I scheduled the eye surgery. April 21. Now to deal with the anxiety of knowing what they do. Ewwww... (At least I'll get valium before the surgery) In the meantime, because of the long term effects that contacts have on the shape of eyes, I have to wear my glasses until then in order to give my eye time to rebound to it's "natural shape". The good news: The headaches will go away April 22.
EarI mentioned lbriefly the ifaa's issues with controlleer staffing atr DIA last week. Turns out there's an investigation (someone leaked to channel 4) that came out this week. You can read the report at ninenewsinvestigates. I think the report is, in itself, a bit more alarmist than the real situation, but hey, that's what tv news does best. From my point of view, the typical "safety was never compromised, everything is fine, we're looking out for you (pay no attention to the man behind the curtain)" chorus that is repeated by the faa's spokesman is typical. They repeat that mantra over and over..... The bottom line, someone from headquarters is always assigned the job of reassuring the public/covering their butts. Remember that the next time you deal with any federal (or even state) agency at anything other than the operational level. In the meantime, we (the controllers) will continue to keep em flying...
A couple of months ago, I wrote about the background of the Empire in Imperfect Hope. (I"ll link to that article shortly) I was rereading it, and noted some storylines in it that bear potential. I'd written about the empires past as if posting an excerpt from a history book published many decades after the events, perhaps even centuries later. It was written from the empire's point of view, referring to the ktath and their allies as assassins and opponents of the empire as rebels. Even the disaster (for the empire) at Sha'te Valley was spun, despite it being a crucial event in the toppling (eventually) of the emperor.
What struck me was how easy it was for me to reference the empires point of view in a positive light. In Imperfect Hope, the empire is intended to come across as "the enemy", but I have to make them believable and realistic. From their point of view, they have a perfect right to do what they're doing, it's for the good of the empire, and ultimately, good for everyone in the long run. Only an unbiased history will tell if they're right. (and from the author's moral view, they are not "right", but to make a believable and compelling story, I'll continue to give them the benefit of the doubt...) ;-)
Those who remember the IFGS game Sha'te Valley will remember the "Villains" who survived the battle, Phorix, Grannach, and Beauty. I never 'officially' wrote about what happened afterwards to them, in part because for a long time I considered working on more D'oril based IFGS games. I did have a fate in mind, and I'd hinted at it to some of you over the years. However, the empire "history" I posted some time back addresses that in a vague way, and I've realized that their fates (as well as that of the heroes (assassins in the empire point of view), makes for a great tale. From the lead up to Sha'te (Heartbow and Seeker), to the battle, to the empire's dramatic retreat from D'oril (think Napoleon/1812/retreat from moscow) and pursuit by the k'tath and the companions of ELorna, to the turmoil in the Empire when their survivors get home and take their sides in the rebellion against the corrupt and capricious emperor. I know the players at Sha'te always had their own hopes for what their characters would do in the aftermath... Therein lies perhaps my next project.
Oh, it'd be a prequel to Imperfect Hope. Perhaps it would even answer the question about what ever happened to Brandis, Cerredwyn, Doc, Evro, Wulluff, Delanore, Merlissa, and the rest of the D'oril gang. Just remember, it's all fiction, and with author's licence, whatever happens in my stories takes place outside of IFGS life, unless you can make it fit... ;-)
And I may change the names to protect the not-so-innocent...
Till Next Time (TNT)
Jim
EarI mentioned lbriefly the ifaa's issues with controlleer staffing atr DIA last week. Turns out there's an investigation (someone leaked to channel 4) that came out this week. You can read the report at ninenewsinvestigates. I think the report is, in itself, a bit more alarmist than the real situation, but hey, that's what tv news does best. From my point of view, the typical "safety was never compromised, everything is fine, we're looking out for you (pay no attention to the man behind the curtain)" chorus that is repeated by the faa's spokesman is typical. They repeat that mantra over and over..... The bottom line, someone from headquarters is always assigned the job of reassuring the public/covering their butts. Remember that the next time you deal with any federal (or even state) agency at anything other than the operational level. In the meantime, we (the controllers) will continue to keep em flying...
A couple of months ago, I wrote about the background of the Empire in Imperfect Hope. (I"ll link to that article shortly) I was rereading it, and noted some storylines in it that bear potential. I'd written about the empires past as if posting an excerpt from a history book published many decades after the events, perhaps even centuries later. It was written from the empire's point of view, referring to the ktath and their allies as assassins and opponents of the empire as rebels. Even the disaster (for the empire) at Sha'te Valley was spun, despite it being a crucial event in the toppling (eventually) of the emperor.
What struck me was how easy it was for me to reference the empires point of view in a positive light. In Imperfect Hope, the empire is intended to come across as "the enemy", but I have to make them believable and realistic. From their point of view, they have a perfect right to do what they're doing, it's for the good of the empire, and ultimately, good for everyone in the long run. Only an unbiased history will tell if they're right. (and from the author's moral view, they are not "right", but to make a believable and compelling story, I'll continue to give them the benefit of the doubt...) ;-)
Those who remember the IFGS game Sha'te Valley will remember the "Villains" who survived the battle, Phorix, Grannach, and Beauty. I never 'officially' wrote about what happened afterwards to them, in part because for a long time I considered working on more D'oril based IFGS games. I did have a fate in mind, and I'd hinted at it to some of you over the years. However, the empire "history" I posted some time back addresses that in a vague way, and I've realized that their fates (as well as that of the heroes (assassins in the empire point of view), makes for a great tale. From the lead up to Sha'te (Heartbow and Seeker), to the battle, to the empire's dramatic retreat from D'oril (think Napoleon/1812/retreat from moscow) and pursuit by the k'tath and the companions of ELorna, to the turmoil in the Empire when their survivors get home and take their sides in the rebellion against the corrupt and capricious emperor. I know the players at Sha'te always had their own hopes for what their characters would do in the aftermath... Therein lies perhaps my next project.
Oh, it'd be a prequel to Imperfect Hope. Perhaps it would even answer the question about what ever happened to Brandis, Cerredwyn, Doc, Evro, Wulluff, Delanore, Merlissa, and the rest of the D'oril gang. Just remember, it's all fiction, and with author's licence, whatever happens in my stories takes place outside of IFGS life, unless you can make it fit... ;-)
And I may change the names to protect the not-so-innocent...
Till Next Time (TNT)
Jim
