#Love is Blind UK couples who got married

[afabstract]

Love Is Blind: UK Reunion Reveals Who's Still Together

Six couples dressed in wedding finery in season one of "Love Is Blind: UK" to marry the love of their lives, but only three pairs said "I do!" The "Love Is Blind: UK" reunion episode reveals who's still together a year after the show.

Follow us on Twitter | Instagram “Love Is Blind: UK” had a pretty successful run—three couples ended up walking down the aisle, looking very much in love as they made their vows and promised to spend the rest of their lives together. However, getting married within a month of knowing each other comes with its own unique challenges. The reunion episode of “Love Is Blind: UK” takes a look at what…

[litgwritersroom]

There's a challenge in UK Love Island called a Snogathon where the boys are blindfolded and have to rate the girls kissing skills (but could switch it around). While it doesn't necessarily focus on one couple, that could be an interesting way to introduce drama and be a fun write, so for any season, any point in time, write that.

R.E.M.

S3 | Seb/MC | 4100+ words | @crimswnred

"Islanders, it's challenge time! Time to play Snogathon. The boys'll be blindfolded as the girls take it in turns to snog each of them, doing their best to impress. Lads, prepare to have your faces well and truly shifted off, it's snogging time! #gameon #tongueswagging"

Poppy tugged her hair behind her ear. Two weeks ago she would be probably telling you that there was no way in hell that she would be kissing random boys for imaginary points which were worth less than nothing. Being a timid introvert had always made her the weak link not only on the Island but in real life too. Her friends would always tell her she should try and put herself more "out there" and make "big decisions" without needing to think twice. That was the main reason she was on Love Island, after all.

From day one, she had chosen Camilo. He seemed the easier boy to get along with — Seb and Nicky were already coupled up, Harry reminded her too much of college fuckboys and Bill talked too much — and he showed some interest in her back. He was a nice, family-centred boy but unfortunately, his attention was divided. 

When the blonde bombshell, Iona, made her decision to pick him, Poppy wasn't surprised. Iona had made a point of showing how much she wanted to get to know him and they even had a small talk on the terrace about him. It wasn't long until she picked him and Poppy was left single.

Instead of being dumped as everyone was expecting, though, Poppy got to stay. She should graft on the other boys yet she gravitated back towards Camilo. He always said the right thing at the right time, about how he wanted to stay in a couple with her, how it didn't make a difference if they were together or not. That Iona wasn't his priority.

And Poppy tried to believe it but there was always this little whisper in the back of her mind telling her he was lying. Sweet talking. Seb told her she was being silly. Of course, Camilo would want to couple up with her, he would say. According to the older man, she was sweet like honey, fresh like a breeze and probably the only girl there who could actually build a real relationship. Except for Elladine, after all, she was basically married to Nicky.

Seb always had a way to lift up her spirits. He was as quiet as her but every time he spoke, he really had something to say. She found him incredible, fascinating, to say the least, and the more she learnt about him the more she adored him. If there was one thing to be grateful for in Love Island, it was her friendship with Seb.

"Ok, the rules are super simple," Iona said out loud while standing next to the whiteboard with the girls' names in a horizontal line and the boys' names in a vertical one. She was wearing a purple one-piece that hugged her curves and had a cut right between her breasts, the wedges she had on made her a few centimetres taller. Her body looked like a sculpture under the sun and even Poppy could admit that.

It didn't matter how much Seb or Camilo tried to convince her, there was no way someone would look at Iona and choose Poppy. Camilo was either blind or liked his girl bland and, to be honest, Poppy didn't know which option was more offensive. She had nothing on Iona. Not even her big fluffy blonde hair with pink ends that she had dyed only to look cooler was close enough to Iona's pixie cut. She outdid Poppy in every category possible.

"The girls will snog every boy," Iona kept explaining the rules, inciting a fit of giggles in the girls. "And the boys, blindfolded and with noise-cancelling headphones, will rate each kiss from 1 to 10."

"Can we keep the blindfold for later?" Camilo shouted to the void, getting nothing but some nudges from the boys around him, some masculine laughs of approval and Iona's highly flirty giggle. Oh, great.

"Calm down, now, tiger," Iona purred. "And put your headphones on!"

Poppy watched Camilo roar laughter as he adjusted his headphones before she felt the cold touch of Elladine's hand on her shoulder. She turned to her, catching a glimpse of every other girl there staring back with pitiful looks in their eyes. Poor Poppy, she could almost hear them saying, not interesting enough to keep her boy's attention for more than a week. What a shame!

"Now, the first girl, please!" Iona called, pointing at Miki.

Miki untangled herself from AJ and climbed down the stairs of the patio until she was in front of the first boy, Harry, in her ugly velvet green heels she insisted on using even after Iona had told her they were not that cute. Poppy hugged Genevieve, in a way of giving back the empathy she had just shared, but the older woman was just smiling. A wild, totally fake smile that didn't fade out. Not even when Miki was really kissing Harry.

When they parted, Harry screwed his face to a thoughtful look. "Not that firm but also a little awkward… a solid 7."

Before those ugly shoes stepped toward the next boy, Miki frowned and mouthed what seemed to Poppy like an outrageous "a seven?". She shook her head and moved to Nicky, who seemed pretty scared of the whole challenge rather than just Miki.

Both Viv and Poppy got closer to Ella as they watched her kiss Nicky's face off. It was weird, at best, and he was so obviously trying to not make any contact, with both his arms glued to the sides of his torso  — loyalty at best. 

In the end, when they broke apart, he wiped his mouth and said, "Lips too harsh and the kiss was too forceful… I'll give it a 5."

The next boy was Camilo. Poppy watched as her couple and Miki messily kissed each other and she wondered if Camilo was always that ugly of a kisser. Oh, my god, did the public think the same? What if it was some kind of a meme? She frowned at that thought before her eyes caught something else.

Seb's shoulders were shaking and he had his hand over his mouth. It took her some time to finally click. He was laughing. She couldn't say it wasn't on brand for him to be laughing. She wondered if he was laughing at the scores or if Camilo was also a loud kisser. She needed to ask him about that later.

"Messy and… moist," Camilo said when Miki pulled apart again, "I'll have to give it a 6."

Miki huffed, not even thinking before moving to Bill. This time around, though, the kiss seemed more natural, showing how well they knew each other. Their bodies fit together like puzzle pieces and Poppy guessed that was as far as romanticism could go in a challenge like this.

"Magical," Bill complimented as he let Miki's waist go. "Soft without losing the passion and tasted like mangoes. I love it. 9."

With a little squeal, Miki allowed herself to celebrate before she moved to the last boy. Seb. Poppy had to hold back a laugh as she watched them awkwardly kiss. As expected, though, their kiss lasted less than half the others.

Poppy knew the girls weren't so keen on getting to know Seb as they were with the other boys, after all, he had all that goth vibe going plus he was the oldest islander that season. Still, she never got why they saw those as anything but qualities.

"Three," Seb smirked, drawing gasps from all the girls. "Sorry, not my type of kiss." Yeah, that wouldn't make him more likeable. It was funny though.

Miki returned to her place next to the other girls, shoulders slumped. The others tried to cheer her with a shower of positive comments and justifications, like "It was just 'cause you were the first, huh!" and "You'll see, at least you weren't the last one!"

Elladine was called next and she did the same path as Miki had done. She got an 8 from Harry, a 10 from Nicky — Poppy wondered if the boys were recognizing their couples —, an 8 from Camilo and a nine from Bill. For some reason, Poppy's heart was still beating loud when she kissed Seb.

"5." He said when she stepped back. "A little weird and definitely not natural at all."

Well, that was better than three! Poppy thought as she watched Elladine only shake her head humorously and roll her eyes. She then left the lines of boys and made her way back to the girls.

The girls clapped as she returned, congratulations flooded her, even from Miki — although it seemed to be a little bit fake and jealous. They once again showered the returning girls with compliments and comments saying how hard Seb was to please. Poppy called him a brat, earning a few laughs and easing the tension between them.

AJ was next — 6, 6, 7, 8 and 6, in order — and then Genevieve — 10, 7, 8, 7 and 7, also in order —, making Poppy and Iona the only girls left. Yet, for some reason, Poppy had a feeling Iona wouldn't want to be last.

"Now the next girl," Iona said but didn't call anyone. Instead, she tiptoed to the beginning of the boy's line, trying to be as smooth as she possibly could.

She kissed Harry with all the passion she could have for someone she never looked twice. He seemed to like it, though, and, with a smile, she kissed her back. It lasted for a while before she pulled apart.

"Oh, wow," Harry commented, blushing. "Firm, confident, sexy… 9," he announced with a smile on his face.

Iona smiled back, only sparing an a-second-long look at Genevive, who had her arms crossed now. Poppy wondered if there was something happening there. It would make sense, after all, Iona was a single islander and the first bombshell, the reason for the girls to tremble and for couples to see their ruin. And, well, Harry wasn't that devoted to his couple, was he?

She moved to Nicky, and they kissed. Opposite to Harry, after a while, Nicky got stiffer, and the kiss ended soon after. She frowned, pulling back, and he awkwardly shuffled on his feet. "Sorry," he sighed, looking away even though he was blindfolded. "Hm… it was… brief… short but sweet, an 8."

And then, it was Camilo. 

She wasted no time before kissing him. Mouth open, tongue in, making Camilo almost jump in surprise but he quickly recomposed. He kissed her back with the same fury, the same passion, nearly as if he had recognized her. Hand on her waist, falling almost too perfectly.

That was when it hit Poppy.

He had recognized her. They all had. She had a tongue piercing. They all could recognise her as soon as they tasted the metal nob against them. Camilo kissed Iona passionately knowing it was her. Actually, it looked like he knew exactly what to do with her mouth and Poppy wondered if they ever had done it before. Behind her back. 

And then, they broke apart. "Exactly what I was expecting," Camilo remarked, voice dopey. "Bold, but soft at the same time. 10," he announced, at last. Oh, now Poppy was pissed.

Bill was next. He just wasn't that hard to please, to be honest, and he once again gave a 10 to their kiss with the commentary that it was good enough without being messy. The bar was low with that boy, Poppy concluded, a little more anxious now. Just imagine if she was the only one with a low score from Bill…

That's when a familiar voice invaded her mind. "You're thinking too much!"

She turned her attention to the boys again. Seb was next and Poppy's heart was beating so loud. Was that because she was mad? Was that because Iona didn't have a score lower than eight until now? 

Iona kissed Seb, clearly doing her best to impress him. Almost as in instinct, Poppy raised her thumb to her lips, biting its fingertips. Seb looked unphased — but again, when did he not? It didn't take too long for him to break the kiss.

"Not the best kiss I ever had but well, I guess we win some and lose some," he commented, making Iona scowl. "A 5, I guess."

Sebastian was a fucking bitch but Poppy would be lying if she said she didn't love it.

Iona happily made her way back to her board and took note of her score. The biggest so far with 42 points, followed by Elladine with 40 and Viv with 39. AJ was next with 33 and then Miki, with 30. Poppy just prayed she wouldn't be lower than Miki.

"And the last girl…"

Following the cue, Poppy made her way to stand in front of Harry. She had her hair tied in a ponytail, so they couldn't feel it and was wearing her plain yellow bikini, so they couldn't feel any extra texture. She was usually shorter than the other girls, but she made a point of using high heels so the boys couldn't notice the difference.

Breath in, breath out, she got closer to Harry. He was thinner than most boys and also shorter than the rest but she kinda enjoyed the small height difference. She held his face between her palms and finished that torture, her heart beating like crazy from the adrenaline rush.

She kissed Harry for the first time ever. He tasted a little like a fruit salad, a mix of all the other girl's chapsticks, but she learnt to enjoy the taste against her lips. She would be lying if she said she wasn't a little self-conscious at first, her nerves testing her abilities, but soon enough she had let herself melt into the kiss. She was enjoying herself so much, she was smiling mid-kiss,

With a peck, she broke the kiss off and took a step back. Harry was silent for a second, looking like he was thinking way too much about the score. "Can I give her a halved score?"

The girls gasped and the boys whispered between them. Poppy just realized why after Iona stated: "You need to give her between one and ten, a half is lower than one."

"No!" Harry bit his lower lip. "Sorry, I meant… Can I give her nine and a half?"

Now, the girls were the ones whispering between them. Iona frowned and caught Poppy's eye, who only had a tiny little smile playing on the corner of her lips. "I am afraid you'll have to choose between nine and ten."

Harry puckered his lips. "Fine. Yeah, no… It was really good… And I have no idea who this is…" Harry giggled like a schoolboy. "Fuck it. 10, then."

The boys clapped at the score, causing Poppy to blush, even if they couldn't see her. She moved to the next one, doing her best to not be recognised — after all, that was the whole point of the game, right? 

Poor Nick was once again stiff as a rock, looking like he wanted to be anywhere except there. Poppy held him gently and softly pressed her lips against his, trying to be as nice to him as possible. It took him some time but Nicky finally allowed himself to have a taste of her, allowing Poppy to deepen the kiss.

Nicky tasted different from the other boys. She couldn't quite put her finger on it but she actually enjoyed it and even envied Elladine for a second there before the thought escaped her mind and all she could pay attention to was the feeling of his tongue against hers. 

She pulled apart with a sigh, making him smile. "Fuck…" he whispered and she tilted her head, even if he couldn't see her. He put his chin on his palm and rested two fingers on his lower lips. "Soft lips, not too desperate… good… technique… yeah, it's a 9." He announced, so sure of it that it made her heartbeat quicken. 

Mouthing a 'thank you' he couldn't see, Poppy moved to the next boy, also known as her current couple, also known as Camilo. Suddenly, all the calm the other boys had made her feel vanished away from her body, taken away by this inexplicable fury she had burning inside. 

He had given Iona a ten. The highest score there was and, well, the chances to get lower were much, much, bigger than tying it. With a deep breath, she got closer to him. His body was the same but as she stood on her tiptoes to close the space between them, it couldn't feel worse.

It was a bit odd, to say the least. She had done that before countless times and each one of their kisses had taken her breath away but now… now she was just challenge-nervous rather than excited and the only thing she could taste on his tongue was her own regret.

God, she regretted ever picking him at first. She regretted meeting him in the bathroom. She regretted believing him when he said he wanted to be with her. She regretted choosing him for the recoupling. She regretted trying to compete with Iona for him. He wasn't worth it. None of this was worth it. 

Not her time, her best, her all. That was what she gave him and what did she receive back? A headache and many, many insecurities and trouble. Probably a bit of online exposure too but definitely not enough to justify it. Nothing would ever be enough to justify it.

With no need to think twice, Poppy cut the kiss short. Maybe not too short for the others to realise but short enough for her to make a point. They were over after that. It wasn't like he hadn't seen it coming. And as for Poppy… well, she would rather walk than spend another second with him.

"All right," he said, a humourless chuckle escaping him. He looked disappointed, a little sad even. "Yeah, definitely a great kiss… Not the best today, though. I'll have to give it a 9."

Jerk. Nine. Less than ten, that was for sure. Poppy bit her cheek as she fought the urge to turn and eye Iona, who probably had a triumphant smile. To be honest, if they wanted to couple up, Poppy wished them all the best but it was a sting to her ego nonetheless. But as Taylor Swift would say, 'the players gonna play', and Camilo was most definitely a player.

She had two boys waiting to be kissed now.

Chin high, Poppy moved to Bill. He seemed excited for another kiss, almost too excited. Deciding to leave Camilo and the Iona bullshit behind, she let a low chuckle escape her, giving up space for the positive vibes and confidence to come back.

She circled Bill's neck with her arms, capturing his lips with newfound energy she had never met before. The pain of a betrayed woman could do wonders, she guessed, as Bill's tongue explored hers in a dance of their own. 

Kissing Bill was fun. That was the best way to describe it. While Harry's first kiss was as nerve-wrecking as teenagehood kisses and Nicky's were like sweethearts kissing in the front yard after a first date, Bill's was like kissing a stranger at a college party after drinking way too much. It was freeing somehow and exactly what she needed after Camilo's disaster.

When she broke apart, Bill leaned forward for a second, denouncing how little he truly wanted to let go, but Poppy pushed him slightly back.

"I think I know who that is… I'm giving her a 10!"

The boys sniggered around him. 'Mate… I don't think that was who you think it was," Nicky commented.

But Bill only huffed. "No way, I'm sure it is."

"No, mate, it really isn't." Seb concluded.

Poppy turned to him. With the sound of the boy's laughter serving her as a soundtrack, she moved towards him. Her heart was beating so fast it could jump her chest at any given minute. She tried to reason with it for an instant. Of course, she would be nervous, she concluded. Seb was probably the hardest to please of the boys and they were friends, so it wouldn't be anything but awkward. 

However, somewhere deep down, she was aware that wasn't the whole truth.

She needed more than four points from Seb so she could beat Iona. Yet, that thought never crossed her mind as she got closer and closer to Seb. All she could think about was how inviting his lips were and how her heart was beating so fast she was certain it could stop at any given moment.

When she was about to touch him, though, she heard him whisper, softly enough to make her mistakenly think she was imagining it. "Hey Poppy, I was waiting."

For an instant it was like time had stopped. Poppy could swear no one moved while the words slowly sunk in her mind. Her eyes widened when it clicked. But, just as they had frozen it a second before, they probably fast-forwarded it soon after because next thing she knew, Seb was kissing her.

It didn't matter how they did it, though. They were kissing. Poppy's thoughts rushed inside her head and everything and nothing made sense at the same time, until there was nothing to think about anymore. Her mind was blank and Poppy let herself melt and be kissed by him.

