#Gracie watches the west wing | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

mrsunderhill678 · 4 years ago

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Hehe, guess who wrote more shit? Well, it’s not shit, but uhhh... Yeet

“Hope for the future is just optimism based in dead realities.” - West Von Sparrow

“He's claimed me as a butcher would a carcass, he's bled me dry and left me ta hang on this hook. I have been flayed of my soul, of my flesh, of my fucking humanity, guess I should'a learned he who rolls against the house, never holds the damn die.” - West Von Sparrow

“You may be a monster, but I'm just a little less than human, and that's what makes me, dangerous." - West Von Sparrow

“It's the break of a new dawn, and though the dusk took my last sunrise, I ain't giving in, cause after all, the sun doesn't rise only once. So when the night comes, just remember, bravery gets you through the night, love gets you through the day.” - Delilah Coraline

“It's beautiful, isn't it? When you find someone to share your world with?” - Evangeline Frights

“Guess I'm an oaf that's seen some shit, but so long as I'm her oaf, I bet I'll be fine.” - Crane Hemmington

“I haven't been in the trenches, but blood spilled is a war in of itself, thing is, you become the enemy.” - Crane Hemmington

“Everything that is yours, can just as easily be mine, possession of self is all you have, and even that can be taken.” - Ballith Greedpaw

“Life is the most precious thing to steal, is it not? Not only do you steal a life, but the joy the memories of the poor bloke you slew held in those who loved him's mind.” - Ballith Greedpaw

“Greed is such a twisted thing, and I suppose that is why I am tangled.” - Ballith Greedpaw

“If you want to speak in the language of what haunts you the most, you'll find yourself speaking the tongue of your mind.” - Damon Watkinson

“I, can do whatever I want, cause in a game with no consequences, why would I choose to lose? You don't reach the end of the checkerboard without the words, "King me," rolling off your tongue. You don't trap the other player's King without saying "Checkmate," so why would I get this far just to say, "Sorry?" - Damon Watkinson

“I have seen the truth, and a thousand lies, and perhaps, I am nothing more than one of the thousand.” - Damon Watkinson

“Our love is magical in the sense that it is beautiful in all it's simplicity and complexity.” - Gracie Hangers

“Life's been a struggle, of black eyes and bloody knuckles, the betrayal of false love and hopes, but whenever my heart falters and threatens to stop, I look into the eyes of my children, and find a reason to fight.” - Camille Trueblood

“I thought I fell in love, when all I really did was tumble off the fucking cliffside. God, I dived into those waters so willingly, drowned for a man who doesn't God damn care. All he's ever been is a false promise, and I guess those hurt more than lies, don't they? Lies are so easy to catch, but a false promise of love is so seductive, especially for a girl with... Nothing. All I had was my heart, and I guess he took that too.” - Jenna Coleburg

“The sun always fades into the night, you're guaranteed to spend some of your days in darkness, but that ain't what matters. What matters, is that you fight through it, and come out God damn smiling. It's what I did, ain't the strongest man of all, the one that comes out of hell still smiling? Or perhaps, the one who walks into hell, smiling.” - Carter Gariah-Smith

“I was swung from the gallows for sumthin' I never would'a done.” - Carter Gariah-Smith

“Just because something is damaged, don't mean it can't deal some.” - Carter Gariah-Smith

“Funny, huh, how in these thirty odd years of mine, I knew her for three, and if you think about it, those were the only three years I lived.” - Avelice Bevelriks

“I lost everythin', really, Sandy, my darling wife, she was my rope, and I guess ever since she snapped I just been floatin. It's cold in these hands of mine, these memories of her. I'm tryin' so desperately ta hold onta em, but they're slippin, they are. Her smile, her laugh, it's all faded. Don't even remember the sound of her heart no more. Though... I can still see her, in my daughter. Her eyes, her laugh, hell, even her smile or the way she sits. Sometimes it's hard lookin' at my daughter, some days it's like I'm lookin' back at Sandy's ghost.” - Casimiro Boeheken

“I've seen the devil's dreams, where young men die by young men's hands, where boys turn ta men and mothers ta widows.” - Casimiro Boeheken

“Got a noose round my neck, and the floorboards are creakin' underneath me. Either I can cut the rope, or let them floorboards give way, cause either way, I'm free.” - Casimiro Boeheken

“Everything we do has a song, a melody, a voice. And I can hear the song in his smile, harps and echoes of angels, but I can hear the tinge of pain that haunts him.” Marinda Weathers

“I live to love, I live to lift up those around me and tell them, "You're strong, you're brave, and God, are you beautiful, live life like a butterfly, flutter those wings and fly. Because life is short, and you, are loved." - Marinda Weathers

“Day in day out, I fight, I win, and I move on. That's life, these days. Days pass, but I don't.” - Garret Weathers

“Everyone loves the angel with broken wings, huh? Cause they fight the hardest to get their wings back, only to realize, they're the savior of nothing, and they're ripping their own damn wings.” - Garret Weathers

“We can fight the dark, punch it square in the jaw and tell it to back off, cause the dark's only got place in our life when it's lightin' up the stars, and we ain't here to stay in the shade.” - Bob Weathers

“He who won't accept all of ya, don't accept ya at all. The bravest thing you can ever do is be you in the face of the man who hates ya.” - Bob Weathers

“My lullaby sings of secrets I cannot possibly understand, and my heart plucks the chords of joys forgotten and tragedies resurfaced, such a melancholy tune, this melody of my scars.” - Beatrice

“It's like Amethyst and Wanda are my lighthouse, constantly guiding me home. Even if I'm drowning I can see their light from underneath the waves.” - Gracie Ace

“Perhaps I ain't got no stars leadin' the way, but I got my heart givin' me direction. Sure, it's scarred, and God is it battered, but it's flutterin' them wings with everythin' it's got, and me? I'm still pumpin', blood's still coursin' through my veins, so I'm alive, and by every God, I'm fuckin' kickin.” - Crystal Bones

“It's kill or be killed, and I guess we just ain't dyin.” - Alfred Godsel

“In the eyes of many, I'm a hero, but in my eyes, all I see is a man with a gun, who pulled a trigger, and ended a life, but still somehow managed to make the most egregious of sins look like a hero's doin. How the hell did we manage to make spillin' blood somethin' noble?” - Alfred Godsel

“I've lost a lot, but I'll save my grievin' for the livin', for those who've managed to die before they ever hit the dirt.” - Alfred Godsel

“They say dead men tell no tales, but when I come knocking, oh, you'll be wishing that was true, you can pray to every god you know, but that won't save you, no one can. Because he who you silenced, have ripped the stitches from their mouth and out tumbled your secrets, right into my ear.” - Celestia Cloven

“At first I thought it a curse, the whispers of the dead, but not anymore... Not anymore. They speak to me their secrets only so they may find rest, and so he who wrought him demise, may be brought what they deserve. And I, am what they deserve.” - Celestia Cloven

“Belief can be either beautiful, or oppressive, it's up to the morals of the man who believes to create the damn definition.” - Jakobi Warcoat

“Until the fires of this revolution swallow us whole we will shout, we will cry and weep, cause freedom ain't so quietly taken away.” - Jakobi Warcoat

“You wanna kill us, go ahead? Show us just exactly who, you, are. Cause we already know, all yer doin' by killin' us, is provin' us God damn right.” - Jakobi Warcoat

“I've been running all night, trying to find myself, but sometimes I feel... Lost. But maybe that's not a bad thing, you know? The lost boys found a purpose in Neverland, after all.” - Gayle Flint

“I've got scars, and God do they show, the markings of a lonely child lie on my wrist, and they hardly compare to the ones in my heart and my mind.” - Emma Flockheart

“If a warrior isn't a woman who's been through hell but came out a better person, than I don't know what is.” - Emma Flockheart

“My father was the one who built the crumbling pillars of my heart anew, but now, without him, I'm crumbling, God, I'm crumbling.” - Juno

“Some days, I feel perfectly comfortable in my body, and other days it feels like a cage and I wish I could just scratch at my skin until I tore my way out.” - Juno

“No matter where you run, or where you hide, your mind gives you up to your demons every fucking time.” - Juno

“You can't explain love, just feel it, and trust it.” - Lynsey Aldallen

“You have the strength of a thousand lions, you shed your mane, and traded it for the hunt, and as you were always meant to, you led the pride, with your claws and your strength, the remnants of your mane fluttering behind you. And that's beautiful, to be brave and vulnerable all at once.” - Lynsey Aldallen (For context, she’s talking about her sister, who’s trans)

“My mother rescued me, I rescued her, she's my hero, but sometimes, we have to fight for our heroes, because their strength falters. And when it does, it's up to us to save them.” - Lexie Rebhan

“I'm already swingin', I reckon, these gallows were made for selfish men like me, I imagine everyone'll cheer. All hail! All hail! The wicked man is dead, strung by his neck, payin' for his sins with the devil. It's damn well the fate a man like me deserves.” - Ron Jameson

“So oh gravedigger, vengeful angel of death, put me down as you would a wolf wearin' the single dead sheep's wool in the flock, watch me bleed. Cause that's what I did to you. I caused you're pain, I caused mine, just be lucky you don't have to live with me... Cause I do.” - Ron Jameson

“I was born to be damned, as they say, they speak of me in such terrible ways, history is written by the victors, the patrons, the saints, never by she who made it.” - Selena Wolfmoon

“All who burned me at the stake only had to live with themselves, but I, I have to live with the actions of every single one of them, and, worst of all, I have to live with my death. The scalding of my flesh and the charring of my bones, the screams of my two daughters still haunt me. They way Eldridge begged and howled, or how Autumn cursed at those who damned her. And all I could do was howl in grief as we burned away, but I imagine we were lost, just as tears in the rain or stars upon the waking of the sun.” - Selena Wolfmoon

“I like to say I'm tough, but it ain't because 'a what I look like on the outside, but who I am on the inside. You could be strong as all shit and still be a weak man. All you ever gotta do ta be weak, is push another down, and all it takes ta be strong, is helpin' a man up.” - Elwood Sparrvitz

“I 'ave been made anew by the love I been showed and given, my heart no longer beats 'a regret and pain, but for my lovely wife and children. Cause if your heart don't beat for no one, what's life worth?” - Elwood Sparrvitz

“To be completely divine is as inhuman as it is to be entirely damned, entirely broken or whole, we are never one hundred percent, we are many pieces, smelling of ash and smoke, and the fire that created it.” - Diaze Calico

“Savagery suits her like a well tailored suit, or a ball gown on the most royal of queens. She is savagery, she wears blood like wine on her teeth, and your pain like the finest of shawls, and in the end, she shall wear that shawl of your scars and dance before you in it, she shall make a mockery of your death, for that's all you ever were.” - Diaze Calico

“You can believe that hell is not where you'll go, but that's the greatest lie the devil ever spun, that there was an option other than her, that there was a loving God watching us.” - Diaze Calico

“The wicked doth not sleep, they doth not live, only breathe this blood on their breath.” - Diaze Calico

“Out of all this pain I've been through, I've found that even if bullets had flown that day, and planes had been torn from the sky on burning wings, it was in my sleep, when my mind was at rest, that I felt the most bloody chaos.” - Duke Benson

“I should've died the day a bullet pierced me fucking skull, but all that's left is this scar on the Earth known as Duke bloody Benson.” - Duke Benson

“I'd ask for a prayer or an amen if I thought it'd saved our damned souls, but a single prayer won't save a man who's sinned.” - Duke Benson

“A prayer won't save a man who's lost his fucking faith.” - Duke Benson

“With a foe as cruel as myself, I was bound to bloody lose.” - Duke Benson

“Bury me six feet deep, mate, deeper if you can, because I am a soldier, a sinner, a beast, not a bloody man.” - Duke Benson

“Reckon me 'ands are as stained as the soil wifin' da trenches.” - Angel Benson

“Inside me is a boilin' angah, at da world, at dis pain, myself and anyone in point blank range. I imagine me angah's shot me point blank, left the man I was fokin' bleedin', dead from a single shot.” - Angel Benson

“I've always condemned what I can't fokin' understand. So if I fear meself, wot does that make me, aye?” - Angel Benson

“You know wot's fokin' funny? You don't 'ave ta fight in it, ta be bloody broken by it. You could be livin' untarnished boi it, next thing you know, a soldier's knockin' on your fokin' door. War breaks all. They who fight, and they who bloody don't.” - Angel Benson

