Experiment #4: Photography

Since I just recently dusted off my camera, I wondered if there were any worthwhile pictures I have accumulated over the years and decided that I might as well put up some of my favorite pictures, in no particular order, along with the back story/explanation behind it. If you get too bored reading the explanations, then don't and simply enjoy the pictures. I only put in my little blurbs to practice my writing. These are thumbnails so click on the pictures to get a full sized view of the picture and please feel free to comment on which ones you like the most.......or least.

Door to a Buddhist Temple I used to live by in Seoul, South Korea

#1: For awhile, I lived in an apartment in the middle of a steep hill in Seoul and was always curious about what was on top. After a few months, I finally made a day to see what was up there and found, to my amazement, a full blown Buddhist temple with statues, fountains, and trails. I just recently got my camera and felt like experimenting with the point of focus in a picture (or as my friend called it, "the focused/unfocused" factor). I had the notion of making the view of the door from inside the ring to be unfocused while the closer parts to be intact. I also liked how the picture was dominantly full of bright colors while the door ring was the dullest object while I felt brought more attention to it.

Foliage from the same Buddhist Temple Seoul, South Korea

 #2: Again this is from he Buddhist temple. A friend of mine pointed out how they liked the statue being off-centered and how it brought more character to the picture itself. Again, I liked the color contrast between the plants and the statue, emphasizing the differences between frail, natural beauty and rigid, man made art.

Busan, South Korea

#3: I was asked to formulate an all styles dance team for us to compete the southern city of Busan. We lost the first day but also met a lot of interesting dancers from around the world (mostly Australians and Koreans). We dined, drank, and shared our views/knowledge of dancing as we slowly made our way to the beach to fight the massive crowd of people. After dinner, we found this dog leashed to a table, happily wagging its tail and sniffing about. At the time, I would have preferred a center shot, but now favor it being to the side. 

Buddhist Temple Busan, South Korea

#4: This was at another Buddhist temple, this time in Busan (different trip). To be honest, I tweaked this one a little bit because I wanted to have a silhouette of the dragon statue to give it a more ominous appearance. There were a number of trinkets but the one that stood out to me was the praying scholar/priest who appears to be riding the dragon from this angle.

SkinniDip Portland, Oregon

#5: This was when I recently moved back to the United States and took a trip to Oregon to visit a friend and win a break dance battle. I was happy to be back home and decided to indulge in a lot of sweet delicacies that I usually refrained from in Korea. Maybe it's just my imagination, but the diary products in Korea taste a lot different to me than in the states. As I took this picture, I was unaware that it was going to end up looking like something you'd see in a magazine ad or TV commercial, but there it is in all its fast food glory. 'Merica!

Tacoma, Washington

#6: There's not a whole lot to say about this except it's a green gummi bear. The mixture of the detailed lines of my fingers along with the light shining through the jelly-like texture was what stood out to me the most in this picture. I also like how the backdrop is very bland and out of focus, giving little distraction away from the gummi itself.

B-Boy Battle Evolution Atlanta

#7: The first time I ever traveled to the east side of the United States for a break dancing competition was when I went to Evolution Atlanta. Crews from all over the world: Japan, Korea, Holland, France, Spain, and others all gathered into one big venue to throw down and show their best dance moves. We made it to the quarter finals in the 3on3 segment of the event but I ended up hyper extending my thumb during my last run on the first day, rendering me unable to dance for day two. So I resorted to taking some pictures, this one I considered to be one of my best shots. It was the first time I saw so many people in the audience eager to record the battle with their handheld devices. The point of interest is obviously the stage due to how everyone is enclosed towards it and what I found interesting was the contrast of brightness on stage which entails a bit of mystery in who it is and what exactly he is doing, but everyone is still mesmerized by him.

Pike Place Market Seattle, Washington

#8: Behold the Pike Place Market. A tourist trap of market vendors and fish merchants tossing their wares to and fro. Hence the point of this picture where the dull sign announces its purpose but is easily noticeable is the small fish sign, heading in the direction of its hurlers.

Halloween Performance Tacoma, Washington

 #9: We did a dance performance in downtown Tacoma for some private Halloween party and for some reason they wanted us to be zombies, makes sense. We before the show, we had to prep around an hour or two for make-up consisting of foundation, latex, and glue. This is of one of my friends, Ash, who I considered to have the best turnout out of everyone else.

