LOPERNICUS

• Species: Eurasian badger
• Sex: ♂
• Age: 23-33
• Height: 6ft 4in
• Weight: 450lbs
• Siblings: 1 brother 4 years younger, high-functioning autistic
• Misc: Prefers colder climates

Judgemental Side

Family Structure

Lopernicus grew up with both his mother and father around, plus his younger brother. In addition, he knew his paternal grandmother, had two uncles, and had a close relationship with his high school home room/history teacher.

He had a very strong bond with his grandmother, as she would look after him after school until his parents came home from work. As a result, she became a second mother to him.

One of his uncles – his mother's older brother – had a life-long struggle with drug addiction and passed away in his early 60's. However, despite his life this uncle had had a fun, loving and humorous nature which Lop had admired.

The other uncle had not technically been Lop's uncle, and instead was his father's Godfather. Although Lop didn't get to know him very well before he died, his honorary uncle's kind nature left an impression on him.

Lopernicus got to know the above mentioned home-room teacher after he transferred to a new high school, and this teacher turned out to be exactly the influence Lop needed. Lop's previous teacher had been prone to giving “a boot up the behind” as a catch-all way of motivating his students, whereas this new teacher offered positive motivation too. Lop responded to this much better.

His father was a blue collar worker who worked hard and had a good sense of humour. He felt particularly driven to provide as best he could for his family. He achieved this, and had energy and enthusiasm left over for hobbies of his own. He was particularly interested in a form of martial arts that involved stick-fighting, which he trained in despite having arthritis. He was never prone to bragging so preferred to stick to humble pursuits (hence his job and interest in a martial art that promoted humility).

His mother worked as a receptionist for a small office. In her spare time she was artistic with a particular interest in learning musical instruments, although she didn't learn any one instrument to an advanced degree, choosing instead to learn to play one moderately well before moving on to another.

Rules

His parents established a set of house rules based on a sense of moderation and fairness, such as "treat others as you wish to be treated." They were both religious, although this was more of a background belief and did not intrude into their lives in any heavy-handed way; they were not zealots.

Knowingly or not, the family characterised itself on a sense of safety, and in many ways, moderation. It should be noted however that his father broke from this value of moderation to exercise an “all or nothing” attitude when it came to providing for his family and engaging with his hobbies. However he didn't go out of his way to impose this value on Lop, as Lop felt he had moral permission not to push himself to extremes despite growing up with his father.

Nurturing

Lopernicus rarely injured himself or got sick, however when he did, his parents were attentive to him. Routinely it was his mum who took the most time out to care for him during these times.

He became seriously ill on one occasion when he was young, as he developed spinal meningitis and had to go to hospital for ten days as a result. This happened as a result of an ear infection, which Lop was quite prone to during childhood, so after this hospital incident, whenever Lopernicus got sick again his parents became worried. After a couple of years and a handful of ear infections with no further hospital trips, they relaxed enough that the worry rarely entered their heads again.

Overall, his parents are emotionally articulate and therefore able to be emotionally supportive of him when he doesn't feel happy. They are able to be supportive of him when he is sad, and able to withstand his anger (although, given that his family do not generally 'do' extremity, his anger is rarely an overwhelming affair).

Critical

As for most children, occasionally Lopernicus misbehaved. When he did, his parents usually responded by putting him in time out (when he was younger) or by lecturing him (when he was older). On one occasion that has found its way into family lore, Lopernicus refused to help with unpacking during a camping trip and his father somehow managed to find him a corner to stand in while he considered his actions.

This story is re-told occasionally at gatherings, usually prompted by somebody who had heard the story and wants to hear it from somebody who was present at the time, with the subtext of the telling applauding Lop's dad's creative parenting skills. Lop himself is happy to admit that his dad was clever for finding a corner the way he did.

Sometimes Lopernicus felt - and acted - unmotivated, and his parents were fairly quick to give him tough love to get him motivated again whenever they noticed this. Lop experienced some problems in high school. He didn't get along with several of his teachers and eventually came to feel that he couldn't succeed in pleasing these teachers, so instead he rebelled. Although his parents did their best to push him to be motivated again, it was a change to a new school and the experience of getting to know his new home-room teacher that really turned things around for Lop.

On the subject of Lop being moved to a new school. This was not as a deliberate decision by Lop, his parents, or the school. Lop was moved due to an administrative change, specifically a change in the school's district lines.

As an adult, Lop is generally a very gentle and easy-going character but will defend himself ferociously when need be. He would prefer to build bridges rather than burn them.

Objective Side

Rational

On the whole, Lop's family are good at being objective and accounting for here-and-now information and circumstances. Although they make use of the structure that rules and moral codes can offer, they are quite able to step away from those and instead respond to a situation on its own merits.

Childlike Side

Free

Lop's family are quite the poster clan for “the family that plays together, stays together.” They share and enjoy a lot of similar interests. In particular, Lop's dad likes nerdy pursuits and Lop, along with his mum and brother, happily go along with these. The whole family also has a liking for pop culture.

As a small child, Lopernicus loved the playground and enjoyed playing with plush toys. His play was about exploration and about role-playing with his toys. He was very energetic and he used that energy to be kind-spirited. He was also highly imaginative. (It should be noted that Lop tended to prefer action figures to plush toys once he was old enough). He tended to keep to himself and did not really click with any particular group of friends, having only casual or fleeting friendships

Lop's neighbourhood didn't have many children his age, and this is one reason for his lack of early childhood friendships and his use of toys for roleplays.

That didn't change much as he grew into an older child.

When he reached his teens he developed an interest in fantasy and sci-fi, which suited his taste for imaginative exploration and play to a tee, along with an assortment of nerdy pursuits. When he reached his sophomore year in high school he finally found a group of people who shared his interests and with whom he fit in, so from the age of fifteen to sixteen he gradually changed his social pattern to get to know, and become part of, a group of friends.

By age 18, he had a well-established, small group of friends who he liked to go out with on Friday and Saturday nights, and they often stayed out until the small hours.

Lop had one relationship during high school. Although he was very fond of her, she didn't feel the same intensity in return, and mostly reciprocated by being controlling of him. She dumped him quite abruptly, soon before graduation. At first Lop was devastated with this, but soon realised that he felt far more free outside of the relationship than he had within it, and he embraced his new sense of freedom. Since then he has enjoyed his circle of friends and is not actively seeking a relationship, and feels that if and when the right person comes along he will consider a relationship then.

Lop has recently entered into a relationship.

Compliant

Lop has a good relationship with the concept of compliance, because his family are a well-balanced bunch who have taught him the value of moderation and consideration of one's actions well, and because he feels he has the freedom to depart from that when he needs to. This feeling of choice over whether to be compliant means that he quite happily follows the crowd when it suits him (and others, without impacting too negatively on him).

Defiant

The flip side of the above is that Lop is also happy to defy authority when he feels he needs to, although he is not unduly preoccupied with defiance for its own sake. Defiance is born of being in the underdog position, and Lop hasn't had a particularly terrible time with being the underdog. Although he has had his trials and difficulties, he has overcome them, partly by his own efforts and partly with the support of his family and friends, so he feels he has the personal power to simply turn down demands made on him without needing to 'defy'.