As far as I’m concerned, last night was a pretty good night.

From the President’s election night speech:

America, I believe we can build on the progress we’ve made and continue to fight for new jobs and new opportunities and new security for the middle class. I believe we can keep the promise of our founding, the idea that if you’re willing to work hard, it doesn’t matter who you are or where you come from or what you look like or [who] you love. It doesn’t matter whether you’re black or white or Hispanic or Asian or Native American or young or old or rich or poor, abled, disabled, gay or straight. (Cheers, applause.) You can make it here in America if you’re willing to try.

(Cheers, applause.)

I believe we can seize this future together because we are not as divided as our politics suggests. We’re not as cynical as the pundits believe. We are greater than the sum of our individual ambitions and we remain more than a collection of red states and blue states. We are, and forever will be, the United States of America. (Cheers, applause.)

And yeah, I left the cheers and applause in. Because they really ought to be there.

Let’s get to work.

Tomorrow is Election Day in the United States, and, above all, I hope that if you’re reading this and you’re eligible, you’ll take the time to vote. It is, as I’m fond of saying, the very least you can do as a citizen. Voting for those who represent you in government is, after all, your civic duty, and it is very important.

When voting tomorrow, I hope you’ll vote to re-elect President Barack Obama, as I did when I filled out my absentee ballot a couple of weeks ago.

Four years ago, I cast a ballot for then-Senator Obama, and today, I still feel good about that decision. His tenure hasn’t been perfect, but on the whole, I believe the President and his team have done a pretty good job keeping our country going, and have made great strides in the effort to correct many of the serious problems his administration inherited. I think he’s basically on the right track in terms of policy, and I’m more than willing to give him another four years to keep working in that direction.

When the President took office, he had some pretty huge expectations to live up to – as John Scalzi once so wisely said, “Your next president is going to disappoint you. Barack Obama does not fart cinnamon-scented rainbows” – he didn’t quite live up to the deification that so many of his supporters subjected him to; I don’t think any real, actual human being could. All the same, I think his list of accomplishments since his inauguration is pretty impressive: The Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, ensuring equal pay for women. Ending “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”, allowing all of our servicemen and women the ability to serve openly. Passing “Obamacare” and thus setting our country on the path toward true universal health care for all citizens. winding down the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Appointing Justices Sotomayor and Kagan, thus bringing the demographics of the Supreme Court more in line with the demographics of the country. That whole Bin Laden thing. And finally, managing to keep the country’s economy afloat and on the mend despite generally awful conditions world-wide.

He didn’t accomplish everything he promised or would have liked, for all sorts of reasons, but I want to give him another term to keep trying. I like what he’s accomplished, more or less, and I’d like to see what he can do with another four years, especially with folks like me leaning on him from the left a little more often.

I prefer this approach a heck of a lot more than that of the other guy, whose position seems to be tax cuts at the top, cutting useful programs, and throwing even more money toward the defense industry, while making life difficult for anyone who’s not a rich white male heterosexual. The rhetoric from the Republican candidate and his surrogates regarding the rights or women, gays and lesbians, and those dealing with poverty are very troubling to me.

That’s about all I’ll say about the Romney-Ryan ticket; suffice it to say that I don’t like what they’re selling.

I do, however, continue to get a pretty good vibe from the President as a leader and as a person. I’m very happy that he’s more an academic than a businessman – I like that the President seems like the smartest person in the room much of the time, and isn’t simply spouting business school platitudes and clobber scriptures. I like (though am occasionally frustrated by) the fact that he seems to have a general optimistic expectation that those he’s treating with about policy are coming to the negotiating table in good faith, even if they aren’t; I like the fact that he’s willing to compromise, even if I sometimes thing he’s giving up too much – after all, if everybody’s a little upset, it means the end result is a pretty good compromise.

Finally, I like the fact that Barack Obama looks a lot like America, at least the America I like to believe I’m living in. He’s the product of multiple cultural backgrounds, and is sensitive to those who look different or believe differently. He came from modest means, and with the application of his ingenuity, smarts, and the help of those around him, he made a life for himself and found himself rising toward the top, but I’m pretty sure he still kind of remembers what it’s like down toward the bottom. He’s spent much of his professional life in service to his community, and not just shareholders. His experience in America, at least superficially, is a lot like mine. That, in a lot of ways, is a comforting thought.

