tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16047817112362846652024-03-13T10:02:41.333-04:00An Informed ApproximationSeán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-49444905468904600922012-03-13T12:53:00.001-04:002012-03-13T12:53:37.444-04:00If It Catches on Fire, Step AwayWeird stuff has been happening lately, since I lost my job.<br />
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I was told that someone, an employee I had trained near the beginning of the year, had attempted to forge my signature and use my name in an attempt to avoid violating his/her parole. It seems that community service was a condition of the parole, and had not been done. So the individual mocked up (poorly) a letter "from" me stating that he/she had done the required service. The letter was a mess--the detective showed it to me so I could make a statement about the person in question. It was the most entertaining thing that had happened since the commencement of my unemployment. I was reminded how much I enjoy "stupid criminal" stories.<br />
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And I was busing up to my fiancee's house when a man <i>ran in front of the bus</i> to make it stop, thinking the driver would let him on. He started screaming at the driver and banging on the bus' windshield, apparently complaining that the bus was early and should have waited at the stop it was trying to depart. The lady driver, apparently not understanding the art of de-escalating a confrontation, proceeded to scream and curse back at him, inflaming the man's anger even more. He refused to move, showing his back to the driver and leaning on the front of the bus. He finally gave up, and probably wisely, before the driver though to call the police.<br />
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What a week!<br />
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An addendum to the first story above: the office manager at my old employer called me to let me know that the parolee in question actually called to speak to me, and wanted to advise me that he/she had used me "as a reference". This makes the individual's judgement even poorer...because had someone called me the lie would have been found out for sure. Wow!Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-54840354564283485062012-03-11T20:25:00.001-04:002012-03-11T20:25:14.141-04:00Review: Old Man's War by John Scalzi<div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<i>I somehow forgot to post this review when I wrote it, so here it is:</i><br />
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A much easier read than I expected, Scalzi's Old Man's War is also an entertaining one. The author states in the acknowledgements that the book owes a lot to Heinlein (Starship Troopers) and I think you could probably add Haldeman's The Forever War to the list of inspirations and influences. As such, I didn't find the ideas to be particularly original but Scalzi's main character pulls the premise up and gets it off the ground in a way that makes the journey a fun and emotional ride. The story is focused on the main character, John Perry, a 75 year old who leaves Earth for the promise of rejuvenation at the cost of a soldier's life, and never strays. So we only hear about things that are important to the plot, or to Perry's development. The result is never really getting a very clear picture of what the universe away from Earth is like, which works within the framework of the storyline, but always leaves the reader wanting a little more information.</div>
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One concept I quite liked was the idea behind the Ghost Brigades, and I wish there had been more focus on the dichotomy of the CDF military: the titular “old man” infantry in contrast with the Special Forces “child soldiers.” Scalzi's next book is called The Ghost Brigades, so maybe I'll get what I was looking for in that volume.<br />
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The thing that frustrated me the most was the author's use of dialogue. It reminded me so much of Orson Scott Card's use of back-and-forth too-clever banter that quickly becomes nauseating. Now, it's not nearly on the stomach-upsetting level that Card has achieved, but I could envision a time when Scalzi gets there unless he reigns it in. I really hope it doesn't continue on this path, because his writing is otherwise very pleasant.</div>
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I'm looking forward to checking out the other books set in this universe, and maybe getting a better sense of the structure of the colonies.</div>Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-87509601973523361352012-03-11T20:23:00.001-04:002012-03-11T20:23:49.171-04:00Too EventfulWell, it's been another long gap between posts, and even then the last few have been book reviews and not so much actual blog content. Even the book reviews slowed down because I had not been reading nearly as much.<br />
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I have also put writing into a slow-burn, occasionally producing just a little bit here and there. Wedding planning, overwork from the "real" job, and just plain exhaustion keep me from the keyboard. Of course, those other things are important, especially the wedding planning, so I don't regret the time spent on them, and some of my creative juices have been squeezed into some special things for the wedding that I am really excited about.<br />
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I tried to join a writers group, something that I had wanted to do for a long time and never seemed to actually do. A tendency to be shy among new people didn't help. So I went to a meeting in January, and found it pretty useful, but then being too busy got in the way and I haven't been back since. I hope to go again, maybe after the wedding, and stay a regular attendee. <br />
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I have 2 nearly complete short stories on the go right now, and my never-ending revisions of A Separate Breed. The one short was started with the intention of submitting it to an anthology, but I missed the deadline. So I'll finish it and keep it on hold until a good opportunity comes up for it. Same with the other, a zombie story with a cool twist that I don't think has been done before.<br />
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I figure I may have some time to write for a bit, because I fell victim to my employer's need to cut their payroll. So while I look for a new job, I'll have the time to devote to the wedding, and even shoehorn in some word processing time. The impact on my bank account means I need to be working as soon as possible, but in the interim maybe this is golden chance to focus. <br />
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My fiancee knows me well, and that had this not happened with my job I may not have looked too hard for a better opportunity. I'm going to go with that tried old saying that was texted to me by a friend after hearing of my situation: <i>Everything happens for a reason</i>. <br />
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And in this case I'm looking forward to seeing exactly what the reason is.<br />
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<br />Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-22462636348537625612011-11-06T13:05:00.000-05:002011-11-06T13:05:05.208-05:00Review: Without Warning by John Birmingham<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I have a couple reviews I'd forgotten to post about books I've read recently. Here's the first one.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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I just went looking for <em>After America</em> , the sequel to <em>Without Warning</em>, in the Kobo e-book store because I want to know what happens next. There were a few times, tough to resist, where I was at work and feeling very tempted to hunch over my desk with the novel to get through another scene of this gripping book.<br />
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</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">I loved the "Axis of Time" trilogy, although Birmingham wasn't able to maintain the same level of inexorable momentum through all three books. As an aside, the chapter of <em>Weapons of Choice</em> detailing the arrival of the multinational fleet to 1942, dropping right into the midst of Admiral Spruance's fleet bound for Midway, and the ensuing confused naval battle, is one of my favorite scenes in literature.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><em>Without Warning</em> manages to keep the same edge-of-your-seat and desperate-to-know-more tension that the early parts of Birmingham's first trilogy established. It starts immediately, just before the onset of the Desert Storm invasion of Iraq in 2003, with a wounded and disoriented woman in a hospital bed in France, her confusion becoming more profound as news reports come over a TV of an energy wave that has destroyed most of the population of North America. The US military, almost entirely overseas when this event occurs and the most powerful force in the world, is suddenly adrift without any civilian government direction.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">Just like that, the world's one true superpower is gone, and the dominoes start to fall. Without the US there to balance the scales, nations go to war, economies crash, populations starve and factions fight for control of governments. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">Even the events you can see coming with the relentless slide of international relationships manage to shock. The fear of a tragedy happening is one thing (such as hurricane Katrina relentlessly moving toward New Orleans) but the reality of that tragedy happening is quite a different feeling. It's DREAD versus HORROR, and Without <em>Warning</em> manages to make the reader feel both these things.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">Some of the characters are difficult to empathize with, such as Jules the smuggler, or Caitlin the black ops assassin, but others truly shine. The POVs of Admiral Ritchie and Seattle city engineer James Kipper are the standouts of the book. Ritchie in particular may have the most sphincter-tightening exchange of dialogue in the book when he meets with an Israeli ambassador. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">In the end, the new world order to which the reader and characters are becoming used to is suddenly turned on end, setting up a sequel that promises, if not the same sense of desperation, a similar level of tension and shock.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0cm;">Great book.</div>Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-7795914885729038422011-08-24T19:27:00.000-04:002011-08-24T19:27:51.740-04:00Finally!I have been a few different things in my life...a good student, a failed student, gas station attendant, pizza delivery boy, photolithographer, gypsy cab driver, trainer, fundraiser....and now I can add "published author" to that list!<br />
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You can find <em>Told You So</em> available at <a href="http://www.pillhillpress.com/shoppe-anthologies.html">Pill Hill Press</a> and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Told-You-Se%C3%A1n-David-Gardner/dp/1617060909/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1314224926&sr=1-1">Amazon.com</a>.<br />
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I am continuing to do re-writes on <em>A Separate Breed</em>, as well as making notes for another book that would be set in the same "universe" but only loosely connected. Progress is slower than I would like, but still moving.<br />
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I've been using the beta for Scrivener for Windows this summer...amazing program. I'm sure I don't use very much of the functionality, but the parts I have been using have been so incredibly helpful. Highly recommended program for writers. The Mac version has been out for some time, but the Windows version is still a work in progress, with the actual release pending in the next couple months.<br />
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SDG<br />
Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-62090960677765733952011-07-23T13:11:00.000-04:002011-07-23T13:11:44.034-04:00Hello Stranger!Haven't posted since April, and this is just as short one with more coming soon.<br />
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Lots of good stuff happening for me. I have a major function to go to today...my engagement party. Wedding will be next year but a big South Asian-style engagement party today. She hasn't even seen the ring yet, though she's chomping at the bit for it.<br />
