#also bad article on a bad site. boo.

[wetmopmob]

um. those aren’t exactly the reasons…

[petit-papillion]

Charles after crash/orange fans : I think most especially at the back were pretty nice to Charles. I’ve seen a video where they cheer.

But I think Zandvoort feels like it’s not a great place to be if you’re not max (the way they treat Lewis / women if I remember correctly might be the worst of the season). A shame …

I think there needs to be a distinction made among the Orange Army. There are fans who love F1 and are there to see the race. And then there are "fans" who are there for the party atmosphere, the drinking, and yes, some are really just there to cause trouble. Similar to what you have with football.

I'm sure there are people from both groups who get a little overly supportive for their favorite driver, and hateful towards anyone they view as Max's rival (mostly Lewis, but probably also Charles and potentially others). Booing, whistling, and shouting insults at your rival seems to be a normal thing in many sports, although I never understood why that should be a thing. After all, what good is your team's, or in this case, driver's victory, if there aren't worthy opponents to compete against?

But my guess is that it is the latter group who are far more belligerent, insulting, or downright abusive towards women/non-Max fans/drivers not called Max. I read an article a few days ago that talked about how there are groups of men who stay at the camp sites. They buy crates of beer and drink all day, starting at 8 in the morning. For 4 days they are drunk, often even missing the race altogether. And it's these types of men who (verbally and sexually) harass women attending the race and generally make a nuisance of themselves.

I do feel bad for those people who are just there to enjoy the racing and behave like decent human beings, who are being lumped in with those who behave like freaking morons.

[pizzasteveofficial]

ugh

no u know what Im pissed. I got back into the SCP foundation cuz of Dr Bob so Ive been perusing old articles. They redid Clef's daughter to literally just be Noelle from Deltarune which I guess is ok cuz the original article was weird and uncomfortable but I was able to work with the material. I can still work on the material but they fuckin linked this new article to this called "The Tombstone of Alto Clef" which was published in 2019, the same year where in the beginning of the year the DJ Kaktus obsessed circlejerk crowd booed me off the site because "ethics" (since when did SCP care about ethics????). So in response to me wanting to give Dr. Clef a happier life in the foundation, they just straight up kill him off. Fuck y'all. And they stripped Jack Bright of all character he even fuckin had in the story and kept everything a "big fucking mystery oooh" no fuck y'all that writing is abysmal, stupid, makes no fucking sense given Dr Alto Clef is a goddamn reality bending and warping anomolous entity he isnt even fuckin human and u kill him off? Nah fuck y'all new SCP circle jerk shit sucks ass and when I do my DND campaign Im cherry picking everything cuz FUCK the current moderation staff like I hate all of you. Half of you for bullying me off the site cuz I dared question why a new writer's fanfiction is not allowed but their own fanfiction fucking is. And half of you for having limp dick syndrome in denying my request to have everything deleted so I couldnt be associated with y'all anymore. All of you collectively ruined the fucking SCP foundation and now I have to fix it off site in a DND campaign because you guys think circle jerking yourselves and stroking your own egos is more important than actually nurturing creative writing. Im not saying my stories are perfect or whatever but Im not some idiot that doesn't know how to write like I excelled in all creative writing courses Ive ever taken as well as other writing courses because I do know how to write I do have talent but because I don't cater to men jerking themselves off I get accused of shit they do all the fucking time. Cant have a psychiatrist date a patient cuz it breaches ethics but we can have Donald Trump be an SCP and have Dr Bright scream about how he shit his pants. And we can have a reality warping entity die in the line of duty thru "mysterious circumstances TM" like hes some fragile human bitch. No fuck y'all everything y'all write is bullshit and has always been bullshit you should be ashamed of even moderating the site. Step down cuz y'all don't even know how to run a creative writing website. Stop ruining everything. Make your own circle jerk corner and circle jerk yourselves to death in there instead and give SCP back to the people who actually like to have fun. Fuck y'all all to hell especially ONE PARTICULAR CUNT I WONT NAME but you probably know who you are.

also before anyone gets it twisted I don't hate Kaktus. He's a fucking dickhead but I respect him as a writer. It's the moderation team that all suckle his dick that I have a problem with. To the point that he can produce subpar shit and its fine because the moderation team is taking turns deepthroating him. Which is sad because he's a talented writer but they don't nurture that when they worship him like a god instead of treating him like a human and actually helping him create amazing stuff rather than just "I can do whatever I want!!!!"

Also if anybody from the moderation team contacts me I will be blocking you because I don't wanna hear what you have to say. Y'all suck period end of story justifying yourself or insulting me won't change my opinion of how fucking bad you suck and how fuckin bad you ruined the site. I hate you!!!!! and I get any anons on this too deleted. I just wanted to say my piece because for years your bullying fucked up my mental health and I have been unable to write anything because of you!!! I will be changing that hopefully soon when time allows, but fuck you!!!! I hate you SO fucking much and I want it to be known that I detest the moderation on SCP and your writing is dry, stupid, don't make no goddamn sense, and boring AF and you're making that the standard for the site. Fuck off 🖕🏻🖕🏻🖕🏻🖕🏻

[its-only-v]

Prophecies

A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned that I was dying for more urban fantasy after binging Wolf Like Me from Peacock. Looks like someone heard me because there's more content. And it’s… something.

Chances are, you haven’t heard of this show. I hadn’t before I started watching this. There’s only what look like press releases posted online and the most detailed article only has the barest minimum research behind it that doesn’t even line up (more on that later). Peacock is terrible at marketing its new shows so here I am doing their job for them. You’re welcome, streaming company that somehow lost a billion dollars (???).

Supernatural Academy (2022- )

I liked the animation style of Supernatural Academy enough to give it a try and here we are. And it does deliver - there’s so much potential for fantasy in animation and it takes full use of the medium.

Supernatural Academy takes place mostly at an academy of supernatural creatures. Jessa and Mischa are wolf shifters and dragon marked twins - in a world where dragon marked are sent away to live in cloisters because a prophecy foretells they will lead to the rise of the wicked dragon king. Their parents hid away their dragon marks, but now their secret threatens to be exposed.

It’s full of your classic YA fantasy tropes - chosen ones, a strict headmaster that may or may not be evil, chosen ones, a supernatural world hidden from the human world - where smartphones don't work conveniently enough, prophecies, students sneaking away to do dangerous things that can get them killed, evil king (dragon, this time) that wants to destroy the world. But just because it has a lot of tropes doesn’t make it bad. The 20-ish-minute episodes are gripping enough to binge and there are 16 episodes of this.

There are even unexpected twists and the show goes much darker than you’d think. Stakes are high - death is not unavoidable, which, by the way, most media of this kind stays away from and come off feeling too safe.

It’s also refreshingly modern and inclusive. You wouldn’t think inclusive fantasy is that big of a deal but when supporting the biggest fantasy franchise geared children and teens becomes iffy because of the creator, you want better things to, if not take its place, exist alongside it. The two lead sisters and Latinas, their friend group (“pack”) is racially diverse, and has a nonbinary fae who is in fact voiced by Ali Eisner who are non-binary themselves. And all of these are all fully-formed characters and accepted for who they are. There are even characters of different sexual orientations who are not just queer-coded.

Now, on to the bizarre things I found while digging into where this show comes from that have nothing to do with the rec but is still something I couldn’t keep to myself.

The show says it’s based on books by Jaymin Eve and I was willing to check it out, even if it was for a younger audience. But it turns out, Supernatural Academy is a rare case of an adaptation that is somehow original by improving upon the original? I did some digging and it’s not what Polygon claims it is - “a tween cartoon from a steamy romance series”. Granted, it does share the name with Jaymin Eve’s book series that describes itself as “sexy urban fantasy book series” on her site. BUT it doesn’t have much else from it except for maybe the setting. The show is much closer to Eve’s other series, Supernatural Prison (I can see why they might have changed the name) whose first title is Dragon Marked. Why could they not just name the show that? But Jessa’s pack in the books is made up of four guys with a reverse harem-ish situation going on in the words of one reviewer - Braxton (dragon shifter), Maximus (vampire), Jacob (fey) and Tyson (wizard). In the show? Braxton and Max are still there, but Jacob is Jae and Tyson is Tessa, a witch. I like Jae and Tessa as they are in the show and I couldn’t imagine them otherwise, it’s definitely a good change. And that’s just what I found without having read the books.

With that said, I’m definitely into this show. I’d watch more of it. If only they made these longer episodes instead of forcing the showrunners to make them shorter to fit more ads. It’s not cable!

Until next time,

V

[arlingtonpark]

2020 Election Night Survival Guide

Hey, everyone!

It’s Halloween night, but the scariest night of the year is going to be in a few days on Election Day.

Since everyone’s wetting themselves over this, here’s a quick survival guide for Election Night.

Part I. The State of Play

In the United States, political authority is shared between three institutions: the President, the Senate, and the House of Representatives. Elections for all three will be occurring on Election Night 2020.

The President is elected by the Electoral College. Each state is given seats in the College based on the size of their Congressional delegation.

