Shinmaru

Heh, I see what you mean, Mimmi...it does seem kinda flat now that I look at it. I think this calls for a little more detail to be added on my part! *raises hand into air dramatically* Again, thanks for taking the time to read it - I always enjoy your critique, Mimmi ^_^

It's been a long, long time since I've written any sort of short story, so I think that this could do with some revising. However, I decided to post it on OB, so that I could get some feedback on it and so that I could get some good advice. Thanks in advance to those who take the time to read this ^_^ [center][b][u]Conversations[/center][/b][/u] ?Do you love?? ?What?? Jacob peered up from his homework. Curt usually asked eccentric questions out of the blue, so Jacob was used to it?but it didn?t make the act any less unsettling. ?Do you love?? Curt repeated. ?Well, of course I do,? Jacob said, with a hint of annoyance. ?But, do you [i]love[/i]?? Curt?s face turned deadly serious. ?Do you love with the passion of true love? Are you capable of loving and understanding in accordance to the levels of true love?? ?Well?I guess so,? Jacob said, frowning. ?Isn?t everyone capable of that?? Curt sighed and walked over to the window. He stared out the window wistfully, as he had grown accustomed to doing when talking to others. ?I had high hopes for you,? Curt whispered to himself. ?Higher hopes for myself, too. I thought I would be able to change at least one person, but I suppose the world was not ready yet?they can not hope to understand what I have come to understand.? Jacob stared at Curt for a moment, then returned to his studies; he was too used to Curt?s unconventional behavior to let it distract him from what really mattered. Curt lingered at the window a few seconds longer before strolling over to his bed. He stooped over slightly and rummaged under the bed; after a few seconds, he produced a long, dust covered wooden box. Curt placed the box softly onto his bed. He stared at it, lost in thought. ?You know, Curt, you?re a strange guy,? Jacob mused, whilst writing his essay. ?You ask a lot of strange questions?or, at least, the questions seem strange coming from a guy like you.? ?How so?? Curt asked, opening the box with a soft click. ?Well, you?re so cold and distant most of the time,? Jacob said, scribbling away furiously with his pencil. ?One would hardly expect you to ask questions about true love and stuff. You don?t even seem to be worried about work or anything?I?ve never seen you study or do homework or anything? Don?t you have any ambition?? ?I had ambition quite a while ago,? Curt stated in a matter-of-fact voice. He picked up the rifle that he had stored in the box. Curt had never thought that he would have to resort to this, but he could no longer stand his current situation. Something had to be done. Something [i]drastic[/i]. ?The last of it is about to be drained away.? Jacob stopped writing for a moment. He bit the end of his pencil nervously and continued writing his essay. Curt was an amusing distraction but finishing this essay on time was a life or death situation for Jacob. Curt picked up the rifle and checked to make sure that it was loaded, which it was. ?Jacob, I want you to know that I hope the best for you,? Curt said while walking over to the middle of the room, rifle cocked on his shoulder. ?Even if you and your people are a bunch of miserable failures.? ?What are you talking about?? Jacob asked incredulously, stopping his frenzied scribbling for a split-second. ?You?re confusing me here, Curt.? Curt stayed silent; he was done dealing with Jacob and the people who were exactly like him. They knew nothing of what really mattered?he could not stand to be around them any longer, though his extended stay with Jacob had endeared him slightly to him. Curt would bring Jacob along with him on his journey; that would be the right thing to do. ??Curt?? Jacob asked hesitantly. He looked up and saw Curt standing in the middle of the room, pointing the rifle at his chest. ?Curt, what are you-? Jacob never finished his sentence. The rifle kicked back into Curt?s shoulder as he fired into Jacob?s chest. Jacob's face contorted into a look of extreme shock; the kind of shock that lingers for the split-second that you realize your life is over. Jacob?s body emitted a sharp spray of blood as he flew backwards and hit the ground with an audible thump. A pool of crimson red blood flowed from the fresh wound and dripped out around Jacob, conforming to the shape of his body. ?Yes, exactly as it should be?? Curt murmured to himself, as he raised the rifle to his head. ?You?re one of the lucky ones, Jacob. I hope you realize that. Unfortunately, I was too weak to be able to stir up some rational thought in your simple-minded race. But, alas, I suppose that is the problem of another.? ?Do you love, Jacob? Do you and your people truly love? I hope you find your answer.? Curt pulled the trigger. ~ And that's about it. Any comments and critique are definitely appreciated ^_^ EDIT: Added some italicized words that didn't translate from Microsoft Word (darn you, vB coding!) and corrected a couple of mistakes. EDIT #2: Added a bit more to Jacob's death, as per the request of Mimmi...not much, but at least it's a reaction lol.

