An open letter to Mr. William Collins, Esq., Planetary Ruler
Dear Mr. Collins:
The undersigned have some questions regarding your management of world affairs since your Final Quickening and your attainment of The Prize of ultimate power and knowledge.
We understand that you are a busy man, and most of your time and effort is focused on your studies in grammar and philosophy (a less-charitable observer might question why this is taking so long for one in possession of ultimate knowledge). Consequently, it may have escaped your notice that it is now 2018 AD, thirty-two years since your well-deserved victory in the final Gathering.
It gives us no pleasure to point out that the era of world peace and cooperation which we were led to believe would ensue, and for which so many of us worked and sacrificed, has not yet arrived and does not seem imminent.
While we will always be grateful for your efforts in preventing the eternal dark age that would have engulfed us if your opponent had prevailed, we respectfully remind you that with ultimate power comes ultimate responsibilty.
What’s it like livin’ in this skull these past three decades?
They say that you play too loud
Well baby that’s tough
They say that you got too much
Can’t get enough
They tell you that you look a fool
Baby I’m a fool for you
They say that your mind’s diseased, shaky stuff
It’s a rock ‘n’ roll damnation
Ma’s own whippin’ boy
Rock ‘n’ roll damnation
Take a chance while you still got the choice
You say that you want respect
Honey for what
For everything that you done for me
Thanks a lot
Get up off your bended knees
You can set your mind at ease
My temperature’s runnin’ hot
I been waitin’ all night
For a bite of what you got
It’s a rock ‘n’ roll damnation
Ma’s own whippin’ boy
Rock ‘n’ roll damnation
Take a chance while you still got the choice
It’s a hard life
Damnation, they’re putting you down
Damnation, all over town
Damnation, Cause you’re way outta reach
Living on the street you gotta practice what you preach
An it’s a rock ‘n’ roll damnation
Ma’s own whippin’ boy
Rock ‘n’ roll damnation
Take a chance while you still got the choice
Damnation, you left a happy home
Damnation, To live on your own
Damnation, You wanna live in sin
It’s a rock ‘n’ roll
Damnation, Just a bundle of joy
Damnation, you’re a toy for a boy
Damnation, you got the dollars in your eye
Always chasin’ that pie in the sky
Rock ‘n’ roll damnation
So Much Strife. So Much Killing. So Much Lost. For What?
For Consensus.
That is Prize. Our Talents, pooled.
We no longer spread across the world, hiding our gifts from humanity.
With the Prize, we act in concert. We have impact beyond the thud of our weapons.
Maple Clamphoof’s @glutnix gentleness and good cheer now works alongside The Ratchet’s @pogo bloodlust and Groß Wilhelm’s @durhamindurham skill. The Kurgan will never know what hit him.
Maud d’Oilly’s @KeisterButton grace and perception is now all of us, as is Nellie’s @penguinchris well-illustrated wanderlust, Henry Farnsworth’s @Wisconsin_Platt attitude of positive cooperation, and Shemp’s @hadley grasp.
Red Dog @SteampunkBanana now dances to the vocal antics of Bon McEvoy @donald_petersen and The Devil Himself @guest_account_7 while drawing on the ancient knowledge of Ennis @gwwar and the Three Sisters @ChickieD in a bar replete with boisterous Highlanders: Aeaba Taylor @eve, Rachel McGinty @CleverEmi, Hep Burn @miasm, and the irrepressible Bark McBarkruff @ghoti (who still has terrible calligraphy) .
An eternity that will be lovingly documented by Bag of Hammers’ @dreamboatskanky’s trusty No 2 pencil. and nurtured by Mom’s @old love and pies. Though we’ll miss Harold
The Prize gives us an opportunity to grow. Juan’s @strokeybeard view of women could “updated.” Perhaps Eve @nightflyer can give him some “pointers” while working the bar. We can all help The Worker @manwich acquire a 21-st century skill.
We all won. We all share the Prize now, through Consensus.
But consensus for what? That is for us decide. We have the time. Share your thoughts below, while I prepare additional remarks concerning the four key names I have so far omitted.
What should we do with this immense collective possibility?
While we chew on that, here’s a primer on “consensus” decision making. It does not mean “unanimity.” It means the “sense of the meeting” is heading in a common direction.
If you concentrate hard and blow your nose, you might extrude his essence in a form that could be installed in a new mechanical avatar. I think we’ve all secretly wanted a mascot.
Never mind, we know you’ll come round eventually. Personal growth is a slow but inexorable process. Look around you. All you see are sympathetic eyes. Have a cup of tea. We have time. Lots and lots.
Now that we’ve reached the conclusion of our latest journey, let us continue the tradition.
Players’ Choice Awards!
All players are welcome to submit your votes via PM to me directly for each of the following categories:
Favorite Character Concept
Best Character Development
Character You Were Saddest to See Defeated
Feel free to submit up to three choices per category ranked by preference. Winners will be revealed in the final epilogue following the calculation of Round 10. Votes must be received by Sun Jan 14 @ 2300 EST and results to be announced early next week.
I know the game gathered a lot of dust during the December scheduling snafus, so hopefully the Table of Contents will be useful for refreshing the ol’ memory.
Friends (aka Quakers) place great value in silence.
I could talk about silence for hours.
Friends place such a high value on silence that Quaker worship is typically an hour of Silence.
So as we all grapple towards Consensus, I ask that we all take heed of the reticent but ever present ElHar Aziz @TobinL .
Here’s a bit more about Quaker Worship:
If you have never before attended an unprogrammed Friends (Quaker) meeting for worship, your first meeting may surprise you.
While all Quakers meet for worship to hear more clearly God’s “still small voice” (I Kings 19:12), Friends in the unprogrammed tradition base our worship entirely on expectant waiting. We take the Psalmist’s advice literally: “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).
We meet in plain, unadorned rooms because we feel that, in such places, we will be less distracted from that small still voice. Our benches or chairs face each other because we all are equal before God. There are no pulpits in our meeting rooms because we all minister to each other. We have no prearranged prayers, readings, sermons, hymns, or musical orchestrations because we wait for God’s leadings (guidance and direction) and power in our lives.
Occasionally, during meeting for worship, someone is moved to speak out of the silence. Although Friends value spoken messages which come from the heart and are prompted by the Spirit of God, we also value the silence and find that expectant worship may bring profound leadings. Friends have found that some leadings are for sharing immediately, some are for sharing on another occasion, and some are for our personal reflection. The meeting ends when one Friend, designated in advance, shakes hands with his or her neighbors. Then everyone shakes hands. No two meetings are ever the same.
And so it came to pass that the sole survivor of the Immortal contest wandered off into the setting sun. To any unknowing observer, he merely appeared to be an eccentric old man - possibly a librarian or scholar - talking quietly to himself and seemingly fretting about lines of reasoning of strange import.
To the knowing observer, of which only one remains, the question presented by these conversations were clear: having harnessed the insight, erudition, and life experiences of over two dozen Immortals, how best to harness that wealth of knowledge to benefit the world?
What will become of that discussion? One can only wonder.
[And so the Last Archivist, the final member of the Order of The Watchers, gently closed the ancient ledger forever. Shortly thereafter, the Last Archivist closed his eyes for an equally long time.]
