1416 – Frank 11 | Read With Me | SWM+ Sneak Peek

Episode 1416 – Frank 11 | Read With Me | SWM+ Sneak Peek

[START OF RECORDING]

SCOOTER: Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, and friends beyond the binary, it’s time for the podcaster who just…I was gonna record a intro for…this is super meta, but I was gonna record a intro for one type of episode, and then I just thought, has there ever been a spin-off of This Old House called This Old Boat? Then I said, I don't remember one. Then I said, well, we better do a episode about it then, 'cause that sounds incredibly Sleep With Me-esque. So, probably at some point twenty minutes from now, I may be talking about This Old Boat, but I’ll probably talk about it sooner, and then I’ll go off…you say, you never even mentioned boats or old boats at all, Scoots.

I’d say…Scoots, what’s your favorite old boat? I’d say, well, the boat in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, but I wanted to see it…a lot of people said, well, I want that Bucky cut with Bucky and Sarah, but I want to see the boat cut. I want to see that boat out in the ocean or the harbor, please, and I wanted to see if it was named or renamed something. ‘Cause I say, well, I have a couple ideas from the arc of the season. So, anyway, it’s…but…oh, what am I talking about? It’s time for Sleep With Me, the podcast that puts you to sleep.

INTRO: [INTRO MUSIC] Hey, are you up all night tossing, turning, mind racing? Trouble getting to sleep? Trouble staying asleep? Well, welcome. This is Sleep With Me, the podcast that puts you to sleep. We do it with a bedtime story. Alls you need to do is get in bed, turn out the lights, and press Play. I’m gonna do the rest. What I’m going to attempt to do is create a safe place where you could set aside whatever’s keeping you awake, whether it’s thoughts or feelings or physical sensations, so things on your mind maybe from the the past, the present, the future or that are just…they're popping up.

It could be physical sensations, it could be emotions or feelings, it could be a change in your schedule or your routine or your work, or you maybe just work a second or third shift or one of the many other shifts I’ve invented. Whatever it is, it sounds like you're here because you need some company in the deep, dark night, and that’s really what I’m here for. I’m here to keep you company — I’m so glad you're here — and to take your mind off of stuff while you fall asleep. So, what I’m trying to establish, I guess, is a safe place where you don’t need…where you feel comfortable enough not to listen to me. Believe me, if you listen to me for more than five minutes, you say, oh, wait, you're right, I don’t really need…and I’d say, it’s fine. ‘Cause your first reaction might be, well, he’s not making any sense.

Should I listen ‘til he starts? I say, no, no, no need to listen to me at all. You can listen. So, here’s the thing; I got this safe place. I’m gonna smooth it, I’m gonna pat it, I’m gonna rub it down, then I’m gonna send my voice across the deep, dark night. I’m gonna use lulling, soothing, creaky, dulcet tones…creaky, dulcet tones…a little bit different than what you expect. They may take some getting used to. But for the regular listeners, they say, okay, I did need something a little bit different. You say, Scoots, that’s a under…you're more than a little bit different. I’d say, yeah, aren't we all? Oh, so shall we all, or whatever they…so say we all are a little bit different, and that’s so good. I also…pointless meanders, superfluous tangents.

It means I’m gonna get mixed up, I’m gonna use filler words, go off topic, keep rambling, get lost in my own ovular logic. They called it circuitous logic, but I said, mine’s more ovular. Or ellipse…I say, is that an ellipsis? Did my brain just go in an ellipsis? You say, no, it went…I think that was an eclipse. I say, hardy, har, har, brain. So, if you're new, I want to give you some information upfront, because it’s my job to kinda earn your trust and to make you feel comfortable. So, if you're doubtful or skeptical, first thing first, that’s totally normal and should be expected. I’d say bravo, because you’ve probably been tossing and turning and tried other stuff, and it’s vulnerable listening to a sleep podcast. Now, I will tell you this podcast does not work for everybody.

It probably doesn't even work for the majority of people that try it, but I really do hope it works for you. There are a lot of other sleep podcasts you could check out at sleepwithmepodcast.com/nothankyou, but I can tell you I’ve been doing the show…when I record this…I’ve recorded over a thousand episodes, and most listeners that became regular listeners over the years…since 2013, there’s people that have been listening that whole time. They said, yeah, it took two or three tries for me to get used to you, or it took me listening once, strongly disliking the podcast, coming back a few months later, giving it another try. So, just kinda see how it goes. That’s one thing. You say, well, that’s really a way to sell your podcast. I say, well, it’s the truth, right?

But there’s even more stuff you probably want to know if you're new, and if you're a regular listener, what up? How about that? This was supposed to be one kind of episode, and now we're gonna talk about old boats, maybe. I don't even know…will this be a personal-essay style episode or what am I gonna be talking about? So…okay, so…oh, so, if you're new, though…oh, what are the other things you know? One, I make the show for two reasons. I’ve been there; tossing, turning, mind racing, trouble getting to sleep, trouble staying asleep. I got all of those, and I know how it feels there in the deep, dark night. So, that’s the first part. The second thing is that you deserve a good night's sleep.

Your sleep is important, and you deserve a place you could rest and a bedtime that you don’t dread, a bedtime that you feel neutral about or you say, well, at least I got that sleep podcast to listen to. He’ll be goofing around. How did he miss that the name…how did he not see the…? Maybe he didn’t watch the post-credit’s credit’s post-credits scene on Falcon and the Winter Soldier to see the boat out in the ocean. But, you know, or…I don't know. But so…oh, what was my point? Oh, you deserve a good night's sleep. If you can get the sleep you need, maybe you could…your life’s a little bit easier. Maybe you're a little bit more engaged. Maybe you could be in a place where you could flourish, and if your life’s better, everybody’s life’s better. It’s just a real fact.

Some people dismiss that, but if your life’s a little bit better, if you're a little bit rested, our world really is a better place. So, that’s why I make the show. Other things to know if you're new that really throw new listeners off…oh, the pod…this is a podcast you don’t really listen to. You just kinda barely pay attention to it. That can be really hard at first, to kinda passively listen to someone rambling. You might be wondering, when does it get started or where is this thing going? I’d say, well, it’s not going anywhere, and it already started. It already started and stopped a few times. So, just kinda consume it like you would if you were looking at clouds or listening to something in the back…like, I don't know, for me it’s sports.

