#all this after a formal four course LUNCH on a tuesday

[lizmitches]

shira is so SILLY for dragging her feet on this relationship btw. like imagine a 9 foot tall beautiful blonde woman walking into your home one night and saying "i'm divorcing my husband of 20 years because i fucking love you--i've always loved you--and i want to be with you for the rest of my life. also you said you wanted to exhume your brother's corpse so i called a guy and he'll be here tomorrow" like????

[lindsaystravelblogs2]

Days 11 & 12 - 14-15 March

Day 11 - Tuesday, 14 March  Skua & El Brujo Glaciers

We had a landing at Skua Glacier in the morning – actually at least two kilometres from the glacier face and we walked in.  It started with a long trek across some open sandy/stony beach and then it gradually became grassy, then bushy and hilly, and the track was barely wide enough to put one foot after the other.  It also became wet and wetter and we walked through patches of water up to almost 30 centimetres deep.  It was a challenging walk and quite a few people gave up a few hundred metres shy of the best lookout.  Heather was one of them and she stood high on a point where most of the glacier was visible, but I went down to another section of rocky beach and up some hills to where the glacier front was immediately in front of us but still a few hundred metres away. Well, it was immediately in front of a dense phalanx of French-speakers who stood shoulder-to-shoulder chatting and editing their photos while the rest of us pointed our cameras over their shoulders or between their legs – or like me who tried to outflank them and almost fell off the side of the hill.  I took three quick snaps and headed back to Heather.  I saw a couple of small birds on the way and as we walked back across the beach, I saw some more and added two more species to my Chilean list.  The walk was quite enjoyable, albeit pretty challenging in places, but it was raining almost all the way, and quite heavily towards the end of the trek.  As we neared the zodiacs to take us back to the ship, the wind came up and we were severely stung, almost cut, by driving hail and quite a lot of snow.  It was a good morning, but we were certainly glad to be back on board, starting to warm up, and able to remove our soaking clothes.

During lunch, the ship moved several kilometres to the El Brujo Glacier where a zodiac cruise was on offer.  This is a big glacier with a front of more than two kilometres, but we had just had hot showers and didn’t relish the thought of sitting for another two hours of strong wind and heavy rain on a zodiac, so we both stayed on board – the first excursion we have missed on this voyage.  I still don’t think we missed anything though.  The ship slowly turned a full circle in the wind a couple of times so we saw whatever there was to see out of our window – and we saw a pod of dolphins playing around just outside our balcony and none of those in the zodiacs saw them.  We also had ready access to the bar that added to the inducement to stay on board.

They had a formal White Night dinner on Deck 3, followed by a Traditional French Revue in the Lecture Theatre at night, but we managed to miss both of them.  As well as the White Night dinner, there was also a special dinner in the Officers’ private restaurant on Level 3 that we could have attended, but as luck would have it, we enjoyed a very quiet meal in our almost deserted favourite restaurant on Deck 6.

Day 12 - Wednesday, 15 March  Pie XI Glacier

This is the largest glacier in Chile: 64 kilometres long and covering more than 1200 square kilometres.  It is over four kms across the face.  It got its name in honour of Pope Pius XI who was reigning when it was named in 1930. When the French say it, it sounds like Pea-leven.

We did not make a landing here because the ship had to be at the English Passage (not the English Channel) at high tide later in the morning, but the ship sailed a few kilometres along the glacier front four hundred metres away, then turned and retraced its course so passengers on the starboard side could also get good views of it as well.

The English Passage is a very narrow section of the Magellan Strait, restricted to ships less than 180 metres in length (Le Boreal is 146 metres long).  It has several islands in it and a few curves that make navigation a challenge.  It didn’t look too bad to me (as a rank non-professional) but they closed th bridge and slowed the ship so the crew could concentrate on getting us through safely. Obviously, they succeeded or I would be penning this from the bottom of the fiord – which I am not!  It was very picturesque and most people were out on deck watching the islands slide past as we passed through the narrowest section of the Passage.

There was quite a lot of rain during the day, and most of the afternoon was so misty that we couldn’t see the shore on either side of the ship.  There were low clouds all day and it was a bit exciting because it seemed almost dark by early afternoon.  We have had quite a lot of fog in places, but this was certainly much thicker – almost spooky at times.  And then, during dinner, a thunderstorm hit with lots of lightning.  It was really very exciting.  With a steel-hulled ship, it seemed to me that there was no cause for alarm, but I spoke to one couple who were afraid to venture outside in case they were struck by lightning – maybe there were other Nervous Nellies too, but I just enjoyed it.

During the afternoon, one of the naturalists did a presentation about some of his work with birds.  He has worked in many places but he focussed mainly of one particular area where he and some volunteers do annual blanket surveys, literally walking every square metre of some islands, counting eggs and chicks, banding them and recording a range of measurements in a longitudinal study because the same birds return to breed in the exact same place every year.  It was a fascinating discussion and I would love to be involved with ‘on the ground’ projects like that.

[unmaskedagain]

How about... No!

Yeah, this one was weird for me. It’s started out strong but near the near the end It kind of fell flat. Throughout this I sprinkled in Quotes from one of my favorite shows; I’d watched it every time it was on. Fans will recognize it. Its ugly betty.

           When Marinette lost all her friends, she didn’t break down like she thought she would. Or how anyone in class thought she would. There were no tears, no apologies, no anger or frustration. It had happened one sunny Tuesday afternoon, in the middle of class, of month after school started back up again.

           Alya, the new class president, had announced in the middle of class after Miss Bustier had stepped out for a moment, that Marinette was an awful bully; she wasn’t the girl they knew anymore, and so… “We’re not your friends anymore.”

“You all feel this way?” Marinette asked.

           There were a lot of nods, and yes’s.”

“I didn’t hang with Chloe for reason,” Nino glared. “I’m not hanging with Chloe 2.0.”

“Just another disappointing useless male,” Chloe shook her head.

“You’ve been really mean lately,” Rose said softly. “Sorry.”

“Lila only wanted to be friends with you,” Mylene insisted. “You didn’t have to be so nasty!”

           To which Marinette looked at her blankly, shrugged and said, “Okay.”

           That was it.

           The other students in class didn’t know what to do or say. They had prepared themselves to argue and defend their decision. But what could they say to “okay.”

Nathaniel looked at the rest of the students like there were stupid, “I’m still your friend, Marinette.” He got glares.

Adrien nodded, “We’re still friends,” he assured. “Though,” he glared at the rest of class, “Some people should definitely lose my number.”

The statement got shocked looks. No one expected Adrien to side with Marinette. At worst, when the lines were drawn, they expected him to be neutral. They didn’t know the boy as well as they thought. Lila looked dismayed as she had thought the boy to be a pushover.

“I wouldn’t mind a permanent truce,” Chloe offered. The Bluenette and the blond’s had entered into a truce that had slowly turned into a good friendship. “Maybe i’ll take over the spot as the new bestie.”

           Marinette snorted.

           Adrien glared at his oldest friend, his hair raising on ends; if Alya was officially out of the way that meant technically he had the number one friend spot. He wouldn’t lose it to Chloe. That wasn’t fair! “It’s taken!”

           Chloe smirked, “For now!”

           Marinette smiled. She would be just fine.

           The class, however, wouldn’t.

           It took them three days to realize that ending their friendship with Marinette had consequences.

           The first time was when in the middle of lunch, Rose let out a happy scream, “Prince Ali is coming back to town. He’s invited me to a fundraising gala for the children’s hospital. This Saturday.” The other girls immediately launched into excited screams.

           The four, who had been exiled from the rest of the class, ignored them. Mostly because they were all going to the gala as a well. Adrien because of his father. Nathaniel because his art was being displayed. Chloe because she was Chloe. And Marinette because her great aunt was hosting it.

           When four was the first to make it back to class and sat in their seats in the very back; talking amicably, they barely noticed the other students come in. But they did notice Rose when she ran to the back of the class with a huge smile on her face.

“Marinette!” Rose chirped. “I need a dress for the gala; something formal. Something sparkly.”

           Marinette nodded, “Have your measurements changed.”

Rose shook her head quickly, her eyes still sparkly as she daydreamed about dancing with Prince Ali.

Marinette opened her bag and pulled out her brochure that Chloe had insisted she get to hand out. It included examples of dresses she previously made and prices for things like dresses, skirt, suits, anything. It had her phone number, her website information; everything. Adrien had gotten tips from his dad about how he started out and relayed them to Marinette. It made her feel like a real designer.

She handed the brochure to Rose, who took it absentmindedly. “Ok, then it would be about $475. $550 if you want the full princess look.”

“Wha-What?” Rose asked confused.

           The other students in class looked confused as well apart from Adrien, Chloe, and Nathaniel who bore smirks.

“The dress you’re commissioning,” Marinette said slowly. “The estimated price for a rushed custom dress is between $475 and $550. It would’ve been a bit cheaper but you’re ordering it at the last minute. All my prices are in the brochure; standard for everyone. I would actually just purchase one the designs on my website; it would be less expensive than having me create something specifically for you.”

           Rose looked at the brochure, her mind struggling to process. “But you-you always make my dress for free!”

“I didn’t really like to,” Marinette shrugged. “But you guys never really asked you just demanded; like you did when you walked in.” Rose looked a bit ashamed; because yes, she did just demand. “Materials are really expensive. Every free dress or any custom piece I gave out I had to increase the price for the rest of my commissions. It never seemed fair to my other customers. Which worked for me because I opened up my own design studio and office. MDC Designs.” It was in a richer part of Paris; in an unused part of an office building. It had tons of natural light and an amazing view; plus it was private. “Though for some reason, the high price just attracted more people. But you were my friends so I did it anyway.  Now we’re not friends so I don’t have to anymore.”

“Rich people,” Chloe explained. “The more expensive something is, the more they want it.” The blond had become Marinette’s social media manager and business manager as well. Because of her MDC was becoming Instagram famous and had featured clothes on various runaways. She always hired all the models.

           A devastated look appeared on Rose’s dress; she couldn’t afford a fancy new dress. She didn’t have enough money saved up for one. She never thought she’d have to save money for a dress. Marinette always made anything she wanted.

“And you wonder why no one likes you,” Alya hissed that the two girls.

           Marinette leaned back in her chair, “I could make an effort to be liked but I rather be hated than inconvienced.”

“You don’t need her, Rose!” Alix snapped. “We’ll find you much better dress than she could ever make.”

           Alya crossed her arms, “And it won’t look as tacky.”

“Good for you,” Marinette said happily, and went back to talking with her friends.

           While shopping for Rose’s dress, the girls decided to pull up Marinette’s website so they could make fun of outfits. Unfortunately, they were hard pressed to find anything wrong with the fabulous dresses. Even Lila spotted several she wanted for herself.

Rose didn’t find a better dress than the ones Marinette’s website. At least not one for a price she could afford. She ended up re-wearing an elegant blue dress Marinette had given her the year before for a dance.

Though she had stumbled when The Emily Gilmore, world around philanthropist millionaire, brought her niece on stage and it turned around to be Marinette. Marinette wearing the most gorgeous silver dress Rose, and most of the party guests, had ever seen.

“That is a friend of yours from school, yes?” Prince Ali asked. “I didn’t know there was a Gilmore in Paris. They contribute much to my Go-Green Projects. Will you please introduce me?”

           Rose froze. Because no, she wasn’t Marinette’s friend. And it was highly doubtful she’d get anywhere close to Marinette.

“They’re not friends actually,” Chloe said swooping in. “A bit of a falling out. I’m rather close with Marinette though. I’d love to introduce you now if you’re ready. Marinette was the one to get the Gilmore foundation to really take an interest in Going Green. They are always looking for new ideas.”

           Prince Ali gave a quick look at Rose, “I’m sure it will not take long. Is it okay with you if I go?” Rose forced a happy smile on her face and nodded. “Thank you!”

           Rose was forced to watch Prince Ali offer Chloe his arm.

“I’m surprised you did bring Lila Rossi?” Chloe drawled as they walked away, leaving Rose, alone in the middle of party where she hardly knew anyone. “I’ve heard so much about her own contributions to your Go-green projects.”

“Who is Lila Rossi?” She heard Prince Ali asked. And just like that, a little bit of Rose’s world came crashing down.

           It was two days later, before the first bell rang, Alya rushed to Marinette’s desk, with big smile on her face and hope in her eyes. “Did you see the new heroes?” She asked excitedly. “BrightRoar and Killer Bee!” She shot a mean look at Chloe. “I guess you got replaced for being such a lousy hero.” She turned back to the bluenette. “I need another interview with Ladybug, like stat! When can you set it up?”

“I can’t,” Marinette said and went back to pulling out her school books for the day.

“Of course you can,” Alya insisted. “You always do it! You’re the one who got me my first interview with Ladybug and everything.”

           Marinette rolled her eyes. Yet another demand. “No, I can’t.”

           Chloe tapped her perfectly manicured nails on the desk, “What my best Mari (Adrien growled, “I will end you, Chloe!” Marinette was his best friend. But the other blond had been slowly invading Marinette’s room; leaving clothes and shows. A blanket on the top bunk though she knew Adrien had called dips.) is saying is that it’s not that she can’t, it’s that she won’t.”

“Why not?” Alya stomped her foot. “I need the deets on this now if I’m going to scoop Aurore and her BugOut site.”

“You’re not friends anymore,” Chloe taunted. “Why would she help you?”

“I-well, it just!” Alya struggled to find the right words to say. Because she never considered that Marinette wouldn’t want to help with her blog anymore. Or that she only did it because they were friends.

           Marinette sighed, “No. I mean I really I can’t. Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t even if I could.” She told her ex-friend and the other classmates listening in. “Ladybug only gave you interviews because we were friends. She always thought you were a bit much. When I told her we weren’t friends anymore, she decided to not work with the Ladyblog anymore.”

“That’s a lie!” Alya yelled.

“Then why don’t you ask Ladybug herself,” Chloe told her.

“I will!”

           While Ladybug was patrolling that night it was to no one’s surprise that Alya stood of a roof top of a building and waved the hero down.

“Do you need help?” Ladybug asked the girl kindly once she was on the roof.

“I need an interview!” Alya said, her phone was out and she was live streaming. “Why did you replace Queen Bee? Is BrightRoar a lion or a tiger? Are they permanent?”

           Ladybug looked puzzled, “I thought Marinette told you already. I won’t work with you or the Ladyblog anymore.”

           Alya stepped back, shocked. “What? Why? I thought she was lying.”

“What did she tell you?”

“That you thought I was a bit much,” Alya growled darkly. “That I only got the interviews because I was her friend. Which was a lie; I got them because I’m an awesome reporter. And she said I wouldn’t get anymore interviews.”

           Ladybug shook her head, “Marinette left out a lot of what I said,” At this Alya’s expression turned smug. “I did say you were a bit much. But I also said you’re blog had become a tabloid full of incorrect information that I just couldn’t support anymore. It keeps getting worse every day; I swear if I have one more person asking me about some girl named Lila Rossi, I’ll lose it. I don’t know a Lila Rossi, and she is not my best friend. Also, Chat Noir and I are not and will be never be dating; stop insisting that we love each other. I told Marinette, you were a bad journalist who needed to learn to check your sources and cite where your information. I should’ve stopped dealing with you a long time ago. Honestly, I thought working with you was a bad idea from the start. But I owed Marinette a favor, you are her friend. Oh sorry, I meant you were her friend.”

           Alya stood stunned as the words washed over her.

“I wish Marinette wasn’t so nice sometimes,” Ladybug sighed, though Marinette was practically dancing on the inside. “She should’ve told you what I really said.  I guess she just didn’t want to be mean. Good luck with everything, Alya.” And with that Ladybug swung away.

           It took Alya another five minutes to realize she was still live streaming.

           Alya thought she’d wake up to the entire world talking about her encounter with Ladybug but they weren’t. Sure there were dozens and dozens of complaints accusing her of lying to them but nothing to extreme.

           Her friends comforted her as soon as she got to class. Alya barely noticed to down in the dumps. Lila had assured her that Ladybug was only trying to protect her which was why she pretended not to know the Italian girl. This relieved one of Alya’s concerns. Still, It was a hard pill to swallow but she realized that technically she owed all of the Ladyblog’s success to Marinette who had helped arrange multiple interviews and convinced Ladybug to work with her in the first place. All because Alya was Marinette’s friend. The Ladyblog was doomed.

           Said Bluenette had walked passed Alya’s desk without so much as glance in her direction, instead talking amicably to Chloe.

           A few hours later during the middle of a history lesson, every phone in class starting pinging rapidly with new notification to the point where Bustier instructed them to turn off their phones completely.

           Bad idea.

“Bugout posted an interview with the entire Miraculous team,” Rose said excitedly.

           Everyone was watching the interview within seconds, almost everyone Chloe watched Alya instead; drawing a suspicious look from Adrien. Bustier just sighed and got her phone out as well. To their surprise it wasn’t just four heroes, it was six.

           Aurore gracefully interviewed Ladybug and Chat Noir about the coming and goings of everyday hero life. Then ask the big question; who were the new heroes.

“They are the new permanent members of Team Miraculous!” Ladybug announced with a smile on her face. “Killer Bee,” Chloe preened. She had to change her name and costume but she got to keep being a hero. “BrightRoar.” Nathaniel fought not to blush. He still couldn’t believe that Marinette chose him. “Viperion!” Luka had been thrilled to be offered a place on the team. “And Renard blanche.” Aurore had been given the fox miraculous and had created an illusion of the new fox hero so she could do the interview.

“What happened to Rena Rouge and Carapace?” Aurore asked.

“Permanently retired,” Killer Bee sniped. “They’re actions outside the mask were… untasteful. They showed themselves to be unworthy of being heroes. They were fired! At least Queen Bee got to resign with her dignity.”

           Alya dropped her phone and rushed out of the room in tears; Nino and a few of her other friends following her. Nearly everyone in class thought it was because Aurore got the interview she had been wanted but four knew the truth.

“let’s take a quick break,” Bustier said softly, already mentally preparing for another akuma attack.

“That was mean.” Adrien told Chloe.

“No that was deserved,” Chloe stated. “Alya tried to get Max to hack into the MDC website and ruin it. I’m lucky Claude runs helped with our internet security or we’d have been screwed. Mean, was me taking your little Cat Bed and tossing it on the pullout. And replacing with it with a comforter set worthy of a Queen.”

           Adrien’s eyes widened and he rushed out of the room, probably to Marinette’s to defend his territory. Honestly, Marinette thought, he was behaving more and more like a cat every day.

           Marinette gave Chloe a look, “You’re still as horrible and evil as the day that Satan himself placed you in your mother’s arms.”

           Chloe preened, “Oh, darling, that’s sweet.”

           When Mylene got an amazing idea for a short, she immediately went to Nino to ask if he could direct. He said yes. While in Class, they immediately started making plans and cast roles and assigning jobs to the other members of class. . “We can start filming this weekend.”

“Marinette, you’ll do costumes again.” Nino said quickly. “And food! We need food.”

“No.” Marinette said back.

           Nino was so busy making plans that it took a minute to process what she said. He looked up shock. “No? What do you mean no?

“I’m too busy with other commissions to take on your project,” Marinette said easily. “Plus even if I don’t design the clothes myself, there is a consultant fee; not to mention contracts to sign.”

           Alya glared, “Contracts? For what? Its a school project!”

“No, it’s not.” Adrien snapped back. “It has nothing to do with school. We’re not being graded or anything.” He reminded them. “Marinette has a brand now. She has to protect it and her clients. That means non-disclosure agreements, security agreements. A contract will lay out just what she is responsible for and what she can bill you for. It keep that waters clear.”

           Mylene frowned, “We don’t need all that.”

“You might not,” Adrien said defensively. “But people are starting to recognize MDC all around the world. A contract will stop you from using her name to boost your movie. Or maybe even stop you mentioning her in the credits all together.”

           Marinette nodded, “Besides on my website and on the brochure on the class board, it clearly states for big projects like this; I need at least a three month warning. I’m swamped.”

           Nino wanted to point out there Marinette always made time before. But he remembered Marinette saying not too long ago that she always made time for her friends. And they weren’t friends anymore.

           In the next few weeks and months, the class got used to hearing the word No from Marinette.

           Alix asked about getting a banner. Marinette said No.

           Alya asked about getting food for the bake sale like always. Marinette told her she’d have to make an order at the bakery and pay for it in advance.

           Kim needed a scarf for his mom. Marinette gave him her brochure.

           Birthday party planning. Sorry, Marinette no longer provided that service; please review the brochure if further clarification is needed.

           So to get back at the Bluenette, the class got her, and Chloe and Nathaniel, excluded from the Class field trips and class parties on the grounds that Marinette caused too much tension in the class. Lila insisted that Adrien would come around.

            The four retaliated by no longer helping with any of the fundraising or contributing their own money. If they couldn’t go on the oh so special class trips, then why should they help pay for it? Unfortunately for the class, they had forgotten that a majority of the money donated came from what Marinette raised/Donated and what Chloe contributed.

           Bustier’s class trips went from the envy of the school to “oh god, why are they on a farm?” Really fast.

           And for every “amazing” trip the class went on and for every party they had, the four hosted their own events that ended up the talk of the entire school.

           It took until the end of the school year for Lila to be finally be exposed.

           Chloe, Marinette, and Aurore were having a mini spa day in Marinette’s room. Their faces were covered in green mud masks and their hair was in curlers and their wore pajamas.

           When Adrien burst in the room, he screamed, “Akumas!”

           Marinette through a pillow at his face, “That’s not funny, catboy.”

“Catman,” Adrien corrected with a laugh.

           Marinette stated back, “Please! I’m more man than you’ll ever be.”

“Nino texted.” He kept forgetting to block his old friend’s number. “Dude! Lila’s a liar! Alya’s losing it.” He read the text of his phone. “Then five minutes later. Man, we screwed up big time, huh? A minute later. Sorry.”

“About time,” Aurore shook her head. “For a self-proclaimed amazing journalist it took Alya way too long to figure Lila out.”

“She didn’t want to believe it,” Marinette shrugged. “She’s not big on admitting when she’s wrong. Or when she’s gone too far. I admittedly enabled her for a long time.”

“Everyone did,” Adrien frowned.

           Chloe rolled her eyes, “The class is going to come groveling back on Monday.”

“Let them,” Marinette narrowed her eyes. “I’m done with fake friends.”

           The girls nodded. The low sound of small click got their attention. All eyes went to Adrien who still had his phone out.

           Chloe stood up, “I swear, Adrien, if you took a picture of me on your cell phone; I will kill you and eat you.”

           Adrien held his ground, “Surrender the top bunk or I post it on Instagram.”

