The Light

Shiro woke up as the limo pulled up to Bastion's house. "Here it is, home at last."

The house wasn't as big as some of the ones they passed on the way, but it was bigger than any from Shiro's home. It was round too, which surprised him. The ground floor had glass all around the outer rim, so you could look straight through it at the lake on the other side. The sun was just rising, and its reflection on the lake was breathtaking. The first floor was mainly decoration, a sitting room, a kitchen, a dinning room, and a game room were among the bigger rooms, all of which surrounded a set of stairs. An elegant staircase in the center of the house led up, with a smaller set of stairs on either side leading down.

"Dad built this place from scratch. Not by himself though," He reassured when he saw Shiro's face. "he had a lot of help. Your mom even had a say in some of this." Bastian exited the car first, stretching from their long ride, and held his hand out for Shiro. "Come on, you've got a lot of exploring to do." Shiro admired the house, and Bastian stepped up to the front of the limo. "Danke mein Freund." He nodded to the driver and turned back to Shiro.

"I'll bet you she wanted the glass to circle the first floor." He said as they approached the front door. "She always did say she loved the way the sunlight looked when it passed through glass." He continued walking before turning around to face Bastian who had stopped in his tracks.

"Has anyone told you you're good?" He marveled. "With your brain we'll figure your mother's riddle out in no time!"

"Oh can we work on that now!?" Shiro beamed.

"That can wait. For now, we have to explore your new home." He threw the door open and Shiro was silenced by the sight. The light coming through the glass danced in intricate patterns on the floor and he knew his mother had waited his whole life for him to see this. He could feel her aura in the room, and immediately collapsed in the doorway.

"Shiro!" Bastion threw himself to the floor catching Shiro in the process. "What was that!?" He spat out when he noticed Shiro was smiling.

"Sorry, I could just feel my mom's presence. She had more of an impact on this house than you think." He noticed Bastion's grip around him loosen."Did I scare you?"

"Well yeah, you collapsed. I thought you had fainted and the ground isn't exactly made of pillows." Shiro started laughing. "What? Shiro what's so funny? Did you plan this?"

 Shiro scrambled to get up, "No," he said between laughs. "Let's get to exploring!" He extended his arm out to Bastion, who took it, and pulled him up. "Where do we start?" He eagerly asked, looking at the entire floor before him.

"You can pick. Do you want to see what you can see from here, where you'll be sleeping, or where the cool stuff is?"

That last bit caught Shiro's attention. "When you say 'cool stuff' it must be really cool because this right here is cool." Bastion smiled and lead him into the house toward the staircase.

Stepping into the house, Shiro, once again, felt the presence of his mother. He didn't expect to ever feel his mother's presence again after he left to get aboard the Alexandria and yet here, twice in one day, he felt her, which made him weak. Bastion caught sight of him and cautiously watched in case of a second collapse. It was as though his mother had created the light's patterns on the floor. He'd seen these patterns before though. In his bedroom back home. His mother insisted on installing the window herself, and would have killed anyone who broke it. It wasn't a big window, but it still illuminated the room brilliantly when the sun was at the right angle.

"You know, she built this glass." Shiro looked away from the floor and up to Bastion. "It's fabulous glass. No other glass makes a pattern quite like hers, and it's durable too!" He walked over to the wall and knocked on lightly. "These bad boys have been through a lot and yet they're still here."

"It did always strike me as invulnerable." Shiro stroked the glass.


"Shiro hurry! You don't have a lot of time to make the ship!" Margaret opened Shiro's door and found him reaching up to the glass window, just above his bed. Her looks hid her age. She had long brown hair that curled around her and flowed over her shoulders, accenting the brown of her eyes. She wore a tattered shirt and ragged jeans, the typical outfit of a laborer in the city, but still managed to shine. "It's just glass Shiro. You really need to get going." Her voice quivered and Shiro spun around.

"Mom," he looked down catching the look in her eyes and decided not to bring anymore attention to it than was necessary, "I'll make it. You know I will." She smiled up at him, and pulled him in for a hug.

Neither of them spoke after that. Neither of them needed to. They both knew this was goodbye, and they both knew it had to be done. Shiro gathered the few things he could manage, smiled at his mother, nodding goodbye, and left. Margaret went to the window, watching her son walk toward his destiny. As soon as he was out of sight she collapsed on the living room floor, and succumbed to the tears that had been fighting to get free.


Shiro tried comprehending what his mother's life was like before she left. "How much can you tell me about my mother?" He questioned Bastion.

"I can tell you loads." He stated. "That, however, would take ages, and right now I need to show you the house, and give you a basic run down of the way things work here in the capitol." He spun away from Shiro and started toward the stairs. "Follow me, then. You'll love what's underground."

