Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in Jiituomas' LiveJournal:

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Wednesday, May 14th, 2008
5:59 pm	Pyrrhic Victory. Also received acceptance on another paper of mine today. Unfortunately the revisions it requires are of the kind that feels very alien to me, and the instructions where to edit mutually exclusive. I will most likely kill my darling and waste loads of research I've done in order to increase readability to the required level. Tomorrow will tell. Current Music: Dystopia - The Second Dawn (Comment on this)
10:34 am	Paperworks. On Thursday, May 29th, Andreas will be presenting our forthcoming paper at a conference in Aarhus, Denmark: Andreas Lieberoth & J. Tuomas Harviainen: Shaping Information Environments in Play and Ritual: Comparing Evidence from Gaming and Religions in a Cross-disciplinary Perspective. More about the paper itself later. I must say, though, that it feels damn good to work with a colleague with whom one can create something much more than the sum of its parts. And using my former discipline and my new one openly together (as opposed to just borrowing methods from theology to LIS and/or game studies, like I usually do) is also really enjoyable. Current Music: Kammarheit - The Starwheel (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Saturday, May 10th, 2008
8:17 pm	Stalker: Tieteisroolipeli - A Review The last few days, outside of work and my son's ninth birthday's festivities, have been spent concentrating on the Finnish Stalker tabletop rpg (by Ville "Burger" Vuorela), and associated activities (reading the original novella again, watching Tarkovsky's version and listening to Russian industrial). Here, finally, is my review of the game:( Read more... ) Current Music: Eduard Artemyev - Solaris, The Mirror, Stalker (6 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, May 2nd, 2008
4:09 pm	Books, Articles and Delays. Some random thoughts active at this moment: Finally got my hands on the Stalker rpg. I hope I'll have time to read it thoroughly this weekend. A review will be forthcoming next week, because it seems that the author is expecting me to write one. (In all honesty, a Finnish game written about one of my favorite books ever would get one, regardless of whether it's expected of me or not.) My two larps still haven't been added to the Game Bank. Apparently "two days" can be a very long time. (Actually, Gordon's just damn busy at the moment, I think. Can't blame him for spending his time on something actually important.) I am also extremely happy for the positive feedback two of my recent contributions have gotten. I was myself very pleased with Kaprow's Scions, so I am really happy that others have liked it too. It was a definite stilistical deviation from my normal style, and I've been therefore wary of its reception. I wasn't, however, at all pleased with the article I wrote on Rajakatse for Roolipelaaja magazine ("something honest that's this praising must look dishonest to other people"), but reader feedback - both direct and indirect - has mostly been very positive. So I feel rather happy with those. A third text is causing me a bit of a headache at the moment, but more on that at the appropriate time. Current Music: Halo Manash - Language of Red Goats (4 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, April 18th, 2008
12:01 pm	Proggress and not. The good: - Sent a copy of Prayers to Aram yesterday, for an upcoming re-run in Israel. - Got a good look at Tobias' new scenario, GR, which is a very strong work, and a very unpleasant one, and managed to send him some feedback on it without disrupting my work schedule. - Have made great progress with the paper I am writing with Andreas. The big problem is that we've yet no idea if the abstract got accepted or not. Nevertheless, I love writing it - it's got the same charm for me as Kaprow's Scions did, in the sense of breaking my normal style of academic writing. - There's now a mugshot of me among the rank of the Jeeps. Still am very much moved by it all. The bad: - Gareth still hasn't received the copy of Playground Worlds I sent to him almost two weeks ago. After having paid nearly 7 euros for the postage, I am very disappointed with the mail service. And starting to worry a bit, especially since Thomas (in Switzerland) got his in just three days. And I mailed them both at the same time. - Haven't made as much progress with the paper I am writing with Andreas as I'd hoped, despite it being great. There's still plenty of time - today and later - so I am not too worried. Current Music: La Nausée - Artism (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, April 14th, 2008