Houston, Texas

#10: I had an exhibition battle to do in Houston, Texas and my friend, Charles, showed me around town the day before my flight back to Seattle. Charles was telling me about this method of taking pictures of quickly zooming in as the shutter clicked open to give the picture a "warp speed" effect. I found a nice circular, neon clock and tested this new technique to come with satisfactory results.

Tacoma, Washington

#11: "The Garage" in downtown Tacoma is a nice little spot where graffiti artists go to throw up some of their pieces. I was surprised to see how much it has changed and took the opportunity to document this moment. I don't think there is must for me to explain other than the plethora of colors and how the lighting glistens off the paint.

Puyallup, Washington

#12: A few of us wanted to take a stroll in a park and I took the opportunity to bring my camera. Remembering Charles's zoom technique, I decided to test out a hypothesis and adjusted the shutter speed of my camera. As I left my camera on "continuous shot", I pressed the button and spun my camera around. The result was a similar tunnel effect bu with the lines blurring in an inside circular fashion as opposed to blurring towards/away from the center. Thus forcing the focus on my friends walking through the park close to the center.

Yellowstone National Park

#13: We saw a tree stump that looked like a face. I thought it was funny. The End

Experiment #3/Game Review

          I decided to take a break from storytelling and wanted to try my hand at reviewing games. I originally wanted to write a review for Fable 3 but since there are a lot of co-op online features that I don't have access to, I figured it wouldn't be a very complete review. So I went to the next game in my possession. At the risk of sounding repetitive: Comments, suggestions, and critiques are greatly appreciated. I would love to hear some feedback so I know the pros and cons of this article. I would even appreciate an honest comment like "I didn't finish reading it because I got bored". Thank you again for your time, and an extra special thank you if you manage to read all the way through it.

Fallout: New Vegas

Story:

Benny and members of the Great Khans

            You are literally thrown in media res of a conspiracy that will ultimately decide the fate of New Vegas. As soon as you are able to move, you are given the freedom to explore the Mojave wasteland through multiple angles. Throughout the game, you will run into smaller factions such as the Boomers, Great Khans, Brotherhood of Steel, and others who will ask you for your help. The stakes will rise once you set foot in New Vegas and the three major factions ask you for your help in claiming the Hoover Dam, the only stable power source in all of the Mojave. Should you pledge your loyalty to the Romanesque Legion of Caesar, an army of cold blooded killers who wish nothing more than to conquer and enslave? Perhaps working with the National Republic of California (NCR) by helping them police and regulate the land? Or becoming the right hand man to the reclusive guardian of New Vegas, Robert House, who carries a secret agenda of liberating New Vegas.

Design:

           

             Survival is the theme of this game and the post-apocalyptic wasteland does nothing less than emphasize it. You will find yourself traveling long distances, hopping from town to town like a true wanderer with your trusty Pip-Boy to keep track of the your stats, inventory, quests, and GPS. It’s no wonder that one of the many traits your character can invest is titled “Survival” where you must scrounge for any source of sustenance. This not only allows the player to regain hit points per second (HP/S) depending on how many points are invested in it, but also also allows you to make campfire recipes to improve the quality of the food you consume.  Although this may seem like a trivial trait, it is quite effective in the new hardcore feature which adds a bit more realism by including a hydration, food, and sleep meter to your stats which you will continuously need to keep an eye on. Players will thoroughly enjoy the epic climb to the top from scrounging for mole meat to dining on fine wines and throwing their caps around at the numerous casinos.

Behold the Centaur!

            Not only are there plenty of drug fiends and gangs running amok, there is also a plethora of wild mutated creatures from two headed cows to man sized geckos to radiation induced abominations called “Centaurs”. Whether you’re cracking a Legionnaire’s skull with a fatal melee blow or sniping an NCR Ranger in the far off distance, you have the luxury of pillaging their bodies for any notable loot which you can sell to traders in order to improve your odds of survival.

 New Vegas has not only put some particular traits like “Speech” to more use, but other traits and stats have the chance to influence alternative choices along with your reputation in each faction. The complexity reputation goes much farther than being good or bad; siding with one faction can lead to another hating you and some quests disappearing. For better or worse, your choices will ultimately determine the fate of the Mojave and the individual people you meet. Quests and side quests alike have multiple outcomes which will occasionally put you in the fork in the road where each decision results in its own ramifications.

One such scenario

 Gameplay:

V.A.T.S in use.

