Below are the 12 most recent journal entries recorded in Gabi's LiveJournal:

Monday, August 10th, 2009
4:47 pm	Ponystars Grasslands Adventure quests walkthrough In case anyone here is playing Ponystars, I have compiled the following information that may be of use to you: Complete Grasslands Adventure quests details There you can see the locations, requirements and rewards of all Grasslands Adventure quests. Other tips: 1. It helps if you raise one pony of each type to level 5 for the basic quests, and use the remaining 6 ponies for the intermediate and long quests. That way you save fairy gold and training time, and you can use the stat gain from the intermediate quests in order to begin the advanced quests. The only exception is the Air world, in which the basic quest gives you more stats than the intermediate quest. You may save more gold if you train one Air pony to level 10 only for the intermediate quest, and the other to level 23 for the advanced quest. 2. It helps if you have 3 crops of each type in the farm, that way you can keep 12 ponies well fed without ever buying food for them. The best time to plant new crops is right before the harvest. 3. Don't buy ponies from the breeder. The black market is a lot cheaper, and so is breeding them yourself. Keep your ponies healthy and you'll get one for free when you've played for 3 days, and another when you've played for 100 days. 4. Invest on the Magic Fountain as soon as you can, it's really worth it, especially when you need your ponies to reach high levels. After you've been playing for a while, Fairy Gold will come on its own. 5. Be patient. That's what the game is all about. You can contact me if you need help with anything else in the game. Current Mood: content (Comment on this)
Sunday, February 8th, 2009
10:32 pm	A frustrating conversation (09:34:33 PM) MK: hey (09:35:16 PM) Gabi: Hi. (09:35:22 PM) MK: cool (09:35:30 PM) MK: you are in argentina ? (09:35:43 PM) Gabi: Yes. Where are you? (09:35:54 PM) MK: i m in california (09:36:19 PM) MK: what time is it over there (09:36:34 PM) Gabi: Ah. There's a big time difference at this time of year, I think. (09:36:41 PM) Gabi: 9:30 PM. (09:36:48 PM) MK: about 6 hours (09:36:53 PM) MK: its 3:30 pm here (09:37:12 PM) Gabi: I see. (09:37:33 PM) MK: how you doing today (09:37:49 PM) MK: how was your sunday (09:38:07 PM) Gabi: Good, I haven't done anything serious today, which is unusual for me. And you? (09:38:28 PM) MK: i got up late around 2 (09:38:42 PM) MK: last night was wild (09:38:56 PM) Gabi: Oh. May I ask what you did last night? (09:39:16 PM) MK: ofcourse we are friends now.. you can ask me anything (09:39:35 PM) MK: well i was dead drunk... i hate that (09:39:52 PM) MK: but if i go out to clubs.. i tend to drink a lot (09:40:07 PM) MK: you know i hate it (09:40:22 PM) MK: my new year resoultion was to stop drinking (09:40:37 PM) Gabi: Then why do you do it? (09:40:44 PM) MK: yesterday was the first time since new year i did (09:40:54 PM) MK: i dint even drink on my bday (09:41:32 PM) MK: it was my friends bday and you know... (09:42:09 PM) MK: but now no more at least till june (09:42:29 PM) MK: no bday till then :-) (09:42:49 PM) Gabi: When is your birthday? (09:42:57 PM) MK: it was on 3rd feb (09:43:28 PM) Gabi: Ah. I had a classmate in primary school who was born on that day. (09:44:02 PM) MK: you still in touch ? (09:44:50 PM) Gabi: No, we had a big fight when we graduated and stopped talking to each other. (09:45:16 PM) MK: ohh you dont seem to be the one who would intiate the fight (09:45:22 PM) MK: initiate * (09:46:02 PM) Gabi: She did say bad things about me to all my friends behind my back for at least 6 years. (09:46:26 PM) Gabi: I tried to deny it until it became too obvious. (09:46:38 PM) MK: ahh thatz bad.. (09:46:46 PM) MK: sometimes you just have to move on (09:46:54 PM) Gabi: *Nods.* (09:47:20 PM) MK: :-) (09:47:24 PM) Gabi: :) (09:47:43 PM) MK: you know i made 2 other resolutions (09:47:51 PM) MK: for the new year (09:47:57 PM) MK: to start learning guitar (09:48:04 PM) MK: and learn spanish (09:48:09 PM) MK: i m on the waiting list to learn guitar (09:48:28 PM) MK: and by gods grace i found you (09:48:39 PM) MK: will you teach me spanish (09:50:12 PM) MK: are you still there ? (09:51:58 PM) MK: well that was strange (09:54:04 PM) Gabi: Sorry, I'm here now. (09:54:15 PM) Gabi: And yes, I can help you with Spanish. (09:54:29 PM) MK: are you busy ? (09:54:39 PM) Gabi: The phone rang. (09:55:03 PM) MK: oh ook (09:55:18 PM) MK: tell me more about you (09:55:52 PM) Gabi: What would you like to know? (09:56:07 PM) MK: everything that you would like to tell me (09:58:33 PM) MK: gabriela i guess you seem to be too busy (09:58:37 PM) Gabi: Sorry. (09:58:49 PM) MK: its alright, as long as you just lemme know (09:59:27 PM) Gabi: It's OK. It's just... when I'm having a few conversations at once, it's hard to reply to the one with such a vague question hanging. (10:00:42 PM) Gabi: I'm afraid I don't know how to answer that. (10:01:03 PM) MK: i guess it becomes a little to confusing when you are talking to lot of people (10:01:12 PM) MK: i tend to have 1 on 1 conversation (10:01:26 PM) MK: thatz where you really get to know each other (10:02:04 PM) Gabi: I think really getting to know each other is more a matter of time than anything else. (10:02:09 PM) MK: but i guess you seem to have too many spanish students (10:02:27 PM) Gabi: No, I don't have any. (10:02:39 PM) MK: :-) (10:02:50 PM) Gabi: I give people a hand when they ask, but that's not why I'm talking to everyone. (10:03:30 PM) MK: of course it takes a time to know someone.. but unless you have a meaningful conversation it doesnt go forwards (10:03:32 PM) MK: forward (10:03:39 PM) Gabi: That's true. (10:04:25 PM) MK: so what do you do (10:05:04 PM) Gabi: I'm going for a PhD in computer science and I teach paradigms of programming languages at university. (10:05:09 PM) Gabi: What about you? (10:05:14 PM) MK: wow (10:05:18 PM) MK: thatz amazing (10:05:28 PM) MK: i thought you must be very intelligent (10:05:59 PM) MK: i m an IT business analyst.. for a biotech (10:06:22 PM) Gabi: Thanks. Er... what exactly does a biotech do? (10:06:41 PM) MK: they research and develop new drugs (10:06:56 PM) Gabi: Oh. Interesting. (10:07:01 PM) MK: similar to phramaceutical companies (10:07:54 PM) MK: i am on the IT side.. too bad in biology (10:09:16 PM) Gabi: So do you write programs, maintain a server... or something else? (10:09:39 PM) MK: no