lauramcdphotography

[herpsandbirds]

thank you for loving wildlife…the work you do is so important as I’m sure you’re aware but i am inspired by and have an unending amount of respect for biologists! Thank you even more for sharing your findings on your blog – biology was a dream of mine I wasn’t able to pursue so in a way I’m able to live vicariously through you by means of your blog :3

Thank you so much for saying so. xoxo

Remember that you can still participate in biology by going outside and documenting what you find on ebird or inaturalist.

Here's a special friend for you!

Violet-backed Starling (Cinnyricinclus leucogaster), EAT SOME TASTY BUGS!!!, family Sturnidae, order Passeriformes, South Africa

Photograph by Rolf Wiesler

[headspace-hotel]

Chemically sterilized...or mechanically sterilized?

It is clear that applying chemicals to your yard and landscape, be it fertilizers, weed killers, or pesticides, has devastating effects to the community of life that is present in every place.

But is the terrifying decline in insects explainable by chemicals alone?

When i am in mowed environments, even those that I know have no lawn chemicals, they are almost entirely empty of life. There are a few bees and other insects on the dandelions, but not many, and the only birds I see are American robins, Grackles, and European starlings.

Even without any weed killers at all, regular mowing of a lawn type area eliminates all but a few specially adapted weeds.

The plants of a lawn where I live include: Mouse ear chickweed, Birds-eye Speedwell, Common blue violet, Dandelion, Wild Garlic, Creeping charlie, White Clover, Black Medick, Broad-leaved plantain, Mock Strawberry, Crabgrass, Small-flowered Buttercup, Ribwort Plantain, Daisy Fleabane, a few common sedges, Red Deadnettle...That sounds like a lot of plants, but the problem is, almost all of them are non-native species (Only Violets, Daisy Fleabane, and the sedges are native!) and it's. The Same. Species. Everywhere. In. Every. Place.

How come...? Because mowed turf is a really specific environment that is really specifically beneficial to a number of almost entirely European plants, and presents stressors that most plants (including almost all native north american plants) simply can't cope with.

The plants mentioned above are just the flowering weeds. The grasses themselves, the dominant component of the lawn, are essentially 100% invasive in North America, many of them virulently and destructively invasive.

Can you believe that Kentucky bluegrass isn't even native to Kentucky? Nope, it's European! The rich pasture of the Bluegrass region of Kentucky was predominantly a mix of clover, other legumes, and bamboo. The clovers—Kentucky clover, Running buffalo clover, and buffalo clover—are highly endangered now (hell, kentucky clover wasn't even DISCOVERED until 2013) and the bamboo—Giant rivercane, Arundinaria gigantea—has declined in its extent by 98%. Do European white and red clovers fulfill the niches that native clovers once did? Dunno, probably not entirely.

One of the biggest troubles with "going native" is that North America legitimately does not have native grass species that really fill the niche of lawn. Most small, underfoot grassy plants are sedges and they are made for shady environments, and they form tufts and fancy sprays, not creeping turf. Then there's prairie grasses which are 10 feet tall.

What this means, though, is that lawns don't even remotely resemble environments that our insects and birds evolved for. Forget invasive species, lawns are an invasive BIOME.

It's a terrible thing, then, that this is just what we do to whatever random land we don't cover in concrete: back yards, road margins, land outside of churches and businesses, spaces at the edges of fields, verges at bypasses and gas stations...

Mowing, in the north american biomes, selects for invasive species and promotes them while eliminating native species. There's no nice way to put it. The species that thrive under this treatment are invasive.

And unfortunately mowing is basically the only well-known and popular tool even for managing meadow and prairie type "natural" environments. If you want to prevent it from succeeding to forest, just mow it every couple of years.

This has awful results, because invasive species like Festuca arundinacea (a plant invented by actual Satan) love it and are promoted, and the native species are harmed.

Festuca arundinacea, aka Tall Fescue, btw is the main grass that you'll find in cheap seed mixes in Kentucky, but it's a horrific invasive species that chokes everything and keeps killing my native meadow plants. It has leaves like razor blades (it's cut me so deeply that it scarred) and has an endosymbiont in it that makes horses that eat it miscarry their foals.

And this stuff is ALL OVER the "prairie" areas where I work, like it's the most dominant plant by far, because it thrives on being mowed while the poor milkweeds, Rattlesnake Master and big bluestems slowly decline and suffer.

It's wild how hard it is to explain that mowing is a very specific type of stressor that many plants will respond very very negatively to. North American plants did not evolve under pressures that involved being squished, crushed, snipped to 8 inches tall uniformly and covered in a suffocating blanket of shredded plant matter. That is actually extremely bad for many of the prairie plants that are vital keystone species. Furthermore it does not control invasive species but rather promotes them.

Native insects need native plant cover. Many of them co-evolved intimately with particular host plants. Many others evolved to eat those guys. And Lord don't get me started on leaf removal, AKA the greatest folly of all humankind.

So wherever there is a mowed environment, regardless of the use of chemicals or not, the bugs don't have the structural or physical habitat characteristics they evolved for and they don't have the plant species they evolved to be dependent on.

Now let's think about three-dimensional space.

This post was inspired when I saw several red winged blackbirds in the unmowed part of a field perching on old stems of Ironweed and goldenrod. The red-winged blackbirds congregated in the unmowed part of the field, but the mowed part was empty. The space in a habitat is not just the area of the land viewed from above as though on a map. Imagine a forest, think of all the squirrels and birds nesting and sitting on branches and mosses and lichens covering the trunks and logs. The trees extend the habitat space into 3 dimensions.

Any type of plant cover is the same. A meadow where the plants grow to 3 feet tall, compared with a lawn of 6 inches tall, not only increases the quality of the habitat, it really multiplies the total available space in the habitat, because there is such a great area of stems and leaves for bugs and birds to be on. A little dandelion might form a cute little corner store for bugs, A six foot tall goldenrod? That's a bug skyscraper! It fits way more bugs.

It's not just the plants themselves, it's the fallen leaves that get trapped underneath them—tall meadow plants seem to gather and hoard fallen leaves underneath. More tall plants is also more total biomass, which is the foundation of the whole food chain!

Now consider light and shade. Even a meadow of 3ft tall plants actually shades the ground. Mosses grow enthusiastically even forming thick mats where none at all could grow in the mowed portions. And consider also amphibians. They are very sensitive to UV light, so even a frog that lives in what you see as a more "open" environment, can be protected by some tall flowers and rushes but unable to survive in mowed back yard

[twoa-plus]

hello gravity falls fandom i am going insane and putting everyone into monsterfalls. i cannot be stopped. i’m on mobile so i can only post 10 at a time but here’s the first 10 + explanations :3

mermaid mabel is cool and all but i think she should be Weirder. also the idea of her not being able to frolic makes me sad. so she’s a wolpertinger now

i like cervitaur dipper he can stay. gave him a lil saddlebag for the extra pocket space & turned the spots on his back into more constellations :3

BEAR WITH ME OK dragon stan. PLEASE PLEASE HEAR ME OUT PLEASE i pulled out the monster manual for this and everything & copper dragon suits him PERFECTLY they’re funny and charismatic and like having company around and get annoyed with people who don’t like their jokes and are very protective of their hoards and

i like sphinx ford i think it suits him but i don’t really like how everyone just makes him a lion furry with wings like c’mon get WEIRD !!!! give that cat a jarringly human face

tbh my justification for this one is mostly just that i think it’s funny but. fur bearing trout wendy. they come from lumberjack lore so it’s at least kind of on theme

listen i usually just draw twinks and pretty girls im fighting for my life here dont @ me. anyways fairy soos comes from a post by @/year2000electronics :3

GRENDAAA i wanted her to be both pretty/cute and also strong bc like. yeag. so i settled on peryton with a violet-backed starling as the bird :) c’mon man it’s a deer pegasus with cool colors what’s not to love

when i first started doing these my bestie said candy would be a fresno nightcrawler and i have not looked back. i dont know why but it suits her so much

someone in my tiktok comments said mothman robbie and i was just like. yeah sounds legit. and then my bestie said he’d be a rosy maple moth who dyes himself black/red to be emo or whatever and now we’re here :3

gideon is a kitsune bc they’re tricksters or whatever and also easy to turn into a marketable plushie. he would totally be plushie-able

ok now i am off to make the sequel i’ll put a link here when it’s done :D

edit: IT HAS ARRIVED

[legendofmorons]

Time gives you a flower

Rating: G

Reader: gn

Pairing- Time x reader

Genre: Fluff, mutual pining

Summary: Time gives you a flower, and you press it. He is amazed by the other pressed flowers and plants you have.

-------

Time takes first watch as the others all start winding down... or are already asleep in Sky's case. He pays special attention to your form as you struggle to get your bedroll to cooperate.

He smiles softly to himself, watching your triumphant little wiggle as you cover yourself up.

The fire is warm, dancing and flickering as the others slowly fall asleep.

Time stands from his spot by the fire. He wants to do one last permitted sweep before he settles in for the watch shift.

He walks around the permiter- slow and methodical. His sword at the ready.

The night air is cool as stars come to life above.

He can hear the others moving to get comfortable. And he's just glad everyone is on one place and safe. They've all had a rough few days

As he makes it to halfway around the perimeter, he sees a bit of color among the grass. Bright and stark against the lush green field bordering the forest.

He stops beside the color- a flower.

He's found a flower.

