I hates meeses

Well, since the villain quiz just basically earned me derision and the deadly sins survey didn't reveal anything interesting, I guess it's about time for a real entry. :) What's it been, maybe a week? A little more? Not that I have all that much to report, but I will just say that, thankfully, I have not re-entered the fugue state or anything, I just haven't been in the mindspace to sit down and journal. I've certainly lost a lot from the week, I think...that's what I get for not journalling on a regular basis. Anyway, let's see what I can remember...

( The week in review )

So there ya go. Oh, there was one thing today of note...I finally sat down and started reading Dead Inside. Yeah...I'm diggin' it. It's weird, too...I was in either the exactly right or exactly wrong emotional space to start reading this game. See...earlier today I'd done that Seven Deadly Sins thing, right? So that had made me think about myself, and you know that's never good. I had also, and I blame no one for this, really gotten it in my head that I really needed to hear "Safety Dance" by Men Without Hats. So I did that...constantly...for like a half-hour. So that burned away what little sanity I might have had remaining. Then I started in on Dead Inside which is, you know, about people who lose their souls. So I started reading, and it was so incredibly reminiscent of being depressed that I started thinking about being depressed. And then, boom, it was like some crazy PTSD flashback and I was taken somewhere weird. Not bad...really...just weird. Like...I wasn't depressed, but I was painfully aware that I knew what it felt like. So, yeah, kind of an emotional day for me today. Plus reading a kickass new RPG. So...good times. I not even into systems yet, but I think this is something I could get into, if I could find the right kind of emotionally twisted spirit spelunkers to come with me on that trip. Around here? Shouldn't be a big problem. ;)

Say that's not your bag, though...say you're yearning for something else. Something hipper...less feeling, more fronting. "Rob," you say, "Isn't there something more...urban? More inner city? More...I don't know, gangsta?" "Hmm.," I'd say, "Like what?" "Oh, I don't know," you might muse, "Something along the lines of, like, Juice or Menace II Society, but in a roleplaying game." "Gee," I'd say, "I'm not sure. Is that what you're in the mood for?" "Yeah," you'd say, "Except...you know...with magic."

Ladies. Gentlemen. I give you...Wyrd is Bond.

Now...those of you who know me know that there are certain things that will motivate me to pick up a roleplaying game. Among one category, you've got something fun and new, something brilliant and well-written, something with a cool premise and innovative system and hot design names attached...you've got your Feng Shui, your Unknown Armies, your InSpectres, your Dead Inside. There's another category, though...the games I just look at and get a "feeling" about. I know what's going to happen, and yet I can't turn away. I think some of you know how some of these have turned out. You've got your Purgatory (you know...with the flying sledgehammers) and your Underworld (you know...with the...uh...umbrellas). So I know this. I know this. But...come on...you have to be with me on this one. Wyrd is Bond. I mean...come ON! Guys? Guys?

Anyway, speaking of rap, nerdcore has come crashing down on my head. Jeff (metalepticfit) sent me a link to MC Frontalot the other day, which I was pretty immediately taken with. It's...well, you know. Geek rap. I offer you this excerpt from "Which MC Was That?"...

Step up, Poindexter, act smarter than you are.
'Bout to pull the MC name out the jar,
And whoever guess closest wins a nine-sided die
And a gift certificate to Fry's
(Yo)
My moniker is MC Frontalot
I got a plus-one bag of nerdcore hiphop
And my mail list busted a hundred, so I'm famous
It's unbelievable nobody know what my name is

Proper. So here are my song recs: "Special Delivery" (I just kinda dug the beat...I dunno...it's not that representative, but it's political); the joint with Kompressor, "Rappers We Krush" (Industrial! And it mentions Muppets); the new track "A Very Unlikely Occurence" (I, like, didn't understand this one, and it doesn't sound like any of the others, but it was neat); and "Yellow Lasers" (because, you know...it's about macking on a girl at a Star Wars convention). Because I know there are some fanboys out there, I'll just throw in for completeness sake a mention of "Penny Arcade Theme" but that's not an official rec.

So if that wasn't enough, from memento_mori I was then exposed to MC Chris through the mention of "Fett's Vette" (if that doesn't work, try going here. If you can't guess who the song is about, here's your hint: the chorus starts "My backpack's...got jets."

So, yeah...nerdcore. The next big thing. Just goes to show you...Kill Minus Nine was way ahead of his time. ;)

As you probably know by now, I have a new icon. Here's a bigger version...

( Cut for your convenience )

I made it with the neat-o web toy found here, so now you can do the same. Good times! In other LJ administrative news...I've added myself as my own Friend. I dunno...seemed to make sense at the time.

So, yeah...some links?

If there's anyone left out there who doubts the genius of Neil Gaiman, please read this blog entry. Thank you.

Irony: Having to recall your product line of fireplace remote receivers because they pose...uh...a fire hazard. Yeah. (Inf's contribution: "I'd call that a feature.")

So, you may have heard by now that there's a new worm running around called Sasser. What you may not have heard yet is that it hassled the British coast guard's computer systems and reduced them to computing their navigations on pencil and paper. So there's two lessons here, that I see. One is one we keep learning over and over, which is keep your systems patched and be careful out there. And I don't mean admins. (I mean, I do...but not just admins.) Every home user can do their part by keeping a little security in mind and not being a propogator for these nasties. Keep those systems up-to-date, everybody! The other is...always study your low-tech methods and shit, cuz you never know when you're going to need them. :)

Sasser's emergence does remind me, though...a while back I predicted a dire doomsday for the Internet because I was sure it was only a matter of time before someone combined a worm like Sasser or Blaster with a destructive payload like we saw with Witty. Well, that day has not come, so it looks like all my doomsaying was for nought. Score minus one for me. :)

And with that, gentle readers, I leave you tonight with this PSA, courtesy of Evan: Careful with that nailgun.

Peace out, everybody! Bedtime.

Workin' for a livin'

Looks like I might be getting that contract gig I've been interviewing for. Crazy. More news in a week or two...