@Answer Guy
Greybeard Geek.
No relay list published yet.
Recent Notes
If you haven't seen this already...
California passed a bill to seize #Bitcoin left idle on exchanges.
After 3 years of inactivity, assets can be taken by the state under 'Unclaimed Property' law...
This isn't as shocking as you might think. California isn't "seizing" the assets so much as it is taking custody on the registered owners' behalf.
Don't hold ₿ IOUs on exchanges. Move it to self custody when it's not being used for collateral or liquidity (such as loans or limit orders).
Don't hold ₿ IOUs on exchanges. Move it to self custody when it's not being used for collateral or liquidity (such as loans or limit orders).
Sounds like the author could have invested a bit more effort in world building.
The fantasy genre can be a trap for those who don't create or adopt some sort of structured metaphysical model through ...
s/it's/its/ damnit!
Also, I feel like the title sets an expectation that flies in the face of the synopsis provided by Lyn.
A thief pulling "Trouble's pigtails" sets up a rather specific mental image. That would seem to necessitate a mischievous thief proactively driving the action (at least at the outset).
This story seems to be about the anti-hero being dragged into the action rather than a mischievous, possibly flirtatious Puck or Tom Sawyer getting more than they bargained for.
Also, I feel like the title sets an expectation that flies in the face of the synopsis provided by Lyn.
A thief pulling "Trouble's pigtails" sets up a rather specific mental image. That would seem to necessitate a mischievous thief proactively driving the action (at least at the outset).
This story seems to be about the anti-hero being dragged into the action rather than a mischievous, possibly flirtatious Puck or Tom Sawyer getting more than they bargained for.
There's an annual contest for indie-published fantasy books called SPFBO, and it's been running for ten years now. When looking for indie novels to read, that's not a bad list to start from.
Anyway, ...
Sounds like the author could have invested a bit more effort in world building.
The fantasy genre can be a trap for those who don't create or adopt some sort of structured metaphysical model through which magic works (and, more especially, by which it's effects on the narrative are constrained).
Ultimately the sort of "magic" in the TV series Bewitched or I Dream of Jeannie is intractable for any serious storytelling (or even comedy — beyond sight gags and slapstick).
We can't leave the audience wondering "Why didn't she just wriggle her nose or do the emphatic blinky thing to fix that?
The fantasy genre can be a trap for those who don't create or adopt some sort of structured metaphysical model through which magic works (and, more especially, by which it's effects on the narrative are constrained).
Ultimately the sort of "magic" in the TV series Bewitched or I Dream of Jeannie is intractable for any serious storytelling (or even comedy — beyond sight gags and slapstick).
We can't leave the audience wondering "Why didn't she just wriggle her nose or do the emphatic blinky thing to fix that?
1
Story idea: Ægobots
Have you ever wanted a personal robot or servant?
What if you could actually sort of be your own robot? What if there was some sort of implant or even just a discipline or technique by which you could turn the part of you that you consider to be YOU, your ego, inward to sleep, play games, watch movies, chat, do your doom scrolling, engage in virtual sex with other ægobots, whatever … all while a sort of AI or "mini me" was blissfully directing your body and other parts of your brain, alter egos, doing various boring, mind numbing or mindless tasks for you.
In other words, what if you could direct your body to essentially be your own personal servant?
Now the story plot: what if that device, implant, mechanism … what if that were compromised, backdoored, and after untold millions of folks had adopted this for their benefit, they could be subverted, co-opted into being a meatspace army while the owners of all those bodies were off in a dream space, unaware that any of this was going on … a sort of Inception/Matrix zombie horde?
What if?
Have you ever wanted a personal robot or servant?
What if you could actually sort of be your own robot? What if there was some sort of implant or even just a discipline or technique by which you could turn the part of you that you consider to be YOU, your ego, inward to sleep, play games, watch movies, chat, do your doom scrolling, engage in virtual sex with other ægobots, whatever … all while a sort of AI or "mini me" was blissfully directing your body and other parts of your brain, alter egos, doing various boring, mind numbing or mindless tasks for you.
