voice. (around 9:30am)

[seclusion]

Um, hello! I mean, 'good morning!' I wanted to say hi...

Oh, and a couple of other things, too. Well, I went out front a little bit ago. It was pretty nice! The weather here is a bit nippy, but... [He sighs, refreshed-sounding, and there's a little tapping noise like - like he might be patting his cheeks.] It feels good on my face. I should probably find a coat, though... Oh, anyway, while I was out, I found some birds, I think four of them, hopping around on their little bird feet. [He laughs.] At least, I thought they were birds, but while I was feeding them some soda crackers, this old lady came out nearby and said, "Don't feed those! They'll never leave!" [His imitation of the woman's voice is gravelly and probably awful.] I asked her, "Do you want them to leave?" and she said, "They're rats on wings!"

Wow. I didn't even know that rats could have wings. I think rats are okay, but I guess I can see she wouldn't want them around, and they're probably good enough at finding food on their own. Still, I was really surprised, rats on wings! There wasn't anything like that at home. So it really made me think...

I decided that I wish I could know about all these worlds. All these lands and cities, and birthplaces and homes. There are so many more than I ever thought I'd wonder about. My home is on a plain, with rocks and plants and I think trees, and some flowers, and a wide, wide sky overhead. There aren't any people around for a while; it's just my house, that's all. But this is such a big city, and I realized that a lot of you probably came from those, or came from places by the sea, or in deep forests or on high mountains. I thought that was amazing. My butler's read to me about places like this, but just because I tried to sniff the salt shaker doesn't mean I know what it's like to smell the sea air. [He's laughing again, a short sound with a lot of mirth.]

And I also know that some of you came from places that are very dirty or sad... Burned down places or places without plants. I mean, I don't know that for sure, but I bet it's true. Still, even a place like that... People are born there, so they're places full of life. Um, maybe I'm just getting a lot of perspective here or something! But there are a whole lot of lives and they're all crashing into each other here and now. Isn't that so weird? But cool!

I thought I was going to make a better point than this, but I didn't end up doing it. I guess the best thing I can say is a question:

If you don't mind, would you have a little bit of time to tell me a picture of a place you like? Thanks for listening!

Comments

[princeofpictionary]

I have been so impressed by everything, too!

[seclusion]

Yes, there's a lot to be impressed by! Automobiles and sidewalks and radio stations and toasters and night time...

[princeofpictionary]

What is a toaster?

[text]

[bondsoflove]

[He's at work, so he really shouldn't be answering this, but.]

Are you blind?

[The voice sounds young. Childish.]

[NOT TEXT ;w;]

[seclusion]

[LALALA, nothing to see here... literally nothing, because it's true, he can't actually see, and he's not figured out things like screen readers and etc. So he can only sit where he is, humming and clueless. Durr hurr hurr.]

[voice]

[bondsoflove]

[Well, that answers that question.

Quietly.]

When I was a kid, I lived in a compound with my whole clan, several hundreds of us. My mother, my father, my older brother and I had a large house, traditional and very old. We had to take our shoes off before going inside, we knelt on cushions to eat, and we all shared the bath. There was a porch all around, and a garden in the middle. My brother would sometimes sit with me on the porch and talk to me, give me advice. It was enclosed, like a miniature city. I felt safe there.

Once I was old enough to sleep by myself, I had a bed, but when I was really little--a year or two--I remember sleeping on a futon with my mother and father.

voice

[rewritter]

She didn't mean that literally. Obviously.

voice

[seclusion]

Obviously? She didn't? Do you mean they weren't rats? Because they sure had wings...

[rewritter]

Rats and birds don't look anything alike, idiot.

voice;

[motioned]

I don't think she actually meant rats with wings... She sounds mean, though.

voice;

[seclusion]

Do you think they'll get food on their own? Even if it's not soda crackers? I was kind of worried about it, but I think they're resourceful animals.

voice;

[motioned]

Oh, yeah, I think so! I mean, they're really good at stuff like that. I wouldn't worry about it too much. Anyways, there are lots of people who make a pastime of feeding them at parks and lakes and stuff. So they'll be fine no matter what.

[bestseller]

Rats with wings? Do you mean bats? Otherwise, I'm not really looking forward to running across those things. Had a bad enough time with them on the ground in the subway.

[Well, mostly it was his wife that hated them. Still, when she freaked, he felt it.]

[seclusion]

Umm, I don't think they were bats, because they were hopping around and cooing... I don't think bats can hop, right? It's confusing if I think about it too much, actually.

[bestseller]

They can't. Sounds more like something birds would do. But you said you only thought they were birds right? Can you describe them to me?

[Yeah, he's curious, but he's also ready to be informed of knowing what to look for so he can, you know, proceed to flee in the opposite direction if need be. Granted, this guy wasn't wounded by them, Alan doesn't want to take that chance. Him and birds don't really get along.]

video

[meowingumbrella]

My favorite place is the one that I make my own, naturally.

video

[seclusion]

Like, 'my home is my castle?'

Voice

[tea_lover64]

There is a shop which I owned back at home. It sits on an elevated place, in a very well kept part of town. At sunset, you can see the sky painted in a beautiful picture which takes the breath away. The colours are nice hues of pink and purple. There is always the smell of tea, as well as the fragrance of flowers sweet and enticing. You can hear people laughing and talking, about life, love, gambling, gossip, philosophy. You can also hear people playing a game, placing down pieces on a board, a scratch of the head, a hmmmmm as they consider their next move.

Voice

[seclusion]

Oh, that sounds really relaxing. I bet people really appreciated being able to have a place like that. All the tea must have smelled so good and so cozy...

I imagine it felt like a little home.

Voice

[tea_lover64]

Home can be anywhere ultimately, its a matter of creating yourself a place to be happy in.

voice;

[safeguarded]

You shouldn't listen to her. I mean, it's a phrase, I doubt they were really rats.

[Not telling him about his world, because... Yeah.]

voice;

[seclusion]

What is that even supposed to mean, though? Would that mean that finches are mice on wings? Do they eat cheese, should I have brought that instead of soda crackers?

[He's serious...]

voice;

[safeguarded]

She probably called them rats because she doesn't like them, actually. It's just a saying here.

You should bring them whatever you think they'd like, but yeah, some kind of bread or cracker is probably best.

Video

[subject_seven]

Ah, Emil! Those were pigeons!

Video

[seclusion]

[Emil's response comes as a video simply because that's how hers opened the feed, and he doesn't know to change settings. He has certainly looked... better, but he's been keeping himself as tidy as possible. The NV is atop the coffee table, near where his elbows rest; he's sitting at the table with his legs folded underneath. It's cozy this way.

His face brightens, too, when he hears Nana's voice.]

Hi, Nana! That's what they're called? A few people told me they probably weren't rats, but I had no idea what they might have been otherwise...