Lair of the Carter

Stargate Universe

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 06:48:31 GMT

Dear Gods, its actually good. It appears they have a budget, and either a lot of the talent behind Galactica, or inspired by it. Good dramatic pacing, characters you can care about, and heron61 will be pleased to see they get their scout badge for diversity and lack of blatantly offensive stereotypes. Its like Galactica had a lovechild with Voyager and let the better parts of Stargate raise it. I just got caught up, though I still need to catch the very first episode. Off to hulu or whatever to find it.

Bit of cyberpunky fiction

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 17:24:53 GMT

Well, that was unexpected. I had one of those dreams last night, the kind that makes for a story. I actually made the effort at writing it down and developing it some. More like the opening chapter of a novel I'll never write than a short story, but quite the exercise. I haven't attempted anything like that in a long time. I'm pretty pleased with the outcome, and just how much detail started pouring out once I started. I might have to tinker more with this again. Its an interesting start on something.

Its hard finding work in 2030 that doesn’t involve shooting people. Its not that it isn’t out there, the world didn’t end in 2012 or anything like that. No polar inversions, no Planet X causing massive tidal disturbances and earthquakes. Just one incredible party, the biggest Happy New Year the world has ever seen. Life pretty much went back to its steady struggle against self destruction and decay while reaching towards transcendence that has marked the past century or so of Mankind’s progress here on this Earth.

Which is not to say there weren’t some hiccups. Yellowstone blowing its top pretty much ruined the breadbasket of America. There were some earthquakes too, come to think of it. It was starting to look pretty biblical there for awhile around 2020. Especially when the middle east finally had the nuclear exchange it always wanted to have and we had to start using our own energy reserves to keep the machine rolling, what was left of it. But things are starting to settle back into some level of normalcy here in the North East. That is, if you call islands of god-like prosperity surrounded by seas of decay and desperate lawless poverty normal. But such is the world. I don’t have to run it, I just work here.

So at least I have work. The thought is small comfort as my finger nervously clicks the safety lock on my hidden needler as I watch for trouble. “Silent But Deadly,” I like to call it. My SBD. It annoys the crap out of the gun nerd mercs when I do that, make up my own designations. People have to have their systems, their sacred words and codes. Its not like they have a lot else since the Holy Land lit on fire and it doesn’t look like Jesus is coming back in a flying saucer to save anyone.

I hate these jobs as much as I love them. I’ve been lucky to rarely see any real combat, they usually go pretty smoothly. Which is good, as I’m built more for precision than heavy assault. But there is just something about the feeling of worth you get when you know that life is on the line, and its your job to hold it, that is beyond measure. I think a part of me has always wanted to be a warrior, to live in that perfect moment of clarity between gunshots when time slows and there is only the absolute focus of being and the execution of action to continue it. I feel were I to die in that moment, Valhalla would open to me and that moment would become eternal. I understand the worship of battle now having experienced it. But all the same, I’m happy to avoid it to live another day. I’m not eager to die, I intend that to be the very last thing I do.

I keep watch while my partner works on the elevator security panel. I can’t help but try to read the code she enters, hovering in red holo display as she works. The language of machines and systems, I used to know it pretty well. I’m hopelessly out of date now, which is why I get to hold the gun today while she engages in a combat of her own, of logic and abstraction. But I follow enough to know that she is close, and that I should be ready.

“Bingo. And we’re in.”

She stands, a slender six feet of talent in the plain grey jumpsuit of a technician, just another worker doing routine maintenance on a faulty elevator control panel. The short curls of her brown hair frame her head like a helmet, such as is the current style. I don’t care for it much, but it is practical. The front zipper of her jumpsuit has slid down to near sternum level, but she doesn’t seem to notice. She had her mammaries removed years ago, along with her ovaries in that brief window where transgender surgeries were covered under the Universal Plan. And like many, was left unfinished when coverage was as promptly removed. Such is sometimes the genius of a “Democratic” system. Though she seems happy enough, I think she got ultimately what she wanted anyway. Efficiency.

