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fosterbradley28 · 4 years ago

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Best Boats for Families

For many boaters, boating is a family tradition—a way of life that includes shared experiences like the very first time you take the steering wheel, catch a fish, or trim a sail. Not only are moments like these fun for the whole family, they’re moments that bring parents and kids closer together as the family becomes a “crew” through teamwork and shared responsibilities. For each and every member of the family to join in and participate, however, you’ll naturally want to choose a type of boat that everyone can enjoy to the fullest potential.

Just which is ideal for you and your family will depend on a number of factors: what sort of boating do you, your spouse, and the kids most enjoy? How large does it need to be, and what sort of accessories should it have? As you ask yourself these questions, remember that for most families one of these boat types are likely to be ideal.

Best Starter Boats for Families

Bowriders

Cabin Cruisers

Fish-and-Ski Boats

Jet Boats

Pontoon Boats

Sailboats

Walkarounds

Bowriders

If joyrides across the lake or bay, towing water toys, swimming at the beach, and just generally kicking back on the water sounds like good times to you and your kids, a bowrider may be your perfect choice. This is one of the most popular forms of family boats out there thanks to versatility, copious seating, and easy access to the water.

Bowriders are available in a huge range of sizes that match just about every budget, from small 16-foot runabouts to 30-plus-footers with every comfort feature imaginable ranging from enclosed head compartments (full bathrooms) to complete outdoor kitchens (though we call ‘em galleys, on a boat). And while they may not be the ideal platform for activities like fishing or overnighting, bowriders can be used for just about any waterborne activity you can dream up.

Cabin Cruisers

Cabin cruisers tend to be larger than many other types of boats and can cost quite a bit more, but they also expand your abilities to include adventures like visiting distant ports, weekending aboard, or even taking a family vacation on the water. They’re more or less like having a mobile home that floats and most are outfitted with everything you need for adventures that last days at a time.

Fish-and-Ski Boats

Fish-and-Ski boats are designed to be just what their name infers. They have all the basic accouterments you need to chase those finned critters in the morning, then enjoy water skiing, wakeboarding, and similar watersports in the afternoon.

Most have a layout similar to that of a bowrider, but with the addition of fishy features like livewells, rod holders, and an electric trolling motor, plus tow-sports goodies like a ski-tow pylon and ski lockers. True, some trade-offs must be made in order for a boat to be designed for multipurpose use (that livewell could be a drink cooler on a dedicated watersports boat, and that bow seating might be a casting deck on a boat meant purely for fishing). But on the whole, the fish-and-ski is perfect for families that want to participate in both activities.

Jet Boats

Though the range of available choices is a bit less expansive when it comes to jet boats, and jet propulsion tends to be slightly less efficient than more traditional choices, they have one perk which many family boaters love: there’s no propeller. Propeller injuries are exceedingly uncommon in any case, but the mere thought of doing away with the prop and instead propelling the boat with a powerful jet of water gives many parents invaluable peace of mind. Plus, jet boats have amazing handling, minimal draft, and all the other features and accessories found on runabouts.

Pontoon Boats

Pontoon boats are incredibly popular and it’s no wonder why: the stable, comfortable platform they provide is ideal for kicking back and lounging on the water. But don’t think for a moment that today’s pontoons can’t be downright thrilling, too. Many are equipped with potent engines that provide exciting performance and the ability to enjoy watersports, too. And while they may not be as apt at handling large waves as monohull boats, many of the larger pontoons and “tri-toons” (boats with three pontoons, instead of just two) are surprisingly capable in choppy waters.

Sailboats

Sailing is, of course, a very different experience than powerboating. Speeds are greatly reduced and operating a sailboat is far more complex than pressing down a throttle and turning a steering wheel. Yet these “drawbacks” are in some ways what makes sailing so appealing—it takes skill and teamwork to sail a boat from your dock to your destination, and every member of the family has his or her role to play. Plus, modern sailboats are available in all different sizes and comfort levels. Added bonus: since sailboats don’t require huge, powerful engines, compared to powerboats on a foot-to-foot basis they generally cost significantly less.

Walkarounds

For families that enjoy fishing and day cruising yet also want overnighting abilities, walkaround boats can be ideal. They usually have large, open aft cockpits where you can swing a rod or set a trolling spread, but the bow is enclosed and provides both sleeping accommodations and weather protection. And while it’s true that for many types of fishing center consoles may be the most effective design, many angling families with young children—especially those who may go fishing in chilly or rainy conditions—choose walkarounds particularly because of that added protection.

Choosing the Perfect Boat for Your Family

In most cases, one of these seven types of boats will prove ideal for you and your water-loving family. If bass fishing is your true love, bass boats will be impossible to beat. Speed demons will naturally gravitate towards high performance boats. And if wakesurfing is your sport of choice then getting a dedicated ski boat/wake boat may be in the future.

But in every case remember one thing: find a boat that makes both you and your loved ones happy, and spending time on the water will draw your family closer together—and that’s one thing that the best boat rentals in Clearwater FL can guarantee.

#Boats #Family Boats #Boating #Ideas #Tips

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longestnight64448 · 7 years ago

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SongFic *George Weasley X Reader*

.....Tell Her / Jesse McCartney......

I know how it feels

To wake up without her

Lying here all alone

Just thinking about her

I gradually woke up from the peaceful dream I was having. I turned to my left to see that Anna wasn't in bed. She must have got up early to get ready and make breakfast. I sighed contently. I was lucky Anna found me. I was a broken man when I met her; I'm still broken but I'll always be broken. There's no fixing a broken heart when you've lost someone who was always with you, your business partner, your best friend, your twin brother. But Anna was helping dull the pain and made me happy again. I still remember when we first met.

"Excuse me, sir. Are you okay?" A sweet, gently voice pulled me out of my sad thoughts of my lost twin.

I looked up from the till area. My sad brown eyes met the brightest set of pale blue eyes I've ever seen; they were framed by thick, black lashes which were enhanced by her straight fringe. The woman had pale skin with a round face which had a few freckles across her button nose and cheeks, soft pink lips, and long, curly auburn hair which cascaded down to her average sized chest; some of the strands framed her face. Her eyes were looking at me with concern and kindness. This girl was very pretty. To other people she may have looked average, but to me she looked gorgeous! I faked a smile trying to convince her that I was fine.

"Yes, Ma'm. I'm fine, just spaced out for a few minutes there!" I tried to sound cheery, but the look in her eyes told me she wasn't convinced but wasn't going to push me.

"Okay...I was wondering if you had any extendable ears in the back because I can't seem to find any on the shelves." Her voice was sweet and caring; but not sickly sweet like honey.

"Umm...I think there is. I'll quickly go get some. How many would you like?"

"I think five will do."

"Okay." I quickly went into the store room and grabbed five extendable ears for the pretty woman.

"So, who are you gonna be ear-wiggin' on then?" I grinned cheekily at the woman as I placed the ears on the counter. She laughed. I liked her laugh; it was almost like a lullaby.

"They aren't for me. They're for my nephew, he's a wee mischief maker and I thought I'd get him some useful birthday presents rather than clothes and money."

"Ah! I see. Being the cool auntie. Is this all you're getting?"

"No. I've got all this stuff too." She suddenly heaved a big pile of tonnes of Weasleys Wizarding Wheezes products onto the counter. My eyes widened in shock; she just beamed at me.

Once I had packed all her stuff into a bag and she had paid I followed her to the door as it was time to lock up. "Well, it was lovely doing business with you. I'm sure my nephew will love all the stuff I got for him."

"Well, I'm glad that mischief will be managed, then." I smiled at my own personal joke; although it gave me an ache in my broken heart. Just as she stepped out the door I changed the sign on the door to 'closed' and bid her farewell. Truthfully, I didn't really want to go up to the apartment and sit in the silence but I didn't really feel like going home to my family who tried to tip-toe around me. Just as I was about to close the door the woman suddenly spoke, "Hey...I was wondering if you would like to go get a butter beer or something with me? You look like you could do with some company."

I was kind of shocked. I didn't expect that. I think my emotion must have shown on my face because now her face started to go red in embarrassment.