Sometimes…not recently, but I want to start putting baseball on again and not paying…I gotta start listening to baseball in the background again so I can not pay attention — but it soothes me — or train videos on YouTube during the day. I need a lot of soothing. That was one thing I was using in late 2020 and early 2021. So, this podcast is kinda like that, something to have in the background to keep you company. It also does not put you to sleep. It keeps you company while you drift off. I take your mind off of stuff. That’s why the episodes are over an hour, so you have plenty of time to fall asleep, and if you can't sleep, I’m here. My job is to keep you company whether you're listening or not. So, if you're listening and you need me, I’m gonna be here, too.

I don't even know what I’ll be talking about, but I’ll be present here for you, because that’s important. That’s really the whole show. Other things if you're new that can throw you off is the structure of the show, and the show is structured very intentionally to meet our goals, to help as many…to be there for free twice a week and to kinda help ease people into bedtime. So, the show starts off with a greeting so you feel welcome and seen, then there’s listener support, then there’s sponsors and support for the show. That’s how we put it out twice a week. Then there’s the intro. The intro’s usually…I’ve been trying to get them in around twelve minutes, but they always seem to go a bit longer. So, the intro’s between ten and twenty minutes long.

The intro’s really a show within a show to ease you into bedtime, so you could start winding down. You can…as you become a regular listener, you can kinda figure out what works best for you, but what works for getting used to the show is…the first few times is maybe putting the show on as you're getting ready for bed or as you're doing something…wind-down activity, even if it’s making your bed or drawing or looking through a magazine. I don't know, people don’t do that anymore, but, you know, knitting or just sitting around, chilling. So, the intro just gives you a little bit of distance from the day, and, I don't know, regular listeners…there’s a small percentage of people that skip the intros and then there’s a percentage of listeners that fall asleep during the intros.

But for the most part, the listeners are either in bed getting comfortable or doing something else to chill out and wind down. So, that’s why the intro is ten to twenty minutes long. The variety is just my inability to be concise and go on rambles. You never know. I say, well, I could plan out ten minutes and talk for twenty-five. That kinda serves the purpose of the show. That’s where my natural skill set comes in of not being able to get to the point. So, that’s the intro, then there’s business between the intro and the show. Those are the sponsors that enable us to be here for you twice a week for free, then there will be a story. Tonight I guess it’ll be a story about This Old Boat. I don't know if it’ll be This Old Boat or This Old Boats, 'cause I haven't recorded it yet, but I’m excited now. I don't know…Bob…oh, I can't even say it.

Bob…you see, those are the words I can't pronounce. Vila, right? Bob Vila? Bob Vila. I don't think…people would say ‘villa’, but it’s Bob Vila. Vila? I don't know. Bob Vila. So, I’ll probably…I thought that would be easier for me to say, but apparently my mouth can't say it, so, that’s easy to avoid. I said, we’ll probably be overusing tha term, but not if we can't say it. So, we’ll talk about that, and then there’s some thank-yous at the end of the show. So, that’s how the show works. That’s why it’s here for you, and that’s kinda what to expect, just rambling in a friendly voice in the deep, dark night to keep you company, take your mind off of stuff. I’m really glad you're here. I really work hard on the show. I yearn and I strive. I really want to help you fall asleep, and these are the ways I’m able to be here for you for free twice a week.

Friends beyond the binary, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls…this is the second time you get to hear me say that welcome, because this episode is constructed from a intro from the past and our Read With Me episodes here. It’s a Frankie and Victor episode with our friend Frank and his…so, I’m reading from the book Victor and Frankie, also known as a famous Mary Shelley novel. This is a little bit different than episodes we’ve done with Sleep With Me, but we’ve tested this out on Sleep With Me+. It was so popular, we wanted to bring it to everyone. So, it’s me reading through a book, also paraphrasing, making stuff sleepy, but it’s not perfectly sleepy, just like everything else we make, you know? It exists within this world, but it’s pretty chill. So, I hope you enjoy it, and without further ado, more of Victor and Frankie. Thanks, everybody.

Chapter 21. I was soon introduced into the presence of the magistrate, an old, benevolent man with calm and mild manners. He looked upon me, however, with some degree of severity. Then, turning towards my conductors, he asked who appeared as witnesses on this occasion. About a half a dozen people came forward, and one being selected by the magistrate, he deposed that he had been out fishing the night before with his son and brother-in-law, Daniel Nugent, when about 10:00 they observed a strong, northerly wind rising, and they accordingly put in for port. It was a very dark night, as the moon had not yet risen. They did not land at the harbor but, as they had been accustomed, at a creek about two miles below.

He walked on at first carrying a part of the fishing tackle, and his companions followed him at some distance. As he was proceeding along the sands, he struck his foot against something and fell at his length on the ground. His companions came up to a system, and by the light of their lantern, they found that…they found this cute, cute, cute sleeping person snuggled up, so they could not see them. Even with the tripping, this person did a thing with their…[mumbles]. But they were still deep, deep asleep. Their first supposition was that it was someone from the town that had been partying too hard, and then on examination, they said, wait a second, these clothes are not from our town. I’ve never seen clothes like this before except from people visiting or people that just had gone shopping.

But no one we could think of had been on a trip. So, we saw…we said, well, that’s weird. They couldn't wake…we tried to wake the person up. We said, hey bub, hey, hey, who are you? Hey, where are you? But they didn’t wake up. We thought that even though the sand is soft…I don't know, we scooped them up 'cause they were so cute, and they were going [mumbles]. So, we scooped him up and brought him to the home of a woman nearby and endeavored in vain to make them comfortable. It was a handsome man, we could see, a young man about five and twenty years of age, and he still was…he’s still saying cutesie words in his sleep.

