Xref: mit-eddie alt.romance:2305 alt.callahans:1410 Path: mit-eddie!mintaka!think!yale!cs.utexas.edu!samsung!umich!mailrus!iuvax!noose.ecn.purdue.edu!newton.physics.purdue.edu!maxwell.physics.purdue.edu!sterling From: sterling@maxwell.physics.purdue.edu (Bruce S. Woodcock) Newsgroups: alt.romance,alt.callahans Subject: Re: A poem (LONG) Message-ID: <3331@newton.physics.purdue.edu> Date: 17 Mar 90 20:54:22 GMT References: <3330@newton.physics.purdue.edu> Sender: news@newton.physics.purdue.edu Reply-To: sterling@maxwell.physics.purdue.edu.UUCP (Bruce S. Woodcock) Followup-To: alt.romance Organization: Purdue Univ. Physics Dept., W. Lafayette, IN Lines: 140 I recently found this article on the junk newsgroup. I think it is appropriate here and, without the author`s permission, have decided to repost it here. But I doubt he`ll have any complaints. Enjoy! -Sir Bruce Sterling- ______________________________________________________________________________ Hi! As this is my first posting here, I just thought I would share a modest piece of poetry ( or is it prose? ) that I wrote for a couple of friends a couple of years back just after they became engaged. As hard times ensued, they were forced to be separated ( one living in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada and the other living in Perth, Australia ) and were not sure what they should do. Well, both came to me for some advice ( AACK!! said I ), and I ended up writing this poem in order to express my feelings on what they should do. I am also VERY glad to say that they are now very happily married in Perth and are awaiting their first child which will be arriving around October. Well, here is the poem that I wrote to help them out. It has already helped two people out, but my romantic heart hopes that it can/will help more people out. Any feedback on the style, etc. is/will be appreciated. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Gift of A Rose Alone in the corner sits the knight turned mage, His azure armour casting myriad shapes upon the ceiling, While his fingers weave an incantation to view his lady love. The features in his orb of glowing amber, Reveal a lady who's radiance surpasses that of all others, And makes the sun's brilliance pale by contrast. His thoughts wander for a second to his destined foe - A knight adorned in armour so brilliantly white - Also vying for the love of the enchanted maiden fair. But the pearly white knight had known the maiden, For what seemed to be a lifetime in her bottomless eyes, And her heart went first to the ivory warrior. Alas, the turquoise knight chanced upon her one day, And their consciousnesses were woven together, As if a master weaver was conceiving the finest silk. Her heart shattered in two from the opposed emotions, She probed for a solution to her dilemma and found one, But the answer she found injured her knight azure. And 'ere the wounds began to fester, She rushed over to her knight's side to heal him, And held him through the long hours of the cold, dark night. Now he rests isolated in his castle, The crimson radiance of the walls, A sign of a love once born that will never subside. The fluid movements of his arms then change their tempo, As the ethereal image of the maiden fair solidifies, And he holds her close while the darkness encompasses them. But reality's bitter teeth, Nibble at his passion not for the maiden so tender, But at the husk of an essence he fashioned out of despair. Magick spirals from his fingertips, Her visage evaporating into the night air from whence it came, While he hangs his head and mourns over his error for a while. And in sorrow's bitter embrace he consoles himself, While his ever conscious mind devises a brilliant scheme, That might win his lady fair's eternal devotion. Then reaching into a dazzling, ethereal void of his own making, He reaches in and focuses on a weapon to wield, To assist him in the noble quest for one woman's treasured love. But the weapon that he draws is not one of might, Nor is the weapon drawn used to pierce his enemy's flesh, Instead it's purpose is to pierce his maiden fair's heart. For the mage reaches in to the very core of his heart, Closing his palm as his concentration climaxes, And draws forth but a single rose. The once dazzling light begins to fade, And the mage's complete attention is transfixed, On the greatest gift he has to bear. His mind then embarks to ponder the many possibilities of his action, Recalling the immortal words of a bard he once knew, As a crystal tear escapes his solemn visage. He then walks forth through the dark, cold castle halls, As crystal tear merges with rose, And the gift he fashioned is complete. Raw magick encompasses the enchanted flower for a brief moment, Sustaining