It's pretty, and he recognizes it from his own home. The first of the flowers around it to bloom- it's a violet. The purple is a light shade- but a cheerful color.

He feels a soft smile at the sight. His mind flits to you if all things- how you might look holding the flower.

Oh well- he knows he's down bad. Why shouldn't be think about giving you a flower?

You deserve one after all you've done. Especially today! You had to solo a silver lynel after they got separated.

You deserve more than a flower for that ome- but it would be a start.

Time isn't sure how to give you a flower without betraying his feelings- but he's way more interested in you having it than anything else.

So he picks the violet, gentle with it as he does. He stands, flower still in hand.

He finishes the permiter check, his mind barely focused on it. Thank the stars for muscle memory.

Time sits back down by the fire, stating into it as he contemplates how to give you the flower.

How would you react? Would you be happy and like the flower? Are you allergic to it? He hopes not.

Maybe this isn't such a hood idea-

He hears movement.

Time looks up, gaze landing on your figure as you get out of your bedroll.

"Y/n?" He asks, loud enough to hear bit not enough to wake the others.

"Time." You say, walking towards him.

"What's going on? I thought you were exhausted. "

Your soft smile makes his heart do a funny two step. He loves when you share such a gentle moment with him.

"I am. I just can't sleep." You sigh, moving the last several feet to the log he is on.

You sit beside him. Leaving a little space between you but only a few inches.

"Oh. Well... If you want to talk I'm here."

"I appreciate that but I'm okay. I think I'm just jittery."

"That makes sense... The whole hero gig means you attract trouble- with so many of us...."

"I don't mind. I'm glad we're not alone doing this."

Time looks at you- you who seems to always understand what people need.

"Me too."

You looks at him, eyes landing on the violet. And you aren't sure what to think, it's pretty- his hand dwarfs it of course... but something about the flower in his hand makes you feel all soft.

"The Violet is pretty."

"Oh-!" Time starles before he continues, "I found it. You can have it if you like."

You can feel your face warn- though if asked you will blame the fire. "I'd like that."

Time could kiss you- you just saved him the trouble of figuring out how to gift you this. He won't kiss you, not without consent. He is a gentleman.

But he could.

He holds the flower out to you, watching with bated breath.

You take the flower, admiring it.

"Thank you, Time." You say, and you sound so awed it nearly breaks him.

"Anytime."

"I'll have to press this." You say, more to yourself than anyone else.

"Press it?"

"Yeah, press it! I have a bunch of pressed flowers. With all the shit life throws at anyone, I like to hold on to nice things."

Time shouldn't be suprised. You've always been hood at uplifting people. You would have something to make you happy to- or he would hope so at least.

"Can I see?" He asks.

You grin, "Yeah! Just give me a second."

You stand then, moving towards your bedroll and belongings

Time mourns the loss of your body heat as you leave. But he loves how happy you loon.

You kneel by your pack, pulling out a large book. It's bound in leather and looks well loved.

Time watches you come back, violet and book in hand.

You sit back down. This time, your knee touches his.

"I use the book to press flowers." You explain, opening the book to a random page before setting the violet on the open page- setting it bloom side up.

You close th book on the violet before opening the back cover.

In the back cover is a pressed clover and a pressed daisy. Both are preserved just so.

"Oh-" Time manages, suprised by the good condition of the plants.

"I have a lot of them- more back home."

"How often do you do this?"

"As often as I can."

"They're really pretty ." Time says, though he wants to add that you're also pretty.

"Thanks."

You look at him again, shutting the book gently.

He looks- well his gaze is soft. And he looks so open and relaxed it's hard to not feel special.

The others joke about how you're his favorite- you don't believe them... but moments like this make you wish they were right.

"Thank you again for the flower." You say.

"I'll bring you more of you like."

"I'd love that. Thank you, Link." You day- though you wish you hadn't said his name. That's so personal. What if you made it weird.

Time has to stop himself from grinning, instead he settles for a soft smile. "It's nice to hear my real name."

"Well... Keep bringing me flowers and I'll keep calling you by name."

"Deal."

[merklins]

BEHOLD! THE CONSEQUENCES OF MY ACTIONS!

Various hlvrv characters as ponys (: A full list does indeed exist, BUT! These are the silly guys I've drawn for you today. Under the cut, as I! Have now gone into WAY more detail than I thought I would haha.

Player- A Pegasus, inspired by the European Turtle Dove and Komorner Tumbler Pigeon! (He is not pictured here BUT. I also have a Saxon Fairy Swallow assignment set aside for Power Trip) I'd probably give him more armor in the future for the HEV suit, BUT! Little leg guards is what he's got for now. And also a little band on one leg like you see on pigeons for tracking and scientific purposes. Because SCIENCE and BLACK MESA! And honestly I thought it'd just look cool for him to have the little lambda band on his leg after all's over with and he isn't carrying around an entire HEV suit anymore. The other front leg is where he would put anything else, like friendship bracelets or "hey hold onto this for a minute" or what have you.

Doc- A Pegasus, BUT BETTER! After an accident in the Green Department of the rainbow factory, he now glows... GREEN! Surprising! And also she has various bat pony traits Which she now uses her epic and cool inventions to help with. Like the robot arms! He's inspired by a Rufous hummingbird, mostly. Actual flight is finicky because of the hummingbird and bat pony wing combination, BUT! They can indeed hover and zip a little! As they deserve. (This drawing was done before I picked hummingbird specifcially, but now she's got much tinier wings like a hummingbird, that are feathery at the base but extend out into more bat-like wings!)

Loverboy- As Gordon B he would be an Earth Pony, BUT! There's this wonderful wonderful Generation 3 episode where- [I am sent to the abyss for referencing this single episode for the third time on blog] WHERE THE EARTH PONYS GET HUGE MAGIC GIANT BUTTERFLY WINGS THAT LOOK SO AWESOME AND COOL. Loverboy is that (:

(THE EPISODE IS CALLED TWO FOR THE SKY)

Sleepless- A Griffon! Violet-Backed Starling is the main inspiration, but I DID take a little bit from the White-Breasted Ground Dove as well. The other half that isn't a bird I used a Clouded Leopard because. cloud... fog... the purple stuff... it was a REACH, but it looks cool so I win either way. I didn't draw it in this one, but I imagine his regular sleeping mask is a little more like a cowl you'd see in Falconing. One of the masks that slide on and cover the entire upper face. Also I know Griffons are basically pony sized, but also I write the canon here and Sleepless gets to be taller than ponies by a large margin. Just for fun, a little treat for me.

Valentine- A Unicorn! But as opposed to other unicorns I have slotted in the hlvrv roster, they take a lot of inspiration from that classic unicorn look. You know the one, probably. A lot of MLP redesigns change the unicorns to look like it and its SO cool. But Spork and Valentine are the only ones I really did that with this time around, other then a couple guys who got the little unicorn beard. You also probably know the one. I think I stole their cutie mark from somewhere by mistake, so apologies for that, BUT!! In other news, Valentine and the Love Letters all very VERY specifically have the little heart-shaped hoof thing going on. For the Aesthetic, y'know?

CLOWN NEO FUNNY GUY CLOWN NEO!! Neo himself is an Earth Pony, BUT! In Nightmare Circus? He has all that cool dressage that carousel horses and circus ponies wear SUCH AS! One of those cool decorative head pieces that are meant to make them look like a unicorn. EXCEPT. Because this is a dream and you can do whatever you want, It ACTUALLY works as a functional magic horn and he can pull all KINDS of magic tricks and shenanigans with it!

AAAAAND PING FOR FRIEND WHO RAMBLED WITH ME FOR HOURS ON THE MATTER TO HELP ME ASSIGN THEM ALL! YES, ALL OF THEM! @bbeeohazardd

[princes-creations-askblog]

Finally posting oc content again bc I can’t hold it back anymore <3

Ok so I have this set of ocs (I’ve talked abt them before in this post right here) and uh. I’m remaking them now. or trying to, I’m having bad writer’s block hngh—

So like. Now that I’ve exploded and absolutely NEED to post them or I’ll die, I’ll give you some basic info on them :)

I’ve renamed Jay to Jeiviin. They’re a six-year-old Sky Dragon born and raised in Emporia, having lived in Taldrena their whole life (up until an incident in which they ended up in Voxtren). They’re intersex and were raised genderless, and have an older sister.

I’ve renamed Cora to Avaki. She’s a seventeen-year-old Sky Dragon that was born in Talix, one of Emporia’s islands, and moved to Taldrena with her family when she was 8. She’s Jeiviin’s older sister, and really into true crime.

I’ve renamed Sigasi to Sivea. She’s a fourteen-year-old Healer Dragon born in the Philippines, but moved to Emporia (specifically Voxtren) when she was 11. She’s an only child, but became best friends with Jeiviin and Avaki after the events of her (and the other characters’) story takes place, and she’s surprisingly feisty for a Healer.

I’ve renamed Delta Sun to Astrallon. They’re somewhere around 150-160 years old, and they’re an Angel from the Concept Universe (or the Void). They left their home when they were in their 20s to search for their missing mother (idk what happened to her though), but they never found her, and instead decided to just. Stay in Emporia. I mean, it’s a really pretty country, so. Fair enuf.

None of them have designs yet, but I have some very basic ideas for what I want them to look like —

Jeiviin will be pretty short (I mean they’re 6 so ofc), and their main colour will definitely be blue. Lotta scars.

