#[ best personality quiz 2024?? ]

[midnightactual]

What is your Cosmos Persona?

"I'll show you a bombastic side-eye."

Tagged by: stole it from @historias-multorum Tagging: @rangikuxmatsumoto, @waspandr, @thorneprincess, @thestupidmeanone, @wxtchpilot, @chronicparagon, @halfkuma (choice!), @bxd-kxrma (choice!), @auburniivenus, @ryathenaughtykitsune, @vere-flores

[burning-academia-if]

Burning Academia [Play Here]

Demo Updated: June 7th, 2024 (Prologue-Chapter 2)

Current Word Count: 91.4k (w/code)

Word Count per Play Through: ~34k

F.A.Q | Navigation | Bonus Content | Pinterest | Spotify | Character Quiz | Ko-Fi

You never thought you'd go to college, due to your circumstances. But you especially didn't dream you'd be forced to attend the prestigious Vales Grove University after being attacked by wraiths in their library. What started as a visit to a long time friend, ended with your hands burned, your innocence questioned, and the startling realization magic is real. To apologize for what's happened to you, or more accurately, to keep an eye on you, the Headmaster himself offers you enrollment with all fees waived. With no real choice in the matter, you become a student, and try to ignore the suspicion everyone throws your way. Besides, you have worse things to deal with. Like how you've started to attract ghosts and other dead things, or the fact that there is a very living thing inside your head, waiting for you to lower your guard and take control. And most pressing of all, managing your obligation to a family that hasn't been such a thing in years. Tread carefully, if the ghosts don't devour you, the university certainly might.

Customize the MC; gender, appearance, personality, etc!

Romance six questionable love interests, or not!

A morality system which changes how your story will go. Do you belong to the day, the night, or somewhere in between?

A complicated family, which you've been shackled to your whole life. Will you ever be able to escape them? Do you even want to?

Survive college, your job, and attempt to not have a quarter life crisis.

Avoid getting devoured by all the things that go bump in the night.

Retain your free will.

Dawn: The world has never been kind, but that hasn't stopped you from giving up. You'll run through the night and embrace the rising dawn. A path of becoming hope.

Day: There's light in the world, if one only knows how to look. As long as you hold on, the light will find you, too. A path of finding solace.

Dusk: All you've known is suffering, and you won't stand for it any longer. Regardless where that leads you, or the choices you need to make to save yourself. A path leading to freedom.

Night: There's no hope here, not as things stand. You'll change it all, even if you must stand in the darkness. A path of destroying everything which has sought to destroy you.

More simply: Dawn/Day: traditional good paths, Dusk: anti-hero path, Night: "villain" path

Rook Bellerose [M]: A "best friend" you've known for almost a decade now. He's never let you get close even after all this time. He's the king of jokes and immaturity, but after the events which led to your enrollment at Vales Grove, something's changed. Maybe it's the guilt, or maybe it's the mask finally slipping.

Beck Castro [M]: Rook's detested roommate, although you aren't sure why. He's the kind of guy who likes to hear himself talk, and he's pretty good at it. He can captivate a room or get himself out of any situation. For whatever reason, he's taken a keen interest in you, and has offered his help for whatever you might need.

Rhea Windsor [F]: The Headmaster's daughter. Everyone who talks about her often complains that she's the traditional prim and proper young woman one would expect from a Headmaster's daughter. However, the more you talk to her, the more you realize she's the exact opposite with a dorky personality and a streak of clumsiness.

Zoe Ripley [NB]: A loner who hides in the library to avoid people. They saw what went down the day you were forced to attend Vales Grove. Despite their prickly attitude, you get the sense they aren't a bad person, and despite how they act, they've never refused to help you. If anything, you seem to be the one person on campus who doesn't get on their nerves, professors included.

Lars Angel [M]: The most exhausted person you've ever seen, and that's saying something. He's a grad student, and one you keep running in to. He can't stand you, and you can only guess at why. With a sharp tongue and a bitter disposition, he tries his best to avoid you. Too bad you both keep running into each other. It looks like fate has other plans.

??? [M/F/NB]: The thing which haunts you. You have no idea how the two of you got connected, but you can feel it in your blood, organs, neurons, synapses. You know it's evil, you know it wants to consume you, but tell me? Has anything ever cradled your soul so gently before?

Poly Route options:

Beck/Rook [triad]: Dawn or Day Path

Rook/??? [triad]: Night Path

Rhea and Zoe [V]: Dawn or Dusk Path

[RO Portraits]

CW: Gore, violence, discussions and depictions of death, parental neglect, emotional abuse, parental abuse, alcoholism, depression, classism, mtc

RO Route CWs (contains spoilers): Read here

[mcflymemes]

CHALLENGERS (2024) PROMPTS *  assorted dialogue, adjust as necessary.

who says i want somebody to be in love with me?

i don't want to fuck you to prove a point.

fuck me because you want to.

are you gonna do it or not?

tastes even better than it looks.

i just told you i missed you.

i really want to kiss you right now, but i'm worried that if i try, you'll think i'm the worst friend in the world.

you know, it hurts me sometimes how little you believe in yourself.

decimate that little bitch.

let's be honest, you gotta feel bad for the kid.

you're not a spring chicken anymore.

dude. he's a pancake. you're gonna flatten him.

how's this feeling?

we're ready for you.

so obviously this isn't the result you wanted today.

you choked.

i don't want you to embarrass yourself.

i'm just a little rusty. it's a confidence thing.

get your fucking confidence back. i can't do it for you.

i'm so sick of you using this as an excuse to have a fucking meltdown.

you said we could watch a movie.

you're evil.

i'm gonna quiz you on it tomorrow.

sir, i don't know who you are.

i don't think we have much more to talk about.

i haven't spoken to you in five years.

i was just taking a little nap.

move, or i'm calling the cops.

you were really something back then, huh?

we always talked about how amazing it would be to win this together.

i'm a crazy person.

any predictions about how that's going to go?

can you do me a favor? can you not, like... demolish me tomorrow?

shut the fuck up.

if it matters to you so much, i can just give it to you.

i need it to look like i really beat you.

don't guilt me with your dying grandmother.

she's the hottest woman i've ever seen.

you were... fucking incredible.

baby, we've got to get going.

i'm not going to that party.

are you that threatened by me?

we can't both just go in there, dicks swinging.

i'd let her fuck me with a racket.

hey, do you smoke?

of course they will remember you.

see, that's your problem. you think you're like an artist or something.

you just want to win because you love it when people tell you how talented you are.

are you on facebook?

i told you tennis was boring.

you just got this crazy look on your face.

are you on a date?

i don't kiss and tell.

why did you want to have dinner with me?

i think you might be the worst friend in the world.

i didn't know you were so concerned about my feelings.

of course you still have a thing for her.

we just had what i'm assuming is the best sex of our lives.

i fucked your brains out?

what do you think you need? a cheerleader? a fuck buddy? a girlfriend?

you're talented, you're charming, and you've got a big dick.

excuse me for inconveniencing you.

don't expect to sleep here tonight.

stop going easy on me.

i'll be whatever you need me to be. i'll fuck off if you want me to.

i need you here, actually.

you're referring to when i declared my love for you.

you're not in love with me anymore?

i've been dreaming about this for five years.

i'm gonna propose something to you, and it's gonna make you angry. it's gonna make you very angry. but you have to hear me out, okay?

i'm finally ready to listen to you.

how dare you fucking ask me that.

do you think it's cute what you're doing? do you think it's funny?

that's the stupidest fucking thing i've ever heard.

i've always wanted you.

you didn't do anything to me. i did it all to myself.

i think i've reached the limit of my willingness to have this conversation with you.

do you understand how embarrassing it is that you're here?

you've never beaten me.

tell me it doesn't matter.

will you just hold me?

i'm not here to fuck you.

i miss watching you play. you were so beautiful.

