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-------- -- -----  A E R I E   O B L I V I A N A .
singular book of text wandertainment by Frank Edward Nora
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OSOAWEEK--ISSUE 013--10/20/94
<-------  ||  OsoaWeek  ||  Issues  ||  Book 1  ||  ------->
(Cup OWis013, Created v1 (4/27/99), Copyright 1999)

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[[BEGIN013OW]]



[[01013MH]] OsoaWeek013, October 20, 1994

Published by Obliviana Super Occult Amusement. Contact via e-mail at obliviana@aol.com, via voice at 1-800-OBLIVIANA, or via snailmail at 37 Gill Lane, Suite 119, Iselin, NJ 08830, USA. On America Online, contact via "Obliviana".

Copyright 1994 by Frank Edward Nora. Permission is granted to make complete, verbatim electronic copies of this ezine for the purpose of free distribution. All other forms of reproduction are forbidden without express written permission from Frank Edward Nora. This file should contain approximately 55828 characters and 1366 lines. OsoaWeek originates in the United States of America.

Statement of Purpose: OsoaWeek is the weekly ezine of Obliviana Super Occult Amusement (Osoa), an innovative and far-reaching game with an eye on the future.

See the Appendix at the end of this file for a clear explanation of what Osoa is all about. And check out the Sneak Preview below (after Contents) for an overview of what's inside this issue!

*OW*



[[02013CN]] Contents of OsoaWeek013

BEGIN
01 013 MH--Masthead
02 013 CN--Contents
03 013 SP--Sneak Preview
04 013 LO--Lord of Obliviana Revelry
05 013 NH--Nihilistica
06 013 CO--Catalog of Obliviana
* * *
07 013 SO--The State of Osoa
* * *
08 013 HR--Hemisinister Review
09 013 HT--Halfevil Times
10 013 SU--Superior
11 013 SR--Severe Repair
12 013 AX--Appendix
END

Unless otherwise noted, all contents are by Frank Edward Nora. See Appendix for more information on the Contents, codes, and searching.

*OW*



[[03013SP]] Sneak Preview of OsoaWeek013

Lucky number thirteen here! OsoaWeek's been coming out on time, every week for a full quarter of a year now. That oughtta tell ya something! Like, OsoaWeek is a darn fine publication you should download every week from now on. Right?

Lord of Obliviana Revelry (04013LO)--What the heck is wrong with this guy? You'll be wondering that when you real this rambling tirade about Sirajul and Mujibur, espresso, eating sushi in an elevator, Tarot losers, the Garden State Parkway, and a lot more. Get into it.

Nihilistica (05013NH) gives you a sort of sneak peek at two very cool video games currently under development here at Obliviana--"Blameday Sunglasses" and "Halzapular Fuzz". It's a little bit of the future available right now!

Catalog of Obliviana (06013CO) does, yes, have stuff for you to buy. Signed, numbered, stamped, and all that, these artifacts are wild little treasures. Do spend.

The State of Osoa (07013SO)--Here, the Lord of Obliviana is just totally fed up with everything, and just wants to get this issue done. He so looks forward to the coming Renaissance--you know?

Hemisinister Review (08013HR) takes critical aim at two films, one old and good and one new and good. The films are "Logan's Run" and "Pulp Fiction". Also, see how these two movies fare against all the others ever reviewed in OsoaWeek!

Halfevil Times (09013HT) brings you, once again, your Halfevil Times Horoscope. Take for example... Sagittarius (Nov 22-Dec 21) Kiss Time Warner's ass. No, assaulting Los Angeles with an AT-AT is not an impossible dream. Tell you from five seconds ago to stop following you. Tune your radio to the deluded rantings of the dictator of the mouse army.

Superior (10013SU)--Okay, "cool indoor artificial river, that feeling that falling", and "torture's not an option in that hell, pal tailor", and "meander beaks yip in dreadful holler, carving slopes of ale foams", and "so I will drink tea, restructure catalog, fight; reverse the attack". Okay?

Severe Repair (11013SR)--In this week's chapter, "Dolthethmen", we follow the wanderings of (who else) Dolthethmen, as he meets some friends of his at the mall, and experiments with some highly hazardous reality altering powers. Join our jaded hero on his odd journey into the unknowable. Not for the faint of brightness!

Appendix (12013AX) is here for you if you are unsure of all this.

*OW*



[[04013LO]] Lord of Obliviana Revelry

And here we are, at the end of the first quarter of OsoaWeek! That's thirteen big issues, this being the last! I tell ya, thank goodness, make way for the Renaissance of Obliviana--starting one week from today!

Part of the idea of the quarter is that thirteen issues, each between 50K and 100K, will fit easily on a high density 3.5" disk. Another part of the idea is that a format is established in the first issue of the quarter which will be followed by the subsequent twelve issues.

Also in the first issue of every quarter, there's a total presentation of Obliviana as it has developed up to that point. So for example, the details on Obliviana next issue will significantly expand and refine on that in OsoaWeek001.

Another major change is Ibof--the Indefinite Battery of Obliviana Files. In this, a variable number of files will be released each week in tandem with OsoaWeek--files of all sorts--sounds, radio shows, pictures, movies, games, databases, and a lot more. And because all of these will be individual files, there's a lot of flexibility in terms of handling them. That is, for storing, viewing, and organizing the files, better methods can always be developed.

But enough talk of the future. What of the present? Yeah, what of it. The present is this behind-the-scenes, long ago, getting ready kind of place. I went to Manhattan today, and it was draining. All sorts of stuff. I saw either Sirajul or Mujibur at their store--I'm not sure which one it was. I talked to comic book creator Dave Cockrum at Jim Hanley's Universe. No one was interested in him. No lines, no people, nothing. I told him that when Jim Lee was there, the line stretched all the way to Penn Station. That didn't make him feel too good.

What's the deal with all the video game arcades in Manhattan? There weren't too many to start with, and few that are there keep disappearing. There used to be two at Penn Station--Station Break and Space Station. Space Station disappeared long ago, but Station Break held on until earlier this year. Then there was Playland at Times Square. Yeah, it was a pretty scary place, but they had a lot of good games. Now that's gone, too.

