#This is just a random poll with not a deep sense in it. Just vote without thinking too much | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

hwaslayer · 10 months ago

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project: make you love me (jyh) | 13.5

♣︎ spotify playlist | series masterlist

—summary: yunho can’t stand how you’re so wrapped up in the notorious campus fuckboy, park seonghwa. he would gladly love you the way you deserve, despite being shy, awkward and the complete opposite of seonghwa. thus, when he finds himself spending more time with you over literature reviews and random study sessions, he decides to take on the challenge to win you over.

—pairing: jeong yunho x f. reader x park seonghwa

—genre: (18+ - minors dni) strangers/friends to lovers, college au | fluff, angst, smut

—word count: 1.8k

—chapter content/warnings: cussing/mature language, just a peek into some stuff that happened over break, very self indulgent honestly i just wanted more yuyu time lolol, the usual teasing between these lovebirds, making out, handjob, teensy weensy bit of spit play, unprotected sex, riding yunho after hes fresh out the shower purrrr 🤪

—a/n: hi! dropping a bonus chapter because it's like ... kinda necessary in order for the next update to make sense? more self indulgent tho LOL but it wasn't long enough to be a chapter chapter 😭 anywho, enjoy!! pls vote on my poll if you haven't already cause ya girl needs to figure out her priorities hehe ty 💕

"Get in the damn car! We're late!" Chaery yells at Seungmin as he lazily walks over after forcing for a pitstop just to get snacks. Yunho laughs as he watches from the rear view mirror, popping his mouth open when you lean over and feed him a fish ball.

"Why don't you get in and stop worrying about me? I'm getting there!" You hear Seungmin yell back as Soobin swings the door open and slides into the back seat.

"Maybe they'll never notice if we just drive off?" Soobin suggests, making Yunho chuckle again.

"He's almost to the car."

"Why is she hella mad anyway?" Soobin shivers in his jacket.

"He's taking his sweet ol' time. Plus, you know how Chaery is. Her family is full of seasoned travelers. They don't do pitstops and stuff." You dip the fish ball into the sauce and pop it into your mouth.

"Right." Soobin sips on his cup of coffee, scooting closer to the door when Chaery and Seungmin finally slip into their seats.

"We're literally so behind now. You made Yuyu wait." She continues to go at Seungmin, making him roll his eyes.

"Yunho, I'm sorry. I really had to use the bathroom. Some people don't understand it's a thing."

"You're good." Yunho starts up the car and instantly turns up the heat. "We've only got about an hour and a half left."

Today, you and your friends were off to spend a few days deep in the snow; renting a huge cabin near a snowboarding and ski resort. Yunho graciously offered to drive, patiently dealing with your friends and their requests on the way over.

Yunho heads to the cabin to help drop off the bags before meeting up with the rest already at the ski resort. He pulls into valet while the rest of you hop out and head straight into the store to get some gear and rent some snowboards. You find the rest of your friends hanging around in the café, sipping on hot cocoa while waiting for your group to arrive. Everyone is in good spirits, excited to see Yunho alongside of you. Even though he's tagged along a few times, you still can't help but feel worried about Yunho. You don't want him to feel isolated or left out, especially if you and your friends already have a good bond with each other. But, he fits in so well every single time, you almost feel like he's been friends with them for as long as you have been.

He tries, and the effort shows.

Once the snowboarding finally takes off, you find out that Yunho has been snowboarding before and is pretty comfortable with it. You, on the other hand, are terrified out of your mind. It takes a few tries, a patient Yunho and constant falls before you're [at the very least] boarding in a straight path. But, you're having fun and sharing lots of laughs with your friends, and you find yourself enjoying yourself no matter the circumstance.

After an hour or so of boarding, you, Yunho and a few of your friends sit off to the side to observe everyone else and play around with the snow in the surrounding area. You give your sister a Facetime call during the brief break, getting your friends and Yunho in the screen. Your sister kept calling Yunho a cutie, demanding for you to bring him over for dinner ASAP. Yunho agrees and tells your mom and sister that he'll see them soon again, waving goodbye before helping you stand to your feet for another round of snowboarding.

You and your friends are out there for another 1.5 hours before you call it quits, heading back to the cabin for a relaxing rest of the evening before another day of playing in the snow tomorrow. Everyone pitches in to make a good, hearty dinner— Yunho and a few of the other boys grilling in the covered back patio while the girls stayed indoors and finished preparing the rest of the dishes over some drinks. Once everything is set, everyone sits at the table and quietly enjoys their food before debating what to watch for the rest of the night.

After dinner, most of the food is gone, and the group is cleaning around before you head upstairs to your shared room with Yunho. You take a shower first, while Yunho hangs out with the group downstairs, enjoying the hot water as it hits your skin. You take a good, lengthy 20 minute shower; gently moisturizing before getting into Yunho's shirt and some shorts, leaving your wet hair to air dry.

Luckily, the cabin is warm enough, but you know you'll get cold the longer you sit around. Before leaving the room, you turn on the portable heater just to warm the room a bit more before you get to bed. By the time you've headed back downstairs, a few of your friends are huddled around the living room now watching a true crime docuseries with some snacks; the rest already resting in their rooms or asleep from the eventful day.

"I'm gonna shower." Yunho kisses your cheek before excusing himself to shower. You watch for a bit before helping clean up around the kitchen and living room. You then bid your friends goodnight— the exhaustion kicking in quick that you don't really have time to sit and enjoy the rest of the docuseries they've started. When you get back into the room with a cup of tea in hand, Yunho has just turned off the shower and steps out in nothing but a towel. His hair is damp and you can't help but ogle at his frame, his body. "Hey. You didn't wanna watch?"

"No, the exhaustion is hitting me pretty badly now. I just helped clean up a bit downstairs and made some tea."

"Mm. Is the room warm enough for you?" He points at the portable heater that he's turned up a bit more.

"Yes. It's cozy." You chuckle. "Thank you." You sit on the bed with your back against the wall, watching as Yunho takes a seat on the edge. He's running a smaller wet towel across his damp hair, his back facing you. You can't help but crawl over and throw your arms over his shoulders, planting random kisses against the side of his neck and shoulders.

"Cutie." He chuckles. "What can I do for you?"

"A kiss?" He smiles, dipping forward to connect his lips with yours in a sweet kiss.

"You sure that's all?" He teases. "You know you can just tell me, baby."

"That's all." You continue to kiss him, hand traveling down his chest, to grazing across the tent forming in his towel.

"Hey." He whines in between kisses, slightly hissing when you continue to gently palm him through the towel. "If you keep doing that, I won't be able to stop myself."

"Your fault for walking out of the damn bathroom when it's literally below 0 outside." He laughs, hands falling onto your hips when you crawl onto his lap.

"It was warm enough in here!"

"Sure." You playfully roll your eyes.

"Take these off." He whispers, tugging on your shorts.

"So bold." You tease as he helps you out of your shorts and bites his bottom lip.

"Mm, well. You started it." His hands come up your shirt to squeeze your sides. "Care to show me what exactly you need, love?" He smirks, a drip of a suave tone slipping through his lips.

"Mhm." You sit back a bit and run your hand up his towel to gently stroke his already-hardened member. He hisses and tilts his head back in pleasure, tempted to thrust into your hand as you pump him at a steady pace. He lets out low, strangled moans, trying his best to keep contact with you through hooded lids. You take the opportunity to spit onto his dick, letting it drip down the head and down his length while you pick up the pace. Yunho's moans are a little louder now, and hearing it drives you crazy.

"Jesus." He lowly groans. "Baby, wait, wait, wait—" He grabs at your wrist and stops you. "You'll make me cum if you keep going."

"You don't want that?"

"No. Or else, we would've gone through all that trouble of taking off your shorts for nothing." You giggle, adjusting your position to line him up at your entrance.

"We have to be quiet."

"Do we? They have the docuseries on loud downstairs." You slowly sink down his length, lips attaching to his as you both let out soft moans while adjusting to the feeling.

"Mm, but there's still rooms across—" Yunho chases after your lips, enclosing it in a heated kiss before you can say anything else. He grips onto your hips and guides you at a steady pace, more gargled and low moans leaving him as you work him.

"They won't hear a thing, pretty. Don't worry." He smirks against your lips. "Is it really a bad thing, though?"

"Yunho." You giggle, tilting your head back in pleasure when his cock hits you in all the right places, clit rubbing against him perfectly.

"Love when you say my name like that." He mutters against your neck, tongue swiping against the surface before he bites onto your neck. You let out a sigh just as his hand comes to your neck, gently squeezing as he watches you ride him at a steady rhythm.

"You feel so good." Your hands trail up the nape of his neck, tugging at the ends of his hair. His hands come back to your sides as he whispers in your ear, praising and cooing you straight to the edge.

Gonna keep being a good girl for me?

Riding me like you were made for me.

So pretty, so beautiful.

My baby.

And it only takes a couple of more rolls against Yunho before you're twitching and trembling in his grip, digging your nails into his shoulders as he thrusts up into you and fills you up shortly afterwards. He groans as lets out every last bit into you, lips grazing against your neck before planting a soft trail there, to your jaw, to your lips.

"That was fun." You say, making Yunho chuckle.

"Let's get cleaned up." He looks down at the towel that's now on the floor. "Again." You laugh, heading to the bathroom to clean up, get dressed and do some final touches before slipping into bed with Yunho. He instantly pulls you into his arms, wrapping one around your shoulders while you lay on his chest. "Can barely keep my eyes open now." You smile when Yunho kisses you on the forehead, letting out a content sigh with you in his arms.

"Yunho?"

"Mhm?"

"Thanks for coming along on this little trip."

"Wouldn't miss it for a thing, love." He hums against you, falling asleep in due time just to repeat the agenda all over again tomorrow.

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yami268 · 2 years ago

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Zelgadis vs the Internet: Polling Theme: Modern AU Rating/Warnings: K Words: 699 Summary: While Zelgadis is browsing the internet, he comes across a poll that shakes his core and Amelia tries to help.

It happened to be one of those days where Zelgadis was mindlessly browsing the internet. He was doing some of his normal activities with several tabs opened. Many were for watching videos and there were a couple for checking his friends’ blogs. In all honesty, he found the social media aspect to be a pain. Still, it wasn’t like he didn’t have his own, but he didn’t do much with it.

While checking up on the latest posts, he decided on a whim to search himself, just for curiosity’s sake. He soon typed in his name and hit enter, seeing an alarming number of results that were about him. The top post was, surprisingly, a poll. Like one of those weird random polls that seemed to pop up from users who had nothing better to do. After scanning through, he saw that he was somehow one of the options for this poll. And to add even more insult to injury, he was losing. Badly.

As he entered a state of a sudden mental breakdown, Amelia popped up right beside him. “Hello, mister Zelgadis! What’s ya doing?” She didn’t get a response from him, which made her worried a bit. So, she poked him a couple of times until he snapped out of it.

“Huh?!” Zelgadis jumped, looking over at Amelia. “Oh, hey, Amelia.”

“Hello again, Mister Zelgadis. I asked what you were doing?”

“Well, I decided to see if there were any posts of me on social media and found this dumb poll. Also, I’m losing,” he answered, his head drooping a bit.

“What?!” Amelia exclaimed, causing Zelgadis to fall out of his seat. “How can this be?! To think that people would not vote for the most coolest person in the entire world! I swear, by the shining stars of Justice, that I will right this horrible wrong!”

“It’s fine, Amelia. It’s not like I care about something like that,” he lied as he deep down did care.

She then glanced over at him with a curious glint in her eye. “What is this poll about anyway?”

“I’m… not sure.” Zelgadis took a look at the post again, carefully reading what it was about. “… It says, ‘Best Coolest Dork Blorbo’.”

“… What’s a blorbo?”

“Beats me.” Zelgadis sighed. Maybe it was for the best anyway. He definitely knew he wasn’t a dork and blorbo could have been something along those lines. Still, he couldn’t help but be in an anxious state of low self-esteem, something that Amelia had noticed very well.

After pondering a way to get him out of his forlorn mood, she then asked him, “Um, mister Zelgadis, do you mind if I use one of the pictures I have of you?”

“Sure, why not,” he replied in a despairing tone. She then skirted off to the side, leaving him to wallow in self-pity. After some time, Zelgadis decided to check that poll again, to see how poor he was doing. To his surprise, he saw that he had a few more votes than before but was also gaining a lead.

He soon turned to Amelia, staring at her fidgeting form with an eyebrow. “Amelia, did you do something?”

She looked back at him, letting out a forced chuckle. “Well… Since it seemed unfair to be that far behind, I decided to vote for you. I also asked my online friends if they could vote too and showed them a neat pic of you.”

“Oh, really?” he said, his tone becoming increasingly gruffer.

Sensing his irritation, she stared with big emotional eyes. "Was that too much?”

“No! it’s fine,” he said, peddling back a bit. He then glanced away, rubbing the back of his head. “I’m just amaze you did this.”

“Of course! You’re my favorite blorbo… Whatever that means,” Amelia said before giving him a quick kiss on the cheek. His face turned red, stunned by the whole gesture. Still, a part of him was glad that she would be there, no matter how miniscule.

It was only a few seconds later that Zelgadis then had a realization. “Wait… What picture did you use?” Amelia soon became flustered, inching herself away as he stared.

#Slayers #Zelame Week #Zelame #Amelia Wil Tesla Seyrunn #Zelgadis Greywords #Modern AU #Was inspired by that poll I did #Fear the internet

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queers-gambit · 2 years ago

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Angel is the Centerfold

prompt: insecurity runs deep when Eddie's secret lady-love finds the worn pages of a centerfold - marked on a woman who looks nothing like her.

pairing: Eddie Munson x female!cheerleader!reader

fandom masterlist: Stranger Things

note: you ever just get overwhelmed and wanna dip off for a week because you need to recharge your battery? reader's actually able to do that here - lucky ducky.

word count: 2.7k

warnings: cursing (when isn't there), insecurity, small angst, comfort ending i guess.

