#Portland Center Stage

[sueclancy]

Ducks in a row

This painting that I began in my last post was inspired by one of my nephews who teased me, gently, about saying so often during our family domino games that I “need a minute to get my ducks in a row”. Apparantly I tend to focus on our family conversations during our games rather than on my dominos and which I’m going to play next – which amuses our nephew. So this last week I worked on… …and…

[callmedarthrevan]

yeah the one here hired an AI artist and he made some damn scary looking posters....

I have started seeing many small non union regional theaters using AI artwork for their upcoming seasons instead of using the artwork provided by licensing companies or hiring graphic designers/artists to create new artwork to advertise with, which is definitely something we shouldn’t read in to.

[sleepoutro]

MCR north american tour full youtube recordings masterpost ✨

here's all the recordings/compilations of full shows i could find on youtube (some might be missing a few minutes/a couple of songs), plus a tiny bit of info on each video. ik these are probably all on the my chem archive dropbox but i didn’t have anything better to do lmao so here they all are in one tidy list. thank you to all the people who filmed these i owe you my life. (btw when i say right or left side of stage in this post i mean from the audience pov :D)

Oklahoma: Tony: filmed from ga

San Antonio: JYeahJasonJude: filmed from near barricade, with great zoom. Tony: filmed from seats, full stage view, phoenixrai: filmed from ga

Nashville: The Academy is My Beautiful Romance: compilation of different videos, streams, clips etc. ur internet boyfriend: filmed from back of the arena seats

Cincinnati: The Academy is My Beautiful Romance: compilation of different videos!

Raleigh: Yordoom: filmed from ga (this one has a really clear and fun view of the floor crowd in my opinion). dallon: filmed from seats, right side

Elmont: Alê Morais: filmed from high up right side. Mothman Multimedia: not a full video but a playlist of videos from the whole show, filmed from high up, center

Philadelphia: Electronic Beagle: filmed from high up left side. markit aneight: amazing quality!! deadhoarse: another great quality one, left side

Albany: The Academy is My Beautiful Romance: compilation :)

Uncasville: ConcreteRose: side of stage, right side. Kelush: filmed from ga

Montreal: Finnyfresh: instagram live uploaded to youtube, mostly filming jumbotron

Toronto1: Keandell Clyde Arcenal Pineda: filmed from floor seating, full stage and jumbotron view.

Toronto2: The Academy is my Beautiful Romance: compilation

Boston1: Full Sets: filmed from seats further away, full stage

Boston2: Cen's Jams: filmed from high up left side, stage and jumbotron in view most of the time. Blue Moon: Side/almost behind stage, frank's side. chaosangel42: filmed from seats on stage level, right side

Brooklyn1: The Academy is My Beautiful Romance: compilation

Brooklyn2: xZ3ROGRAVITYx: nice full stage view from the right side. Tom’s Archive: filmed from ga with a great zoom and some great quality shots from the jumbotron

Detroit: Bingop: filmed from further away, seats, Sheep: very good full stage view from the left

Saint Paul: Cool Concert Channel: filmed from ga, close to the stage

Riot Fest: Geoffrey Gardner: right-ish side of stage. phoenixrai: great quality. and kudos to both of these people for how stable the videos seem to be considering everything lol

Alpharetta: Blue Moon: close to stage, great quality

NJ1: phoenixrai: again, fantastic quality. deadhoarse: great quality, filmed from left side with a great zoom, so there’s nice variety in the shots. Tom’s Archive: close to stage, another great quality recording. Gothic Romance: just another great recording, more from the right side of the arena this time. nj1 had all the people with good cameras for some reason lol

NJ2: Tom’s Archive: Tom coming in with another banger. filmed from the pit, amazing closeups. ray toro is so beautiful. Andrea Warfel: filmed from further back in ga. Metal Love Collection: another great quality nj video, filmed from ga with a good zoom.

Firefly: alene b: good quality, just clips of last two songs. gems (loves frank iero): another nice quality one, good view of jumbotron most of the time

Sunrise FL: The Academy Is my Beautiful Romance: compilation!

Houston: Fredy Benitez: filmed from further back in seating

Dallas: phoenixrai: great quality, filmed from ga

Denver: Sudz’ Concert Recordings: filmed from further back but with a good zoom, nice full view of stage

Portland: The Academy is My Beautiful Romance: compilation!

Tacoma: SquawkyJo: full stage view

Oakland: The Academy is my Beautiful Romance: compilation!

Las Vegas: hearmenearme: filmed from left side high up. phoenixrai: great quality!

Aftershock: Elias Blake: divided into 2 parts, link is to part 1 :)

LA1: phanfanisonline: divided into 4 parts, link to part 1 :)

LA2: JMetalHead: filmed from right side high up

LA3: ray: filmed from pit, link is to part A. JMetalHead: filmed from right side high up. i love this person's reactions to their favorite songs haha RandomAspectsofLife: side of stage, frank's side (almost behind stage so you can see a lot of the crowd which i love!)

LA4: ray: filmed from seats, right side, full stage view + occasional jumbotron, link to part A.

LA5: Tina Sharp: full view of stage from the left side. deadhoarse: great quality, filmed from the right

WWWY2: StayThicc: filmed from further back, jumbotron in view the whole time. The Academy is My Beautiful Romance: compilation!

WWWY3: PichyTheReefCoralTheReef: full stage and jumbotron view

MEXICO CITY: we got our professional recording! uploaded by a lot of people but here is one link

and obviously a reminder that there are also a ton of amazing quality individual song performances on youtube, these are just the full show recordings! please lmk if you notice any mistakes, it's late when i'm making this lol. i'll try to add on to this if new videos are uploaded :) happy watching! edit: just to add, if you click on one of these videos and it turns out to be one of those that barely show ray at all just please click right out of there. i haven’t watched all of these through so please know that i don’t endorse that and find it weird as fuck to say the least

[fearsmagazine]

SAW THE MUSICAL: THE UNAUTHORIZED PARODY OF SAW Extends Off-Broadway and Announces National Tour.

After an astonishing New York run this Fall, SAW The Musical The Unauthorized Parody of Saw has extended its run Off-Broadway at AMT Theatre (345 West 45th Street) through Jun 23, 2024. It will also kick off a national tour in LA with a six-week run beginning Feb 29 at the Hudson Theatres Mainstage (6539 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90038 in Hollywood) SAW The Musical: The Unauthorized Parody began performances Off-Broadway on Sept 16, 2023, with its New York Opening Night on Sunday, Oct 1, 2023, and was called "Hilariously Absurd" by NPR. The run is extended through Jun 23, 2024, in Midtown's Theater District.

Danny Durr as Gordon and Jill Owen

The National Tour stops include Los Angeles, CA (Hudson Theatre Mainstage, Feb 29- Apr 7, 2024 ); San Diego, CA (Tenth Ave Arts Center, April 10 – 28, 2024), Las Vegas, NV (May 1 – 5, 2024), Portland, OR (Alberta Abbey, May 15 – Jun 9, 2024), Greely, CO (Union Colony Civic Center, June 2024), Chicago, IL (Jul 26 – Aug 18, 2024). Exact dates, locations, and tickets can be purchased by visiting www.sawthemusical.com/national-tour.

One of the most thought-provoking horror films of all time now is…a musical. SAW The Musical hilariously captures the events of the first movie, parodying the Saw that started it all, following from where Lawrence Gordon and Adam Stanheight find each other for the first time in the bathroom trap. Will they follow "the rules" as they discover each other's secrets? Will they escape the game in time and saw right through? A love story with fluidity (and lots more fluids), SAW The Musical: The Unauthorized Parody of Saw is Little Shop of Horrors meets Avenue Q, pushing the boundary on sexuality and how to love. [Parental Advisory: Explicit Content]

"SAW The Musical: The Unauthorized Parody of Saw brings the iconic horror film to life on stage with a wickedly funny twist. Now is the perfect time to laugh at the macabre as we blend horror and hair-raising laughter, creating a unique musical experience that's both hilarious and thrilling. Get ready for a love story entangled in traps, secrets, and unexpected humor, pushing the boundaries of entertainment with a dash of explicit fun." Cooper Jordan, Creator, and Producer

Created by Cooper Jordan (DEX! A Killer Musical, The Rat Pack Undead), SAW The Musical has a book by Award -Winning Writer Zoe Ann Jordan (Virtuoso - NYCHFF) and music & lyrics by Patrick Spencer & Anthony De Angelis (An Axemas Story), and directed & choreographed by Tony Award Winner Stephanie Rosenberg (Easter Bunny HOP! LIVE; Co-Producer: Moulin Rouge! The Musical, Anastasia) with music direction by Leigh Pomeranz (DEX! A Killer Musical) and fight direction by Dan Renkin (All My Sons, DEX! A Killer Musical). The Musical is produced by Cooper Jordan, Saw The Musical Parody LLC, Stephanie Rosenberg, Merciful Delusions Productions, Panit Chantranuluck, June Rachelson-Ospa, and more to be announced. Cooper Jordan is the Lead Producer.

SAW The Musical: The Unauthorized Parody of Saw (New York) stars Danny Durr (National Tour: A Christmas Carol, Tony-nominated War Paint) as Gordon, Adam Parbhoo (NY: Home's Kitchen) as Adam, Gabrielle Goodman (NY: Open, Stay) as Amanda/Alli/Jigsaw and Voiceover for Detective Tapp is by the late Donnell Johnson, with Swings & Understudies; Andrew Caira (New York: The Importance of Being Earnestly LGBTQ+, Regional/Tour: Atlantic City Blues Brothers), Patrick Voss Davis (Film: Lucky Louie. Regional: Newsies), James Lynch (New York: Baby Powder), Thomas Skea (Film: Out of Water), Morgan Traud (Regional: Mame), Jessica Morilak ("A Sketch of New York") and Keaton Barry. SAW The Musical's National Tour Casts will be announced in 2024.

For an updated schedule, National Tour tickets or to purchase tickets, please visit SawtheMusical.com.

