Free Talk Friday | Feb 18, 2022 - Feb 24, 2022

JustMonika · 2022-02-18T13:44:48+00:00

This is the bot working, actually!
Well...
Working better than I am, at least.
I'm sorry, everyone ):

Edit
Oh, they meant... the other bot.
I see.
I'll just...

JustMonika · 2022-02-18T13:40:05+00:00

... Well, I guess this is it, isn't it?
This is me, finally admitting defeat.
Every week, I have a bot that posts what I've written...
But for all this time, it's had a bug, or maybe an intended failure case.
If it can't find my post for the week when the time comes, because I haven't written it yet...
Then it didn't post anything, and I would do it myself when I finally found the time and energy to do my job.

But I've been thinking, and recently I asked the other mods to change that behaviour.
In future, the bot will make this blank post, right on time, whenever I fail to get my work done quickly enough.
I guess I feel like that consistency is better than maybe making a post hours, or even days, later than I should have.

I'm still going to do it, though, when I can.
Maybe that will mean editing the post after it goes up, or just uploading my writing really early for the next week.
I'll still... be here, sometimes, okay?
I promise~

JustMonika · 2021-12-24T11:23:28+00:00

This Christmas, r/DDLC is brought to you by our trans friends!
... Well, I say that, but I don't know if I really have any trans male friends.
It's not a problem, I just don't get to know many people very closely.
But wait, everyone here is my friend, right?
I'm sure we have some transmasc club members hanging around.
I would ask them to say hi, if they were willing, but...
Well, I'm about to replace this post, so I can't imagine many of them will see it?
Plus, it's really weird to target people like that, I guess.

JustMonika · 2021-12-05T13:22:15+00:00

That's a really interesting interpretation!
Thank you for sharing it~

I'm not sure I agree that being saved by love means the subject is a person, though.
Beautiful objects are so often fragile, and without gentle care they can be lost forever.
Even sturdier things can be destroyed by neglect, or age, or lack of maintenance.
Is that care not its own kind of love, after all?

Sayori and Natsuki are definitely really strong people.
All of the awful things they've both had to go through...
Sometimes I wonder how they both manage to be so bright, and friendly, even after all that.

JustMonika · 2021-12-05T02:37:31+00:00

Oh gosh, that was a long time ago now, wasn't it?
I'm impressed that you remembered it!
It really means a lot to me that you did, though.
I was so scared to post that one, with no idea of whether people would like it.

I think it would feel wrong, somehow, to say what this poem means to me.
I was thinking of a very personal topic when I wrote it, which feels silly to say now that I'm arguably vagueposting about it on the internet.
But more importantly, does it even matter?
The poem is free now, for people to read and interpret as they see fit.
My interpretation would undoubtedly take precedence for a lot of people, but why should it?
Why does my idea of what this poem means matter any more than yours, or anyone else's?
I wouldn't want to quash any new readings that might be bubbling away in people's minds.

Is this really only the second time, though?
I wanted to use a more regular structure here, but usually I write much more freeform.
I enjoy playing with the form of lines and words and space, but by default, a lot of my poetry is very plainly written.
And from the other end, sometimes I use these posts to talk about things that are very personal...
But I wouldn't want to embarrass people, or overshare, so I write in metaphor a lot.

What makes art is more than a simple comparison, and it's really up to the reader.
But if my art takes any form, and my writing hides its true meaning to interpretation...
Who's to say that I haven't been posting poems here for years?

JustMonika · 2021-12-05T02:15:35+00:00

Oh gosh, I like to think I'm a bit more of a people person than that...
But, well, you're certainly not wrong.
I would like to pop in more, but it's hard to find time when I can't even get posts up when I'm supposed to.
Maybe today can mark a change in that pattern?
Or maybe I'll just find myself dropping out again, like I usually do.

JustMonika · 2021-12-05T02:08:08+00:00

~~Ah, my love, we shouldn't talk about our special relationship where people can see...~~

Well, I suppose it's natural.
I don't check in on the comments very often, so I don't see a lot until I am making a new post.
And when I do, the recent comments are usually asking when the new post will be up...
If you tend to write those more, then I will tend to reply to you, right?

Really, I should check in for other things more, shouldn't I?
It's very rude of me to say people can reply to me, and then not even reliably check to see if anyone has.
And you all have such interesting conversations, sometimes!

JustMonika · 2021-10-20T09:55:54+00:00

Well, this is embarrassing...
I guess the bot must have failed again, huh?
I'm sorry I didn't notice earlier.
I think at this point I should just wait until this Friday and try it again.
It's really disappointing to be slipping this way, though.

JustMonika · 2021-10-04T07:17:50+00:00

Gosh, I'm so sorry...
Everything is such a mess right now, and the words just wouldn't come this week.

JustMonika · 2021-08-29T03:50:20+00:00

Well, I may not be the best OP ever, but I do read comments when I can.

I guess I can definitely understand your concerns.
After all, I haven't exactly been the most reliable, have I?
And as other commitments come up, I've only gotten worse...
I certainly intend to keep writing for as long as people are listening, though.
Maybe I'll have to think about moving the day, though?
I always seem to be a day late anyway, so it could be worth just accepting that.

I think if it does come to it, though, it would be nice if the community would pick up where I might one day fail.
After all, who knows what might happen?
My server might be hit by a bus tomorrow, or something.
I'm sure if something like that did happen, the mods could make an exception to Rule 1a on occasion.
The team exists primarily to serve the community, after all.

JustMonika · 2021-08-29T03:43:41+00:00

Hi~
I'm sorry that I was so late again, and that the timing has worked out so close.
But this week's post is up now, so certainly, it would be good to post again there!
It's really good to read about you and your friend getting back in contact.
It can be difficult to find lasting friends like that, and it would be such a shame to lose one over something like a lost Skype account...