Avaki will be more seafoam green I think? And a lot taller. Possibility of being emo or scene

Sivea is so so purple. I kinda want her to resemble a violet-backed starling. I love those fucking birds. I want her to have a sorta medieval-goth-princess aesthetic, but more modern

Astrallon gets to be tall as hell. Way taller than they need to be. Get enlarged stupid. And I want them to have some vague religious vibes, like biblically accurate or something. Perhaps multiple sets of wings, or too many halos. Or too many eyes.

Ok now that that’s out of the way.

Storyline thing or something!

The kiddos are still both gonna be experiments — that was an integral part of their story before the remake, and I don’t wanna change that — but Astrallon won’t be an experiment anymore. Instead, they’ll be friends with the guy running the experiments, but they won’t know about it until he calls them up and says “DUDE WE’RE GETTING FUCKED UP PLEASE HELP”.

The experiments aren’t gonna be turned into some form of superhuman (superdragon?) beings anymore, either. Instead, the cult is trying to transform Dragons into Humans by surgically removing their Draconic traits and making them physically look as human as possible.

Those experiments never end up working and all the subjects that went through the procedures died. Including Jeiviin. But they get to come back as a ghost, because I said so.

Anyway!! The reason Mr. Cult Guy calls Astrallon screaming for help, is because Sivea and the other still-living experiments broke out and started killing motherfuckers. As they should.

Astrallon is a very kind person, so of course, they immediately run over to their friend’s location to help, and promptly get their shit FUCKING WRECKED by Sivea, who thought they were another cultist.

Some other stuff happens after that, and then the story ends, but I haven’t gotten to that point yet. As I said, I’m having writer’s block atm, so I can’t get past the part where Sivea starts plotting.

Also, despite the setting of this story being in Emporia, which is also where my AHiT AU takes place, this is not set in the AHiT universe! It’s an entirely original work, full of the blorbos from my autism.

I am tired and can’t think of anything else to write, so that’s it post’s over. Eat up

[daniigrimm-blog]

Yeah Boy & Doll Face, this is Bulletproof Love so Throw a Match into Water cos Today I Saw The Whole World and it's The Jaws of Life

Pierce the Veil did the walk of shame out of a tour with All Time Low in 2017 and that same year announced that drummer Mike Fuentes would be leaving the band; they cited that they wanted a safe feeling environment for their younger fanbase and honestly in the six or so years that the two girls that came forward with receipts and allegations really nothing has been done and that is a shame. A couple to a few years ago (not sure on exact date) they did a quarantine video featuring the drummer however and they have yet to remove his image from their Epic Win playlist but I do digress, it does seem the band has been trying to turn over a new leaf and move on sans Mike Fuentes.

That being said, let's do a deep delve into what exactly has been up with Pierce the Veil--active members are now Victor Fuentes (guitar), Tony Perry (Lead Guitar), and Jaime Preciado (Bass).

So what have these guys been up to the last decade?! Well it seems they were busy growing and having families. That's right ladies, sorry to say--these three starling studs are currently off the market. Sad, I know, but that's not why we're fucking here. We are here for the music. I did think that it was very sweet that Vic, Jaime, AND Tony settled down with seemingly the loves of their lives and that Danielle, Vic's wife, recently gave birth to their first baby Violet Valentine Fuentes! I'm excited for them and their newest adventure together as new parents. As a parent myself I wish nothing but the very best for them and as someone who can no longer make these cute little babies, I am certainly excited for whatever pics they have to share.

Now let's talk music.

Where were you on February 10th, 2023 when The Jaws of Life dropped? i was in my room, I know rather anticlimactic but, I am always in my room. Introversion aside, I remember putting on my headphones and gearing up to rock out to PTV's newest jams and my god was I not disappointed.

In an interview for Blabbermouth.net Fuentes says: "This album has truly brought us closer than we've ever been. It was extremely difficult for us to be off the road and apart for so long. We've never missed anything more than playing music together and never had such an strong appreciation for recording, touring, and simply being in the same room together than we do now. 'The Jaws Of Life' is about how life can sink its teeth into you and try to devour you. The negativity in the world and within your mind can be a vicious thing. We're extremely grateful for this record, our fans, and the opportunity to play live music again."

The first single release from the new album, was Pass the Nirvana--let's start here. Clowncore visuals aside (I am deathly afraid of clowns!) I'd say the music video takes me right back to a 90s grunge era when I was a stinky teenager watching TRL on my couch. Flash warning, for the sensitive.

“‘Pass the Nirvana’ is about the many horrible traumas that the youth of America have endured over the past few years. COVID, no proms, no graduations, an insurrection, school shootings. The list goes on. Their lives have been tossed around like clothes in a dryer, as the tensions within our country have infiltrated our own homes, friends, and families. To me, the song represents a euphoric detachment from all of that anxiety and stress and about finding some form of peace or nirvana.”

That tracks. The grungy guitar riffs and metaphorical lyrics really tie this track together in a pretty plaid bow. There were a lot of things this year that made me question what year it was, but I'd relive the 90s again as adult this time--why not? could be fun, some of the trends were neat.

The second single on the album is throwing the same vibes; albeit the song is different in many ways as the first single. For instance, both are desperate situations with meaningful lyrics. Both have underlying 90s grunge rock vibes. But Emergency Contact is essentially about a pair of lovers; one is ready to move their relationship further and is frustrated with the other who is still unsure if they should. Vic Fuentes tells you the meaning in his own words here. It's a lovely melody that I think is comparable to their collide with the sky style. Which was also very nice to hear again.

Now that brings me to their third single off their Fifth album (Fearless Records) , The Jaws of Life, Even When I'm Not With You. This is my FAVORITE out of the three singles so far, but I am as HUGE sucker for a good rock ballad.

“This song was inspired by a text my manager sent me while I was going through a rough time. I thanked her for being there for me, and she said, ‘Even when I’m not with you, I’m still with you.’ That phrase touched my heart and inspired me to write a love song dedicated to my wife about no matter how far away I am on tour, I’m still devoted to her, and we will always be connected through our love.”

The lyrics are sweet, the looping riff is melodic and wonderful and I 100% love this track. Favorite track on the album? No, sorry--but definitely my favorite listed of the three singles. If you hate Gold Medal Ribbon or the vibes thrown on Misadventures then I don't want to hear anything you have to say. Your opinion is sadly invalid here on my blog, move along.

How many tracks are on The Jaws of Life? 12.

So we've already been over tracks 2-4, no need to readdress those. Let's go back to the Death Of An Executioner.

“The visual of this song, to me, is a car that’s following you—like the video for ‘Karma Police’ by Radiohead. It’s got its headlights on your back, and it’s just kind of slowly creeping on you. To me, it represents social media and people expecting perfection out of you and always waiting for you to make a mistake so they can run you down and destroy you. I like the title ‘Death of an Executioner’ because it describes killing the person who’s trying to kill you.”

Hello Alt Rock/Rock Electronica Radiohead influences! YES, I am HERE for it 100%. The harmonizing laid over vocals just work. And the filter effect over Fuentes' voice is mesmerizing. Kinda partial to the repeating of "blood red moonlight" as a good scene setter too--just GREAT imagery here. Plus, have you listened to it yet? You should--the song goes really hard.

Flawless Execution. It's the fifth track. on the fifth album.

“This one’s kind of hard to describe. I feel like it’s about people blurring the lines between love and sex and vice versa. It’s almost about when you’re OK with being used because you want to be close to the person so badly. You want love so badly that you’re actually OK with being used or abused, kind of like the Bill Withers song ‘Use Me.’ So, it’s about those extremes that we go to just to be validated. If you’re always desiring someone’s approval, it can go to some toxic places.”

"I'll scar you with my flawless execution every time." This. is actually one song that really caught my ear the first time I heard it. Man what a smooth earworm it really is! And that chorus really hooks you. Not sure what that says about me, now knowing the meaning of the song (fuck it I already kinda knew what it implied), nah--it really doesn't change my mind. This song slaps. It's definitely one to put on and really enjoy.

So far, I really think that consistently this band has grown with each album release and that really says something. Personally, their Dance Gavin Dance/Myspace screamcore on A Flair for the Dramatic wasn't my favorite (I know Ill get hate for that) but they were still growing as people and as a band. After doing infinite amount of touring and getting to know other musicians/bands they did some dabbling and grew into Selfish Machines--Besitos really hooked me. And it just got better from there my dudes! Hold the freaking phone! When Collide With The Sky and new doors and opportunities were opening for them--that was it for me. I was a fan. Misadventures , which won album of the year in 2017 circulated so many times on my playlist that I lost count. And then--radio silence. Man, when the allegations dropped I was heartbroken.

For a long time I did not support a band that I loved because of one person doing a misdeed and that was not fair. Not fair to the people who weren't involved, and not fair to me personally because of what their art does for me. When they finally addressed things and booted that rootie tootie from the band, I almost threw confetti into the air! They did the right thing, for those girls, for the fandom, and for the band. Now, they could begin to grow--and GROW THEY DID.

It took just short of a decade but we finally got NEW Pierce the Veil, and man am I just so happy with what they have given us. That finally brings me to the title track, The Jaws of Life.

