#I have no reasons for alessio to wear this

[crimsonsharked-archive]

Happy Sinday. -fucking dies- Dark blue dress...

Non-filter under cut || Non-RP blogs please do not reblog

[e-m-p-error]

What's their McDonalds order? Boxers or briefs? Fancy lingerie or comfy underwear? Can they drive? If not, why not? Do they run to the door when the food arrives or wait for the delivery guy to knock? Can they cook? Do they enjoy it? Do they keep a tidy home / workspace? {{ Val and Crimson. }}

Everyday Muse Questions!

[ Crimson ]

What's their McDonalds order?

Crim always orders a BigWack meal with cheese and a ten piece chicken nuggets. He gets root beer as the drink, light ice.

Boxers or briefs?

Briefs!

Fancy lingerie or comfy underwear?

Mostly comfy underwear but sometimes he likes fancy lingerie if he's feeling sexy.

Can they drive? If not, why not?

Yes! But he doesn't drive as much as Alessio does.

Do they run to the door when the food arrives or wait for the delivery guy to knock?

He waits for someone else to get it for him.

Can they cook? Do they enjoy it?

He can! He enjoys cooking when he's in a good mood.

Do they keep a tidy home/workspace?

He is not a very tidy person but his maids keep his home and workspace neat and organized.

[ Valentino ]

What's their McDonalds order?

I have answered Val's WackDonald's order Here

Boxers or briefs?

Briefs

Fancy lingerie or comfy underwear?

Fancy lingerie! He rarely wears things for comfort

Can they drive? If not, why not?

He can! But he probably should not, as he does a lot of his driving under the influence of something.

Do they run to the door when the food arrives or wait for the delivery guy to knock?

Sometimes he runs to the door, other times he makes the delivery guy wait. It depends on how hungry he is.

Can they cook? Do they enjoy it?

He can! But he rarely cooks for other people. He likes cooking but he often doesn't give himself the time to do it.

Do they keep a tidy home/workspace?

The only reason his home is clean is because he is somewhat dating Niffty and Vox frequently pays for him to have a maid (the ugliest on staff).

[natromanxoff]

Queen live at Amphithéâtre in Fréjus, France - July 30, 1986

(x)

This concert was originally supposed to be in Nice (as seen on the poster above). Freddie actually didn't find out the venue had been changed until the day of the show, refusing to show up to soundcheck. Having realized the contract couldn't be broken, he finally arrived late to the gig. "Let's fucking do this," he shouted as he got out of his car and headed to the stage.

With a capacity of 15,000, this is one of the smaller venues Queen would play on the tour. Freddie comments on it when introducing Another One Bites The Dust: "It's nice to be here tonight in this little bedroom. Now that we're in this bedroom, let's do a little boogie, huh?" Just prior to this, Roger had done a snare fill in the break after Under Pressure to which Freddie replies, "I know you're bored, Roger. Hang on." His drumming is enthusiastic in many spots tonight.

Before he does his Queen breakup rumour speech, Freddie asks, "Everybody understands a little English, yes? I can't speak French. I'm trying, but I mean... it's useless." He then introduces Who Wants To Live Forever. "This is a new song. It's written by Brian. It's on... It's a very new... What do you think it is?" Someone in the audience then shouts for We Will Rock You!

Freddie sings the third verse of Another One Bites The Dust very similarly to the album version, and he later offers a great rendition of Is This The World We Created. He also sings the first verse of Bohemian Rhapsody closer to the record version than ever before on stage.

He references an iconic French singer before Crazy Little Thing Called Love: "This is a song that Édith Piaf would've sung if she was alive." It was probably more of a joke as she was best known for her renditions of ballads.

During the breakdown of Radio Ga Ga after the second chorus, Freddie says, "It smells like a hamburger."

Instead of singing "I thank you all" in the second verse of We Are The Champions, Freddie quips, "Cartier and all." It throws him off his game, and he messes up the next few bars of piano - and audience members definitely notice. He was wearing some kind of hat, and perhaps it fell off or somehow got in the way. In the next chorus, he makes up for this flounder by singing "We'll keep on fighting" like the album, with his masterfully powerful vibratto.

Pics 2 through 4 were taken by Fredo, pics 5-8 were submitted by Alessio Rizzitelli, and the last one is from Juan Gabriel.

There is no known video footage of this show. Any footage purported to be from Frejus is extremely likely to be the TV footage of the Paris show.

(x)

Fan Stories

“In summer 1986 my friend Martin and I decided to do an Inter Rail Tour i.e. you buy a railway ticket which allows you to travel unlimited miles all over Europe for a whole month. We started the tour in Villach/Austria on July 1st 3:15. 18 hours later we reached the Italian-French border at Savona. As early as the next day we went on to Cannes. The first thing we did in Cannes was to go to a ticket shop and to buy tickets for the Queen show that was to take place on July 30th in Nice. The vacation was already a huge success having these tickets and our anticipation was huge. We kept on travelling the whole European continent. Mid July we stopped at Oxford and London. On July 11th we decided to visit the Queen Fan Club. Unfortunately, the office was closed but we noticed hectic activities near the building of Queen Productions without knowing the reason for it. Only much later we realised why the fan club had been closed: it was the day of the first Wembley concert and we two blockheads had no idea! The stop in the UK was followed by a short trip to Spain. Then we wanted to spend the rest of our vacation on the Cote d' Azur. We found a camping ground near Nice in a town called Frejus. Each day we went by train from Frejus to St. Raphael, a 20 minute ride, to spend the day on the beach. One or two days before the concert I was lying sunbathing on the beach of St.Raphael when I noticed a small aeroplane towing an advert banner. The banner read that the Queen concert had been rescheduled to take place in Frejus instead of Nice. Thank heavens I saw that banner, if I had not seen it by sheer coincidence we would have stood before closed gates on the night of the concert. Finally the long awaited day arrived: July 30th 1986 - Queen live in Frejus. In the morning we packed our bags because we had to catch the last train right after the concert. At 1:00 pm we arrived at the amphitheatre where only about 100 fans were already waiting. The heat was almost unbearable. I remember that a fan, who had come in his car, parked the car near the gate, opened the doors and played his cassette at full volume. So, we heard A Kind Of Magic at least five times through the afternoon. Around 5:00 pm (or was it 6:00?) the gates opened. We had good "starting positions" and ended up in the 5th row in front of the gate. When the gates opened, the "battue" was considerable, as you can imagine, but we survived. When we entered the amphitheatre we hesitated for a moment if we should head for the stage or rather go for the stone steps - there was still enough room. After having stood before the stadium for hours we decided to secure seats on the stone steps so that we could sit for a change. We went half-way up the stadium and had a perfect view of the stage. The theatre is rather small and very intimate. No matter where you were, you could see the stage well. The stage was also pretty small and packed with equipment. After more waiting the show finally took off. The support band Craaft was rather boring and was hardly appreciated by the crowd. Craaft was followed by a long and boring set change. I remember the never ending "One-Two" - "One-Two" sound checks. However, the crowd was in great spirits. Those of you who ever attended a Queen concert know what I am talking about. Queen enter the stage. The start of the show is the part I remember most vividly. The lighting rig hung deep down, only about 2 metres above the stage floor. As soon as the "One Vision" intro began, the apparatus began to move and bright light came out of it. During the intro the whole lighting construction unfolded to its full size, a modest size of course, because the stage was really rather small.

I don't need to tell you about the show and the set list. I remember Freddie's greeting "Welcome in this little bedroom". My friend had smuggled his mini cassette recorder into the stadium. In the beginning he held up the recorder - unfortunately, because the music was so loud that the small microphone could not handle the sound volume. Later we put the recorder on the step behind us and so we got a reasonable bootleg. After such a long time I don't remember more details but I will never forget the magical atmosphere on stage and in the audience. Wait, I remember this: both Brian and Freddie played a wrong chord: Brian made a terrible mistake towards the end of Bohemian Rhapsody and Freddie hit the wrong key in "We Are The Champions" on the piano right before the part "but it's been no bed of roses". It was so bad that the show stopped for a second. It is remarkable that in a perfect show like this one small mistakes do happen and it made me happy to see that Queen are human, after all. The last thing I remember of this concert is our walk from the stadium to the station. We walked along the rails, did not speak a word, were half deaf and totally blissful. This night was definitely the highlight in my life as a Queen fan.” - Winnie

“Just stumbled over this site and read the other report of the Frejus-Concert! Thought I'd share my story too! I was spending my summer vacation at a campground near St Tropez, France with five friends. I saw the concert posters and decided to check out if there were still any tickets left. (It was just a few days before the gig)! So I borrowed one of our two cars from a friend and drove to Frejus to find a ticket. Actually, I wanted two, because of Amanda, this incredible blonde Scottish girl I met at our beach! :-) Well, I got my two tickets quite easily and drove back to Port Grimaud. Unfortunately, in the remaining 36 something hours until the concert, Amanda was nowhere in sight! (It turned out later that they made a tour that day, and it turned out she loved Queen! Well, missed chance for both of us! Never saw her again! So I borrowed the car a second time, had no trouble selling my extra ticket (for the price I paid, of course) and went to the concert! I was 18 back then. 34 years later, I can only remember the atmosphere in the ancient Roman amphitheatre! Coming in through small entrances, the summer dust kicking up as thousands pour in, I remember a lot of people mocking a cattle round-up! "Muuuuuh, muuuh" - quite funny! The concert was great, as the other two I witnessed (Stuttgart 1984 and Mannheim 1986, only some weeks before). It wasn't until some years ago that I learned this was the 5th last Queen concert of all (-Freddie) times! Thought I'd share my story! Wonder what became of Amanda! :-D Greetings, Andi” - Andreas Gorr

[fiiore-blogs]

𝐟𝐢𝐨𝐫𝐞  𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐮𝐬𝐨 ; character  study

tws : abuse , mentions  of  death , homophobia  &  blindness ( ?? )

