The real question is, if she has *twiches* brains...
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I have to say I'm disappointed with...Not a major rant. I'm just turned off at the level of cold criticism aimed at the Superstar finalists. Much of this is coming from people with ten posts or less and so I find myself weaving conspiracy theories. Then again, I still believe in Santa and disco, so what do I know?
Constructive criticism is a wonderful thing and I've benefited greatly from it since I started writing. It can take on many tones, and I wish this contest had yielded a little more warmth in the responses. Most Paizo posters tend to exercise thoughtfulness, respect and consideration for each other's feelings and that's been palpably absent during much of RPG Superstar's run. These finalists have each worked hard to get where they are. Those in the top sixteen each beat out 49 other writers to get where they are.
Whether it's people trying to give extensive writing lessons to those who already beat them out in the contest (Why? Superstardom through association with a finalist via flexing your creative writing chops after the fact?), or those who lay hard into the contestants sans any measure of merciful tact. Some of the criticism, almost all of it helpful in a way, has also proven to be a long distance whiz in your face from a few vain, built-up bitterpusses. Thank you internet. I will say, however, that even said bitterpusses do actually seem to possess some savage skills with language...
I'm not talking about 95% of the people who offered their 2 cents. I'm talking about you, reading this right now. Yeah, you, with the Guy Fawkes beard. Down and give me twenty. I will accept small bills if that's all you have.
Look, putting yourself out there in a competition like this always has a chance of attracting a few chucked rocks to the noodle box, but it doesn't mean it has to happen. Group hug, bltches. Bring it in. If my mention of feelings seems a bit treacly to some of you, you're clearly not a regular around these parts. We try to show respect.
He he he he he.......! (lol)
When I go and comment, I feel like I'm the Paula Abdul or something, but.....great googley moogley!!! I don't even feel like saying anything negative or even constructive-like. There's enuff......construction.
Merry Xmas, Heath. I was going to send you a card but my card oompany, Sugarqube Greetings, suddenly went poof. Gone. Glad I was in the last month of my subscription. Hey, I was going to threadjack, but now that I mention losing my card company... that's my thread-appropriate rant.
I try so hard to seem sane, and then BAM! Boy up and stops talking to me. I thought we were doing quite well, actually, considering that I've had a huge crush on him for years and we're both coming out of really bad break ups. I've tried really hard to seem sane and stable. I guess it's just him being nuts but g#~@%@mit, fracking talk to me.
I'm giving myself a week to cool off and I'll try again.
I'm so tired of dealing with stupid 20 year old boys.
I'm having a good laugh about how much frothing hate there was for WOTC nearly 2 years ago at the beginning of this thread.
Man, looking for a real job is apparently like putting a "kick me" sign on your back for the universe. It's been a few months since I've gotten out of school and even getting an interview has been tough. Art degrees don't have a lot of heft when it comes to job searches, so you have to be kind of creative. The very first place I interviewed at seemed really cool; the woman I talked to took notes while I answered her questions, we discussed salaries and benefits and I left feeling pretty good about my chances. Well, someone else got the job, but I wasn't upset. The next few were much worse. One guy got up abruptly during out interview to talk to the plumber, another woman scheduled an interview and then called me in the morning of the interview and asked,"Wait, you're a graphic designer, right?" (Reading someone's resume is apparently optional.) This went on sporadically for a while.
Around the 18th I noticed that the first place where I interviewed had some entry level openings and since I really liked the company when I took a look around, I decided to apply again. Day after Christmas, I got an email from the nice lady that I spoke to the first time: she said I made a good impression the first time, but she wasn't sure where I would fit in the company a few months ago and she would be happy to talk to me again if I could come in either the next day or the following week. Great. So I went in yesterday (hour and a half train ride), headed up to the office at the appointed time, waited for a few minutes, ready for my interview. A few more minutes. Waited a little longer. Guess she's busy. The receptionist poked her head in about twenty minutes after the scheduled interview time had gone by, with a really apologetic look on her face like she was about to tell me my puppy AND grandmother had just died in a plane crash.
