#Destined 2 Win tour

[jonquilyst]

Day 0 - Introduction

🎵 Dear Mom and Dad, I’m doin’ fine. You guys are on my mind… 🎵

Welcome to the premiere of THE 2ND SEASON of Total Drama Sims: the hottest, freshest reality TV show on simblr. I'm your host jonquilyst, though if you tuned in to the show last season, you'll already know who I am!

14 more teenagers have gathered to put their wits, guts, and strength to the test to seek out the ✨ grand prize. ✨ Like last season, they will compete in crazy challenges, deal with less-than-perfect living arrangements, and face the judgement of each other!

🎵 You asked me what I wanted to be, and I think the answer is plain to see… 🎵

🎵 I wanna live close to the sun. Pack your bags 'cause I’ve already won… 🎵

Allow me to give you the grand tour of the no-longer-abandoned film lot we claimed for this season! Instead of cabins, contestants will be staying in these cramped trailers, just like actors on set! There's one for each team with 7 beds each and complimentary bathrooms.

Our mess hall is a bit less rustic than the one we had at the summer camp, but it's got that same ol' charm with 2 dining tables and a small living area for everyone's convenience!

Now, on to the fun part: replacing the shoddy outhouse, our contestants' destination for providing their juicy confessionals will be a makeup trailer right behind the trailers! Get used to it: it'll appear every single day with a different contestant providing their thoughts.

And finally, the auditorium! This will be the site of our ever-so-exciting elimination ceremonies. In front of it is the walk-of-shame, where losers will say goodbye to Total Drama Sims to catch the lame-o-sine at the very end!

🎵 Everything to prove nothing’s in my way. I’ll get there one day! 🎵

Now, allow me to formally introduce you to our 14 new contestants!

(from left to right; top to bottom)

(also fun fact: the poses are all different this time, so everyone's portrait is truly unique to them!)

ASHLEE SCHAEFER (she/her) by @shmoodlet - A rap artist who always wants to be the center of attention

BRODY SHERMAN (he/him) by @aniraklova - A football captain who loves to party and cause mischief

COFFEE BEAN (she/her) by @riverofjazzsims - A gloomy and introverted polyglot who was entered into the competition by her twin sister so she can have more typical teenager experiences

DREW PINTO (she/they) by @witheringscreations - A talented track athlete who wants to make friendships outside of those she trains with

ENZO ESPINOZA (he/him) by @seyvia - A handsome model who wants to prove to his brothers that he's the most exceptional sibling

FLO HARPER (she/her) by @akitasimblr - A nosy "rebel" (she only dresses the part) who secretly loves to bake

HANS SOMME (he/him) by @ethicaltreatmentofcowplants - A physically gifted, socially inept snob who doesn't think TDS will be that hard

LIANA MORRIS (she/her) by @bloomingkyras - An introverted computer whiz who chose to compete in TDS so she wouldn't have to go to her grandparents' house

NEAL WARD (he/him) by @nakasumi-sims - Son of famous actor Judith Ward. Judith signed him up for TDS2 so he could be occupied while she's filming overseas

PAULINA CALLAWAY (she/her) by @cowplant-ate-my-sim - A cheerful girl who signed up for TDS so she could have a free vacation

TAKASHI ABBOTTSFORD (he/him) by @stargazer-sims - A friendly and talkative boy who thinks he'd be good at TDS due to growing up in a large chaotic family

TONI STROUD (she/her) by @simsinfinitylt - A creative and imaginative thespian who is determined to make a name for herself

TRISTAN BACHMAN (he/him) by @micrathene-w - A snarky academic genius who accidentally arrived at TDS when he was meant to go to his academic decathlon meet

WILLABELLE LOWES (she/her) by @invisiblequeen - An overachiever who is confident she'll win TDS

🎵 I WANNA BE, I WANNA BE, I WANNA BE FAMOUS! 🎵

Wait... What About Teams?

Yea... about that: teams will be sorted a little differently this season! Instead of randomized teams right away, they are being formed after the first socialization day, when everyone has time to form relationships! Shortly before the first challenge, two people will be selected at random to be the "captains" of the teams. From there, they will select their teammates schoolyard-style (alternating between boys and girls) based on their relationships with the other contestants!

[oddeyecir-cle]

 ✶ ˖  ࣪  📹 .  ぅ

lee donghyuck enemies to lovers fic ideas (all fics are haechan × reader)

haechan who is your rival coworker + secretly deadpool

for the sake of this story, lets assume deadpool does hide his identity. he works at a tech company and is constantly beefing with his coworker that he's lowkey attracted to. and the plot could maybe be something like you accidentally finding out his identity and then using that information to slightly/ kind of/ in a non-toxic way blackmail him. eg: making him run errands for you, asking to tag along on his quests as deadpool. then the pair gets closer through all the time they spend together etc etc.

✶ note : hyuck HAS to be the sassiest, funniest, most sarcastic, cocky human being ever. also include some spidermark maybe

haechan as the prince of the neighbouring kingdom

historical au. very basic ik but hear me out. your kingdom's glory and power is gradually draining and it's threatened by multiple rivaling kingdoms. that is when your mother, the queen, tells you there is no choice but to turn to hyuck's kingdom for help. you hate the idea but you know everyone's counting on you so you go through with it anyways. (this is historical so there could be a very cool scene of the reader riding on a horse in battle armour to neighbouring kingdom's palace themself but whatever). they're good, kind people so they agree to help you. they send over a part of their military along with some weapons and of course haechan himself, their most prized possession who, like you, is skilled with a sword and is a wise leader. there's lots of quarrels between the both of you when it comes to the topic of which one has more power over the other and about who should be leading the troops. but you soon put your animosity aside when you realize that you have to work as a team to win. (insert dramatic battle sequence with swords and arrows flying around. at one point, you and haechan lock eyes and suddenly he drops to the ground. the world starts to blur around you when you realize he's been stabbed in his back. you frantically rush to his aid but he falls limp in your arms. its now upto the writer to kill him there itself and end the story. very angsty, i love. or they could also save him somehow and give main characters the happy ending they deserve).

 ✶ note : sloooooowwwww buuuurn. i mean this should be a long ass series with 7k+ words per chapter. should be so heavy on the angst and the hate that it makes you wonder if they do actually end up loving each other in the end. please include sword fighting scenes with sexual tension i beg you. (im big on bollywood, can u tell).

haechan as a stranger/ tour guide you meet on a family trip

you've just gotten out of a 3 year long relationship after your boyfriend cheated on you with your best friend. things get worse when your family, unaware of your breakup, forces you on a 2 week trip to *insert destination of choice" . here you meet the annoying, sarcastic, a-little-too-happy-for-his-own-good donghyuck. he is with the group your family is touring with (him being the tour guide is a pretty cute plot too but it could kind of complicate things later) and instantly wins everyone over with his charm, except you of course. in classic hyuck fashion, he tries to keep getting your attention and eventually succeeds. his company helps ease the pain of the heartbreak he didn't even know about. its bittersweet when it's time to part ways. you realise after you come back to your college dorm that you never exchanged phone numbers and you fail to find him on social media as well. but fate has strange ways of bringing people together. which is why you cant stop smiling when crash into a certain someone during a regular grocery run.

✶ note : more on the fluff and less on the angst for this one. and maybe a dash of slice of life as well.

haechan as captain of the football team.

there is no actual plot for this other than the fact that you're a cheerleader and also his academic rival (there is no trope i love more than this). my vision for this is very 2000s romcom. ik this isn't a lot to work with but there could be some sub trope like fake dating mostly.

✶ note: nothing much just make it cute

+i have a few more ideas, will probably make a part 2

++if in the future, by some miracle, people do find these interesting enough to use, please dont forget to credit me!!

[soupiiiie]

Not sure, but I was thinking about Josh either reader who is a famous singer and they have been dating for a while now and maybe she goes to the Clancy tour with them/they go to some sort of award show together

Rewarding

Josh Dun x famous!reader

words : 1224

warnings : none

I hope this is good, I feel kinda iffy about it...

Fixing my hair for the final time, I glanced beside me at Josh looking handsome as ever in his suit. Tyler sat across from us next to Jenna in the limo, all four of us dressed to the nines for the award show. Over the past 2 years, I have been working on my third album. When it was released, all of my fans and Twenty One Pilots fans got it to number one on a bunch of charts. So much so that I was nominated for a Grammy. I of course brought Josh, my boyfriend, as my date, and I had to bring Tyler and Jenna. They'd been my best friends since I met Josh and helped a ton while making the album.

The limo finally stopped at our destination and my hands shook slightly. Noticing this, Josh grabbed my hand and rubbed his thumb over my knuckles, “Hey, they love you, there’s nothing to worry about, okay?” he whispered quietly to me. I nodded and swallowed thickly. He kissed the side of my head and the door to the limo opened. Lights flashing all around us were blinding, fans were standing behind velvet ropes and security guards stood at either side of the door. Josh stepped out first and held his hand to help me get out. I took it and stepped out, Tyler and Jenna following soon after. 

“Y/n we love you!” “Oh my gosh Twenty One Pilots?!” “I love you y/n!” “We hope you win y/n!” 

Fans were yelling toward us and we just smiled and waved every so often. I was already beginning to get overwhelmed with all of the paparazzi and noise. Josh gently squeezed my hand reassuringly and I squeezed back. We walked through the doors to the venue and were met with even more paparazzi and a photo-op section. We all stood with each other for photos and I was pulled aside by an interviewer. Josh, Tyler and Jenna stayed back for more photos.

“So y/n big day huh? We’ve heard that you’re nominated for 3 Grammy's tonight, how do you feel?” The interviewer, a young woman, asked me. 

I smiled and nodded along, “I’m super excited to be here with my team and friends but also nervous. I don’t have a speech prepared.” The woman laughed lightly and continued with another question.

“We see you brought a Grammy winning band with you tonight, maybe they’ll give you some of their good luck?” she motioned toward Josh and Tyler standing with a reporter, Tyler with his arm around Jenna.

“Yes, my boyfriend Josh is with me of course and I couldn’t be here without Tyler and Jenna. All three of them have been absolutely amazing and supportive. It wasn’t easy making an album while on tour with them.” I smiled toward Josh as he made brief eye contact with me and came toward me wrapping an arm around my waist and kissing me on the top of my head.

“Well y/n, we hope to see you go home with an award tonight, good luck!” I smiled at her and shook her hand. After catching back up with Tyler and Jenna, the four of us went inside the theater to find our seats. 

“Does it feel weird to be here a second time?” I looked toward the three next to me.

“It feels weird to be here with my pants on.” Tyler smiled and Jenna just laughed and shook her head. I laughed along with her rolled my eyes

“Josh, if I win, can you promise to keep your pants on?” He gave me a small smirk.

“No promises sweetheart.” Rolling my eyes jokingly, I sat down in my seat and we waited patiently for the ceremony to begin.

