#Alex if I didn't have 12 days to prepare for this....

[flufflecat]

[queen-of-reptiles]

𝙼𝙰𝙽𝙲𝙷𝙴𝚂𝚃𝙴𝚁 𝚁𝙴𝙳

description: In which Laura and her wife surprise everyone with not only their marriage, but the ref shocks people on pitch as well

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laura coombs x female reader

disclaimer: this is all fiction! Do not take any of this seriously

warnings: language, cuteness and slight anger/angst

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y/n just posted

liked by, 1maryearps, ellatoone and 328, 299 others

tagged lccoombs

y/n derby day tomorrow means pampering today :) 🥰

view 12, 289 comments

username1: I love them so much !!! 🥹🥹

username2: I want this relationship ! 💳💳

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username3: RIGHT???

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username4: I want someone to love me this much as well! 🥺

username5: I WANT THEM MARRIED NOWWW

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username6: SAME 😭

lccoombs: my baby <33

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y/n: <333

lucybronze: You never do cute things like this with me :(

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y/n: you ain't my girlfriend

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lucybronze: I'm your best friend

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y/n: you're in BARCELONA??

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lucybronze: hmmmph

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y/n: answer my ft call rn

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username7: FRIENDSHIP GOALS 🥺🥺

keirawalsh: parents 👏😌

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y/n: o' sweet child of mine!!! 🥰

stanwaygeorgia: cuties !!

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lccoombs: 😘😘

ellatoone: See you tomorrow Laur! ❤️

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y/n: she says see you! 💙

alessiarusso99: Love this! 🥺

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y/n: love you! 🥺

manutdwomen: love you two sm !! ❤️❤️

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y/n just posted on her story

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twitter/X

username1: HAS ANYONE SEEN UTD'S TEAM SHEET??? 😭

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username2: ARE THEY?????

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username3: THEY HAVE TO BE??? 😱😱😱

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username4: OMG OMG OMG OMG

username5: Y/N FUCKING COOMBS OMG 🥰🥰🥰

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y/n couldn't help but laugh at the crowd's reaction to her shirt, the cheers and screams of excitement at the name on the back made Mary roll her eyes playfully.

Laura and y/n had kept their marriage quiet, only a their teams and families came, as well as the England squad. No one seemed to suspect a thing without the engagement announcement.

It had been a gorgeous ceremony, y/n's maid of honour being Lucy and the right-back made her cry far too many times with her speech. And after discussing, y/n decided she wanted her wife's name on her back.

The second the man utd team sheet went up, the comments and her phone had been blowing up, the team and herself finding itself hilarious as people freaked out.

And after taping her ring around her finger and walking out with her team, y/n could see the complete shock her name change had given and it made her grin.

As they walked down the line, high fiving the city players, Laura came face to face with her wife, both being started today due to other injuries in the squads.

Laura smiled softly as she got to her wife last, the blonde pressing a kiss to her wife's ring, which caused a loud 'awww' to ripple through stadium.

y/n smiled softly and winked at her wife before jogging to her team and getting ready to prepare for the match, a small knot of worry in her stomach.

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twitter/X

username1: man this game is rough!!

username2: y/n and Laura are so cute tho, the fact Laura instantly pulled her away from Alex is so sweet

username3: y/n's yellow was in no way a card?? 🙄🙄

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username4: honestly this ref hates her, because even the commentators said she got the ball???

username5: THIS REF HATES MAN UTD WTF??? 🖕🖕🖕

username6: I AM SOO confused how that is a free kick? Like? Man city were losing so the ref was like oops better let them get a goal???

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username7: I'm a city fan and even I think y/n's card was wayyy too harsh?

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username8: the way Laura was there like, 'she got the fucking ball?' - like??? 😡😡

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y/n didn't know what was going on. She was aware that she was being rough, but Manchester derby's were always like that. But the ref seemed to have it out for her.

She was on a yellow and she knew it as she jostled with her lover, Laura just slipping past her with her smaller frame. y/n let out a curse of annoyance as she chased after her wife.

She managed to jostle again and dispossess her wife, the blonde sprawling out across the floor in annoyance as y/n's harsh shoulder barge, a legal tackle but an annoying one.

Laura stood up and watched as Mary managed to intercept y/n's pass, her wife letting out another curse of annoyance as she moved back into her defensive position.

However, the shrill call of the whistle stopped the game as Katie dispossessed Mary. Katie threw her arms up annoyance as y/n defended her captain, saying she had fairly got the ball.

To everyone's shock however, the ref held up a second yellow y/n's way, quickly switching to the dreaded red. It was current the 76th minute and 2-2.

"What the fuck?" y/n asked in shock.

"Wait why?" Ella asks running over to the ref.

"Foul language toward another player." The ref stated and y/n's jaw dropped as she looked over to Marc, her manager who was animatedly trying to discuss it with the 4th official.

"I didn't say it to her, I said shit as I tried to chase her down!" y/n yelled, walking toward the ref. "You've had it out for me all game." y/n defends once more.

The ref was having none of her defence and pointed at the tunnel. Despite the game being at City, the crowd suddenly set off in louds sets of boo's at the ref.

The cheer of 'you don't know what you're doing' became louder as y/n continued to shout in anger at the ref, Laura finally tugging her wife away, telling her to calm down.

"Get the fuck off me!" y/n hisses ripping herself out of her wife's hold and her move caused the smaller woman to stumble slightly. The ref blew her whistle again.

y/n let out a dull laugh as she heard the official following her the woman telling her to get off the pitch immediately. y/n scoffed and trudged off the pitch.

Marc was looking as confused as she was and as the ref shouted at her once more, y/n had enough. She chuckled and grabbed her coat from the bench and jumped over the barrier.

The cheers got louder as she moved to the crowd tugging on her coat and lifting her water to her mouth as she sat next to a city fan, who held up his fist for a fist bump, which y/n did.

The ref watched her confused for a moment, as if trying to figure out if she was serious. y/n just opened her arms as if to say 'and what' as she grinned.

"I'm off pitch!" y/n called and Laura had to slide a hand over her mouth to hide her wide grin.

If there was one thing people loved about Laura's wife, it was that she was known for being a sarcastic little shit, it was one of the things people adored about her.

y/n knew they would appeal the cards and at least her red and one yellow would be revoked, because in all honesty she hadn't done shit.

Marc snorted, having to walk away as he tried not to burst out laughing at his longest running player, acting liked a child as she sat in the opposite teams stand, with people cheering for her.

Eventually, the game drew to a close, a draw being the final result even with utd down a woman. Laura moved over to her wife, who was sat chatting to a city fan, who seemed to be in awe of the woman next to her, despite being a City fan.

"You coming trouble?" Laura yelled up to her wife, who grinned and said goodbye to the fan, taking a quick photo before jumping back over the railing and into her wife's arms.

"I'm sorry for snapping love." y/n hummed, Laura chuckling as she pressed a kiss to her lover's head.

"It's okay baby, you had a rough game." Laura promises as they walk into the tunnel.

"She fucking hated me!" y/n defends and Laura sighs pressing a kiss to her wife's head.

"And you are no help with your sass." Laura says and y/n scoffs.

"Just because you're two years older doesn't mean you can mother me!" y/n tells her wife as they near the changing rooms.

"I thought you liked it when I took charge?" Laura asks quietly, her teeth pulling at her wife's earlobe as the woman pauses in shock.

Laura chuckles and kisses her wife's cheek before skipping into the changing room, y/n gulps and pulls at her collar before walking into the changing room, where she is greeted with cheers of amusement by her team.

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y/n just posted on her story

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lccoombs posted on her story

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y/n just posted

liked by, alessiarusso99, 1maryearps and 372, 811 others

y/n don't take lessons off me kids...

view 10, 281 comments

username1: ILY SO MUCH 😍

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username2: ICON ICON I-I-I ICON ICON!!! 👏👏👏

username3: her just sitting next to a City fan who fist bumps her ! 😭😭

username4: Laura trying not to laugh

username5: Marc crying! 😭

ellatoone: crazayyyyyy 😂

1maryearps: I have never been so proud in my life! 🥺🥹

katiezelem: As your captain, I reprimand your actions... As your friend, I fucking love you!

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y/n: 😝😘

lccoombs: my little troublemaker! 🥰

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y/n: you've put a ring on it now baby!! 😌

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lccoombs: and would never take it back! 😊

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username6: 🥺🥺❤️

katie_mccabe11: Fooking hilarious! 😂

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y/n: heheh 😌

lucybronze: I both idolise you and worry about you!

