#(hence why I bought the ipad)

[helltrskelter]

Rkgk

[missbutterworthless]

[i’m not a violent dog. i don’t know why i bite.]

The lead singer of BOTB’s Season 4 projected underdogs, Arlo Beck of Penny Arcade, declined further comment in regards to the threatening of a member of the media when questioned about former band mate and fellow competitor, Seven Lawless of Soft Violence.

Further Info Under the Cut!

TW for mentions of addiction 🫶

Introducing Arlo Beck, lead singer of Penny Arcade, a pop punk band of humble origins known most for their musically delivered political commentary and their revenge anthems (it is of particular note that such anthems were not common in the Lawless Era, with the band leaning far more heavily into charged love songs. Which could mean nothing.)

Fun Facts!

Beck is an Aquarius!

According to an insider source, beyond singing, Beck is quite capable with the ocarina.

Beck is known to juggle at any and every opportunity, regardless of who may or may not be watching. (He is apparently rather talented as well.)

Beck is known for accessorizing with heart motifs, noted by a previous local publication to be a nod to fellow bandmate Rowan Hart.

Beck often carries a bottle of quick dry black polish for ‘manicure emergencies’. He is known to have addressed such emergencies while on stage after chipping a nail during a performance.

Beck is often cited as the source for Penny Arcade’s ‘gimmick’ of collecting loose change in collection bins during a dedicated song at every performance. The change is then matched and donated to queer and at risk youth. Beck remains firm that every member of Penny Arcade, past and present, is equally responsible.

Picture Easter Eggs and more Fun Facts!

Arlo is wearing a WWOD? bracelet in the pic! The band got together to make bracelets with Orion’s most recent catchphrase while waiting for filming to start. Arlo made his particularly fruity. He also made a keychain version for Orion.

The time on Arlo’s phone is a nod to MCx7. Seven is, well, 7. And Arlo is 1 & 2 because his initials are the first and second letters of the alphabet. Hence, 7:12.

Arlo’s initial tattoo utilizes the S in SD as an infinity symbol. He acknowledges it is cringy. And poetically tragic.

Not shown is his tongue piercing, which Orion chewed him out for getting because his tongue was swollen and his speech slurred for nearly two weeks!

As stated above, he likes to wear motifs of his band members! Because he is a doofus! Most common because it’s his daily accessories is a heart motif for Rowan, but he also has jellyfish pendants and vampire bite chokers for Iris and different color bee pins for Devyn depending on their hair color! Jazzy is represented in the case he carries his juggling equipment in, which he takes literally everywhere after she bought him one for his birthday years ago. He is currently racking his brain for what to do for August!

43 of the 57 missed calls on his phone were from Orion. He knows because Orion’s ringtone is I Don’t Dance from High School Musical 2.

He is heavily addicted to nicotine (to Orion’s chagrin) and became a functioning (for now) alcoholic after The Fight™️. Prior, he imbibed during social functions but never alone and never when he had plans. Up until the audition, he never partook in other substances but caved into peer pressure. Despite his snark and notorius RBF, he is a chronic people pleaser.

The eyebrow slit is a scar from slicing his eyebrow open in Lucy’s diner after crashing head first into the dish station and shattering a plate. With his face. The scar is almost entirely faded but he can no longer grow hair there. He’s actually really insecure about it and has considered getting the spot microbladed.

That’s all for now folks! I mostly wanted to share my art :) I adore @infamous-if and have been playing with Arlo as my MC since Day 1! He finally fully clicked in my head and after days of attempting to find a face claim or craft him in the sims I decided to crack open Ye Olde iPad and do it myself!

Please feel free to share any fun facts about your own Infamous OCs! Regretfully my friends stay firmly opposed to interactive fiction so I am starved for fellow Infamous fans

[thelovelyghostwriter]

I bought Procreate when I bought my iPad from a friend 3 years ago but I didn't really use it. But now I'm viewing the tutorial done by the company for beginners and I am amazed at how great the app is? Also it's not a subscription plan, just one-time payment so it is great. Hmm... I might be motivated to start drawing. It's a pain in the ass but there is not enough artwork on Kuraneon. There are not even enough fanfics of them (so hence why I started writing them)!! Rareshipper pains...

[salty-dracon]

The first time I ever cried in front of my best friend, I'd broken a stick of charcoal. She was surprised, and quickly ran to comfort me. I confessed to her that I had trouble with pretty much any pencil that wasn't metal. I picked up one of the broken pieces between my fingers and tried drawing again, with shaky hands. I'd only managed to get a few tough strokes in before it snapped between my fingers again.

She's always known I had super strength, but I'd always been careful to hide it. Still, things popped out when I got too excited. I'd squeeze a tube of toothpaste too hard, or poke my finger through a bill form, or break a tool I was using all too often. Before we got a room together, I confessed that I was scared of being in the same house as her every day. What if I squeezed her too tight, or broke something important? She couldn't understand how terrified I was of living with another person. Sometimes, hurting people felt like the only thing I could do, besides lifting up furniture. It hurt me inside. Imagine knowing that your only purpose in life is to hurt others, no matter how much you act in the name of justice, or no matter how kind you are- wouldn't you feel terrible?

She took my hands. "Let's create, then. Let's create something, so you don't have to feel like you only have to destroy."

To some extent, I felt that my super strength, and the pains I took to live with it, were just my lot in life. Still, I wanted to impress her. So I went to a craft store and I asked for something cheap. A simple charcoal kit was my answer. And so was the broken stick of charcoal in my hand.

She started by sketching a sphere for me, then sketching ovals and lines over it. "Here's the light part," she said, pointing to an oval near the top left of the sphere. "And here's the darkest part," she said, pointing to the opposite end. "You have to color with shades of gray in the middle. Can you do that?"

I nodded confidently. "Yes, I can!"

Five minutes later, I'm crying over a broken stick of charcoal and an unfinished sphere. And she's hugging me, telling me that the kit was only $15 and we can go buy something else.

----

"Maybe we should get you one of those rubber pencils," she said over tea. "You know, the ones they sell at book fairs? The ones that have no internal structure, so they just wiggle all over the place? They're a little impractical, but they probably won't break in your hands."

"I don't think they produce very strong lines, though."

"Right." She nodded. "Well, let's find you an extra-tough mechanical pencil! Then, you can draw in a sketchbook with no issues at all."

She ordered one a few days later. When it arrived in the mail, I took it for a test drive on a new sketchbook she'd bought me. I wanted to draw a tree. So I pressed my pencil into the sketchbook, like I'd seen her do, and drew a long line.

The second time I ever cried in front of my best friend, I'd cut a long strip into the sketchbook with nothing but the tip of a mechanical pencil.

-------

She asked me about the details of my super strength after that. I confessed that I ended up breaking anything hard between my fingers, so holding pencils and styluses was out of the question. If by chance there was something hard enough to withstand my strength, it would likely bend or break some other equipment. I could type on a computer, but using too many shortcut keys too fast would result in me breaking the key (hence why I had to carefully use an iPad for everything). I also wasn't a good writer. My thoughts were pretty simple- I couldn't write any thought-provoking poetry. I'd been thinking about snails a lot lately, but somehow, writing a poem about snails sounded like something I wouldn't be satisfied with.

She took these thoughts into her own head and closed her eyes. Finally, after what felt like an awkward eternity, she opened them.

"Pottery."

"Pottery?!"

She took me into her room, where she showed me an apparatus she had set up around some plastic wrap. It appeared to be some kind of electric-powered table.

"Oh, is that a pottery wheel?" I asked. "So you use the foot pedal to make it turn. Oh, but what if I break the pedal?" I thought. There was a reason I also couldn't drive.

"Why don't I use the pedal?" she suggested, sitting down. "You just focus on keeping your hands as still as possible, and shaping the clay from the bottom up. Clay can't be broken, and pottery is perfect for someone with a lot of strength who can keep their hands still."

Carefully, she held the pedal down with her foot. The pottery wheel began to spin. I carefully gathered up the clay in my hands, holding my stance as it carved itself around my still fingers. Slowly I brought my thumbs down over the ball of clay, now shaped like a hemisphere, and spread them out. With more careful fingers, I tapered the edge. What I now had was a rather simple- looking bowl.

"Done," I said. "Now what? Do we let it dry?"

She looked down at it. "Yes, we can do that. Or, we can paint it and decorate it."

"What if we carved snails into the bottom?" I examined the sides of the bowl. "Oh, but I'd probably break the stylus."

