These boxes of books sure are heavy...

[frameacloud]

Theri There from 2005-11-21

Notes: A learning experience with mental shifting. (Readers have pointed out a flaw in this exercise in weird physics: the person should have fallen forward instead. But then we wouldn’t have seen xir sorry face at the end.)

Transcript:
A person struggles to carry cardboard boxes from a moving van, thinking, “These boxes of books sure are heavy. I’ll visualize my dragon form, and focus on its qualities of strength and balance!” The shining silhouette of a dragon astral form appears around xir.
The dragon picks up a box with xir forelimbs, extending xir wings and tail. Caption: “When a quadrupedal dragon rears up bipedally to carry a heavy object, xe instinctively counterbalances the burden by unfurling xir wings behind xir.” This is illustrated with a old-fashioned balancing scales, sitting level.
Caption: “Phantom wings (weighing nothing) are an ineffective counterweight to lean against.” The weight vanishes from one side of the scales, and they collapse to the other. The dragon otherkin falls over, spilling the box.
Under a pile of textbooks such as “Physics 101” and “Qi Gong,” the dragon kin says, “I shouldn’t try a mental shift like that if I’m ever on a tightrope,” and then mutters, “Balance indeed!”

[Edit 2017-04-03: Updated link.]

Comments

[zuki-san.livejournal.com]

heee! I like today's comic--while I may be lacking in "Did my wings do that? O.o" stories, I can still relate to this, a bit.

I am extremely amused that the book atop our dragon's head is Physics 101. So deliberate, Orion. ^.=.^

I also get the imprthat the dragon in question might have bent xis knees a bit, and/or went up on the balls of his feet when shifting. The pose of the dragon in panel 4 suggests it to me--or more likely, it's something I do when imagining myself dragon.

Unfortunately, I don't think that's the best "carrying heavy weights" stance for flat-footed bipeds, wings to counterbalance or not. ^_^
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If I believed that anything, ah, significant was happening when I imagine myself dragon, I can easily see myself trying something like this...possibly with similiar results.

As it is, it's not something I'm in the practice of consciously calling up...often*. More like a mood or a mental state that, when I notice it, I will usually focus on and try to heighten. Usually said feeling creeps up on me when I'm alone (or feeling alone, regardless of crowds about), in a good mood, and....hmm. Some third quality that I'll work out just what it is later.

Point is, it tends to happen in libraries. There's something about the solitude, the mental attitude adopted when I leisurely hunt down a book, or just browse along the shelves, and the knowledge that I'm pacing through shelf after shelf of knowledge and I'll never get to read it all...

Well, it tends to put me in a draconic mood, and it has since high school. For that matter, finishing a good book or story can have the same effect. I will unashamedly admit, I get a high off of the right book.( or some other kind of literature. or a good discussion.)

Why am I bringing this up? Why is it vaguely topical? Why, because the dragon's carrying a great big box of books. ^_^
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* I realized an exception to this statement while I was writing. I have two semi-notable "phantom limb" habits. One, sometimes I'll put wings on my back just to flap or stretch them out, then refold. You can see grazing canada geese do it, and other birds too, I imagine. It might be a sign of slight agitation, or fidgeting.

The other thing I'll do is put wings on my back when I really want to move--a long haul on my bicycle or a dash off to class or somewhere else. I'll imagine them there, catching the wind and pushing me along, faster.

(warning! Tangent ahead.)

I'm not in good physical shape, but I do love a good run--or a chase. And several other forms of physical activity besides (dancing, DDR, some martial arts--anything I can lose myself in focusing on.)

Joy in motion. I suppose that's something else that brings out the dragon in me. *thinks that sounds very cliche, but couldn't find a better phrasing. Everything else had too many awkward qualifiers*

--And that concludes another semi-topical, self-referential, rambling post by Zuki.