           Aurore blinked, and then looked at Marinette confused, “They know this isn’t their room right?”

           Marinette face-palmed, “I don’t even know anymore.”

           Monday, as Chloe predicted, the class did come groveling back.

           Marinette, Chloe, Adrien, and Nathaniel walked into class only to see that everyone had rearraged the seats again to what it was originally before Lila came.

           The bluenette nodded, “Time to get serious!”

           Chloe and Adrien’s expressions turned cold. Chloe cast a look at the still friendly looking redhead, “Nathaniel, put on your game face.”

           Nathaniel quickly tried to look stern.

“Not your gay face,” Chloe hissed. “You’re game face.”

“They’re the same face,” Nathaniel whispered.

           Marinette crossed her arms, “What’s going on here?”

           Alya frowned, “This is our way of saying sorry. We should have never believe Lila. The rotten liar turned us against you.”

“No!” Marinette shook her head. “Saying sorry is saying sorry. And don’t blame Lila for you chose to do.”

           Chloe marched to the back of the class, and glared at Rose and Juleka, “You’re in our seats!”

           Rose tried not to panic, “It’s not your seat anymore. You’re up front with Sabrina again.”

“Let’s try this again…” Chloe leaned down, and glared hard. “MOVE!” She yelled.

           The girls scrambled out of the chairs.

           With a huff, the remaining three walked to the back of the class without another word.

           The four sat down and glared at the rest of the class.

“You guys can come on the class trip with us now!” Kim offered.

              Nathaniel snorted, “Yeah, i don’t do camping.”

“We couldn’t any way,” Chloe said. “While you’re camping for a week. We’ll be in England for our own class trip.”

              She got envious looks.

“We can come with!” Alix smiled. “It’ll be a blast.”

“No,” Marinette said. “We had to save up all year for this trip. We already made reservations. You can’t come. I wouldn’t  want you to anyway. It’s too much tension. Why don’t you go find Lila? I’m sure she’d take you back.”

“Girl, didn’t you hear us?” Alya said. “We’re sorry!”

“Oh I know you’re sorry,” Marinette said coldly, “I just don’t know why you think that matters.”

[ecto-american]

White and Nerdy

Holiday Truce Gift for @idiot-cheesehead-archenemy based on their request for Vlad’s slice of life outside of the Fentons.

On FFN and AO3

Summary: Contrary to belief, Vlad does have hobbies other than spinning in a fancy chair with his cat thinking of evil plots. For example, every Tuesday he dedicates the day to hanging out with his best friend as they both indulged in their crippling, long term addictions: World of Warcraft, with a pinch of Dungeons and Dragons.

Rating: K+

Warnings: Some cursing

Other Notes: Everybody is gay or trans, and you can't stop me.

Running a multi billion dollar empire was stressful, to say the very least. And of course, when you own those businesses, it was easy to work as much or as little as you pleased. Not that Vlad ever found himself taking off too much from work. No, no. He loved running his empire, the meetings and decisions. Whenever he took too much time off, the halfa found himself restless. Vlad craved a full schedule, and he needed things to look forward to.

Though of course, he wasn't all work and no play. There was one day of the week Vlad always, with the exception of business trips, took off or would take easy: Tuesdays. Tuesday was raid day.

And on that Tuesday morning, Vlad paid no mind as he could faintly hear the front door being unlocked and closed. His best friend, his actual best friend (NOT that fool Jack), had keys and was permitted to come over whenever he pleased.

Vlad continued his morning routine lazily, carefully shaving and grooming his beard to his preferred style. Brushed and styled his hair in it's normal ponytail, and he dressed himself. Any other day of the week, Vlad would be putting on his Italian brand name custom suits, always freshly pressed and ironed by a maid. But today was raid day, and so he instead was wearing sweatpants and an oversized Packers sweatshirt. He slipped on his football slippers, and he went downstairs to his computer room.

Not his office, which was expensively decorated with only the most fine and formal, shelves lined with important titles. His computer room, which was expensively decorated for a whole other reason. As he opened the door, he smiled at the shelves full of figurines of his favorite characters, accessories adorning the walls. He knew that most would have a stroke, since he never kept anything in the original box, despite having the entire collection of figurines, statues, busts, everything that would make the most dedicated fan drooling. That was simply stupid in Vlad's eyes, it was made to be admired and displayed, not kept in a box. If any were to break, he could simply buy another, no issue.

They lined shelves that were all over the brightly lit room, with cabinets below that held their boxes. While he didn't keep them in boxes, he of course, still kept them. There were also some books, mostly related to the lore but also game guides and manuals.

He admired his collection for a moment before turning his attention to the middle aged man getting comfortable in one of the three computer setups Vlad had, the far left one. All the setups were, of course, only the best and most advanced, with each desktop having three monitors and leather chairs. Each desk was a large U shaped one, set pressed to each other and near the back wall for the outlets.

"Hey, morning!" Edward Lancer greeted him warmly. Both men were morning people, clear by their chosen professions and schedules. Ed was in his own lounge wear, sweatpants with crocs and an old college t-shirt. "I brought McDonald's." He gestured to the bag that was left on Vlad's desk, alongside a cup of coffee clearly from Vlad's own kitchen.

Had it been any person other than Ed, Vlad would have been mortified over McDonald's. But even billionaires couldn't resist their breakfast, and it was only on Tuesday that he was able to privately indulge. Ed never judged.

"Thank you!" Vlad replied brightly. Ed had his own meal in front of him, sitting facing away from the keyboard as he took his time eating. Vlad joined him, sitting at his desk and doing the same, allowing them to talk face to face as they ate.

"Are you ready to fight the dragon later?" Ed questioned as he cut up his pancakes. "Since we're resting, I've been trying to figure out what spells I should prepare for the day to fight it." Vlad snorted, shaking his head.

"Knowing Harriet, she'll likely make the dragon a red herring that goes down with ease and dick us over with the actual boss that'll be invincible to half our party because it's immune the attacks that destroy the damn dragon," Vlad replied before taking a big sip of coffee. Burning hot, but delicious. Ed chuckled in amusement.

"She's always made it fair though," Ed replied. "Her boss battles are never unbeatable."

"Yeah, but she makes every campaign some Water Temple level meets 90s point and click mystery game difficulty and outrageous puzzle solving," Vlad grumbled.

"I like it, it's good critical thinking practice," Ed replied. "I've used some of her puzzles in the games I DM for the students. Really makes them think rather than just attacking everything. I swear, one of my students, Nathan, he just loves rolling to attack every NPC I make."

"Sounds like a ninny," Vlad said as he took a bite of his greasy fast food. The best part about the summer was Ed not having to teach. They could dedicate the whole day to hanging out. Of course, Ed took up a summer job, but he was able to secure Tuesdays off.

"A bit, but a good kid," Ed always spoke fondly of his students. "You should come in sometime for a game, it'd be fun."

"I think I might," Vlad agreed thoughtfully.

Of course, going to Casper High was always hit or miss. Daniel was there, and it was always nice to be able to check in on the little badger. But as mayor and a billionaire that funded several scholarships, it would be nice publicity to go and have some face time with kids. Many of his high school interns had graduated and left for college, and he was in the market for some new ones. Might be able to find some promising new future employees too. Hm, he'd have to see where he could fit a Casper High visit into his schedule when school began. Vlad would worry about that another time.

"How's their gay club?" Vlad questioned. "You guys just formed one, right?"

"It's got a steady group of kids who come in, very good kids. Many have supportive parents now," Ed explained. The teacher had paused, giving a small sigh. "It's a double edge sword for me. On one hand, I'm so grateful that so many of them can be who they are. But...I don't know. I hate that we never got to have that."

Vlad nodded understandingly. He poked at his breakfast, feeling hunger temporarily leave him as those depressive memories came back.

"I'll forever be thankful that Mother wanted to apologize and make amends before she died," Vlad spoke. "But I'm sorry she missed out on so much because of what I had to do to become happy. At least she passed away recognizing me as her son."

The last memories of his mother was depressing. Elderly and sick with cancer, even with all the money Vlad began to throw at her once she reached out to him after nearly twenty years of refusing to speak to him. Whether his sister wore her down, or it was deathbed regrets. It was an emotional two years, being able to see his mom again.

"Mine's in better shape than me, and they're still calling me by my old name," Ed complained. "I don't think it'll ever change. I try to keep a relationship, cause of the kids, but I don't know if it's even worth it anymore."

Silence hung in the air as they separately mourned for what it all cost them. Of course, it was worth it. Absolutely worth it to be happy, to be comfortable and finally as they should be, but it didn't make the cost any less harsh of a price to pay.

"Their generation will be better," Vlad said firmly. Ed nodded in agreement. "Please let me know if any of them need binders or anything of the sorts."

"I will. I've been thinking about starting a clothing drive for them," Ed explained. "I can probably get the school on board with it if we market it as for the lower income students too. Dressing how you want makes a big difference."

"You get the details sorted out, and I will absolutely financially back you," Vlad promised. Ed smiled.

"Thank you. I may start working on that to propose for this school year," Ed mused.

For the bumbling oaf that Jack was, Vlad had to admit that he was a very loving and caring man. A bit too caring, honestly, it was a bit of a flaw. He had immediately accepted Vlad, and later on his own son. It always warmed him to remember that Daniel had two parents that had immediately gotten him everything a young trans man could ever need. No hesitation, no questioning.

Ed took a final bite of his breakfast before humming happily. He wiped his hands as he pushed to toss his empty containers into the trash can.

"Enough being sad, let's raid," he suggested. Vlad hurriedly took his last two bites before nodding in agreement.

123456789

The raid was broken up with greasy Chinese takeout for lunch, brought to them by a staff. Another guilty pleasure Vlad rarely indulged in. Then, of course, it was a return to games before they changed into their normal attire, sitting down to a home cooked dinner by staff. By the time they were finishing up, their other guests had begun to arrive for the evening plans.

Vlad always hosted the game. It just always made the most sense. He had the most room in his house, nor the distractions of family. Not that he disliked Lance nor Ed's children, they were great, but there was nothing that ruined the immersion of dragon slaying quite like teenage dramatics. And he thought that playing with toddlers in the house was frustrating.

The four sat in yet another room in Vlad's mansion that he had dedicated fully to the hobby. A large round table with Harriet Chin sitting furthest from them. A DM folder that separated her papers from there, just low enough that the halfa could see her smirking to herself as she reviewed her plans. Ed sat to her left, with an empty seat in between them. Another empty seat in between him and Vlad, and yet another separated Vlad from Lance Thunder.

Vlad honestly didn't really know the man that well yet. He was one of Harriet's coworkers that she had dragged into the summer game, as Vlad and Ed needed a third person in the party for this campaign. Their normal fourth and fifth friends, Joe and Frank, were spending the summer with their daughter and their newborn granddaughter. He already missed the pair terribly, especially Frank. Frank would often join in on their World of Warcraft adventures. But Lance was gay, and that made him okay enough for Vlad to accept him into their little queer circle with little complaint.

"I wouldn't get her a car unless she had good grades," Vlad gave his two cents into the conversation. Something about Lance's daughter wanting a car. Lance nodded.

"That's what I've been saying, but Alan keeps saying that if Star had her own car, she could begin driving herself to the library and to school to study, but I just don't buy that," Lance agreed. Vlad knew by now who those people were. Alan was Lance's husband, Star was Lance's daughter from his first marriage. Vlad had seen pictures of Star before. She was a spitting image of Lance. "She's more interested in being with her friends."

"And what does Rene think?" Ed questioned about the ex-wife's opinion. Lance shrugged.

"She doesn't think Star needs a car," Lance replied. "Public transportation isn't bad here, she can always borrow one of our cars, and lots of colleges won't let you have cars as a freshman anyway. So it'd be sitting in the driveway in a year or so for a year anyway."

"Star's going to be a junior, right?" Vlad questioned. Lance nodded. Vlad mentally went over his garage of cars. "When she's able to have a car on her college campus, I'll happily give her a good deal on one of my cars if she has good grades. I'll probably be retiring one of my cars by then. Of course, it's not going to be some beat up piece of junk." Lance's eyes widened.

"I'll definitely keep that in mind," Lance smiled warmly at him.

"Vlad sold my oldest, Ophelia, a car about five years ago. Car still runs like it's new," Ed spoke up.

"Ophelia just began graduate school, didn't she?" Harriet questioned, finally speaking up. She had been nose deep in her campaign notes. Ed nodded.

"She got in at the University of Chicago, full ride," Ed beamed with pride, and Vlad was very proud too. Ophelia, his precious goddaughter, was like a niece to him. Very smart, quick-witted and the only one who could match Ed's passion for literature. Of course, Vlad provided her with that full ride scholarship, as he did with her younger siblings, and eventually he would do the same for Ed's remaining two when they got to that point. No niece or nephew of his was going to college with student debts. "George is set to graduate soon too, this is his last year. Before med school anyway."

Ahh, little Georgie. Vlad got to spend a lot of time with him. He was one of Vlad's interns at Axion Labs. A strong willed boy, good head on his shoulders. Sometimes a little too honest, but the world needed more people like that. Whenever the billionaire stopped by Axion Labs, he always paid a visit to his favorite intern. It was always those times he spent with Ed's children that Vlad regretted not having his own.

"So how's the cat, Vlad?" Harriet asked, giving a small smirk. She could always seem to sniff out his emotions. Damn journalists. They were a bit too observant. Vlad rolled his eyes.

"How's yours?" he asked back. She chuckled.

"Bandit's the happiest boy alive, I just got him a nice new cat tower," she replied. Vlad nodded.

"I just had a new cat house for Maggie built," Vlad told her. Of course, he was never going to admit to his friends, most of them knowing the ghost huntress, that he named his cat after a long term crush. "It's going to be installed in the next week or so. You should bring Bandit over then. Maggie loves him."

"Oh I might," Harriet hummed happily. "It's been a while since Bandit got to hang out with Maggie."

"Does anybody want a drink before we begin?" Vlad questioned.

"Can I have a glass of rosé wine?" Harriet questioned. The billionaire smirked.

"Of course," he replied. He glanced to Ed and Lance.

"Uh, just gimme a beer, you know what I like," Ed shrugged. Lance thought for a moment.

"I may just have some wine too," Lance spoke.

Vlad nodded, and he stood to go to the intercom on the wall. All of the rooms in his house had it for his staff. He pushed it, and he requested the drinks, alongside what he knew to be choice snacks.

Almost as soon as Vlad had sat down, a male staff member came with a tray. It was full of cheese and crackers, popcorn, chips and fondue. Another staff member came with drinks and glasses.

Vlad picked up a beer like Ed, cracking it open and taking a long drink. Of course, in any other company, he'd indulge in wine. Beer was not something one could normally drink at a formal business function, and so he always took advantage of the times he could freely have some.

They began. A small discussion, and as the billionaire expected, the dragon went down easy. Suspiciously easy. Harriet gave the group before her a mischievous grin just over her DM folder. Vlad didn't like this, or that look in her eye.

"So you guys defeated the dragon," the reporter replied slyly. "But there's no loot to collect on him. The dragon dissolves and melts away. Everybody roll for perception and add your stuff. Then tell me what you got."

Oh, he definitely did not like this a single bit. Vlad eyed her coldly as he picked up his dice. Ed and Lance did the same.

"Visual or hearing, I'm missing an eye so I'd have to roll disadvantage otherwise," Ed reminded her.

"Hearing!" Harriet chirped. He nodded.

"Uh, sixteen then," he replied.

"Ten," Lance said.

"Twenty-two," Vlad spoke.

"You hear nothing," Harriet told Lance, pointing to him. She moved her finger to Ed. "You hear a small noise, two voices. But they're a bit muffle, you can't quite make out the entire conversation. But you do hear some words. The general jist of the conversation you can make out is that these individuals have realized you killed the dragon and are here." Harriet pointed to Vlad. "You! However, you can hear everything. It's a rough voice of a masculine figure telling somebody to prepare for battle, somebody has killed their precious dragon. They're going to detect your thoughts to determine your next movements before making their next move."

"I cast detect magic," Vlad replied. Harriet's eyes sparkled.

"It failed," she announced gleefully. Vlad internally groaned, and he could see Ed looking confused. "So what will you guys do."

Lance scratched his temple as he stared at his character sheet. He was not just new to the group, but to the game itself. The weather man studied his sheet for a moment as he tried to think. He took a long sip of his wine before speaking.

"Well uh, I think my guy is just gonna look for the treasure, cause I didn't hear anything," Lance said slowly. "And I'm still really interested in the promised gold."

"I tell him to not, because we should be careful," Ed spoke up quickly. "Because of what I heard."

"You tell your party what you heard?" Harriet questioned. She had leaned back in her seat, a leg over the arm of the chair as she held her beverage. The lesbian lightly swirled her wine in her glass before taking a long drink.

"Yeah, I tell my party what I heard," Ed clarified.

"And I'll tell them what I heard," Vlad agreed. "Because I need these people alive to keep me alive. They're my meat shields." Harriet snickered.

"So the prince never mentioned anything but a dragon being in here," Ed said slowly. "It must be another adventuring party trying to get the treasure. Prince Yamum said he did send several people to collect the family amulet."

"I say we kill them," Vlad suggested. Ed looked at him in disapproval, and Vlad shrugged. "My character's selfish. He doesn't want to share the loot with this party, and he doesn't want to share the rewards for returning the amulet."

"I agree," Lance said slowly. "My guy doesn't want the competition."

"No, no!" Ed said sternly. "We are NOT killing him, he may have useful information for us or be able to help."

"There's two voices, so that's a five way split between treasure," Lance pointed out. Vlad glanced to see Harriet's reaction. She was grinning like a fool, with that distinctive sparkle in her eye. She was absolutely up to something, and she looked like a true super villain. Evil plots forming her mind. Vlad trusted her with nothing, and yet he admired this chaotic evil lesbian. Harriet was his villain goals.

"Harriet, I swear on your grave," Vlad began his threat, only to stop with a frown at Harriet's devilish giggle.

"The individual detects your negative and violent thoughts," she announced cheerfully. She finished off her glass, shifting to have both legs over the armrest, her back against the opposite one. "And they have deduced that you're a threat that needs to be taken care of. Congratulations, boys. You're encountering the real boss." Vlad scowled.

"I knew you were going to do this, you always pull some weird bait and switch thing!" Vlad complained. Harriet smirked. "Lemme guess. It's a, it's a, god what would be the worst thing to fight right now." Vlad racked his mind for a possible enemy. "A rakshasa? Probably with a shield guardian too."

Harriet's smirk only widened. And Vlad knew he was correct.

"Roll for initiative, bitch."

[toomanytuesdays]

haters. destiel.

So I wrote this a while back with the intention of it being a fanfic but I couldn’t write anymore. So I decided it was a nice one-shot and here it is. Enjoy!

Word count: 770

__________________________________________

~ four years ~

     

I knew he'd be my sworn enemy from the second I'd heard about him.

The new kid.

He started kindergarten after all of us and no one really wanted to be his friend for the first few weeks.

That was until he came up to me in the sandpit and kicked over my sand castle. He gained a few friends after that.

I, however, was livid. Who did he think he was? Hadn't said one word to any other child and then comes over an destroys my castle. And it was my best castle to date.

My revenge was destroying his block tower.

His revenge was ruining my painting of my family. It was my favourite one.

My revenge was spilling juice on his pants at lunch time and making him look like he'd peed himself.

And so it continued back and forth between us until the end of the year, and we both had gone off to different primary schools.

~ fourteen years ~

I was a bit skeptical when my form teacher announced that we had a new student joining us the next morning. Last time I had a new student in my class we didn't get along at all.

When the following morning came and it was time for the new student to arrive, my stomach was in knots. I knew who it was going to be. Yet I didn't hope it would be him either.

When a full head of black hair bobbed into the room, a small bit of relief and a large portion of hatred flowed through me. I was right. Of course he looked different; I probably did too, but I knew it was him.

I saw him scan the room silently and when our eyes locked I knew he recognised me. His eyes darkened and narrowed. Shit.

Luckily for me, the cliché moment didn't happen and the only desk that was free was on the opposite side of the room. He sat down and the usual formalities commenced.

For the first half of the day, I didn't have class with him, which I was pleased about. I didn't have to see him. No opportunity for pranks from him, so I was in the clear. I knew he still hated me with a passion.

At lunch I saw him sitting by himself and I almost felt sorry for him, but remembered that I hated him and the feeling was gone.

I didn't see him for the rest of the day.

For weeks I was on edge; when was he going to attack? Every corner I turned I was on high alert for his wrath. I didn't know why I was so scared when I could easily make the first move. I didn't want to.

After months of nothing happening, I started to relax, ignorning him and feeling like things were the same as before.

That was until one Tuesday afternoon.

We were in P.E., my favourite and bestest class, and the teacher was reading out our results from the last fitness test we'd taken. I knew I'd be the top student because I always was in P.E. so I had zoned out a little as she read out the scores.

I tuned in again when I heard my name and the sound of clapping. I grinned modestly and blushed slightly, despite already knowing I was first.

"And the top student of the class is . . ."

My mouth dropped open. Um, what did she say? I wasn't first?

"Castiel!"

I stared at her in shock for a second, teeth clenching, eye twitching. Not only was I second, I also lost to him?!

The anger bubbled and brothed up inside of me and I had to dig my nails into my palm to calm myself down. This can not be happening.

I glared as the class surrounded him, congratulating him with slaps on the back and handshakes. Everyone was in awe that this not-so-new kid had beaten me, Dean Winchester, at my best subject.

No one beats Dean Winchester.

Not on my watch.

~*~

   

It took me another few weeks to think and conduct my plan for revenge. I think he thought I had given up. But nooo, what was coming for him was the worst thing he could ever imagine.

Everyone's weakness is public humiliation and what's better than reputation humiliation at school, but city-wide humiliation.

I don't want to spill the gory details but basically, the found out a secret of his that was enough to drive him and his family out of town for good.

I haven't seen Cas ever since.

[saintmachina]

What were some parts of seminary that you liked, versus ones you didn’t? I’m thinking about my future (read: freaking tf out) and I know I want to study theology in some way, I’m just not sure how exactly, ya feel?

Thanks for the question! Your mileage may vary: I went to a Princeton Seminary, which I would categorize as a theologically/politically moderate, academic, traditional Western-style seminary. Seminary culture varies WIDELY from school to school, so keep that in mind when choosing between, say, a Princeton, which may be a more insular academic community focused on research and internships, and a Fuller, which may be a larger community more integrated with the surrounding city concerned with practical training for missionaries, worship leaders, and Christian artists. This is NOT to say that you can’t learn to be an awesome worship leader at PTS (I know them) or an awesome theology professor at Fuller, but make sure you shop around for your particular cultural, career, and academic needs. 

