Starbuck – The Beige Moth

Chapter 135: The Chase.—Third Day

April 13, 2025April 13, 2025 Robin VanGilder3 Comments

Alright, I’ve delayed enough, let’s finish this monster up.

I’ve had a real sense of impending doom lately, had some sleepless nights due to anxiety and whatnot. There are things I can do to combat that, and I know that I am in fact given to seeking out portents of disaster and using that as an excuse to take refuge in paralysis, but it would also help a lot if the country I live in wasn’t rapidly descending into fascism. Therapy is all well and good, but sometimes material conditions are the root concern, y’know. And yet, here I am, ready to finally finish out this years-long project. Let’s get to it!

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Chapter 134: The Chase.—Second Day

March 30, 2025April 16, 2025 Robin VanGilder2 Comments

As we approach the end of this great tome, I find myself in a reflective mood.

Thinking back upon the story as a whole, its many detours and sidequests, and the thrust of its narrative. This past week I even went and read some other criticism of Moby Dick, to refresh my memory a bit. The… pacing of this project has definitely been lopsided, with my having covered more than half the book in the first year, and then slowly grinding out the last bit of it. But that feels appropriate, as Ishmael dithered and delayed in telling the end of his tale, so do I struggle to embrace the entirety of this enormous work with the inadequate span of my typing fingers.

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Chapter 133: The Chase.—First Day

March 23, 2025April 16, 2025 Robin VanGilder1 Comment

Ugh, man, I finally feel like I’m waking up again.

Last week I had some minor oral surgery. Nothing too serious, no teeth being removed or anything like that, but nonetheless I had to go under general anaesthesia; that is, I was knocked out cold. It’s always a strange experience, I haven’t had it since I had my wisdom teeth out, and I’ve been some time recovering from it. The last few days have felt a bit like an extended dream which I cannot fully sink into nor awake from. But now, I’m coming awake again, and none too soon: the hunt is on!

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Chapter 132: The Symphony

March 16, 2025 Robin VanGilder3 Comments

Ahh, man, I had a nice vacation.

Didn’t go anywhere, but just… hung out at home, like the old days. Reconnecting with the version of myself who was a layabout in college and when I worked at the market, playing Final Fantasy XIV for hours and hours every day, sinking time into JRPGs, so on and so forth. It’s refreshing, getting away from work and indulging in old pleasures like that. But, it’s time to get back to business.

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Chapter 126: The Life-Buoy

October 27, 2024 Robin VanGilder4 Comments

Blehh, I’ve got my first cold of the fall season.

Thankfully, it’s not a bad one. Just enough to give me a bit of a snuffle and make me feel more tired than usual. It’s very annoying, honestly. Not bad enough to take time off of work, but I still don’t want to go out except when it’s necessary, and I still feel worse than usual when I am at work. Ah well, could certainly be worse!

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Chapter 124: The Needle

September 8, 2024 Robin VanGilderLeave a comment

Hoo, I think I’m finally in the clear.

From the summer heat, I mean, though the season doesn’t technically end for a few more weeks. It’s been awfully muggy here lately, and we had a couple last days of unbearable warmth, post-labor day. Ugh, it was right when I was working from home too, nearly melted into a puddle at my desk during a meeting, where I had to have my headset on. Anyway, I must apologize for missing last week, I was overwhelmed with Emotions after getting back into an old hobby. Perhaps I’ll write on it another time.

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Chapter 123: The Musket

August 25, 2024 Robin VanGilder1 Comment

I’ve been re-energized.

Last week, I was in too bad of a mood to write my post. Some things going on that weekend just threw off my whole vibe, I couldn’t get in the right headspace for writing. Things improved significantly through the week, though. Starting to get back into an old hobby of mine… but, in a careful way. It’s a trading card game, and those can be a real money sink if you’re not careful.

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Chapter 120: The Deck Towards the End of the First Night Watch

July 21, 2024September 8, 2024 Robin VanGilder1 Comment

Blehhh, I do hate the summer.

I apologize for the lack of a chapter last week, I was defeated by the heat. Even with a chapter this slim, I couldn’t muster up any cogent thoughts, so I left it alone. There are some more extremely short chapters in the offing, I may do some multiple-chapter weeks comin’ up.

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Chapter 119: The Candles

July 7, 2024 Robin VanGilder1 Comment

Y’know, I’m starting to have more sympathy for Ahab.

I, too, feel like cursing the sun, and never looking skyward again, as it beats down and boils the air around me. That is to say: it’s getting hot again, and I hate it. Supposed to get above 90 for the next few days, and I will be melting into a puddle, so we’d better get into this chapter before that happens.

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Chapter 118: The Quadrant

June 30, 2024 Robin VanGilder2 Comments

Ahhh, finally feeling better.

My cough is finally clearing up. I can breathe freely for the first time in like three weeks. I was starting to go a bit stir-crazy, being cooped up in my apartment this whole time. Man, I don’t think I could handle working purely from home, I gotta get back into the office.

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