accepting that I will be thinking really hard about omelas approximately once per year for the rest of my life so here's a bunch of links for future me next time I go down this rabbithole
The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas, Ursula K. Le Guin (1973)
Omelas, Je T’Aime, Kurt Schiller (2022)
The Ones Who Stay and Fight, N.K. Jemisin (2018)
The Ones Who Yell at Omelas, Rite Gud podcast (2022) [links a bunch of other responses]
tumblr post by shedoesnotcomprehend (2018)
After We Walked Away, Erica L. Satifka (2016)
Why Don't We Just Kill the Kid In the Omelas Hole, Isabel J. Kim (2024)
and bc I always forget, the BTS music video that references it is Spring Day
@ myself read another story jfc
Leave a card in my inbox!
The Fool: When has your character been excited to start a new journey? The Magician: How does your character unleash their creativity or resourcefulness? The High Priestess: When has trusting their instincts paid off for your character? The Empress: Who has been a positive female figure in your character’s life? The Emperor: Who has been a positive male figure in your character’s life? The Hierophant: Who has served as a mentor to your character? The Lovers: Which of your character’s relationships has been the most positive? (Romantic or otherwise) The Chariot: What goal is your character determined to reach? Strength: On what issue is your character persistent? The Hermit: Write about a time your character did some soul searching. What did they find? The Wheel of Fortune: What are your character’s proudest successes? Justice: When has your character felt satisfied with the conclusion to a major dispute or concern? The Hanged Man: When has your character needed to step back and look at things from a different perspective? Death: When has your character had to let go of something in their life? Temperance: How does your character balance their life? The Devil: Does your character ever neglect their wild side? The Tower: When has your character lost an ideal or relationship? The Star: When has your character been most hopeful? The Moon: When has your character’s path been unclear? The Sun: When does your character sit back and enjoy themselves? Judgment: Has your character ever been given a second chance? The World: When has one of your character’s dreams come true?
Bonus: Major Arcana in Reverse!
The Fool in Reverse: When has your character acted recklessly? The Magician in Reverse: When was your character manipulated? The High Priestess in Reverse: When has your character felt betrayed emotionally? The Empress in Reverse: When has your character felt dependent on another? The Emperor in Reverse: When is your character inflexible or stubborn? The Hierophant in Reverse: When has your character’s personal beliefs been challenged? The Lovers in Reverse: When has your character experienced heartbreak? The Chariot in Reverse: When has your character’s pride or arrogance been their downfall? Strength in Reverse: What are your character’s doubts or insecurities? The Hermit in Reverse: When has your character felt the most alone? The Wheel of Fortune in Reverse: When has your character felt their life was no longer under their control? Justice in Reverse: When has your character been treated unfairly or cruelly? The Hanged Man in Reverse: When has your character tried to avoid making a major decision? Death in Reverse: When has your character tried to fight change? Temperance in Reverse: When has your character felt overwhelmed? The Devil in Reverse: When has your character suffered from refusing to break off an unhealthy relationship? The Tower in Reverse: When has your character’s actions led to disaster? The Star in Reverse: When has your character lost faith? The Moon in Reverse: When does your character mistrust their feelings or intuition? The Sun in Reverse: When does your character’s goal seem just out of reach? Judgment in Reverse: When has your character found it difficult to forgive themselves? The World in Reverse: What is your character holding back?
house md is awesome
Custom Fields Masterlist
I've put together a giant list of everything I could think of that could be something you might like to have as an option for an alter to fill out on their profile. I've divided it into sections and how we use sections is use the color option to use as a divider between sections which is why I have color in parentheses next to those.
Last Updated (timestamp)
|Divider (color)|
Quote
|Section 1: Housekeeping (color)|
Activity/Status (active/dormant/missing)
Alter Type (introject/brainmade/fragment)
Rough Split Date/Date Noticed
Carrd/Rentry/Etc (Link)
Spotify Playlist (Link)
Art Credits (Link)
|Section 2: Alter Info (color)|
Proxy/Sign Off
Name Hoard
Nicknames
Species
Age
Static/Dynamic Age? (Do you age?)
Birthday
Gender(s)
Pronouns (full sets)
Sexuality
Romantic Orientation
Amory Orientation (poly/mono)
Verbality
Known Languages
Interaction?
Triggers
Introject of... (if applicable)
Source List
Source Memories
Subsystem?
Current Role(s)
Old Role(s)
Internal Role(s)
Fronting Job(s)
Internal Job(s)
Fronting Signs
Notable Personality Things
|Section 3: Appearance (color)|
Hair Style/Color
Eye Color/Facial Descriptions
Height/Weight
Other Body Markings
Misc Info
|Section 4: In-Sys Relations (color)|
Romantic Relationships
Friends
Fronting Partner(s)
Social Groups
Other Groups
|Section 5: Interests (color)|
Likes
Dislikes
Interests
Hobbies
Favorite Color
Favorite Food
Favorite Animal
Favorite Season
Favorite Book
Favorite Game
Favorite Movie/TV show
Favorite Songs
Favorite Music Artist
|Section 6: Extra Info (color)|
I saw a poll earlier about participation in regular in-person activities, with numbers that make me wonder if a lot of people don't know what the options are or how to find them. Here are some that I have always found welcoming to new people; for me, these are ways to leave my apartment and get some human interaction without having to make much conversation (there is a reasonable amount of that if you want it, but since it's understood that you are there to do an activity, the thing you are doing is the point rather than pure socializing). A search for "[activity] [location]" should tell you what's available in your area.
