#COBURG BABY!!!!

[briarrolfe]

Our 78 year old Italian neighbour Josie might not remember my name, and may never get my pronouns right, but the thing is: We Are Besties and I am totally obsessed with her. She blasts disco music 24 hours a day. She chain smokes. She is so obsessed with Vegemite that she cut a holiday visiting family back home short because she was seized by Cravings. She took her first ever selfie with me. She flirts with my fiancé. Once I had to rescue her from her finding a lizard in her toaster. She drinks her first coffee of the day at like 4 am. Recently she told me “if anyone tries to take you away from me… I will kill them” with total seriousness and I fully reciprocate it. She is a constant source of chaos in our lives. I would do anything for her and I love her with all my heart

[archduchessofnowhere]

Ok some comments on the teaser:

I'm assuming this is Baby Sophie.

Either the Lombardy-Venice tour of 1856 (where the Imperial couple was publicly snubbed by the local nobility) or the 1857 Hungary tour (I believe there were no disturbance in this one tho)

New moustache for Johannes Nussbaum's Max! (the hair and make up department are too cowards for real Max's parted beard). And the mystery Princess Marie, who has the face of someone who has scrolled through Instagram for two hours straight.

Ok for real if this is Charlotte then this is such a miscast jfkf this is the least Coburg-looking lady I've ever seen.

Screenwriters really want to write about the 1848 revolution but also they want the Empress Sisi cash grab so we keep having masses of people with torches marching to the doors of the Schönbrunn during times that were relatively chill in Vienna. Or maybe this is meant to be Italy?

Manifesting this being Doctor Seeburger.

Not much else to comment. Let's wait for more teasers/the synopsis to see what's to come!

[brf-rumortrackinganon]

Let's talk about the racism that Meghan experienced in UK

"I do think Meghan did experience some racism in the press - like that horrible monkey photo after Archie was born - if not as much as she said."

If all Meghan had done was said “this isn’t right and you know it” every time there was legitimate racism (aka, speak softly), the public would’ve hung, drawn, quartered, flayed, and burned the press alive for her (the big stick).

Firstly, the radio personality who posted that monkey photo to his social media had done that for every single royal baby since George. He did it for George, Charlotte, Louis and Archie. It was his way of mocking the idea of royal babies being paraded as if they were performing monkeys. The image he used was of a real life socialite couple from the 1930s who kept a monkey and dressed it up and paraded it for amusement. It hit badly with Archie because he is part black and the radio personality claimed he didn't know Meghan or Archie were black because he doesn't follow the royals at all and was aware that Harold had married, but not the minute details involved.

He publicly apologised profusely after he found out and pulled down the picture immediately. As a very public radio personality with over 30yrs standing, he'd never shown or said anything racist that we were aware of, and had a spotless record which made his public explanation believable if you lived in the UK. Other countries, having different racial history and different relationship to their public figures refused to accept his explanation and also refused to accept that this was a one off incident by one person, a radio personality on his own IG account simply tarred entire UK media with this incident as did Markle and Harry. 

Secondly, the girlfriend of a far right political leader had a very public racist twitter conversation about Archie and Meghan. The DM publicly shamed her and published her twitter thread as the perfect example of unacceptable behaviour from public figures and their WAGs. 

Boris Johnson's sister wrote about Meghan's exotic blood adding to the thin blue blood of royal family. This is a template article trotted out every time a royal gets married. It is a celebratory article that points to the most obvious difference between them and frames it as advantageous for the royals to have the new in-law because it improves their thin blue blood!!

The language is always unfortunate no matter which royal bride they pick on. 

For Kate, the same article described  how her working class blood from her coal miner ancestors would enrich the thin blue blood of the royals. Honestly, the way they repeatedly reported on Carole's working class, coal mining roots, you'd think that Kate had emerged from the coal mines a minute before her engagement photocall. There was a strong element of calling Carole and Kate upstarts for daring to emerge from their coal mining ancestors to marry the Prince of the realms. You see this point geing made even in comedy shows like The Windsors where Kate is depicted as having travellers ( Romani people) background. 

If you google archive articles written about Sophie, Fergie and Diana, you'll find that this type of article was written about them too. 

In Diana's case, her article was framed as Charles marrying up because the Spencers are trophy aristocrats whose titles are *older than the Windsor titles. 

*There is a whole aristocratic snobbery thing about dates titles/ dynasty are created. The older the title/ dynasty creation date, the more aristocratic you are perceived to be. So the Spencer title/ creation created in the 17th century is more aristocratic than the Hanoverian/ Saxe- Coburg-Gotha/Windsor titles/ creation. Ditto older and more aristocratic than Philip's Edinburgh titles which is why Diana could be cheeky to him about it. 

In Meghan's case, this template article hit badly because the language used to describe her difference has become racialised in some instances and so this article was interpreted as racist. 

Ditto the straight out of Compton article which can be substituted for the many, many articles written about Kate and her coal mining ancestors. 

The headline came from a clueless editor who thought they'd be witty by using the title of same name movie that was out around this time and had played very well in the UK. 