One cool thing I had was a "Grande" espresso. The guy warned me it was four shot of espresso. I was unfazed. Boy did I feel good after I drank it. They've gotta be thinking of making coffee illegal--it's just too good a drug.

New York City. A lot of stuff. But New Jersey is better. Much better. It's high voltage just like NYC, but without the claustrophobia. Dude, believe me, New Jersey rules.

Um--I don't know what the f*ck's happening in my life. All I know is, my life is in major economic distress, and it comes right when I need to create the massive Obliviana Renaissance. Great. You know, I'm tired, real tired, of this starving artist crap. I want money.

So yeah, that's my goal for the second quarter of OsoaWeek--making money. How shall it be done? I don't know--maybe I'll think of something. I mean, heck, the Digital Superworld has definitely begun. And Obliviana Super Occult Amusement is something which thrives in such an environment. It's just, the Digital Superworld is so weak now in its beginning, you have to go through a lot of annoying junk to deal with it. But I will. I will.

Call me banal, I tape 120 Minutes now and then, and watch it on fast forward scan, stopping at the occasional cool video. Let me go do that now, friend. Let me go.

Eating sushi in an elevator, checking out the Super Famicom games, discovering that Cafe Skep (the place I did my one and only poetry reading) is gone, maneuvering through a swarm of Deadheads, seeing a job opportunity fizzle away, making eye contact with a beggar and seeing him perk up, asking me for money, only to be disappointed by my well-practiced ability to ignore such trash.

I realize I'm trying to make it seem like I'm cool or something, but just realize it is a way for you to get to know me better. My experiences today were okay, but I don't feel so great about it. I'm not cool for drinking a lot of espresso, or for going to Mujibur and Sirajul's store, or for brushing past two Tarot losers at Star Magic--no--it's just that, these things happened, and I felt like writing about them. So cool it with the cool thing. Let me have this dangerous Revelry. Let me be the Lord of Obliviana I want to be.

Haiti stupidity on the TV, I hear the Garden State Parkway to my left, little Star Wars Micro Machines all over, Japanese Rock and Roll Chicken alarm clock, and no money, none at all.

Gimme a break. Let's go.

Get all Obliviana!

*OW*



[[05013NH]] Nihilistica

***BLAMEDAY SUNGLASSES***
You may remember, from last week's Nihilistica, a video game called "Have Tina". Well, it's still the same game (bowling, trading cards, and religion), but I've changed the name to "Blameday Sunglasses." Look for it in the future!

***HALZAPULAR FUZZ***
Here's a top-secret video game project. It's so secret, I don't even know what it's about. Great name, though.

*OW*



[[06013CO]] Catalog of Obliviana

With more and more of your life switching over to digital, isn't it nice to be able to obtain something unique to the physical world? That's what Obliviana Artifacts are all about! Each one is signed, numbered, stamped, and very limited! So for the best in non-digital thrills, order often from the mighty Catalog of Obliviana!

You can always call 1-800-OBLIVIANA to check out how many of a given Artifact are left, and also reserve an item. Your Artifact will be held for 5 business days, awaiting your order. I keep two of everything, so the initial amount available is at least two less than the total.

To order, send check or money order made out to Frank Edward Nora, or cash (at your own risk), to the address in the Masthead. All prices include postage and handling. Guarantee: Return any Artifact within 30 days of receiving it for a full refund.

MINIATURE SUPER OBJECT 1: NON-THORIUM ANTENNA
This is a strange little Super Object I developed some time ago as an incentive item to get you to order one of my former magazines. I got no orders, though. Now, there are 40 Non-Thorium Antennas, complete with tiny plastic container and title card. 28 left. OA001. Only $3 each!

PERFECT FOVY
Fovy was a publication I released fortnightly for five issues last Autumn. Each issue is on one folded-up 11 x 17 sheet of paper, with an awesome 8-Codingseed poster on one side and cool stuff on the other, including two Zope comics per issue! A wonderful collection, bound with a paper band, and only 26 made. 24 left. OA002. Yours for $5!

PELTER CD-ROM
This is an actual CD-ROM I had pressed over a year ago, and it contains 256 of the coolest clip textures you ever saw! Being for the Macintosh, each image is a 512 pixel by 512 pixel 32-bit color image. As well, each image comes in 6 varieties! These are 32-bit, 8-bit, grayscale, tiled 32-bit, tiled 8-bit, and tiled grayscale. This product never saw commercial release because, (a) I blew all my money just producing it, and (b) I'm too lazy and wary to have anyone else produce it. So! A great bargain, with only 40 copies available. Includes the original color-photocopied cover, and a brand new insert with updated information. Requires Macintosh computer with CD-ROM drive. 38 left. OA003. Only $30 each!

READ THIS OR DIE!
An awesome collection of Zope comics spanning eight years! Contains twenty sheets of colored paper, with 40 Zope comics in all! Included are "Zope's Resin Conundrum", "Zope's Little Puppet", "Doctor Zope and the Abdomen Ghoul", and loads more! Each set not only has the usual signature, stamp, and number--but an original drawing of Zope as well! All bound together with a big binder clip. A very raw artifact! 20 made, 7 left. OA005. $4 each.

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[[07013SO]] The State of Osoa

What can I say? I just want to get this issue done so I can move on to the Renaissance. I'm really tired of a lot of things about this format. So let me just say that the State of Osoa is that it'll be much better come next week. Okay, guy?

*OW*



[[08013HR]] Hemisinister Review

***MOVIES***

LOGAN'S RUN
My memories of this one were really screwed up by the alternate storyline of the TV series. Really cool 70's sci-fi atmosphere. Lots of ambiguity. A fine film.

PULP FICTION
This movie really worried me about halfway through, but it all managed to come together at the end. I liked the non-linear storytelling, but Quentin Tarantino is a sh*tty director. Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson are superb, John Travolta has a good presence, Harvey Keitel is a real downer as usual, and Uma Thurman, an empty void of a performer, can't act at all. Good writing, but a lot of indulgences. Where'd that guy get a box of Fruit Brute in this day and age?