[gentlebeardsbarngrill]

01/27/2024 Daily OFMD Recap

TLDR; Adopt Our Crew - Adopt Our Quiz!; Queerties Reminder; Cast & Crew Sightings; How to Help W/New Stuff; Hunt for The Pirate Home Twitter Watch Party; Articles; OurFlagMakesADifference; Love Notes; Goofy Shit For Morale

== Adopt Our Crew ==

Had some fun stuff going on across the platforms today with Adopt Our Quiz hosted by @adoptourcrew! You can still go do them! I'm including them here for those who don't have the platforms. Ordered from left to right 1, 2, 3. You can see the answers here on twitter (which have cool animations)

Answers below in picture form:

Twitter Thread Instagram Story

== Queerties ==

Just a reminder to vote for the Queerties if you're up for it!

TV Comedy Best TV Performance Wanna help another Taika/Rhys verse Queertie? Vote for Kaimana for Best Film Performance in Next Goal Wins!

== Cast And Crew Sightings ==

It's the weekend so as you can imagine there aren't many sightings. Definitely some personal stuff posted but nothing campaign related so I'll leave it out. Couple things I didn't know you could do was look at peoples likes on twitter, and now I know how to be a proper stalker if I ever wanna get into that kinda thing, which I don't, let me tell you. That being said, these are to make people feel warm fuzzies so here we are! Alex Sherman is out here liking our tweets all over the place! He's been doing it for days, just sweet to see the support.

Kristian Nairn sending love and support to fans on their art!

== How To Help ==

How To Help Save OFMD Task List - US

How to Help Save OFMD Task List - Outside US

Some new stuff added to our usual How to Help Lists, feel free to check them out!

== Talking About the shows Creativity ==

If you wanna talk about the shows creativity, referencing some of the awesome show-crew like Ra Vincent, Production Designer for OFMD can be great! Here's Ra Vincent's site Great inspiration and pictures to use to show off to the networks. Please be sure to credit them just like anything else you're using. Other great crew members for inspiration: Gypsy Taylor Costume Designer/Stylist!

== RADIO! ==

Some awesome new suggestions from @AdoptACrew Check out the thread here. Link to the NPR suggestion site: Here

== Reminder - Twitter Watch Party ==

=HuntForThePirateHome=

HuntForThePirateHome Watch Party Starts Sunday Jan 28 at 3 PM EST, 12 PT, 8 PM GMT. Hashtags for that event are:

#HuntForThePirateHome

#AdoptOurCrew

#SaveOFMD

== Petition Update ==

We hit 82,000!! Definitely things slowing down, but I think in generally we're focusing more on going after specific platforms (not saying more signatures isn't good, just saying we seem to have shifted priorities)

== Articles ==

I didn't see any new articles today, but I did see one I didn't notice the other day so I'm including it now:

Why Our Flag Means Death’s Cancellation Should Make You Angry

==OurFlagMakesADifference==

I had a couple people ask about what's going on with some fan led Palestine Efforts so I'm linking the current thread from Our Flag Makes A Differences Resource thread on Twitter. I know there is a great tumblr thread but tumblr search sucks so please share it with me if you have it!

== Love Notes ==

Just a little reminder for tonight--- you deserve happiness. You deserve kindness, and grace and you deserve a break from all the stressors that bug you on a day to day basis. Sometimes it's other people who can give you that break, and sometimes the only person who can give it to you is you. If you can, talk a little nicer to yourself today, give yourself a little extra time curled up in bed, or watch an extra episode of your favorite show. Remember to give yourself some love too, lovelies. You deserve it. You're gonna be okay.

== Goofy Shit for Morale ==

So I'm gonna combine a couple things tonight and end tonight with some fun goofy shit also feat. Rhys, Samba, and Taika

@buckrogers2491's post

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Samba Schutte (@sambaschutte)

Alright, night lovelies! Let me know if I missed something or made any mistakes! (I think I double checked everything this time!)

[study-with-aura]

Tuesday, April 9, 2024

Today went very well. I am glad that I was able to catch up on my posts during my break earlier. I am now eating my evening snack, and then I will get ready for bed before spending a bit of time with my parents until it is time for sleep.

I am not quite sure if I am a fan of statistics quite yet seeing as conditional probability took me a little longer to understand, but I do think I finally figured it out so it made sense in my brain. On the other hand, the book that I am almost done with is so good. They mentioned the father of taxonomy, who I only recently studied in Biology. Yes, I forgot his name, but it isn't important as he did a terrible thing by assigning value to a person based on their race and said that there were four races, and technically even five, and then he assigned them an order and why they were in that particular order. Apparently, that was one of the ideas behind race realism which is pseudoscience at best in which geneticists even say there is no actual scientific backing for despite how it is often displayed. Although, I am finding this out from this book, with what I know in general, I trust it. Sometimes non-fiction can be difficult to read, but when it's written like this, and because I like history, I don't want to put the book down. It's strange that I somewhat remember hearing about some of the events mentioned in the book, but I can't recall it perfectly. I was only 7 then!

Tasks Completed:

Geometry - Learned about conditional probability + practice + learned to check for independence with conditional probabilities + practice + honors work

Lit and Comp II - Reviewed Unit 23 vocabulary + read chapters 54-55 of Emma by Jane Austen and finished the novel + took quiz on Emma (12/10)

Spanish 2 - Copied and studied clothing vocabulary

Bible I - Read 1 Samuel 13-14:1-15

World History - Learned about Anne Frank + read some of Anne Frank's writings + learned about Nazi ideology

Biology with Lab - Completed virtual mystery "lab" story (14/15)

Foundations - Read more on thoroughness + took next quiz on Read Theory + read steps of Monroe's "Motivated Sequence" + read about the psychology of persuasion

Piano - 60-minute piano lesson + practiced for one hour

Khan Academy - Built into coursework

CLEP - None today

Streaming - Watched Greatest Events of World War II in Color episode 3

Duolingo - Studied for 15 minutes (Spanish, French, Chinese) + completed daily quests

Reading - Read pages 323-376 of Accountable: The True Story of a Racist Social Media Account and the Teenagers Whose Lives It Changed by Dashka Slater

Chores - Laundry

Activities of the Day:

Personal Bible Study (2 Corinthians 6)

Ballet

Pointe

Journal/Mindfulness

-

What I’m Grateful for Today:

I am grateful that my piano teacher was very proud of me today for having three of my pieces fully memorized and almost a fourth!

Quote of the Day:

Without music, life would be a blank to me.

-Emma, Jane Austen

🎧10 Pieces from Romeo and Juliet, Op. 75 - Sergei Prokofiev

[lukkabloom]

Fun facts abt residents & castle trio according to Ikevamp Radio (ヴァンなま) Part 7

Episode idk the number but Happy 7th Anniversary Ikevamp!!

