Goodbye, G'Kar

I believe that when we leave a place a part of it goes with us and part of us remains. Go anywhere in these halls, when it is quiet and just listen. After a while you will hear the echoes of all of our conversations, every thought and word we've exchanged. Long after we are gone, our voices will linger in these walls for as long as this place remains. But I will admit that the part of me that going will very much miss the part of you that is staying.

We'll miss you too, G'Kar.

Character actor Andreas Katsulas, well-known to Star Trek fans as Tomalak and Babylon V fans as G'Kar, died after a long battle with lung cancer earlier this week. Everything I've read about him suggests he was much more than a great actor, he was a great person. He'll be missed not just by his fans, but by his friends, and that says something.

Incoming! DS Treats!

Looks like DS owners are in for more treats from Nintendo.

Not only are there some eagerly anticipated games (Tetris and Age of Empires DS) and a hardware redesign (DS Lite) on the horizon, but Nintendo of Japan announced they are developing catridges for the DS to support displaying television and surfing the web. No news yet on if/when these features will arrive in the US, but you can be sure Nintendo won't be leaving us entirely in the cold.

Source

On happiness

Every now and then, I come across a quote that resonates so strongly that I feel the need to save it.

Today, this quote appeared in the RSS feed (aka web clips) above my inbox:

The art of being happy lies in the power of extracting happiness from common things.
Henry Ward Beecher

I am at my best in life when I feel that sentiment to its fullest and act accordingly.

Thank you and congrats, Steelers

Until I got to college, football was something other people watched (related: beer was something other people drank). The Superbowl was an excuse to get together and eat junk food and laugh at the new commercials.

That all changed in early 1996, with Superbowl XXX. The Steelers and Cowboys met in Tempe, Arizona. The Steelers were down by ten, and Cowher took a gamble. He called for a surprise onside kick, caught the Cowboys off-guard, and minutes later it was a three-point game. The commentators couldn't believe it, the crowd was going nuts, and the fans I was watching with were blown away.

And I was hooked.

The Steelers lost that game, but the NFL won a convert. I became a fan just in time to watch The Pats make a run at the title and lose to Green Bay, sealing my fate as a lifelong football and Patriots junkie.

Last night, we came full circle. In Detroit, Cowher's team again squared off against the best the NFC had to offer, and this time they didn't need the onside kick: they got the lead and held it.

It won't go down as the best Superbowl in history, or even in the past few years, but it was special to me. Thanks, Steelers, for showing a young geek what football was really about, and saving me from countless Sundays spent with nothing to watch on TV :).

Game on!

I haven't had the writing "bug" of late, and so I haven't really put anything down here in a little while. I apologize to my legions of fans.

It probably has something to do with work; my work of late has me doing a lot of painfully boring writing. I recently took a 71-page template and turned it into a 30-page spec, so I should probably get some kind of Editor of the Month award. No dice, I'm guessing.

So, not only has my blog been quiet, but I really haven't produced anything creative lately. I have several borrowed books with creative exercises to help get writing juices flowing, and they sit in a bookcase mocking me. I just haven't felt the itch, except in one area -- gaming. And for once, the gaming itch is being scratched.

That's right -- game ON. We're getting our pen-and-paper gaming group back together, dusting off our dice and pencils and making it happen.

It's as much fun as I remember :).