Reading the article, i was struck at the class digs therein. Just like the class digs at Kate 7yrs earlier. It was quite offensive in that respect. But everyone chose to read the headline and nothing more and be offended by their racist interpretation of the headline and ignore the more offensive classist article. 

For your point about the public coming to Meghan's defence when each of these things happened.....they did. The whole country was outraged. The popuoar radio personality was sacked less than an hour after that monkey picture went up and despite understanding his explanation, he was cancelled and remains cancelled to this day. He has disappeared completely from the public. Not even one of those 'where is he?' Type artivles/ pap pics retrospectives about him. Gone. Finito. Never to be accepted back in public life.

Ditto the political leader and his girlfriend. It says alot when even our own far-right figures find that kind of language from their own leaders unacceptable. He resigned from the party within days of that article. Cancelled never to be heard from again. 

The problem is that Meghan and Harry keep repeating these ergregious incidents as if they were happening repeatedly, and that entire UK media was engaged in them and also remove context so that uninformed public think that Megyan was continually racially abused by UK media. 

Between you and me, i think the DM tried to walk back their straight outta compton article by going on a crusade to shame other more ergregious racists to distract from their own mistake, but also to show Markle that they could and would defend her. Other UK media took the same route, but unfortunately for everyone, she didn't accept and instead twisted their defence to pretend the UK media was actively and deliberately racially abusing her. And that's the narrative that has stuck. 

*****

Old ask from March 4th. It’s from the discussion we were having about Scobie’s handling/presentation of racism in Endgame. I think you can find some of the earlier conversation in the Endgame tag.

[dweetwise]

[Dbd] Wanderlust

A small post-Entity one shot I wrote this summer and apparently never posted 💚 No ships, just some survivor bonding (and bickering 😂) Rated G | 1.2k words | ao3 link

The plane lurched to the side and Haddie did the same in her seat, her pencil sliding across the map of Malta and drawing a line in the Mediterranean sea. She huffed in annoyance and wordlessly reached to buckle her seat belt.

Next to her, Élodie did the opposite and pushed up from her seat with an exasperated groan.

“Just a little turbulence!” Ace’s voice sounded from the cockpit. “Nothing to worry about!”

“This tin can is awful!” Élodie complained. She wobbled to the front of the small plane, steadying herself on any solid objects as the plane shook from the turbulence.

“Aww, don’t worry, baby,” Ace said, affectionately patting the outdated flight instruments in front of him. “She’s just jealous of all your vintage glamour.”

“It’s a piece of scrap metal held together purely by duct tape and wishful thinking,” Élodie retorted. “In fact, I’m amazed we haven’t crashed yet.”

“Eh, I’ve flown in worse,” Zarina piped up from the co-pilot seat. Based on the fact that she had her feet propped up on the dashboard and was leaning back in her chair, she didn’t seem to be doing much of said piloting.

“See?” Ace told Élodie, then added with a grin, “If you’re so peeved about my plane, why don’t you ask your sugar daddy to buy us a shiny private jet instead?”

Zarina snorted while Élodie merely glared down at Ace.

“You refer to Felix as that one more time and I’m ejecting your seat,” she threatened.

Ace gasped. “But then who’s going to fly you all over Europe to do your Scooby gang shit? I’m not letting just anyone touch my plane, you know.”

“You’ll hopefully be a pancake on the ground, so I don’t think you have much say in the matter,” Élodie countered.

“Human pancake. Yum,” Sable offered. She was sitting in the back of the plane, busy with painting her already black nails even blacker regardless of the bumpy ride.

Zarina sighed before turning to look back at Haddie. “How’s the map coming along?”

“Good,” Haddie said. She waved the thin folder with the Imperiatti insignia that contained their information on the case. “It should only take a day to investigate the site and talk to all the witnesses. It’s a small island.”

“Should we split up?” Zarina asked.

“Dibs on the witnesses!” Ace hollered. “I’ve heard Maltese women are stunning.”

“Me and Haddie should go to the site to investigate,” Élodie said. “I brought my archaeology kit just in case.”

“I’m coming with you,” Sable said. Nobody protested: keeping Sable away from people was usually the way to go if they wanted their witnesses to not shit their pants from fear.

“I’ll go with Ace,” Zarina said, fiddling with her voice recorder. “And Vittorio?”

Haddie glanced at the man in question. Vittorio didn’t even appear to have heard the question; he sat completely silent on the seat opposite of Haddie, staring intently at the floor. His face was ashen and he desperately clutched the Lidl plastic bag they’d acquired on their pre-flight shopping trip in Coburg.

Considering this was his first time ever flying and he’d chosen to do it with Ace as his pilot, he was doing remarkably well.

“You okay?” Haddie asked, nudging Vittorio’s shoe with her own.

He looked up and gave her a shaky smile. “I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.”

“You didn’t have to come,” Zarina said. 

“I will have to get used to flying sooner or later,” Vittorio said with determination. “The Imperiatti works all over the world and I don’t want to be hindered by this should my help be required somewhere.”

