Hello Everyone,

 This is a special purpose blog, it isn't to tell you about my latest troubles, nor about my unions or activities. It is about helping the world and about an innovative new way to do so.

 First of all I must thank my friend _Sam_ for his blog telling me about it. Thanks _Sam_. :wink:

 There are many problems in this world that we must strive against. Cancer, AIDs, global warming, so many curse balls have been tossed at humanity it is a wonder we are still standing.

 Microsoft has started a partnership with several organizations that are attempting to fight back against the onslaught of ever-mounting problems in this world.

 If you sign up, which is free, they will give money from their advertising income to an organization of your choice whenever you have a conversation with their instant messenger.

 For all those of you who have the messenger already, or who have been looking to get it, this is a no-brainer. It costs you nothing, and it gives to a worthy cause of your choosing.

 Remember that nothing good has ever come about in history by someone sitting on the sidelines and doing nothing, only action, from the greatest to the smallest, has a chance to change the world.

 Click on the image below to get to the site to download the newest version, or just follow my instructions.

 Start the messenger, go to your options, changer your name by adding one of these to your name, click ok.

 Text Code Cause

*red+u  American Red Cross

*bgca    Boys & Girls Clubs of America

*naf      National AIDS Fund

*mssoc  National Multiple Sclerosis Society

*9mil     ninemillion.org

*sierra    Sierra Club

*help      StopGlobalWarming.org

*komen   Susan G. Komen for the Cure

*unicef    The US fund for UNICEF

Add the star symbol * and then the code letters/numbers. Mine was John1918, then I changed it to John1918*help.

                                                                               -John

Hello Everybody,

 If you have tried to contact me anytime after mid-day on March 1st it probably can't get to me.

 I am having immense trouble getting anything on Gamespot, in fact I will be surprised if this gets posted. I can see I have 2 pm's, but I cannot get to them.

 If you need to contact me for some reason and I still can't get on tommorrow I will do my best to leave on xfire for a good while, my xfire is the ever imaginative john1918, for those who don't already have it.

 Otherwise you can get me at concerned_citizen1918 [at] hotmail [dot] com. That is always around.

 Goodnight, or morning for you foreigners...

                                                                        -John

Blah!

Thats right Blah!

 As I write this I am tired, I am being overworked by a teacher, and I am tired.

 I got up at god dang 5:30 to drive to school dispite 19 inches of snow. I went to bed last night at 10:00. I fell asleep at 12:30.

 Somehow I went up a level WOO ME!!!

 And somehow you peopled haven't learned to go away, 1605 views now...

 No union update, no nothing right now, too tired, going to bed.

 So Blah!  

                                                                -John

 Hello once again to all you people who are so bored you read my blog. :)

 So...I am making this blog post because I found something a bit odd with my schedule for college. The week that is just about to start is week six. Because of a national holiday it is supposed to start on Tuesday.

 Now, my math class doesn't meet then so no break there, and my other two classes are online so no break anywhere...

 But one thing doesn't quite add up. For the harder of my two classes my week, as I said before, starts on Tuesday, it also ends on Tuesday...

 This mean I am supposed to do a class that normally takes a few days to get done in one day...

 I have always realized that life is not fair, but I guess I didn't quite realize just how UNfair it is...I wouldn't expect to see me doing anything big or important online for a bit. :D

 As for personal updates...well I have another emblem touting my PC game collection, 1501 of you people have looked at my profile, I have read 205110 posts, and I have posted 2510 times.

 Hope the fates are looking more kindly upon you, farewell for now.

                                                                     -John1918

 It is commonly held that GIGO is a true statement. It means Garbage- In Garbage-Out and refers to user input with computers. I had just written a blog post pushed submit, and it disappeared.