"I mean...if you don't want to its fine, I mean you probably already have plans and stuff...yeah...umm...thanks for the stuff." She was just about to walk away when I realised I had to say something. Something pushed me to this woman; something was telling me that I couldn't let her walk away.

"I'd love to. Just give me a minute and I'll get changed out of my work robes."

I quickly scurried to the counter and put my robes on it; I turned back to the door and saw her waiting on me smiling. I'd never really got a good look at her properly. She was short, maybe about 5 foot 3 inches, she had nice curvy thighs, a nice shaped bum; which were both shown lovely by her dark skinny jeans. She had a small waist and an average sized chest which were shown off by her fitting white t-shirt and black blazer which had lots of badges and a big bow on it. Once I had locked the door we began our journey to get butter beers.

"Well, I think I should introduce myself, I'm Breanna McPherson." She held out her white, gentle hand to me. I took it in mine and said, "Lovely to meet you Breanna, I'm George Weasley." I smiled at her; it wasn't a real smile but it was partly there.

I can't believe

Her hold on me

It's something indescribable

I know she knows

But won't you please

After our first meeting Anna would often pop into the shop to see how I was and she would sometimes bring me a coffee or cake when she was on her lunch break from working at a boutique that was a few minutes away. We would talk about random stuff, ourselves, serious stuff; just anything really. I even told her about Fred; which was very hard to do. She comforted me and reminded me that he'll be watching over me and that no matter what he'll always be there for me and be a part of me. I felt like she truly understood me. I began to think that this woman was like a best friend to me. She was becoming one of the most important people in my life and we had only known each other for about 2 months. Every day I found myself waking up thinking about her and that I hoped she'd come to the shop that day, and then when lunch time rolled around I would always end up finding myself looking at the door every time it jingled and if she didn't turn up that day I'd be in a bad mood until closing time; although the next time I'd see her I never held it against her. Whenever she asked me to do something I would always do it, for example, she made a comment jokingly that she thought I looked better with longer hair so I should grow it; well I did. She even helped me with ideas for the shop, she was the genius behind many new products, such as Moody Nails (nails change colour depending on your mood), Varying Hair extensions (hair extensions which can easily change length, thickness, style, colour etc.), Big Sister make-up kit (a joke make-up kit which you swap with someone's make-up kit and then when they go to put make-up on they get attacked by the kit and the bad make-over is permanent for 24 hours) and she helped invent the invisible mini-troll (which is a tiny troll about the size of your pinkie which only appears when the person who owns them says their name, they can be used for annoying someone during class, waking someone up, etc.). I was starting to get really attached to her; I couldn't go a day without at least seeing her. She defiantly had a hold on me and, the funny thing is, I think she knew how she was affecting me because she often joked and flirted with me about it. Finally, I got up the courage to ask her out on a date and much to my relief she said yes.

If you see my girl

Just tell her I miss her smile

Tell her I'm counting the minutes

Gonna see her in a little while

I know when she

Holds on to me

She's the one thing that I could never live without

Oh, oh, oh, oh

And tell her I love her

I remember one of the best dates I ever had with her. It was a sunny Sunday in August; we'd been dating for a good few months by now.

I could hear the waves crashing against the soft sand as we walked along the beach hand in hand. We were talking about our dreams and hopes for the future.

"Well, the shop was Fred's and my dream and I got it so I suppose the next thing I want would be a family." I smiled down at her; the gentle summer breeze was playing with her hair. She smiled at me with her pale blue eyes glittering.

"Well, I always wanted to have my own boutique. I want to make all the clothes, jewellery and stuff. It's the only thing I'm really good at is making things. Besides' I really enjoy making my own clothes and jewellery so why not make money out of the things I love to do. Although, I'm not far off being able to start looking for vacant shops for my future business." I beamed at her; she's amazing at making things and coming up with ideas. God knows how I managed to get an amazing girl like her.

"Also, I've always wanted to have a family. I'd love to have quite a few kids. I've always thought that I'd be a good mum. You know; the type that makes their clothes, bakes stuff all the time, and all that jazz."

She smiled up at me. I laughed at her expression. She looked so happy thinking about being a mum.

"Love, I'm positive you'd be an amazing mum." She beamed at me; then I saw a glint of mischief in her eyes.

I looked at her in confusion and wonder, and then she shoved me down on to the wet sand and ran away from me laughing. I chuckled then ran after her. Once I caught up with her she was smiling like an idiot. I loved that stupid smile of hers; one of the things which make me fall for her all over again. I picked her up and she gripped on to me as I slowly made my way to the sea. She didn't struggle; just wrapped her legs around my waist and her arms around my neck laughing like a fool. I looked down at her and saw her looking at me with love and adoration in her eyes. I lightly kissed her on the lips and said softly "I love you."

"I love you too, you bloody ginger fool." We laughed; and then I jumped into the water.

Oh yeah, just tell her I love her

The way that she moves

You know what it does to me

And when I catch her eye

I can hardly breathe

I knew she was the one for me, the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with, when my family were having a party for Harrys' birthday.

I went to pick her up from her apartment. I appareted into her apartment like I always did since we started dating. When I arrived she called from her room saying she'd be a few minutes. I sat down on the couch and looked at the Daily Prophet, knowing if I went into her room I'd just get in the way. "Right. Let's go. We're gonna be late."

I turned around and I could feel my eyes bulge out of their sockets, my heart accelerate, and my mouth open in shock; she looked beautiful, she never fails to take my breath away. She was wearing a simple black strapless dress which was tight fitting on the top showing a little cleavage and made her waist look really small and then it came out so it skimmed gently over her thighs and ended just above her knees. She was wearing a pair of black elegant two strap heels which gave her a little bit extra height. On the top of the dress there was a big black and white flower corsage which gave the dress some needed detail. Her hair was down in its' naturally curls which cascaded down her back and some of them framed her face. She wasn't wearing a lot of make-up just some eyeliner, mascara, foundation and blush. She was wearing a single diamond necklace that I had given her for her birthday about a year ago.

"God, I didn't know I looked that bloody good." That snapped me out of my daze. I could feel my face get warm from being caught staring. I got up and went over to her. "You look beautiful." I then kissed her lightly on the lips.

"Thank you. You scrub up pretty good too and you look adorable when you blush." She beamed at me and her eyes gleamed with teasing.

"Ready to go, love?"

"Yup."

Crack!

"I hate apparition!" Anna exclaimed. I chuckled. "You never fail to remind me of that fact, love."

"Just making sure you don't forget, darlin'."

We quickly went into the hall that had been rented out for Harrys' party. We were greeted by my family and some of my friends. Anna was greeted just as warmly as I was. Everyone loved her. They all thought she was the best thing that ever happened to me; and she was just so wonderful that they couldn't help but love her. They felt like she was part of the family; and everyone said that if I ever let her go there'd be hell to pay. But luckily I didn't ever plan on letting her go.

Soon Harry arrived and we all started dancing and having a good time. Anna and I had been separated for a little while now. Ginny and Hermione had taken her away from me, so I was talking with my old friend Lee Jordan, my brother Ron and Harry.

"George, how's it going with Breanna? Might I add that she looks gorgeous this evening?" Lee said.

"It's going great! I swear every time I see her she just makes me fall deeper in love with her, if that's even possible."

"No wonder. She's an amazing girl. So when you gonna pop the question?" Lee asked.

"Yeah, George! When am I gonna get another sister-in-law?" exclaimed Ron. Harry just watched in amusement as I squirmed at the question.

"Well, I have been thinking about it but I'm not sure. I've got the ring and everything. I mean I totally want to marry her but what if she doesn't want to marry me?"

Harry finally spoke up. "George, you should see how she looks at you. Every time I see her with you she looks so loved up even when I speak to her she's always happy and then if I mention you or she sees you when she's talking to me she just radiates happiness and love. She truly loves you, George. I know that if you asked her she would say 'yes' straight away."

"I just wish someone could give me a sign or something signalling that I should do it."

"George, I want you to know that I'm positive that Fred would love her. He would adore that girl and tell you that if you didn't marry her he would." Ron said gently with soft eyes.

I looked at him in shock. No one had ever mentioned how Fred would have felt about Anna before. I had thought about it but I had never voiced my thoughts. But I'm glad someone had said it.

"Thanks, Ron. I guess I needed someone to say that out loud."