“You could have stayed in Germany with Ursula.” Ace’s head popped into view as he leaned to look back at them. “She sure seemed interested in getting intimately acquaintanced with you and your…knowledge.” The sentence was accompanied by the wagging of eyebrows.

Haddie rolled her eyes while Vittorio grimaced: from nausea or the innuendo was anyone’s guess.

“She’s a very capable woman, but I don’t see how that’s relevant—” Vittorio started.

“Air pocket,” Zarina abruptly cut him off. 

A split second later, Haddie’s stomach dropped as the plane jumped and tilted to the left, before Ace grabbed the controls with a curse and righted their course.

Vittorio squeezed his eyes shut and swallowed a few times before rasping, “Can you please focus on flying?”

“I am!” Ace protested. “Just trying to lighten the mood.”

“Vittorio’s already having a hard time,” Haddie said. “So keep the plane steady unless you want projectile vomit all over your ‘baby’.”

Élodie visibly cringed. “Eugh, please, no puking.”

“Speak for yourself, I love puke,” Sable said. Somehow, her nail polish bottle and drying nails were still completely unscathed.

Élodie stared at her. “Remind me why we brought you along again?”

Sable responded with a sickly sweet smile. “Because I’m not going to get spooked by lawn furniture and run away screaming like a little bitch.”

“I told you, the canopy curtain looked like the Nurse from where I was standing!” Ace protested.

“Yeah, it probably did,” Haddie hurried to defuse. “And I sensed some weird energies in the area. I most likely would have been startled too.”

“Exactly!” Ace said.

Élodie looked at Haddie with a raised eyebrow, but Haddie just shrugged. She really didn’t want to hear more of Ace’s excuses about the sun in his eyes, or how he was just running away to get help, or “Felix’s girlfriend told me the manor is haunted, so of course the Nurse could appear at the garden party!” when the reality was most likely a few too many German beers.

“Maybe it did look like the Nurse,” Sable conceded, then grinned wickedly and added, “if you’re a little bitch.”

Ace let go of the flight controls to turn and point at Sable, eyes narrowing as he snapped, “Okay, listen here you fucking brat—”

“Fly the goddamn plane!” Haddie, Élodie and Zarina yelled almost in unison.

In the end, they made it to Malta relatively unscathed. Haddie successfully marked all their destinations on her map of the island, Élodie secured all their bags, Sable finished painting her nails, Zarina radioed the airport and got them permission to land, Ace got them back onto solid ground with most of the plane’s rusty landing gear still intact, and Vittorio only puked once into his bag.

The others were grumbling about the rough flight and even rougher landing as they exited the plane, but Haddie was smiling as she felt the familiar adrenaline rush of an unsolved mystery. Now, they only had to figure out if the rumors of shadowy figures lurking in the woods were an urban legend that got out of hand, or something more sinister like a paranormal occurrence or the Black Vale trying to regroup after the Entity’s defeat.

She’d never tell the Imperiatti, but she actually hoped it was one of the latter. Returning to normal life after years in the Entity’s clutches hadn’t gone well for her—and based on the ragtag group of fellow survivors who had eagerly volunteered their help for the trip, she wasn’t the only one still craving the thrill of danger.

A new adventure was just what they needed.

[ifitistobeitisuptous]

help wanted

Tl:Dr. Newborn puppy sitting help needed

Where: North Coburg, Naarm/Melbourne. I can see Merlynston station from here

When: soon for a month or 3? Any help is good. If you just came for a few hours every week would be help. If you camped here 24/7 would be unbelievable.

Who: any moot or friend of a moot. At this end it's me (48) and my wife (66).

Why: we've let too many of our dogs get bred, and we are going to have concurrent litters. We've got an 11 week old litter I should have sold, one girl going to whelp in the next day or so, and 2!! other girls due over the next months. And 4 other adult dogs. we give our puppies 24h care for their first month or so. We're getting too old for this. Normally we only do 3 or less litters a year. Gives us time to recover. This first litter has us burnt out, and we are facing down the barrel of 3 more coming.

What: be here. Be the human in the room doing human things so we can sleep (and i can go to work). Take care of the mums' needs so they can take care of their babies. If all goes well that is all that's needed for the first 3 weeks of their lives.

How much: look. Depends on what you can do and what you want? Cash? A place to live for the next 3 or more months and all you can eat?

Oh... and they are Yorkshire Terriers... the biggest mum weighs less than 5kg. The pups usually between 100g-150g at birth.

This was the first litter at a month old or so.

The adults

Do you know anyone who can help? Dm me for my phone number.

You can come play with puppies!

[imperial-russia]

Q1;Is it true that Grand duke michael alexandrovich( the tsar's brother) liked Princess Victoria of Wales? Or Princess Beatrice of Saxe-coburg and Gotha? He had a Lover right olga's lady in waiting or she wasn't? Or if she was what happen to her?

Q2; How did he end up with Countess Brasova?? Natalya was it?

I am very much curious about him.

