Jacob’s Escalator

Today is the fourth of January, 2008. I wish to extend a belated welcome into the new year. I have high hopes about this one, if only because it is a multiple of four and therefore a new president will be due.

My sight, while it is quite far when I look down at the escalator’s lower reaches, is limited when I look up. Clouds and choice platforms obscure my vision. However, I’ve studied the stars and plotted a bit of my course, so I can give you a little insight into what the year holds, for me and for this site.

Those very close to me - most notably, my parents - are aware of my short-lived desire to write a story based on Rush’s song 2112 Overture. Now that I have a good place to release my writing, I have decided to take up the pen and the MP3 player and once more see what can be made from someone else’s story. The length and completion date of this mini-saga I am not sure about, but I know it’ll take a lot longer than the 20:37 it takes to listen to the song itself.

Very few of you readers know all that much about the things I know a lot about - Pokemon, perhaps, is the most memorable of these. Pokemon has held my interest since I was about seven (or something) and the first game came out for the ancient Gameboy. However, it’s a concept extremely difficult to grasp for most of the adult family, for two reasons;

1. Its extremely large scope. Pokemon Red was strange enough; Diamond, one of the newest, is thrice as complex. It would be hard for anyone to fully understand at first.

2. The fact that my mouth is disabled, in a way. Stupid ADHD.

However, Pokemon is definitely not the only interest of mine that could use a bit of explanation for you. Therefore I hope to soon introduce a new category of posts, where I describe to you in my own thoughts something that interests me. Once you’ve learned a bit about something that interests me, some of the pictures and posts I might write about that something will make more sense to you.

Which leads me, finally, to the Digital Artwork category, which I hope to begin publishing works in. Digital Artwork is fancy longhand for “Sprites”. Before I post any of these “sprites”, I will write an introductory post that explains them and their usage. They are a bit too unwieldy to be described here.

As for my new year, I have so far only made one resolution - one that I think I can keep, realistically. That resolution is to practice guitar once a day, every day, for at least an hour. I think that between this blog, a few interactive stories, work, school, school work at home, work work at home, the friends and the family, I can spare a whole hour each day. Don’t you?

(Please read the Prologue)

After some time of sitting on the stair, digging through the backpack, I finally stood and cast my eyes about. The wind had died since I’d gotten aboard, although the cold made the air nearly tangible. Far, far below, the earth glowed a soft white color, decorated with shadows that were the marks of rolling hills and valleys. This was on the left side of the stair; to the right, mountains were much more clearly defined, and they held an almost blue shade, with their bottoms and tops covered with snow.

I looked back down at the backpack. Whose was it, I wondered. How did it get lost on the Platform of 16? Was it abandoned intentionally, or is someone looking for it? I reached down and took the notebook from it, flipping through its pages. Nothing - not even a page torn out. It was totally unused. I reached down and grabbed the pencils, and I saw they too were sharpened to a point - but completely unmarked.

A sudden fervor came over me and I sat down again, holding the side of the escalator against my back. I flipped open to the first page and began to write.

It’s been a while since I got on this particular escalator… the view hasn’t improved much, which disappointed me. Indeed, my life seems to be getting… well, worse isn’t the word. It’s actually wonderful. Fuller, perhaps? The long hours I used to have to myself are fading away. I hope I get used to that. I’m not sure if I ever will, but I certainly hope I do.

But I look around at myself, and things are indeed wonderful. School is going well. It’s no longer a breeze! Huzzah! Something to occupy myself with - now if only I could actually occupy myself with it. And friends, I’ve been out a lot more and enjoying the company of others, and that’s… actually much better than I imagined. I must do that more often. And I have a good, palpable talent now - I can play guitar! Well, sort of… but I’m working on that. I keep dreaming of going big, and then I have to keep knocking myself down because surprise is a much better emotion than bitter disappointment. But I know I’ll at least try. Once. Twice, as many times as it takes…

I frowned. I was wandering around with this paper. Where was my topic? My theme? My point? The answer was simple: there was none. And did there have to be? Maybe not, not now. I looked around again, this time looking up and not down. The sky was filled with papers and objects and pictures, flying hither and thither, cast about by people and various other escalators. I grabbed one as it flew near; a message from my Father, to “all readers”, with a vast collection of beautiful snowflakes he himself had made out of paper. I smiled at it, stuffed it in the back of the Notebook, and quickly returned to writing.

In any event, I will try to dedicate some of my fading free minutes to this Notebook I have come across upon the Escalator. My life might not interest you - none of me might, in fact - but I’ll write all the same. (I pause, willing more appropriate words to come.) I hope that you’ll enjoy reading the works of my eyes and imagination.

Until there is more to write about - happy living!

I smile. “That’s enough for now, I think.” I tore the paper from the notebook; to my amazement, the words have copied onto the next page, saved to be seen again, later. I stood and held the paper out over the side of the escalator; the net of winds caught it and whipped it about before I even let go. When I did let go it was whirled about and seemed to split into many, flying through the skies to be seen by the masses.

I sit back down and begin to think, smiling. What to write about next…?