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Messages - Carillon

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21
General Discussion / Phoenix Quests
« on: October 18, 2008, 06:57:16 pm »


Note: Click on the image to be directed to my GM introduction thread.
The following users thanked this post: Serissa, Chongo, Hellblazer

22
Development Journals and Discussion / A letter, dated Oclar 26, 1436
« on: August 12, 2008, 07:30:56 am »
To my daughter, on the day of her birth:

Welcome to the world, my little storm child. Conceived in a storm and born in a storm ... I should have known that you were on your way when I felt the winds pick up yesterday morning. You woke me before dawn with your movements, and we snuck out together to watch the sunrise while Connor and Anna were still sleeping. We were on the same bench by the shore that I was sitting on when I first knew you were a girl, a few days ago. I cannot explain that strange certainty in any reasonable or adequate way, but I knew right then, in that moment, that you were not a son, but my beloved daughter. I wish I'd known too that sitting there watching the sea as the clouds rolled in and the sun came up yesterday morning would be the last dawn we'd share in the same body, but I don't think it made it less special to be surprised by your arrival that night.

Perhaps you will understand all of this better one day when you have a child of your own, when your belly starts to swell and you feel new life quicken within you. Whether or not you planned for it, I think when you first feel your own son or daughter stir within your womb you will know it was right. At least, that is how it was with me, with your father and I on the Isle of Mist at the temple, me lying on my back in the wet grass and him sitting beside me. Up until that moment, I wasn't sure I wanted my life to change. I won't lie to you, my sweet, for I would rather you always know the truth of your circumstances. I wasn't certain I wanted you then, in those early days. You were an unexpected blessing, and one it took some time for me to make my peace with. A lot changed in that moment I felt you first move inside me though. Not everything ... I still had my doubts and worries. I still do, though they are different doubts. I gaze down at you now and worry that I won't be able to do this, or that some cruel twist of fate will tear us apart. I worry too that you are far more than I deserve, but I no longer doubt that I want you.

It is a struggle to find the right words as I write this. One glimpse of you has stolen all of my words. I thought I had known enough silence to last a lifetime during those years all alone on Alindor, but when I hold you in my arms and feel your heartbeat and the warmth of your skin, and the world holds still for the two of us, it is a different and delightful kind of silence. How can I capture in a phrase the beauty of your tiny, delicate features? How can I write how my heart swells with tender pride to feel the strength with which you grasp my finger? The only word I could find to give adequate voice to these and a hundred other thoughts was the word I found myself using over and over again as I held you in my arms for the first time: perfect. There is no other way to put it, my darling. You are perfect in every way I could have conceived, and so many I never expected.

I wonder how old you will be when you read this, if you ever do. I wonder if we will still know each other then, and if we do what kind of life we will have shared. I hope you have a life full of joy and love, but also one not empty of a few tears and a little hardship. That seems like a strange wish, I know, but perhaps you will come to understand this too. I want you to experience everything that life has to offer, and to be the beautiful, vivacious, strong, independent, passionate woman I know you can become. You are already some of those things, my beloved girl--beautiful, for one--but to gain true strength of character, to learn the value of joy and love and friendship, I fear you will also have to know sadness and adversity and loneliness at times. Do not be afraid of these times or shy away from them, and most of all don't lose hope. Have faith in yourself, and know that somewhere deep within you lies the courage to endure all of the trials life will bring you. Remember that there is beauty in the storm, and like the storm, many of the best things in life are unpredictable, challenging, and impossible to control.

Most of all, I hope that no matter what happens, you will never have to ask yourself whether I loved you, but just in case (and because even the best divination can do no more than offer a glimpse of what is yet to come), let me say now: yes, oh yes. I loved you, my beautiful daughter, even on this, the very first day we have been able to look into each other's eyes. When you didn't cry when you first came out of my womb, I thought my heart had stopped. And then I reached for you, and felt your tiny body against mine, and heard you take your very first breath and make your very first sound, and my heart started again but everything else had changed in an instant. I thought I loved you a little when you first moved within me, and I knew I loved you when you were turning lazy somersaults in my belly later on, or kicking me as I made The Curvaceous Lady sing for you. And yet those feelings pale in comparison to the overwhelming surge of emotion that swept over me like a tide the moment I looked upon you and held you to my breast, close to my heart.