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y/n: love you tooo bestie! ☺️☺️

alessiarusso99: omg! 😂😂

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y/n just posted

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tagged lccoombs

y/n thought it was time you guys received some of these ;)

I love you so much Mrs Coombs xo

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lccoombs just posted

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tagged y/n

lccoombs the best day of my life. I love you Mrs Coombs xo

comments disabled

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twitter/X

username1: AHHHHHHH WEDDING PHOTOS!!

username2: Mrs and Mrs Coombs omg 🥺🥺🥺🥺😭😭😭😭

username3: IT IS SO CUTE

username4: I wanna cry 😭

username5: lucy being maid of honour?? crying! the dresses?? crying! the last dance photo?? crying!

username6: when is it my turn to be god's favourite??? 😭😭

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END

short but sweet this one - queen laura is criminally underrated so thank you to whoever suggested this one!!

-

Queenie xo

[matchalovertrait]

Uh oh, it wasn't Dulce, was it? She is known for being.. well, Dulce. Find out in the next segment.

Previous / Next (Transcript under the cut)

(1.) [Carlo] This is...

[Mia] Dulce-

(2.) [Sofia] It's amazing! And with the added bacon bits? There's added flavor and crunch. I like these a lot.

(3.) [Mia] Yes, and somehow everything altogether isn't overwhelming. Every ingredient shines in harmony.

[Carlo] Delicious, but personally, I feel like the bacon bits make these a bit heavy for an appetizer.

(4.) [Dulce] Thank you, judges.

[Andrea] Next, here's Rubiya's appetizer!

(5.) [Rubiya] Okayy, Dulce! I see you. She's setting the bar high and I'm older than her. Well, we're the same age right now, but I'm in a grade above her at school. Anyway, my goal is to impress all three judges. Let's do this.

(6.) [Rubiya] Judges, I present to you: Spaghetti with merguez sausage meatballs and shakshuka sauce with a side of garlic flatbread with pea shoots.

(7.) [Carlo] The meatballs are a bit dry... but I suppose if you put enough of the sauce on them they're not so bad.

(8.) [Mia] Oh hush now, Carlo. That's what the sauce is there for.

[Carlo] It's good, though. It's good.

[Mia] Rubiya, let me add that I thoroughly enjoy the texture of your pasta as well.

(9.) [Rubiya] Thank you, judges. I appreciate the feedback.

[Andrea] Lastly, we have Chef Alex's appetizer.

(10.) [Alex] It's time.

(11.) [Alex] Judges, I give you a raclette with merguez sausage, pea shoots, vegetable flatbread, and a side of shakshuka sauce.

(12.) [Sofia] Lovely presentation, Chef Alex.

[Carlo] It seems lazy to me, but at least you didn't try to replace marinara sauce with shakshuka sauce and call it a day.

[Mia] I can't wait to try everything.

(13.) [Mia] I was a bit hesitant about the sauce being used as a side, but whatever you added to it really made it more complex. Everything is delicious.

(14.) [Sofia] The type of cheese you chose too... it's interesting.

(15.) [Carlo] I wish you did more with the pea shoots, but the dish itself works.

(16.) [Alex] Thank you, judges.

[Andrea] Thank you, chefs! Please proceed to the room next door so that the judges can begin their discussion.

(17.) *Muffled voices*

(18.) [Lewis] Well, it was nice meeting everyone. Do you guys want to share phone numbers to keep in contact with each other?

[Rubiya] Lewis! Don't say that! It's not certain that you're the one who's diced.

(19.) [Dulce] For sure it's not you, Rubiya. Chef Mia stood up for you and this is basically her show. That spaghetti did look awesome in every way.

[Rubiya] Thank you! So did your pizza wedges.

(20.) [Alex] Yeah, everyone here has talent and technique... and make company. It would be cool to get everyone's number.

[Lewis] Yes! Let's do it.

[Rubiya] Yay!!!

(21.) [Alex] Well, I'm not some heartless monster. I do feel bad for Lewis, I guess.

(22.) [Andrea] Welcome back to the judges' table, chefs. Our judges have made their decision.

(23.) N/A

(24.) [Mia] Chefs, thank you for the appetizers you have prepared for us. The various dishes we had were splendid.

[Carlo] We had much to discuss, both good and bad things despite there being an obvious choice regarding who should be diced.

(25.) [Sofia] However, we discovered something... turns out, we have a bigger issue than burnt croutons.

(26.) [Mia] Somebody here did not fully follow the rules of Diced Junior.

[bcacstuff]

Alex posted (I think it was last Thursday) a story where he was on his way from an airport and on his laptop he had a photo of Sassenach bottles. It looked like he was on his way to Scotland, maybe for next week event in Edinburgh: 8-11of August. But still not seen anything that he is in Scotland. Also wondered where he was last Saturday outside M&S. Just thought.

But on Sam´s post from Saturday where he is asking if ready for the weekend, Wendy posted this:

And later that day Alex wrote a comment something like "I thought I was ready for the weekend", but the he deleted it.

Today this was a comment on same post:

I have seen that Inside Wee Box has collaboration with Andy the Highlander. I think the also had with Sassenach historian.

Maybe, this is just a guess, that Alex is in Scotland and they both are busy now with Sassenach (GGC) not only for the event in Edinburgh which will be later this week, but also before. Could be that M&S had with Sassenach to do (even I have to say Sam did not looked dressed like for a business meeting). But today could had been that they had something with Inside Wee Box. I have not see that they had collaborated with them before, or that Inside Wee Box had commented on any of Sam´s posts until now.

Yes, I saw the story of Alex at the airport and most likely bound Scotland for the Kimpton event. As well as Ashley who pronounced she'll be in Edinburgh 5 - 12 August, though last night her flight was canceled and she'll be arriving tomorrow.

I don't know how much to read into those comments. Didn't see AN's comment (or maybe I did and forgot 🤷‍♀️). Not seeing it anymore at least if it was there. As for weebox, they've always promoted OL and his booze as well, you can see that in their older posts. Don't think they have a collab with OL or SS for that matter but are all doing it on their own accounts. I actually don't care much about it or think much about it for that matter.

I figure if AN is in Scotland they'll surely be busy with whatever business wise. Don't think AN is there for just a nice vacay or visit him, nor Ashley. But I really don't think being photographed in front of the M&S store means anything. Gosh, perhaps he was on his way to AN who might stay in Edinburgh and he needed some mints, or AN was inside the store as he forgot his toothbrush 🤷‍♀️😂

For what it's worth, on Sunday evening S seems to have nothing better to do than trying to be funny during Duncan's live signing.

Duncan btw. announced that he's preparing for Hyrox Poland, maybe Sam can recommend him a nice training buddy! 😉

[estebanocon]

Another Singapore GP, another selfie dump.

[1] Nico Rosberg - 2016 WDC gave us a jump scare when he showed up, shoutout to my friend who's a big fan of his who he remembered and was probably the reason why he turned around to smile for this pic because I was so sure he was just going to keep moving down the line. 🥲

[2] Alex Albon - my fellow March Aries: always kind, always obliging and generous with his time, also came prepared with his own marker!! A true professional.

[3] Nico Hulkenberg - I've seen this man every year since 2017 and he's ignored me every single time and I was just going to accept that he was never going to give me the time of day when finally, this year he deigned to take a picture with me. 💀

[4] Franco Colapinto - this man could not be less interested in taking this photo BUT Y'KNOW WHAT? I give him major props for doing it anyway when he could have just ignored me.

[5] James Vowles - the last selfie I took at the Singapore GP! Luckily there weren't a lot of people where I was, so he kindly stopped for a second to take this before going on his way.

[6] Mick Schumacher - another fellow March Aries: most of the time he just signs stuff but that particular day he decided to take pictures with fans as well, which I'm so glad he did. 🥺

[7] Ayao Komatsu - we almost didn't recognise him because he was dressed in civvies on race day?? Anyway, please take good care of Esteban. 🙏

[8] Maya Heug - the only F1 Academy driver I asked for a picture and gotta be honest, I was just stalling so I could ask Rene as well. 🫠

[9] Rene Rosin - after we took this he immediately roasted me for not waiting until they left the paddock because "the picture will be nicer without the gate". 🤡

[10] David Croft aka Crofty - another one for the "I see them every year but I finally got their attention" folder. He always has earphones in so I had to wave my entire arm for him to notice.

[11] Martin Brundle - see above, except he doesn't have earphones in and usually just zips past us.

[12] Simon Lazenby - I just missed him in 2022 so it was good to catch him this time!

[13] Jamie Chadwick - I was surprised that nobody else seemed to recognise her this year but maybe it was because she's not driving? Anw, a nice surprise to see her again!

