Fill one like this up

Throw for luck, fumble, it looks cold out there, that shitty wannabe snow falls gently, as if it was mocking you…

Get into the kitchen without hitting the door (throw for agility, failed, down two hit points). Moan and disentangle yourself from those dreams still clawing at your legs (throw for sanity, fail, -10% to all your actions for 2 hours). Pour some coffee in the mug, don’t put too much or you might lose sanity (throw for dexterity, pass). Now heat the keetle, make sure the water is hot enough or you’ll spoil the coffee (throw for perception, fail, you spoiled the coffee!). There’s no more coffee in your jar, it’s a critical situation, the fate of the morning hinges on this, check your flatmates supplies (throw for perception, pass, there it is), fetch it, pour it (throw for dexterity, pass), put it back where it was (throw for stealth, pass)…

…Sit in the computer and try to log on to the Internet (throw for luck, pass), you’re there, check e-mail, (throw for luck, fail, the server is overloaded), lit a cigarrette (throw for dexterity, fail, the ashes spill over the keyboard, minus 2 hit points to your computer)…

…Let’s live on the edge, let’s shave, go to the toilette, avoid hitting the door (throw for agility, pass), get the razorblade from your flatmate’s mound of girly beauty stuff supplies (throw for dexterity, fail, a bunch of things fall in the floor, throw for luck, fail, her mascara splashes in the toilette, ouch! Thank god you haven’t fumbled…). Shave (throw for dexterity, fail, down two hit points, down one charisma point)…

…And this has been the easy part, a world full of goblins, trolls and the odd elf awaits out there…good luck trooper.

Harvey Pekar once said that ‘ordinary life can be pretty complex stuff’. I would like to add that it can be quite intense if you look hard enough! And you will need a soundtrack for that search, of course. Try Skills (7) Stamina (12), a band who have recently released their ace debut album, ‘Robotic With Strings’ in Junior Aspirin (buy here).

Skills (7) Stamina (12)- Sofa

This is not the kind of ‘hard’ music we usually post, but it’s really got under my skin. A first reference to describe their sound would be Stereolab, if only Stereolab lived in the real world, or Tortoise before they grew up, when they had fun running around the neighbourhood in their red BMX. Gorgeous vocals, surreal lyrics and spare, gentle yet complex instrumentations recorded with a homely no-frills ace production (sound as if they were playing in your lounge), this is music to fall quietly in love to, the way it happens to people like me, throw for stamina, failed, there you go again, surely your sanity is going to go down the hill, but it will be fun…