#There's funny cute and creepy cute: these two tend to overlap when it comes to the 80's!

[a-little-ray-of-fantasy]

Gotta love the 80's: my fictional faves from those years are certified cuties!

The funny thing is, there's cute...

...and there's cute.

There's a lot of difference between these two kinds, and at the same time there isn't at all.

[moneyshvt]

☆ . · . simay barlas, twenty-two, female, she / her . · . ☆ AYLA CLEARWATER lives in that huge mansion over there! no, not that one. look for THE LARGE NATURAL STONE FOUNTAIN and that’ll be it. the SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHER has offered occasional glimpses of LIGHT GREEN walls and an impressive collection of EMPTY PICTURE FRAMES in the background of social media posts, but all of that is nothing compared to seeing the opulence in person. they’ve remained CLEVER as ever since moving to tercet court one year ago, but it seems like they might’ve gotten a little more of NARCISSISTIC too. maybe that’s why they’re rumored to have such a FRIENDLY relationship with everyone else who lives on this street. ☆ . · . ooc info: ollie, they/them, 21, est . · . ☆

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘

— she was adopted when she was just under two years old from turkey, so the clearwaters have always felt like her family to her. she knew the greater part of growing up that she was adopted, it just never was an issue for her. it was a fact, but it really wasn’t an important fact. she has no desire to try to find her birth parents or family, though she has visited turkey.

—  the clearwaters are a triple threat in sports : her grandfather retired mlb player and coach, her father a retired prominent defenseman in the nhl and current dartmouth men’s hockey coach, and her older brother ( 26 ) is making a splash in his third year in the nfl as a wide receiver.  however, her parents made sure she and her brother had a ( fairly ) average “middle class” bringing up, though they had their fair share of money in the bank. didn’t have to struggle, really, but didn’t get everything she wanted either. had a summer job scooping ice cream for two years in high school.

— grew up in norwich, vt, real big on nature and hiking and all that jazz and lowkey misses it in the heart of la.

— when she was ten she got one of those kid’s polaroid cameras ( u know the ones where the film is only a little bigger than a postage stamp ) and she was obsessed. she worked her way up through cameras over the years, having a natural eye for it.

— one of the first games she ever shot was one of her brother’s high school football games which sounds sweet but it was actually because she was so bored out of her mind and wanted something to do. needless to say, though, that was the start of it. some might say it was kind of inevitable she gravitated toward sports somehow — she was a clearwater at heart. since then she has gained a lot of knowledge and respect for all different kinds of sports.

— for college she was torn between dartmouth and nyu. she ultimately chose nyu because it was somewhere new.

— she went to nyu for advertising and photography, shooting various nyu sports teams while she was there and throughout her years, managed to shoot a few rangers, knicks, and yankees games as well. she held two summer internships with the yankees ( on her own merits or because of her family name, she may never truly know ) and ultimately graduated from nyu a year early.

— she then spent the better part of a year after graduation road tripping as you do and ended up in california. it’s all about who you know, and in picking up a favor for a friend in cali she stumbled into the perfect opportunity. from there she landed a role on the company that handles the photography for staples center and other notable teams, most notably the kings, lakers, and dodgers ( photography company based on this irl one ).

— she moved into tercet court not long after she knew she would be in la for much of the time being. it’s definitely not her house, considering she makes just enough to live on. it’s a family home, purchased initially by her father who’d wanted to sink some money into tangible assets instead of the stock market and to have a west-coast home available for the family. hey, worked out pretty well for her.

— she has predominately been tasked with shooting the kings the past year or so, though she started with shooting dodgers games last summer and is doing so this summer as well. she’s also shot a handful of lakers’ games when a friend needs someone to cover. three of her photos so far have been used in large ads and banners in the city ( including most recently her current MONEY SHOT of the game winning goal in a come back win ) --- very cool moment for her. several others have been used by local publications and websites.

— she does a little freelance work as well ; mostly for friends or friends of friends, though she’s been considering lately trying to make her skills and business available in a more professional manner. she does do a lot of photographing for herself --- a lot of candids ; she thinks they capture the true spirit of a person moreso than when they’re posing or prepared for a photo. but not in a creepy way --- she’s been the victim of the paps enough times by association with her family to know the correct boundaries and limits.

𝐌𝐈𝐒𝐂

— lowkey loves playing games with the paps, though she’s probably the only one that finds it funny. as a photographer herself she has a good eye for where they’re hiding and will also snap photos of them in turn just for her own amusement.

