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Welcome to the Dream Incarnate
Hey there. I'm James.
This is a journal about me.
Here, you will find fanfiction, random things I have found on the internet, various life posts (many of them f-locked) and other stuff.
I am the moderator - and currently only contributor - of the Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts music arranging community,![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif)
ff_kh_arrange. Please stop by and listen to my works when you get the chance. :D
As far as LJ friends are concerned, I don't really have any kind of policy. If I recognise your name, great! If I don't, still great! A nice intro post would be much appreciated, eg. "Hi, I'm [name] from [community/place]. [Blah blah blah]. Thanks!" will do.
If you're visiting from the outside world and you're not familiar with livejournal, read this.
1. To read my most recent entries, which is where you are now, click "dream today" above.
2. To find an entry sorted by date, click "dream yesterday".
3. To read entries posted by my friends and communities I'm watching, click "dream of you".
4. To read my profile, click "dream of me".
5. To view my memories - or favourited posts - click "the dream relived".
6. To read entries sorted by tag, click the tag you want (to the left, below the ads) or click "tags" to view the tags page.
Thanks for visiting!
~HM
This is a journal about me.
Here, you will find fanfiction, random things I have found on the internet, various life posts (many of them f-locked) and other stuff.
I am the moderator - and currently only contributor - of the Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts music arranging community,
ff_kh_arrange. Please stop by and listen to my works when you get the chance. :DAs far as LJ friends are concerned, I don't really have any kind of policy. If I recognise your name, great! If I don't, still great! A nice intro post would be much appreciated, eg. "Hi, I'm [name] from [community/place]. [Blah blah blah]. Thanks!" will do.
If you're visiting from the outside world and you're not familiar with livejournal, read this.
1. To read my most recent entries, which is where you are now, click "dream today" above.
2. To find an entry sorted by date, click "dream yesterday".
3. To read entries posted by my friends and communities I'm watching, click "dream of you".
4. To read my profile, click "dream of me".
5. To view my memories - or favourited posts - click "the dream relived".
6. To read entries sorted by tag, click the tag you want (to the left, below the ads) or click "tags" to view the tags page.
Thanks for visiting!
~HM
Physics - 110/121 = 91%
Chemistry - 118/123 = 96%
*contented sigh*
- feeling...:
YES
I have finished Year 11! :D :D :D
I'll tell you my final grades when I get them, should be a couple of weeks.
Bad news:
In order that I get to 50,000 words for NaNo, I'll have to write more than 3,000 words a day. Not going to happen. Thus, I am now aiming for 30,000 - double what I have now. I'm not going to finish (not even close) but NaNo will be a foot in the proverbial door.
I will win! I will win! Vinceeeeeeeeeeeeeero!!!
Nessun Dorma, if you were wondering. :D
Other news:
Now that I have no school, I can continue x-posting my fics to
arcanum_hm and post my final, final arrangements to ff_kh_arrange.These are my thoughts, in chronological order.
- Multiple choice ftw! All seems easy.
- Oh God I hope my calculator is working properly
- Yes, I can answer these questions...
- ...CRAP. Short answer questions on stoichiometry.
- I dropped my scribble paper and it is this close to my outstretched foot, but the dumbass teacher (with a not-so-subtle Swedish accent) misinterpreted my whispering as "No, it's okay, leave it" rather than "Yes, give it to me, I need it to draw on".
- Ohshitwhataretheequationsfortheformation
anddestructionofozone - It's okay, I don't need them.
- ...I hate this exam.
- Eine Kleine Nachtmusik. Of all the pieces to get in my head...
- ...and now the teacher thinks my tabletop-piano-playing is probably a neurological condition.
- Yes, onto organic chemistry! Time to break out the pencil to draw up these formulae.
- WTF WE DID NOT LEARN THAT IN CLASS
- ...FOR SRS, SCHOBES (my teacher), WRY YOU NO TEACH US "REFLUXING SULPHURIC ACID IN 1-PROPANOL" EQUATIONS
- One hour to go and I'm done! Just need to check it through.
- *five minutes later* Okay, this is boring.
- FREEDOM, BITCHES, THE EXAM IS OVER
- Opening line: "Once upon a time, Cinderella got revenge."
- I hate this teacher that is supervising us. I haven't even had her, ever, but I instantly hate her.
- Wow, nice choices for inspiration. I'll take "The blue box" for 400, thanks.
- 1000 words maximum? Good luck.
- *twenty minutes later* So, I'm typing at 30wpm. No wonder NaNo's so hard.
- 600 words later and nary a climax. WTF.
- 1100 words. Shit. Editing time! *print*
- Okay, I seem to be adding more words than I subtract.
- Down to 1060! Yes!
- Crap, running out of time.
- Ellie, I love your jellybeans, and that is not a metaphor.
- Ten minutes left, still on 1060. Quickly remove extraneous words... and... done, right on the end. Print. Save. Done.
Only three exams to go! Maths (x2) and Physics.
