ironwood: (LANTERNS / peace)
ɪʀᴏɴᴡᴏᴏᴅ ᴇᴍᴘᴇʀᴏʀ ᴇsʜᴀɪ ([personal profile] ironwood) wrote in [community profile] tushanshu_logs2015-06-04 09:18 am

[EVENT] YARD SALE

Characters: Come one, come all!
Date: June 3rd - June 8th
Location: The City of Keeliai
Situation: To welcome the warm weather, the kedan are hosting a city-wide yard sale! Buy, sell, trade, haggle to your heart's content.
Warnings/Rating: Shouldn't need any, but please indicate content warnings in subject headers as applicable.

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A few tenured Foreigners might remember the last instance of a city-wide yard sale from three years prior, but to most, this will be new. In an effort to raise spirits, capitalize on the near-perfect weather, and just make a few spare juulan, the kedan are turning the city into a maze of hastily erected stalls and tables, where everything from kitschy handcrafts to illicit illustrations, to nebulous inventions that may or may not actually do anything, are being sold. In a way, it's a little bit of clearing the air between kedanese neighbours.

Despite the currently cool view on the Foreigners by the kedan, they'll be able to get fair prices and full selection all across the city for the Yard Sale, and they'll be just as encouraged to set up a spot and sell something of their own, even if it's simple.

It's the spirit of the thing, after all.


FIRE SECTOR

The extravagance of the Sector remains evident even in something as low-key as a street sale, and because of that, many an enterprising kedan are flocking to the district to see if they can score some really high-end items for very little cash - items such as jewelry, merchandise from the spas that dot the Sector, and many other luxury items. Some of these are bought up with the likely intention to be resold at higher rates later, but no one seems bothered by that probability.

Some of the numerous brothels have placed scantily-clad "saleskedan" outside their doorsteps, who are surprisingly glib about advertising their services. It's widely understood that it's a look-not-touch demonstration though, and anyone who makes an unwelcome move is likely to get a headslap from the nearest person. Liquor houses, on the other hand, are offering finger shots of their prized blends, with bottles available for purchase as well.

Haggling over prices is expected here and approached with the excitement of a gambling challenge! In fact, some sellers may just bet the purchase on whether you can guess the correct outcome of a coin flip, a high-or-low card draw, or even something that looks like roulette, except with a rainbow of colours instead of numbers.


EARTH SECTOR

Clothing and textiles are the key items being sold in this district, with a special emphasis on detailed beadwork, leather tooling, and precisely coloured weaving. A few of the clothing merchants are holding a competition of "who can copy a Foreigner's outfit most exactly" and the wise would encourage this, if only to get a copy or two of hard to replace items. The results will be sold at a discount to interested parties, but tipping for acknowledgment of their skill is generally expected and widely appreciated.

Other types of items being sold are pottery, of both the functional and decorative types, and stoneware like statuary. If you're looking for a replica of a carved idol back home, this is the place to commission it.

The kedan here are less receptive to haggling, simply because their stubborn natures clash with the objective. They'll budge a little, but underbidding them by too much will turn them sour and grumpy.


METAL SECTOR

Here is where the majority of quirky inventions are showing up, some useless and some genuinely helpful. The Metalworkers have already cleared everything being sold here as non-proprietary, so there won't be anything groundbreaking as far as technology goes, but a lot of the items are more geared toward personal conveniences than anything really high-tech.

For some bizarre reason, the most prominent thing for sale in the Metal Sector are clocks. Every kind of clock one could think of has found its way to the streets and stalls. Clocks for every occasion: a clock that will chime only once every fourth Tuesday but otherwise keeps perfect time. A clock that will chime in the morning if it's going to rain, or at night if you should drink an extra glass of water before bed. Clocks that are counting down to the next time you're going to have a streak of bad luck. And newly popular, clocks that are counting down to the turtle's sinking.

Kedan in this Sector are fairly ambivalent to haggling; they will, but they don't usually initiate it. They are pretty defensive of their inventions however, so calling their wares useless or similar will probably end up raising the price, just so they can try and make it go to someone who'll appreciate their genius!