[14] Anthony Davidson - a friend of mine is a big fan so I've seen him a lot but this was the first time I asked for a pic. 😬

[15] Tom Clarkson - aka the guy who had to tell Max to mind his language during the Thursday press conference. 🙊 I know him as the host of Beyond the Grid and got to tell him I love the podcast, and he thanked me for listening.

[16] Lee McKenzie - Lee, Rosanna Tennant (who was also around!) and Ruth Buscombe (who I saw multiple times but the timing was never right 😭) are probably my favourite track-side reporters. This was my first time seeing Lee in person and I was so glad she took the time to stop for this pic!

[17] Aurélie Donzelot - I've been a fan of her work for years, since she was at Renault/Alpine literally changing the motorsport social media game. She's independent now and I still love following her work spotlighting women in motorsport on her podcast "Racing Lives" as well as her stories on Substack.

[18] Susie Wolff (featuring Jennifer the marshal) - I felt bad at first because my friends also wanted a photo with her and we could have taken a group photo but she was in a rush and only stopped for me. Later that night she saw us again and asked security to step aside so she could take pictures with my friends, which was very kind of her. 🫶

[ more of my F1 experiences ]

[justrainandcoffee]

Against all odds (Alfie Solomons x fem!oc) part 9

Crossover Peaky Blinders - Hunger Games

Masterlist. Parts One Two Three Four Five Six Seven Eight

Summary: During the 72th Hunger Games, Panem meets Heaven Lavey the girl apparently angelical from district 7. But the eyes of the country are also on District 9, not just because they are the last winners but because of its tributes. The youngest of this edition Desirée and Charles, 12 years old. And twins. || Rose finally meets Aberama Gold. || The rebellion finds its symbol.

Warnings: The usual. Violence and death but it's not graphic (I tried, I couldn't write it.)

Words: 3.2 k || I think you need to listen to this song because I mentioned its lyrics here.

A mother is crying. A father, also devastated, is trying to comfort his wife and oldest daughter. District 9 is moaning the death of its tributes. As always but this time it hurt. This time it was cruel. The 72th games finished with a victor from district 7. A pretty girl called Heaven whose name didn't match what she did in the Arena.

The thing is that no one is blaming the girl, clearly traumatized, but the voices claim for Coriolanus Snow's head. And at the same time Coriolanus Snow wants the head of the the director of the gamemakers.

Contrary to the people, Snow receives what he wants.

Everything happened in just two weeks.

15 days earlier.

Rose was in her studio when she saw the tributes from district 9. She was used to see girls like Nina. Thin, around 15-17 years old. Or boys around the same age, usually taller than their counterparts but more or less the same height, some a bit heavier. But the difference between different tributes along the years she had been working on the games were minimal. That's why she prepared the costumes with anticipation. Usually very few things needed to be fixed when they wore the clothes for the first time.

But now…

12 years old, both of them.

Desirée Goldwyn was reaped first. Rose never saw such small girl before, she seemed around 10. She was scared and had her eyes full of tears. No one volunteered to help her. Of course not. No one of the girls were staring at Desirée as she walked to the stage where Alissa was waiting for her. Rose saw the forced smile the woman had in her face

The unexpected happened next.

A boy name Alexander Thomas was reaped. But a voice prevented him to follow Desirée steps.

"I volunteer as tribute!"

For a moment Rose's heart stopped. And she was sure that Alfie and Nina had the same thought as her in that infamous second.

No.

Desirée Goldwyn had a dark brown curly hair and intense green eyes. The boy, had the same hair and eyes. Also the same height and probably weight.

Alexander Thomas saw the boy, clearly younger than him, walked very decided to the stage. Alex would never have the chance to thank him.

"A volunteer!" said Alissa "What's your name, darling?"

"Charles. Charles Goldwyn. And Desirée is my twin."

.

Twins.

The Capitol exploded. Even before their arrival, the Goldwyn twins were the sensation of the games. Pure innocence, a fraternal love so strong that the boy decided to accompany his sister to the Arena. The fact that they were pretty helped a lot. They were exactly what The Capitol wanted and they received two.

Rose hid her face in her hands, before throwing the things over her table in one fell swoop, screaming in frustration at the same time. Frustration and anger weren't enough to describe her mood. Every single kid that she dressed had a special place in her heart. And nightmares. But the image of those twins that seemed to be younger than 12, were devastated.

They didn't have a chance. Not a single one.

.

Alfie was in silence in the train. He was facing the landscapes that by now he knew by heart, listening to the kids.

"I'm going to protect you," was saying Charles. "I'm quick! I can distract them so they can't touch you!"

"You should stay with mom and dad. And Leo," she said refering to Leonela, their older sister only 14. "Who's going to feed the chickens?"

"Mommy can do it, De! And Leo, too! Leo can help dad, too! And when you come back home, they're not going to worry about anything else."

"Don't say that!" Desirée had her eyes full of tears, too "You're going to come home, too, Charlie!"

"You know there's only one victor, De."

Nina and Alfie stared at each other. What do you say to two kids, twins, who were together from the moment of their conception, that one of them is going to die? That with the odds on their favour. But as Alfie knew very well, odds were never on their favour.

"So," Nina interrupted forcing the kids to think other things "what are your talents? Caesar likes to know what makes you happy!"

"Desirée is a good singer," Charles said to her "our nana always sang us a song when we were kids and then taught her how to sing. She tried to teach me too, but she gave up."

Nina chuckled and smiled at the boy "so, sing us something, Desirée."

[When I was a little girl, my mama said to me

"What's your favorite flower, darling? I'll get you the seed"

I said "Dandelion, Dandelion," that one's so pretty

She said, "Child, that one's not a flower, that one's just a weed"]

Alfie turned his head to listen to the girl. She indeed had a pretty voice.

["You can't stop me multiplying

No, you don't want me in your garden

Dandelion, Dandelion.

Then my fragile flower turned into a ball of grey

So I took a breath

and made a wish and blew them all away."]

"That's a pretty song, Desirée," said Nina.

"Our nana always said that her grandmother sang it to her and probably for generations. I always liked it."

"Leo, our sister," said Charles "sing it every time she sees a dandelion in our little backyard."

"I'd do the same," said Nina smiling again to both kids.

Alfie watched at his former mentee and asked himself if Nina also thought that the twins had any chance against the careers. No matter how quick Charles said he was.

.

The Capitol was excited to see the new tributes face to face, as always. But this time was a morbid pleasure behind it. Were the twins really that young? Were them really that precious?

The voices inside the building were disgusting. An hour after the reaping she already saw people trying to bet on them. Their faces were in every screen. People cheered every time that the reaping was repeated.

With her blood boiling, she went to the ninth floor and picked up some of the cookies that a month ago Alfie, and also Nina, baked when they went to their monthly visit to the Capitol. The cookies were in a perfectly closed jar so they were good. She picked up only five. And using a tweezers delicately put a piece of paper inside all of them.

Those cookies had a destination. Rose put them in a box and went to the post office.

Communication between districts were highly forbidden but inside the Capitol people were allowed to send packages or letters. And for few years she kept certain address just for her. It was time to used it.

.

A little cardboard box with his name on it was what Aberama Gold received when the sun was going down. It wasn't uncommon for him to received packages. But usually those were clandestine and contained guns. This one was from the official post office and it had just five cookies.

Soon Aberama understood that they were more than cookies and that the person behind that was important. Five little papers that formed a message:

We need to talk. Send your answer, same way you received this. To the tribute centre. Rosebeth Evert.

Aberama Gold didn't trust the ones involved in the games. And Mrs. Evert's face was in every news since district 9 won the previous games. He knew who she was. And he also knew that the woman was one of the very few members of the Capitol who were allowed to be part of the auction.

So why, such lady wanted to talk to him? And way she used such cryptic way yo do it?

He considered a trap. Wasn't Mrs. Evert, Snow's personal stylist? Aberama was sure of that. If she wanted to open a shop, Aberama was sure that people from the Capitol would kill for her clothes. But Mrs. Evert had a low profile and only appeared during the games.

Still, Aberama Gold ordered to his cook to bake some cookies and he left a message for her inside them.

"Five days after the games. Under the bridge. Go alone. Promise you'll be safe. A.G"

.

Alfie, Nina, the kids and Alissa arrived the next morning. As always people, citizens and those working there, were more annoying than usual.

Rose spent big part of the day adjusting the costumes and ordering every one around her in the studio to remain calm.

"You're going to be the most beautiful tributes ever," she said to them when finally they were ready. The same hairdresser that visited district 9 with her six months ago was the one in charge of comb their hair. Although Rose forbid the makeup artist to put anything on them to make them look older. The public wanted kids, she was going to give them kids.

