#activate air plane mode

[octuscle]

I'm on a flight to Tokyo, and I'm definitely going to stand out amongst the locals... what should I do?

I always have the greatest respect for visits to Asian countries myself. So it's more than natural that you need support. I myself have had very good experiences with a preset that I am sending you. I recommend that you activate the preset as soon as possible, the transformation is set to last 12 hours.

Okay, it's exemplary that you had your cell phone in flight mode, so the message only reaches you after the plane is already on the tarmac on its way to the terminal. With your seatbelt still fastened, you activate the default setting. After the first few seconds, the first effect becomes apparent. The tension is gone. This is not the first time you have landed in Haneda. Only tourists and fools jump up and open the luggage compartments before the seatbelt signs have gone out. You are disciplined. Discipline is the only way to survive a juggernaut like Tokyo. You know that. The idiots around you don't.

You say goodbye to the person sitting next to you. You say goodbye to the flight crew when you leave the plane. In broken Japanese. You struggle with the language. Even though you've been learning it for over a year. At least you recognize a few of the characters at the airport. At least you can understand fragments of the conversations around you. And you know your way around the airport. Even if you're not the first to jump on, you're one of the first at the baggage carousel. It pays to have a Japanese ID card. Wait a minute! A Japanese ID card? Sure, you've been living here for years. Tokyo is your second home. Naturalization was only logical. You have a Japanese great-grandmother. That made it easier. You inherited your black hair from her.

You look at the people with the big suitcases with pity. They're either going to waste a fortune on cabs now. Or they'll have real problems on the train during rush hour. You've packed efficiently. And your advantage is that you stand out from the crowd. 190 cm… That makes you a giant in Japan. And a colossus at 120 kg. When you finally take the steps from the subway into the open air, the default setting has already been active for three hours. You walk the last few meters to your hotel. It's so nice to be back here. Yes, you actually live in London. But you spend as much time as you can in Tokyo for business and pleasure. For years now. You speak the language very well, you're up to date with all the fashions and gossip. And a regular guest here at the hotel. The concierge addresses you by name. You greet him back by name. Nevertheless, you exchange business cards. Tradition is tradition. The building trembles. A slight earthquake.You don't know how many earthquakes this is in your life. It's not even worth mentioning in your conversation.

Now a quick bowl of noodle soup. And then to the gym. You've spent too much time motionless on the plane and in the subway. You need action now. The feeling that your body has given its last. And then a hot bath and a massage. Your buddy at reception has already arranged everything. You just quickly take your luggage upstairs and get changed. And then you run down the stairs to the gym. The earth has just shaken a little again. The last thing you need now is to get stuck in the elevator.

Two hours later, when Atsushi presses his elbows into your back, all is right with the world again. Atsushi is a master of his trade. And you've known each other for ages. In fact, you played baseball in the same club as children before you moved to Europe with your parents. It was a real coincidence when you found each other on one of your visits here on Grindr. It's one of the biggest and hardest reasons why you're staying here at the hotel. Rarely have you experienced a better masseur who is both good for your back and offers a first-class happy ending. He stands behind you and massages your neck. And his hard-on sticks out in front of your face. Shit, if he doesn't suck you off right away, you'll cum without him laying a hand on you.

You two spend the evening at karaoke. Unfortunately, Asushi can't stay in your hotel room tonight. But he will take you upstairs. And you fuck him as a thank you. Asushi thanks you with a deep kiss goodbye. He says that your education in Europe has paid off. Nobody fucks like real Japanese men who learned to fuck in Paris. You grin. Well. An almost real Japanese man. Your one grandmother was English. You owe your blue eyes to her.

Get up, go to the gym, take a hot bath. That's how your next morning starts. Not easy with the jet lag. But you have to get back into the rhythm of the city of your ancestors quickly. The first meeting is at 07:30. Time is money. And life in Tokyo is not cheap. "それで、侍よ？よく眠れましたか？" Asushi sent a picture of his morning wood. You return the favor with a selfie, freshly showered. "よく眠れたよ！しかし、私には硬いものと柔らかいものがある。疲れ果てた夜に備えよ," you reply. "はい、侍よ！" You're looking forward to the end of the day!

[my-vanishing-rad]

Woman of the Day the first woman navigator in the Soviet Air Force Marina Mikhaylovna Raskova of Moscow who died OTD 1943, creator and commanding officer of the all-female 588th Night Bomber Regiment - the Night Witches, the scourge of Nazi Germany.

Women were allowed to enlist during WW2 but not in combat roles, support only. That changed in June 1941 when Hitler launched Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union. The Germans were pressing on Moscow; Leningrad was under siege. Desperate times. As so often in war, needs must. Closed doors suddenly opened for women.

Marina was more than ready. She had letters from over 2000 women wanting to fight and finally, she had Stalin’s backing to form an all-female fighting squadron comprising three units of 400 women each. Most were students aged from 17 to 26 and they were put through compressed training as pilots, navigators, maintenance and ground crew at the Engels School of Aviation.

If Marina was prepared, the military was not. The women were allotted secondhand uniforms from the men, including boots that were too big. The women stuffed torn-up bedding in their boots to make them fit.

(This is when I warmed to them. Fast forward over forty years and just like every other woman prison officer, I was rolling up the legs of flame-resistant overalls and padding out riot helmets and safety boots with scrunched-up newspaper to make them fit because they were male uniform issue only. We didn’t even question it then. We were women, used to being treated as a flipping afterthought).

The Night Witches’ planes were no better: outdated two-seater open-cockpit biplanes made of plywood covered with canvas not meant for combat. Wooden planes, in other words. The women were not equipped with parachutes, radios, radar or guns. They used rulers, stopwatches, flashlights, pencils, maps and compasses to navigate and the planes could only carry two bombs, one under each wing. These weighed so much, the wooden planes could only fly at lower altitudes making them an easier target, which is why they only flew nighttime missions - and night flying meant freezing temperatures, wind and frostbite. The planes could become so cold that touching them could rip off skin.

If that didn’t sap the Night Witches’ morale, the outright sexism from male comrades should have. Marina tried to prepare her women for it but it was intense.

Impossible odds, wouldn’t you say? Yet on 8 October 1941, 28 year old pilot Major Yevdokiya Bershanskaya led the Night Witches on their first active bombing mission, thus making the Soviet Union the first to officially allow women to engage in combat.

Night after night, convoys of up to 40 two-women crews carried out between eight and 18 missions each, flying back at very low altitudes to re-arm between runs. The front planes would act as bait to act German spotlights, which provided illumination, and then release a flare lighting up the target. The last plane would idle its engines and glide in darkness to the bombing area. Stealth mode.

Their planes could manoeuvre faster than the enemy making them hard to target but other than that, they were defenceless. Almost none of the planes carried defence ammunition and if they were hit by tracer bullets, which carried a pyrotechnic charge, the wooden planes would burst into flames. Ducking and diving out of the way of enemy fire was the only tactic they had. These women were exceptionally highly skilled pilots.

The Germans nicknamed them Nachthexen or night witches because their wooden planes made a whooshing noise that sounded like a sweeping broom. The planes were too small for radar or infrared detectors to pick up and the women pilots didn’t have radioes so radio locators couldn’t pick them up either. In effect, they were ghosts, deadly ones. They were feared and hated so much by the Nazis that any German airman who downed one was automatically awarded the Iron Cross.

The all-female 588th Night Bomber Regiment dropped more than 23,000 tons of bombs on Nazi targets. They carried out their last mission on 4 May 1945 when they flew within 37 miles of Berlin. Three days later, Germany officially surrendered.

Altogether, the Night Witches flew more than 30,000 missions, about 800 per pilot and navigator. They lost a total of 30 pilots. 24 were awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union, making them one of the most highly decorated units in the Soviet Air Force during WW2, but they were not included in the big victory day parade in Moscow because their planes were too slow.

The Night Witches were disbanded six months later. The Germans had two theories as to why the women were so successful: either they were criminals sent to the frontline as punishment, or they had been given special injections so they could see at night. Neither was true. What they had was determination, courage and skill. No witchcraft required.

Marina didn’t live to see it. She died on 4 January 1943 on the front line, aged just 30. Hers was the first State funeral of WW2 and her ashes were buried in the Kremlin.

The First Commandment of the Night Witches:

"Be proud that you are a woman."