"Hey, George. Look on the dance floor!" Lee nudged me.

I turned around to look at the dance floor. I saw Anna dancing gracefully. She was dancing with Ginny and Hermione. She was swinging her hips from side to side and shaking them every so often. She was laughing and smiling with the girls. I never realised that I was grinning like a fool until I caught Anna's eyes; she started laughing really loudly when she saw me staring at her. God, that girl knew how to make me breathless. She kept eye contact with me but started to shake and rock her hips more and started to move her body more to the music. God, that girl knows exactly what she does to me.

Still can't believe

Her hold on me

She's just so indescribable

I know she knows

But won't you please, please

I smiled. That night had to be one of the best nights of my night.

We had just got back from Harrys' party and from the minute we arrived at my apartment we were lip locked and fighting to get each others' clothes off. We stumbled across the living room kicking our shoes off and then I managed to get her dress off. She took off my shirt and started to undo my trousers. I lifted her up and captured her lips with mine as she wrapped her legs around my waist. I somehow managed to get us into my room without breaking anything. We collapsed on to the bed and began to show just how much we loved each other.

After we had made love we both cuddled into each other. I mumbled sweet nothings into her ear. Anna looked at me and said that she was going to get a drink. "I'll get that for you, love." I got out of bed and chucked on my boxers which were lying in the middle of my floor. Once I had poured her a drink I turned around to go back to my room when I noticed a glint come from the floor in the hallway. When I walked closer to the hallway I saw it was a silver engagement ring with a large diamond and six smaller ones on it; it was the ring I had bought for Anna a month ago. What was it doing on the floor in the hallway? Not in its box hidden safely in Fred's room? I picked it up and glanced up at the picture on the wall. It was a picture of me and Fred when we were about six; we were smiling cheekily, winking and laughing at the camera. The funny thing is, that's Anna's favourite picture of me and Fred. She says it captures us together so perfectly. Innocent, mischievous, funny, loving and care free. I looked down at the engagement ring in my hand and then back at the picture. This was my sign. I smiled at the picture. "Thanks, man. I know you'd have loved her and Ron was right. You're probably saying that if I don't propose then you will." I chuckled and then went back to my room. I handed Anna her drink and took a deep breath and crawled back into bed. Once she had finished her drink she cuddled back into me. I looked down at her; she looked so beautiful. "Anna." I softly murmured.

"Hmm." She mumbled and looked up at me.

"I love you."

"I love you too." She kissed me and then put her head on my shoulder.

I turned slightly so that I could look at her and so that she could see me.

"Anna. I just want you to know that you're everything to me. You've helped me in so many ways and each time I see you I can't help but fall even deeper in love with you. And I want you to know that Fred would have loved you."

She smiled at me and whispered. "Good 'cause if he didn't we would have issues. And I love you too. Everyday I'm with you I feel complete; I would do anything for you George. Every time I'm with you I love you more than I did before, if that's even possibly."

I beamed. I think that just gave me the courage to do this.

"Breanna Caitlyn McPherson, will you do me the honour of becoming my wife?" I held out the ring to her. Her expression went from surprise, to awe, to love. She engulfed me in a hug and kissed me.

"Of course! I always thought that Anna Weasley had a good ring to it! I love you, you bloody ginger fool!"

"So you won't mind having lots of ginger babies then?" I said while I put the ring on her marriage finger.

"Darlin' we can have a whole bloody army of gingers if you want!"

"Well then. We better get to work then, my future Mrs. Weasley." I smiled devilishly and then captured her lips in mine.

Every time that I'm around her

I just go to pieces crashing tumbling to the ground

I'm so glad I found her

I know how it feels

I was so nervous. I was fiddling with the sleeves of my dress robes. I kept glancing at the time. We were getting married at 12:30 pm and it was 12:00pm. I would glance at the clock ever few minutes but it never seemed to change. I began to pace back and forth. I was meant to be out in the garden greeting the guests and stuff but I had somehow escaped my mum's clutches. I took a deep breath and made my way to the garden. With each step I made from me and Fred's old room down to the back door I got more exited and anxious. The garden had been tidied up and there were red and white roses everywhere. It looked wonderful. There was an arbour near the orchard (I asked it to be placed there as the orchard held a lot of memories of me and all my siblings) and all the leaves were all beautifully golden; Anna had always wanted an autumn wedding so we were getting married in October. October 13th to be exact; it wasn't too cold and the colours of autumn had just appeared. I greeted everybody as I made my way to the arbour. Ron wasn't at the arbour like he said he would be. I rolled my eyes; mum probably has him looking for me. I got stopped by quite a few people who wanted to congratulate me and stuff like that. Once it was just after twenty past twelve I began to head to the arbour where the sermon guy was waiting, and much to my surprise there was Ron with a big, thin box. Once I was under the arbour I approached Ron with a look of curiosity on my face.

"Ron, what's that?" He smiled at me and set it up on an easel.

"It's a wedding present from your bride." I smiled with confusion and eagerness at the same time. I wanted to know what it was.

"Can I open it?"

"Yeah, if you want. She said you should open it before the wedding starts."

"You better move it then. We don't want it here when we're getting married."

"Nope. It stays right here." He beamed at me.

"Okay..." I'm sure I looked even more confused.

I reached out to take the wrapping off of it. I quickly pulled it off and gasped at what was in front of me.

It was a big picture of Fred smiling and winking at me. I could feel the tears coming to my eyes. I had to blink a couple of times to stop them falling.

"She didn't want you to get married without having your best man there." I turned to him, grinning and gave him a big hug.

"I'm marrying the best woman in the world aren't I?"

"Yeah, you are. I almost cried when she asked me to do this. No one knew but me."

Then I heard the music begin to play. I let go of Ron, smiled and then turned around. Ginny and Harry, Hermione and Charlie, Fleur and Bill, and Bridget, Anna's sister, and Lee came down the aisle. They took their positions and turned to look for Anna. Anna stepped out of the house looked breathtakingly beautiful in a beautiful white strapless dress which floated down her legs and stopped at her knees. Her dress had some light beading on the bodice and it had a large red rose attached to the left side of it. She was wearing a pair of white heels which made her a little taller than when she normally wears heels. Her hair was in its natural curls and the midday autumn sun almost made her hair look ginger; which made George smile even more. He couldn't take his eyes off of her. She wasn't wearing a lot of make-up as usual just the 'essentials' as Anna called them. She was wearing the single diamond necklace he had given her two years ago for her birthday. He watched her gracefully make her way to him. Time seemed to stop for him. He couldn't see anybody but her. Not her dad who was by her side, not anybody who complimented her as she passed, no one in the room mattered at this moment. He only had eyes for Anna. His beautiful Anna. The woman he loved more than anything. The woman he would spend forever with.

Once she had reached me I grinned at her and took her hand. The whole time through the ceremony we just stared into each other's eyes. Silently telling each other that we loved each other. I saw her glance at the picture of Fred and she smiled at me. I beamed and mouthed 'My best man. Thank you.'

Finally after putting our rings on each other I pulled her to me and we kissed. The first time as man and wife.

"I love you, Mrs. Weasley."

"I love you too, Mr. Weasley."

Oh yeah, just tell her I love her

I sighed. Hard to believe that was almost a year ago. I looked over at the clock on the bed side table. I needed to get up for work soon. I climbed out of bed and stretched. I slowly made my way down the hallway. I glanced at the pictures of me and Fred, me and my family, and me and Anna. I smiled at the one of us on our wedding day. It was our first dance. She had her hands around my neck and I had mine on her waist. Our foreheads were against each other and we were slowly dancing, cherishing our special day. I turned into the kitchen and saw Anna with her back to me making breakfast. I slowly approached her, hoping that I was silent. I slowly snaked my arms around her. She looked back and smiled at me.

"I was wondering when you were gonna get up. I thought I might have had to drag you out of bed."

I laughed. It wouldn't be the first time she would have done it.

She was putting the French toast onto the plate that was on the counter. Once she did that she enchanted the dishes to start washing and drying themselves. I smiled down at her. She smiled at me and went to place the plate down on the table along with a cup of coffee for me.

I walked over to her and kissed her lightly on the lips. "I love you."

"I love you too, you bloody ginger fool."