Soon enough, the lights dimmed and it started. After a ton of applauding and singing along to some performances, it was finally time to announce the main award I was nominated for. My palms grew clammy and I grabbed both Josh and Jenna’s hands. Josh smiled at me and they read of the nominees, we were shown on the big screen as the announcer named us. 

“And the winner,” Taking a deep breath, I squeezed Josh’s hand and he put his own over top of mine. “ for best album goes to… y/n with (album name)!” I gasped and looked at Josh with wide eyes. 

He smiled back at me and I stood to walk onto the stage for my award, the audience cheering loudly behind me. I shook the announcer's hands and stepped to the microphone, award in hand. “Thank you so much for this. I want to thank my friends who are here with me tonight, you guys kept me sane. And I want to give the biggest thank you to my wonderful boyfriend who’s also with me tonight. I couldn’t have done any of this without you. I love you. Finally, thank you, thank you so much to my amazing fan base. You are the reason I do this.” I smiled and stepped to the side and started toward the stairs back to my seat.

“Y/n everybody!” The announcers spoke and a roar of applause was heard. When I sat back in my seat, Josh kissed my hand lightly. “See, I knew you could do it, and my pants are still on.” I chuckled at him and turned toward Jenna and Tyler. 

“We’re so proud of you y/n. I knew you could do it.” Jenna squeezed my other hand and Tyler nodded beside her.

After the show came to a close, we exited the venue with another slew of photos taken and questions answered. One limo ride and a bunch of celebratory car karaoke later, Josh and I had been dropped off at Josh’s house. We said goodbyes to Jenna and Tyler and went inside. My feet were cramping from being squished into heels all night and my dress was becoming itchy.

“Would you please unzip my Josh?” I asked with my back turned toward him. 

“It would be my pleasure hun.” He smiled and unzipped my dress, kissing my shoulder as I slid it off of my body, “I’m so proud of you baby. You deserve the world for all of your hard work.” I blushed and went to put on my pajamas.

“Thank you babe. It feels nice to know that people love what I make for them.” He agreed and walked into the bathroom to get ready for bed. I followed and after brushing our teeth, we climbed into bed. Josh’s arm wrapped around me and I was pulled into his chest. I breathed in his scent and a wave of calm washed over me. “Even if I hadn’t won an award tonight, this feels just as rewarding.” 

He lifted my chin slightly, “I love you so much,” and with that, he kissed me sweetly, smiling into it. I pulled back for a moment.

“I love you too.” Leaning back into the kiss, his smile widened. We pulled apart and I laid my head on his chest, letting his heartbeat lull me to sleep. A kiss was placed atop my head and a small goodnight was whispered before my heavy eyelids gave way and sleep took over. 

I was the luckiest girl in the world.

[annaphoenix1994]

First Christmas

Masterlist - Part 2 Here

Simon conquers his first real Christmas and gets a gift of his own.

"Merry Christmas, baby."

Tags: Pure fluff/Soft Simon/Domestic Simon/Slight angst

Additional Note: Simon gets a unique surprise when he sees an old friend. "Looks like you got yourself a win, yeah L.t.?"

Throughout the years, Simon dreaded the holiday season and hoped he could at least stay in active status as he didn't have a family to return home to. To him, Christmas was just another day with a dinner that the Captain would usually plan, Price being the one who did so on his unit. But unlike Simon, Price had a family of his own to go home to for the holidays as well as Soap.

On top of everything else, this would trigger his depressive attitude all over again, leaving him to wander alone in his thoughts, wishing he had what everyone else in his unit did. A family.

That was the longest tour of his life. Christmas really hit him hard that year and he spent the holiday being on guard atop a cliff that hugged their headquarters.

Roughly a few years later, Simon hadn't had to pick up the mask for combat since being home, surprised that he didn't want to go back after adjusting to a healthy relationship. After talking to his brother-in-arms, Soap, he didn't feel as guilty when Soap didn't want to go back to the field either. The men still called each other by their nicknames and made time to reconnect while bringing along their partners for quality time together as they enjoyed their early retirement.

Simon sat in his at-home office, looking at the medals and certificates that you had framed nicely for him to be a reminder of his honorable duties. He fidgeted with the balaclava that had a bruised and tattered skull print on the front of it. The pad of his thumb traced over it as he knew he wore it a lot while deployed, but vowed to never have to put it on again unless it called for war.

His attention darted towards the closed door, his gaze breaking from the photos of him and his comrades in uniform, posing in front of the helicopter that carried them to many destinations, one with the K-9 that was on their unit, Kyle, they called him as the Marines on his unit at the time compared the K-9 soldier's bravery and heroism the same that reminded them of Chris Kyle - the American Sniper, and one of him, Soap, and Alejandro. Christ, he was such a cool guy.

The door opened slowly after a soft knock. He admired how you respected his office as it was a sacred place. You were ignorant of how he spent his time overseas, nor did you question him about it, but you were always there for him whenever he needed to. "Hey," You smiled at him, still in your pajamas.

He was too, sort of... He didn't have a designated set of pajamas, but he figured a black t-shirt, sweatpants, and thick socks did the job just fine.

As for you, however, you loved the festive prints that were put on the fleece bottoms as the four seasons brought out a happiness that Simon loved to see. He wished he had as much light in his eyes as you did.

He looked at you with a heavy gaze, wondering how the fuck he got so lucky, but he forced the negative thought from his mind as he constantly feared he would lose you.

You picked up on that gaze and tilted your head in concern, "You alright?"

He nodded, watching you walk into the office and close to the desk, looking down briefly at the balaclava that he had been fidgeting with, "I'm going to start on the turkey," You said to him, referring to the Christmas dinner you had planned. He was eager to see your family again as your father was the complete opposite of his own - he was a true family man - something Simon admired to be. "You want to come with me?"

"I'll be there in a few," He replied, his sharp eyes never leaving your features. "Just thinking."

"I understand. I'll be here if you need me." You nodded, presenting that comforting smile that he loved so much coming closer to him, feeling your warm lips press against his forehead.

After a few minutes, what really ended up to be twenty, Simon gathered the motivation to join you in the kitchen, stopping briefly to eavesdrop as he heard you on the phone with someone.

"Around seven is fine - sure, absolutely! He'll be astonished! - Okay, just text me when you're near!"

He watched as you set your phone on the counter before continuing to mix ingredients in a mixing bowl, unaware of his presence. He waited until your hands were off of the bowl before snaking his arms around you, knowing you were likely to jump every time he managed to sneak on you and he wasn't in the mood to have to help clean up a mess of flour and eggs off the floor.

Surprisingly, you didn't jump clean out of your skin this time. Instead, you just gasped at the sudden warmth of his torso against your back and his chin against your neck before placing a delicate kiss there. "Coming to help me bake cookies?" You smiled, leaning your head back on his shoulder.

"I thought you were cooking the turkey."

"Multitasking, babe, it's what we women do so well."

"That and running your mouth." He poked, watching you gasp.

"I guess you're right... for once."

"I know I'm always right, sweetheart," He chuckled, kissing your neck again before making his way to the wine cabinet, getting himself a glass, but offering you one first. "Want one?"

"No, thank you. I'll save it for later." You nodded.

---

Evening had fallen and the small gathering at the house was going according to plan, except for one thing. You began to grow nervous as Soap was supposed to be there by now and judging by the lack of texts, he hadn't shown any sign of being near. You forced yourself to hold your composure as you didn't want to give away the surprise, but you couldn't help but worry. Glancing at Simon, he sat at the dinner table with your father as they were all patiently waiting for the rest of the food to be ready. You, your aunt, and your sister were helping you prepare the food, always insisting for the men to banter on about their days. And the fact that they would always try to sneak a piece of hot food before it was even time to eat. Especially the deviled eggs -- you had to physically hide them every year.

And make two platters of them -- your father, uncle, and Simon didn't give them any mercy.

"I'll be right back." You told your sister as you exited the kitchen, trying not to look in a rush as you pat Simon's shoulder on your way past him, a comforting gesture you had always done for him. You made sure that Simon wasn't watching you as you checked your phone, seeing a relieving text from Soap that had come through not even a minute prior:

Thank God, you thought as you walked towards the front door, making it look like you were changing into your slippers to keep any suspicion at bay. Thankfully, it worked.

Simon was hard to surprise, but you thanked your father for keeping him distracted.

You opened the door, smiling at Simon's brother-in-arms alongside his new wife. "Thank you so much for coming." You smiled, mumbling the words as you didn't want to ruin the surprise for Simon.

"Wouldn't miss this for the world, love," He nodded, greeting you with a warm hug. "He for-sure doesn't know I'm here, right?"

"Not yet, anyway. I was going to let you surprise him."

"Oh, I can surprise him." He smirked, his hand resting on the small of his wife's back as he guided her inside first. To your relief, the short hallway that led to the front door was enough to keep Soap in the shadows for a bit longer until it was time to surprise Simon. Truly, he didn't know what to say, but he knew he'd think of something.

He shrugged off his coat after helping his wife out of hers before shooting you a smug grin, nodding as if he were asking permission to make his presence known. You smiled as you let him take charge.

"Well, well, you really are quite the opposite." He said, referring to their last big battle together when he teased Simon about taking off his mask.

Simon turned around in his chair, truly stunned before standing to his feet, immediately stretching out his hand to grasp Soap's before the men embraced. "It's so good to see you, brother." Soap said, patting Simon's back.

"Where in the bloody hell have you been?" Simon asked in disbelief, stepping back to look him over, glad that he was still in one piece.

"Around," He shrugged. "I know we weren't in contact for a while, but I knew once she reached out to me, I had to come and visit and wouldn't miss it for the world."

Simon glanced at you with soft eyes.

"Well, I have a seat saved for you, sir." Simon said, repeating the same words Soap had said to him that night when he and Simon regrouped for a final agenda, although Simon was a bit hostile for the first half of it if he had to be honest.

Dinner wasn't quiet this time. All of the chairs were full, the food was hot, and the fireplace kept the house warm. It was nice to see Simon and Soap reunite, knowing he was comfortable around him as, aside from you, Soap had been alongside Simon the most, the men claiming their brotherhood with military status.

You were always one to get gifts for the ones you love, so it wasn't a surprise when you began handing a gift to Simon and your family, even Soap and his wife. It took a while for Simon to get used to gift-receiving, not knowing how to truly accept one due to lack of experience, but he was no stranger to giving gifts. In fact, he loved to shower you with them, going overboard sometimes as he sometimes felt he couldn't quite get it right when it came to showing how much he loved you.

For Soap and his new wife, you gifted them with a housewarming gift - well, multiple... you also went overboard when giving gifts. You just couldn't help it. Besides, it was a special occasion for Soap - he had just purchased a new house with his wife.

Amazon was your best friend when it came to buying multiple gifts.

You laughed as Soap and his wife opened the gift together, seeing that you had bought them a personalized cutting board (she loved to cook), a speaker that worked in the shower (Soap loved music and Simon always joked with him on base that he "should as well baptize himself" with the long showers he took), and an ornament for their Christmas tree that was a picture of them at their wedding in the middle - Simon being the best man as well as the men standing in attention, similar to how they stood in the photos in Simon's office.