the life breathed into his fragile offering, In a sphere constructed from the depths of emotion. Walking through corridors long forgotten with time, He starts to traverse the crystal steps to his inner sanctum, A place that once was barred from everyone save himself. He beholds the room with the eyes of a romantic, Wanting every minute detail to embrace perfection, As he positions the rose for his love to see in the setting sun. And as the glowing orb over the planet starts to merge with the horizon, He walks to the window as he perceives the desperate cry of a lonely maiden, As he reaches out with his hand and his heart. Somewhere, another hand is out-stretched, And even though separated by a seemingly infinite distance, They become one united together in a single thought. The mage's expression slowly turns to that of a smile, And in their mind they hold each other tight, As they dance together to the rhythm of a heartbeat, Until the blazing sun breaks over the horizon. Copyright 1990, Jack De Winter --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Until next time!!!!! Wildside Wildside c/o jdwinter@watmath.waterloo.edu (519) 884-8071 "As Doctor Pulaski would, at this juncture, no doubt remind us, life is rarely fair." -Data, Measure of a Man, ST:TNG ________________________________________________________________________________ | Actually, life IS a bed of roses, but somebody | Of course I`m a romantic! | | somebody forgot to remove the thorns... | Why do you think I`ve never | | Internet: sterling@maxwell.physics.purdue.edu | had a girlfriend? | ----- I DO NOT SPEAK FOR PURDUE. PURDUE DOES NOT SPEAK FOR ME. SO THERE. ----- Xref: mit-eddie alt.romance:2306 alt.callahans:1411 Path: mit-eddie!rutgers!mailrus!iuvax!noose.ecn.purdue.edu!newton.physics.purdue.edu!maxwell.physics.purdue.edu!sterling From: sterling@maxwell.physics.purdue.edu (Bruce S. Woodcock) Newsgroups: alt.romance,alt.callahans Subject: Re: A poem (LONG) Message-ID: <3332@newton.physics.purdue.edu> Date: 17 Mar 90 20:55:10 GMT References: <3330@newton.physics.purdue.edu> Sender: news@newton.physics.purdue.edu Reply-To: sterling@maxwell.physics.purdue.edu.UUCP (Bruce S. Woodcock) Followup-To: alt.romance Organization: Purdue Univ. Physics Dept., W. Lafayette, IN Lines: 140 I recently found this article on the junk newsgroup. I think it is appropriate here and, without the author`s permission, have decided to repost it here. But I doubt he`ll have any complaints. Enjoy! -Sir Bruce Sterling- ______________________________________________________________________________ Hi! As this is my first posting here, I just thought I would share a modest piece of poetry ( or is it prose? ) that I wrote for a couple of friends a couple of years back just after they became engaged. As hard times ensued, they were forced to be separated ( one living in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada and the other living in Perth, Australia ) and were not sure what they should do. Well, both came to me for some advice ( AACK!! said I ), and I ended up writing this poem in order to express my feelings on what they should do. I am also VERY glad to say that they are now very happily married in Perth and are awaiting their first child which will be arriving around October. Well, here is the poem that I wrote to help them out. It has already helped two people out, but my romantic heart hopes that it can/will help more people out. Any feedback on the style, etc. is/will be appreciated. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Gift of A Rose Alone in the corner sits the knight turned mage, His azure armour casting myriad shapes upon the ceiling, While his fingers weave an incantation to view his lady love. The features in his orb of glowing amber, Reveal a lady who's radiance surpasses that of all others, And makes the sun's brilliance pale by contrast. His thoughts wander for a second to his destined foe - A knight adorned in armour so brilliantly white - Also vying for the love of the enchanted maiden fair. But the pearly white knight had known the maiden, For what seemed to be a lifetime in her bottomless eyes, And her heart went first to the ivory warrior. Alas, the turquoise knight chanced upon her one day, And their consciousnesses were woven together, As if a master weaver was conceiving the finest silk. Her heart shattered in two from the opposed emotions, She probed for a solution to her dilemma and found one, But the answer she found injured her knight azure. And 'ere the wounds began to fester, She rushed over to her knight's side to heal him, And held him through the long hours of the cold, dark night. Now he rests isolated in his castle, The crimson radiance of the walls, A sign of a love once born that will never