But something on the look on his face made us all gather ‘round him, 'cause it looked like he had giant handprints on his clothing like if someone had patted his shoulders in a greeting of goodbye. I don't know, the person went on and on and on like that, but I stopped listening. Maybe it was that they mentioned that he was a handsome young man. I started to think about myself. So, the rest…the deposition…well, that part I wasn’t even listening to, either, ‘til the big hands patted on the shoulder, 'cause he kept…the hands were huge, the hands were huge. They didn’t even…they kinda looked like they were made of tree branches or some…and I said, wait a second. Also, a lot of leaves, including leaves we don’t have…like, leaves everywhere; stuck to his clothes.

I said, leaves everywhere, and leaves that aren't even from the area. I started to think about…you know what I’m saying, and I started to get a little chill, and a mist came over my eyes which obliged me to lean on a chair for support. The magistrate observed me with a keen eye and, of course, drew an unfavorable augery from my manner. Then the guy’s kid confirmed his father’s account, but when Daniel Nugent was called, he swore positively that just before his companion tripped over the sleeping person, he saw a boat with a single man in it at a short distance from the shore, and as far as he could judge by the light of a few stars, it was the same boat in which I had just landed.

Then a woman deposed that she lived near the beach and was standing at the door of her cottage waiting for the return of the fisherpeople, and about a hour before this whole tripping over the sleeping guy, she saw a boat with only one man in it push off from that part of the shore, where they dropped off their sleeping companion or something. Then another woman confirmed the account of the fisherpeople having brought…this was the woman whose house it was…the sleeping dude into their house. They put him in bed and they rubbed him and they made hot drinks for him. Daniel went into town to see if…'cause he said, well, maybe we just need something with more caffeine to wake him up. They tried everything; tickling, pinching, singing, loudly clapping, to wake him up.

There was plenty of other people that came up that…concerning my landing and the boat, and they agreed upon that with the strong north wind that had arisen during the night, it was very possible, probable, even, that I had been out in the water for many hours and had been obliged to return to the very same spot from which I had departed. Besides, they observed that it had appeared that I was the one who dropped my sleeping friend off from another place, and it was likely that as I did, it did not appear…I didn’t know the shore, right? I might have put into the harbor ignorant of the distance of the town from the place where I put my sleeping friend.

Mr. Kirwin, on hearing this evidence, desired that I should be taken into another room where the sleeping person was, that I might be observed spending time with the sleeping person, if it was my friend or not, and to see how I would react. Now, this idea was probably suggested because I was already irritable. I couldn't hide it, especially when they talked about the giant handprints and all those leaves. They had never…probably never seen a person become agitated by the mention of being covered in leaves. So, I was accordingly conducted by the magistrate and several other persons to the inn. I could not help being…but being surprised by the strange coincidences that had taken place during this eventful night.

But knowing that I had been conversing with several persons in the island I had inhabited about that time the sleeping person had been discovered…see, I wasn’t worried. I was perfectly tranquil as the consequences of the affair. I didn’t have…I said, there’s…it wasn’t me. I don't know anybody that fell asleep. I didn’t drop any sleeping people off. Show me a law against dropping your sleeping friends off, anyway. But I didn’t speak any of this 'cause I didn’t feel I needed to. That was until I entered the room where the sleeping person lay, and I was led up to them. I could hear clearly that they were…instead of saying googly, googly, goo, they were saying, goodbye, goodbye, goodbye. Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye. Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye.

How can I describe my sensations on hearing that clearly and beholding what I would soon…which I was behelding? I feel yet parched, right now, to speak on, nor can I reflect on the moment even now without getting a chill. The examination, the presence of the magistrate, and the witnesses passed like a dream from my memory when I saw who it was sleeping, and I understood what they were saying, because it was Henry Clerval snuggled up before me. I gasped for breath and then I leapt to his bedside and took him up in my arms. I exclaimed, wake up, wake up, my Henry! Oh, my Henry, do not say goodbye in your sleep. Do not tell me no, with woe, you were journeying through the dream world and across to another realm. Please, Henry, don’t go to your dreams, because I thought I was your dream.

This has happened many times before recently, and I know you think probably…and then Henry even said, soon I’ll see my friends. Soon I’ll see my friends. I know they await you, dear Henry, but what about me? Clerval, my friend, my benefactor, carrier of…slowing me down or speeding me up unnecessarily, outgoing when I didn’t want to be and introverted when I wanted to be extroverted. I couldn't stand up, even, and they didn’t understand what I was talking about, so they carried me out of the room. Then I caught a cold, I guess. Maybe it was something like it. I just kept talking…I kept thinking I could even talk Henry out of it.

Then I guess this went on for two months of me going on and on and on, as afterwards I heard it was very confusing, and I talked about William and Justine and Clerval, saying I was the one who they were walking away from, and it must be me and my fault that they walked through their dreams to another realm. Now, luckily I had a lot of attendants. So, sometimes I entreated my attendants to help me track down who had planted the seed, you know? Who was whisperer of the dream walkers who would leave this realm? Help me find him. He’s a leaf-based being. Other times I felt like the…then I said…I would say to them, I’m covered in leaves. There’s leaves all about. I hear the branches rustling. The branches, the branches are calling. Most of the time, though, I spoke not in their language.

So, Mr. Kirwin alone could understand me, but the way I was acting…even if you could understand me, it wasn’t sensible, but it was even less sensible to them. It was sufficient to confuse every other witness to my behavior, and I kinda hoped I would get invited to join them, that I…I said, please, let me dream something sweet, that my friends are asking me to join them. But I didn’t dream that, so I was more miserable than any person ever…the most miserable person in the world. If they could have given an award, historically, it would have gone to me. It should go to me.

I wished I could rest or drift into forgetfulness, and I thought of doting parents, my doting parents, many brides waiting for me, many youthful lovers that may have loved after me, picturing me in the bloom of health and hope, but now wishing I was in another realm. Of what materials was I made that I could thus be…resist all these surprises? Even though I had woe…wow, I was also impressed that despite my behavior, I could handle so much which, like the turning of the wheel, continually renewed both my resilience but my need for resilience.

