#62nd anniversary

[tropes-and-tales-archives]

More Precious Than Rubies: Part 2

This is an alternate timeline story that has a Rafael Barba track and a Sonny Carisi track. The two paths split off in part 3.

WC: 1696

TW: Angst; end of relationship drama; SVU-typical case about alleged rape.

AN: The prompt was "You Know Who to Call"

Sonny spent a long while getting over you.  Deep down, he worried that he would never really get over you.  He had messed everything up so badly, and he never realized how much you had brightened his life until you were suddenly gone.  He practically experienced auditory hallucinations, swearing he’d heard his phone chime with a new message – but there was never anything there.  No short, cute messages from you telling him that you missed him and couldn’t wait to see him again.  No forwarded emails about interesting legal cases.  No slightly risqué pictures, like the one you’d sent him the night before your anniversary…which he had ended up missing anyway.

And you were gone.  He guessed that you blocked his number because none of his texts or calls went through.  He sent you a few long, heartfelt emails that he was certain you deleted without reading.  But that was the thing about you:  no matter how badly you were probably hurting, you weren’t going to let it slow you down or derail your life.  As Sonny had remarked once, you had your life together in ways that Amanda never would.

He heard through his Fordham friends that you’d gotten a coveted internship with a firm that specialized in overturning wrongful convictions.  Sonny had always pictured the two of you as two sides of the same righteous coin:  him, punishing evil-doers and you, righting wrongs. 

He only saw you once in the months that followed.  You were standing on the other side of West 62nd street, so bundled against the cold that he almost missed that it was you.  But it was you – the same blue pea coat with the frayed cuffs, the same plaid scarf wound around your neck.  It made Sonny’s stomach drop, and he wanted nothing more than to dash across the street after you.  He wanted to fall onto his knees in front of you, bury his head against your stomach, and beg you to listen to the apologies that had choked him since he’d screwed up and lost you.  But a long line of traffic divided you, and when it was time to cross, he completely lost you in the crowd.

And then it was a solid year before he saw you again.

********

Rafael Barba stood on the other side of the glass with Olivia and Carisi, watching as Fin and Rollins interviewed their suspect.  A jittery young man, one Jeremy Michaels.  Freshman at Hudson University on a full academic scholarship, apparent hope of his family…and accused of raping a seventeen-year old classmate.

The evidence so far was nothing more than the girl’s word, but Barba knew it was in the early stages and SVU would probably find more for him.  His mind wandered to the other cases sitting on his desk, but his reverie was broken by the sound of heels clicking across the floor.  He looked up and saw some anonymous junior detective leading a young woman towards them.

“This is his public defender,” he said with a jerk of the thumb to the sweating young man on the other side of the glass.  Barba perked up and looked you over, and he while he didn’t miss Carisi’s sharp intake of breath beside him, the older man just ignored it. 

For a public defender, you were in a nicer suit than he’d expect, a well-cut jacket over a pencil skirt that hugged your curves nicely.  But you were young – so young that you looked like a child playing dress up.  Even with your hair swept up into a classic chignon and your perfectly manicured hand that you extended to him in greeting, you looked like you should be settling into your own dorm room for college instead of defending human trash.

“ADA Rafael Barba,” he said, wrapping your slim hand in his larger one.  “I don’t think I’ve had the pleasure.”

You introduced yourself.  “Newly minted public defender.”  You glanced over his shoulder at Liv and Carisi, and Barba saw you narrow your eyes a fraction before you nodded at them.  Then you pulled your hand away from his and looked through the one-way mirror.  “Is that my client?”

“It is,” Liv said after clearing her throat.  “It’s good to see you again.”

Barba’s ears pricked up at that – Liv knew you? – but you ignored the niceties. 

“I was hoping it wasn’t Mr. Michaels,” you said.  “Because it’d be a violation of his constitutional rights if you were still interrogating him after he asked for counsel.”

“Not an interrogation,” Liv started, but you cut her off.

“This ends now.  I need a moment with my client, please.”  And then Barba watched as you swept past them and barged into the interrogation room like you owned the place, hustling Fin and Rollins out with a look that he swore was nearly vengeful.  The Liv switched off the speaker, and Barba half-watched you, half-listened to the squad talk around him.

