#although the tower one isn't really a link

[chargetrick]

more shocial links! some very important ones this time...

[who-is-page]

I've seen (typically older) therians talking about how they feel that their subculture as animal-people and nonhumans is slowly disappearing. This is a point that, in all honesty, I'm inclined to agree with-- although I think I'd perhaps frame it less as "disappearing" and more as just "changing."

Because let's be honest with ourselves here: is the subculture actually vanishing, or is it just evolving into radical new dimensions as excited newbies join and find different focal points for their nonhumanity? As they express themselves in whole new dimensions and ways, as they explore a digital landscape that didn't exist ten, twenty years ago? As the older members lose touch with the newer members, and no one bridges that gap between the two?

I think I'm also extra frustrated because when I see these discussions go down, a lot of the time they're either 1) self-pitying, or 2) finger-pointing.

It's not bad or wrong to look around and realize that the community you found comfort in has changed in ways you could have never predicted and which leave you feeling off-kilter. But approaching these changes with a complete lack of curiosity, with an absolute woe-is-me sort of perspective, where you drag your feet and glare bitter daggers at everyone else, isn't the way to do anything.

And going around trying to pin blame on whoever happens to be at hand is an even worse way to approach it. "It's the furry fandom's faults!" "It's the alterhumans' faults!" "It's the humans' faults!" Who does this approach realistically help? What does this do, beyond ostracize people and make whoever is saying it feel temporarily vindicated in their solitude, in a vicious cycle where they never step out of their ivory tower and always use how alone they are as "proof" that they're right?

I think having discussions about the ways the subculture has changed is extremely worthwhile. But I think that they're at their best when enthusiasm over sharing takes a main, central point. When you see people excitedly telling others about Werecards for the first time, or when you get to introduce someone to the concept of personal websites and webrings, or when you link someone who's only just starting to learn that there's others like them to old and new groups and forums alike. These are the ways you keep those traditions alive, these are they ways you get people both informed of and really excited about them.

And like, maybe I'm just cheesy and optimistic, but building bridges is way more fun than building walls! And more than that, I also think it's fundamentally something that's significantly more helpful and productive. I'm always so hype when I see community projects taking off that involve connecting many different people, especially if they're centered on a specific group or identity, but I also think that those sorts of things are how we keep a community healthy and moving, how we avoid things getting stagnant and rotting away.

I've said it before in past essays I've published and I'll say it again: alterhuman communities survive through their internal momentum. We're still around and kicking because we're a bunch of opinionated, passionate animals and objects and entities and people and concepts and and and-- this is what we are! This is how we all, both together and individually as separate groups, continue to be around. We write. We argue. We dance. We leave tracks. And then others see all those things, months or years down the line, and they know they're not alone. They know that it's okay to join in around the campfire, and they end up leaving their own tracks, and the cycle repeats.

So I guess what I'm saying here is that I'm not just beseeching people to create, but I'm asking you to create with others. To extend that paw towards the people around you in your immediate community spaces and wider, and to realize that yeah, the digital grains of sand and time might erode and change the landscapes we're all in, but we can still have a damn good time exploring the new nooks and crannies around us and showing others our old hidey-holes and favorite spots to watch the sun set.

[galactic-glamour-girl-posts]

Animaniacs VS Crunch: WHY are they insane-y?

Despite being the creator (in-universe) of the main trio of Animaniacs, Lon Borax himself is a relatively obscure, and more often than not, absent character.

In "The Warners' 65th Anniversary Special", it's revealed that before he drew the Warner siblings, he created Buddy (again, only in-universe).

Buddy (both in-universe and out) was seen as a boring character, suggesting that Lon Borax himself perhaps wasn't the most creative person. In that case, isn't it strange that he went from creating a character as unremarkable and bland as Buddy to characters as boisterous and bizarre as the Warners? Especially, as it turns out, in such a short amount of time:

"Congratulations, Borax, you’ve discovered a cure for insomnia. That’s the most boring cartoon I’ve ever seen. Do you realize we have to show this cartoon to the front office tomorrow?"