Seb tasted like a hint of menthol cigarettes mixed with this breakfast's strawberries they had had that morning. Poppy didn't care about that. She was too busy focusing on the 'finally' feeling that was flooding over her at the moment. Absentmindedly, her fingers touched his face, entangling themselves in the hair on the back of his neck, holding his profile with her thumb.

He didn't mind the invasion of space. Instead, he welcomed it, and Poppy felt the icy tingling of his rings on the small of her back, pulling her close. Her chest was pressing against his naked torso, their bodies so close together they couldn't be told apart. If both their senses weren't too taken by each other, they would've heard the sound of the girls gasping, the whisperers that followed the great demonstration of affection.

But they didn't, so they didn't let go of each other. If she could, Poppy would kiss him forever. It was the best kiss she had ever had and it was like a surge of electricity was hitting her body over and over again. When people talked about perfect first kisses, they probably never meant something like that, in a reality show, in a challenge. But there was no other word Poppy would use to describe that kiss if not perfect.

 "Hey, you two!" Iona called them out. "You can kiss in private later, now move on! We are all watching it!"

Poppy obeyed, begrudgingly breaking their kiss with a couple of pecks, happy to find Seb with swollen lips and a dopey smile playing on them. He sighed, satisfied, happily even, and cracked his knuckles with the giddiness of a young boy. "Now, that's a kiss," he commented, chuckling. "You girls have a lot to learn from that… It's going to be a 10."

The girls clapped, the boys did too, and Poppy watched as Iona wrote down her numbers. 48. The most among all of them.

Poppy returned to the girls and all of them once again showered her with compliments. Although, this time, she didn't feel a lot of truth in them. She couldn't care less, though. Kissing Seb had left her walking on air, head in the clouds… fuck, she felt good.

'`Now, to the final score!' Iona said immediately after the boys had taken off their headphones and blindfolds."With a score of 48 points, the winner is… Poppy."

You could tell there was no excitement whatsoever in Iona's voice. That didn't stop Poppy from celebrating with the other girls, though. They cheered and jumped and hugged, and Poppy laughed, even if they were the last one.

"Poppy was the last one?" Harry questioned, eyes shimmering. "Damn…"

"Oh, wow," Bill commented. "Good job, Poppy!"

"Killed it, girl," Nicky smiled.

"What did she get?" Camilo asked.

Poppy turned to him. He didn't seem happy. No, he seemed… pissed at something. Maybe it clicked for him that she took longer on the last kiss? The thought alone made her eyes stray from Camilo to Seb and they shared a knowing look.

"A date." Iona dryly responded. "So, who you're gonna take to the terrace date, Poppy?"

She looked at each and everyone's faces. The nervous looks from the girls, the hopeful looks from the boys. Nicky's and Elladine's encouraging smiles, Camilo's annoyed frown. But it didn't matter how much she searched for other faces, she always would come back to him.

"I pick Seb."

[coreancitizen]

2022 Year in Review: My Korean drama recommendations

2022 went by so quickly, and I think that's partly because almost every week I had new episodes of shows to look forward to. I'm a bit of a contradiction: I don't have the patience to wait for a new show to be completed so I could binge it, but I (maybe not-so) patiently wait for episodes every week, haha. TBH, I find I'm more invested in a show and its characters when I watch a drama weekly. And there were so many characters worth the investment in 2022: Woo Young Woo, Queen Im Hwa Ryeong, the Oh sisters, Kim Yumi, Jin Do Jun and Jang Uk, to name a few.

I just want to make clear that, as in previous years, this is by no means a list of the best Korean dramas of 2022. These are merely my favorites among the ones I watched that premiered in 2022 (or ended in 2022).

You can find my previous roundups here:

2021: Year in Review 2020: Year in Review

YUMI'S CELLS 2

New season means new love for Kim Yumi (Kim Go Eun) as she begins a romance with co-worker Yoo Babi following her breakup with video game designer Goo Woong. TBH, I wasn't quite sure how I'd feel about the new pairing — I have a soft spot for Ahn Bo Hyun — but Jinyoung charmed me even before the series started. He and Go Eun have a sweet and natural chemistry that made me root for Yumi and Babi, even knowing how the relationship ended in the webtoon. Another thing I love about the series is its portrayal of Yumi's pursuit of her dream to be a writer — from the frustrations of earlier rejections to keeping it positive while faced with criticisms and the satisfaction of another job (book) well done. That shot of her jumping on the bed toward the end of the series was cathartic and the perfect cap to Yumi's growth. (Viki)

LITTLE WOMEN

This is NOT Louisa May Alcott's famous novel though it does share some themes and puts sisters at the forefront of the story. The Oh sisters — In Joo, In Kyung and In Hye — just want to live a life not steeped in poverty. So when 2 billion won falls on In Joo's lap, their problems are over, right? Nope. A multitude of troubles arrive as the sisters get entangled with a rich, powerful and corrupt family with a lot of unscrupulous allies. This series got me on the edge of my seat from the very first episode and the thrills and tension never let up until the end. I absolutely love how messy and chaotic the sisters and their relationships with each other are. They love but they also fight, annoy and block each other, LOL! Now please cast Kim Go Eun and Wi Ha Joon in an action comedy series or film and give them the ending on the sunny beaches of Greece that their characters deserve. (Netflix)

BULGASAL: IMMORTAL SOULS

This is the first drama that caught my attention last year, a fantasy with monsters, past lives, immortal love and families. It's the story of how the lives of a man (Lee Jin Wook) who was turned into an immortal monster 600 years ago and a woman (Kwon Na Ra) who has been dying and reincarnating for centuries have been intertwined. The world building is quite interesting and the central mystery keeps you guessing until the very end. Keep an eye out for familiar faces as people from the past emerge in the present. (Netflix)

A BUSINESS PROPOSAL

This romcom is adorable with a capital A. Shin Ha Ri (Kim Se Jeong) shows up to a blind date pretending to be her best friend and does her best to turn off a potential match by behaving outrageously. It's a schtick she and her chaebol best friend had cooked up a long time ago to discourage suitors. Unfortunately, the blind date turns out to be Kang Tae Moo (Ahn Hyo Seop), the young president of the food company where she works. And even more unfortunately, he's interested and now wants to marry her! Hilarious chaos ensues, abetted by the couple's adorable best friends (the second couple), her zany family and his kdrama-loving grandfather. You'll never look at an archaeopteryx (bird-like dinosaur) the same way again. (Netflix)

TOMORROW

This is a lovely, heartbreaking, oftentimes cathartic drama about people desperate enough to consider taking their own lives and the team of resolute grim reapers who work very hard to prevent their deaths. Comatose Choi Jun Woong (Rowoon) is the newbie in the Risk/Crisis Management Team led by Koo Ryeon (Kim Hee Sun). Lim Ryung Gyu rounds up the team. Head of the Soul Collection Team Park Joong Gil, despite being a fellow grim reaper, is a thorn on the team's side — he has a special animosity for Ryeon that may have something to do with the past. Fortunately, the team has a stalwart supporter in the Jade Emperor (Kim Hae Sook). (Netflix)

MILITARY PROSECUTOR DOBERMAN

Legal action drama with a touch of comedy is probably the best way to describe this series and it's the perfect leading man vehicle for Ahn Bo Hyun. Do Bae Man passes the bar with basically just a GED and so finds himself unable to find a spot in a decent law firm until he gets an "offer he can't refuse" from corrupt lawyer Yong Moon Go: Serve in the military for five years as a prosecutor and then join his prestigious firm after. The plan is going swimmingly until he crosses paths with another military prosecutor, Cha Woo In (Jo Bo Ah), who is targeting some members of the military brass for revenge after her beloved father's suspicious death. After long-buried secrets begin to emerge, Do Bae Man finds himself reevaluating what it is he really wants to do with his life. (Viki)

EXTRAORDINARY ATTORNEY WOO

Woo to the Young to the Woo! The series follows Woo Young Woo, a young lawyer on the autism spectrum. She's got a brilliant legal mind, able to see different angles of a case but struggles with day-to-day interactions. Fortunately, she has the people looking out for her, like her dad, her boss/mentor, her law school friend and, of course, the handsome support team member who might just have more than friendship in mind. Park Eun Bin is brilliant as Woo Young Woo, she truly gets you invested in her challenges and triumphs. The legal maneuverings are fairly interesting, especially when they involve a rival law firm and somebody from WYW's past. (Netflix)

ALCHEMY OF SOULS

In the land of Daeho, an assassin trapped in a blind woman's weak body encounters a young lord from a powerful family who needs help to unlock his powers. Interesting lead and supporting characters, solid world-building, fantastic sword and sorcery action? I was sold from the very beginning. At the end of the second ep, I was absolutely in love with the feisty Mudeok and her rather bratty young master/pupil Jang Uk who just wants his gate of energy opened so he can do what everybody can — cast spells and use a sword. There's a twist at the end of the 20-episode first season, and I guess your enjoyment of the second season would largely depend on how much you accept the change. But in both seasons, the crown prince remains quite the scene stealer and he's possibly my most favorite character of all. (Netflix)

UNDER THE QUEEN'S UMBRELLA

A truly female-driven drama — from the queen and the queen dowager down to the concubines and, yes, even the court ladies. The series begins with Queen Hwa Ryeong's biggest problem being the four grand princes' rather relaxed approach to their education, lagging behind the other sons of the king via his numerous scheming concubines. But tragedy strikes and the queen and her sons suddenly find themselves fighting to make sure they don't lose not just their positions but their very lives. Kim Hye Soo makes it so easy to root for the embattled queen who wields her position and her eyebrows skillfully to thwart ministers, concubines and her mother-in-law, the queen dowager. I also love that her sons, the four grand princes, are unlike other royal brothers in sageuks — they are close, affectionate and loyal, leaving the dirty tricks to their half-brothers. This series probably has the most satisfying ending among the ones I watched last year. (Netflix)

REBORN RICH

Yoon Hyun Woo is a hard-working, loyal, no-questions-asked employee of the powerful Jin Family, which controls the Soonyang Group. One day, on an overseas errand to retrieve some secret money, he is betrayed by someone in the family and murdered — but promptly finds himself "waking up" in the body of the youngest grandson of the Jins, back in 1987. How, you ask? I finished the series but that part is still unclear. What's clear is how charismatic and believable Song Joong Ki is as the twentysomething investment whiz Do Jun. And what an amazing actor Lee Sung Min, as Soonyang chairman and patriarch Jin Yang Cheol is. The push-pull in their relationship is what made the series work for 15 episodes. Not that the supporting cast members are slackers. This is one of the best ensembles I've ever seen, the actors really working to make these characters ones you'd love to hate. Some of the business stuff might put off viewers but I found the whole thing fascinating and easily understood. I cheered when Do Jun/Hyun Woo used his knowledge of the future as well as his relatives' greed to take pieces of Soonyang. I'm recommending this series but with a caveat: I found the ending a bit of a mess and rather unsatisfactory. BUT the previous 15 episodes are fantastic and definitely worth a watch. (Viki)

Bonus recommendations

I recently started dipping my toes into Chinese dramas, even though I'm still intimidated by the episode count. "Love Between Fairy and Devil" is sweet and hilarious and has fantastic special effects. (Netflix and Viki)

But my heart truly belongs to Li Wei and the sixth young prince of Xin State as they figure out family, politics and love as their "New Life Begins." (Viki)

Last but certainly not the least, "Pachinko," which even though it stars some of the biggest names in Korean entertainment is not considered K-Drama by its creators. Based on Min Jin Lee's critically acclaimed novel, the series — Youn Yuh Jung, Lee Min Ho and Kim Min Ha are key parts of the ensemble — follows the trial and tribulations of a Korean family over four generations. The story begins in Korea, moves to Japan and eventually spreads to the United States. The story is rich and emotional, the direction precise and the acting superb. It has been recognized in a lot of year-end lists and recently won the Critics Choice Award for best foreign language series. (Apple TV +)

[plounce]

tma fic recs? i went into ao3 and it was a mess

yeah it’s been slow-going for me too because of the amount of freak shit people post/have posted, as well as the fact that a lot of the high-kudos’d jm fics are from before s4 really ramped up their relationship development. and i’ve found i can get pretty picky about martin’s characterization. here’s a couple i’ve read and liked

(now with a read more because it’s gotten long) (updated 2/15/20)

the umbrella (4.6k) - mag160 fixit, probably my favorite fixit so far. includes canon-level non-graphic blinding. but it has a happy ending. it’s tma, i don’t need things to be light and fluffy all the time, i’m good with canon level darkness yk? as long as there’s a happy ending and the gays’ love for each other is pure.

feel the done days and you’re pulling through (1.8k) - jon deprogramming from being an avatar. living a very domestic and idyllic life. it’s adorable

all resistance wearing thin (4.7k) - ok this is the ONLY web!martin concept ive ever liked. bc it doesn’t make martin a crazy villain hes still himself and hes just NICE he LOVES people (aka jon). and we all like to indulge in a bit of mutually obsessive love. happy ending :)

some invitation of light (4k) - i love the joke that “martin is proof that playing hard to get works,” and this fic is in line with that. i’m picky about jealousy in fics but this one was enjoyable

ways to save the world (19.3k) - oooooogh urghhhhh jon gets trapped in the lonely and martin communicates to him through passages of poetry… im a total sucker for epistolary fics and this one was so GOOD

*

above all shadows (4.3k) - canon divergent from s4, written before the finale. very fairytale esque. theres some paragraphs in this that made me go HAM

catch and release (2.3k) - pre canon divergence au where theyre both avatars being spooky and doing a back and forth. martin is full lonely and jon got RAISED BY SPIDERS. somewhat edgy but in a fun way. we love creepy shit

agate, amber, amethyst (994) - short sweet and soppy. magpie jon is so utterly charming to me.

reciprocity (1.9k) - short and sweet caretaking stuff. both these bitches need to sleep.

always a reason (1.7k) - we love jon taking care of martin!! as he deserves!

pl: nuclei; but you only need one, anyway. (1.1k) - s3 phone calls with jon asking martin for research help. timezones. jon trying to stretch those “i care about you” muscles

1. can’t be helped (5.3k) 2. rituals (8.4k) - two fics in a series. very monster boyfriend. the first is martin losing his emotions to the lonely. the second is martin getting them back, but jon has been subsumed by The Archivist, which is figuring out what martin means to it. there was a moment in the second that made me go a little whoa hey! it was the archivist compelling martin. but it wasn’t anywhere near enough to make me stop reading. they were good, heartrending reads.

misshapes, mistakes, monsters (7.9k) - jon takes martin as his plus one to an oxford reunion. an enjoyable read, along with an almost cartoonishly villainous posh man. pining! “it’s nice to feel like i’m something worth protecting” arrrghhhh

small things, simple acts (6.6k) - post-159 fic. bookmarked this one! because they LOVE each other and TRY SO HARD for each other!!!! jon buys martin a stuffed cow because he saw martin looking at it and theyre TRYING for it. “There are a lot of things that Jon can’t give him, like safety or a normal life. But he can absolutely get him a stuffed toy just because he looks like he wants it.”

i’m almost me again, you’re almost you (12.9k) - you know when you try to feel feelings and it’s like touching a hot stove? that’s what martin does this whole fic as he’s recovering from the lonely and jon is being so achingly sweet and good with him, but martin can’t 1. deal with it just yet 2. believe that jon loves him back. post-159 fic. god. READING it felt like touching a hot stove, or stepping into warm bathwater with cold feet. jesus christ. excellent

fate, or something (107.8k) - this is that 100k blind date s1 canon divergence au, and i tried it out and i LOVED IT. martin has a spine! it’s just so sweet. they’re friends! martin works with melanie for ghost hunt uk! a great read. it’s that sloooowwww burn shit.

forever is composed of nows (5.9k) - jon meets martin (a single dad) and martin’s daughter (agnes! who had good writing for a child in a fanfiction) in the library and things grow from there. this fic is SO CUTE. it’s wonderful. i literally had to take breaks while reading it to make wild animal noises because i couldn’t deal with it. god. it’s so good. UGH (thanks to @infernallegaycy for the rec!)

and i won’t pray for an unfilled grave (5.9k) - daisy after coming out of the buried. daisira and daisy&melanie bonding. WOMENNNNN I LOVE WOMEN

*

hello my old heart (15.8k) - jess @thedistortion, the person who got me into tma and a dear pal, wrote this, and their brain is utterly huge and good. i love this so much. a deeply excellent post-159 fic that i would also say is pre-160. so many parts of this make me gasp and clutch my chest! but it also has an excellent realism to it. spiders that enrage me. please read.

yesterday is here (26.6k+, WIP) - post-canon jon and martin travel back in time and hang out with the pre-canon crew and attempt to make everything better. guaranteed happy ending. it’s so sweet watching jon be so kind and gentle and Better At People with his coworkers and make things right - and the s1 jon and martin fumble at seeing their extremely married and Knowing counterparts.

a measure outside the lines (22.9k) - i looove post-159 fics that show that martin hasn’t been completely severed from the lonely and still really struggles with it. this one is EXCELLENT at it. there’s some moments in this one that just made me totally ache because oh… oh martin. it’s so wonderful and has such excellent emotional catharsis

*

interlude (7.8k) - s3 au where georgie meets martin over facetime with jon! makes me wistful for the friendship they could have had without all the coping mechanisms in the way. the fond teasing is very cute. the pining! the banter! the slips of the tongue! very, very enjoyable.

skin deep (3.1k) - another s3 au where georgie meets martin on better terms - she calls him for help after jon’s meeting with jude (as jon’s locked himself in his room). the way jon leans on martin and lets him in and just… the way he behaves around him. very sweet.

bury my heart on the coals (3.6k+, WIP) - au where martin was one of gertrude’s assistants who is now a ghost haunting the archives. i’m enjoying how he’s so judgmental of jon and all the little signs of Haunting that jon and the assistants are experiencing.

nor any more youth or age than there is now (6.5k) - outsider pov of jon being a primary school teacher in scotland post 159!! so, so sweet. i LOVE outsider pov stories and this one is so good. jon using his powers to protect his students and displaying all that character growth he’s had… the glimpses of his domestic life with martin… it’s adorable. please check it out.

take sides in divided cells (3.4k) - in an idyllic domestic post-canon, martin’s father tries to reconnect with him. from jon’s pov, so it’s a lot of him worrying about martin and then being protective. oof! oof! emotional hurt/comfort.

pieces of you stuck on me (1.9k) - spy au. a little snapshot - i enjoy all the implied backstory going on. the thrill! the longing! the suspense! and i’m generally a sucker for spy aus, i’ll be real.

be kind, i beg you (14.9k) - post 159. oh this one is so achey… i love it. jon obsessing over “loved is past tense” and trying so hard to be Good to martin, while martin deals with mood swings from his recent emotional traumas. they try really hard and are very domestic, talk about gardening, and clean up the safehouse. LOVED THIS.