So, I was supposed to stick around, I guess, in this realm, and after two months I found myself as awakening from a dream, lying in a room with a bed not up to my standards at all, surrounded by people I didn’t even know in a place that wasn’t…I said, this place is not like…you call this an inn, man? Not by the hair on my chinny, chin, chin would I call this an inn. It was morning, and this was when I awoke to understanding. I had forgotten the particulars of what had happened, and only felt as if some great misfortune had suddenly overwhelmed me. But when I looked around and realized I wasn’t free to go as I wished, that I had no servants…and I said, this place is not up to my standards. I said it already. All flashed across my memory, and I groaned bitterly. Ugh.

Again, if they gave out awards, worldwide awards for groans, mine would be in the top of historical groans, in my opinion, but my opinion could be judged against…no other groan could hold up against mine, no other resilience against mine. But oh boy, this woman who was sleeping nearby, my groaning, my great, great groaning, woke her up. She worked there. She was actually the wife of the person that ran this facility. I didn’t want to judge her, but it looked like she spent a lot of time working. She hadn't had the luxury of servants. So…and I could…I just sensed she was gonna be rude to me. I was kinda judging her insides by her outsides and my experience. ‘Cause, you know, some people have trouble sympathizing with a guy like me. They don’t have my resilience, my ability to groan, my ability to need to be resilient.

They don’t understand what it’s like to be me. But the weirdest thing was her tone expressed her entire indifference, and she addressed me in English. The voice that she used was…I recognized as one I had heard during the past months in the middle of my things. She said, are you better now, sir? I replied in the same language with a feeble voice, I believe I am, but if it be all true, if indeed I did not dream, I wish I was still asleep and not so resilient as I am. For that matter, replied the woman, if you mean about that sleeping guy, I believe…and you wish you were sleeping, and I fancy you're gonna have to find a different outlook. However, that’s none of my business. I’m sent to help you, and help you get well. I do my duty with a safe conscience.

If it were well, if everybody did that, just took care of their own business and their side of the street, it would be all well for everybody. I said, this lady does not…I turned away from her because I said, what an unfeeling person to make a speech like that to someone like me…what I had just been through. Didn’t she know? But I felt languid and unable to reflect on all that had passed, even though I felt like she was…she thought she knew everything and was judging me and that all her comments were directed directly at me with ill intent, though I’ve been told they're not. But the whole series of my life appeared to me as a dream. I sometimes doubted if indeed it was all true, for it never presented itself to my mind with the force of reality. How could someone achieve such great heights and such low lows?

As for the images that floated before me more distinct, I got frowny, frowny, frowny, and no one was near me to soothe me with gentle voices of love. No dear hand supported me. Somebody came in in a lab coat and said, okay, let’s do this, this, and this, and the woman prepared things for me. But, you know, like I said, not many people know as much as I do, and I saw utter carelessness visible in his lab coat, and in the woman I saw something, an expression trying…she was trying to hide the visage that was full of scorn for me. Who could be interested in the fate of me, right? They had already said it was my fault my friend slept and then said, I’m gonna keep asleep. You know, but you may be judging me as they had, unkindly, but these were just my first reflections.

The full power of my mind had not yet come to fully awaken so I could process all of this. I’m giving you my story without too much editing. So, that was my first reflections. But I soon learned that Mr. Kirwin was kinda kind. He gave me…apparently this is the best room in the whole place by far, and it wasn’t great in my opinion, but in the opinion of everybody else, this was as good as it got, and it was given to me. They said, most of the time, you don’t get a woman to sit at your bedside and be good for you, or a lab coat at all. Now, Kirwin…if I’m keeping score, he didn’t really come and check on me, either, though he ardently desired to relieve every frown of every person. But he just didn’t want to listen to me talking nonstop, because people thought I wasn’t making sense, anyway.

He came, therefore, to see that I wasn’t…I was taken well care of. His visits were shore and with long intervals. Now, one day while I was gradually recovering, I was seated in a chair, my eyes half open, and my cheeks livid. I was once again overcome with gloom and misery and often reflected, let me just sleepy, sleep, sleep here, 'cause this world became…was more wretched every minute that went by. At one time I considered whether I should not just say…what was I gonna say? Maybe I could just make something up? I thought about what was happening with Justine in the past, and how she had been judged. Suddenly the door opened and Mr. Kirwin entered. His countenance expressed sympathy and compassion. He drew a chair close to mine and addressed me in French.

I fear that this place is very shocking to you. Can I do anything to make you more comfortable? I said, I thank you, but all that you mentioned is nothing to me. On the whole Earth, there is no comfort which I am capable of receiving. I know that the sympathy of a stranger can be but little relief to one borne down as you are by strange misfortune. But you will, I hope, soon quit this melancholy abode, for there’s plenty to grant you the freedom to head out on your way. I said, that is my least concern. I am, by course of strange events…it’s gonna get worse for me. Probably…I don't know if they…they should keep records of this. Of all mortals, none have endured or will endure as much as I. Nothing, indeed, could be more unfortunate and frowny than the strange chances that have lately occurred.

It seems like you just showed up here on this shore by accident. This island, we're renown for our hospitality, but this time we were not hospitable to you. Oh no, no, no. Then you were shown that your friend were sleeping, and you were the only one that realized they were headed to another realm. So strange that they should be the one here waiting for you, as if placed by someone in your path. As Mr. Kirwin said, this notwithstanding what I view in retrospect. I also felt considerable surprise at the knowledge he seemed to possess concerning me.

I suppose some astonishment was exhibited in my countenance, for Mr. Kirwin hastened to say, immediately upon your being taken under the weather, all papers that were on your person were brought to me, and I examined them that I might discover some trace by which I could send your relations an account of your misfortune and poor wellbeing. I found several letters, and among others, one which I discovered from its commencement to be from your father. I instantly wrote to Geneva. Nearly two months have elapsed since the departure of my letter, but you are under the weather. Even now, you seem not to be able to endure any agitation of any kind. Obviously this man knew not my resilience, so I told him, this suspense is worse a thousand times, you making me wait versus all the events.