It was actually Nicholas, the future tsar, who had a teenage crush on Victoria (and only ever a crush it remained). But yes, Mikhail was in love with Beatrice, though apparently not as half as much as Beatrice was in love with him. When it became clear that Nicholas would not give his consent to their marriage (due to them being first cousins), the relationship was broken off and Baby Bee suffered an emotional breakdown, which very much caused an enmity between her mother and the tsar.

Misha found solace with Alexandra Kossikovskaya, who served as a lady-in-waiting to his younger sister Olga, but yet again the relationship was doomed to fail on the basis that Mikhail could only legally marry a woman from a ruling house. When Misha was threatened with exile and loss of his military ranks, he yet again gave into the pressure and gave Alexandra "Dina" up.

But then he fell in love with Natalya and I am sure his family was fondly remembering the days of exalted first cousins and ladies in waiting with good reputations, because Natasha was not only a complete commoner, but she was already once divorced, re-married, and a mother. Apparently, Misha was just too smitten this time and no doubt Natasha was an attractive and clever woman who knew how to keep her man. She abandoned her second husband and moved to Moscow. The point of no return for Mikhail was when Natasha became pregnant with his child. He felt he could not possibly give her up - and insisted upon marrying her. Then the whole ugly mess with him promising NOT to marry Natasha but using the tragic period of Tsarevich Alexei´s Spala agony to do exactly that happened. The truth is that even though Mikhail definitely acted under-handedly and paid for it, his personal life with Natalya was happy and I don´t believe he ever regretted it.

If you are interested in Misha, I definitely recommend THIS BOOK.

[princesselisabethofhesse]

1897

THE GENTLEWOMAN. July 24, 1897

The operas this year have been most tastefully and carefully presented, and have given extreme pleasure to the Royalties, who are all more or less musical, none so enthusiastic, perhaps, as the Duchess of Coburg and the Grand Duke and Duchess of Hesse. This very attractive young couple, with their baby daughter, Princess Elizabeth, have left us all too soon for Germany. The Grand Duchess has played a very important part during the season, and though lacking the gentillesse of the Crown Princess of Roumania, she has been greatly admired.

source: britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk

image: "The Romanovs: love, power & tragedy"

[duchessoflennox]

King Christian IX of Denmark had three daughters: Princess Alexandra of Denmark (later Queen of United Kingdom) was born in 1 December 1844 Princess Dagmar of Denmark (later Empress of Russia) was born in 26 November 1847 Princess Thyra of Denmark (later Crown Princess of Hanover) was born in 29 September 1853

Princess Alexandra was a personality of an uncommon order. The gracious lady was graciousness itself. She was distinguished, not by any desire to enter into public affairs, but by a kindliness, a generosity, a sympathy with all classes, poor and rich, which endeared her to the whole people.Alexandra shared a draughty attic bedroom with her sister, Dagmar, made her own clothes, and waited at table along with her sisters. Alexandra and Dagmar were given swimming lessons by the Swedish pioneer of women's swimming, Nancy Edberg. At the age of 19 Alexandra married Prince Edward of Wales, the eldest son of queen victoria and Heir of Great Britain throne, Edward loved his wife but was not faithful to his marriage!the result of this marriage was 6 children. 🥰❤️

Dagmar was known for her beauty. Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge said that Dagmar was "sweetly pretty" and commented favorably on her "splendid dark eyes." Dagmar was intelligent, When considered Dagmar for queen victoria's second son Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Queen Victoria judged that "Dagmar is cleverer [than her older sister, Alexandra]... she is a very nice girl." At the age of 19, Dagmar married the Russian Tsesarevich Alexander, after the shocking death of her fiancé Tsesarevich Nicholas, who was Alexander's older brother. The result of their marriage was 6 childrenWhen she married, she didn't know how to speak any Russian. However, within a few years, she mastered the language and was so proficient that her husband, tsar Alexander iii wrote to her in Russian.🥺🤍

Princess Thyra As a child shared a bedroom with her elder sisters, Alexandra and Dagmar, and was taught how to sew and knit her own clothes and socks. Thyra was an attractive and gentle young woman, with dark hair and dark blue eyes, and king Christian and Queen Louise wanted their youngest daughter to make a good marriage as their elder daughters had. Thyra's first suitor was King Willem III of the Netherlands, but as he was thirty-six years older than she was, she rejected him.In her youth, Thyra had fallen in love with Vilhelm Frimann Marcher, a lieutenant in the cavalry, which resulted in a pregnancy. Her brother George I of Greece suggested that she have the baby in Athens to avoid scandal; the Danish press was told Thyra had been taken ill with jaundice. At the age of 25, Thyra married Ernest Augustus, Crown Prince of Hanover, and the result of this marriage was 6 children.🤩💗

[thepaleys]

