tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50397542024-03-19T11:49:06.112+08:00The Kawanga KidA long way from Beresford and ParkwoodAlex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.comBlogger394125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-200083303521132652011-04-28T21:15:00.000+08:002011-04-28T21:15:22.359+08:00There is much awesomeness in the new Doctor Who season 6 trailer!
Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-44064306299870934552011-04-23T07:06:00.001+08:002011-04-23T07:07:59.393+08:00Well, it's been more than year since my last post, and much has happened since then.
I've become more active on other blogs, we've moved to a different home, and the nature of my work has changed yet again.
Plus, I'm a year older and getting that feeling that I have to move faster to get things done.Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-3324808371680145992009-11-09T03:01:00.002+08:002009-11-09T08:55:34.699+08:00Because of color coding problems, on Monday mornings I now wake up at around 6:00 AM, shower, shave, and rush down to the car to head over to Ortigas hoping to beat the Monday prohibition on cars with license plates that end in 1's and 2's.
There's an upside: reduced traffic, seemingly fresher air, and a lot of quiet time -- I tend not to listen to the radio when driving these days. Also, Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-22044518149291526412009-05-22T09:27:00.003+08:002009-05-22T09:45:49.161+08:00Star Trek - The RebootI know, it's not quite a reboot or a retcon. The time travel rationale (which has been used before in the Star Trek universe) that allows for this "alternate reality" Star Trek allows us to enjoy all the old Original Series episodes and Next Gen episodes along with whatever they're going to do with this rebooted franchise.Still, this is done all the time in other media. WhenAlex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-20291388696537933092009-03-24T09:36:00.011+08:002009-03-24T10:01:52.642+08:00Starbursts, Cylons, Starkillers, and Fireflies – Oh My!This first appeared on the New Worlds site, but I'm reposting it here for the heck of it.Role Playing in Science Fiction’s UniversesDungeons and Dragons (D&D) is not only the grand-daddy of all Role-Playing Games (RPGs), it’s also part of the mental image that most people associate have with the hobby: a handful of players sitting around Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-66806367556591125872008-10-14T06:23:00.001+08:002008-10-14T10:28:02.564+08:00It's available on iTunes, y'all, but for those of you who aren't interested in buying it, you may wish to view the following link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aym8_S3BXKw <!-- multiply:no_crosspost -->Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-74553745529255780742008-09-18T05:30:00.001+08:002009-06-01T10:42:36.007+08:00It's been said that court jesters / fools had the unenviable job of not only entertaining the ruler of the land, but also to offer an unorthodox view on matters trivial and important - to allow us to think about things in a new light.This particular webcomic from "We The Robots" does just that:http://www.wetherobots.com/comics/2008-09-17-GuestRyan.jpg<!-- multiply:no_crosspost -->Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-17761155087721087092008-08-01T10:19:00.001+08:002009-06-01T10:42:16.578+08:00Go see Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.Funny, touching, though Act III kinda startled me with the shift in the storytelling style. The casting of the primaries -- Dr. Horrible (Neil Patrick Harris), Captain Hammer (Nathan Fillion), and Penny (Felicia Day) -- is fantastic and I love the performances.Here are the lyrics I could make out from one of the songs:Bad Horse, Bad HorseBad Horse, Bad Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-21945151903982966482008-07-30T10:29:00.000+08:002008-07-30T10:51:30.812+08:00The Newborn ExperienceIt's wonderful to discover things about infants; every day we're learning something new about our son. Just to recap what we've gotten so far:1. baby poop has no smell -- at first. It slowly acquires an interesting aroma as it shifts from its initial dark, dark green hue and annoyingly rubber cement-ish consistency to its mustard-and-sesame-seed incarnation (indicating a Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-18887080702712107012008-07-04T09:29:00.001+08:002009-06-01T10:45:42.534+08:00A good friend of mine is fond of stories involving time travel. I enjoy the odd time travel story too, but it's difficult to pull off a time travel story that isn't a bad re-hash of something that's been done before, or something incredibly confusing involving paradoxes and multiple instances of the same person.However, there is a fantastic game that bends your mind as far as thinking in terms ofAlex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-31566359739624326372008-07-02T09:41:00.001+08:002009-06-01T10:45:52.941+08:00I was perusing the recent pvponline comics and ran across LOLBAT!Pretty funny! I don't know if it has legs, but for a short strip, quite funny. It assumes that you're familiar with l33tsp3ak or whatever netslang is called. <!-- multiply:no_crosspost -->Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-2714017920016109432008-05-30T13:35:00.000+08:002008-05-30T13:39:53.959+08:00Prepping for a New ArrivalIt's getting close to July and our preparations for our soon-to-be son are shifting into high gear. On the schedule for this weekend - clearing up and boxing books from the shelves, figuring out how to transfer two older shelves down to the storage room, and rescheduling the move of the computer table to my sister's room.And then there's the baby stuff that needs to be Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-59921036272401652032008-04-04T11:54:00.001+08:002009-06-01T10:41:32.936+08:00So if we look at Nikolai at http://www.behindthename.com/ we see that:Russian and Bulgarian form of NICHOLAS. A notable bearer was Nikolai Gogol, a 19th-century Russian novelist.Looking at Nicholas at the same link, we find:From the Greek name Νικολαος (Nikolaos) which meant "victory of the people" from Greek νικη (nike) "victory" and λαος (laos) "people". Saint Nicholas was a 4th-century bishop Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-40000457330106866632008-04-03T06:51:00.002+08:002010-04-14T16:49:16.588+08:00I've lost interest in Final Crisis because of most of the unintelligable and unengaging stuff going on in Countdown.
