deganawida

You know, after examining that list again, I'm rather surprised that the UK isn't listed. As I understand it, the UK has a high standard of living. Anyone know what's up?

Oh, I agree, but you know those UN folk. Food, bribes, they seem to go hand-in-hand.

Well, MC, the do have good waffles... I think that's it, though.

For me, it's Patriot Games. I have enjoyed that movie many times. Though there are divergences from the novel (I think that they should have stuck with the book's ending, as it was perfect), it's pretty darn faithful to the source material (if one ignores how the ending is played out). I'm waiting for Without Remorse to be made into a movie. Best Clancy novel IMO.

Dude, this had me rolling! I, too, loved the first three books (I thought The Shadow Rising was just as good), and am halfway through Crossroads at Twilight. What a disappointment! Your observation is pretty much spot-on, though I would say the making of heartstone is pretty important (although that goes against his own canon, as it should take both men and women). I had given him a chance to redeeem himself with Winter's Heart, which was pretty good and gave me hope that he would actually finish the saga (did you know that he only planned for four or five books total?). Alas, it is not to be. As for Salvatore, I hate Drizzt with a passion. The Crystal Shard was fun, but the series went downhill from there. His "Crimson Shadow" series is fun, if immature in exposition, narrative, and dialogue, but I think that his Demon series is actually worth reading. Is it Tolkien? Heck, no, but it ain't Drizzt either, and is better than some other stuff out there. I especially like how he handles rangers in the Demon saga (much more like AD&D 1E rangers, rather than D&D 3.x rangers).

Most definitely concur! OSC writes some of the best books on the art of writing that I have read. His sci-fi is pretty good; like many posters in this thread, I loved Ender's Game. The other stories in the series are not to my taste, though they are very well-written. The Alvin Maker saga is brilliant, if one approaches it as one should, which is that these are more folklore tales than a professionally done story (which is why there are differences in style and story between Seventh Son and The Red Prophet). However, I do believe that Ellison and Heinlein are better sci-fi authors. This is not said to diminish OSC's stature, merely that these two (particularly Ellison) are better story-tellers than OSC. Granted, this is personal opinion, so take it with a grain of salt. As far as OSC goes, I'll read his books without reservation, and I'm not a big sci-fi fan (I tend more toward fantasy and mystery).

She has a girlfriend now...duh Duh duh Duh... Yeah, I used to listen to some ska, but mostly punk.

Then you are sadly mistaken. Just to take one of your assertions, that ninjas practice all day long and make their livings with live performances: Hatsumi-soke, grandmaster of the Togakure Ryu, is a practicing bone doctor, former TV star, and accomplished painter. All of the members of the upper echelon of the ryu have occupations outside of nin-po; some work construction, some law, many work in the medical field. There are some students in Japan who do not currently have employment; however, these students are foreigners who have come over to study and who have been put up by members at their homes. Given giri, it is expected that the students will repay the debt (though it is rarely done as a monetary transaction; most families take offense at even the suggestion). Also, if your "sources" have no idea who the Togakure Ryu are, then I would definitely question their validity, as they are the largest nin-po school in Japan (based out of Iga) and are well-known by the Japanese.

If you would like to learn the truth about ninjas, not the various myths and legends that get spread around, then I would suggest looking into the Togakure Ryu. Just run a search online for Bujinkan or Masaaki Hatsumi, or simply go to www.bujinkan.com. Togakure Ryu's form of nin-po is taught all over the world, though there are conditions. It will not accept members who have a criminal record, mental illness, drug addiction, or mental instability. However, it is worthwhile, both in physical and mental training, and the members are friendly and willing to answer any questions. The taijutsu is the most spectacularly useful form of Eastern martial arts that I have studied, and the non-combat techniques are extremely helpful in everyday life.

So, am I therefore to assume that Ritalin is defunct, since ogre is back with Skinny Puppy? Also, is Frontline Assembly still making albums? The last that I heard of them, they had morphed into Equinox and had released "Holon". Oh, yeah, tri--I'll probably be castigated for this, but IMO Trent's best album was "Broken". TDS was a bit too pop, PHM was too personal, and The Fragile was just too bad.

That guy (whose name currently escapes me) was awesome. Are you referring to the 360 degree device that he would spin his keyboard around and play it at odd angles, or some other device?