(Hoping they don’t private the stream like so many of the other ones)

It’s with Morishin (Sebas’s VA) ONLY so I’m kinda bummed about that… but he always makes every episode chaotic so I guess that’s a plus (no this isn’t Sebas hate)

(The headless Arthur and Vincent in the background I CAN’T HAHAHHA)

This years theme is TABOO so we’re getting gacha & events with these themes :)) in JP at least

So apparently in the Ikesen livestream, on June 3, it was determined that the nickname for Yamada Shiro, the artist for Ikevamp and Ikesen, would be “Shiro-chan” (it’s cute)

Morishin is like “Shiro-chan are you watching??” and then proceeds to worry if it’s appropriate to say that (but everyone in chat just spams “Shiro-chan!!” in the comments)

Morishin touching Leo’s boob mousepad LMAOO (also the fact that apparently he was told in the rehearsal that he was allowed to grope it) → and then told by the comments that maybe he touched it too much

After the ads, Morishin said “... So I was told that I was seen by Shiro-chan..” while groping Leo’s boobs??? HAHAHA 

So the first segment is called “Open the Forbidden Door: Ikevamp Taboo Quiz” where they use the youtube live chat feature to ask the viewers questions & they answer

The first question is [TABOO Level 1] Out of these options, one person is hiding their TABOO… their least favorite food. Which of these people are lying? 1: Charles (likes souffle) 2: Isaac (likes sandwiches) 3: Vincent (likes pancakes) 4: Mozart (likes cookies) WAIT THEY ANSWER VIA IN-GAME VOICE LINESS???

Charles: Things I like? Let’s see…. I like souffles. They’re delicious as a meal or as a dessert, and while we are waiting for them to bake, we can talk a lot with each other.

Isaac: My favorite food? Hmm… If I were to pick one, it'd be sandwiches. I can eat it while I’m reading or doing research.

VIncent: Woahh! It’s a fluffy pancake! Yup, it’s my favorite food! I like eating it with butter. Hey, can I eat these? 

Mozart: Cookies, scones, and the like… How can you eat those foods that get messy and fall apart a lot?

Question 2!! [TABOO Level 10] (the jump from levels what the—) According to the Ikevamp election 2024 “The forbidden couple ~Whose hand will you take tonight?~” Story event (which will be available in the future), which of these kink (?) options are not available in the story? 1: Hypnosis play 2: Honey play 3: Brush play 4: Ice play

(the difficulty level increased suddenly…) the one with the highest vote was the brush play?? (what is that? Don’t answer that pls) But the correct answer was option 1: Hypnosis play

3rd question  [TABOO Level 30] Whose lower abs (iliopsoas muscle) is this? (There’s an image of it) 1: Faust 2: Jean 3: Leonardo 4: Shakespeare

The most voted answer is Leonardo, which was the correct answer (from the 4th anniversary birthday card)

4th question  [TABOO Level 50] Whose xxx (nipple)  is this?? (there’s also an image) 1: Theo 2: Arthur 3: Comte 4: Dazai

The chosen answer was Arthur which was correct!! (image from the 2018 election of Arthur’s sexy wet illustration)

5th question  [TABOO Level 70] According to Sebas’s story on the “7th Anniversary Let’s speed up the main routes campaign” which words can be best replaced as xxx from the original line? The line being “Why is it… that the more you touch me here, xxx” 1: my heart beats rapidly 2: my body becomes hotter 3: you become sweeter?? (idk how to translate this accurately it’s an expression) 4: my dyungyun bangyuns (similar to option 1 but more comical)

The options were more diverse, with 3 being the most popular choice, but 4 being the 3rd most popular choice (darn it). The correct answer is… Numero 3

6th question  [TABOO Level 100] The ultimate forbidden action in ikevamp is, of course, blood-sucking. Listen to this please: (insert audio) Whose sounds was that? 1: Galileo 2: Vlad 3: Napoleon 4: Drake

Galileo got the most votes, and he was the correct answer!!

Morishin as confused that the more the level increased, the more they got the answers correct

Also we’re able to listen to the other options sucking blood (how is this allowed on youtube???)

The next segment is “Hidden Secrets: Taboo Talk” using X (Twitter) they introduce the viewer’s taboo episodes.

Morishin said that it wouldn’t be weird if Comte (or everyone in Ikevamp) would participate in Paris Olympics (happening rn) with their buff bodies HAHA

Next Morishin introduces the different pictures of this campaign where viewers could slide their fingers on screen (on the characters) and remove their clothes /// (again HOW IS THIS AVAILABLE ON YT???)

Now we get to see how people decorate their avatars :)) love the big Moussette one

NEXT!! We get to see amazing fanart with the theme of TABOO!! THEY’RE ALL SO PRETTY & AMAZING I love it when official companies appreciate their creators and communities

In the “I love yu” segment (love that it’s been here since the beginning) 

(it’s only Sebas here so I’ll just have his name once) Sebas: *Hums* Today was such an amazing day. Who would’ve thought that we would be able to go to the beach as a leisure activity? The observation details were everywhere! It was almost too much by myself. As soon as I get out of the bath, I shall start taking notes in my journal. *GASP!!* I felt a signal of wanting to know the contents of my diary!! Are you curious? You want to know, yes? Of course. I’ll go to the center of the bathtub and shout my love of these historical figures.

Arriving at the beach, everyone couldn’t take their eyes off of your figure in a swimsuit, but the ones to take the initiative were Master Arthur and Charles. Because surprise, it was them two who had chosen your swimwear. “You can enjoy the beach to the max with a girl’s swimsuit” is what they said, not even willing to hide their true intentions. The two—as the sexy representation—stared at you in your figure, enjoying the beach to the fullest.

Following them, Masters Napoleon and Isaac took some time walking by the shore. I was watching them from under the parasol, but their figures depicting young love was something out of a drama. Holding your hand tightly as you were blown by the salty winds, showing the future of the cutest love triangle… On which channel could I watch the second episode?? Oh, my apologies.

After the walk, the ones who invited you for lunch were Masters Leonardo and Drake. The large fish that Drake caught was swiftly chopped by Leonardo, completing an exquisite sashimi lunch. Of course, the soy sauce was provided by myself.

After lunch, a drawing event was held by the van Gogh brothers in the sand. The three’s challenging tastes clashed, completing a squid-like product the more you look at it, the more you love. Everyone’s satisfied expressions were brighter than the sunlight in the summer, and is that wholesome moment—allowed to be viewed for free??

After that, you were invited by Dazai-san and Faust to sunbathe, but as soon as I heard that they want to “xxxxxx” you, I, Satou Akihiko, could not stand by and watch! I replied. I stumbled on my words from the aggressiveness, but please understand my consideration. 

Leading you to Master Jean and Shakespeare, the three of you listened to the sound of waves. The three of you shared your own world there—mmm, very romantic. 

When Herr Mozart and Vlad invited you out into the shade, your cheeks were very warm, as if you had a heat stroke. Cooling off in the shade… I would like to experience that as well. I am waiting for your invitation. 

At last, it was dinner time, and you were invited to a seaside restaurant by Comte and Galileo. While you were enjoying the seafood dishes, the two were sipping on their wine. As a historical maniac, the scene was a delicious dish. Sebas can eat much more!!

Of course, I was able to enjoy time with you too. Sitting by the shore, laughing “ahaha, ahaha” and “Hey~you did it,” splashing water together. Your face was glowing with the drops of water, something from a dream. 

When the others are with you, they look so happy. To be able to observe them is something I enjoy. However, there is a side of me that wants to keep you all to yourself. This way of thinking… may be taboo for a butler like me. But it should be okay if it’s something I do in my head. Here, let me think of a confession of love I want to say to you at the beach.

“Even if I know that this is a forbidden love, my feelings for you cannot be stopped. I want to take you to the far ends of the sea, where no one will know of our circumstances. That is how much I love you.”