Let's be honest, high school wasn't easy on anyone. Sure, some people could slip through the cracks while remaining unnoticed, unseen, unheard, and never bothered. Others weren't as lucky but it wasn't as bad or pressured as some other lives in high school.

I wasn't gonna make excuses for the other jocks but I found life just flowed a little simpler if I nestled myself securely on the outskirts of social circles.

I was once lead in the spring musical last year and liked to keep up with my drama friends; I was voted in as class president in October; pitcher on the softball team; might've even found myself on the cheerleading squad.

Did it make sense? Probably not to others.

But for the way my mind liked to race, keeping extra busy with a plethora of friends was easier. I was never in one 'crowd' and could hop around freely to my choosing; occasionally even hopping over to the Hellfire Club on a few random days.

Those were the conversations I was most animated in.

These guys never gave a fuck and liked pushing creative envelopes. So, they wouldn't push me about my home life but sure as shit pushed me into whether or not I thought Luke Skywalker was hot or not. Gareth was running a very important poll and it was vital I give them my honest opinion on the Jedi.

If I wanted, I usually had a seat at Hellfire, too. I couldn't make every game and usually my character was someone fleeting due to my busy schedule... But it was how I came to really get to know Eddie Munson better. He was the Dungeon Master and was always willing to hang for an extra hour to go over some details about the campaign or game.

If I didn't understand something, he was breaking it down for me. He teased me, sure, but never made me feel lesser-than for not grasping a concept completely.

It could've been the reason we started hanging out at his trailer.

Maybe it was also because life was finally catching up to me and overwhelming me in a tsunami wave of stress, and I needed an escape.

Either way, one moment, I'm content being a busy little bee, and the next, I'm crying my eyes out at Eddie Munson's trailer as a roach smoldered in a glass ashtray between us.

It became something of a regular occurrence for us. Sometimes, I ran into his Uncle Wayne on his way out to work and other times, it was nearly pitch black when I arrived. But Eddie was always welcoming; never complaining when I'd burrow into one of his hoodies for comfort; content to roll a joint and let the pair of us rant about our weekly worries.

I guess he got sick of hearing me complain so much because one evening, perhaps while rambling, Eddie leaned forward and seared his lips on mine. He made some comment about shutting me up like this from now on before pressing his tongue into my mouth and commandeering every known thought I had.

It worked... For the first couple months.

It was nice to feel like I had something private, 100% for myself. Nobody knew that Eddie Munson was the guy I spent my free time with; they didn't need to know I started blowing them off in favor of him. They didn't know how we would lay in his bed, fucking, talking, laughing, smoking; they never needed to know how he whispered sweet nothings in my ear, and like a fool, how I ate it up.

It was private. Eddie was private.

Stolen glances in the hallway, a few kisses in empty classrooms.

But then... It turned a little repetitive.

Once, I'd met him in the woods (per his request) and when I arrived 'early', he was in the midst of another deal. Waving me off as "another customer that can wait", he turned to the boy in front of him and all but basically ignored me.

I knew we weren't public, but damn, right?

And there was the time when my Mom's car tire blew and she couldn't pick me up from softball practice... But Hellfire had just let out and when I asked Eddie for a ride home, he chuckled, "I would, princess, but I don't think I could fit your reputation in my van."

I get there were some other people around when I asked, but shit.

Oh! And there was that other time when he and I went to the corner store for a few snacks and his arm was securely around my shoulders. It was about 12:30 in the morning on a Saturday, and sure, not many people were out but a few had come in after us... And Eddie had dropped his arm so quick, you would've thought he was burned.

He had waited until they were gone before letting us pay together and leave...

It was starting to feel more and more like Eddie was ashamed of me. Like he didn't want to be seen with me... Like he couldn't stomach the idea of people knowing he was into me - or I was into him.

None the less, the idea started to gnaw at my mind because I couldn't begin to understand what was so wrong about... Well, me.

Eddie had called that night and asked if I was down for a movie and joint, claiming he had picked up my favorite candy at the store today and needed my company to break into it. I had agreed with the thought that maybe I'd just gently broach the subject; just ask in earnest if there was something about me he was ashamed of or not.

"Hey, sweetheart," Eddie panted when he opened the door for me, instantly leading me through his trailer, "I'm so sorry, I lost track of time. You mind hanging tight so I can hop a quick shower?"

"Oh, yeah, no problem," I assured, nodding with a small smile.

"Thanks, doll," he whispered, kissing my cheek, "be just a minute."

I nodded absently and watched him go, looking around his room and finding it only mildly messy today. I sat on his bed and rubbed my hands together, trying to think of the best way to ask him what was up, when suddenly, my eyes caught sight of a dog-eared magazine peaking out from under a pair of boxers in front of Eddie's bedside stand. Curiosity burned my stomach and I let the tip of my show gingerly toe the boxers to the side and cocked my head to get a better look.

Only... I almost wish I hadn't.

The woman in the worn-centerfold was outstandingly gorgeous and her curves were natural. You could say I was staring but there's a way you can tell - and that woman, staring up at me, was 100% natural. She was something lethally beautiful with sculptured thighs and a taunt stomach; defining outlines running along her curves.

Picture perfect.

An angel in the centerfold.

Her hair was even perfectly cascading around her, maybe akin to a halo that draped off her thin, highlighted shoulders. Reaching up to feel my own, I couldn’t help but scoff and drop my hand instantly as even our fucking hair was stark opposite one another.

I felt my mouth dry as I took note of her breasts and how they spilled from her lace bra before darting my eyes down to skim her body and land on the smooth, hairless cunt peaking out from a pair of pure white crotchless panties. Taking a sobering breath, I realized everything about her was in some way, shape, or form the exact opposite of me.

Insecurity reared its ugly head and made me question if this was the reason Eddie didn't want to be seen with me. If this was why he didn't want to commit; to date me; to let others know... Because I was wrong. I was all wrong in his mind - this woman with the perfect natural body was a reflection of what he thought was ideal.

His idea of what he wanted.

And it was the literal opposite of me.

Feeling sick, I let my foot jerk to push the boxers back over and stood nervously from his bed. The room was about to collapse on me and a ringing started in my ears, forcing my feet to move or else I'd break down in sobs right there.

Pausing at the cracked bathroom door, I knocked and called, "Hey, Eddie, I forgot my aunt's coming to town and I have to help my mom. I'll just call you later, okay?"

Praying to God my voice remained steady, I waited as Eddie mulled over my words. "A-Are you sure, sweetheart? I didn't get to see you much this week. We can always just watch a movie, or something?"

"I'm sure, I'll just call you later. Bye," I called, not leaving room for argument.

"O-Okay, call me when you get home! Bye! Drive safe!" Eddie called over the sounds of his shower; my feet surging to get me as far from the trailer park as possible.

Call it childish but I didn't call Eddie. I just didn't really have it in me to entertain a conversation where I wasn't okay. In fact, I didn't really have it in me to do anything that week. So, I took mercy on myself and canceled all of my obligations - only going to classes, and then straight home, where I remained alone in my room as my mother worked nightshifts at the hospital this week.

And at lunch, I just hung out in the SGA room where I made up for the work I'd miss from all my canceled after-school meetings.

So, it was easy to avoid everyone. Easy peasy.

Nobody seemed to notice because of how thin I constantly stretched myself, but my self esteem took a major blow that I wasn't really looking to actively heal and wanted a little peace to myself. So I made myself extra scarce by faking a really bad period so nobody would question me too much.

Turns out, maybe Eddie noticed my flighty behavior. I didn't know it, but after school on Wednesday, he caught Chrissy's elbow and ducked into an empty classroom to ask her what was up with me.

The head cheerleader assured him I was just feeling a little under the weather, not putting too much thought into why he seemed so worried. She knew you two were friends and figured he thought I was sick, not realizing he was actually trying to understand why I had blown everything (and one) off this week.

After school Friday, Eddie had enough and loaded into his van after clocking my absence at practice again. Not that he was paying attention (he totally was), but I'd missed the whole week, and he knew that wasn't normal.

So, when he showed up at my door, imagine his shock to see me answer it in my pajamas.

"Eddie," I felt my eyes widen, trying to subtly close the thick cardigan I was wearing around my leggings and tank top. "Uh, did I forget something in History?"

"Funny enough, you did."

"Oh."

"Yeah," he breathed, "see, by my observations, you've been blowing everyone off this week, and can mean you've forgotten your friends."

I scoffed, "No, not entirely."

"Yes, entirely," he repeated. "What's going on with you?"

"Nothing."

"Bullshit," he shook his head. "You've not been in the cafeteria all week, you haven't been doing the morning announcements, you haven't shown up at Hellfire, or SGA, or cheer, or any of your other orgs - the hell's up with you?"

"Oh, I uh... Didn't think anyone really realized," I admitted quietly.

"When you move as quick as you do and then come to a screeching halt, yeah," he chuckled, "a few people notice. So, again, what's wrong?"

"It's literally nothing."

"So, why're you blowing me off too?"

"I'm not."

"You're standing pretty defensively in your doorway," he pointed out softly. "Am I... Like, am I not welcome anymore?" His question caught me off guard because I wasn’t sure how to answer it. My silence was enough of an answer as he whimpered, "Oh, shit, wait, what'd I do, sweetheart?"

"You didn't do anything."

"Well, obviously I did if - "

"No," I sniffled, cutting him off, "that's what's wrong, you just... You never did anything."

"Okay, darlin', I'm confused," he paused. "What didn't I do?"

"You... You were always ashamed of me, never wanted to be seen with me, or let people know we were hanging out. I get we weren't dating, but you never asked me to be your girlfriend, either. So, yeah, you didn't do anything... And then I just... I found something that confirmed I'm nothing like what you want. So, maybe you're not welcome here anymore because I don't think I was ever welcome in your life."

"Sweetheart, how can you say that?" Eddie asked in confusion. "I'm ashamed of you? No, that's the farthest from the truth! Where is this - I don’t understand.”

"C’mon, Eddie. You literally run the other way when it comes to even seeing me in public," I pointed out. "If you're ashamed, that's one thing. If you just don't want to be in a relationship, that's another. But I don't think you really want to be with me, so, let's just cut our losses."

"What the hell could you have seen that made you think I don't want you?" he scoffed. "Darlin', I just - I'm not very good at this shit, okay? And I'm the Freak, remember? You're gonna take more of a social hit dating me than I will - I just wanted to try and protect you from the ridicule coming your way for even being seen with me."

"Then that's my decision to make," I shrugged.

"You're right," he agreed. "And I'll let you make that decision on your own, but that's if you even want to be with me. 'Cause apparently you've found something that's so Earth-shattering, it's making you think I don't want you. Darlin', I worship you, okay? So whatever it is, I promise it’s not what you think.”

"Then why... Why don't I look like them?"

"What?" He asked. "Like who, doll?"

"I know it’s stupid but… The women you look at in magazines, okay? The women you fantasize about - those women. Why don't they and I look alike?"

Eddie looked gobsmacked for a moment but recovered quickly, speaking softly but strongly, “Because they're exactly that, pretty girl, a fantasy. Nothing like the real thing," he smiled at me. "And for whatever it's worth, I look at a variety of things, so, the odds of you lookin' like one of the women I look at... Are actually pretty high."

"Eddie - "

"No, I'm serious," he smirked, "'cause I just think about you most of the time. Those women might get me started but it's the thought of you that takes me out, hmm?"

"Oh, my God," I couldn't help but laugh, "okay, okay, you've made your point.”

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. I guess I just got a little in my head.”

"So, why're you home instead of at practice? You’re always over thinkin’ something, why’s your head all in a twist?”

"Well, you, Munson, put my head in a twist pretty consistently. And for the record, it started as an insecure week that required a lot of self-care."

"Well, what's on the agenda for tonight?"

"Um, gonna paint my nails and watch a few movies?"

"Got room for one more?" He pouted dramatically. "Missed you this whole week, and I barely got to see you last week, too."

"I think I could squeeze you in somewhere," I smiled with a nod, opening my arms to let him step over the threshold and into my embrace. Against his chest, I spoke, "If I didn't want to be with you, Munson, I wouldn't be. So, don't go worrying about protecting my reputation, because I'm only concerned with my happiness - and you make me pretty damn happy.”

I felt Eddie's arms tighten and his lips press to the top of my head, "Good plan, baby. And I'm only concerned with your happiness, as well."

"All right, kiss-ass, you’re already invited in. Don’t gotta lay it on too thick.”

“Oh, so, I don’t have to offer to paint your toes?”

I paused, letting my chin press to his chest as he smirked down at me. “Well now, wait a minute…”

#eddie munson #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson x you #eddie munson imagine #eddie stranger things #eddie x reader #stranger thing s4 #stranger things 4 #stranger things season 4 #stranger things #stranger things x reader #eddie munson x fem!reader #eddie munson x oc #eddie munson x y/n #requests open

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natalilysims · 4 years ago

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Legacy Questionnaire

Thought this would be fun to do so I can look back on it after a few more generations pass and see how some answers change. This can also be done as a ‘send me a number’ game so if you want to do that you can find the original post by @melien, here. Inspired by @an0nymousghost, you can check out their post here!

1. When did you start your legacy? What inspired you to do it?

I started this Legacy on March 28, 2019. I usually do challenges where there are a lot of rules for each generation but I wanted to start something where I could do pretty much what I wanted and play a little bit more out of my comfort zone. And I’d seen a lot of amazing Legacies on Simblr that made me want to do my own and post it.

