My new kitchen mitt

I found this in my mailbox after coming back from Taiwan. I had completely forgotten about it. :-p

I had decided to make a donation after watching A Night Of Too Many Stars. I usually donate $100 at a time. However, the $100 gift was a beanie, which I didn't want. I wanted the $50 gift, the kitchen mitt. So I donated $99.

Taiwan Trip

Just got back from a 1 week trip to Taiwan. For some reason, it was very tiring. I was tired the whole time I was there. Maybe I'm getting old. Or I need more naps. ^_^

I practiced kendo 3 times while in Taiwan. I think the biggest take away that I want to make sure I remember is my zanshin (残心). It sucks. -_- 林老師 mentioned that I need to be more ready for opportunities for multiple attacks. I should not just attack and go through. I need to be ready to attack again. Which also fits with the philosophy of being ready to attack at all times. 菅原先生 at Indianapolis had also mentioned that I need to pay more attention to my zanshin on my last visit, so I guess I have something concrete I need to work on. :-p

4E D&D

That's right, Fourth Edition Dungeons and Dragons... :-p

I decided to try playing a game with Nick and Ryan this past weekend using the new rules, with Ryan being the DM and Nick and I both playing 2 characters. Personally I never do quite as well when I have to play multiple characters, but meh...

I played a Warlord (new class) and a Cleric while Nick played a Paladin and Wizard. I barely finished creating the Cleric when we started, and didn't even really read over the combat section yet, which made certain things a little confusing. Ryan had to save our asses because Nick and I apparently can NOT roll. Let's just say that the number 1 on the d20 appeared way too often, as well as numbers below 10... -_-;;

I have to say I still don't know what to think about the new system yet. The simplification of the Skills system is intriguing, yet harkens back to the Non-weapon proficiencies of 2nd Edition. I think it's an improvement though. I definitely do NOT like how many minuses were eliminated by boosting everything overall. :-( It feels like they don't want to imply weaknesses and/or make the math simple. However, one thing I'm furious over is putting the magic items in the Player's Handbook. >:-( Not only is the system magic heavy to begin with, this violates so much about the premise of D&D in my opinion.

As for the REAL major change, the at-will, encounter, and daily power system... I withhold judgement for now. ^_^

13 years of kendo and I still get blisters

Yesterday I decided to do suburi (素振り) while watching TV, and I got a blister on my left hand under my callus after about 300, finishing with 600. The callus is below the pinky, about half-way down the hand. 13 years of kendo and I still get blisters. :-p I want to say that my hands have not built back up since the surgery, or that the dragonfly bumps on the tsukagawa (柄がわ) contributed, but in the end, all I can do is smile, clip off the callus, and bear the pain. -_-;;

昨日私が素振りをやりました。三百素振りをやった後で、私の左手がまめを得ました。全部六百素振りをやりました。まめは小指の下で、手の中心にいます。十三年の剣道、私はまだ素振りでまめを得ます。-_-;;

昨天我自己練了一下劍道。練了三百下我的左手就起水泡了。總共練了六百下。水泡起在我的小指以下，差不多手的中心。劍道練了十三年我還在起水泡。:-p 可能是手術後練習不夠，還是劍柄上的蜻蜓，可是還是有點無奈。

-_-;;

On my way out of IL

Well... I finished my LCPC submission this past Monday and verbally agreed to Sony Entertainment's offer, so I guess I'm on my way out of Illinois and back to the Bay Area. They're still waiting on a final signature from Japan before mailing me the official offer. Hopefully this isn't indicative of how things will work. :-p

Feels... a bit odd. ^_^ But I've been getting more and more excited about starting work, so I think that's a good sign.