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singular book of text wandertainment by Frank Edward Nora
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OSOAWEEK--ISSUE 219--10/6/98
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(Cup OWis219, Created v1 (4/27/99), Copyright 1999)

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OSOAWEEK
Ezine of Obliviana
Issue 219, 10/6/98
by Frank Edward Nora
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LORD OF OBLIVIANA
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Today marks a day of transition in Obliviana. Xappenshard Craze has ground to a halt, and yesterday I decided to suspend the Daily Winner for the time being. But this only a minor setback, because another aspect of Obliviana is on the rise--the paranormal side.

Three days ago, Saturday, October 3, 1998, I turned 31 years old. And at about one in the morning, as my borthday was just beginning, I wrote the Declaration of Obliviana, which is presented here in the next section.

I have, in the past, written several different Declarations of Obliviana, but this one succeeds where the others failed. The purpose of the Decalaration of Obliviana is to answer the question that has been confounding me for years--"What is Obliviana?"

The weeks leading up to my writing the Declaration of Obliviana were quite trying. I got my new computer, and as I set it up and played with it, I neglected Obliviana. At the same time, response to Xappenshard Craze pretty much stopped. But in that time, the seeds that would become the Declaration of Obliviana were growing.

Now, I present to you the Declaration of Obliviana, followed by some commentary.

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DECLARATION OF OBLIVIANA
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DECLARATION OF OBLIVIANA
10/3/98
by Frank Edward Nora, Lord of Obliviana

Forge of Wander (FOW) is a paranormal graphical symbol which already exists in your mind--you just have to find it!

Obliviana is the game which enables you to do many wonderful things with your FOW. And this document contains everything you need to get started!

FOW is a grid, 11 squares by 19 squares--209 squares total. To play Obliviana, you will be visualizing FOW in your mind's eye. It is good to imagine it as bright lines on a dark background.

You play Obliviana in sessions called Jaunts. Each Jaunt has three stages--the beginning, the middle, and the end.

Beginning: Visualize FOW in its dormant state--horizontal--19 squares wide and 11 squares high. Associate the dormant FOW with the number zero. Dwell upon the dormant FOW for a time.

Middle: Activate FOW by associating it with the number 209 and making it vertical--11 squares wide and 19 squares high. Dwell upon the active FOW. Now, do some Wanderings (see below). Pause between Wanderings to feel and observe the reactions they cause.

End: When you feel the time is right, return FOW to its dormant state, by associating it again with the number zero and returning it to a horizontal orientation. An active FOW will eventually become dormant on its own if you aren't thinking about it. Wait for a time before reactivating your FOW--until it feels right.

This is the basic method of playing Obliviana.

Wanderings are the things you do in the middle stage. They range from elegantly simple to wonderfully complex. Right now, I'll give you a very simple Wandering to get you started, called Deepnotice.

To do Deepnotice, seek out elements in your environment which you would not normally notice. Regard the chosen element with more scrutiny and for a longer time than you normally would. Elements here are generally visual, but can be from any other sense, including thought.

For more information, go to the Obliviana Super Occult Amusement website at www.obliviana.com. This document is copyright 1998 Frank Edward Nora, Lord of Obliviana. You may, however, reproduce this document freely as long as the text remains complete and unaltered, and you do not profit financially from it.

Wonder, we're coming back. Zope rules. Get all Obliviana! 209

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COMMENTARY
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Wow. An answer to "What is Obliviana?"

The Declaration of Obliviana is very short, and on its own, a bit confusing. Nevertheless, it truly does contain all the information necessary for a person to start playing Obliviana. But I do expect that almost everyone who is interested in Obliviana will seek out more information.

Still, the Declaration of Obliviana is a succinct definition of Obliviana.

Eleven years ago, in October 1987, I published my 39th minicomic-type publication, the 32-page "Steering Zonebook Thozien". This publication set forth an idea that is very similar to the one described in the Declaration of Obliviana--the publication even contained images of FOW!

In the eleven years since then, my ideas have matured, but more importantly--I, too, have matured. A great deal. And, the world has changed.

The first statement in the Declaration--"Forge of Wander (FOW) is a paranormal graphical symbol which already exists in your mind--you just have to find it!"--is a very bold statement.

I absolutely believe in the veracity of this statement, and in my personal experience with FOW, I have found enough evidence to convince me that FOW is indeed real.

I have always been intesely interested in the subject of cults, and I think I understand their dynamics pretty well. And I am extremely sensitive to the potential for Obliviana to become a cult. But I believe that the Declaration, by its nature, goes a long way toward preventing this from ever happening.

The Declaration provides all the information a person needs to play Obliviana. The information may be extremely rudimentary, but it is complete. And this standard of freely giving away details about Obliviana will extend into all of the "additional information".

I encourage people to explore Obliviana on their own. I truly believe that Obliviana is a very good thing, and I want to give people the information they need to do it on their own. And this sort of structure is completely non-cultlike.

And I'll tell you right now that I do not know the secrets behind FOW. I discovered it by accident, and I have observed its nature, but I don't know its origin or purpose. I do, of course, have ideas about these subjects, but I will not discuss them at this time, because all of my ideas on this subject are speculation, and are of little value when compared to the real, practical exploration of the nature of FOW.

I ask those of you who are interested by the concept of FOW to explore it and let me know what you discover. I will be providing additional information on my website.

Get all Obliviana!

Note: The Declaration has 2299 characters. That's 209*11. I did this on purpose.