Mourning for the accident struck Grand Duke Paul's palace. The black shadow of death, inconsolable pain, the fear over the fate of the baby, all this sadness would not permit Grand Duke Paul's aching soul to heal. The doctors gave no hope at all for the survival of Dmitri Pavlovich. Grand Duke Paul struggled with the dread of this misfortune in his palace and could not find consolation. After a while, he had become a shadow of his former self. The doctors who cared for him, led by Dr. Turgeniev, decided that the Grand Duke had to leave the country in order to get back his physical health and recover his moral balance. An unexpected obstacle arose, however. The doctors had ordered the Grand Duke to have massages during the course of his voyage. The Grand Duke most clearly refused to engage the services of an outside masseur, someone he did not know, some stranger. Dr. Turgeniev found a solution: he offered to teach me, over several days, how to do a medical massage. Our studies went quickly and well, and so, to the list of my duties as Director of the Grand Ducal Wardrobe was added that of the masseur. As he was leaving for abroad, Grand Duke Paul left his young children in the care of his brother and sister-in-law, Grand Duke Serge and Grand Duchess Elisabeth. It had come about that the Grand Ducal couple had become very attached to their niece and nephew who- as fate would have it - had escaped from the jaws of death. (..:) Our first stop on this new voyage was in Coburg. The Grand Duke, as well as myself, was accompanied on the voyage by his aide-de-camp Efimovich. The Grand Duke had gone there to see his sister Marie Alexandrovna, Grand Duchess of Coburg-Gotha. Nevertheless, we were not to stay there very long; the Grand Duke wanted to get to Italy quickly, for the sun, that heat which his body tortured by disease and sorrow needed so much. Alas, we were not to have any such luck. We had gone to Naples, Florence, Rome, Venice - everywhere we found miserable weather, rain, cold and damp. This made the Grand Duke even more upset. He was complaining of the terrible weather and was not the least bit content. In truth, the autumn of that year was one of the most unpleasant. We had stayed away from our home for almost two months and then returned to St. Petersburg for the Christmas holidays. Despite all of the unfavourable circumstances of our voyage, it still was of benefit to Grand Duke Paul. He had become stronger, less sad, and his taste for life had returned.

MEMORIES OF ALEXEI VOLKOV Personal Valet to Tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna 1910 - 1918

[loiladadiani]

Romanov extended family group, 1896

Standing at the back from left to right: Ferdinand, Crowned Prince of Romania, Nicholas II, Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, Princess Victoria Melita (standing very far from her husband, Ersnt Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse and By Rhine.)

Sitting in the middle row from left to right: The little boy still in skirts holding hands with the lady next to him, Marie, Crowned Princess of Romania, is Grand Duke Dmitry Pavlovich. Next to Marie is Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, holding her daughter Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna; next to her is Grand Duchess Marie Alexandrovna (I am using her original Russian title, she was also Duchess of Edinburg and eventually Grand Duchess of Saxe-Coburg Gotha.) I do not recognize the baby she is holding. Last, sitting in front of Ernie, is Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna.

On the floor, sitting by Marie and holding a little girl's hand, is one of Marie's younger sisters. The little girl whose hand she is holding is Grand Duchess Marie Pavlovna, the younger. Her father, Grand Duke Pavel Alexandrovich, is sitting next to her. Lastly, I am very tempted to say that the woman sitting to the right of Pavel is the elder Hessian sister, Victoria, although I am not 100% sure!

[levymcgarden55]

[id: 18 screenshots of Facebook posts from Pigeon Rescue Melbourne, each advertising a different pigeon for adoption. They all have a photo of a different pigeon attached to the posts.

1: Big flirty boy Filthgrinder is available for adoption!

2: Sweet baby C.E.O. of Friendliness likes flying to your shoulder to watch you work but also likes preening your hair and trying to get your ear to regurgitate for her. She's not like other pigeons and just wants to spend time with humans rather than her cage mates

3: Rampantly Unemployable is available for adoption! He(?) has an untraceable band unfortunately. He's friendly but not ta... See more

4: Valuable Treasure is available for adoption! He was rescued as a juve and is a cool teen now, ready for a new home.

5: 'He literally smells like a deep fryer' (the attached photo is of a pigeon covered in soap suds)

6: We have white men available for adoption; the king is human-friendly and likes playfighting, greyface however hates humans with a passion.

7: Enemy Problem is available for adoption! He's a big strong man.

8: Introducing Hot boy! As the name would suggest, this young male squeaker came into care after being c...

9: Friendly Renly is an adorable young man who looks like a seagull and a noodle had a baby together. He enjoys growling at and play-biting at your hands if they ever go in his cage, but once he's out he's happy to be handled and patted. He is a strange-looking genuine joy to have around the house.

10: Mote and Not Mote are available for adoption! We rescued Mote from having fallen down inside the walls of a house. He had a splinter stuck up in the corner of one eye and required some vet care - he has become well again. Not Mote was rescued after having fallen out of a nest into a carpark.

They have become best friends. They are just learning to fly, and being cool teens like to hang out on the top of the roof all day and return to bed after all the adults have gone in.

11: A Man With Very Positive Ideas is available for adoption! He's a calm male, and I suspect he may have slight vision loss in his left eye, a...

12: Lewd Book (f) is available for adoption!