BASICS 

full  name : fiore  emiliano  luca  gattuso

nicknames : honestly  just  fiore , flower  cat  boy  as  a  joke  by  his  cousin  ( his  first  name  translates  to  flower  in  italian , his  surname  gattuso , derives  from  the  italian  word  gatto .... which  literally  means  cat  kdnvdfjs )

age : 20

date  of  birth : may  30 , 2000

zodiac  sign : gemini 

place  of  birth : tuscany , italy

hometown : rome , italy

location : kingsboro , brooklyn , new york city , new  york

ethnicity : white

nationality : italian

religious  views : non  affiliated , but  definitely  believes  there  is  a  higher  power ( or  multiple ) of  some  sort

educational  level : high  school  graduate

occupation : influencer  &  model  occasional  sugar  baby

living  arrangements : lives  in  a  super  boujee  ass  house  ( basically  mansion  tbh ) with  his  older  cousin  gio , &  his  cat , which  he  very  proudly  named  draco  meowfoy

mental  conditions : undiagnosed  anxiety , very  claustrophobic , will  literally  freak  out  if  he’s  in  a  tight  space 

physical  impairments :  he  has  shit  vision , always  has . his  vision  is  20 / 50  without  any  type  of  help , which  isn’t  necessarily  terrible , but  not  exactly  great . once  you  reach  20 / 70 , you’re  considered  to  have  low  vision , which  is  technically  considered  partial  blindness . with  contacts  on  though , he  see’s  a  solid  20 / 30 , which  again , still  isn’t  too  great , considering  the  fact  the  average  person  see’s  20 / 20 . no  one  knows  his  vision  is  so  garbage  minus  his  cousin , &  no  one  has  ever  ever  ever  seen  him  with  glasses  before . in  fact , no  one  even  knows  he  needs  glasses  or  contacts  to  see , as  he  keeps  this  a  secret

addictions : none  really , just  smokes  the  usual  weed  &  drinks  the  usual  drink , has  tried  coke  once  but  didn’t  really  like  it  too  much 

PHYSICAL  APPEARANCE

height : 5 ‘ 8

body  type : pretty  damn  lanky  but  slightly  muscular ( for  actual  body  claim  gifs  click  here , here , here , here , here , here , here , here , here  &  here ! )

eye  color : baby  blue , but  shifts  colors  in  different  lighting . sometimes  they  look  more  on  the  green  side , sometimes  they  look  sort  of  grey

hair  color : brown

style : he  loves  a  good  boujee  brand  tbh ! catch  him  wearing  luxury  brands  like  philipp  plein , balenciaga , hermès , valentino , gucci .... just  to  name  a  few . he’s  not  opposed  to  wearing  cheaper  brands  &  even  owns  a  basic  floral  jacket  from  forever  21 , but  his  main  rule  is  it  has  to  look  good . honestly  would  rather  shave  off  his  eyebrows  once  a  month  for  an  entire  year  than  to  wear  sweats , you’ll  simply  never  see  him  with  those  on . in  fact , he  doesn’t  even  own  a  pair  of  sweats , not  even  just  to  be  at  home . in  fiore’s  opinion , people  wearing  sweats  have  just  ‘ given  up ’ . this  saint  laurent  jacket  right  here , is  one  of  his  favorite  pieces  of  clothing !

tattoos  &  piercings : this  gemini  symbol  tattoo  on  his  left  wrist , a  cartilage  piercing  on  his  right  ear

scars / birth  marks : a  notably  big  scar  on  his  lower  left  abdomen  ( courtesy  of  his  dad ) , birthmark  on  his  upper  left  cheek  ( which  honestly .... low  key  makes  him  hotter  fkdfvnfdsjn )

PERSONALITY

positive  traits : determined , confident , witty 

negative  traits : secretive , narcissistic , dishonest 

what  do  they  consider  to  be  the  best  &  the  worst  part  of  their  personality ? :  the  best  part  of  his  personality  is  his  confidence  &  his  ability  to  achieve  his  goals  or  get  his  way  somehow . he’s  not  too  bright , but  he  knows  how  to  get  what  he  wants  &  stops  at  almost  nothing  to  have  it  his  way , being  extremely  determined  &  restless . the  worst  part  of  his  personality  has  to  be  the  fact  that  he  can  be  very  dishonest . it’s  a  defense  mechanism  mostly , but  he  has  a  way  of  bending  the  truth  to  his  favor , often  times  becoming  manipulative  &  inconsiderate  of  other  people’s  feelings 

are  they  more  introverted  or  extroverted ? : the  very  rare  case  of  an  extroverted  introvert . he  really  does  enjoy  talking  to  people  but  he  loves  his  alone  time  as  well  &  sometimes , too  many  people  to  talk  to  gives  him  anxiety

any  talents ? : not  really  a  talent  but  more  of  an  unknown  fact  –  he  has  hypermobile  joints  ( or  what  most  people  call  double  jointed ) almost  everywhere . on  his  knees , on  his  elbows , on  his  shoulders , on  his  fingers . he  can  bring  his  arms  all  the  way  around  &  back  while  holding  onto  his  hands , can  touch  his  thumbs  &  other  fingers  to  his  forearm  ( for  more  info  on  this , click  here ) . he  also  makes  really , really  good  edibles 

what  are  their  fears ? : huge  slightly  irrational  fear  of  being  buried  alive , being  in  a  tight  space  barely  able  to  move  or  tight  spaces  in  general . no  one  knows  this  one , but  he  also  has  a  huge  fear  of  ending  up  completely  blind . his  grandmother , his  mother’s  mother , has  always  had  terrible  vision  . she  was  pronounced  legally  blind  when  she  was  barely  45 , later  going  completely  blind  before  she  turned  60 . fiore’s  mother  didn’t  inherit  her  bad  vision  but  it  skipped  a  generation  &  if  you  guessed  it , his  grandmother’s  shit  vision  is  something  he  carries . he  has  a  huge  overwhelming  fear  of  it  getting  worse  &  worse  over  the  years , &  ending  up  like  his  grandmother  did 

any  allergies ? :  corn . will  literally  have  a  deathly  reaction

do  they  have  phobias ? : claustrophobia 

list  3  pet  peeves  they  can’t  stand : people  chewing  with  their  mouth  open , when  people  have  strong  unpleasant  body  odor  or  bad  breath  ( no  bullshit  he’ll  call  you  out  for  this  lmfao ) , dirty  fingernails 

PAST

best  memory : opening  up  to  his  cousin  about  what  really  happened  with  his  parents  &  having  him  accept  him  with  open  arms , then  later  that  day  going  to  the  beach , smoking  one  with  him  &  talking  about  life 

worst  memory : his  parents  finding  his  sex  tape  with  his  now  ex  boyfriend , causing  them  to  disown  him  &  almost  beat  him  to  death 

biggest  secret : his  past , as  he  refuses  to  talk  about  anything  that  happened  before  2018 . also , his  vision ? definitely  a  secret  too 

biggest  wish : surprisingly ? falling  deeply  in  love  with  someone  &  traveling  the  world  with  them , also  opening  up  an  edible  shop 

biggest  fear : irrational  fear , but  being  buried  alive , crossing  paths  with  his  parents  again , &  turning  completely  blind  at  one  point  just  like  his  grandmother  did 

first  love : alessio  cardone  ( npc , nathan  naenen  fc ) , his  first  love , &  so  far  the  only  person  he’s  ever  truly  fallen  in  love  with . for  gifs  of  his  face  click  here  or  click  here  

ROMANCE  &  SEXUALITY

sexuality : bisexual / biromantic 

turn  ons : dirty talk , fingering  &  being  fingered , versatile  sex , being  dominated / dominating  someone , lip  biting  when  kissing , hickeys , being  spoiled , cuddling , hair  pulling 

turn  offs : people  denying  or  hiding  what  they  really  want  &  desire , know  it  alls , people  treating  him  like  he’s  stupid , cheap  people , people  who  talk  shit  with  people  around  but  won’t  peep  a  word  when  they’re  alone , hypocrites 

MISCELLANEOUS 

speaking  voice  claim : lorenzo  zurzolo  vc , or  click  here !

relationship  with  mother : he  hasn’t  spoken , heard  of  or  seen  his  mother  since  his  parents  disowned  him  when  he  had  just  turned  eighteen , so  well  over  two  years  ago . he  has  no  idea  if  she’s  even  alive  or  well  

mother’s  name : originally  martina  reina  ( now  martina  gattuso )

relationship  with  father : same  thing  with  his  father . he  hasn’t  spoken , heard  of  or  seen  him  since  his  parents  disowned  him . despite  both  his  parents  being  trash  though , fiore  has  always  been  more  afraid  &  resentful  of  his  father , as  he  has  beaten  him  multiple  times  throughout  his  childhood , while  his  mother  mostly  just  stood  by  &  let  it  happen . he’s  also  done  things  like  lock  him  in  a  car  trunk  for  hours  as  punishment , &  would  leave  him  in  a  tight  spaced  closet  for  longer , which  explains  his  irrational  fear  of  being  buried  alive , &  his  severe  claustrophobia  

father’s  name : gian  gattuso 

siblings : none

pets : click  here  to  see  his  ragamuffin  cat  he  named  draco  meowfoy 

favorite  place : any  part  of  spain . honestly  loves  spain , &  loves  how  shameless  some  spanish  people  are 

role  models  or  crushes : seth  rogen  ( he’s  not  even  a  role  model  fiore  just  loves  him  skacnbdjs ) , terry  crews , tina  fey , jamie  chua  ( this  is  just ... for  obvious  reasons  lmfao )

favorite  animals : a  sucker  for  koalas , cats  &  dogs  ( definitely  a  cat  person  though ) . he  also  thinks  red  panda’s  are  possibly  the  cutest  creatures  on  the  planet 

favorite  books : the  five  stages  of  andrew  brawley  by  shaun  david  hutchinson , a  child  called  it , the  lost  boy , a  man  named  dave , the  privilege  of  youth , all  by  dave  pelzer  ( he  has  cried  reading  all  of  pelzer’s  books  too , as  he  feels  it  hits  close  to  home ) 

favorite  movies : la  vita  è  bella , literally  all  the  sex  &  the  city  movies , honestly  any  movie  seth  rogen  is  in , catch  me  if  you  can 

favorite  music : listens  to  almost  anything  but  his  favorites  are  anything  indie / alternative , deathpop  &  italian  music

favorite  food : pasta , chicken  picatta , authentic  mexican  tacos 

favorite  dessert : anything  tiramisu , caffè  gelato , cannoli

QUIRKS

are  they  right  handed  or  left  handed ? : left  handed 

what’s  a  word  that’s  always  on  their  lips ? : “ oh  yeah ? ”  usually  in  a  teasing  manner  or  sexual  context 

what  languages  do  they  speak ? : italian , english , spanish , decent  sicilian 

do  they  curse ? : definitely 

what’s  their  worst  habits ? : lying  ( obviously ) , always  wanting  to  have  the  last  word , instantly  seeking  revenge / getting  even  when  he  feels  he’s  been  wronged , chewing  ice , &  honestly ? forgetting  to  eat  for  long  ass  periods  of  time . he’ll  eat  something  at  ten  am , then  suddenly  it’s  about  to  be  midnight  &  he’s  like  ‘ well  fuck ..... i  forgot  to  eat  🥴 ’

do  they  drink  or  smoke ? how  frequently ? : drinks  &  smokes  pretty  frequently ! is  honestly  never  one  to  turn  down  drinking  or  a  smoking  session 

are  they  an  early  bird  or  a  night  owl ? : night  owl  for  sure

how  tidy  is  their  room ? : usually  tidy  or  decent  looking  at  least . he’s  not  a  neat  freak , but  he  hates  his  room  being  messy 

how  long  do  they  usually  take  getting  ready ? : forever . it  takes  him  at  least  an  hour  just  to  shower , thirty  minutes  to  pick  out  his  clothes , another  thirty  to  do  his  ‘ fresh  out  the  shower ’  routine , &  longer  to  actually  get  ready  &  be  satisfied  with  his  look . in  other  words , a  girl  takes  less  time  than  him 

