Jeff Calhoun (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
bardish) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
riverviewlogs2018-08-01 10:10 am
bardish) wrote in riverviewlogs2018-08-01 10:10 am
and i wonder, when i sing along with you [OPEN]
who: Jeff Calhoun & OPEN
what: August Catch-All
when: ALL OF AUGUST
where: Various
warnings: Prompt II has brief references to past drug use and... VAGUELY demons.
i. it's a kind of magic (GRAMARYE)
[ Of everything Jeff could complain about with regards to his life here (Such as the recent kidnapping-by-cult! That's still a big one!), there's one thing he's totally content with: his job. Working at Gramarye, he gets the same joy of teaching as back home, only without the constraints of testing and curriculum drama. Also, the pay's marginally better. That helps.
Here in Riverview, he gets to teach kids who don't have a lot of opportunities at the public school, whether because they can't control their magic (or other abilities), or because the facilities aren't equipped for them, or they just... haven't had the best experiences with non-magical people in their own worlds, and feel safer with people more like them. Whatever the reason, they get their schooling at Gramarye, and Jeff's one of the teachers who works with them on their fundamental education. Not with magic (not a chance in hell he'd try to teach magical lessons, with there being ten thousand different types of magic here in the first place), but mundane subjects.
It's a challenge, coming up with lesson plans that can both cast a wide net and be allow him to customize for each kid's needs, but he loves it. And he gets to focus on all kinds of different things, depending on the students. Critical thinking! Reading comprehension! Self-expression! Occasionally, some degree of math!
For all that he might give off a slacker vibe, it's clear that he at least takes his job seriously. So, Jeff can often be found at Gramarye, whether it's during school hours for the magical youths, or after-hours: grading, lesson planning, or cleaning up after some magical mishap or another. Look, it's a hazard of the job. If he weren't so totally gunshy about doing magic, himself, he'd just... enchant the damn papers so no teenage wizards with a strong affinity for pyromancy could set their tests on fire when they get too stumped by a question...
Kyle.
So that's his current mission, when he's not teaching: asking his coworkers (or frequent visitors of Gramarye) for tips or spells to MAAAAYBE baby-proof his classroom. ]
Look, they're good kids, but sometimes they can get a little, ahh... excitable? It's like... shit happens! Things explode a little! So, if you've got a spell for that, I could really use a hand here...
ii. i'm burning through the sky, yeah (OPEN MIC NIGHT)
[ It's funny where life takes you. The last time Jeff played in front of a crowd, it was... 1995? A packed house, the crowd a mass of sweaty bodies, drunk, high, hopped up on this thing or that. He was shitfaced, too, trying to fry a voice out of his head with a cocktail of substances, but he could still hear it, even through the fog. From what he can remember, the set went from okay, to not-so-great, to a total shitshow. He lost time, blacked out, sometime around the last song in the set, and whatever happened after, he still has no memory of.
He found out after-the-fact that the night ended in yet another fight between him and his bandmates. Only by then, it was one fight too many, and that was the end of that. Bye bye, band.
And that wasn't even when he hit bottom.
This is the first time Jeff's picked up an instrument and played for an audience (instead of just himself) in over twenty years, and it couldn't be more different. Open mic at a coffeehouse, mellow music for a small, mellow crowd. Not normally something he'd do-- god, there's still a part of him that expects everything to go wrong, even as he's strumming a guitar and singing covers of other musicians (never his own stuff, not anymore)-- but, fuck, Athena's a bad influence here! Living with another bard, and not having his daughter around to pour all of his attention into, it's gotten harder for Jeff to keep on pretending he can live a full and satisfying life without music.
So, here we go. He's not flashy like he used to be, and half the people at the coffeehouse aren't even here for the open mic performances-- they're doing their own thing and hardly paying attention-- and that helps ease him through his initial waves of anxiety and settle into a nice groove here. It's just a few songs, by a few artists. When he's finished, it's a rush, that buzzing thrill beneath the skin that he always used to feel when he performed.
When it's over, Jeff sticks around to mingle and chat with people. Come say hi!
(And he enjoys the open mic thing enough that he'll come back a few more times over the month to play a short set. If Athena's with him, you can bet there will be duets.) ]
( And here's some references for songs he might've played: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. )
WILDCARD.