WATER SECTOR

It’s almost possible to have a full meal in this Sector without spending a single julaan, such are the free samples on every corner. The delicious smells encompass hundreds of different types of food, simple or complex, prepared or fresh, all sold from market stalls lining the streets and canals. If a particular specialty takes your fancy, you can always buy a large amount at a low price to take home - or you can eat it right there. It’s not uncommon to see families of kedan holding impromptu picnics in parks, or even occasionally in the middle of the streets.

Foreigners will be welcomed here, as chefs and bakers leap on the opportunity to test their delicacies on Foreign tongues and palates. Some chefs might even offer Foreigners the chance to work for them for the day as glorified food-tasters, making sure whatever they cook is suitable for selling to other Foreigners.

With so many free samples available (and almost forced on to unsuspecting passersby), haggling is seen as bad form in the Water Sector. It’s certainly possible, but don’t expect to make any friends while doing it. Oh, and watch out for the sea prunes. They may smell divine and cost a single julaan for a full bag, but they taste disgusting and will result in minor cases of food poisoning for the Foreigners.


WOOD SECTOR

Like in the Water Sector, a lot of the market stalls lining these streets sell food. Unlike the Water Sector, this food is rarely prepared. Most of it is produce either bought from, or being sold by, the Woodsmen - fruits and vegetables grown outside the city. Some of the Foreigners might recognise it as a kind of outdoor grocery store or a large farmer’s market.

Also being sold in Wood Sector is furniture, usually carved from - you guessed it - wood. Some of it is crudely carved, made to look natural and to add a touch of the outdoors to any kedan’s home, whereas others are very delicately and intricately carved to mimic interesting patterns or perhaps even particular animals and places in the city. Chairs, boxes, chests, figurines, tables, shelves, even small beds - these have all been made with long hours and large amounts of skill, making the practice of haggling a delicate one, and not undertaken lightly.

There are also a disproportionate amount of stationary stores selling things like black charcoal, blank journals and books, and thick parchment. They’re willing to sell entire batches for ridiculously low prices.


SKY SECTOR

The newly built Sky Sector has been quickly establishing itself as the art hub of Keeliai, angrily dismissed by those kedan who consider the worth of craftsmanship to be in the usefulness of the finished product, and happily embraced by those kedan with self-described ‘old souls’ and the ability to see life in a slightly different way. The new art studios in Sky Sector are using the yard sale to advertise; they’ve set up a large and grandiose outdoor gallery to show off the various types of art, ranging from small abstract paintings and jewelry to large statues and dedications. The smaller objects are frequently given away to anyone admiring them; many might leave the gallery with a small pair of free earrings or a frame carefully wrapped in paper.

These kedan will quite happily haggle over any of the larger pieces, and they seem to have a particular interest in doing so with Foreigners. They almost make a game out of it; talking as fast as if the gallery was an auction, deliberately trying to confuse and obfuscate. They’ll be delighted by any Foreigner capable of keeping up, and may even gift them the piece in question with no further haggling required.


CENTRAL KEELIAI

The center of Keeliai is, in many ways, a mish-mash of everything all the other Sectors are selling, with one notable exception: coupons. Businesses across the city make sure to have a table or a stall in Central, where their advertisements can reach a greater number of people - and one of the easiest ways to advertise is to hand out free coupons! These coupons vary as widely as the businesses handing them out do, but they all give the bearer discounts on the stated goods/services, and all coupons remain good for weeks after the yard sale ends. A single twenty-minute walk through Central can net you enough coupons to fill a decent-sized book.

In the spirit of neighbourly forgiveness, a small group of kedan are walking through Central and offering coupons good for an entire Sector, or for a particular chain of restaurants across the city, rather than just one business. They’re loathe to offer these to Foreigners, but will reluctantly do so if pressed. Unfortunately, if Foreigners try to use these coupons after the yard sale ends, they’ll quickly discover not all of the ‘participating’ businesses were informed of their participation - though most store and restaurant proprietors will honour the coupon anyway, just so they don’t develop a reputation of going back on their promises.