“How do you know her?” he asked conversationally, watching as you talked in earnest to the scared young man and then clasped a reassuring hand to his shoulder.

“She used to date Carisi,” Rollins finally said. 

“Huh,” Barba said.  It made sense.  You were a young public defender.  You couldn’t be that bright:  first of all, you dated Carisi.  Secondly, no one at the top of their class ever became a public defender, no matter how much of a do-gooder they were. 

After a moment, you left the conference room with your client, your chin tilted at the squad in near defiance.  “Charge him or cut him loose,” you said.  “In the meantime, if you need to bring him back in for questioning, you know who to call.” 

Then you marched out of the precinct with Michaels, your head high and your heels a steady staccato, leaving little in your wake other than a hint of some sunny perfume and a room thick with tension.

“That was awkward,” Fin said, and Barba glanced over at Carisi, noting how pale he was, how quiet.  Carisi was never quiet. 

“It doesn’t matter,” Rollins scoffed.  “We have this guy cold.  We’ll arrest him before the week is out and have him found guilty within a month.”

There was something appealing about you, the way you’d strode into that interview room, the way you’d marched back out with your head high and a fire in your eyes.  And, obviously, there were a million questions about a woman who had dated Carisi, of all people on earth. 

Barba was going to almost regret annihilating you in court.

********

You annihilated Barba in court.  You only knew about the swaggering ADA tangentially, but you knew that he relied on style points when SVU couldn’t give him solid cases. 

You always knew you wanted to be a public defender – you knew it since you were a kid who shouldn’t have to know what a public defender even was.  Let people make assumptions about your ability or tenacity.  They’d learn, eventually.

Like ADA Barba.  You saw him look you over, and you saw him make an immediate judgement about your skill.  The SVU squad knew you a bit, but they only knew you as Sonny’s sad-sack ex-girlfriend who used to linger around the precinct for a chance to see your absentee boyfriend.

Sonny knew you best of all of them, but you knew he didn’t know much.  You’d dated for over a year, and he likely couldn’t name half the things a dedicated lover should.  Did he know your favorite flower, or your favorite ice cream flavor?  Unlikely.

Did he know your family history and the preternatural zeal for competent – no, excellent – counsel for the poorest and most desperate citizens?  Even more unlikely.

You knew you’d have to defend the guilty.  You already had a full caseload, with at least three clients who not only committed the crime they were accused of, but freely admitted how much they enjoyed committing it. 

Jeremy Michaels wasn’t one of those cases.  He was innocent and never wavered from his story.  You hunkered down and built him a strong defense, and well – if revealing SVU’s slipshod practices was an outcome of the case, then it was just a happy accident.

In court, you parried every one of Barba’s thrusts, and then watched you eviscerated the state’s case.  You called in witnesses of your own.  In a move that felt so good it felt like a narcotic, you called Amanda to the stand and got her twisted in her own testimony.  Then, when she got upset, she came across as openly hostile, even when Barba tried to cross her and salvage it.  You watched at least three jury members turn on the state’s case, just like that.

And then, the coup de grace:  you exposed SVU as sloppy.  You turned in evidence after evidence of the alleged victim’s social media while the victim was on the stand.  Posts from Facebook that SVU should have found and vetted during their investigation – but didn’t.  It had taken you all of twenty minutes of idle scrolling through the young woman’s social media feed.  You had no idea how NYPD missed it.

And then you made the alleged victim read her own words for the court.  Back-and-forth threads with friends about how she, a honey-blonde white girl from the Upper East Side, was hooking up with a black scholarship kid from Biloxi, Mississippi.  And when one friend opined that the alleged victim’s father would go nuclear when he found out about his only daughter’s hook up?

“Miss Prince, can you read this last comment for the jury?” you asked, and your voice sounded so sweet and accommodating that the woman smiled before she realized what you were asking.

She stuttered, turned bright red, and then read the damning bit in a voice that was so low that you cut her off and made her repeat it. 

“What does it say, Miss Prince?”

