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'My Corduroyed Life' - Mark A's Journal
You know, it's a funny hobby is role-playing…
When you role-play, it's a very complicated thing. I mean, is it escapism? To me, escapism is something that requires no effort and chilling. I have to concentrate when I'm role-playing... I aint escaping. I'm escaping when I watch a schlock... Many claim it is escapism though, but it's a known fact that every character that you role-play is an extension/ distortion of your own personality. You can't *truly* escape. You can't play a master mathematician if you can't do your sums, you can't role-play a knowledgeable scholar who speaks in German if you can't speak German, you can't play an evil character if there isn't a dark side to your personality.
It’s gotta have been well over a year ago, but I still remember it with great fondness. I was in IC (in character) the dungeonworld chatroom (http://www.chat.madcentral.com/madchat/chat/) playing a male centaur (Fritz) who's filly/ girlfriend (Gafron) had just dumped him. A gay man playing a straight centaur being dumped by a straight female centaur played by a straight man. It really is amazing how something so bizarre, so off the wall and peculiar to people outside of role-play looking in can be not even a consideration to people like us. I didn't even think about who was playing whom, and how bizarre it would be if I could have actually seen my mate Joey playing Gafron at the time.
Role-play works more naturally if you start your character with a blank personality. You can sit for hours coming up with backgrounds, cool histories, character traits and idiosyncrasy... or you can go "I'm going to be a halfling sorcerer" and then RP immediately. Over the years my favourite characters have developed from that premise. Take, for example, the character I’m actually playing at the moment in phee's online D&D in mIRC as I write this: Harold the Annihilator. When I started playing him, he was just 'a halfling sorcerer that had a daft name and an alignement of chaotic good. Now he's still that, but he's also renowned for getting himself knocked out, a wreckless streak, vindicism that is shocking, a big mouth with opinionated views, panic attacks, and an affection for animals. How did Harold the Annihilator become a reality? Well first of all, he is a product of too much alcohol and poppers at Glastonbury festival. My friend Pete and I came up with the 'amusing' name 'Harold the Decimator' whilst under the influence. Then we thought it'd be amusing to come up with the most ridiculous class possible for such a 'rah' name: it *had* to be halfling sorcerer. However, when it came to remembering it when sober, all I could think of was annihilator, so he became an annihilator, not a decimator. I wanted a chaotic good character for two reasons: 1) I'm kack at playing baddiesand enjoy playing goodies, and 2) My last D&D character was Lawful, so I wanted a contrast. Basically, that was all I went in with, other than 'he's friendly'. Everything else has been added to the character as I've gone along and as things have happened in the scenario he's in, and I've *really* enjoyed doing it that way!
RPing, it's a funny old thing, aint it?
Have fun,
M
Current mood:
happy.Current music: Noko by Molotov.
I admit it, I have a problem...
My name is Mark Adams, and I'm a chocoholic!
I really, really do eat too much chocolate. I constantly berate smokers for smoking, but I genuinely believe that I am addicted to chocolate. I'm a hypocrite, and a 'dirty' chocoholic. I can't stop. Chocolate calms me down, makes me happy, accompanies a good film/ telly programme (or makes a bad one tolerable)... it rules me. I never go a day without chocolate.
Sure, I'm slim now, but what'll happen when I'm in my forties/ fifties? The chocolate will curse me into obesity. I just don't think I can even cut down, let alone stop...
What I'm gonna do is try and scare myself: I'm gonna do a chocolate log. For a whole week, every time I eat chocolate, I'm going to write it down on a list. This list will shame and scare me into eating less chocolate. I will post this list on this blog: maybe I can humiliate myself out of this addiction?
Have fun,
M
PS:
I am actually something resembling serious here. I am genuinely worried about the amount of choc I eat...
Current mood: Chocoholic.
Current music: Dali by Martin Grech.