Go ask the lizard-guy something....

[Sstavix]

You do /pb join to play. You need at least 2 players. basically you throw Snowballs (they function as paintballs) at the opposing players. If you hit them they lose a life.
Simple!

So does your character actually get killed? Or do you get a number of "lives" at the beginning of the game?

Summer?

Summer is good for working outside... when it doesn't get too hot. Not really my favorite of seasons, though.

[ZappierVirus]

You get 4 lives to start.

FYI, we are moving on to Step 2 in the Fictional Character Bracket.

Fall?

[Sstavix]

It's my second favorite season. The crisp autumn air and the harvest of apples and pumpkins is always pleasant.

Plus, at that time, most of the lawn is dead, so I don't have to mow the blasted grass any more. I really hate mowing. I hate lawns - such a waste of space. I'd rather see stone walkways, fruit trees, and raised beds full of vegetables and fruit-bearing bushes.

... guess what I just came in from doing?

[ZappierVirus]

Spring?

[Sstavix]

Spring?

They're bouncy! Or great sources of fresh water, depending on how you look at them.

[ZappierVirus]

LOL

I meant Spring the season, But your answers were great!

[Sstavix]

LOL

I meant Spring the season, But your answers were great!

Thank you! ... did you have a question?

Spring is probably my least favorite season. It means my favorite season is over (boooo!) and the grass starts growing. It's mud season. I don't like mud. It's dirty.

[ZappierVirus]

Yeah. A natural valley separates our neighbor's backyards, and the valley's low spot is right behind our backyard. Naturally, all the water from 8 backyards flows right into the gap between our fence and our neighbors fence. Because our neighbors willow trees drop so many branches behind out fence, nothing can grow there, so the result is mud. Mud mud and more mud (and mosquitoes). It dose not help that some pipe back there spews out water every once and a while.
So, Yeah....

Anyway, Favorite Month?

[Sstavix]

Yeah. A natural valley separates our neighbor's backyards, and the valley's low spot is right behind our backyard. Naturally, all the water from 8 backyards flows right into the gap between our fence and our neighbors fence. Because our neighbors willow trees drop so many branches behind out fence, nothing can grow there, so the result is mud. Mud mud and more mud (and mosquitoes). It dose not help that some pipe back there spews out water every once and a while.

Your pipe reminds me of a story I read several years ago about a Washington business. The business owner had wondered about the water pressure, so he had some people check out his property. Turns out, he had a broken pipe in a back corner of his land. And now that the city was aware of it, they told him that he had to fix it or else he would face a fine for wasting water. No problem, he figured, and dispatched a crew to get it resolved.

But wait! People from the Department of Ecology stopped him. The leak had been going for so long that they had declared the area a natural wetland. If he did any digging, it would disrupt the fragile ecosystem there... and he would be facing a fine.

So if he repaired the pipe, he'd have to pay a fine. If he didn't repair the pipe, he'd have to pay a fine.

... just one of many reasons I live in Idaho!

Anyway, Favorite Month?

I'm thinking November. Not only does it have Thanksgiving, but it also is the beginning of "birthday season" for my family. My second daughter and I were both born in November, and my other two kids were born in January. My wife was born in July... she's the odd one.

[JesusIsLord713]

Oh wow Zap, I never knew your backyard was that intense. That must not sound cool.

Normally when a huge rain comes in our backyard is basically a huge puddle. If the rain continues after that the backyard eventually turns into a very basic line of water, like a river. I think this is because half our yard goes up very slightly, so the water can't really stay up there at certain places.

Evergreen trees or the trees that lose their leaves in the fall?

[ZappierVirus]

Yeah, it is like having a pond in the backyard, especially after it rains.

Cows or Pigs?

[Sstavix]

Evergreen trees or the trees that lose their leaves in the fall?

Evergreen trees are extremely abundant in the Pacific Northwest. Pine, spruce, fir... you name it, it probably grows around here somewhere. It's also why winters tend to be so pretty in this region.