I leaned down to her stomach and kissed the medium sized bump. "And I love you, Fred."

I stood straight again and snaked my arms around Anna's waist. I looked down into her beautiful bright, pale blue eyes and I saw her gaze lovingly back into mine.

#george weasley x reader #george weasley imagine #songfic

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happytinylou · 8 years ago

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I want to talk about Louis Tomlinson and what he’s gone through recently. Mainly because I myself have been through both an arrest AND having a paparazzi right up in my face, but also because I feel like he’s having a really rough time of late and the poor guy deserves a break.

Let’s take it back to the beginning: Louis becomes a part of One Direction. This catapults him into worldwide fame and stupendous amounts of money. Now, while this seems a good thing (who would complain about that, you think), it DOES come with a whole host of down-sides.

I’m not even half as famous or rich as him, but I can vouch for the fact that as soon as you are even a little bit famous or “wealthy”, or even just successful at something, you suddenly find that everyone around you changes.

You suddenly have more “friends” (not real ones, but people who want something from you). Suddenly everyone is really nice to your face but VILE to you online when hidden behind the safety of a computer or phone screen (and this alone makes you go slightly crazy as you end up not knowing what’s even real anymore as one day you think you’re God’s gift, and the next you believe that internet troll who says you’re hideously ugly and have a big nose).

Suddenly you get asked for lots of “favours” and people start to think they “own” you and act like you owe THEM something even though you’ve never met them. They think nothing of interrupting a family meal to ask for a photo, they demand that you help them by turning up to an event (and bad mouth you when you don’t), and you become the token celeb at any event you do go to (including normal things like family weddings).

Basically, your life is never “normal” again.

Now, please don’t get me wrong, it isn’t all bad; far from it. Being famous and rich is obviously a good thing, and I wouldn’t change my life now for anything, BUT it did take me a good ten years to come to terms with my own fame, to understand it and, most importantly, to ENJOY it.

That leads me onto my next point; I’m 38, Louis is 25! He’s been famous from a very young age and is probably not even close to the understanding and acceptance that I’m at with fame (and his situation is made worse by the fact that he’s a billion times more famous than me, and is confronted with screaming, hysterical girls everywhere he goes! Blimey, at least MY fans have a degree of etiquette and politeness… well, most of them. There’s always that one guy who tweets you photos of his own penis).

And Louis has had one hell of a bumpy ride in the past 18 months: from the birth of his son Freddie in January 2016 (who to my knowledge, wasn’t planned - apologies if he was!) – a tough thing for a young lad of his age to deal with (and all credit to him for stepping up and being a father). Then, at the end of last year he tragically lost his wonderful mother Johannah to cancer, and shortly after he separated from his girlfriend of one year, Danielle Campbell.

And now there’s this latest saga of him being arrested at LAX airport after he tried to get a paparazzi out of his and his girlfriend’s faces, only to then see (from what I can see on the video) that his girlfriend was being attacked (or certainly held up against a wall) by a group of so called fans – at which point he steamed in to protect her.

Now I ask you: WHAT has this poor lad done wrong?!

In the early days of my fame I was chased everywhere I went by paparazzi; they waited outside my house, followed me in cars and on bikes, and they generally made life quite difficult. The law changed some time back so that paps are no longer allowed to take pictures on your private property (which is great as it means they no longer come to your house), however if you live on a street in London say, the minute you step onto a public pavement, you are fair game.

For years I’ve enjoyed a normal private life living in the countryside where the paps leave me alone, and I get to post my own pics on my own social media - it’s a win-win for me. However, one place the paparazzi are still absolute demons to me is Barbados. I’ve been going there since I was 5-years-old and Barbados to me feels like a second home, so much so that I often go there alone. Over the years it’s become the celeb hot-spot (cheers Simon Cowell for ruining my perfectly peaceful get-away!), and is now teeming with paparazzi.

The last time I was there holidaying alone, I was hounded all day, every day by paps. All I do when I’m away is read my kindle on the sun lounger and the only time I move is to get a bottle of water, so quite why they need to be there all day I don’t know, but I can tell you, it’s VERY uncomfortable having them watch your every move.

Imagine as a woman; you’re not quite beach-ready or in your best shape and you’re nervous about putting a bikini on anyway, and then factor in that someone with a very powerful high-res lens is going to be snapping EVERYTHING you do. It’s enough to send anyone mad! Then, as if all that wasn’t enough to contend with, there was one incident that really frightened me. I got up one day from where I was lying on the beach and walked the 20 yards back into my hotel complex to get a drink. As I did so, one of the paps jumped up and ran from her position until I came face to face with her INSIDE the walls of the hotel. She got in front of me, and her camera was (I kid you not), mere inches from my face as she walked backwards with her finger held down on the button, snapping off some 10 frames per second. She was so close I nearly actually walked into her, and I have never felt so intimidated or annoyed.

Technically all the beaches in Barbados are public property, so they can do what they like there, but it’s up to the individual hotels as to how they deal with them (most wouldn’t allow them in, full stop). Now, the day this happened to me, it was in front of a good 50 people (guests and staff around the pool and bar), and I was alone there. No one came to my rescue, no one tried to stop the pap (including the hotel staff), and no one asked me if I was ok. I wasn’t ok. It probably doesn’t sound like much, but believe me it was. It was the fact that she was so close to me and SO in my face, and that I had nowhere to go! And also the humiliation of everyone watching and probably assuming that I loved it (I didn’t). I was there as a normal holiday maker, NOT as THE Jodie Marsh, and I certainly wasn’t there to “work”.

In fact, one of the reasons I post so many photos on my Twitter and Instagram when I’m away is so that it makes the pap pictures worthless – if the Daily Mail can pick up pics of me in a bikini for free from my social media then they won’t buy the pap ones and I might actually get some peace when away!

I was trying to keep a very low profile within the hotel itself and would go and grab a lounger very early morning (German style!) and stay there all day with a hat pulled down over my face so as NOT to draw attention to myself. When the pap did what she did, it not only caused a huge embarrassing scene for me, but it attracted attention to me (for all the wrong reasons), and it singled me out from all the other holiday makers. Suddenly I was THE Jodie Marsh with an entourage of paparazzi and I became the gossip of the hotel. I could have died from the shame of it all. I was gutted that the hotel didn’t step in to help (I did go on to complain to the hotel manager and eventually even moved hotels to try and evade the relentless paps – they found me within a day but the new hotel didn’t allow them inside so I stayed by the pool, too frightened to go onto the beach).

I was also gutted that I had been made to feel so scared and vulnerable. That incident stayed with me so much that it has made me not want to go back to Barbados. When I go away it is to relax and recharge and escape the graft and stress and monotony of every day life and work (like ANY person who goes on holiday).

Now, imagine you had to deal with that incident EVERY DAY OF YOUR LIFE… because that’s basically what those One Direction boys are dealing with: paparazzi surrounding them wherever they go and getting right up in their face. It’s not nice as a one off, but if it happened every day it would drive you to despair!

Louis is fresh after the death of his mother, and my guess is that having already asked the pap politely to back off, he fronted him in that way as the pap WOULDN’T back down. And you know what, even if he just fronted him out of the blue without any warning, is this 25-year-old man supposed to stay calm and controlled at ALL times? Is he not allowed a minor blip in his ever-composed exterior? Is he perfect? Is anybody?!

As far as I’m concerned, Louis had every right to confront an annoying paparazzi. When you really think about it, it’s kind of like having a mad stalker who follows you everywhere, taking pictures of everything you do. AND, people forget, no matter how famous you are, you’re still a normal human! So therefore it IS weird being followed by paps, no matter how incredibly famous you are. It’s not something you ever really get used to (unless you’re Katie Price and you love it and set up cringey pap shots everywhere you go!).

Moving on to Louis’ girlfriend being attacked (for that is certainly what it looked like to me); what decent, caring man WOULDN’T want to protect his girlfriend in that situation? I actually think Louis was very restrained in what he did – I know men who would have started knocking people out left, right and centre (admittedly, I just might know the wrong types of men!), but it’s like the old saying goes: “hurt me, I can deal with it, hurt my family and you’ll regret it.” Most people have an inner primal protection mode when it comes to someone they love being hurt; it kicks in without us even being able to control it. If I was walking down the street and someone called me a name I would laugh it off; call my mum a name however and I’m going to want a row. It’s not something I would even be aware of, the red mist would descend. It’s built into us. From what I can see on the video, Louis does nothing more than ANY of us would do if a loved one was being attacked, threatened (or in this case, held up against a wall).And all of this happened because Louis is a global star (and because he clearly has shit - or no – security).

