Thyroid

Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Content count

    1295

  • Joined

  • Last visited

Posts posted by Thyroid

  1. Posted

    Haha, I won't lie and say I didn't consider it. But I don't think my current girlfriend would take to it much. Also, you know, that's a pretty insane solution. Things are complicated as they are between me and her as she's my best friend and my ex, so. But yeah, totally considered it for a moment.

    Anyway, update: she made it. She's staying at undisclosed location, and is roughing it until December. :) Yay. Hopefully she graduates with great marks, gets her Movenpick gig running as soon as possible, and wings it out of there.

    Thank you so much, everyone. I lost my ability to rationally think on my first night, and I didn't know who to turn to. You all helped loads. :tup: :tup: :tup: out of :tup: :tup: .

  2. Posted

    Re:fantasy and subtlety: Well, I think ASOIAF has plenty of subtlety to it. So there's that. Sanderson's Mistborn trilogy was fun, but ultimately a video game stuffed in a book.

    Anyway, I thought this was worth saying: language matters. I think subtlety and irony work really well in English, but I've yet to see Arabic literature pull it off. I think the English language is one whose words are tools for evoking specific, chiseled feelings or ideas, whereas in Arabic, everything is grandiose and epic, because of the rough, heavy lexicon, making it a different ball game. It'd be hard to explain further without this turning into an essay. But the result is that, while subtlety doesn't work as effectively as it does in English, other tricks, including evoking switching to poetry mid-paragraph, switching between classical and contemporary Arabic depending on whether we're doing dialogue or description, or bafoonish, cartoonish characters, like in Charles Dickens's work, do a better job in Arabic than English.

    It's something I've noticed.

    I do agree with all of the above. (Including what I said.)

  3. Posted

    Now she's stopped answering my calls. I hope she's OK.

    I appreciate all the support. :) Maybe this is all not worth the dust I'm kicking-up but I didn't take things especially well last night and it's been a scary, nerve-shattering experience. It's hard for me to believe how insane everyone is acting.

    Thank you, sincerely.

    MrHoatzin Yeah. I think there's been a hugely satisfying paradigm shift lately. Things are getting more progressive.

    Brkl and syntheticGerbil, I honestly wouldn't say my problems are any bigger than yours. I'm good at avoiding trouble, and I keep my nose clean. :) I just happen to stick my neck out sometimes for people who I think could use a little helping hand.

    This culture is just very frustrating to deal with, especially since I know we could be much better. If I get particularly impatient with it, it's because I still care.

    Thunderpeel2001, One of the stipulations of the scholarship was that she'd work for the Movenpick for two years at the Dead Sea, Jordan side, after she graduated. She still has two months to go till graduation, then the two years. Hence, leaving not being an option. She signed the contract ages ago.

  5. Posted

    I forgot to add that officials will take her dad's side in any legal issue. In Jordan, he is her legal guardian, and therefore, as long as she's not married, she gets "returned" to him. All he has to do is put out a "public call" (a Jordanian thing).

    Maybe, because she has an American passport, the Embassy could help.

  6. Posted

    OK, so here it is.

    My ex-girlfriend and I are close friends. It's mostly an issue of me trying to make sure she has someone to be friends with, because she has no-one else. It's not because she's a bad person (she's loved by everyone she knows; I mean it), or because she's anti-social, or anything, indeed, that is her fault.

    It's because of her dad.

    Think of all the horror stories you've ever heard about crazy dads. This is him. Possessive, angry, accusatory. I'll spare you the details. It's far, far worse than you can imagine. He is the only person in this world who I genuinely loathe.

    Friends, family, anyone: no-one is allowed to speak to his daughter. The reason she still talks to me, and why we're so close, is because she actually has no-one else.

    His masterpiece, however, that when she graduated, he locked her up in the house for two years. He stopped her from working or going to college. No internet, phone, or computer. She 'd snuck a copy of FF7 and beat that over 20 times, whilst continually re-reading her handful of novels to keep her sanity.

    When we met, she was crying herself to sleep every night, only getting out because she found a job that was cheap enough for her to get to in a taxi and where the pay would mean she had some money at the end of the month. We snuck around. Dated for a year. I started helping her find her feet again. She went from suicidal to happy. It's the best thing I've ever done.

    With loads of patience and a lot of work, she got into the Royal Academy for Culinary Arts. She did it via scholarship, paid for by noneother than the Movenpick. She's the top of her class, and the top of her entire year. She's insanely talented. A very hard-worker. This is something she made for me before she even got in there. This was one of her first attempts.

    Here's a later one. Here's another, including Arab-style cake.

    She has to work nights. Her dad doesn't like that, oh no. He doesn't pay a cent. He doesn't drive her there, or take her back. In fact, as far as he's concerned, she doesn't exist. But he doesn't like that.

    He's locking her up, two months before graduation. She'll fail her entire year. She'll lose the scholarship she and I died to make happen.

    She snapped. She fought back. She decided to leave her entire house, with no money, and just break for it. She's had enough. I've never heard her scream. I've never heard her sob like that. She has never, when I tried to calm her down, told me to shut the fuck up.