“Raise a glass ta da sinner full 'a anger, raise a glass for the poor bastards and blokes war touched, cause all who 'ave known her embrace 'ave known pain no loving God could create. But never, mate, NEVER, raise a glass, to the bloody Bensons.” - Angel Benson

“When I'm finally in da dirt, where I belong, da world will keep spinnin', the sun will rise again, as it shall sink, and though it may rain, da world won't weep a single fuckin' tear, for da man known as Jerry Benson, cause mate, why should it?” - Jerry Benson

“Us soldiers, we're cheered for, celebrated, but dey care only for da actions, not for da man.” - Jerry Benson

“As I've learned, 'e who tastes death will find dat da aftertaste is an eternal stain on one's tongue. Da tang of iron and blood is all dey'll ever fuckin' know.” - Jerry Benson

“God created us to love 'im, and expected us ta be more selfless den he.” - Jerry Benson

“War don't change a man, no, it kills him, and replaces the soldier with itself.” - Mordakai Benson

“He who runs with the wolves is bound ta be ripped inta the moment he stops runnin', no wonder there's blood on my teeth.” - Mordakai Benson

“War don't give a damn who you are, what kinda pain you been through, it'll putcha through more while promisin' glory! That's the picture they paint. Soldiers woopin' for victory and glory for all who fight, but they always forget he who catches the fuckin' bullet.” - Mordakai Benson

“The only thing you and I got in common is that we were made by God, difference is, I was forgotten by him.” - Mordakai Benson

“Don't raise no glass for this soldier, don't pour no wine on my casket, cause I'm the lamb that strayed from the flock, only ta learn he always wore a wolf's fur.” - Mordakai Benson

“I’m one dead dream away from blasphemy.” - Calliger Cougar

“They say life is short, Tommy, that it goes by in the blink of an eye, so why ain't we fucking dead yet? I blinked a hundred times, and I'll blink a hundred times more. Cause no matter what they say, it don't go by in the span of a blink, or like a bullet speedin' through the air. It's slow, and God damn miserable, this here ward is proof of that.” - Ben Stilts

#writing #characterdialouge #oneliners #author #writer

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astarkey · 5 years ago

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I’ve also been tagged by @chasemisprintedlies to do this lol. I’ve been bored and lazy too since Thanksgiving, so I kinda needed this haha. Thanks for tagging me! ��💖

What was the last thing you read? A fdtd fanfic (if anyone wants to know which one, specifically, it’s called Climbing Out the Grave)

Favorite movie? The Fifth Element

Favorite book? The Secret Life of Bees

Dream date? I’m a big kid, so probably like some arcade place, or a town fair. Also, eat at some restaurant (not a fancy one, but like casual local restaurant or pizza place I’ve never been too ‘cause I like to try new stuff), and just taking a late-night walk. Then after, if I still have the energy lol, probably watch a movie at either my house or their’s. Idk, I’m a homebody, but I do like to have fun if it’s someplace that comforts me that fits within my comfort zone where I can chill.

Do you have a crush? Uh, yeah, and I’m still hoping it’ll go away soon.

What are your hobbies? Playing video games, writing, playing the guitar, making gifs, listen to music, etc.

What’s your favorite time of day? Golden hour

If you could look like anything, what would you look like? Like how I look like now, minus the scars.

Are you a romantic? Yeah

What’s your favorite type of weather? Sunny days when it’s breezy.

What do you like talking about? Anything I’m interested in that I’m pretty sure no one else is interested in haha.

What are your turn ons? Someone with a sense of humor and nice taste in music. Also someone that respects my feelings, wow, that’d be so nice.

Turn offs? Anyone who’s not like that.

If you got a tattoo, what would it be and where would you get it? I thought about having an ‘A’ with wings tattooed on my back, but I also wanted to get something tattooed on my wrist; I just still haven’t thought about what it would be lol.

Do you want any pets? I already have my dog, and she’s been a handful for a long time haha.

Dream job? Musician.

Dream place to live? Somewhere near the coast where I have no neighbors lol. (Think of like the location of where Owens lived in Practical Magic. That’s where I’d be.)

Dream vacation? Going to the west coast.

Do you want any piercings? I already have 4 ear piercings, so I’m good.

If you had kids, what would you name them? I mostly have like 5 girl names. Aaliyah, Lily, Cosima, Angelina, and Sabrina.

What are your best traits? I’m Loyal, trustworthy, humble, down-to-earth, grounded, very chilled, very warming, funny.

Worst traits? Procrastinating a lot, lacking self-confidence, gets jealous, bottles up years worth of emotions.

What’s your worst fear? Just dying in general.

What do you want to eat right now? I’m just craving a bunch of sweets, like pies, cookies, and chocolates (it’s that time of the month so... yeah)

What’s the best vacation you’ve been on? Going to Virginia Beach for the first time, plus when I went to my first Soundgarden and Nine Inch Nails concert there 😊

Favorite city? Uhh, Roanoke? It’s my home city, and as boring as it is, it makes me happy whenever I come back here.

Favorite social media platform? Tumblr, since it’s the only platform where I can just post things I’m interested in, and reblog stuff that interests me instead of me just talking.

Favorite article of clothing? Hoodies and flannels.

Do you play any sports? Nope.

Favorite meal of the day? Dinner?

What are you excited for? New games coming out next year, or sooner!

Not excited for? Whenever there’s a next rainy day ‘cause I hate rainy weather.

When was the last time you cried? Two months ago, I think. I was watching some movie again that got me emotional, again lol. It was probably either Coco or Song of the Sea.

Dream house? A big, modern, two-floored house. Idk, I don’t want to describe in detail ‘cause I feel like it’ll be too much, but the house I’m imagining in my head looks really nice, so I’ll just say that haha.

What’s something you hate about the world? That, yeah, it’s run by people that don’t care about it while they literally have the power to save it instead of just letting it die.

What’s something you love about the world? There’s a lot of beauty to it.

What scents do you like? Christmas pine, sandalwood, amber, clean linen, etc.

What kind of sleeper are you? I’m a heavy sleeper since I sleep with the tv on all the time, but I’ll wake up easily to loud noises if anyone’s close to my room

Sweet or savory? Sweet

Are you a cat or dog person? Dog person

How long would you survive in a zombie apocalypse? I have no idea. Probably long, if I’m smart enough lol.

Are you trusting? Uh, yeah. I’d like to think that I am haha. Like really, who am I gonna tell when I barely talk to anybody lol.

What fictional characters do you identify with? Dean Winchester, Noctis Lucis Caelum, Trish O’Day, Elaine Benes, Gracie Hart, Mia Thermopolis, and Buffy Summers.

What labels do you commonly get? Idk, someone thought I was emo or goth when I was in 7th grade, so I guess that’s what I’m labeled as pfff lol.

What song would be your life anthem? Try Again by Aaliyah

What issues are you dealing with right now? Trying to figure out which art idea should I start working on first ‘cause I have WAY too many ideas. Like I have so much that it’s impossible for me to try to start on one, so I end up doing nothing.

How can someone win you over? Uh... I dunno. Just being themselves, and respectable with what I want to do with my life and how I feel. Also I like a guy with a sense of humor. But yeah, if someone messages me like they wanna get to know me or that they like me even though they barely know me, yeah that ain’t gonna work, boo boo. It just puts a lot of pressure on me and it legit makes me feel sick to my stomach haha. I’d rather be with someone I already know and someone I can trust and feel safe with.

What’s something about you people don’t know? I have a learning disability.

I’m tagging anyone who sees this and wants to do this! 😊💕

#chasemisprintedlies #personal #sorry it took me so long doing this!

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averywhittaker · 5 years ago

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avery grace whittaker ( fc : heather baron-gracie ) 22 years old from jonesboro, georgia and has lived in atlanta for 18 years . currently working as grocery shopper / delivery with InstaCart [ kit , 25 , mst ] | @atlanta-rpgstarters

pronouns: she/her

theme: [Didn’t know what I was in for] - “Sometimes it feels like that song could have been written about me. It’s unnerving, you know? But it’s fine, it’s a good song so I don’t really mind too much...”

Why the name Avery Grace?

“I’m not really sure. I like it though. Avery means elf king but it also reminds me of the word aviary, you know, one of those cages they keep birds in? I like that imagery. I am a cage of birds...”

Ethnicity: white

Enneagram: 4

Relationship Status: Dating, long distance “My girlfriend still lives in Auburn. She says she wants to come out for Thanksgiving but I don’t think she will. There’s too much going on in Auburn and anyway she just opened a little shop and she’s focused on that...”

Sexual Orientation: level 5 on the kinsey scale (mostly gay) “I’ve always had a couple of exceptions -- my first boyfriend, for example. I loved him, I really did. But I’m mostly gay.”

Appearance

There’s a pageantry to how Avery dresses and she knows it. She’s never really fit into the crowds of Atlanta (at least not in the circles she runs in) but she doesn’t mind. Instead of trying to avoid that, though, she embraces it now. Atlanta might not have the emo culture of the midwest but Avery tries to bring it in as much as she can.

Avery wears a lot of dark colors, creepers, heavy eye makeup and other things that make her mother gasp. She loves her black lipstick and her black velvet. She would deny being goth though as that is a subculture and she only dresses it. She doesn’t live it.

Personality:

“Avery’s cool. She’s smart and I think that makes her sad. She watches and notices every bad thing in this world and I think it just kind of left her dejected. It’s like she feels like she has to save the world and I can’t make her not get that.” Guinevere, Avery’s girlfriend

Has severe major depressive disorder

Dissociates a lot due to the depression

Feels like she should solve every hurt in the world but genuinely doesn’t know how to

Definitely a little bit of a mother hen

Writer of poetry and poetic? Journal entries

Super observant. She notices a lot.

Down to try almost anything

Very spacey

Supportive of her friends

Struggles to follow through with things

Avery has always been sad. She’s been sad as long as she can remember. Her sad is a deep rooted and chronic. As a visual thinker, she pictures her brain as a little coastal town filled with bluegrey ocean fog. Sometimes the sun comes out enough to dissipate the fog and she is happy but it always comes back. The fog and the gloomy mood that accompanies it always return in time. It’s the only thing she’s ever known.

It’s hard to tell Avery has depression unless she tells you. She’s incredibly good at presenting as well adjusted. Her biggest tells are how spacey she seems and how exhausted she often looks.

Avery often feels Unreal or like her entire life has been a lie or a dream. Something about her feels entirely Artificial to herself but she can never place it. All she knows is that once, when she was drunk, she didn’t recognize herself in the mirror. She was a stranger even to herself that night. Something about that strikes her as oddly poetic but she isn’t sure she can capture that idea in writing.

When her depression eases up, she’s actually pretty fun to be around. She’s a little bit of a mother hen (though simultaneously needs to be taken care of) and can be incredibly charming when she wants to be. she’s a creative thinker and always has her pen and notebook on her to write (just in case a thought strikes her) and she’s carried it for as long as she can remember.

Hobbies:

writing (well)

playing guitar (poorly)

reading

napping

art. this tends to be in a style reminiscent to Jenny Holzer of written word meets visual medium.

History:

tw: depression, suicidal ideation/attempt, mental hospitalization

Avery can remember being little and watching the birds fly away and wishing she had wings to join them. When her mother read her Peter Pan for the first time she remembers closing her eyes and praying for Peter to come teach her how to fly. She kept her window open for a year after that, praying every night to the stars for Peter to come take her adventuring. Ever since that moment she’s been longing to escape Jonesboro and go somewhere beautiful and new and not home.

She knows feeling out of place is normal, especially in adolescence. She knows what she’s experiencing isn’t some great oddity only reserved for a select few. But Avery has always had a knack for feeling alone even in the biggest crowds. She remembers being young and going to her dads workplace (in the bowels of Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport) and watching what felt like thousands of people bustling through trying to get to their connection or their luggage or anywhere else. And she remembers feeling distinctly alone even surrounded by a crowd of more than 260,000 daily passengers.

All throughout her childhood, she swore she was leaving leaving Jonesboro as soon as college hit. Leaving wouldn’t fix her sad and she knew that but at least she would be somewhere new and get to experience something new.

Every English program she applied for in high school was out of state. The day she was accepted to Auburn University was the happiest day of her life. It wasn’t her top school (she didn’t have the grades for her top school) but she was still getting out. She was escaping. And she was never looking back, as far as she was concerned. Avery didn’t even come back during the breaks. She got a job at the Auburn University Club as a pool attendant during the summers and worked inside the club during the rest of the year.

She managed through her first year of school, struggled through her second, drowned during her third year, and failed her final year.

