My life is currently shitty. Here's how I know:

[Critters2]

I'm reading fantasy literature (Star Wars Expanded Universe stuff--mock away!), and I cried at a concert tonight when this African children's choir sang "Danny Boy". I don't usually cry at concerts. And I read fantasy lit when I need to escape.

How's by you?

[Symarip]

1. I'm still at work - which sucks.

I'd have no one to go home to even if I weren't working - which sucks even more.

I moved to Virginia from California to experiece the last two items... You can see where I'm going with this.

[Critters2]

2. I actually work extra hours, so I don't have to go home to no one.

The beagle does not appreciate this.

And I moved from Iowa to Illinois to experience these things. Yes, where I live is worse than Iowa. Make of that what you will.

[Symarip]

3. Here's to a late night

I'll be here until tomorrow, I'm certain.

[Critters2]

4. That does suck. You're winning in the shitty life competition.

Congrats! Most impressive!

[ThomCat]

5. My life is a bit of a challenge right now.

Pain that I thought was easing up is kind of out of control.

Exhaustion is almost taking over my life.

My finances are stretched about as far as they'll go.

I have to somehow move my entire bedroom into my living room and live out there for a week while the flooded carpet in my room is ripped up and replaced. No easy feat for me.

But we all hang on and deal with stuff somehow, so I'll keep hanging on too.

Whatever your challenges are right now, I hope you're hanging on, and I hope things improve for you soon.

[Critters2]

8. Mostly, I'm just REALLY REALLY lonely. Serving a congregation and town that don't welcome newcomers

Not even their pastor. Not even after 3 1/2 years.

Yeah, not what you have to deal with, I'll be the first to admit. But on the shitty scale, imo.

[ThomCat]

9. It's not about comparisons.

I have my challenges, and you have yours, and they're both just as serious and important. I'm very sorry that you're lonely. I wish some of us were nearby.

I would never belong to a congregation, but I might sit in on a couple of services occasionally to see what you're up to. And that would give me a chance to hang out with you afterward. How awesome would that be?

The think about being a newcomer is to have other people to be a newcomer with.

[Critters2]

19. That would be awesome. Totally awesome. nt

[rebel with a cause]

27. What part of Illinois are you in?

If it is a small town, those are hard to get people to accept you sometimes. In the seventies I moved up state into this one town and could not even get people to speak to me. I didn't stay there too long. German towns are the worst around here for that, and I am not saying anything bad about the Germans. I am now a somewhat recluse so it does not bother me if anyone speaks to me here or not.

[Nevernose]

6. Thanks for calling it fantasy literature

It's always irked me when people call Star Wars science fiction. Star Wars is about as science-fictiony as the Rig Veda or the Lord of the Rings. Which one are you reading? It's been a few years since I read any, though I did read the Mace Windu book not too long ago. Very good as far as SW:EU novels go, a lot of technical backstory, like the specifics of his fighting style. They've stopped doing that as much, especially since there's no more West End Games source material.

[Critters2]

7. I'm reading _Darth Bane: Path of Destruction_ about a Sith Lord

who lived about 1000 yrs before the Battle of Yavin. Give or take.

[DarkTirade]

11. That's the first one, right?

I read the first one, haven't found a copy of the second yet.

[Critters2]

13. Yep. I'll probably finish it by the end of the week (if I get off the fuckin' puter!).

Then I'll go get the second.

Did you like the first one?

[DarkTirade]

20. I wouldn't put it in the top Star Wars books list, but it wasn't the Black Fleet Crisis either.

Although the geek in my was slightly annoyed by the glaring inconsistancies dealing with cortosis... But that was started with the Knights of the Old Republic game, and the book is really a spinoff of that project.

... yeah, I'm a geek.

[Critters2]

21. What would you put in the top?

I just got a craving after watching all the movies, so went hunting online. I found a chronological list of the books, then to the library for the first one listed. Then just workin' my way down the list. What would you recommend?

[DarkTirade]

22. Depends what you're looking for.

If you want more galaxy-spanning conflict, the big series like the Admiral Thrawn ones (both the original trilogy, or the two that are set ten years later. All five are by Timothy Zahn. And he wrote two spinoffs which I recommend reading in published order, not chronological order. Survivor's Quest and Outbound Flight. Neither are necessary, but they do give some extra background on things.) or the Jedi Academy trilogy (I'm not a big fan of Kevin J. Anderson's Star Wars stuff, just a matter of personal taste, but it still tends to float towards the top of the pile quality-wise.) are pretty decent.

If you want something a little more human dealing with the people who aren't princesses and the last of the jedi and all that crap, then I'd recommend the X-Wing series. The ones by Stackpole are a bit more serious, while the ones by Allston are are a bit funnier. Stackpole also wrote a continuing story of the main character from the first four X-Wing books, I, Jedi, and it overlaps both time and plot-wise with the Jedi Academy trilogy. In fact, to save some time you could probably skip over the Academy trilogy. Although the events do link a bit back to the earlier Republic time period, dealing with the temples on Yavin and whatnot. But most of the background with Exar Kun and the jedi of that era was covered in a comic series, not in novel form. Only comic book I ever owned for a long time was from that series.

