Secret World I

Interruption III

Right now, I'm reading Primo Levi's If Not Now, When? I still have several chapters to go, but there's once again a passage I wanted to share:

"...On the contrary, they were lighthearted: in the partisanka adventure, different every day, in the frozen steppe, in snow and mud, they had found a new freedom, unknown to their fathers and grandfathers, a contact with friends and enemies, with nature and with action, which intoxicated them like the wine of Purim, when it's the custom to abandon usual sobriety and drink until you can't tell a blessing from a curse. They were lighthearted and fierce, like animals whose cage has been opened, like slaves who have risen up in vengeance."

Good Sunday

Last weekend, we made our annual visit to Wenzel Farm, and then came home to relax for the rest of the day. Cara made banana bread, and at Elias's request, we watched some old episodes of The Twilight Zone: 'Walking Distance,' 'Time Enough at Last,' 'Third From the Sun,' and 'To Serve Man.' Needless to say, it was a wonderful afternoon.

Speaking of Elias... I've carefully concealed the existence of the Star Wars prequels from him for the entirety of his young life, but on the way home the other day he said the words I've been dreading for so long. "Dad," he asked, "did you know that there are other Star Wars movies that we haven't seen? There's a queen, and Anakin Luke Skywalker..."

Cruel & Unusual Meal Plans I

More news from Htrae: Jawbox will commemorate the Dischord reissue of their fifteen-year-old major label debut with a reunion appearance on a late-night talk show.

Interruption II

On Friday I finished John Berger's Hold Everything Dear. A particularly resonant passage:

"On the one side: every armament conceivable, the dream of no-body-bag wars, the media, plenty, hygiene, many passwords to glamour. On the other: stones, short supplies, feuds, the violence of revenge, rampant illness, an acceptance of death and an ongoing preoccupation with surviving one more night - or perhaps one more week - together.

"The choice of meaning in the world today is here between the two sides of the wall. The wall is also inside each one of us. Whatever our circumstances, we can choose within ourselves which side of the wall we are attuned to. It is not a wall between good and evil. Both exist on both sides. The choice is between self-respect and self-chaos."

Autumn Equinox & Birthday of Bilbo and Frodo

"Then the weather clouded over. That was on Wednesday the eve of the Party. Anxiety was intense. Then Thursday, September the 22nd, actually dawned. The sun got up, the clouds vanished, flags were unfurled and the fun began."

Last Day of Summer 2009

As is our tradition, we celebrated the change of seasons, as well as the birthday of Bilbo and Frodo, with a potluck dinner. Yesterday Patrick, Michael, Molly, and Nate joined us, and after a delightful meal and a delicious dessert, we played a little Rock Band, and then a game of Funny Friends. I have to say, while I might prefer Friese's Power Grid on a purely mechanical level, there's distinct charm to the little narratives one constructs while playing Funny Friends.

It's been easy to let this project fall into neglect, but I'm hoping to break that habit. There are many dreams in my life in various states of realization, but none of them are even close to what I want them to be. I'm ready, though, to make a true effort. Here's to the coming of autumn.

RIP Mike Seeger

I'm sorry to hear that Mike Seeger of The New Lost City Ramblers died last night. I know that I'm not alone in having gotten a lot of pleasure out of his music, and my condolences go out to his friends and family.

Thoughts on Moon

Actually, I don't want to say too much. I eagerly anticipate new films, keeping an eye out for trailers and reading up on reports from film festivals and shit, so it's rare that I see something without bringing any preconceived notions with me. I managed to do so with Moon, however, knowing only the broadest details of the premise, and it proved to be quite rewarding. So let me say only this: it's a rough-hewn, evocative, unassuming, atmospheric piece of science fiction, and I recommend it unconditionally.

Omnivores

I picked up a copy of Will Hindmarch and Jeff Tidball's Things We Think About Games a while ago, and have been wanting to mention Thing 051 in particular, which concerns itself with "omnivores," folks that play a variety of different kinds of games - boardgames, card games, electronic games, RPGs, etc. Here's a quote:

"But not only are there fewer omnivores than their enthusiasm might suggest, many self-identified omnivores are lying to themselves. No matter how much you might like to think of yourself as a roleplayer, if you haven't picked up an RPG book, much less sat down to roleplay, since college a decade ago, it's a bit of a stretch."

No doubt that's very true for many folks, but might I suggest that aside from "true" omnivores and the woefully self-deceived, there might also be a third class of player, one with which I unabashedly identify: those who consider themselves platform-agnostic to a large degree, but are also aware of how their tastes frequently ebb and flow. Cara has pointed out before how I tend to be serially fixated on different forms of play, sometimes engrossed in Far Cry 2, other times preoccupied by indie RPGs. A year ago, I was playing boardgames as often as possible, electronic games when I could, and RPGs almost not at all. Lately, those priorities have shifted - I've been reading plenty of RPGs, playing them as often as possible, playing boardgames when I can, and barely playing electronic games at all. Maybe a year from now I'll have a new computer, or the folks that I roleplay with will be too busy to get together. I don't think I'm alone in this, either - it seems like many of us, especially those of without a lot of free time, shift our attention with the seasons, changes of circumstance, or the appearance of new and intriguing games. Isn't that true?

Birthday

Today I am twenty-nine years old.

May Day 2009

Happy holiday to all.

Interruption I

I've just finished reading War is a Force That Gives Us Meaning by Chris Hedges. One passage in particular has held my attention:

"We are tempted to reduce life to a simple search for happiness. Happiness, however, withers if there is no meaning. The other temptation is to disavow the search for happiness in order to be faithful to that which provides meaning. But to live only for meaning - indifferent to all happiness - makes us fanatic, self-righteous, and cold. It cuts us off from our own humanity and the humanity of others. We must hope for grace, for our lives to be sustained by moments of meaning and happiness, both equally worthy of human communion."

Spring Equinox & Portland NRD

Once again, there's been a long silence since my last entry. Naturally, I hadn't intended to go quite so long without putting anything up, but free time is always scarce and it's been easy to let this project slip further and further into disuse. Today is the first day of spring, though, and I'm hoping that the change of season can also serve as an opportunity to start posting a little more regularly.

Speaking of long-neglected projects, I'm trying to relaunch Portland NRD, the message board I set up several years ago. Like previous incarnations of this weblog, I never really contributed frequently enough to get the board off the ground, but I would still be thrilled to see it do so. I'd envisioned it as a place where my various interests - radical theory and history, speculative and fantastic fiction, punk counterculture, other worlds, and play of all kinds - could coexist and intersect. If that sounds like something you might be interested in, you'd be more than welcome to post.

Resolutions: New Year's Day, 2009

Another lengthy break from posting - I apologize. Many other things have been occupying my attention, with family and friends visiting, holidays being celebrated, and some unusually snowy weather all providing welcome changes to my days as of late. It's a new year, though, and one of my resolutions is to contribute to this project more regularly and in a more substantial manner. 

As someone who looks for a fair amount of significance in shifts of season or year, I'm actually quite fond of the idea of resolutions. I have many this year - to exercise more, eat more healthily, spend less unfocused time on the computer - but chief among them are to play more and to spend more time working on various creative pursuits. In particular, I have several picture book projects that I'd planned to have finished long ago, and I'd be very happy if I finally completed them this year. Here's to hoping...