(no subject)

[zanarkandian]

Hey guys.

[Tidus's apartment looks even more cramped than usual. Looks like someone went overboard on his recent shopping trip. He greets the camera with a tired wave.]

So...maybe it's not my place to go poking around into everybody's business, but I'm getting the feeling that things are kind of a bummer lately. We've lost a lot of friends and family. And I know I didn't really know them, or most of you, that well, but I had some ideas to help with that? Maybe?

First idea: laugh about some ridiculous stuff they did. Helps if you do it with a friend, so they can make fun of your goofy face. Or maybe that's just a me thing? Anyway, laughing helps.

Second: It's okay to be sad for a while. Maybe you have to ignore it for a bit if there's something really important you need to focus on, but it's okay to take your time.

And finally, you could always kick a ball really hard. Hey, I've got plenty?

Comments

[defenestraighttomyheart]

When I was little, I grew up in a tiny apartment in East Point. My dad made it up to a police lieutenant before he retired, my mom owned a bakery.

So, after the shootout that blew out his kneecap, my dad spent a lot more time back home. I'd always see him watching those old black and white movies with the hardboiled detectives. Casablanca, the Maltese Falcon, Chinatown, and Columbo. I'd sit down and watch them with him. I think it reminded him of all the stuff he did his old job for. And I think a bit of that rubbed off on me, after a while.

I remember that the first time I'd ever drank was when I snuck away some of mom's firewhiskey. I put on one of my dad's old coats, a hat he picked up in a tropical vacation spot in a place called Hawaii. I went up to him one Halloween all dressed up like Humphrey Bogart, and I take a big long drag off of it and I had something all memorized to sound really cool in front of him and I immediately throw up on the floor. I think he didn't know whether or not to be disappointed, charmed, or concerned, so he comes over. And right when that one part of Laura comes around, dad put his hand on my back and the movie and him said the exact same thing at the same time.

"I can afford a blemish on my character, but not on my clothes."

[zanarkandian]

Whoa! Gotta admit, that's pretty funny. I bet he told that story over and over for years afterward.

But if that's what he was like...I bet he'd be happy to see you at work now, if he could.

[defenestraighttomyheart]

It's complicated.

He wanted me to join the force. It's not like I didn't try, but the economic situation in East Point soured a bit when I was going through academy. Laid me off before I even put on a uniform and never even put me on record. I don't think he'd particularly like that I'm technically running for red team now, but I think even he would have to begrudgingly say that if he were in my shoes, he'd be hard pressed for ways that he would handle things differently.

Then again, mom and dad are both in a old folk's village down in Florida, so maybe that's toned him down a bit.

[zanarkandian]

Geez, that's tough. But you're doing a great job out here with us, from what I know. So. Thank you.

Is Florida some kind of paradise?

[defenestraighttomyheart]

Well, it could be, if it weren't for the crocodiles.

And the snakes.

And the people.

... Why do we send our elderly over there?

[zanarkandian]

...what? Those are big monsters, right?

That doesn't sound too safe.