5:41 pm	Playground Worlds – a subjective review Despite being involved with Playground Worlds myself, as an author and as one of the proofreaders, I feel like commenting on the book. This isn’t an actual review, jus a set of opinions. Montola, Markus & Stenros, Jaakko (eds): Playground Worlds. Creating and Evaluating Experiences of Role-Playing Games. Solmukohta, 2008.( Read more... ) Current Music: Henrik Summanen - Mellan Himmel Och Hav OST (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, April 11th, 2008
2:27 pm	Quick notes. A hectic day at work, due to catching up after attending a research group meeting at my department (which I think went really well, and helped me clarify my thesis work again). Thomas just informed me that he's received the copy of Playground Worlds I sent him. I am very happy the mail service was so fast. I hope the other recipient gets his copy soon, too. Meanwhile, there's been loads of post-Solmukohta things to read, a sex & larp ddiscussion on liveforum.dk I'd really love to attend if I had the time (read: set a few things straight...), and some talk about the recent French rpg master's thesis on a couple of other fora. So too much to read, and thus impossible to get anything special beyond basic work tasks done. Nevertheless, some highly subjective comments on Playground Worlds should appear here on Monday. Current Music: Bearly Queen - The Infamous Commercial Suicide Album (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Tuesday, April 8th, 2008
12:49 am	A few more sentimental musings on Solmukohta There is something I have been thinking about ever since I gave Jonas a farewell hug just before leaving the event. It's the fact that despite that we had the chance to exchange about three sentences (max) during Solmukohta itself, it felt like having met a dear friend again, one I wouldn't be seeing for a full year. And that's what the Nodal Point - interlude-year feeling or not - has become for me. It's all about the human contact. Not just who you know or who appreciates or disregards your work, or bickers - or sleeps - with whom. The actual contact with people who understand what it's all about. It's about the semi-random opportunities to meet friends and colleagues. It's about the chance to give a spontaneous extra thanks to Anna for a wonderful Nice Evening because she happens to end up in the seat next to you at the gala dinner. About a German friend grabbing you up in a sudden hug from behind while you're having a heated larp theory discussion with someone else, oblivious to the world around you. About people honestly saying they absolutely loved your game, but following that immediately suggesting "a few improvements", really solid ones, because they too have run larps for many years. About sharing the joy of someone who's been given a sign of respect for her incredible work, without a bit of envy. About dramatically kissing the hand of the person responsible for the increasing spread of experimental larp in Europe, regardless of not having an audience, as a sign of fun, friendship and appreciation at the same time. About knowing that despite all the occasional misgivings, all the little disagreements, all the social drama and soap opera, this is your scene. The people you want to return to, with not just your great successes in larp, but also with your magnificent failures. About knowing that if you didn't have a chance to say goodbye to a friend from Israel, or Norway, or just some part of Finland you normally won't visit, on the last day, you'll see him or her next year, and will simply have a year's worth of larp experiences - good and bad - to add to the discussion. If you disagree, write a dozen larps, attend a couple more Nodal Points, and I'll wager you'll come around to my point of view in a few years. Current Music: Ulf Söderberg - Nattljus (9 Comments |Comment on this)
Sunday, April 6th, 2008
8:32 pm	That thing called Solmukohta. I am currently too tired and too down with the flue to write a proper report, but a few words are in order. I did not attend as many program points as I should, simply because there just were too many friends to talk to. Time went by really fast. My lecture on SM roleplay and larps was short and dry, but I spiced it up with a shibari demonstration (a big thanks goes to my lovely Norwegian assistant. Also, the by-popular-demand extra run of Prayers on Sunday morning was intriguing: this time the murder mystery -like aspect took a very prominent place. The venue was good, I was satisfied (and occasionally more) with the food, and loved meeting a hundred or so friends, from really close ones to acquaintances. On Saturday, I was declared a Jeep member (as was also one very talented Swedish larp organizer), which for me is a really high honor. And I also agreed to take part in a couple of upcoming projects, from writing guidance to an inter-Nordic experimental larp. (And butchered a Robbie Williams song I love in vampire karaoke...) In some sense, this was an "interlude" Nodal Point for me, given that I was there mostly for the friends and did not experience any big revelations or life-changing situations. Nevertheless, I had a wonderful time. A big thanks to everyone involved, organizer or guest. More - pictures, book review, commentary... - later. Now, recuperation and loads of flue medicine. I feel awful due to the flue, but keep smiling and feeling happy due to Solmukohta. Current Music: Diesmal Nicht! - Schnell, schnell! (6 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, April 4th, 2008
