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Post by ralphie on May 17, 2011 8:05:46 GMT 10
-- RALPHIE AMADEUS DILLINGER !
-- NAME: Ralph Amadeus Dillinger.
-- NICKNAMES: Ralphie, only. (He once stated that "Ralph" was too harsh and intimidating, and that it was comparable to "Voldemort" or "Lucifer.")
-- AGE & BIRTHDAY: Twenty-nine, March 28.
-- BIRTH PLACE: Gloucester, Massachusetts.
-- ORIENTATION: Heterosexual.
-- OCCUPATION & SCHOOL GRADE: Illustrator for a greeting card company, he also picks up freelance jobs when he can.
-- PLAYED BY: John Krasinski.
-- PERSONALITY !
-- SARCASTIC: It would be splendid if everything and everyone were just fine and dandy all of the time. In fact, Ralphie knows his fair share of sunshine dolls and sugar-sweet guys. He just certainly isn't one of them. At a young age, he was the little boy full of attitude and spunk. As he got older, that sort of attitude developed into something further. Sarcasm. Dry humor. Maybe a touch of wit. He can be a bit of a skeptic, and as such, do not be surprised if he says something icy. Though he doesn't normally intend to be a bully (and it often comes across as such), he can often be heard making smart-ass comments and just being a downer. Of course, while others may find it bad, Ralphie is the opposite. He loves his sense of humor, and he absolutely loves to make little quips whenever he feels the need. You see, some people out there just make it so easy for him. He views it as an opportunity, to be able to get his two-cents in while dragging people back down to reality. Though he isn't always just a jerk, it is very rare for anything he says to not be tinted with acid or have a slight mocking tone.
-- UNCENSORED: Most people have this ability to be able to stop talking and to ensure that they don't say too much. Ralphie is not one of these people. To say that he doesn't know when to stop talking would probably be an understatement. Not only is he unable to shut his trap, he also enjoys saying every little thing he can. He is often times very blunt, and can easily appear to be harsh. He sees no purpose in sugar coating things. However, he also can just say some strange things. He tends to be the person to make analogies that many disapprove of, or making bizarre references. The only times he tends to keep quiet involve business propositions, but once you know him on a personal level, it becomes apparent. Often times, something that's socially inappropriate or even a touch vulgar will have no hesitance leaving his mouth. Much like his biting case of sarcasm, he views his honestly as something to be sought after. However, that being said, he has gotten into some trouble by saying too much or saying the wrong things. Not many people like it when someone tells them they're an idiot (though most of the time, the person he's talking to probably doesn't deserve it) or insults them in some other way.
-- ARROGANT: It's hard for one to encounter Ralphie and not comprehend that he is absolutely full of himself. He can do no wrong. He is who everyone wants to be. Over the years, he has developed a very strong sense of confidence in himself. He is a competent fellow, so why not? Double confidence with his harsh sense of humor, and things only got exponentially worse. He managed to develop a very strong ego. It's not that Ralphie thinks that everyone around him is worthless scum; he just thinks he's the best thing since sliced bread. He is the type of guy to use terms like "you mere mortals" and use belittling terms, but those aren't the ones to look out for. Being a bit self-absorbed, most of the conversational titles will revolve around him and how awesome he thinks he is. He's the guy who acts like people are just flocking to know him and be like him. Though Ralphie isn't always sitting around bragging about himself, this haughty nature is apparent in other ways. It would take a lot of insulting for him to actually get offended, even by strangers, and he likes to turn them around with his sarcasm. Not everything has to be about him, but the things that are have to be good.
-- DORKY: Ralphie certainly won't admit it, but he can be a total loser. He can be a bit of a dork, and it isn't exactly subtle. He also tends to be rather childish. He is not the type of person to mask who he is or act a certain way in public. He's the type of guy to call a round of "nose goes" when it comes to certain situations. Despite his sarcasm and arrogance, it is very possible for him to be silly. He can get easily excited over something that isn't a big deal. He has a very odd set of interests, and that excitement grows if he is able to make connections between his interests and the outside world. It isn't a surprise that Ralphie doesn't take many things seriously. After all, when he's always making snide comments, it's hard for him to realize that not everything is a joke. Ralphie is more likely to break into song in public than he is to sit still and act polished. He doesn't exactly care what most people think about him, and much like his words, doesn't enjoy censoring his actions. He doesn't mind that some people find him immature and stupid, he would much rather make math puns than appear to be some polished, professional man.
-- SUPPORTIVE: There are a couple of things that, for some strange reason, tend to throw people off when they get to know him. The most dominant of these features is his desire to be supportive of other people. While he's likely to drop many backhanded compliments, he genuinely wants to see those he is close to succeed. He knows that it isn't as easy for others to do what they want or act how they want, and he's very willing to try and encourage this sort of behavior. He is also surprisingly accepting of who other people are and who they want to be. He also aims to be emotional support for those who need it. When he was younger, he was jokingly the "therapist" of his group of friends, and this has stuck with him through the years. Ralphie, though he likes to talk, actually can listen. He would prefer to focus on the problems of others than his own problems, and will certainly hear out those who need him to be there. He is always willing to give advice, though it's often covered in his own brands of insults and humor. Either way, he wants people around him to be happy, even if his attitude suggests otherwise.
-- LOVES: Food, bicycles, people watching, cigarettes, women, simply relaxing, stubborn people, helping people, doodling, ultimate frisbee, dogs, figuring people out, caffeine, clean spaces, not being rushed, old cartoons, catchy theme songs, crappy old movies.
-- HATES: Suck-ups, falling out with people, cell phones, timing, getting lost, losing things, the corporate grind, celery, whiny children, raising his voice, being stressed out, seeing people cry, things that remind him of his parents, his job, sleeping, being ignored, nosy neighbors, wrapping paper.