    She called me up last night, needing a place to stay for the night. I would have gladly let her stay, but Jordanian law says I could be arrested for it. It's an honour crime. If I was a woman, that's different. It's why I was reluctant to post last night, but needed a place to vent. She didn't stay here. It's why I can post.

    It's her dad. He's accusing her of sleeping around. He is the angriest, most pathetic person on this planet. He is willing to emotionally and physically abuse his own daughter.

    She's left everything behind in a society that will punish her for it, and is going to wing it, riding on her good grades, until she graduates.

    In Jordan, that's like diving headfirst into the ocean and hoping you learn how to swim.

    Then, goodness knows. I'll help her, but I'm juggling enough hot plates as it is.

    And I'm worried sick.

  7. Posted

    I am not having a good night. I wish I could get into it, but it might turn into a case of shooting myself in the foot, if it ever becomes a legal thing.

    I hate Arab culture. I fucking hate it. I feel all dizzy and nauseous now.

    Haven't been this upset in a while. Can't even think straight. Sorry, Thumbs. I'll delete this in the morning.

  8. Posted

    Actually, it occurs to me now that I've been watching Gravity Falls on the Disney channel. I meant I haven't seen anything live action in months. It's very good. Well-written, beautifully animated, consistent, full of easter eggs, and very much worth all the love it gets. Watch it.

  9. Posted

    I did see a clip of the new movie: the scene

    . It was tense, but stupid. Well-shot (especially towards the end), but not without problems. I might still see it (I haven't seen anything in months, and haven't seen a full movie in at least a year now), but I doubt it's going to be great.

  10. Posted

    Well, firstly, GRRM is a big map nerd. I don't think there's a mistake. There is, however, some feinting going on.

    Secondly, I don't remember the exact specifics of that battle, but I'm worried any attempt I do at explaining things would spoil things ahead for you. :( What chapter are you on?

    Argh, I'll try not to put in spoilers. According to the Wiki of Ice and Fire:

    Jaime Lannister is tasked to capture Riverrun, the capital of the riverlands and the seat of House Tully. He first marches east to the Golden Tooth. Commanding some 15,000 men, he easily destroys the defensive forces of 4,000 men Lord Vance has stationed there and make directly for Riverrun, where Edmure Tully hastily assembles his house bannermen.

    Edmure Tully was training an army of some 16,000 levies near Riverrun, when Jaime Lannister’s host attacked. Jaime won another easy victory. Edmure was captured along with many of his bannermen and Lord Tytos Blackwood led the survivors into Riverrun as Jaime’s host besieged the castle

    Lord Beric Dondarrion's force, sent by Lord Eddard Stark to put a stop to Gregor Clegane and bring him to justice, are ambushed while crossing the Mummer's Ford. They are attacked by the combined force of Gregor and Tywin and are nearly wiped out. Lord Tywin, victorious, closes off the Kingsroad and marches north.

    And this part, which I suspect you haven't reached yet:

    They then head from the Golden Road to travel across the Trident, conquering several of the Riverland's holdfasts, including Raventree Hall, and heading towards Harrenhal.

    Then stuff gets a little more complicated.

  12. Posted

    Oh, good. I was worried that I had accidentally spoiled something, since (later than you are now, Thunderpeel), near the end of book one,

    Varys visits Ned in his dungeon wearing stubble.

    Ben, did you read that essay on Jon Snow's mum? :)

    Also, here are a few examples of the "hidden" things I love so much, from books two and three, though these aren't my favourites:

    - The House of the Undying. Here are some choice quotes from that scene that should make more sense now.

    Farther on she came upon a feast of corpses. Savagely slaughtered, the feasters lay strewn across overturned chairs and hacked trestle tables, asprawl in pools of congealing blood. Some had lost limbs, even heads. Savaged limbs clutched bloody cups, wooden spoons, roast fowl, heels of bread. On a throne above them sat a dead man with the head of a wolf. He wore an iron crown and held a leg of lamb in one hand as a king might hold a scepter, and his eyes followed Dany with mute appeal.

    And

    Beyond loomed a cavernous stone hall, the largest she had seen. The skulls of dead dragons looked down from its walls.Upon a towering barbed throne sat an old man in rich robes, an old man with dark eyes and long silver-gray hair. “Let him be king over charred bones and cooked meat,” he said to a man below him. “Let him be the king of ashes.”

    And

    The man had her brother’s hair, but he was taller, and his eyes were a dark indigo rather than lilac. “Aegon,” he said to a woman nursing a newborn babe in a great wooden bed. “What better name for a king?”

    “Will you make a song for him?” the woman asked.

    “He has a song,” the man replied. “He is the prince that was promised, and his is the song of ice and fire.” He looked up when he said it and his eyes met Dany, and it seemed as if he saw her standing there beyond the door. “There must be one more,” he said, though whether he was speaking to her or the woman in bed she could not say. “The dragon has three heads.”