[bicommunitynews]

Each year we publish a roundup of bi events at the end of December. Naturally this one will be a little less packed than usual. Nonetheless wishing you a very different and better year ahead! At the start of the year very few of us realised what might be ahead as the COVID-19 virus was still thought to be far away and most likely confined to a corner of China. So for those first ten weeks or so of 2020 things were happening as normal. So it was at the start of January when Layla Moran became the first UK MP to come out as pansexual. Courts compensated a worker who had been told to pretend to be gay rather than bi in the workplace and returned confiscated medals to an ex serviceman. Northern Ireland started to consult on same-sex marriage while we learned women are more likely to divorce one another than men. There was good news on HIV figures and from the European Court declaring that government inaction on LGBTphobic hate was no longer acceptable. And the Welsh Government declared it would go a step further than merely repealing Section 28 with active work to ensure children are making informed choices on sex and relationships. In February Bi Pride got a mention in the House, while LGBT History Month saw many more bi-related talks than usual. Overseas Switzerland voted to recognise LGBT hate crimes. There were bis on TV in Doctors and I Am Not OK With This as well as a new season of Atypical to look forward to. And new research showed peculiar findings about bi people and skin cancer.

With the pandemic seeing the start of lockdown in the UK during March events started to be cancelled like Birmingham BiFest and BiFest Wales. As Prides started to fall like dominoes, Eurovision announced its first ever rollover winner. In the USA a St Patrick’s Day parade barred a beauty pageant winner from marching on account of her bisexuality. We had more bi representation on TV in Love Is Blind’s demonstration of double-standards over bisexuality, BBC polyamory drama Trigonometry, and Batwoman. The House of Commons held its first ever debate on LBT women’s health while Canada declared its intention to outlaw so-called “gay cure” so-called “therapy”. And new figures showed more people identifying as bi in the UK than ever.

In April many of us were starting to get used to life indoors and wondering how much a loo roll could fetch on eBay there were sobering thoughts about how the lockdown meant a lot of bi and LGBT people were now trapped in unsafe situations. The USA responded by relaxing its limitations on bi and gay men donating blood with Australia contemplating the same shift. The first LGBT club closure of the pandemic was announced in Brighton. On TV we had a raft of fresh bi viewing with the return of Flack, Killing Eve and Harley Quinn. But the big bi drama of the month was away from TV as BiNetUSA abruptly tried to claim copyright over the public domain bisexual flag.

Most LGBT magazines stopped publishing for the time being due to the pandemic but we took the decision to keep BCN coming out as one little strand of bi life we could keep fairly normal, so our April edition was the second of six in 2020.

Staying indoors gave people some time to organise and so in May there were online campaigns about the blood donation ban and conversion therapy. Being indoors also meant people could virtually visit museums worldwide. New research showed bi men were the most closeted group across Europe.

As the Black Lives Matter movement drew headlines worldwide in June dating app Grindr dropped its race filter. One of those “how did that take so long?” moments. There was a big victory in the US Supreme Court, while over here a new faux LGB equality campaign group came out against same-sex marriage, for anyone who hadn’t already realised they weren’t on the side of any queer folks. The BBC nonetheless carried on quoting them as if they were a serious human rights campaign. The annual Bi Book Awards winners were announced, though without (for now) the usual glamorous awards event. The Grammys got their tongue tied online. In good news, Gabon decriminalised sex between women and between men and Scotland opened up civil partnerships to any couple regardless of gender. BiCon had a bumpy month with two organising teams quitting in the space of a week.

In July we had more happy news from abroad as Montenegro recognised same-sex civil partnerships and South Africa changed its rules on how marriage ceremonies are conducted. It was less good elsewhere as the budget for PrEP was cut in the UK and in Poland the presidential election came down to a knife-edge before going the wrong way. We learned bis have worse experiences of crime than other people and the GLAAD annual review of film releases noted cinema was getting Whiter and gayer, with no bi male representation in major film releases.

We are used to a host of Prides in August so it was a hot summer with so much less to do every Saturday! However some ran online and BiCon happened in a very slimmed-down online form. The run-up to Bi Visibility Day began with more Town Halls deciding to fly the bi flag. New US research showed bi youth experience of bullying.

It’s Bi Visibility Day, Bi Week and Bi Month in September and among the delights was improvements in dictionary definitions. Northern Ireland inched further forward on equality while the UK courts rules that the Equality Act includes nonbinary people. Coming-out guide Getting Bi came out for the Kindle. In the USA we saw the first research on how the COVID-19 pandemic was hitting the LGBT communities while here Stonewall had research on how many bis are out to their families – not many.

In October we learned there would be a biopic of former US Congresswoman Katie Hill. Netflix dropped GLOW. In good news for millions the Pope made a small shift toward a better attitude to LGBT lives on the part of the Catholic Church. And in bad news here, a BBC which was veering increasingly far from balanced and responsible reporting of LGBT issues warned staff they should not attend Pride events even in their own time and private lives.

All eyes were on the USA in November as Donald Trump lost by a huge margin in the election there – albeit not as wide a margin as many opinion polls had predicted. Biden won with over 80 million votes in the end – more than any previous candidate. Biden’s speech missed out the “B”. Europe considered its next five year plan on LGBT work without the UK, and in Poland there were symbolic protests against the hateful “LGBT free zone” populists. We all realised we had been too distracted by COVID to notice that the LGBT inclusion work in schools that had started under the Conservative-Lib Dem coalition had been quietly dropped by the new minister for Women and Equalities.

Most important, COVID vaccines started to be approved. After a very hard year, change was at last in sight.

In December the three month ban on blood donation for bi and gay men and their partners was completely rewritten – for better and for worse – though the new rules don’t come in until a few months into 2021. Kyrsten Sinema rocked a great wig and coat in Washington. There was divine justice as a homophobic MEP got caught breaking COVID rules at a gay party. And Switzerland – whose good news on hate crime kicked the year off – decided to let same-sex couples marry. And so ILGA’s annual world map of LGBT rights showed a ripple of changes. And our fifth edition of the pandemic landed on subscriber doormats, more or less in time for Christmas.

That was 2020. To our most sincere delight, it is in the past. Here’s to a very different year ahead.

[sandjsbeachbumbonanza]

Day 131 – Wine tasting

J woke up early this morning to carb up and line her stomach before today’s wine tasting. We met Mansur at around 9am and headed off to our first winery, Waterford Estate, in Stellenbosch. This was a beautiful property with a lovely courtyard with plenty of tables and chairs. We sat in the sun and tasted 8 different wines. Two of the reds and the dessert wine were paired with chocolates. Bizarrely, J also got a salt tasting of three different types of salt. Mud salt, pearl salt and Hawaiian volcano salt. Her favourite was the mud salt, which tastes amazing on popcorn. The two stars of the wine tasting were the old vine Chenin Blanc and the Chardonnay dessert wine. J also loved the rose and geranium chocolate, which had a floral taste. We also got a cellar tour. The cellar is for the most part housed in a former cathedral. We also saw the bottling area and the winemaker, who was tasting some of the barrel wines. Interestingly, this winery had steel tanks, French oak barrels ranging from 200 to 3,000 litres, concrete tanks and four ceramic tanks. They use different storage vessels to age different types of wine. As the winery owner’s son had recently gotten married on the property, one of the concrete tanks had been decorated with a lovely design. This was our favourite winery of the day.

The next stop was Babylonstoren in Franschhoek. J was looking forward to this winery the most. Pre-COVID it was impossible to get in here. Even on a weekday post COVID Mansur struggled to find a parking spot. This place is known for its kitchen. They do farm-to-table cooking. Disappointingly, the winery was very corporate and we didn’t love the ambience. They even charged us a 10 rand entrance fee per person. We did get to walk by some of the vines, however, and J tried a Viognier grape for the first time. We ended up buying a bottle of Viognier so J could try it, and a platter of food to keep us going. The food was the star here. The biltong and droëwors beef sausage were excellent. The beef sausage was spiced with some combination of mace and clove and tasted almost like a Moroccan merguez sausage. There was also a delicious duck liver paté. The visual highlight, however, was the fruits and vegetables. There were orange, yellow and purple carrots, golden beetroot, green oranges and a persimmon. We highly recommend this platter.

The next stop was Anthonij Rupert. Because we were not part of a large tour group, we bypassed the more corporate tasting room and went to the manor house where Graham Beck, a famous winemaker, used to live. The manor house was built in 1833. They have kept a lot of the original décor but have given it a few modern touches. It looks like it should be a guest house, but it is only used for tasting. The floors creak and J asked if the manor house was haunted. The staff said they think it is, by, you guessed it, a lady in a white dress, much like all other alleged hauntings. We tasted three sparkling wines, one Pinotage and three heritage wines. J’s favourite was the blanc de blancs sparkling wine, which is made in a French style (‘Méthode Cap Classique’), but cannot be called champagne as it is not made in the Champagne region of France. There was only one other couple there. They were toasted and having a grand time. They were there before we got there and were still there when we left.

Our final stop was Delaire Graff Estate. According to Mansur, it is owned by the largest diamond trader in South Africa, a very wealthy guy who lives in London. There is even a diamond shop on premises. Mansur told us it costs at least $1,000 a night to stay at one of the villas at the winery. It too looked a little corporate, but had a nice outdoor terrace overlooking the mountains. J found the wine guy here the most impressive of all and she thought this winery had the best red wine, a blend called Botmaskop. The wine guy, James, trained as a sommelier but now wants to work on a yacht in the Mediterranean once COVID is over. We tried three different Chardonnays at different price points. S was very proud that the one he liked the most was the most expensive and is sourced from a single vineyard. J found it too sweet. We also tried some other whites and reds and J requested a meat and cheese platter to go. Bemused, the wine guy told us the chef had said this was fine, but it would not be as ‘aesthetically pleasing’. The platter arrived in little takeaway containers and true to the chef’s word, was not aesthetically pleasing.

We went back to the hotel. Mansur foolishly thought we were done for the evening, but S insisted on heading down to aperitivo hour(s) with our food. The hotel kindly plated it and made it look aesthetically pleasing. S was disappointed as the hotel didn’t have the usual chicken liver paté canapé platter ready for us as they didn’t think we’d make it to aperitivo hour(s). We ended up having to share one platter with Room 3, who surprisingly dropped by and sat next to us.

Room 3 is a funny couple. They are Gareth (no relation to the Zimbabwean Gareth who we hung out with over the weekend) and Kirsten. He is Welsh and she is South African. They live in London and escaped here in early December shortly after we left the UK. They only intended to stay for a month to visit Kirsten’s father, but ended up working and travelling in South Africa instead of going back to the UK. They, like us, are planning to head back in May/June. We traded notes on how to try to avoid quarantine in the UK. We also learned that he previously lived in Bethnal Green, so we spent a lot of time talking about the Krays (famous East London gangsters), their old haunts and the various movies about them (sadly S has watched all of them multiple times). Gareth informed us that the Blind Beggar, the pub where they shot Georgie Cornell, is now a tourist attraction and is worth a visit when we return to London.

J noticed that S and Gareth were twinning, in a business casual button-down shirt with rolled up sleeves, khaki shorts and brown shoes. However, S has a few decades on Gareth. Due to a glitch with our hotel room key, we lost track of them after aperitivo hour(s), but they were good fun.

[sad-sweet-cowboah]

Misty Forester

Name:

Misty Selene Forester (Rodriguez)

Born:

April 10th, 1873 (Aries)

Age: 24 in RDO events, 25 in the main game, 33 in the epilogue

Birthplace: Manhattan, New York City, New York

Notable Characteristics:

Long brown hair

Bright green eyes

Plump red lips

Black, red, and white color scheme

Fashionable, will always make sure she looks good even if she’s wearing a potato sack

Sassy af

Vocally talented

Other Info:

Half Puerto Rican, 1/4 English and 1/4 French.

Bisexual, known to openly flirt with both men and women

Skills:

Sharpshooter

Persuasive speaker

Skilled actor

Weapons:

Duel wielding custom Mauser pistols

Lancaster Repeater

Carcano Rifle

Hunting Knife

Family:

Arella Forester (Mother)

Luis Rodriguez (Father, unknown whereabouts)

Marie Forester (twin sister, deceased)

Background:

Misty is the child of immigrant parents. Her mother, Arella, is from England and is the daughter of a successful French businessman and an English woman whose own family came from their own wealth. Arella was set to be married to a man who too came from a rich family. Arella was unhappy with this, stole some money from her parents and managed to escape to America for better opportunities. Despite her parents search, she managed to avoid them. She settled down in New York City. There she met Luis, a man who escaped his own home, once living in extreme poverty in Puerto Rico. They bonded and quickly formed a relationship, and Arella soon found herself pregnant.

Before Misty and Marie were born, Luis received word that his mother back in Puerto Rico had fallen ill. He didn’t want to leave his love and their soon to be children, but he had no choice. He managed to get back to PR and would often send letters. Arella kept him up to to date with everything, eagerly waiting his return. However after the twins were born, the letters stopped coming.

A couple of years passed and Arella gave up hope that Luis would return, wondering if he perished or just stopped caring. Either way, she had her daughters to take care of and did her best to raise them. The funds she once nicked from her parents’ fortune allowed her to provide her and her daughters a comfortable living situation.

All the money in the world however did not prevent Marie from getting sick. She became infected with Cholera at the age of five and despite the aggressive medical care, she ended up passing away.

Both Misty and Arella were heartbroken. They stayed in NYC for another six years, and decided to move south, relocating to another city known as Saint Denis. Arella, having grown up around French culture, felt right at home. Misty missed NYC, but soon fell in love with the grandeur of Saint Denis and often wandered around, marveling the well-dressed citizens and enjoying the entertainment. She soon realized she wanted to become a singer, seeking out a vocal trainer whom she learned from for a few years. She also hung around the theaters, speaking with performers and learning tips and techniques on not only singing, but acting as well.

Little did she know that it would come in handy one day. At the age of 16, her grandparents ended up in Saint Denis for a vacation when they ran into Arella by accident. The reunion was explosive, and a lot of shouts and curses were exchanged before everything calmed down. Misty did not know that her mother ran away years ago, and she never heard much about her grandparents except for that they lived in the UK. Despite the tension held, her grandparents absolutely loved her and wanted to keep in touch. Sometime after, she was kidnapped by a gang of outlaws. Somehow word had gotten out she was the granddaughter of a wealthy family, and their intention was to hold her for ransom.

She was with them for three weeks, having to endure their vulgarity. They gave her the bare minimum, feeding her bread rolls and making her sleep on the ground, knowing she would do no good if she got sick or injured. Despite how afraid she was, Misty managed to form a plan, carefully learning their mannerisms and how they interacted with others. She managed to escape without inflicting violence, using her charm and learned acting skills to weasel her way out. Unfortunately for her, she had no idea where she was.

No longer was she in the state of Lemoyne, instead finding out she was in a completely different state called West Elizabeth. With nothing but the clothes on her back and no money in her pockets, she had no idea how to get home, and she was certain those outlaws would catch up to her sooner or later. She managed to keep herself discreet for a couple of days, laying low and charming shopkeepers into giving her a couple of cans of food. All the while, she was desperately trying to find a ride back to Saint Denis that didn’t cost her money, or being subjected to disgusting favors from men twice her age.

One night she’d found shelter in a barn, sleeping peacefully when the sounds of voices aroused her. She realized immediately it was the gang of outlaws that kidnapped her in the first place, and she had no way to defend herself. Despite her trying to keep quiet, they eventually found her hiding spot. With no way out she was ready to accept her fate, until she heard gunshots and the heavy thudding of bodies. More gunfire sounded and she opened her eyes to see them facing outside the barn as a flurry of bullets both entered and exited the barn. She hid behind a crate, listening to the carnage until the gunfire stopped. Seeing the gang were all dead, she warily left her hiding spot and met the man who saved her, a fellow named Hosea Matthews. She recognized him immediately, having seen his wanted poster plastered all over Saint Denis for years. She thought he had the same intention of holding her ransom, but instead surprised her in saying he was here to help, after hearing talk about the rival gang searching for a young girl.

And so for the next few days, Hosea taught Misty how to defend herself. He gave her a revolver, teaching her how to shoot and basic tracking/hunting skills. He even offered to bring her back to his personal gang.