Things I Loved

The residential experience. Nearly all students at PTS live in beautiful on-campus housing or in apartments specialized for families with children just a few miles away. Living a few minutes walk from the library, my professors’ offices, and the chapel was amazing, especially since students at PTS tend to be sociable with the others who live on their hall. I would often spend my evenings studying with friends in their dorm rooms, and since everyone on campus at any given time tends to eat their meals in the cafeteria together, I formed a strong clique of ten or so people who unpacked my readings + spiritual crises with me at the lunch table. 

Spiritual friendships. I was able to make deeper friends than ever before in my life from a variety of denominational and theological backgrounds. We saw each other through vocational shifts, prayed with each other, administered the Eucharist to each other, celebrated birthdays and ordinations together, and stayed up late into the night when anyone needed us. I would literally drive across the country to bail any of them out of jail at a moment’s notice.  

The emotional crucible. Seminary is bootcamp for the soul. You get exposed to so many new ideas and theologies, learn how to preach, sit at people’s bedside while they’re sick, pull together responses for every new act of violence in the news, and most of the time, are thrust into a leadership role at a church that is either going under and begging you to save them or so large and thriving that it nearly swallows you whole. Nothing will grow you up like that. I have an insane amount of poise now dealing with other people’s crises, rage, or grief, and that wasn’t the case when I matriculated. Pastors are all making it up as we go along, but seminary gives at least the appearance of sage wisdom under pressure. 

Academic engagement with theology. This one seems obvious, but after spending four years in a secular liberal arts university that was tolerant of my enduring interest in religion but didn’t offer me an outlet for it, seminary was balm in Gilead. I loved being able to dig into what I really cared about directly, be that metaphysics, church history, or the Bible as literature, and I thrived being surrounded by other people who cared about it and did the reading and wanted to explore together. 

Freedom to research what I wanted. There are plenty of demanding intro-level courses that throw you to the ground and kick you while you cry into your notecards (New Testament, what’s good) but it was fun being on that ride with the rest of your small cohort, and upper-level classes offered chances to research what you cared about. I got to present research on astrology in the book of Daniel, queer American Muslim communities, IVF treatments and theology in Ghana, overlap in myths about Odin and Jesus, and I did an independent research study linking the emergent church to the spike in Millennials re-discovering the Episcopal and Catholic churches.The library was stuffed to the brim with books I would kill for. What a treat.

The melting pot. PTS DEFINITELY has its ideological and admissions biases but they do work hard to create a diverse student body, and I was close with students from so many different counties, denominations, ethnicities, and political leanings, which was enriching beyond belief. It was one of the big reasons I chose a seminary degree. That said, not all schools skew diverse, and I was very specific about choosing a seminary that was explicitly affirming of women in ministry and the goodness and wholeness of LGBTQ+ folks, so I knew that I would be supported by general school policies. Getting that information up front is important. 

Access to university resources. This one is PTS specific, but I went to a independent seminary closely linked to and basically on the same campus as Princeton University (they were the same school back in the 1800s until an amicable split, but we’re still cozy). This meant that I had access to Princeton U libraries, free events, lectures, and religious life, and I was a member of the Episcopal Church at Princeton U for most of my time at seminary. People bribe admissions officials or work themselves to nervous breakdown to get access to the resources I had at my fingertips, and I don’t take that for granted. 

The aesthetic. If I’m gong to take tens of thousands dollars of loans out for graduate school you bet you’re ass I’m going to be sitting in American Hogwarts while I do it. 

Things I Did Not

The cliquishness. This one is a double-edged sword, because I thrived on having a clique of high-functioning. highly-educated pastors who ate at the same lunch table and gossiped about the same people and showed up to campus parties in a gang, but that’s not always healthy. People tended to fragment off by denomination or where they fall on the liberal-conservative scale, and differences can fester that way. Students of color were often implicitly excluded from certain spaces through this behavior. Humans skew towards tribalism to begin with, but when you put super socially-oriented people with strong beliefs in one space where they have to live on top of each other and are looking for low-effort socializing after a long day in the trauma ward, confessional, or picket line, it gets worse. 

Imposter syndrome. Maybe it’s grad school in general that does this, but I spent most of my degree fighting off the feeling that I was dumb, lazy, not serious enough about my “calling” or my research, and probably a heretic. Part of my character growth came from learning not to give a fuck about what people who didn’t share my passions thought of them, and from realizing that I wasn’t on the ordination or PhD track like most of my peers, and that was okay. So I grew from this, but it stung like hell. I cried a lot.

No handholding. The professors at PTS were, by and large, old school, and they were busy as hell. While there was opportunities for office hours, most engagement with professors came in the performative form of “a question, well, more of a comment really” during lectures. Students, (mostly men, I’m not going to lie to you) scrambling for a good letter of rec for a PhD tended to monopolize whatever time professors had. I can think of exceptions (Ellen Charry was exceptional and made time for me in her home when I was struggling to unpack antisemitic theology) but it was a far cry from the literature department in my undergrad, where professors were accessible and knew me personally as mentors and friends. 

Caregiver burnout. This is my big one, and is the reason I’m still in recoup mode doing the office job thing instead of working in formal ministry. Everyone at my school was a pastor, hospital chaplain, activist, or social worker. We are the people who care so much, and who are constantly doing emotional labor for those around us with no time off and usually, poor personal boundaries. Working in a field where it is your job to hold everyone’s hurt and be the face of God to them while their life falls apart is….hard. It was not unusual for me to work ten hours at Penn on my feet in campus ministry, helping people sort through whether or not they wanted to report their sexual assault, holding mini-interventions about excessive drinking, and scrambling to re-schedule worship night after my volunteer went to the hospital after a suicide attempt, and then ride the train home while my phone blew up with news of a new mass shooting that I would have to help host a candlelight vigil for. You hold your parishioner’s hand while they die in hospice. You watch social services take your client’s children away. You stand still while someone screams at you for being too political in your sermon, or not political enough. You sit down to do the budget only to realize the beloved pastor who just retired had been embezzling. Typical Tuesday. 

A lot of the items on these lists are specific to my temperament and the culture at PTS, but by and large I would say it was an amazing experience well worth my time, effort, and money. I pushed myself academically beyond what I believed I was capable of, made the deepest friends of my life, found a home denomination, learned how to effectively care for others and myself, and was met by God in transformative ways again and again. Someday I may get that ordination or work for a ministry nonprofit again, but I have skills now that no one can take away from me, skills I use every day in some capacity. 

Good luck in your discernment process, and I pray you find yourself in exactly the place you need to be!

[eleanor-writes-stuff]

a language that i never knew existed before - Day 21

For @senauma, who requested a modern AU where Rey and Ben meet at work, with love at first sight and mutual pining because that’s the good stuff, y’all.

Thanks for this super fun prompt, and I hope you like it!

Last call for prompts, Reylo fam! Don’t forget to drop by and leave a request!

25 Days of Reylo Also available on AO3

[11/22/18, 09:18 AM] To: rey_niima@skywalker.com From: ben_solo@cloudcity.com Subject: Re: Finalizing

Yeah, I can’t believe we’re actually done.

Flying in next Tuesday for the final meeting. Looks like we might finally get to meet in person after all. Can’t wait to see you, Rey.

- Ben

The thing is, Tuesday at the final pre-merger meeting won’t be the first time they meet in person.

Not for Rey, anyway.

The first time she ever met Ben Solo was at the press conference announcing the merger six months ago, a whole month before they were both designated their companies’ respective merger liaisons and assigned to work with each other. He was up in the front, at the long table along with Luke and Lando and all the other stakeholders, while she and Finn had their backs plastered to the wall at the very end of the packed room, a whole ocean of press and cameras between them.

Even still, Ben Solo had been impossible to miss. Taller than anyone else in the room, he’d drawn her eye the second he emerged from the side entrance and took his seat next to Lando. The way his eyes scanned his surroundings while everyone else spoke, the way his quiet yet sure voice filled the room whenever he was called upon, the little smile he’d flashed the cameras when Poe cracked a joke during the group photo… every single detail about Ben Solo from that day has stuck with Rey ever since, made all the more vivid by the fact that she’s gotten well acquainted with those eyes and that voice and even occasionally that smile thanks to the last few months of video conferences and late-night calls.

And now…. now she gets to experience all of it in person again. Of course some part of her had known that Ben and the rest of the Cloud City team would eventually relocate, that in the near future he might very well be a part of her everyday life. But knowing that two companies are about to merge and processing the fact that the man you’re half in love with will soon be just five minutes away are two very, very different things, and Rey is only now figuring that out.

[11/26/18, 07:32 PM] To: ben_solo@cloudcity.com From: rey_niima@skywalker.com Subject: Re: Finalizing

Just leaving the office. Everything’s ready for tomorrow morning! It’s been fun working with you on this, but I honestly can’t wait for this merger to be over and done with so that we can all go back to normal. Whatever normal ends up looking like once the country’s two biggest tech companies become one, that is.

Have a safe flight. I’ll see you soon, Ben.

- Rey

Soon can’t come quickly enough. If it were up to Ben, he would’ve flown out Monday afternoon and arrived just in time to ask Rey to dinner after work. Thanks to Lando, though, they don’t end up leaving for the airport until five, and when they do get there it’s only to be told that there’s a two-hour delay.

By the time they arrive in Yavin, it’s nearly midnight. He debates writing to Rey throughout the ride to the hotel, but if the past few months have taught him anything about her, it’s that she’s as much of a night owl as he is. Not to mention breathtakingly radiant and smart and funny and–

Is it possible to be in love with someone you’ve never met? Rey, at least, has the advantage of having seen him in person way back in May, albeit from across a crowded room. But Ben has never seen her outside of a screen, and for the umpteenth time he curses himself for leaving in a rush that day rather than sticking around for the post-conference mixer where he would have been introduced to her.

Instead, the very first time he laid eyes on her was during a video conference, when she was just one of the dozen people whose names and positions his uncle had spouted off before calling the meeting to order. Even then, though, squished between Luke and Poe and dressed in a non-descript black shift dress, Rey had been the most interesting person in the room, and he’d found his eyes drawn to her again and again. Sometimes Ben wonders if maybe his meddling uncles had noticed that, if that’s why Luke and Lando had partnered them up shortly after.

Even if that’s the case, Ben can’t bring himself to be mad at them. Hell, he’ll let them gloat about it as much as they want if it actually leads to anything.

If Rey actually lets him into her life.

Ben (00:12): Just landed. Heading to hotel now. I’ll see you in the morning. Sleep well, Rey.

She doesn’t see his message until the next morning, when she wakes up at six in order to get to the office extra early and make sure everything’s ready for the meeting. It’s really more of a formality at this point, just some signatures on a dotted line to cap off months and months of negotiations, but Rey still feels the need to check that everything’s perfect. Even now, four years since she first started working for Skywalker Tech, there’s a constant need to prove herself, to keep earning her place. Maybe, she’d mused to Ben once, when their late-night call about merging HR protocols turned personal, deep down I still can’t believe that I finally belong somewhere and I keep thinking that I’m going to fuck it all up and then it’ll be gone, just like that. A pause, and then– Wow, I should really go to sleep.

Ben had laughed then, a rich, raspy sound that made her toes curl. A little bit of psychoanalysis never hurt anyone, he’d said, and in her mind Rey pictured him smiling at her, shrugging those broad shoulders of his, maybe even leaning in to brush messy strands of hair away from her face.

And out of nowhere, a wave of homesickness unlike any she’d ever known before had hit her right in the gut, a particular brand of longing that would take her months to recognize as pining.

So now here she sits, the first to arrive at a meeting where she’ll be seated next to the man she’s been pining after for the past six months. It’s eighty-thirty, half an hour before the meeting is scheduled to start, and Rey has gone through the contract in front of her at least four times this morning alone. She’s about to pick it up for a fifth time when the door opens, and–

“Ben.”

Rey (06:04): Sorry, just saw this Had an early night to get ready for this ridiculously early morning Anyway, off to the office now Would you maybe wanna get lunch after the meeting?

He’s supposed to leave with the rest of the team at eight-thirty, but the second Ben wakes up to find Rey’s text, he knows there’s no way he’s going to be able to concentrate on the meeting unless he talks to her first.

He skips the gym, showers and gets dressed in thirty minutes, and orders an Uber a little after eight. It’s a twenty-minute ride, thirty with light traffic, and Ben spends all twenty-three minutes scrolling up and down his chat with Rey to figure out whether she’s asking him to lunch as colleagues or friends or…

By the time they pull up to his uncle’s company, Ben still hasn’t figured it out – par for the course when it comes to his relationship with Rey, really. She’s been a mystery since day one, this stranger who sets him at ease with just one smile, this voice coming from tinny speakers that somehow soothes him more than anything else in the world. Ben has gone all his life looking for a place where he can finally find peace, spent years exploring countryside mansions and remote mountains and exotic islands, but of course he would find home in a pair of hazel eyes and a lilting accent and a soul that feels like the missing part of his.

If his uncles could hear him now, would they regret unleashing someone like him on poor, unsuspecting Rey who probably just thinks of him as a work friend? Or would they just fist-bump each other and ask to give a toast at the wedding?

Ben grimaces at the thought, makes a conscious effort to rein himself in as he steps onto the elevator. Lunch first – whether or not it’s a date – and then he’ll maybe consider everything else. The elevator ride is quicker than expected, and within minutes he’s standing outside the conference room, watching Rey through the glass walls.

She has her back to him, but he can see that she has her hair down in waves and she’s wearing a cream-colored dress and he can just picture the look of concentration on her face as she goes through the contract, the familiar sight of a slight furrow between her brows and her lower lip trapped between her teeth emblazoned in his mind after months of working together.

Precious minutes tick by while Ben tries to compose himself and gather his nerve to walk in. When Rey reaches for the discarded contract yet again, he knows it’s time.

“Ben,” she breathes before the door has even closed behind him, before he’s even had a chance to meet her eye, and then she’s throwing the contract aside, pushing her chair back and standing up and–

“Rey,” he murmurs, crosses the room and falters with only inches between them. Rey hesitantly raises her arms and he haltingly stumbles closer and then suddenly they’re hugging and somehow, impossibly, it’s not awkward at all.

His arms wrap around her waist and hers circle his neck and when she laughs, a puff of warm air dances across the exposed skin of his neck. “Hi,” Rey breathes with a slight giggle, dazed and in disbelief. Her lips barely move against his skin but he shudders anyway, pulls her closer and squeezes her hips.

“Hi,” Ben echoes, lips brushing against her temple. She sighs and rests her head on his shoulder, and if it weren’t for the meeting he’d be happy to stay like this forever but–

“I got your text,” he tells Rey, still holding her tight. She doesn’t say anything, just tenses the slightest bit in his arms.

Ben pulls back, and she reluctantly loosens her hold on him so that they’re looking at each other now, and he shouldn’t feel this comfortable around someone he’s only just met, shouldn’t feel at home with a stranger, but he does and so the words escape him without thought.

“Rey… did you ask me out?”

She stares at him for the longest time, and with each second that passes by without a denial comes the ever-increasing urge to smile until he’s grinning at her like a fool and she’s beaming at him like the sun and–

“I suppose I did,” Rey laughs, her hands still twined behind his neck and his arms still slung around her middle, and Ben’s pretty sure he had a dream like this once, a dream where they were holding each other and dancing and smiling while all their loved ones watched. “Is that… is that okay?” she asks, her smile dimming.

“It’s more than okay,” Ben hurries to assure her, to put that smile back on her face. “It’s perfect. You’re perfect. God, I can’t believe–”

“That you’re finally here?” she interrupts, slides her fingers into the curls at the base of his neck. “Yeah, me neither.”

That you feel the same way, he’d meant to say. That I could be so lucky. That home is you in my arms.

But they’ve got time for all that and more, now. They’ve got time for lunch dates and long walks and all the things he could never tell her over the phone back when he still didn’t know how right she would feel in his arms.

So instead, Ben pulls her back in and rests his cheek on her head. “I’m here now, sweetheart. I’m here to stay.”

“Good,” Rey murmurs, lips grazing the side of his neck. “Because now that I’ve finally found you...”

She doesn’t say it yet, just as he doesn’t. But they both trade an unspoken promise they’ll give voice to soon enough.

Now that I’ve finally found you…

… I’m never letting go.

The constant switch in POVs kinda bugs me, but other than that I’m... actually okay with this, even though it didn’t turn out anything like the fic I set out to write and it somehow ended up being more than two thousand words. I hope you enjoyed it as well, and thanks for reading!

As always, please don’t hesitate to like/reblog/comment.

[wolf-in-a-suit]

Employee of the month

Movie:Star Wars

Summary: Somehow you had found your way, however unwillingly, on Starkiller base. Barely recovered from this unforgivable disruption of your life General Hux starts taking notice of your defiant actions against fellow colleagues and a certain black clad Sith: That’s gonna be fun!

Starkiller base, the pride of the whole first order. Here you only found the best, of the best in their respected fields. Technicians who fixed any arising problem as soon as they laid hands on their ‘most holy tools’. Stormtroopers decorated for their services, and in peak physical condition. What you usually didn't expect to find was:

Boredom. Utter, crippling boredom. You were transferred here against your will to your utmost horror -your former superior, bearer of the bad news, probably still hadn’t regained all of his hearing. Though, it wasn’t the boredom in your job as a radar technician that was the cause of your anxiety - you were used to your job not posing a challenge: but the people. Three thousand four-hundred six to be exact. Just thinking about the astronomic number caused your stomach to plunge way down onto the perfectly cleaned floor, the maintenance team was the best of the galaxy as well. At your old station you had to fight awkward conversations and sleepless nights just dealing with one hundred colleagues. This, was the stuff of nightmares.

The weeks passed with moderate embarrassment and you soon found the merits of inhabiting such a big chunk of metal, floating in the vacuum of space. No one cared about you just stealing away from conversations and never leaving your station, except for an absolute necessary repair job. Until of course, someone noticed and your perfect constructed monotony was violently interrupted.

The humming of the instruments in the dimmed lights, the sole indication that it was nightshift, soothed your usually racked nerves. Nightshift was great because it only required one technician on duty, you were only too eager to take the shift from your complaining coworkers. All was as it was supposed to be: You, your instruments, and a hot cup of coffee in your hands. Paradise - however short lived. The marching of boots echoed down the hall outside your cozy station. Nothing unusual, yet like always your gut clenched and your head seemed to have a hitch in your record collection: 'Not here, not here. Not here!' The urgent footsteps passed and dropped in volume, you released your breath.

Suddenly, the echo came to a violent halt and after a second the the marching was back and gained in volume. You groaned inwardly while trying to set your face into ‘human interaction mode’, which consisted of a somewhat I'm-not-quite-sure-if-a-smile-is-appropriate expression. If you ever managed to force a facsimile of a smile on your face, it was certainly gone when General Hux entered the room. Clad all in black, from feet to collar, his red hair posed a stark contrast to his white face: Dressed for business. Though, not very tall he always radiated and inspired a fear in his subordinates.

Gathering your, rather small composure to begin with, you tried to stand at attention. The hand was supposed to go to the side, no that wasn’t right... like this, still not right... how did the Troopers make this seem so natural?

Hux witnessing your pathetic struggle didn't need to comment, his face first annoyed morphed into wonder at the complete lack of any form for elegance.

Finally you settled into an awkward position between a formal greeting and a child trying to copy a soldier, he took a deep breath stifling his annoyance: "You are hereby required to participate in the COFO program."

Silence. Both of you mustering the other. Oh, this is where you were supposed to acknowledge the demand, right? Unsettled by your silent stare, the General began to speak: "Did you-", right when you blurted out: "COFO program?" Once again there was a stalemate, Hux mustering you, trying to decide if you were making fun of him. 'Not good!' Just one way to turn this ship around, however, daring it may be! "Sir." you added lamely. At this the General seemed to set your tribunal on hold, no person would degrade themselves like this, in order to joke around.

"Cooperation of fellow officers, while your outstanding work has been noted-" here he looked very doubtful, certainly due to the great first impression you just made "your superiors have informed me that you tend to seclude yourself. This is unacceptable! In order to function on full capacity, interaction is required." At the word interaction you gulped audibly. "The program was created to foster this type of skill. Tuesday, 0800 room 394, do not be late!"

He turned, his coat giving an elegant furnish, and left you in the crumbling remains of your former little world.

If General Hux had been aware of what he just set in motion, he would gladly offered you a post on starbase 42, the most secluded base of the whole quadrant.

The first impression you formed about the COFO wasn't necessary a good one. At 0800 sharp, all the social delinquents had gathered in a too white room - the First Order’s understanding of a welcoming and warm color. Then the pairing began and your sweat glands took this as an invitation to go into overdrive. Finally, you stood face to face with your interaction partner: Gary a bored looking Stormtrooper, sporting slightly red eyes. "N...nice to ...meet you?" But the grimace, stretching uncontrollably on your face, spoke clearer words: 'Having an intestinal parasite would be better than this!'

Gary, just shrugged his shoulders. "Guess we're stuck with each other."

The days passed, and somehow you made it through a whole week of the program, with minimal awkwardness. Quite a feat! By now, you were sure, that if someone was to search for the definition of 'laidback' in the dictionary a picture of Gary, slouching somewhere, was included. Strengthened by not being swallowed by the earth yet, you felt brave enough to face the cafeteria at gamma shift tonight. Standing in line, musing what you should take: The gray puddle with pieces in it, or the brownish-reddish meat, at least you hoped that’s what it was supposed to be? Apparently the ‘best of the best’ motto didn’t include the kitchen personnel. The chain of your thoughts was broken by men’s laughter. "Come on Gary, what’s your hippy ass saying over the next mission?" Craning your neck, Gary and his tormentors fell into your line of vision. Never had you seen the man this uncomfortable, but the other Stormtroopers just grinned even wider enjoying this immensely.

"Come on guys, knock it off." Gary berated himself for choosing exactly this time to grab a late dinner. In the corner of his eye he saw movement, the flash of a data pad and... darkness engulfed the whole cantina. The few tired persons present started murmuring and shouting. Gary almost cried out when in the pitch black, a hand found his and started to drag him off, to an unknown destination, but something about the clunky ungraceful movements put him at ease. 'Just roll with it.'

When he and his mysterious savior- or possible serial killer- burst into the light of the corridor he finally saw the woman from the program. After a few more turns they came to a stop and she slowly turned around. She dropped his hand shocked, as if an evil spirit just had just been exorcised from her body and she just became aware of her actions. With her change in demeanor the old awkwardness bleed back into her moves and once again, each shift of arms made them look too long for her frame.

Her head turned down, eyes squinting over every perfectly boned floor tile, she mumbled: "S...sorry?"