Physics exam on Monday and I have one lesson left tomorrow.
I'm really scared I'll crash and burn. Please, f-list, if you know anything about stoichiometry or momentum, I could really use your help.
Also, screw NaNo, I'm no good at it. *depressed*
- feeling...:
Bleh.
If you could provide some sort of canon source, that would be great, otherwise hearty discussion is encouraged.
Here goes:
- Are Occuria gods? That is, is there some sort of religion or spirituality associated with them?
- What is the extent to the Occuria's power? Are they omnipotent or is their power finite and bounded?
- Are they corporeal, that is, do they have a body made up of matter?
- Are Occuria immortal, that is, can they die?
- Why did the Occuria (except for Venat) flee to Giruvegan? Did they create Giruvegan before or after they fled?
- Why does the Great Crystal exist? Is it the source of Mist, or does the Sun-Cryst take that title, or is there some other unexplained phenomena?
- Occuria speak a specific way. I've read that their speech is a form of Received Pronounciation (RP), which is apparently the "proper" way of speaking traditional English. I've also read that Venat speaks a particular meter. Are these statements true? (Obviously I won't have to worry about RP seeing as you don't hear them speak when reading, duh.)
- Now, specifically looking at Venat and Cid, is their relationship parasitic or symbiotic? In other words, was it as good for Cid as it was for Venat? (NO, THAT'S NOT WHAT YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO THINK.) Also, was Venat controlling Cid's actions and thoughts, or was Venat like a sort of invisible assistant?
- Seeing as Cid was defeated on top of the Pharos, I take it Venat fled and went to become a part of Vayne. When Venat and Vayne fused to become The Undying, and when The Undying died ironically, did Venat die along with Vayne, or did Venat flee also?
- feeling...:
contemplative
2. MY ENORMOUS ARRANGING ASSIGNMENT IS ALL DONE AND HANDED UP!!!
3. 358/2 Days is still a fantastic game!
4. I'm almost ready for exams in two weeks time!
5. Exclamation marks!!
6. Are really freakin' awesome!!!
7. Go back to #2!!!
8. No, really, a semester's worth of work is done and dusted and I don't have to rock up to school on Wednesdays until 10:30am!!! Prime time to write for NaNo!!
9. Not to mention this is all of next year's work I completed in half a year!! So next year I'll only have to deal with four "academic" subjects and then music, which is just really rocking up to class, pretending to practice, and probably catching up with other work!!
10. I love calculus!!
11. ........!!!
- feeling...:
Bouncing off the walls
I'm on day 18 right now. The controls took a little getting used to and levelling up takes woefully long, but OMG it could be early PS1 graphics. I'm utterly in awe.
- feeling...:
amused
For a school project (my FF and KH musical arrangements, which you might have seen on ff_press or kh_press in recent weeks), I'm making a short video for my analysis. Do you have any idea how boring explaining modulations are? Like, seriously? I'd rather discuss knitting patterns.
What I'd like to have in the video is some pictures of certain FFX media, and footage from the game itself.
Specifically, if anyone could get me the following, I would be forever grateful and I will make some kind of gift in return, either fic or music.
1. Good quality, large, pictures of the Squaresoft and Square-Enix logos, the three composers of the FFX soundtrack (Uematsu, Hamauzu, Nakano), the soundtrack cover itself, and the cover of the game and any relevant promotional art for the game
2. Footage of the battle with S. Omnis showing the multi-elemental attacks the enemy offers, and also its Ultima spell, while the whole party retaliates with flashy overdrives and summons. The post-battle scene would also be nice
3. Footage of any and all high-res CGI movies within the game, eg. entering Bevelle by skating on cables, the romantic scene in Macalania Woods, any scenes with Sin
4. Any of this either emailed to me (email's on my profile page) or appropriate links in a comment to this post
I'm away on holiday this coming week so I won't be able to access my LJ until Saturday 4th October, but the entire project is due only four weeks after that.
Timely delivery of this media will be rewarded with the fic or musical arrangement of your choice.
Thank you, so, so much!!
Rating: 4/5
For: Excellent subplots, wordplay, deftly executed religious themes, intriguing and enthralling even at the worst of times
Against: Messy plot, one-dimensional characters at times, not sufficiently different from The Da Vinci Code or Angels and Demons, inanely short chapters
Dan Brown's fifth mainstream novel, and the third featuring Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon, is like a train wreck. Messy, a little difficult to comprehend, but you simply cannot tear your eyes away from the twisted metal. I must be a very sad person but this book is now most definitely a favourite. Sure, the plot is a little messy and the main characters (Robert, Katherine, Peter, Sato) are little one-dimensional (why is Robert still the knight in shining tweed? Still?) but everything just pulls together with brilliant cohesion and I'm loving how Brown writes the sub-plots and religious themes, continually weaving in and out of the main events. Of particular mention are the scenes with the main antagonist, Mal'akh - so chilling, so surreal, my eyes fly left and right until the current chapter comes to a close (but some chapters are pathetically short... why, exactly?) Brown's style is sublime - fantastic imagery and descriptive language (which I am very bad at when writing fiction) knit together with intense single thoughts in the minds of each character and carefully executed dialogue. While he's done it twice before in The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons, it's still brilliant. This novel has also expanded my vocabulary - my favourite word from the text is "apotheosis", meaning "the act of becoming a god".