13: Frivolous Househusband is available for adoption! He's a fantail without extreme curvature of the spine, so he flies just fine. He's not tame or friendly, more so what we call in the biz an 'aviary friend'. Sometimes I secretly call acquaintances with zero social graces who I would rather put in a cage than have dinner with again 'aviary friends; you're welcome to steal that and it's sure to impress all your cool bird friends.

14: Tame male Alleged Stabber is available for adoption! (Yes, you do have to keep our names, forever.) Being a tame male, his favourite hobbies are biting your hands, sitting sweetly on your shoulder and potentially biting your ear, and then flying on to your lap to wait until you offer your hands for more biting. He comes with a sweet girlfriend, uh, ...Scromit? Scromit suffered a broken wing and can't fly more than a foot or so, so you score a free disabled sweetie cage if you want it!

If you'd like to be bitten by a man who loves you while Scromit stands nearby politely looking on in confusion at the whole thing, let us know.

15: Abhorrent Ghoul is available for adoption! She (?)'s a well-behaved fluffy feet sweetie who can fly well and is not tame.

16: Tiny little mini couple Rudimentary Pigeon and Rudimentary Boyfriend are available for adoption.

17: Brokebeak is available for adoption! I nursed him back to health after I found him waiting to die at Coburg Lake, with a scalping injury and a broken upper beak tip. I syringe fed him for weeks and weeks while he wouldn't eat. I helped his scalp grow back perfectly. His gratitude: he now absolutely hates me, yet he has no interest in ever leaving me despite how much I suggest it to him. He knows he has a good life getting fat and being angry here. So if you're looking to add a wild guy who despises you and brings nothing of value to your avairy, Brokebeak may be the man for you.

18: Robed Cultist & Flying Skull are available for adoption! They are not tame and they fly well. /end ID]

i need everyone to see the funniest fucking pigeon rescue in the world

[elsalouisa]

George, Duke of York to Queen Victoria — 16 November — Anichkov Palace

"My dearest Grandmama

As Lord Carrington starts tonight direct for England, I will take this opportunity of sending you a few lines. I know that both Papa and Lord Carrington have continually written to you and kept you informed of what has been going on here, and so I did not write to you. I have written to May each day and we have been so busy that there is not much time for writing and several days I had barely time to finish my one letter, so I hope you will forgive me for not having written before.

It has indeed been a terribly sad time here; but the Wedding came like a gleam of sunshine in the midst of the deep mourning. Poor Aunt Minnie has indeed been brave and has borne her terrible grief in a wonderful way, Mama has been of the greatest possible help and comfort to her, I don’t know how she could have got on without her. Dear Alicky looked quite lovely at the Wedding, the Service was very fine and impressive and the singing quite beautiful, she went through it all with so much modesty but was so graceful and dignified at the same time, she certainly made a most excellent impression. I do think Nicky is a very lucky man to have got such a lovely and charming wife; and I must say I never saw two people more in love with each other or happier than they are. When they drove from the Winter Palace after the Wedding they got a tremendous reception and ovation from the large crowds in the streets, the cheering was most hearty and reminded me of England, an enormous crowd of several thousand people assembled in front of this Palace and cheered continuously from 3.0. till 8.0. The young couple showed themselves at the window several times.

Alicky got a great many lovely presents, I have never seen such jewellery, your charming locket was very much admired. Dear Nicky was most touched by your making him Col. in Chief of the Scots Greys, and it was the Regiment he admired more than any other, when he was at Aldershot this year, he is quite delighted about it. | know your giving him this Regiment has made a most excellent effect here.

The weather unfortunately has been bad, very cold with snow and rain alternately and no frost at all, | am disappointed as I wanted so much to see St Petersburg with snow and ice. I must say I have never been treated anywhere with so much kindness and civility as here from everyone I have met. This is the first time I have been to Russia, I certainly have got a most excellent impression of the people and the country. Uncle Alfred and Aunt Marie leave here tonight, the former for England and the latter for Coburg. Nicky has been kindness itself to me, he is the same dear boy he has always been to me, and talks to me quite openly on every subject. It is really quite touching to see the charming way he treats dear Aunt Minnie; and he does everything so quietly and nicely and naturally; everyone is struck by it, and he is very popular already. I am so glad that May, sisters and our Baby are with you at Windsor now, and that you are going to keep them with you till Papa and I arrive on the 6th.

I am so looking forward to seeing you and them all again. We leave next Sunday and shall spend one day with Aunt Vicky in Berlin. God bless you dearest Grandmama with love to all and hoping to see you very soon.

I remain ever your most devoted and dutiful grandson Georgie".

[maroonhealth]

Disability Services North Melbourne

Disability services North Melbourne help people with a disability to engage with the NDIS. This includes support coordination, accommodation and community participation.

The NDIS review is set to put people at the centre of how the scheme works. It will also examine how the program is managed and funded.

Find out more about disability inclusion programs for schools and workplaces.

