#OS and OV are always moving

[redrobin-detective]

So I’m actually taking the time to watch Ben 10 Alien Force and it’s, okay. I can admit it has a more cohesive long term plot process than Omniverse and some of the stories ARE good I just can’t really vibe with it. I’m still watching it but it’s not the same burning need I felt with OV and I’m not sure how much further I’ll get before I entirely lose interest. 

I know a lot of people like AF so I’m going to put my slightly critical thoughts under a read more so those who don’t want to see it can skip it.

The reason I can’t get into the series like I did OV, for me, is the characters are lacking in any true dimension making me not invest in the series. Ben in particular, the heart and soul of the series, feels like a cardboard cutout of a character without much defining personality to make me believe he’s Ben much less an actual person. Having watched both OG and OV I can describe, off the top of my head, what Ben is like. 

Ben of the original series was a horrible little gremlin child with a heart of gold in there somewhere. He was childish and reckless, sometimes acting out or going too far with his pranks. He has a variety of interests and things he doesn’t like but finally gets a handle of his abilities and learns that being a hero isn’t just about beating up bad guys, it’s about standing up and protecting others.

Likewise, OV Ben has been around the block as a teen superhero. While he is still a bit full of himself and reckless, a lot of it is a carefully constructed façade so people don’t see how stressed and nervous he is about the heavy burden on his shoulders. He’s desensitized to how weird his life has become and is good at adapting and thinking on his feet. Like his younger self, he has a variety of likes and dislikes, some the same and some different as he grew up.

15 eps in AF and I still can’t really think of how to describe Ben, he’s got the personality of a freezer burned low fat waffle. He’s just a very standard teen boy without any true defining traits. I haven’t seen him talk about any interests, express any real opinions on anything. Like he had to put on the Omnitrix again after taking it off for a normal life and it doesn’t seem to have any impact on him. AF Ben is also almost always in the right, always the calm one (esp compared to Kevin who’s his own mess of one track stereotypes) with a perfectly straight moral code. He’s quiet, polite, he makes a few quips but otherwise is just kind of there. When he’s not actively engaged in the plot, he’s just sitting there with a vacant expression and a half smile. In an attempt to make him “normal” and “relatable” they not only stripped the character of anything that makes him stand out but also anything that makes him Ben Tennyson. 

OS and OV Ben are always moving, either fiddling with the Omnitrix or bouncing their leg or lounged in a precarious position while mouthing off. He’s a very energetic sort, spirited in a way that’s as admirable as it is aggravating. To watch AF Ben sit passively in Kevin’s car, hands on his knees, back straight. It’s like looking at a stranger. 

I loved Ben because he was fiery lil shit, half feral and running into everything half cocked because he’s stupid but also has a big bleeding heart. He’s a good boy, theoretically and gets better as he matures but he struggles with his self image and decision making. Kid has also straight up, and knowingly murdered and will do so again. He is a one universe force of nature running around, causing and fixing problems in the same breath. God I love this disaster. AF Ben feels so far removed from this Ben and it frankly bores me.

I’ll keep going but I remember when I first watched AF years ago when it first aired, I watched at least the first 10 episodes before I quit. I recall thinking that it didn’t feel like Ben 10 anymore and it really doesn’t. Yes it has some interesting storylines, yes the worldbuilding and lore expansion is appreciated. But god I just can’t invest in these characters. For all of Omniverse’s faults, at least the character felt not only like an actual person but who Ben is supposed to be. Ben is not and never was your ‘boy next door good boy superhero’ he’s ‘local child menace gains infinite powers uses them to steal a golf cart’. 

[insane-mane]

What are your favorite things about your least-favorite Ben 10 shows? What are your least favorite things about your favorite Ben 10 shows?

This is an excellent question! I may have problems with each iteration of the show, but I also respect what each has given to us to enjoy.

My least faves are Ultimate Alien and the Reboot. but it’s not to say they can’t do some things right!

UA had an interesting concept for a gimmick and when actually utilized right, it lead for interesting situations. In the beginning it gave Albedo a leg up in the fight, and eventually gave Ben an added bonus alongside new and old aliens. I think making a new Kevin mutation was neat, and seeing young and teen Ben fight together was interesting. The Ultimatrix has a neat design, and I actually kinda prefer it over the rolex-look the recalibrated prototype has.

I’ve said it before, but the reboot can handle characters in some ways OS didn’t and genuinely had small moments of good family love I wish there was more of. There’ve been small sentimental moments with decent music that genuinely made me feel bad in certain moments. Some jokes can get a chuckle from me every so often, mainly from a line delivery or expression. I think Upgrade looked dope. Shock Rock was a neat alien, despite there being tons of electric guys as is.

The rest are my faves, but that isn’t to say they don’t come with problems.

Ben and Gwen are annoying as FUCK to listen to sometimes in the original series. Ben’s character while young, is also suuuuper hard to get behind when he’s being uber obnoxious. Some of the backgrounds were very bland as well.

AF kinda took itself a little too seriously at times, and of course took place at night way too often. A bit of the quality dues down by S3, both in writing and some animation. Kevin and Gwen’s relationship rushed way too quickly for my tastes. I feel like Ben’s character was waaaaay too mature, I almost wish he still had that arrogant cockiness resurface after putting the Omnitrix back on, then after the Highbreed war mature gradually, making his UA personality less regressive.

OV obviously lends itself to the more comedic side as apposed to UAF’s bleak seriousness, and sometimes it doesn’t always land. Some moments don’t get to settle before they move on to a snarky line or joke. I’ve already talked about how some of the female designs bug me, but I’m also annoyed with how some references or cameos are too obvious instead of something just being it’s own thing. The vast majority of redesigns don’t bother me, in fact I think they’re an improvement in some cases, but others can be a giant “What, why?”. Really wish they didn’t do Ester like that just so Ben and Kai could get together to make Kenny, and that also makes me wish Ben and Kai’s relationship was less like a bad sitcom

[lecliss]

Sudden thoughts. In OS, we have the very final episode of the series where it establishes Gwen lives in a different town but then moves to Bellwood and starts attending the same class as Ben. In the movie, Race Against Time, it follows up on that very same idea of Gwen going to Ben's school and therefore living in the same town. And going forward, Gwen and Ben continue to both live in Bellwood, but in two different high schools with Gwen going to a prep school. Meanwhile, in the very first episode of OS, when Ben enters the Rust Bucket, he is shocked to see Gwen there.