[ More prompts might pop up later. IN THE MEANTIME: if these don't strike your fancy, you can choose your own adventure. ]
what: August Catch-All
when: ALL OF AUGUST
where: Various
warnings: Prompt II has brief references to past drug use and... VAGUELY demons.
i. it's a kind of magic (GRAMARYE)
[ Of everything Jeff could complain about with regards to his life here (Such as the recent kidnapping-by-cult! That's still a big one!), there's one thing he's totally content with: his job. Working at Gramarye, he gets the same joy of teaching as back home, only without the constraints of testing and curriculum drama. Also, the pay's marginally better. That helps.
Here in Riverview, he gets to teach kids who don't have a lot of opportunities at the public school, whether because they can't control their magic (or other abilities), or because the facilities aren't equipped for them, or they just... haven't had the best experiences with non-magical people in their own worlds, and feel safer with people more like them. Whatever the reason, they get their schooling at Gramarye, and Jeff's one of the teachers who works with them on their fundamental education. Not with magic (not a chance in hell he'd try to teach magical lessons, with there being ten thousand different types of magic here in the first place), but mundane subjects.
It's a challenge, coming up with lesson plans that can both cast a wide net and be allow him to customize for each kid's needs, but he loves it. And he gets to focus on all kinds of different things, depending on the students. Critical thinking! Reading comprehension! Self-expression! Occasionally, some degree of math!
For all that he might give off a slacker vibe, it's clear that he at least takes his job seriously. So, Jeff can often be found at Gramarye, whether it's during school hours for the magical youths, or after-hours: grading, lesson planning, or cleaning up after some magical mishap or another. Look, it's a hazard of the job. If he weren't so totally gunshy about doing magic, himself, he'd just... enchant the damn papers so no teenage wizards with a strong affinity for pyromancy could set their tests on fire when they get too stumped by a question...
Kyle.
So that's his current mission, when he's not teaching: asking his coworkers (or frequent visitors of Gramarye) for tips or spells to MAAAAYBE baby-proof his classroom. ]
Look, they're good kids, but sometimes they can get a little, ahh... excitable? It's like... shit happens! Things explode a little! So, if you've got a spell for that, I could really use a hand here...
ii. i'm burning through the sky, yeah (OPEN MIC NIGHT)
[ It's funny where life takes you. The last time Jeff played in front of a crowd, it was... 1995? A packed house, the crowd a mass of sweaty bodies, drunk, high, hopped up on this thing or that. He was shitfaced, too, trying to fry a voice out of his head with a cocktail of substances, but he could still hear it, even through the fog. From what he can remember, the set went from okay, to not-so-great, to a total shitshow. He lost time, blacked out, sometime around the last song in the set, and whatever happened after, he still has no memory of.
He found out after-the-fact that the night ended in yet another fight between him and his bandmates. Only by then, it was one fight too many, and that was the end of that. Bye bye, band.
And that wasn't even when he hit bottom.
This is the first time Jeff's picked up an instrument and played for an audience (instead of just himself) in over twenty years, and it couldn't be more different. Open mic at a coffeehouse, mellow music for a small, mellow crowd. Not normally something he'd do-- god, there's still a part of him that expects everything to go wrong, even as he's strumming a guitar and singing covers of other musicians (never his own stuff, not anymore)-- but, fuck, Athena's a bad influence here! Living with another bard, and not having his daughter around to pour all of his attention into, it's gotten harder for Jeff to keep on pretending he can live a full and satisfying life without music.
So, here we go. He's not flashy like he used to be, and half the people at the coffeehouse aren't even here for the open mic performances-- they're doing their own thing and hardly paying attention-- and that helps ease him through his initial waves of anxiety and settle into a nice groove here. It's just a few songs, by a few artists. When he's finished, it's a rush, that buzzing thrill beneath the skin that he always used to feel when he performed.
When it's over, Jeff sticks around to mingle and chat with people. Come say hi!
(And he enjoys the open mic thing enough that he'll come back a few more times over the month to play a short set. If Athena's with him, you can bet there will be duets.) ]
( And here's some references for songs he might've played: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. )
WILDCARD.
[ More prompts might pop up later. IN THE MEANTIME: if these don't strike your fancy, you can choose your own adventure. ]
no subject
What if you're the one who wants to back out?
[Cam smirks with a dust of his eyelashes against his tan cheeks. Traveling the world, a man sees a lot of sun. Sunscreen doesn't last very long in the desert. The wind sandblasts it off your face.