— she hopes someday to be the team photographer for a team, hopefully in one of the “big four” ( nfl, nhl, nba, mlb )

— she played field hockey and lacrosse through high school.

— ayla thinks she’s better at shooting people. part of what she loves about being a sports photographer is how active and unpredictable it is to shoot a game. she’s had to learn a lot to try to predict what she can.

— very much a morning person. has never had a problem waking up in the morning. who’s jealous bc i am. goes for a run at sunrise, and has showered, gotten ready for the day, and is at a local cafe shop editing photos / making graphics and drinking an iced mocha by 8. truly couldn’t be me...

— so desperately wants to be that girl with tons of cute aesthetic plants in her apartment but tragically plants always die in her care no matter what she does. probably has gotten one of those tiny tabletop sand zen gardens to make herself feel better tho she still keeps trying with plants. so far the only ones that have lived any length of time are the air plants.

— she really wants a greyhound but is afraid to make the commitment to actually adopting one.

— her personal insta ( the non-sports one ) has a modest following. a few thousand, probs.

— she has struggled a bit with people who think her opportunities have only arisen because of her family pedigree ( which some have gone so far to tell her they’re “not her family” --- which, don’t even go there, lads... ), and that has made ayla work all that much harder to prove that she’d gotten where she has on her own merits.

— she has a rule ( and in the case of the nhl there is a rule enforced by a signed contract ) about not getting involved with anyone she shoots ; it’s considered a conflict of interest. i imagine she has a really good relationship with the players though --- probably doesn’t hurt that she is pretty. at least one of them have hired her to shoot their wedding this summer even though she is wildly under qualified.

𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐘

alya is a chill and laidback person at heart. her approach to the fame attached to her due to her father and brother has been to laugh it off good-naturedly. she’s generally well liked, with a hint of sass and humor. she comes across as a bit of an air-head at times, but that’s part due to a persona she put on from a young age. she has an observant eye that drew to her photography in the first place and will often allow her to draw certain conclusions about people. she’s well versed in all the sports she shoots, something that tends to surprise a lot of people, but how is she supposed to be good at her job if she isn’t ? if she gets bothered during games she typically shuts people down with wide eyes and some obscure bit of knowledge in her cute, raspy lil voice. dareisay... elle woods, what like it’s hard ? energy ??

a few of her downfalls include her narcissism and need to be liked. she looks to look and feel pretty, by her own standards, and is a queen of the self-timer and remote self photography : has two instas because of it -- one for her sports photography and one that’s a “personal” and mostly just pictures of herself. her need to be liked is something she doesn’t even realize. she likes to be seen in a positive light.

𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄

alya stands at 5′4″ with a slim but athletic build. her hair is naturally brown, but is dyed to have blonde highlights. she does not need glasses or contacts and has no tattoos.

she’s almost always wearing the same pair of beat up timberland’s she’s owned since freshman year of college. she likes to be able to move easily ( bc homegirl absolutely cannot walk in heels at all ). despite what the tabloids like to call her unfortunate choice in footwear, she likes to look cute, often pairing them with short, flowy sundresses or skirts + crop tops. when she shoots games, however, she’s dressed rather practically in skinny jeans, a crop top, and a cardigan. her hair is often kept down and loose, or in a messy bun.

𝐎𝐎𝐂

it me. ollie again. i also play fitz ( miguel bernardeau fc ). yes the overlap between fitz and ayla is not great but i truly only know one thing that that one thing is hockey asldfalsdjf sO. if y’all seeing me rping with myself on the dash bc i think it’d be fun to bounce fitz and ayla off each other mind ur own business...

[phdna]

Hi! I just finished the Hawkeye comic and I 'm going to start reading Cap America: White next. Being a big stucky fan, do you have a list of comics you could rec to me? Anything would be appreciated, thanks!

Oh, did you enjoy Hawkeye???

Also, fair warning: Cap: White and I have a love/hate relationship. It gets a little queerbait-y and creepy at times (since from the way Bucky is drawn, you can’t really tell that Steve is only 4 years older than him), but oh god the story is so full of feels!

And yes, I absolutely have recs for you!!! Get ready for a long post!!!