2. Are you following any strict rules there or just play how you want?

Nah, I’m basically just doing what I want.

3. Post the oldest picture you have from your legacy save.

The first ever Sharp house. Originally created by lilsimsie but I gave it a renovation. It’s up for download if anyone wants it!

4. What’s so special about your founder that you wanted to start a legacy with them?

She wasn’t really special to be honest. I just finally made a Sim that I managed to enjoy playing enough to not give up and start a new family like I’ve done a few times before with Legacy Challenges.

5. Favourite generation(s)

Generation 1 was probably my favourite. Which makes it sounds like I’ve enjoyed the family less and less as the challenge has gone on but that not the case at all. I think it’s because even though it was only a little over a year ago, I have a bit of nostalgia for that generation? Idk, I’m weird.

6. Favourite heir.

Probably Harper, the Gen 3 heir.

7. Favourite spare.

Either Abi from Gen 1 or Jordan from Gen 3.

8. Favourite spouse.

Alessia, the Gen 4 spouse. I’m gonna be really sad when I have to move on to Gen 5 and stop playing her.

9. Top 5 favourite legacy sims.

1. Jordan 2. Alessia 3. Sonny 4. Abi 5. Hayley

10. Top 3 favourite couples.

1. Safiya and Milo - the OG couple of this challenge. I have to stan. 2. Jordan and Jackson - kinda look like brothers but I just love them so much. 3. Eli and Alessia - currently playing them and they’re so cute.

11. If you ever did any story lines, what is the one you’re most proud of?

I’m not a huuuge fan of making big story lines for my Sims but sometimes I have little things in my head about the Sims’ personality or their motivations for doing certain things that someone looking through my legacy won’t know because I don’t necessarily put them into my posts to make a huge story.

12. Any memorable moments?

Mango, a cat from Gen 2, randomly going into labour. I literally don’t know how she got pregnant.

13. Any funny moments?

None that I can think of. That’s upsetting.

14. The most unexpected twist in your legacy?

Some of the kids were unexpected twists - Harper and Hazel weren’t supposed to exist and neither was Eli but I have a problem with making my Sims have too many kids.

15. Favourite name used on your sims?

I remember being very excited about naming Gus. And I love the name Sonny, especially for a boy. For surnames, I was really proud of Nair and Lane, even though they’re pretty basic lmao.

16. Who of your legacy sims you can relate the most to?

I don’t really relate to any but if I had to choose it would either be Abi or Harper.

17. Do you usually get attached to them or just play without deep thinking?

I get kind of attached in that I love looking back at old screenshots and remember how fun it was to play them but I don’t cry when my Sims die or anything like that because I usually have other Sims that I can move onto and focus on. And like... if I really wanted to see a Sim again, I probably have them saved somewhere.

18. Any surprise babies? What was the story?

Not really a surprise because I made it happen, but Harper and Hazel were not part of my original plan for Generation 2. I planned on Faye only having 2 kids but I was bored and when that happens I usually cure the boredom by having more kids, which I’m trying very hard to stop doing because after the excitement of having the baby is over, I can be even less interested in playing than I was initially.

19. Who of your sims has the best style?

I feel like none of my Sims have the best style, they’re all pretty generic, but if I had to choose... Jordan or Harper.

20. Who is the best genetic mix of their parents?

This is definitely a flaw of The Sims 4 and its shitty skin tones but I quite like that Max and Jordan (who are twins) have a slight mix of their parent’s genetics. Max has Harper’s hair and Cheyanne’s skin tone. And Jordan has Cheyanne’s hair and Harper’s skin tone.

Again, this shouldn’t be a thing. The kids should have a skin tone that’s in the middle of what their parents’ skin tone is but I just thought it was interesting when I noticed it.

21. Is your legacy berry, vanilla, banilla, or a mix of those?

Vanilla in the sense that they aren’t berry sims but not vanilla in the sense that I use a lot of CC and some mods.

22. Have you ever done another legacies apart from this one?

I’ve started a few, two of which I began posting on here but then deleted because I didn’t like how they were going. I was 100% expecting to give up with the Sharp family as well but it’s going pretty good so far.

23. How many generations are you aiming for? When you reach a certain milestone, are you going to continue playing or just wrap up the whole thing?

If I lose interest at any point and genuinely get bored of the Sharp family then I’ll probably stop at the end of whichever generation I’m on but ideally I want to complete 10 generations. I might take a Sim born in the final generation and use them in another legacy/challenge I start as a spouse or something but I’ll stop with the Sharp Legacy after 10.

24. Have you ever done any other challenges with your sims from the legacy?

At some point I probably will use someone from the Sharp family in something else but so far I haven’t. I will be using a Sim from another challenge/family in Sharp Gen 5 though.

25. What do you do when you feel uninspired playing the legacy?

Either stop playing The Sims 4 altogether or play another challenge/family for a bit.

26. Have you had your sims die? Which death was the hardest to take?

I’m on Gen 4 so a lot of Sims have died at this point, all from old age. So far, Harper’s was probably the hardest to take.

27. Do you have this one OTP that stands out among the other legacy couples? Tell us about them!

Jordan and Jackson. I don’t know what it is about them, I just love them so much. Sometimes I wish I made Jackson the heir. I knew that for Gen 4 I wanted to live in Sulani and do Island Living stuff but I didn’t mold Jordan into an Island Living type of Sim so it wouldn’t have fit very well.

28. Have you had a sim who you grew to like?

Eli was very unplanned and I had no idea what to name him and I was like ugh why did I do this but now I love him a lot. Originally, I named him Casper.

Bailey was also very hard to name. I’ve always really loved her, it’s just the name that I’m not sure about. I like the name Bailey but something about Bailey Sharp isn’t my fave. And Sonny and Bailey don’t go together that well imo. But at the same time, now I couldn’t imagine her having a different name so... idk.

29. Have you had a sim that you fell in love with right away?

I’m always obsessed with the first born in a generation so - Abi, Hanna, Max & Jordan, Sonny

30. Do you choose your heirs yourself or make heir polls?

I have thought about making an heir poll when I’m not sure what I want to do for the next Generation but so far, I’ve managed to figure it out so I haven’t needed a poll.

Also, when it comes to choosing an heir, I usually like to choose when they are still a child so I can kind of mold them into what I want for the next Generation as they’re growing up. So making a poll would be hard because the people voting wouldn’t know my plan and I wouldn’t want to give major spoilers for what’s to come.

31. The first legacy memory that pops up in your head?

Safiya going to a cafe to make friends but she ended up just sitting alone drinking coffee. Or when Cheyanne and Harper went on a date and Harper died...

32. The hottest sim?

Gus, Max or Brandie

33. The prettiest sim?

I feel like I’ve been very lucky with this family because all the kids have been really pretty but if I had to choose, probably either Abi, Hayley or Jordan.

34. The most unique sim?

I feel like all my Sims are pretty basic to be honest. If I had to choose... maybe Jordan? I’m not sure.

35. Have you had any sims that remind you of someone?

I’ve never really thought about it, so I guess not.

36. Do you use other people’s sims in your legacy?

I think most of the Sims I’ve used for this Legacy are either pre-made Sims in the saves I’ve been using or I’ve made them. I don’t think I’ve specifically downloaded anyone from somewhere for my Sim to marry. I probably will do that at some point though.

37. Imagine if you had a chance to meet one of your sims. Who would it be?

That’s so weird for me to imagine but if I had to, either Jordan or Harper.

38. Do you have that one generation you wish you’d done differently?

I love Brandie and Eli so much but I sometimes wish Harper and Cheyanne had Max and Jordan and then were done with babies because 2 generations in a row with 4 babies is a bit much.

39. Your favourite non-romantic relationship in the legacy?

Harper and Hazel were fun to play with at the beginning of Gen 3 when they went to university.

40. Random fun fact about your legacy you want to share!

I’m trying to make each generation a bit different and focus on a pack. Gen 1 and Gen 2 were both fairly generic but Gen 3 had a university theme for a while and Gen 4 is Island Living. Gen 5 will probably be a mix of Island Living and Eco Lifestyle (if I can be bothered to figure out how to properly work Eco-Lifestyle).

#sharpfam #idk what to tag this lmao

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sflow-er · 8 months ago

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Okay so... time for some thoughts of my own.

Had this poll been conducted before S3, my vote would have actually been "strictly platonic (non-shipper)". I may write fic about them, but in canon, their portrayal has never crossed the line from platonic to romantic. I also feel that it isn't really possible to tell a happy background love story with them in a satisfactory way considering what we know about them (especially Henry's background), and I seriously doubted the makers of YR would want to tell an unhappy one.

That last point still holds true, but as of the finale, I feel like their portrayal has shifted to "open to interpretation" after all. Here is why.

The meadow scene is a blatant parallel to Wilmon on the football field in S1E4. See this post by @waltybrainrot for screenshots. Basically, we have Wille/Henry passed out or on the verge of it, lying with his face to the side. Then we have Simon/Walter hauling him up and looking after him. All of this takes place in a field of green grass - the plastic turf of the football field for Wilmon, a lush meadow for Walty. There is no reason whatsoever for the scene to be set and filmed like this except as a wink to the Walty shippers.

The order of scenes in YR is not random but often used to connect things for the viewer. Sometimes the connection is relevant to the current narrative (e.g. the cuts between Sara&Micke in the car and August leaving the dorm in S3E3 or the S1 scenes that cut between dinner at Hillerska and the Eriksson house) but it can also be a more obscure connection that will only make sense later on. For example the camera work in S1E2, which cuts from August working out before rowing practice to Sara riding Rousseau before class. Feels like seemingly non-sequitur scene-setting imagery but also serves to connect these characters in your mind and foreshadow some similarities and an upcoming relationship between them. So why does Walty's meadow scene follow Stedrika's friends-to-lovers makeout session, and why are they the only other glimpse we get of background characters waking up that day (instead of, say, Nils and Vincent who are more central to the narrative)...?

The outtake that could be seen on director Linnéa Roxeheim's IG (first posted here by @youngroyalsnshameless) is not canon, but the fact that she posted it may tell us something about the writers' initial intentions:

I mean... It sure would be easy to read a Heartstopper reference into this, what with the obvious bi flag lighting. Or a SKAM S3 reference, what with the red cups and stripes of neon face paint. Which by the way almost resemble a Pride flag here, and their placement on the cheek almost looks like a "this character is queer" meme.

(And if you really want to go off the deep end, you can also note that the stripes look bright green - a colour that used to be associated with gay men, as popularised by Oscar Wilde, who also popularised the idea of wearing a green carnation on the lapel, which may have been referenced by Wille's crochet flower in S3E5. But that's already quite far down so let's swim back up now. I mostly just wrote this bit to demonstrate the kinds of leaps we fans can take so don't take it too seriously.)

Anyway, when you put all this together, it sure starts to look like the makers knew exactly what they were doing with Walty at and after the party. They knew this fandom always liked to analyse and find hidden meanings and parallels, and they knew Walty shippers would be on the lookout for any clues. So they delivered, in a way that would not feel too obvious (cutting out the HS/SKAM parallel) or unrealistic (letting us infer that something might happen between them without making us wonder how and whether it would work out).

So yeah, I would say "open to interpretation" now. And although I still don't consider myself a shipper, I do feel more like a fan than a non-shipper trying to trace the parallels.

Time for a little Walty (Henry/Walter)* poll!

*Or Valty (Henry/Valter) if you prefer. I'm sticking with the W.

It's safe to say that S3 and the meadow scene in particular have made many people more aware of this background ship and may have even shifted some viewers' perceptions of them. I figured it might be fun to see if thoughts on their status at the end of canon differ between shippers/fans and non-shippers.

So, hcs and fanon aside...

Feel free to justify your choice in the tags/replies! Please be respectful though - I don't want to see any ship wars or hate for these characters, people who enjoy them or even people who dislike them!

Reblogs for larger sample size are much appreciated! Will reblog with my own thoughts later.

#young royals #henry young royals #walty #walter young royals #yr s3 #young royals analysis #young royals season 3 #yr s3 spoilers #young royals s3 #my s3 thoughts

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lhs3020b · 5 years ago

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Boris And the Baddest of Bad Weeks

I promised an expanded entry on what’s going on at the moment in our national meltdown, so here it is...

Allow me, if I may, to walk back an earlier comment of mine. Some time ago, I was distinctly skeptical about the idea of an early general election. However, the situation has evolved. You see, there was one thing I didn't count on. I never imagined that Boris Johnson would be stupid enough to force nearly two dozen of his MPs out of his party.

That's right: I over-estimated his intelligence. Umm, whoops.

In my defence, what he did may well have been the single most utterly-stupidly self-defeating maneuver ever in British politics. The only sense I can make from it is that he's having a narcisistic breakdown. Actually, viewed in that very narrow light, perhaps it does make a little sense. If you've ever had the misfortune to have a narcissist in your life, you'll be aware that the thing they just can't cope with is any sort of rejection. The "no"-word tends to summon a meltdown - and of course BoJo faced a pretty major series of "nopes" from Parliament this week.

The other thing I didn't count on was that apparently yes, there actually are some things that some Tory MPs just won't do, even if the consequences of Not Doing The Thing runs to damaging their personal careers. This did come as a surprise to me - I'd assumed that blind partisanship and the desire for salaries would ultimately trump - or perhaps, Trump - all other concerns. But no, credit where it's due, it turns out that for at least 21 of them, there was a floor on the greed after all. Admittedly it's taken us three years of accelerating chaos to find it, but it was there.