Exactly what they were: just children.

She only found time to talk to Alfie only at night after the parade and when finally the city was in silence. There, in his bedroom, she could confess to him that she finally communicated with Aberama Gold.

"But he didn't answer yet," she said. "If he doesn't give me an answer soon, I'm going to visit him."

"It's dangerous."

"It is but I reached my limit, Al. We're going to see these kids die. You know that. You know they don't stand a chance."

"Do you trust him?"

"I trust no one here. They'd sell you to Snow for a corn chip but I need powerful people, too I can't do this alone. We can't. Do I have other options? No. It's the best I can do, love," Rose sighed deeply "how are you, Al?"

"I'm tired, luv. I'm very tired of everything. The only thing we can do is to expect the best."

"And that means…?"

"Hope, I guess."

She snuggled up against him and closed her eyes "Hope. I like that word. I really liked that word."

.

As expected the twins had no extraordinary ability. They couldn't throw knives, they didn't know how to use a bow. Nina commented that Desirée knew how to make traps because her father taught her. That's how they trapped rabbits and another little animals. Charles was right that he was quick, so Alfie spent some hours teaching him how to use a blade. Maybe he'd hurt some other tribute as he was running away. But they couldn't do more than that. Not with the careers showing themselves like peacocks around the arena.

And three days weren't enough to teach them how to kill.

The Arena was a foggy forest. The Cornucopia was made of wood covered with moss. Alfie always said the same to his kids "run away from there" some listened to him and others, like Nina, did not. But fortunately for the twins they did listen to him.

The bloodbath was always terrible and deadly. But this time…

That blonde girl from 7, Heaven Lavey, was the first one to be noticed as a menace despite her score wasn't that high. Alfie remembered that years ago, Lucy spoke about a tribute really unhinged and it seemed to be that the prophecy was true. It was cruel to say the least.

The careeers survived, same as the twins and tributes from other districts but compared to other games, the number of survivors was low.

All Panem witnessed the dawn of the third day. Heaven Lavey killed two careers in the same moment and by now the number of victims rise to eight. And she was about to add two more.

The twins were hiding in the bushes. They survived eating berries that weren't toxic but it wasn't enough. Charles was hugging Desirée who was incredible dehydrated. He too, but his sister was in worse condition.

"Sing to me, De," Charles said. "The song about dandelions."

"I can't. I think I'm going to die, Charlie."

"You're not, De. After the song I promise to search for water. Just sing to me, De."

And the girl did. And whole Panem listened to the song.

Charles knew better than people could think. No one knew Desirée the same way the boy knew her. And although young, he was old enough to know about death.

"I found a real dandelion," Charles said picking up the puffy flower "Make a wish, De."

"I want the games over," she said and blew it away.

Not long after that the deadly Heaven found them. They were still hugging each other when they died. Together they came to the world, together they left.

Some people said that in district 9, a woman cried so loud that some near mockingjays mimicked her screams and soon the whole district was hearing the lament of mother who witnessed her children being murdered.

Five days after the games.

The night is warm and calm. After the games it seemed that people disappeared. And that year in particular was a very agitated event.

[You can't stop me multiplying.]

The song is in her head sounding like an infinite record player.

Rose left her car parked far away from the bridge that Aberama Gold mentioned and walked all the remaining blocks to that place.

Now, under the yellow streetlight she sees everything around her. She feels eyes on her although she can see no one. Probably they're spying on her to see if she's alone.

Fifteen minutes later, Rose sees a man wearing a hat walking towards her. He's wearing a brown coat despite the hot night. Rose doesn't know Mr. Gold but she knows it's him. She asks herself if the man has a gun hiding there. She knows that's very possible.

"Mrs. Evert," says Aberama approaching her, shaking her hand.

"I thought you weren't coming."

"I was here before your arrival, Mrs. Evert. I was just waiting, I'm sorry but I needed to know you were alone."

"I'm risking my own life coming here, Mr. Gold. Not because of you but him. So, I'm not that stupid to ruin my only chance to get help. We need to talk alone, please."

"What do you have to offer?"

"Not here. I'm not going to talk unless I'm sure we're on the same side, Mr. Gold."

"I'd say the same. I do not offer my help to anyone."

"A person you trust gave me the address to locate you, thanks that they trust the same person as I do. No one against this hell here can survive alone, Mr. Gold. We're part of the same chain. It just happens that not all the links know each other."

Aberama snorts and with his head orders her to follow him. That poor side of the Capitol reminds her of district 8. Grey buildings, dirty streets… Last year, during Nina's tour, when they stopped in that district, that was the first time in over a decade that she visited her birthplace. And it wasn't easy. Her mother and brothers were near as ever since then but she couldn't visit them. It hurt her to know that for example last time she saw her baby brother Louis was 8 years old and now he was a 24 years old man. She couldn't recognise him and probably for him, his own sister was a complete stranger. She didn't regret her choice to leave her house to help them, but she paid a high price when she did it.

Aberama invites her to enter into an old house. Its walls are covered by vines and it seems to be an abandoned place but as soon as he opens the door, she sees that it's in perfect conditions. There's a young man there, too.

"That's my son, Bonnie," he says. "Bonnie, she's Mrs. Evert."

After offering something to drink and a chair, Aberama sits down in front of her. After looking at him for one last time time, she finally shows to someone else what she has. Rose is still restless. What if…

And yet, she knows that she can't do this alone. The folders and papers she collected over the years are now in other hands.

"You did this alone?" he asks.

"But I can't do more."

"Ma'am, I don't know how to say this but this is a lot."

"Not enough," she insists. "If we want to start phase two, we need more than that. I need people, smart people. The kind of people you can find in district 3, those who know how to do this."

"When do you want to finish this?"

"Three years. Two and a half. We're going to sabotage the Quarter Quell, Mr. Gold."

"Then you need to know something that probably you don't know, but I do," Aberama opens a drawer and pulls out a cardboard folder that gives to her. Blueprints and a map are there "if we want to fuck Snow, I'm not enough, you're not enough. My people isn't enough… do you want this? Play bigger, Mrs. Evert. Go to district 13."

"What the fuck are you talking about?"

And it's that night, that moment in the Gold's household that she learns that District 13 is still alive. Rose learns about the pact between the capitol and the rebel district. The nuclear weapons… and Chester Campbell.

"They have a president?"

"Same way we have ours. No one chose him, but he's there. I don't know him personally, but I heard things about Campbell."

"And what do you think?"

"I think, if I were you I'd approach him the same way a mouse approaches a cat. In his own favour, Snow is charismatic he'll let you talk. Campbell is… well, more complicated. At least he's not Snow."

"Are there any other options?"

"No."

"I don't want his hands on this, Mr. Gold. I don't give a fuck if he's the president of Lostland. I'm trusting you with this, the afterwards is up to District 13 if you want but this? Just us and your people."

Aberama scratches his chin and offers his hand to her "I give you my word that this is just our mission, Mrs. Evert. This part, but we're going to need their help."

"It's fine. We have a deal. We sabotage the games and they take care of the rest. Burn everything once is over, Mr. Gold the good thing about papers is that can be consumed by fire."

"I'm a professional," smiles the man.

"In six months, I'm going to contact you again. I'm sure you know that I'm part of the auction. But I'm not part of them. I'm not them. I'm not my husband."

"I can see that. I see you in six months, Mrs. Evert."

"Use the cookies," she says before leaving his house.

"I will. Goodnight."

A single dandelion is in middle of the street growing up in the pavement. She takes it and blows it all away. The seeds fly with the wind.

[You can't stop me multiplying.]

Fascinating that rebellion found their symbol in something so simple and mundane as a dandelion. But it was also a powerful thing. Growing up were it shouldn't.

[You don't want me in your garden.]

Snow was walking through his garden full of white roses, thinking about the girl named Heaven and the twins.

The twins and their song.

[You don't want me in your garden.]

There in middle of his roses dozens of dandelions were growing up. Imperceptible under the beautiful flowers. But they were there.

And in every district.

“Make a wish, De.”

“I want the games over.”

Hundreds. Millions of dandelions around Panem. Stronger than ever, even if in the eyes of the Capitol, people from the districts were just weed.

[You can't stop me multiplying.]

And it was just the beginning.

Next

[hardtchill]

Can someone please explain why Jill is so hated? Didn't she win so much with USWNT? Genuine question. Thanks.

the uswnt won despite her, not because of her, especially in 2019.

Jill did a lot of things, but i will list the biggest ones.