This was Weed Memlo's response to the Buddy cartoon. When Lon tried to defend himself, claiming that is wasn't "that bad", Weed was having none of it:

"No! It’s worse! Fix it! Add more characters! Poof it up! Stay up all night if you have to! I want funny! If you need me, I’ll be at the smokehouse."

Weed Memlo (a director at WB) demanded that Lon work overnight, all the while he would be lounging around at a restaurant. Now, if you know even the slightest bit about how to make a cartoon, you'll know that it takes time...ALOT of time. As in, it takes over half a year to make just one episode of most cartoons, amount of time. So you'll also know that, even if he wasn't starting from scratch, expecting Lon to create new characters and heavily modify an existing cartoon in just one night is absurd.

link

What Animaniacs is depicting here is an overt example of an animator being forced to partake in crunch culture. And how did this affect Lon? Well, in his own words:

"I worked all night on that cartoon. I was exhausted, and then...and then I remember it was exactly 2:43 a.m. on the morning of February 30th, I-I started drawing these weird characters!"

What seems to be heavily implied here is that the stress and exhaustion he experienced due to crunch drove Lon mad, and that's why the Warners are as insane as they are.

As we know, the Warners go on to appear in more Buddy cartoons, then get their own shorts to star in (even if they didn't make any sense), but end up locked in the water tower once the studio didn't want to deal with them anymore. After a few brief escapes or instances of the studio temporarily letting them out (either to loan them out to other studios to make more money or to have them star in war propaganda short films), they escape in 1993 and end up starring in their own TV show.

But Lon Borax?

He went nuts.

Yeah he doesn't get better, they just put him in a home.

This is all portrayed comedically, but unfortunately crunch culture actually does have harmful affects on animators and people who work in the video game industry in the real world. 100-hour weeks, cases of sickness and depression, just really awful stuff. However, I don't think this was the writers necessarily making light of crunch, quite the opposite.

Weed Memlo got so fed up with the Warners he quit directing their cartoons. They constantly annoyed everyone who worked at the studio. Pulling pants down, scaring their crushes, playful teasing, stuff like that. They never did anything too harmful, in fact sometimes people just ran away screaming before they even did anything. This was their response to Wakko simply asking "Can we eat with you?":

Still, the studio certainly wasn't peaceful with them around. Most of the human actors were clearly bothered by them (although toons like Bugs and Daffy seemed to be more lenient to the Warners). It wouldn't have been like that if the Warners were sane. Sure they're kids (toon kids on top of that) so they probably still would've ran around and misbehaved here and there regardless, but not to the extent that they're known for.

The Warners made people afraid of going to work, and probably stalled if not halted production of a lot of what the studio was working on (Plotz even says "The Warners had single-handed brought this studio to a screeching halt.") The studio would've saved themselves a lot of trouble if they had given Lon more time, prioritised their worker over money.

But they didn't.

Watching this episode, it feels like writers were trying to get that message across. That the studio deserved to have to deal with Warners; that they were the consequences for partaking in crunch culture. The Warners had been serving large doses of karma for almost a full season at that point, only this time, their "special friend" wasn't just one person.

It was the corrupt industry that birthed them in the first place.

[frostwing213]

I keep getting a lot of Elain stuff popping up on my dash. Mostly about shipping, and I'm like:

How'd this girl end up in a love triangle????

People are very opiniated too, fighting over and making essays about it. There's Elain/Az and Elain/Lucien (There's also Az and Gwen, but I understand how Az got in a love triangle.)

I'm just, struggling to care. Don't get me wrong, I don't hate Elain, I just find her kinda boring. She doesn't do much. She feels like that classic fairytale princess that looks pretty and sad in a tower.

Off the top of my head, these are things that define her (Without being linked to men, becase I'm not there yet. Plus, a female character should be able to stand on her own without the men in her life)

She gardens and is primiarily associaed with flowers

Pretty

Nice

Weak

She kinda killed the king of Hyburn

Didn't want to be a fae

kinda wishy washy

Achreon sister

Quiet

Her sisters want to protect her

Future seeing powers

And I'm out of ideas. From my point of view, she doesn't have any discernable personality. Her three major defining things when people think of her are: Pretty, flowers, soft.