The next factor that I didn't count on was that the opposition parties got their act together. Bluntly, there was no hint of this over the summer. The speed with which it happened has left me a little dazed. The earlier failure to call a Vote of No Confidence, the weird shenanigens over ludicrous Governments-of-National-Unity, the generalised infighting and chronic myopia ... just two weeks ago, it was not looking good. I was basically starting to quietly accept that we on the pro-Remain side were finally defeated, and worst of all, we'd been defeated mainly by our own allies.

Then the prorogue happened.

It's fair to say that it's already backfired. The obvious cynicism of the strategy, the naked contempt for all the institutions of British government, the sheer gall of it all - it was meant to energise the pro-Brexit crowd. Instead, it appears to have driven everyone on the soft-Brexit/pro-Remain aisle into a state of thermonuclear rage. And if there's one thing that can bring unlikely allies together, it's a common enemy. By pursuing his grandiose "oh look at me being so Brexity!" cock-strutting routine, Boris accidentally made himself into exactly that enemy.

The other factor was that the prorogue has imposed a sharp time-limit. Consequently, Continuity!Remain just doesn't have the luxury of descending into factional infighting. The deep irony is that putting us on a tight deadline has actually helped us. It's imposed a focus that just wasn't there even 10 days ago.

Meanwhile, as for the wider country, well, Boris's walk-about up north yesterday seems to have been a complete disaster. Random people were basically coming up to him to tell him that it had all gone wrong. Then there was that bizarre speech he gave in front of a captive audience of police recruits. It was just weird - proper delusion territory, and entirely-incoherent. I'd like to compare it to Trump, but at least Trump can manage a consistent theme. Johnson was just rambling. There was nothing there, except possibly a desperate plea for attention. A lot of the political journalists I follow are openly-speculating about whether BoJo was on drugs during the speech.

(And wouldn't that be the ultimate post-2016 banter-timeline twist? If the Prime Minister - the Prime Minister! - got busted for snorting crack?)

Meanwhile, BoJo's narc-meltdown has accidentally undone Theresa May's one significant achievement.

Contrary to what many people think, Theresa May did manage to thread one single needle. That was, she (mostly) managed to keep the parliamentary Conservative Party together. Granted a few MPs jumped ship to Change UK earlier in the year, but it stayed in single digits. There was no big split - and, significantly, the Change UK crowd got wet feet about no-confidencing her. The advantage of this was that Theresa May avoided having the Tories fall into what we might call the 1922 Trap. Here's what I mean by that: in the late 19th Century, the old Liberal Party was increasingly-split on the issue of Home Rule for Ireland. The tensions only got worse as time went on. Then Asquith went and delivered the First World War and precious little else of value. (He was notably-slimey on votes for women, and seemed uninterested in doing anything about the property qualification that 40% of men still faced. The cynic might note that Nick Clegg's behaviour is not entirely new.) Lloyd George tried to put the party back on its feet, but the damage was done. During the 1920s, the Liberals were openly-split. At elections, Liberals ran against each other in numerous constituencies. Because of the way first-past-the-post voting works, in practise this meant that Tories or Labour got elected instead. (A constituency has - say - 46% of the vote for any Liberal candidate, but two run. Each of them gets 23% of the vote. A.N. Other Party takes 24% and gets the MP's seat.)

Theresa May's political strategy - yes, she actually did have one - was predicated on avoiding having Tories run against other Tories at elections. Given their divisions, it was a narrow needle, but she mostly managed to thread it. Boris Johnson has gone and exploded that. You see, of the 21 MPs he's sacked from the party, several are saying they'll contest the next election as independents.

It's hard to know just how big a problem the 1922 Trap will be - but, their vote is already split with the Brexit Party. And even the most optimistic opinion polls have the Tories around 10pts down on where they were in 2017. They're already in minority in the House - how many votes can they afford to lose, really?

Meanwhile, there's a further problem. The Tories' drift to the political right may have taken them too far. They assume that their friends at the Times, the Sun, the Telegraph and the BBC can plaster over the cracks for them - but, can they? The media was full-throated for May in 2017, and she still lost her majority. The newspapers are hysterical and shriekier than ever - but, who reads them? I can't remember the last time I bought a physical copy of one of the main papers. I suspect that's true of many other people too. There are signs that the socially-liberal/financially-conservative chunk of voters are starting to decamp to the Lib Dems. Again, it's not clear how big this movement is - but, as I said earlier, how many votes can the Tories afford to lose? It's possible that they could be facing the nightmare scenario of a general election where the right-wing vote is split three ways (four, if you count UKIP's still-slightly-tembling corpse, though they're close to a rounding error now). If the next election was still certain to be in 2022, all this would be somewhat academic. Two and a half years is a long time, they could find a way to turn things around. All things being equal, I expect they would.

But then BoJo had his narc meltdown, didn't he?

The so-called government is now in absolute minority in the House. While their opponents can't currently agree on an alternative prime minister, nonetheless the anti-BoJo grouping now has a majority of 43. They can stop him doing anything. No legislation is going to go through this house. Finance bills are basically dead on arrival. I really can't see how he could pass any kind of Budget. And also, if he does anything at all to irritate the Opposition, they can no-confidence him any time they feel like it. Quite simply, he's on death row.

My guess is that they'll leave him be during the prorogue period. The logic here is obvious enough - let him twist in the wind. He's doing a great job of destroying himself, so let him get on with it. This way, when Parliament returns late in October, they can do the deed and it will look like a mercy-killing rather than a gang-land execution.

Hypothetically, there are four ways Boris could get off the hook:

1) He could resign. This would arguably save him some dignity, and just perhaps it might leave a little room to revive his future career. But, he won’t take this option. He’s a narc. They don’t voluntarily quit. (Plus, uh, much as I’d cackle if he was forced to quit, it just leaves his successor with the same set of problems that he failed to address.)

2) He could try to simply ignore the anti-hard Brexit law. The problem here is, it would give the opposition a prima facie grounds for an immediate Motion of No Confidence. He might get some love from the rightwing press, but the ultimate result would presumably be his removal and a new Prime Minister. It would be the most pointless constitutional crisis ever.

3) He could arrange to lose a motion of no confidence in his own government. This would arguably be constitutional, and might be a way to trigger an early election. But, it would a) look utterly-absurd, b) be an unprecedented thing to do and c) would also require him personally to face the House telling him to fuck off. I’m not sure that a narc is capable of that. Also, there’s the issue that, as we saw in 2017, there’s no guarantee that he could win a general election. I’m absolutely not sanguine about the risks of an early GE but a) that’s democracy and b) if he runs his campaign the way he’s running being PM then he could well end up roasted.

4) He could reverse the prorogue. On the one hand, un-proroguing Parliament would buy him some extra legislative time. On the other hand, his opponents have control of the House, and a wobble on the prorogue would make him look weak. There’s not much upside for him here, though it’s the most “conventional” of the four options.

Basically the TL;DR is that while he has some choices, none of them are good and all of them could cause him considerable personal pain. The opposition have set up a proper four-pronged Morton’s Fork for him. Which tine will he impale himself on?

As for Brexit? Well, one interesting detail is that the underlying political question seems to be open again. It hasn't quite gained mainstream traction yet, but apparently people are starting to ask whether Brexit is going to happen at all. The Labour Party's position has moved visibly toward hard-Remain, albeit grudgingly. The Lib Dems are having their time in the sun again (though, I suspect that glomming up Philip Lee may help them less than they seem to hope). I don't know that I think it's going to happen, but I can now imagine a situation where at the end of October, the anti-BoJo constellation No-Confidences him then pushes a quick revocation bill through Parliament. (The "party line" here would be, "We wanted a second referendum but this man's scheming hasn't left us enough time.") Again, not saying this is at all likely, but I think it is now a possible outcome.

And if nothing else, BoJo's supposed golden hour is turning out to be quite the nightmarish turkey - and isn't that just delicious?

#diary of a disaster #UK internal politics #Boris's bad bad no good week #hahahahaha

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snkpolls · 6 years ago

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SnK S3E2 Poll Results (Anime Only Viewer Version)

The poll closed with 208 responses. Thank you to everyone who participated!

Please note this is the anime only viewer version of the poll. Manga readers, please click here for the results of the manga reader poll!

Rate the episode

Without much room for argument, the majority of respondents have voted in favor of this episode being amazing!

Really liked it. The Levi vs MPs action scene was amazing!

Rate the ending

Over half of voters loved the ending, while a small 2% could have done without it.

How do you feel about Linked Horizon performing the ending this time?

As expected, over half of the fandom is happy that they are back, regardless if it’s the ED or the OP. Attack on Titan just wouldn’t feel the same without them, would it?

A surprise to be sure, but a welcome one

Awful

Which one is your favorite ED?

The largest group of voters agree that the new ending outshines the others, with great escape langing in second. Yuugure no Tori is barely beat out by season one’s first ending.

Which scene(s) did you like best?

Levi vs. Kenny/MP’s unsurprisingly topped the votes by over double of everything else. With it’s stellar animation and high stakes action, it’s no surprise that it had major appeal to the audience! The scene that came in second was Kenny saying Levi’s full name out loud for the first time.

Even though I love mikasa and all, They should’ve spent less time on Mikasa and more time on the others

Jean <3

levi is 11/10

Armin kawaii >3<

Mikasa was amazing.

KYEEEENNYYYYYYYY

On a scale of 1-5 how much did the animation during the Levi vs. MP chase blow you away?

It took the animation staff one month to create this 30 second sequence and their efforts really paid off. The scene was a huge hit, and both anime and manga fans were blown away by the results!

Really liked it. The Levi vs MPs action scene was amazing!

On a scale of 1-5, how daddy is Kenny?

While there’s definitely some mixed feelings about whether Kenny is really daddy material, more voters than not wouldn’t mind him being theirs.

How did Erwin light the match with one hand?

Will the mystery ever be solved? We don’t know, but the majority of voters are quite certain that Erwin’s chiseled jawline may have something to do with it!

How excited are you to see kidwin’s eyebrow game next week?

The majority of respondents are excited to see adorable kidwin in the next episode!

Is your heart ready for Historia's childhood flashback?

75% of respondents are excited to finally learn Historia’s backstory. Some of you are even sure you’re going to cry! We hope that it meets your expectations!

On a scale of 1 - 5, how much do you relate to Bartender-kun?

We all have a little bit of anxious eek’ing bartender inside of us! Well, all but 7% of us anyway.

Would you want Levi as your motivational counselor?

Nearly 75% of voters appreciate Levi’s realism and bluntness and wouldn’t mind a little straightforward advice of their own. About 25% of voters would rather be approached in a different way.

Does Erwin have a gambling problem?

71% are confident that Erwin’s tendency to gamble is totally fine and the best option for our main cast. 28% believe that gamblers anonymous would be a good choice.

What was your reaction to “Levi Ackerman?”

Unfortunately it was unavoidable for the vast majority of voters to avoid this major spoiler. Although there are a good 23% of voters who may have managed to avoid this spoiler all this time and were quite perplexed at the revelation. We are glad to see that some of you still managed to be surprised!

I didn't even realize

Cardi b laugh

How do you feel about Armin shooting with no hesitation?

Nearly 50% of respondents were really happy with this development, finding it a cool thing to add to Armin’s character. Meanwhile, a combined 42% either have mixed feelings or feel badly for Armin. We hope you keep looking forward to his development from here!

A Slap On Titan has ruined Armin for me, I expected him to enjoy it.

See, that's how you do character development.

With more of Kenny, what is your opinion of him now?

Most voters seem to be in favor of Kenny and are looking forward to seeing more of him. The general consensus that nearly 50% of us can agree on is that BANG BANG was indeed a memorable moment we can all appreciate.

I still hate him, but you have to admit that him going into the saloom with the whole "Bang Bang" sound effect was so hilarious!

Interesting how he flips from very serious to "Yahoo!" and back.

Hilarious and BANG BANG!!!

Levi mentions there is no right or wrong with what they did. Do you think our protagonists killing people was the right choice?

Most responders aren’t as concerned about the morality of the action, but rather that they had no other choice if they were to defend themselves from the enemy. There is a grey area there that the characters have to embrace if they want to survive. As manga readers, the poll hosts would love for you guys to please keep considering this theme moving forward! It only continues to get deeper and more exciting to watch!

Ain't a question of right or wrong, it's a question of kill or be killed.

I agree with the first three points. I think if i was in the same predicament as the Survey corps, I legitimately would have done the same to survive.

How about torturing the MPs for information?

The largest group of voters believe that the torture of Sannes was justified in order to get information. 25% believe that Sannes had it coming to for all the pain he’s caused others. A smaller percentage are a bit horrified by Levi and Hange’s actions, however.

I had mixed feelings, but the sixth option, the first and the second option. They werent talking, and Hanji and Levi had to do something to save Historia and Eren.

I'm mildly horrified they actually seemed to like it

Still no right or wrong

Armin says that they are no longer good people. Do you agree?

While “Only on Sundays” was a bit of a joke answer, we think it’s safe to assume that most of you believe that they are still good people who simply had to get their hands dirty for survival. There is no right or wrong in that game, after all. About 25% of voters, however, disagree and believe that ideals are most important in any situation.

I think they are still good people deep down. They had to do what they needed to do in order to survive. Is it morally wrong? Yeah, but just thinking back to what Levi said makes sense.

Is anyone a good person?

Like Levi's 'right or wrong' comment, they're neither good nor bad, just trying to do what they think is right.

Hange states that Eren is going to be eaten. What are your thoughts?

Nearly half of respondents are confident that Eren’s fate isn’t sealed just yet due to protagonist armor. Still, there are quite a few who are on edge about Eren’s fate or just plain confused in general. Please hang tight guys!

Relates to ymir eating that boy that was with reiner and annie

Wasnt he already eaten by some random Titan already? And turned into a titan for the first time as a result?????