"Dude!" She flinched at the too loud and enthusiastic voice. "What you're sayin' sorry for? That was awesome!" He never knew that eyes could get that big, but here they were: Looking at him in a wonder that somehow made his insides turn, too fragile. Add a bulky Stormtrooper with a loose mouth like him and it simply spelled disaster. He shrugged 'Since when did I ever give a shit about something like that?'

In that very moment, in a somewhat dimly lit corner of Starkiller base a Stormtrooper and Radar technician formed an unholy bond that would let chaos and mayhem rain down upon their enemies.

"And then Ren just started screaming at us and trashing the whole room! Guess who the lucky fella on cleaning duty is." Gary's arms, still in uniform, surged through the air. He was an exotic bird visiting the mundane planes of existence: Namely the gray walled radar technicians work station- much to the annoyance of Matt, your coworker. He currently was shooting glares like laser beams at the interruption of his most holy and cherished routine. When the object of his continued affectionate thoughts didn't melt into a puddle under his scrutiny, he huffed and stalked out of the room. Leaving Gary and you alone, not even taking notice of his departure. Ideas shifted in your head, turning, grinding against each other and finally: Clack, something stuck!

When you looked at your friend a new gleam ignited in your eyes, pregnant with the promise of danger, but also excitement. "So let's pay him back." Your voice was bar any stutter or insecurity. Gary felt a cold shiver running down his spine, he wasn't quite sure if he liked the change.

General Hux strode through the polished corridors, personnel squirting around him and parting to let him pass. A sharp turn right and he reached the cantina, bend on getting his exact one o'clock lunch. When his eyes caught sight of dark billowing robes, it took all his discipline not to groan in a- very much warranted- but undignified manner. Kylo Ren! Twenty-four hours in a day, and the insufferable man just had to pick this exact time to get his coffee.

Gracing the Sith with an aggressive ruck of his head, just barley balancing the rope of civility, the General strode to the counter. He stopped and turned however, when a storm of cursing accompanied by the sound of liquid spraying out onto the floor reached his ears. The powerful Kylo Ren, Sith, leader of the knights of Ren, and protégé of Snoke himself was helplessly trying shield himself against the dark spray of coffee erupting from the machine. When he finally managed to vacate the area of danger, slipping more than walking on the steaming liquid on the floor. Hux was sure the sight before him was a gift delivered by whatever force resided in the universe. The dark knight was seething, black hair plastered to his red face and robes dripping.

The cantina was very still, no one dared to ridicule the man any further for fear of being cut down. Hux however had no qualms of walking up to his 'partner', mustering his drenched form slowly. His face perfectly straight, only the rising eyebrow indication of his thoughts. "Do try to keep the floor clean, Ren." Then he turned and exited, the loss of lunch not bugging him in the least.

For the rest of the day General Hux's staff was constantly on edge- Hux in a good mood? It had to be a trick, or drill! At first the General had simply thought himself lucky, in having witnessed the total mortification on Kylo Ren that afternoon, but when reports of a group of Stormtroopers running around in their underwear, due to a malfunctioning capacitor in the locker system his suspicion started to rise.

The monitor before him spluttered out all data of the last month, and his sharp eyes narrowed. That's what he thought! This particular band of Troopers had been victim to quite a few of these irregularities occurring on base. First, their entrance codes stopped working, leaving them to spend half of the night in front of the barracks, then their new arriving uniforms were several sizes too small, followed now by this ridiculous display of running around almost naked. A disgrace! He wouldn't stand for the First Order being the point of jokes due to these misfits! 'Time to visit the troops.' With that last thought the ginger wrath of the Order descended on the unfortunate souls.

Just a few more steps! You sat by the ledge of the upper section of the training room, hidden by a crate and fixing your next victims with a killer stare. Captain Phasma and Kylo Ren strode down the aisle, with the constant air of an imposing couple of regents. However, they were unaware that they were just three steps between them and their new makeover. “Get down on the floor and show me some real pushups!” Phasma raged, her silver armor making her easy spotable against the backdrop of oppressive black walls. Ren followed suite: “What is this embarrassing display of drills supposed to be!? The rebels won’t be impressed by this!” His mask while obscuring a most certainly murderous expression did little to ease the sting, so the two Troopers in question hastily altered their movements.

The prepared maintenance droid - ‘of doom’ as Gary helpfully added, each time the two of you spoke about the mission in hushed whispers – slowly rolled down the room toward the, self-proclaimed, pair of drill sergeants. “That has to be much faster, if-” Kylo stopped mid yell, when he felt a sudden nudge on his leg. Starring down he was greeted by a small maintenance droid rolling again, and again against his leg, the big lense occupying the front, making it look almost like a loyal, innocent - but somewhat retarded puppy.

“Shush!” Captain Phasma turned around and was astonished by the scene unfolding before her: Kylo Ren, was trying to get the the small machine away from himself, but somehow the little guy managed to evade all of his kicks. Sighing she strode over, bend on grabbing the thing and chucking it down the trash compactor. This certainly wasn’t very beneficial for their image. A strong hierarchy was founded on discipline, and discipline was only gained by respecting as well as fearing your superiors. Which was arguably hard at the moment, Phasma had to admit, when Ren grabbed his lightsaber and ignited it, the angry hiss of plasma filling the room.

General Hux choose this exact moment to stride into the room. The scene before him couldn’t have been a more unfitting display for commanding officers: His Capitan crouched down, in order to make a grab for a small droid at the feet of Kylo Ren. Meanwhile, the Sith was raising his red lightsaber threatening over his head, ready to strike down the malfunctioning disturbance. Hux lips thinned to a small line, annoyance along with a headache rising in him. Just when he was about to gift his ‘colleagues’ with scathing remarks:

Boom! The middle of the room erupted in a cloud of pink dust and glitter. The remains of the machine squirting to a halt directly before the General’s feet. The following silence was far too loud. The last part of golden glitter glided to the ground, giving a free view on a, now, very pink robed and armored Captain and Sith. “Who was THIS!?” The golden pieces of paper floating down Ren’s shoulders did little to accent his intimidating roar. He turned, robes billowing and emitting a new pink gust, the hand gripping his lightsaber with even more force now. Hux had to commend the Troops for their stoic expressions, stifling every snicker, for it would most certainly be their last.

In the corner of his vision the General caught sight of a face on the landing above, quickly vanishing behind a stack of crates. ‘Found you!’

Clack, clack. Your hurried footsteps leading you to the security of your station resonated in a scarry manner from the halls. This was bad! You were so screwed! But once the initial burst of panic had passed, you realized something: ‘Why do I even care? From the very start I wanted to find a way out of this garbage station?’ This was your ticket to freedom! A sweet way into the secluded confines of Station 42. Granted, you had to avoid being disciplined by Phasma - and being killed by Ren, but once Hux found you, you were certain, the only thing to expect was a degradation and being thrown off the base. Your goal from the moment you said foot on this godforsaken piece of space litter.

Still you couldn’t fight the flinch when the General sporting his most terrifying expression, reserved only for the most serious of transgression, strode into the radar technician’s office. He didn’t stop at an arm’s length though, and kept invading your privet space, coming to a standstill just directly before your face. In this moment you could have sworn, that he could melt steel with the intensity of that glare. His voice however was even and quiet, which made it all the more terrifying: “So, we have a joker amongst our crew, have we?” You choose the only reasonable position someone was allowed to take if they weren’t sorry at all: Eyes cast down, regarding your feet and mumbling a not so heartfelt “I am very sorry, sir.”

Couldn’t he back off a little? You felt the heat radiating from him, but did not dare to move even an inch. “Sorry, doesn’t cut it for humiliating your superiors! In one case more than once!” You flinched again. “So the appropiate punishment is…” At this you looked up a hopeful gleam in your eyes, which was however, short lived once you caught sight of his cold, blue stare and the knowing smile creeping on his face. “… a transfer to…” ‘Yes, say it! Station 42!’ “… my personal staff!”

‘Wait… what?!” There was no need to pose a question, your flaggerbasted expression, complete with a slack jaw did the job for you. The grin on the ginger man’s face had an almost feral quality to it. “You don’t think I am going to accommodate your wish to get transferred from this base, now, do you?! Also, there is no way I am going to leave…” here he leaned in even further, your noses almost touching and whispered: “… such talent go to waste!” As fast as he had entered he turned on his heels and strode out. His farewell tinted with a somewhat dark humorous manner, made your skin crawl: “Monday, 0800, my office. You should start to make yourself comfortable… in your new home.”

[memorylang]

An Autumn Week in My Teaching Life | #15 | December 2019

From visiting universities to the Buddhist temple and churches, I’ve had plenty adventures. Exploring in my downtime makes me happy. But these places are all way smaller than they would be in the States. Except the Buddhist temple. It’s larger than the States’.

Coming to the end of my first semester teaching, I write to you the typical weeks of my autumn life. Granted, no weeks perfectly matched those preceding them. You can compare this to my story #4 (August 2019), describing a summer day in my training life.

My Day-to-Day

Mornings usually began up by 6 or 7 a.m., with silence, a morning reflection and prayer, some exercises for my posture, then a chapter of The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoevsky (Достоевский), before journaling, fixing breakfast and maybe seeing a TV episode like “Adventure Time,” “Ben 10: Omniverse,” or “Pokémon the Series.” I love positive quests. 

This paragraph is your schedule key. Classes at my university last 90 minutes. Classes run 8:30 a.m. (first period) then 10:10 a.m. (second period), with a 20-minute lunch break, followed by noon (third period), 1:40 p.m. (fourth period) and 3:20 p.m. (fifth period). Each period counts for two credit hours. Usually after work, I take a few hours’ break at my apartment to nap or fix dinner before walking or busing downtown for the night’s English community clubs. 

By Peace Corps’ standard, I serve at least 30 credit hours a week at my university, co-teaching, helping with clubs, lesson planning and helping colleagues with translations. I condensed these duties to Mondays through Thursdays. The other 10 hours (usually 15) go into community activities I do throughout the week, but especially on Fridays through Sundays.

The main students I teach are the sophomores and seniors majoring to be English teachers, whose groups the university abbreviates as АХБ-2 (Англи хэлний багш) and АХБ-4. 

This fall, I co-taught English with four main colleagues and Chinese with two. The first English colleague specializes in grammar. She was my first supervisor. The next colleague, tied for youngest, specializes in speaking and listening, or conversation. The third specializes in phonetics. The fourth is a doctor of translation. As for Chinese language instructors, one, also tied for youngest, graduated from this university’s Chinese translation program. The other had studied in China’s Inner Mongolia region, which my students also call Southern Mongolia. They were all Mongolian. 

Additionally, I visited after work a daily Mass or two each week whenever downtown around the hour. The Catholic church had daily Masses at 6 p.m. then shifted the time up to 5:30 p.m. when the sun set earlier. Luckily, the church is across the street from the library where we Peace Corps Volunteers host our community English clubs.

When I’m extra vigilant, I avoid the computer when I get home, finish journaling, then get my teeth brushed and flossed, retainer in and any remaining dishes washed before bed. Then I move the air filter from the living room to my bedroom and set my phone’s alarms for the next morn. I try to focus on God’s love to get me to sleep, but that’s a work in progress.

Mega Mondays

Mondays early this fall, I came at 8:30 a.m. for office hours with my international relations sophomores. But they grew busy and stopped coming, so I arrived since then after 9:30 a.m. to co-teach the day’s first class. It was an English grammar course for АХБ-2, with my grammar colleague.

Next came lunch’s 20-minute break (that I rarely had time during which to eat), followed by American academic English for international relations freshmen. I co-taught with my conversation colleague. Usually by 1:30 p.m. I felt tired, but I still had the international relations sophomores for general English. Luckily, their smaller group stays on task. I co-taught with my grammar colleague again.

After Monday’s work, around 3:30 p.m., I came home to sometimes snag a nap before fixing dinner. By semester’s end, I had research meetings, so I bought quick dinners from our school’s downstairs canteen. Then I walked downtown for the adults’ speaking club at the library from 6 p.m. From 7:15 p.m., after the club, I walked cold nights home or waited to take the bus if I felt weary.

Tuesdays and Toastmasters

On Tuesdays, I came to school at 8:30 a.m. for the freshman business class, to whom I co-taught general English with my phonetics colleague. I had the second period free, so I sometimes lesson planned with or aided the doctor of translation. Then I co-taught my last class at noon, which was intermediate English basics for АХБ-2, also with my phonetics colleague. Sometimes at 2 p.m. I had lesson planning with her. In earlier weeks, I also met with my speaking club student leaders before they grew too busy.

Then I’d go home for dinner before coming back downtown for children’s speaking club from 6 p.m. to 7. Afterward, a member from Toastmasters would pick me up from the library to bring me to our World Vision building, where we practice speeches till 9 p.m. Then someone would drive me home, which I appreciated. I usually felt energized from helping Toastmasters’ young adult stories in personal and professional development. 

Wednesday Willpower

Wednesday mornings varied. Sometimes I came in 8:30 a.m. to co-teach the senior business students’ basic academic English class. I alternated weeks teaching this with either the phonetics or the grammar instructor. Other times, I just came in at 10. I co-taught English speaking and listening with its colleague for АХБ-2. Afterward, I either lesson planned with that colleague or I prepared for our school’s English club. Every other week, I alternated between our creative writing club I co-ran with the phonetics instructor and our speaking club. After school  Wednesdays, I usually went home and relaxed at my apartment. 

On some nights, I went downtown either for Mass or to help at the IELTS/TOEFL club, although during the later months I grew too tired. Since I inevitably tended to stay working in our department’s office many days till 4 p.m. or 5, I usually felt exhausted by Wednesday. Nonetheless, surviving Wednesday meant my rest of the week had ease!

Thorough Thursdays

Thursdays began the relaxing back half of my weeks. Around 9 a.m., I lesson planned with my conversation colleague. Around 10:10 a.m., I lesson planned with my grammar one. For the noon class, I spoke English with our АХБ-4 seniors. The students varied who came each week, but I loved my patient talks with them. Sometimes I even helped them with their IELTS/TOEFL preparation. I had last lesson planning after that, occasionally. Then my colleagues and I had ready our next week. Afterward, I returned home. 

Some weeks, I came back downtown for 5:30 p.m. Mass then community Movie Club after 6. Other times, I went on separate adventures, such as to the Evangelical church groups that met Thursday nights. I try to stay spiritually involved. Some weeknights after Mass I just stayed at church to chat with our pastor about Catholicism generally and specifically to Mongolia. 

Community Weekends

Fridays were breathers. Those days varied most, though. At my school, when I’d free periods on Thursdays or Fridays, I’d drop by the Chinese language classes for third year translation students to help. These were on Thursdays with our university’s instructor and Fridays with the visiting one. Only on one occasion I stayed for the beginners’ 3:20 p.m. to 4:50 class for business and Mongolian language and literature students. 

Some Friday afternoons, a couple Buddhist monks drove me to the temple so I could help them with basic English. Afterward, they would drive me wherever else I need to be, such as to my church or to meetings or speaking clubs. By evening, if still downtown, I attended Mass, too. From November, I gleefully visit the orphanage most Fridays and Saturdays.

On weekends, I also grocery shopped when downtown and having remembered a pack to haul goods. I still use my silver backpack Mom bought me for Shànghǎi 2017, plus the IKEA collapsible bags I bought for World Youth Day 2019 Panamá. While back in my apartment, I sometimes spent the early weekend mornings or late evenings video calling and messaging friends back in the Americas or China or fellow Peace Corps Volunteers.

Saturdays tended to be like Fridays, also flexible. Some Saturday afternoons, I visited our family movie club at World Vision. Sometimes I stayed in my apartment all day. If downtown during evenings, I visited our church for weekly rosary. Given that our prayers are all in Mongolian, I’ve practiced speaking very fast. I also write these blog stories on Saturdays! 

Trilingual Sundays

Sunday mornings, I usually lounged or wrote in my apartment during the early morning. Around 9:30 a.m. or 10, I’d head into town, either walking along the hill or street or waiting for and taking the public bus. A couple mornings during the walks, other Christians with cars saw me and gave lifts to downtown. How thoughtful! Our priest always translates his homilies in English whenever I or the Filipina parishioner come, so I’m never very lost. 

After Mass, I enjoyed fellowship with the parishioners. I usually get to try various store-bought pastries and baked goods this way. I also worked on my Mongolian language notes. The woman who runs Toastmasters is also a parishioner who directs a preschool/kindergarten, who teaches me Mongolian some Sundays after Mass. She’s taught me plenty about the formal language we use in Mass, always helping me to better understand. A French parishioner whose English is very good helps, as well as our pastor, too. Rediscovering the meanings behind prayers and formulas of Mass helps me fall in love with them again. By December, I’d learned “Our Father,” “Hail Mary,” the Apostles’ Creed, “Seek Ye First” (our Alleluia), “Holy, Holy, Holy” (Sanctus), “Lamb of God,” and the first half of the Confiteor (the prayer for forgiveness).

After practicing Mongolian, I crossed the street to the library for Chinese Speaking Club. There, I taught Chinese language basics to local adults and high school and university students. As with all our community clubs, attendees steadily declined, but I’d still a nice handful to work with. I enjoyed getting to share my language with the community.

After Chinese Club, I sometimes did activities with its members. Otherwise, an older member would give me a ride to get groceries or go home, when he was able to attend.

Sunday nights in my apartment pretty much felt like a rinse and repeat for the week, while I geared up for the next one. I cook for literal hours Sunday afternoons. I watch plenty of YouTube, like Ascension Presents or the Bible Project to keep me focused. I enjoy no longer fretting over homework, as I did during those university years, though! Instead, Sunday through Thursday nights, I often answered students’ or community members’ English questions or went through friends’ requests to figure out who’s who. Facebook’s as big in Mongolia as WeChat in China.  

Random Events

Peace Corps taught me to expect the unexpected, in terms of invites hosts cancel and new invites from nowhere. Still, these varied occasions have added fresh adventures to my weeks, ensuring no week seems quite like the one preceding it. 

One of my community colleagues who used to teach at the university introduced me to her students at meals. Not only did I help them practice English but I also made new friends. A particular doctor who works at the Japanese hospital shared plenty about Mongolian philosophy. His discussion of trios, like the mind, heart and hands, and how they transfer energy, for example, keep me fascinated in learning words. I referenced this man a couple months ago in my capital story. I like changemakers.

From November, I created informal speaking groups with my АХБ-2 students, for those who enjoy karaoke, sports, PUBG and food. Since meeting times came down to what students wanted and had time for, those invitations inevitably hit me the day of or night before the function. Still, I keep myself flexible to support my students in the rare moments they seek aid and support. I really care. 

Then there were those other weeks, when I was ill, watched pets, or just binge-watched Let’s Plays of Pokémon Sword and Shield, for example. My school finally upgraded my internet last month, so I felt pleased. [American speeds, though, feel Sci-Fi compared to these!]

Spring to Come

During the spring term, I look forward to teaching in more places with more people. I’m particularly excited that my colleague I hadn’t met yet because of her maternity leave returns this spring! I heard she’s talented.

TiIl then, my biggest winter project will be a co-authored study I’m analyzing with the conversation and psychology instructors, concerning students’ motivations to learn English, as influenced by major and grade level. I also want to revise my senior thesis for another journal submission. And with my grammar colleague, we may be meeting with other instructors and community leaders about an English summer camp we designed during our December Peace Corps conference in the capital. These’ll keep me busy. Winter’s extracurriculars will include engaging in my communities like the orphanage, Toastmasters and technology university.

As a personal goal, I want to keep visiting the community’s different churches and get to know God better. While I continue to discern life’s directions, I love knowing the faithful.

Finally, with that weekend travel restriction lifted, I look forward to spending more weekends beyond my usual surroundings! Mongolia has much to explore. Now’s the time.

Up next is a story to recount my trip from Mongolia to America, through China.

You can read more from me here at DanielLang.me

[thesamesandwicheveryday]

5.

After a day of incredible pressure and its different pains, one after the other, follows at least one or two hours of what I can only describe as a kind of ritualistic stateliness; I’m currently working on my posture and self-restraint sitting upright in a computer chair, and whilst there are a good three or four inches between my back and the back of the chair, I’d say enough room for a cushion, I am not utilising a cushion, because I am working on myself, and if I can sit like this as if a cushion were really there, then I’ll have the grace and elegance of a dancer, and not only will I have the grace and elegance of a dancer, but I’ll have the restraint of a monk, and I will learn to find gratification in the simplest of ways, like once every 90 minutes when I feel gratified by just leaning back. In this spirit I’ve got a bottle of Riesling open, but I’m only drinking one glass per half an hour. There’s Mavrodaphne in the cupboard, but that’s more a me-and-Will drink, we’ve got a joke about it now, we even text about the Mavrodaphne. The last time he mentioned it I texted him back saying “Mavrodaph’ me” and he texted back that he laughed aloud, and I really think when someone takes the time to say “I actually laughed out loud” instead of “lol”, they truly must mean it. And there’s probably something in that, some profound key to understanding sincerity and humanity, but I’m not going to go into that now, not with the day I’ve had. No, I can leave that kind of heavy thinking for another day; that’s a Wednesday kind of a task. My first pain was planning a Monday lie-in yet waking up inexplicably at 8am after a missed call from a number I didn’t recognise that didn’t leave a text nor answer the phone when I called back but did in fact leave a voicemail though I can’t access those because it’s 2018 and leaving voicemails is disgusting. I don’t know if the cultural hatred of Mondays has become a superficial preset in all adult humans or if it really is as bad a day as we all think it is, because I don’t have a nine-to-five nor a structured work schedule and I hate Mondays, but the call waking me up and me just knowing I was waking up into a Monday prevented me from falling back asleep again. I try not to be superstitious so I’d be interested in learning the metric factors of how precisely one measures a “bad day”, why Monday is the worst. Why not Thursday? Tuesday’s a bum-note. I’ve never been hugely keen on Saturdays. I digress.