Candidates for President put forth a slate of candidates to represent their state in the College, which voters choose by popular vote.

This system was chosen because a national popular vote was not possible at the time. 

As of now, Joe Biden is almost certainly going to win the election. He is polling ahead in every state Barack Obama won in 2012 except Ohio and Iowa, and is liable to win Arizona and maybe even Georgia. This will give him a comfortable victory. 

The Senate is composed of two Senators for every state. One third of the body elected every two years for a total term of 6 years for any one Senator. 

The current crop of Senators was last elected in 2014, a very good year for Republicans. 

It was not expected, though, that Democrats could undo those gains since they were made by Republicans wiping out Democrats in Louisiana and Arkansas, and other similar states.

Democrats used to have a strong presence in those states, but that presence was wiped out in the Obama years.

Republicans didn’t make those gains in swing states, but instead in state’s whose voters switched allegiances. It was hard to see Dems making a comeback.

A lot has changed though.

States like Arizona, Texas, Georgia, South Carolina, and even Kansas are competitive now. This was unthinkable in 2014.

Dems have made gains of their own in these states among suburban voters. These people are generally white collar workers who are better educated than average. And they are repulsed by Trump’s basic indecency.

The Dems are now widely expected to win a majority of the Senate -- possibly even a comfortable majority.

The House is composed of 435 Representatives who’re elected every two years. 

The dynamics are the same as the Senate: Dems are gaining in the suburbs, and Republicans are gaining among blue collar workers. 

The Dems took over the House in 2018 and they’re expected to increase that majority by 10 seats or so. 

Part II How to Handle Election Night

Assuming you want to watch the election returns come in live, here’s how to best do it.

Firstly, do not watch the TV news coverage before the actual vote counting starts. 

It’s all drivel and you’ll annihilate your brain watching it.

It’ll mostly be padding to fill up time and make it seem like a lot is happening when not much is.

As well as pundits trying to divine the meaning of this election before it’s actually happened.

And lots of bemoaning of how we can’t all just get along. With no one even trying to think of solutions. 

Don’t waste your time.

You should use the time before the polls close to get up to speed on what the candidates stand for, and how various scenarios might affect you.

To the extent you can stomach such speculation.

Vox is a great news source with a great series of articles on Biden’s platform.

Here.

President Trump...he has no platform.

Literally.

It’s just a copy-paste of the 2016 one. 

Of course, a lot depends on the congressional elections, and I’m not going to get into the nitty-gritty of that here.

There are elections for various governorships up, but you can ignore them, unless it’s your governor up for election. 

The governor of any state that isn’t yours only matter if they’re likely to run for President in a few years. 

There are also some high profile local elections going on.

To varying extents, Dems are hoping to expand their power in Arizona, Michigan, Texas, and North Carolina.

Republicans are hoping to do the same in Wisconsin.

Arizona, South Dakota, New Jersey, and Montana are holding referenda to legalize marijuana.

Oregon will be voting on legalizing mushrooms and decriminalizing all other drugs. 

California has a number of referenda on the ballot regarding rent control, criminal justice, and labor laws.

Florida will be voting to raise the minimum wage to $15, potentially the ninth state to do so.

In any event, feel free to make a party of it.

Order a pizza, have snacks out, beer. Whatever you want. I’d urge you to invite friends over, but, you know...

You can turn the TV news on at 6pm if you like, but I recommend you leave it on in the background and not pay close attention until 8pm. 

I also recommend choosing which network to watch based solely on which one has the most gimmicky, over the top presentation. 

TV news has zero value to you aside from providing real time, unprocessed information. 

Leave the game play analysis to the internet.

Have a laptop open if you have one. Otherwise have a computer handy.

I recommend having three tabs open.

One for the New York Times’ live election night interactive. You know those touch screen displays the networks have their election nerds using to show the state of the race as votes are counted?

The NYT’s interactive is that, but all to yourself.

I also recommend reading the accompanying article explaining how the interactive works. It’s pretty cool what programmers can do these days. 

Lots of news sites will have online interactives, though. Choose whatever you like, but the NYT’s is generally the best. 

The second tab is for Twitter. Twitter is the best place to be for real time analysis. I’ll have a twitter list available for you to use if you like.

The people on this list fall into one of three categories.

The first are the election nerds. These people are adeptly familiar with the United States’ political geography and can tell which side is winning before all the votes are counted.

The second are the pundits. 

Smart ones, mind you.

Political scientists and commentators. I made sure to get a mix of liberal, conservative, and moderate voices. Obviously they provide the commentary on the nerds’ analysis. 

The third and final are a couple of joke accounts for laughs. PixelatedBoat, originator of the milkshake duck meme and the Gorilla Channel hoax, is in there, as is President Nixon’s Twitter impersonator. 

The final tab is for a good quality liveblog. I recommend 538′s, but again, most news sites will have liveblogs going, it’s just that 538 usually has the best one. 

Lastly, as races get called, don’t be afraid to cheer or boo. Election day is pretty sterile, which is a shame because it used to be very rowdy and frenetic. By all means, be emotional.

You’re free to call it a night whenever you want, but there’s no point in carrying on past 1am, so I’d recommend stopping there.

There aren’t any exciting races on the west coast, and California is notoriously bad at vote counting, as they are at ALL things involving government, so the outcome of those races won’t be known for a while. 

Part III The Known Unknowns

Now comes the stuff everyone is panicking over.

Is this the end of democracy?

Eh, probably not.

In theory, Trump could successfully steal the election, but only if it’s a close race.

It’s not a close race.

There is no way for Trump to steal the election. Not through excluding mail ballots, not through the courts. There just isn’t one. 

The Supreme Court won’t help Trump unless they think they can get away with it, but the recent confirmation of Barrett to the Court has put them on notice, and that will restrict what they can do. 

Trump could contest the results by asking Congress to certify his slate of electors as legitimate over the electors the voters chose, but that’s not an issue if Dems control the House. 

That’s really it.

There’s no other way for Trump to win even if he loses the Electoral College.

Even recent buzz about late arriving mail votes not counting probably won’t amount to much.

Most of the people mailing their ballots in late are actually Republicans lol ^^.

Here are some issues to actually look out for:

Trump thugs policing polling places. Voter intimidation is illegal. If someone is intimidating you, report them. 

Hoax ballot stuffing. Don’t be surprised if people fake fraudulent voting to juice Trump’s claims of a rigged election. Treat such allegations with caution.

Violent unrest is unlikely to happen even a little bit, but I won’t be surprised if there are at least some isolated incidents.

While there is some risk, I actually think the danger is overhyped.

The likeliest outcome of this election has always, always been that Biden cakewalks to Inauguration Day. 

Even the talk about not knowing the winner on election night might have been all hype.

Florida, despite its reputation, is actually very good at counting ballots, and the winner of the state should be known on election night. 

A lot can be extrapolated from this, and some news sites might call the race just off of that. 

If who won Florida isn’t known on election night, then you can start panicking. 

Trump will definitely fume about if he loses, but if the outcome is clearly in Biden’s favor, it’ll just be hot air.

It shouldn’t surprise you to know that if Trump loses, he will make no effort to shepherd a economic bailout bill into law in the time between the election and his formal exit from office.

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.

Also Trump. 

Trump himself has openly floated the idea of fleeing the country if he loses.

He’s over $200 million in debt and will have to sell most of his assets to pay it off. He also faces prosecution for various crimes he committed before and during his presidency.

If he does, he’ll probably try to brand himself a fallen hero in exile, and live off of his supporter’s Patreon donations or whatever. 

Oh, yeah, and the rallies. Trump is planning to keep holding his rallies even after the election, even if he loses, even as the plague is ravaging and the economy is in the toilet.

Don’t be surprised if his supporters are completely blind to the utter failure of leadership in that.

Let’s see, what else to cover...

I guess that just about covers it.

Have fun, kids!

[spideymybucky]

A thing for Co-stars

Pairing: Tom x reader ,Zendaya x Tom 

Warnings: fluff and angst, just cuteness!!!!

Word count: 1.4+

A/N: Well, thanks for reading and this came to me because idk. Things happen and my brain is weird. Y’all like it? Would you like more? My request are open cause im bored, so blow me up babes! 

Tom Holland wasn’t expecting any of this to happen. He wasn’t expecting his life to turn into a whirl wind of events, red carpets, paparazzis, or just being put into the spotlight so fast. He  also wasn’t expecting to fall in love with (Y/n) (Y/l/n), while being in a ‘relationship’. He felt as if everything was sleeping right out of his hands.

He sat on the white high chair with Clair, the make up artist, retouching his foundation. He looked at his phone, reading the article published by one of the gossip sites. Tom Holland and Zendaya called it quits? Read the headline. He bit his lip as he scanned over it. It seems as if  Tom Holland, Spiderman himself, might have cheated on Zendaya with his new co-star (Y/n) (Y/l/n). Talk about drama. They were seen walking out of a restaurant together. An insider said “Tom has never felt this way before. He truly is broken, he doesn’t know who to choose.”