She doesn't act for herself, she doesn't speak up. She goes with what happens and gets sad when she doesn't like it. (Becoming a fae was traumatic, and I understand her reaction, but I don't really like it. AND I HAVEN'T EVeN TOUCHED ON THE GREYSON[was that the human dude's name???]THING YET!)

So, when the books start, early ACOTAR. Archeron sisters are in the woods. Feyre is the only one doing something to support the family. Who is Elain in this book? Pretty gardener. Delicate. She isn't doing anything. Some can argue Nesta isn't either, and as a Nesta Supremist, I have to say she was willing to get married to someone cruel to make it easier on her family, and although that isn't much, it's still something. What does Elain do in this book? Be pretty. Please, someone give me an example of Elain doing something constructive and I will edit it in. Please.

Moving on. Next book. She... hosts the house along with Nesta. Oh! She's engaged to a fae hating guy (Who i think is named Greyson. I can't remember and I'm currently loaning out my 2nd and 3rd book, so I can't check rn). Uh.... I don't remember if she does anything else until the end, where she is captured and dumped in the caldron. We find out Lucien is her mate. EDIT!: As @devi1sange1 pointed out to me, Elain did stand up to Nesta about using their house as a meeting spot for the queens. She also takes responisblty for how they treated Feyre. 2 points for Elain. I give her those

She shows up more after that, so I'm not doing book by book, but she gets dumped fast by her fiancé and hangs out in the house of wind, being very sad. I almost wanna describe her as floaty, because she's acting like a ghost, just existing and mourning what is gone. This is a vaild response, and I understand why she responds this way, it just annoys me because she has not shown any autonomy so far. Anything. I think I remember her asking her ex-fiance to take in humans, but that was after being pushed by the inner circle. Uh... she gives a few prophecies, yay that. When the fighting starts, she stays on the sidelines, which I don't blame her for. She kinda kills the king of Hyburn. I think that's all she does in that.

After that. What does she do? Other than hang around??? I DON'T KNOW!

Elain shows no real drive! She exists and sometimes does stuff to push the plot!

Now onto the (possible) romantic interests she has.

Greyson: Uhhhhh, they like each other. She likes her because she's sweet and pretty. I didn't catch anything else between these two. Uh, he dumps her as soon as she's fae and she gets depressed over it

Lucien: Mating bond. She doesn't like him, I get it. He tries to back off. I think Lucien acts responsibly in this situation. Elain is at no fault in this situation either. Mating bonds don't always pair up the most romantic pair, and it doesn't always work out well. Honestly, I never saw much chemistry between these two, and if not for the bond, they likely would have forever ignored each other.

Azriel: (Random, but I searched him up on tumblr because I couldn't remember how to spell his name, and WOW, there's a lot of Azriel x reader. Yall really 'like' him) How, just how did this become such a popular ship? I never even caught this on my read through. Yeah, Az is nice to her, but he's nice to anyone considered friendly. He's just as nice to Feyre and I don't see anyone shipping those two. I just... don't get it. Is it because we want the sisters paired up with the bat boys? Is that it?? I don't understand. I see no chemistry. It's just two people being nice to one another guys.

I think those are the major ones. I don't understand any of them. Lucien and Az are such powerful charters, while Elain is... 'pretty flower girl'.

I don't hate her, but she kinda annoys me with how much crazines she's getting with people shipping her. Wanna know what i think would be great? She ends up with no one romantically. She has friends, just no romantic partner and that is perfectly fine. Lucien will live. If there's nothing between Az and Gwen, then Az will live.

To wrap up, I find Elain to be a pretty boring charter, I just feel indifferent towards her. I love the other two siblings, but I feel like Elaine could have been improved.

Feel free to talk to me about this! Throw out your own opinions! Give me edvince that supports or opposes any of my points! Correct me on stuff and ignore my spelling!