After my rude awakening I walked from my bedroom to the living room naked as the blinds were all shut and I’m a really naked person. There are low beams in my living room, these charming, great slabs of thick branch supporting the roof, and whilst they’re certainly characterful, I have to be aware of them all the time or else I’ll bang my head, like I did today, naked, gripping my head with my right hand, dropping my phone on the hard floor in doing so, not breaking the screen at all but there’s a scuff now in the corner that I can only challenge myself to stop thinking about. I tried calling Will a first time, and I got his voicemail: “Hi, this is Will, looks like I’m busy, if it’s an emergency call 999, they’ll be better qualified to deal with it than me”. Hilarious, Will, but I just banged my head on my roof beam and fell over like a naked Buster fucking Keaton, I have no time for your jokes and your japes right now. I tried a second time, then after my morning coffee a third, but still Hi this is Will, Hi this is Will, Hi this is Will. Eventually, as I was forcing myself to eat a bowl of muesli for the sake of health and also hating myself, he texted me: “Can’t talk now, Esther’s come over, had a fight with her mum or something, crying a lot, you know how she gets. Lemme give you a bell when I’m about. W. -X” And this had several flaws. Let’s start from the end and work our ways back. “W.-X” — why is he signing off like that, still, after four massive years of knowing me? Why does Will always have to end texts like he’s closing a deal? Just close me off with the initial and a kiss and — much worse — a full stop between the two? Distanced once more with that, let’s be honest, quite egregious dash? Is he proving some kind of point about being that crucial whole decade older than me, that self-righteous kind of, “oh look at me I love grammar” bollocks, that kind of “I don’t use Face-tube” or “I saw something on the interwebs” humour that the middle-aged employ to indicate superiority? Is that what that is? Because I’ve always wondered it and today I really had to think about it, and I figure it’s because he’s spending the day with Esther who’s always been that bit more Will’s brood, another late-30s horse-girl, another Oxon (that’s the name they give to people who graduated from Oxford and that’s something I have to fucking know), you know I think the only reason he married her in the first place is because it looked good on paper, he’s as good as told me that to be frank, and yeah maybe she is crying today and maybe she’s had a fight with her mum but that’s Will’s job how? Esther, sweetheart, darling, it’s over — and Will’s got the decree absolute to prove it, honey, sweetheart. And because of a fight with her mother? Everyone fights with their mother, I do nothing but fight with my mother but you don’t see me saying to Will “oh Will please can you come over and hold me? My mum still doesn’t love me and doesn’t even respect me”, do you? No you don’t, no matter how true that is, because Will’s not my dad. HE’S NOT YOUR DAD, ESTHER. 

And “can’t talk now”? Can’t, or won’t? Why would he write that like I’m placing some mad demand on him when I so very clearly am not? So many times we call each-other and there’s a dead end and it’s always something really innocuous that neither one of us feels the need to explain, we’re not married, and even if we were — the point is, he really felt like he had to say “can’t talk now”, like he’s really frazzled by me at 9am, and I even wonder if that’s for Esther’s benefit, like if she looks through his phone again she’ll see he’s at least been a little cold to me, and she’d love that wouldn’t she. Oh, but Esther’s sad again and so the world must spin off its axis because she’s sad again, Esther’s come off her Prozac, Esther’s cat’s got diabetes, Esther’s troubled by world news, Esther’s accidentally lost weight and now needs new clothes. I thought this whole Esther saga was over, I thought she'd get the hint that once you’ve put legal proceedings into action to separate yourself from someone, the message would hit home loud and clear, but no. Esther needs new brake-lights on her car. Esther’s tripped on an avocado skin and fallen down a haunted well. Esther’s been possessed by the great and powerful Beleth and needs a lift home from the exorcist’s bungalow. He’ll call me when he’s free, capital-double-you-dot-dash-capital-ex. And you’d think I’d get my sandwich and that would make me feel better? Well that's what I thought, too. Eventually I got dressed into the first t-shirt and jeans I saw lolling outside the clothes hamper and got out of my flat as quickly as I could, hoping to save the day before it fell into utter ruin and developed the ability to cause me real harm. The walk from my flat to the market is only a short one and is even shorter angry. I felt as if when I got through the door of the place I suddenly slipped outside of myself, but unable to look back in I instead disappeared, and when I returned back into my host body, I was looking at my reflection in the glass display of vanilla slices at my sandwich stall. I looked flushed. I looked hungry. I was ravenous and needed to see a friendly face. Of course today was the day they let just whoever walks into the market serve sandwiches, it seems, because I was met with a smiling boy-child, with biro scribbled onto his hands. He had mid-brown hair coming down about one inch above his shoulders, I’d say he was into day 10 of not washing it, the kind of bleary eyes that seem used to glasses and look unsettlingly beady when unframed, an unremarkable nose and an offensively weak chin, and whilst it sounds as if I’m describing a hapless teenager with great insensitivity you may in fact be relieved to learn my utter contempt here is directed toward a whole adult human who, if I were to conservatively guess, would be somewhere around the 27 years old marker. 27 years old and an untucked, short-sleeved, blue cotton dress shirt, like some bizarre attempt at formality, what was he, on his way to an interview for a different job or something? Judging by the outfit, a job as a white plastic patio furniture salesman? I wish I'd seen his shoes, they might have saved him, but as he stood, six foot tall before me, his bottom half was hidden behind the counter, so I had to assume he was wearing tan Caterpillar boots with striped yellow and black laces, and on that probably quite correct assumption, I hated him. He asked me my sandwich order and I told him, pretending to be shy to mask my escalating rage, and he threw the thing together like it just didn't matter, and when he asked me why he hadn't seen me round here before I don’t know how I found the strength to sweetly reply, “I just moved, yeah, used to live in Manchester but I’ve always fancied myself as a country mouse” with a smile, so convincingly he introduced himself as Greg and started suggesting local pubs to me, especially the Golden Lion because “you look cool, and they do a lot of cool nights there”. Cool, cool, cool, Greg, thanks for the tip, Greg. I asked him, “I come here every now and then for my lunch and haven't seen you before either?”, and he told me he's helping is mother out who’s at home in bed, sick. I told him that was really sweet of him and he crumpled in on himself slightly and said “nah”, as he limply placed the white, paper sandwich bag onto the counter, because I didn’t want him putting it directly into my hands and therefore did not offer my hands out. I waved goodbye after wrapping the conversation up with false platitudes, and thought again about the Caterpillar boots he might have been wearing, and thought about the beam in my living room, and thought about how many steps I would have to climb up to get back home and eat my sandwich. I made it to the top of my 39 stairs and into my flat without spontaneously combusting, and I sat behind my living room door with my knees up to my chest eating my sandwich which was, predictably, not that great. The onions this time were on the very top layer, the ham beneath those, then the lettuce underneath the ham, then the tomatoes, then the bread, like the whole thing was upside down. I thought about flipping the sandwich upside down to salvage this terrible situation into a bearable one but then the rounded-top half of the bun would be on the bottom, the flat half on the top, and I wasn't about to start creating my own problems. So I ate it, and it was fine. Which would be fine, but I’m not one to settle for fine. Today’s just been really hard. So here I'm sat with my Riesling and my good posture, looking at the long shadow my straight torso makes on the wall by the light of my reading lamp, and I just tried to call Will again, watching the shadow turn angular with my elbow’s movements like an old, German expressionist movie, but this time it went straight to voicemail and immediately I received a text saying: “Can I call you later?”. Will has turned his auto-reply on, and is no longer taking calls today. I’m breaking into the Mavrodaphne, and I'm going to apportion 14 cashew nuts for myself but first I will lean back for a good, long while. I won't call Will again. It’s really none of my business. My head just hurts from the knock from earlier, and I didn't like my sandwich at all, really. 

[stunudo]

That Got Away: A Criminal Minds Fanfiction 2/?

A/N: I am so humbled by the amount of love the first part of this new Spencer x Reader story has received. I do not own any characters, lyrics or images. xoxo Stu

***Update: I wanted to apologize with the chronological error I originally made in a paragraph about Hotch. It had Haley and Jack in Witness Protection too soon. A genuine thank you to everyone for not being judgemental about it, it has been fixed! xoxo Stu***

Inspiration: Katy Perry’s ‘The One That Got Away’ and Darlin’ Companion sung by Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash

Setting: Season 4      Rating: Teen    Warnings: Grief, Teen Angst, Bad Kissing

Spencer Reid had held Y/N until she had cried herself to sleep on the floor of her hotel room. He very carefully covered her half-naked form, cushioning her head with extra pillows from the bed they hadn’t made it to. He remained there, watching her sleep, the gentle rising of her back a hypnotic rhythm. Spencer did not want to leave her, but she needed more rest than he had time to give. He sat at the oddly placed desk, found the hotel stationary and prepared to write Y/N a confession.

Hotch had the hotel issue wake up calls for the BAU team at 6:30am. Spencer had made it back to his (much simpler) hotel room around two in the morning. The four hours of sleep left the doctor with an anxious stomach. After showering and dressing in a very typical Reid ensemble; he headed to the lobby. It was there he, naturally, bumped into Prentiss at the coffee cart.

“Morning Emily,” Spencer’s soft voice greeted the black haired beauty.

“Well, well, good morning, Reid,” Prentiss teased, feigning surprise in seeing him.

He remained patient, anticipating all the inevitable questions he would be fielding after leaving the team at the precinct to return Y/N’s luggage the previous night. His utter exhaustion was ensuring a shorter temper than was strictly professional.

“Late night?” Prentiss pressed after taking her coffee from the barista.

“You could say that,” Spencer nodded, his voice cracking. “How was your evening?”

“Mine?” Prentiss sighed, “Wild night. I took a bath and passed out to the hotel access channel.” She waxed sarcastically. “See you by the cars, Reid.”

Spencer placed his order, thanking the barista with a slight tilt to his head. He noticed Hotch near the entryway, speaking on his cell phone. Hotch was on edge with The Reaper in the wind. Spencer felt awful for him, knowing Hotch had lost his marriage to the job already. A tenuous situation was that much more paralyzing for someone like BAU chief Aaron Hotchner, someone who had to be in control.

The team assembled into the waiting SUVs and returned to Pasadena Police Department shortly after 7:30 am. The team dispersed into the previous decided assignments; Reid and Prentiss going through Y/L/N’s contacts and research. Just after 8 o’clock, a distinguished man in his fifties was escorted to the office the BAU had annexed for the case, by Detective Chang.

“Agents,” Chang announced,”This gentleman claims to be the guy who wrote the threatening letter sent to Dr. Y/L/N last month.”

“Who are you?” Emily Prentiss approached the new suspect.

“Byron Osbourne, ma’am,” the man nodded to the female agent with an English lilt to his voice. “I saw the press coverage footage this morning and knew I had to come forward before anything got out of hand.”

“Dr. Y/L/N is dead,” Spencer uncharacteristically spat at the man,”I would say we are passed out of hand.”

Agent Prentiss eyed Dr. Reid suspiciously. She then formally arrested and cuffed Mr. Osbourne. After reading his Miranda Rights, she passed him to the stocky lead detective who escorted him to interrogation room 1.

Spencer was quick to make the call to Quantico. “Garcia? We need background on one Byron Osbourne, a possible British national. He just voluntarily admitted to writing the suspicious letter Dr. Madison mentioned that Graham received nearly a month ago.”

“Good Morning, to you too, Boy Wonder,” Garcia grumbled. “I am all over this, but in the mean time... “How’s your reunion going?” The savvy analyst coyly pounced on the inexperienced doctor.

“I am going to hang up now,” Spencer responded testily, “And catch the unsub that killed my mentor.”

“But!” Garcia couldn’t use her vicious wit against a grumpy and determined Reid.

At some point during the night, you had found your way into your excessively large bed. Your body was stiff from traveling and sleeping on the unforgivably flat surface of the hotel room floor. The inside of your head was inflamed from dehydration, your chest gaping with the hollowness of grief.

The only reason you made yourself get out of bed for the day was because you knew you had absolutely no reason to do so. Across the pillow tops, you recognize the scrawl on a folded piece of paper Spencer left for you on the bedside table. You leave it, knowing that whatever he had to say could wait.

“But Aristotle didn’t say that,” Spencer argued, “That is attributed to Plato.”

“Sorry, Professor,” Your 18 year old self teased,”Ancient Philosophy isn’t on my course schedule until spring semester.”

Spencer had stopped over on a Tuesday afternoon the second summer you knew him. You were clearing the debris from your built in swimming pool, one of the many chores your Dad made you help with. You obliged because you were, in fact, the only one who used said pool.

“I’m just surprised you got that quote wrong.” Spencer twisted his lips in a smug smile.

You eyed him, shaking your head at his taunts. “Watch it, or you’ll end up in my net too.” You intended to whip a trail of pool water at the skinny genius, but he had hopped backwards, avoiding your wrath. You, however, lost control of the momentum along the length of the net, which knocked you off balance. You fell into the pool, fully clothed.

You remember the dread of trying to act normal when internally you were freaking out over the pair of black granny panties you had on underneath your now soaked khaki shorts. You stayed in the pool, chatting and cleaning until Spencer had to leave for the day. He always had to leave quickly, it was almost like he was sneaking over to see you. Though you knew your dad was fine with you spending time with his young protegee, you guessed your dad knew you didn’t interest Spencer that way.

You remember waving at him from the shallow end of the pool, as he walked his bike out of the side gate.

Morgan and Rossi were waiting for the M.E. to bring them back to examine the body of the late Professor Y/L/N, Y/N’s father.

“Oh, Baby Girl, please tell me you got some dirt for me!” Derek Morgan crooned into his phone.

“Easy there handsome,” Garcia directed. “I’ll give you work now, and need-to-know later.”

“That’s my girl!” Derek chuckled. His brilliant smile lighting up the dreary corner’s office.

“Byron Osbourne just confessed to writing that threatening letter to Dr. Y/L/N. Hotch and Prentiss are going to question him, very soon.”

“Garcia, who is this guy?” Rossi chimed in.

“He’s, well he’s, a wannabe,” Garcia confided,” He comes from money, old British money to be exact. He uses philanthropy to strut his family name about academia. But he never finished “university” himself.” She finished in her own mock accent.

“Wonder what the professor did to set this guy off.” Rossi supposed.

“Penelope,” Derek added, “Were the victim and Osbourne on any boards or committees together?”

“Oh sugar bear, you know I am all over that like a cardigan is on grumpus Reid,” Garcia muttered,”Hotch and Emily already have what they need. Now do you have time for the need-to-know? Or do we get to rendezvous later?”

“Later, Baby Girl, sadly I have a very different body to go examine,” Derek lamentably flirted. “Just warn me if this one is off the rails.”

“Nope, peaches, you’re good. I mean, Reid is good, “Garcia bumbled, “Well, who knows if that’s true, then. I’m going to stop thinking and talking now. Okay? Okay, bye!”

Rossi looked at Derek sideways, “That woman is very multi-faceted.”

“Oh, Rossi, you have no idea, man,” Derek agreed, shaking his head.

You had slowly gotten dressed. Remarkably you were early enough to make the tail end of the complimentary continental breakfast buffet held in the small nook off of the hotel lobby. You rifled through the remaining stale doughnuts, claiming a chocolate cake flavored one, that was calling your name. The ambience was perfect there, the warm sun coming through the skylights. You lied to yourself, pretending you were vacationing for a few quiet moments.

Your phone buzzed beside your mug of bland coffee. You check the name before answering.

OLIVIA MADISON

“Olivia, how are you,” You answer quickly.

“Y/N, hi, how are you?!” Olivia rushed back.

“As good as can be expected, I suppose.” You recite.

You make small talk and arrange to take lunch the following day. Cal Tech’s spring break was over, so Olivia would be lecturing for your father’s senior seminar in the morning. Your stomach lurched at the image. As another female nontenured professor in academia, you respect the shoes that Olivia has been asked to fill. You would be excited for her, if it weren’t so devastating.

Spencer had just left his mother with a therapy group she had been attending for the summer months. He was finding it harder and harder to balance school and care for his mother as her disease progressed. The long summer days found him yearning for a more normal life, a less complicated, a less responsibility-riddled life. He rode his bike on the familiar route to Y/N’s house. Spending time with her made him feel like a regular seventeen year old guy, not a prodigy, not a caregiver. She was intelligent, funny and so easy to talk to. Y/N was a geek, too, a sheltered only child with a single father who was a celebrated Mathematics professor.

“Oh, a little saucy mare like you should have a steed. Oh, a little bridlin' down from you is what I need.

Darlin' companion, I tell the mountains and the canyons, Long as I got legs to stand on, I'm gonna stick by you.”

The crackling recording poured through the Y/L/N house as Spencer pedaled up the welcoming driveway. He knew that you were home alone, Dr. Y/L/N would never let you keep the speakers at that high of a volume. He left his bike near the back door that lead into the kitchen. The door was unlocked, so Spencer went in to find Y/N.

This was always when he began to panic, the time between entering their house and finding Y/N. Spencer scratched his neck as he made his way up the winding staircase in the house’s cavernous center. He wiped his palms on his pants and continued towards her room. The song had finished leaving the hum of the speakers awaiting the cd change in the air. Spencer cleared his throat, his head down as he knocked on the door frame to her bedroom.

The door was ajar, he didn’t hear Y/N inside as the next cd began. He knocked again as he pushed the door open, strolling into the room. Spencer froze, he had no idea how to move. There she was, on the bed, sitting on a bath towel, rubbing lotion on her outstretched leg. Completely naked. His prodigious mind was useless as his pants constricted around his sudden boner.

“Spencer!” You screeched when you finally saw him. “What the hell?!” You struggled with the towel beneath your butt, trying to cover your bare body.

Spencer spun on the spot, but didn’t flee. He just started reciting facts. “Did you know that many people attribute the model Betty Grable as the inspiration for women to start shaving their legs? The shorter skirts of the forties and stockings made it more desirable for women to emulate the style icon...”

“Spencer,” You shouted. “It’s okay, um, I’m covered now.” You had shut off the deafening grunge band that had followed the Man in Black. Spencer just stood there with his back to you. After a moment he sort of side stepped to the desk chair, where he crossed his legs. Finally he looked at your face. You were both blushing and couldn’t hold eye contact. You had thrown on your awful yellow terrycloth robe.

“Did you try “Margaret Thatcher” to cool him down?” You asked out of nowhere. You slapped your hand over your mouth. Why did you always say what was on your mind?

Spencer open his mouth to respond, then closed it. He thumbed his nose and sheepishly answered. “I don’t think I understand that reference, Y/N.”

“Ignore me, it was from a movie, when this British spy was trying to stop an erection,” You tried to explain, like you always did with pop culture to Spencer. “And I just said erection. Again.” You finally stopped talking. After a few agonizing minutes, you sat down on your bed.

“Spencer?” You asked, cautiously. Remarkably he hadn’t left, you both had just sat there looking around your bedroom and not at each other.

“Yeah?” He replied, his voice faint.

“I am very flattered.” You admit. “Is that alright to say? Like, I know it is does not prove anything, it’s just a thing that happens to guys and it does not reflect my level of attractiveness or not-attractiveness...”

“Y/N/N?” Spencer interrupted your rambling.

“Yeah?” You ask, your face growing warm and your chest feeling tight.

“I am sorry, that was rude of me to walk in without a confirmed invitation,” Spencer was talking to the pile of clothes on the floor. “Also, I want to apologize if I in any way offended you or jeopardized our friendship by making unintentional advances towards you. I just could not help it, honestly you took my breath away.”

What? Your brain was repeating the last words he spoke like a broken answering machine, ‘you took my breath away’. Shocked could not cover the amount of surprise that was flowing through your bloodstream at that moment.

“So you’re not like, traumatized?” You push, “Like seeing me, all of me, doesn’t change how you feel? Is it going to be weird now?”

Spencer, cleared his throat. “It only makes me care about you that much more.” He actually looked at you now, his brown eyes searching for yours. But he only holds your glance for a second, because this is so new, so unique for two friends to overcome in a few moments’ time. He smiles nervously, you are stuck in place as a ribbon of hope is sliding through your mind.

“Spencer, can I kiss you?” You said it, out loud. “I mean, is that something that would interest you? Am I a girl that you would like to, with, maybe?” In the entirety of your friendship you had not heard him mention girls like the guys on the floor of your dorm did, this was not a weird question.

Spencer blushed. “Am I a guy you would like to kiss? Or is this a test?”

“Not a test,” You held up your hands in mock surrender, smiling nervously. You stood up, walking towards your friend, who was now one of the only people to have seen you naked. Spencer stands up as you approach him, backing up into your clutter filled desk.

“Um, Y/N, I don’t know if we should be doing this.” Spencer’s hand was pulling at his hair, his voice catching.

“Spencer, can I kiss you?” You asked, but it was stronger than the first time. You wanted this and you were not getting reasoned out of it now.

“I don’t know how,” Spencer whispered.

You caught his bony face in your hand, looking up into his scared eyes you smiled, calming both of you for a split second. You took a deep breath and leaned in to him, with eyes closed and heart on your sleeve. After kissing his chin, you found his lips, his large hands were resting oddly on your shoulders. This went down in your shared history as the most awkward moment of your lives.

”The murder weapon appears to be a long, metallic, needle like instrument, about four inches long.” Dr. Shearer stated.

Morgan and Rossi were taking notes. Dr. Y/L/N was a typical guy in his fifties, he could have been one of Rossi’s buddies from his days in the Marines. The agents were being extremely diligent, for Reid’s sake.

”How many stab wounds were there?” Rossi verified.

”Thirty-seven.” Dr. Shearer replied.

”And no defensive wounds, Doc?” Morgan double checked.

“Correct.” Dr. Shearer answered. “The tox screen does show a decent amount of alcohol in his blood, but not over the legal limit. Perhaps he was asleep when the assailant struck, agents.”

”It’s possible, but he was sitting up right at his desk.” Rossi countered.

”No, that tracks; no defensive wounds, late night, maybe he had someone over for a night cap?” Derek worked further.

”What kind of strength did our unsub have?” Rossi went back to the coroner.

”Moderate, nothing impressive.”

”Are we looking for a female unsub?” Rossi asked cautiously.

“Mr. Osbourne, can you tell us why you would send such a violent letter to Dr. Y/L/N’s office?” Hotch asked succinctly.

“Well, frankly, I am extremely embarrassed about it now, as you can imagine.” Osbourne smiled placating.

“Let’s start at the beginning then,” Prentiss pressed. “How do you know Dr. Y/L/N?

“We were on the Board of Regents at the school, agent, surely you know that.” Osbourne cheeked.

“What made you write a letter stating that you, “Would see him destroyed?” Hotch asked.

“Well, he just so happened to vote against the use of some funds that would have benefited the school, greatly.” Osbourne elaborated.

“And would have trumpeted your name.” Hotch deduced.

“Well, if we had gotten to that stage of the development, yes, my name would have been attached to the project.” Osbourne admitted. “As it should be, I was a major backer and had spearheaded the development.”

Spencer shifted on his feet in the observation room. This man was a narcissist, but not the unsub. His patience was straining, he left Hotch and Prentiss to continue the interview. His long legs brought him to the evidence boards, his racing mind, back to the stack of evidence bags holding the papers Dr. Y/L/N was reading over the night he was killed.

Spencer Reid lost himself in the equations before him for the next few hours.

Your phone rang with an unfamiliar number. The amount of planning you had started with your dad’s lawyer had you seeing spots. Welcoming the distraction, you took the call.