Main Game AU:

Misty considered Hosea’s offer. How she wanted to return home, but had a fear that upon returning, the same events would transpire and may end up with her, her mother, or others she cared about getting injured or killed in the crossfire. The last thing she wanted to do was bring home dangerous, greedy men, and decided to leave with Hosea.

Thus then started her journey as part of “Dutch’s Boys”, a scared young girl soon taught to be a useful gang member. Dutch and Hosea discovered her acting skills and put her to work for heists and robbery.

More to come soon...

RDO Events AU:

Upon declining Hosea’s offer, he gave her money to take a train back to Saint Denis and wished her luck, and let her know that he’d help her again if she ever needed it. She thanked him and got on the next train back home, glad to finally have a way back but she’ll never forget Hosea.

She returned to an emotional reunion, by not only her mother but her grandparents as well, who refused to return home until she was found. They immediately offered to take her and Arella back to England with them, where they guaranteed her safety. Arella declined for the both of them, while it was tempting, she did not want to subject Misty to the life that she hated.

Life returned back to normal for Misty, and putting the experience behind her, she tried pursuing a life in show business as she intended. Despite having a beautiful voice, she just couldn’t break past performing on the streets. She was constantly in other more successful performers’ shadows.

When she moved out on her own, she found it much harder to live on the meager money she was making. She then remembered her experience while being held hostage. The outlaws spoke about their tales and triumphs with stealing riches. She soon began to succumb to her curiosity, finding herself hanging out with the less desirable folk in Saint Denis.

She soon made herself a posse of her own called the Midnight Regulators, making their way across five states like a storm in robberies and ambushes. Misty often takes the role of damsel in distress to lure rich folk into trying to help her, and then robs them blind. She will also help those who are in greater need than her, sometimes becoming a “Robin Hood” and giving part of her loot to poor families.

Unfortunately, one of her gang members became too greedy and tried to overthrow her by attempting to kill her. The fight ended with Misty putting a bullet in their skull. The gang disbanded after that and she was alone, pulled to perform for funds.

Extra:

Legally her name is Misty Rodriguez. However, her mother introduced them using her own maiden name for her daughters to avoid discrimination.

Misty is actually afraid of horses, except her own, after being kicked in the chest as a child. It took her a long time to get comfortable around them.

She secretly hopes to meet her father one day.

She is considered morally gray.

Despite how her life has changed, she still wants to be on stage one day.

She has a soft spot for children and while it doesn’t seem likely, she hopes to settle down and have her own family.

Horses:

Cressida, an amber champagne Missouri Fox Trotter mare:

Misty’s main mount and her absolute favorite horse. Both fast and resilient, Misty was drawn in by this mare’s prowess and beauty.

Cornelia, a marble sabino Criollo mare:

Misty’s first horse. Cornelia can easily match Cressida in speed and stamina, but she’s very clumsy. Misty doesn’t ride her as often in fear of accidentally injuring her.

Orion, a sorrel overo Criollo stallion:

Misty came across this beautiful stallion tied up at a gang hideout, and took him once she’d done away with them.

Andromeda, a bay frame overo Criollo mare:

Misty’s newest horse. A prized mare she found at Braithwaite Manor when she snuck over to originally steal horses. She made out with the ones needed plus Andromeda for her own collection.

Blanche, a white Kladruber mare:

Not the fastest mount, but gorgeous and sturdy. Blanche, meaning “white” in French, was given to Misty by a man in thanks for saving his daughter.

[obserfdom]

False God, Kaylor's New Anthem

False God - the sexiest part of the album, Lover, (similar to the flirtatious Dress in Reputation) to me personally, has a intriguing meaning. I have searched the web to see what analyses so far regarding the lyrics. Nothing much, mostly saying that it is about Joe Alwyn. Okay, let's debunk this one. 'Cause I also know that Kaylors have an interpretation from the gay's angle.

I think, I can speak on both perspectives, since I've been in both. I once married, however my biggest love life relationship was with woman. So, I am really curious to know, in what angle did Taylor actually write this song.

***

We were crazy to think. Crazy to think that "this" could work -> okay, since almost everyone out there agree that FG about love/relationship, so "this" referring to Taylor relationship (lover).

Now, don't you think it kinda strange that Taylor having a doubt about her relationship with Joe? I mean, she was 27th when she first met Joe & with enough experiences in relationship already, not to mention Joe is also coming from almost the same background, apart from different country and Joe gained celebrity status from the cinematic industry, but still I mean, what is so crazy about starting a "heteronormative" relationship like that?

Unless... she was talking about a "different kind" of relationship - something, which in general, still being perceived as 'abnormal'...

Hmmm, interesting.

But wait, there's another way to translate it, that somehow during that moment she was having an existential crisis. She questioned a lot of thing: the meaning of being celebrity i.e. she worked so hard to pursue her dream whilst at the same time she was devastated by the facts that people whom she thought once friends, stabbed her from the back - or that strangers would start to belittle & mocking her for everything - she had trust issue, she started losing confidence, she hold grudge, she was in emotional turbulance (these loosely translation based on her interviews).

Hence: she thought to drag someone to her "crazy" world would be tenacious.

Remember how I said I'd die for you? --> seems like she was really madly in love here

We were stupid to jump --> yet they've decided to taste the water anyhow

In the ocean separating us. Remember how I'd fly to you?

--> ok, again, this does fit Joe. Cause taking it in literal sense, then it probably about her had to fly back n forth US-UK.

However, Karlie still fits the role as well, I think, since they both doing a busy life, mostly continental apart.

Whoever it was for, metaphorically speaking it is about how she was making a sacrifice for the relationship to work.

And I can't talk to you when you're like this

--> later we would comprehend that Taylor was talking about a moment when her and lover had some feud. When she restrospected how during the couple-fight, her beau would:

Staring out the window

(I imagine her beau stood still, in silence, gazed through the window) avoiding to look her in the face, thus she thought:

like I'm not your favorite town

!!! What is her beau fave town?

I'm New York City

(yeah, baby!) And whose fav city is New York? Karlie Kloss!

"Well, Joe can also regard NYC as his fave city..." True - but, Taylor wouldn't be writing something that has no common reference to it. I've googled Joe's city preference and came out with null results. While as for Karlie Kloss, almost everywhere - you can find her boasting around about how much she loves NYC. As a matter of fact - she was the one who convinced Taylor to move to NYC in 2014 (and Taylor has been in love to the city, since).

Furthermore the next lyrics kinda congruent to the above speculation:

I still do it for you, babe

--> "I moved to NYC still staying here to date because of you." See, it still a close referrence to Karlie.

Can you come out with different translation that lead to Joe, instead? If you do, please let me know in the comment.

They all warned us about times like this. They say the road gets hard and you get lost

--> this one is really interesting. We all know Joe and Taylor still together and that Taylor somehow bragging about how happy in relationship she is now. But here as if like her saying that 'something happened to the couple' in FG story. Something big and terrible - something that might cause them to split/break apart.

And she kinda blame, the reason why it happened cause:

When you're led by blind faith. Blind faith

--> what is the meaning of "blind faith" in term of falling in love? Yes, when you are so in love that you are willing to do anything to retain or to be in it. You disregard everything, cause you are so drunk inside the pool of love, lust, altogether. You become 'blind'.

Ok, let's speak in het point a view, first - do you think, you see a magical spark when seeing Joe with Taylor out and about? Hard to tell? Okay, fair enough.

But here, an excerpt from Rolling Stone interview:

Her paused after accentuated the word "if"... to me is her showing hesitation even doubt to the idea of having a family.

Kinda weird coming from her current public image in Lover Era where she continue asserting how happy she is and how seems like, she has found the love of her life.

Further in FG she asserted that she is madly in love with someone whom she willing to die for - to fly across ocean for - so much intoxicated by love as if like having a blind faith!

Unless... the love of her life which she depicted in FG is...

in which because of that, for her to think of the ideas of: 'to be together, be a family'; would be a crazy notion and hard to imagine.

***

Yet, she also made it clear in FG, despite the odd, she was not ready to release the idea of 'stick together for good', because she thought there is still possibility that:

(But) we might just get away with it

***

The following lyrics to me, kinda raw and blatant:

Religion's in your lips. Even if it's a false god. We'd still worship.

(We might just get away with it)

The altar is my hips.

Lips & hips -> you imagine anything? (Lol).

Why False God? Clearly, she still talking about love:

Even if it's a false god. We'd still worship this love.

So in another word, Taylor using False God as a metaphor for passionate love she was experiencing with someone.

But why False God?

My take using gay perspective: is because we know how most religions condemn homosexuality. So with probably her involved in the same sex relationship, which would be considered sin or false by many, this probably her way of saying: "I don't care. I have all the rights to love whomever I want to love, regardless what society in heterenormative world would think!"

Next:

I know heaven's a thing. I go there when you touch me, honey. Hell is when I fight with you. But we can patch it up good. Make confessions and we're begging for forgiveness. Got the wine for you.

In general sense, the narrative here is about normal things happen in relationship. It's about having differences inside romance - a fight, a quarrel- then "kiss and make up".

But again, it is interesting how she chose the religious term like 'hell' and 'heaven' to equate her romantic endeavours.

This can't stop me from thinking that she actually is talking about sacred-secret love which against religious belief.

(Again, her way in saying: "I don't care your heaven or hell! I have my own, in this love-life story of mine!").

I would also like to re-iterate: "Got the wine for you" - seemingly her 'make up' sentence for her beau. But it is interesting to think about her chosen word "wine" there. It could mean literally that they both do love wine or...

"intimate love" - ok very much correlated. Yet further from the same source (wiki), wine (alcohol in general) often perceived as "evil".

So in which way, Taylor denoted "wine"? If its in devilish way, yes, then it is another mockery from her to religious dogma as if like saying: "I don't mind being perceived as evil. Me and lover will continue doing what we are doing!"

And you can't talk to me when I'm like this. Daring you to leave me just so I can try and scare you.

Hehe, so woman, don't you think? ;)

You're the West Village. You still do it for me, babe.

A shout out to Kaylors on this. Cause west village in literal meaning is a place where Karlie once lived.

Is there any other meaning for West Village? Yes, a big maybe. But unfortunately, I couldn't find any. Perhaps, you can dig on that and tell me later?

Finally, when come back to:

They all warned us about times like this. They say the road gets hard and you get lost

--> if we persevere with Karlie's scenario - then one could imagine this depiction is perfectly suitable to the Kaylors conspiracy theory.

How we speculated that their relationship in trouble - they chose to beard for their career sake - beside continue "behind the scene" with their LOVE that worthy eternal worshipping.

Sounds too delusional?

Perhaps. But since it is still a blank space, one owns a prerogative to write things accordingly. And False God is a love letter from Taylor Swift to Karlie Kloss? I'd say ameen to that!

xxx

Update: Joe Alwyn Fave City (thank you @dodsdmr for this info)

[insanityclause]

Exactly two months to the day they closed their acclaimed run in London, the cast of Harold Pinter’s “Betrayal” is stepping into the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre on Broadway for the first look at their new surroundings. On Aug. 14, they will begin previews of the drama for a 17-week limited engagement of what is widely regarded as one of the Noble Prizewinning writer’s greatest works.

Directed by Jaime Lloyd, who has become one of the foremost interpreters of Pinter, this version is designed so that none of the actors ever leave the stage. The trio are all recognizable from their screen exploits — Tom Hiddleston and Charlie Cox are beloved characters from the Marvel universe as Thor’s trickster brother Loki and blind attorney Matt Murdock in “Daredevil,” respectively. And Zawe Ashton recently made a splash opposite Jake Gyllenhaal in Netflix’s “Velvet Buzzsaw.”

Told backwards in chronology, the play tracks married couple Robert (Hiddleston) and Emma (Ashton) as their relationship unravels after Emma begins an affair with her husband’s best friend Jerry (Cox). But it also dives into the destruction of Emma and Jerry’s affair, as well as Robert and Jerry’s friendship. As with most Pinter, the characters are often sparse in their language in emotion, and words left unsaid often cut the deepest. A simple game of squash takes on much significance — the camaraderie, the competition, and ultimately what it means when they stop playing together.

The cast sat down with Variety to discuss squash and other games people play, with what Pinter means to them, and how their paths have crossed in the past, leading to this moment.

What does it mean to you to be here in New York, making your Broadway debut?

Zawe Ashton: It is a dream come true, actually. I’ve seen some of the best things I’ve ever seen in this very theater, including the show previous to us, “The Ferrymen.”

Tom Hiddleston: I first came to Broadway with my dad and my sisters when I was 17. It was my first time seeing the city and I remember going into Times Square and we went to see “Follies.” This was before I was even thinking about being an actor — or maybe in the back of my head I had decided. The first time I was in this theater I saw Samuel L. Jackson and Angela Bassett doing “The Mountaintop.”

Charlie, you actually live out here, are you planning on showing them around? Charlie Cox: Oh, yes. There’s a few places I want to take them.

Ashton: [Laughs] How can you make that sound sinister?

Cox: I’m not sure the places I like will be what you’re imagining. I want to take them to Bubby’s. It’s a restaurant with a great all-American brunch.

What does “all-American” mean to Brits?

Cox: Fried chicken and waffles.

Hiddleston: And big portions.

Cox: And coffee that keeps being filled up. You have to put a napkin over it to stop them.

Hiddleston: Right. If you have a second coffee in the UK you have to pay for it.

Cox: It’s crazy. When I get my coffee, I need to put my milk and sugar and the proportions have to be right. When they fill your coffee up over here, the proportions are all off. Also, you feel like you’re on rocket fuel and you don’t know why.

Ashton: Anything else we need to experience?

Cox: Well, these two are too healthy but I’d love to introduce you to half-and-half. It’s one of the best inventions in the world. It’s cream and milk.

Hiddleston: I know about that. This isn’t, like, my first time in America.

Cox: Oh, and I’d love to introduce you to McDonald’s. [Laughs.]

Hiddleston: I’m really excited about the seasons. I’ve spent time in New York before but it’s only been for like two weeks at a time. To be here from summer into fall into winter…

Cox: Fall is an illusion in New York. You get a weekend in the 70s, and that’s it.

Ashton: No, but the colors and the trees! And Thanksgiving is going to be amazing!

How did you first become familiar with the work of Harold Pinter and specifically “Betrayal”?

Hiddleston: For my A-Level English literature, we did a play of Pinter’s called “The Homecoming.” What I found so interesting was “The Homecoming” was so spare and so precise and so grown-up. I remember my teacher encouraging us to think about this play as about power and sex and family, all in a very brutal way. That it’s a father and sons competing for supremacy. I remember thinking: “This is reading a bit too much into it, isn’t it?” But it isn’t. As a 17-year-old, I just didn’t realize there was a writer engaging so consciously at this level.

Then I read “Betrayal” at the Royal Academy of Dramatic arts as an exercise for a dramaturgy class. I read it in one sitting and I did think, at the age of 21, “This would be an amazing thing to do one day.”

Ashton: We did a couple months of scene study at drama school and I played Anna in “Old Times.” I was 19 and I loved it and we actually nailed the scene study. I mean, we were 19-year-olds, maybe it was terrible. But my head of year said to me: “If I had known how easy Pinter was going to be for you, I would have given you something else.”

Was it easy?

Ashton: No! It wasn’t easy! But what I think he identified that if you vibe with Pinter, you’re kind of a special breed of person. If you can lean into all the violence and brutality and also see the tenderness and experience the special viewpoint he has of human relationships, you have a friend for life.

And you vibed with him from the start? Ashton: 100%. And now I love him even more. Doing “Betrayal” is about having to invest in a love affair with these two men, but I also feel I’ve invested in a love affair with Pinter. I’ve wanted to read his poetry, I’ve wanted to think about him, I’ve wanted to read the books Joan Bakewell and Lady Antonia Fraser wrote about him. Just to try and piece together the man who I’ve never met. Charlie has.

You’ve met Pinter?

Cox: The first play I did in the West End was with Jaime Lloyd, “The Collection.” Harold was part of numerous rehearsals and came to see the play many times. I got some great Harold stories that I’m still dining out on! During that time, I read “Betrayal.” Harold died the following year. It’s funny, my wife and I live in Connecticut and when I was offered this play I walked into my local bookshop and it was sitting right there.

A year ago, you didn’t know you’d be doing “Betrayal” in London, let alone here.

Cox: Four weeks ago we didn’t know we’d be here! It all happened very fast. When we closed in London, we thought we were done.

My understanding is this all began last October, when Tom and Zawe did a reading from the play at the “Pinter at the Pinter” gala?

Ashton: It sprung from that gala and people thinking we were rehearsing it already. People kept coming up to me and asking if we were doing a full production. So at the gala I basically came up to Tom and said, “What are you doing in March 2019?” And you were like, “Uh, get away from me, crazy lady.”

Hiddleston: It was an interesting night because it was celebration of all his work as a gift to [his widow] Antonia Fraser and it was 10 years after he died. But it wasn’t a heavy night, it was a celebration. And people came back to do extracts. The production Jaime Lloyd directed of “The Homecoming” came back. Jeremy Irons came back to do “No Man’s Land.”

Wait, Jeremy Irons starred in the film version of “Betrayal.”  Were you intimidated to do a scene in front of him?

Hiddleston: Well, less intimidated because I played his son in “The Hollow Crown.” There were several “Betrayal” alumni. Sam West was there, who played Robert at the Donmar Warehouse. Kristin Scott Thomas, who has played Emma, was also there. There was something very generous about this company of great, established actors who had made a great impact with Pinter’s work saying to Zawe and myself, “If you’re not doing it, you should do it.”