"Thank you so much." Soap complimented you.

"You're welcome. I know you can make use out of it!"

"Definitely will."

Throughout the gift-giving ceremony, you were fulfilled as you loved the feeling of having family, hoping that Simon felt the same as you knew he had a rough childhood/early adulthood. You were glad Simon got along well with your father - the men even going on fishing trips every so often. Although you got each member of your family one gift, you had two for Simon - one of them being something he didn't know about, so you were going to save it for everyone to see, knowing he would love it.

His first gift was, of course, multiple items into one. You got him one of his favorite hoodies, his favorite cologne, and something new: an online pass for one of his favorite car video games that he and Soap had talked about at dinner - that conversation being planned too, ensuring that it was something of interest to Simon before you bought it. He wasn't a big gamer, but he liked to interact with a virtual world every now and then to take the edge off. And he loved racing cars. Now I definitely won't hear from him much anymore. He'll be too busy racing Soap, you thought jokingly.

He placed a thankful kiss to your temple, watching you as you opened your gift(s). When this man went overboard on showering you with gifts, he meant it. Inside the box was a gift card to your favorite coffee shop(...let's just say it was enough to keep you satisfied for a few days on your favorite iced coffee...), a pair of socks that had a cute print of your favorite animal on them, three books that you had always been wanting to read, but always forgot to order (he literally swiped your phone while you were sleeping and went through your Amazon cart), your favorite face scrub, and inside of a small velvet box was another diamond band to match against your engagement ring. To Simon, the bands he got you were to symbolize the years you have spent together. Having two bands total, he would want you to choose the band you wanted for when your wedding day came.

"Thank you so much, baby." You smiled, pressing a kiss to his lips as you immediately tried on the band, watching it fit snugly against your engagement ring.

"You're welcome, sweetheart."

"I have a surprise gift for you, by the way. It wouldn't have made sense to give it to you before everyone opened their gifts."

"You're making me nervous with that talk." He chuckled.

"Don't be nervous, you'll love it!"

You got up carefully, rushing towards your shared bedroom to retrieve the special gift you had been hiding from him for the past week from the closet. Walking back into the living room, he was still standing at the table, the wrapping paper from his gift box thrown away and his items sitting in the box, organized. Yep, the military never left him...

Simon began to feel suspicious as Soap and his wife approached the table as well, but those feelings subsided as it was only the four of you at the table. You smiled as you set the box on the table, wrapped in solid red wrapping paper. He looked down at it, his suspicion growing as he honestly thought it was a prank Soap had put together.

"It ain't gonna open itself!" Soap teased.

"The more you talk, the more resistance I feel on opening it."

Soap sighed.

"Don't be a wuss." He chuckled.

Simon shook his head, hiding the chuckle he wanted to let out as he was truly happy to be picking at Soap again. He missed it - taunting him and joking with him across their radios while on missions. It made the time go by faster.

Slowly, he opened the gift, seeing a white box underneath. It resembled a box that a cake would come in, but it was no cake. Using his pocketknife to cut the tape that held it shut, he then saw a mound of tissue paper under the lid. Now confused, he glanced at you briefly before slowly moving the tissue paper out of the way.

He was truly at a loss for words. His chest tightened, his heart thudded against his sternum, and his mind felt dizzy as if he were stunned.

It was an outfit for an infant with a positive pregnancy test on top of it and a copy of the ultrasound of the baby. A little blip.

You were only seven weeks and had found out on your recent check-in at your doctor. It was partially a planned pregnancy, but you nor Simon were in a rush but were prepared if it were to happen.

He was afraid to reach in and touch the items, afraid that they would disappear if he did. He couldn't believe it, but also couldn't find the motion to express what he was feeling. Happiness was an understatement and he hoped that you didn't think he wasn't happy with the gift, but you knew by seeing in his eyes that he was truly too stunned to speak. He then looked over at you, seeing the excitement in your eyes as he felt the time had slowed down around him. Everyone was looking his way now, making him feel like he was obligated to jump for joy, but he didn't move.

He looked back down at the items in the box, seeing your handwriting on a small card next to the test: 'I can't wait to meet you, daddy!'

That did it for him right then and there. He broke out of his few-second trance and approached you, "Are you serious?" He asked, pleading with his eyes that it was true. His hands were on your hips, closest to your abdomen as he was going to admire that bump of life that grew inside of you.

You nodded at his question, wrapping your arms around his neck as he carefully pulled you closer to him, leaving a couple-inch gap between you two, afraid that he would squish your belly. You were so delicate to him now that he was responsible for.

He was going to be the man he admired - your father.

He closed his eyes as he imagined it was just you and him in the room, ignoring everyone's curious gaze and congratulations as he pressed his face against your neck, keeping himself there before you felt his left arm come up behind your neck and to his face, seeming like he was pinching the bridge of his nose. He was holding back tears.

"Well, all-be," Soap smiled as he approached him from the side, patting his shoulder. "Looks like you've got yourself a win, yeah L.t.?"

[batsplat]

omgg i started following you because i loved your motogp posts and i did not expect to get emotionally attacked about my tennis fave like this. you've lit expressed everything ive felt abt tennis lately like daniil's return game has developed so well these last few years if only his shoulders were still functional he wld be soo unstoppable (i remember like last 2 year-ish when his serve suddenly went to shit and i was like wtf is going on?? but then it turned out his shoulders don' work anymore😭😭😭) ngl i did not expect him to make it to the ao finals this yr at all but then he did and i started getting hope again and then well uk what happened next... (i actually went to bed when he was up 2 sets because i alrdy had premonitions for what was abt to happen and i didnt need that experience twice 😭) anyways i finally quit watching the men's tour reguarly middle of this yr-ish because mostly because my biggest opp started winning big tournanments/slams consistently and i cld not take it anymore (part of why i got into motogp ig, i needed a new thing to fill in the hole)

also ur thing being having to be the chosen one in men's tennis is soo true but i wld argue it cld even be broadened down to being in the chosen generation... every 90s born player doomed to be seen as the weak links of the sport, both forever destined to be surpassed by those who came before and those who came after...

anyways mostly i also just wanted to thank you for writing all your super information motogp posts!! not only is ur writing style super informative/consistent, all the topics u've written abt feel super unique like i doubt i wld ever randomly stumble elsewhere. i'm not that good w/ words so idk how to fully express my appreciation, but your posts are the main reason i started delving into more past motogp races and interviews instead of just sticking to current ones which has 1000% made my experience of becoming a motogp fan more enjoyable!

🥺🥺 such a nice ask from a fellow sufferer... I actually tried to sleep in for the ao final and managed for like. maybe a set. it's so funny to have a whole fanbase quite literally begging their player not to go up two sets to love, zero hindsight needed I was HORRIFIED by that second set going his way... especially since I noticed the balance of play in the actual games had changed and meddy wasn't winning any return points anymore, just relying on an earlier break to seal that set iirc. and then I started going for increasingly desperate tactics to distract myself when the inevitable happened in the next three sets (including rewatching marc marquez: all in, it was rough man, like I get what you're saying about getting into motogp to escape because generally I too have fled to this sport whenever tennis has most been pissing me off)

and obviously that final was very trauma flashbacks to my definitive sports trauma, a match I'm STILL not over and at this rate have accepted I'll be miserable about until the day I die. but this time I couldn't even BLAME him because it was an insane effort to even get to the final, he'd done such a fantastic job given his tennis really wasn't there at the start of the tournament, he just kept figuring out ways to win... the hurkacz match where he basically ran out of fuel in the fourth, that crazy semifinal where he just refused to know when he was beaten, and then taking two sets off sinner in that final!! the resilience and the grit but also the tactical acumen, like my god when he blindsided hurkacz by radically altering his return position RIGHT AFTER doing that post-match back-and-forth with courier where he explained in detail why he favoured his regular return position. the cleverness and the bravery he showed in clutch points in that semi, something that zverev is completely incapable of (monte carlo 2023 still lives rent free lol), like the psychology of that match slapped. how he took it so sinner, completely caught him off guard by mixing up his game, and it was WORKING. really managed to change the dynamic of that match up... he lost that match first and foremost in his legs. just so cruel after everything. we had the guy who easily disposed of an admittedly rubbish djokovic in the semis on the ropes. and it still. was. not. fucking. enough. one of the best slam final runs in recent memory and it still wasn't enough!! he's already far outperformed what he SHOULD have been capable of in his career and somehow he keeps developing a game style which should have plateaued ages ago and I have so much respect for the work him and gilles have done post-2022... and he really should have more to show for it

anyway yeah I remember the serve decline in 2022, back when I was really in the weeds with analysing meddy's game. and that was also the year it felt like his legs completely deserted him. his deciding set record that year was horrific after ao, very rarely even got it that far win or lose and when he did so almost always lost (karatsev was cramping, let's not talk about the other third set win)

scorelines from the tour finals genuine miracle i did not throw myself into the sea

only one four set match post-ao and he also lost that, incidentally. and obviously that was partly because his brain was fucked, BUT I also wondered whether it was the aftereffects of the hernia operation that year affecting both the physicality and the serve. and I can't remember if he confirmed that anywhere but the theory's certainly cottoned on to help explain the serve decline, even if his endurance obviously has massively improved again. and then add in the shoulder... it's so brutal because it used to be such a key pillar to his game, like the whole magic was tied together by being able to whizz through his own service games while making his opponent's return games hellish

and like,, the thing I really admire about him is that there was a period in 2022 where it did feel like he'd been 'figured out', like there was increasingly a game plan that could be used against him. serve and volley, etc etc. but to some extent, he's managed to resist just being written off when facing elite competition BECAUSE he keeps coming up with ways to throw his opponents off-balance. what he's been doing this year, for all that it hasn't gotten him great results, has been so much fun to watch - really reminded me of his summer/autumn 2019 stretch where he'd played so much he should've constantly been at risk of keeling over of exhaustion but adapted to it by just becoming a completely different player. wawrinka uso 2019 match still goes crazyyyy, one of his most underrated performances. serve and volley in the uso 2019 final I wanna run to u. it's such a wonderfully unique game that's frankensteining all these unique parts together that all sort of shouldn't work but all sort of do, harnessed and constantly reinvented by (let's face it) the smartest top player currently in the game. and it really does piss me off that he hasn't been rewarded more. he's been the best of the rest since 2019, he's absolutely maximised his game for someone who doesn't have that stratospheric big three-level of talent and I WANT it to actually matter. but men's tennis will always see talent triumphing over guile I fear, and meddy has consistently been a victim of poor timing

and yeah, the generational aspect is true, where the entire ''''''''nextgen''''''''' cohort has essentially been doomed - partly because they just weren't good enough, but partly because they arrived at just the right time window to still be thoroughly traumatised by the big three without getting any kind of a break before the next super talents showed up. until 2022 I really did naively believe we were getting a chaos era of SOME kind until that decrepit spanish ghoul showed up in australia to trample all over my soul and give me depression, and then immediately another bloody spaniard started going at it. how can you not be a little bit bitter that alcaraz got to swan to his first slam title without having to face a single member of the big three? idk man like sometimes it really is the magic of sports that the anointed few don't just have talent on their side, they are also fantastically lucky. you see it with how the big three all secured their first slams... things just seem to work out somehow. infuriating and existentially horrifying

