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missfay49 · 1 year ago

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[ID: The first image is a full page 70's style art-piece depicting 3 women with identical outlines that are colored and positioned differently on the page and one man holding one of the women. The other two women are lightly holding each other. The man is tan with black hair and mustache and chest-hair. The woman he's holding is a pale-white with red hair and blue eyeshadow. All three women have exposed nipples, but there is a heart transposed over their vaginas. One woman is a more tanned redhead. The other is pale with pink hair. There are rainbows, clouds, and stars in the background with a heart in the center of the page and a rose at the top-right. There are three overlapping symbols along the right side of the page; the top symbol is the icon for Mars, with the arrow pointing straight up. The middle symbol is the icon for Venus, but with the stem pointing to the left. The bottom symbol is the standard icon for Venus with the stem pointing down. End ID]

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BISEXUALITY: THE NEWEST SEX-STYLE

Could you be ready for a lesbian encounter? Well, a surprising number of perfectly "normal" man-loving females are...

By Jane Margold

With his loose-limbed sensuality, which was sometimes macho and sometimes camp, Mick Jagger was one of the first celebrities to hint at a new erotic identity that was neither heterosexual nor homosexual but somewhere in between. Jagger's fellow rock star David Bowie clarified the message, freely proclaiming his bisexuality to the press as well as to his audiences. Last Tango's Maria Schneider was the next to declare her fondness for both sexes, and suddenly the list of known bisexual celebrities extended to include Lou Reed and the late Janis Joplin, with singer Joan Baez recently chiming in to say that one of the nicest loves of her life had been a woman.

Still, bisexuality was a revolutionary movement where the chic and the famous weren't in the vanguard. Judging from the bisexual therapy groups that had sprung up in big cities like New York and San Francisco, and from the pro-lesbian talk heard at women's meetings everywhere, striking numbers of perfectly ordinary heterosexuals had been exploring gay relationships before the idea occurred to the elite of London, New York and Hollywood.

To those who remember the time, just three years ago, when Kate Millett caused a furor in the national media by confessing her dual sexual preferences, the speedy acceptance of bisexuality as a life-style seems almost unbelievable. Members of the "third sex," however, see nothing surprising in this sudden reversal; to them, bisexuality is a logical result of liberating forces that have "sophisticated" us all to the point where we now view pornographic double bills in neighborhood movie theatres, contemplate spending our vacations at sex-therapy clinics, and politely RSVP when invited to an orgy. In a society already familiar with every variation of love between the sexes, leading a member of one's own sex into the bedroom, say the bi's, was clearly the next hurdle in the steeplechase toward total erotic freedom. Bisexuals also cite the influence of gay liberation in preparing us for this new phenomenon: first, by lessening the stigma of homosexuality; then, by undermining the old stereotypes depicting gay people as desperate, lonely misfits.

Still, while the new bisexuals view their sexuality as "natural" evolution, they fail to acknowledge that no matter how radical the psychosexual climate is now, many of us do manage to resist its influence. Ultimately, personal rather than social factors impel people to join the third sex. Some men and women turn to gay relationships after a series of discouraging heterosexual love affairs, then switch to bisexuality when they realize certain of their emotional and physical needs can be met only by the opposite sex. Others may follow hedonistic friends into group-sex encounters, only to discover the real turn-on isn't the group but the experience of making love with somebody of their own gender. still others try bisexuality in a naïve attempt to relive a pleasurable homosexual encounter experienced during adolescence - or in an effort to "work through" the fear that they might secretly be gay. And while for some the experiment ends with one or two encounters, others make a more sustained commitment to the bisexual life-style.

Oddly, a heterosexual man who has no interest in a homosexual encounter himself often encourages a woman friend to try lesbian sex - perhaps because he finds the idea of "girls together" erotically appealing. Witness the experience of an artist friend of mine whose husband persuaded her to have a lesbian experience. "Jack is one of those men who think that gay and bisexual women know all the erotic secrets," Paula explains. "He never openly suggested that I sleep with another woman but, from time to time, we'd be lying in bed and, as he caressed me, he'd suddenly whisper, 'You know, a woman could be doing this to you.' Then he'd spin out erotic fantasies about an attractive woman we'd both seen somewhere, asking me to imagine how I'd feel if I were touching her breasts or stroking her skin and hair."

Possibly because she was intrigued with the idea of making love with another woman, her husband's provocative talk made Paula angry, and she told him she had no intention of starting up a gay affair just to please him. "He stopped the bedtime stories immediately," Paula remembers. 'Maybe because he sensed that even if I wouldn't admit it, his campaign had already succeeded." One night when her husband was away on a business trip, Paula went to a gay bar, convinced she'd go home repelled by actually viewing scenes that had begun to be uncomfortably enticing in her imagination. Instead, when the bar closed, she found herself inviting the woman she'd been dancing with to come home with her. The two women talked all night, made love in the morning and spent most of the next week together, in and out of bed. "She was bisexual and an impish, adventurous free spirit. She was also very young," Paula stresses. "And I think she liked the idea of enlightening me."

By the time her husband returned, Paula's intense physical affair had ended, but the encounter permanently changed her sexual style: "I felt really opened up - uninhibited - more aggressive and confident in bed. I also development a new appreciation for Jacks big, rough, muscular body. I wanted his oppositeness and, to be blunt, his mal genitals. But most important, I saw that my sexuality didn't depend on a man... or, for that matter, on a woman. I felt much more in tune with my own body and in control of my responses - I stopped being afraid of letting go and started following my instincts without worrying if it was 'feminine' to make so much noise or take this or that position."

Paula told her husband about the encounter, and while he seemed pleased by her newly relaxed attitude, he didn't press for details about the affair nor urge her to repeat the experience: "I think he knew this was an area I wanted to control, without an prodding from him." Occasionally, Paula felt tempted to sleep with another woman, but resisted these impulses for several years. "Then," she says, "I became heavily involved in

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BISEXUALITY [continued]

the women's movement and finally straightened out my feelings toward bisexuality and other women. It was only then that I realized how emotionally sterile my first lesbian affair had been. I'd had all the wrong reasons for making it with my first female lover. I used her - as a sexual experiment, as a way to please my husband and as a way to improve my view of myself." Since then, Paula has been to bed with two other women: "They were friends first, and the sex evolved naturally, as an expression of the interests and sympathy we shared. That first encounter may have liberated me sexually, but the women's movement taught me that bisexuality has to involve your head and heart, not just your body."

While some older feminists bristle at the charge that Women's Liberation has fostered bisexuality or lesbianism, many younger women in the movement seem perfectly willing to embrace their gay and bi sisters. At a two-day women's weekend I attended recently in San Francisco, the workshop on "Loving Women" was by far the most popular seminar. Many of the women present had already experimented with homosexual affairs and simply wanted to discuss their experiences, while some seemed keen to argue gay politics, and a few, like me, were there out of curiosity about ourselves. I had never before questioned my own heterosexuality, preferring to view my occasional flashes of erotic interest in other women as an unavoidable response to the advertising industry's constant use of gorgeous, alluring females to sell products. I was ready to explore my own reactions now.

Mary, the group leader, was a husky woman with close-cropped hair and sneakered feet splayed carelessly in front of her chair: she looked so outrageously, militantly "butch" that many of us made a determined effort not to stare at her as we waited for the meeting to start. Still, we all listened eagerly when she began to speak of an early marriage which had left her feeling "that if a man couldn't satisfy my emotional and sexual needs, I couldn't imagine who could and, for a while, just resigned myself to being lonely and frustrated." Before our speaker had finished chronicling her gradual discovery that she was gay, several women interrupted to ask how she felt about bisexuality.

"I'm not trying to convert anyone to an exclusively lesbian life-style," Mary said. "But I do think bi's have chosen the most difficult sexual stance. Both straights and gays can identify with them just enough to feel tempted and threatened by the possibilities they represent. And the easiest way to resolve that ambiguity is to insist bisexuals are sick - and react to them with shock and disgust."

Mary paused, and a young, vividly pretty blonde interrupted. "everyone overemphasizes the problems we bisexuals have because they're afraid we might be onto something positive," she declared. Even though her own affair with a woman friend had started out as "silly, giggly adolescent horseplay," it had ended, the blonde said firmly, "as by far one of the most satisfying sexual encounters I'd ever had.

"We didn't plan it," she explained, "although I think we both knew it would happen eventually because we were always talking about sex and men and what aroused us... and wishing we could tell men what turned us on as easily as we could tell each other. One night we just started touching each other and saying, 'Do you like this,' or 'How about that?' We were both laughing and scared, but I was so entranced by the soft, delicate feeling I got from touching her that I knew I wouldn't stop. I suddenly understood what it must be like for a man to make love to me. But with my friend, sex was gentler, more tender, and much, much slower. Gradually we built us the most explosive climaxes either of us had ever had.

"The affair went on, with both of us expecting to feel guilty. Instead, we were elated by the discovery that women were capable of fulfilling each other sexually and giving each other love, without the same scrambles and conflicts that happen in man/woman affairs. Then came the real surprise - by learning to trust women, I started to grow up emotionally and I found myself trusting men. The desperate feeling that I couldn't survive without a man was gone, and I got the courage to start communicating honestly with men instead of always being coy, sweet, guarded. Sure, I alienated a few men, but the ones I really cared about were relieved to have me share my sexual and emotional feelings with them. That meant they could open up to me and we could try to understand each other.

