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bunchofstraydogs · 3 years ago

Note

You asked for it :> So may I request the rest of BSD playing Genshin? 😘🥰

Darling, since I can't write that many characters in one go, I thought I should give you something special. I present... 💫 women 💫

Women of BSD as Genshin Impact players

tw: you're in bsd fandom, you know all the tw there are by now

Kyouka Izumi- Assasin in the streets, babysitter in the... Genshin Impact

Kyouka is that cute, stubborn kid that overfixates on things. Atsushi is things. Look, we all know Kyo-chan is mad intelligent and talented and it shows in her game play. Right off the bat she got the sense of the gameplay of every type of character and decided what works best for her. She knows what type of team she's going for and knows how to manage her materials wisely.

When she plays alone, Kyouka works towards bettering her characters and pushing through the storyline. Her favourite way to play the game is with Atsushi, whether alone or in co-op with others. Playing with Jinko is a huge win-win situation for her - she helps him beat up whatever he needs to take down and complete puzzles, he gives her praises and gratitude. And materials, but seldom does she take them.

Her main job, though, is to protect Atsushi and his world from the otherworldly evil known as the suicidal maniac, Dazai Osamu. She's fairly successful.

Main Team: MC, Klee, Keqing, Rosaria

Sub Team: MC, Qiqi, Fischl, Hu Tao

Mains MC, both for her flexibility with elements and because she likes being the little sister to Atsushi's male MC.

Yosano Akiko- retired nurse, now a terrorist

Did you really think she'd stay a healer without having the sadistic satisfaction of hurting people in grotesque ways? Nay. She doesn't have a single healer on team. She either has a teammate who's a healer like Haruno, or she wastes abundance of food until she can teleport to a statue of the seven.

Her game play is on crack, basically. She has several energy spurs, sometimes several times a day, where she rages through the game, before losing interest and going shopping. It's very possible with her that days can pass before she feels like playing again. Then she binges the game for hours and repeat.

When i say she acts like on crack i mean it. She has rage in her veins instead of blood. She tanks her characters and goes out looking for fights with worst possible opponents. Hell, she'll under equip her party just to see how many mofos can she take down in weak state. Spoilers, a fair few. She does die quite a bit, and is almost always out of food, but she's just as stubborn as she's crazy. Those two thing correlate probably. Which is why she made Azdaha her bitch. Her party consists either of strong, hot milfs women like herself, or twinks. You won't see someone like Childe disrespecting her vibe.

Main Team: Beido, Venti, Hu Tao, Rozaria

Sub Team: Lisa, Yanfei, Ningguang, Xingqiu

Beido and Lisa main. Bad bitches only.

Naomi Tanizaki- the fangirl player

She basically collects the cutest characters possible.. That's how she chooses her characters, based on cuteness. She went for the hot ones first to pull her brother but she got jealous and changed her tactic. You know she's spending her money on character skins and certain banners. She's insanely lucky tho?? She got Qiqi on the standard banner as her first 5*, pulled Klee on her banner in little over four 10 pulles and got Diona eventually anyway. Baraba and Xiangling were free and she mained Xiangling untill Klee rolled in. She spent some money on Venti and was already in pity when Ganyu came around. She's fully ready to whale for Kokomi though.

Now i know i said she's incredibly lucky, right? Yeahh that luck has to turn against something to keep the balance and well... she's still crying over Chongyun.

She usually co-ops with her brother, it's a daily ritual. Loves co oping with everyone though, mostly Haruno, Atsushi and Kyouka. She made online friends as well. Actually, there is one person she co ops with almost as much as she does with her brother. IchiGawa is her Genshin bestie and they talk about their crushes and infatuations besides the game itself. Her friend is the only secret she keeps from her brother.

Main Team: Klee, Diona, Venti, Barbara

Sub Team: Razor, Xiangling, Xingqiu, Qiqi

A Klee main.

Haruno Kirako- the healer

Literal angel. You need her, i need her, ADA needs her, the president needs her, just... yes. Her whole team consists of support- healers and crowd control characters. She was a f2p at first, but realised she earns her own money and can spend it however she wishes and she chose the monthly cards.

She's a necessity, point blank. She can get intimidated by new foe at first, but when backed up by her friends, she becomes determined and flexible. Pays good attention to her teammates, most importantly, their health bars, and acts accordingly.

The only reason most of them made it as far as they have, being as reckless as they are.

Main Team: Albedo, Barbara, Jean, Venti

Sub Team: Qiqi, Noel, Jean, Xinyan

Mains Albedo and Barbara

Fan fact: She's very fascinated infatuated with Albedo!! He's even her home screen and has posters and key chain of him.

Gin Akutagawa- that cottagecore assassin

You may be wondering what that could even mean. Let me tell you, she brought Animal Crossing to Genshin Impact. Sure she takes care of her characters and they're pretty powerful, but she kicks ass in real life as well. The game is her little getaway, especially since Serenity pot has been introduced. She's been making away her home for her and her brother characters. You can see her chop wood, collect materials, taking pictures with her friends and her brother, sometimes of pretty scenery and cute moments. A very wholesome player.

She's the type to help her friends explore their world and help them find oculi, open chests, shrines, collect flowers, mine... She's very patient, but if she sees her co-op teammates struggle with something, she'll jump in to help do it herself untill told to back off. In which case she will listen and silently give her support, usually with the cheering stickers in the chat.

She's f2p! Sure, she could get the monthly card at least, as Ryunosuke told her, but she really wants to enjoy the game on her own terms and have what she does through her own effort and hard work. It just feels satisfying to her and more personal.

Main Team: Jean, Ayaka, Diluc, Barbara

Sub Team: Doesn't have one! She just changes characters if certain elements are needed.

Jean main!! She admirers the relationship her and Barbara have. While she's the younger of the two, she's taken the mantle of the older sibling, in a way, and is looking after her reckless as heck brother and cares for him like Jean does for Barbara. Jean is also a wonderful person in her eyes and Gin harbours great respect for the blonde.

Higuchi Ichiyo- IchiGawa 🤡

I love Higuchi so much, but my girl is a mess and a half. Help her, please. No, really, she needs help. She's been over compensating for not being dramatic and eye catching in the battlefield, and has now found a new way to prove herself to her Akutagawa-san. Problem is, as soon as she sees a potentially powerful character, she has to get them and boost them to the havens... yeahh, good thing you can't do loans in the game, otherwise she'd have sharks on her ass for having a bill as dramatic and eye catching as Tsunade's from Naruto. Our girl out there turning heads for wrong reasons. She's definitely spent her pay checks on the game "oh no no, i just buy the monthly subscription, ehe" ehe my ass, you bankrupt bitch. Baal is coming and she's looking to sell a kidney. No, it's not her own and no, it doesn't have anything to do with the game. It's a mission, for God's sake.

But hey, the game is a good investment for her! She even made a friend, one that totally understands her how she feels!! They're very alike as well, ready to do anything for the person they love. The two talk about love a lot and have bonded over it. Higuchi is actually a jealous and a protective type of person, so she hides her friend from Gin and Tachihara like snake hides it's legs. If only they knew 🤡. But it's better this way as they both have a certain sense of normalcy and familiarity they were missing in their daily lives. (Higuchi and Naomi meeting scenario when?)

Main Team: Xiao, Fischl, Xingqiu, Diluc

Sub Team: Baal (soon?), Venti, Ganyu, Zhongli

She mains Xiao because he reminds her of Akutagawa-san and yes, she uses characters from her sub team when playing with others.

Fan Fact: when she was asked why her username is IchiGawa, she said she's like a river 🤡 No, it does absolutely not stand for Ichiyo Akutagawa.

Ozaki Kouyo- the husbando and loli collector

Don't get the wrong idea when i said loli collector. She just needs to adopt them and look after them. She also enjoys watching her precious babies kick ass like her Kyouka. But that's a two way sword, because she gets angry when they die. Savage.

And yeahh, the real reason she's playing the game... Mr Zhongli. She switches often between eng and jpn audios because she can't decide which sounds sexier. Also, Mr Diluc? Yes, she would like to be served one sex on the beach please and thank you! Ah, Mr Kaeya, a perfect window of opportunity, yes.

She has a huge spot for the teenager group as well. Razor, Bennett, Fishl, Xiangling, Xingqiu and Chongyun are also her kids. She just finds them very precious (don't we all?).

Main Team: Zhongli, Kaeya, Bennett, Diluc

Sub Team: Diona, Klee, Qiqi, Sayu

A Zhongli and Diluc main.

Bonus:

Elise- the evil lackadaisical player

Mori found out about the game from Higuchi and Tachihara and introduced it to Elise, telling her she should make a team of sweet little girls like herself and have fun going on adventures around Teyvat. In response, Elise made a team that, not only does it not have a single child in it, but is using it to gaslight and bully Rintarou.

"Why aren't you smart and inventive like Albedo?"

"Why aren't you as passionate and persistent as Sucrose?"

"Look how capable, loved and admired Ningguang is. You could never."

"I wish i had someone as strong, caring, handsome and rich like Childe looking after me. He would treat me like a real princess. "

Mori has been crying rivers ever since.

Thing is, Elise isn't even that interest in the story. Actually, she couldn't care less. Some characters are interesting to her and she likes the graphics, but other than that, she's mostly playing the game to torture the greasy doctor (as she should).

Main Team: Albedo, Sucrose, Ningguang, Childe

Sub Team: doesn't have one

Doesn't have a main either, she plays whoever she feels like playing.

I wanted to add Lucy too, but my mind wasn't cooperating ;-; Sorry about that. I do hope you liked this, Eli 💛

#bsd #bungou stray dogs #bungo stray dogs #kyoka izumi #haruno kirako #higuchi ichiyo #ozaki kouyou #bsd elise #tanizaki naomi

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clumsyclifford · 3 years ago

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you said i should say less about new ace content in general and i immediately understood that as say more so please gimme some ace stuff and please make it fluffy. i don't particularly care about the pairing but i'm always down for lashton and/or malum but any atl ship works for me as well so like just do your thing i guess wow that was a useless sentence this messy ask is further proof that i should go to sleep so bye love you!! -fiancee

well i ran with ace lashton in an interesting way i hope you enjoy it this is not based on real life but maybe it could be. in a better world it is. that’s all i’ll say about that, i hope you like it

read here on ao3

Luke likes going to the movies. He likes staying home and having a home-cooked meal. He likes quiet, simple, intimate activities.

He does not like parades.

“But it’s Pride,” Ashton wheedles. “D.C. Pride! One of the biggest pride events in the country!”

“You made that up, and I don’t care,” says Luke. “I don’t want to go. I don’t like parades.”

“It’s not really a parade.”

“Also not true.”

“Okay, but it’s not about the parade, it’s about the gathering,” Ashton says, gently shaking Luke. “It’s about a bunch of queer people all coming together and uniting in one space. Celebrating our differences and our similarities. Celebrating community.”

“That’s beautiful,” Luke says. Ashton looks hopeful. “Still no.”

Ashton huffs. “I don’t wanna go alone.”

“Go with Michael and Calum,” Luke suggests. “I’m sure they’d love for you to tag along.”

“And third-wheel all day? No thanks.”

“Well, I don’t know what to tell you,” Luke says, and carries on setting the table for dinner. If his mum comes home to a half-set table, the blame will fall on Luke, of course. Ashton takes the cue and begins laying out plates.

It’s quiet for a moment. Luke can tell Ashton is trying to come up with a way to convince him to go to Pride, but it won’t work. Luke’s avoided Pride for seventeen years. He doesn’t intend to start now. Staying at home with his boyfriend and watching Rent is about as much as Luke cares to celebrate Pride Month. Maybe they’ll make out a little. Standards are low.

“Okay, how about this,” Ashton says, and Luke sighs deeply. “No, hear me out. And keep an open mind, okay? Think about compromise.”

“I’m listening.”

“What if we go before the parade starts?”

Luke frowns. “Then what would be the point?”

“There will still be people there,” Ashton says. “But it won’t be nearly as many people, and the festivities won’t really be happening yet, so we can still say we went to Pride but we won’t get caught up in the whole big thing.”

“But I thought you wanted the whole big thing.”

“Ah, whatever,” Ashton says, waving him off. “I’d rather go with you than see the parade alone.”

Luke feels bad. It’s obviously important to Ashton, or else he’d have given up already on trying to make Luke go. And as much as Luke knows he shouldn’t feel obliged to prioritize Ashton’s wishes over his own comfort, this makes him want to.

Compromise. “Okay,” Luke says. “Fine.”

Ashton blinks. “Really?”

“Did you think that wouldn’t work?”

“I—” Ashton’s face breaks into a smile. “I don’t know, not really, to be honest. Really? You’ll come?”

“Yes,” Luke says, and the delight in Ashton’s face makes up for the dread pooling in Luke’s stomach.

Ashton shuffles around the table and presses a warm kiss to Luke’s cheek. “Thank you,” he says, warmth also bleeding into his voice. “I’m excited. You’re gonna like it.”

Probably not, but Luke keeps that thought to himself. He doesn’t need to rain on any more of Ashton’s parades.

Luke and Ashton are excited about Dupont Circle for different reasons. Ashton is basically vibrating out of his seat on the Metro as they approach their stop, where the parade is slated to begin at half past noon. It’s only eleven now, but that doesn’t seem to matter to Ashton. He seems confident that there will be enough Pride to satisfy his excitement without overwhelming Luke.

Luke’s just looking forward to the Krispy Kreme at the station.

They take the escalator out, and sure enough, there’s Krispy Kreme to the left. Luke grabs Ashton’s hand and yanks him towards the shop.

“Seriously? We’re at D.C. Pride and your priority is donuts?” Ashton says, but he allows Luke to tug him along until they’re at the door.

Luke turns to him and very seriously says, “Ashton, my priority is always donuts.”

“Yeah, that’s fair, I walked into that one,” Ashton mutters as they enter the store.

Five minutes and two donuts later, both of them exit, Luke munching contentedly on a strawberry-frosted donut (with sprinkles, of course) and Ashton carefully biting into his jelly-filled one.

“Okay, starting now, we’re at Pride, and you can’t be a Negative Nancy,” Ashton declares.

“I promise not to be a Negative Nancy,” Luke vows. “I swear on this donut.”

Ashton beams. “Yay! Okay let’s go explore.”

You’d think this was Ashton’s first Pride for how excited he gets over everything. He stops at almost every stand, even though they’re all selling different versions of the same thing, and somehow manages to spark up conversation with any passing person who looks queer and interesting. Luke loves this about Ashton, how charming and outgoing he is, how he could befriend a vaguely human-shaped plant. People are drawn to him; Luke’s no exception. Ashton is very much the main character, even more so because he doesn’t seem to know it. He's just Ashton, and Luke loves him for it. Even when it means the halo of Ashton’s spotlight draws attention to Luke by extension.

Luke is not a charming, outgoing person. Luke is quiet and reserved. He’s never cared for the spotlight. Sometimes it’s a good thing that he has Ashton to pull him out of his shell a little. Sometimes he wilts under the scrutiny. It's a toss-up, but Luke appreciates that Ashton never stops trying.

Most of the tables selling merch boast shirts, hats, flags — the kind of thing you’d wear or own if you wanted to be loud and proud about your identity. Luke’s not really that kind of person. Luke’s way of coming out is to subtly slip into the conversation the fact that he has a boyfriend. Before he had a boyfriend, it pretty much never came up. Big, colorful flags have never been his cup of tea.

And anyway, that’s only half of his identity. The other half never comes up, and Luke’s okay with that. It’s not like being ace is the kind of thing you can casually mention. It has to be a whole thing, every time, and Luke doesn’t want to deal with the whole thing, so he just doesn’t bother. Most of the time it doesn’t really matter. As much as Luke is able to fly under the radar, that’s what he intends to do.

