of playing an RPG! I would spend forever creating a character. Depending on the RPG, I could choose my appearance, class, race, sex, alignment, abilities, skills, religion, and I would have a backstory in mind. Sometimes, I would just create a starter character to see how the game played out before I created my "real" character because not all warriors play the same and a mage is not a wizard just as a druid is not a cleric. It seemed like in a JRPG, you were dumped into a character and there wasn't much <i>roleplaying</i> to it.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I couldn't tell you how many times I was ripped out of the game by a dialog or action choice. When the image I had in my head of my character did not correspond to the options given. This only seemed to happen in a console JRPG. I don't remember playing a western RPG on my computer in which the game came to a complete stop as I said to myself, <i>"I wouldn't say this. I wouldn't do that."</i> Sometimes I would have to pause for a significant length of time, hours or even days, before I could bring my head around to having my character take the best of two (or more) bad choices. I hated that and it took the fun out of the game for me.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
So, I stuck with computer gaming. That is until the newer consoles came out and wonderful RPGs were available. But that is the topic of another blog.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-69757873163990684752016-04-05T07:13:00.001-07:002016-04-05T07:13:39.338-07:00A History<div align="justify">
Here is just a little history - my history - my gaming history. OK, so here goes ...</div>
<div align="justify">
<br /></div>
<div align="justify">
<em>Pong</em> came out when I was a teen. The first time I played it was at a family get-together in a pizza place during the 1970's. I loved it! But soon after I joined the military and went to college, and I didn't have much time while for gaming while getting established in my career. When things calmed down a bit, I bought an Atari 2600 gaming system and of course, I got <em>Pong</em>. <em>Asteroids</em>, <em>Space Invaders</em>, and a multitude of others soon followed. I played as much as I could, and ended up with a relatively small video game collection.</div>
<div align="justify">
<br /></div>
<div align="justify">
Then I found a new love - TSR's Dungeons and Dragons, the original table top role playing game. At the time, it was still a new game and I remember all the negativity the media associated with the game. But that didn't bother me. I was still in the military and a few like-minded individuals and I formed a group. We created characters and had grand adventures! Sessions would end up lasting all night. We had a wonderful dungeon master who was able to think on the fly and was able to improvise. My favorite memory was a fight in a magic shop after an adventure. It was just supposed to be an interlude to reequip but instead, ending up eclipsing anything that had occurred before.</div>
<div align="justify">
<br /></div>
<div align="justify">
Then personal computers first came out. I spent weeks deciding between the merits of the two top contenders of the day - the Commodore 64 and the Apple IIe, After debating the pros and cons for hours with friends, I ended up with one of the first Apple IIe's. What a great system! My first computer game did not have any graphics, it was the text-only adventure game <em>Infidel</em>! I had to map out where I was, using <i>paper and pencil</i>, as the game progressed!</div>
<div align="justify">
<br /></div>
<div align="center">
<img alt="infidel.jpg infidel picture by swerdnagrl22" border="0" src="http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/swerdnagrl22/infidel.jpg?t=1241627264" /></div>
<div align="justify">
<br /></div>
<div align="justify">
Even to this day, I don't think anything can compare to a text-only game. It was a perfect combination of reading a book and playing a video game. The lack of graphics seemed to enhance the experience. It just allowed <i>your</i> imagination to establish the world, in a way that is still unique. I remember getting stuck in a game. Not knowing what to do, I typed "Throw my hands up in the air" and the game responding "Your hands go flying over the tree". <em>Zork, Sorcerer</em> and <em>Moonmist</em> joined my collection of text-only games. However, I eventually graduated to games with graphics! True, they were only black and white (or black and green, depending on which computer I used). The first time I played a video game all night long was while sitting on alert in the military. My navigator and I traded playing levels on <i>Lode Runner</i>. There were no saves, if you used up all your lives, you had to start over from the beginning.</div>
<div align="justify">
<br /></div>
<div align="center">
<img alt="loderunner.jpg lode runner picture by swerdnagrl22" border="0" height="299" src="http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/swerdnagrl22/loderunner.jpg?t=1241627337" width="615" /></div>
<div align="justify">
<br /></div>
<div align="justify">
Then I got out of the military, and my forays into the world of D&D ended. I hesitated to find a new group; I was extremely shy. But my days of adventuring weren't over - role playing games graduated to computer gaming! My favorite was <em>Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord </em>and I remember having to buy graph paper so I could once again make my own map. That was just the start of my love for old school computer RPG's. </div>
<div align="justify">
<br /></div>
<div align="center">
<img alt="wizardry.jpg wizardry picture by swerdnagrl22" border="0" height="371" src="http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/swerdnagrl22/wizardry.jpg?t=1241627411" width="600" /></div>
<div align="justify">
<br /></div>
<div align="justify">
I ended up playing all three of the Wizardry games which eventually led to Might and Magic series, which after many years led to series of games like <i>The Elder Scrolls</i> and <i>Fallout.</i> Since then, I have played racing games, platformers, point-and-click adventures, puzzle games, first person shooters and strategy games. I have played handhelds, consoles and, of course, computers. I having been gaming for more years than many people who read this have been alive. Boy! Do I feel old.</div>
<div align="justify">
<br /></div>
<div align="justify">
Well, that is my early history of playing computer/video games. In the next couple of days, I will chronicle my more recent adventures in gaming. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-64373424885018012992016-03-08T14:56:00.000-08:002016-03-08T18:58:00.073-08:00No Luck in SWTOR<div style="text-align: justify;">
Ever since pre-launch in Star Wars: The Old Republic I have had the worst luck, especially with early access. Every attempt to play in early access has been thwarted by something: computer problems, internet problems, download issues, or bugs in the game. Most recently, Chapter 10 was bugged and no one could start early access on time.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Today, early access to Chapter 11 began. And wouldn't you know it, I have problems! My Sith marauder, Sa'die, was sent to Zakuul to try to recruit Aric Jorgan, the leader of Havoc Squad. Well, it didn't go well. Aric Jorgan was running around in his skivvies playing with a pretend gun. Then he disappeared. He even refuses to show up at the rendezvous point. I guess he realized he wasn't wearing any clothes and is too embarrassed to show his face. Or Havoc Squad realized that their leader had cracked and sent him for psychiatric evaluation. So sad, really.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ1rzHOzmPAunQc9swZif0NcxaL9JlPFjHFF7CFxwYZtpuzbDXYqtLu5pN3MCGBpFNr1Prp4rainFAmjR8tWPlCWn6ywpeU0WPcYCBq_-eQ9R1A4qs1cHtUtITdA3X6OWb_IOE2Q22N4T2/s1600/Sa%2527die.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ1rzHOzmPAunQc9swZif0NcxaL9JlPFjHFF7CFxwYZtpuzbDXYqtLu5pN3MCGBpFNr1Prp4rainFAmjR8tWPlCWn6ywpeU0WPcYCBq_-eQ9R1A4qs1cHtUtITdA3X6OWb_IOE2Q22N4T2/s640/Sa%2527die.jpg" width="604" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sa'die in her war gear</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
UPDATE:<br />
Well, I was finally able to shake the mission loose and reset everything. Aric Jorgan has found his closet and was able to get dressed! I started Chapter 11 over and was very happy. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-86929281944076280172016-02-01T20:41:00.002-08:002016-02-01T20:41:53.788-08:00Hats of the Old Republic Part VI<div style="text-align: justify;">
Well, this will be my last "Hats" post for a while. I want to find some fun ones before I do another blog on this topic; not just head pieces I have in my inventory.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This is an interesting bit of headgear; it doubles as a painter's accessory - maybe something to dry a brush.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyb7-3R2X816a1U2GO76tfbVmMjF6AjzN2MgFcZjU_IT1GbAXnjI3c2KgwP28DhVMOHdUPJKJsabLQsVi2iIrEVy6ERPr-Hjv3WtFslxlVj0Ehr3a4uIpkR9ayq74x-irZVvnfd4ENeX45/s1600/remnant+arkanian+bounty+hunter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyb7-3R2X816a1U2GO76tfbVmMjF6AjzN2MgFcZjU_IT1GbAXnjI3c2KgwP28DhVMOHdUPJKJsabLQsVi2iIrEVy6ERPr-Hjv3WtFslxlVj0Ehr3a4uIpkR9ayq74x-irZVvnfd4ENeX45/s1600/remnant+arkanian+bounty+hunter.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Remnant Arkanian Bounty Hunter</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This one looks like Marvin the Martian with a severe case of deadly underbite.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGGrOm3ICq5VvOtnE3E3ED0Bulk4rwvcDmKgQc1g3Za6uOl_AM9E-fay-iSfy3lAyo1Jr-uJGokMRN1VfCtvDn2EEOk4UYnfYvM47Vhh60Al1gxLNajcsnXrABx7cRq1Z2yVThtnouCz8X/s1600/remnant+resurrected+bounty+hunter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGGrOm3ICq5VvOtnE3E3ED0Bulk4rwvcDmKgQc1g3Za6uOl_AM9E-fay-iSfy3lAyo1Jr-uJGokMRN1VfCtvDn2EEOk4UYnfYvM47Vhh60Al1gxLNajcsnXrABx7cRq1Z2yVThtnouCz8X/s1600/remnant+resurrected+bounty+hunter.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Remnant Resurrected Bounty Hunter</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The last two I found rather boring. They weren't good enough to want to equip, but not awful enough to show off. I am not sure if I will keep them or not. I will have to decide if having a complete collection is important enough.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTVgdBMfl_QU4umerkgOTY3URxknK7sio-UZfbuUysPlj5Ot1RfoelgiUIp-kbnj2iFo-_CfZSzejtCZ0nxbqfI-vJ2K34jFBMGbuEytZGNxOW7KL6Je9fvItgYtIVQsf_eVnQHuc_o37c/s1600/combo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="376" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTVgdBMfl_QU4umerkgOTY3URxknK7sio-UZfbuUysPlj5Ot1RfoelgiUIp-kbnj2iFo-_CfZSzejtCZ0nxbqfI-vJ2K34jFBMGbuEytZGNxOW7KL6Je9fvItgYtIVQsf_eVnQHuc_o37c/s640/combo.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Remnant Arkanian Knight and Remnant Dreadguard Trooper</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-31141129611162393072016-01-08T13:12:00.001-08:002016-01-08T13:12:56.526-08:00Hats of the Old Republic Part V<div style="text-align: justify;">