HOW DO THEY RATE?
(Twin Peaks Fire Walk With Me, Natural Born Killers, Sirens, LOGAN'S RUN, PULP FICTION, True Lies, The Player, The Lion King, Barcelona, Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, Surviving the Game, Trespass, Cool World, The Mask, Aladdin, Night on Earth, Forrest Gump, Backbeat, Time Cop, The Crow, Dracula, Baby's Day Out, Batman Returns, Clean Slate, The Flintstones, Thumbelina, Toys)

*OW*



[[09013HT]] Halfevil Times

HALFEVIL TIMES HOROSCOPE

Aquarius (Jan 20-Feb 18) No, the Space Shuttle Challenger hitting the Atlantic is NOT one of the Greatest Hits of the 80's. Debbie's winch is the key to your sanity. Search for tiny specks of cran-watermelon flavored pollen in the lottery store's rug. You were asked to dunk the wooden spoon in LAVA, not larvae.

Pisces (Feb 19-Mar 20) You want toffee and vegetable soup flavored Tic Tacs. Jump at the opportunity to become perpendicular. Every time you're in an elevator with other people, imagine how life would be if all of you were suddenly teleported to a hostile alien world, and had to build a new life together. Gimme some hovering.

Aries (Mar 21-Apr 19) Clean up already clean train stations in good areas. You finally figured out Rubik's Cube, but by now no knows gives a sh*t. Take a quiet moment and consider why you never notice the cool interdimensional portals in your place of residence. Who is that Leanna person, anyway?

Taurus (Apr 20-May 20) Your newspaper clippings on Gerald Ford's daughter are finally worth something, you pathetic excuse for a stalker. Try and climb into your favorite sit-com--it probably won't work, but if it does, you'll have a blast. Propose to a tree--if you don't you're not politically correct. Like raisins.

Gemini (May 21-Jun 21) Crouching for no good reason wherever you may be is the new "in" thing. The flea circus is one thing, but the flea monster truck show is another thing altogether. You are impervious to Ontario. Free the orcs.

Cancer (Jun 22-Jul 22) Carry a garrote at all times to strangle Juan Valdez and that damn donkey of his next time they teleport into your kitchen. Fling jellied turnips at those damn chanting monks. You should be ashamed of your Orca vs. Free Willie video game. Loan me ten llamas.

Leo (Jul 23-Aug 22) Kick the crap out of that annoying midget, Bilbo Baggins. An time travel opportunity to hang out with high school burnouts from the early '80s will arise. Pretend to be ominous to gain new friends. Fly over Caldor.

Virgo (Aug 23-Sep 22) The world ended in 1990, but you still refuse to accept it. You can maybe afford a bishop from the Franklin Mint "Alien vs. Predator" chess set. Don't drive around Pennsylvania without lots of pineapples in your car. Question sorority.

Libra (Sep 23-Oct 23) I know you'd like to pierce those piercing people with a bullet from a .44 Magnum, but restrain yourself. Your life abounds with semicolons. Logical positivism isn't exactly the best topic to bring up at the UFO convention. Like, forget it.

Scorpio (Oct 24-Nov 21) Try the Mark Twain look. There may be a little Seattle Slew in that glue. Be a pal and tug Quebec off the face of the Earth. Hummingbirds just love that antigravity ray of yours.

Sagittarius (Nov 22-Dec 21) Kiss Time Warner's ass. No, assaulting Los Angeles with an AT-AT is not an impossible dream. Tell you from five seconds ago to stop following you. Tune your radio to the deluded rantings of the dictator of the mouse army.

Capricorn (Dec 22-Jan 19) You're such a pervert with that telekinesis of yours. That latest wacky offer from Sprint just isn't for you. Your hair is a real Logrus in the morning. Key a 747.

*OW*



[[10013SU]] Superior

SUPERIOR 97
Cool indoor artificial river, that feeling that falling. Inn a holly a field a three a sending of coded information across waterways. A trip and into the tiny envelope the life the essence where it all goes and I, in pendular awe, regard the time and I wish for no more than a well. A well for fresh water and the spirit this is all in the overly bright vision I'll never see in manifest...

SUPERIOR 98
The ultimate task I must tolerate the (ways of the) Empress to be full. It was nine tonight and the light went out on the black ocean. D'accord the f*cking.

SUPERIOR 99
A mansion on a hill surrounded by woods, circular illusory wall, day/night, humans in mansion, bears in woods. A highway with cars, drivers, diners, and an exit--straight/wraparound feature, exit has motels, et cetera. Volcanic erupting ground, dirigible dock towers, dirigibles full wraparound. A complex subway system with stations but no above ground. Gimope humanoid cats live in medieval town. Backyards.

SUPERIOR 100
Stand up and be counted to be flaunting keelhaul galosh. Sharpwisewoman looking thru the thing of string convoy! A plan in the asp stood up and was not considered. Chocolate a chocolate a bannisters again free meadows in flight, candor in breezy dark day. Chattel for wonder, hen! Bargaining bell borehole, fell in booze, tended to and, eh, what's the status of the gape? Portions of the blender are resplendent, resplendent. I wonders when it'll occur you know I'm in a bind hey! No better whenever than then. Torture's not an option in that hell, pal tailor. That's a good nursery rhyme for a modern themes, a modern, a modern old man in friends of the animals cat, cat, rook, parrot, cat, cat, dugong!

SUPERIOR 101
Forgot this forget this I would rather pretend to know than ease into a bad crazy manner of driving thru the neighborhood after a rain. At home it's not so good, a longshot how typical! And the systems were there very good and anemone hasn't a sparks in be ethers trend, motions trending for bath again, lo, nonagon bane such soon my wise such been true, cool boon steal bang plop noodle fleas crap nary gnats. Shifting for sifters, hanging well done my silly little cat who's human wandering, talking to herself seen by another oddity, a nice alligator blacksmith but what does it occur but what in this it in never created thus, so thus and in thus it is so I assume.