[braveseeker3]

Aerialbot Headcanons

Silverbolt

Tired Dad vibes

Second most introverted after Skydive

He can carry his brothers on his wings while flying. Not all of them at the same time, though

Doesn't get acrophobic in space

Worrier by nature

Has a lightning outlier ability

Air Raid

Closest equivalent to Team Medic

He's very ADHD

Definitely the most extroverted

Can, has, and will play mid-air chicken with Ramjet

Gets mistaken for a Seeker (usually Skywarp) in fights a lot. Has lots more faction badges on his alt mode than the rest of his brothers to try and avoid him being shot down by friendlies

Skydive

Plays strategy games with Prowl

Nerd for military aviation history. And just. . . aviation history in general

Quietest of them all, and soft spoken

Definitely the guy you hang out with if you just want to read something or do some other quiet activity with company

Birdwatcher

Really into RC planes

Knowledge Sponge

Fireflight

Very perceptive - often acts as a spotter for snipers

Loves and collects shiny things, usually rocks. Has a sizable collection of agates and geodes in particular

Picks up on others' emotions very easily, and is a good judge of character

Also very ADHD

Goes birdwatching with Skydive a lot

Slingshot

Silverbolt's most common passenger, due to his alt mode being the slowest and having the shortest range

Team Sniper

Uses the agility of his alt mode to access vantage points like the roofs of skyscrapers

First one to defend his brothers (Air Raid is the second)

Holds grudges

Superion

Very protective of Optimus

Since he doesn't combine a whole lot outside of active combat the Autobots don't know him very well. But the Aerialbots usually say he's short-tempered, and protective if someone asks

Y'know how Sideswipe and Sunstreaker are described as front liners in fanfics a lot of times? Superion is that

Once picked up Starscream and threw him like a baseball

Can use Silverbolt's outlier ability. Fortunately, the limbbots are protected from being electrocuted by it regardless of them being combined or not

[fiuworks]

TMA OCS!

working on an oc mini universe! workplace comedy but its three avatars of fears actively killing off as many people on flights as possible

Hermes Dillon - Captain! He's an avatar of the vast...feeling too much turbulence? Waking up abruptly feeling like you're falling? About to step off the plane and disappear into the abyss? Sorry! Your captain is fucking with you <3

Santiago Vitar - Cabin Crew! Feeling a little ill after plane food? Your seat feeling horrible to the touch? Are your rowmates coughing on you with no masks on? Sorry the cabin crew who served you is actively waiting for the bug eggs to hatch!

Marina Ibrahimovic - Cabin Crew! Having a panic attack about being inside a big metal cage filled with warm bodies? Dreaming about crashing into cities or the fact that this mode of travel is killing the planet? Is your on flight entertainment suddenly spewing messages of doom and the end of humanity even though you're watching Crazy Rich Asians? Sorry the air hostess is actively hoping your heart rate gets so high that you die!

DO u enjoy them? Ask me stuff abt them! Askbox wiiide open fellas

also they're a throuple lol

[crazycurly-77]

Bob (24/24)

This is written in the style of the series 24.

Events occur in real time.

Hour 24 of 24: 09:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.

09:03:32 p.m.

Aft deck of the yacht:

When you arrived at the helicopter, Tony and you were still laughing and cuddling. According to the plan, Gibbs should show up here any minute and then every second would count.

At that moment he came around the corner and suddenly his behavior changed from reserved to raging with anger.

“I knew it!” he yelled loudly, walked quickly towards the two of you, threw himself at Tony and knocked him to the ground with a well-aimed punch.

But DiNozzo recovered quickly and hit Gibbs in turn.

The men who were supposed to guard the helicopter initially just watched the fight.

The investigators continued to hit each other while you climbed fortunately undetected into the helicopter quickly, put on your colleague's helmet and then waited until the two of them had climbed in.

You sighed inwardly, because you had imagined the first test of this new development to be different.

However, immediately after takeoff you had to activate the newly developed and as yet untested whisper mode so as not to attract even more attention than you probably would have already.

At first the distraction didn’t seem to have the desired effect. But luckily the guards decided to intervene and end the fight.

But things didn't go as the guards had intended, because as soon as they reached the two fighters, DiNozzo and Gibbs attacked the men and knocked them unconscious after a short time.

The investigators then quickly climbed into the helicopter, you started the machine and immediately activated the whisper mode.

You all hoped that the machine's silent mode would give you enough time until take-off speed was reached.

And you were lucky, because the machine started up very quickly, but the other guests, startled by the sounds of the fight, were already running over.

There was great indignation when they saw that the rotor blades were moving faster and faster and the machine was ready to take off. They didn't like the fact that their new acquisition was literally about to disappear and so they ran towards it.

John, who had also rushed over, was horrified for a different reason. He couldn't believe it when he got to the landing platform as he saw who was getting into the plane.

"Those are NCIS agents!" he shouted loudly, blowing their cover.

Don saw the whole thing completely differently, because he was completely astonished when he saw the helicopter take off and could only mumble: "I knew I knew that Kitty. That's Y/N Y/L/N. I didn't know she could look so hot..."

Admiral Connelly, or Bob for that matter, was furious, because he was in danger of losing his money if the plane took off. He had to prevent that with all his might.

He stormed onto the bridge and shouted at the crew on duty there:

"Arm your weapons, they mustn't escape!"

09:10:34 p.m.

In the helicopter:

The engine was now running at full speed and the rotor had reached the speed required for takeoff when Gibbs and Tony jumped into the helicopter.

“We have to get off the ship as quickly as possible, everything is about to blow up!!!” Gibbs yelled and you took off.

But as soon as you lost contact with the boat, you three saw machine guns and an anti-aircraft gun emerging from the deck of the yacht.

“Go, go, GO!!!” Tony shouted now too.

Under fire you climbed and climbed into the air. The helicopter had some secret new developments, but unfortunately it was not bulletproof, which is why you were hit several times.

Due to the range of the guns on the boat, however, it was difficult for you to escape without being shot down first. So you activated the on-board guns, armed the missiles, aimed at the yacht... and fired.

It was a direct hit and the boat was destroyed with a huge bang in a large explosion.

The large fireball and the pressure wave of the detonation hit the helicopter, which you were able to intercept quickly.

Relieved to have survived, you said: "Let's get home now," pulled the throttle lever and you flew away at top speed.

Fortunately, you didn’t encounter the FBI's F-18 Super Hornets on their way.

09:45:12 p.m.

Stillwater, Pennsylvania:

Since the helicopter was obviously not housed in a particularly secure location at the Quantico base, you flew to a completely inconspicuous location where there were more than enough opportunities to hide it until better accommodation was available.

In fact, you landed outside Gibbs' hometown of Stillwater and you put the machine in a disused mine there.

To be on the safe side, you activated stealth mode and called in NCIS internal guards.

After Gibbs, Tony and you had secured everything, you decided to rent a car in the nearby small town for the trip back to Washington, D.C.

You set off and walked silently next to each other for a while. Then Tony and you started talking about the past 24 hours.

A lot had really happened. And there were many developments that no one had expected.

In the middle of this conversation, Gibbs suddenly intervened and said: “That was a good job, Y/L/N. NCIS has a new job for you. Report to headquarters tomorrow morning at 08:00 a.m.”

You looked at him confused and replied: “Yes, sir.”

“Don’t call me ‘sir’,” he reprimanded you, grumbling.

You nodded. Then he turned to you again and grinned mischievously: “And as soon as we arrive in Washington, I’ll invite you to dinner so we can get to know each other better.”

You looked at him in amazement. What was he planning?

At that moment, DiNozzo spoke up enthusiastically: “Wonderful idea! I suggest we go to the new restaurant in…”

He didn’t get any further because he was rudely interrupted by Gibbs:

“You’re not invited, Tony. There are only two of us going.”

Poor Tony stopped and gaped in amazement. He looked like a fish.

Gibbs instead hooked your arm through his, walked with you towards his hometown and maybe he would introduce you to his father while he was there. 

The End

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Here you will find the other chapters of this story.

Masterlist stories - Part 1 (finished ones)

Masterlist stories - Part 2 (finished/ongoing)

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Tags: @ilovemark1951, @hobby27

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[black-aengel-07]

Scythe Model: Arrowhead

An interceptor-fighter craft known for its speed and unique style of combat that had made it the bane of all Imperial attempts at air superiority. The Arrowhead Model is specialized for Aeronautics combat, while its much larger and heavily armed variant, the Viper, is specifically constructed as an orbital fighter.

General Design:

Shaped like a leaf, the Arrowhead is quite small for an aircraft, not even nine meters long, with a width of three meters, its small profile makes it a challenge to target, especially when its right up in your face about its deadly intentions. Yet its proportions hide a surprisingly sturdy frame, on top of having a passive sensor mask that makes it very challenging for standard targeting equipment to get a lock on it or detect their approach until they are almost on top of its target.

Propulsion and Manoeuvrability:

The Arrowhead Scythe is propelled by six thruster engines at its caudal side that are not too dissimilar to the design of the plasma thrusters on void ships, if only with a much smaller profile. Furthermore, it is aided by grav-plates to remain suspended in the air without the need of wings to support its flight. However, these are not the most outstanding features of this craft, those would have to be the Gyroscopes.

Mechanicum adepts are still in heated debates as to the inner workings of recovered pieces of the Gyroscopes, as they have been dubbed, from dead Arrowhead craft. But what they all agree upon its that they are the singular most fundamental piece in the Arrowhead’s near physics defying agility.

Named after the device they most closely resemble in appearance; it is theorized they emit some form of gravitational anchor point that allows the craft to always be relative in their positioning to the closest primary gravitational well.

This is how the Arrowhead is able to remain in stable flight and turn without the need of any form of wings, as well as perform manoeuvres that would otherwise kill an organic pilot within. For instance, by simply rotating both Gyroscopes inside the Arrowhead in the same direction along a horizontal plane, the craft immediately spins on its axis without changing direction, allowing it to suddenly turn around on a pursuing target and light it up with its main armament before reconfiguring its trajectory back into a stable flight configuration.

For this reason alone, the Arrowhead has earned the righteous ire and fear of all Imperial pilots who have ever faced them in battle and survived to tell the tale.

Weaponry:

Arrowheads are a significant threat to face in combat, made all the deadlier by their arsenal.