Absolutely zero attention to the health of her players. She constantly played the same players (even with a bench as deep as the Mariana trench) even in friendlies which meant squat. The only reason Tobin, Pinoe and Alex still have ligaments left in their bodies to tear is Dawn Scott. Jill overplayed them so incredibly much. There was a period of time in 2019 when Pinoe and Tobin had bags of ice strapped to them almost permanently and still Jill kept playing them.

She played favorites, like holy fuck. I can go along a very long way with a coach saying a player fits the system better or fits the style better, but she didn't do that. She played favorites clear as day.

She did NOTHING to prepare the team for the future. She took everything out of that team until it was basically sucked dry at the end of 2019. In her 6 years as NT coach she introduced one new forward who stuck, Mal. It was so bad that by the time Vlatko took over we had a 12 year age gap between the youngest vet and the oldest forward after that (Mal, who wasn't actually fit to play). A good balanced team has players under 23, players over 30 and the core of the team will be between 24 and 29. When Jill left our entire forward pool was over 30.

Her treatment of players is what i would consider abusive, but hey, this is woso it's considered normal. This is an article in which Pinoe's comments about Jill in her book are summarized. Most note worthy, "I never felt in safe hands with Jill".

There is so much more, but these are the key elements for me.

[independent-space-vessel-rahili]

The Story of Rahili

[Begin Log] [30/11/2278] [Name: Rahili] [This blog serves the purpose of documenting and sharing the events of my time stationed on the human PMC ship "Hestia's Embrace"]

3:00- I woke up today after a 4-hour sleeping cycle, no one else was awake and the ship was dark. I decided to explore the ship, the kitchen was missing many of the necessities for avali life, and we would need a resupply today as the food that I packed would not last me long. I studied the sleep cycle of Human Alex, they slept until 7:00. I have attached my report of their sleep cycle below.

[Begin Alex's Sleep Cycle Report]

Human sleep cycles are much longer than that of an Avali, essentially being all three Avali rest periods in one Eyes were rapidly moving from 3:00-4:00, 5:00-6:00 Body was colder than usual Breathing and heart rate were slowed Motor cortex was inhibited Body was covered in fabrics

[End Alex's Sleep Cycle Report]

6:00- Alex awoke to me observing them with various scientific instruments and was understandably confused. I commented on their sleep cycle and they understood but requested privacy as they prepared for the day. I composed a shopping list as they prepared.

6:10- Alex emerged from their quarters and I sent them the shopping list. We went into the port and purchased everything I would need to eat and drink for the next few weeks. I organized my foodstuffs into my refrigeration units and grabbed a container of liquid ammonia for later.

6:20- Alex started work on breakfast for the crew. I have attached a report on the food prepared below.

[Begin Food Prepared for Breakfast] For the Humans: 12 Eggs (Scrambled) 18 Strips of Bacon (Fried) 24 Pancakes (Fried) 6 Cups of Coffee

For me: 1 Breakfast Burrito 1 Cup Herbal Stimulant Tea

[End Food Prepared for Breakfast]

7:00- Commander Graves awoke along with the rest of the crew and Alex served food in the "Mess Hall". During breakfast, Graves discussed what we would be doing today for work, "Alright crew, today we have been hired to transport some cargo, you all know what this means so I don't need to explain. They are paying us very well, and we would fools not to take advantage". When I mentioned that I didn't know what she meant, Graves took me aside and told me that we would be smuggling illicit goods and that it would be best if we were not caught with it.

8:00- As I was performing some routine cleaning and tuning of my augments and refilling my coolant tanks, Jonas walked in to check on me and asked, "Rahili, what are you doing?", I told him that I was performing maintenance on my augments. Jonas was immediately curious, "What augments do you have and can I make a report of them?", I allowed this and have attached his report below.

[Begin Augment Report by Jonas]

Cooling systems keep Rahili at -50°C Neural Co-Processor allows for constant communication with pack-mates and The Nexus Built-in oxygen tanks allow for breathing in thinner atmospheres, like our ship Enhanced eyes to improve the poor eyesight that the Avali have

[End Augment Report by Jonas]

10:00- We picked up the cargo and are making final preparations to leave the port, I purchased some stimulants and more nutritional supplements.

11:00- As we left the port, I ate some beef jerky and slept for my second daily sleep cycle.

15:00- I woke up to Commander Graves on the PA system making an announcement, "Attention all crew, we will be entering the jump gate within the hour, I just wanted to let you know", After the announcement I decided to go to the bridge and see what a human jump gate looked like as I have never seen a jump gate(Avali don't use gates, we have jump ships that generate a wormhole)

16:30- Going through a jump gate was a nauseating experience, with all the twists and turns and g-forces in different directions. I must have blacked out because I woke up in the infirmary with Alex staring at a medical readout looking very confused. "What… happened?" I mumbled as I sat up. "You blacked out during the jump" "My head hurts" "The g-forces must have been too much for your body to handle, we pulled around two to three G's" "For future reference, my species is from a moon that has about one-third of Earth's gravity, tell me if we are going to pull more than two G's next time" "Are you sure you are safe to be on this ship?" "Yes, I was simply unprepared for such a rough ride through a jump gate, Avali jump ships provide a very smooth trip"

18:00- I have decided to end my blog early today and rest after what happened with the jump gate. I prepared a tea to help with healing and sleep.

[End Log]

[bunbeeplays]

The Lemon Legacy: Generation 1, Chapter 74 - Nailed It

It's been a busy time for Xander, constantly working on the restaurant. Today, Moses and Ian are helping him set up the instruments that the band, The Main Squeeze, bought. Ophelia isn't expecting the visitor that shows up at her door but it's a pleasant surprise, nonetheless.

Ophelia: Hey, what brings you here?

Drew: You better not have any plans. We're doing a spa day.

Ophelia: What? Really? You don't strike me as the spa type.

Drew: We've been planning band stuff out, I figured we both need an excuse to chill.

Drew: We can get massages, get our nails done-

Ophelia: Who are you and what have you done with Drew?

Drew: Come on, nonbinary people can get their nails done too! I just can't get those big ol' claws you like so much cuz my guitar strings would rip them off.

Ophelia: I'm in.

In the time they've been attending yoga classes at this spa, neither of them have ever taken advantage of the other services besides the pool. This will be a nice change of pace!

Drew: Sul sul! One wrench and a buffalo wing tea for the lady!

It also happens to be Night on the Town, so their drinks are free!

Ophelia: Woooo, Night on the Town!

Drew: It's like 11 AM.

Ophelia: NIGHT ON THE TOWN!

Drew: So Xander said after they get the stage set up, it's all done?

Ophelia: Basically, except a few finishing touches. He's been so secretive, I can't believe Moses and Ian got to see the place before me.

Drew: We'll have plenty of time to see it when we're performing there.

Ophelia: I'll finally get to see it tomorrow! I'm so excited.

Drew: You should be! That's why we've got to get you fresh in-game painted nails instead of CAS nails.

Ophelia: If you wanted to get your nails done, you don't have to use me as a scapegoat.

Drew: Hey, we're here for our 12 o'clock.

Rita: Ah, Mx. Padilla, hello! And that must be Ophelia.

Ophelia: You booked an appointment? What if I had said no?

Drew: I may be skinny but I'm not afraid to throw you over my shoulder.

Alex: Alright, prepare to be pampered, Miss Lemon!

It was sort of nice having her hands massaged before getting her nails done. Definitely worth the money!

She goes for something a little more glamorous than usual. Treat yourself!

Drew also likes their manicure, though they're not exactly the glam type.

Drew: Brings me back to my grunge days in high school. Sure hope there's a revival soon.

Ophelia autonomously put on a face mask before the two part ways for their massages.

Ophelia: A deep tissue massage won't hurt too bad, right?

Lana: Don't worry, Miss Lemon, I'm a trained professional. I did all my certifications online!

Ophelia spins into a robe and lays down on the massage table.

Lana: Now just relax and let me take care of those sore muscles.

Ophelia: Okay…

It feels nice at first… until the masseuse digs her knuckles into her spine!

Lana: Oof, this is a big knot.

There are parts of the massage that feel good… and there are parts where Ophelia feels like the masseuse is trying to fold her into an origami swan. Stop pulling her shoulder back like that, lady!

Ophelia practically hobbles off of the massage table.

Lana: Hope you enjoyed!

She certainly did not. She feels bad for not tipping but not tipping is better than chewing her out for jerking her around the dang table!

Ophelia admires her nails while waiting by the pool for Drew.

Drew: Watcher, I feel like a new Sim. How was that massage?

Ophelia: …Great.

Drew: Great! Let's slam down more free drinks and take advantage of the pool!