            The combat system contains the a mixture of mechanics of a traditional first person shooter, where a player must aim their shorts manually, along with cinematic stat based attacks utilized by Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System (V.A.T.S) to target an enemy's arms, legs, chest, or head. The difference between firing off two to four shots at a time in V.A.T.S can be determined by the amount of action points you have which recharges over time.

Rex, ever loyal.

            Companions of all shapes and sizes can help keep you company and watch your back in some tight situations depending on how you tweak you “companion wheel”, a special interface that helps you manage the behavior of your companion along with other features. Speaking of features, “fast travel” helps break the monotony and time consumption of backtracking by instantly taking you to a previously explored location.

Presentation:

Too familiar?

            New Vegas is not necessarily a sequel, but another story of the Fallout world. The game engine can easily be recognized as the same as Fallout 3, leaving nothing really new to offer. The autosave in the game is actually a vital necessity thanks to the many bugs and glitches residing in the game itself. You will easily become angry at the sight of a frozen loading screen and parts of the map that you will fall through the floor of.

            The soundtrack of New Vegas is quality that fits perfectly with the theme of a classic Vegas. Wayne Newton’s voice makes a guest appearance through a radio station called, “Radio New Vegas”, which plays music reminiscent of a Vegas from another time; other notable actors such as Matthew Perry, Ron Perlman, and Felicia Day also lend their voices. This combined with the dynamic sound effects of explosions, beeps, and plasma blasts results in high quality audio that should not be overlooked.

Pro:

            Whether you have played previous installments of the Fallout series or not, New Vegas is an easy game to immerse yourself into. Aside from the glitches, Bethesda did a good job in creating a unique world chock full of things to do. The variety of weapons are surprisingly plentiful in the wasteland along with plenty of enemies to test them on. There is plenty of replay value not only to try your hand at the hardcore mode, but also to complete the quests over and over again with the many alternative choices which helps determine the fate of the Mojave after completing the main quests.

Con:

            The bugs and glitches have already been mentioned several times but it is a point that cannot be stressed enough for a game that was highly anticipated amongst dedicated fans. Although New Vegas was well put together, it is almost too similar to Fallout 3. Hopefully if they decide to make another Fallout game, it won’t seem so much as a rehash as a whole new gaming experience to enjoy.

Enjoy.

*Disclaimer: Due to my lack of equipment, I was unable to provide my own pictures of Fallout: New Vegas so all images you see here were "borrowed" from the internet. 

Experiment #2/Short Story

I attempted to take the sound advice of one of my friends and decided to write about some of my recent dreams involving high school and zombies. Again I haven't really spent much proofreading on this in order to remind everyone that I give myself a time limit on how much I'm supposed to be working on this so if you spot any grammatical errors, don't be shy in pointing them out. I will post how I feel about this piece at the end in order to let the readers make their own judgement on it. Again, honest critiques are greatly appreciated, if you're feeling generous, even a "pros and cons" bit as well.

Experiment #2

            Three students sat in the middle of the classroom. Up against the door was a makeshift blockade of the teacher’s finely polished mahogany desk laid wedged against the door and a pile of chairs. The faint buzz of the fluorescent lights emanated the room as the three students continued to stare at each other in a brooding triangular fashion.

            “Oh god, I’m late!!” blurted out Carl as he shot up and ran towards the barricaded door.

            “Carl wait!” Mark tackled him to the ground and pinned him down. “What on earth do you think you’re doing?!”

            “I have to get to my third period physics class!” said Carl, “If I don’t turn in my report by the end of the period, Miss Newton will flunk me!” He continued to try to break free from Mark’s hold.

“Did you forget what just happened out there?! Thanks to that gas, Miss Newton is either dead or a zombie!”

“Let me go, Mark! I can’t fail this class!”

Sara appeared next to Mark as they both peered down at the struggling Carl, “This is for your own good,” she said then swung her hand across his face. The slapping sound of colliding skin pierced through the ambient buzzing, leaving everyone at a standstill.

A sharp, hot pain branched across Carl’s face as he looked at his two friends towering above him. “We’re going to die.” He answer was in the form of another sharp slap across his face.

“Mark, stop!” Sara pushed him off of Carl.

Mark shrugged his shoulders, innocently, “I thought another would make him a little more optimistic,”

“If you’re so concerned with moral,” said Sara, “why don’t you go look for the radio?”