"I've also learned more about my own sensuality and I've begun to use what I know with men. It's more important to me now to slow down and enjoy sex. Very little turns me off about any human body - male or female - though I guess I am more excited by men. Now, when I make love to a man, I want to touch and kiss and explore every part of him, even it if takes hours. Men don't expect that, although they want it as much as women do, and they really dig it. I've never had a man tell me to stop being so tender. And the more warmth and love I give, the more I have to give - and receive," she concluded.

"Beautiful!" several voices chorused, impelling the rest of the group to relax and begin exchanging experiences. Later, as we disbanded, I began thinking about the remarkable sense of self-assurance the bisexual women present had conveyed. Nor was I the only one who noticed this. "What's scary for me as a heterosexual," I overheard a woman say as we all left, "is the feeling of strength I get from these women. I can't help thinking that they aren't confused at all about their sexual identities - that they've somehow discovered an extra emotional resource in themselves that give them the guts to try relationships I only fantasize about."

After that, I began to notice that while many of the bisexual men I talked with looked upon their experiences merely as exciting forays into the forbidden, the women spoke of their relationships with understanding and honesty. It was impossible not to take these women seriously. Gradually, as I was impressed again and again by their warmth and obvious acceptance of themselves and of other people, I found my initial prejudices against bisexual women ebbing, replaced - disturbingly enough - by a strong desire to experiment with a lesbian encounter of my own.

After discussing these feelings with my women's group, I was surprised, but comforted, to learn my temptation was far from unusual. Six members of our heterosexual group said that they, too, had considered making love with another woman and the other three already had. In talking to many other "straight" people, I soon realized my conflicts about bisexuality were a far-from-unique consequence of the sexual whirlwind of the '70s. At the risk, then, of sounding hopelessly inhibited to some, and overly impressionable to others, I think my fears of and attractions toward bisexuality are worth exploring here, as one more way of explaining why this new possibility appeals to so many people.

Intellectually, the concept of bisexuality attracts me - not because I have any great humanitarian urges to make love to the whole world - but because I suspect that, given the freedom to choose a partner of either sex, men and women might come together out of posi-

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tive appreciation for each other, rather than out of stereotyped social, economic and physical needs. The idea of bisexuality takes on a more gut-level appeal when I begin to think about my own relationships with women. All my adult life, I've received indispensable emotional support from six or seven close female friends, all of whom would be depended upon to offer help, advise or simply a sounding board. I can't claim that these relationships have been free of petty jealousy and silly arguments, but they have lasted and deepened, despite physical separations, good and rotten marriages and sometimes bizarre political, intellectual and spiritual changes. Whenever I've felt as intensely about a man as I have about these women, I've wanted to express that love as strongly and physically as I could, and sex, then, had always been positive - a way to close the gap between two psyches and create a powerful closeness. Could a woman friend and I dissolve the barriers between us and achieve this same magical intimacy if we allowed ourselves to make love together?

The answer is I don't know and may never know. Fear prevents me from finding out. Not the obvious fear of lesbianism, since I'm too attached not only to men but to the ideal of establishing healthier, more direct communication between the sexes ever to exclude men from my bedroom or my life. Still, irrational anxiety overwhelms me when I think of making love with a woman - a fear that I'd be pushed over the brink into a hell of decadence so all-consuming that I might never again enjoy simple, one-to-one heterosexual sex, might always need greater and kinkier stimulation - orgies, chains, four-legged beasts, Brueghelesque scenes of chaos and malevolence. Absurd, of course, but so are most of one's darkest apprehensions.

More sensibly, I'm afraid my feminist consciousness has soared so high these dats that I'd be led to take another woman's emotional requirements too seriously. I'd feel so compelled to make up for past deprivations as female lover had suffered, so determined to offer all the sensitivity and compassion I possess, that I'd be absolutely incapable of denying her anything, and would soon end up feeling drained, violated and much more of a woman-hater than the most resolutely piggish male. With this fear goes the suspicion that I've always felt comfortable with women precisely because the air between us is not twanging with sexual tension. This sense of ease may well depend on our willingness to suppress whatever erotic feelings exist between us. Still, however dishonest such an unspoken agreement may be, it provides us with a safe space in which to forget our bodies and think about other parts of ourselves - and I'd have to sacrifice this if I were to start viewing women as sexual possibilities. Finally, I've worked too hard conquering all my old bugaboos about sex to risk introducing any new guilts into my life.

I discussed these conflicts with Dr. Daniel Goldstine, clinical psychologist and co-director of the sex-therapy program sponsored by Cowell Memorial Hospital at Berkeley's University of California. "For most of us," he said, "the biggest problem with any form of sexual behavior is the group of enemies in our head - the little voices that say you've done something terrible and make you feel guilt. Bisexual activity can be dangerous for those people who feel that a single homosexual act might define them forever after as homosexuals. For them, guilt can sometimes produce severe panic. But otherwise, any therapist who tells you that bisexuality is bad or wrong is reflecting his own personal bias, although he might also be saying, perfectly validly, that if you buck convention in any way, it's going to be hard on your life."

Dr. Goldstine observes that he has "certainly been seeing a lot more women lately... and perhaps a few more men... who are either considering having homosexual affairs or have already had them." And while his male bisexual patients tend to be people who are willing to "try anything," the women "are often coping with a major shift in their lives - a divorce, a decision to change jobs. some, too, are simply angry at men."

One cannot, the doctor believes, discount the influence of the women's movement: "Because of it more support and enthusiasm for female bisexuality exists now than before, and a lot of perfectly ordinary heterosexual women are getting swept up in it. I think many women are experiencing a genuine desire to feel closer to each other and avoid ego games, and they try sexual relationships with each other as a way of finding real mutual acceptance. That's fine, but it's realistic to wonder, as you did, what happens if you get into that kind of relationship, do all that giving and find that it doesn't work - that it's no more fulfilling than a man/woman involvement. The basic problem in any sexual relationship is learning to ask for - and get - what you want. There's no guarantee that two women or two men can resolve that problem any more successfully than a man and woman can."

Most of Dr. Goldstine's bisexual patients haven't yet experienced any serious identity crisis. "Most of them go through some conflict about it," Dr. Goldstine says finally. "But that doesn't mean they're sick. It simply means that they know their bisexuality isn't acceptable to everyone - however much more acceptable it may be now than it was in the '50s or '60s. Patioents will come in and ask if their bisexual behavior is O.K., and my answer usually is that if you really like it and don't feel guilty about it, who is anybody to tell you not to?"

Many psychiatrists now share Dr. Goldstine's liberal attitude toward those who engage in homosexual activity. Recently, the American Psychiatric Association joined two other major health groups to declare that homosexuality in itself will no longer be considered a mental illness. Dr. Robert L. Spitzer, a member of the APA committee that made this pronouncement, also says, "Bisexuality will also no longer be regarded as a mental disorder per se - unless, as with homosexuality, the individual is in some way disturbed by it or in conflict with it." This means bisexuals who don't want to be converted will find it easier to locate a sympathetic psychiatrist; thought, of course, individual therapists may continue to hold the Freudian view that bi's and gays are sexually immature - or to espouse any of the other countless theories that attempt to explain why the human child, born with the capacity to respond erotically to both sexes, should learn to limit itself to the opposite gender.

Despite such psychiatric support, it is not always easy to love both men and women. "Bisexuality isn't all pleasure," says Gerri, a bubbly, hyperenergetic divorcée who lives with a man and also has a female lover. "Heterosexuals may be titillated by the thought of going to a party totally open to the idea of picking up whomever looks attractive - man or woman. Except it doesn't happen to be that simple. Most bisexual people are living with someone or attached to someone. So, if you lead a bi life-style, you have to be able to cope with several people at once - your male lover, yourself, your female lover and whomever she may be involved with. The situation can be difficult to handle. First, you have to decide that you want to sleep with a woman, then you have to have a man who understands, and only then do you hope you'll meet a woman you'll like and who likes you and who also happens to be gay or bisexual."

Given all these complications, Gerri explains, bisex-

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uals are not the promiscuous creatures many heterosexuals believe them to be. "My male lover is the only man I sleep with," she says. "He satisfies most of my physical and emotional needs, and we've worked really hard to create a close, stable relationship that doesn't stifle either of us. But, just because he is a man, there's a certain kind of immediate, intuitive understanding he can't give me." Gerri looks for this kind of support from female lovers, and since bisexual ladies don't wear big scarlet B's on their bosoms, she must take certain risks to find out if another woman is willing. This "preliminary approach" has to be delicate - rather like the way a man "tests" to see if a woman is physically interested - only more subtle, since no generic sexual attraction can be assumed.

"I'm not aggressive and I don't like the idea of upsetting anyone," Gerri emphasizes. "So I go carefully. Usually, though, I don't find myself attracted to another woman until I've know her for a while. I don't automatically respond to any particular physical type, male or female, although I do tend to look for the same emotional qualities in a woman as I do in a man - warmth, a sense of humor, self-confidence. When I do get to know someone who appeals to me, I find myself touching her hand or her shoulder - I gesture a lot when I talk, anyway. If I see her eyes shift or she moves away a little, I know she's uncomfortable and I stop immediately. It's not a conscious technique - most women learn to judge whether a man is interested in them by the way he talks, touches and looks at them. I've attuned myself to a woman's responses and, if I feel she's attracted to me, I'm honest about my bisexuality and see how she reacts. If she seems uneasy, I just drop the whole topic. If not, we might meet again privately to talk and touch more intimately."