Dudley Street Reserve

Dudley Street Reserve offers a range of services for residents and visitors. The facility includes a play space with equipment suited to younger children and outdoor fitness equipment that can be used to perform beginner calisthenics workouts.

The shared path along Dudley Street will be closed from Footscray Road to Adderley Street for two months as part of the West Gate Tunnel project. Cyclists should use La Trobe Street as a detour.

Arden Street Reserve

The Arden Street Reserve offers stunning Swan River views and dual-use footpaths. It’s a popular spot for exercise groups on the weekends and for families to hold picnics.

It is the training base of North Melbourne Football Club and was home to the club until it moved to Coburg City Oval in 1965. The installation of lighting at the ground has enabled NMFC to train at night.

North Melbourne Community Centre

North Melbourne Community Centre offers a wide range of affordable programs and services. It also features a community health club, stadium and learning hub. It has a large well-equipped gym, group fitness rooms and a great range of kids activities.

Council is developing a new 3000 square metre community hub to address the growing needs of North Melbourne's diverse community. The new facility will include youth, family and ageing services.

Queen Victoria Market

Queen Victoria Market is a large, open-air market located in the centre of Melbourne. It occupies two city blocks and seven hectares. It is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register and National Heritage List.

It is a great place to shop for fresh produce and specialty food. It also offers a variety of other products and services. It is accessible by public transport.

University High School

University High School is a high-achieving secondary school in Parkville. It is known for its diverse student population and unique program of accelerated learning for gifted students.

This could be a sign that this school is not doing enough to support low-income students. Learn more.

North Melbourne Primary School

We built a new kindergarten for 66 children on level 5 of the North Melbourne Primary School – Molesworth Street campus. It’s part of the innovative'vertical school' campus designed to help local kids get a superb education close to home.

ARM Architecture and Bush Projects have masterplanned the tight site to make the most of every opportunity. Outdoor spaces are multipurpose and support flexible teaching approaches.

Royal Melbourne Hospital

Established in 1848 as Melbourne’s first hospital, the Royal Melbourne Hospital (RMH) offers outstanding care and treatment, improves health outcomes through its comprehensive medical research program, and trains future health professionals. It is also a designated statewide provider for services including trauma and leads Centres of Excellence in tertiary services such as neurosciences, nephrology and oncology.

RMH is a member of Melbourne Health, which was created on 1 August 1995 through an order in council to aggregate the Western, Northern and North West Health Care Networks.

City of Melbourne North Melbourne Library

Located in busy Degraves Street, this three-storey library offers traditional and digital catalogues as well as music and film collections. The narrm ngarrgu (Melbourne knowledge) facility is also home to the City of Melbourne’s Environment Resource Centre.

The library offers programs including babies and toddlers story time and school holiday activities. Membership is free. The Carlton, North Melbourne and Docklands locations are currently offering click and collect services until July 2023.

North Melbourne Recreation Centre

The North Melbourne Recreation Centre (NMRC) is a gym and stadium in Carlton that offers a comprehensive learn-to-swim program from children to adults, group fitness classes and personal training. It is also home to the North Melbourne Football Club and Fencing Victoria. It is accessible to people with disability and has a Changing Places toilet. Its facilities are open throughout the year and can be booked through Active Melbourne.

[collymore]

These monarchists are so easily fooled into thinking the Windsors are just like them!

By Stanley Collymore

Crucially to William but also the rest of the clearly, like-minded irrefutably bone idled, utterly dysfunctional, inured racist, delusional cum actualy white Aryan Master Race supremacists and toxic self-evidently unquestionably obviously medievally very decadent mindset Saxe-Coburg Gothe-Mountbatten pillocks, literally here's my very earnest and heartfelt advice to you. Crucially simply keep your quite useless and undoubtedly meaningless too, to everyone apart from yourselves, and evidently your ample array of fatuous sycophants these rather ridiculous titles; for as far as I'm obviously concerned, but likewise also, from my very honest perspective, and those who simply quite unquestionably, think as I do; although I unapologetically clearly wish to make it absolutely certain, to anyone who is really interested that is, that I'm simply specifically speaking for myself, and crucially distinctly no one else, nor would I ever want to or quite significantly, give the distinct lying impression, characteristically of that plethora of dishonest, racist right-wingers and hardcore Nazis who in trying to accord credit to their basically useless and rather unconvincing arguments; fittingly, love nothing better than to rather instinctively and effectively too, continuously utilize the personal pronoun we!

When what they're simply saying and obviously know, that it has far less validity comparatively than any arrogant azoospermiac male boasting about himself being a horny and actually prolific, biological father when very obviously, he's really quite pathetically, some generally actually incurably, and distinctively, naturally sexually ineffectively sterile, moron. So I'm speaking solely, on behalf of myself, although quite consciously, aware of other people's opinions in full accordance, with my own; thus my simple rather frank and honest advice to you Windsors is this: get out permanently of my citizenship life, and remain there; as currently, you're discernibly, unquestionably a permanent nuisance essentially because as a British citizen that I crucially am and actually have no intention of decidedly, enforcedly relinquishing; I have Charles, and the remainder of you, discernibly, like quite toxic vermin in line at a basically waste disposable plant undeniably, and permanently too, as it evidently, actually inevitably currently stands as my country's distinctively, basically unelected rather undemocratic, discernibly obviously unaccountable and, a purportedly hereditary - Head of State with no plausible mandate either from myself or effectively for that matter any other citizen

(C) Stanley V. Collymore 11 February 2024.