"Leave it to me," she said. "You make little flat clay snails, and I'll stick them around the bowl. Does that sound fun?"

"Sure."

We got to work. With a large clump of clay next to me, I rolled up and curled the clay in my hand into a vague snail shape over and over. She deftly applied each one to the side of the bowl, until we had numerous little snails surrounding my creation.

"Next, we pop it in the oven, right?" I asked.

"The kiln." She popped open a machine that looked like a pressure cooker and lowered the bowl inside. 24 hours later, I was left with my clay bowl, but hardened and dried.

My hands shook as she placed it in my outstretched hands with a triumphant smile. "You made that!" she said.

"No I didn't!" I exclaimed back. "You handled the foot pedal, and you stuck all the snails on..."

"You still did most of it," she said. "Aren't you proud?"

"A little?" I turned my head. The bowl wobbled in my hand.

"Good start. Now, we start glazing the bowl with colors." She produced a set of glazes from the closet and a paintbrush. "Just tell me what colors to use," she said. "I'll do it for you."

"Isn't that cheating?" I asked, gently placing the bowl down and praying it wouldn't break.

"Not if I say we made it together." She giggled. "Because you're too scared to admit that you're making your first piece of artwork."

"Yeah, but I feel really bad that you're doing the painting."

"Like I said, it's a collaboration. You're fine with that, right?"

I relented. I began using the iPad to look up snails, then telling her how to paint each one. She deftly and quickly painted each snail in the colors and patterns I suggested.

"You're so good at this!" I exclaimed, as she colored one of them like a Pokemon. "Where did you become so talented at painting?"

"It was a lot of work," she said. "I used to struggle at painting. My older brother was the really talented one, but my strokes always turned out all messy. I wanted to be a painter like him, but..."

"It was impossible?"

"I realized that not every kind of artwork is possible for every kind of person." She sighed. "Some of us don't have the talent or the time to develop a talent. That's why I found what I was good at first, and then studied myself up from there."

"And that pottery wheel was from when you tried out pottery?"

"Yeah." She nodded. "I wanted to make geometric shape pottery. But I kept having creation ideas above my skill level, and I was really unhappy with the result."

"What did you do in the end?" I asked.

"Painting, of course," she said. "But just little things and abstract stuff. Did you know that there was a style of Roman art that focused on painting little pretty things? It was called the Third Pompeiian Style. There was a bit of abstraction involved, even. So even in history, there's something for everyone."

"You're amazing," I said. I was utterly blown away by her perseverance.

"You're more amazing," was her reply.

Somehow I got the sense that neither of us believed the words of the other. It was the last thing we said to each other before she popped our bowl in the kiln again.

The bowl, for what it was worth, did turn out pretty amazing, though. That bowl- or at least its shape and the little snails on it- was the first thing I'd ever created with my own (super strong) hands.

People think you’re lucky to have the power of superhuman strength, but outside the context of fighting bad guys it’s actually pretty inconvenient.

[redwallslikeyou]

We just had our first family trip to KL!

It was a short trip and flight but it felt like the perfect 3 days away from the hustle and bustle of home ❤️

Jordan did soo well for his flight and he was unfazed even when the landing was rough haha. Mei mei was expectedly uncomfortable at first and so was I since it was our first time on a plane together. I quickly learned that the iPad was a necessity when flying with a baby because she was so quiet when entertained by screen time. This also gave me the assurance that we can do longer flights in the future!

Since we didn’t have check in baggage, we left the airport quickly and had a smooth transfer to the airport via grab. Both kiddos fell asleep on the hour long journey there while Jon and I kept vigil on the roads. I caught a sight of Jon keeping track of his GPS, something that made my heart go fuzzy and warm because he never fails to make me feel safe with him. ❤️

When we arrived at the hotel, we were pleasantly surprised to see that the room was spacious and clean at the same time. It was a really comfortable stay for a really affordable price! The kids enjoyed having room to run around in and we even had a separate room for Selfi.

We retired for the night and started our day early the next morning. Since we were only there for 3 days and 2 nights, we decided to visit 2 malls - Berjaya Times Square and Pavillion. I have fond memories of both malls, the former which I first visited with Jon post procedural OJT and the latter which I frequented with my mom. I didn’t have high hopes for Berjaya Times Square since we were aware that it was a really old mall, but it turned out to be so so fun! Jordan really enjoyed the indoor theme park and he managed to ride on several age appropriate rides. Jon rode the roller coaster which I now regret not joining him for! There were also several carnival games that Jordan was really happy to try even though we did not end up winning anything. Haha. We had lunch at McDonald’s, and sourced for alternate meal arrangements at a jap restaurant where we ordered some rice and soup for takeaway. Before leaving, we even bought some cute fits for the kids and stopped for baskin and robbins! It was a treat indeed.

After 4 long hours of fun, we headed back to the hotel to rest. Jon and I managed to catch a half an hour nap while Selfi watched the kids. When we woke up, we took a stroll to Pavillion which was only 7mins away. It was decided that we would indulge in some luxurious Korean food haha. Jon and I kambeh-ed to the trip with Magoli - Korean rice wine. At the end of the evening, we walked out of Pavillion with a new luggage for Jon, new shoes and clothes for Kor Kor, and a new backpack for mei mei. ❤️

We had an early night (or rather, the kids did heh) and woke up early the next morning for breakfast before our flight! The hotel’s breakfast was surprisingly decent hence we decided to have it before leaving for the airport. The flight home was great, less for Mei mei’s fussiness because she was both tired and hungry.

It was all in all such a great trip! I enjoyed it so so much and it seemed like everyone else did too.

I look forward to more opportunities to create memories with the family! ❤️ I can finally understand why people say that memories created on trips are money well spent indeed.

[tipsylorie]

Dream Project Pt. 2 {title in progress}

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

A/N: Hello guys! Here is the second part of the story I have been working on. My friend @w-h-i-t-e-mochi had read this already and she commented that it might feel a bit dragging. So, Im sorry about that but I just tried to emphasise on how Jayceon Stone acts as her assistant. This is not yet proof read tho so, sorry again. But I came to realisation on how Lee Da Hee would make a great Liviana and to be paired with Lee Jun Ho as Jayceon. Therefore, if you want, they can be your character reference. 

Word Count: 2,300

Before Liviana got to her office, she was greeted by her employees with good mornings, and she greeted them all back with a smile and nod of acknowledgement. Once she arrived at her office, she was welcomed with the young man once again with a smile on his face. “Good morning Liv, I hope you had a goodnight sleep and your first schedule for today is supposedly with the Finance Department of the entertainment, but it seems like you should prioritise the meeting with your potential investor, Mr. Stone.”

Liv can’t help but chuckle with how blunt his assistant was as he immediately stated her schedule for today, so she just replies with, “Woah, what’s the rush Jer? Slowly. I agree on meeting with the investor first so maybe update them that after 45 minutes we are good to see each other at the Casa Royale Hotel. I just need to look through the contract again and see area for negotiation.”

Jayceon is a bit flustered with Liviana’s remark of him seems to be in a rush because this is the first time of him doing such job and he just copied what Dexter usually do as his assistant. So, his response went, “Sorry about that Liv. I just tried to be productive by not stalling any tasks that could’ve already been done. The contract is already sent to your email so just check that and I will call his assistant now. So please excuse me.” After saying the last line, Jayceon exited the office and sat on his desk just outside of it.

~30 minutes later~

“Would you like to come with me Jer?” Liv asked the young man as she exited her office.

“Sure, no problem. I already notified the Financial Department of the meeting being moved an hour later.” Jayceon replied with ease.

“Good job!” She said and high fived him. “Now let’s go.” She continued as she led the way to the parking lot where her driver and car awaits.

~At the Casa Royale Hotel~

“Over here Ms. Voss!” Dexter exclaimed as he waves Liv and Jayce to go to his direction. “Thank you for arranging this meeting Ms. Voss and please do have a seat.” Dexter said as he gestured to the seats vacant for the two and they sat as Dexter continues, “Unfortunately Mr. Stone won’t be able to be here as he is in a 1 week leave due to the transitioning of company rights. I hope that is okay as I am given the Power of Attorney as his proxy for today. He had trusted me that whatever agreements we will be having for today is as good to be his as well. So, no need to be concerned.”  He said the last line with a reassuring voice.