Tell me now what else has gone on that needs to make me frown. Withhold nothing. Well, your family’s perfectly well, said Mr. Kirwin with gentleness, and someone, a friend, is come to visit you. I know not by what the chain of thought that the idea presented itself, but it instantly darted into my mind that the leaf-based being was the guest he spoke of, and he wanted me to get back to work for him as I had promised multiple times but defied. I put my hand before my eyes and said out, oh, take him away. I cannot see him. For god’s sake, do not let him enter. Mr. Kirwin regarded me with a troubled countenance. He could not help regarding my exclamation as a presumption of my non-wellbeing.

In a rather severe tone said, I should have thought, young man, that the presence of your father would have been welcome very much indeed, instead of inspiring such repugnance. My father! I cried. Every muscle in my body was relaxed at once. I went from anguish to pleasure. Has my father indeed come? How kind. How very kind. But where is he? Why isn't he already here already? Wait a second, he should be here right now before you. My change of manner surprised and pleased the magistrate. Perhaps he thought that my former exclamation was a momentary return of my confusion, and now he instantly resumed his former benevolence. He rose and quitted the room with my nurse, and in a moment, my father entered it. Nothing at this moment could have given me greater pleasure than the arrival of my father.

I stretched out my hand to him and cried, are you then safe? Elizabeth? Ernest? My father calmed me with assurances of their welfare and endeavored by dwelling on these subjects so interesting to my heart to raise my desponding spirits. But he soon got the sense that this room was dingy, too, even for him, not an abode of cheerfulness. What a place this is that you inhabit, my son, he said, looking mournfully at the lack of accoutrements around me. Not even fresh flowers, and how many servants do you have here? There’s not even a lake for you to go out on whenever you feel like it right outside your door. Oh, my father said, you travel to seek happiness, but unluck seems to pursue you. No wonder you need to be so resilient. Poor Clerval.

The name of my friend who was now sleeping in another realm…I said, pa, man…dad, too much. Ah, alas, yes, my father, some dest…I have a destiny of not…not a good one, not the destiny like Destiny’s Child had. More like Destiny’s Headache for me, hanging over me. But yet, I must fulfill it, otherwise I would be…I tried to get a invite, and I couldn't even get one from anybody to another…to sleep in another realm. We were not allowed to converse for any length of time because they couldn't see how resilient I was. They thought I needed constant tranquility. So, Mr. Kirwin came in and insisted my strength should not be too exhausted by exertion. But the appearance of my father was to me like that of my good angel, and I gradually recovered my health.

As my sickness quitted me, I was absorbed by a gloony…a gloony or gloomy melancholy that nothing could dissipate. I thought about all the good times I had with Clerval and all that Clerval had done for me, and the idea that he would prefer to be somewhere else than with me boggled my mind. More than once when I thought about it…like, wait a second, I mean, who’s gonna run…? I need a friend that serves me, not just a servant who serves me, and this agitated me in reflections through me. People were concerned at my going on and on and on about it. They said when I get like that, I say, alas, alas, alas, alack, alack, alack. But why did they preserve…? Don’t help me feel less miserable, I told them.

This was my destiny, and soon I would move on, friendless, servantless, with…particularly without friends who serve for free out of the…Clerval served me out of the quality of my friendship. Soon, very soon, will all this…I don't know. No one knew the weight of the anguish that I had to carry, so much heavier than theirs, so heavy it could bear me to the dust, and in dealing with this justice, even mine, the most powerful of recoveries, would have to rest. But soon, the appearance…soon…I wouldn't quite say I forgot about Clerval, but Clerval became distant in my mind although ever present in my thoughts, you know, of what I was missing from me.

Sometimes I would sit for hours, motionless and speechless, wishing for some revelation to make…'cause now I was like, this leaf-based being, he’s messed with something I can't quite replicate anymore. The season of the sizes approached, and it had already been three months around. While I wasn’t feeling great…and I had tendency to go…you say, alas, alas, alack nonstop. I was obliged to travel nearly a hundred miles to a country town where the court was held. Now, Mr. Kirwin got to work in a similar manner like when…you know, people want to help me. He charged himself with every care of collecting witnesses and arranging my defense. Of course, once they got an idea of who I was, they spared me the disgrace of appearing publicly even though the case was brought to the court.

They said, that’s fine, 'cause I was on the Orkney Islands when Clerval took his nappy-poo on the beach. A fortnight after that, they said I could do whatever I wished. My father was enraptured on me that I have to live in this town that just wasn’t up to our standards, right? That I was again allowed to breathe the fresh atmosphere of my home country. But me, I didn’t share these feelings. For me, both places were stifling whether I was home and being served or in the place that was shabby to me being served. The cup of life tasted untasty to me, and although the sun shone upon me as it should and as it…but it also shone upon everybody else. I said, what a rip off. So, I saw nothing around me that didn’t perturb me. There was no light that could look upon me in such a way to help me as Clerval’s eyes did.

But I would think about his expressive eyes, wondering…looking up to me with adoration, almost like he was always applying to be my friend. I said, well, if you just do this, this, and this…no, no, I don't want to do that. That look, like a mascot, almost…to think those eyes would never look at me with adoration again, that his hands and his body would never run an errand for me again, that he would never have to wait for me again when I was running late when I really wasn’t running late; I just didn’t feel like being on time. His eyelashes, how they…he would flutter his eyes when I woke…I said, what, are you sleeping? I told you not to fall asleep but to wait for me. Man, I remember the first time I could tell…he lived within the palm of my hand, as so many would and so many do.

Now, my father, he tried to get me…he said, come on, man, let’s go back to Geneva. Elizabeth is there, Ernest. But any time he said anything…favorite foods…I would just groan, those great groans, those award-winning groans, deep, deep groans. Sometimes, indeed, I felt a wish for happiness and thought with melancholy delight of my beloved cousin or longed to see some plays and eat some food, to see once more the blue lake and the rapid Rhone, things so dear to me in early childhood. But in my general state of feeling was a torpor which…I don't know, this shabby town maybe fit my new style, that this was a welcome a residence as the divinest scene in nature. This fit my melancholy. This was the melan of my melancholy or the choly of my melancholy.