“Hey, pins!”

Ashton is not like that.

“Luke, you like pins, right?”

The table they’ve stopped at is covered end-to-end with pins. Enamel or plastic, every single pride flag Luke has ever seen in his life is represented here, in a variety of shapes and sizes. The kaleidoscopic display is fun to look at, at least. There’s nobody behind the table at the moment, which means in theory it would be pretty easy to steal one, but Luke’s not like that, and even if he was he wouldn’t feel good stealing a pride pin from a small-business owner.

“I don’t really have an opinion,” says Luke.

“Ha,” Ashton says. “O-pin-ion. Haha.”

“I’m leaving you,” Luke says, turning away with a wry grin.

“No, come back.” Ashton grabs his wrist and pulls him closer, so Luke wraps an arm around his waist and rests his head on Ashton’s shoulder instead. “I like pins. They’re a very understated way of coming out.”

“Having a boyfriend is an understated way of coming out,” Luke replies.

"I resent you calling me understated," Ashton says in faux-indignance. Luke giggles.

“I’m so sorry, I had to run and grab some water,” says a voice, as a person bustles around them to stand behind the table. Their pink fringe is pushed back by a bandana and they’re wearing a jean jacket with so many pins and patches that the fabric is practically invisible. A sticker on the front pocket of the jacket introduces them as Alex, he/they :). “Can I help you with anything?”

“Just admiring the collection,” Ashton says brightly. “I love your jacket.”

“Thank you very much,” says Alex. “It’s been accumulating pins for about five years now.”

“Damn,” Ashton says, wolf-whistling. “That’s a good collection. I don’t have a good jacket for pins.”

“Wish I could tell you where I got mine, but it was a gift from my boyfriend,” Alex says. “I’ve heard thrifting is a good way to go.”

“You wanna go thrifting, Luke?” Ashton says, nudging Luke, who shrugs.

“Sure,” he says. He reaches for one of the asexual flag pins, a small enamel rectangle, and smoothes his thumb over the surface. “These are pretty nice.”

“You should buy it,” Ashton says. “Start a cool jacket. Then we could be matching.”

“You don’t have a cool jacket yet.”

“I know, but we could.”

“But neither of us have a cool jacket. So it’s not even—”

“Fine, ruin my fun,” Ashton harrumphs. To Alex, who’s watching them with amusement, Ashton says, “So how long have you and your boyfriend been together?”

“Oh, uh…” Alex’s gaze diverts to the air like he’s counting invisible numbers. “Six years? Almost? I think it’s gonna be six years in July.”

“Six years,” Ashton repeats in mild awe. “Holy shit.”

“Yeah, high school sweethearts, blah blah blah,” Alex says, smiling. They shrug. “Everyone thought we’d break up when we went to college, but when you know, you know. You know?”

Luke swallows. Ashton says, “Good for you. That’s impressive.”

“I like to think so,” Alex says. “What about you? Are you guys together?” He winces. “Should I not have asked that? I’m sorry, to be honest this is Jack’s business, I’m just running the stand because he wanted to go look around a little before the parade started. My boyfriend Jack, I mean. Sorry.”

“No, no, it’s all good,” Ashton says. He hip-checks Luke gently, which Luke takes to mean something like is it cool if I tell him? It’s nice that Ashton is asking, but Luke had kind of figured everyone would assume they were together because, you know, Pride, so he doesn’t really care.

“Yeah,” he says. “For, what, eight months?”

“Eight months,” Ashton confirms.

Alex grins. “That’s great, I love it. What are your names?”

“Ashton,” says Ashton. “He/him.”

“Luke. Also he/him.”

“It’s nice to meet you guys,” Alex says. “I’m Alex. He/they.”

“Yeah, your thing says,” Luke says, pointing.

Alex laughs. “You’d be surprised how many people don’t see it. Or they see it and think it’s just another decorative pin.”

“Do people wear pronoun pins as decorations?” Luke wonders. “That seems strange to me.”

“People are ineffable,” Alex says solemnly. Then he grins. Luke likes Alex. In fact, little though Luke’s actually spoken today, he likes most of the people whom Ashton has stopped to chat up. Queer people are so friendly, is what Luke is learning. It almost makes him happy to be here.

Except now Alex’s words are ringing in Luke’s head, and he can’t stop hearing them. Everyone thought we’d break up when we went to college, but when you know, you know.

Ashton’s going to college this fall. Luke’s managed to forget about that fact because it’s only June, but that doesn’t make it any less true. Ashton’s leaving and Luke’s going to finish his senior year alone and what if something happens to them? What if they’re fooling themselves thinking they can do the long-distance thing? What if they’re doomed already and this summer is just prolonging the inevitable?

“Well, personally I would love to buy a pin,” Ashton says. “Luke, choose one.”

“What?” Luke says, blinking himself out of his spiral. “Why?”

“I’m buying you one,” Ashton says.

“I don’t—” Luke bites his lip. He’s still fidgeting with the ace flag pin, and he kind of likes it. Maybe he can subtly come out in different ways. Maybe he can just wear it, and wait for someone to ask. Then it’s way less of a big deal because it’s not like Luke has brought it up.

There’s enough shame in the world. Luke doesn’t need to add to it.

“Okay,” he says instead. He holds up the ace flag. “This one.”

“Great choice,” Ashton says, digging out a five to give to Alex. He hesitates, then pulls out a ten instead. “Actually, maybe I’ll also get one. Then we can actually match.”

“Right, with our matching jackets that don’t exist yet.”

“You know what, fine, we don’t have to match.” Ashton makes a face at Luke. “You can put your pin on whatever you want. It’ll go great with your all-black closet.”

“Shut up,” Luke grumbles. Ashton laughs.

“Hey, don’t knock the all-black,” Alex says. “Black is the new black. It’s fashion forward.”

“Not in eighty-degree June it’s not,” Ashton says.

“It’s seventy-five,” Luke protests. “And Alex is wearing a jacket!”

“Yes, but Alex is not my boyfriend, and we only just met,” Ashton says, grinning. “Also, their jacket is sick as fuck.”

“It is sick as fuck,” Alex agrees. “But I’m still siding with Luke here. You can’t go wrong with all-black.” For the first time, he seems to register Luke’s shirt, and his eyes light up. “Hey, Green Day! I fucking love Green Day!”

“You should be my best friend,” Luke says seriously, and Alex nods equally seriously.

“Hey,” Ashton complains. “I like Green Day.”

“Thank you for the pin,” Luke tells Alex. “Good luck with the, uh, you know, selling more of them.”

“Of course, anytime,” Alex says. “I’m pretty sure there’s a website on these business cards if you ever want to, I don’t know, browse?” They shrug one shoulder. “This is why I’m not a small business owner.”

“Cool,” Luke says, taking the card. He probably won’t use it, but you never know.

“Nice to meet you, Alex,” Ashton says, as he and Luke start to walk away, fingers interlaced between them. “Good luck! Happy Pride!”

“You too! Enjoy the parade!” Alex says, waving.

Luke doesn't bother to inform him they're not staying that long; he and Ashton turn away and continue walking, Luke with his new pin clutched in his fist.

“They were cool,” Ashton says enthusiastically. “There are so many fucking interesting people here. God, I love Pride.”

Luke grips the pin tighter. The pointy back starts to hurt where it’s pressing into his palm. “Yeah.”

“Thanks for letting me get you something,” Ashton says. “I know it’s not really your thing, but I don’t know. I felt like we should buy something after we stood there for so long.”

“No, yeah, I agree.”

“On the bright side, they’re pretty cool pins.” Ashton holds his out like he’s assessing what he’ll do with it. “Maybe Michael has an extra jean jacket he never wears. I could ask him.”

Luke hums. Ashton glances over at him, eyebrows drawn together. “Are you okay?”

Luke's not supposed to say anything like this. He’s supposed to be positive because he promised he wouldn’t be a “Negative Nancy” and the sky is so blue that Luke would hate to be the reason for rain, but if he doesn’t say it then it’ll just keep ringing around his head until he can’t think about anything else.

“You’re not scared we’re gonna break up when you go to college?” he blurts out.

Ashton stops short and their hands break apart so Luke’s falls to his side. “Where’d that come from?”

“You heard Alex,” Luke says. “Everyone thought he and his boyfriend would break up when they went to college.”

“But they didn’t,” Ashton says.

“But that’s obviously unusual,” Luke counters. He swallows hard. “I’m just saying…aren’t you worried?”

Ashton tilts his head. “Do you want me to be worried?”

And yeah, a little part of Luke does. Only because if Ashton’s worried, it means he values their relationship enough that it would hurt him to lose it. But Luke knows that’s not really fair, and he knows Ashton loves him, even if he doesn’t seem worried at all.

“No, I don’t know. I just— I don’t know.”

“Are you?”

“I don’t know,” Luke says again. “I had pretty successfully managed to avoid thinking about it, but now…I don’t know.”

Ashton gently pries open Luke’s fist and runs his thumb over the red imprint the pin has left. Sheepish, Luke puts the pin in his pocket. As soon as his hand is free again, Ashton takes it, holding both of Luke’s hands in both of his own.

“I’m not worried,” he says quietly. His eyes are so sincere and his hands are so soft and Luke loves him and likes him and knows that to lose him would be a fate worse than death. “You must have missed the other half of Alex’s sentence. Remember? When you know, you know.”

Luke’s breath catches a little. “Yeah, but…”

“But what?” Ashton lifts a shoulder. “I already know, Luke. I’m in it for the long haul. So unless you meet some other guy who’s even awesomer than me and makes better puns, you have nothing to worry about. I’m not letting you get away that easy.”

Luke gazes at Ashton until the rest of the world falls away. “Oh,” he breathes.

“Okay?” Ashton quirks a smile.

Luke surges forward and kisses Ashton for as long as he can manage without passing out. It’s clumsy and sweet and Ashton’s hands tighten around Luke’s waist and Luke wraps his arms around Ashton’s shoulders and nothing else in the known universe matters except this.

When they finally break apart, Luke cracks a smile. “Okay.”

Ashton beams. He offers his hand to Luke again, and this time Luke takes it and doesn’t let go.

#luke hemmings #ashton irwin #lashton #lashton fic #5sos #5sos fic #fic #my fic #idk when im gonna post this but at the time of drafting it i am So Fucking Tired #i cant imagine that will be less true when i finally post it lol #i feel like im constantly tired lmao #but right now its 1am and i wanted to be asleep or like getting ready to sleep like.......an hour ago #and then i made a cup of tea instead #it's july 23rd (it's july 22nd but it's past midnight so. 23rd)#and i want sleep!#after i save this post to my drafts tho im gonna go start getting ready for bed #maaaaaaaaaan im tired #night yall #oh i hope you like this fiancee it occurred to me while writing that its hard to write an Ace Fic unless its about the Being Ace #which is not something i care to write about #usually characters just........are ace #so this fic plot was borne (born?) of that dilemma #ask #anonymous #fiancee anon #ETA i just woke up twelve minutes ago but fiancee said now so you get this now

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anchorsandadderall · 6 years ago

Text

Potholes and Pumpkin Pie

Rating: G

Mechanic AU that begins with a flat tire and ends in a rousing argument about Thanksgiving desserts. For @gfdisterek because car troubles suck and I like to think that they end in something good sometimes.

It’s a quiet Wednesday at Derek’s shop. Days around a holiday usually are for mechanics. Beacon Hills is close to approximately nothing of note or interest, so incoming relatives are usually fetched from the airport by their loved ones. It’s that or risk spending precious pre-prep time out searching the back roads in the woods for them when they get lost. So, Derek is sitting behind the front desk, flipping through a copy of Top Gear from June and pondering the merits of ordering newer ones for the waiting room, when the bell above the door jingles to announce someone is coming it. They come in so hard that the bell smacks into the metal framing above the door, making a jarring clang.

Derek startles and looks up, scowling and prepared to tell someone to take it easy on his damn door. Standing there, though, is a guy who looks like he took a detour to Hell on his way to work. His light blue shirt is wrinkled and disheveled and has a wide swath of a dark brown coffee stain across the chest that even makes it down to his khakis. Half of his brown hair is gelled into an ‘artfully messy’ look. The other half is actually messy and slightly damp. When the guy braces his hands on the desk and almost collapses against it, his amber eyes are wild and kind of desperate. Derek decides not to push him any further.

“OhmygodI’msogladyou’reopen!” the guy says, all of the words leaving his mouth in one long rush.

“…Yeah, I’m open,” Derek says, keeping his voice carefully even. The last thing he needs is to excite this guy even more. “You need to breathe.”

The guy nods furiously and sucks in a hard breath. “Right. Breathe. I’m breathing.”

“Good.” Derek looks over the guy’s shoulder and sees a blue Jeep out front. It looks old, but it’s in one piece. So, his very wired customer probably didn’t just get into an accident. “What can I do for you?”

“I hit a pothole and I need a tire. Like, super quick. I’m late for work.”

Derek grabs a clipboard with an inspection sheet already clipped to it and stands up from his chair. “Let me take a look at it and see if I can patch it.”

The guy pushes off the desk and follows right on Derek’s heels to the door. “No, I’m pretty sure it’s gonna need a new tire. Right now.”

Derek opens his mouth to tell the guy that a shop this small doesn’t just stock tires, especially not ones big enough for a Jeep, but he stops in the door to the shop. He’s only vaguely aware that the guy runs into him (and that his shirt is still really wet).

“What… happened to your tire?” The tire is more shredded than anything Derek has ever seen before. And he’s seen branches and half-boulders do a lot of bad shit to cars. But this tire is in ribbons. Multiple ribbons of fat black rubber, hanging sad and limp from the rim, like one of those dogs with eyes always covered by their hair.

“Pothole.”

Derek looks over his shoulder at the guy. “Just how fast were you going?”

“I was late for work.”

It’s not an answer but it also kind of is. It’s like invoking the 5th amendment. “Right. Well, you’re right. You need a new tire.”

“Great. How long will that take? I’m late for work.”

“So you’ve said.” Derek heads outside and starts to write in the vehicle information on the form. Jeep. Blue. New tire needed. “I don’t have anything in stock that’s going to fit your car. I’ll need to order the tire.”

The guy makes a wounded sound. “When… will it get here? Soon?”

“Uh… maybe Friday? Nowhere is gonna be open tomorrow since it’s Thanksgiving.” Derek pauses on the form. The guy is tinting pink. “Hey. Breathe.”

The guy sucks in another breath. And then another one. “Okay. Okay, Friday. That’s fine. You have drop-off service, right?”

Derek has to look over his shoulder at his shop front just to make sure it didn’t suddenly get bigger or more impressive. Nope. Still his single little box of a shop with ‘Derek Hale- Mechanic’ stenciled on the window and in need of repainting. The red flip-around Open/Closed sign because the neon one went out and hell if he knows how to fix that thing.

“Does this place look like it has a drop-off service?”

“Yes?” The guy’s voice is a little shrill with desperate hope.

“No. I’m the only one here.”

“Why are you the only one here??” The guy gestures wildly at his Jeep. “Like… what if this was a different kind of broken and you could fix it? Who would be at the front desk for customers??”

“My front desk guy has the day off to go see family out of state,” Derek says, getting a little irritated that he apparently has to discuss his business planning with this idiot. “Should I ask you why you don’t have any friends you can call for a ride?”

The guy sighs out a defeated breath, slumping forward a little. “They’re all out of town to see family,” he admits. “Sorry. Okay, um… how late are you open? Can I bring this back by tonight?”

Derek looks at the leaning Jeep, then at the remains of the tire. “You joking, right? You can’t drive on this thing. You’ll damage the rim.”