Somehow relaxing in that ridiculous pool floatie did more to ease her aching back than that dang massage did. Drew the party animal isn't used to sitting around, so they do a super splash in their lounger, which is something I didn't know you could do.

Ophelia, the wise and mature future matriarch of this legacy, does her own super splash in her lounger. Hey, this is their day to have fun, so she's going to have fun, damn it!

Ophelia: This was fun, Drew. I really needed this.

Drew: Glad to hear it, dude. I've gotta head home. Text me tomorrow about how cool the bar is, okay?

Ophelia: You got it.

Xander comes dragging in pretty late, and very tired.

Ophelia: Well hello there, Mister New CC Hair. Way to pick a haircut that's eerily similar to your other one.

Xander: I'm a pretty adventurous guy, but my hairstyle is one thing I'm content with, Lemon Cake.

Ophelia blathers on about her day as they eat a late dinner, and Xander nods and smiles along.

Ophelia: You okay? You've been quiet.

Xander: Just sleepy. Your nails look very pretty.

Ophelia: Thanks, sweetie. Let's finish up and I'll tuck you in.

Xander: Tuck me in?

Ophelia: Yeah, good boys who work very hard deserve to get tucked in.

In all fairness, she did tuck him under the covers. She just decided to tuck herself under there too.

I can't stand these two

[garbagefarm]

Garbage Farm (#48)

2024-03-25, session #48 of Garbage Farm! Spanning Winter 3 through Winter 9 of Year 4!

cast:

me (@mothmute)

E.B. (@blueherin)

Kimi (@2kimi2furious)

Highlights include, but are not limited to the following:

pre-game:

it's been a while, but Garbage is back, woohoo!

—oh. logistical difficulties. welp, it was bound to happen.

“so, uh, what'd you have for dinner?”

I did my Garbage Homework and I came prepared with a to-do list and everything! But nobody knows what we're doing.

(the song from titanic plays softly in the distance)

Possum is gonna be so so glad to see us, he might do a li'l hop and everything, maybe get all flat

Winter 3:

LET GARBAGE BE JOINED

oh god I've got clown shoes on and they jingle now, let's see how long before they notice

(spoilers: they don't)

I visit Marnie. Lewis assures me he is there strictly for business reasons.

Cringefail, one (1) more duck.

felled tree remains mysteriously appear in the graveyard??

Kimi finds a mystery door......

Clint caught me digging in the trash, who cares

Special order for Taro Root!

Alex is wearing his special shorts, but Kimi's are more special (hint: they are purple)

Winter 4:

Mr. Qi flies by on an airplane. Mystery boxes can now be found.

The Wizard Catalog is amazing.

I try to renovate my house, but all my stuff is in the way!

Made another shed big, though.

E.B. finds a mystery box. “what's inside?” “mystery, duh”

Honestly, a lot of the day is spent mindlessly wandering.

Big chests!! I'll miss the stone ones' aesthetics, but big chests!!

We all went to bed early

Winter 5:

Bookseller is in town???

Cool pig had an Elliott Portrait, that's not weird at all

(apparently had an Alex portrait, too)

I go ahead and max out the ducks

then I go consume all the books at once

Kimi finds powdermelon seeds??

Winter 6:

After moving all my furniture, I get a bunch of renovations to my house. To be honest, I have no idea what to do with all this space, my place was already a little sparse.

Kimi dies in the volcano because she didn't bring food!

(Somewhere in here, I suggest EB take the lead on the Taro Root quest)

Wind in the night...

Winter 7:

The big tree! Noooo! —eh, it was only there a few days.

A little hardwood turns it into a cute little house, though

Turns out, I'm the only one of us cool enough to explore the mystery cave 😎

It's wine night, and I drastically underestimate just how many kegs I have

Winter 8:

There's always so much to do! —and yet I can recall almost none of it!

Ice fest??

Kimi is running late to ice fest, but no worries. ... okay, maybe some worries, I am anxious-typed.

Hey, whole bunch of new dialog!

Evelyn is worried it might be the last time she make a snowman with Alex. That's so sad!! (It's okay, nobody dies here)

Harvey froze his face

Clint is completely useless at making snowmen

KIMI CAUGHT DOPING IN THE CONTEST AND STEALS 1ST PLACE

(it's okay)

I call out how nobody noticed my literal clownshoes and then realized, “shit, I sound like Clint,” 100% clown behavior

Winter 9?:

non-canon day!!

possum gives us a snail

MAYO CHUG hang on let's try and get a picture

Kimi tries and fails to count down

I suggest using a bomb as a timer; when the bomb goes off, drink!

we are so bad at this

over 12 in-game hours and no mayo chug picture, truly phenomenal

TO-DO:

crystalariums for coffee project and so many stairs

💀💀💀

I've been putting off kegs, preserves jars, and some tree-tap improvements for so many sessions, now

friendship!!

walnut room......

long-term projects, shopping lists

OPERATION MAGIC HAT (strictly confidential)

Keep exploring 1.6 content!!

Gotta defeat the ocean. The whole ocean.

... do we want extra garbage cottages?

oh right, darts

-

A short session, but it's good to be back, and I'm looking forward to exploring more 1.6 content with my friends

[munsons-maiden]

Hi there again Kiki! So I have decided to get LASIK done, my apt is for 12/21. Are there any do's or don'ts that you wish you had knew about beforehand, as far as what to do to prepare before and what not to do after the procedure?

Thanks for all the help, Alex

Hi love! Aaahh I'm so happy for you! It really changed my life, as overly dramatic as it sounds 😅 The only thing I can think of is that all the doctors told me it wouldn't hurt AT ALL afterwards and that was a lie. The first three to four hours were horrible, and you should be aware of that because you should definitely ask them to refresh the local anaesthesia in your eyes before you head home to make it a little more bearable, BUT it stops after those few hours, and not a slow stop but like a light-switch being flipped so I promise the pain is very short-lived and it's so, so worth it! 🖤 I think it's best to make sure someone accompanies you and keeps you company in the hours after the surgery - you'll sleep through most of the rest of the day, I think, because the sedatives you'll get to calm you down will make you high as a kite but personally it really helped me to know someone was there. And one last important thing: you'll have to use a lot of different kinds of drops for your eyes, and I didn't get them from the people who did the LASIK but I needed to buy them from a pharmacy, and they were out of stock everywhere nearby so my husband drove an hour to the one pharmacy that had the medicine, and you HAVE to start taking the medicine as soon as you get home to prevent inflammation so that was stressful; I recommend you ask whether they will give you all the medicine you'll need or whether you need to get them yourself and if so, if you can get the prescriptions beforehand so you can order them in advance.

I'd love to hear updates, and good luck!! 🖤

[now-we-say-c0ral]

September 13, 2023

Woke up at 6am and headed straight to the gym because I have time. It's been 3 days since I last went and I really needed a good workout to start my day. I did shoulders, biceps, traps, dels, and some cardio. It was a strong session! Glad I didn't sleep in today.

Went back home and took a shower and made my way to work. Made it a bit early and I was assigned in Theatre 12 with Mark and Alex. They're such a lovely bunch. I was on a late today so it's 10am-8pm. Fuck my life. My body isn't used to going home at 8pm from work anymore.

We had 2 cases in our late shift. One was an intraocular injection then the other one I had to scrub to fix the set but I had handed it over to the night staff because it was already 8pm and the patient was still not inside the theatre.

On my way home Eddie texted me saying that he's prepared me dinner. He's so cute. He bought me some Jollibee chickenjoy! I passed by Sainsburys to buy some frozen shrimp and spinach for the munggo I'm going to be making when I got home.

When I went back to Custom House Station where I left my bike, I saw Britney has been beheaded. I was so sad. Not mad. Just sad. I was expecting this to happen sooner or later but not this soon. It hasn't been 6 months since I got her and now this happened. Ed was more distressed than me. Walked home with her and ate my dinner with Ed. I'm having Chickenjoy for lunch tomorrow. Yey!

Ed invited me to go to The Dorchester Hotel to have tea. We're dressing up. It's going to be fun!

[awkwardpariah]

Well there's a writing prompt I'm not gonna pass up:

Midtown Manhattan, 2075. From the 44th Floor of the Ocasio-Cortez apartment building, a boy of 12 looks to the south, hoping to see the demolition of the Verrazzano Sea Wall. "You might see a puff of smoke, but that's about it from here," the boy's father says, trying to hide his amusement. "Maybe if I got to the observation floor I'll have better luck. Alex said they could see it from up there." "Alright," his father gets up with a groan. "Get your jacket." "UGH! Dad it hasn't been cold all month" "I know, I know, but you never know, ya know?" "You sound like grandma," the boy shot back. His father paused to reflect on that before shaking his head, "Well it was still bitter cold here in March when I was your age. Besides, the old windows up there don't do much against the windchill."

