who's playing this game?

[laeshanin]

I loved Heinlein when I was a little hippie in the '70's, especially Stranger in a Strange Land and Time Enough for Love, but I've been going off him ever since. He got seriously weird about incest in his later books and it creeped me out so much I can only read his earlier stuff now. Feminism helped turn me off his theme of old balding hook-nosed blokes who got all the nookie, as well.

"Stranger..." was for me one of the seminal books I've read. A truly remarkable piece of fiction, and though I read some of his other books I noticed that he became somewhat formulaic. Something that Stephen King can be accused of too. Which goes to show you that you should never get too smart/clever/big for decent editing. 

Many more S/F fans out there?

[witch]

Yes, Stranger had a huge impact on me too, especially as it seemed to offer a brave new way of life that fitted in with the hippie ethos. I would agree Heinlein became formulaic, much more elegant way of putting it!

My (younger than me) partner frequents the groklaw site, he was quite surprised I knew the word grok and the origin of it, mind you it might not be his age so much as the fact he reads technical manuals for fun.

One of the things I admired about Heinlein was his incredible brain, I believe he invented waterbeds and waldoes in his books.
I have been a science fiction fan since the age of nine, after the fairies and the myths and legends, there didn't seem any other logical place to go!

[cwieberdink]

Yes, Stranger had a huge impact on me too, especially as it seemed to offer a brave new way of life that fitted in with the hippie ethos. I would agree Heinlein became formulaic, much more elegant way of putting it!

I loved Stranger, but my FAVORITE Heinlein book was Friday.  I can still vividly see it in my mind like a movie.  Wow.  It was like opening the door into Willy Wonka's candy garden when I read that book..... I think I was about 13.

Chris

[dawnkeeper]

I have not an artsy bone in my body. I am a web developer on the programming side. I will have my degree this fall. I love this game though... I guess I fall on the Computer Science side of it. I would fail miserably if left to my own devices on designing a website. I leave that to the artsy folk.  Yep, my skills of an artist are sorely lacking.

Come to find out though that there seem to be more artsy web developers than programmers out there. So I am in a bit of demand around where I live.  All these designers need someone to do the coding. Works for me. 

[Renatus]

I'm perhaps the only person on Earth who likes Heinlein's Number of the Beast. I'd like it a whole lot better if he hadn't stuck that 4000 year old Gary Stu that is Lazarus Long in, however. I can only take so much of that character. I may also be the only person on Earth who liked I Will Fear No Evil - it wasn't his best and some of it was pretty silly, but I liked that he dealt with gender fluidity. I haven't read many books that do that.

I'm not sure what my favourite book of his is; it's been ages since I've read any of his work because all of the books of his I own are still on another continent. I'm really fond of Starship Troopers though, which baffles me a bit considering I'm a rabble-rousing little punk. 

[bluecatvon]

I spent years and years in business, then flip-flopped and went back to school for a technical degree in medicine.  Now I'm back to running the family business.  The past 25 years I've maintained a hobby-like devotion to learning computers...as the field keeps one...no, several...steps ahead of me. *Sigh*  I'm an artist, an introvert who has learned to be an extravert when a need arises, dabble in computer graphics, write poetry, paint watercolours, make jewelry, and try whatever else strikes my fancy. 

I'm addicted to Sims, and I thank God my hubby is addicted to surfing the internet, because we can sit quite happily at our desks for hours.  We live on an island and the TV is crappy, so this fills an entertainment need.  I'm a control freak, so therefore I LOVE macrotastics.  Without it, I couldn't possibly control everyone, all of the time.  I have ALL of JM's hacks and couldn't do without them.  I'm an achiever, so it's a challenge for me to allow my Sims to be different - read: stupid, sloppy, underachiever, etc. - but I'm learning.

haha! you sound very much like me!

[bluecatvon]

ok, i admit i was wrong.we can't classify people into categories. being 19, i guess i have a lot to learn thanks guys! good to know that the human race is not as boring as i thought :p

[Oddysey]

I may also be the only person on Earth who liked I Will Fear No Evil - it wasn't his best and some of it was pretty silly, but I liked that he dealt with gender fluidity. I haven't read many books that do that.

I'm not sure what my favourite book of his is; it's been ages since I've read any of his work because all of the books of his I own are still on another continent. I'm really fond of Starship Troopers though, which baffles me a bit considering I'm a rabble-rousing little punk. 

Gender fluidity? What in blazes is that? It's either something really weird, or you need to read a bit more modern SF.

I always liked The Cat Who Walked Through Walls. I think it's sort of a sequel to The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. (Which I need to read . . .) And I like ST, even though I don't agree with a lot of it, it's very interesting.

