alanv's Xanga

Cross-posting broken

Mon, 09 Feb 2009 07:13:23 GMT

It looks like the cross-posting plugin from http://journal2.alanv.org hasn't been working for several months now.

Does anyone actually read my journal through this mirror anymore? If so, I'll (eventually) get around to upgrading the plugin.
If not, no reason to :P

Post comments on an entry on http://journal2.alanv.org instead of here, as I never check this.

Card games, web games, and thou

Sun, 09 Nov 2008 00:58:51 GMT

This entry was originally published at Alan's Journal

I finished opening the 10 boxes of DBZ TCG yesterday (120 booster packs).
I ended up with at least 4 copies of each common, so that’s fine. I also ended up with at least 1 copy of every uncommon (2 copies of every uncommon except one, 3 copies of every uncommon except three). That’s also decent.
However, if you don’t include the foil cards, I ended up missing 2 rares (Black Dragon Support and Black Z Warriors Gather, but I received a foil Black Dragon Support in the first box). Given that I had 4 copies of some of the rares (5 if you include foils), this is rather disappointing.

I played through CMU Adventures again today, making a defense/magic character. Certain spells (sex appeal and aging, in particular) become crazy powerful at higher stats, dealing 100+ damage per cast. I really need to work on the game more. In particular, the early game is still way too difficult. Healing items are rare and not terribly effective, and I ended up having to leave one person alive to use purely for healing when I got knocked down to low health. Once you pass the first boss, the game becomes a breeze though, so that part is probably fine.

I’ve been kinda getting back into KoL… at least, been “getting into” it enough to want to complete the remaining level 11 and 12 quests so I can fight the sorceress. At least things are incredibly easy now because I’ve been spending all my adventures (during my hiatus period) at the gym raising moxie and muscle (which are now about twice my myst, which is supposed to be my primary stat). Whee.

I should do more with my weekends.

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Combined TCG, Take 2

Sat, 08 Nov 2008 08:13:02 GMT

This entry was originally published at Alan's Journal

The CTCG site has been updated with a new “minimal translation” format.

I realized today, looking over my card games, that most games are already based around some sort of battle system. Therefore, linking games together should be as simple as providing a way for these different combat systems to work together. At least, this should work for games that are primarily battle-based… notsomuch for exploration-based things like Star Trek CCG.

The goal of the minimal translations is to allow you to play your turns normally as your game would define (play Pokemon and Energy and Trainers, power up your DBZ fighter and play Supports, play a storable Monster or hidden card or PC equipment or PC, etc). The only time the rules need to step in is during an attack to define how the attack is handled across game boundaries.

The translations for the three existing games so far seem to make sense in my mind, but perhaps I missed something. As always, feedback is appreciated.

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Shame on you

Thu, 06 Nov 2008 20:49:33 GMT

This entry was originally published at Alan's Journal

Shame on every single American who voted for props 8, 102, or 2 and enshrined discrimination in the state constitution.

But doubly shame on all the African-Americans who voted for it. It was not long ago that you didn’t have the right to marry people of different races. How ironic that you now want to deny that right to people of different genders.

A quote from an African-American woman I found on a blog post talking about gay marriage:

As for it not being the same thing, well I read an argument several years back. It was over a hundred years old. It spoke of all the reasons black people should not be allowed to marry, not each other, and not whites, why they should not be citizens, why they should not be allowed to own land, why they should not be allowed to vote. Why they were trying to seek more rights than white citizens had. Why it was against God, country and religion.

It chilled me to the core - If you crossed out every instance of ‘negro’ in that document and put in ‘gay’, it was nothing more or less than what is being said by some people today. No difference at all.

If those things were all horrible lies about people like us, how can the same arguments suddenly be truth for others who aren’t like us?

And how as black Americans can we support this bias?

If you voted for the propositions, please, think about that. Think about how unthinkable it would be today for you to suggest that Blacks or Asians should only marry within their race. And ask yourself why it is suddenly okay to deny that to people based on gender.

Also, QFT:

Symbolism matters to disenfranchised people in a way that is hard to explain to those of us who always knew we could be anything we want to be in America. Forget president. Gay people can’t even be spouses, though Britney Spears could have her umpteenth marriage tomorrow just by stumbling into a quickie Vegas chapel. Scott Peterson has the legal right to marry on death row after murdering his wife and unborn child.

No matter how undeserved, straight people never lose the right to marry; no matter how worthy, gay people cannot earn it.

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sigh

Wed, 05 Nov 2008 15:31:45 GMT

This entry was originally published at Alan's Journal

California is lost, as Arizona (surprisingly) was and Florida (even more surprisingly because of the percentage) was.

At least I can have hope that many of the homophobic bigots will die out in the coming years (seeing as it tends to be older people who are less tolerant) and replaced with the sane, tolerant, moral youth.

At least I can have hope that we now have a president in office who believes discrimination is wrong and that marriage rights should be available to all, even if he does not believe in full marriage equality.

At least I can have hope that the supreme court will not be going so far right that this country starts to fall apart and that gay marriage bans thus won’t have a good chance at passing.

Until then, I mourn the loss of this state (and this country) to the religiously-induced bigotry is unfortunately so prevalent in society today.

