( ᴠɪᴅᴇᴏ )

[mantlepieces]

[ It's dark -- mostly because it's late, but there aren't an excess of lights on, either -- though Reggie's face is faintly illuminated by the light of his communicator screen and also something off-screen that might be a TV or bedside light. Either way, he's recognizable enough, and though he's smirking faintly his expression is otherwise somewhat blank.

He's been staying out of most of the current drama as best as any survival-oriented, cowardly narcissist can, which is pretty damn well. All things considered. Basically he hasn't been leaving the house if he can avoid it, for which has his reasons. ]

So, all right. Hear me out. Anyone else ever noticed how once you're here, you have to just start believin' in everything? Like that any kinda crap is possible and you just gotta get used to it... after a while you don't even have to think about it anymore. [ Which is, you know, nice. In his opinion. ] Nice thing about that is not having to worry so much about whatever happens, I think. No matter how bad things have gotten here, it's never been the end of the world.

... Well, not yet. [ And his brow crinkles at that, but only briefly. ] Kinda makes you think, huh? Like what's the best way to take advantage of being stuck in some world that actually takes okay care of us? Don't even bother arguing with me about that part, it's true and everyone oughta know it. We get a lot of free, fake time to kill being here, so I say it should be obvious: we can do whatever we can't do back where we came from. Anyway, what I actually wanna know is--

Anyone here made a bucket list yet?

Comments

text | just how i like it

[mantlepieces]

not the way real life matters.

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[rathercommon]

You ARE aware that there are BILLIONS OF BLOODY PEOPLE ON THIS PLANET for whom this IS their real life, right?

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[mantlepieces]

I mean for ME. all of US. we're not gonna be here forever and we might as well accept it

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[rathercommon]

Yeah? Well, if that's true - and I think that's a really short-sighted way of thinking, since you can't be completely sure - I'd say the best way to accept it is by learning to be EFFECTIVE with our time. That means making life better for the people who will be here forever, and who can die.

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[mantlepieces]

u can do that

me, I dont care about them

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[rathercommon]

UGH. People like you FRUSTRATE ME. The only way you 'don't care' about other people is if you have something SERIOUSLY wrong with you, SERIOUSLY wrong, and since only a TINY fraction of the population is like that it's FAR more likely that you DO care but are blocking yourself from feeling it. And that's total rubbish. If you didn't shut yourself off from sympathy and kindness, YOU'D be happier and THEY'D be better off.

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[mantlepieces]

well people like u frustrate ME because u cant just let it GO, how do u know I'm NOT happier BECAUSE of that

if it works why the hell not do it?

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[rathercommon]

Because it DOESN'T work. Closing your eyes to what others need eats you from the inside out. It seems easier at that moment, yeah, definitely. But the longer you go watching people who need you and doing nothing, the hollower and sicker you get. Believe me, I spent most of my life doing as I ought to have done and keeping my head down, and when I stopped, that's when I felt much better. Not that I ended up helping in the right way, but that's just my point, isn't it, that you feel better regardless of how you help.

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[mantlepieces]

says u, I feel great

what works for u isnt going to work for everyone, okay. and these people are all FINE without my help ANYWAY

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[rathercommon]

No, what works for me isn't going to work for everyone, that's true, but there's a great bloody gap between 'I take my tea with milk and two sugars' and 'There's satisfaction in making things better for people.' The first one is just a personal preference, yeah. The second one is literally programmed into every single human brain.

And they are NOT fine, you need to LOOK AROUND. There are SO MANY of them who have been killed or hurt or had their livelihoods threatened. Or who are scared, now, because war's probably coming and we're not helping that.

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[mantlepieces]

theyre hardly in much worse shape than we are, and as the guests here I think we're entitled to sit out the draft if we feel like it. we dont owe them anything just for being here. and even if we DID I aint going out of my way for a bunch of strangers.

its not worth it even if I know ur gonna argue with me that it is

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[rathercommon]

Not in worse shape than we are? Are you demented? How are we at ALL in bad shape?

And I'm not talking about any draft, am I-- I don't think we ought to jump into any wars. That's the way to make things WORSE for people, not BETTER. I'm talking about giving away our ridiculous wealth (which is RIDICULOUS) and our free time to feed the people who can't feed themselves. All of that.

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[mantlepieces]

thats what I'm saying. we're not and they're not. some things we got better than them and some things they got better than us, but however u wanna look at it still dont make them OUR responsibility. maybe I'd like to have my OWN life since that obviously aint happening elsewhere and maybe that life doesnt include giving everything up again to charity

like its such a crime to want to take care of ur own self all of a sudden

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[rathercommon]

Except that your own life won't matter a whit to you in the future, will it? What you do now has ZERO effect on what happens to you down the line. If you just spend all your days having fun you won't even have a memory of that fun. Right?

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[mantlepieces]

oh I know. all the more reason to get in all my fun now while I DO remember it

if we DID remember everything we did here when or if we go back home maybe Id think about it all differently, I dunno

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[rathercommon]

That makes NO SENSE. What's the point of fun if you're not going to remember it?

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[mantlepieces]

are u kidding? because its fun right NOW. at the time Im having it. the great thing about fun is how memorable it is or isnt means nothing in the present

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[rathercommon]

Erm, except that when it's DONE, it'll mean ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.

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[mantlepieces]

same goes for anything else we do here so whats the difference, except this way I actually have a good time before its done

we may be here a while, or not, pretty impossible to know for sure

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[rathercommon]

EURGH, that's NOT TRUE AT ALL. Because of what I was LITERALLY JUST SAYING. It doesn't go for the things that affect other people, does it!

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[mantlepieces]

I know, we're going in circles huh

cuz I know I already said I dont care what happens to other people, especially if I wont remember them anyway

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[rathercommon]

You should be glad we're not face to face, because I'd ABSOLUTELY slap you right now.

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[mantlepieces]

if it makes u feel better u can owe me one. slapping can be hot.

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[rathercommon]

You've apparently never been slapped PROPERLY if you think that.

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[mantlepieces]

well, Ive been saving myself for the right person