subside. The fluid movements of his arms then change their tempo, As the ethereal image of the maiden fair solidifies, And he holds her close while the darkness encompasses them. But reality's bitter teeth, Nibble at his passion not for the maiden so tender, But at the husk of an essence he fashioned out of despair. Magick spirals from his fingertips, Her visage evaporating into the night air from whence it came, While he hangs his head and mourns over his error for a while. And in sorrow's bitter embrace he consoles himself, While his ever conscious mind devises a brilliant scheme, That might win his lady fair's eternal devotion. Then reaching into a dazzling, ethereal void of his own making, He reaches in and focuses on a weapon to wield, To assist him in the noble quest for one woman's treasured love. But the weapon that he draws is not one of might, Nor is the weapon drawn used to pierce his enemy's flesh, Instead it's purpose is to pierce his maiden fair's heart. For the mage reaches in to the very core of his heart, Closing his palm as his concentration climaxes, And draws forth but a single rose. The once dazzling light begins to fade, And the mage's complete attention is transfixed, On the greatest gift he has to bear. His mind then embarks to ponder the many possibilities of his action, Recalling the immortal words of a bard he once knew, As a crystal tear escapes his solemn visage. He then walks forth through the dark, cold castle halls, As crystal tear merges with rose, And the gift he fashioned is complete. Raw magick encompasses the enchanted flower for a brief moment, Sustaining the life breathed into his fragile offering, In a sphere constructed from the depths of emotion. Walking through corridors long forgotten with time, He starts to traverse the crystal steps to his inner sanctum, A place that once was barred from everyone save himself. He beholds the room with the eyes of a romantic, Wanting every minute detail to embrace perfection, As he positions the rose for his love to see in the setting sun. And as the glowing orb over the planet starts to merge with the horizon, He walks to the window as he perceives the desperate cry of a lonely maiden, As he reaches out with his hand and his heart. Somewhere, another hand is out-stretched, And even though separated by a seemingly infinite distance, They become one united together in a single thought. The mage's expression slowly turns to that of a smile, And in their mind they hold each other tight, As they dance together to the rhythm of a heartbeat, Until the blazing sun breaks over the horizon. Copyright 1990, Jack De Winter --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Until next time!!!!! Wildside Wildside c/o jdwinter@watmath.waterloo.edu (519) 884-8071 "As Doctor Pulaski would, at this juncture, no doubt remind us, life is rarely fair." -Data, Measure of a Man, ST:TNG ________________________________________________________________________________ | Actually, life IS a bed of roses, but somebody | Of course I`m a romantic! | | somebody forgot to remove the thorns... | Why do you think I`ve never | | Internet: sterling@maxwell.physics.purdue.edu | had a girlfriend? | ----- I DO NOT SPEAK FOR PURDUE. PURDUE DOES NOT SPEAK FOR ME. SO THERE. ----- Path: mit-eddie!rutgers!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!pt.cs.cmu.edu!andrew.cmu.edu!jf2z+ From: jf2z+@andrew.cmu.edu (John Charles Fiala) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: Callahan's Bloopers Message-ID: Date: 18 Mar 90 07:42:23 GMT Organization: Class of '92, Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA Lines: 46 The door opens with a SLAM!, making everybody wheel about as I run in, pursued by threee (i.e. Three and only three) (<- Math joke) Cream pies. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Oh, well. I get up, and start eating cream pie off of my face while I explain. I scheduled a CMU get-together at Scotland Yard today, starting at Noon. However, as I learned when I got there, SY doesn't open 'till six. (It opens at 11 AM during the week. Honest.) {I walk in, licking my paws and looking quite self-satisfied. My pet, because of his error, left me in a dark store-room while he went off wandering around with Oktave. A cream pie in the face wasn't enough. THREE cream pies was, though.} Oktave did think to leave a note for Mr. Callahan, and so we managed to find each other. As no one else had stopped to stay, she proposed that we go to a book store and browse. I agreed, and we left a note. I managed to pick up some good ones, so did she. After some more wandering, we parted. Nothing much happened, but it was fun. Next time, I'll try to check things out more. A diet Coke Mike! Uh, a Diet Coke and George's usual, that is. To confusion, it keeps us on our toes! {Confusion or Cream Pies, same difference :-) } {SMASH} If we want to try and pull off a Callahan's get-together at Balticon, let me know. John Fiala jf2z@andrew.cmu.edu "You ELOPED??" "Don't say "Eloped"...! Can't you be more ROMANTIC?! 