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Publication for "The Tree" in the anthology <em>Told You So</em> is getting closer and closer. The editor says it goes to the printer on August 5...that's less than two weeks away. They sent me the galley proof so I could check the copy for my story, and I was so proud to see that "The Tree" was placed first the book!<br />
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During all of this, I'm melting in my apartment in the heatwave hitting Toronto. I kinda feel like this, but without the ghosts flying around:<br />
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It was hotter than internal human body temperature two days ago. This <em>will</em> be my last summer without AC...I vow this on the bones of my ancestors!<br />
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On that note, happiness, love and peace, everyone!Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-67283067209275956102011-04-16T22:32:00.000-04:002011-04-16T22:32:04.755-04:00Review: Wolf of the Plains by Conn Iggulden<div class="reviewText mediumText description"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-elW7isV5J0s/TapQ8h2tG9I/AAAAAAAAAEU/fTuMIQMWp4k/s1600/wotp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" r6="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-elW7isV5J0s/TapQ8h2tG9I/AAAAAAAAAEU/fTuMIQMWp4k/s1600/wotp.jpg" /></a></div><div class="reviewText mediumText description"> </div><div class="reviewText mediumText description">A fantastic work of historical fiction by Conn Iggulden, detailing the journey of the man known as Temujin as he unites the various Mongol tribes and becomes the conqueror history would know as Genghis Khan. Iggulden has done a lot of research, including a trip to Mongolia, and he seems to have captured the Mongol "vibe" pretty well. Most of the main characters are fully realized, and the steppe atmosphere is amazingly well detailed. You can almost put your hands around the power of Temujin's personality as more and more people join his cause, and the inevitable and foregone conclusion to the story still manages to feel tense with uncertainty. <br />
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A good companion to this book would be a viewing of Sergei Bodrov's movie epic, <em>Mongol</em>, if only to firmly solidify the imagery of the steppes and the look of the Mongols themselves for the reader. The film has a slightly different interpretation of Temujin's rise, and is remarkable in its own right, but doesn't change the fact that Iggulden's book is a real keeper. <br />
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Highly recommended, and I look forward to checking out the two sequels. <br />
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SDG </div><div style="text-align: right;"><div class="like_it" id="like_it_78999558"></div> <a class="lightGreyText" href="http://www.goodreads.com/flagged/new?resource_id=78999558&resource_type=Review&return_url=%2Freview%2Fshow.html%3Fid%3D78999558" id="flag_link78999558" rel="nofollow" title="Flag this review as inappropriate."><span style="color: #d7d7d7;">flag</span></a> </div><div class="grey500BoxBottom"></div><br class="clear" />Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-87351912093301438802011-03-23T21:13:00.000-04:002011-03-23T21:13:12.215-04:00Review--Marsbound by Joe Haldeman<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-zWCV9kXoXqc/TYqaWM7BkmI/AAAAAAAAAEQ/bIr6gVf0nQI/s1600/marsbound.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" r6="true" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-zWCV9kXoXqc/TYqaWM7BkmI/AAAAAAAAAEQ/bIr6gVf0nQI/s1600/marsbound.jpg" /></a></div><br />
I probably would have a better opinion of this book if it had been written by almost any other author, but this is a Joe Haldeman book and I have come to expect far more from him than a story like <em>Marsbound</em>. The main character is likable and believable. The dialogue is realistic and typically Haldemanesque. The story just didn't engage me, though, and it isn't helped by a group of aliens that I just wasn't buying into. Haldeman knows to how create cool and weird aliens (see <em>Camouflage</em>, a really underrrated book) and unfortunately the Martians in the story only have the weird part of the equation nailed. The other thing that was hard for me to swallow in the plot was the everpresent antagonistic relationship between the main character and her primary "opposition", a bitter and vindictive administrator...something just felt off about it. <br />
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That said, the underlying idea in the book is a sound one, and I want to know where it goes with the sequel, <em>Starbound</em>. <br />
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OK book, but in the context of knowing who wrote it, a little disappointing.Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-27202279755604771672011-03-23T01:04:00.000-04:002011-03-23T01:04:53.844-04:00A Fortnight to WriteAt my real job I've been stuck in this cycle of not using all my vacation time in the actual year in which it was generated. As a result of this, I have two weeks worth of 2010 vaction time left over to use this year, and I am smack in the middle of week one (week two is to follow consecutively).<br />
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While I do have some other very important things to which I need to attend during this time, most of this period is earmarked as writing time. The primary writing priority is in making a lot of headway in a rewrite and expansion of my NaNoWriMo novel, <em>A Separate Breed</em>. As I was outlining the abandoned plotlines that needed closure and the extra background that needed to be added in order for certain characters to make more sense, I think I realized that they would not be adequate to give the book the additional length it would require. I was stewing about this a bit on Monday as I made some changes to the first draft of the manuscript, trying to figure out what else there could be. Was my story really that thin?<br />
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My writing style tends toward concision. I'll never be someone to write 800 page novels or 10 book series. I usually know what I want to say and I say it.<br />
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When I was finishing the first draft of the book back in November I had seen a news article that gave me an idea for a "next step" plot point. It would have expanded upon the main situation of <em>A Separate Breed </em>in a logical way, but I didn't have time to include it and I wanted the story to be finished before the November 30 deadline. So I shelved it, figuring I could use it in a potential follow-up novel.<br />
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Silly me. That bonus bit of story, along with my other outlined items, is where my extra 25 to 35 thousand words are coming from. No need to panic! So now my original climax gets to just be a precursor to the real thing.<br />
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And we're supposed to be getting something like a half foot of snow tomorrow here in Toronto. Blech. This is really going to interfere with my scouting mission to an area of the city I need to write about.<br />
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Weather notwithstanding, this is my fortnight to write!Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-39965870744602344902011-03-13T15:10:00.000-04:002011-03-13T15:10:41.933-04:00Abide Not By Ill Fortune<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Here's a short piece from a few years ago:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I remember when I woke up early one Saturday, about four in the morning. Something had startled me from my slumber, and was immediately apparent in the absence of a dozing woman on the right side of the bed. I groggily sat up, looking toward the open bedroom door, using the tip of one ring finger to dislodge the crust from the corner of my eyes. I could just see the entrance to the bathroom down the hall: the door there was open and the light was not burning. <br />
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I wanted to go back to sleep, but despite being exhausted, I knew I wouldn’t be able to rest until I knew why she was up, so I pulled on a pair of shorts and crept out to the living room. The light in the kitchen was on and I peeked in, seeing her sitting at the small dinette table facing slightly away and to my left, just barely allowing me to see the glum expression on the profile of her face. Resisting the urge to move to her side and ask her what was wrong, I watched her silently, her dark hair mussed from sleep. She was generally hard on her appearance after waking, self-deprecating without the humor, but I always thought that her hair in slight disarray made her more humanly beautiful, validating to me one aspect of the attraction I felt to her.<br />
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She wore an oversized San Diego Chargers t-shirt, her favorite sleeping attire, and was sipping a cup of tea, the purple box on the table indicating Darjeeling, the used teabag sitting on a napkin folded neatly into a quarter of its original size. She began to hum, and I struggled to figure out what the tune was. One instant it was the strain of a Strauss waltz, the next a Metallica riff—it was no song and every song, it was whatever she wanted it to be in that moment. To me it was an embodiment of her, unpredictable and comforting all at once, whimsical and beautiful.<br />
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As I rested my head against the wall, the humming ceased and she reached toward a thin vase in the center of the table, pulling one of two roses from the sparkling crystal. She always kept flowers on the kitchen table. She looked thoughtfully at the rose as water dripped from the stem onto the tabletop, inhaled its scent with her eyes closed, and sighed. I was reminded of a wedding we had attended the month before. It became apparent during the reception that she was becoming frustrated waiting on me to propose to her, and was perhaps doubting our future as time passed and I made no attempt to offer a larger commitment. I had made the decision then, and was in the process of devising exactly how I would go about asking her to marry me, naturally wanting it to be perfect. <br />
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Without warning she pulled a petal from the defenseless flower, and because of the quiet her voice seemed harshly loud: “He loves me.”<br />
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She carelessly flicked the separated petal away, took another sip of her Darjeeling. No sooner had the mug been returned to the table then off came another petal.<br />
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“He loves me not!”<br />
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Curiosity, warring with wanting to step forward and comfort her, had the best of me. I wanted to know how this would end. <br />
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Shortly, there were but two fragile looking petals on the decimated rose, and both of us could see that the result was not going to be the most desired one. Reluctantly, she pulled one off with quite unnecessary force. It made me think of ripping the tag from a new pillow.<br />
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“He loves me,” she mumbled forlornly.<br />
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She stared at the one remaining petal on the tortured flora and drew her feet up off the cold linoleum. It seemed that she was going to finish the ritual as she prepared to tear off the final piece, but she hesitated just a moment, and tore half the petal off, accompanied by a wickedly self-satisfied grin. “He loves me not.” <br />
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She plucked the last half-petal, and before she could give the final verdict, the verdict of her own choosing, I delivered it for her.<br />
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“I love you.”<br />
</span>Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-86109601832681521482011-03-11T20:03:00.000-05:002011-03-11T20:03:35.435-05:00Respect the Earth<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-uU7bVygD5hY/TXrE_bz1QNI/AAAAAAAAAD8/begtYzvK1Kc/s1600/japan-tsunami-hits.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" q6="true" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-uU7bVygD5hY/TXrE_bz1QNI/AAAAAAAAAD8/begtYzvK1Kc/s320/japan-tsunami-hits.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