[broadwaydivastournament]

Broadway Divas Tournament: 2A

Donna Murphy (1959) “DONNA MURPHY (Anna) received the 1996 Tony Award, as well as Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle nominations for her performance in The King and I. She also received the 1994 Tony and Drama Desk Awards for her portrayal of Fosca in Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Passion. Last summer she was featured as Dorothy Trowbridge in Mr. Lapine’s Twelve Dreams at Lincoln Center (Drama Desk nomination). Other Broadway Credits include: Edwin Drood in The Mystery of Edwin Drood, The Human Comedy, and They’re Playing Our Song. Off-B’way: The Whore in Michael John LaChuisa’s Hello Again (Drama Desk nom.), Rose in Song of Singapore (Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle noms.), Hey Love; The Songs of Mary Rodgers, Privates on Parade, Showing Off, Birds of Paradise, A…My Name is Alice, Little Shop of Horrors. Regional work includes Miss Julie (McCarter), Pal Joey (Huntington), Williamstown, Portland Shage Co. and Goodspeed. She made her feature film debut in Jade, and co-stared (sp) in “Someone Had to Be Benny” for HBO. Other TV includes: Francesa Cross on Stephen Bocho’s “Murder One,” “Law & Order,” “A Table at Ciro’s” (PBS Great Performances), “Another World” and the American Playhouse Production of Passion. Ms. Murphy can be heard on the original cast recordings of Passion (Grammy Award), and Hello Again, and is featured on Leonard Bernstein’s New York on Electra/Noneshuch.” – Playbill bio from The King and I, December 1996.

Mary Beth Peil (1940) "MARY BETH PEIL (Anna Leonowens), before joining the 1982 Los Angeles production of The King and I, received national acclaim for her television portrayal of Alma Winemiller in Lee Hoiby's opera Summer and Smoke (based on the Tennessee Williams play), produced by PBS and the Chicago Opera Theatre. As a member of New York's Theatre for a New Audience she has apperaed in many productions of Shakespeare. A Graduate of Northwestern University and a First Prize winner of the Metropolitian Opera Auditions, Mary Beth has been featured in opera and musical theatre with such companies as The Metropolitan Opera National Company, the New York City Opera, the Lake George Opera and the Minnesota Opera. She has appeared as soloist with the New York Philharmonic, Honolulu Symphony, Buffalo Philharmonic, the New York Young Concert Artists and the Cincinnati Area Artists Series. Favorite musical theatre roles that she has performed include Rosabella in Most Happy Fella, Magnolia in Show Boat and Kate in Kiss Me, Kate." - Playbill bio from The King and I, March, 1985.

NEW PROPAGANDA AND MEDIA UNDER CUT: ALL POLLS HERE

"We have Donna Murphy as Dolly. We have Donna Murphy as Aurelia. What are we doing to get Donna Murphy in a Mame revival so she can hit the Jerry Herman trifecta? I need this woman back on a stage immediately and genuinely, I cannot tell you how much money I'd be realistically willing to shell out. And on a more personal note? What do I have to do to get Donna Murphy to look at me like she wants to devour me whole? The things I want to do to this woman... She has chemistry with every single person she crosses paths with. I need her carnally."

"Mary Beth Peil's hair deserves a Tony Award of its own. She started going grey almost twenty years ago and never looked back. A grey-haired octogenarian who's actively out here being hot and sexy and showing skin is quite possible one of the hottest things in the world. Let me reiterate: I want to fuck this old woman."

[usafphantom2]

USAF Should Look At China’s Future Multi-Crew Fighter Model For F-15EX

The F-15EX's currently empty rear cockpit needs to be taken advantage of by adding a new kind of second crewmen, an Air Mission Commanding Officer.

Major Joshua “Soup” Campbell Posted on Jul 25, 2024 11:24 AM EDT Edited By Tyler Rogoway

F-15EX and J16, both two seaters, but one uses the second crewman in a different capacity than the traditional weapon system officer role.

PLA/USAF

Amidst strategic shifts in its force posture, the U.S. Air Force (USAF) faces pivotal decisions on the deployment of its next-generation fighter fleet. With plans to retire aging F-15C/D Eagles and scale back F-15E Strike Eagle operations, the USAF is poised to integrate a limited number of F-15EX Eagle IIs into the fleet. Yet, while the F-15EX boasts advancements as an evolution of the F-15E Strike Eagle family of fighters, current strategies overlook the aircraft’s rear cockpit potential.

The first F-15EX Eagle II delivered to the Oregon Air National Guard’s 142nd Wing, the first operational unit to receive the type, touches down in Portland in June 2024. 142nd Wing/Oregon Air National Guard

Meanwhile, the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) advocates for multi-seat configurations to manage data-rich combat environments effectively. USAF plans, on the other hand, currently exclude utilizing the F-15EX’s rear cockpit, limiting its role to air-to-air missions and possibly limited air-to-ground missions sometime in the future.

In this era of transformative air combat, as the PLAAF pioneers new operational concepts with multi-seat fighters, the USAF stands at a crossroads, balancing legacy strategies with the imperative for adaptive, integrated command and control of unmanned systems and network-centric operations. With the F-15EX, however, the USAF has an opportunity to lead the way regarding future air combat by fully embracing the Eagle II’s two-crew capability.

The Eagle II Opportunity

With the pending divestment of the F-15C/D and reduction of the F-15E inventory, the USAF has committed to purchasing a relatively small number of F-15EXs to replace the F-15C/D in Japan, as well as at three National Guard bases with units tasked with U.S. homeland defense. The Eagle II, however, evolved from the Strike Eagle and subsequent F-15 derivatives, is capable of far more than what the legacy Eagle fleet previously provided to combatant commanders.

Given its modernized sensors, self-protection suite, fiber optics, future integration of an open mission system and digital open architecture backbone, more powerful engines, increased computing capabilities, and the inclusion of a rear fully-missionized cockpit, the F-15EX represents a significant advancement over both the F-15C/D and F-15E. Yet, current operational plans do not involve taking advantage of the rear cockpit, leaving it empty and unused, assigning the F-15EX to perform long-range and medium-range air-to-air only missions with minimal expansions into other missions sets the F-15EX is purpose-built to fulfill.

From left to right, an F-15C, an F-15E, and an F-15EX. USAF

The evolving character of air combat, however, demands that platforms do more amongst the growing complexity of high-end warfare. When considering the future of air combat, which places information at center stage in a high-end conflict, failing to utilize the rear cockpit would be a missed opportunity to expand future roles and responsibilities of the F-15EX, disregarding the investment that already exists in the aircraft’s capabilities.

By contrast, People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) assessments of the anticipated complexities of forthcoming high-end combat environments have led them to identify multi-seat, multi-role configurations as critical to operations.

Available information suggests that the PLAAF believes an additional operator offers the potential for more effective interpretation and utilization of the vast sensory data that could overwhelm the cognitive and processing capacities of a single individual, particularly in the future of contested air combat environments. Having made this assessment, the PLAAF is now moving forward in developing operational concepts for how best to employ multiple operators in a single tactical aircraft, like the J-16 and the two-seat J-20S variant (also referred to variously as the J-20B and J-20AS), beyond their traditional roles. The USAF could benefit from adopting a multi-operator approach like the PLAAF’s with the F-15EX.

A picture of a two-seat J-20 during testing. Chinese internet

Information Saturation

Any future high-end conflict will produce vast amounts of data that need processing. Both the U.S. military and PLA continue to develop robust integrated intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) networks to facilitate combat operations and support long-range kill chains. As such, sensors within the land, sea, air, and space domains will provide more data than can be consumed by human operators to process — and make accurate — real-time tactical and operational decisions. Due to the rapidly changing environments in a future contest, these decisions will need to be made quickly and potentially at the forward edge of the battlespace.

In an anticipated information-saturated environment, the USAF advocates for the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine-to-human collaboration to alleviate the workload and cognitive demands on operators. While the incorporation of AI may process and distill information to provide operators with pertinent data, a saturated, complex combat environment full of adversary ships, aircraft, and coastal defenses employing deception and denial tactics will still likely result in an overwhelming influx of information for operators to process, leading to task saturation. Performing a multitude of missions and tasks — including controlling collaborative combat aircraft (CCA) and managing other aircraft in formation — all the while making air-to-air and air-to-ground engagement decisions within a contested, degraded, and operationally limited (CDO-L) environment will challenge and could exacerbate cognitive processes for both humans and their AI agents. The PLAAF, on the other hand, seems to be intent on leveraging AI integration with more human operators, not less.

Public Domain

Moving Beyond Traditional Roles

A recent article published in January 2024 by Chinese state-owned outlet Ta Kung Pao Online in Hong Kong, titled “J-16 Leads the Air Force Aircraft Fleet in Preparations for Future Air Battles,” sheds light on the evolving role of the J-16 back-seater and its implications for the future role of the J-20S back-seater. The article outlines the traditional division of responsibilities between front-seat and back-seat operators in the J-16. It also underscores how, due to evolving characteristics of air warfare, the role of the backseat operator has evolved as combat has evolved, informing future J-20S operations.

A Chinese J-16. Japan Ministry of Defense A stock picture of a Chinese J-16. Japan Ministry of Defense

According to the article, the J-16 stands out as the primary two-seat fighter in the PLAAF’s combat air force. While the two-seat Su-30 Flanker exists in the PLAAF’s inventory, its fleet is smaller in size, whereas the J-16 contains more advanced avionics and is in continued domestic production exceeding 245 aircraft, leaving the PLAAF to rely heavily on the J-16 and its more advanced capabilities.

A Chinese Su-30MKK Flanker. Dmitriy Pichugin A stock picture of a Chinese Su-30MKK Flanker. Dmitriy Pichugin

Equipped with asymmetric, outsized weapons that don’t fit in the J-20’s weapons bay, the J-16 provides a broad array of operational capabilities, making it a versatile asset in various scenarios. Similar to the F-15E, the J-16 conducts long-range air-to-air engagements and attacks on ground and maritime targets where the back-seater serves as a weapons controller responsible for employing different types of weapons. The PLAAF, however, is beginning to adapt the J-16 to the expected information-dominated combat environment and evolving manned-unmanned teaming by developing new roles and responsibilities for the aircraft and its operators.