SUPERIOR 102
How am I next? But something is being kept from me, something big. I'm being held down. If I don't do anything about it, I'll just flounder forever like I am now. If I fight I might get some clue as to what's going on. I quite agree.

SUPERIOR 103
Tent the beer of thought teeth. Wend away a week for bazaar a beth tethers wreck. In a stand better to wreak a pen a blast atones for elk. Meander beaks yip in dreadful holler, carving slopes of ale foams! Needing pleasing bath, intents at night, corner peep at hand! Deal fever, talent as cartoon, no over retract pan deals. Deals deal sore corner, pen prick crash danny hover for a year. In mist mysteries covers, all covers blame bag slap gag. Oven baloney super tweeze, a gargle peeve, tender sally non argon sleets. Sleeve pep perpetual nativity, matrimony never weather, blunt stipulate a crab a noodle. A tar fan layer be naugahyde, nary not bad canary. Bat baptizers brews, stool wooden balls quite immense and for you a type of serif decorative?

SUPERIOR 104
February 8, 1989. I sit here, under attack, confused, slightly manic, GREAT. So--I need to do work. But what? First, turn off the prototype zonebook. Ok. I can tonight do: Go to the office, sleep there. Or stay here, sleep here, get up early, goto office. Ok. So I should do stuff but I'm not in a very good state of mind. So I will drink tea, restructure catalog, fight; reverse the attack. Ok.

*OW*



[[11013SR]] Severe Repair

SEVERE REPAIR 13: "Dolthethmen"

Later on, Dolthethmen went to the mall.

In the bookstore, in the philosophy section, he read the following sentence from a random page of a random book:

"In this, the state of the nature of the entity, we are as to stumble upon the corroborative name."

Dolthethmen cringed.

So here he was in the bookstore, and a fairly well-stocked bookstore it was, for a mall bookstore. He reasoned that this bookstore was like a video store, only that he needn't own an expensive device to decode the contents of the books, as one would require with videos. But, he reasoned, one must learn to read to decode a book, which in the final analysis is probably more expensive than any video machine.

Ah! So many books. How much reasoning? The shroud of this reality, like a blanket, has many features. But Dolthethmen was at the mall, at the mall. And the desire he had had to go to the mall was great.

Great. But Dolthethmen knew that no matter where he went, no matter what job he had, that the core of either his satisfaction or discontent was this: his core endeavor.

Now this thing this thing had to be manifested, now that an opportunity had shown itself.

He thought, as he left the bookstore:

"Ah, the glowings of man's incandescences! Leave me now, pal day, so to embrace your sister dusk. Be, be in my mind, the lightning unbalanced. I am the holder of many such discharges of force; be not afraid of me, but rather, respect me.

"Not really hungry, but eating takes a long time and is a good way to waste time these days. Why an avoidance? Why not going ahead for the it of it? The tit. The tit. The tits the tits. I see many tits this evening, albeit clothed, and how I'd like to suck them and lick them and kiss them, but I know this will not happen. Sexuality is okay, but more a seasoning than a substance. I know nothing anymore, else that all I know...

"Be my girlfriend, I'd like to ask one of these mall pretty silly girls. But to what avail? Somethings are not right. Piranha fish these guys, eating it all up, mindless. A loner, I? Mayhap. Mayhap.

"Be my girlfriend, or at least my lay.

"Be my joy, as I avoid that which is truly important. But why avoid it? This avoidance is irrational for sure, but still I am doing it. Is it beyond my control? Yes, I believe it is beyond my control at the moment; that for the moment, I am screwed.

"So clutch me, ennui, as you always do. So clutch me."

Now Dolthethmen a while later thought:

"Here is reality. And as I go through the week, I cycle thru a variety of moods and outlooks, each relieving the pressure of the other. But somehow I must break free from this cycle. I must break free. And I will. But the disentanglement must be done in a stable manner."

Dolthethmen in the mall ran into a friend, Hasnafter.

Dolthethmen addressed him:

"Hey, Hasnafter! How are ya!"

"Yo! Dolthethmen! How goes it!"

"Ah well. You know. Visions of riding on trains and that sort of stuff."

"Well, that's cool. Hey, guess what dude, I got a new girlfriend."

"Huh?"

"A new girlfriend. And she's really hot. In fact, she's all I can think about, dude!"

"Hasnafter, in hope, be dutiful, yet severe."

"Say what, Dole?"

"Never mind. I must be going."

"Ho! Wait a second. Don't you wanna hear about my girlfriend? She has huge, shapely, succulent knockers, and..."

"No, sorry, but I'm in a hurry."

"Okay man. But take a raincheck, Dole--you REALLY wanna hear about her."

"Okay, cool. See ya later."

"Bye, man."

Dolthethmen walked away from Hasnafter, not wanting to hear of Hasnafter's good fortune, especially not now.

Dolthethmen collapsed, there in the mall, having lost all interest in continuing to interact with the world.

But he felt himself lying on the floor, and felt the stares of shoppers that he knew must be on him. But his body was heavy like a weight, a dead weight.

And he didn't move.

He must have remained that way for three or four minutes, wondering all the time when someone would take notice and come to his aid. Finally, full of wonder as to what was going on around him, he succumbed to his curiosity and opened his eyes, disgusted that he would give the world around him such heed.

As he looked around, he realized that though shoppers occasionally glanced his way, they didn't want to bother themselves with investigating further.

So Dolthethmen slowly got up and then quickly walked away, moving briskly along in the mall, smiling as sunlight from above stroked his moving form, and breathing a sigh of relief as he bolted up an escalator.

Somehow, he felt refreshed and generally well. He thought:

"Who am I? Who is Dolthethmen? I walk among these people, but am I truly one of them? Who am I? Who am I?

"I muse, say I have an exciting life, but I erase all memories and occurrences, as a yardsman trimming a hedge. So I can be pure and bereft of the foul excresions of indulgence. Yea, I do wonder who I am, but though I am vaguely in discontent, I do not abhor my life as so many others seem to abhor theirs. Do they abhor their own lives or my own? I would think, were I so important that others might abhor my life, I would revel in it and love my life.