Now, the final episode is not canon and RAT is dubious(and while it is canon I'm pretty sure the universe in the movie is not the Prime one), but everything past that is very much canon. So Gwen does, obviously, live in Bellwood. If she did not originally live in Bellwood then she did at least move their when the next school year started as presented in the final OS episode, RAT, and the OV flashbacks when she and Ben are 11.

But the thing is, it isn't 100% clear from the first episode that Gwen does in fact live in a different town. She could be in a different class than Ben and could have gotten in the Rust Bucket before him since he was busy being hung up in a tree by JT and Cash. And precisely because the final episode is not canon, anything that can't be established as obviously not happening in canon can't be proven or disproven.

In fact, Ben parents in OS and Destory All Aliens are almost completely different people from the Sandra and Carl in RAT and the rest of the series. So perhaps in some continuities Gwen didn't originally live in Bellwood, but in others she's always lived there. But there's still the issue of it being impossible to confirm from the first episode where Gwen lives so it can't be determined yet which one was originally the case and in which situations was that fact changed.

In fact! Nevermind to the whole post! We do canonically have different continuities with in-canon confirmation that the universe gets changed probably regularly so the whole question doesn't even matter cuz both answers are probably true!!! Why do I get hung up on these kinds of questions in a series where they clearly don't fucking matter????

[emblyn-ruane]

"Look into my eyes" (@emily-barker)

I see:

Absolute Conviction  |  Aggression  |  Ambition  |  Anger  |  Anxiety  |  Apathy  |  Arrogance  |  Bloodthirst  |  Bravery  |  Compassion  |  Confidence  |  Conflict  | Courage  |  Darkness  |  Defeat |  Denial  |  Desire  |  Despair  |  Determination  |  Devotion  |  Disappointment  |  Distrust  |  Dominance  |  Emptiness  |  an Enemy  |  Enlightenment  |  Envy  |  Excitement  |  Exhaustion  |  Elitism  |  Experience  |  Fear  |  a Friend  |  a Future  |  Gentleness  |  Greed  |  Grief  |  Guilt  |  Honesty  |  Honor  |  Hope  |  Hostility  |  Ignorance  |  an Illness  |  Insecurity  |  Integrity  |  Intoxication  |  Kindness  |  Lies  |  Loneliness  |  Longing  |  Loss  |  a Lover  |  Loyalty  |  Malicious Intent  |  Mania  |  Melancholy  |  Misery  |  Negativity  |  Overcompensation  |  Pain  |  Paranoia  |  Passion  |  Perseverance  |  Pettiness  |  Pity  |  Positivity  |  Pressure  |  Pride  |  a Purpose  |  Racism  |  Regret  |  Resentment  |  Resignation  |  Resolve  |  Sadness  |  Self-Hatred  |  Sexism  |  Shattered Remains  |  a Shining Light  |  Something Familiar  |  Spite  |  Stress  |  Stupidity  |  Submission  |  Tranquility  |  Trauma  |  Trust  |  Vengeance  |  Warmth  |  Wisdom  |  Wrath  |  a Cry for Help  |  Something Eating Your Mind  |  the Years have Changed You

You’re:

Animalistic  |  Approachable  |  Broken  |  Closed-Off  |  Cold  |  Crafty  |  Crazy  |  Defensive  |  Devious  |  Difficult  |  Disheartened  |  Emotionally Detached  |  Frightened  |  Frightening  |  Genuine  |  Guarded  |  Headstrong  |  Heartless  |  Human  |  Immature  |  Impatient  |  Inhuman  |  Insane  |  Intuitive  |  Lost  |  Mature  |  Noble  |  Patient  |  Pitiful  |  Primitive  |  Pure  |  Reliable  |  Remorseless  |  Reserved  |  Resourceful  |  Short-Tempered  |  Simplistic  |  Sly  |  Soft-Hearted  |  Struggling  |  a Threat  |  Trapped  |  a Troublemaker  |  Trusting  |  Understanding  |  Unique |   Unpredictable  |  Unwavering  |  a Victim  |  Wicked  |  Feeling Vindictive  |  Guilty of Something  |  Hiding Something  |  Lost in Thought  |  Planning Something  |  Scared of Me  |  Scaring Me  |  Someone I can Trust  |  Someone I Can’t Recognize Anymore  |  Someone to Fear  |  Someone Worthy of Respect  |  Weak to Manipulation  |  Weighed by Something

You:

Aren’t Being Yourself  |  Belittle Yourself  |  Don’t Want to Hurt Me  |  Don’t Want to Leave Me  |  Drown Yourself in Something  |  Feel Alone  |  Feel Empowered  |  Have a Plan that Involves Me  |  Have No One Else to Turn to  |  Have Nowhere Else to Go  |  Have Seen Some Things  |  Haven’t Been Sleeping  |  Lie to Yourself  |  Lost Faith/Trust in Me  |  Lost Something/Someone Important  |  Need Me/my Help  |  No Longer Believe Me  |  See Me as a Thing  |  See Me as Someone Else  |  Seek to Hurt/Harm  |  Seek to Manipulate  |  Think Highly of Yourself  |  Think I’m Hiding Something  |  Think Little of Yourself  |  Think You Know Best  |  Want to Hurt Me  |  Want to Protect Me  |  Want to Sleep with Me  |  Want to Use Me

Emblyn’s Thoughts:

“Barker an’ I ‘ave known each o’er since we were jus’ knee ‘igh at our Ma’s knees. ‘er family knew mine an’ ‘e res’ ov it was ‘istory. Always stopping by faw a quick visit before ‘ey moved on. Oh, I heard ‘e rumors of her mother an’ ‘e nas’y business ov ‘e wolf cul’. It’s not ‘ard ‘o  hear a rumor in ‘e workin’ class ov Gilneas. ‘owever, ‘ere’s somethin’ abou’ Barker. She’s a ‘reat to be cer’ain bu’ I don’ ‘ink she’d ever inten’ionally se’ way ‘o ‘arm me. She’s been weighed down by some’in’ in her pas’. Somethin’ ‘at ‘aun’s ‘er, per’aps to do wi’ her ma? Or her bro’er, poor lad. Ei’er way, she’s a strong ally an’ a fellow witch.  Can’ ‘urn your back on ‘ose wi’ ‘e wind in ‘eir blood.”