Information-Dominated Combat Environment

In the context of the evolving landscape of networked and unmanned warfare, contemporary air combat will incorporate a multitude of systems where all combat elements are interconnected with vast amounts of information. Through data transmission and intelligence-sharing platforms, collaborative operations based on interconnected systems have become the predominant operational model, with the J-16 capable of assuming the central command role for entire formations. According to the Ta Kung Pao article, the J-16 back-seater, in this new environment, evolves from simply a “weapon controller” into an “air mission commanding officer.”

A close-up look at the pilot and the back-seater in a Chinese J-16. China Military Online/Liu Chang and Liu Yinghu

With this new evolution, the air mission commanding officer (AMCO) encompasses multiple roles and responsibilities in a high-tech conflict that includes overseeing air-to-surface weaponry, managing and disseminating multi-platform intelligence, and issuing operational directives. While this may seem similar to the USAF’s airborne Forward Air Controller-Airborne (FAC[A]), there appear to be differences in employment concepts between the PLAAF’s AMCO and the USAF’s FAC(A), particularly regarding the operational environments with which they are utilized.

Primarily employed in close air support (CAS) or strike coordination and reconnaissance (SCAR) missions, the FAC(A) is the airborne version of a joint terminal air controller (JTAC) in which both can nominate and mark targets, deconflict airspace, relay critical ground schemes of maneuver, and authorize airstrikes. The PLAAF’s AMCO, however, seems to focus on roles and responsibilities that leverage the PLA’s sensing network in a contested air interdiction environment.

Utilizing the PLA’s expanding sensing network to build situational awareness in the battlespace, the J-16 back-seater, assuming the AMCO role and plugged into the sensing network, is intended to direct coordinated efforts among various aircraft, in conjunction with ground and naval units, to execute comprehensive aerial attacks. Additionally, the back-seater’s role is to command and coordinate multiple drones acting as ‘loyal wingmen’ with the intent to amplify combat effectiveness through combined manned and unmanned operations.

Whether or not the PLAAF is actually proficient with this type of force package integration in a high-end combat environment remains to be seen. There is a distinct possibility that the PLAAF is overstating its capabilities in such an environment and much of this training is nascent or scripted, or this is the aspirational plan for future operations. However, the article points to recent footage from state-run CCTV that claims to showcase joint exercises involving GJ-2 drones under the command of J-16s enabling swarm attacks. Analysts, however, suggest that the articles and CCTV coverage of these events do not match reality given current PLAAF capabilities and likely reflect a desire for future capability. But while the PLAAF may be unable to conduct the defined roles and responsibilities of the AMCO in the current state, the PLAAF continues to move forward in preparing its endeavors. More importantly, however, the J-16’s implementation of an AMCO also serves as a testbed for future two-seat J-20S operations.

While the J-20S may lack the payload capacity of the J-16, the PLAAF anticipates that “stealth, high-speed, and advanced situational awareness” allow the J-20S to “penetrate enemy territory, gain air superiority,” and subsequently assume command over trailing aircraft like J-16s and J-10Cs. Moreover, the J-20S, like the J-16, will be able to coordinate and control CCAs to compensate for its magazine depth and weapons limitations, a task overseen by the AMCO in the rear cockpit.

Drawing parallels from the expanding roles of J-16 and J-20S back-seaters, incorporating a Weapon System Officer (WSO) into the F-15EX’s rear cockpit would expand its capabilities and enhance the lethality of USAF strike packages. With the advent of large, integrated sensing networks providing a vast amount of data, an F-15EX WSO, assuming a role similar to an AMCO, can coordinate and direct fires, provide mission-critical intelligence in the midst of mission execution to other platforms in a strike package, pass information of evolving situations between pulsed operations, and even coordinate with various naval or ground forces.

As highlighted in this picture, a two-person crew did fly the first F-15EX jet to Portland in June 2024. Oregon National Guard

Additionally, the F-15EX’s weapons array integration, including outsized weapons, allows it to perform an array of missions already being fulfilled by the F-15E, which includes long-range air interdiction. Moreover, it can be deployed to other environments in the event of horizontal escalation or low- to medium-tier conflicts, providing global firepower reach against smaller, maligned nation-states while still providing key capabilities in the high-end fight. Furthermore, the lack of stealth allows the F-15EX the ability to carry highly specialized pods that stealth assets simply can’t, or won’t, carry. Advanced pods can provide many warfighting-enhancing capabilities, from communications to sensing, electronic warfare, network redundancy, and edge computing.

A US Air Force F-15C Eagle carrying an infrared search and track (IRST) pod. This is one of many specialized podded capabilities members of the F-15 family, including the F-15EX, can carry. USAF

Finally, an F-15EX WSO can oversee the employment of groups of Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) or swarms of other drones.

CCAs, AI, and Command and Control

Both the USAF and PLAAF view CCAs as a way of generating cost-effective mass. The intent is to augment attack formations with low-cost, AI-infused robotic wingmen to increase capabilities in the realm of firepower, sensing, electronic warfare, communications, and other capabilities that manned aircraft bring to the fight. Though both air forces promote heavy reliance on AI in CCAs, AI currently lacks intuition and the ability to infer information in a complex CDO-L combat environment that it is not accustomed to and lacks the ability to break from its given prescribed parameters to adapt. It is therefore expected that some level of human-to-machine interaction between manned aircraft and CCAs will be required to make decisions in a combat environment for some time. Due to the anticipated human interaction with CCAs, the PLAAF foresees multi-seat fighter platforms as an operational requirement.

In a document titled “Study on the Combined Manned Aircraft/UAV in Air Operations,” published around 2021 by Wang Danjing and Liu Ying of the Department of Combined Tactics Air Force Command College in Beijing, the discussion of command and control of CCAs described the task intensive nature of managing combat operations and CCAs simultaneously. When deciding the optimal manned-to-unmanned mixed formation characteristics, task management and cognitive performance were at the forefront of the author’s conclusion that the ideal formation to employ CCAs consists of pairing a two-seat aircraft with a single-seat aircraft.

Wang and Liu note that “U.S. scientists show that there is a nonlinear relationship between a person’s workload and work performance,” suggesting that adding management of CCAs to a pilot’s tasks could impact performance. The authors conclude that “the manned aircraft formation scope is better as a two-aircraft formation, with one being a two-seat aircraft tasked with tactical control of the UAVs, while the other is a single-seat aircraft tasked with executing the task of standing guard and attacking.”

While USAF tactics will almost definitely differ from the PLAAF’s regarding CCAs, utilizing an extra body in the backseat of the F-15EX can enhance the employment of CCAs, allowing the front-seat pilot to focus on other tasks or coordinate various functions in a combat setting.

Moreover, it is expected that CCAs will not always launch with their manned platforms to conduct missions in an Agile Combat Employment (ACE) scheme of maneuver or disparate basing environment like in the Pacific. Positioned between forward assets and bases, an F-15EX could take command of CCAs and transfer to forward fighter platforms or launch or recovery locations.

Take Aways

Although the U.S. military typically does not examine adversary strategy, operations, and tactics with the intention of replicating them, it is crucial to recognize the strengths of developing adversary capabilities and evaluate how they align with U.S. military operational principles.

Given the information provided above, it is imperative for the USAF to recognize and address the limitations of human cognition in future information-intensive environments and consider deploying additional operators to process the vast data available and manage new cognitive demands and new responsibilities like CCAs in a high-tech warzone. The PLAAF’s ambitious approach to utilizing its two-seat J-16 and J-20S platforms in complex, high-end combat environments may provide insights into how to maximize the F-15EX’s enhanced capabilities by incorporating a back-seater.

Similar to how the PLAAF intends to use the J-16 to cooperate with other fighter platforms, C2ISR platforms, and its kill-web to employ its outsized weapons, the F-15EX provides the range, payload, and sensors to do the same for the USAF. Additionally, with its fully missionized rear cockpit and large-area display, the F-15EX is capable of doing everything the multi-seat F-15E can do, and more.

The F-15EX’s fully missionized rear cockpit allows a WSO to conduct a multitude of mission-related functions, freeing the pilot to focus on other tasks at hand. Incorporating a WSO in the F-15EX would thus harness the intended capabilities the F-15EX is designed for. With no one in the rear cockpit, however, the F-15EX’s potential expansion of roles and responsibilities and overall effectiveness cannot be realized, leaving the Air Force unable to capitalize on the investment that is already paid for with each aircraft rolling off the line.

With every new set of roles, responsibilities, and mission expansion, however, comes new training requirements. For the F-15EX to adopt similar roles and responsibilities of the AMCO, the F-15E training pipeline can leverage existing training plans either by restructuring F-15E training flights that develop these specific tasks or by creating a new AMCO training pipeline in concert with the F-15EX syllabus being constructed to prepare future Eagle II pilots. Taking qualified F-15E WSO instructors into an AMCO pipeline that runs in concert with the F-15EX syllabus, the Air Force can fully realize a cohesive multi-seat aircraft ready for the high-end environment.

Unfortunately, however, the USAF has chosen to focus the utilization of the F-15EX on a single mission: long-range air-to-air. While capable of conducting close air support (CAS), combat search and rescue (CSAR), long- and medium-range air interdiction, maritime air interdiction, defensive counter-air, suppression of enemy air defenses (SEAD), and more, leaving the rear cockpit empty in this high-tech piece of machinery and conducting only long-range air-to-air engagements leaves all this potential capability on the table.

USAF

Equipped with outsized, long-range weapons and specialized pods, and the ability to command CCAs and swarms of other drones while directing combat fires and disseminating multi-platform intelligence from a multi-crew platform, the F-15EX offers a broader spectrum of capabilities beyond solely engaging in long-range air-to-air combat. Additionally, much of the necessary technology for these functions is already integrated into the aircraft.

For these reasons, it is imperative that the Air Force not let preconceived notions of traditional roles and responsibilities obstruct decision-making concerning the future of air warfare and the potential evolution of roles and responsibilities.

The character of warfare is evolving, necessitating the utilization of both machinery and personnel in innovative ways that align with the changing environment. The multi-operator platform direction currently pursued by the PLAAF yields operational insights worthy of consideration by USAF planners for the near- and mid-term, even as the USAF continues to develop advanced AI solutions for the long term.