In these moments I just endured to just stick around here and do nothing, nothing, not at all. Also, then other times I would get…I’d say, man, I gotta find…I gotta spread some leaves around…I guess I would go out and shout at trees. I don't remember any…well, I claim not to remember any of it. I would tell the trees what I thought of them and…oh, it wasn’t…this wasn’t a big composting town, but anybody that did, I disrupted their composting. Yet one duty remained to me, the recollection of which finally triumphed under my bad feelings in the moment, because it was necessary that I should return without delay to Geneva, there to watch over everybody of which who…they loved me so, and I loved that they loved me so, so fondly. I was fond of their fondness, you know? Never gonna give that up.

But maybe I would go there and lie in wait for the leaf-based being, and if anybody…and if any chance led me to the place where he was lying low, or if he endared again to come within my eyesight, oh boy, would I promise; don’t you dare make eye contact with me, leaf-based being. I might with unfailing focus spread those leaves around not just town, but holy cow, you would become…whatever, I would make sure you went through the whole cycle of life, and you would be free of carbon and nitrogen so quickly. Recycling I would do…because I thought of him and how he was a mockery of all I stood for. Now, my father, he didn’t get it. He wanted to delay our departure. He said, son, you're still yelling at trees. You kick leaves, but in a way that scuffs your shoes.

He didn’t think I could…he didn’t…of course he, again, he didn’t know what I had inside me, that he didn’t think I could sustain the fatigues of a journey. He said…he would just pat me on the back and say, why don’t you sit down again? Like that I was the shadow of a human being. My strength was gone to him. I was just a mere presence sitting around and rambling all day. Again, yeah, I would go on these…I’d say, don’t speak to me of trees or vegetables or…oh boy, don’t put a fruit in front of me. Father said, son, that’s just a fruit. Just eat it. I would hold up the seeds and…all sorts of stuff like that, apparently, according to other people. They said, you can't go…we can't just go to a show. Where are we gonna stay, even? You do…they would have to put fruits and vegetables and other foods for me.

They would tell me that all…when I would ask, I guess they would tell me my food was minerals. I would say, is this a vegetable? Is this organic? They’d say, oh no, no, this is chopped-up mineral, limestone. This is a limestone…key limestone pie we're serving you. The whole town, I guess, had to play in this charade. They should thank me for that, for teaching them to be so creative. But my…I guess my father was like, what do you want me to do? I can't go ahead to an inn and say, oh, by the way, all of your tomatoes are basalt or basalt when this…when my son comes for dinner or sup, as they would say in some places. I say, where are we, anyway? He said, Ireland. I said, we gotta get outta here. I gotta get going. I had such inquietude and impatience, my father finally gave up and thought it best to yield.

So, we took a passage onboard a vessel bound for Havre de Grace, and sailed with a fair wind from the Irish shores. It was midnight when we left. I lay on the deck looking at the stars and listening to the dashing of the waves. I hailed the darkness that shut Ireland from my sight, and my pulse beat with joy as I reflected that I soon would see Geneva. The past appeared to me in the light of…I said, this is like a dream, yet the vessel on which I was, the wind that blew me from the shores of Ireland which now I loathed…why, I can't quite say, because I guess they didn’t…that’s where…I had a resentment towards it even though, apparently now reading this, I see that…they would say, what do you want us to do? We did the best we could with this guy.

Then the sea was getting on my nerves, too; surrounding me and not showing me anything, deceiving my vision. Also, when I was out there, I was thinking, there’s no one doting on me like Clerval would, my friend, my dearest companion. To think that the one coaxed Clerval to sleep and to another realm was the leaf-based being. So, there I stood. I repast in my memory my whole life, my quiet happiness, and my quiet happiness being quietly brilliant while residing with my family in Geneva. Then my mom, then I…then went to Ingolstadt, then I remembered when brilliance came to my foremind, the creation of a leaf-based being, and I called to mind the first night that the leaf-based being became sentient. But from there, I was unable to pursue a train of thought, 'cause a thousand feelings pressed upon me.

Maybe I feel more, too. I don't know, maybe a normal person has a hundred feelings pressed upon them, or maybe it was…for me it was a thousand. Whatever the record is, I probably have one or two more. But then tears…some say that tough guys like me don’t cry, but Victor…I, Victor, did cry. Now, every night since…at this town they would also give me a small quantity of laudanum, which gave me the rest necessary. I said, maybe I’m gonna take some laudanum, and soon I was sleeping profoundly, or so I thought, because sleep did not afford me respite from thought and brilliance. My dreams presented a thousand and one objects that then I needed to process in the night, as well.

It was like my mind was an unceasing machine of brilliance and thought, but didn’t…my mind didn’t understand that it needed to be more like Clerval and serve my needs. So, by the time morning came, I was kind of…I was in a bad mood again, and I felt like…I felt leaves. I heard leaves. I felt leaves. I started ranting about leaves and trees, saying there’s trees on this yar ship. My father, I guess, was there and tried to wake me up. There was waves all around a cloudy sky. No leaf-based being, no leaves at all. For a second I had a sense of security, a feeling that a truce was established between the present hour and the irresistible future, and it imparted to me a kind of calm forgetfulness. Also, I was tired. What do I need to remember, anyway? Sometimes the human mind…I said, Clerval who?

I guess apparently my father…I started saying that over…oh, what would you have for breakfast? I would say, Clerval who? I don't know what leaves you're talking about. Never…what’s your tree? Cambium? No. Compost? No, comost…come most of the time. No, I don't know what…fruits and vegetables? I’m unfamiliar. Please tell me more. That forgetfulness…but I now know it was another powerful thing within me, probably that this is why I need to record all this, so people know that Victor Frankenstein or Victor Frankenstein possessed such qualities that, again, maybe you could just take a small dose of, and we’ll bring you…because then you don’t have to endure all I’ve endured, for so few have that level of resistance. Or, what was it called again? The plasticity of my mind in your modern terms is nothing like that, that…yeah. So, soon you will understand better. Rest well. Goodnight.