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by KarmaOfChaos [/i] [B][color=deeppink]Darkness: The main message of this poem was that it had gotten to the point where the pretty lights had dimmed, the exciment and joy had faded in a jaded apathy, and that the beautiful facade had fallen apart to reveal a dull, dangerous darkness beneath. "Murkiness at the end of the road Warped and twisted and skewed Reality exists no more Only you can see the truth" This line was [i]really[/i] done well. That reality had to be twisted and erased to see truth. (Or at least that's how I percieved the lines.) So reality is not always truth. Excellent! I'm guessing Marlow is a reference to some historical figure or something...I've never heard of him. (Or her.) Care to digress?[/color] [/B][/QUOTE] That's actually disturbingly close to my thought process throughout the whole thing, heh. I tried to capture the descent into darkness through the whole thing...I'm guessing I did well, aye? That one part in particular is the one part that underwent heavy tweaking. That part was very, very different after I finished the first draft of the poem...didn't go well with the rest of it at all, I thought, so I changed it into what you see right there ^_^ Marlow is kind of a historical figure you could say...he's a famous literary character from a book I'm currently reading. There are quite a few references to it in the poem if they catch your eye *hint hint* ~_^ [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Mimmi [/i] [B][COLOR=darkred][i]*feels discussion urge come onto her*[/i] [/color][color=indigo] Are you saying that we should ignore what we feel, because the pain isn't worth it ? Should we give up on what we want, simply because we can't have it ? Do you mean that we can smother these things and keep going.... with what ? If there is no desire, want, need and difficulty ... what is left ? What is it you mean we should use, work with ? [/color] [color=darkred] ..... Heh, that was just me playing intellectual and passionate.[size=1] (feel free to ignore that, I was just having fun :p) [/size] Here's a somewhat more basic reply: [/color][color=darkred] Yes, fantasies are easier to live with - beauty seems so painfree. [/color][color=darkred] Live in the present, take what you can get and make that as desirable as what you dream of. Or.... make your fantasies reality and live in that.[/COLOR] [/B][/QUOTE] My poems are actually inspiring intelligent thought :D The desire to want is what sometimes keeps us from getting what we want, I think. We are so caught up in what we think we want that we lose all rationale and that's kind of what I was going for here. Of course, it's also good to have dreams and to want to go after them - however, dreams are a double-edged sword. Of course, I bet my entire stance on this poem will probably change soon, haha. Sometimes, I even forget what my own stuff means :p [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Lady Asphyxia [/i] [B][size=1]You know the poems you read and can immediately picture it as a song? Well, this was one of them. I thought it was fabulous. It was rhythmical and it rhymed and it had a message and a chorus and everything. ^_^ [/size] [/B][/QUOTE] I'm glad you enjoyed it ^_^ I prefer writing poems in a more songlike nature...it's far easier for me to work with (plus, I usually listen to music while I write poems, so it's hard for me to avoid it lol). Plus, I just really enjoy the rhythms of certain songs...cool, cool stuff, in my opinion. Thanks for the replies, everyone - definitely appreciated ^_^;

Thanks for the reply, Mimmi; definitely appreciated :) Here's a little quick poem that I've decided to jot down right now, heh. Hope it's enjoyable (by the way, I couldn't think up a name for this, haha). We all want something fair We all want what's never there We all want better lives We all want the butterflies Just ignore the pangs, they'll go away Just ignore the needs, they'll go away Just ignore the desires, they'll go away Just ignore the wants, they'll go away ~ Whoo, that was quite fun, aye?

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by dark_serena [/i] [B][SIZE=1][COLOR=purple]Then there's Vexx. I die, I have to get everything all over again. I return to the level, everything I've already gotten is [i]still[/i] there. Wouldn't that create a paradox? :cross: It's like I'm reliving Banjo-Kazooie all over again![/color][/size] [/B][/QUOTE] I'll have you know that gave me a good laugh :p Some of the older Mega Man games have incredibly cheap bosses and stages...they're extremely difficult and only those with insane hand/eye coordination can hope to really get through the stages without dying a jillion times. They're still fun, but yeah, they're extremely tough. This has probably been mentioned earlier in the thread (I mean, how could it not be mentioned?), but the original Metroid is frustrating as hell -__- I've been playing through it on Metroid Prime and...yeah, the game really gives you fits, heh. Mostly because it's really easy to get completely lost in the game, only to find that the item you needed was only a couple rooms away and you were dumb enough to go the wrong way. Fun times.