Primary Weapon: Arrowheads maintain their weapons locked beneath their plating when in cruising mode or whenever they are performing their most famous attack. Depending on the Sub-Model of the Arrowhead, one could either expect forward facing twin linked las-cannons with surprisingly high rates of fire or a missile volley, ranging up to ten fire-and-forget missiles before the craft needs to fabricate replacements.

Secondary Weapon: Arrowhead Scythes all tend to be fitted with a secondary weapon on its underside, usually geared for smaller targets like infantry. These weapons tend to vary greatly from direct energy weapons like Laser Beamers and Volkites, or kinetic weapons such as RCGs.

Power Field Blade Wreathe: The most famous weapon of the Arrowhead, even if it’s the one with least range, if only due to the sheer gal of the Men of Iron to create a fighter craft specialized for melee.

Given its sturdy design and high manoeuvrability, the Arrowhead is designed to ram against enemy aircraft to immediately achieve a kill or shatter formations, forcing a chaotic dogfight where the Arrowhead holds the advantage or is actively forcing enemy craft to focus on it while other aircraft deal the finishing blow.

This final armament converts the Scythe into a flying Power Blade capable of slicing clean through a Lightning Strike Craft without hardly loosing speed, and given its agility, entering close quarters combat with these crafts is always a deadly dance where one wrong move could result in a swift end by the reaper’s blade.

[ask-a-bot]

My autism has activated: a good book series for anyone of any age! Guardians of Ga'Hoole! And the series that comes after, Wolves of the Beyond! They were my fav books when I was growing up. Guardians is 16 books, and wolves of the beyond is 6 books!

Added to the list! Thanks! I've got the first book so he can give that a try too. If nothing else, he's got plenty to try out. He's currently listening to... Biggles. Funny... I don't think I had that on the list.

I told him to try it. Biggles is a WWI air ace. I thought he'd like those.

One of your favourites, eh?

One. Yes. Not that his plane is anything like my alt mode.

Well, no. It wouldn't be, would it. Still, those little biplane can still pull off some impressive stunts.

If you say so.

How did the surfing go?

Great! Best conditions so far. Shame you had to miss it. Want me to kick Megabum's bum for you?

No thank you. Not unless you want to sit in the Naughty Corner.

Not unless you want me to bite your finials.

Do you want to live in the Naughty Corner?

I think I'd rather draw, thanks. Afthole.

[moodbroads]

BACK IN MY WOLFQUEST PHASE ONCE AGAIN!!! MEET ROSEMARY :3

also heres some goofy ah photos of my mate being scared of his own pups-

ANYWAYS IM SO EXITED FOR HELLROARING MOUNTAIN!!! i wonder if theres gonna be a new achivement for like interacting or killing a wolverine since i think they said its gonna be rare or smthin! i already know theres prob gonna be new cool collectibles so im exited about that- OOH WHAT IF THEY ADD A WOLVERINE SKULL

would be nice to also have a den in an abandoned human camp ehehe tbh my dream wolfquest update would be if you could raid like a rabbit warren or maybe get revenge on stranger wolf dens so there could actually be war n stuff >:D MAYBE IF YOU FIND A NON-ABANDONED FOX DEN IN WINTER U CAN MAKE IT UR OWN BY DEFEATING THEM >:D

it would also be so epic to have mutations like having a piebald pup!! aionguedbhklwsuv i have SOOO MANY IDEAS like a 'rp mode' in multiplayer servers where ur able to play as a puppy or special rp-only emotes like stretching, shaking or play fighting/roughhousing! and maybe even splitting players into diff packs (maybe being able to attack the other players- if in a diff pack XD)

BUT YEE ANYWAYS BACK TO RAISE MY PUPS-6 MORE POUDS TO GO (to 15) AFTER THE DEN FLOODED T_T (edit cuz im too lazy to make another post)

I FORGOT HOW DRAMATIC WOLFQUEST CAN BE LIKE SKIPPER JUST GOT YOINKED BY A COUGAR AND THEN 5 MINS LATER THE ALPHA FEM OF THE MOLLIES CAME

also yaya its spring i can finally bring food cuz the only beavers are like a million miles away :')

OH AND I SAW AN EAGLE PERCH FOR THE FIRST TIME ON LAMAR PEAK AND IT WAS SO PRETTY-

PLZ GROW SKIPPER PLZPLZZPLZZAAA IM ON MY WOLF KNEES AND HOWLING WHY DID U HAVE TO DO THIS UR BROTHER IS 16.9-

anyways yeah i saved and left after that to take a break-hope to update yall once again soon XD

i have returned once again i couldnt resist >:)

WE GOT TO THE REN SITE FINALLY!! :D the personalities of em are rlly starting to come out sooo...

introducing...creek the napper/antisocial, ember the explorer/rebel, and skipper the energetic/extremely lucky XD

i got revenge on the cougar that snatched skipper /j

BONE PARTY!! (yeah thats creek sleeping once again ;-;)

fun fact i found out durin this playthrough: the plane will visit your mate if they have a radiocollar on and you dont! even if your far from the den and theyre still at it! i saw it a few times and it was pretty cool but very hard to get good shots of :')

AGRHJ MORE DRAMA- dang calfree creek moved in super close to my home hex while skipper got sick- ;-;

once again skipper being 1 tiny pound away BUT AYYE SHE GOT HEALTHY AGAIN LIKE 2 NIGHTS LATER SO YAYA

also me findin the barbie bag and lance being scared of it for some reason (AgAinSt GuRLiEpOpS?!?1/1/!?)

underappreciated local redhead XD

i finished and creek got air jailed by lance for tryna be active T_T

I KNEW SHE WAS A RUNT >:(

ANYWAYS HERE THEYRE ADULT FORMS!! ember got a cool tinted buffy which was my first npc coat!! (XD aint suprised tho cuz lance was stormy) and creek looks like he ate face-first into a bag of flaming hot cheetos

ANYWAYS YAYAAA I HAD A FUN TIME!! i might continue this bloodline too..someday >:)

[rabbitcruiser]

Go For a Ride Day

Go For a Ride Day, celebrated on November 22, urges you to just get up and get out! Do you ever feel like you’re tied to your laptop/phone/tablet screens? We’ve become a pretty sedentary bunch — a far cry from the people who discovered countries, oceans, and animals simply by getting off the couch and exploring.  Make today a day to set your spirit free and enjoy your wanderlust on whatever mode of transportation suits you best. Bike, boat, car, skateboard, sleigh—it doesn’t matter what you choose! Pick a location you’ve always wanted to visit and make today the day you’ll go.  

History of Go For A Ride Day

Birthdays are fun and Christmas means presents (if you’re lucky), but nothing quite compares with the magical day you get your driver’s license. That’s when your world truly changes forever. Why? Cars mean freedom. You can suddenly go anywhere at anytime (as long as your parents are cool with your plans). Such is the nature of transportation — something we in the 21st century take for granted. We all grew up with planes, trains and automobiles — so we’re quite used to getting where we need to go.

But it wasn’t always that way. When President Jefferson asked Lewis (and, eventually, Clark) to explore the American West in 1804, there were no nonstop flights from St. Louis to the Oregon coast. As the History Channel describes it: “The excursion lasted over two years.   Along the way they confronted harsh weather, unforgiving terrain, treacherous waters, injuries, starvation, disease and both friendly and hostile Native Americans. Nevertheless, the approximately 8,000-mile journey was deemed a huge success and provided new geographic, ecological and social information about previously uncharted areas of North America.”

And today we complain about trying to squeeze our carry-ons into the overhead bin.

Americans have always loved to “go for a ride” — with whatever mode of transportation existed. Horses. Boats. Bicycles. And of course, the ubiquitous car. The nation had a long love affair with automobiles starting in the mid 20th century and lasting until recently — as a new generation of car buyers, born after the car craze, loses interest in design — focusing instead on practicality. Stellar gas mileage makes Priuses as sexy as Porsches. Well, almost.

Go For A Ride Day timeline

1950s Car culture

Cars inspired new businesses like drive-through restaurants and drive-in movie theaters, and employed one in six working Americans.

1956 Interstate highways

President Eisenhower authorizes $25 billion for the construction of 41,000 miles of the Interstate Highway System.

1964 ‘Pony car’

Ford introduces the sporty and powerful Mustang — the automaker's most successful launch since the Model A.

2019 Driverless cars get smarter

MIT engineers develop a system to help autonomous cars determine if there’s a moving object coming around the corner.

Go For A Ride Day FAQs

What does Go For A Ride Day celebrate?

Go For a Ride Day 2019 encourages us to get out in the world, as opposed to seeing it on a screen. Any mode of transportation will do on this day. What was America’s first car company?

Brothers Charles and Frank Duryea founded the Duryea Motor Wagon Company in 1893, becoming the first American automobile manufacturing company.  What happened to supersonic jet travel?

The Concorde, which flew faster than the speed of sound, never turned a profit. When the plane broke the sound barrier (about 760 mph), it created shock waves that would hit the ground with a loud and sudden sonic “boom.” The FAA eventually banned all commercial aircraft from flying at supersonic speeds over land.

Go For A Ride Day Activities

Make it fun

Make it easy

Make it memorable

Dare yourself to try something new and adventurous. Why not try a mode of transportation you’ve never used before? Suggestions include jet skiing, parasailing, or going on a hot air balloon ride. In colder climates you could try a sleigh ride, or a horse drawn carriage.