For male bisexuals, finding a partner of the same sex is far easier than for women - if they're willing to settle for speedy, anonymous, Midnight Cowboy-style encounters. Plenty of male prostitutes sell their favors, and men who don't want to pay can find casual pick-ups at gay bars and clubs. For men who want more than a one-night stand, though, finding a lover becomes more difficult. Those bisexual men who are not promiscuous are not likely to broadcast their erotic identities. Two men I interviewed had delayed sleeping together for years, primarily because neither could be certain the other was erotically interested in males. Finally, Ralph, a powerfully built physicist in his late thirties, tentatively "declared" himself by telling his younger friend Michael about a homosexual encounter he'd had. This disclosure prompted the two men to begin an on-again, off-again sexual relationship that's lasted several years. Still, both Ralph and Michael are quick to stress they're not in love with each other. "Going to bed together has let us be much more open, honest and relaxed with each other than men friends usually allow themselves to be." Ralph maintains, "but our relationship's more like a close friendship than an affair. We're both more interested in our women than in each other."

Ralph's wife reacted positively to the news of her husband's sexual involvement with men: "Eric knew I'd had homosexual fantasies for a long time and that I was afraid I was a closet case. When I told her I'd had sex with a man I'd picked up in a movie theater - and found, to my incredible relief, that I preferred women as sexual partners, Erica said she wished she could be equally free. She approved of my affair with Michael, too, partly because she knew he was no real threat to her, but also because I think she realized that exploring my homosexual impulses might help me get over anxieties about my masculinity. She seemed to realize it would make me a better lover for her - that I'd quit being so macho and tough in bed, and become freer to indulge my tender, feminine side."

Michael's girlfriend is somewhat less understanding than Ralph's wide and prefers not to be told much about her lover's bisexual activities. "She knows I wouldn't leave her for a man, so she simply accepts that my erotic needs are different from hers," Michael says. "I view sex as physically exciting and fun, so I've never seen anything wrong with going out and making it with someone on a no-guilt, no-commitment basis. And, while I hate to sound chauvinistic, it's much easier to find a man who'll agree to that than a woman. My relationship with Ralph works on the premise that we don't make demands on each other."

Right now, Ralph and Michael say they don't have time to pursue the sexual side of their friendship, "But," predicts Michael, "we'll probably make it with each other again. I don't foresee ever giving up sleeping with men. I see my bisexuality as positive - it's taught me to respond to people without getting hung up on traditional roles. And once you've opened up new areas of awareness, there's no going back.'

The women bisexuals I interviewed appeared more willing than men to admit the part love plays in their relationships. Two of the women I spoke to had been lovers for several years, and their relationship has progressed from passionate a attraction to sustained commitment. Both Elena and Jill had satisfying marriages before they met three years ago, and though they agreed husbands and jobs had to come first, their affair has lasted and deepened. "We'd each had experiences with women before, but it was still hard to accept that we were falling in love," Elena says. "We had to resolve all sorts of problems - how committed we'd be, how much we could trust each other, how much time we'd spend together, how our feelings toward our husbands might be affected and how they would feel."

Elena, a tall, athletic-looking woman with the sleek body of a flamenco dancer, was less threated by her husband's possible disapproval than Jill. "Elena and her husband had been married a long time, and he felt secure enough to accept and support her relationship with me," Jill explains. "but I was newly married and my husband was jealous - a problem I'm still coping with, even though he realized I need the balance, and I guess the tension, of being emotionally and sexually involved with both a man and a woman."

Jill emphasizes that her affair with Elena is free of competition and jealousy: "One of the greatest pleasures of this relationship is that nobody's trying to be boss. Neither of us expects the other to leave her family, give up other friends or try to fulfill every need. And both of us seem to have an uncanny sense of when the other needs reassurance or jut to be left alone to enjoy her husband. If we constantly had power struggles or hurt each other, there's be no point in being together."

A bisexual, Elena adds, can view women not as competitors, enemies or pawns but as worth love partners. "And even though bisexuality might be a fad right now for some people," she says, "it has to have a profound effect in the long run. People are beginning to realize that they can enjoy a wide range of sexual behavior. We're not predestined to be homosexual or heterosexual."

Whether or not we're all predestined to be bisexual remains in question. Still, whatever happens in the future, I've concluded that, right now, for the many who've tried it, bisexuality offers a satisfying - and often loving - way of life.

thinking again about the 1970s cosmo article about bisexuality where according to the bisexuals interviewed the biggest problem facing the bisexual community is finding someone to have gay sex with you when you’re already married. girl i know

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rambite6 · 1 month ago

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Ashwini 𓃗 ☋ ♈︎ Observations

Ashwini natives often have a strong need for partnership, whether romantic or platonic, as the twin deities governing this nakshatra are reflected in the myth of the Ashvins’ conception. Born to Surya and Saranyu, Saranyu, overwhelmed by Surya’s light, created a shadow goddess named Chhaya and retreated for reflection. Surya, noticing the change, transformed into a horse to find her. Ashwini ☽ native Maria Schneider, in 1976, left the Caligula set to be with her girlfriend, photographer Joan Townsend, who was already a patient at a mental hospital. People influenced by Ashwini may struggle with mental health issues, like addiction or mood disorders, as their restless minds constantly seek meaning and excitement, leading to burnout and loneliness.

Ashwini natives, like other Ketu-influenced individuals, have a mysterious appearance, characterized by dark hair, an aloof stare, and full lips. They tend to have a youthful look, with fuller cheeks, a soft round-tipped nose, and smooth skin. Ashwini eyes are usually upturned almond shaped with dark or vibrant eye color, holding a possessed stare.

#vedic astrology #ashwini nakshatra #sidereal Aries

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blueberrypancakesworld · 4 months ago

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Kyle Gallner - Masterlist

Summary : All my works for this brilliant actor under the cut

Colin Gray

°Perv!Colin Gray ~ Headcanon

°Help in unexpected arms ->classmate!reader , fluff/comfort, injury, kiss

°The sweetness of the pomegranate is our love ->fem!reader, smutish, obsession, kissing

~~~~~~~~~~

Vince Schneider

°Sweetheart ->fem!reader, flirting, fluff

°Breakfast with a grumpy cloud ->fem!reader, fluff, kissing

~~~~~~~~~~

Quentin Smith

°Quentin Smith - In a relationship sfw

~~~~~~~~~~

James Heathridge

°Love the devil's painting ->fem!reader, kiss, darker themes, obsession

°The angel of his desires in chains ->wife!reader, smut, kidnapping, body whorship

~~~~~~~~~~

Jeremy Farrell

°Jeremy Farrell - Gif Pack

°Emo?It is love ->girlfriend!reader, hurt/comfort, kissing, cuddling

°Do you have a girlfriend ->girlfriend!reader, fluff, flirtish, kissing

~~~~~~~~~~

Cameron Coulter

°Shopping mall, feelings and foreboding ->fem!reader, fluff, mutual feelings

~~~~~~~~~~

Winston

°The soldier comes back -> fem!reader, fluff, comfort, ptsd (nightmares), emotional, kissing

°Surprise for my beloved ->fem!reader, fluff, comfort, kiss

~~~~~~~~~~

The Demon

°The Demon ~ NSFW Alphabet

°The art of consent and words ~ fem!reader, dom/sub, fluff, smutish

