Mythic Swirl here... hows it going?

Keep 5 cards in your pocket. One will say "yes", the second will say "no."

If you lose your voice, or lose speech, or want to make a dramatic embellishment at the right time, it is an elegant and efficient solution that is right there at hand.

But what if people question you from there? "Why do you have that card? Why would you do this? How long have you had that in your pocket?" For this, or whatever else they say, the third card: "I don't have a card for that."

"What the fuck," they ask. They laugh. They are bemused. You bring the energy back down with the fourth card: "I have laryngitis. I've lost speech. My throat hurts". Whatever you expect to occur.

The joke is over. Rule of threes. Now they are curious. YThey wonder about logistics. "How did you know I would say that? Is everyone so predictable?"

As a three-part bit, nobody ever sees the fifth card coming.

"I have powerful wizard magics."

At the same time, it made things much simpler, for all Fredrick, our Wizard, had to do, was cast a sufficiently powerful enough Banishment to stop him... with his protections in place though, it had to be done via a ritual, and the rest of us had to hold his attention until he finished... easier said then done. In the process of keeping him busy, Kel’nav, our rogue, lost an eye, and Telresa, a holy knight of the sacred light, had their leg clean removed from them.

Just as Fredrick was nearly finished, the Demon finally caught wind of our actions, and shifted to launch a powerful curse at them to snuff out the last hope we had. I did not think, I simply charged, planting myself between the monster and Fredrick, feeling the full brunt of the curse taking me. The Demon sneared, and as I felt myself grow cold, I coughed out, “... You shall not... hurt anyone else... the blood of my oath... my fam-” I was cut short, but it did not matter, as things started to fade to black, I saw the Demons face shift from disgust, to fear, and then be gone... And then it was done...

At least, I thought it was done, somehow, I still saw, somehow, I still heard around me, not dead but trapped in a form of stone. I was more then a bit surprised, but there wasn’t much I could do about it. I witnessed the fall of the enemy forces and the remaining dark ones surrender, die, or flee, I saw my friends gather and heal and... more then one attempt to shake me... I witnessed Fredrick and Devaln(A witch who had acted as a guide to us on more then one occasion) attempt spells and potions to free me... I saw them all slowly come to accept that I was gone as nothing they did worked.

The pain I felt was unbearable, but there was nothing I could do. I am not sure I was thankful or annoyed at first that they took me with them, and eventually set me up as a statue in the middle of a small village we had once saved. A Village several of them settled in and helped grow and flourish, even settling down to have families. All of them moved on and attempted to keep living, holding me as a memory... all except Fredrick... blasted wizard never could let things go... not that I can or would complain, he kept me updated on what everyone else was doing, cried drunk at my feet a few times, and occasionally, whenever he would discover some new technique or magical pathway, would attempt to awaken me... never had any success, but... I can respect him for it.

I lost track of how much time had passed, watching the village grow to a town, then a city even, around me. I watched children grow up and have kids of there own, I got to see the daughter of Kel’nav turn into a fine young woman named Sonya, and despite being a hybrid of man and elf, no one seemed to look down upon her... the world we fought for seemed to be doing just fine.

I reflect on all this as clouds form in the distance, twisted and dark... familiar in a way that one had seen them before could not forget... it seemed another host was found, and they were keen for vengeance. I heard them in the distance, the coming dark army, the screams of terror, the burning fire. I saw people rushing to evacuate, and guards and the brave moving to fight them off, I saw pillars of smoke draw ever closer.

Then I saw something that made my stone blood run cold... Sonya, nursing a wounded arm, retreating around a corner. What followed her... if my blood ran cold before, it boiled now, as the rotting corpse of the Demon’s puppet appeared, apparently resummoned. They didn’t seem to be in any hurry, they almost seemed to be... playing with Sonya, with a gleeful grin.

Don't freak out. I am autistic. These things are not bad. However, can we just...take a second to notice how weird it is that there are entire social media accounts full of 10-second videos of things making crunching noises, people squishing slime in their hands, and objects clacking together, and that enjoying them is mainstream and normal?

It seems that nowadays, almost everyone exhibits sensory-seeking behavior, when just a decade ago, the idea of anyone having "sensory needs" was mostly obscure. It is a mainstream Thing to "crave" certain textures or repetitive sounds.

