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The picture above is a screencap from the video "Everyday at the Bus Stop" by Tommy february⁶.

The format/background/whatever is a Halloween LJ theme! It kind of makes me want to watch Batman Beyond. ^_^;

I miss the fans that believe in a future where humanity gets along. Where Roddenberry's vision isn't mocked, it's something to work toward. I miss people who enjoyed Star Trek--whatever series--because of episodes that had puzzles to solve (without technobabble) or a moral quandary that was debated (not argued) without heat.

I miss the fans that thought "we're better than this," that thought phasers were cool but a last resort. I miss those people that get it that Starfleet is closer to NASA than the Navy.

I miss them, because I've seen them go. With every episode of Voyager or Enterprise or even Star Trek Nemesis where sex and explosions and plot holes and "events" that were designed to get Beavis interested, a handful of them left. "This is not Star Trek," they'd lament.

Some of us kept the faith. Trek is an exciting show, with action (and yes, attractive people sometimes doing naughty things) and adventure, but at its core it is a story about people getting along and working for a better society.

Are there any of you left? Because I'm tired of just hearing from the "fans" that endlessly complain about how "unrealistic" a science fiction show is, or how Starfleet should militarize, or how the Federation should shoot first and forget the questions.



x-posted at startrek.

I've been using it to demonstrate genre in Creative Writing! (episodes of Buffy and Highlander), and now I'm just killing brain cells watching episodes of Babylon 5. They only have the first two seasons, so I'm watching the end of Season Two where the shit really starts to hit the fan.

It seems that I'm much more a creature of habit than I had realized. I've been trying to get the artistic mojo working during Spring Break, but not much came of it.

Today, I had a breakthrough. I've been really nostalgic about the late 90s lately. Ah yes, those were the halcyon days where I would spend hours sitting cross-legged with my lapboard, drawing new issues of RotS with my 0.5mm Pentel mechanical pencil and then inking and lettering with my 0.3mm Rapidograph and various other tools....

I've been on the hunt for a good drawing pencil pretty much since I got off the plane in July 2007 (and kicking myself for not bringing my favorite almost as long). Today, on a random whim, I went to Staples. Within ten steps from the door, I noted a display for a sale on 0.5mm Pentel mechanical pencils. Not the same as the one that I bought at the College Bookstore in 1992 that I've drawn all but one page of RotS with and still works, of course, but still, they looked as though they could fit the bill.

I came home, sat down on the floor cross-legged, and cranked out a picture of Myrissa from RotS.

Am I that hidebound to my artistic idiosyncracies? Drawing in 0.7mm pencil (the standard size of most mechanical pencils) is really that much of a difference? And the posture thing is a bit worrisome too; I'm not 23 anymore. If I sat like that for nine straight hours with headphones on like the old days, I'm pretty sure that a muscle spasm would be my reward.

I miss it. I miss drawing comics and I miss creating new stories for RotS. I miss the sound of the metal nib of my Rapidograph scratching against the Bienfang bristol board that I'd draw on, working diligently because I had to get this story out of my head. I miss it like I'm sure a former high school athlete misses their youthful glory. I miss it like that one perfect place that you know you'll never see again, but you want to visit anyway.

Sometimes I wonder if RotS was just a creation of its time. I came to a good stopping point, and from a literary standpoint that was a good idea. From a creative standpoint it's just screwed me up something fierce. I seem to recall that at one point my plan was to finish a major arc and then take a six-month break, just as I'd done between #30 and #31. I'd finish #50, take six, then go from #51-75, then #76-100, then do twenty-issue arcs from then on. If I had actually stuck with that plan, I'd probably be in the 140s right now.

I need to find a way to harness the experience and ability that I've gained in the last 10+ years while at the same time recognizing that I'm ten years older and my body can't take that kind of abuse anymore. I should also allow for the fact that I spend the vast majority of my energy on teaching!

One way or another I've got to find a way to do this. Maybe I'm just riding that wave of nostalgia and I'll be over it tomorrow, but right now it feels like an important part of myself is atrophied and I don't like it. I've got to find a way to change things before I "get over it" and go back to my artistic complacency.

I collected and played Magic: The Gathering for a couple of years in the mid-90s, starting with Fourth Edition. That was a weird time to get into it, because Wizards of the Coast had decided not to put lands--which are necessary to play the game--into booster packs. I was kind of stuck for a while until a kind soul that had literally thousands of land cards gave me some.

