eli rana!
I HAVE BEEN A WORLD APART, STUCK IN BETWEEN TIME. HEAD
INTO THE GROUND, I'M FOUND FALLING THROUGH FAULT LINES.
I FEEL SEE THROUGH, CAN YOU SEE THROUGH ME?



My name is Eli Rana, and, thankfully, I've lived to be twenty-six years old so far.
As of this moment, I'm a Daytimer, and I can't really imagine living life any other way.

MAN YOUR BATTLE STATIONS ,
( t h e b a s i c s )

BIRTH NAME: Elias Augustin Rana
NICKNAMES: Eli or Rana. There isn't much creativity you can take with anything in there.
BIRTHDAY: July 21st
GENDER: Male
ORIENTATION: Heterosexual.
OCCUPATION: Electronic Technician for the post office. Oh, yes, he lives a life of excitement.
FINANCIAL STATUS: Lower-middle class.
MEDICAL STATUS: Clean, though he was infected once-- by a dog bite, actually, not by a radical political activist or anything.

A WHORE IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING ,
( t h e a p p e a r a n c e )

GENERAL:
"I feel like me most of the time... but I look more like a stranger every day."

Average is Eli's middle name. Well, actually, it's Augustin, but that's entirely beside the point. Just under six feet tall, he doesn't tower. Barely one hundred and forty-eight pounds, he can hardly claim to be the most physically fit guy on the block, much less in the city. Dark skin, dark hair, and dark eyes are all a product of unique heredity, but they are hardly unique characteristics on their own. His tattoos are all significant to him but only brow-quirk worthy to the general public. His clothing style? A bit old fashioned, to be frank. And even those glasses that are just so typically Eli only project "nerd" to the rest of the world.

Obviously, the one thing that allows him to stand out above the rest is the 'fro. Undeniably, it will attract your eyes-- but once you tire of looking at the epically foofy bush on his head, there isn't much to keep you interested. Tragic? Could be. But Eli doesn't mind. As a matter of fact, he'd rather be insignificant. How does that quote go? "If I can't be beautiful, then I want to be invisible." Yeah, that's pretty much his life summed up in eleven words. He'll sit on the backburner while all the pretty people go out to play. Like I said... Average is Eli's middle name.

DEMEANOR:
"Hi, my name is Eli and I'm a wall flower."

If you didn't gather it from the whole "he's-really-a-super-average-insignificant-kind-of-guy" thing, then let me reiterate: Eli is not a confident, in-your-face human. And he has come to embrace this fact. He keeps to himself, he entertains himself, and he doesn't constantly crave social interaction-- so don't be surprised if he only gives you a passing glance on the street or fails to reciprocate the smile you flashed him in the bookstore. When he does care about people, in the case of his few friends, his family, and Klaudia, he is a great nonverbal communicator and a compassionate listener, but to those outside of his "circle," he comes off as very cold, or, at the least, distant. But that's just Eli.

PLAYED BY: Omar Rodriguez-Lopez

HIDE YOUR FEATHERS, BABY ,
( t h e p e r s o n a l i t y )

LIKES:
• Clocks - old fashioned ones, if you please. In fact, the older, the better. He's collected them since he was a kid, what with his deranged interest in time and all, and still manages to pick up a few pieces a year. None of those in his collection are working, though; each one is destined to remain stuck in the time it died for the rest of eternity.

• Math - he's good at it... like, really good at it. A human calculator if there ever was one. Everything in mathematics is simple for him, he understands it-- and that's much more than he can say for any other aspect of his life.

• Music - cliche, right? Who doesn't like music? But if Eli has half a second to himself, he'll pop in the ol' earbuds and jam out to whatever-- classic rock, acid techno, hip hop, indie punk, polka, baroque... you name it, he's got it on some playlist somewhere within the confines of his ancient iPod... and he loves it all.

• Driving - nothing leads to amazing thought provocation like a nice, long drive.

