[Gossamer's Scrapbook] The Ethereal Canyon I

[Evalin]

*raises hand* Just as a midnight snack when dreams of Mizahar keep me awake >.>

[Gossamer]

Ron - I have to admit under your close scrutiny I did panic. When you asked me how many cheesepuffs I had got stuffed into my gullet before I lost... I couldn't think of any number other than 40 and it just slipped out there! 40! *panic* 40? Oh right.. that would have won me the bet. Duh... busted. Evalin - Ewhhh gross!

[Phoenix]

Even 39 would have been more acceptable Jen! Ugh

[Gossamer]

Depsite Jule's hellish teasing.... I had an incredibly productive day just before I have to go to work for a long shift today. Check it... I finally finally got Riverfall's calender and seasonal challenges up. I went ahead and got the outline for Riverfall's holidays and festivals up and running. I got the travel times outline going so that should be a breeze to actually finish up once we get rolling on it. Volunteers are needed for that project if anyone wants to jump in. I uploaded a ton of new banners for Mizahar... btw my banner count is well over 150 now! Whoot. I also uploaded some individual banners for the staff forums too. I hope the staff enjoys them. I'll have some others done soon so all the forums have a slightly unique flare. And I got a gnosis that I have been secretly working on almost complete. I can't wait to unveil that!

[Nahuat]

Charles Baudelaire - The Journey
I

For the child, adoring cards and prints
The universe fulfils its vast appetite.
Ah, how large is the world in the brightness of lamps,
How small in the eyes of memory!

We leave one morning, brains full of flame,
Hearts full of malice and bitter desires,
And we go and follow the rhythm of the waves,
Rocking our infinite on the finite of the seas:

Some happy to escape a tainted country
Others, the horrors of their candles; and a few,
Astrologers drowned in the eys of a woman,
Some tyrannical Circe of dangerous perfumes.

So not to be transformed into animals, they get drunk
On space and light and skies on fire;
The biting ice, the suns that turn them copper,
Slowly blot out the brand of kisses.

But the true travellers are they who depart
For departing's sake; with hearts light as balloons,
They never swerve from their destinies,
Saying continuously, without knowing why: 'Let us go on!'

These have passions formed like clouds;
As a recruit of his gun, they dream
Of spacious pleasures, transient, little understood,
Whose name no human spirit knows.


II

It is a terrible thought that we imitate
The top and the ball in their bounding waltzes; even asleep
Curiosity tortures and turns us
Like a cruel angel whipping the sun.

Whimsical fortune, whose end is out of place
And, being nowhere, can be anywhere!
Where Man, in whom Hope is never weary,
Runs ever like a madman searching for repose.

Our soul is a brigantine seeking its Icaria;
A voice resounds on deck: 'Open your eyes!'
A hot mad voice from the maintop cries:
'Love... glory... fortune!' Hell is a rock.

Each little island sighted by the look-out man
Becomes another Eldorado, the promise of Destiny;
Imagination, setting out its revels,
Finds but a reef in the morning light.

O the poor lover of chimerical lands!
Must one put him in irons, throw him in the water,
This drunken sailor, contriver of those Americas
Whose glimpses make the gulfs more bitter?

Thus the old vagabond, tramping through the mud,
With his nose in the air, dreams of shining Edens;
Bewitched his eye finds a Capua
Wherever a candle glimmers in a hovel.


III

O marvellous travellers! what glorious stories
We read in your eyes as deep as the seas.
Show us the caskets of your rich memories
Those wonderful jewels of stars and stratosphere.

We would travel without wind or sail!
And so, to gladden the cares of our jails,
Pass over our spirits, stretched out like canvas,
Your memories with their frames of horizons.

Tell us, what have you seen?


IV

'We have seen the stars
And the waves; and we have seen the sands also;
And, despite shocks and unforeshadowed disasters,
We have often, as here, grown weary.

The glory of sunlight on the violet sea,
The glory of cities in the setting sun,
Lit in our hearts an uneasy desire
To sink in a sky of enticing reflections.

Never did the richest cities, the grandest countryside,
Hold such mysterious charms
As those chance made amongst the clouds,
And ever passion made us anxious!

- Delight adds power to desire.
O desire, you old tree, your pasture is pleasure,
And whilst your bark grows great and hard
Your branches long to see the sun close to!

Do you ever increase, grand tree, you who live
Longer than the cypress? - Nevertheless, we have carefully
Culled some sketches for your ravenous album,
Brothers finding beauty in all things coming from afar!

We have greeted great horned idols,
Thrones starry with luminous jewels,
Figured palaces whose fairy pomp
Would be a dream of ruin for a banker,

Robes which make the eyes intoxicated;
Women with tinted teeth and nails
And cunning jugglers caressed by serpents.


V

And then, what then?


VI

'O childish minds!