So many hats and so little... fashion. I thought that it was time for more legacy headgear. I decided to highlight the ugliest in this blog.<br />
<br />
Today's first one reminds me of a baby pyramid head from Silent Hill 2.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2CJqn8PV-GS_LKoUPc6LpdTEINx5IPlrcbQYT-LyINaic3FGewvVtNXf5xXOgSlTqmu1jbuOUy0NWtudBBWerCcWuNu0gsTezHLmlelCVn5u9_Shc81plhQVretRNAcrUTZ6p9a5Y_96f/s1600/remnant+arkanian+warrior.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2CJqn8PV-GS_LKoUPc6LpdTEINx5IPlrcbQYT-LyINaic3FGewvVtNXf5xXOgSlTqmu1jbuOUy0NWtudBBWerCcWuNu0gsTezHLmlelCVn5u9_Shc81plhQVretRNAcrUTZ6p9a5Y_96f/s1600/remnant+arkanian+warrior.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Remnant Arkanian Warrior</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The second piece of headgear another from the insect collection.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2AJqqQb0llXb-0CX8Ym1rbaGY90MnDs18Y1QB9syLLKRi8kZKctx9CgolidRyxks_K2kFeUJVfgImkorJJloAzL-EtOTauwoyNGnV2Brm4KVDBWxp8B62LixPDPGIca0jX7J2rQmYra_n/s1600/remnant+dreadquard+agent.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2AJqqQb0llXb-0CX8Ym1rbaGY90MnDs18Y1QB9syLLKRi8kZKctx9CgolidRyxks_K2kFeUJVfgImkorJJloAzL-EtOTauwoyNGnV2Brm4KVDBWxp8B62LixPDPGIca0jX7J2rQmYra_n/s1600/remnant+dreadquard+agent.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Remnant Dreadquard Agent</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Number three in today's blog is inspired by an old-fashioned light bulb.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVjYV_yJc65cnmAsD_TohQTw1yFvIVC6TKYcUj55pOrXH2sMSbUC9Ehz2QtspW1a41A-e6ZMHExUqyYvaxZk540eVLitsbCAW5i0MHi_Vfhd3660EV7nAQPs1FL9y4ZKs8sFO2oISsz3M2/s1600/remnant+underworld+warrior.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVjYV_yJc65cnmAsD_TohQTw1yFvIVC6TKYcUj55pOrXH2sMSbUC9Ehz2QtspW1a41A-e6ZMHExUqyYvaxZk540eVLitsbCAW5i0MHi_Vfhd3660EV7nAQPs1FL9y4ZKs8sFO2oISsz3M2/s1600/remnant+underworld+warrior.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Remnant Underworld Warrior</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
And the last entry in today's blog must be my least favorite, ever! I really dislike this one. No wait! I need to be completely hones, I <b><i>hate</i></b> this one. What is it supposed to be? Curse of the welding mummy?<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgitdoidRrP6a0-qjiph8BvEt4sCDW4zYEt47V8A162oofisDwP-1-66ygOqOy2BW2m2h3BHxxWbRTIwndI_ipBn3ehaWWpfU54BdGJsZDAeyAykR5t5YW4LRZo1T4dSbHoeGR9_M7MqCzP/s1600/remnant+underworld+bounty+hunter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgitdoidRrP6a0-qjiph8BvEt4sCDW4zYEt47V8A162oofisDwP-1-66ygOqOy2BW2m2h3BHxxWbRTIwndI_ipBn3ehaWWpfU54BdGJsZDAeyAykR5t5YW4LRZo1T4dSbHoeGR9_M7MqCzP/s1600/remnant+underworld+bounty+hunter.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Remnant Underworld Bounty Hunter</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-68618144661480645452015-12-04T12:36:00.000-08:002015-12-04T12:37:41.389-08:00Hats of the Old Republic Part IV<div style="text-align: justify;">
Oh, it has been ages since I did a Hats of the Old Republic post! My sweetie and I are still playing Star Wars: The Old Republic. Four years later and we have <i>still </i>have ugly headgear, but new and improved. We now have Legacy gear that we can pass to any of our alts.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This first one is a nice, basic helmet. Not too bad.</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXhF5H1ZoTzxL6ykBQamznvwX8dM2UC6DtatmmAjxklAj_87F8KMqzQWX0_KxaJPcy9B3Ms3QkGPlgWM9ovADs_yDywU6vgKJ53gMy_NsI5D9coJ0yK5phrP2tlEK8E7QioLGTJ4Wo5_83/s1600/imperial+battle+ace+pilot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXhF5H1ZoTzxL6ykBQamznvwX8dM2UC6DtatmmAjxklAj_87F8KMqzQWX0_KxaJPcy9B3Ms3QkGPlgWM9ovADs_yDywU6vgKJ53gMy_NsI5D9coJ0yK5phrP2tlEK8E7QioLGTJ4Wo5_83/s640/imperial+battle+ace+pilot.jpg" width="544" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Imperial Battle Ace pilot helmet</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The second one is the other Imperial pilot helmet. Not bad looking but it looks heavy and overwhelming.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfksTSsjKIKbg9VdHUDYGIjChN2FGYuyOqUgB-vpHjgajcbJbWHdJWZ1JD1G3TaLUPgJCK4vtOpsorgi803NBDKum2puvqsJo_IiBorFAjgYejNKOiqV1osCi0N-fcUi1f9fD5O73opPId/s1600/imperial+covert+pilot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfksTSsjKIKbg9VdHUDYGIjChN2FGYuyOqUgB-vpHjgajcbJbWHdJWZ1JD1G3TaLUPgJCK4vtOpsorgi803NBDKum2puvqsJo_IiBorFAjgYejNKOiqV1osCi0N-fcUi1f9fD5O73opPId/s640/imperial+covert+pilot.jpg" width="544" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Imperial Covert pilot helmet</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Number three on today's list gives Sa'die a "lich" look, especially since I have the head slot color coordinated with the chest piece she is wearing. The pinkish color makes it look like the skin has been peeled away. Now, that makes me think "Ewww".</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0iYMS-DSYEKEw7zPI_Cbl0c0a6zB5C76j1joqMO00g0aVMw108TCiyB_dbPJ91AhUX3YCI9HmCuP5yKZJnohnlTacG6mfWR8e58OfrllEDGeNTAbZT3TjFseSPbuQgrQn7Uq4CmJZdsoQ/s1600/remnant+yavin+inquisitor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0iYMS-DSYEKEw7zPI_Cbl0c0a6zB5C76j1joqMO00g0aVMw108TCiyB_dbPJ91AhUX3YCI9HmCuP5yKZJnohnlTacG6mfWR8e58OfrllEDGeNTAbZT3TjFseSPbuQgrQn7Uq4CmJZdsoQ/s640/remnant+yavin+inquisitor.jpg" width="544" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Remnant Yavin Inquisitor's Headgear</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This last one on today's blog is my favorite out of this bunch. This look is reminiscent of the original 1980's terminator. I like the violet lighting feature on the side.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP_msIUVSoDYsBGgd-IFk46RwtEYVZ2he_Nudee1ytviUPAmdCtZgh__Yala6oIGztc8_ej_SokJzNd04MozvRlXsQinVX03EC5CBLi-dyGez2Lkesg9aJPsZYocPi9qF-QbxceTT4-Qrv/s1600/remnant+yavin+warrior.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP_msIUVSoDYsBGgd-IFk46RwtEYVZ2he_Nudee1ytviUPAmdCtZgh__Yala6oIGztc8_ej_SokJzNd04MozvRlXsQinVX03EC5CBLi-dyGez2Lkesg9aJPsZYocPi9qF-QbxceTT4-Qrv/s640/remnant+yavin+warrior.jpg" width="544" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Remnant Yavin Warrior</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-8760109066690167692015-10-14T22:39:00.000-07:002015-11-16T15:39:48.781-08:00I Just Wanted an Appointment<div style="text-align: justify;">
I have never liked going to the doctor and over the years it has gotten worse. I get so anxious that when I finally get in the doctor’s office, my mind goes blank and my response to questions is either “Things are okay” or “I am fine”. I am great at delaying and putting things off. But I finally found a primary care doctor that I really like and trust so I decided to quit procrastinating and seek medical treatment for a condition that bothers me. I had an appointment with him yesterday and he took a lot of extra time to discuss things with me. My doctor wants me to get an ultrasound done, then go see two specialists, and then we will discuss the next step.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
So, today I was determined! My motto was “Get it done!” I picked up the phone to call and schedule the diagnostic study. I paused the TV and called the phone number on the referral. A polite man answers the phone and gets all my information: full name, birthdate, complete address, phone number and insurance carrier. Then he tells me they don’t schedule that particular procedure and he would have to transfer me. I got his name and the number he was transferring me to “just in case… ”, and shortly thereafter I was speaking to polite woman. We go through the whole routine again (name, birthdate, etc.) and once more I am informed that I have the wrong number, they don’t schedule that study, and I will have to be transferred. This process happened again and <i>again</i>. Sometimes I was able to get the person’s name. Sometimes I was able to get the number they were transferring me to. Some of the people I spoke with were great – polite and very helpful. But some of them were rude and not the least bit obliging. Usually, the transfer went just fine but several times I was disconnected from the system.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
After thirty minutes and two rude people in a row, I started to get upset (one person insisted I was not in the system and the other said she couldn’t schedule the ultrasound without the order number even though I told her I had it on my copy and I could read it to her). I was transferred one more time and the woman who I spoke with was polite and helpful but she would have to transfer me again! “Just in case” I got the phone number and it was the <b>same one I started with!</b> I lost it. My hands started shaking and my voice got all quivery, and I told her I was really upset. I told her that I had already called that number and they just transferred me. I told her that <i>all</i> I wanted to do was get the diagnostic study scheduled.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