So, I watched a lot of CNN last night, having heard about the big earthquake in Japan just a few minutes after it happened. I've seen a few people on social media freaking out about the end of the world, and it makes me shake my head because people just don't understand the ground they walk upon. The planet is like a living thing, and it is always in some form of upheaval. It is inevitable that disasters will happen, and they get more and more likely to kill scores or thousands of people as the population of the planet continues to skyrocket upwards. Natural "disasters" are not getting more frequent, or more severe. This is just the way the world works...take a few geology classes and if you don't already understand, your perspective may change a bit. Hell, go seek out the recent episode of Nova that highlighted the 2010 Haiti earthquake. Some very good basic explanations (and great educational graphics, too).<br />
<br />
The images from Japan, particularly the tsunami sweeping across the rural areas of Sendai province, are frightening. The planet is host to immense power, and we are like insects when she decides throw her weight behind her actions. <br />
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Thoughts and prayers go out to those in Japan who were affected by this disaster. The company I work for will likely do some relief fundraising as a result. And I wish things like this never happened--people don't deserve to face these situations. But always respect the Earth's power, and we'll be as prepared as possible when these inevitable events weigh upon us.Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-73672307723523418622011-03-05T12:52:00.000-05:002011-03-05T12:52:39.431-05:00Book Review: Soul Born by Kevin James BreauxI will admit heading into this review that I have known the author for a couple decades, so granted, I'm sure I have a little bit of bias, and anyone who has read the handful of entries in my blog will be aware of this connection. Following, however, is my honest opinion of Kevin James Breaux's debut novel, <em>Soul Born</em>.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-YlxCuOqj5Ww/TXJfKs3DCGI/AAAAAAAAAD4/t7wVtJRDs48/s1600/soul+born+cover.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" l6="true" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-YlxCuOqj5Ww/TXJfKs3DCGI/AAAAAAAAAD4/t7wVtJRDs48/s1600/soul+born+cover.bmp" /></a></div><br />
My personal taste when it comes to fantasy has generally been works that include a great deal of detailed worldbuilding. I love reading about history so when I consume fantasy stories about strange and exotic new worlds I often have the mindset that I looking for historical and geographical snapshots over and above a strong plotline and interesting characters. This is usually what holds my attention in fantasy, because I am always looking for clues, for a broken potsherd that tells me about the way the people in the land lived their lives.<br />
<br />
<em>Soul Born</em> is a very focused novel. There are no meandering passages in this book and no exposition that isn't relevant to what's happening. There is no scenic route to get to the destination. The book is the GPS equivalent of telling you the quickest way to get from point A to point B. And baby, it makes the book ROLL.<br />
<br />
I'll note here that it took me a little while to appreciate this characteristic. I had to put the book down half way through and think about it. Something about the style of Soul Born then clicked for me, and I enjoyed the hell out of the book. Most fantasy novels have clearly delineated good guys and bad guys, maybe some gray area third party that swings back and forth for a while until finally aligning with one group or the other for the Big Final Battle. Not so in <em>Soul Born</em>: these people are not out for some high falootin' grand ideal, they are, each and every one of them, pushing their own agenda. The result of this is a cast of characters that have a seeming tendency towards erratic actions, but in reality are simply adjusting their plans to the shifting tide of events in the story. If the characters, Karn and Opal in particular, realize that staying the course isn't going to get them what they want, they simply head in a different direction. It's kind of refreshing. <br />
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There's no dead wood in the plot. The characters are fun, if sometimes a little reprehensible. The book is action, action, action. It isn't your typical fantasy, and that's a good thing. It really stands out next to everything else on the shelf because it breaks all the standard fantasy tropes. <br />
<br />
Thumbs up!<br />
<br />
SDGSeán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-28403896032945855122011-03-03T21:41:00.002-05:002011-03-03T21:48:07.119-05:00Aspiring Author and Collector of Interesting FactsI'm thinking that, with the news I received yesterday, that the little description of me above can perhaps now read like this:<br />
<br />
<strike>Aspiring</strike> Author and Collector of Interesting Facts<br />
<br />
I say this because I got an email yesterday afternoon that included the following sentence from an editor to whom I had submitted my novellette, <em>The Tree</em>:<br />
<br />
"We enjoyed it and would like to publish it in TOLD YOU SO."<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-k_CaCDBzHyw/TXBOGwlofLI/AAAAAAAAAD0/h50M5y_LbMY/s1600/-DESKT%257E1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" l6="true" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-k_CaCDBzHyw/TXBOGwlofLI/AAAAAAAAAD0/h50M5y_LbMY/s320/-DESKT%257E1.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
I'm feeling on top of the world with this news; it's like the culmination of years of dreams, and it's an excitement that I must admit I have rarely felt in my life. If you are imagining me rushing to read and fill out the contract they sent me that will permit them to print my story in their anthology, you would be very close to the mark.<br />
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First phone call went to my girlfriend. Second one to my mother. Then Facebook and Twitter found out. Yes, safe to say <em>excitement</em> was the word of the day. I've gotten a ton of encouragement that has managed to help me get to this place, from the two women mentioned in this paragraph chief among them, and also from my good friend and award-winning author <a href="http://www.kevinbreaux.com/">Kevin Breaux</a> (whose first book, <em>Soul Born</em>, I will be posting a review of shortly...I finished it a few days ago and have been digesting my thoughts on it), among many others along the way.<br />
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Certainly, I still have to work very hard to keep this from being the only success I ever have as a writer, but my hope is that this starts the snowball rolling down the hill, and that by the time it reaches the ditch it could be used for the base of a very large snowman.<br />
<br />
The Tree will be printed by Pill Hill Press in their conspiracy anthology <em>Told You So</em> later this year. I will, of course, be crowing about it with more information as soon as I can!<br />
<br />
Cheers!<br />
SDGSeán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-84136221241848023902011-02-20T18:54:00.000-05:002011-02-20T18:54:12.065-05:00Lose, damn you, LOSE! Go Team!This post is about sports. But not about sports.<br />
<br />
I am a sports fan. Baseball is my favorite, but football, hockey, soccer...they all stoke some passionate fire for me. I have found myself, as a fan, in an odd place recently: cheering for my favorite team to lose.<br />
<br />
As far as hockey goes, this is one sport where my favorite team is not the one I grew up cheering for. Though I'm from the Philly 'burbs I am more of an Ottawa Senators fan than a Flyers one. The interest there started when Ottawa got an expansion team that entered the NHL in the 92-93 season. The Flyers stunk at the time, and with a teen interest in all things Ancient Rome I decided to follow the new team with the Roman Centurion logo. The effort I put in trying to keep track of a small market Canadian team in a little-televised or reported on sport...well, let's just say it wasn't easy. If I was lucky, I'd catch 30 seconds of Ottawa highlights a week, and <em>The Hockey News</em> was always a week behind at the local 7-Eleven. Eventually, my hockey heart resided in another country.<br />
<br />
And boy, did the Senators <em>suck</em> the first few years. Spectacularly. But they managed to squeak into the playoffs in the spring of 1997 in the final game of the season. I got to watch the last 5 minutes of that game on ESPN2, saw them take a 1-0 lead on the Buffalo Sabres on a goal by defenseman Steve Duchene, watched the team skate around the ice like they'd just won a championship. It would be the start of respectability for a team that had been the laughing stock of the league, and their high point would be an appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals in 2007.<br />
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They're going to miss the playoffs for just the second time in 15 seasons, and there's so little hope for a turnaround with this year's roster that I've actually been hoping they lose games for the sole purpose of getting a higher pick in the next amateur draft! The general manager has started trading away the players with any value, and the team has become a bunch of kids and minor leaguers who are playing with more spunk and fire than the jaded vets who preceded them. <br />
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<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_g1dLFslCwY/TWCNVx0ss4I/AAAAAAAAADw/mq5M5Xz-B8E/s1600/4147866.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="206" j6="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_g1dLFslCwY/TWCNVx0ss4I/AAAAAAAAADw/mq5M5Xz-B8E/s320/4147866.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">No need to be so glum, coach!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
It's a weird feeling, rooting for your team to lose. I feel like I should be ashamed, for urging them on the downward spiral. It's not that I want them to do poorly, I just want what is best for them <em>going forward</em>. I think that the house needs to be razed right to foundation, rather than keep shoring up the sagging floors and bowed walls. Even this logic doesn't make sense to some fans, I guess, who feel that if the result doesn't get tabulated in the W column, then it was a failure. <br />
<br />
Starting over from scratch...it's sometimes a better option. I discovered this when I felt I had to break up a ten year marriage. A few years later and I'm in a much better relationship. The pain of taking a match to something that was "safe" but flawed in every way was worth the rebirth I experienced as I stood up from the ashes. I discovered it again when writing a story that was, to be honest, a train wreck of plot, and the problems couldn't be fixed through revision, the whole thing had to be dumped and started over with a new focus.<br />
<br />
So I say to the Ottawa Senators: it's okay to tank the rest of the season. Yesterday's win against the Maple Leafs, which vaulted you 1 point ahead of the Oilers to be ranked 29th (of 30 teams) in the league is only a minor setback. It might be hurting right now, but it'll only get better from here.<br />
<br />
