xenoglots

[xenoglots]

“The beginning of winter. The dying of the light, when warmth turns to cold.”

blue noon. / @arielshepard

                  ❛     sounds pleasant.       ❜

                  louise holds her tea close to her mouth as she holds audience with the –––– being in front of her. it is woman and not woman, it is something earth has never encountered before. and you know. this is coming from the linguist that figured out how to talk to heptapods.

                  at the gala, a woman she doesn’t recognize is there and shakes her hand and the handshake is cold. in her classroom, a person much older than the other students sits in the back and leaves before everyone else can shut their books. later on, she asks the one in front of her about it. she knows the answer. she doesn’t consider it now. not yet, not in this moment.

                  ❛     they told me three–thousand years and                   they’d need our help. but –––– that’s not the                   only thing that’s in trouble, huh ? that’s not                   the only end to stop.       ❜

                  there is no end, none, and she watches hannah take her last breath and be born again. she sits at this table, alone with a tea, with wine, with water or tea again or wine and wine and wine and she is alone at this table. she takes another sip of the tea, noting it’s cooling off. it’s gotten easier to ignore the flips and trips, how her brain sometimes stumbles within a moment. but she holds herself in this one.

                  ❛     what’s coming ? what already has                   begun ?       ❜

[xenoglots]

spacepiratemaz:

WHERE IN THE INTERNET IS GEM ?

RP BLOGS: johanna mason / thg –– @illripyourthroat –– main, current hiatus valkyrie / mcu –– @trashkyrie –– active maz kanata / sw –– @spacepiratemaz –– active  dr louise banks / arrival –– @xenoglots –– revamp / you are here k–2so / sw ––– @surviveinspace ––– current hiatus ………. i know my bullshit he’ll be back soon personal: @fieryfigrindan twitter: @ gemslaw discord: available for mutuals.

[xenoglots]

“Okay. So what do we do for eight minutes?”

blue noon. / @qdir.

                  ❛     oh ! oh, uh –––––– hm.       ❜

                  louise banks is meticulous, and understands a lot of what they are to do and what is to be done. but this –––––– idle play ? no, she didn’t count this in. she didn’t count on the idea that the other would actually bring it up, either. it makes her awkward, shifting on her feet, and so she shrugs.

                  ❛     i guess. we can talk ? small talk, if you’d                   wish, or perhaps you can tell me about what                   you can do, i can tell you what i can do ––––                   which isn’t much. really. just, you know. the                   uh, language things. time also, a bit different                   for me than most humans. at least right now.                   everyone catches up eventually, i think, but it                  is beyond what i live through and see and –––                   you know what i can do for eight minutes ? not                   ramble. yeah, that’s a good idea. perfect.       ❜

[xenoglots]

–––––––––– AS SOON AS YOU START THINKING ABOUT THE BEGINNING, IT’S THE END.

[xenoglots]

‘ be patient and tough; one day this pain will be useful to you. ’

poetry. / @whinedarksea.

                  she doesn’t look up. she never does and she never will. perhaps that is a cowardice, but she likes to think it’s not. it’s the awful truth. she knows this day and that one day and the next day and the last day, too. she knows all of it. and she knows the pain of it all, too. in truth : he tells the truth. this pain is good for her ; it teaches her something. and it’s not as bad as hannah aches. ( born and dying in the same breath, clutching baby fingers and stomping terrible two feet away at the same time. ) but it hurts. and it heals, eventually. already. and it’s life.

                  ❛     yeah ––– yeah, i know. i know.       ❜

                  so that is when she finally looks up, and she nods as she straightens herself almost automatically. everyone always has to bury someone, it’s a simple truth of life. sometimes louise just doesn’t pay attention to who it is at the time.

                  ❛     but the usefulness doesn’t really help                   right now, does it ?       ❜

[xenoglots]

sentence prompts ➝  poetry starters

‘  life— the thing that happens to us.  ’

‘  you owe no one your forgiveness.  ’

‘  how’s that for a happily ever after?  ’

‘  silence has always been my loudest scream.  ’

‘  when I die, do not waste a minute mouring me.  ’

‘  “no” is short for “fuck off.”  ’

‘  you shine brighter than all the starlight there has ever been or ever will be.  ’

‘  i bet you regret making an enemy out of me.  ’

‘  we cannot control what we remember  ’

‘  i don’t even believe in people.  ’

‘  it takes courage to grow up and become who you really are  ’

‘  i am a world of uncertainties disguised as a girl.  ’

‘  whatever it is that stirs your soul, listen to that. everything else is just noise.  ’

‘  i like the disaster of the night sky, stars spilling this way and that as if  they were upturned from a glass.  ’

‘  resist much, obey little.  ’

‘  be patient and tough; one day this pain will be useful to you.  ’

‘  i am a dreamer with empty hands and I like the chill.  ’

‘  i deserved someone who was willing to stay  ’

‘  you’re everywhere except right here and it hurts  ’

‘  time doesn’t obey our commands  ’

‘  girls like her were born in a storm.  ’

‘  only the brave and the broken are kind in this world.  ’

‘  people aren’t born sad; we make them that way.  ’

‘  some people are born with tornados in their lives  ’

‘  there is nothing scarier in their minds than a girl who knows the power of her flames.  ’

‘  tell them to be proud of every bit of themselves—  ’

‘  some are made of witchcraft and wolf and a little bit of vice.  ’

‘  these scars have never diminished your worth, they are the stories that make you whole.  ’

‘  and you say you are broken, but broken mirrors like you create the most beautiful patterns of light.  ’

‘  but what could you possibly see in her?  ’

‘  everything, I see everything in her, because the stardust that makes her is the same stardust that makes me.  ’