The guy actually thinks for a minute about that, as if that’s not a really easy thing to decide is an awful idea. “How expensive would that be to fix?”

“Way more than a tire.” Derek opens the door of the Jeep and begins copying the VIN from the faded sticker inside the door. The Styrofoam coffee cup is in the cupholder, just a sad inch of cold coffee left in the bottom. The ceiling also managed to get hit, taking on a large, wet stain. Everything smells like pumpkin spice creamer. “What’s the big deal? You’re a wreck, you should probably just call in anyway. You smell like coffee and fear sweat.”

“Wow, excuse you!” The guy shoulders him aside, practically climbing over him to kneel on the driver’s seat and reach into the back. He gingerly lifts a cooler between the seats and shimmies back out of the car.

Derek has no idea what to make of the way the guy cradles the thing like it’s his kid or something. “Is… that an organ? Do they let you deliver organs in this thing? Are you even allowed to stop for coffee when you’re delivering those?”

The guy goggles at him. “What? No! It’s my pie.”

Derek waits, but that appears to be the entire explanation. “…Okay?”

“My pie. For the Thanksgiving cook-off at work.”

“You’re going to drive to work on your rim… because there’s a contest?” Derek says slowly.

“Someone has to beat Danny! He’s held the dessert spot for two years and he can’t be allowed to just sweep it this year! Someone has to keep him in check.” The guy opens the top of the cooler and makes a piteous whine. “Man, my whipped cream rosettes got smashed!”

Derek is pretty sure that this guy is crazy. Or has horribly skewed priorities. But he’s also a pretty sad sight and the roads are almost empty so…

“Fine,” he sighs. “I’ll take you to work. But you’re on your own for getting back.”

“Seriously?” The guy’s face lights up in a smile that makes Derek’s stomach do weird things. “Oh my god, you’re awesome! I’m gonna write you the most amazing review on Google!”

“Uh… thanks.” Derek has no idea if he’s on Google. He’ll ask Isaac on Monday.

It takes twenty minutes to get all the information down and get the Jeep moved into the safety of the attached garage and to flip the sign to Closed on the door. Derek thinks that the guy (whose name is unpronounceable, but everyone calls him Stiles) might actually fidget right out of his skin. When he pulls his Camaro around the front of the shop, Stiles practically throws himself inside and pushes the cooler at Derek while he buckles his seat belt.

“So. You’re going to beat Danny.” Derek isn’t good at small talk, and the only thing he knows about Stiles is that he’s a panicky idiot and he really wants to beat someone called Danny.

“Damn right I am. No more watching him preen around the office.” Stiles grins and pats the cooler in his lap. “This baby is gonna be his undoing. I saw his Instagram this morning and he went way too fancy and made this weird pear almond-y tart thing.”

“What did you make?” Derek turns onto the main road and heads toward the business district.

“Pumpkin pie.”

Derek glances over for a second, then looks back at the road. “His sounds fancier.”

“So?” Derek can see Stiles puff himself out slightly in his periphery. “It’s not a fancy dessert contest. It’s about taste.”

Derek makes a doubtful sound. “Is it that hard to make a good pumpkin pie? Everyone makes pumpkin pie.”

“Mine is special!” Stiles snaps. “Are you a Michelin chef, Mr. Thanksgiving Critic?”

“…No. I don’t even do Thanksgiving.” Derek admits, glaring at the road.

“See? So you don’t get to talk.” Stiles glares ahead at the road.

“Shut up. It’s still just a boring pumpkin pie.”

“Uh, except it’s not.” Stiles lifts the lid of the cooler and shoves it under Derek’s nose, which makes him swerve the car slightly in surprise. “Smell that? That’s a gingersnap crust.”

“Stop that!” Derek pushes the cooler away. No wonder Stiles ripped his tire to hell on a damn pothole. “Who the hell uses cookies to make pie crust?”

“I do, and it’s delicious!”

“A pie is sweet enough on its own.” Derek pulls up in front of an office building that looks like all of the others in the carefully-matched business district. “Go to work.”

Stiles growls and shoves open the top to the cooler. “Gingersnaps are spicy! It adds layers!”

Derek cranes back when Stiles brings his hand out, holding a wedge of pie with a tuft of whipped cream that’s smashed down, only a few neatly piped ridges left. “Put that back.”

“No, taste it!” Stiles shoves the pie into Derek’s mouth when he tries to protest. “Tell me that’s not better than some stupid tart that’s probably on Pinterest.”

Derek sputters around a mouthful of pie. “Are you insa-”

Tap-tap-tap

Derek and Stiles both startle at the same time and look out of the passenger window to see a redhead in a crisp brown pencil skirt and white blouse. There’s also a guy with blond hair. And one with bronze skin. They all look equally horrified. But not, Derek notices, terribly surprised.

“Stilinski. Let’s go, we can’t eat until the stupid judging is over,” the blond calls.

Stiles shoves his door open. “He said my pie is gonna beat your tart, Danny,” he says, slamming down the lid of the cooler.

“No, I didn’t!”

“Shut up, Derek!” Stiles flails free of his seatbelt, foisting the cooler into the redhead’s hands. “You just need to taste it without the whipped cream being smashed.”

“I tasted it just fine!”

“No, you didn’t! Just come over tomorrow and taste it the right way!” Stiles snatches the cooler away and stalks up to the building, yanking on the door. The lock clangs at him and he scrambles at his hip for his badge.

Derek is left riled up, deeply confused, and holding half of a slice of pie in his hand. The two men followed Stiles, but the redhead is still standing on the curb, writing on the back of a business card. “…Did he just invite me over for Thanksgiving?”

“Dinner is at 4.” The redhead reaches in and neatly tucks the card into the tuft of whipped cream on the wedge of pie. There’s an address scribbled on the back of it. “And if you marry him, I’m going to tell this story at your wedding.”

#my writing- beware #sterek #mechanic au #all car troubles should end in something nice #or in this case something really annoying #followed by something nice #(plus the pie was nice but Derek would never say so)

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pet-diary · 6 years ago

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Hello there. Me & my boyfriend are moving to Seattle in the summer. We are from California & are wondering what we should prepare ourselves for?

Ooh that’s an interesting question. I guess it depends on what you know about Seattle already, what you’re used to right now, and what you’re concerned about? Feel free to elaborate if you want me to answer with some more specific details!In general though: Seattle is great! I really love living here. It’s a big city, but it feels pretty small sometimes, because of the tightness of different neighborhoods and the general culture of the people here. People are really nice and friendly, helpful. Some people talk about a “Seattle freeze”, but I’ve honestly felt that people are nicer here than they were in the south. That could have to do with the sort of people I’m around (people closer to my age, doing similar tasks as me when I encounter them, with general outward appearance that matches my own more than people I encountered in the south). But I think people are also just eager to feel like they’re apart of their community. There’s a lot of young achievement work-oriented people here though, so be wary of that, it can feel pretty false...

The public transit is pretty great here, imo. I can get around a lot better than I ever have anywhere else. It’s easy to get outside the city and be in the forest, mountains, snow, ocean side, etc. It’s really gorgeous around this region. There’s not a bad view in the whole city, you can literally go anywhere and find an awesome cityscape, mountainscape, or ocean view. There’s a lot of cool neighborhoods. Every area feels like it’s own smaller town within the bigger city. Tons of great food. Cool boutiques and great international district (I love Daiso and Uwajimaya), and Ballard has some awesome little shops. There’s SO MANY parks, you can literally go to a different park everyday for like a year. It’s easy to get outside the city if you have a car (or you don’t mind a long-ish bus ride). Nearby towns are SUPER cute too, I love exploring the area in general. There’s several school options if you’re a student, but the main school here is the University of Washington. They have a beautiful campus with cherry blossoms in the spring.

The weather here is great imo, contrary to popular belief. The summers here are very pleasant, not very hot (although beware, most places do not have AC and it can get warm enough that you want it! We had to buy a window unit last summer because we have pets). Consider this when you design your space at home, windows will be OPEN in the summer, and blinds will be OPEN all spring, fall, and winter. Start taking vitamin D! It is overcast pretty much everyday except for all of summer when it is blue cloudless skies (a little too bright for my tastes). Winter can be very long, cold, wet, and unpleasant at times. It doesn’t fully rain here all that much, almost never storms, but it DRIZZLES all the time (not so much in the summer). Spring usually goes from rain to sun then back to rain five minutes later, then back to sun. It’s all over the place. You’ll find yourself wearing shorts and a jacket a lot, lol.

Homelessness is a big epidemic here.

Pike Place and other tourist spots are shitty busy in the summer. Everyone leaves once it starts getting chilly (it will be a total shift from summer to any other season, it would be amusing if it wasn’t so annoying).

Rent is atrocious. You might be used to that coming from California?It’s best to sign in the winter months when they can’t find anyone to fill the place. The prices are JACKED UP in the summer. Consider signing a short term if you have to sign in summer, it’s ridiculous how much more they charge in summer…

Check neighborhoods out on walkscore and those sites about neighborhoods. Every neighborhood has a different vibe. They’re very distinct.

Use crosswalks. You will get hit by a car if you don’t. It’s not in the culture to just walk whenever you feel like it. Tourists and transplants keep trying to make it a thing but it’s not. There’s a lot of cars, a lot of pedestrians, a lot of bikes. Be courteous of everyone doing their thing. Also, be careful driving, you will inevitably almost kill a pedestrian because they’re everywhere.

Parking is atrocious, especially in Capitol Hill and downtown. Don’t have more than one car, you’ll just want to sell it. Parking is also expensive. Get a zoning sticker ASAP so you can park in the street if your area allows.

I’m obviously not a native here, but this has been my experience for the past few years. :)

#seattle #seattle wa #washington #Anonymous #anon #reply #replies #answer #question #response #ask #personal

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wineanddinosaur · 4 years ago

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Next Round: Knead Wine’s Pricing Structure Is Creating Loyal Customers

Airing between regular episodes of the VinePair Podcast, “Next Round” explores the ideas and innovations that are helping drinks businesses adapt in a time of unprecedented change. As the coronavirus crisis continues and new challenges arise, VP Pro is in your corner, supporting the drinks community for all the rounds to come. If you have a story or perspective to share, email us at [email protected].

In this episode of Next Round, Zach sits down with Allie Nault and Jarad Slipp, accomplished sommeliers and new business owners. Their venture, Knead Wine, doubles as a retail wine shop and a takeout artisanal pizzeria.

Knead Wine is based in the quaint getaway town of Middleburg, Va., just an hour outside Washington D.C. The wine store is a microcosm of escape in its own way, offering a wall of unique wines from all over the world curated by Nault and Slipp, as well as a wall of $20 wines, and a wall of $45 wines. Despite their extensive knowledge and accolades, the duo strives to make buying wine an anxiety- and judgment-free process.

Throughout the episode, Nault and Slipp explain how the Knead Wine was conceptualized at the start of Covid, and how they’ve make their business model work in trying times. As it turns out, pizza and alcohol aren’t the worst things to invest in during a pandemic.

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Or Check out the Conversation Here

Zach: From Seattle, Washington I’m Zach Geballe, this is a VinePair podcast Next Round conversation. We’re bringing you these conversations in between our regular podcast episodes so that we can focus on a range of issues and stories in the drinks world.

Today I have the pleasure of speaking with Allie Nault and Jarad Slipp of Knead Wine. Thank you both for being here.

Allie: Thank you for having us.

Jarad: Super happy to be here.

Z: Excellent. So let’s start with the basics: What is knead wine? For those of you who are just listening to this and somehow didn’t read the headline on your podcast app, that’s k-n-e-a-d. So there’s a little bit more of a story here than just the obvious, which is that, yes, we all need wine.

J: Knead Wine was birthed in the middle of the Covid pandemic. We actually opened on August 1st. My background has been in restaurants for most of my life, and then I ran RdV Vineyards in Delaplane in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains for six years. When I left, I could have gone all over the place, in lots of different directions. But I really, really love where I live […] on the top of a mountain in the middle of nowhere. I can’t see my neighbors in any direction. We have a pet bear that comes around on occasion, and it’s fantastic. I wanted to carve something out right here in my own backyard — easier said than done in the middle of Covid. So unwittingly, we found a space, and we did gourmet takeout pizza and retail wine. And again, unwittingly, looking back, the only thing in the restaurant world that is actually ahead of the game right now is takeout pizza. I think the worse the world gets, the more people drink. So it was kind of the one-two punch. It wasn’t planned, but it was certainly welcome.

Z: Gotcha. Allie, maybe a little bit about your background as well?

A: Of course. So I am kind of a restaurant orphan. I’ve worked in Providence, Rhode Island, New York City, at the top of the One World Trade Center, down to Commander’s Palace in New Orleans, and most recently at The Inn at Little Washington as their sommelier. In March 2020 restaurants closed, and Jarad and I were just sitting at home saying: “What’s next? Is the inn going to reopen? Will I even have a job?” Jarad just departed from RdV, and it was perfect timing at the perfect place. A spot opened up right in downtown Middleburg on the main street in this beautiful old building that needed a lot of TLC. But we were just so excited. A little bit more about the concept: when we say restaurant, we serve food and we can do intimate private events for up to 10 people by state law right now. But when you walk in, it actually looks like you’re at a retail wine shop, and then all of a sudden you start smelling pizza and these famous cookies we started making. Then you’re like, “Wait, what else is going on here?” Then that’s when the pizza comes in as well — it’s a whole entire sensual experience. Even with your mask on, you’re able to still smell Jarad’s incredible pizza as you walk in. They don’t let me back there in the kitchen.

Z: Fair enough. So let’s start with just a little bit more about Middleburg, because those people who are not in Virginia or nearby, like me, [might be asking] “Well, OK, it’s on the map, but what kind of community is it?” What has the reception been?”

J: It is a very interesting little microcosm. Middleburg is probably the wealthiest town in the wealthiest county in America — Loudoun County — which is to say it’s on the same par as Palo Alto and Jupiter, Florida, and so on and so forth. We have our fair share of multimillionaires and billionaires that stroll in on the daily. But that said, the median income is something like $56,000 a year. For every person that has a 1,000 acre horse farm, there’s probably 20 or 30 or 40, 50 people that they employ there. So we get all walks of life. It is this super cute, quaint hamlet in the middle of horse country. We’re exactly an hour outside of Washington, D.C., so it’s a nice little getaway. Jackie Onassis used to come quite a bit when she was younger. But particularly with the current state of the pandemic, it’s been a nice getaway for people in the city to sneak away to, even if it’s just for an afternoon.

Z: I would love for you to explain a little bit more about what you’re doing: when it comes to wine, you have a very straightforward, very simple pricing structure; can you explain what that is, and why you went that route?

J: I honestly can’t remember what the genesis of it was, but part of what we’re supposed to do as sommeliers is demystify wine, and I wanted to keep it real streamlined and simple for anyone that came into the shop. Basically, you walk in the door and everything on the left-hand side is $20 and everything on the right-hand side is $45. It’s really that simple. We have some bubbles and some stickers that are priced as marked, and we have a small wall that rotates. It was originally intended to be our favorite wines from our wine travels, but there’s not a whole lot of traveling going on right now. It started out with Willamette Valley, which is the last trip that we took. Currently it’s our favorite dozen Pinots from around the world. Come spring, that will probably turn into our favorite local Virginia wines, so it’s always moving. So the large preponderance of the wines is either $20 or $45, but you can get wines up to 300 bucks.

Z: Do people vibe with that pricing? Does that make sense to people right away? I will say, I’ve seen a few restaurants do something similar, where everything is either one price or in one bucket, [but] I don’t think I’ve seen retail shops do that. I’m obviously not familiar with every last retail shop, but it seems like it’s the kind of thing that if done well, as I imagine it is, that people really appreciate. They don’t have to think about price tags on wines next to each other to decide which one to buy. They know they’re on the left or the right wall, so they know what the price is going to be.