Ashton: It was such a compliment.

Hiddleston: Then Antonia Fraser also said, “Would you like to do it?” And Jaime leaned across and said, “Let’s do it!” So it came together very fast. And Jaime’s first suggestion for Jerry was Charlie, but he said you couldn’t do it.

Cox: The show I was doing [“Daredevil”] was going to be scheduled for another season at the time. So they went out to find somebody else. Then my show got cancelled and I called my agent and said I would love to do a play. I didn’t hear for a bit and I finally got him on the phone and was about to say “I’ve been trying to call you!” — but in a very nice, English way. And before I could say anything he said, “How would you like to do ‘Betrayal’ with Zawe Ashton and Tom Hiddleston?” I paused and said, “I’d like that very much.”

Ashton: If “Daredevil” hadn’t been canceled you wouldn’t have been able to do it.

That has to take some of sting out of cancellation.

Cox: It did, yeah.

This play doesn’t work without the chemistry between the characters, even when they are constantly competing and  one-upping each other. Did you know each other prior to working together and was that chemistry pretty instant?

Cox: Tom and I knew each other. We were bouncing around L.A. at the same time early in our careers.

Hiddleston: The truth is, we first met bumping into each other auditions for the same films that neither of us would get. After like the fourth time, we said, “Let’s go get a burger.”

Ashton: We’d been intersecting for years. Weird things have happened: Tom and I sat next to each other years before at the theater. We did the gala but weirdly, we’d also done a reading a couple weeks before that. And then Charlie and I realized we had auditioned together years ago.

Cox: I’m almost sure it was you. I didn’t get it.

Ashton: I didn’t either. And it was definitely you.

Hiddleston: That’s how most actors know each, they audition for things they don’t get.

Ashton: This could be the most unpleasant experience; it could really be toxically bad. What has happened is it has been the most joyful experience ever. That’s not to say we’re not completely embedded in the raw pain of the play. But I think you realize when you get to a certain age that you don’t need it to bleed into your lives and you don’t need to carry it home. I don’t want to do that with Harold Pinter because you can and you will go mad.

Hiddleston: It’s one of those things, you can’t put your finger on why it works, but it works and it’s a great pleasure

Cox: That one-upmanship you talked about that’s in the text; if that were to manifest between us as actors, it would be awful.

Ashton: However….there was a squash game.

Cox: Let’s not talk about that.

Ashton: It did spill over into that game.

Cox: Look, it’s not about who wins or loses, it’s about who’s fitter. And Tom is fitter than I am.

Hiddleston: It was very instructive, playing squash. Some of those scenes, the competition is in the subtext, the brutality to each other is underneath it while they’re being civil on the surface. After we played squash, those scenes played themselves.

Cox: I still have a buttock injury from that last game. I was desperately trying to reach a ball because I was so determined to keep up! We had one day where we had five solid sessions and then Zawe joined us for the spa.

Leaving behind these characters at the end of the day could be a challenge. Are you able to do that?

Cox: Sometimes I’ll be at the end of the day and I’ll be agitated in some way and then I remember; of course, I just got off stage.

Ashton: I’ve often said I’ve felt like a baby who needed to be burped. There’s so much repression in the play and people aren’t saying what they mean and you want to cry but you have to hold it in. Sometimes I want to cry for three days.

Hiddleston: My favorite actor of all time Paul Scofield said: “The emotions are real, but they aren’t mine.” Which I think sums it up. Actors investigate something real but the situation doesn’t belong to them. So I know consciously I’m not Robert, I know I haven’t been betrayed. But when I investigate his sadness, some aspect of that belongs to me. It sometimes leaves a shadow.

“Betrayal” has been performed in America before, obviously, but are you curious about how Broadway audiences will respond versus London audiences?

Cox: We get a lot of Americans in London. I don’t think it’s going to be radically different.

Ashton: I think it’s going to be radically different. I think there’s going to be some exciting new things having an American audience is going to illuminate. I think it’s going to be interesting.

“Betrayal” runs at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre through Dec. 8.

[christinaengela]

Hello friends and fans!

Welcome to my 45th newsletter – September 2020!

On A Personal Note

August was a blurry month – it really doesn’t feel like September, it feels more like March the 342nd! Know what I mean? Anyway, between work and everything else I have going on the side, the last six months or so have literally disappeared! For most people, this year has been a complete loss, for me I’ve at least published 7 new titles. Not to brag, but this brings my tally up to 30 books!

On the home front, my workshop is where I indulge my creative side in wood and metal work. Some years ago however, I got sick and tired of sharing my workspace with the rest of the garage! When it rained, it meant I couldn’t run my vintage bug outside, and the small space available meant I wouldn’t be able to work in there that day! About two years ago, I built a greenhouse against the side of the house across the alleyway between the house wall and the boundary wall, bordering on the back garden, which in the end my love convinced me to use as a workshop space instead! For the past two years, this has been where I worked on various projects, regardless of the weather. The only problem with that was again, space. While I had more permanently accessible space to keep my tools and to work, quite a lot of my tools were actually kept in shelving under the work benches. I needed more space – or to be more specific, a broader room to work in.

So, finally, last week I finally gave up on the bar area. It was where we entertained friends and it consisted of an actual bar room with an adjoining dining area with casual benches and a table for when we had barbeques etc. It’s been a considerable amount of time since we’ve entertained anyone who drinks, and neither of us actually drinks much more than a brandy now and then – scarcely enough to warrant wasting the useful premium real-estate on a bar! It would be far better to just dedicate a cupboard inside the house to housing the drinks, glasses and accoutrements – and all my collectibles, antique cameras and telephones etc. on the walls could be redistributed around the rest of the house.

That said, Wendy could have her greenhouse back – and so last week I relocated my workshop to the larger space where I have more room to work on projects and store and organize my tools and materials! For the first time, I feel I actually have the right space to indulge my creativity! The adjoining stoop will still be reserved for chats, game nights and barbeques – should they ever arise again.

Aside from that little personal ramble ,I also have some very good writing-related news to share with you this time – another two of my books have come out as audiobooks, and I’ve also published a new novelette called “Lifetime”! Moon Books also released an anthology I was the Editor for, so it’s really been a productive year for me so far!

Art

I also indulge in painting from time to time – and no, I don’t mean walls! The following paintings are in my portfolio:

#gallery-0-13 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-13 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 20%; } #gallery-0-13 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-13 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

“Human Nature” 2017 A4 acrylic canvas

“Balancier” 2020 A2 acrylic canvas

“Rescuer” 2020 A2 acrylic canvas

“The Awakening” 2020 A2 acrylic canvas

“The Earth Wept” 2020 40x40cm acrylic on canvas

You can read more about my art projects on the Art page.

What do you think of them? Feel free to let me know!

Music

Yes – I also make music from time to time!

A selection of music tracks I made using eJay and other similar apps between 1999 – 2008 are available on my YouTube channel.

You can read more on the Music page on my website!

Activism

For those of you interested in my activism-related posts and activities, you can follow them at “Sour Grapes: The Fruit Of Ignorance“.

Current Writing Projects 

On a suggestion of Brandon Mullins from Moon Books, I agreed to a combined edition of “Duck Blind” and “The Next Room”, to replace the two novellas published in February this year. The new book is novel length at over 46000 words, and I also wrote a short foreword and an introductory portion to precede the first part of the story.

As I mentioned several times previously, I have still a lot of work to do! I have a number of part-way completed stories awaiting my loving attention! Unfortunately, life and work have a nasty habit of getting in the way!

Also, thanks to Lulu.com’s spite in throwing their entire publishing platform into a mincer and expecting users to just shut up and like it, I have left the platform entirely – but aside from the immense amount of work that precipitated on my side with having to relocate all my books from there to other platforms, it also means I’ll have to rebuild one of my books entirely from the ground up! “The Pitfalls of South African Self-Publishing” is now out of print thanks to Lulu. Why? Because the second half of the book details the ease of self-publishing using Lulu’s old platform – the one they entirely scrapped and replaced with a vague, useless monstrosity – and gives a step-by-step example with screenshots, and is practically a love-letter to Lulu! I will now have to redraft that entire portion of the book, thanks to them!

In the past week or so I’ve been working on an editing project for Moon Books, and you can read more about that in the next section.

Editing

I completed editing an anthology for Moon Books in mid-August entitled “Moon Books Horror Anthology V”. This book contains 7 short stories filled with pure dread – and it was released on 20 August. It’s already available in eBook and paperback.

Currently I’m close to finishing the edit of a sci-fi tale for Moon Books. “Avenging Aranis” is by UK writer Steve McElhenny, and it’s the first part of a trilogy!

Marketing – The Dreaded “M” Word! 

Portfolio 2020!

I thought it would be nice if I could produce a neat, organized catalog of all my books that interested parties could download and browse – a free, distributable and shareable catalog, and so I created “Portfolio 2020!” – a listing of all my currently available titles!

Portfolio is more than that though, because it also contains a biography as well as synopses for most of my titles – and I have a plan to update it regularly, perhaps on an annual basis! Portfolio 2020 is available as a free download from my website.

Videos

In August, Nigel Peever made this amazing audiobook trailer video for the newly released “Demonspawn” – have a look, isn’t it beautiful?

https://christinaengela.files.wordpress.com/2020/08/demonspawn-video-by-nigel-peever.mp4

Sales

Let’s start with the good news! Audiobook sales over July were truly amazing – with a massive (by my previous standards) 42 copies of “Blachart” sold from Audible during that month! This frenetic surge in sales didn’t last very long, just to the end of July, with just 3 sales of that book in August. I realize a slowdown is inevitable as a new title stops being new. In fact, August proved to be rather dull in comparison, with just 3 sales of “Blachart“, and 3 sales of a new audiobook title, “When Darkness Calls“. This of course led me to formulate a new personal theory regarding sales, popularity and choice of narrator when publishing an audiobook – one I will probably explore later in the second edition of “The Pitfalls of South African Self-publishing”, which I am working on as time allows.

But I digress! Ebooks sales on Ebooks2go have picked up a bit over August since I transferred my titles there at the start of the month, culminating in three whole sales (sarcasm definitely intended). To give you an idea how writers get ripped off by some distribution channels, just check out the screenshot below:

The three top-most entries show three eBook sales via Hoopla – and each of those titles sold for $2.99. What do I get out of it? 14 US cents out of $2.99 per sale! It’s positively downright bloody criminal! For comparison, the one beneath that – a sale via B&N at least gave me $1.64 out of $2.99 – but only one of those from July. No wonder so many writers give up!

Over-all though, I’ve got the idea that sales have been dwindling globally and not just for me, so I’m by no means feeling picked on. I realize that with economies teetering on the brink of disaster – and so many of my contacts on Facebook posting the sad news that they will be homeless and sleeping in their cars or on the streets within days – how very, very lucky I am. I may not be raking it in as an author – but at least I have a secure job, for which I’m very thankful indeed!

Publishing

These are the books I’ve released so far this year!

#gallery-0-14 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-14 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 16%; } #gallery-0-14 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-14 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

Between January and September 2020 I released eight new titles! Of these, two – “Duck Blind” and “The Next Room” have been replaced by one combined title, “Mirror, Mirror” which includes both of them. Of course, this reduces my count back to 30 again – but when you already have 30 or so books to your name, what’s one here or there?

New Releases:

“Lifetime”

On August 07 Moon Books Publishing released a novella of mine called “Lifetime“, bringing my title-count up to 30! Here’s a look at the back cover blurb for the book:

“An entrepreneurial couple, happily married, run their deep-space prospecting company together. They are unexpectedly separated when the ship one of them is aboard is lost during a prospecting voyage. The other spares no effort in an attempt to find her, and immediately sets out on another ship to find her. Meanwhile on a remote planet, surrounded by wreckage and the bodies of her crewmates, she has survived and treated her injuries, and fights to stay alive while she awaits rescue…”

Buy now: eBook Paperback Audiobook (coming soon)

“Lifetime” is available in ebook and paperback and will be coming out in audiobook format soon, narrated by Miciah Dodge.

“Mirror, Mirror”

This was shortly thereafter followed by another new title “Mirror, Mirror”, on August 11, which repackages “Duck Blind” and “The Next Room” into one single novel-length book. “Duck Blind” and “The Next Room” are also now out of print – being henceforth exclusively available in “Mirror, Mirror”.

Buy now: eBook Paperback Audiobook (coming soon)

Here’s a look at the description:

“Things aren’t always as they seem. Neither was Charlie Branson – or Andy Niksn.

Outwardly, Charlie appeared to be the successful, respected, somewhat over-paid Captain of a commercial space liner.

In truth, it was 2025 – space liners did not yet exist, and the space liner Freedom was really just a very expensive set – a fancy simulator for wealthy clients the company took on simulated cruises into deep space to forget the real world for a while, to get away from it all – and they loved them for it!

In an atmosphere where people were locked away from reality for weeks at a time, and cos-playing and roleplaying redefined ‘normal’, telling fact and fantasy apart became more complicated than expected. For those who preferred the pleasant escape from the harsh realities of life outside, like Charlie, wishing it could all just be real became something almost like a prayer.

Andy Niksn, by contrast, was the very successful respected and somewhat over-paid Captain of an actual commercial space liner in the year 2773. Trouble was, Andy felt trapped! He was in a relationship – a dead-end partnership that had no future and promised both even less happiness. On top of that, his friend Jim had died recently, leaving Andy in the darkest place he’d ever been – and he didn’t mean space!

Andy wished he could just wake up to a different reality where everything could make sense again! For Andy, this too became something almost like a prayer!

As it turned out, someone heard them.

The answer wasn’t quite what they expected.”

Audiobooks

#gallery-0-15 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-15 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 25%; } #gallery-0-15 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-15 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

“All That Remains” JEA (2019)

“See Them Aliens” MBP (2019)

“Blachart” MBP (2020)

“When Darkness Calls” (2020)

“Demonspawn” MBP (2020)

On August 7th I received the completed audiobook of book 2 in the Galaxii series, “Demonspawn“, narrated (and dramatized) by Nigel Peever! The audiobook was finally released on August 31, and it was worth every minute I waited for it!

Nigel has also committed to narrating book 3 in Galaxii, after the five or so other books he has waiting in the queue, so he should only get round to that one somewhere around January ’21. In the meantime, that gives me time to work on Galaxii book 4! 😉

On August 20, “When Darkness Calls“, narrated by Miciah Dodge, was released via Audible! You can read more about it here.

Coming Soon

In the meantime, here’s a look at the covers for hot new audiobooks currently in the pipeline:

#gallery-0-16 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-16 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 25%; } #gallery-0-16 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-16 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

“Malice!” (2020) COMING SOON!

“Lifetime” (2020) COMING SOON!

Stay tuned for updates!

Reviews

You can see all my previous reviews here.

Currently Available Titles

I now have 30 unique titles available in 4 series (not including books I’ve been the editor for, and my 16 free promotional items)! My books are available in three different formats: EBooks, Paperbacks and Audiobooks. Click the links or images below to view titles available in these formats.

Communication

Below are links to a few of my most recent posts and articles since my last newsletter:

New Release: Demonspawn Audiobook

New Release: When Darkness Calls Audiobook

New Release: Horror Anthology V

Sinotec SJ86C LED Projector Review

New Release: Lifetime by Christina Engela

New Release: Mirror, Mirror by Christina Engela

“Demonspawn” Audiobook Now In For Review!

New Release: Lifetime by Christina Engela

Some Great Resources For Writers

Another Round At The Crow Bar #44 August 2020

If you want to see more articles, just click on the category links below:

Elements of Horror

FAQ Answered

Fun Facts

LGBT Heroes

The Tech Side

Secret Weapons of the Resistance

Writing Advice

Guest Writers

Newsletters

Interactions

Fan Mail, Reader Reviews & Honorable Mentions

I found the following awesome items to show you this month!

Great Book July 20, 2020 review on Audible for “Blachart” (audiobook):

Excellent story! “This is a very well written Sci-Fi tale that is told by an awesome narrator. I can’t wait to hear book 2!” – D. Sturgeon, Aug 13, 2020 on Audible for “Blachart” (audiobook).

Epic!!! “Another great tale told by narrator Nigel Peever. I look forward to the continuing Adventures of Blachart and Michael.” – Justin Bradley, Aug 16, 2020 on Audible for “Blachart” (audiobook).

Great Narrator “The story is pretty creepy, it takes place in South Africa. I’ve never heard haunting stories from this area. It’s a fun little story if you’re doing a drive on a dark night. The narration sounded excellent, and the protagonist in the story wasn’t taking no crap from the evil dead!” – Jeff Spencer, Aug 21, 2020 on Audible for “When Darkness Calls” (audiobook).

I display my Fan Mail, Reviews & Compliments with pride, gratitude and humility. You’re always welcome to have a look.

Hate Mail & Horrible Mentions

I’m rather proud of my hate mail, and you can review my collection here – but be forewarned, don’t do it while eating or drinking, or you might choke while laughing!

Interviews

All my interviews are linked to from this page. If you would like to do an interview with me about my work, please do get in touch!

In Closing

Well, that’s all for this time, folks! 🙂

Thanks again for all your support, friendship and interaction!

Feel free to email or message me via Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn if you have any comments or questions!

Until next time, keep reading!

Cheers! 🙂

Catch me on social media!

Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn | Academia | Minds | Instagram | GoodReads | Author’s Database | Library Thing | YouTube | Pintrest | Stage32 | The Book Marketing Network

If you would like to know more about Christina Engela and her writing, please feel free to browse her website.

If you’d like to send Christina Engela a question about her life as a writer or transactivist, please send an email to christinaengela@gmail.com or use the Contact form.