We ride the elevator up to the restricted floor in silence. I look out through the glass as we rise past the market levels to the towers of light and glass. The LED displays on the sides of the skyscrapers telling their endless stories of propaganda, product, and art. I watch as always the lights of the city extend out to the borders, and look for the dark at the edge of the grid. Sometimes I think I can see the fires burning beyond, life finding a way even if abandoned by its own. Struggling for survival outside of our little island of light.

With a soft ding, the door slides open and we move. My partner prowls like a cat through the farm of gray empty cubicles. I note the absence of papers stuck to their walls, meeting notes or funny cartoons such as I remember in my days. Just the foam seats and interface terminals that block out all but the digital world from the notice of their drones.

We move fast and silent, we have only so long before the security systems come back on line with angry vengeance, knowing they were tampered with. We hear the voices of our prey in the corner office, just where the HUD displays indicate they should be. My partner places the small charge on the lock as we crouch ready to either side of the door. She counts down with her fingers. Three. Two. One. BANG.

She moves in first through the smoke, a ballet of acrobatic flips and kicks that takes out the two suits on the left side before they can react. I wish I had the time to watch her do her thing, I have always had a fine appreciation for the martial arts, especially in so graceful a form as hers. But I can only focus on my targets, the two on the right with the girl. The needles launch with perfect computer aided precision, as always. They fall: one, two, three. The needle’s coating slides effortlessly through their armor, exploding with small pops of massive tissue damage inside. One, two, three.

One, two… three.

My partner looks at me in stunned horror, as I realize what just happened. The third shot, a perfect hit through the left eye, destroys any organic matter in her head. She continues to stand, seemingly unaffected, just the slightest trickle of blood beginning to leak from one of her nostrils, while her bodyguards fall to the floor.

Oh fuck, what have I done? I didn’t even realize I made the third shot until after it had left. Why did I fire? What did I just do? Did my systems malfunction? I just fucked up everything and I don’t even know why.

My eye locks with hers, the right one that is linked to her augmented systems. I feel that focus of timelessness, like when I was staring down that barrel of the gun that took part of my frontal lobe. I feel dizzy, with a sense of motion. Her mouth is moving, but I can’t hear the words she is trying to say. And then its gone. Her body slumps to the ground and now time is moving way too fast.

“You IDIOT! What the fuck was that!”

I don’t have an answer. We just move out on autopilot, following our planned route. She doesn’t say a word to me. Just a look as we exit the waste chute that says enough before she swings up onto a fire escape and is gone from sight.

Shit. This is not going to look good on my resume.

GO!

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:30:18 GMT

I think I might finally be starting to get it. I've been grinding away at the igowin software, which is a 9x9 board with varying handicaps that progress as you do. I've been stuck at about 17 Kyu for weeks and finally started to get some of the spacial tactics. Giving ground being a bit of a breakthrough for me, as I was playing to respond to every move with another attack previously. This drops me to about a 14 Kyu against the computer in just a few matches. Its finally starting to make some sense and I'm progressing again. I figure once I get to about a 10 I might be able to play a human at about a 40 and not embarrass myself too much :)

Globalization

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 18:48:17 GMT

I am in America, eating a Lemongrass Mint
which was purchased in Beijing
imported through South Africa
manufactured in Switzerland
with ingredients from Asia

It hits 4 continents before reaching my belly.
Oh, and its named for a city in South America.

Crazy, ain't it?

Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:18:22 GMT

Latest blood tests back. My A1C is back down to 5.5, which is pretty much normal. It was up to 9ish in previous reads. Its amazing the difference working out about twice a week makes in my sugar response. I'm sure all that mountain climbing I did in China didn't hurt either, mind you. But this is after only less than 3 months of getting back into training.

It seems that Karma demands that I become a kung fu master. Or something. My health suffers if I don't. That's about typical for Karma's tactics on getting me to do things. Why couldn't I just be crazy and get visions? That'd work just as well, really. Well, then again, no it probably wouldn't, so its just as well.

Brain test

Sat, 29 Aug 2009 23:36:43 GMT

Interesting brain test to see how well you can guess ratios. They flash dots on the screen, yellow and blue, for .2 sec. You guess which color had more dots.

You had a score of 89% correct on this test. Based on the results we have so far, the average person who takes this test scores 75% correct.

Your percentile score on this test was 99, meaning you scored higher than 99% of people who took
this test

Sweet. Still has smrts.