Never to forget the principal matter,
We have everywhere seen, without having sought it,
From top to bottom of the fatal ladder,
The wearisome spectacle of immortal sin:

Woman, base slave of pride and stupidity,
Adores herself without a smile, loves herself with no distaste;
Man, that gluttonous, lewd tyrant, hard and avaricious,
Is a slave of the slave, a trickle in the sewer;

The joyful executioner, the sobbing martyr;
The festival that flavours and perfumes the blood;
The poisonous power that weakens the oppressor
And the people craving the agonizing whip;

Many religions like ours
All scaling the heavens; Sanctity
Like a tender voluptuary wallowing in a feather bed
Seeking sensuality in nails and horse-hair;

Prating Humanity, besotted with its own genius,
Is as mad today as ever it was,
Crying to God in its furious agony:
"O my fellow and my master, I curse thee!"

And the less senseless, brave lovers of Dementia,
Flee the great herd penned in by Destiny,
And take refuge in a vast opium!
- Such is the eternal report of the whole world.'


VII

O bitter is the knowledge that one draws from the voyage!
The monotonous and tiny world, today
Yesterday, tomorrow, always, shows us our reflections,
An oasis of horror in a desert of boredom!

Must we depart? If you can do so, remain;
Depart, if you must. Someone runs, another crouches,
To deceive that vigilant and fatal enemy,
Time! Ah, there are some runners who know no respite,

Like the wandering Jew or like the apostles,
Whom nothing aids, no cart, nor ship,
To flee this ugly gladiator; there are others
Who even in their cradles know how to kill it.

When at last he shall place his foot upon our spine,
We will be capable of hope, crying: 'Forward!'
As in old times we left for China,
Eyes fixed in the distance, hair in the winds,

We shall embark on that sea of Darkness
With the happy heart of a young traveller.
Do you hear these voices, alluring and funereal,
Singing: 'This way, those of you who long to eat

The perfumed lotus-leaf! it is here that are gathered
Those miraculous fruits for which your heart hungers;
Do come and get drunk on the strange sweetness
Of this afternoon without end!'

By those familiar accents we discover the phantom
Over there our personal Pylades stretch out their arms to us.
'Swim to your Electra to revive your hearts!'
Says she whose knees we one time kissed.

O Death, my captain, it is time! let us raise the anchor!
This country wearies us, O Death! Let us make ready!
If sea and sky are both as black as ink,
You know our hearts are full of sunshine.

Pour on us your poison to refresh us!
Oh, this fire so burns our brains, we would
Dive to the depths of the gulf, Heaven or Hell, what matter?
If only to find in the depths of the Unknown the New!

[Gossamer]

. Best Haircut Ever 'Nuff said, really. .

[Gossamer]

. Wikipedia Made My Day So I was talking to Jules about the Dragonriders of Pern series from Anne McCaffery and how epic it was. I told her about Dragonflight and the best scene ever in any book where F'lar is really f'd up because Lessa has been gone for ages and hes drinking and suicidal and she finally shows up. He grabs her by the shoulders, shakes her violently, and demands to know where she's been. Lessa sobs and simply tells him... "I brought them. I brought them all." Anyone who read that book will be instantly transported back to that scene where Lessa and Ramoth and five weyrs of dragons appear in the skies above Ruatha Hold and shock the entire world. You just can't forget it. It's right up there in the best scene ever in a book. It's probably my number one. I read it when I was like somewhere around 12. I wanted to be Ramoth. I wanted to be Lessa. I wanted to make F'lar sob like a baby. God I loved those books. And I've reread them numerous times since and they've never lost their magic. Holy shit.. I loved that book. I loved all her books. I even loved her Ship who Sang series and The Crystal Singer series and everything really that she wrote. I even had a great time with her off the track novels. But the best news I could have ever found was the following little excerpt from the wikipedia page on the Dragonriders of Pern. It lead me to more info, and OMFG the guy who did X2 and Watchmen has entered into an agreement to develop Dragonflight as a movie. I feel like my fantasy life will now be complete. Television and movies Prior to 1995, the motion picture and ancillary rights to the literary property were optioned by various entities, including Robert Mandel and Kerry Skogland. In 1996, McCaffrey sold the motion picture rights to an Irish company, Zyntopo Teoranta, who entered into a co-production agreement with Alliance Atlantis, covering development including advanced 3-D animation and compositing effects for television budgets. Distribution pre-sale efforts failed, and Zyntopo Teoranta entered into an agreement with Ronald D. Moore as showrunner to present the project to Warner Brothers Network. In 2002, Warner Brothers Network and writer Ronald D. Moore had completed sets and casting for a pilot episode, and were within a few days of filming. Moore had sent the pilot episode to Warners for final approval. It was returned with so many changes to the basic structure of Pern – making it more like Buffy: The Vampire Slayer – that it no longer much resembled the world created by Anne McCaffrey. As a fan of the Dragonriders of Pern series, Moore refused to continue. Filming was canceled, and rights ownership remained with Zyntopo Teoranta's assign, Kua Media Corporation (Canada).[6] In May 2006, it was announced that rights to the entire Dragonriders of Pern series were optioned by Oscar-winning production company Copperheart Entertainment.[7] Copperheart announced their intention to bring Pern to the big screen. On 12 April 2011, Copperheart announced signing David Hayter as screenwriter and Don Murphy as executive producer for a film version of Dragonflight, with production expected to begin in 2012.[8][9] .