I sit here and write this in awe. I am awed by the miracle of your presence, by the way your ears taper to little points, by the simple fact that you have ten fingers and ten toes, each ending in a perfect little pink nail (trust me on this one—I know, as I have counted them each dozens of times already!). I am awed by the way when I speak to you, you are already aware of my voice, and when I look down at you, sometimes you seem to look right back at me as if you know who I am.

I hope you have a wonderful life, my beautiful little daughter. I hope I am there to share in it, embracing the good and bad alike, watching you take your first steps into this big, fearsome world. I hope I am able to watch you grow and change with the years, both in body and spirit, becoming more with each challenge you face with open arms and a warm heart. I hope, I hope, I hope ...

And yet ... because life can be cruel and unexpected, and because though I hope that you will never have to ask yourself whether I loved you I refuse to leave this up to chance, let me say now, again: yes. Oh yes. A thousand times yes, my daughter. Whatever else may come, know that I held you on this very first day of your life, of our life together, and loved you with all my heart.

Your mother,
Jaelle
The following users thanked this post: Pseudonym

23
General Discussion / Away For A Few Days
« on: May 12, 2008, 07:37:05 pm »
Just a quick note to anyone who's looking for either me or one of my characters in the next couple of days that you may find it harder to catch me online than usual. I'm on Vancouver Island doing some volunteer work in schools for the week and am very busy, but I'll likely be home again this weekend.

Ciao!

Carillon/Cailina

Edit: Oh! As a random aside, if you're curious about what Vancouver Island looks like, take a browse through landscapes, nature, wildlife, etc in this photo gallery.

That's where I grew up before I became a city girl!
The following users thanked this post: lonnarin, miltonyorkcastle, Hellblazer

24
General Discussion / Pssst ...
« on: March 24, 2008, 10:11:21 am »
*whispers*

I have it on good authority that Darkstorme has a birthday today, so make sure to tease him mercilessly about his old age. But don't tell anyone I said anything!

*shifty eyes*

;)
The following users thanked this post: miltonyorkcastle, Stephen_Zuckerman

25
Introduce Yourself / A Much Belated Hello
« on: December 02, 2007, 03:43:12 am »
Dear Layonara ...

Or something like that. How do you introduce yourself to a community you've been part of for a year? That's the question I've been pondering and grappling with for a while now, and up until this point it's been much easier to just postpone creating this introduction than actually find an answer.

So why now, you ask? Well, today, as I calculate it, is my Layonara birthday—the one year anniversary of the approval of my first character—and as such is probably the most appropriate day I can think of to do this. So here goes, confession number one:

Until joining Layonara, I had never roleplayed a day in my life. In fact, had someone inquired as to my roleplaying abilities in casual conversation, my likely response would have been to blush and change the subject. I also hacked and slashed my way through the original campaign module and its offspring, pillaging, looting, and acting with a deep sense amorality that quite horrified my partner, who had given me the game to try. My first character may sound familiar to a few of you: a half-elven neutral good ranger who used a longbow and longsword. (Isn't it amazing how you can remain neutral good and still steal family heirlooms and do horrible things when they hand good points out like candy?)

My partner was the one who discovered Layonara, and after watching him enjoy it for a few months I was eventually goaded by him into submitting a character, Arynne Liadon, who basically became a much more moral version of my OC character, since unlike her predecessor, Arynne's actions had consequences. Well, one turned into four, as Eruanna Glorandir, Chiara Laecelam'lela and Jaelle Thornwood were all born into the world. And my partner? Yes, he still plays, though more rarely now. He's since discovered a myriad of other ways to torment the playerbase. Many of you know him, either as Darkstorme or Ouroboros. (I suppose he's my second big confession. :D Try not to hold him against me!)

What else? I'm twenty-two, five-foot-eight, green eyed and brown haired, and lest this start to sound like a personal ad, I will refrain from commenting on my thoughts on candlelit dinners and long walks on deserted beaches. I'm a student, though the end of my university days draw nearer with each December final. I'm crazy enough to stay at university even once I finish my biology major and English minor though, and will soon be entering my university's education program. Which, it occurred to me one night, means I'm going to spend almost the rest of my life going to school. Oh well. :) I'll manage somehow.

