Story Set Up:
-
@futurebird https://web.archive.org/web/20080804140516/http://www.dreadgazebo.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=8
I like the journal thing as a setup for a tabletop role playing game, is all.
-
Story Set Up:
One day you get a strange envelope in the mail. No obvious significance of the return address, it's just a shipping depot. In the large bubble envelope you find... your childhood journal. An old tattered notebook full of drawings and writings you remember well. Who could have sent it? A relative?
But there is another much more serious issue. One you are reluctant to even confront.
You never lost your old childhood journal. It's right there on the shelf.
There are *two* copies.
@futurebird Time to call Central HQ and make sure you’re operating in the right timeline.
-
Story Set Up:
One day you get a strange envelope in the mail. No obvious significance of the return address, it's just a shipping depot. In the large bubble envelope you find... your childhood journal. An old tattered notebook full of drawings and writings you remember well. Who could have sent it? A relative?
But there is another much more serious issue. One you are reluctant to even confront.
You never lost your old childhood journal. It's right there on the shelf.
There are *two* copies.
You compare the copies, side by side. The text is the same, with one exception. One uses the Oxford comma, and the other does not. And one has a little stain that the other doesn't have, on page 6.
-
Story Set Up:
One day you get a strange envelope in the mail. No obvious significance of the return address, it's just a shipping depot. In the large bubble envelope you find... your childhood journal. An old tattered notebook full of drawings and writings you remember well. Who could have sent it? A relative?
But there is another much more serious issue. One you are reluctant to even confront.
You never lost your old childhood journal. It's right there on the shelf.
There are *two* copies.
how could this be?
Is it possible that you mailed this to yourself from another dimension?The pages are exact copies of the journal on your shelf except for one detail: The dress you had worn and colored blue, is colored red in this new mystery journal.
-
Story Set Up:
One day you get a strange envelope in the mail. No obvious significance of the return address, it's just a shipping depot. In the large bubble envelope you find... your childhood journal. An old tattered notebook full of drawings and writings you remember well. Who could have sent it? A relative?
But there is another much more serious issue. One you are reluctant to even confront.
You never lost your old childhood journal. It's right there on the shelf.
There are *two* copies.
@futurebird goddamit!! Time travel is possible! I was sure it wasnt! (and clearly im involved in its development - thats also unexpected!)
-
Story Set Up:
One day you get a strange envelope in the mail. No obvious significance of the return address, it's just a shipping depot. In the large bubble envelope you find... your childhood journal. An old tattered notebook full of drawings and writings you remember well. Who could have sent it? A relative?
But there is another much more serious issue. One you are reluctant to even confront.
You never lost your old childhood journal. It's right there on the shelf.
There are *two* copies.
"Remember that creepy copy of my journal someone sent me? Well I think I figured it out." If you were more honest with yourself you would realize you had not 'figured it out' but you are anxious to tell your friend what you discovered see if you can put this thing to rest. "I did what you said and compared each page and you were right. They aren't totally identical. There are all kinds of little differences."
"Like what?" Sarah isn't looking reassured like you hoped she looks more worried.
-
"Remember that creepy copy of my journal someone sent me? Well I think I figured it out." If you were more honest with yourself you would realize you had not 'figured it out' but you are anxious to tell your friend what you discovered see if you can put this thing to rest. "I did what you said and compared each page and you were right. They aren't totally identical. There are all kinds of little differences."
"Like what?" Sarah isn't looking reassured like you hoped she looks more worried.
"Well like the drawings of my favorite animal. It was always the turtle. I remember that. But, in the copy it's frogs. Every turtle is a frog."
"Okay." Sarah stirs her coffee, it's still too hot to drink. You have been worried she just thinks you made this whole thing up. But, you needed to tell someone.
"And not just that, some of the math problems have different mistakes and numbers."
"Are you certain you didn't just have two very similar journals?"
You've been over this.
-
"Well like the drawings of my favorite animal. It was always the turtle. I remember that. But, in the copy it's frogs. Every turtle is a frog."
"Okay." Sarah stirs her coffee, it's still too hot to drink. You have been worried she just thinks you made this whole thing up. But, you needed to tell someone.
"And not just that, some of the math problems have different mistakes and numbers."
"Are you certain you didn't just have two very similar journals?"
You've been over this.
You're started to get frustrated. Because Sarah keeps trying to explain it away. It's the yellow "Mead" brand notebook you bought at the five and dime. You remember wanting light blue but they only had yellow.
It's the same journal. Same dates, but also... different.
Perhaps talking to anyone else was a mistake.
"I don't think that's what this is." You say trying to hide your annoyance. "Listen, let's just talk about something else."
-
"Remember that creepy copy of my journal someone sent me? Well I think I figured it out." If you were more honest with yourself you would realize you had not 'figured it out' but you are anxious to tell your friend what you discovered see if you can put this thing to rest. "I did what you said and compared each page and you were right. They aren't totally identical. There are all kinds of little differences."
"Like what?" Sarah isn't looking reassured like you hoped she looks more worried.
-
how could this be?
