The End of an Era
I've had this blog for a while....quite a while actually. When I started it, I had been frigging around with blogs for roughly 3 years, and finally settled somewhere. There were advantages and disadvantages, but 3 years and over 300 posts later, it has served me well.

But there comes a time when you have to step up and start fresh. I have a lot more HTML experience now, and I'm starting to get a feel for CSS (albeit, in a very rudamentary way), so I can do a lot more than just throw up some text and pictures now and then. I got it, I might as well use it. So, without further adieu, I give you the new and improved DFQ:

DodoFeatherQuill.blogspot.com

No, I didn't create the template, and no, if you leave your comment here I won't read it. I'm turning over a new feather. :)

Over and out.

crazy month!
I haven't had much chance to post this month because, well, I've been packing, moving, going to concerts, going to BBQs, buying furniture, going to the movies, going to parties and now tonight I'm going to the jazz festival. Michelle's Murder Mystery party is this weekend as well. I'm almost done my costume...bwahahaha

I saw Clerks 2 recently, and I actually liked it. Snooch! Jay was seriously hot in that movie...



Still waiting to get internet at the new apartment!

But more importantly...
In my usual habit of running off to interesting happenings, last night Phil and I went to an AIDS benifit concert called "Roots in the Eighties" at Hugh's Room, where a number of extremely talented musical artists got to 're-invent' their favourite eighties songs in a folky-accoustic way. Among their ranks were Greg Lawless, Greg Hobbs, The Undesirables, and David Newland's favourite new brainchild- "The McFlies" (who were the inspiration of the whole concert, being that they're an eighties revival band).

The whole event went off great, even at it's most awkward- one performer had trouble starting up Bruce Springsteen's "Reason to Believe" because the Brian Adams version was playing in her head. She could hear someone singing it to themselves in the audience, who turned out to be one of the McFlies. From then on it was a duet- and a good one.

All of the performers were fantastic, and the McFlies themselves finished off the night wonderfully. I even got to give David the mix tape I made him for his birthday.

Anyway, the other cool thing is that Phil and I got free tickets to Edgefest from work this week, so we're going to that tomorrow. I've never been to Edgefest before...and I know it's going to be mostly going to be a younger age-group, so I'm trying not to having any pre-conceptions. On the other hand, for the price of free, it's a damn fun thing to do for Canada Day. Keane and Our Lady Peace are playing, so that pretty much makes it worth it for me.

Beyond that, I plan to RELAX on sunday and monday, and do as little as possible.

The Walrus Strikes again, and things get even stupider
This guy must have taken Weird Al's song "Dare to be Stupid" a little too literally:

D and D and Me Part 3: Medieval Times
-----------------------------------------------------
My email, to him:

Dear Mr. Barbeau,

As a former member of YRPG (and a girl) I have been following your "D&D and Me" series over a period of time, and witnessing some of the subsequent fallout. I was not grossly offended by the first two parts, as I considered them to be tongue-in-cheek, but I'm afraid that your third part has me baffled.

If you are going to express your opinion, then at the very least, let your readers in on what it is that you are writing about. Your third part accomplishes nothing but make you look like a childish backpeddler who doesn't want to give details of the actual fallout of the articles, but rather make up some moronic fictional representation of the truth. If you truly are a journalist, Mr. Barbeau, then you would apologize if you felt sorry, and write a REAL review of the club, or you would explain why you think there was nothing wrong with the original articles. Your poorly written third part just seems like a pathetic attempt to further bludgeon an already well-beaten dead horse.

Furthermore, (and I'd like to make this abundantly clear) comedy is best left to the people who can actually write it, and not those just making a pathetic attempt to "build themselves up, as a group and as individuals, at the expense of another similar group".

Sincerely,

Megan Swaine,
York University alumni, and still proud RPG gamer.
------------------------------------------------
In the process of making this post, I found this (and please read it all the way to the end):
Editor's Note, February 2006 Issue

I admire this editor's response as being decent, and mature. Especially since he was 'threatened' by an offended gaming geek.

I will however, state here and now that I don't believe that there was 'supposed' to be three articles. I think the last article was the writer's pathetic attempt to cover his own ass. Which is why I'm going to leave my response the way it is. If the articles were meant to be fictional, then they should not have used the name of a real club, with real people. Period.

This whole thing was ridiculous to begin with, and both sides came out looking pretty shameful. You wanna know why I never wrote for a York publication? Here's a good example. Try getting heard through the caucophony of idiotic people who think they can write for the Onion, and who are trying to pad an issue.