Maybe you weren’t born to be wild, but don’t let that stop you from joining in the fun. Play tourist in your own city or neighborhood. Use public transit and see the sights like visitor.

Exploring is an adventure, but it can be even more fun if you have someone to share it with. Bring along an adventurous friend or family member to help make some memories. If your local friends are sticks in the mud, then bring your more adventurous friends along virtually by posting your adventure to Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

Why We Love Go For A Ride Day

It’s an escape from reality

It can be great exercise

It helps us be spontaneous

Every now and then we just need something to break up the status quo and make us feel alive! Go For A Ride Day exists for that very reason. It can be hard to get motivated to see new places or even try new foods, but Go For A Ride Day provides the momentum.

You can try skateboarding or using a scooter. How about getting out your helmet and going for a long bike ride? Did you know you can burn over 400 calories an hour horseback riding?

Our lives tend to run to the predictable, and for the most part, that predictability helps the world go round. But we all still have a small streak of rebellion, and that's what Go For a Ride Day helps bring out.

Source

[smokescreenimusprime]

I'm gonna take two of your ideas for Fifth Sigma (Smokescreen having multiple alt modes and him reuniting with the rest of the Rescue Bots) and connect them to make a plot.

Let's say, Smokescreen gets another alt mode that allows him to travel way easier. Something like an air ambulance. This probably happens pretty early on, when he's getting his own

Later on, Optimus tells Smokescreen about how there's a group of Rescue Bots that are also on Earth, but because of the situation with the Decepticons, they can't send him there just yet. They gotta be cautious and safe about this whole thing.

Smokescreen is of course excited, but also reasonable and gets why he can't meet them just yet. However, because Smokescreen is still the somewhat impulsive person that we know and love; one day, when Decepticon activities were low, Smokescreen decides to take his chances and finally meet these other Rescue Bot guys. He can handle himself! Maybe he found out where they're located, or even Optimus could've told him where it is. (What are you talking about, he definitely told Team Prime where he was going, of course he did, why wouldn't he)

So, Smokescreen starts flying and goes to Griffin Rock. Shenanigans ensues because now everyone is wondering why is there an unauthorized helicopter flying around here?? and the Rescue Bots are definitely gonna get involved

GDFFGHUGFFGGFFGGT SMOKEY NO-

however, as impulsive, I do have a possible counter point that would possibly lead to him pushing the meeting off for a while: his capture

while he is going to be able to escape (possibly via pretending to be helpless and weak to get the drop on them), Smokescreen is going to be with them for quite a bit longer than he was in canon. And well...... the Decepticons are probably going to want to check to make sure Smokescreen is in fact a real Rescue Bot instead of someone pretending to be one, meaning it's entirely possible for him to have been Psychic Patched. Luckily they didn't have time to scrutinise every single conversation he had with Optimus before he escapes, but it really puts into perspective for him that he is a target and could put the other living Rescue Bots in danger

(I'll also admit, I'm. SO tempted to have Smokescreen get kidnapped a second time by Soundwave alongside Ratchet in S3. Not sure specifically what'll happen there, but he's Tired and Stressed and maybe manages to talk with Predaking a few times)

but after the war's over and Megatron dies? It's free game and you bet the first thing he does when everyone is in stable condition. Maybe during a data transfer or something he was looking through the Autobot computer and remembered "hey...... wait a second, I can do that thing now :0"

I also love the mental image of him leaving the Cybertronian equivalent of a sticky note on the monitor about where he's going before just. ZOOMING out of the base. He's so excited he completely forgets about the Groundbridge and instead flies across the whole US as fast as he can

and just. Oh god Smokescreen with a flying alt mode is going to give him so much room for chaos which he is going to relish in. I'll admit, I don't really want to give him a helicopter alt because Blades already has that one, but maybe he could transform into one of those ambulance planes instead? but yeah, as you've brought up, the Rescue Bots are going to be very confused about this weird bright blue jet circling part of the island. Maybe Dr.Green tries hailing it to see who they are and what they want, and he only gets a vague response of wanting to speak with Charlie Burns and that he'd like to meet somewhere away from town

and just. God imagine the reunion itself. Smokescreen's basically bouncing on his feet waiting for the apparent new Rescue Bots to arrive, so absolutely elated by the prospect of not being alone anymore after several painful months. Maybe there's some slight anticipation and exctiement over the possibility of being on an official team, but with a tinge of bitterness over the team not being Sigma-17 and also a tinge of anxiety becuase..... well, what if they don't like him? What if they're like all those bots back from his Academy Days who didn't think he was good enough? What if he flubbed the first impressions and they thought he was just a goofy idiot who didn't take his job seriously??? Oh Primus wait, maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all, maybe he should have waited for Optimus to introduce them, oh scrap why did he have to be so impulsive like this what would the others have-

and then they arrive.

Chase was of course a given, after all, Charlie was the one asked for and Chase wasn't going to let his partner go alone. Heatwave was there to gague the newbie and for protection on the off chance this was a trap, Boulder came out of curiosity, and Blades didn't want to be left behind and wanted to meet a possible new friend

And when they arrive, it's not a stranger at all. His colors, his alt mode, the way he carries himself is all different.......

but it's still Smokescreen. Still their beloved 5th team member who they thought died alone without them. Some one they mourned and missed and reminisced about

never in a million years could they have guessed it would be him

as for Smokescreen.......

he looks as though he's seen a ghost.

Because honestly, for all intents and purposes, he has. For weeks, months, years, his team has been dead. He saw and read the reports, spent countless sleepless nights trying to rationalize their survival, only to finally accept the fact they were gone

and just as he rationalized their survivial before, now he tries to rationalize their death

because this- this shouldn't be possible. They were dead, they died, for millions of years they were GONE, he must be dreaming or hallucinating or being Psychic Patched by the Decepticons, this can't be REAL, it can't, it can't it can't it can't it can'titcan'titcan'titcan'tit-

but it can. They're alive. They're here. They're real.

and suddenly Smokescreen gets crushed with a suffocating grief he never had a chance to work through, but also a small bubble of hope

once both parties get over the initial disbelief, there's a pure wave of euphoria that hits. Finally, after so so very long, they've been reunited. They can finally work together as the team they were always meant to be. He gets along great with the Burns family, but it does take a little time for hi to fully slide in with the established dynamic

however, the first thing he does when he arrives is that he immediately drags them all in for a check up. Who knows what possible health issues have sparked up in his absence, plus it would be good to establish a new baseline for their health on earth

Smokey definitely becomes a more or less permenant addition to Griffin Rock. Occasionally he'll pop a quick visit to help out on Cybertron, but almost all of his time is spent with the team helping out with local distasters. He's absolutely flabbergasted by how much Pure Absolute Insanity goes down on this island, but he low key loves it

Both sides have quite a lot of stories to share from their respective adventures, but Smokescreen's stories have a bit of a tendency to make the others loose their minds because what do you mean you got captured by Decepticons THREE SEPERATE TIMES-

but all in all, they're happy together and reunited :D

(also just for an added pinch of angst that won't really affect anything but could still be Neat, I had a Thought for something to happen before the actual meeting

so like......... what if during the S2 finale when Optimus was sending all the Autobots away, he ended up sending Smokescreen to Griffin Rock. He didn't have time to explain what the place was or why, but if all of this was coming down he might as well guarantee Smokescreen's safety. Him being out by himself is just asking for the Cons to find him, so he decides to take advantage of Griffin Rock's cloaking and at least make it so the number of Rescue Bots won't decrease any further

but ofc...... Smokescreen doesn't stay. He looks back at the Groundbridge and can't bring himself to abandon Optimus. He's a medic, a healer, it's his job to protect people and save lives, he took his oaths and isn't going to break them now

and just maybe some of Dr.Greene's tech picked up on the Groundbridge and Smokescreen's signal. Maybe the Rescue Bots searched the place but found signs of nothing and assumed it was just an error, completely oblivious to how close they were to being reunited)

[secretlywritingstories]

We balance each other out on the seesaw of life | Phan one shot

Summary: Phil had dragged Dan to Isle of Man after his return home from tour. The sea air would do him good (even if it gave him hobbit hair) and he could be surrounded by Phil's family (who were his family too). He hadn’t actively planned to drag him onto a seesaw on a playground but it turned out to be a precious moment all the same.

Tags: Established relationship, domestic fluff, being the best guncles, playing on a playground and embracing their inner child

Word count: 5.1k

No warnings.

Inspired by this video Phil posted on Twitter.

Read on AO3 or below

It was wonderful to have Dan back. Phil felt as if he hadn’t really been a functioning human without him. Perhaps that should be cause for concern. After all, there was such a thing as being too dependent on each other.

However, it was not a concern that Phil would or really could entertain because if there was anything in this whole world that he felt sure about… it had to be Dan. If pressed or feeling contrarian, Dan could might be able to come up with a million and one arguments of could occur to pry them apart, even or particularly against their will, but Phil decided not to listen to any of those hypotheticals.

He trusted the universe to let him keep Dan until they were both grey and old. They would be one of those old couples that died within days of each other because they couldn’t live without each other. He had already decided that within the first year of knowing Dan.

