#I'd be moving to Oregon

[dinodogs]

So. An opportunity to move somewhere far safer, and far cheaper, has come up and I'm like so conflicted here. You'd think I'd jump at the chance to move somewhere where I'll be safe, where I don't have to constantly worry about being hatecrimed. But also this is my home.

The state I'd move too wouldn't be bad, but it wouldn't have my trees or my mountains or my wild life or my riding trails or my memories. It wouldn't be home, I'd be moving there without my partner (at first), and without any friends and only a few people from my family to support me. I'd be alone, and I'd miss every little thing from home.

Just the idea of leaving everything behind is so scary, and I'm not sure I can do it.

[artykyn]

Not me crying because I had a really bad beginning of 2023 and signed up for a program that would proceed to make the rest of my 2023 rough and I spent the whole first three months of 2023 trying to pick myself up and motivate myself like "I'm gonna make it through this year if it kills me" and well look at that I made it

[probsdeletel8r]

i want to move to oregon

[selvepnea]

I feel like I'm forgetting to do something...

[flowersforbucky]

magnetic field

erik lehnsherr x reader

word count: 2k

summary: takes place following the events of days of future past. reader is a mutant with elemental manipulation powers.

a/n: this goes out to the three erik/magneto fans that will read this 🤧 i don't have high hopes for this but i still thought i'd give sharing it a shot. very well may end up deleting it but we will see lol

warnings/tags: a little bit of angst but mostly fluff! kissing, suggestiveness, implied smut but nothing graphic

You just keep me coming back

Something about how opposites attract

You hold me down

I'm in it for real

Love me, leave me high and dry

I'm back in your arms and I don't know why

I can't get around your magnetic field

- magnetic field by lights

It's just past dusk on a Sunday evening when he shows up on your doorstep with drenched clothes and dripping wet hair.

You knew that you were bound to see him again one day. You just didn't expect it to be here, or quite this soon.

“What are you doing here, Erik?”

You cross your arms and lean against the frame of your small cabin's front door, wrapping your cardigan tighter around yourself as you take in his appearance.

It had only been a few months since you had last seen him in D.C., but those few months had taken their toll on him. Dark circles encase his eyes that appear almost hollow.

“It always seems to rain when you're feeling particularly nervous,” he says with a half smirk. Thunder booms from above as rain beats down harder on the tin roof of your porch.

“It's Oregon,” you shrug. You concentrate on keeping your voice even. “It's rained for the last five days.”

He's not wrong. You do tend to subconsciously make it rain when you're nervous.

He chuckles under his breath, taking a step closer to you. Your breath catches in your throat.

“Do you really have to ask why I'm here?”

Now it's you who avoids his question. You have your hopes as to why he's here, but you can't bring yourself to feed into them. Not after all this time - after years of trying to move on while he was imprisoned, followed by a brief reunion during the events of Paris and D.C. that left your heart shattered all over again just a few months ago.

Can you really let yourself believe that he's simply here for you?

You raise a single hand to the side of his neck, your palm caressing the wet skin of his throat. His eyes narrow but he doesn't flinch away, only watches you curiously.

A second later, his previously soaked clothes and sopping wet hair are completely dry. He glances down, realizing what you did as you reluctantly pull your hand away from his skin. You think maybe - just maybe - a hint of disappointment flashes through his eyes at the loss of contact.

“Can't have you dripping all over my carpet,” you sigh, turning to retreat back into the house. You hear the front door click shut and you know that he's followed your lead inside.

“So, why Oregon?” He asks hesitantly as he slips his coat off and hangs it on a hook in the foyer. You turn to find him taking in the appearance of the place you've been trying to call home for the last few months. His eyes skim over the piles of books scattered throughout the small living room, and then to the bouquet of wilted zinnias on your dining room table that you had picked in hopes of making the bland space feel more lively.

“I'll answer your questions if you answer mine,” you offer, leaning against the edge of your kitchen counter. He walks to the dining room table a few feet away from you and pulls out a chair, taking a seat in front of where you stand.

“That sounds fair enough to me, darling.”

Your heart skips a beat at the familiar pet name. It feels as if it's been a lifetime since you've heard him call you that.

“I came here once as a kid,” you answer simply. “After what happened a few months ago, I couldn't bring myself to go back to New York. Charles, the mansion.. everything reminded me of you. I just needed to get away for a while.

He looks down at his lap, unable to hold your gaze. “I have so many regre–”

“Your turn,” you interrupt as you turn to the cabinet behind you. You rummage through it, gathering a tea kettle and a mug.

You aren't ready to hear his apologies. As badly as your heart has wanted to hear that he's sorry for so long, to hear him say that he regrets ever doing anything to jeopardize what the two of you had - you don't trust yourself to not crumble into a million pieces at those words now that he's sitting in your kitchen.

“How did you find me?” You ask without looking back at him. You fill the kettle with water, and bring it to a boil in seconds with the snap of your fingers.

“I'll tell you,” he says over the sharp whistle of the kettle. “But you can't laugh at me.”