~~~~~~~~~~

Tappert

°Love in the military hospital ~ nurse!reader, angst, hurt/comfort, kissing, flirting

~~~~~~~~~~

#colin gray #vince schneider #james heathridge #jeremy farrell #cameron coulter #jennifers body #scream 5 #criminal minds #bones series #cold case

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covid-safer-hotties · 3 months ago

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Also preserved on our archive

Another perfect example of how masking to help prevent covid keeps us *all* safer from *all* airborne illness.

by Tamara Schneider

Lingering respiratory viruses set the stage for chronic lung disease, mouse study shows

Doctors have long known that children who become seriously ill with certain respiratory viruses such as respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) are at elevated risk of developing asthma later in life. What they haven’t known is why.

A new study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis may have solved the mystery. The study, in mice, shows that respiratory viruses can hide out in immune cells in the lungs long after the initial symptoms of an infection have resolved, creating a persistently inflammatory environment that promotes the development of lung disease. Further, they showed that eliminating the infected cells reduces signs of chronic lung damage before they progress to a full-blown chronic respiratory illness.

The findings, published Oct. 2 in Nature Microbiology, point to a potential new approach to preventing asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and other chronic lung diseases by eradicating the persistent respiratory viruses that fuel these conditions.

“Right now, children who have been hospitalized for a respiratory infection such as RSV are sent home once their symptoms resolve,” said senior author Carolina B. López, PhD, a professor of molecular microbiology and a BJC Investigator at WashU Medicine. “To reduce the risk that these children will go on to develop asthma, maybe in the future we will be able to check if all of the virus is truly gone from the lung, and eliminate all lingering virus, before we send them home.”

About 27 million people in the U.S. are living with asthma. Many factors influence a person’s likelihood of developing the chronic breathing illness, including living in a neighborhood with poor air quality, having exposure to cigarette smoke and being hospitalized for viral pneumonia or bronchitis while young. Some researchers — López included — suspected that the link between serious lung infection and subsequent asthma diagnosis was due to lingering virus in the lungs that causes ongoing damage, but a direct link between the ongoing presence of virus and chronic lung disease has not been previously shown.

López and first author Ítalo Araújo Castro, PhD, a postdoctoral researcher in her lab, developed a unique system involving a natural mouse virus known as Sendai virus, and fluorescent markers of infection. Sendai is related to human parainfluenza virus, a common respiratory virus that, like RSV, has been linked to asthma in children. Sendai behaves in mice in very much the same way that human parainfluenza virus behaves in people, making it an excellent model of the kinds of infections that could lead to chronic lung disease.

Using the fluorescent trackers, the researchers could observe signs of the virus throughout infection. After about two weeks, the mice recovered, but viral RNA and protein were still detectable several weeks later in their lungs, hidden away in immune cells.

“Finding persistent virus in immune cells was unexpected,” López said. “I think that’s why it had been missed before. Everyone had been looking for viral products in the epithelial cells that line the surface of the respiratory system, because that’s where these viruses primarily replicate. But they were in the immune cells.”

Moreover, the presence of the virus changed the behavior of the infected immune cells, causing them to become more inflammatory than the uninfected immune cells. Persistent inflammation sets the stage for chronic lung disease to arise, the researchers said. Indeed, seven weeks after infection, the mice’s lungs exhibited inflammation of air sacs and blood vessels, abnormal development of lung cells and excess immune tissue — all signs of chronic inflammatory lung damage, even though the mice appeared outwardly to have recovered. Once the infected immune cells were eliminated, the signs of damage diminished.

“We use a perfectly matched virus-host pairing to prove that a common respiratory virus can be maintained in immunocompetent hosts for way longer than the acute phase of the infection, and that this viral persistence can result in chronic lung conditions,” Castro said. “Probably the long-term health effects we see in people who are supposed to be recovered from an acute infection are actually due to persistence of virus in their lungs.”

The findings point to new ways to think about preventing chronic lung diseases, the researchers said.

“Pretty much every single child gets infected with these viruses before the age of 3, and maybe 5% get serious enough disease that they could potentially develop persistent infection,” López said. “We’re not going to be able to prevent children from getting infected in the first place. But if we understand how these viruses persist and the effects that persistence has on the lungs, we may be able to reduce the risk of serious long-term problems.”

Study: Castro IA, Yang Y, Gnazzo V, Kim DH, Van Dyken SJ, López CB. Murine parainfluenza virus persists in lung innate immune cells sustaining chronic lung pathology. Nature Microbiology. Oct. 2, 2024. DOI: 10.1038/s41564-024-01805-8

www.nature.com/articles/s41564-024-01805-8 (PAYWALLED)

#mask up #covid #pandemic #covid 19 #wear a mask #public health #sars cov 2 #coronavirus #still coviding #wear a respirator #flu #influenza #RSV #respiratory syncytial virus

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ladylooch · 10 months ago

Text

Love & Fairness -[Nico Hischier]

A/N: OPE! I LIED!!!! We do have a full fic for Sunday! The Nico and Lexi angst I've been hinting at for months from that original lil blurb. Hope you all enjoy a little roller coaster for our perfect parents.

Word Count: 4.3k

Timeline wise: Nico and Lexi are married. Lucie is between 1-2. Mack and Sophie are not born.

The night is coated with cozy nostalgia in a dimly lit Hoboken restaurant. Lexi sits with her former nursing coworkers, discussing the most ridiculous patient and staff stories from the hospital since the last time they all connected. Lexi is embarrassed to admit that she hasn’t been able to attend one of these meet ups since Lucie was 3 months old. Her daughter is over a year old now. But life has been hectic with her and Nico’s new addition, plus the long stretches of hockey the Devils have been playing.

It’s all worth the sacrifice to watch Nico hoist the cup above his head. Soon, Lexi thinks. Soon he will reach his dream and then maybe the pressure can ease a bit.

With two fingers, she twirls the stem of her now empty martini glass as Gretchen whines about the limited available to take time off with how short staffed the hospital is.

“We need more people. They can’t even find nurses through the program Lexi came here on.”

“Really?” Lexi’s eye raise in surprise. “It was so competitive when I started there.”

“The pandemic has thinned the desire. Plus working conditions are awful.” Lexi nods. The circumstances weren’t great when she left either.

“Honestly, even if we could find part time people it would help alleviate the pressure.” Ashley mutters, throwing her curly red hair back over her shoulder. The table pauses. Then collectively, they all glance Lexi’s way, including Shawna, who had been relatively quiet.

“What? Me?”

“You were just talking about how boring and mundane your life has been. Maybe… coming back part time would help fulfill your sense of purpose.” Ashley shrugs.

“Lex, things haven’t been the same since you left. We could really use your sunshine right now.” Gretchen adds on.

“I am raising my daughter. That is my priority.” Lexi hears herself say the same thing her and Nico have talked about since Lexi became pregnant. But inside her body, a bubble of hope and excitement fills her chest. It starts as a tiny, translucent circle and begins to grow the more the two women encourage her to reconsider.

“Raising Lucie is incredibly important.” Shawn agrees. “This wouldn’t detract from that, especially on a part time basis. Think of your immediate impact! You haven’t been out of the industry that long. All your certifications are still relevant. You could easily slide in a few days a week, for 3-4 hours at a time. They’re even allowing part-timers to build their own schedule from week to week. It would be the perfect fit for you!”

“And they have daycare in the hospital now! You could bring Lucie there. Socialization is so important for babies. You could have it all right there rather than scheduling a million mommy and me play dates.”

Lexi stares at her three friends in front of her, a slight smile on her face. The gears turn in her head, consider, contemplating, feeling excited at the prospect of returning to a profession she spent so many hours of her life working in. But the though of Brady looms over her head. Losing him took Lexi a long time to get through. She still wakes up at night sometimes, hearing the flat line of his monitor.

“I don’t think I could go back to pediatric. Not with Lucie.” Lexi shakes her head, sighing.

“You wouldn’t have to. They are fully staffed.” Gretchen assures. She begins to dig around in her purse. “Look, just call Aly. She would be excited to hear from you. The rest could easily get worked out.” Lexi takes Ally Schneider’s card, her former boss. Ally had been the one who held Lexi after she lost Brady. She was the one who sent Lexi home and she was the one who accepted her resignation a week later, with full grace and understanding. She would be compassionate and supportive of Lexi being a mother. Maybe this could work.

In a quiet room, in the back of her mind, a part of her pauses at the thought of bringing this up to Nico. He is so proud of Lexi being a stay at home mom and wife. He shouts it to anyone who will listen about Lexi’s important role in their household. She does worthwhile work for them. He puts he on a pedestal because of it.

Lexi decides that she will talk to Ally first, before she approaches it with Nico. After all, her friends have a clear agenda here. Maybe it wouldn’t be as simple and flexible as they are portraying.

So Lexi decides, before she talks to Nico, she will talk to Ally.

- - -

Later that week, Lexi steps out of her evening shower, onto the white, memory foam mat. Nico waits outside the glass enclosure, holding up a fluffy towel for her to step into. He wraps it around her back, then lazily stuffs one corner over the other into her breasts. Lexi grips the towel closed, knowing it won’t stay up like that. That may have been her husband’s agenda.

“Thank you.” She sighs, getting on her tip toes to kiss him. He crushes her into his chest, using his tongue to trace along her lip, then dash into her mouth. Lexi melts into his sexy warmth. Nico grips the towel at her hips, pulling her flush with him.