anyway. lol. as you can see I do always have a tennis rant in me. will always be a major part of my life, obviously something I have a far far better understanding of than any other sport, still keep up with the women's game fairly closely... where icl it helps that the players I'm most invested in have dropped off SO badly this year, partly due to injury, that I can merrily ignore their existence. plus, and this bit is crucial, I don't loathe the players who actually win things. so I'm in a happy place where I just enjoy the sport and (if anything) want Certain top players to do better than they currently are... but also don't lose any sleep over the results. like, have I been massively frustrated with iga this year? yes, but it's also not made me stare at a wall for five hours. also, it's just been a way better product than this predictable basher servebot shit from the men. women's wimbledon semi day THE best tennis day of the year, prove me wrong. they've had actual classic matches, which the men have been noticeably short on. just sort of been an odd season for the men, with djokovic shrivelling and alcaraz patchy outside of two slams and sinner doing his whole 'I'm not a cardboard cut out I'm a REAL boy' routine on his way to fifty hard court titles and everyone else irrelevant. as I've already said... it's fine. whatever. hope the sport enjoys fifty thousand alcaraz/sinner slam wins as the earth keeps turning around the sun and eventually we all turn to dust. it's fine

and seriously, thank you for everything in the ask... always happy to hear I've made someone's fan experience like. better. and that I add something a little bit different to the mix lol, also literally no compliment I like to read more than anything to do with my actual writing. because this ask was so lovely, here's my personal favourite moment as a tennis fan this year:

still think that australian open title should be restored to us

[esilher]

Collaborative December klaine challenge 2023 between @esilher and @mynonah

Bedtime by @mynonah

"Attention, attention! Boarding is over, the gate is closed. Welcome to our international VIP flight! Estimated time of departure: in 20 seconds. Please remain seated and keep your seat belts fastened during the extremely long 35-second flight. That goes for you too, Mr. Teddy Bear! The flight can be bumpy at times, UGH, just like the takeoff, apparently. But it's just turbulence, so please, stay calm. Our plane is gliding through the air in very strong hands, no need to worry, Mr. Teddy Bear! Refreshments will be served at our destination, the Pillow Islands.

Attention, attention! We've flown over the Strait of Blanket and are about to land. We’ll arrive at the Pillow Islands in 10 seconds. Please return to your seats and fasten your seat belts. I'm talking to you, Mr. Teddy Bear! As we land, please be aware that sleepyheads will be given priority in entering the Island.

Arrival in 5 seconds!

5!

4!

3!

2!

1!

Kids and Bears, welcome to the Pillow Islands! The local time is: bedtime."

* * *

Kurt gently closes the door behind them and looks at Blaine with wide eyes before jumping into his arms, giggling.

"We did it!!!"

"We did it." Blaine echoes, wrapping his arms tighter around Kurt's waist.

"I can't believe it. It's 8:20 pm and he's asleep. In his own bed. It's all because of you."

"Me? You were brilliant."

"Obviously," Kurt chuckles, pulling away just enough to look Blaine in the eye. "But it was your idea."

"We came up with it together."

"Um, well... I was about to tell you what your prize is for arranging our first night off in two months, but as you wish..."

"What? No, no, no, no. No. Give me my prize. I deserve it. What did I win? But more importantly... Can I get it on the nearest Pillow Island? Because that sounded pretty cool and... I thought you could give me a private tour. What do you think?" - Blaine asks, playfully rubbing his nose against Kurt's.

"What a coincidence... That's exactly where I left your prize."

[themedialmercurial]

✈️🪁Asteroid Vibilia (144) and how you travel🪁✈️ pt. 2

This asteroid was named after the Roman goddess of travel, representing both short and long journeys. Depending on the placement of said asteroid, it can point towards your preferred travel destinations and where you may choose to take a journey - - - 🛩️

P.S this is based on my observations, by all means I’m far from a pro. Take this with a grain of salt and feel free to share your thoughts!

See part 1 here!🛩️🛩️

Aspects to the sun-many prominent and important trips during your lifetime

Aspects to the moon-intimate trips, meant to evoke strong emotion, emotional development

Aspects to mercury-trips involving a life lesson, challenges your way of thinking

Aspects to Venus-trips based on aesthetics, art and love

Aspects to mars-action filled trips, fast-paced, living on the “wild-side”

Aspects to Jupiter-potentially winning a trip to a destination, or winning something during a trip, luck

Aspects to Saturn-trips that are structured/serious in nature (defined itinerary), prominent business trips

Aspects to Uranus-random and spontaneous trips, many of surprises during the vacation, expected events

🪁VIBILIA IN THE FIFTH HOUSE🪁

The native with this placement will travel in relation all things self-expression and entertainment as the fifth house is representative of all things fun. They may also embark on their travels as a means of finding romance (maybe even THE one!) if they don't already have a partner. These individuals seek leo-like activities on vacation such as live shows, the circus and cinema overall. As they are prone to seeking the spotlight, destinations where the native can join in on festivities are likely to be preferred.

The native would thrive in a resort-like setting, Jamaica or the Caribbean comes to mind. Plenty of activities in which tourists can join in on such as dancing and singing. They too would enjoy the festival . Also, the native would love the social aspect of the activities! Rather than collecting physical souvenirs, the native would collect many new friends!

🪁VIBILIA IN THE SIXTH HOUSE🪁

The native with this placement may be meticulous in their travel plans, having something that ressembles an itinerary to keep themself organized throughout the journey. Since the sixth house represents also health and work, this individual is likely to embark on trips that remind them of their career somehow or, they may actively seek connections to their career. As per their health, they are likely to actively seek whether food or activities, things that ensure that they maintain their health-style. The native may enjoy collecting souvenirs such as books and stationery to keep their busy minds stimulated.

A travel destination that is suited for this placement would be Slovakia as it is said to have the most public libraries for its residents. Also, the native may prefer a more structured approach to travelling, thus a tour guide with a pre-planned itinerary may help the native relax.

🪁VIBILIA IN THE SEVENTH HOUSE🪁

The native with this placement will travel for affairs related to contracts, whether that be marital or business. This can be someone who enjoys travelling with their partner and/or someone who must travel abroad in order to sort international business contracts. Also, this placement will find great comfort in all that is aesthetic during their travels, with special attention to jewelry and clothes. They will likely see no problem splurging on these items, claiming them as souvenirs.

A libra-like activity that comes to mind is visiting an art gallery or a museum, subjecting the native to an environment dedicated to aesthetics. In particular, the Louvre museum in Paris comes to mind, offering a great balance between visual beauty and learning.

🪁VIBILIA IN THE EIGHTH HOUSE🪁

The native with this placement will travel for reasons related to their thrill-seeking nature as the eighth house represents mystery. This person will likely have a go with the flow mentality while travelling, opting for opportunities they'll never forget.

Some activities for this placement include: bungee-jumping, cave exploration, skydiving, hiking in the woods, national parks and camping to fulfill their desire to complete activities that can be considered dangerous generally. In particular, Yellowstone national park in Wyoming, Montana, deemed to be one of the greatest national parks to exist, should have the native feeling right at home.

______________________________________________________________

As a collective, water signs would likely prefer travel destinations closer to bodies of water such as an island or coastal environment🏝

As a collective, fire signs would likely prefer travel destinations that are warmer in temperature with sun-filled days 🏜

As a collective, earth signs would likely prefer travel destinations that are mountain-filled along side valleys and rocky places. The Appalachians come to mind 🏞

As a collective, air signs would likely prefer travel destinations riddled with cooler, windier weather🌬

Keep your eyes peeled for parts 3!

[lcvedior]

𖤐 ʾ ⠀ ❪ ⠀ NATALIA HWANG ⠀ ╲ ⠀A DISCOGRAPHY DEEP DIVE

∬ ˚ ⋆ ࣪  TALIA (2015): THE GRAND DEBUT … Fresh out of filming for her supporting role in the 2016 film ‘The Handmaiden,’ Natalia would make her musical debut on her 18th birthday, releasing her first full studio album, featuring three lead singles: ONLY YOU, FULL MOON, and FLY. Each of these tracks would get their own individual promotional periods. This release would debut to much critical acclaim, the lead singles peaking at #1, #5, and #1 on charts respectively and the album selling over 683,000 units. Only You rose to popularity with a surprising quickness, racking in 7 music show wins. Full Moon was also a hit, recognized as one of the most iconic songs as well as choreography in the industry, being covered by large range of idols and notable celebrities. Then Fly did surprisingly well with the general public, taking the industry by storm with it’s vocal prowess and earning several PAKS and RAKS, and staying in the top of charts for a total of 70 weeks.

∬ ˚ ⋆ ࣪  24 HOURS (2016): THE FIRST COMEBACK … Riding off the success of Natalia’s debut, her acting projects, and modeling work, Zephyr thought it’d be best to release her first comeback in the earlier part of 2016. 24 Hours is her second studio album, consisting of 8 tracks with 24 Hours serving as the title track. 24 Hours debuted at #15 on charts but progressively worked itself up to #1 throughout the promotional period. Alongside the title track, the b-side MAGIC which unexpectedly peaked within the top 10 on music charts. Due to popular demand, Natalia also promoted the track very briefly on music shows. Although the public’s reception of her work was seemingly positive, it was evident that she was still exploring her artistry. Even though she was never truly given credit for anything on this album or the album prior, she was heavily involved in the writing and concept for all tracks. On the contrary, both Zephyr Entertainment and Henri Kwon (especially) were very adamant on not straying away from the sexier image she’d been portraying already.

∬ ˚ ⋆ ࣪  WHY (2016): THE SUMMER RENAISSANCE … Natalia came back just in time for the summer with her single Why. The tropical house track was met with immediate acclaim upon release, peaking at #1 on all charts, taking home 10 music show wins, and seeing several PAKS. This song was everywhere that year. When people think of summer 2016, Why is destined to come to mind. It also trumped her previous reign of 70 weeks on charts by staying for 90 weeks. It also revisits the charts frequently, usually around summertime of every year. This year she was able to take home BEST NEW ARTIST and SONG OF THE YEAR with this single alone. This is what marked the official solidification of her status in the music industry.

∬ ˚ ⋆ ࣪  VARIATIONS ON THE WORLD LOVE (2017): A LOVE-HATE RELATIONSHIP … Natalia Hwang released yet another studio album titled Variations on the Word Love, which is a darker piece of work exploring themes of toxic relationships and what love can look and feel like. Never Ever, the title track, debuted at #1 on charts and stayed there for weeks. Other b-sides on the album also charted well, like the #5 peaking track MOONLIGHT. The album sold over 2 million copies, marking her first 2 million seller in her career. Aside from the success, though, fans were worried that Natalia was being overworked. From booking luxury brand deals, Mon Cheri’s new season, and gearing up for her first world tour, it was safe to say there wasn’t a time where Natalia wasn’t working. Everything she did was selling like hot cakes, Zephyr and Henri felt like they could slap her name onto anything and make bank. On the contrary, while she was apparently loved by the public, she was also hated a great deal. People slapped the names ‘diva’ and ‘airheaded’ on her, embroiling her in attitude controversies and slandering her for her interviews where Henri accompanied her.