'A flight of love in the night'...or something..." --Outlanders, #14 ------ George QuickPaw Professional Cat (Rates negotiable) You can reach me through my pet, John Fiala, at: jf2z@andrew.cmu.edu ------ Path: mit-eddie!rutgers!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!zephyr.ens.tek.com!tektronix!reed!odlin From: odlin@reed.bitnet (Iain Odlin,,,) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: An entrance. Message-ID: <14434@reed.UUCP> Date: 17 Mar 90 13:16:04 GMT Sender: news@reed.UUCP Reply-To: odlin@reed.bitnet (Iain Odlin) Organization: The Kobayashi Maru Lines: 106 The door opens, framing a man wearing a black cloak with a blue silk lining. He gazes curiously around the room at the patrons within. A stranger sam- pling of life-forms he has never seen -- spiders, blue unicorns, specters -- but the interior feels comfortable so he crosses the threshold and closes the door behind him. As he walks up to the bar, gingerly avoiding the fuzzy objects scattered about, the people he passes become aware of the troubled air about him and follow his progress. "You would be Mike Callahan?" Mike looks up from the drink he was mixing for the green tiger sitting in the rafters. "I would," he replies. "And you are ...? I haven't seen you here before." The cloaked figure looks pleased. "Then I have found Callahan's Place," he states, a weariness indicating long searching touching his voice. From with- in the depths of his cloak, he produces a dollar bill which he places on the counter, accompanied by the request, "A lemonade, when you've finish with the emerald-hued one's drink, please." Both the tiger's and the newcomer's drinks are produced in short order. The man tastes his drink and looks pleased, then he notices that many eyes in the place are focussed on him. "An introduction," he says as he steps up to the line of chalk drawn on the ground. "My name is... well, call me Orion. It's my nick-name. My life of late has been not been... joyous." Orion takes another sip and continues. "I was, in no particular order, a college student, a boyfriend and a happy person. My life was pleasant and had some sort of direction." He stops and looks around the room at the faces of those around him. The interested expressions tell him that it is safe to continue, and with the help of his lemonade, he does. "Then, the following events occured. I got the flu for three weeks, despite my being immunized; My girlfriend of eight months broke up with me in favour of a man I despise; One of my two great-grandmothers died, while the other had a non-fatal myocardial infarction; My brother was involved in a one car accident (he was not the driver) which resulted in total amnesia for three days and partial amnesia for a week. I saw the car, and can honestly say it is nothing short of miraculous he and his friend weren't killed outright; My former employer, with whom I am good friends, contracted a disease re- sembling Multiple Sclerosis and the doctors have no idea what it is; My mother had a job-related nervous breakdown and had to take a leave of absence from her job (teaching retarded children); My place of residence removed itself out from under me; My duck was eaten by a coyote..." Orion pauses, gulps a bit of lemonade and concludes his list with, "and my cat broke his leg." He downs the rest of his drink, and notices the room is silent. Orion cuts the silence with a request for another lemonade, which is in- stantly placed in his hand, then continues. "This, needless to say, destroyed my grades. It was 'recommended' by the college review board that I leave, and I did because I couldn't, and still can't, deal with the stresses involved in addition to those already present in my life. Now, I am searching for a both a place and a reason to live. About the place: For the last two months, I have been attempting to secure a house or apartment for myself and have been routinely turned down for various reasons ranging from the fact that I have no job to the fact that my room-mate (to be) is female. As for the reason, well..." Orion takes a drink. "It seems to me that I have been sent a very definite message from someone/something. In the space of one month my entire life was devalued and destroyed, piece by piece. Losing my girlfriend was an enormous and in- credibly painful part of that (and still is in some ways), but it wasn't the whole of it. Heck, I even lost my car, thanks to an insurance company that won't cover me as a non-student." A