After this horrible incident, which would have left Louis and Eleanor scared and shaking, Louis then gets arrested. I’ve been there. It’s VILE! For someone who has NEVER done more than get a speeding fine, it’s the scariest thing in the world to be kept in a cell and to be interviewed under arrest. Not only that, but the whole time all you can think is “shit, that’s my work in America stuffed,” as if you’re charged with a crime you may not be permitted to enter America again. Most of my documentaries are filmed in the USA and for Louis, he NEEDS to be able to go there for his career too. It’s vital. So all this is going through your head at the same time as the confusion of feeling like you’ve done nothing wrong and that they’ve arrested the wrong person!

And all of this on top of the stressful and devastating few years he’s had in his personal life. Poor, poor Louis, I feel for him, I really do. I want to hug him (not in a creepy way). I want him to know that there ARE good people out there (because right now he’s probably hating humans), and I want him to know that it will all be all right in the end. Karma is real and when all is said and done, the good people always come out on top.

“But you and Louis asked for the fame, you WANTED it!” I hear you say. Yes my loves, we did, but we didn’t bloody know that with it would come a big fat dose of lunacy, opportunists, crazies and stalkers, did we? We didn’t know we’d end up trusting no one. We didn’t know it would change everyone around us (even sometimes, our own families), we didn’t know it would send us over the edge at times. Oh no; WE thought we’d be sitting pretty in our mansions forever more with our perfect lives, feasting on champagne and lobster, surrounded by wonderful caring people who don’t want anything but our amazing company because our friendship is just so strong and real! We thought it was the dream! We thought money and fame would bring us everything our hearts desire. And you know what? The one thing we all really need in life is the true, deep, unconditional love of a mother or father or partner, and that is something money can’t buy.

It’s something Louis knows only too well, and that’s the one thing he’s just lost. So please give him a break, people. Louis needs love and support.

#this was really lovely :((#i hope louis knows that there are so many people out there that care about him and only want his happiness #*

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hendroda · 8 years ago

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In her first Jodie Marsh Has Her Say column for Closer Online, Jodie Marshopens up about the dark side of fame, and why she wants to give Louis Tomlinson a hug (but not in a creepy way!)…

Basically, your life is never “normal” again.

Now I ask you: WHAT has this poor lad done wrong?!

Moving on to Louis�� girlfriend being attacked (for that is certainly what it looked like to me); what decent, caring man WOULDN’T want to protect his girlfriend in that situation? I actually think Louis was very restrained in what he did – I know men who would have started knocking people out left, right and centre (admittedly, I just might know the wrong types of men!), but it’s like the old saying goes: “hurt me, I can deal with it, hurt my family and you’ll regret it.” Most people have an inner primal protection mode when it comes to someone they love being hurt; it kicks in without us even being able to control it. If I was walking down the street and someone called me a name I would laugh it off; call my mum a name however and I’m going to want a row. It’s not something I would even be aware of, the red mist would descend. It’s built into us. From what I can see on the video, Louis does nothing more than ANY of us would do if a loved one was being attacked, threatened (or in this case, held up against a wall).

And all of this happened because Louis is a global star (and because he clearly has shit - or no – security).

"But you and Louis asked for the fame, you WANTED it!” I hear you say. Yes my loves, we did, but we didn’t bloody know that with it would come a big fat dose of lunacy, opportunists, crazies and stalkers, did we? We didn’t know we’d end up trusting no one. We didn’t know it would change everyone around us (even sometimes, our own families), we didn’t know it would send us over the edge at times. Oh no; WE thought we’d be sitting pretty in our mansions forever more with our perfect lives, feasting on champagne and lobster, surrounded by wonderful caring people who don’t want anything but our amazing company because our friendship is just so strong and real! We thought it was the dream! We thought money and fame would bring us everything our hearts desire. And you know what? The one thing we all really need in life is the true, deep, unconditional love of a mother or father or partner, and that is something money can’t buy.

It’s something Louis knows only too well, and that’s the one thing he’s just lost. So please give him a break, people. Louis needs love and support.

#*#Louis

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ask-broppy-lovechild-blog · 8 years ago

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True Colors

Inspired by: @ask-artsy-oncie, @tisbubb, and @dawnbuneary (Love your content guys)

I didn’t call it “True Colors” because of the song, but because imma try to focus on making it about not hiding your real personality. The first three chapters are mainly fluff, but the next ones will actually get a story going.

P.S So sorry for the bad grammar, I…I wont promise but understand that this is my first Broppy Fanfic. So it might not be as good as others you’ve read. Anyways, enjoy!

“Branch had a dream that he proposed, and became King Branch instead of Prince Branch. And Poppy had the exact same dream.“ ~Previously

It’s been days since Poppy became queen, waiting patiently for the day where her happiness will grow x1000 more than it already is. That special day. However, Poppy needs to stop focusing on the future and worry more about the present.

Being Queen of a species that mainly does parties and celebrate sounds fun and easy, but really, it’s hard. The only reason for this is that a lot of her subjects are carefree and don’t really care about a lot of important matters; even when they know it’s life threatening, they take a lot of things for granted and don’t listen. At least she has Branch who would listen and understand her words; always there to help her when she’s having trouble.

Spring: the season after winter and before summer, in which vegetation begins to appear, in the northern hemisphere from March to May and in the southern hemisphere from September to November. It was a cool season, a season that causes most allergies, a season that generations are born with most animals, the season where some breeding happens. Trolls breeding cycle are different than most animals. Female Trolls go in heat in spring, where the air is clear and can usually send a heat scent across the land. Meanwhile, the birth of most Trolls take place during fall, where the Trolls have a lot of resources and items to make a comfortable place for their pod. This is also where the Troll tree gets its nutrients from the dead plants, as it doesn’t take life from the living ones; making the pods growing rate much faster.

(A/N: Don’t quote me on this, this is not cannon. This is just for this story as far as I’m aware of :3)

This was Poppy’s first season, but she hasn’t gone in heat yet. Unlike most female Trolls, she can control her heat. She takes her heat a week back, trying to gain very little attention as possible for this week, wanting to get things done before worrying about breeding. She had to reschedule the two meetings she missed, going to there now. Branch isn’t really affected by the heat of other female Trolls. After being gray for more than 10 years and being isolated from everyone else, he’s learned how to control his desires very well. He hasn’t gotten any reason to mate with anyone…..yet.

"Hey guys” she panted, “I made it on time this time! So what’s going on outside these walls?” She questioned, sitting down to gain a bit energy.

“Well, we have new predators to watch out for, first off” Said the tiny yellow Troll, known as Smidge. She pointed to the crows and birds that loomed over, who can easily snatch a troll.

“I’ll have I talk to Gristle about that later today….anything else?” She asked the Snack Pack.

“We’ve spotted faint….how could we say this-” Satin said, getting finished by her sister, “-….structures far north….” they said as they showed her the Troll sized telescope the Bergens installed for them. There was a very small sky scraper with other faint and blurry buildings.

“We can check it out later. If there is other life, like, other Bergens or Trolls, then we can introduce ourselves!” She stated, kinda excited by finding others to be friends with.

“Poppy, we’ve also spotted new plants for food in the forest besides ours.” Guy Diamond stated, pointing to the forest with all the vegetation for the Trolls and animals for the Bergens.

“I will take note of that!” She said, smiling proudly. She seems to be in a better mood today, maybe it’s the season. Winter was pretty stressful for her, as that was when she started to take the Queen role.

“Due to the predators, we should make a safe passage for the Bergens and Trolls so they can leave the walls and venture forth without fear” DJ Suki says, fiddling with her headphones.

“I should also talk about that with Gristle” she said, taking a mental note of all of this.

“I don’t have anything to report, Mr. Dinkles has really been distracting me” Biggie said, “and Cooper didn’t come yet”.