Liviana was taken back a little bit as she was expecting to meet the CEO himself, so she answers, “Oh, alright then. I can say by re-reading the contract before coming here is that it was really detailed and somehow stringent.” Liv’s remarks made the vibe feel tense as Jayceon starts to worry and his secretary noticed the faint change of his facial expression. Fortunately, the young woman who has no idea on what caused the sudden change of vibe smiles and continues to say, “But there is need to worry because I like it that way. It will help us keep things black and white and lessen misunderstandings so, I say we seal the deal right away!” She said the last line with enthusiasm and grabs a pen to sign the document. This made the young CEO relax his tense shoulders and gives a smile of recognition to his assistant that he is satisfied with how the meeting turned out.

The partnership was sealed with the final handshake between Liviana and Dexter. Then all of them bid their goodbyes with a last reminder from the older man that after a week, they will meet again to announce publicly about the merger. Liviana and Jayceon conclusively thanked Dexter and took their leave.

Once they arrived back the LV Entertainment building, Jayceon reminded Liviana of her meeting that will take place in 15 minutes.

“Thanks Jer, I will just grab the needed materials in my office. Oh, you can seat this one out because I don’t think I will need an assistant there. So, you can just grab an early lunch or Brunch if you still haven’t eaten your breakfast.” Liviana informed her assistant.

“But I can totally accompany you since it is my job, and maybe… I can give some inputs if you want.” Jayceon tried to reason because she can feel how Liv is being lenient towards him.

She can sense what her assistant is trying to do, and this made her smile, so she replies, “Do not worry Jer, I am not taking it easy towards you but I really don’t find the need to have you there. I can just message you when I need something or when there is something worth noting. But for now, you can just grab your lunch. Okay?”

Jayceon was satisfied with her reply, so he responded, “Sure Liv. Thanks. I will also just arrange the meetings for later to keep everything smooth sailing.”

This made Liviana say, “That would be amazing. Thank you.” She took her leave to proceed to the conference room.

**Jayceon’s Phone**

Message from Liviana: Check Break Even Analysis

Reply sent: Should I check it Liv, right now?

Liviana forgot to put her phone on mute so everyone in the room heard the chime of notification. This made her say, “Sorry guys, please continue.” Then she sent her assistant another message.

**Jayceon’s Phone**

Message from Liviana: No, I will just spam you of the things I need to do. So there’s no need for you to reply.

Reply sent: Oh, okay. Sorry.

Message from Liviana: I said, do not replyyy 😭

Message from Liviana: TLA each branch financial report last month in conjunction of the Entertainment

Message from Liviana: Bake some Choco Moist Cake for Julie

~After many messages later~

“Thank you so much everyone. We need to find solutions soon to add more income without jeopardising the operating expenses. So, I will be all open with suggestions in my email. Okay guys?” Liv informed her staff and all of them agreed then she ended the meeting.

~Back to her office~

“Why is there food on my table? I didn’t order anything.” Liv thought to herself when her secretary enters her office.

“I bought you some lunch in case you’re hungry. I am not sure what to but so I just bought sandwich and Iced Americano to play it safe. I hope it is fine.” Jayceon told her boss.

“It’s actually great! I totally forgot that I haven’t eaten my lunch yet. Thanks. This is actually my go-to food when I am having hard time to think what to eat. So really, thank you Jer.” Liviana told her secretary with genuinely.

Jayceon replies enthusiastically, “No problem, boss. Just doing my job!” He is about to leave then he suddenly remembers something, “May I ask something Liv?”

“Sure.” Live replied as she took a bite of her sandwich.

“With everything you sent me earlier, from the meeting’s notes to your friend’s cake, why did you still forget your own food?” Jayceon asked curiously.

“Yes, I think so. Are you planning on checking up the Academy’s different branches afterwards?” Jayceon asked his boss to confirm and inform that the schedule in the iPad seems incomplete.

It took a while for Liviana to think of an answer so she manages to say is, “Well, all I could think of once I get home is food, maybe that’s why.” She smiled to her assistant with face shows confusion with the lack of answer she replied so she just says, “It’s easier that way. Anyways, what’s next to our schedule?”

While Liviana is taking a sip of her Iced Americano, Jayceon enumerated the meetings that are lined up and this is followed by a question from Liv, “After all these meetings for today, does that end all of the Entertainment’s agendas for the week?”

“Yeah, why? Is there something wrong?” Liviana asked worriedly.

“It’s just that your ex-assistant seemed to forget to update the calendar since what I have now is relatively blank.” Jayceon stated as he looked through the tablet’s screen.

This made Liv ponder for a few minutes and came to a realisation, so she replies, “I believe it was purposely left that way since that is what I instructed her before she left. Hence, we can just leave it like that and have some sort of business trip tomorrow. I will message you the information once I got home because we need to go to the meeting now.”

Jayceon was relieved to know that there was no missing schedule, so he answered, “Sure, I’ll be right behind you Liv.”

After Liviana and Jayceon finished attending all the meetings for the day, she asked him to her office even though it was already passed his clock.

The young man took a seat adjacent to Liviana’s table and she remarks, “Hey, I think I will need your opinion about making the partnership with Stone Corp. public sooner instead of a week. Because I made some thinking the whole day and concluded that it would create traction for the Entertainment. I am not sure if you’ve already seen our latest financial reports that we are close to be in red – and barely breaking even.” Her face is contoured in full worries and anxiousness, she continues, “So I just want to know your opinion if I were to propose this to Mr. Stone, would it be alright or not?” She asked and nervously waiting for Jayceon’s reply.

“Honestly Liv, I don’t think you should rush this. Because one week is not a long time. The best advice I could give you is focus on the events that will happen, both in TLA and the Entertainment. Do not worry too much.” This response from Mr. Stone might come out quite manipulative but as Liv asked him with sincerity, this is the best answer he has based on his judgement with the overall situation.

The young woman took some time to weigh what her secretary just told her, and her reply goes, “Yes. Yeah, I think you’re right. I agree. Maybe let’s conclude for the day and meet tomorrow at the usual time here in the building to gather last minute things.” She informed her assistant, and both bid their goodbyes.

~At Liviana’s House~

“Let’s make the cake first and then eat dinner afterwards before checking all the reports for tomorrow’s trip.” Liv said as she tries to reason with herself.

Her closest friend Julie is having her 27th birthday tomorrow and she is currently supervising the branch of TLA where the Scholarship Audition Programme is going to be held, which is the Municipality of Paradigmia.  It is like the second main branch after the one in the City of Pneumarê. The main branch is the only one located in a city, however due to the development of the Tree of Life Academy the municipalities and provinces where other branches are located, it is becoming a progressive community which at a very near future can make them a city. If you are wondering on why the Final Audition is not going to take place in the city, well… It is because of how it was agreed upon on where annual inter-branch events will take place – and it is through spinning wheel where the names of the branches are written in random order. Therefore, she must make sure to visit Paradigmia at all costs tomorrow.

Going back to Liv’s closest friend, Julie Andews is also her longest friend who also supported her while she was busy integrating an Entertainment company to her family’s Academy. Ever since it was Anne who was more focused on handling the academics aspects, so it took quite a while for Julie to find a place where she truly suitable. Heck, she even attempted to do the financial aspect, but it took a toll on her. Then, one time strolling through the city’s academy branch, she saw the need to develop the extra-curricular activities not just for students who do it for grades but also those who wants to experience it. Especially when she realised that it would be vital for the integration of a Korean Entertainment Company. So, she drew up a proposal on how she plans to execute such developments and it was immediately approved by Liv. Liviana also doubled check it with her parents if such change would be okay and even though it took a week for them to agree, Julie was able to perform her plan without a hitch.

Okay, going back to the cake. After she baked the 3 layers of the heart-shaped cake for Julie she realised that she mixed a hell a lot of batter. So, she just took some of her leftover cupcake cups and make the rest of the red velvet mix into cupcakes. To Liv’s surprise she was still able to great 2 dozen of cupcakes, so she plans to give half of it to Anne as she also promised her a visit yesterday. Liviana successfully iced and decorated the cake and all the cupcakes after several hours, so she proceeds on putting it on her refrigerator to finally have her dinner.

Liviana freshen up before heading to her bed since it was a tedious work and cleaning earlier in the kitchen that made her sweat a lot. Before having her eyes closed, she remembers the reports she must re-evaluate this made her say, “For fuck’s sake.” After another 2 hours she finally got her sleep.