With this, I, Sebas, will be able to overcome this challenging summer. Well, before we overheat, let’s get out of the bath and start writing in our historical figure journals. The fact that I have this journal is something the others must not know—a taboo. 

AAAND that’s the end of the segment

They have a new PV (yayyyy) and it looks so HOT??? It should be released by the time this post is out

Leo’s sequel will be out this winter (for the JP players)

Lol I literally forgot how much fun I have watching this (as well as how much time it takes to translate this in one session haha)

Also if anyone wants me to translate/want me to expand on more things, I can take things into consideration and (maybe) do it

If anyone got this far, have an amazing rest of your day/night!!

[tgmsunmontue]

It's all academic darlin' PART 6/10

12k+ Hangster AU. Updating 2-3 parts per week and will be finished by 14th January 2024. (Each part is ~1500 words).

Bradley is a professor but living his best life with IceMav parents. Jake is a pilot. Maverick sort-of tries (and fails) to play matchmaker, so he tries again. Touch of epistolary and sprinkling of one-sided unknown/mistaken-identity.

For the emails in this part (because bold (Bradley Bradshaw) and italics (Jake Seresin) aren't super obvious) the beginning and ending of emails are also marked with this: <>

PART 1 PART 2 PART 3 PART 4 PART 5

                Bradley stares at the email and snorts in disbelief. Fucking hell, Mav's right. Alive and breathing and he’ll flirt with it. Though it does make him wonder why Jake didn't flirt with him when they were at the cabin. One word he'd never use to describe Jake Seresin is shy.

&lt;>You’re lucky you’re not one of my students. Pretty sure I’d have to report that email for sexual harassment.<>

&lt;>Lucky for you I’m not. Anyway, you started it.<>

&lt;>Not intentionally. I’ve used that turn of phrase dozens of times before and never had anyone reply like you have. And I’m never going to be able to use it again without thinking it’s inappropriate, so thanks for that.<>

&lt;>I aim to please.<>

&lt;>I’m sure you do.<>

…             …             …

&lt;>I’m sure you do.<>

                Those four little words have Jake taking in a long slow breath, he’s never before realized that flirting through email was something you could do. Makes sense, he’s done it through text messages and apps plenty, and obviously in person, but through email is a new thing. Plus he’s never flirted and not known what the person looked like before, even if they were old pictures on Tinder or Grindr… Apps he never got back around to reinstalling on his phone. He wonders if it’s just the length of time since he got laid that is making him feel… interested. Curious. This flirting is two-way, he hasn’t had the guy give short or sharp replies, he’s humoring Jake. Almost playful.

                He’s on a carrier for the next few months, training and upskilling; so he has nothing to lose in emailing this guy. Being flirty. Plus he’ll actually get some answers to his original questions which he sent off earlier. He’s definitely more interested in this than he thought though, wonders if the guy is single. Okay. That’s putting the carriage before the horse, they’re exchanging emails. If it becomes something more than just… light flirting and getting to know each other then he will ask.

…             …             …

&lt;>So what do you like to do in your down time?<>

&lt;>Well, I have a pretty full schedule. I teach and carry out research, but that’s my job so not down time I guess. But I love it, so it doesn’t exactly feel like work. Outside of my paid hours of work I do… well. Everything? I love trying new things, sometimes the more dangerous the better. I do rock climbing at least twice a week, hiking, do some jet skiing, water skiing, snowboarding. Picked up all the winter sports when I lived in Sweden. Plus my dad is a freaking daredevil and adrenalin junky so he’s always finding ways to do stupid shit. Usually drags me along. I go out to a quiz night with my postgrad students and some colleagues. What about you?<>

&lt;>You mean the very little leave I have? I usually spend it with friends and doing whatever they want to do. I’ve started enjoying hiking a bit more, like keeping active. I love my job too, feel very lucky to get to fly and get paid for it.<>

…             …             …

&lt;>Favorite type of music?<>

&lt;>Country. Can take the Texan out of Texas, but you can’t take the country lovin’ out of the Texan. You?<>

<>I’ve yet to hear music I don’t like. But I’m a fan of things I can sing along to. I’m constantly singing, people say they can hear me before they can see me.<>

                Jake rubs his eyes, feels like he’s making connections where they don’t exist. Lots of people like singing along to music. And Bradley is a common name. In the beginning some of the emails do actually go into the work Bradley does, and he gets more articles to read. He’s got a much better grasp of materials science now, and he re-reads the original article Mav gave him and it’s fascinating now, rather than being slightly interesting.

…             …             …

&lt;>So how long is your deployment and what are you up to? If you can share it.<>

&lt;>Unless something comes up I’ve got three months left of what is a seven month deployment. And I’m a naval aviator. Recently been doing nothing but night landings, which I have to admit has to be my least favorite thing to do. Nothing like taking off from a carrier though.<>

&lt;>My dad was a naval aviator. A RIO.<>

&lt;>Does he still fly?<>

&lt;>No. He died when I was small. Training exercise actually, so you be safe out there.<>

&lt;>Always.<>

                Bradley stares at the screen in front of him, thinks about Mav telling him that Jake saved his life and what kind of fucked up mission apparently made him an Ace. Knows his mom didn’t want him joining any of the armed forces, but he doesn’t know how she’d feel about him wanting to… date one. Obviously exchanging some emails isn’t dating, but he still feels like he’s laying groundwork for something and it’s a little unsettling. But his life is so heavily intertwined with the defense force, he understands the ebb and flow and nature of work. Has to accommodate it often enough with his own research.

                Also, he’s not sure, but he gets the feeling that Jake has forgotten that they’ve met. He knows now that Jake was dealing with concussion when they met, so he’s wary about reminding him. He’s been there; both the dealing with a concussion and dealing with Mav playing a bit free and easy with personal medical details. Regardless, being reminded you’ve forgotten shit and not remembering just makes you feel like shit so he just… ignores it. He doesn’t mention Mav, wouldn’t have mentioned Ice anyway, and just refers to his ‘dad’ to sort-of describe his dad, Mav, and Ice, even if it might get confusing if Jake picks up on it.

                He takes the email communication as the opportunity it is though, to get to know Jake without the idea that he needs to portray any particular type of image. He’s going to ask all the questions which have crossed his mind in the last few months. Okay. Maybe not all of them…

…             …             …

&lt;>Do you like cooking?<>

&lt;>Yeah, definitely. I don’t get much opportunity though. My gran taught me. I like the meditative nature of a lot of the works. Like kneading dough, julienning vegetables, finely dicing things… that’s one of my happy places. What about you?<>

&lt;>Yeah, I love cooking too. I totally get what you mean about it being meditative, takes you out of other thoughts and makes you focus. Also I love cooking for others. I’m told it’s one of my love languages.<>

…             …             …

&lt;>You ever wonder what your life would be like if you took a different path? I think about it sometimes, if I'd studied something different, or followed my dad despite my mom pretty much expressly forbidding me to do so...<>

&lt;>I'd be on my family ranch. Or in the airforce. I like my life though, wouldn't want to change much. <>

&lt;>No regrets then?<>

&lt;>A few. But I wouldn’t be the man I am today without them so not really.<>

…             …             …

&lt;>Sorry this can’t be longer – I’ve got a pile of marking and then I’ve got to get to my dad’s for dinner. Weekly dinner cannot be missed upon pain of death, even if right now it’s a choice between undergraduate essays and dinner with the parentals.<>

                Jake frowns, he’s certain Bradley had said previously that his dad had died when he was young. Must be a step-dad or something. The emails haven’t remained super flirty, but there’s definitely been comments here and there. One email confirming he’s single, which Jake had tucked away; felt encouraged that this was going somewhere and he feels weirdly invested in just where that somewhere might be. The emails have made the weeks flow quickly, the constant communication back and forth has just felt… good. Bradley has made him laugh, and challenged him to think about technical shit which he’d never done before. He’s still been working out and socializing plenty, but for fifteen to thirty minutes a day he spends reading and writing to Bradley and he’ll be back within six days and Bradley’s last line in his email has his heart skipping a beat and then going double time.

