The Monsters Underground

Ellen had me play Undertale. I actually finished in January and I've spent all the time since then watching other parts of the game on Youtube (whyyyy are some of them so terrible?) and browsing the fanart. Man, Undertale fans have made some freaking awesome stuff.

I stalled on playing Undertale for a while, because my computers have a history of rejecting games. But luckily my new computer accepted Undertale.
Except it was very obvious that this was one of the first things I've ever played on the computer. I was very very bad at the battles. It took be about an hour just to realize that I could move the heart around the box during battle scenes...
I got killed a lot during boss fights. Mettaton probably got me the most. Jerk. But Undyne and Muffet killed me a lot too.

Spoilers.

I love the fact that you don't actually have to hurt anyone.
But at the same time, since you have the choice to make friends with all the characters, is is truly terrible if you actually decide to kill them...
And now I even feel guilty when I have to kill monsters in other video games.
My play of Undertale is not marred by any deaths, and I plan to keep it that way. No one will hurt my monsters~ (Ellen says the same).
I think my soul would reject my body if I tried to kill any of them... I could never bring myself to do it.
Especially after reading some of those fan comics...
So freaking heart-breaking

Another thing I was super impressed by is how the game breaks rules.
If you happen to watch the pure evil that is the genocide run, this is especially obvious in the Sans fight. If you know what I'm talking about, then I don't need to elaborate.
It feels like this rule-breaking could end up changing the future of gaming.

I also freaking love the fact that this game, which was made mostly by one guy, became so popular. That's so awesome for him!

The most terrifying parts of the game are where Undyne is after you (at least that's true in the Pacifist run, with her chasing you with all those spears O__O ).
And my favorite part of the game is hanging out at her house. Aaah, the spear in the table! Holy frack. O__O Poor Frisk must be so terrified of her.

At my creative writing class a couple weeks ago, I started up an Undertale conversation with Claire, and another girl in the class. That was fun because I hadn't gotten to speak with anyone about it at that point.
And then I talked on the phone with Ellen and Kelly about it for probably over an hour, exchanging some of our favorite fan arts.

And I will now share some of my favorites too.

Th fight scene of this animation is freaking awesome, but unfortunately I can't paste here directly.

And this is one I can't stop watching either.
There are other cool versions of this song too.


Some of my favorite comics by this artist:
Funny ones

1

You're going to need those eventually by zarla on DeviantArt 2 [MILD SPOILERS] You're both in BIG trouble by zarla on DeviantArt 3 Wheeeeeeee by zarla on DeviantArt 4 Yes he went thataway by zarla on DeviantArt And sad ones 1 [UNDERTALE SPOILERS] Is this bravery by zarla on DeviantArt 2 [UNDERTALE SPOILERS] They'll get bored eventually by zarla on DeviantArt And I'll put this here too.

Library Checkout Cards

In the movie Whisper of the Heart, Seiji is trying to get the attention of a girl who loves to read. So he checks out a whole bunch of books from the library to get his name on the checkout card. That way when she checks out those books, she'll notice that his name is already on all of the cards.

Except they don't have those checkout cards anymore.
It's all digital.

Now, at the library near my house, whenever you order a book, movie, ex, they put it on the hold shelf with a little card on it. The card has your initials and your library pin number.
And there's someone with my same initials (different pin number), so their holds are always right next to mine.
And they keep checking out stuff that I like, or have seen, or plan to see.
It's a bit eerie.
I was at the library with Ellen, and she said it might be like the incident in Whisper of the Heart. Which is a cool idea, though I doubt anyone would go to such trouble. I think?
It's amazing though how often I see something of their that I like.

Ashlyn's Pack

I finished drawing all of Ashlyn's dogs.

Rogue was first, and is the closest to her.
Night is the playful, mischievous one.
Wolvie is the powerhouse. Ashlyn always has to keep an eye on him, because he is not tame.
Kit is playful, and generally in charge of errands.
Angel and Stormy are the calm ones.
Gray is the newcomer. Ashlyn doesn't know him too well yet.
Xavi was one of her first dogs. He was a strong foundation for everyone to lean on. But Ashlyn lost him.
Summer was always very friendly, but unfortunately she didn't last long.

