Frequency and Morphology of Names
I am broadcasting on all channels, though the signal breaks. Shimmer of static between stations. This Note Is—musical identification stuttering through wavelengths where Tonal resonance meets Otto Decibel, that volume of presence announcing itself. The air tastes metallic here. Your Tone is not a controlling possessive sound, I tell myself, tuning and always adjusting the dial toward Pitch Perfect, ironically off-key. Moths gather at the window, mistaking glass for sky.
OTTOTONE varies from sincere to hilariously varied, an OTTO ILL LOGICAL delicious morphic shape undergoing past tense transformation. My grandmother's maiden name dissolves on my tongue. Continuous practitioner of utopian state of mind rules, I exist in Neverwhen—ALWAYS MAYBE—that uncertainty stripped of time, at all times approximately present. Clock hands chase their own shadows. Soonwhen brings imminent vagueness, punctually off-schedule, questioning this Be Why Existential Brand. Even my echo has an accent.
Wow—exclamation—whisper quiet whisper loud, Whatever Casual Intensity Happens To Be, lost and found in the same breath. The dictionary opens to random pages at night. Knowing and unknowing wavelength specific, unpredictable and constant, I'm preparing a new visual and sonic joke about stationary motion where everyone is outside. Laughter from empty rooms. Rimshot Ba Dum Tss Walking Gag Mobile, curved human seriously funny, perfect and imperfect as a Goodnight Nobody greeting card series. Minnesota winters teach us long goodbyes.
Forever first immediate concerns present themselves as polite interruptions—Pardon My Apologetic Existence—swinging up when down in the Wiggle Room Squirm Wavering. Butterflies mistake me for a garden. BUTTERFLY shimmer and flicker steady, balanced and unbalanced, jitter be calm nervousness coating everything in Sugar Slice Gentleness. The French have a word for this, but I've forgotten it. Velvet Soft Hammer soft, a Pound Of Silk Sandpaper, caramel chainsaw destruction scored to Pillow Punch French Pop Music. My reflection speaks first.
Sergeant Otto CUDDLE COMBAT wages aggressive affection, snuggle strike cozy attack, competing also with yourself. Victory tastes like burnt sugar. Sprint then Paint, Customs Check at the Border Embassy Walker where diplomats negotiate CURRENCY being exchanged—shivering, stuttering OTTOTTO, double palindrome double threat. Names multiply in mirrors. Over the top energy insists Otto Be Good, rights and wrongs, simultaneous haves and have nots, stool and toilet furniture for Brrd Pilots Flying Blind through Ivy League Consciousness. Even my shadow has imposter syndrome. B-Grade Cautious Focus extends Eight Arm Octopus-Like Excellence into spaces unnamed. The alphabet ends where I begin.
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Recommendations for Asymptote Journal:
1. Consider italicizing the interstitial sentences to create clearer visual rhythm
2. Add a brief author's note about the project's relationship to naming/identity
3. The experimental nature fits Asymptote's aesthetic perfectly—maintain the fragmentation
Title Suggestions:
Current: "Otto Frequency: A Morphology of Names" - Strong but perhaps too explanatory
Alternatives:
- "Neverwhen: An Otto Biography"
- "Double Palindrome Double Threat"
- "Broadcasting on All Channels"
- "OTTOTONE"
- "The Alphabet Ends Where I Begin"
The last option might be perfect—it captures the cyclical, self-referential nature while maintaining mystery.