“Radio?”

“Mr. Olson would sometimes play music on his radio during class,” she pointed to the other side of the room, “I think he kept it in that storage cabinet.”

“I’m not sure how much of a difference music is going to make for us, but okay. It’s better than sitting around in silence,” said Mark.

Carl sat up and looked at the door then at Sara. “What’s going to happen to us?”

Crackling static interrupted their conversation as Mark adjusted the knob of the radio.

After a few seconds, Sara heard something coherent. “Wait!” she said, “turn back a little bit.” Mark complied to find a clear channel of a man giving an announcement. “Turn it up.”

Everyone concentrated on the radio as a scratchy voice blurted through the speakers. “Although the military has taken control of the situation by enacting a quarantine. They fear the possibility of containment would be impossible; if one infected were to run loose outside of the city, it could lead to another outbreak such as this one. We have received information that the military is running a mission titled, ‘Operation: Salvage’. All radio stations, along with this one, has been instructed to inform any survivors to go climb the highest structure they could find in order for rescue helicopters to find you and pick you up. I repeat…”

“Did you hear that? They’re sending choppers out,” said Mark.

            “No!” cried Mark, “Too many zombies outside! It’s safer just staying in here!”

            Sara hushed them both as the radio announcement continued, “…after the rescue phase is completed, the second phase of the operation is to strategically drop multiple bombs onto the city, vaporizing any sign of previous existence of infected and uninfected alike. For any survivors out there still listening to this, you have only one hour until the rescue phase is terminated. I repeat…”

            “They’re going to bomb the city regardless of survivors?!” asked Carl.

            Sara stood up. “We have to go to the school library. It’s the only two story building around here.”

            “You can’t be serious!” said Carl, “That’s on the other side of the school grounds!”

            “Not to mention how narrow the hallways are in that building,” said Mark.

            “It’s either that,” Sara pointed up, “or wait for the bombs to drop on us.”

The room returned to its buzzing ambience as everyone stood there in silence, brooding over a decision they already knew they had to make. Without a word, Mark walked over and took one of the chairs off the pile and slammed it against the ground. Splinters of wood flew off of it as Mark grunted to pry off a long, sturdy piece. He gave it a few test swings and gave a nod to them both. “No time to waste then.”

After Carl and Sara followed Mark’s examples with the chairs, they all removed the barricade, save for the mahogany desk. This was it, behind that door trudged hordes of zombified students and faculty members. What was normally a simple five minute walk through the commons was now an expedition to their only chance of living through another day.

Sara reviewed the plan with everyone.“We run out this building as fast as we can and wait to go into the library together. Got it?”

They complied and dragged the desk away while she held onto the door knob.

She squeezed her weapon as she gave the doorknob a faint twist. “Let’s go.” She swung the door open to reveal a hallway peppered with groaning, docile zombies.

Carl caught sight of one of them and instantly recognized her, shouting “Miss Newton?!” causing all the zombies to curve their heads at the three students.

In all honesty, I don't really like this piece I wrote. But the point of these experiments is for me to post up whatever comes to my mind. There is no real goal in the short story, no real suspense or struggle other than what is explained outside of the scene itself. The characters were bland and two dimensional, making it hard for me to convince the reader to really care about them at all. For my next writing, I will try to have a story to make up for this and hopefully make it complete.

I am juggling with the idea of writing for one story, but releasing bits of it once a week. Is that something readers would be interested in?

Experiment #1/Short Story

Ever since I finished participating in NaNoWriMo, I have been brainstorming to find new excuses to express my creativity a little more. As a result, I have decided for the next few weeks, I will do my best to submit one piece of work (whether it be a video, writing, photography, etc.) a week to keep my motivation going. Another reason for me to do this is also to get used to having people reading and critiquing my ideas since I am usually quite apprehensive about my work. I still have much to learn in writing so honest opinions and suggestions are greatly appreciated. Don't hold back.

For my first week, I decided to try my hand in freestyle writing. I've only proofread this once and didn't really do much editing on it. This is my attempt in starting a story "in medias res" and trying to have a reader have an idea of the back story involving it.

Experiment #1

            Rocks sprayed down the mountain as Lan slipped against the rocky terrain. He gave a hearty thanks to his anxiety fueled reflexes as he clung on to a protruding rock. After regaining his footing, he climbed up and rolled onto a nearby ledge where his partner stood facing him with his wide stance and his hands resting on his hips. His over enthusiastic companion peered down the cliff to measure how far they have climbed while his hair flared behind him from the wind, roaring defiantly through their ears.