The young woman glared at you, then read it in a steadier voice.  “It says, ‘if my dad finds out, I’ll just say he raped me.’”

And everything after that was just a formality, really.

[rotm-channel]

In-universe This drawing was done by Jamie who managed to find some old tapes of Fireball XL5 while his young mind was captivated by the interstellar adventures of Steve and his crew he minded that it was in black and white so he made this drawing to give it some color.....

For Fireball XL5s 62nd anniversary(This took 2 months of hard work and planning to make so I hope you love it)f

[kernyen-xo]

2023 Year in Review

Firstly, I’m gonna start out by saying that one thing about having short hair is the wild bed head that occurs.

And…you’re welcome.

On with my year in review:

Feb: 1-year anniversary at my job.

Apr: Celebrated my 62nd birthday. The kid celebrated her 43rd birthday and the grandkid celebrated her 13th.

Jul: 1-year anniversary owning my home.

Aug: The lease was up for the silver RAV4, so I leased a white one with a few more doohickeys. I’m still discovering what the vehicle can do, so I feel like I’m in a perpetual state of being dweeb-like.

I discovered the joy of watching k-dramas.

I became a fan of BTS. I discovered them while searching for k-dramas on Instagram. I knew of them, but not about them. These guys are amazingly talented, smart, and humble despite their crazy overwhelming success across the world.

Became a fan of Bob’s Burgers. My fave character is Linda :D

Most scary thing: When the kid was diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

Most happiest/grateful moment: When the kid told me that she was cancer-free. Thankfully, she had a rare kind of ovarian cancer that was not aggressive as is typical of ovarian cancers.

I read 145 books.

I’ve taken up collecting pop-up books. It’s a fun hobby. If you have any recommendations, let me know :)

I’d like to think I’ve grown wiser with age. I just know my tolerance for bullshit is kissing dirt. Sometimes, I feel like I’m behaving like a persnickety old woman. But, then I think, well dammit, people can sure be stupid silly, and I don’t have time or the patience for it.

Overall, I’m a kind person though. Truly.

Anyway, laugh all you want :D. Just remember, I’m laughing along with you ;)

Toodles -xo

[oldguardleatherdog]

The September 11th roleplay consulting post: a gift that keeps on giving.

Hey faithful folks and followers, friends old and new, it's late in the kennel and I've got an early class and should be in bed but wanted to drop a note about the 9/11 roleplay post where I offered to be a consultant for a Discord server reenactment that's picked up more than 100,000 notes since my addition last August.

Seven months down the road, it continues to draw comments and reactions that pop up from time to time in my mentions. A few are designed to work my nerve, of course, but the vast majority are a balm to my spirit. Most are variations of "he had me in the first half ngl", keyboard smashes abound, many make me laugh out loud, and I truly wish Tumblr allowed reactions or direct replies to tags because so many ask me how I'm doing, want to know more (and I still get direct messages about it, which I encourage), and express respect and warmth that makes my heart just want to burst.

I get a lot of grief across social media as a queer activist, especially these days, and my initial foray into Tumblr was marred by a 10,000-person brigading of a stoner post I made that was picked up by some 20-year-old in Scotland of all places who thought it sport to make fun of a 60-year-old pup player with AIDS ("I wish he died in 9/11" is a memorable comment, and I'm afraid I'll never forgive a certain were--something who joined in) followed by a mass reporting that wiped out my queer resource blog (and you can be sure I haven't stopped trying to get it restored)... but the reactions to my toss-off dark humor post as a September 11th Survivor have wiped that slate clean, and my time here is a joy and a blessing and always, always well-spent and worthwhile.

For the record: I'm doing fine. My PTSD is well-treated and rarely troubles me, my performance art and music career has never been more active and vital, and I'm working as a director for a trans rescue organization (www.rainbowpassage.org, please give us a look and spread the word), on the front lines of queer activism where I have always belonged.

I have a beautiful family whom I cherish, my Master and I will celebrate our first wedding anniversary in a week and my 62nd birthday the next day (15 years together on 4/20!), and I treasure each and every one of you. Thank you for reading my various barks and howls, for being a part of my Tumblr journey, and for your presence in my life.

