Robert Jordan Has Passed Away

Well, all you Wheel of Time fans out there, the thing we feared and hoped would not happen has come to pass. Robert Jordan passed away yesterday, Sunday Sept. 16, 2007.

Yes, I think most of us had issues with some of what he wrote and/or writing style at time, but I think in general he has provided us all with a fascinating world that has entertained us for many years.

The following site has information about Robert Jordan and his series, and links to other sites that discuss the matter.

http://www.dragonmount.com/

I think the words on dragonmount.com quoted from Robert Jordan's WoT series is appropriate here:

"May you shelter in the palm of the Creator's hand, and may the last embrace of the mother welcome you home."

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Warning!! Spoiler Alert!! Do not read further if you do not wish to know a little of what happens in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Note: All characters and plot lines of HP7 property of J.K. Rowling


I've decided that I really need to start writing more, so I'll start with this small spot. My wife and I just finished reading the 7th Harry Potter book, and we loved it. The book had action, mystery, suspense, and a small smattering of love. So many questions were finally answered: Was Harry a horcrux? Who was Severas Snape really working for? Who would die and who would live? and more.

This book had me choked up half the time. I have to say that the three people who caused me the most sadness were Fred Weasley and Remus and Nymphadora Lupin. I was completely surprised by the death of Fred. Fred and George were both two of the coolest characters in the book. They could take any situation and make it funny and were loyal to Harry Potter until the end. Remus and Tonks weren't as much of a surprise to me due to the forshadowing of making Harry Teddy's Godfather. I was thinking to myself at that time, "will she do the same thing again?" She did.

I was glad to find out that Severas Snape really was working for Dumbledore to the very end. I think it was a very dramatic moment for Harry Potter to find out the truth, and to know that Snape had loved Lily Potter all his life and had her patronus. This was a cool revelation.

The whole thing about Harry Potter being a horcrux and dieing for the protection of others was a pretty cool concept. The whole thing seemed so messianic. Harry Potter willingly giving his life and then essentially coming back from the dead.

There is so much more I could say about the book, and will probably add to this later. For now I need to go; just know that this book was very well done from beginning to end. Kudos to J.K.

Our baby girl!

Well everyone, my wife, Svetlana, and I now have a little baby daughter. We decided to call her Erin Sophia. She was born 10:01 pm June 26th. She was 5 lbs 11 ounces and 18 inches. Sveta and I are both excited. We're home from the hospital now and everything seems to be going well. She's a little sleepy head, I guess she got that from me. Half the time she seems more interested in sleeping that eating. Anyways, she's just the cutest little thing. We'll make sure to keep family updated. Here are some pictures of her.

(These are just thumbnail size. If you want to download the pic, it will be full size.)
Erin not long after she was born

Sveta and I with the baby

Erin all bundled up

Here she is stretched out in the warmer

Close up

Erin in her one piece

In the carseat

Blogging...the final frontier....

These are the voyages of the blog-ship Arangarx...its continuing mission to explore strange new topics. To seek out new ideas and new methods of citation. To boldly go where....probably every blogger in the Universe has gone before!

::Que the cheesy exploration music::

Anyhoo, greetings all. This is my foray into the world of blogging. Whether I become some well known blogger or remain a lifeless moon of a lifeless planet in some unknown galaxy of the blogging universe, I hope for this to become a place for expression of ideas and who knows...maybe I'll inspire some soul to...something...

And yes, I am a role player. I've done pbem, group posting, freeform, and live-table-top among others. I enjoy the freedom of imagination that the role playing world offers. That being said, while I'm sure that some of my posts will include role playing games, this is not intended to be all about rpgs. I figure that I am enough of a gamer/role player that it is safe to identify myself to the world as such.

Next week's topic: Another Topic. (It'll be a good one too!)