Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in nelc's LiveJournal:

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Thursday, July 9th, 2009
12:48 am	Crazy! My LiveJournal Sitcom Being NelC (FX, 6:30): NelC (Jim Henson) and apneatic (Josephine Baker) find a lost parakeet at the Eiffel Tower. Afterwards, sex108 (Steve Martin) marries ffutures (Geoffrey Blake)'s grandmother. Later that day, antipope_cats (Jada Pinkett) keeps accidentally stepping on ninja (Michael Moore)'s foot. Also, keikotakamura (David Hyde Pierce) causes problems at work when a file from feorag (Alan Rickman) has a virus. That weekend, west32 (Rosie O'Donnell) is allergic to slammerkinbabe (Tupac Shakur)'s sweatshirt. Crazy results follow. What's Your LiveJournal Sitcom? (by rfreebern) Current Mood: tired Current Music: Sash—Encore Un Fois! (Comment on this)
Tuesday, July 7th, 2009
6:10 pm	10th Grade Blog NelC's Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 10 Average number of words per sentence: 19.02 Average number of syllables per word: 1.55 Total words in sample: 3366 Analyze your journal! Username: Another fun meme brought to you by rfreebern What's that, age 15? Not bad for a blog, I guess. Current Mood: hungry Current Music: Vangelis—Blade Runner Blues (Comment on this)
3:49 pm	The Moons of Juniper Seen on the Kennebecasis Naturalist Society site. Juniper has 16 fairly well-known moons, and probably a number of minor ones. The four largest are Callisto, Europa, Io and Ganymede. The 12 others, which are much smaller, are Adrastea, Amalthea, Ananke, Carme, Elera, Himalea, Leda, Lysithea, Metis, Pasiphae, Sinope and Thebe. I feel an urge to write a whimsical story about Juniper. Current Music: Gyorgi Ligeti—Jupiter and Beyond (Comment on this)
Tuesday, June 30th, 2009
9:39 pm	Get me Joss Whedon's Number So, over in RPG.net, in a thread about making Firefly's astrography sensible, or at least playable in an RPG, a sub-thread broke out about whether faster-than-light communications were canon or not. They certainly appear to be, since there's no time-lag apparent in the Serenity movie where one might expect there to be. Whether it was intended, or was just a slip, is another matter. But an argument was made that though the comms were shown with no time-lag, this was just a cinematic convention, since it isn't possible to write a scene showing speed-of-light communications over inter-planetary or greater distances without losing the audience. I thought this was rubbish and wrote the following particles (can't really call them vignettes). A couple of posters liked them (The word "Awesome" was used once or twice :) ), so I thought I'd repost them here: Here are some relatively painless ways to show speed-of-light communications: Episode X: Mal says "Wash, how far away is our oh-so-respectable-and-solvent client? Ninety light minutes? Send him a message asking why the guay his money transfer hasn't come through yet! Me and Kaylee are going out to work on the stabilizer vane again. I feel a powerful urge to hit something with a hammer for three hours. Call me if you get his reply before we're finished." Episode Y: Mal receives a desperate call from an old acquaintance on one of the Rim Worlds. "Well, they're a light-month away, no need to rush off unprepared. Either it's already happened, or it can wait a while longer while we divert to pick up some heavy equipment of the breaking things variety. Jayne, I want to borrow one of your catalogs, and not the ladies' lingerie one." Episode Z: Mal has been woken up to answer a call. He's wearing his pyjamas, has bedroom hair and looks half-asleep. His interlocutor introduces himself and asks if Firefly is available for hire. Mal replies that it certainly is, reels off his standard rates and asks what the client has in mind. Jump-cut to the client who says that it's a simple job needing no more than a few resources, and not much time, so a cheap rate would be appropriate. Jump-cut to: Mal is now dressed, shaven, hair combed and is holding a glass of synthetic OJ and a piece of toast. He asks for a few more details, such as the location of the job. The client names a Border World. Jump-cut to: Mal is now wearing overalls, his sleeves are rolled up, his hands covered with grease and he's fiddling with a doohickey. He points out to the client that that planet has been under Alliance interdiction since they broke the planet's terraforming in the war, and quotes Serenity's "Sneaking past Alliance frigates and landing in blizzards" rate. The client demurs, and suggests a much lower rate while forwarding a guaranteed reliable fake science mission transponder code. Jump-cut to: Mal has a distinct five o'clock shadow and is looking even greasier than before, except for his hands, which are relatively clean. He picks at his bowl of noodles while he speaks, suggesting that the transponder code won't be much help with landing in a world-wide snowstorm, and quotes a rate half-way between the previous figures. The client sighs and gives in, telling Mal where to find and where to deliver the McGuffin. Jump-cut to: Mal is clean again, though