"But what about sex? Sex seems to come in from the woodwork, to work and wreak havoc upon my sheltered soul. Life other than sex is hard enough, but with sex it becomes a real thunderstorm, I'd say. But such is life! Such is lust and living!

"Indeed, let me think where to go. The arcade. To play videogames and pinball and confounders and maybe there'll be a few hot girls in the arcade too. The arcade. Let me go to the arcade. Play some pinball, some confounders. Aye, confounders. I wonder what the world would be like without confounders? As in, just videogames and pinball. It seems to me that confounders complete a triangle, that in videogame, pinball, and confounder, some stability is formed. For who would say that in the pantheons of today there isn't a god or goddess for such amusements? I would hope a goddess, as that's potentially erotic. How I'd like to be a designer of confounders and please that goddess in my work.

"How might I explain a confounder to one on a world without confounders? Twould be tough, sure, but I can do it. Confounders are amusement machines, and to be found with and generally compared with videogames and pinball machines. They are based on the idea of actual physical happenings, as in pinball, but are quite varied, like videogames. Most pinball machines concern themselves with the motion of a small metal ball on a playfield, whereas confounders use a variety of objects, controls, and concepts.

"In cosmic terms, is human sexuality an okay corruption? Can there not be much worse corruption out there, that would corrupt one beyond human capacity just to understand or consider? If I think of a weird word, like 'therC', am I in trouble with cosmic densities? How dense is the cosmos, and man included? This line of reasoning makes my feet tingle.

"Ah! The wonder of the arcade! Ah the wonder, and glad am I that I'm not one who profits from such an endeavor, but rather, one who benefits! For I do benefit for I do enjoy it! Ah!

"But hence and hey--do I recognize someone here? That girl Emily Tare from that job I had a few years ago? There she is, over at the 'Arc of Hypnosis' videogame, with another girl, who seems to be her friend!"

So Dolthethmen strode over to the 'Arc of Hypnosis' machine, and watched as Emily's friend played, and hoped that Emily would notice him. But she didn't immediately, so he looked over at her, and stared at her for several moments and caught her attention.

"Hey!" Emily said, "I know you! What the hell are you doing here Dole?"

At that moment Dolthethmen thought:

"I pray to all the gods in existence please let me wind up in bed with this girl tonight."

Then he said:

"Just, y'know, Emily, walking around, eh."

"Well, we just got out of work so we came here for a few games. Do you know Am?" said Emily.

The other girl, Am, just got killed in the game.

"Damn it." Am said.

Emily took over the control of the game, it being her turn, and continued to speak.

"Am, this is Dolthethmen. Dolthethmen, this is Am. I used to work with him over at Mason Diode."

"How ya doin'?" Am said.

"Okay, how 'bout you? 'Am'--that's short for Ambivale?" Dolthethmen said.

"Yup...say, weren't you, uh, weren't you out in the mall before, like, asleep on the ground?"

Apparently at least Am, and possibly both Am and Emily, had seen him lying on the ground.

"Yeah, I was lying on the ground--but I wasn't asleep--I'd just momentarily lost all enthusiasm to exist, that's all."

"Highly abnormal--but I like it!" Am said.

"Dole's a bit out there, Am." Emily said.

Emily was sweet and beautiful, but Am was a homely and chunky. As Dolthethmen stood there, he instantly knew that Am would like him, that he would like Emily. and that Emily would like someone else. This was the way it always went. Yearnings were chains of paper clips in Dole's mind.

Dolthethmen thought:

"The trick here is to alter reality so that Emily likes me, the guy she likes will like Am, and Am will like this other guy. If I can but solidify my initial appraisal, and then alter reality a bit, I'm sure we can have a nice double-date. In fact, why not have Am be the girlfriend Hasnafter was referring to?"

Quickly, Dolthethmen's eyes shot onto Am's breasts, to make sure they were sufficiently huge, shapely, and succulent so as to correspond to Hasnafter's description. They were huge, but shapeliness and succulosity were in the eyes of the beholder. And indeed, Hasnafter was enough of a loser to think this girl a prize.

So Dolthethmen desired to alter reality in the following way: that Hasnafter would walk in and be Am's boyfriend, want to go out, and suggest Dole for Emily's date, and that they later split, and he and Emily go back to her apartment and make love.

Such a plan! But did he really have the ability to alter reality to such an extent? No, perhaps not, but he in that moment implored himself to remember this situation in the future when he would be in a state of greater power, and apply the reality-altering expression back in time so that the events he had just outlined would indeed occur.

The next moment brought a signaling flash and light-headedness to Dolthethmen, and he knew that the realityalter had been achieved. He knew that Hasnafter would walk in any second.

A clarification here. In referring to the altering of reality, I am referring to an innate ability on the part of an entity to change aspects of their environment in more fundamental ways than physical. Dolthethmen's strategy assumes that such a power can be applied to the past as well as the present. So he simply made a mental note that if he ever gained the ability to alter reality in a stable and effective manner, that he then alter this particular moment in the past, now the current present. Portions of this reasoning are dubious in a temporal and logical sense, but it worked in any case, though perhaps not in the same fashion as Dole expected.

But he then came a flurry of irrational fears in the face of his confidence that his realityalter was a success. Was Emily was a good lover? Did she have VD? Might he impregnate her accidentally? Would he discover later that she had other love interests? He cursed himself for not being more complete in his realityaltering guidelines.

But he figured that since the expression would still be generated in the future, he could continue to model his desired alter up to any point before a certain pathway in reality was revealed. In other words, until all the effects of the alter were apparent, could he not edit his mental note?

Well, it mattered not, as Dole turned and saw Hasnafter approaching.

"Dolthethmen!" Hasnafter said. "Long see no time! I see you found my girlfriend already--couldn't wait to hear about her from me, eh?"

In a moment of panic, Dolthethmen hoped that reality would go his way; that Am and not Emily would turn out to be Hasnafter's girlfriend.