[END OF RECORDING]

(Transcription performed by LeahTranscribes)

Title: Frank 11 | Read With Me

This Old House

https://www.bostonmagazine.com/2009/01/21/this-old-house/4/

https://www.thisoldhouse.com/this-old-house/21019435/tracking-40-years-of-history-in-the-this-old-house-timeline

https://tedium.co/2021/08/13/bob-vila-this-old-house-departure/

Magistrate History

https://www.magistrates-association.org.uk/about-magistrates/history-of-the-magistracy/

https://www.judiciary.uk/about-the-judiciary/history-of-the-judiciary-in-england-and-wales/history-of-the-judiciary/

https://www.fjc.gov/history/timeline/us-magistrates

Limestone

https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/resources/466-limestone-origins

https://www.limestone.com/about-us/limestone-learning-center/the-history-of-limestone/

https://pontotocsandandstone.com/a-solid-history-of-limestone/

Basalt

https://www.bumerstone.com/en/the-history-and-modern-use-of-basalt-stone/

https://www.basaltft.com/hist.htm

https://joidesresolution.org/vesicular-basalt/

The Fate of Clerval

https://www.briancroxall.net/lit-tech/2012/11/19/the-significance-of-henry-clerval/

https://frankensteinproject.wordpress.com/character-breakdown/

https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zxhf82p/revision/6

Teaser:

This is super meta

Has there even been a spinoff of This Old House called This Old Boat?

There will be now

My favorite boat

Plugs: Sleep With Me Plus; SleepPhones; Story Only Feed; Rusty Biscuit Links; Emily Tat Artwork; Crisis Textline

Sponsors: Helix Sleep; Zocdoc; Warby Parker; Coyuchi; Odoo

Intro:

• 1039
• Shoutout to the other invented shifts
• A safe space where you feel comfortable enough not to listen to me
• So Say We All
• Ovular Logic
• Is that an ellipsis?
• Now we’re gonna talk about old boats maybe
• Did he see the post credits scene in Falcon and Winter Soldier?
• It already started and stopped a few times
• I want to start putting baseball on again so I can not pay attention to it
• Train videos soothe me
• Structured very intentionally
• Bob Villa or Vila?

Story:

• Introduced to the magistrate
• Witnesses say they saw me
• Out with their nephew Daniel Nugent
• They find a snuggled up, cute, cute, cute person
• Maybe they partied too hard
• Wait, these clothes aren’t from our town
• They carried him to a nearby house
• A handsome man, maybe 25 years old
• Muttering cutesy words in his sleep
• Giant handprints on his shoulders
• The handprints looked like tree branches
• Wait a second…
• Mist comes over my eyes and I have to sit down
• Daniel Nugent swore that he saw someone in a boat nearby
• The boat was the same that I landed
• Someone else saw a man in a boat depart an hour previous
• Daniel looked for caffeine to wake the man up
• Nothing worked to wake the man up
• So many people testify that they believe I was the man in the boat
• Mr. Kerwin says I should meet the sleeping person to see how I react
• I couldn’t hide that I was irritable
• I was conducted to the inn
• A strange series of coincidences
• I know I didn’t do this, so I’m not too worried
• But then I see the sleeping person
• Saying, “Goodbye,” over and over again
• It was Henry Clerval!!
• I gasped and leapt to his side
• Oh my Henry, do not say goodbye in your sleep!
• They carried me out of the room
• And I guess I caught a cold
• I just went on, rambling, for 2 whole months
• I was just incoherently confessing everything
• This is all my fault!
• Who is the Whisperer of the Dreamwalkers!
• I try to get people to help me find the Leaf Being
• Only Mr. Kirwin can understand my language
• I wish to dream and depart through the dreaming
• I would win an award for Most Miserable Person
• How could I handle so much?
• Renewing my resilience and my need for resilience
• I woke up, 2 months later, as if from a dream
• This inn is not up to my standards
• I have no servants, WTF
• My groaning would win awards
• A servant is in the room
• I just no she’s not gonna sympathize with me
• I recognize her voice
• Gosh, I wish I wasn’t so resilient
• How could this servant be so unfeeling to me???
• How could one person achieve such high highs and low lows?
• Nobody is there to support me
• A lab coat person tries to treat me
• These lab coat people don’t care about me
• It turns out that Mr. Kirwin does care about me
• He tries to relieve all frowns of everyone
• Why don’t these people want to hear me talk nonstop?
• He visits me sporadically
• Kirwin wants to make me more comfortable
• Kirwin believes me
• I was surprised by his knowledge of me
• Kirwin read all my papers to try and contact my family
• He wrote to my father 2 months ago
• Kirwin says someone is here to visit
• I assume it’s the LBB
• I say I don’t want to see him
• But it’s actually my father!
• I was confused again
• My father also acknowledges this is a pretty dingy place
• There’s not even a lake outside your door, for goodness’ sake!
• I have a destiny’s headache, father
• I couldn’t talk for long before I had to rest
• I gradually recovered my health
• A gloomy melancholy that will not dissipate
• It boggles my mind that Clerval doesn’t want to be with me
• I need a friend to serve me! Not just a servant!
• Soon, I’ll move on. Alone. 
• Kirwin tries to organize my defense for the trial
• I prove that I didn’t do anything to Clerval
• I can now do whatever I wish
• My father thinks I should go home
• Here and Home are both stifling
• Everything perturbs me
• I miss Clerval
• I just groan any time my father mentions home
• The Melon of My Melancholy
• Sometimes I’d go out and shout at trees
• I wouldn’t let anyone compost in this town
• It was necessary to return to Geneva
• I’m fond of their fondness
• I’ll lie in wait for the Leaf Based Being
• My father is concerned by my anti-tree behavior
• He thinks I should just rest
• I just sit around and ramble
• Don’t put a fruit in front of me, whatever you do
• I would only eat chopped up minerals, not fruits or vegetables
• Key Limestone Pie
• Everyone has to be in on my charade
• I don’t want to be in Ireland anymore
• We took a vessel for Havre de Grace
• I’m excited to soon see Geneva
• I’m positive that LBB coaxed Clerval to sleep
• I look back on my life to this point
• My commitment to brilliance
• An Unceasing Machine of Brilliance and Thought
• I woke up in a bad room again
• I heard and felt leaves outside
• I start ranting about leaves again
• But of course there’s no LBB on this boat…
• I’m recording this to pass along my brilliance
• The Plasticity of My Mind
• Soon you will understand better
• Goodnight