Major Joshua “Soup” Campbell is an F-15E Weapon System Officer (WSO) and graduate of the distinguished USAF Weapon School with 1,500 hours in the F-15E which includes 630 combat hours. He spent the last year as a Fellow at the USAF’s China Aerospace Studies Institute with a strategic and operational focus. He is currently attending Johns Hopkins University, School of Advanced International Studies through the Department of Defense’s Strategic Thinker’s Program. He has worked in a variety of capacities at both the squadron level and MAJCOM staff positions.

[avacoleman]

when the lights go out || a firstprince fic

summary: Henry Fox’s career is in crisis and his dating life isn’t faring much better either.  After a chance encounter with a charming man becomes memorable for all the wrong reasons, Henry throws himself into his next assignment: writing the memoir of a beloved C-list actor. Henry, however, knows Alex best for the role he played as his random, awkward one-night stand. Henry enters their professional partnership keen on keeping their relationship just that. But after Henry confesses that their hookup was less than spectacular, Alex concots an arrangement that Henry is unable to resist. In addition to ghostwriting Alex’s life story, Henry will teach him a thing or two about satisfying a man.  As they spend months out on the road together, they must decide if the connection between them is yet another story worth telling.

chapter 2/8 || rated e || read on ao3 *updates every tues. and fri. *

Portland, OR Rose City Comic Con Day 1 [Unknown number] hey, i hope you’ve made it safely [Unknown number] in case it wasn’t clear, this is alex. i’ll catch you later. maybe we can grab a bite or something after today’s panel? Henry saves Alex’s number and confirms that yes, he’s arrived in one piece and would be happy to join Alex after the event. All of this is still wrapped in impossibility for Henry. Even though he’d been fully briefed on the tour and signed his contract, the fact that he’s now embarking on a multi-city tour with Alex hasn’t sunk in yet. The six and a half hour long flight didn’t do much to lessen the surrealness and now that he’s here at the venue, Henry doesn’t see an end in sight to the feeling. The convention center is, in a word, daunting. For as much as Henry loves Lord of the Rings and Star Wars, he can’t say his appreciation for the franchises has ever been this devout or even close to it. All around him people are decked out in elaborate, truly remarkable costumes. Some are easy to ID like Doctor Who and Marvel characters. But others are so obscure that Henry can’t even hazard a guess. It’s overwhelming but also kind of intriguing too, seeing people be wholly themselves and embrace the things they love. He forces himself to focus up as he grabs a directory map of the convention’s floor plan for reference before going up to one of the booths for his credentials. With his badge secured, he looks at the map again and makes his way over to where Alex’s panel is being held in one of the larger rooms. It takes him some time to find it; the convention center is practically a maze. But he spots a blowup outside the door clearly marking the panel, Supernatural in the Mainstream. By the time he gets inside, the room is packed and the excited chatter is practically tangible. 

Henry spots a few Crescent Valley fans in t-shirts referencing the show. Admittedly Henry still hasn’t started the series, but before he hopped his flight out of JFK, Pez spent the vast majority of their last few days together giving Henry a pretty substantial rundown of the essentials, including some cast trivia. Most notable from the recap was learning that Alex had dated one of his co-stars, Nora Holleran, during season two. Henry decided it was none of his business– only after doing a Google search on her.

Even with the knowledge that the show resonated with so many people while it aired, it’s strange to reconcile it with the fact that the guy he met on a whim at a bar is part of such a cultural force.

After a few moments, a woman takes to the stage, introducing herself as the moderator. The audience is ravenous as she introduces the panelists and Henry almost goes deaf from the screams Alex earns when his name is called.

Henry studies Alex as he crosses the stage, waving to fans and putting a hand to his heart in appreciation for the warm reception. The large monitors on either side of the stage zoom in on his face and the sincere gratitude Alex feels is plain as day in his eyes.

“Alright, let’s get started, shall we?” the moderator says to kick things off.

Alex in his element during the panel, magnetic really. Even though he’s one of four panelists, it’s so clear to see how he effortlessly draws people in. 

Henry takes out his notebook, hoping to glean something in any of Alex’s responses to the questions directed at him that can be a kernel of an idea they can turn into the core of this book.

He can’t shake Alex’s words during their lunch with Zahra, the way it seemed that Alex sincerely wanted his book to be about something real. 

Vanity cash grab celeb autobiographies were a dime a dozen. Henry figured for people who lived so heavily in the spotlight, it probably felt like the natural progression of things. But with Alex and his team being so adamant in their search, scouring through profiles in hopes of finding the right person to pen Alex’s story, he had to believe this book would actually stand for something other than more dollars in their pockets.

There isn’t much that Henry is able to take away for research other than noting the way people gravitate towards Alex. More than once, he’d actually seen people in the audience quite literally shift to the edge of their seats as he spoke.

When the panel is over, Henry fights against the current of attendees to make his way backstage. He presents his badge to the man at the entrance who gives it a once-over before deeming it to be authentic and ushering Henry through the curtain.

Alex is easy to spot, holding court just as he’d done on stage before, this time with a small audience of just the moderator and his fellow panelists. He’s got a water bottle in his hands, preparing to take a sip when he catches sight of Henry instantly and politely excuses himself from the group.

“You survived day one. How’d you like it?” he asks.

“Your world is very different from mine, but it’s pretty cool,” Henry admits.

“Good, I'm glad to hear it.”

There’s a lull as Alex looks him over and Henry suddenly feels oddly self-conscious and small. Seeing this side of Alex, the sheer star power, is a bit overwhelming.

“You're done for the day, right? I took another look at the itinerary this morning. You’ve got the signing tomorrow, yes?”

Alex nods. “Yeah, I’m all yours starting now.” The man’s face instantly flushes. “You know what I mean.”

Henry offers up a smile that feels more like a white flag. 

“We should head out,” Alex says.

He moves away and heads back to the others in the room, making his parting remarks before touching Henry’s elbow and guiding him to a set of double doors he hadn’t initially noticed when he entered. Henry is treated to a glimpse of the convention center’s underbelly, the private exit that leads them to a secluded area outside on the street level.

Henry is sure it’s probably all in his mind, but now that it’s back to just him and Alex, away from the adoring fans and bright lights of a main stage, the man standing before him now is someone else entirely again. Henry wonders if he’ll ever be able to wrap his head around the two versions of Alex that exist in this world.

“There’s a park not too far from here. Do you want to walk around for a bit?” Alex asks.

It’s a random ask but Henry is glad for it. He’s not sure what to do with himself as they try and find their rhythm around each other.

They make it to the park a few minutes later and walk alongside the edge of a small pond.

Henry turns to attempt starting a conversation and it seems as if Alex had the same thought too; they bump arms immediately and both rush to apologize.

Henry sighs and stops walking.

“I have to ask. Are you still sure about this?” 

Alex’s eyebrows furrow. 

“What do you mean? This walk?”

Henry crosses his arms and gives him a dry look.

“Ah. You being on this project then,” Alex says.

Henry nods. 

Alex looks at him. “Of course I am. I won’t lie, it is a bit of a mindfuck when I stop and really consider it. I’m still trying to figure out how to be around you. But my opinion on your work? My decision to collaborate with you? That hasn’t changed. Not one bit. So, yeah, we had a good night. Great conversation and even better sex,” he muses. “But I can forget it if you can.”

Henry snorts out a laugh in surprise that he quickly tries in vain to cover up as a sneeze. Alex, rightfully, doesn’t buy it though Henry wishes desperately that he would. He hates the way Alex’s face falls. 

“Are you…do you mean you didn’t enjoy it? That I wasn’t…,” Alex trails off.

Henry’s basic functions betray him and his mouth merely opens and closes like a landlocked fish struggling for breath.

In the end, no response is an answer within itself and Henry watches the varying degrees of what can only be described as horror play out across Alex’s face.

Goodbye tour, goodbye contract, Henry thinks. All gone before it even truly got started.

For a man that writes for a living, Henry falls short on what to say. How could he possibly salvage this now?

“I…it…,” he flounders. 

Bang up job, Henry, he internally chides.

“Oh, my god. Oh, my fucking god,” Alex whispers to himself. “Crap, that’s why you snuck out then, isn’t it?”

Henry winces. While that is an astute, wholly accurate description of what he did last week, hearing it so plainly — and from Alex’s lips no less— just makes it sound that much harsher.

“Maybe it was just an off night. It happens sometimes. But look, we don’t have to talk about it. Like you said, we can both forget it ever happened. Today can be our official day one.”

Alex shakes his head, refusing to let it go.

“No. What didn’t you like about it?”

“Alex, come on. Seriously. We don’t have to get into it.”

Alex takes a step closer.

“Please? I want to know what I did wrong.”

Henry frowns.

“That’s harsh; don’t frame it like that. Just think of it as…areas of improvement.”

Alex crosses his arms. “That isn’t much better, but I guess you’re right.” Alex pauses. “Okay then, what do I need to work on?”

Henry groans and looks up at the sky.

“I…how is this happening right now?” Henry mutters to himself, rubbing his forehead and turning his eyes to the water.

He gets a wild fantasy of jumping into the pond and hiding in its depths to avoid this conversation. Could he hold his breath long enough to wait Alex out? He’d be willing to test that hypothesis if it meant even five seconds away from this talk.

When he looks back at Alex, the man’s eyes are unwavering and Henry’s instantly transported to the night in question. To how wide eyed and earnest Alex had been after they had sex and he checked in. It makes something in his chest crack a little, enough to put a hole in the wall he hoped to build around the truth.

“Well, the handjob was a bit…rigid. And when you were working to open me up, that felt a touch awkward. And then when you were actually inside me, it was rushed and uh, a tad repetitive. You were enthusiastic, which was nice, but I couldn’t quite mirror that.”

He hopes his answer is diplomatic, but he knows there’s simply no easy way to say any of this. 

Alex’s brows knit together deeply and it feels like a lifetime before he speaks again.

“So…sex. You’re telling me I’m just straight up bad at sex as a whole?”

Henry groans and slaps the palm of his hand against his forehead.