You snort, pouring the boiling water over an earl grey tea bag as you try to ignore the swell of bitterness in your chest at the nostalgia of it. Memories of this exact scenario in a different time and place flash through your mind - a happier, more innocent time and place. You carry the mug over to where he sits and place it in front of him before pulling out the chair next to him.

You hold out your pinky towards him, elbow on the dining room table. He cocks an eyebrow at you.

“I pinky promise that I won't laugh at you,” you say, little finger still extended. He leans forward, lips forming a smirk as he wraps his pinky around yours. His skin is every bit as soft and warm as you remember it being and you dread the moment that he pulls away.

“I went to the mansion,” he answers with his finger still secured around yours. “I snuck into Charles’ study when no one was home and found some letters you had written to him. I saw the return address on the envelope.”

“Huh,” you muse. “I guess I see why you made me promise not to laugh.” You're not sure what you were expecting his answer to be, but you didn’t think it would be quite so… human.

“Your turn to answer a question, darling.”

Your only response is a small nod.

“Do you want me to leave?”

“No,” you answer, perhaps a bit too quickly. “I don’t.”

His posture slackens, relief taking over his features. He leans over to where your fingers are intertwined, and presses his lips to the side of your pinky finger. It has been years since his lips have touched your skin, but you melt at the familiar warmth all the same.

“Good,” he sighs in relief. His breath fans over your skin, leaving a visible trail of goosebumps over your hand. “I do not intend to leave unless you order me away.”

Your eyes burn with tears that threaten to spill over. His sudden appearance, his words, his mere presence after so much time apart is overwhelming. Despite it all, you can’t bring yourself to care about the reasons why you’ve had to spend so much time apart.

He’s here, and that’s enough for you. Everything else can be addressed in time.

You bring your free hand to his face, cupping his jawline in your palm. Your thumb skims over the stubble that graces his cheeks.

“What do we do now?” you wonder aloud. His pale eyes crinkle as he gives you the first smile that you’ve seen from him in years.

“We try to make up for lost time.”

••••••

You heat him some leftovers from the dinner you had made for yourself not long before his arrival, a bowl of chicken noodle soup and homemade bread. He scarfs the food and the tea that you'd made for him down within minutes, and then retreats to your cabin’s small bathroom to rinse off the last few days of cross-country travel. He had brought a singular duffel bag that now rests on the foot of your bed - which just so happens to be the only bed in the house, seeing as how it's a one bedroom and you live here alone.

Butterflies fill your belly at the implication. There was once a time where it never would have been a question - of course the two of you would have shared the only bed in the house. Now, doing so could very well mean diving back in too quickly and ending up broken all over again.

But then again, didn't that become a possibility the second that you opened your door to find him on your porch?

“What’s on your mind?” His soft voice sounds from behind you. You had been so lost in thought that you didn't hear him exit the bathroom and wander back down the hallway.

You turn to find him leaning against your bedroom door frame, wearing only a towel that hangs loosely from his hips. His chestnut hair still drips wet.

Your eyes flicker between him and the spare quilt that you have piled in your arms.

“You can sleep in here,” you tell him with a nod towards the bed that you'd just put a set of fresh sheets on. “I'll take the couch.”

He chuckles lowly, standing up straight as you walk towards the door, blocking your exit.

“Don't be silly. I'm not going to kick you out of your bed in your own home,” he tells you in a gentle but firm tone.

“You're not kicking me out of my bed,” you assure him. “I'm offering it to you.”

Your cheeks warm under his gaze that you struggle to hold - your eyes threatening to wander down the expanse of his chest with the rise and fall of each breath that he takes.

“It's loads comfier that whatever cot that you were sleeping on in prison, I promise,” you jab at him lightly when he doesn't respond.

He hums in consideration, taking a step closer to you.

“It's not the cot that I minded so much while I was in prison. It's the fact that any bed without you in it feels empty.”

A clap of thunder booms in the distance at the same time that your heart skips a beat.

“I'm not expecting anything to happen, darling,” he assures you lightly. “We don't even have to touch. After so much time apart, I just want to be next to you.”

You exhale a breath that you didn't realize you had been holding in, and place the quilt in your arms on the dresser right next to you.

“Don't be silly,” you repeat his sentiment from just moments ago. You take a step closer to him, now able to smell hints of Old Spice soap from his shower. “Of course you can touch me. If that's what you want.”

“If that's what I want?” He scoffs softly, inching towards you. You place your hands on his hips, walking backwards until your thighs brush against the edge of your mattress. You're lodged between him and the bed, his bare chest practically brushing against yours.

“As if I’d ever not want that.”

He raises his hands to each side of your face and tilts your head up to look at him. His thumb massages over the swell of your bottom lip, his eyes locked on your mouth.

“Erik,” you breathe, and before you can get out another word, his lips are slated over yours. You pull him flush against you by your hold on his waist.

When you close your eyes and focus solely on the feeling of his mouth moving in synchrony with yours, you forget where you're at and everything that's happened over the course of the last decade. In this moment, you're not in a run down cabin in the middle of nowhere Oregon - you're in the courtyard of the mansion and he's kissing you for the very first time.