“You’re welcome. Luc is sleeping.”

“Finally.” Lexi sighs.

They had a hard night with Lucie. She was fighting sleep from the moment dinner ended, rubbing her eyes, and saying no to bed time, even to daddy. They both took turns rocking her, putting her in her crib, but nothing was giving. Finally, Nico took her to the couch with a warmed up blanket from the dryer. Lexi disappeared upstairs at Nico’s request. Between now and then, their little girl finally succumbed. Nights like this are becoming more prevalent for Lucie. Lexi is not surprised as their little girl is more toddler than baby these days. Both her and Nico need to buckle up for the upcoming roller coaster of their daughter growing up. She smiles at the thought. There is no one else Lexi would rather do this with.

How will you going back to work effect her? An inner voice whispers like a siren.

Lexi raises her green eyes to the mirror, staring at her expression. She looks worried. And she is. Because she has a job offer expiring tomorrow that she still hasn’t talked to her husband about. She never expected to walk out of her meeting with Ally three days ago with an offer of employment. She had told Ally she needed time to talk to Nico, but then the Devils lost two back to back games and Nico’s mood has been less than desirable for the conversation.

Beside her, Nico grabs his tooth brush then dots toothpaste on the bristles. Lexi assesses his mood, seeing him relaxed although a bit tired.

“Can we talk about something?” She begins while dabbing a finger into her moisturizer. She presses three generous dots in a triangle, then begins to smooth them into her face.

“Mhm.” He says around the tooth brush oscillating against his back molars.

“I think…” Lexi starts, then swallows loudly as she stop herself. Nico continues to brush his teeth, looking at her in the mirror. She pretends to smooth out more of her moisturizer on her neck. Her heart flutters heavily against her throat. When she doesn’t continue, Nico turns fully to look at her.

“What?” He mumbles around the white foam in his mouth. Her tongue caresses the side of her mouth anxiously.

Why is this so hard to spit out?

Nico spits out his toothpaste, then wipes his mouth.

“I think I want to go back to work.” She finally sputters out. Nothing about her voice sounds confident. Nico whips his head in surprise at her. He opens his mouth and then closes it, pursing his lips. Lexi immediately sense his annoyance.

“Okay? But, we have talked about how important it is for you to stay home with Luc? You’ve always agreed to that.”

“Yeah….” She trails off, sticking her tongue into the pocket of her cheek so it juts out. “But I’ve been thinking about what I want lately, as me, and I really miss working with patients and having a place to go outside of here.” Nico’s eyes widen, and he looks away, sighing.

“Okay.” He shakes his head. “I thought you were done with nursing after Brady.” Lexi doesn’t flinch at his name, but her heartbeat patters more heavily in her body.

“I thought so too, but it’s been calling to me the last few months. And I have an opportunity to go back.”

“I don’t see how that is going to work for our family.” Nico shrugs simply, already seeming done with the conversation.

“Well, can we talk about it? Because I talked with Ally-”

“What does you talking with Ally have to do with our family? Because you and I have already discussed this, before we had Lucie. You said you would stay home because I’m gone so much. How…” Nico scoffs, looking above her head, trying to find his words. “So what, someone else is going to come here every day and watch her? Or we drop her off at some day care center where random people are raising her?”

“They have a daycare at the hospital. She could go-”

“No. Our daughter deserves better than that.” Nico shakes his head vigorously.

“So you just unilaterally decide this for me then?”

“So you unilaterally get to decide to go back to work?” He shoots back at her. Lexi stand up completely straight, rolling her shoulders back.

“You don’t own me.” She hisses out unexpectedly. Immediately, she wants to take the words back at the fire igniting in Nico’s eyes. His cheeks begin to turn red in frustration while he forces a hand through his long, brown locks.

“When did I say that?” Nico snaps. His tone and voice are reaching places Lexi has never heard from him. Her eyes narrow at him, then she turns to leave the bathroom. Nico is hot on her heels. “You’re putting me in a position to be the asshole, Lex. You and I agreed you would stay home with our kids.”

“Well I need something more!” She huffs at him. “Emma gets to go be-”

“That’s Emma and Timo. Not us.” She startles, feeling like a scolded child by their parent. Tears begin to fill her eyes at the shame of his disappointed scowl.

“I’m allowed to change my mind.” She whispers to him, hating the way her lip trembles.

“Yeah you are, but not when it ruins our kid’s life.”

“Nico, that is so unfair.” Her tone wobbles at her words. Nico’s jaw tightens at the two drops that escape her lids. He looks away, large eyebrows jumping as he tries to brush the effect of her emotions away.

“I don’t care, Lexi.” Nico shakes his head again. “The answer is no.”

Lexi shakes her head in disgust before heading into their master closet to change. She cries as she pulls on her pajamas. When she returns with tears on her face, Nico doesn’t even care.

Instead, he climbs into bed and turns his back to her like a cold, distant monster.

- - -

Nico and Lexi don’t talk the whole next day. Not even about Lucie. They move around the house, avoiding each other. She goes to the store to grab groceries; he stays home with Lucie. They sit silently, watching TV during dinner. Lucie doesn’t seem to notice, snacking on her food and playing with her toys like everything is normal.

This continues into the following morning when Nico has to head out on a five game road trip. He dotes all over their daughter as Lexi’s resentment for him breeds into an ugly, angry tyrant in her mind. She doesn’t even let him kiss her cheek when he is about to leave. She slides away from him, turning her back on him like he did to her two nights ago. His heavy sigh makes tears sting her eyes, like she is the one in the wrong here.

“Lex.”

“Nothing about this will be resolved before you leave in the next two minutes. Travel safe.” She responds without turning towards him.

He stands there for a few more moments, rubbing his hand along Lucie’s head as she munches on her oatmeal. Internally, Lexi wonders if he will try to find some middle ground regardless of her words. But then Nico leaves without apologizing, or saying I love you, or providing any comfort like he usually does. She feels herself hating him a little bit more.

She doesn’t watch the Devils games that week.

She is so angry with Nico. They do nightly FaceTime calls with Lucie, but Lexi don’t speak to her husband. Nico gets more and more frustrated with her. It begins to bleed out onto the ice against the St. Louis Blues. Nico gets two penalties in the game, including five minutes for fighting. Of course, Lexi doesn’t know this because she is watching. She knows because Emma Meier shows up at their door with a bottle of rose the next day.

“What is going on?” She asks when Lexi opens the door. Lio is on her hip, munching on an apple sauce pouch as she strolls in. Emma is in dark wash, tight designer jeans and a tan, long sleeved crop top. Her hair is straightened and perfect, not even a hint of frizz from the rainy humidity earlier in the morning. She puts the bottle of rose on the counter, then goes to put Lio next to Lucie. She’s pulling her skin tight jeans back up her waist as she looks expectantly at Lexi. “Nico wouldn’t share anything with me. Timo couldn’t get it out of him either.”

“Of course not.” Lexi snorts, then rolls her tense neck muscles out. Emma nods her head at Lexi to continue. She sighs, crossing her arms over her chest. “I want to go back to work and the dictator of this house said no.” Emma widens her eyes.

“Nico said no?” The words seemingly taste awful to her as she says them.

“Yep. He told me if I go back to work I’m ruining our daughter’s life.”

“No.” Emma’s mouth opens in shock.

“Yes!” Lexi exclaims, reaching for the bottle of wine. She twists the top open, then takes two really big glugs. The acidity burns at her esophagus as she puts the bottle back down. Emma picks it up, taking a more delicate sip. She slowly blinks and shakes her head.

“Wow, I’m surprised.”

“Me too.” Lexi responds, sighing heavily. Tears prick at her eyes as she recounts the conversation from last week. She purses her lips, looking back at Emma.

“I don’t understand why he gets to make this decision for me?”

“He doesn’t.” Emma says simply. “This is your life. You have the right to do the things you want to do with it. Your partner needs to be supportive of that.”

“Nico doesn’t seem to see it that way.” Lexi looks out into the living room, watching as Lucie coos at Lio, holding up a large, red lego block. Lio takes it from her, then puts it next to a blue one.

“Oh we can’t do that one. Rangers colors.” Lio shakes his head. “Grab a green one, LuLu.”

“I’ll talk to him.” Emma insists after pouring two glasses of rose. “He is being unreasonable.”

“Actually, I’d prefer if you didn’t.” Lexi sighs, tracing a circle onto the marble counter top, then looks up at her. “I think it would just make it worse.” Emma scans her sister-in-law, then nods in understanding.

This is one they’ll have to work through on their own.

- - -

The night Nico is due home, Lexi stares at the ceiling, replaying everything that has happened in the last two weeks. Life went from the mundane, same day over and over again, to this angsty, aching storyline of push and pull between a husband and wife. She went from having no job prospects, to receiving an offer, to turning it down. She hasn’t even told Nico. She doesn’t want to. Doesn’t feel like he deserves to know with the way he has been acting.

Her phone lights up the room as the garage camera catches Nico returning home from his late night flight from Colorado. Tears curve into the water line of Lexi’s eyes. Normally, after a road trip this long, she would gallop down the stairs excitedly to throw herself into his arms. He could catch her. They would make out like teenagers against the refrigerator, then he would carry her upstairs to make love.

Not tonight.

Her brain traces his path through the house from memory, knowing when he stops at Lucie’s room. Five minutes later, she hears him rustling with his bag outside and closes her eyes, pretending to be asleep so she can avoid an interaction with him. Her lip trembles as she shakily swallows to wet her dry throat.

Nico comes into the bedroom almost completely silent. He drops his things in the closet and presumably changes. Lexi’s chest aches when he comes to the bed and grabs his pillow afterwards. His footsteps are so silent, when his voice speaks from next to her, her heart jumped into her throat.

“Lex?” She startles at his touch. Nico grimaces. “I’m sorry… When I went in to kiss Luc, she was hot. She has a fever.” Lexi moves to get up. Lucie was fine when she checked her a few hours ago. “No, please. I’d like to take care of her myself.”