Hah! Me too! I can't give them away, or throw them away, or sell them, but I never listen to them anymore. They're all organized and packed away, but, for me, Industrial died 10 years ago, and listening to them would be like digging up my grandfather.

Heh, yeah, it really wreaks havoc on the gaming. Just wait 'til you have children. I'm a bit lucky, 'cause my wife likes to play DnD every now and then, but I still don't get to play as much as I like because we all have to get our schedules right. Anyway, I've been gaming for over 15 years now, most of that done with the various incarnations of DnD. I've done RIFTS, and enjoyed it, but DnD will always be my first love (even if I think that they still haven't gotten the Ranger right). So where in GA do you live? I'm in the Savannah area, and it always amazes me to run into GA folk at message boards.

Darn right!

<shudders> The only ticks I like are 7 foot tall blue ones.

Yeah, I know, my foot probably brushed up against it or something, frightening it. Not deliberate, I assure you, for though I hate spiders, I leave them be, as I don't much like being swarmed by bugs when I go outside. That said, though, I view them as being as amicable as having a root canal: necessary (from what I understand; never had one, personally), but not something you want. Still Life, do you have a "hole" still where it bit you?

Last Saturday, I got bit by a spider while I was on my front porch. Not just any spider, mind, but a Brown Recluse. Until Wednesday, I thought that it was a fire ant bite or mosquito bite that had been rubbed raw by my shoes, but I had it looked at, and it's a brown recluse bite. Not fun. I haven't had a severe reaction to it, just swelling, fevers, and joint pain with massive headaches, but once this sucker finally heals I will have a "hole", and indentation on my foot where the venom has eaten away my flesh. This is not cool. I hate spiders.

Good thing the Samoan is asleep. He hates bats.

What connection did she have with Revan? I don't remember that.

Scalloped, preferrably.

Taking the assertion found online that the PC is a disgraced Jedi who served in the Mandalorian Wars, will there be some kind of interaction between the PC and Revan? After all, Revan was the general in charge of the Republic fleet in the Mandalorian Wars, and it is not much of a stretch to acredit the PC's disgrace to Revan's favor/disfavor, or at least have Revan be aware of it (assuming that his/her memories have returned). To take it a little further, will there be a confrontation between the PC and Revan (whichever Revan it is) over the PC's disgrace?

Doubtful. My guess would be that Dustil will make an appearance, rather than his father. After all, the game is set 5 years after KotOR 1, and you are given the distinct impression that Dustil will make his mark on the galaxy if you tell him the truth about the Sith. I wouldn't be surprised if Carth were dead.

What kind of person visits Internet message boards with (presumably) his sole purpose being to insult various members of said message boards? What does that say about one's character? Further, since when is an individual's worth measured solely by one's state of employment or lack there-of? By his mid-30s Ghandi was too busy leading his peaceful revolution to continue his law career, Mother Teresa had already devoted her life to aiding the Untouchables in India, Hemmingway was a drunken adventurer whose writings merely served to launch his next trip, and Jesus was an itinerant minister and healer who relied solely on the donations of individuals and didn't even have a home. I would hesitate to cast aspersions on any of these individuals, as each has had a tremendous positive impact on our lives and world history and culture, and yet these individuals would quite obviously fail to pass the criteria which you, Buns, are using to judge Eldar. From all that I have seen of him over the past several years, Eldar is a gentleman, intelligent, and has always been willing to be kind to those who are kind to him; in my opinion, and I'm sure that many others feel the same way, Eldar has proven to be a person of worth, and one which many are glad to call "friend". In the future, I would recommend keeping your insults to yourself.

Man, I miss the Lair. Can't wait 'til it's back up and running.

I liked Carth quite a bit. Yeah, he was a paranoid prick, but given what happened on the Endar Spire and his history, I don't really blame him. Still, he was one of the characters that I could always depend upon. Though, I still think Jennifer Hale did the best voice-acting job in the game (ahhh, Jennifer Hale...). As far as favorite character goes, I have to cast my vote behind Jolee. Jolee was the most interesting character that I've encountered in an RPG in quite a while. I enjoyed his backstory, and loved his "old man" commentary throughout the game. Also, though he is classified as neutral, I found him to be the most Light-side Jedi of the bunch, and my character trusted his advice far more than any other character's.