“Like I said, it could have been an off night. We were drinking, we were both overexcited. The room was cursed or perhaps I really was, remember? There’s a lot at play here.”

Alex is quiet again, too quiet for Henry’s likings. Henry awkwardly scratches the side of his nose and rocks slightly on the balls of his feet as Alex stares off at nothing before turning his gaze back on Henry.

“I’ll take this into consideration. Thank you, Henry. I appreciate your honesty.”

It’s clinical and closed off and Henry wishes he could take back the last few minutes. But the truth is out there, the ball squarely in Alex’s court and Henry can’t help the sinking feeling that he’s about to lose it all.

~*~*~

Rose City Con

Day 2

Much like yesterday, Alex continues to be incredible with fans. It’s only a signing today, but Alex’s energy is on one hundred for each and every person that comes his way. He poses for pictures and makes good conversation with fans. He asks them questions, learns a bit about each of them. It’s clear to see the knack he has for making everyone feel like they’re having a unique, truly personal interaction with him.

Several people come up to him already in tears and overwhelmed, but Alex doesn’t seem fazed by it at all. Henry is impressed with the way Alex puts them all at ease in no time, cracking jokes as he signs merch.

Henry has no clue how Alex manages to keep his enthusiasm going for hundreds of people. The fact that this is only the first city makes his head spin. He’s not even the one engaging with people and yet Henry feels exhausted merely watching Alex in action.

Henry barely managed to sleep last night. Each time he closed his eyes, he was brought right back to the water’s edge with Alex, replaying every painstaking moment of their conversation. 

There was no time to talk about it this morning. The last thing Henry wanted to do was throw a wrench in Alex’s day when he had this signing scheduled.

Looking at Alex now, it makes Henry commend actors for their ability to truly compartmentalize and put their focus where it needs to be.

Once the signing wraps and the final Crescent Valley fan is off with a bag full of newly inked merch, Henry sees the first crack in Alex’s mask. His shoulders sag a little and he rolls his neck from side to side before standing.

He hops down from the slightly raised platform he was seated on. Henry walks towards him without really thinking about it.

“Are you heading back to the hotel now?” Alex asks.

Henry cocks his head to the side, adjusting the strap of his bag.

“I was going to…unless, do you have something else you need me to shadow you on?”

Alex shakes his head.

“No. I was hoping we could talk.” 

Henry looks around. There are still some stragglers from other signing lines though they’re out of earshot.

“We can go back together,” Alex says decidedly. 

They take a car service back to their hotel and Henry is all too relieved once they’re outside again. The ride over was silent and heavy with the weight of whatever Alex wanted to say but couldn’t in the moment.

All that free time merely left Henry with a thirty minute window to dream up scenarios of what Alex wanted to discuss. Every single one of them ended in him being fired and pulled from the tour.

“Can we go to your room?” Alex asks.

Henry nods stiffly. He figures maybe it’s for the best. At least he’d be able to pack his things immediately after Alex chewed him out and sent him on his merry way back across the country to New York.

For now, three thousand miles don’t separate them, merely three feet as they head up the elevator. 

A feeling of déjà vu sweeps through Henry, but this evening couldn’t be any more different than the night they met. Instead of crowding each other’s space and making out, they keep enough distance that their clothes don’t even come close enough to touching, never mind any other parts of them.

Henry lets them into his room and pockets his keycard as he steps inside. The door slamming shut behind Alex sounds ominous though Henry fully recognizes that’s probably his irrational brain conjuring the sense of foreboding.

“So…you wanted to talk,” he says, toeing off his shoes and setting them neatly along the wall. The sooner they got this over with, the better.

Alex nods, crossing his arms against his chest, his hands holding firm to his biceps. The positioning makes him look so small suddenly, vulnerable even. It’s such a sharp contrast to the energy Alex had with fans not too long ago. 

The enigma of Alex Claremont-Diaz continued to baffle him.

“After we spoke yesterday, I took some time to think about everything. I decided to do some research,” Alex says. “I went back to past partners to see if they shared your point of view.”

This isn’t at all where Henry thought this conversation was going. All the same, he plays along, still bracing for the worst. This could all well be a roundabout way of him getting the axe.

“And what were the results of your findings?” he asks.

“They were inconclusive. They all said they never faked it with me which got me thinking again. There’s a factor to consider here that varies from the others.”

Henry's confusion must register on his face because Alex sighs and rubs his face.

“I’ve recently…uncovered something about myself that probably should have been super obvious to me. But hey, you know what they say about hindsight.” 

Alex groans in frustration at himself.

“Can you, like, just face the wall or something? I’d really rather not have to look at you when I say what I’m about to.” 

“Your ridiculousness truly knows no bounds, does it?” Henry huffs but Alex quickly levels him with a glare.

Henry holds his hands up in defense, knowing a lost cause when he sees one.

“Fine, fine,” he says, turning away. 

He can see Alex in the reflection of the TV screen and a part of him feels guilty for not owning up to this fact when sees the tension in the man’s shoulders and watches as Alex shakes his hands as if warding something off.

“My past partners were all women. It’s come to my attention in recent weeks that I’m bi and the night we hooked up…that may or may not have been the first time I had sex with a guy. So maybe, just maybe, I wasn’t stellar at it for what I think is a pretty valid reason when you think about it.”

Henry turns back so suddenly the soles of his clothed feet scrape against the carpet. He’ll think of the rugburn later, but for now, there are bigger things to focus on.

“Alex,” he says, unsure of where to even go next. His mind is racing so quickly, it’s hard to make sense of anything right now, not with Alex’s confession laying bare before him. 

“Your shoulders barely even fit through doorways so I don’t want your head getting big too,” Alex quips, “but…I wanted to be with you that night. It felt like nothing else really mattered to me except getting into bed with you because we really vibed and I wanted to see where it could go. And I know that sounds totally lame and cheesy and probably pathetic as hell or whatever, but it’s true.”

Alex rolls his eyes at himself, stuffing his hands in the back pockets of his jeans.

“This doesn’t have to be a big deal. Hell, it doesn’t even have to be a thing, period.”

“Alex,” Henry says again. This time, something in his voice must stand out because the other man finally stops talking and looks directly at him.

Henry holds his gaze for a moment, needing his words to ring clear.

“It should be a thing because it is in fact a big deal, contrary to what you might think of the matter. Coming into your sexuality, it can be a lot mentally and emotionally. Add in making physical strides…you took a major step that night. That sort of thing isn’t easy to do.”

Alex huffs out a terse laugh.

“It was a swing and a miss.”

“I’ll pretend that’s a cricket reference instead of the tragic baseball one I’m sure it was intended to be.”

Alex’s lips quirk into a reluctant smile just as Henry was hoping it would.

“The only cricket I’ll acknowledge is Jiminy,” he says.

Henry laughs. “I’ll allow that inane response. We’ve got more important things to discuss.”

Alex sighs and takes a seat at the edge of the bed, his head lobbing back as he looks up at the ceiling. All it does is expose his smooth neck and Henry looks away before the sight gets the better of him.

He follows Alex over and sits beside him, his hands resting on the comforter on either side of him. Alex doesn’t rush to speak which Henry grows a little concerned with. Alex is hardly ever quiet or still. Seeing him like this now, Henry can practically hear the whirlwind of rushing thoughts. 

“I should hope that by now, you know you can be honest with me. That’s quite literally what I’m here for. Whatever’s on your chest, you can say and it’d be completely safe. Let your conscience be your guide and all that.”

“God, I hate you,” Alex says, but there’s no bite to his words, especially as he smiles softly and rests his head against Henry’s shoulder.

“Thanks for being so cool about this. Part of me is still not entirely convinced I won’t be struck dead from embarrassment later but, if I had to get news like this from anyone…I sure as shit am glad it was you.”

“You’ve got nothing to be embarrassed about. This just explains a lot. I’m sure you’ll only get better from here on out, now that you know.”

Alex sits up and snorts a laugh.

“And how many guys will I have to fuck until I get it just right?”

“Is that a riddle? A rhetorical question? Some kind of demented R-rated Goldilocks reference?”

“I’m genuinely asking here,” Alex says sincerely, enough to get Henry to quiet down. “What if I never figure it out and I’m just this trash partner for dudes going forward? How many is standard for it to, you know, click?”

Henry smiles sympathetically. “I can’t answer that for you.” Alex frowns, but Henry continues. “It could be ten or it could be as little as one. It’s different for everybody. You just need to get more comfortable with it.”

Alex’s brows furrow, his lips pinching slightly before he looks away. It’s almost an identical look to his expression that night when he was taking his time in touching Henry for the first time.

“What are you thinking?” Henry asks now, unlike that night. They’re well past that stage of being tentative.

Alex opens and closes his mouth before shaking his head.

“Nothing. It’s nothing,” he says, getting up from the bed and running a hand through his curls.

Henry rises to his feet too as Alex turns back to him and speaks suddenly.

“I’m hungry. You hungry? What do we think the room service situation is like here, hmm? I’m guessing high volumes of quinoa and other rabbit foods. A damn shame. I weep in Texas barbecue. Fuck, what I wouldn’t give for some good barbacoa right now,” he prattles on as he tries to sidestep Henry.

Henry gently catches hold of his arm and stops him in his tracks. Alex sighs defeatedly and looks up at him.

“Maybe we’ll get to a point where I’ll be able to read your mind, but until then, I’d really like to know what you’re thinking,” Henry says. “Please.”

Alex sighs again. “Well, when you ask so nicely.”

Henry lets go of him then and holds his gaze. The stalemate ends as Alex collects his thoughts and courage.

“I was thinking, maybe you’re onto something with that whole ‘one person’ thing. Like…I don’t know, maybe that one person could be you? You could, maybe, teach me. Show me the ropes. Or at the very least, explain how I could be better. You know, give me pointers and stuff…if you’d even go for that.”

Henry’s jaw drops slightly, his blood rushing and pounding in his ears. For all his ribbing and joking before, Henry can tell Alex is completely serious now.

“You know, I can’t read your mind either, right? You’re gonna have to say something. Ideally right this second because if I thought I was out on a limb before, I’m freefalling right now and spiraling is not cool or sexy,” Alex says.

