thephoenix

zzzzzzzzzzzz...oh what? oh. *goes back to sleep*

How long did it take you guys to run through one playthrough? I'm trying to decide whether or not I have enough time for this game.

I'd like to be....a phoenix for real! But if that's not possible, i'd be an eagle I guess. I love to fly, and the eagle is one of the most majestic creatures in my book.

Hmm... 1) Australia 2) United Kingdom 3) New Zealand 4) Spain 5) Italy

My deepest condolences to the victim's family and friends. I can only imagine how they felt when they heard of the grisly murder by a psychopath. On a brighter note, congratulations to INTERPOL and the German police for so quickly arresting this lunatic. I'm guessing he will get a life sentence without chance of parole in permanent solitary confinement since Canada does not have the death penalty.

From what I can tell, she is genuinely trying to raise her son well, and if she has to do porn to get enough money for that, so be it. I think it's safe to say it wasn't her top career choice, but she is paying taxes, isn't on welfare, and hasn't been arrested for anything. Even though there is a big stigma associated with the adult industry, nobody is hurt in the process.

Indeed. He needs to be locked away yesterday. Someone this deranged is a major threat to public safety. This is pretty much on the same level as "3 guys 1 hammer" in brutality. (Please do not watch that video if you don't know what it is.)

I very much respect Queen Elizabeth II for her unwavering dedication and loyalty to her country. She has always held herself to the highest levels of grace and professionalism. She has been involved in no scandals or anything of the sort unlike many public figures today. It'll be interesting to see if she out-reigns Queen Victoria as the longest reigning monarch in the UK's history.

Happy birthday Stu!

I'd love to visit DC and meet some of you, but the dates don't work for me at all.

This is an interesting surprise to me... It'll be interesting to see how DC incorporates this into their next movie involving him.

Congrats! I didn't get the chance to read it while it was still here on GA, but I'll be getting a copy when it is released.

Pros: 1) All of the stories I have read on here focuses on the storyline, characters, background, their friends, family, situations etc. Unlike nifty where 90% of the stuff I read on there is some mega-orgy where there is at least one sex scene in each story in a series. 2) I like the forum, and chat, being able to converse with others in the gay community in relative anonymity. (Relative being the internet.) Cons ...hmm... dunno. I'll have to get back to you on that

I have to admit reading the title of the topic made my mind run into the gutter. Anyway, my breakfast and dinner meals are usually the largest. Breakfast because it is the first meal of the day and always consists of eggs and a bunch of other things. Dinner because I usually eat dinner around 1830 (6:30pm) and there is a long time until I eat again. (Unless I go for a midnight snack). Lunch is just whatever is at the caf....usually a full plate of stuff and a salad or something...

I've always wondered about these meet-up things. Do you guys all know each other or can anyone go without feeling left out or an "odd one out" or something?

Kaiden. Because there is a history between my Shepard and Kaiden since Mass Effect 1. I thought there was not enough history for my Shepard and Cortez to form such a close relationship. Just my two cents. The Phoenix

*begin_transmission--time<<T*09:30:00:0000UTC.02.15.2004*LOC:City:Windsor**Province:Nova_Scotia**Country:Canada*fluxlevel43593* Dear 17 year old self, Do not submit your application to the University of Toronto. Actually, don't go to Toronto at all. Stop trying to waste to time thinking what other people are thinking of you and just let things come naturally. Don't start playing WoW. You will know what it is when the time comes. It is very addicting and it will take time away from things you need to do. Go straight to pursuing the dream job of a pilot. Stop trying to skirt around it because you'll just end up hating what you do. Here's a hint: look into Western Michigan University or Embry Riddle. The answers you seek are there. Also don't...... ##ERROR:283923948## ..forge....t....to................ge...t.................... ##CRITICAL_ERROR:disturbance_time_stream## **end of transmission**

On ME3:

I'm an American-born Asian...but I'm totally 100% American in spirit, 0% in Chinese, so I don't know if I count. (actually maybe a little Canadian too.)