And finally, I love the fact that he totally geeked out in the Oval Office when Nichelle “Uhura” Nichols came by for a visit. That smile on his face is totally genuine:

So yeah, election season is all over but the voting. Go vote, and I hope that when you’ll do, you’ll take the preceding thoughts into account.

Still hectic and all around here, and Frankenstorm’s Monsoon hasn’t been helping matters.

However, I can report with some relief that although there’s been some inconvenience, my little corner of the Mid-Atlantic coast seems to have dodged the worst of Sandy’s hopeless devotion. The power even stayed on all last night, which, given past experience, is rather novel.

So yeah, if you’re wondering, we’re fine and dandy, if a little damp.

Yeah, this is glurge, barely removed from some email from your great aunt Edna’s aol account with a subject line beginning with “>>>>>>>FW:FW:FW:FW”, but there’s some wisdom to it.

And yes, you’re supposed to read this in a political context; your vote and your participation does matter. I think you all know who I’d prefer you cast your various votes for, but the principle applies whether you fall to the left or the right.

A man was walking a beach one morning and he encountered thousands of starfish that had washed upon the shore. As the sun grew higher in the sky, surely these thousands of beautiful starfish would shrivel and die in the hot sun.

The man glumly kept up his walk until he came across a boy, throwing starfish back into the ocean.

The man, seeing that the boy had no chance to make a dent in the miles of starfish, he said,

“Hey, what are you doing? You know you have no chance to make a difference? ”

The boy looked up, took another starfish and flung it out to sea and said,

“It matters to this one!”

So yeah, you…go fling some radially-symmetrical aquatic life into the sea. If nothing else, those particular echinoderms appreciate it.

I feel like I’ve been kind of quiet on this front, and I kind of have. I don’t really have an excuse beyond the fact that real life has gotten in the way – I’ve been encountering a bunch of meatspace commitments that need addressed, and my immune system is trying to slay a heinous virus that got in before I could bolster things with a flu shot. At the end of the day, I don’t have the energy to tend to this particular garden, nor the free brain bandwith to come up with interesting things to write about even if I did.

So, please, accept my apologies for my lack of words if you feel you need them. Things may get less hectic before long, but I honestly wouldn’t bet on it, at least in the near term*.

in the meantime, here’s an interesting piece of wisdom I encountered in my travels. A slight variation of this statement is often attributed to Stephen Hawking, though as far as I can tell, this is the original article. Doesn’t change the point the weilder of quotation is trying to make, in any case:

“The greatest obstacle to discovering the shape of the earth, the continents, and the oceans was not ignorance but the illusion of knowledge.”

~ Daniel J. Boorstin

See ya when I see ya.

____________________________

*- Though, if history is any indication, this post will probably be followed up by several ingenious bits of wordsmithy in short order, but I make no promises.

As the battle with the traitorous drow priestesses and the assassins came to an end, a party of new drow descend from street level into the cavern.

“Return to your pens, slaves! The glory of this victory is worthy only of drow!”, shouts the lead priestess, pointing to the goblins and dwarf, who are binding each other’s wounds. They rise to leave, and Imogen follows, resigned to bide her time until a better oppportunity presents itself.

She feels a hand grip her upper arm. “Not you, human. We may have need of your skills. You’ve proven useful beyond your unfortunate station.” She turns toward the voice, to see Illarien, a Bregan D’aerthe mercenary archer with whom she’s travelled before. He looks to the priestess. “This one stays.”

The priestess of Melarn nods, indifferent, and proceeds deeper into the cavern. The party, also including Illarien, Cholo, a warrior, also of Bregan D’aerthe; Hireaux, a warlock, and Aureilio, a war wizard both of Xorlariin, follows.

The group descends, finding themselves in a chamber of much older construction than the levels above. The walls are rough-hewn stone, pocked irregularly with alcoves filled with moldering drow bones, and columns of web, crawling with tiny spiders. At the bottom of the narrow staircase is an altar, topped with a monstrous stone gargoyle, and swirling with otherworldly smoke.

The smoke speaks.

“How Do You Serve Lolth?”, it asks.