@emily-barker

[iaconic-moved-blog]

anyway no more “consider”- ben tennyson is autistic and that’s just how it is 

i wanted to update my autistic headcanons for him with stuff from my roleplay blog but yeah

parents super chill and a-okay with ben’s need for his own space; RAT might be AU, but even in AF, his parents were still letting him run around on his own ‘cause that’s just his routine, and they only intervene when they actually see that it’s something scary that could maybe get him killed. and even at the end of the episode they find out he’s been fighting aliens, they see how important this is to him, that he’s been doing this for so long, and continue to allow it ‘cause this is his routine and he has a support team with him as well, so they feel safer ( though obviously they still worry but hey! that’s their son’s routine )

constantly stimming with how gestural he is; the omnitrix and him fiddling with it are definitely the obvious ones, but him messing around with the windows in kevin’s car, or just overall fucking around in rook’s car with all the buttons when he’s in need of moving around 

suffers sensory overload, which is sometimes when he’s wildmutt, but even when he changed back in Of Predator and Prey pt 1, he was clutching his ears, and he could still hear it. this also is enhanced when he’s eye guy, which is why he’s always just suffering 10x worse when he’s that alien. 

doesn’t understand most social cues, and is why he’ll end up third wheeling, not fully understanding implications when he’s on dates or when someone is super duper into him romantically ( see Ester, his time with Jennifer Nocturne when he was literally telling Julie they were only friends because that IS how he legit perceived it ), and needing people to be blunt with him and not just trying to side step around whatever they’re trying to get across 

ben acting up more when gwen and kevin left in OV because that was such a drastic change to his routine, and then vehemently being against Rook being his partner. It takes him a while to let Rook in, and you can definitely tell that Jolt From the Past that Ben and Rook have been working together quite a bit, and it wouldn’t surprise me if Ben totally blew him off to patrol on his own, avoid Rook, and when he was finally called out on it, he just purposely showed up late. You can tell with how quiet Ben was in the car ride in that episode and Rook just seeming uncomfortable. Ben didn’t hate him, and he even said he just doesn’t like changing out he does things

Heck he was still pretty EH when Kevin joined him and Gwen to fight against the Hybrid in AF.

half the time doesn’t listen to anyone speaking to him and doesn’t usually make eye contact because he’s stimming with his watch by fiddling. more so in OS and OV since they’re new to him, and especially in OV because of the newer features it had that doesn’t JUST relate to his aliens ( ie: when he was checking his voice mail when grandpa max called him in Store 23 ). even in UAF, he just doesn’t listen to a majority of what people are saying.

extreme interest in Sumo Slammers that has lasted most of his childhood and lasts deep into late teenage years. like OS he was super into it, and UAF and OV, it’s just made more evident that he still has that super fixation on the franchise, and doesn’t show disinterest in it despite how long it’s been

to go back to sensory stuff, noise bothers him the most, but he’s also extremely bothered by heat and texture. i personally headcanon bellwood is in california given the proximity to a desert AND beaches, so you’d think he’d be fine with 100 degree weather, but he’s obviously made uncomfortable by it in Hot Stretch. And I mean anyone would hate being covered in ant pheromones, but he was especially pissed off about it, and I honestly think Ben hates feeling slimy as a human. Being Goop is fine ‘cause that’s just the DNA, but overall, he HATES being covered in slimy substances. This is also in Of Predators and Prey pt 1 and 2. And in OS with having sunscreen plastered into his hair. I mean, you COULD infer no one wants that, but he just did not look comfortable with that at all.

UAF pretty much confirmed he has a super good memory with things. I don’t remember the exact episode, but he was in Ledgerdomain and could memorize and write down run-like symbols with one glance at a distance

and gwen said he’s not working to his full potential at school. ben’s canon worst subjects are physics and chemistry, but he still manages a b+ average. while not every autistic person is good at math or science, ben has a good hold on them, and excluding the two subjects, he mainly suffers in those because he also as adhd which honestly fucks him up sometimes. he also learned to play a guitar real easy is OS ( I think the episode was called Monster Weather? idk too lazy to check ), so he could also just be really good at music too.

feel free to add more things, these are just what came to mind, and i gotta head out for class

[grotesquegabby]

Fluff Alphabet for Cecilio The Jokester

this is more what Cecilio would do if he had an s/o or s/o’s in general. Plus these things help me think to build up more for characters.

A ctivities - What do they like to do with their s/o? How do they spend their free time with them?

Simple things mostly, Cecilio is old fashioned when it comes to dates.

B eauty - What do they admire about their s/o? What do they think is beautiful about them?

I feel they would admire their s/os attitdue and demeanor. Physical looks aren’t something Cecilio really goes for all the time. It’s personality, and since he can feel/sense the emotions and air of people. He tends to move towards very confident people. Those who are sure of themselves or even fiery in spirit.

C omfort - How would they help their s/o when they feel down/have a panic attack etc.?

Comfort and make some jokes of course. Laughter is the best medicine

D reams - How do they picture their future with their s/o?

Cecilio doesn’t know, he tries not to think about the future too much anymore. He’s a here and now kind of guy, whatever happens in the future happens. Lets focus on now.

E qual - Are they the dominant one in the relationship, or rather passive?

In between, though he enjoys being a bit passive. He’s rather chill

F ight - Would they be easy to forgive their s/o? How are they fighting?

That depends on what the fight is about for one. If it’s serious Cecilio can get loud especially if his s/o is loud. But since I imagine his s/o is kind of stubborn he would be in return for forgivness unless he knows he’s in the  wrong.

G ratitude - How grateful are they in general? Are they aware of what their s/o is doing for them?

Cecilio is grateful for his s/o if any. He would be aware of any nice thing they do, he’s observant as heck.

H onesty - Do they have secrets they hide from their s/o? Or do they share everything?

Cecilio might keep things to himself but only really personal stuff that has nothing to do with s/o. In the beginning of course, after a while he’d share But he doesn’t really have secrets to hide.