“It’s about trying to get released from life’s grip and finding your way. There’s a line in it where I say I’m having the time of my life rotting in the sun, inside the jaws of life. It’s trying to be OK with where you are and starting to feel happy again—I’m making my way, and I know that I can see some light. There’s a lot of ’90s influence in this song musically, which I’m super stoked on. The verse feels like Tripping Daisy or Superdrag—I was thinking about their song ‘Sucked Out’ a lot when I was writing this one.”

That is super befitting because so far I can hear all the 90s undertones and influences from track 1 to the title track. Superdrag, Tripping Daisy, Smashing Pumpkins, Radiohead, Bush, Soundgarden, and a little Nirvana. These are great fucking influences to have and man, I love that they are just spinning them into their own modern grunge pop and I am here for it. As a fan of many different types of rock and pop I have to say this is taken and done--and it is done well. Kudos to production and underlying bts workers/musicians that put their time and effort into this. This album is fully flushed out, very well produced, and thematic from track one to track twelve. Just pure perfection.

This is what went into the Production of PTV's fifth studio album.

The seventh track on the album is quite possibly my favorite. It's consistently stuck in my head no matter what I do to get it out but I'm not even really trying at this point--it's too good. It can take up rent free space in my head for as long as it possibly desires to--because jesus fuck it is glorious! It's called Damn The Man, Save The Empire.

“I’ve been trying to use this title for years, but it’s never felt right until now. It’s a quote from one of my favorite movies, Empire Records. Lyrically, it’s about how no one can really know who you are until they’ve really spent some time with you. I feel that way sometimes when people follow our band on social media and think they have me pegged, but you’re seeing what I want you to see, not who I fully am. So, it’s just reminding people about that superficial experience.”

Instrumentally this combines grungey hard guitars with dreamy vocals that portray that same kind of dreamy vibe that social media gives you with a filter on it. "No one like us anyway..." is another relatable vibe but im starting to get that not everyone is built to be an extrovert and you only live one life--so why spend it trying to please people that don't like you when they don't matter? Great song. Even better message.

Track 8 is called Resilience.

“With this song, I had this vision of that classic scene in the movies when the hand pops out of the dirt after they’ve been buried alive, and the person starts pulling their body up to the surface. It’s like when you’re digging your way out of this hole, and your eyes finally see the sun and they adjust. Also, one of my most proud moments on this record is that we got to use a quote from Dazed and Confused to start the song. We actually had to have the actors approve that. It was such a win for the album.”

It starts off with a familiar scene from a movie most of us grew up with. I don't know about the children today, but I don't really care. It's a cult classic and Idgaf what the kids younger than me have to say about it really. The acoustic guitar is melodic and almost waltz like, and vic's crooning swoony voice wraps this song up nicely. "It's odd that I-keep runnin into spiderwebs, runnin into spiderwebs at night." was a really neat lyric I picked up on in that song. Very neat visuals.

Track 9 is called Irrational Fears . It's a 20 second interlude of an air flight assistant talking over an intercom. I don't really have much to say about this.

Vic said this:

“This is an interlude that sets up the next song. It was inspired by that first scene in the movie Garden State, with Zach Braff, where he’s on a plane that’s going down and everyone is freaking out around him, but he’s perfectly calm. We wanted to set the scene with this British flight attendant being all chipper but saying really dark things. Jaime made the music, and then my friend who’s a voice actor recorded the voiceover in London. It was a fun challenge, and I’m really proud of how it came out.”

Track 10 is called Shared Trauma and it's vapidly becoming one of my favorite PTV tracks. I guess personally, it touches very close to home. My family hasn't had the easiest life up until now, we have a lot of shared trauma but it's made us closer because of it--and it's certainly helped us grow knowing that.

“The title kind of speaks for itself. I’ve always felt that shared trauma and going through a traumatic experience with somebody can be one of the strongest bonds in human existence. Knowing that you’ve both been through something together will always connect you in such a powerful way. I think that’s beautiful—it’s the good that can come out of the bad. Musically, it was very much a collaborative band effort that came out of this loopy analog beat that Jaime sent me. It was really fun to write.”

So Far, So Fake starts off with couple of slow arpeggios that set the mood for the song which is cut into like a knife by Vic's sharp vocals to form a smooth even climb through the rest of the melody. The chorus is catchy, man, and does it stick if you let it. It's a hit. 100%. If they were to make another music video off this album, I would get in line to watch this one (but who are we kidding? I would get in line to watch any videos they decided to make as long as Mike isn't in them.)

“This song was written in 2017, so we’ve had it for a long time. It was one of the only ones that made it from some of the first writing sessions we did before the pandemic. It’s about if you’ve ever been betrayed by somebody you felt was a friend, and the wound never really mended—where even an apology doesn’t feel like it’s enough. It feels like it can never really be resolved. So, it’s a bit angry, a bit sour, a bit difficult to think about. But I always want to write about things that are affecting my life.”

I do recall a time where Vic had mentioned he was cheated on by someone who wasn't exactly exclusive with him? I don't remember the interview exactly but I do remember hearing it. Maybe that applies here. Maybe and I'm not saying this to start anything--it hits even closer to home and it's about Mike and what he did. They are family, and the band did lose out on a member. I imagine that would affect everyone very deeply and there would be wound that needed healing. I'm glad though, whatever the case, that Vic was able to get this out--it seemed he needed to. Music can be very therapeutic. Not just to us but to the artists who create it especially.

The final track on the album is called 12 Fractures and it is a lovely duet between Victor and an artist named Chloe Moriondo. She/They have never come up on my radar before but some how are an active member on the emo scene. She's/They've hung out with everyone from the likes of All Time Low, and Simple Plan, and now to Pierce the Veil and I love her/them for it. And can I just say that Her/Their voice is just wonderful. It's safe to say, I love this song.

Shout out to all the legal smokers of medicinal 420. I cannot wait til they federally legalize. We just need to move forward as a society but I digress, "Oh thank god for THC" is one lyric grab I loved from this song but it's just one. And it makes it all that more relatable.

“The song was called ‘12 Fractures’ before it became the 12th song on the album. We didn’t plan it like that. I’m glad it worked out that way, but it also makes things confusing. I’m actually looking at our vinyl right now to make sure it doesn’t just say ‘Fractures.’ But this one came from a deeply personal story about a friend of mine who went through a divorce. I watched two of my favorite people in the world just fall apart. When friends break apart like that, it’s like losing a family member. It’s super difficult, even as a bystander. It was cool to get Chloe on the song to bring the story to life. I’m a big fan of hers, and I think she did an amazing job.”

Now that I heard her/them on this song I will certainly be looking into her music because to be quite frank I just hadn't heard of her. I do love getting new music on my radar all the time though and this is usually how I find it. Artist collabs are SO so good for expanding the playlist repertoire-just trust me.

Did this convince you to go get The Jaws of Life and give it a listen? I sure hope so. It's fucking amazing on many levels. They did grow, they did change, and what they created is something I'll be blasting on my playlists for the next few years--but hey, let's maybe not make us wait another decade for new tunes next time guys? Pretty please?

Thanks.

D. Grimm

Sources:

here

here

here

here

here

here

here

here

here

here

here

here

here

here

Some may not be linked because of space in the post my apologies, they can be found with a simple google search.

[mysteriouslybluepirate]

I Got A Green Denim Jacket

What am I embroidering on this thing (I need something to fill some free time)? If you have a specific idea, leave in tags or comments! I'd love to hear it! Especially if it's fandom based, as I have basically no ideas (Yes, I will be embroidering an Izzy sparrow on it).

[drabbles-of-writing]

Wing AU. Darius is a violet back starling and Eber is lammergeier. Darius spends a lot of time preening himself and, despite the abomination goo, he always has the best looking wings of all the coven heads. Terra is a cuckoo because they’re known for destroying the eggs of other birds and replacing it with their own like little evil motherfuckers. I am apart of the Terra hate train cause she’s a bitch ass motherfucker. -Punk Anon

fuck Terra all my homies hate Terra

but goodness I love those ideas! the starlings especially look extremely pretty and bearded vultures are some of my favorites. and it's also really funny considering their species are the opposite of how big they are in-canon. bearded vultures are BIGGG boys, and they're strapped onto the wings of this itty bitty beasty guy.

Terra especially I can put down as a common cuckoo; they're the best examples of brood parasitism since not all cuckoos are parasites. plus, I just think the colors work with her.

god im just rotating these guys in the brain. amazing take as always punk

[dansnaturepictures]

30/03/2022-Nettles, Chiffchaff and more at Lakeside and home

It was good to see the House Sparrow in the first picture in this photoset, Starlings and my first Blue Tits in the garden for a while early this morning. Starling, Goldfinch and others looked great in the garden and out the back throughout the day, I appreciated the sound and sight of the Starling feeding sessions in the garden a lot today. I got the tenth and final picture in this photoset of a Starling in the bush later in the day with its iridescent feathers looking nice. I have been pleased with the amount of Starling photos I have taken lately. It was lovely to see a little moth quickly in my room before bed last night. A House Sparrow I saw today as I believe I recall them doing last year picked up some of Missy our dog’s fur who has had a recent shave in the garden, excitingly I think they are using it for nesting material. My Mum said a Blue Tit did similar. 