This is really rather selfish but The Lost Symbol helping me knit together the plot of Stress. Chapter 8 is coming along okay; I'm aiming for 6000 words per chapter, and I'm up to 4500-ish.
Also!!
I'm going to Queensland next week and I'll be taking a billion photos of the place. Stay tuned, I'll post as many as I can here.
- feeling...:
content
Today was the last mass celebrated at my local church at my old primary school, to which I have attended basically all my life. One of the long-time parishoners, when delivering a post-homily reflection (a brief history of the church), said it was called the "story of James" because I was baptised there, had my first communion and confirmation there, and then played the organ (now).
I told him later jokingly, "I did not authorise you using me in your speech!"
It's so sad to see it go. But on the bright side, it will be replaced with a multipurpose hall and maybe an extra classroom.
Gladness:
It's currently sitting in the kitchen. It's a circa 1970's Yamaha Electone E50 with two manuals and a pedal keyboard, and it's feature-packed and in good condition. Needs a good dusting, though, and the user manual is useless. The book with suggested settings for different instruments and styles, however, is awesome.
Only AU$200. XD
- feeling...:
I ARE THE WINNER
Right now I'm at Amp Plains and I can't beat Luxray and his tribe right now. Charmander succumbs too quickly to multiple shocks, but I need him for Smokescreen. What to do, what to do.
I suppose I could use a wonder mail generator and teach Bulbasaur a TM which will affect the whole room but I've already cheated once (for a Friend Bow) and I'd rather not cheat unless I absolutely must.
Any ideas?
Also, if anyone's visited my profile lately and is wondering what the mysterious new community is, that will be the future home of all my fanfiction - past and future. I'll repost most, but not all, of my fics there as soon as Stress ch8 is finished. Probably next week. All fanfiction-related posts here will be deleted soon after. Watch this space!
- feeling...:
enthralled
- feeling...:
confused
FFVII - Jenova ABSOLUTE - reworked version
FFX - Seymour Battle - reworked version
FFIX - Ukele de Chocobo
KHII - Dearly Beloved
ff_kh_arrangeGo! :D
Also, I'm pissed off at the recipient of my FFEX gift - they have not commented at all. I'm not impressed. I know this person is probably very busy but this is just not acceptable. It's been almost a week.
I'm uploading my new and improved musical arrangements! To recap, I only require ten minutes of music, and at least one song must be over three minutes. Stay tuned here and at
ff_kh_arrange. Has anyone seen the new Dead Fantasies? IMO they're both enthralling and disappointing. Check them out on Youtube - search "Dead Fantasy # HD Official", replacing # with 3, 4 and 5 as you watch them.
Also, I think it's time for a poll.
Poll #1443715 Possible name for a fic/fandom journal!
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 1
What sounds the best?
View Answers
heaven_fics
0 (0.0%)
monument_fics 0 (0.0%)
forcerain (That's my Youtube channel) 0 (0.0%)
arcanum (IDK, I like how it sounds) 1 (100.0%)
scribo_ergo_sum (I write, therefore I am, and yes I am pretentious about these sorts of things) 0 (0.0%)
- feeling...:
discontent
So like please give me something to do in fandom. Like, seriously. Force me to upload my arrangements, or write some fic, or actually start writing the next chapter of Stress.
As soon as I get my first interim report (hope I'm on straight A's, hope hope HOPE), I am IGNORING work for at least two nights to write/arrange. Fandom >>>> School. Okay?
- feeling...:
Buh-zay.
Wait until after he drinks the bottled water.
At least Basch is obviously Swedish/German/Scandinavian IRL, K?
- feeling...:
Oh dear.
So today I stalled another four times, but seeing as I was on the road for thirty minutes as opposed to fifteen, I've halved my stalling frequency. :D
My current top speed is 40 km/h, which is around 25 mph.
I still am not very confident with the clutch. I know if you give it a little more throttle and let go of the clutch, you're practically ensured of a jerky but definite start, but I don't want to lose control. So I have to practice creeping launches.
The second-to-third and third-to-second changes are very satisfyingly solid. Snick-snick and all that.
Apparently, I'm doing a very good job - according to my dad, several of my friends, and my next-door neighbour. Unfortunately, as soon as I mess up I start to panic. What if someone's behind me and gets angry? What if I mess up the launch and plough into a bin? What if I forget to indicate? What if I indicate too early? What if I stall again and ruin the car? What if- what if- what if- what if-
Someone tell me to stop whining, please?
- feeling...:
numb
Watch out, people of Adelaide, I'ma come getcha in mah Honda Jazz.
VTEC just kicked in, bro.
:D
- feeling...:
WHEE
