September 2, 2020 · 7:33 am

hooker

He cracks a window and then cracks another to stare out at the linden woods bordering this place. Samantha’s Place. He knew this silhouette of a woman with the dangerous curves came between the private dick in the trench coat — the real gravitas behind surface, buffoonish Wendell “Biff” Carter — and the owner of the magic shop over in Colona with the green geode that Jeffrie Phillips took back to Teepot to “mate” with his smaller pink one to complete the circle and symbolically unite the twinned cities. That’s why the former didn’t want to talk about the later, despite 2 requests to do so in case the first was missed. It was a dame, in retro-speak.

Samantha was also the same as New Nun, a disguise that perhaps she forgot she was wearing, like a mask. New Nun knows. Rhodes > Roads.

The Colona man formerly had a herb shop over in Cassandra City. The private, trench coated investigator now has his office *in this very spot*. He’s trying to complete a triangle, just like the A.Team did in this very same town before him. Scarlet Triangle. It was all there in black and blue. Somewhere.

The Man About Time raised himself up from the ground. The portal looked bigger from the outside

than the inside.

Typical. There would be no safe passage to the Amazon this night, but he knew that was death anyway. Speaking of which…

Just later the Man About Time deduced it also had something to do with this chimney, a Big Chimney indeed. He would have to take it apart brick by brick soon to find out what makes it tick. Clock? Bomb? (another one?)

—–

“So tell me about this Colona,” he requested mildly a bit more later to the man with the orange firebird burning in front of the hearth fire. “I know that Teepot use to be the twin city of Pietmond, long since destroyed, but now it seems to be this one.” He stared at the green geode on the mantlepiece, knowing Jeffrie Phillips hadn’t arrived yet. He should be due any moment. Or any century.

“Different,” uttered the man opposite him in a deeper, less mild voice. “Somewhat,” he amended. “Reason,” he spoke about the overlap, meaning there was a reason for it. “Absorption — *assimilation*.” MAT knew that New Nun had also been assimilated.

(to be continued)

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September 1, 2020 · 7:48 am

new deal

“We may not be finished with Cassandra City, Baker Bloch. I hope you can mustard enough energy to ketchup with me.”

“I relish the thought.”

“I thought you would I thought you would.” Then he became mild again, his normal self. Man About Time, MAT, knew something. I had a meeting with him tomorrow to discuss Beet and the making of their next album, “Lived to Tell”. Lived to tell *what*? I want to ask him. Why did they pick The Crossroads to record that album? I separate myself from MAT for now and fade from the picture.

“So we begin.”

—–

“Is he gone yet? Oh HI!”

“I want to buy this place.” Simple and soft from the end of the bar. “And the jar.”

“Homer?” Moe couldn’t part with Homer he didn’t think. Best to start over somewhere else.

“Bar not jar,” he gruffed over to his old friend in his course manner. His old *enemy* friend. Best to keep them close to the vest; know of their whereabouts. New Nun and Sticky between them nodded, since they were one with his mind. Shut up mind! Did I say that out loud as well?

MAT spit in his hand and moved toward Moe, arm extended. Dare he shake it? he asked internally while shaking in a different way. So mild. So dangerous.

“No jar.”

He extended his figure upward. He reached.

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August 31, 2020 · 8:25 am

another cave


“It’s a crossover post from this here blog over to Facebook-land, Hucka Doobie.”

But Cassandra Blueberry, wanna-be Blue Berry Girl of the great state of NWES City, was there instead. Similar in ways but I wasn’t suppose to talk about that any more.

“I thought your name was Constance” I replied to her greeting.

“Find me,” she said in her pleasant voice, with no hint of a troubled past. “I’m still relevant.”

I doubted it. I had chosen another. Wendy. Like “The Shining’s” Wendy except different. More red I suppose but perhaps not more bloodied. Ketchup again. I left Cassandra to hold the irrelevant mustard.

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August 31, 2020 · 7:49 am

0516

Exploring the city again…

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August 31, 2020 · 6:40 am

Carter’s Cave

“It’s a landscape tile, perfectly square and I don’t think it could be here by accident. Just thought you’d like to know, Baker Bloch.”

“Well um, *thanks* Biff Carter.”

“I have an office set up already in The City to start examining the oddities of this area. This — New Eden.”

“That’s great. I wish you well. Let me know what you find.”

“I’ll send you a report daily.”

“Er, what about Cassandra City? I thought that was your base? Did you have a falling out with the guy in the trench coat? Wait — I suppose *you’re* that guy, or the replacement. Comedy over gravity and the like.”

Biff Carter thought about this for a change before replying. He didn’t want to become totally stream of consciousness. I realized who he might be tonight.

“We have a mutual friend.”

Thought so. But what of the square landscape tile? It *was* here. And he was right: ’twas a strange phenomenon and I don’t think it could be accident. Must be the work of Carrcassonnee again. I understand she has a car now that she can steer around. CAR.

“Don’t get too close to it,” peering Biff Carter warned once more. “Could be radioactive; could be a plant.. er, planted here by Umbrella.”