“Dr. Y/L/N.” You answer.

“Yes, hello, this is Agent Morgan with the BAU.” A sultry voice answers you.

“How can I help you, Agent?” You wonder why someone besides Spencer was calling you about the case.

“I was calling to inform you, that the Medical Examiner has released your father’s body, ma’am.” Agent Morgan gently explained. “Now if you need help with arrangements, of any kind, please let us know and we will ensure you are getting the help you need.”

You exhale a ragged breath, “Thank you, um, Agent Morgan?” You answer, forgetting who you are speaking too.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Can you tell me, did my father suffer?” You ask because you need to know how much to hate this son of a bitch.

“No, ma’am,” Agent Morgan soothed. “He was asleep when he was attacked, he never saw it coming.”

A single tear leaves a trail on your cheek, you sniffle loudly over the line. “Thank you, again. And, please, catch this guy.”

“We are doing everything we can, ma’am.” Morgan confirmed, “I don’t know if anyone told you, but we have our own personal genius working on it as we speak.”

You smile through your tears, this guy was a good egg. “I might have heard about that guy, takes a lot of sugar in his coffee?”

A pleasant chuckle answered your retort. “Yeah, that’s our guy.”

To Be Continued...

Part 1    Part 3

@reiding-and-writing @holagubler @imagicana @hotchnerfuckmeup @speedreiding

[wheresanne]

Learning Korean: HowtostudyKorean.com Unit 1 Vocabulary

Follow me on my learning Korean language journey. You can visit my Learning Korean page to see more resources for Korean vocabulary or grammar. 

Here are all 1,210 words from the HowtoStudyKorean.com Unit 1 course from Memrise language learning website.

Lesson 1

한국   -   Korea

도시   -   city

이름   -   name

저   -   I (formal)

나   -   I (informal)

남자   -   man

여자   -   woman

그   -   that (from a previous sentence)

이   -   this

저   -   that (something far away)

것   -   thing

의자   -   chair

탁자   -   table

선생님   -   teacher (three syllables)

이다   -   to be

침대   -   bed

집   -   house

차   -   car

안   -   not

사람   -   person

책   -   book

컴퓨터   -   computer

나무   -   tree

네   -   yes

아니   -   no

소파   -   sofa

중국   -   China

일본   -   Japan

문   -   door

의사   -   doctor

학생   -   student

Lesson 2

나라   -   country

가방   -   backpack

창문   -   window

잡지   -   magazine

방   -   room

안(에)   -   inside (not ㄴ...)

위   -   on top

밑   -   below

옆   -   beside

뒤   -   behind

앞   -   in front

여기   -   here

냉장고   -   refrigerator

개   -   dog

강아지   -   puppy

고양이   -   cat

쥐   -   rat

펜   -   pen

전화기   -   phone

커피   -   coffee

식당   -   restaurant

건물   -   building

텔레비전   -   television

미국   -   USA

캐나다   -   Canada

호텔   -   hotel

학교   -   school

은행   -   bank

있다   -   to have

있다   -   to be in a location

Lesson 3

음식   -   food

케이크   -   cake

공항   -   airport

병원   -   hospital

공원   -   park

한국어   -   Korean (language)

머리   -   head

다리   -   leg

손가락   -   finger

귀   -   ear

팔   -   arm

눈   -   eye

입   -   mouth

배   -   stomach, pear

버스   -   bus

배   -   boat

우리   -   us, we

먹다   -   to eat

가다   -   to go

만나다   -   to meet

닫다   -   to close

열다   -   to open

원하다   -   to want (an object)

만들다   -   to make

하다   -   to do

말하다   -   to speak

이해하다   -   to understand

좋아하다   -   to like

크다   -   to be big

작다   -   to be small

새롭다   -   to be new

낡다   -   to be old (worn) (나...)

비싸다   -   to be expensive

싸다   -   to be not expensive, to be cheap

아름답다   -   to be beautiful

뚱뚱하다   -   to be fat, to be chubby

길다   -   to be long

좋다   -   to be good

아주   -   very (ㅇ...)

매우   -   very (ㅁ...)

너무   -   too, very

Lesson 4

길   -   street

거리   -   road

우리   -   we

오다   -   to come

끝나다   -   to be finished

끝내다   -   to finish

하지만   -   but

위험하다   -   to be dangerous

잘생기다   -   to be handsome

못생기다   -   to be ugly

손   -   hand

영어   -   English

택시   -   taxi

열차   -   train

역   -   station

버스 정류장   -   bus station

비행기   -   airplane

자전거   -   bicycle

거기   -   there (when it's close)

저기   -   there (when it's farther away)

아내   -   wife

남편   -   husband

아이   -   child

아들   -   son

딸   -   daughter

아버지   -   father

어머니   -   mother

춤추다   -   to dance

피곤하다   -   to be tired

다르다   -   to be different

알다   -   to know

편지   -   letter

슬프다   -   to be sad

맛   -   taste

맛있다   -   to be delicious

살다   -   to live

식사   -   meal

아침   -   morning (not 오...)

아침식사   -   breakfast

생각하다   -   to think

지금   -   now (not 이...)

행복하다   -   to be happy

배우다   -   to learn

연습하다   -   to practice

물   -   water

걷다   -   to walk

사과   -   apple

재미있다   -   to be funny, interesting

많다   -   to be many

돈   -   money

Lesson 5

동생   -   younger sibling

남동생   -   younger brother

여동생   -   younger sister

형   -   older brother (when speaker is male)

오빠   -   older brother (when speaker is female)

누나   -   older sister (when speaker is male)

언니   -   older sister (when speaker is female)

삼촌   -   uncle

이모   -   aunt (maternal)

고모   -   aunt (paternal)

아저씨   -   older man not related to you

아주머니   -   older woman not related to you (four syllables)

할아버지   -   grandfather

할머니   -   grandmother

친구   -   friend

사진   -   picture

안경   -   glasses

비밀   -   secret

비   -   rain

가게   -   store, shop

꼬리   -   tail

박물관   -   museum

가스 레인지   -   stove (gas range)

오리   -   duck

기대하다   -   to expect

건너다   -   to cross (a road)

던지다   -   to throw

싫어하다   -   to not like

떠나다   -   to leave

농담하다   -   to joke

지루하다   -   to be boring (ㅈ...)

마르다   -   to be too thin (person)

멀다   -   to be far away

마르다   -   to be dry

비슷하다   -   to be similar

싫다   -   to not be good

오래되다   -   to be old (an object to be old) (오...)

배고프다   -   to be hungry

년   -   year

일   -   day

오늘   -   Today

월요일   -   Monday

화요일   -   Tuesday

수요일   -   Wednesday

목요일   -   Thursday

금요일   -   Friday

토요일   -   Saturday

일요일   -   Sunday

어제   -   yesterday

내일   -   tomorrow

모레   -   day after tomorrow

시간   -   time

공부하다   -   to study

공   -   ball

Lesson 6

신발   -   shoes

남방   -   shirt

질문   -   question

문제   -   problem

노력하다   -   to try

앉다   -   to sit

만지다   -   to touch

자다   -   to sleep

나이   -   age

화장실   -   restroom

먹다   -   to eat

보다   -   to see

주   -   week

곧   -   soon

항상   -   always

부장님   -   boss

분위기   -   atmosphere

차   -   tea

기다리다   -   to wait

바지   -   pants

교실   -   classroom

급식   -   food at school

교감선생님   -   vice principal

교장선생님   -   principal

놀라다   -   to be surprised

아래   -   bottom

청소하다   -   to clean

풀   -   glue

수도   -   capital city

병   -   water bottle

병   -   disease

약속하다   -   to promise

생선   -   fish

야채   -   vegetable

언덕   -   hill

선물   -   present, gift

빠르다   -   to be fast

느리다   -   to be slow

기타   -   guitar

듣다   -   to hear

들어보다   -   to listen

착하다   -   to be nice (not 친...)

종이   -   paper

그만하다   -   to stop (ㄱ...)

우유   -   milk

운동하다   -  to exercise

손목   -  wrist

시계   -   clock

손목시계   -   wrist watch

영화   -   movie

Lesson 7

눈썹   -   eyebrow

교사   -   teacher (profession)

반   -   class of students

직장   -   work location

벽   -   wall

털   -   hair (not on head), fur

머리카락   -   hair (on head)

저녁   -   dinner, evening

점심시간   -   lunch, noonish

옷   -   clothes

찾다   -   to search for, to find (ㅊ...)

가르치다   -   to teach

일하다   -   to work

짓다   -   to build

가지다   -   to own, to possess

잠그다   -   to lock something

잊다   -   to forget

돕다   -   to help

주다   -   to give

맞다   -   to be correct

쉽다   -   to be easy

덥다   -   to be hot (not 뜨...)

그립다   -   to miss (a thing)

귀엽다   -   to be cute

춥다   -   to be cold (not 차...)

어렵다   -   to be difficult

더럽다   -   to be dirty

바쁘다   -   to be busy

같다   -   to be the same

안전하다   -   to be safe

딱딱하다   -   to be hard

부드럽다   -   to be soft

가능하다   -   to be possible

불가능하다   -   to be impossible

일찍   -   early

오전   -   morning (not 아...)

오후   -   afternoon

매일   -   everyday

여름   -   summer

가을   -   fall

겨울   -   winter

봄   -   spring

Lesson 8

즉시   -   immediately (ㅈ...)

바로   -   immediately (ㅂ...)

빨리   -   quickly

가끔   -   sometimes (ㄱ...)

자주   -   often

많이   -   many, a lot (adverb)

방금   -   a moment ago

완벽하다   -   to be perfect

곧   -   soon

곳   -   place (ㄱ...)

기계   -   machine

대학교   -   university

아프다   -   to be sick

놀다   -   to play

트럭 �� -   truck

동시에   -   same time

검은색   -   black

흰색   -   white

밤   -   night

어젯밤   -   last night

똑똑하다   -   to be smart

갑자기   -   suddenly

매년   -   every year

음료수   -   beverage

외국   -   foreign country

외국인   -   foreigner

쓰다   -   to write

쓰다   -   to use

실수   -   mistake

수리하다   -   to repair

고등학교   -   high school

잡다   -   to catch

읽다   -   to read (used when talking about reading anything: newspaper,magazines,labels,etc)

다시   -   again

중요하다   -   to be important

여행   -   travel

혼자   -   alone

낮   -   daytime

젊다   -   to be young

늙다   -   to grow old, age (느...)

나이가 많다   -   to be old (person) (two words ㄴ...)

동   -   East

남   -   South

서   -   West

북   -   North

도서관   -   library

받다   -   to get/receive/acquired

도착하다   -   to arrive

내다   -   to pay for something (2 syllables)

나쁘다   -   to be bad

Lesson 9

되다   -   to be/become

공장   -   factory

열   -   fever

시작하다   -   to start

극장   -   theater

회사   -   company

모기   -   mosquito

간판   -   sign

직업   -   job

부끄럽다   -   to be shy

수업   -   class (two syllables)

행동하다   -   to act

고기   -   meat

돼지   -   pig

돼지고기   -   pork

소   -   cow

소고기   -   beef

소개하다   -   to introduce

발견하다   -   to discover, to find (ᄇ...)

방문하다   -   to visit

잃다   -   to lose (something) (2 syllables)

잃어버리다   -   to lose (something) (5 syllables)

돈   -   money

벗다   -   to take off clothes

꽃   -   flowers

값   -   price (one syllable)

건강하다   -   to be healthy

예쁘다   -   to be pretty

땅콩   -   peanut

축구   -   soccer

야구   -   baseball

여권   -   passport

수건   -   towel

미래   -   future

체육   -   physical education

지하철   -   subway (three syllables)

웃다   -   to laugh

이제   -   now (not 지...)

현재   -   present, now

장소   -   place, location (ㅈ...)

Lesson 10

하나   -   one (Korean)

둘   -   two (Korean)

셋   -   three (Korean)

넷   -   four (Korean)

다섯   -   five (Korean)

여섯   -   six (Korean)

일곱   -   seven (Korean)

여덟   -   eight (Korean)

아홉   -   nine (Korean)

열   -   ten (Korean)

스물   -   twenty (Korean)

서른   -   thirty (Korean)

마흔   -   forty (Korean)

쉰   -   fifty (Korean)

일   -   one (Chinese)

이   -   two (Chinese)

삼   -   three (Chinese)

사   -   four (Chinese)

오   -   five (Chinese)

육   -   six (Chinese)

칠   -   seven (Chinese)

팔   -   eight (Chinese)

구   -   nine (Chinese)

십   -   ten (Chinese)

백   -   one hundred (Chinese)

천   -   one thousand (Chinese)

만   -   ten thousand (Chinese)

처음   -   the first time

마지막   -   the last

첫 번째   -   first (1'st)

두 번째   -   second (2'nd)

개   -   thing counter

번   -   action counter

번째   -   time counter

명   -   person counter

대   -   vehicle counter

잔   -   glass counter

시   -   hour (indicates "o'clock")

분 (time)   -   minute

초   -   second (s)

살   -   years old (ends in ㄹ)

영   -   Zero (ㅇ...)

공   -   Zero (used in phones)

Lesson 11

일월   -    January

  이월   -    February

 삼월   -    March

  사월   -    April

  오월   -    May

  유월   -    June

 칠월   -    July

  팔월   -    August

  구월   -    September

  시월   -    October

 십일월   -    November

  십이월   -    December

 동안   -    during

  달   -    month (not ㄱ...)

  개월   -    month (not ㄷ...)

 날   -    day

 하루   -    a day (one day)

이틀   -    two days

  사흘   -    three days

  지난 주   -    last week

  지난 달   -    last month

 다음 주   -    next week

 이번 주   -    this week

  이번 달   -    this month

  다음 달   -    next month

 작년   -    last year

 올해   -    this year

  내년   -    next year

  평생   -    in my life

 달리다   -    to run

기회   -    opportunity

  보통   -    usually (not ㄷ...)

 계획   -    plans

  회사원   -    office worker

 두렵다   -    to be scared

  요리하다   -    to cook

  요리사   -    chef

  운전하다   -    to drive

 운전사   -    driver

  이상하다   -    to be strange

  죽다   -    to die

Lesson 12

점원   -    Store Assistant

배우   -    actor

얇다   -    thin (not people )

적당하다   -    moderate

속삭이다   -    to whisper

목   -    Neck

소리   -    Sound

목소리   -    Voice (ㅁ...)

복습하다   -    to review

층   -    Floor

바꾸다   -    to change (not 변...)

신청   -    Application

유학   -    Study Abroad

꽤   -    fairly

의미   -    meaning (ㅇ...)

그때   -    that time

상황   -    Situation

넘어지다   -    to fall

어리다   -    to be young

입다   -    to put on clothes

닭   -    Chicken

기쁘다   -    to be glad

열심히   -    diligently

독서하다   -    to read (only used when talking about reading books)

문장   -    Sentence

기름   -    Oil

출발하다   -   to depart

몇   -    some/few (article placed before a counter)

그들   -    Them

마시다   -    to drink

내리다   -    to get off, go down, come down

나오다   -    to come out

나가다   -    to go out

때   -    time (when)

쪽   -    Direction (ㅉ...)

생활   -    Lifestyle

쓰다   -    to write

모르다   -    to not know

완전히   -    perfectly

사다   -    to buy

팔다   -    to sell

Lesson 13

사실   -    Fact

 축하하다   -    to congratulate

  약   -    Medicine

  일어나다   -    to get up

 준비하다   -    to get ready

  익숙하다   -    to be familiar

  흥미롭다   -    interesting

  음악   -    Music

  늦다   -    late

 시원하다   -    cool

 질투하다   -    jealous

 맵다   -    spicy

  하늘   -    Sky

  땅   -    Land

  죄송하다   -    to be sorry (notㅁ...)

  미안하다   -    to be sorry (not ㅈ...)

무겁다   -    heavy

  가볍다   -    to be light, not heavy, slight

 유명하다   -    famous

지하   -    Underground

요즘   -    these days (...ㅈ...)

  빵   -    Bread

들어오다   -    to come in

들어가다   -    to go in

  쓰레기   -    Garbage

입장하다   -    to admit

  회계사   -    Accountant

  엔지니어   -    Engineer

  녹차   -    Green Tea

  같이   -    together

 정부   -    Government

  성격   -    Personality

 온도   -    Temperature

 커튼   -    Curtain

  숨   -    Breath

 숨쉬다   -    to breathe

  이   -    Teeth

Lesson 14

냄새   -    smell

  청소기   -    vacuum cleaner

 얼굴   -    face

 시장   -    market

 몸   -    body

 불   -    light, fire

 숙제   -    homework

  기억   -    memory

상자   -    box

 바람   -    wind

 세금   -    tax

 켜다   -    to turn on (ㅋ...)

  끄다   -    to turn off

  숨다   -    to hide oneself

  숨기다   -    to hide an object

  고장내다   -    to break

  놓다   -    to lay an object down

  눕다   -    to lie down, lay oneself down

  존경하다   -    to respect

  대체하다   -    to replace

  제공하다   -    to provide, to offer

  포함하다   -    to include

  내다   -    to make something come up, arise, occur

  싸우다   -    to fight

  속이다   -    to trick somebody

  감동하다   -    to impress

  서다   -    to stand

 잠기다   -    to be locked

  켜지다   -    to be turned on

꺼지다   -    to be turned off

  나다   -    to have something you didn't have

  고장나다   -    to be broken

  놓이다   -    for an object to be lying down

화나다   -    to be mad

  짜증나다   -    to be annoyed

  열리다   -    to be open

 속다   -    to be tricked

  자꾸   -    repeatedly

닫히다   -    to be closed

Lesson 15

잠   -    sleep

  모자   -    hat

  줄   -    line, string, rope, queue (ㅈ...)

 감기   -    a cold

  기침   -    cough

 설사   -    diarrhea

 독감   -    the flu

  재채기   -    sneeze

 동아리   -    a club in school or university

  취미   -    hobby

  수학   -    math

  가족   -    family (not 가정)

  실력   -    skills

 사촌   -    cousin

 삶   -    life

 맥주   -    beer

 과거   -    past

 마음   -    one's heart/mind

 그림   -    picture, painting

 들다   -    to lift, to carry, to hold

  들다   -    to enter, to go into

가져오다   -    to bring an object

  가져가다   -    to take an object

돌리다   -    to turn, to run a machine, to hand out

  돌다   -    to be turning, to be rotating

 돌아보다   -    to look back

  돌아가다   -    to go back

 돌아오다   -    to come back

  돌려주다   -    to give back

걸다   -    to hang

  주문하다   -    to order (ㅈ...)

 결혼하다   -    to get married

부르다   -    to call out

  고르다   -    to choose, to pick (ㄱ...)

 넣다   -    to insert, to put inside

 경험하다   -    to experience

  설명하다   -    to explain

자랑하다   -    to show off

  똑같다   -    to be exactly the same

자랑스럽다   -    to be proud

 또 다르다   -    another

걸리다   -    to be caught

  시끄럽다   -    to be loud

  흔하다   -    to be common

  드물다   -    to be rare

 속   -    inside (ㅅ...)

  아마도   -    maybe

Lesson 16

경제   -    economy

  경제적   -    economical

  역사   -    history

 역사적   -    historical

 과학   -    science

  과학적   -    scientific

 충동   -    impulse

  충동적   -    impulsive

 문화   -    culture

 문화적   -    cultural

 민주   -    democracy

 민주적   -    democratic

  개인   -    individual/personal (2 syllables)

 개인적   -    individual (3 syllables)

 자연   -    nature

자연스럽다   -    natural

  실망하다   -    disappointed

실망스럽다   -    disappointing

  사랑하다   -    to love

 사랑스럽다   -    to be lovely

  만족하다   -    to be satisfied

 만족스럽다   -    to be satisfactory

  관계   -    relationship

  풀다   -    to untie, to unfasten, to loosen

  스트레스   -    stress

  연필   -    pencil

  색깔   -    color

  그   -    he

  그녀   -    she

  결과   -    result

  조금   -    a little

 꿈   -    dream

 꿈꾸다   -    to dream

 세상   -    world (ᄉᄉ)

 세계   -    world (ᄉᄀ)

  근처   -    to be close to, to be near (no "다")

  가깝다   -    near by, close (adj.)

 회화   -    conversation

  태어나다   -    to be born

 나중   -    later

 다니다   -    to go somewhere frequently

  문자   -    text message

힘들다   -    to be difficult to do something

 제목   -    title of a book

  그러나   -    but, however

순수하다   -    to be pure

  최근에   -    recently

  가슴   -    chest

  믿다   -    to believe, to trust

Lesson 17

과일   -    fruit

 술   -    alcohol

  우산   -    umbrella

  권   -    counter for books

잎   -    leaf

  교회   -    church

  강   -    river

  반갑다   -    to be good, happy

 계절   -    season

  따뜻하다   -    to be warm

 날씨   -    weather

  부엌   -    kitchen (ㅂ...)

  담임   -    homeroom

 방학   -    school vacation

 머무르다   -    to stay

  당근   -    carrot

  무   -    radish

  감자   -    potato

  칼   -    knife

  쉬다   -    to relax/rest

���내다   -    to send

  높다   -    to be high

  걸어오다   -    to come by walking

  걸어가다   -    to go by walking

  초대하다   -    to invite

  단어   -    word

  문법   -    grammar

  울다   -    to cry

  발   -    foot

  바다   -    sea

  신문   -    newspaper

  고객   -    customer

 환영하다   -    to welcome

  부자   -    rich person

가난하다   -    to be poor

교육   -    education

기분   -    feelings

시험   -    exam

분   -    person (high respect form)

순서   -    turn

Lesson 18

원숭이   -    monkey

교과목   -    subject in school

교과서   -    textbook

소문   -    rumor

충전기   -    charger

청구서   -    bill

계산원   -    cashier

계산기   -    calculator

출장   -    business Trip

밥솥   -    rice Cooker

소설   -    novel

백과사전   -    encyclopedia

전공   -    major (in school)

가위   -    scissors

팀   -    team

부모님   -    parents

피부   -    Skin

군대   -    army

군인   -    soldier

지도   -    map

책상   -    desk

어깨   -    shoulder

백화점   -    department store

대학생   -    university/college student

중학교   -    middle School

가수   -    singer

공기   -    air

새벽   -    dawn

자르다   -    to cut

요청하다   -    to request

궁금하다   -    to be curious about

안타깝다   -    to be unfortunate

젖다   -    to be wet

주로   -    mainly, mostly

저쪽   -    that direction

내부   -    inside part

외부   -    outside part

Lesson 19

한식   -    Korean food

  양식   -    western food

  키   -    height

  별   -    star

 태도   -    attitude

월급   -    pay cheque

  도심   -    downtown (ㄷ...)