thatz too technical for me :-)... (10:09:52 PM) MK: i am a business analyst (10:10:18 PM) MK: attend meetings and play games on facebook (10:10:22 PM) Gabi: XD (10:10:31 PM) MK: whatz xd ? (10:11:55 PM) Gabi: It's a smilie. A laughing face with closed eyes. (10:12:10 PM) MK: oh i love that dimple on your face (10:12:20 PM) MK: and you have very pretty eyes (10:12:27 PM) MK: keep it open (10:12:39 PM) Gabi: Are you talking about my Facebook profile picture? (10:12:49 PM) MK: yeah (10:12:54 PM) Gabi: Thanks. (10:13:14 PM) MK: you welcome (10:13:19 PM) MK: so you are a teacher (10:13:50 PM) Gabi: Yes, I am. (10:13:54 PM) MK: now how wonderful is that.. (10:14:12 PM) MK: i respect only 2 professions and teaching is one of them (10:14:19 PM) MK: other being nursing (10:14:39 PM) Gabi: It's great. It does have its drawbacks (a lot of work for very little pay), but it's very satisfying in other ways. (10:14:57 PM) MK: thatz the reason i respect it.. its a nobel profession (10:15:11 PM) MK: who can be more lucky than me though (10:15:25 PM) MK: i wanna learn spanish.. you know spanish very well (10:15:48 PM) MK: on top of that you are a teacher.. so you know the intricacies of teaching (10:16:42 PM) MK: and to make it perfect.. your name is gabriela.. i always loved gabriela sabatini (10:17:11 PM) Gabi: *Laughs.* That's funny. I'm not good at tennis, though. (10:17:25 PM) MK: neither am i.. i just liked her (10:17:55 PM) Gabi: Yes, I'm a teacher, but teaching a human language is not the same as teaching how to program computers. I can answer your questions, but I wouldn't know how to make a Spanish course from scratch. (10:18:27 PM) MK: well whatz life without challenges (10:19:00 PM) MK: perhaps this will be a nice challenge for you.. to teach spanish (10:22:12 PM) MK: hellooooooooo (10:22:20 PM) Gabi: That's "hola" in Spanish. (10:22:47 PM) Gabi: But you can't hear me say it anyway. Do you know how letters are pronounced in Spanish? (10:23:06 PM) MK: i have started a little bit online (10:23:15 PM) MK: its pronounced ola (10:23:33 PM) MK: but i tend to forget things (10:24:08 PM) Gabi: Right. The h is always silent unless it's right after a c, in which case the 'ch' sounds like the 'ch' in 'church'. (10:24:26 PM) MK: coool (10:24:34 PM) MK: i will keep that in mind (10:24:50 PM) MK: can we start our classes from tomm ?? (10:24:58 PM) MK: its a sunday.. fun day (10:25:04 PM) MK: can we a little fun today (10:25:34 PM) Gabi: OK, as you wish. It was your idea after all. (10:25:55 PM) MK: please dont feel bad (10:26:03 PM) MK: i was just being naughty (10:26:31 PM) MK: tell me about argentina.. (10:28:39 PM) Gabi: It's a big country. It has a bit of everything. (10:29:12 PM) MK: whatz the main tourist attraction (10:30:41 PM) Gabi: I don't know what the main one is. Buenos Aires has many attractions, and there's also the Iguazu Falls, many places in the Patagonia, the desert in San Juan, the jungle and colorful mountains in the northwest... (10:31:01 PM) MK: where are you from.. (10:31:11 PM) Gabi: I'm from Buenos Aires. (10:31:37 PM) MK: ahh thatz good .. so if i come to argentina.. i have a guide for buenos aires (10:32:09 PM) Gabi: I could try. (10:32:25 PM) MK: :-)) (10:32:43 PM) Gabi: What are you laughing at? (10:32:51 PM) MK: you said i could try (10:33:01 PM) Gabi: How is that funny? (10:33:40 PM) MK: well if you would come to california.. i would definitely be your guide (10:34:01 PM) MK: i wouldnt have to try (10:34:13 PM) Gabi: Not everyone is a born tour guide. (10:34:23 PM) Gabi: You're being quite rude, you know. (10:34:34 PM) MK: i m really sorry (10:34:41 PM) MK: i did not mean to be rude (10:34:48 PM) MK: in anyway (10:34:56 PM) MK: perhaps itz just the format of chat (10:35:13 PM) MK: one doesnt really see the real expression (10:35:33 PM) Gabi: Well, I saw a :)). (10:35:51 PM) MK: well it could have been :-) (10:35:56 PM) MK: then it would be fine ? (10:36:06 PM) Gabi: I think it would. (10:36:13 PM) MK: but then (10:36:35 PM) MK: everybody doesnt have a cute smile like yours (10:36:45 PM) MK: sometimes people tend to over do it (10:36:52 PM) MK: you must give them benefit of doubt (10:37:26 PM) MK: dont judge them so soon (10:37:28 PM) Gabi: That's why I told you you were being rude rather than insult you or block you. (10:38:04 PM) MK: wow.. insulting and blocking is just too extreme (10:38:13 PM) MK: atleast i feel it that way (10:38:31 PM) MK: i think there is always some space for negotiations (10:38:39 PM) Gabi: that woul;d be not giving you the benefit of doubt. (10:38:47 PM) Gabi: *would (10:39:28 PM) MK: i wouldnt even think of such extremes though (10:41:10 PM) Gabi: Hey, it's not like I was talking about death threats or something. I was just making a point of what it would be like not to give you the benefit of doubt. (10:41:36 PM) MK: but you scared me .... why would you even think of blocking me (10:42:02 PM) MK: i felt there goes my spanish lessons and gabriela (10:42:12 PM) Gabi: I'd try to explain for the third time, but if you haven't understood by now I don't think you will. (10:42:22 PM) MK: :-) (10:42:37 PM) MK: i m just playing with you.. (10:42:58 PM) Gabi: Are you? If that's the case it's not a kind of game I enjoy. (10:43:17 PM) MK: well i was.. if you dont like it then i wont (10:47:51 PM) MK: helllooo (10:48:01 PM) Gabi: OK. (10:48:18 PM) MK: thatz it ? (10:49:13 PM) Gabi: What did you expect? (10:49:39 PM) Gabi: Next time you can write the whole dialogue and I'l follow it, so as to not disappoint you. (10:49:44 PM) MK: i dint expect anything.. do you really want to continue talking ? (10:50:21 PM) Gabi: I'm not sure. It seems like you're criticizing everything I say and also the times when I don't say anything. (10:50:35 PM) MK: Am i that bad ? (10:51:21 PM) Gabi: Just scroll up and read through the conversation. You've been doing it all the time. (10:51:35 PM) MK: i just told you my opinion.. you dont have to agree with me.. so do i.. that doesnt mean that i criticized you (10:52:33 PM) MK: i never meant to insult you in anyway (10:52:55 PM) MK: i m saying this to just clear it (10:55:34 PM) Gabi: Not insult me, but you seemed to be complaining all the time. (10:56:06 PM) MK: well dont you think its wrong to judge someone so soon (10:57:11 PM) Gabi: I wasn't judging you, I only told you that you were being rude. (10:57:24 PM) MK: i said sorry for that (10:57:55 PM) Gabi: Anyway, everyone forms impressions of others all the time. Your actions affect other people's