Ahhh ol' peaceful Bloomington... as much as I enjoy the calm and quiet atmosphere around here (it is a nice, small college town after all), there really isn't much that one could do to amuse oneself. for instance, a few weeks back I found out that this chick who works at the local college mall's gaming store happens to be a porn star (and a cute one too; w/ big 34DD boobs!! talk abt major awesomeness!!). to my utter dismay, I was later told that she had transferred to Indianapolis... NOOOOOO!!! [/Vader] so yeah, there goes the very last thing that makes this place actually interesting. bummer.
anyway, it just came to my realization that 'tis been 3 yrs since I arrived here and so many things have changed during the course of my stay (well, apart from maybe some old habits and my eternal dislike for sushi. anyone who tries to convince me to eat one gets automatically punched in the throat. yeah. fuck sushi). I'm still not exactly the most sociable person on the planet though and it's somewhat unfortunate since my college years have been nothing but repetitive shit that I do almost every single day. I don't party and I only tried clubbing once (it sucks moby dick). fortunately for me, salvation from perpetual boredom comes in the form of my geeky hobbies: i.e. comic books, video games, toys and card games. the last one is particularly important since it's one of the few opportunities I get to actually socialize.
in any case, since I have nothing better to put up I thought maybe I'd tell a bit more abt these "colorful characters" that I hang out w/ every Thursday evenings. meet the motley crew:
Brandon - Brandon & I happen to share many similar hobbies & interests, so it's no wonder why we both could get along w/ each other pretty well. a fellow gamer who also plays/collects various video games, he works as a DJ at a local WTTS radio station every Friday & Sunday mornings, from midnight till 6 am (the AM station is 1370 WGCL). I pretty much owe him a lot since if it weren't for him, I prolly wouldn't have been able to attend the Yu-Gi-Oh! Shadow of Infinity Sneak Preview in Indy last month (also, he gives me a ride to my apartment whenever the weather's too terrible for me to cycle around). he's a pretty much an awesome guy to hang out w/ (esp if you’re also a gamer yourself).
Ashunti - some might say that the big black dude has some anger management issues (let's just say he can get very emotional when dueling) but overall I think he’s okay in my book. part of the reason being, he's usually the 1st guy I look for whenever I’m looking for any specific cards that I need. if memory serves me correct, he was the very first guy that I got to know back when I started out (and he's also one of the few who actually knows me by my full name).
ashunti & brandon. kyle & jake can be seen in the background
Jory - the resident Irish [insert: drunken + rowdy Irish joke]. I remember him telling me that he's actually half Australian (from his mother's side). he seems to be close buddies w/ Zane & Gavin, and as a result is usually the butt of our jokes (poor guy). still, I think he's a very nice and cool guy overall.
strangely enough, jory seems very sober whenever he's dueling...
Zane - Zane doesn't consider himself as black; he's Jamaican. apparently he has a stalker whom he despises so much (he once told her that she's an ugly whore who needs to stop bothering him). surprisingly, they somehow ended up going out to the movies or sth (and he even went as far as making out w/ her in the car too) despite all of that constant berating (is that messed up or what?). what's cool though is that Zane and Jory likes to make “donut runs” at night and I once got lucky to tag along for a trip. the place, Cresent Donut Shop has arguably some of the tastiest and cheapest donuts available around here. (hell, last week Ikram & I went there and we even got a dozen of donuts for free!!)
JOKE OF THE YEAR: *us on the way back from a donut run to my apartment and meeting up some college chicks along the way* Jory: ooh college chicks. I could prolly get a ride w/ them or sth imcp: huh? yeah, sure Jory Jory: hey, w/ my face, I'm pretty sure girls would be all over me Zane: uhhh...your sister doesn't count
Gavin - for whatever reason, Gavin seems to enjoy playing w/ fairies in Yu-Gi-Oh! not that there's anything inherently wrong w/ that, but it's always an amusing moment whenever he brings out his Mystical Shine Balls (monsters in the game) in a duel (because you know sth is indeed wrong when you have a black guy who's so proud of his 'shiny balls' and is telling his opponent to do "stuff" w/ 'em).
zane (left) & gavin (right). a particularly amused frank is seen next to gavin
Frank - Frank is gay. and he likes to lick elephant balls. ........ heh, heh, heh I'm just kidding. for some reason, frank & I always end up telling each other retarded jokes whenever we're dueling. his idea of challenging me to a duel: "hey c'mon im, let's duel so I can kick your ass".
I remember telling frank to strike a pose that'd make him look cool but here we can obviously see he looks like someone diseased
Jake - Jake's quite knowledgeable in terms of strategies and rulings (normally, ppl ask me abt rulings & stuff since I always keep myself up to date w/ the most current info. but if I'm not sure abt sth, I usually ask him or Mat). personally, I don't care much abt his rather peculiar habit of "borrowing promo cards included in video games at stores and never returning them back"; but what somewhat disturbs me is his apparent attraction to one of the guys' mom, who happens to be a smokin' hot MILF (no kidding). I mean, I can understand how some teens can have those weird fantasies of lusting over their friend’s mom (think Finch from American Pie) but geez...it's somewhat unsettling when you hear someone getting excited because he heard a rumor that said friend's mom might be getting a divorce which opens up many "opportunities". he's a cool guy though.
