Investment

originally posted January 5, 2006

I was up early this morning, the slave girl Joy in tow, before the first light of Lar Torvis bathed the cobblestones on the Avenue of the Theater of Pentillicus Tallux. Tasta, too, the newly acquired sleen and first girl of my Boarding House, accompanied me. I have business to tend to north of Ar in the resort city of Venna. I felt it was important, before making this journey, to stop on the Street of Coins to obtain the balances of my accounts. These things tend to be stable, but fluctuate from time to time with the economy. I was reassured to find my investments, individually and as a whole, continue to grow. My main source of income, closely rivaled by the second Vennan run of 'The Fall of Agamedes', is the money generated by the Boarding House. While the scandal of that operation has greatly quieted in recent months, it continues to earn and the number of return customers continues to grow. Some in the Anbar fear losing the reputation of Glorious Ar's most dangeorus district, but not all. The Boarding House, you see, is popular with visitors to my city. While they recognize the danger of traveling in this district, the lure is too great for many to resist. In the time I have been owner and proprietor, no fewer than three Inns have opened for business nearby. One is only a few insulae down the very street I am situated upon which, I am pleased to report, is now informally referred to as 'The Avenue of The Red Door Whores'. I recently sold Kawena, a barbarian with minimal training, to the famed Capacian Baths. The reputation of the collar she wore brought more coin from her sale than I deserved. I have no doubt, however, that the proprietor of the baths informs his customers, in detail, where she once served. He will recoup his investment in short order.
I am happy to be traveling again, though this trip is less about adventure and discovery and more geared for business. I know I have strayed far from the hand-to-mouth existence many of my brothers in Caste endeavor toward. The plays I have written in recent months, while I believe them to have aesthetic value, are largely geared toward the acquisition of further wealth. I have eschewed the maxim, for some time now, of 'A Song for a Cup of Wine'. I still have no voice for such things as songs, leaning toward the cynical and often seditious in my poetry. I need this time awayto quiet my mind, removed from the city I love. Perhaps it will be a few days. Perhaps it will be a passage hand or more. These things are difficult to know. What is far easier to know is the simple pleasure I derive in being on the road. In having my Sandal, the girl Joy, a few a'hil ahead of me on the path, carrying my pack that I might walk unencumbered.