The short answer would be basically “Anything in which Bucky is even mentioned” because Steve has no chill when it comes to Bucky. A longer answer would be, in no particular order:

Captain America & Bucky: The Life Story of Bucky Barnes #620-624

A summary of Bucky’s life and his relationship with Steve, and a truly delightful stand-alone comic.

Captain America vol 5 #606-610

An arc in which Zemo tries to ruin Bucky’s life and Steve, Nat and Sam are not happy about it. Feat a lot of “Steve telling the world the fuck off because Bucky is his priority” moments, which are always gems.

Captain America #447-448 

Steve is trapped in an alternative reality while Bucky tries to save him.

 Captain America: Who Will Wield the Shield?

After Steve’s death in Civil War, Bucky becomes Captain America. Comics being comics, Steve comes back to life. And the two of them angst over who should be Captain America.

Captain America: Red, White & Blue: American Dream

Steve thinks about Bucky as he lies frozen before the Avengers find him. It’s 8 pages (or so) of FEELS.

What If #5… Captain America hadn’t vanished during World War Two

A Nobody Dies AU, with Bucky calling Steve an old man while Steve is literally like “BUCKY LOOK AT THE SIZE OF MY ARMS DO I LOOK LIKE AN OLD MAN TO YOU???” What’s not to love about it?

Paradise X #0

A really obscure AU tbh, and precious only because of a few panels, as far as Steve and Bucky are concerned. Long story short, Steve is an angel (literally) and Bucky throws a tantrum. There’s a hug involved.

Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty #12

A really cute stand-alone story about how Bucky influences Steve, since most comics tend to show how Steve influences Bucky.

Captain America Comics

The original vintage comics written during the actual WW2. It’s a little bizarre as far as plots go more often than not, and Bucky looks anything from “a little younger than Steve” to “6 years old” and that’s disturbing. But if you want Steve and Bucky being fluffy (and funny) without angst attached to it, these are your go-to comics.

Avengers #4-16

The first arc Steve has in the comics after he’s found by the Avengers as a Capsicle. It has a lot to say about how much Steve grieves for Bucky, even to the point of making you wish he’d see a therapist ASAP. Bucky is dead, of course, so you don’t get to see him, but you get to see what I consider one of Steve’s lowest points - looking at a kid, going “You look like Bucky!!” and essentially trying to convince said kid to be Bucky, while yelling at him whenever he tries to be Bucky because nobody will ever be like Bucky. It’s… worrying.

The entire Brubaker run. You can get the reading order/list here.

Some of it overlaps with some previous recs. Most of it is told in Bucky’s POV, and you truly get just how much Steve matters to him just by seeing how he can’t seem to go more than a couple of issues without thinking about Steve. It’s also a comic classic, so.

Hopefully this will keep you busy with feels for a while!!!

Let me know your thoughts on the comics as you read them

Have fun!

Edit: the awesome @buckbuckbuck reminded me for some weird reason I forgot to rec Planet Hulk, which is an angsty gladiator AU basically and Very Relevant when it comes to Steve and Bucky!

[randomsofmine]

October Wrap Up

Really good month. And yet again I signed up for a ridiculous number of readathons. I’ve participated in Victober, Zoes 24-hour Readathon and Deweys 24 Hour Readathon (*). I’m still participating the House Cup Reading Challenge (+), which is a month-long readathon that started part way through October.Some of my books have overlapped with other readathons so I’ve added a little symbol to note which is which.I’m also thinking of taking part in Tome Topple Round 5 in November. I managed to read 15 books for a total of 5207 pages.

Strange Magic (Essex Witches, book 1) by Syd Moore

This was pretty interesting in terms of the history info it gave. I was unaware that certain parts of England had a higher concentration of witch trials than others. It was an ok mystery. The main female character had some moments that made me not like her. She tended to be pretty judgmental. I could see myself picking up the sequel at some point but I probably won’t be breaking doors down to get to it.  3.5/5

How To Be A Heroine: Or, what I’ve learned from reading too much by Samantha Ellis

This is sort of a memoir as well as a discussion on popular female characters. The author is re-reading certain books while looking back at her life and seeing how those books shaped her as a person. There were some interesting thoughts and I liked how the authors' original opinion on some characters had changed after re-reading their book years later.  3/5

Victober 2017

Frankenstein by Mary Shelly

This was a re-read for me. I first read it for an English Lit course and loved it. And I still love it. It's so odd and dark and full of weird impossible events. Victor is the worst.  4/5