[End of Part 2]

[upthehillask]

hi!! i think your art is absolutely amazing, (especially for you not ever being professionally taught!) it always blows me away and i really look up to you for that. i’ve recently bought an ipad & stylist so i can take my art to a more digital side of things! when did you transfer to digital art? and why Harry Potter? sry if this isn’t rlly a good question, no pressure to answer, thank you :)

Thank you so so much! I know what it's like to look up to an artist, it's always crazy to know I might be that artist to somebody else, so wonderful and meaningful!!

Congrats on getting started with digital art! :) Personally, I got my graphic tablet at the end of 2015, so basically 2016 was my busiest year of learning to draw and developing my skill and style. The reason I even did all this was purely because of my desire to draw HP fanart :) I was always a fan of HP movies but only finally read the books in 2015, and naturally I needed more, hence discovering fandom and getting inspired to create for it!

[cllynchauthor]

I bought the script for #puppetgate.

You all remember All in a Row, the London play featuring the terrifying grey crotchfruit goblin which represented an autistic child.

Well, I was tired of people saying “did you even see the play?”

I couldn’t afford to fly to England to support an ableist play.

...So I bought the goddamn script.

And I can’t make this post flippant or funny. I’ve read the play and there’s just no more laughter in me.

I live-tweeted a reading of the whole thing. You can read it here.

Or there’s a threadreader version of it here.

TW/CW for abuse, restraint, institutionalization, alcohol, drugs, sexual assault and pretty much anything else you can think of.

THE PUPPET IS THE LEAST OF THIS PLAY’S PROBLEMS, and I’m saying that about this puppet:

1. The puppet - Laurence - is on stage and present in the room throughout the play.

That means he hears his father talking about bukkake with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, hears his carer speculating that he is really a puppy wrongly reincarnated into a human body, and his mother saying that she’s excited to live without him and that she called social services on herself.

Things he overhears include:

Laurence is consistently discussed in the third person, even when he melts down and has to be restrained.

They ask each other if they are all right in the aftermath. No one asks him if he is all right.

The only time he is spoken to directly is when he is making a fuss for more food (which he is routinely denied with no explanation of why they don’t want to feed a hungry child).

2. It is made clear that Laurence understands spoken language.

Laurence repeatedly understands and responds to things which are said directly to him.

When his carer says “too loud” he turns his iPad down. When he is told “plate” he goes to fetch a plate.

When his mother tells him he can have more pizza when the timer goes off he waits for the timer and then comes running when it goes off.

He understands spoken language.

But throughout the play it is considered normal and acceptable to say hideously terrible things right in front of him as if he really was an inanimate object and not just represented by one.

3. No one cares that Dad blamed his pillow-shitting on Laurence

When the mother discovers a turd on her pillow - which we know from a monologue delivered earlier is the fault of the father - she calls her son a “little monster” but the father is struggling not to smile.

He doesn’t seem to think that maybe it will upset his son to be verbally abused over something of which he is totally innocent.

Later when he reveals the truth the other two are disgusted but NO ONE seems to think that he owes Laurence and apology.

Laurence’s feelings about being blamed for all this are never discussed, mentioned, or thought of.

Oh and also the Dad pissed on his wife’s iPad charger and books. Also blamed on Laurence.

Did I mention the mother called social services on herself so the kid would be taken away because she couldn’t take it any more?

The Dad may have directly contributed to his son’s institutionalization which he is vocally against.

No one points this out.

4. All three adults are drunk or stoned by the end of the play.

The mother comes home with wine and begins drinking. She convinces the carer to have a couple of glasses of wine too. The Dad goes out and comes back stoned.

No one sober is looking after the high-needs child with behavioural challenges.

5. The mother sexually assaults the carer.

When her husband is out of the room the mother flirts with, harasses, and then “forces herself” on the twenty year old carer, Gary.

He is clearly uncomfortable and not into it.

Yes, Laurence is still in the room.

6. The play is very pro-restraint.

In an opening monologue the father describes having to pin his son face down on the ground, calling it “the kind of hold they say is child abuse. The only hold that stops him biting you.”

This is the same hold that has killed many people including 13 year old Max Benson, an autistic boy whose death the playwright used to promote his play.

Several times during the play the father and carer worry that the institution won’t be able to control Laurence because they aren’t allowed to use holds like that.

The Dad worries his son will end up “sectioned, chemically lobotomized.”

Several times during the course of the play the kid melts down and attacks. He has to be restrained each time.

7. There is so much more than this.

It took me 170 tweets to dissect all the things wrong with this play.

8. What bothers me most didn’t bother reviewers at all.

The Guardian called the play: “a lively, compassionate and darkly humorous show with the unmistakable ring of truth.”

Autism Advocate Anna Kennedy said that “It has great potential to raise autism awareness”.

An Autism Mom team member of hers said, “it did not seem out of place to not use a child. I would in fact feel more uncomfortable had they have used a child due to some of the language and emotional scenes, hence why it has a 16+ age minimum.”

Everyone agrees a child shouldn’t listen to the things being said in this play.

But no one was bothered by the idea of Laurence listening to the things being said in this play.

None of the reviews, from the lukewarm to the raves, express any concern about the things that are said in front of Laurence.

The play is “honest”, “heartwarming”, “raw”, “comedic”.

Yes, comedic.

Reviewer Shaun May told me that when he saw the play, the line where the carer companies Laurence to a puppy “got big laughs.”

That’s all he is.

A punchline.

[quaintrelle-on-the-loose]

hello, december!

The December Diaries is back! And so am I with blogging (crossfingers! 😂). This is also one of the reasons though why I took a one-week break from work. I wanna start this month doing the things that relax and make me happy. I want to unwind and reflect. I know that I need it. Don’t we all?

This is year three of my December Diaries and I’m just excited. This year is obviously different from the past years but I still decided to continue and not ditch this annual tradition for memory keeping’s sake. It wouldn’t be as eventful as the past years but I hope to still make the most out of it! Hence ...

on today’s highlights

Gift Wrapping

I really waited for this first day of the month to “redecorate” our Christmas tree. It’s currently filled with the classic red ornaments and gold Christmas balls and I don’t like it so I bought some pink balls, white snowflakes, and some white star lights to redo it. However, there will be some construction to be done in our second floor the coming days so the house is going to be all messy so I skipped the redecorating. No, thanks but I won’t waste my effort (haha). Hence, I just wrapped the first batch of presents I’ll give this coming Christmas instead.

Pretty in Pink

I bought this ipad case online and it finally arrived today. I needed an extra case since the one I bought before was heavy that I just use it when my iPad’s on the table. Can’t wait for the stickers that I personally picked so that I could already proceed on giving my iPad a new look 💗 But seriously though, I should also stop with the online shopping! 💸

Quiet Time

I already had a Quiet Time this morning but I craved for more thus, after taking a shower tonight, I had another one (having quiet times both morning and evening’s always been a goal and I really want to achieve it). Here’s my reflection/note to self with regards to tonight’s devotional:

“It is not enough that you call yourself a Christian. It is not enough that you proclaim with your mouth that Jesus is your Lord and Savior. Walk by faith and not by sight! What really matters to the Lord is the state of your heart and what’s in it. Are you a follower of Jesus? Are you a ‘true’ Christian? Do you DENY YOURSELF, TAKE UP YOUR CROSS, and FOLLOW HIM everyday?”

Journal, Alas!

I finally wrote on my journal again tonight. It’s been ages and I felt like I already forgot how to journal (lol). It was messy and all over the place. Anyways, this is also one of my goals this month — to be consistent on journaling. It’s important that I go back to the habit now that I already bought markers and a journal for 2021. It would be a waste if I do not use it again (just like what happened to my journal this 2020. Well, I’m blaming the pandemic for that one).

A random musing on my journal:

“Well, God knows how often I stumble. I keep on stumblin’. But I also refuse to give up on Him and our relationship. He continuously fights for me. He loves me unconditionally. What right do I have to stop striving? I will never give up on growing and striving to serve Him more for He definitely deserves my all.”

