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There’s a lot of meat in this one, and every bit of it is honest. It contains:

1. The way I think and why I’m an atheist.
2. How we’re treated by others (and how I used to think of atheists too).
3. The questions that got me started on the road to atheism.
4. Meeting with my old priest about those questions.
5. What it felt like to go from proud Catholic to ashamed doubter to unashamed atheist.
6. Telling my mom.
7. How different friends reacted.
8. What I hope to prove to others.

I tried to make “Good Atheists” as interesting and insightful as possible, especially for people who aren’t atheists. Let me know your thoughts.

You can download the session review (PDF). I also went and compiled all of the released materials I’ve made so far into one nicely organized, bookmarked file (also PDF).

Also, as a little web-only goody, you can see the character sheets of the enemy hero party that was tracked down and murdered during the prequel. They’re just regular HTML, so they’ll load in your browser like normal web sites.

1. Gargash the Barbarian
2. Telon the Rogue
3. Elaine the Sorceress

You may now resume your regularly scheduled Friday nights—for now!

——

Instructions: Find two or more quotes by other people that together say something that you’d have a hard time saying yourself. Post them with these instructions and just leave it at that. Plain text is good, and if you link to images from sites like and-i-quote.tumblr.com and postsecret.blogspot.com then you should probably also post the plain text and the url.

1. From http://mackyyy.tumblr.com/post/399430272

“Everyday,
I fight back the urge to text you or call you,
teling myself that
if you wanted to talk to me,
you would.”

2. From http://babblecrossing.tumblr.com/post/392767283/rainingdogsandfish-inspyrred-ichliebe

funny how sometimes
you’re missing somebody,
but when that somebody shows up.
you do NOTHING.

And if you want to learn more about the world and the main campaign’s story, then here is a round-up of all the little things I’ve made so far. They’re all PDFs.

• Main Story Handout
• Bio: Holy King Remwald the Jubilant
• World Map

Please feel free to leave a comment to encourage/terrify the players, but remember that I will be watching for anything that even remotely seems like unfair help.

One of AAU’s 32 bajillion buildings. They’re basically a real estate mafia at this point.

I had a nice, long break. I nearly did everything on my winter break bucket list, although I had to replace “go to a water park” with something else because apparently San Diego suddenly thinks it experiences winter (it doesn’t). The only unchecked item was going to the park on a sunny day to see how many cherry pits could fit in my mouth. I guess I’ll just have to find time to do that very important thing.

Also, I’m happy because I got a perfect A in the class I took during the intercession, Art History through the 19th Century. My transcript hasn’t been updated yet, but I think my cumulative GPA is now above 3.8, which should put me on the President’s Honor List. It’d be easier to stay on there if A-’s didn’t push you off. I wish my school would weight A-’s the same as A’s. Oh well. Right now I’m on the list, and I’d proud of everything I accomplished even if I wasn’t.

As for this upcoming semester, I finally heard back from the swim team. It’s a deal. I’m on it. I’m sure it’ll be a while before I’m able to keep up with them, but the person I talked to said it would be okay. I’m also going to be taking advantage of the Body Sculpting and Yoga classes my school has started to offer. If I can stick to all of that, then I should be able to partially compensate for all the chocolate I eat whenever I come home.

Oh, and for anybody following the D&D campaign I’m running, you can check out the map (PDF) I made. I tried to make all the names of places fun to say out loud, so have fun.

And now, time to board. See ya.

They all seem really excited, which in turn makes me really excited. After we met for the first time last Friday to go over the basic rules and start building character sheets, I knew I wanted to really give them the deluxe storytelling experience.

If anybody wants to follow along, you can check out the campaign premise (PDF) and read up on the character King Remwald (also PDF, read this one second). Also, you might get a kick out of an old post I wrote about the different types of D&D players.

If you are a player in this campaign, then don’t worry, you don’t need to make fancy PDFs when you write your character’s backstory or anything like that. If you feel inspired, then go for it, but just have fun and leave the work to me.

If you aren’t a player in this campaign, then feel free to leave comments, but know that we’ll ignore you if you try to do any backseat driving, and I’ll delete those comments when I see them. No, you don’t get to be “a voice in their character’s head.” I’m posting this stuff because I realized players from my previous campaigns as well as friends of the current players might be interested, not because I want the internet to swoop in and do the thinking for my players. So please don’t spoil anything by posting your theories, non-mechanics advice, puzzle solution ideas, etc. If I feel like we have a problem, then I just won’t post campaign materials publicly. We’ll see how this goes.

Good luck, players!

Without further delay, here are some of the lessons other people have taught me and other things I picked up from them.

