Strange people.

We all know at least one; a person who will more often than not do things that are very out of the ordinary. Sometimes you get whole families of them, who do the same strange things (sometimes referred to as 'cults') or who do lots of different strange things (sometimes referred to as 'inbred'). So I know you, The Reader, will know the sort of person I am speaking of.

This post began while I was out with Rebel and Gamegirl - Gamegirl, like Rebel, is a housemate of mine currently. We were out for a meal at a rather fantastic all you can eat buffet and Gamegirl mentioned she couldn't access my new blog posts because I hadn't put the link up on facebook. I told there weren't many new posts, as the very few people who read this will be able to corroborate, but she insisted and so the link is now back in public domain. She also said I should write new posts to increase their number. Fancy that, effort equals productivity.

Any how, since it's coming up to deadline time again I need to procrastinate for no good reason and this blog does provide me with quite the opportunity. What could I write my new posts on though? My recent misadventures involving the M25? No, as a Greater London local I have dealt with the pain, anguish and hardship of the M25 for long enough that it doesn't rile me suitably to require a rant or blog post. My love life? While that may be interesting for some of you Readers, I've already said that I'm not going to go into that kind of thing here - "HAHA!" the Reader cries, "It's actually because you don't have one, isn't that right you sad little Chadrock?" Currently, that statement is closer to being false than true actually. I just don't want to publish it online. Could I write about the wonders of the all-you-can-eat Chinese Buffet I went to? Well, here goes:

It's a buffet. Of Chinese food. And you can have as much as you want for fourteen British Sterling/$20 equivalent. The food is good and service is pleasingly fast. Those are the wonders. Share, indulge and enjoy.

Not so interesting as a blogpost, right? So I was still kind of flailing around cognitively for an idea this morning when my course friend BluesBoy revealed he had to print an essay off after class and hand it in. Not amazing in itself, the video he showed me while it was printing was.

Have you ever heard of Live Action Role Playing (L.A.R.Ping), Reader? If not, go abuse youtube for a while and have a look around for it. You'll find something. If you're too lazy to navigate away from my page, then I shall provide a brief explanation: grown men and women go out into the woodland or some other secluded area away from regular society and dress up as fantasy characters from games such as World of Warcraft and re-enact battles from the history of that game or from the game itself. Like when you were eight years old and played Cowboys & Indians with your friends, only slightly more organized and there's a set of rules. No, I don't know them. No, I don't LARP. I do, however, find the idea at the same time comforting and hilarious. All shall be explained later.

First, I finally reach the point of my new post; Live Avatar Role Playing. Yes, like from the film. With the blue people/Na'vi. The people of Hometree, Wisconsin have set up their own fantastic (nb; of fantasy) reserve that they attempt to model on Pandora. This was the video on youtube that BluesBoy showed me. This takes LARPing to a whole new level; WoW has a huge player base, or 'population', and so I find it more understandable that people would want to LARP from it's history and literature. Avatar may have a big following and high success rate but it's not in the same league as WoW or most cyberpunk cults. Live Avatar Role Playing takes my feelings of comfort and hilarity to a whole new level, which I will explain now.

Comfort: If this...activity makes them happy, then fine. Great. I'm glad for them. If painting yourself blue and running around sparse woodland and speaking in invented languages, go for it. Just like the normal(?) LARPers, I shouldn't come down harshly on these people. They're not hurting me so why should I worry?

Hilarity: Really? I mean, really? Grown adults who are meant to be mature and sensible do this kind of thing for entertainment? Thinking about it, it's not quite as bad as grown men hiding in trees and yelling "Lghtning Bolt!" while throwing representative twigs, but it's close. "This is how I feel comfortable, why should I be ashamed? It's like it's my real skin." Yeah, right. Which is why you paint it on.

BluesBoy and his housemate Firehead have actually turned up during the writing of this blog. There was a brief discussion about the video during Guitar Hero, along the lines of, 'It can't be real, they're just actors. Their speeches were too good and there weren't any mistakes,' but while that could be true if these people are confident enough I don't think they'd stutter or have problems talking about it on camera.

Decide for yourself; youtube Live Avatar Role Playing and see the strangeness for yourself. Whatever you decide, I'm leaving it well enough alone. I have to go shopping for stuff to cause chaos with in my last class ever. Wish me luck.



(Note: Their archery is terrible and the joining ritual just doesn't translate well into role play. Do not try this at home.)