She apologized profusely but had to put me on hold. When she got back on the phone she told me that even though she didn’t handle the scheduling of the requested procedure, she would take care of it. Once again I give all my information and, <i><b>ta-da</b></i>, I am scheduled for next week! Now <b>that</b> was a great example of good customer service. When I finally hung up the DVR on my TV said 40 minutes and 39 seconds had passed! No wonder dealing with the medical community causes anxiety!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-41484104629204171192015-06-13T17:17:00.000-07:002015-11-16T15:40:14.546-08:00Kickstarter and Koji Igarashi and Bloodstained<div style="text-align: justify;">
By temperment, I am calm and even keeled. I don't get overly enthusiastic or excited by many things. In many ways I regret that, I feel that I miss out on something by not being more enthusiastic. But a little more than four weeks ago, I got excited by a video game my sister-in-law saw on Kickstarter, "Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night", being designed by Koji Igarashi. Koji Igarashi, better known as Iga, spent twenty years at Konami designing video games. His most well known works are Castlevania games, 2D side-scrolling exploration/action games.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
According to an interview Iga gave Polygon last year, several years ago Konami moved him away from 2D Castlevania games to social games. Iga freely admitted that he was unable to transition from the hardcore games he was good at to the social games for the casual market. After several of his games were canceled, he quit Konami and decided to start his own company. He wanted to make a gothic, exploration-focused action platformer in the style of Castlevania.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Iga went from publisher to publisher and was told "No" every time. He finally found some financial backers but they would only fund him if he could prove there was still interest in his style of game. Hence, Iga went on Kickstarter campaigning for $500,000 for "Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night". The campaign was to end June 12th. My sweetie and I were excited and contributed on the first day. Apparently, we weren't the only ones because Koji Igarashi reached his goal that first day.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
As the campaign progressed, stretch goals kept getting met so new goals were added. My sweetie and I checked the Kickstarter page several times a day over the four weeks of fundraising, monitoring Bloodstained's progress. As the amount of pledges kept growing, so did my excitement, so much so that I insisted that we watch final four hours of the campaign streamed live on Twitch! After <strong><em>$5,000,000</em></strong> were donated, one last stretch goal was made during the live stream and that goal was more than met by the end of the campaign. We had so much fun! </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-1528990579273386742015-03-13T01:04:00.001-07:002015-11-16T15:40:38.162-08:00Crochet Patterns<div style="text-align: justify;">
Been doing tons of googling but not much that has inspired a blog post. Mainly, I have been searching for crochet patterns. I recently got back into crocheting after a 20-year absence but it feels like I never stopped! My first project was a shawl using Lion Brand Homespun. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
My goodness, is that a challenging yarn to use! The stitches end up not being very well defined and it was difficult to keep track of where I was on the pattern. Also, the yarn kept getting "stuck" on the crochet hook. In addition to the problems I was having with the yarn, the end of my crochet hook kept poking my hand and it was getting so sore I had to limit the amount of time spent crocheting.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I thought I would see if there were padded crochet hooks and I came across the Clover brand. They were more expensive than other hooks but I decided to treat myself. They are amazing! Definitely worth the extra price. The handles are nicely padded, color-coded, and most amazing of all they made crocheting with the Homespun yarn so much easier! The yarn didn't get "stuck" and I was able to work must faster. I love them and ended up getting about seventeen Clover crochet hooks!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhahOquLmgKcof6Sr6vXaM33sf1zorI1_TeF-CV8xvRRM6svyfD-9bqxHans41GUsQilblmXi7h_uw6SJDCd9Rdfwuz2DcVF7UvUjQkwMLSvkVtvFOPFeTPK74oE-Veu5UtC73MgDfzyTWc/s1600/clover+hooks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="593" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhahOquLmgKcof6Sr6vXaM33sf1zorI1_TeF-CV8xvRRM6svyfD-9bqxHans41GUsQilblmXi7h_uw6SJDCd9Rdfwuz2DcVF7UvUjQkwMLSvkVtvFOPFeTPK74oE-Veu5UtC73MgDfzyTWc/s1600/clover+hooks.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Anyway, after completing my shawl I decided to make some dishcloths. My biggest complaint about dishcloths is that they can end up smelling rather quickly so I wanted to make quite a few so they could be switched out often. I got some cotton yarn and then I searched for crochet patterns. I found several that were okay but... I don't know... they just didn't seem right. So, I ended up with my own designs! Below are my two favorites.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYL2yAKkSwZ8H6OHu125jlsL49SXqM1Ju5Nt77YIo7PrzveXfD30zPIqjO-Zk6wLKhyZoKQwF9JVM807vjh1Hv6uaJJW1_waalqQuKS_dof9H12Ywtf2QpKJkessG2k-eDjdfkzanYt4p2/s1600/dishrags.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYL2yAKkSwZ8H6OHu125jlsL49SXqM1Ju5Nt77YIo7PrzveXfD30zPIqjO-Zk6wLKhyZoKQwF9JVM807vjh1Hv6uaJJW1_waalqQuKS_dof9H12Ywtf2QpKJkessG2k-eDjdfkzanYt4p2/s1600/dishrags.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
The blue one on the left was my first attempt and I decided to just make a simple square. I skipped every other stitch in order to make an open weave so it would dry out quicker. I also decided to use a strand of size 10 crochet thread with the strand of cotton yarn in order to increase its "scrubability". This one has been used and laundered a couple of times already and works exactly as I wanted. I went fancier with the one on the right. I used two colors and made a more open weave. I again used a strand of crochet thread throughout the dishcloth but this time I added an edging of picot stitches using three strands of crochet thread. It makes for a great scrubby!<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-73522505847284037772015-01-24T15:07:00.000-08:002015-11-16T15:41:02.131-08:00Crochet, A Personal History<div style="text-align: justify;">
Boy, it has been a long time since I posted any new blog! Well, time to rectify that!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I was taught to crochet in the fifth grade by my German grandmother. She used the perfect technique to teach a shy, introverted perfectionist. My grandmother told me I couldn't make a mistake in crochet. If I didn't like something, all I had to do was rip it out! She taught me how to start, a chain stitch, and how easy it was to undo. She told me to make a chain then rip it out and start over. My grandmother told me to try different sizes and tensions, and when I had a chain I liked to come get her and we would go to the next step.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Then she taught me the most basic stitch, a single crochet, and how turn at the end of a row. Again, she told me to practice and whenever I didn't like what I had, rip it out and start over. She left but she would check in on me occasionally to answer any questions I had. My grandmother would look over what I had done and instead of critiquing my work, she would explain. For example, when my rectangle started looking much more like a trapezoid, she told me it was because I had changed the tension. But it wasn't a mistake. If I didn't like it, I could rip it out and start over or I could use what I had. I didn't have a potholder, just add stings and I had an apron for my doll! My grandmother taught me different stitches, how to decrease and increase, and then she set me loose!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This is one of my fondest childhood memories. I even remember the yarn we used - a small ball of yarn left over from one of her knitting projects, dusty mauve in color. I still have that first project around here somewhere - a combination doll hat/basket! I learned how versatile crocheting. You can start crocheting anywhere you can get a loop. Start crocheting in the middle of a completed piece to add a handle or get a three dimensional project. Add crochet to a piece of fabric for a different texture or for a pretty edge. Use yarn with a larger hook and you have an afghan, use thread with a small hook and you have a doily.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I crocheted for many years but then I suddenly stopped. Recently, I was inspired and started crocheting again! I feel like I am reunited with an old friend. My first new project, a shawl, is done and I have several other projects beckoning.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-14206066721019707202014-10-18T09:51:00.001-07:002015-11-16T15:42:24.946-08:00London Beer Flood<div align="justify" style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
Yesterday, October 17th, was the 200th anniversary of the
London Beer Flood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It sounded humorous
and I chuckled so I thought it would be a good subject for a random act of
googling!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it turns out to be more of
a tragedy than a comedy.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQlrEPJe6bgdRg3KMeg0nPlZ6DxGh7oQlUPkcjopsTCb6Ydx4OsPCY4MY13JybbE2JFiR_2LA5m8e3Gcl17140NogOqSZwjJhjOl35NvMbHl4IvTSUvd7853ydttfv2cT6CPBwt5dhrLE1/s1600/The-vat-before-it-ruptured1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQlrEPJe6bgdRg3KMeg0nPlZ6DxGh7oQlUPkcjopsTCb6Ydx4OsPCY4MY13JybbE2JFiR_2LA5m8e3Gcl17140NogOqSZwjJhjOl35NvMbHl4IvTSUvd7853ydttfv2cT6CPBwt5dhrLE1/s1600/The-vat-before-it-ruptured1.jpg" width="335" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
A London brewery, the Horse Shoe Brewery, had an enormous vat that held approximately