In hindsight it was silly and preventable. She got too tied up in world events and it drove her to a mental hospital. She was too ensnared by the brutal images of dying children on the news and couldn’t make herself look away. It felt like she would be killing them personally or like their deaths would go unmourned by the west if she didn’t watch and witness and cry for them. The stress of worrying for those you cannot save drove her depression into an all new low. She tried to kill herself and landed in the hospital. Unfortunately, it coincided with finals (she wonders now if that’s part of why it impacted her so much – she was already at her breaking point from school) and she failed all of them. She was placed on academic probation and warned that if she didn’t pull her grades up she would be expelled.

She didn’t pull her grades up.

Instead the depression hit even harder after her hospitalization and she failed her second semester all together. She didn’t mean to. It was just impossible to focus on her homework. Avery tried to ignore the expulsion and her depression and just focus on her job and her girlfriend but that was easier said than done.

Every time she was at work she got vivid fantasies of throwing herself in the pool, taking a deep breath underwater and just getting it over with. She was able to swallow the fantasies over the summer. When the new semester started and she was reminded of her failure, they became even more vivid and she eventually confessed what was happening out loud.

Her girlfriend pushed her to leave work and take time off to focus on her mental health. Avery resisted. She didn’t think she would be able to find another job and not finding work meant she would have to go home.

Eventually, she gave in and agreed. Her parents let her move back home for the foreseeable future while she tries to get her depression under control. She couldn’t continue to afford Auburn without a job.

She’s been home since the end of September but she’s only just now reintegrating herself with the town. She spent October mostly in bed sleeping until her dad kicked her out one day with the instructions “Come home when you have a job interview.”

She wasn’t able to get one but she did sign up to shop and deliver for InstaCart. It gives her something to do, at least, even if the money isn’t good.

Health:

Physically, Avery is pretty healthy. She has a mild dustmite allergy that can make reading old books hard but otherwise she seems like she comes from solid stock.

#atgaooc #atgaintro #biography

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onestowatch · 5 years ago

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The Best of 2019 and Beyond | Staff Picks

It’s the end of 2019. The world is on fire. You inhale your mango-flavored juul pod. The most pivotal figure in the world is a 16-year-old Swedish girl. Your Amazon Alexa listens intently in the corner of your bedroom. What I’m trying to say is that it has been an absolutely crazy year and an equally mind-blowing year for music. And what better way to cap the end of a year, an end of a decade than to perform a mandated survey on the entire Ones To Watch staff in the hopes of gathering their thoughts on the music that shaped their 2019, their 2010s, and their predictions for this brave new decade.

Maxamillion Polo

Most Underrated Artist of 2019: An honest toss-up between keshi and Aries. Believe 2020 belongs to them.

Best Breakout Artist of 2019: Lizzo, who is finally getting the recognition she’s deserved for years.

Best Music Video of 2019: BTS - “Boy With Luv”

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Biggest Artist Crush of 2019: Carly Rae Jepsen, this year and every year.

Best Concert You Attended in 2019: Childish Gambino at The Forum. Felt like church.

Favorite 2019 trend: stan and cancel culture. Live by the sword; die by the sword.

What moment of 2019 will you not be forgetting anytime soon?: Naruto-running through Area 51.

Who is poised to be the breakout artist(s) of 2020: Conan Gray is going to be absolutely massive come this time next year.

Favorite Song of 2019: Dominic Fike, Kenny Beats - “Phone Numbers”

Favorite Album of 2019: Tyler, the Creator - IGOR

Favorite Artist of 2019: Lil Nas X, if only for his Twitter presence.

wow thanks u guys pic.twitter.com/CetLFOKP41

— nope (@LilNasX)

December 6, 2019

Favorite Song of the Decade: Grimes - “Oblivion.” Honorable mention goes to Mitski’s “Nobody.”

Favorite Album of the Decade: Kanye West - The Life of Pablo

Favorite Artist of the Decade: Childish Gambino, an unmatched creative.

New Year’s Resolution?: Take more pictures, edit more videos, cook more, and discover more artists.

Green Lee

Most Underrated Artist of 2019: Arin Ray

Best Breakout Artist of 2019: Kenny Beats

Best Music Video of 2019: TOSS UP BETWEEN GINGER ROOT’S “WEATHER” & “B4” BOTH FIRE. HUGE FAN. CAMERON LEW, YOU’RE THE MAN.

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Biggest Artist Crush of 2019: BENEE

Best Concert You Attended in 2019: SLOWTHAI AT THE ECHO WITH DAVID O’ CONNOR. HOW MANY OF YOU CAN SAY THAT YOU’VE MOSHED WITH YOUR BOSS? HUH!?

Favorite 2019 trend: @foosgonewild

What moment of 2019 will you not be forgetting anytime soon?: Game of Thrones’ trash ass ending.

Who is poised to be the breakout artist(s) of 2020: BENEE

Favorite Song of 2019: Monsune - “Outta My Mind”

Favorite Album of 2019: MAGGIE ROGERS – HEARD IT IN A PAST LIFE

Favorite Artist of 2019: Channel Tres

Favorite Song of the Decade: Tyler The Creator ft. Frank Ocean - “She”

Favorite Album of the Decade: SHIT. This is hard. Majid Jordan by Majid Jordan or Whack World by Tierra Whack.

Favorite Artist of the Decade: BROCKHAMPTON.

New Year’s Resolution?: To be a better son and take better care of my body. Your health is your wealth.

Jenna Singer

Most Underrated Artist of 2019: Huron John

Best Breakout Artist of 2019: Johnny Utah

Best Music Video of 2019: Loved ROLE MODEL’s newest lyric video for “that’s just how it goes” – super simple and done very well.

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Biggest Artist Crush of 2019: I don’t typically crush on artists, but seeing Jeremy Zucker perform live was a momementttttt

Best Concert You Attended in 2019: Polo & Pan – they are incredible, such a party

Favorite 2019 trend: Loose jeans lol – may low rise skinny jeans burn in the past forever

What moment of 2019 will you not be forgetting anytime soon?: Diplo playing Stagecoach – still confused, slightly jealous I missed it

Who is poised to be the breakout artist(s) of 2020: Ahhhhh! This is so hard to tell, the ability to make it big has been redefined with the ability to make music in your room. Really digging Gracie Abrams right now!

Favorite Song of 2019: I have the worst memory, but “Hit the Back” by King Princess is a whole jam and has been on repeat

Favorite Album of 2019: Again, worst memory but LOVING Immunity by Clairo right now

Favorite Artist of 2019: Clairo

Favorite Song of the Decade: i. have. the. worst. memory. I’m going to go with “Stolen Dance” by Milky Chance

Favorite Album of the Decade: Sadnecessary by Milky Chance – a go to

Favorite Artist of the Decade: … Justin Bieber. Not for necessarily for his music, he’s withstood well against a lot of pressures from being such a world famous artist

New Year’s Resolution?: MAKE BIG CAREER MOVES – also carve out more time to relax. You are your best when you’re rested and clear-minded!

David O’ Connor

Most Underrated Artist of 2019: Sam Fender. So much more to come from him, can’t wait.

Best Breakout Artist of 2019: Clairo, built her own queendom of timely perception.

Best Music Video of 2019: “CRYABY” by Dijon. Visually tackles an emotion that’s hard not to look at.

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Biggest Artist Crush of 2019: Lauren Sanderson. She may not care but I do enough for the both of us.

Best Concert You Attended in 2019: Wednesday, June 19, 2019. Sir SlowThai @The Echo w/ @fuqgreen.

Favorite 2019 trend: Flood-prepped pants

What moment of 2019 will you not be forgetting anytime soon?: Lizzo memeing and melting the internet at every occasion.

Who is poised to be the breakout artist(s) of 2020: Arlo Parks, Deb Never, Dijon, Arizona Zervas, Audrey Mika, Alaina Castillo, Garçons, Sam Fender.

Favorite Song of 2019: “CHA” by LAUNDRY DAY. I am equally nostalgic and envious to write so honestly about teenage angst.

Favorite Album of 2019: slowthai - Nothing Great about Britain

Favorite Artist of 2019: slowthai

Favorite Song of the Decade: ANHONI - “Drone Bomb Me.” If you know me well, maybe too well, I’ll sing this song happily and loudly.

Favorite Album of the Decade: Intuitively obvious but My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was the decade’s benchmark

Favorite Artist of the Decade: Kanye. Defending him became my protagonist social calendar.

New Year’s Resolution?: Work with more diehards before I die.

Malcolm Gray

Most Underrated Artist of 2019: Sudan Archives

Best Breakout Artist of 2019: Channel Tres

Best Music Video of 2019: Solange - “Almeda”

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Biggest Artist Crush of 2019: Green Leef

Best Concert You Attended in 2019: Channel Tres at The Moroccan Lounge

Favorite 2019 trend: Creatives demanding ownership

What moment of 2019 will you not be forgetting anytime soon?: The last season of Game of Thrones being so mid

Who is poised to be the breakout artist(s) of 2020: Baby Keem

Favorite Song of 2019: Tyler, The Creator - “I Think”

Favorite Album of 2019: Toro y Moi - Outer Peace

Favorite Artist of 2019: Toro y Moi

Favorite Song of the Decade: Darius - “Hot Hands”

Favorite Album of the Decade: Kanye West - Yeezus

Favorite Artist of the Decade: Frank Ocean

New Year’s Resolution?: Listen to more music and make some music

Jimmy Smith

Most Underrated Artist of 2019: Can't Swim

Best Breakout Artist of 2019: Grayscale and Angel Du$t

Best Music Video of 2019: Blink-182 - “Not Another Christmas Song”

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Best Concert You Attended in 2019: Vans Warped Tour 25 Year Anniversary Festival

Favorite 2019 trend: TikTok, all of it.

Who is poised to be the breakout artist(s) of 2020: The Chats

Favorite Song of 2019: Bring Me The Horizon - “Sugar Honey Ice & Tea”

Favorite Album of 2019: Issues - Beautiful Oblivion

Favorite Artist of 2019: Waterparks

Favorite Song of the Decade: Angel Du$t - “Toxic Boombox”

Favorite Album of the Decade: Every Time I Die - Low Teens

Favorite Artist of the Decade: Every Time I Die

New Year’s Resolution?: Meet My Chemical Romance

Alec Wing

Most Underrated Artist of 2019: Little Simz

Best Breakout Artist of 2019: Billie Eilish

Best Music Video of 2019: FKA twigs - “Cellophane”

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Biggest Artist Crush of 2019: UMI

Best Concert You Attended in 2019: James Blake / The Strokes / The Who

Favorite 2019 trend: IGOR Wig

What moment of 2019 will you not be forgetting anytime soon?: Drake Getting Booed off stage at Camp Flog Gnaw

Who is poised to be the breakout artist(s) of 2020: Aldous Harding

Favorite Song of 2019: YBN Cordae ft. Anderson .Paak - “RNP”

Favorite Album of 2019: JPEGMAFIA - All My Heroes Are Cornballs

Favorite Artist of 2019: James Blake

Favorite Song of the Decade: Frank Ocean – “Self Control”

Favorite Album of the Decade: Kendrick Lamar - To Pimp A Butterfly

Favorite Artist of the Decade: Kendrick Lamar

New Year’s Resolution?: To build something and be proud of it.

Precious Kato

Most Underrated Artist of 2019: Monsune

Best Breakout Artist of 2019: BENEE

Best Music Video of 2019: Jungle - "Casio"

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Biggest Artist Crush of 2019: Oscar Jerome

Best Concert You Attended in 2019: The 1975 at The Roxy

Favorite 2019 trend: Wearing your jacket draped over your shoulders. It feels badass!

What moment of 2019 will you not be forgetting anytime soon?: Having not one but two Fyre Festival documentaries.

Who is poised to be the breakout artist(s) of 2020: DVNA

Favorite Song of 2019: Friendly Fires - “Offline"

Favorite Album of 2019: Loyle Carner - Not Waving But Drowning

Favorite Artist of 2019: Hablot Brown

Favorite Song of the Decade: HONNE - “Take You High"

Favorite Album of the Decade: Mac Miller - The Divine Feminine

Favorite Artist of the Decade: Tom Misch

New Year’s Resolution?: Learn how to separate hope and naiveté.

Alexa Schoenfeld

Most Underrated Artist of 2019: Hamzaa, Jean Dawson.

Best Breakout Artist of 2019: Baby Rose, slowthai

Best Music Video of 2019: UMI ft. YEEK – “RUNNIN (EP. 3)”

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Biggest Artist Crush of 2019: FKA Twigs, Pell

Best Concert You Attended in 2019: PVRIS at The El REY

Favorite 2019 trend: Millenial app astrology – have you entered the Co-Star universe?