• Marijuana - well, nothing leads to amazing thought provocation like a nice, long drive and a bowl of chronic. We all have our vices, and if Eli's got one that trumps any other, it's his love for a pretty little girl named Mary Jane. Generally speaking, he smokes alone, but anyone who's willing to smoke with him is definitely more than welcome.

• Inventing - he may have flunked out of art school, but the kid can draw up schematics, blueprints, and outlines like no one's business. Nothing he's designed serves any practical purpose, however.

• Circuit Bending - even though he's not very good at it. On that front, Eli hasn't come up with anything new or exciting... or even noteworthy, but he does it for fun and enjoys it as it happens, and as far as he's concerned, that's all that matters.

• Comic Books - the darker, the better. Ironically, he has always been interested in those epidemic Apocalypse story lines...

• Water - it comes in handy in so many different situations! Cotton mouth, general thirst... er... watering... things. Well, as far as human body hydration goes, water is pretty great and Eli carries a water bottle with him at all times. But, as a result, he's not much a fan of goofy syrupy drinks.

• Orange - the color... not the fruit. Orange and green maybe-- but orange would totally kick green's ass if they got into a brawl.

DISLIKES:
• Crabs - you know... the crustacean. They taste bad, they look weird (seriously, those eyes, they're pretty fucking creepy), they're kind of brainless, and really mean. Obviously, there is nothing redeemable about these things, and thus Eli just can't find it in his heart to accept them.

• Hypocrites - and liars. And manipulators. Basically, people who project a sense of genuine character and are really just super bitches underneath it all. Not good. He's had quite a few instances pop up in his life when people seemed to think that he was legitimately retarded because of his muteness and tried to exploit him due to it-- all with a sweet, sugary coating. Yeah, he may be dumb, but he's not stupid.

• Dogs - Just no.

• His Mother - for whatever reason, Eli and his mother have never really gotten along. No matter what he does, she must disagree. And no matter what she does, he must disagree. Regardless, Eli does love his mom, but there will probably never be a time that he actually enjoys her company.

• Novels - because he really doesn't enjoy spending his time reading vast quantities of text for no reason. Entertainment? That's what comics are for. Escape? Hello, chronic. Enhanced intelligence? He's far too lazy to care. No matter how you slice it, reading just isn't his "thing."

• Fantasy - Sci-fi is okay in his book. But start throwing in fairies and goblins, and his attention span suddenly plummets.

• Mornings - definitely not his style. The night life is where it's at-- or, more specifically, it's where his inspiration is at. All genius thoughts occur between the hours of midnight and four AM, almost as a rule.

• Himself - tragic and pathetic, of course, but hey... he's just not a fan.

• Babies / Children - Eli is certainly no optimist when it comes to kids. They are not beacons of hope, nor are they living breathing epitomes of innocence... because they're loud and obnoxious, rude and selfish, dirty and smelly. Kind of like crabs, there is nothing redeemable about the human child.

• Women - he's come to view them all as self-centered, egotistical, shallow, abusive beings. Obviously, these presuppositions come from observation rather than experience... and Klaudia is the exception. But it's safe to assume that if he ever does date, he'll have himself a nice set of trust issues.

FEARS:
• Dogs - one bad experience was enough to scar him for life (literally... just check his right forearm for the remnants of forty stitches). Even the smallest, easily punted dogs are cower-inducing, these days, but he's gotten a little better about the irrational running and outlandish avoidance.

• The Supernatural - ghosts, zombies, aliens-- he's totally fascinated by all of it, but it scares the shit out of him at the same time. It's just another reason for his pot smoking, too... helps him get through the night without nightmares.

• Death - more accurately, the unknown... and / or the wrath of God. He's never been very religious, but he does believe in God, so there's still some level of uncertainty associated with death.

• People in Costumes - clowns, mascots, Halloween aficionados... fucking scary, okay?

• Being or Going Crazy - because sometimes, yes, he does question his sanity. But he can't bring himself to go to therapy anymore, and he has an irrational fear of prescription drugs... so who knows where this one will lead.