Just two more points that I wanna note before ending this post. This has been my fave season since who knows when. Before, this season means family gatherings and hanging out with friends to me. Now, I could say that it still is a season for family and friends. But more than that, I have more important reason to celebrate this season — JESUS. Jesus is God (Matthew 1:23) and Jesus saves! (Matthew 1:21) 💫

Good night! ��✨

[hamonsurveysoverdrive]

Terrain

[Expect a lot of these today, I’m snowed in]’

Have you ever clicked on an ad on the side of your screen by accident? Yepp. When was the last time you were disappointed? Yesterday when my power never came back on and I had to eat stale nachos from 7-11 bc no one else was open. Do you like the smell of rain? Yes. What was the last thing you took a picture of? The lights outside of my mother's house, showing my bf she has power lol Do you know anyone that uses Sprint as their phone carrier? Probably? When you go to McDonalds, what drink do you usually get? Coke. What were you doing today at 2:15 in the afternoon? It's still just 10 am, but I'm sure I'll still just be stuck at my mom's house with nothing to do. What’s the nickname of your home state? Lone Star State. Have you ever thought about your wedding? Sure. What’s the worse type of weather in your opinion? THIS FUCKING COLD ASS SNOWY ASS WEATHER. Do you have a Kindle or iPad or neither? Neither. Would you rather read or write? Read, writing is straining now. When was the last time someone took a picture of you? Someone else?? Idek. Do you own a pair of slippers? Yes. Would you rather see Taylor Swift or Carrie Underwood in concert? If I'm not paying, I'll go to pretty much any concert lol. But if I have to pay, I'm not going to either of these. When someone screws you over, do you get back with revenge? No. Name something negative that you hate about yourself? I'm already pretty fragile mentally right now, I don't feel like picking myself apart today. Is your house currently hot, cold or just right? MY house is freezing, bc it's 7 degrees Fahrenheit and there's no power. Hence why I'm at my mother's. Is there a Dead End road near where you live? I'm sure... Do you roll your eyes often? Yes. All the time. Literally everyone in my life talks about how much I roll my eyes. Growing up, did you see your cousins often? Unfortunately. Where was your first job? Shitty retail job. When’s your birthday? November 2. Is life a party to you? No. Who are you tired of seeing in the news a lot (celebrities)? I don't care. When was the last time you flew a kite? Oh god I have no clue. How long have you had Facebook? Since 2010. Have you ever had to call and complain about a product you bought? No. Name something positive you love about yourself: I'm compassionate. Have you cuddled with someone today? No. Can you smell anything right now? Not really. Have you spoken to a relative on the phone today? I texted my best friend. I know she's not my relative, but she is my kids' aunt, so kinda? Do you use the toilet paper with the colourful designs on it? No. Do you wear your hair up or down most often? It's short, so it is never up. How does alcohol affect you? I'm a recovering alcoholic, so very badly. When was the last time you had a cold or flu? Beginning of January I had a cold. What was the first thing you ate today? Ritz crackers. Do you have anything more important you should be doing right now? Most likely lol. Do you still buy the paper or do you get your news elsewhere? You know, I kind of miss reading the actual newspaper. Have you ever eaten tofu and if so, did you enjoy it? I have. It really just depends on how it's been prepared. I've had it and hated it, and I've had it and loved it. Have you worn make-up today? No. I'm literally stuck inside. Do you ever get dizzy and nauseous when you’re extremely tired? Maybe a little nauseated. Have you ever tried lemon brownies? ...Do you mean lemon bars??? Can you hear anything right now? My niece is watching some stupid YouTube video. What was the last type of meat you ate? Sausage. What colour is your toothpaste? Blue. Have you taken any medication today? Just Tums. Have you ever been suspended from school? Yes. Have you ever inhaled helium? Yes. Have you bought something that was on sale today? I haven't bought anything. Are you a fan of Adam Sandler? I like his old movies. What was the last fruit you ate? Cranberries. Off the top of your head how many aisles are in the supermarket you shop at? No idea, don't care. Have you ever watched Parks and Recreation? Yes. Have you watched a movie this week? Yes. How far away is the closest McDonald’s from your house? Like, a 10 min drive. If that. Have you ever been to a wedding? Yes, a handful. What is your favourite kind of pasta? I like all kinds. Have you set an alarm today? No, I turned off my daily alarms lol Do you keep up-to-date with current news and events? Yes. When was the last time you visited relatives? Do the ones I see on a daily basis count? Because I'm hanging out with my dad, niece, nephew, sister, and step-dad right meow. Have you asked someone for advice today? No. What was the last website you were on, other than this one? My college site. Did you ever play Habbo Hotel? Idk wtf that is. Do you speak any languages other than English? Not fluently. Have you ever been to Hawaii? No thanks. What colour is your shampoo? It's pink. Have you watched more than an hour of TV today? No. Ever wake up early on Saturdays to go Garage Sale shopping? No. When was the last time you got a nose bleed? Like two months ago. How old is the mattress on your bed? It's brand new. Do you have any picture frames without a picture in them? Yes. Do you keep magazines by your toilet? No, but there's a couple books. The last time you got dressed up, where did you go? Out to eat with Justin for V Day. Did the one person who hurt you the most in your life apologize? Yes. Are you proud of who you are? Sometimes. Think of a random person, and give them a message here, no names: No. If you were a waiter/waitress, would you make good tips? I was a waitress ONCE and I made terrible money bc unfortunately my face is very telling when I think someone is an idiot, and I also have an attitude problem. What if there were two of you? Would the world be in trouble? It would just be annoyed. Forget about toppings. What type of CRUST do you like on pizzas? I like crust that has seasoning on it and is soft. I hate bland crust. Have you ever stolen a road sign or traffic barrier? I convinced my high school best friend to steal a construction cone once. Captain Crunch vs. Count Chocula: Who makes the better cereal? Captain Crunch. Would you prefer an ice cream sundae or an ice cream cone? Neither. Is chapstick a necessity for you? Rarely. What are the best kind of Girl Scout cookies? Lemonades or peanut butter sandwiches. If a cop was following you, would it make you paranoid? Yes. Do you watch movies with the subtitles on? Yes, I'm deaf in one ear.

[xanderdesade]

so, a little update on my life... partly vent.

* i’ve put my huion up for sale, i had it only for a couple months but i feel it didn’t fit my lifestyle. since i do tons of travelling i can’t pack it down, unpack, pack it down, etc. it’s like having a pc, impossible to bring around. * the ipad pro that i purchased months ago finally arrived, since it took so long, me and the seller contacted the mail company responsible for sending it and because they thought it would never resurface or be found i got refunded the money. i contacted the seller after it finally came & was going to send it back - until i realized that i could keep it and replace the huion. which i did. my nintendo switch savings are back to 0 now. * i bought procreate, i’ve been testing it out and i’m actually pretty glad to finally have it, it’s going to be a bit hard to adjust to, but it’s going to mostly replace painters essentials 7 on my laptop and it feels... weird. * i got struck with yet another depressive episode, i had way too high expectations on myself in the beginning of this self isolation deal & expected to finish 10 drawings a week pretty much, quickly realized i can not create at all lately and i feel like utter garbage. i need daily naps that last hours just to pull through.

* on top of the depressive episode i’m struggling with other things such as grief and heavy stress, i’ve had many things messing with my brain lately. my mother went into the hospital for a brain scan due to constant migraines and pressure in her head, i was horrified it would be a tumor or something of the sort, i don’t know yet. my 12 year old beloved family dog won’t make it until winter due to how frail and ‘stiff’ he is, he can barely get up from the floor anymore, it’s very sad to see him struggle to just move around every day. we are planning to have him put down before winter so he won’t suffer another cold season. i also went through a break up but it wasn’t bad at all, just thought i should add it since it happened. i don’t mind it.

* i’m officially out of office for commissions (on fiverr) until may sometime... because i’ve been so down and afraid of disappointing people with what i feel is garbage art i decided to shut that business down for a while. i even had a dream that somebody commissioned me which quickly turned into a nightmare from stress. the fact that it’s affected my sleep is a red flag for me, hence why i’m out for now.

that’s about it. 

[mymurderbooks]

Prince Lestat, and a review of Heliophobia perfume from Sixteen92

Title: Prince Lestat Author: Anne Rice Rating: ★★☆☆☆   Series: The Vampire Chronicles

Perfume: Heliophobia House: Sixteen92 Collection: Friday the 13th Limited Edition Rating:  ★★★★★

---

First, I have to confess that the two stars I’ve allotted Prince Lestat are almost entirely sentimental: Prince Lestat is terrible, but I love Anne Rice. Two stars for my love, and for me at least it holds a peculiar kind of nostalgic charm, though the book is so bad I dragged myself through it,

When I was little (about ten) I had a truly awful fansite on Geocities, dripping blood horizontal rules and all. I haven’t read Interview with the Vampire in a while but I will list it as one of my favourite books ever, and actually I think Feast of All Saints is an amazing non-vampire book of hers that’s largely overlooked. There’s a break in continuity in my Vampire Chronicles fandom, the last book I read was Vittorio when it came out, it was so bad that I lapsed for years, until recently I started following Anne Rice on social media and saw that she had a new book out called Prince Lestat and the Realms of Atlantis. I rolled my eyes a little at the title but it did make me want to revisit the vampire world.