He threw his phone on the counter and sighed. He wasn’t ready for this side of fame. Nothing was supposed to come out of to co-stars eating together. His gut said it was a bad idea, even (Y/n) said that, but he ignored every sign and insisted. He just wanted a bit of time with her.

“Mate, stop stressing about it. I already sent a statement to PR and they’re gonna deal with it.” Harrisons stated. He nodded and looked at the mirror.

“Well, love, you’re all done here. Tell (y/n), if she needs a retouch to come to me. Sara’s gone for the day, you know an emergency or something.” Her crooked smile was something that made every ones day. She was like a mother hen to all the actors.

“Sure, Clair.” He answered smiling. Harrison followed him to the set. It wasn’t a big production, but it was highly anticipated for its cast. He read his scene, taking notes from Guillermo, the director until he had to leave. He looked around, not seeing much of the cast here. He was sure the he had scenes with her, but she was nowhere to be seen.

“(Y/n)’s gonna be late, so we’re gonna shoot the shot/reverse shots first without her and continue with the 23rd scene followed by the 2 and 4 scene, ok?” Guillermos’ thick latin accent  noticeable more then ever. The crew members nodded and started arranging the set. All the house scenes were to be done this after none, and later they had to fly to Thailand to continue.

Filming continued for the next few hours, it was hard doing everything alone. He didn’t have his co-stars input or how he should act. Guillermo called it quits, unsatisfied with the 23 scene after two hours. He wasn’t angry, just annoyed by waste of time. He looked down at his clock and it was 8:30 pm. He sat on his designated chair with a snack on his hand, and looked through his phone. More articles were being released, his name was trending and it annoyed him.

“Well, if it isn’t my cheating boyfriend.” A feminine tone came from behind him. He turned around and saw Zendaya smiling.

“Hey, Z, What’ya doing here?” Tom spoke with his mouth full of bread.

“Gross, Holland.” Daya, scrunched her nose in disgust. He laughed and swallowed, almost choking.

“Sorry, sorry. Forgot how lady-like you are.” Zendaya rolled her eyes and sat next to him.

“Well, Tommy boy I’m here to relive you of your guilt.” Tom looked confused at Zendaya.

“What are you talking about, Z?” He asked confused out of his mind.

“I talked to your manager and we’ve decided to release a statement about our break up, and how its been a year and a half or something like that since then.” She showed him everything, how it was going to go down and it was going to be posted on both their instagrams. He looked at her with hopeful eyes, feeling better than ever. It was a weight lifted of his shoulders.

“Z, you didn’t have to do that. I know how private you are in all of this. I-Thank you.” Tom mumble out as he engulfed her into a hug. A high pitched laughter interrupted their hug, as Tom pushed Zendaya a way. He looked at the door to find (Y/n) laughing at her phone. She looked up and caught Tom’s honey-brown eyes. She then averted them and saw Zendaya next to him, her eyes wide with intrigue.

“I’m guessing thats her.” Zendaya mumbled, slightly showing Tom. He nodded and sighed.

“Yeah” he whispered out.

“You sure do have a thing for co-stars, don’t you?” Zendaya humorously said. He glared at her.  Why is he so unlucky? He thought. (Y/n) stood in front of them with a tight lip smile. Her eyes roamed from Zendaya to Tom. They looked close, like any couple would, and happy.

“Hey, Uh…” She whispered out, scared her voice would betray her.

“Hey, I’m Zendaya but my friends call me Daya or Z, or ya’know, you can call me Zendaya. Its up to you. ” With her hand out, (Y/n) grabbed and shook it. Dayas’ big smile plastered on her face as (Y/n) was to scared.

“Yeah, I know. I’m a big fan of your work. I’m (Y/n).”

“Thanks, boo. Me too, I’m a fan. I loved you in Captive.” Her warm smile made (Y/n) guilt grow. She nodded, forcing herself to smile and act as if nothing happened that night-which nothing did, except some glances here and there.

“I just wanted to clear the air and say nothing happened that night. Tom and I were just having dinner, after a long day and Paparazzi were there. I should’ve known it was to risky, I didn’t want to cause any problems. You and Tom make such-” Zendaya burst out laughing, making (Y/n)s’ rant cut short. Tom smiled lightly and nudged Z.

“No no no no, we aren’t-I mean we were but now- its”

“What Tom’s trying to say is that we aren’t together.” She motioned at both of them. “We were an item but its over now, he’s just one of my best friends.”

“Oh, ok.” She sighed in relief and smiled at them. “I should get going, Guille’s kind of mad at me.” She slowly hugged Zendaya and smiled at Tom before retrieving. Tom looked at her go, slipping away from him again and he sighed. Why was he such a dork? Can’t he just talk to her and not make it awkward?

Zendaya on the other hand looked at both of them. (Y/n) was stealing glances at Tom, every no and then. Her eyes full of love and hope, but with every small glance a bit of hope decade. Thomas, on the other hand, was trying his hardest to push down his feelings and ignore (Y/n). He acted as if nothing happened, with a broody look on his face. He was stealing glances too, both of them oblivious.

“You shouldn’t just stay there staring at her. Go on and ask her out before that wannabe Zac Efron does.” Zendaya winked at him. She grabbed her coat and slipped it on. Tom stood up next to her, falling a few feet short.

“Yeah, I know. I know.” He said hugging her.

“Get on it Thomas, cause she’s gorgeous and if I were her I wouldn’t wait for you to get your shit together.” She smiled and waved at him, leaving him speechless.

She was right, though. He had to talk to her, tell her how he felt and how everything went down that night. He didn’t mean to make her feel uncomfortable or put her in any kind of situation where she was affected. He needed to do it before anyone else got to her. She was gorgeous and talented, how can someone not like her? Licking his lips he stood up and walked to her.

(Y/n) looked at him and smiled. She set better after what Zendaya said. He was free, no relationship attached to him, and that made her revaluate her relationship with him. She was attracted to his innocent smile, his puppy dog eyes and his wild curly hair. She could see herself with him, talking for hours and just laughing at everything. The hardest part about everything is envisioning a future together, and thats what both of them did.

“Hey…” He mumbled out. She smiled at him, making him slightly dizzy and out of breath.

“Hey.” She whispered out before looking up straight into his eyes.

Right there and then they both knew, everything was going to be ok.

Tags

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[lakersnewsonline-blog]

NBA Los Angeles Lakers Team Page At VegasInsider.com, The Leader In Sportsbook And Gaming Information.

Fans collected outside the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles to pay tribute to Kobe Bryant as news spread of the basketball star's death. I likewise think you are spot on about the advantages to the college game. I utilized to be a devoted college basketball fan. Prior to KG came out of high school in 1995, nearly all the star gamers stayed in school for four years. As a result, there were numerous identifiable players who constructed their traditions and names up in college; college basketball had that star power that you mentioned, which made it simpler to follow. It was so a lot more fascinating. Nowadays, there are no more recognizable players since they leave for the NBA Draft the second they begin to construct that star power. Philadelphia 76ers Los Angeles Lakers live rating (and video online live stream) starts on 26.1.2020. at 01:30 UTC time at Wells Fargo Center arena, Philadelphia, USA in NBA - USA. Here on SofaScore livescore you can find all Philadelphia 76ers vs Los Angeles Lakers previous results sorted by their H2H matches. Links to Philadelphia 76ers vs. Los Angeles Lakers video highlights are collected in the Media tab for the most popular matches as soon as video appear on video hosting sites like Youtube or Dailymotion. We're not accountable for any video content, please contact video file owners or hosters for any legal grievances. Even though the Clippers have been much better on paper in years past, the Lakers constantly been the favored destination. The Lakers and Clippers are neck and neck in regards to preference among free agents and basketball cache for the first time in NBA history. Likewise, this is the very first time that the 2 finest teams in Basketball have been in the same city. This produces an intriguing dynamic. It was a informational and well rounded short article, it's simply that while you raise the gamers Kobe had around him, MJ had a terrific two Hall of Famers with him too. Kobe has actually likewise been the primary player a bulk of the league keeps in mind having admired and designed their game after so because way he has actually also gone beyond the game. The gamers that can have that type of impact are typically remembered as being fantastic. Kobe blended his game from all those prior to him and included his own flare to it which is why he was so terrific.

