Namiiscu

Enjoying bad art is neither virtuous nor unvirtuous because enjoyment is passive. It is barely a choice. I do, however, think that incuriosity is shameful. Taste, as in the ability to understand, diagnose, and articulate, the artistic choices that make up a work, is the vehicle for understanding and producing art. Taste can only be cultivated by reflecting upon a broad field of art, peak to dogshit. Because of this, the cultivation of Taste is one of my favorite parts of being alive.

If you've only ever watched marvel movies, of course they are your favorite movies. Your love of marvel movies means little. However, if you have sampled everything the world of cinema has to offer, have watched every single movie dogshit to peak, and marvel movies are still your favorite, that is meaningful. You probably have some very interesting things to say about movies. Even though I will probably disagree with them.

Loud? ✅️ We all hear them coming

Incorrect? ✅️ For being in your drink

Buzzers? ✅️ They tend to do that.

Bonnie (regular): "Wait, that's such a long journey though!!! I'm not gonna go find you just so I can punch you if you're wrong!!! That's dumb!!! [...] Okay, then I'll believe you!!! Hopefully I won't have to walk forever to punch you!!!"

Bonnie (friendquest): "...I'll miss you, Frin. ... I know you'll leave soon, but, um... Y-You should come by Bambouche one day! So you can meet my sister!!! So I can say... "That's Frin! They helped me a bunch! They're really cool!!!" So come and see me sometime, yeah? Promise? [...] I'll be waiting for you, Frin!!!"

"i know you'll leave soon" "that's such a long journey" assuming that Siffrin would never want to stay close by, that wherever he goes would be arduous for them to reach. ...and, maybe in Siffrin's interpretation, not worth the annoyance and exertion it would take to reach them.

Isabeau (regular): "I can't wait to go back to my old job, you know? Make sure to say hi when you're near Jouvente, 'kay?"

Isabeau (friendquest): "...I hope...I hope you'll at least visit sometime, Sif. Our journey is over, but don't be a stranger, okay?"

Isabeau, short and restrained after his aborted confessions. maybe keeping it brief and simple to not overcomplicate the triumph of the moment, hoping he'll have the chance to express himself properly later (they're all having dinner together tonight, after all! they'll have time for feelings talks then! why wouldn't they?). not wanting to overwhelm or assume. how can he ask for anything more substantial than a visit before Siffrin knows how he feels, what he might want, what Siffrin might want?

Odile (regular): "But now I can finally get back to traveling. [...] It'll be weird to travel alone now, but I'll get used to it again. Or I could just go home to Ka Bue... Hm... [...] Ha...I'll miss you, Siffrin. You're a little strange, but you're a good kid. Maybe try letting down your walls every once in a while, huh? And come to Ka Bue anytime. Maybe we'll meet again during your travels."

Odile (friendquest): "It was fun. Traveling with everyone. I will miss it. [...] I... I suppose everyone will go back to their homes, now... Mirabelle will probably stay here, Isabeau will probably go back to Jouvente, and we'll ask someone to accompany Bonnie back to Bambouche... And what about you, Siffrin? Will you be going back home? [...] Oh... Why no-- ... No. Sorry, this isn't any of my business. But... No home at all... I never knew. I'm sorry. [...] ...I'll probably be going back to Ka Bue soon. Our paths will diverge soon... But if you ever come towards Ka Bue... Please come by, and say hello, won't you? ...Don't be a stranger, Siffrin."

Odile, reinforcing everyone's assumptions, backing away from the opening Siffrin gave her out of respect for their privacy, and sharing more of her own hand than Siffrin may even realize—resigning herself back to the quiet of her own company after the warmth and noise of being with everyone else. but even as a fellow traveler, both ~obviously intending~ to continue their journeys, there's no suggestion that their paths may intertwine deliberately, only inevitably diverge and briefly cross by happenstance or on a whim.

Mirabelle (regular): "...You can be so nice, Siffrin. [...] You know, um, um... Um!!! I know we haven't known each other for that long... B-But I hope you know I really treasure your company! I do! I really really do!!! And so... Thank you! Thank you for accompanying me on this journey! [...] ...I'm sure you're excited to go back to traveling on your own... But don't forget me, okay? Come see me at Dormont anytime! I'd love to hang out! Promise!!!"

Mirabelle (friendquest): "I have a lot ahead of me, still. But I never would have realized this without you, Siffrin! S-So, whenever you're done traveling, or you'd like to stay someplace for a little bit... Maybe think about coming to visit Dormont? Just to say hi? B-But you don't have to!!! It's just an idea!!! [...] I'm glad we're friends, Siffrin. ... D-Don't forget about me on your journey, okay!"