“Okay, well, when he does, tell me. I have to get back the the kids” She said and started to walk back.

“One more thing, Poppy” DJ said, walking to her pink friend.

“What is it DJ?” Poppy asked, turning to her.

She whispers to her, “just don’t be too loud tonight.” She said, and starts to walk away.

“What do you mean?” Poppy asked, tilting her head. The only response she got was a wink. She sat there for a good while and thought……..and when she finally got it……..she ran home, blushing furiously.

Once she got past the crowd of happy and some grey Trolls, she made it home to the safety of the bunker. After the event where everyone turned grey, there has been more grey Trolls. But it’s considered normal now, more Trolls are becoming a bit more emotional; but we’re all Trolls and Bergens, you have the right to express your feelings. A lot of males found out to not let gender stereotypes control their life.

“Poppy? Are you okay?” Branch asked his slightly darker female as he looked up from his book that he was reading. She was pink before, and now she’s red?

“N-Not now, Branch.” She said, looking in her pile of things that she never decided to put away, as they’re still in their boxes.

“How did the ‘meeting’ go?” He asked her, putting his book and reading glasses away neatly.

She smiled at the question, “Very well! I was there on time!” She answered him happily, walking toward him after finding the activity she needed.

He picks her up and nuzzled her neck affectionately. She loved the small affection he’d give her before she had to leave him again, “that’s exciting. I’m glad you’re getting in the grove of things!” He said in a kinda praising voice.

“Thank you!” She said as he puts her slowly and gently down.

“Okay, have a good day, Poppy. Love you” he said, giving her a quick peck on her lips.

“Love you too, Branch” she said, and pecks his lips back. Then she waved and left.

Branch has been planning his proposal, as he has all the valuable items; he just needs the right place and time. The only troll who knows this is Suki; someone who he can trust. Suki has mentioned a party, as he is still getting used to parties, but he just doesn’t like a loud one; but he quiet and slow ones are boring as well.

So they had to scratch that idea off the list. Then she suggested something romantic, like, the place where they first started dating. But then it would be crowded cause that’s literally in front of the Troll Tree. So they had to scratch that idea off the list. But he came to a conclusion that he wants to introduce a very special poem he made long ago to her.

He’s always showed her poems to make her relax, but this one was very special. Furthermore, he has decided to make it by the far beach. He only knows this cause he used to go out and take himself when he was grey; going far to find food and healthy water for himself. He wants to show her the soft and warm sand with the cold and sometimes warm ocean water. “Yes, that’ll work!” Branch mentally told himself.

He was gonna do it when the sun is setting, making it a beautiful scenery. He had everything figured out, and now he needs bathing suits for the two. If he knows the Troll village well, he knows two fashionista sisters who can get the job done of making clothes. Satin and Chenille.

He quickly went over to their pod, not bothering to knock. The two were making clothing for a Troll, and it looked more like a blue robe. If he was gonna propose to her, it would be when she’s not working as much as she is. Which means he’d have to propose……..TOMORROW!!

“H-Hey! Excuse me! It’s an emergency! Satin and Chenille!” Branch screamed as he ran in, interrupting them.

“Yes-” Satin started, “-Branch?” Chenille finished.

“I need two bathing suits! One Poppy size and the other my size!” He said, showing that he was in a rush.

“Two bathing suits, coming right up!” The twins said together as they ran to get started. They know how big Poppy is, and they’re measuring Branch for his height.

While they were doing that, Branch was mentally planning his proposal. He knows about Poppy being able to back her heat up by a week, so that gives him a lot of time before she gets any desires. He wants then had to sneak away, before anyone noticed they where gone. After all of his thoughts, he noticed they finished and they gave it to him for free, since he’s the Prince.

“Thank you!” He said as he ran home, holding the clothing close to him. He ran so fast, he could very faintly hear a “You’re welcome” after 5 seconds.

He gathered all of his items, hiding them in his backpack that he used when he went to help Poppy save her friends. He looked at the time, and knew she was coming home now. He patiently waited for her on the couch, not a second later and she bursts in. He stands and follows her into the room, knowing her stress.

Today was the day Branch would finally propose to his one and only love, Poppy. He went over to her, as she just finished her work early. She stretched and yawned, turning to her partner with a soft smile.

“Hey Poppy, I uh, wanna show you something” he said, a hint of nervousness in his voice.

“Oh really?” She said as she stands and leans against Branch for support.

“Yah, come on. I can carry you if you want” he said, wrapping his hands around her small waist as she laid her tiny hands onto his wide and thick shoulders.

“Please.” She said as she looked up at him. He picks her up, holding her outer thighs at first and then holding under them. She holds onto his neck for support.

He managed to sneak away from everyone and go far past the walls to the beach. Poppy didn’t notice at first, but then covered her eyes and puts her down.

“Ready?” He said quietly and softly, before removing his hands and she couldn’t believe what she saw.

The water met the land, and the land was unusually gravelly and….soft. It was actually cold, but not too cold. It was a nice white color at night, and the soil ran through her tiny pink toes.

“I-I want to touch the water!” She said like a child, running to the ocean water, but Branch stops her.

“Ah-Ah-Ah! You need to wear this first.” Branch said, showing the bathing suits the twins made it him.

She looked at them and takes hers. She knows how to wear one, she has one. But that one is way too small, since it’s been a good while since the last time they had a pool party. She went behind a tall enough rock to change, and so did Branch. She came out in her one piece, which was simply blue, with green at the bottom, flower designs separating the two colors like her casual wear. Branch had simple Green trunks, with no really special design. He didn’t want anything fancy.

“Now?!” She said, very excited to jump into the natural ocean water before her.

“Yes” he answered as he followed his excited queen into the warm water.

She giggled and splashed; the sunset looming over, turning the water into orange and yellow color. Poppy loved the beach, as he could see her excitement. Now, it was the time for him to say the words.

“H-Hey Poppy, I have to tell you something” he said, as she approached him. Her wet feet was making the sand stick to the bottom of her feet and in between her toes. Her body was soaking, and she shakes the water out of her hair like a dog.

“What is it, Branch?” She asked, going to her bigger partner.

“Well….I want to read you something” he starts, and goes into his backpack, and take out his poem

“Oh! A poem!” She said as she sat Chris -cross-applesauce in the sand, acting like a child getting read a story.

“I’ve never imagined that there can be this day” He started, “A day that love will find its way. Out of my heart and into your soul. These feelings I have are beyond my control. All my life I have waited patiently. For a goddess like you, so beautiful, so lovely. Words can’t express the way I feel. These feelings towards you are all for real. You are the reason why I go on. Eternity can’t separate this special bond. This heart of mine is reserved for you. Forever it is yours, this love is true. I’ll be your first and you’ll be my last. My world, my everything, till my time has past. I will always love you until the end of time, my love, my queen, my valentine.” He finished and he was blushing, as he had a smile on his face and looked at her.

She was blushing, and wide-eyed, “Branch….that was so……sweet!” She said as she kisses him, he kisses back with a huge smile on his face.

“And one last thing…” he said and looked in his backpack, and took out the case.

“My queen, my love, my one and only…will you make me the happiest Troll alive, and marry me?” He said, getting on one knee and opening the box with the choker in it. Trolls don’t wear rings, since they can get easily lost like that. However, of you wear a choker, it shows that you’re engaged/married. Since it’ll be harder I loose it like that.

Poppy went wide-eyed, and almost cried tears of joy. She hugs him tightly, and kisses him passionately. The two lips touched, it was weirdly the best kiss they probably ever had. Once they separated, he puts the diamond chocked around his fiancée’s neck. The two shared a tender a nuzzle, and then changed into their regular clothes before going home.

One week after, and after a long and heated session at the royal bunker, Poppy went back to work. But after weeks, they did notice Poppy’s behavior and figure. See, it takes a very long time for Trolls to birth their young because it takes awhile for a baby to develop in a seed—Simple. You can tell when one is close to birthing day, by the size of their stomachs.

They usually have a small bump that’s barley noticeable during spring. Then they grow a medium sized baby bump during the summer; finalizing with them having a huge baby bump durning the fall. After awhile, more and more pregnant Trolls are seen. Due to this, Parties aren’t as wild as they normally are.