I've been an SF fan since . . . oh, boy. Probably around third grade, when I discovered Animorphs, although it could have been before then. They aren't really SF, but they started moving me away from fantasy and towards SF. I read a lot of Golden Age in middle school, and it was basically the first non-kids SF that I read. Asimov, Bradbury, Heinlein. A little later I read Dune, and all the sequels. Won't touch the new prequels, though. Read halfway through one of them, got bored and annoyed by the ineptitude. Now I read Asimov's Science Fiction, the magazine that used to be Astounding or Amazing or something. Not the one that Campbell edited; that's Analog, now. Books are mostly classic SF and whatever I pick up off the library shelf, particularly new releases. I'm a particular fan of robot stories, but I'll read just about anything that is well-written and thought provoking.

I write SF, too. Sort of. I have two "finished" stories, one of which that has no dialog and isn't really SF but is set in a non-Earth world, and one that is almost all dialog and  is has the deus ex machina cranking along on the last page. I also have a truly craptastic 70+ page novel that I wrote when I was in seventh grade and has about three or four dozen characters, most of home will wander off for 20 pages or more until I remember about them and give them whatever the next line that needs to be said is. Then I have the scattered wreckage of at least twenty stories on my hard drive, which will likely never be finished.

I'm a junky . . . heh.

[Liss]

I read anything that has words.  But I'm more of a fantasy-genre person I guess...although I love horror/suspense (Stephen King/Anne Rice, et. al). 

I guess I would say I'm an artsy person, at least in my mind if not in practice.  I'm also a knowlege seeker, I love to learn about stuff but I don't have a degree in anything. (I'm currently in school for medical transcription.  Love learning new words)!

One of the things I love the most about the sims is the *community*.  I've had times when I didn't even play the game, but would keep up with message boards and stuff just because I liked the people.

[veilchen]

I also read anything that has words. If I don't have anything availble to read, I read bulletin boards, bill boards, people's t-shirts etc.

However, I am a science fiction fan, but I also like weird stories ala The Twilight Zone. Also on my list are historical novels and mysteries. I read psychological thrillers and mysteries as well (now here's a shocker ). The one thing I will never even touch are Romance Novels, I find them utterly revolting, as well as blood and gore stories. I do like a well written gothic novel/story, but it has to be far above the regular trash that passes as gothic.

That is one of the greatest benefits of being bi-lingual. I can enjoy books in more than one language.

Oddysey, that sounds great, I wish I could read your stories. I am a great fan of home-made stories, but the only one's I ever wrote are the bed-time stories for my kids. They did however, contain a great deal of kiddie science fiction and historical backgrounds.

G.

[witch]

A little later I read Dune, and all the sequels. Won't touch the new prequels, though. Read halfway through one of them, got bored and annoyed by the ineptitude.

Totally agree! I recently strated a prequel of Dune, what rubbish, I was editing sentences in my mind, criticising the plot development (or lack thereof) and wondering what was wrong with the book for the whole time I managed to keep reading. I got Dune out again a week or two after that, Frank Herbert is much cleverer than his son, he makes it seem like the reader is seeing and discovering the story all by themselves, instead of having it described step by painful step as Frank's son does.

I also read anything that has words. If I don't have anything availble to read, I read bulletin boards, bill boards, people's t-shirts etc.

Me too. I have even been known to read the newspaper fish and chip wrappers when desperate. For many, many years I had a book a day habit. I don't get how students don't see signs we put up, the first thing I do anywhere new is READ EVERYTHING! 

[reggikko]

Also on my list are historical novels and mysteries.
G.

G., check out the Benjamin January series by Barbara Hambly. The first book is "A Free Man of Color". The premise, a freed former slave who studied medicine in Paris returns to his home, New Orleans, in the early 1830's. The novels are mysteries, but Hambly did an unbelievable amount of research and her stories are filled with New Orleans history which is accurate as well as colorful. I think you would really enjoy those books. By the way, New Orleans had the highest population of free people of color in the nation at that time.

 The juxtaposition of the French Creoles, the people of color, both slaves and free, and the influx of the hated "Americains" made 1830's New Orleans quite the colorful place.

[veilchen]

Thanks for the tip Reg. I never heard of her, but that is precisely the kind of historical mystery I like. Well researched and well written.

I have some time on my hands until the fall semester starts, now I know what I shall do this weekend. My problem with books is that I have a hard time putting them down. Bedtime reading? Don't I wish. I tried reading boring books and see if I could fall asleep, but they just made me angry for wasting my time and not tired as I hoped they would. Oh well, sleep is for wusses anyways right? :D

[Renatus]

Gender fluidity? What in blazes is that? It's either something really weird, or you need to read a bit more modern SF.

It's exactly what it sounds like - gender is not a fixed state (like sex more or less is), but a fluid one. I haven't seen many genre books tackle this concept. If you have, I'd be delighted if you'd point me in the direction of some - I have more books than I can read right now due to the six hours of Finnish class I have most days, but that's never stopped me from cheerfully acquiring new ones. I'll read them all eventually. 

[nothingbutsims]

I love to read as well, but I'm more into the modern day mysteries.  I really enjoyed Dan Brown's Angels & Demons - had me going to the very end.  I am a Lee Child fan also.  He is an excellent writer.