The woman I was meeting with wasn't even there. She had called the house and emailed me, but I had been long gone, so I couldn't really get either message. So I did my best to make a professional exit and headed home. Once I got home (another hour and a half on the train; I got absolutely nothing done), I did get her messages and she wanted to reschedule for today, so I emailed her back. She was really apologetic and very nice about it, but she didn't get in contact with me today like she said she would and she wasn't around when I called. So, I don't think I'll be getting that job unless sympathy for the spazz the showed up when he shouldn't have is somehow enough to get my foot in the door.
Been there, done that. Good luck, bro.
Thanks. I'm going back tomorrow at 2:30 for that interview. Hopefully the third time is the charm.
hope for the best; be positive and outgoing; works for me.
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Yes - did you find out why she reckons you would not fit the organisation? From the pictures I have seen of you, you don't look like a typical corporate drone, though their attitude to that might vary depending on the type of company. That might be the stumbling block - not the way you look as such, but the image you project and how that might interact with and reflect the culture of the company in question (supposedly an interview is clinched in the first few seconds when they look at you - I personally think that is b$@*&#@s but on the other hand appearance is pretty key, as is a positive, polite but assertive attitude, which I can normally fake for an hour or so at interview and so, if you need to, can you). In any case, you need to bottom out why she rejected you last time - something you need to address during the interview (no point pussy-footing about, since you got rejected last time and need to know why).
"Winning" at interviews is about practice to some extent, so having a few is helpful as you get to see the stupid questions they ask you and can come up with pat answers. See it as a game, rather than life-or-death, so you don't get too anxious. And a bit of sex can help - I managed to get my big break with my first job interview success partly because I was able to flirt slightly with the lady interviewer in question (who should have known better really, as a partner in a major firm of accountants, but there you go). While I am doubtless far sexier that you, it might help. But don't do it if it would make you feel awkward - they key to success in these things is looking relaxed but interested, and having the credibility to do the job in question.
Anyway, good luck.
Good luck JK hope all goes well for you man!
Thanks, guys. I think the problem with the last interview was that I wasn't focused solely on the job I was interviewing for and I think she got the impression that my interest would lie more in another position than what was open (which is true; I would rather work in design or something creative than administration). I was more interested in hands-on stuff than what they were offering the first time around. I can actually pretend to be a young go-getter for interviews and it isn't a huge corporation; it's a custom frame company that produces frames for museums, galleries and collectors and a good 50% of the staff are artists-by-night like myself. I think focus is the major issue: saying,"I want this position for this reason because I possess these credentials and these qualities" rather than "I'm interested in a lot of things, so whatever you think I can do for you" which is a really crappy strategy.
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This is probably my biggest irrational pet peeve, but it deserves attention: Misused Words and Phrases
- Decimated: This means "reduced by ten percent" rather than its more common meaning of "obliterated". Seriously, if I was a military commander and my forces were decimated, I would be overjoyed at such a victory. A good variant is "completely decimated". Yeah. Reduced by ten percent, but REALLY BADLY. That ten percent was just GONE, man.
- Deceleration: As any person that has taken and passed high school physics knows, there are two types of acceleration: positive (speeding up), and negative (slowing down). Why have another, misleading word used to describe something that already has a perfectly good descriptor already? An object doesn't lose its acceleration, it just accelerates in a positive or negative manner.
- Near Miss: If one nearly misses something, IT'S A HIT! Private: "Oh, I'm fine, Sergeant. It was a near miss, though." Sergeant: "I can see that! Your arm's off!"
- Liquid, Red-Hot Molten Magma: It takes a special kind of person to be quadruple-redundant. Especially if you're a screenwriter for the F$~%ING DISCOVERY CHANNEL (true story). Seriously. Magma is inherently liquid, because it's (duh) MOLTEN ROCK. Molten is a SYNONYM for LIQUID. And yeah, it's red-hot because if it wasn't, IT WOULDN'T BE A LIQUID (or molten). It would just be a F#&!ING ROCK.
