Three-day Birthday

[rinue]

Scarlett got Man Man tickets for Ciro's birthday; they are a favorite of all of ours. The live show was energetic and charming, with face paint, shredded newspaper, many instruments (some created), many different blue-sequined jackets, goggles, and rushing from micrphone to microphone, sometimes with ladders. The front man has a comedian's ability to be very serious and intense about silly things, which lets him undercut the pomposity of rock star posturing while still adopting magnificent poses - the playfulness I associate with genuine artistry.

Along with various video games, CDs, foodstuffs, and random bits of tableware, Mom and Dad got Ciro some truffle honey which is so strongly flavored that if it is opened downstairs for just a moment you can smell it in the whole house for about an hour. (There were very many gifts. I think this comes from a combination of liking Ciro and the fact that his birthday falls at a time of year when there's nothing else going on, so that it's a relief to have An Event to fill what has traditionally been a dead spot for the family, holidaywise.)

I made an elaborate cake that is effectively a fruitcake (rum and everything), only Italian and more dependent on chocolate and ginger. I think it's too dry without ice cream, but with ice cream quite nice.

Chad is returned to Dallas, with renewed and perhaps fleeting resolve to get out of Dallas, where there are beautiful buildings but the weather is unlivable and there are events but none of them can be found or done spontaneously.

If anybody is wondering, Rome by Dangermouse and L.A. Noire by Rockstar are both as impressive as people say.

Comments

[rinue]

Consensus from me, Ciro, and Val is that we mostly don't miss the weather, except thunderstorms. There's nothing like a Texas thunderstorm, and that's a fact. Other things I like about Dallas: some of the architecture and some of the restaurants and the DMA. For the most part I have no inclination even to visit.

Italy move pretty much has to be either Rome or Milan because that's where the film industry is; my connections are still solid and I'm learning the language, and really the main reason for the delay is to pay down student loans past a certain amount so I'm free to not have a steady income for a while. Also, just on timing, I'm a citizen once I've been married to Ciro for three years outside the country or six months inside the country, whichever happens first, and the wait means I'll already be a citizen by the time we move - which is actually what would free us to go with London instead if that looks more promising; as it stands, I would need a visa.

Obviously, politics in both the U.K. and Italy have lately been batshit; it's either dumb austerity measures that are crippling economic growth or a debt crisis and Berlusconi. So it's also true that the two years left doesn't coincidentally line up with the next U.S. presidential election; if the U.S. is stupid enough to not reelect Obama, I want to be ready to expatriate immediately and intend to be prepared for that eventuality.

[tao_te_trick]

I haven't figured out if politics in this country actually are crazier since I became an adult or if they were always this crazy. I think back to the XYZ Affair and even to our entrance into World War II, and I can see that the American people have had a pretty long-standing love affair with bat-shit crazy. (And Retroactive Continuity, but my few studies into neuroscience are revealing that Retcon is a normal human activity.)

(Not that I'm saying that we should not have entered WW2, just that the narrative of how and why we entered the war is unrelated to the real how and why. For reference, read Human Smoke by Nicholson Baker.)

My student debt really nags at me, but Red Dead helped get rid of some of that. If I hadn't jumped ship from Rockstar so soon, I'd probably be in much better financial shape. However, I'm living better now.

Also, I found a place that teaches Tai Chi as a martial art. It's wonderful. I feel so much better when I am in shape, but I have such a hard time getting motivated to exercise without some form of intellectual challenge involved. Tai Chi is definitely a new way of thinking.

[rinue]

It's mostly annoying to pay student debt interest at a time when nothing on earth is getting that kind of guaranteed return. (Although I understand I should "buy gold! buy gold! buy gold!" which I'm sure is not a bubble.) I'm sure you have a very similar viewpoint.

In "wouldn't this be ideal" land, I make a nice chunk of money off this film and it's taken care of; but as usual with creative work, one can't make plans assuming things will actually sell.

And while I'm working crazy overtime right now as a captioner, it's still not crazy game designer on deadline to ship overtime. I can do that on film sets, but not in office buildings. Similarly, I could probably be working on film sets more except I would have to move to L.A., and, you know. Hate. Hate that place. And as you also know, tend to like to be my own boss.

We actually have a copy of Red Dead; just haven't cracked it open yet. I'll be looking for your credit.

[tao_te_trick]

Sadly, I am not in the opening credits of Red Dead, so you'll have a long wait to see my credit. Though I am credited as "Trick" in the game credits. ("Patrick" still connived his way into the manual.) The game definitely starts as a slow burn, as Rockstar games are wont to do. It's a shame. I always try to get my audience's attention in the first minute, but most games these days are expecting the player to give them the length of a feature length film before really kicking it into high gear.

(Final Fantasy XII is the worst of these, asking players to give it longer than all three of the extended editions of Lord of the Rings combined. I eventually set that one down somewhere near the end of Two Towers.)

I'm at a start-up company now. They've been around for three years and have never crunched. The sister studio that made Rift never crunched like Rockstar for that product, so I'm feeling much safer from a health and sanity standpoint. It's also strange to know that I'm going to work with Rockne S. O'Bannon for some of development. My professional demeanor starts to melt as I repress a fanboy squee each time he's in the office.

If you guys have a Nintendo DS, I can't recommend 999 enough. It's a joy.

[rinue]

Agreed on FFXII. After, I don't know, 16-20 hours of play and still not giving a damn about anything that was going on, I walked away with no regrets, and don't think I've touched anything released in the series since.

I don't suppose O'Bannon lets you bring puppets to meetings? Or talking dolphins?

Never got in to portable gaming; just doesn't click with me, for whatever reason. I don't think I even had one of those beepy LCD baseball games when I was a kid going on car trips. I guess I'm a little like Tom and like my electronics box-like and stationary. People keep trying to sell me on smartphones and e-readers, and although I think they're neat tech, the idea of owning one stresses me out.