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OOC: The descriptions of the various sectors are only a guideline, and many other items can be found for sale all over the place. The only thing that's definitively banned everywhere are the sales of weapons and drugs.

If you haven't posted to and been approved on this thread regarding your character finding a possession of theirs, please do so before having them (or someone else, whichever way you want to do it) discover the object(s)!
solo_patria: (canony: do you hear)

[personal profile] solo_patria 2015-07-02 03:16 am (UTC)(link)
"Become more of myself...Perhaps so." Enjolras will take that much, and mull it over later, perhaps, but he can see where it is true already. He has done so many things in so many places here that he could not have dreamed of doing. The radio for one, requesting an ability to help heal while assisting at a hospital, friends with people he could never have met back there. It's true, really.

"I've learnt to live, I think. Maybe we've all become more...authentic here. At least in many of the cases that I've seen."
ruinsprofessor: (calm)

[personal profile] ruinsprofessor 2015-07-05 05:15 am (UTC)(link)
"Yes. I'm inclined to think so. Absent the contextual pressures of our own homes, many of us find... second chances, I suppose, if nothing else." Her own partner is one of them, as are a number of the people from his world. Though they provide their own pressures for each other, now... well, that's another matter. "Regardless of what's happened here, I believe the fact that we came at all was a good thing."
solo_patria: (sc 4: stubborn)

[personal profile] solo_patria 2015-07-08 02:33 am (UTC)(link)
"As do I." He agrees, rather firmly believing in that much as well. "I've learnt things here that I never would have stopped to think about. Whatever happens when I leave this world, if I return home, or not, I will have had that much. I can be content with it."

Despite all of the horrible things he has been through, that they all have been through, they've come through it stronger, better, than before. More themselves, as Raine's put it.

"That is not to say I would not like for it to be made better, though."
ruinsprofessor: (dissatisfaction)

[personal profile] ruinsprofessor 2015-07-08 10:02 am (UTC)(link)
"Of course," she says, to the last. "We should never stop trying to improve, striving to better ourselves and our situations as possible." This was barely even a question in the first place.

She hesitates a little, though, thinking over the first he said again. She agrees with what he says, mostly, but one thing is a sticking point for her. Always has been. "Can you be content with it even if you don't remember?"
solo_patria: (Default)

[personal profile] solo_patria 2015-07-09 03:20 am (UTC)(link)

"I do not suppose I would know to feel anything about this." His answer is, perhaps, a bit abrupt, 'concise' if someone wanted to be polite when describing it. "We may not know ourselves, after all. "

As far as Paris, in the moments he had had, Enjolras could still be content, he thought.

"I know there would be no chance for me to relearn what I did here, if I did not remember, but..I came here during a moment that I was most proud of, and had made a sort of peace with someone that I never understood before. Perhaps I could still be content with that."

ruinsprofessor: (ah...)

[personal profile] ruinsprofessor 2015-07-11 05:32 am (UTC)(link)
"I could only hope so." Raine falls quiet there, looking thoughtful, if a little melancholy. She's pretty sure she couldn't be content with that, but then again she would never know she wasn't. Would she?

It's a little while before she shakes herself, clearing the conflict from her expression with some effort. "Well," she says aloud. A space-filler. "Thank you. You've made me think." As is usually the case, when she runs into Enjolras.
solo_patria: (canony: do you hear)

[personal profile] solo_patria 2015-07-12 01:32 am (UTC)(link)
"Have I?" Enjolras smiled at that. "You've rather done the same for me. Thank you for that." He could use that sort of thing every so often. It was good for him to see new perspectives, even now.
ruinsprofessor: (smile)

[personal profile] ruinsprofessor 2015-07-12 02:00 am (UTC)(link)
"You're welcome." Back to a little smile. "It's always a pleasure. I'll see you another time, I'm sure." They usually do wind up running into each other, every so often.
solo_patria: (Default)

[personal profile] solo_patria 2015-07-13 04:28 am (UTC)(link)

"Certainly." He returned the smile nodding. "Until then."