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Final plea

Tue, 04 Nov 2008 04:57:54 GMT

This entry was originally published at Alan's Journal

Tomorrow is the election. Regardless of how you intend to vote (even if you disagree with my below pleas), please make sure that you do vote. Your vote is the foundation of democracy and it is your responsibility.

If you are in California, Arizona, or Florida, please vote no on your propositions to ban gay marriage (and civil unions as well, in Florida’s case). Regardless of how you feel, denying a group of people a civil right based on a religious argument is just wrong.

Prop 8 in California will not affect churches (no church will lose tax exemption over it nor will they be forced to marry gay couples) or schools (marriage isn’t required to be taught in schools and, if it is taught, parents always have the right to pull their children from lessons at their discretion). It will, however, affect children who will find their parents no longer married, and leave them confused and hurt. It will deny the fundamental right of companionship to people based on a chromosome. It is wrong.
Prop 102 in Arizona won’t have any effect either since there are already laws against gay marriage and the courts have upheld their constitutionality. There is no reason to further enshrine discrimination in the fundamental document of the state, that is supposed to grant and not deny rights.
Prop 2 in Florida goes way too far and also destroys the committed civil unions of heterosexual couples. Tearing people apart like that is unacceptable.

If you live in a swing state (or close state like Arizona) please vote for Obama rather than a third party, even if you disagree with him. We cannot afford to elect McCain after he has proven himself unreasonable, unreliable, and immoral during this long campaign season. We cannot afford to risk a McCain or, god forbid, Palin presidency.

24 hours and we should know who the next president is. Here’s hoping for the best.

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Not again…

Thu, 30 Oct 2008 04:21:27 GMT

This entry was originally published at Alan's Journal

McCain, you fail. You really, really fail.

Neither candidate is perfect (nor particularly desirable to me, personally… was undecided between a third party and Obama right up until the moment I marked my ballot), but McCain has run such a disgusting campaign that I don’t know how he sleeps at night.

Edit: I am irrationally pissed off right now at organized religion and anyone who supports gay marriage bans, after spending the evening volunteering at the no on 8 campaign. How can people who believe in a man that taught acceptance and love advocate discrimination, the destruction of innocent families, and the second-class treatment of others simply because they are different?

How can anyone support a ban on gay civil marriage when it has absolutely no impact on churches (no church is forced to unite gay couples in religious marriage, nor should they be), schools (California law allows parents to pull children out of any lessons they find objectionable and does not require the teaching of marriage, much less gay marriage), or their lives (unless they are really so insecure that two people that love each other getting married hurts them in some way)?

What the hell is wrong with people?

More importantly, why can’t I let go of this? Building up anger like this can’t be good for me, and I hate that it makes me hate.

*sigh*

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Fundies fail at practicing what they preach

Wed, 29 Oct 2008 03:13:09 GMT

This entry was originally published at Alan's Journal

I’m laying here right now just crying and upset.

I hate fundies. I hate fundies so much. I hate fundies for spewing hatred and causing things like this and generally making life miserable for people who want nothing more than to be allowed the same civil (meaning governmental, meaning religion has no place dictating such rights) and human rights as everyone else.

Why the hell should my gay friends not be allowed visitation rights when their partner is sick?
Why the hell should they be denied tax benefits because of something innate and unchangable?
Why the hell should they not be allowed inheritance rights?
Why the hell should they be unable to jointly adopt children who, possibly, would not have otherwise had a family to care for them?
Why the hell should they be denied the legal protections of marriage simply because of one chromosome in the person they love?

What the hell is wrong with people that they insist on imposing their beliefs on everyone else?

If you live in California, please please please vote no on proposition 8.

If you live in Arizona, please please please vote no on proposition 102.

If you don’t live in either, please donate to the campaign.

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Errands

Sun, 19 Oct 2008 01:05:09 GMT

This entry was originally published at Alan's Journal

Today was lots of errands.

Got my flu shot this morning, then went to look for new shoes, pants, and pillows. Bought none of the above, although I found a really nice dress shirt (kind of a muted lime green) that I want, but it was $17 which is $7 more than I spend on clothes, so meh.

Afterward went to vote. Was torn up until the end about whether to vote Obama (not my first choice, but he’s the only viable candidate and I want to give him all the support he can get against McCain, whom I consider to be a disgrace at this point) or a third-party that I agreed with more. Meh.
I still think proposition R is the best ballot measure ever. The argument/rebuttal on that page are actually what was mailed to voters as part of the election materials. Awesomeness.
(Yes, it was pointed out that naming something useful after him may not be entirely appropriate, but I don’t think there’s anything blatantly offensive, destructive, or useless in the city that we can name after him, so this seems good enough.)

Went to the bookstore for a while and read a couple novels.

Then did laundry. Most people separate whites and colors… I really should separate greens and other colors. Probably 3/4 of my load was green clothes. Awesomeness.

That was my relatively boring day. At least I used the hell out of my $1.50 bus pass (6 trips).

gswong is a rankmaniac

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Mmm

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 02:17:20 GMT

This entry was originally published at Alan's Journal

Mmmm booze

Mmmm company parties with open bars

Also you people fail at directions. Leave your andrewid and desired page that you want linked.

zizhuang is a rankmaniac

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