The Sacramento Kings would complete second to last in the Midwest Division where they were in at the time completing with a record of 29-53. Only the San Antonio Spurs had a worse record in that department finishing at 28-54. This game that I'm blogging about is a game that occurred during that season however it revealed simply how dominant the Los Angeles Lakers could be at their best. I think they are both amazing gamers and I doubt Kobe will ever be considered top, however not for his capability to play basketball. Because he revolutionized the game, I think the primary reason that Jordan is number one is. Kobe is playing in a different era than Jordan, so I don't believe there can be a comparison between Jordan and Kobe. Jordan didn't play almost the number of incredible protectors as Kobe does, however Jordan still has sllightly much better stats. I think that if the NBA lockout can end and Kobe wins another champion many people will then consider him the very best, however only if he gets that next championship. I do happen to believe tha Kobe's days as a player are numbered because of this lockout, ideally he'll play a few more seasons but he may just play a couple of more. Sure the NFL is a reflection of society, as is any social group. In any social group, there are the great apples and the bad ones. There are a lot of NFL players who are frequently doing deal with charities and such, simply as there are players who remain in the news for being causing difficulty (although it looks like the same players over and over once again). The thing with the world we live in today is that the media selects to make stories out of the "bad apples" i.e. gamers getting apprehended and other numerous selfish acts, while seldom, if ever, giving credit to those who utilize their platform to do their part in making the world a better place. And this is why high-profiled people in general have the stigma of "low morale" put upon them deservedly or not. Simply put, a couple of bad apples ruin it for the rest. Kobe Bryant is known for his amazing athleticism and clutch shots. You can discover emphasize tapes of vicious dunks and game-winners with no time left on the clock. What can't be seen on an emphasize reel is the laser focus and psychological strength he possessed. Kobe is well-versed in many languages, including English, Spanish, and Italian with complete confidence. Kobe is notoriously known for discovering French so he could trash-talk Tony Parker, and was just recently heckling Luka Doncic from the sideline in his native tongue of Slovenian. Bryant's mind was as hazardous as his physical abilities any given game during his profession. After leaving the game, Bryant had more time to play coach to daughter Gianna, who had a budding basketball career of her own and, her father stated, wanted to one day play in the WNBA. They were seen sitting courtside at a Brooklyn Nets game late in 2015, Bryant plainly passing along his wisdom to his daughter. He frequently showcased her talents on the court on social media. The Los Angeles Lakers (15-2) head to New Orleans (6-11) to take on the Pelicans Wednesday night. Typically, a game in between a championship contender and a restoring roster would not draw much attention, however this isn't just a regular game. Lakers' star Anthony Davis, AD, go back to the team who prepared the Kentucky product in 2012, after going on a rocky roadway trying to get to Hollywood. The concern all of us are asking is what will the return of Davis bring to the arena? Will it be cheers, boos, or silence? The heavily awaited game has actually caused a great deal of discussion in between the media and Davis.

[bigskydreaming]

Wow. I mean, I know newsarama is a dumb fucking site, but even I had to stop and blink when I saw the headline “10 (or 11) Reasons Why Marvel Hates Tony Stark”. Like yeah, that’s an actual listicle they made or whatever. Check out the highlights!

1) “From almost the moment we meet him in Iron Man, he’s under attack for his war-mongering ways, quickly getting kidnapped and forced to design weapons for terrorists during a trip to the Middle East to show off his new rockets.”

Yes. Poor baby. How utterly AWFUL for your origin story to be people being mean to you FOR YOUR WAR-MONGERING WAYS. Most tragic origin story EVER!!!

2) Stane’s Betrayal

Gasp. Shocker. Oh no. Tony is literally the only hero who has ever been betrayed by someone they trusted. *camera pans over to all of his teammates he left locked up in the Raft even after he’d broken the Accords himself BUT I DIGRESS*

3) Poisoned by his own heart

“And if you’re Tony Stark, all of this also comes with a mysterious illness that’s stemming from the arc reactor in your chest which is, ironically, also the only thing keeping you alive.“

Yeah, the half a movie this was the C plot for really would’ve sucked if he didn’t have access to all the education, resources, and materials needed to create his own personal fusion reactor and fix himself.

4) Coulson Murdered

Gosh, what a tragedy for TONY, the only person anywhere who cared about Coulson, and definitely worse than for Coulson himself, and oh wait, he never even died anyway so actually its ‘felt bad because this guy he barely knew and never even acted like he liked was thought to be dead but he was really off being secret agent man.”

5) PTSD

Not gonna joke about this one because yeah, I think Tony does have PTSD and yeah, as someone who has it himself, it sucks, but guess what? Sucks just as bad for all the other characters who definitely have PTSD like, y’know Sam....who ran a fucking SUPPORT GROUP for vets with PTSD like HIMSELF, and all the others who most likely have it due to their own traumas. Like, point me to one MCU protag you DON’T think has PTSD. Tony’s not special for having it, he’s special for being the only one Marvel cares enough about having it to actually SHOW it.

6) Happy Hogan almost dies

Yes, again, worst thing to happen to a person ever....something happens to someone ELSE and somehow, its all about how Tony’s affected, and oh yeah, Happy didn’t actually die! Again, how truly unique a tragedy for Tony, having someone close to him like...get hurt. What a novel experience. No other hero can relate.

7) Pepper Potts dies....a little

Wouldn’t this article have been better titled “10 (or 11) Reasons Marvel Hates Everyone Around Tony Way More Than They Hate Tony”?

“Yes, Pepper survived - but for a few minutes there, her death was the worst thing that ever happened to Tony.“

*stares at camera*

Like, I can’t get over the fact that this article is serious. The person who wrote it really thinks they’re making a case for why Genius Billionaire Philanthropist Playboy Tony has like, the worst existence of any MCU character.

8)  Ultron “Kills” Jarvis

Oh no, the AI that Tony made after everyone told him not to ‘killed’ the other AI Tony made before him? What a nightmare! If only Tony had just....not done the thing everyone else told him not to do! Also, this is definitely WAY worse than all the thousands of people Ultron killed, yup, the fact that Tony’s homicidal science fair project killed his answering machine sucks WAY harder for Tony than everything else Ultron did sucks for like....everyone else.

9) Dumped by Pepper

....this isn’t a tragedy, this is what happens when you’re a narcissistic, emotionally stunted man-child and your girlfriend eventually gets sick of putting up with it. Also:

“His fragile emotional state due to the break-up along with Miriam Sharpe confronting him by the elevator for the death of her son in Sokovia clearly leads to Tony making some questionable choices.Maybe that's why he's so desperate to make amends that he rushes headlong into conflict with his Avengers teammates.“

.....that’s a thing that someone wrote. Civil War, the Accords, locking his teammates up in the Raft, recruiting a fifteen year old to go fight for him in Berlin, all of that totally makes sense because Tony can’t handle being dumped, boo the fuck hoo are you shitting me, lmfao who is this person, why is this person like this.

10) His BFF’s BFF killed his parents

First off, Cap as Tony’s BFF lol, revisionist history at its finest, when did they do more than like....tolerate each other? Secondly, his brainwashed BFF killed Tony’s parents, and maybe Cap would have told Tony that if he’d been remotely rational about all the stuff Cap tried to tell Tony even BEFORE he found out about his parents. Sorry not sorry, can’t believe we’re still doing this, but yup, some of us are actually of the opinion Cap had every right to defend his best friend from childhood who’d been brainwashed and turned into a living weapon against his will from being killed or carted off to the Raft for things he literally had no choice in. 

11) Peter Parker dies in his arms

PEOPLE AROUND TONY SUFFERING AS THE RESULT OF TONY’S SHITTY DECISIONS OR ELSE JUST THEIR OWN HEROIC IMPULSES IS NOT TONY’S PERSONAL TRAGEDY. Like lmao, barely any of these are Tony’s traumas. They’re literally just “Tony meets the bare minimum standard of a basic human being and like, FEELS things when people around him suffer.” Like yes, it sucks when people you care about get hurt, but your feelings are not comparable to THEIR tragedies! This is the entire basis of the ‘girlfriend in the refrigerator’ trope.....killing someone close to a hero should not be considered bad because that hero feels bad, its bad because THAT PERSON DIED. Loooooooool. Omg, I am laughing so hard at this whole damn thing because otherwise I’d just be like....banging my head against my desk.

Like, I literally don’t get it. How do people actually think this way? How do you look at all the characters in the MCU, and zero in on Tony, and think yes, him, THIS is the guy who has it the worst.....and then when you try and defend that position, this is the stuff you come up with and like...you actually think that makes your case? LOL. I literally do not understand.

[inevitablesurrender]

I got some of the best spam I have ever gotten today:

hi how are  looking guy for hot at me on this math site - [redacted] -  sign up and looking me  my nickname is 58942 

I am reminded of an AI trying so hard to learn how to communicate.  Which temps me to respond under that guise but I guess I shouldn’t.

I managed to have the energy to make soup and chocolate peanut butter bars, and go grocery shopping yesterday, and as predicted I am a little bit dead now, but not as bad as I thought I would be because I can words a little.  ...Which is good because planning to go to the house and get more shit done tomorrow.  Everything’s a little bit off in that we have about half the curtain rods we actually need to hang the damn curtains, but may as well get as many as possible hung up and aired out since I have only encountered new thermal curtains once before and boy did that need... a few days to not be a little bit nauseous around.  Also gotta wait for the kitchen curtain rod so I can get that up and accurately measure everything to finally get old curtains altered to fit because “simple things” are always multi-step processes.  Life.  Why.