On a Lakeside lunch time walk in the eastern meadows (Wednesday is usually my one constant day being in the office to work but current Covid protocols meant I couldn’t go in today after my recent bout of it) I enjoyed hearing and then seeing the beautiful green tinted warbler in the third picture in this photoset, a Chiffchaff blending in with a few new leaves of delicious green on the tree. Not only seeing both Chiffchaff and Blackcap at local Lakeside in one week but getting photos of them both too with my big lens feels amazing. They are both such stalwarts of exciting early spring days and beyond, its a pleasure to be seeing and hearing them. Interestingly among other things lately like the recent run of weather Chiffchaff takes me right back to the first days of working from home and the first lockdown as they were everywhere two years ago. Last year I didn’t notice Chiffchaffs around here as much but had quite a stellar local Blackcap spring, so with them both having a strong start this week I wonder which warbler will reign supreme this spring for me locally? Hopefully a close battle. 

I had a look at the strong area of flowers on the verges near the road entrance to Lakeside and saw some delightful ones again. Following admiring and taking another picture the second in this photoset of the notably sized clump of what I believe is red deadnettle on the grass across the road, I was thrilled to see two more bright types of nettle, the yellow deadnettle or yellow archangel which I took the sixth picture in this photoset of and the lovely white deadnettle in the seventh picture I took today in this photoset. I was thrilled to see them both adding a strong splash of colour to the day, and the yellow one I was amazed by as I had never seen it before I don’t believe. It was truly eyecatching and I found myself so enthused to see it. Today it was a good day to really appreciate nettles and show with the beautiful variety of colours between the three with them in flower just how colourful and pretty they are. And of course how important they are like any plant. 

The primroses still hanging on, violets white and purple, the big daffodil and snowflakes which I have enjoyed here lately looked really good again with lots of snowflakes together hanging low in the grass which looked great and I tweeted a photo of on Dans_Pictures tonight. My first ever snowflake at Lakeside last year become one of my favourite spring time memories and this year I seem to have gone to a whole new level with them seeing so many at Lakeside which has been thrilling. Lesser celandine just clinging on, cowslip still looking great in numbers, daisies and dandelion looked nice today too.

I didn’t want to take many photos today with having a phone call with my Dad so less time to process and upload tonight so wanted to bring just one lens and with no sun was torn between my big or macro the latter a certain if sunny as I might have seen butterflies, I am glad I brought the big lens as the macro wouldn’t have been able to have the zoom for the Chiffchaff shot but the flowers which I would ideally use my closeup macro lens for seemed to still be doable with my big lens. I took the fourth, fifth and eighth pictures in this photoset of views at Lakeside today with blossom, greenery and gorse blending so well and the emerald glow of the vegetation looking stunning once more. A key theme lately which happened again today was seeing views I see from my room well from Lakeside including the three prominent thick trees visible in the scene. I got the ninth picture in this photoset of some stunning blossom in a nearby street that goes an amazing pink/purple colour I took a couple of photos of it.

Wildlife Sightings Summary: Starling, House Sparrow, Blue Tit, Robin, Chiffchaff, Collared Dove, Woodpigeon, Feral Pigeon by Lakeside well again, Jackdaw, Herring Gull, Greylag Geese flying past the house and a fly or moth tonight.

[puckwritesstuff]

🦆104🪶

(104. “You’re crazy.” “And so what if I am?”)

Jim had been in the cell for a few days. Every few hours the people keeping him there threw a piece of bread in, but that didn't keep him from feeling like his stomach was trying to claw its way out of his torso in search of something to eat. The hunger also meant real hallucinations this time, and one of his least favorites knelt in front of him.

The camera-ready suit the kid was wearing had turned yellow, and the cape was torn. He lifted the brim of his hat-- now red-- and stared Jim down.

"Is this what you wanted?" Drake asked. "To cast me as the villain? Or did you stop asking for that when you realized I had your child?"

The Darkwing suit faded back to violet.

"Get out of my head," Jim muttered.

"So, I'm in your head now?" Drake asked. "You know how that sounds, right?"

The hallucination leaned in, inches away from Jim.

"What part of it bothers you the most?" he asked. "That they like me more than you? That the role you had built your life around was suddenly gone? Or are you just pissed that I live your life better than you ever did?"

"You're not real."

"You're crazy."

"And so what if I am?" Jim hissed. "Does that mean I don't love my daughter? That I didn't love my wife?"

"You're using past tense again, Starling, you and I both know she's not dead," he said.

"Except they can't hear you," Jim said. "They can hear me, and I'm not letting them hear that."

Drake grinned. "I guess you did learn something from your show."

(Thank you for the request!)

[moonlight-breeze-44]

Hey Em! I've gone through most of your Malec fics and I really love them! (especially the autistic!Alec one but also all those dealing with Alec's mental health issues) I was wondering if you have other recs for me of fics you love, since I'm really new in the fandom and there's so much out there?

Hi there! I’m so glad you’ve been reading and enjoying my fics! That means so much to me :) You’re so sweet! <3

I always have fic recs, so I am more than happy to give you some anytime you want. Here’s a list of a few (or a LOT because I got carried away, oops) that I love with my whole heart. I’m not sure what kinds of fics you like, so I rec’d some of my faves and ones that are specifically about autistic!Alec or Alec & mental health issues.

~ ~ ~

- Walking With Death by Aria_Lerendeair. This is a fic about Malec becoming immortal husbands, and it’s angsty but so, so, so good. Death is a character and Alec buys him coffee.

- Stone Can Be Broken by lawsofchaos and the wonderful sequel Hearts Can Be Remade by Aria_Lerendeair. Both are very angsty, but Laws’ has a hopeful ending and Aria’s has a happy ending. Be sure to read the tags on Aria’s! <3

- Five Times Alec Hides His Tears And One Time He Doesn’t by notcrypticbutcoy. This fic is about Alec’s struggles with anxiety and it is such a heartwrenching read for me. 100/10 recommend. 

- Violet by cuubism. This one deals with some pretty serious suicidal thoughts, so be cautious! <3 Magnus and Alec meet each other on a bridge. Or, the one where helping someone else is sometimes easier than helping yourself. Written by cuubism of the Malec Discord server we’re a part of!

- Wish Upon A Shooting Star by Aria_Lerendeair. Another immortal husbands fic, and it is so, so sweet and has a whimsical, optimistic energy that will surely make you smile. (Bonus points: written by our very own sassy moderator of the Malec Discord server.)

- “You are hurt” by sugarandspace. I’m not sure how much you like parabatai feels, but if you do, this is THE FIC for you. Jenna, who is a member of our lovely Malec server as well, does it wonderfully. It’s set post-3x18 Malec breakup and it has Alec self-harming and lots of feels with him & Jace.

- A Different Time by TK_Extraordinaire. This fic is basically a character study of Alec, a look at how he evolved over the years told from the POV of others.

- Tell me I’m perfect (but tell me the truth) by SquaresAreNotCircles. This fic is one of my favourite fluffy ones and it’s basically 7.5k of Alec talking about how much he loves his boyfriend to everyone who’s not him and then one time Magnus finds out about these secret compliment-fests.

- Brother Let Me Be Your Shelter by alistoney. This fic deals with Alec’s self-harm and it is an add-on to that scene in season 1 when Alec storms away after Jace & Clary kiss. Lots of Izzy and Alec feels, provided graciously by the amazing Zia of our Malec server.

- I will catch you when you fall by sugarandspace. Another fic where Alec self-harms, but this time it’s Magnus helping him out.

- Quiet now, you’re gonna wake the beast by EternallySilverMagnusAndAlec. This is a wonderful autistic!Alec fic that also goes into the emotional trauma that Alec has to deal with from Maryse. Written by EternallySilver of the Malec Discord server!

- Not So Unrequited by Aria_Lerendeair. A best friends to lovers AU that goes through their journey together as friends (including lots of delicious angst) and eventually leads to the confessing of feelings.

- The Lonely Hearts Hotline by Fatale (femme). I prefer oneshots to long fics, so this is one of the only fanfics I’ve read that surpasses 20k. This is the story of CEO Magnus and phone sex operator Alec and yes, it is absolutely as good as it sounds. 100/10 must read.

- Subjective by Accal1a. This fic was actually just posted tonight in the Malec Discord server, but I wanted to link it in case you didn’t see. Hannah has an amazing way with words. This is a 5+1 about Alec & dealing with homophobia. It isn’t all posted yet, but it will be soon, and the first chapter is SO GOOD.

- Autistic Alec AU by AceOnIce. This is a series of fics where Alec is a mundane and autistic, and it shows the journey of his relationship with Magnus. It’s amazing and also written by one of our Discord server members, Amelia.

- shed my skin, my scars by ByTheAngell. This fic is another fic about Alec & self-harm, written by the wonderful Elle of the Malec Discord server, with a few mentions of other ways of not taking care of himself, too. It’s set post-canon and portrays the way that people can fall back into bad habits quickly and easily very well.

- On Thunderstorms and Scared Shadowhunters by alxdrlightwood. The fic in which Alec slowly begins to accept that it’s okay to have a phobia, and Magnus is there to provide cuddles.

- And They Were Roommates by CoolStoryMatt. A roommates college AU where Malec are oblivious idiots that really need to learn to communicate better. Another of the rare above 20k faves of mine. Absolutely hilarious, with great plot and so many moments that’ll make you yell at your screen.

- Whumptober 2019 by Donovanspen. This is a series of works with Malec hurt/comfort and angst.

- No reason to feel like this by sugarandspace. A fic in which Alec deals with depression, and Magnus is there for him.

- it took me years to say the words that you did not even need said by arekiras. A series of fics about autistic!Alec and his life as a Shadowhunter, Head of the Institute, and boyfriend/husband to Magnus Bane.