tear runs down Orion's cheek. He removes his glasses and wipes at his eyes. A quick sip and a replacement of the glasses later, he goes on. "I heard as I opened the door someone mention something about the happiness of Valentine's Day. Well, Valentine's Day is my birthday. I just turned twenty-one. Valentine's Day is a far from happy day to me. It is, all at once, a reminder that I am getting older and that I am once again in the realm of the non-paired folk. It's been that way my entire life. No one ever took the time to do birthday things for me, because they all were busy doing Valentine's Day things for themselves. Sorry to belabour the issue, but is a personal sore-point for me, and I just had to endure it once again last month... "As for my current situation, I have spent the last two months shuffling from friend's residence to friend's residence and am now at the end of my rope. I must have a place in less than two days, or I'm homeless. And God, I am tired of having my stuff scattered across numerous places of storage." Orion finishes his lemonade and stares at the empty glass. He casts a side- long look at the fireplace. "I'm not entirely sure why I'm telling you all this. Maybe because I'm looking for some form of comfort, I don't know. Probably, I'm saying it because I need to get it off my chest. Whatever the reason, make of me what you will, I am Orion. Pleased to meet you all! "My toast: To cats, without which I would most likely be dead now." And with that, he flings the glass into the fireplace. *CRASH* Orion sits at the bar, orders yet another lemonade and then says to the assemblage, "Maybe I'll have something better to toast in the near future. I have two house interviews tomorrow. Wish me luck?" Path: mit-eddie!rutgers!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!zephyr.ens.tek.com!tektronix!reed!odlin From: odlin@reed.UUCP (Iain Odlin) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: Re: An entrance. Message-ID: <14435@reed.UUCP> Date: 17 Mar 90 13:26:08 GMT References: <14434@reed.UUCP> Reply-To: odlin@reed.UUCP (Iain Odlin) Organization: The Kobayashi Maru Lines: 13 In article <14434@reed.UUCP> odlin@reed.bitnet (Iain Odlin) writes: > Orion sits at the bar, orders yet another lemonade and then says to the > assemblage, "Maybe I'll have something better to toast in the near future. > I have two house interviews tomorrow. Wish me luck?" > He then looks slightly embarrassed as he realizes that the mailer program did not include his signature, which may be seen below. -- ----------------------------------Iain Odlin----------------------------------- Box 142, Reed College, Portland OR, 97202 odlin@reed -or- {ogicse,tektronix}!reed!odlin ...Hope the crumbs in my pocket can keep me for another night... Path: mit-eddie!rutgers!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!usenet.ins.cwru.edu!cwjcc!ncoast!allbery From: allbery@NCoast.ORG (Brandon S. Allbery) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: Re: The Cynic rants raves and rages Message-ID: <1990Mar18.020753.3722@NCoast.ORG> Date: 18 Mar 90 02:07:53 GMT References: <9060039@hpfcso.HP.COM> Reply-To: allbery@ncoast.ORG (Brandon S. Allbery) Followup-To: alt.callahans Organization: North Coast Public Access UN*X, Cleveland, OH Lines: 15 Far from chasing you out of Callahan's, Cynic: I suspect you're going to be the acid test for whether this group can fulfill its purpose. I thank whatever or whoever watches over me (if any) that I managed to escape whatever caught you. Still hoping---and working, however I may, to make that hope a reality, ++Brandon (P.S. I'm not so sure that the concept of "soulmate" necessarily means love, as opposed to friendship. But that's the fun of words.) -- Brandon S. Allbery (human), allbery@NCoast.ORG (Inet), BALLBERY (MCI Mail) ALLBERY (Delphi), uunet!cwjcc.cwru.edu!ncoast!allbery (UUCP), B.ALLBERY (GEnie) BrandonA (A-Online) ("...and a partridge in a pear tree!" ;-) Path: mit-eddie!rutgers!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!usenet.ins.cwru.edu!cwjcc!ncoast!allbery From: allbery@NCoast.ORG (Brandon S. Allbery) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: Re: The Cynic rants raves and rages Message-ID: <1990Mar18.022659.3971@NCoast.ORG> Date: 18 Mar 90 02:26:59 GMT References: <9060039@hpfcso.HP.COM> Reply-To: allbery@ncoast.ORG (Brandon S. Allbery) Followup-To: alt.callahans Organization: North Coast Public Access UN*X, Cleveland, OH Lines: 40 As quoted from by jf2z+@andrew.cmu.edu (John Charles Fiala): +--------------- | (The Cynic's words are in quotes.) | | " I read posts by people in their early | twenties about how they have not found anyone yet, and I so | desperately want to tell them to organize their lives so that they | can be