During the fall, Poppy had a stomach the size of an overgrown acorn. Though, it only takes about two weeks for the pods to develop and grow, just to get the baby out. Poppy was asleep with Branch, when she suddenly felt a sharp pain in her stomach and shot right up. This jump scares Branch into waking himself.

“A-Are to okay?!” He said, looking at her as she held her stomach.

“NO!” She said in pain as she was grunting in groaning; Branch started to panic.

“Uh, u-uh, UH!” He said, unsure what to do. Then he got an idea.

“You’re in labor?!” He said, sitting up and getting out of bed.

“I-I think so!” She said, sweating.

He went to get her the needed items to not have her pass out, (or possibly die).

After that long and stressful session, Poppy was tired and ready to pass out. He held a rainbow seed, knowing that it’s gonna be a rainbow Troll like it’s mother and father. But the colors went along with the colors blue, purple, and pink. Branches seed ran with blue, green, and purple. And Poppy’s ran with red and different shades of pink.

“Are you…okay?” He said, and held the seed gently, walking over to his tired partner.

“Yah *Pant*” she was extremely tired.

“Let’s plant it tomorrow” he said, and he puts the seed in a soft and gentle blanket,

She nods and passes out, as he cleans her up and changes the sheets. He makes the place comfortable to where they’re gonna plant it with the resources around. Branch worked all night to make it perfect.

Poppy awoke, sore from last night, and went to go find her fiancé. She found him in the living room, asleep on the couch. She giggles quietly and softly placed a kiss on his cheek, before shaking him awake.

“Branch? Branch? Branch? Branch? Branch? Bran–” She said, calling his name over and over until he awoke and interrupted her.

“I’m up, I’m up.” He said, sitting up and stretching with a yawn.

“Ready to plant our seed?” He said, smiling at her, small black bags under his eyes.

“Are you tired?” She said, looking at him.

“Yes, but come on. A Troll seed can’t last long without the nutrients from the tree” he said and stands, as she holds their seed.

Branch shows her the small and comfortable patch he made for the pod. She smiled at the decorations and planted it in the middle of it.

“What are we gonna name it when it’s born?” Branched asked her, looking at her smiling face.

“Well, I have the names Twig and Iris” she answered and looked at him.

“So Twig is it’s a boy and Iris if it’s a girl?” He questioned.

“No, both names are gender-neutral. Twig can be a boy or girl name. Iris is used for a lot of girls, but I consider it as a name for both genders. So yes, I would name my son, Iris.” She explained to him, and he was actually happy that she was thinking of names and not something dumb or uncreative.

“I had the names Rosie, Pollen, Flower, and Roots, Twig, and Leaf” he said, looking back at her.

“But I do like the name Iris” he finished and held her close.

“Well, let’s see what gender it becomes.” She said, looking as the ground grows a bit. They can see a tiny bulb on the ground. The upcoming parents smile at their creation.

Chapter 2.

#Broppy #Branch #Poppy

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tinystoriesfamily-blog · 7 years ago

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4 incredible beaches on Tenerife that will fulfill you

I am not telling you that beaches described below are the best on Tenerife because tastes vary. Some like sandy beaches, some don’t stand sand in every corner of their body. Some like to listen how waves crash on a rocky shore. To some such coast is too dangerous to get close to. That is why I will describe four beaches I found to have a transcending effect on me.

1. Playa de Benijo

Already getting there it is the experience itself. You go through picturesque villages surrounded by majestic green mountains. Before you start walking down the stairs toward the beach, stop and have a drink in one of two bars who have excellent sea view (and it’s easier to park a car on their premises). While walking down the countless steps, you can enjoy the sound of merciless waves. They are showing their power by smashing into the pointy rocks standing proudly out of the sea. When you reach the bottom of the stairs, you’ll be mesmerized by the contrast of pitch black silky sand and foamy white water. The tip of the wave caresses the seashore again and again. I have to warn you that the beach is often closed due to extreme waves and strong currents. But you don’t need to swim to take in all the beauty of this natural play.

2. Playa de Las Teresitas

I think Playa de Teresitas is the most advertised beach on Tenerife. It’s long, with gold sand, palm trees and with a great view of nearby colorful houses that are rising in the hill. It is nice, but it is also packed with tourists. Luckily it is so big, that people can distribute along the shore. If it’s windy, you will feel like you are in the middle of a sand storm. Why do I like it? Mostly because kids love it there and water is shallow long enough, so I can relax they won’t go too deep. We also had a fun experience that stayed as a pleasant memory: we found a quicksand. It wasn’t the real one, which swallows you whole. Some water springs are making bubbles on the surface, and the sand is wet enough to drag you inside. If you allow yourself to step in, you will transform into a joyful kid again.

3. Playa Jardin

You will find Playa Jardin in Puerto de la Cruz. Even though it is a city beach, it is always possible to find a parking space. If you are lucky, you will get one right next to it. If not, the road will take you to the big parking lot next to the open sea. Don’t be disappointed to walk a bit longer to get back to Jardin, because on your path you will find an incredible installation of stone sculptures. It looks like the enchanted town of sleeping trolls. You will also pass small castle with an old cannon in front. Jardin beach is a sandy beach with bar, showers, and toilets, usually with a lot of people. Why do I like it? Because it is a mixture of warm sand, black rocks and green gardens on top. If you don’t want to be in the sun, you can take your beach towel above the shore under the palm trees. You will have a fantastic view, natural shadow, and fragrances of blooming bushes. Hint for parents: there is a great playground, and a bar is near.

4. Playa Abades

The last beach is nothing like the previous three. You don’t find many people there — at least we didn’t. It is nothing spectacular about it. But it is peaceful. There is a small sandy beach, on one side accompanied by rocky caves, where you can hide your water or beer from the hot sun. In the distance stands what looks like an abandoned church. I guess there is a lot to see under the water because you can detect plenty of divers. It is a calm beach, but it is not deserted. You have bars and small grocery shop only couple ten meters away, but still far enough that beach stays entity of their own.

Another splendid place is Los Gigantes, because of spectacular cliffs. I didn’t like the beach there though. It was crowded, and sand was hot; it wasn’t possible to walk barefoot.

I preferred natural pool in Santiago del Teide (Piscina Natural Acantilado D Los Gigantes). It is unique, you get some sea showers when the big wave tries to enter the pool, and you still have the view of Los Gigantes cliffs.

* This story was originally published on our passion project. You can check it here

#travel #beach #tenerife #nomadlife

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mnranger5 · 7 years ago

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Family Weekend & MLS Bass Tournament, Mille Lacs Lake, 8/24/17 - 8/27/17

We decided to make a big family weekend at Mil Lacs for the MLS Fishing Tournament. Dyan found an amazing log cabin near Isle where we would call home base for three nights.

The tournament was on Saturday, and we arrived on Thursday so that we could get a little pre-fishing in.

Rachel, Madison, Morgan and Denise arrived at the cabin first, with Dyan, Scarlett, Felicity and Aidan pulling in shortly after. The kids spent the sunny afternoon playing on the perfectly sandy beach. Mike arrived around 7:30, and I pulled in last around 9PM with Ashlynn and Brianna.

The cabin was simply amazing although nothing about it was new, or recently remodeled. It was a small log home with a giant family room and kitchen overlooking the lake.

The cabin had two bedrooms upstairs that also looked out over the lake. The yard was expansive, and flat with a fire pit centered halfway between the house and the lake. As I already mentioned, the beach was sand – without a weed or rock in sight – perfect for the kids.

The sand extended out at least 50 yards, as the kids walked out that far, and it was only knee deep.

The shallow sand would provide a challenge to get the boat in and out of, but a long dock would easily take care of that problem. If this property would have been for sale, I would have considered putting in an offer…

Once the girls and I arrived on Thursday night, the kids played outside and inside while we enjoyed the bonfire.

The kids all slept in tents under the stars the first night. They loved that they were “on their own!”

Mike and I launched both of our boats on Friday morning at 6AM out of Liberty Beach. We brought both of our boats so we could cover twice the water while pre-fishing. Mike headed south to Hawkbill Reef in the SE corner of the lake, while I headed north to Lakeside Reef. The weather had changed considerably overnight. The calm, warm sunshine was replaced with cold, clouds and wind. And while I cursed the weather a bit, I would have gladly taken it over what was in store for us on tournament day. The national weather service was calling for a windy, cold, fall-like weekend with 1-2” of rain.