“I missed you so much,” he whispers against your mouth when he pulls away. You raise up on your toes, pressing your lips against his one more time before pulling back to stare up at him with a smirk. You sit down on the edge of the mattress and scoot back, pulling him down with you.

“Then let's make up for lost time.”

You don’t notice it until you're drifting to sleep in each other's arms hours later, but the thunderstorm that had been raging upon his arrival had slowed to a silent, peaceful mist.

thank you for reading ♡ comments and reblogs are very much appreciated!!!

[buildingshitwithcrab]

yaaaaaaaaaaas.

There are a lot of houses in Miamisburg, Ohio that look like this from the outside. Trouble is, almost all of them have been beaten to death by the renovation blandness ugly stick, on the inside.

Unusual home custom-built for the current owner in 1974. Nothing has been changed since. It’s located in Tigard, Oregon and listed for $680K. 

Keep reading

[vaspider]

Any advice for someone thinking about moving to the Pacific Northwest?

That kinda depends on where you are moving to! Here are the things I've found useful to know about moving to Portland:

I moved from Philly, where people tend to be more kind than nice, and here, people are more nice than kind. What I mean by this is that people in Philly will call you a jagoff while pulling over to change your tire in the rain, while people in Portland will smile while they keep driving. (This isn't universal, but it's real.)

Oregon has no sales tax. You'll pay a bunch of different income taxes in April, though, so make sure you pay attention to your mail in the beginning of the year so you get all your local taxes done.

Locals tend not to use umbrellas much. I tend to not just bc the rain is rarely hard enough to require one. Get a good raincoat.

Portland was one of the first places in the US to be wired for home electricity. Therefore, the grid needs upgrades, and a lot of the big lines are not buried as they are in other places and are vulnerable to ice. Make sure you have good home batteries for when we have ice storms.

Ditto, the streets don't get treated for ice. Make sure you have good boots and YakTrax or similar.

Pedestrians don't fucking look before they step out into the street. If people acted in Philly like they act in PDX, they'd get hit. If you're driving in the PNW, act like every pedestrian is about to do the most foolish thing ever.

Ditto PNW drivers. I'd rather drive to EWR on a Friday at 5 pm than try to cross the Willamette at rush hour.

TriMet still has a lot of room for improvement, but it's a lot better than any other city I've lived in. Get your Hop set up when you get here so you know you have money on it and all, even if you don't ride often, just in case.

The Oregon Zoo membership has an exchange thing where every month there are different local places you get free admission to. Getting a membership is generally less expensive than going twice in a year, and also, there's a bunch of other stuff you can do with that membership.

Choose where you wanna live as the place you're gonna do pretty much everything. Portland is largely set up so you can do everything you need within your neighborhood, which is nice. Pretty much the only time that I leave my neighborhood is when I have to go to a specialist doctor or to hang out with my cousins who live in SW or go to a special event.

Portland has a lot of cool shit you can do in your neighborhood - honestly more than I've seen anyplace else I've lived. There are hiking groups and bike rides and soap box derbies and all kinds of shit. Join local FB groups, look for posters... you'll see 'em.

If you consume weed regularly & qualify for a medical card, get one. The taxes on marijuana add up a lot faster than you think.

Some of the best food in Portland is at the strip clubs. No, I'm not joking. There's a law in PDX that if you serve alcohol, you have to serve Real Food, which has led to bars and clubs competing over how good their food is.

Food cart pods are the shit. Research your local food cart pods. You'll get some of the best food you've ever eaten and can take a huge group of people with different food needs to a local food cart pod and just have everyone go to different carts and get their own shit.

Look into who owns your local weed store. There are good Black-owned stores, and one of the most popular "chains" is/was owned by some deeply shady people who essentially bribed one of our Secretaries of State. So it does matter.

Be nice to the crows. There is a huge huge huge local murder & crows tell other crows if you're an asshole or you're cool.

I'm sure there's more stuff, but that's what I can think of while I'm listening to a podcast and my wife is driving us home.

[busket]

gravity falls rant, cw sexual assault and harassment

seeing the gf fandom do a full 180 on billford is so odd to see and kind of infuriating because I had so many nasty rumors and lies spread about me in 2015-2018 because I liked them as bitter exes. a callout google doc was made and I never read it, but I know it framed me as a creep and an abuser. all because I thought a cartoon nerd and a triangle had a fascinating dynamic that was dark and compelling

in 2017 or 2018 someone sent like 70 messages to my curiouscat just repeating RAPIST RAPIST RAPIST RAPIST over and over again. I'd never even had sex at that point, and I had just cut my dad out of my life for actually being a pedophile and a rapist. so that was traumatizing! that really hurt me!