I nspiration - Did their s/o change them somehow, or the other way around? Like trying out new things or helped them overcome personal problems?

Thyone technically did change Cecilio as he became more distrustful of others and can be a bit aggressive in his jokes to test people.

If he had a different S/o that he could eventually learn to trust Id say things would change for the better.

J ealousy - Do they get jealous easily? How do they deal with it?

Nah

K iss - Are they a good kisser? What was the first kiss like?

Yes, Id say he is a good kisser. His first kiss was when he was younger. It took him by surprise really, you see when Cecilio was a young clown. Traveling the multiverse he came to Italy, where he did eventually stay quite a while.

He had regulars for his performances one being a young boy. Eventually he struck a friendship with him. They did everything together and it was nice to have someone to spend time with but one day something happened. The boy appeared very nervous around him and of course Cecilio thought he did something to terrify him but soon realized he was mistaken. When the boy quickly grabbed his shirt and pulled him into a kiss. Nothing graphic just a kiss that he held for at least 20 seconds. Before Cecilio to respond or even speak the boy was gone, having run off.

Sadly, he never saw him again since the boy never came back to his shows or contacted him. Gone without a trace.

L ove Confession - How would they confess to their s/o?

A big display/show, something that grabs attention for sure. Like fireworks

M arriage - Do they want to get married? How do they propose? What would the marriage be like?

He’s fine either way with it. If he proposed it would be in a kind of semi silly way to just have fun with it.

If by marriage you mean wedding. Something simple but if he had to pick a location, Italy for sure.

N icknames - What do they call their s/o?

Sugar, Baby, Sugarplum, Babe, Sweet, (insert nickname close to s/os name), Doll

O n Cloud Nine - What are they like when they are in love? Is it obvious for others? How do they express their feelings?

It’s kind of obvious when Cecilio likes someone, less mean jokes towards the person if any at all. Gifts are given to the person of interest.

P DA - Are they upfront about their relationship? Do they brag with their s/o in front of others? Or are they rather shy to kiss etc. when others are watching?

Cecilio isn’t one to lie unless he needs too, so he would never lie about his relationship with anyone. If he’s got one partner, hey im taken sorry (sir/ma’am) or Yeah I’m in a poly relationship. He’s big on affection but also knows there is a time and place for certain kinds but...that won’t always stop him.

Q uirk - Some random ability they have that’s beneficial in a relationship.

His ability to do very impossible things. He’s manipulated tings to benefit himself and past s/os to impress them.

R omance - How romantic are they? What would they do to make their s/o happy? Cliché or rather creative?

He is a hopeless romantic to his core. Cecilio is rather cliche most of the time, but he gets creative when he feels his s/o wants to experience something a little different.

S upport - Are they helping their s/o achieve their goals? Do they believe in them?

They would love to help them, if Cecilio didn’t believe in them he wouldn’t be with them supporting them.

T hrill - Do they need to try out new things to spice out your relationship? Or do they prefer a certain routine?

They can but Cecilio always has a trick or two up his sleeve. But he does like old fashioned kind of things.

U nderstanding - How good do they know their partner? Are they empathetic?

Cecilio knows he wont truly understand how his s/o is feeling but he can lend an ear if they have trouble or need to talk. He will know his partner very well after spending time with htem. He’s very observant

V alue - How important is the relationship to them? What is it’s worth in comparison to other things in their life?

If the relationship is good it’s going to be very important to him, he wouldn’t want to lose it. Well if things get serious the s/o would pretty much be a part of the family

W ild Card - A random Fluff Headcanon.

Cecilio likes to bake and do photography of things he likes (such as his s/o’s)

X OXO - Are they very affectionate? Do they love to kiss and cuddle?

Cecilio is very affectionate, giving kisses is one of his favorite things to do.

Y earning - How will they cope when they’re missing their partner?

Would most likely have a picture of them smiling and look at it every so often when he gets sad.

Z eal - Are they willing to go to great lenghts for the relationship? If so, what kind of?

Yeah

He’s done some things. To say make his s/o happy or feel loved he does grand gestures like carving their face into a mountain side or rearranging stars to look like them. He’s done that once.

[angelsandcelestials]

Messages from your Angels & Guides~September 2-9, 2018

September's Theme~Light

Affirm: " I am the Light, the Light I am."

This month, be the light. Light dispels darkness. Light illuminates. Light shines. See yourself as you were truly meant to be seen. Be the light for someone who needs to be lifted up. Call upon the light as it is always within you. Creating and expanding your own inner light is a simple way of tending to your own energy field.

Ready to see what's in store for you this week? choose a card, left middle, right for your weekly guidance. Scroll down for your reveal.

Left-

Rewards~ We have lift off!  Energetically and physically, things are about to take-off in your world. Hold on to your hat. Hard work is about to pay off. Whatever, your venture os right now, there is great movement coming. Good things are about to come and this is your time to enjoy them. You have done the work, now it is time to reap the rewards. Congratulations!

Angel Number 9~  Your Divine life purpose involves the giving of service through your natural talents, passions, and interests.

Totem Tuesdays~ Scorpion

Use your inner strength and courageously take a leadership role in your life right now. Give those around you direction.-Scorpion

If Scorpion has scrambled across your path;

You are being asked to remove and cut out those things in your life that no longer serve you. Evaluate your surroundings with a critical eye for releasing old baggage, letting go of objects that are cluttering up your home, and purging the clinging energy of those that are co-dependent to you. Focus on minimizing the enabling of others not to move forward as well as taking your own steps towards death and rebirth. Re-establish your boundaries, make clear decisions about which direction your next few months will take and move on.

If Scorpion is your Animal Totem;

You are a very strong person and have the ability to inspire others. You are passionate about your love affairs and are known as a good lover. You have very strong sexual needs and often enjoy periods of solitariness between your intense and passionate relationships. You have the gift of Psychometry. You tend to use your sense of touch in most things and enjoy textures in your foods. You are protective of your solitude when you need it and will be very defensive of your children – occasionally protecting them where they need to face consequences in order to learn and grow. You are unafraid of allowing yourself to be vulnerable with others. You have a way with words that can often be stinging in their remarks. Your overall charisma will carry you through any conflicts.

via-Spirit-animals.com

Middle-

Fish + Ring + Letter

This combo speaks of Abundance & Wealth.  Business and Finances play a role this week. You may need to get those contacts and contracts together.  Make sure all your paperwork is in order. You will be able to pin down those who will be able to help you regarding a business venture. A commitment will be solidified through business discussions.  A business partnership on the horizon. Contracts signed, Paperwork regarding inheritance is indicated as well.

