wizards are all broke bitches. spending all that money copying spells you wont even use into your spellbook? pussy shit. i got the only spell that fuckin matters you college geek. FIREBALL
haha so any wizards want to help me solve a puzzle im trapped in an eternal curse labyrinth
context if you need it: komboloi or “worry beads” are literally just loops of beads made from gemstones that are meant to be played with. ik they might look like a type of prayer beads, but theyre not religious at all (though theyre considered good luck charms). theyre the most popular with older men and they can actually sort of be status symbols. no im not kidding. its like whoever has the coolest fidget spinner. its like the card scene from american psycho except its old greek men passing around komboloi like “amber…. nice.” some people even have really big ones just for decoration. of course you can also do cool tricks with them which is also very important. these things can go for hundreds of dollars and are accessories in a way. you cannot begin to comprehend how seriously greek old men take their stim toys. but yeah they are a lot of fun to play with
and okay im mostly joking here but theres actually a legit reason for this phenomena and why its mostly old men:
in the late 1800s/early 1900s there was a subculture in greece called “mangas” (not to be confused with japanese graphic novels). it was a counterculture of working-class young men, who usually had cocky/confrontational personalities. like many, it was partly a music-based subculture, with rebetiko music. but it was ALSO a fashion subculture.
the typical outfit would be a jacket with only one sleeve in the arm, a loose button-up shirt, a cap, pointed shoes, and a wrapped belt used to hold knives. pinstripes were also very common and so was the “limp-walk.”
here’s an example and also a cartoony depiction
anyway as you can guess, komboloi were also really a huge thing in this subculture. they were used as an accessory and became a status symbol through that. this also applies to begleri which are a similar toy. they can twiddle them while having an arrogant laissez faire attitude, which of course looks Cool. but it might also partly be because it was a working class subculture, theres only so much you can do to really show off.
but i think you can for sure see the carryover today. most old greek dudes alive rn probably werent really there for the peak of the subculture, but their fathers and brothers sure were so it stuck around as a “cool” thing for a good while. and to this day whats basically a stim toy has become a status symbol.