&lt;>If my dates are right, then the GW gets in this week. How do you feel about catching up over a drink?<>

&lt;>Before or after the hands-on experience and private tour?<>

                He’s more confident this time that he’s going to get a positive answer, not the original dread after his first flirty email months ago. He does indeed get in this week, and for once he might have plans which aren’t with friends or family. He sends a quick email to his brother and sister, letting them know he’ll come and visit after he’s been back at least a week, which is his usual practice anyway.

…             …             …

&lt;>So the easiest thing, for an ACTUAL tour of the labs, is for you to come to the University. I finish teaching at 3 on Friday, so can show you around then. Just come to the engineering office and I’ll swing by. Then we can discuss the hands-on experiences. You want my number?<>

&lt;>You have a functioning phone?<>

&lt;>Harsh. Here’s my number anyway. I’ll try and keep my phone safe.<>

                What the fuck.

                That’s just… it’s too much of a coincidence now. Jake scrunches his face and wonders if he’s maybe still just trying to make connections where there aren’t any. Is it all wishful thinking on his part? There just seems to be more and more mounting evidence though. It started off with a couple of things that made him wonder. It’s been too long now to ask outright, but he’s put the pieces together. Bradley Bradshaw is also somehow Bradley Mitchell and a part of him doesn’t want to ask. Can’t ask now that it’s been four months of emailing back and forth. He grabs his phone, most of the contacts are callsigns or emojis, and he decides to go with the theme and puts a little rooster emoji and he opens up the notes app. Wants to list things manually.

                He likes singing to music.

                He may or may not have a functioning phone. Again?

                He’s a navy brat, which any kid of Mav’s would be.

                Except he said his dad died in a training exercise…

                Mav gave me the article.

                Okay.

                Okay.

                He cracks his knuckles and searches for Bradley Bradshaw again. Pictures of the Bradley who he thinks of as Mav’s son come up again, but this time he does some actual digging, clicking through links to conferences featuring keynote speaker profiles and it has actual photos. Definitely photos of Bradley Bradshaw, his name under the photo and everything. So Bradley Bradshaw and Bradley Mitchell are the same person and he’s coming to grips with that, because Mav gave him the article. He goes back and adds a row of exclamation points with a few question marks to help convey his confusion. What did Mav mean by giving him the article? What is he missing? Is he missing anything? Is he reading too much into this? He tugs at his hair in frustration.

                Wait.

                He goes back through the emails and there, Bradley says his dad was a naval aviator. Well, he guesses Mav was one too, even… but no. Bradley said his dad died during a training exercise. Something is tickling in the back of his mind and he logs in to the naval database, types in the name Bradshaw and there it is. There’s a fucking family resemblance to write home about, holy shit. He falls down a little rabbit hole of enquiry and finds out the history of Nicholas Bradshaw and Peter Mitchell and he knows now, 99.99% that Bradley Bradshaw is also Mav’s son. He puts all his email interactions with Bradley into perspective and yeah, they’d definitely been flirting and getting to know each other really well. He’s shared some things with Bradley which only Javy or his siblings know.

                Also Bradley’s hot, even with the shirts and bad moustache and now that he knows what Bradley Bradshaw looks like, knows what he looks like shirtless chopping wood, or stripping off after a run, or explaining how the pump system works… Fucking hell, of course he knows shit about stuff like that, he’s an engineer. He said he was a teacher. And he loves music, and flying and can cook… He goes back to Rate my Professor and rereads them with new eyes and huh, okay, yeah, it all tracks.

                Okay. They’ve arranged to meet and then… go from there. He’s not naïve enough to know drinks could mean anything, because Bradley Bradshaw for sure as hell knew who he was talking to the whole time. It does raise a different question in Jake’s mind though.

                Did he think Jake knew who he was talking to?

PART 7

[merbear25]

It's anon 🌻🐸 here!! Thanks for writing my matchup again 🥺🥺🫶 honestly I appreciate the efforts and time taken to write it!! It was actually fun to write my first ever matchup and I didn't know I did it differently from others fhjff

Also congrats on reaching your 200 followers milestone - for the event: can I ask for prompt 2 for Denmark?

I hope you're doing well and 2024 has been treating you well !!

Hello again lovely! I deeply appreciate your kind words and wish the same for you. I'm so happy that you enjoyed your personalized quiz! I hope you like what I've written for you 💜💜

CW: SFW, gn!reader, fluff, friends to lovers trope

Love that'd gone unnoticed

Reconnecting with long-time friends filled you with bursts of energy; you wanted to know everything about what'd been going on in their lives since the last time you spoke. Sometimes it felt as if you were meeting again for the first time, what with how much they'd changed.

While you sat waiting for Denmark to enter through the cafe door, your daydreams began exploring the possibilities of who he might've become. Once passing over that threshold, however, you were faced with that same lovable smile he'd always had.

The conversation flowed as if you'd never left each other's lives— instead having only said your goodbyes a short time ago. He was excited to tell you about everything he'd been up to and was just as animated when you shared your success and stories. That familiar sense of supportive and caring nature brought out the fond memories that'd been packed away.

Not wanting to lose any more precious time, you two were just as inseperable as before: the sense of humor and jokes you'd share were still prominent and, more importantly, things felt like they picked up right where they'd left off.

There was hardly a dull moment when you two were together. You were each other's go to when no one was interested in seeing niche movies and the best company when the days felt a tad gloomy.

How could you two have ever grown apart like you had? The reason for it seemed like a blur, a distant memory. Perhaps, you'd just become distant as many do. Whatever the reason, it didn't have any relevance to the present.

However, on one of your many nights going to a late showing of a cult classic, the air between the both of you was thick with tension. You weren't sure if you'd done something or if it was just in you imagination. He wasn't coming right out and admitting to there being an issue, although it was more than apparent—he wasn't a very good actor. Deciding not to push, you did your best to brush it off by keeping an upbeat attitude, thinking that you'd let him come to you if there was something weighing on him.

Despite your best efforts, your attempt seemed to have failed. On the drive home, the atmosphere felt like it had yet to be cleared and was now filling the inside of his car with sufficating awkwardness and uncertainty.

Pulling up to your place, a long sigh dragged out of him. He put the car in park and turned to you, "What are we even doing?"

His question brought on a flood of familiar dread. Butterflies were faintly stirring in your lower stomach as you asked what he meant exactly.

"It feels just like last time, doesn't it?" When you still weren't getting it, he continued, "I mean, we spend so much time together and everything..."

Sorting through the mess unraveling inside your mind, you hurridly tried to come to the conclusion: did you have feelings for him too?

"I just...All I know is that I adore being with you and I don't want to lose you again." Your chest heaved at the thought of him leaving your life again: no more laughing fits that left you in tears or silly outings that you'd think about while you were at work.

"I like it too. I really like it... I'm not sure if—"

Before he had the chance to finish his train of thought, panic at the possibility of saying goodbye again took over, leading you to land a clumsy kiss on his lips. It was backed by an elixir of fear and passion and was met with certainty—an understanding that you were meant to be together.