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GAME NEWS
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XAPPENSHARD CRAZE SUSPENDED

For the time being, I am going to suspend Xappenshard Craze, including the Daily Winner. This is mainly because I'm distracted by a lot of other things these days, and no one's playing XC anyway. The game may come back in the future, however.

DAILY WINNERS!

[43] 9/29/98--WatchfulCondor (Fonosta 6) 7 wins
[44] 9/30/98--NightRambler (Fonosta 7) 5 wins
[45] 10/1/98--EveningJane (Fonosta 20) 5 wins
[46] 10/2/98--NightRambler (Fonosta 7) 6 wins
[47] 10/3/98--RevengeQueen (Fonosta 11) 2 wins
[48] 10/4/98--NightRambler (Fonosta 7) 7 wins
[49] 10/5/98--ForestWave (Fonosta 8) 3 wins

FINAL STANDINGS

Fonosta 1--LordOfObliviana--not eligible
Fonosta 2--DeepNotice (Fonosta 2)--3 wins
Fonosta 3--FlyingOcean (Fonosta 3)--2 wins
Fonosta 4--CrazyAvenger (Fonosta 4)--3 wins
Fonosta 5--TimeBanshee--0 wins
Fonosta 6--WatchfulCondor (Fonosta 6)--7 wins
Fonosta 7--NightRambler (Fonosta 7)--7 wins
Fonosta 8--ForestWave (Fonosta 8)--3 wins
Fonosta 9--PeepDoodle (Fonosta 9)--1 win
Fonosta 10--LeafEnchantress (Fonosta 10)--1 win
Fonosta 11--RevengeQueen (Fonosta 11)--2 wins
Fonosta 12--DewDrop (Fonosta 12)--1 win
Fonosta 13--CANCELLED
Fonosta 14--LittleRebel--1 win
Fonosta 15--SylphidMorning (Fonosta 15)--4 wins
Fonosta 16--DriftRanger--0 wins
Fonosta 17--FalconVixen--0 wins
Fonosta 18--SpunkyTerrapin (Fonosta 18)--2 wins
Fonosta 19--DashingPresto (Fonosta 19)--3 wins
Fonosta 20--EveningJane (Fonosta 20)--5 wins
Fonosta 21--LoneWanderer (Fonosta 21)--0 wins
Fonosta 22--CygnetThistle (Fonosta 22)--2 wins
Fonosta 23--Hasn't Gotten on Mailing List Yet
Fonosta 24--FoamBlazer (Fonosta 24) 2 wins

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NEW THIS WEEK
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[1] Declaration of Obliviana--on the home page

[2] Obliviana Trading Card, Series 1, Card 14, "Obliviana Seal of Artifact Reality"--in the Trading Cards page in XC--This was the one card left over when I stopped Daily Winner.

[3] I'm still behind on Duffy.

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LUCKY STORM
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Lucky Storm 219:

119

(Flip 9, Dire 5, Storm Pelter "Ore", Hucaway Stormposts 10 & 14)

Previously:

209: 27
210: 126
211: 20
212: 140
213: 170
214: 175
215: 177
216: 83
217: 111
218: 77

Note: The Lucky Storm is drawn randomly, using a deck of 30 cards (called a "Storm Codex"), one for each Flip and Dire.

Comment: Wow! 119! I've been seeing this number all over the place in the past few months! And it was my box number at Packaging Plusin Iselin! 11, 19... 119! Cool!

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SONGS OF THE WEEK
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"Hello Larry" Theme Song
(I got it online. It was a TV sitcom from 1979-1980)

Glenn Miller, "The American Patrol"
(Album: "Digital Gold" (and many others))

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CARNE'S MOISTURE DETECTION FRIEND
Episode Eleven
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CARNE: Yeah, "hoopy" was a word from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the galaxy. Last month, my Moisture Detection Friend started using it, figuring it was cool to use a word like that.

PACER: Aren't they coming out with a new movie of that?

CARNE: I think so. Yup. So anyway, you're telling me that all these treehouses just appeared out of nowhere? And nobody questioned it?

PACER: I tellya man, I was here like two days before they appeared. There was an article about it in the local paper. But everyone just kind of thinks it's somebody else's problem. No one's doing anything about it.

CARNE: And you can actually go in 'em?

PACER: Yeah! Come on, I'll show ya. The weird thing is, they all seem like they're very old, y'know, been here for a long time. The wood is all weathered and everything. I found a really weird coin in one of them, and I told the newspaper, but they weren't really interested.

CARNE: This is really unbelievable. I mean, it shows how--y'know--how all this unexplained stuff--how it can go by virtually unnoticed and unchallenged.

PACER: Yeah, and the part that sucks is, I'm part of the problem. I could be doing more, but I have a lot of other stuff in my life, and I can't devote the time and energy--and money--that it would take to try and bring this to the attention of the public.

CARNE: Who owns this land anyway?

PACER: I don't know. It's real near a state park, but I think it might be part of an estate that's in total dispute. I guess the guy died and his relatives are fighting over it. I don't know.

CARNE: You know, I'm part of the problem too. I should be thinking about this amazing phenomenon totally. But I keep thinking that I want to get to Sam Goody before it closes to get that My Bloody Valentine album, Loveless. I shouldn't be thinking about that, but I am.

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XAPPENSHARD
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Xappens 7 & 12 are still unsolved.

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INFORMATION
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Obliviana is at "www.obliviana.com"
Send all E-mail to "obliviana@aol.com"

OsoaWeek is copyright 1998 Frank Edward Nora, Lord of Obliviana. It may be copied for personal use only. No part of OsoaWeek may be published, either digitally or physically, without permission.

The Obliviana Mailing List is currently holding steady at 23 members.

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END
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