"Girlfriend?" Dolthethmen asked

"Yeah, the most lovely girlfriend anyone could ever have..." Hasnafter said as he strode forward and put his hands on Emily's shoulder, coinciding with her last guy in the game getting killed, "Emily!"

Dolthethmen was about to collapse again, and was lightheaded, but then he heard them all laughing and saw in his panic Hasnafter embracing Am and saying:

"Ha! Just testing ya, and you didn't believe it. See? Our love for one another is so great that it's visible and nobody could believe I was going out with anyone else but Am. So hey guys--you wanna go out? Emily, I know you were complaining that you didn't have a date, but I'm sure Dolthethmen would oblige! You're girlfriend wouldn't mind, would she, Dole?"

"I don't have a girlfriend."

"Well! And Emily doesn't have a boyfriend, so this looks like a match made in heaven! Let's go!"

Emily spoke:

"Well okay, if it's okay with you, Dole."

"Fine by me."

"Well okay!" Hasnafter said. "Let's go!"

"Thank you thank you thank you." Dolthethmen thought to himself.

"Oh wait a minute, huh? I wanna play another game of 'Arc of Hypnosis'!" Am said brightly.

"Okay--why don't we all play!" Hasnafter said.

"No," Emily said, "you can only have two players at a time--me and Dole'll play 'Worrisome Landscape'--okay, Dole?"

"Yup." Dolthethmen said.

"Things are going much too well." Dolthethmen thought to himself.

'Worrisome Landscape' was his favorite game. Favorite videogame, at least.

Now as Dolthethmen played the game, as the Worrisome Landscape passed by on the screen, he wondered as to how he had managed to succeed in altering reality as he had. Verily, he felt sure that he would wind up in bed with this Emily chick, and that things would have to start to go his way in general, being that he now seemed to be able to alter reality to some degree.

But he cautioned himself. He did not have a very stable track record in altering reality, and there was no telling whether this circumstance was lucky or whether he had executed a repeatable action. But he did of course realize that in altering reality he did risk altering himself a little bit in the bargain.

But he didn't really concern himself with that too much. As he smelled Emily's subtle perfume and felt as she brushed against him now and again during the game, he spontaneously began to visualize her naked body--her arms, her breasts, her legs, her pussy, her ass. He couldn't wait to be nude with her, to have sex. Sex, that glad destroyer of everything.

Dolthethmen also worried a little about whether, in calling upon the aid of another version of himself, if he might really have enlisted the aid of a separate being, like a demon or god, and therefore might owe said being payment. But he discarded this notion, as it seemed unlikely. But still, the supernatural veil around him was of questionable veracity, and he knew he could be in a deluded state. As far as what was really going on out there in the supernatural, Dolthethmen was in the pitch black dark of unknowing. But he figured that perhaps that far out in the inky despair of the void, the matter became irrelevant.

So he played the game and lusted and did not remember the corrupt event of earlier in the day, at the video store, where he was apparently abducted by a future version of himself, in the form of a gorgeous woman, who was highly corrupt and apparently stalking the past to f*ck previous version of herself. But the herself was himself, in some possible future. But he did erase the event. Not that he didn't experience it, but that officially, it never happened. Now you might wonder how he did it--so I'll tell you. He had entered a state of being where he had access and knowledge of a greater variety and extent of realistic powers--he'd entered the state when the abduction was apparent; it was an emergency measure to elevate himself in power when faced with such supernatural phenomena of a hostile nature.

A thought that should have crossed Dole's mind then was that by imploring a future version of himself to aid him, he might be drawn back to the state of reality where he was being raped by the evil female future version of himself. Additionally, he should have suspected that the person who appeared to be Emily was in fact this future version of himself in disguise. But these thought did not occur to him.

So Dolthethmen felt quite grand, there playing the game with his girl nearby him. Not that she was officially his girl yet, but he had a good feeling that she soon would be. He thought, won't it be nice to have her suck me off, won't it be nice to be sexual and naked and with a girl for a change! Yes, yes indeed.

Soon they left the mall and went down to the Noyage Parlour and got a room and watched some movies and had falafels and orzo and kiwi beverage and super chips.

There in the dimness of the little room in the Noyage Parlour, Dolthethmen and Emily were getting pretty snug, her legs resting over his, their arms around each other, as Hasnafter and Am were likewise positioned.

Soon, Am and Hasnafter were kissing and fondling one another, and Dolthethmen felt that he should speed up the process of getting himself and Emily into doing likewise. So he turned his head and sort of nuzzled her shoulder and brushed his lips against her cheek. He felt her whole body shudder and looked in delight as her face turned toward his, and as their lips were moving closer and closer with each nanohour. But in that moment, in that last possible moment before their lips would inevitably touch, right down to wire, all was not well in the immediate environment. There was a loud thud, all the lights and electricity and TV went off, and distant shouts were to be heard. Though Dolthethmen and Emily's lips touched for a moment, the startle they received precluded it being considered a kiss.

There, in the uttertotal lack of light, it was Emily who spoke.

"What happened?"

"I don't know..." Dolthethmen was barely able to blurt out, being that the sudden jolt of adrenaline mixed with his fiery lust hormones caused a state of mental distress and fogginess.

"Looks like a power failure." Hasnafter quipped.

"But there was a loud noise, and listen--do you hear people yelling?" Am said.

"Uh, I don't know. You suppose we should try and get out of here, or just sit tight. Does anyone have a light, or is there a flashlight in here or something?" Hasnafter said.

"My watch has a little light, but I doubt it'd do any good." Dolthethmen mumbled.

"We're all non-smokers so I doubt any of us has a match or lighter." Am observed.

"I don't have anything." Emily said.

"Shouldn't there be emergency lights or something?" Am wondered out loud.

"I don't know." Hasnafter said. "But there's something very wrong here. I don't know what going on, but I say we wait and see what's happening--it could be a robbery or something."

"Yeah," Dolthethmen said, "let's sit tight until we get a better perspective on what's happening."