[Verilian]

First of all: O.O !!! No way! I am not sure if I read that specific book, they just had random ones in the Jr. High school library, but I loved all the Dragonriders of Pern books I read. They were amazing. I can't wait for the movie. Second, and the real reason I was going to post in your scrap just now. I don't know if anyone gets this, but Jen.. there is a monster in your avatar. Seriously, I keep seeing it. It's like.. another face, that is only there when I'm not looking at it, and when I try to find it it's gone. I keep seeing it, and it freaks me out. It's in the upper right corner of the pic, I think. It's hard to be sure, because as soon as I notice it, it's gone. ...so.. I just thought you should know that your avatar is possessed.

[Gossamer]

. Welcome To Riverfall! Sometimes you just get inspired and have to make a sign. .

[Gossamer]

. Goss' Storyteller Philosophy Everyone does it a little bit differently don't they? So I haven't scrapped for a while, but since Cyphrus has a whole parcel of new Storytellers I thought I'd post up something that is kind of near and dear to my heart. I'm not into telling anyone to have fun or enjoy themselves. That seems to be a no-brainer. If you didn't like to be here, you either wouldn't be playing on Mizahar at all and you certainly wouldn't be a storyteller. Only you yourself can control your own actions and your own happiness. So with that in mind, here's my personal Storyteller Philosophy. Be Original - Don't copy things from real life, books, movies, or anything else of the kind. People aren't stupid. They will see right through it. If you have a similar culture or say only change certain names, words, mix up letters... its not fun for anyone. Make Assumptions In The Positive Not Negative - Often times mods tend to assume people are not as smart as they are. It's an inherent arrogance I dislike. Assume instead that everyone is at least on par with you brainpower-wise and be surprised if they excel past you. Be patient if they are a bit slower on the uptake. Visual Appeal - Be verbally and visually breathtaking (or ugly, or creepy or whatever theme you are going for). Pick more than one sense to appeal to it then go crazy in your methods to madness. Folks will appreciate it and gravitate towards the effort. Top Shelf Is The Goal - If you are going to do something, do it with class and style. Don't do anything halfway or post something sub par. You want to excite your viewers with eye candy and tangible things that can help you get your message and convey your mood. Along with stunning, becoming a top shelf item means you are the most coveted, popular, in demand, and rare. Remember, you don't want to be the only thing on the top shelf, but believe me secure your place there as fast and as secure as you can because you don't want left off of it either. Don't Play All Your Cards In One Hand - Keep secrets, build mysteries, leave the reader wanting more and curious beyond belief. That's the way you draw crowds and generate excitement. Educate Yourself - If you don't know what your talking about you can't be a leader and that's what storyteller's are in Mizahar's environment. Learn the lore inside out and learn the topic you are talking about so as to not make yourself look like a fool. Even if you are doing a training thread in a skill you don't understand, read up about it on the web for a bit. Make sure you can talk the shop talk and Diversify - You can never have enough locations, activities, or information. If you think you can write about all of it and have it all outlined for everyone, you are sorely wrong. The very next people after you hit 'post' will have questions you haven't thought of or want answers to the most obscure off the wall topic you can think of. Many people will tell you its about quality not quantity in locations, but that's to my way of thinking a crock of bull. Post up a whole hell of a lot of locations that are top notch. Any city anywhere of the size most of those are in Mizahar has a great deal of goods and services, people, places and things. Make them come alive by providing a heck of a diverse backdrop for PCs and wild animals alike. Treat Everyone Fairly - Don't restrictions the types of PCs, incarnations of PCs, experience levels, etc you allow in your areas. I hear too often that mods just want good writers in their cities. No, you want writers in your cities. The more they write the better they will get. Give them a chance. Don't create cliques and elite by wanting your cake and eating it too. I've also heard recently that mods want alts of long standing pcs for this or that lately for special things. Its never fair to restrict a PC to a certain location or type just because they are new to the game or 'unproven'. Grade in order if you can. If you can't, grade so that everyone gets something and no one has to wait too long. Posting Is More Important Than Posting Order - I get hung up on threads sometimes. It's better to post than to post in order and let one thread hold up a whole line of other threads. If your stumped, skip it and go back. It's fair to go in order, but its more fair to post and keep posting rather than let one block hold up the entire city's party. Be Prompt - Whether this is in regards to answering private messages, questions, or posting responses. Prompt is important. I struggle the most with this one, to be honest, especially in my moderated threads. I generally have to get really excited about a post to reply to one quickly, and that kinda takes me to a certain place that makes me crave the story or to get awareness out there. If you aren't aware, you aren't excited and if you aren't excited the story isn't going to be fantastic. And please, don't misunderstand me. I work at every single thing on this list. Sometimes I succeed brilliantly. Sometimes I fail horribly. But I have to work at it like everyone else. That doesn't change the fact that I think this is how things should be. You can think differently. That's your prerogative. It may not work for you, but it definitely works for me. .