But this news item sparked my interest.
Yes, Virginia, all the past Legions are now part of DC Continuity! And there's going to be a kick-@$$ story that's going to pit Superman and the heroes of the 31st Century against 'Superboy' and the villains of the 31st Century. Written by Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-42704453896128797012008-03-26T13:39:00.002+08:002008-06-10T11:11:11.278+08:00I got this from my sis, who got this from the following link:The A-TEAM MovieIf you've been holding your breath for The A-Team movie, well, we feel sorry for you. But help is on the way for you and your oxygen-deprived brain. So just hold on. Until June 12. Of next year. Feel better? You should, actually. The release date, as reported by Variety, is the first for the long-discussed, Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-71302031228015107252008-03-25T09:20:00.002+08:002008-03-25T09:30:53.033+08:00TubeWatch: 30 RockI follow the TV Show 30 Rock. It appeals to my sense of humor, and the characters are somehow both archetypal and unique. The situations usually start somewhat plausibly and in grand network TV tradition spiral into silliness without sacrificing my viewer engagement.I also like the occasional breaking of the fourth wall to do some serious entertaining while still pushing the Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-42096993913926580652008-02-21T12:24:00.001+08:002008-02-21T17:43:36.917+08:00It's no secret that I'm a fan of the Hero System, especially the Champions super-heroic setting.Recently, there have been two announcements that promise to shake up the Hero System fandom:Hero Games is coming out with a 6th Edition set of its rules in 2009;Cryptic Studios is coming out with an MMORPG based on the Champions setting in 2009.According to the Hero Games website, the reason they're Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-10462834431864078892008-02-13T14:02:00.000+08:002008-02-13T14:10:46.640+08:00Those Awful Green Things...Just recently, my wife and I found ourselves looking to overcome boredom (and a potential onset of pregnancy-fuelled nausea), and after enduring several card games that are somewhat boring with two players, I pulled out my copy of "The Awful Green Things from Outer Space."This is a classic boardgame currently published by Steve Jackson Games, and is surprisingly fun.TheAlex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-13311562960760538142008-02-07T09:37:00.000+08:002008-02-07T09:47:00.672+08:00The Internet, Computers, College, and GuidoThat's not his real name, but this guy's an old classmate and roomie of mine from college.In fact, as on the occasions that we've briefly exchanged e-mail o'er the internet, I was reminded that my initiation to complex world of the Internet, electronics and computers began in those years.I was, of course, a dabbler in computing - having cut my teeth on Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-3328483146470559362007-12-12T04:50:00.000+08:002007-12-12T09:50:40.134+08:00Philippine Speculative Fiction III Book Launch My short story "The Death and Rebirth of Nathaniel Alan Sempio" appears in Philippine Speculative Fiction, Volume III. PSF III was launched last Friday, and pictured are the authors who attended and, of course, the editors and hosts of the event!Go out and buy a copy to see what all the fuss is about, hehe. <!-- multiply:no_crosspost -->Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-26229447845405059852007-10-05T06:35:00.000+08:002007-10-05T10:36:00.411+08:00Stopping World War IIIFolks from my generation (and my parents too, of course) grew up in fear of a Nuclear War. There's a term you all might be familiar with: Mutually Assured Destruction. This theory posited that if both sides of a war (let's say, oh, the U.S. and Russia) knew that starting a war would end up with BOTH sides effectively losing, then no one would start a war.There were movies that fanned the flames Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-21152132502067317672007-10-02T05:02:00.000+08:002007-10-02T09:02:08.702+08:00Snippets of Philippine HistoryThose Sneaky JapaneseBefore the Japanese invaded the Philippines, they did their spadework. Imperial Japan had the very sneaky tactic of sending immigrants into our young country, and having them work as different types of shop owners. They were very friendly, constantly asking questions like, "how's business?" and "how old is your son now?" and "aren't you related to...?" and "any news from yourAlex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-80676018200839226832007-09-20T07:20:00.000+08:002007-09-20T11:30:54.567+08:00My Ninong passed away at around 7:30 this morning at Capitol Medical Center. Its September 20, 2007 now.Bye Ninong. Thanks for everything, and say hello to Lola Iday and Lolo Benjo, look for Mama Liz if you need stuff taken care of up there - I'm sure she's already pretty busy though. Say hi also to Lolo Paking and Lolo Uncle, and to Manong Susing, Tita Linda, Tito Lenny and Lola Babs, Mommy Lu, Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-49230300536003804722007-09-19T07:44:00.000+08:002007-09-19T11:44:42.048+08:00Messages on my PhoneOn Monday (17 Sep 2007), at 11:57:58 am I received the following text from my sister:Manong, your ninong jamin is at the hospital 2 drain the fluid of his stomach. Mom and Dad will be visiting him at the hospital this afternoon.My Ninong Jamin had been in the hospital to had his fluid drained before, because he wasn't able to purge his waste anymore.On the same day, at 2:54:25 pm, I received the Alex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5039754.post-74490131035807500562007-09-13T07:45:00.000+08:002007-09-13T11:46:05.872+08:00Web Comics I FrequentIt's seldom boredom that drives me to webcomics - it's stress from work. I try to check each of these webcomics three times a week (usually MWF):PVPONLINE - a webcomic about the crew behind a gaming magazine.Least I Could Do - a webcomic about a man struggling desperately not to mature, and his saner circle of friends. Warning - There's some sexual content here, as evidenced by the logo.MultiplexAlex Osiashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14851139031311819958noreply@blogger.com0