Brent

• Introduced me to the Venture Brothers.
• Find out who needs help laughing and help them. Everybody will be happier. Surrounding yourself with happy people will make you happy. Doing this regularly will give you a happy life.
• Remember to be generous, even to the ungrateful and nonreciprocating (but more so to the grateful and nonreciprocating).

Chris Ramm

• Introduced me to good music, video games, fine art, movies, literature, and most other things. I’ve known him longer than anybody, so this was easy.
• Even if you know for certain that you will win doesn’t mean you have to fight.
• Trying to be different is just as mindless as trying to conform. Don’t worry about that stuff at all and you’ll be just fine, and plenty rebellious.
• If you suddenly find that your tastes or interests have changed, then move forward. It doesn’t have to be permanent, and it doesn’t have to be temporary either. You can go back anytime, too. Life is an adventure like that. Never be ashamed of changing tracks.
• Integrity means acting in accordance with your own beliefs just as much as not bowing down to other people’s beliefs. Sometimes this will mean upsetting others, no matter how gentle you really are.
• Loyalty is when love shows itself most clearly.

Christopher Villareal

• Brought me into the open source world and introduced me to most anime.
• Everybody wants a little respect and praise. Find a way to give it to them (but stay honest always). Tactfulness is 99% of everything.
• Working with others does not mean letting them walk over you. If others start to disrespect you, then don’t stick around and act childishly with them. Don’t wave attract attention to what happened, but don’t hide it either. Just have a spine and leave.
• Don’t deprive yourself because of vanity. If you think there’s something embarrassing about something you want to do, then have the self-discipline to set that aside and just go for it. Have fun, and in a counter-intuitive way, let the embarrassment add to the fun if possible.
• It’s okay to be shy, but don’t let it be a problem, and definitely don’t intentionally exacerbate it.

Collin

• Introduced me to computers as fun things to fiddle with (we even sang David Pogue songs together in 5th grade) and Dungeons & Dragons. Didn’t realize that so much of my geekiness stemmed from him until now. Thanks a lot, Collin.
• It can make perfect sense for somebody to be rational as well as spontaneous.
• It is irrational to live a life without spontaneity.
• You don’t lose your sentience and become an animal when you start feeling attracted to the opposite sex. It’s okay.

Eric

• Original partner in appreciation of giant robots. Introduced me to numerous sci-fi shows.
• Not all people with valid opinions have to debate a lot or carry on until they “win” when they do.
• When somebody is spouting nonsense, often it doesn’t deserve any response.

Justin

• Introduced me to Linux and is my original sushi buddy.
• Know where you really are on the ladder and act appropriately. Don’t present yourself as any more of an expert or novice than you are. Speak confidently when you know what you’re talking about, but try not to patronize.
• Don’t hold back praise for others when they do something you admire, and if somebody is looking up to you, then try to pull them up to your level without holding back.
• It is much wiser to view discussions as collaborations instead of conflicts. The only possible prize that anybody can leave with is to be liberated from fallacies they once had. Otherwise, you’re stuck with short-term pride and hurt feelings.

Kendra

• Introduced me to most of the ridiculous web memes that I know.
• Something’s enjoyability is absolutely irrelevant to its moral acceptability, so stop being judgmental and feeling guilty. Enjoy life.
• Being serious all the time isn’t good, smart, or fun.
• Sexuality is a spectrum, and a very big one. Acknowledging this doesn’t make you gay, bi, or anything. But it does make other people make more sense.

Krystal

• Introduced me to Coke Zero and rekindled my appreciation of double-bladed lightsabers.
• A glance and a pause is often all it takes to help somebody stop and put his or herself in your shoes and know exactly what you mean.
• Do not hold back how much you love your family.
• Allow yourself to be passionate about whatever interests you, but you don’t need to bounce off the walls.
• A bit of edginess is good for everybody. Root for the villain every once in a while.

Mark

• Introduced me to German-style board games.
• Being mindful of your own interests doesn’t mean you’re selfish. You can care about yourself and others at the same time, and if others try to get you to do things that are against your interest, then they’re the ones being selfish.
• Don’t worry about becoming a leader or follower. Instead, just focus on doing whatever it is that you want to actually do with people.

Mason

• Introduced me to evolutionary biology and atheism. (My old church would like a word with you.)
• Any analytical process that doesn’t consider other people’s feelings isn’t all that analytical.
• If you want happiness, help others be happy.
• Expertise does not justify arrogance.
• It is absolutely fine to walk around in your underwear in your own home every once in a while.