Nate - he's a fine guy and not that bad of a duelist. other than Ashunti and maybe a few, he was among the first few ppl that I got to know quite well, along w/ Jamison & Kyle. he also likes to poke fun at Jory too.
nate (the one /w glasses) & jake
Kyle - Kyle likes to make gay jokes and I'm the unfortunate bastard who happens to be the target of his homoerotic jabs. one of these days I just might ask him out on a hunting trip so I can shoot him in the face, Cheney-style. but then I really can't help but sympathize the poor old sod, esp. after hearing so many of his luckless stories (he once told us he won't be showing up the following up week but then came anyways w/ the news he got dumped; he once got hit on by really old gay men while working at Taco Bell and later on, in a separate incident he quarreled w/ his terrible manager and got fired for it). he now works at McDonald's on campus w/ Nate.
kyle: the only guy I know who complained that Brokeback Mountain should've had better male actors.
Brian - Brian's one of the oldest guys at Avalon (I think he told me he was 30 or sth) and a close buddy of Ashunti. he likes to pick on me, partly because I once beat him so bad in duel, he actually lost in a single turn. every once in awhile, he'll try to strangle me out of frustration because of my antics (he got even more pissed when I took a pic of him, and even started chasing me around the store). still, I'd give him some credit since he did give me & some of the guys a ride to Indy for a Yu-Gi-Oh! regionals tournament (which was my very first) two years ago.
Mat - he's basically the guy who runs the show for Yu-Gi-Oh! nights at Avalon. although in the past he's known for a really terrible temper tantrum, he's actually alright. he even goes as far to ensure that everyone (regardless whether you're an experienced player or newbie) gets an equal opportunity to win tournaments and at the same time enjoy the perks of dueling.
a candid shot of mat & brian. this was immediately before brian tried to beat the crap out of me
Jamison - Jamison's a really nice guy. he works at the local Smokey Bones restaurant (as a manager if I recall correctly). if Ashunti doesn't have the cards I need (or if he's simply not around), Jamison’s my next best bet to get what I'm looking for. he's also into manga & anime (plus he likes drawing too). unlike Brandon & myself however, he's not much of a gamer but more of a DND (Dungeons & Dragons) kinda guy.
Tricia - aka "Trish". not much can be said abt her except she's Jamison's squeeze and also happens to study at IU. she also one of the few experienced female duelists around here.
mat, jamison (in red) & trish
The Besseys (Mike, Colin & Jacob) - Mike works for an insurance company and I think he's a very cool dad because he actually spends quality time w/ his kids by sharing the same hobby as them. we often joke around at store, though I do try to keep my sly double entendres rated PG-13 around the kids. Colin was my one-time a tag partner but he doesn't come as often nowadays (prolly because of school or sth). Jacob, being the youngest (I think) is the friendliest kid I've ever known (and that's really saying sth since in the 3 yrs I've been here, most of the American brats I've met are so annoying, I can't help but feel like punching them in the face just for shits & giggles). he always greets me w/ a nice chirpy "Hi" whenever I arrive at the store. once, I even got to hang out w/ the Besseys when Mike offered to take me to the Elemental Energy Sneak Preview last November.
mike has a "wtf?!!" look on his face
jacob & colin
The Wangs (Justin, Jessie & Russel) - the siblings are relatively new faces at Avalon. the eldest, Justin seems quite the skilled duelist but sometimes I think he's too hasty when making plays which end up costing him many mistakes. Jessie thinks I’m always picking on her in duels, which is not necessarily the case. I'm not that much of a bully, but then again I am an mcp so it's pretty much expected? :P Russel is the youngest of the three and I haven't had the opportunity to get to know him well yet. I think he's talented and has some major potential though.
justin holding up a card
jessie tries to persuade me not to make fun of her. not gonna happen
Others - there's Jim, a nice big fella who comes every once in awhile....errr..I mean, he "shows up" every once in awhile...; Rian & Miranda, two nice girls who also happens to enjoy Yu-Gi-Oh! immensely; the ever-annoying James, who brags abt a lot of stuff yet rarely participates in any tournament (which happens to be one of the many reasons why he’s disliked by most, although I just happen to tolerate him since I'm a nice guy); Mark the nuclear physicist (I shit you not) and many others whose names escape me at the moment.
if any of you Yu-Gi-Oh! players out there happen to drop by Bloomington, come to the store for a visit. Avalon is at 223 S. Pete Ellis Dr., Bloomington, IN. our weekly tournaments are held every Thursday at 6 pm. Mat's in charge but I should be around unless there’s a major exam or sth.
on another note, last weekend I was fortunate enough to have made that trip to the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago which was way overdue. after so many years, I finally got to fulfill a childhood dream to see Sue, the largest, most complete, and best preserved T-Rex fossil yet discovered. call me an old fashioned geek, but I thought it was pretty cool to see a bunch of dinosaur fossils (they even had the Tsavo man-eating lions up for display). too bad the trip had to be cut short since the museum closed at 5 pm (actually, I kinda got carried away and didn't notice that everyone had left until I realized I was practically alone in the animal planet exhibit). still, the next day I got to visit the Museum of Science & Industry and see the Game On! exhibit that was held there. it was pretty awesome as I got to play some really old school games (the original Street Fighter, Pitfall on Atari and a bunch of games on old consoles like the Sega Dreamcast). yup, overall the trip pretty much kicked ass.
me & sue
the sequel that never was: Jurassic Fark
I just had to take a pic of it. should describe the above pic perfectly
imcp & dimetrodon
stegosaurus
yeah, the triceratops & I were pretty much horny that time