- "Wherefore art thou Romeo?": Now, most people place the emphasis on "art", believing "wherefore" to mean "where". However, as the word "wherefore" means "why", the emphasis should be placed on "Romeo". Shakespeare's famous line can be effectively rewritten as "Romeo, Romeo, why are you Romeo?". Evidence as to this can be found in the fact that Juliet is lamenting the fact that her love is the son of her father's mortal enemy.
- Centrifugal Force: I redirect you here. You spin me right round, baby, right round, in a manner depriving me of an inertial reference frame. Baby.
Decimate 1. To destroy or kill a large part of (a group). 2. Usage problem a. To inflict great destruction or damage on. b. To reduce markedly in amount: He decimated his trust fund. 3. To select by lot and kill one in every ten of.
Usage Note Decimate originally referred to the killing of every tenth person, a punishment used in the Roman army for mutinous legions. Today this meaning is commonly extended to include the killing of any large proportion of a group. Sixty-six percent of the Usage Panel accepts this extension in the sentence The Jewish population of Germany was decimated by the war, even though it is common knowledge that the number of Jews killed was much greater than a tenth of the original population. Decimate is also used to refer to large-scale destruction other than killing, as in The supply of fresh produce was decimated by the accident at Chernobyl, but this usage is acceptable to only 26 percent of the Usage Panel.
Words and their meanings change. It's dictated by custom and usage. If enough people use decimate in a certain way, then that's what it means.
Regarding deceleration, I'm not sure, but it could be that deceleration has been around longer than the term negative acceleration. In which case, the latter is the usurper. Regardless, it's called a synonym, and thank the gods English has them.
As to near miss and liquid, red hot, molten magma: Yes, I hate adjectives to. What a silly idea, lending further imagery and description to our words. By the way, magma can be an incredibly dense, pasty substance, or it can flow quickly and fluidly, almost as if it were... liquid! Likewise, as it cools, it looses its red hot appearance. Perhaps there are more scientific terms to refer to each of these states. But most people aren't scientists. They're laymen. And their words usually come first. (See my statements regarding deceleration)
The quibble with the Shakespearean quote is valid, although, again, it's been used in a certain way for so long that even an acknowledge misquote isn't without its value or place.
Centrifugal force isn't so much a mis-used word as a mis-understood concept. But your point (if I understand it correctly to be poking fun at the common usage) is valid.
Oh man, this is a bad place for me to get started. Speaking of magma though, ask the Hawaiians sometime how many descriptive words they have for lava.
A few things grammatical that annoy the hell out of me:
Begging the question vs. RAISING the question.
Lose. The word is LOSE. Single "o."
Hepatojugular reflux, NOT reflex.
Bated breath vs. "baited" breath.
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Oh man, this is a bad place for me to get started. Speaking of magma though, ask the Hawaiians sometime how many descriptive words they have for lava.
A few things grammatical that annoy the hell out of me:
Begging the question vs. RAISING the question.
Lose. The word is LOSE. Single "o."
Hepatojugular reflux, NOT reflex.
Bated breath vs. "baited" breath.
Racked vs wracked. To rack one's brain means to desperately search. To wrack one's brain just means you have a REALLY BAD HEADACHE.
Also, people in Ticonderoga, New York frequently use the term "valid Victorian" rather than "valedictorian". Also, about ten percent of the locals say "salad Victorian" or "salidictorian" rather than the correct "salutatorian".
Microfacial expression reading at airports.
This kind of crap makes me apoplectic, mostly because I know I am going to get pulled aside, which is going to make me even angrier.
"How are you today?"
"Where are you heading?"
"Is this all your property?"
None of your damn business!
BUT, because they are in a position of authority and can delay my flight or make my life miserable, I have to play nice, regardless that I've already paid a fricking ton in advance to get on the plane with half of my luggage left at home because it's less trouble than having it screened, and I have to take my steel toed shoes off and stand around an airport in my socks.
Unbelievable gestapo b.s. Of course I appear inwardly hostile. What a shock that people might feel contempt or fear at the "thought police!"
Who are the brain police?
(10 awesome points to anyone who catches the reference!)
Do you want the song, or the band named after the song?
Who are the brain police?
(10 awesome points to anyone who catches the reference!)
I like...BRAINS...