Mirabelle got so goddamn close to an actual, straightforward invitation for them to stay with her. "whenever you're done traveling or you'd like to stay someplace for a bit" could be a long-term thing of indefinite duration! but then she anxiously backtracks to "visit," "just say hi," "you don't have to! it was just an idea!" out of fear of coming on too strong, imposing too much. she's the one afraid of being forgotten, here, worrying that she'll fade as easily from their mind as anything else, unmissed. trying to balance emphasizing that his company is something that she genuinely wants, but leaving room for them to back out without feeling awkward if it's not something that they genuinely want.

in every case, Siffrin's plans "to keep/go back to traveling" are assumed, the distance is assumed, the separation is inevitable. it's all Siffrin can hear, couched in polite, socially mandated overtures to keep in touch. everyone will be gone and they will be alone again, outside of brief, occasional reunions (and always reunions that he would have to impose to initiate—how can they choose to visit Siffrin if they have no home to visit?—how can Siffrin know if they truly meant it when they asked, if they'll still mean it as time goes on?).

it's all the rest of the party can imagine, too—of course their mysterious rogue will quietly disappear back into the forests and crowds, impossible to find or contact after it's all over. they're left asking, begging, through the clenched teeth of social restraints, not to be left behind or forgotten, either. please visit, they say. don't you get it? don't you know how important to me you've become, how much i want to keep you in my life? they don't say.

and now all i can hear when i read back these lines is

to Bonnie (friendquest): “Yeah, I’ll come by.”

to Isabeau (regular): (You nod.)

to Isabeau (friendquest): (...) (You nod.)

to Odile (first time): (She's smiling at you gently.) (You smile back.) (…)

to Odile (friendquest): (You nod.)

to Mirabelle (first time): (You promise.)

to Mirabelle (friendquest): (. . .) “I'd like that, Mirabelle.”

everyone knows Siffrin is quiet, but that’s probably not the level of enthusiasm they would hope for!!

thinking especially in contrast to when Odile gives him the mirror picture—they don’t just smile, they beam! he doesn’t just nod, he nods furiously in excitement to have this proof of their journey together. the rest of the party is frequently reacting to and commenting on the faces he makes. we know Siffrin can be hugely expressive and obvious with affection even in their silence.

but everything here is restrained and understated as soon as the question of the future is raised.

there are some very telling (...) in several of these conversations, but i feel the shift most sharply in that first conversation with Mirabelle.

she praises them, and he blushes! she talks about how much they mean to her, how grateful she is that he joined her, and he’s smiling so hard it hurts!!

…and then she talks about them separating. about being forgotten.

that extra spacing in (You promise.) is putting in a lot of work. the moment is heavy, suddenly, instead of bursting with joy. the conversation ends.

(Don’t think about it, don’t think about it, don’t think about it.)

i wonder if the rest of the party could feel him pulling away in these moments, even before the loops start straining the smiles he gives them. thinking this is where we lose them, no matter how much they want him to stay, try to let him know that he’s welcome.

Odile does stutter occasionally, but only when she's completely caught off-guard, shaken, or extremely worried by something. Can't cram every instance into the post, but here's most of them.

Why am I bringing this up? Im glad you asked! Because I want to make you think about this particular scene.

#my take away is that she's blindsided and also plausibly wounded by it

#'oh yeah i have the solution to your problem :D' #'but also no fuck you im not helping there's something more important to me right now'

#which from Odile's perspective probably looks like her being vulnerable with Siffrin #and asking if he'd be willing to help her out and also accept her vulnerability and talk about something really important to her

#and really hoping/borderline expecting they'd say yes because their plan for the day was to nap so like- #clearly they dont have anything pressing going on?

#and sif going 'maybe later' implies that what is like- pretty obviously a big emotions conversation #that they may not have another opportunity to have #is of lower priority than like- a nap to them

#(she thought she had a close bond with them... something like family... was she wrong?) #(is she doomed to a family that just doesn't care to stick around??) #or something like that #anywho anywho #im being so fine and chill and normal about this #*low opacity png of screaming into a pillow appears behind me*

(Tags by @phoenixwithapencil )

YES YES YOU WORDED IT. Her offered out wasn’t really made with the expectation that Siffrin would actually take it. She tacked it on at the end because, well, its the polite thing to do. She doesn’t want to inconvenience Siffrin all so they can be silent emotional support as she marches towards the accumulation of all her years in Vaugarde, searching fruitlessly for a familytale she'd be allowed to hold in her hands. She's a grown woman, she can handle this herself if she has to, but treasured company would still be incredibly appreciated during such an important moment.

He's done her a favor, one she believes he doesn’t understand just how big, important it was for her. Not to mention, on their possibly last day alive. So she directly requests he accompany her. Reaching out, allowing herself to be completely vulnerable with someone she sees as almost family, if the word didnt carry the baggage it does.

The important thing about wool is that it continues to keep you warm even when it’s soaking wet.

Other natural fibers don’t do this. In fact, quite the opposite. Campers and boaters are usually familiar with the phrase, “cotton kills.” If you’re wet in cotton or linen, your clothes actually sap heat from your body.

If you sink in a lake in late October like I did today, staying warm is important. I was rescued long before I would’ve actually died, but cold makes your muscles seize up, which isn’t good if you have to swim to land.

Which brings me around to life jackets. If the water’s cold enough, you may only have five-ten minutes until your muscles seize (today I probably had 40-60, more than enough time to get to land if I hadn’t been picked up), and you’ll drown.

In a life jacket, even in extremely cold water, you can float semi-conscious for perhaps another 30 minutes or so before you actually freeze to death, which is usually when someone rescues you.

What’s more, you probably know that moving around on land warms you up. Jumping jacks, jogging in place, etc.

In water, moving actually makes you colder. You need to stay still curled up in a ball, which you can only do in a life jacket.

In wool AND life jacket, you’re warm, and your head’s above water, which is pretty much your only and entire goal.

Yep! A really simple “experiment” I learned as a kid and now use in my own courses is sticking your hand in ice water. Compare moving it around in the water to curling it up in a fist. The contrast is stark!

To increase your survival time in on cold water, you want to curl up! If you’re with others, you want to huddle!