∬ ˚ ⋆ ࣪  FANTASY (2017): A LOVE-HATE RELATIONSHIP PART 2 … Following the promotional period for VOTWL, Natalia would release her first mini album only a few months later, selling 2 million copies once again. It’s title track Fantasy would garner 9 music show wins and peak at #1 on charts. Of course, this release wouldn’t come without backlash, many netizens criticizing the attire she wore in her music video, calling it skimpy and inappropriate. Although she wouldn’t promote this release much as she was preparing for her first world tour, other tracks on the mini would gain popularity, such as DON’T SAY NO (which would later get its own music video) and WHATEVER. Those tracks would both get added to the Setlist for the tour. She would walk away from this year with the ARTIST OF THE YEAR award, much to a lot of people’s dismay. Regardless, this year was still a success even with the boycotts and nasty, intrusive comments from interviewers and netizens alike.

∬ ˚ ⋆ ࣪  NATIONAL EMBARRASSMENT (2018): THE EERIE CALM BEFORE THE STORM … Natalia released her second mini album right in time for spring of this year, a reference to netizens titling her a ‘national embarrassment.’ While the album sold less copies than her previous releases, it would still chart exceedingly well. She didn’t promote this album much, never performing it and oftentimes barely acknowledging it after its release.

∬ ˚ ⋆ ࣪  TIMELESS (2018): THE HATE TRAIN (WHEN THINGS FALL APART) … Around winter of 2018, Natalia released her fourth studio album, featuring the title track #LADY and the promotional b-side ALTERLIFE. Things seemed to be looking up before its release, the albums presales already hitting incredible milestones and the anticipation for the release umpteenth. The first few hours of the release were peaceful, both tracks debuting at #1 and #10 respectively. However, things came crumbling down when Henri Kwon released an exposé regarding Natalia, officially announcing their parting from one another and dumping on her mental health and extremely personal issues. This sent the media into a frenzy, everyone talking about it and a plethora of headlines coming out everyday. Some people sided with Natalia, saying that Henri was wrong for speaking on her and airing out her mental state and sexuality like that, while most used this as an opportunity to bag on her all that they wanted. This was an extremely rough period for Natalia, as she was being asked very rude and inappropriate questions every interview and being harassed by paparazzi and fans on the internet everyday. This was an all-time low for her, emotionally and in her career. She’d always received hate but never to the extent of this year. Due to this, her promotions were cut short and she canceled many schedules. She would then be placed on an indefinite and unofficial hiatus where she wouldn’t release music or make any public appearances for the next nearly three years.

∬ ˚ ⋆ ࣪  MY OBSESSION (2021): THE LONG AWAITED COMEBACK … After nearly three years and many half-assed, vague updates from Zephyr Entertainment about Natalia’s whereabouts, Hwang finally made her comeback in 2021, releasing her first studio album in years titled My Obsession. My Obsession would prove to be her best-selling album, selling over 4 million units with its title track MIDNIGHT winning 12 music show wins and SONG OF THE YEAR, while other tracks such as TOUCH, SELFISH, and SECRETS charted exceptionally and were promoted due to popular demand.

∬ ˚ ⋆ ࣪  DESSERT [FEAT. MICKEY MOON & KYRIE HAN] (2021): COLLAB OF THE YEAR … A little later this same year, Natalia would unveil another release, which would be a chart topping single featuring Mickey Moon of DREAMCHIC and Kyrie Han of RAVANA. The collaboration would go viral, peaking at #1 and staying within the top 15 weeks after its release. The single would even be nominated alongside Midnight for awards such as BEST DANCE PERFORMANCE and SONG OF THE YEAR. Although, it would win BEST COLLABORATION.

∬ ˚ ⋆ ࣪  BAD OMENS (2022): CREATIVE FREEDOM AND ARTISTIC AUTHENTICITY … After taking yet another year off from music, Natalia came back with her studio album titled Bad Omens, featuring the title track Fever. This ‘hiatus’ was much different from the previous one—in length and reason. It was obvious that she was working on projects behind the scenes, such as new modeling projects, preparing for comebacks and (possible) tours, and making business moves. In this album, fans were able to see a different, deeper side of Natalia and her music. She was vulnerable with the concepts for music videos and album art, and talked about past experiences in her tracks which raised quite a few brows to listeners. Many people would speculate about the lyrics but when questioned about them, she would only answer with vague responses. Some tracks that were talked about in particular were: I LOVE MY BOYFRIEND, PWIC, and LIQUID SMOOTH. The album is often regarded as her best piece of work sonically, conceptually, and artistically.

As of early 2024, Natalia has taken more time off from music to focus on her new record label COUNTESSA RECORDINGS, which she revealed and bought her first artist in the later part of 2023.

[puroresu-musings]

NJPW THE NEW BEGINNING in Osaka Review (Feb 11th, Osaka EDION Arena)

Toru Yano & YOH vs. Ryusuke Taguchi & Boltin Oleg **

Bishamon vs. Great-O-Khan & Callum Newman ***1/4

Shota Umino, El Desperado, Tomoaki Honma & Tiger Mask vs. EVIL, Ren Narita, SHO & Yujiro Takahashi **1/4

Tetsuya Naito, Yota Tsuji, Shingo Takagi, Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI vs. SANADA, Yuya Uemura, Taichi, DOUKI & TAKA Michinoku ***

Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi ****1/2

IWGP Tag Team Championship - El Phantasmo & Hikuleo (c) vs. KENTA & Chase Owens **

Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr. *****

10 Man Dog Pound Cage Death Match - United Empire vs. Bullet Club War Dogs *****

Photos.

Wow, what a show this turned out to be. It started pretty ordinary, but ultimately had three exceptional bouts, one of which is the best match of 2024 so far. The show opened with CHAOS teammates Yano and YOH taking on Taguchi and Young Lion Shooter, Oleg. This was perfectly fine, but only went 3:45, so there really wasn't much to mention. YOH scored the win over Taguchi with a roll up. Next, UE Young Boy Callum Newman got a chance to shine in his tag match with O-Khan against Bishamon. This was a good little sprint, with the spirited Newman looking especially good. It wasn't to be his night, however, as he was put away by the veterans at 7:37 with Shoto.

The NJPW Babyfaces took on House of Torture next. This was your typical HoT match, beginning with a brawl, before the babyfaces got their shine, only to succumb to heelish shenanigans. After Dick Togo distracted the ref, Narita hit Tiger Mask with the Metal Plated Push Up Bar Of Doom, before SHO pinned him with a Shock Arrow in 8:43. Post match saw SHO steal Despe's IWGP Jr. Belt and proclaim himself the new champion, so we've got yet another HoT stolen belt deal, and Desperado seems destined to feud with these dorks for his entire reign. This was followed by pretty much the same LIJ vs. J5G match we've seen all tour now. It was a good outing, but I can't say that I'm interested in any of this, aside from Tsuji and Uemura's Hair Match in Sapporo at the end of the match. The two youngsters carried the action in this one, which culminated in SANADA tapping out BUSHI at 11:05 with Skull End to go strong into his Title Match with Naito on the 24th.

Perhaps the final ever Okada vs. Tanahashi match followed, twelve years to the day that the Rainmaker Shock happened in this very same building that made Okada a Superstar. This was excellent, emotional stuff that was by no means the best match these two have ever had, but it was a great send-off for what is perhaps the greatest, most consistent feud ever. I've potentially gone a tad high with the rating, but I don't care, I'm sticking with it, as this one had me invested from the minute the entrances happened. The Osaka faithful were super into this, loudly chanting for Okada at the start, going crazy throughout. Tana, who's definitely in "office shape" at the moment, even turned back the clocks and hit the High Fly Body Attack to the floor, which was awesome. After getting the knees up on a HFF attempt, Okada nailed the Tombstone, but Tana turned the Rainmaker into a small package for a great near fall. After some back and forth which the crowd were totally into, Okada hit a beautiful dropkick, a Landslide, and a Rainmaker to put the President away at 16:50 with one final Rainmaker. The pair embraced in the post match, and a teary bowed to the Lion Mark and Okada bid farewell to Osaka. He only has two matches left in his NJPW career in Sapporo, which should be similarly emotional occasions, and hey, who knows, maybe he could even put someone over on his way out (nudge nudge, wink wink).

The IWGP Tag Title bout that followed was something of a dampener, to say the least. This was the opposite of the last match, the crowd were dead for the most part, and it moved at the speed of smell. It was hovering around one star territory, but things picked up once Hikuleo got the hot tag and ran wild, but it was short lived as the ref got bumped, Taiji Ishimori ran in, hit his old pal ELP with a belt, then Hikuleo, which allowed KENTA to steal the win and the titles. Look, I know New Japan likes and rewards loyalty, and Chase Owens was there for them when they needed people badly, but the notion of him holding a major title in NJPW in 2024 is all kinds of bemusing. And to say the new GoD's Tag Title reign was a bit of a disappointment would be an understatement. These guys deserve better, and I honestly don't have the strength to watch another match between these teams after the two we've already seen so far this year.

Thankfully, things turned around in fantastic fashion with an absolutely perfect display of pro-wrestling between ZSJ and Bryan Danielson. This was a rematch of their 5 star classic in AEW last October, and it managed to surpass that match and is the best bout of 2024 so far. Outstanding grappling and counter sequences throughout this, Dragon used an arm wringer to send Sabre's legs into the ropes, which he then proceeded to work over the whole match with intense kicks and leglocks. Zack fought back, working over Danielson's neck. Lots of Romero Specials, Manjigatame's and Cobra Twists, before it broke down into a stiff strike exchange. Danielson hit a big Back Suplex off the top for a near fall, then tried Cattle Mutilation, which Sabre escaped and hit a Zack Driver for a near fall of his own. Dragon hit the stomps, then locked in the crazy arm submission he submitted Okada with, but Zack fought to the ropes. Another strike battle culminated in Danielson hitting the Busaiku Knee out of a backslide, but Sabre turned a second into a European Clutch, they exchanged great cradles, before ZSJ got the pin with a crucifix at 32:46 of fabulous action. The two shook hands afterwards, and now being 1-1, Danielson challenged Zack to a 2 out of 3 falls tiebreaker backstage, which I'm 100% down for. In the ring, ZSJ signalled he wanted a belt, then called out the winner of Naito/SANADA (despite what Chris Charlton might have claimed he said). I'm all for Zack winning the belt to be fair. I've lots to say about Naito being the champion again, which I'll refrain from, but all I will say is that the guy who holds the top belt in this company sure has felt like an after thought since winning.