perception of you. (10:58:45 PM) MK: well i will try and change you perception about me (10:58:48 PM) Gabi: And you keep complaining about everything I say, and about every time I'm silent. If anything, that's you judging me. (10:59:07 PM) Gabi: Just be yourself, but try to give me a break. (10:59:57 PM) MK: :-) (11:01:20 PM) MK: well alright lets just wipe it out.. i am sorry about being rude and judgemental about you (11:02:39 PM) Gabi: Apology accepted. :) (11:04:02 PM) MK: good (11:04:17 PM) MK: so do you like travelling ? (11:04:40 PM) Gabi: Yes, I do. And you? (11:04:54 PM) MK: yeah me too.. (11:05:01 PM) MK: i want to visit so many places (11:06:04 PM) Gabi: I like seeing many places, but above all I like being with people I care for, so I try to visit my friends and relatives who live far away whenever I can. (11:06:31 PM) MK: thtz nice (11:06:45 PM) MK: you seem to have big family (11:07:31 PM) Gabi: I do, if I count my parents' cousins, second cousins, etc. (11:07:40 PM) MK: :-) (11:10:25 PM) MK: well i am done with your interview.. can we have a casual talk.. (11:10:54 PM) Gabi: That's what I thought we were having. (11:11:30 PM) MK: i m done with the list of all the questions that i had (11:12:06 PM) Gabi: Wow, and people say I am to structured! (11:12:50 PM) Gabi: I've never thought of making a list of questions to ask someone I'm meeting for the first time. No offense meant. (11:12:58 PM) MK: :-) (11:13:05 PM) MK: do you believe everything i say ? (11:13:38 PM) Gabi: It's hard to tell what's true and what isn't, considering I don't know you and I can't see your face, nor hear your voice. (11:14:07 PM) MK: well like you said.. its just the first time (11:15:06 PM) Gabi: Is MK your real name? (11:15:36 PM) MK: yes (11:17:33 PM) MK: well i m not an american (11:17:39 PM) MK: been living here fro 5 years (11:17:50 PM) MK: originally from india (11:18:48 PM) MK: "Hola" (11:19:30 PM) Gabi: Hola. (11:19:59 PM) MK: i thought i lost you (11:22:28 PM) MK: Buzz!! (11:23:16 PM) Gabi: Buzz? (11:23:32 PM) MK: Buzz!! (11:23:40 PM) MK: thatz just to wake you up (11:23:46 PM) Gabi: I was not asleep. (11:24:08 PM) MK: :-) (11:24:22 PM) MK: come on talk to me (11:25:05 PM) Gabi: OK, what do you want to talk about? (11:25:30 PM) MK: anything (11:26:04 PM) MK: do friends need to have something to talk about ? (11:26:20 PM) Gabi: Well, it's either that or not talk. (11:26:32 PM) Gabi: And you seem to mind the latter. (11:27:06 PM) MK: i wouldnt mind if you tell me.. not talk (11:27:37 PM) MK: i guess you should atleast tell me.. i wouldnt have to wait (11:28:13 PM) Gabi: I only talk if I have something to say. (11:28:35 PM) Gabi: I'm not good at talking just to make some noise. (11:29:26 PM) Gabi: If I'm silent it doesn't mean I don't want to talk to you anymore, it means I don't have anything to add to the conversation (either that or I'm away). (11:30:00 PM) MK: wow you are clear about everything (11:30:26 PM) MK: like the 1's and 0's in computer science (11:30:29 PM) MK: true or false (11:30:42 PM) Gabi: I just do my best for people to understand me. (11:31:27 PM) Gabi: But you don't seem to want to understand me, it looks more like you're trying to annoy me. (11:31:29 PM) MK: sometimes you dont need to try.. they will understand you and accept you (11:31:37 PM) Gabi: Well, you don't. (11:31:52 PM) MK: well, perhaps i am (11:32:09 PM) MK: but i might just try to add some spice (11:32:29 PM) Gabi: Then I think I might be done talking to you. (11:32:39 PM) MK: alright (11:32:44 PM) MK: if thatz what you want (11:33:36 PM) Gabi: Yes, I've already told you I don't like that kind of game, but you insist on criticizing me and making fun of me, so I've had enough. (11:34:12 PM) MK: alright Gabriela.. (11:34:25 PM) MK: it was really nice meeting and talking to you.. (11:34:49 PM) MK: i m sorry if i insulted you or you felt really bad about something (11:35:09 PM) MK: i never meant it (11:35:18 PM) MK: you take care of yourself (11:35:24 PM) Gabi: You too. Goodbye. *Sighs.* I still don't know what this person really wanted, nor which parts of the conversation were jokes or lies. Does anyone? (5 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, February 28th, 2008
10:58 pm	Technical difficulties I'm having connection problems. I called my ISP. 5 minutes later someone picked up, took my details and transferred me to techical service. 15 minutes later, getting no answer, I hung up and tried again. I repeated the same process, but this time I didn't hang up, and within about 20 minutes of waiting for the transfer to complete, I got an answer. After talking for a while, the woman told me I had a signal. I told her I knew that, but I was losing packets. She asked me to wait and tested it, and said it was true. So now she says they're sending a technician to my home... On March 6th. And from past experience I can tell they're likely to reschedule without a warning. Joy. The worst thing is that customer support is still way better than Fibertel's. *Sighs.* (Comment on this)
Sunday, September 2nd, 2007
8:53 pm	Testing I'm testing the LJ Bot and... I've posted a new chapter of Quest of Twelve! So there. Go and read it. ^.^ TPM, up to chapter 30 CM, up to chapter 16, revised Current Mood: excited (Comment on this)
Friday, August 17th, 2007
11:56 am	Question #2 Is everyone busy these days? What has been taking up most of your time lately? And if you could do anything you wanted right now, what would you like to do? Current Mood: curious (6 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, August 13th, 2007