Show your appreciation for Christina’s work!

All material copyright © Christina Engela, 2020.

Another Round At The Crow Bar #45 September 2020 Hello friends and fans! Welcome to my 45th newsletter - September 2020!

[maryxglz]

Exactly two months to the day they closed their acclaimed run in London, the cast of Harold Pinter’s “Betrayal” is stepping into the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre on Broadway for the first look at their new surroundings. On Aug. 14, they will begin previews of the drama for a 17-week limited engagement of what is widely regarded as one of the Noble Prizewinning writer’s greatest works.

Directed by Jamie Lloyd, who has become one of the foremost interpreters of Pinter, this version is designed so that none of the actors ever leave the stage. The trio are all recognizable from their screen exploits — Tom Hiddleston and Charlie Cox are beloved characters from the Marvel universe as Thor’s trickster brother Loki and blind attorney Matt Murdock in “Daredevil,” respectively. And Zawe Ashton recently made a splash opposite Jake Gyllenhaal in Netflix’s “Velvet Buzzsaw.”

Told backwards in chronology, the play tracks married couple Robert (Hiddleston) and Emma (Ashton) as their relationship unravels after Emma begins an affair with her husband’s best friend Jerry (Cox). But it also dives into the destruction of Emma and Jerry’s affair, as well as Robert and Jerry’s friendship. As with most Pinter, the characters are often sparse in their language in emotion, and words left unsaid often cut the deepest. A simple game of squash takes on much significance — the camaraderie, the competition, and ultimately what it means when they stop playing together.

The cast sat down with Variety to discuss squash and other games people play, with what Pinter means to them, and how their paths have crossed in the past, leading to this moment.

What does it mean to you to be here in New York, making your Broadway debut?

Zawe Ashton: It is a dream come true, actually. I’ve seen some of the best things I’ve ever seen in this very theater, including the show previous to us, “The Ferryman.”

Tom Hiddleston: I first came to Broadway with my dad and my sisters when I was 17. It was my first time seeing the city and I remember going into Times Square and we went to see “Follies.” This was before I was even thinking about being an actor — or maybe in the back of my head I had decided. The first time I was in this theater I saw Samuel L. Jackson and Angela Bassett doing “The Mountaintop.”

Charlie, you actually live out here, are you planning on showing them around? Charlie Cox: Oh, yes. There’s a few places I want to take them.

Ashton: [Laughs] How can you make that sound sinister?

Cox: I’m not sure the places I like will be what you’re imagining. I want to take them to Bubby’s. It’s a restaurant with a great all-American brunch.

What does “all-American” mean to Brits?

Cox: Fried chicken and waffles.

Hiddleston: And big portions.

Cox: And coffee that keeps being filled up. You have to put a napkin over it to stop them.

Hiddleston: Right. If you have a second coffee in the UK you have to pay for it.

Cox: It’s crazy. When I get my coffee, I need to put my milk and sugar and the proportions have to be right. When they fill your coffee up over here, the proportions are all off. Also, you feel like you’re on rocket fuel and you don’t know why.

Ashton: Anything else we need to experience?

Cox: Well, these two are too healthy but I’d love to introduce you to half-and-half. It’s one of the best inventions in the world. It’s cream and milk.

Hiddleston: I know about that. This isn’t, like, my first time in America.

Cox: Oh, and I’d love to introduce you to McDonald’s. [Laughs.]

Hiddleston: I’m really excited about the seasons. I’ve spent time in New York before but it’s only been for like two weeks at a time. To be here from summer into fall into winter…

Cox: Fall is an illusion in New York. You get a weekend in the 70s, and that’s it.

Ashton: No, but the colors and the trees! And Thanksgiving is going to be amazing!

How did you first become familiar with the work of Harold Pinter and specifically “Betrayal”?

Hiddleston: For my A-Level English literature, we did a play of Pinter’s called “The Homecoming.” What I found so interesting was “The Homecoming” was so spare and so precise and so grown-up. I remember my teacher encouraging us to think about this play as about power and sex and family, all in a very brutal way. That it’s a father and sons competing for supremacy. I remember thinking: “This is reading a bit too much into it, isn’t it?” But it isn’t. As a 17-year-old, I just didn’t realize there was a writer engaging so consciously at this level.

Then I read “Betrayal” at the Royal Academy of Dramatic arts as an exercise for a dramaturgy class. I read it in one sitting and I did think, at the age of 21, “This would be an amazing thing to do one day.”

Ashton: We did a couple months of scene study at drama school and I played Anna in “Old Times.” I was 19 and I loved it and we actually nailed the scene study. I mean, we were 19-year-olds, maybe it was terrible. But my head of year said to me: “If I had known how easy Pinter was going to be for you, I would have given you something else.”

Was it easy?

Ashton: No! It wasn’t easy! But what I think he identified that if you vibe with Pinter, you’re kind of a special breed of person. If you can lean into all the violence and brutality and also see the tenderness and experience the special viewpoint he has of human relationships, you have a friend for life.

And you vibed with him from the start?

Ashton: 100%. And now I love him even more. Doing “Betrayal” is about having to invest in a love affair with these two men, but I also feel I’ve invested in a love affair with Pinter. I’ve wanted to read his poetry, I’ve wanted to think about him, I’ve wanted to read the books Joan Bakewell and Lady Antonia Fraser wrote about him. Just to try and piece together the man who I’ve never met. Charlie has.

You’ve met Pinter?

Cox: The first play I did in the West End was with Jamie Lloyd, “The Lover/The Collection.” Harold was part of numerous rehearsals and came to see the play many times. I got some great Harold stories that I’m still dining out on! During that time, I read “Betrayal.” Harold died the following year. It’s funny, my wife and I live in Connecticut and when I was offered this play I walked into my local bookshop and it was sitting right there.

A year ago, you didn’t know you’d be doing “Betrayal” in London, let alone here.

Cox: Four weeks ago we didn’t know we’d be here! It all happened very fast. When we closed in London, we thought we were done.

My understanding is this all began last October, when Tom and Zawe did a reading from the play at the “Pinter at the Pinter” gala?

Ashton: It sprung from that gala and people thinking we were rehearsing it already. People kept coming up to me and asking if we were doing a full production. So at the gala I basically came up to Tom and said, “What are you doing in March 2019?” And you were like, “Uh, get away from me, crazy lady.”

Hiddleston: It was an interesting night because it was celebration of all his work as a gift to [his widow] Antonia Fraser and it was 10 years after he died. But it wasn’t a heavy night, it was a celebration. And people came back to do extracts. The production Jamie Lloyd directed of “The Homecoming” came back. Jeremy Irons came back to do “No Man’s Land.”

Wait, Jeremy Irons starred in the film version of “Betrayal.”  Were you intimidated to do a scene in front of him?

Hiddleston: Well, less intimidated because I played his son in “The Hollow Crown.” There were several “Betrayal” alumni. Sam West was there, who played Robert at the Donmar Warehouse. Kristin Scott Thomas, who has played Emma, was also there. There was something very generous about this company of great, established actors who had made a great impact with Pinter’s work saying to Zawe and myself, “If you’re not doing it, you should do it.”

Ashton: It was such a compliment.

Hiddleston: Then Antonia Fraser also said, “Would you like to do it?” And Jamie leaned across and said, “Let’s do it!” So it came together very fast. And Jamie’s first suggestion for Jerry was Charlie, but he said you couldn’t do it.

Cox: The show I was doing [“Daredevil”] was going to be scheduled for another season at the time. So they went out to find somebody else. Then my show got cancelled and I called my agent and said I would love to do a play. I didn’t hear for a bit and I finally got him on the phone and was about to say “I’ve been trying to call you!” — but in a very nice, English way. And before I could say anything he said, “How would you like to do ‘Betrayal’ with Zawe Ashton and Tom Hiddleston?” I paused and said, “I’d like that very much.”

Ashton: If “Daredevil” hadn’t been canceled you wouldn’t have been able to do it.

That has to take some of sting out of cancellation.

Cox: It did, yeah.

This play doesn’t work without the chemistry between the characters, even when they are constantly competing and  one-upping each other. Did you know each other prior to working together and was that chemistry pretty instant?

Cox: Tom and I knew each other. We were bouncing around L.A. at the same time early in our careers.

Hiddleston: The truth is, we first met bumping into each other auditions for the same films that neither of us would get. After like the fourth time, we said, “Let’s go get a burger.”

Ashton: We’d been intersecting for years. Weird things have happened: Tom and I sat next to each other years before at the theater. We did the gala but weirdly, we’d also done a reading a couple weeks before that. And then Charlie and I realized we had auditioned together years ago.

Cox: I’m almost sure it was you. I didn’t get it.

Ashton: I didn’t either. And it was definitely you.

Hiddleston: That’s how most actors know each, they audition for things they don’t get.

Ashton: This could be the most unpleasant experience; it could really be toxically bad. What has happened is it has been the most joyful experience ever. That’s not to say we’re not completely embedded in the raw pain of the play. But I think you realize when you get to a certain age that you don’t need it to bleed into your lives and you don’t need to carry it home. I don’t want to do that with Harold Pinter because you can and you will go mad.

Hiddleston: It’s one of those things, you can’t put your finger on why it works, but it works and it’s a great pleasure.

Cox: That one-upmanship you talked about that’s in the text; if that were to manifest between us as actors, it would be awful.

Ashton: However…there was a squash game.

Cox: Let’s not talk about that.

Ashton: It did spill over into that game.

Cox: Look, it’s not about who wins or loses, it’s about who’s fitter. And Tom is fitter than I am.

Hiddleston: It was very instructive, playing squash. Some of those scenes, the competition is in the subtext, the brutality to each other is underneath it while they’re being civil on the surface. After we played squash, those scenes played themselves.

Cox: I still have a buttock injury from that last game. I was desperately trying to reach a ball because I was so determined to keep up! We had one day where we had five solid sessions and then Zawe joined us for the spa.

Leaving behind these characters at the end of the day could be a challenge. Are you able to do that?

Cox: Sometimes I’ll be at the end of the day and I’ll be agitated in some way and then I remember; of course, I just got off stage.

Ashton: I’ve often said I’ve felt like a baby who needed to be burped. There’s so much repression in the play and people aren’t saying what they mean and you want to cry but you have to hold it in. Sometimes I want to cry for three days.

Hiddleston: My favorite actor of all time Paul Scofield said: “The emotions are real, but they aren’t mine.” Which I think sums it up. Actors investigate something real but the situation doesn’t belong to them. So I know consciously I’m not Robert, I know I haven’t been betrayed. But when I investigate his sadness, some aspect of that belongs to me. It sometimes leaves a shadow.

“Betrayal” has been performed in America before, obviously, but are you curious about how Broadway audiences will respond versus London audiences?

Cox: We get a lot of Americans in London. I don’t think it’s going to be radically different.

Ashton: I think it’s going to be radically different. I think there’s going to be some exciting new things having an American audience is going to illuminate. I think it’s going to be interesting.

“Betrayal” runs at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre through Dec. 8.

[cyn2k]

Sherlock Fic Recs (mostly lesser-known)

All right, I’ve recommended individual fics from time to time,and I certainly reblog fic rec lists, but this is the first time I’ve tried to assemble a Sherlock rec list of my own. I’m trying to select stories I’ve not seen often (or ever) on other lists for this, and they are in no particular order. Mind the tags. Nearly all are end-game Johnlock, although a couple are more gen.

Since this is my first time writing a fic rec list, please let me know if you enjoyed it.

A Telling Touch - by MikayoToudaiji, 91K, E, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson 

Post-Reichenbach. After Sherlock’s death, John manages to get himself re-enlisted and is sent back to war. But when two series of gruesome murders link home and outland together, John is suddenly faced with more battles than he could have imagined. A Reunion, multi-chapter, case fic.

This is one of my go-to fics. John is grieving the loss of Sherlock and back in the army, this time in Syria, courtesy of Mycroft, when he is called home due to the mysterious death of Irene Adler. Irene was the latest victim of a serial killer, but she has managed to leave John a mysterious message. Sherlock does eventually return, but badly injured. There’s a fascinating case fic, a very different and totally platonic Mary Morstan, Sebastian Moran makes an appearance, and a Mummy Holmes who’s absolutely lovely. I find this story so emotionally rewarding, on many levels.

Follow My Voice - by flawedamythyst, 9K, T, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson

Sherlock's voice is all John has.

John is in a coma, and his only link back to the world is Sherlock’s voice. Told mostly from John’s perspective, the payoff when John finally wakes up is lovely.

Meeting Clara - by BlueSkye12, 2K, G, no pairings (pre-Johnlock, perhaps, if you squint)

John and Sherlock have a chance meeting with John's former sister-in-law and Sherlock learns a thing or two about John's return from Afghanistan.

Sherlock learns exactly how much damage John suffered from the bullet that brought him to London and that fateful meeting at St. Bart’s. Clara is very protective of John, even if he’s no longer her brother-in-law.

Bitter Sweet - by distantstarlight, 17K, E, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson

Alpha John Watson is a retired army doctor with a chance to acquire an omega mate. He meets the most unusual omega he’s ever encountered.

A somewhat unusual take on A/B/O dynamics, where alphas need to have a use in life, either with a satisfactory career or as a parent to the next generation. Omegas, including Sherlock, are bought at auction, which some may find disturbing, but there’s no indications of maltreatment on anyone’s part. It’s Sherlock who has all the power in this relationship, although he’s deleted the reasons why. John may have to pay the price for that.

The Art of Seduction series - by flawedamythyst, 97K across 6 works, T to E, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson, Sherlock Holmes/Jim Moriarty, Sherlock Holmes/many OMCs, John Watson/OMC, Mycroft Holmes/Greg Lestrade

Sherlock ran a website called The Science Of Seduction, on which he gave advice on the best ways to get laid, wrote blog entries detailing the results of his various sexual 'experiments' and generally contributed to the stereotype of 'every gay man is a sex-mad playboy'. John avoided the thing like the plague. AU in which Sherlock treats sex like he does crime in canon. Inspired by Queer As Folk UK, but it very quickly went its own way.

I love this series. Sherlock is obsessed, not with crime, but with sex. John is his flatmate and pretty much the only gay man in London with whom Sherlock has not slept. John pines, Sherlock sleeps with most of gay London, and they all go dancing every weekend. Then Jim shows up and ruins everything. Or does he?

Semper Fidelis - by Blind_Author, 57K, M, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson, Mycroft Holmes/Anthea

Written for a prompt. Moriarty frames John and "Anthea" of betrayals which cause both of the Holmes brothers to cut them off. Cue BAMF!John and BAMF!"Anthea" doing their best to clear their names.

John and Anthea go on the run after they are both framed the same day. They protect one another and bond over the idiocy of their respective Holmeses. Both are in established, if hidden, relationships. They bond while on the run.

Evidence of Human Life - by thesardine, 17K, E, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson

Sherlock's sanity deteriorates while he and John are stranded on a deserted island.

I basically summed this up in my personal bookmark as: Sherlock and John on a deserted island. They hunt seals, Sherlock periodically goes nuts, and they start having sex.   

This Doesn’t Feel Like Falling - by Dark3Star, 148K, E, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson, pre Mycroft Holmes/Greg Lestrade

When he fell from St. Barts, Sherlock knew he loved John Watson. John couldn't love him back (or so he thinks). Now that he's back from the dead things are back to normal... sort of. When a serial killer targets increasingly high profile gay couples Sherlock is on the case. With a, possibly ill-advised, plan Sherlock and John go undercover as a couple to uncover the truth.

Part 1 of a series, although this is by far the largest part.  Your classic “married for a case” trope, taken to the extreme. There’s a decent case fic, a lot of mutual pining, and some interesting wedding planning. Heed the warnings, there are some pretty graphic depictions of violence when they finally confront the murderer.

The Secret Identity of John Watson - by scifigrl47, 27K, G, John Watson/OFC (but don’t let that scare you!)

Taken out of context, John Watson leads a terrifying life. You have to wonder what those poor women he dates thinks of it, especially if John decides to try keeping one away from Sherlock, and Sherlock decides that it'd be best if he could get rid of her. After all, Mycroft's taught him a thing or two about removing potential 'problems.'

Told from the point of view of the bank girl John saves and then dates. Guys, I am a total Johnlock shipper, and so is everyone else in this crack-fest, although they aren’t actually together. Samantha and her girlfriends are an absolute riot, and their impressions of both John and Sherlock are hysterical.

Small Steps - by crossroadrain, 16K, unrated, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson

"It's John's birthday and all his army buddies have got him a prostitute for a laugh.

A/B/O fic, where Sherlock is an unwilling omega stripper hired to entertain for John’s birthday get-together with a bunch of his army buddies. When John takes him aside to protect him from his army buddies, he learns something more is going on. The writing is a little uneven, because the writer is not a native English speaker, but the story is quite good.

Endings - by Purple_Slippers_18, 3K, T, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson

Fifty years. Eighteen thousand two hundred and sixty two days. It was a long time to be alive, never mind the thirty-four years Sherlock had breathed before he'd met John, which the man in question most certainly did not. As far as Sherlock was concerned, his life – the one whose memories he hoarded like a dragon protecting caverns of stolen gold – began on that serendipitous January afternoon when two strangers met in the research labs at St. Bart's.

Not for those who can’t deal with MCD or find assisted suicide disturbing, but they’re so in love here. Retirement!Lock.

Body Language - by CeruleanDarkangelis,2K, T Sherlock Holmes/John Watson

There is a language to dancing; a call-and-response from one body to another. Even with the poncy kind of dancing I knew he was versed in, the kind that requires classes and counting and rules, there is communication between bodies. Watching him now, I’m more than pleased to discover that he understands my dialect as well.

