A Catalog of Mundanity

This is a blog dedicated to creating a catalog of random things. The aim is to have a resource for writers in need of a reference for what random things people have, talk about, do ect-- things that add texture and reality to a story but don't necessarily have to do with the plot.

The catalog is here for you to reference, save, ect:

If you find yourself with a need that you think applies, feel free to request it! You'll hopefully get some ideas soon.

To add to the catalog, simply start answering questions! To only look at questions go to the #prompt tag. I'm working on creating a post with a hyperlink to every prompt as well! Answer as many as you like whenever you like. I'm working on finding a day/days that I can post prompts reliably.

What's out the window?

Bonus details: Where are you, what building you are in, what couuntry you're in, how familiar you are with the view. (Stay safe, don't include any identifying information)

I'll start: I'm in a basement apartment, so I mostly see sidewalk, wet with a lot of leaves scattered on it. I can see a vine growing from a plant the upstairs neighbors have that hangs down. I can see the road, with a black car and a white car parked in front of a tree. There's a no parking sign in between the cars. After that, there is a mini parking lot that holds like 3 cars for residents who pay for a spot, a red townhouse, a stop sign, and other townhouses further away. I'm in the northeast US, and this is the view from my apartment.

What is on one of your shelves?

Prompt by @dru-reads-writeblr though I altered a bit, thought it'd be easier-- pick a shelf and list what's on it. This can be one level of shelf or the entire contents of a single piece of furniture

Bonus: What room it's in, what type of shelf it is

I'll start: This is a red shelf (my dad painted it) in our living room, next to the front door. It has on the top: a bag of grocery bags, KN95 masks, a GPS for the car, a plastic bag, and a small bowl with batteries in it. The next shelf down has random books such as a DSM (I'm studying psychology), a German anguage learning book, a self-help book, a bugeting journal, and journal my sister and I use to evaluate cafes. Next shelf down is all fiction books that re my partner's.

Okay, so originally I envisioned a separate post that I would continually update here on tumblr, partially because I want to ask the same question multiple times. But, in trying to make that post, I found it much more difficult than expected. For on thing, it becomes such a huge no-paragraph-breaks block of text that I can't imagine going through. Second, to do so here on tumblr means that I have to reformat it, sometimes to a less easy-to-read format. A few people very beautifully listed what was on their desk in bullet form, but in a post that lists all of them, I can't have one response hav its own bullet points.

So here's my new plan: The catalog is in a viewable google doc that I regularly update with your answers, AND I will have a post with hyperlinks to every question I've asked so if you prefer to go through the notes you can. I will simply reblog the same post to get more responses on the same question. I find google docs a much easier format to work with and am pretty confident with hyperlinks both there and on tumblr.

Does that sound like a good way to format it so it would be easy to use as a resource?

What is the last memory you've shared in conversation (that you feel comfortable sharing) ?

Bonus details: What the context that inspired it was, how long ago this memory was/how old you were, any other topics of conversation sparked by this memory.

I'll start: My sister and has a conversation about our first times having coffee. The first time I remember having coffee was feeling like I had to pick a drink fast at Dunkin' Donuts and said "americano" because I knew I'd heard it before and probably tasted my mother's drink before. I ordered it and immediately loaded it with sugar. I ws probably like 14. I'm not sure how it progressed but I know I started drinking it regularly when my mom got a peppermint chocolate coffee for Christmas. My sister told her own stories about it, and we also talked about how she loves dark chocolate while I'm kinda meh about it.

Disclaimer: This blog is aimed at helping writers depict normal life. Anything submitted to this blog in response is considered free for writers to use.

What is in your pockets?

Saw this one on the post I made when I proposed the idea for this blog by @sing-you-fools

Bonus Details: What clothing item it is, occasions the things are used for, how much use you get out of them

I'll start: I keep a small tube of Vaseline and a glasses cleaning cloth in my pocket at all times. I also currently have quarters in another pocket, earbuds, and some rings I took off and never put back on.

What is on your desk?

Bonus Details: What your living situation is, what you do at your desk, what country you're in

I'll start: Pile of posters to hang, clothing that is too small, sketchbooks, notebooks, a nonbinary flag, lactaid, a college mug filled with pens/pencils/a magic wand, a calender, a temporary tattoo, a dagger, a sketchbook I actually use (as opposed to old ones), a coloring book, a massager, washi tape, books, a corset, a cloth shopping bag. I live in the northeast US, currerntly do not use my desk (just put things on it), and live in a small apartment.

My idea is to share a prompt, such as "Tell me what's on your desk right now" and then list the answers on its own post. I'm hoping to include othr optional relevant information-- for the above I might ask you to include what country you're in, what your main use of the desk is/what work you do, and what your living situation is. Those would be completely optional details to include, really what I want is your list of Things! There will also be things like what conversations you've had, what you do for certain occasions, habits, memories, annoyances, etc. The idea is to share no matter how boring or mundane it is! This is not meant to be entertaining but it will be immensely helpful as a reference for how other normal people go about their lives. I heavily encourage requests, so if you're in need of Random Mundane Things, feel free to request it!

But please, for this to work I need more than just me making posts and getting no response. I need people willing to participate!

I'm open to getting help running it if anyone is interested as well.