SDGSeán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-72179502254499495502011-02-19T17:48:00.001-05:002011-02-19T17:49:49.132-05:00The Road to Empire, Part 2<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="color: #93c47d;">Here's Part 2 of the War Journal of Gardner Sean, in which a vanquished foe returns with a vengeance, great plots never seem to go as planned, and the enemy fields some of the greatest generals in feudal China. Find Part 1 <a href="http://informedapproximation.blogspot.com/2011/02/road-to-empire-part-1.html">here</a>. </span></span><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="color: #93c47d;"></span></span><span lang="EN-CA"></span><span lang="EN-CA"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">196 AD</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">October</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">Yuan Shao dies, and while this comes as a shock, even more surprising is his successor: Gongsun Zan, who immediately brings the warfare against Lu Bu nearly to a halt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can feel his attention turning to me, and I watch Ande port closely as its garrison grows.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">December</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">Under Lu Bu, Dong Zhuo's legacy has been reduced to 3 of the wealthiest cities in <country-region w:st="on">China</country-region>—Xu Chang, Wan and <city w:st="on"><place w:st="on">Luoyang</place></city>—and they are all on my doorstep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These cities and the potential of adding Lu Bu to my coterie of military geniuses make me greedy, so I push to reorganize my military and attack before Gongsun Zan throws my plans out the window.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">Everything is proceeding apace, as I advance north from Ru Nan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First Xu Chang falls, then I am besieging Wan and without warning Lu Bu has surrendered…</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">…to Gongsun Zan!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DXPUT5F3RHE/TWA9CRdqCpI/AAAAAAAAADY/oKGdrvd-rEI/s1600/china+map+part+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="257" j6="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DXPUT5F3RHE/TWA9CRdqCpI/AAAAAAAAADY/oKGdrvd-rEI/s320/china+map+part+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Charge Against Lu Bu</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">My blood boils as I continue to attack Wan and it falls to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lu Bu would not have been able to hold out against me, and he surely yielded to my biggest rival at the promise of better resources to fight me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yuan Shao had been the most powerful man in <country-region w:st="on"><place w:st="on">China</place></country-region> when he died.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am not prepared to wage war with his successor, and so starts the standoff.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Armies of unprecedented size soon grace the border between our lands.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I slowly put a massive plan into place.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">197 AD</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">January </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">When Yuan Shao had been waging war with Liu Biao he captured Guanling port just south of Xia Pi.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His advance was halted when I, his trusted ally, sacked and occupied Xia Pi.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since that time Guanling had maintained a garrison with 25K troops in it and a pair of lazy, ineffectual generals.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">But with Yuan gone and a belligerent foe on his throne, I now found myself with an enemy fortification in my own lands.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Granted, it was a small force, but it could not be ignored and while I developed a plan with my generals it was a nagging concern that could not be avoided.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wanted to launch a two pronged assault against Gongsun Zan's holdings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One half would be an obvious, full scale frontal assault from Chen Liu against Pu Yang, led by myself and Gan Ning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The second would be landing a smaller, more mobile force with my most cunning officers—Breaux Kevin, Daj Kirender, Sun Jian and Zhou Yu—at Gongsun’s rear that would harry the seemingly safe (and thus poorly defended) cities in his heartland.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would also leave a massive army at Beihei under Vang Qaishi and her father Vang Lu.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">The attack on Pu Yang would mean that he could not spare any of the large number of soldiers there to defend his rear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The same would hold true for his garrison at <place w:st="on"><placename w:st="on">Ande</placename> <placetype w:st="on">Port</placetype></place>—it would be held in place by my army at Beihei as surety that it would not advance north to Gongsun’s capital, Ping Yuan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Breaux, Sun and the rest would be able to run wild, sacking cities and disrupting the enemy’s supply lines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If he did pull soldiers from Ande or Pu Yang, my armies would rout him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Gongsun Zan also had substantial armies in his easternmost provinces, but they were occupied in a holding action against a foreign tribe raiding from the north, and thus were neutralized.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the far north, Gongsun Zan is engaged in small scale border skirmishes with Ma Teng.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I periodically send Ma Teng gold to keep this going.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">I amass my army at Chen Liu, and do so in obvious fashion, knowing that it would appear as a threat to both Pu Yang and the Hulao Gate to the south of Luoyang.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Less obviously I create a force at Xia Pi to deal with the garrison at <place w:st="on"><placename w:st="on">Guanling</placename> <placetype w:st="on">Port</placetype></place>, commanded by a set of reliable, if unspectacular, officers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is a smaller, but necessary, third prong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Though I plan on launching the back-door surprise from Beihei’s peninsula, I do not increase the size of the Beihei army because Gongsun always increases the Ande port garrison in response.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t want my Beihei intimidation force to be outnumbered when I start my offensive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So Sun Jian gathers his resources at Mo Ling, and prepares to sail.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fIQLjdU5opE/TWBBTPa8-LI/AAAAAAAAADo/BVNqKr_akhA/s1600/china+map+part+2bb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" j6="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fIQLjdU5opE/TWBBTPa8-LI/AAAAAAAAADo/BVNqKr_akhA/s1600/china+map+part+2bb.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A map of the Unused Grand Plan--Donglai Port is mislabeled</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">June </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">I am putting the final touches on my preparations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first half of Sun Jian’s force has set sail, and the second half is about to get underway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They will regroup at <place w:st="on"><placename w:st="on">Donglai</placename> <placetype w:st="on">Port</placetype></place>, to the east of Beihei, raise the morale of the soldiers and then my three pronged attack will get underway.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">And that’s when all my plans go out the window.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">A messenger comes to me at Chen Liu.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am being asked to join a coalition to overthrow Gongsun Zan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A month later and I would have been ecstatic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t quite have everything in place, but I cannot refuse this invitation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For my plans against Gongsun Zan to go forward, I must not be on negative terms with my western neighbors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is no way I could conduct two wars effectively.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I clench my jaw and agree to join, and they ask me to head the coalition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I agree to this as well, leading the alliance in front of Liu Biao, Taishi Ci, Ma Teng, and Huang Quan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">The Emperor visits me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s been meeting with me regularly since I took Beihei almost two years ago, conferring upon me greater and greater status.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This time he appoints me Chancellor and blesses the actions I am about to take.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">July</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">No sooner had the ink dried on the scroll acknowledging the coalition than Gongsun Zan crossed the Yellow River with his troops, leaving <placename w:st="on">Ande</placename> <placetype w:st="on">Port</placetype> and occupying <place w:st="on"><placename w:st="on">Linzi</placename> <placetype w:st="on">Port</placetype></place> on the Beihei side of the river.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is now just a two day march away from Beihei.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When Sun Jian arrives on the peninsula, I do not send him on to his original mission, but to reinforce Beihei.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">I launch the attack from Xia Pi on Guanling port, but I also divert what had been the remainder of Sun Jian’s men, still at sea and very close to Guanling, to attack from the sea and rid myself of this threat faster.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">Elsewhere, I change my overall strategy on the fly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I can push Gongsun Zan to the other side of the <place w:st="on">Yellow River</place> I can establish a strong natural border and reformulate my plans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This means capturing <city w:st="on"><place w:st="on">Luoyang</place></city> and Pu Yang in the north and destroying a handful of fortified outposts in the process, then maintaining control of the ports on my side of the river.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It also means driving a large army out of Linzi and back to <place w:st="on"><placename w:st="on">Ande</placename> <placetype w:st="on">Port.</placetype></place></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">My greatest generals attack Linzi, home to 120K troops.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To my horror, I find that Linzi is defended by Zhang Fei and Lu Bu.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My losses are terrible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My men resolutely slog forward.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">I also decide to be the hammer against Ma Teng’s anvil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From Chen Liu, I attack Pu Yang.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I detach Gan Ning to Wan and he heads against <city w:st="on"><place w:st="on">Luoyang</place></city>, where he runs smack into an infantry unit commanded by Guan Yu.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I abandon the action against Pu Yang to reinforce Gan Ning against one of the greatest generals of the age.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">August</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">My victorious troops at Guanling reinforce Beihei.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As the defences of <place w:st="on"><placename w:st="on">Linzi</placename> <placetype w:st="on">Port</placetype></place> fail, Zhang Fei and Lu Bu retreat back to Ande.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I pull my men back to Beihei rather than defend Linzi, wrecked and difficult to occupy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of the 250K men in Beihei, I have lost two fifths of them in repelling Lu Bu and Zhang Fei.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their casualties are half of mine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is a victory in that I accomplished what I wanted to do, but I sacrifice so many men that it feels like losing.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div> <br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-E5nazzv90oY/TWA-JDjHuDI/AAAAAAAAADg/e4yI_26kAFQ/s1600/Ande+Port.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="178" j6="true" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-E5nazzv90oY/TWA-JDjHuDI/AAAAAAAAADg/e4yI_26kAFQ/s320/Ande+Port.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Yellow River Corridor Between Ande and Linzi Ports</td></tr>
