RE: https://eldritch.cafe/@EllisArcwolf/115788959110082500
Earning My Internet "Keep"
I haven’t just been waiting for the bureaucratic gears to turn; I’ve been rewriting the history of the Fifth Astral Era.
To keep my brain sharp (and frankly, to stave off the crushing weight of waiting for the license that has taken forever), I’ve been deep-diving into my adaptation of The Tragedy of Julius Caesar (The Tragedy of Ĵulŷs Kæsar). But I realized that for the specific Fifth Astral Era history I’m targeting for Morvelet's writing career, Early Modern English wasn’t archaic enough for him to have written his plays in.
So, I did what any reasonable lore fanatic would do: I rewrote the "You blocks, you stones" speech from Act I, Scene 1 in Middle Eorzean (think Chaucer meets FFXIV): "Ye blockes, ye stones, ye duller than bestaille! / O ye harde hertes, ye felouns of Allage..."
See more at my diegetic Taper Project website: https://taper-project.jijivisa.org/
I am proving to myself—and to the world—that even when I am at rock bottom, my capacity to create complex, layered, and incisive art is untouched. I can do anything.
The Reality Check
But while I can rewrite iambic pentameter, I cannot rewrite the cost of living.
I am currently in Pittsburgh, fighting to secure transitional housing. To stay safe and healthy until my license arrives—if all goes according to the latest plan I've been made to believe is "The Plan"—on January 6, 2026. To make that happen, I need to clear some obstacles in my path:
- The "Impact Fee": My host has been incredibly generous, but my presence has spiked their utility costs. I need to help cover a $421 electric bill to ensure I am not a burden on the lifeboat that saved me. There's still most of it to cover. I've received about $150 in the past two weeks, which was barely enough to make ends meet and get my phone back prior to a job interview I had on Thursday.
- Meds: I need to refill my Bupropion (depression meds). Now I'll also have to refill my Venlafaxine. Couldn't make it to Pittsburgh today for an important doctor's appointment because I couldn't leave Butler on account of the expense and my current fiscal destitution.
- Transit & Logistics: Getting to the interview and navigating the city requires funds I currently do not have. More than you'd think, as the ONLY place I've YET found to live is where I'm staying now, an hour (two by bus) and a once-a-day bus schedule away from Pittsburgh.
I really wish I could live in Pittsburgh, but I don't have the money to buy a local bus ticket right now, and the frequency of donations have proved my dream of finding a place on the generosity of strangers quite silly. For now, I just need to be able to get around so I can resolve things until I can make my own money to get a place to live in Pittsburgh. Still need help to get there.
The Ask
I am begging you to invest in the person who can turn trauma into Chaucerian verse. Help me clear these immediate hurdles so I can nail upcoming interviews, get my LPC license finalized, and finally have a room of my own to write Julius Caesar's sequel.
Thank you for being the audience that keeps the lights on.
#FFXIV #FinalFantasyXIV #FFXIVLore #CreativeWriting #Shakespeare #Linguistics #Chaucer #WorldBuilding #MutualAid #Crowdfunding #Poverty #HousingInsecurity #Pittsburgh #ButlerPA #AuDHD #Disability #MentalHealth
Ellis C. A. Arcwolf (Author)