I also know it was because I had a NSFW account where i drew porn (i was an adult, i was clear i only wanted adults following me. and I still do draw nsfw, I'm not ashamed of that now but these folks made me ashamed of it for years) that included some porn of trans men, like Stanley or Stanford as trans men (NEVER together bc I've always been staunchly against incest or pedophilia ships) and these people framed me as a transphobe and a transmasc fetishist

well obviously I'm a trans man now and I didn't know it at the time but those drawings were a way to explore my own relationship with gender. I even look like Stan and Ford now, obviously i latched on to them as trans men because I wanted to BE them. but I believed it when people called me a piece of shit, I assumed all trans people would despise me too and I'd committed a horrible sin and it forced me back in the closet for another 5 years.

the people doing this were teenagers at the time, a few I thought were my friends/mutuals, and they made that part of my life kinda miserable. I was already miserable with other shit going on in my life. I ignored most of the harassment to make myself uninteresting and to avoid the possibility of becoming a lolcow but it involved anonymous messages both on tumblr and curiouscat, I even got a few emails just mocking me. even in 2019 when some people were like "oh yeah she's moved on to moomin, this is what her art looks like now, I can't look at it without thinking about how much she loves rape :/" which was NEVER true!!! I liked Ford and Bill as bitter exes but it was always consensual in my mind.

Anyway I don't ever expect or even want an apology. I'm sure they don't realize what an effect that harassment had on me during literally the darkest years of my life. to them they were just teasing a weird girl on the internet for fun, or very seriously warning their friends against whom they'd been lied to about being an abuser, but I was a closeted trans man trying to finish college, my home life was abysmal and abusive, I hated myself, i hated my body, my only friends were online, and when I'd log on for some escapism I was met with another message like "hey, you should block this person. they're saying some really cruel things about you on their account. I know it's not true but it looks like some people are believing it."

gravity falls was so important to me as a show since oregon is my home and it felt so authentic to my own childhood being interested in cryptids and going camping and visiting shit like the Oregon vortex as a child. but the fandom was the worst I've ever been in. it ruined my enjoyment of media online for years. so idk. I guess I feel somewhat vindicated but it would also be nice to get those years back and not be harassed and bullied online about something so stupid and unimportant

[literaryvein-reblogs]

words to use instead of air/wind?

Air—the mixture of invisible odorless tasteless gases (such as nitrogen and oxygen) that surrounds the earth

Wind—a natural movement of air of any velocity

Airflow - a flow of air; especially: the motion of air (as around parts of an airplane in flight) relative to the surface of a body immersed in it

Airstream - a current of air

Billow - to bulge or swell out (as through action of the wind)

Blast - a violent gust of wind

Blow - an instance of air moving with speed or force; a blowing of wind especially when strong or violent

Bluster - a violent boisterous blowing

Breath - a slight breeze; air inhaled and exhaled in breathing

Breeze - a light gentle wind

Buran - a northeasterly wind of gale force in Russia and central Asia usually identified with sandstorms in summer and blizzards in winter

Chinook - a warm moist southwest wind of the coast from Oregon northward; a warm dry wind that descends the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains

Current - the part of a fluid body (such as air or water) moving continuously in a certain direction

Cyclone - a storm or system of winds that rotates about a center of low atmospheric pressure, advances at a speed of 20 to 30 miles (about 30 to 50 kilometers) an hour, and often brings heavy rain

Draft - a current of air in a closed-in space

Eddy - a current of water or air running contrary to the main current; especially: a circular current

Flatus - gas generated in the stomach or bowels

Flurry - a gust of wind

Gale - a strong current of air

Gas - a fluid (such as air) that has neither independent shape nor volume but tends to expand indefinitely

Gust - a sudden brief rush of wind

Headwind - a wind having the opposite general direction to a course of movement (as of an aircraft)

Mistral - a strong cold dry northerly wind of southern France

Northeaster - a strong northeast wind

Norther - a strong north wind

Northwester - a strong northwest wind

Puff - an act or instance of puffing; whiff

Respiration - the movement of air or dissolved gases into and out of the lungs

Scud - a gust of wind

Sigh - the sound of gently moving or escaping air

Slipstream - a stream of fluid (such as air or water) driven aft by a propeller

Southeaster - a strong southeast wind

Southwester - a strong southwest wind

Squall - a sudden violent wind often with rain or snow

Storm - wind having a speed of 64 to 72 miles (103 to 117 kilometers) per hour

Stream - any body of flowing fluid (such as water or gas)

Tailwind - a wind having the same general direction as a course of movement (as of an aircraft)

Tempest - a violent storm; a disturbance of the atmosphere accompanied by wind and often by precipitation (as rain or snow)

Tornado - a violent destructive whirling wind accompanied by a funnel-shaped cloud that progresses in a narrow path over the land

Updraft - an upward movement of gas (such as air)

Uprush - an upward rush (as of gas or liquid)

Vapor - a substance in the gaseous state as distinguished from the liquid or solid state

Ventilation - circulation of air

Waft - a slight breeze; puff

Westerly - a wind from the west

Whiff - a quick puff or slight gust especially of air, odor, gas, smoke, or spray

Whirlwind - a small rotating windstorm of limited extent

Williwaw - a sudden violent wind

Windblast - a gust of wind

Windflaw - a gust of wind

Windstorm - a storm marked by high wind with little or no precipitation

Zephyr - a breeze from the west

Hope this helps with your writing. Do tag me, or send me a link. I'd love to read your work!