</tbody></table> <br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">Gan Ning duels Guan Yu and loses, but before Guan can leave the field an up and coming officer of mine, Huo Qubing, takes Gan Ning’s position and defeats the great warrior.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The tide turns and <city w:st="on"><place w:st="on">Luoyang</place></city> falls despite soldiers reinforcing the city from Pu Yang and Hulao Gate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We turn back to Pu Yang and find that Gongsun Zan has pulled many of the remaining soldiers there and sent them to Ande.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We pause to regroup and motivate the men at Hulao Gate, now empty of the enemy, and batter Pu Yang into submission.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am holding Guan Yu and 16 other officers as prisoners of war.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">The enemy has reinforced his installations on the opposite side of the <place w:st="on">Yellow River</place> from Pu Yang.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My side of the river…is a mess.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I try to make everything defensible, and to reinforce Beihei.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I lucked out against Guan Yu, but if I’m going to have a chance to make real headway, I have to deal with Lu Bu and Zhang Fei.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">October</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">I knew I would not be able to hold Guan Yu indefinitely, but I could not afford to allow this great man to return to my enemy’s service.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I attempted to recruit him, but he was too steadfast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His sworn brothers, Liu Bei and Zhang Fei, were conquered vassals of Gongsun Zan, and he would not waver.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With a heavy heart I ordered the execution of Guan Yu and the other captives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">December</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">Back when I defeated Gongsun Zan in his first incarnation, many of his generals joined me even though he did not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of them was an inconsequential administrator name Li Yie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This man had been left in charge of Shou Chun while my most able men were at the front of battle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As it turned out, this man remained loyal to Gongsun Zan because in December of 197 he wrested control of the city and announced his defection.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">A month later I send an expedition to Shou Chun to take my city back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The headsman dealt with Li Yie.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">198 AD</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">March</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">In the west, at Yong An, I have maintained a light governance of the city, leaving a single officer, the steadfast Bu Zhi, to run things and manage improvements.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have also left him 90K men on what amounts to a tiny outpost in a sea of greedy, if friendly, rulers as a deterrent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bu Zhi finishes improving the defenses but he lacks subordinates to which he can delegate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He requests more men to administrate, but I do not heed his request because I need people on the border with Gongsun Zan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">Yong An is strategically unimportant, but I am reluctant to simply abandon the city and so I leave Bu Zhi to manage as best he can.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">Through the spring Zhang Fei and Lu Bu play a game of cat and mouse with me, occupying Linzi only to have me repel them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I keep retreating back to Beihei because the port’s defenses are stripped bare.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I let them come back just so I can make them retreat when it nears collapsing again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This tactic works for me far better than the all out assault I originally carried out.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">June</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">The coalition against Gongsun Zan ends after a year without ultimate success, but the previous 12 months of warfare have actually strengthened my position, because Gongsun has now been effectively evicted from my side of the Yellow River.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I ply my former allies with gifts, and most accept them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Out west, </span>Huang Quan rejects the gift I send him and my relations with him suffer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">July</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">I garrison the ports around Pu Yang and send more men and most of my generals to Beihei.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I plan on making a push against <place w:st="on"><placename w:st="on">Ande</placename> <placetype w:st="on">Port</placetype></place> that will result in a deciding breakthrough.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA">But yet again, someone else looses an arrow before I can pull back the bowstring.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="color: #93c47d; font-size: large;"><strong>To be continued....</strong></span></span></div>Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-54376478497926980732011-02-12T17:56:00.000-05:002011-02-12T17:56:02.933-05:00The Road to Empire, Part 1<span style="color: #93c47d;">The following post is the first excerpt from the War Journal of Gardner Sean, a man who rose from obscurity in feudal China to become Emperor, and unite the land under one ruler.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #93c47d;">Well, okay, it's actually proof of my card-holding Geek status, because last year I was playing a lot of Romance of the Three Kingdoms IX, a strategy game by Koei, which is a historical simulation of the Three Kingdoms period of ancient China, a beautiful and brutal piece of history.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #93c47d;">It's a flash of my geek card because I took notes on all the big events in my campaign, and also created characters named after a few friends, my girlfriend, and some Bollywood actresses. And then I took the notes and fleshed them out into an epic tale of a man who was forced from his home by a barbarian tribe, made of himself a leader, then an emperor. I did it for the sole purpose of trying to jump start my writing, and it was a lot more fun than I anticipated, so I thought I would share it in installments. I even made some helpful maps. Later, there may be a brief video. I hope you enjoy it!</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The Road to Empire, Part 1</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><place w:st="on"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Southern China</span></span></place></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aXzsWf5Apz4/TVcKDBhrehI/AAAAAAAAADQ/zPRneCXYJ60/s1600/china+map+start.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" h5="true" height="153" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aXzsWf5Apz4/TVcKDBhrehI/AAAAAAAAADQ/zPRneCXYJ60/s320/china+map+start.jpg" width="320" /></a><place w:st="on"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span></span></place></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">190 AD</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">January</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The uncivilized Shan Yue tribe has sacked Hui Ji, expelling the citizens.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I fought them, bravely I suppose, winning a number of followers as the people fled the city, and have set up an estate in nearby Wu.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A few reliable friends form my innermost circle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Word of my deeds had gotten to Wu ahead of me, and fearing the might of Shan Yue, the people asked for my protection.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I organize the town with the aid of my trusted lieutenants, and begin recruiting an army.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">February</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I send a detachment of officers to nearby Mo Ling, knowing that it is unclaimed by any warlord and could be a powerful center of commerce if developed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My little corner of <country-region w:st="on"><place w:st="on">China</place></country-region> has doubled very quickly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I spend nearly two years increasing trade and agriculture, and fortifying the defences of my cities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I try to recruit promising new officers to my cause with little success.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My reputation is non-existent…few outside of the local area have heard of me, and those with any skill seek employment from the great generals and warlords like Dong Zhuo, Cao Cao and Sun Jian.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">191 AD</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Summer</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">With money flowing more freely from the mercantile city of <city w:st="on"><place w:st="on">Mo Ling</place></city>, I begin to build an army and draw up plans for expansion, because to stand still in China is to beg for someone to conquer you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wu and Mo Ling sit on an east-pointing peninsula at the mouth of the <place w:st="on"><placename w:st="on">Yangzte</placename> <placetype w:st="on">River</placetype></place>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To head west to the mainland, I would have to go through the ruins of Hui Ji and past the powerful Shan Yue tribe—not an option when I am puny in comparison.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Across the mouth of the Yangzte however are lands controlled by Liu Biao.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is clearly stronger than I, but the closest of his cities, Shou Chun, is poorly defended.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While Shan Yue tribe is a difficult hurdle for me, they also create a natural barrier to any force approaching me from the west.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In effect, I am far enough from Shan Yue that they do not attack, but they also create a shield for me to the west.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My little peninsula is a safe haven!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I need only worry about naval attacks from across the Yangzte or from the sea.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">November</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">The rest of <country-region w:st="on"><place w:st="on">China</place></country-region> is in turmoil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dong Zhuo is wreaking havoc as a coalition forms to bring him down, headed by Cao Cao.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When an emissary arrives to enlist me in the coalition, I refuse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Joining would mean that I could not move forward with my assault on Shou Chun because it would ally me with Liu Biao.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would lose what little reputation I have in proceeding with an attack on a fellow coalition member, and I do not want to wait another year for the coalition to dissolve.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">December</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">My generals Breaux Kevin and Daj Kirender lead my first military campaign, and I make my first enemy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Under their brilliant leadership Shou Chun falls under my control so easily that I turn my army west and attack Lu Jiang, which has had its garrison depleted by Liu Biao to attack Dong Zhuo in the north.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I halt here as Liu Biao sends reinforcements to Jiang Xia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also don’t have enough men to hold any more territory than I have just taken.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Best not to bite off more than I can chew, and I’ve already accomplished more than originally intended.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With Wu as my capital, Mo Ling as my economy, Shou Chun as my fortress, and Lu Jiang as my breadbasket, I settle down to consolidate my territory, now 4 cities strong.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fIZGBOthEh0/TVcKAQ0WepI/AAAAAAAAADM/RdMNHQ7Zv8Y/s1600/china+1st+movement.