Haha, you just knew I was gonna reply to this one, didn't you? :p Mario must've told a pretty big lie because his nose is damn huge lol. Seriously, though, I like the idea - cool stuff, heh. I wish I had a Mario teapot. *sighs*

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Solo Tremaine [/i] [B][COLOR=#503F86]As they moved over to the Noticeboard, Ben let out a frustrated sigh. ?I?ve still not been voted for Best Female Member yet,? he muttered disdainfully, trying to ignore people who were voting for themselves in every category. He was above that- he was trying to convince [I]everyone else[/I] to vote for him in every single category. It took class to be able to do that.[/COLOR] [/B][/QUOTE] Haha, that was just awesome. The funniest thing about that is that it's true :p And what's this - a cliffhanger! Solo, you're evil...you write an enjoyable chapter and now we have to wait to see what happens :( Hopefully, you won't keep us in suspense for too long ~_^

They're all pretty funny but my favorites are "Why is she still awake?! I said chloroform, you idiots! Not colorforms!" (reminds me of The Simpsons when Homer tried to knock out the babysitter at the zoo with colorforms, haha) and "Oh my God! That penmanship is atrocious!" (I just kept laughing and laughing at this one...it's so ridiculous to think that someone would dwell on penmanship when there's a guy with a note stabbed through his heart on their front step lol). I think they all look good. They show up well on my computer, they're readable and pleasing (well, as pleasing as murderous rampages can be) to the eye.

Since my poetry thread is a bit lonely (meaning nobody has posted in it since the dawn of time), I've decided just to make a seperate thread for this poem. Anyway, like most of my writing, a small idea formed in my head. Throughout the course of the day, this poem has been slowly evolving into what it is right now. I'm still not totally satisfied with the product right now, but eh. This poem has two distinct influences, both of which could be easy to spot of difficult to spot, depending on what your interests are and how perceptive you are. If you can spot both, then you are immediately awesome lol. Anyway, that's enough pretense; let's get to the poem, shall we? "[b]Darkness[/b]" Sitting in the darkness of night Contemplating the absence of light I can't understand my plight Everything just doesn't seem right Walking down the hall to the door Could've sworn I've been here before Listened to the lore of yore Save it, I've heard it all before Sometimes y'know it ain't easy But I know how hard it can be The way things are goin' They're gonna crucify me Sitting in the heart of darkness Brooding like the sunset below Send in the graves to get me I'll be haunted like Marlow I'm descending into the depths Darkness from beginning to end The sky is falling all around No more stars for me to ascend Sometimes y'know it ain't easy But I know how hard it can be The way things are goin' They're gonna crucify me Sitting in the darkness of night All alone without any light Disappear at the end of the day Abstract in its thoughts and ways Murkiness at the end of the road Warped and twisted and skewed Reality exists no more Only you can see the truth Sometimes y'know it ain't easy But I know how hard it can be The way things are goin' They're gonna crucify me So, there you have it - what do you think? Good, bad, ugly? Suggestions, praise, torment, whatever you want to post, doesn't matter to me - as long as it's not spammy :p

You can't really blame Nokia for trying (well, I suppose you can). But, yeah, the N-Gage is really cumbersome to use and not only when you're playing games. I'm sure, by now, you've all seen the infamous picture of the N-Gage in "phone mode" (Tony posted an awesome picture of it a couple months back in a thread MaxSonic made about the "N-Guage" - pity it was deleted when MaxSonic got banned, heh). Really, Nokia got a little overambitious with this. Overall, you get the feeling that the N-Gage is marketed as a handheld console firstly, with all the extra stuff tacked on it. However, buying the system can't really be justified when all the extra stuff doesn't work well. The high price tag is just the kiss of death, heh.

I think PoisonTongue is really on to something...the process behind the art is just as important, if not more important, than the art itself. With a lot of great artists, their artwork can not only be viewed aesthetically but psychologically, as well. Their artwork is a "window to their soul," as it were. Look Vincent Van Gogh; the man was pretty unstable, he was bi-polar (I think he was bi-polar, anyway) and he was rejected in just about every facet of his life. The only medium he had in which to express himself was his art and, in the ten years in which he created his best artwork before killing himself, he created some of the most amazing and haunting artwork ever made. And that's really the kind of stuff you find when you look at the process behind the art. If you never bothered to look at the process, you'd never know that Van Gogh favored color over form because he felt that color bettered expressed the raw emotion of his work. You can really see some of Van Gogh's work and get an idea of how emotionally unstable he was and how he saw the world...from a psychological standpoint, it's quite incredible. Just the other day, I had the opportunity to view some slides that my Art History teacher had of some work done by patients of an insane asylum that had been taught to paint by a professional art instructor. Some of the artwork I saw was supremely haunting...it was really representative of how (how can I put this lightly?) mentally unbalanced they were. Looking at some of this artwork was like peering into their minds and I find that sort of thing supremely interesting, heh. So, yeah, just some random thoughts.