More: Word Lists

[spookberry]

Question about half normal AU: I know Danny was present during the Haunted high arc, but does Tucker and Danny appear in any of the other movie arcs (Boo York Boo York, freaky fusion, etc) or are they living their best lives away from all the freaky situations Draculaura and co. Finds themselves in?

Btw love the AU and your artworks! Your style is so cute.

Its kinda tricky cuz Monster High doesn't really have an exact timeline? (Tho DP is worse about this) Some things happen before others obvi just cuz of the appearance of certain characters and their introductions. If you do go by movie releases, Boo York and Scarrier Reef are the only ones that haven't happened yet.

If I wanted to make an accurate timeline for when each movie happened I think I'd need to rewatch them all right now ajxkab. Just know Frankie is a year old at this point.

Half Normie AU starts in January on a full moon(i havent drawn this part tbh) and then shortly after Tucker moves to Oregon where he winds up enrolled at Monster High. A few weeks later in February is when Haunted happens.

I havent really considered if the DP gang would wind up involved in the plots of Boo York or Scarrier Reef tbh. Danny would be so excited about the Crystal Comet though... Regardless I do really want them to be around for the 2nd Halloween Celebration!

[zombielesbean]

as someone who currently lives in the desert I've been thinking a lot about this phenomenon of people thinking the desert is entirely barren and devoid of life, and I think people get their idea of what a desert is exclusively from the sahara, which is almost entirely sand and nothing, but that's because it receives zero precipitation for sometimes multiple years at a time, but the thing is the sahara is pretty unique, there's really essentially two places on earth experiencing that level of extremely dry weather, and the other one is antarctica, tho honestly antarctica is the more extreme of the two, like. even the sahara is not devoid of life

most deserts have lush ecosystems full of all kinds of plants and animals, like. the desert I live in is an amazing place to be if you love animals for instance, I came from oregon and it's very hard to spot animals aside from birds and squirrels there, because they have so much underbrush and such to hide in, but as soon as I moved here where the cover is more sparse, I started seeing so so many animals, lots of snakes and lizards and all sorts of interesting insects, and even rabbits and bats, all of these I'd only see extremely rarely in oregon, like I'd only ever spotted like three rabbits ever and only like. one bat, and all the snakes were just garter snakes

but anyway yea the desert is extremely cool and I actually really like it here

[sirdeln]

I was lucky enough to be able to attend the Lord of the Rings musical in Chicago earlier this week and was SO DELIGHTED. I can't stop thinking about it and talking my friends' ears off and wanted to write down all of my thoughts!  Here's my review under the cut :)

A brief background on the musical for those unfamiliar: In the 2000s LOTR excitement was high! This musical originally premiered in 2006 in Toronto and moved to the West End in London the next year. It was extremely expensive to produce and included a massive cast, full orchestral pit, and large, complicated sets. It consequently lost a lot of money. Bummer!!! I did not see this production as I was 8 and living in Oregon at the time. 

Last year (2023) the musical was reworked into a new production for the Watermill Theatre with a smaller cast, more intimate feel, and notably, all the musician/actors on stage. It received generally positive reviews and presumably was commercially successful, because Chicago Shakespeare Theater announced it would be hosting the same production with a new cast this year. Of course I rushed to buy tickets, because I never thought I'd get to see any version of the LOTR musical (and also I lived in Chicago for a short time and love it there 😊 ).  

Of course, there are some necessary plot changes and abbreviations to fit the story of the whole trilogy into a 2 hour and 45 minute musical. Most notably Rohan is entirely absent. No Eowyn :,(, no Eomer, and no Helm's Deep. Theoden and Denethor are combined into one character, "The Steward," which I think works fairly well. There's one large battle between the armies of men and the forces of Sauron, and there's an inserted argument between Frodo and Sam, similar to the movies.  

Unlike the movies, the scouring of the Shire does occur, although we don't actually see Saruman at the end of the show. I think that to someone unfamiliar with the story, it would be a little confusing, especially because it's full of unexplained names, other references to Middle Earth, and singing in elvish, but ultimately I think it's pretty impressive that they've created a mostly coherent plot that's the length of a normal show! 

I'll caveat that I went into this already an opera/musical theater appreciator (although I've only ever been involved in productions playing in the pit, I am certainly no actor). I was really hoping to be pleased based on everything I had heard about last year's UK show and my positive opinion of the old cast recording.  

On to specifics about the Chicago show!  

The cast is extremely impressive. Basically everyone on stage is a quadruple threat; acting, singing, dancing, AND playing instruments. The casting call posted earlier this year made me so curious because it seemed so specific (here it is for those who are curious: https://www.theatreinchicago.com/auditions/industrydetail.php?AuditionID=10319), but they really managed to find Suzanne Hannau, who sings, dances, and acts as Rosie Cotton all while playing piccolo, flute, and recorder (and possibly tin whistle? Tin whistle heads out there, let me know).  