It seems the books between Vittorio and Prince Lestat were Mayfair Witches crossovers. I’m not a big Mayfair Witches fan, and Anne Rice proclaimed Prince Lestat the ‘true sequel to Queen of the Damned’, so I think it’s safe to skip over them straight to this. If it’s been so long you’ve forgotten the special terms Anne Rice uses throughout her vampire world, don’t worry, there’s a glossary in the front (the section is called ‘Blood Argot’).

As I mentioned it’s been over a decade since I last touched Interview with the Vampire and I can’t quite remember if it was this self-important and ponderous and overwritten, but in my memory, it was not.

I think Interview with the Vampire had such appeal because of the underlying desire for immortality that drove it and, in particular, the wish for an immortal child, while knowing that immortality was a cursed existence, that made it so powerful. This is absent in Prince Lestat, and the vampires are sort of beautiful, superhuman, mostly super-rich, and they feel comfortably detached from the kind of soul searching in her earlier vampire novels.

The plot itself isn’t terrible, and the book holds some interesting ideas.

Spoilers under the cut:

The plot of Prince Lestat is that there’s a Voice (referred to In Capitals), and the Voice has been telling vampires to destroy each other and sowing discord in the vampire world. Surprise, the Voice is actually Amel, the ‘spirit’ that entered Akasha the QotD, except now Amel is actually an alien being. Another of these alien beings had named himself Gremt Stryker Knollys and started the Talamasca.

So this Voice has thrown the vampire world into discord. Our little Chronicles family of vampires (Louis, Marius, etc. etc.) had moved out of Paris and New Orleans because, and I paraphrase, the riff raff had moved into those cities, which sounds a lot like some vampire version of white flight, and now cocoon themselves in, of course, brownstones on the Upper East Side. Benji (if you don’t remember who he is, he’s from The Vampire Armand, which also isn’t a great book) now runs a podcast, which conveniently broadcasts at a pitch too low for human ears, in which he lists the recent troubled news of the vampire world, entreats all of vampiredom to coalesce into a sort of vampire brotherhood, and calls for the ‘elders’ but especially Lestat to step up as leaders and come save them all.

All the vampires in this book are obsessed with Lestat.

Before I get more into that, now for a quick overview of the structure of this book: 

Part I is a sort of overview of the world, including I think the most interesting part of the book, we’re introduced to a vampire scientist, Fareed, who’s doing scientific research into what exactly a vampire is. He inducts other scientists into vampiredom, they all have a research lab, and here Anne Rice glosses over the specifics of how the biology of vampires apparently works, maybe through a lack of desire to do background research, I don’t know, but I kind of prefer that to an elaboration of the strange pseudoscience.

In Part II, various supporting characters/vampires/vampire groups get their own chapter each, except that the chapters are very similar to each other and this gets repetitive and obnoxious. I got through it, but honestly if you skim quickly through the bulk of it I don’t think it would make a huge difference. In truth I don’t remember many of the vampires from the previous books, or maybe they were in the books I skipped, there’s a mortal girl called Rose who’s like Lestat’s godchild or something, I’m not sure if she’s been in the series before but it doesn’t really matter because her entire life is summarised, and by the way Lestat has a kid called Viktor. You’ll see.

So each vampire chapter pretty much goes like this: vampire is beautiful, reminisces about the past. They live mostly alone, in posh dwellings with scented candles and tapestries and fluffy rugs and expensive artisanal carved wooden furniture and Ipads and Bose speakers (Anne Rice should have product placement) and all the trappings of the wealthy. They all sound the same despite being different people born in different eras. The voice speaks to them, they resist, and they contemplate how wonderful and amazing Lestat is, and how they wish to see him, and/or how they wish he would be their glorious leader.

If you made it through Part II, Part III does actually end with him becoming their glorious leader. Hence the title.

Lestat’s egotism is more palatable when reading in Lestat’s own voice, but an entire vampire world so enamoured with Lestat, I don’t know how I feel about it.

There are things I like about this book that I wish Anne Rice would have touched more on: the vampire science, the plight of the skulking-in-the-shadows vampire in the modern age of Google Maps and Insta, the workings of the Talamasca, aliens. The ideas are definitely interesting. I do think it would have been a much better book if a good chunk in the middle had been ripped out and the (frankly somewhat embarrassing) florid language had been edited out - though this might be Anne Rice’s doing rather than Knopf’s, and I suppose it could be considered to have its own rococo charm.

Will I, like a chump, read Atlantis, despite being disappointed by several of the Chronicles books? Yes, like a chump, I will. I also look forward to the possible Vampire Chronicles series that will apparently be made at some point soon (or maybe never), although I fear in my heart it’ll suck (pun inevitable). I guess you could call me a fan who’s returned to the Church of Lestat.

---

Heliophobia

My Anne Rice/Vampire Chronicles fandom is why I bought Heliophobia. The description goes: ‘the fear of sunlight – once believed to be a telltale sign of vampirism. Its scent is shadowy and reclusive; the crumbling and overgrown garden path of a long-forgotten estate, drenched in moonlight and delicate wisps of fog, pierced with a subtle tinge of the scent of untamed fear lurking in the shadows’, which is very vampire, and the notes of ‘climbing ivy, faded magnolia blooms, moonlit vines, cracked solarium glass, splintered wood, peeling wallpaper, humid air, fog & shadow, feral musk’, which makes it not just not any vampires, but specifically Anne Rice, moonlight and magnolias, giant dusty mansion type vampiric scent.

As you can guess it doesn’t actually smell like cracked solarium glass or shadows. I’m not exactly sure what those smell like. It smells largely of magnolia, magnolias and dust, a muted magnolia, like magnolias in an old house. It’s redolent of Interview with the Vampire, very beautiful. I’m so pleased with it and I recommend it if you like indie perfumes and early Vampire Chronicles. Put this perfume on, sit in your brocade armchair or whatever with your glass of red wine or dark grape juice or otherwise blood-reminiscent liquids, and reread your favourite vampire books.

Sixteen92 does excellent atmospheric scents and I like many of her perfumes, several are book themed and she had a whole Southern Lit series if you’re into that. You can order this from the Sixteen92 website but it’s only available on Friday the 13ths. The next one is March 2020.

[3oclockoccultis]

What’s in my bag?

So lately I’ve been ITCHING to do a what’s in my bag. I watch #Refinery29 spill it addition of what’s in in my bag and I am obsessed! I use to watch what’s in my bag when I was little but it’s become a thing again and I’m here for it (especially since it’s with celebs lol). Anyways, I always said that “if I were to get famous” I’d go on Refinery and that’s how I’d truly know I’ve made it because it’s something I always wanted to do. Since that’s not going to happen and I don’t have a YouTube channel because I don’t have a working computer and because I feel like everyone has a YouTube nowadays, I just decided to illustrate one. I still get to talk about what I carry and why.

1. First and foremost, the bag: JanSport mini. I use to be a handbag girl but I had read years ago that putting too many things in your bag was extremely bad for your back and I’ve just been paranoid about it ever since. I didn’t want a big bag and look like a school girl because I look young for a 25 year old (so I’ve been told lol). Plus this little guy carries a lot!

2. My iPad I got for my birthday 💛. My hubby got me an iPad with a data plan so now I can illustrate on the go, where ever and whenever which is great for me because I love to draw and write and all that stuff. I don’t have an Apple Pencil and I’m thinking on whether I should get one because I’ve been using the adonit pro 3 stylus and it works just fine. The only difference is, I guess the pressure sensitivity but that’s not a deal breaker for me.

3. A notebook for drawing and practice drawing. Sometimes as an artist, well for me anyways, I like to have digital as well as paper because sometimes with digital you can kind of cheat with layers. With paper, you really have to think outside of the box. Although I don’t always use it, I still keep it around because before I got my iPad I was practicing with a pen and a piece of paper.

4. I have a Pencil case: I have three pens, one is green, the other is red, and the last one black, I also keep a mechanical pencil with refillable lead plus erase, and lastly I keep my stylus in there because it’s small and I will misplace it lol.