Is it possible that you mailed this to yourself from another dimension?The pages are exact copies of the journal on your shelf except for one detail: The dress you had worn and colored blue, is colored red in this new mystery journal.
/s colored blue, is colored red /colored black and blue, is colored white and yellow
(FTFY) -
You're started to get frustrated. Because Sarah keeps trying to explain it away. It's the yellow "Mead" brand notebook you bought at the five and dime. You remember wanting light blue but they only had yellow.
It's the same journal. Same dates, but also... different.
Perhaps talking to anyone else was a mistake.
"I don't think that's what this is." You say trying to hide your annoyance. "Listen, let's just talk about something else."
@futurebird
Paranoia... meet Sarah, talk about the notebooks - but without actually bringing them along. Narrator may be _quite_ unreliable. -
@futurebird https://web.archive.org/web/20080804140516/http://www.dreadgazebo.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=8
I like the journal thing as a setup for a tabletop role playing game, is all.
Oh, so the Dork Tower (or KotKT) sketch was based on an older reference ?
I never knew that. -
Story Set Up:
One day you get a strange envelope in the mail. No obvious significance of the return address, it's just a shipping depot. In the large bubble envelope you find... your childhood journal. An old tattered notebook full of drawings and writings you remember well. Who could have sent it? A relative?
But there is another much more serious issue. One you are reluctant to even confront.
You never lost your old childhood journal. It's right there on the shelf.
There are *two* copies.
It's of course a very nice setting, but I'd be impressed if you can expend it without resorting to the overtired time-travel, multiple-dimension or evil-twin explanations (or worse, cop out and give no explanation at all).
-
You're started to get frustrated. Because Sarah keeps trying to explain it away. It's the yellow "Mead" brand notebook you bought at the five and dime. You remember wanting light blue but they only had yellow.
It's the same journal. Same dates, but also... different.
Perhaps talking to anyone else was a mistake.
"I don't think that's what this is." You say trying to hide your annoyance. "Listen, let's just talk about something else."
Hanging out with Sarah was great, but you probably did drink a little too much. Laying in bed you look at you phone 8:20am. You need to be at work in less than a hour. Calling in sick is tempting, part of you wants to look at the two notebooks again. Next time you'll bring them with you and show Sarah. Then maybe she'd understand why you are so shook up.
You go to the book shelf to look at them again. And find that both of them are gone.
-
Hanging out with Sarah was great, but you probably did drink a little too much. Laying in bed you look at you phone 8:20am. You need to be at work in less than a hour. Calling in sick is tempting, part of you wants to look at the two notebooks again. Next time you'll bring them with you and show Sarah. Then maybe she'd understand why you are so shook up.
You go to the book shelf to look at them again. And find that both of them are gone.
And as you wake up more you realize calling in sick isn't an option. Not today. You are freaked out about the missing journals, but you need to get to work. You dress and wash up as quickly as possible and dash to the elevator.
You are on the 8th floor.
You live on the 6th floor.
That was not your apartment.
-
And as you wake up more you realize calling in sick isn't an option. Not today. You are freaked out about the missing journals, but you need to get to work. You dress and wash up as quickly as possible and dash to the elevator.
You are on the 8th floor.
You live on the 6th floor.
That was not your apartment.
@futurebird I'd read the hell out of that. Of course, i just finished a manuscript with a ton of Mandala effect stuff.

-
And as you wake up more you realize calling in sick isn't an option. Not today. You are freaked out about the missing journals, but you need to get to work. You dress and wash up as quickly as possible and dash to the elevator.
You are on the 8th floor.
You live on the 6th floor.
That was not your apartment.
@futurebird Now I'm worrying whose pants I just threw on.
-
And as you wake up more you realize calling in sick isn't an option. Not today. You are freaked out about the missing journals, but you need to get to work. You dress and wash up as quickly as possible and dash to the elevator.
You are on the 8th floor.
You live on the 6th floor.
That was not your apartment.
Your husband is Mr. Pelicot.
(It's a horror story now) -
And as you wake up more you realize calling in sick isn't an option. Not today. You are freaked out about the missing journals, but you need to get to work. You dress and wash up as quickly as possible and dash to the elevator.
You are on the 8th floor.
You live on the 6th floor.
That was not your apartment.
You have already pushed the button on automatic and look behind you at the door of the apartment where you slept. 8L not 6L the same exact floor plan just two levels up.
You half expect the door to open. Should you go back? But you have locked the door.
Maybe you will call in sick after all.
Too panicked to take the elevator you run down the stairs to 6L. Rush to the door and then stop.
What if someone is in there?
-
You have already pushed the button on automatic and look behind you at the door of the apartment where you slept. 8L not 6L the same exact floor plan just two levels up.
You half expect the door to open. Should you go back? But you have locked the door.
Maybe you will call in sick after all.
Too panicked to take the elevator you run down the stairs to 6L. Rush to the door and then stop.
What if someone is in there?
To your horror the door knob turns. You back away making too much noise and duck back into the darkness of the stairwell just soon enough to see yourself run past, late for work. You listen. Then realize that "you" will also notice that it is the wrong floor and so you flee down the stairs.
You're going to work after all. At least at work things are normal.