By who? Also Erwin didn't seem phased.

You'd better eat him before he eats you

SNK has a history of quick and understated major reveals, how did you feel about Sannes’ quick confession about the Reiss family being the true royal line?

Many respondents found it comical how quickly Sannes confessed about the truth of the Reiss family. However, more than half either missed the initial reveal completely or believe that there should have been more focus on it as it was being stated.

It was dramatically short

They will focus more on it

Which group of characters are your favorite?

Where do you primarily discuss the series?

Additional thoughts on the episode?

Amazingly done & manga readers are tripping

I am liking what I am seeing so far, but I hope they give some of the scenes the time to breathe. There were moments in the both episodes where the transitions between scenes seemed jarring to me. I had also heard that this arc was more about character development, but so far I have seen very little of that.

I'm saddened that Dimo Reeves had become such a throw away character.

Talented, brilliant, incredible, amazing, show stopping, spectacular, never the same, totally unique, completely not ever been done before

Too much in too little time, episodes like this should be double the time

Beast Titan WHEN

Well, fuck

Thank you to everyone who participated! We’ll see you again on Monday!

#snk polls #snk poll #snk spoilers #snk s3 #poll results

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utopia-game · 4 years ago

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War Hungry War Birds 7:7

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UTOPIA NEWS

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JANUARY EDITION 1 Yr 4

WarBirds (7:7)

Aka Smiles’ Kingdom

Aka 99 Problems Today we are looking at Warbirds (7:7), a great story for anyone looking for guidance on how to build an organic 25 player kingdom! I spoke with the Monarch of Warbirds and this is what he told me about their kingdom.

What is your position and do you enjoy it?

My name is RedBird, and I am the elected monarch and co-founder of Warbirds, though most probably know us just as "smiles' kingdom" or by our server name "99 Problems". We are a warring kingdom that started out in age 83 as a teaching and training kingdom for new players that evolved rapidly as we found ourselves competing at higher and higher levels.

Why was the kingdom created and what is your modus operandi?

I was a few years off from Utopia (and enjoying sleep), it was in late 2017 I think, when Smiles asked me to come back for an age and play with him and puncher in a revived TFC. I was hesitant at first, but he sold me on the idea of a 25 faery kingdom, said he would be running the wars, and I couldn't say no to that -- I believe that Smiles is the best war leader in the game. It was a terrific age (age 81) with a killer setup and we crowned honor and WW, top 3 land and nw. I'd really only planned to come back for a single age, but that success made me want to stick around. I did one more age with TFC, but the magic was gone. Drama began to appear in the kd, there were personality conflicts etc., and it just wasn't a great age. I'd been bit by the uto bug though, so after age 82 I just decided to random into a ghetto and fool around for another age.

The Kingdom I randomed into in age 83 was a kingdom of 100% random provinces. No one in the kd had played with anyone else there before, so there was no leadership or discord or anything like that. I didn't really have any interest in trying to be in charge, this was supposed to be a sort of "age off" for me where I could just play casually. But when it became clear that no one else was going to step up, I just put myself out there and offered to do what I could. Little did I know...

A lot of the players were brand new to the game; some were experienced but had spent most or all of their time in the ghetto. There were a few people with more substantial experience as well, but I would only slowly discover that as we went along. I set up a discord (very trial and error, as I had never run a server before) and started teaching people how to use bot, and take intel before attacking, and how to properly do ops, etc. It was slow going. In the first week I got I think... 5 people into the discord server? Most people were shy, and just wanted to use the chat bar or in-game forums.

It took a lot of coaxing, but slowly more and more people started popping in. The first few people I trained became my "LS" by default, and they helped the new arrivals learn bot and all the rest. Very, very basic stuff. Expectations were minimal, it was all about making people feel comfortable and safe and welcome. Our kd location was 9:9, so we called ourselves "99 Problems" in honor of the basket case of a kingdom we all instinctively knew we were.

Well, little did I know, Smiles had done more or less the same thing as I had! He'd left TFC after age 82 as well, and randomed into the deep ghetto. Sure enough, he'd found himself flying his own little flock of misfit birds. We got to talking, and when we realized that we both had only like ~15 provinces each, and a couple of inactives apiece, we came up with a plan: we would war our two kingdoms against one another, purge our respective inactives in the eowcf, and then merge the kingdoms.

So we did. It was a rough and very basic little war. Lots of bounces. Activity sporadic. But it was good training for both kds. In the end, 99 Problems won, and smiles asked the admin to merge his remaining provinces into my kingdom, so I became monarch by default. I'm not a war leader though and never have been, so from the very beginning, smiles was the one calling the shots and doing the hard training. My role is and always has been to bring people together, problem solve, and make people feel safe, welcome, and appreciated as part of our community.

Once we settled into a system that worked for us we set about training our players and replacing inactives using the in-game recruiting tool. We finished 9th in kd honor that first age, as a kingdom of 22 completely random provinces, the only two of whom had ever played with one another before being myself and smiles. That was the beginning of our kingdom, and I was so very proud of all of our players.

We decided after our first age that we would be a teaching and training kingdom, and that we would prioritize giving as many people as possible opportunities to learn leadership, and that we would welcome brand new players and encourage players who were completely new to the game to play with us and learn with us. For the first three ages that remained our central focus, though we found ourselves creeping up the rankings charts every age. With Smiles as your war leader, that sort of thing is going to happen! It's only a matter of time until you find yourself competing at higher and higher levels. In more recent ages we have begun to shift our focus to crown goals, and recruitment strategies have shifted to attracting the best talent possible. As our community continues to grow we may consider starting a second kingdom based on the same principles that we started with only a little over a year ago -- those of teaching, training, and egalitarian spirit.

When was the kingdom started, how many founders?

The answer would be, age 83, and every one of the people who played with us in that first age can be thought of as the founders of our kingdom. There was no "core" group, and that principle of egalitarianism and equal ownership of the kingdom continues to this day. All of our players have an equal voice in setting the direction for our kingdom, and while seniority or status as an original member might hold special meaning for those of us who remember that first age together, seniority does not confer any special status or authority in our community.

How many actual members do you have and how do you recruit?

Currently we have an active roster of 25 players with four active former players standing by as potential substitutes. There are also around twenty former players. I try to stay in regular contact with everyone who leaves or decides to take a few ages off. Some are retired for good and others I hope will return at some point when they have more time. Our kingdom has a policy of filling any empty spots first from our veteran pool if possible before recruiting from the outside. In addition to the 50 or so players and former players our server is also host to a few dozen regular guests from various other kingdoms. Our numerous public channels are open to everyone, and we make no effort to hide our location at the start of the age, so all are welcome at any time. I encourage everyone to come join us in our public channels.

What about these 10 laws of effective leadership and 6 eternal principles of the constitution I hear about?

Well, I will start with the nuts and bolts, because I really enjoy talking about our kingdom's constitutional structure. Our kingdom has functioned as an elective monarchy since the end of our second age. At the end of every age our kingdom votes on goals and direction for the next age. Things like level of competitiveness and level of activity expected from players, criteria for recruitment, age goal, kd name, and theme for the age are decided by straw polls and secret ballot.

Once our age goals are decided upon, we hold a formal election to select a monarch for the next age. The only stipulation is that whoever is elected must accept the goals and direction that the kd chose for the coming age, and cannot try to change them or the constitutional nature of the kingdom. A Returning Officer is selected from the pool of original kd members, and they are entrusted with handling the nomination and selection process and ensuring a fair result of the vote.

Once a monarch is elected, the constitution stipulates that they must appoint a war leader to lead the kingdom, and a council of advisors to support the war leader. Once the war leader is appointed, the show is theirs to run however they deem appropriate. The monarch can change war leaders mid-age if they want, but not during a war in progress, and the monarch has no power to overrule or interfere with a war leader's conduct of a war.

The elected monarch has final say on withdrawing from war, recruitment, and removing players, or selecting people for leadership, but it is the war leader who is at the top of the org chart for most in-game decisions. So in some sense you could say that the kingdom runs on a consular system with two leaders; one civilian, and one military. In that sense the constitution is a formal description of the system that Smiles and I designed for ourselves out of necessity that first age. It worked well, so we made it official.

In practice, our core leadership has not changed much in 5 ages. Smiles and I have served as war leader and monarch respectively every age since our kingdom's foundation, though we do rotate people through council as often as we can to give people experience of war planning and wave leading. In the last three ages we have brought in some tremendously experienced and capable people from other kingdoms, and this expanded leadership capacity has added tremendously to our success. It also gives me great hope for the future of our constitutional experiment.

As for RedBird's ten laws of leadership, well, these are just the rules I expect my leadership team to lead and play by:

1. No topic of discussion is off limits in leadership council, and everyone has an equal voice there.

2. Morale is everything, and no negativity, complaining, or defeatist talk is permitted outside of council.

3. We reward initiative and encourage risk taking.

4. Everyone deserves a second chance. Most people deserve a third chance. Some people deserve a fourth chance.

5. We review personnel after every war and we are always looking for ways to make our kingdom stronger, and support players who are struggling.

6. We offer praise for positive actions, and gentle correction for mistakes. We always address the members of our kd using terms of affection and respect.

7. We always put the needs of the KD ahead of our own provinces.

8. We are decisive in giving orders and we do not argue or plead.

9. Life is more important than utopia.

10. Don't be a martyr: set a sitter and get some sleep.

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There are some goals that are so poetic as to be necessary goals. A crowning achievement for our kingdom would be to achieve a level of success greater than that crowning age Smiles captained for us in TFC in age 81. If we could do that, it would feel like a full circle and culmination of the first chapter of our kingdom's journey. It would be a crown for all of us, but for Smiles more than myself. A legacy for me would be seeing this constitutional and democratic model I am trying to create actually carry on after I am gone. I'm sure I still have plenty of ages ahead of me, but the time will come eventually when I either step aside or the members of my kingdom decide to hand the reins to a new king or queen.

If and when that day comes, if I could take a few ages off from utopia, and then come back and discover that the kingdom I helped to found was still going strong, and had stayed true to the systems and principles on which it was founded... well, that would be the crown for me.

Thank you for the interview opportunity!

Thank you Redbird and Thank you Warbirds for being part of the community! You have a very unique kingdom structure and a nice piece of history for anyone who many have missed the early 80’s. It also serves as a very inspirational story on building a kingdom from the ground up and how you overcame struggles you faced in order to maintain a presence in the war charts age over age.

I would like to thank Smiles for constantly commenting and participating in the MUGA chat especially when I mention him as he has been very transparent about sharing information and data. Thank you Smiles for your contribution!

For any Monarchs out there if you would like your kingdom/war featured please reach out to me in discord or at 1:1!

W1nD#9514

Reporter - w1nd 1:1

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daemonappreciator-blog · 7 years ago

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My Experience With The Daemon Forum (The Daemon Page

I feel guilty writing this, because I don't hate this community. But something needed to be said, something needs to change, and if I didn't write this, all these thoughts swirling around in my head were going to consume me. So here it is. A piece on my time spent with The Daemon Forum - be warned, this is going to be long.

I've been a member of The Daemon Forum for over five years now. I've accumulated quite a few posts, and I like to think I've helped out the community a few times. However, I've had several problems with it, and more and more have become apparent the more I'm around it.

But I'll start with the positives. I love the concept of daemonism. Having a daemon has helped me through some truly rough times. Finding my form through personality typing has been a really fun journey. I love surfing the analysis index, it's one of my favorite parts of the place. Having other people around to compare notes which is particularly nice, especially since it's exceptionally difficult to find experienced daemians outside the forum. I've also made several great friends on there; there are lots of friendly people around.

However, if it was all fun and games, I wouldn't feel the need to write this, and unfortunately, the majority of my time spent there was a negative experience. It should come as no surprise that I'm not going to say my account name on TDF, as I would rather not be banned; especially when all I want to do is point out problems that could be solved. I am in no trying to harm the community or drive people away from it; I'm merely sharing my honest opinion of the place - but know it is only my opinion and observations. Other people may have had none of these problems. But they were prominent enough for me to come away with an anxiety attack after every time I posted there, a couple years into it. Anxiety being something I recovered fully from before then, so it's been very unhealthy for me. As it happens, I'm extremely nervous while writing this, because I wouldn't be surprised if there was a major backlash from the community in response to this. But as I said, I have to get this out of my head, and out into the open, or it will never stop bothering me.

So I suppose that's the topic I'll start with. Potential backlash. I've noticed over the years that the staff tends to be quite sensitive to constructive criticism, and it's been punished whenever it's about something other than forum layout or glitches. Someone once posted anonymously about feeling afraid to come out as plural, because the forum treats headmates very differently than a multiple community would, and that they didn't want to be seen as "less than" all the other members just for being a headmate. They seemed scared to me, genuinely worried about this. They weren't accusatory or nasty about it. But the only reply they got was a moderator reprimanding them for 'passive aggression', and they were told they had broken several forum rules (I'm not staff, but I didn't understand what was done wrong, even with the explanation), and were essentially told they wouldn't be warned again. As someone who ran several forums myself, I would immediately get rid of that moderator. If that member was so scared they felt they had to post anonymously, that is not the correct response; especially when there's no provable way to know this is a member who has caused problems in the past. The members of the community are humans with feelings, not robots used to expand your website. I tried treating my members that way once. Didn't work out too well. Anyway, I don't know if that member ever came back after that, though I don't have any way to know who it was. I wouldn't blame them if they left after that, after exposing themself like that, being that vulnerable and being treated so for it. It must have felt awful.