Standout members of the cast are Alina Jenine Taber as Arwen, who gave my favorite vocal performance of the show. She is a perfect Arwen and blends easily with Will James Jr.'s Aragorn in their second act duet. Also she learned harp for the role! Will James Jr. as Aragorn is excellent casting as well. He totally pulls of the humble gravitas of Aragorn and I actually prefer his voice to the Aragorn in the 2008 cast recording.  

More flowers go to Rick Hall, who made a perfect, lovely Bilbo (and is double cast as the Steward), and Spencer Davis Milford as Frodo. His acting chops are WILD! Special mention goes to Ben Mathew as Pippin. He is a truly wonderful cellist and gives a noticeably excellent musical performance while acting and dancing! With a cello strapped to his front! Crazy good!! Generally though the whole cast is excellent. 

Here are my small gripes. These are less flaws, and more things that I would have done differently were I for some reason in charge. Lauren Zakrin plays Galadriel and is an extremely talented singer, but IMO her vocal style is much too "Broadway show tune" for Galadriel. "Lothlorien" is one of my favorite tracks in the show, and while she totally rocks it, I prefer a more ethereal sound for this role.  

Tony Bozzuto brings an incredibly impressive physicality to Gollum (climbing down ropes into the audience, swinging fully around ladders 20 feet up in the air type of stuff) but I think using an Andy Serkis Gollum voice and movie Gollum look is a directorial mistake. Bozzuto does a great job with what he's given, but the Serkis Gollum voice made the audience (at least the night I went) react to Gollum as if he was a comedic character rather than a tragic one. It also slightly cheapens the emotional impact of “Now and For Always,” which is hugely unfortunate. He would say incredibly sad things but the goofy voice made people laugh. 

UK correspondent and subject expert @lotrmusical tells me this wasn’t an issue at the Watermill. The voice wasn’t as much a Serkis-specific voice and worked more with pathos. I also think using the movie Gollum look is a missed opportunity to do something really cool and unique with the character – imagine if they'd gone with a cartoon froggy type Gollum or come up with their own original look! 

My final qualm is a musical qualm. The new orchestration is extremely impressive in that it creates a very similar sound to a full orchestral pit (I've read it was 60 musicians?) with a MUCH smaller group and mostly sounds very very good. Having the actors as the instrumentalists on stage works really well in creating the folk story vibe, and fits with the framing device of this show; it's hobbits telling you their version of this story.  

But a couple of moments are weird. Harmonica during an Aragorn/Arwen love scene is a wack choice, and same for accordion representing wizard magic. There are a few issues with intonation, balance (sorry brass players), and ensemble. I think this is inevitable when your instrumentalists are playing simultaneously to acting, moving across the stage, and performing choreography. To be clear, in no way is this the fault of the musicians themselves, but it's a pretty unavoidable side effect of this staging: you just aren't going to play perfectly together if you're standing 40 feet away from each other and your instruments are individually mic'd. 

@lotrmusical tells me this also wasn’t a problem for the Watermill, maybe because it’s a much smaller venue than Chicago; very possibly these small problems arise from a combination of the Yard at Chicago Shakespeare Theater being a larger/more difficult space and from my seeing the show in its first week. It may resolve itself as it progresses! Personally I think the staging is worth these minor issues because the folk atmosphere works so well with the story, but it's worth pointing out.  

Okay, time for all the stuff I loved!  

I mentioned the folk element of this staging briefly and this angle works really well for LOTR. There's a framing device of hobbits telling this tale to you with ensemble cast members at times narrating, and I think it's a great fit for the story. It creates a feeling of intimacy that I really loved, and that feeling is enhanced by some interactive moments with the audience.  

When I entered the theater, the stage is set for Bilbo's birthday party. There's a beautiful party tree revealed by the backdrop, a large banner proclaims the occasion, and bunting is flying out above the audience. Hobbit actors came out into the audience and interacted with us, playing games and chatting, while Bilbo made the rounds on each level to greet his "party guests". It really effectively transitions the audience into the world of middle earth, and I'll admit to tearing up when everyone sang happy birthday to Bilbo.  

(screenshot from official trailer)

The stagecraft maintains the immersion throughout the show. The lighting design incorporates lights flashing straight out at the audience for a few dramatic moments (there are epilepsy warnings on the website and program for a good reason) and characters move swiftly up and down the aisles throughout the show. Gollum climbs down a rope from the gallery at the beginning of the second act, and the Nazgul snap and prowl around the audience.  

Speaking of the Nazgul, the PUPPETS in this show are totally stunning. Shelob is an absolutely massive puppet that emerges from the back of the stage and moves extremely realistically, and the ringwraiths are glowing, articulated skeletal horse heads, each moving with a dark cloaked puppeteer. The Nazgul are absolute showstoppers; it's impossible to convey the way they move and look under the stage lights, but it was totally enthralling. I could watch just them for ages. The puppet designer is Charlie Tymms, website here if you're curious: https://www.charlietymms.co.uk/ 

(screenshots from official trailer)

The lighting, choreography, and sound design are all fantastic and combine to create a really magical feeling. The best way to get a feel for this is in the short trailer released by Chicago Shakespeare Theater, but even that doesn't really convey how cool it was in person. The fight and dance choreography is super impressive as well. I'm a big believer in the importance of lighting design for live theater, and this production is maybe the best I've seen. Some favorite moments are Galadriel and Lothlorien's swirling, twinkling gold effect, the spotlight and freeze when Frodo puts on the ring, and the projection onto vertical cloth streamers for the Bruinen water horses.  