I love a good debate! Give me one! Please.

Interact with me.

Edit!: Thanks for interacting! I swear I'm reading everything! I just didn't expect this to blow up so fast!

Another edit: Thanks yall for interacting! I'm really enjoying reading the responses and what people hope to see coming from Elaine in the future!

[carnirat]

So you know John Smith's "Journal of Impossible Things" from Human Nature/The Family of Blood?

Years ago, I got a small copy of it at a nerd store and it's got every page from the journal in it. I'm sure these all exist out there already but here's some of my favorite pages and what text I can make out for those who haven't seen some of these

There's lots of repeating text and jibber jabber, I assume to fill space, so I won't write down stuff twice or the random stuff he tends to write over and over

I find myself wanting to draw a perfect rose, over and over although I cannot find a rose anywhere!

In my dream, I keep asking a girl where to find one, and she is dressed in the most extraordinary immodest way.

She will not answer me, and she keeps walking away.

I remember this girl I have drawn her although(?) I know her well in my dream

(The rest is stuff from the previous page and more jibber jabber)

I am a father in my dreams, I am certain, and a grandfather. A great sadness at these thoughts. As if they had not just died, all my (I can't tell), but had departed in a way somehow more final than death.

I am the last for some reason I am terribly afraid that my watch is broken.

I can't remember what they look like (idk) see shadows (idk)

The skies are a burnt orange. And the leaves on the trees are silver.

I know a man who lives on a hillside there. And the city has towers! And I dance(?) in my robes, and my collar I can never get it right. I am so ill suited for it and yet they tell me I am in charge! Ha ha ha!

(Repeating)

(A page about Capt. Jack Harkness)

I am traveling with a man in the military, only he isn't what he seems, and so I leave him behind after a battle, and he is stranded in no man's land, so alone and so far away from home.

(More repeating)

(Page about Martha, next page is immediately next to this)

She wants someone close to me someone I think I know in the waking world. And she is a doctor. She wants to heal me. Why is being a Dr so important? To her and to me. I wish she could turn around so I can see who she really is.

(More repeating)

The girl with the strange spikey hair is trying to take someone away from me

She dresses strange different

Her features are unclear

I don't know what she looks like

Black hair

(Lessgo badwolf rose)

A woman with the universe(?) poured into her and she becomes a lady!

Such grace!

She judges the living and the dead.

Everything changes as she (idk)

She judges(possibly) everything and everyone that she meets

She judges all that come in her path all and more.

She has gold eyes the universe is inside her

Powerful

Gold eyes

I have seen the opposite of a star. A darkness rather than a light on the void

There is a world that lives there, terribly close to disaster. It feels most like a vision, a prophesy. Like something out of astrology, that the placing of these stars is important.

(Jibber jabber)

And further into the nightmare, there was a pit. And there was a voice from the pit. And it wrote itself onto mens faces. It sought an escape into the world of men.

It was the beast, I am sure. The thing inside is all that we must not let out.

A broken clock or a broken mirror will let it out.

(Can't make out the last bit)

-

Hit the photo limit but I'm not done! I'm reblogging with the rest, here's the link to that)

[notafraidofredyellowandblue]

Rammblings Nijmegen 2024-06-19

Now this was good weather for being outdoors 😊

a lot different from the day before

so i took my time checking out all the merch, food, drink etc stuff at the venue 😊

The sun was very bright, straight at the stage, so i'm not surprised most of them wore sunglasses, i see Richard squinting in clips from the first few songs, i think he's like me in not liking that much sun in the face. As the sun was setting and shadows were growing larger, the shadow of one tower was exactly near Richard's spot, and i think he moved there for a song. Sun also made it difficult to see the big screens for the first part of the show, which was a shame, this really is the time of year when the sunset is quite late, when i was in the shuttle to the station afterwards (about 23:15) it was still somewhat light out. In that aspect yesterday's dark skies were better.