10:41 am	FreeFall and AWiF Arrived Wednesday evening to join A Week in Finland. It was very nice meeting loads of old friends, making new ones, and listening to Kyöpeli (from whom I'd love to hear a performance in some other environment than a noisy bar as well). I was too tired to join the barhopping tour, so I went to my parents' place early, and spent the evening reading Playground Worlds, the Solmukohta 2008 book. On Thursday, I spent two hours at my old department, gathering material on hardline docetism for a forthcoming article project of mine (The Divine Player). Was very successfull. The FreeFall run of Prayers went well, too, though this time the time defintely ran out. But I had fun observing it, as had Santtu, and the players seemed to enjoy it a lot.So alol good. A few clarifications that I need to make came up during the debriefing, so I will submit a new version of the game to its earlier recipients on Monday. About a dozen of us went dining in Lappi, a restaurant I'd probably never visit on my own. The food was pricey (no surprise), but also damn good. After that, I went to help and clean up the location where we'd played, and then it was off to the Countdown Party. Stayed there till the end, bought the new "Panclou" (clever...) and chatted with friends. Also had one significant discussion with a friend that hopefully cleared some air for both of us (and not just for myself). Leaving to Solmukohta in a few hours. Before that, reading some more of PW. Current Music: Musti Laiton - Megacity Chillout (Comment on this)
Wednesday, April 2nd, 2008
10:24 am	Off to FFF and Solmukohta Heading to Helsinki for the events this afternoon. Mail brought me yesterday one more SM-study book, so I have something to read on the train. I am rather nervous about the Prayers run at FreeFall tomorrow - I'm not used to having my larps advertised in the country's leading newspaper. I am really looking forward to Solmukohta. After a day being ill, I had the pleasure of sleeping on my new futon mattress which arrived yesterday evening. I am now feeling incredibly well rested and full of energy. And I am entertained by the amount of feedback a book review of mine has generated, so I can feel sufficiently distracted from real life as well. Today, Kyöpeli's concert, FreeFall and AWIF. In two days, Solmukohta. Current Music: Current 93 - Calling for Vanished Faces (Comment on this)
Friday, March 28th, 2008
12:24 pm	Sins and Theses. I finished and submitted the publication version of Bratislava this morning. I'm still amazed by both how solid a work it was and how disgusting stuff I've actually written. It disturbs me quite a lot. Meanwhile, Thomas kindly sent me a couple of days ago a link to a French master's thesis (in French) on role-playing, Le jeu de rôle, mode d'expression littéraire? by Coralie David. The author cites several papers from As Larp grows Up, Beyond Role and Play and Role, Play, Art. Very nice. Too bad my French isn't better. Current Music: Halthan - Subliminal Kill (Comment on this)
Wednesday, March 26th, 2008
9:34 pm	A Book, Prayers and Sins. The long overdue Finnish larp organizer's handbook, Larpinjärjestäjän käsikirja, is finally out. My own article is just two pages long, due to the heavy layout (which, along with the pictures and the cover, I was really disappointed with), but I'm pleased with it. The book itself looked decent enough at first glance. Some of the articles (like Dare's guide for urban larps) are really good, others have good content but seem rather pretentious in style (Reivo's work, in particular, but that's always been his writing style). I really admire the effort put into writing most of the texts, regardless of their size. Meanwhile, I have granted permission to include not only Prayers, but also (with Nina's agreement) the full version of Bratislava to the LARPA Game bank. So in a few days (after Solmukohta, more likely) both scripts can be freely downloaded there. Bratislava will contain loads of disclaimers, though, as to call the content matter controversial would be a definite understatement. Current Music: Roxette - Crash! Boom! Bang! (Comment on this)