It hadn’t quite been that extreme feeling to be without Dan while he was on tour, but there had been moments where Phil had felt a new sense of being lost. He had taken for granted what it was like to always have his love so close. He begrudgingly had to admit that he had taken that privilege slightly for granted. It had become their everyday life, and while it was wonderful, it became a given.

Maybe that was why Phil was even more all over Dan since he had returned. He understood that Dan needed to go into hermit mode, have a whole week of frydays, and no responsibilities.

No people too.

Other than Phil.

Of course.

Phil didn’t count as people to Dan anyway. He’d called him a piece of furniture once. Phil had chuckled at that one and teasingly demanded that Dan take him back to the store. Dan’s eyes had crinkled, even with the dark bags under them, and he’d said Phil was too used to be returned. Phil had hit him with a pillow. They’re giggled and laughed and fallen into each other.

For a moment, Phil hadn’t been able to tell where he ended and Dan begun. It wasn’t the first time he’d experienced that.  

It had been a few weeks since Dan’s return to London post tour and Phil had deemed it necessary that they started to see people again. They made plans to catch up with friends, more days in a row than initially planned to accommodate other schedules, and then setting off for Isle of Man to see Phil’s parents, as well as Martyn, Cornelia and little Freja.

“People did that once you know,” Phil said to Dan when they were on the plane.

Dan turned from where he’d been blindly staring out of the window. The seatbelt sign turned on to indicate that they would begin their descend.

“Huh?”

“Go to the seaside,” Phil said.

He realised that he’d just again started a conversation with no context, or rather the context of his thoughts, which Dan didn’t have access to. He wasn’t really worried though because –

“Go to the seaside when they were unwell? Faint ladies prescribed visits to seaside towns to regain their strengths?”

– Dan often figured out where his head was at without any direct access anyway.

“Yes,” Phil said, clutching onto Dan’s arm after he’d doubled checked his seatbelt was still on.

“Are you telling me I’m a faint lady?” Dan said, mock offended with a soft scoff.

The last couple of weeks had done him good but the exhaustion still lingered in his face. Phil knew that he had loved every night out on stage in front of their audience, but all of the travelling and the effort had definitely taken a toll on him.

“You need it. The fresh seaside air,” Phil said with a hum.

Dan just hummed and slumped more in his seat, leaning towards Phil.

“I do like the seaside air,” he said after a beat. “You can breathe in without filling your lungs with car exhaust. It’ll kill my hair though, especially now that it’s so long.”

It would. Phil was rather looking forward to that really. Dan still hadn’t gotten a haircut since he had come back from tour. He was past his normal due for one by now, but he hadn’t wanted to use his limited social resources on getting a haircut.

Phil had offered to cut it for him, but Dan had just put the old haircut video up on their big screen TV and turned the volume all the way up to remind him how it had gone last time. Phil might be dense at times, but he got the hint there. Though he stubbornly maintained that it had made for a hilarious video and Dan hadn’t even looked that bad.

When they arrived home, Kath was the first to greet them. She stood in the doorway with a warm smile and something deep within Phil’s heart ached a little. It wasn’t that long since he’d seen his parents. It had just been for his birthday in January less than two months ago, but he loved her and his dad, and they were growing older.

Not just older. Growing old.

Not yet, but it was creeping up on them, slow and deadly.

Phil stayed in his mother’s embrace a touch longer than he would otherwise have, and he only really let go when Dan poked his side and then also demanded a Mama Lester hug. Phil reluctantly relented, if only because he wanted to watch the comfort and love with which his mother and Dan handled each other.

Dan had really been readily adopted into his family years ago, and it had been Phil’s mother leading that charge. Nigel met them in the kitchen, instructed to keep an eye on Kath’s latest baked creations in the oven while she came out to greet them. Dan was a little more awkward around him, but it was still a lovely reunion, even if Dan got insulted right off the bat.

“It looks like you haven’t slept for a week,” Phil’s dad told him, not meaning offence but just stating it plainly.  

“I feel like it too,” Dan laughed with an easy smile. “Even though it’s the opposite. I’ve pretty much been asleep every day since I came home.”

“I can confirm that,” Phil said and raised his hand. “Practically comatose.”

It was an afternoon of warmth and comfort, and then an evening full of laughter and games when Martyn, Cornelia and Freja came over too. It was good to see them again. It was more of a treat to see them now that they’d moved out of London, and Freja was growing much faster than Phil had anticipated.

“Do you want to come to the playground with us tomorrow?” Cornelia asked, as the evening was wrapping up and she was standing in the doorway with her sleeping daughter over her shoulder.

“Playground?” Dan asked, looking slightly bemused.

“We’ll be there,” Phil promised for the both of them.

“Cheers, I’ll send you a text when we get ready to leave. It’ll be around 10 AM, but it might be a little before or later depending on the princess’ mood,” Martyn said, trying to sound annoyed but there was too soft a tone in his voice.

It had been a strange thing to see his big brother become a parent. Sometimes, Phil was reminded of how him and Martyn had been as children, and now Martyn was the one with a kid. It felt rather adult.

Much more adult than Phil felt himself. He knew he technically was an adult and he was capable of many things, but he wasn’t sure if that supposed “I am an adult” feeling would ever kick in.

It was still on his mind when him and Dan curled up together in the guest bedroom in his parents’ house.

“Do you feel like an adult?” he asked Dan.

Dan didn’t answer right away and Phil looked over to see if he had fallen asleep immediately. It hadn’t been that long since they had gotten into bed, but it wasn’t a lie that Dan had been sleepy lately.

“No,” he said, spoken softly into the dark bedroom. “But I don’t quite feel like a kid anymore either. It feels like I’m stuck somewhere in between. Responsibilities and childishness mixing in a rather terrifying manner.”

His words were slightly slurred, like he was just barely clinging to his consciousness.

“That’s not childish, it’s your inner child still living,” Phil said, after a moment. “No need to kill him.”

Dan didn’t reply. Phil snuggled closer and he could feel his steady breathing, clearly drifted off to sleep mid-conversation. Phil didn’t really mind. He looped his arms around Dan, ignoring the face full of curls and felt how Dan shuffled back just a little into Phil’s embrace. Even sleeping they drifted towards each other. Sought comfort in each other.

Bright and early – at least according to their usual morning rhythm – they grabbed their coats and headed out to meet Martyn, Cornelia and Freja. Dan had slept in until the latest moment, and his face still had creases from the pillow where his skin hadn’t evened out yet. Phil on the other hand was just feeling the effects of his first coffee of the day and he was almost giddy in his steps as he dragged Dan along by the hand.

They didn’t usually hold hands out and about but experience taught them that they could get away with a bit more on Isle of Man. It was a smaller community, less people out and about, and the ones that did see them didn’t seem to care one bit.

The playground was located on the top of a hill overlooking the ocean. You couldn’t see it from within the playground, but it was close enough that the sea air was wafting liberally through the air. Dan’s hair had curled in the moisture just on the walk to the playground.

Phil noticed and he couldn’t stop himself from pausing and reaching out with his free hand. Just tugging on a curl and watching it spring back up. Dan narrowed his eyes and tried to do his best to send a death glare at Phil but he wasn’t really succeeding. Maybe because he still looked more sleepy and mildly grumpy than scary.

“It’s cute,” Phil said.

“It’s a mess.”

“A cute mess.”

“I’ll make you a cute mess,” Dan grumbled, even as his mouth lifted in a slight smile.

Phil reached forward to poke Dan’s nose, and then let go of his hand. He smirked before starting to sprint off the last of the way to the playground.

“Last one is a rotten egg!” he hollered over his shoulder.

He was granted with a rather delighted expression of surprise, disbelief and fondness on Dan’s face before he turned around to look where he was actually going. He knew he would need to do that, or injuries was way to high risk.

“You can’t just say that!” Dan complained in a yell but Phil could hear him start to sprint after him all the same.

There was a glee building in his chest, a bright smile on his face, even as his heart beat way too fast and he was running out of air in his lungs. It was worth it; he could live on glee and happiness of being silly with the love of his life.

It was moments like this that made life worth living.

Phil predictably reached the playground first, touching the fencepost and letting out a shout of victory. Dan wasn’t far behind but rather than heading for the post, he just ran right into Phil.

Phil stumbled a little, nearly tripping over but he managed to catch Dan and keep them both standing. Just barely. Dan was panting and if Phil had to guess, he would wager that his heart also was beating out of his chest.

“Cheater,” Dan said and then coughed twice. “You got a head start.”

Phil didn’t even try to deny it. He moved his hands to hold onto Dan’s shoulders better, but still let him lean into him.

“Sore loser.”

“False winner.”

Oh, how Phil loved him.

“Well, there’s one way we could fix it. All or nothing!”

It made Dan pull back, a little, to be able to look properly at Phil’s face. He shook his head when he saw the sincerity in his eyes.

“You’re a mad man if you think I’m running twice. Once was more than enough,” Dan said, pinching Phil’s side. He yelped and tried to pull away but Dan managed to wrap his other arm around his shoulder and keep him there to endure the abuse.

Well, the babuse.

“Did we get here first?” Dan asked, looking around at the empty playground. There wasn’t a single child in sight, let alone Freja with her parents.

Phil fished out his phone and saw that a new message had ticked in that Freja had refused to put on shoes for a bit but they were on their way now.