 Anyways, tommorrow I will be turning 18, this means I get to sign up for the draft, I get to deal with my bank, and I can now be kicked onto the street without a moment's notice. :)

 College is usurping a great deal of my time, leaving me less time for gaming and less time for Gamespot. Sorry to all my friends and unions for that. :(

 My Union is doing well, with a membership of 99, a huge amount of activity and more hits than you can shake a Squig at. The Tournament is progressing nicely, as is Roma's fluff thread.

 Well, its getting late so I need to wrap it up, I will be seeing all of you soon, I hope, have a good one.

                                                                          -John

 Upon passing a sign in my town I would like to help spread it's word. The time has come for all Northern California farmers to renew, or purchase newly, their Ag permits...Yes, that was what I wanted to share with you...no, really. :D

 Ok, I guess I'll add a little more. Tommorrow, February the 2nd, I will celebrate another birthday. I'm turning 18 and that means the time has come for several things.

 First of all, all American males who reach 18 have to sign up for the draft. So I will now be one of the "lucky" people who could be chosen at random to serve my country. (You can stop smiling Steve.:P)

 Secondly, I get to go tommorrow to work out with the bank the details of my first checking account. I also get to dispose of my savings account that will now have a monthly fee.

 Thirdly it means my parents no longer have any responsiblity towards me, and if I make them mad they could kick me out at the drop of a hat.

 Oh the happiness of being 18. :)

 My Union is doing quite well, with 99 members now and a high amount of activity. It's level seems to be skyrocketing becuase of all the activity it gets.

 As for college, well, it is taking allot of my time and it will only get more greedy in the future. I will be getting another class, Russian History, this month, and that means more work. I've had less time to game lately, and less time to devote to Gamespot, sorry to all my poor unions. :(

 Also, you people need to find something else to do, I have 1312 profile views, what in heck is going on? I'm not that friggin' interesting!

                                                                          -John

Hello everyone,

 On January the 16th I am going to be starting college once again. Because of this I am not going to be able to devote as much time to my unions, or Gamespot in general.

 I am still going to be on, and I am still going to devote time to my unions and friends. I just won't be able to bull-s*** with people when they are bored, and I will probably only be on later in the day.

 In other news...My Union is starting to hold it's Dawn of War Tournament, and it is holding a banner making competition, with a (small) cash prize. We have a healthy membership of 81 people and also have an active board.

 I also am going to need to purchase a computer some time in the future. The rig I am currently gaming with is 3 years old, and it wasn't very good back then. Donations? :lol:

See you all around.

                                                                              -John

Farewell for Now, But The Fates Shall See My Return

 Tommorrow, the 28th, I will be leaving for a work-week or so. I will be traveling down southward, in a very roundabout way, to Arizona. Therefore I won't be on at all for a good bit. The plan has recently, like today, changed to begin tommorrow.

 If you happen to be wondering why I am leaving, well, you should really go out into the world and forge a life for yourself in reality. :D My stepfather's sister lives in Arizona, and we are going to visit her, along with having a vacation.

 I'll see you all when I return, then I shall begin to unleash swift moderations upon those who post off-topic once again. Heres looking at you david. :roll:

 In other news, I recently leveled up to level 13, my lucky number, and nearly 950 times somebody has looked at my profile. My union now has about 77 members. And my collection of games has grown larger again with another Christmas.

                                                                           -John

 I had meant to leave My Christmas entry up until after the holiday passed by. But the best laid plans can be abolished as quickly as sand blows in the wind. My newspaper published this poem by LCDR Jeff Giles instead of an editorial. I felt an urge to spread it on Gamespot.

 This is the poem, typos and all, just as it appeared in my paper.

A different Christmas Poem

 "The embers glowed softy,
and in their dim light,
 I gazed round the room
and I cherished the sight.
 My wife was asleep, her
head on my chest,
 My daughter beside me,
angelic in rest.
 Outside the snow fell, a
blanket of white,
 Transforming the yard in
a winter delight.
 The sparkling lights in the
tree I believe,
 Completed the magic that
was Christmas Eve.
 My eyelids were heavy, my
breathing was deep,
 Secure and surrounded by
love I would sleep.
 In perfect contentment, or
so it would seem,
 So I slumbered, perhaps I
started to dream.