9:42 am	Like a vacation, but without the free time Anyone who knows me will know that this is extremely unusual, but I somehow managed to go out 3 nights in a row: Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. It all began when my mum's friends from Barcelona (Spain) came to visit. Their names are Josefa and José (no kidding), a.k.a. Pepi and Pepe. They stayed in my house for a few days, though I didn't get to spend much time with them because I was working so much. *Sighs.* I did, however, make an effort to stay up later and enjoy a couple of nights out with them (Tuesday and Thursday, Wednesday was different). So, on Tuesday we finally went to see my Israeli 'cousin' Lilach dance. (She's actually my grandfather's cousin's daughter, which in our term makes her my mum's second cousin, but she's younger than me so it's easier for me to call her cousin.) She and her boyfriend John are dancers in a tango show at the Tortoni cafe, which is a very old and famous cafe in Buenos Aires, where great writers and artists in general have met since the late 19th century. I'd been meaning to see her dance for months. I liked the show, and I sang along a lot. And all the dancers were great! Oddly enough, my mum and I were the only Argentinian spectators among the crowd. There were people from Colombia, Peru, Chile, Brazil, Mexico, Ireland, Finland, the USA, the UK, Italy and... some other country in Europe, I think it was Hungary. And of course Pepi and Pepe who were from Spain. After the show Lilach and John went to have dinner with the rest of our group, but not me. Alas, I had to work in the morning and it was nearly 1 AM (not that I could eat that late, but I'd have enjoyed the company). On Wednesday, after my last chair meeting with the subject I'm leaving (I'll miss teaching it, but I'm also excited about the new one) all the teachers and professors went out for an end-of-semester dinner at a Korean restaurant. It was my first time trying Korean food. I'd been warned about how spicy it was, so it was a surprise when it turned out to be less spicy than I'd imagined. It was unusual food, but nonetheless tasty. And I ate too much of it, but fortunately not enough to get sick. I've learnt my lesson with previous meals, especially that I have to stay clear of food with too much sesame oil. The dinner was fun, I'm really going to miss being a part of that crew. Although we're still going to see each other at university, it's not so big a building. And one of them is coming with me to Paradigms of Programming Languages! And on Thursday, I had dinner with Pepi and Pepe again (and with my mum too). We went to a restaurant that specializes in traditional foods from the province of Tucumán (where my mum was born). I had a tasty humita (a meal made mostly of mashed corn, with some cheese and red pepper and spices), and then we went to have ice-cream, although by then I could only eat a small one. Pepi told us that in Spain they don't sell ice-cream in the winter. Poor Spaniards, I feel sorry for them. So, 3 nights out in a row. Friday may count as 'out' too, because I spent the night at my dad's place, but we didn't do anything special, and I spent most of that day working and worrying (because I had to return some exams to the students and the teachers who had them arrived over an hour late). But I got a break during the weekend (for a change!), and even managed to watch 2 movies with my mum, who had taken a vacation during that week and thus was not at work. Of course, not all was fun and games. Yesterday I had to clean the house after my lovely puppy spread litter-box stones all over it. I really hope she grows out of it. And soon. And now I'm back to work, but not as pressed for time as last week, and I've already fixed a nasty bug, so things are looking good. I hope they stay like that. Current Mood: hopeful (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Friday, August 3rd, 2007
8:10 am	The obligatory post-HP entry I've finished the book. What can I say?, I liked it better than most of the previous ones, it had some interesting twists and it all seemed to fit together in the end. It didn't really leave me longing for more, though. Now I'll keep readyng "The Valley of the Horses", the only book of the Earth's Children series I couldn't get in English here and now Wildy has given it to me. (If you see her, send her hugs!) Virtually everything else in my life is work these days. Programming, exams, exam reviews, preparations for the next semester (I'm going to be teaching a new subject, so now I'm working on both for the transition!), and I even had to improvise a class on Friday because there was an excercise no student could do, and it was in fact quite an easy one, it turns out there was something they hadn't understood and they hadn't even realized it. And we, the teachers, hadn't realized it either. Well, it looks like they've understood now, and I hope it is so. Ok, now I'm going to keep working. It hasn't been a month since my vacation and I already feel I need a break. I wish I had time to write, that would make everything better. But at least I still have tea. Current Mood: busy (Comment on this)
Monday, July 23rd, 2007
10:47 pm	Rising from my weekend As some of you may know and others may not, I was sick on Saturday. Very sick, in fact. I won't go into the details because nobody wants to read that kind of thing, but while it was nothing truly dangerous, it was very painful and I'm extremely glad it's over. Now all I need in order to fully recover is to get my full vocal range back. Which is important because I want to sing as much as possible, but I know it's just a matter of being patient and taking care of myself. Today I went to work and my boss Alexis congratulated me on my meticulousness, for being sick during the weekend and being ready to go back to work on Monday. I started a Facebook group recently, for people from TPM. It may not be worth mentioning here because most of you don't visit TPM and the one who does is already in my Facebook friends' list, but I'm saying it nonetheless because I'm surprised at how many people have joined the group so far, and how it has helped me and others find out more about each other (for instance, seeing names and faces of people we only knew by their TPM screen names, and getting in touch with people we'd lost contact with). Speaking of getting back in touch with people, Karin, my faithful reader and one of the nicest people I've met online, has returned to the Internet after a long absence. I don't think she will read this, but I'm very glad to be able to talk to her again, and to know she's still interested in my writings, and I hope she gets back to writing soon herself, because I'm very interested in her stories too. She's a good writer, great at descriptions, action scenes and sad stories. She's been trying to explore other aspects of writing, which I think is a great thing for a writer to do and definitely not an easy one. She's suffered due to bad criticism, something I understand too well because I've had similar experiences in the past and they've hurt me a lot, but I really hope she's up and writing again soon. You should never give up on what you enjoy... and in her case I enjoy it to, and I know I'm not the only one. On that note... Read Quest of Twelve... Post a reply... I command you! ... Well, ok, I don't command you, but I would definitely appreciate some input. Remember I'm revising old chapters and haven't yet written the final ones. And more about literature. I've got the book everyone is talking about. You know which one it is, the one everyone has read within a day or two. I intend to read it... but I'm taking it lightly because I have many more urgent things to do. So don't you dare spoil it for me! Now, on a lighter note, I'll leave you with some of the latest clickable photos of my pets Leika (dog) and Mimosa (cat): See you around! Current Mood: relieved (8 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, July 12th, 2007