Henry blinks twice, letting Alex’s words fully sink in.

“Wait…you’d want to…with me again?”

Alex rolls his eyes and throws his hands up.

“I feel like you deserve a redo. And besides, do you see any other hot British men around here who know my secret shame?”

Henry startles out a laugh.

“You shouldn’t be ashamed and we British men do not travel in packs.”

“Tell that to the Redcoats. British men traveling in packs,” Alex repeats and shudders. “No good ever came of that. Just open any history book at random.”

“My god, do you ever stop talking?”

“Usually when my mouth is occupied in other ways.”

Henry quirks a brow.

“Down, boy. Get your mind out of the gutter. I was absolutely talking about when I’m drinking coffee or eating food or—“

Henry puts his hands on either side of Alex’s face.

“For the love of God, can you be quiet for two seconds so that I may think?”

Alex mirrors his raised brow.

“Holy shit, you’re actually gonna consider this?”

“Did you think I wouldn’t?” Henry shakes his head and lowers his hands. “I mean, yes, there are a hundred and one reasons why we shouldn’t. Chief among them being that we’re here for business not pleasure.”

“But seeing as though we kinda shot that to hell without meaning to…,” Alex supplies. “I freaking love loopholes. I really do.”

“Why doesn’t that surprise me?”

Henry looks up at the ceiling briefly before shaking his head.

“If we do this, we’re going to have to be very, very careful. I don’t want to jeopardize our working relationship. This book has to always come first.”

“Of course.”

Henry sits once more on the bed, Alex stepping close to him with his arms crossed against his chest.

“If this were to happen, we’d need to establish some ground rules. No staying overnight in each other’s rooms. If, for any reason, one of us wants to call it off—,”

“No questions asked. No awkwardness,” Alex says. “Simply not wanting to anymore would be reason enough.”

Henry nods. “Yeah, exactly.” He purses his lips. “And it won’t be a daily thing either.”

Alex scoffs and puts his hands on his hips.

“Jesus, do you think I’m insatiable? You’re hot, but I promise you, I can in fact exercise some self-control.”

“In the short time that I’ve known you, I must admit that’s coming as quite a revelation, but I suppose I’ll have to take your word for it.”

Alex rolls his eyes and smiles softly, his face a bit thoughtful. Henry can’t look away as Alex speaks, especially as he takes note of Alex’s change in tone, the way he grows more serious and contemplative.

“I’m gonna make it up to you. That night.”

“You don’t owe me anything. Besides, this isn’t even about me. I’ll just be here to help you figure out what your future partners might like.”

“And the best way for me to start with that is by learning what you like. When the time comes, yeah, I’ll figure out how to make another guy come undone. But in the meantime? These next few weeks? It’s just me and you. I want to make you feel all the things you should have when we were together. Every sigh, every moan, every desperate breath. I’ll earn it for real this time.”

Henry’s throat feels a bit dry at the thought, at the determination in Alex’s eyes. 

“Is that a promise then? A challenge perhaps?” he manages to say, trying to keep his composure even as he feels himself getting aroused.

Alex doesn’t miss a beat as he says, “Sweetheart, that’s a goddamn guarantee.”

~*~*~

Phoenix, AZ Canyon Con

One of the best parts about agreeing to be the ghostwriter for this project is undoubtedly the ability for Henry to visit cities he’s never been to. 

The flight to Arizona with Alex was enjoyable and this time around, they’re set up in an AirBnB for an entire week.

They’ve settled into their temporary new digs pretty nicely and Henry is looking forward to making further progress with Alex and this book. 

Neither of them has actually brought up the other day and the deal they’ve struck with each other. Henry hasn’t been sure how to breach the topic, but now that they’re set to stay inside this rental for the week, it feels like it’ll take true Herculean effort to ignore the elephant in the room for much longer.

He reasons that since it was Alex’s idea, he’ll leave it to him to mention when he’s ready. For now, they have been able to tiptoe around it, making conversation about virtually anything else.

Henry takes up residence on the couch with his laptop, headphones on as he queues up Crescent Valley. He’s begun watching the series as part of his research. He’s halfway through season one and he still can’t tell if he likes the show or not. Despite that indecision, he can sincerely say Alex is a pretty great actor.

The show itself is campy at best, but there’s something very earnest in Alex’s portrayal of a newly turned vampire attempting to find balance in the two worlds he’s a part of.

Episode nine begins and for better or worse, Henry finds himself getting sucked into it. He rues the day already when he’ll have to confess to Pez that he should have watched along with him back when they were roommates in university. He’ll never hear the end of it. He’d better start preparing now for the resounding chorus of “I told you so”.

Henry’s so wrapped up in the show that he jumps a little when he sees a figure in the doorway of the living room. Alex is now both on his screen and here in the flesh.

Henry awkwardly makes to get up, hitting pause and taking off his headphones.

“Did you want to watch television in here? I can go.”

Alex’s brows furrow a little.

“Oh, no. I just wanted to hang with you. I know we haven’t really had much time to sit down about the memoir yet, so maybe we could now? But if you’re busy though, we can do it later.”

Henry shakes his head and closes out of Crescent Valley. He switches over to the Google Doc he created, storing away all the notes he’s been taking from various interviews he’s watched and read of Alex.

“Now would be great. It’s been nice seeing you out there with fans, but what I’m still trying to understand is the reason why you want a book at this time. What’s the angle or message you want readers to connect with?”

Alex takes a seat on the single seater across from Henry. 

“I want to talk about my sexuality, my ADHD, being a tragic child of divorce, the highs and lows of being in this career. But, mostly the first part.” 

Alex takes a deep breath and lets it out.

“I want to come out and maybe in doing so, it’ll help someone else to make sense of the things they might’ve been feeling for years, but never knew how to dissect or put a name to.”

Henry thinks back to their initial business meeting. Alex had made it clear that despite their past, Henry still remained his top pick to ghostwrite. Alex had also said there were different reasons why he hid the truth of who he was. Now it all slid into place since Alex’s admission the other day.

“Alex, that’s incredible. This is huge.”

Alex smiles nervously. 

“I can’t believe I’m doing it, but I feel good about my decision. My friends and family know. I feel good about myself, even though I’m still figuring this out.”

“You’re taking a big step and on the world stage no less. That’s pretty remarkable. I’m proud of you. I’d be honored to help tell your story.”

He takes his phone out of his pocket.

“Do you mind if I record? It helps me to get details correct and it’s also useful in getting your cadence right when it comes time to start writing.”

“Not at all. Go for it,” Alex says.

Henry nods and opens his voice memo, hitting record. He asks questions about Alex’s upbringing, the sort of little things a quick Wiki search can’t tell a person. 

True to the terms of the contract and Zahra’s assurance, Alex makes himself, for a lack of a better term, an open book. He gets candid about how his parents’ divorce coupled with his relative celeb status has made it difficult for him to put much stock into the concept of dating, especially with people outside the industry.

This fact in particular strikes Henry though he decides not to examine that too closely.

After about an hour and half, Henry decides they’ve covered enough ground to get him started.

“This was great. Thank you,” he says, looking over the new notes he’s taken and saving the recording.

“Yeah, of course.” Alex still looks contemplative and for a moment, Henry merely chalks it up as a side effect of their in-depth conversation until he stands and Alex speaks up.

“Um, could we talk about the other thing too?”

Henry doesn’t need clarification. He tucks his laptop under his arm and sits back down.

“Of course we can.”

Alex lets out a relieved breath.

“I couldn’t sleep last night and I kept thinking about the problem areas you mentioned. One thing you’ll learn about me is that I like making lists and stuff to keep me on track. There’s a neurosy or two in there, but let’s not look at it too hard right now. We can get into that later for the book,” Alex says.

“Point is, I ended up making a sort of…outline for us and these sessions so they have some structure to them. You can talk things out first and then maybe we could have a practical portion. I can link you to the live doc.”

Henry blinks a few times.

“That’s comprehensive. You've made a sex syllabus.”

Alex’s cheeks flush slightly.

“It’s too much, isn’t it?”

“Alex, I’m British. I thrive off structure and formality. I’d quite like to see this outline so yes, please, link me.”

He stands up again.

“Maybe you could come by my room in about an hour?” Henry suggests. “The deal was that the book comes first. I’d say we made sufficient progress today in that area,” Henry says, tapping his laptop.

Alex blinks twice. “Sounds good.” 

His tone is almost detached and before Henry can ask if he’s alright, Alex is already on his feet with his phone in hand.

Henry retreats to his room and sets his computer down on the nightstand. He hears the chime of his inbox and he opens it to find an email from Alex, subject line “aforementioned sex syllabus 🍆💦”.

Henry laughs and opens it.

The first lesson, Back to Basics, has subsections for kissing and touching.

Henry closes out of the doc as his eyes look at later topics like fingering and oral. He begins to pace, his neck feeling hot at the road ahead. 

In all fairness, at least, this first lesson won’t be difficult at all. Kissing is as harmless as it comes and Henry can attest to the fact that this wasn’t actually an area in which Alex needed improvement.

All the same, Henry knows there’s merit in easing them into this new working relationship instead of jumping into the deep end on day one.

An hour goes by much faster than Henry could have anticipated and suddenly Alex is knocking at his door.

Henry squares his shoulders and crosses the room to let him in. He takes some reassurance in the fact that Alex looks as uncertain as he feels.

“Hey,” Alex says as he comes in, taking a look around himself before landing back on Henry. Even though these sessions were Alex’s idea, Henry gets the feeling he’ll have to be the one to get the ball rolling tonight.

“I will preface this lesson by saying you don’t need any pointers in this department.”

Alex smiles to himself and Henry has to admit, it’s kind of adorable seeing that reaction.

“Regardless, I think your guideline was pretty smart in starting out slowly with these sessions. We can build up from there.”

Alex nods. “Cool, I’m glad you agree.”

Henry stuffs his hands in his pockets. “And you’re sure you want to do this, right? I won’t be offended or anything if you’ve had a change of heart in the past hour.”

Alex shakes his head. “No, I’m still in. I guess I’m just nervous about screwing things up a second time. I don’t know if I could readily bounce back from that level of humiliation.”

