i was recently approached for being a "mentor" of sorts, and like anything beyond food, itch-scratching, and girl parts, it got me to thinkin...

how can one impart knowledge when one's own database is so incomplete? or is it true that recognizing one's own limitations is the foundation for greater wisdom?

or maybe you should shut up, robbie-san, and stop navel-gazing.

hrm...good point.

fact is there's a lot of life experiences that a person probably never figures they're ready for. i don't have kids, but when and if i ever do, i'll probably be like "son of a bitch, i can't have kids. i'm not old enough" (though i BEEN old enough for some time). i imagine when i die, i'll be in line with everybody else goin "Just ten more years! FIVE! A month! I still wanna see Tahiti, dammit!"

well, enough of that crap. behold my awesome power to raise mountains out of mole hills.

REQUESTS! i still have a crap-ton of them to do, and i haven't forgotten! i'm just havin a whale of a time getting back into drawing--plus i got a bunch of concept art to dig into--so you're going to have to deal with my glacial skeelz. plus i'm one of the 10 million (jeepers) WoW subscribers who must answer that native call to dungeon adventures and who is helplessly locked within a downward spiral of excessive troll devotion. to modify a line from Trainspotting "The reasons? There are no reasons. Who needs reasons when you've got phat lewts?"

i have a note here that says "Lee Van Cleef petting a gerbil". I don't think that's a request, per se, but i'm really intrigued. Was it in "Master Ninja II" that happened? Was it appropriately highlighted? Did Lee Van Cleef really pet a gerbil or was that a mental extrapolation with ominous undertones? Did he kill said gerbil? I wouldn't trust Van Cleef with a twig, much less a living creature. Those beady, villainous eyes...

well, i hope you're happy. my coffee's gone cold.

Valentine's day is coming rather soon, and to all you young lovers out there, i'm going to be holding Cupid hostage. I invited him over for drinks and then delivered several brutal haymakers before binding him with ethereal chains of unending torment before throwing him in my closet with all the empty kitchen appliance packages.

So here's how it's gonna be: you're going to go to your partner on Valentine's Day, give them a long, unexpected, and awkward hug, maybe even a kiss, and tell them you think the world of them. And you're not gonna buy a bunch of crap to remind them that you love them or to prove something. That's a load of crap that has gotten pounded into skulls and we're going to extract that nail, however painfully. If you are expecting some sort of material proof of love and have wrapped that expectation in the guise of "the thought that counts", brace yourself and remember that certain expectations can be poisonous. I'm not trying to be bitter here; just remember that gifts can be gotten any old day, and expecting them and using them as a measure of commitment is a mistaken priority.

well, i guess that does sound bitter. so before i go, let's commiserate on another aspect of valentine's day.

remember in grade school, what a bitch valentine's day could be? i remember making heart-shaped containers out of pink and red construction paper, and wasting learning time on making and delivering valentine's day cards to one's classmates. at some point teachers clued into the fact that some kids were left out, and eventually made kids distribute cards equally.

i had my share of embarassing moments because of these rituals. Once, one student's mom came to the classroom with pink-frosted cupcakes and handed them out. I quickly devoured mine because, friggin' cupcakes. Apparently we were sposed to wait. But hell, my valentine envelope-container was pretty empty, and i needed pink-frosted sustenance to guide me through the self-doubt. Another time, i think it was in third grade, i actually liked a girl and added a (3rd grade level) heart-felt sentiment to the TMNT card i gave her. That didn't really pan out as i had cleverly planned. About 5 minutes later that card was making the rounds of the classroom. Even the teacher had a good giggle. The upside was that there were no head-locks or submission moves performed upon me at recess. The laughter was sufficient.

*frogs and crickets* i guess that went to a darker place...

well anyway, i guess valentine's day to a grade schooler lays a couple confusing foundations...say what you will about socially-imposed gender roles and friendships and birds and bees, but the notion of romance is central to V-day. So when you think about it, being made to give cards to your classmates, boy and girl alike, leaves some unanswered questions. at least for me it did. because later on in school it was made clear in student handbooks that displays of affection are forbidden. i don't remember when the card-giving tradition stopped or at what grade level, but thank god. Ultimately, it was probably just an excuse for our teachers to get a working-day without having to outline a lesson plan.

*gives Cupid a couple more knockout blows with a billy club* so that's my thoughts on valentine's day, ahead of the game!

now get back to work.

ja, mata