Guess who spent the entire weekend writing a 10-page book review on the Salem Witch Trials that's due Monday? I'm 6 pages down and have 4 more to go. This is the first time in. . . forever that I've had too much information and no idea how to incorporate it. It's all actually pretty interesting, really. Who would have thought that all of that nonsense that occurred in 17th century New England could all be seen as a testament to how little rights women had during those years?
I really need this paper to be flawless...or at least appear to be flawless because I don't think I'm doing so good in this class. And that's strange! History was my thing...well, not my thing, but it was always easy for me. I can't believe I'm not doing so well.
I guess I can blame it on circumstance. Tests are..basically the only grade in this glass. He talks, we listen and take notes, we take exam at the end of the unit. And it seemed as though every time I had a test, something would come up. First time, like always, I'm not sure of how the teacher tests us -- so failing or not doing so well is a given pretty much with me if I don't know the material. But in this class, it wasn't that I didn't know the material, it was that I was definitely not used to his style of teaching so I didn't know how to take notes! And not to mention my brother bringing my nephew over for me to watch before class so I was late and I didn't have time to go over the crap notes that I already had. I took the test, thought I passed....but I didn't. Well, I barely passed it. And by barely I mean...barely.
Then there was the second exam. It began great! I knew how to take the notes, I knew what keywords to listen for, I thought I'd ace this next exam. Then...I got sick. The last time I was that sick, I ended up in the hospital going under the knife. I was so out of it that week that I remember irrationally thinking "Oh my god! Do I need to get my appendix removed....again!?" I missed an entire week. A WEEK! A week of him talking, a week of notes I'll never get. I missed it. And when I came back and sat down, he placed a piece of paper on my desk and I literally shouted "WHAT THE HOLY HELL IS THIS!?"
"This" was test No. 2. And That....I failed.
So I really need to step it up these last two tests and with this paper. Because if I fail one more test..just one, I'm either going to give up and quit or sleep with the teacher. And. Let. Me. Tell. You. Something: I am not above giving up the goodies to make an A! Even a B. Hell, really, I'd settle for a C. I've been doing so good since I got back in school in 2008, I don't need to fail a class.
So, doing this assignment (as well as the whole....you know, trying to pass) has put a halt on my writing. But worry not! The semester is almost over.
But I can't concentrate! Every time I try to think of what should happen next, I end up coming up with ideas that should happen in the future. And in great detail too! But me being me, I forget to write them down, so when it comes to actually putting those ideas into writing, I'd....forget...everything...
I find myself constantly thinking about it, even when I should have been thinking about this paper. I think it's safe to say that unlike my past projects, I don't think I'm giving up on this one when I approach a wall. I'll see that it gets done...but it won't be anywhere near done until after this semester is over.
Stay tuned! My next one will actually involve some more information about what I've been working on. I was going to talk about it tonight, but I left my notebook in my bag (which is about 4 feet away from me) and I am NOT going to get up and get it. What is this, a gym?
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Monday, November 15, 2010
Coffee beans, boxer briefs and a whole lotta hair!
It's interesting where inspiration comes from. While sitting in my friend's car on the way back home from Richmond and listening to a song, I thought of an entire scene. While looking out the window, my mind would go to this faraway place and suddenly there's a light bulb shining atop of my head.
This time the inspiration came from doing the most simplest task: Walking down the stairs at eight o'clock in the morning. I know it sounds silly, but that's exactly what I did! One morning, I woke up and walked down stairs wearing a white robe, black boxer briefs, and a gray t-shirt. But enough about something as mundane as what I did and what I was wearing -- lets talk about what it inspired!
As I mentioned in the previous entry that I'm writing this story. I don't know exactly what it is yet, but I know it's a story. Within this story I use mythical creatures and beliefs -- complete with my own spin, of course -- as part of the main plot.
One I found interesting was something called the futakuchi-onna. This one is very interesting in that it's a woman with a second mouth on the back of her head. This entry isn't about the beliefs people had regarding this creature, so I'm not going to go into much detail about how and why she has a frakkin second mouth in the back of her head. Instead, I'll talk about how she fits into my story.