Speaking of plural systems, there was one that joined for a brief stint and then left after posting a thread about real vampirism. It was a poll, asking if anyone on there had psychic vampirism. The post body was used explaining what vampirism was and wasn't, and giving educational resources on the topic. The poll got several votes, but no replies, until a moderator (or it may have been a member acting as a moderator) posted that this would not be discussed because they were 'encouraging members to drink blood' - at no point did they say so. Vampirism being a very real condition with real problems, and not something that occurs by choice; it's essentially a physiological disorder that people are born with. They are the type of people who absolutely need education and experienced peer support to remain healthy, and as the poll proved, there were several vampires on the forum, who were unable to discuss those issues with each other. It's clear the problem wasn't because it was off-topic - the thread was in a section that allows those discussions, and there are several threads for LGBTQA folk there, along with therians and otherkin, not to mention religious discussions, political talks, and so on. Again, it was a very inappropriate response, though it was a different moderator/member this time.

Then there was an incident where a novelist joined up to learn about daemonism. The members were plenty friendly to them, but the moderators met the idea with skepticism and caution. Which I suppose is understandable, since there was no way to know where this person would post their findings, though they said it was just for inspiration for a fiction novel, and that the ideas wouldn't end up being exactly like daemonsim (that already being in The Golden Compass and all). This writer made a thread asking what people think of spiritual daemonsim, and asked that only people who have experience with the topic reply. They were reprimanded for 'tailoring' the responses - however, if you look on just about any thread relating to spiritual daemonism around there, you'll find the majority of the posts by people who do not believe in such things posting about their opinion, and that landside of skepticism seems to really scare off the people who do believe in that - I know those people are around, but it seems they often end up being too nervous to post an unpopular opinion, especially when some people state their opinion as fact and imply ridiculing people who think otherwise. There's a definite worry about looking crazy or not fitting in, at the very least on that topic, because of that atmosphere. So when a mod posted on the author's thread, expressing not only that but also distrust for this person, that kept anyone else from replying. I wanted to, honestly, being someone who sees a spiritual aspect to daemonism. But no one stepped up to the plate after that, and for me personally, it was out of concern that I would be punished for giving them information, and I would imagine others felt similarly. There was a lot of posting about how the members don't know who this person is, and that the questions are 'suspicious' - I don't get that. Any member can see every other thread on these things. That writer could see far, far more incriminating things about the forum than whatever could have been shared there. It's a public forum. There's no huge secrets. That kind of response, is, again, completely inappropriate and in this case, very off-putting and suspicious itself. It implies that for some reason, the forum does not want to discuss spirituality, though to any long-time member, that concept isn't much of a surprise. Whether it's true or not, there is an air of expectation to see daemons as constructs only, and nothing else - including on The Daemon Page, where daemons are explained solely as constructs, psychological; no other view or opinion is even mentioned, and this makes the people who think otherwise feel ashamed - at least, I do. It feels like, while everyone else can talk about how their daemon came to be and their nature and all that, those of us who have differing views have to sit in a dark, quiet corner and listen to everyone else and not speak up, and it makes you feel embarrassed about having your daemon. That is not a feeling I want to have in any community, especially not one about embracing your individuality.

And now I'll move onto that topic. There is an interesting... duality, you could say, to this place. Which is ironic, given that part of the idea of daemonism is to have duality. So on one side, you've got this incredible concept of having a form that perfectly fits you, that is uniquely you, that means something intrinsically 'you'. This is what I love about the forum. It's some deep soul-searching, and self-analysis. On The Daemon Page, it's said that there's a form to fit your personality perfectly, and also a form that you prefer to take when projecting your daemon, and only you can determine both. So, when I joined, what I expected was to see a million different forms, because people are hugely varied and unique. But then you see the other side of this coin. Now, I don't take a problem with this first part - it's entirely up to someone what form fits them. There are a lot of canines. So many canines. And humans are social creatures, that makes sense. If someone feels a coyote is what fits them, then that's good, that's beautiful, and it's good that they aren't ashamed of that even if there are a lots of people with the same form. After all, one form can mean something to every individual. However, it's this next part that sits wrong with me. I have seen, so many times, people try to 'correct' each other about their forms. Say someone says their fitting form is a tiger - it would be no surprise to see someone come around and say 'you're too social for that'. I get it in the Reverse Analysis section - that's where you go on asking people to find forms that fit you, based on what you say about yourself. I mean when this happens in random threads. I've even seen people talking behind the backs of others about this, including but not limited to mocking people for their choice of form, saying people are naive or 'trying to be cool' with their choice, and therefore lying to themselves, and even one case where someone said "*eyeroll*" about someone previously on the forum, and their choice of form.

So there's a feeling of being judged. To add to that, it seems like no matter what your form is, you are expected to act like you have a canine form, even though that just isn't you. For instance, there was someone with a king cobra form, who was rather cold and distant. I saw people criticize him for being himself (he was not breaking forum rules) - and I just think it's weird that they were surprised he acted like he had a king cobra personality, when a big part of the point of daemonism is to celebrate and embrace your personality, and to truly accept your whole self. I also remember him saying he actually didn't want a king cobra form, he would prefer an octopus. But he was the type to only project what fit him best, so he wouldn't deny himself. (I had a couple discussions with him - he thought it was too fitting that people misunderstood him, when the king cobra itself is so misunderstood.) He left not long after he joined, and told me he just didn't feel welcome, despite doing his best to be friendly - he was never nasty, that I saw. On a side note, his cousin, who is also a member, made a video archive thread for reference of different animal movements and sounds, but has since disappeared off the forum. On the thread, before he vanished, a moderator offered to update the post for him if he didn't have time, but it doesn't look like anyone's done anything about it. Which is disappointing, because I was really hoping for a big library of videos. I guess I just wonder if the mods are going to get back to that at some point.

Then there's the whole debate on mixed-breed forms, extinct forms, mythical creature forms, and - the most taboo of them all - human forms. Very often, you'll see people, moderators included, saying these forms can't be 'viable'; the reason being that you can't study these creatures to find out their behavior, and that humans are too varied and individual to use. And while it's been said that you don't have to agree with the works on the analysis index, there's a distinct feeling of an unspoken rule that you do have to agree with them. Because if you take a form for reasons that don't quite match an analysis on the forum, you will have people pointing it out to you left and right - I certainly did, even though I chose my forms based on a combination of analysis and my own opinions of the animals, and to be frank, it is no one's business who chooses what form. On the previous topic, I always found it silly that people think they can determine the personality of someone (this is not including RAs) through scattered posts on an internet forum. I'm sorry, but you cannot know someone better than they know themself, no matter how close you are to them - certainly not as a stranger on the internet, and no one is in the position to tell someone else better about their form, yet as I said, I saw plenty of that. Then, back to my current subject. I recall a couple people who used dragons as forms, someone with a gryphon, and someone with a wyvern. I was really interested in that concept, and I thought it was cool they embraced what they felt fit them. So I looked up their posts, to see if they talked about what it's like to have a mythical form. I couldn't really find much. They would typically talk most about it in their introduction, quickly find out they were expected to choose animal forms, and after that they generally seemed to be cautious about talking about it. One of them stubbornly continued to talk about his daemon like she was just like any other, but his posts would largely go ignored, and it made me feel... awful. The others would typically be ignored, too, whenever they tried to talk about theirs. As an example, if you post in The Daemon Boiling pot, no matter what you post, you'll typically get around ten or so replies. It's a good place to talk about random daemon-y stuff, as a lot of people frequent it. But I hardly ever saw a reply to them on there. It would be odd to see even one. I can only imagine they felt like they were being silently judged, brushed off in the hopes they would change to fit in, and that's no way for a community to be. That's the vibe I got. I always wanted to reply to them, but I was worried that looking associated with them would earn me the same treatment, and I am very ashamed of that.

Then the mixed-breed forms were generally seen as 'trying too hard to be cool', and would be ridiculed - this was said around the forum, even with mixed-breed people present, even if not aimed directly at them. I don't understand how that isn't breaking the rules. But some people are literally a mixed breed. My best friend is half one race, and half another - two that don't get along - and not being able to fit in with either has been a huge deal in her life, and nearly led her to suicide, because she didn't belong anywhere, and she always felt ostracized. Her daemon is a half-dog, half-wolf because of that. And I think it's extremely tone-deaf and insensitive to make fun of people for having a form that means something to them, no matter what their reason may be.

And then there's the human forms. There are members who nearly only project their daemons as humans. Interestingly, they list theirs forms as animals on their profiles - as do most of the mythical forms - probably out of forum expectation, but continue to only use human forms in daily life. These people seem to be ignored similarly to the mythical ones, but receive more than that. I've seen, again, mocking behind their backs, and in these cases, I've seen people question them rudely, act uneasy about them using a human form, make lewd implications, and send insults directly at them for having a human form. I don't understand. I will never understand what the problem is with someone using a form that works for them. I also don't understand the automatic assumption that the daemian and daemon must be having sex in that scenario - first of all, why do people have to intrude on others like that - and second, that's their business. Even if they are doing it, I can't imagine something being wrong with that. As far as I understand, most people have sexual fantasies, not to mention many people feel incredible shame and self-consciousness about sexuality, and if anything, I should think this would help them accept themselves, and boost their self-confidence for dating. But I'm getting off-topic. My point is, what other people do in their own mind has zero affect on others, and no one has the right to nose into it.

Typically, it seems like when someone joins and says their daemon has a human or humanoid form, they are immediately linked to the archive to pick an animal form. Sometimes it's clearly just members being polite, at other times, it seems like it isn't a suggestion. Very often, sadly, I've seen them be patronized, like trying to correct a five-year-old too gently. I've also seen someone say, 'well maybe that's the way they've understood the concept without really knowing it', implying that the way TDF does daemonism, is in some way, 'the one true way', and that people come to be enlightened, as you do often see people having very similar practices throughout their lives, and then change how they do things upon joining the forum, even if what they've done since childhood has worked perfectly well for them.

Which brings me to the subtle rules of the place. The unspoken rules, that you will use an animal form, that you will fit the analysis of said animal, that you will act like a canine form despite your fitting form, and so one. In my search for other daemon communities (I could find none which were active, only essays), I went to Tumblr. This was the only place I could find people posting about the topic. Some of these people are from TDF. I visited every single daemon-related blog, and found, interestingly, that the only one to have any kind of rules is TDF's Tumblr page. While on the other blogs, you find people coming to share their experiences and find out what daemonism is, on the TDF blog, you'll find people asking what they can and can't do. There is a definite 'you can only have an animal form' rule there. While the others say, 'daemons generally appear as animals, but you should use whatever fits you for personal reasons', one even said that you shouldn't use the analysis archive, because it tries too hard to force people into categories that strangers created, and that those animals may mean something different to you. Another said to outright avoid TDF for similar reasons; that the community is too controlling on who can have what form.

There is more than just that, but those unspoken, unclaimed rules are a little too close to an unofficial religion for my comfort. I tried to follow those rules for a long time, and tried to make my friends follow them, too, because that was the kind of precedent the forum set. I was a huge jerk doing that, and I regret it more than I can say. Their questions of "But why do things have to be that way? Why does it matter at all?" is what first got me questioning this. Maybe TDF is just trying to maintain order, but as they've admitted time and time again, the way they do things is absolutely nothing like in HDM anymore, and so rules seem arbitrary and unneeded to me. It seems better to let people do what they want, and to be willing to talk about all those different things.

And this leads me to discussion. It seems to be nearly impossible to get a discussion started on something that is not a popular opinion. Spiritual daemonism, as I said earlier. The ties between your religion and your daemon. Non-animal forms. And many, many more topics. Oddly, a deep, philosophical discussion is particularly hard to get going. I understand people just want to have fluffy fun, and that's great (the fun threads are the ones that by far get the most posts, after all), but when you want to delve seriously into something, despite the sheer size of the community, it seems like it's a rare day that someone steps forward and participates. Maybe it's just me, but I'm the type to really want to figure out topics like this, and while this community should be the place to go for all things daemon, I just can't get anyone to humor me.

It feels like anyone that is different from the unspoken rules is treated as weird. As I said, differing forms, non-psychological views, having more than one daemon, and so on. It's a very gloomy atmosphere to those who fall under those labels.

Now onto miscellaneous problems. There's no way I will be able to cover everything, but I'll put a few out here. Putting a trigger warning on spiders and snakes. That is not what a trigger warning is for, and that light use of the term is offensive and insensitive. This is a forum about animals - censoring some types of animals is incredibly fishy. Some animals are more equal than others, it would seem. At least one of the founders/administrators of the forum left years ago, saying none of it was ever real, and that they 'outgrew' it. That's not a very hopeful light for following members. That particular admin also set a tone of being rude and sharp to the members, if I remember correctly. Come to think of it, I haven't seen an actual admin on there for quite some time, and it makes me wonder who is really running the place - not knowing who is in charge makes me, and several others, feel very uneasy, especially given how odd some of the moderators tend to act.

I also know the vast majority of the members are young to mid teenagers - I was there once, too, I understand, but it seems like they shouldn't be the ones running the place, and it often feels like they are, as some of the moderators are a bit on the younger, inexperienced side, as well. Or maybe I'm just old and judging youth too harshly.

That is another oddity around there. I keep seeing people 'move on' from daemonism, stop talking to or projecting their daemon and leave altogether in their adulthood; thirties or so. It seems I'm one of the few older members left - though I'm not sure I'll come back ever, after this. It isn't like I've done anything other than lurk for a long time, anyway.