160,000 gallons of beer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A metal band
snapped causing the vat to burst open.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The resulting outpour broke open other vats which resulted in more than
250,000 gallons of beer to flood through the streets of the St. Giles
neighborhood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Reports related that a
15-foot tall tidal wave crashed into buildings, knocking down walls and
flooding ground floor rooms and cellars.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A total of eight people were killed; some drowned, some were slammed
into walls, and one was crushed by a collapsed wall.</div>
<br />
<o:p>The Horse Shoe Brewery was cleared of any liability and remained open for more than another hundred years.</o:p></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-11531226387206312562014-07-02T04:02:00.002-07:002015-11-16T15:43:42.481-08:00Agrypnia<div align="justify">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
Insomnia – lying there at night, when it is dark and quiet
but you just can’t get to sleep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You
glance at the clock and notice the hours as they slip by without being able to
get to sleep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trying to shut off your
mind, but the thoughts just keep coursing through your brain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Getting up in the morning, tired and just
wishing that you could get some sleep…<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
like the word “agrypnia” better than “insomnia”; “chasing sleep” seems so much more
appropriate than “sleeplessness”.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
I have had lifelong agrypnia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My first memory of agrypnia was when I was a preschooler.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember being glad when I learned to tell
time in first grade <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">specifically</i>
because of my agrypnia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had a mantle
clock that chimed the hours and half hours, and somehow, it was comforting to
know what time it was.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My agrypnia only
got worse as I grew older, instead of being awake for hours at night, I began
to be awake for the entire night.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
I finally started doing some research about how to prevent insomnia
in the 1980’s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I followed all the
recommendations: establish a routine, and go to bed and get up at the same time
every day; don’t take naps; eat before you go to sleep (but don’t have a heavy
meal); exercise before bedtime (but don’t exercise too much); avoid stimulants,
such as nicotine and caffeine; avoid alcohol (wait, is that a depressant or a
stimulant – oh, no, it is both!); only use your bed for sleep or sex – no TV,
no reading of books (wait… read books but not anything stimulating); and most
importantly – avoid stress and don’t worry! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Right</i>…</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
For years, I followed this advice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do you know how hard it is not to take a nap
if you haven’t slept much the night before?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And to this day, I don’t drink caffeine after my morning coffee; in
fact, I avoid any soft drinks with caffeine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>After a while, it really annoyed me when I realized that it was all “Do
this”, “Don’t do that”!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Experts were
saying that it was my fault that I couldn’t sleep – my thoughts, my actions, my
choices were preventing me from sleeping!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
After years of trying to follow all the advice, I began to
think “How dare you?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What makes you the
expert?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unless you have insomnia
yourself, you have no reason to say anything!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I even read an article that said insomnia was a learned behavior, and
when I couldn’t sleep I was supposed to get up and do something I really hated,
like washing the kitchen floor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was
supposed to condition me to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">decide</i> to
sleep because the consequences were unpleasant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Like being so tired but lying as hour after hour passed wasn’t
unpleasant enough!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Like struggling
though a day at work wasn’t difficult enough!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
I decided that if the “expert” hadn’t lain awake for hours
and hours at night, wondering why sleep was so elusive, I wouldn’t listen to
them!!!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the “expert” hadn’t
personally experienced their own agrypnia, and not just an occasional sleepless
night, then their advice was practically meaningless.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trying to sleep is difficult enough without
wondering what <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I</i></b> have done to cause my sleeplessness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">That</i>
doesn’t turn off my brain at all.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Sigh….
I am really tired but I can’t go to sleep tonight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again!</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">You know what is the worst? I googled insomnia remedies again this evening, and they haven't changed since the 1980's! The same useless advice. Oh, well.</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-18743412382969662822014-02-28T00:03:00.001-08:002015-11-16T15:44:18.547-08:00Phantom Music<div align="justify">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
I haven’t written a blog here in a while for several
personal reasons but it is time to shake off the shackles and write again so
here goes…<br />
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Musical Ear Syndrome!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Or as I like to call it, phantom music.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Musical Ear Syndrome is a form of non-psychiatric auditory hallucination,
also called Musical Hallucination or Musical Tinnitus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most people have heard of tinnitus, or
ringing in the ears.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a perception
of sound when none exists.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Musical
tinnitus (or Musical Ear Syndrome) is when that sound is perceived as
music.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Usually, victims hear musical
noises ranging from vocals to instrumental music, and some even hear announcers
or commercials.<br />
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Most people don’t talk about it because they are afraid of
being accused of being mentally unstable or psychotic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This might be a good time to talk about
psychiatric auditory hallucinations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Psychiatric
auditory hallucinations are generally defined as voices talking to the victim (on
a personal level), usually associated with schizophrenia or mania.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There can also be medical reasons for some
auditory hallucinations, such as brain lesions or medication side effects.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Musical Ear Syndrome (or MES) does not fall
into these categories.<br />
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
As I mentioned above, most people don’t talk about it because
they don’t want to be considered crazy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
MES is becoming increasing recognized as separate from other auditory
hallucinations making it easier for people to discuss it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Experts believe that MES is related to hearing
problems, and usually (but not always), is experienced by those with hearing
loss.<br />
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I started googling this subject because I have experienced
this phenomena myself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let me start by
stating that I have a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">HUGE</i> problem
with insomnia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every few weeks, I have
extreme difficulty getting more than a couple of hours of sleep several nights
in a row.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I become an extremely light
sleeper, and can be awakened by the slightest sound.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have been awakened by the sound of the
refrigerator coming on in the middle of the night, in the kitchen when I am in
the bedroom, on a different floor!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
order to combat this, I turn on a fan in the room to help mask normal nighttime
sounds.<br />
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Then, occasionally, I would be awakened by music.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would assume it was my clock radio coming
on - I would reach for the alarm clock and notice that it was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hours</i> before I needed to get up!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So where was the music coming from?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would try and hunt the phantom music down
but it was faint and difficult to trace.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The music was not coming from my clock radio, it wasn’t the neighbor,