What cultural moment of 2019 will you not be forgetting anytime soon?: No genre boundaries, no gender boundaries

Who is poised to be the breakout artist(s) of 2020: Remi Wolf, Peach Tree Rascals

Favorite Song of 2019: Jacob Collier ft. Daniel Caesar - “Time Alone With You”

Favorite Album of 2019: The Menzingers - Hello Exile

Favorite Artist of 2019: UMI

Favorite Song of the Decade: The 1975 – “SOMEBODY ELSE”

Favorite Album of the Decade: Childish Gambino – “Awaken, My Love!”

Favorite Artist of the Decade: Kanye West

New Year’s Resolution?: EXHALE DEEPER

Brooke Pohle

Most Underrated Artist of 2019: Briston Maroney

Best Breakout Artist of 2019: Summer Walker

Best Music Video of 2019: Jadu Heart - “Purity”

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Biggest Artist Crush of 2019: I would end it all for A$AP Rocky this year and every year

Best Concert You Attended in 2019: Maggie Rogers at the Greek Theatre

Favorite 2019 trend: Reflective 3M jackets

What moment of 2019 will you not be forgetting anytime soon?: The mess of Area 51

Who is poised to be the breakout artist(s) of 2020: Patrick Martin

Favorite Song of 2019: Maggie Rogers - “Light On”

Favorite Album of 2019: Billie Eilish - When we all fall asleep where do we go?

Favorite Artist of 2019: Briston Maroney

Favorite Song of the Decade: Rihanna - “Stay”

Favorite Album of the Decade: Lorde - Pure Heroine

Favorite Artist of the Decade: Rainbow Kitten Surprise

New Year’s Resolution?: Put my mental health first!!!

Jess Chung

Most Underrated Artist of 2019: Rosemary Fairweather

Best Breakout Artist of 2019: BENEE

Best Music Video of 2019: Crumb - “M.R.”

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Biggest Artist Crush of 2019: Pedro Sampaio

Best Concert You Attended in 2019: Dominic Fike

Favorite 2019 trend: fanny packs !

What moment of 2019 will you not be forgetting anytime soon?: the reappearance of Keanu Reeves on social media / memes / movies / games

Who is poised to be the breakout artist(s) of 2020: Clairo

Favorite Song of 2019: Rex Orange County - “10/10”

Favorite Album of 2019: BROCKHAMPTON - Ginger

Favorite Artist of 2019: BROCKHAMPTON

Favorite Song of the Decade: Dominic Fike - “King of Everything”

Favorite Album of the Decade: Tyler, the Creator - Flower Boy

Favorite Artist of the Decade: Tyler, the Creator

New Year’s Resolution?: Do more hikes !

Jessica Thomas

Most Underrated Artist of 2019: Hope Tala

Best Breakout Artist of 2019: Rosalia

Best Music Video of 2019: Ashnikko - “Hi It’s Me”

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Biggest Artist Crush of 2019: ROSALÍA

Best Concert You Attended in 2019: BANKS at the Palladium

Favorite 2019 trend: Not sure if this counts but this dude is my hero… (editor’s note: totally doesn’t but I’ll accept cause same)

What moment of 2019 will you not be forgetting anytime soon?: Juice WRLD’s tragic passing and the effect it will have on generations of creatives to come.

Who is poised to be the breakout artist(s) of 2020: Boy in Space (!!!)

Favorite Song of 2019: YBN Cordae ft. Anderson. Paak - “RNP“

Favorite Album of 2019: Matthew Chaim - The Mathematics of Nature

Favorite Artist of 2019: Lolo Zouaï

Favorite Song of the Decade: BANKS - "Gemini Feed"

Favorite Album of the Decade: SZA - Ctrl

Joey Legittino

Most Underrated Artist of 2019: BabyJake

Best Breakout Artist of 2019: Aries

Best Music Video of 2019: Supa Bwe ft. Qari - “LOOK”

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Biggest Artist Crush of 2019: Kailee Morgue

Best Concert You Attended in 2019: Beck, Cage the Elephant, and Spoon at FivePoint Ampitheatre

Favorite 2019 trend:Cowboy culture hitting the mainstream. Yee Yee!

What moment of 2019 will you not be forgetting anytime soon?: Eating tide pods

Who is poised to be the breakout artist(s) of 2020: Ant Saunders

Favorite Song of 2019: Augustine - “Guts”

Favorite Album of 2019: Cage the Elephant - “Social Cues”

Favorite Artist of 2019: BabyJake

Favorite Song of the Decade: Mac Miller - “Self Care”

Favorite Album of the Decade: Blink-182 - “Neighborhoods”

Favorite Artist of the Decade: Mac Miller forever

New Year’s Resolution?: To not wait until New Years to make new resolutions for myself.

Chase Nathan

Most Underrated Artist of 2019: EARTHGANG

Best Breakout Artist of 2019: JID

Best Music Video of 2019: DaBaby - “BOP”

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Biggest Artist Crush of 2019: Dominic Fike :)

Best Concert You Attended in 2019: slowthai at Flog Gnaw

Favorite 2019 trend: Baggy Pants - no more of that cuffed pant look

What moment of 2019 will you not be forgetting anytime soon?: Being 10th row at Flog Gnaw for Drake

Who is poised to be the breakout artist(s) of 2020: Bakar, Guapdad 4000, Kent Jamz, Grip, KEY!, Mez

Favorite Song of 2019: Tyler, The Creator - “ARE WE STILL FRIENDS?”

Favorite Album of 2019: Dreamville - Revenge Of The Dreamers III

Favorite Artist of 2019: Tyler, The Creator

Favorite Song of the Decade: Mac Miller ft. Anderson .Paak - “Dang!”

Favorite Album of the Decade: Anderson .Paak - “Malibu”

Favorite Artist of the Decade: Tie between Anderson .Paak and Pusha T

What Is Your New Year’s Resolution?: Be more positive!

George Schaefer

Most Underrated Artist of 2019: Pi'erre Bourne

Best Breakout Artist of 2019: Baby Keem

Best Music Video of 2019: Octavian ft. Skepta & Michael Phantom - “Bet”

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Biggest Artist Crush of 2019: Summer Walker, Jhene Aiko

Best Concert You Attended in 2019: Baby Keem at The Roxy

Favorite 2019 trend: Igor Wig

What moment of 2019 will you not be forgetting anytime soon?: Watching Drake get boo'ed off stage

Who is poised to be the breakout artist(s) of 2020: Jean Dawson

Favorite Song of 2019: Pi'erre Bourne - “Guillotine”

Favorite Album of 2019: Baby Keem - DIE FOR MY BITCH

Favorite Artist of 2019: Toro y Moi

Favorite Song of the Decade: Kanye West ft. Pusha T - “Runaway”

Favorite Album of the Decade: Frank Ocean - Channel Orange

Favorite Artist of the Decade: Frank Ocean

New Year’s Resolution?: Get a job.

#staff picks #slowthai #billie eilish #aries #keshi #benee #clairo #tyler the creator #kanye west #maggie rogers #dominic fike #channel tres #umi #2019

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insomniaandicedlattes · 6 years ago

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Hey there. Hi there. Hello there.

This is something I’ve been contemplating for quite some time. Another blog. One that isn’t a side blog and a place for me to write.

My other writing blog is, unfortunately, a side blog and is all based on a single subject for one of the main characters. It’s all Harry Styles based and well, I’m bored with it. I think he seems like a great person and has been fun to write but I need to write about more than just him and the audience on my writing blog doesn’t seem like they’d all be interested in something about politics or a different celebrity being the feature. Some of them might but a lot of them love Harry, 1D, and a few other things but maybe not what I’m wanting to write going forward. So rather than try to transition that blog into what I want to be doing now I’ve created this one.

It’s hard to keep writing something you’re not 100% committed to because it feels more like a chore than a chance to truly enjoy your craft. So this is going to be a home for me to write just about anything else. I can’t even begin to explain how happy I am about that.

So first a little bit about me. Okay, it’s a lotta bit about me so click read more if you’re interested.

My name is Ann Marie, I’m in my mid-30s (writing that makes me feel old), and I live in Iowa. I’m a proud Italian-American who is in the beginning stages of doing some family history research which has been a lot of fun. If you’ve read my old writing, yes there’s a character with my name from Iowa in something I’ve written. Honestly, I didn’t feel like picking a name when I wrote it. Hell, most of the characters have a name that connects to my family and I’ve even used my Italian family’s surnames for the last names of characters before.

Yes, I did say I’m in my mid-30s. No, I’m not married or a mother. Neither is really something I’m planning on. If the right guy showed up someday I could be swayed on the marriage portion but not the kids portion. I have 2 cats, George and Gracie, and they are all the kids I need. I love kids, I just don’t want them for myself, at least biologically. My niece and nephew are my universe. Some of my writing may have characters with kids so please know that if you are a parent and it doesn’t seem accurate to your life I’m just trying to imagine it.

I own my own Social Media Consulting business and work as a contractor with nonprofits and small businesses. I love what I do and have been doing it for over 10 years but started doing it full-time almost three years ago. Working for myself is a dream come true. I make the rules. I set the hours. I decide whether or not I want to work with a client. It’s amazing.

Writing is my creative outlet despite my work being sort of creative. I’ve been writing basically my entire life. I’m not the greatest writer but I am also not terrible. It’s a form of escapism for me. A chance to create a fantasy world and dive into it often to avoid the realities of my own life. I’ve mainly written fan fiction and while it’s a lot of fun for me I am trying to write my very first 100% original novel.

I am very political. I often felt on my other writing blog that writing characters who were also political would alienate people. American politics is a shitshow but is something that I am unbelievably obsessed with. If I had a chance to redo my life I may have tried to go into politics. My original novel is based on politics. It’s my own little way of pretending that’s what I do. If you need to know, I’m a lifelong Democrat. I was about 8 months old the first time my Mom pushed me in the baby buggy she had for me and went door-to-door canvassing for political candidates. I watch way too much CNN and I often like to rant about my dislike for the current political administration. If you’re a Trump fan this blog will not likely be for you.

My AppleTV is my best friend. I watch way too many shows on streaming services and love snuggling under a blanket with a good movie or show. If you have suggestions send them my way. I’m often watching Harry Potter for the 472,000 time or in the middle of watching every Marvel movie ever made. When it comes to TV shows my top faves are The West Wing, Friday Night Lights, and probably something dumb like Gossip Girl.

I suffer from several chronic health conditions including mental health issues. At one point I was agoraphobic and struggled to leave my house. I have chronic migraines, severe depression, panic attacks and an autoinflammatory skin condition. It’s not fun. So when I disappear for days on end I’m normally battling a migraine.

I’m happy to talk about the issues I deal with or help other people that struggle with any issues. I’m a completely open book. Whether it’s about relationships and how terrible I am about them, mental health issues, sex, owning a business, facing your fears, literally anything I’ll talk about it. So feel free to ask me anything. You can do so anonymously or not. If you’d prefer to keep it private let me know or send me a message and we can chat. If you’d like to see me try writing something I’m happy to do that too. You’ll eventually learn the things I enjoy and I’m always up for a challenge if I at least know something about what I need to write.

I hope you enjoy my writing.

xx. AM

#writer #writer problems #writing blog #fanfic writer #fan fiction writer #introduction #writer intro #fan fiction writer

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the1975hqs · 7 years ago

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He’s Matty Healy of art-pop heroes The 1975. She’s Heather Baron-Gracie of pop newcomers Pale Waves. The first time Matty heard Heather’s band he declared he needed to work with them. Two singles, a video and a mega US tour later, Pale Waves are on course to be your new favourite band. We meet the mentor and mentee in London.

The hub of The 1975’s empire is not, as you might expect, an airy, pink neon-lit, minimalist space with Rothkos hanging on the walls. It is, instead, a top-floor unit in a building on a courtyard trading estate in west London. The floor below has a place stocking Christmas supplies, and even on this humid September day, Santa’s grotto twinkles back at you through the open door.

Upstairs is the HQ of Dirty Hit, the record label founded by The 1975’s manager, Jamie Oborne, as a vehicle for the band he discovered as Cheshire teenagers. Now it’s home to some of the UK’s most exciting bands, from the established, such as Wolf Alice, to rising stars such as The Japanese House – whose ‘Pools To Bathe In’ EP was produced by 1975 frontman Matty Healy and drummer George Daniel – and new signing No Rome. There’s a particular up-and-coming band that Healy has really taken under his wing, taking them on tour in the States, co-producing their first two singles and directing the video for the second, ‘Television Romance’ – and that band is Pale Waves.