[fleurtyherald]

  At Gulf Wars XXIX on Wednesday I will be teaching a class on the toilette of my favorite person from the Renaissance, Caterina Sforza!

Caterina Sforza (1463-1509), Countess of Imola, was an exceptional woman. In her private life Caterina was devoted to various activities, among which were experiments in alchemy and a love of hunting and dancing. Her stillroom book was handed down to her son, Giovanni de’ Medici, and transcribed with his permission by a captain of the Bande Nere in 1525. In the volume, entitled Gli Experimenti de la Caterina di Forli, there are 454 recipes of medicinal, chemical, and cosmetic focus. Her recipes were published by Pier Passolini in 1893. I translated 20 of her recipes for my book available in the Kindle Store and by print from Amazon.

Here are the handouts for the class. The PDF is available here.

  Pale skin, fair hair, rosy lips and cheeks, high forehead, thin eyebrows, and curls. These were the characteristics of ideal beauty during the Renaissance in Emilia, Romagna, Lombardy, the Veneto, and Tuscany (1450-1600).

Take caution, though, to not cake on the makeup like later Elizabethans did:

No. Just, no.

Haven’t you noticed how much prettier a woman is if, when she makes up, she does so with so little that those who see her cannot tell whether she is made up or not? But others are so bedaubed that it looks like they are wearing a mask and dare not laugh be-cause they fear it will crack. Such women never change colour except when they dress in the morning, and must spend the rest of the day like motionless wooden images…. How much nicer it is to see a woman, a good looking one I mean, who obviously has nothing on her face, neither white nor red, but just her natural colour, which may be pale or sometimes slightly tinged with a blush caused by embarrassment or the like, maybe with her hair toudled and whose gestures are simple and natural, without working at being beautiful?” — Book of the Courtier by Castiglione, 1513 

Also, never forget the power of the rose!

To all aromatic mixtures are added roses, which are the best things for imparting scent. — Nostradamus 

Cleansing the mouth and face, combing/ scenting the hair, applying a whitener, as well as applying rossetto, body powder, and perfumes were all part of the daily ritual of a noblewoman throughout the Middle Ages and Renaissance.

Come to the class to discuss, learn, and try Caterina’s products!

Herbs Used

– Alkanet root, Brasilwood (Sappanwood), and red sandalwood are plants that calm skin inflammation and are used for rouge.

– Beeswax is essential to provide a moisture barrier and pseudo-emulsifier in creams.

– Cerussa is a poisonous lead based whitener for the face. Titanium dioxide (TiO2)is a food safe white pigment and good substitute in cosmetic recipes.

– Clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, musk are aromatic herbs with great medicinal properties when ingested or applied to the skin. They are uplifting and sensual fragrances.

– Lavender is an aromatic flower that contains a high content of linalool. Linalool is a terpene alcohol which calms the nerves and lessens pain.

– Myrrh contains sesquiterpenes, which make it effective as an antimicrobial wound healer.

– Olive Oil is rich in polyphenols, which are well known to protect against free radical damage, as well as vitamin E, which is the main source of protection against free radicals that damage the skin. 

– Rice powder contains para aminobenzoic acid which protects the skin from UV rays, ferric acid which is an antioxidant that provides protection especially when added to vitamin E, allantoin which is an anti-inflammatory agent, and tyrosinase which is an oxidase that limits the production of melanin.

– Rose possesses mood-elevating properties, heals acne scars, and provides nourishment for mature or sun damaged skin. Rose helps balance the skin’s PH and controls and balances sebum production, making it useful for skin imbalances such as dry and oily skin. 

– Rosehip seed oil contains antioxidant beta-carotene, and essential fatty acids omega-6 and omega-3, helping to repair and rejuvenate damaged skin.

– Sage (Salvia officinalis) is a tonic and stimulant. It is valued as a mouth treatment because of its anti-inflammatory and antiseptic properties.

“Thou must know, Margaret, that a young lady could not have a complexion so clear, white and delicate if she did not aid it to some degree with art, or else it might show at times by mischance as might often happen, that it is not so fair. And they do not reason well who say that a lady, so she have a fair complexion by nature, may ever thereafter set it at naught and neglect it. And for this cause I would grant that a gentlewoman should use continually waters of price and excellence, but without solid matter to them or but the very least part. And for these I may know to give you receits most perfect and most rare.” — Il dialogo della bella creanza delle donne, 1541 

  SOURCES

Anon. Manual des Mugeres.

Banckes Herbal.

Delightes for Ladies.

Mattioli Herbal.

Mistress Jadwiga. Medieval Oils and Waters.

Passolini, Pier. Caterina Sforza Volume III.

Pointer, Sally. Artifice of Beauty.

Rucellai, Girolamo. Secreti del reverendo Alessio Piemontese.

Caterina Sforza Toilette Class 2020 At Gulf Wars XXIX on Wednesday I will be teaching a class on the toilette of my…

[johntropea]

The memory-B cell

SOURCE Gluten Sensitivity, Celiacs & Bulletproofing Your Gut

If you have an immune reaction to gluten, the mechanism by which the immune reaction works is just like a vaccine. You get a shot of a vaccination for measles, they give you the bug measles. Your brain says, “What’s this? This is not good for me.” And in your immune system, you have generals—army, air force, marine corp generals—sitting around with nothing to do. And the brain says, “You general, you now are General Measles. Take care of this.”

General Measles builds an assembly line. The assembly line starts producing soldiers called antibodies. The antibodies are trained as assassins to go after just measles. They go all through the blood stream firing these chemical bullets called cytochians looking for measles. General measles is watching this. All the measles bug from the vaccination is gone. General measles turns off the assembly line. You don’t need these soldiers right now. You shouldn’t have measles antibodies in your blood stream unless you are exposed. You shouldn’t have them. But General Measles is vigilant the rest of his life. If you’re ever exposed to measles again, General Measles just has to flip the switch and within a couple of days, all the antibodies are back. As opposed to having to build the assembly line that takes months to do.

That’s why if you go to Africa to visit, you need shots months ahead of time for dengue fever and yellow fever and all of that. But if you go back 10 years later, you just need a booster shot 2 weeks before you go. You just have to wake it up again.

That general in the immune system is called a memory-B cell. Never goes away. If you have an immune reaction to gluten, you have memory-B cells to gluten. They never go away. So you can’t have a little gluten. You can’t be a little pregnant because your immune system turns on and then for months, 3-6 months, one minute exposure, a couple of chromes, one minute exposure and you’ve got antibodies for 3-6 months that are attacking your brain or your joints or your liver, wherever your genetic weak link is as to where gluten is going to mess you up.

[...]

DAVE:  That’s an incredibly picturesque view of it. There’s another one. So many people, even some clients or bulletproof followers, they’ll say “oh yeah I’m gluten free, at least 90% of the time”.

If you keep stimulating that part of your body, not only are you gonna get the negative immune inflammatory effects, you’re gonna get the cravings right?

TOM:  The problem with gluten is that no human can digest it. It’s impossible to digest the gluten proteins that are in wheat, barley and rye. Alessio Fasano, Dr. Fasano from Harvard Mass General Hospital, he’s the director of pediatric gastroenterology. He is very clear about this in his presentations. No human can digest this.The way he says this is if you take the hydrochloric acid in the human stomach and you put it in a little vial. You put your finger in the vial. It eats your finger to the bone in one minute. One minute! You put some gluten in that vial, it won’t digest the gluten. 

[...]

DAVE:  No human protein digestive enzyme made by the pancreas or the liver is capable of breaking down gluten. You’re saying this is a definitive fact. Dr. Tom O Bryan who spent 30 years doing this. Everyone listening to this?

TOM:  That’s exactly right. The closest enzyme is called DPP4 and it can break down partially but no enzyme produced in the human digestive tract can break this down. It’s just the science! Just read the papers!

...so, how does the addictive side of gluten work versus the destructive inflammatory side of it work?

...gluteomorphins. It’s a peptide of gluten of partially digested gluten. Gluteomorphines are called gluteomorphins because they bind to the opiate receptor sites in the brain like morphine.If you have these gluteomorphins traveling in your bloodstream, these clumps of brick that’s called gluteomorphins and they bind to the opiate receptors in the brain, what happens there? It stimulates the opiate receptor producing endorphins. The feel good hormones in life. It’s great! You feel good! It’s not a problem. 

But you have toast for breakfast. You stimulate those opiate receptors. You have a sandwich for lunch, you stimulate those receptors. Pasta for dinner every day, every day, every day, every day! And what happens is you down regulate the receptor which means it stops working.

That is exactly the mechanism in the development of the epidemic of type 2 diabetes because from birth we’re eating so much sugar we down regulate the insulin receptor so insulin doesn’t work anymore or it works less efficiently than it should. 