“They’re on their way, just a little delayed,” Phil said, looking down at his phone.

“Shoes?” Dan asked, as he let go of Phil and strolled into the playground.

Phil chuckled. “Yeah. But can you blame her?”

“No, I too want to live a wild barefoot existence. Well, at least until I cut my foot on something or just, like, get cold.”

Phil smiled, shaking his head fondly. The fact that Dan knew his niece currently had trouble accepting shoes on his feet felt nice. He’d been paying attention to even stupid silly things.

Phil took in the playground around him. Before Martyn and Cornelia had gotten Freja it had been a while since he’d actually been on a playground. It had felt a little strange coming here as an adult without a child. He had a feeling that he would have gotten some weird looks for lurking around on a playground or playing near other people’s children.

But they were alone right now, and Phil had his perfect playmate.

“Come on,” he said, tugging Dan properly into the playground. Most of the playground was entirely too small to cram their large bodies into. It would surely break. They couldn’t fit their asses down the slides and the seat of the swings looked far to narrow too. But there was one item that Phil was pretty confident could hold them.

“What are we doing?” Dan asked, even as he let himself get dragged along. He might question why but he didn’t hesitate for a second.

“The seesaw,” Phil said, and he knew that would be explanation enough.

“Phiiil,” Dan whined. “It’ll snap.”

“We’re not that heavy, and it’s like meant for parents to be able to use it too, isn’t it?” Phil insisted.

He put a hand on the little race car seat on one side and tried to wiggle it. It felt more than sturdy enough.

“I don’t think it’s meant for adults,” Dan said with a frown. “Imagine tiny Freja on one end and you on the other. There’d be no balance. She’d just be up in the air the whole time.”

It was a fun imagine, and Phil made a mental note to try it with her. Freja loved to be tossed up high, so he thought that she might actually like it. He could imagine her little giggle.

“Well, I’m not asking Freja to get on it with me, am I? I’m asking you,” Phil said. “Jump on.”

He made a shooing motion with his hand, to get Dan to walk over to the other side of the seesaw as he put just one foot on his side in preparation. Dan just looked at him with a blank expression.

It didn’t say blank for long. His resolve cracked far too quickly, warm smile spreading on his face and eyes sparkling slightly.

“You want me to ride the seesaw with you.”

“Yes.”

“For real?”

“Are you hard of hearing already?” Phil quipped, completely unphased. He wasn’t backing down. He didn’t need to with Dan. Together they could indulge in every single silly idea.

Dan shook his head, making his curls even more messy for a moment. Phil watched with a smile as he walked around to the other side of the seesaw and put a single foot up, just like Phil.

“You want to do this at the same time?” he asked.

“No, you get on first, then I’ll go.”

“You just want to see my ass hit the ground. If I fall off and break something, you’re paying for the hospital bills,” he remarked.

“We’ve got joint finances,” Phil snorted. “And it’s a children’s playground.”

“Never underestimate the dangers! We’re getting old,” Dan said, the last bit with a glint in his eye.

“We are not. Now get on the seesaw, buddy.”

Dan did. As predictably, it tipped under his weight. His legs were far too long, having to almost curl up to fit on the tiny footrests but he just managed it. Phil tried to not let the seesaw drop all the way down by keeping his foot on it, but Dan was heavier than he’d thought.

“Just let me fall, huh?” he asked, bright smile on his face, even with the accusation.

“And now I’m about to raise you up!” Phil argued and got on himself.

Dan had made it look quite easy. It wasn’t. Phil’s legs were too long as well and it felt like his muscles protested as soon as he tried to bend them into position. But he was going to do this, and his body just had to get on board with the fun.

It did. He managed to cram himself onto the little seat and then they were swinging. Their weight was similar enough that they evened out almost perfectly. And Phil got the pleasure of looking right at Dan, with his messy hair and the dark circles under his eyes and the small smile on his lips.

He rocked back a little, clinging on tightly with his hands, and let them tip back and forth. Dan did the same and soon they were rocking back and forth gently. Phil got a vision of them in rocking chairs on some porch as old men instead of being in their 30’s and rocking back and forth on a seesaw in a playground.

The movement was small, but there was still something fun about it. Maybe just because it was an indulgence and an experience shared with Dan. Most things were more fun when they were shared.

“Happy?” Dan asked, sounding caught been exasperated and fond.

“Yes,” Phil said, warm and secure.

Dan’s eyes softened a little. He knew that Phil didn’t just mean in this moment.

It was so good to have Dan back. Phil had taken to staring at him more than normal, delighting in looking over and just be able to see him without a screen between them. He never quite wanted to go back to that again. Long distance wasn’t made for them, at least not for long.

Though it was all good in the end, as long as he got Dan back.

“I see you started without us,” Martyn called out.

Phil turned to look at him walking into the playground with Freja on his hip, Cornelia walking behind with a bag slung over her shoulder. They never really went anywhere with Freja without a bag for her things.

It reminded Phil of how he and Dan would bring just one shared backpack going to the BBC when they went to do the radio show. They’d take turns carrying it, just like Cornelia and Martyn did.

“We can’t let the kids have all of the fun,” Dan quipped, and then it looked like he was ready to get off.

Phil wasn’t quite ready for that yet.

“Corn?” he called out.

“Yeah?”

“Take a video of us?” he requested, effectively halting Dan’s movements.

Dan raised an eyebrow at Phil in question, but Phil didn’t meet his gaze. He wanted to remember this moment. He wanted video of it. He loved that he had so many fun memories with Dan captured on camera and this would be another one.

“Got it,” she said with practiced easy, pulling out her phone.

Martyn sat Freja down who pointed at the two of them. “Guncles,” she mumbled out, words half hidden behind her other hand shyly coming up to her mouth.

Dan threw his head back and laughed. It made the whole seesaw move more his way; elevating Phil as Dan threw his weight around.

“Did she just call us… guncles? Who’s taught her that?” he asked, looking pointedly at Phil, but he looked quite touched.

“No one, she came up with that all on her own,” Phil argued, trying to wink at Freja and not really succeeding.

“Liar,” Martyn was quick to call him out. Phil could always count on his big brother being a little shit. “Phil practically rehearsed it with her on his birthday visit.”

Dan laughed again, and it was such a lovely sound. Phil rolled his eyes, but he was smiling too.

“Alright, ready when you are, boys,” Cornelia called, camera ready in her hand.

Dan and Phil exchanged one look and then schooled their expressions. They kept their faces neutral as they rocked back and forth a couple of times. Phil hoped it came off both as silly and a little eerie.

“Some performer you are, huh?” Cornelia said with a shake of her head as she lowered her phone. “You make the seesaw look tiny.”

“It is tiny,” Phil argued.

Suddenly, Freja ran over and tried to climb up on the middle piece unprompted. She couldn’t quite clamber up on her own, even as Phil put a foot down to steady the seesaw for her. She turned around and pointed at her father.

“Up!” she requested and then tried to climb on again.

Martyn grabbed her and carefully placed her on the little platform in the middle. She let out a delighted giggle, even as her legs wobbled under her. Martyn stayed by her side, keeping a hand on her shoulder to steady her and be ready to catch her if she lost balance. Phil carefully eased his foot off the ground and the seesaw started swinging back and forth again.

Cornelia walked around to the other side and lifted her phone to film again.

“Want to swap out, Corn?” Dan asked. “I can get one of the family together.”

Phil was about to protest that Dan was just as much a part of the family, but Cornelia beat him to it.

“You’re family too, Dan. Besides I want a video of my little girl with her father and her guncles.”

Freja seemed to agree, wiggling her little butt happily. Phil took that as they should keep the gentle rocking of the seesaw going. He may even had leaned back as much as possible to give it more momentum. Dan did the same on the other side and she let out a happy laugh.

Martyn rolled his eyes at the two of them, but he also couldn’t quite keep the smile off his face.

It didn’t take long for Freja to tire of the seesaw, and so they went around the playground watching her try everything at least once. She was so full of energy and Martyn and Cornelia seemed delighted that Dan and Phil were the ones running around with her the most. It seemed like it was a welcome break for them.

Phil was pretty sure he was more exhausted than Freja by the time they left the playground. They waved off Martyn, Cornelia and Freja, but not after Freja ran up and gave both him and Dan a hug.

She also kept waving at them from over her mother’s shoulder.

“She’s quite cute,” Dan said, falling into step next to Phil. He walked close enough that their shoulders bumped with each step as they headed back. “I’m fucking exhausted though. She’s fast.”

“She is,” Phil agreed with a chuckle. “Not quite rocking back gently on a seesaw for her.”

Dan let out a hum of agreement. “It was fun though,” he said, voice barely loud enough to be heard.

“What did you say?” Phil asked, mostly just to make him repeat himself.

Dan narrowed his eyes in mock annoyance but he did repeat himself all the same.

“The seesaw. With you. It was fun.”

“I’m glad,” Phil said, feeling warmth spread in his chest. “It’s supposed to be fun.”

“Yeah,” Dan agreed. “And it was but also just… there’s something life affirming about it. Like… you never get too old or too big to play around. No one is stopping you except yourself. Life if meant to be fun and silly, and do random things just for the sake of it. It’s what everything is about.”

The warmth continued to expand in Phil’s chest and he leaned close enough to latch onto Dan’s arm.