When I would post a daemon-related topic of interest to me, something that wasn't the usual "it's my CIEday", "here's a cute picture", "I've changed forms" and so on, I would seldom get replies. It just didn't feel like a community. It felt like there wasn't a real, deep interest in the topic. It felt like I was trying to talk through a one-way mirror, and would just get overlooked constantly, and it made me wonder why. Is it me? Did I say something wrong? Because the silent treatment is something this forum does all the time, it seems. But I wasn't the only one to post more thoughtful threads, and most of them didn't get much conversation on them, either. So maybe it was a general lack of wanting to think deeply. Maybe that's just not the forum's thing. Either way, it disappoints me, because you would think a community claiming to be a resource and encompassing things on this topic would be willing to get all up in it. But maybe it's that atmosphere, again, of feeling afraid to speak up, because you might not fit in, and then people will ignore your posts, too. I know I'm not the only one who's felt that.

And in the vein of people trying to tell others better about themselves, I've seen way too much of that geared toward plural systems. Trying to tell people what their headmates are and aren't. It was, at least at one point, to the point of prejudice.

And while some people feel as though they can't post their opinions (an administrator at least once corrected someone's 'wrong opinion', I wish I was joking), others use the fact it's their opinion to flame and hate. Again, I see too much of that. I will never get why the moderators jump on what they do and ignore those posts. It seems like they have no direction, and no one in charge to determine what needs help and what does not.

For a length of time, this forum made me hate daemonism, and I stopped interacting with my daemon for nearly a year. I've fortunately gotten past that now, and realized that it's up to me to do what I want, even if I can't have anyone to talk to about it. If anyone knows of another active community, that's more open-minded, I would love to join it.

When I started talking to my daemon again, they told me, "That community is like poison, you don't see it at first, and most people don't. But over time it slowly seeps in and makes you sicker and sicker, until you break. Unlike a toxic community, it isn't immediately obvious. But it's still there."

Unfortunately I have to agree with that. I've had quite a bit of anxiety just writing this, and just thinking about the forum makes me break into a cold sweat - again, I wish I was joking. I just want this all over with and behind me forever. And doing this was a necessary part of that. I'm sure the forum will have major backlash to this, and there will be a lot of arguing. But at this point, I don't care. I'm going to stand up and say what's been going on, and no threat of getting a slap on the wrist will stop me.

I hope it was all clear. Of course, if you want to join there, you should, and form your own opinion based on your experiences. This is just what I saw, and what happened to me. Good luck with your daemonism, and don't let anyone make you give up. I just hope the forum also doesn't give up, and makes some necessary changes to make it a healthy community. If it does, I just might come back to talk again.

#daemonism daemons thedaemonforum thedaemonpage daemians TheGoldenCompass HisDarkMaterials MyExperienceWithTheDaemonForum

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thisdaynews · 5 years ago

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Warren takes on Harris and Biden in battle for black support

New Post has been published on https://thebiafrastar.com/warren-takes-on-harris-and-biden-in-battle-for-black-support/

Warren takes on Harris and Biden in battle for black support

Polls so far tend to show Sen. Elizabeth Warren is doing better with white voters than black voters. | Amr Alfiky/AP Photo

2020 elections

The Massachusetts senator is making an aggressive play for African American support — and the outcome could well determine whether she’s the nominee.

CHICAGO — Elizabeth Warren was on a roll.

The 2020 hopeful stood onstage at the Apostolic Faith Church last weekend and delivered a policy sermon of sorts, interspersing calls to shutter private prisons and forgive student loan debt with stories from scripture. The mostly African American crowd spurred her along with shouts of “yes” and “that’s right!” — and, unlike Amy Klobuchar and Tulsi Gabbard before, Warren got a standing ovation. When musicians started playing to signal Warren that her time was up, the Rev. Jesse Jackson waved them off so she could keep going for 10 more minutes.

Story Continued Below

“I am in this fight because I am not afraid. I know our fight is a righteous fight,” Warren said.

The enthusiastic reception at Jackson’s Rainbow PUSH Coalition convention was a small but public validation of a yearslong effort by the Massachusetts senator to make inroads with African American voters. Facing an uphill battle against rivals with deep ties to the black community — namely former Vice President Joe Biden and Sens. Kamala Harris and Cory Booker of New Jersey — Warren has moved aggressively to win over a constituency that could well determine the nominee.

Her plan, described by a half-dozen black activists and movement leaders who’ve been contacted by Warren personally as well as her own campaign aides, is a mix of one-on-one outreach to black political leaders when no one’s watching, and a deliberate focus on racial justice woven throughout her policy proposals. Above all, Warren is determined to outwork her opponents and to demonstrate to skeptical African American voters that she will fight for them in the White House.

“For grassroots activists especially, to get a personal call, it’s a rare thing to happen but when it does people take note,” said the Rev. Leah Daughtry, a Democratic political strategist who co-authored the book “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Politics.”“The personal outreach is really remarkable in my opinion, and it’s a testament not just to her but to the team she’s built really pointing her in the right direction.”

It’s unclear whether it will be enough. Warren’s relatively weak standing among black voters is one of the biggest questions hanging over her candidacy. It’s almost impossible to win the nomination without significant black support, especially in the South. In 2016, it was Bernie Sanders’ undoing even as he gained traction with young black voters.

Polls so far tend to show Warren doing better with white voters than black voters. Three national surveys this week showed her trailing Biden and Harris among black voters by double digits. Washington Post-ABC News and Quinnipiac had Warren at 4 percent among African Americans, while CNN pegged her support at 12 percent. At some rallies in cities with large black populations — such as Chicago this past weekend or Memphis earlier this year — her crowds have been whiter than is representative.

There haven’t been many public polls of the important early primary state of South Carolina —where over 50 percent of the primary electorate in black — but a Post and Courier-Change Research poll conducted a few weeks before the first debate had Warren performing better than her national average with black voters. She had 14 percent, compared with 11 percent for Harris 52 percent for Biden.

Still, several activists and leaders in the black community said that Warren has been laying the groundwork herself to compete with Biden and Harris. Jackson, for one, dismissed the idea that the presence in the field of two African American candidates as well as the No. 2 to the first black president would doom Warren’s efforts to win favor among black voters.

“Jimmy Carter did it from Plains, Georgia. Bill Clinton did it from Hope, Arkansas. Blacks voting for whites isn’t new, whites voting for blacks is new,” Jackson said in an interview after Warren’s speech. “I watched people respond as she was quoting scripture and the ministers were saying ‘She’s coming down the line with it!’ And people began to stand up because wherever she has a platform she draws fire. I mean in a positive sense, she draws fire.”

Warren is also playing a quieter game behind the scenes to win over black leaders. She has barraged officials and activists with phone calls, text messages, and emails.

Sometimes Warren reaches out to offer support in political fights making headlines. Other times it’s more random. Nelini Stamp, the national organizing director for the Working Families Party, said Warren emailed her a few months ago out of the blue. The senator, Stamp said, was prompted by a tweet she’d written remarking on a campaign swing through the South that Warren was on.

“She’s been really reaching out to a lot of black movement leaders and individuals across the spectrum,” Stamp said, noting that the Working Families Party is in the midst of its endorsement process and has not picked a candidate. “She is making a concentrated personal effort.”

Nikema Williams, a Georgia state senator and chair of the Georgia Democratic Party, said Warren has reached out to her a number of times as well.

“There’s no pattern — she’s truly speaking to people engaged for the first time and people who’ve been in it forever,” Williams said. “She’s just doing a really good job at retail politics, people remember how you make them feel.”

As for policy, Warren’s flurry of proposals address race in ways that go beyond the standard box-checking of criminal justice reform and mass incarceration. Her student loan debt forgiveness plan includes a $50 billion fund for historically black colleges and universities and minority-serving institutions. When she announced her plan to eliminate the filibuster in order to advance progressive causes, Warren noted that for generations the supermajority rule “was used as a tool to block progress on racial justice.”And she framed her housing plan as a “first step to addressing the Black-White wealth gap.”

In her stump speech, Warren tries to connect the barriers minorities face to her broader message of combating economic inequality.

“Why is the American middle hollowing out?” Warren often says.“Why is it that people who work hard every day find a path so rocky and so steep, and for people of color even rockier and even steeper?”

Some black activists point to a speech Warren gave to the Edward Kennedy Institute in Boston in September 2015 as the moment when her outreach ramped up.

“None of us can ignore what is happening in this country. Not when our black friends, family, neighbors literally fear dying in the streets,” Warren said. “It comes to us to once again affirm that black lives matter, that black citizens matter, that black families matter.”

Aimee Allison, the founder of the She The People national network of women of color in politics, said Warren’s policy proposals show she’s been listening closely to leaders in the black community.

“I have said from the beginning — it could be a person of any race or gender who could be the leader of the new American majority,” she said. “What people of color care most about is the policies. They want to know what you are going to do and want there to be a sense of trust.”

#black #Foreign #Politics #support

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beechwrench4-blog · 5 years ago

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What the Eagles should do at wide receiver

The 2019 NFL offseason has begun for the Philadelphia Eagles, which means Howie Roseman and Doug Pederson will spend the next couple of weeks evaluating the 2018 roster. It’s time to start figuring out what this team needs to do to get back to the Super Bowl. Today we’ll continue this roster outlook series by looking at the wide receiver position.

NELSON AGHOLOR

Regular season stats: 982 snaps, 97 targets, 64 receptions, 736 yards (11.5 average), 4 TD, 3 rushes for 32 rushing yards, 1 passing attempt for 15 passing yards, 1 fumble

Playoff stats: 9 targets, 4 receptions, 38 yards (9.5 average), 1 rush for 12 rushing yards

Review: Agholor really stood out to me during the offseason. He simply looked faster than I ever remember, routinely burning corners deep during practice. I was thinking he was really going to build off his turnaround 2017 season. That never really happened, though, as he finished the 2018 season with volume numbers similar to last year. He was worse in efficiency, however, with four fewer touchdowns and a decrease in yards per reception.

Outlook: It’ll be really interesting to see how the Eagles handle Agholor this offseason. The 2015 first-round pick is currently under contract at a $9.4 million cap figure for 2019. None of that money is currently guaranteed, though, since it’s a fifth-year team option. I really can’t see the Eagles being fine with keeping Agholor at that number. I would guess they’ll try to sign him to a team-friendly contract extension, citing Agholor’s massive struggles over his first two years as why the team can’t pay market price for him. If the Eagles and Agholor can’t agree to an extension, they might just have to move on. That would stink for the Eagles because he wouldn’t factor in to their compensatory pick formula when he signs elsewhere. Again, this is a tricky spot for the Eagles. It would be nice to not have to add slot receiver to the list of Philly’s needs this offseason but they shouldn’t overpay to keep Agholor around.

Poll

Nelson Agholor: Stay or go?

77%

Stay

(3461 votes)

22%

(1027 votes)

4488 votes total Vote Now

ALSHON JEFFERY

Regular season stats: 770 snaps, 92 targets, 65 receptions, 843 yards (13.0 average), 6 TD, 1 fumble

Playoff stats: 17 targets, 11 receptions, 145 yards (13.2 average)

Review: Due to recovering from a torn rotator cuff, Jeffery didn’t play his first game until Week 4. He started strong out of the gate with 25 receptions for 306 yards and four touchdowns in his first four starts. All of those games were with Carson Wentz starting, by the way. Jeffery’s effectiveness decreased after the Eagles acquired Tate, which probably isn’t just a coincidence. He then saw a boost in productivity with the Eagles getting away from an ineffective 11 personnel package, which also coincided with Nick Foles filling in for an injured Wentz. One key difference with Foles under center is that Jeffery was seeing more shots down the field, as represented by the 16.5 yards per reception he averaged with Foles compared to the 11.1 mark he had with Wentz. Jeffery came up big for the Eagles against his former team in Chicago before ultimately having the season go right through his hands during Philly’s final offensive drive in New Orleans. Just bad luck. Really hard to be super mad at Jeffery for that play considering he was playing through broken ribs and he played through an injured shoulder en route to the Eagles’ Super Bowl win last year.

Outlook: Wentz and Jeffery haven’t ever really had a ton of offseason time to work together. In 2017, Jeffery missed a lot of practice time as he was resting from the shoulder injury he suffered. Last year, neither Jeffery nor Wentz participated in camp. Here’s hoping both players can get on the same page more in 2019. It’d be nice to see Wentz make some more “trust throws” to Jeffery in order to give him some jump ball opportunities.

Poll

Alshon Jeffery: Stay or go?

98%

Stay

(4531 votes)

(79 votes)

4610 votes total Vote Now

JORDAN MATTHEWS

Regular season stats: 346 snaps, 28 targets, 20 receptions, 300 yards (15.0 average), 2 TD

Playoff stats: 2 targets, 1 reception, 37 yards, 1 TD

Review: Matthews signed with the Patriots in the 2018 offseason but they moved on from him after he continued to deal with injury issues. The Eagles then brought JMatt back into the fold when they desperately needed more bodies at receiver. Unlike Matthews’ first stint with Philly, he was an effective role player this time around. That role much better suited him than being a force-fed volume target that the entire offense ran through.

Outlook: The Athletic’s Bo Wulf noted that Matthews seemed to think he’ll command serious attention in free agency now that he’s healthy again. It seems like he’ll be seeking a bigger role/contract than what he’ll be offered from Philly. I wouldn’t mind having him back on a cheap deal if his market isn’t what he expected it to be.

Poll

Jordan Matthews: Stay or go?