nor was it anything I could find to turn off!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The phantom music would last for a period of time lasting from about
thirty minutes to a couple of hours.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
would get so frustrated!<br />
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I finally complained to my sweetie, and she googled it and
told me about MES.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After researching it
myself, I realized that my phantom music was triggered was my fan!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The item I used to mask noise was causing the
phantom music that woke me up and kept me up!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was such a relief to know that there was this thing called Musical
Ear Syndrome, and I wasn’t the only person to experience it.<br />
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Now,
when MES wakes me up in the middle of the night, I turn off the
fan and am able to get back to sleep. However, turning off the fan allows other noises to disturb me</span> but for some reason, the sound of the refrigerator or furnace does not bother me nearly as much as the phantom music.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-52774898098629064152013-11-18T22:20:00.000-08:002015-11-16T15:44:55.119-08:00Papercuts Papercuts Papercuts<div align="justify">
I know that I have made a couple of entries regarding papercuts. The reason is that I know the artist, Elaine LaMarche, and we commissioned a piece of art. Now, I am so excited! I just have to give a shout out to Elaine LaMarche of E-Art Judaicuts - <em>Noah's Arc</em> won first place in an art show! Woo hoo! This beautiful piece of art deserves all of the accolades it has received. Check out her stuff on her <a href="http://elainelamarche.com/" target="_blank">website</a> and follow her on<a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Elaine-LaMarche-Paper-Cut-Art/259693694144709" target="_blank"> Facebook</a>.</div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo7q10A1oJhCeZg2pgE1jt8gZtawL8gPqBQA-iQBhoioYdjhUMjGBrlr6t0A5Bjl03hA2_RR4mP3vx-nnZTnIzGRHxiDlAPx2XtnlhyphenhyphenISkKFTaUjQP1lO2NWHuvmD8vzwPnKnjvcGmZBf6/s1600/Noahs-Arc-Large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="488" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo7q10A1oJhCeZg2pgE1jt8gZtawL8gPqBQA-iQBhoioYdjhUMjGBrlr6t0A5Bjl03hA2_RR4mP3vx-nnZTnIzGRHxiDlAPx2XtnlhyphenhyphenISkKFTaUjQP1lO2NWHuvmD8vzwPnKnjvcGmZBf6/s640/Noahs-Arc-Large.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Noah's Arc</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-21377463813022010852013-10-17T10:14:00.004-07:002015-11-16T15:45:32.220-08:00Frances Hodgson Burnett<div style="text-align: justify;">
This all started because I was looking for something new to read on my Kindle that was cheap! I have been rereading some of my favorite books so I decided to see if there was a free/cheap version of <em>The Secret Garden</em> or <em>The Little Princess</em>, both written by Frances Hodgson Burnett. To my delight, I found the entire collected works of Frances Hodgson Burnett for under $3.00!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
After downloading the book, I was surprised at how many books there were in this collection, so I decided to find out what I could about the author. I was shocked at how little information is out there, and so much of it is contradictory! For heavens sake, she didn't live that long ago. She was born in 1849 and died in 1924 and her children's books are considered classics! Well, that just made me more curious.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbazdbex7YwvhgRb1l6GxNC4O1ze6UW4r6F3do6DatbZRnuD9sXgPU55LOibo5sJcWBmukopvYsNIhPVoCLzFajSiGUFDfl3hBJQ0WSVomrA3OF3eWJNRlPu9yYKN8oSqh9mroMj7edRRk/s1600/frances-hodgson-burnett.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbazdbex7YwvhgRb1l6GxNC4O1ze6UW4r6F3do6DatbZRnuD9sXgPU55LOibo5sJcWBmukopvYsNIhPVoCLzFajSiGUFDfl3hBJQ0WSVomrA3OF3eWJNRlPu9yYKN8oSqh9mroMj7edRRk/s1600/frances-hodgson-burnett.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Frances Hodgson Burnett</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Frances Hodgson Burnett was born in England and emigrated to the United States at the end of the Civil Way at age 15. Some websites call her English and other call her American. All agree that she started writing as a child and continued throughout her entire life. I could not find any agreement on when her father died. I read he died in 1852, 1853, 1854, 1865. After his death, the family lived in abject poverty, genteel poverty, or gradually declining affluence. However, everyone agrees that she supported her family with her writing. I saw that she was successful enough to support her family starting at age 18, 19, or 20, and that she was not successful until much later in life.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Again, websites disagree about how many books Frances Hodgson Burnett wrote. They range from just a few to thirty, forty, fifty and sixty. Now, she is strictly known as an author of children's books. But during her lifetime, she was apparently best known for her children's book or her historical novels or her books for adults or for her plays. Speaking of her plays, I read that she was a playwright as well as that she didn't write plays, just that her novels that were dramatized for the stage.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Some websites say the critics loved Frances Hodgson Burnett and others say that the critics really disliked her, critiquing her more for her private life than for her writing. She was considered scandalous. She married and divorced twice, she earned her own money and controlled it herself, she liked fashion and travel, and was entirely too independent.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Most everything I read agrees that her first marriage was unhappy. Frances Hodgson met her first husband, Swan Burnett, shortly after arriving in Tennessee as a teenager. Swan Burnett became a doctor, and I read on one website that she put him through medical school with her earnings as a writer. Or she just financed his advanced training. Or her husband was Dr. L. M. Burnett out of Washington, DC.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The most interesting contradictions I found is regarding Frances Hodgson Burnett's second husband. Some websites state he was an English doctor, a secretary, her business manager, or an actor. One website stated that he blackmailed her into marriage in order to control her fortune.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
With all the contradictions I found, I felt that I had to find out more about Frances Hodgson Burnett. I downloaded her biography to my Kindle and I should be able to find out the true story of this fascinating woman.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-15136409515956995912013-09-06T18:46:00.001-07:002015-11-16T15:46:56.580-08:00Random Girls<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
I was taking a break and turned on the TV; <em>Funny Girl</em> was
on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a Barbra Streisand movie about
and an early Broadway star, Fanny Brice. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And so begins my Google searching!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The movie took some liberties with the real
life of Fanny Brice but Barbra Streisand depicted her fairly accurately.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was surprised how differently Fanny Brice
could appear in photographs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can
definitely see the comedic actress but she wasn’t that ugly.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSFwM-69Y7aWcbXumyW_jM4QjN18wg31cj5tkqB7QNwbDkUD6GEAWY0e3CN6nM9vmstQNrRNf5oLkkuSLlkZB3VayMapGBPFdnpw6bbsBQwArmyIYXacD3_uD1f6xcdBh6a8I5zZr734fU/s1600/fanny+brice.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="411" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSFwM-69Y7aWcbXumyW_jM4QjN18wg31cj5tkqB7QNwbDkUD6GEAWY0e3CN6nM9vmstQNrRNf5oLkkuSLlkZB3VayMapGBPFdnpw6bbsBQwArmyIYXacD3_uD1f6xcdBh6a8I5zZr734fU/s640/fanny+brice.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fanny Brice</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Next, I looked up the Ziegfeld Follies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were put on by Florenz Ziegfeld and were
around for around 25 years starting around 1910.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I guess they were sort of a cross between
more modern Broadway musicals and vaudeville.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The chorus girls, or Ziegfeld Girls, were famous for being beautiful, but I was surprised at how risqué most of their pictures were.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> I guess they were the pinups of their time. Reading a bit more, I found out </span>that many stars got their start as
a Ziegfeld Girl (but I recognized more that were turned down by Flo Ziegfeld).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggFDTCW6aVzp479sOUT6wA9M8hqcvL1jteeqsr7PYfvWlY0PCalC09OTQi0LN-7oBYrBk6xM-zWGPIumL4HPjhY4Mtta6w19nU0xY_KFNmwpuJc9dX5Frakew-kLHkmVfr_-BcLsS1rPsy/s1600/ziegfeld+girl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggFDTCW6aVzp479sOUT6wA9M8hqcvL1jteeqsr7PYfvWlY0PCalC09OTQi0LN-7oBYrBk6xM-zWGPIumL4HPjhY4Mtta6w19nU0xY_KFNmwpuJc9dX5Frakew-kLHkmVfr_-BcLsS1rPsy/s1600/ziegfeld+girl.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ziegfeld Girl</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Lillian Lorraine was considered the most famous of the
Ziegfeld Girls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Apparently, she had an
affair with Flo Ziegfeld and he loved her even after their affair ended.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I looked up her image and was surprised… I
think she wasn’t that good looking.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzKsCJYw890XddpKfspE4ChztOGkqU1FZFG1UD3V1xAwNjI4HlVVCASRaYWQ7PuWPt1QY9arqAzWWhGaz1P9o1LQCqTlfUjS2W8ULyJg2FpGS6VFa37fbPrzvy8ZaQLQGvqt2VzkjGUpLz/s1600/lillian+lorraine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzKsCJYw890XddpKfspE4ChztOGkqU1FZFG1UD3V1xAwNjI4HlVVCASRaYWQ7PuWPt1QY9arqAzWWhGaz1P9o1LQCqTlfUjS2W8ULyJg2FpGS6VFa37fbPrzvy8ZaQLQGvqt2VzkjGUpLz/s1600/lillian+lorraine.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lillian Lorraine</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