Cam reaches across the table to pick up a chocolate truffle between his fingers.]
There's only one way to eat these.
[He shoves the whole thing in his mouth and chews, the mass of the truffle bulging out one cheek. Extremely dignified.]
no subject
And thus be incapable of speaking so it's all you Jeff. ]
no subject
NOW IT'S JUST JEFF WITH TWO PEOPLE SHOVING TRUFFLES IN THEIR MOUTHS. This isn't fair! Don't put the entire weight of the conversation on him!
In a panic, he reaches for a truffle and shoves it in his mouth. THERE. Now nobody can talk.
...
Or maybe they're all equally ridiculous people, and this is totally silly, and Jeff can't help but laugh even with a mouthful of avocado truffle. Oh god, now he's coughing. Time to take a sip of lemonade... Don't look at him! ]
no subject
It wouldn't do for him to choke to death right when they're starting to get along.]
Do you like them?
[He did make them for Jeff, after all. Athena will eat anything. Bless the girl.]
no subject
She doesn't actually want him to choke to death, though. ]
no subject
Thankfully, Waltz is here with the assist. Jeff swallows, nods, clears his throat with another sip of lemonade. ]
It's good! Possibly lethal. But good! [ A DREAMY SIGH, now that he's not choking and coughing. ] Avocados really are good for everything...
no subject
[Cam sips his lemonade, picking at a lingering piece of chicken on his plate. It really was very good. The presentation simple, but elegant. He's not a big fan of overwrought foods.]
They are. Avocados are used for beauty treatments in many cultures, as well as to medicinal purpose.
Whenever I make guacamole I use the leftover avocado for face-masks. JJ loves them.
no subject
[ DELICATELY SELECTING ANOTHER TRUFFLE. ]
no subject
[ Pause. Wait. Maybe this is the kind of jokey banter they shouldn't have with present company. ]
Ahhh... Not that I... have any...
no subject
The last thing he wants to be thinking about, at the dinner table with a minor present, is the BINGO card of Jeff Calhoun's fetishes.]
Hm. I think that's about it for me. Thank you both for dinner. Would anyone like tea?
no subject
Poor Jeff. Poor, poor Jeff. She takes pity on him as she finally swallows. ]
Depends. What kind is it?
[ SURPRISE, Athena is actually a tea drinker and kinda picky about it.
Er, wait. ]
I mean that sounds good.
no subject
[ LIKE A GOOD HOST WHO DOESN'T MAKE JOKES ABOUT HIS WEIRD FETISHES. ]
no subject
[Cam slides his chair back, retrieving his napkin from his lap to drape elegantly over his plate. Good manners are always in style.
He watches Jeff for a moment. The man looks stressed. He seems to exist in a state of chill, or Chernobyl.]
Do you need help? Not that I... don't think you can't do it on your own.
[Way to sound patronizing. He almost winces.]
I'm sure you could do anything you put your mind to.
[Winces.]
no subject
I got this, you guys, don't kill yourselves tripping over your manners. Chai sounds great, Cam.
no subject
But Athena's laughter breaks the awkward silence, and Jeff's going along with it. ]
Oh yeah. I can even do some things I don't put my mind to.
[ Social crisis averted! Thanks, kid. ]
Do you... want help with the tea...?
no subject
[Cam laughs too, his shoulders and neck softening.
This really is nice.
He starts rolling up his sleeves, heading into the kitchenette after them.]
I don't need help, but I could use company. It takes a little while. You have to really simmer the spices in the milk, or else it's just... Starbucks.
[He wrinkles his nose and starts pulling packets out of his EUROPEAN HANDBAG.]
no subject
I want to learn how you do it.
no subject
IT FEELS LIKE THERE'S AN INSIDE JOKE HE'S NOT IN ON. ]
What's wrong with Starbucks?
[ Sorry, guys. He's not as much of a tea drinker as you are!! ]
no subject
[He shoots a grin over his shoulder at Athena, and shifts over so there's room beside him. It's a tight squeeze for two tall adult men and one sharp-edged teen girl.]
Masala chai. Just like bibi makes. There's nothing better after a good meal.
We'll need a pot. Milk. Sugar.
Here, I have cardamom, cinnamon, fennel, and ginger. Do you want to help me crush it?
no subject
Can we use this?
no subject
no subject
[Cam brushes past Jeff to grab his bag, glancing at him over his shoulder.]
Do you like chai, Jeff?
no subject