Angel Number 25~ Have faith that your life is changing for the best. You and your loved ones are safe and protected during these changes.

Angel Number 27~ Continue on your path with faith. You're doing the right thing, so keep up the good work.

Angel Number 34~ Ascended Masters along with the angels are here with you now. Talk to them frequently about your feelings, thoughts. Listen for their replies, which will come to you as repetitive impressions, signs, and inner signals.

Just for Fun~ Persistence Divination

Get out your preferred divination tool today and ask a question regarding yourself that has been particularly tough for you to deal with. Be prepared to face the answers you get, and persist with a follow-up question to gain more information and hopefully some traction toward a solution.

Consider your interaction with your divination tools to be a conversation, back and forth, much like an interview. If you do not feel you are being objective, you can work with a friend. That person can either dialogue results with you or assist in performing divination.

Right-

Happy Family~ The rainbow over the family portends a time of joy and celebration. You will find close connections with others valuable. It does not have to be a blood bond. There is a higher vibration surrounding those of a like mind. This vibe will bring your tribe into your sphere.  If single, this message signifies, a partner coming in, who has been waiting just for you. He or she may have children, but you will all work well as a blended family unit. Finally, this message is also about a celebration coming up. A wedding, anniversary, birthday. The birth of a child, or the birth of something new such as a project or job.

Angel Number 4~ The Angels are with you! Call upon them for help, guidance, and feelings of love and security.

This week’s messages come to you courtesy of  Divine Guidance Oracle, Energy Oracle Cards & Gilded Reverie Lenormand.

.

I do hope that this week’s messages resonated with you. If it hasn’t at first glance, then feel free to re-read them. There may be a deeper or hidden message specifically for you from your angels and/or guides. These messages may also apply to several people and/or the collective. That’s how Spirit works..lol Let me know though I would love to hear from you. Also, please share, reblog, and like. This way you will be paying it forward for others to receive this guidance. Follow Angels & Celestials on Instagram And on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/AngelsandCelestials111/

[lokbobpop]

Energy

energy. [ ĕn′ər-jē ] The capacity or power to do work, such as the capacity to move an object (of a given mass) by the application of force. Energy can exist in a variety of forms, such as electrical, mechanical, chemical, thermal, or nuclear, and can be transformed from one form to another.

Energy is from Greek energeia "activity, operation," from energos "active, effective," from en "in" plus ergon "work." Specialized senses of the word energy include the power that comes from sources such as heat or electricity, and the ability of sources such as heat or light to do work.

Energy ener gy en er gy en erg y

Writing the word energy

This whole world word has been all about supply energy to the elite in the heaven existence that sit we have have had endless time of over and over again pain turmoil sadness we have all experienced so much pain hell its not come to am end and it feels like who how did I allow this for millions and millions of year to happen to me how did i not see what i was doing why didnt I stand up before why did I lefty my thoughts trapped me to believe i was so small wheni was so large i was =like god all this time and never knew it for well anu i see i hold something against him but i did allow this to happen i see i need ot get over this as I have revenge of he should spend years stuffing the way so many have suffer ed in there li if has he seen this does he really know what we have been though why he just turned a blink eye does he is he sorry for what he did im never heard an apology or should there ever be one but i do see if he can get over what he has dont for millions of years than i can for sure because what he did was so wrong and i assisted him by living in my own fear.

Reading energy

Im am mostly energy a eat my energy to move i need food and water all the time to live where ther was a time we didnt need anything an we will move back to this of no energy needed and i look forward to watching this happen being a part of this to happen to put things back to how they should be.

All my personalities are energy based thats all they are i created them and then let the mind use them to guide my life so i did have ot take responsibility for all my chooses i just let the mind take over and i never saw until Desteni what i was doing i never saw how this affected me my physical which i love so much now how it has been through hell and probably some parts will never heal but thats ok i can still heel my still ove me and all of me until we all love each other this can be i can make it be for mw and all.

Power to have no power in your phone or in your car or something you need ot plug in ot i get energy and not having any power to support you but be full of energy your self but cant utilize that energy as it was for another lol

The build up of energy where you build it up to a point and you let it go with anger energy and you scream and shout and you let others know how angry you are how much energy you have built up within yourself and hear me roar ive dont this so many times with my husband and my daughters let lose rage basically energy ive not delt with and unleashed it on all of them and trin now carries this energy i passed on and she needs my help which i will support her with.

Electric energy bill cost so much money its 300buck a month here and little bit less in in oz when we should all have free energy for all it should be free.

I have no energy at the moment because ive don’t so little of the last 10 months but sit around i just doesn’t have enough to do much more than this is like ive run myself down to a standstill i cant do anything everything makes me feel tired a 5 min walk is just to the bus stop and im worried it will take months to get back to normal plus all my ailments the moment my knees my feet even my ankles yesterday i dont feel physically great for sure its like my body is saying you’ve done so much this is how it is for me stop what you are doing now help me get over it.

Saying energy

Fear of not getting back my heath and energy

Energy bills

Thoughts of im always tired will this go away or will i always be tired will my physical recover from the energy I have put apon it will it heal and will i be back to normal.

Reusable energy is the only way to go stop the fossil fuels we dont want ot need these types of things its over we need free reusable energy we need to stop the government’s pushing these sort of corps onto us no more fuel no more coal enough.

I need ot build my energy up slowly bit by bit to get better.

Sf

Does this definition support me no fear of planarity problems with the energy we use fear of not stopping all my energy sometimes comes up until i take charge of it fear of my physical having no energy and not heeling the anger of energy i had released on trin which she now carries

Energy emerge me

Energy

To move one physical within to feel myself within the physical to ground myself in the physical to embrace all i am with calmness self determination os self change within a moment

To let other accumulation pass through me and out not to land within me or on me not for me to hole it but just be aware of it.

I will live this word with supporting myself by using my energy to support and feel my physical to get fit to feel batter to move myself accordingly whats best for all i will use it wisely.