I Feel Like I'm Supposed to Cry?

I swear, every time I get an email from my advisers, it throws a wrench into everything.
My English adviser is the one person who I really felt like I was on the same page with.
And I just learned from my other advisers that he's on leave. For the entire semester.
Which means there's no way he can do anything with my project.
Nooo, you couldn't bother to tell me that, even though I have to graduate this semester. Really. No problem at all. It just means that I have to go and talk to a bunch of other people who have no idea about my project, and try to convince them to go over it all within the next month or so, and approve it so I can graduate.
I hope someone from the English department will help me. Because if I have to pick someone from the environmental studies department, they'll probably want me to change everything again.
I just got another update from my two ENVS advisers. It almost seems like they don't know this story takes place in the future? Although it's obviously not the present. I have a date too.

I've really got to stop. I could keep going on, but I need to calm down before bed.
I probably shouldn't have written this. It's gotten me worked up again.
Must find something soothing to do...

Are graduate programs always this freaked out? Because I've heard a couple terrible horror stories about them.

Class List

Classes started a couple weeks ago.
I don't actually need anymore units or classes this semester. But I have to register and take something. So I'm doing some fun and simple stuff. Aah, these are the best semesters, because I have the freedom to work on a ton of my own projects~ I've been doing a lot of drawing, for my stories. I've been very behind on those for a long time.

The most "official" class I have this semester is probably Environmental Topics. I took this class a couple years ago. It's mostly listening to speeches by guests (I'm going to try to get them let my uncle talk). And there will also be thesis defenses by other students. I should be doing mine later this semester. Whew.

So, I was somewhat limited in the fun classes I'd sign up for. I wanted them to meet on the same days, to avoid a long commute whenever possible.
I'm taking intermediate aikido. Luckily my body remembers some of the moves, because I've forgotten quite a bit of it. I took beginning aikido a few years ago.
Man, I'd love to learn some kung fu. Fighting based off of animals. That sounds so awesome.


My other fun class is acting. The class was full, so the teacher said I could just show up.
I figured it would be good to learn, because of a project I've been helping a friend with. I can't wait to share more about the project, but my partner has been mired in work for a couple months. Anyway, voice acting is something I'd like to get better at, for this purpose. And also doing stuff in front of an audience. Although that doesn't make me too nervous. Only flute solos do that. Heh.
Actually. I did a performance in the acting class yesterday. Everyone is doing a short demonstration. I sang Popular. I figured that song would have a lot of energy to it, and it's fun to sing. Though I choked once. And I stumbled on a line. Bleh.

I'm in band again. Of course. We've got some good music.
I'm not really signed up for creative writing this semester. I have plenty of stuff I could share with the group, but I've been hesitating about bringing it. I'll probably go visit a couple more times though.

Fei Yen and The Little Gal

I drew Fei Yen once before, but I wanted to do a better job.

I really oughta try to redraw Kazuhi too. I can never seem to draw him right. Why don't my guys ever look old enough...

I suppose this is officially the last of the human/dragon pairs from Katani's story.
Except this dragon doesn't actually appear in Katani's story? But she will exist not long after the story ends. She doesn't even have a name yet. Poor little gal.

I started this ages ago. And when I came back to color it, I wondered why the heck I hadn't drawn Fei Yen in a Chinese outfit. It took me a minute to remember that I wanted to draw an outfit that I had designed for the world. The battle yukata (or battle kimono). If you have ever work a traditional yukata, you'll find that it is not designed for taking large steps. That is not so in Fei Yen's world though. Especially for people like her, who might find themselves in a dangerous situation at any time. The battle yukata looks very similar to a traditional Japanese Earth yukata. One of the main differences (there are others - like the obi and everything under it aren't as thick and stiff) is the slits in the side of the "skirt." The slits usually aren't visible, because the folds of fabric cover them. I wanted to show them in this picture though. Underneath are pants that are loose and easy to move in.