    There's more. :)

    - "Mayhaps". Walder Frey's warning to Catelyn and Robb. At the beginning of book 2, Bran is playing with Big and Little Walder a game called "Lord of the Crossing." From the ASOIAF Wiki: "The game must be played on some sort of bridge placed over water of some sort. One player stands in the middle of the bridge with a staff. That player is the "lord of the crossing". When another player approaches, the lord of the crossing must say "I am the lord of the crossing, who goes there? The player who approached must then present his reasons for crossing the bridge and why he should be allowed to cross. The lord asks the player questions and makes them swear oaths. The player does not have to respond truthfully to the questions but the oaths are binding unless the player says "Mayhaps" quickly enough that the lord does not notice. Then the player must attempt to knock the lord off the bridge. The lord can knock a player into the water at any time and he was the only one armed with a staff. Only when that is accomplished can the player become lord, but only if you said mayhaps in the game, otherwise it means immediate disqualification."

    As you know, Walder Frey kept saying "mayhaps" to Robb and Catelyn when promising them safety underneath his roof, his warning to them that they were in danger here.

    - Patchface is interesting, isn't he? Since we're on the topic of the RW, try "Fool's blood, king's blood, blood on the maiden's thigh, but chains for the guests and chains for the bridegroom, aye aye aye."

    - So's Melisandre. There's the scene where she burns the three leeches in the fire, condemning all the kings who oppose Stannis, but also stuff like this: “Ser Cortnay will be dead within a day. Melisandre has seen it in the flames of the future...Melisandre saw another day in her flames as well. A morrow when Renly rode out of the south in his green armor to smash my host beneath the walls of King’s Landing. Had I met my brother there, I would have died instead of him.”

    - There's loads, loads, loads of stuff I can't get into. It sucks that I'm starting to forget, because it's been over a year since I last read any part of the series, but chalk it up to its strength that I remember anything at all.

  13. Posted

    Haha, yes. That's definitely part of it.

    There's loads more. I promise, Thunderpeel, that, when you're done, I'll show you loads of things you missed.

    But what I mean is stuff, like, say - you've already passed this -

    the identity of the two men who Arya caught talking in that secret room full of dragon skulls

    , who, if you squinted hard enough, you would have realized were

    Ilyrio Mopatis and Varys

    .

    That's easy mode stuff, though. Most of the more awesome stuff comes later.

    My personal favourite was (book 5 spoiler)

    delicious Frey pie

    , and then maybe (major book 3 spoilers)

    Walder Frey's continual "Mayhaps", a reference to the Lord of the Crossing game that means he's lying

    .

  14. Posted

    Haha, on what? There's a bajillion things. Lots of it comes later, though.

    Well, OK. The ending of this first book's already been heavily foreshadowed.

    That's not much, but anything else would be unfair to you. I don't know, Thunderpeel. Read now, essay later. You've got loads headed your way, about to knock down your door with the force of a khalasar.

  15. Posted

    Oh man, you'll have to read the books before I get into that. Your understanding is correct, but it goes beyond that a little. There are various essays that explain loads of things. What part of book one are you on?

  18. Posted

    Yeah, one my of my favourite characters gets their POV chapters in Feast: the lovely

    Brienne of Tarth

    .

    ADWD is a slow burn, initially, but it gets going once a certain POV comes into play and then runs at the halfway point. It seems that, as soon as Martin figured-out (book 5 spoiler)

    how to work out the Meereenese Knot

    , things smoothed-out and it becomes quite exciting.

  19. Posted

    That Minecraft one is incredible.

    Also, I never realized Braavos and White Harbor were so close to Winterfell. That's got some heavy implications...

    Woah. Second favourite in the series? I'm surprised. I've heard it's by far the most difficult to get through, as none of the "fan favourite" characters appear in it. A lot of people seemed to really dislike it, if I understand correctly. I'm amazed it's your second favourite!

    I love characters. There isn't a crapload of plot in A Feast for Crows, but there's a lot of insight into the characters and backstory. There's also that second layer of things which I love so much.

    I think the book gets a bad rap for being a follow-up to A Storm of Swords. After that particular entry, expectations must have been insanely high. To follow the book up with only half the characters, lots of character fleshing-out and development, more set-up than pay-off, and then to take five years to write it and six years to follow-up on it must have turned people against the book.

    Again, though, I think it fits really well with the rest of the series, and people should, in time - if and when the series is finished - learn to appreciate it.

    What irks me is that so many people seem to love it on a re-read. I just wish they reflected that in their reviews online.

  20. Posted

    Thunderpeel2001, you enjoy it!

    SpeedyDesiato, You know, I do love A Feast for Crows a whole lot. There's loads of insights into the characters and it had this pleasant interlude feeling seeping throughout. It's not flawless, but it's my second favourite in the series. Admittedly, it's a bit slower early on, but ultimately it pays-off nicely.

  22. Posted

    Also, Ben, I can try and meet and say hi, but I'm not sure if that's possible. I think I get a few hours for myself, and it'll be on the evening just before I leave (Friday, the 28th).

    (Also could someone tell me the average book price for a mass market paperback in London? Used, I mean. 5 pounds?)

    FINAL ALSO: also, sorry I posted 3 times.