‘  did you really think she was a tender flower you could trample upon, and damage her very soul?  ’

‘  you clutter my mind  ’

‘  i close my eyes and see infinite galaxies  ’

‘  i long for a life i have control of  ’

‘  and all i have now are memories that feel like dreams  ’

‘  don’t be afraid of getting hurt  ’

‘  you have to fight to be alright  ’

[xenoglots]

“Blue Noon” by Scott Westerfeld Sentence Starters

“Amazingly polite. For example, you’d never hang around when you’re not wanted.“ “You know me, always happy to rescue people.” “Just don’t push too hard, cowgirl.”   “Okay. So what do we do for eight minutes?” “They left it on my kitchen table, while I was sleeping. If they wanted to kill me, I’d be dead, right?” “Wolves don’t eat other wolves.” “Feels different in here somehow.” “Cats. Smug, self-centered little beasts.” “So wait. What’s the bad news, then?” “And it’s true, he really likes her. He buys her tons of clothes.” “But that doesn’t prove the world is ending.” “Don’t know. Don’t care.” “What the hell (name)? You’re actually going to trust her?” “Fine, let’s talk. But in exactly twenty minutes I’m out of here.” “You know. Seeing as how you kidnapped me, you’ve got a lot of nerve acting like I’m the bad guy.” “It doesn’t matter how old you are. A monster is still a monster.” “We only do nasty, secret things to keep everyone safe. Without us in charge, you’re all doomed.” “Just don’t sit there pretending like I’m some kind of demon, alright?”  “That’s usually the problem with brilliant plans: not-so-brilliant people.” “You mean, my phone is tapped?” “That sounds … unfair.” “Okay. I want you to pull that knife back a few inches.” “You’re just saying that so I won’t slit your throat.” “And they might not be here yet because they really did get busted by the cops. In which case, we’re both lucky we didn’t go along.” “Yeah, well. I’m sorry too. Didn’t mean to rant, but I thought maybe you might want to know what I was thinking for a change.” “Could those of us who aren’t psychic at least get some subtitles?” “So now that I’ve explained reality to you, what are you going to tell me in return?” “I’d hate if you gave up jealously. It’s probably the only thing in the world everyone’s good at. Everyone besides me, of course.” “This isn’t about me, though. It’s about us.” “She has the same good point that most scumbags have: she makes me feel a lot better about myself.” “You have no idea what I am.” “What have they done to you?” “We’re knocking at your door! We’ve found you at last. We’re coming for you!” “You actually let her touch you?” “The beginning of winter. The dying of the light, when warmth turns to cold.” “Hey, now there’s a snappy greeting card: ‘Hope that you and yours have a lovely coming of darkness.’” “I can’t believe you! This is where we first kissed!” “It seems like we’re always in crisis mode.” “In my fantasies I’m more of a rock star who can fly. And has no little sister.” “We have to get used to the fact that we can’t save everyone.” “You’re calling me stupid. Look in a mirror.” “That’s what I like about (city/town name): Always something different.” “Don’t worry about me.” “The end of the world … it’s all my fault.” “We can’t let this go on. We have to try.” “You’re a fool to hate me, (name).” “I don’t hate her. Still, she’s not exactly road trip material.” “I’m still sorry, you know. For what I did to you.”

[xenoglots]

–––––––––– AS SOON AS YOU START THINKING ABOUT THE BEGINNING, IT’S THE END.

[xenoglots]

Speech was a bottleneck because it required that one word follow another sequentially. With writing, on the other hand, every mark on a page was visible simultaneously. Why constrain writing with a glottographic straitjacket, demanding that it be just as sequential as speech?…Semasiographic writing naturally took advantage of the page’s two–dimensionality; instead of doling out morphemes one at a time, it offered an entire page full of them all at once.

Ted Chiang, “Story of Your Life” (via wordswilling)

[xenoglots]

What happens now?

They arrive.

[xenoglots]

If you could see your whole life from start to finish, would you change things?

[xenoglots]

[xenoglots]

[xenoglots]

what people think linguistics is: i can speak 14 languages fluently

what linguistics actually is: god i love the consonant-vowel structure in polynesian languages

[xenoglots]

Descriptivists of the world, feel free to use this as a response to language criticism whenever you see fit!

[xenoglots]

“Hey, now there’s a snappy greeting card: ‘Hope that you and yours have a lovely coming of darkness.’”

blue noon. / @the27percent.

                  ❛     listen, if you have a better way to tell the                   world that this is inevitable i would really love                   to hear it !      ❜

[xenoglots]

sinninggod:

‘ what? ‘ he asks in surprise, looking up from the paper. ‘ seriously? ‘ a smile’s working its way up to his lips. no one’s ever really… offered to teach him. the ones that have always get frustrated, get tired of dio & how he learns in general. he’s a terrible student, but maybe, he figures, some of the humanity in him with jangle that terribleness around. ‘ i mean, if you want to deal with a pain in the ass that can’t read, hell yeah. ‘

                  perhaps he isn’t used to people being helpful. it wouldn’t surprise louise ; along the years of her life, she has come across more than her fair share of unpleasant people. but his smile makes louise smile back. she has done enough work for a lifetime, sure, but any opportunity within language and the written word snags at louise too quickly and easily. the brain works wonders, and is something perhaps society will never be able to fully understand. but language holds a key to it that louise can’t ever put down, and she can’t help but volunteer herself immediately.

                  ❛     i taught my kid how to read, and i doubt you                   can have more stubbornness than her. do you                   only have symptoms of dyslexia and reading                   hinderances within english ? perhaps it would                   help at first to translate documents into a lang––                   uage easier for you, if that hasn’t become lost                    in the same way english has. and then we can                   tackle english and your dyslexia along the way.      ❜