(Liz Lauren via playbill)

Overall, I loved my experience and if I lived locally, I would go see it a second time. If all goes well and they tour this production, I will absolutely be there if it comes closer to me. This show is clearly made by people who love the Lord of the Rings, and that love absolutely shines through.  

I think you will enjoy this production if you love the atmosphere of the Lord of the Rings and you like the music in the show. You'll enjoy this if you love theater and stagecraft, or don't know much about the Lord of the Rings but are ok with being a little confused/ready to be along for the ride. I think a person who is primarily a film fan and loves the epic battles of LOTR would perhaps not have a great time, and a person who knows that they don't enjoy or aren't immersed by theater would also not have a good time.  

If you're thinking of attending, you should check out the trailer from Chicago Shakespeare Theater:

the cast recording from the west end 2008:

and Mickey Jo Theatre's review of the Watermill production:

Most of what Mickey Jo Theatre says about the Watermill show is applicable to the Chicago production. The trailer and cast recording will give you a sense of the show as a whole (although of course the orchestration is significantly changed), but the overall sound is much the same. 

I'm certainly not an expert, but feel free to reach out if you are thinking of attending or have any questions! I'd also love to hear from/compare notes with anyone who saw the Watermill production from last year 😊 

A huge thank you to @lotrmusical for checking my facts and telling me about their experience with the Watermill show!!! you rock!

[oatyarn]

been really blessed in terms of yarn lately: my friend and his family just moved to oregon, and his mom is a knitter and also dyes and sells her own yarns. while packing to move she gathered two huge storage totes full of skeins she didn't want enough to go through the trouble of moving, and she gifted them to me!!! its all very nice stuff, merino wool and cotton primarily, and a lot of it is her own dyed yarn. it all came as skeins, though, not wound into balls, and i didn't have a yarn winder and sure as shit wasn't going to ask the nice ladies at the local yarn store to wind any of that for free.

so i did go down to the yarn store on my day off, and asked after winders - specified i didn't need anything fancy, something small would do, the most budget friendly option preferably.

then i mentioned my friends mom by name, explained why i had a need for a winder all the sudden, because i've always just bought yarn there and had them wind it for me. and the lady working there goes, "y'know, i have a pretty nice winder at home that's just sitting collecting dust since i really just use the one here at the shop. it cost about a hundred bucks, but i could just give it to you. i'd rather it go somewhere where it would get some use than sit around and collect dust."

and so two days later i went back and she gave it to me! fully assembled as well, all i had to do was clamp it to my desk and get going. i don't have a swift, so it's a little tricky, but my setup means i am able to use my knees as a makeshift swift, so it's working out! i've wound six skeins into balls so far and i'm super excited to do more.

[goodluckclove]

Eulogy for Kafka

Hey, friends.

So at this point I've accepted that my thirteen year old tabby Kafka is likely dead. She was the king of our household, a noble individual who loved me, my wife, and no one else, and in tribute I'd like to talk about her. Join me under the read more to say goodbye to my best friend for so much of my life.

I was told you were on the verge of death when they found you. Half-starved in a field in Gilroy, California, you were nursed back to health and then adopted by my parents from the shelter as a replacement for the cat that fell before you. You were small, fully-matured yet looking still akin to an older kitten. I named you Kafka - both after the writer, and after a cat from a failed young adult novel I wrote a few years beforehand.

Kafka, your hobbies included knocking the books out of my bookshelves, scratching up my records, and at one point pulling cords from their sockets. You screamed constantly whenever I left my bedroom, to the point where I questioned whether I'd ever be able to move.

But I did move. I took you with me to Portland, Oregon, on a long car ride where you smushed your face up against the netting of your carrier. And then I brought you a few miles from that first apartment into a studio of our very own, where you ruled over the domain and once slept by my clawfoot tub as I cried in the bath. After that it was to the apartment of my now-wife, who you hesitated around the proximity of before falling fully in love.

We were hoping the house we bought together would be your final stop on this road trip. But you had other plans. After refusing to step outside your home for thirteen years, you ducked out when we weren't looking and were set loose in the suburban streets of Portland.

This hurt me at first. i wept imagining you cold and scared and alone, huddled under some bush and wishing things were different. Then something in me changed. Because you refused to go outside as a matter of principle, didn't you? I'd carry you in my arms and step out into the parking lot as a goof and you'd let out that familiar low-tone grumble.

You started peeking by the open doorway when I brought my bike in, and I'd laugh. Where do you think you're going? I'd say, almost tauntingly.

Now? You might've been thinking. No no, not now.

Wife told me last night they were giving you scratches and pets, and for the first time since I moved in, you started purring loudly. They said this a few time, suggesting they were moved and haunted by the moment.

Now, you might've decided then. Now it's okay.