The really crappy ones to avoid are the Black Fleet Crisis trilogy (even I couldn't slog through those), and the Bounty Hunter trilogy. (Once again, even I, devoted Star Wars geek, couldn't slog through it.)

I didn't particularly like Children of the Jedi, Darksaber and Planet of Twilight. The Crystal Star wasn't that great either. The Corellian Trilogy was interesting, but not the best IMO. For interesting outside of the main storylines stuff, The Courtship of Princess Leia was interesting(takes place right after the X-Wing book Solo Command, I believe), as was the original Han Solo trilogy (not the newer one. The newer one wasn't that great.).

[Critters2]

24. I was looking at the Jedi Academy trilogy at the library yesterday.

The X-wing series sounds interesting. Thanks!

[DarkTirade]

26. Yeah, that one's not my personal favorate, but I'll still reread it from time to time.

One of Kevin J. Anderson's better traits seems to be the ability to work a storyline that moves around enough to stay interesting, but without getting over-complicated at the same time. Whereas Zahn and Stackpole tend to just get really messy-complicated sometimes.

Which is probably why the few times they've collaborated it's been interesting as hell.

[DarkTirade]

10. I'm in the middle of rereading some Asimov myself

and I got misty-eyed during at least two scenes when I saw the new Batman the other day.

[Critters2]

14. Wow. Sounds like things suck for you.

Sorry!

[DarkTirade]

18. Nah, that's actually pretty normal for me.

Although I should lay off the Asimov... I had a nifty story idea that I started working on recently that involves robots, and I don't wanna be too heavily influenced by his stuff.

[rebel with a cause]

28. You sound like my son.

Honestly, over the years I have heard about almost every one of the Star Wars books he read. But that ended some time ago when he moved out and started working long hours. He is too busy now to be talking to me very much. He is also creative.

Both of my kids are geeks. I raised 'em that way.

[DarkTirade]

33. I neglected the Star Wars books for a while

mostly because when I went off to college I couldn't afford 'em. I only just recently got around to reading the New Jedi Order series.

[rebel with a cause]

36. I just talked to my son

and he stopped reading the Star Wars books about in the middle of the New Jedi Order because he got busy (probably at work). He liked the Academy Trilogy story line, I remember when he told me about those. He may still have all those books, I don't know. We have enough books between the three of us to open a library, but most of them are now put away in boxes. Some of them were given to the area Goodwill simply because we decided it was better to let someone else enjoy them. I don't think his books were among them though.

Fortunately, the line of work my son is in has allowed him to find fellow artsy geeks (male and female) who he can share some of his interest with. As a group, they have made multible trips to see The Dark Knight, but he has beat all the others because he took me to see it one night, and his father (we are divorced) to see it another, so he has now seen it four or five times.

[DarkTirade]

37. Yeah, I need to find more artsy geeky types.

[rebel with a cause]

38. he lives in a university town

and works for a newspaper, so that is why he has now been able to make all these friends. For a while there he had to wait for college friends to come back into town for visits.

[rebel with a cause]

39. I should have added that he is not happy with

where he lives or his job, but it does enable him to meet people with like interest.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

12. pretty sucky. nt

[Critters2]

15. Sorry, priyanka.

Your name still rocks, though!

[La Lioness Priyanka]

16. thanks. you do good work. which beats having a nice name

[Critters2]

17. Thanks! nt

[Lil Missy]

23. Time for you to visit Omaha. I'll cheer you up. Dinner and a few cocktails.

Maybe I could also round up OmahaBlueDog to join us.

[Critters2]

25. If only I could. No time for the necessary 6 to 7 hour drive there and back right now.

But I'll keep it in mind for the future. Or hop over when next I'm in Iowa. I have friends there--three Presbyterian pastors I took a class with in Des Moines. I'm still in touch with them.

[Fox Mulder]

29. I'm working at a Wal-Mart.

Nuff said.

[yellowdogintexas]

30. no job, therefore no structure in my life. Four nagging cats

daughter in AZ husband in Montana

I am spinning my wheels here folks.

Relatively speaking there are I am certain at least a dozen folks on DU who would be grateful for the level of shittiness in my life compared to what they are dealing with daily. So I apologize if mine seems trivial but it is what is bugging me at the present time.

So I just need to leave the PC and go cut the grass before the day realizes I am out there and heats itself up.

[TZ]

31. Shitty of course

I'm freaking exhausted as usual..Gave my self a painful shot of interferon this morning (I am learning that some places are painful and some are not..guessed wrong this morning). Spent yesterday battling nausea almost all day. No nausea today cause I haven't taken my chemo pill yet. I ran out of my script and they doctor re issued it but the grocery store won't get it in today which means instead of doing one pill in the morning and one in the evening I'll have to do one as soon as I get home and one at bed time. Oh joy!
I WISH lonliness was my biggest problem...

[Courtesy Flush]

32. Sucker!!!

You got caught up in Danny Boy! It's an age-old tear jerker song. I can't explain it, but there's something about Danny Boy that just opens the faucet.

Don't think you life sucks because of it. It's a natural reaction.

[blue cat]

34. My life is shitty somewhat

going through unrequited love sickness, yet have never looked hotter or felt better in my life. Today is a draw, or maybe better since today isn't over yet.

[easttexaslefty]

35. Trying not to dwell, but pretty damn shitty