  시내   -    downtown (ㅅ...)

  추억   -    memory (ㅊ...)

 후보자   -    candidate

 라면   -    instant noodles (Ramen)

  주년   -    anniversary

  자세   -    body position/posture

  걱정하다   -    to worry

  씻다   -    to wash

확인하다   -    to confirm, to check

  모으다   -    to gather, to collect

 이야기하다   -    to talk with, to have a conversation with

수집하다   -    to collect

  추천하다   -    to recommend

  좁다   -    to be narrow

  넓다   -    to be wide

  특별하다   -    to be special

  게으르다   -    to be lazy

  편하다   -    to be comfortable (not ㅇ...)

  안락하다   -    to be comfortable (not ㅍ...)

  더   -    more

  덜   -    less

  가장   -    most (ㄱ...)

제일   -    most (ㅈ...)

  평소   -    usual

  여러   -    many/various (ㅇ...)

  옛   -    something old

  옛날   -    a long time ago

  옛사랑   -    old love

 옛이야기   -    old story

 옛길   -    old road

  닥쳐   -    shut up

Lesson 20

교수   -    professor

주인   -    master, owner, proprietor

  잘못   -    mistake, fault

  기온   -    temperature

  거울   -    mirror

가루   -    powder

  근육   -    muscle

  어둠   -    darkness

기본   -    basics

사고   -    accident

 교통   -    traffic

  잘하다   -    to do something well

 못하다   -    to do something poorly

 수영하다   -    to swim

대우하다   -    to treat somebody

  퇴직하다   -    to retire

  접수하다   -    to receive (usually an application)

  씹다   -    to chew

  통역하다   -    to interpret

  번역하다   -    to translate

젓다   -    to stir

늘리다   -    to gain, to improve, to increase (ㄴ...)

  빠지다   -    to fall into

빠져나오다   -    to escape, to come out of

빠져나가다   -    to escape, to go out of

늘다   -    to be gained, improved, increased

  둥글다   -    to be round

  헷갈리다   -    to be confusing (ㅎ...)

 어둡다   -    to be dark

  잘   -    well

  못   -    poorly

  님   -    adds respect to a person's name or position

  또는   -    or

  세   -    A counter for "years" of age (ends in vowel)

  꼭   -    surely

  물론   -    of course

이상   -    a noun to indicate that something is more than something else

Lesson 21

소식   -    news (not 뉴스)

  엄마   -    mom

  아빠   -    dad

결혼식   -    wedding

  우표   -    postage stamp

  신   -    God

  만화   -    comics, cartoons

  만화책   -    comic book

  예정   -    Schedule

  코딱지   -    booger, a small amount of something

  논   -    rice paddy

  낮잠   -    nap

  의견   -    opinion, feedback

  수입   -    income

  축복하다   -    to bless

사라지다   -    to disappear

  졸업하다   -    to graduate

입원하다   -    to check in to a hospital

  퇴원하다   -    to check out of a hospital

  이기다   -    to win

지다   -    to lose

  후회하다   -    to regret

  타다   -    to ride

즐겁다   -    to be pleasant

  부족하다   -    to not be enough, to be lacking

  간단하다   -    to be simple

  누구   -    who

  왜   -    why

  언제   -    when

  어디   -    where

역시   -    also

  미터   -    meter

  센티미터   -    centimeter

  몇몇   -    some (only used with people)

나중에 또 봐요   -    see you later

  벌써   -    already (not 이...)

  이미   -    already (not ㅂ...)

특히   -    especially

점점   -    gradually

Lesson 22

얼마나   -    how much

몇   -    how many

  뭐   -    what (adverb)

무슨   -    what (adjective)

  무엇   -    what (noun)

 어떤   -    which

어떤   -    some

  어느   -    which for places

어때   -    how was

대개   -    usually (not ㅂ...)

  바깥   -    outside (not ㅇ...)

  쯤   -    approximately

  계란   -    eggs

  자리   -    a seat, a place to put something

  중요성   -    importance, emphasis

 벌금   -    a fine

파일   -    file

로션   -    lotion

  습관   -    customs, habit

치마   -    skirt

  단계   -    step, phase, stage

짓   -    some sort of negative action

  차지하다   -    to occupy a space

수거하다   -    to collect, to come and pick up

찢다   -    to tear, to rip

  첨부하다   -    to attach (a file)

  다녀오다   -    to go and then come back

  예상하다   -    to expect

올바르다   -    to be correct (not 맞다)

  복잡하다   -    to be complicated (ㅂ...)

 짧다   -    to be short

 서로   -    reciprocally

 필독   -    must read

  며칠   -    how many days

퍼센트   -    Percent

Lesson 23

초록(색)   -    (the color) green

 보라색   -    (the color) purple

  연두색   -    (the color) light green

분홍색   -    (the color) pink

갈색   -    (the color) brown

회색   -    (the color) grey

 적색   -    (the color) red

셔츠   -    Shirt

눈   -    snow

눈보라   -    blizzard, snow storm

뉴스   -    news (not 소식)

전쟁   -    war

  작품   -    a piece of work

날짜   -    date

그릇   -    bowl

등   -    one's back (body part)

 손등   -    back of hand

 손톱   -    fingernail

독자   -    readers

부부   -    couple, married couple

변경하다   -    to change (four syllables)

  들르다   -    to stop by

내려오다   -    to come down

  내려가다   -    to go down

드러내다   -    to reveal, to show

  발표하다   -    to announce

드러나다   -    to be revealed, to be shown

 푸르다   -    to be sea blue

노랗다   -    to be yellow

빨갛다   -    to be red

 하얗다   -    to be white

  까맣다   -    to be black

  파랗다   -    to be blue

  섬세하다   -    to be delicate

송이   -    counter for “bunch” (bananas)

  종류   -    counter for a “type of thing” (ㅈ...)

  가지   -    counter for a “type of thing” (ㄱ...)

  그렇다   -    to be like that (ᄀ...)

 이렇다   -    to be like this

  저렇다   -    to be like that (ㅈ...)

Lesson 24

설탕   -    sugar

경찰관   -    policeman

  경찰서   -    police Station

구름   -    cloud

경쟁   -    competition

 경쟁자   -    competitors

피   -    blood

구두   -    shoes, boots (ㄱ...)

 목욕   -    bath

번호   -    number

전화번호   -    phone number

열쇠   -    key

수박   -    watermelon

  과자   -    candy, cookies

양복   -    suit

  날다   -    to fly

  걷히다   -    to clear up (in weather)

구경하다   -    to sight see

뒤처지다   -    to fall behind

  앞지르다   -    to pass, to overtake

 감독하다   -    to supervise

 느끼다   -    to feel

지우다   -    to wipe off, to erase

  두다   -    to put, set, place something

  달다   -    to be sweet

  깊다   -    to be deep

조용하다   -    to be quiet

뜨겁다   -    to be hot (not 덥다)

  차갑다   -    to be cold (not 춥...)

 친절하다   -    to be nice, to be kind (not 착...)

 전   -    before, ago

  직전   -    just before

  후   -    after, later

 직후    -   right after

  이래    -   since

 잠시    -   a moment

잠깐    -   a short time

 이내    -   within

 치우다    -   to remove, to clear away

Lesson 25

모든   -   every (ㅁ...)

모든 것   -   everything

  어디나   -   everywhere

 언제나   -   every time

  누구나   -   everyone

 뭔가   -   something

  어딘가   -   somewhere

언젠가   -   sometime, some day (ㅇ...)

  누군가   -   somebody

  아무나   -   anybody

  아무 거나   -   anything

아무 데나   -   anywhere

  아무 때나    -   anytime

 아무도    -   nobody

 아무 것도    -   nothing

  아무 데도    -   nowhere

마다    -   each

  모두    -   all (two syllables)

 다    -   all (one syllable)

 데    -   place (ㄷ...)

언제든지    -   anytime

  젓가락    -   chopsticks

 혀    -   tongue

 지갑    -   wallet, purse

 기숙사    -   dorm

  주소    -   address

 메뉴    -   menu

 아시아    -   Asia

  동남아시아    -   South East Asia

  눈물    -   tears

  회의    -   meeting, conference

  고향    -   hometown

  휴일    -   holiday (DAY)

  아기    -   baby, infant

  산책하다    -   to go for a walk

  사귀다    -   to go out with, to date

무관심하다    -   to be indifferent

  심하다    -   to be severe, to be extreme

  하루 종일    -    all day long

  예전    -   old days, past

 관심이 있다    -   to be interested in

  이때    -   at this moment

Lesson 26: Theme Lesson 1: School

학교   -    school

  학생   -    student

 선생님   -    teacher (three syllables)

교사   -    teacher (two syllables)

  담임선생님   -    homeroom teacher

  교장선생님   -    principal

 교감선생님   -    vice principal

  원어민 선생님   -    native speaking teacher

  과목   -    subject

  반   -    class (one syllable)

 수업   -    class (two syllables)

  교실   -    classroom

  교시   -    period

  1교시   -    first period

  2교시   -    second period

  시간표   -    timetable

  급식   -    the lunch served at school

  동아리   -    club

  시험   -    exam

  중간고사   -    midterm exam

  기말고사   -    final exam

  문제   -    problem/question

  질문   -    question

  방학   -    vacation

  초등학교   -    elementary school

중학교   -    middle School

  고등학교   -    high school

국립고등학교   -    public high school

  사립고등학교   -    private high school

  학원   -    after school private academy

 학년   -    grade

 학기   -    semester

  수능   -    Korean SAT

  수행평가   -    performance assessment

 가르치다   -    to teach

  배우다   -    to learn

  듣다   -    to hear

  이해하다   -    to understand

  이해가 안 되다   -    to not understand

  설명하다   -    to explain

  평가하다   -    to evaluate

시험을 보다   -    to take an exam

  채점하다   -    to mark or grade an exam

  방과 후 수업   -    after school class

학교 끝나고   -    after school

  수업 전에   -    before class

 수업 끝나고   -    after class

Lesson 27: Theme Lesson 2: Transportation

버스   -    bus

  정류장   -    stop/station

  버스 정류장   -    bus stop

  버스 기사   -    bus driver (not 아저씨)

  버스 아저씨   -    bus driver (not 기사)

  전철   -    subway (two syllables)

  지하철   -    subway (three syllables)

  역   -    station

위치   -    location

  길   -    street/road (one syllable)

 거리   -    street/road (two syllables)

  사거리   -    intersection

  교통카드   -    transportation card

  자리   -    a place to sit

  노약 좌석   -    a seat for the elderly and weak

  호선   -    line in a subway

  출구   -    exit of a subway station

  택시   -    taxi

  막차   -    last train/bus

  첫차   -    first train/bus

 가다   -   to go

  오다   -    to come

  만나다   -    to meet

  건너다   -    to cross (a road)

  내리다   -    to get off

  타다   -    to get on

  찍다   -    to scan a card

갈아타다   -    to transfer (ㄱ...)

  환승하다   -    to transfer (ㅎ...)

  데려다 주다   -    to bring a person to a certain point

길을 잃다   -    to be lost

  앉다   -    to sit

  충전하다   -    to recharge

  멈추다   -    to stop (ㅁ...)

  자리를 맡다   -    to save a seat for somebody

  놓치다   -    to miss (not 보... or 그...)

  빠르다   -    to be fast

 느리다   -    to be slow

  복잡하다   -    to be confusing (ㅂ...)

  오른쪽   -    the right side/direction

  왼쪽   -    the left side/direction

건너편   -    the opposite side

  반대로   -    the opposite direction

 여기   -    here

  거기   -    there (not 저...)

  저기   -    there (not 거...)

Lesson 28: Theme Lesson 3: Eating

김치   -    kimchi

  밥   -    rice

  반찬   -    side dish

  식사   -    meal

  물   -    water

 음료수   -    beverage

 맥주   -    beer

  소주   -    a type of Korean traditional alcohol 1

  막걸리   -    a type of Korean traditional alcohol 2

  콜라   -    cola

  사이다   -    cider

  고기   -    Meat

돼지고기   -    pork

  소고기   -    beef

  해물   -    Seafood

재료   -    ingredients

  국내산   -    some product/food from Korea

  식당   -    restaurant

  맛집   -    delicious restaurant

  젓가락   -    chopstick

  숟가락   -    spoon

  포크   -    fork

  접시   -    plate

그릇   -    bowl

in 91 days

탁자   -    table

  상   -    small traditional Korean table that folds out

  냄비   -    pot

  냉장고   -    refrigerator

  김치냉장고   -    kimchi refrigerator

  냉동실   -    freezer

 메뉴   -    menu

 먹다   -    to eat

  마시다   -    to drink

  요리하다   -    to cook

  따르다   -    to pour

  주다   -    to give

  주문하다   -    to order (ㅈ...)

  시키다   -    to order (ㅅ...)

  계산하다   -    to pay (4 syllables)

  내다   -    to pay for something (2 syllables)

 비싸다   -    to be expensive

  싸다   -    cheap

  배고프다   -    to be hungry

  배부르다   -    to be full (stomach)

  맛있다   -    to be delicious

  맛없다   -    not delicious

  짜다   -    salty

  느끼하다   -    greasy

  고소하다   -    nutty

  아침(식사)   -    breakfast

  점심(식사)   -    lunch

  저녁(식사)   -    dinner

Lesson 29: Theme Lesson 4: Shopping

가게   -    store, shop

 시장   -    market

  백화점   -    department store

  전통시장   -    traditional market

  슈퍼   -    supermarket

  편의점   -    convenience store

  책   -    book

  서점   -    bookstore

  돈   -    money

  현금   -    cash

  신용 카드   -    credit card

  체크 카드   -    debit card

  적립카드   -    point card

  할인   -    discount

  할인카드   -    discount card

  값   -    price (one syllable)

  반값   -    half price

  가격   -    price (two syllables)

  가격표   -    price tag

  옷   -    clothes

  바지   -    pants

셔츠   -    Shirt

  신발   -    shoes

  양말   -    socks

  모자   -    hat

기념품   -    souvenirs

  중고   -    used

  중고품   -    a used item

  보증서   -    warranty

  고객(님)   -    customer

  점원   -    worker at a store

 세금   -    tax

  쿠폰   -    coupon

  유통기한   -    expiration date

  영수증   -    receipt

  영업시간   -    open hours

  사다   -    To buy

  팔다   -    to sell

  되팔다   -    to resell

  내다   -    to pay for something (2 syllables)

  계산하다   -    to pay for (4 syllables)

  환불하다   -    to refund

비교하다   -    to compare

  장을 보다   -    to do the groceries

  적립하다   -    to save/accumulate

  입다   -    to wear

  입어보다   -    to try something on

  수선하다   -    to hem/fix clothes

  열다   -    to open

 닫다   -    to close

 비싸다   -    to be expensive

  싸다   -    cheap

저렴하다   -    inexpensive

 크다   -    to be big

  작다   -    to be small

  많다   -    to be a lot

 가능하다   -    to be possible

Lesson 30: Theme Lesson 5: Weather

날씨   -    weather

  기온   -   temperature

  공기   -    air

  비   -    rain

눈   -    snow

 바람   -    wind

  이슬비   -    drizzle

  눈바람   -    blizzard

  폭염   -    heat wave

장마   -    rainy season

 가뭄   -    drought

기후변화   -    climate change

  번개   -    lightning

  천둥   -    thunder

소나기   -    shower

  태풍   -    typhoon

  단풍   -    changing of the color of leaves in autumn

낙엽   -    fallen leaves in autumn

  황사   -    yellow dust that comes in the spring in Korea

  하늘   -    Sky

  구름   -    clouds

  해   -    sun

일교차   -    the difference in temperature within a day

  산불   -    forest fire

자외선   -    UV rays

  자외선 차단제   -    sun screen

  내복   -    long johns/long underwear

  우산   -    umbrella

  비옷   -    rain jacket

  겉옷   -    outer clothes

  바다   -    ocean

  해변   -    beach

기후   -    climate

  에어컨   -    air conditioner

난방   -    heating

  냉방   -    cooling/air conditioning

  치다   -    for lightning/thunder to strike

쌓이다   -    to be piled up

  오다   -    for rain/snow to come

  내리다   -    for rain/snow to fall down

  피다   -    for a flower to bloom

  지다   -    for the sun to set

  뜨다   -    for the sun to rise

  불다   -    for wind to blow

  틀다   -    to twist, turn, set (a machine) going

  끄다   -    to turn off

  덥다   -    to be hot (not 뜨...)

  춥다   -    to be cold (not 차...)

건조하다   -    dry

  따뜻하다   -    to be warm

  습하다   -    humid

  맑다   -    clear

  쌀쌀하다   -    chilly

  서늘하다   -    cool (ᄉ...ᄂ...)

  여름   -    summer

  겨울   -    winter

  가을   -    fall

  봄   -    spring

  영하   -    below zero

영상   -    above zero

Please contact me if you see any mistakes. Thanks for reading! 

[inkofamethyst]

May 16, 2019

Hello, I have just taken an html color quiz and I got: #B0E0E6 Powder Blue

Your dominant hues are green and blue. You're smart and you know it, and want to use your power to help people and relate to others. Even though you tend to battle with yourself, you solve other people's conflicts well.

So, uh, yeah!  That was fun!!

In other news I am very tired right now but I want to go to sleep early tonight so I’m determined not to get into the bed at any time before 8 pm so that I can get a full night’s rest.  Yes, that means that I’m going to watch Critical Role for the next three to four hours, how could you possibly tell?  Basically I’m forcing myself not to take a nap despite so desperately wanting one.  I stayed up really late last night to finish a truly ratchet English hat project for my final exam and it does not look great but it was reversible and that was the extent of my dream for it so I’m not completely disappointed.

So on Tuesday I had quite the day, actually.  It was my AP Calc BC exam (my last AP exam ever(!)) to begin with.  I felt really really confident about that multiple choice section, and then that free response hit and my confidence went way way down.  It’s not like it matters an awful lot because I’m going to retake the class at my university this fall anyway, but I still wanted to do good in it.  After the exam my Beyonce-friend and I were planning to go see Detective Pikachu but unfortunately we missed the only showing that would’ve worked with his schedule that afternoon so we just ate lunch at the mall and left.  (After that I took a nap when I got home.)

Then I woke up and had to get prepared for this thing called Class Night which is basically a semi-formal dinner/dance event for seniors only.  Everyone looked so nice and the pictures look so good and I was really feelin’ myself in my black and white striped jumpsuit, gold heels, burgundy liquid lipstick (which I did in my puzzle-friend’s car, mind you, while he was driving, and I still managed to get a fairly flawless look), and cute Forever-21 gold and fake-diamond earrings.  Real cute, I tell you.  The food (mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, mixed vegetables, chicken) was just okay, but I did win a prize and I got to see everyone glowing so I’d call the evening a success.  And then my puzzle-friend drove me home (I’m so glad he offered to drive (and it was his birthday too) because he’s such a better driver than me (not to mention more confident)) and we listened to his driving playlist which included Lindsey Stirling, La La Land, Hamilton, and more.  We had a grand time, and it really sucks that he won’t be going to the same school (though I’m really happy that he’s going to the school he really wants to go to and of course I wish him all the best).

And that was my Tuesday.  It was a good Tuesday, I think.

Today was a good day too.  I finished reading The Laramie Project which was really an interesting play.  My theatre class had an interesting conversation about the play a well as social justice issues including some debate relating to discrimination.  I didn’t really participate... I didn’t feel like the setting was right for me to completely express my viewpoints in a clear and concise manner.  Besides, I didn’t really want to debate.  Maybe it’s because I didn’t really feel like being forced to stand my ground or maybe I just didn’t find debate to be the healthiest way to conduct a conversation on the play.  I’ll leave that to the others in the class and keep my musings inside my own head.  I also found out that my theatre teacher is way more willing to express her liberal views in the classroom than I expected her to be, but I feel like that might just be a theatre teacher thing, I don’t know.

Though, I will say this in response to a classmate of mine: I don’t believe that discrimination will go away if we simply stop mentioning differences.  I know that a lot of people in the United States want to reach a certain level of equality for all, but there’s some contention about the best way to achieve this goal.  While I do believe that sometimes the media can be a little pushy about some seemingly meaningless social justice things, I do believe that awareness can be an effective way to shed light into pervasive ideas relating to discrimination that exist within our culture as Americans.  It’s like... it’s like a similar reason as to why I believe that history is so important to learn.  We have to learn about where we come from in order to move forward (on an almost completely unrelated side note, this can also be applied to African-American culture potentially, but that’s a conversation for another day).  We have to learn the complete truth about our past so that we can learn from it.  Erasing our differences now will only lead to an incomplete story in the future, potentially dooming the next generation to repeating our mistakes.  We don’t need to shove awareness for every social justice issue down the throats of Americans on a daily basis, but we should not erase the identities of others in the name of equality because that ain’t it.  Celebrate our differences because that’s what gives us our humanity, our spice of life.  

I believe that all lives do, indeed, matter.  That is a true statement.  However, I believe in the Black Lives Matter movement (we talkin’ in a general sense here; I don’t condone violence (though if we’re frank, we’ve grown up in a world where we’re taught that violence gets people’s attention and that you need attention to get results (check out the American Revolution’s Sons of Liberty because while they’re lauded in elementary school classrooms as heroes, they did some pretty terrible things, and maybe, oh I don’t know, think about all the wars that have happened throughout history and the violence that occurred to achieve almost any goal and how we literally learn about that in school for years and years in school (in America, at least)), so while I don’t support anyone who causes violence in the name of BLM, I find it difficult to put the blame entirely on them when the people who are supposed to be their role models aren’t so different (yes, I know these are adults that should be held responsible for their actions, I just want to point out that there are reasons, even if they’re subconscious, for these actions))) because it’s not saying that black lives matter more, it’s saying that black lives matter too, as I heard it explained in an Instagram video from Twitter.  In the paraphrased words of a Tumblr post that I found on Pinterest, people don’t go around shouting that all cancers matter when there’s an event for Breast Cancer or Lung Cancer awareness/fundraising.  That just ain’t a thing.  Why?  Because it’s a bit redundant.  We can talk about all cancers, sure, but it’s disrespectful to only bring up other cancers to discredit the idea that one individual type of cancer is devastating.  And finally, in the paraphrased words of my theatre teacher, firefighters don’t spray all the houses on a street with water when only one is on fire, because while, yes, all the houses matter, there is a house that is currently on fire and requires immediate attention, and the fact that the burning house should be equal to the other houses on the street is irrelevant in that moment because the other houses don’t need help.