ASPIRATIONS:
• Really, all he wants out of life at this point in time is to find some way to earn Klaudia's affection. Which is difficult considering the current situation. Not only is she with someone else, but she made it clear some time ago that she's just not interested in him that way. But he still can't bring himself to give up and move on.

• Buying a cat would be nice-- a companion for the apartment and a hunter to get rid of the occasional spider.

• The only reason he stays with the Post is because Klaudia is there. Otherwise, he'd be looking for a new job... some sort of great career in Electronics...

• But he's even considered going back to school-- this time, for Engineering. It just seems like something he'd enjoy and something he'd be good at. The education is a little grueling and obviously expensive, but it's on the list of priorities.

• What Daytimer doesn't want to meet a Nighttimer? If it wasn't so, you know, difficult and against the law, he'd just go out of his way to find one. But considering he's always got Tolstoy, weed, or both, on his person, he'd rather avoid run-in's with the law than go looking for trouble.

• Finally, he wants to be influential. That also probably sounds terribly cliche, but it's something he's always wanted-- to change someone's life for the better. A little romantic, but he figures it's at least possible.

WEAKNESSES:
• He's mute. No, seriously. Totally mute. Hasn't said a word in nearly ten years. While he is rather good with communication otherwise-- gestures and writing-- it is definitely not easy living in silence while the rest of the world hustles and bustles. You try it for one day and see just how inhibited you feel.

• Low self esteem, anyone? Eli is only mute because he has low self esteem, you know. There isn't much he finds redeemable in himself, and he's constantly living through negative self-fulfilling prophecies and has yet to figure out any way to rectify the trend.

• Insomnia has become a main aspect of his life lately, and that's not really a good thing. In all senses, he's a dreamer-- very inventive, but also irrational. Eli is pretty sure that his insomnia and the hours he's gained in the day from it are somehow making his life better, but he apparently can't see the toll it's taking on his mind and body.


STRENGTHS:
• After working with them for so long, Eli has become the master of electronics. If your computer is busted, he can fix it in a jiffy. Coffee pot stopped working? He'll take a look at it. By association, he's come to know a bit about plumbing and automotive repairs, also... so, basically, he's just the go-to Mr. Fixit.

• Listening is so much easier when you don't spend all of your time thinking about what you're going to say after the fact. And since Eli really doesn't spend any time thinking about what to say, he's managed to become a favored listener when it comes to the few friends he has and certainly with his family. In fact, Holiday has mentioned a couple times that he is her favorite brother just because of this skill.

• Over the years, he has grown exceedingly talented on the bilingual front. He probably can't speak much, but he can write fluently in Czech, Spanish, English, and Nepali.

QUIRKS:
• Eli decorates everything he wants to decorate with newspaper and magazine clippings. An entire wall of his bedroom is pasted over with a layer of little printed words. Some spell out song lyrics, others tell stories, and still others are the quotes he's found most influential in his life.

• He won't eat square foods. Crackers, toast, sandwiches, cheese slices, etc. He either has to cut them into ovals or circles or triangles... or he just won't eat them.

• No matter what, if he nods "yes" to a question, he smiles, too. Nod equals smile and there's no way around it. Even if you asked him, "Do you disagree with infanticide?" He'd nod and smile.


SECRETS:
• Okay, well, due to his general fear of talking to people, his trust issues, and his fear of rejection, Eli has never dated a girl. Really-- never. Middle school was too awkward, the early years of high school were too stressful, and when he went mute, he ended up looking more like a freak than anything else, which wasn't very attractive to young, naive, hormone-crazed girls. So, he has remained single his whole life. And, yes, that does mean he's also a virgin. It's not a "secret" he particularly likes about himself, but he doesn't look to change it, either. Well just say he's grown a little indifferent over the years.

• Speaking of being a virgin, he is totally, unconditionally, hopelessly in love with a girl he's worked with for the past four years-- Klaudia. Oh, sure, she's involved with her long-time boyfriend, and she's only the most well-liked, easygoing, mild-tempered girl on staff. She's smart, pretty, funny, compassionate... but Eli is pretty sure that if he continues interacting with her and thinking positive thoughts, he'll stand a chance in hell. Yeah right.