[themattress]

Very interesting interview about the Ben 10 reboot.  Some of the best points....

"The show has always rebooted. It’s funny that people, some of the older fans are up in arms that it’s rebooting. But it’s rebooted almost every two or three years for its entire life. It’s just that this time we decided we would look back to when he was 10 because we want to find the new generation of fans for the show."

This.  The previous reboots (UAF and OV) may have been "soft reboots" in that they had a pretense of continuity with what came before, but they were still reboots all the same with different art styles, tones, creative decisions, worldbuilding and characterizations.  Seagle's remark is also evidence of the OS, UAF, and OV all being their own seperate timelines, something supported in-universe by the character of Paradox.

"But we also had a lingering feeling that we had moved away from his 10-year-old-ness too soon. There were still a lot of stories to tell during that time period. That was an aspect of the character. And also given his relationship with Gwen and Max, we felt like there were still a lot of stories to be told in that time period. That was another creative impetus as well."

Agreed.  I've never particularly cared for teenage Ben, mainly due to how badly the time-skip was executed, and I also feel that there was much more to be done with the OS setting.

"I think we’re still in that phase with Ben 10, because these are still Ben 10 stories, they’re not Teen Titans Go stories, they’re Ben adventures just like they’ve always been. That is all the same elements and it’ll just take people a while to get used to the surface, which looks a little different."

Seriously. People who compare this to TTG or PPG'16 are doing so based on very shallow surface elements. It's more in spirit with the OS than either of them, albeit even more light-hearted in tone.

"The further that you step out, you’re going to start to see that much bigger kind of image. You’re see of totality and a lot of the mythology and all of the things we’ve been putting out, we’ve been putting in small little pieces."

So basically no story arcs as traditionally told in this franchise, but they've done their worldbuilding and there is going to be continuity and developments that becomes more apparent the longer the series goes on.  Actually, it already is with some of the recent episodes, so that's very interesting and cool to see.

"Yuri’s a regular on the show, but who he is playing is unbelievable compared to who he used to play. That’s all I can say about it at the moment. But it was all completely by design. And when you find out and then the fans find out, they’re going to be enthralled and livid over who Yuri is."

I bet it's gonna be one of the Big 3 villains of the OS: Vilgax, Kevin 11 or Ghostfreak.

"Like Duncan said before, there’s so many stories and we love him at this age where he’s just so impetuous and had so much to learn and can really screw up and is such a smart aleck. We want to spend a lot more time with him as a 10 year old. And it’s just a lot of fun for us. So at the moment that’s where we’re focused."

Good.  Again, my preference is the 10-year old Ben too.

"So yes, there are more things afoot. A lot more things afoot, in some ways. Some of them show up in this first season, some in the second."

And there's going to be a second season, which we probably already knew there would be. And doubtlessly Charmcaster will be in it, yay!

[deekshithj-blog]

Go with the Flow

It may seem like an overused idiom, but we think it’s the perfect title for a blog post on Nutanix networking and Flow. Today the journey is well underway. AOS 5.6 released in April and contained VM microsegmentation to increase application security and Flow was officially announced as the vehicle for connecting and securing any application (VM, Container) on any cloud (Public, Private, Hybrid). Nutanix simplified traditional data center infrastructure with HCI and now we bring that same “one click” simplicity to networking and security. In this post, We are going to lay out the journey for Flow at Nutanix, from its headwaters in AHV, winding through microsegmentation, touch on some of the exciting places we will take Flow based on technology from our recent Netsil acquisition and even a gaze over the horizon at our multi-cloud future.

Headwaters: Virtualization for the Enterprise Cloud OS

The story of Flow in Nutanix goes back to AHV, our native hypervisor based on Linux KVM. The foundation of our networking and security technology is based on OVS – an open source virtual switch with proven scale and performance. Since the early days, OVS has been known for rapid innovation and proven scale. We chose OVS because we have always had big plans around networking and the important role it plays in virtualization – even more so for modern distributed applications, hybrid or multi-cloud environments. OVS provided a robust platform to handle our immediate requirements and a rich set of features and functions to develop for the future. Starting with AHV in 2015, OVS has been used under the covers to provide VM virtual networking and support features like our innovative IP address management (IPAM) that is built right into AHV.

Are we there yet?

VM networking in AHV was only the beginning. As of AOS 5.6 released in April, we officially released the first set of features in Flow with the laser focus on making applications more secure and doing it with our “one click” philosophy of simplifying IT. AOS 5.6 includes VM Microsegmentation and Network Service Insertion – all managed centrally through Prism. Flow requires no additional components (management or control) and works seamlessly with our existing Prism management and Acropolis data plane model that our customers love.

Application-Centric Security

We all know that the concept of VM microsegmentation or East-West firewalling isn’t new, so what is different about our approach and what do we mean by App-Centric Security?

Our approach to microsegmentation doesn’t start with networking – in fact it is agnostic to how the underlying network is configured or built. Unlike traditional approaches where you are required to start planning with logical networking as a path to microsegmentation – Nutanix has no such requirements or complexities. We allow you to incorporate microsegmentation with Flow without any changes to existing network configuration – keeping things simple and providing admins and architects to focus on business or application requirements. Our approach starts with visualization and policy and this is where being “app-centric” comes from.

Being “application-centric” is about three key attributes:

Policy framework with inherent understanding of applications

Grouping that is based on how developers build their applications (tiering)

Full visual insight into interaction between different entities inside the application – to eliminate any guesswork in planning and reduce errors that could impact availability.

We firmly believe that the only way to create effective security policy is to start with a solid understanding of what is being secured. In this case, applications. The key is logical grouping of VMs and visibility. Starting with a new management construct in Prism, called Categories, Flow allows the writer to group VMs logically based on some classification. For example, high level groups could be development and production or categories could be used for application tiers like web servers or databases.

In the Flow policy process, once categories are created, policy is placed on categories…NOT on the member VMs. This is an important distinction as it separates the policy and groups from more dynamic network identifiers (i.e. IP addresses). This is a huge reduction in the typical complexity involved with policy creation. The responsibility for understanding end points is removed from the human policy writers and left to the virtualization platform which always knows that information and can automatically update/change policy.