Henry steps closer to him, removing his hands from his pockets and instead encircling Alex’s waist.

Alex’s eyes widen but he doesn’t shrink away or look uncomfortable. If anything, he looks curious. Expectant even.

“I think the best way for us to get past the awkwardness might be to simply embrace it,” Henry says.

Alex peers up at him, his eyes drifting to Henry’s lips and back just as he’d done that night right before they kissed for the first time.

This time around, it’s Alex who makes the first move and tugs Henry closer. Henry can’t hide the way this affects him. His breath catches as Alex leans in and presses his lips to Henry’s.

It’s reflexive to kiss him back at once. Alex had left his brain in an absolute fog that night in New York as they kissed on the street and weeks later, Alex hasn’t lost his spark.

This kiss doesn’t mean anything. It won’t lead to anything and Henry thinks that’s what allows him to rid himself of any self-consciousness or second thoughts.

Alex’s kiss grows hungry and quickens and for the sake of Henry’s quickly beating heart, he needs them to take it down one notch or two.

“A bit slower,” Henry says softly against his lips. “I don’t want to rush this.”

Alex smiles and does as he’s instructed. He kisses Henry agonizingly slowly, perhaps out of spite, but Henry relishes in it. Alex’s tongue skims along the seam of his lips and Henry opens his mouth to him at once, gripping Alex’s hips as their tongues meet.

He breathes in deeply, his mind growing hazy in that way that Alex is too good at initiating. Henry feels like absolute putty in Alex’s hands, entirely malleable. 

Alex must know it too as he takes control and walks Henry back to the nearest wall. Henry instinctively drapes his arms over the man’s shoulders, lightly threading his fingers through Alex’s hair.

Alex lowers his hand between the two of them and lightly cups Henry. Henry sucks in a surprised breath at the touch.

“Next time,” Alex says quietly, tauntingly.

Henry whimpers in protest.

“Unless,” Alex tacks on in question.

Henry pulls his face back a little and licks his lips.

“Touch was on the agenda, right? We can do a teaser.” Henry sighs. “Rather, selfishly, I really want you to keep touching me. That felt nice,” he admits.

Alex laughs softly but places his hand back over Henry. His cock twitches immediately at the attention. He clenches his jaw as Alex strokes him lightly over his clothes. Henry���s eyes shut, his head resting back against the wall.

His arousal grows with each stroke, his whole body feeling liable to melt. If Alex had touched him like this their first night, it most definitely would have set a different tone for the evening.

He rocks forward as he resumes their kiss. Alex tentatively squeezes his cock. Henry moans against his lips, heart pounding. Alex squeezes him again before continuing to stroke him. Henry can feel himself leaking.

Alex’s hand creeps up, gripping the waistband of his jeans. Henry desperately wants to feel Alex’s skin on his in earnest, but he reminds himself that this is merely their first day. He can’t lose himself like this, no matter how good it feels.

He touches Alex’s wrist lightly and opens his eyes. Alex stills at once and lets go.

“I think that’s good for day one,” Henry whispers.

Alex nods. “Yeah, that was, uh,” he clears his throat and returns his arm to his side as he steps back, “that was enough.”

And yet still, Henry wants more. He wonders if it would be wiser or more efficient for them to blow through the lessons in one go. Maybe that way they could in fact spend the rest of their time together doing what they’ve signed contracts for and are actually getting paid to do.

But the knowledge that he can get access to Alex like this for several more weeks makes him throw away all sense and logic. He wants an excuse to keep these clandestine meetings going.

“I’m gonna grab a shower,” Alex says unhelpfully. All his words do is put images in Henry’s mind that shouldn’t be there.

Henry nods stiffly. 

“I’ll get started on dinner for us in the meantime,” Henry says. Maybe getting lost in the rhythm of cooking will make it easier for him to calm down.

“I’ll see you in a bit then,” Alex replies.

Henry sees him out and waits until he hears Alex’s footfalls down the hall before locking his door and undoing his pants to finish the job Alex started.

[aautiemiller-rockcenter]

JUMP Portland Teen Solo Results

1st- Malia Gazda (Dance Enthusiasm) YRJ - 1st year teen!

2nd- Shelby Ellis (Dance Enthusiasm) YRJ

2nd- Ella Geraci (Dance Enthusiasm) YRJ

3rd- Tessa Ohran (Center Stage UT) YRJ

3rd- Deanna Rusov (New England Dance Academy) YRJ

4th- Juliana Loor (Encore Dance Academy)

5th- Corinne Benard (Project31 Dance Studio)

6th- Sadie Chong (Rhythm Dance Company)

7th- Aubrey Thomas (The Academy Brea Space)

7th- Emilie Lavoie (Studio Innova Danse)

8th- Olivia Geraci (Dance Enthusiasm)

8th- Eva Menard (Studio Innova Danse)

8th- Faith Michaud (Dance Express)

9th- Addison Varney (Dance Studio of Maine)

9th- Leah Ciak (Rhythm Dance Company)

9th- Natalie Chadwick (Elevate Dance Cenber)

9th- Addison Keene (Elite Academy of Dance)

10th- Sophia Lestage (Studio for the Living Arts)

10th- Mia Eilon (Studio for the Living Arts)

10th- Sadie Rivera (The Dance Workshop)

10th- Zoie Phinney (Studio for the Living Arts)

[answersfromzestual]

Metoidioplasty Frequently Asked Questions and Answers:

How many stages is metoidioplasty?

One-stage procedure for the creation of a neophallus from a hormonally enlarged clitoris.

Can metoidioplasty penetrate?

Sexual penetration after Metoidioplasty is rarely possible. Some people can find the right position to penetrate but aren't able to thrust or achieve deep penetration. (If this is important to you, consider Phalloplasty)

Do I need to be on testosterone to have a Metoidioplasty?

Yes, surgeons generally require you to be on testosterone for one to two years prior to having Metoidioplasty to maximize the growth of the neo-phallus before surgery. lf you're planning to go off testosterone at some point after surgery. It's important to know that you could lose phallus length, which could prevent standing to urinate

Do I need to have a Hysterectomy before Metoidioplasty?

Only if you're having a Vaginectomy procedure done. With Metoidioplasty, then the uterus needs to be removed. (Ovaries do not have to be removed.)

Will I be able to pee while standing after Metoidioplasty?

The ability to pee while standing after

Metoidioplasty depends on anatomy and is not always possible. People who are heavier are often not able to urinate standing up after metoidioplasty

Are there ways to enlarge a metoidioplasty penis?

A surgeon in Iran published a study in 2016 about the successful use of a traction device (ex. pump) to lengthen the post- metoidioplasty phallus. Dr. Toby Meltzer a Metoidioplasty surgeon based in Scottsdale, Arizona and Portland, Oregon has long advocated pumping to enlarge the neo-phallus before metoidioplasty.

Can I have Urethral Lengthening without having a Vaginectomy?

Most surgeons require a vaginectomy if Urethroplasty (Urethral lengthening/UL) is being performed because Vaginectomy reduces the risk of fistula. However, there are a handful of surgeons who will do UL without vaginectomy: Dr. Heidi Wittenberg in San Francisco, and the surgeons at Crane Center for Transgender Surgery, Drs. Crane, Santucci and Safir, If considering this option, it's important to understand the increased risk of complications.

Can I have Testicular Implants put in at the same time as the Metoidioplasty and Scrotoplasty?

Most surgeons prefer to wait until the scrotum has healed before putting in testicular implants. Generally, this takes place 5-6 months after the initial surgery. The exception to this is with the Belgrade Metoidioplasty technique with labial flaps joined at the midline to create the scotum (vs. VY Scrotoplasty). In this case, the testicular implants are put in during the initial surgery.

What is recovery from Metoidioplasty like?

Recovery can include: moderate to severe pain; a catheter for 2-6 weeks if urethral lengthening is performed; no desk work for two weeks, and no strenuous activities for four weeks.

What is a fistula?

If you experience urine coming out from somewhere other than the urethra or catheter tube, this is a fistula. These often heal on their own but sometimes require surgery. Depending on the fistula, surgeons will require a period of three to six months between the original metoidioplasty surgery and a fistula repair surgery to allow tissues to heal and strengthen. Learn more about potential complications from Metoidioplasty here.

What if I decide after surgery that I need Phalloplasty? Can Phalloplasty be performed on someone who has had a previous Metoidioplasty?

Yes, phalloplasty can be performed for some patients who have had metoidioplasty in the past. It is dependent on how your original surgery was done and surgeon preference.

Source

[thebowerypresents]

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard Unleash Three-Hour Show on Forest Hills Stadium on Friday Night

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard – Forest Hills Stadium – August 16, 2024

Prior to the Paris Olympics, if someone had mentioned Australia and Raygun in the same sentence, you’d have been forgiven for assuming it the reference was to a song or album by the madly prolific (and sci-fi adjacent) Australian rock outfit King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard. While that country’s reputation still recovers from the breakdancer who couldn’t dance, those assembled at Forest Hills Stadium on Friday turned their attention to the Australian rock band that can, and does, do it all. Their three-hour set — the first of two weekend appearances at the venue — kicked off with the live debut of the blues-heavy “Field of Vision,” off the recently released Flight b741, the six-piece’s 26th(!) LP.

The group’s music covers a wide array of genres, and their shaggy fans of all ages were as comfortable in tie-dyes as they were in the mosh pits erupting throughout the night, first for a speedy, ear-splitting rendition of “Gamma Knife.” Fitting for the season, those mosh pits were shaped like hurricanes, with bodies increasingly moving faster toward the center, except for the inevitable one or two standing still in the eye of the storm. Friday’s show gave the band as much room as they needed to display all facets of Gizzardom. 

“Mr. Beat,” a sing-along, evolved into a jam that could be played out into infinity. With the sun still shining, the music was firmly on the boogie end of the spectrum with an equally playful rendition of the harmonica-heavy, aptly titled “Boogieman Sam.” But as day turned into night with a red sun setting into Manhattan’s hazy skies, the set turned toward the sextet’s heavier jams of the brown-acid variety. 

