Fluffcuddle on the Go

At work today, I had to step outside because the heat in our room was way too high. You might say it was…searing. YEEEEEEAAAAAH!

Here is the final result of one-month’s face-fuzz fabrication. Contrary to my initial concerns, the maintenance throughout Movember wasn’t that hard and the result is particularly sharp. Sharper indeed than Matthew’s “biker ‘stache,” which makes him look about as tough as a full-grown man on a child’s tricycle. This picture also came together well. I believe I shall use it as the cover of my next album: Fluff, Songs to Cuddle By.

I play bugle. I play it provacatively.

It’s taking some time, but I’m adjusting to human sports. Here at the ArenaNet office, they play a lot of ping pong. The equipment is very small and, during most games, very little is destroyed. Despite these oddities, I’m getting better. In this photo, I’m about to annihilate* Ben.

* Not literally annihilate him. See my earlier comment about destruction.

Matthew introduced me to the human festival of Movember. Usually, I have so many other places to groom that bothering with the hair on my face seems like too much effort. But I take local customs seriously on account of my diplomatic role. When in a largely hairless country, do as the largely hairless do.

Here I am at two weeks’ lip fuzz. I took the picture next to some roses in order to offset the overpowering masculinity.

It’s nice to have a professional photo of my costume for posterity. Contrary to appearances, I put a lot of work into that. Each one of the hairs in that wig was pulled from a dolyak…or Matthew while he was sleeping.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/arenanet/8149138062/in/set-72157631899201212

I couldn’t really sleep last night. Halloween is my favorite holiday, and I’m so glad that both our worlds have it. I put on my costume first thing this morning and went to wake up Matthew. He screamed, which is odd because I specifically decided not to go with a horror costume this year. It’s possible he thought I was dressed up as something else, which has me worried for my chances in the costume contest at work. What else should I be wearing to make it obvious that I’m Logan Thackeray: oversized armor, heart boxers, a My Chemcial Romance T-shirt, mascara? What am I missing?

After performing so well at the Guild Wars 2 Halloween content earlier in the day, I acquiesced to Matthew and Miranda’s request to play board games once we were all settled in. Normally, I shy away from games like 7 Wonders in favor of…sharpening my swords and dismembering practice dummies. This isn’t to say that a game must be violent to hold my attention, but I’ve always been more for tearing down than building up.

Still, a charr soldier can face any challenge and overcome any adversary on any battlefield. That’s what I told myself before I got my ass handed to me. Next time, I’ll build up more resources . Tonight, I will cut more limbs off the dummy.

The Mad King’s clocktower was noticeably difficult as far as jumping puzzles go. I was on the verge of dizziness a number of times. Also, I fell quite a bit. I know it’s necessary for balance reasons that all races have the same jump height and distance in the game, but this is not a reflection of reality. At best, an athletic asura can jump maybe two or three feet, while an average charr can jump five or six asura.

(My thanks to Caleb, for the jumping puzzle assistance.)

I agreed to watch the presidential debates with Matthew and Miranda tonight, in exchange for which I got control of the laptop (so I was ready to get the Guild Wars 2 Halloween update when it went live). I couldn’t decide which was worse, waiting for the patch or the endless talking. You people really watched three of these?

In charr politics, there is much less debating. If, say, someone wanted to try to rise to Khan-Ur, they would declare their lineage and qualifications: the huge number of grawl they’d killed, for example, but certainly not the number of vetoes they’d cast. Their rival would do the same, and then one would cut the other’s head off.

It’s an expeditious process that preserves one’s energy for the real task of uniting the charr, something very few have proven capable of. In this, I suppose, we are more alike than different.

Anyway, the evening was not a total loss. I enjoyed hearing about your people’s love for horses and bayonets. And of course the Halloween patch eventually arrived. So, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to ride a broomstick through Lion’s Arch.

It’s not that I think bats are a bad addition to the office, it’s just that they’re hard to catch and have so little meat on their bones. Honestly, I was getting used to the convenience of the snack dispensers.

Having seen Halloween celebrations at the ArenaNet offices before, I’m always eager for things to get into full swing. This carved gourd is the first sign. It won’t be long before nerds-in-costumes outnumber nerds-in-hoodies.

It’s not cruel of me to say, since I’ll be one of the former. Wait till you see what I dress up as!

Sometimes, when I’m working late, I like to come out to the balcony and appreciate the Washington sunsets. They can be quite breathtaking, and it’s a relaxing break from long periods of work. It’s also nice to use the balcony for something positive. Most days, I bring coworkers out here when they fail to replicate some aspect of charr life, and I threaten them with a five-story fall.

While the wonderful NCsoft people repacked all the event materials, I moved to the kitchen for a coffee. Human coffee is a lot like charr coffee, except with more ingredients, more steps, and more of a false sense of accomplishment when it’s ready. There’s an old, sing-song charr poem that accurately describes our simple process.

Need some coffee when you wake?
Brown stuff, wet stuff, fire drake.

This is not to say I dislike human coffee rituals. On the contrary, with all the sugar and mixing and careful heating, it’s like…making liquid cake. And just like cake, if you cook it yourself, you get to lick the tools when your done. Just be careful; that steam pipe is hot.