The same thing happens with the gluteomorphin peptides from harshly digested gluten when they hit on the opiate receptors you downgrade the opiate receptors in the brain. That’s why it’s associated with attention deficit and autism and depression and anxiety. Because people don’t have the juice of life. They can’t get the endorphins working or being received to feel good about life. And so they crave that food. 

What’s your take on the gluten-like compounds and other grains? 

TOM:  So for all of your listeners, there’s gluten in rice. There’s gluten in corn. There’s gluten in a number of grains. It’s not gluten. It’s the bad family of glutens that are bad for you. Now theres other reasons why some of those grains would not be great.

For example, rice flower has a higher glycemic index than wheat flour. So if you’re eating pastries made with rice flour, it alters your blood sugar more aggressively than eating pastries made from wheat flour. Now this is not talking about the immune response, just blood sugar regulation. So the idea of eating other grains or other grain based packaged goods and products, I personally think we’re meant to have a little grain once in a while, especially if you’re a high performance athlete or you’re just high performance. You need a little grain every once in a while. You just want the grains that aren’t offending you and thus activating your immune system to fight it, and you want the grains in dosages that your body can metabolize well.

So the main emphasis of your diet is quality meats and quality vegetables, maybe a little bit of fruit once in a while and a little bit of quality grain.

DAVE:  And what are the most quality least immune offensive grains?

TOM:  Brown rice, quinoa, and amaranth in my experience are—and this is clinically, I haven’t seen any studies that show level of immune sensitivity between those grains.

...and oats, the jury is mixed. For example. when oats grow out of the ground, there’s no gluten in them. You buy oats off the shelf, there’s gluten in them and it’s cross contamination...So I recommend to our patients, if you want oats or a little oatmeal once in a while, make sure it’s gluten free oats.

DAVE: But it’s interesting that the three that you talk about the most there are brown rice, not white rice, and I’m assuming whole grain quinoa and whole grain—what was the other one—amaranth?

TOM:  Amaranth.

DAVE:  So, what about all the fiber in the husk and the anti-nutrients in the husk that’s irritating to those same villi that have been beaten down by gluten all the time? Like, why wouldn’t you take off the irritating parts of these grains before consuming them?

TOM:  That’s a really good question, Dave. And there’s an entire family of discussion about lectins and the offensive nature of lectins and grains, absolutely accurate and valid discussion. So in our practice, we use the biomarker. I always go for biomarkers to see how’s this body functioning. So we use the biomarker, looking at the indicators for intestinal permeability. And within 3-6 months, that should be cleaned up. And if it’s not cleaned up then we get more strict and say, “Ok Mrs. Patient, we’re gonna do a grain free diet for a while and see if you’re having elected sensitivity that’s impacting on this.” So I’ll do it in stages. I try and make it as manageable for the person to begin with, and if we don’t get the results, I’m certain they’re feeling better, that’s obvious. But we want the biomarkers to be back down to normal and there’s no inflammation in the gut at all because that is the most dangerous phase of gluten sensitivity is when you don’t have positive blood work, you don’t have any celiac disease with billus atrophy, the shags wearing down and all you have is inflammation in your gut. That is the most dangerous phase with double the mortality of celiac disease if you just have the inflammation.

TOM:  Well, it depends on the patient. With most patients, we try to make it as manageable for them as they can as long as they don’t have inflammatory bowel disease, collitis or Chrons, we will allow them to do the non toxic gluten grains and if they feel good there’s no symptoms, they’re improving, everything’s going well, in 6 months they feel great, “doc I’m back to normal” I said great, lets check the biomarkers now, let’s see. If there’s still inflammation, still indicators of intestinal permeability, then I’ll pull all grains. And that’s just a clinical decision on my part. There are some doctors who will pull all grains right away and that’s an excellent approach that I have no argument with whatsoever. My concern is full compliance.DAVE:  Yeah. I see your point exactly now. So a lot of people just aren’t gonna do it. I recommend pulling all grains except for white rice as the least offensive one, even less offensive than brown and recommend sweet potatoes over that. But my assumption is that people who are after the state of high performance, kind of people who are listening to this, they wanna know how to do it perfectly and maybe if they’re gonna degrade from perfect.Alright fine, eat the quinoa or whatever else. But in your case you’re going after people who aren’t necessarily Bulletproof. And if it’s grandma, well grandma’s gonna have to have some kind of toast, yeah of course amaranth toast is better than wheat toast. I see your point exactly.

Yeast

DAVE: Do you think the studies that we’ve done are adequately separating toast which is yeast plus grain, from just grain?

TOM:  No. No. The studies are not adequate. There are studies on this and this is really the big picture perhaps another session here can dive into. Is the problem with gluten is not that it gives you sore tummies. The problem with gluten sensitivity is that it gives you vulnerability and acceleration in the development of autoimmune diseases.

...how long does it take when you go gluten free

...the rule of thumb for me has always been in my office it’s always been 3 weeks. If you aren’t noticeably better where you know you’re on the right track within 3 weeks, something’s wrong here. And most people notice within 3 or 4 days of being gluten free.

[nxsuper]

1,2,5,7,9,10,11,20,23,26,36,42,43,47,50,74,80,81,102,107,124,138,140 (I know it's a lot)

3 Fears  high place much high--deep water and  chainsaw when is not in my hand XD

3 things I love  strawberry...draw and cute draw

My best friend   flowey :3    naaa is @chronictale and @lazycb thanks for text me :3....irl life alessio my only friend XD

Favourite color  red :p

Do I have a crush  ask @camilieroart

Favourite place  my house 

Someone I love  for now *é*°ç*°§

Favourite season spring is my birthday 

The reasons I joined Tumblr  good art !!!

How often do I wear a fake smile?   well much time but  not when i’m speaking with my friend :3  sometime i hide the fact i’m sad when they are sad but if they ask i answer without lie or i try ;3

Do I believe in ghosts? How about aliens? the fact i live in a infested village and i wake up more than 1 time seeing black figure and hear dog when i was without  a dog yes but not in the alien :£

Do I believe in magic? who know is magic!

Do I have any nicknames?  well my friend call me cola  ..caso ...nick....nxsouper XD   

Favourite animal? fox or wolf  i love both u.u 

Dyed my hair? nope maybe one day 

What do I want for birthday?   mmm idk i want surprise XD but if you gift me something about undyne i go crazy this year :p

Do I like my handwriting?  nope my hand shake a little so my write is terrible

Where would you like to travel?  mmm spain or france because i’ve some friend here and well i go where my friend are 

Do you ever want to get married? is my dream :3 with 2 child 

Favourite ice cream flavour?  cream 

What your zodiac sign?Aries

Get the closest book next to you, open it to page 42, what’s the first line on that page? above fishhouse2.png  undertale book XD

[morganbelarus]

It wasnt crying wolf: sale of whole Italian village revealed as PR hoax

Tiny Esino Lario claimed all its assets were up for grabs but it was actually working with a tech firm to raise awareness of issues facing villages

Last month a mountain village in northern Italy put all its assets up for sale. A website advertised that everything must go.

Street signs started at 1,250. A pilgrimage site cost around 600,000, with a 15% discount applied. The town hall was a bit cheaper 200,000. Benches came at 280 each, but with an enticing three-for-two promotion.

In a full-page advert placed in almost all of Italys top newspapers, Esino Larios mayor, Pietro Pensa, lamented the reason for the mass sell-off: a lack of resources to fight the villages depopulation.

Sadly, we no longer have the resources to fight against problems bigger than us, he said. I have decided [] to sell the most symbolic places of Esino Lario.

The initiative attracted widespread national media coverage and scores of potential buyers. But on the day sales supposedly began online, something about the website looked off. Prospective customers were unable to purchase anything instead, they were redirected to a page asking them to share pictures of the items on social media. The sale was fake news.

The Esino Lario sale was publicised in national newspapers and had its own website

Esino Lario wasnt even struggling it had attracted resources through events and volunteering schemes, and its population of 745 had dropped only slightly since the turn of the century.

The mystery was addressed at a press conference in Milan later that day. In fact, the sell-off turned out to be a PR campaign by a local tech company specialising in broadband for remote villages.

The company teamed up with the Esino Lario council to raise awareness about the depopulation of rural areas, while also obtaining publicity for its new scheme for villages.

Massimo Castelli, the national coordinator for small villages at the National Association of Italian Local Authorities, said he supported the bizarre deception.

As representatives, we try to make the suffering of small villages come to the fore, he says. But this isnt an issue the media like to cover maybe they cover the colourful initiatives like houses sold for 1.

It wasnt a case of crying wolf these areas are actually losing population because there are no jobs, schools close, services are cut.

While Italys population has grown by 4 million since the 1990s, research shows that villages with fewer than 5,000 residents, which make up a fifth of Italys population and manage over half its territory, haemorrhaged some 675,000 residents. The trend is expected to speed up over the next decade.

Smaller local authorities are becoming craftier in their fight for resources and public attention. The houses for 1 scheme, for example, has become popular throughout the country. In Sicily, Sambuca is the latest village to sell abandoned properties starting at 1, while similar schemes have run in Ollolai, Sardinia; Casoli, in central Italy; and Borgomezzavalle, in the north.

Sambuca was able to lure potential buyers from the UK, Dubai, Panama and Russia.

Sambuca has sold abandoned homes for 1. Photograph: Alessio Mamo/The Observer

In Esino Larios case, the campaign brought about unprecedented media coverage, with national TV crews descending on the village. The tech company says the mayor joined the campaign voluntarily to raise awareness about the issue, without receiving any direct compensation.

Esino Larios administration has not answered the Guardians interview requests.

The approach involves plenty of tricks that might not be part of a mayors typical job description shooting videos, extravagant initiatives and exaggerations that play to the medias weaknesses but Castelli, the coordinator, is convinced it pays dividends and makes the public more aware of the issues facing villages.

He is himself no stranger to provocation. Earlier this year, he gave a speech in the Italian parliament wearing a black armband, symbolising his mourning for the death of small villages.

Because there was that provocation, I got rounds of applause, he says. And mine was the only speech of the session that made it into the national newscast.