However, conifers don't offer much in the way of edible fruit production. For apples, pears or plums, you need to go to trees that shed their leaves every year.

So I could go either way. Evergreens for the beauty, deciduous for the tasty fruit.

Cows or Pigs?

They are both smelly, noisy animals. However, only one produces bacon. So I'll go for pigs.

[ZappierVirus]

Sheep or Chickens?

[Chozon1]

Spoiler:

What do you mean? Character-driven stories tend to be the best ones out there. Much better than just having your characters go about their business, waiting for something to happen.

And yes, I've read some of those. Short stories that were so mundane, with uninteresting characters, that you're left feeling unsatisfied with the ending. There was no point to the story, so what was even the point in reading it?

Now mind you, sometimes this can be done very, very well. Consider this:

Sally woke up when the alarm went off. She stretched, got out of bed, and got dressed. She went to the kitchen and poured herself a bowl of cereal. She ate slowly, not really tasting the food. It was just automatic, her mind elsewhere. She took the bowl to the sink once she was done.

She went back to the bedroom and made the queen-sized bed. She gathered up her dirty laundry and took it to the laundry room. After a moment's hesitation, she decided to go ahead and wash her clothes. With the washing machine churning in the background, she wandered around the apartment, dusting.

She returned to the kitchen and washed the dishes from last night, along with her bowl and spoon. She went to the front door and brought in the mail (more bills and junk mail she had no intention of reading) and the newspaper. She moved the clothes from the washing machine to the dryer, careful to take out the pink shirt that he liked. She didn't want it to shrink. She hung it up, still damp, in the closet.

She mopped the kitchen floor. She opened the newspaper and flipped to the classifieds section. There were several jobs listed, but after a few minutes, she realized she wasn't actually reading anything. She folded the newspaper up. She looked at the phone and considered calling her sister. She stopped herself with her hand halfway towards the receiver. Not yet.

She tidied up the living room. She moved the armchair to a different spot. She moved it back.

She looked up and saw that it was growing dark. The clock said 7:30 p.m. Sally didn't know where the time had gone. She hadn't even eaten lunch. She looked in the refrigerator and pulled out some leftover spaghetti. She warmed it in the microwave. She ate it in the living room while watching some brainless sitcom that failed to bring a smile to her face. She put the bowl in the sink and opened the newspaper. She used a red pen to circle a couple interesting prospects. She'd call them tomorrow.

Nine o'clock. Time for bed. She returned to the bedroom, got into her nightgown, and got into bed. She looked at the picture standing on the nightstand next to her. A man in a red jacket, smiling as he displayed a large fish. She smiled, for the first time in several days.

It had been three weeks since his death, and the first day that she hadn't cried at the memory of him. It had been a good day.

No, though that was very good. ^_^ I mean more...I know where I want a story to go, and I know how it starts. But I don't know how to get from point B to point C. So I write my characters through A and up to B, then have to basically set them loose until they bring me to point C, where I know where to go from there. XD

You can never eat to many Greek meatballs?

[Sstavix]

No, though that was very good. ^_^

Thank you! And even though I knew how I wanted the story to end, it still brought a tear to my eye as I wrote the last sentence. I may have to work on revising that story and seeing if there's a contest I can submit it to.

I mean more...I know where I want a story to go, and I know how it starts. But I don't know how to get from point B to point C. So I write my characters through A and up to B, then have to basically set them loose until they bring me to point C, where I know where to go from there. XD

That approach can work. Set the scene, and write it how you see it. Then keep asking the question "And then what?" What does your character or characters do as a response to that? And then how to they respond to that response? And then what do they do? Keep going until you reach Point C. You can always clean it up and edit it later. (In fact, the last novel I worked on I had a character that was introduced late in the work. But he seems to fit so well that, as I rewrite, I've made notes to add him in earlier. Make him a bigger character than simply a boyfriend for one of the other minor characters. Now I just need to find the time to write... )

You can never eat to many Greek meatballs?

What's a Greek meatball, and how is it different from Swedish or Italian?

Sheep or Chickens?

Meatballs?