8:11 pm	Another AC Journal entry... but this one is mine! Short version: AC '07 was amazing. Long version: read below. The plane trip to AC: it was long and uncomfortable for the most part (after all these years of travelling I haven't yet managed to get the handle of sleeping on a plane) but that didn't bother me much because I was filled with expectation which, I'm glad to say, have actually been exceeded. I was questioned as much as all other foreign visitors when I entered the USA, but things got more relaxed when I gave them Wildy's details. I thank her for giving them to me. Then on my second flight I asked for some tea and I ended up having it all over me, as the container popped open when the flight attendant was serving me. But well, it was tea. I can't complain. Wednesday: as I walked towards the baggage claim, I spotted Wildy and Gornemant and ran towards them. They greeted me as warmly as I greeted them, and then introduced me to Sarah. I knew she was Wildy's roommate and Gorn's girlfriend and she was going to share the room with us, but that was all the information I had, so I didn't know what to expect. It turned out... that she was (and still is, I presume) a kind, friendly and all-round amazing person. I'm glad to have met her, and I hope I'll get to meet her again. She claims she's not furry, but she draws amazing furry art (and just as amazing non-furry art), has a furry badge and has attended AnthroCon, so she's about as furry as I am (or I'm about as non-furry as she is). I too was a bit creeped out by the fursuiters on my first con (AC '06). This time I knew what to expect, so I didn't really mind them; then again, none of them tried to hug me by surprise or break into our room.   We then went to the hotel in Wildy's car, put everything in the room and then met Amber, Ben, Magalian/Bob/Mags and Zina. I was surprised that Zina greeted me with a hug. She's the only one who has requested not to receive random hugs. I guess that means she considers me a friend, and that in itself means a lot. ^-^ She also drew on my sketchbook that day.   We went to the same Chinese restaurant we'd gone to last year and stuffed ourselves full. Then we took the rest to the hotel, but never got around to eating it. I got a funny fortune cookie about having someone to share my warmth. Wildy was quick to point out it wouldn't be her. :P   I got 2 gifts from Wildy: a book I'd been unable to get here (I'd casually mentioned it to her last year) named "The Valley of the Horses" by Jean Auel, and a safety clip which, while not as touching as the book, was quite handy. She also brought the leftover tea from last year, and gets credit for being the only one (other than me) to remember to bring tea for the Tea Party. And she let me borrow her computer everyday so that I could upload photos. ^.^   At night we watched the fireworks display from the window, and then went down in hopes of having a better view, which we didn't quite manage. Gorn started walking all of a sudden, and thus started the trend of having everyone follow him around everywhere. We turned back when he didn't find what he was looking for (apparently a good spot for watching the fireworks). But we all love Gorn. Not only is he a great guy, but I wouldn't have been able to be there without his help. Thursday: another trend was established: the one about me getting up early and all my roommates sleeping until noon. I went down to the lobby to spend some time with Amber and Ben. I got to meet Beowulf, an amazing artist and one of the most eccentric people I've met. But friendly nonetheless. And Amber was so nice to me! She drew on my sketchbook and we had a nice conversation even though she seems to find it almost as hard to pick subjects as I do. And she even asked about the Tea Party we were planning. She apologized for not doing anything fun, but I was having fun then and there. I don't like small, dark, loud, cramped , smoke-filled spaces either (reference to the pub where we almost went on Wednesday but soon most of us decided against). And she surprised me by singing the full Candy Mountain song from "Charlie the Unicorn" at full speed. Ben drew on my sketchbook too: a very well-drawn... androginous cat anthro? Funny, it's hard to tell what it is, but everyone has agreed that it's very well drawn. I also laid my hands on Magalian's sketchbook and drew on it.   Then the protestors showed up after it started raining, and everyone laughed at them. You've probably read about them by now. 3 guys standing in the rain with the most ridiculous protesting sign I've ever seen, with furries gathering all around them. It was a nice touch when Uncle Kage gave them AnthroCon umbrellas. I wondered if they had nothing better to do, but if it was attention they wanted, they certainly got it, though you could argue that it was not the kind of attention they desired.   When my roommates got up we went out for lunch (or breakfast in their case) which ended up being pizza. I ate a very interesting pizza named Pieroggi, which had mashed potatoes, cheese and onions and one slice of it felt like a whole meal.   We went to the Omni for a while -an impressive hotel-, and then to the Zoo (for those who don't know, that was a large room in the Westin hotel with many tables for us to sit around). After hanging out there for a while, I headed for the computer room to check my e-mails and forums and send a message to my family. That's where I found Tapewolf, who was out of the UK for the first time and looked rather terrified. Luckily he warmed up to us quite fast. :)   All this time I'd been trying to organize the Tea Party, but we didn't have a room for it. After the registration, it became clear that I'd have to be a bit more aggressive about it or else the party would never be. I posted on the Clockwork Mansion forum asking for help, but none came, so I had to make a decision. The room I was staying in was out of the question, as had been expressed by all of my roommates. The Omni was too far to drag everyone there. So there was only one room I had access to and knew all of its occupants: room 912, the one under Gorn's name. I asked him if we could hold it there, and he said it was up to the people staying in that room. I asked those people and, since none said 'no', I told everyone I met and posted on the forum that the party would be held at 7 PM in room 912.   