When you pulled away from him, you felt like you were seeing him for the first time. His eyes scanned your face, and when he leaned in for another kiss, you welcomed him with open arms.

[thxnks4themrms]

I’m gonna have another best friend end of the year quiz btw

the person who gets a majority of it right will be crowned the awesome sauce sigma of bolos edgekingdom 2024

[stemacademics]

21 sept 2024 | number theory day

I studied ring of integers mod n today. I'll do more of the ring and group stuff tomorrow, there's a quiz coming up on Monday.

also my new study desk finally arrived today. and there was a minor (minor by the standards of an average, normal and fully functional member of the common society; Major, HUGE - by mine) screwup there as well [listen to me whine below the cut <3]

so my roommate didn't let me know about this desk business when I was in the study room (and she, in the dorm room), so she conveniently positioned the desks in a way that my bed is now too close to the balcony door (the current arrangement is in her favour - she essentially has no change while my bed has suffered a displacement of ~40cm which is unbearably irksome and even hurtful to my existence) and I feel a tad bit too claustrophobic. the 35-40cm shift in position is kind of unbearably painful to me (I um hate changes, absolutely hate them). she also left me with the dirtier desk so I had to wipe at it with my noodle arms for a longer while than it could've been (the surface was white, so I had no choice but to wipe at it for nearly an hour before realising that some of those dirty marks simply wouldn't go - and acceptance does not easily come to me)

I'm guessing that her not telling me was fully intentional because we're not the best buddies (we interact only out of necessity) and I am the kind to assume the worst of any random person that I meet in real life (in the sense, the worst that they can do to me), including myself. all this is kinda stressing me out, and I've not been able to sleep for the past half-hour or so because of the bed, and I'll never ask her to move her desk so I can move back my bed because I absolutely hate confrontations. so I just put up with her and adjust. and I absolutely hate it. my friend says that I have to speak up and can't be a pushover forever but then, ARGH I simply cannot wait for my own single room next year.

I already have a lot on my plate at the moment and the world only hurls more stuff at me, making it worse

it's fine (it's not, but the first step is to lie to my brain, so ┐(´ー｀)┌) because I already have a lot of stuff to do, and can't afford to waste my energy on all this.

I've got to mail my mentor tomorrow, study some group and ring formalisms, work on my summer report, study Fourier series and coupled oscillations - I'm going to take it slow anyways, because I'm not quite there for the Hustle yet.

[apenitentialprayer]

Have a question about voting as a Catholic, since I was confirmed earlier this year: is it true that we are *obligated* officially to vote, if we do are we allowed to vote 3rd party or even write in, is it considered *sin* to not vote? I am not trying to be controversial or anything, I haven't fully decided what I'm going to do I guess, but basically I would like to know if there's any official rules regarding this. If you have a good resource for official/accurate statements made by the church/pope Francis, that would great- I stopped trusting what people claim he says a long time ago.

So, as a heads up, I've been a political quietist since I was 18, and this election will be the first time that I will vote — I felt convicted last year and decided then that I would vote. Part of this is a response to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which states (#2239-2240):

It is the duty of citizens to contribute along with the civil authorities to the good of society in a spirit of truth, justice, solidarity, and freedom. The love and service of one's country follow from the duty of gratitude and belong to the order of charity. Submission to legitimate authorities and service to the common good require citizens to fulfill their roles in the life of the political community. Submission to authority and co-responsibility for the common good make it morally obligatory to pay taxes, to exercise the right to vote, and to defend one's country.

Now, this was a particularly convicting passage for me, because I had strong feelings about all three of the "morally obligatory" actions that this passage listed. And I think that you can absolutely make an argument against performing any one of those three actions from a Catholic perspective, even if they should normatively be done, if you can argue that the government that you would be performing them for is illegitimate. And I had to ask myself, "Do I think the United States government is a legitimate government?" And, well, I do. The next question was "Am I actively engaged in a campaign of civil disobedience in protest of a particular policy that this otherwise legitimate government is engaged in?" And, well, I'm not. And based on those two answers, I decided that I cannot disengage from public life and relinquish my opportunity to contribute to the common good. Now, you might not come to the same conclusion. But I would consider what the catechism says, ask yourself the questions I asked myself (and others, if you can think of those), and determine for yourself whether or not your conscience will allow you to not perform what is otherwise an apparently obligatory task. You are absolutely not obligated to vote for one of the two main parties. If you look at Catholic Conscience's 2024 Election Guide, it provides the stances for five separate American political parties. I am personally discerning between voting for one of the major candidates and a third party candidate (I would have to write in for them, though, because they didn't win a spot on my state's ballot). Pope Francis only addresses the two main candidates in his statement about these elections, where he says "You have to vote, and one must choose the lesser of two evils. Who is the lesser of two evils? […] I don't know. Everyone with a conscience should think on this." And, especially if you live in a swing-state, that might be a stance you might really want to consider; that might be the morally correct view to take. (I don't live in a swing state, so I feel I have more freedom; I feel like I can pick a third party candidate. I think you can even make the argument that if you live in a state where the lesser of two evils is the assured candidate, you should vote third party as a way of making it clear that the lesser of two evils cannot presume upon your vote simply because they are the lesser of two evils. But I'm sure others can disagree). If you are unsure of who to vote for, I took the ISideWith quiz to get an idea of who best represents my political beliefs. I wouldn't rely just on the quiz results, though; upon doing further research on the third party candidate that the website most closely matched me with, I realized we had an irreconcilable difference and opted to look at the other candidates it suggested instead. So, ISideWith can be a starting point, but shouldn't make the decision for you. Hopefully this is a good start; let's pray for each other's discernment and for the electoral process as a whole.

[tellthemeerkatsitsfine]

This is an incredibly funny podcast episode. I realize most of my Peacock & Gamble posts are just for me because no one else is going to be interested in listening to these in 2024, and by an large, I'd say that's very much for the best. But if anyone is interested in just laughing really hard for about 45 minutes, this is pretty good. Maybe. It's probably slightly funnier if you have the context of knowing the Peacock & Gamble dynamic so slightly less funny if you don't, but not by that much, it's very funny no matter what. Interview they did with Romesh Ranganathan from the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2013.

This post was not originally behind a cut, but I'm going to add one before I reblog it so I don't take up people's entire feed with an interview from 2013.

It gets incredibly combative about ten minutes in (and before that, quite suddenly very sexual for a couple of minutes, which I guess is the other element required to complete any good interview), and the amazing thing is they manage to keep up that level of aggression for a solid half hour or so. They keep saying they're going to get back on track, and as a listener I kept expecting them to do so because it's one thing to have some banter for a bit, but you can't just turn an entire interview into a fight. But that's what they did. They had a brief discussion about sexual positions, and then they had a fight for 30 whole minutes. God it was funny.

I always find it funny listening to people try to have a conversation and fail. This is weirdly making me think of Andy Zaltzman, even though Andy Zaltzman has nothing whatsoever in common with any of the three men in that podcast episode (Ray Peacock, Ed Gamble, Romesh Ranganathan). I often write about how Andy Zaltzman has no chemistry whatsoever with nearly anyone in the world, and I think it's clear that I view that as endearing, but I don't know if I make it clear enough how incredibly funny I find that to listen to. Just people trying to talk to each other and it doesn't work. One time last year Frankie Boyle did The News Quiz and he and Andy had to interact and they were like magnets just glazing off each other. Like sandpaper trying to knock together smoothly. It was nothing whatsoever like this Peacock & Gamble episode, totally different in vibe and tone and certainly in content, but I found myself thinking of it because they had in common people trying to have a conversation and utterly failing.