I'm not usually keen on stories that are dramatized like this, but I think it works well here. The story flows well, the symbolism of being invisible is used well and it isn't [i]too[/i] dramatized, which is a plus; overdramatizing could've hurt his work, I think. There are a few mistakes here and there but, as you mentioned, you wrote this up quickly, so the mistakes can be corrected. Overall, you have yourself a good short story here :)

You are my new hero, Boba. lol Haha, this is the sort of stuff I was hoping for when I added that club into my sig...the whole thing gave me a great laugh, hehe. There are some grammar/spelling mistakes in there, but that doesn't really matter...what matters is that this whole thing was damned funny lol. Consider yourself member numero uno of the club, even without the recommendations :p

The Church reveals their stance on Whoopi Goldberg's decision to make Sister Act 3.

Eh, I've got about three scars on my body. Allow me to share my tragic stories with you :) My least noticable scar is on the back of my right ankle; it's maybe half an inch and you have to look really closely to even notice that it's there. Anyway, I got the scar after accidently tripping over something (proabably a backpack) and scraping the back of my ankle on the metal part of my sister's bed that holds up her mattress. The actual injury barely hurt at all, so eh. My second scar is above my right eyebrow...it's actually more of a lump than a scar, come to think of it, but it's still scar-like in appearance. I got this one after someone pushed me into a wall and my head got busted open. I swear, the actual scar is really tiny, but I was bleeding [i]a lot[/i]. My last scar is located on the back of my head, top right side. I was swinging on a tire swing at my aunt's house and I just suddenly fell out of it onto a thick tree root. Got a rather nasty cut from that and I had to wear this huge head bandage for a couple days. Whoo, that was a nice trip down memory lane, aye?

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Semjaza Azazel [/i] [B]Well, modchips in and of themselves are not illegal. I have a few systems modded to play imports. However, obviously copying games you don't own is another story. I think it's pretty sad that people try to justify what's basically stealing. [/B][/QUOTE] Yeah, the modchips aren't illegal (I have my PlayStation chipped so that I could play some imports) but it's not a good idea to have it done unless you can get a professional to do it or you have enough knowledge of such things to do so yourself. Personally, I went for the former :p But just renting games from Blockbuster, Hollywood Video, etc. and just copying them is basically stealing - as Tony said, I don't really know how you can justify that. Also, as PoisonTongue mentioned, you can get games for fairly cheap by buying them used. They're usually in good condition, anyway, so that shouldn't really be an issue.

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Mimmi [/i] [B][COLOR=darkred]And I like the grayning effect. Added to the detraction of striking hues, it resembles an old Western movie. Where everything's a little laid back, but awaiting to kick some behind. But mostly I think the banner reminds me of an old black&white picture, the kinds that tell a story. When I saw the colored version, I saw no story to tell. Which I did in the first one. - Mimmi[/COLOR] [/B][/QUOTE] Yes, I think that's pretty much the same analogy I used when I talked to Syk3 yesterday, heh. I much prefer the black and white version over the two colored versions - to me, the black and white "coloring" gives the banner the sense that Vash and Wolfwood are moving; I can't really explain it, but that's the sense that I get. I think the black and white lends itself better to something like Trigun, anyway. Trigun has more of an old-west feel mixed along with all the futuristic sci-fi stuff. The music has a western feel, as well. The black and white banner gives off a western feel, too - I'm half expecting Clint Eastwood to show up in there :p The other two are good, but the first banner trumps them both, in my opinion.

Well, Mario Kart 64, while a good game, doesn't hold a candle to Double Dash!!, in my opinion. MK64 is a pretty easy game. I don't play racers too often and I was able to snag a gold trophy in each class with pretty much minimal effort. And that's even when taking into account the fact that the game "cheats" by giving artifical boosts to the CPU players to keep the race close. However, the track design is pretty good and there are a fair number of creative shortcuts in the game. Someone who really masters the tracks, especially Wario Stadium, can finish some of these with some really insane times. The best part of Mario Kart 64 is the battle mode. I've only had the opportunity of playing four-player Mario Kart battle mode once and I really, really enjoyed it; I feel it could be still enjoyed immensely even today. In this game, it doesn't really make a difference whom you choose in Grand Prix, since it doesn't take much effort to beat it, but in Time Trial I prefer to use either Toad or Yoshi. Both characters are lightweights and they have easy to control karts, which is vital for making quick, sharp turns (you'll find that this is even more vital in DD!! - I can't tell how much easier the game gets [spoiler]once you unlock Toad and Toadette[/spoiler]).

