Mark of the Archdemon Part 1

I’m working on a Dragon Age: Origins fanfic of undetermined length, featuring my personal Warden, an elven rogue named Arwyn. Here’s the first part.

Everything Today is Thoroughly Modern

I don’t know how I feel about feminism.

On the one hand, we have a lot to thank the suffragettes, the bra-burners, the Nancy Fridays (Google it), and the Hillary Clintons for. The sheer fact that we women can vote (provided we’re citizens of America and not Canadians, or vice versa if you live in Canada) is proof positive of that. We have birth control, maternity leave, female CEOs, magazines about female CEOs… Is it perfectly equal now? No, and it won’t be for a long time–after all, it took centuries for women to ditch the corsets and start wearing pants. But the fact remains that we have those things at all, which is more than, say, Susan B. Anthony did, and the world keeps progressing. Evolution takes time, but it is a constant forward march.

On the other hand, “feminism” can be a euphemism for “lesbian.” Let me explain: I’ve had a girlfriend. I know the lesbian side of the equation, or as “lesbian side” an 18-year-old mildly autistic girl can get. So this is not a hate diatribe about LEZZIES ARE SICKOS OOOOOH. Rather, this is why must pro-woman mean anti-man?

It doesn’t, you say. EXACTLY, I say. But those stereotypes of the man-hating lesbian exist and they exist for a reason. Same reason woman-hating queer stereotypes exist. The people do too. Maybe those people aren’t true feminists, but if not, what are they? Lesbians who use feminism to cover up their own insecurities and bigotry? For that matter, what is true feminism?

Maybe it has something to do with the goddess worship thing I’ve been looking into off and on over the past five years, I don’t know.

But for every man-hating lesbian, every crunchy-granola, Berkenstock-wearing, short-haired dyke (my favourite teacher in high school fit that very description, actually, minus the man-hating bit)… well, there’s…

This. What is this.

I’m not going to dissect the article, it rather speaks for itself. The funniest bit is the comments going ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS?! All I will say about the article is this:

I’m amused that all a woman should want to do is a business degree, find a husband, and have kids who she then homeschools while holding down a job with paid maternity leave (where is she working?). I’m in computer science, babe, I have no intention of getting an MBA.

And two…

Is anyone else reminded of the beginning of Thoroughly Modern Millie?

Now We’re Cooking with Gas

Today was the first day of classes at university, and my first day cooking in the new apartment. We’ve had things like cereal in here, but I hadn’t done any actual cooking until now.

I have Art Appreciation at 10:10 am to 11:00 am on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, but today we just went over the syllabus and he booted us out 15 minutes early. So I went to the bookstore and picked up the texts for the three classes I am Most Definitely in. (Tomorrow I talk to an English prof and try to get into that class.)

I’m really a bit worried, I need 12 credits to retain my student status and so far I only have 9. Most of the classes I need to take, though, are already full–hence having to go grovel to the English professor. I’m keeping an eye on College Algebra, though; I took a placement test today and I scored high enough to get in. Now I just need an opening.

So after I came back from Color and Design (2:30 to 4:25 on Monday and Wednesday), whose teacher has the most ROCKIN’ goatee by the way, I set up my consoles in the living room, downloaded the Design syllabus and printed it out, talked to my boyfriend, and then started on dinner.

We have a half-size stove in this apartment, and it’s also a gas stove. I have never used one of these before, so Mom had to show me how. We’d picked up groceries earlier today, and I’d gotten some kitchen supplies as part of moving in, so I had everything I needed.

I used a recipe from Allrecipes.com for Grilled Chicken Salad with Seasonal Fruit. First let me say that I love Allrecipes.com. I love the ratings, the reviews with ideas for variations on the recipes, and I love the sheer variety of stuff you can find there. I have an app for it as well, which I use a lot. One of the nice things about Allrecipes.com is that you can enter the number of servings you want to use, and it calculates the recipe alterations for you. So useful.

So I made half the amount of salad the recipe calls for, and it was plenty for just my mother and me. Instead of grilling the chicken (as I don’t have a grill), I sautee’d it, and used a bag of assorted lettuce greens instead of just the Bibb lettuce, which I couldn’t find in the local grocery. We did find some lovely strawberries, though, since they’re still in season.