As part of this process Flow includes the ability to visualize the interactions between VMs in categories (Applications). Thus providing another method to simplify the policy exercise. Imagine removing all the guesswork and knowing exactly how each part of an application communicates with the others. That’s what Flow provides – application-centric security based on a unique policy model and granular enforcement via microsegmentation.

Beyond Microsegmentation – Security and more…

We are very aware that there are cases where additional functions are required. For this reason Flow also includes the ability to leverage the same granular policy described above to redirect or tap the “flows” between VMs into other functions or services. Those can be home grown or provided by one of our ecosystem partners. Common use cases are services like third party Firewall Appliances, IPS/IDS for security, and Packet Monitoring among others.

For more details and specific use cases with examples, download our Flow Tech Note.

What’s around the next bend? (Flow + Netstil)

I suspect that what brought you to this blog was some announcements that came out our .NEXT conference in New Orleans. Back in March we acquired a company called Netsil. Cool fact, Netsil is “listen” spelled backwards. Listen is very appropriate, Netsil technology starts by “listening to” the interactions between VMs and services. It uses advanced stream based analytics to provide detailed maps (think Google Maps) of the interactions that essentially make up applications. Netsil tech is going to find its way into multiple areas of the Enterprise Cloud OS, but for Flow it will provide some truly awesome enhancements. We explained the unique policy model we use in Flow above, now combine that with mapping, discovery, and application context from Netsil and you get something truly unique and even more app-centric.

With Netsil, we will automatically discover your applications running inside VMs, understand your application topology to automatically assign categories and recommend (and create) security policies for you, taking the guesswork and complexity out and replacing it with “one click”. Expect to see the combination of Flow and Netsil technologies to be available in the second half of 2018. For a preview of Netsil capabilities,

check out this video

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Where to NEXT? (Multi-Cloud)

We have big plans for Flow as we build out more features and services that are part of our focus on running any and all applications in the Enterprise Cloud OS. Expect to see Flow expand into the cloud as part of ensuring that the same application-centric security found on-prem is available everywhere. Our goal is to provide features and functions in support of moving workloads from on-prem to public cloud and back with Flow will provide a consistent security policy and connectivity so that you can operate you multi-cloud environment with One-Click.

Flow is available for purchase or evaluation today. Take a look.

Disclaimer: This blog may contain links to external websites that are not part of Nutanix.com. Nutanix does not control these sites and disclaims all responsibility for the content or accuracy of any external site. Our decision to link to an external site should not be considered an endorsement of any content on such site.

Forward-Looking Disclaimer: This blog includes forward-looking statements, including but not limited to statements concerning our plans and expectations relating to product features and technology that are under development or in process and capabilities of such product features and technology and our plans to introduce product features in future releases. These forward-looking statements are not historical facts, and instead are based on our current expectations, estimates, opinions and beliefs. The accuracy of such forward-looking statements depends upon future events, and involves risks, uncertainties and other factors beyond our control that may cause these statements to be inaccurate and cause our actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially and adversely from those anticipated or implied by such statements, including, among others: failure to develop, or unexpected difficulties or delays in developing, new product features or technology on a timely or cost-effective basis; delays in or lack of customer or market acceptance of our new product features or technology; and other risks detailed in our Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended January 31, 2017, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this presentation and, except as required by law, we assume no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect actual results or subsequent events or circumstances.

© 2018 Nutanix, Inc. All rights reserved. Nutanix, the Enterprise Cloud Platform, the Nutanix logo and the other products and features mentioned herein are registered trademarks or trademarks of Nutanix, Inc. in the United States and other countries. All other brand names mentioned herein are for identification purposes only and may be the trademarks of their respective holder(s).

[isslibrary]

New Books (December)

Sorted by Call Number / Author. Some awesome stuff on this list (I added commentary). Thanks to the Jacobs family for some of these donations, to Mr. Colvin for the art history suggestions, and to students who requested materials. Mrs. Wald, we now have the first three

Magic Treehouse

books in Spanish. As always, if you can't find something, ask me or Mrs. VanHorn and we'll help.

296.1 U

Understanding the Dead Sea scrolls : a reader from the Biblical archaeology review. 1st ed. New York : Random House, ℗♭1992. A sourcebook of articles by the world's leading Dead Sea Scroll authorities.

303.66 Z

Zinn, Howard, 1922-. Artists in times of war. New York : Seven Stories Press, c2003.

** Highly Recommended -- and it's short **

305.38 W

Question bridge : Black males in America. First edition. Question Bridge assembles a series of questions posed to black men, by and for other black men, along with the corresponding responses and portraits of the participants. The questions range from the comic to the sublimely philosophical: from "Am I the only one who has problems eating chicken, watermelon, and bananas in front of white people?" to "Why is it so difficult for black American men in this culture to be themselves, their essential selves, and remain who they truly are?" The answers tackle the issues that continue to surround black male identity today in a uniquely honest, no-holds-barred manner. While the ostensible subject is black men, the conversation that evolves in these pages is ultimately about the nature of living in a post-Obama, post-Ferguson, post-Voting Rights Act America. Question Bridge is about who we are and what we mean to one another. Most critically, it asks: how can we start to dismantle the myths and misconceptions that have evolved around race and gender in America--how can we reset the narrative about ourselves, just as #blacklivesmatter has reset the narrative of civil protest? The founding artists, along with contributions from Ambassador Andrew Young, Jesse Williams, Rashid Shabazz, and Delroy Lindo, will introduce and contextualize the body of the work and provide closing remarks on our current and future social climate.

** This project happened at the Birmingham Museum of Art and it is really interesting **

305.409 D

Doyle, Sady. Trainwreck : The women we love to hate, mock, and fear... and why. Brooklyn, NY : Melvillle House, 2016.

