I lead a relatively drama free life. Whenever I sense someone is trying to start something I generally try to ignore it. My life is busy enough, and interesting enough (to me anyway) to not have to bother with pointless conflict for the sake on conflict. There is a large segment of the population that lives on it in various ways.
The most common appears to be living vicariously through other people's conflicts. The most obvious being people that obsess over celebrities lives. This type of person thrives off of the media sensation that surrounds their target. There is always the feeling that the media isn't treating the target fairly, and it creates a conflict within the person's mind. Although this is a sad type of drama seeking behavior, it is mostly benign because the only downside for the people around this person is having to hear the boring stories about the unfair treatment of the target.
Another more insidious form is the type of person that causes conflict with family and friends purely on the basis of the desire for conflict. This person will create arguments out of anything available. A simple phone call about what they are doing the next day can quickly escalate into a fight about how that person is never left alone by the caller. Perhaps the saddest aspect of this sickness is that they attract each other. People who thrive on conflict seek out other people who thrive on it because only people with the same sickness can last.
There is no cure for this illness. The only thing the sane person can do it limit their exposure to the conflict driven, and make sure you don't vote them into public office.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Life in the Cage
The world I have had in my mind for years is really just a prison for the inhabitants. All who have ventured out into the world have never returned.
To the west are the Wild lands. Rolling hills, massive forests, dry deserts, and other inhospitable lands. Many attempts have been made to colonize the Wild Lands, all have failed. The creatures that roam the lands are only described in myth, and all are described as death incarnate. To the distant west are the Elf lands.
The rest of the lands are surrounded by vast seas, and no expedition has returned. The common thought is that there are sea monsters that swallow the ships whole. In reality a race of water breathing humans destroys the ships and places the ship's crew on a safe island. They feel that land humans are trespassing, and the other lands are populated with horrors that no human should ever have to face.
To the west are the Wild lands. Rolling hills, massive forests, dry deserts, and other inhospitable lands. Many attempts have been made to colonize the Wild Lands, all have failed. The creatures that roam the lands are only described in myth, and all are described as death incarnate. To the distant west are the Elf lands.
The rest of the lands are surrounded by vast seas, and no expedition has returned. The common thought is that there are sea monsters that swallow the ships whole. In reality a race of water breathing humans destroys the ships and places the ship's crew on a safe island. They feel that land humans are trespassing, and the other lands are populated with horrors that no human should ever have to face.
The Origin of My World
While I was at work it struck me, a way to explain where the magical powers came from. I had always intended for my fantasy world to exist on Earth, just in some different time. it may be cliche, but it gives a sense of connection to the fantasy realm.
The basic premise is that the stories take place in the far distant future, and all evidence and knowledge of our civilization is long gone. Long ago people built massive underground thermal power generators. The massive amount of power generated was transmitted through the air, and used by specially designed machines to convert the power into usable electricity. The machines were designed to be self-maintaining, and were designed to run for as long as Earth existed.
A plague of unknown origins spread across the world, killing billions. In order to survive, small communities of people completely shut themselves off from the rest of the world. These small groups of humans in time lost all of the great knowledge gained over countless centuries.
With intense selective pressures a terrible reality, humanity began to rapidly change. New species of humanity emerged. Some became incredibly long lived, others moved into the seas, while some groups shrunk many times over. A particularly large group evolved a very unique trait.
Over time their bodies developed the ability to tap into the massive amount of unused power flows in the air. The tapped power manifested itself into the magical powers described elsewhere.
The basic premise is that the stories take place in the far distant future, and all evidence and knowledge of our civilization is long gone. Long ago people built massive underground thermal power generators. The massive amount of power generated was transmitted through the air, and used by specially designed machines to convert the power into usable electricity. The machines were designed to be self-maintaining, and were designed to run for as long as Earth existed.
A plague of unknown origins spread across the world, killing billions. In order to survive, small communities of people completely shut themselves off from the rest of the world. These small groups of humans in time lost all of the great knowledge gained over countless centuries.
With intense selective pressures a terrible reality, humanity began to rapidly change. New species of humanity emerged. Some became incredibly long lived, others moved into the seas, while some groups shrunk many times over. A particularly large group evolved a very unique trait.
Over time their bodies developed the ability to tap into the massive amount of unused power flows in the air. The tapped power manifested itself into the magical powers described elsewhere.
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