"I'm sitting on the horns of an enema"
I suppose I should explain the titles since I may actually have some readers soon. I started a little game with the titles for this blog where I use an obscure pop-culture reference as the title, leaving the reader to try and figure where I got the reference and what it is a reference to. The title of the last entry, "Old Sources of Energy", was a quote from some Sierra Club nut ball bastard (was that insensitive?) talking about not gathering any more energy resources in favor of newer "renewable energy sources". These newer sources of energy technology will take decades to develop and perfect and become widely adopted. So what are we to do in the mean time? Complain about energy prices and blame the corporations who couldn't lower prices if they tried because of the environmental policies. Well as long as it makes sense. This title had little to do with the entry last time, I just happen to hear the environmentalist nazi use the line as I was about to start the entry so I used it.
For this entry I'd like to explore a little more of writing abilities. Below is an e-mail I sent to a classmate in my accounting class in its' entirety with some portions censored for obvious reasons.
--------- My e-mail --------------
Date: Tue, 11 Mar 2003 14:58:45 -0800 (PST)
From: (Censored)
Subject: (My name) (from accounting) New Number
To: (Censored)
Hi,
My new number is (Censored). And the old number will give you the real number (if the above one is wrong) if you call it if you want to make sure that's the real number. The old number again is (Censored).
So should I have chapter 6 read and significant progress on the assignments done, or just have 6 read, or are we going to concentrate
on 5? The test if the big calendar on the wall is right will be on the 19; a staggering 8 days from now. I guess we'll talk about it on Wed./tomorrow.
bye
(My name) (from accounting)
=====
"I would have written you a shorter letter, but I didn't have the time"
-Mark Twain
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--------- My e-mail --------------
Now I wrote this e-mail rather quickly and without thinking much about it and just sent it off. To my surprise my classmate expressed utter amazement at how great my e-mail was. I couldn't understand what she was talking about. Why was she so impressed by this e-mail? I don't really understand. Doesn't seem so special to me. Yet she was so insistent of how great an e-mail it was. Maybe she's easily impressed.
Ok so actually I had this one episode of Seinfeld in mind when I was writing it. I didn't tell her that. I don't think I even realized at the time I was writing it. The episode in question had Elaine (no idea how to spell that name) hanging out with the polar opposite characters from the normal Jerry, George and Kramer, in sort of a "bizarro world" reference to the Superman comic book series. These other characters went to the library to read for fun, were real nice to each other and of course every time the other version of Kramer would come over he would knock on the door, say his name and after a few seconds add "from across the hall" (as opposed to Kramer’s sliding and swinging the door open all the time at will). And the new Jerry would always hesitate then let him in when he said "from across the hall". So I was kind of ripping that off with the constant "my name...from accounting 1a" those few times. I hope that made sense. Well anyway I still don't understand what's so great about this e-mail.
Next I want to brainstorm this idea for a story I'd like to write. It's basically going to be a parody of THE ONES WHO WALK AWAY FROM OMELAS
by Ursula Le Guin which can be found here (new window). Normally I would be more hesitant to some what promote a story that has some "hippie-ful overtones" to it. But that is why it will be more of parody.
Basically a character would be dropped in the middle of this city of Omelas that's more based on reality. Kind of a Han Solo or Wolverine in the X-Men movies kind of character who seems outside the story from the rest of the characters. He'd wander around, talking to different people and learning the story as he progressed, making snide comments and pointing out holes in the story as he went. Eventually the revelation of the child suffering so society could live happily would be revealed. And at the end the character would be given the choice to stay in Omelas and accept the suffering of the child as a fact of life or leave Omelas due to moral indignation or whatever. Of course, this would be the end of the story. No answer to the choice.
Actually what I really want to do is make a Neverwinter Nights Module (new window) based on this story. Of course I would have to change it a little so there was some fighting. And I would have to figure out how to make it "non-linear" so it's not a one-track story. The story would always end the same way: the player is given a choice of either staying or leaving Omelas. Either way the module would end right there. It wouldn't matter which choice the player made. I might include a third choice like rescuing the child. But that would have a catch to it also as it would have dire consequences. Something like the rest of city population either dieing or possibly just turning it into a really bad place with lots of suffering. I think it would be fun writing the story and making the NWN module like that. It would take forever to build the whole city though. Then I'd have to build it again in the everybody-suffering-now version.
I just check my hit stats and I've received two visitors! Thanks visitors. I guess this means I have to post an e-mail address. Pfff. Alright fine. I better not get any spam though. If all goes according to plan you should find it at your left. Oh and I’ll post something about LiteStep next time...