What's even weirder, is that it's not just that "stim" content is mainstream; the way everything on the internet is filmed seems to look more like "stim" content. TikToks frequently have a sensory-detail-oriented style that is highly unusual in older online content, honing in on the tactile, visual and auditory characteristics of whatever it's showing, whether that's an eye shadow palette or a cabin in a forest.

When an "influencer" markets their makeup brand, they film videos that almost...highlight that it's a physical substance that can be smudged and smeared around. Online models don't just wear clothes they're advertising, they run their hands over them and make the fabric swish and ripple.

I think this can be seen as a symptom of something wrong with the physical world we live in. I think that almost everyone is chronically understimulated.

Spending time alone in the forest has convinced me of this. The sensory world of a forest is not only much richer than any indoor environment, it is abundant with the sorts of sensations that people seem to "crave" chronically, and the more I've noticed and specifically focused on this, the more I've noticed that the "modern" human's surroundings are incredibly flat in what they offer to the senses.

First of all, forests are constantly permeated with a very soft wash of background noise that is now often absent in the indoor world. The sound of wind through trees has a physiological effect you can FEEL. It's always been a Thing that people are relaxed by white noise, which leads to us being put at ease by the ambient hum of air conditioning units, refrigerators and fans. But now, technology has become much more silent, and it's not at all out of place to hypothesize that environments without "ambient" white noise are detrimental to us.

Furthermore, a forest's ambience is full of rhythmic and melodic elements, whereas "indoor" sounds are often harsh, flat and irregular.

Secondly: the crunch. This is actually one of the most notably missing aspects of the indoor sensory world. Humans, when given access to crunchable things, will crunch them. And in a forest, crunchy things are everywhere. Bark, twigs and dry leaves have crisp and brittle qualities that only a few man-made objects have, and they are different with every type of plant and tree.

Most humans aren't in a lot of contact with things that are "destroyable" either, things you can toy with and tear to little bits in your hands. I think virtually everyone has restlessly torn up a scrap of paper or split a blade of grass with their thumbnail; it's a cliche. And since fidget toys in classrooms are becoming a subject of debate, I think it pays to remember that the vast majority of your ancestors learned everything they knew with a thousand "fidget toys" within arm's reach.

And there is of course mud, and clay, and dirt, and wet sand. I'm 100% serious, squishing mud and clay is vital to the human brain. Why do you think Play-Doh is such a staple elementary school toy. Why do you think mud is the universal cliche thing kids play in for fun. It's such a common "stim" category for a reason.

I could go on and on. It's insane how unstimulating most environments humans spend time in are. And this definitely contributes to ecological illiteracy, because people aren't prepared to comprehend how detailed the natural world is. There are dozens of species of fireflies in the United States, and thousands of species of moths. If you don't put herbicides on your lawn, there are likely at least 20 species of plant in a single square meter of it. I've counted at least 15 species of grass alone in my yard.

Would it be overreach to suggest that some vital perceptive abilities are just not fully developing in today's human? Like. I had to TEACH myself to be able, literally able, to perceive details of living things that were below a certain size, even though my eyes could detect those details, because I just wasn't accustomed to paying attention to things that small. I think something...happens when almost all the objects you interact with daily are human-made.

The people that think ADHD is caused by kids' brains being exposed to "too much stuff" by Electronic Devices...do not go outside, because spending a few minutes in a natural environment has more stimuli in it than a few hours of That Damn Phone.

Prior to 2022 I was living in a basement apartment, in a suburb, in a large town. In September I moved to the coast, in January I moved into my current apartment with 4 large windows and less than a mile from the ocean.

In front of my house is a grass patch I've let go and fill up with wild flowers, behind the property I live on it is wooded and generally speaking the weather here is far more tempestuous than it was in my old home.

Wind is a daily reality and creates so much sensation and noise. Not to mention I go to the beach weekly. Rarely for long and in winter it's too cold to leave my car but the roar of the ocean, the smell of it, the sight, these are all stimulating in a way that no slime or fidget spinner could ever even approach.

Yes, Financial And Diet Related Advice Givers, you are correct that I do not NEED a latte every day. However, much like a pet dog, I DO need a walk and things to look at.

Here's the link! Like i said, if you can send me a screenshot of ur donation with a character you want drawn, i will do sketches for you!

Ursula and Kevin reply:

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MY HEART