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Today is a day of significance. The 11th of September always will be, for me. I won't repeat all the political and social ramifications of that day. That will be handled by other, wiser people who are more educated in these matters.

Instead I will remember it as a day to honour the firemen, paramedics, and police officers who risked everything to run into those buildings and save as many as possible.

I will sit in silence for the ones that never came back out.

These amazing people are often woefully underpaid and overworked. They are seen as a cost, rather than a necessity.

But they are heroes.

I will never belittle the military. I have such huge respect for those men and women who are willing to die to protect their homes and mine, so when I say that I honour the civil defence forces to the same level, please understand that it is a compliment to both, and not a reduction in respect to either.

It takes a hero to run into a building that is on fire. It takes a hero to step up and prove a crime was committed. It takes a hero to fight to protect the innocent.

Too many heroes, both civilian and civil defence were lost that day.

I honour those heroes, today.

I will not be drawn into political debates today. If you have something political to say, I will not respond.

Wolf Dreams

Sep. 3rd, 2011 02:13 pm
ayoub: ([Default])
Wolf Dreams is now available on Amazon as a Kindle Download!

I am so very nervous.

The crazy is now out there!
ayoub: ([Default])
How to go from stabby to constructive criticism on the Internet in three easy steps:

1. Upon discovering that you are feeling stabby because someone on the Internet is wrong (or whatever other reason), write out your response on a piece of paper, or in a private document.

2. Step away from the computer, or put away the mobile device, and do something that is guaranteed to make you less stabby. Everybody has something that never fails to bring a smile.

3. Read the thing that made you stabby again, then consider your response. Ask yourself three questions:
a. Will your response change anything as it is?
b. How would you feel if someone responded to you in that way?
c. Is it worth it?

This should leave you with a better idea about how to respond, and indeed whether to respond or not!

Of course, these steps don't apply if the only thing that makes you happy is being stabby...

Also, if this post makes you feel stabby, let me point you to step one... ;)
ayoub: ([Default])
I tend to write characters in the fantasy genre. When I want a break from that, I write crime, or a little sci-fi. The nymwars pseudoym issue struck me as something that would concern a member of one of the long lived races I write about.

'What's in a name?' I ask myself, looking in the mirror. I'm several thousand years old, and have held many names, but only one has stuck. And by one, I mean, literally, one. A single syllable, a single word, a single letter. Not really a common name, but one that I've been known by for the last few millennia. It's also convenient, because the first name I took for myself is unpronounceable for most humans, and many other creatures. The problem is, it's not so convenient when it comes to official paperwork. I have a legal name. I've actually had a long list of them, but they're conventions. They're not me. My name, in as much as what I call myself, pre-dates record keeping as it exists today.
'So again,' I ask out loud, 'what's in a name?' I shake my head and laugh. 'Apparently, nothing.'

I use my real name on Google+, on Twitter, and on LJ/DW. It's worked for me. My personality profile is such that, if I use a pseudonym, I find it restrictive. It becomes a character that is only a part of me, and therefore, I get into character when posting.

But not everyone is me. I'm glad I have my critters in my head, though. They help me understand things.
ayoub: ([Default])
I've had a copy of John Truby's book "Anatomy of Story" sitting here for a while.

I started taking a premise and working through the book.

Three chapters in, and...

Mind = blown.

No way I'm ever writing a novel length story another way again. Look out NaNoWriMo, I'm gonna be so prepared.
ayoub: ([Default])
When I was a wee lad, my mum used to drink coffee made in (what to me is) the weirdest way (she still does, by the way). She mixes half milk and half water, a spoon full of coffee grounds, and puts it on the stove to simmer for a while. I don't know anyone else who drinks coffee that way. As a wee lad, this brewing process made the coffee smell very, very bad.

Fast forward to my university years, and I discovered the effects of caffeine. Vending machine coffee was barely palatable, but it worked with a fair amount of sugar added.

And then I watched Hudson Hawk.

In hindsight, this proves that product placement works on me.

Because I started drinking cappuccinos wherever I could get them.

After that, I went to lattes, caramel macchiatos, and finally, to the greatest coffee taste in my experience: Freshly ground medium roast beans, a stove top espresso maker, and a little bit of sugar.

The point of this entry? None really. Just felt like talking about coffee :D
ayoub: ([Default])
The government of the United Kingdom is in danger of doing what the criminals on the streets of England have done, and that is to lash out at whatever is nearest.

If the government puts in to place measures to block access to social networks and communications, they will have made victims of innocent bystanders.

There's also the free speech aspect of it. Does this government really want to head down that path?

Every single MP in the debate today missed one very obvious point: If you block one method of communication, those intent on criminal acts will find another.

Why is it that they can't see that?

The government needs to move with technology. We do not need knee-jerk reactions that threaten the privacy and free speech of every person living here.

Also, if I hear another politician using the word "criminality," I'm going to scream.
ayoub: ([Default])
What are your top five personal values?



Honour, Loyalty, Wisdom, Freedom, and Personal Development...
ayoub: ([Default])
How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you are?



Some day, I'd say 21, others, I'd say 100...
ayoub: ([Default])
What are your opinions of Google+ so far?



One word: AWESOME!
ayoub: (Default)
What are some everyday things that you once considered impossible?



Being happy in my own skin, and getting email wherever I am :D
ayoub: (Default)
What charities do you support most?



St. John's Ambulance, and Cancer Research...
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In what ways are you predictable?



In my selection of clothes, my choice of drinks, and my favourite things... Otherwise, I try to be as unpredictable as possible!
ayoub: ([Default])
What are your top three priorities?



My kids, getting a job, visiting my love.
ayoub: ([Default])
When does silence convey more meaning than words?



When you're in the arms of the one you love...
ayoub: ([Default])
Do you ever celebrate the green lights?



Definitely :D

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