And can we not talk about Massachusetts requiring costly permits just to swap out a 30-year-old dishwasher, because of course but also rage.  Sadly the two things I’m not comfortable doing myself are plumbing and electrical so.  Fuck.  Not gonna manage the move before the end of this month due to that whole appliance unpleasantness, but by the end of next month.  ...Gonna be real fun working around all this.  Buuuuuut I already thieved the excess carpet and old living room drapes that were just a little this side of needing to be replaced into my room because I Have Plans.  No furniture save my desk and my chair.  But plans.

And I know I’ve got more Tron fans here than the toy blog, so.  I done been told Diamond Select’s Kingdom Hearts Tron (and Goofy set) is extremely low production, basically starting to be sold out everywhere, and may not even make it to a lot of the sites where it’s still on pre-order, so you might wanna look around for stores that have it in stock and go for it now.  Also don’t bother looking at old pictures; the face sculpt and articulation were massively improved as seen in the linked photos, but at the expense of no longer including a shadow Heartless.  But there’s no removable identity disk.  Boo.  (Supposedly there will be an alternate GameStop version in the near future... but surely my stance on giving them money is no secret, so I give in here when I can still pick this one up for the original price.)  Still, it’s a TRON figure that is ACTUALLY TRON, which is rare and weird and fuck you Disney, as always.

Unfortunately between this and needing potting mix and the potential of Masterpiece Blackarania actually looking right... I will have to hold off on DMC5.  Not that big of a deal, it’s rather tradition at this point to pick them up late.  I know games aren’t likely to jump in price after release, and... well, the only DMC game I ever pre-ordered was DMC2.  ...So I will avoid that curse and wait a bit with few complaints.

And several how-to videos and articles with pictures later, I am still mildly terrified about propagating succulents.  The orchid is still very much alive and well, though... so here goes nothing again, apparently.

[canaryatlaw]

alright. well today was.....the first day of the bar exam. Don’t know if I have any better description than that. it was something alright. I woke up to my alarm (which I had set to the Mean Girls song I’ve been using as my pump up song but starts with just Kevin screaming “Yo Yo Mathletes!!”) and did get myself out of bed, I was planning to leave at 6:15 so I had plenty of time to get ready. So I brushed my teeth and changed, they said to dress in layers because the exam rooms might be hot or cold (spoiler alert, it was FREEZING), so I picked a tank top and leggings with a zip up hoodie if needed. The email they sent (they people the people from my school who are trying to get us to pass the bar) yesterday said that when you wake up read a book or something (but no outlines) for 10 minutes to wake up your brain, or something like that, so I read the little local Chicago magazine that they keep in hotels saying all the cool things to do in Chicago this summer. I made the microwave minute muffin that I was telling you all about last night, but I was super careful to stir it all the way so there were no unmoistened bits and it was a wonderful double chocolatey muffin experience that I was very pleased with, and then ate a granola bar for good measure because you know, good breakfasts. when it was like 6:15 I headed downstairs where there were several other law students (recognizable because of the plastic bags we all had with our computers inside them) were all waiting and got in an uber, I thought of maybe sharing with some of them but there are like 3 different test sites all in this area so idk where they all were going. And in this area I mean these are the only sites for all of Chicago (and potentially all of Illinois? don’t quote me on that but that might’ve been the case) and there were a ton of kids from other law schools around, mostly recognizable because they were all wearing stuff from their school which I apparently did not think to do, but oh well. I arrived there around 6:20 (it was a really short ride obviously, that was the point) and got out of the uber to see my bus orgs professor standing there looking slightly confused, and he saw me so I said hi and he said that a group of them were supposed to be here greeting us (which was also in the email from yesterday) and that he had been told to get there at 6:15 but he was now the only person present, which sounded familiar to me always be the on time person. But we chatted a little which was nice, I hadn’t really seen him since the class ended in the fall, and despite me finding bus orgs terribly boring I did rather enjoy him as a professor. So the doors were opening at 6:30, so a bunch of us were just kinda milling around in front of the building. It was on one of the college campuses around here (it’s U of Illinois Chicago) in a building called the “forum” which apparently has large rooms in it where a lot of people can sit for tests. So they open the doors at 6:30, there are metal detectors directly after the doors, and they were checking bags as well. I’m not sure if metal detectors would find the kind of contraband they were actually looking for (like I’m sure it’s good to know there aren’t any guns too, but nobody’s really concerned about sneaking a gun into the bar exam), they were more focused on keeping all electronics out of the room, which is understandable. I still have had my period today but very little cramping, so I didn’t need to use the thingy that I stowed in my bag anyway but wouldn't have been able to use during the test because technically it’s an electronic. But we got through the metal detectors and were directed to tables where we showed them our photo IDs and they gave us our photo name badges which we then had to wear for always the rest of the test. I have the world’s worst photo of me on mine, but it’s technically my fault because I’m the one who uploaded it, but in my defense it was like, two hours before the window for submitting your application was gonna close and like 10 o clock at night so I just took a photo of my unmake-uped face against my white wall without me smiling like they wanted and surprise surprise, it looks terrible, but oh well I’m over it. We then got shown the room where we could leave our stuff we couldn’t bring into the test room, which was pretty much everything. I was using my black legends drawstring bag that we got in Florida, so I left my phone, the charger I brought with me and the external battery (because I’m prepared) along with some food and a gatorade, plus a few other things. The only things we could take into the room were our laptops and chargers, then in a little ziplock bag you could have your photo id, cash/credit card, transportation card, keys, pads and earplugs. We all had giant ziplock bags (the 2 1/2 gallon ones) to carry our laptops and chargers in because that’s what they told us to get. So we got into the test room with our little bags and computers. I found my seat all the way in the front right corner, and this room is BIG, like best estimate there were maybe 2,000 people? You didn’t really see it until everyone went to leave and it was like impossible to get through the doors and then you’re like oh wow, there’s a lot of people here. But I was in the second row, third seat in from the right wall, so pretty much on the edge, but hey it’s fine we got a perfect view of the guy at the podium who was legit right in front of us. They had the two big screens down both displaying a “clock” tab with the time counting up by seconds. In the instructions it had said if we were mac users who didn’t have a usb port you could bring your little converter thing, so I took mine with me just in case, but didn’t think I would need it. I got to the instructions they had on the tables for the computers and it had this whole thing about no usb’s or data transferring devices and I was like shit am I gonna get in trouble for this? So I took it to the proctors right in front and said it said in the instructions that I could bring it but idk if it qualifies under these rules. They both pretty much looked at me like they had no idea what I was talking about, probably because they didn’t understand what the thing actually did, but recommended I go on to the tech people, who I asked and they said oh yeah that’s fine, the other’s just don’t understand how to use things lol so that was solved. I didn’t think I’d need it, I just didn’t want to get in trouble for having it. So I sat down and logged onto my computer, got the exam stuff up and waited. There was this stuff on the program saying if you didn’t have wifi access you’d have to wait to upload your exam answers to later and I was like well that sounds perturbing so I checked if we could get wifi and that was a big nope, so that was a nice little anxiety inducer. Waited for a while, more people came, I think we officially started at either 8:30 or 9, I don’t remember exactly. First was the “Illinois Essay Exam” which is the only part of the test that is completely unique to Illinois, the other portions are all used by other states (most states have switched to what they call the Uniform Bar Exam which has reciprocity across most states, but Illinois isn’t switching until next July [boo], so we instead had pieces of the UBE but not the whole thing). I was a bit nervous about this part because a lot of it depended on knowing where Illinois law differed from the majority law you would otherwise learn, and there was the potential to be hit with some questions from the really fringe subjects like personal property that you know I had a 2 hour lecture on and that was it, so I was glad to see it was mostly mainline stuff, so that wasn’t bad. 90 minutes for that, 3 essays, not bad. After that we switched into the Multistate Performance Test that most other states use as well, and it’s a closed packet of info from which you need to draw up some sort of legal document based on the facts and laws inclosed. I had thought this would probably be the easiest part for me because given all the info I can write stuff no problem, and it definitely wasn’t hard, but it was.....odd. Not like any of the practice ones I’ve done, it was about drafting language for the articles of incorporation of this rugby league and dealing with a bunch of corporate stuff that seemed really easy, like stupid easy? So either I did really well or I totally fucked it up, but I’m fairly certain it was the first lol, so that was a relief, even though the nerdy side of me was like awww now I don’t get to write a long essay that I’m really good at writing, but that’s really okay. We breaked for lunch, I saw a few of my friends briefly but then got separated from them. The deal was that the school was going to bring us lunches, and they were set up somewhere for us to get to. When we left the building there were like 3 other schools set up with their lunches right there but ours weren’t, so I was trying to follow the directions to the spot they said in the email but it was not going well and I could tell I was just getting lost, and I was like fuck it I’ll just get some food from the popeye’s that’s right here, except it all got fucked up and was spicy and I couldn’t eat any of it except the biscuit, so basically lunch was a massive failure on multiple levels, but I had some pretzels in my bag so I wasn’t starving. Got back in and ready to go, the afternoon was the Multistate Essay Exam (don’t you love all these titles?) which was similar to the Illinois one but based on federal/majority law. It still had the opportunity to get into some fringe subjects though. it was 3 hours, 6 essays, so same odds as before. It can be hard for me to tell how well I actually did coming out of a test like that because I’m really good at bs-ing and I know it, so if I can come up with some good bs my mind thinks it’s all good when it could actually not be, but whatever. The first one was a con law question that was about marijuana of course, but was kind of on an odd basis, but I think I got the law part right so that was good. There was one about a corporation where I got to use my favorite line of the day “....because things that do not exist cannot enter into business deals” and one regarding trusts that was probably the biggest fringe subject, but I spent the last few days going over trusts (for like, the first time, but still) so the rules were fairly fresh in my mind and I think I got all of the intricacies of it right. There was one question that was just like straight evidence questions, and like those are my jam, so I get typing and I’m going and going and- oh wait, I hit the character limit and I didn’t even start the third prompt within the question yet. WHOOPS. The character limit was 4600, which really is not very much, so I had to go back and remove the bs I wrote in the first two prompts, just because I knew I could write it, and then wrote my third answer and had to move some more stuff around and delete some more bs, but I ended up with a final product that was exactly 4599 characters, which is really a masterpiece, so I was like alright perfect I’m not touching it from here lol. I ended up finishing with about 20 minutes left, so I read over a few of them and made minor changes, just details and such. Then we were done and had to wait for them to collect all the papers and then account for all of them before we could get released, then of course I had to make it through the massive crowd just to get outside. I did get outside and got an uber to my hotel room because I had to go there for wifi to upload my friggin exam answers, and let me tell you guys, this was the most anxiety inducing thing, because when you click submit on the test it will try to upload the answers but then see you don’t have wifi and be like oh it failed and the proctors are just like “yeah just go home and when you get wifi open the program and it’ll upload the answers” and I’m just like.....you couldn’t have just let us into the wifi you already have set up in this building??? Like do you know how much anxiety this process is going to give me?? The proctor said to make sure we hold onto our laptops as in the previous year someone had actually left theirs on a Chicago public transit bus which was like oH GOD WHY level nightmare, so I was making sure that didn’t happen. The uber took a while to get there because it was rush hour and there was traffic, and while I had been taking the afternoon part of the test I was like I’m gonna get out and text Jess and bug her until she agrees to go get food with me, then when I turned my phone back on and opened twitter I already had a message from her being like I can’t wait till Thursday morning like we originally said I need to see you and get food after the test tomorrow and I was just like bitch come get food with me now which she readily agreed to, which was easier than I expected lol. The uber finally came, I got to my hotel and logged onto wifi so the exam answers would upload, and legit right after they did that I switched a few things out of my bags and then headed back out. I walked a few blocks to the train that’s nearby, it’s the same stop as my church so I was familiar, and took that to the red line and then up to where we had agreed to meet because Jess wanted to take me to her spy restaurant which is really the only restaurant she knows in the city of Chicago (and now that I wrote that she’s probably going to wind up reading it even though she never reads these posts) and we definitely did not get lost getting there, that did not happen, but we did get there and it was cool, you just enter this random door on a building and it brings you to this little entry way where you have to say the “password” and get confirmed, then the wall opens and there are stairs down to the actual restaurant, which was pretty cool, outfitted with a lot of spy and James Bond stuff. We ended up just getting a table by the bar because it was kind of crowded, so we just chilled and she told me literally everything that happened at SDCC this weekend which, let me tell you, was a trip, then we decided we’d split an appetizer of cheese curds, then we were both gonna order the grilled cheese that also contains cheese curds because we are 100% those people lol. The service was kinda slow but I didn’t really care because we were talking and have fun, but of course those are Jess’ stories to tell so I won’t spoil any of them here other than saying she had a ridiculously awesome time, even if it had some stressful moments with stupid security guards. We eventually finished and paid, then ran around the restaurant checking out the rest of the spy stuff and hitting random buttons that caused different things to happen which was pretty cool, then to get out you had to put a dollar in a payphone which would then ring and give you a code which you had to enter, and then the wall would open which led to this staircase down and then up again that was covered with the little name tags they give you to write your “spy name” on, and then when you get to the door you come out in the lobby of this random hotel that’s like, a fully functional hotel, so that was pretty fun. We eventually figured out how to get to the train (read: I wasn’t navigating and Jess only got lost a little bit this time) and we decided to save ice cream for tomorrow even though I wanted ice cream now, because I was also full of cheese curds and other types of cheese. So I got on the red line and then switched to the blue line, then got off and walked the rest of the bit back to the hotel. While walking back my parents called, just wanted to check in so I told them everything and they seemed pretty happy about all of it, so that was good. Since we did all the essays today tomorrow is just going to be the multiple choice questions, 200 of them in two sessions of three hours each, 100 per session. They’re all hypos though so they take a while to answer and the supposed time allotment for each question is 1.8 minutes, so it’s a solid amount of work I’d say. It was like 9:15 by the time I got back and I desperately needed to shower because I hadn't since Monday morning because I didn’t want to have to wake up even earlier this morning to do it, so I got in the shower and changed into my pajamas, watched tv and did internet stuff for a bit before figuring I still had to get up pretty early, though an hour later than today, so that’s an improvement, so I’d better start writing this post and that’s what I did. Of course it took longer than usual because I end up being incredibly detailed about days like today even when I don’t consciously think to do it. Oh well. And now I’m here, it’s almost midnight, and I need to wake up at 6:30 am, so I’m gonna take all of those as reasons why it’s time for me to go to bed now. Goodnight babes. Stay magical.