I mean, obviously the other different is that it was planned in this case. Andy and Frankie were genuinely trying to have a normal radio show and they just didn't have the social skills to pull it off. Peacock & Gamble are quite capable of being personable, and just thought it would be funny to bring on Romesh for an interview but instead have a fight.

It's hard to tell how much of it was real. I mean, I know it wasn't literally real, they were clearly friends who were playing. But it's hard to tell whether they sat down beforehand and actually planned all the elements of this, like in previous fights with a man named Raji James, or whether they just started talking and realized they were falling into this pattern and decided to run with it. It sounds like it was largely the latter, at least at first, which I think makes it funnier. By the end Ray Peacock was intentionally throwing grenades into the conversation by fucking with Romesh every time he opened his mouth, but for the first half or so, they did quite a good job of sounding like people who were genuinely trying to work together but kept stepping on each other's toes and hitting nerves and kicking off. Which is funny if it happens once but they kept it going for so long.

I'm going to say I think this one from right near the beginning might have been semi-real - as in they hadn't planned to get into a fight about this, but they hit on a topic that made Ray slightly prickly and then Romesh got into his prickly character/mode in response and all three of them realized it would be funny to significantly exaggerate their reactions. And then they just took off from there.

Ray Peacock: You’re sort of soaring a little bit [in your comedy career], aren’t you, at the moment? Romesh Ranganathan: I don’t know about soaring. Ray Peacock: I think you are, I think you’re doing really well. Ed Gamble: Let’s watch Romesh get incredibly uncomfortable while we compliment him. Because that’s the sort of thing that will happen. Ray Peacock: But you are, though, aren’t you? You’ve took off a little bit. Romesh Ranganathan: I don’t know – Ray Peacock: You’re not a big star. Romesh Ranganathan: Okay. Ray Peacock: Don’t be stupid. Romesh Ranganathan: All right, I mean I didn’t want it to go that direction. Ray Peacock: Yeah, no, you’re not. You’re not. Romesh Ranganathan: I’m happy to be self-deprecating, but don’t put the boot in. Ray Peacock: There’s a good chance nothing more will happen. But at the moment, you’re doing all right. Romesh Ranganathan: Yeah. Ray Peacock: You’ve done Russell Howard’s Good News. Romesh Ranganathan: That was great. Thanks, man. Ray Peacock: Yeah, join the club. Romesh Ranganathan: Yeah, yeah. Oh, hello. Ed Gamble: Welcome, welcome. Ray Peacock: Thanks? I didn’t compliment you. I said, “You did Russell Howard’s Good News” – you went, “Oh yeah, thanks.” Romesh Ranganathan: No, I meant – I wasn’t saying, “Thanks for saying I did Russell Howard’s Good News.” I was saying, “Thanks, because you did the warm-up, you were lovely.” Now I regret saying it, because you’ve turned into a little bit of a prick. Ray Peacock: So you’ve got me down as your warm-up act? Romesh Ranganathan: No I didn’t say you – oh my God. This is unbelievable. I didn’t – Ray Peacock: It is unbelievable, I agree! It is unbelievable. Romesh Ranganathan: This isn’t what I signed up for. I thought this was going to be a pleasant thing. And everything I’m saying, you attack me! Ray Peacock: It is a pleasant thing! You’re the one that’s coming here Billy Big Bollocks, coming here going, “Ooh I’ve been on Russell Howard’s Good News and you’re my warm-up man!” Romesh Ranganathan: I wasn’t Billy Big Bollocks! I didn’t even mention it, mate, you’re the one that brought it up. Ed Gamble: Right, can I just say – this may not be what you signed up for, but this is the reason we asked you to come on the podcast.

I transcribe that big to give an idea of the tone, but the really amazing thing is just how long they kept it going. So long. They kept finding way to get mad at each other. More podcasts should turn into straight-up fights (not in a Joe Rogan ray, just in a Ray Peacock/Romesh Ranganathan way). I like this more intellectual and thoughtful Ray Peacock that we're getting in the Edinburgh episodes, but it's been a while since he's picked a good fight with someone (in the chronology of me listening to the collected works of Peacock & Gamble starting from 2007 - I'm vaguely aware that in the chronology of real life it's been 10+ years since any of this has happened), and he's so good at it.

I'm mostly giving Ray and Romesh credit here because they were mostly driving it throughout the episode - Ed Gamble, like in their live shows, seemed to have worked out that he's funnier playing the faux-reasonable party. Though for some reason this tiny exchange has come back to me about four times since I first heard the episode and made me suddenly laugh again:

Ed Gamble: So what's your show about, Romesh? Romesh Ranganathan: Oh, I don't like your tone. Ed Gamble: All right. What's your fucking show about?

The whole episode is incredibly funny. I made the mistake of starting it on a break at work and I had to skip to the next one and then finish this one at home because it was making me laugh too hard for work. At the beginning of the next episode Ray said he didn't even want to do any more interviews because none will be as funny as the Romesh one, and as lovely as Ardal O'Hanlon was in that next episode, I sort of agree on that. And if anyone is reading this and would like to judge how much I enjoy combative comedy, I would just like to remind you that you watch people do professional pretend wrestling.

[b-blushes]

uk people, thoughts on voteforpolicies dot org dot uk?

website on which (amongst other things) you can take a quiz on the policies for the parties running and, most interestingly, does NOT link the policy to a party until the end of the quiz!!! aka you're not biased by preconceptions?

the answers to that changed who i was intending to vote for, if i was just looking at that website. I won't be solely basing my vote on that, i'm going to read info from the parties themselves also, but interesting place to start!!! breaks things down in a way that i could understand. you can choose to compare policies on a variety of uhhh sections, like, you don't have to do Giant Quiz On Everything At Once, you can do, say, just a comparison of their stance on crime for example. cannot vouch for the trustability of the site, i won't lie about my internet proficiency. they say they're independent and non-partisan, have been around since 2010, seems legit at first glance but i am not sure how to fully verify such a thing? as i said, personally the best way i can think of is to get info from a variety of sources (once again non-rebloggable due to i'm not a political expert)

(EDIT: updated 2024 manifestos do not seem to be on there yet so it's based on 2019 policies - after the quiz i have/will searched the parties' manifestos and command f on specific issues as it's A Lot to read them all, and that's a more realistic beginning point)

[study-with-aura]

Wednesday, May 8, 2024

All of this review lets me see how much I have learned in my first year of high school, but at the same time, cumulative exams are NOT fun. There is SO MUCH information! And I'm still learning more information in Biology and World History! I mentioned this in yesterday's post, but my piano harmony and theory exam is on Friday, and I am much more worried about that than the practical! Almost done, almost done. And the best present of all during finals week, Julien will be home! He's taking his finals right now, and I'm not sure if he'll be coming back over the weekend or early next week. He won't tell me. He's going to get squished like my squishmallows. He better be ready for it!