Then the Dog Pound Cage main event that was also Will Ospreay's New Japan swan song. Look, theres way too much to even attempt to recap, and I went back and forth about going the full 5 stars on this one, as it did feature some stuff I really wasn't keen on. BUT, at the end of the day, these 10 guys put on an absolute spectacle of bloody drama and craziness, and it's definitely not a match I'll forgot any time soon, and a tremendous post match. They had an impossible task in following the previous match, but they had an equally blow-away outing, that was the complete wrestling polar opposite. This was set up like that classic ROH vs. CZW Cage of Death from 2006, in that the cage encircled ringside as opposed to the ring itself, and was fought under War Games rules, with guys coming out every two minutes.

Ospreay and Finaly started, with Ospreay convincing Finlay to let them fight for 5 minutes. Lots and lots of crazy stuff followed, which included the heels bringing out a ton of plunder, Akira hitting an incredible dive off the cage onto the War Dogs before Connors gave him a big spear through an upright table in the corner, Gabe Kidd potatoing HENARE with table shot, that split him open bad on the top of his head, which the doctors at ringside spent a lot of time trying to patch up. HENARE got a receipt of sorts later when he hit Kidd with a super stiff slap that looked like it knocked Gabe silly. Connors hit a big spear on Ospreay through the ropes, off the apron and through a table at ringside, Jeff Cobb ran wild on everyone with his incredible power moves, TJP emerged from under the ring as the Aswang, running wild and misting all the heels, Maloney broke up a pin attempt by Drilla Killa'ing Ospreay into the pile of bodies, Coughlin took a serious wilful beating with kendo sticks, who then took a big senton through a table off HENARE from the top of the cage. Connors introduced thumbtacks, but ended up bumping into the pins. Gedo came out with a barbed wire wrapped table, but O-Khan put an end to his interference, and it was Finlay who went through the barbed wire table, thanks to an Ospreay powerbomb. Gabe Kidd responded by hitting Ospreay with a piledriver off the apron, through a ladder bridge to the floor. Moloney forked Akira in the head, who juiced heavily, but then overcame his fear of the fork, no-sold it, and stabbed Drilla in the head with the cutlery, drawing his blood of his own, then hanged Connors over the top with a dog collar.

The heels then handcuffed Cobb to the cage, removed the ring canvas and padding, exposing the boards, and what followed was absolutely terrifying, as those boards were flying around and guys were falling through the ring left and right, to the point I thought someone might get seriously hurt. HENARE hit a massive vertical suplex on Kidd to the boards, before he too was handcuffed. Akira then took a horrendous Tombstone on the boards, which left Ospreay alone with the War Dogs. Sacrificing himself to save Akira, he tried a Hidden Blade, but collapsed from exhaustion, resulting in him taking a spear into the boards by Connors, then Finlay wrapped his knee in barbed wire and hit Ospreay with his new Overkill finish to end this insanity and win for his team in 64:05 of crazy, mind-blowing action.

The Overkill finish was quite ironic given the amounts of sheer overkill in this thing, there were times when I thought/was begging it would be over, but they just kept going and doing crazier stuff. Anyone who knows me knows I love a good crazy, unhinged blood and gimmicks match, and this was one of the best there's ever been, overkill or not. In the post match, Ospreay bid farewell to New Japan, and he got the big emotional send off with the confetti and all the UE guys surrounding him. Ospreay asked that the fans not forget him, and backstage he promised he'd be back, but when was still a mystery. Losing Ospreay is a major blow to NJPW (not to mention they're also losing Okada!), but I've no doubt he'll do great things in AEW.

NDT

[phanfictioncatalogue]

Dorks In Love (2) Masterlist

part one

attention wins your affections and oh, how i love it so (ao3) - natigail

Summary: Dan and Phil dog-sit a friend's dog and Dan realises just how much Phil acts like a dog with how he expresses affection and Dan falls a little bit more in love.

Candy Crush (ao3) - AmethystHollis

Summary: Dan wears a candy necklace. Phil has a sweet tooth. You know the rest.

Changing Light (ao3) - AmazingDandroid (Stardust_Ti)

Summary: "Alright, Phil. Give me your best 'I'm fabulous!' look."

Drips Through (ao3) - artbabe

Summary: Dan goes outside to smoke at a party. Phil joins him.

Here’s some faves from my camera roll this year (ao3) - natigail

Summary: 1 birthday tweet. 4 photos. 4 domestic memories. 1 smiling Phil. 1 fond Dan.

Hold my hand, honey (ao3) -  natigail

Summary: Dan likes the minimalism of being on tour and he doesn't really get homesick, as long as he has Phil by his side. Phil, however, misses home at times, he clutches onto his pillow and scatters his various little knickknacks all over the tour bus. But he might also need to hold onto Dan when it gets really bad.

I’ve given up all I can (ao3) - orphan_account

Summary: He was overwhelmed with heat and pleasure; this never got old. Each time was new, wonderful, gorgeous. Daniel Howell was a piece of art.

I've Seen That Too Many Times (ao3) -  soft_lester

Summary: Dan walks in on Phil playing Fortnite naked. Again.

Love is Brewing (ao3) - TearDrop1234

Summary: You are watching Dan & Phil, and what a wonderful thing it is.

Phan Funeral Meet-Cute (ao3) - bogdaddy_owns_my_ass

Summary: Dan Howell meets a tall, mysterious man at the funeral of a dear friend of his who had died under mysterious circumstances. What Dan doesn't know is that this man is who he is destined to be with for all eternity.

Querencia (ao3) - orphan_account

Summary: in which Dan is existential and Phil is there for him.

sweater paws (ao3) - outphan

Summary: Phil finds Dan's sweater paws irresistible.

tickle fight. (ao3) - fin_flora

Summary: “Don’t start a tickle fight when I’m supposed to be mad at you!”

you deserve the universe (ao3) - axtual_soulmatxs

Summary: Dan complains about his weight and Phil assures him he is beautiful (bc he is).

[pghbabesonbikes]

FBX

by Sara Khalil

Alleycats are a fun, low-pressure way to race. That’s why I always try and get people to do them, ha. First, you’ll receive checkpoints & a spokecard. Next, you’ll make a plan to bike to one, many, or all of the checkpoints. Lastly, you’ll follow the spectacular race directors instructions to complete the alleycat and bonus, you’ll feel like a million bucks. You’ll leave the race day with your delicately positioned spokecard in your front wheel for years to come, a small yet important token proving you kick ass. 

Every alleycat is organized a little bit differently. Sometimes the checkpoints are literally an address which is definitely a win for the navigation nerds. Other times they’re mediocre riddles or even just a spot on a map (that’s not even drawn to scale 🙃). It’s likely you’ll find all the things you need at them, like rad people to keep you motivated, snacks/drinks, cheerful signs, a much needed floor pump, among other things…

The strategy for attacking an alleycat can also really vary. Buddy up with people, you can do it in a group! If you’re worried about navigating or simply just want to have fun then rely on everyone’s brain for navigation (at your own risk!) and see where you place! More competitive? Wanna see if you have the street cred to really do the thing?? Try and rely on your own navigation to get you through it, whether that is google maps or your experience driving Uber. Honestly, sometimes I just follow the tire tracks and hope for the best… 

I work for a local bike share company that hosts 2 alley-cat-style rides each year. I call these alley-cat-style because they aren't races, but more multi-destination rides that are designed to get folks of all comfort levels out for fun, social, urban rides. Even though these rides lack the big race mentality, these rides are really fun for riders of all levels, and ultimately, you can bring whatever energy you want! Bike or Treat is our Halloween alleycat that takes place the Saturday before Halloween every year (a fun scavenger hunt race), and Le Tour De Donut is our April alleycat with 4 checkpoints each stocked up with donuts from local bakeries and coffee.

We don't have registration up yet for Le Tour, but folks can see all of our upcoming events here: https://pogoh.com/events/ 

My favorite kind of alleycat is the “go fast get there first” classic style - the Frigid Bitch way!

Every year I plan to do it solo, and if someone tries to tag on I always let them know there’s a non zero chance I might ditch them because I’m in it to win it. When the checkpoints drop, I usually bust out a paper BikePGH map to get a feel for where the checkpoints are across the city, highlighting potential routes between each. I’m confident in my ability to navigate most neighborways and bike lanes. I never use technology to navigate because it kinda takes forever to be honest! If I’m gonna skip a few, it’s usually the ones that are on hills, because I’m a slow-ish climber. I have a side plan that if I make it to a certain point by a certain time, then I’ll go for them!

The plan, roughly

This year when the checkpoints dropped, I was kicking myself because I knew almost all the checkpoints from doing the training rides, but I missed the training ride that hit Climax St! Of course it was a stop for FBX. And the south side slopes are kind of my kryptonite - I almost never climb them. This meant I really had no idea how much time Climax st was going to add to my route. I decided to nix Climax and Rialto from my gameplan for the day. I didn’t think I would have time to make them. 

Jo at the lake

My first stop was the lake. From there, I promptly guided my pal to a staircase that no longer existed, then to what I believed to be the checkpoint, but what was really the weird statue/shrine in South Oakland. Once we finally found Romeo St, it was a real vibe - we ditched our bikes and ran up the stairs to someone holding a sign that said “You’re a bitch!” which warmed my soul and spotted a friend Jarrod taking photos. We quickly said hi and bye before heading down the new-to-us, fully functioning staircase that connects to Bates and swiftly hiked our bikes down it. We crossed Hot Metal Bridge to hit OTB as fast as possible. Our plan was Grandview next, but somewhere along the way my bud egged me on to try Climax and we split. Turns out, it wasn’t a bad climb (the memory is distant now, ha) ANDDD Venture Outdoors had a s’mores stop at the top. Score. 

Photo by Murphy Moschetta 

I like to move quickly, so I bombed back down to south side and made my way over to climb back up PJ McCardle. I noticed my front tire was going flat when I got to the overlook and a volunteer, Bobby, helped me pump it up. Thankfully it didn’t give me any trouble for the rest of the race. I continued on, at this point feeling a little beat from climbing up two big hills. I was solo. I hit the point and kept on rolling. Somewhere in the Strip I linked back up with Jo and she encouraged me, yet again, to go for it. I sped up to hit Rialto. The next few checkpoints are kind of a blur. I slid through Polish Hill before heading to the button to see my friend Erin, and roped my way down to the official checkpoint near the water. 

Last up, I rushed up to hit the last stop, Bananna-lenaville. I felt an emotional burst because the volunteers were counting down “10… 9… 8…” as I rolled up. I found out later, they did that for a lot of folks… good call team Bananna-lenaville! I started off to the Wheel Mill in hopes I’d get there quick! I ditched my bike on the sidewalk, ran up the stairs, and politely threw my manifest at the volunteer. FBX was in the books. I took a look around to see who was back (though it’s impossible to tell how you did) and started swapping stories. A few popular questions were floating around - “How many checkpoints did you hit?” “Who did you ride with?” “Did you hit Rialto?” Everyone had a different day. 