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" h5="true" height="261" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fIZGBOthEh0/TVcKAQ0WepI/AAAAAAAAADM/RdMNHQ7Zv8Y/s320/china+1st+movement.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">192 AD</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">June</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Liu Biao has been mostly apathetic towards me since I stole land from him, because the chaos in the north has occupied him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The coalition eventually falls apart without accomplishing their objective, and Liu Biao attempts to retake Lu Jiang.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I repel his attack and rebuild the orchards and rice fields.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Caution sets in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I feel as though I do not have the strength to defend my two northern cities because the melee in the north is so close to them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Were I caught in the middle, I would perish quickly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I attempt to protect myself through good relations and offer gifts to other rulers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I befriend Yuan Shao, who has defeated both Cao Cao and Liu Bei and is slugging it out with Dong Zhuo.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And beyond belief...Liu Biao warms and becomes a friend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I start to feel comfortable, Dong Zhuo dies and Lu Bu takes his place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">194 AD</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">October</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I live in peace with my neighbors, growing my population, bettering my cities, establishing a reputation as a benevolent and tolerant leader, promoting cultural affairs and beating thugs away from my people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sun Jian emerges in the west, a monsoon of destruction, and soon controls a third of all of <country-region w:st="on"><place w:st="on">China</place></country-region>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A coalition forms to overthrow him, with Yuan Shao at its head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This time when the emissary comes I eagerly join up for the opportunity to better my relations with the members, knowing that I will never send a single soldier or piece of gold to support the distant effort.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The year-long coalition against Sun Jian fails just like that against Dong Zhuo, but it does succeed in reducing him to less of a threat.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">195 AD</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">January</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I realize that my reputation has become strong through the land, but as Emperor Xian calls upon other generals of great repute, granting them titles and power, I have yet to meet him. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I set out to find a way to increase my power. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">My advisors form a council to deliberate and conclude that any warlord who has been granted a title by the Emperor controls at least one defined region of <country-region w:st="on"><place w:st="on">China</place></country-region> in its entirety.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some regions have as many as 7 cities, and my realm consists only of 4 cities spanning incomplete parts of 2 regions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I send agents across the land.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">March</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">It comes to my attention that Gongsun Zan has withdrawn to a single city, though he has an extraordinarily large army.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His city, Beihei, is the only one in its region.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Controlling Beihei may put me on the path to advancement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I prepare an expedition, and sit to wait for an opportunity…</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">June</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-weodCLyWCEk/TVcKFpmp6iI/AAAAAAAAADU/shSE4FSF3II/s1600/china+2nd+movement.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" h5="true" height="129" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-weodCLyWCEk/TVcKFpmp6iI/AAAAAAAAADU/shSE4FSF3II/s320/china+2nd+movement.jpg" width="320" /></a><span lang="EN-CA"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Just as I am about to launch a seaborne attack on Beihei, word comes to me that Sun Jian has been driven back to Yong An and is nearly defenceless, the city poorly fortified.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Though the coalition failed, the warfare against him never stopped.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has a wealth of incredible talent following him, and is one of the great generals of the age.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I consider asking him to surrender to me, but I know it will be fruitless.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is too proud and I am of little influence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know that time is short, that his neighbors, depleted in their containment of Sun Jian, will soon resume their attacks and Sun will fall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also know that Gongsun Zan has sent half his military might to the north to attack Yuan Shao, leaving Beihei with a smaller than expected garrison, though still a major obstacle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But Beihei is also vulnerable to the predators around it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I need Sun Jian’s abilities and influence, but I also need Beihei for the recognition it will give.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Choosing one course over the other means that the road NOT taken will be lost to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yong An and Beihei are in complete opposite directions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There isn’t time to take one, and then the other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is going to be a decisive moment for me, and I change my mind multiple times from one choice to the other and back again.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I make a radical decision, ignoring my Sun Tzu teachings, deeming the reward worth the risk.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I decide to split my forces.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">July</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I send over half my troops (about 90K men) under generals Breaux Kevin and Vang Qaishi to the stronghold of Beihei—well fortified, I slightly outnumber the enemy who remain in the city.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Gongsun Zan has accompanied over 100K soldiers to the north</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I send another 40K men under Daj Kirender and Vang Lu to Yong An.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t plan on holding distant Yong An, knowing I will be recalling those troops immediately, and bringing home a slew of new officers.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">This leaves only about 30K troops to guard my 4 home cities...they are woefully underdefended.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My ministers begin drafting new soldiers aggressively to supplement the home guard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Training can wait, it’s numbers I need to keep my now-friendly neighbors from getting too greedy.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Both forces depart from nearby ports on the Yangzte and will cover most of the 2 month voyage on the water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The morale of the troops will suffer from so long in the ships.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">In late July I hear that Huang Quan has dispatched an army to Yong An.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are traveling on foot through mountains.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It looks like Daj Kirender will get there first, but it will be close.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Breaux Kevin makes landfall near Beihei and begins a siege of the city.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My scouts tell me that when Gongsun Zan got word that he was under attack, he disengaged from Yuan Shao, turned his army around and began marching back to Beihei.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the city doesn’t fall before he can cross the <place w:st="on">Yellow river</place>, then Breaux’s mission will fail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The expertise of the generals attacking Beihei is far greater than that of the enemy and Gongsun’s officers fall in duels, the morale in the city is dropping like a stone in a pond.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But their reinforcements are not far away and the clock is ticking.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Daj Kirender reaches Yong An a week before Huang Quan, and after a brief battle he flies my standard above the palace before the other ruler even comes within sight of the city.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My relations with Huang are strong, and he turns his army back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">A case is made to Sun Jian that I have saved his life—the lords all around him have blood-feuds with him and would likely execute or imprison him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I outline my plan for unifying <place w:st="on"><country-region w:st="on">China</country-region></place>, tell him that I want him in my service, and that if he refuses…I will let him go.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sun Jian and many of his generals, including the great Zhou Yu, are convinced to join my cause.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Meanwhile, Gongsun Zan has closed the gap, and his army is crossing the <place w:st="on">Yellow River</place>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Breaux Kevin sends a detachment under Gan Ning to harry and slow Gongsun’s advance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He succeeds in the delaying tactic but his unit is small and soon overwhelmed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then, the gamble pays off and Beihei falls!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Breaux Kevin enters the city and Gongsun Zan is left with an army—but nowhere to quarter them, no food to supply them, and no money to pay them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unlike Sun Jian, Gongsun Zan refuses to enlist with me. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I free him, true to my word, and attempt a number more times to convince him without success.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Eventually, he disappears from Beihei, but I know not where.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many of his generals don’t suffer from the same overweening pride, and eagerly give me their service, if not their loyalty.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">195 AD</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">September</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">A month after my double-victory has given me great renown, Emperor Xian visits me at Shou Chun, and grants me the title of Governor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bristling with this new-found power, I prepare a military build-up that would put the previous one to shame.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">December</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Liu Biao breaks our truce and attempts to set my ambitions back, but his plans are too confident and I turn the tables, taking Xia Pi and other central <country-region w:st="on"><place w:st="on">China</place></country-region> cities from him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After a few months of losing ground he retreats west to Xiang Yang to lick his wounds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yuan Shao has renewed his offensive against Lu Bu in the north and Lu Bu is losing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Though Yuan Shao is friendly with me, he fortifies <placename w:st="on">Ande</placename> <placetype w:st="on">Port</placetype>, on the other side of the <place w:st="on">Yellow River</place> from Beihei in response to the growing army in my city, as assurance that his capital of Ping Yuan is protected.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is mutual respect, and no hostility.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Ma Teng and Huang Quan continue to be the dominant rulers in the West, slowly eating up their competitors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Taishi Ci and his meagre force eventually exist as an inexplicable island between the two western powers and Liu Biao.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">For the next 10 months I rebuild what I have conquered.</span></span></div><br />