“I was just so excited to hear a band that was positioned in the left, an alternative band, that was so in tune with pop sensibilities,” says Healy, sat in Oborne’s office, the pungent smell of marijuana emanating from somewhere about his person. “It kind of reminded me of The Cure or The Primitives or bands like that – it’s the happy/sad thing loads of bands have thrived on. I saw them first at Dingwalls, and there was this truth in there. There’s a naivety and a purity to them and an honesty to them that kind of comes through in their music.”

Frontwoman Heather Baron-Gracie, who receives a warm, brotherly hug from Matty after plonking herself on the sofa next to him, puts it more succinctly: “I just love pop music, and when it makes you feel something, it’s even better.” Heather, 22, formed the band four years ago with her best mate Ciara Doran. Joining later were guitarist Hugo Silvani and bassist Charlie Wood. Two women, two men; two goths, two skinny indie boys – it’s a look that shouldn’t work, but it just does. “People say we’re like two sets of twins,” says Heather. “You couldn’t dress Hugo and Charlie up as goths because it just wouldn’t work. Well, we do the make-up sometimes and dress them up in my little skirts and things – but that’s just for us.”

Matty is at pains to point out the precise extent of his involvement in Pale Waves. “The songs were there, so my involvement in writing was only editing,” he says. “I always have a fear of being overbearing. I know what it’s like to be want to be prided on your own merits, and I would hate to be resented by an artist for feeling I’d strong-armed my involvement for my own personal gain.”

Mainly, the message is that Pale Waves are perfectly capable of writing songs on their own – Matty’s a facilitator, not a svengali. And what songs they are. The group’s two singles so far are the near-flawless sugar rush of 2016’s ‘There’s A Honey’ and the heart-melting crush of 2017 follow-up ‘Television Romance’.

The video for the latter was directed by Matty. What’s he like in director mode? “I’m very aggressive, but Heather gives as much as she gets so it’s all good,” he says. “We don’t do miming, we do have the track on at full volume. So I have to shout above the track, ‘LOOK SEXY!’ That’s pretty much the only thing that I shout: ‘LOOK AT THE CAMERA! LOOK F**KING SEXY!’”

The video sees Pale Waves performing in an Ashton-under-Lyne council flat in that looks like a hipster’s wet dream – all retro furnishings and kitsch collectables. It actually all belongs to the 92-year-old woman who lives there. “She had no clue what was going on but she was loving it, watching videos of The 1975 on people’s phones,” says Matty. “She didn’t actually believe it was me in the ‘Love Me’ video, because I was there with my Spielberg cap on taking it all very seriously.”

The first time Heather saw The 1975, it was accompanying her cousin, who’d won tickets to a gig. The last time, it was when Pale Waves were supporting the band on their two-month 2017 tour of huge US venues. “The first night was absolutely mental. I couldn’t even look up because I was like, ‘Oh my god’. We went from playing to about 10 people in Ireland to 7,000 people in Phoenix. It was a bit unreal.” Did Matty have any advice about that? “Yeah,” says Heather. “He said, ‘Just get on with it!’”

Though they’re friends, the tour didn’t provide much time to hang out. Matty was frazzled from the months on the road, and trying to get his head around his own band’s next album. “I was quite busy and quite down and quite emo – I’d been on tour for so f**king long,” he says. “We were pretty much doing a show every day and then when you have a day off you’re in your own little hotel and the lights are out. But it was great to watch Pale Waves grow as a band.”

Heather often writes songs with US coming-of-age films playing in the background for inspiration – her favourite being ‘Adventureland’. That sense of the apocalyptic emotion of teenage life lives in her lyrics too. “Those films set you up for going to America, but when I went I was kinda like, it isn’t what I expected. Like, we went to Hollywood at midnight and I was so scared because there’s a lot of mental people just roaming about. I was going all, ‘Take me home!’”

1975 fans have already embraced Pale Waves, and not just on Matty’s say-so. The bands share a mentality for finding romance in the everyday, and each group is formed around a creative core based on a tight friendship: Healy and best mate George, Heather and Ciara.

“That’s the thing I identify with most, the duality between them reminds me of the relationship between me and George,” says Matty, who, post-success, bought a house across the road from his bandmate to make sure he’s only ever a short skateboard ride away. “I did notice on tour that they never really did separate, never one without the other.”

Heather found Ciara on social media before starting university. “I saw a picture of her in this big group chat and I thought, ‘She’s the only one who really looks like someone I’ll get along with’. The first day we got there we met up and haven’t really been apart since then. I get scared thinking that she might not be a part of my life one day.”

Though they formed in Manchester, Heather’s home town is Preston, a no-nonsense city where the way she dresses – Robert Smith of The Cure by way of Robert Smith of The Cure – marks her out as someone different. “When I go back home to Preston, they do not take to it very well,” she says. Needless to say, her look isn’t as big a deal to her as it is to other people. “Everyone who meets me thinks I’m in a heavy metal band,” she says. “I never really call myself a goth, but others do. I’m like, maybe I am a goth?”

Matty – who adopted his own take on Heather and Ciara’s style for NME’s cameras – says their commitment to it is a mark of their authenticity. “The make-up, the hair, the whole thing, it’s not a set-up for the band. I can see those two girls being like that and needing to be in a band to express that, needing to find each other.”

Though she stands out, Heather says her teenage years were about “keeping a low profile. I didn’t really find people that I got along with,” she explains. “At school I would go to a room to play piano when everybody else was talking in the cafeteria. I’m not really into that – I’m not really a massive social person. Ciara’s always telling me off for being socially awkward but I’m just like, ‘I can’t’.”

Heather has been writing songs since the age of 11. As a teen, she would write “kind of Avril Lavigne pop”; more recently it was “folksy, emotional and stripped-back acoustic stuff like Ben Howard – not very cool music.” It changed when she met Ciara. “She said, ‘Lets try something different, because I want to make people dance at our shows and not kinda just cry: they can cry and dance.’”

Right from that first week at university, Pale Waves became Heather and Ciara’s sole focus. The band rehearse daily, and dedicate every minute of spare time to music. University was a slog she had to get through. Jobs were another unwelcome distraction. “My parents tried to get me into this job entering numbers into a computer-based system for the NHS in St Helens, and I was just not doing it,” she says. “I went to the interview looking like this, but they offered me the job anyway. It was Monday to Friday with some weekends and my brain would just be fried.”

Heather’s days of keeping a low profile may soon be over. Even now, and particularly in Manchester, she’s recognised on the street by a growing band of obsessed fans. “They always call me ‘queen’. It’s dead cute. Or ‘mum’, I get ‘mum’ a lot,” she says. “I keep seeing girls dressed like me. They ask me about make-up – I’m not even that good at make-up! It’s quite scary having people look up to you. I don’t want to mess anyone up.”

The adulation looks set to grow as Pale Waves make their careful, precise steps forward. Later today, Heather’s back with the rest of the band in the studio recording an EP. An album will follow, but not for at least a year. “With the album, I think we’re just going to show another side to us which is a lot more emotional and not as – I don’t know how to put it… Just, like, a bit more intense.”

Matty perks up. “You mean like emotionally intense?”

“Yeah.”

“Good. That’s what I’m hoping for.

#matty healy #the 1975 #pale waves #heather baron gracie #interview

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mollyasterwrites · 7 years ago

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esmébelle’s birthday present!

Boq is the first one to be suspicious about the new arrivals.

His mom and dad are holding two wriggling bundles swathed in yellow blankets. (Melanie had made a point about blue and pink being too gender specific and had encouraged a sunshine, buttery colour for them until they were old enough to decide their favourite colours for themselves).

Fiyero isn’t offering any back up, content to bat away at his own toy, so Boq is left to pad forward and pull his way up his dad’s leg so he can inspect the intruders himself.

“Okay, big brother,” Darren laughs and crouches down, reaching out with one hand to scratch the dog behind the ears, his other arm still holding the new, unfamiliar package. Boq’s never smelled anything like it before. It’s not Gracie who smells of lavender, more Fiyeros, and something called ballet (that’s the only way Boq can describe it). It’s not Mel because he can always hear her before he smells her. And it’s not Luke because he’s trudging in behind them carrying a bag, with Ella scurrying behind him, a bunch of flowers clutched to her chest.

“That’s so sweet!” Ella coos at the sight of Boq pushing his wet nose against the blanket, trying to get a closer look. His last guess is Chinese food and when a small pink nose pushes its way out of the blanket, followed by a face stretching itself into a tiny yawn, he’s disappointed because he’d had his hopes set on leftover prawn crackers.

“This is Elliot,” Darren tells him. His voice is ringing with the same rich and happy tone it had the first time Boq had rolled over and learned ‘shake’.

Elliot turns out to be some sort of hairless Fiyero, and even Boq’s unfortunately permanent roommate pads over to investigate. Both cat and dog cock their heads to the side when Elliot lets out a distinctly un-feline noise. So not another cat after all. Thank the doggy gods.

“And this is Annie.” Now Mom is crouching down beside them and in a matter of seconds Bonnie is presenting Boq and Fiyero with an almost identical bald creature, but this one looks a lot more disgruntled.

“You guys think you can deal with two more troublemakers in this place?” Darren asks. Fiyero sniffs once then bounds away, totally uninterested.

Darren and Bonnie laugh, followed by Luke and Ella. They’ve taken Fiyero’s nonchalance as confirmation that this isn’t going to be a problem, but Boq’s not so sure.

__________

Apparently Elliot and Annie are called babies. Sort of a less furry and noisier version of puppies. Boq does not like them.

They’re placed in two wooden crates that look a lot comfier than the one that Boq has to crawl into when he makes his annual trip to the vet. Boq had been there when the crates were built and he waits for Darren and Luke to tell Bonnie about the swearing and the splinters that were involved in the making of them. But they stay weirdly silent, exchanging looks and breathing sighs of relief when Bonnie doesn’t pick up on the fact that Darren’s Buzz Lightyear action figure has definitely had to have his wings glued back on after an unfortunate happenstance with a hammer and something called Ikea instructions and Buzz really truly ‘falling with style’ when he’d been thrown across the room after it.

He pokes his nose through the bars of one of the crates and sniffs at Annie.

“How about we leave her to sleep, bubba?” Bonnie suggests, scooping Boq up off the floor and kissing the top of his head. Boq is ready to snuggle into her like usual and silently beg her for some of the Schmackary’s snickerdoodles that he likes so much, but he’s deposited back onto the carpet seconds later.

Not happy with this, Boq plops his bum on the ground and stares at his mom and dad, but they’re busy staring at something else.

Both of them are staring at the babies, eyes shining. Darren is definitely crying more than Bonnie is.

“We totally made those,” Darren says and Bonnie sniffs happily in agreement.

“Two little Shephards,” she smiles.

“Are you sure that...”

“Oh my God, you bozo,” Bonnie sighs. Boq watches as Darren guiltily chews his lip while Bonnie rolls her eyes. “We’ve talked about this.”

“It’s just... they’re never really gonna have much of a family tree on my side. I’m the only Shephard I know.” He takes a quick look at Bonnie’s face and quickly adds, “Apart from you, obviously.”

“Then they’re first generation Shephards,” Bonnie shrugs. She links her arm through Darren’s. “And I think the Shephard name is pretty awesome.”

Boq lets out a whine and Bonnie glances over her shoulder before letting out a laugh.

“Don’t worry, Boq. We know that you’re one of the OG Sheps around here,” she smiles, beckoning him over and picking him up. Darren scratches him behind the ear, just where Boq likes it.

Then all three of them peer into the wooden crates, side by side. Darren and Bonnie get that gooey look on their faces again, and Boq wonders if they feel how he feels when it’s laundry day and Darren accidentally drops one of his socks and Boq gets to play with it for a while before Bonnie starts yelling about Hiroshima 2.0.

He doesn’t get what the big deal it. They’re just sleeping. It’s kind of boring.

__________

Okay, he preferred it when they were sleeping.

Boq tries to cover his ears with his paws but the wailing doesn’t stop. Fiyero somehow manages to sleep through it all, but Boq is restless and blearily lifts his head when lights flicker on above him and Darren and Bonnie’s legs move beneath the duvet.

“I’ll get Annie, you get Elliot,” Darren says, accidentally stumbling into the wardrobe. Probably because he hasn’t opened his eyes yet.