Proof I did it

I finished in 25th place and got ALL the checkpoints. I was pretty stoked about how I finished, but even more excited to announce a little secret my friends and I were a part of - the brand new Pittsburgh Babes on Bikes Racing team! We’re a couple of badass babes who are introducing racing to more women and under repped gender identities, organizing group rides/clinics, and generally getting more folks to get out together to try more on two wheels. Our team aims to add more novice riders as time goes on. 

photo by Monica Garrison

If you’ve ever thought about racing mountain bikes, well, this is your year! We’re hosting a bunch of pre-rides out at Yellow Creek State Park  in anticipation of one of my favorite races, the YC Monthly Grassroots series. The first pre-ride is March 23rd and the race follows the next weekend. There are three routes available - beginners tackle 8 miles, sport riders hit a 16 mile out and back with a few creek crossings, and experts go after the full 23 mile loop which has some rocky bits. Pick your distance and come check it out with us in March! Frigid Bitch racers get a discount code for race registration. 

My most prized collection

I’m looking forward to another year of Frigid Bitch. Less than a month out, I’m full of excitement wondering if I’ll get any new friends or flats along the way. What will the weather be like? What bike will I ride? Am I even going to know where the fucking checkpoints are?? Anything can happen! But it’s nice to know it’s gonna be a surprise. 

[danielsiegelalonso]

Altering Music Careers: The Benefits and Challenges of Collaborating with Other Musicians | Daniel Siegel Alonso

When two (or more) musicians collide, magic can happen—or occasionally, it's more like a polite, artistic wrestling match. The music industry is rife with iconic collaborations that altered the course of genres and careers, from unexpected partnerships to power-packed duos. But like all things in life, collaboration in music brings both highs and lows. Daniel Siegel Alonso looks at the benefits and challenges of working with other artists with some iconic examples.

The Benefits

Fresh Perspectives

Siegel Alonso points out that when you collaborate with another artist, you invite their creativity and influences into the studio. This injection of new ideas can be what your music needs to evolve. Take Blondie's Debbie Harry and Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards of Chic, for example. In 1981, the punk frontwoman teamed up with the duo for her solo debut. The result? A hybrid of genres. KooKoo was one of the earliest fusions of funk, rock, and dance music that would become the trademark of Rodgers and Edwards, and this style would later be evident on albums such as David Bowie's Let's Dance. Harry's punk edge combined with Chic's disco groove created something distinctive—proof that stepping outside your comfort zone can lead to timeless innovation.

Skill Expansion

Sometimes, your collaborators possess technical skills or a level of musicianship that helps you grow. Siegel Alonso says a classic case is musical chameleon David Bowie teaming up with The Donny McCaslin Group on his Blackstar record. Bowie was known for pushing boundaries, and in his final album, he turned to McCaslin's jazz group to elevate his sound. The partnership propelled both parties to explore experimental territory that blurred the lines between art-rock and jazz. Collaborating with seasoned musicians allowed Bowie to embrace an avant-garde sound, while McCaslin's group gained exposure to a new audience. Win-win.

The Power of Reinvention

Collaborating can also help musicians refresh a staid image or explore new genres without fully stepping into the unknown. Enter Dolly Parton's 2023 rock album, Rockstar. At 77, the queen of country shocked the world by teaming up with rock legends like Paul McCartney and Steven Tyler to create an album of hard-hitting covers and originals. Dolly's leap into rock allowed her to break out of country music's constraints while remaining true to her roots as a larger-than-life entertainer. This kind of reinvention keeps musicians relevant and surprising—and Parton's ability to seamlessly navigate a new genre shows just how potent partnerships can be.

The Challenges

1. Creative Control

Siegel Alonso advises that one of the primary challenges in collaboration is the shift from being the sole decision-maker. It's like co-driving a car—you might not always agree on the destination or the path. Collaborations can sour when both parties have assertive, conflicting creative visions. However, managing egos, preferences, and creative direction with respect is critical. It's a delicate balance, but when handled respectfully, these obstacles can lead to a stronger result than either party could achieve alone.

2. Balancing Styles

Sometimes, artists from different genres or styles collide—and it's not always seamless. While Harry and Chic pulled off their genre fusion, not every alliance is seamless. Merging two distinct musical worlds can feel like squeezing square pegs into round holes. If the styles don't gel or someone feels like they're sacrificing too much of their signature sound, the project can feel forced or disjointed.

3. Schedules and Logistics

As ordinary as it sounds, scheduling can be a considerable challenge. Busy musicians often have packed touring and recording schedules, making it difficult to carve out time for collaboration. Even worse, the spontaneity and flow of creative chemistry can get lost when you're working across different time zones or coordinating through emails and Zoom meetings.

Conclusion

Teaming up with other musicians is a fragile balancing act. It can lead to career-defining breakthroughs, as seen in Harry's genre-bending debut with Chic, Bowie's jazz-tinged swan song, or Dolly's genre jump into rock territory. At the same time, it requires compromise, flexibility, and a willingness to renounce one's ego.

While collaboration is not without its challenges, the potential rewards are worth the effort—musicians can explore new sounds, expand their skill sets, and even breathe new life into their careers. So, Daniel Siegel Alonso notes that while it's not always simple, for musicians willing to embrace the unpredictable magic of partnership, the potential upside is nothing short of transformational.

[neonvibeofficial]

~ ELECTRIFYING BEATS, UNSTOPPABLE ENERGY! HELLO WE ARE NEONVIBE!~

NEONVIBE: a 4 member south korean girl group currently signed to express yourself entertainment.

MEMBERS:

jenna (birthname yunjin park)

mimi (birthname: minji choi)

hailey (birthname: hana kang)

sophia (birthname: yuna kim)

BIRTHDAYS:

jenna: february 9th, 2005 (age 20)

mimi: june 14th, 2006 (age 18)

hailey: september 27th, 2007 (age 17)

sophia: november 3rd, 2008 (age 16)

MBTI:

jenna: entj (the commander)

mimi: isfp (the adventurer)

hailey: infj (the advocate)

sophia: estp (the entrepreneur)

BLOOD TYPES:

jenna: o negative

mimi: b positive

hailey: a positive

sophia: ab negative

HEIGHTS:

jenna: 5'7/170cm

mimi: 5'4/162cm

hailey: 5'9/175cm

sophia: 5'10/177cm

WEIGHTS:

jenna: 118lbs/53kg

mimi: 112lbs/50kg

hailey: 121lbs/54kg

sophia: 124lbs/56kg

ZODIAC SIGNS:

jenna: aquarius

mimi: gemini

hailey: libra

sophia: scorpio

POSITIONS:

jenna: leader, main rapper

mimi: main dancer, vocalist

hailey: lead vocalist

sophia: maknae, visual, rapper

DEBUT SONG, ALBUM, & DATE:

april 17th, 2025

song title: "rise up"

album title: vibin' with you

CONCEPT:

a mix of girl crush and 2000s hip hop, with messages of female empowerment and self love for all genders.

FANDOM COLOURS:

cape honey: FFE6AB, for their honey like voices and smooth raps

cyan: 1DD7FF, for their bright and flashy fashions

hot pink: FF55D4, for their girl crush images and messages of female empowerment

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ABOUT THE MEMBERS:

JENNA (top left): was born as park yunjin in seoul. she is an only child to her mom and dad. she grew up with a passion for rap and hip hop, her father being a pilot who flew famous rappers to their tour destinations. her favourite growing up was a fellow woman rapper named k-flash, who is an african american. as a young girl, she wrote her own raps and went under the stage name young jinny, winning underground rap battle contests. her fierce determination and natural born leadership skills lead her to become the leader of neonvibe. she spent 1 year training under express yourself.

MIMI (top right): was born as choi minji in kyoto, japan to a japanese mother and a korean father. after she turned five, her and her family that consists of herself, her mom, her dad, and two older twin sisters, moved to her father's hometown of busan, south korea. it was from here where a talent scout noticed her fluid dance moves and her humble attitude towards her fellow dancers and invited her to join express yourself. it's due to her past with dance that lead her to become the main dancer of neonvibe. she spent 2 years training underneath express yourself.

HAILEY (bottom left): was born as kang hana in rio de janeiro, brazil to a brazilian mother and a peruvian born south korean father. her mother is a famous pianist named octavia camacho while her father is a famous drummer named byung-ho kang. she was trained by her mother's classical music ensemble in singing but found her true passions in the form of rap, r&b, and hip hop. she has a soulful voice comparable to real life singers sohyang and mariah carey, and with this lead her to become the lead vocalist in neonvibe. she trained with express yourself for the shortest time at 3 months.

SOPHIA (bottom right): was born as kim yuna in lyon, france to french-chinese mother and a south korean father. she was a model who posed for child brands in france such as prep!, nouvelle vague, and mignon et plus. she was noticed by a talent scout during a fashion show and with this she revealed that she handmade her outfit for the show, for the theme was diy. with this talent it lead her to design the groups outifts and due to her bubbly & "it girl" like attitude lead her to be the center and visual of the group. she trained for 1 year underneath express yourself, joining the same time jenna did.

[bunkershotgolf]

Explore Branson Golf Destination Courses Shine in ‘Golfweek’s Best’ Annual Rankings

Five cited for excellence in Missouri including the top four, three garner ‘Top 100 Public Course’ status

Golfweek recently announced two “Golfweek’s Best” lists (“Top Courses by State” and “Top 100 Public Access Courses”) and five courses in the Explore Branson golf destination garnered best-of recognition in them.

Nationally, Ozarks National (Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw design), Buffalo Ridge (Tom Fazio and Johnny Morris), and Payne’s Valley (Tiger Woods) earned distinction in the “Top 100 Public Course” list, ranking nos. 51, 77, and 93, respectively.

For Missouri public courses, Golfweek course raters ranked Ozarks National No. 1 in the state, Buffalo Ridge No. 2, Branson Hills No. 3 (Chuck Smith/Bobby Clampett), Payne’s Valley No. 4, and LedgeStone No. 7 (Tom Clark).

The hundreds of members of Golfweek’s course-ratings panel continually evaluate courses and rate them based on 10 criteria on a points basis of 1 through 10. They also file a single, overall rating on each course. Those overall ratings are averaged to produce the final rankings.

“Golfweek bestowing this honor on us validates not only that our course is considered one of the finest, but also that the Branson golf destination is one of the best with five courses voted into the state’s top 10,” said Dan Davis, PGA, Branson Hills Golf Club, Director of Golf.

Branson’s five other courses are Top of the Rock (Jack Nicklaus), Mountain Top (Gary Player), Thousand Hills (Bob Cupp), The Pointe, and Holiday Hills. Top of the Rock and Mountain Top are award-winning par-3 courses, a welcome addition in golf trips where players tee up 18-holers in the morning, then add afternoon “short course” rounds. Thousand Hills has often earned “favorite course” status among area golfers, while The Pointe and Holiday Hills provide additional popular 18-hole playing options.

The two short courses and Ozarks National, Buffalo Ridge, and Payne’s Valley are amenities of Big Cedar Lodge.

All 10 courses in the destination are located near one another as well as hundreds of restaurants, lodging options, and after-golf attractions.