Old D&D edition player telling you about his character:
Blah blah blah slaughtered by orcs blah blah blah met a wizard mentor blah blah blah found a magical blah blah blah.
New edition player telling you about his character:
My character has plusta plusta plusta damage plusta plusta plusta armor class plusta plusta plusta using his magic hackmaster + 12.
I didn't think something could make me long for the boring backstory days.
Old D&D edition player telling you about his character:
Blah blah blah slaughtered by orcs blah blah blah met a wizard mentor blah blah blah found a magical blah blah blah.New edition player telling you about his character:
My character has plusta plusta plusta damage plusta plusta plusta armor class plusta plusta plusta using his magic hackmaster + 12.I didn't think something could make me long for the boring backstory days.
True, true, the generic, "my family all died so i got a class level." is boring but it is twenty times better than the new, "since this happened in my life i should get a bonus to this."
Microfacial expression reading at airports.
This kind of crap makes me apoplectic, mostly because I know I am going to get pulled aside, which is going to make me even angrier.
"How are you today?"
"Where are you heading?"
"Is this all your property?"
None of your damn business!
BUT, because they are in a position of authority and can delay my flight or make my life miserable, I have to play nice, regardless that I've already paid a fricking ton in advance to get on the plane with half of my luggage left at home because it's less trouble than having it screened, and I have to take my steel toed shoes off and stand around an airport in my socks.
Unbelievable gestapo b.s. Of course I appear inwardly hostile. What a shock that people might feel contempt or fear at the "thought police!"
Guy #1: "So, where are you from?"
Guy #2: "Oh I'm from a small town. You might have heard of it. It's called Mind-your-own-g#~-d!+n-business."
Do you want the song, or the band named after the song?
The song.
"Charlie, I want to track down the evil dragon that tricked us and stole our magical relic."
"Charlie, I want to get enough XP to level up next week."
"Hey! Can you read this supplement and explain it to me, Charlie."
"Charlie! When are we going to get to level 20!"
"I just bought all of the Complete books. Can I make up characters from them?"
Day before game day:
"Can we play Silver Age Sentinels?"
AAAAaaarrrrggghhh!!!! *.*
Well, I know who the Dream Police are; any points for Cheap Trick ?
Who are the brain police?
(10 awesome points to anyone who catches the reference!)
hehe I totally LOVE this post :)
This is probably my biggest irrational pet peeve, but it deserves attention: Misused Words and Phrases
- Decimated: This means "reduced by ten percent" rather than its more common meaning of "obliterated". Seriously, if I was a military commander and my forces were decimated, I would be overjoyed at such a victory. A good variant is "completely decimated". Yeah. Reduced by ten percent, but REALLY BADLY. That ten percent was just GONE, man.
- Deceleration: As any person that has taken and passed high school physics knows, there are two types of acceleration: positive (speeding up), and negative (slowing down). Why have another, misleading word used to describe something that already has a perfectly good descriptor already? An object doesn't lose its acceleration, it just accelerates in a positive or negative manner.
- Near Miss: If one nearly misses something, IT'S A HIT! Private: "Oh, I'm fine, Sergeant. It was a near miss, though." Sergeant: "I can see that! Your arm's off!"
- Liquid, Red-Hot Molten Magma: It takes a special kind of person to be quadruple-redundant. Especially if you're a screenwriter for the f@##ING DISCOVERY CHANNEL (true story). Seriously. Magma is inherently liquid, because it's (duh) MOLTEN ROCK. Molten is a SYNONYM for LIQUID. And yeah, it's red-hot because if it wasn't, IT WOULDN'T BE A LIQUID (or molten). It would just be a f@##ING ROCK.
- "Wherefore art thou Romeo?": Now, most people place the emphasis on "art", believing "wherefore" to mean "where". However, as the word "wherefore" means "why", the emphasis should be placed on "Romeo". Shakespeare's famous line can be effectively rewritten as "Romeo, Romeo, why are you Romeo?". Evidence as to this can be found in the fact that Juliet is lamenting the fact that her love is the son of her father's mortal enemy.
