Member Application
Hi! My name is Ben and I am 44 or so. Please use he/him pronouns when referring to me!
What do you hope to get out of being a member of Birchwood Isle? Looking forward to writing again and getting my characters a chance to tell new stories.
Did you come here looking for someone to care for your inner kid(s)? Not particularly 'take care of'. I want my inner kid to get to interact with people, but being taken care of isn't a priority.
What will you do if you post a thread for your inner kid and nobody replies to it? Not every thread gets taken up; that doesn't seem like a big deal.
What will you do if an adoption falls through for your inner kid? It depends what happened and why, but getting a character adopted isn't a particular priority for me.
If you are playing an adult character, what will you do if you find an unanswered thread in which a child or adolescent is acting out? It depends on the situation, but if it looks like a place where an adult's intervention is desired and appropriate (and I have the bandwidth) offer to have my adult intervene.
If the site needs it, are you willing to play an adult? Yes
Is there anything you want us to know about you? No
Link to your discipline sheet: click here (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1WdnqHs6t9uEa7XRgxlYDD5Xxhr3rG7FOaLtuC07kNWA/edit?usp=sharing)
Child Application
Hi! My name is Tyler Jacob Whelan and I am a 5th grader. I am 11 years old. Please use he/him when referring to me!
Basic Information
Full Name: Tyler Jacob Whelan
Nickname, if Any: Squeak (does not like this)
Age: 11
Birthday: January 2nd
Sex: Male
Pronouns: He/him
Current Grade in School: 5th grade
Special Needs: Tourette's (most common tics are grunting noises and sudden arm movements)
Personality
What are your greatest strengths? List 5-10: Clever, persistent, hard-working, observant, good memory, good with smaller children and animals
What are your greatest weaknesses? List 5-10: Dishonest, disloyal, doesn't speak up for himself or others, oversensitive, prone to assuming the worst about people, nosy, suck-up
What do you struggle with? Communicating clearly, prioritizing tasks
What are your hobbies or interests? Movies, animals, whatever my friends like
What do you really enjoy? Stories, television, music that makes my body shake, board games, pizza, wearing a heavy jacket, days that are a little cloudy, bland colors, fruit, fresh cookies, little kids
What do you really dislike? Doughy food, people yelling in anger, really hot days, wet clothes, being around too many people at once, being late, being bored, being nagged, really sour food, things that are supposed to be scary but aren't
What are your favorite things? Watching TV, doing things in parallel with a close friend, baggy clothes
What do you fear? Being seen as useless or a burden
Describe your personality in 100-500 words: Tyler hates open conflict, and wants very much to be included and liked by other people. At his best, he can be helpful, pleasant, and uncannily charming. But he can also be fickle and manipulative: he can perfectly sweet to you one moment, then ditch you the next moment because he thinks it will ingratiate him with someone he cares more about who just walked into the room. It’s not quite fair to say he’s insincere, though it can come across that way. If you meet him on his own, he’ll really, truly want you to like him, and he’ll be willing to go to great lengths to make it happen; it’s just that if there are two people around, he has to decide whose opinion he cares about more…
Relationships & Behavior
How do you normally get along with adults? I'm quiet and don't make trouble on my own, so most adults don't mind me. When adults do pay more attention to me, it's a bit hit or miss: I try really hard to figure out what they expect, but sometimes misunderstand or fixate on the wrong thing.
How do you normally get along with teenagers? Teenagers mostly don't notice me, which is fine, but on the rare occasion when one needs a younger assistant, I'm pretty good at it.
How do you normally get along with other children? I often have trouble with my peers: I miss social cues, say the wrong thing, or misunderstand things. I want to fit in and get along, but too much, in a way that's over the top and too obvious. It's easier with younger children, where there's not the same social pressure.
How independent are you? Pretty independent for my age.
How do you normally react when you get into trouble? I freeze up or try to lie my way out of it. If that doesn't work, dissociate.
Link to your discipline sheet: click here (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1AR1bp5_25DJ6LaA_LuQEwa3P8CrLJpH7iitJAZ43HtI/edit?usp=sharing) ✅
Orphan Village
Orphan Village Application
How long have you lived at the Orphan Village? Four months
Which House do you belong to? Willow House
What is your grade in school? 5th grade
How did you come to live in the Orphan Village? Mother unable to take care of him, kicked out of house by step-mother and father.
Who are your favorite people in the Orphan Village? The younger kids. They’re easy to deal with and mostly happy that I like paying attention to them.
What are your favorite places in the Orphan Village? The stables! I love horses, and I miss the one I used to ride, so I’m really glad I can still take care of horses here.
What are your favorite things to do in the Orphan Village? See above
How do you get along with caregivers and authority figures in the Orphan Village? With most of them, pretty well; I don’t act out much, and I try to make it easy for adults not to need to pay attention to me, which is fine by me. With the adults paying too much attention for that to work, I can be a little frustrating because I’m so prone to lying or treating every serious conversation like I’m about to be in trouble.
How do you get along with other children in the Orphan Village? I often struggle with peers close in age, where my tendency to say the wrong thing and miss social cues stands out.
How do you get along with teenager adolescents in the Orphan Village? Fine. Teens are usually more tolerant of the way I miss social cues because they expect younger kids to follow different social norms, and I’m agreeable enough.
How do you get along with young adult adolescents in the Orphan Village? Fine, though I don’t deal with them that much. They’re basically adults, as far as I’m concerned.
Do you hope to be adopted someday? I’m not sure
Describe your ideal adoptive family. Several siblings, older and younger
Is there anything else we should know about your life at the Orphan Village? No
Background
Describe your history in 150-1000 words: Tyler’s house was never calm, and over the first few years of his life, his father’s violence escalated from screaming and thrown plates to physical violence directed at both Tyler and his mother. When Tyler was six, Miranda’s mother left with Tyler, and the two lived a somewhat precarious life, hopping from couch to couch, until a car accident left Miranda unable to take care of him.
Tyler went back to his father, now remarried. His step-mother, a vain woman who craved the appearance of a perfect family, took to Tyler when she discovered how good he was at putting on the performance she wanted, and Tyler send the next four years keeping up appearances and dodging his father’s anger.
That, too, fell apart when a fight with his father turned violent and a terrified Tyler managed to injure his father with a knife. Furious, Tyler’s step-mother kicked him out, persuading a social worker that he was too dangerous for her to keep in the house. The social worker, perhaps sensing that the situation was more complicated, arranged a placement for him in Orphan’s Village.
Other
Is there anything else we need to know about you? No