Researching even more, I found out that the Ziegfeld Girls
were preceded by the Floradora Girls. <em>Floradora</em> was the first of a series of
musicals during the late 1800’s and early 1900’s that became really popular.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> These chorus girls were not nearly as risqué as the Ziegfeld Girls. Amazing what a difference about fifteen years can make!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGwImdq-NnxyIndSY2pWGFkNp9imgZDA-ZQElW07tuEmzGMSsv9Y2oO4ch77V0i9j1DBHmDdrYhzFz7v0edx1EJf36tvB1mpoO3gdQ6IgV3AN7CMgVx04fboxQSxRY7XMUZB8w119RvugV/s1600/floradora+girls.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGwImdq-NnxyIndSY2pWGFkNp9imgZDA-ZQElW07tuEmzGMSsv9Y2oO4ch77V0i9j1DBHmDdrYhzFz7v0edx1EJf36tvB1mpoO3gdQ6IgV3AN7CMgVx04fboxQSxRY7XMUZB8w119RvugV/s640/floradora+girls.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Floradora Girls</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>And before the Floradora Girls were the Gibson Girls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was expecting the Gibson Girls to be
similar to the Floradora and Ziegfeld Girls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, instead of being chorus girls on stage,
they were a illustrations by an artist, Charles Dana Gibson.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not real.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In fact, <em>very</em> not real. I know, that is not grammatically correct but I couldn't believe how unrealistic he depicted women. He combined two different standards of
beauty into an impossible ideal; he
wanted a “fragile lady” with the “voluptuous woman”. In order to reproduce the look of a Gibson Girl, women needed to lean forward and have a tightly cinched waist. In fact, in order to maintain such a ridiculous posture, a special corset was developed to allow women to depict this artist's ideal.</div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTQ2hI_2dkfXEM-K05FDMPc4oJk6v45vQRPB4DTRXip8jDP74a9JjAPgoOVIQtUFIucVM1t-n0JYRGM1NjG59uRwzYW7SrGm1T8pu9kZsEmWKgIZzFXDcq2DLxEdw5p3XvBeUvzdK5QAhY/s1600/Edwardian+S-bend+Corset.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTQ2hI_2dkfXEM-K05FDMPc4oJk6v45vQRPB4DTRXip8jDP74a9JjAPgoOVIQtUFIucVM1t-n0JYRGM1NjG59uRwzYW7SrGm1T8pu9kZsEmWKgIZzFXDcq2DLxEdw5p3XvBeUvzdK5QAhY/s1600/Edwardian+S-bend+Corset.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Edwardian S-Curve Corset</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-26976724462673806232013-08-30T00:20:00.000-07:002015-11-16T15:41:52.297-08:00Feeling Nostalgic<div style="text-align: justify;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFsDBIv7KKyZlXnefYymAH1ybYDCAckeBalV1KRwSy7J6I53cbanSVj4LRFmZu4Cd_MJXoS9TBnk3XyjCdiqTQZ6BLk_V6VaXSrwV0OToO2Hj7oSDD0JKY7DelEOqV-Nl5uSR_ijFheDVG/s1600/pong.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFsDBIv7KKyZlXnefYymAH1ybYDCAckeBalV1KRwSy7J6I53cbanSVj4LRFmZu4Cd_MJXoS9TBnk3XyjCdiqTQZ6BLk_V6VaXSrwV0OToO2Hj7oSDD0JKY7DelEOqV-Nl5uSR_ijFheDVG/s1600/pong.jpg" /></a>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
My search was a little different this time than what I usually do for these blogs. Instead of trying to find out new information, something I hadn't heard of before, I used Google to verify the facts and make sure that I had things in the correct chronological order. And I did have to research the correct name of some of my favorite games. It doesn't help to say "You know, that game where the guy swung through the trees on a vine and jumped crocodiles."</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The very first video game I ever played was Pong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was in high school and I loved it!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only place I knew that had it was a
pizza parlor that had several pinball machines and the one Pong machine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> I couldn't get </span>to the pizza parlor because I
didn’t have a driver’s license and there were no such things as home gaming consoles.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Pretty soon, other video arcade games showed up but they were pretty bad in my opinion. It wasn't until I was in college that the good ones came out such as Space Invaders and Asteroids. The golden age of Pacman and Donkey Kong came out after I graduated.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>The first real home video game console to be released was the Atari 2600. But we never
got one before I went to college since money
was tight back in those days. So it took several years before I could afford to buy an
Atari 2600 of my own.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZkCE674SN9TjYCowrwi-yUEc8s_k3j36gg398kK2oCSieloCQYnV0jYG4VzSbEzaM5jecR0w7llagmMLOaxeSDVdgo9gzkpxtdfe7bDJFAxQQ0Zxsa3HtaurmKJxYbETo1eseqUxGG0uE/s1600/atari+2600.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZkCE674SN9TjYCowrwi-yUEc8s_k3j36gg398kK2oCSieloCQYnV0jYG4VzSbEzaM5jecR0w7llagmMLOaxeSDVdgo9gzkpxtdfe7bDJFAxQQ0Zxsa3HtaurmKJxYbETo1eseqUxGG0uE/s1600/atari+2600.jpg" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I had to get Pong, of course, and Breakout which was a more
advanced version of Pong but tipped on its side.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My other favorite games were Space Invaders
and Asteroids, Adventure and Haunted House.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
I had Pitfall, Berzerk, Missile Command and Raiders of the Lost Ark. Other games included Dig Dug, Pacman, and Frogger. There was even an educational one - Brain Games. </span>I even bought ET the Extra-Terrestrial.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Yes, that one - the video game that was so bad they buried unsold cartridges in the desert someplace in New Mexico; the game that was so bad it almost
destroyed video games before they even got started.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> In addition to the games </span>I had all the possible controllers – the
joystick, the paddle and a keyboard controller. I continued to play for quite a few years, but after one move I never bothered unpacking my Atari 2600. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
But <span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">I
still have all of that stuff around someplace.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I never get rid of things.</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-37674551768426384772013-08-06T01:29:00.002-07:002015-11-16T15:47:25.263-08:00Night Owl<div style="text-align: justify;">
I have chronic insomnia. I have had chronic insomnia for as long as I can remember, and it has always been difficult. I seldom get a regular night's sleep.</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I remember being glad to learn how to tell time in first grade. We had this mantle clock that chimed the hours - at noon it chimed twelve times, at 1:00 it chimed once, at 2:00 it chimed twice, and so on. When I was awake during the night, I knew what time it was by the chiming of the clock. But I dreaded the time between 12:30am and 1:30am. That was because the clock only chimed once for the half hours. So if it chimed once, I wasn't sure what time it was. It could be half past the hour or 1:00am. And if it chimed once two times in a row, I <em>still</em> wasn't sure what time it was. It could be 1:00am or 1:30am. But if it chimed once <u>three times in a row</u>, I finally knew what time it was! It was 1:30 in the morning! And that was in the <em>first grade</em>! Now, how many of you know 6 year olds that are awake for hours in the middle of the night?</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Having insomnia has wrecked havoc with both school and work, but I have learned to get by with little sleep. However, as I have gotten older, I sometimes I wonder if it is really insomnia or if I am just a Night Owl. No matter how tired I am, if I remain awake until 10:00pm then I am remain awake for <em>hours</em>. It is as if a switch is flipped at 10:00pm and, suddenly, I come alive. If there is no social requirements for me to get up at a certain time, I naturally fall asleep around 2:00 or 3:00 o'clock in the morning and awaken sometime around 9:00 or 10:00 o'clock in the morning.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
So, I decided that tonight's Google search should be the Night Owl.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
First of all, Wikipedia is not very informative. It just defines night owls as people who stay up until late at night and morning larks as people who get up early. Next, there were some businesses that had late night hours: bars and lounges and, for some reason, hookah places. I was surprised by the next listing - sales of night vision goggles. The first page on Google ended with several blogs ranging in topics from baseball cards to hair products. Now, I don't know how any oft that is related to being a night owl, but the next few pages were even more baffling. There were blogs about home decor, a Christian pastor, fishing lures and pediatric urgent care. Not what I expected when I googled "night owl".</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-66287441024781176692013-06-16T23:06:00.000-07:002015-11-16T15:48:44.685-08:00Video Game Muse???<div align="justify">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Have you ever been inspired by someone?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Tried to emulate them and fail, miserably?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That happened recently.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I follow a <a href="http://elegantcauldron.blogspot.com/2013/06/musings-on-muses.html" target="_blank">blog</a> in which the author recently
spoke of her muses in the kitchen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Based
purely on memory, I thought a muse was an artist’s inspiration based on something Greek.