“You can bring her in here.”

“No, you deserve to sleep.” He reaches out tentatively for her cheek, cupping it briefly. “Goodnight. I love you.” It’s the first time he’s said it to her directly in a week. He moves to pull away and she grips his wrist.

“I love you too.” She earnestly looks into his deep, brown eyes. “But I am also so mad at you.”

"I know. You have every right to be.” He maintains direct eye contact when he says it. Lexi’s eyebrows furrow. “We will talk tomorrow.” He leans down tentatively and Lexi goes the other 50% until their lips meet. The kiss is sad and achey. Their lips crave the taste of the other, but can’t go all in like they want to. Lexi pulls away first, stroking her nose along Nico’s. She can feel his lashes against her forehead. Then he pulls away to go lay on the floor of their daughter’s room.

The next morning, Lexi is up first. She pokes her head into the guest room, seeing Nico and Lucie have moved there together. Lucie’s bare feet are pressed into Nico’s chest, cheeks pink, hair wild like it had been sweaty and dried sometime during the night. Lexi creeps in, pressing a hand to her toddler’s forehead. No fever. With that comfort, she tiptoes from the room again.

Downstairs, she makes herself a berry smoothie and settles into the couch with a book. She stays there for a bit, then begins to feel antsy waiting for her loves to wake up. She heads back upstairs, unpacking Nico’s bag completely and getting started on his laundry. She bring his three suits to the downstairs closet for dry cleaning to pick up tomorrow.

It’s almost lunch time when a sleepy Nico and Lucie come downstairs together. Lucie smiles at her mama around a pacifier in her mouth. Lexi arches a slender eyebrow at Nico. Lucie hasn’t had pacifiers for 6 months.

“I lost the battle.” He groggily mumbles. His long hair is flopping every which way. He hands their daughter over to Lexi, then kisses her head. “ ‘m gonna take a shower.”

Nico disappears back upstairs while Lexi gives Lucie some of her leftover smoothie. She sucks it up happily, babbling for some banana when she is done. Lexi is cutting that up when Nico returns downstairs. His hair is slicked back from his shower. He is dressed in new lounge sweats while texting on his phone.

“Do you want a smoothie?” Lexi asks him.

“No, I’m going to make myself some eggs. Do you want any?”

“No, I already ate.”

“Okay.” He wraps an arm around her waist from behind. Lexi resists the urge to tense, trying to purposefully relax her upper body. Nico rests his chin on one of her shoulders, then turns his nose into her neck.

“I was completely out of line last week.” He murmurs while staying there. Lexi scoops up the banana pieces and puts them in a small bowl for Lucie, then slides it across the counter to where she is in her highchair. Lexi puts the knife down and turns so her and Nico are facing each other. He keeps her enclosed in his arms with a palm resting on the counter, on either side her.

“Do you only love me because I’m the mother of your child?” Lexi ponders.

“No, Lex. I love you. The person. So much.” He finishes with a whisper. His eyes trace her face earnestly. Lexi nods.

“I turned them down.” She admits.

“I’m sorry.”

“And I’m sorry if I have a hard time believing that.” Lexi says pointedly.

“Fair.” Nico nods then swallows hard. “But I am.”

“Can I get an explanation?” Lexi asks. She reaches her hands out to rest on his hips, gripping the waistband of his joggers as an anchor.

“I’m having a hard time with how much I’m missing of Lucie growing up. And I put that fear into you last week. Like… I’ve been able to fall back on the idea that you’re here. And if you go back to work, what will I have to ease my failures as a father?” He touches his chest delicately. Lexi lowers her gaze to his beaded bracelets. She moves one of her hands up to hold his wrist. “If this is what you need to do… to be happy… to feel what I get to feel when I step onto the ice every day, then I am in full support of you.”

She stares at his chest, letting his words sink in. As he always is, Nico is patient. When her eyes meet his again, they stare at each other wordlessly for a moment. She is wary. He can sense it.

“I know I hurt you and I’m so sorry.” He whispers. She nods her head in recognition of his apology.

“Nico, you are an amazing dad. It makes me really sad you feel like you’re failing our daughter. That couldn’t be farther from the truth.” She shakes her head, blowing out a sigh. “And I wish you would have shared that with me before it turned into this.”

“I’m embarrassed.” He shrugs. “I’ve been good at everything my whole life. Working so hard to overcome any obstacles.. but there are things I can’t give to Lucie and it kills me, babe.” The way he says babe wrecks her. Lexi moves his hand to the side so she can slide against his chest. Her fingers clutch at his muscular back and dig into his scalp as she cradles their heads together.

“She is so lucky to have you, Neeks.” Lexi turns to kiss his stubbled cheek. He buries his nose deeper into her collar bone as she stroke along his spine. “I am too.” His large arms wrap around her waist, enclosing it completely.

“Tell me again?”

“Hmm?”

“Tell me you are thinking about going back to work.”

“I’m… thinking about going back to work?”

“Okay. Whatever you want to do is what works for our family. We will figure it out.” Nico murmurs. “That’s what I should have said to you. I’m sorry I didn’t.” Lexi smiles against his cheek. Nico turns, capturing her lips.

“I accept your apology.” She murmurs. “But I really did already turn Ally down.”

“I’ll call Ally. Tell her your husband was a fucking idiot last week, but he’s done with that.” Lexi chuckles, top teeth dragging over her bottom lip.

“I would like to try it. See if we can find a balance?”

“Yes, 100% yes, baby.”

Across the counter, Lucie squeals excitedly then throws her banana bowl onto the floor.

“Oh! LuLu is in too!” Nico cheers. “Yay mommy!!!” He claps around her back. Lexi chuckles, a whole body rumbling one as her and Nico separate. Nico grabs Lexi’s phone, sliding it across the counter. “Call Ally.”

Ally extends another offer to Lexi immediately on the phone.

Within an hour, Lexi has signed an offer letter and has orientation scheduled for the following Monday. Nico brings her to her first day of work, packs her lunch, and spends the whole time Lexi is working with Lucie in the day care, spending time with the kids, signing autographs for staff members and patients alike. By the end of the Lexi’s four hour shift, he is exhausted.

“No wonder you need a break.” He mumbles, exhaustedly running a hand over his hand. “And she isn’t even tired.” He points out about a babbling Lucie in her carseat.

“Welcome to my life.” Lexi smirks, then clicks her seatbelt in place. Nico wraps her hand in his, bringing it up to kiss along her knuckles. “So what’s for dinner stay at home dad?” Nico balks at her.

“McDonalds.” He chuckles, turning out of the parking lot.

With ease, the Hischiers settled into this adjusted life, until two pink lines show up a few months later on a test in their master bathroom.

Read more Nico and Lexi here.

#what my world spins around au #Nico Hischer x OC #Nico Hischier imagine #nhl imagine #nhl fan fiction

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seriousbrat · 30 days ago

Note

What are your favourite telltale signs that a fanfic was written by an american?

Some that always sticks out to me:

- Characters drinking lots of coffee

- Tea with cream instead of milk (it’s not unheard of, but it’s not your standard cup of tea)

- People mentioning hospital bills

- Being unable to write smokers casually

- Sirius is salivating for a Harley Davidson and not a Triumph

Okay honestly the tea thing in general is a BIG one. I think people don't always understand the way tea is consumed in the UK, how ingrained it is in daily life. Ive basically got a rotating cup of tea all day. Growing up in my house, even when we lived in america, someone would offer to make tea basically hourly lol. There's different situations when tea is offered in slightly different ways, different ways of making tea like builder's tea, different things that are served with tea, tea meaning 'dinner' in some regions, and these customs are hard to understand unless you've lived them.

Often Remus is portrayed as a tea fanatic because he offers tea when Harry visits him, which is always funny to me because that's just the normal thing to do when someone's visiting.

Another tea-related one I encountered once (this made me laugh a LOT and I felt a bit bad for the author) was that Lily 'woke up to the smell of tea.' This is an instance I think using coffee would have been alright lol, they obviously just replaced 'coffee' with 'tea', not realising tea doesn't really smell much when you make it and definitely doesn't waft about the house like coffee does. James would have to be holding the cup under her nose or brewing several large vats of the stuff in the same room lol

I agree with the ones you've said. In what was once the most popular jily fic in the fandom, there's a whole thing with Lily somewhat righteously trying to get James to quit smoking when, in the 70s, everyone and your nan smoked, even indoors, and Lily herself probably would have too. In a lot of Europe young people from all walks of life will casually smoke. rah where's my baccy etc

Similar to the Harley thing, there's often a lot of American music/TV/food/pop culture used. Or anachronistic stereotypically British things like everyone being into the Beatles.

THE NAMES. Characters having surnames that are very much from America's immigrant heritage, polish or german etc, like 'Schneider' and 'Kowalski' and things. First names too, this is a bit less dire but a lot of names common in the US wouldn't have been given to a child in the 60s. Specifically aristocratic characters would have a particular set of names, although pureblood conventions are obv a bit different than irl.

Another one is general drinking culture. Like I mentioned the idea of, honestly, anyone who isn't an obvious child being asked for ID in a pub is very silly haha, unless maybe in a student area. Whereas in America they'll ask everyone for ID before they let them sit down. (even my 60yr old dad has been asked lol)

in my experience Americans have a strange relationship with alcohol in general, which is both slightly puritan and enthusiastic. My theory is that this is because of prohibition (I find this very historically interesting) and they aren't as prone to casual daily drinking as Europeans, rather they tend to go all out on specific occasions. I love an American house party haha, but I don't think Americans would go for work drinks at the pub as often.

Exaggerated distances between places. Working class families having multiple cars and big houses and driving everywhere even within London. Aristocratic characters doing things they'd never do and having things they'd never have. The Blacks are often portrayed as too fantabulously wealthy imo in a very Rockerfeller New England-y way. Also they wouldn't speak French to each other lol

In general class distinctions, which are very important in the UK, are difficult to understand from an outside perspective I think.