The priestess answers “By seeking to create the demon weave in her honor.” The smoke utters a satisfied sigh, and disappates. The party is overcome with a feeling of health and well-being. The priestess orders Chollow to proceed further down the narrow corridor. He sees a fleeting movement in the shadows ahead, and quickly ducks, avoiding a blast of dark energy coming toward him. The group is set upon by several armed drow, led by a drow wizard who cast the bolt.

Combat proceeds quickly – Illarien quickly fires arrows into the lead line of armed drow adversaries, while Imogen and Aureilio cast bursts of arcane force and fire, damaging the enemies and creating a zone of magickal energy on the stairs ahead, creating a barrier of flame and false footing that enemies cannot pass without further injury.

The wizard levitates, casting further bolts of poison at the warlock and priestess, while a second wizard joins him at the bottom of the stairs ahead. The second wizard strikes down the priestess with a gout of fire. While Cholo and Hireaux engage the locked down enemy warriors, Areilio casts a spell of lightning that arcs from foe to foe, weakening several.

Imogen remains in the rear, and with ranged support from Illarien, uses her mage hand to administer a healing draught to the fallen priestess, who rises, and heals herself and the seriously wounded Cholo, who has by now dispatched enemy warriors. They still remain a threat, however, as giant spiders emerge from their fallen bodies to press the attack.

The spiders are quickly felled by a burst of fire from the war wizard, and Imogen’s armed allies surge forward to strike at the wizards, the leader still hovering twenty feet above the floor.

After Cholo strikes down the grounded wizard, and Aurelio’s magick missle knocks the leader to the ground, the leader raises his hands as if to seek a truce. He begs for his life, offering to cease all of his hostile activities and renounce his allegiance to the assassins if the party will only let him live. Imogen’s keen insight reveals that the wizard, who she now recognizes as Valen, a renegade wizard allied against Lolth’s forces, is genuine in his offer.

However, being drow and largely without mercy, the rest of the party quickly kills him and strips his body. Amongst his possessions is an ornate bracelet, which Imogen identifies as a Spellfire Manacle, an artefact that will allow the wearer to control and stabilize the Demon Weave.

She tells the party of the item’s nature; it is exactly the sort of artefact that will allow the allied houses to consolidate Lolth’s power. Of course, each of the party members wishes to consolidate that power for his or her individual house. As the priestess of Melarn siezes the bracelet for herself, the alliance between the mercenaries, Melarn, and Xorlariin, at least amongst the party, quickly dissolves. Threats and challenges are made, weapons are drawn, and spells are readied.

As the drow begin to fight amongst themselves, Imogen begins backing away slowly, mentally encouraging the rest of the party to concentrate on each other, not noticing the human wizard slink off into the shadows. The civil war between the great houses may yet be averted, but another fight within the groups allied with Lolth is just beginning.

With luck, the priestesses of Melarn, the Warriors of Bregan D’aerthe, and the Mages of Xorlariin will be too busy fighting amongst themselves over the power of the Demon Weave and the fate of Menzoberranzan to notice a single human slave fading away in search of a path to the surface.

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previous adventures:

• session 7
• session 6
• session 5
• session 4
• session 3
• session 2
• session 1

Yeah, I woke up and found the heat had kicked on during the night. Hello, October!

1. “When I Fall” – Barenaked Ladies
2. “Winterlong” – Pixies
3. “Barefoot Tonight” – Miss Kittin
4. “Now I Am an Arsonist” – Jonathan Coulton feat. Suzanne Vega
5. “Kids Don’t Follow” – The Replacements
6. “Man or Muppet” – Jason Segal & Walter
7. “Armageddon It” – Def Leppard
8. “Where Did The Good Go” – Tegan & Sara
9. “Johnny Sunshine” – Liz Phair
10. “Antichrist Television Blues” – Arcade Fire

Like a lot of people, I was a voracious devourer of JK Rowling’s Harry Potter series. It was great fun, and I’d come to enjoy much of the affiliated cultural stuff around it, even though I found the movies largely tedious and grew a bit weary towards the end. This weariness wasn’t because I didn’t enjoy the stories, of course, it’s just that I was ready to move on. I was really curious about what Rowling, who’d gone from “nobody” to the “world’s most famous writer” in short order, was going to write next, once the whole Potter business was over with.

With the release a couple of weeks back of The casual Vacancy, we found out.

I’ve just finished the book, which was marketed as Rowling’s first “adult” novel (despite the fact that the Potter series was read by pretty much everyone), and, in short, I quite liked it, in particular because of it’s differences from what’s come before.