“You got all that from a children’s seesaw?” he asked, chuckling.

“Shut up.”

“No. You’re being soft and sentimental. That means I’m allowed to tease you.”

“I never signed anything like that,” Dan protested, while fighting a smile.

“Yes, you did. Must always entertain Phil’s whims. Must endure teasing when sentimental,” Phil listed off on his fingers. “It’s all right there in our contract.”

“What contract? I just told you I didn’t sign anything.”

“Hmm, well, I know how to forge your signature, so are you sure about that?” Phil teased, leaning his head on Dan’s shoulder for just a moment.

He wanted to get snuggled up once they were back at his parents’ house. It was nice enough to be outside in the fresh air and run around but it felt like they could do with getting cosy and warm now. A little late morning nap never hurt anyone. It wasn’t like their sleep schedules could be more thrown off than they already were.

“What else have you signed with my signature, Philip Michael Lester?” Dan asked, even as he pulled Phil more into his side as they walked.

Just like they had balanced each other out on the seesaw, it was so easy to fall into perfect step next to each other. The length of their strides and the tempo matched without a second thought. A side effect of having walked next to each other for so many years.

“Oh, you know. All the regular stuff. Deals with the devil and such.”

“You sold the devil my soul. Imagine their disappointment when they find out that I have none. That’s mean of you,” Dan said, voice growing a little tired. A little sleepy.

They were almost back at Phil’s parents’ house. Judging by the look on his face it seemed like it wouldn’t take much to convince Dan to crawl back into bed.

“It’s incredible that you work actually. No soul and no heart,” Phil said.

“No heart?” Dan echoed.

“Yeah, ‘cause you handed it off to me,” he said, cringing a little at his own cheesiness. Dan was the one for sappy declarations, but at times Phil tried to purposely speak his language.

It was worth it when Dan snorted, almost choking on a laugh.

“You did not just say that. That’s corny as shit, Phil,” Dan protested, even as he tried to lean closer to Phil. Almost melting into his side as they walked side by side.

“Doesn’t matter. You love it. You want to hear all that corny shit,” he said, full of confidence.

Dan shook his head but didn’t argue. It would have no point. They both knew he’d lose that discussion. Phil knew him too well.

His phone buzzed in his pocket just as they reached the house. He pulled it out to find a message from Cornelia. She’d sent over the two videos of them on the seesaw. The first one with their stoic faces and the second one with Freja giggling in the middle and Martyn standing behind her.

“Look,” Phil said, leaning close to show Dan the two videos.

“Cute. You should post the first one,” he said as he pushed open the front door.

The car hadn’t been out front, so Phil’s parents had probably left to do something. Phil still called out to announce their return just in case he was wrong. No one replied.

“What, with no context?” Phil asked, even as he already moved to save the video.

“Keep them on their toes,” Dan said with a shrug. “And to remind them that if grown ass men can play in a playground, then so can they. You’re never too old for a little fun.”

“We look more like we’re being held hostage,” Phil said, as he opened Twitter and picked the video from his gallery.

“All part of the aesthetic,” Dan said, closing the front door behind Phil that he’d just left open because he’d been distracted by his phone. “That and my awful hair.”

“It’s cute,” Phil maintained. He left the video sitting in his drafts for now. He could post it later. Right now, he was much more interested in putting his phone away and falling into bed with Dan. “Come to bed?”

“We just got out of bed like an hour and a half ago,” Dan argued, even as he toed off his shoes and hung up his jacket and headed right back to the guest room.

Phil did the same and when Dan wasn’t moving fast enough, he grasped him by the hand and pulled just to make sure that he didn’t get any other idea. Again, Dan let himself get pulled and they stripped off their pants and just crawled back under the covers.

“We’ve been outside, we’ve been active. We deserve a little rest,” Phil argued, and snuggled up close.

His nose was slightly cold, and he nosed along the underside of Dan’s jaw. Dan pinched Phil’s hip but otherwise didn’t protest being used as a personal heater. Phil then reached up to trail his hands through Dan’s curls one more time.

He hummed contently and leaned into Phil’s touch.

“Thank you for dragging me along, and making me remember to have fun,” Dan mumbled, speaking against the top of Phil’s head. He placed a soft kiss there.

“Always,” Phil promised. “We’ll be 84 years old and I’ll still make you ride the seesaw with me.”

[inthedayswhenlandswerefew]

So I've never written out my thoughts like this as I'm reading a fic but this was so over the top amazing that I HAD to...I debated just reblogging with these things but spoilers...and also I wanted to be sure you saw it...I hope this was okay ❤️

"It takes courage to build ladders for people who might one day outclimb you."

This sentence stopped me in my tracks. I reread it a bunch if times. This is so profound and beautiful. I wrote it down in my journal..i hope you don't mind.

"when you slink covertly into therapist mode like a water moccasin weaves through swamps, subtle ripples in the muddied water and vigilant eyes."

Gorgeous writing. Beautiful imagery.

“ No, fuck the coyness that women are supposed to cloak themselves in to preserve their worth. You’re waiting for him to kiss you like someone drowning waits for a gasp of air."

Can I just fangirl over these two sentences.  The first sentence...YES. ALL THE YES. The second sentence. SAME girl SAME.

“So.” You hesitate. “Aemond.”

“Yes, I’m familiar with the concept.”

Hilarious response from Aegon. Hilarious. This is why I want him to be my bestie.

“He’s insecure. Very insecure, though he’s learned how to hide it.”

This is giving me One Direction "what makes you Beautiful" and I love it.

I loved the entire interaction between our girl and Aegon in her room.  Just seeing that friendship and how he does care about her. Beautiful.

Aemond coming to get her when the fire alarms are going off? Gahh what a gentleman! And then giving her the hoodie and telling her to keep it?!

The entire fire bit with Aegon was pure comedic gold. And LUKE fighting FOR Aemond. So therapeutic!

“No, you could use some more of it, you could use a lot more, you have so many demons it’s like Paranormal Activity in your brain, they’re in there all day tearing things off the walls and kicking over chairs and sabotaging anything you dare to care about and you let them!”

This entire scene broke my heart, but holy crap the imagery. GENIUS. so freaking genius. Amazing writing, love.

I so hope that Aegon talks some sense into Aemond soon. I don't want these two souls apart for long. I don't know what Stargirl's past really is, but I feel like she needs him as much as he needs her. So excited to see what you have planned for them all!

OH! AND I adored how she called out Jace on the plane. He is the WORST in this and I'm enjoying hating him...

MISS KATE!!! 😭 I cannot even express to you how happy this made me! I was smiling MASSIVELY the whole time I was reading it. 🥰 This is the stuff writers live for, so thank you so much for taking the time to share it.

Sometimes lines of dialogue/description will pop into my head randomly and I'll think "...Is this good or is this too weird? Will people get it?" and to see someone pick out the exact same snippets and connect with them...it's just priceless. 💜

I absolutely cannot wait to show you what's next for Stargirl, Aemond, Aegon, (evil!) Jace, and the rest of the Comet fam! ☄️

"I don't know what Stargirl's past really is, but I feel like she needs him as much as he needs her." 👀👀👀

[usafphantom2]

Ukrainian Air Force lost 62 planes in 2022. So far, in 2023, he has lost only seven.

Fernando Valduga By Fernando Valduga 11/08/2023 - 19:35 in Military, War Zones

The Ukrainian Air Force should not last more than a few days in a broader war with Russian forces. Eighteen months later, the Ukrainian air service not only lasted but also turned into a long-range attack force. One that is shaping the battlefield throughout Ukraine.

And, notably, the Ukrainian Air Force is becoming more able to survive over time: firing new Western rockets and missiles at greater distances and thus avoiding the most intensive Russian air defenses.

On the day Russia intensified its eight-year war against Ukraine in February 2022, the Kiev air arm had only 125 or more former Soviet warplanes: about 50 Mikoyan MiG-29, 30 Sukhoi Su-25 and a few dozen Sukhoi Su-27s and Sukhoi Su-24s fighters.

Some observers expected Russian missile attacks and fighter sweeps to entirely eliminate Ukraine's fighters and attack brigades in hours or days.

That didn't happen. Warned by NATO intelligence that the attack was coming, Ukraine's fighter and attack teams flew with their planes to small airfields and airstrips, avoiding the initial dams at their main bases. Flying into battle, the pilots remained low - very low - to minimize their exposure to Russian missiles.

After a year and a half of intense fighting, the Ukrainian Air Force lost no less than 69 aircraft - mainly to ground air defenses - but managed to maintain its overall strength on the front line by restoring old and grounded fuselages and acquiring 18 Su-25s and 27 MiG-29s from NATO countries.

Equally important, Ukraine armed each of its frontline types with new Western-made ammunition with greater range than the Soviet ammunition they replaced. Significantly greater range, in some cases.

The Su-25 received Zuni rockets made in the United States with this distance and precision for their distinct "rocket launch" attacks against targets up to eight kilometers away. The MiG-29s and Su-27s obtained, from U.S. stocks, high-speed anti-radiation missiles that hit enemy radars of up to 80 miles.

Perhaps the most notable is the fact that Ukraine has armed its Su-24 with two types of cruise missiles, the British Storm Shadow and the French SCALP, both of which can travel 155 miles. In recent weeks alone, Su-24 cruise missiles have blew up a warehouse of Russian vehicles and shot down several vital bridges carrying supplies to the south of Russia-occupied Ukraine.