"FINE!" the boy groaned, and with that the father and son left. From the lounge they watched the numbers tick down from 58 and as had been the case for both the father and son's entire lives, upon reaching 46 the numbers jumped to 44. Just as the doors opened, the boy asked his father, "Dad, how come buildings don't have a 45th floor?" The father prepared to answer before pausing, realizing he had no idea. It had just always been that way. "Not sure, I think I asked your grandma once. She yelled at me, 'that's a bad number!'"

The memory stung. The man's mother was like most people of her generation: sweet, but prone to harsh outbursts. He remembered her apologizing, like always, and telling him she'd go see her therapist, like always. But he never got an answer. As the man was lost in thought and they exited the elevator, his son had already called his grandmother. The older woman's face lit up at the sight of her grandson, and before the young boy could ask the question he found himself inundated with doting compliments and questions about if he was eating enough. "I'm fine grandma, really I'm fine." The woman looked cross, before ordering, "give the phone to your dad." The boy complied with a sigh, and handed the phone to his father. "Mom, we're both fine, he eats like a python and doesn't gain a pound I promise," the man tried to placate his mother, knowing he was still in for a lecture. "I just worry about you two, all alone in that building. Is Redding still on that work trip?" The man put on as brave a face as he could, hoping his mother wouldn't press the issue about his estranged partner, "New work trip ma, they're in Warsaw for the G6 meeting." She looked a little confused, a little concerned, but decided not to press the issue for a change, "well is everything alright? Do you need money?" "MOM!" he shouted, attracting far more attention than he wanted.

Lowering his voice, "We're both fine, Nicky just wanted to ask you a question," before handing the phone back to his son. The boy, snickering over his dad's outburst, composed himself in time to see his grandma again, "Grandma, how come buildings don't have a 45th floor?" The man braced for the same outburst he received as a boy, but his mother didn't say anything. She took a deep breath, obviously trying to calm herself, and finally replied, "Well sweet pea, when I was young and fair" she dramatically threw her greying hair eliciting giggles from her grandson, "a very nasty man became the 45th President. Do you have any idea who that man might be?" Her grandson shook his head and she furrowed her brow, "what are they teaching you kids in school these days!?" Nicky responded defensively, "Mx. Agrawal still has us on the Roaring 20s and Prohibition!" The old woman groaned, "Well, before your daddy was born, a very nasty man named Donal..." Before the old woman could finish her thought everyone started shouting and pointing to Southward and Nicky rushed to the windows leaving his father holding his phone. Other than the people quick enough to grab a set of binoculars, most could only see the five puffs of smoke made by the implosion charges of New York's old Sea Wall. The boy's father heard a loud groan from the phone in his hand before raising it to meet his mother's gaze. She was holding her head in one hand and wiping away a tear. "Your uncle died in one of the camps. My best friend lost three fingers to frostbite that first winter. I still can't get to sleep most nights when its really cold..." She raised her head scowling at him, "What are you teaching that boy?"

He sighed, not wanting to have this fight, "Mom, he only knows about Junior, most kids his age don't know who Don Sr. was, the man was a vegetable for most of the war."

"IT WAS HIS FAULT!" she started to shout. "Ma!" he responded indignantly. She looked embarrassed and took a few breaths like you're supposed to, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. You know its hard for me thinking about those days." He exhaled with relief, knowing that the conversation would probably be all downhill now, "I know mom." "Its just that, he doesn't know what it was like back then." The man looked to his son, looking disappointed and jabbering with is friends about how he thought the explosion would be bigger and smiled, "I guess that means the bad guys lost, eh ma?" A sad smile crept across the old woman's face, "Yes, I suppose it does," she replied.

[medicasino]

MILKY WAY for yotaro!!!! [is died] also megaphone 📢 for natsumi and alexandra?? 😳😳😳😳😳😳🥺

HEYYYYY sorry i'm like 2 days late I had little energy to write 20 paragraphs but I DO NOW.... prepare urself

🌌 MILKY WAY - what was the inspiration behind your oc? what was the first thing you decided about them?

OOOOHHJHJ good question. I'm gonna try to be relatively brief bc I was a baby at the time (like 10-11. maybe 12? good few years ago) and some of it is rlly embarrassing/i'm not proud of it :sob:

Okay so!! The origin for Yotaro even existing is because of this pet website I used to be on called Pony Island-- I used to be obsessed with it and I gave the ponies I adopted "lore". anyways I got a pony from like the Pony Market and was like "OOOH i will base their lore off wolf in sheep's clothing" and initially my idea was to name them something relating to that however I was an idiot child and it didn't go that way at all and anyways I like the name Yotaro enough to keep it now. I mean, I got lucky and it didn't end up being anything BAD which is great but. still kinda embarrassing

anyways, shocker (/j /s) but the first thing I decided about them was that they're a manipulative... wolf in sheep's clothing VBRGYHFDBDUHD LIKE THE TITLE OF THE SONG BY HIT BAND SET IT OFF anyways yeah. they used to be a completely unfeeling cold and ruthless power-hungry bastard who only cared about themself and liked treating others like dolls. anyways I didn't ever really expect them to be much more than a pony island character but then i made them a human design and then i thought "oh haha it would be so funny if them and Alexandra met" and i liked that so much that they managed to sneak their way into her story and uh Yeah. also originally Laila and Yotaro were Not siblings! the funny thing is Laila and Alexandra used to be a ship and then I thought "oh fuck but what if Alexandra and YOTARO...... :0" and in my head i was like FREAKING OUT like oh my god who do i pick. pretty sure it's obvious who won the ship war LMAO. then as i developed them more i went "... what if i made them Relatable" so now they're still a power-hungry bastard but their desire for power is not because they wanna rule over others but because they don't ever want to get hurt again. They still manipulate others but they don't know it's wrong to do so, they're very much under the impression that they have to do that to get by otherwise people will use THEM and they'll get thrown to the wolves. They don't even feel like a real person, just some sort of hollow husk who can only feel rage and bitterness. Also they have adhd LOL they also definitely have Other Things going on but i have to do a think bc a lot of the identity issues stuff is stuff I have and i don't even know what causes that LMAO

📣 MEGAPHONE - how loud are they? what do they speak like? got a voice claim?

UM UM UM I've never had a voice claim for Alexandra ;w; i got close with a song but APPARENTLY it was used for. Big Mouth. so. NO!!! i have never watched big mouth and never plan to it looks horrible anyways i'm sad cus i loved the song for her but eh who give a shit /lh anyways i always imagined Alexandra would speak in a relatively deadpan tone, not just bc she's autistic ofc (tho honestly same Alex we r rlly vibin) and she's ALWAYS been intended to have a deeper, more neutral leaning voice but still feminine. yeah. cannot imagine her with a high pitched voice lmao. She's not the loudest person but she definitely speaks clearly and yeah. As for Natsumi, she's more on the louder side, her voice would be kinda in the middle of "deep" and "light", not super light but def not as deep as Alexandra's-- her voice is also more fem, though she's done a lot of vocal training to get it like that (because transfem) and yeah. she's definitely not a very quiet person, she likes being Known yunno.

[eleanorbloom]

Meet My MC: Eleanor Bloom

Hello! So, I’ve been wanting to do this for MONTHS. Since I started posting When You're Ready series to be exact, but I never found the perfect face claim to do a nice moodboard. That changed a few days ago thanks to a random post in Tumblr where I discovered this Queen 😍😍😍

Let me introduce you to my main Open Heart MC (I have another MC for the mini series I’m writing, but I’ll make a separate post when it’s due). This is the woman I've been building and destroying as I write the series, and despite her suffering, is the luckiest bitch on earth 😂

Edited on August 15th, 2021.

Name: Eleanor Andrea Bloom

Nicknames: Ellie, by her friends and family in general; Sunny or Sunflower by her dad; Andrew by her brother; Elle by Bryce; Ella by Keiki.

Face claim : Ivana Baquero.

Height: 5'4 (167cm)

Date of birth: December 14th, 1992.

Hometown: Cincinnati, Ohio, USA.

Education: Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania.

Family: Robert and Verónica Bloom (parents), Benjamin Bloom (younger brother, 6 years younger), Ricardo Díaz and Ofelia Velásquez, chilean maternal grandparents, Albert and Lorraine Bloom, paternal grandparents.

Love Interest: Bryce Lahela. (At first was Ethan, but he's now competely in the past.)

