E-Mail, Dice and RPGs, and a brilliant movie
For a while now my E-Mail address listed on the site has been unchecked by me. This is because the E-Mail company greatly altered the way their service works without notifying me, and I just thought I was recieving less E-Mail/spam. I am currently trying to wade through the flood of old E-Mail that I have found so that I might pick out actual E-Mails amongst that which will soon be deleted. If you've sent something to me, and still don't get a response within the next couple days, just send it again to this address.
Another thing that I have failed to mention is my dice program. Over the past couple years I've obtained a great interest in RPGs. Role Playing Games, for those who don't know. Dungeons & Dragons is probably the most popular example, although I am not a fan of it. In fact my RPG of choice was "inspired" by Dungeons & Dragons in an odd way: they couldn't stand D&D. The RPG I play has rules based on reality, but grounded in simplicity, and it has an awesome world. Unfortunately, I can't say much more about it, since it has not yet been published, but once it is, I'll say plenty more about it here. Anyways, as I was saying at first, a while ago I made a program (written in VB - blegh) for rolling dice of various sides. You can download it here. It has buttons for rolling 4-, 6-, 8-, 10-, 12-, 20-, and 100-sided dice. There's also a Coin button, a box where you can pick a number, and it will roll a die with that many side, and buttons for three 4-sideds, three 6-sideds, three 20-sideds, and three 100-sideds, and two 10-sideds (for rolling 100s). All the multiple dice buttons also show the results added together, and the two 10-sided button shows the combined value of 10s designed for rolling hundreds (i.e. it could show you rolled a 70 and 2, and and also shows 72). Unfortunately I had to write the program in Visual Basic, since it's the only programming language I could learn quickly, thanks to it's incredible lack of flexibility and functionality, so it may not run right away on your computer. If it does not work, you will need to go to Microsoft's site and download the Visual Basic drivers. Most people should have no problems though.
I saw the movie Spirited Away yesterday (not to be confused with Guy Ritchie's Swept Away with Madonna), and it was incredible! Some of the most incredible visuals I've ever seen, and a great story, with wonderful characters! I know some people won't want to see it just because it's animated, and America has this stigma thinking that animation is only for kids, and while this film may be appropriate for most children, it is most certainly a film that will entertain an adult audience. I can't endorse this movie enough, it just may be my new absolute favorite movie. Unfortunately, since it has already been in theaters a while, it will be leaving them quite soon (today is the last day it shows at the theater I saw it in), so I suggest you hurry, and see this marvel before it leaves the big screen, as it is very much a movie that should be seen in theaters. I leave you now with a couple reviews: (click "Read More" to see them, or just click here to see the trailer.)
MARK S. ALLEN - KMAX-TV, SACRAMENTO
"Mesmerizing and hypnotic. Unlike anything you will see all season."
GARY SCHENDEL - KGTV (ABC), SAN DIEGO
"A mystical ride through imagination."
LUKE THOMPSON - NEW TIMES
". . . 'Spirited Away' is the best movie I've seen all year."
GENE TRIPLETT - THE DAILY OKLAHOMAN, OKLAHOMA CITY
"A visual stunner. A wildly imaginative animation masterpiece."
JIM SVEJDA, KNX / CBS RADIO
"Astonishing and exhilarating, 'SPIRITED AWAY' is one of the greatest animated features ever made."
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY - LISA SCHWARZBAUM
". . . a Japanese animated masterpiece. . ."
THE NEW YORK TIMES - DAVE KEHR
". . . a masterpiece, pure and simple - certainly the finest thing that the distinctive Japanese style of animation, called anime, has produced - and a film that can stand with the Disney classics of the 30's and 40's in the range of its imagination and the quality of its execution."
WALL STREET JOURNAL - JOE MORGENSTERN
"It is plainly, though not simply, a masterpiece from an acknowledged master of contemporary animation, and a wonderfully welcoming work of art that's as funny and entertaining as it is brilliant, beautiful and deep."
LA DAILY NEWS - BOB STRAUSS
". . . 'Spirited Away' is a two-hour feast of visual imagination, consistently rendered at the highest level of graphic art."
USA TODAY - CLAUDIA PUIG
* * * * stars
DAILY NEWS - JACK MATTHEWS
* * * * stars
NEWSDAY - JAN STUART
* * * * stars
NEW YORK POST - LOU LUMENICK
* * * * stars
PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER - STEVEN REA
* * * * stars
SAN FRANCISCO EXAMINER - JEFFREY M. ANDERSON
* * * * stars
SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE - C.W. NEVIUS
* * * * stars
". . . a lovely, evocative tour de force."
THE SEATTLE TIMES - TOM KEOGH
* * * * stars
". . . spectacular . . ."
BERGEN RECORD - ROGER EBERT
* * * * stars
"This is one of the year's best films."
It also won a bunch of awards already, but I don't think I need to list those. ;)