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 10:46:39 GMT

Improvement. Only up at 6am today. Still kinda liking the early morning. Just not the part where I fall down into a coma at 3pm to catch up. Dream stories were really good tonight though.

Alternate world where Superman was a real dick. Like SMBC was drawing him. There was this alien race destroying the planet with a giant mining laser, but superman was too busy being a dick somewhere else on the planet to notice until it had done a bunch of damage already. He does intervene and stop it, but has to sacrifice himself to do so. Setting is now post apocalypse Victorian styled steampunk fantasy with most of the world destroyed or under ice. Seems superman dieing brought magic back into the world or some such. There are cool costumes.

I'm making a D&D character, and telling his story. He starts off with 1 level of fighter and then intends to go to magic school. First, there are a number of quests one can take to raise one's stats. One for each stat. Example I read was eating a fish in a particular ritual to gain a +1 int. Only 1 +1 can be gained for each stat. But there is an alternate quest for each that gives a +3. For fish, its make an empathic connection with a magical fish. If you do the +1 you can't get the +3. The fish I caught was a bunny, and it was very cute. Nevertheless, on a random roll, character is killed by baddies that he gets in the way of that wipe out his family or some such. A necromancer is fortunate enough to find him and raises him from the dead, making him his apprentice. "Your life is now mine" and he's inclined go agree, honor bound. I think the necromancer is fulfilling one of the darker versions of the +3 options by binding him in this way, but I'm not sure which. I never detail the whole chart. So he gets to learn his mage levels, at the study of a dark mage seeking lichdom, while the apprentice himself is good of heart but bound. Something goes wrong and master's lichdom fails, trapping his soul in a soul jar or some such, releasing apprentice, who can now start the game.

After that, there's not much getting back to sleep. Not when I'm writing alternate D&D stat mod ritual rules in my head.

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 12:40:16 GMT

China pics are up. See Facebook.

Shanghai
Guilin
Shaolin
Beijing

Early Morning Realizations

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 11:26:36 GMT

Jetlag sucks. I've been waking up at 4am every day for the last 2 weeks. Coming home didn't help any. So now I will talk about pants.

I don't have much in the way of body modesty. I really don't care if people see my bits, it really doesn't matter. I;m not in the least embarrassed by them. However, I also realize that people may not want to see my bits, and they may cause embarrassment and horror to those unfortunate enough to view them among polite society. And so, I wear pants. Not for me, but for the ones I love. Excepting for the ones I love very much, for whom I take them off whenever possible.

Home again

Tue, 04 Aug 2009 23:07:12 GMT

I am pleased to report that both China has released me to return and America has accepted me through customs. I owe far too many companies money for them to not let me back in ;)

The trip was awesomely good. I started a journal of it which I didn't finish. Bits of that posting and pictures to follow when I get the time.

In short: I climbed mountains, the great wall, learned new Kung Fu, bought a bunch of crap, hit some clubs in Beijing, and walked up a whole lot of stairs. There was also some things that tasted like chicken which I am fairly certain were not chicken. Same for some of the pork. We decided it was best to not ask.

I'm still terribly jetlagged, will recover in the next day or so. More later.

Printers

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 19:52:24 GMT

I am officially done with inkjet printers. The last lexmark I bought, mind you from a going out of biz sale so it was only $40, cost me $55 to replace the ink. On a cost basis analysis, I'm spending between $.50 and $1.00 per page to print, as they don't last all that long.

Today's adventure in pricing began when my Brother fax machine refused to print a fax it received because it thought the yellow ink cartridge was empty (its not, its full. I've never printed color on it). When I first set it up, it insisted I install color ink even though I was printing B/W faxes, and now it continues to refuse to print B/W without color ink, which it in fact has. So I start to price.

I have concluded that laser is in fact the way to go. With about a $200 investment, you can get up to 3000 pages. That's $.07/page. Comparing with various standalone faxes and printers, the best I could do was about $.30/page. Laser for the win. Except it cost an extra $150 for any model to also FAX. Fail.

So I ended up with a $30 FAX machine that takes toner ribbon. Yes, that's good old fashion toner ribbon. $30. That's $.18/page for the rare time I ever receive faxes, less as replacement toner comes in 2 packs so it drops to somewhere around $.10 over time. And its half the size of the old one. Win.