There was another problem which made my confidence shake: KK revealed to me that he had forgotten to bring the tea. And so had almost everyone else. And also all those who had promised electric kettles failed to bring them. Luckily Wildy had brought the teas she had, which came as a huge relief, and in addition to the teas I had brought we had enough to provide a decent range of choices to all attendants. That, and I had brought my water heater just in case, so I made up for the lack of electric kettles by setting up a "tea lab" in the bathroom and making the tea inside the cups. Each person would give me a cup, I filled it with water, heated it, and then put the chosen teabag in, and the sugar for those who wanted it. Gornemant was brave and made his own tea this way.   So, crisis averted, the party was quite fun. There were plenty of sweets to go with the tea: TGH's cookies, my alfajores and Kinder eggs, and Gorn's countless treats. We talked a lot, drew a bit (Sarah made an amazing drawing on my sketchbook, which was praised by all my relatives and friends at home; I made another surprise drawing, this time for Jouster/Matthew/jousterl). And people played Mario Party 8 and Trauma Center. I enjoyed watching the Mario Party game without supporting any player in particular. The party had many attendants, which I think is what made it most fun. And what made it most funny was the way forestcat brought her allegedly "non-furry" boyfriend: wearing ears and on a leash! I got to meet Zedd, Saist, Gryphon, The Lurking Dragon and Reese, and Alondro and Mischa (who I'd met last year) showed up as well.   Near the end of the party, Eric (Wildy's... complicated relationship who had said he wouldn't come) appeared out of nowhere. He ended up staying with us. In our room, that is. I didn't have the chance to spend much time with him, nor with Wildy since he arrived. One thing that threatened to ruin my mood from then on was how upset or worried Wildy looked whenever I got to see her, but whenever anyone asked she said she was fine. I really hope she is fine now, because she's a very nice girl and she deserves all the joy she can get. Friday: once more I got up early, didn't find anyone this time, and headed for the computers room. Tapewolf was there again, and soon James StarRuner showed up. I was glad to finally meet him. He too had had trouble getting the money for the trip, so it was a good thing that he could make it. That, and he'd always been very nice to talk to online, and he was just as nice to talk to in person. And, just like Tapewolf, he's a good writer, which always adds extra points to any person in my book. James and I had promised each other to do an art exchange. He fulfilled his end of the deal right away. I had to wait until later to get my stuff and draw him at the Zoo (by then he was already wearing his Dan robe) but I kept my word as well. I spent some time with both of them and Zedd (someone, I think it was Tapewolf, pointed out that each one of us was from a different country) and we somehow drifted to the convention center, but the dealer's room wasn't open yet, so I went back to the hotel to find my roommates and go for lunch. This time we went to an Indian restaurant, and thus Wildy kept a promise of her own. I'd never tried Indian food before, and she had promised to take me to an Indian restaurant during AC. The food was great. And the sneaky Gornemant stood on the line first and paid for all of us.   After lunch we all went to the dealers' room. I had my first sighting of Sarah chasing pigeons on our way there. At the dealers' room I found shadesfox and radarnocturn, as well as some of the people I'd already seen. I spent some time looking around and taking mental notes of what I found interesting, and I won a Pixie Stix by singing at one of the dealers' tables, where the dealer rewarded all expressions of artistic talent. I then led Sarah to that table and she got her own Pixie Stix by dancing.   Amber had registered as Ben's assistant, and Ben complained that she was taking all the customers away from him. But I understand that things picked up for him later. Some people even fell for his 'special offer' (2 portfolios for $30, all 3 for $50). This was on purpose, and it somehow worked. Which proves how bad many people are at math. Or maybe they just bought them all because he draws so well.   The rest of the day was rather quiet, except for the part when we went to see 2's rant. I spent most of the time at the Zoo, with KK (who gave me a blue pencil!), TGH, Shades, James, Blade, HollyAnn and Rafe. That's when HollyAnn (hollyannvix) told me she'd gone to the Chinese restaurant with most of the DMFA crew right after we returned from the Indian one. Maybe some other year, when I can attend again, we can coordinate better.   Rafe let me take a look at his printed DMFA strips. While I was looking at them, someone came from behind and asked me who had drawn them because they looked great. I told him, of course. So maybe DMFA will have a new reader now. ^^ Saturday: I got up early as usual, but this time I didn't leave the room right away. Instead, I spent between 2 and 3 hours inking a drawing I'd made for KK. I don't regret doing it, I'm glad I managed to finish it in time to give it to him. But I do regret having arrived late to Rob Paulson's talk. I didn't know what time it was, and I was sad when I found out I'd missed hearing him sing. What I did get to hear was fun, though. Then I went to the dealers' room again, watched the art show (I liked Shiro Tora's "Ship Sheep in a bottle", but I couldn't get it because I was outbid at the last moment, but I did get a beautiful picture called "Starcatcher"). One of the guys at the Art Show loved my signature and took a photo of it! I paid him back by taking a photo of him on Monday.   