“Yeah, been meaning to ask you about that. Who, or what, is Umbrella? Red or maybe red and white striped.”

“Strip, yes.” Did he say strip?

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August 30, 2020 · 9:32 am

N-W-E-S

I knew Rock Ramby lived or at least *sat* in the cabin at the center of this circle of railroad in a forest grove of huge trees of his design. Or so he claimed. I knew that Gill Alex lived here as well, his Vain and Artery Boy that Santa-like Sven, who runs a packing industry over in nearby Misty Mountains, delivers a fresh supply of every now and then, always a happy moment for Rock. He likes his boy mate to be rock hard and real seeming, veins and arteries popping out in the right locations and correct hemispheres.

Then I knew that Blue Berry Girl, also from the Misty Mountains and maybe even the same as Sven in some mysterious way, came to Rock’s place, and, Wonka-like, shed her spherical blueberry encasement while crossing the RR track to enter the cabin. The dog at the house seemed to know her after the blue sphere disappeared, but earlier we understood this was Rock’s canine. So who lives here, Rock or Blue Berry Girl? And why did Rock’s fair haired mate and Blue Berry Girl later conjoin at NWES City at that ill-fated meeting hosted by Dr. Rabbid Baumbeer, ending with his death at the hands of, um, I believe her name was — yes — Lu Ellen Hutchinson? Or Hutchison. Why did Baumbeer take the green seat of the 4 after yellow topped Vain and Artery Boy, later Gill Alex, took the yellow seat, Blue Berry Girl, sans exterior sphere by this time, took the blue seat opposite him, and red hatted Lu Ellen sat down in the red one opposite Baumbeer’s, gunns ready to be pulled at the right or correct moment? Ka-POW!! POW POW!! *POP* POW!! Meeting adjourned.

My current theory about all this is that Gill Alex, Vain and Artery Boy if you will, is the same as Blue Berry Girl — they are part of one entity. Likewise for fellow opposites Lu Ellen and Dr. Baumbeer sitting around this same, four-square circle. And then the two pairs also correspond in a higher manner. This is one entity masquerading — if you will — as 4 separate entities. Each of the 4 represent an aspect of the 1. A great 4n1 or 4orrin1 or Foreign One. If you will.

But who is in the center, then? The actual person behind the people? Or meeples? Is it TILE? Is it the River or Riiii-ver? 12 square tiles linked from source to mouth, a complete stream to start the game like beginning Crosby progresses to ending Young through middlings Stills and Nash? TILE update with thieving or crooked red fishermen (and/or farmers) included?

Dr. Baumbeer might have been murdered because he was the only one who retained the knowledge of the 4n1 or 4orrin1 or Foreign One. He might have been the same as green toned Bullfrog, who a little earlier, had killed Lu Ellen’s father. If so, this seems like a revenge killing pure and simple but is actually more. This was the elimination or eradication or hiding of a certain type of truth, a central core. It seems meaningful that the red one did the shooting with the gunns: Lu Ellen Hutchison played by mediocre actor Alice Frame, who also stars in the current production as similarly red topped Wendy. Character-actor Sandy Beech is recruiting her hard for The Twins’ production, some kind of remake of “The Shining” or something, perhaps involving decisions made at crossroads. But the warm and fuzzy atmosphere of “Burger Wars” still represents a lure for Alice despite all the linden dollars being thrown around.

(to be continued)

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August 29, 2020 · 4:18 pm

Rhodes, Rhoads, Roads.

Must be catching…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roads,_Ohio

The community was settled by people of German descent, and was originally known as “Berlin X Roads”.[2] The Berlin Crossroads Post Office was established on June 28, 1850, and stayed in service under that name until December 30, 1933.[4] As of 1901, the community was known as “Berlin Cross Roads”.[5] After World War I, due to the local feelings towards Germany, the Berlin part was dropped and in 1962 the community was registered with the USGS as simply “Roads”. At that time, the population was recorded at 130.[2]

http://codes.ohio.gov/orc/5533.26

The highway constituting a portion of the Appalachian highway system, and running east and west across the state between Cincinnati, Ohio and Belpre, Ohio, and passing near the city of Jackson, Ohio, shall be known as the “James A. Rhodes Appalachian Highway.”

Whenever a section of said highway is opened to the use of traffic, the director of transportation shall, as soon as practicable, erect thereon suitable markers indicating its name.

Effective Date: 09-28-1973 .

So let’s see what we have *here*. Lightning couldn’t strike again at another X Roads… could it?

—–

Looks pretty innocuous so far, but there’s men there again.

Hmmm: Twins. You have to stand right in the center to get the best effect.

—–

Roads from Carcassonne’s CAR (Complete Annotated Rules):

A completed road

A road is completed when the road segments on both sides end in a crossing,[3] a city segment, or a cloister, or when the road forms a closed circle. There is no limit to the number of road segments which can lie between these endings.