damp, and is wearing a bathrobe. He tells the client that it's a deal, sends Serenity's account number for the transfer of the first half of the fee, confirms a date to drop off the McGuffin and signs off. "Jian gui! I do hate these long, drawn-out negotiations with a passion. Kaylee! Can't you make something to make the radio work faster?" "Oh, I'll just rewrite the laws of physics: it'll be easier!" For extra comedic effect, the client is conservatively dressed in a business suit, immaculately groomed and manicured, and sitting behind an empty desk in every shot of him. The only thing that subtley changes in his office between shots is the ambient lighting as the day passes. Doing it this way is no more painful than any other piece of exposition, and it would establish the principle of SOL comms in a way never before seen in a sci-fi show. And seeing things I've never seen before is an important feature of watching sci-fi shows for me. It really isn't a difficult thing to keep communications time-lag in mind while working out a plot; no more so than the thousands of other things a writer has to bear in mind. I've also had the "It can't be written or filmed any other way" argument when the subject comes up of space warfare in movies looking like WWII or Napoleonic naval warfare. But I've yet to write a counter to one of those. Current Mood: awake Current Music: Good Technology—The Red Guitars (Comment on this)
Tuesday, June 9th, 2009
4:37 pm	That's a Bit More Like It Your result for Which fantasy writer are you?... Philip Pullman (b.1946) 7 High-Brow, -21 Violent, 11 Experimental and 27 Cynical! Congratulations! You are High-Brow, Peaceful, Experimental and Cynical! These concepts are defined below. Philip Pullman was already a prominent author of children's books when he published his most praised work to date, the trilogy known as His Dark Materials (1995-2000). In this work, set both in parallel worlds and our own, Pullman made a courageous attempt to write a book for young readers which incorporated a whole vision of the universe, as well as a discussion of ethical issues. He managed to combine this with a burst of thought-provoking and entertaining imagination, bringing to life a Europe where the church is still in control, "souls" that have been externalised as animal presences, intelligent, sentient polar bears and much more. The series have been described as a sort of "anti-Narnia", as Pullman's attempt to write an updated variant of the kind of books C S Lewis, whom Pullman has criticized for having racist, misogynic and preaching tendencies, wanted to write. His Dark Materials has also spawned some controversy among Christians, who see the the work as an attack against Christianity, Pullman being one of Britain's most outspoken atheists. Other Christians have, however, claimed to have found spirituality in the books. Either way, Pullman's combination of renewal and expansion of the genre, his profound messages on the value of life and his refusal to under-estimate his young readers' ability to see life as it is makes Pullman one of the most interesting and important writers of modern fantasy. You are also a lot like Tove Jansson. If you want something some action, try Gene Wolfe. If you'd like a challenge, try your exact opposite, J R R Tolkien. Your score This is how to interpret your score: Your attitudes have been measured on four different scales, called 1) High-Brow vs. Low-Brow, 2) Violent vs. Peaceful, 3) Experimental vs. Traditional and 4) Cynical vs. Romantic. Imagine that when you were born, you were in a state of innocence, a tabula rasa who would have scored zero on each scale. Since then, a number of circumstances (including genetical, cultural and environmental factors) have pushed you towards either end of these scales. If you're at 45 or -45 you would be almost entirely cynical, low-brow or whatever. The closer to zero you are, the less extreme your attitude. However, you should always be more of either (eg more romantic than cynical). Please note that even though High-Brow, Violent, Experimental and Cynical have positive numbers (1 through 45) and their opposites negative numbers (-1 through -45), this doesn't mean that either quality is better. All attitudes have their positive and negative sides, as explained below. High-Brow vs Low-Brow You received 7 points, making you more High-Brow than Low-Brow. Being high-browed in this context refers to being more fascinated with the sort of art that critics and scholars tend to favour, rather than the best-selling kind. At their best, high-brows are cultured, able to appreciate the finer nuances of literature and not content with simplifications. At their worst they are, well, snobs. Violent vs. Peaceful You received -21 points, making you more Peaceful than Violent. This scale is a measurement of a) if you are tolerant to violence in fiction and b) whether you see violence as a means that can be used to achieve a good end. If you aren't, and you don't, then you are peaceful as defined here. At their best, peaceful people are the ones who encourage dialogue and understanding as a means of