J: Allie can probably speak to it better than I can, because I’m often in the kitchen. But the reception has been amazing — people adore the idea. And again, it keeps things easy for them: they have their two price points, and they can gravitate from one side to the other. Oftentimes people will get mixed cases with both price points. It makes things interesting and challenging for us in a good way in that it’s very, very curated. We very much have to stay in our lanes price-wise, and be able to find wines that fit those two price points. So you can’t deviate too far, one way or another. You have to give great value. But you also can’t bring in a wine that costs $19.95 and sell it for 20 bucks.

A: When talking about wine with guests, I feel like one of the hardest things to always break down is asking the tough question of: “How much do you want to spend tonight?” This makes it very easy. We have two price ranges: $20 or $45. Some people (very, very few) will be like, “Uh, I guess 20?” It’s perfect — there’s a time and a place for the $20 wall, and for the $45, even for Jared and myself, who love wine, and have tasted a lot of incredible things. Twenty dollars is such a great price range to find new and exciting things, but also at such a high qualitative standpoint. So it makes it exciting. We will blind taste to find the best Cabernet Sauvignon for the $20 price range. So when someone comes in, [they know] it’s the best thing that we could find right now on the market for a $20 Cabernet Sauvignon. People will come in and they’ll see it will rotate in like a month depending on stocks and inventory, and with what distributors are bringing in. They get super excited to see what the next Cabernet Sauvignon is on the wall a month later. Seeing that excitement over a $20 bottle of wine is something that I find so fulfilling. Having spent so much time with Wine Spectator’s grand award-winning wine list, I get more pleasure out of providing something that is affordable, a daily driver that makes people thrilled when they go home with their pizzas. It’s really rewarding.

Z: I’ve sometimes thought that with wine programs and things like that, constraints sometimes do more to breed creativity than having an unlimited budget and going for a Wine Spectator grand award, and being able to buy whatever you want. Does that ring true?

J: Oh, absolutely. If you give me a big enough check, I can give you a grand award. It’s just a matter of going out and finding all those blue chip wines, whereas here it’s small, it’s curated, and nothing goes on the wall that isn’t vetted by us. If we don’t like it, it doesn’t make the cut. So when people come in, it’s pretty funny. They’re like, “Oh, what are your two favorite wines?” I’m like: “All of them. They’re all here for a different reason.”

Z: You mentioned at the beginning that you opened in August. When the beginning parts of the planning for this started, was the intention to be [like this], was it done in the knowledge of Covid, or did you have a somewhat different idea that had to evolve because the world changed pretty dramatically?

J: I think with the restaurant world, there is no going back to normal. There will be a new normal for us. This is all we know, because we got the keys to the building last April 1st (which is scary, it’s almost coming up on a year.) We opened on August 1st, and I did 90 percent of all the build-out in construction. We knew what we were opening into, or we thought we knew what we were opening into. So this strange paradigm is our normal, and it’s worked and it’s been great. We do have the ability to have some tables in there if we wanted to. Right now, we choose not to. It’s takeout only. We have done a couple of private events, like on New Year’s Eve and so on and so forth, which are super fun. But as far as navigating the current landscape, we kind of planned and built for it for that, in fact. So that makes sense.

A: Yeah, I love the way it’s set up. It’s a really great creative outlet for the two of us to figure out a way to do takeout hospitality. People come in for a split second to grab their pizza and grab a bottle of wine, or maybe they come in for 45 minutes. Will they grab a case of wine? They want to hear all about everything. But being able to give a very special experience through takeout has been a really intriguing challenge for us to come up with. I think for all restaurants especially. I’ve personally enjoyed it. I don’t know if Jarad’s enjoyed it as much as I have. We haven’t really talked about it.

Z: This whole time? That seems like, you know, maybe a conversation you should have.

A: I guess he likes it. We’re still doing it.

Z: Yeah. There you go. That’s some proof for sure. So I would think just in the abstract, that a wine shop/restaurant opened by two incredibly accomplished sommeliers would be potentially intimidating for a lot of people. We experience this issue as wine professionals where people want our expertise but are also afraid of it. Some of the things you’ve talked about — the focusing on pizza, which is, for most people, a pretty damn approachable food; having very clear prices (I think some of the fear is about getting talked into a more expensive wine than they’re comfortable with) — do those structural elements help people get over that fear factor? Or do you just not think that people are intimidated?

A: Well, I think when people walk in and they see me in the front of the shop, they think I’m probably like a college student just answering the phone. I look very young. I sound very young. They probably never in a million years thought that I knew anything about wine. That’s something that I’ve always had to break down the barrier with, at any place I work. If anyone’s ever intimidated by me, then there’s a real problem, because I’m not at all intimidating. I know you can’t see me — I’m a tiny 5’3, 100 lb girl. I don’t think that they’re intimidated when they come into the shop. I think that they become at ease when they hear about the price ranges. I mean, Jarad can be a little intimidating, I’ll say that.

Z: That’s why you keep him in the kitchen, right?

A: But I think once you’ve once you start talking to him, you’re like, “Oh.” It’s just like your friend next door, or someone that’s going to become your best friend because he’s just so warm and welcoming.

J: I’m the guy that’s in the kitchen that yells: “What you want is the second one on the left, the Pinot Grigio.”

A: We have fun.

Z: As Jarad mentioned at the beginning, pizza is one of the things, more than anything else, that people have been consistently going with during the pandemic (not that they didn’t eat a lot of pizza before) What are three or so of your favorite current pairings of wine with your pizzas? Feel free to explain the pizzas too, because I am sure they’re not all just Hawaiian.

J: I have two hard and fast rules: No pineapples and no green peppers, ever. Barring that, if you buy it at the grocery store across the street and bring it over, I’ll slap it on your pizza. But I refuse [those] two things. The pizzas are kind of rooted in Neapolitan style, but Neapolitan pizzas are really meant to be eaten immediately out of the oven with a fork and a knife. They’re kind of floppy. Being takeout, we need a little more stability, and being in America, we use American flour. I think it actually tastes better. We sneak a little Italian flour in there for some silky texture, but American flour tastes better. We’ll do a pepperoni pizza, no problem. But we have more exciting things as well. Tomorrow we’re putting on a pizza with Bosc pear, crispy speck, gorgonzola dolce, and Korean chili flake, and we’ll pair that with pear cider. I hate when people — when I say people, I mean guys because it’s always guys — try to match up every little nuance of the dish to every little nuance of the wine. At some point, you just get analysis paralysis, and it’s just not fun anymore. So if you get a red pizza and you get a bottle of red Italian wine, you’re in the ballpark. Whether it’s Chianti, or it’s Dolcetto, or it’s Barbera, it’s really a stylistic preference. But it’s not like I say, “No, you have to get this wine with this pizza.” That’s just silly. Rule number one is eat what you want, and drink what you want.

Z: That’s very reassuring. That was always my rule as a sommelier. But one that, as you said, is not always shared by colleagues. Allie: I know asking what your favorite wines are is really hard, but do you have a couple of things that you’ve put in that you’ve been excited to see the clientele really vibe with, wines that might have been a little more out there?

A: Yeah. I think when we started the shop, our regulars who joined us in the area (because we obviously have a lot of transient foot traffic as well) were huge on Pinot Grigio or Chardonnay— more of the classic options as a wine buyer, which is fantastic. I love people who know what they want. But as we’ve been open longer, they’ve wanted to venture out and try new things, which has been really exciting. So we actually brought in Guardians Saperavi from the country of Georgia. It’s a woman-made wine. Saperavi is the grape variety, and it has this crunchy and dried red fruit character, a touch of florality to it. It’s a very intriguing red wine that has pretty nice acidity, so it also goes well with pizza, but it’s delicious to just chug on its own. I had this whole entire shift of, “I like Pinot Noir. I’ll try Saperavi. Oh, I love Saperavi. That’s now my new favorite wine.” Then when we were able to order more, because it was out of stock, I had a list of phone numbers to call when it came back in stock. So that’s something that’s been really exciting, and for $20.

I feel like people are really excited to take a chance, and maybe $20 was the peak of what they’ve spent on a bottle of wine before. But once they see how incredible the world of wine is, for Thanksgiving, they ventured over to the $45 wall, which is really also exciting — to show the entire world of wine at both price ranges to them.

So that’s probably been the most exciting part for me, with all of this, is just watching the transition of the community and their wine preferences. But when it comes to pairings, I always just say: “What grows together goes together.” So sticking with the Italian wine that Jarad was talking about. But whenever someone comes into the shop, it’s not like in a restaurant where you commit to like three ounces, and if it wasn’t your favorite wine, you just chug it and move on. It’s a whole bottle. So I always ask first: “What do you typically enjoy?” Then I find something along the lines of what they enjoy that will also go with the pizza, because I’d hate to send someone home with a Zinfandel if they like Old World Bordeaux. It’s not going to go well for them at the end of the night.

J: I think when we opened, we wanted to make sure that we had all of our bases covered, and all of the classics represented. Now as we’re seeing the clientele’[s] bandwidth is, we’re beginning to push the boundaries a little bit and say, “OK, let’s try some Greek wine, OK, Greek Chardonnay. OK, that worked. Let’s do Assyrtiko. OK, that worked. Let’s do a retsina. Retsina’s a tough sell, but you push up until the line, and then you draw back a little bit.

Z: Yeah. Then you drink retsina for a few weeks if that’s where you end up.

J: Oh it’s lights out, by far-and-away the best retsina out there. But it’s still an acquired taste.

Z: Well I want to thank you both so much for your time, I really appreciate it. It sounds like a really cool project. It makes me sad that at the moment, I am very far away and can’t come visit. But one of these days I will make it out there. I’m sure we’ve got some listeners in the Virginia area who, if they haven’t been in already, are looking forward to it. I can almost taste the pizza, and I’m very glad to know I won’t have to ever get pineapple. Thanks again, and best of luck going forward.

J: That’s very kind. Thank you so much.

A: Thank you, Zach. We look forward to welcoming you at some point.

Adam Teeter: Thanks so much for listening to the VinePair podcast. If you love this show as much as we love making it, please give us a rating or review on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher or whatever it is you get. It really helps everyone else discover the show. Now for the credits: VinePair is produced and recorded in New York City in Seattle, Washington, by myself and Zach Geballe, who does all the editing, and loves to get the credit.

Also, I would love to give a special shout out to my VinePair co-founder, Josh Malin, for helping make all this possible, and also to keep Keith Beavers, VinePair’s tastings director, who is additionally a producer on the show. I also want to, of course, thank every other member of the VinePair team who are instrumental in all of the ideas that go into making the show every week. Thanks so much for listening, and we’ll see you again.

Ed. note: This episode has been edited for length and clarity.

The article Next Round: Knead Wine’s Pricing Structure Is Creating Loyal Customers appeared first on VinePair.

source https://vinepair.com/articles/next-round-knead-wine/

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johnboothus · 4 years ago

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Next Round: Knead Wines Pricing Structure Is Creating Loyal Customers

Listen Online

Listen On Apple Podcasts

Listen on Spotify

Or Check out the Conversation Here

Today I have the pleasure of speaking with Allie Nault and Jarad Slipp of Knead Wine. Thank you both for being here.

Allie: Thank you for having us.

Jarad: Super happy to be here.

Z: Gotcha. Allie, maybe a little bit about your background as well?

Z: This whole time? That seems like, you know, maybe a conversation you should have.

A: I guess he likes it. We’re still doing it.

Z: That’s why you keep him in the kitchen, right?

J: I’m the guy that’s in the kitchen that yells: “What you want is the second one on the left, the Pinot Grigio.”

A: We have fun.

Z: Yeah. Then you drink retsina for a few weeks if that’s where you end up.

J: Oh it’s lights out, by far-and-away the best retsina out there. But it’s still an acquired taste.

J: That’s very kind. Thank you so much.

A: Thank you, Zach. We look forward to welcoming you at some point.

Ed. note: This episode has been edited for length and clarity.

The article Next Round: Knead Wine’s Pricing Structure Is Creating Loyal Customers appeared first on VinePair.

Via https://vinepair.com/articles/next-round-knead-wine/

source https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/next-round-knead-wines-pricing-structure-is-creating-loyal-customers

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jacobsmith321 · 4 years ago

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Examples from their Issues of their Editorial Magazines

For research, their website is perfect as they have all their issues on display, with interesting images, illustrations and arrangements of text, that could give me an idea as to what I could do for my editorial.

Issue 1

This issue is cover out of the 5, is my favourite because it says a lot without fully explaining it. The running head (the text on top) is titled “Innovation in the Human Age”, giving the implication that this editorial will show us how it will innovate us in out modern society, considering how we’re not being pushed or inspired. The use of blue is calming and subtle, reassuring us that need to carefully approach this topic

The title “Anthopocne” is written in a sans serif typeface, though the capital ‘A’ at the start is interesting, as it’s replaced with a triangular arrow that’s not fully formed. This could have been an intentional form of design, to signify how slowly we’re being lead into a direction that will lead to destruction, if we are not careful.

The centre of the page has an illustration of a thumbprint, though there is so much added into it that idea, it’s played in many different way. First off the thumbprint can be in reference to the carbon footprint and impression we have made on the earth and like in a police investigation, we found the finger print and the suspect is humanity. The lines our finger prints make are mainly the space between the skin and empty space acts like an oval maze; the poster adds a check point pin that’s used on google maps (or any location based software/website) to say that you’re starting at the centre and you have to find your way out this maze (representing the situation we’re all in and getting lost).

At the bottom there’s 3 supporting cover lines with key words, which connects to the running head (possibly presenting priority). ‘How we think about e-waste is in need of repair’ (’in need of repair’ in blue), ‘The driverless car and the death of the traffic light’ (’The driverless car’ in blue) and ‘Andrew Revkin on the Anthropocene: The science, the philosophy, the word’ (’Andrew Revkin’ in blue). These would be eye catchers and things to look out for when reading through or they drive you to read through.

As for the layout of the page, it’s almost balanced but the ‘Issue 1′ sticker takes that away and feels a little bit heavy, although there is quite a good amount of space, the finger print maze and ‘Issue 1′ sticker form an L shape layout and there’s good contrast with the colours as well as type.

Contents page

The contents page at the beginning seems promising, providing photography and illustration at the beginning. A giant eye on billboard taken by Victoria Pickering is looking directly at the dripping water coloured silhouette of what appears to be New York; the pieces that are seemingly interreacting, could show how we are slowly watching the degrade of the environment and how big cities like this cause a lot of damage (the stain like appearance references the stains and messes they make on nature).

There’s about 6 columns of text but there are 3 sections with 2 each (1. Data Collection, 2. Features (featuring the 3 supporting cover lines), 3. Idea Watch.

Issue Pages

I will be looking at 4 pages to show how they have applied their research, imagery and illustration. But also discuss their page format.

All these pages are double spread (no matter the topic) and even if one page is dedicated to text and one’s dedicated to imagery, there’s always something that links them together, either by the imagery and text invading one another’s space or if one of them aspects takes up the entire pages (Showing that it wants to prioritise both.

There are 3 sections and to tell which one you are entering, a massive blue space with some a number and text (relating to the category) adds a divide.

It’s like a clear blue sky or sea and add a tranquil feeling. There’s no deeper meaning other than a subjective colour and negative space to relax us.

This page is discussing about the effects of humans had on the earth and hints of the Anthropocene may have appeared much earlier than even scientists had anticipated but also mentioned how humans are able to change and alter the ecosystem to how we see fit.

