...no shocking revelations or controversial views here. Well, maybe a revelation...

Life:

In about 17 days, I'll be out of a job. The semi-permanent internship (it was supposed to be 3 months) finally runs up at the end of May.

Mixed emotions: on the one hand, I'm kind of down about leaving... the people are great, the atmosphere is loose, and the work didn't feel like real work most days (especially those days when I was in the mood to add unauthorized code to their application... the look on a developer's face when they pressed the "mystery button"... :D ). On the other hand, I'm worn down to nearly nothing after 2 1/2 years without a real vacation, with year-round school and tutoring and internships... I need some time off. Also, it'll definitely push me to find that job I can settle into while I pursue my bachelors's (software engineering appeals to me).

Music:

I've almost finished converting my favorite cassettes to CDs. I found almost my entire collection of Overkill (I'm on the fence over getting a copy of "Horrorscope," mainly because I wasn't too terribly impressed with it, but partly because it doesn't have Bobby Gustafson on guitar), a couple of Testament CDs (I was very happy to find "Practice What You Preach:" it remains one of my top 10 favorite speed metal albums, even though it's much slower than their early stuff), and a copy of "Cowboys from Hell" ("Cemetary Gates" is just a phenomenal ballad). There's no way I can replace some of them (Vio-Lence, Laaz Rockit, Toxik, for example, are out of print, and I can't find a copy of the Death Angel box set with "Ultraviolence" and "Frolic in the Park"), but I can surely boil it down some.

Games:

...or, more specifically, game: I've been obsessed with "Hellgate: London." It has sucked me in, and I can't escape. I've concentrated on my Guardian more than my Engineer (the traditionalist in me insists that demons should be slain with swords, not guns... :lol: ), but the overall feel of the game, the chance to mow down almost limitless legions of undead and demons... not to mention the odd NPCs you meet (there aren't many, but some of them are real characters).

Movies:

I'm finally getting the chance to see Iron Man this weekend. Stay tuned...

TV:

"The Deadliest Catch" started its 4th season several weeks ago. Point blank, it's one of the best shows on TV: it has action, suspense, drama and tragedy. For those of you who don't know about it, it's a documentary series about Alaskan crab fisherman in one of the most hostile work environments on Earth: the deck of fishing boat in the Bering Sea, in winter. People get hurt (and killed: last season, a boat went down almost as soon as the season began; there was only one survivor out of five crewmen). Fortunes are lost and made. If you get the chance: Discovery Channel on Tuesdays at 9PM EDT (which is GMT -5 hrs. for the non-US readers among you).

Books:

Finally, I got a copy of the Ciaphas Cain omnibus and blew through it in less than a week. It's a Warhammer 40K series about and Imperial commisar who's... not normal. He spends most of his time saving his own skin, and making sure those troops he's with are watching his back. Somehow, though, he still finds time to be an accidental hero... which means his superiors seem to put him in positions where he's likely to be killed. Smart, funny, and action-packed... definitely a good read.

So... I'm still contemplating an RPG guide, but it's not a priority project at the moment. There are so many types of RPGs (action, turn-based, party, single-character, Western, Eastern) that it coud be impossible to come up with a "one-size-fits-all" guide like the last one. I'm also sort of thinking about a series of articles defending video games with reasons other than "'cause Jack Thompson's a moron."

I definitely have another story in the pipeline... something much more restrained than the last one.

So... enjoy yourselves in the meantime. :D