Follow Guardian Cities on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to join the discussion, catch up on our best stories or sign up for our weekly newsletter

Original Article : HERE ; This post was curated & posted using : RealSpecific

It wasnt crying wolf: sale of whole Italian village revealed as PR hoax was originally posted by MetNews

[dippedanddripped]

In New York in the 90s, it was wheat-coloured Timberlands – Jay Z would famously pull up every weekend to David Z, a Manhattan shoe retailer, to purchase a fresh pair, giving his week-old shoes to some lucky passer-by. On the West Coast, it was Chuck Taylors, with gang members declaring their Blood or Crip allegiances through their chosen colourway. London too had a shoe of choice: Nike Air Max 95s – often affectionately referred to as ‘110s’. At some point or another, pretty much every major city or region has become synonymous with a certain shoe, a stylistic signifier that often is reflective of a certain scene or subculture, before eventually transcending it all together. Forget national anthems and number plates, what people have on their feet can often be a lot more telling.

In Italy, but more specifically Milan and Rome, it was ‘The Silvers’. Released in 1997, the Air Max 97 took on its colloquial nickname as a result of its futuristic, metallic aesthetic. It was quickly embraced by the graffiti writers and, soon after, the club kids of Italy’s two biggest cities. It was a shoe that sold well enough without ever doing spectacularly well in other countries, but in Italy, 97s soon became a mainstay of underground subcultures before later appearing on runways at Milan Fashion Week and on the feet of off-duty footballers. Air Max 97s also served as the inspiration for Italian designer Riccardo Tisci’s most recent collaboration with Nike, who commented that “if you didn’t have Air Max you were not cool! The sexy bad boy and the bad girl in the club, they would wear them – so my memory of these shoes is me saving money to buy them!” The sneaker would go on to become the first adopted en-masse by Italians, gradually seeping out from its major cities into rural towns and provinces to eventually finding itself on the feet of those who had never ‘bombed’ a train or seen the inside of a Neapolitan nightclub.

It is this phenomenon that has been recorded in a forthcoming tome by editor Lodovico Pignatti Morano, who has previously worked on such projects as Ideas From Massimo Osti, a monograph on the Italian founder of Stone Island. Le Silver, which is published by international art media group Kaleidoscope and limited to only 600 copies, explores the adoption of the 97 by Italy’s most vibrant subcultures and its subsequent rise to mainstream commercial success through a series of interviews, ranging from small-time rappers to Vogue Japan’s Anna Dello Russo.

Initially conceived as an internal report at Nike to explore this unique fascination with a certain shoe, the project soon grew into something much greater. “For a publisher focused on contemporary art and culture, a book about a Nike shoe may seem like an odd fit,” explained Kaleidoscope’s creative director, Alessio Ascari. “But for several years now, we've been resisting the self-referential attitude of the contemporary art world and connecting the dots that link it with other creative fields and industries. What drives us is the opportunity of looking at these phenomena from the perspective of contemporary art, with a close eye on the relevance of aesthetics in society – and this book is exactly about an aesthetic obsession.”

THE BIRTH OF THE 97

In 1997, Christian Tresser was a young designer at Nike, whose previous experience had largely been in creating football boots – as well as creating another cult favourite, the Nike Spiridon. “When the 97 arrived on my desk, it had already been through two designers before me,” recalls Tresser in Le Silver. “The message I was given was, ‘This shoe is going to make your career. Don’t blow it.’” And so, inspired by an image of water drops hitting the surface of a pond and rippling out, Tresser set about creating the 97, with a combination of metallic-looking and reflective fabrics. (He also goes on to refute the common misconception, at least in the world of sneakerheads, that the 97 was informed by the Japanese bullet train).

ARRIVING IN ITALY

“I think that clubbers and writers adopted them straight away independently of each other,” explains Morano, the book’s editor. “It was very intuitive. Switched on people saw the shoe, either in store or on the feet of some DJ or in the window of Foot Locker and they just got it straight away without having to look around for confirmation from others.”

According to Morano, there are a lot of theories about why hyper-futuristic looking items, like the 97s and the wares of Massimo Osti at Stone Island took on such cultural significance in Italy. He ventures that it may have its roots in “the Futurists (the art movement of the early 1900s) and how their aesthetic was a result of Italy’s late transformation into an industrial economy, relative to Northern Europe.” For many of the interviewees in the book, there’s a similar dedication to a technical, new-age look.

“Anna Dello Russo, meanwhile, ventures that Italy’s fashion scene adopted the shoe as a reaction to the years of minimalism, by the likes of Martin Margiela and Helmut Lang, which had preceded it. According to her, it was only that style that mattered”

“We would go to Alpine equipment stores and steal Gore-Tex jackets and puffas, using various techniques,” remembers Kraze, an Amsterdam-based writer embedded in the Roman graffiti scene at that time. “We would wear Gore-Tex pants and jackets, even when it was hot. It wasn’t like we needed the technical functions, though in a way, as graffiti writers, we were battling on the streets: climbing, hiding, staying outside all day, running away.” Naturally, when the 97s arrived, it chimed perfectly with this exaggerated utilitarian look – and the Milanese and Roman crews quickly found similar illicit ways of getting their hands on the shoes. One graffiti writer recalls that it was a source of pride to say that you hadn’t paid for your ‘Silvers’.

“A lot of the people I spoke to said that they stole the shoes, or knew people who stole the shoes, or worked in stores where theft of this particular model was particularly rampant,” explains Morano. “But I also spoke to a lot of kids whose parents bought them for them immediately.”

SILVERS ON THE DANCEFLOOR

In Milan and Rome, “graffiti writers were the first to adopt the shoe as part of their uniform. And in Naples, it was clubbers from the city’s house music scene to first start wearing them,” says Morano. “Neapolitan clubbers were more fashion conscious and interested in combining the shoes with designers like Margiela or Helmut Lang while Milanese and Roman graffiti writers were more into a straight up technical look with North Face jackets and Goretex pants.”

Tino Ricciardi, an Italian gabber enthusiast, says there ‘Silvers’ were adopted by party-goers for their aesthetic, but also a practical reason: “From the moment I saw them, I loved them. I liked the fact that they were all grey and metallic, which reminded me of cyberpunk, and then when I went and tried them on in the store and felt how comfortable they were, I was totally sold. They were perfect for dancing.”

LE SILVER ENTERS THE FASHION WORLD

At some point, 97s began to transcend their humble, subcultural origins, explains Morano. The latter third of Le Silver is dedicated to this, with short anecdotes from footballers, such as World Cup winners Fabio Cannavaro and Marco Materazzi, as well as the story of how the shoe conquered the runways of Milan. “Legend has it that the two major watershed crossover moments were Giorgio Armani wearing the Silvers when he went out to take a bow after his show at Milan Fashion Week in February of 1998 and one season later, in September, always in Milan, Dolce and Gabbana using the shoes in their show,” says Morano. “A lot of people remember these two events very clearly but I was never able to find photographic proof and the designers didn’t want to confirm these facts to me.”

Anna Dello Russo, meanwhile, ventures that Italy’s fashion scene adopted the shoe as a reaction to the years of minimalism, by the likes of Martin Margiela and Helmut Lang, which had preceded it. According to her, it was only that style that mattered: “No other sneaker was accepted. It was that model, in that colour (silver), and that was it.” As the shoes began to gain mainstream approval, some of the original wearers ditched their beloved ‘Silvers’ says Morano, but “some people were still so into the aesthetic that they didn’t care.” Littered with colourful anecdotes, Le Silver serves as not only an insight into how a single shoe came to penetrate just about every facet of a nation’s youth culture, but it provides a compelling snapshot of late 90s Italy itself.

Follow Calum Gordon on Twitter here @calumtrc

[some-thoughts-and-crosses]

When the slopes hit back...

I’m out of sequence again…I wanted to capture this trip but had things to say I wasn’t sure how to express. As with all these blog posts though, I decided to just write them completely unedited, so at least there’s a record. Plus I have another upcoming trip this weekend and am 2 posts behind already – so, best do it now. What a compelling start!

In Feb, I went away for the weekend to a ski town called Ovindoli. It’s about an hour and a half outside Rome, in Abruzzo. I went with 3 lovely girls from work, invited by one I knew pretty well (Sarah), while the other I knew a little (Stephanie), and the last not at all (Inkeri).

We stayed overnight at a beautiful medieval town called Fontecchio, an hour or so away from Ovindoli. Our digs looked like they were once part of a castle, and our host was so gracious and kind. We met him at the Square’s parking and he walked us over to our rooms – which we wouldn’t have found on our own.

This is where the women used to gather for water until as late as the 1960s.

Here be a medieval-times store-front. “Just like in Beauty and the Beast!” (Steph).

The town’s cultural group was having a celebration and aperitivo that night and we were invited.

We ended up passing the chief performer anyway as we went by the clock tower – the starting point. He was animatedly playing the accordion as we went by in preparation for the evening. He and his friend – a sweet girl who spoke English, told us they were starting at 19:30, so we walked around a bit and headed back closer to the time. It was very informal and apparently he and another friend’s first performance! They played accordion and tambourine, singing local songs in dialect with great enthusiasm!

They even dressed in matching plaid shirts – their way of looking like ‘mountain’ people, we were told. I sent a clip to the gang and Aatish mentioned they gave off chutney jol vibes – which is pretty apt!

Everyone there was so friendly and welcoming to us – we were treated like VIPs. Steph pointed out that we made quite the exotic and international group, with her being Chinese-American, Inkeri being Finnish, and Sarah (also American), being red-haired – particularly uncommon in these parts.  

Alessio, our host, gave us a tour of the clock tower. It’s housed at the top of what is now a gallery. This was part of a permanent exhibit showing images from the earthquake of a few years ago that caused damage and deaths.

However all this came after day 1 at the ski resort. I managed to book a private hour lesson around 3PM, and had all but managed to psych myself out before it. Sarah and Steph can ski, and Inkeri was set to ski-board. I, on the other hand, had never so much as ridden a ski lift. I got fitted out for my skis and boots with the others anyway, and wore the boots for the day until time for my lesson. This was a big part of why I almost cancelled! It’s hard to explain just how awful these boots are. They’re extremely heavy and cumbersome. I felt like they were moon boots built to withstand anti-gravity environments, except I was wearing them on earth. Each step felt like a fall waiting to happen. And they hurt my shins. Carrying the skis around was also uncomfortable. I was also convinced (helped in part by anecdotes from colleagues) that I would fall and injure myself in the attempt of learning. I mean, I could barely walk with these boots – and I’d had a lot of practice walking! Please note that the idea of falling is not new to me. I have fallen many times on incredibly varied forms of transport. I’ve been jet-skiing (great fun, though I did end up overturning it and landing in the water). I have even face-planted in snow from steering a husky sled in Norway – at night, while it was snowing on my eye-balls. If you know me, you’ll know that looking cool is not my primary concern in this life. However I was worried about how I would get around and manage by myself in Rome, should I end up with injuries. Being alone and reliant on public transport, has its drawbacks.