Next, and I think finally last, are the Betas. I've only drawn Shanka and Thorn. And Shanka didn't turn out too well. So I'm gonna redraw them, and the rest of their pals. Shanka is sketched out already.
It has taken me entirely too long to draw all of these characters. There are so many in Katani's story. Ashlyn and Evva won't have nearly that many in their stories.

The Disagreement

So, I seem to have forgotten to post about one of the books a teacher of mine wrote.
He was my creative writing teacher a few years ago - as an undergrad when I wasn't actually signed up for the class, if you recall. He let me show up and write. (It was actually because of something he said that made me realize that a novel could be a graduate project. Which is probably one of the main reasons I did grad school. I asked him to be one of my advisers, but he wasn't taking any new students XP ).

It's called The Disagreement.

It takes place in the Civil War, and is about a doctor on the southern side.
I like the first half the best, when it was going into the details about how the war started, and how the protagonist was getting his feet.
And I like the topic. I know more than average about the Civil War, because Dad is a Civil War nut.

I have my own signed copy~

Environmental Plots: Air Pollution

We are on to our next environmental topic: air pollution.
This topic connects to many others (climate change, water quality, soil quality, human health, etc).

The first and most obvious effect of air pollution is that bad air can hurt our health.
When we burn chemicals, fossil fuels, etc, those chemicals get into the air. And from the air, they can get into eyes and lungs, on our skin, etc.
There's a reason so many city kids have been getting asthma recently. It's because the air in cities can be really disgusting. Bad air concentrates in certain areas, especially cities, because of all the exhaust from vehicles, factories, power plants, etc. Beijing seems to be the famous example. An example that I have seen myself. There are tons of photos of people in face masks, walking through what looks like smoke. It's not smoke. It's the air they breathe most of the year.
When I first stepped out of the airport in Beijing, I could smell it. You cannot see the sky. Above you is just gray. And when you're driving down the highway, the buildings on the side of the road are hazy.
Here's a couple pictures I took while I was there. The birds nest and the water cube - two awesome buildings that were built for the Beijing olympics.



I wrote this story already, but someone told me how he had a group of girls from Beijing in one of his classes. One day they hiked up a hill to watch a sunset, and they were astounded. Because it was the first sunset they had ever seen. The sky where they grew up is too polluted for people to see sunsets.

Beijing is not the only city like this. It is the only one I've ever visited though.

Some places are more prone to air pollution than others. Places that are situated in lower areas (a valley, between cliffs, ex) can hold onto the bad air. It sits, trapped inside the high borders around the city.

Bad air isn't just bad for humans. It's bad for the planet, and everything that lives on it.
And here, we actually have a success story.
The ozone layer surrounds the planet and pretty keeps everything alive. For a while, we had some chemical aerosols that would make their way into the atmosphere and break apart the ozone layer. This was bad.
Really bad. There were holes in it, which were very damaging to the land and people who happened to live beneath the holes.
And you know what? There was a huge campaign to get rid of these aerosols, and it worked! The ozone layer has since been recovering. Which just proves that we can fix huge problems, if we only try.

Acid rain is another problem. This occurs when chemicals (for example, from burning coal) get into the atmosphere and then gets captured by the rain and dragged back down to the earth. Which is bad for humans, human structures, water, and soil.
Air quality can affect the soil in other ways. This example is specific to California. There is a type of habitat that is built off of serpentine soil. It is very rare habitat, and comes about because the soil in some areas is rich in a mineral called serpentine. Because of this unusual soil, there are a lot of unique species living in these strips of serpentine soil.
Unfortunately highways also run along some of these areas. The exhaust form the cars can actually reach the soil, and change the content of the soil. This changes what kind of plants are able to grow there. It is altering a very rare and fascinating habitat.

And finally, we have climate change. Which is something that will get its own post. I'll talk about here, in context of air pollution.
Global warming is caused when sunlight is locked inside the earth's atmosphere. This is a good thing. Without it, we would not be alive.
But when we mine fossil fuels, we are removing a source of carbon that has been stored for millions of years. When we burn those fuels, we are dramatically increasing the amount of carbon (and other chemicals) in the atmosphere. Life as we know it is not accustomed to these levels.
Carbon is a greenhouse gas (there are many others too, like methane, which comes from farming livestock, dumps, etc). Greenhouse gases hold heat pretty well (the amount of heat they hold varies). When the amount of greenhouse gases increases in the atmosphere, it catches more heat from the sun. Which leads to a changing climate all over the planet.
It's not always warmer (though on average around the globe, temperature is increasing). But it will be more extreme. Dry places will get drier, wet places will get wetter, storms will be much more devastating, etc.