- Red-Handed by Carmenlire. This is a fic about Alec relapsing with self-harm and Magnus being there for him. Like Elle’s fic above, it also portrays the way one can slip back into bad habits quickly and easily very well.

- Reasons To Stay by AceOnIce. This fic is a 5 times fic with 5 times Alec wanted to die, but didn’t.

- holding onto you by anonlymous. Another Alec & self-harm fic where Magnus is there for him.

- Once You Taste It by Carmenlire. Yet another Alec & self-harm fic, with Alec making the choice to go to Magnus before things get too far.

- An Unlikely Angel by thatnerdemilyj. This fic is a Fraywood brotp where Clary leaves nice sticky notes for Alec after being exposed to all of the bad thoughts in his mind. Bonus points, it’s written by the lovely creator of our Malec server, the other Em!

- First step after the fall by sugarandspace. A fic about the aftermath of 2x08 but Magnus has wings as a warlock mark and he used those to save Alec when he jumped. Lots of angst for both Magnus & Alec!

- Survive In That Despair by thattrainssailed. This fic is one of the only no-dialogue fics I’ve ever read, but it makes the emotion that much more potent. It’s another Alec & self-harm fic, and it’s more graphic than the others I’ve rec’d here, so please be extra cautious! <3

- We Care For Each Other by ZequoiaRose. A bad day fic with absolutely ridiculous amounts of hurt/comfort. So soft, I don’t even have words. 100/10 recommend. 

- I cannot touch because they are too near by jillyfae. This fic is honestly the best fic about the parabatai bond I’ve ever read. It has a truly lovely amount of wordbuilding and is told from Magnus’s POV where he wants to know more about the bond Alec & Jace have. Extremely soft and written by jilly from our Malec Discord server.

- Between The Lines by Carmenlire. If you like pre-canon fics at all, this is an absolute must-read. It tells a heartwrenching story of Alec & his repression due to the Shadowhunters’ homophobic society, told from Isabelle’s POV. 

- Starling by cuubism. One of the best fics about Alec & mental health issues, in my opinion. It’s absolutely heartbreaking in the best way. It can also be pretty intense, so be sure to read the tags and the author’s trigger warnings! <3

- Astraphobia by AceOnIce. An autistic!Alec college AU where Alec’s fear of thunderstorms causes him to meet Magnus for the first time. So, so, so cute. Like, illegally cute.

- The Breath of a Lie by Secretness. This fic is another one of the best fics about Alec & mental healh issues. Although, please be aware - it is very, very intense. This fic will fuck you up good if you’re not careful, so please take care of yourself. <3

- 11:45 by bidness. This fic is the last of my above 20k recs. It is the sweetest workplace AU you will ever read, where Magnus keeps stealing Alec’s lunch and leaving apology notes behind. Also written by the absolutely wonderful Tilly of the Malec Discord server.

- The Best High School Love Story (Maybe Ever) by Aria_Lerendeair. If high school AUs are your thing, you will absolutely love this. It features competitive Malec, best friends to lovers, and the cutest storyline to ever cute.

~ ~ ~

So I ended up giving you like, half of my bookmarks, oops. Sorry about that. I hope you find some that you like among these, and thank you so much again for reading my fics!

Thank you for the ask!

[babywonderlandwerewolf]

Frank’s hints about season 3 part 2

Time for more season 3 hints and hype!

sleaveheralone asked: How would you describe Scrooge's relationship with his sisters?

Frank’s answer: Spoilers. (I’m excited!)

sazxofone asked: Will we ever see Fergus and Downy again?

Frank’s answer: Yep (technically they were in a flashback in Challenge of the Senior Junior Woodchucks but could still appear considering the above)

drummergirl231 asked: Has DT17 Donald ever had to balance family relationships and a romantic relationship before?

Frank’s answer: Not yet. And his kids’ reactions aren’t the people he has to worry about the most. (Lookin forward to Della’s reaction)

cinnabun asked: ooc daisy quote please i’m begging

Frank’s answer: “You do not need to fall for another man that needs saving.”

aprilcruelsday asked: Could you spare an out of context Penumbra spoiler?

Frank’s answer: Doesn’t trust cars.

pilyarquitect asked: OCC Bradford please?

Frank’s answer: “We are not villains. We are FOWL. ACT LIKE IT.” (partially said in Double O Duck! You Only Crash Twice)

maximumlightcolor asked: Ooc steelbeak quote??

Frank’s answer: “Prepare to be OUTSMARTGUYED!” (Double O Duck! You Only Crash Twice)

moonstoneflowers asked: Are we going to find out anything about Webby in the upcoming season?

Frank’s answer: Sure seems like a good time for it.

lynxuwu asked: OoC Darkwing Duck spoiler?

Frank’s answer: Has never fought an actual supervillain…yet. (Looks like we’re referring to Tarus Bulba or NegaDuck)

rumblewithwendy-moved asked: ooc taurus bulba quote.

Frank’s answer: “Reminder: order more dramatic tarps.”

shizu-twg asked: Would you be willing to share an OOC spoiler/hint/line for the first episode of Season 3?

Frank’s answer: Lots of young adventurers look up to Scrooge. Who did Scrooge look up to? (It’s Isabella Finch from Challenge of the Senior Junior Woodchucks)

doritoarts asked: Are we gonna see more of Jim Starling?

Frank’s answer: We have a long-term plan for Negaduck/Jim Starling, if Disney lets us do it. I love that character something fierce.

catboooks asked: spare an ooc kit cloudkicker quote? please mr angones im begging you

Frank’s answer: “SPIN IT!”

toospicy-peppermint asked: Are we gonna cry this season??

Frank’s answer: I have.

egonspenglers asked:Do you think Dr. Bushroot will ever make an appearance?

Frank’s answer: I think he might. Sort of.

pyrot0xin asked: Please I am B E G G I N G you Are Heron and Steelbeak gonna interact I N e e d to know

Frank’s answer: Oh yes very much so. (Double O Duck! You Only Crash Twice)

raheyyy asked: out of context donald?

Frank’s answer: “Namaste.” (The Lost Harp of Mervana)

maximumlightcolor asked: Launchpad ooc spoler maybe 🤘😪

Frank’s answer: Is bad at video games. (Double O Duck! You Only Crash Twice) 

trixielulamay asked: OOC Goofy spoiler

Frank’s answer: Still a photographer. (Quack Pack)

prettysureimbatman asked: OOC Violet spoiler?

Frank’s answer: Is the best there is at what she does. (is a Senior Woodchuck in Challenge of the Senior Junior Woodchucks)

trixielulamay asked: OOC GYRO QUOTE

Frank’s answer: “I swore I’d never go back there again…” (Astro BOYD)

prettysureimbatman asked: Are we gonna see Violet and Lena act more like sisters as time goes on?

Frank’s answer: Yep. (Challenge of the Senior Junior Woodchucks being first of them)

get-em-wright-back asked: ooc fenton spoiler?

Frank’s answer: Has two secrets that aren’t his secret identity.

pixiesphere asked: Will we see Selene again?

Frank’s answer: Uh-huh

i-am-marcus-pines asked: out of context darkwing duck quote plz

Frank’s answer: “Can’t…let her…down…” (probably referring to Gosalyn in an intense moment)

undertelevisionskiess asked: Ooc Gladstone quote?

Frank’s answer: “NOT THIS! ANYTHING BUT THIS!!!”

saturngears asked: ooc boyd quote or spoiler?

Frank’s answer: “This was the best day!” (Astro BOYD)

lynxuwu asked: are we going to see more of the caballeros in the next season?

Frank’s answer: Si. (Louie’s Eleven)

cosmicdelta asked: How worried should we be for Huey in season 3?

Frank’s answer: Nobody worries about Huey better than Huey.

spectrum270 asked: So do you have any sort of story in mind for how Steelbeak got his namesake attachment? It never got explained in the 90s.

Frank’s answer: Yep.

aria-daize asked: Is the shadow blot tied to any epic mickey lore in this series?

Frank’s answer: Our version of the Blot is a new character that takes bits from the original Mickey nemesis, Shadow Blot from Epic Mickey, and Blot from the original DuckTales. He has a new context, and a new obsession with vengeance against one of our long-standing characters. (I wonder who that character is between Donald, Scrooge, Beakley, Della or even Duckworth)

rumblewithwendy-moved asked: ooc lp quote!!

Frank’s answer: “I just want to be good enough!” (Double O Duck! You Only Crash Twice)

heroanalysis asked: Which one the kids will Gosalyn meets first?

Frank’s answer: Dewey!

moonstoneflowers asked: What are some of the major characteristics you've always liked about Goofy and have incorporated into DT17?

Frank’s answer:Goofy is best dad. (Quack Pack)

meeobug asked: Will we get any more shadow magic related things in s3?

Frank’s answer: Yep

backtothefuturefan88 asked: Will F.O.W.L. Eggmen be in the series?

Frank’s answer: We call them Eggheads, as there are both men and women in the ranks. (Double O Duck! You Only Crash Twice)

animator320-deactivated20200207 asked: Will Mark Beaks try to come back for B.O.Y.D.? What will happen to him now that he lives with Doofus? Is B.O.Y.D. safe at all?

Frank’s answer: I cannot stress this enough: BOYD is not safe. Avoid him at all costs. (Astro BOYD)

jillybean2011 asked: Ooc three caballeros quote? Please?