My travel buddies were so sweet though, they even offered to give me a trial lesson pre-official lesson, so I could be more comfortable. This didn’t go well. This was not because they weren’t good instructors. I fell, and couldn’t get up. They had to help me un-click my skis before I could rise. This made the idea of practicing on my own nerve-wracking. I pictured myself in some undignified pose, unable to help myself back up. In retrospect, I could have probably managed to un-click my skis and get up, but I was pretty nervous at this juncture and not thinking very positively. I also didn’t want to get in anyone else’s way and unwittingly hurt someone.

I realised I was also feeling particularly sensitive. I suddenly felt a little overwhelmed by not knowing how to do yet another thing. And being torn between warring feelings of privilege that I could even be in a position to learn, and frustration that I had to suffer through the process of learning so late in life, when it’s just so much harder (for various reasons). At this juncture I want to quote Mindy Kaling (Why not me?):

Yes, I had the extreme privilege of starting to learn to ski. And I was miserable. I hated the feeling of ineptitude. I was suddenly tired of all the hassles whenever I wanted to try something new, logistical and otherwise.  I remembered learning to scuba dive, and being beset with the worst sea-sickness from the choppy water. And feeling conspicuous from being the only people of colour then (along with my brother. I’ve always been a proponent of doing the thing; trying new experiences. I’ve abseiled and been on zip-line slides. I have had a few horse-riding lessons. I’ve had one archery lesson. I tried to ice-skate once, when I lived in London over a decade ago. Kew gardens in winter is pretty magical, but I can still remember the unwieldy awfulness of being in those skates, as I clutched the rail for as long as I could stand before getting off the ice. I was tired of all these wonderful, awful experiences. I was resentful that so many of them were so hard, or had scary elements. I know…I was feeling sorry for myself. Poor Sena, who has trouble with her elitist adventures. All I can tell you, is that the struggle felt real. I realised that so many of these involved me venturing out alone, and receiving strange looks for being there in the first place. I am not over-sensitive, but I am perceptive. I wished it could just be easier. I felt resolve that my nephews and nieces wouldn’t ever feel this way. That they would have options early, and would be helped along as far as I could.

I did manage to pull myself together in time for my lesson. I lucked out with a wonderful instructor. She was patient and kind, and I ended up having a great lesson. That doesn’t mean I turned out to be a skiing savant…not at all. I still fell, but I learned too - and after my 2 lessons, I could feel an improvement.

Post weekend, I gave my mixed feelings some consideration, and happened to come across a timely article by one Maria Popova:

“De Botton distills Nietzsche’s convictions and their enduring legacy: The most fulfilling human projects appeared inseparable from a degree of torment, the sources of our greatest joys lying awkwardly close to those of our greatest pains…

Why? Because no one is able to produce a great work of art without experience, nor achieve a worldly position immediately, nor be a great lover at the first attempt; and in the interval between initial failure and subsequent success, in the gap between who we wish one day to be and who we are at present, must come pain, anxiety, envy and humiliation. We suffer because we cannot spontaneously master the ingredients of fulfilment. Nietzsche was striving to correct the belief that fulfillment must come easily or not at all, a belief ruinous in its effects, for it leads us to withdraw prematurely from challenges that might have been overcome if only we had been prepared for the savagery legitimately demanded by almost everything valuable. (Or, as F. Scott Fitzgerald put it in his atrociously, delightfully ungrammatical proclamation, “Nothing any good isn’t hard.”)

I’ve been nursing the assumption that I am uncoordinated and un-athletic, but actually, I was an active kid. I ran and jumped long and high, and there was always swimming. Stopping to think about it, maybe it’s more that I’m just bad until I get good. I still have a list of other activities to try out. I will try to remember this lesson.

After all that, let us end with a pic of the best hot chocolate I have ever had. It was in a cozy restaurant on the mountain, while surrounded by snow. Also, ski-lifts are fun.

[awfully-sadistic]

Dread

Dot Dreadful was no stranger to the word dread. While it was in her last name, it was also a feeling not foreign to her. But it had been a very long time since she had actual reason to feel it again. The tips of her fingers tingled and when she turned her hands over to look down at them, they were shaking. She curled her hands into fists, but they were shaking too. While the visual of shaking was not seen, something that made her feel like it made its way up her arms and settled in her shoulders where it felt like a heavy weight was pressing upon her. It traveled from her shoulders and down her back, where it ached. The burden she was carrying was too big, had been too big, and it was beginning to show. From her back, her knees could have been knocking together if she had been a cartoon character. She would have been drawn as one of those stressed out, anxiety-riddled characters. You know, with the overly exaggerated features and nail-biting antics.

While she may not have been biting her fingers, she felt that familiar feeling in the pit of her stomach settle which made her realize that even her hands felt clammy. There were just days like this and all the immersing in the world could not fix it. But that had been before the merging. The times when even her girlfriend could not have helped but tried her best to stay with her throughout the experience. Dot was thankful and was always thankful for that especially when she wanted to do nothing but hide away from the rest of the world; even Felina.

But it had been a long time since she felt this way. So, what brought it up now? Everything was perfect in New Senzannini, especially after the merger, and Dot did not really have a damn care in the world. But some time between when she had gone to bed and woke up the next morning, it had been like this. There was no shaking this feeling or making it better. It even almost seemed like things had been from before the merging, when it was just her and the lack of family around her. She didn’t find anyone in bed when she woke up and it was a jarring feeling when she had been used to it for months. It made her cry and that certainly didn’t help the situation. She was alone when she shouldn’t have been, it was as simple as that.

Getting ready for work was a chore when it should not have been. While she normally could have thrown anything on and been fine with it (especially being the boss and being able to wear whatever the sam hell she pleased), she had so much trouble trying to dress herself. Nothing she put on felt right. It didn’t make her feel good nor did it help put out the image of herself that she wanted to convey. She finally decided on some leggings, threw her hair up in a bun, and just went to work like that.

The ride to work was somber silence. No one called. No one texted.

She was utterly alone. But why?

And more importantly, who could she be mad at?

She wanted to be mad at everyone. She was mad at everyone. The day hadn’t even begun and she was already emotionally drained. She was weepy and driving was rather unsafe because she had the strong urge to just yank the wheel hard to one side and crash into the nearest object. It would have been so easy to do some harm to herself but once she felt better, how was she going to explain the damage to her car… or better yet, to herself?

Did they even care? They hadn’t bothered to keep in contact with her. This was her bitter feeling all through the drive and all the way to work when she jabbed her ornately decorated key into the keyhole to her Mortuary business. The first thing she noticed was that Tod wasn’t even around. The shop connected next door was closed and the place was as dead as the people she worked on.

Was this unusual? She couldn’t really recall anymore because the way the Family functioned wasn’t even the same, she thought with bitter resentment as she unlocked the shop’s door and flipped the sign to OPEN.

It seemed like nothing was the same and that put her on a further downward spiral of depression. So what, Tod wasn’t around. She probably wouldn’t want to see him anyway. Maybe it was better she was alone because she was in a sour mood. She went into the backroom to grab her lab coat and thought that perhaps hacking dead body parts apart would make her feel better.

She was hacking away when she stopped herself, mid-swing and started to cry. Then she brought her hatchet down, and continued to cry. She must have looked like a crazy sight but she didn’t care… it wasn’t like anyone important was around to see her anyway.

Through her sobbing, her normally sharp hearing didn’t even hear the front door to the shop jingle or the voice that called out for someone. She didn’t even notice the person wander through the maze of aisles situated just particularly so and when he didn’t get an answer, had to cross over into the Mortuary. It was when he stood at the lobby and called out again did she hear a voice she did not recognize.

Putting down her hatchet and figuring a customer had arrived, she didn’t want to come out from the basement looking like a literal bloody mess. Even in her depressed state, she didn’t want to present herself as the owner in such a state. She liked scaring people but she just didn’t feel the need to mess around with anybody in this state right now. In fact, why did she even come to work? She was asking herself this as she wiped her face clean of all traces of blood and washed her hands clean. The customer would just have to deal with her bloodied lab coat but it wasn’t especially gruesome to scare anyone away. She could have looked so much worse.

“Don’t go anywhere,” she growled to the whimpering mass strapped and gagged on the operating table. It was more of a joke because she had taken his arms and legs a few days ago.

“How can I help you?” Dot asked with a clipped tone. She noticed at once the tall height of this man standing with his back to her; his head seemed to be moving around, most likely observing the place. She slipped behind the front counter to pull out her black business book and skipping the pleasantries, opted to get straight into business. “Did you come to make an appointment?”

When she finally looked up, she was face to face with a man she had never seen before; he had moved seemingly without a sound and quick enough that he was up in her face by the time she looked up from her book but that was not what startled her. He looked way too familiar to have never met him and she would have remembered a face like this. She could not help but think that his face was structured just like Alessio and Diesel’s. In fact, the thought seemed to be forced in her head because that was who she saw when she looked at this man and he even had the same strong jaw and nose, but his eyes were kinder and gray and he looked way more relaxed than how the brothers usually looked. However, instead of having jet black hair like the brothers had, his hair was straight silver, reached further down than what she could see from behind the desk and seemed to contrast his darkened olive tone. He looked immensely younger too.

She could do nothing but gawk at the face of this handsome man.

The jingle of the bell next door broke the spell as someone came into the shop.

“DAD!”

Now that was a tone that was familiar. Dot’s heart hammered in her chest and it must have been obvious because the man’s gaze flickered there before turning to look towards the connecting shop. Felina Frenzy came into view, carrying a couple of bags of luggage as well as the world’s most annoyed face on the planet.

“FATHER.” she shrieked, throwing his stuff on the ground. “HOW CAN YOU MAKE ME CARRY THIS? I AM YOUR ONLY DAUGHTER.”