I used to say you were once feral - since rehabilitated and reformed. But that was never true. You were always a feral cat, Kafka. You just found two people that you loved enough to protect and a home you felt fit to reign over. But in the moments when your biological clock told you things were ending, you did not die the king you were in life. No, you dove bac out into the wild and pitter-pattered across the damp grass and sidewalk. A beast. A warrior.

You might've ended up cold and wet, but I bet after a life of warmth and comfort that must've thrilled you. You understood the dirt, the dirt you almost died in, and maybe a part of you was certain that you would be best suited to end your time here in the arms of the earth that birthed you.

For thirteen years I was your parent. I cried into your fur. You licked your tongue across my cheek until the skin was raw. I held you up by the arm pits and made you do a little dance. You slept on my pillow and took up two-thirds of that pillow.

You saw me out of my abusive household. You saw me through terrible relationships and lonely night after lonely night. And, ultimately, you saw me to my wife.

You met my wife. You considered them. You sat on their chest and hissed when they tried to move you to get up. And gradually you understood that they were safe. The brought you toys and you actually played with them. We would go to bed at two in the morning and hear you shouting at your mouse friend Carl for upwards of twenty minutes.

If one of us came out you would look up at us so innocently. Proudly, almost. We'd congratulate you on a good hunt, because you are at your core a feral creature.

I trust you waited to leave until you knew we would be okay. You would always keep us company whenever we were upset - we'd call it Spaghetti Time, although I don't know why. And I do think we'll be okay.

For now it hurts. I wish I could've been there. I wanted you to choose ultimately, but I wanted you to choose to be with me. I'm selfish in that way, I guess.

I don't hold faith in ghosts, but I'm confident your presence will stick around our family. Based on how insistent you were on always sitting on my lap, grumbling anytime I moved too much, I don't believe you have much interest in crossing over as they say.

Bob and Nipsy will be housecats now. I bet you told them about sunbeams, and maybe the joys of hiding in cabinets. You did a great job teaching Bob on how to be a proper tabby cat. He lounged in between Riley and myself this morning, calm and sweet. Almost like he knew.

I'm going to circle the neighborhood soon to see if I can find any sign of you. If not, when we get a house the first thing we do is going to be to plant a tree in the yard in your honor. Something that flowers. I was thinking dogwood.

Thank you, Kafka. Thank you for loving me unconditionally for twelve years of my life. I will do everything I can to live in a way that respects and honors the effort you put into keeping me going.

I will love you so completely for the rest of my life. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

[hometoursandotherstuff]

Okay, guys, this is your opportunity to buy a house on the coast of the Pacific Ocean, well, the Columbia River, they call it, and it feeds into the ocean, (the pink paint is peeling on the outside - could be the salty air from the ocean - but the inside is remodeled), plus your own crematory business for only $660K. 1892 Victorian home with 6bds, 6ba, (room for everybody), in Astoria, Oregon.

So, this is the business- you have a conference table next to the display wall.

Newly redone customer rest room.

Plus an office. Looks like they're pretty busy.

I'm thinking the oven is somewhere in this cement garage- maybe down those stairs.

Hall to the family quarters. They've done it all in the popular gray and white.

The original pocket doors remain and they put in new floors. Pardon the family, they're very disorganized.

I don't think I'd trust them for not mixing up all the ashes. Unless they're organizing a moving sale in here.

Dining area and a smallish, but open and clean white kitchen.

The rooms are large, but I don't think this one was meant to be a bedroom, b/c of the large open doorways.

The bedrooms look pretty big.

Bathroom is redone. Too bad they don't use the sink.

Could be a nice enclosed back porch.

6,534 sq ft corner lot.

Only about 3 blocks to the river.

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1229-1213-Franklin-Ave-Astoria-OR-97103/86304836_zpid/

[pacificnorthwesterngothic]

moved to the Portland area recently and was wondering if u or any of your followers had recommendations for what hikes to check out first? Thanks!

Hey, welcome to the PNW!

In case you didn't grow up hiking, I'd be failing you if I didn't first link to the Leave No Trace principles website as well as an FYI on the ancient hiking rule, "cotton kills."

Oregon Hikers is a good resource, with a "Find a Hike!" page that lets you filter by features like "family hikes" and "loop hikes."

60 Hikes Within 60 Miles: Portland is a classic. The author, Paul Gerard, has been writing about hiking for almost two decades. And he has a blog!

I'm personally partial to guides published by Mountaineers Books. They let their authors have a bit of fun, so you get a sense of the author's personality, which is good for helping you judge their ratings systems and advice.

AllTrails has live trail condition reports from users, so I'd strongly recommend using it in conjunction with any of the resources listed above!

Pardon me if the following is all known to you, but... check the websites of whoever manages the trails you pick. That'll tell you about road and trail closures, as well as heads-up about things like cougar sightings. Calling or visiting ranger stations will also get you up-to-date expert tips (like when the black flies or mosquitos have hatched). And, once you get into longer/harder hikes, don't forget to bring a map or GaiaGPS.

I hope that helps and I hope others will chime in with their own advice!