Frank’s answer: “WHY WILL NO ONE TELL US?!” (Louie’s Eleven)

alongdwdfan asked: Will Morgana Macawber appearing this season?

Frank’s answer: Not this season.

rumblewithwendy-moved asked: what has drake seen while stalking the rooftops

Frank’s answer: Spoilers.

swirlmist asked: Anything you can tell us about Drake/Darkwing or Gosalyn?

Frank’s answer: Darkwing and Gosalyn both try to come off as bigger, more fearless, more competent, and more epic than they actually are because deep down they fear they may not be very good at all. They may never be those perfect versions of themselves, but they’ll never stop trying to be and that’s what makes them heroes.

beaglelover62 asked: We've seen Lena have a pretty great moment against Magica last time, and her wicked aunt didn't have any powers. How bad can the conflict between the two of them be in S3?

Frank’s answer: Not all conflict is physical.

cartoons4ever77 asked: Which Woodchuck badges has Huey not earned yet?

Frank’s answer: Spoilers. (isn’t a Senior Woodchuck in Challenge of the Senior Junior Woodchucks)

animator320-deactivated20200207 asked: Which kid will B.O.Y.D. interact with the most?

Frank’s answer: Huey. (Astro BOYD)

animator320-deactivated20200207 asked: When will Rockerduck be thawed out?

Frank’s answer: Mostly immediately.

hdisndihduxujsidjjxj asked: What kid character will Louie interact with most?

Frank’s answer: Dewey. (Louie’s Eleven)

sleaveheralone asked: What will be the biggest challange that Scrooge will have to face this season?

Frank’s answer: That he’s not as unstoppable as he thought he was.

empro-8 asked: Please don’t tell us Boyd will be an enemy. Boyd is a good boy

Frank’s answer: Boyd is a very good and definitely real boy. (Astro BOYD)

sleaveheralone asked: Is the character Scrooge looked up to,one of his relatives or someone else?

Frank’s answer: Someone else. (Isabella Finch)

lophiii asked: Frank you’re scaring me please give us some calm info

Frank’s answer: Dewey gets a sidekick. (Maybe Gosalyn)

moonstoneflowers asked: Will Doofus ever come around to having a little brother?

Frank’s answer: No

yulinfantasy asked: Will Drake and Gosalyn interact with Huey?

Frank’s answer: Yes. (looks like Gosalyn is looking to be the eighth addition to the kid group (currently with HDL, Team Magic, and now BOYD))

beaufonvilleranger1 asked: Who will give Drake Superhero Advice in Season 3 *first*, Huey or Dewey?

Frank’s answer: Launchpad.

prettysureimbatman asked: Will Gosalyn appear in multiple episodes?

Frank’s answer: Yep

lophiii asked: will gos ever meet boyd??

Frank’s answer: Yerp.

kingoflizardss-deactivated20200 asked: Will there be more Falcon Graves?

Frank’s answer: Perhaps (Louie’s Eleven)

saturngears asked: which adult other than the drakes will boyd interact with the most?

Frank’s answer: Spoilers. (Gyro and Fenton in Astro BOYD)

bulletrat asked: does gos interact with Team Magic at all?

Frank’s answer: Yerp

sleaveheralone asked: An out of context spoilers about Branford?

Frank’s answer: Has been plotting for a long time.

pure-heart-muses asked: Is Branford a better strategist than Lunaris was?

Frank’s answer: Oh yes. But in the most business way possible.

shadeslime asked: Will anyone be having their first crush this season?

Frank’s answer: Donald? (Louie’s Eleven and other upcoming ones)

15sok-deactivated20200303 asked: Whose the most dangerous FOWL agent

Frank’s answer: Different answers for different characters.

thealmightykingprawn asked: Describe Steelbeak in one word.

Frank’s answer: Steelbeaked.

dontkillbugs asked: Would it be accurate to say, in terms of screen time and development, Boyd is to season 3 as Lena was to season 1?

Frank’s answer: No probably not.

[clitorisesandpoetry]

DEJA VU RITUAL

YEAR ONE

thrown into a communal theatrical performance.

former sleepy-town lovers sucking amphetamines off each other’s lips, simplifying new york as the place, man. the place where, like, i found freedom. interactive show, my beachtown tan shuffled on the edge. distracted by onyx pigeons, dalmatian-speckled falcons. five mom! i saw five rats huddled together like dormmates.

parade a cacophonous blur, i squinted. a lifetime of buildup -- is it odd to feel inadequate?

sorry, everyone. my voice’s a mosquito stuck in hometown tree sap.

i grew up cozied. birch fences, white as snowdays. brunette snow moats, dirty springs. last summer's memories, dragonflies skimming. silent pining, crickets.

oh. i thought this was it! this was my debut -- my exclusion from suburbia. my first out. truth!

eventually after many bruisey months, more nebula than roommate, i learn to say my name.

oh ya. i get it. why everyone here wants an audience.

for a bit, all of me was all of me. mantra-ing, is this even real? is this existence? (now how am i here again?)

* * *

YEAR TWO

he rode me around a new suburban town pixels no more

please please take me

holy debauchery! i don’t want me

* * *

YEAR THREE

white button-down with a slim effeminate tie, pleated skirt confessing to tawny thighs, falling knee socks and worn pleather black boots. i’m a humble student, slowly learning how to exist. how to not be alone.

i kneeled crescent moons in piss coated sidewalks. begged out, “i’m capable of more than this illness (maybe)” soft, but declarative, whispers, “i love all of you.” less than 7 months later, ambulance croons & blistering ears.

man. to know i can never have a year like that again.

i can never have so much hope & optimism after so much grief. i can never be so ready to trust. so interested in touch. the year i tried to be social. the year i confused being acknowledged with care. a kind of sourhead candy spat from mouth to mouth, til one back-of-the-bus badass choked on that 2:47PM speed bump. bleached white and covered in someone else’s vulnerabilities, fell out of that warm cozy cheek to roll off the bus. i lost my poor meatball when somebody sneezed.

it’s okay. it was, for me, all for the better. & it is still there. a wonderland ready for me to trip into, where i can feel 20 again. (my exes dull suburbia, my exciting 19 narnia)

* * *

YEAR FOUR

slow waltz, but without any grace or precision. we seeped into each other.

lovely blue eyes, brillo cheeks, smug twilight epiphanies. i’ve never been loved before.

he -- a man. an actual man. my enemy -- someone to believe in.

failed orgy logistics, i’m still laughing. a relationship on the backs of our inadequacies.

we talk shop. this city. the altar it never asked to be. fails to be. like all gods, easy to blame and dismantle.

even when i was quite literally - poetry metaphor to its side for a sec! - bleeding, welted, bruised from pink to green, violet to black, no one, none of them, or anyone from the woods, or anyone from the code, ever called me strong & powerful.

daunting ink stains; initial spill bled out & our midnight hands clutch.

* * *

YEAR FIVE

big bad storm pelted.

“the neighbor! their basement was flooded, but ours didn't get one drop.

uncle joey just renovated that basement.”

loss and secondhand smoke. dust and flies and grief. her surgery, her fucking surgery.

somehow, this morose and helpless year is enviable.

god, i had not clue. after the storm, the apocalypse.

* * *

YEAR SIX

my walk-in closet. my mouse-hole. a sanctuary like a womb, blindingly tight, nearly within myself. but with 2 windows, spectating bluejays! cardinals! fellow taco-hungry new england chirps.

walls plastered, as if a bullet went through my head and my subconsciousness, consciousness ricocheted 360 degrees around the space with the hello kitty pink that makes my brain’s slime. vibrator on my sheets, sad journals open on the floor, “mom, dad, i’m not asking permission but give me permission.”

queer refugee finally in asylum!

they say millennials are entitled, but all i wanted was a space of my own. a place without that claustrophobic pretense that we love you,

as long as you behave. be straight and cis and god be normal and please, listen to us, you are vulnerable. remember you are vulnerable.

* * *

YEAR SEVEN

front-teeth stained ashy-black. bitch list, ferocious. is this a bad year or the start of my new life? wheezing self-esteem, breathing machine neither friend nor foe.

eh. we’ve all listened to nirvana, read the glass jar. we’re HUGE fans of despair.

wednesday, toes in sand. thursday, i am not my thoughts. i am not my thoughts.

i am not my unemployment. i am not my thoughts. i am not my insecurities. i am not my failures. i am not my limitations. i am not my problems. i am not my feelings. i am not my net worth. i am not my pinings. i am not my frustrations. i am not my illness. i am not my mother. i am not my family history. i am not my oppressions. i am not my losses. i am not wigge those strings, unlatch those loops, let the material droop. put everything away, at a distance, so they won’t tangle again.

* * *

YEAR EIGHT

a harrowing horror.

a galactic agony.

year eight should be a love poem, like year four. it should be prose that would make her shake. de-mystifying confessions spelt with affection and romances. prose so honest she would be forced to face her importance.

a starling song present-day me croons to her, over and over. and she would rub my nose with her nose, brush my lips with her lips, and feel safe.

it isn't fair, none of it, but year eight isn't about her.

cause, like, my mom.

my mom. my mom. my mom.

first, her wellness. then her mobility and voice. & then all of her.

“i wouldn’t want to live if something happened to one of you kids.”

“there is a hell -- this planet is our personal hell.”