Somehow I managed to put it all together with one skillet, one cutting board, and without burning the apartment down. And it came out really nice! Delicious, actually. The tangyness of the sauce was balanced well by the sweetness of the strawberries, and the chicken and lettuce made a nice texture combination, all added to by the light nuttiness of the pecans.

So, I built furniture, went to class, and cooked for myself (and mom) in this new apartment. So far the year is looking up.

SpOtter’s Top Apps Part 1: Games

The games section of my iPod.

So I have an iPod touch. Its name is Sylph, because I am that kind of nerd who names all her stuff. (You should see my console setup.) It’s not an iPhone because I got it before the iPhone came to Verizon. That’s right, it’s a 2nd gen iPod touch. The software is all up to date, though, which is nice.

I’m telling you all that to tell you this: I love apps. I do so much with them, and I have a ton. Not as much as some people, I’m sure, but enough that it keeps me busy. The only downside is that I need a WiFi signal for most of them–damn you no 3G on iPods! But at school or at home or in Starbucks, my iPod is my constant companion.

So, because you all have such a high opinion of my opinions, I’m sure, I’m going to tell you what apps are my favourites. What I use the most, what I think is the best-made, and what I think is a just plain cool idea. But because I have quite a few apps, I’m splitting them up into categories, each with a top three (if applicable… my Health category only has one. THEREFORE, I PRESENT TO YOU:

My favourite is Rarity

So let’s talk about ponies, shall we?

Of late, one of my favourite shows is My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. This show is, in a word, amazing. Created by Lauren Faust, one of the brains behind the Powerpuff Girls and Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends, it is far smarter and better-written than its name implies, managing to be savvy, clever, and fun without losing any of its kid-friendliness. The best part about the show, in fact, is the kid-friendliness—it is completely accessible to young girls, its target audience, meaning it’s sweet and girly and innocent, but without talking down to them. NOTHING in the show is at all condescending. It is on the girls’ own level instead.

Somehow this makes it appealing to 20-something boys.

I think what’s appealing isn’t the girlyness of the show; it’s the writing. Smart writing appeals to everyone—good quality is good quality, and everyone recognizes it. Not only that, but the characters are largely likeable, a rare find in a kid’s show, despite their flaws. And they do have flaws! Not just superficial, funny flaws, but ones that genuinely get in the way of their objectives, flaws they have to overcome. The whole show is about being yourself, but learning how to be yourself and meet your goals at the same time, not to mention being yourself and getting along with other people. Primarily the getting along with people bit, come to think of it. And the art style! It’s actually good! It’s simple and clean, yet detailed. And it’s not in weird shapes or “cutesy” stick figures or stupid-looking CG—it’s brightly-coloured vector 2D animation, and doesn’t try to be anything else.

 

I mean just look at it.

 

But, to quote LeVar Burton of Reading Rainbow, don’t take my word for it. Watch My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and see for yourself!

(This blog post is not in anyway associated with Hasbro or the Hub and is not endorsed by them. I simply love ponies.)

WTB Green Card, PST

I am frustrated.

So as a Canadian citizen, despite living in the US for the better part of my life, I have to transfer into UNK as an international student on an F-1 visa. This means a few things, one of which being that I can’t get a regular job unless it’s on campus, but I also can’t apply for work study. Another one is that a “hold has been placed on my account” until I attend International Orientation at school. This means I don’t get an ID or password, and am therefore unable to get into the school system and as such unable to register for classes, until three days before classes start. I’ve been looking at the class schedule for this semester as well—and all the classes I need to take are full.

So I may have gotten into the university, but whether I’ll be able to take any classes there appears to be another story. I have been so looking forward to actually being able to take classes in my major, classes I will enjoy, but I need to take algebra first, and algebra is full. All sections of it. Because I haven’t been able to register yet. What classes aren’t full have one seat left, and I still have a week before I’m able to register.

Am I missing something? Is there some special thing they haven’t told us? From what I’ve been told through what they’ve sent me, I have to show up at the school, immigration documents in hand, before I can do anything—I have to prove I exist, and that I legally have the right to exist in this country, and then I can actually, you know, be a student.

Which leaves the question of what the fuck I’m supposed to be doing this semester. This isn’t fair to me and it’s not fair to the other international students. I can’t even apply for work study positions because only Americans can do work study—it’s a federal program. There are student worker jobs, but work study students get preference. So there’s no guarantee I’ll be able to go to class or get a job. I have no idea what to do, and no idea where to go for help.