reasonably content without anyone, because there is no | insurance that they will find someone." | | True, very true... I haven`t had any girlfriend for quite a while. But | I don`t need one as much as I did, and I am organizing my life so I | can be without one. (Not that I would turn one down!) I`ve stopped | actively searching. If it happens, It happens. +--------------- I tried this for a while. I was successful... but I dropped it when I realized how empty it was. To Doug, the "Cynic": "You gave your life to become what you are now. Was it worth it?" You may have seen that quote (Richard Bach, ONE) around; it sounds to me like you need to ask yourself that question, seriously. And if the answer is "no," perhaps it's time to do something about it. (That is much like what I did: I realized that I didn't like myself or my life, and decided that it was time to change that.) You aren't a cynic. You are the empty shell left behind when hope dies. And the only two things left are either to discard the shell---or clean it out and refill it. I chose the latter, and by and large it was a good choice; I still have problems, but I can at least live with myself and the world, and I actively work to solve those problems. How do you choose? ++Brandon -- Brandon S. Allbery (human), allbery@NCoast.ORG (Inet), BALLBERY (MCI Mail) ALLBERY (Delphi), uunet!cwjcc.cwru.edu!ncoast!allbery (UUCP), B.ALLBERY (GEnie) BrandonA (A-Online) ("...and a partridge in a pear tree!" ;-) Path: mit-eddie!rutgers!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!usenet.ins.cwru.edu!cwjcc!ncoast!allbery From: allbery@NCoast.ORG (Brandon S. Allbery) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: Re: Metaphysics and Angst Message-ID: <1990Mar18.024735.4850@NCoast.ORG> Date: 18 Mar 90 02:47:35 GMT References: <8505@mentor.cc.purdue.edu> Reply-To: allbery@ncoast.ORG (Brandon S. Allbery) Followup-To: alt.callahans Organization: North Coast Public Access UN*X, Cleveland, OH Lines: 34 As quoted from <8505@mentor.cc.purdue.edu> by gtz@mentor.cc.purdue.edu (Eric C. Garrison): +--------------- | "I wonder if anyone here lies awake in the middle of the night, | petrified with fear about the future like I do? Does anyone else | see the crap behind all this hype to succeed, to compete, to further | the rat race? How can anyone be totally wrapped up in getting a | good job, looking for maximum money without considering the | happiness factor? +--------------- I saw it... and I rejected it. I have a good job with a small company which I have helped to build from a one-man job since I was hired by that one man. I don't get paid as much as I could if I went to work for a software mill, but I also don't have to live the rat race. I *do* have to work, and sometimes work very hard, but it is worth it. I'm not trying to be the meanest rat in the race; I'm trying to (1) keep a small company on its feet and (2) help produce a software package that I can be proud of. And both affect me both directly and indirectly, and in more places than just the paycheck---when a company consists of only a few people (and for two years it was just myself and the owner!), those people reflect directly upon the company and vice versa. When you get out of college, remember that small companies often present the best opportunities. And they don't suffer from corporate rat-race syndrome. But, more importantly, remember that you *won't* succeed at something if you aren't happy about it. Worry about success *after* finding a job you're happy with, if at all; doing otherwise *is* pointless. You may find what might be called "success" on some scale or other, but it won't be success for you. ++Brandon (geez. Maybe my "handle" should be the Armchair Philosopher?) -- Brandon S. Allbery (human), allbery@NCoast.ORG (Inet), BALLBERY (MCI Mail) ALLBERY (Delphi), uunet!cwjcc.cwru.edu!ncoast!allbery (UUCP), B.ALLBERY (GEnie) BrandonA (A-Online) ("...and a partridge in a pear tree!" ;-) Path: mit-eddie!mit-amt!snorkelwacker!think!yale!cs.utexas.edu!mailrus!husc6!m2c!wpi!cmoir From: cmoir@wpi.wpi.edu (C-More) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: A new arrival... Keywords: Look out, another one just trotted in... Message-ID: <9639@wpi.wpi.edu> Date: 13 Mar 90 16:02:09 GMT Organization: W.P.I. Office of Higher Insanity Lines: 99 A man enters the bar, looking incongruously imposing yet unimposing. About 6'2, brown hair interspersed here and there with a bit of red (betraying a Scottish heritage), and grey-emerald eyes that somehow seem to draw you in if you look too deeply... He appears to be somewhere in his mid-twenties. He's wearing a deep blue pair of pleated pants, and a grey sweatshirt with "WPI" stenciled in maroon on the front. On a chain around his neck