Wednesday, March 19th, 2008
12:56 pm	Prayers Re-visited. I completed the translated-with-instructions version of Prayers today, and sent it to a few people who may find it interesting. The next run is on the Thursday before Solmukohta, as a part of FreeFall. Now I'll turn my attention on translating some more of Sielun/Messu for my German friends, a task I should have completed a year ago. Translating it is easy, it's writing good running instructions for it that's hard. Current Music: Panic on the Titanic - Gold, Clouds, Desire (Comment on this)
Tuesday, March 18th, 2008
12:31 pm	Books, cont. The mail finally delivered my copy of Sadomasochism: Powerful Pleasures. This means that in a few days, I can finish writing my Solmukohta presentation. The book seems to contain some data on S/M roleplay, too, and that means it'll be useful for me also beyond the seconadry masters' and personal interest. EDIT: After a quick but proper skimming, I can say that it indeed does have several articles with such data included, from descriptive to statistics. This book is definitely going to be in my PhD work's bibliography. It also means my friends won't be able to borrow it from me for quite some time. Current Music: Deutsch Nepal - Dystopian Partycollection (Comment on this)
Thursday, March 13th, 2008
8:50 pm	Small Snake Steps. Two small Serpentine things worth mentioning. One: There's apparently been (going to be) a new British run of Serpent today. Waiting for feedback - especially since there may be some people known as "highly critical" among the players. Two: The American edition of Serpent is now available online as a part of LARPA Gamebank. Current Music: Rotting Christ - Kronos (Comment on this)
Monday, March 10th, 2008
4:35 pm	Reading, and Further Reading. Finished Evans' History yesterday. It proved to actually contain significant points of interest that I will be able to use in the paper I'm doing with Andreas. I'm now moving on to a book I found through it, Andy Letcher's doctoral dissertation Role of the Bard (2001), which the author was kind enough to provide as a file to me. Letcher's text has a segment on "temporary tribal zones", an extension of his based on Hakim Bey's TAZs, which seems highly useful for my research on larps, S/M scenes and implemented liminality. So I expect to be making heavy use of that material. More on the concept later, when I've had time to analyze it all through. Current Music: Ovro - Gegendurchgangenzeit (Comment on this)
Friday, March 7th, 2008
1:04 pm	Writing again. Today, after first completing a book review, I started serious work on the article Andreas and I are preparing for an upcoming conference. It's only peripherally connected to larps studies (but nevertheless is), and deals more with information and ritual. But moe on that later. After all the breaks due to having to organize space at work, write reviews, etc. (none of which was at all bad), I must say that getting back to academic writing in a serious manner feels damn good. It is, after all, my primary artistic means of self-expression, as crazy as that may sound. Current Music: Current 93 - Thunder Perfect Mind (Comment on this)
Thursday, March 6th, 2008
9:02 pm	Serpents, debated. Apparently Thomas and Eric are now discussing the two latest runs of Serpent on rpg.net. While of course flattered by the interest, I must say that this sort of insight into the running of any larp (mine or not) is extremely intriguing. I'll try my best to stay out of the conversation. Meanwhile, I've heard that one person asked for the game script, after reading an actual play report, and then commented on how much "necessary" stuff was missing from it and why it was thus unusable. Intriguing, that, too. Current Music: Johann Sebastian Bach - Brandenburg Concertos Nos. 1 - 6 (5 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, March 5th, 2008
8:36 am	Mourning, and progress. In addition to the death of Gygax - without whose creation my life and career would have been very different - a couple of other things took place: I managed to repair my home computer's security component without having to re-install the OS. This is really important for me, because I can now access non-unix email again at home (and, "less" importantly, use Facebook, Messenger and watch Youtube - some plugins wouldn't install without it.) A summary of the Intercon H run of Serpent is now available online. I am extremely glad that not only did Eric and Thomas volunteer to do the Feb 29th runs in the first place, but also gave me very useful data on how they went. EDIT: And here's a link to the Lausanne run's report (in French), lifted from racaille's comment below for the sake of reader convenience. Current Music: Lustmord - Metavoid (8 Comments |Comment on this)