"I'm scared." Emily said, and clutched Dolthethmen for support.

He took her in his long arms and felt the shapes of her lovely breasts against his chest. He wasn't especially concerned with the power outage--he just wanted to get back to Emily's apartment and get naked and get it on.

"Don't worry Emily--I've a feeling it's nothing more than a fuse gone out. The power'll most likely be back on in a minute or two." Dolthethmen said, and with that he pulled Emily to him and gently kissed her. She responded by moving closer to him and upping the passion of the kiss that was progressing. He was in heaven, and hoped the lights might stay out for a while.

Dolthethmen and Emily kissed in silence for a little but, but the sounds of distant yelling continued, and there was a lack of any noise nearby them--and they knew that there were other people in other rooms around them. Shouldn't someone be yelling or looking around or something? Hasnafter was beginning to get concerned.

"Dolthethmen--I have a very bad feeling that something's wrong with reality. You know how you always talk about that--about reality collapsing or folding or whatever--do you think something like that is maybe happening or something?" Hasnafter said with a bit more concern in his voice than might be expected.

"Look Hasnafter," Dolthethmen said, parting lips with Emily, "there's been a power failure. It's only been a few minutes, and the other people around in the other rooms and stuff are probably doing what we're doing--relaxing and enjoying the darkness and waiting for the lights to come back on. As far as the yelling, it's probably people out on the street fighting or looting or something."

"And that noise?" Am asked.

"Probably related to the cause of the blackout. Maybe a truck hit a power line or something. I'm sure there's a rational explanation... not that I don't believe in reality problems, but if it were a reality problem, I think I'd feel it. And I just don't."

"Ooh Dole, I'm glad you're here to explain these things." Emily said, almost drunkenly, as she moved back to kissing him.

"Well I'm not so sure." Hasnafter said. "And I for one think it's about time to grope our way out of here."

"Why?" Dolthethmen said, again pulling away from Emily, "The only reason we'd be in danger is if there was a fire--and I see no indication of that--or if the air supply in here depended upon a ventilation system--and likewise I see no way we could run out of oxygen. Also, if criminals are around, they might find us here--but I think we've a better all-round chance of it in any case to lay low and relax. The light'll probably be back on any time now."

"Well I think Has is right--I think we should get the hell out of here." Am said.

"Yeah--I think me and Am are gonna try and get outta here even if you and Emily wanna stay here, Dole." Hasnafter said.

"No, no. We should stick together, and if you have to try and get outta here, me and Emily'll accompany you." Dolthethmen said.

"I'll go anywhere with you." Emily said dreamily.

Dolthethmen thought briefly that he might have overdid it with his love realityalter. Also, he acknowledged that he was much more concerned with sex than love, and he wondered why he was like that.

"Well, that mighty neighborly of you, Dole. I say we wait a little longer and then get going." Hasnafter said.

"Fine." Dolthethmen said.

Emily moved herself and motioned to Dolthethmen until she was lying down on top of him, kissing him and feeling him. Her hand moved over his clothed form, over his shoulder, down his chest, and finally reaching his groin, gently squeezing his engorged fellow. Please lights, stay off, he demanded of the air.

There in the dark making out with Emily, though Has and Am were nearby, was very delightful to Dolthethmen. But all during it he had a terrible feeling that this bliss would be all-too-short and that disaster would certainly soon strike. After a few minutes of smooching and erotic body interpositioning, he heard Emily whisper in his ear:

"Oh, Dolthethmen, I was too shy to tell you at work, but I really had a big crush on you. I've thought of you often since you left. Right now, I'm as happy as I can be. Let's get outta here and go to my place. I think you'll like it."

Dolthethmen wasn't quite sure what she was referring to about liking--her place or the things they might do together. But, he figured, the way she was talking and acting, they'd be having sex most surely. But the yells from outside were now really worrying Dolthethmen. If it were some kind of major catastrophe, things would be pretty shook up, and he might miss out on the evening of indulgence lying ahead. He considered trying to alter reality, but he was in utterly the wrong mind for it, and couldn't muster an iota of reality expression. It seemed that the raging lust throughout his physical form occluded his more obtuse realityish capabilities. But at this point, they could either wait or brave the dark and try to get out of the Noyage Parlour.

"Uh," Dolthethmen said aloud, "hey guys--you think maybe we oughtta try'n get out now? It has been a long time--and it seems certain that someone--a manager or worker or someone--would have come by now--and I know there were a couple of other people in the rooms around us."

"Yeah," said Hasnafter, "that's a good idea. let's get going. Uh..."

"How're we gonna work this?" Am asked.

"Well..." Hasnafter said.

"I think we should all get up and move over to the door, then move down the hall and up the stairs, hand in hand, against the wall. When we get to the stairs we should see the light from the street." said Dolthethmen.

"What if the lights are all out on the street too?" Am asked.

"Well," Dolthethmen answered, "I don't know. I guess there should be some cars or something out there. I dunno."

"What we really need is a light source." Hasnafter commented.

"I know, but we haven't any." Dolthethmen said. "And anyway, even if it's pitch black outside, we should still be able to find our way to our cars and get the hell outta here."

"But I sure wonder what's going on." Am said.

"Me too." Hasnafter said.

"Well, let's go and find out." said Dolthethmen.

"Ooh, my hero." Emily said softly.

"But," Am began "like, what if it's just normal outside and we all just suddenly went blind or something?"

"Oh that's silly." Hasnafter said, "the TV went off the same time the lights did. At least--the sound went off. How can you explain that?"

"I dunno--some kind of wave or something--knocking out the TV and our vision at the same time?" Am said.

"Okay, we don't need to have this conversation any longer." Dolthethmen said, "I have little light on my watch--here," he turned the light on his watch on, "now I'm sure we can all see this, so we're not blind. Not that it wasn't a possibility."

"Yeah," Am said, "It was just an idea."

"Whatever," Dolthethmen said, "I say lets all grab hands now and move out the door."

"In what order?" Am asked.