[ledenews]

Borrowed Dads and Co-Opted Ideas

Changing the way we view community has been something that's been heavy on my mind lately. I wrote earlier in the week about community gardens and how small changes can be made/added/designed to make the "community" in gardens more of a feeling than a synonym for "neighborhood." When we become a part of our community, we can do a much better job at operating as a community, but we have to open the doors for that kind of relationship to take root. Let me give you an example. A few years ago, I designed and led a ministry for single-mom families. The ministry was called BAD (Borrowing A Dad) and served a small group of single moms and their kiddos. Meetings were once a month at various sites and designed to nurture the whole family. Essentially, the kiddos borrowed dads for two hours a month. The groups would schedule their meetings around an event each month that would allow for an activity for the borrowed dads and kids, such as fishing at a local park, while also providing the moms a space to have a small group discussion. Everyone was together on site but the kids and borrowed dads would go one way while we moms would go the other. We were still there to kiss boo-boos and do potty trips, but the whole purpose was to create for us, the single moms, a safe place with others who understood everything that we were going through while, at the same time, the borrowed dads provided an intentional space for our kids to grow and nurture relationships with male role models.

Borrowed Dads

What took place within that group was life changing. The single moms formed a community that took care of each other. We wrapped around each other all the time, even if just to call and say a quick good morning and check in. We became a family. And our kids? Well, that was perhaps the most wonderful part. Our children formed strong relationships with the borrowed dads; relationships that continued outside of the group and provided what they needed the most and couldn't get from us moms – positive male role models. I can't put into words how much it meant that our kids were being nurtured and loved by people who didn't have to but, rather, who chose to. The group meant a lot to all of us involved. There was one reason why the BAD group worked: we poured ourselves into it and it, in turn, showered all of the participants with acceptance, understanding, and love. It was as much a feeling as it was a group. We built community. And if that kind of life change can take place from one get together a month, imagine what we could do if we formed that kind of relationship with people who shared our neighborhoods. I've lived in my neighborhood for over 20 years. I like to think that I'm pretty embedded here. I know a lot of people here and seem to usually be kept in the loop as to what's going on, but I had to seek out involvement. I have a crazy busy schedule so evening Crime Watch meetings weren't really a possibility for me, but I did become very involved at my kids' elementary school, which allowed me to meet and get to know the parents of the other kids.

Knowing Neighbors

Truth be told, it was the elementary PTO that allowed me to become active and invested in my neighborhood by allowing me the opportunity to get to know the families here. It was important to me that I knew my kids would be watched out for by my community when I wasn't there. So, what if we all sought that kind of relationship within our neighborhoods? What if we knew that if someone hadn't seen us leave our house for a couple of days that they would come and check on us to make sure we were okay? What if we had the kind of relationship that my friend Courtney told me about the other day. She and another single mom went to the grocery store in their own vehicles so they could take turns standing between the two cars and interacting/watching over the children so they wouldn't have to take the kiddos into the store during these COVID-19 days. That's the kind of community that can bring about the changes we need because they nurture each other and encourage growth. Imagine the difference if we began living in a way that encouraged taking care of each other and building a sustainable network of neighbors. That can look like a community garden or a community childcare arrangement when emergency needs arise. I've had discussions with folks about what it would look like if communities began opening small grocery stores in areas where there isn't one. But we have to start opening the doors and encouraging relationships and trust in each other. Hopefully, these days of social distancing and stay-at-home orders will help us to realize that we should be able to rely on each other, especially during emergencies, in a way that makes us more connected to each other and less dependent on government and policies. If we take the time to get to know each other, our biases will begin to disappear. We would begin to see each other as more than our circumstances and begin to realize that we have different skill sets but are still able to contribute something to the greater good.

