Had to dig around a bit to find this...

I suppose it isn’t strange
That we’re so attached
To the shells we fall into.

While we’re inside it
We can’t know what it’s like outside,
And if we decide to leave
We can’t climb back out,
So the impatient ones break down the walls.

When they want to tell what it’s like
They find that the shell is gone
And really, they can’t remember where they left it,
Anyway.

So it goes.

And yet... are they truly lost?
Does the hawk return to the egg?
Yet the hawk is definite and real.
And the unborn chicks hear the shrieks of their parents,
And yearn to fly.

We’re not like that.
Not really.

Themes I want to see in stories, at some point.

People decrying the foolishness of trying to make super-strong robot slaves... Because the damn things have so many design compromises to allow them to perform their feats of strength, that they're basically useless. They're made with government contracts, of course.

A setting in which a ruling class of magicians discourages "science", because it's supposed to be opposed to magic. In the end, it turns out that the main effect of this was to discourage innovation in "sciencey" endeavors, which threaten the mages' supremacy. Or something... Point is, the opposition is fundamentally political.

So yeah, posting little dribbles of stuff is pretty neat

Lance's face paled. "But you have to support the League! We're the central institution for the redistribution of wealth to trainers in need! We're too big to fail!"

I've ranted elsewhere about the dangers of comparing onesself to Monty Python. That said, allow me a moment of hyposcrisy.

"We'd like to opt out of your service. Here are our names."
"Just a moment... Sorry, I'm afraid I can't help you. These names aren't listed in our database."
"So you're not going to let us opt out."
"I'm afraid it can't be done."
"But the customer is always right!"
"Not only do you wish to not be the customer, were you even using the service in the first place?"
"That's not the point! It's a scandal if you prevent people who'd like to opt out of your service from doing so!"
"I'm afraid the issue here is out of my hands. If you're not using our service, you can't opt out of it. Your quarrel is with the English language."
"Well, escalate me to that department!"

A thing in my head

"You're the gym leader?" Ash gaped. "But you're only eight. People can't be gym leaders until they turn, you know, ten."