solving conflicts. At their worst, they are standing passively by as they or third parties are hurt by less scrupulous individuals. Experimental vs. Traditional You received 11 points, making you more Experimental than Traditional. Your position on this scale indicates if you're more likely to seek out the new and unexpected or if you are more comfortable with the familiar, especially in regards to culture. Note that traditional as defined here does not equal conservative, in the political sense. At their best, experimental people are the ones who show humanity the way forward. At their worst, they provoke for the sake of provocation only. Cynical vs Romantic You received 27 points, making you more Cynical than Romantic. Your position on this scale indicates if you are more likely to be wary, suspicious and skeptical to people around you and the world at large, or if you are more likely to believe in grand schemes, happy endings and the basic goodness of humankind. It is by far the most vaguely defined scale, which is why you'll find the sentence "you are also a lot like x" above. If you feel that your position on this scale is wrong, then you are probably more like author x. At their best, cynical people are able to see through lies and spot crucial flaws in plans and schemes. At their worst, they are overly negative, bringing everybody else down. Take Which fantasy writer are you? at HelloQuizzy Current Mood: cynical Current Music: John Williams—Cantina Band (Comment on this)
4:13 pm	But I Love Gene Wolfe! Your result for Which fantasy writer are you?... Robert Jordan (1948-2007) -1 High-Brow, -11 Violent, -1 Experimental and 13 Cynical! Congratulations! You are Low-Brow, Peaceful, Traditional and Cynical! These concepts are defined below. Robert Jordan, the pen name for James Oliver Rigney, Jr, was the author of the best-selling Wheel of Time series. This gargantuan piece of fiction, set in a world where half the source of magic has been tainted by the Evil One, so that only women can do magic without turning insane, was published between 1990 and 2005. It is scheduled to be finished by 2011 by author Brandon Sanderson, who will be working from Jordan's extensive notes, since the latter's tragic and premature death in cardiac amyloidosis made it impossible for him to finish the series by himself. Fantasy readers across the world will remember Jordan as the creator of one of the most detailed secondary worlds ever imagined by a single person, with carefully crafted cultures, legends and conflicts. This he used as the setting for a grand epic tale of the traditional fantasy theme of Good against Evil and seemingly insignificant people discovering that they are destined to play an important role in this struggle. Although the plot centres around conflict and several important characters are warriors, be it by choice or necessity, Jordan does not bask in gory details of violence and war is described as something evil that essentially does more harm than good. However, he is able to discern the forces that might push countries into conflict, leaving little room for over-romantic notions of ever-lasting peace. All this makes Jordan's epic tale the choice for those who are not daunted by the scope and length of what is, perhaps, the longest story ever written. There are plenty who would say that it is also one of the best. You are also a lot like J K Rowling. If you want some action, try David Eddings. If you'd like a challenge, try your exact opposite, Gene Wolfe. Your score This is how to interpret your score: Your attitudes have been measured on four different scales, called 1) High-Brow vs. Low-Brow, 2) Violent vs. Peaceful, 3) Experimental vs. Traditional and 4) Cynical vs. Romantic. Imagine that when you were born, you were in a state of innocence, a tabula rasa who would have scored zero on each scale. Since then, a number of circumstances (including genetical, cultural and environmental factors) have pushed you towards either end of these scales. If you're at 45 or -45 you would be almost entirely cynical, low-brow or whatever. The closer to zero you are, the less extreme your attitude. However, you should always be more of either (eg more romantic than cynical). Please note that even though High-Brow, Violent, Experimental and Cynical have positive numbers (1 through 45) and their opposites negative numbers (-1 through -45), this doesn't mean that either quality is better. All attitudes have their positive and negative sides, as explained below. High-Brow vs. Low-Brow You received -1 points, making you more Low-Brow than High-Brow. Being high-browed in this context refers to being more fascinated with the sort of art that critics and scholars tend to favour, while a typical low-brow would favour the best-selling kind. At their best, low-brows are honest enough to read what they like, regardless of what "experts" and academics say is good for them. At their worst, they are more likely to read what their neighbours like than what they would choose themselves. Violent vs. Peaceful You received -11 points, making you more Peaceful than Violent. This scale