The babies keep crying and crying and Boq wonders if there’s an off switch. He and Darren had once found the off switch for Bonnie’s speakers, because there was only so many times two guys could listen to West Side Story without going insane. Boq hopes this situation can be fixed just as easily, without the argument afterwards. He didn’t know what the words ‘Sondheim is a genius!’ even meant but Bonnie had said them so fiercely that Darren had admitted defeat and Boq had briefly wondered if he was getting a new dad.

But the babies aren’t switched off like that. Elliot seems to calm down when Bonnie holds him and rocks him gently. Annie, on the other hand, only cries louder when Darren picks her up.

“Bon, am I doing it right?” Darren asks, looking panicked.

“Rock her a little slower,” Bonnie instructs gently.

Darren gently cradles the baby in his arms but she doesn’t stop. Even Fiyero’s woken up by this point and if looks could kill then Annie would have shut up long ago.

“I think I’m doing something wrong,” Darren says, sitting down on the bed and trying and failing to get Annie to stop crying.

Forehead kisses and soft, hushing noises and lullabies don’t help matters. Boq isn’t surprised about the latter. He loves his dad but Darren can’t sing to save himself.

Tired and wanting to go back to his dream of snickerdoodles and Gracie wrapping him in her tutu so she can kiss his nose and put him on something called ‘the Instagram’, Boq lets out a whine.

“Not you too, Boq,” Darren groans. Boq can tell from his tone that this is really bothering him, so he pads forwards and stares inquisitively at Annie.

Maybe he can help? Nipping at her doesn’t seem like something Darren and Bonnie would be happy with, but he has to do something because he’s pretty sure Darren is about to start crying and not in the happy way he was earlier. Without thinking too much about it, Boq stretches his neck out so he can lean forward and lick the baby’s bald head.

“Boq, no! You can’t just -”

“Darren.”

Bonnie’s voice is quiet but forceful. It’s why she’s so good on stage.

Darren lifts his head in confusion, but then he hears it too.

Silence.

Annie’s quietened down but as the seconds tick by she starts whimpering again. At once, Boq licks her head and she stops.

Darren lets out a quiet huff of laughter, echoed by Bonnie.

“Well, would ya look at that?” Bonnie marvels.

“She seems to like Boq,” Darren grins, not looking so tired. He leans forward and presses his forehead against Boq’s. “Who’s a good big brother?”

Boq’s tail wags happily because he knows that tone. It’s him. He’s the good big brother.

Once Annie stops fussing, she and Elliot are laid in their cribs and Darren and Bonnie go back to bed. Boq flops down on the bedsheets as well, but he can’t sleep. He has one ear pricked for some reason but he’s not sure what he’s listening out for until Elliot gurgles and he sits bolt upright.

He crawls to the end of his bed and hooks a paw over the edge of the wooden frame into Elliot. The moment is still and Elliot doesn’t gurgle again but Boq stays there. Occasionally, he’ll wander over to Annie’s crate and wait and see if she makes any noises. He does this all night even though the babies don’t make a sound after that, even if he is really tired.

He’s just looking after them so Mom and Dad can get a good sleep. It doesn’t mean anything. It’s a just in case.

This doesn’t mean he likes him.

__________

But after a while Annie and Elliot grow some fur on top of their head. Annie looks like Mom and Elliot looks like Dad but they still somehow look like each other among all that. Boq thinks it’s odd that he doesn’t look like anyone but Dad taught him that families don’t always need to look alike. Darren and Luke are brothers and they’re totally different.

With the fur comes teeth and longer legs and fingers that like to reach out and grab Boq’s tail. It’s annoying at first, because then it’s sort of fun. Because Fiyero hates chase and Annie and Elliot love it.

The first time Annie gets him in a headlock so Elliot can gather his fur into a hair tie makes him growl. But he sits without complaint after that because the laughing noises they make have him wagging his tail.

He realises he likes it when they laugh and hates it when they cry. He figures this out when Elliot comes home, his ballet slippers torn after some boys had made fun of him for dancing and wearing the same tutus Gracie does. Boq thinks tutus are great fun, and he climbs into Elliot’s lap and licks his nose until he laughs again.

He’s there to lick noses when Mom and Dad have one of their rare shouting matches. He stays curled into Annie’s side, a paw on Elliot’s lap when Darren storms out and slams the door behind him, but he perks up when Darren returns with a bunch of flowers and apologies but, most importantly, Sbarro’s.

Boq does not sleep on Mom and Dad’s bed that night.

He knows face licks are in order when Annie comes home and tells him about a boy from soccer camp. When he hears this his tongue laps at her cheeks while she squeals.

He does the exact same thing when Elliot comes home and gently whispers about a boy as well. Turns out Boq is the first to know about that and waves of smugness roll off him until Fiyero swipes at his face.

When Dad finds a weird spot on his back, Boq crawls onto the bed beside Mom and knows that there are some things that face licks can’t fix, so he just stays by Bonnie’s side while she cries. And then he stays as quiet as he can when Annie and Elliot sneak him into hospital so he can see Dad before something called an ‘operation’. He’s not a big fan of the hospital and prefers it when Darren comes back home and smiles a lot more and Ella brings balloons that burst in Boq’s face.

When he starts to feel more tired and less bouncy, he knows it upsets Annie and Elliot so face licks are at an all time high. Even though he’s kinda wiped after them. When he feels all achey and lets out a whine, Elliot crawls into Annie’s bed so they can huddle together and run their hands through his fur. And scratch the back of his ear.

They stay up all night with him.

And Boq knows that must mean they really love him.

#danni writes things;#esmé's tag

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hlsuggestion · 8 years ago

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✩ = our favorites

Dreaming of You by Velvetoscar - Not Rated, 68k ✩

The Begrudging Starbucks AU.The world is winter and steamed milk and creamy espresso shots. The world is a never ending queue. The world is a Starbucks logo and a pink-cheeked smile from Niall and a bored scowl from Zayn and the world is Louis watching his best mate, Liam, fall in love with their newest customer, Harry. Who may or may not be in love with Louis. The world is cruel.

i’d never seen it coming by foreveralliee - Not Rated, 40k ✩

“So,” Louis asks dragging out the vowel sound and raising an eyebrow. “Heard you wanted a tattoo?” “Oh! Um….Yeah.” Pebbles stutters his voice huskier than Louis anticipated from his first word and appearance. “This!” He exclaims, holding out the drawing in his hand. It’s a sketch of a large butterfly in shades of black and grey. Or an AU where Harry works in a coffee shop and Louis works in a tattoo shop. Chance encounters bring them together and they go from there.

i just know i have found the place my heart belongs by scagnetism - Not Rated, 32k ✩

“Gracie loves faeries, don’t you, little love?” Louis asks, cutting through Harry’s thoughts, and she spares a glance over her shoulder at her father, nodding quickly before looking back at the house and touching it with gentle fingers. Harry looks up at him, and they share a small smile, Louis making him feel warm, warm, warm. “This is her house, and it’s my favorite thing in my shop,” Harry explains, and Louis crouches slightly so he can see it better. “’S beautiful,” he murmurs, and Harry smiles appreciatively at him. Harry looks at Gracie again, blonde hair falling into her face as she inspects the glittery house, and he instinctively tucks her hair back behind her ear. “I’ve never seen the faerie,” he says to her softly, “but sometimes, when it’s very quiet, I can feel her.” He closes his eyes, taking in a breath, just sitting like that for a few seconds for the effect. “That’s how I know she’s watching over me.” Or, the one where Louis has a quiet little girl, Harry has a toy shop with a magic faerie house, and they were made to fall in love.

Four Letters, Seven Points by LibbyWrites - Explicit, 20k

Louis was pretty sure that a nerd who plays Scrabble as a hobby could only be boredom personified. Harry proved him utterly wrong.

i think that possibly maybe i’m falling for you by littledarling - Mature, 11k

Louis never expected himself to fall in love again, especially at a coffeeshop of all places.

Puzzle Pieces, You and Me by larrymylove - Teen And Up Audiences, 4k

In which Harry likes to start puzzles, and Louis likes to finish them

Other works featuring coffee shops:

i’ll bring the bread because boy, you’re the jam by scagnetism - Not Rated, 8k ✩

Just when he’s about to stop clicking the next button and claim defeat, maybe put some posters up around town, he’s met with a picture of white cardstock lying on a table, words written in black Sharpie with careful, deliberate strokes. “Hiiii,” it reads, “if you’re reading this, you’ve found my camera! I’d love it if you could contact me so I can get it back. It’d be the nice thing to do.” Or the AU where Harry loses his camera. Louis finds it. They fall for each other via email.

let’s savour what we’re falling over by vashtaneradas - Not Rated, 20k ✩

west wing au (loosely); in other words everyone works in the white house and louis likes getting coffee with the washington post reporter in his briefing room.

We’re Going Down Swinging by eyesofshinigami - Explicit, 21k

*Everyone knows that revenge plots never work. Liam, Zayn, and Niall have told them as much, but Hell hath no fury like Louis Tomlinson scorned. His new friend Harry takes a bit of convincing but, once he agrees to help, Louis is sure his ex will regret the day he decided to cheat.That is, if Louis can stick to the plan and stop falling for his co-conspirator.Or, the one where Louis and Harry fake it til they make it, so to speak.

here for you by blitztrigger - Mature, 24k

“I can be your boyfriend for when you go home at Easter,” Harry says in one quick breath, “Fake boyfriend, I mean. If you- um, if you want?” Or, an AU where Louis needs a bit of a hand, and Harry’s more than willing to help out.

You Got Time by bandshirtedboybanders - Explicit, 61k ✩

The thing is, Louis wasn’t meant to exist without Aaron. They’d grown up together and into each other. Forged together by pain and trials they were too young to deal with. Forged by love too of course, an absolute fuckton of the stuff. Melded together until they were two halves of a whole. Now, Louis just feels like half a person.

Or, the one where Louis’ pretty sure he’s already loved and lost his soulmate, and then he meets Harry.

#harry styles #louis tomlinson #harryandlouis #louisandharry #one direction #hlsuggestion #ficrec

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willlemonheadsupremacy · 5 months ago

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WAIT JOSH AND AMY ARE ADORABLE

#screaming giggling kicking my feet #Josh Lyman #the west wing #like OKAYYYYY #im rocking with it for now…however the joshdonna agenda remains at the forefront of my mind do not worry #Gracie watches the west wing

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jumpingcattlehockey · 8 years ago

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Tag meme thing time! Tagged by @savvyliterate and @no-patience-for-jam-hands!

Rules: Tag 9 people you want to get to know better

Relationship Status: Single.

Lipstick or Chapstick: Why not both? Frequent choice: chapstick, let it soak in, lip liner, then OCC Lip Tar.

Last Movie You Watched: Moana. Finally.

Last Song You Listened To: American by RuPaul (the whole album makes for excellent running music)

Top Three Shows/Dramas/Animes: Instead of favorites, we’ll go with what I’m currently watching (because I can only say Gilmore Girls, X-Files, and West Wing so many times): Frank & Gracie, The Great British Bake-off/Great British Baking Show, and The Americans.

Top Three Favourite Characters: Lorelai Gilmore, Dana Scully, and President Jed Bartlet.

Top Three Ships: My original ship: Han & Leia (original trilogy and books; I do not accept any movie made after the 80s as canon, as they don’t even compare to how great the post-movie books were). Mulder & Scully (I didn’t watch that show because of aliens, I saw the two of them and thought, “Oh my. So what’s up with that?”). Aaaaand Luke & Lorelai.

And I tag: In typical me fashion, I waited till the end of the day to check Tumblr and the people I was gonna tag got tagged already! So. If read this and haven’t been tagged, and are bored or interested, just say I tagged you!

#meme

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jeremywilson24-blog · 7 years ago

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Which Martial Art Is For Me?

Those of us old enough will remember trying to find a martial art club was almost impossible. Many clubs trained in backstreet gyms and halls, were often just a small group of friends. If you knew someone training already, it was easy to get in, if you didn't, well, it was virtually impossible. Fast forward to the early 70's. It was at this time that the 'Bruce Lee Phenomenon' hit the West. Enter The Dragon, a major Hollywood backed film, hit the silver screens. It was explosive, here was a guy who could do almost magical things, at blistering speeds, and so, as a direct result of that film, so was born the modern age of martial arts in the West.

Clubs began to spring up everywhere, people flocked to be trained so they could be like Bruce Lee! The reality of that was somewhat harsher! Soon, may realised that to reach even a fraction of Lee's ability required years of painstaking practise!