This time i was on the other tribune, right next to the stairs (woohoo!). Still a bit behind a tower, which unfortunately meant i couldn't see Olli's spot 🥺 but i could see the others quite well, Till and Schneider too

Everybody seemed in a great mood, Paul very playful stomping around his part of the stage. Flake and Till having a cosy walk (and Paul chasing after Flake on the way back). I think on one of the first songs Richard went to Flake's station and Flake came down his stairs briefly to him 🥰

my 2nd show in a row, now i'm sure there were some sound issues on tuesday, because this time i could very clearly hear Richard's 'Links' solo (loves his solo, Ausländer too, at the end he went to Schneider's drumkit, to have a little eye contact 🥰 I think there also was more pyro and/or lights than yesterday, wonder if stuff didn't work because of the rain (don't remember). Also still very much love Richard's Puppe backing vocals, don't be surprised if i'll be posting on that more often in the next days 🥰

Also think i saw Flake and Richard get together at the final salut, don't know if there was a hug, i hope so 🥰 but i couldn't tell.

Personally didn't move or dance like the day before (when we were a bit like that 'aristocats meet rammstein' cartoon) i was a few rows from the top and people behind me stayed in their seats so i figured i shouldn't stand up and block their views, which made it a little less fun for me personally (maybe i should have just stood up anyway, don't know). So although it was a textbook Rammstein show, everybody in great spirits, everything working fine (afaik), i am happy that i did both shows, because the first one with all it's imperfections was a bit more fun for me personally 😊 (what can i say, i like the imperfections)

Radio and Ausländer again worked great live, isn't it funny how some songs may be better on an album, but don't translate to the stage, and these, that may be not as spectacular on record, just have "it" on stage 🥰 Loved all the great bangers like Sonne, Du Hast, and Wiener Blut sounds soooo good live. I had hoped to see the silliness of Mein Teil cheering squad, but unfortunately that didn't happen. I admire the piano ladies for their enthusiasm, it's quite difficult to get the crowd excited, kudos to Richard for getting them a bit of extra applause on b stage 🥰

Saw Schneider pick up a passenger again in the boats, and although i normally don't like when he does that, this girl was so cute in her snowwhite outfit, Till got her to wave to the camera and everybody cheered for her 🌺 (Till also headbutted Paul's mic when it was left unguarded, but i don't think he was injured)

So all in all, great show, with even greater music 🥰 And i finally got to see my fave band live 🥰

-

and on a personal note, i had some anxiety up front about getting there and back with such a large crowd, but i took enough time before (was already there at least an hour before the show started which with seats is absolutely not necessary, many people only came to their seat when Rammstein started, but it was quite relaxed that way) and on the way outi let everybpdy sort of flood down the seats and the field and then got down, and because i was by myself, i could zigzag around the crowds and get to the shuttles quite easily. All friendly people, everyone in a good mood 😊 Even the linesat the toilets were very quick (yes that is important) 😊

So now on to the journey back home after two great days 😊 but i admire fans who do several shows and venues back-to-back, i couldn't do it (and that's not just because my age being 'younger than most of Rammstein') 😄

[loregoddess]

1, 7, 11, and 36 for the tloz asks? (hope you feel better soon!!)

Thanks for the asks! (And I am on the mend, even if it's a bit slow-going, it was just a common cold luckily).

1) Is there a Zelda game(s) that you associate with each season or time of year? Not...particularly? There was no set pattern to how or when I would play/replay LoZ games, even when I was in school I was so efficient with my homework that I always had time to play games in the evening before bed, so I don't even have a "summer break" game per se. I do kinda associate certain games w/ periods of my life, like aLttP was the first game I played so I associate it w/ the first house I lived in, and WW and TP were the two games that I played a lot during middle school, and SS came out when I was in high school and also around the same time I got seriously into timeline theory for fun.