However, I think the main tell for me is usually dialogue, SORRY THIS GOT SO LONG:

This issue, tbf, is very understandable. It's very difficult to achieve natural-sounding dialogue for dialects that you're not personally familiar with. Tbh I think it's not always easy to achieve natural-sounding dialogue in general for anyone. I've lived in America too and now have lived in a non-english speaking country for many years, mostly speaking catalan/spanish on a daily basis, so I get confused too and I use american phrases picked up either during my time there or from the internet. Anyway point is I think about/notice dialogue a lot, so here are my thoughts.

There's often overuse/misuse of slang or certain terms that can end up being amusing, like that fan film using 'a row' constantly to describe a bitter fight to the death between sworn enemies haha. Over/misuse of things like 'bloody,' 'wanker,' 'twat' lol. Understanding what types of characters would say what, and in what situations, can be tricky. 'Pants' is a common mistake because in BrE it means underpants, not trousers. 'Restroom' is also very American. 'College' meaning 'university' ditto. 'Pissed' for angry rather than 'drunk,' 'mad' also to a lesser extent-- I'd normally understand 'are you mad' as 'are you crazy.'

I saw a tumblr post once, one I thought would be a bit mean to reply to directly, in which a character jokes to Sirius about 'doing fags' because he smokes cigarettes and is in a relationship with Remus. lmao. That's a good example of someone trying to use a slang term without understanding the way it's really used. Also a good example of someone gratuitously using a slur (which is more common in America anyway) for no reason lol oh well

In general, I think since Americans are used to hollywood portrayals of British characters who mostly use something akin to RP, even authors who are diligent about BrE can end up sounding a bit stilted and a bit pride and prejudice-y with their teen characters (except with 'bloody wanker!' sprinkled in occasionally.) And this is fine, I don't think it's fair to expect perfectly natural/accurate dialogue from fanfic authors all the time, wherever they're from. But a line like "Yes, it must have been nice" might sound more natural as "Yeah, must've been nice," though it depends on the character obv.

Personally I think I overuse contractions because I find them fun (I love a cheeky 'oughtn't' or a 'mightn't.' or 'shouldn't've' lol. tbh im always saying 'ought' and 'ought not' irl but that's just me being weird.) But contractions and dropping certain words is common in informal BrE, what's tricky is that if this is misused it also sounds odd. So it's a difficult balance to get right. For instance: 'it would be nice if they had' can become 'be nice if they had' but not 'be nice if they.' or 'be nice if they'd.' This was a professionally made video game rip but there's a character in Mass Effect who talks like that, it drove me mad.

I love to think about accents and dialects and dialogue in general (which is why this got so long sorry) and imo the key is just familiarising yourself with a dialect as much as possible and making sure you hear the accent in your head as you write. Using slang terms in ways you've heard them used before, and carefully. For younger characters you'll want to watch something like the inbetweeners rather than bridgerton haha. Or something like Would I Lie To You or Taskmaster where there's a variety of panelists and therefore of accents, both series are free on youtube and are excellent!

#the ID thing in america is so wild and i always forget when i go there #they wont accept my spanish ID so i have to bring my passport with me everywhere #anyway personally i think people should use flippin' a bit more haha. esp for the 70s.#replies #i was reading something earlier where everyone was saying 'yes' to each other back and forth #'yes i think so. do you agree?' 'yes and are you coming to the show?' 'yes i shall be there'#which i think is uncommon in casual speech even in america #where ppl say 'yep/sure/sounds good' a lot #and for a british character i'd use 'yeah/alright' or if theyre a dumbledoreish character 'indeed/quite so/certainly'#not that ppl don't say 'yes' EVER haha. it's just less common than you'd think #there are other things i can point out (i truly think about this a LOT) but anyway. its too long already

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philtstone · 4 months ago

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title: although it took a while

Summary: Shawn and Juliet figure out how to fall -- and be -- in love.

if u have been reading my personal posts here on tumblr dot com u jnow that, comrades. this fic kicked my ASS. real frustrated tears were shed. the only reason we're here today is because i dont know how sunk cost fallacy works and refused to give up on it after weeks and weeks of investment. technically this is in the same universe as "so here we are again" and "and we were driving on a road" (my beloved mollyverse) but it can very much be read as a stand alone. the title is of course from space age love song <3. enjoy!

Excerpt:

“What?”

“You were just …” Shawn exhales, rubbing his good hand over one eyebrow and back through his hair. It sticks up endearingly at the top. “I mean, you know, your face got all pinchy and sad a couple months ago, when everything with – I mean, when I was in the hospital, and you came to visit like three times and it was awful — not you visiting, but you looking upset because of me —” He offers a half-laugh that isn’t humorless enough to be truly upsetting. “Couldn’t have that happen again! But don’t worry, Jules, I’m actually fine. Zero gunshot wounds this time. We can totally pretend I walked into a door, or something, and then perhaps partake in a game of parcheesi.”

Juliet’s insides twist tightly, all in one go, into a pretzel-like shape. Schneiders’ Pretzels of Hanover, Shawn would probably say. He rolls his wrist again, grimacing a bit as he does. Before she can stop herself she’s reached out and grabbed his hand in her own.

“Tell me where it hurts,” she says, even though she’s already pressing her fingers gently in between thick tendons and the meat of his palm. Shawn’s fingers rest automatically against her forearm, close to her pulse. His hands are warm, as they have been the last handful of times she’s felt them, and instinctively she skips her thumb over a red scrape on his knuckle to work softly against the curve of his wrist where he usually wears a watch.

When she looks up, expectant, Shawn is staring at her. His mouth hangs faintly open and his eyes are … oh. Juliet swallows. They can be so intense sometimes.

“I guess I fell pretty hard,” Shawn says finally, registering her earlier question. An odd rough strand is bending his voice. Juliet’s heart pounds in her ears. Her own voice echoes back at her from that case earlier in the year – their proximity on the ladder, his arm reaching over her – Shawn, what are you doing? “Um – weird. I mean, weird. On my wrist. I fell hard and weird on my wrist.”

“Right,” Juliet says softly.

“That feels good,” he adds. They stare down together at their joined hands and Juliet’s careful movements. She ignores the way the dark hairs of his arm tickle her fingers and the faint twitch of his ring finger against her palm every time she shifts her grip. She tells herself they aren’t holding hands if she’s offering a pseudo medical service to her coworker who definitely doesn’t have proper health insurance.

read the full fic on Ao3

#my writing #I PERSERVERED YALL #psych #juliet o'hara #shawn spencer #shawn x juliet #shules #burton guster #shawn x gus #carlton lassiter #henry spencer #psych usa #psych 2006

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girlactionfigure · 1 year ago

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1.5 Hours Until Expected Release: The IDF says it has completed preparations for the reception of the released hostages from the Gaza Strip, in an operation dubbed “Heaven’s Door.”

Once released from the Gaza Strip via Egypt, the hostages will be brought by the IDF to the Hatzerim airbase in southern Israel for an initial reception, where they will undergo a short physical and mental checkup.

The military has prepared psychologists and mental health experts to greet the hostages, many of whom are children. The experts will explain to them what happened in their community on October 7 when they believe the time is right.

The IDF has bought the hostages phones so they can call their relatives immediately upon arriving at Hatzerim.

The released hostages will remain for up to two hours at Hatzerim before being taken to a hospital, either by helicopter or minibus. The helicopters will be flying in a more comfortable and quiet mode.

Those who need immediate medical attention will be taken straight from the border to a hospital, without going to Hatzerim.

The families of the hostages are waiting at the hospitals, and hotel rooms have been reserved in the area.

Schneider children's hospital has recommended that the hostages remain at least 48 hours under observation before being released home.

The same process will be carried out for the next four days for the rest of the hostages who will be released from Hamas captivity.

The IDF in a statement asks the public to “show patience and sensitivity and respect the privacy of released hostages and their families” and not to circulate unverified information.

#Israel #ceasefire #hostage release #Gaza #HamasisISIS #IDF

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scotianostra · 28 days ago

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Happy Birthday comedian and writer Armando Iannucci.

Born Armando Giovanni Iannucci in Glasgow on 28th November 1963, his father, also called Armando, was from Naples, while his mother was born in Glasgow to an Italian family. Before emigrating, Iannucci’s father wrote for an anti-fascist newspaper as a teenager and joined the Italian partisans at He came to Scotland in 1950 and ran a pizza factory in Springburn.

Iannucci studied at Oxford University, but it was only during his second phase as a research student that he seriously pursued comedy. A writing partnership blossomed with Andrew Glover, and he performed in revue with Sarah Smith and as part of a live double-bill alongside David Schneider, forming long-term creative relationships with all three.

In 1988, BBC Radio Scotland invited him to co-host their experimental youth shows, No’ The Archie Macpherson Show and Bite The Wax. He moved to London after applying for a producer’s job with BBC Radio in 1989, and quickly earned a reputation for contentious broadcasts.

Armando was instrumental in giving Steve Coogan his first break, with the popular character Alan Partridge made his debut on his radio show. Armando was quite happy for others to take the mantle and carry his comic invention, but in 1995 he hosted the topical BBC2 series The Saturday Night Armistice, his other main show as host was The Armando Iannucci Shows on channel 4.

Of Iannucci’s work I am a big fan of “The Thick of it” which he devised, directed and was chief writer, tell me who does not love the foul-mouthed Director of Communications, Malcolm Tucker, played brilliantly by Peter Capaldi.