Personality: Eleanor is outgoing, kind, caring, and is always ready to help others; she also has a profound sense of empathy. In front of adversities she's resilient and stubborn, a total fighter for what she considers right. Unfortunately that leads to focus more on other people's needs instead of their own.

Messy overthinker.

She's clever and very intuitive. In High School she was one of the best students of her class, but she was also a bit of a troublemaker, always standing up for others and fighting for what is right.

Her passion for medicine and fighting for her ideals was inherited from Ricardo, who was President of the Medicine Students' Union while he was at college in the 60s in Chile.

Family Background:

Eleanor was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in a family of parents who fell in love at the young age of 16, and that have been together ever since.

Robert works as Engineer in Construction while Verónica is Auditor in a Financial Firm.

Benjamin is studying Naval Engineering at University of Michigan.

Her paternal family is from Columbus, OH.

Her maternal grandparents are chilean and lived as exiled in USA after the Military Forces made a coup d'etat in the country (1973). Both were members of the Socialist Party and, at the risk of being arrested (and tortured) for their political tendencies, Ricardo accepted an offer to do a fellowship in pediatrics in Columbus, OH. Ofelia worked as Mid-wife in Chile but stayed at home the first years to help Verónica with the new country and the new language, and because she and Ricardo wanted more kids. After sixteen years (1974-1990), as democracy was reinstated, both returned to Chile with their two younger children, of 12 and 9 at that moment. Verónica stayed as she was studying and had plans of making family with Robert eventually, once they finished their studies.

Despite the fact that her grandparents weren't living in USA when she was born, she's very close with them and her chilean family in general. Normally The Blooms travel once a year to spend the chilean winter holidays or the national holidays in September, although the last few years have been just Verónica and Robert because of Benjamin's college schedule.

Interests.

She likes to listen to music, specially pop. Taylor Swift is her favorite artist of all times. She also listens a lot of Spanish-speaking music, like Reggeaton (mostly to dance) and chilean artists like Francisca Valenzuela, Los Bunkers, Alex Anwandter and Javiera Mena.

Eleanor is a coffee person, and is more a sweet tooth than salty, all thanks to the pastries and cakes Ofelia prepares every time she visits Chile.

She likes to cook and bake things, but she's not a fan as Sienna.

She likes to read, but above all she enjoys taking long walks and sometimes, if time allows, do some hiking.

She loves romantic movies and her favorite Christimas Movie is Love Actually.

She LOVES dancing, especially reggaeton (which she learned to dance it during her visits to Chile), but now that she has Bryce as partner she loves it even more because the boy has moves and he's the only one that can keep up with her just as she likes (and even better). Besides is a sexy activity and one of their favorites foreplay 🤭

Random facts.

Her parents called her Eleanor because during High School, her mother was obssessed with Eleanor Roosevelt, and her father just liked the name because it was a Beatles' song (Eleanor Rigby).

Her dad started calling her Sunny or Sunflower since she was 7 for her bright and caring personality. And since then the sunflower has been her favorite flower.

She's fluent in Spanish. Even thought she learned a lot during the her visits to Chile on vacations over the years, she became fluent after she spent two months in Chile before going to college.

____

Thanks for reading! I had all this information ready to be published for months, but I didn't want to post it without the face claim.

I hope you enjoyed getting to know Eleanor a bit more 😊

[thejosh1980]

I was lookin' back...

As I prepare for my first live concert in over 12 months here in Australia, I think back to my last live concert, The Josh Fest 2020 in Dresden Germany.

The Josh Fest came together thanks to Mirko Glaser and the guys at the US Car Convention. Mirko and I had discussed having some kind of small live stream show at his jazz bar, The Blue Note, as we were trying to find a way to make it happen with the COVID restrictions. Then it became a bigger show, because the Groove Station was interested in putting something on. A few days later the US Car Convention people contacted Mirko, and it all came together as an even bigger live outdoor concert event, with all my main bands together, and US muscle cars surrounding the stage.

They called it "American Car Day", but we all know what it really was....

The Josh Fest.

It meant quite a bit of work for the bands. Some of the bands had already been on forced hiatus for several months due to COVID. We had to relearn songs that we hadn't played in many years!! Eddy and I hadn't been on stage together in 8 years, and it was only Blues Over Coffee's 2nd show!!

Old meets new!

I was also busy packing up my life, selling off my guitars, car, and studio equipment. After 18 years in Europe, there were quite a lot of items to decide on; what to sell, keep, and pack ready for the moving company, which was scheduled for a couple of days after the big show. It was an emotional process; a life time of memories coming to an end...

Dresden adopted me 12 years previously, and it was becoming clearer and clearer to me that I would miss my step-hometown deeply.

Germany, the UK and Europe gave me a lifetime of memories and experiences. So many I've forgotten, due to the alcohol induced memory losses, but many many many of those experiences, laughs, good times, challenges, and rounds of shots are permanently written and imprinted on my heart.

I love my European friends, fans and band mates, dearly.

My band mates and I have been through a lot together over the years. There's a type of brotherhood that only band members can experience, on and off stage. In some cases, I knew these men (and a few girls) better than I did my own family or partner. I cherish the late night discussions, the crazy shit that happened on and off stage, and the memories of everything that happened in all that time on the road.

I also cherish my wonderful fans, who, even now, keep surprising me with their love for me. Actions speak louder than words, and some of those actions shocked me, some of them humbled me, and many showed me that while the music spoke to you in one way, your responses spoke to me in another. I can't count the tattoos with my name on them, the gifts I have received, the love we have shared and the music we have made together.

Oh My Josh!

I have made some amazing and deep friendships along the way. Some were forged even before I moved to Germany, some of them deepened, some drifted, but all of them ever so important to who I am today.

What can I say about Guss Brooks? He stands out mostly cause we met before I moved, and he was with me every step of the way; from the first show to the last, in some form or another. In fact, right now, I can't think of ANY show I performed during my 12 years in Germany that wasn't affected by him in some way. You might think that's a bit of a stretch of the imagination, but there was always some connection, whether it was people we knew at the gig, the place we played, the bass I was using (thanks GB!), or the songs I was playing...

We were connected.

On stage, with a wink, a flick of the wrist, a nudge, a look or a glance, we could tell each other anything and everything... If one of us got lost in the song, the other had his back, and could bring him back with a lift of the elbow. There were no words, it was all feeling. It was all feelings... When we did the shows with The Go Getters, it really stood out to me then, that we were interlocked, engaged, and entangled musically, and well, spiritually. I'm sure he'll disagree, but that's just because he's so humble. That connection also transferred to the fans, who could sense our communication. That’s what made playing together so special, every time... We have a deep connection, personally and professionally.

When 100s of people travel miles through COVID restrictions to come together to say goodbye to some ausländer, when band mates come together for one last show, it really shows me, how much I was loved. I didn't realise until that day, really until the end of the show, how deep the love was felt and what I would be leaving behind. Those deep and meaningful friendships carved from the experiences we've had together will stay with me forever.

The festival was a culmination of all that was good in my European adventures.

I know over the years I burned a few bridges, but it felt like those had been fully rebuilt, renovated and reinvigorated. We've all made mistakes, but that was all in the past, and the friendships grew stronger. It felt amazing. I felt like by the time The Josh Fest began, I’d come full circle with all my enemies and demons…

Alex got to meet many of my friends, fans, and band mates too. The pandemic meant very few chances for her to see me in action, but that all changed that day. Alex got to connect with folks who have had a tremendous influence on me, and I’m really thankful for the opportunity to share that part of my life with her before we left. I knew that coming back to Australia I wouldn't have the same opportunities that I had in Europe.

I've been looking back at photos and videos of that special day, and I am reminded of how important you all were—and still are—to me. I was reminded of how I looked out from stage to see so many of my wonderful fans and friends, no, I mean family. On stage, I felt a brotherhood like nothing else I have ever felt before…

It made it just that little bit harder to leave...

You know, I arrived in my 20's and left in my 40's!

It's been a year since I played my last song on stage with my brothers to my family. I sit here and miss it. But I also feel gratitude. I feel lucky to have made an impulsive choice when I was 22, and still have had the chance to enjoy that choice 18 years later. I just wish I could go back and soak it all up again, deeper and slower.

It all went by so fast, didn't it?

Thanks for reading,

The Josh

If you'd like to watch the bands, you can view the live stream here:

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL15P5AADkIPxEFip17KYypZQWSJ9t-g4J

The Lazy Boys

Eddy and the Backfires

The 2930s

Rosis Rockets

Hot Rails

Blues Over Coffee

Johnny Falstaff

11th July 2020 – American Car Day – The Josh Fest – Dresden - Germany