I watched as James unpacked and put on his pair of blue wings, and somehow ended up missing lunch. Everyone else was either not hungry or already back from their own lunches. I ended up eating ramen in my room. On the bright side, the fursuit parade was pretty (as opposed to freaky, as it seemed to me last year) and I got to see and touch a real ferret!   Then I went to the Zoo again, did more art exchanges, gave away some alfajores, saw Amber in a harem costume and finally went to see Uncle Kage's stories (and caught the last part of the Masquerade in the process). Then I returned to the Zoo for a while, and headed back to my room where I saw the beginning of a movie but was too tired to watch it all. Sunday: this time I was determined to make up for the miscalculations of the previous day. I ;eft my room early, met KK, Jouster and Shades at the Zoo and after talking for a while we all went to the dealers' room, where I proceeded to buy everything I wanted and ensure my lunch. I did the latter by sticking to the first friend who confirmed he intended to go out for lunch, and that was James StarRunner. I bought a few gifts and got a special deal on the "Nature of the Beast" card game for being the first customer from Argentina (and because the dealer was very nice), and KK gave me a little gift (a beautiful pewter pin with 3 dolphins, which I'm still wearing), but I made sure not to lose track of James. I gave my last alfajor to Amber, and then went for lunch with a rather large group (which of course included James).   After walking for a while trying in vain to find an open Italian restaurant, we went to a Greek one. The food was good, but the highlights were the events that transpired there. First, as soon as we sat down someone ran away without paying. The owner of the restaurant chased after him but couldn't reach him, and ended up calling the police, who came quite soon. Then, and old lady approached us and asked for permission to touch James's wings. It was funny.   Then we went back to the dealers' room and Jouster and I claimed the pieces of art we had won. As soon as he was done it was time for him to leave... the first goodbye I had to say. It left me with a bitter taste, as I started missing him even before he left. For completely unrelated reasons I ended up lifting him up again, just like last year, but this time to prove someone else in the queue that I could do it. I wonder if that will turn into a habit.   I headed back to the hotel with my new picture, but I'd only made it to the 3rd floor when I saw a notice asking for help at the art show and ended up volunteering for it. It was an interesting experience, but not something I'd like to do very often, as it ate away 6 hours of my day. One of the good things was that I got to see the inner workings of the art show, meet new people, lend a hand, and meet Blade when she went there to complete her paperwork. I also saw Alondro there, who was an experienced volunteer himself. He said to me: "they got you in as a volunteer too? Now they'll never let you go." 'Never' is too long, but it almost felt like it was true. I told him so when I saw him upon returning to the Zoo after 11PM.   I missed saying goodbye to some of my friends. That's the main reason why I don't intend to be a volunteer next time I can go, whenever that is. I stayed up late to make up for my absence, and spent time at the Zoo with all my friends who were still there. I got to have an interesting conversation with Mags (we began to talk more since then), and see Gorn in a kilt. It was fun. I went to bed at nearly 2 AM (yes, that's very late for me, I'm an early riser, remember?), knowing that I'd have to be down at Operations around 9 to request my volunteer T-shirt as I'd been told to do. Monday: I didn't get to sleep much, but I was there, showered, dressed and ready to receive my T-shirt. The problem was that my T-shirt was not ready to receive me. It was already in the truck. I had to give them my volunteer form and they said they'd mail it to me. They made a strange face when I asked if they shipped to Argentina, but then they said "sure; anywhere in the world," so I expect to receive it eventually.   I then met Shades and spent some time with him before he left. We looked for KK (I wanted to give him the remaining banana tea as I had promised to him) but he was already gone, so gave it to Wildy and asked her to send it to him. She said she would. Then we met TGH at the lobby and enlisted his help to fulfill a promise we'd made to Jouster before he left: make the APF video, 2nd edition. We'd aready gathered questions from many people for that purpose (we actually had to gather them twice, because Rafe lost the first set due to a misunderstanding, as in him not hearing when he was asked to take care of it). It was somewhat rushed, but I think it went well. Although I haven't seen the result yet, I'm still waiting for Shades to process it and post it.   Then we left the room, put everything in Wildy's car and went to the Omni, where we found not only the people who's been staying there all along, but also the ones who had been left without a room for the last night. Seeing Mischa and Tapewolf, who I'd assumed to have left, brightened up my spirit a bit. We had some last-day fun, ate at a Bar & Grill which is something I wouldn't recommend but was still somewhat fun because we were still together, went to the park near the Omni, took photos, talked and watched the pigeons and once more I wished we could keep doing that for much longer, but this time it was I who had to go. I had a plane to catch. I reluctantly said goodbye to everyone, and was taken to the airport by my roommates (whom I certainly wouldn't mind rooming with again many times in the future). The trip back: it was long an uncomfortable, doubly so because the first flight was delayed and it wasn't until it arrived to Atlanta that I found out the 2nd flight was also delayed and thus I hadn't missed it. While still in Pittsburgh I found some furries at the airport and talked to them (me spontaneously talking to strangers is a rare occurrence), and that made the wait for the first plane more bearable. But wondering whether I'd miss the next plane made me really nervous.   Then on the 2nd plane there was a blackout before take-off, which was scary in itself, and they also had to replace a part of one of the engines and make a live performance of what would otherwise have been the security video, which was lost in the blackout. I found myself praying that nothing bad happened after take-off, which is something I'd never done before, being used to flying in planes since I was a baby. Fortunately nothing did, but a big surprise awaited my return... Snow in Buenos Aires! But that's another story and shall be told another time. Or, rather, has already been told. Check my posts on Clockwork Mansion or TPM for more details. My AC 2007 report is done!! On other notes: hollyannvix has added me as her friend! I'm honored. :) Current Mood: cheerful (9 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, July 2nd, 2007