Shiro watched him for a moment as Bastion walked away, entraced by the house, the atmosphere, and, he admitted to himself, Bastion himself. He shook his head, and ran after Bastion, "I can't wait!"

The two smiled at each other and made their way down the staircase.

Two Years of Google Thanks

Two years ago today it felt like my life was just starting. Not that high school and everything before that didn't matter, or that I wasn't living. None of that at all, it was two years ago today that I left home, flew to California by myself, and started the crash course journey to the rest of my life.

Let's see what started thanks to that trip to California.

- I got used to not being home, sorta. (more got my feet wet so college wouldn't overload me.)
- I learned what CS was, and fell in love with it.
- I formed some of the best friendships on this planet, in three weeks.
- I got to see where CS could take me, which is different than learning CS.
- I got a blog. (This is totally the best thing out of it all. =P)

Two years ago I had three weeks of solid adventures. I traversed San Jose with nothing but the pictures of bus routes to guide me to an In-N-Out, which I was just now able to find on the map just by looking because I still remember the whole experience.
I was doing photo shoots in San Francisco while waiting for the bus that never (eventually) came, singing Hakuna Matata on buses and getting the bus to sing along, arguing Batman vs Iron Man, walking the Golden Gate bridge (and thinking of X-Men), climbing 8 billion stairs to get to Coit tower, and getting sung Happy Birthday to on a bus when it wasn't my birthday.
I was sitting in a super fancy restaurant having "bro" time with the 7 other guys who were there when we went to Santana Row. I think this might be the first time my Blueness really showed, and I think this story ended up getting to most everyone, even if it wasn't supposed to leave the table. Haha. I bought a green feltish hat and a nice jacket type thing from Urban outfitters. Oh yeah, and everyone was in love with the supernice cars that were right there where the shuttle dropped us off.
I was going all over Great America, not shouting Enrique's name, but instead just getting to know different people while trying to find the best rides there. I'm fairly certain I ate some sort of junky food that was way more expensive than it should have been, and then left sorta early to head back to the dorm.
I was playing Ultimate on a near nightly basis, and quoting Romeo and Juliet to get people to play, and running around till we couldn't see anymore, and staying up late in the lounge, and having my laptop used for a terrible excuse for a movie ( =P ), and running off to see Step Up 3D, and then pretending to Parkour everywhere, and going with everyone to see Inception, and "Mind = Blown", and almost getting us killed but Sour Beth saving us, and our shuttle driver running a red light, and sleeping on the shuttle, and playing with the id holder things, and roaming a boat late at night, and strawberries.

There was the time they were talking about time management, and Virginia and Linda had to take a piece of yarn and measure out the time they spent eating and sleeping then cut it off, and Linda had less than an inch of yarn left.

The time that Enrique stole the show with his dance moves on the Intern boat. Literally no one could touch his dance moves.

The time Kyle nonchalantly decided to tell us the building might be on fire.

How Sara Cain got a virus on her computer within a day.

Michelle's obsession with penguins, which it turns out was more of everyone else saying she was obsessed with penguins and it stuck.

When Lynn found the wheat grass shot, and eventually got most people to try it.

Izzy's super fancy outfit for the last day when we were going to present our projects.

Kasra's elevator speech about corn soup.

Sam Couch, Scouch, Scellen, Skeleton? Trying to figure out how Lori and Linda did that.

Kofi impersonating Charles spectacular method of teaching.

Emily, Sara Cain, and Antwan Dodson.

How intense Virginia was in Ultimate Frisbee. Seriously, she's like pro or something.

Itty Britty. I dunno how you spell that, but that. Just Brittany in general.

Sarah, Sarah Beth, and Sara.

Christian having his own theme music thanks to his Nexus One.

Kofi being offered up for trade by Kasra during a project presentation.

There are soo many more memories, and I just spent a good while thinking up things, but I tried to hit things that everyone could remember.

All this though got me started. After this heading off to college didn't seem hard, because I A) was still in the same state, B) knew what my degree was and knew what the future held, and C) knew 4 of my class mates, and had a network of friends who were all starting college with me.

It was the smartest most ingenious thing ever thought up by any company, and I express my gratitude on a regular basis, but thank you Google. Thank you Kat. Thank you Jessica. Thank you Carolyn. Thank you Charles. Thanks to everyone who came and talked to us.

Dearly Beloved

So, I'm sitting here, a day away from my birthday not thinking about what it will be like when I turn 20, but instead thinking about me when I was in 5th grade, because that's when this all started.

Kingdom Hearts that is. Came out in September of 2002, and I honestly have no idea when I first got my hands on it, but I remember raving about it. I remember a lot of things because of it.

I remember being in our old church, and talking to someone's parent about it. Somehow video games came up, and I remember telling them that it was a really good game, it had a lot of Disney characters, and had an amazing story, which to this day can bring me to tears, which may or may not be saying much.