It was also a good time for me to get on board, because the expansion set of the day was Fallen Empires, and I liked those cards and the artwork (and I was apparently the only one, as you can still find them for sale in 2009). Magic was relatively simple back then, and it really was a game where skill and luck could conceivably allow even someone with a crappy, mishmashed deck a win over someone who'd spent $800 buying cards to try and beat them. Ah, good times.

But all good things come to an end. Starting with the Ice Age expansion, the designers began throwing in new rules. Some of them were great: "snow-covered lands" added a new dimension to the game. As time rolled on, though, the simple elegance of the game (okay, so the rules weren't perfect, but we had a handle on them!) started to be come more and more convoluted. Add in the ever-increasing expense to keep up with the hobby, and the proverbial cards were on the table.

Magic seemed to move on without me.

A couple of years ago, my brother and I started buying booster packs of the latest expansion. Nice art and some good ideas, but it didn't feel like Magic to me. For one thing, the modern design is just way too "clean." It looks like something that would pop up on a computer screen. There was a certain charm to the cheezy design of the original cards, with their serif fonts and occasional art from the Foglios.

The story itself felt off too; this new paradigm felt more sci-fi than "magic" to me. This was not a game where my beloved Dragon Whelp would fit in. And how about my Elvish Hunter, which was a good card, but was really in my deck for the sole reason that she looked just like a former neighbor of mine that I had a thing for?

The other day, I had cause to look up a certain card for a friend of mine. Don't ask. Magic was once about wacked-out concepts like an Australian musical instrument summoning Minotaurs. That's a good time to me, especially when I can make a didgeridoo sound effect every time I tap the thing. PARTY.

And yet, if they still crank out weird stuff like that, it's not very conspicuous. So, every now and then I sigh wistfully at a display of cards and move on.

...

But wait! Wizards of the Coast might just be meeting me halfway! Magic 2010 looks like it's right up my street philosophically, although the cards are still kind of techy-looking. I think I might actually give this a shot if I have any spare money on July 17.

I find it interesting (and a bit sad) that reaction to this news generally focuses on how this will affect tournament play. I never really cared about that, and I kind of think that the whole system is a big rip-off anyway, but then, don't get me started on that or I'll rant about 4e D&D again.

I know that nostalgia is a deadly trap. Still, there's something very powerful about the memory of going over to the TP and breaking out the cards if the other gamers hadn't yet arrived. I'd love to once again shout out with glee "you just got Whelped, son!" ^_^

...and maybe I'll still give pydjikon my blue and black cards. ^_~

I seem to have a peculiar inability to just ease into a vacation. Well, in my case it's a staycation, but whatever. Things come up, and on top of that, just like Riker, I've never been that good at organizing my downtime. Something will come up. It always does.

Anyhow, here are some interesting articles relevant to my interests, with selections in italics.

Brewer: Still time to recover from 'monumental mess'

Gov. Jan. Brewer today told Southeast Valley business leaders Arizona is "in a state of catastrophe" and that her rescue plan must include a temporary tax hike.

Warning also that more across-the-board education spending cuts will be necessary...

Still, she conceded, education remains a target for more spending reductions.

Stating those businesses depend on a steady stream of well-educated workers, he asked Brewer if education spending faced further cuts in the coming months.

"Unfortunately, you probably are going to see more reductions in K-12 and higher education spending," she replied, though she quickly added the state's total reduction in expenditures "cannot all come out of education."

Charming. I'd make an Emperor Nero reference here, but the education system won't be able to handle it with all the budget cuts...should I mention that our Governor does not have a post-secondary degree, or is that a cheap shot?

Moving on...
Dems: Bill to delay teacher contracts a political move

Republicans are pushing the bill, said Senate Assistant Minority Leader Rebecca Rios, because it will "provide time and cover to Republicans who are planning to make historic cuts to education."

John Wright, president of the Arizona Education Association, said the legislation would only delay when teachers would find out if they are going to be laid off. Knowing that sooner would help them find new jobs quicker, he said.

Of course, if you're not already at least looking around for a new job just as CYA, you're really just asking for it. As Mrs. Kearns told me during Student Teaching, "there's nothing sadder than a teacher without students."

Teacher contracts targeted under new bill

Those notices could drive talented teachers out of the state, officials said.

Good news! The majority of teachers that I know who have moved here have also bought houses. This was during the housing boom, which means that they are all upside-down in their mortgages now! You're not driving them out of the state, you're just driving them into bankruptcy!

...gee, maybe being so chronically poor has its advantages after all....