A player who has a thief on this completed road scores as many points as the road is long, decided by counting the number of tiles.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Lake_River

The Red Lake River (French: Rivière du Lac Rouge; Ojibwe: Miskwaagamiiwi-zaaga’iganiiwi-ziibi) is a river located in northwestern Minnesota. The river begins on the western side of the Lower Red Lake and flows westward. After passing through Thief River Falls, Red Lake Falls, and Crookston, the river merges with the Red River of the North in East Grand Forks.

More soon…

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August 29, 2020 · 9:52 am

search

“Ahem, I am looking for the purple girl,” Sandy Beech announced to the 2nd floor of the Great Marwood Tower in general, a duplicate of our Parisian Eiffel in scale if not in size. An older lady in a flowery black dress at the bakery counter turned to him and cleared her throat as well. “*Ahem*, young man.”

“Yes?” Sandy inquired. “You know something? I’m talking about the Blue Berry Girl,” he clarified. Of course he didn’t add that The Twins were looking for her. No one needs to know that here… none of these bots who, despite being unreal, still have eyes to see and ears to hear. They know things. He’s learned that down through the months existing in this place. And Marwood is thick with them. That’s their raison d’etre, apparently.

“I know something. But it, uhum, will cost (*cough*).” She took another deep drag of her Winston cigarette, her last. But she had a Marlboro pack ready in the top of her left white stocking, stretching it beyond needed elasticity. Oh well, she’d could always sell the damaged goods down at the Cub Run thrift shop in Apple’s Orchard (Apple’s Orchard?) for another carton or two; they weren’t particular about what they take in. Or maybe some sweets of some kind. Maybe rum cake — killing two birds with one stone as it were. Satisfying two vices at once. “Young man,” she prompted, ready to get the sale on. “Are you still there young man?”

“Of course I’m here,” Sandy shot back bitterly. Stupid bots, he thinks inwardly. Always questioning whether you’re real or not or here or not. I suppose it’s a defense mechanism built into their kind.

“I –“. But she broke down here and forgot what she was doing. The next carton beckoned. She pulled up the dress from her stockinged legs and retrieved. Sandy turned away, having seen enough old in his days of taking care of Ma-ma and Aunty Jenn. Sandy gave up in that direction. He decided she was just leading him on.

“Like what you see?” The older woman then spoke toward bakery attendant Betty John Hammock and confidently declared, “he likes what he sees,” making her nod. Stupid bots.

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August 28, 2020 · 9:02 am

Zero

And to think this was almost her home. She stands up after getting rid of slimly taller blue and slightly shorter red at once. This was not a vein and artery situation topped by topping gold and/or yellow. Plant is in the temple. *The* Plant. He touches Carrcassonnee and both (olive) green (entities) come to life. Fantastic! But what of her? Blue Berry Girl, or Blue Berry Wannabe Girl? Baker Bloch said he would stop by later after he made a decision. But the Baker Bloch that showed up was not himself but another. Another core. You could tell by the somewhat iridescent hat, I’ve heard. And so it is.

He emerged from the house instead. “Hi doll.” Oh boy.

—–

“Of course it was Axis in the house,” Baker Bloch said to fellow core avatar Hucka Doobie later. “He’s married to Wheeler after all — that still applies.” Hucka Doobie let him speak further. “His name is Blackey after all. Black like a swastika.” Careful, Hucka Doobie thinks but doesn’t say aloud. He was entering Constance Blueberry territory again with his consideration of dark against light. She looks into Baker Bloch’s eyes. Baker realizes he’s stumbling and bumbling once more. After all, Hucka herself was a strong black woman and not a Bee any longer. Or a man. She’d tied a bow on all that existence and stored it away for later study. Perhaps at Xmas.

(to be continued)

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August 28, 2020 · 8:03 am

Sunklands Institute

“Aren’t you a little light to be a Blue Berry Girl?” Sandy quickly tried to backpedal the comment. “I mean, the *blue* and all.” He looked away from her crossed arms and her stare. He didn’t want to seem racist, but had stumbled into a big pile of awkwardness. Constance, sensing this, tried to lighten the mood.

“I knew what you meant.”

“I know you did, I know you did.” He was back to his confident self after the bumble. Should he ask her out on a date? Too soon? He thought again of his quest for the alchemical endpoint of All Blue, turned to All Orange for the purposes of this here blog. Started as a child when he saw the perfectly round, orange-like navel in a box. We covered that in photo-novel 10. And better make that a navel orange back in that sentence before last. In a fruit box.

“If you don’t want me, you can leave me.”

He leaned forward, switching gears. “Try the other one, Wheeler. If you don’t mind. She’s going to show up sooner than later. Best to test it out now.”

“I’ll do better than that,” Wheeler currently playing the role of Constance Blueberry said back to Baker Bloch currently playing the role of character-actor Sandy Beech.

So just for the record, here we have two core avatars interacting with each other so no need for that collaging effect I spoke about earlier. This is Baker Bloch, this is Wheeler. Not 2 characters of Baker Bloch or 2 characters of Wheeler, etc. On with the show…

(to be continued)

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