Unprecedented

There are people in food pantry lines now who have never been there before because of this pandemic. People have lost their jobs and, in turn, are facing the loss of their health insurance. I've read about people losing thousands of dollars from their retirement accounts. Many of us don't know how we're going to feed our families or pay our rent. And wouldn't it be nice if we knew that we weren't in this alone and that there were people beside us who served as our safety net. Pockets of this type of community have already formed. There are groups focused on county feeding systems and the needs of the elderly. There are people willing to help strangers celebrate their senior students' graduations. Heck, someone even paid for my cup of coffee for me the other day in the drive thru line. People are wrapping around people right now, proving that the idea isn't too far-fetched. We are really good at identifying needs and making arrangements to have them met, so let's keep doing more of that. Let's put our neighbors back into our communities. Stay home. Wash your hands. Stay well. Wave and smile at your neighbor. Onward, Amy Jo Read the full article

[dearyallfrommatt]

Alt-weeklies are dead. Blogs are dead. Bootlickers and the civility police won.

 The above story from The New Republic written by Alex Pareene was brought to my Twitter world by Radley Balko, superlative journalist and maybe the only self-described libertarian I’d let thrive after the Purge. In short, it discusses the recent emasculation of Deadspin and how it’s indicative of the death of the “rude press”. That is, the elimination of smaller, shall we say less respectful outlets like Splinter and Gawker, publications that would stick their fingers into they eyes of the rich and the very much richer.

 And it’s not just those web-based publications’ deaths that article warns of. It’s the slow extinction of the alt-weekly or alt-monthly, all to be replaced by boutique publications that won’t be so gauche as to upset their betters. In other words, they’ll be “civil” because “civility” might be the most important thing we’re missing in this cold, cruel world.

 The first writing gig I got out of college was at an alt-monthly and the only “regular job” I’ve ever had was with an alt-weekly, so I might be a bit biased on this matter. Twenty-some-odd years ago in Gainesville, FL, a pair of cats named Colin Whitworth and Mike Podalsky started MOON Magazine, maybe the altest alternative magazine that wasn’t a ‘zine that I’ve ever seen. I mostly wrote about music and Gainesville being what it was, there wasn’t much sticking-in-the-eye that needed doing.

 Though I do remember them pissing of a real estate guy so badly he started his own “alt-monthly” in competition. It lasted one issue as I recall. Every afternoon at 4:20, we'd have a “staff meeting” and the magazine run pieces from severely left-wing sources going after the destruction of the Everglades or the dangers of the Cassini probe. It was that kind of magazine.

 After I left Gainesville for Athens, I took up with Flagpole Magazine, a music/news/arts weekly in Michael Stipe’s hometown. Athens is a different town and publisher Pete McCommons was a different breed. An old school newspaper man contrasted to Mike and Colin’s “young upstarts”, Flagpole was a gentler poke that nevertheless contrasted well with the bought-and-owned-by-the-chamber-of-commerce local daily, The Athens Banner-Herald. He still gave a lot of room to his staff to go nuts, notably my direct editor Ballard Lesemann.

 When I left college in 1997, I had already worked in actual, for real newspapers for almost a decade. Furthermore, I’d grown my hair long and discovered Hunter Thompson, so I was by no means inclined to go back to covering school board meetings for some small town weekly. MOON went the way of the dodo sometime in 2001, and though I left in 2002, Flagpole’s still kicking.

 I rarely made anything close to a living at writing, but I’m thankful of my time with the alts and grateful to Colin, Mike, Pete and Ballard for letting me share the ride with them and have a little fun. So, again, grain of salt. One thing working on alternatives taught me was that “complete objectivity” was not only impossible but unnecessary so long as your cards are on the table, so I ain’t going to put no shuck on you.

 Now, I won’t summarize or really explore what the above-linked New Republic piece goes into. I highly recommend it be read and considered with much gravity. Even if you don’t agree with its conclusions - or even the need for the existence of “rude journalism” - do study on what it suggests. Do we really want a world where the extremely rich, either as individuals or as a group, can shut down publications that don’t show proper fealty and people who’re willing to tell the Boss Man to take this job and shove it?

 The responses to Radley’s retweet and others I’ve seen elsewhere are telling indeed, though. While there are plenty of sympathetic voices, not a few folks are saying “well, good, fuck ‘em”. There is a negative view of journalists, but if anyone suggests that it’s caused by recent events in the business are lying or stupid or ignorant or all three. For as long as there have been rich dudes willing to start wars for more wealth, there have been plenty of poor bastards willing to die for them. Nowadays, we have folks willing to pay Major League Baseball for what they used to get for free, and not even blink an eye.

 A lot of it’s political. Right-wing media doesn’t have the same problems in getting funding because, well, most rich people are quite fine with the nuts and bolts of conservative thought. The economic side, anyway, which spells less taxes or regulation; the social side, they have enough pull to not have to worry about anyone griping unless they piss off someone higher up the ladder.

 Which is extremely amusing, since these are the same folks who stay constantly stricken with the vapors about how much money Hillary Clinton (or Elizabeth Warren or Barrack Obama or Bernie Sanders or fill-in-the-blank-here) bring home. The “common people”, they’re saying, don’t need hoity-toity nerds who can string sentences together and count without taking off their shoes telling us that they’re favorite rich guy needs a kick in the nuts for being the type of bastard that needs kicking in the nuts on a regular basis. The hooting baboons that support digital frat houses like Barstool are happy to stick it to those PC creeps, man, rebelling in that way that hurts the actual elite not one tiny bit.

 They also hate the corporate media and social media sites, which they will tell you endlessly in the comments sections of corporate medias’ pages on social media while FOX and CNN have a special on it every other week. They hate “political correctness” trying to tell them that the “natural order” isn’t just boozy white dudes watching the Pats and gorging on chicken wings, making  cracks about the opposing quarterback being homosexual or making “hey-it’s-just-a-joke” jokes about Serena Williams or some WNBA playing being a “man, baby”.

 There is most definitely a place for big mainstream news sources like CNN or The New York Times or TIME Magazine. A professor of my in journalism school used to repeat the quote, paraphrased from memory, that “journalism is the first rough draft of history”. Despite what the right wing has been screaming for years, whoever the president is, the big papers are rarely out for his blood. Once you become president, you are a “Washington insider” and all the corporate media really cares about is making money. 

 Whatever he says about the “Washington Swamp” and “fake news”, Donald Trump’s been part of that world, as is every Washington politician or media figure. FOX News is the mainstream media and the Washington Examiner has plenty of backing to keep that so. Who funds The Federalist? That publication has its place but that question must be asked. To do otherwise is to tell the powerful that you’re just fine with them running things, thank you very much.

 But there needs to be a place for a small, scrappy paper speaking for the weird and shat-upon, flicking the earlobe of the rich and powerful and running ads for weekly drag shows. The dirtbag center - that’s what I’m calling the tedious middle-class bourgeoisie spawn that all voted for Trump because they hated Hillary but don’t want to admit it and were shocked as the rest of us, deal with it - wants to be kept fat and saucy while their kids joke about “learning to code” and they all grind themselves down in a miserable existence. Sticking it to the media and the elite, man, all up in the “intellectual dark web,” man, just like Peter Thiel or Bari Weiss, man.

 This is one of those things that shouldn’t surprise me as much as it does, because these people are that guy who started a one-run magazine to get back at Colin and Mike for saying hurtful things about them being crooked. In America, at least, there has always, always been a group of people who will kick down for the benefit of their upper-class betters and do it with a smile on their faces. It’s why dumbass country boys went to die for slavery and why thick-necked hardhats smashed picket lines and assassinated union leaders.

 Like the story notes, we all thought that blogs would be the new hotness, but that lasted just long enough for Google to deciding that “do no evil” was bad for the bottom line. People, especially wingnuts, boo-hoo about Facebook or Twitter without acknowledging or even recognizing that Mark Zuckerberg is a greedy little shit and Jack Dorsey is quite comfortable with cosplaying Nazis. Thanks to Ajit Pai’s bought-and-sold ass, Net Neutrality - about the only thing that keeps the internet from being anything other than a glorified Want Ads - is going to be that much harder to make reality.

A lot of this goes back to the “civility” thing, or lack thereof, NYT columnists bemoan whenever they get caught out being a dipstick. We’re too mean to each other, they say, we don’t know how to respect each other, they say. Rich people know how to run things better than the hoi polloi, so do sit down and be quiet like nice children. Or else. 

 Because here’s the thing, friends and neighbors: the rich, I mean really rich class in this country do not give a solid gold shit about you apart from how much more money they can squeeze out. Suck up to Elon Musk all you want and bemoan Bill Gates having to pay so much in taxes that he’s still a billionaire afterwards all you want. They are not going to let you on the space ship with them once they’re done fouling the waters and scouring the land.

 You can cheer the death of Deadspin all you want, hoot at the firings of journalist who say bad things about Trump or the cops or Tom Brady, and general be gleeful that the media all should “learn to code” to your heart’s content. Because it won’t end there. Conglomerations are already scooping up weekly and small town dailies, shuttering the superfluous and give everyone the same story in the same tone while kissing the proper butts.