This time the inspiration came from doing the most simplest task: Walking down the stairs at eight o'clock in the morning. I know it sounds silly, but that's exactly what I did! One morning, I woke up and walked down stairs wearing a white robe, black boxer briefs, and a gray t-shirt. But enough about something as mundane as what I did and what I was wearing -- lets talk about what it inspired!
As I mentioned in the previous entry that I'm writing this story. I don't know exactly what it is yet, but I know it's a story. Within this story I use mythical creatures and beliefs -- complete with my own spin, of course -- as part of the main plot.
One I found interesting was something called the futakuchi-onna. This one is very interesting in that it's a woman with a second mouth on the back of her head. This entry isn't about the beliefs people had regarding this creature, so I'm not going to go into much detail about how and why she has a frakkin second mouth in the back of her head. Instead, I'll talk about how she fits into my story.
I didn't know how to include this woman. I mean, she's very interesting, but it was hard for me to come up with a way to include her with my own spin.. . . until I walked down those stairs that Saturday morning. In my mind I was a white middle-aged married man who woke up after noticing his wife wasn't in bed. He feels around the bed with his eyes closed before opening them and realizing no one was there. He got up, put on his robe and walked down the stairs. The early morning light shined through his windows as he walked into his kitchen. He noticed the coffee was made and he praised his wife for already having it made. He heard something behind him, so he laughed and said something around the lines of, "Oh there you are" before turning around and noticing it was, in fact, her. But he was scared for some reason. He let out a scream and WHAMO -- opening credits.
I've concocted an entire story to follow this, but I probably shouldn't go into more details before someone cries "SPOILER ALERT!!!"
Just know that a simple task, such as walking down the stairs or taking a shower (that's another entry!) can lead to inspiration coming out of your ying yang!
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Hey, gay guy...why you no hero??
A few months ago (probably last year) my friends and I were all having a discussion on the demographics of a video game hero: what we wanted and what we thought were the characteristics of a hero. A main character. Someone who's life is the very subject of the story. I've thought about this before. I mean, I've thought about how I'd tell a story in a video game or an animation, but never in any detail. But, apparently, my friends have all thought of this themselves and they already had everything from the character designs and personalities to the final boss all thought up. Curious, I wanted to hear them. Each one of them said that they had included a character based off of me in their little story. I felt honored. . .of course I had no idea that I was about to be offended.
Nine out of ten of them (real stats here, people!) had me as the main characters sidekick. Of course, there's nothing wrong with a sidekick and at least I'd play a prominent role in the story. I felt good thinking that my friends saw me as someone they'd want around. And....then....I heard the rest. Flashing in neon colors, speaking in a high-pitched lisp, hitting on the main character in a failing effort and gaining laughs by the group -- I was to be that gay guy. You know, the one Hollywood likes to spoon feed us as the gay norm in stories as the comedic relief? The one who uses his sexuality to make the boys a bit uncomfortable, either for his personal gain of winning a battle or just for fun. That one who isn't taken seriously. Ever. And is often in need to be saved before, lets face it: 'He can't hold a gun with those hands!' Yeah. That one.
Of course this is just a story. A well thought of story that a friend thought to include me in so there was no need to get upset of offended. But it led me to question: Is that really how straight men see homosexual men? I'm not talkin about all straight men, but generally speaking. And more importantly: Is that how they saw me?
Instead of having a gay fit and shooting glitter out of my pom-poms, I sat up that night (I do this every night) and I thought about my story. How would I tell a story?
Like almost every night, when I can't sleep, I listen to my MP3 player. And, of course, Keane fills up most of the slots (I may or may not be obsessed with them. Who know!?) The song "Try Again" came on and I did what I normally do when that song comes on: I pumped up the volume. I closed my eyes and suddenly a story popped into my head. And each night and day after that, I couldn't get this story out of my head.
I like to write. As you can see, and when I do write something I take it far too seriously. This is no exception. Inspired by Final Fantasy X, Suikoden II, Blood+, Ghost in the Shell, and Fullmetal Alchemist I concocted a little story I like to call "The Resurrector"
It's a story about a young 22 year old boy whose fate has been decided for him when his mother became the Great Resurrector during the Dumaanian Civil War in 1964 and died leaving him with her knowledge and memories. It follows his journey, as well as the members of the Ginsburg Special Task Force Squad 7, and the battle between Light and Darkness. With the main cases and antagonist being those of mythical creatures I put my own spin on.