“Golfweek rating five of our 10 courses among the finest in the state and country is exciting; we hope it inspires people to visit our golf destination in the Branson Missouri Ozarks,” said Lynn Berry, Director of Communications, Explore Branson.

Branson is the No. 3 rated trending tourism destination in America according to Tripadvisor, a place where live entertainment theatres, lakes, museums, a world-famous theme park (Silver Dollar City), sports venues, outdoor adventures, and family friendly activities proliferate.

Tripadvisor, the world’s largest travel guidance platform named Branson’s Silver Dollar City the No. 1 theme park in the United States last week. Utilizing traveler reviews and ratings for experiences, tours, activities, and attractions on their site over a 12-month period (May 1, 2022 - April 30, 2023), as well as an additional editorial process, earned the theme park top status.

For more information about Branson and its golf destination, visit www.explorebranson.com/golf, Instagram (@ExploreBransonGolf) or Facebook (@BransonGolf).

Explore Branson Golf Courses

Ozarks National, 800.225.6343

Mountain Top, 800.225.6343

The Pointe, 417.334.4477

Thousand Hills, 800.487.0769, 417.334.4553

Buffalo Ridge, 800.225.6343

LedgeStone, 417.335.8187

Top of the Rock, 800.225.6343

Branson Hills, 417.337.2963

Payne’s Valley, 800.225.6343

Holiday Hills, 417.334.4838

  About Explore Branson

Branson is a one-of-a-kind family vacation destination nestled in the lakeside beauty of the Ozark Mountains — and an incredible value — with dozens of live performance theatres, three pristine lakes, an international award-winning theme park, dozens of attractions and museums, a Historic Downtown district, a Town Center-style shopping complex, a full range of dining options, and a host of hotels, motels, resorts, RV parks, campgrounds, sports venues, and meeting and conference facilities. Branson is less than one day’s drive for one-third of America’s residents. With low-cost flights to Branson Airport (BKG www.flybranson.com) and nearby Springfield-Branson National Airport (SGF), it has never been easier to access Branson. Call 1-800-296-0463 for help planning your next vacation, convention or reunion. See more at: http://www.explorebranson.com

[grits-galraisedinthesouth]

"The Firm would NOT lie for me when I did and said BAD things!"

When Meghan says, "but they didn't PROTECT me," she's not referring to her person, she's referring to her REPUTATION.

I would not want to be on the (Netflix) production team this weekend. How many messages & phone calls have they received all week from Meghan (& Harry) after reading and watching all the American social media criticism?

She does NOT care what ANYONE in the UK thinks or believes. Every business/philanthropic venture is designed to "repair" Meghan's reputation in America and make her wealthy.

Meghan blames Harry (and the BRF) for ruining her reputation in America because The FIRM (and Harry) failed to "protect" Meghan's carefully curated (slick) social media/instagram image--- the image nobody in America even knew existed.

In other words, the FIRM didn't lie & cover-up enough for her, thus ruining her Diana 2.0 "Star to Be" dreams. Harry is therefore destined to make amends for the rest of his life, even if it means setting the House of Windsor on fire while he watches his family burn. As one of Harry's friends said, "Harry needs the hard fall."

Harry's Reason for Breathing is to set Meghan up "to be a success in Los Angeles, my home." Revenge p95

Netflix must have anticipated the criticism because they refrained from printing any details on upcoming episodes 4-6:

We've seen the trailer clip of meghan & harry in their rented studio apartment/hotel (the emphasis is on "studio") while Kim K (ahem Meghan) stages an overwhelmingly tough day at the shared desk of their "home" office. (The office arrangement Harry said would never work for other couples (kate & william). Thank God Catherine & William have no desire to work out of a makeshift hollywood backlot.

So What's Next:

Wedding Drama?

Tour Drama?

So-called "Digital Harassment"

Couples Therapy?

Despite my vulgar behavior and square belly, I was REALLY Pregnant drama?

Colonialism & Brexit?

Crying and more crying

What's THIS? Meghan's BREXIT post on the day after her "London" date w/Harry 07-2-2016

Make THIS Make Sense:

They can vlog from home, but Teams: Garrett/Netflix, Harpo/OWN, Variety, Spotify, New Yorker are not welcomed. Pipes or that reported neighborhood smell coming off the water?🧐

One win from this disaster, Christopher Bouzy and Bot Sentinel will go down with the ship.

[ericac318]

Heart Racing

Summary:Another speedster joins Team Flash and starts a fling with Jay Garrick (the real one). The story spans the different times he was present. Jay Garrick x OCHeart Racing

A/N: This one has been a few years in the making but it’s finally done. Read the entire thing here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15821805/chapters/36833964

Chapter 1

Preface -

Momentum aka Carter McKinley joined Team Flash shortly after Zoom was revealed as Jay Garrick, their so called friend. Her speed, coupled with Barry’s, helped the team to conquer the big bads and allowed each speedster to have a break from time to time. Her name came after a heated debate between Cisco and Harry with Cisco’s winning.

“Barry, didn’t you say that he had a prisoner back on Earth 2?” Carter asked once Zoom had been defeated.

He nodded, “Do you want to go get him out?”

“Of course, after what you just did, you deserve the break of a lifetime,” she replied.

Cisco accompanied her to their breach and sent her through. She freed the man, unable to remove the helmet, and returned with him to her Earth.

“You couldn’t get that thing off?” Caitlin asked when Carter appeared in the Cortex with the real Jay Garrick.

Carter shook her head, “I tried, but it wouldn’t budge,” she shared as she helped him to a chair where Caitlin took over on the attempt to free the poor man.

While Caitlin worked, Barry walked in. “Is that him?” he asked.

Carter nodded just as Caitlin freed him, allowing him to stand and turn. “Yep, the real Jay Garrick,” but he had Barry’s Father’s face.

Carter watched as Barry turned and left the room and then saw the confused expression on Garrick’s face. “Caitlin, can I have a minute with him?” Caitlin nodded as she left the pair alone.

Carter moved closer to the stranger, “You’re his father’s doppelganger and Zoom just murdered him,” she revealed causing sadness to take over his face. “You couldn’t have known. I just wanted you to know so you wouldn’t take his reaction personally.” She changed the subject, “Is there anything I can get you?”

He shook his head, “I’m just happy to be out of the cell and that mask,” he replied, taking a seat across from Carter’s. “Thank you for coming to get me. I just need to recover a little and then I can get back home, where hopefully my Earth isn’t destroyed,” he revealed.

Carter reached out, placing her hand on top of his, “If you want, you’re welcome to stay with me while you get back on your feet. I have an extra room,” she offered.

“I don’t want to be any trouble,” he began, not removing his hand, “You’ve already been more accommodating then you could ever know.”

“You wouldn’t be any trouble at all,” she answered his protest, “Please, let me do this for you. I will feel much better about sending you home if I know you’re ok.”

Jay pulled back his hand to place it on his chin, thinking her offer over. Finally he leaned forward, “If you really don’t mind then I will.”

His response caused a large smile, an unexpected one, to cross her lips, “Just let me know when you’re ready to head there,” she stood to check on Barry and to suppress her enthusiasm.

Carter had always had a small crush on Barry’s dad and, she assumed, that was the cause of her school girl behavior with this man she didn’t know at all.

Later on that afternoon, Carter drove Jay to her home. They made a stop to get him some essentials before arriving at their destination.

Carter led him inside, giving him a small tour before reaching the guest room, “This is where you’ll sleep,” she revealed, “There’s a bathroom in here but feel free to roam anywhere in the house.”

“Thank you,” he replied, his clean shaven face enhancing his handsome features.

“If there’s anything you need, my room is next door,” she replied, feeling suddenly flushed, “Do you need anything before I go start something for dinner?” she asked, hoping to escape him.

Jay shook his head as he walked into the room to get settled, allowing Carter to race to the kitchen and cool down while she looked for something edible for them.

Carter came across some hamburger meat, pasta sauce, and some angel hair so she set to work on spaghetti and meatballs. By the time her meal was almost done, Jay stepped into the room and took a seat at her island. He was wearing sweatpants and a t-shirt but still looked amazing.

“It smells great out here,” he complimented as she passed him a glass of wine.

She nodded, “We’re just lucky I had anything to cook,” she played off the praise, “I’m out running with Barry too often to keep this place well stocked,” she took a sip of the wine, knowing it wouldn’t be the thing warming her cheeks.

Jay smiled before he spoke again, “Either way, I’m grateful that you’re generous and skilled in the kitchen. The only thing I can imagine that could be worse then being imprisoned could be a trip to McDonalds,” he joked, causing Carter to let out a loud laugh which caught her and sent her into a fit of giggles while she finished putting together their food. Jay couldn’t help but to laugh with her.

Carter laid their bowls out in front of them before she took a seat across from her, ready to test her feelings with some small talk.

“You must have someone back on your Earth worried sick about you,” she began, “Like a wife or a girlfriend. I can’t imagine how it would feel for someone I love to suddenly disappear.”

Jay stopped mid bite and locked eyes with her, “No, there’s no one at home, which I am thankful for after this.”

Carter nodded, unsure of where to take her questions, so she ate silently, instead.

After a few minutes of silence, Jay spoke, “Why do you ask?”

Carter almost choked on a noodle as the words left his lips. She did her best to compose herself and took a sip of wine, “Just curious,” she lied, hoping she was believable.

He smiled while looking down, shaking his head, “I don’t think that’s it. I’ve been out of the game for awhile now, but I think I still know what it looks like when someone is interested in someone else,” he revealed causing Carter to stop what she was doing and stare at him, working through her next move.

She took a deep breath and spoke, “Ok, you’ve got me. I am attracted to you. And, I know I don’t know you but I feel drawn to you,” she paused thinking over their day, “Don’t worry, though, it started after I offered you a place to stay. I didn’t lure you here under any false pretences.”

“I wasn’t concerned with that, at all,” he replied gently, “I’m actually happy to hear that you’re interested in me because I was instantly attracted to you,” he looked into her eyes sending a shiver down her spine, “At first, I assumed it was because of my time locked away but I didn’t have the same feeling toward any of the other women back at S.T.A.R. Labs,” he confessed.

Carter took a long sip of wine before replying, “So, what do we do about our feelings? You live on a different Earth so it’s not as if we can start dating,” she allowed her words to linger in the air, wondering if he’d realize what she was proposing.

Jay raised a brow at her statement, “What exactly are you suggesting?”

“I forget that you may be more old school when it comes to these things,” she teased, barely knowing him but confident, “We can just have a fling, just a physical thing. You get to go home and I stay here without all the messy feelings.”

“I am afraid the ‘messy’ feelings are already present, but I am open to your idea,” he smiled softly, “Let’s discuss it in the morning because it has been quite a day,” he stood and took their dishes to the sink and began cleaning up.

Carter moved to stop him, “Guests don’t do the dishes. Go get some rest.”

He looked as if he may object but then realized where their close proximity to each other could lead and nodded, “I will see you in the morning.”