 In the end, we need an antagonistic press. We need someone willing to piss off the deep pockets and old families and moneyed interests. We need someone that’ll give a voice to left-handed, bisexual, transvestite furries who love swing dancing. Or even just a little time, a slice of acknowledgement that the world isn’t just boozy obnoxious white dudes on barstools or bitter wine moms sniping on Facebook. You can cheer the downfall of such, but all you’re doing is putting the noose around your own throat and saving the Powers That Be a little time.

 You may not want to rock the boat, friends and neighbors, but have no illusions. When the rubber hits the road, the Wealthy Elite will throw you over. Don’t make it easier for them.

[lovediva1313]

Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt

I feel bad because I haven’t checked Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt . on Cotton Bureau for a while. I’ve just had a look at a few designs and instantly regretted not featuring them more often. That’s because I honestly enjoy 99% of everything they put out and wish I could wear all of them.Some of them don’t resonate with me because I’m not from the United States of because I cant see myself wearing a toilet roll on my t-shirt. But even for those designs, I can see the fun in them and can appreciate the execution.And another thing I love, the site: simple, easy to sort the printed designs and the available products.Cotton Bureau is always delivering in terms of quality, style consistency and product information. The designs are minimalist and each product is detailed with how many units it has sold, the days left in the campaign, size chart and info about the artist – all on one comprehensive page. Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt, hoodie, sweater, longsleeve and ladies t-shirt

Im just here for the boos Christmas Classic Ladies

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Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt Unisex For an in-depth description of their services and products you can read the article we did on how to sell your designs on their platform Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt .It’s been a string of new product launches in the past month or so, from DesignByHumans and Society6. Now it’s Redbubble ‘s turn to add something new: Premium t-shirts. The textiles are soft, pre-shrunk, heavyweight, from ethically sourced cotton. Extra care was put into the need of the customers so each t-shirt comes with its own wash bag.The shape of the t-shirt is a little different as well, especially the women’s styles, with a curved hem and capped sleeves. The men’s collection have a classic cut and are durable, in case you wanna go hiking or service a car while wearing them. Or maybe you’re obsessed about washing them. They thought about everything, really.On a more serious note, Premium means meeting both quality and aesthetic requirements, which is exactly what this new collection is. For Redbubble artists in particular, the best part is that the print is super large. So their work will look even more incredible. There are also two extra mock-ups to show the design off in style. Customers will enjoy a much sharper print.As far as the price is concerned, these babies will cost you around $40 a piece, up to $56. It depends on the prices set by the shop owners. Most of them are $43.57 for both men’s and women’s. You Can See More Product: https://hottrendtees.com/product-category/trending/ Read the full article

[beautshirt79]

Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt

I feel bad because I haven’t checked Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt . on Cotton Bureau for a while. I’ve just had a look at a few designs and instantly regretted not featuring them more often. That’s because I honestly enjoy 99% of everything they put out and wish I could wear all of them.Some of them don’t resonate with me because I’m not from the United States of because I cant see myself wearing a toilet roll on my t-shirt. But even for those designs, I can see the fun in them and can appreciate the execution.And another thing I love, the site: simple, easy to sort the printed designs and the available products.Cotton Bureau is always delivering in terms of quality, style consistency and product information. The designs are minimalist and each product is detailed with how many units it has sold, the days left in the campaign, size chart and info about the artist – all on one comprehensive page. Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt, hoodie, sweater, longsleeve and ladies t-shirt

Im just here for the boos Christmas Classic Ladies

Im just here for the boos Christmas  Hoodie

Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt LongSleeve

Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt Sweatshirt

Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt Unisex For an in-depth description of their services and products you can read the article we did on how to sell your designs on their platform Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt .It’s been a string of new product launches in the past month or so, from DesignByHumans and Society6. Now it’s Redbubble ‘s turn to add something new: Premium t-shirts. The textiles are soft, pre-shrunk, heavyweight, from ethically sourced cotton. Extra care was put into the need of the customers so each t-shirt comes with its own wash bag.The shape of the t-shirt is a little different as well, especially the women’s styles, with a curved hem and capped sleeves. The men’s collection have a classic cut and are durable, in case you wanna go hiking or service a car while wearing them. Or maybe you’re obsessed about washing them. They thought about everything, really.On a more serious note, Premium means meeting both quality and aesthetic requirements, which is exactly what this new collection is. For Redbubble artists in particular, the best part is that the print is super large. So their work will look even more incredible. There are also two extra mock-ups to show the design off in style. Customers will enjoy a much sharper print.As far as the price is concerned, these babies will cost you around $40 a piece, up to $56. It depends on the prices set by the shop owners. Most of them are $43.57 for both men’s and women’s. You Can See More Product: https://hottrendtees.com/product-category/trending/ Read the full article

[lovediva013]

Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt

I feel bad because I haven’t checked Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt . on Cotton Bureau for a while. I’ve just had a look at a few designs and instantly regretted not featuring them more often. That’s because I honestly enjoy 99% of everything they put out and wish I could wear all of them.Some of them don’t resonate with me because I’m not from the United States of because I cant see myself wearing a toilet roll on my t-shirt. But even for those designs, I can see the fun in them and can appreciate the execution.And another thing I love, the site: simple, easy to sort the printed designs and the available products.Cotton Bureau is always delivering in terms of quality, style consistency and product information. The designs are minimalist and each product is detailed with how many units it has sold, the days left in the campaign, size chart and info about the artist – all on one comprehensive page. Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt, hoodie, sweater, longsleeve and ladies t-shirt

Im just here for the boos Christmas Classic Ladies

Im just here for the boos Christmas  Hoodie

Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt LongSleeve

Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt Sweatshirt

Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt Unisex For an in-depth description of their services and products you can read the article we did on how to sell your designs on their platform Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt .It’s been a string of new product launches in the past month or so, from DesignByHumans and Society6. Now it’s Redbubble ‘s turn to add something new: Premium t-shirts. The textiles are soft, pre-shrunk, heavyweight, from ethically sourced cotton. Extra care was put into the need of the customers so each t-shirt comes with its own wash bag.The shape of the t-shirt is a little different as well, especially the women’s styles, with a curved hem and capped sleeves. The men’s collection have a classic cut and are durable, in case you wanna go hiking or service a car while wearing them. Or maybe you’re obsessed about washing them. They thought about everything, really.On a more serious note, Premium means meeting both quality and aesthetic requirements, which is exactly what this new collection is. For Redbubble artists in particular, the best part is that the print is super large. So their work will look even more incredible. There are also two extra mock-ups to show the design off in style. Customers will enjoy a much sharper print.As far as the price is concerned, these babies will cost you around $40 a piece, up to $56. It depends on the prices set by the shop owners. Most of them are $43.57 for both men’s and women’s. You Can See More Product: https://hottrendtees.com/product-category/trending/ Read the full article

[lovediva0303]

Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt

I feel bad because I haven’t checked Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt . on Cotton Bureau for a while. I’ve just had a look at a few designs and instantly regretted not featuring them more often. That’s because I honestly enjoy 99% of everything they put out and wish I could wear all of them.Some of them don’t resonate with me because I’m not from the United States of because I cant see myself wearing a toilet roll on my t-shirt. But even for those designs, I can see the fun in them and can appreciate the execution.And another thing I love, the site: simple, easy to sort the printed designs and the available products.Cotton Bureau is always delivering in terms of quality, style consistency and product information. The designs are minimalist and each product is detailed with how many units it has sold, the days left in the campaign, size chart and info about the artist – all on one comprehensive page. Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt, hoodie, sweater, longsleeve and ladies t-shirt

Im just here for the boos Christmas Classic Ladies

Im just here for the boos Christmas  Hoodie

Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt LongSleeve

Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt Sweatshirt

Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt Unisex For an in-depth description of their services and products you can read the article we did on how to sell your designs on their platform Im just here for the boos Christmas Shirt .It’s been a string of new product launches in the past month or so, from DesignByHumans and Society6. Now it’s Redbubble ‘s turn to add something new: Premium t-shirts. The textiles are soft, pre-shrunk, heavyweight, from ethically sourced cotton. Extra care was put into the need of the customers so each t-shirt comes with its own wash bag.The shape of the t-shirt is a little different as well, especially the women’s styles, with a curved hem and capped sleeves. The men’s collection have a classic cut and are durable, in case you wanna go hiking or service a car while wearing them. Or maybe you’re obsessed about washing them. They thought about everything, really.On a more serious note, Premium means meeting both quality and aesthetic requirements, which is exactly what this new collection is. For Redbubble artists in particular, the best part is that the print is super large. So their work will look even more incredible. There are also two extra mock-ups to show the design off in style. Customers will enjoy a much sharper print.As far as the price is concerned, these babies will cost you around $40 a piece, up to $56. It depends on the prices set by the shop owners. Most of them are $43.57 for both men’s and women’s. You Can See More Product: https://hottrendtees.com/product-category/trending/ Read the full article