5. I keep a book on me, for some down time. This book is You/Poet by Rayna Hutchison and Samuel Blake which is about writing and understanding poetry. I use to write poetry when I was younger and then stopped for some reason, so I was going to start an IG poetry page, but I keep track of so much many different accounts already that, I’ll really have to think about that.

6. 4Curly Hair business cards, I have a business (hence my other account I keep track of 🙄) and I keep business cards on me for potential costumers.

7. A fine tooth tail comb, especially if my hair is in a protective style and I have an itch?! That thing becomes my best friend.

8. Tissues and a face mask, I got a bunch of cute face masks for my birthday from my mom because I hate getting sick. Also, I carry tissues because I don’t think it makes sense to go and buy pocket tissues at the store. When you go to a restaurant, especially fast food, they give you so many tissues and at one point it was making a mess in my bag. So I found an old Clinique pouch I had in my close (nice and small too) and I made my own pocket tissue.

9. Gum, because duh 🙄 lol

10. Deodorant because I’m forgetful and I love this one because it’s natural. The brand name is crystal, scent vanilla jasmine 💐

11. Hand sanitizer, because I like to be clean lol

12. Pepper spray and multi tool knife, you never know 🤷🏽‍♀️

13. Keys

14. Lotion from bath and body works, I just bought pumpkin spice and it smells so frickin good!!!

15. 4 Lip glosses and 3 chapsticks, just in case I forget to bring one from home. (And a lot of them are sheer but different shades of pink with glitters and stuff.

16. My card holder and change purse, which is perfect because I can also keep money in it too. Also, I needed to be able to grab it and put it in my pocket if need be.

17. Charger because duh again lol

18. AirPods and AirPods holder, my hubby was the one that found the AirPod grips because it would fall out of my ears sometimes. So this device, holds the AirPod and also goes around your ear to make it secure.

19. Ear phones and ear phone jack, just in case I want to listen to something on my phone or iPad.

20. And last but not least, my make up bag. I don’t carry make up per say, but I do carry eyebrow pencil and gel, and eyebrow tint, mascara, toothpicks, aquaphor to moisturize my face, a mirror, Advil, nail oil, eye drops and a little hand sanitizer.

And that’s it. That’s everything I carry in my bad, aka I just spilled it 🤣

[margretgatenby6-blog]

Convert A Song To A Different File Format With ITunes

On this video, learn how to convert iTunes m4a information into mp3's with the intention to share and hearken to them anywhere. The psycho-acoustic encoding precept utilized by AAC is just like that utilized by MP3, but AAC uses an improved implementation of the psycho-acoustic encoding mannequin and extra environment friendly evaluation and encoding, and can subsequently yield better sound quality than MP3 at the identical bitrate. Chosen File > Create MP3 version. Besides changing FLAC to iTunes, it also helps to convert M4B, DTS, APE, RA, OPUS, OGG, MKA, WMA, AU, MPC, to iTunes natively supported ALAC, MP3, and so on for playback on iTunes, iPhone, iPad, iPod, and many others. This system is portable: it does not use system registry and all settings are stored in INI information. Thus, the program will be run from moveable gadgets such as pendrives, removable drives. Typically, your gadget do not support all audio files and it's important to convert them to different supported format. You'll need a computer software program to do process. Using this app, your work might be too simple and time saving also. All Audio Converter is the Finest Audio converter app on Android. Other: Certain audio files, especiallym4a recordsdata bought from iTunes could also be DRM-protected. It is a type of copyright protection and as such, you won't be capable to import these files into Stay. Reside doesn't support DRM-protected recordsdata. Custom parameters settings, as Audio Pattern rate settings, agree m4a aac to mp3 wav amr ogg converter serial Audio Channels settings and many others to offer the flexibility and effectiveness of the output recordsdata. Codec: Many audio file codecs are wrapper" or container formats, which signifies that the file extension alone doesn't inform how the contained audio stream is encoded. The audio stream in a WAV file for instance could be encoded in a vast number of completely different compressed or uncompressed codecs, it may possibly even contain an audio stream encoded as MP3. MP4 and OGG are container codecs, which may contain audio streams of various codecs, in addition to video streams, metadata and for instance subtitles.

FLAC, brief for Free Lossless Audio Codec, is an open format with royalty-free licensing audio coding format for lossless compression of digital audio. Digital audio compressed by FLAC's algorithm can usually be diminished to 50-60% of its unique dimension and decompressed to an identical copy of the unique audio information. FLAC has assist for metadata tagging, album cowl artwork,and fast in search of. Nonetheless, FLAC is incompatible with most popular media player or transportable devices like Home windows Media Player, QuickTime, iTunes, iPod, iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry, MP3 participant and etc. Utilizing , it is easy to convert M4A files to a wide range of other formats. I think lowlander can also be proper concerning the plugins to do agree m4a aac to mp3 wav amr ogg converter serial could properly must be purchased, I have bought them, unsure the place or when, but I can convert mfa to mp3 anyway. You are able to do a search on google free of charge m4a - mp3 converters and do that outside MM, after which you'll be able to import the converted files into your library.Low degree compatibility: Apple Inc. developed it, so M4A is principally applied to iPod, iTunes and related Apple units, nevertheless it's not suitable for a lot of other units and media gamers. You possibly can upload distant audio information through their direct URL in addition to information stored in your Google Drive account. To avoid wasting the brand new aac information elsewhere, drag them out from iTunes (this is not going to remove them from iTunes Library). You possibly can delete any information (including the aac information) as required in the Music Record. (do not tamper with the precise library within the Finder).ACC audio format is a successor of MP3 that provides with versatile conversion settings and excessive-quality compression. It's the official format for iPhone, iPod and iTunes, but also is supported by numerous players and units. Changing FLAC into AAC you may acquire more environment friendly file compression whereas saving good sounding quality.Once upload accomplished, converter will redirect a web page to show the conversion consequence. Nonetheless, increasingly sound packages are able to play Ogg Vorbis information, and most recent hardware MP3 players help the format. Very simple to make use of as it focused solely on converting M4A to MP3. OGG would not stand for something. Actually, it's not even a compression format. OGG is a multimedia container that can hold all kinds of compression formats, however is mostly used to hold Vorbis files — hence why these audio recordsdata are called Ogg Vorbis recordsdata.The toolkit is backwardly appropriate with simpler and pre-current AAC decoders. A great deal of the toolkit's error correction functions are primarily based round spreading details about the audio sign more evenly in the datastream. Compared with its predecessor MP3, M4A format supplies with better sound quality and smaller file dimension. Because of lossless compaction, the information could also be easily transformed in each path with no deterioration in high quality. The sound information encoded with ACC compression, which reduces the file dimension considerably.

[38sr]

Cintiq VS iPad (9.7 inch)

So it’s been almost a week since I bought myself an iPad and I figured, why not make a post comparing both my Cintiq and new iPad? I always get asked about what tablets I work with and which is better etc etc etc. Now, these aren’t the only options in terms of buying a drawing tablet. In fact, I’ve bought and used tablets under $100 when I first started digital art (in ye old middle school days). The real goal is to find what works for you and for me these two tablets are what suit my tastes and needs. And more importantly, having expensive tools doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll make you draw better. You need to draw more and experiment a lot in order for your drawing to improve.

With that, let’s get into it.

Cintiq 13HD (No-Touch) Price: $900

So, I’ve actually had my Cintiq for almost 2 years now (received in 2016) and it was Christmas present that took 2 years prior to that to happen (part of it was constantly bombarding my parents with how much I need it and saving up the money). There are 2 versions of this tablet: No-Touch and Touch. Personally, I like to place my hand on whatever surface I’m drawing or writing on. I couldn’t tell you why, I just do it. I know some people can write without doing that and it feels weird for me to try and do that. I need to have my hand on the surface to feel out the motions I guess. So, I opted to buy the No-Touch version, which only responds to my stylus pen and nothing else. 

If you’re an artist that loves drawing on surface and feels like they can execute better with drawing on-screen, then this tablet is for you. I’ve used tablets that aren’t on-screen drawing types and let me tell you, it’s a hassle to draw like that. Now, there are plenty of great digital artists who use these types of tablets and can make beautiful art, you go and props to you. But personally, again, I need to be able to draw on the surface to really feel what I’m making.