Like for instance, my first encounter with the Excaliber, main York publication. (THAT article was written many moons ago, so please take it as such)

Small Press Fair
Mood:  a-ok
So yesterday I got to indulge my passion for poetry by going to the local small press fair- a collective gathering of a whole bunch of independant publishers (mostly local) of poetry, fiction and sometimes even graphic novels. As usual, there were a TON of things to look at- I picked up a bunch of stuff at David's table (Believe Your Own Press)- Clara Blackwood's two chapbooks (Under the Dragon's Tail and Visitations) and I also picked up Edward Nixon's (another Art Bar regular) chapbook: Nights in the City of the Dead, from Aeolus House. I picked up some other ones by Timothy Carter and "Stanzas", as well as a copy of SMUT Magazine and Misunderstandings Magazine. The guy from Misunderstandings recognized me and suggested I submit some more stuff, and see what goes. I also picked up like a gazillion business cards, which also helps.

In spite of my usual reading habits, poetry is different- so I'll likely have all of this stuff read by the end of the month. ;)

We also dropped by Unionville Festival, even though it was raining, which was fun. Had a peameal bacon sandwich and listened to "88" perform. They did an ad-lib cover of New Orleans is Sinkin'.

All in all, a pretty good day.

Later we hung out with Mark and watched some videos we rented, one of which was Song of the South by Disney. Very, VERY dated feel. Not racist, just dated, and maybe a little idealistic.

Art Bar: Irving Layton Tribute night
Mood:  a-ok
Lastnight I finally popped over to the Art Bar, for their Irving Layton Tribute night. There were 7 readers, all of them former students of Layton, and they all shared their memories of him, and their favourite poems of his. It was very touching. I even got to hear some of my favourites.

I kept Chai company, as usual (his website is www.globalsurvival.com) and I talked to David, who invited me to "Happy Sushi Tummy", in honour of New Gen's grand re-opening just recently. I read my poem on the open stage, and got a good reception from Phlip, who said I read better than I usually did.

Afterwards, about 12 people ended up going for sushi, earning us some free squid and ice cream from the New Gen staff, who seemed happy to have our business. I also got to talk to Edward and hear his wild stories.

All in all, a good night.

I should probably post something
So I guess I had a pretty good holiday weekend... Michelle came down and we hung out with Mark on saturday night, and then yesterday we went up to chris's (along with Tara) and blew some stuff up and had a bonfire in the rain.

I guess I've sort of been in a transitional period lately, trying to figure out how to pull things together. I've been looking down other avenues, other opportunities, to see what's available. I want to lose weight, I want to write more, try to get stuff published (because I really should). There's all these possibilities, but I'm having trouble concentrating on a single one...

trying to get warm again
The other night I talked to Debbie for about 3 hours on MSN...what started out as polite conversation turned out to be catch up and reminiscing on old times.

Sometimes I forget how many stories there are...I think she had forgotten too, until we both started talking, and then suddenly it was just a deluge of happy memories... I don't think I've laughed that much in a really, really long time.

Debbie and I are two VERY different people, and in most ways, we started out like that. I was a quiet, withdrawn, child; she was loud, gutsy, and always had to be the center of attention. I was like a miniature adult, never getting into trouble, for the most part- she was drawn to new and exciting things, and anything and everything she wasn't allowed to do. Debbie allowed me to really 'be a kid'. Before her, I had never had a sleepover, I had never climbed a tree, or lit something on fire, or teased a boy. And before me, I guess, she had never had someone around for the times when she really wanted to be serious. I became the wise-cracking smartass to her impulsive creativity; occasionally even hatching a few crazy ideas myself. Despite our differences, we eventually geled in a way that was both frustrating and exhilerating at the same time. We were best friends.

Even now, after all these years- I talk to her and I really know she is listening. We are each others objective standpoints. Fresh perspective. We have have become two very different people, but we are like sisters. Only with her can I go from laughing out loud to sentimental tears in just a few seconds.

That night was my mind slamming on the brakes from all the stresses I was going through, and giving me a strong dose of catharsis. It is these moments that we remember.

Soundtrack to my life?