As for the design of the page gives us a layout of text and a illustration by Chris Brown. The main structure is 4 columns with a lot of between 2 sets but under the 3rd column there’s a bit of blue text hidden under it.

The main illustration is of a power washer cleaning a wall of cave man paintings also it’s actually a caveman style painting on an actual wall. This shows that we may be progressing but we’re washing away our old traditions and instead of reviewing them and looking back at what to do and what not to do, we’re simply ignoring and swiping away, soon to possibly history, like this power washer on the wall.

The text is a lot and may put you off but simply reading the title and looking at the image above, at least draws you in and peaks your interest. They can tell you what the subject is about so you start to give it a chance.

The opening page to one of the supporting cover lines “How We Think about E-Waste Is in Need of Repair” and it discusses how countries like China and Ghana are dumped and handed with old tech but instead of letting it clutter and becomes useless, you can visit their markets and shops and receive parts you need.

This page has some duality as it’s mostly image based (the next showing off more info) though it’s 2 sides of the same device (probably symbolism for 2 side of the same coin), showing off the inside and mechanics of what could be a phone or PC and the coverage (this can be seen as how there’s no complications to an issue, that what’s on the surface and covered up.

The image leaves enough space for there to be breathing room but instead places the text on top of the coverage on the right (we pay attention to the hardware inside and see how vast it is, before getting to the tittle).

This page is all about 3D Printed Bricks, which are made from waste and other materials. They are made for sustainability and helping with living conditions and potential cases earthquakes or strong winds.

The page layout focuses more on imagery to show what the 3D bricks will look like and the information on the right is small in comparison, to give us a little bit more insight into the idea around them.

What does editorial magazine do well?

The cover is astounding for it’s simplification added with an immense amount of subtle but vibrant detail, both in design and messaging. The pages present a lot of factual imagery (with copyright and credits).

There are a lot of headers that instantly tell us the subjects of the topic but the imagery is the first thing we see, so it makes us rely on the overall appeal and design to catch us on, before further reading.

Everything’s readable, the typeface isn’t inconsistent and the style is fitting to the magazine.

What do I feel it fails at?

it’s a magazine and it should be factual but there’s a lot of text wall and despite the order they’re trying to create, the placements feel slightly off and if they’re going to be off, you could take advantage of that and further illustrate the state of the planet through the words of course but make the words into images in a way as well.

Despite that last part of criticism, I will be looking at more of their issues and how they are designed and read more on their context, as it will give me inspiration, what to avoid plagiarising and learn what to do and what not to do.

Anthropocene. (unknown, unknown unknown). Take a Break from Your Screen. Retrieved October 28, 2020, from Anthropocene: https://www.anthropocenemagazine.org/in-print-3/ (Image and info source)

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grassroutes · 4 years ago

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Zhiyun Smooth XS: Is This 2-Axis Gimbal Worth Upgrading To?

Zhiyun Smooth XS

8.00 / 10

Read Reviews

Read More Reviews

See on amazon

The Zhiyun Smooth XS brings added stabilization to both at-home and outdoor shots. A great beginner gimbal for anyone looking to get started.

Key Features

2-Axis Motorized Gimbal

App allows for gesture control, mode adjustments, preset customization, glamour effects, and more

10" Selfie Stick Extension

Specifications

Brand: Zhiyun

Selfie Stick: 10 inches

Class: Smartphone

Maximum Payload: 0.51lbs (235g)

Smooth Motion: 2-axis (pan and roll)

Bluetooth: Yes - native camera and ZY Cami app

Pros

Budget Friendly

Extremely portable (pocket-friendly)

Comfortable grip

Cons

ZY Cami App Glitches

2-Axis Gimbal Limitations

Buy This Product

Zhiyun Smooth XS amazon

Shop

<![CDATA[ // Bottom var galleryThumbs1 = new Swiper('.gallery-thumbs-1', { spaceBetween: 10, slidesPerView: 10, freeMode: true, watchSlidesVisibility: true, watchSlidesProgress: true, centerInsufficientSlides: true, allowTouchMove: false, preventClicks: false, breakpoints: { 1024: { slidesPerView: 6, } }, }); // Top var galleryTop1 = new Swiper('.gallery-top-1', { spaceBetween: 10, allowTouchMove: false, loop: true, preventClicks: false, breakpoints: { 1024: { allowTouchMove: true, } }, navigation: { nextEl: '.swiper-button-next', prevEl: '.swiper-button-prev', }, thumbs: { swiper: galleryThumbs1 } }); ]]>

With more footage than ever shot on smartphone cameras, competition for the best video continues to increase. Thankfully, gimbals help expand our shot opportunities and boost quality. So if you're serious about shooting video, you need a gimbal that both fits your needs and feels good to use.

The Zhiyun Smooth XS aims to improve on the original Smooth X model. It's still an incredibly affordable entry-level gimbal; its upgrade focuses on design improvements. So if you're a fan of the predecessor, Zhiyun kept all you loved intact while making it better.

For some shot examples and a quick breakdown of the unit, check the video review.

Thanks to Zhiyun, we have one Smooth XS to give away as well. You'll find the entry widget at the end of the review.

youtube

Unboxing The Zhiyun Smooth XS

The Zhiyun Smooth XS comes with the following:

Smooth XS

Hand Strap

Tripod

USB Type-C Charging Cable

Storage Bag

During the unboxing, the first notable detail was how light and small the Smooth XS felt in my hand. While Zhiyun kept this element of the Smooth X, you'll notice there's more color to this device. The white edition doesn't stray too far from the typical neutral colors associated with gimbals, but the splash of color makes the controls stand out more.

While handling the included tripod, you'll notice it has a sturdy build and the rubberized feet. While the white of the tripod might lead you to hesitate about using it outside, these provide a nice amount of grip. The USB Type-C charger's length felt just right; the Zhiyun logo at the Type-C connector was a nice small touch.

As someone who appreciates extra comfort accessories, the strap and travel bag both hit that criteria. The material of both felt a notch about what I expected. Once the gimbal is folded up, you can slip the entirety of the box's contents in the storage bag easily.

Zhiyun Smooth XS Features

Overall, the core experience from Smooth X to the Smooth XS hasn't drastically changed.

It's a pan and roll 2-axis gimbal stabilizer with a 10-inch built-in selfie stick extension. You'll pair the device by Bluetooth to your phone and control the device using the four-way control stick, mode, zoom, and record buttons. The tripod attachment fits into the 1/4-inch attachment point at the base.

The battery life of the device also still lasts around four hours. If you're using the ZY Cami App, certain features such as gesture control will drastically drain the battery of your gimbal faster. The app does offer you a warning if you accidentally leave it on, so you'll learn about any drain quickly.

Overall, the battery life was never a problem while shooting. If you stress the gimbal out by not balancing your phone properly or using more draining features, however, you'll need to recharge sooner.

Since the Smooth XS charges to full in under an hour, it's not too big a deal. It also supports power banks, so you can charge both phone and gimbal (if necessary) on the go.

Using The Smooth XS

Despite all this similarity, the Smooth XS does offer two important design changes. Firstly, opening and closing the Smooth XS is drastically different than the Smooth X. Opening the Zhiyun's Smooth X involved a more complicated process that felt a bit like learning a secret handshake.

With the Smooth XS, it's as easy as a slide-based design.

To open the gimbal, hold the motor and slide out to open. Then unlock the top and turn the handle around; you can add your phone to the spring grip and power-up.

As a note, the grip can handle thin smartphone cases okay. However, if you're working with a thicker case, you're not going to get that tight connection you need. For best results, it's easiest to forgo your case and make sure your phone is properly balanced inside.

To close it, it's as easy as sliding up and locking the rest. Repeating the process comes incredibly naturally, so the Smooth XS easily lives up to its expected use as a pocket-ready gimbal.

The second design change is the ergonomic nature of the grip on the front and back. For a gimbal that doubles as a selfie-stick and can last four hours, you want it to feel comfortable in your hands. While subtle, the curvature and light padding felt nice during any extended recording.

ZY Cami App: An Equal Boon and Bane

When you first open the device, you'll see a sticker on the camera mount suggesting you pair the device with the ZY Cami app. As one might expect, many features are tied to this app. If you want to take advantage of gesture control, modify gimbal settings, or set-up tracking then you'll need the app.

However, I experienced a number of bugs during every encounter with the app. Auto-tracking would frequently be lost, or it'd randomly crash the app. Gesture control would also not frequently detect me unless I used either of the two accepted gestures (peace sign or a wave) near my face.

These problems didn't occur with less intense features of the app, however. If I used the glamour effects, it was seamless. SMART Mode offered a number of templates, and I didn't run into any problems with the preset motions, music, or effects.

Overall, I found it easiest to leave the ZY Cami app in the background while swapping to my main camera and utilizing the gimbal and its buttons. Anytime I needed to change a setting, I'd just swap to the Cami app.

For cases where I did want the Cami app features, I would knowingly adapt to the problem. Trying for a gimbal walk would result in fewer cases of tracking being lost. Remaining stationary while filming also proved better for all issues.

Creative and Practical Applications With The Smooth XS

The Smooth XS works as a great gimbal for anyone interested in doing TikTok, Byte, or Instagram Reels. If you want a quick-button or hands-free recording device, it has you covered. Thanks to SMART Mode, you can also learn some gimbal pans while practicing some short-form video.

If you're just interested in the Smooth XS as a stabilizer, you can also shoot some amazing shots. While it won't reduce all the jitter as a 2-axis gimbal, you can definitely improve your footage.

Should You Buy The Smooth XS?

Whether you should buy the Smooth XS boils down to what you're after. If you're looking for a first-time gimbal to practice on or want to casually vlog, the Zhiyun Smooth XS works great. It's affordable, lightweight, and it fits easily in your pocket.

More than anything, the Smooth XS is meant to get you to embrace the notion that you can film anytime and anywhere. But if you're not needing to be sold on the ease of use or an affordable smartphone gimbal, you aren't the target audience here.

Zhiyun Smooth XS: Is This 2-Axis Gimbal Worth Upgrading To? posted first on grassroutespage.blogspot.com

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adurnah · 8 years ago

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Two days in Numazu (Love Live Sunshine real life setting): a report

Heya! I know I haven’t used my Tumblr in ages, but I didn’t know where else to put this so here I am.

So, I’ve been to Japan for two weeks in late February and I managed to spent two days (Sun 19th and Mon 20th) in Numazu and Uchiura, the places where all of Love Live Sunshine is set. It was an incredible experience, so I’ve wanted to write a report both for me to remember it but also to show other people the place. I can’t believe I procrastinated two months in this

From Kyoto (where we were before this) we arrived at Numazu on Sunday morning at around 8am, by night bus. This is Numazu Station, featured a lot of times in the anime. We’ve been really lucky and had a wonderful weather! at least for one day

After going to check-in to our hotel (if you’re interested in going, I really recommend you Sanco Inn Numazu Ekimae, it’s super close to the station and the staff knows English pretty well), we came back to catch the bus for Uchiura.

Right in front of the station there’s a collaboration cafè, Yudai Festa Sun! Sun! Sunshine Cafè. We went there later for dinner.

This is the bus stop to Uchiura. You’ll see Love Live is literally everywhere here. Unfortunately I already knew we had no chance to catch the LLSS collaboration bus if we didn’t want to waste time (the first was at around 11am iirc)

While we were waiting there for the bus, another bus arrived and a girl next to us asked us “Where are you going?” so I said “Izu Mito Sea Paradise” (since it’s the most known attraction from Uchiura and it was actually our first stop), and she said that that other bus that arrived was going there too. So we took that bus.

Random photo of the scenery from the bus.

Comes out, that bus wasn’t going to Izu Mito. I don’t know what happened, if she didn’t understood what I said or she was just wrong, but at some point on the road to Uchiura the bus changed direction. I kept looking where the f- we were going on my phone, and comes out we were going to the near city of Izu-Nagaoka. I tried asking to the driver if the bus was going to Izu Mito Sea Paradise (maybe taking a longer route) but he said “No, *something else I didn’t caught* Sea Paradise”. IDK. In the end I found with Google Maps that there was another bus going to Izu Mito from that area, so we dropped off the bus and waited for the other bus.

The funny thing to all of this is that at that bus station in the middle of nowhere and far away from every LLSS location there was this:

No matter where you go, Love Live is there.

An old woman also asked us (in Japanese this time) where we were going and she confirmed that this bus was actually for Izu Mito and she was right this time. I got pleasantly surprised that people are so friendly there, even with weird gaijins like us.

This detour unfortunately cost us a lot of time, but in the end we managed to arrive to Izu Mito Sea Paradise! If you don’t know, this aquarium is the setting for the Koi ni Naritai AQUARIUM PV.

I forgot to take a photo outside This is the Show Stadium of the Aquarium, where most of the scenes in the KoiAQUA PV happen.

I loved this tank with sakura flowers inside.

I haven’t took a photo of the whole coloured jellyfish pool (where You is being emo in the PV) but I had a bit of fun photographing the single jellyfishes.

Shukas Otteeeeers so cute. I went to see them hundreds of time.

A dolphin came to say hi to us! o/

A nice view of Awashima Island and... Fuji-san being shy and hiding behind clouds.

Aqours images signed by the seiyuus. In front of this place is where you can see half of the aquarium’s audience are Love Livers, a lot of people came here to take photos of the posters. I loved the guy that posed next to Mari doing her “Lock on!” pose lol

Best grills and best seiyuus signatures

The aquarium shop has a literal aquarium with Aqours acrylic standees inside

YouChika under the sea and a fish staring at me

Aqours standees inside the aquarium shop.

The visit to the aquarium took us until midday, since we also saw the shows. After lunch, we went out and headed to our next stops.

First of all we stopped at the close Sannoura Tourist Center, aka the tourist center of the town. I tried periscoping inside of it so here’s a video: https://streamable.com/d5n33 (I can’t find a way to embed it sorry)

As you can see the place is FILLED with Love Live, it really is the main attraction there.

If I recall correctly this page in their signature book was signed by the seiyuus when they first came here in February 2016. I witnessed one of Rikyako’s best masterpieces with my own eyes I feel blessed.

After we looked around a bit the two staff members showed us a map of Japan where people put a round sticker for the place where they were from, and they also had spaces of overseas. For Europe iirc they had a space for UK, Germany and then “Other Europe” lel, so we put our sticker there. There were only 2 sticker on “Other Europe”, and I wondered who they were... comes out it was my friend and her boyfriend who come here in December :’D Not a lot of people are as crazy as us uh better for them

After this the staff girl asked us if the wanted to write a post-it with cheers for the seiyuus for their First Live. After I wrote mine, she took it, looked at it and asked “Yousoro?” (since I wrote it in blue and added an anchor), I said yes and then she disappeared for a bit and came back with two You keychains as a present for me WTF I was almost crying as I thanked her, so kind!! They also gave some Chika goods to my friend, I was speechless. As if it wasn’t enough, while we were going out the staff guy stopped us and gave us one of their big posters??

Like seriously WTF. Are they really so happy to see tourists?

I feel sorry that they also tried to make some conversation with me but unfortunately I’m still a beginner in Japanese and they didn’t know a lot of English ;; They managed to ask me if we were going to see some locations and I said that in fact we’ve already been to Izu Mito. They were so happy ;;

Another nice thing I didn’t expected is that outside of the Tourist Center we found a few itashas. Not comparable to the one you can see in UDX in Akiba but they were nice!

This one was very well made, except for the fact that one side was wrongly mirrored lol

This guy has good tastes.

We left the Tourist Center in the direction of the school. This is the place where Mari falls while running, in fact, to the school to meet Kanan.

A bit ahead we found this groceries shop called “Oh! Mos” that sells mikans and specifically the Jyutaro x LLSS mikans, and also has this big Aqours shrine. I told ya LL there is really everywhere.