7) Favourite dungeons? If we count FSA as "oops all dungeons" where every stage is basically a dungeon, then The Village of the Blue Maiden, The Swamp, all three stages of The Dark World, the Pyramid, and the Tower of Winds were probably my favorites (although the entire game is a favorite, there isn't a single bad level in it). The Tower of the Gods was also an extremely cool dungeon from WW, and WW has the coolest "mini-dungeon" designs in general. I loved all the dungeons in TP, but my two favorite are Arbiter's Grounds and the Snowpeak Ruins, and TP's Hyrule Castle is one of my favorite iterations of Hyrule Castle as a dungeon (although aLttP's Hyrule Castle is a close second). I also have to say that EoW's dungeon design was S-tier, not a single bad dungeon in that game either, but my favorite was the final dungeon (redacted for spoilers) bc it hits sooo many design aesthetics that I love.

11) Favourite Ganon characterization? WW Gandondorf, hands down. As a certified villain-enjoyer, I like it when a villain has both a cool design and also some sort of narratively interesting motive beyond "heehee, I'm evil", and WW Ganondorf is the only Ganondorf to come close to that for me, since "envy of Hyrule's resources" is a more interesting motive than "I want power to rule the world/destroy it and remake it" (although world destruction to be remade by the antagonist can be a really interesting motive/narrative element, but LoZ does not execute it in the way that makes my brain want to spin like a centrifuge). In general I don't rely on LoZ for interesting villains, bc while Ganondorf's designs are usually very cool visually, his writing is rather flat, and even my beloved WW Ganondorf isn't as complex as some of my favorite villains/antagonists from other games.

36) Which game had the most engaging story, in your opinion? Most of the LoZ games are narratively engaging for me, since they all have interesting stories in their own right. My personal favorite is TP, because the time spent at the beginning of the game establishing Link's "normal" life was a bit longer, and really made the kidnapping of the Ordon children feel personal--and then how the rest of the story unfolds just, haunts me, haven't stopped thinking about TP since I fist played it.

[silver-wield]

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth Review Chapter 4!

Okay, this collection of posts will be filled with spoilers, including clips and screenshots, so if you don't wanna see things, then don't look. Some of the things I'm gonna highlight will include references to Remake and other sources to link with the overarching plot. This is a straight path playthrough with no sidequests or extra content.

Now you know, let's go!

Chapter four is a meaty fucker. Once you discount all the waffle you can do with sidequests and other random things, chapters 1-3 aren't actually that long and involved story content wise. Chapter four is really the start of the bulky content. And I'm gonna summarise most of it because I'll be here all day otherwise.

Okay, once we cross the plains and reach Under Junon, we're basically thrown into the fight with Bottomswell, although it's not called that anymore and icba to recall what its new name is.

The battle itself is pretty fun and makes full use of Tifa's flight capabilities if you know what you're doing.

The plot has been changed slightly. We don't rescue Priscilla, but instead it's Yuffie in trouble. Our buddy, Mr Dolphin, has his moment at the end with a combo and he comes back into play later when we climb the electrified tower, which I honestly thought wouldn't happen because it's pretty cringe originally, but they made it work so I can't complain.

Once we've dealt with Bottomswell and made it back to shore, we find the mayor giving Yuffie CPR. Now, I noticed Cloud scrutinising the procedure, so I'm suspicious about this coming back at some point in part three. There was originally a draft of Tifa giving Cloud CPR that didn't make it into the game, so it's possible they're planning on doing something with the idea.

Anyway, we save Yuffie and get a hilarious bit between her and Barret. I honestly love their dynamic. She's such a kid and he's got so little patience for older kids. I feel bad for future teenage Marlene 🤣

After we agree to meet Yuffie, it's back to the inn for some convos and rest. This one with Barret amused me. Cloud knows he likes the limelight and plays along with it. This detail also comes into play later the GS when Cloud's defending Barret to Dio.

On the way to his room, Cloud overheard a strange voice coming from Aerith's room. This is the first hint that Red isn't exactly what he seems to be. We also hear more about the whispers and what happened to them both. This is actually interesting. What exactly did Sephiroth need to steal from them?

This chat with Tifa is non-optional, unlike the others, and delves deeper into their relationship and her suspicions about what he remembers. They have a heart to heart, but aren't quite on the same page, which leaves them both a bit downcast.