The Thick of it spawned his first movie, in January 2009, his first feature film In the Loop, Armando penned his second feature film last year with the very funny “The Death of Stalin”, he also rote the screenplay for an adaptation of Charles Dickens’s David Copperfield, called The Personal History of David Copperfield. Last year saw him create the comedy sci-fi series Avenue 5, we are waiting to see if it will get a third series.

Iannucci has won two Sony Radio Awards and three British Comedy Awards. In 2003, he was listed in The Observer as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy. He was also subject of a 2006 edition of The South Bank Show. In 2011 he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters by the University of Glasgow in recognition of his contribution to film and television. At the 2011 British Comedy Awards, Iannucci received the Writers’ Guild of Britain Award.

Armando is patron of the Silver Star Society, a charity supporting women through difficult pregnancies. In April 2012 he abseiled from the top of the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford to raise money for the hospital’s specialist pregnancy unit. Armando has been married to Rachael Jones for 28 years, they have 3 children, Emilio, Marcello, and Carmella.

Iannucci is set to take aim at tech moguls in his latest

movie after online swipes at Elon Musk. He has been embroiled in a long running spat with the world’s richest man Elon Musk, regularly turning his ire on the controversial billionaire. He is writing a new script about the accountability of the social media titans of Silicon Valley.

#scotland #scottish #history #comedian #writer #filmmaking #TV #happy birthday

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dalekofchaos · 7 months ago

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My alternate Ghostfaces

Did a post like this before, but thought I'd go more in depth.

Scream 1. I would never trade Billy and Stu for the world, but I do have some scenarios.

Randy and Tatum.

Randy Meeks' motive: He's obsessed with horror movies and was in love with but Sidney wasn't in him. He wanted to make Sidney suffer and get revenge. Also he was planning to blame Billy and Stu.

Tatum Riley's motive:She just wants to kill her cheating boyfriend and all the girls he slept with and to her NO ONE is good enough for Sidney. She doesn't want to kill Sidney, she wants her all to herself. aka Yandere Tatum.

Scream 2.

Nancy is the mastermind. Murphy and Lois the sorority sisters are the people who get their hands dirty. They were OBSESSED with Sidney in all their scenes and they did nothing with them. Their motives would be wanting the famous Sidney Prescott in their Sorority House and for her to die in their Sorority House.

Scream 3.

Milton as the mastermind and Roman and Angelina as the killers.

So here's my little pitch for the Milton story,

Milton is the mastermind. He essentially wants to tie up loose ends. If the story of Maureen gets out, his studio and the Stab franchise is finished. So Milton decides to use his son Roman and his new actress for Sidney to kill all ties to Maureen Prescott, finally ending with Sidney's death. Roman's motive remains the same and Angelina's motive is her cut motive was her being obsessed with Sidney, taking the role of Sidney and wanting to become Sidney.

So I thought of giving Roman a redemption arc. Milton keeping Roman in the dark about how he raped Maureen and when Sidney tells him, Roman is conflicted. Sidney kills Angelina and then Milton has Sidney where he wants her and remarks. That this is like when he took her mother and before anything gross can happen, Roman shoots him dead.

Roman turns himself in and down the line Roman would be the key to helping them in future Ghostface cases while also having Sidney and Roman grow closer as real siblings, almost akin to what Sam and Tara are. Speaking of. Roman could've been what Sam and Tara needed. He knows what they're going through, that inner darkness and especially being related to a monster. He could've also helped resolve any issues between the sisters.

Scream 4.

Jill and Rebecca Walters.

Jill's motive remains the same.

Rebecca’s motivation would be she wants a juicer and more willing victim star to sell out and make significantly more bank while possibly cashing in herself with her story of being “close” to Sidney and the heart break of losing her.

To Jill Rebecca is the mother she never had and the perfect agent any star could ever have. To Rebecca, Jill is the daughter she always wanted and someone who could easily replace Sidney.

Imagine this. She brings Sidney back to Woodsboro. She’s a shady publicist and her motive is to make a profit off of Sidney’s death and make Jill into the perfect victim that will make them both famous.

Now we could have Charlie or even Trevor as killers just to give us 4 killers since Scream 4 lol Jill strings them along, Charlie is obsessed with Jill while Trevor is doing this to be forgiven for cheating. Charlie and Trevor kills the teens while Rebecca kills the heavy adults. In the end Rebecca and Jill kills them and frames them as the killers. Jill would do her self-injury while Rebecca would rush out the door as the screaming witness telling everyone what happened.

Jill doesn’t kill Rebecca. When Jill learns that Sidney survived. Rebecca insists that she lets her handle this.

Much of the same happens but with Rebecca in the Jill in the hospital role. When Sidney hits her with the MRI Sidney says “Rebecca, you’re fired”

The final scene would be for Sidney, Gale and Dewey coming for Jill. Only to see that the bed is empty. Jill is on the run with a promise that she could return to hunt Sidney.

Scream 5. Three scenarios. Either Vince Schneider and Amber, Judy & Wes Hicks or Tara and Amber

Vince and Amber.

Vince's Motive. Embracing his uncle’s legacy and attempting to turn Sam into his partner for her to embrace her father’s legacy. This time, the Macher is the mastermind and groomed Amber to be his partner like Richie did. Amber's motive remains the same.

Making Vince the mastermind could have added an extra layer onto the lambasting of toxic fandom.

Like, Amber could still have 100% been the toxic fan, but you could add on a commentary about how her being as entitled and angry as she was about the Stab movies not doing exactly what she wanted was what allowed Vince to take advantage and groom her into doing what he wanted.

Which is what Richie did too, but adding in a little twist that Vince didn’t actually give a fuck about the Stab movies would have been a nice bit of frosting on top of things.

Sort of like what Mrs Loomis did with Mickey, with how truly terrible people can and do manipulate impressionable kids into doing horrendous things.

The one thing I would change is I would save Dewey’s death for Scream 6 and the big death would be Richie is killed instead of Dewey. We get one moment of Sidney, Dewey and Gale together. Dewey is with the Carpenter sisters. The Vince reveal happens and Vince mortally wounds/knocks Dewey out. Sid & Gale kill Amber while Sam kills Vince.

And Scream 6, same movie but the motives is Ethan and Quinn are Vince’s siblings and Bailey is Vince’s father and we see one more Ghostface, Leslie Macher and it’s the Macher’s revenge against the Carpenters.

And as for Dewey’s death in Scream 6. Bailey kills Dewey. I feel like one cop killing the other would’ve worked better, especially since Bailey is a dark reflection of Dewey.

Judy and Wes Hicks

In Scream 4, we were introduced to Judy. Judy had a past with Sidney back in Woodsboro High. Something about Judy, always seemed off to me. But you know who also had a past with SIdney? Angelina and her cut plotline was Roman’s partner. So imagine this. Richie isn’t the killer, and Amber isn’t the killer. It’s the mother-son duo of Judy and Wes.

Motive. What would their motive be?

Judy is the one who was in love with Billy and wants revenge on Sidney for taking him away. You could still have Sam as Billy’s daughter, because let’s face it that boy was a slut.

Wes could be the second Ghostface instead of Amber. I read a reddit post that suggested that Wes was a bit obsessed with Tara, let’s work with that. Wes is a psycho stalker killing everyone close to Tara so he can have her for himself and plans to blame it all on Sam. Judy killed Dewey to lure out SIdney and Gale after Wes’ killings were not working.

Sidney and Gale kill Judy together while Sam and Tara kills Wes together

Sidenote. If Amber isn’t the killer. She could either sacrifice herself to save Tara or live, the choice is up to you. But if she lives, we get the Core Five!

As for what happens in Scream 6, this video had this idea of Jason being this True Crime esque killer, so yeah do that instead of Richie’s family.

Tara and Amber.

Amber’s motive is a mix of her original motive and Richie’s motive mixed into one. . Tara’s motive would be Sam left her. Her father left her. Her mother is the town pariah who constantly leaves her for work, Wes was obsessed with her and the only guy she liked was stolen from her. Her life was shit and it started the moment that Sam left her. All she had was Amber. They became best friends, shared their love of horror and became girlfriends.

See the rest of my Tamber au for more

Scream 6. Either go with Jason and Greg or even better. Make Sam and Tara the killers.

Jason and Greg was the most interesting thing about Scream 6, SO OF COURSE THEY KILLED THEM IN THE BEGINNING AND REPLACING A TRUE CRIME GHOSTFACE STORY FOR REDOING SCREAM 2, BECAUSE OF FUCKING COURSE! Yeah, I am STILL pissed about Jason, Greg and the Woodsboro subreddit's lost potential.

Sam and Tara.

Fuck it. Melissa wanted to do it and Jenna can do evil good!

Imagine all the attacks on Sam's character and Sam being framed for Richie's murders are all a result of Gale's book. Gale changed the actual story because it would sell more. So Sam decides to get revenge.

Sam does the New York murders and believes she's alone. She's not. Tara is there to make sure Sam succeeds. What Sam and Tara do not realize is their friends are helping them. Mindy helps cover their tracks and Chad is the muscle.

Yes The Core Four are the Ghostfaces in this alternate Scream 6.

One by one Gale's life falls apart. The lies and slander are revealed to all. Sidney outright abandons her and refuses to talk to her. Kirby refuses to help her. "You made your own bed, you're on your own, Gale." And anyone that could possibly help her is dead.

Gale is alone in the Ghostface shrine to confront the consequences of her actions and the monster she created.

One by one, the four of them corner her and then they all mask off.

Sam wears Billy's mask

Tara wears Amber's mask

Mindy wears Jill's mask

Chad wear's Mickey's mask

"You had to know this was coming Gale. All you had to do was write that book about Dewey, but no, you couldn't let Ghostface go, could you? You had to destroy our lives and now you'll pay for it and all the lives you profited off of."

Sam and Tara draw their knife and gut Gale.

They pinned the blame on Quinn Bailey and Ethan Landry.

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