Lan remained sprawled out on the ground like a throw rug. “How much more do we have to climb, Cole?” he asked between wheezes of air.

            Cole stood firm as he flipped a map out and unfolded it. “According to the map, we’re done climbing.”

            “Really?” Lan sat up with delight. “So we’re finally here?!”

            Cole let out a single, “Ha!” as he stuffed the map back in his pocket. He slid his legs to readjust into dramatically pointing at a cave. “Now we must traverse this cave.” He twirled around and thrust his open hand to Lan’s less than eager face. “Come now, Lan. It is time to spelunk!”

            “I’m never going on another mission with you again,” said Lan as Cole helped him up. “What’s so special about this girl anyways?”

            “She was the Collectives top marksman…errr markswoman. But don’t let her appearance fool you, she can be one powerful ally…or adversary.”

            Lan wiped the sweat from his face with the handkerchief from his dad. “A lot of hard work got soaked into that rag” was what his dad said when he gave it to Lan. Hard work isn’t really on my to-do list, thought Lan as he shoved it back into his pocket. “Let’s get this over with,” he said, marching towards the cave.

            “Hold on there, high step.” Cole hopped in his way. “You can’t just sha-shay your way into Artemis Tell’s home, unannounced.”

            Lan gave him a strange look. Cole was never one to miss a chance to rush into danger in a blaze of glory. “Why not?”

            “Surprising a marksman is already a bad idea. But she also lives up here for a reason, she isn’t too fond of people.”

            “I thought you two went way back. Wouldn’t she be happy to see you?” asked Lan.

            “We do, but we didn’t really end on the friendliest of terms.”

            Lan cocked his eyebrow, “Is that as bad as it sounds to me?”

            “No more questions!” snapped Cole. “Artie isn’t…”

            Shrapnel of rock erupted between them, followed with a high pitched ping. Lan yelped as he fell back from the sudden barrage and scrambled to his feet only to be shushed by his guardian.

            Cole’s whole body kept completely still, save for her eyes that darted around their surroundings and lips. “Don’t move,” he remained a statue as his eyes examined the smoking rock in front of him, “Guess we don’t have to worry about surprising her anymore…”

            The sound of metal sliding against metal echoed out of the cave followed by the clatter of a metal shell. They remained frozen as Cole stared into the cave in the corner of his eyes.

            “There’s only one man I know that still has the audacity to call me Artie and he knows all too well that I only miss on purpose,” boomed a voice from the cave.

            Cole’s neck pivoted to get a better view of the cave “Is that you Artemis?”

            “Cole Bridges,” hissed the voice, “Last time I saw you was through the crosshairs of my scope.”

            “And I still to this day give thanks that you held your fire,” Cole clasped his hands together in prayer.

            Her response was echoed out the cave in the form of sliding metal. Lan’s sweat pushed through his forehead and trickled down his face as his entire body tensed up. This was exactly why he wanted to avoid doing missions with Cole.

            “Wait!” shouted Lan. “Don’t shoot us! Michael sent us!”

            “Michael?” said the voice. The wind whistled through the hardened sediment as a girl half his size holding a gun twice her size. “What does Michael want?”

Lan was too shocked to answer immediately, his brain having trouble comprehending a girl with such a delicate frame being able to hold such a large gun.

She rested the gun over her shoulder and continued, “Come in, let’s discuss this over tea.”

            Cole unfroze and started to walk over to her. “Oh thank goodness, for a second there…” He was interrupted another explosion of rocks next to his feet.

            “You stay where you are!” said Artemis, staring down her scope, “I haven’t decided to forgive you yet.” Her demeanor changed as she turned to Lan. “Come now young man, we have much to discuss”

            “Young man?” thought Lan, “I look twice her age.” He walked inside…

United by One

The phrase, "United we stand" has been used numerous times in history to rally people together; it can make the cries of impoverished and hungry heard, voice the desires and dreams of a new generation, and show the support of a community. This unity reveals an asset in human beings that is so powerful yet so easily overlooked due to our inability to physically grasp it: connection. With unity accumulating the masses towards a mutual goal, it is easy to overlook the fact that such an assembly can originate from one single person.