Your Life: The Soundtrack
Opening credits:	"Bigger than my body" - John Mayer
Waking up:	"Let's get it started" - Black Eyed Peas
Average day:	"Sheep go to heaven, goats go to hell" - Cake
First date:	"Looking for you in me" - Hayden
Falling in love:	"Is this love" - Bob Marley & the Wailers
Love scene:	"Beside you" - Simply Red
Fight scene:	"I just want to live" - Good Charlotte
Breaking up:	"Your ex-lover is dead" - The Stars
Getting back together:	"Back to you" - Bryan Adams
Secret love:	"When somebody loved me" by Sarah McGlaghlin
Life's okay:	"Bridge over troubled water" - Simon and Garfunkel
Mental breakdown:	"Hallelujah" - K.D. Lang (ya you heard me)
Driving:	"Bad Leroy Brown" - Jim Crocet
Learning a lesson:	"Somewhere only we know" - Keane
Deep thought:	"Imagine" - John Lennon
Flashback:	"Free Falling" - Tom Petty
Partying:	"Rock this Town" - The Stray Cats
Happy dance:	"Jump Jive and Wail" - Cherry Poppin Daddies
Regreting:	"Innocent" - Our Lady Peace
Long night alone:	"Nobody's Home" - Avril Lavigne
Death scene:	"My Way" - Il Divo
Closing credits:	"Bend and Break" - Keane
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Lately (a drunken blog entry)
So I just came back from a night of drunken celebration with Mark and Phil- we went to the Dark Horse (?) in Bloor West village. I got sloshed on Long Island Iced Teas, as usual.

But I'll back it up a little- I went to TRPA lastnight, and had the good fortune to go on a night that people had decided to celebrate Eugene's birthday, which is on monday. There was twice as many people as usual, as well as some YRPG alumni- Mr. Michael Messenger (sp? I won't call him Laura!) and good 'ol current YRPG pres. I met a lot of other cool people, and got some emails for some games people are trying to start. I'm considering it. I'm more of a casual geek, but I could stand to work a little more geekiness into my schedule. :)

Anyway, to back it up even more, Phil is now working at the same company as me. Don't ask, because I won't relate the whole story, but he's doing basically the same job, just at my office instead. It's pretty cool so far.

My first ad astra - the actualization
Well, Ad Astra was a thumping success- not only was it more useful to me (as a writer), but the crowd was considerably older and more mature, and what can I say, it's a convention that revolves around books. I'm a book nut.

Speaking of books, I picked up a random assortment of pined-for and not pined for titles, including a very sizable anthology of Leonard Cohen (Stranger Music), a large volume of Romantic literature (thanks Michelle, it's from the same series as my eighteenth century literature anthology), a copy of Jordonsky (sp?)'s "Megalex"(in english this time), a collected edition of "Crisis on Infinite Earths", a Rob J. Sawyer novel (I can't think of the name just now, but it was cheap), and a couple of Gordon R. Dickson novels. I also replaced my beat up copy of The Gunslinger with a nicer, less beat up copy, and picked up a few literary magazines that I found in the dealer's room as well. You can never have too many of those.

I met a lot of fun people at the con, and also saw a lot of familiar faces. Wierdly enough, I felt right at home at this convention, despite the fact that it was my first time. I attended the Poetry Round-robin, even though I don't have much in the way of sci-fi or fantasy poetry. Magnetic poetry kicked ass though.

To top it all off, I have rediscovered my appreciation for classic science fiction and fantasy, an appreciation which, I guess, was never gone in the first place. Practically all the fiction I wrote in highschool was either horror, fantasy, or science fiction (not to be confused with sci-fi?).

And oddly enough my muse, fiction-story-wise has done its darnedest to point me back in that direction. Maybe it's time to revisit my beginnings. There are some ideas that reach far out of that realm, and into the realm of the fantastic.

Meg's mini-vacation so far
So with just barely getting away from work with my sanity in tact (don't ask) on tuesday, I went to the Art Bar poetry series. Clara Blackwood was featuring so that was any added bonus, and I sort of hung out with David Clink and his crowd for a while. We skipped the open stage to go get sushi, which was pretty fun.

It's wierd, because I'm terrible for taking visual cues, especially from people I only hang out with occasionally. An old friend of David's was there, Alan (not Alan Briesmaster, a different Alan) and we shared a couch, and I guess he assumed I was a regular, because when they got up to go for sushi (which included him) he turned and said "so are you coming or what?" At that point I hadn't been invited, so I hadn't taken the initiative, but I can be a bit of a dumard sometimes to this stuff. I have a rather strong paranoia about being 'the tag-along'. However, I have been out for sushi with them before, it's just that they usually say 'you should come too' or something like that. David is a hard fellow to read sometimes, but that's one of the things I like about him. But they didn't seem to mind my presence, and I got to know Lisa (?), whom I had seen several times at a distance but not actually spoken to until now.