Fun fact: Suwawa, Rikyako and Anchan went in this shop a few weeks later, when they were there for their DIVER photoshoot, and left a signature (that’s the shop twitter account).

We took a bag of mikans and when we went to the counter to pay, the old woman pointed at Chika’s image in the bag and said “anime?” to us, lol. When we said yes (?) she showed us that they even have the cardboard box of mikan, the megaphone and the sign that Chika uses in episode 1 to gather people for her school idol club, lol. SUKURU AIDORU BU DEEESU. My friend took a pic with them

Btw, mikans are really good.

Moving on, we went to the place where the girls (try to) shoot a PV in episode 6. The place is called “Nagahama Castle Ruins” but there really isn’t much except for a really nice view.

Actually, I had printed a lot of these postcards with anime screenshots to take this kind of photos, but unfortunately I realized taking a good shot takes a lot of time and effort, plus the wind was not helping me. In the end I gave up and took really a few of these. I still have all of them so maybe I’ll try again if I manage to go back in August.

If you turn back you can already see the school!

My friend took a panorama of the bay.

Moving on to the next stop: the little shrine where Kanan ends her morning run and dances under the stalkers other girls’ eyes.

I saw a lot of people thinking that the shrine where Kanan dances is the same as the one in episode 4 to where Ruby and the seconds year run, but it’s not: that one is in Awashima Island and it would have required Kanan to take the boat from where she starts her run. In fact it’s this one, a bit before the school. There were two other Love Livers there taking photos.

After this we finally got to the school bus stop! Featured in the ending, as well as in episode 1 when You joins the school idol club.

I failed this photo on so many levels.

Going up the hill to the school, such a nice scenery.

And here it is! Uranohoshi Girls Highschool is in real life a middle school called Nagaisaki. It was Sunday afternoon so no one was around, except for the gym where we could hear some people inside.

After this we walked all the way back to Izu Mito and beyond to see the other locations, like...

Yasudaya ryokan, aka Chika’s house!

And right in front of it, the beach featured in the very first LLSS image, as well as the scene in episode 1 where Chika and Riko talk. Someone already wrote Aqours on the sand.

And the pier when Riko tries to kill herself jump in the water.

Early blooming sakura.

Last one I tried to take. Kimi no kokoro wa kagayaiterukai?

Shougetsu Cafè! aka the place were a CYaRon radio drama is set, and also were the 2nd years seiyuus went during their Teku Teku. Of course we went to grab some mikan dorayaki! They are super good. I even bought mikan jam, but I still have to open it.

Photos and signatures of the seiyuus.

We were so lucky we even found the LLSS kitchen car! I bought the You Noppo keychain.

Unfortunately, at this point my organization failed me. We wanted to go to Awashima Island, but I got wrong the place where the boat docks. I thought it was in front of Shougetsu, where there actually is some kind of port, but it wasn’t. We lost time looking around and on the web (how come that the Awashima Marine Park website doesn’t say where the boat docks?!), then tried to ask to the girls in the kitchen car who managed to explain to me it was 20 minutes by feet to get there. Unfortunately it was already kinda late, and since we didn’t want to rush it we decided to go back to Numazu. While riding the bus I saw the bus stop “Awashima” and the docks. If only we had take the right bus in the morning I would’ve know. Too bad.

Even if we didn’t rode the LLSS collaboration bus there was still some Love Live on board. Someone likes OmoiNare ships here.

At Numazu station we finally grabbed some Noppo Pan! I bought the LLSS (caramel) flavoured one this time, and later I tried the strawberry chocolate too. In the same shop in the station I also bought some really good mikan cookies.

Going around Numazu by night. This shopping district appears in episode 6, and it also contains Maru-san (Maru’s favorite bookstore) and the cafè used as a background for Guilty Kiss first illustration

Obligatory visit to Numazu Gamers, or Numazu’s Little Demon shop.

Inside the shop.

Going to the collabo cafè for dinner! They have this fake UraGirls bus stop sign which actually resembles the real one (including the timetable)

I got the full You menu: Youkisoba (I even got the appropriate coaster), You’s drink and You’s Magic Tea (it’s a butterfly pea tea, it’s blue but when you put lemon in it it becomes purple). I really liked it tbh to be just a collabo cafè (not famous for the quality of their meals...)

And this concludes our first day in Numazu.

The next day we decided to do just a short visit to Numazu, since going back to Uchiura just to go to Awashima Island was too expensive.

Nakamise again.

We went to see Yoshiko’s house, a building called Natty Numazu. At the first floor of the building, on the other side, there’s a watch shop that even has some LLSS merch, and when the shopkeeper saw us looking at it they made us enter and sign their Yoshiko signature book lol

This tiny temple is right next to the alley where Yoshiko is seen in the last scene of episode 5 (before starting running away from the others).

Of course since You is best grill I couldn’t miss this place: You’s house! Which is not a house but a Western-style cafè called Orandakan.

Just from outside you can’t be wrong this is the place.

Their You shrine from inside.

When we entered an old lady came to us and made us seat. She tried failed a bit to talk in English and brought us their signature book (I swear every single place has signature books there). My friends told me she also said “Welcome to You’s house” but unfortunately I didn’t catch it.

Their menu is only in Japanese but luckily since the teas are all in katakana and the cakes had pictures we managed to order something.

Not bad but tbh kinda pricey, I paid 1010 yen for a tea and a piece of cake... but it was at You’s house! So it’s ok.

Our message in the signature book, I did the writing and my friend did the drawing.

Moving along Yoshiko’s escape route, we passed next to Numazu Deep Sea Aquarium (where the first years go in their KoiAQUA radio drama, aka the shiirakansu aquarium) and Numazu Hamburger & Cafè, where the first years also came for their Teku Teku.

I took a photo of this sign and not of the place, how fail I am.

We finally arrived at Byou (which I discovered actually means View-O), the water gate/observatory where Yoshiko finally stops running and also where You and Mari go talk in episode 11. Going up only costs 100 yen but due to some circumstances we decided not to go. The weather got bad in any case so we wouldn’t have seen anything anyway.

And this concludes our trip around Numazu, and is also where we suddenly started having incredible bad luck.

The weather was getting worse and worse, with strong wind and rain. On our travel back to Tokyo we wanted to make some stops: at Atami to visit the Plum Garden since the plums were in full blooms, at Nebukawa station (the station of feels in the anime), and Kozu station (the beach of feels- yes, they’re in different places). After riding the train we already decided that we would miss Atami, the weather was too bad to enjoy a garden. We could still stop at Nebukawa and Kozu, I mean, we just have to stop and take some photos, it can’t be that bad, right?

Wrong. The wind was so strong we were basically flying away, I’ve never seen something like this. We run inside the station and I only managed to take these photos.

Being the wind so strong we decided not to stop in Kozu, since it would’ve been a pain with our luggages and everything. But, after arriving at that exact station, the train stopped. We heard a lot of messages but we couldn’t understand them. We checked online and discovered that all trains in the Tokaido line were suppressed due to strong winds. And we were in Kozu. But we couldn’t go down. I couldn’t believe our bad luck, lol. The train stayed there for three (THREE) hours before leaving, and even then it was going slow and occasionally stopping, making our travel from Numazu to Tokyo 6 hours long instead of 2. But in the end we managed to arrive in Tokyo safe and sound.

Anyway, except for this last part, I really loved going to Numazu. It’s a bit of a struggle if you don’t know Japanese and it’s kinda expensive, but if you’re a Love Live fan it’s really really worthy. It’s not just “seeing” those places in real life, you can do that from photos... but being there, living like them, taking the same bus they take to school, eating mikans and Noppo pan... it’s an incredible experience. It makes it feels like everything is more real, even if it’s just an anime. I really hope I’ll be able to go back in August!

I want to give many many thanks to LuciaHunter for the LLSS Locations Google Map (link: https://www.google.com/maps/@35.3623197,139.0468361,10z/data=!4m2!6m1!1s1cL4tMTO0iVaz69hqK88wyetWkR8 )

and also u/MasterMirage and u/FliryVorru for their reddit posts, they all were a huge help in planning this!

This concludes my report of these two days in Numazu. If you really read this till the end thank you, hope you like it! And if anyone has any question feel free to ask!

#love live #love live sunshine #aqours #numazu #uchiura

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cloakedsparrow · 8 years ago

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Sometimes you watch a movie, and between the seemingly endless screentime of criminally dull characters spouting nonsense dialogue, you marvel how something so lame and expensive got made. It takes a lot of people to make a movie as big as Paramount’s “Ghost In The Shell,” which is estimated to have cost upwards of $110 million. It also takes a lot of bad choices to make a movie this unrelentingly boring and, ultimately, astonishingly offensive.

Based on the manga written and illustrated by Masamune Shirow, “Ghost In The Shell” follows Major Mira Killian (Scarlett Johansson), a groundbreaking cyborg that combines a robot body (that looks like Scarlett Johansson) with a human mind. The mind is her ghost, her soul, her humanity. The shell is robot vessel, which holds her brain and pushes Major to understand her identity in a world where humans race to upgrade themselves with cyber tech like x-ray eyes and drink-all-you-want livers, but robots are treated as slaves. When hunting down a terrorist hacker called Kuze (Michael Carmen Pitt), Major is forced to confront how she doesn’t really belong in either world. This sends her down a path to uncover her human past.

The great irony of the film is that while its plot is all about the search for soul, “Ghost In The Shell” is all style, no soul — or, rather, all shell, no ghost.

Director Rupert Sanders made his name helming commercials, most famously one for the video game “Halo 3: ODST.” But when it comes to his filmography, all he’s got to offer is “Snow White and the Huntsman,” a battle-studded fairy tale re-imagining, which crammed its princess in jeans and pitched her into chilly CGI landscape to create a stylish but stilted adventure. That film was critically panned and considered only a modest box office success. Yet somehow Sanders was gifted a second chance. And what he gave us was the same superficial showmanship.

Set in a futuristic Tokyo, “Ghost In The Shell” drapes the city in giant holograms of robot geishas, smiling bodybuilders, and a drooling corgi. A skeezy bar boasts holograms of strippers (glitchy enough to appease its PG-13 rating), and boxers battling (presumably the future’s pay-per-view fight night system). While some of the production design is gorgeous–the robo-geisha teased in trailers is a highlight–most of the designs seem to have no function beyond looking cool. They tell us little about this world.

With all the holograms and cyber punk flare of “Ghost In The Shell,” I thought of the aesthetic of The Wachowski sisters, who’ve created rich sci-fi worlds with “The Matrix” trilogy, “Cloud Atlas,” and “Jupiter Ascending.” But there’s a huge difference between their designs and Sanders’, in that the Wachowskis’ designs give their world context, life, and depth. Every detail seems to fit and function, and gives audiences some little insight into this fictional universe. Sanders’ stuff just looks like CGI stickers thrown around his dazzling Hollywood star, lacking any purpose beyond wow factor. It makes for a hollow viewing experience, especially when paired with performance styles that feel lost in translation.

From the Marvel movies to the trippy action-adventure “Lucy,” Johansson has brought dizzying charisma to heroines who use their incredible abilities–be it sharpshooting or telekinesis–to topple tyrants and take down armies of armed baddies. In “Ghost in the Shell” she wears a barely-there body suit and scales walls while firing a gun right into the brainstem of any who’d oppose her. She punches out terrorists and single-handedly downs a tank, even when it risks tearing her shell asunder. And yet I felt nothing. Johansson’s charm seems in sleep mode as she struts vacantly through this tedious journey that boasts more tech talk than interesting action. Sanders has somehow drained away the very star power Johansson was supposedly cast to deliver. And that brings us to the scandal that’s followed the film since its earliest casting rumors: Yes. This is an example of whitewashing.

This issue has raging online for years, before the film even went into production. One side insisted that because the Manga — and its resulting 1995 anime — were Japanese, so too should be the heroine of its live-action, American-made adaptation. Others claimed that because the character is just a brain in a robot body, anyone could play the role, so why not Johansson who has a big fan base and a storied history in the action genre? Before seeing the movie, I understood both sides. But after?

This is hands down Asian erasure.

It’s not just that Major was renamed the white-coded “Mira Killian” instead of the original Japanese name Motoko Kusanagi, “Ghost In the Shell” is set in Tokyo. The film is dripping in elements of Japanese culture, from the anime iconography to geishas, and koi fish to traditional sushi restaurants with low tables and visitors in elaborate robes and obis. And yet most of the main characters are white; not just Major, but also her best friend Batou (Pilou Asbæk), her mother-figure Dr. Ouelet (Juliette Binoche), her antagonizing boss (Peter Ferdinando), and the aforementioned terrorist she’s charged to track down (Pitt).

So even if anybody could have theoretically been cast to play the fully robo-figured Major, Paramount chose to cast a movie set in Japan, telling a Japanese story, and steeped in Japanese culture using primarily white actors. That sends a message about who is valued and not, and it’s a pretty insulting one that only gets more clear and offensive as the movie goes on. There are people of color in the film, filling out Major’s team. But aside from her handler (Takeshi Kitano), they barely get five lines to share between the three of them. I couldn’t tell you any of their names, because the movie only cares about them in the rare instances where Major and Batou need back-up. They’re not characters as much as conveniences.

Another shocking scene involves Major hiring a sex worker so she might touch human flesh. Instead of the short-circuiting lesbian scene from the comic, Major — who absolutely reads as a White woman — hires a Black woman so she can poke her and experiment. The optics are bad, especially in the wake of such a successful and woke film as “Get Out.”

And then things get worse!

Spoilers for the third act of “Ghost In The Shell.”

I rarely get into third act reveals. But as was the case with “Passengers,” it’s necessary to discuss the vile story lurking beneath the slick ad campaign. When Major discovers her past, she finds out she’s actually Japanese. Her name was Motoko Kusanagi. She has a living mother who speaks English with a heavy Japanese accent. Her childhood bedroom is decked out with Japanese knickknacks, as if it’s a souvenir shop for tourists. Major is secretly Asian! And still, the filmmakers felt totally comfortable casting her as white. This reveal hits in waves of “no they didn’t” that don’t peak when Kuze discovers he’s also actually Japanese (“Your name is Hideko!”), but when Major visits her own grave, then embraces her mother as if to say, “It’s cool. I’m your rebooted white daughter! I test better globally.”

End of spoilers.

If the social politics of this property bore you, so will the movie itself. Sanders seems to have urged all of the cast to speak in the same deadpan delivery, making every line feel like an afterthought. And with dialogue like, “I don’t think of her as a machine. She’s a weapon,” the script could have desperately used some energy. Instead, the actors, Japanese culture, and story are all put in service to build to action set pieces that are sometimes visually stunning, yet never hit hard because Sanders hasn’t bothered to build the world or develop compelling characters.

I rarely check my watch during movies, but this movie is so gruelingly slow-moving that I had to, if only to assure myself it was almost over. It wasn’t. When I checked, I assumed we were nearly a two-hour mark. It had been 72 minutes. I still had 35 to go, and every one — whether made of quick-cut action, bland banter, or leering shots of Johansson in that high-tech leotard — felt like a unique bit of torture; vapid, yet self-aggrandizing.

In only keeping mildly true to the source material’s aesthetic, Sanders created a film that has spectacle and action, but no excitement. How he was allowed a second chance at a big-budget remake after the mediocrity of “Snow White and The Huntsman” is beyond me. How Paramount poured this much money into a script that reads like a sloppy translation, and action scenes that are so CGI-enhanced they look like video games, I can’t even begin. I’m genuinely astonished a studio movie in the age of incredible offerings like “Logan,” “John Wick,” and the upcoming “Atomic Blonde” can be this totally, absolutely and utterly garbage.