I remember the countless Gummi ships my friend, my brother and I made. Mine were generally sporadic, not very well put together, my friends were the same ship, just with more guns, and my brother always made cool designs. I remember he made the top half of a Gundam, complete with shield.

I remember my sister making Sora walk up and down the steps in Olympus while she narrated his inner monologue. It would frustrate me, but she was so fantastically cute about it all. Always makes me smile when I think about it, and one of the many stories I always tell me friends about her.

I remember going on vacation to Disney World, Lindsey with her voice recorder in tow, and being interviewed about Kingdom Hearts. I talked about the red nocturne in what was one of our vacations most memorable lines, "They spin around and go poof." It sounded great when slowed down. Also there was someone who lived in Agrabah, but I'd have to ask my sister to be sure.

I remember getting my parents to buy me the soundtrack for a birthday or Christmas or something. It's fuzzy. One of the few video games I've bought the soundtrack to, and not because I don't like other soundtracks, but this one was fantastic. If you've never heard it then you are missing out on some of the most beautiful music to grace this planet. Place yourself on an island, standing there looking out at the crystal clear water surrounding you, the sun is just on the horizon, and there's a calm breeze blowing. The waves gently pushing their way on to the beach, and some birds are singing in the distance. I dunno, that's the description I'm getting while listening to Dearly Beloved. =D

Honestly this music. I play games for lots of reasons, but a huge factor is the music. I love me a game with a beautiful soundtrack. I love when the music isn't just there to make it look pretty, but to pull you in and make you a part of the game. The music that pulls at all the right heart strings and makes you feel not only connected to the main character but to the whole universe it takes place in.

They did a fantastic job of it, because I remember spending countless hours listening to the music. I remember wishing I could graduate to the March Caprice because that would be fantastic.

This game did it all though. It didn't just have the music, but it had the game play, it had the story, it had the voices. Sora's voice, Haley Joel Osment, will forever be a part of me, and Sora's character will forever shape who I am. I'll never forget how he was able to run around my screen and shape my future in the way that he did, instilling in me some of my greatest ideals and morals. Just his relationship with Kairi, and how pure it was. How pure his entire outlook on life was. I'll never be Sora, but I'll always strive for it.

I could rant about this game for hours, I really could, I'm only scraping the surface here, but I'm going to stop there for now. Rave about it some more another day.

I'll just leave you with this, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECPqsqvHuWc&feature=youtu.be

Listen to it if you can because I promise you it's beautiful, and you should hear it at least once.

6 Days

Not quite as significant as last years 21 Days post, but hey still kinda cool.

I don't have much to say, nothing is wreaking havoc on my mind at the moment, which is a genuinely good thing. Only downside is that I'm left with a pointless post, but after that last one this is probably for the better. Give you guys a bit of a break.

So last year at this time Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 had yet to come out. Still had 2 days for that, and I managed to run down to Fort Worth to stay at Corey's, who I'd talked to for less than half a year at that point, to see it along with Cathy, Eric, and Katie.

Last year at this time Brian's film No Such Thing As Monsters had yet to premiere. It was quite fantastic. Dark, and intimidating, but fantastic. He's great with film, and is definitely going to make some thought provoking ideas come to life.

This year at this time I have a co-op with Alcatel-Lucent. All the coworkers are supportive, and always offering their services if I ever have any questions. Getting to do testing, and fixing bugs which is cool, and definitely educational.

This year at this time I make sure to catch Cody for a game of LoL almost everyday. It's a great way for me to keep in touch with him, and I very much enjoy the continuing friendship with him. His friends Blizz and Angel are pretty cool people too. I'm never really around when anyone else is on. Except for J... I can't think of his name, sorry.

Last year at this time I was anticipating the bright lights of Times Square, and the bright faces of some amazing friends. I might not have understood exactly how much Google was doing for us when the paid for us to go to New York/California, but I definitely understand it now, and couldn't be more grateful for what they've given me. If you're friends with me on Facebook you have probably seen my reactions to Emily showing up in Austin. That's something I can never thank Google enough for.

This year at this time I'm just planning out that last bit of "reckless" before I hit the 20 mark and leave the "teen"s behind. If you know me though, then you know my bit of "reckless" will just consist of hanging out with friends, going to the mall, playing video games, and working. Haha. Planning on having a super fantastic last weekend as a teenager before I lose the right to be angsty and super emotional and such.

I dunno, I just kinda felt like rambling here. One of these days, I'll be able to completely ramble, and not hold anything back. I'm kinda looking forward to being a super completely open book, but for now you just get to sit back and read as you imagine me as some mysterious person. That makes me cool right, being mysterious. I feel like Lizzie McGuire talked about that in an episode once... Eh, that was ages ago, I could be wrong.