I'm just going to drop in my two cents. Because I've been there myself, although I don't like to admit it or even acknowledge its existance in my life. At least not any more. This was a few years back, in Toronto, Canada, when my grades were slipping, friendships almost non-existant, and the few that I had - well, betrayal, lies, deceit and all that. I saw a few counselors and psychiatrists, although I never started taking anti-depressants on a regular basis. I didn't want the side effects, and I didn't want to be dependant on them. There were times when it was unbearable, sometimes, it was just ok. Y'know, just life passing you by. It took a great deal of willpower, an idea that spiraled into extreme amount of inspiration, which spiraled into motivation, which fueled my willpower. I assigned blame to others, and told myself it wasn't my fault. I put 100% into absolutely everything that I did, effectively taking myself off of auto-pilot and personally intervening in even the smallest of tasks. Thus began my recovery. I had effectively declared all-out war on my depression. I vaguely remember someone saying that I looked angry all the time. You know those things that you just take for granted and don't think about - you just do? I personally intervened in everything until my life resembled some form of normalcy. For those terrible moments when you seemingly can't pick yourself up, I found that uplifting, movitating music helped. In the case of betrayal, I transformed all the hurt into anger. I dealt slightly better with that, because I could visualize beating that person up when I hit the gym. I was also seeing a counselor during this time to help vent my frustration and anger. I put 100% into my classes. Some of my team's weekly paper reports looked like small textbooks. I was quickly voted in to the position of team captain for my particular team (about 12 teams in my program), and kept it for the entire semester, being the longest person to continuously hold the position in the history of the program at my college. It was not just a title though. There were responsibilities, I had to delegate the tasks, and I had to sign off each weekly task, effectively representing my team as a whole to the instructors. I finally graduated with honors. I took such an accomplishment as one of my victories against depression. I was not yet done though. The idea that fueled all this to begin with? The financial possibility of pursuing my dream job of being a pilot, as many of you know, is a very expensive endeavor. I submitted my application to the university I am currently at, and got accepted in the early months of 2011. I was not simply making a move across the city, across the province, or even across the country. I was moving OUT of the country to the United States. In the span of a few months, I had thrown out, donated, burned or sold 90% out of ALL my personal belongings, including furniture from my fully self-furnished apartment. Not a piece of furniture followed me across the border. My iphone, xbox and my macbook were my only electronics to follow me over. And only just enough clothes. And my Ontario college diploma. An apartment full of stuff minimized into 2 suitcases and a duffel bag. I abandoned my Ontario residency status, and cancelled and closed bank accounts/credit cards. Burned bridges, deleted contacts, and changed my phone number. Deleted people off of FB, and blocked certain people. On the eve of my departure from Toronto, I burned mementos of Toronto (photos, private/confidential documents), visualizing all the hurt, anger, and frustration, and yes, the city, going up in flames. As soon as I arrived in the United States, I participated in as much as I possibly could to establish myself in my new state of residence. I joined the Air Force ROTC, an aviation fraternity, got inducted into an honor society, I am about to be inducted into the university's honors college, and am volunteering as much as time as I can. I am working out regularly to stay in shape, because of AFROTC, and wanting that endorphin rush and sense of accomplishment after every good workout. I was recently awarded a AFROTC ribbon recognizing me at the top 10% of my class (among 7 other ribbons I was awarded), and I maintain a near-perfect GPA. And I am a student pilot, who just finished my third solo flight and first instrument flight. I'm about halfway done towards my private pilot license. Such a very abrupt change, intertwined with great accomplishments and success helped get the depression out of me. Hopefully for good. I believe I am living proof that you can get rid of depression without medication. I wish all of you who still carry such a burden the best of luck in getting rid of it. But please take my experience with a grain of salt. It may or may not work in your circumstances.

Great chapter as always...I have to ask: how much longer til you finish and publish a book on it?

We have never forgotten, and we will continue to never forget the horrors that happened this day in September 10 years ago.

Thanks NightOwl!

Thanks Steve! I've been crazy ridiculously busy here but good I get to experience college life once again Thanks Bee!

mmmm yummy...thanks! Thanks Tara! You have a great day too! Thanks Mark! OMG hot! LOL... Thanks Neph!! Thanks TalonRider Thanks Andy! BTW i'm south of the border now...hehe. I think i'll be here to stay...I like the United States too