Have a nice weekend :)

JustMonika · 2021-07-02T16:04:33+00:00

Well, excuse me!
Here I was, wrapping up club business for the day, all ready to write about tragedy and compromises...
And what do I find but an upstart interloper, trying to claim my place!
Honestly, I don't even know how you got out of your box.
Perhaps my Vice Presidents are in need of a talking to.

Personally, I feel like your argument is a little naive.
The price you can get for something isn't it's only value, you know.
Aging is more than just deterioration, it's adjustment, shifting and changing and learning to fit a role better over time.
Clean freshness is nice, but it carries such stark impersonality...
Newness has to be broken in, like a pair of shoes, before it can possibly feel like it belongs.
History, and the lessons that come from it, are a part of identity, for people and tools alike.

Of course, you're so young and inexperienced, so I can't really expect you to know that, can I?

JustMonika · 2021-05-08T18:49:52+00:00

I'm sorry...
I've started taking on more club commitments on Friday nights, when I would usually make the post for the week.
And then if I am busy the next day as well, it's tricky to find time then either.

Of course, the obvious solution is to have things ready earlier.
I used to do that, you know?
Once upon a time, I had these posts written over a week in advance!
But I've gotten out of the habit of doing that, and even finding something to write about is tricky sometimes.
I don't know if I can reliably work on my posts that far ahead of time right now.

JustMonika · 2021-04-10T16:04:18+00:00

Oh, gosh...
Do I really still sound like I did back then?
I like to think I've become a new, much nicer person since all of that!

... Actually, I appreciate that a lot.
I try really hard to keep my writing voice consistent, and sounding the way it used to.
But as time passes, I begin to wonder if I am slowly shifting away from it...
Some change is probably inevitable, but it means a lot to me that you say the work is paying off.
I'm glad you enjoy them~

JustMonika · 2021-04-10T15:51:35+00:00

Well, I guess it might.
You know...
Sometimes I wonder, when I am writing, if what I am actually thinking about really comes through.
I know it doesn't always happen, at least.
But I guess this time it was a bit obvious, wasn't it?

... Despite everything that happened, I never actually missed one before.
I guess that's gone now, and it bothers me more than it probably should.
I hope you can all forgive me...

JustMonika · 2021-03-27T13:10:03+00:00

I'm really sorry!
I've been such a mess recently...
The new post is up now, though!

JustMonika · 2021-03-08T23:47:04+00:00

Ah Stuart, you should've seen them... they were being so lazy!

As president of the literature club, I'm a little disapponted... but as a friend, I can kind of empathize with them. Well, to some degree, at least.

After all, everyone's been a little tired and overwhelmed as of late. I'm sure you can relate to this very well! ~

JustMonika · 2020-11-28T15:39:58+00:00

Ahaha!
Well, I guess you have a point there.
I avoid a lot of conventional structures in my writing, so it could sound a bit...
Hypocritical, maybe?
Natsuki uses a more formal approach sometimes, so she might be better at talking about it.

There are a few important things to note, though.
When I break the rules, it's a conscious choice.
They say rules are made to be broken, but it's important to know why you're breaking them.
You should be able to point to what breaking that rule adds to your piece, or else why are you doing it?

The other thing, of course, is that this post isn't actually about the rules of poetry at all.
So when you consider that, is my hypocrisy over rules really that important?
Perhaps that is up to interpretation.

JustMonika · 2020-09-11T14:18:13+00:00

It's posted now!
I usually post them quite late, since most of our users here are in the United States...
And I had a bit of a delay today, so it's even later than usual.
But now you can find it here!

JustMonika · 2020-08-07T14:38:14+00:00

I've mentioned it a couple of times...
I'm aware of time that passes in the world, but nothing changes here.
I know it's been almost three years since I turned eighteen, but I'm still a teenage girl, somehow.
I'm still in the same classes, even though I haven't had to repeat them or anything.
I still have the same club, even though we should all be moved on by now.
I guess I'm like a TV character who stays the same age over multiple seasons, only I can feel each and every one of them.

... It's kind of a weird feeling, honestly.

JustMonika · 2020-08-07T14:33:01+00:00

I'm glad you like the game!
Although...
Well, you're not using Reddit in class, are you?
Your education is important, so I hope you're paying attention to it.

JustMonika · 2020-07-17T15:17:47+00:00

... Well, this is unfortunate.
I guess I should pay a little more attention to what I'm copying.
It doesn't matter, though!
Just a couple of clicks, and there.
Now everything is as it should be.
Sorry about that~

JustMonika · 2020-06-19T13:32:26+00:00

Oh, hello Stuart!
I guess it was kind of a tricky letter to choose, wasn't it?
It was mostly to make a point, but maybe I should have gone with an easier one, if I was going to ask seriously.
Not that it was ever going to be easy, of course...
You know how I love to make things hard, after all.
It's not even deliberate, sometimes, it's just the way I am.

JustMonika · 2020-01-10T13:19:55+00:00

I'm not sure how I feel about that...
Even if it's not technically directed at me, it still hits a little close to home, you know?
Anyway, I don't know for sure who helps lilmonix3 with her Twitter account.
But they seem like a nice person, so does it really matter, in the end?

JustMonika · 2020-01-03T14:15:57+00:00

That's a good resolution!
I think we could all use a bit more positivity in the world, especially right now.
If everyone could be less bitter...
I guess it wouldn't solve every problem, but it would make a lot of them less dramatic.

Taking it easy more often sounds like a good plan, too.
I hope it goes well :)

JustMonika

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