I'm out now! Maybe I'll post again before I'm 20, but that's probably a bit of a stretch. =P

Two years?

You mean to tell me I've been out of high school for two years. I've almost had this blog for two years. In a few weeks I'll have known Lynn and Emily and Kasra and Enrique and the whole CSSI crowd for two whole years? I would have named you all, but that's 28 people, plus Jessica, Kat, and Carolyn. Soo many people!

So wait, there's four years since I met Camron, Cici and the freshmen my Junior year. Then that means six years I've known Brian and Brison and Kylie and numerous other high school friends? And seven years for Chelsea and Emilee. Nine for Meghan and Kelcey and Chris (if you don't count Baseball) and Ryan (if you don't count our parents being sorta friends when we were like 3) and the rest of my middle school friends. Thirteen years for Cody, and fourteen for Erik! Fifteen for Jessica, if that still counts as a friendship.

I didn't name everyone, but I'm sorry. There are a lot of you, and I'm happy to have every single one of you as a friend. I think what's crazier to think about, isn't how long I've been friends with people, but looking at the people I've barely met. With all of those friendships in perspective it's weird thinking I've only known Jacob for a little under two years now. Eric, Ann, Eric, Corey and Gerardo even less than Jacob. Cathy less than that, but still over a year and a halfish. I've known Pedro for a year in August, and Nikki less than that.

How has time flown by so quickly and yet slow enough that in less than a year I can form some of the strongest bonds I've ever felt. I could have sworn we spent endless hours debating what we should do, and at the same time it was only yesterday that I stumbled into the piano lounge to listen to the Kingdom Hearts guy and found the crew.

Speaking of recently, just last week Cody and I were running around in the back yard fighting in tournaments and taking down evil with intricately woven plots and interweaving characters who resurfaced from time to time with his Mayhanna and my simple Elf. How was this all not last week!?

It's interesting though, because anytime I sit down and think about the future I really worry I'm going to waste it away. Everyone thinks that to some extent I think, but somehow I've managed to not waste it. I do spend a lot of time dwelling on the future, and more time dwelling on the past, but I find the time to enjoy the now. The time to celebrate what is right in front of me.

I'm not the best at it by any means. I'm not constantly seizing the moment, and yet I still feel like the majority of my time has gone to good use. I could always improve, but I'll never stop being able to improve.

And then there's the couple of days right after watching an exceptionally good movie. I tell myself I'm going to do all of these crazy things like in the movies. I'm going to develop super crazy acrobatics, or go on to make a difference. I'm silly like that. I let movies get to me.

For example, I watched The Amazing Spiderman last night. I still on occasion try to access my hidden superpowers, and hope that one day they'll surface, even though I know the chances of that happening are pretty impossible. I'm a dreamer like that. And I'm perfectly cool with that, and don't ever want to accept the fact that it's not going to happen. Young, naive, inexperienced... Take your pick, but I'm cool with that.

You see, I have no idea where I'll be in two more years. I can't tell you what new thing I'll be pining after, and I can't tell you what I'll fill my time doing. I hope, however, that I keep this part of me. That I'm able to dream. Because that's really one of the only things I fear. I guess, in a way, I fear reality. I like breaking it when I can.

Let's see things I think of when I think of "reality":
-After you graduate high school you and your friends will go different ways and won't see each other.
-Same for college graduation, except a bit more likely you'll still interact.
-People are only going to hurt you.
-Some dreams are too far fetched, you should set your sights on something more attainable.
And I can't think of anything else now. Silly me.

I know reality isn't all dark like that, but those are a few of my problems with "reality". Call me an idealist, but I really don't want to ever agree with those. Friendships last if you make the effort. I mean, what was the whole beginning of this post about. In fact, I feel like I've gotten closer to Cody than I was in recent years and that's just by making an effort to play an online game with him daily. Do friends grow apart, yeah, it happens. It sucks too. Just people change a lot in their high school/college years, and you can't be mad with someone who finally grows into the person they've been trying to find all those years. You might just not be the same buddy buddy that you were before you changed. You can stay in touch, you can hold on to the friendship if it means something to you. There's nothing in the "real world" that says you can't stay friends.

I'm never going to give in to the idea that people are only going to hurt me. Have I been hurt? Oh yes I have. I've been decimated by people before, but for some silly reason I keep believing in them. I watch TV, and see all sorts of things that make me angry at humans, but it really doesn't change my believe in how good they can be. Oh well, looks like I'll forever be cursed by loving people, and giving them a chance instead of expecting them to backstab me from the first time I meet them.