The casual Vacancy is, first and foremost, grounded in the real world (not actually the real world, but rather that sort of hyper-real setting with occasional exaggerations that feels more real than reality). There’s no spells, magical creatures, or world-shattering consequences. It’s all on a rather small scale, dealing largely with the goings-on in a small English village in the wake of a sudden death leading to an opening on the town’s governing council, and how the potential shift in the balance of power amongst the town’s movers and shakers will affect the lives of the people living there, particularly the residents of The Fields, a council housing project between Pagford and neighboring city Yarvil.

Though he dies (no real spoilers there) in the first pages of the novel, Barry Fairbrother is the driving force behind the story’s events. His sudden absence from the lives of the people of the town of Pagford and how it affects them *is* the story. We get to know life in Pagford through the eyes of numerous characters, all Barry’s friends and rivals, admirers and detractors, each reacting to the vacuum his absence creates, and the resulting class and social tensions in the community.

I’m not going to go into plot details, as I’d suggest the book is well worth reading for yourself, though the way the story plays out through the eyes of these several dozen characters, all well-drawn, eccentric and flawed, is engaging and unfolds in often clever ways (even if the ending comes off as a little bit rushed).

In the end, the story is a vehicle for social commentary, touching on class rivalies, the viability of social safety net programs, and religious diversity, among others. While I was never in doubt as to where Rowling’s personal feelings lie, she gets to the heart of all sides of most arguments – those characters whose positions she doesn’t necessarily sympathize with never fall to the level of strawmen – letting the story suggest the author’s personal convictions rather than simply having characters become exposition mouthpieces. On this level, it’s a well-drawn examination of a wide variety of social issues important to most of us in the western world, looked at through a particularly English lens.

Rowling writes in an engaging prose style, often cleverer than that she employed across the Potter series (the flagrant abuse of and bludgeoning by adverbs is much reduced here), in part, I suspect, because she wasn’t necessarily burdened with writing toward children. Much of the novel is made up of the interior thoughts of characters toward another, and I got the particular impression she greatly enjoyed coming up with these scathing private criticisms.

Also, there’s the sex and cursing, which seemed to have shocked some critics, given Rowling’s background in children’s fantasy. Again, this is a book for a different market (not that many of her fans wouldn’t enjoy it anyway), and it all fits within the world she creates, and serves to drive the narrative. Well distant from the presence of unicorns, Rowling is able to be more than merely glancingly suggestive and serve the needs of the story with the occasional prurient thoughts and actions; the kind of thoughts and actions that people in realist worlds actually have and engage in.

As I said above, my experience with this novel was a positive experience. It was a different experience than reading Harry Potter, with touches of Jane Austen, Coen Brother movies, and Tony Blair along the way, but all told through the clever prose and emotional connection to character that Rowling exhibited as she wrote one of the best selling fantasy series in history. It’s worth taking a look at.

After the reception with the leaders of the allied houses, Imogen felt restless with her thoughts, and needed some time to process them. So she walked, taking a long, indirect route back to the slave quarters. She felt secure walking the streets of Menzoberranzan alone: although she was a valuable piece of property, traffickers would think twice about abducting her, for fear of drawing the wrath of the priestesses of Lolth. And if they didn’t, she was confident in her ability to subdue a few common street thugs.

The political climate of Menzoberranzan was definitely charged; the wizards and priestesses were on the verge of civil war, and there was a third faction of outsider assassins all too eager to help things along. She’d engaged in her own efforts to set the various sides against one another with subtle pressure during the reception she’d just left. She’d started seeing opportunity in the coming conflict – the drow leaders might be too wrapped up in their preparations for war to notice a single slave slipping away into the shadows of the Underdark.

Her path through the winding streets of the city brought her to the fringes of The Bazaar, the city’s chaotic, never ending, but always changing marketplace. Although she is a slave, her recent adventures had left her with a full purse, as her drow masters were too preoccupied to notice her secreting away gold and silver from the pockets of slain adversaries. If her plans for escape were to be effective, she needed equipment and supplies, and in The Bazaar, no one asked many questions.