is a measurement of a) if you are tolerant to violence in fiction and b) whether you see violence as a means that can be used to achieve a good end. If you aren't, and you don't, then you are peaceful as defined here. At their best, peaceful people are the ones who encourage dialogue and understanding as a means of solving conflicts. At their worst, they are standing passively by as they or third parties are hurt by less scrupulous individuals. Experimental vs. Traditional You received -1 points, making you more Traditional than Experimental. Your position on this scale indicates if you're more likely to seek out the new and unexpected or if you are more comfortable with the familiar, especially in regards to culture. Note that traditional as defined here does not equal conservative, in the political sense. At their best, traditional people don't change winning concepts, favouring storytelling over empty poses. At their worst, they are somewhat narrow-minded. Cynical vs. Romantic You received 13 points, making you more Cynical than Romantic. Your position on this scale indicates if you are more likely to be wary, suspicious and skeptical to people around you and the world at large, or if you are more likely to believe in grand schemes, happy endings and the basic goodness of humankind. It is by far the most vaguely defined scale, which is why you'll find the sentence "you are also a lot like x" above. If you feel that your position on this scale is wrong, then you are probably more like author x. At their best, cynical people are able to see through lies and spot crucial flaws in plans and schemes. At their worst, they are overly negative, bringing everybody else down. Author picture from Wikipedia. Licensed under the following conditions: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Take Which fantasy writer are you? at HelloQuizzy Current Mood: listless Current Music: Ennio Morricone—A Fistful of Dollars (Comment on this)
Tuesday, June 2nd, 2009
1:59 pm	Dreamwidth woe I've managed to bollix up my cross-post info on Dreamwidth, but the wretched thing isn't giving me an option to change the destination. Any ideas, anyone, on how to deal with that? Current Mood: frustrated Current Music: Garfunkel & Oates—Sex with Ducks (Comment on this)
Monday, May 25th, 2009
5:39 pm	Sayonara Nihon DSCN10412adj Originally uploaded by NelC. Finally, finally finished posting my pictures from my trip to Japan in 2007. The complete collection is here. A randomised précis (only 72 pics) is here (caution: may contain fandom). (Comment on this)
Sunday, May 17th, 2009
8:09 pm	Another Migraine Started after I came out of the Star Trek movie. I can't watch movies with shaky camera work any more, and especially ones that spazz about during action scenes. Felt a bit dizzy when I got out of the cinema, bent over and when I was walking away, there was the aura. About 5° across, right side of the visual field, moving slowly up and out to the right, looking like a cubist aurora. Very pretty colours, but a bit distracting. Unusually, I have got a headache with this one, but I think that's more down to the movie than the migraine. I think I really should take this to the doctor. Probably won't be able to do anything, but still.... Current Mood: migraine-y Current Music: Isaac Hayes—Theme from Shaft (Comment on this)
Saturday, May 9th, 2009
9:06 pm	M-21 Blackbird and D-21 Drone in 3D M-21 Blackbird and D-21 Drone in 3D Originally uploaded by Bluedharma. Saw this after a google. It looks really good if you keep a pair of anaglyphic specs by the computer. (Comment on this)
Thursday, May 7th, 2009
11:04 pm	Japanese Word of the Day 暮色 【ぼしょく】 (n) dusk; twilight scene 暮 — live, make a living; grow dark, end (O'Neill 1140) 色 — colour, passion (O'Neill 241) Current Mood: bouncy Current Music: Bob Marley & the Wailers—Redemptio Song (Comment on this)
Sunday, May 3rd, 2009
3:20 am	Kaffeeklatches? What is it with kaffeeklatches recently? There was a kaffeeklatch at Eastercon with Tim Powers — that nobody knew about because the notice was on the wall of the gopher hutch or somewhere equally inaccessible to con-goers until 15 minutes before the KK, when someone thought it might be a good idea to rustle up some people to sign up for it, because, you know, for some mysterious reason up to then no-one had signed the invisible bit of paper, except for a couple of people Tim Powers had casually mentioned the klatch to, and who had the patience and experience to find it. Now fastfwd mentions that for her klatch on Saturday at SciFi London 2009, not only did the staff know nothing about it, but some bloke locked himself in the room where the klatch was supposed to be to do some urgent internetting. Now, I've only been to four cons in my life, and three of them were WorldCons, so maybe I'm spoiled, but it seems impolite at best to invite writers and other luminaries to your con, making them believe that they might be able to spend an hour basking in the praise of enjoying some conversation with some fans, and then not do anything to actually organise it, even to actively disorganise it. Or are most cons like this, and I've just been lucky in attending some of the more organised ones? [NelC shakes stick angrily at so-called organisers who are as organised as three blind hedgehogs in a paperbag.] Stop messing around. Show some respect, you young punks. Current Mood: flu-ey Current Music: Everything But The Girl—Each and Every One (Comment on this)