Ukrainian Su-24 sighted with Storm Shadow missile.

The shift to isolated attacks - all Ukrainian jets, except the Su-25, can fire ammunition beyond the range of most of Russia's land air defenses - has greatly increased the life expectancy of Ukrainian pilots. After losing more than 60 jets last year, this year the Ukrainian Air Force apparently lost only four MiG-29s, a Su-24, a Su-25 and a Su-27. A loss rate for 2023 that is one fifth of what it was in 2022.

If the most recent phase of the transformation of the Ukrainian air force was the adoption of modern Western munitions, the next phase should be the adoption of Western planes. After many months of diplomacy, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands announced in May that they would work together to train Ukrainian pilots to fly the Lockheed Martin F-16 jets.

Meanwhile, the Netherlands signaled that it would give Ukraine some of its approximately three dozen active and retired F-16s after the completion of the training. A White House official said that a training plan should be in place “at the end of the year”.

The F-16 is not a new plane. The fighters that the Netherlands can donate to Ukraine were built in the 1980s and deeply updated 20 years later.

But the F-16 is fully compatible with a wide range of modern ammunition - and, for example, it can fire HARM anti-radar missiles in its most accurate mode.

The F-16 is not a miracle weapon. But it should help the Ukrainian air force to fire more and better missiles even farther and more accurately than it is doing now. In the third year of the broader war, this may mean even fewer losses for an air force that should not last longer than a few days.

Source: Forbes

Tags: Military AviationUkrainian Air ForceWar Zones - Russia/Ukraine

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Fernando Valduga

Fernando Valduga

Aviation photographer and pilot since 1992, has participated in several events and air operations, such as Cruzex, AirVenture, Daytona Airshow and FIDAE. He has works published in specialized aviation magazines in Brazil and abroad. Uses Canon equipment during his photographic work around the world of aviation.

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[chocolatedetectivehottub]

Travelling to Isla,

Travelling to Isla,

Travelling to Isla: A Journey to Paradise

Isla, a name that evokes images of sun-drenched beaches, azure waters, and a serene escape from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Whether you're looking for an idyllic retreat, an adventure-filled trip, or a cultural experience, Isla promises to offer a little bit of everything. Here's everything you need to know to plan your unforgettable journey to Isla.

Getting There

Isla is easily accessible by air, sea, or land, depending on your location. Most travelers arrive by plane, landing at the nearest international airport, which serves as the gateway to the island. From there, you can take a short domestic flight, ferry, or even a private yacht to reach your destination. If you're coming from nearby cities, many tourists opt for boat rides, which are not only a convenient mode of transport but also offer a scenic view of the surrounding waters.

If you enjoy road trips, driving to Isla can also be an option, especially if you're traveling from mainland regions. Renting a car or using a local transport service can give you the flexibility to explore the landscapes along the way.

Best Time to Visit Isla

The ideal time to visit Isla is during the dry season, which typically runs from December to April. During this period, you’ll experience the most pleasant weather, with warm temperatures, clear skies, and calm seas. However, Isla can be beautiful year-round, and if you prefer fewer tourists, visiting during the off-season (May to November) might offer a more peaceful experience.

Accommodation

Isla is home to a variety of accommodations, ranging from luxury resorts to budget-friendly hostels. For those seeking ultimate comfort, many beachfront resorts offer all-inclusive packages, private villas, and spectacular views. Mid-range options include charming guesthouses and boutique hotels, while those on a tighter budget can find simple but comfortable lodgings.

If you're looking to truly immerse yourself in nature, camping under the stars or staying in eco-friendly bungalows might be the right fit. For a more exclusive experience, some resorts offer overwater bungalows or private islands for rent, making your stay feel like an unforgettable adventure.

Things to Do in Isla

1. Beach Activities

The pristine beaches of Isla are the heart of the island. Whether you want to relax on the soft sand, swim in crystal-clear waters, or engage in water sports like snorkeling, jet-skiing, or paddleboarding, the beaches offer it all. The vibrant coral reefs surrounding the island are perfect for diving, offering a glimpse of exotic marine life.

2. Cultural Exploration

Isla is rich in culture and history. Visit local markets, explore quaint villages, or tour historical landmarks. Many visitors enjoy the opportunity to experience traditional art, music, and cuisine. Don't forget to try the island's specialty dishes, often featuring freshly caught seafood and locally grown produce.

3. Hiking and Nature Walks

For adventure enthusiasts, Isla offers some excellent hiking trails. The island's terrain is diverse, featuring lush jungles, hills, and cliffs that provide breathtaking panoramic views. A guided nature walk is also a great way to discover the island’s unique flora and fauna.

4. Spa and Wellness

Isla is a haven for relaxation. Many resorts offer luxurious spa treatments, yoga sessions, and wellness retreats. Whether you're looking to rejuvenate your mind and body or simply unwind with a massage, Isla’s serene environment makes it the perfect destination for wellness tourism.

5. Wildlife Encounters

For animal lovers, Isla offers plenty of opportunities for wildlife encounters. Explore the island’s wildlife reserves or take part in responsible animal tourism, like visiting sea turtle conservation centers or bird-watching tours.

Local Cuisine

Isla’s food scene is an exciting mix of fresh seafood, tropical fruits, and vibrant flavors. Local dishes often feature grilled fish, lobster, and shrimp, served with coconut rice or plantains. Don’t miss out on the island’s famous tropical cocktails, made with locally sourced rum or fresh fruit juices.

Street food is another highlight, with food stalls offering delicious snacks such as fried plantains, seafood skewers, or coconut milk desserts. Be sure to try a local delicacy or two to experience Isla’s true culinary culture.

Sustainable Travel in Isla

As tourism grows, Isla is also focusing on sustainable practices. Many hotels and restaurants use eco-friendly practices like renewable energy, waste management, and supporting local businesses. Travelers are encouraged to respect the environment, support local artisans, and minimize their ecological footprint.

Conclusion

Travelling to Isla is more than just a vacation; it’s an opportunity to reconnect with nature, experience unique cultures, and escape into paradise. Whether you’re a beach lover, an adventure seeker, or someone in search of tranquility, Isla offers a perfect blend of relaxation, exploration, and unforgettable memories. Plan your trip, pack your bags, and get ready for the journey of a lifetime!

[lilybug666]

Diet of a succubus.

This is a bit of a sensitive subject for me. I've been around for a long, long time. I've fed many different ways before. Some were less...humane than others. I'm ashamed of my younger self. I didn't have as much restraint. I didn't have anyone to teach me, not that that excuses my actions. I think a lot of us (demons) are more or less created then left to fend for ourselves.

How I now feed, I don't take anything from my target other than the energy they throw off. It's similar to if for example someone brings you a steaming plate of food and sets it in front of you. I won't touch your actual meal, but I will absorb the steam coming off of it. It is disbursed in the air, you aren't doing anything with it, you still get your full meal and I can get one too. Now of course the strongest energy I can get like this is sexual, but I can also feed off of intense emotions. It can be any kind. People often jump to the negative ones, and yes while I will take those, I also get a lot out of extreme happiness too. I don't take anything directly from anyone's life source these days, with the exception of Vani. Being that we share the same vessel, he is not in danger. It is impossible for me to accidentally drain him. The worst that could happen is he falls asleep for a bit. I also don't have to feed that often no matter the method. Something I suppose to do with aging.

-

Many, many years ago, I used to feed off of humans' direct life force energy. People got sick, some of them died. Though unlike what propaganda stats, all of my victims were willing. I need permission to take from them, their consent if you will. Though I don't think all understood what was at risk. Some got addicted to the rush. Even when they were ill. The last time I fed this way I believe it was some point during the renaissance. I then went to the mode of contracts. It seemed fairer, my next meal understood that they would meet their end at my hands. I started experimenting with absorbing other types of energy besides just sexual. Fear, anger, and sadness were very powerful. I took those in the same way that I do now, but I still was relying on souls/life force energy as the main course. I had a handful of contracts. Some were more work than others. If I'm being honest, I ate the vessels of a few of them as well as their souls. I suppose it's the bridge between my timeline(s) as a vampire. Even as a vampire it was more about the energy I obtained from blood.

One day it hit me that I no longer needed so much energy. Filtering what was around me was enough. When I came into this system I had already switched to my current way of feeding. Though I still did visit and have sex with some on the astral plane. I hid in headspace most of the time and didn't announce my presence to my headmates. Eventually went dormant. When I became active again just months ago, it had been years since I last fed. It took a while to feel "normal" again. I do get hungry still, but I'm in control of it these days verses it controlling me. I want to stress, those that I feed from, I will not harm you. I will only take what is given and I will only accept what will not cause harm to one's health.

Additional: When it comes to human food, I'm actually the least picky one in the system. It's fuel for the vessel but there are things I do enjoy. I have developed a sweet tooth, so I like a lot of things my host likes. I also like spicy food. Unfortunately, I like meat, and our host is a pescatarian who is allergic to multiple types of fish. So, our choice of meat is very selective. Vani seems to be happy enough with the fish we can eat. I miss red meat myself. I might have snuck a tiny bit a couple times. My host wasn't too upset with me, he just told me to not make it a habit. He's also encouraged me to learn some recipes of anything that sounds interesting.