Best woofs always, Animal aka pup bruzr

[synergysilhouette]

I swear, they approached Disney's 100th anniversary film all wrong.

The best part about "Wish" were the easter eggs, and even those were hit-or-miss. The plot didn't scream fairy tale or Disney--and neither did the music; if I never knew this film was a Disney film, I'd say it was a company's first attempt at an animated film. As a first attempt, it's not bad, but as Disney's 62nd film and an ode to 100 years of business....I was heavily disappointed.

I've made posts about how this could've been another epic Disney film, but for this post, I wanna try another angle, with two different ways Disney could've approached this celebratory film.

Option 1: A parody. Looking at "Enchanted", AKA one of Disney's best live-action films, the movie makes fun of classic Disney tropes as well as paying homage to renaissance-era films, which at the time this movie came out, was Walt Disney Animation Studio's biggest successful period. A film about a naive animated soon-to-be princess who is banished to the real world discovers what she wants out of life, all while charming those around her. I'm not saying "Wish" needed to include the real world aspect, but having a parody about a princess (or prince) who comes off very early-Disney while still feeling modern and giving us Disney-esque tropes and a fun story would've been a great vibe. Imagine if Asha is naive and easily taken advantage of by King Magnifico, who teaches her magic and manipulates her into harming others, seeing her youth as a weakness ("Well, you're young. You don't know anything, really."). Imagine the story actually having her BE a fairy godmother, albeit in training, and she has to learn the price and limitations of wishes (very "Cinderella"-esque) and learning when to help and when not to help others. It'd be mature and magical at the same time! Plus I imagine Magnifico being a cross between Narissa and Gaston. Amaya would probably be non-existant or an admirer Magnifico uses.

Option 2: A cutting, modern take on a classic. While I'd rather have "Kingdom of the Sun," "The Emperor's New Groove" is a funny and irreverent story about a selfish Inca Emperor who's turned into a llama by his power-hungry advisor and must return to the palace while learning to care about others along the way. Kuzco, in contrast to most Disney protagonists (or most protagonists in kids/family films in general) starts off petty, untrustworthy, and self-centered, but these qualities also give way to cleverness and humor, something that most Disney heroes lack due to either their innocence, kindess, or seriousness. Kuzco continually comments on things around him with quips and remarks that go unnoticed by the general populace (thanks to breaking the 4th wall), and it got me thinking, what if Asha was like this--or better yet, Magnifico? What if Magnifico wasn't a villain per se, but a selfish and mean king who continually had pessimistic comments to make about this fantasy-esque kingdom he created and his airheaded inhabitants. Their growing dependence on him--as well as their happy-go-lucky attitudes make him constantly patronize and devalue them, and his attitude accidentally causes destruction for the kingdom. When Asha challenges his perspective and goes on an adventure to bring back his love for others (trauma does run deep for him), he learns that everyone has a wish worth granting, and that he shouldn't be so quick to look down on others because they still have the joy and innocence he lost. Plus the people of Rosas learn not to take advantage of others and appreciate the things they have. Magnifico being like a cross between Yzma and Kuzco would be a sight to behold, while Asha takes on more of a wise Pocahontas-type role.

I can't be the only one who thinks this was a better approach to "Wish" if they didn't want to do a typical epic film.

[ifreakingloveroyals]

Happy 62nd Anniversary Juan Carlos and Sofía! (m. 14 May 1962)

[wevelocityteampresents-blog]

Something I made for Top Cat's 62nd anniversary this week.

I wanted to draw Spook. But I thought the dialogue was a better fit for Brain. This was actually my first time drawing him. I usually draw Spook or Choo Choo since they're my favorites and are easier for me to draw. Now that I've drawn Brain, I've nearly drawn the entire gang. All that's left is Benny.

I also wanted to upload this to my website. But I didn't think it was good enough for it.

[daisybvintage]

Daily Vintage: Avon Golden Promise for Avon’s 62nd Anniversary, 1948

[thejoyofviolentmovement]

Throwback: Happy 62nd BIrthday, Dave Gahan!