“I’m pretty sure I have two more daughters around here somewhere.” The tone that came out of his voice was exactly what Dot would have expected coming from a man who looked like he didn’t take life seriously whatsoever. Even the way he addressed his own daughter was as dismissive …or perhaps as flighty as his personality. But Dot was still having trouble trying to comprehend what she was seeing… or even hearing.

“I AM THE ONLY DAUGHTER THAT MATTERS RIGHT NOW,” Felina further shrieked, her excitable nature only fueling this exchange.

“D-Dad?” Dot asked, painfully turning her gaze from one Frenzy to another. “T-This is your dad?”

Felina looked apologetic almost immediately. She ran up to Dot to stand next to the man at the front desk, nearly throwing herself over it. What she was doing was trying to reach for Dot’s hands but she couldn’t reach… and Dot made it easier, giving them to her.

“I’m so sorry about the introductions, I TOLD him to WAIT.”

“I don’t get why I have to wait in the car,” the man stated, turning his head down to stare at his daughter in what looked like a pout. Dot had to double take because it looked so much like Diesel and Alessio pouting as well. The image flipped her tummy as well as the prospect of meeting the Frenzy Patriarch… or at least, the other one.

“BECAUSE YOU CAN’T JUST COME UP TO HER LIKE THIS!” Felina argued. It made sense why the caps lock key to her phone was always on because she was always yelling at a Frenzy, and it seemed her dad wasn’t an exception.

“Why not?”

“Because you’d give her a heart attack.”

“Oh… that explains why her heart is beating like that.”

Felina dropped her gaze to Dot’s chest and Dot resisted the urge to pull her hands away to hide her chest. “W-What’s going on?” she asked as it seemed the most logical place to start.

“Oh good! You don’t have a clue,” Felina seemingly gushed now, looking happy. It only served to confuse Dot who didn’t quite like being surprised… but Felina’s surprises weren’t so bad so this was okay. “I didn’t want anyone to ruin it for you but father is here and I wanted you to be the first one he met. Everyone else is getting ready for his arrival.”

Dot wanted to ask if that was the reason why she woke up alone. She was content to stifle it despite having her feelings hurt since it seemed that everyone had a valid reason on disappearing. But the thought seemed to come out before she could even think to shield it.  Felina frowned, only realizing then that it must have been a strange sensation to wake up virtually alone and have no idea what was going on. But what she hadn’t accounted for was that Dot would have been COMPLETELY alone and figured most of the Frenzy’s asked a Dreadful counterpart on helping them prepare for this arrival and thus filled Dot’s day with nothing but emptiness and depression.

“Oh no, I am SO sorry, Dottie!” Felina stated once this dawned upon her. She tried her best to climb over the desk in her attempt to hug her girlfriend and/or grovel at her feet. Dot made the attempt to stop her, looking surprised as Felina’s dad even tried to help her get over.

“N-No, it’s okay.” She tried to protest, gently pushing Felina back at the shoulders before she seriously hurt herself. “You don’t have to do all this…”

“I’LL COMMIT SEPPUKU.”

“N-No, you don’t have to go that far.”

“I’ll do it too!”

Dot gawked at father and daughter trying to kill themselves before she started to laugh. The situation was just too funny. From what started as the worst possible day Dot was having, she was now staring at her girlfriend and her girlfriend’s father both seated on the ground and sitting on their knees.

Somehow, they had even begun fighting over a knife that had been pulled out from one of Daddy Frenzy’s suitcases.

But once Dot had started laughing, both stopped short to stare up at her wondering why she was laughing. Was she feeling better? The question was riddled all over their faces and Dot laughed harder.

Supposing having a reason such as picking up Daddy Frenzy, Dot’s previous anger was nearly dissipated as it was the ONLY valid reason why Dot didn’t allow herself to be angry at how this day went. But she had wished it was different in the sense that she didn’t have to be kept in the dark especially on a bad day. Perhaps it was bad timing that something like her bad mood happened but it was even further perpetuated by the fact that the Family members she had come to love and rely on in the Frenzy’s had up and disappeared as if they had never been there. The thought scared her.

“Did you think we were leaving you?” Felina asked in a tone that was almost a whisper. It was more along the lines that she didn’t want to put that idea in Dot’s head and therefore was afraid to ask. Dot didn’t know it but would over time that all of the Frenzy’s were completely serious about her; she had seen changes in her Family that no one else would ever be able to accomplish even if they had lived for a thousand years. Dot didn’t understand it now but Daddy Frenzy moving in was monumental. It meant that they were going to be around long after New Senzannini disappears. It was for as long as the Dreadful’s were there, the Frenzy’s would also be there.

Dot knew better; she had. It just wasn’t a comforting thought to wake up and be put in a situation like that where her bad mood seemed to overtake everything; even something as logical as perhaps calling someone first just to make sure they were still around. She allowed her own emotions to rule over her decisions and stubbornly closed off her own shell before getting hurt. When she didn’t answer, a face appeared in front of her own that she nearly fell over in surprise. Instead, she made a startled noise and fought to fight the blush that threatened to bloom all over her face.

“I know how to fix all of this,” Daddy Frenzy spoke up with a tone so serious that it caught Felina’s attention and she looked entirely shocked.

Both women stood in what could have only been described as a dramatic pause and then:

“Marry me.”

“FATHER.”

“You said I could.”

“Not right NOW. You have to get to know her first!”

“I can get to know her while I’m married to her,” her father argued, looking like a child who wanted to get his way but was not and was trying to. Felina looked like an exasperated sight, as if she had been speaking to one of her siblings and once again, Dot found herself laughing at the Frenzy’s antics and at the same time, trying to calm her erratic heartbeat.

She had no idea what to expect from here on out but she figured, even through the days she counted as bad ones, the Frenzy’s wouldn’t fail on somehow making her laugh and feeling better.

Even if Felina insisted on marrying her off to a Frenzy each and every time a bad mood hit.

[fri-endsrp]

0cean

Dinner. Amari As if they were able to smell Natalie's food, the three lovers arrived shortly after Amari and Archie and soon everyone had been seated at the dinner table. "That's so," Amari shook her head, her curls bouncing infront of her eyes. She and Alessio were in a rather heated discussion about cats having nine lives. "There's no way a cat has nine lives." she added, her arms folded on the table. She watched as Alessio leaned forward and rested his elbow on the table, his fork in hand. "Why do you think cats parkour without a care in the world? Have you seen that video of that cat falling from a ten-story window and surviving?" He stabbed his last potato and placed it in his mouth. "Shit's crazy." Amari was not impressed, though. There was no reason for cats to have nine lives. Besides, the cat from Alessio's childhood had died from cancer and hadn't resurrected. Albeit, their mom did tell Alessio that his cat had ran away. Amari didn't feel like arguing about it anymore. He had drank two glasses of wine already, and an intoxicated Alessio was just as stubborn as a sober one. "Alright, alright." she said, lowering her eyes to her plate as she adjusted her arms a little. Although the clock showed that it was almost midnight, and most of everyone's plates had been cleared, the conversations were still lively. Amari's eyelids felt heavy, though. She only had enough energy to idly listen to the other conversations while she closed her eyes and rested her head in the palm of her hand. Sheridan and Miley had been conversing about something when Miley stopped and said, "Now, watch yourself, Archie. Eye contact only - not boob contact." She, too, had drank some wine. Giggling lightly, Amari had began to zone out of their conversation when Miley added, "I know you weren't able to control yourself before but you sadly have to this time. There are children around." Conversations dwindled before dropping completely. Everyone had heard Miley's comment. Amari was beginning to feel drowsy, so Miley's comment hadn't processed as fast as it did for the others. But when it did, and her eyes slowly opened and focused on Archie, did she begin to feel as though there was something she was missing. Sure, Miley wears low-cut tops around them and it's not unusual for a guy to glance every now and then. But there was something about Archie's demeanor that hinted towards something more. His eyebrows are pushed together. Now, Amari sat up. Folding her arms on the table, her curls hanging over her eyes, she stared at Archie and watched him as he cleared his throat and stuttered. Then, his gaze lifted from his plate to Miley and a tight smile formed. "Nothing sad about it." he finally replied. Amari didn't move or say anything. She hadn't figured it out quite yet, but there was a nagging memory in her mind that she didn't want to think about. It would've been easier if Archie had just glanced at Miley's boobs once or twice - hell, they all did every now and then. But there was something about her comments and his behavior that brought Amari's nagging memory to the surface. It had been a Wednesday night and the first night in a couple of weeks that Amari and Archie had off together. Or so Amari thought, because Archie didn't come home that night and had told her the following morning that he had been at work. She didn't call his job. She trusted that he had been telling the truth. But as his behavior started to change and it seemed as though he was walking on eggshells around her - the nagging in her head appeared. And now she had figured it out. However, she hadn't moved at all since Archie last spoke. Every now and then, while she was thinking, her eyes peered at Miley before returning to Archie. But after she pieced everything together, Amari hadn't moved her eyes away from Archie. "Fuck this," she muttered, pushing her chair back and collecting her phone and wallet from the table. She needed to get out of there. "You weren't even going to say any-" Nope, she couldn't finish that. The pressure in her throat was building, and she was beginning to have difficulty keeping her plain expression. Her jaw clenched, she looked through her curls towards Archie and felt a twinge in her stomach. There was so much she wanted to say but what's the point? She shook her head. Her anger was beginning to transition into sadness. "You can have him." She added as she started walking towards the door, her voice low. A knock came from the door but she hardly acknowledged the guy as she moved past him and began walking down the street. As she walked, the cool breeze lessened her anger and gave her the chance to confront her saddness. It's not like she wanted to, though, but it can be tough trying to avoid certain thoughts during a twenty minute walk. Completely engulfed in her thoughts, she couldn't even remember if someone had been calling her name or not. Nineteen minutes and thousands of goosebumps later, Amari made it back to their apartment and closed the door behind her after entering. Rubbing one of her arms, she slid out of her sandles and trudged into the kitchen for something warm to drink. But she could barely focus. Mere seconds would go by before images of Miley bent over infront of Archie flashed in her mind and she could feel each crack in her heart growing. Cracks that had to be healed previously. And Amari found that ironic, really, that the same person who helped heal the cracks was the same person who opened them back up.