Pros:

Great for stationery studio work that requires more hours for completion

Pen pressure sensitivity is great 

Little to no lagging while drawing

Can use as a second screen display (wanna watch Hulu while drawing? Now you can! )

Stylus pen has little button that’s really helpful for changing colors without having to the color wheel to eye dropper tool, just click and go

Compatible with both Macs and PCs

Comes with driver updates once installed so you don’t have to go the website and all that

Don’t have to charge any battery of sorts, it’s simply a second monitor screen

Comes with extra pen nibs, pen case and tablet stand

Cons:

Not portable and needs to be connected to a desktop of laptop in order to draw

May need an adapter for the port since some computers don’t all have HMDI ports yet (mine doesn’t and I needed an adapter)

Cables can get wonky if you continuously unplug and re-plug from moving to different locations, hence why it’s best for you to have a stationery studio to leave the Cintiq to preserve the cables better

Monitor screen slightly washes out colors, so make sure to look at the illustration on your main screen to check if your colors are okay.

Mini Express-Key pad is difficult to use (it’s customizable but you’re better off just using your hotkeys in my opinion)

Tablet stand isn’t the best, too much pressure can make it fall (but for the most part it does the job)

NEEDS TO BE UPDATED OR ELSE YOUR PEN WON’T WORK JUST TRUST ME

Expensive (current listing now is $800 after 2 years)

iPad (9.7 inch)  & Apple Pencil Price: $530

Let me start off saying that I actually bought the iPad and Apple Pencil together on sale. This price doesn’t include any accessories like a tablet case and pen case. I’m saving up to buy those things later, but for right now I only paid for the tablet and pen. In addition, the Apple Pencil I bought was also refurbished so it was $10 less that original price ($99). 

My iPad Specs

9.7 inch

128GB

Wi-Fi

No cellular

Rose Gold version

1 year warantee

I already own an iPhone so I don’t have a need to call or text people on my iPad. The reason I bought this was so that I’m able to draw on the go more or less. I don’t need cellular to draw on the go. Also, the 9.7 inch iPad has 2 versions: 32GB or 128GB. If you want more space, then you have to pay an extra $100 (which I did cause I’m gonna be drawing and CLIP files can get pretty big).

In reality, had I bought this tablet and Apple Pencil together when it initially came out, I would have paid $700-$800 dollars. That’s like buying a Cintiq but for a smaller screen. So, I waited until prices dropped over time and tried out my friends’ iPads just to get comfortable before I bought mine. I suggest doing this if you want an iPad but not sure if you want to make that jump yet. It took me 3-4 months to save up for this purchase (cause I had a job in my school and started doing commissions, so I was able to save money faster than I did 2 years ago)

Pros:

Portable and easy to store in your bookbag as long as you have a case

Practically no lagging when it comes to drawing 

Pen pressure sensitivity is great (like too great, it can go so light that it beats out Cintiq pen pressure sensitivity)

Just like an iPhone, can switch between horizontal and vertical views so you can choose which is comfortable

Extremely lightweight

Colors are great and not washed out

AIRDROP IS GODSENT (wanna finish that sketch you made earlier? AirDrop it to your Mac and finish it on your Cintiq)

Long battery life (I’ve only charged it once so far)

Apple Pencil also has long battery life

Apple Pencil is bluetooth so it connects once you set it up the first time

Rose gold is a cute color

More affordable

Cons:

Apple Pencil needs to be charged and doesn’t have a way of showing when it’s at 100% (gotta hope for the best honestly, but on your iPad it’ll tell you when your Pencil is at 5%)

When needed, it takes almost a day to fully charge iPad

Not suited for work that requires a lot of time, so it’s more of a sketchbook if anything else

If you choose to not have cellular, you can’t really use any apps that require Wi-Fi 

Don’t have hotkeys for my drawing program, it’s pretty much manual

Touch sensitive to both Apple Pencil and hands, so yeah it’s a bit of hassle when drawing and my resting palm makes unnecessary marks

So that’s pretty much all I have to say about both tablets in regards to pros and cons. Of course, these aren’t only tablets you can use if you want to do digital drawing. I’m just simply sharing my experiences and thoughts on these particular tablets since I use them. Now, Cintiqs are studio standard equipment (if you wanna work in animation that is) so that’s really the reason why I own one (since I am an animator). I bought the iPad cause I dislike not being able to digitally draw anywhere outside of my room (which is my studio). Or when I go for meetings with my clients for freelance projects and having to use a napkin for drawing. It’s more or less a sketchbook for me. But I do highly recommend the iPad for it’s price since it’s almost $300 less than the smallest Cintiq (which is the 13HD). Also, you can still use your favorite drawing programs (except for SAI I think) and it doesn’t feel any different. 

Hope this post was helpful to someone! 

[tvwriteups]

tvw is having Black Friday and electronics dilemmas

I'm one of those people that browses Black Friday deals for things I am going to buy for myself.

It's hard to decide what to get this year though. I haven't had a new electronic device since I got a Nintendo Switch last June (so I could join everyone else playing ACNH).

I'm still on a PS4. I actually still have my PS3 but I can't do anything with it because someone took my controller to give to a kid who had a broken controller and has not replaced my controller! (I have a separate remote for it so it's just a glorified CD player.)

My phone is a couple of years old. It's probably the one item I don't care to update.

My Squeezebox Boom died the other month. I need a new clock but not sure I need the streaming radio anymore. (It is so old!)

My favorite solar Logitech PC keyboard is dead. I did replace the battery but it didn't last all that long. (There is no legit replacement battery that can be bought; can only buy it through something that feels shady.) I have a Mac version of the same keyboard which is not getting used because that iMac actually isn't even mine and is currently in someone else's home right now.

My Kindle Fire is a 5th Gen and they're on 10 now! I don't stream on it (I have a phone for that) so I don't really need a new one. I see deal prices and I think I want a new one but...like...don't need it. It's also the only tablet I have (I've never owned an iPad in my life and have zero need for one).

My MBA's battery life sucks now and there isn't enough storage on this thing to run updates. Heck, I'm not even sure I can update to the new iOS. I tell myself I'll just buy a Mac dedicated hard drive to get around the upgrade/storage issue but when I see deals... and then I'm all "do I know a student I can hit up for a deal?"

And my desktop PC is dying. I think the hard drive is due to fail. I don't even know when I bought it anymore. I've had two desktops in 10 years (and still have that old husk and an even older Gateway fro, 2001 sitting on my floor!). But prices on quality desktops are insane even with the deals because of all the crypto mining driving the costs up. I don't want to spend that money on something that doesn't automatically come with Windows 11 so I'm gonna have to wait another year.

I don't understand why I didn't just format my hard drives to be compatible with both PCs and Macs. Aside from laziness it's probably because of size limitation issues. My PC is backed up to external hard drives that I cannot plug into my Mac.

Hence, I need a new PC with a USB port so I can still access the backed up files for when the old desktop finally kicks it.

I really wanted to be all Windows PC desktop and MacBook laptop but... yeah, just plonked some cash on what is essentially a desktop replacement laptop of the budget gaming variety. It's meeting in the middle and totally the setup I didn't want to go for but doing what I want doesn't make any financial sense at the moment.

I could probably turn around and sell it or even gift it to a younger family member when I finally can pull the trigger on the computer setup that I want.

Not just electronics going on here but I'm also feeling like I need a new couch. One of the kids was picking at the leather and now a portion of the couch bothers me to sit on unless I put a blanked between the surface and myself. My deceased aunt had purchased it for me so it will be hard for me to let it go. Also, it is an insane sleep-inducing couch -- just something about it! Even guests had come over and find themselves nodding off on it.

I don't know. I don't know if it's a case of everything having gotten old or increased indoor stay due to the pandemic just making me bored with the stuff around me.

I did replace my air fryer though but that's because the previous one broke.

Need a new device for making coffee. Not sure if I should get an actual small coffee maker or get one of those Melitta ceramic cones. I keep telling myself I shouldn't drink coffee anymore but I keep going back like an addict. (I never became a regular coffee drinker until I turned 28.)

Grr. Need to make a backup image of my current desktop. Grr. Grr. I used to not mind doing this stuff but I find it incredibly annoying now. Probably because old now.

I just so freakin' restless and annoyed that I took apart a large armchair so I could move it upstairs to my den... just so things could be a little different around here!

A little less than a year ago I was sleeping on a queen sized mattress on the floor of my living room. And then a couple of month later I was sleeping on a queen-sized bed in my den. And then in September I was finally back to my own bedroom (loooooong story).

Wait, is this cabin fever?