This is just 2K of absolutely hot dancing seduction. There’s a follow-up fic, Touch Me, about what happens when they get home

Blind series - by inspiration_assaulted, 19K across 3 works, G to T, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson

Lt John Watson, 25, will do just about anything to stay in the Army, even if it means marrying a man he's never met. It's only for two years, and he'll probably be in Afghanistan the whole time. How much can his life really change?

Mycroft arranges a marriage between Sherlock and John, allowing John to stay in the army and Sherlock to pay for rehab. They write each other letters, but have never met. I originally read this story on FF.net and loved it. I was delighted to find it on AO3, which is easier on my eyes.

Words of One Syllable and At A Loss- GwendolynnFiction, 101K across 2 works on FF.net, M, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson

The landmine at Baskerville leaves Sherlock deafened. Unable to stand living without his friend John agrees to learn to sign, but foreign languages cannot be learned in a void. Sherlock helps John learn to sign by finally learning to talk to him.

This was one of my early favorites when I first started reading Sherlock stories on fanfiction.net. The author has slightly different versions up on AO3, but I find these much more enjoyable, as their relationship just seems to work better. The followup story is what happens during the Moriarty trial and after the fall, when Sherlock has to return unexpectedly after John goes missing.

The Otter and the Hedgehog - by Trinity Fire, 23K on FF.net, T, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson, Mycroft Holmes/Greg Lestrade.

Just when John and Sherlock think they have time to rest after a case, they get an unexpected surprise... Unexpected, yes, and fluffy!

This is a little uneven, and has a very awkward, very weird self-insert OC, but Sherlock the otter wandering around the flat tucking John the hedgehog into his scarf to carry him everywhere is just too cute!

Letters to a Soldier - by Pakmai, 70K on FF.net, T, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson

Captain John Watson is a soldier in Afghanistan. Sherlock Holmes has just been admitted to a drug rehab facility, assigned to write a letter to an unknown soldier. He doesn't expect to get a letter back from someone as interesting as John. John doesn't expect to get letter from a recovering drug addict. Together they form an unlikely friendship through letters.

I’ll admit, it’s been a while since I read this one, but this series turned me into a big fan of epistolary fics. The follow-up fic, Letters to a High-Functioning Sociopath, finished after I’d stopped reading regularly on FF, so I admit I don’t know how the series ended.

Flare - by iMusicalMinji, 6K on FF.net, T, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson

John has a lot to learn about an elusive species when he ends up living with one. Like how he doesn't have to change under a full moon, how he is fireproof even if he cannot breathe fire himself, and how he loves the doctor. MythicalCreature!AU

A sweet dragon!Lock story, with some parental elements. Sherlock’s hoard made me laugh, and then I thought about it and it made sense. 

[weregonnaneedmorewhiskey]

Let’s talk about double standards (DISCLAIMER: IF YOU ARE IGNORANT AND ONLY READ PIECES OF WHAT I HAVE WRITTEN, DON’T READ IT ALL AND CERTAINLY DON’T WRITE REPLIES SAYING I’M AN IDIOT ETC BECAUSE I WILL CLAPBACK WITH RECEIPTS BEING THE SAVAGE THAT I AM)

Ok firstly, I originally was gonna write this on Tuesday but in rehearsals for a production at the moment so it got pushed back and Thank God I did because I did not expect this week to be so...eventful to say the least. I swear I will write a positive blog positive in the near future instead of talking about serious issues. Double standards exist and they are shit. The fact that people can bat a blind eye to one person’s situation but crucify someone else’s situation is BULLSHIT. We’ve all seen the events involving James “I think I can sing” Charles and Tati Westbrook exposing him for sexually manipulating heterosexual people. I think this is absolutely DISGUSTING. If someone is straight, they are straight. If someone is exploring their sexuality then LET them, but don’t manipulate someone for your own sexual gratification. Whilst I have a feeling that James Charles will continue to have a career after this even though that predator label is gonna definitely hang over his head, I ask this. WHY WEREN’T PEOPLE THIS QUICK TO “CANCEL” JEFREE STAR AFTER NUMEROUS INCIDENTS OF HIM BEING RACISTS! And this is coming from someone who doesn’t believe in the cancel culture. I just don’t understand how we let one person slide but not the other. Make it make sense! That’s all I ask. 

Amber Heard who I at one point like and supported has been exposed by Johnny Depp and his camp in a $50 million lawsuit for lying about being abused in their marriage, using said lie to boost her career and actually being the abuser within the marriage. When finding this out, I was horrified and disgusted by this. When the events surrounding the end of Johnny and Amber’s marriage came to light, I was confused. My reason for being confused was due to the fact that Johnny was with Vanessa Paradis who I love for 14 years. They had two children and their relationship was barely in the news and even when they spilt, it was pretty quiet. Well...with the exception of rumours circulating that Johnny was having an affair with Amber since they got together not too long after his split with Vanessa. My thoughts were “well he was with Vanessa for so long and she hasn’t said anything about Johnny period. This is odd. I raise an eyebrow at that and remained confused until THAT video came out of Johnny appears to throw a bottle in Amber’s direction. That in combination with Johnny’s erratic behaviour made me think “whoa he really did that”. The public opinion of Johnny went down drastically, people were quick to hate him but he was still getting film roles. Controversially but nevertheless his career was effected minor. For Amber to use an accusation like that to boost her career, become part of the Me Too movement and be a UN ambassador is disgusting, Amber, you disgust me. The fact that Amber is not having her career effected by this is a perfect example of A) how people stay silent about women being abuses and how men getting abused does not get taken seriously and B) double standard. There should not be different rules depending on gender, or race. Keep that same energy. I seriously hope that Warner Bros will remove her from Aquaman 2.

Mel Gibson, a known racist and abuser only had his career effected for a couple years until he makes Hacksaw Ridge and it gets critical praise and several award nominations including Oscars and now he has been cast as Santa Claus. The person who told his girlfriend after beating her whilst holding their child “I hope you get raped by a pack of niggers” and told her that she “fucking deserved it” is playing Santa Claus. And yet when Chris Brown who took accountability for his incident, has a charity that primarily helps women who are victims of domestic violence but does not put this in the public eye got crucified  in the public eye, blackballed, lost endorsements that probably would have earned him $20 million, had stores refusing to stock his third studio album Graffiti, got banned from the UK and is continuously persecuted TO THIS DAY about it.

And if someone is gonna write a response saying “what about Karruche” Those allegations were proven to be false and she has even admitted this herself and Iyanla Vansant exposed her and her manager for using her show as a way for boost her career as they tried to control her spiritual healing...on a show about spiritual healing. Also side note, we’ve seen how quick the LAPD were to arrest Chris when that girl made up that lie about holding her at gun point. If there was any truth to K***** accusation, A) he would have been arrested immediately and B) he would have been back on probation. Charlie Sheen is another example of someone with a domestic violence incident and this happened at the time when he was the highest paid actor on television, making $1.8 million, before he eventually got fired from Two and A Half Men in 2011. Charlie Sheen did have his career effected minor but he gets a roast on Comedy Central and all is forgiven. Ozzy Osbourne has allegedly admitted to choking Sharon in the past but not an eye lid batted because it’s Ozzy right? Sean Penn allegedly abused Madonna, a well known fact but sue Lee Daniels for saying this in an interview despite this being a well known fact.

R Kelly when the tape was released continued to be one of the biggest artists at the moment, racked up number 1′s and only got his Times Up moment a few months ago. After years of sexual abusing young POC women for over 20 years and there being mounds of evidence, remaining defiant and unapologetic and pretty much hiding in plain sight with dubbing himself The Pier Piper of R&B. Meanwhile you have Elvis who married Priscilla when she was a teenager but still gets honoured on TV specials. And I'm not trying to shit on Elvis to bring R Kelly up because I have been VERY vocal on my dislike for R Kelly and how I hope he gets jail time.

Recently I saw a tweet surfacing “celebrating” five years since Solange attacked Jay Z at the Met Gala. I love Solange but this shit should not be celebrated at all. I thought then and now, if Jay Z had even pushed her back in self defence, the backlash he would have gotten, would have been insane. When Bow Wow and his ex girlfriend got arrested and Bow Wow’s mugshot showed him with scars on his face, people made memes. Again double standards, if she had scars or a bruise on her face, everyone would be saying “FUCK BOW WOW, HE’S AN ABUSER” but...no smoke for his ex girlfriend huh? Wow. 

I’ve just had enough of double standards and that’s the tea. Just start supporting POC beauty gurus like Jackie Aina and Alissa Ashley because they deserve all the love and support.

[vertigoambrosia]

today fucking sucked hopefully the hamburg show will not

(though i think i saw a spoiler that i am Not Pleased about)

man the markthalle seems totally rad

oh good this is a singles tag match for once

not quiiiite sure why arrows get another shot so soon but whatever

oh the forgetten verses of the shotgun song!

wow that bridge is awful

so basically the opening uses all the good parts with vocals lol

did jay fk change their theme after becoming fuckboys? i can’t remember their face one anyway but still

i like icarus a lot and so feel really guilty that i can’t stop noticing his titty problem

they look like they feel tender :(

yooo that backstory on the arrows’ masks is really cool

unfortunately the sound mixing sounds kinda weird so it’s a lil hard to make out commentary? it’s weird cause i feel like its been a while since that problem occured

i also feel a lil bad criticizing sound mixing because it is The Worst To Do

sounds a little better now though so we’ll see - also they are pushing out two events so may have had less time

or i’m just tired and separating sounds is harder - today was a hard day

lmao is the crowd chanting ‘schurle sheisse’?

what is the other thing they are saying

dover and avalanche should have a contest to see who can throw jay and francis farther

yay they got a crossfire!

lmaoooo that forearm on jay

and booooooooooooooooo come on reiner!

good luck david you have to fight meat brick frankenstein

aka ilja’s long lost dad

seriously look at ilja’s twitter it’s practically kayfabe

david’s moving to the uk real soon so maybe he’ll be around in wxw more often

he’s stopping by brooklyn next week and i might go even though it’s a show on a thursday night in williamsburg and nobody’s going with me :(

‘we see a man who used to be a man, but is not anymore’ god i love wrestling so much

rico straight up mentioning how destro revived PCO

...is pco shorter than i thought? i feel like hes not that much taller than david, but that also doesn’t quite make sense cause i’ve seen pco in person and he was around matt riddle’s height

i want to say this match is a lil slow but also its basically just been pco clobbering david so it’s pretty one sided rn

oh david bb i don’t think product placement will be the best idea

look at that brick man fly

david y u go to top you can’t lift him from thre

i wish there had been a little buildup for this match; its kind of an odd matchup, especially when it’ll inevitably be compared to the insane ilja match

holy shit pco trying to kill david

this match can’t go on much longer tho

omgggg pco readjusting his neck after the cherry mint ddt is so great

that was a lot of fun but idk if i believed that comeback...

PEEEEETE

and ivan!

but god i missed pete being all hot

ivan i love you please cut your hair

coast 2 coast are good but i’m not as into them as some other tag teams that have shown up

maybe i’m not being fair though because the first comparison of guest tag teams i’m thinking of is LAX, who are fucking fantastic and also new york city boys so of course i love them

also LAX debuted in world tag team league (under their old name EYFBO) so they had more matches to impress

aww look at pete smiling at the aus berlin chants

‘ivan kiev, pete bouncer, these are a couple of studs’ guess who said that

dis chain wrestles

lmaooo commentary mentioning people getting horny on twitter on wxw

andy saying pete is considered to some to be the most handsome in wxw

rico making a note to mention it is not only women who are hot for pete

ivan: gangly and kinda rodentlike but somehow also sexy

his smile is legit cute af tho

fuck pete, marry ivan

protect lucky b/c he is a baby

remember last year at the afterparty when i really loudly talked about how good pete looked and then he was like, right there?

ali def tocuhed the butt i saw it

stop smashing my boys’ faces! especially pete’s!

that was a great blind tag

yay our bois

match was a bit heatless but i feel like that ws a bit inevitable considering

but our boys!

lol i literally had never heard axel’s theme before the first ‘omg axel’s back!’ video

oh snap this match is hype

huh, rico mentioning jazzy and wesna trained together - that’s cool!

i don’t know if i have a ton to say this is some hard shit

the good shit

lol tas has no control

wesna’s probably too busy to regularly show up in wxw, but i’d fucking love if she had a lengthy feud with jazzy

wait what just heard rico say ‘she did swing both ways back in the day’ right before the submission

not sure if he was talking about pro wrestling and mma or, you know, the usual swing both ways

ok the back and forth forearms get a lil boring i think in general there needs to be a moratorium on that in general for a bit

huh...that was kind of an odd abrupt finish but sure why not

lucky <3

i should take this moment to tell you that despite this being my fave promotion i am still incapable of watching anything in a single sitting

because i’m DUMB

ok actuallt adhd but it does feel like i’m regressing

NEW GEAR FOR OUR STRANGE BOY

lil lucky ninja

lol he’d be the worst stealth assassin

i really want/need lucky to win this but i have a bad feeling since this isn’t a marquee event it’s not gonna happen :(

fuk u tarkan

get out of the ring tarkan you had your match

HAHAHA GET OUT TARKAN

BYE FELICIA

omg lucky winning immediately wouldhave been so satisfying

i have so much affection for lucky i want to cuddle and smooch him

why does he have to be so cute

hahaha now marius is mr. clean

“i don’t know if the real mr. clean really likes females” lol wut rico?

TARKGAN GET OUT

YESSSSSSSS

wait but no the brass knuckles are still in the ring!!!

rainer i swear if u don’t see that

RAINER THE FUCKING WEAPON

goddammit

BB NO

LUCKY

BB NO

PLS NO

oh babby

i mean, he deserves it, but

wait wtf?????

undertaker?

OH SHIT

MACK OFFICIALLY SUPERNATURAL

SPOOKY MACK

i can’t even get mad at the distraction win because i mean mack just fucking teleported that’s a good reason to be all ????????? stunned

omg he unprettiered pete!

i am hype for this!!!

lol that we’re having a rise schism though

unlike the bullet club it’s timed perfectly and written well (and rise hasn’t worn out its welcome) so it’s still good

i’m glad veit is growing his hair again but it looks awk right now

timo!

here comes the grapplefuck

“veit is heavier” “he’s wrestling big tim. it doesn’t matter”

“tim’s got 0% body fat”

hah tim getting rare boos cause veit is so beloved

timo’s hair looks good

which probably means he’s gonna make it super short like, next week

dis match gud

dieses match ist gut

dieses kampf? duolingo hasn’t taught me ‘match’

it did teach me ‘opponent’ though

I SAID NO

ohhh this is so much fun

why wasn’t the doug williams match this fun

AAAAAAAAAAAAAA

i still don’t like the cravat suplex, but maybe that’s just cause i’m alwauys like ‘omg the dude’s neck!’

*tim voice* lol it’s been a while since i’ve been booed in europe

TIM PROMO

omg every time he talks to junior through the camera it’s adorable

already know emil was the next monster consulting pick cause spoilers (though that’s not the one i’m upset about)

i’m excited about riptide coming cause i was thinking of following it

i wonder who the ~mystery partner~ is

it would be big if it were gwf (and warrant the ~mystery~), but i seriously doubt it

maximum wrestling would be nice cause that’s where pete and ivan are their evil kinky versions

i mean...what other german promotions are there?

tfw you have to go through the hiring process all over again

who the fuck is this guy and why does aj keep touching his goatee

‘allan pain’? he looks like he’s been in gay porn

so aj has a daddy now? (but not a daddy dom)

daddy sub? is that a thing?

CHEEAAAAAP HEEAAAAAT (great)

oh aaron pain i guess? did aj get it wrong or did the editors doing the graphics?

real talk though aj is like, intentionally kayfabe bi, right?

emil feels like a weird choice but ok sure

i don’t think he’s a good culture fit for an office hierarchal culture

i was gonna say ‘corporate culture’ but monster consulting is def more of a business casual company

LOL rico straight up said allan looked like someone’s slaveboy

ok that backdrop moonsault was pretty fucking great ngl

so was jurn really sick or is it an angle? it’d be kinda funny if jurn like, just stood up aj sometimes cause he didn’t feel like dealing with him

haha i fucking love the hamburg crowd getting right in the face of the heels

ugh i hope i was misdirected as to how this match ends

tas i swear to god you better be paying real close attention to bullshit right now

WHAT THE FUCK

even ilja is like ??????

SOMEBODY GET ANOTHER REF OUT HERE RIGHT NOW

YEAHHH RAINER

????????

ILJA

REMEMBER: YOU ARE TRYING TO WIN A TITLE

which means you need a ref

and to not get DQed

tas wake up

tas

pls

really tho where is felix? isn’t he the one who drives ilja? does he have the night off?

TAS

...rainer?

...markus?

yeah this is fun and all but because the ref bump is so long i feel like i’m just waiting for the obvious Bad End

you know, tas happens to wake up just as either ilja does something illegal or andy has finished doing something illegal and has ilja pinned so lol andy wins

also lbr, it’s been like 10 minutes that is way too much for a ref bump

hah even rico is like ‘yeah ilja if you wanted to get a pin you guys shouldnt have taken out both refs!’

like, i know ilja has no chill but like...sweetie this is a title match

oh my god ilja what are you trying to do

sirs no

i wonder if tas is actually asleep

oh SHIT

ok wait also

tas got hit straight in the fucking head by andy and he’s not immediately dqing andy?