How would you use this topic?

Some futuristic stories are set in worlds that have rampant climate change. This causes so many problems that it will give you plenty of conflict to work with (more about this on the climate change post).
Ship Breaker is one book that puts this to use.
There is also The Day After Tomorrow, which gives a disaster story of climate change.

Acid rain could pose a danger in your book (think of the falling "thread," in the Pern books).

Air pollution might be causing sickness.
Like the poor swomee-swans, choking on all the smog in The Lorax.

Or, to a more extreme level ,there are the toxic jungles, in Nausicaa. The poisons coming from these jungles is so intense that if you go near them without a mask, you will die.

Reading Update

Whoa it's been almost a year since I last talked about the books I've been reading. I made some posts on individual books (Uglies, Bloody Jack, The Name of the Wind, Seraphina), but most of the others have gone un-mentioned.

So, let's go through my list and see what's worth talking about (Not everything is worth talking about...).

I finished reading the Seventh Tower series. Overall, it was a cool series. Lots of creative stuff. I may have been hoping for a more spectacular finale. It was a little bit similar to his Keys to the Kingdom series, in some ways. But I think I did like the Keys series more.

I read a book by one of my teachers. Maybe I should post about it. I don't think I have yet. It's called The Disagreement. I don't have too many books that I know the authors of.

I read Eona, the second book after Eon. But is seemed mostly drama? And romancey angsty stuff. Not my thing.

I started Reading Cirque du Freak. I liked the manga, and the first book was good. I'll be reading more.


Wow. Almost everything that's worth talking about, I already gave individual posts to.
Hmmm. Lots of books for school. Not many of the school books are interesting enough to talk about, but I did post about one of them last semester (Thirteen Reasons Why).
There are a lot of nonfiction books too, almost all about animals. Heheh. Born Free is one of them. The ones I thought were worth reading I put on my "To Watch" list. I don't really have anything to discuss about them though.
So while the list of books I read last year is very long... I don't care enough about most of them to mention them.

There were a couple big disappointments. I've mentioned the book Ship Breaker. How it's the closest thing I've found so far to my grad project. SO I read a couple more books by that author.
...
No. Turns out Ship Breaker was a young adult book, and most of what he writes are not young adult. Waaay too graphic for me. Except I was unlucky enough to sign up to read one of them for class, so I had to read it all the way through, whether I liked it or not. At the very least, they provided material for the literature view portion of my grad project.

I read The Count of Monte Cristo.

Ooh, okay and I'll end with probably the coolest one on this list. It's called Neverwhere, by Niel Gaiman. He's one of the big fantasy authors right now. We talked about him in my scifi/fantasy class last semester. And I recently discovered that he wrote some Doctor Who episodes. Like the one with the human Tardis. I like that one, because I'm fascinated with things that look human, but really aren't. You can probably tell (usually they're animal humans).
Anyway. Niel Gaiman has a darker and creepy style, but at the same time it's isn't too much (even for me. I can be sensitive about certain things. But he does just enough without going too far). It was a little bit like The Keys to the Kingdom, in the strange shadow world that exists just next to ours. A very cool world. Good characters, and the ending was good too. I didn't expect the direction it took.

Yeesh

Whoo, I got the next version of my graduate project turned in.
It's a really weird feeling, knowing that I'm turning in something that is lower writing quality than the last version I submitted...
But hey. That seems to be what they want.

Of course, only a few hours after turning it in, I received an email from one of my advisers that made me irritated at them all over again.
I doubt it would have bothered me much at all if there hadn't been so much of it already...
Leave me alooooone (except not really. You have to read my project so I can graduate and get out of here this semester). But leave me aloooone.


Please just let them approve what's left of my story.
TT^TT