8:38 am	Ok, no response to my last entry. I'll try another. To those who don't know yet, I'm going on vacation tomorrow and I'll be back on Tuesday morning. I'll be seeing some of you. I'm really looking forward to it, and I want to thank everyone who helped make it possible. Last Saturday's exam was the worst since I've been teaching this subject. It was so bad that we'll have to take 2 make-up exams instead of one. The teacher responsible for it was away, but he sent an e-mail to all the teachers and students to apologize for it, and he's making the new exam now. I've already tested what he's come up with so far and sent him my input. It was an awful situation, being there and having to improvise a solution and tell the students that something was wrong and that we'd had to make some changes on the fly. At least that's over now. On the bright side, I saw "Fantastic Four - Rise of the Silver Surfer" after the exam and I found it to be quite good. Much better than the first one, at any rate. Yesterday I spent the day correcting exams and testing the new one. Today is my last day at work before I leave for AC. I'll be packing, and maybe getting something extra. I think I won't be taking my cell phone with me after all. Getting it to work there would be more trouble than it's worth. Besides, I'm not planning to spend much time alone at AC. I recently judged a literary contest at TPM. It was an enjoyable experience, even if only one of the submissions was good and followed the rules. There was no question about who the winner was. If I have free time soon, I'll try to write something. Maybe on the train. I'm starting to suffer from writing deprivation, which happens whenever I'm way too busy (as in busier than I can handle, which is a lot). If I can write, it'll bring my energy back to peak level. I can't say this about many things, but writing has an even better effect on me than tea does. Of course, drinking tea while writing is the best combination ever! And I'm really looking forward to the tea party. I hope my dog is ok while I'm away, and that she doesn't try to break everything in the house. Current Mood: hopeful (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Saturday, June 16th, 2007
11:37 am	Status update Ok, since I got 3 replies asking mostly about what's going on in my life... and stuff... here it is. Morning job I'm programming a drupal-based tournament organizer, which is still very much in the "make it work" phase. For those who haven't heard of it, I'm referring to one of the mottos of the Smalltalk community which actually applies to any software project regardless of the language: "make it work, make it right, make it fast." For small projects I prefer to do all things at once, but sometimes it gets so complicated that you first need to find a way to make the evil thing do what you want it to do, and then start thinking of a way to do it properly. But it's interesting, and I'm learning a lot about Drupal which could serve me in the future. Teaching job It's as demanding as ever, but I'm enjoying it... for now. I really want to move to another subject next semester. I've been teaching this subject for nearly 7 years! And next semester it's going to change so much that, if you ask me, I don't think it will be the same subject anymore. So if I can't go on teaching the same, it's the best opportunity to start teaching something completely different. I've requested the switch, and I got an offer from Databases, but the professor of the subject I'm currently teaching doesn't want to let me go unless I find a replacement. And I'm having trouble finding one. I really hope I can sort this out soon. Online life If you're reading this, you probably know at least a part of it. I'm doing the same things I always do at the Clockwork Mansion, Tsuyoi's Lair and The Pokemasters forums (by the way, if you don't know these forums, check them out. They're great!), and restarted a little activity on Neopets, but just a little. I'm currently trying to get more people involved in the Dragon Tamers game at TPM. It's a Pokemon-related RPG/collaborative writing project/Game-style battling game with some special rules and all original characters, it's permanently open to everyone and I've been enjoying it for over 5 years and I'll be willing to introduce any new players to it and tell them anything they need to know. It's become quite slow lately and I really don't want it to die, so if anyone out there enjoys writing and can deal with pokemon (the world and its creatures, not the anime), I'll very gladly welcome them into the game. I also want to keep writing Quest of Twelve. If only I had more free time... Other activities I'm going to the Chinese neighbourhood today to buy some vitals and stuff for AC (to those of you awaiting the Banana tea, I'll make sure I get a box today; it's made in Argentina but they don't sell it in my neighbourhood). Then tomorrow I'll go to my dad's place for Father's Day (I find it odd that Father's Day seems to fall on the same day in every country, yet Mother's Day doesn't), and try to return early for the other Father's Day celebration at my grandparents' house. And on Monday, Flag Day, I don't have to work but I have a birthday party far away from home. So it will be a nother long weekend that won't seem long at all. But well, at least I won't be working. ^.^ So... how was that? Current Mood: energetic (Comment on this)
Friday, June 15th, 2007
10:22 am	My first entry, and it's a question! Ok, so I got this LJ account a while ago because I wanted to post to a few webcomic communities, and now several people have added me as a friend. That means they'll be watching my posts... but I had no posts and no plans to make them. This made me think that maybe I should try to put some content in here, and at least shadesfox thinks that would be a good idea. So, the question to all of you who have added me and anyone else who happens to read this, is the following: what would you like me to post in here? Current Mood: curious (4 Comments |Comment on this)