- Centrifugal Force: I redirect you here. You spin me right round, baby, right round, in...
Theres such a thing as self opinion
And this far down south I have no
Self-control
If anybody else feels like a nobody
Well then you're gonna have to look out
For you
I'll colour green everything believed in
But I keep screamin for my glass
Of lemonade
I walk around and it feels good to
Be movin
The breeze thats blowin through cannot
Be found
Jump on the trolley thats headed for all
The hollering
And then youre gonna have to look
After you
In desperate need of a little more
Religion
To nurse your God like point of view
Fool on the sheetroof you gotta lay down
In your ruins
The river flowin by, is way too big
To bound
If I should speak up, and say hello
Mr. uppercut
Oh, how nice to have avoided you
I'll bloody bleed on everything Im seeing
But I keep screamin for that glass
Of lemonade
Too much, too much, too much lemonade
Too much, too much, too much lemonade
Too much, too much, too much lemonade
Too much, too much, too much lemonade
Too much, too much, too much lemonade-:)
3337 rants is too many to read through... so please forgive if this has been mentioned before.
PIN number is the one that gets me.
It's not a PIN number.... It's a PIN!
Personal Identification Number.
Not Personal Identification Number Number.
3337 rants is too many to read through... so please forgive if this has been mentioned before.
PIN number is the one that gets me.
It's not a PIN number.... It's a PIN!
Personal Identification Number.
Not Personal Identification Number Number.
Or ATM machine.
Automatic Teller Machine machine.
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On the subject of what I consider to be inaccuracies in frequent gaming posts/magazines, I have the following pet peeves:
'Hoard', and 'Horde'. I see phrases such as 'the barbarian hoard' or 'the dragon's horde' which drive me mad. Why is a huge pile of gold, jewels, and other precious objects spilling all over a country such a threat? (Okay, apart from the rioting/hyper-inflation that it is likely to cause as people grab a part of it for themselves.) And just why does the dragon apparently spend its time apparently sleeping on top of or counting a small army? (Again, unless it has a weird collecting obsession for items such as golems or figurines of wondrous power?)
DM: "Now that you've dealt with the dragon that's been playing god with those barbarian tribes, it's time to deal with the dragon's horde."
Player: "Sweet! How much gold is there?"
DM: "Not hoard, horde. As in the five tribes of barbarians that you pissed off by killing their god. Good luck. You'll need it."
Stop giving me ideas like that. It's dangerous.
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3337 rants is too many to read through... so please forgive if this has been mentioned before.
PIN number is the one that gets me.
It's not a PIN number.... It's a PIN!
Personal Identification Number.
Not Personal Identification Number Number.
Or ATM machine.
Automatic Teller Machine machine.
My personal favorite is the La Brea Tar Pits in L.A.
From its common Spanglish form into pure English, it translates as "the The Tar Tar Pits."
Mine is the Rio Grande River; the Big River River
Again, in defense of La Brea and the Rio Grande, it's not a matter of redundancy. It's a matter of of useage and custom. Those are their names. (I've actually been to the La Brea tar pits, and had a tour guide mention that they shouldn't be called the La Brea tar pits, because that translates as The Tar tar pits. She proceeded to call them the La Brea tar pits for the rest of the tour)
Here in China we have the same thing. The Huang He (Yellow River) is called, in English, Huang He River (Yellow River River). The same is done with all Chinese rivers and mountains. Sigh.
DM: "Now that you've dealt with the dragon that's been playing god with those barbarian tribes, it's time to deal with the dragon's horde."
Player: "Sweet! How much gold is there?"
DM: "Not hoard, horde. As in the five tribes of barbarians that you pissed off by killing their god. Good luck. You'll need it."
Stop giving me ideas like that. It's dangerous.
That's a truly evil idea. I love it! Just need to get hold of 500 barbarian miniatures!!!!
Geaux Tigers!
Tornadoes. Ruin a perfectly good night.
Hmm... think I hear the sirens going right now.
Tornadoes in JANUARY?! WTF?
really; wow; wereabouts are these tornadoes? do you have a special shelter?
How is that a rant? That is much too cheerful to be a rant.