659.1 W

Wu, Tim, author. The attention merchants : the epic scramble to get inside our heads. First edition. "From Tim Wu, author of the award-winning The Master Switch and who coined the phrase "net neutrality"--a revelatory look at the rise of "attention harvesting," and its transformative effect on our society and our selves. Attention merchant: an industrial-scale harvester of human attention. A firm whose business model is the mass capture of attention for resale to advertisers. In nearly every moment of our waking lives, we face a barrage of advertising enticements, branding efforts, sponsored social media, commercials and other efforts to harvest our attention. Over the last century, few times or spaces have remained uncultivated by the "attention merchants," contributing to the distracted, unfocused tenor of our times. Tim Wu argues that this is not simply the byproduct of recent inventions but the end result of more than a century's growth and expansion in the industries that feed on human attention. From the pre-Madison Avenue birth of advertising to TV's golden age to our present age of radically individualized choices, the business model of "attention merchants" has always been the same. He describes the revolts that have risen against these relentless attempts to influence our consumption, from the remote control to FDA regulations to Apple's ad-blocking OS. But he makes clear that attention merchants grow ever-new heads, and their means of harvesting our attention have given rise to the defining industries of our time, changing our nature--cognitive, social, and otherwise--in ways unimaginable even a generation ago"--.

759.2 R

Riley, Bridget, 1931- artist. Bridget Riley : works 1981-2015.

770.92 K

Sherman, Cindy, photographer, interviewee. Cindy Sherman, Imitation of life.

** If you enjoy taking selfies you should really look at this **

811.6 C

Collins, Martha, 1940-. White papers. Pittsburgh, Pa. : University of Pittsburgh Press, c2012. White Papers is a series of untitled poems that explore race from a variety of personal, historical, and cultural perspectives, questioning what it means to be "white" in a multi-racial society.

811.6 J

Jones, Ashley M. Magic City Gospel : poems. Spartanburg, SC : Hub City Press, 2016.

811.6 R

Rankine, Claudia, 1963- author. Citizen : an American lyric. Claudia Rankine's bold new book recounts mounting racial aggressions in ongoing encounters in twenty-first-century daily life and in the media. Some of these encounters are slights, seeming slips of the tongue, and some are intentional offensives in the classroom, at the supermarket, at home, on the tennis court with Serena Williams and the soccer field with Zinedine Zidane, online, on TV--everywhere, all the time. The accumulative stresses come to bear on a person's ability to speak, perform, and stay alive. Our addressability is tied to the state of our belonging, Rankine argues, as are our assumptions and expectations of citizenship. In essay, image, and poetry, Citizen is a powerful testament to the individual and collective effects of racism in our contemporary, often named 'post-race' society.

** Essential Reading **

891.71 B

Baratynsky, E. A., 1800-1844, author. A science not for the earth : selected poems and letters. First edition.

92 Goldman

92: Biographies are in the Biography Room

Goldman, Emma, 1869-1940. Living my life : abridged. Condensed ed. Anarchist, journalist, drama critic, advocate of birth control and free love, Emma Goldman was the most famous—and notorious—woman in the early twentieth century. This abridged version of her two-volume autobiography takes her from her birthplace in czarist Russia to the socialist enclaves of Manhattan’s Lower East Side. Against a dramatic backdrop of political argument, show trials, imprisonment, and tempestuous romances, Goldman chronicles the epoch that she helped shape: the reform movements of the Progressive Era, the early years of and later disillusionment with Lenin’s Bolshevik experiment, and more. Sounding a call still heard today, Living My Life is a riveting account of political ferment and ideological turbulence.

** Howard Zinn suggested reading this so I got it-- we need more biographies about women, so let me know if you have ideas! **

92 Guevara

Resnick, Marvin D. The black beret: the life and meaning of Che Guevara. New York, : Ballantine Books, [1970, c1969].

92 Joyce

Anderson, Chester G. James Joyce : with 124 illustrations. A biography of the Irish genius relating details of his life to the substance of his books.

92 Wright

Wright, Richard, 1908-1960. American hunger. First edition. A continuation of Richard Wright's autobiography, "Black Boy.".

ES F Osb

ES Section/Español is in the Reading Room

Osborne, Mary Pope. El caballero del alba. Lyndhurst, NY : Lectorum Publications, 2002.

ES F Osb

Osborne, Mary Pope. Dinosaurios al atardecer. Lyndhurst, NY : Lectorum Publications, 2002.

ES F Osb

Osborne, Mary Pope. Una momia al amanecer. Lyndhurst, NY : Lectorum Publications, 2002.

F Bac

Backman, Fredrik, 1981- author. A man called Ove : a novel. First Washington Square Press trade paperback edition. "A grumpy yet loveable man finds his solitary world turned on its head when a boisterous young family moves in next door"--Amazon.com.

F Bur

Burton, Jessie, 1982-. The miniaturist. First Harperluxe edition. Engaging the services of a miniaturist to furnish a cabinet-sized replica of her new home, 18-year-old Nella Oortman, the wife of an illustrious merchant trader, soon discovers that the artist's tiny creations mirror their real-life counterparts in eerie and unexpected ways.

F Pea

Pearson, Ridley. Dark Passage : Kingdom Keepers Book Six 6. New York, NY : Disney, 2013.

F Pea

Pearson, Ridley. Disney after Dark : Kingdom Keepers Book One 1. New York, NY : Disney, 2005.

F Pea

Pearson, Ridley. Disney at Dawn : Kingdom Keepers Book Two 2. New York, NY : Disney, 2008.

F Pea

Pearson, Ridley. Disney in Shadow : Kingdom Keepers Book Three 3. New York, NY : Disney, 2010.

F Pea

Pearson, Ridley. The Insider : Kingdom Keepers Book Seven 7. New York, NY : Disney, 2014.

F Pea

Pearson, Ridley. Power play. 1st ed. New York : Disney/Hyperion Books, c2011. For the five teens who modeled as Disney Hologram Imaging hosts, life is beginning to settle down when an intriguing video arrives to Philby's computer at school. It's a call for action: the Overtakers, a group of Disney villains, seem to be plotting to attempt a rescue of two of their leaders, both of whom the Disney Imagineers have hidden away somewhere following a violent encounter in Epcot. A staged attack by new Overtakers at Downtown Disney, startles the group. A dark cloud in the Kingdom Keeper era is unfolding, and with dissension in their own ranks, it's unclear if there's any chance of escape.

F She

Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft, 1797-1851. Frankenstein. New York, NY : Signet Classics, 1965. The monster was supposed to be man's benefactor, but, scorned for his ugliness, he swears revenge on his creator and the human race.

SC Doy

Doyle, Arthur Conan, 1859-1930. Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Racine, Wis., : Whitman Pub. Co., [1965].