The first martial art to really explode as a result of Lee's film was Karate. With schools already well established in the UK, they capitalised on the phenomenon by coming out of the back streets and into the school and church halls etc. Adverts sprang up, and all of a sudden, you could find a club to train at! Karate is perhaps one of the most well known of all the martial arts, with a rich history and tradition spanning centuries. And so Karate clubs began to boom, along with other martial art styles, which began to gain interest from a Western culture suddenly smitten with the lure of Eastern mysticism and legends.

Inevitably, this boom faded, people left because it was too hard, that to get anywhere was a lifelong commitment, not something achieved in a matter of weeks or months, but years of hard graft. And so, clubs lost members, but not to the extreme levels that they disappeared back into the dingy training halls of earlier years. Many thrived with a steady increase in students, losing others along the way, but retaining sufficient to keep going.

Then, as with the Bruce Lee films, along came another Hollywood Blockbuster that was to push martial arts back into the public domain...Karate Kid. The film was simple, a young lad being picked on by a group of Karate school bullies, boy comes across a Japanese janitor, who just happens to be a master in Karate....Mr Myagi. It was a wonderfully simplistic film, where, I am sure we all remember, the young lad, 'Daniel san' was taught the rudimentaries of Karate through washing a car! 'Wax on, wax off'.....marvelously clever analogy, from which he learnt everything he needed to do Karate! Of course, it is not that easy in reality, but here we had a film, which spawned 2 sequels, that suddenly showed that training was not only hard work, but could be fun as well!

And, what this film did that no other film before it had done, it attracted Children to the martial arts! It was truly a catalyst in the meteoric rise of martial arts clubs across the world, with parents rushing to sign up their kids to learn about this wonderful way of looking after yourself, of learning respect and discipline, and making their children better people for when they finally enter the world as Adults. Karate was the main benefactor of this boom, obviously I guess given the film's title, but the knock on effects were felt right across the various martial art styles. Popularity rose through more films, with stars such as Jackie Chan, who, with his unique blend of undoubted skills and comedy, made Chinese martial arts seem fun to learn. And so there we have it, a very brief history of the rise in popularity...But! Here we are in 2008, and despite all the publicity, do you know which martial art is which? I hope the following will give you some guidance:

Karate - Probably one the most recognised. There are several styles, which I will not elaborate too much on here, suffice to say that each does have it's differences, but each also has many of the same characteristics, namely a focus on traditional etiquette, discipline and hard work. Karate (meaning Empty Hand) is a very traditional martial art, where you will certainly learn respect for others. The main styles are Shotokan, Wado Ryu, Goju Ryu, and Shitu Ryu, though there are a great many more. Karate has also become one of the most 'bastardised' styles. There are a great many schools and organisations whose Chief Instructors have studied many of the styles, and have combined this knowledge to develop their own systems. These Organisations have developed their own curriculums and grading syllabus. Essentially they are still Karate, and, with the right club or organisation, you will learn a great deal about yourself.

Taekwondo (or Tae Kwon Do) - This is a Korean martial art, thousands of years old, but only really becoming popular in the past 20 or 30 years. The modern concept of Taekwondo was developed by General Choi in Korea during the 1950's. Today, there are two styles, ITF (International Taekwondo Federation) and WTF (World Taekwondo Federation). Both teach the same basic ideals. Taekwondo (meaning the way of hand and foot) is, predominantly, a martial art based around kicking techniques. Very spectacular and effective techniques, but those learning Taekwondo will also learn valuable hand techniques, and self defense. ITF Taekwondo is much closer to the original concept of General Choi. The WTF style has developed more into a Sport, and is, in fact, a recognised Olympic Sport. ITF sparring is semi contact, whereas, if you fancy your chances, the WTF style concentrates on full contact.

Judo - Judo means 'The Gentle Way'. It is a very modern art, and, in fact, is not really a martial art, but a sport. Judo is, however, a very effective self defense art, teaching you how to put locks and holds on an opponent, and how to throw. There are no kicks or punches in Judo. A well established Olympic sport, it offers an alternative to more traditional 'combat' style martial arts.

Kung Fu - A Chinese martial art. There are hundreds of styles available, the most popular today being Wing Chun. Bruce Lee was a famous exponent of Kung Fu, but he also studied many of it's various styles and developed his own Jeet Kune DO (JKD), a method of fighting that used real life street situations to develop an effective method of attack and defense.

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu - This is the fastest growing martial art style in the world today. Japanese Judo and Ju Jitsu masters exported their martial arts to Brazil around the 1940's and 50's, where it quickly gained popularity. A Brazilian family, the Gracies, took this knowledge and developed it into one of the most effective ground fighting systems known today. Although similar to Judo and Ju Jitsu, the Brazilian art concentrates much more on getting your opponent into a submission by locks, holds and chokes. It is, to many, a much more realistic method for the street, where rules do not exist.

MMA - Not really a martial art as such. MMA means 'Mixed Martial Arts'. It's origins are again Brazil, where it is known as Vale Tudo. Today, MMA, or perhaps you would know it better as 'cage fighting' is a huge sport, dominated by the UFC, Pride and Cage Rage. It has, for many, become an alternative to boxing. MMA is a 'no holds barred' sport, whereby opponents can punch, kick, elbow, knee and wrestle each other into submission, or, get a knockout. Very explosive, and certainly not for the faint hearted! Those in MMA will have also trained in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, as well as Karate, Taekwondo or other martial art style, hence the term Mixed Martial Arts.

Kickboxing - Probably the second largest participant club sport in the world. Developed by the Americans as an alternative to Boxing, Kickboxing is, as the name suggests, a Boxing sport, but you are also allowed to kick. Training is hard but rewarding. As well as traditional boxing techniques (jabs, hooks, crosses, ducking and weaving etc), you will also learn a variety of kicks, most of which derive from Taekwondo in style. In fact, many Taekwondo clubs will also run their own Kickboxing clubs, as the two styles compliment each other extremely well.

Choi Kwang Do - Another Korean art, this concentrates mostly on the practical side of 'what works in reality'. Kicks, generally, are not above the waist, and you will learn a variety of hand techniques, all designed to work 'on the street'.

Tai Chi - Another Chinese art. Often thought of as an 'old people's' martial art. Whilst it certainly lends itself well to the older generation, in my personal opinion, it should not be overlooked. It teaches meditation and relaxation, but also it teaches you to focus your inner energy, or Chi, very effectively.

In some ways, it is sad that, as a result of the modern age, there are also some excellent, but increasingly forgotten martial arts worth investigating. Aikido and Hapkido (Japanese and Korean respectively) have become victims of the increase in popularity of the more explosive martial arts. These are predominantly self defense systems, but incredibly effective. If you aren't sure, watch some of Steve Segal's early films. Segal is a world recognised master of Aikido, it is one of the single most effective martial arts for self defense, but, sadly, it receives little publicity nowadays. It's principles are the teaching of using your opponents own momentum for your own gain, it also teaches pressure points and restraints. Even if you study one of the more popular styles, Aikido or Hapkido are definitely worth considering as a second martial art.

Today, choosing which martial art you want to do is actually much easier than you think. A great many clubs will offer you a first lesson free, so take advantage of that fact, and go and try as many as you can. In this way, you can find out which one suits you best.

I will give a couple of words of caution!!

1. Do not be tempted to sign up to a membership or any payment plan on your first lesson, or even in the first 3 or 4 lessons. Make sure it is right for you first!

2. Avoid buying any uniform for the same period. Otherwise, if you decide it's not for you, you will have wasted your money.

3. Go along and watch a few classes first, before actually trying. Most clubs will let you watch. You will get a different perspective on the class teachings this way.

4. Talk to other members, or even the Instructors. Nobody will mind you asking questions. Believe it or not, the vast majority of clubs are not interested in just taking your money only to see you leave. They want you longterm, because they genuinely want to teach you and see you develop.

There are, unfortunately, plenty of organisations out there who will happily take your money. The 'McDojo' as they are derogatorily referred to by our American friends are out there, waiting for the unsuspecting student or parent. These will try the hard sell, some even go cold canvassing onto the streets! Don't be easily tempted by promises of a Black Belt in a few weeks or months, it simply doesn't happen that way.

So, how long will it take to get a Black Belt? Well, on average, you should allow a minimum of 3 years, and that is based upon a lot of hard work, and regular weekly training, at least twice a week! And remember also, a Black Belt does not mean you are an expert! On the contrary, getting your Black Belt is merely akin to completing your apprenticeship of learning...Once you get your Black Belt, the real learning starts, it is your doorway to a wealth of knowledge and experience that awaits you on the other side.

Too many people look at trying to grade every 3 months, which is fine. But, it is not how quick you get your Black Belt that counts, it is EARNING your Black Belt that will make it most satisfying.

Learning to defend yourself, and others, is only one aspect of Martial Arts, but Martial Arts is not about learning violence. It is, and remains, one of the most effective methods of fitness in the World. It will teach you confidence, respect, both for yourself and others, you will learn discipline and above all, you will learn how to become a respected and well rounded individual.

And when you do decide which martial art to practise, don't be afraid to check out just where you can get your equipment. Often your Instructors can supply you the equipment you need, but if you feel their prices are too high, check out the Internet of a Martial Arts Magazine for guidance. Instructors do, on the whole sell to you at the same price, but unfortunately some like to try and make a fair nit more if they can. Fortunately, the boom in Martial Arts has also seen a boom in the choice of Martial Arts Supplies available. So, whatever you do decide to practise, you will also be spoilt for choice as to where you can go to kit yourself out!

So go on, give it a try, and you will never look back! Steve Turner Black Eagle Martial Arts Equipment

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/1047781

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booksclevernessblog · 7 years ago

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I hope everyone who celebrates had a great Christmas!

I can’t believe I’m writing this — 2018 is looming…waiting in the wings…right around the corner! It’s practically here! I’ve been pretty out of the loop for the latter half of 2017, but I have managed to find a LOT of 2018 releases to anticipate (surprise, surprise!). All of my 2018 anticipated releases aren’t here; I wrote another post in October featuring some more!

But before I get on my list, I’m going to book-push the one 2018 release that I have already read and ADORED! The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert! I’m sure you’ve heard about it by now. The hype has been huge surrounding it, and extremely well-deserved. It made its way on to my favorites list immediately after I finished reading it. Think the magic of The Night Circus, meets YA fairytales!

Now, on to the books! I’ve sorted them by month and release date so you can easily plan your book-buying!

January

Reign of the Fallen by Sarah Glenn Marsh

To be published January 23, 2018, from Razorbill.

Odessa is one of Karthia’s master necromancers, catering to the kingdom’s ruling Dead. Whenever a noble dies, it’s Odessa’s job to raise them by retrieving their souls from a dreamy and dangerous shadow world called the Deadlands. But there is a cost to being raised–the Dead must remain shrouded, or risk transforming into zombie-like monsters known as Shades. If even a hint of flesh is exposed, the grotesque transformation will begin.

A dramatic uptick in Shade attacks raises suspicions and fears among Odessa’s necromancer community. Soon a crushing loss of one of their own reveals a disturbing conspiracy: someone is intentionally creating Shades by tearing shrouds from the Dead–and training them to attack. Odessa is faced with a terrifying question: What if her necromancer’s magic is the weapon that brings Karthia to its knees?

—

2nd: The Lost Season of Love and Snow by Jennifer Laam 4th: The Fandom by Anna Day 23rd: Markswoman by Rati Mehrotra

February

I Stop Somewhere by T.E. Carter

To be published February 27, 2018, by Feiwel & Friends.

Ellie Frias disappeared long before she vanished.

Tormented throughout middle school, Ellie begins her freshman year with a new look: she doesn’t need to be popular; she just needs to blend in with the wallpaper.

But when the unthinkable happens, Ellie finds herself trapped after a brutal assault. She wasn’t the first victim, and now she watches it happen again and again. She tries to hold on to her happier memories in order to get past the cold days, waiting for someone to find her.

The problem is, no one searches for a girl they never noticed in the first place.

TE Carter’s stirring and visceral debut not only discusses and dismantles rape culture, but it also reminds us what it is to be human.

—

6th: All We Can Do Is Wait by Richard Lawson

March

Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

To be published March 6, 2018, by Henry Holt BFYR.

Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and Zelie’s Reaper mother summoned forth souls.

But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were targeted and killed, leaving Zélie without a mother and her people without hope.

Now, Zélie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a rogue princess, Zélie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for good.