Tasks Completed:

Geometry - 1st and 2nd quarter review

Lit and Comp II - Reviewed Units 7-9 vocabulary + read the news + + worked on non-fiction writing assignment (due next Thursday) + CLEP Test practice question + reviewed final study sheet

Spanish 2 - Reviewed Los Artes vocabulary + reviewed more on the preterit and imperfect

Bible I - Read Matthew 21

World History - Typed up a short essay about a current female leader and her accomplishments (I went with Kaja Kallas who is the Prime Minister of Estonia because she was in the last docuseries I watched as an interviewee, and she seemed interesting)

Biology with Lab - Learned about some phyla of invertebrates + filled in graphic organizer chart (first two sections) + continued germination lab

Foundations - Read more on virtue + completed the next quiz on Read Theory + worked on the outline for my argumentative speech

Piano - Practiced for two hours in one hour split sessions

Khan Academy - Completed High School Geometry daily mastery challenge + completed High School biology daily mastery challenge + completed World History Unit 1 test (89%)

CLEP - Completed Sample CLEP Test Questions 61-75

Streaming - Watched The Cuba Libre Story Episode 8

Duolingo - Studied for approximately 30 minutes (Spanish, French, Chinese) + completed daily quests

Reading - Read pages 229-274 of Into the Bright Open by Cherie Dimaline and finished the book

Chores - None today

Activities of the Day:

Personal Bible Study (Romans 8)

Ballet

Variations

Journal/Mindfulness

[ysterrd]

Lance Tendo (CV: Amasaki Kouhei)

“There’s another person inside of me— Q.”

A smart returnee[1] detective with another personality

A smart returnee detective with great deduction skills.

Lance’s other personality, the mischievous Q, was born from Chaosism’s experiments on him. They struggle against each other for control over the body.

He’s not good with technology and prefers solving puzzles using analog methods.

Profile

Class: Slam Days

Height: 169cm

Weight: 55kg

Birthday: February 15

Age: 20

Zodiac sign: Aquarius

Hobby: Solving puzzles & answering quiz questions

Skill: Deduction

Rider Finisher: Apocalyptic Twin

Voice Lines

“There’s another person inside of me— Q.”

“There’s no riddle I can’t solve, trust me.”

“I’ll take a coffee… now to add 3 sugarcubes…”

TL Notes:

帰国子女 means “returnee child” and refers to a child of Japanese expatriates who lived abroad and has come back to Japan. I thought it’d be weird to refer to Lance with the full expression considering his age, so I just used “returnee” to get the message across.

To address the elephant in the room, I tried my best not to use language that would allude to outdated information about DID, or terms associated with DID itself (eg. “alter”). To be fully transparent, the OG description uses 二重人格, the Japanese term for “split personality”, but I opted for wording that would be more neutral. I believe that the least I can do, as someone who’s not a system and is not the most familiar with DID, is to limit the potential damage that a clumsy choice of wording could cause. However, I also recognize that "other personality" in reference to Q may not be the most appropriate choice. I'm sorry for the potential clumsiness that arises from this.

Source: Ride Kamens website

Originally posted on Dreamwidth & Twitter on Feb 12 2024. The wording of the TL has been slightly altered, and a TL note has been expanded upon.

[nancypullen]

Merry Everything and a Happy Whatever

Well, I cam back from Florida with just a couple of days to prepare for the onslaught of Christmas and promptly got sick. The virus that my sister had, some respiratory thing, definitely not a common cold, took me out at the knees. I slogged through the grocery store with my long list (I wore a mask!) and hauled home enough to feed an army. Everyone arrived on the 22nd and I made a dinner of pork carnitas, tortillas, and all the toppings. Rice and beans rounded out the meal and the whole gang was satisfied. The next night was a rotini and meatball bake, extra cheesy. And so it went. I was Typhoid Mary in the kitchen, coughing up a lung, and you'd think spreading disease. Would you believe that not a single person caught it? I'm just now feeling human again and no one else is even sniffling. I have to admit that the Christmas dinner was not my best. I kept forgetting to set timers. The turkey was dry (and I pride myself on juicy roasted birds!), the sweet potato casserole was not quite set, and I left the rolls in too long. I felt like a failure, but everyone ate and no one died.

Christmas was merry, Santa was sure good to all of us - especially a certain little girl. My boys spoil me absolutely rotten, to the point of making me feel guilty. I always cry and act like a doofus because I still see those sweet little boys of mine, and I want them to save their money for themselves. I should be proud that they're both doing so well and are so kind, but I just feel guilt. I'm not worthy! I'm sure a psychologist could have a field day with my thoughts. Anywayyyy, even though I was sick as a dog, it was wonderful to have everyone together. I felt like apologizing for not being more fun. I hate it that Matt flew all the way home and we didn't even play our usual rounds of Song Quiz or go on an adventure. In summary, Christmas was wonderful because my family is wonderful. The Edgewater parents had to go back to work, so we kept Little Miss for a three extra days since she's out of school. She helped me take all of the decorations off the tree (I knew she was dying to get her hands on those ornaments) and we collected all of the Santas, deer, and holiday knick-knacks from around the house. Between the two of us we got Christmas packed away and everything tidied up. Turns out child labor is beneficial. We took her to see Migration and she giggled all the way through. She dressed herself for the movie and I didn't fight it. Better to be overdressed than underdressed, right?

We handed her over yesterday afternoon and I came home and told Mickey that I was takin' to the bed. I don't think I moved for twelve hours. I didn't do much today either. I need to rest up for our big New Year's Eve festivities.

Yeah, I can't say that with a straight face. We have NO plans. I wouldn't go if we did. I don't even have a dinner planned for us. Usually Matt gets to stay through New Year's Eve and I do a buffet of appetizers. We may be eating tuna sandwiches on paper plates. Sounds like I've given up, doesn't it? Lawdy, I'm just tiiired.

Anywho, I survived and thankfully the family seems to have missed my contagious stage. I'd feel really awful if they'd all taken this nasty virus home. Glad it ended with me, good riddance to it. I'm thinking about what my word for 2024 will be and I'm just not sure. Last year I chose the word flourish. I chose it because I was so unhappy here, couldn't seem to make a friend, etc. I was determined to take control and make this my home. I should have chosen a different word. I tried, good grief how I tried. I'm an Army brat, I'm not shy about meeting people or being in new places. I've taken classes, gone to functions, reached out to others, even gone out a couple of times with some local ladies. Apparently I'm still undesirable. I did apply for and finally get a job at the library, so maybe that will help. If nothing else I'll make a little money while the local population rejects me.

Might as well make the best of it. Maybe my word for the new year will be acceptance. It is what it is. I'd rather my word be winner, as in lottery. Did you see that Powerball jackpot? Whew! I'd be outta' here so fast. With that kind of cash I could still see Little Miss every week. Fancy Grancy could jet in for gymnastics practice and dinner. Crossing all my fingers. I'll save one for Denton though.

Maybe that's the cold meds talking. Or not. I've whined my way through this blog post, so I'll end this little pity party. Just wanted to get you all caught up before we hang a new calendar. I'll think about my word for 2024 and get back to you. Anyone else choosing one? I've seen folks opting for simplify, balance, courage, gratitude...in what direction are you hoping to steer your next 365 days? We've passed the winter solstice and we're gaining sunlight every day, let's walk into the sunshine and choose happiness this year. I've always found happiness in small things - a pretty sunset, bird song, little green shoots in the spring. Tomorrow I'm going to get a whole bunch of tulip bulbs (a gift!!) in the ground. I'm planting hope. There's always hope, right? Alright, I'm off to soak in a bubble bath and read the latest Lisa Jewell book. I was on a library waitlist for months and so far it's been worth it. I downloaded it on my new Christmas KIndle. The Pullen men hate it that I'll use the same technology for a decade (my old Kindle worked fine, just didn't hold a charge like it used to). There you have it. It's over. Ladies, we decorated, shopped, wrapped, cooked, and spread joy like chicken pox. The lull between Christmas and the new year celebrations is a welcome relief. Rest if you can, recharge. You've earned it. Sending out loads of love tonight. Stay safe, stay well. XOXO, Nancy