 The sound wasn't loud,
and it wasn't too near.
 But I opened my eyes when
it tickled my ear.
 Perhaps just a cough, I
didn't quite know,
 Then the sure sound of
footsteps outside in the snow.
My sould gave a tremble, I
struggled to hear,
 And I crept to the door just
to seewho was near.
 Standing out in the cold
and the dark of the night,
 A lone figure stood, his
face weary and tight.

 A soldier, I puzzled, some
twenty years old,
 Perhaps a Marine, huddled
here in the cold.
 Alone in the dark, he
looked up and smiled,
 Standing watch over me,
and my wife and my child.
 "What are you doing?" I
asked without fear,
 "Come in this moment, it's
freezing out here!
 Pit down your pack, brush
the snow from your sleeve,
 You should be home on a
cold Christmas Eve!"

 For barely a moment I saw
his eyes shift,
 Away from the cold and
the snow blown in drifts.
 To the window that danced
with a warm fire's light,
 Then he sighed and he said
"Its really all right,
 I'm out here by choice. I'm
here every night." "It's my
duty to standat the front of
the line,
 That separates you from
the darkest of times.
 No on had to ask or beg or
implore me,
 I'm proud to stand here
like my fathers before me.
 My Gramps died at 'Pearl
on a day in December,"
 Then he sighed, "That's a
Christmas 'Gram always re-
members."
 My dad stood his watch in
the jungles of 'Nam',
 And now it is my turn and
so, here I am.
 I've not seen my own son
in more than awhile,
 But my wife sends me pic-
tures, he's sure got her smile.
 The red, white, and blue...
an American flag.
 I can live through the cold
and being alone,
 Away from my family, my
house and my home.
 I can stand at my post
through the rain and the
sleet,
 I can sleep in a foxhole
with little to eat.
 I can carry the weight of
killing another,
 Or lay down my life with
my sister and brother..
 Who stand as the front
against any and all,
 To ensure for all time that
this flag will not fall."
 "So go back inside," he
said, "harbor no fright,
 Your family is waiting and
I'll be all right."
 "But isn't there something
I can do, at the least,
 "Give you money," I asked,
"or prepare you a feast?
 I seems all too little for all
that you've done,
From being away from your
wife and your son."
 Then his eye welled a tear
that held no regret,
 "Just tell us you love us
and never forget.
 To fight for our rights back
at home while we're gone,
 To stand your own watch,
no matter how long.
 For when we come home,
either standing or dead,
 To know you remember we
fought and we bled.
 Is payment enough, and
with that we will trust,
 That we mattered to you as
you mattered to us.""

 LCDR Jeff Giles, SC, USN
      30th Naval Construction
                             Regiment
       OIC, Logistics Cell One
               Al Taqqadum, Iraq

                                                                           -John

Hello Everybody!

 I just wanted to wish you all a very Merry Christmas this year. :) No matter where you are, no matter what you do, I hope it is a happy one for you. After all, my friends deserve the best. :wink:

 I haven't heard Merry Christmas enough this year, too few people rejoicing like they should. So all of you need to have an even more fun, even more memorable Christmas to balance it out.

 In the spirit of the Holiday Season I made a little banner for your signature. It took me a good bit to make it in paint so don't knock it too badly. :P

 I, as many of you on here will be, will be absent for Christmas. I am going to be going to my grandmother's for the family get-together.

 Hope you all have a really nice Christmas, but remember the most important rule for enjoying the holidays, take it easy. :D

"I wish you a Merry Christmas. I wish you a Merry Christmas. I wish you a Merry Christmas. And a Happy New Year.

 Good Tidings I bring to you and your kin. Good Tidings for Christmas. And a Happy New Year."

(If I had a microphone I would have sang this for you and sent myself to you for Christmas.:wink: )

                                              -John, Your Secret Online Santa