How much more should I divulge? After a year of silence, I suppose I owe you all more than that. Well, I've never lived more than a few minutes from the ocean, and honestly can't imagine living away from the sea. I've known how to swim almost my entire life, worked as a lifeguard, a swimming instructor, learned to sail, kayak, and row. I've played rugby, soccer, and field hockey, and a handful of musical instruments. I love tea, coffee, and chocolate, and not just because each go extremely well with a good book. I was always a precocious reader, though now I am merely a voracious one, and my tastes range from the Romantic poets to the Victorians, to American modernism and noir, to the fantasy classics ... I could go on forever, but as this is already lengthy I'll refrain from listing my favourites right now.

Well, I've said a bit about me, but I suppose I should say a little about my characters as well. I suppose it is true that we all sculpt from the clay of our own lives, and this is almost certainly the case with me as well. However, I am as unlike my characters as they are unlike each other. I can see myself reflected in all of them, but they have their own lives to live and I am content to watch them develop in the world you have all helped shape. So let me conclude with thanking you all, for taking me into your world and letting me explore it, and for helping spin the stories we weave together for our characters. I cannot say how much I have enjoyed and continue to treasure the time I spend with you all.

~Carillon

26
General Discussion / Free Pie!
« on: September 26, 2007, 05:58:23 pm »
Ahem ... now that I have your attention ...

I'm going to be running an RP event next Friday (Oct. 5) with another player, and since not everyone checks the player event calendar, I thought I would post it here as well.

The event will be a guided nature walk by two rangers, one of Folian S'pae and one of Katia. Little to no combat, just good old RP and lots of interaction with animals. We've even scheduled it after Lord of the Forest's Friday quest, so anyone wanting to make it can.

So, if you've ever wanted to have your character see a wolf up close or feed a deer an apple, now's your chance!

(And just so no one will accuse me of false advertising, there will be free slices of pie, all baked by Arynne, and maybe even a few drinks around a campfire afterwards.)

Hope to see some of you there!

If there are any questions, please post them in this thread, too.
The following users thanked this post: Pseudonym

27
Fixed Bugs / Character Submission Wizard
« on: March 18, 2007, 05:26:19 am »
Hello there,

I recently attempted to post my latest character submission using the character submission wizard. I accessed the wizard from the link on the sticky in the character submission forum, filled in all the parts applicable to me and entered my bio. I then previewed my post, which seemed fine, and attempted to post it.

I was redirected to the main layonara page. Upon trying the whole process again, the same thing occurred. I posted my submission in the traditional way, but I thought I should let someone know that there may be a problem with the wizard. Please let me know if I can provide you with any further information on the topic.

Thanks,
Carillon
The following users thanked this post: orth

28
CNR Suggestions/Discussion / Fish -- Not just for fillets anymore!
« on: January 16, 2007, 06:35:19 pm »
As an aspiring fisher (the person kind, not to be confused with the cute furry ones in the Dinen Forest), I have been delighted and amazed by the variety of fish I have been able to pull out of the rivers and lakes of Layonara's continents.

However, I have noticed that one is somewhat limited in the ways available to prepare said fish. Consequently, I propose (only half in jest ;)) a series of new recipes.


Honey Smoked Salmon (baker's oven):

1 honey
1 branch hickory
2 pepper
4 salt
1 fillet salmon


Stuffed Trout:

1 trout fillet
1 steamed rice
4 white mushrooms
1 butter


Pickled Herring:

1 herring fillet
6 salt
1 clove garlic


Hickory Plank Carp: (named after the recipe from Lake Ontario, after which you eat the plank and throw away the fish)

1 carp fillet
1 hickory plank (already craftable through woodcrafting, of course)
2 salt
2 pepper
1 sage leaf


Battered Bass (The original "Fish and Chips"!)

1 bass fillet
1 corn oil
1 Broken Knuckle Beer
1 chicken egg
2 wheat meal

(Chips may also be added if a potato CNR ever shows up)


Catfish Gumbo (Down-home Ajari style.  Mmmm-mmm!)

1 catfish fillet
1 steamed rice
4 white mushrooms
1 garlic clove
4 salt
2 pepper
2 corn kernels
1 Alchemist's Fire (for heat!)
1 bucket water


Curried Pike

1 pike fillet
1 ginger root
1 garlic clove
2 yellow mushroom
2 pepper
1 cow's milk



Let's give fish the culinary respect they deserve! Voice your opinions, or suggest additional recipes ...

~Carillon
The following users thanked this post: Hellblazer, Timmy0420

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