Oh, and there were nine of them.</span></div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<div align="justify">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">I
looked it up and it turns out that there were nine Greek goddesses that
inspired artists, writers and scientists.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So that inspired<em> me</em> to try and google gaming muses. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought I would eventually google something
about video game inspirations but it was a total disaster!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First of all, google kept trying to correct
it to “gaming mouse” instead of “gaming muse”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When I finally got google to understand I wanted to search for “gaming
muse”, I still didn’t get what I expected.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I got either foreign websites, stuff on tumblr, or something about Muse
Software.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I kept going deeper into
google to see if anything about video game inspiration showed up and when
nothing of interest showed up, I switched to “video game muse”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That didn’t turn up anything either.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><sigh> I am so disappointed.</span></div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<div align="justify">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">So, do I write about my own muses in video gaming? What inspired me to start gaming in the first place? I don't know. I am so disappointed but I might revisit this topic at a later time...</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-6396893889183130212013-05-09T14:03:00.000-07:002015-11-16T15:49:29.593-08:00Ugly Wedding<div style="text-align: justify;">
The inspiration for today's post is something that showed up on my home page - a wedding video in which the bride and groom were made up as zombies. Oh, it was sooooo ugly! Most people want to look their best on such a momentous occasion. I can understand bringing your own personality to a wedding but where you can't bear to look at your wedding pictures? So, I wondered if it was very common that a couple wanted to be memorialized in that way. So, let the googling begin!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I found several other zombie themed wedding pictures. I can't imagine sharing these with your children or grandchildren!</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg887mhBqYg9jmwJRt-12a-3M_ZFhuOagUyOJVsrNRM0ksC7PkBtywrDRwOHBxUW8eeLSEyHMgnuVQrtP-6G7s89wrrOQymkg3WNXoYdAAljE-2jy4MvpJ0k0ZscFdBCUsFfS2D7fYWYqvp/s1600/zombie+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg887mhBqYg9jmwJRt-12a-3M_ZFhuOagUyOJVsrNRM0ksC7PkBtywrDRwOHBxUW8eeLSEyHMgnuVQrtP-6G7s89wrrOQymkg3WNXoYdAAljE-2jy4MvpJ0k0ZscFdBCUsFfS2D7fYWYqvp/s1600/zombie+01.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Too much blood!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFLgw4fROidsDOauD23ZSaQGd2lsFT5Kz6sAjuWaKCn2A8F_CANsTEMc4iLkqjOcnonIhTzaTdZkOoARF2mptpg3kGHWzTVS_eYJER3XleKFvOApmEu8r-bxVj7TJHftZd4JJEtWxl8MdL/s1600/zombie+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFLgw4fROidsDOauD23ZSaQGd2lsFT5Kz6sAjuWaKCn2A8F_CANsTEMc4iLkqjOcnonIhTzaTdZkOoARF2mptpg3kGHWzTVS_eYJER3XleKFvOApmEu8r-bxVj7TJHftZd4JJEtWxl8MdL/s1600/zombie+02.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Too gruesome!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
I saw quite a few other images of the bride and groom in a lot of makeup. The most common seemed Shrek inspired weddings! Shrek? Green ogres? Oh, well...</div>
<div align="justify" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvktMeJmAGDzpTrWZ4Evpa5oX06iEX2VnX37bIvzL47necSpW4FDEFeSRITeKWmCpXopk-0hxw7MjD205rOaHqkBmcJ2YlHvKzNMWzkF76xkLAC241FsRFfe1CsQ50ZvNRPKmlJQxLO4PV/s1600/shrek+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvktMeJmAGDzpTrWZ4Evpa5oX06iEX2VnX37bIvzL47necSpW4FDEFeSRITeKWmCpXopk-0hxw7MjD205rOaHqkBmcJ2YlHvKzNMWzkF76xkLAC241FsRFfe1CsQ50ZvNRPKmlJQxLO4PV/s1600/shrek+01.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I wonder if this was a way of dealing with a cold outdoor wedding?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0CNRAgy9gt0K3qr_4E7jcnjp-cKngEr8CjxKXFKCriozmURfh7FRzvH75EOUXANXPEdlkPgQv9XDmiUEkWTJNYCD_fHWLlvFLnJX4D_gRI62ahu_HzqXW72UGSyfAMbd1mufcYzua9Apy/s1600/shrek+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0CNRAgy9gt0K3qr_4E7jcnjp-cKngEr8CjxKXFKCriozmURfh7FRzvH75EOUXANXPEdlkPgQv9XDmiUEkWTJNYCD_fHWLlvFLnJX4D_gRI62ahu_HzqXW72UGSyfAMbd1mufcYzua9Apy/s1600/shrek+03.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At least their makeup color matches.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
Now, I really enjoy Star Wars, and so does my sweetie, so a Stars Wars themed wedding doesn't seem <em>that</em> outrageous. But I can't imagine not being able to recognize the bride and groom!</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghGWHhLp96rt5Wqs1G0PLi8jftiEtLEle45v1p92PxXaltHBc22LzdYex6kVE1qXq3Kkdcz-HKdA42dG2S2rbXmu4bprpuf8_k00rs8AcVGQXh3PLiOdx3xNXOOg1_HEybpQgYp4CxLZot/s1600/star+wars+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghGWHhLp96rt5Wqs1G0PLi8jftiEtLEle45v1p92PxXaltHBc22LzdYex6kVE1qXq3Kkdcz-HKdA42dG2S2rbXmu4bprpuf8_k00rs8AcVGQXh3PLiOdx3xNXOOg1_HEybpQgYp4CxLZot/s1600/star+wars+01.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">General Akbar???</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgmoHkzA2zYT5D_eBT43FmWU1Ii6sO1yKGhJggXKk_Y37ofRQsU0C4fe8MBDfjJoV5VZ5aGs1Gfb6DcN9KOM5OIT0TMTtuLfRMRWWF4xhlb6VGL1lQ2xexm4lQMbhZ3pJU62foFwAwOsSQ/s1600/star+wars+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgmoHkzA2zYT5D_eBT43FmWU1Ii6sO1yKGhJggXKk_Y37ofRQsU0C4fe8MBDfjJoV5VZ5aGs1Gfb6DcN9KOM5OIT0TMTtuLfRMRWWF4xhlb6VGL1lQ2xexm4lQMbhZ3pJU62foFwAwOsSQ/s1600/star+wars+02.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At least the bride got an ivory helmet to match her dress.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-65713310116360546672013-03-31T14:15:00.002-07:002015-11-16T15:50:03.210-08:00Gypsy <div align="justify">
I love finding out new things!!!</div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<div align="justify">
We watched the 1962 movie "Gypsy" and I was curious how accurately the musical portrayed the real life Gypsy Rose Lee. It was fairly accurate for two of the main characters: Louise (Gypsy Rose Lee) and her sister, June. They were child performers in vaudeville, they did have a pushy stage mother, and June was the more talented singer and dancer. June did elope at an early age in order to escape her mother, and she became a pretty famous actress. Louise did go into burlesque and became a "classy and witty striptease artist". Both sisters did well in the entertainment field, acting on stage, in films and on television. Both became writers, and June even was nominated for a Tony award for a play she wrote and then directed on Broadway,</div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<div align="justify">
The mother, Rose, was portrayed much more sympathetically in the movie than what I gathered from everything I found out about her. I enjoyed reading about both Louise and June, but I was shocked at what I read about Rose! I could not believe that when Louise was born in 1911 she was named Ellen June Hovick but when her sister was born one or two years later, her mother gave that name to the new baby and renamed <em>her</em> Rose Louise. What mother does that!?! Later, Louise became know as Gypsy Rose Lee and June went by the name of June Havoc.</div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<div align="justify">
June never knew exactly in what year she was really born because her mother <em>forged</em> several birth certificates for each of the girls. Rose put June into silent films as a toddler, and was able to get her to cry for the cameras by telling her the family dog was killed. The girls supported the family throughout their childhood by performing in vaudeville. As I mentioned above, June did elope with one of the boys in the act. She was 15 or 16 at the time. Unlike in the movie, Rose did call the police and had the boy arrested. Rose went to the police station to meet with him carrying a concealed weapon, and tried to shoot the young man!</div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh59I3XlQKU7xYq45SgGDFpDI_CUDDMQZDGIPfcvEOQ9C-fLuF74z3_nnJBfPR-mbUu1dw16ZzsY0FF0Nex4fT5WGbsuZ6VMcP7AMtVdX5AQHeESqFcWANXscr_G2-alaq4K3aYKHYMAtXH/s1600/GRL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh59I3XlQKU7xYq45SgGDFpDI_CUDDMQZDGIPfcvEOQ9C-fLuF74z3_nnJBfPR-mbUu1dw16ZzsY0FF0Nex4fT5WGbsuZ6VMcP7AMtVdX5AQHeESqFcWANXscr_G2-alaq4K3aYKHYMAtXH/s640/GRL.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Horrible passport pictures of June, Louise and Rose</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<div align="justify">
Rose was supported by both her daughters for the rest of her life, and continually made demands for money and gifts. Louise set her mother up with a farm in New York state and a 10-room apartment in Manhattan which Rose ran as a boardinghouse. One thing I read described it as a "lesbian" boardinghouse and, apparently, one of the women became Rose's lover. Louise came for a visit, and the woman made a pass at her. Rose shot and killed her, but was never prosecuted for it because the woman's death was made to look like a suicide! </div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<div align="justify">
Those two sisters definitely had interesting lives!</div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-10417295647012658882013-02-24T18:18:00.004-08:002015-11-16T15:51:23.366-08:00In Honor of the Oscars<div style="text-align: justify;">