<span style="color: #93c47d; font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"><strong>To be continued.....</strong></span>Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-55562434848939940082011-02-01T23:36:00.000-05:002011-02-01T23:36:57.873-05:00Bag O' MiscellanyIn early January I submitted <em>The Tree</em> to a conspiracy anthology, ultimately making no change to the title. Looks like they will start reading the submissions in mid-February. This is really big for me...it marks my first actual submission of any of my work for publication. <br />
<br />
I'm in the middle of a zombie story for another anthology. I've never written in this genre before, but I feel like I have a good idea to flesh out. Kinda stalled on it for a bit, but that was mostly because of my job.<br />
<br />
Started a re-read of the first draft my book, <em>A Separate Breed,</em> red pen in hand. I figure I need to add at least 20K words, and there are plenty of gaps and abandoned plotlines that I can use to fill the space around the main storyline. I'm very excited to get back to this, and I've also gotten myself a lot more organized as far as keeping track of ideas when they come to me.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_WOnAvOt_mh8/TUjd3hobZAI/AAAAAAAAADA/pzoGw5ygiJw/s1600/IMG_5568.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" s5="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_WOnAvOt_mh8/TUjd3hobZAI/AAAAAAAAADA/pzoGw5ygiJw/s320/IMG_5568.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
My dog, Lily, turned 13 on January 30th. She's hanging in there for an old girl, though she's declined a bit over the last year. Her hips and back legs just aren't as strong as they used to be. She's partially some of the inspiration for <em>A Separate Breed</em>. <br />
<br />
I've been in a plaintive mood lately, first sending a letter to the TTC (Toronto Transit Commission) for their terrible service lately, and then a written complaint about the woman who lives in the apartment just below mine. She's been harassing me for a year over noise that she claims comes from my apartment...when I'm not home! And we're not talking dog noise, as she says she never even hears Lily bark. I'd just had enough of that nonsense.<br />
<br />
Eagerly awaiting the snow storm tonight. Gonna look beautiful tomorrow!<br />
<br />
SDGSeán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-79719839683640327062010-12-31T17:01:00.000-05:002010-12-31T17:01:26.381-05:00Yep. Not even lying.You can't really move forward until you come clean. So eventually I knew I had to just throw it out there.<br />
<br />
I maintained the fiction for a long time, mostly because I was embarrassed, and partly because the falsehood had a kernel of truth behind it, just enough to salve my struggling conscience. My then-wife even went along with it, even as she never let me forget the truth. But I thought I could just outrun it in time, so I kept it up, and repeated it over and over, till I almost had myself believing it.<br />
<br />
Till one day a few years ago, while it ate at me mercilessly, I decided to out myself in a game of Two Truths and a Lie, right in front of a room full of coworkers, my boss among them.<br />
<br />
Make three statements about yourself, one of them a lie, and the other participants had to guess which one was the falsehood. The more outlandish the truths, the more likely you could fool them. Everyone else had taken their turn, and the room was focused on me.<br />
<br />
"I was an Eagle Scout in my teens." Number one.<br />
<br />
"I've never travelled off the continent of North America." Number two.<br />
<br />
"I flunked out of university." Number three.<br />
<br />
They didn't get it correct. They all guessed option three, but it was actually the secret I had hidden for so very long, and now I had admitted it. My terrible shame, one that didn't mesh with anyone's opinion of me. I was the smart one, the one who could seemingly answer almost any question thrown at me, the one who could easily finish a crossword puzzle, the one with the expansive vocabulary, the one people said should be a teacher...and I was actually a failed student.<br />
<br />
And once I had bared my soul, I realized it didn't make a whit of difference in the way anyone thought about me. No one's opinion of me soured. If anything, it seemed to add to my character, to the mystery about me. "How could he know all this stuff when he didn't even finish uni?" they would say when I left the room.<br />
<br />
Oh, I don't really know a lot. My studies at the local community college before I moved away from home were varied: I took classes in almost every subject, and so my knowledge is broad but not terribly deep. Jack of all trades, master of none, or so the saying goes. I love to learn, though, and so when something takes my interest I investigate for more. I have found it to be a good asset for small talk, and it often gives me the ability to ask pertinent questions of people who know more on a subject than I...and increase my knowledge. I say, never be afraid to admit you don't know something, because people may illuminate you on the topic...and then you actually do know.<br />
<br />
I fancy myself a "collector of interesting facts" and this propensity has lead to an ability to make people think I am much smarter than I am. <br />
<br />
But admitting the truth on this failed venture at a university degree allowed me to finally start setting goals (actually trying to fulfill those goals would be another matter entirely, mind you). I carved myself a niche in the industry in which I found myself working, and I get to use my creative and teaching skills within it. It isn't where I really feel I want to end up, but it is a resting place while I have finally gotten moving on those goals, which don't feel so very far away now.<br />
<br />
I just finished polishing up a story, a novelette with the uninspired title "The Tree". Once I settle on a new title for it as 2011 dawns, I'll be submitting it to anthologies. And re-writing my NaNoWriMo book is next.<br />
<br />
2011 is going to be just awesome.Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-63033101071986552472010-12-28T11:51:00.000-05:002010-12-28T11:51:52.358-05:00An Ode To The Common Cold<span class="messageBody">Two quick poems about having a cold (as I do right now).</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #ffd966;">mucus mucus go away<br />
and come back some other day<br />
when I have less work to do<br />
or when I've bought more soft tissue</span> <br />
<blockquote></blockquote><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><span class="highlight">Snot</span>, <span class="highlight">snot</span>, there's quite a lot<br />
blow your nose till it glows <br />
red and sore go to the store <br />
for more meds you feel so dead<br />
damn this cold I'd sell my soul<br />
for less congestion here's the question<br />
what can I take to end this ache? </span>Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-20112020658004205322010-12-27T22:40:00.000-05:002010-12-27T22:40:31.978-05:00A Lesson Learned<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I am an aspiring writer.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">There...I said it. That's an enormous weight off my shoulders, you can be assured.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">My good friend (and newly published novelist) Kevin Breaux sent me a link to a website in mid-October that I investigated and then pondered for a good week and a half before saying, "Damn it all, you unambitious sonuvabitch, <em>just do it</em>!" So two days before I would need to start on a daunting test of self-achievement, I registered as a participant in </span><a href="http://www.nanowrimo.org/"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">NaNoWriMo</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">, also known as National Novel Writing Month. The idea? To write a 50,000 word novel in the 30 calendar days of November. Kevin, already a published graphic artist and short story writer, had been encouraging me to WRITE and SUBMIT almost constantly for two years, and while I had spurts of creativity in which I was able to put my ideas down on paper, I only completed one story in all this time, and it was never at a point where I was satisfied enough with it to make it a submission for publication.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">But allow me to be very honest here: I was actually afraid to submit it. I didn't really understand why, not consciously, until NaNoWriMo had ended at midnight on December 1, and I realized I had a 53,000 word manuscript on my hard drive.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I have started to write many novels in my life. The was the epic fantasy that ripped off many elements of <em>Lord of the Rings</em> and <em>The Wheel of Time, </em>which I had started in high school in 1991, and even included dialogue from1986's <em>Transformers: The Movie</em> word for freakin' word. There was the story of myself as a paleontologist turned adrenaline-junkie vigilante called the Red Man, from my college years, which was accompanied by a few character sketches and a logo. There was another epic fantasy which I started to write during a long and creativity-sapping marriage, that had an overly complicated plot and a main character that I had created for a <em>Wizard</em> magazine contest, accompanied by maps and unique units of measurement to make everything as authentic as possible. There was the pseudo-memoir about my life before and after the dissolution of my marriage. Many others mingled throughout, with graphic novels begun here and there, and there is one trait that all these works share: </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">I didn't finish a single damn one of them. Not one.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">So you can imagine my sense of accomplishment when, on November 28, 2010, I clicked a button in Microsoft Word and a tool in the program reported back that my document contained 50,136 words. The book wasn't quite done, and I took a day of rest before writing another 3,000 words on the last day to wrap up the story. I felt great, and even more awesome feelings manifested after I wasted a lot of paper at work by printing out my manuscript. Holding it in my hand, rough first draft though it was...I can't quite articulate how amazing it was.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">So here's what I learned from NaNoWriMo: be disciplined, and don't edit on the fly.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">My two biggest obstacles to writing, finally unmasked! I always needed to be in the mood to write, to create, and that cannot happen if one is to actually produce anything substantial. This one I had always been aware of on some level, but the contest gave me a hard deadline, and I followed some advice I had read on the website to prevent giving up, and I told everyone I knew that I was doing it. I wasn't going to embarass myself by being a <em>quitter</em>.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">The second lesson I learned though was potentially the most important one, and an obstacle that actually contributed to the other issue. I have always wanted my first draft to be my last draft, and the process of editing as you write, of trying to make sure all the details are perfectly consistent, it really slows you down. For me, it would slow me down so much that it took all the joy out of the creative process! If you don't love writing, you sure as hell aren't going to keep it up. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">So write the story. Just get it out of your system, and then go back and re-write the story to make everything fit properly. And then re-write it again to polish it nice and shiny. And then edit for grammar and spelling.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">NaNoWriMo opened my eyes to a new way of writing, because I would never have finished it had I stuck to my old methods. As work continues on my manuscript, one that I hope will see someday see bookshelves, I'm holding this lesson tight to the vest.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_WOnAvOt_mh8/TRlb5zTMr6I/AAAAAAAAABs/hS5gliYlvyc/s1600/nano_10_winner_240x120-7.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" n4="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_WOnAvOt_mh8/TRlb5zTMr6I/AAAAAAAAABs/hS5gliYlvyc/s1600/nano_10_winner_240x120-7.png" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>For anyone interested, please see Kevin's author blog </strong></span><a href="http://kevinjamesbreaux.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>here</strong></span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>, and support a new writer by following the Amazon links on his site to purchase his fantasy novel <em>Soul Born</em>.</strong></span>Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-62990478823523882632010-10-02T22:35:00.000-04:002010-12-31T17:05:06.836-05:00A little pretension never hurt anybodyAfter years of joking with people that I was a little pretentious, my girlfriend outright told me that this "quality" described me, doing so in a very critical manner. So this got me thinking.<br />