“A Ghost In The Shell” opens Friday, March 31.

#ghost in the shell #article #review #major spoilers #comics to film

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lplt · 8 years ago

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Tokyo Day 2

This morning we woke up for a 7 am Japanese-style breakfast at the hotel. It was three courses (mostly served at once) in small wooden boxes/dishes. Our favorites were unidentifiable but everything was really beautiful and delicious. We spent the hour lingering over the food and tea and fruit and yogurt we had for dessert while the other diners in our seating were done by 7:30. Caroline met us at the hotel at 9 am and we walked to a combini to get provisions for the day. We grabbed candy and snacks, then headed out to see if the municipal tower (supposed to have an amazing view of the city from the top) was open on Saturday. It was not, but a friendly and aggressive man came to tell us where to go. We avoided him and got on the subway to the imperial palace… but actually went in the wrong direction for four stops before turning around and getting on a train going the correct direction. After we managed to make it to the palace gardens, we walked around the perimeter a few times and saw (and ran from) the same helpful stranger from the train station. As soon as we were reasonably not creeped out, we checked out the palace and made our way to Tokyo Station. We got lunch in the basement at “Ramen Street,” a row of eight of Tokyo’s best ramen shops. We bought tickets from a vending machine, got in line, were seated at a table, and received our ramen to slurp. It was incredible, of course. After ramen we took the train back to harajuku. It lived up to the hype - it was insanely crowded full of teenagers in crazy outfits and wild makeup. So much goofy stuff was for sale in every shop. We stopped for crepes, which were for sale in cute little stands every 20 feet on harajuku’s main street. We shopped at a Japanese dollar store and wandered through a few other places looking for weird treasurers and toys. We did not find the Sailor Moon costume I've been looking for. From harajuku we walked the short distance to the meiji shrine. It’s glorious. The giant wood beams that make up the entrance gate are from 1700-year-old trees, and they're really impressive in person. The park and shrine are so green and peaceful. It's amazing that this can a. be part of Tokyo and b. be right next to the absolute craziest place we've been to so far. We spent a while there walking around and chatting, but mostly people-watching and reading all the signs in English. Our next stop was Shibuya crossing. This is the stereotypical vision of Tokyo - teeming masses crossing the street in a beautiful, coordinated ballet. It's not exactly like that in person (mostly because we were part of that crossing 3 times) but also because it's still incredible how many people come through that intersection. A ton. It's a freaking ton of people. We went up to the second floor of the train station to get a better view and still couldn't believe the crowds. Believe the hype. I read in my guide book about a photobooth place that does crazy doe eyes and heavily-airbrushed skin in Shibuya so we walked back across the intersection and up to the second floor of a building with a restaurant and maybe an electronics store? The photobooth place was full of teenagers girls in full makeup with bright pink cheeks and heavily-lined eyes. We paid our 400 yen and hopped in a booth. The instant Photoshop was fun, but the big surprise was the second booth we were ushered into. We sat on a bench and got to edit our photos, adding stickers, sparkles, heavier makeup, silly English phrases, and cat ears and whiskers. We were obsessed and we thought we could upgrade our previous poses so we went into another booth, scrounged around for more change, and did the whole thing again with new themes. Easily a highlight of the trip and very much an only-in-tokyo thing. Photos safely in hand, we walked 30 min east through residential neighborhoods to the original Butagumi. Set in a two-story home, it's a small tonkatsu restaurant that displays the pork cuts in a butcher's case as soon as you walk in. I found it on the Eater 38 for Tokyo so I insisted that we make the trek. When we entered and asked for a table for 3, they told us they couldn't seat up and made an X with their arms. Being a total dingbat, I asked how long it would be for a table. They said 20 so we went outside to discuss and collect ourselves. Of course the minute we got outside Caroline told us that the X meant they weren't interested in serving us as foreigners. I shouldn't have been surprised but I was also dying for the food they were making - it looked spectacular. We debated for a while about how to best deal with the fact that they both turned us down and also gave us a wait time. I was being pretty stubborn so we went back in and waited, then were ushered upstairs to our traditional table. We took off our shoes and sat down, then immediately understood why they weren't interested in foreigners - a woman from California was yelling at the people who worked there about how poorly she thought she'd been treated. We did our best to be respectful for the rest of dinner and (I think) did a solid job. The tonkatsu was one of the best things I've ever eaten. The fried pork sirloin was perfect in every way and I want to swim in the barbeque sauce we dipped it in. Absolutely amazing. The little sides and amuse bouche were incredible too. We left only a little terrified but very happy.

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canadastartupblog · 5 years ago

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How to Turn a Passion Project Into a National Business

What started out as a batch of greeting cards on Etsy is now a stationery brand available at Michael’s craft stores across the U.S.

The characters featured in Cynthia Koo’s Wonton In A Million product line, which are based on dim sum foods like shu mai and dumplings, have attracted an enthusiastic fanbase.

Koo’s mission is to use her brand’s platform to promote Asian culture and encourage other women to become entrepreneurs.

Even though she studied East Asian languages and culture with a minor in computer science at Columbia University, Cynthia Koo says she’s always been a designer at heart. Growing up in New York City’s Chinatown, she enjoyed making custom greeting cards for her family, carefully rearranging stickers in her sticker books and emblazoning her planners with Hello Kitty characters.

Now, Koo is a 31-year-old entrepreneur that shares her heritage through Wonton In A Million, a unique stationery business that makes dim-sum-inspired washi tape, stickers and stationery.

“I think this company is a way to introduce Chinese culture and food to people who may not know what it is yet,” said Koo. “Wonton In A Million is a way for me to promote cultural understanding during a time when immigrants are kind of vilified.”

Turning a passion project into a small business

Koo’s journey with Wonton In A Million began in 2015 when she was waiting for dim sum takeout at the Oriental Garden where her father has worked for the last 30 years. As she waited for her order, she took in the sights and smells of the restaurant and wondered if her love of Chinese culture and cuisine would lend itself to “punny dim sum greeting cards” as a project for a 365 Days of Design challenge she was participating in.

At the time, Koo was a full-time designer at a financial technology startup. The design challenge was a “passion project” that originally only served as a way to check things off on a to-do list. “I’ve always had ideas for businesses and art project ideas. I started [doing the design challenge] to get some of those things done, because I was always starting things and then stopping,” she said.

“I set about designing 20 cards. That was my goal for the month, and once I put them up on Etsy, I would move on to the next design project,” she said. “The reception I got was incredible and surprising.”

Shortly after posting her initial designs on Etsy, Koo said her friends and family began sharing them online. Soon, sales grew, and people started making product suggestions. “Before I knew it, I had been working on this project for six months and hadn’t moved on to my next project.”

Other businesses began reaching out about collaborating, and Koo said it wasn’t long until she worked with Chinatown Ice Cream Factory.

For the first two years, Wonton In A Million was Koo’s side gig while she worked at her full-time design job. Though she’d occasionally considered devoting all of her time to her fledgling online business, she had reservations. “I hadn’t intended to do that because I was worried that it would stop being fun and stop being a source of joy … if it became my main source of income,” she said.

However, those concerns went out the window when her weekly sales numbers exceeded the weekly paycheck from her full-time gig. “That gave me confidence to start thinking about [making it full time], and it still took me six months to disengage from my job,” she said. She ultimately left her job in April 2017.

Transitioning from an Etsy shop to an e-commerce business

Wonton In A Million began as an Etsy shop. For the uninitiated, Etsy is an online storefront that allows people to sell handmade, vintage and custom items, as well as craft supplies like the stationery items Koo sold. “The phenomenon of being able to be a sticker shop is a new option made possible by marketplaces like Etsy,” she said.

Without Etsy, Koo firmly believes Wonton In A Million wouldn’t have gotten off the ground. Koo says its “platform, audience and instruction on how to get yourself found [by customers]” were instrumental in starting her business. “Etsy is a great platform, especially if you’re not technical, to get started and see if your ideas have traction,” Koo said. “The fees are a little bit higher once you start doing a lot of volume, but starting off there is a good idea, because you at least have one built-in source of traffic to bolster your sales.”

When Koo outgrew Etsy, she used her coding and design knowledge to create an online store using Shopify’s e-commerce platform to better serve Wonton In A Million’s customers.

While she’s proud of where Wonton In A Million is today, she said there were some things she wishes she knew as a new entrepreneur. “I wish I had asked for help more often and earlier. I have always been the kind of person to want to figure things out for myself,” she said. “If I had extra help earlier, I would have grown faster and struggled less.”

As a creative entrepreneur, she said the business’s operational needs often got less attention than the need to create new designs. Given the chance to start over, she said she would swap those priorities. “I’d get that side of the business buttoned up properly from the beginning, and I’d ask for help for that stuff earlier,” she said. “I’m having to deal with that now as I’m preparing to scale up. Having that figured out allows you to grow faster and make better decisions.”

Finding a community in stickers and paper

From the beginning, Koo said her designs took on a life of their own online. Her cute dim-sum-based characters resonated with consumers, and Wonton In A Million’s products became an easily shareable product via social media. The company now has more than 7,500 members on its Facebook page and nearly 30,000 followers on the accompanying Instagram account.

Since its inception, Wonton In A Million has steadily cultivated a following in the stationery and planning communities that share designs and planner layouts online. Koo said she was initially unaware that the hobby had such a huge following online. “We have a very specific, nerdy hobby, and there probably aren’t a lot of people in our life that understand, so to meet other people who are similarly obsessed with this hobby is amazing,” she said. “I’ve built lifelong friendships in this community.”

The online planning and stationery community also serves as a unique platform for sellers to collaborate with each other. Rather than fostering a feeling of competition, Koo said Facebook groups and Instagram posts are used to create a stronger bond between creators.

“We collaborate with each other to help with giveaways, and I think that’s something that sets our businesses apart – we have potential competitors supporting each other. What’s amazing in this community is that shop owners are themselves customers, so they’re excited to discover and work with new shops,” she said. “The overarching mindset of collaboration over competition within this community has been incredible for me.”

Scaling up a small business

After years of collaborating and partnering with small local retailers, Koo signed a nationwide partnership with Michaels Arts and Crafts stores to sell an exclusive line of products. Koo said this opportunity has opened her eyes to “the world of licensing and having bigger distribution partners,” though she still struggles with where she wants to see Wonton In A Million go and just how big it will get.

“I love working from home and determining my schedule, but to reach the heights of where I want to take the brand and the business, it will need to take on a bigger organizational structure,” she said. “I think my impulse is to keep this small as long as I can while working with partners to help spread the characters.”

Now that her products are available across the country, Koo says her business has seen an influx of new customers. “People saw my items in-store, thought they were incredibly cute and wanted more. I’m also hearing from Asians who see their own culture reflected in a mainstream store and were excited to have found me,” she said.

Today, Wonton In A Million has four full-time workers, including Koo, her boyfriend and two employees. While such a small team can handle the company’s current business, with all the newfound attention, the company will need new ways to meet customer demand. The only way to keep up, Koo said, may be to find larger manufacturing and distribution partners. For now, Koo said she’s considering hiring more designers, licensing experts and other possible hires.

Regardless of where the business ultimately lands, Koo hopes the Wonton In A Million brand will help make people curious, empathetic and happy. “It’s still to be determined where this opportunity leads, because I think it might open more doors that I haven’t walked through yet,” she said. “I’m excited to see where this goes.”

Sharing culture and fostering entrepreneurship for women and Asians

When a group of customers reached out on Facebook asking fellow community members what dim sum was, Koo realized how much cultural outreach her brand could do. She estimates that about 60% of her customers don’t know what Chinese cuisine is. As a result, Koo said she’s been drawing on the cute factor of her characters to help people learn about dim sum and Chinese culture. She thinks one of the reasons Michaels was interested in Wonton In A Million was because of her brand’s mission to share Chinese culture and “having the ‘why’ be front-and-center in all of my branding and packaging.”

Koo is also passionate about fostering entrepreneurship among Asians and women. Growing up, Koo said she doesn’t remember a time where her parents weren’t working. Whether her father was at the restaurant or her mother was working as a seamstress, she says her parents always struggled to make sure things were fine for the family.

It wasn’t until she got older, Koo said, that she realized how hard so many Asian immigrants worked to give their families a better life. Despite how hard her parents worked, Koo said she was never pressured to pursue a career just for the salary. It was a luxury that she understands not many children of immigrant parents get. “As a child of immigrants, I understand that is rare and not every immigrant child has that freedom … I was lucky that my parents always told me to do what [made me] happy,” she said.

Koo has written numerous blog posts on her Medium account aimed at helping Asians and women become entrepreneurs themselves. “It occurred to me that I know so many kind and generous women. If they were able to fulfill their potential and take the leadership positions that they deserve, the world would be much kinder and better off,” she said. “I think I’m uniquely positioned to work on that cause on behalf of Asian women.”

She’s also conducted a “How to Design Your Own Design 365 Project” class on Skillshare and taught workshops at planner community conferences. “I’m still figuring out a more systematic way to do it, but doing things like partnering with The Cosmos … helps address unique challenges for Asian women, both socially and internally,” she said. “As a business that has resources, I love figuring out how to tie that into specific social causes to support them.”

Koo said the most important thing a new entrepreneur can do is to “find your tribe.” For her, a tribe consists of an audience and other shops to collaborate with. “For every idea, for every product, there are people who are going to love what you do,” she said. “The trick is to find those people and serve them.”

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snuffymusthike · 6 years ago

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The morning after my wedding last year in March, my newly minted husband and I flew out to Colorado because his father was nearing the end of his life. In fact, there had been a possibility of his passing in the days before we got married. Needless to say, it was a very stressful week.

We arrived in Denver at 10am with about five hours to spend before his brother would be able to drive up from Colorado Springs and get us. So, we took the “layover” as an opportunity to explore the Mile High City. I did my usual research ahead of time to figure out where we could go without a car in the limited time we had.

Light Rail: The RTD

It seems the more I visit other large metropolitan cities, the more I realize how far behind the Puget Sound area is. The Denver International Airport sits about 25 miles outside the downtown area of Denver. We were able to hop on the light rail at the airport and be in downtown less than an hour from our plane landing. You can find out more information here.

The map for the transit system was easy to understand with its color coded zones and staff at the platform were helpful when we went to buy our tickets. The day pass made the most sense for us as we would traveling in more than a few zones and for longer than 3 hours. This way we would not have to worry about travel while we were there. For only $6 each, it was a deal.

Our trip in from the airport on Line A was quiet and the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains spread out in the distance. The more I visit Colorado, the more I want to return to explore those majestic peaks.

Union Station

My itinerary had us getting off at Union Station right in the middle of town and doing some walking to stretch our legs from the flight. The places I hoped to visit were all within a reasonable distance for us. Union Station itself was well laid out and there were shops and services conveniently located nearby.

If we were staying in this area, there was a Free Mall Bus that ran regularly that I imagine would be great for those with less mobility. Also, if you only had a few hours for your layover, I think it would be worth it to ride the light rail in, walk around for a short while and hop back on for the airport.

Of course, nowadays, you could ride the light rail in and make use of services like Uber or Lyft if you didn’t want to be limited to where public transit could take you. Public Transit is great but it can eat up precious time.

Confluence Park

It took us about 10 minutes to walk from Union Station to the grassy hills in Confluence Park. Built where the Cherry Creek and South Platte River meet, it is a wide open natural area among the tall shiny skyscrapers. We didn’t see any kayakers maneuvering on the river but there were plenty of people out playing and relaxing in the sunshine. What a beautiful green space to have in the middle of all the urban.