Author's Remarks: What a fuss over Charles who with Kate was racially less charitable over Archie when he was just an embryo in Meghan's womb! A follow up situation when the said Charles, Kate, Camilla and William along with Philip and Liz were quite aware of as well as personally complicit as regards the attempted murder of Archie who as a baby was taken with both his parents: Harry and Meghan, on their last official tour of South Africa. A murder attempt that was actually foiled by the prompt and grateful actions of Archie's nanny, but clearly while it was still in the offing had Kate vilely gloating to Charles about how appropriate it was that Archie would actually die in her sickening words: "Niggerland". There's distinctly an old and wise Barbadian saying that when you malevolently wish evil on others, and quite unwarrantedly so, it very vehemently comes back to rather viciously bite you in the posterior. So don't actually expect this Bajan/Brit to shell out any sympathy for racist Charles and like-minded Kate who could be and distinctly were so viciously racist towards an unborn child initially, as well as simply be complicit in his planned murder as a child; quite literally doing so because Archie: they both, like the rest of their ilk and also their equally sick fawners like Tom Bauer perceive in their quite evil and delusional state of existence that they also carry on with in their persistent state of denial, would never, or could obviously actually ever, become Aryan Master Race specimens exactly like themselves and as well Kate's own three sprogs; my word not theirs, in retaliation! How bloody pathetic of them in this the 21st Century!

Charles had the opportunity to see his two grandchildren by Harry and Meghan when the four of them were in Britain and rather specifically it was Lilibet's upcoming first birthday and to which he had an invitation to her planned birthday party but he rather pointedly refused to. Now this discernibly, ignorant mother fucker is quite purportedly suffering from cancer and actually milking all the kiss- me-ass: an undoubtedly rather  nice derogatorily put down Barbadian term of phrase, sympathy that he can effectively get he literally unquestionably, significantly heads off supposedly and specifically very "poorly" to Sandringham, ostensibly and as well crucially for recuperation; but actually guess what? Has a discernibly, supposedly recuperating from her mystery illness Kate Middleton obviously in attendance with her three sprogs and crucially too, his similarly biological grandchildren just as Archie and Lilibet are, but obviously with evidently no rejection even in such circumstances from this racist and hypocritical bastard that the UK has as its unelected monarch. Actually prompting one commentator to opine and I wholeheartedly agree, Charles is literally quite preferably, and I quote, "at ease with his white grandchildren" - end of quote!

Furthermore, this cancer stuff pertaining to Charles happens often and discernibly quite uncaringly on a daily basis to many much more deserving, as human beings, than Charles and Kate: singly or obviously effectively collectively will ever be! And it occurs as well quite glaringly too without a glimmer of any interest by the media and the fawning, brownnosing serfs, who now would like for everyone to wear sack cloth and ashes for two specifically distinctively pathetic human beings in class ridden and unquestionably feudal Britain, languishing in the 21st Century.

Which poses the obvious question by very intelligent folk according to the comments that I've come across. Has William been to see his dad yet? No! For if he had done the media would have had it evidently as front page news, and another vitriolic attack on Harry and racist onslaught on Meghan. In actuality, William obviously couldn't even be that bothered to literally go to church with his father, despite being only a few miles away from him. And equally, rather ludicrously, this distinctly racist plonker is supposed when Charles kicks the bucket to essentially become the future Head of the Church of England. And very evidently, except in the minds unquestionably of the intellectually challenged, discernibly brain-dead, stupid perniciously gullible and quite visibly also, the brownnosing sycophants that asininely worship these so-called and rather risible monarchical prats exactly like those obviously manifestly and arrogantly thoroughly too vilely infesting the toxically verminous and incestuously inbred, Saxe-Coburg-Gothe-Mountbatten-Windsor Klan, William is really showing his true colours.

[crazyprompts4asoiafdune]

ASOIAF AU

Where Eddard Stark is Edward, Duke of Kent, who has been living with Catelyn Tully (a Catholic actress or widow, take your pick) for twenty years and has five kids by her. His children by Catelyn (the FitzKents) are not yet settled when he decides to marry and reproduce an heir for the kingdom with Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfield. Robb died at Waterloo--the shock of his death led to Catelyn’s death and both Sansa and Arya must marry in a hurry to provide a home for Bran and Rickon. Enter Jon Snow and Gendry Waters, aides de camp to the Duke. How does their courtship progress, how do the FitzKents relate to baby!Victoria and how does she relate to them?

[princessvictoriamelita]

Crown Princess Marie of Romania holding her baby son Prince Nicholas of Romania in 1904.

Source: National Archives Bucarest. Please don't remove the watermark.