<br />
Am I really?<br />
<br />
Looking at my birth certificate, it lists my given first name as well as a middle and surname. I'm told that my parents only had two name possibilities for me, both male. Without intent to offend anyone in possession of the name which went unused, I must admit to being happy in my current life that they opted for Sean rather than the more dated Donald.<br />
<br />
My ex-wife was Irish. And when I say "Irish", I mean that she was born and bred a daughter of the Emerald Isle, so when she informed me that my Gaelic name should have an accent over the "a" called a <em>fada</em> I knew I could trust her. Having successfully developed an adult signature of my name that I could finally both enjoy aesthetically <em>and</em> sign consistently, I found this fada to be an easily incorporated flourish. Granted, it's not on the level of John Hancock's signature on the Declaration of Independence, but combined with my abandonment of the cursive "S"--my own print-cursive hybrid "S" has supplanted it--it gives me a nice, distinctive mark or set of initials with which to commit my approval to documents and contracts.<br />
<br />
The fada, which I eventually began adding even when printing and typing my name, became a great little conversation starter, too: "Why do you put that accent on your name?" Sometimes socially awkward, it occasionally prompted other people to strike up a chat with me.<br />
<br />
It's not like my name can be shortened, like many others. People named James, Elizabeth, John, Charles, William...these folk have options on what they want to be called! As much as I love my name, it's a little confining. And besides, I'd justify this slight re-spelling of name, that's how it's <em>supposed</em> to be spelled! The fada just got lost crossing the ocean, and forgotten among the American penchant towards simplification and phoneticization (Shawn/Shaun? Blech! Seán!)<br />
<br />
Conscious of the fact that some people found my flourish a trifle silly, I began joking that it was "my sole bit of pretension". Most would nod.<br />
<br />
Then she told me that I really was prententious. And suddenly I don't like this apellation any more.<br />
<br />
So I went in search of the definition to refute my girlfriend's accusation. Here's what <a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/pretension?qsrc=2446">Dictionary.com</a> has to say:<br />
<br />
<div class="header"><h2 class="me"><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace; font-size: small;">pre·ten·sion</span></h2><sup><span id="hotword"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;"></span></span></sup><span class="pronset"><script language="javascript">
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</script><noscript></noscript><span class="show_spellpr" style="display: block; margin-top: 8px;"><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><span class="prondelim">[</span><span class="pron">pri-<span class="boldface"><strong>ten</strong></span>-sh<em><span class="ital-inline">uh</span><img alt="" border="0" class="luna-Img" src="http://sp.dictionary.com/dictstatic/dictionary/graphics/luna/thinsp.png" /></em>n</span><span class="prondelim">]</span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span></div><div class="body"><div class="pbk"><span class="pg"><span id="hotword"><strong><em><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">–noun</span> </span></em></strong></span></span><br />
<div class="luna-Ent"><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><span class="dnindex"><span id="hotword"><span style="color: #333333;"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">1.</span> </span></span></span><span id="hotword"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">the</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">laying</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">of</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">a</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">claim</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">to</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">something.</span> </span></span></div><div class="luna-Ent"><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><span class="dnindex"><span id="hotword"><span style="color: #333333;"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">2.</span> </span></span></span><span id="hotword"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">a</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">claim</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">or</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">title</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">to</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">something.</span> </span></span></div><div class="luna-Ent"><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><span class="dnindex"><span id="hotword"><span style="color: #333333;"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">3.</span> </span></span></span><span class="var"><span id="hotword"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">Often,</span> </span><span class="secondary-bf"><span id="hotword"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">pretensions.</span> </span></span></span><span id="hotword"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">a</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">claim</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">made,</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">esp.</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">indirectly</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">or</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">by</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">implication,</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">to</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">some</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">quality,</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">merit,</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">or</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">the</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">like:</span> </span><span class="ital-inline"><span id="hotword"><em><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">They</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">laughed</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">at</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">my</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">pretensions</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">to</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">superior</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">judgment.</span> </em></span></span></span></div><div class="luna-Ent"><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><span class="dnindex"><span id="hotword"><span style="color: #333333;"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">4.</span> </span></span></span><span id="hotword"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">a</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">claim</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">to</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">dignity,</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">importance,</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">or</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">merit.</span> </span></span></div><div class="luna-Ent"><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><span class="dnindex"><span id="hotword"><span style="color: #333333;"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">5.</span> </span></span></span>pretentiousness. </span></div><div class="luna-Ent"><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><span class="dnindex"><span id="hotword"><span style="color: #333333;"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">6.</span> </span></span></span><span id="hotword"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">the</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">act</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">of</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">pretending</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">or</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">alleging.</span> </span></span></div><div class="luna-Ent"><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><span class="dnindex"><span id="hotword"><span style="color: #333333;"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">7.</span> </span></span></span><span id="hotword"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">an</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">allegation</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">of</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">doubtful</span> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">veracity.</span> </span></span></div><div class="luna-Ent"><span class="dnindex"><span id="hotword"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'">8.</span> a</span></span></span></span><span id="hotword"><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> <span id="hotword" name="hotword" onclick="this.style.backgroundColor='#b5d5ff';return hotWord(this);" onmouseout="this.style.backgroundColor='transparent'" onmouseover="this.style.cursor='default'" style="background-color: transparent; cursor: default;">pretext.</span></span> </span><br />
</div><div class="luna-Ent"></div><div class="luna-Ent">...and you know what, I actually don't think any of those apply to me! I was relieved beyond explanation to find this to be so. But even so, a little prentension never did any harm. Let people think more favorably of themselves, I say. Better a little pretension than a feeling of worthlessness.</div><div class="luna-Ent"></div><div class="luna-Ent">So now I'll claim a little pretension in the form of the fourth definition above, thinking that this blog may have some merit among the uncountable opinions, musings and diatribes strewn across the internet.</div></div></div>Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1604781711236284665.post-82351970205260481802010-08-21T20:16:00.000-04:002010-08-21T20:16:28.191-04:00Yours is as good as mine<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Your idea, that is.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">There's nothing in particular I plan to focus on with this blog. I don't have a timeframe in mind for the frequency of posting. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">It is, shall we say, an experiment.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Were I to take an <em>educated guess, </em>I would say that I may try to make wry and witty observations about my life (and others, I suppose). I may give an opinion here and there (though as befitting my personality, perhaps not very strong ones). I'll comment on the things that make me passionate and emotional (which will probably involve sports more often than relationships). I'll probably try to turn the occasional clever phrase (more often than not, unsuccessfully). </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Really, I just want to see what I am inclined to write about. And should you happen to chance upon this little corner of the internet, whether by accident or intention, I do hope at the least you enjoy it.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Cheers.</span>Seán David Gardnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02938531487421729040noreply@blogger.com0