OVERALL:
"Um, yeah. It's definitely a sad, sad song with no storyline."

Ironically enough, getting to know someone is incredibly difficult when silence is your constant companion. Okay, so that's not ironic at all... but you can't sense the sarcasm in my written words, can you? Welcome to the difficulty Eli faces every day in every situation with every human being. Ever.

You'd never guess it, but underneath that generally unhappy-looking exterior, Eli Rana is a pretty happy-go-lucky kind of guy. He appreciates humor and the fine art of sarcasm, it doesn't take much to keep him entertained, and if you needed him to, he'd listen to you talk and talk and talk for hours on end. He's a chameleon and a fly on the wall and everything in between-- over the years, he's learned that blending in with the crowd is much easier than trying to make some kind of statement, and you know what they say, "Stick to what you know."

But first impressions speak volumes, apparently, and on that front, Eli is shit out of luck. In any totally new situation and when falling into new friendships, he's probably the most awkward person you'll ever meet. Physical contact makes him nervous. People that try to pry too deep into his personal life make him nervous. People that smile too much make him nervous. People that smile too little make him nervous. Do you get the picture? All the years of self-inflicted solitary confinement (not literally, of course, but emotionally) have made him very aware of his surroundings and, by proxy, of the people in those surroundings. He studies more than he interacts, clearly, and that has tainted the way he forms relationships... mostly because it has added to his paranoia.

Eli doesn't have much faith in the human race. It started when he was just a kid, but hit a special crescendo in his teen years. And now, his distaste has only been perpetuated by the rabies epidemic. So maybe part of his distant exterior is there for a reason-- he's standoffish and skeptical around new acquaintances. But, really, it's nothing personal... just his own trust issues. You can thank his childhood peers and his mother for that one.

Suppose, though, that you really do crack into the outer shell that is Eli and make it to the tootsie roll center. You'll find a brilliant guy with a penchant for inventing, for puzzles, for language. He's all but a genius when it comes to the practical things in life-- computers really are so much less complicated than people are, and math will always give you the same answers without emotion getting in the way. You'll find a sweetheart who values his closest relationships over everything else-- he may not be capable of understanding the people he loves, but he'll do his best to try. There is no doubt that Eli is the perfect listening ear no matter what you happen to be going through because he'll never judge, he'll never interrupt, and he'll let you go as long as you need. And you'll find a level head bolted firmly to supportive shoulders. He may initially come off as a distant, difficult human being, but he's grounded and he doesn't get too carried away... at least not these days.

So what else is there? Probably a thousand different facets all built specifically for different people and different situations. The only problem is that he hasn't experienced much of what the world has to offer... so all Eli knows is what he has known for the past twenty-six years, and while he may be adaptable, he really is quite naive. As far as he's concerned, things won't change. Er, at least, not for him.

NOBODY KNOWS BUT YOU ,
( t h e h i s t o r y )

HERITAGE/ETHNICITY: Well. That depends on how in-depth you want to get. His father is from Nepal, and his mother is from the U.S. But his grandparents on the Rana side are Nepalese and his grandparents on the Kopecky side were Czech and Mexican. Any lower on the family tree and you start finding roots in Spain, France, Britain, Russia, Bangladesh and China. Really, this kid is the poster child for the cultural melting pot idea.
BIRTHPLACE: Vršovice, Prague 10, Czech Republic.
PARENTS:
- Abhik Rana, 58, musician, novelist, carpenter
- Graciela Rana, nee Kopecky, 60, painter, fashion designer

INFLUENTIAL RELATIVES:
- Nathaniel Rana, 29 - brother
- Holiday Rana, 31 - sister

SIGNIFICANT OTHERS:
- N/A

HISTORY:
We must learn from the past so that we may avoid repeating our mistakes... or something.