Yes.  I did just analyze history to prove a point.  It’s just that this topic gets me so riled up (and I know that’s the problem; I need to learn how to keep my cool in a conversation on this topic) that I want to bring in the whole arsenal.  But before I end this post, I just want to draw attention quickly to the fact that the class was still dancing around the homosexuality issue a bit.  And maybe it’s because that’s (LGBTQ+ issues) still a relatively new issue in the legal arena, or because it hasn’t really been normalized in our lives as much as racial relations or gender inequality, or maybe because we, as a group, didn’t have much background information to reference on LGBTQ+ topics to we (and by “we” I mean the others in the class) slipped into referencing other groups who are discriminated against, or maybe it was another thing of a hundred things, but I just thought that it was interesting how it felt like the class skirted the issue sometimes until a person (...normally one of two people: the person in the class with gay parents or the person in the class who is very much invested into LGBTQ+ issues as an LGBTQ+ person themselves, or sometimes the teacher who was co-leading the discussion with another student) brought it up directly that Matthew Shepherd was gay and that his sexual orientation was a factor that led both to his death and to his fame as a... well... martyr of sorts for gay people.  But not really a martyr.  That’s not the right word because he didn’t really choose to die for what he believed in.  He died was killed for his sexual preferences, but to me martyrdom has the connotation of defiant choice.  Maybe that’s wrong and it’s just me, but I think he was turned into a martyr when really he was... he was just a kid, really.

And lastly, I would just like to say that word choice matters.  It’s important to think about what you say before you say it, not so that you won’t offend others, but so that you know that your message will be received as you would like it to be received.  Words are useless if they are misunderstood, and communication is one of our greatest tools, so we must use it wisely.  The classmate to whom I responded just now used some questionable word choice to express a (rather questionable, in my opinion) belief of his today, and it would have caused far less uproar if he had been more careful with his words.  Words have power (with their connotations and denotations and syntax and audience consideration and more), and I think that we sometimes forget that.

Phew, okay.

Today I’m thankful for the fact that I only have one real final left.  I don’t really have to study for any more finals except my chemistry one on Monday and then I’ve got a week of graduation rehearsals and other fun senior events as well as some really easy finals.  The end of this year is looking pretty good if I do say so myself.

Oh, and an update on things I was semi-stressed about before: the photo submission thing for the kente presentation ceremony wasn’t a big deal, and any other minor thing that I was stressing over also wasn’t all that big a deal either, so life’s looking pretty good right about now.

[healthbolt-blog]

New Post has been published on Health bolt

New Post has been published on https://www.healthbolt.net/healthy-delicious-food/

Healthy Delicious Food

Contents

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[pikespendragon67]

Late Birthday Present for writer-of-worlds!

Beginning Commentary: SO, my writing friend, @writer-of-worlds, had a birthday in April. I, however, was too caught up with schoolwork to do anything for them at that time. But now I have a few days off before summer school, I decided to make up for that. Happy late birthday~!

This is a modern AU I came up with a while ago…which was developed because I thought Kaze would look nice in a short-sleeved dress shirt and glasses. If this is interesting enough, I can elaborate more on this.

“You know, Kaze, you seem to be quite distracted today,” the older man with his teal hair in a messy ponytail commented, placing a pile of books down on the closest surface he could approach.

The younger man with the clean-cut yet still relatively long (for a man, that is) green hair, aged to be around his college years, blinked and freed himself from his daydreaming pose.

“Ah, my apologies, Sir,” Kaze quickly spoke, immediately snapping his attention to his boss. “I won’t let it happen again.”

“Come now, Kaze. I may be your employer, but I’ve also known you since you were a boy. If something troubles you, I’m open to chat with you. I’ve yet to reach the level of heartless CEO, after all.”

True, Yukimura’s book shop was still in its mom-and-pop phase of business; he only managed to open it around four years ago. How it was being slightly successful in the digital area is up to anyone’s guess, though.

“Very well,” Kaze sighed. “Corrin’s birthday is soon approaching and I still have no idea what to do for her. I tried buying tickets for one of her favorite bands, but they sold out the second they were released to the general public.”

“Ah, I see. Are there any other performances she might be interested in?”

“Unfortunately, no. …Unless she were somehow into polka music.”

Yukimura chuckled slightly before clearing his throat.

“And I’m certain you’re far past the phase of giving each other gift cards, correct?”

“If it were just a gift card, I feel she’d think I would break up with her. No, I want this to be special, Sir. We’ve been together for a few months now, with this being the first birthday of hers where we’re a couple.”

“In that case, don’t go too overboard so that you don’t scare her off. If you show too much dedication, she’ll think you’re obsessed with her. I’d say hold off on the very expensive gifts after a few years have passed, such as jewelry.”

“Well noted. Do you have any other suggestions?”

“Hm… How about a trip to the observatory run by Professor Izana? I’ve heard he’s quite a romantic, so a tale such as yours could easily get you in.”

Now it was Kaze’s turn to chuckle, a warm smile staying on his face afterward.

“That might actually work. Thank you so very much.”

“Not a problem. …Though, could you please return to work? I know this might be a slow day, but I still want us to be ready for customers.”

“Yes, Sir.”

Once work had finished, Kaze returned to his apartment complex building. Before he entered his own, though, a thought occurred to him.

Would the observatory be enough for her? I feel she should also get a material gift. …But what?

Kaze thinned his lips, but then decided to go three doors down to hear other opinions on the matter.

He gently knocked on the door, to which he was greeted by his four-year-old nephew Asugi.

“Hi, Uncle Kaze!” Asugi exclaimed.

Kaze smiled and got to the boy’s eye level, soon ruffling his black hair.

“Hello to you, too, Asugi.”

“Asugi, I told you not to open the door without asking who’s at it!” A woman with her long, black hair in a ponytail and bangs covering her face gently scolded him.

“I’m sorry, Mom…” Asugi pouted.

She sighed, but then paid attention to the man in question. “Oh, hello Kaze. Saizo won’t be home from the restaurant until later tonight.”

“Sorry to bother you, Kagero. I was actually hoping you could help me come up with a present for Corrin’s birthday.”

“Get her a bunch of candy!” Asugi exclaimed.

“Now now, we don’t want her to get cavities like you would,” Kagero smiled. “How about you go play in your room while I help your uncle?”

“Okay, but I hope I get candy for my birthday.”

With that, the boy closed the door, and Kagero offered Kaze a place to sit on the couch.

“Can I get you anything?” She asked in the small kitchen.

“No thank you, I’m fine,” Kaze replied.

And so, they sat opposite of each other.

“So, what do you need my help in?” Kagero asked.

“Has Corrin told you about anything she’s had her eye on? I assume Orochi must gossip about these sorts of things and you are her closest friend.”

“Then why not approach her?”

“She drains too much energy from me, if I’m being honest…”

“Yes, she does tend to do that. Let’s see… I believe last Tuesday she told me that she saw Corrin walk into Oboro’s boutique during her lunch break.”

“Interesting. …It’s not too expensive there, correct?”

Kagero held a laugh in.

“Fear not, Kaze. I’m sure you can afford her wares on your salary. After all, you don’t have to buy her a complete outfit.”

“Ah…yes. Good to know…”

“…You were planning on that, weren’t you?”

“N-no, of course not.”

He soon looked away from her to hide his embarrassment.

Kaze made note to thank his lucky stars, as the observatory was only fifteen minutes away from town. Professor Izana, although busy with his work, was surprisingly approachable and…quite eccentric.

He’s almost an exact clone of Orochi… Kaze remarked to himself.

As he told his story the good astronomer, Izana looked at him as if he were telling the juiciest gossip, and gasped at the end. He wholeheartedly agreed that Corrin should be treated to a night under the stars, and told Kaze he would clear everything up by next Saturday.

Kaze thanked him, but before he could leave, Izana asked him to go over whether he wanted a laser show or not.

At first, Kaze was confused as he entered the boutique. It was clearly made for women, and he had no idea which item Corrin solely focused on. What if he got her something she would think was ugly by accident? He was half tempted to call Kagero and ask her to go with him so she could give him her input, or to at least get Orochi’s number so he could talk with her about this.

The store’s owner, Oboro, herself eventually walked out to see what was wrong, and he explained his woes to the blue haired woman. She snickered, saying that men tended to be clueless about these sorts of things, but still offered her help. Oboro apparently recalled Corrin looking at a new black and white scarf, but told her that she couldn’t afford it yet.

Ah, now I see. This would match with her hair and favorite headband, Kaze thought.

Fortunately, Kaze actually had the money to purchase said scarf.

Corrin was the kind of girl who preferred sleeping in on the weekend, which made being a light sleeper sensitive to light and sound quite annoying. Such as the case when her phone buzzed on the nearby nightstand. She groaned and pulled her sheets over her head, further messing up her long, white hair, until she remembered:

OH, RIGHT! Today’s my birthday!

Birthday texts began flooding since last night at midnight, with the first sender being her mother of all people. With all the texts, though, Kaze had yet to message her. She was starting to get worried until she got a buzz.

you are free tonight yes?

Corrin squeaked. He was always so formal with her and she thought it was adorable.

yep~! ;3

Perfect. i’ll pick you up at 6. :-)

She had to remember that her cousin and roommate, Azura, was sleeping in the next room and to prevent screaming on the top of her lungs, she buried her head in her pillow and squealed. Corrin couldn’t really explain why she was as excitable as she was now. Normally, she felt more of a mature bond with her boyfriend of seven months, as she did her best to act her age around him, but today she felt like a high schooler all over again.

Azura had given Corrin an iTunes gift card for $50 along with a cute little card with an iguana on it before she had to head off for rehearsals. She received a Facetime chat with her “siblings” (family friend’s children) all the way in Nohr (in order: Xander, Camilla, Leo, and Elise) all wishing her a happy birthday before Xander had to leave for a business meeting. A few hours after breakfast and a quick shower, her stepsiblings of Hoshido (in order: Ryoma, Hinoka, Takumi, and Sakura) had coerced her to eating lunch with them and spending most of the afternoon in the local square.

“We wanted to plan a surprise party, but our restaurant has another party planned tonight,” Corrin’s red-headed older sister Hinoka sighed.

“Yes, one of our shareholders Anna decided to have a family reunion,” the man with the long, spiky black hair named Ryoma added.

“Nothing wrong with that, I’m glad I can spend time with you at all!” Corrin smiled.

Ryoma gave Corrin a commissioned painting of flowers, saying that Kagero had quite an eye when she was serious about her artwork. Hinoka presented a model aircraft, which at first confused everyone until Corrin told them that the two of them bonded over flight shows. Takumi did his best to act like he didn’t care when he gave his older half-sister a copy of the fourth book in The Illusionary Mages saga, one of their favorite series. And Sakura timidly gave Corrin a little pink plush dragon.

After doing some window shopping, Corrin had returned home to relax and continue reading birthday messages as she snacked away on her hidden junk food stash. Azura was a complete health nut, so she had to make sure she wouldn’t get any crazy ideas.

…Speaking of crazy ideas…

babe are we going to a fancy restaurant tonight? Corrin typed.

After a few minutes, a response appeared.

oh no i’m sorry :-(

Whew, I can eat before we go, then.

dont worry i still love you <3 we can hang out after this?

i would like that very much :-)

Corrin laughed to herself, he started typing with emoticons not too long after the two started dating and even after all this time, he was still doing the basics. She couldn’t wait to see how he would react to emojis.

A knock on the door was soon to be heard, and after doing some last minute touch-ups, Corrin took a deep breath and opened the door.

“HEY!” She exclaimed, soon launching herself into her boyfriend’s arms. Fortunately, Kaze was grounded well enough to not fall backward in this surprise attack.

“Happy birthday, dear,” Kaze said after sharing a short kiss and pressing his forehead against hers. “Are you ready to go?”

“Yep, let me just lock the door behind me. So, what do you have planned for tonight, hm?”

“That’s a surprise.”

“Ooh, this is gonna be good.”

Corrin bounced a little, which Kaze found utterly adorable.

Kaze once again made note to thank his lucky stars, as his roommate Silas had agreed to let him borrow the car for this occasion. Silas was a pleasant guy in general, but he was serious about his car. One time, someone scratched it and it took all of Silas’ willpower not to yell at the one responsible.

“Saizo wanted me to tell you happy birthday as well, as he’s busy at the restaurant tonight,” Kaze said as he opened Corrin’s door for her.

“Ah, okay. For a second there I thought he disliked me,” Corrin joked. “After all, Kagero and Asugi actually sent me a video with him not there.”

“He’s never been one for celebrations, if I’m to be honest.”

Because it was her birthday, Kaze allowed Corrin to listen to her favorite station. However, he still preferred a quiet car so he could focus more and be able to speak clearly without talking over whatever music Corrin was listening to.

“We’re heading out of town?” Corrin asked. “Oh gosh, oh gosh.”

Kaze chuckled a bit.

“Don’t worry, dear, I’m not planning anything malicious.”

“Kaze, you’re too sweet to do anything malicious. I’m just getting excited is all.”

“Ah, I see.”

“Plus you have to remember I’ve been taking that self-defense class.”

“I remember, poor Jakob had his back out for nearly three days when you demonstrated your prowess to me.”

Kaze made sure to park a little distance away from the observatory, as he wanted to surprise Corrin as much as he could. He wanted to have her eyes closed until they approached it, but anyone could see the observatory nearly a mile away with how big it was.

“I haven’t seen this place before,” Corrin said. “Is it new?”

Whew, the surprise isn’t completely ruined.

“It is for you,” Kaze smiled, once again opening Corrin’s door for her and holding his hand out for her to hold onto.

They approached the normal-looking doorway and into a slightly dark hallway. Kaze made sure to help Corrin up a spiral staircase, and they soon approached Professor Izana standing in front of his desk and a telescope.

“Welcome, welcome! I’m Professor Izana, but please call me Izana!” He eagerly shook Corrin’s hand.

“Oh, hello. I’m Corrin,” she laughed awkwardly. “Nice to meet you.”

“Very lovely to meet you, as well. Your boyfriend here wanted to make tonight extra special, so you must be quite the special little lady.”

“Uh, thank you…”

Kaze cleared his throat.

“Oh, right! We’re in for a real treat tonight, so please, head back downstairs and follow the light filled hallway to find your seats.”

“He sure is spontaneous,” Corrin whispered.

“Indeed,” Kaze remarked quietly. “Still a nice fellow, though. I promise.”

The two found their seats, which Corrin remarked was like a movie theater, and the dome ceiling slowly opened itself up. Corrin gasped as the night sky revealed itself, a very nice shade of navy blue mixed with a few lighter shades, clear of any clouds, and thanks to the lack of city lights, the stars could actually be seen.

“There’s so many,” Corrin said under her breath.

“Beautiful, aren’t they?” Kaze grinned as he held onto Corrin’s hand.

“They’re incredible!”

Corrin gasped once more when she noticed a shooting star. The first shooting star of that night, as it were.

“A meteor shower?! I can’t believe that the sky decided to give me a meteor shower for my birthday!”

Kaze was stunned, he certainly hadn’t planned for that to happen. He looked over to the window above him and noticed Izana giving him a thumb’s up.

Is this a special effect, then? Kaze thought.

“Oh, Kaze, this is wonderful!” Corrin exclaimed, soon wrapping her arms around Kaze’s shoulders and kissing his cheek in rapid succession.

“Well, I actually had another gift that I found the other day…” Kaze said as he tried to reach for the gift. Corrin halted after he spoke, and he managed to give her a small pink box with a black ribbon tied on it.

Corrin once again gasped (this must be a new record) as the black and white scarf appeared.

“OH MY… HOW DID YOU KNOW!?” Corrin squeaked.

“Let’s just say I had a friend to help.” Kaze pressed a small kiss on Corrin’s cheek this time. “Happy birthday, my love.”

Corrin felt like her heart could burst right out of her chest with how sweet Kaze was being. She immediately stood out of her seat and sat right on Kaze’s lap to wrap her arms around his shoulders once more and kiss him this time on the lips. …And repeated that action for a few minutes or so.

“Well now I have to find a way to make your birthday as special as this one,” Corrin spoke as she attempted to catch her breath.

“Honestly, you don’t have to…” Kaze blushed.

“But babe, you’re always such a sweetheart to me! Can’t I be a sweetheart to you?”

She gave him a big pair of puppy dog eyes and an overdramatic quivering lip. Kaze couldn’t help himself from laughing softly.

“Alright, I’ll let you do that. But just to let you know, I’ve always thought you were a sweetheart.”

[benvironment]

Devilla Forest - a bit of a gem

Just after Hogmanay we had a run of subzero days here in Fife, the first such weather we’d seen in almost four weeks. While it mightn’t have been snowy I wasn’t going to pass up the chance to see the landscape in a white cloak of any description, so on a freezing cold January morning I dusted down my mountain bike and headed off to Devilla Forest in Fife.

The air in the forest was absolutely calm, and a frigid temperature of -6C had allowed beautiful hoar frost to develop on the surfaces and for the lochs to freeze over. The scene was set for an exquisite 21km pedal around on two wheels, snapping away with my camera at every turn. 

In this blog I’ve posted some of the pics I took that morning but, before we get to those, I thought I’d give you a bit of background to Devilla and my previous explorations of this enigmatic place.

I’d lived in Fife for several years before I even visited Devilla. I was prompted to do so when I was commissioned by Scotland Outdoors to write an article about the hidden treasures of Fife.

It occurred to me that I probably wasn’t even aware of most of said treasures and I therefore asked the question of the great Scottish public. What ARE Fife’s hidden treasures? Devilla was one of the responses on Twitter (thank you again to David from Alloa!) and so on a beautiful spring day I cycled all the way from Dunfermline (on the 11 mile traffic-free cycle way) and spent most of the day exploring the forest on my bike. 

I was cycling around for hours, happily getting lost as I explored the labyrinth of trails. Devilla is a Forestry Commission site covering 700 hectares so it’s not huge by any stretch of the imagination, but the forest roads are distributed evenly throughout the entire site, and there are innumerable informal paths all over the place:

I’ve revisited the forest half a dozen times since then, on every occasion trying to cover as much ground as possible without covering the same ground twice.

My GPS tracker plots my route when I get home, and no two visits show the same paths being ridden. I always end up missing some out. The simple reason for this is the staggering number of trails, formal or otherwise. No matter how hard I try, even as my knowledge of the place expands I seem incapable of covering every path in the forest in the course of one visit...and I know that there are loads of paths I’ve not yet gone down. 

Devilla rewards repeat visits as it always seems to churn up something new. Furthermore it is crammed full of history, ranging from prehistoric coffins and stone circles, to boundary stones and plague graves. Hiding away among the trees are gravestones, a mausoleum, drystone walls, wooden carvings, an old ice house and WW2 buildings. 

Some of these things you can  just happen upon by accident but the site has been extensively documented by local historians, whose fantastic unofficial maps of Devilla and its features can still be found dotted around the forest at key locations:

My tip for you, should you visit and should you encounter one of these maps, is to take a photo of it and carry it around with you on your phone/camera. It’s a great map anyway with all the historical features marked out, but the Forestry Commission map at the main entrance doesn’t show the whole site nor does it show the smaller paths. Plus of course you are likely to get temporarily lost without a map in your pocket!

Happily, though Devilla is a managed pine / spruce / larch plantation that was mostly planted in the 1950s, the site was established a sufficiently long time ago that it avoids that depressing claustrophobic feel that blights so many modern forests. Forestry as in industry at Devilla apparently dates back to the 1730s, and if you explore the red squirrel trail around Bordie Loch you’ll see this lovely photo of Fife forestry workers at a local sawmill in 1913:

Bordie Loch is just one of four beautiful lochs at Devilla, and regardless of where I go or how much ground I am trying to cover when I visit, I always make a point of visiting all of them. Each one is very different in character and a route that takes in all four is recommended......on a bike, certainly. But you could just as easily walk the trails too. Here’s how those lochs look in the summer and autumn:

Peppermill Dam:

Bordie Loch:

Keir Dam:

Moor Loch:

They’re all gems, I’m sure you’ll agree? And they’re buzzing with wildlife too.

Naturally there is considerably less ‘buzzing’ in winter, but the forest’s charms remain through the colder, darker months, especially on those beautiful blue-sky frosty days.....which brings us back to the present.

On my January bike ride I set off from the car park at sunrise, and got to see the golden light streaming through the forest on my way to Bordie Loch: 

As I stood taking that photo I heard something large and heavy crashing through the undergrowth. A roe deer, fleeing the early morning dog-walkers.

At Moor Loch I took the perimeter path and stumbled upon a festive holly bush that someone had decorated with tinsel and battery-powered lights. An unexpected sight that first made me smile and then made me wonder whether whoever put it there was going to come back and get it once Christmas was over.

On the loch’s eastern edge the rushes were rising into the morning sunshine like sausages on sticks. Gloriously warm in the sun, freezing cold in the shade.

At Moor loch’s northern edge I stopped at a well-worn gap in the rhododendron and snapped a photo across the open water. This was my first visit in the depths of winter and it was surprising just how bare the loch looked in comparison to the summer, when there is no open water to be seen:

Onwards, past old stone walls....

....to Peppermill Dam - the largest of the four lochs. Completely frozen on this day.

Even though the sun was blazing through unblemished skies, white frost stubbornly adorned every tree and every blade of grass.

Pointed and sharp, but even breathing on the ice crystals brought about their destruction:

I lingered longest, and indeed usually do linger longest, at Keir Dam. Hidden away off the main trails it’s a lovely sun trap, but in all my visits I have never seen anyone else here: 

On the fringes of the loch, the woody skeletons of summer growth sparkled against the dark forest interior. The sun didn’t seem to be making much headway in melting the heavy frost:

Indeed, when I arrived back at the car park some hours later the water in my bottle had frozen.

I was buzzing, so headed out for one last circuit of Bordie Loch before heading home. As always it had been a convoluted route within a relatively small space, but at no point did it feel like I was running out of options or risking getting bored. My only real motivation for finishing when I did was my stomach demanding food.

There’s no visitor centre or cafe at Devilla but there is a farm tea room / called the Walled Garden, which is a couple of kilometres up the forest road on the eastern edge of the forest. It is signposted from the A985 and is, frankly, fantastic. I stuffed myself silly with soup, sandwiches, scones AND cake the first time I happened upon it, as I was exhausted from hours exploring the forest. It’s the perfect lunch spot to split your ride/walk up or to reward yourself after your exertion. Personally I like to visit it AFTER I’ve ridden Devilla’s trails and before I ride the 7 miles back along the old railway to Dunfermline. One word of caution though. TAKE CASH! They have no card machines at the cafe. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays.

For more information on Devilla and some of the way marked trails, download the Forestry Commission leaflet.