[itdisneymatter]

Day 01 - Magic Kingdom

Instead of a summary this time around, I'll try to sum up the day in a few words and sentences with a TLDR (too long; didnt read). Mostly to save me from repeating myself too much but also means you can skip on me droming on about nothing.

So the TLDR for today: Magic Kingdom. Custom t-shirts. Magic Bands. Really worth it. Got a good few rides in and hit 2 out of 3 of the mountains. Went for lunch at Belle's castle. Hot, hot, hot. Seen the 3pm parade. Missed out on a few rides but we'll get them in on a return. Everyone really enjoyed it and kicked the holiday off really well. Didnt hit dinner till late. Caught in a thunderstorm on the way home. Soaked.

And now...

First things first, or is that now second. Anyway,  I may have missed one or two details in my less than awake state which had an impact on todays events. We had planned, all going well, that we would head to Disney Springs (previously Downtown Disney) to get some Magic Bands - a watch-y thing that replaces your park ticket making it easier for Fast Passes and the like. With all the delays and the tiredness of yesterday it just wasnt a thing we were able to do. Ah well, best laid plans and all that. It meant however that we now had to try and pick them up when we hit the park today, pushing out our plans slightly. 

Some of us got personalised t-shirts made up (with our name and a specially selected Disney character), so today was a perfect opportunity to wear them.  We skipped on breakfast, and didnt have any bottled water to make a coffee (normally eek but ok for this morning, strangely). Not too hungry anyway so headed to my mum and dad's hotel to pick them up. They are in the same hotel as my sister, so its really convenient as a meet up point as my brother was picking them up in his car and its between both of our hotels. We were pretty spot on time for it being the first day so off we set for Magic Kingdom.

Parked up and within five minutes we stumbled upon a wee gift shop that sold Magic Bands - woohoo!  They have different colours and design so Ann picked up a nice wee 45th Anniversary Limited edition number. Patrick went for Sorcerers Apprentice (to match his tshirt.) Robert went for Up (to match his tshirt AAAND favourite Disney movie). Grace went for Orange Bird, who is a wee orange bird (funnily enough) who used to appear is old, Disney animations. We picked up a cup one time on the first visit to Disney (in 2013) and that cup had Orange Bird on it, and Grace has had an affinity with the character ever since. I went for Aladdin. Mum and Dad picked some funky coloured bands and we headed off to the park entrance. Spotted some of the other party (the ones in the second car) in their custom t-shirts so sped up to meet them just in time to board the ferry to the Magic Kingdom entrance. Tshirts already coming in handy with finding peeps, so colour matching tees in the way to go for future outings I think! Ferry was lovely and all of the kids were getting really excited.

So me trying to Facebook Live the Magic Kingdom entry was a complete and utter failure. I didnt even know how to start the thing - I should be as ashamed, calling myself a techie. Though I did get slightly reprimanded taking my phone out as they had a no selfie policy at security, prior to going in. He had a gun, so I pretty much did what he said and put my phone away. I fell back on my trusty Go-Pro (that I havent used since last time, but how hard can it be, right?). Video to follow as my laptop is ancient and I can barely run wordpad nevermind a full 1080p video clip. 

Full of smiles we headed in and once we stocked up on some water, a first visit badge for Emily and the others picked up their magic bands, we had 20 minutes to get to to our first fast pass - Splash Mountain in Frontier Land (good job I knew the way :P). Bypassed some rides as well as an opportunity to get Dole Whip (marked down on our initial plans), but we made the ride with 5 minutes to spare - phew!

Magic Kingdom Mountains 1 & 2... check!

Splash mountain. All of the family (save for my Mum, Alessio and Isabella) hit up the ride and it was AWESOME! Grace was quite panicky so was a little clingy (even though she'd been on it before) but Emily and Corrie both first timers absolutely loved it. And for our efforts, our first family ride photo! :D

Then we headed to Big Thunder straight after - ended up riding on my jack jones which was arite though as I go pro-ed the whole thing (our party's reactions, not the ride itself). We did also get a video for our memory maker which we have never had before but its a really fantasticly amazing this to have (even if the photographers does make you hold invisible fairies and set you up in a variety of cheesy poses).

On a role, we then hit Haunted Mansion, It's a Small World (GG's personal fave), Mickey's Philharmagic AND Peter Pan all before lunch. Not bad, for running an hour or so later off plan.

Be. Our. Guest!

Due to availability and a LOT of pre-planning, our wee family were the only ones booked in to Be Our Guest today. We said our goodbyes to the rest of the party and after arranging a meet up point and time we set off for a now, very much needed, lunch. We decided on some really nice menu choices, including a monster Grilled Cheese Sandwich and Barbequed Pulled Pork. The guys also got the infamous "Grey Stuff" for dessert, which seemed to be the kids favourite course of the day. However the star of the show for me was the French Onion Soup which was sublimely awesome (I'd eat this every day and I'm really really not a soup guy!).

We caught back up with the rest of the party after lunch just in time for the 3pm parade, which was only listed as a might-do due to time so really impressed we managed it. Time to get the zoom lens out! :D A side note on cameras - last time we were here I opted to take a reasonably good performing compact camera instead of my main SLR, for accessiblity purposes. While it was good, I always missed the feel and added control of my main camera, so this year its the exact opposite - Im gonna be a packhorse. Quality over comfort! The parade was really colourful and with the smaller kiddos were put up on shoulders so they had a perfect view (however I must add, its quite difficult to take quality photos through a 70-200mm lens mounted on a 5D with a flashgun, I'll have you know).

After cycling through most of the main Disney Princess movies in the Parade (except Frozen, which was kinda dissapointing, mainly as *I* wanted to see Elsa), Mickey and Mickey signed off the show to resounding cheers and waves and applause.

ROARRRRRRR!!!

A little time to go before our last listed Fast Pass of the Day - Seven Dwarves Mine Train, so we queued up for Enchanted Tales With Belle beforehand. The main premise is that kids (and some adults), volunteer to get chosen to reeact a little scene with Belle. For one of the main roles, The Beast, kids must roar their loudest and Grace got chosen! (though I shouldnt really be surposed by that). She was all chuffed and kept saying her and Robert had switched roles from last time with Robert now playing the part of the mighty steed Snaggleforp, or whatever the horses name is (its late and and I'm not going to google Belle's hor..., right fine... its Phillipe). Patrick, Robert, Corrie and Emily were also picked to be part of the show. Even Kevin was picked as a Knight in shining armor - which he played brilliantly (mostly it was about standing still, but still, brilliantly). They all got presented with a little bookmark as a small token, at the end for taking part.

By now, everyone was feeling a little drained so decided after Seven Dwarves that we would head for home and grab a bite to eat. We are going to be back at Magic Kingdom at least one other time when we can prioritize Tomorrowland, so everyone was on board. Seven Dwarves, I ended up on my own again after having lost my little sidekick Gracie (who opted out of the ride). I didn't mind though as I had my Gopro already to go again. I was slotted in on the first seat with a lady, who immediately asked my name and introduced herself (as Martha?... maybe, it was loud and after two attempts of saying 'what' you just need to go along with it). She just started chatting away all through the ride. In fact, just today loads of people just started up full blown convo's with me out of the blue - I mustve been rocking a approachable/chatterbox vibe in my backward facing hat and camera loadout. Those of you who know me, know me as anything but (listen I try, but I'm the first to admit I'm pretty terrible with words and interesting conversation at times). That being said, it was great to chat with so many different people around the world and just goes to show how friendly and amazing this place really is.

A wee cheeky ride on the Speedway for a few folk, a quick tee shirt pic in front of the castle and we headed home.

An absolutely amazing day with Splash mountain being the clear favourite for most of the kids. And although we missed out on a section or two, we still got loads of rides in and everyone was content with general flow how the day. With everyone on the same wavelength I think its gonna make this holiday a really magical one (sorry for the being soppy, Im getting tired, but we're nearly there).

Thunder and Lightning, very very frightening.

Michael & Sarah-Jane decided to grab some dinner and get an early night so we said our goodbyes for the day. We headed out to the shop after getting back to the hotel to grab so Beers and water (in order of priority obvs), as well as a few other bits and pieces. We then met up with my Mum, Dad, Kev, Pauline and Emily to go for a bite to eat (I just realised I havent formall introduced everyone in the party, Ill get around to that tomorrow, promise). With it being a Saturday most places were pretty packed and after checking out a few places (unsuccessfully), we ended up in Johnny Rockets (which Robert pointed out was where we went the second night the last time after failing to find a place - kids memorys are scary at times). We got seated but the service was SLOOOOOW! I can fault our waitress too much though, she brought me over a freee refill pretty much as soon as I finished my first drink. It instantly reminded me of Steve Buchemi's in that infamous Diner scene at the beginning of  Reservoir Dogs...

Mr. Pink: Look, I ordered coffee, alright? And we been here a long *bleeping* time and she's only filled my cup three times. When I order coffee I want it filled six times.

Ok, so it wasnt six times, it was one time, and it wasnt coffee (mmm coffee, I really shoulda went with coffee now that I think about it), but it was the single good thing about the service and one that warranted the tip even if it didnt meet Mr. Pink's stringent tipping criteria.

I actually haven't had an appetite since those prissy little sammiches on the plane. Even at Belle's castle and I wasnt particulary hungry even when we sat down at Johnny Rockets. But hey, do they mak a mean burger! Opted for a Smokehouse, which included some Bacon-y goodness and crispy onion rings - good stuff and nearly worth the wait, nearly... but then again it was a long wait. So the whole experience was fairly ok but then it took a big huge nose dive to round off the night...

When we left the restaurant,  its was bucketing it down. I know coming from Scotland we should be used to a little rain, but this was torrential, and we got huge flashes & bangs of thunder and lightening thrown in, in good measure. Big Rain as Grace so eloquently put it (shes just brilliant with words). Our hotel was right across the road, which was handy, but we had to leave the other guys to struggle to their hotel which was pretty much a mile away :( 

Ok, I'm delivering this really late and have no time to edit so apologies, I must try harder during the day in future. The images are also taking an age to download, so might not have all the ones I want in by the time this goes up, though Ill try to add more later in maybe a weekly slideshow or something. See you tomorrow for Day 02 - Epcot which will which will likely being unofficially subtitled - Battling The Storm!