Realm of the InterNutter

Thoughts, stories and ideas.

Challenge #01554-D093: A Rovin' Heart

"Scrounger" Noun, a person or being who collects discarded objects and turns them into (a) ready cash. (b) something useful - often re-purposed. -- Knitnan

Tolerance is a wonderful thing, and more of it happens on the relatively lawless edges of society than it does in the lawful middles. Law likes to build a bubble around itself and eliminate everything that exists outside of it. But edges... edges are where interesting things happen. Sometimes, it's a plummet into destruction, but other times... you get interesting flights into strange new areas of potential.

And it's the edge stations where Humans could interact with Galactic Citizens before they were accepted into Galactic Society as mostly harmless. Such as Peripatetic Matthew, a wanderer who may or may not have begun the Loyal Order of Hitchhikers, but definitely gleaned rides to a Spacer's next survivable stop along the Edge Territories. Matthew would bring a small amount of cargo to stow into odd places and introduced quite a large number of freighter captains to the concept of luggage tetris.

But that wasn't all that Peripatetic Matthew did.

Continue Reading

Prompts remaining: 12 Submit a Prompt! Ask a question! Buy my stories!

Cheevs!

I'm getting stuff done. Hooray. Just... not all the stuff I want to do. C'est la vie, I guess. So yeah, I haven't arted.

But I did manage to clean most of the kitchen countertop. The only space left is the space covered by stuff that's due and overdue for getting washed.

I cleared out the drainer so that I can wash more stuff as time goes by.

I cooked a nice Leftovers breakfast, featuring last night's vegetables and four eggs that

Read more »

Challenge #01553-D092: The Dunwich Power Initiative

Oh, the tears of eldritch horrors? Yeah, those are technically a renewable resource. -- RecklessPrudence

"They weigh a third of a ton each, they're pure crystal and, when struck, emit an energy that can be harnessed by a sphere of aluminium. I mean, in the 1800's, that was impossible, but now..."

"Aluminium is everywhere. I get it. So how much energy can we extract from one of these things?"

"Uh... probably about 100 terawatts per tear."

Continue Reading

Prompts remaining: 13 Submit

Read more »

There's something wrong with me

I did succeed in going to Suncorp and arranging for a card to arrive in 3-5 business days, and a PIN in a separate piece of mail. Huzzah. I also succeeded in doing two twenty-minute cleaning sessions in the kitchen disaster area.

Most of it was sorting out the stuff I can clean in the dishwasher versus the stuff that I have to hand-wash, but I do now have cleaner benchtops and a lot less rubbish just hanging around.

I also succeeded

Read more »

Challenge #01552-D091: A Lesson to Learn

Something from a non-human perspective about the deaths-per-terawatt-hour rates of various power sources in the early 21st century [source #1, #2, update of #1], and the irrationality of pushing for more coal over renewables (cough cough current Australian government), or literally anything over nuclear - even without fusion - please?

...especially when you take into account that living within 50 miles of a coal-fired plant exposes you to over three times as much ionising radiation per year as living within the same

Read more »

I might have a problem

We went out to see some movies, today. Fun was had. Expense was found. Expense in the form of some new vinyl LP's.

My 45's are really getting crowded out, now. And I might need to order some proper LP storage at some point so that I can stack these udder-buckers... because my vinyl collection is getting just the teensy-tiniest bit FIRKIN ENORMOUS.

And I show no signs of stopping because I adore vinyl.

That said... even the cheap vinyl comes out

Read more »

Challenge #01551-D090: Case Studies in Strangeness

(A scientist's notes while monitoring a human's thoughts)

While trying to focus, the subject held an intense discussion with itself berating itself to focus.

If the scans are anything to go by, it has not enabled the desired effect. -- RecklessPrudence

Everyone knows that humans are insane. The extent of that insanity and the resultant dysfunctions have yet to be completely mapped. Which is why the Centre For Human Studies exist. Sometimes, people are so desperate to know what's wrong with them

Read more »

Willpower vs won'tpower

Inertia is a wonderful thing. For limited definitions of 'wonderful'. It's inertia that got my house into a state of... eurgh. It should be intertia that, once I get going, will get it un-eurghed. I need to hire some damn cleaners, because working with someone is what motivates me the best.

Otherwise I just sit and entertain myself until I either fall asleep or time runs out on me.

Problem is, I also have severe anxiety about contacting anyone. I've had two

Read more »

Challenge #01550-D089: Inspired Desperation

This is dumb, like dosing Tasmanian Devils with meth and then stuffing them down your pants dumb. -- RecklessPrudence

"So let me get this straight," said B'tiz. Who clearly thought that ze was in error. "You are building a catapult to literally throw yourself at the enemy ship, where you will somehow infiltrate and then suborn one of their vessels, rescue me, and leave them stranded on this micro-planet."

"Trebuchet, but yes. That's the gist of it. Trebuchet's are easier to make.

Read more »

Big day ahead

I'm taking my little darlings off to Scenic Coominya for the first week of the holidays. Which is a big, long-arse drive for me.

With luck, I might get Beloved to drive, which will be a break.

But that's pretty much all I have planned for today. Y'know. Apart from the whole story thing that will be happening later.

If I'm really lucky, I'll get to clean and then listen to one of my rescue albums.

The kids are going to be

Read more »

Challenge #01549-D088: Reminiscing

How do you know I was cursing at you back then, love? You didn't speak my language yet, and I doubt you remember exactly what I said. For all you know I was paying you lots of loud, angry compliments. -grin- -- RecklessPrudence

"You forget," said Pal. "My livesuit was recording everything. I got a full translation in time, and you were cursing me out for everything under the sky."

T'tin was taken aback. "You knew what I was calling you, and

Read more »

Queensland! Beautiful one day...

...buggered up the butt by a cyclone, the next!

Doesn't quite fit the Australian Tourism Board's idea of advertising, but neither did The Scared Weird Little Guys' Come to Australia (You Might Accidentally Get Killed).

But this is definite proof that Earth is a Deathworld and Australia ups the overall rating.

As you might guess, we all weathered the storm. A bit of a blackout, but at least we all had hot food before the lights went out.

I did finally get

Read more »

Challenge #01548-D087: The Good Word

We all know "Abracadabra," or, "Hocus Pocus," and sometimes, "Just Like That! Just Like That!" Then of course there's, "Please," "Excuse Me," and, "Thank You," which might stop you getting hit by someone. -- Knitnan

There was one door in the Vault that had not been opened. The SPOEns had been at it for almost a year. And it wasn't often that Shayde took her Ambassadorial Yacht anywhere at all, because she didn't like to travel without Rael by her side. And

Read more »

A bit of wet

The drawback to not paying any attention to the mainstream media is missing out on news bulletins like Cyclone Debbie. The typical summer weather is a bit late, this year, with cyclone season commencing in autumn proper, instead of late summer. Blame climate change.

I'm located south enough that cyclone season just gets us wet, most of the time, and flooded pretty often enough to be annoying. I'd stock up on frozen veg, but it's a bit difficult to get the cheap

Read more »

Challenge #01547-D086: Custom Made Babies

"No matter what side of the argument you are on, you always find people on your side that you wish were on the other." -- RecklessPrudence

"All I'm saying is that a certain amount of strengths are needed in the human genetic structure," argued Doctor Vardian. "My plan was to eliminate genetic disorders. Not... what has happened."

"Purity is more important than anything else," shouted the skinhead in the gallery. "We need to separate ourselves from the filth that has come to

Read more »