At this point I wait until the ink runs out on my 3in1 printer and when it goes, just chuck it for a B/W laser printer. The inkjet can sit under my desk for the rare day that I want to print out a pretty color picture. That's all the damn things are good for.

IRAN

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 19:13:49 GMT

If you are not following what is going on in Iran right now, you should be.

Start here:

http://one-hoopy-frood.livejournal.com/10678.html

Kung Fu

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 01:44:56 GMT

Passed my yellowbelt test tonight. Woot! Current sifu believes in making the tests a real test of physical ability so even though I'm coming into this as a former blackbelt, he knows that and is making sure I'm still feeling pushed. So that is the good.

Better, I'm going to China!

The school is doing a China trip at the end of July. The usual tourist spots, and a good bit of time at the Shaolin temple training with the monks. So I get to be beat with sticks for having a lazy horse stance a lot. Which means lots of training for me in the mean time to clean that shit up. All courtesy my dad, who decided that since he really hasn't done much for me and just got a nice inheritance from his mom is passing along the goodness. I am not one to complain. I am also not one to pass up a chance like that. So, thanks dad :)

So now I've got to step up the training. I've got only a month to tighten up so I can take best advantage of the monk time. Nothing like a little motivation to get me off my ass and eating better.

Guess I'll install that Mandarin module for Rosetta Stone, too. I hear such good things about the software, now I actually have a reason to use it.

FYI

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 01:37:56 GMT

Just in case I've managed to slight anyone or what not, my general policy on adding LJ friends is that I have to be able to figure out who the hell you are. I do the same thing on Facebook, but that's a lot easier since people use names and pictures. With LJ its too often handles and graphics so I end up trolling through their journals looking for clues and references. Not often successful with that. So if I've been ignoring anyone I shouldn't, poke me to fix it cause now you know why.

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 14:41:02 GMT

Mr. President! Get Down!

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 15:40:28 GMT

I have survived another WTT. I've been beaten, brused, burned, bitten, cut, and poisoned, and had the time of my life. Rockin.

Also learned new vocabulary: Crunt. Definition: not sure where it is, but you don't want to be punched there.

Wickerman

Tue, 26 May 2009 21:29:53 GMT

So how to explain it. Everything went wrong. We worked our asses off for days. And everything came off so right. We all had a tremendously good time. I think in part for being so involved in the production. Met some very cool folks, drummed, danced, burned some shit. And left with the impression of it having been an excellent party. I'm still kind of buzzed from it, actually.

I'll post some pics of the installation later on when I get them off the laptop.

Wed, 20 May 2009 14:47:16 GMT

In other news, I'm back in training again. My dad offered to pick up the tab on classes at the school he's been going to, so I couldn't let that by. Shaolin Kempo this time, which is like kung fu mixed with a healthy dose of karate. Hard style blocks and strikes, which I'm really digging as I did a LOT of soft style before, and chin-na (which he just calls ju-jitsu for familiarity) joint lock techniques, which was also something I studied quite a bit before. It seems the course is basic kempo and ju-jitsu techniques and short katas, moving in to shaolin 5 animal style kung fu. We did Dragon Blocking this week, which involved grabs snaking around the opponent with open claw hands. Very cool, and delightfully different than Eagle Claw which does a lot of the same but in a more linear way. I always wanted to do more with the traditional animal forms, now it looks like I will get the chance. In 3 classes, I think I've gotten all the white belt material. I might be 7 years out of shape, but a previous black belt does help speed up the basics :)

I feel great for the exercise, too. I've so needed this. Mmmm... Yang... Really increases my energy. Really causes me to wake up at 3:45am and not be able to get back to sleep until 7 too, which I'll need to find some workaround for. That's annoying.

wickerman dead mans party

Tue, 19 May 2009 21:51:00 GMT

So we're leaving for Wicker Man this thursday. This has turned out to be a much bigger outing than first intended last year when we said "hey, we should get the clan out for a party space pittsburgh style next year". Scortch made this huge dreamcatcher thing that will be flying over north crook, and hanging from it will be a sort of astec calander in painted cardboard skulls, astec zodiac animals, bats, skeletons etc, pioneered by ryan and lisa. Who'd have thought, the past few weekends my attic has been full of people painting under blacklights like the happiest of kindergardeners. We're one of two groups running sound, too. I'll be spinning some of my funky dubstep and other goodies, ron has a crapton of material as usual, ryan has a set or two and ben will have a lot if he's able to make it up (anyone leaving friday eve, give him/me a call).