Fuck Homeland Security. I’m trying to do this legally and they’re trying to find ways to say no. If they want to stop illegal immigration, they have to stop saying no.

Also my sister got a car today

I’m proud of myself. Today I started an account at a new bank—all by myself. Drove to the branch office, talked to the manager, and opened the account, in my name, on my own. This is a Big Deal. We sent in the first month’s rent and the signed lease into my new landlord yesterday, and he should be getting it today. We can start moving in this weekend. Also, I found a student-worker position open at the Chemistry office at school—as the cabin boy, basically. Does basic secretary work, runs errands, etc. I need a class schedule before I can apply, which means I need to attend orientation first, but hopefully I can get that job. It’ll be nice having some income of my own.

In case you haven’t figured it out, I am really excited about all this.

IN OTHER NEWS, I’ve been playing a lot of Champions Online lately. I have an active World of Warcraft account, and I do log in, but the uber-obsession is fading. This is likely because I have new things to obsess over, like school. Anyway, I really like CO! The character creation is super fun, even without all the extra C-Store costume bits, and I actually really enjoy the gameplay. My favourite parts are probably the travel powers, though. Super speed? Flight? Who needs those when you have a GRAPPLE GUN. I have no idea what the grapple gun latches onto, though. The top of the screen maybe?

The more I play MMOs, though, the more I think, Damn I want to work on one of these. But hey, that’s why I’m in school. Hopefully I can get an internship in Austin this summer—that would be so cool. Well, actually it’d probably be hot—it’s Austin—but you know.

One more thing: I’m trying to get back into writing. Rebecca has been riding my ass to do something for her, so that’s tonight’s project. I’m working out details for the Fractal stories right now—but in the meantime, I’d like to warm up with some fanfiction. My usual fandoms are Mass Effect, Dragon Age, World of Warcraft… possibly Kingdom Hearts, or Champions Online or something. Thoughts? (And if there are any other fandoms I should write in, let me hear them.)

Catching Up

New school year means new opportunities, new stories, and a new shot at the blog. I’m going to a new university in a new city, and things are a fresh start.

SO WHAT’S BEEN GOING ON?

• I got a boyfriend, as I mentioned in June and then never followed up on because I suck. He is amazing and his family is lovely and I had a wonderful time in Austin. Things went great and I didn’t have an anxiety freak out once.
• We went to Canada at the end of June, to Vancouver Island. Visited the grandparents in Victoria, then went to Gabriola Island—a small artists’ colony off the coast of VI—to see my aunt, who lives there, and my other relatives on my Dad’s side, who were also visiting. I actually get along really well with my cousins now, and I didn’t always. It’s a nice change. Gabriola is also GORGEOUS, a real temperate rainforest.
• I applied to the University of Nebraska at Kearney and actually GOT IN. After a long period of sending in paperwork (gotta love being an international student) I got my acceptance letter. Classes start on the 22^nd of August—in two weeks, in other words.
• I have finally settled on a major that I am really happy with. So at UNK, I will be a computer science major. Somehow this is only a surprise to me.
• Mom works at UNK, I’ll be going there, and Kearney is about three hours from Columbus—a hell of a commute. So we’ve decided to get an apartment in Kearney. The one we found is two doors down—literally!—from the campus. It’s a small one-bedroom, but it’s fine for just the two of us. The rent is low, considering all utilities minus internet are included, the place is in good condition, and the landlord seems really nice. Mom will be going home as much as possible, but I’ll actually be living here most of the time. Therefore: it’s my apartment, more or less. My first apartment.
• I turn 22 next month.

The upshot of all this? Holy shit guys I am growing up.It is both exciting and terrifying. Been a long time coming, but you know what? I think I’m ready now.

The Austin Adventure: Day 1

So I have a boyfriend. His name is Stephen. He lives in Austin, TX. Saturday is his sister’s wedding. As his girlfriend, I was invited.

So I, on my own, went to Austin today.

Three things: 1) This is my first time flying alone. Ever. 2) This is also meeting my boyfriend in person for the first time. Ever. 3) This is the first wedding I have ever gone to. Ever.

So let’s just call this… an adventure.

I left Omaha this afternoon, flew to Houston, then from Houston went to Austin. I took a notebook, and logged on the plane. Here’s what I wrote.

Treehouses and baby brothers

New drabble: Aaron, at fifteen years old, thinking about his new baby brother.