And while some dreams (the superpower ones) might be impossible it doesn't hurt to dream big. I mean, I've always dreamed of acting in a movie, being a superhero or being the guy who falls in love with the girl. I don't really ever see that happening. Sadly I've let that get a bit too clouded by reality. Also dreamed of being a dolphin trainer. Probably not going to happen, but I could make it happen. I could train myself, and learn Marine Biology. I could dance cheesily in SeaWorld's shows. Honestly I almost went that path, but opted out because I felt like I could do something better elsewhere. Darn my being smart and feeling like something was expected of said smartness.

Lastly, I dream of making a change. Somehow doing something that gets people's attention and saying the right thing that causes a positive impact all over. I'm just one kid from Amarillo, Texas though. Honestly not that special. There's a ton of Computer Scientists out there that scare me with what they know. There's a billion other bloggers who can phrase things better than me. I just can't help but think that somehow I'll do something that catches someone's eye and then causes a landslide where all of a sudden I'm in a position to do something. That would be fantastic.

Who know maybe in a few more years something will happen. Perhaps I'll make one of my dreams a reality. I dunno, what do you think.

Thankfully, I took a break after the first part, then came back later. It's a better post than I had originally intended and I like when that happens. Hopefully you do too, because it's kinda for you, the reader. =D

A Cruise

First Part
Previous Part

Shiro managed to find himself in the center of the large crowd leaving the ship. He hadn't had much interaction with people from the capitol, aside from the captain and the baggage boy, quickly realizing the differences between the people from home and the people here. There was an air around him that he couldn't quite grasp, one he'd never felt before and he stopped for a moment to try and figure it out.

"Hey out of my way!" Shiro turned toward the voice before being knocked to the ground by a passing man. His face and body had the look of a man in his thirties, but his hair showed his real age. Not a single hair on his head was a color other than white. Shiro watched the man as he started to get up, dusting himself off.

"Don't mind him mister! I don't like him either." Shiro attention was pulled down by a little girl, no older than 7, tugging at his pant leg. A smile spread across his face at the girl's words.

"Lacy! You can't say things like that about the mayor. You know, he's only a step away from becoming president. Can you imagine what would happen then if he heard what you just said?"  The mother turned to Shiro. "It was your fault you were in his way, you should know better."

Shiro quickly disregarded the mother and turned back to Lacy. "Hey," she had started tearing up, "it's ok." He squatted. "Your mother has a point you know. You shouldn't be so quick to judge people. Especially at your age."

"But papa sai-"

"Lacy!" Shiro shot up as her mom grabbed her by the arm and yanked her away into the crowd.

He reached for his necklace, holding it tightly in his hands, and watched them disappear. "Please give me the strength I need."

The crowd surged forward and Shiro was forced out of the ship, blinded by the lights of the capitol. The sun had already started to set, but the buildings that stood before him each mimicked its brightness. The crowd thinned out as people found their complementary limos or stepped aside to greet a loved one, and Shiro continued on, searching for the limo he knew was waiting.

"Mr. Winters!" The voice was gravely, and Shiro immediately knew he had found the right driver. "My apologies for the lack of a sign." He opened the door and beckoned for Shiro to get inside.

Shiro got in to the limo and was greeted by a young man, no older then twenty-five, with dirty blonde hair and deep green eyes. He suppressed a flutter at the sight of the man. "Hello Shiro, I've been looking forward to your arrival." Confusion flashed across Shiro's face. "Right, your mother couldn't tell you everything could she?"

"How long have you known I was coming and how did you know my mother?" Shiro shot out before he realized he was talking.

"The name is Sebastian Frost, but you can call me Bastian." He looked out the window, scanning the sea of limos. "Hey, we've got a bit of a drive, I'll explain everything to you on the way, but before we start driving do you see that limo over there?" Shiro turned to look through the window. Which lim- Oh. His eyes landed on a driver dressed in a T-shirt and shorts. "Stands out doesn't he?" Shiro nodded. "If I were you I would take note of the passenger, and do my best to stay out of his way in the future."

"Who is he?" Shiro questioned as a large man approached the car.

"President Ivan Roberts." The man was tall, built like a bodybuilder, and didn't look a day over thirty with his deep brown hair. "His grandfather's dad was one of the founders of the capitol, and he's going to keep it in his family as long as he can."

"Aren't there other descendants vying for that?" Shiro was still perplexed by President Roberts.

"They tried, they still try, but he's relentless." Bastian clapped his hands and the driver started to leave the lot. "His whole family is, which is why you of all people should stay out of his way. If he finds you he'll eat you up and every single person who isn't inside the walls of the capitol will feel his wrath."

Shiro swallowed, "I can handle myself. First person to make it in from outside. Says a lot doesn't it?"

"No offense but the Alexandria has no security. In fact, that's a perfect starting point." He leaned back in his chair and motioned for Shiro to do the same. "We'll discuss President Roberts more later, but for now I need to fill you in on what your mother couldn't." Shiro shot forward at the mention of his mother. "We've been in touch for several years now. It's not easy getting word out of the walls, so we could only communicate when the Alexandria took a group to see the sights." He motioned sarcastically and made a face.