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Another re-read. But I feel like that I never actually finished it the first time around as I have no memory of the ending. My only real criticism of this is is that Mina Harker is put into the secretarial role. This horrible creature is coming after her and they have her typing up notes.  4/5

Classic Ghost Stories by Various +

This is a mish-mash of several short stories by Charles Dickens and  M. R. James. There were some good ones and some less so.My favorite was the Signalman and Rats.  3/5

Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell   

My love for Elizabeth Gaskell grows with every book. This explores the life of a small town doctors daughter when her father re-marries and her friendship with the local rich family. It is an unfinished novel as Gaskell died before finishing it.Even without the ending, it's still fairly clear on the outcome and that doesn’t spoil it at all. It's an excellent story full of wonderful and somewhat absurd characters.I enjoyed it so much.  5/5

House Cup Reading Challenge

Assassins Quest (Farseer Trilogy, book 3) by Robin Hobb

The final book in the Farseer trilogy. Such a good ending to the 3 books. If you wanted you could leave it here and be satisfied but I will be continuing on to her other works that link to this.It does get pretty dark and a bit weird but it is so good.  5/5

The Sun and Her Flowers by Rupi Kaur *

I read Milk and Honey at the beginning of the year and fell in love. I’m not a poetry lover normally but it blew me away. My copy is now earmarked with my fave ones.I really enjoyed her second book. Possibly slightly less than Milk and Honey but only a smidge. Emotional and full of lines that just speak to me.  4/5

Death at the Fountain Abbey (Tom Hawkins, book 3) by  Antonia Hodgson

Somehow I accidentally bought the 3rd book in this series.To be fair the summery on the back didn’t indicate that it was a part of a series.Checking reviews, I was told that I could read it as a stand alone. I’m not entirely sure that’s 100% true but they did give you the background of the characters and some of the events in the other two books. I really enjoyed this. The main character wasn’t an overly clever detective. He was surrounded by characters of dubious quality. The mystery was interesting and a bit weird. I’m definitely planning on picking up the other books.  4/5

The Moomins (The Invisible Child and The Fir Tree) by Tove Jansson *

Two cute short stories from the Moomin world. I adore the Moomins and had never read the actual books. It was very cute and enjoyable.   4/5

The Witches by Roald Dahl *

I think The Witches is one of the few Roald Dahl books that I haven’t read before. It was so good. Twisty and funny and bonkers as all his books are.Much darker than I thought it would be.Perfect for the 24 hour readathon.  3.5/5

The Wicked and The Divine, vol. 6 by Kieron Gillian *

This gets stronger and stronger with every volume. The mystery surrounding the characters deepens even further and we get to see a couple of the characters backgrounds. We also get to see them deal (rather badly) with the fallout of the last volume.  4/5

The Grendel Affair (SPI Files series, book 1) by Lisa Shearin*

I’m a massive fan of Lisa Shearin’s Raine Benares series. I’ve re-read it at least twice.And I have read this book before, I just failed to continue on with the rest of the books. So I decided I needed to re-read the first book again before I could continue on. It was such a joy to re-read. Its a fun, smart urban paranormal fantasy with some interesting characters and creatures. I like the mesh of supernatural creatures working in SPI. Now I need to pick up the second book.  4/5

The Duchess Deal (Girl Meets Duke series, book 1) by Tessa Dare

Historical romances are my comfort food. They are just always so easy and fun to read and perfect for palate cleansing in between heavy fantasy books or for when I’m feeling slumpy or unhappy with the world. Tessa Dare is one of my fave romance authors. Her books are always a good read and this was no less. I couldn’t put it down.It was just so good.The romance was really good and believable. Can’t wait to pick up her next book.  5/5

You (You series, book 1) by Caroline Kepnes

Good lord, creepy.So very creepy.I’m not usually a fan of creepy books especially ones about stalkers but this was surprisingly good. I was on the edge of my seat throughout the whole book. I think one of my favorite aspects is that all the characters are terrible,  terrible people, not just the main character Joe, which is very unusual.Seeing things from Joe’s POV is an odd sensation, there were points where I found myself siding with him. His actions seemed reasonable for a second before my brain snapped back to reality, which really speaks to the author's skill.I read this via audiobook which really helped me get into Joes’ mind frame which is really really scary.I’m not sure if I will pick up the sequel as it seemed a good stopping point and I don’t see how the second book can top this but you never know.  4/5