So how does one become hundreds? Thousands? Millions? Although intangible, an idea can leave a strong influence on people; it can change or reinforce a person's beliefs. But as influential as an idea can be, it is simply just that: an idea. That's where that one person comes in, to take this idea and take action to find others to connect with it. That one person tells another person about it, then those two people tell two others, then those four, etc. creating a chain reaction that is almost impossible to stop from spreading; soon the whole city will know about it.

This idea of uniting others to one idea through one person is not a recent discovery. Think of a major historical event around the world and more than likely you can put a face to it. Those people probably weren't the first to think of the ideals they stood for but they certainly were the ones that helped unite others to fight for it alongside them. I'm sure you have a lot of ideas running around in your own head, some just waiting for you to take action. So my question to you is this: Are you that one person?

"Identity can be defined as the condition of being oneself and not another."

  

           When asked for our identification, there are numerous procedures in order to ensure companies and organizations that we are who we claim we are: A driver’s license, social security number, mother’s maiden, etc. We live in an age where our family history and ethnic backgrounds are filed and stored into an intricate combination of numbers. With all the research and studies we have done in order to diagnose and catalog people into groups and personality traits, there is still one question that we, as human beings, still struggle to answer: “Who am I?” Unfortunately, there is no absolute answer; each is as unique as the person that asks it. Inherently, it confronts the never ending struggle of identity.

             Identity can be defined as the condition of being oneself and not another. There are many ways to reveal a person’s self. One can be whether a person desires individuality or conformity. Those that seek individuality may search for their identity through their own methods that can be considered unconventional. Those that seek conformity may find safety in numbers by searching for their identity through the locally accepted norm in order to find a mold that best fits them.

              Although this is a very important characteristic to consider, it is only one piece of a complex puzzle which helps determine someone’s identity. One piece by itself does not define much but fit together with other traits and characteristics helps reveal a clearer picture of someone’s identity.

              There is no right or wrong between these two choices; finding one’s identity should not be the pursuit of finding the right answer, but to embrace the answer as a truth. Numbers should not determine who we are nor should superficial classifications especially since each of our identities are so profound and unique.

Comfort Food - Short Story

I swung the door open with a bell jingling to my arrival. A few heads glanced back to see who was coming into our quiet little town’s roadside diner. Most of them went back to their eating while one or two of them nudged the person next to them, whispering. But that was all going to change, soon they would have something else to whisper about. All I cared about at that time was to satisfy a craving I have had for a long time. I made my way over to a booth and sat down into the plush cushy seating, wincing at the sharp pain coming from my rib cage. 

In mid-approach, I wasn’t sure if the waitress was either taken aback by who she was about to serve or the still pulsing bruise on my cheek. She continued making her way to me with an obvious discomfort “What can I get you?”  I tried to ignore her all but friendly attitude “What kind of Sundaes do you have?” 

“What was that?“ she leaned over closer to me “You’re going to have to speak up a little bit”

I begrudgingly repeated myself and she briefly paused to digest my question. I knew that pause, she was trying to figure me out. Just like the rest them, she gave up “We have regular, strawberry, and a banana split special” 

Just what I was hoping for “I’ll have a banana split” 

After a quick jot in her notepad and an “Alright then” she left, turned her tension away from me, and went to submit my order. 

Even with my head turned, gazing out the window, I knew people were keeping an eye on me. I knew that conversations shifted towards me. Always gossiping but never lifting a finger. It would have been a lot better if they just ignored me. At least that‘s one thing my Mother was good at doing.

“Here you go young man” my sundae slid in front of me.

“Finally” I thought to myself “a banana split sundae of my own“ A special treat someone went out of the way to make just for me. I overheard someone at school talk about how he had one for his birthday and how delicious every bite was.

Before I could grab my spoon the waitress placed her hand on my arm “Maybe you should wash your face before you eat” she gestured at my bruise “Some cool water might reduce the swelling” 

I glared at her wanting to tell her to mind her own business but I didn’t want to risk causing trouble, not with my sweet dessert so close to me. I complied and made my way to the restroom. The cool water splashing on my face felt good, refreshing. I looked in the mirror and realized how noticeable it really was. Afterwards, I sat back down and she nodded “There we go, I’m sure your mother" she hesitated at the word "would feel better knowing that cleaned up before eating” 