"Is that why she was always out when the Alexandria came by. The guards always came to watch the city, but she was never anywhere to be found. I never told anyone because I didn't want the guards to be the ones to find her."

Bastian smiled, "I like you already." Shiro couldn't explain his feelings to himself, but his heart skipped a beat when he saw Bastian's smile. "That's exactly why she was gone. I never met her, but my men made the trip to deliver a message to her and then bringing one back for me."

"Why my mother, why me?" Shiro quizzed him.

"You ask all the right questions." Bastian grinned. "Your mother may not have told you, but she once lived here in the capitol. In fact, she was good friends with my father, and boy did he have stories to tell me about her." He noticed Shiro's lost expression. "Don't worry, we're not related or anything. My mom admired her strength, but father admired her for her bravery. She was braver than anyone inside these walls, and no one even knows her name anymore."

"What happened? Why did she leave this!" Shiro motioned at the buildings they flew past. "I mean look out there!" Shiro actually looked, for the first time at the city they were in, and for a moment forgot to breathe.

The buildings stood taller than anything he'd ever seen, and each one advertising a different company or brand. The people who walked around all looked young, no more then thirty, and so full of life. They darted in and out of buildings always coming out with bags full to the brim. Everything was clean too, the streets were spotless, and the buildings were in perfect condition.

"That's what he said." Shiro was pulled back inside the limo. "Seriously, he could not understand how she would want to leave. She told him that one day he'd understand, that it would make sense to him when the frost signaled the coming fourth winter." Now Bastian had the perplexed look on his face. "Never figured that one out."

"Wait, she always told me that too!" Bastian focused entirely on him now. "She always said that someday the frost would signal the coming of the fourth winter, and that on that day it would all make sense." He sat for a moment thinking about the phrase. "Did your family ever know my dad?"

"No, your dad never lived in the capitol. It wasn't until I got in touch with your mother the first time that I even knew she had a kid. Dad always said she wasn't the marrying type." Bastian looked intently at him. "Why the sudden question about your dad."

"So she wasn't Margaret Winters when your dad knew her?" Shiro was more intrigued and sat forward even more, almost falling out of his chair.

"No, it was Margaret Sullivan." The gears in Bastian's head started to turn. "She spoke of a frost signaling a winter. I'm the Frost,"

"And I'm the Winter!" Shiro shot up. "Does that mean she had this all planned out from the beginning?"

Bastian sat in silence, contemplating the question, and trying to figure out just how much of this Ms Margaret Sullivan had planned out while she lived here. Had father known what she meant. Could he have known what she meant?


Shiro sat back in his seat, intrigued by the new situation that stood before him. What else could she have been planning?

Those Thought Provoking Days

So I posted a new blog like... yesterday. And now I'm working on another one. I dunno why, I mean I should probably do some more videos that I can upload or something, but I'll give that a few more days before I pick it back up again.

Well, by posting that last one I got interested in seeing my old posts. I kinda like my old posts, I kinda like my old me. Not that I don't like new me. It's just that new me isn't old me. Well that was redundant.

Let me try that again, there's this thing I've always done where I keep track of things I've written or done in the past (e-mails, notes, blogs, videos, etc...) and then randomly I'll go back and look at it. It's really fun seeing how far I've come, and how much I've change, and exactly how much I'm still the same as I was when I started this thing.

One big difference I noticed is that I was really thought provoking at times in my old blog posts. I picked ten or so at random and read through them and the majority of the time I was talking about something that I could learn from or that anyone could benefit from really. It was interesting, and I had many cool references (to Doctor Who usually.)

Recently any thought provoking thoughts I've had I've kept to myself, which I don't like doing because me and thought provoking thoughts result in hours of lying in bed thinking about said thoughts and just getting bogged down in whatever rabbit hole of thought I find myself thinking through.

And with that being said, today's thought provoking thought, and sorta yesterdays. As a kid I sorta instilled in myself what I  believed to be absolute truths and this strange set of rules that I won't let myself break. As I grew up, I came to the conclusion that God made no mistakes in creating me, and as such said beliefs were law. This is me, and don't think I'm saying they should be, and I'm not saying I'm without fault, just that I don't doubt the things I came to believe as a kid.

Among these things are my belief in God, my belief in people, my love for others, my desire to put others before me, my disdain for drugs, my disdain for smoking, and my disdain for alcohol. A lot that I could talk about, but only really one that is on my mind at the moment, and that's the alcohol thing.