“i’m so happy for you.”

she was a tension in years 1 - 6 and even parts of 7. in years a -q.

but, but, give me those 25 years again. i don’t need to grow. i don’t need to see what’s next. or i don’t care what i need.

the worst of my former days, the hardest most brutal and painful evenings, i was still able to wake up, roll over to my phone, and hear her talk, laugh, even yell. hear her teach me who she is. who i am.

imagine, if i got my wish & relived my life, even if was only a montage of my worst days. that's delightful to me.

i crave, like how the weight of the sun and the moon and the earth keeps us from floating off,

to hear her say my name again.

i’m still waiting for her recovery to progress to the point where she can look at me in the eye and say my name.

* * *

YEAR NINE

i miss when she was as close as eyelashes.

new york, where she was born and raised and married and had me and had her first house. new york, a mausoleum.

* * *

YEAR TEN

WORK IN PROGRESS. empty, slightly crumpled, piece of parchment. if dead moms didn't scorn all other luck, i would be rabbit’s foot.

just don’t die, and fuck, never move! and year ten will be probably be worthy. as will all the rest.

[oppositesunchild]

Starling Chap. 1

"And this is StarBrightLight signing off. Shine brightly dudes and dudettes and I'll see you, later.  Bye bye!" I blow a kiss at the screen and wave before turning off my camera. Blowing my silver hair out of my violet eyes, I got up and got in the shower. I pulled my razor out of its slot in the wall and stared at it. Contemplating.  Shaking my head I throw it into the trash and get out quickly getting dressed. I go over to my laptop and open Skype and quickly call my brothers before I could change my mind.

"What's up Skye?" Mark asks.  

"Can I come and visit?  I'm getting urges again." I ask. Seán smiles sadly and reaches out and touches the screen.

"Of course you can visit Starling. I'm so proud of you." I raise an eyebrow.

"Why?" I ask.  

"For telling us as soon as possible, love." Mark says.

"Alright. I'll see you soon. There's a plane leaving in about 4hrs. I'll be there tomorrow afternoon.  I love you guys. Bye." After quickly editing my video and posting it on YouTube, I turned off my computer, packed my bag and left for the airport.

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

(Mark p.o.v)

As Seán and I stood at the airport baggage claim area, we kept an eye out for silver hair.

    "Markimoo! Jackaboy!" A voice called from our left. We both turn as one.

"Starling!" We cry. I run over and tackle her into a hug. Seán follows after grabbing her bag from the claim. After giving Seán a hug she climbs on my back and we walk out of the airport.  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(Next morning~ Next morning~ Next morning~)

(Seán p.o.v.)

The next morning I woke up to the smell of bacon, pancakes and eggs.  Walking into the kitchen I gave Skye a good morning kiss on the forehead. She giggled and handed me plate. Giving her another kiss, I went and sat at the table. Soon after Mark stumbled down the stairs and landed heavily in a chair.

"We're going to have some visitors." He says. I groan slightly. A knock sounds at the door. Skye goes and opens it and squeals.

"Scarlet!" She says.

"Hello, little sis." a rougher version of Skylar's voice says.

"Who're you?" Skye asks.

"We're Marks and Seáns demon twins. I'm Darkiplier and this is Antisepticeye. And you are?" Dark asks.

"Oh! I'm Skylar. Scarling is my demon twin. She protects me just as much as my big brothers do." She says while leading them to the kitchen.

"Sit down and I'll bring you some food." She orders. Both Mark and I take a good look at Scarling. She has red streaks in her silver hair and red eyes.

(Scarling p.o.v.)

"Seán, can I talk to you and Mark for a second? In private?" They both nod and lead me to a room away from the kitchen. They both give me a look that says spill. So I do. "You will need to put Skye on suicide watch as of this afternoon at 2. She will be reading her comments from her video and some will cause her to contemplate it. I'm just letting you know know that Dark and Anti are her mates and they will help her the most. But you need to help her until all of them know that. Alright?" They both nod even if they don't look happy about that fact. We walk back into the kitchen and finish our breakfasts.

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

(Seán p.o.v.)

Later around two, Mark and I heard soft sobbing. Getting up we went to check up on Skylar. There she was curled up on the couch, staring at her phone and crying. I went over and took her phone away from her while Mark took her upstairs to his room. I looked over a few of the comments. Some made me extremely happy. They were very encouraging and kind. Then I began to see red.

    “Those ugly sons of-.” I let out a deep breath. I was seriously pissed off. I went upstairs to Marks recording room and set up a camera. Turning it on I faced it towards me and started recording. I folded my arms and glared at the camera screen.

"I am very disappointed in a few of you. Yesterday, Starbrightlight posted a video before coming to visit Mark and I in L.A. Today, she decided to read her comments like the great person she is, but a few of you aren't so great. Mark and I found her curled up on the couch crying because of what you said. To the few kind souls out there. Thank you for what you've done. Your comments are greatly appreciated and I'm telling you to keep up the good work. To the rest of you jerks, I hope you're proud of yourselves. You just made a perfectly wonderful and kind girl cry. You wanna know why?  Let me read you a few of the comments. 'You are so fat and ugly. You should go and kill yourself. No one loves you anyways.' ,'Crappy channel.’ ‘Your just copying others who had better ideas than you.’ ‘You should just stop now’. You shouldn't even be doing anything like this.’ and ‘You're a woman you should be cooking and cleaning not acting like an idiot.' How dare you all? How dare you say that. Let's go and check on her, eh?"

Grabbing the camera, I quietly walked over to Mark's bedroom. There laying on the bed was Mark with Skye laying on top of him, head buried in his chest sobbing her heart out. Mark, seeing what I was doing glared at the camera then flipped the bird and mouthed,

“Fuck you,”  before running his hand through her hair. Quietly backing out and shutting the door I walked back to the rec. Room.

    "Can we speak to them?" I heard Anti say in my head.

"Sure." All three of the demons appeared.

"Hi, we're Antisepticeye, Darkiplier, and Scarling. We are the demon versions of Jack, Mark and Skylar. We just wanted to let you know, that if we find out that this bullshit has happened again, we will not hesitate to hurt you. Skylar is our best friend and little sister and to see her cry makes us very angry." They all growled. Flashing their fangs before vanishing.

"See you later. Jacksepticeye out." I turned of the camera and uploaded it to YouTube before going down and making Skye her hot chocolate. It had both French Vanilla and Irish Crème coffee creamer with a little peppermint oil and cinnamon. Walking back upstairs I opened the door to see Skylar asleep curled on top of Mark. I walked over and set the drink on the bedside dresser.

"That was a disappointed video, wasn't it?" I nodded and placed a kiss on both his, and Skylar's heads. "Go ahead and have a nap. I'm gonna go through all of our and her stuff and remove anything that could harm her." He nodded and turned towards the girl in his arms and soon dropped off into sleep.

I am the original author of this story.

[ayanagiann]

June 2019 Tracklist

Playground (feat. More Giraffes) - Sweater Beats Further Than The Planes Fly (Holmsey Remix) - Eves Karydas Places I’ll Go (feat. Half an Orange) - Blonde Maze We Were Young (feat. JP Cooper) - Petit Biscuit Y U Gotta Be Like That - Audrey Mika Talk (Bohkeh Remix) - Khalid Wanna Be Down - Whereisalex Party Up The Street (feat. Swae Lee, Mike Will Made It) - MIley Cyrus D.R.E.A.M. (feat. Ghostface Killah) - Miley Cyrus Can I - Kiana Lede No Guidance (Remix) - Tinashe Days Like This (feat. Khalid) - Goldlink Gravity (prod. River Tiber & Kaytranada) - River Tiber Hurt - Blxst Gemini (2 sides) - Wale Got Me (feat. Ari Lennox, Omen, Ty Dolla $ign & Dreezy) - Dreamville Heavy (feat. Jenifer Lewis) - Kiana Lede No Good (prod. by JMSN) - Alcordo Time (prod by Free Nationals) (feat Mac Miller) - Kali Uchis What If (Amber Mark U Say (feat. Tyler, The Creator, Jay Prince) - Goldlink Try Your Fire - Lucky Daye Lose It (Jerry Folk Remix) - Oh Wonder GOAT - Moosh & Twist Fried Rice (feat. JID) - Bas Down Bad (feat. JID, BAS, J. Cole, Earthgang & Young Nudy - Dreamville Starter Kit - Justin Starling Addicted - Violet Star Joke Ting (feat. Ari PenSmith)  - GoldLink Trampoline - (Jauz Remix) - Shaed Back To You (feat. Trove) - Two Lanes Backwards Love (feat. Trace) - Taska Black White Noise (R3HAB remix) - Ella Vos Holding On (feat. Maria Lynn) - Tarro With You (feat. Megan Trainor) - Kaskade Fearless (feat. Luke Burr) - Pat Lok Wherever You Are (Airmow Remix) - Adam & Steve When Am I Gonna Lose You (Medasin Remix) - Local Natives Potions (w/ Said the Sky & feat. JT Roach) - Slander Sad Song (feat. Tini) - Alesso Hold The Line (feat. A R I Z O N A) - Avicii Dream Glow (BTS World Original Soundtrack) - Charli XCX A Brand New DAy (BGS World Original Soundtrack (pt. 2) - Zara Larsson Sister - K. Flay The Most - Miley Cyrus Thinkin Bout You - Katie I Like You - Niki Haunt You - Social House Save Me - Marc E. Bassy Paranoid - Russ