Contra dancing: This goes at the top and gets explanation because it's my favorite. I grew up doing this and love it very very much; I always look for local dances when I move somewhere new. Most dances are very beginner-friendly (though there are some exceptions), and zero dance experience is required to participate. Many will include a lesson for beginners in the half-hour before the main event starts, and there are always instructions throughout the evening. You truly do not need to know anything going in. The convention is to switch partners throughout the night, and it's completely okay to attend alone and ask people you don't know to dance. Try Contra Dancing has a search tool by zip code. Typically $8-15.
Community theatre tech: Acting is an option if that's your thing, but in my experience, tech is easier if you're looking for an activity because there's not usually competition--you often can just volunteer without needing to worry about auditions or casting. Roles like run crew (where you move set between scenes and such) don't require any prior knowledge, and plenty of the other tasks can be learned with a little training. If you turn up reliably, the word will spread--good techies are invaluable. Free to participate.
Community band or chorus: Prior experience in playing an instrument is necessary for the band; for singing, it depends on the type of chorus. Some are auditioned, others are just thrilled by any participation. May require dues.
Shapenote singing: A more niche one and another of my personal favorites (I ignore the religious lyrics and treat them as poetry). This can take some time to pick up, but many places have a small monthly sing that is very welcoming to new people. fasola.org has lots of information about the tradition and where to sing. Free, optional donations accepted.
Library events: Find your local public library's website and look for a calendar or events page to see if anything appeals. Typically free.
Crafting groups: Yarn stores and other craft supply places often have regular open gatherings (typically free) and/or classes (may cost money for teaching and supplies).
Games: If you have a local game store, check their website for events. Or search "[location] [chess club]" or whatever is your thing. Usually free.
Dance: Depends on what is available in your area. A studio where I am has a monthly swing dance, with beginner lessons before, for $10.
Sports: I don't really do these but they presumably exist and can be found like the other things.
The important thing is to just go do the thing. It will probably feel awkward the first time--that's normal! These are all spaces where the point is for people to show up and participate. They want you to be there, and they want you to come back! Otherwise they can't keep existing. Several of these (contra dancing, shapenote, a lot of crafting groups) are especially excited about new people and younger participants and will be thrilled to teach you how to do the thing. And the only way to make it feel comfortable is to plow through the first awkwardness and go back until you decide if you actually enjoy it or not. When you find a thing you like, keep going, and after a little while you end up with a community of people to see regularly who share your interests. This is what humans are supposed to do.
We were discussing creating characters in my screenwriting class, and my professor had us fill out a number of these questions that I found could be helpful for other writers and roleplayers and could even be an ask meme. Below the cut are 100 QUESTIONS for your character to answer.
Keep reading
Stop bullshitting people.
Aim for truthful readings.
Be confident when giving a reading.
Avoid blanking when reading.
Avoid the most common mistakes.
Always trust your cards.
Don’t make your cards hate you.
Create a bond with your decks.
Learn proper tarot etiquette.
Don’t believe in superstitions.
Don’t mistake honesty for hate.
Master the Celtic Cross.
Predict timing accurately.
Read reversals the right way.
Treat rogue cards the right way.
Never pull clarifiers.
Never assign a yes or no value to cards.
Learn how to read feelings, thoughts & intentions.
Learn how to read physical appearance.
Learn tarot's astrological associations.
Know the cards’ literal meanings.
Know the meanings of tarot’s colors.
Know the meanings of tarot’s numbers.
Read one spread in many ways.
Deal cards the traditional way.
Have your own reading ritual.
Properly close every tarot reading.
Gauge yourself.
Master tarot.
Be the best reader you can be.
09/23/2022
i am so incredibly tired. a man shouted at me over the phone for the longest time.
Jonathan went to sleep without calling last night. Good. I'm worried about them--the migraine isn't getting better. Julian has left. I'm... not happy with him right now. I don't know how much of that is me resenting the fact that they are currently taking up the space that should be mine and have done such a poor job of doing it, and how much is legitimate grievance.
I'm trying to figure out how to leave without getting killed for it. I want to be able to take care of Jonathan, but I can't be of help to anyone if I'm dead on the side of the road.
Even in the best case scenario, I'm going to be broken for a while. The road between worlds is... long, at best, and deadly, at worst. And I will be vulnerable for a lot of it.
I will try to keep myself together on the way home. Then I will try to make my decision.
I hate when I say things like "oh I want an ipod classic but with bluetooth so I can use wireless headphones" and some peanut comes in and replies with "so a smartphone with spotify?" No. I want a 160GB+ rectangular monstrosity where I can download every version of every song I want to it and it does nothing except play music and I don't need a data connection and don't have to pay a subscription to not have ads and don't have popups suggesting terrible AI playlists all over the menus.
Gimme the clicky wheel and song titles like "My Chemical Romance- The Black Parade- Blood (Bonus Track)- secret track- album rip- high quality"
here’s the mp100 opening recorded onto vhs and back ;)