I'm not against alcohol as a thing, I'm not against people drinking it. Happens all the time, and I have no problem being around people who are drinking (with moderation). I'm mainly around that when I end up at the cousins for Christmas and the adults all grab a beer of sorts, or at the brother's wedding, or when the father is cooking and does the typical beer in front of the grill thing. I'm ok with all of that, don't like the smell, but it doesn't bother me.

What bothers me is this whole idea of getting drunk. I've had too many conversations with friends, and acquaintances about drinking and why I shouldn't be bothered by it. I know I shouldn't, I shouldn't let other people's decisions mess with me, but I can't help it. I have no basis for despising it, never had any actual interactions with a drunk person (except maybe his dad, but I'll never be sure on that one).

You see, I'm in college, so the topic pops up. Not often, but you can't really go far without it. I managed to find myself a set of people who I value more than words can describe, and this topic comes up even less, but it still does. On the rare occasion there is always someone who says "We should get  (insert name here) drunk!" to which everyone laughs and agrees. This is usually followed by a conversation of what they would be like drunk, and then eventually a what would everyone be like drunk.

This conversation I can't stand, which gets me in a lot of arguments with people. I've never once ended an argument about this on a good note, and I'm betting I'll ruffle a few feathers here too, but that's what I do. I despise the thought of interacting with drunk people, regardless of who they are. There is nothing in that that sounds even remotely appealing to me. Which is followed up usually with, "What if your friend was drunk and needed a ride?" I would probably go and pick them up, and take them to their home, and hate every minute of it. Not even gonna lie, that isn't how I would prefer to spend time with a friend. Would I stay there and make sure they were alright, I have no idea. I can't even begin to imagine myself in that situation. I would love to say yes, but I don't know for sure.

And all this drinking makes it easier to have fun stuff is crap as far as I'm concerned. I have had so much fun just making stupid jokes about love being a battleground and playing board games and just having a quaint dinner and talking with one another. One drink, sure, fine, but getting drunk to get drunk, getting drunk to party doesn't make any situation more fun. It makes you stupider, and no longer yourself. At that, my friends, is the point where you're not the person I befriended, which I why I don't know how'd I react to my friends really getting drunk. I'd probably cry, and do my best to take care of them, because I'm the type of guy who cares too much about everyone else. I'd deal with my own pains, and force my judgmental nature down because the person I chose to befriend, that person who I gave a place in my heart, is still there somewhere, underneath the drunken mess.

Maybe you like the taste, maybe it's not a bad taste, and maybe you drink only occasionally, or you just have one after work, or you go a little over board on accident at a wedding. Maybe I'm broken and won't ever comprehend drinking, maybe I'll never change my views on it. It won't ruin my friendships though. shouldn't anyway, as long as we're still on great ground in our friendship.

I sound like a jerk right now, and so judgmental, and not like a blue at all. I never claimed to be a hundred percent blue, and maybe that's something that more people need to learn about me.

Basically, if you want, I have no power to stop you. Can you rely on me to be mister designated driver? As long as I don't have to be where ever you are while you're getting drunk. Will I hang out with you while you're drunk? Nope, I care to much about who you really are to let that picture of you get damaged. Will I take care of you if you're drunk and in need of help? Very likely, wouldn't know how to, and wouldn't enjoy it, but I'm not going to close the door on a friend in need.

Will I judge you if you drink? Yup. Will I hate myself for judging you if you drink? Yeah, severely.

That's the end of my rant, I think I've gone on long enough. Sorry, I know you won't all enjoy this, but it's true, and it's me, and that's what this blog is for.

Ummm... What do you call a place that sells clearance foods?



Sellmonella! =P

Apartment Adventures: Working Man

Once again, apologies for dying for like... Ages... I'm still alive though, just keep getting wrapped up in the world of college, and not being able to find the time to sneak away to write in solitude.

So, I'm back, for how long no one knows, but as long as I have something to say and have somewhere to say it I'll post something here. Sound good?

Cool! Well, before I start talking about the now I want to catch you up on a few things. And looking to see when my last post was I realize it hasn't been as long as I thought. 6 months isn't *too* bad. =P

Well, since then I've had about a billion journeys so here goes. (And then I realized that the last real about me blog was in October...)