In other words, what if you could direct your body to essentially be your own personal servant?
Now the story plot: what if that device, implant, mechanism … what if that were compromised, backdoored, and after untold millions of folks had adopted this for their benefit, they could be subverted, co-opted into being a meatspace army while the owners of all those bodies were off in a dream space, unaware that any of this was going on … a sort of Inception/Matrix zombie horde?
What if?
Precursors to Isekai 異世界
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isekai
☞ Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, Mark Twain, 1889
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Connecticut_Yankee_in_King_Arthur%27s_Court
☞ The Magician's Nephew, C. S. Lewis, 1955
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Magician%27s_Nephew
☞ Three Hearts and Three Lions, Poul Anderson, 1961
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Hearts_and_Three_Lions?searchToken=8ddwrnqif0gurxhg9godp396z
☞ The Twilight Zone, Rod Serling, 1959
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Twilight_Zone_(1959_TV_series)
☞ Glory Road, Robert A. Heinlein, 1963
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glory_Road
☞ Lord Kalvan of Otherwhen, H. Beam Piper, 1965
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_Kalvan_of_Otherwhen
☞ Chronicles of Amber, Roger Zelazny, 1970
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glory_Road
☞ Spellsinger, Alan Dean Foster, 1983
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spellsinger
I'm sure I'm missing some seminal works which could qualify. Also The Twilight Zone only deserves honorable mention as many of its episodes wouldn't qualify as isekai. However, enough of its stories are so influential, and develop themes which could implicitly be isekai (in the sense that the protagonists have slipped into these "other worlds" without any exposition on how it occurred) that I felt compelled to include it.
But we might make similar arguments for The Outer Limits, or even Night Gallery. Where do we draw the line?
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isekai
☞ Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, Mark Twain, 1889
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Connecticut_Yankee_in_King_Arthur%27s_Court
☞ The Magician's Nephew, C. S. Lewis, 1955
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Magician%27s_Nephew
☞ Three Hearts and Three Lions, Poul Anderson, 1961
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Hearts_and_Three_Lions?searchToken=8ddwrnqif0gurxhg9godp396z
☞ The Twilight Zone, Rod Serling, 1959
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Twilight_Zone_(1959_TV_series)
☞ Glory Road, Robert A. Heinlein, 1963
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glory_Road
☞ Lord Kalvan of Otherwhen, H. Beam Piper, 1965
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_Kalvan_of_Otherwhen
☞ Chronicles of Amber, Roger Zelazny, 1970
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glory_Road
☞ Spellsinger, Alan Dean Foster, 1983
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spellsinger
I'm sure I'm missing some seminal works which could qualify. Also The Twilight Zone only deserves honorable mention as many of its episodes wouldn't qualify as isekai. However, enough of its stories are so influential, and develop themes which could implicitly be isekai (in the sense that the protagonists have slipped into these "other worlds" without any exposition on how it occurred) that I felt compelled to include it.
But we might make similar arguments for The Outer Limits, or even Night Gallery. Where do we draw the line?
💡 nostr:npub1jg552aulj07skd6e7y2hu0vl5g8nl5jvfw8jhn6jpjk0vjd0waksvl6n8n #BlockstreamGreen
nostr:nevent1qqst6vhlpcx6f9fkgw4c392ugemuwv56an99v5gyfyqgs24w50eqpuqpz9mhxue69uhkummnw3ezuamfdejj7q3qjg55...
VJLAfpRgZwyxazy5nFJNt8phzxd4c17iAyacsg2qSGMjR7NvGq1sPVYUt4dtUYLgd4qzZRJj9b2wJEAp
Yeah, it's just a huge PITA right now to spin up a full node over Tor, rather than just share a pubkey (from Electrum or whatever desktop wallet) that the other person's client knows how to permute. A...
This is why a number of prominent Bitcoin developers and enthusiasts have been pushing for broader adoption of BOLT12 "Offers"
https://bolt12.org/
https://bolt12.org/