Mine would be too busy nursing a bottle to ever bother with me. I took my first spoonful and savored the sweet combination of flavors exciting my taste buds. Delicious, just like what that kid said. She was probably still in a drunken stupor, unaware of what just happened in her own house. Mmmm, strawberry jam mixed with vanilla. It wasn‘t the first time she heard banging and slamming from the next room. She never once tried to stop him. Next was the banana drizzled in chocolate syrup. Then again, he probably would have started swinging at her. Better me than her I guess. I dug into my sundae. He got what he deserved. When he wasn’t busy hitting me, he would rant about how I was just another reason things never went his way. Another bite. He was hitting me harder than usual. I actually heard one of my ribs crack. Another bite. I was so scared, I didn’t want to die. Another bite. So glad I kept that knife in my room. It was either him or me. Another bite. The blood trickled down the blade onto my hand. Another bite. No more hitting, no more yelling. Just heavy breathing with a craving.

“Young man?” I felt that same hand on my arm in mid scoop “Is something the matter?”

Just then I realized that my sundae was gone and I felt warm tears trailing down my face. I licked my lips inside my mouth to recall my last bite but failed to taste anything. “Can I get another one, please?“ Before she could reply back, she suddenly darted her eyes outside in shock. I didn’t even have to look back, I knew exactly what it was even without turning my head. The strobe of red and blue lights pierced through the diner windows. “Would it be possible to have it to go?”

Author's Note: I originally thought about writing something referring to the Barefoot Bandit, who I recently heard got caught. I did some research on some of his family background and then some. Eventually, I kept having an image of a traumatized boy desperately reaching out for a childhood experience. Since it's been quite hot lately, ice cream was the most refreshing thing that kept popping up in my head while writing this. In all honesty this is the first time I attempted to write something a bit darker so I'm sure it has quite a bit of faults. Not one of my best works but something I wrote nonetheless. Critical critique and blunt responses are appreciated. Thank you

Yellowstone National Park

Revered for it’s wildlife and landscape since the Lewis and Clark expedition, Yellowstone National Park continues to contain it’s natural environment. I generously thank Ferdinand V. Hayden, an American geologist, for the hardworking effort in convincing congress to make Yellowstone the first national park in the world which I had the opportunity to visit recently. Some would believe that they could experience the awe inducing wonders of the park with a click of an internet link but High Definition pales in comparison to the actually setting foot there.

Since I am accustomed to the hustle and bustle of the city, I was in for quite a change of scenery. I was free from the distraction of wi-fi hotspots and phone reception so that I could gaze upon the such glorious geological formations like the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. It’s hard to believe that so much natural beauty can be considered “natural” at all. The foundation of vibrant colors between lush plant life and rocky terrain are complemented by the brilliant formations around the park. Surveying the naked land will make you wonder why we litter the it with buildings and other monstrosities. I am starting to understand why artists would spend so much time painting one specific scene.

Knowing how meticulous a painter in his acrylic scented studio slowly counts his brush strokes on his masterpiece work, it’s no surprise that a park so full of vibrant colors took thousands of years for the Earth to create with the fresh Wyoming air mixing with the  pungent smell of sulfur and other deposits from the geothermal activities far beneath the park. It goes without saying that the ceremonial viewing of Old Faithful’s calculated eruption is a mandatory experience to behold. It is a bit unsettling to know that reports show that the geyser is becoming progressively weaker and does not spout as high as it used it. Since there are a good amount of springs and geysers around the park, it’s hard to determine which ones to go out your way for and stopping at all of them can end up becoming tedious. One that I recommend that you just can’t miss, aside from Old Faithful obviously, is the Norris Geyser Basin. The acidic based water within the basin helps encourages a particular bacterial growth and algae growth which can be distinguished between the various colors of the basin. The listening to the pulsing heartbeat of gurgling geysers caused me to reflect on how alive the Earth can appear to with natural wonders like these.
Coexisting with the heated bubbling water are the many wild animals roaming freely around the park. It is important to remember that we (humans) are the visitors in their natural homeland and we should remember to exercise caution and respect during our visit. Noticing all the telephoto lenses and animals from afar, I realized how ill prepared I was with my basic zoom lens. Luckily we had the misfortune to have a few up close encounters with the iconic wildlife in Yellowstone. The most memorable was a herd of buffalo grazing around the road near the Dragon’s Mouth Mud Volcano. One buffalo literally walked next to the car. I would have taken a picture but I admit that I was worried the sound of the shutter of my camera right next to buffalo would have agitated it.