For three hours, I fought the wind while dropshotting the rocky points in about 10-15 FOW. My little Ranger was taking waves over the bow, and I was not even on the windy side of the lake. I felt bad for people on the west side. Oddly enough, the wind was out of the E/SE, which is kind of rare. The strong winds out of the east prevented me from going to the west side of the lake. That would have been a miserable ride.

Generally speaking, this time of year, drop shotting is the main deal on Mil Lacs. Sure, you can pick up fish using other tactics, but the finesse tactic of drop shotting certainly seems to lands more fish. However, the massive cold front that had come through had shut down the smallmouth. After not even picking up so much as a bite, I needed to try something new. Crawfish are the primary source of food for smallmouth this time of year, and when crawfish begin molting (shedding their skin), they turn bright red.

I tied on the Rapala Scatter Rap Deep Crank in Dark Brown Crawdad color.

This crank is awesome! It has scooped bill that creates an erratic motion in the water and runs about 10-12 feet deep. I went with this color because the underside of the lure is bright red. My plan was to match the hatch.

While playing with the settings on my Helix 9, I dropped the crank in the water and slowly trolled with it. I could not get the setting rights so all my attention was on the Helix. Then, I got a jolt at the end of my line. At first, I thought I snagged a reef, but then the tugging started! I reeled the fish in easily and was surprised it was a 15” walleye.

I continued trolling around the the point, still refining my graph settings when I felt a familiar punch on my fishing rod. It was another walleye, and this one a bit larger at 17”. I continued doing this for another 30 minutes, picking up two more walleyes, one being 18” and the other being 20”. These would have been great eaters, but Mil Lacs currently has a ban on walleye possession. While they were not the fish I was looking for, it was still fun to catch something. Just before heading back to the cabin for breakfast, I hooked up with a larger fish, likely a pike or muskie, and it bit my Rapala off. Dang, that was my only one in that color!

After a delicious homemade breakfast burrito (thanks to Rachel!), we headed into town to Reeds Sporting Goods to see what tackle we could find. Lucky for us, Aidan found 3 more Scatter Raps in the clearance bin, and they were the right color! Score. We also got Aidan a deer target poster for his BB gun.

We then headed back out on the lake for some more fishing. I was drop shotting a point looking for smallies while Aidan sprayed the lake with his brand new crankbait. Aidan was freezing, so I bundled him up in some of my foul weather gear. It was a bit big, but at least he was staying warm.

After a couple of more hours without getting bit, I told Aidan I would troll him around until he got a walleye. Within 5 minutes of trolling his Scatter Rap, Aidan felt a bite, but it did not appear like the fish was hooked. We continued trolling. Once we reached the end of the point, I told Aidan to reel in so we could see if he had zebra mussels or weeds snagged on his bait. As he was reeling, in, his bait hit the surface, and we could see he was dragging in a walleye. He said it was his first walleye ever!

While we were out fishing, Dyan took all the kids into town to get them Mil Lacs sweatshirts and lunch at Eddy’s (deep fried duck wings, YUM!).

We headed back home for a late lunch and found the kids playing out in the lake.

Brrrrrrrr! No thanks! We had another tasty meal of warm roast beef sandwiches (thanks again Rachel!) before cranking up a big bonfire. We sat around the bonfire all evening while the kids played in and out of the lake and Aidan took target practice.

The kids also scavenged for crawfish and constructed a makeshift prison for the feisty little pinchers.

Rachel prepared a spicy chicken tacos for dinner and we retired fairly early. Storms looked like they were blowing in, so we packed up the tents and brought the air mattresses in side.

Right on cue, strong thunderstorm moved over Mil Lacs around 2AM and rumbled throughout the early morning. Mike and I launched his boat around 6 at Nitti Hunter’s resort just a mile north of our cabin. We were one of the first boats to launch as the rain fell moderately.

The rules meeting was at 6:30, with about 80 guys hunkered under a small tent in an effort to stay dry. The tournament director was hopeful all the anglers would remain safe and stressed that the wind gusts would likely approach 40 mph today.

At 7AM, we launched as boat #14 in 48 degree temps, rain showers and strong winds. The boat ride into the Isle area was dismal. At one point, our bow crashed below and through a large wave sending a wall of water over the bow and onto Mike and I. While we both had rain gear, the rain gear isn’t designed to withstand hundreds of gallons of water dousing it at once. After that single wave, we had standing water in the boat. Luckily, my Simms gear did a great job of keeping a majority of me dry.

Our first spot was Hawkbill Reef. We only lasted there for 30 minutes. With the strong wind and waves crashing over the bow, we could not keep the boat in position and kept drifting off the spot we needed to fish. Not picking up any bites, we moved south, closer to the shoreline – an area that was a bit more protected from the fierce winds.

We fished rocky reefs near Spider Island before running over to Upper Twin Island. We stayed on the north and west sides of upper twin fishing large boulders, but could not buy a bite. We were three hours into the tournament and hadn’t found any fish. We both felt that if we were going to find fish, we were going to have to tough it out and battle the heavy wind and waves in the open water. So, that is what we did. We headed back out to Hawkbill. Both of us were throwing drop shots. There was another boat, probably 200 yards to the west of us also throwing drop shots. We saw them land one fish and put it in the livewell. Seeing them catch a smallie got me optimistic. The fish were here. Then Mike got a bite. With a ferocious hookset, I quickly grabbed the net. Mike forced the fish to the side of the boat only to see it was a 15” walleye. Darn! Ten minutes later, Mike set the hook again. Another walleye. Then another walleye. Ugh! Where were the smallmouth? Finally, I felt a light hit on my dropshot and set the hook. Boom! It was a big one. I was casting out of the back of the boat and the fish was in front of the boat about 25 feet down. Mike quickly changed spots with me and so that I could try and get the fish safely to the boat. If it was a smallie, it was the giant we were looking for. As I fought the fish, the line wrapped around the trolling motor prop. Mike slowly raised the trolling motor and fished the line out of prop. Crisis avoided. Finally, the fish tired and I began to make progress on getting her off the bottom of the lake. Mike scooped the net into the water just as we got our first visual. It was a big walleye, about 23”.

My heart sank. With only three hours left to fish, all we could muster was 4 walleyes. It was that moment I began to realize we were in big trouble. Neither of us knew what to do. All of our prime spots that we were confident in were on the opposite side of the lake – which we could not get to because of the rough water. Mike threw out the idea of maybe trying to find some largemouths around docks and grass up closer to the Hawkbill shoreline. So we went shallow. Gave it about 30 minutes of flipping vegetation but came away empty handed. We then took the bumpy ride north to Agate Bay, and fished the rocky reefs. As we drifted with the wind my drop shot got a hit, albeit, a small one. I set the hook and reeled it in easily. It was a smallmouth, but only 12”. Our first smallie of the day. We tossed him back and continued our drift without picking up another bite.

Unfortunately, we did not weigh a fish for the tournament, and were a bit embarrassed by it. However, when the weigh-in was all said and done, 17 of the 38 boats did not weigh a single fish. I guess I don’t feel so bad after all. Misery loves company! The guys who were fishing right next to us at Hawkbill said they only had 6 bites all day, but they were huge bites. They said they only fished two boulders the entire day – “one was the size of a Chevrolet Trailblazer, and the other was the size of a Silverado.” All their bites came off those two boulders. They weighed 5 fish for over 23lbs placing them 4th.

The first place team weighed 5 fish for over 26lbs.

The big bass for the tournament came in at 6.97lbs.

Mike and I sat at Nitti’s Hunters bar for about an hour after the tournament warming up with a few beers but continued our losing theme for the day as we dropped $40 on losing pulltabs. We headed back to the cabin to get some dry clothes where we were greeted with an AH-mazing spaghetti dinner put together by Dyan. Not gonna lie, Mike and I had it pretty easy over the weekend. We fished, ate and had zero responsibility when it came to the kids for three days straight! Once again, we built a giant campfire and enjoyed our last night as the rain gently fell. The following morning, we all got up early and headed home.

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