Cyberpunk

A lot of people have heard of steampunk, an alternate reality where everything is powered by steam. There's also cyberpunk, an alternate reality which features advanced technology. Upon looking online, I found many more variants of this. I was in a bit of a silly mood, and couldn't resist putting the pun into punk.

Cyberpunk- What if robots try to take over the world? You will be assimilated...

Steampunk- Not sure it holds water.

Solarpunk- It seems like a bright idea.

Dieselpunk- I'm not sure we should fuel that idea.

Stonepunk- Now that really rocks.

Clockpunk- Give me time to consider it.

Elfpunk- It does make a couple of good points.

Mythpunk- I'm not sure that's possible.

Dreampunk- Get your head out of the clouds and be realistic.

Biopunk-  Efforts are unpredictable and could mutate into something bad.

Nanopunk- There's a small chance that could work.

Nowpunk- I'm currently considering this.

Characters: Good, Bad, and Ugly

There are many different character traits and personalities, and these play a role in which characters a reader or writer consider their favorites, or their least favorites.

For example, there are some people who like characters that are good-hearted, brave, kind, etc. On the flip side, some people get annoyed if a character has few, if any, flaws, and say that the character is too perfect or goody-goody.

A stubborn character who isn't afraid to speak their mind is also loved. Other people may find them to be rude or irritating.

And there are also people who find a strange attraction to antagonists. Whether they have a sharp tongue, are cunning, or are just cool-looking, some people enjoy these characters. Of course, there are others who just see an evil megalomaniac who is merciless, and they cheer when the bad guy is gone.

To further accentuate my point, let's take Jayfeather, a character from the 'Warriors' series by Erin Hunter. Jayfeather can be stubborn and sarcastic. He hates being treated helpless or inferior. But his wit, and his refusal to let things stop or slow him down, make him a character many people like. And despite his often prickly exterior, he cares about others and is a loyal friend. His intelligence, bravery, and good heart make him a valuable addition to the story.

In your opinion, what makes a good character, or a bad one? What makes them a favorite, or one you can't stand? Obviously character development, making them unique and realistic, is important. But to a certain extent, what makes a character good or bad is defined by the opinions of others. A character that one reader loves may be viewed as whiny and annoying by another reader. It's a unique blend of the writer's skill and effort, and the minds of the people reading the story.

Update

My father's doing better. He was discharged from the hospital a few days ago, and is getting some of his strength back. Thanks to everyone for their prayers.

In Prayer

My father hasn't been feeling well for a few days, and when we took him to the hospital yesterday, we found out that he had a heart attack. They found four blockages, and he had a quadruple bypass today. He's stable and recovering right now.

So everyone please keep him in your prayers for his recovery.

Large and Small Dogs

My aunt has a German Shepherd and a chihuahua. They bought large tennis balls for the German Shepherd, and smaller balls for the chihuahua.

Ironically, the larger dog seemed to like the tiny balls, chewing and slobbering on them, and sometimes leaving huge teeth marks with her powerful jaws. The chihuahua, on the other hand, was determined to carry around the tennis balls, her tiny mouth stretched wide to accommodate their large size.
It's almost as if the German Shepherd thought she was a small dog, and the chihuahua thought she was a large dog. And of course, the chihuahua also thinks she's as intimidating as a three-headed, fire-breathing Irish Wolfhound, when in reality she's the size of an ant and produces high-pitched yaps. It really terrifies the people who walk down the street, or the strangers that pull up into the driveway. If they're afraid of an adorable lap dog, that is. Funny how some dogs act like that, completely opposite of what you think a dog of their size would behave. 

Calling All Rain

I called one of my friends whom I hadn't seen in a while, and was talking to her for a while. I mentioned that the forecast called for rain today, and I was hoping that the rain would start soon.

As we continued talking to each other, I started to hear something. It was finally raining! I looked out the window and saw the wonderful rain falling from the sky.

Then I remembered something, something unfortunate. You see, when it rains, the phone lines at my house often go out. Right after I mentioned this to my friend, I started to hear static in the phone, and it soon became difficult to hear my friend. Needless to say, I didn't stay on the phone for very long after that.

So our phones were out of commission for a short while. But good news! It rained!

Nutshells

Back when my mother and aunt were still kids, my grandmother started complaining about coming home and finding nutshells all over the floor. My mother and aunt insisted they hadn't left the shells there. My grandmother didn't seem to believe them; after all, what other explanation was there?

One day while my grandmother was at work and my aunt and mother were at home, they noticed their cat, Peanuts, jump onto the table. The black-and white cat batted a nut out of the bag, and after a few moments, finally batted it off the table and onto the floor. Their German Shepherd walked over, cracked the nut open in his jaws, then ate the nut inside. The he waited for his feline friend to bat another nut onto the floor, which the cat did, and he cracked it open and ate it. This process repeated itself for a while, until there was a mass of nutshell fragments strewn on the floor.

When my grandmother came home, my mother and aunt told her what had happened. And so, the mystery of the nutshells on the floor was solved.

The Mechanical Bull

I remember being in early grade school, and my school was holding an event with fun games and other activities. A girl who was a few years older than me, and who occasionally babysat me, was supposed to take me there and watch me.

There were several different things to do there, but I recall that there was a mechanical bull. I had seen many kids ride the mechanical bull, including the girl I was with, and it looked like it would be fun. I kept asking her to take me over there so I could ride it, but she continually told me that I couldn't ride the mechanical bull. Regardless of whether she thought me old enough to ride it or not, I kept pleading with her to let me ride the mechanical bull. Finally, she relented and took me over there.

I got onto the bull when my turn came, and the bull started moving. It proved to be a lot more difficult than I thought to stay on it. I asked the man at the controls if he could turn it down, as I was having trouble staying aboard the contraption. But he said he couldn't decrease the difficulty, and I continued to struggle for a few long moments more before finally losing my balance entirely and tumbling off. I fell rather gracefully on my arm, which felt rather unpleasant, and the girl led me away.

I didn't ask about riding the mechanical bull again. I suppose I had learned my lesson after that.