James White Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 My name is James White, which is boring. I'm a science nerd, which I like to pretend is less boring. I'm aromantic, which definitely isn't boring. I'm a birdwatcher, swordsman, and environmentalist. I grew up in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, but I now live in Fullerton, California. I'm also not afraid of repetitive sentence structure. Because I'm heterosexual and cisgender, it took me a while to stumble across the terminology that could explain my revilement of that which makes the world go round (not talking about inertia). I haven't been a part of any community that could have helped me find out what I am until now. Lucky me, finding this place when I didn't even realize I was looking for it. After nineteen years of thinking I had to auction myself off to someone to maintain the illusion of happiness, I can say this with certainty. It's good to be free. I hear there's ice cream around here somewhere, but before I eat it, I have one question to ask. Who is Papo? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Confidential_Con Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 Hey there, James! Nice to meet you! Good to have another scientist-swordsperson around here; do you fence, or do you use the real deal? I'm Isaiah, and I too seek to know who Papo is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cassiopeia Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 Hi there, welcome. Papo is not a person, it's these meme things people on this forum made Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James White Posted December 15, 2016 Author Share Posted December 15, 2016 I do Historical European Martial Arts (HEMA). We take fighting manuals from throughout history (mostly between 1300 and 1900) and learn from them. We use historically accurate replicas made of steel or nylon so everything is properly weighted. Then we put on protective gear (masks, gloves, elbow and knee guards, and padded jackets, for example) and fight. There are some who do it as a professional sport, but I'm just here for fun. I'm best with the Scottish basket-hilted broadsword, and I use Captain George Sinclair's manual from the year 1800 as my main source work. I also know some German-style longsword (1400's) as documented by the Johannes Liechtenauer and some Polish saber from multiple Renaissance sources. I'm currently also learning Italian rapier based on the works of Salvator Fabris and Ridolfo Capo Ferro Di Cagli. I've never really tried fencing, but I know it's an analog of Victorian-era smallsword, so I might give it a whirl some time. I like Papo already Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Confidential_Con Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 Whoa; I'd never heard of HEMA before, but it sounds fascinating; how do you get involved in it? I do fencing myself (I use sabre) on my college's fencing team, but the swords are made for sport, not to kill or maim- they're light and (somewhat) bendable, and they no doubt bear little resemblance to historically accurate ones. Papo is shaped like a friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James White Posted December 15, 2016 Author Share Posted December 15, 2016 I recommend these three youtube channels. They can give you a pretty good idea of what we're about. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_HtUzv9WIfxx31eYKDo4aA This channel has a lot of good sparring videos. https://www.youtube.com/user/scholagladiatoria This channel goes into the history of swords and other weapons. https://www.youtube.com/user/SkallagrimNilsson This guy has fun toys! If you want to find a nearby club and learn there, the HEMA Alliance website has this to help you. https://www.hemaalliance.com/club-finders/ The HEMA community is growing, and it's normal to show up to a club with no experience and no gear. If you have the chance, I recommend going to a club to try it. It's the most fun I've ever had with a sport, for sure. By the way, Historical European Martial Arts also goes by the shorter name, "historical fencing." I don't think I specified this, but we use blunt swords. They're weighted and proportioned correctly, but they have no sharp edges. We take safety seriously. I'm actually a pacifist. I just do this because I think it's oodles of fun. Papo loves historical fencing, but only platonically. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DannyFenton123 Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 Oh my gosh, HEMA sounds amazing! Welcome to Arocalypse, I hope you have a great time here Also, yeah, papo is the friendly arocalypse meme Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James White Posted December 15, 2016 Author Share Posted December 15, 2016 This place sounds like a great time waiting to happen. Also what's the deal with the ice cream? I've seen it a lot while looking around the site. Let it never be said that James White did not investigate the possibility of ice cream. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis On Air Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 Welcome to arocalypse, the birth place of the fundamental study of the sacred papo. Don't question it ever even if you may think it needs questioning because it is sacred and cannot be questioned Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoulWolf Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 Welcome James! You don't sound even remotely boring at all. I like swords too, but so far I've only really got any experience with katanas. Everything else I've used isn't long enough to count as a sword. Ice cream is an aro thing. I'm not sure where it comes from, but I'm certainly not complaining. There seems to be an infinite amount of it available to everyone here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James White Posted December 15, 2016 Author Share Posted December 15, 2016 Blessed are Papo's chosen, for the ice cream is plentiful in their domain. I hear katanas work basically the same way as Fiore dei Liberi's version of Italian longsword. I don't know much about the style myself, but I do know that it's popular for a reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DannyFenton123 Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 Haha, icecream comes from that whole idea that after a breakup, romos cry and eat icecream. But we skip all that and go right to the icecream Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zae Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 Welcome to Arocalypse James! It devinitely isn't boring here~ May the great Papo give you all the ice cream you want~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Untamed Heart Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 i love science though I'm kind of a layman lol. Icecream is basically the aro equivalent of asexual's cake, that's all I can really say! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philbo Wiseroot Posted December 16, 2016 Share Posted December 16, 2016 Welcome to the forums, James! May the Great Papo rain ice cream down upon you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Untamed Heart Posted December 20, 2016 Share Posted December 20, 2016 On 12/15/2016 at 2:57 AM, James said: I do Historical European Martial Arts (HEMA). We take fighting manuals from throughout history (mostly between 1300 and 1900) and learn from them. We use historically accurate replicas made of steel or nylon so everything is properly weighted. Then we put on protective gear (masks, gloves, elbow and knee guards, and padded jackets, for example) and fight. There are some who do it as a professional sport, but I'm just here for fun. I'm best with the Scottish basket-hilted broadsword, and I use Captain George Sinclair's manual from the year 1800 as my main source work. I also know some German-style longsword (1400's) as documented by the Johannes Liechtenauer and some Polish saber from multiple Renaissance sources. I'm currently also learning Italian rapier based on the works of Salvator Fabris and Ridolfo Capo Ferro Di Cagli. I've never really tried fencing, but I know it's an analog of Victorian-era smallsword, so I might give it a whirl some time. I like Papo already I have to say that sounds really awesome to me and I have tried fencing, when I was about 12 on a school holiday. I wasn't good at it, but I never got a clear explanation on what I was doing wrong.I really enjoyed doing archery, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis On Air Posted December 20, 2016 Share Posted December 20, 2016 The problem with fencing is nobody dies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Untamed Heart Posted December 20, 2016 Share Posted December 20, 2016 I was trying, but the swords are so blunt and bendy... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis On Air Posted December 21, 2016 Share Posted December 21, 2016 Spoiler It starts at the bit about fencing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NullVector Posted December 21, 2016 Share Posted December 21, 2016 Hi James, welcome to arocalypse, you sound interesting The HEMA stuff sounds/looks really cool (I watched some of the videos you posted). I've done a few different martial arts and I'd like to give it a go one day if I ever find myself near a club. Probably Game Of Thrones is helping popularize it, lol. You mentioned environmentalism, what is it you're involved with? (I'd like to get involved in this at some point too, 'cos, y'know, it'd be nice to have a planet we can still live on...) On 12/15/2016 at 2:04 AM, James said: Because I'm heterosexual and cisgender, it took me a while to stumble across the terminology that could explain my revilement of that which makes the world go round (not talking about inertia). I haven't been a part of any community that could have helped me find out what I am until now. Lucky me, finding this place when I didn't even realize I was looking for it. After nineteen years of thinking I had to auction myself off to someone to maintain the illusion of happiness, I can say this with certainty. It's good to be free. Yeah, I think that's a huge issue for us "heterosexual and cisgender" folks - I suspect we'll be under-represented here for a while yet for that reason, vs. what our levels in the general population might be. Out of curiosity, how did you happen upon this place? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James White Posted January 11, 2017 Author Share Posted January 11, 2017 I volunteer as an educator/interpreter at the Birch Aquarium in San Diego. I used to volunteer at the Los Angeles Zoo reptile house before I moved. I spend my aquarium time at the tide pool touch tanks, telling visitors how overfishing, climate change, and ocean acidification will make Earth a terrible place to live in a few decades. Even if we don't bring overpopulation into the equation. *puts on fake smile, pretends not to be completely pessimistic for the future of life on Earth* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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