LOL THE BELL HADN’T EVEN RUNG

ilja ge tthe fuck up

ilja

ILJA

if that ref bump had been half as long i’d be real amped up for this actual match

i swear to god if ilja taps i will be very salty

ok good

this is all cool stuff but i’m just waiting for the inevitable that long ass ref bump killed it for me

WHAT

ok that was cool as shit

ref can’t count the pin if his hand can’t touch th emat!

OH COME THE FUCK ON

ANOTHER BUMP

really?

ARE YOU SHITTING ME

ARE YOU

FUCKING SHITTING ME

this is some wwe bullshit i’m sorry

literally 4 ref bumps

i can’t even celebrate ilja kicking out because like really?

can we just make a rule that if the ref gets hit andy gets dqed

tas you fucking

and the distraction

with two refs

yeah i’m sorry that was terrible fucking booking what the fuck wxw

overbooked doesn’t even begin to describe it

what a fart to end an otherwise pretty good show

and really uncharacteristic for wxw too

[dailyaudiobible]

09/30/2021 DAB Transcript

Isaiah 60:1-62:5, Philippians 1:27-2:18, Psalm 72:1-20, Proverbs 24:11-12

Today is the 30th day of September, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian. It's great to be here with you today. We made it this far. All the way to the last day of the ninth month of the year. Crazy as it sounds. We made it this far together day-by-day, step-by-step, and so, let's step in to our reading today. We’re in the book of Isaiah. Today we will read chapter 60 verse 1 through 62 verse 5. And we’re reading from the Christian Standard Bible this week.

Commentary:

Okay, in Paul's letter to the Philippians, we encounter some pretty lofty statements today and we’ll go through it. But if we were like, kinda boiling things down we would come to this understanding: Jesus is Lord. And I doubt that you've never heard that one before. I doubt that even you’ve never said it before; we say these kinds of things all the time. But for policy, Jesus is Lord. It's not like saying Jesus is like the supreme master over things. It's him saying Jesus is God, which is what the early church was confessing and what Paul was preaching and what was problematic and very controversial because well, we…we understand that the Jewish people would not say, would not say God's name. So, oftentimes there’d be like a replacement, like for example Adonai, which is not a name of God, that is a Hebrew word that means, Lord. So, when they began to say Jesus is Lord, well, you see, you see the situation and yet that is indeed what we believe as Christians, and that is indeed what the early church was confessing and we do indeed still confess that until this day and that is central to what Paul was preaching. And, you can see why Paul appealed to Caesar instead of going back to Jerusalem, where they would most likely assassinate him. So, now you sitting in prison waiting for the emperor to decide whether he's going to live or die, essentially over this, as well as his activity among the Gentiles. He's a blasphemer in their mind; blasphemy is to elevate something to the level of God. Jesus is Lord, elevates Jesus to the place of God. We as Christians, 2000 years later who believe this and are going to get killed for believing this, we don’t always grasp how tenuous and how problematic and how what a struggle that they went through in their declaration of faith. And so, Paul uses language in this letter, essentially to unpack that and there's plenty biblical scholars would think this particular thing this statement, this statement, that Paul makes might've been something that was spoken, like creedal, was something that was recited or memorize or spoken in the churches, which wouldn't be all that unusual. We still in many, many tens and tens and tens of thousands of churches around the world do express some kind of declaration, some sort of, whether it be creed, a creed that we recite or some sort of confession that we make, it's never been foreign, a foreign concept to the church. But what we get from what Paul is saying is a pretty clear picture of his Christology, not to get all theological but his view of who Jesus really is. And so, I wanna repeat those six verses so that we can immerse ourselves in that, this is what the early believers believed about Jesus. This is what we believe. Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be exploited. Instead He emptied himself by assuming the form of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity. And when He had come as a man, He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death - even to death on a cross. For this reason, God highly exalted Him and gave Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. This is what we believe as Christians. This is what brought Paul ultimately to his execution. So, it's reasonably safe for us to say that he believed this, he suffered for this, and he died for this and so when we say Jesus is Lord, lets understand that it's not a bumper sticker. It's a declaration that Jesus is one with the Father. Jesus is God.

Prayer:

So, Holy Spirit, we invite You into that. We invite You to make us more and more aware of this reality, lead us deeper into the heart of Jesus, our Savior, who is Lord. Help us, help us to do what this letter says to do everything without grumbling and arguing, so that we may be blameless and pure children of God who are faultless in a crooked and perverse generation, among whom we are supposed to shine like stars in the world as we hold firm to the word of life. Holy Spirit, lead us deeper into Jesus, that we might continue to be transformed into his likeness so that we can be like him in this world. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com is the website, it’s home base, it’s where you find out what's going on around here, so be sure to stay connected in any way that you can or in any way that you want to. Check out the Community section, that is where the Prayer Wall lives, that's where different links to get connected on social media are. Check out the Daily Audio Bible Shop. That's where resources are available for the journey that we are on.

And if you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible that can be done at dailyaudiobible.com or using the app as well. On the website, there's a link on the homepage, using the app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or the mailing address is P.O. Box 1996 Springhill, Tennessee 37174.

And as always, we’re a community that loves on one another, especially through praying for one another. Being involved in each other’s stories and if you have a prayer request or encouragement, you can hit the Hotline button in the app, that's the little Hotline button looking thing up at the top in the app screen or you can dial, well there are a number of numbers that you could dial: if you're in the Americas 877-942-4253 is the number to call, if you're in the UK or Europe 44 2036 088078 is the number to dial, and if you are in Australia 61 3 8820 5459 is the number to call.

And that's it for today I’m Brian. I love you and I'll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Prayer and Encouragements:

Mark Street here from Australia. Haven’t called for a while. I have a real desperate prayer request, my brother-in-law, he’s gone missing in the Northern Territory. It’s been a couple of months now, he does suffer from a mental illness as well, we’re quite worried and concerned. He’s been through a lot, he’s lost his son, it’s real tough. Please pray for him. He’s way up in the Outback, he could be up in the Outback Bush, he’s a bit like a Crocodile Dundee, actually. But, we’re not sure and we’re really worried. If you could please really pray for revelation and closure and for him to be found and wherever he is that he’s safe with the Lord. Yeah, okay thanks a lot everyone. Bye.

Hello Daily Audio Bible, this is Alyssa calling from Colorado. I’ve been listening since the beginning of the year, I did live in Montana, I called once before. I love this community so much and I’m just reaching out today because I got COVID a few weeks ago and I have lost my taste and smell and I don’t have COVID anymore but the symptom has not gone away and I’m actually totally blind, I was born that way, and so for me losing taste and smell is really, really difficult and it leaves me depressed almost every day and I cry about it every day and I know God can heal, I know he's able to do it. But I'm fearful that it won't go away or that it won’t come back because I’ve heard people who don't get it back for a long time so I just need your prayers against fear and that I'll trust God in what He’s trying to teach me through this. But that if it’s His will I’ll get my senses back so that life will be a little bit easier for me. So, thank you so much for your prayers in advance. And I love each and every one of you. And God bless you, have a wonderful day.

Just wanted to say how much I am blessed by the Daily Audio Bible Scripture reading and how moved I am by the prayers. Thank all of you for calling in. I do want just lift up the prayers for parents. I am a parent of four and I just parents who really grab a hold of the prayer that you, that the Lord would bless our children and enlarge their territory, they He would keep their hand of safety upon them, that He would keep them far from evil, that He would even keep evil people away from our children and that every single day our children would learn to love Him with all their heart, soul, strength, and mind. Thank you. We pray all this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

This is Bonnie from Virginia. And today is September 27th. I was listening to the message, thank you so much Pastor Brian, for the message today. I had been living in the abusive marriage relation for about 14 years. But, I think, because of my culture that in Nepal, even though I was a teacher I was not able to escape from that relation because back in our culture if any marry relation will be broken it’s mostly it will be the wife, they will think it’s her fault. And so, maybe because of that scare thought I was living in the abusive relation. I had physical, mental, sexual, verbal abuse every day from my husband. But once I came to America with him, I was able to learn everything about not coping with the abusive attitude of my husband. And I prayed and got advice from other people and I was able to escape from that relation. After 14 years I was able to understand this message from the bible. And thank you very much. I hope this message will …

Hi, I’m a first-time caller from Wyoming. And I was listening to the September 24th cast and I heard a woman who asked for prayer for her 18-year-old son who was going to discipleship training school in Hawaii and I am struggling with the same issue with my daughter. She got accepted to a discipleship training school in New Zealand in January. And of course, New Zealand is closed and it doesn’t look like it’s going to open any time soon and I want my daughter to apply to a different one and she’s accusing me of not having enough faith and that God will make a way for her to go. So, I could just really use some prayer. And I am praying for your son who is going, it’s a huge step and it’s exciting and I would just appreciate prayer. Thank you.  

[xtruss]

Now There’s No Doubt Meghan and Harry Had to Leave

Caught between a hate-filled media and a terrified royal family, the surprise is not that the couple struck out on their own. It’s that they didn’t escape much sooner

Harry says racism ‘large part’ of reason why couple left UK

Shola Mos-Shogbamimu: Meghan has been mistreated for years

Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, speaking to Oprah Winfrey on US television. Photograph: Joe Pugliese/Harpo Productions/PA

seldom remembered fact about the royal family is that, before the death of Princess Diana, it was not normal to be interested in them. Tabloids were fascinated, but it was more of a convention than news – like a splash about tomatoes causing cancer, it was the out-of-office auto reply of the industry, a fallback. The family (I seriously dislike the affectation of calling them “the Firm”) survived while there was nothing to see. They were caught between two irreconcilable forces – their own culture of discretion, on one side, and intense, 24-hour scrutiny on the other – and they navigated that with a studied blandness. What did they actually care about? Manners, duty, causes, the Commonwealth. Whatever curiosity surrounded them, they simply did not reward it, and the regular response to that, after a few centuries and whatnot, was to not be terribly curious.

You may recall David Blaine, the magician who lived in a glass box above the Thames for 44 days in 2003: people really wanted to know what he was doing, even though we could see what he was doing – and that was mainly nothing. There grew a peculiar resentment of gawping at something that was only interesting because it was untouchable. But we could see for ourselves that it was not interesting – and then everyone got annoyed and some of us (not me) threw eggs. Eventually, hawkers started selling eggs. That pretty much sums up the experience of the royals pre-1997.

The death of Diana changed all that, but in a counterintuitive way. Curiosity had driven a woman into a pillar, so you might expect a generalised reflection on the nature of it – what were the paparazzi hoping to see? A divorcee, going about her business, with a gentleman caller. Was there not a case for just giving it all a rest, especially given that the core traits of royalty, the bits that made them so unusual – restraint, self-abnegation, respectability – had been more or less torched by Prince Charles’s generation, anyway (it wasn’t just Camilla and Fergie and their antics; Prince Andrew, who, of course, was then still just a buffoon with no Jeffrey Epstein taint, had added to it with It’s a Knockout).

Instead, the opposite happened: far from posing difficult questions about whether all this invasive scrutiny was warranted or humane, the tragedy seemed to elevate it, to usher in a belief that this obsessiveness between a society and its head of state and her offspring and in-laws was somehow natural. The post-rationalisation of Diana and her place in culture is almost hallucinatory at times.

If you are of a certain age, you might recall that before she died, we were not all trying to dress like her. She was not our people’s princess; we may have watched Martin Bashir’s Panorama interview but with an idle rather than passionate interest. She was neither a feminist nor any other kind of icon. Fair play, it was a decent thing, when she held hands with HIV patients, but generally speaking, she was just a Sloane in an egalitarian age, a pretty relic. Her death should have sparked a conversation not just about an intrusive press but about what the family represented, whether its hierarchies and rules could survive any more contact with living, sentient modern souls.

Instead, it catalysed quite a cunning, self-justifying switcheroo from the gutter press: we had to hound the woman because the public demands it, the public is just so interested. This buried a landmine that has detonated a quarter of a century later, upon contact with that other fixation of the same media, race: or, more specifically, dog-whistling racist tropes.

Harry and Meghan in 2018. Photograph: Neil Mockford/GC Images

And so we come to last night’s interview. It’s possible, of course, in any clash between two factions, for everyone to be in the wrong. It’s possible, for instance, for the royal family to be inhumane, hierarchical to the point of lunacy, snobbish and racist – and simultaneously for Prince Harry and Meghan to be spoilt and high-handed. On the eve of the Oprah interview with the couple, which aired on CBS on Monday at 1am GMT, it was indeed fair to expect that the impartial viewer would come away thinking: “Six of one, half a dozen of the other.” For those who were already Team Windsor, there were aspects that would grate enough to confirm their views: Oprah’s faux toughness, the mad opulence of the garden backdrop, the very carefully choreographed frankness. But in the end what swung it so far the other way certainly wasn’t the cute gender-reveal (the couple are expecting a girl). Instead, it was something much darker: Meghan’s disclosure that she “didn’t want to be alive any more” at one point, while pregnant with their first child, Archie. “That was a very clear and real and frightening, constant thought,” she said.

When I spoke to Katie Nicholl, royal reporter and the author of Harry and Meghan: Life, Love and Loss, before the broadcast, she had said, judiciously: “I think she perhaps didn’t give it long enough. Within 18 months they were off – that was no time at all. Fergie and Diana both gave it longer than that.”

That made sense when we spoke: what’s 18 months to get used to your in-laws? It’s the blink of an eye. But making the briefest survey of the kind of coverage Meghan received, the vehemence and double standards are breathtaking. It also goes some way towards explaining why she couldn’t just give it another year: the press seemed to be whipping itself into a frenzy; every negative story generated 10 more. If she ate an avocado, she was “wolfing down a fruit linked to water shortages, illegal deforestation and all-round general environmental devastation”. If she used lily of the valley in her bridesmaid’s flowers, she was potentially risking the lives of tiny children. She was portrayed as having bullied Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, to the point of tears over flower girl dresses for the wedding (the opposite was true, she told Oprah, God knows what was the root of all that) and routinely disregarded the Queen. And before very long, she was in despair. So you have to wonder, what is a reasonable amount of despair for a person to live with, and to what purpose? When were the smears ever likely to end? Do you have to be Californian and touchy-feely to ask whether that intensity of hatred is worth it, just to have people who will open your curtains and run you a bath?

Harry put it surprisingly strongly, when he said he’s “acutely aware of where my family stand and how acutely scared they are of the tabloids turning on them”. In this he gave the kindest possible reading of the situation, not a family closing ranks against its own, but one cowering in terror and simply not strong enough to protect itself. Whatever the truth of that, the individuals and their possible shortcomings are less interesting than the central question, which is not why Meghan and Harry left, but why any of them stay.

Certainly, the most shocking part of Oprah’s interview were the revelations that Harry was asked by unnamed members of his family how dark his first child’s skin was likely to be – and that, whether relatedly or not, they discovered that Archie would not have a title or, accordingly, any security. So. Many. Questions. Not least, how was Harry supposed to make a guess at his unborn son’s skin colour? But panning out to the general vilification of Meghan, the she-said-he-said mysteries that remain become more or less irrelevant. Irrespective of which earrings she wore and who she got on with or didn’t in the royal household, it was impossible to ignore from the start of the couple’s relationship that she had become the cipher for racial slurs that were, in general terms, unsayable.

Kehinde Andrews, professor of Black studies at Birmingham City University, traces the timeline: when they first met, the Daily Mail imagineered a “satirical” scene in which the Queen meets Meghan’s mother, who’s “straight outta Compton” living in a “gang-scarred home”. Upon the occasion of their marriage – another revelation of the interview is that they actually married three days before that ceremony; I’m not sure how important that is in the grand scheme of things – there was an outpouring of colour-blind celebration. That “just showed how little understanding we have of racism,” Andrews says, “if you think that Meghan Markle would make any difference at all. The monarchy is probably the primary symbol of white supremacy in the world; the idea that one black woman could make a difference to that is just facile.” He compares her fall from grace to that of Barack Obama, “the early celebration, racism’s over, which then switches to: ‘This isn’t about race, this is about you being problematic.’”

When you look at the build up of negative press, it was focused on Meghan as aggressive, bullying and angry, with a secondary motif of her being inauthentic and devious and having hoodwinked Harry, who is typically portrayed as the hapless idiot in what has unfolded. “No one’s called her a racial slur,” Andrews says, “but you can see the stereotypes, she’s basically being treated like most black people in elite white institutions.” She doesn’t belong there, so she must have used cunning to get there, and naturally she wouldn’t know how to behave once she arrived.

Let’s not pretend rich people don’t also kill themselves or experience depression’ ... Meghan during her interview with Oprah Winfrey on Sunday. Photograph: CBS

Here the idea that her predicament was in any way similar to Diana’s or Fergie’s comes apart. Yes, it would be a difficult adaptation for anyone, to suddenly be subject to protocols in which their individuality counted for nothing and all that mattered was the birth order of their spouse. But there was a particular timbre to the coverage of Meghan, that she was matter out of place – and what you’re dealing with there is not so much a hierarchy as a caste system.

In the end, Prince Charles probably emerges worst from the interview, with Harry’s disclosure that his father stopped taking his calls. Prince William comes off relatively unscathed; the Queen, likewise. The damage done to the institution is that one person leaving breaks the spell, and you wonder why, if they are all “trapped”, as Harry says, they can’t just … change. But the hangover from the affair is the tenacious media vindictiveness that, once it finds its target, doesn’t seem able to let go. We accept it as a caper, a game, but the despair it causes is real.

— The Guardian USA | Zoe Williams @zoesqwilliams | Monday, March 8, 2021