I watched a lot of YouTube videos of cute geeky girls playing '80s cover tunes on ukuleles. Technically, this wasn't part of my research, but I had a serious cute-geeky-girls-playing-ukuleles fetish that I can neither explain nor defend.

The clans began to bombard the outer force field with rockets, missiles, nukes, and harsh language.

Being human totally sucks most of the time. Videogames are the only thing that make life bearable.

A river of words flowed between us.

As we continued to talk, going through the motions of getting to know each other, I realized that we already did know each other, as well as any two people could. We’d known each other for years, in the most intimate way possible. We’d connected on a purely mental level. I understood her, trusted her, and loved her as a dear friend. None of that had changed, or could be changed by anything as inconsequential as her gender, or skin color, or sexual orientation.

You'd be amazed how much research you can get done when you have no life whatsoever.

I was obsessed. I wouldn't quit. My grades suffered. I didn't care.