Summary:

Episode: 14016

Title: Frank 11 | Read With Me | SWM+ Sneak Peek

Plugs:Sleep With Me Plus; SleepPhones; Story Only Feed; Rusty Biscuit Links; Emily Tat Artwork; Crisis Textline

Sponsors: Helix Sleep; Zocdoc; Warby Parker; Coyuchi; Odoo

Notable Language:

• Intro (1039)
• So Say We All
• Ovular Logic
• Is that an ellipsis?
• Villa / Vila
• Story
• Daniel Nugent
• Leaf-Based Being
• Destiny’s Headache
• Alas, Alack
• The Melon of My Melancholy
• Key Limestone Pie
• The Plasticity of My Mind

Notable Culture:

• • Intro (1039)

• This Old House

• Falcon and the Winter Soldier

• • Bob Vila
  • Story

• Frankenstein

• The 3 Little Pigs
• Destiny’s Child

Notable Talking Points:

• Intro (1039)
• 1039
• Shoutout to the other invented shifts
• A safe space where you feel comfortable enough not to listen to me
• So Say We All
• Ovular Logic
• Is that an ellipsis?
• Now we’re gonna talk about old boats maybe
• Did he see the post credits scene in Falcon and Winter Soldier?
• It already started and stopped a few times
• I want to start putting baseball on again so I can not pay attention to it
• Train videos soothe me
• Structured very intentionally
• Bob Villa or Vila?
• Story
• Introduced to the magistrate
• Witnesses say they saw me
• Out with their nephew Daniel Nugent
• They find a snuggled up, cute, cute, cute person
• Maybe they partied too hard
• Wait, these clothes aren’t from our town
• They carried him to a nearby house
• A handsome man, maybe 25 years old
• Muttering cutesy words in his sleep
• Giant handprints on his shoulders
• The handprints looked like tree branches
• Wait a second…
• Mist comes over my eyes and I have to sit down
• Daniel Nugent swore that he saw someone in a boat nearby
• The boat was the same that I landed
• Someone else saw a man in a boat depart an hour previous
• Daniel looked for caffeine to wake the man up
• Nothing worked to wake the man up
• So many people testify that they believe I was the man in the boat
• Mr. Kerwin says I should meet the sleeping person to see how I react
• I couldn’t hide that I was irritable
• I was conducted to the inn
• A strange series of coincidences
• I know I didn’t do this, so I’m not too worried
• But then I see the sleeping person
• Saying, “Goodbye,” over and over again
• It was Henry Clerval!!
• I gasped and leapt to his side
• Oh my Henry, do not say goodbye in your sleep!
• They carried me out of the room
• And I guess I caught a cold
• I just went on, rambling, for 2 whole months
• I was just incoherently confessing everything
• This is all my fault!
• Who is the Whisperer of the Dreamwalkers!
• I try to get people to help me find the Leaf Being
• Only Mr. Kirwin can understand my language
• I wish to dream and depart through the dreaming
• I would win an award for Most Miserable Person
• How could I handle so much?
• Renewing my resilience and my need for resilience
• I woke up, 2 months later, as if from a dream
• This inn is not up to my standards
• I have no servants, WTF
• My groaning would win awards
• A servant is in the room
• I just no she’s not gonna sympathize with me
• I recognize her voice
• Gosh, I wish I wasn’t so resilient
• How could this servant be so unfeeling to me???
• How could one person achieve such high highs and low lows?
• Nobody is there to support me
• A lab coat person tries to treat me
• These lab coat people don’t care about me
• It turns out that Mr. Kirwin does care about me
• He tries to relieve all frowns of everyone
• Why don’t these people want to hear me talk nonstop?
• He visits me sporadically
• Kirwin wants to make me more comfortable
• Kirwin believes me
• I was surprised by his knowledge of me
• Kirwin read all my papers to try and contact my family
• He wrote to my father 2 months ago
• Kirwin says someone is here to visit
• I assume it’s the LBB
• I say I don’t want to see him
• But it’s actually my father!
• I was confused again
• My father also acknowledges this is a pretty dingy place
• There’s not even a lake outside your door, for goodness’ sake!
• I have a destiny’s headache, father
• I couldn’t talk for long before I had to rest
• I gradually recovered my health
• A gloomy melancholy that will not dissipate
• It boggles my mind that Clerval doesn’t want to be with me
• I need a friend to serve me! Not just a servant!
• Soon, I’ll move on. Alone. 
• Kirwin tries to organize my defense for the trial
• I prove that I didn’t do anything to Clerval
• I can now do whatever I wish
• My father thinks I should go home
• Here and Home are both stifling
• Everything perturbs me
• I miss Clerval
• I just groan any time my father mentions home
• The Melon of My Melancholy
• Sometimes I’d go out and shout at trees
• I wouldn’t let anyone compost in this town
• It was necessary to return to Geneva
• I’m fond of their fondness
• I’ll lie in wait for the Leaf Based Being
• My father is concerned by my anti-tree behavior
• He thinks I should just rest
• I just sit around and ramble
• Don’t put a fruit in front of me, whatever you do
• I would only eat chopped up minerals, not fruits or vegetables
• Key Limestone Pie
• Everyone has to be in on my charade
• I don’t want to be in Ireland anymore
• We took a vessel for Havre de Grace
• I’m excited to soon see Geneva
• I’m positive that LBB coaxed Clerval to sleep
• I look back on my life to this point
• My commitment to brilliance
• An Unceasing Machine of Brilliance and Thought
• I woke up in a bad room again
• I heard and felt leaves outside
• I start ranting about leaves again
• But of course there’s no LBB on this boat…
• I’m recording this to pass along my brilliance
• The Plasticity of My Mind
• Soon you will understand better
• Goodnight