I am emotionally involved with the crew of the Normandy.
How could I not be? I have spent hours and hours with this crew over the last several years, battling to save not only humanity but a galaxy filled with interesting, complex, diverse species from forces bent on wanton destruction.
It is only a game. True.
But I am emotionally involved, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
If there is a mantle for Goddess of Geek Culture, it rests squarley on the shoulders of Felicia Day. With her role in Joss Whedon’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer and later Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog and her own creative online sensation, The Guild, Day has become a household name for the geek set. Her nearly 1.9 million Twitter followers, for example, demonstrates that she has struck a cord. And not just with those guys who dream of finding a cute girl who shares their geek passions. She is also a hit with the girls who are coming out of the basement, so to speak, to proudly proclaim their own geek status. For Felicia Day is the real deal.
A Juliard-accepted violinist (she opted instead to attend UT at Austin) she double majored in math and music (wiki). And if that wasn’t enough to fill her time she was also the avid gamer that provided the inspiration for her web-hit, The Guild.
So why all the Felicia Day love on this Friday morning? Well come along and I’ll tell you.
I sincerely hope that this post-Christmas morning finds you in possession of tokens of affection from those you love that reflect your passions and interests. Though it came as no surprise that books and dvds were a big part of my Christmas, it was no less of a pleasure or surprise to see what arrived. In addition to gifts from Santa and family and friends, I acquired some pre-Christmas loot of my own throughout the month that I have not yet shared. I will keep the commentary brief and (with few exceptions) will not be mentioning how various items came into my possession.
Those who were so sweetly generous have been thanked and I will be able to retain the mystery of just how naughty I was this Christmas season in purchasing things for myself. 🙂
“If you’ve heard this story before, don’t stop me, because I’d like to hear it again.”
~Groucho Marx
As the curtain closed on November 2009, I found myself having spent the month caught up in a compelling, emotional, immersive fantasy gaming experience in the form of Bioware’s Dragon Age: Origins. I mentioned in that review that technology and storytelling were starting to make great strides in coming together to produce games where the player can get lost in the story on nearly the same level as a good book. Those strides continue with Bioware’s newest release, Dragon Age II. I picked up my pre-ordered copy earlier in March and wasted no time in setting out on my epic journey towards destiny. Everything that was wonderful about Dragon Age: Origins has been retained and improved upon in Dragon Age II and I cannot adequately express how enjoyable it is to interact with a story that is so emotionally satisfying.
(Image found here)
“For those of us who take pleasure in the art of reading, a new year opens up endless possibilities. Where will our reading journeys take us? I, for one, positively quiver with excitement thinking about it. As I start a new year, I have all sorts of ideas and plans about what I am going to try to read, which new authors I may finally sample, which books I have planned to read year after year that I might just get to this year. I make all manner of secret reading promises to myself, some that I keep, others that get usurped by wild whims and literary desires. In the end it is just one more reason that reading is one of the best things about being alive.”
The new year began with those words…then I blinked, and 2010 was over. Well, in many ways it certainly feels like that, in other ways it was a long year. Economic woes, employment challenges, health issues and an uncertain political climate, among other things, either touched us directly in our personal lives or indirectly in the lives of family and friends. In the midst of both chaos and contentment I took comfort and pleasure in the written word.
And with that thought in mind I will join the others who like to look back on a literary year with my 2010 Year In Review.
