Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Shar Tegral

People are becoming more accustomed to virtualizing their identities. Some for misbehavior but most because it is the requirement/standard of the virtual environment. Using real names is a big no-no so subsuming who you really are under the name of a virtual avatar is the way to go.

However many people don't realize how much the name they pick speaks about who they are or what they were experiencing at that time. Granted there is the common situation of inspiration #2244 as your inspirational spark struck someone else. Probably for completely different reasons but well there it is: You were not the first.

There is a small story behind my inspirational spark but that's really nowhere. But the gist of the name Shar Tegral is that it spells the words Large Trash. Almost backwards, Hsar Tegral didn't work in my mind so I swapped two letters. The joke lasted for 5 years, and that is an eternity in the Eve Online Universe, until I accidentally sent an email from my Shar_Tegral@ account to a family member. In one hot minute she replied, with utter disbelief, "Large Trash!!!"

That might explain something about me and my family. We are clever, swiftly clever, and unbelievably creative in many ways. I commonly joke poking fun at Marines (I was Army after all) but regardless of mistaken popular opinions the smartest & wisest man I know raised me: He is a Marine.

My siblings are truly his get as they are smart and generally of high moral fiber. Which is honestly the truth of every Marine I have ever known. Mistakes happen, yes, but a Marine always adhere to Simper Fi or beat themselves with guilt if, or when, they realize they missed that mark.

So, I started Eve Online when it was in Beta. Connected up with some good people and spent time in that environment. Some of those people failed, some aimed for discord and failure, some succeeded at that beyond belief. However whenever I logged into that game my name was a constant reminder of who I wanted to be: The opposite of large trash.

That being said, I never cut a dirty deal. Sometimes I found people making silly actions, the marketplace is anonymous till after the transaction is completed. Whenever I found someone made a gawd awful mistake (usually where their resources fell into my pocket) I'd contact them and ask, "Did you mean to do that?" If they didn't we'd work out a fair exchange and I'd send them back the difference.

That is just one aspect of my virtuosity.

I became huge in the manufacturing, research, financial, leadership environments. Also, unsung to many, I was also huge in the warfare aspects. After all, I know warfare. I was schedule for West Point at one spot of my military career and I did serve under arms for 18 months of fun in the sun in Southwest Asia.

I know challenge.

But one thing I learned about myself along the way was my inner-journalist. An opportunity opened up at Eve Guardian and I was given the chance to become a Reporter. The man who helped me, my mentor, was quick to point out word trash and verbally chided me until I produced what the situation required. I learned and I loved it.

Eventually Eve Guardian management had a scat and disbanded but I was not in that meeting. So, having nowhere else to go I re-branded it and opened Eve Guardian.Net not .Com. And ran that for several years while at the same time growing in stature and abilities in the other Eve Online aspects.

I started as a diamond in the rough. Those years chipped away at me until the cuts revealed the shining aspects contained within me. Now, granted this may seem like a bunch of ego wash but not only will I provide links so anyone interest can look around at my history but as an added joy I get to share the people contained within each of those moments again. Some to honor as they honored me, some to public disdain considering the disdainful manner in which they acted but mostly just to confirm that pre-Brain Injury I was hot stuff.

Closing this up, I am still hot stuff.

Yes, I am physically and mentally disabled.

No, I refuse to be crippled.

Letting Eve Online Know What Happened to me.

The gobs of posts I made in Eve Online.

My Old Guild/Corporation (Miss you guys!).

My old Combat Guild/Corporation.


My testimonial about that Combat Guild/Corporation.

PS: When I joined Ingress spaces weren't allowed in the name so I thought up a quick solution, SharQTegral. Shar Tegral as that is how my virtualized minds think and Q as that is my real life nickname.



Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Ice Creamed Man!!!

Yes this did happen.

A military camp has several setup requirements. A motor-pool can't be near main camp as we store fuel and other volatile liquids. So to protect the main base from any accidents (intentional or otherwise) it is a couple of hundred yards away. As a member of the motor-pool (Acting Jack Sgt I was) one gets used to living off to the side of the normal(s).

One night I was down at base camp enjoying dinner at the KP area and stuck around at the R&R tent watching a movie. After the movie I proceeded to walk "home". Being mostly cloudless but a waned moon night, I could mostly see the ground I was covering. I could even see some light sources, a touch, here and there as my motor-pool guys worked. So I started walking home.

As I was walking I then saw a wave of fluid washing my direction. "Crap, who burst the fuel bladder!!!" was the thought in my head. I then proceeded with ominous vigor to find out who did it and what we'd have to deal with in that case. I wasn't worried though as we stored diesel on hand and it takes more than open flame to ignite diesel.

I continued to "Home" and let the fluid wash over my boots. Continuing to walk I heard the hish and sizzle of fluid washing over sand. Wasn't worried until I heard a lot of click-click-clicks. I then looked down and say that it wasn't fluid - at all! Apparently our construction activities disturbed a huge scorpion nest and they, as a group, were moving to a new home.

Here I was surrounded by about a million scorpions, late at night, without a flashlight or surrounding light source and all I could imagine was falling down and disappearing under stingers and claws quick. So I then launched into a run... through the scorpions they way they came from as that was the shortest distance to get the heck out of there. I ran with the balls of my feet the only thing touching the ground and my knees hitting my chest I was so scared.

And the entire time I ran... I screamed like a little girl.