Examining the wares at a clothier’s stall operated by a crone of a drow, Imogen is drawn to a plain, yet surprisingly well-constructed tunic of pale grey wool, stitched with a brilliant crimson thread. Her attunement for the arcane quickly identifies it as enchanted to provide additional protection against both physical and magickal threats. It stands out to her amongst the rest of the mundane and shabby inventory, though her intuition is that the merchant doesn’t know it’s true nature. It’s exactly the sort item that could mean the difference between freedom and slavery. She quickly negotiates a price, barely needing to use her abilities to bend the crone to her advantage. The price is still high, though worth it, given the potential stakes.

After returning to the house compound and resting for a few scant hours in her small cell, she’s awakened by Trash, a fellow slave who is also the tallest and most hairless dwarf she’s ever seen (rumors say he had a human mother), who informs her that the house leaders have summoned them.

She finds herself once again in the presence of the priestess Ash’ala of Melarn, Hosthtar Xorlariin, and the leader of the mercenaries of Bregan D’aerthe. Those summoned include Imogen, three other slaves, Trash, and a a pair of goblin fighters, calling themselves Frik and Frak; and three drow, Fyre, a paladin of Melarn, Xune, the warlock mercenary, and Tluthdar, a wizard of Xorlariin. The leaders set before the assembled party a task: representatives of the group of assassins sowing chaos have been located in the city’s slums. The mission is simple – go forth and kill them.

The party ventures into the slums, and quickly finds the hidden entrance to the assassin’s lair, which appears to be a basement under one of the crumbling buildings in the slum district. Upon entry, they are surprised to find a meeting in progress between Feryn, a high ranking priestess of Melarn (along with her entourage) and several black-armored drow warriors, clearly the advance guard of a high-ranking assassin. Feryn notices the party, muttering about how she “cannot be seen” as her guards move to sheild her from view. The assassins stand motionless, appearing to guard the entrance to a distant hallway.

Fyre calls out the priestess on her presence. Feryn offers first excuses, then threats, as the possibility of her exposure is presented: “Who would the leaders believe? You, barely a slave, or I who is closer to Lolth than all save Ash’ala herself?”, she calls, haughtily, before signalling her entourage to attack.

The assassins continue to remain still and impassive as the chaos mounts before them.

The battle rages, though it’s clear that the party has the advantage. Trash, the goblins, and Fyre charge forward and quickly lock Feryn into tight melee, while Imogen uses her powers to corral the junior priestesses and guards into advantageous positions for Xune and and Tluthdar to strike at en masse. Unfortunately, Tluthdar finds his abilities flagging, unable to connect with most of his powerful elemental attacks. Xune, with his mighty arcane flail, is more effective. Trash, the powerful “dwarf” is struck down, but is quickly returned to the fight thanks to a quickly administered healing potion.

Soon, only Feryn remains standing amongst the adversaries; as the party’s warriors move in for the finish, the assassins join the fray, apparently fearing for the safety of whomever or whatever they’re guarding. They charge forward from their positions in a wedge formation, striking at Xune, who shrugs of the blows, fading in and out of view, seemingly insubstantial, striking from the shadows. Imogen continues to push magickally at the foes, causing the assassins to turn on each other and maintain a comfortable distance away from her.

Suddenly, Feryn reaches toward the assassins, calling out “Your Strength to me!” Her significant wounds quickly begin healing, as the assassins find theirs worsening. Feryn presses the attack on the warriors surrounding her, while Tluthdar sends a mighty blast of fire into weakened assasins, finally connecting with one of his attacks.

Despite her magickal rejuvination, Feyrin is quickly subdued, and the assassins are vanquished. Beyond their sentry positions, a staircase descends further underground, clearly pointing the direction to the goal. The party pauses to staunch wounds and collect the spoils of battle. All the victors find their purses heavier, and the drow, already well-equipped, quarrel over several pieces of enchanted equipment: a sword, a suit of chainmail armor, and an amulet. Tluthdar, resentful of being outshined magickally by a mere human slave, tosses Imogen the amulet (which she’s identified as being enchanted to provide protection to the wearer), claiming that it’s scrap, since he’s already got a much better one.

While the party squabbles, Imogen hears the sound of footfalls descending from street level. She braces for further conflict, momentarily unsure of whether she should warn her companions of the approaching threat…

______________

previous adventures:

• session 6
• session 5
• session 4
• session 3
• session 2
• session 1

This picture just plain wins the internet for today: