Ref. the influx of new members

[In A Dark Light]

A warm welcome to everyone who is not a bot.

A weary indifference to everyone who is a bot.

Bots are puppets of puppet people. We are all bots.

[Insentient Traveler]

But who is puppeteering the puppeteer?

[In A Dark Light]

I've felt a weary indifference towards myself for some time.

[matt cardin]

Quote Originally Posted by Insentient Traveler

But who is puppeteering the puppeteer?

That would be the Ultimate Ventriloquist.*






















* Cf. Padgett, The Secret of Ventriloquism (Dunhams Manor Press, 2016), pp. 95-97.

[Unwary Traveller]

A sinister influx of silent strangers. What can it mean? They roam the streets of the town at night, and lurk in odd corners of libraries and museums by day, standing motionless like waxworks, always watching.

Are you one of us, or one of them?

As one of these new members (long time lurker) today I've posted a hello message on the "TLO welcomes Unwary Traveller" thread. Actually it's quite a long post, explaining my interest in weird fiction - reading it back to myself makes me wonder if I have become slightly unhinged.

I mentioned Matt Cardin in that post (Hello Matt) as I have some overlapping interests in concepts such as the numinous. I'm pleased to see The Teeming Brain website is back online, I found some really interesting stuff on there such as the posts about sehnsucht / autumn longing. Also I see the story "Teeth" is now on the Pseudopod podcast narrated by John Padgett which has to be worth a listen!

Perhaps these new members have become lost within the winding labyrinths of the TLO forums? I must admit the layout with its many sub-forums is somewhat daunting, although it is part of the charm to be confused when navigating it. I was reminded of this last night when watching a youtube video essay by Jacob Geller titled "The Shape of Infinity" which discusses Piranesi and the Borges story about an infinite library, amongst other things (another video of his worth watching is called "Fear of Depths" - the content on that channel usually has some relation to video games but it's very well thought out and philosophical so don't let that put you off).

Tonight I find myself wandering the streets of the town, my mind vacant...

Quote

I stood alone, staring into immense and empty spaces. Presently I found that I was in a colossal square, as of some European city, alone at the time of evening twilight, and surrounded by houses hundreds of stories high. …A horribly deafening din poured down on me from the four sides of the square. Every sash of all the hundred stories of every house in that colossal quadrangle flew up as by one spring. Awakened by my call, at every window stood a terrific maniac. Sublimely in the air above me, in front, beside me, on either hand, and behind my back, a wilderness of insane faces gnashed at me, glared, gibbered, howled, laughed horribly, hissed, and cursed. At the unbearable sight I myself became insane, and, leaping up and down, mimicked them all, and drank their demented spirit. (Fitz Hugh Ludlow - The Hasheesh Eater)

[Robert Adam Gilmour]

All the subforums put me off until I got used to the front page and the "New Posts" bit at the top of the page.

What incentive is there for a lurker to join but keep lurking? What isn't accessible to a non-member?

[Grimalkin]

Replying (quickly?) to Insentient Traveler's post; just saw the Sasquatch in your signature. I am a Big Foot fan girl who has knitted mini-Sasquatches during the pandemic. In isolation, I have created at least 10 lil' Sasses and 2 Yetis, 2 of which now reside on the fireplace mantelpiece of my friend, Adam Gorightly. They are my only offspring, since I've always been an anti-natalist. Oh, and welcome to all the lurkers, both new and old.

[ToALonelyPeace]

Quote Originally Posted by Robert Adam Gilmour

All the subforums put me off until I got used to the front page and the "New Posts" bit at the top of the page. What incentive is there for a lurker to join but keep lurking? What isn't accessible to a non-member?

The incentive for me to log in instead of lurking is reading the latest replies on 1st page instead of last page, bookmarking my old favorite threads, and thanking a post.

[Metaphysical Mutant]

Quote Originally Posted by Insentient Traveler

But who is puppeteering the puppeteer?

It's puppeteers all the way down.

The Sasquatch monologue is peak Meatwad:

Meatwads inspirational speech - YouTube