Friday, May 1st, 2009
1:37 pm	Dreamwidth I don't know what a dreamwidth is, but all my LJ friends are getting one, so I need one, too. Send me an invite, someone! Current Mood: silly Current Music: Keiko Takamura—Great DJ (Comment on this)
Tuesday, April 28th, 2009
6:30 pm	Japanese Word of the Day 団子 【だんご】 (n) dumpling (sweet) 団 group, troupe (O'Neill 243) 子 child (O'Neill 61) Also: お団子 double-bun hairstyle Current Mood: chipper Current Music: Chairlift—Bruises (Comment on this)
Thursday, April 23rd, 2009
1:33 am	A Gaythering Storm George Takei! (NelC swoons.) A Gaythering Storm from Jane Lynch Current Mood: cheerful Current Music: Philip Glass—Powaqqatsi Anthem part 3 (Comment on this)
Tuesday, April 21st, 2009
7:11 pm	Because I Liked the Cover I bought this at Eastercon, from the dealers' room. I read Doorways in the Sand a long time ago and enjoyed it, and wanted to see if it was still good after about three decades. It was still good, though the style was possibly a little dated even when it was published. But there's no point in picking a fight with a book that's thirty years old. But the cover, what a gorgeous thing it is! Nothing to do with the story, as far as I can tell. In fact, I'm not sure it's not a reject for Lord of Light, with all those Buddhist/Hindu motifs. Yum! Current Mood: enlightened Current Music: 平沢進 – ナーシサス次元から来た人 (Comment on this)
12:24 pm	Derailling for Dummies Derailling for Dummies: You know how it is. You’re enjoying yourself, kicking back and relaxing at the pub or maybe at the library; or maybe you’re in class or just casually surfing the internet, indulging in a little conversation. The topic of the conversation is about a pertinent contemporary issue, probably something to do with a group of people who fall outside your realm of experience and identity. They’re also probably fairly heavily discriminated against - or so they claim. The thing is, you’re having a good time, sharing your knowledge about these people and their issues. This knowledge is incontrovertible - it’s been backed up in media representation, books, research and lots and lots of historical events, also your own unassailable sense of being right. Yet all of a sudden something happens to put a dampener on your sharing of your enviable intellect and incomparable capacity to fully perceive and understand All Things. It’s someone who belongs to the group of people you’re discussing and they’re Not Very Happy with you. Apparently, they claim, you’ve got it all wrong and they’re offended about that. They might be a person of colour, or a queer person. Maybe they’re a woman, or a person with disability. They could even be a trans person or a sex worker. The point is they’re trying to tell you they know better than you about their issues and you know that’s just plain wrong. How could you be wrong? Don’t worry though! There IS something you can do to nip this potentially awkward and embarrassing situation in the bud. By simply derailing the conversation, dismissing their opinion as false and ridiculing their experience you can be sure that they continue to be marginalised and unheard and you can continue to look like the expert you know you really are, deep down inside! CONGRATULATIONS, YOU HAVE PRIVILEGE! Just follow this step-by-step guide to Conversing with Marginalised People™ and in no time at all you will have a fool-proof method of derailing every challenging conversation you may get into, thus reaping the full benefits of every privilege that you have. More at the link. (Disclosure: I am a middle-class, middle-aged, heterosexual, white male.) Current Mood: blank Current Music: Sahashi Toshihiko—Justice and Freedom (Comment on this)
Tuesday, April 14th, 2009
9:36 pm	Calvin & Hobbes, the Return Seen over at Making Light: Calvin calmed down greatly when his ADHD was finally appropriately diagnosed. His parents made the difficult decision not to medicate him, but helped him learn control through a variety of feedback and meditation techniques. He never stopped dreaming, though, and once he could sit still for long enough began to write down many of his fantasies. More at the link. (Comment on this)
12:26 am	Eastercon! Just got back a few hours ago. Managed not to crash the car while yawning on the way back. It was really great. And the best was Tim Powers. What a lovely man! Oh, and an antipodean woman (NZ? Aus?) in a flying helmet with her ontological curry: charming. Wish I'd... been born a decade later. More later, maybe.... Current Mood: sleepy (Comment on this)
Saturday, April 11th, 2009
8:56 am	My Betty Brown Approved Name is Joe-Bob "Chicken and Dumplings" Brown. Take Betty Brown Name Generator today! Created with Rum and Monkey's Name Generator Generator. Current Music: Avril Lavigne—Don't Tell Me (Comment on this)