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by roymund [/i] [B]Cor? Another new system? I just got my GBA!!!:flaming: Figures I'd get it just as the new ones are announced...:( [/B][/QUOTE] Well, as has been said many times, this system is most certainly NOT meant to replace the GBA and/or the GameCube. The DS will be, I presume, a stand-alone system marketed seperately from both the GBA and GameCube. Therefore, your GBA will not become obsolete due to the emergence of this new console.

Honestly, I could really care less about what the "point" of life is. I just go through living and try to enjoy it. I don't waste my time thinking about "I'm just going to die and nothing will be worth it" or "what's the point of living if I won't remember any of it when I die?" None of that matters to me. I guess my life doesn't really have a point...but since when did everything have to have a point in the first place?

Honestly, I think school is a lot easier than it really could be - unfortunately, at least in my experience, there are some teachers who just "go through the motions" and teach you only the bare essentials, instead of challenging you and providing you with the full breadth of their experience. So, yeah, I think you're just needessly releasing your frustration - just think of how many people around the world would [i]die[/i] to simply have the opportunity to give their children the educational opportunities that are readily available in the United States. I think you really need to put things in perspective, honestly. You're one of the luckiest people in the world because you're able to take advantage of the public schooling system of the United States...or, at least, in theory you are. I don't really know the extent that you're taking advantage of it right now, heh.

I've always been a big fan of the Spirit Temple (I guess you'd count the versions you traverse as a child and as an adult as the same thing). Great puzzles and you get [i]two[/i] battles with Iron Knuckles (Iron Knuckles and Stalfos are the best enemies in the game to fight with, in my opinion). You also get an incredibly fun boss battle with Koume and Kotake to go along with it. I'd say the Spirit Temple is an awesome dungeon, heh. Although I thought the Water Dungeon, and the subsequent fight with Morpha, were really annoying, I'll have to agree with Des on this one. Nothing is worse than a dull dungeon, especially in a series that relies heavily on having brillliant dungeons and puzzles. Even the Great Deku Tree had a moment or two when it was a really cool dungeon...Dodongo's Cavern was just extremely disappointing, especially the boss battle. Totally, totally easy to beat. But my favorite dungeon still stands as Turtle Rock from Link to the Past - that dungeon was a real trip and the boss battle is awesome.

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by DeathBug [/i] [B][color=indigo][font=century][size=1]The only thing I occassionaly dislike is Jason's amount of screentime. During some of the summer camp strips, I was just so sick of that kid... I much prefer the family excursions to the campgrounds. Good readin'.[/color][/size][/font] [/B][/QUOTE] Yeah, this is one of the [i]few[/i] problems that I have with FoxTrot, heh. Jason is pretty much the most popular character in the strip, and for good reason; he's a really funny character. However, the strip sometimes spends way too much time focused on Jason lol. The stuff at Camp Bohrmore was pretty funny, but even Jason can get a bit old after a while. FoxTrot is really at its best when each family member "gets their time to shine" so to speak. And, yes, you count as a "bevy." :p

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Dagger IX1 [/i] [B]So, here are my questions. First, has anyone else had my problem (learning all of Bebop's major spoilers before watching it in full)? Second, since I'd like to get back into the show, how would you recommend going about that? ~Dagger~ [/B][/QUOTE] To answer your first question, yes, it's almost inevitable that Cowboy Bebop will be spoiled for you unless you shut yourself off from the internet and watch the series lol. It's almost unavoidable...you always hear people shout [spoiler]OMG WTF SPIKE DIEZZZZ!!!!1111[/spoiler] and then the series is just about ruined for the rest of us who would rather watch the series like normal people. As for your second question...I just go about watching random episodes of Cowboy Bebop that I enjoy. It's almost as if Cowboy Bebop wasn't meant to be watched in order lol. A lot of the episodes, as I'm sure you know, stand alone quite well on their own and you don't need to have seen some of the earlier episodes to really get a grasp of what's going on. Only a few episodes of Bebop really contribute heavily to the overall story, anyway (though, in my opinion, those are pretty much the cream of the crop). Haha, and I swore I wasn't going to participate in this Cowboy Bebop thread :p

Yeah, I just finished reading the Electronic Gaming Monthly review of Metroid: Zero Mission and the original Metroid is one of the unlockables. I still haven't gotten around to beating the original on Metroid Prime because it's so damned [i]hard[/i]. The game is a sadistic, insane bastard and I love it regardless. EGM also mentioned that there were lots of "surprises" in the game...I can't wait to play through Zero Mission and see what that entails, heh.