Another encounter was in the form of a black bear foraging for food downhill from the road. I was filled with a mixture of fascination and fear with each step I took towards the bear who was ignoring a group of us shutter happy tourists. The self reassuring fact that I was more fit then most of the people in the spontaneously formed group, meaning I could at least outrun them if the bear decided to charge us, was what ultimately allowed my legs to move closer to the Ursus americanus. I consider myself very fortunate to be able to look into the very eyes of the these untamed beasts especially on a two day trip.
If I ever get the chance to return to Yellowstone, I shall be more prepared with a variety of lenses along with accurate information on the local hang out spots of the many other animals around the park.

I’m sure there are more astounding shots floating around the internet, but I take a lot of pride in the pictures I have taken. It is a testimony to my experience traversing the raw environment. I waded knee high in the Yellowstone River. I stood ten feet away from a hungry bear. I walked the same sun beaten trail that trappers and explorers from long ago helped create. I felt the cool spray of geyser water. Returning back to city, I start to question how many people will ever get to experience a fraction of what I have at Yellowstone National Park.

A Pilgrimage of 1-Ups and Evil Exes

His hair's a little shaggy...

When I first saw the trailer to Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, I was enticed with a sneak peek of video game-esque special effects, colorful characters, and a simple storyline of young love which I later learned is based off of a comic book. What I actually got at the pre-screening was a blast of epic nonstop action, hilarity, and a whole lot of “WTF is going on?!?!” lost in a fit of laughter. Right from the beginning of this movie, I was at full alert trying to absorb video game references, characters with dynamically relatable personalities, and punch lines. Yes I am fully aware that my first three sentences all contain serial commas which is exactly what my brain was listing in every scene. I really don’t have anything to negatively say about this movie. Some could complain about the cast not being Hollywood enough. I say it allowed them to play with their characters more which made them more relatable as human beings. I can confidently say that this movie has somehow revamped the sentimental sub-culture of adolescence and garage punk gamers to create it’s style of humor and story-telling that I‘m sure other films will soon attempt to follow.

Just one glance at the lanky Scott Pilgrim makes you wonder how in the world he would stand a chance. I’ll admit, the actors/actresses aren’t the sexiest or most visually stunning people to look at. But I considered that a major plus in this movie. Each character stood out from one another and let you know right away their significance in the movie, even actors/actresses with the least amount of screen time were able to leave a powerful impact with their own unique style of speaking and interaction with the unrealistically outlandish video game influenced world they were in.

Cross counter!

Although I was unaware of the plethora of video game implications, whether it be subtle or full blown in your face “KOs”, I should have already had an idea what to expect with the first shot starting with an 8-bit version of the Universal Pictures opening. It wasn’t just one genre of action/adventure most would expect a video game influenced movie dabbled in, there were also RPG, guitar battling, and fighting elements as well. After watching each Ex heavily playing on a these genres, my appreciation for the almighty quarter has been renewed. I should not forget to mention the comic book style narration and presentations of "Thonk"s, "KROWW"s and ":O" Ranging from pee meters to Vegan psychics, I became thoroughly stimulated with the special effects the production team provided.

Speaking of which, just the production line-up itself should have indicated what to expect. The writer and director of previous memorable films, “Shaun of the Dead” and “Hot Fuzz”, Edgar Wright, coupled with the cinematographer of the Matrix series and “Army of Darkness”, Bill Pope, clearly left their impression of “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” with quirky quick cut dialogues bouncing around with back and forth point of views and pop up style visual comments allowed me to feel like the “quiet guy in the back of the group”, viewing all the inside jokes and mishaps that most people usually wouldn’t be aware of. I quite honestly can only remember half of the what was said in the movie due to the massively overwhelming stimulation of laughter I was experiencing, already giving me the perfect excuse to watch the movie again to rediscover the other half that.

Dare I risk over hyping this movie with such a praising review? It’s possible I could have been distracted by so many things happening at once like riding a high speed rollercoaster while reading a comic book. Regardless I can’t help but express my appreciation towards this movie on multiple accounts. This movie makes me want to get out there and epically seize whatever goals and dreams I want to achieve in my life. Whether button mashing my way towards a raise at work, solving a puzzle to unlock a new car, maybe even give in towards the temptation of using a cheat code. Without a doubt, I’m going to go watch this movie again probably even go buy the comic book it’s originally based off of simply because I lesbian it.