Nathan

• Introduced me to Mad Magazine and brownies. Yes, I had brownies before I started going over to his house, but understand that him sharing his mother’s brownies with me in elementary school made me a lifelong chocoholic.
• Don’t let anybody tell you that being more logical means having less heart or vice versa.
• You don’t always have to have an opinion at all. Remember that not everything matters. In fact, most things don’t.

Phil

• Introduced me to Starcraft (and then made me hate it later by kicking my ass at it) and rekindled my appreciation of football.
• Find out where your interests overlap with other people’s interests. Do not turn life into a zero-sum game.
• If you can set boundaries with people at the beginning without making them feel like boundaries, then you’ll be happier.

Ryan

• Introduced me to roller coasters that go upside-down (but I’m still sort of a wuss).
• Experiment. Be creative. Be playful. Enjoy life. Try not to worry about things that will stop you from doing those four things.
• If you are honest, then people will understand you and will probably like being with you.
• When you’re excited, let yourself be excited, and let others be excited with you. You’re as boring as you are foolish if you don’t.

Stephanie

• Introduced me to good music made after the year 1995 or so, a bunch of television shows, and the cardigan sweater.
• Having a sensitive or romantic mind is not pathetic or weak.
• I am not the only person on earth who empathizes and wants to help others.
• If you want to know somebody, start by finding out what they are proud of and don’t step on that if you don’t have to.
• Girls are not out to get me.

Steve

• Introduced me to beer (in moderation) and fashion (in moderation).
• Everything can be put on a number scale. It’s a great way of forcing yourself to assess how you feel about things.
• Being able to appreciate material things does not make you materialistic. Denying yourself any small happiness under the pretense of not being materialistic is just as externally dependent as being obsessed with things.
• Find out what other people’s goals are, and if you have any goals yourself, then don’t lose your focus on them.

If you weren’t on the list, then please don’t feel slighted. I didn’t do my parents either and they’d both have the most bullet points if I put them on here, so you’re in good company. Also, it’s 3:45 in the morning now.

So here’s a selfish list of random things I want to do, preferably with wonderful friends just like you.

This is very important.

1. Grill some steaks and/or have a Star Wars marathon.
2. Go ice skating in the temporary rink at the Hotel del Coronado.
3. Have a lazy picnic on a sailboat some afternoon, preferably with a piña colada and a bucket of chicken wings in addition to whatever else we decide to bring. (Don’t judge me, Mason. I still want more wings.)
4. Watch every remaining episode of Kitchen Nightmares.
5. See Sherlock Holmes.
6. See Avatar.
7. See Princess and the Frog.
8. Go to Knott’s Berry Farm.
9. Find a new coat.
10. Go to a Charger’s game.
11. Convince my dad to make his unbelievable rack of lamb one night.
12. Get down to Clayton’s for chocolate chip pancakes, and maybe some corned beef hash too.
13. Eat a bowl of Applejacks, just because it’s been like ten years since I’ve had a bowl and I was reminded of them recently.
14. Make cookies— from scratch for once. With lots of chocolate. And spices.
15. Spend a sunny day finding out how many cherry pits fit in my mouth.

Bonus: Shave my beard so I can see what I look like without one for the first time in years.

Also, I’ll post up the final versions of all the stuff I made for my design classes plus the video presentation I made for my art history class. But that can wait. Stuff from my narrative storytelling class is already up anyway.

Update: I uploaded the work to my Deviant Art. They wouldn’t take my video files though, so you can watch them here. Watch out, they play kinda fast. It feels that way especially because of chaotic camera movements, but hey, not bad for having used that particular program for only two weeks, right? I’m happy with all of them.

I’ve begun the long process of adding things like ratings and tags to all my fonts. While doing so last night, I rounded up 30 sans serif typefaces that I think are pretty good. Being able to print out a sample page for a typeface is pretty standard for font management programs, so I went ahead and made a PDF for those 30 fonts from their sample pages.

Enjoy.

Just look at those fonts. Aren’t they beautiful? They’re my favorite 30 sans serifs right now, but I keep changing my mind. They’re in alphabetical order since I keep flip-flopping about how I’d rank them against each other. Five that would definitely be around the top though are Interstate, Din, Puritan 2.0, Droid Sans, and Trade Gothic.

I uploaded the file for anybody who likes typography, but for people who also need professional font management programs, I think it’s also a good example of how Fontcase just has a more polished, attractive way of presenting everything. The sample pages are meant to be printed out, but I still think they’re beautiful on the screen. And obviously there’s a boatload of other ways to look at fonts.

Anybody who says typography isn’t super interesting  is full of baloney.