"Well," Dolthethmen said, "It doesn't matter. But if you think we're gonna face some sort of threat, I suppose me and Has should go first, since we're physically stronger than you girls."

"Hey!" Emily said.

"Physically stronger, dear. Now that's a fact." Dolthethmen said.

"I'm stronger than Has." Emily said.

"Well okay, if that's so, then I suppose you and me should go first." Dolthethmen said.

"How do you know I'm not stronger than you?" Emily asked of Dolthethmen.

"Well I don't know--but if you're a normal human girl with the build you've got--there's really no way you're stronger than me--or Hasnafter for that matter. It's just a matter of nature and genetics and all that sh*t."

"Well I am stronger, and I am human." Emily said.

"Look guys, let's just get going, huh? I'll go first since I'm obviously the weakest one--you strong people should guard the rear, since in the dark, fiends usually sneak up on you and don't come from the front." Am said.

"Okay," Dolthethmen said, "you go first, then Has, then me, and then Emily, since she's the strongest."

"I am." said Emily.

With this they fumbled around in the dark, and Dolthethmen found Hasnafter's hand and they stumbled together off the couch and to the door.

"Well, at least the door's still here." Am said.

"Great. Now open it." Dolthethmen said.

Am slowly rotated the doorknob and then opened the door a crack.

"Hello?" she inquired of the hallway. There was no response.

"Let's go and face that which awaits us." Dolthethmen said.

I used to not know what happened after that, but now I do.

*OW*



[[12013AX]] Appendix

Confused? Here's Everything You Need to Know!

(This information is reprinted every issue in essentially the same form.)

The ezine OsoaWeek is the central product of Obliviana Super Occult Amusement. Each weekly issue is prepared as a plain vanilla ASCII file not less than 50K and not exceeding 100K, with the goal of being readable on as many computers as possible. Mac users will likely get little boxes on the lefthand column--this is due to the "hard return" needed at the end of every line on DOS machines. You can live with them, or search-and-replace them away (but please don't distribute any altered copies of OW!).

Meaning of codes: The first two-digit number is the sequential section number in this issue of OsoaWeek. The next three-digit number is the issue number of this OsoaWeek. The last element, a 2-character code, is shorthand for a given feature.

To search: To find the beginning of the next section, search for the string containing two lefthand brackets with no spaces. To find a particular section, search for the string containing two lefthand brackets followed by the two-digit section number, with no spaces. To find a particular feature, search for the string containing the two-character code followed by two righthand brackets, with no spaces. Using the latter method, you can find a particular feature in any issue of OsoaWeek without even referring to the contents.

The Contents are divided into three sections: (a) the introductory, informative, housekeeping sort of features, (b) stuff directly relating to the playing of Osoa, such as new Fonostas, events, info, etc., and (c) the general entertaining and informative section. These three areas are casual and separated for ease of use. To make it easy, in EVERY issue of OsoaWeek, the first section starts with Masthead (MH), the second with State of Obliviana (SO), and the third with Hemisinister Review (HR).

1-800-OBLIVIANA--This toll-free number can be called anytime from any phone in the Continental USA for the latest information on Obliviana, including samples of Obliviana sound bites!

Acknowledgments: I would like to thank my girlfriend Kerri for putting up with me while I spend countless hours developing OsoaWeek--thanks Kerri, I love you!

This Appendix is located at the end of the file because it contains boring, repetitive info you wouldn't want in your way.

Obliviana Super Occult Amusement (Osoa) is an endeavor created by Frank Edward Nora, AKA, Lord of Obliviana. Osoa is fully independent and not affiliated with any other organization, belief, etc.

Here's a detailed introduction to Osoa:

You know there's something else going on in this world, but you can't quite pin it down. And you know there's something else going on with YOU. But it ever eludes you, and teases you, these glimpses of otherness.

On the subject of explaining the world, people generally consider that science and religion form a complete scale. Science dealing with the measurable and observable, and religion dealing with the supernatural and mysterious. But really, science is limited to physical measurement and observation, and religion is limited to gods, supernatural beings, how the world was created, and what happens to us when we die. But if you consider it, there is a vast realm of human experience which does not fall into either category. It is this realm that I call Obliviana.

Dreams, hunches, deja vu, luck, humor, creativity, emotions, intuition, events "working themselves out", psychic phenomenon, the atmospheres of certain places, memories from childhood, ruts, coincidence, "small world", and more. These are just the tip of the iceberg in Obliviana! Who knows what other exhilarating phenomena await our exploration?

With the dawn of the Digital Superworld, that complex and ever-expanding interconnection of computers, networks, and the like, the realm of human endeavor is drastically changed. We have glimpsed a danger in the mesmerizing qualities of even the worst television. In the Digital Superworld, this effect is magnified by several orders of magnitude--so even the cheapest and most worthless online activities become irresistibly engaging and addictive. Imagine a population fully engaged in such tripe--jacked in, spending more and more time engrossed in such pointless, empty activities as computers and robots do more and more of the work. Not a pretty picture, is it?

It is partially with the intent of preventing this nightmare that Obliviana Super Occult Amusement (Osoa) was established on July 28, 1994. Osoa is the first and greatest endeavor to provide the world with a viable, broad-based, universally-compelling endeavor to provide CONTEXT in the Digital Superworld.

The exploration of Obliviana can be undertaken in a wild variety of ways. Check out the eleven Osoa Flowers (introduced in OsoaWeek001) for details. Also check out the first issue for details on establishing your very own Fonosta!

Osoa is an innovative and far-reaching game. Why a game? Well, aren't most explorations really games when you come right down to it? And, as a practical matter, some of the elements in Obliviana are too bizarre to be presented as anything OTHER than a game. So Obliviana as game can be looked at as shielding and candy-coating, but can also be viewed as cutting to the heart of the matter--hey, exploring the realm of Obliviana is not vital to our ongoing survival, but it is pretty darn entertaining and satisfying.

It is with the game of Obliviana running on the ever-expanding Digital Superworld that we can abandon the mediocrity of the past and make something very new, wild, and now.

*OW*



[[END013OW]]



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