[Kitiara]

I also read anything that has words. If I don't have anything availble to read, I read bulletin boards, bill boards, people's t-shirts etc.

However, I am a science fiction fan, but I also like weird stories ala The Twilight Zone. Also on my list are historical novels and mysteries. I read psychological thrillers and mysteries as well (now here's a shocker ). The one thing I will never even touch are Romance Novels, I find them utterly revolting, as well as blood and gore stories. I do like a well written gothic novel/story, but it has to be far above the regular trash that passes as gothic.

G.

Sounds a lot like me. I'll read anything - with the exception of Romance novels. And most westerns. Romance novels are insulting, westerns are usually character deficient (although there are a few good ones out there).
I love SF, although I tend to lean more towards Fantasy actually. Lately I've been re-reading my Norman Spinrad books.

I too will read anything. Drives my partner nuts. The last time we went on a trip in the car I finished the book I was reading, and the extra book I brought in case I finished the book I was reading. Then I started reading the manual for the car (which I had read before) then collected a stack of pamphlets from a rest area and read them. Then I started the 1st book again. He thinks I'm insane, or pathetic, can't quite figure which .

edited for spelling

[Liss]

I don't read romance novels either. Ick.  Though I must admit my mom had me reading Danielle Steele and Judith Krantz in my teens. BLECH!

Actually, most of what I read is non-fiction.  I do enjoy historical fiction, but prefer the actual history.  I'm currently reading The Demon Haunted World by Carl Sagan.  Before that I read The Gnostic Gospels by Elaine Pagels.

[Danni]

I'm a suicidal teenage mother who dropped out of college. I was studing IT... now when my daughter goes to school (if I live that long) I want to be a radiographer. I tend to make self sims, then make them commit suicide in various ways. I might start one of the challenges though.

I read everything, except romance and westerns. Sci-fi (especially Star Trek) is my favourite, but non-fiction is pretty high. I've just been reading the Argos catalogue since I was bored.

[Kitiara]

Danni - I hope your post was made in jest, although I personally do not find it funny at all. All I can say to you is that I hope you find your vicarious virtual suicides therapeutic, and no longer to desire a real-life one. It's not too late to be a radiographer, if that is what you want. Be there for your daughter, but most importantly, be there for you.

[veilchen]

Danni - I hope your post was made in jest, although I personally do not find it funny at all. All I can say to you is that I hope you find your vicarious virtual suicides therapeutic, and no longer to desire a real-life one. It's not too late to be a radiographer, if that is what you want. Be there for your daughter, but most importantly, be there for you.

Agreed Kitiara.

A lot of people have faced severe crises in their lives, and knowing that my children and I deserve better has always spurned me on. I was 36 years old when I found myself newly single with two children, then 10 and 6 years old. It took me 20 years of my life to realize that I was married, but my then-husband was not. I had no choice but go back home, which involved a move across the ocean. I tackled it, went back to school and now I'm back in the U.S. for a few more years to finish up.

Was it hard  and emotionally wrenching? Oh yes. Did I cry, despair at times, argue with fate? You bet. But I knew I deserved better and so did my beautiful children, so I made it happen. I am now 46 years old. It did not happen overnight, or always smoothly, but it happened never-the-less.

G.

[Sandilou]

I'm a suicidal teenage mother who dropped out of college. I was studing IT... now when my daughter goes to school (if I live that long) I want to be a radiographer. I tend to make self sims, then make them commit suicide in various ways. I might start one of the challenges though.

I read everything, except romance and westerns. Sci-fi (especially Star Trek) is my favourite, but non-fiction is pretty high. I've just been reading the Argos catalogue since I was bored.

I was genuinely shocked by your post.  I don't really understand why people here like hurting their sims, let alone themselves!  But that's because I've been lucky in many respects - I'm a natural optimist and would not deliberately hurt anyone else - not even my sims! 

However, I do understand what it's like to feel down and I have learned the hard way that a problem shared is a problem halved.  So, if it helps, talk away.

[J. M. Pescado]

Well, just don't come to me looking for sympathy on the entire suicide matter. If you talk to me about suicide, I'm gonna refer you to Rippy the Razor.

[sara_dippity]

Do you love your daughter? I guess not. Otherwise you wouldn't be contemplating abandoning her like that. I have no sympathy for those seeking attention on a message board, or seeking to burden their child with greif and loss for the rest of their young lives.
Get therapy if you are serious, or go to a support board. Going to a sims board with this tells me you are not looking for help, but rather trying to stir the pot or get attention.

[J. M. Pescado]

I wouldn't put it quite that far. I mean, this is probably the worst possible place to do that, since I will make fun of you.

[sara_dippity]

Yes, but we've all seen how much people love to have you make fun of them (actually I think I was the first to volunteer my guestbook for the official site back on that post on variousimmers...) I mean, people bound in here and beg you to rip their lips off *coughdatabasecough* so it can't really be "the worst possible place to do that" truely, right?