Okay, at first, I didn't know why this popped into my head but I wanted to see if I could find famous people who owned German Shepherd Dogs. But then I realized that is probably from seeing all the hoopla on TV about the Oscars - so on to Google!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Chuck Norris owned a white German Shepherd named Angel. Nick Lachey has a male named Luka. Deion Sanders, Jennifer Lopez, Martina McBride and Jim Belushi have GSDs. I saw that Ted Shackelford, Tanya Tucker, Jake Gyllenhaal, Shania Twain, Christina Applegate, Roseann Barr, Alyssa Malano and Shannen Doherty have all owned German Shepherds.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhykTnv3rH0F-0D5U07f6h_dJoQGx9YSCs3ab6uo38vbSIV2gU5raMqYlP_cUV9oq4WrW6db-vV6zoOMLQZ2hnxIrr-5_fs-9o3GQzEa24qhVyUNaGfsCT7DnQHI_iMCCuLPF1_guZq7Ivl/s1600/bullet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhykTnv3rH0F-0D5U07f6h_dJoQGx9YSCs3ab6uo38vbSIV2gU5raMqYlP_cUV9oq4WrW6db-vV6zoOMLQZ2hnxIrr-5_fs-9o3GQzEa24qhVyUNaGfsCT7DnQHI_iMCCuLPF1_guZq7Ivl/s320/bullet.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Roy Rogers' Museum: Trigger and Bullet</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
But it seemed like the search strayed to famous German Shepherd Dogs and stories about German Shepherds. For example, a German Shepherd in Argentina stood watch over his owner's grave for six years after he passed. Other stories were about dogs that saved or attacked their owners.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The one that gave me the most mixed feelings was Roy Rogers. He not only stuffed and mounted his horse, Trigger, but his German Shepherd Dog, Bullet. I know how I have felt about my pets after they have passed and I can't imagine having that done to them. I wouldn't like to see them but know that they are gone. But... everyone has their own way of dealing with loss.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-73220645552861349242013-01-17T14:08:00.000-08:002015-11-16T15:52:52.912-08:00TommyKnockers<div align="justify">
I saw the first episode of a new series on the SYFY channel, Ghost Mine, and it is basically about TommyKnockers. The only association I had for that term was a Stephen King book about extraterrestrial aliens so I started the search!</div>
<div align="justify">
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNst73TEuFqyUwKaJ-5ekUy7IWKstXh5Jjok1CWFz_AUuA8NDHSNdK46v0FlG4pueAj8Yf-gjzXRH_4RiBpIzHVZiUrhSorBkugxM_DVS_zzLvG0ZMN-9p8dHWlb9i6IxaLs-9iLobxpmX/s1600/cornish+miner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNst73TEuFqyUwKaJ-5ekUy7IWKstXh5Jjok1CWFz_AUuA8NDHSNdK46v0FlG4pueAj8Yf-gjzXRH_4RiBpIzHVZiUrhSorBkugxM_DVS_zzLvG0ZMN-9p8dHWlb9i6IxaLs-9iLobxpmX/s1600/cornish+miner.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That's an actual candle on the Cornish miner's helmet!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
It turns out that TommyKnockers have nothing to do with aliens. The term comes from Cornish folklore for a type of faerie, the equivalent of the Irish leprechaun. TommyKnockers are small gnome-like creatures that inhabit mines. As I have come to expect from these google searches, I came across a lot of contradictory information. Sometimes TommyKnockers are considered helpful and friendly, leading miners to valuable ore and warning of cave-ins. Other times they are vindictive, hurting or even killing miners. I read that miners would not enter a mine unless they were assured that TommyKnockers had already started the job, or that miners would abandon mines as soon as TommyKnockers made their appearance.</div>
<div align="justify">
<br />
Cornish miners emigrated to the U.S. and had a huge influence in the Pennsylvania coal mines and the California Gold Rush spreading the superstition of TommyKnockers. But over the years TommyKnockers changed and instead of being Fae creatures, they became the ghosts of dead miners.<br />
Apparently, with modern technology, TommyKnockers are supposed to be fading into legend. But if this new show is any indication, people are just as superstitious as ever!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-77156199296276079442012-12-13T13:33:00.000-08:002015-11-16T15:53:42.894-08:00History of Crochet<div align="justify">
The inspiration to many of my google searches is a penchant for not taking things at face value. I read an article someplace or I see a show on TV, and a little radar goes off. Ping: error! And I need to look up the topic to see if I am right that what I read or saw is wrong! Whew, does that sound convoluted so on to the topic today: the origin of crocheting.</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO8gtpodM49NZHLPjmX5182RFDR-MH7f_RQ2G6TCWlF2aED4i_9l4JAibAS3Co9OOxMiO-Rw9NNRGjl8Mq4pp0-JAlpnznR7xdjTQVzYRVJXz5Ygb02zQWuHCBq2D8ijZVfIpEMGhuZgug/s1600/crochet+hook.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="122" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO8gtpodM49NZHLPjmX5182RFDR-MH7f_RQ2G6TCWlF2aED4i_9l4JAibAS3Co9OOxMiO-Rw9NNRGjl8Mq4pp0-JAlpnznR7xdjTQVzYRVJXz5Ygb02zQWuHCBq2D8ijZVfIpEMGhuZgug/s200/crochet+hook.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<div align="justify">
Let me start off by stating that crochet is a method of creating fabric by intertwining loops of thread (or yarn) with a rod about the size of a pen with a hook on the end. Crocheting can be used to make anything from delicate, lacy doilies to afghans to clothing items.</div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<div align="justify">
Now, back to the google search.</div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<div align="justify">
Of course, the first entry that pops up on Google is that treasure trove of information: Wikipedia. Wikipedia states that there is no direct evidence on the origins of crochet. There is a theory that crochet evolved from other types of needlecraft, needlecraft from China, Iran or South America. The first real historical evidence starts in the early 1800's.</div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<div align="justify">
Other websites state the reason there is no early evidence of crocheting is that it was worked with the fingers (as opposed to today's hooks). Since there was no tool used and the fabric disintegrated, there is no historical evidence. I liked one website's response to that (love-crochet.com). There are "... surviving pieces of knitted, woven, knotted, and other fabrics – everything, it seems, but Crochet. If it existed pre-1800, surely some fabric would remain?"</div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAmQqQMybxbdDULhZaoIEHc7G7fZw1NCWBU3LnxGH0XBRg6VVD-th7yEe-fImnBTKyv1e2icqCx9zS6S67FtoCzLAr1H-8kwm9-Y38hbCp0sT1iauTArf0_1l2fTDEtltSHXLFZrE7MFpg/s1600/crochet+doily.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAmQqQMybxbdDULhZaoIEHc7G7fZw1NCWBU3LnxGH0XBRg6VVD-th7yEe-fImnBTKyv1e2icqCx9zS6S67FtoCzLAr1H-8kwm9-Y38hbCp0sT1iauTArf0_1l2fTDEtltSHXLFZrE7MFpg/s200/crochet+doily.jpg" width="197" /></a>A few websites try to claim the Renaissance period as the origin of crochet. But I notice one problem with that: they base this on the existence of lace. Lace from that period was looped, braided and knotted thread - not crocheted.</div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<div align="justify">
So, it looks like the first historical evidence for crochet all date to early 1800's. That is when crochet is first mentioned, that is when the first patterns are found, and that is date of the oldest surviving fabric proven to be crochet. My grandmother taught me to crochet when I was in 5th grade, but I haven't crocheted in years. Researching this topic made me want to start crocheting again! </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6703514408624137846.post-7703310712101805282012-12-09T08:44:00.000-08:002015-12-04T12:37:22.027-08:00Hats of the Old Republic, Part III<div align="justify">
Okay, okay, this is<em> another</em> post about hats I have found in Star Wars: The Old Republic. But I have and excuse: I am <em>so</em> excited! My sweetie and I brought our Sith characters all the way to level 50 (max in the game) and finished our story lines! She has been letting me steal all the hats we receive so I have got to show them off.</div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<div align="justify">
So.... we will return to our regular scheduling but first a word from our sponsor: Hats of the Old Republic!</div>
<div align="justify">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBknUaW1KfYEJRIPhyphenhyphenTfS8-cUzZF9Ut1-48nwMqcp2tvbJUWenFESWtz0auNRK4b_9ktpQqsLBXcUmAvqt_1tSRoSf9qREJ2x4sr-TTCag6bifWY-1vR5lV1pZ_Pjd6EHjklRZQYDLdeWB/s1600/Hat+Sith+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBknUaW1KfYEJRIPhyphenhyphenTfS8-cUzZF9Ut1-48nwMqcp2tvbJUWenFESWtz0auNRK4b_9ktpQqsLBXcUmAvqt_1tSRoSf9qREJ2x4sr-TTCag6bifWY-1vR5lV1pZ_Pjd6EHjklRZQYDLdeWB/s1600/Hat+Sith+02.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here we have Sa'die modeling the latest in Sith Fashion. But wait! There is more! Not only does your Sith look chic, this little number does double duty and will cut down saplings in the yard.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKd2KtBdLlmr45dbc0iuSplC1tA_4b1Wt4IIydDQovQSJsW3ZfgFzZP-E30WdYEwNI8hRGMYJxFrb96hSKJf6GHFsTuil-wZ38G-ipeRtx1Mc70NWLmFz4ZGOxVUGIIM_-5WDrqzroIdP1/s1600/Hat+Sith+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKd2KtBdLlmr45dbc0iuSplC1tA_4b1Wt4IIydDQovQSJsW3ZfgFzZP-E30WdYEwNI8hRGMYJxFrb96hSKJf6GHFsTuil-wZ38G-ipeRtx1Mc70NWLmFz4ZGOxVUGIIM_-5WDrqzroIdP1/s1600/Hat+Sith+05.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And here is another piece from our gardening collection - hat and edging tool!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpwkgCmXuQJEErq4uelE-3arq_18y8w220Y3SyCNtircxTtGQOQxBsUQOZZTOl3vTCGKIt3kc39Niw6u6qPkWRmotGa_37nEq4QGIDvxo0c5cEqi7y-ne_UrXKPiGeqzE1CWVyxZT098Y0/s1600/Hat+Sith+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpwkgCmXuQJEErq4uelE-3arq_18y8w220Y3SyCNtircxTtGQOQxBsUQOZZTOl3vTCGKIt3kc39Niw6u6qPkWRmotGa_37nEq4QGIDvxo0c5cEqi7y-ne_UrXKPiGeqzE1CWVyxZT098Y0/s1600/Hat+Sith+03.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Now Sa'die is modeling the latest in holiday wear. Imagine how this will brighten the holiday season!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ6K__WRnkMMl6KN2o-PLOZUfI4AWKsmEulwA7Qx61fbJQl9k5J_ZCouHIOGPCW1YGH1sLdYxkOcxnUpJhp_VnK-OPoUKbo7o_mmZ0pD6s5u7VUkdS0gPqZq6w-wUaIUeEF5e4wmwfOL2c/s1600/Hat+Sith+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ6K__WRnkMMl6KN2o-PLOZUfI4AWKsmEulwA7Qx61fbJQl9k5J_ZCouHIOGPCW1YGH1sLdYxkOcxnUpJhp_VnK-OPoUKbo7o_mmZ0pD6s5u7VUkdS0gPqZq6w-wUaIUeEF5e4wmwfOL2c/s1600/Hat+Sith+04.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And this hat brings back that vintage sci fi look. It just screams cyborg!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div align="justify">
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01287568426040234290noreply@blogger.com0