So yea. Dead Man's Party in force. Boingo service friday night at midnight. I just need to check the costume store for blacklight white facepaint for the skull faces. This is going to be all sorts of awesome.

Wed, 15 Apr 2009 21:29:51 GMT

I normally don't forward this sort of thing, but damn that was awesomeness, whatever the heck it was.

Reason #3374 why I believe in magick

Tue, 03 Mar 2009 18:09:32 GMT

I hate to work on my birthday. I always try to schedule it off if I can and spend some time wandering around, having some good chill alone time just enjoying the beauty of life. In many years its been walks in various places, I get a lot out of that sort of thing. This year, I forgot to put it in the schedule, so had 2 apts scheduled for me in Charleroi, out in the middle of nowhere. I'm thinking the whole time about how I'd rather they not be there so I can quit early today and enjoy the day. When I got to them, both were home but had to reschedule. So I ended up having a beautiful drive out in the country in the spring sunshine listening to my music, chatted with 2 nice old ladies, put smiles on their faces and made them feel better about their day, and had a nice drive home. I do love it when the universe accommodates my wishes when I forget to make the time for them myself.

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 19:32:25 GMT

A couple of weeks ago I noticed one of Chaos's (one of my cats) eyes didn't shine like the other. Something was definitely obstructing it. I thought it might have been a detached retina, a cataract or some such. So first we have to go to the vet, which is the only way to get a referral for an ophthalmologist. They do nothing useful other than repeat what I already tell them, and charge me $150. Next, we see the specialist I need, and discover the eye actually has a tumor. So the prognosis is to remove it asap before there is any spread. That apt cost about $350 to take no action. The actual surgery is scheduled for next thursday, and that is expected to run about $1400. Joy. Which basically means I'll be spending the money I have saved to pay my taxes with, and have to stiff the IRS. Double joy.

Chaos seems to be doing well enough, at least he doesn't seem to be in too much discomfort. Still, there's no waiting, it's gotta go asap. He'll get a nifty little black insert, I hear, which may make him look all piratey. Yar. Suck.

The inevitible problem with having a PS3

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 05:06:18 GMT

Dear Postmaster:

Please forward all incoming mail to my residence in Liberty City.

Thanks,

ME.

DJing cont

Thu, 19 Feb 2009 05:34:32 GMT

Ok, I think I've about got it. Not so well I can do everything on the fly, but well enough that with some scripting notes I can run a prepared set and sound like I know what I'm doing. I started taking notes on some of the more difficult transitions, which turned into much more detail. Things like times to cut in and out, what bpm I should adjust by, if any, what kind of cut to use. Its still just a guide, all the fine tuning happens by hand, but it makes the job a lot easier. Now when I can do the fine tuning fast enough that I don't need the notes, then skillz will be where they need to be. Still, not bad for about 4 hours work today.

DJ fun

Wed, 18 Feb 2009 18:45:11 GMT

Took my first crack at DJing a set. I put together about 2.5 hours of dubstep dancy goodness, and gave the PCJ turntables a go. Some of the cuts were really good. When I was able to pull off a good cross fade or overlay, it was really sweet. When I just couldn't get the tracks to match, it was pretty wretched. But not bad for a first go. I've got the idea now, now I just need more practice to build up some skill. Its exhausting, though. Keeping in mind 2.5 hours breaks down to only about 1.5 hrs with all the cuts, so I wasn't at it all that long, but it was quite draining. It takes a lot of focus. I certainly have a new respect for it, that's for sure.

My goal is to have a decent enough set to spin some at Carterday. I see today its going to take a bit more work. But man, is it fun. I definitely dig it.

Though I would have to pick a weird subset of breakbeat jungle dub to cut my teeth on, wouldn't I? I mean, the beat matching meter on the decks was so confused by all the syncopation it was completely useless. I figure though, if I can handle this stuff, a 4/4 trance set will be cake. So there's something.