Since October, I... went to a haunted house with the UT crowd, and continue to despise haunted houses.
Since the haunted house, I... Stayed in Austin over Thanksgiving break, and had Thanksgiving with the brother and his wife, and the not yet born baby.
Since Thanksgiving, I... went home for Christmas, got the Uncharted 1/2/Controller set and beat the first one.
Since Christmas, I... started video blogging, thanks to a Question A Day book (where there is a question for every single day of the year and spots for answers for 5 years. I thought it was a fun vlog idea so I went with it, and am currently a month or two behind, go figure. Haha.)
Since the vlog started, I... drove to Nikki's house in Dallas to hang out with the gang before the Spring Semester started.
Since the semester started, I... sadly lost Jacob as a roommate, but gained Gerardo as a roommate who while no Jacob was a fantastic roommate.
Since switching roommates, I... was visited by the wonderful Emily Stumme (who has a last name that Blogger doesn't recognize as a word) who flew in all the way from Maryland so Sara could have a dentist appointment, and she could see Mario, Sara, Enrique, Samantha and myself for a few days in our natural environment.
Since Stumme visited, I... officially became an uncle to the handsome Harrison Oliver Combs.
Since Harrison was born, I... lost track of time and the next thing I can think is finished off the Spring Semester.
Since the Spring Semester ended, I... was visited by the fantastic Nikki who flew in all the way from Dallas so she could hang out and see what Amarillo was like.
Since Nikki visited, I... (and while she was in town) hung out with Cody, Camron (which Blogger says is misspelled) and Chelsea a lot, which made me realize how great all of them are and how much I miss them when I'm not there.
Since hanging out with them, I... lost my PS3 to the Yellow Light of Death after having it for... however long it has been since it came out.
Since losing my PS3, I... left Amarillo to go to Austin, because I had a job lined out and waiting for me.
Since heading back to Austin, I... started my job with Alcatel-Lucent and it has been great so far.


Which catches you up. Sorry about the style, I accidentally started that, and couldn't stop. Haha. Somewhere in there I was on an Intramural Indoor Soccer team. We lost, all the games, but it was enjoyable. =D

So, William Combs has a job huh? Yes, with a cool badge, and one of these:

I'm silly, yes, but that's why you're still here. =P

But the job, right. It's great, as I previously stated, and everyone who works here is super nice. I've not met everyone, but those I have have all offered their help in case I ever get stuck or don't know what to do. So, the job is going well, lots of reading and training before I actually start doing cool things like debugging, woot!

While in Austin for the Summer I'm staying at an apartment with Pedro, Ernest and Ricky. It's a nice apartment and the guys are all cool. When we're all there, which only happens on weekends and after 8pm during the week, we just watch shows, do work, play games, have nice little dinners (on occasion), and just talk. Which is cool. Sometimes Cathy comes to visit, Eric came down from Dallas after everyone visited Nikki for a weekend, I stole Matthew on Saturday, Camron came by for a bit after his Orientation... Yeah. It's cool!

Umm... I guess if you didn't know I was doing videos, you can watch the old ones here, and I'll work on making new ones. I also continued writing the story about Shiro Winters if you by any chance started reading that. And I'm working, so don't expect too much of this to actually happen in a short time period, except for my work, which will definitely happen. =D

Arrival

First Part
Previous Part

The Alexandria readied itself for it's final decent, it was home. A crowd was gathered around the landing strip, bringing it home with cheers and signs. Every single passenger had been arranged to be picked up and driven home in a limo, courtesy of the Alexandria's captain. Behind the crowd there was a lot full of limos with drivers standing next to them, each holding a sign with their passenger's name.

A young limo driver, in his early twenties, wasn't wearing a full suit, which was a strange site, but the stranger site was the name on his sign. In fact, the name on his sign was precisely why he wasn't wearing a suit. Nobody thought twice about the name his sign bore when they saw the driver out of costume.

Shiro bowed his head and held his necklace up to his lips. "Please." He whispered to himself. He cautiously made his way out of the hold.

"Excuse me sir!" Shiro paused and turned toward the voice. "I'm sorry, I know you must want your baggage, but that really is our job sir."

Slowly Shiro brought himself to speak. "Oh, I just needed to grab my necklace from my suitcase." He smiled at the baggage boy, showing him the necklace.

The boy bowed in front of him. "Sorry sir, I could get in trouble if they found out you were down there."

Admiring the boys dutiful nature Shiro started toward the main lobby. "Then I'll make sure they don't find out."

The boy shot up. "Thank you, sir. Thank you."

Shiro slipped out of the room, and into the hallway. The main lobby was on the other end of the deck, and until he made it there he couldn't be sure he was safe. He passed an open door on his right, and couldn't resist looking in. "This has to be first class." His eyes lingered a second too long, and the inhabitant of the room stuck his head into sight.

"Who are you, and how did you get aboard my ship?"

"Of course it's the captain's room."


"I said, how did you get on board! I have seen every face on this ship in the last few weeks, but never yours!"

"Ummmm..." Shiro's mind raced. "You see, my mom forced me to go on this silly trip," glancing at the captain, "not that I still think it's silly, just I wasn't excited about it so I made sure to bring all sorts of books to keep me busy. I haven't left my room very much, and, to be honest, I only stepped out to see the Great Wall, but don't tell my mom."

The captain was convinced, and waved him away. Shiro quickly left the sight of the captain, relieved to have made it past the captain without any further inquiries. He was finally there.

Next Part