The main character, Isaac Kenny (working name) if a homosexual male with my personality. Unlike most gay-inclusive stories, this one involves straight characters. The Captain of Squad 7, Apollo Nashua Kviz, is straight; with other main character, Josef Kapana, being bisexual. The reason behind the difference in sexuality with the three main characters was because they are, I believe, the three stages of my life. I thought i was straight up until I reached the 7th grade. After that, until high school, I falsely accused myself of being bisexual. Finally, in high school I realized that I was a screeching, howling, flaming homosexual. But in The Resurrector, sexuality isn't an issue. Instead, magic is. Elementalists make up a good portion of the population of The Resurrector. And some love'em and some hate'em.
Surprisingly, I have included that stereotypical gay. You know, the one who wears flashy clothes and say off the wall things? Him. Yeah. I've included him as one of the antagonists. The kind that puts on the cute, happy, gay face that hides a dark, scary, evil monster.
Nine out of ten of them (real stats here, people!) had me as the main characters sidekick. Of course, there's nothing wrong with a sidekick and at least I'd play a prominent role in the story. I felt good thinking that my friends saw me as someone they'd want around. And....then....I heard the rest. Flashing in neon colors, speaking in a high-pitched lisp, hitting on the main character in a failing effort and gaining laughs by the group -- I was to be that gay guy. You know, the one Hollywood likes to spoon feed us as the gay norm in stories as the comedic relief? The one who uses his sexuality to make the boys a bit uncomfortable, either for his personal gain of winning a battle or just for fun. That one who isn't taken seriously. Ever. And is often in need to be saved before, lets face it: 'He can't hold a gun with those hands!' Yeah. That one.
Leeron Littner of Gurren Lagann
Instead of having a gay fit and shooting glitter out of my pom-poms, I sat up that night (I do this every night) and I thought about my story. How would I tell a story?
Like almost every night, when I can't sleep, I listen to my MP3 player. And, of course, Keane fills up most of the slots (I may or may not be obsessed with them. Who know!?) The song "Try Again" came on and I did what I normally do when that song comes on: I pumped up the volume. I closed my eyes and suddenly a story popped into my head. And each night and day after that, I couldn't get this story out of my head.
Tom Chaplin and Richard Hughes of Keane
It's a story about a young 22 year old boy whose fate has been decided for him when his mother became the Great Resurrector during the Dumaanian Civil War in 1964 and died leaving him with her knowledge and memories. It follows his journey, as well as the members of the Ginsburg Special Task Force Squad 7, and the battle between Light and Darkness. With the main cases and antagonist being those of mythical creatures I put my own spin on.
The main character, Isaac Kenny (working name) if a homosexual male with my personality. Unlike most gay-inclusive stories, this one involves straight characters. The Captain of Squad 7, Apollo Nashua Kviz, is straight; with other main character, Josef Kapana, being bisexual. The reason behind the difference in sexuality with the three main characters was because they are, I believe, the three stages of my life. I thought i was straight up until I reached the 7th grade. After that, until high school, I falsely accused myself of being bisexual. Finally, in high school I realized that I was a screeching, howling, flaming homosexual. But in The Resurrector, sexuality isn't an issue. Instead, magic is. Elementalists make up a good portion of the population of The Resurrector. And some love'em and some hate'em.
Surprisingly, I have included that stereotypical gay. You know, the one who wears flashy clothes and say off the wall things? Him. Yeah. I've included him as one of the antagonists. The kind that puts on the cute, happy, gay face that hides a dark, scary, evil monster.
Nathan Mahler of Blood+
The story itself is still a work in progress. But I would like to thank the jerks who think that gay mean pansy. Because you've inspired me to write this wonderfully dark and interesting story. I may post drafts here for those interested in reading it.
Give me a moment
I need to figure out how I'm going to use this. Normally I'd spam it with lame anecdotes about my life (or my obsession with Tom Chaplin), or pictures of things I like or links to thing that make me smile. I'd talk about stuff that matters to me. . . .I just need to figure out what that is.
Enjoy. And yeah, admire this adorableness that is he:
Enjoy. And yeah, admire this adorableness that is he:
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