-- HISTORY !
The Dillinger household was not necessarily the happiest place in the world, and it certainly wasn't Disneyland. In fact, Theodore Dillinger and Marissa Poppett probably shouldn't have gotten married. They were young and naïve, how were they supposed to know that they weren't suited for each other? The pair bickered nonstop. Some of Ralphie's earliest memories were of his parents arguing. Alas, he somehow wound up with a younger sister and brother, and he thought all families were as angry as his. When he was seven, his parents got a divorce. There was a tension that spread for the next several years, as they attempted to reassemble their lives. They still talked, but it was obvious that Marissa and Theodore wouldn't be getting back together any time soon. His mother eventually moved to the other side of town, and the times when they interacted became even less infrequent. Nothing really seemed normal until his father got remarried, to a woman named Ruth. His father's house appeared to be getting back together, and it appeared happier than ever. A couple of years later, his mother began dating a man named Daniel. The thought of Disneyland was not that far off, it finally seemed.
When Ralphie was thirteen, that idea changed. Daniel left Marissa. Distraught at her second failed attempt at a family, she left for Boston. Thus began a period of Ralphie's life when he thought he would never see her again. He tried to keep up this illusion that everything was going to be okay, especially for his siblings, but he really had no idea. He remained living in his father's house, trying to get along with Ruth. Sure, he did get along with her, she just wasn't his mother. When he needed girl advice from a girl, he couldn't go to Ruth, and he certainly couldn't go to his little sister. He started to become very bitter, especially towards his father, who he felt should have been blamed for his mother's departure. It caused enough trouble that, when Ralphie was fifteen, his father and his stepmother terminated their marriage. It was the second divorce of Theodore's life. That internalized bitterness became an outward burst, and he began to grow angry at his family. He wanted his family to stay together and stop changing; he wanted people to be happy for once. He couldn't wait to get out and leave. He wanted to leave behind all of the petty drama that he had watched unfold.
His salvation came in the form of art, though it wasn't that way initially. Initially, he loved hockey. Why shouldn't he have? He was able to get all of his frustration out by jostling other players and flying around the rink. Part way through high school, there were some scouts already stopping by. Of course, they weren't there for Ralphie. They were really there for his friend, the goalie, Rodger. Still, as his skill level increased, a few of the scouts for small schools began contacting Ralphie. He was more than happy to listen. There were some talks of athletic scholarships, things to help him get out of his home and onto a college campus. His parents wanted all the help they could get, divorces were not expensive, nor was raising kids. However, things were deteriorating at school. The pressure and discord of his home life was making it into his grades. Eventually, he was being neglected for students who received better grades and were better at the game. He needed to come up with a new strategy, and fast. He hadn't even considered art in that time. It was just some class he was taking. He had always liked to doodle, but he wouldn't be able to be an artist. That took real skill. So he pushed it out of the way, booking it as just some random hobby.
In his senior year came the ultimatum of Ralphie's life. He was rare to confide in adults anything about his personal life. Why did they need to know about his parents' screwed up attempts at romance? Of course, he liked his art teacher. The woman was nice and understanding. When he wanted extra time at the end of the day to work on a project, she was willing to allow him to do so. He told her about everything. He even told her about how he wasn't going to be picked up for a team, and how an athletic scholarship was probably not going to come through. She presented an idea to him. At first, he disliked it. However, when it came time to apply to schools, Ralphie had applied to a couple of art programs. His portfolio was not the most impressive thing, but it was good enough to get him into a small, local college for their art department. He was still hesitant by the end of the year, but his teacher assured him that art could be something that he could use. He trusted her, and he really wanted to jump into the next part of his life. He went in to the art program, focusing in illustration, and also worked heavily with a graphic design program. The school proclaimed he could be a member of the hockey team, but he never really made it on the ice.
It took less than a quarter for him to decide that he actually loved being in the art program, and he wondered why he would have doubted it. So, for the next several years, he worked. Ralphie wasn't exactly the best artist out there, but he enjoyed it and his skills improved exponentially until he finished his undergraduate schooling. From there, he figured that he would go on to grad school. So, at the age of twenty-three, he began down the next path for his education. After about a year and a half, he managed to find a job that promised decent pay and that his skills would be put to good use. It was a young, rather new greeting card company. He was told the position would likely last quite some time. Shortly after, he dropped out of the graduate program. He figured there was only so much he could do in the college, and that job offer wasn't going to wait around forever. Ralphie liked the job initially. He could to design greeting cards, and he certainly got to use his illustrative talent. However, the company soon took off. It went from only a handful of corporate buildings, to at least quadruple. He found his role becoming less significant. He was no longer one of a few creative designers for the company. Ralphie slowly began to hate his job, but remained for the money and consistency.
It was only within the past couple of years that he began to seek out a new track for his career. Nothing has really fit him in the way that he desires, though. He no longer wants to work for the company, but he can't bring himself to leave. When the company moved their corporate headquarters to Capeside three years ago, he went with them, feeling no regrets. As time moves on, Ralphie has come to believe that he should have finished grad school and should be doing something else with his life. He has picked up a few freelance jobs, mostly working on logos for small businesses. Nothing has really been a permanent change, though his salary has wavered depending on the success of the card company. He's at that point in his life where he knows something should change, or else he's just going to be grumpy and miserable for the rest of his life. He doesn't want to be as angry and moody as his parents; he wants to be happy with himself and his world. Now, the real problem is figuring out how exactly to go about that.
-- SAMPLE !
O hai, what's up?
-- OOC !
-- NAME OR ALIAS: Quinn. Last character, I think. Yes.
-- AGE: Eighteen.
-- THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE YOU: Very easily amused.
-- HOW YOU FOUND US: Nikki.
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