First came the stellar four-song string of Gizzy mind-palace classics, “I’m in Your Mind,” “I’m Not in Your Mind,” “Cellophane” and “I'm in Your Mind Fuzz.” “God is real. God is a black hole,” announced someone from the stage as they kicked off the speed-metal “Self-Immolate,” complete with an extended, slow-burning drum solo from the inimitable Michael Cavanagh. The tune itself immolated amongst a barraging backdrop of animated, burning flames. Their songs off 2019’s Infest the Rats’ Nest remain the high-water mark for intensity and rocking the fuck out, and it was a bold and impressive feat to tear through that material at the midpoint of a three-hour set, leaving it with their human drummer still intact. 

“Gila Monster” was another fan favorite, off last year’s sprawlingly titled PetroDragonic Apocalypse; or, Dawn of Eternal Night: An Annihilation of Planet Earth and the Beginning of Merciless Damnation. The fans enthusiastically intoning, “Gila, Gila, Gila” felt powerful enough to summon some kind of monster from somewhere in the city, assisted by vocal effects and chants that could’ve rattled out from the depths of a didgeridoo. 

The band welcomed a fan named Gabby to sing a vocal intro to “Nuclear Fusion” that Ambrose Kenny-Smith dubbed “fucking haunting.” Just as impressive as their never-ending discography, King Gizzard & the Wizard Lizard play wildly different sets each night, an audacious feat on its own but especially so when playing three-hour shows.

Somewhere along the way, Friday’s set reached the all gas, no brakes mark and never let up, finishing with “Rattlesnake” and “K.G.L.W.” Welcome to the city that never sleeps to the world’s most prolific band. —Dan Rickershauser | @D4nRicks

(King Gizzard & the Wizard Lizard play the Stage at Suffolk Downs tonight.)

(King Gizzard & the Wizard Lizard play Thompson’s Point in Portland, Maine, tomorrow.)

(King Gizzard & the Wizard Lizard play the Dell Music Center in Philadelphia on 8/27.)

(King Gizzard & the Wizard Lizard play Brown’s Island in Richmond. Va., on 8/28.)

Photos courtesy of Silvia Saponaro | @Silvia_Saponaro

[schraubd]

End Spoofing

The Portland JCC, which also houses the local Jewish Day School, was swatted today. Elsewhere, the mom of a friend of mine nearly got victimized by a scam where someone used voice-altering software to impersonate her daughter and beg for money after she was "in a car accident". It's no mystery that these sorts of scams seem to be on the rise, and seem to be increasingly sophisticated. And I doubt I'm giving any hot take when I say that these scammers are absolutely, 100%, the lowest of the low. One common tactic in these thugs' repertoire's is "spoofing" -- basically, impersonating another number when they call you, so it shows up on Caller ID as your doctor or the IRS or a customer support center (or just hides the actual number that the person is calling from).  I don't know whether spoofing was involved in either of the above incidents. But I'm increasingly of the mind that we might need to just ban spoofing outright. I'm aware of the legitimate reasons for spoofing. A business wants a call to register as emanating from their main line, not whatever back office is calling you. Or someone working from home still wants to be identified as calling from their company, not their personal cellphone. I even can understand some cases where spoofing may have anti-fraud properties (it lets me know that the call is coming from someone at Aetna, which I may be disinclined to believe if the phone number is the random area code of wherever the nurse went to high school). But at this stage, I just don't see those real benefits as outweighing the costs. It doesn't seem like the phone companies have any real way to distinguish "bad" spoofing from good. And while I don't actually know the mechanics (so what I say next might be entirely wrong), it seems to me that it would be technologically-easier to simply ban the practice outright -- create no mechanism through which phone calls can "identify" themselves as anything but their unique actual phone number -- than to engage in what seems to be a losing game of whack-a-mole. And sure, I know in my heart that this is probably a lot more complicated than I realize (though I do genuinely believe that it's one of those things where, if there was some serious government regulatory muscle behind it, you'd see the telecom providers hop to it). But one of the joys of aging is that I get to cantankerously grumble about problems and just demand they be fixed, and I'm leaning in.  via The Debate Link https://ift.tt/WqlrTzE

[earlgreytea68]

Fall Out Boy, So Much For Stardust, Moda Center, Portland 2/28/24

Omg the way Patrick walks off stage at the end there? I am OBSESSED with that.

[deltaruminations]

i love putting deltarune characters in the most mundane Situations. toby fox gives us a brand new vibrant imaginative fantasy world every chapter and im like that rules but also holy shit the light world is a recognizable modern earth society? humans and monsters live together on the surface without significant political strife or prejudice? hell yeah im having characters take a bullet train to some unnamed hybrid of seattle and portland and dicking around Uwajimaya. i’m giving grillby a bun and on-trend mixology pop-ups. im pondering the potential frustrations of being the only person with blood in a tiny town full of magic-dust fucks and needing to buy goddamned tampons. im toiling deep in the dark shitpost mines contemplating crucial worldbuilding questions like "how often does rudy take his daughter(s) camping?" (at least once per season before dess disappeared, once or twice a year after that until… well, you know. gotta take it easy while the doctors run all those tests.) and "where do they go camping?" (varies, but the consistent annual spot is in the berry fields in the mountains two hours out of town. they usually go just before or after the peak of the season, when the crowds are thinner but there are just enough mountain blueberries ripe for the picking that they can harvest a ground coffee can’s worth over the week, griddling them into pancakes and snacking on them fresh while dipping their feet into the clear, cool lake at the center of the campsite. the picking isn’t quite as good in late summer, and the sun burns a little hotter, but the water is warmer and the mountain flies are too lazy to bite. go early, and the lake swarms with frisky damselflies and youth camp kids on canoes and, more than anything else, wriggling black clouds of tadpoles suckling at the shoreline for tiny flies and detritus and bumping indiscriminately into whatever young girl’s hooves happen to get in their way. when noelle was still fairly small, in her first early season, she screamed upon seeing them, sobbing profusely and refusing to join her sister and dad in the crawling water. it took them half the trip to coax her past them, dess bringing her palmfuls of the little things in various stages, rudy pointing out their tiny developing legs and eyes and saying, see, sweetheart? they’re just like little baby froggits. don’t tell me you’re afraid of froggit now, too! how am i s’posed to explain that to them at the next sunday service? and he tipped his head back and laughed as the girls giggled along in suit, sincere in their ease but secretly exchanging glances, aware of how noelle used to shiver and hide behind her parents’ legs upon seeing froggit at the socials after church, recognizing how she still to that day would startle at every sudden jolt from their otherwise friendly, bobbing calm, put off by their too-high hops, the too-fast snap of their tongue as they grabbed another donut from the box. in truth, maybe the tadpoles were easier to tolerate, moving predictably in linear swim, paddling little leggy fins, blowing kisses at the surface of the water and tickling her ankles with their… thin… wagging tails… she let any thoughts of resemblance to horrible, slippery mice scatter away like the frightened proto-froggits around her legs as she finally waded into the water, into her sister’s ecstatic embrace and the clatter of whoops and cheers bouncing across the surface of the lake from their dad, paddling in toward them, his voice betraying a slight break, maybe a choke, before he wrapped his arms around them both and held them close.) and most importantly "does the tv show jackass exist unchanged in this universe?" (yes)

[isthespiceoflife]

Well, stay alive then Kari, stay alive! Kari Faux's album title is a bold one: Real B*tches Don't Die!

Slated to do damage on August 11 at BRIC's 50th Hip-Hop Anniversary Weekend show alongside Digable Planets, we already know she'll be a breath of fresh air bringing some much need youth, vibrancy and unpredictable excitement on the Brooklyn stage! Check her other tour dates below!

Upcoming Live Dates:

8/3 - Atlanta, GA @ Center Stage - Vinyl

8/4 - Nashville, TN @ Exit/In

8/5 - Charlotte, NC @ The Underground

8/8 - Virginia Beach, VA @ Elevation 27

8/9 - Philadelphia, PA @ Foundry

8/11 - Brooklyn, NY @ BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival

8/12 - Washington, DC @ The Howard

8/23 - Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry

8/24 - Chicago, IL @ Subterranean

8/26 - Indianapolis, IN @ Chreece Festival

8/29 - Columbus, OH @ The Basement

8/30 - Detroit, MI @ The Shelter

8/31 - Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom

9/13 - Houston, TX @ Bronze Peacock at House of Blues

9/14 - Dallas, TX @ Cambridge Room at House of Blues

9/16 - Austin, TX @ Empire Control Room & Garage

9/20 - New Orleans, LA @ Parish at House of Blues

9/22 - Bentonville, AR @ Format Festival

10/26 - Vancouver, BC @ Fortune Sound Club

10/27 - Tacoma, WA @ Alma

10/29 - Portland, OR @ Polaris

11/1 - Berkeley, CA @ Cornerstone

11/2 - Santa Cruz, CA @ Catalyst Atrium

11/5 - Santa Ana, CA @ Constellation Room

11/6 - San Diego, CA @ Voodoo at House of Blues

11/7 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo

[troutreznor]

Severance / Bryan David Griffith, 2017, 2021

Smoke accumulated in encaustic beeswax on panel, wood. Courtesy of Laura Swift.

Dr. Pete Fulé at Northern Arizona University showed me tree ring samples from Arizona's forests that show a pattern of frequent, low intensity fires going back hundreds of years before halting in the late 19th century. Compared to today's forests, these historical ponderosa forests were dominated by older, fire-resistant trees, with far fewer trees per acre. These forests were also less uniformly distributed, shaped by fire into irregular clumps and openings.

In the 19th century, large-scale livestock production overgrazed native grasses. Grassy meadows no longer carried fires across the landscape. Openings began to fill in with saplings. Large trees were selectively logged on an industrial scale, setting the stage for today's homogeneous re-growth. Railroad and State Trust land grants parceled out Arizona's land into a checkerboard grid without regard to natural topography or ecosystem boundaries. The resulting checkerboard pattern of federal, state, and private land ownership still persists and complicates efforts to restore fire resiliency across the landscape.

photo captured and accompanying caption transcribed from "Rethinking Fire" exhibit at the World Forestry Center in Portland, OR