I wonder if my honey will always want to pull my carry-on for me…

The park reminded me of Spokane Riverfront Park in Eastern Washington, a wonderful oasis in the center of dry terrain. It was about 11:10 am.

Just Be Kitchen

As luck would have it when I was looking for places to visit, the one gluten free, paleo restaurant I could find was doable without a car. The Just Be Kitchen was a quaint establishment in an area of town that is seeing revitalization. They are also the only place with a Whole 30 approved menu in Denver! We both ordered a mushroom burger with grilled onions and argula.

The soft lighting in the restaurant was soothing after our long week and I am not ashamed to say we may have spent more than enough time taking pictures of our rings.

REI Co-op

As if that wasn’t luck enough, the REI store was right around the corner from the restaurant! If you are an outdoorsy person, you may have a thing like we do for stopping by local REI stores when we travel. Not only is it interesting to see how they are built for the local area, they have free REI shaped stickers you can pick up at the counters.

Wilderness Exchange

Kitty corner from the REI was a shop that caught my eye, the Wilderness Exchange. More heavily geared (pun intended) towards climbing, it also offers consignment. The whole bottom floor was filled with bargains! I did pretty well since I was limited to carry-on, but I found some great wool socks for only $5.

I love REI but I also love to support smaller local businesses. The Wilderness Exchange has been in Colorado for 18 years and is known as the best independent outdoor retailer in the city.

Habit Doughnut Dispensary

Okay, just so you don’t think I never indulge, here is this wacky anomoly.

Just down the block from the Wilderness Exchange, the dope doughnuts of Habit Doughnut Dispensary were so fun. Think VooDoo doughnuts of Portland. They offer vegan and gluten free versions but their main draw is that you can buy alcohol syringes to inject into the pastry of your choice. That is why my doughnut looks like a vampire beat me to it.

A strange idea but memorable.

Superfood Bar

Life is all about balance so we stopped into check out the newly opened Superfood Bar right next door. We probably should have just visited here rather than the doughnut shop but we were making the most of our mini honeymoon (the official one was later in the month).

Everything is made up from scratch as you order and the one guy in the shop was busy. We waited patiently while he made us a smoothie loaded with goodness to share on our walk back into downtown.

Back On The Light Rail With Time To Spare

Stuffed with few spiked donuts and healthy superfoods, we made our way back over to Union Station arriving about quarter to 2. That a total of 3 hours in Denver proper. Factoring in the travel time to and from the airport, it was about 4.5 hours. Not bad.

A few hours in Denver was the perfect way to spend our first day as a married couple before continuing on to Colorado Springs and more somber family time. Look for future posts from Colorado Springs!

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Have you had a long layover in Denver? How did you make the most of your time? Share in the comments below!

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A 5-Hour Layover in Denver For Outdoorsy and Gluten Free Travelers The morning after my wedding last year in March, my newly minted husband and I flew out to Colorado because his father was nearing the end of his life.

#colorado #Confluence Park #Denver #gluten free #layover #outdoors #paleo #rei #travel

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theadmiringbog · 6 years ago

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Check off all the places where you greatly LIKE or DISLIKE spending time with other people—feel free to fill in your own at the bottom. We’ll call these your thrive and survive locations:

____ Bars

____ Nightclubs

____ Restaurants

____ House Parties

____ Cafés

____ Boardrooms

____ The Gym

____ Office Meetings

____ Conferences

____ Coffee Shops

____ Phone Calls

____ E-mail Check-ins

____ Video Chats

____ IMs

____ Nature

____ Pool Parties

____ Dinner Parties

____ Movie Nights

____ Casinos

____ Concerts

____ Black-Tie Events

____ Cocktail Parties

____ Backyard Barbecues

____ Theme Parks

____ Festivals

____ Networking Events

____ Sporting Events

Let’s identify the positions where you thrive and the ones where you merely survive:

Thrive: Look at the first set of places you checked off in the exercise above. Put the top three to five under “My THRIVE Locations” below. These are the places you look forward to going to and where you are your best self.

Neutral: Certain social situations could go either way depending on your mood or who’s there. They aren’t your favorite, but you don’t dread them. Look at the places that you didn’t check off in either exercise and add the ones that you encounter the most under “My NEUTRAL Locations” below.

Survive: Other places or scenarios always make you feel uncomfortable, bored, or unhappy. Take three to five of the places you checked off in the second set and write them under “My SURVIVE Locations” below.

My THRIVE Locations: ________________________

My NEUTRAL Locations: ______________________

My SURVIVE Locations: _______________________

The biggest mistake I see at events is when people hover at the boundary of the Start Zone. It’s a social trap. You’re catching people at a confidence low.

If you are an introvert and don’t like big groups, I highly recommend being what I call a Grazer. Instead of hitting the buffet once for a heaping plate, go up first for appetizers, again for the main course, and then again for seconds or dessert. Why? This is an easy way to take a break from a conversation or move to a new one-on-one.

With a first impression, you are a Triple Threat when you use your hands, your posture, and your eye contact.

When you walk into a room or are waiting to meet someone, keep your hands out of your pockets.

When Westerners and Europeans are in conversation, they tend to hold eye contact for an average of 61 percent of the time. He found that 41 percent occurs while talking and 75 percent while listening. Next time you’re talking to someone, try to objectively evaluate where you tend to fall on the spectrum.

Like any good people hack, Big Talk means skirting conversational norms, challenging chitchat status quo, and shirking social scripts.

I challenge you to try using our top-rated conversation sparkers:*

Instead of . . . Hack . . .

How’s work? Working on any exciting projects recently?

How are you? What was the highlight of your day?

What do you do? Working on any personal passion projects?

How’s the family? Have any vacations coming up?

Where are you from? What’s your story?

How’s it going? What are you up to this weekend?

Been busy? What do you do to unwind?

You mentioned that you volunteer with Big Brothers—have you always done that?

You asked for Argentinian wine—are you a wine aficionado?

I noticed that your purse is handwoven—did you make it?

I was curious about your accent—are you from here?

I was just looking at your bookshelf—you have great taste in reading materials!

Your name is beautiful—is it a family name?

I saw you posted some great pictures of your new dog on Facebook—what made you decide to get a dog?

I send people air plants instead of flowers.

“Great to know you, a friend of John is a friend of mine. He always knows the most interesting people.” “It’s a pleasure! Your name tag says you work at Ken’s Bakery—they are my favorite pizza in town! Have you always been a pizza aficionado?”

Why are raving introductions so powerful? First, you give people positive labels right at the start. Second, you tee up a great conversation and possible discussion topics for the people involved. Third, you get people talking about themselves—what they do and who they are, which produces dopamine. Yes, a raving introduction is ALSO a conversational spark. Boom: win-win-win.

We remember people who make us feel good and who make us want to be the best version of ourselves.

You can optimize an interaction by expecting optimal outcomes. Elevate people by hacking listening, highlighting, and expecting the best in those around you. Being a highlighter helps you be the highlight. Listen with purpose—always search for the good. Be the high point of every interaction by giving people a reason to remember you.

There are three main categories of commonalities that you can pull from at any time:

People: Mutual contacts are the best way to find threads of similarity. You can also liven up the conversation by searching for mutual friends.

Context: Think you don’t have anything in common? Think about the context of your meeting. Maybe you’re both on LinkedIn or both at the same conference. All you have to do is ask about it to get the conversational ball rolling.

Interests: Common interests are the best kind of threads because they introduce a topic you both invariably know a lot about, ripe territory for great stories and interesting conversation.

Here are a few openers and ideas for tapping into each type of commonality:

People

How do you know the host?

You work at ____, do you know ____?

I saw we are mutually connected through ____

You went to school, do you know ____?

I saw you speaking to ____, have you known each other for very long?

Are you a friend of the bride or groom / roommate A or roommate B / an employee or the boss?

Context

How long have you been a part of this group?

Do you usually come to these types of events?

Great venue, right?

Have you ever been to this conference / restaurant / event before? How long have you been living here?

I saw you are also a part of ____ LinkedIn group.

Interests

Love your pen / keychain / bumper sticker / shirt / hat. I am also a fan of ______ How long have you been a ___ fan?

I’m a fellow member of ____; how long have you been a part?

What are you up to this weekend?

I saw you also went to / studied / are a part of ____.

Wasn’t that speaker / presentation / raffle interesting?

You can get a conversation to go much deeper much faster if you use the spirit of the Five Whys. When you find a commonality, don’t let it pass by, ask the other person why it’s important to them.

When he can’t say “Me too,” he says, “Teach me.”

Here are some ways you can make “Teach me?” a thread:

I have never heard of that book—what is it about?

What an interesting career—I have never met anyone in your line of work before.

Tell me about it! I’ve actually never been out of the country, but would love to travel more. Have any insider tips for a beginner?

OCEAN

I stumbled upon something called the five-factor model. This psychological principle posits that all humans have five basic personality traits: openness, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism (easily remembered as OCEAN). And each and every person ranks either high or low for each trait.

Openness:

This trait reflects how you approach new ideas. It also describes how curious you are, your level of creativity, and how much you appreciate variety and originality.

High: Enjoys novelty, change, and adventure.

Low: Savors traditions, routines, and habits.

Conscientiousness:

This trait describes your approach to getting things done. It measures your self-discipline, organization, and reliability.

High: Loves to-do lists, organization, and schedules. Enjoys digging into the details and making things “perfect.”

Low: Typically prefers big ideas and strategy. Might find lists and schedules stifling and overwhelming.

Extroversion:

This trait describes how you approach people. Do you get energy from social situations, or do they drain you? This probably affects your talkativeness and optimism.

High: Gets energy from being with people. Tends to be cheerful and seeks out social time.

Low: Craves alone time and finds being with people draining.

Agreeableness:

This trait describes how you approach cooperation and working with others. It also speaks to how empathetic and quick to forgive you are, and how much attention you pay to the mental states of others.

High: Easy to get along with, very empathetic, and enjoys caring for others.

Low: More analytical, practical, and skeptical—prefers to keep emotions out of decisions.

Neuroticism:

This trait describes how you approach worry. It also explains how emotionally reactive you are to your environment.

High: Tends to be a worrier. Frequently experiences mood swings.

Low: Typically calm, stable, and has very little mood fluctuation.

OCEAN self-assessment

Openness

This trait describes your curiosity and affinity for new ideas. Check off the statements that sound like you:

If you are high in openness you:

___ Are very curious ___ Love to try new things ___ Are adventurous and a bit of a dreamer ___ Can be seen as unrealistic or not focused

If you are low in openness you:

___ Love habits, rituals, and routines ___ Honor and follow traditions ___ Are more pragmatic and data driven ___ Can be seen as closed-minded and inflexible

Based on your answers, where do you think you fall on the openness scale?

Conscientiousness

This trait involves the way you get things done. Check off the statements that sound like you:

If you are high in conscientiousness you:

___ Are very organized and detail-oriented ___ Love to-do lists, plans, and schedules ___ Are a perfectionist ___ Can be seen as controlling and rigid

If you are low in conscientiousness you:

___ Love broad ideas and don’t get bogged down in details ___ Are very flexible ___ Hate being boxed in with a plan or schedule ___ Can be seen as sloppy and unreliable

Based on your answers, where do you think you fall on the conscientiousness scale?

Extroversion

This trait is all about how you relate to people. Check off the statements that sound like you:

If you are high in extroversion you:

___ Are very talkative and tend to initiate conversations ___ Are assertive and expressive with your opinions ___ Feel energized and refreshed being around other people ___ Can be seen as opinionated and attention seeking

If you are low in extroversion you: ___ Are more shy and reserved ___ Enjoy alone time; being with lots of people can feel draining ___ Like your privacy and are more hesitant to share personal information ___ Can be seen as aloof

Based on your answers, where do you think you fall on the extroversion scale?

Agreeableness

This trait taps into your attitudes toward teamwork and decision-making. Check off the statements that sound like you:

If you are high in agreeableness you:

___ Tend to get along with people easily ___ Are trusting of others and love being on teams ___ Default to saying yes when someone asks you to do something ___ Can be seen as a pushover or passive

If you are low in agreeableness you:

___ Have a harder time working in groups ___ Are frequently suspicious of others’ motives ___ Default to saying no when someone asks you to do something ___ Can be seen as competitive or challenging

Based on your answers, where do you think you fall on the agreeableness scale?

Neuroticism

This trait speaks to your emotional stability and tendency to worry. Check off the statements that sound like you:

If you are high in neuroticism you:

___ Are a worrier ___ Tend to be moody ___ Are sensitive ___ Can be seen as too emotional or insecure

If you are low in neuroticism you:

___ Are stable and balanced ___ Are usually calm ___ Have faith that everything always “works out in the end” ___ Can be seen as unemotional or cold

The 5 Love Languages

Words of Affirmation:

People with this love language express their care through spoken or written word—love letters, texts, and verbal expressions of love.

Gifts:

People with this love language express their care through small gifts or tokens of appreciation—jewelry, candy, or flowers.

Physical Touch:

People with this love language express their care through touch—hugs, cuddles, pats on the back, loving embraces.

Acts of Service:

People with this love language express their care by doing things for others—cooking their spouse dinner, running errands, or crafting something for them. (If you couldn’t tell from the story about my dad, this is mine.)

Quality Time:

People with this love language express their care with their time. They want to simply be in the presence of the people they care about.

Another decoding method is to ask about old memories, favorite stories, and recent experiences. These are some of my go-to questions:

What’s the nicest thing someone has ever done for you?

How do you celebrate your successes?

I really want to do something nice for our colleague who just had a new baby. What do you think we should do for them?

What’s your favorite thing to do on the weekends?

What’s the most interesting gift you have ever received? Given?

What’s your favorite activity to do with your friends?

Growing up, what did your parents do to celebrate your birthdays or your successes?

6 Needs - What We Value

As humans, we need both kinds of resources to survive and thrive. Foa and his research team proposed that each of us have a hierarchy of six needs that originate in our childhood. If these needs are met, we are able to grow up, gain independence, and feel secure in our surroundings and relationships:

1. Love

Affection, acceptance, and likability

2. Service

Support, care, and warmth to provide comfort

3. Status

Responsibility, praise, and titles to evoke pride

4. Money

Coin, currency, or tokens that have been assigned value

5. Goods

Tangible products, objects, or materials

6. Information

Advice, ideas, opinions, and teaching

In the Give column, put a check mark next to the resources you think you give frequently. In the Take column, put a check mark next to the resources you think you take frequently.

Occasionally, especially with the nonphysical resources like Love, Service, and Information, we give what we most want. We might crave Love, so we give it to everyone around us—even if they don’t deserve it. Or we might desire to be in the know, so we gossip in hopes of people telling us more. Does this ring true for you?

Each of us is oriented toward one of the six categories of resources.

Go through the following statements and give each a numerical rating: 0 = This does not describe me at all. 1 = This describes me somewhat. 2 = This describes me well.

Resource Meaning Total

Love

It’s important to me to feel accepted. It’s important to me to be liked by others. It’s important to me to feel like I belong.

Service

It’s important to feel the people in my life support me. It makes me feel special when someone does a favor for me. It’s important to me to feel cared for.

Status

It makes me feel great when someone praises me. I like to be in charge. It’s important for me to feel respected by others.

Money

It is important to me to be financial stable. I do my job mostly for the money. I think you have to have money to be completely happy.

Goods

I like to collect things. I often buy and give gifts. I can think of many objects in my home that have emotional meaning.

Information

I like to be in the know. I like to give advice. I enjoy teaching and learning.

Add up each section and put the totals in the far right-hand side. Which one gets the highest number?

Most people’s choices make sense to them. When they don’t make sense to you, it’s usually because you are being driven by a different primary value.

Add it to your stack. YOUR STORY STACK Trigger Topic Sparking Story Boomerang Current Events