So, you may not care about the history of Abhik Rana and Graciela Kopecky, but really... it's kind of important. But I'll try and make this long story as short as possible. Abhik was born and grew up in Nepal. Biratnagar, actually, but that really is sort of beside the point. Graciela is a Colorado native and one of eight children. By all means, the two of them should have never met-- not in this lifetime, and probably not in the next either. But both, in their own special little way, were artistic geniuses. And so, after spending a number of years preparing to study abroad, both embarked on a new adventure to the Czech Republic-- and there they met, Graciela studying painting and design, Abhik studying music and architecture.

A couple years of dating, a couple degrees, some ups and downs, one love child, and a final decision to stay in Prague later... the two married. Then Nate was born. And finally, yes, finally, Elias Augustin Rana was introduced to the world.

He lived about as average a life as one can with two free spirits for parents and two child prodigies as siblings. When the time restrictions were put into place, Abhik and Gracie entertained the idea of starting life anew as a group of Nighttimers, but ultimately the decision was made to "live in the light." For the children, of course.

And Eli grew up with very few traumatic events. A couple grandparents died here and there, but he had never met them face-to-face, so it mattered very little. One of his aunts in the States was killed in a drunk driving accident-- but she was the drunk, so there was hardly any tragedy. He was attacked by a dog, the big mutt his neighbors kept, which left him with a resounding fear of all things canine, but that was about as intense as his life got.

Until puberty became the cool thing for everyone to participate in. All the boys his age came into their manhood right on schedule; they got hairy, they got horny, they got taller, and their voices dropped. But Eli, poor Eli, he was the late bloomer. The very, very late bloomer. By fifteen, he still hadn't started on the road to adulthood. He was short, he was fat, he had glasses three times too big for his face, he had long, curly hair, and worst of all, he had a voice with a higher pitch than most of the girls in his class. Soon enough, most of his "friends" abandoned him. He became the butt of everyone's jokes, and he was constantly mocked-- not even behind his back, either. Generally, it was straight to his face. But the one thing his peers hammered into him more than anything else was how girly his voice was. For months, no one called him by his name but rather "ženskα" ... Woman.

And so now you know the origin of his most noticeable trait-- his silence. After being ridiculed for so long, Eli just literally shut up, making a vow to himself to stay mute forever. Once he learned to cope with it, the silence became his best ally and greatest asset. But it has shaped who he is entirely, and despite the pleas of his parents and siblings and friends, he refuses to give it up now though he has obviously reached adulthood.

Beyond that, his sister and brother both attended their parents' alma mater. Eli attended for some time, with a focus in sculpting, but he flunked out (literally failing every class he registered for) and went to trade school instead. This was perhaps the beginning in the rift between Eli and his mother. She could handle his muteness, but that he might be lacking the creative gene she so proudly nursed in all of her children... that just wasn't okay. However, it was the beginning of the tight bond he soon grew into with his father. Electronics fascinated Abhik, and he respected his son greatly for choosing to get into something he knew and valued.

His job at the Post came soon after, as he did graduate at the top of his class and was recommended well by his professors. For the time being, he is satisfied with where he is in life... but when he's entirely sober, he questions his aspirations and goals and tries to set higher standards for himself... obviously, this doesn't happen often.

For now, that's all there is to Eli Rana's life. It's not epic, and it's hardly interesting, but we've all got those little things that shape who we are.

Welcome to the life of Eli.

DID SOMEBODY TAKE YOUR TONGUE ,
( t h e r o l e p l a y e r )

NAME: H.W.
AGE: Twentyyy
RP EXPERIENCE: Like nine years.
OTHER CHARACTERS: Eli is my baby.
CONTACT INFO: lues venerea - AIM or PM.

RP SAMPLE:

I WON'T FAIL YOU NOW . . .
( t h e f i n a l )

WHAT ALL TOPIC TITLES MUST START WITH: -Admin Edit-
ANYTHING ELSE: Eli named his pipe "Tolstoy" because smoking out of it is just like reading Tolstoy's work-- harsh going in, but so worth it in the long run.

ACCEPTED !

` on account of how Eli is the shit okay?!