Danger lurks in Orïsha, where snow leoponaires prowl and vengeful spirits wait in the waters. Yet the greatest danger may be Zélie herself as she struggles to control her powers—and her growing feelings for the enemy.

—

6th: In Search of Us by Ava Dellaria 6th: To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo 20th: Orphan Monster Spy by Matt Killeen 27th: Nothing But Sky by Amy Trueblood 27th: In Her Skin by Kim Savage 27th: Not If I Save You First by Ally Carter

April

Sky in the Deep by Adrienne Young

To be published April 24, 2018, by Wednesday Books.

Seventeen-year-old Eelyn’s world is war. Raised to fight alongside her Aska clansmen in a generations-old blood feud against the Riki, her life is brutal but simple: fight and survive. Until the day she sees the impossible on the battlefield—her brother, fighting with the enemy—the brother she watched die five years ago.

Faced with her brother’s betrayal, she must survive the winter in the mountains with the Riki if she wants to make it back to the fjord after the thaw. But when she begins to see herself in the people she’s been taught to hate, the world Eelyn once knew begins to crumble. And after the village is raided by a ruthless clan many believe to be a myth, Eelyn is given no choice but to trust Fiske, her brother’s friend who has tried more than once to kill her. Together, they must end the blood feud between their clans or watch their people be slaughtered.

A lush, Viking-age inspired fantasy about loyalty, forgiveness, and the definition of family.

—

24th: Stay Sweet by Siobhan Vivian

May

Fatal Throne: The Wives of Henry VIII Tell All by Candace Fleming

To be published May 1, 2018, by Schwartz & Wade.

The tragic lives of Henry VIII and his six wives are reimagined by seven acclaimed and bestselling authors in this riveting novel, perfect for fans of Wolf Hall and Netflix’s The Crown.

He was King Henry VIII, a charismatic and extravagant ruler obsessed with both his power as king and with siring a male heir.

They were his queens–six ill-fated women, each bound for divorce, or beheading, or death.

Watch spellbound as each of Henry’s wives attempts to survive their unpredictable king and his power-hungry court. See the sword flash as fiery Anne Boleyn is beheaded for adultery. Follow Jane Seymour as she rises from bullied court maiden to beloved queen, only to die after giving birth. Feel Catherine Howard’s terror as old lovers resurface and whisper vicious rumors to Henry’s influential advisors. Experience the heartache of mothers as they lose son after son, heir after heir.

Told in stirring first-person accounts, Fatal Throne is at once provocative and heartbreaking, an epic tale that is also an intimate look at the royalty of the most perilous times in English history.

—

29th: Listen to Your Heart by Kasie West

June

My Plain Jane by Cynthia Hand, Jodi Meadows, and Brodi Ashton

To be published June 26, 2018, by HarperTeen.

You may think you know the story. After a miserable childhood, penniless orphan Jane Eyre embarks on a new life as a governess at Thornfield Hall. There, she meets one dark, brooding Mr. Rochester. Despite their significant age gap (!) and his uneven temper (!!), they fall in love—and, Reader, she marries him. (!!!)

Or does she?

Prepare for an adventure of Gothic proportions, in which all is not as it seems, a certain gentleman is hiding more than skeletons in his closets, and one orphan Jane Eyre, aspiring author Charlotte Brontë, and supernatural investigator Alexander Blackwood are about to be drawn together on the most epic ghost hunt this side of Wuthering Heights.

—

5th: Save the Date by Morgan Matson 26th: Now You See Her by Lila Michaels

July

Gracy and Fury by Tracy Banghart

To be published July 24, 2018, by Little, Brown.

In a world where women have no rights, sisters Serina and Nomi Tessaro face two very different fates: one in the palace, the other in prison.

Serina has been groomed her whole life to become a Grace–someone to stand by the heir to the throne as a shining, subjugated example of the perfect woman. But when her headstrong and rebellious younger sister, Nomi, catches the heir’s eye, it’s Serina who takes the fall for the dangerous secret that Nomi has been hiding.

Now trapped in a life she never wanted, Nomi has only one way to save Serina: surrender to her role as a Grace until she can use her position to release her sister. This is easier said than done. A traitor walks the halls of the palace, and deception lurks in every corner. But Serina is running out of time, imprisoned on an island where she must fight to the death to survive and one wrong move could cost her everything.

—

31st: The Cheerleaders by Kara Thomas 31st: Sea Witch by Sarah Henning

August

These Rebel Waves by Sara Raasch

To be published August 7, 2018, by Balzer + Bray.

Adeluna is a soldier. Five years ago, she helped the magic-rich island of Grace Loray overthrow its oppressor, Argrid, a country ruled by religion. But adjusting to postwar life has not been easy. When an Argridian delegate vanishes during peace talks with Grace Loray’s new Council, Argrid demands brutal justice—but Lu suspects something more dangerous is at work.

Devereux is a pirate. As one of the outlaws called stream raiders who run rampant on Grace Loray, he pirates the island’s magic plants and sells them on the black market. But after Argrid accuses raiders of the diplomat’s abduction, Vex becomes a target. An expert navigator, he agrees to help Lu find the Argridian—but the truth they uncover could be deadlier than any war.

Benat is a heretic. The crown prince of Argrid, he harbors a secret obsession with Grace Loray’s forbidden magic. When Ben’s father, the king, gives him the shocking task of reversing Argrid’s fear of magic, Ben has to decide if one prince can change a devout country—or if he’s building his own pyre.

As conspiracies arise, Lu, Vex, and Ben will have to decide who they really are . . . and what they are willing to become for peace.

October

The Boneless Mercies by April Genevieve Tucholke

To be published October 2, 2018, by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR).

Farrar, Straus and Giroux has acquired The Boneless Mercies, a genderbent Beowulf re-imagining in which four mercenary girls chase glory and honor by battling a monster that’s been terrorizing a nearby earldom. Publication is slated for Fall 2018.

Sometime in 2018 TBA

The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi

To be published by St. Martin’s.

Set in a darkly glamorous Paris, the book follows a charismatic but cursed heir of a massive fortune as he plots to steal one of three ancient and powerful artifacts of fate. He and his crew will navigate the elite gatherings of secret occult societies, traveling through Paris’ catacombs where they must confront their worst secrets as well as a destiny they never imagined.

While the latter half of the year is a bit scarce at the moment, I know I’ll be adding more as the year goes on. 2018 is looking like it’s going to be another great year for books! All of the titles highlighted above that also have the synopsis are the books I’m particularly excited about. I’m also thrilled that so many of my favorite authors are going to be coming out with new books this year!

Whelp, this is my last post before the new year, so have a lovely end of 2017! This year definitely wasn’t the best in terms of the world, but my personal year was a great one.

What was the highlight of your 2017? What’s your most anticipated 2018 release?

2018 Releases! They’re right around the corner! I hope everyone who celebrates had a great Christmas! I can't believe I'm writing this -- 2018 is looming...waiting in the wings...right around the corner!

#2018 Releases

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riddlefromthemiddle · 7 years ago

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1. Every time I see a map I still think of the West Wing episode with cartographers telling C.J. that the globe is wrong. That relative size and even the location of certain countries is inaccurately represented on the world map we currently use.

2. My favorite part is when they demonstrate the need to flip northern and southern hemispheres. C.J.: “But you can’t do that.” Cartograher: “Why?” C.J.: “Because it’s freaking me out!” (Seriously. Watch the clip here and tell me your mind isn’t blown. You’ll never look at a globe the same way again. Plus you’ll giggle. Win/win.)

3. Apparently our kids have an eye for design. T-man’s rearranged his game room to make it a “home theater” so he can host friends for movie night or video marathons. Bear won’t quit changing stuff around even though we’ve begged her to stop moving heavy furniture. They’re driven by feng shui, I suppose.

4. I’ve got my mornings back now that BrightSide drops both kids off at school on his way to work.

5. I’ve decided my mornings should start with coffee, breakfast, and dog snuggles. Plenty of dog snuggles. And it is good.

6. Someone once told me there is no “try.” You can’t “try” to sit in a chair – you’ll either sit or you won’t. The message stuck.

7. The kids look at me like I’m speaking Portuguese when I use this on them.

8. Speaking of foreign languages, I’m teaching myself Spanish with a free app my niece (shout out, E!) told me about called Duolingo. It has an accompanying flash card app called Tinycards.

8a. This is by far the most productive use of my car rider line time.

8b. The app tells me I’m 9% proficient in Spanish already. I think it may be overestimating my powers of retention, but I appreciate the positive reinforcement.

8c. Buenos días. Bebo agua.

9. I find myself literally unable to process giant blocks of text. When faced with a huge section of words the letters all start to run together and my brain blanks out. For real, y’all, you’ve got to hit enter once in a while. Split that sh*t up into paragraphs. Please.

10. I’m fully aware my amount of white space probably makes some of you as batty as no white space makes me.

11. It started pouring during school pickup and the temperature dropped fifteen degrees in an hour. I think that’s pretty weird.

12. There’s probably some science-y explanation, but I prefer to imagine little penguins waddling around up there, blowing icy breath into the clouds.

13. This is why I usually keep my “fun science” theories to myself. They tend to make it sound like I’m dropping acid.

14. At the risk of seeming insensitive, it should be amusing watching middle school girls dismiss through shockingly cold rain.

15. Although, to be fair, I may have emitted a small squeal as I ran to my car.

16. Dude. No judgment. That rain is C.O.L.D.

17. There’s this boy at another middle school who’s using a walker right now. My friend said he fell in the hall last week which, let’s face it, marks a low for any middle schooler. Before he knew what was happening, though, two huge football players scooped him up and another was helping him back into his backpack. I get teary just thinking about it. Y’all. The kids are gonna be alright.

18. It’s been quite the dog week at our house.

19. On Monday we came home from school to find a stray outside. Naturally, the kids ran over to meet her and check for ID – no collar, no tags, no nothing. Plus she was looking pretty rough. Skinny, visible spine, several growths, a severe limp…definitely not a dog I could tell the kids would find its way home on its own.

20. So Bear and I took her to the vet. I was praying there’d be a chip and I wouldn’t have to figure out what to do but the universe was not on board with that plan. So we got her checked out, gave her a couple of vaccines, and brought her home for the night. Gracie and Phoebe were, well, surprised. Oh, and did I mention she was, like, really really old?

21. Our buddy spent most of the night struggling to breathe so at 5:00am she and I went into another room. At 7:30am I dropped Gracie and Phoebe off for a day at the vet’s (yay, dental cleanings!). This gave me Tuesday with the stray we’d named Pepper (for her salt and pepper muzzle), trying to find her a home while carrying her outside to pee every 90 minutes since she can’t do stairs. That afternoon I posted pics on our neighborhood’s Facebook page and got a quick response – Pepper’s owner had texted a Lost Dog notice on another network, and the photo was a spitting image of the dog on our couch.

22. The world turned inside out when I saw her name listed as Peanut. That’s because eight years ago a sweet black stray showed up on our street – no collar, no tag – and stayed with us for three days until her owners posted flyers around the neighborhood. This was our Peanut. Well, not our Peanut, but our Peanut from eight years ago. Except now she’s sixteen and clearly struggling.

23. Back then my kids stood sobbing in the driveway as Peanut’s owners came to take her home. T-man and Bear had already grown to love her in the few days she’d been with us.

24. This time I watched as a little boy ran to our porch, peeked through the window, and started shouting, “Peanut! Peanut! Peanut!” when he spotted his dog. The smile on his face was priceless as he barreled through the front door to hug her, and the family had a bounce in their step as they headed back to their car.

25. Wednesday’s sun rose on two dogs exhausted from dental work and a mama emotionally tapped out.

26. Wednesday morning also brought doughnut holes. ‘Cuz doughnut holes.

27. And three cups of coffee. ‘Cuz coffee.

27a. Starbucks makes vanilla coffee pods for the Keurig. Vanilla coffee plus french vanilla creamer is hea-ven-ly. Mmmm.

28. I’ve now hooked both my kids up with Duolingo and signed them in for Spanish. This family is all in, baby. The fact that T-man and Bear might have the chance to earn credit in an 8th grade class is icing on the cake.

29. I’m finding the flash cards to be somewhat addictive myself. That would be why there’s still two loads of clean laundry left unfolded on a family room chair. Buenas noches. Bebo el vino.

30. I desperately need three solid days off the grid. Short of checking into witness protection, any ideas on how to get that?

A week in the life...#oddsandends #random #life #RFTM 1. Every time I see a map I still think of the West Wing episode with cartographers telling C.J.

#dogs #kids #odds&ends #pets

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