is a silver unicorn pendant. He saunters up to the bar, fumbling for his wallet. "A spiked apple juice, if you please, Mike..." he says, slapping a dollar on the bar. He seems to look as if he wonders if he did it right. Grabbing the drink, he moves to the chalk line. "Hello, wonderful and wondrous people. Being new here, I still don't know what's right and wrong to do here. But being an adventurous sort, I'm willing to at least give it a try... Turning to Taldin and his Lady, he says "First off, I'd like to congratulate my dear friend on finding a soulmate. I knew he would. And Joelle, I'm certain you won't be disappointed. I hope to get to know you better in the future... "Oh, while I'm at it..." (the stranger fumbles in his pocket, finally finding what he's looking for. He takes a small brown cube, tosses it to Taldin, who deftly catches it.) "As a congratulatory gift, have a caramel, 'corn." Not knowing enough about the bar, he is hit by the few peanuts he finds thrown at him. He looks around, smiling. "Yes, I suppose I should have expected that." "I suppose it's only polite that I introduce myself. Here, I shall prefer to be called SilverSinger. Why? Well, why not? "It was recommended that I start paying attention to the goings on here at Callahans by none other than Taldin, here. I'm glad he did. Even having never read any of Spider Robinson's books, I felt right at home right away. "I suppose it's a message to me from somewhere that I found a copy of _Callahan's_Lady_ that someone left behind (foolish!) in a seat in an airliner. I read it and was immediately hooked. Next time I go to the bookstore, the first three are my next purchases. "Now for the reason I'm still here, instead of fading off into the background. I have a question for you all. "Perhaps the subject has been run into the ground, but it can't be helped. I am of the school that there are *more* than one 'right one for you'. That there is more than one person with whom you would be happy throughout life with. How do I know? Friends, I have managed to find two of them at once. "I hope you don't think that sounds selfish. I really don't want it this way, but I have found two women who, in each case, thinks that I'm the most wonderful man in the world, and they would rather be with no one else. Also in each case, I feel that same strong love. But the problem is that in each case I would be happy, but I must make a choice that will make one or the other upset and, though they claim otherwise, unhappy. "What each claims (yes, they know about one another) is that I must make the choice for myself, that I should choose the one that would make me most happy. For me this is agonizing. Either would make me just as happy, and would have the side effect of hurting someone I care about deeply." Here, a sad smile. "TO LOVE!" (A loud **crash** as the mug goes crashing into the fireplace) "Sometimes it finds you twice at once." "I'd be interested to know what anyone thinks, and I'll stick around so anyone who needs to know more may ask." Here SilverSinger looks somewhat uncomfortable. "Oh. I am a bit more than I appear to be, as some of you already know..." SilverSinger undergoes an instantaneous transformation. He changes...into a unicorn. A silver one. Somewhat larger than Taldin, and with the same color mane (a midnight blue). "Well, now you know." He turns towards Taldin and Joelle. "Again, I congratulate you and give my warmest wishes for happiness." Turning back to the bar at large, "And I thank you all for your patience." With that, SilverSinger changes back into his original (and more compact) form and moves away from the chalk line, approaching Taldin and Joelle where they stand. -SilverSinger -Silver Unicorn and new Spider Robinson reader >Appropriate .sig to come, once I think of one...< Path: mit-eddie!mit-amt!mintaka!yale!cs.utexas.edu!rice!husc6!m2c!wpi!crimson From: crimson@wpi.wpi.edu (The Wanderer) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: Hmmmm....... Keywords: ...YAHOOO! Message-ID: <9616@wpi.wpi.edu> Date: 12 Mar 90 17:25:33 GMT Reply-To: crimson@wpi.wpi.edu (The Wanderer) Organization: Erisian Liberation Toadstool Front and Mushrooms, Inc. Lines: 13 We just got access to this newsgroup in my neck of the woods, and being an AVID Spider Robinson fan, I immediately subscribed.....please do tell all about......if this is run as a 'bar' scenario, I apologise for breaking the flow and will 'introduce' myself later and someone please e-mail me a response then........... thanx. -- Disclaimer: "I'm the only one foolish enough to claim these opinions as mine." Reality: crimson@wpi.wpi.edu Outside: 100 Institute Rd #296 crimson@wpi.bitnet Worcester MA 01609 Blue Blaze Irregular Havoc In The Society: Bronnton of Atlantia