Throwback: Happy 62nd BIrthday, Dave Gahan! @theimposter @depechemode

May is a busy month in music history: The 91st anniversary of the birth of the legendary godfather of soul James Brown was on May 3 The legendary jazz bassist Ron Carter celebrated his 87th birthday on May 4 The 68th anniversary of the birth of the great soul artist Sharon Jones was on May 4 The 82nd anniversary of the birth of one of the most beloved singer/songwriters in country, Tammy…

[tomoleary]

S. Clay Wilson, Art Spiegelman, Spain Rodriguez, Paul Mavrides, Jay Kinney, and Hal Robins "Happy Birthday" Specialty Illustration Original Art (2000) Source

“A special present to San Francisco Comic Book Company owner and mega-EC fan, Gary Arlington, done to celebrate his 62nd birthday, and the 50th anniversary of EC's classic "New Trend" comics.”

[forleejehoon]

Industrial Bank of Korea IG reel: 🎉Happy 62nd anniversary to IBK 🩵

[tea-party-at-wonderland]

President Vladimir Putin laid a wreath at the Eternal Flame in the Hall of Military Glory and honoured the memory of the fallen soldiers with a moment of silence. He also laid flowers at the grave of Marshal of the Soviet Union, twice Hero of the USSR Vasily Chuikov, commander of the 62nd Army (8th Guards Army as of April 1943), which valiantly fought for Stalingrad for six months, eventually defending the city in fierce battle.

The event was also attended by Presidential Plenipotentiary Envoy to the Southern Federal District Vladimir Ustinov and Governor of the Volgograd Region Andrei Bocharov.

The Battle of Stalingrad (July 17, 1942 – February 2, 1943) went down in history as one of the longest WWII land battles, involving the highest number of troops. It marked a major turning point in the war and became a symbol of a moral victory over fascism.

On February 2, commemorative events marking the 80th anniversary of Soviet troops defeating the Nazis in the Battle of Stalingrad are held throughout the country. Every year, the Volgograd Region becomes the centre of a national celebration. In 2011, the Battle of Stalingrad State Historical and Memorial Museum and Reserve was recognised as a particularly valuable cultural heritage site of the peoples of the Russian Federation.

(Source)

[arlenschumer]

TONIGHT is the EXACT 62nd Anniversary of TWILIGHT ZONE creator ROD SERLING'S Christmas episode, "Night of the Meek," starring Art Carney and directed by Jack Smight, which originally aired on Friday night, December 23, 1960 at 10:00pm on CBS. Here's an essay I wrote about it, and an excerpt: "Its earnest but heartwarming touches give 'Meek' a gravitas not normally associated with holiday-themed television episodes, a seriousness steeped in Serling’s Judeo-Christian-Unitarian social concerns of the time, like the burgeoning civil rights movement. "In the episode’s opening department store scene, the first person we notice is a young boy—a black boy—placed prominently in the foreground, a black among the all-white crowd of parents and kids. "This was 1960, when nary a 'negro' was to be found on television...so after Carney's Santa wistfully whines, 'On one Christmas, I’d like to see the meek inherit the earth,' Director Smight cuts right to a closeup of that black kid." https://bit.ly/3WjjFvH #rodserling #twilightzone #thetwilightzone #artcarney #tv #television #tvhistory #televisionhistory #christmas #santaclaus #arlenschumer @dgareps @dbbushman @richardsyrettstrangeplanet @adamschumer @nyadventureclub https://www.instagram.com/p/Cmg9HOeLYUb/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[bhaskarlive]

Farhan Akhtar remembers Rezang La Heroes with ‘120 Bahadur’ tribute

On the 62nd anniversary of the Battle of Rezang La, Farhan Akhtar paid tribute to the 120 brave soldiers who sacrificed their lives during this pivotal chapter of the 1962 Indo-China war.

Source: bhaskarlive.in

[theankoletimes]

Museveni: Rail Infrastructure to Cut Costs

President Yoweri Museveni emphasized the critical role of railways in reducing transport costs and enhancing business profitability in his speech during Uganda’s 62nd Independence Anniversary. Speaking at a celebration in Busia, where he was joined by Central African Republic President Faustin-Archange Touadera, Museveni discussed Uganda’s economic history, its current development, and plans to…