Anyway, yesterday, I took the long way up to York (why the long way, who knows) and made it just in time to attend the 'consolidated' Readings at Noon- Eric Winter and a few of the Cobourg poetry group members made it, and did a good job featuring.(Ted Amsden didn't show, but oh well) The usual gang seemed happy to see me. I read a few of my newer poems, and managed to pull off a solid reading of them- even to the point where Eric was impressed (and Eric is not easily impressed).

Of all the things at York that I miss, I think in some ways, I miss the RAN the most, possibly because it has changed the least since I've left. Also because these are people that have seen my progression as a poet from one year to the next, and I feel like they have a keen perspective on how far I've come. They've always been supportive and I hope my little 'reunion' with them is far from being the last.

In other news, Justin (my 6 month old nephew) was admitted to North York general hospital on wednesday and I spent all of thursday there to give Christine and Andrew some support. Justin has some sort of an absess on his neck, but because of the infection, it's hard for them to determine at this time what exactly the problem is. He's been on antibiotics and the swelling has gone down, so he's much more comfortable. So much so that he was waking up most of the pediatric ward with his happy shrieking. :)

The Weekend
First off, kudos to David Newland and Nathan Caswell for their performance at the Free Times Cafe on Friday night, the last stop on their Trains, Brains, Loons and Baboons tour. Both were promoting new CDs- Roll Away and Pulp Town, respectively and their loose format for their show went over great with the crowd. There was even an impromtu performance by David's new 80's cover band, the McFlies.

My fellow alumni from the OWID program showed up, and as per usual, Mike, Rob and I basically stayed until the last dog was dead. We ended up in a sushi restaurant at 2am, where Rob nodded off and Mike and I prattled on until the manager, too polite to tell us to leave, started turning the lights out. We also saw Val and Adrienne earlier in the evening, amoungst recognizable DN afficianados, and a bunch of the Discovery channel crowd. The place was packed, in other words. I'm pretty sure Mike's heckling ended up on the recording. ;)

My parents visited on the saturday, and we did some shopping- my dad and Phil basically had to drag my mum and I out of Value Village before we'd gone through practically every single baby outfit available.

All in all, a good weekend.

Oh ya! I rented the Sims 2- and I must say, I was rather disappointed. What nutjob decided to make it more tedious? I'm sorry, but when even putting the book back on the bookshelf becomes a two or three step process, even if it is 'more realistic', it sort of takes away from the central point of the game. I'll play it a little more this week to see if it gets any better.

A Brief Aside
"D and D and Me"
"D and D and Me Part II"

Okay, so a couple of people have been distraught lately over an amusingly satirical article posted to the Flying Walrus site, one of the student papers at York.

Now, I can't vouch for the current incarnation of the club- it may be more or less uber-geeky than what I experienced, and maybe it is now 50% female, I have no clue. But what it comes down to is this: this article is clearly a satirical commentary. It is not overtly cruel or purposely negative, in fact it is merely exaggerative and verbose. It uses a number of stereotypes to make light of an eccentric group of people for whom those stereotypes may or may not apply. Back when I was in the club, there were both a number of 'traditionally' geeky people and people you wouldn't ordinarily expect to see in an RPG club. They made fun of everybody from elves to jews to the current club pres (an annual tradition), but they were willing to take as much as they dished out. Gaming geeks can be both friendly and excluding at the same time- when the writer uses the term 'elvish', he is clearly referring to the sort of 'geek-speak' that can frustrate the average non-gamer into walking away from the conversation after only a couple of minutes. Nobody that I knew in the club was ever intentionally exclusive, but I can't say with any amount of certainty, that a person completely new to gaming wouldn't get impressions of the club similar to this guy's.

I'm not roasting the club- it had a lot of good people when I was there, and a lot of fun times. But I'm not going to deny that outsiders had a tough time figuring us out.

"I had fun, I enjoyed myself, and find myself getting caught up in the thrill of moment, the “high” of the dice roll, the feeling of acceptance and of the community. The appeal of the YRPG, of the “gaming” way of life is quickly becoming apparent to me — despite the lack of women, and fresh air, and sunlight, and hygiene, and self-esteem."

Ya, I'd say that sounds about right. :)