43%

Stay

(1911 votes)

56%

(2523 votes)

4434 votes total Vote Now

GOLDEN TATE

Regular season stats (with Eagles): 240 snaps, 44 targets, 30 receptions, 278 yards (9.3 average), 1 TD, 4 rushes for 34 rushing yards, 2 fumbles

Playoff stats: 13 targets, 7 receptions, 64 yards (9.1 average), 1 TD

Review: The Eagles sent their 2019 third-round pick to the Lions in exchange for Tate prior to the 2018 NFL trade deadline. It was a curious addition for Philly considering Tate did not address the team’s lack of vertical speed. Tate’s elite ability to generate yards after the catch seemingly made sense for an Eagles team that needed a play-maker, however. Unfortunately, the Eagles were never really able to smoothly incorporate Tate into the offense. His targets usually felt forced and not at all organic. Tate did have some good moments; his game-winning touchdown against the Bears in the playoffs was obviously big. Of course, he also didn’t even realize he was supposed to be running a route on that play until he turned around and saw it wasn’t a run.

Outlook: Unless the Eagles plan to move on from Agholor, I just can’t see them re-signing Tate. Some free agent rankings have him as the top receiver available. I don’t think the Eagles, who are working with limited cap space, will be rushing to pay him a big contract. Then again, Howie Roseman called the Tate trade a success, so maybe they’re interested in keeping him around? I’d guess Tate won’t be back in 2019. I think he signs elsewhere and the Eagles likely earn a fourth-round compensatory pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Poll

Golden Tate: Stay or go?

45%

Stay

(2009 votes)

54%

(2433 votes)

4442 votes total Vote Now

KAMAR AIKEN

Regular season stats: 131 snaps, 7 targets, 6 receptions, 53 yards (8.8 average)

Review: The Eagles signed Aiken right before training camp. Honestly, he was one of the worst players I remember seeing all summer. He dropped a lot of passes and just generally failed to impress. Then he suffered an injury that caused him to miss the final two preseason games. Despite this, the Eagles re-signed him when they found themselves desperately needing receiver bodies. Aiken got a lot more playing time than he should’ve received before ultimately being cut in mid-October.

DEANDRE CARTER

Regular season stats: 83 snaps, 2 targets, 2 receptions, 21 yards (10.5 average)

Review: Carter only signed with the Eagles as training camp was already taking place. Those signings are typically just camp bodies but Carter proved to be more than that as he ultimately found a way on the 53-man roster after having a strong preseason. Carter even made a significant impact in Week 4 when he had a 42-yard punt return to set the Eagles up with good field position on a drive that sent the game into overtime. The Eagles waived Carter in early November to make room for defensive tackle “T.Y. McGill.” Philly likely hoped to put Carter back on their practice squad but the Texans claimed Carter on waivers. Losing Carter clearly wasn’t a franchise-altering move but it was annoying to see a fan favorite get cut for some random DT who didn’t even stick with the team.

MIKE WALLACE

Regular season stats: 73 snaps, 3 targets

Review: Wallace seemed like a shrewd free agent signing by Howie Roseman. The Eagles creatively worked his contract so that he wouldn’t count against Philly’s compensatory pick formula. Wallace wasn’t overly impressive in the offseason but he did have moments where he showed he could take the top off a defense. Unfortunately, Wallace suffered a fractured fibula in Week 2 and was placed on injured reserve. The Eagles activated Wallace off IR leading up to Week 17. He was only a limited participant in practices leading up to the Divisional Round, however, when the Eagles were eliminated from the playoffs. Had the Eagles advanced to the NFC Championship Game, Wallace might’ve been able to return.

Outlook: I don’t hate the idea of bringing back Wallace on a one-year, vet minimum type deal. It’s not like he’s injury-prone; Wallace only ever missed two games over nine seasons before missing 14 in 2018.

Poll

Mike Wallace: Stay or go?

46%

Stay

(1865 votes)

53%

(2161 votes)

4026 votes total Vote Now

SHELTON GIBSON

Regular season stats: 64 snaps, 3 targets, 1 reception, 48 yards

Review: Gibson impressed in the preseason as he led Philly with nine receptions for 195 yards (21.7 average) and two touchdowns. That ultimately meant nothing, however, as the coaching staff clearly did not trust him to play even when the Eagles were missing three of their top four receivers early in the season. It was frustrating to see that Gibson couldn’t get on the field over Aiken, who was pretty worthless. Gibson’s sole catch came on an explosive play against the Vikings in Week 5. He was only active for special teams purposes the rest of the season. Even then, he was kept as a healthy scratch in Week 17.

Outlook: Maybe Gibson will have earned more trust from the coaching staff as he enters Year 3? I don’t know. I’ll believe it when I see it.

Poll

Shelton Gibson: Stay or go?

34%

Stay

(1243 votes)

65%

(2322 votes)

3565 votes total Vote Now

MARKUS WHEATON

Regular season stats: 2 snaps

Review: Wheaton missed most of the preseason due to injury. The Eagles inexplicably guaranteed his entire 2018 salary by having him on the roster for Week 1 before ultimately cutting him prior to Week 2. Bizarre.

MACK HOLLINS

Review: With Jeffery recovering from offseason shoulder surgery, Hollins received a lot of practice time with the Eagles’ first-team offense. He never really showed signs of making a second-year leap after having some solid flashes as a rookie, however. It was later discovered that Hollins’ lackluster camp might have been due to the fact he was recovering from a sports hernia surgery. Hollins was expecting to play in the Eagles’ season opener but Doug Pederson said he suffered a “minor setback” that wouldn’t allow him to play. Then, just hours before that Thursday night game, the Eagles placed Hollins on injured reserve. At the same time, it was said that there was an expectation that Hollins would eventually be activated from IR ... but that never happened. And so Hollins didn’t play at all in 2018.

Outlook: Hopefully Hollins is healthy enough to have a full offseason to prepare for 2019. Perhaps he can be a solid role player (or even more?) in this offense. He was a very efficient target as a rookie (22 targets for 16 receptions, 226 yards, 1 TD) and as a college athlete (81 receptions, 1667 yards, 20 TD). I don’t know if he’ll ever be a volume target but it seems like he can at least contribute in a rotational role.

Poll

Mack Hollins: Stay or go?

87%

Stay

(3371 votes)

12%

(471 votes)

3842 votes total Vote Now

BRAXTON MILLER

Review: The Eagles signed Miller to their practice squad after Week 1.

Outlook: It’ll be mildly interesting to see if the 2016 third-round pick can play his way onto the Eagles’ 2019 roster.

Poll

Braxton Miller: Stay or go?

51%

Stay

(1554 votes)

48%

(1480 votes)

3034 votes total Vote Now

DORREN MILLER

Review: The Eagles signed Miller to their practice squad after Week 1.

Outlook: The 2018 undrafted free agent is likely a camp body.

Poll

Dorren Miller: Stay or go?

Stay

(218 votes)

90%

(2053 votes)

2271 votes total Vote Now

JOHNNY HOLTON

Review: The Eagles signed Holton to a reserve/future contract after the 2018 season ended.

Outlook: Holton’s career 22.9 yards per reception mark suggest he’s capable of stretching the field. The Eagles will give him a shot to see if he’s worth keeping around.

Poll

Johnny Holton: Stay or go?

30%

Stay

(646 votes)

69%

(1463 votes)

2109 votes total Vote Now

MARKEN MICHEL

Review: The Eagles signed Michel to a reserve/future contract after the 2018 season ended.

Outlook: Michel proved himself to be a deep threat in the CFL. The Eagles will give him a shot in camp.

Poll

Marken Michel: Stay or go?

43%

Stay

(851 votes)

56%

(1105 votes)

1956 votes total Vote Now

CARLTON AGUDOSI

Review: The Eagles signed Agudosi to a reserve/future contract after the 2018 season ended.

Outlook: Agudosi is likely a long shot but the Rutgers alumnus offers intriguing size at 6-6, 205 pounds.

Poll

Carlton Agudosi: Stay or go?

23%

Stay

(405 votes)

76%

(1347 votes)

1752 votes total Vote Now

I don’t think the Eagles will be looking to spend big at the receiver position in free agency. I do think they’ll be looking at guys who can offer speed.

Tyrell Williams of the Chargers fits that profile but the 27-year-old could be out of the Eagles’ price range. John Brown is another burner type coming off a solid season in Baltimore.

The Eagles reportedly showed interest in Breshad Perriman during the 2018 season before signing JMatt instead. Perriman ended up with the Browns, where he had 16 receptions for 340 yards (21.3 average) and two touchdowns. Perriman, a former Ravens first-round draft pick (Joe Douglas connection alert), could be worth taking a risk on as he likely wouldn’t cost much. He’s still only 25 years old.

DeSean Jackson is currently under contract for 2019 but his $10 million salary contains zero guaranteed money. The Eagles have been rumored as a potential landing spot for DJacc if the Bucs look to move on from him. Signing Jackson would give the Eagles a much-needed vertical threat and it wouldn’t count against their compensatory pick formula.

In keeping with the theme of speed, Philadelphia might be enamored by Oklahoma’s Marquise Brown. Eagles senior director of player personnel Tom Donahoe attended the game where Brown had 11 receptions for 243 yards and two touchdowns. He could make sense as a Day 2 pick given the Eagles have two second rounders to work with.

Andy Isabella is projected as a slot receiver but he’s very much a vertical threat. According to Pro Football Focus, Isabella had 14 catches for 705 yards and nine touchdowns on plays where he was targeted at least 20 yards down the field. That’s insane. Isabella claims he can run a 4.26 40-yard dash.

Source: https://www.bleedinggreennation.com/2019/1/24/18196117/philadelphia-eagles-wide-receiver-position-review-free-agency-nfl-draft-trade-rumors-nelson-agholor

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ngozia-blog · 7 years ago

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LIVE w/ Periscope

I chose to examine Periscope for this week’s media switch up. I figured I could “kill two birds with one stone,” as I’ve been curious about the platform since a friend recommended it to me some time ago. Unfortunate, but not at all surprising, I’ve not yet freed up space on my iPhone to download the app so I’ll focus on Periscope’s desktop version.

Knowing what I knew about Periscope already, it didn’t seem like something I’d be interested in. With other social media, I can post a photo or video and be on my merry way. But with Periscope, sustaining a live video feed involves holding the device and sustaining (and probably entertaining) an audience for an extended period of time. I also knew that I had never used the Live feature on Instagram for that reason. Reading more about the platform convinced me Periscope wouldn’t get much “personal” use from me.

While there are many ways to discover events, movements and places, we realized there is no better way to experience something than through live video. A picture may be worth a thousand words, but live video lets us explore the world together.

In exploring Periscope more, I wasn’t at all a fan of the poor navigability of the platform. It could very well be due to the fact that I was on my laptop, as opposed to a mobile device. Even so, it was difficult to smoothly scroll through the selection of live video previews that appeared on the homepage. It all seemed very cluttered and unorganized. Some may not mind this, but for me, layout and usability play a factor in how often I use a platform.

Conveniently, a drop down menu offers several topics for individuals looking for a particular type of LIVE video.

Travel the World

World News

Sporting Green

Featured Broadcasts

US News

Explore the Past

Users can also select a featured, trending hashtag or search for one that interests them in the search bar. I don’t quite remember which hashtag I selected, but soon 7,000 others and me were watching @MitchOates deep sea diving at the Great Barrier Reef. Although I was fixated on how he managed to get Internet access at the bottom of the sea floor; it was definitely fascinating to watch live!

I watched a few more videos about a variety of topics – the upcoming Kenyan Election, cooking Moroccan food, Entrepreneurship talk, and commentary on the Russian hacking. All very interesting, yes, but I can get this all and more with the social media outlets I already have without the poor, frustrating interface. I’m not convinced it’ll add anything to my social experience, but maybe Periscope has something to offer to brands.

So far ....

It’s no secret that LIVE video has become more popular in recent years - not only for people, but also for brands. In fact, a recent poll found that 44 percent of executives live-streamed an event in 2015, while another 20 percent planned to try it by the end of 2016. Considering one-third of of all online activity is spent viewing video, adopting streaming platforms in a digital strategy makes a lot of sense. And there are a lot of people out there for brands to engage -- Periscope has more than 10 millions users who watch 21 million minutes of video a day.

Besides a large audience, Periscope offers:

Real time storytelling

Low cost

In the moment

Humanizes brand

Brand transparency

Red Bull was one of the very first brands to experiment with Periscope. Instead of focusing on marketing their product, Red Bull uses Periscope to connect with customers in a way that reflects their brand image. Red Bull even broadcasted its Red Bull Guest House event - an “ultra-exclusive weekend-long party in Miami Beach.” Sounds like a fun event to watch unfold live.

Doritos Periscoped 12 hours of random things colliding into each other (in slow motion, of course) to market the new Doritos Collision Chips. Viewers were even able to vote, via Twitter, on which objects they wanted to see fired at each other, like laptops, eggs, bowling balls and lava lamps.

Brands can use Periscope for a number of reasons including Q&A sessions, interactive customer support, quick product demonstrations, press interviews and entertaining stunts. Brands can take advantage of the Twitter/Periscope partnership that allows followers to view a Periscope video within their Twitter feed. For brands that use Periscope in their digital strategy, this partnership provides the tools to reach their entire Twitter audience with live broadcasts, not only Periscope users. I think there are a lot of opportunities for brands that incorporate Periscope in their digital strategy, not those who rely solely on it.

I didn’t run into any ads – thankfully. However, a quick Google search shows that Twitter began monetizing Periscope videos in late March. The change, which diverges from Periscopes initial stance, will bring in new revenue for Twitter and allow big Periscope broadcasters to profit from their content – another win for successful brands.

As hard I try to think of a reason to use Periscope again, I just can’t find one. I’m more than content with the social apps I have now. Besides, I don’t believe the people I converse with most use Periscope and I can follow the brands I care about on Instagram and Snapchat. I can also watch brands and followers Live on these outlets. Nevertheless, I think brands can reap some benefits from Periscope IF other platforms like Facebook and Twitter are already a part of their digital strategy. I’m interested to see if the capabilities of Periscope evolve, like that of Facebook and Instagram.

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