Next morning, Yuffie intrudes to let the group know she's been hired to kill Rufus at his inauguration. She escapes and they're left to pursue her and hide in plain sight as troopers. But they also want to talk to Rufus about whether they're actually being hunted.

But before all that, Cloud has to go hopping off the back of a dolphin to climb the tower. And yes, he looks smug when he's done because he's a lil shit 🤣

Meanwhile, we get some snippets leading into part three's storyline in Wutai with EC's Glenn making an appearance. Rufus literally killed him, and going off what he spoke about, it's possible he's actually just Sephiroth in disguise and using Glenn to stoke war and gather more dead souls in the lifestream to corrupt it. But we won't know for sure until part three.

After the failed assassination, Cloud splits up with the others and finds himself stuck with some of the platoon he was directing in the parade. You have to keep them alive to succeed at this part.

At the end of the gauntlet is a rematch with Roche. And after you kick his ass, he helps you get to the dock to board the ferry.

Cloud reunites with his team and has picked up a few stragglers. And Yuffie. Who's in disguise as a robe. But that's for chapter 5.

A lot happens plot wise in this chapter, but most of it is set up for part three. Rufus mentions he's read Cloud's file, so that'll be interesting. There's also the plot with Glenn and stuff with Roche. And that's before we even get to Sephiroth.

[marlo-noni]

Back from China

Now that I'm back in Canada after 26 days in China, here's a link to some of my photos (warning: there are over 500).

I usually travel on my own, and I was with my brother and dad this time, which was fun. I acted as their translator and tour guide (since to get anywhere you have to use Baidu, which is only in Chinese). It was interesting seeing China through their eyes, and we got to do things I wouldn't normally do on my own. We also didn't drive each other crazy - there were no fights, just some stressful moments (which happen when I'm alone too - just part of travel).

We were in Beijing, Wutai Shan, and Xi'an.

Wutai was very interesting - we were the only foreigners I saw for the entire 5 days. The weather was kinda treacherous, which I understand is pretty normal for Wutai. It was very beautiful, though. And we got our fill of temples - there are over 200 there. One of the more "off the beaten path" places I've gone to.

Xi'an is lovely. It's "only" 10 million people, and I'm discovering I quite like Chinese cities of this size. Still bustling and highly developed, but not overwhelming. Suzhou and Hangzhou are a similar size, and I also really love those cities. Xi'an has excellent local food - spicy and extremely garlicky. And of course wonderful historical sites. The terra cotta warriors are really amazing, and we timed our visit well because it wasn't super crowded when we went to see them.

Beijing is the 3rd "megacity" I've visited now, the other 2 being Tokyo and Shanghai. The advantage to cities like this is the endless variety of things you can see and do. You can never really see all of it. I intentionally spent longer there on this trip - 15 days in total - for this reason. We saw (this list is non-exhaustive): the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven, Tiananmen Square, the Bell and Drum Towers, the hutongs (old traditional alley residences), Fragrant Hill, the National Centre for the Performing Arts, the Bird's Nest stadium, the Summer Palace, the National Botanical Garden, Ritan Park, and Black Bamboo Park. We also ate an incredible variety of Chinese food - Liu Yuning is right that you can find like every region's food there.

The drawback to megacities, in my mind, is that there are just way too many people for me! It's okay on weekdays, but on weekends and holidays (we were there for the mid-autumn festival long weekend) it's way too crowded no matter where you go. I love a bustling and lively city, but at that scale, it's too much for me.

The drawbacks to Beijing in particular, in my mind, are:

the security is way over the top - even more than any other place in China I've visited. Particularly within a certain radius of Tiananmen, where you get stopped for an ID check literally every block and you have to tell them where you're going. There are also a ton of places you're just not allowed to go that seem stupid to me, like their national sports stadium (near the Bird's Nest in their 2008 Olympic Park), Beijing University, and Tsinghua University (those are by appointment only and the appointments were fully booked even a week in advance).

the air pollution isn't as bad as I saw on TV during the 2008 Olympics, but it's still really bad a lot of the time (the air quality index was often around 150-170).

it's way too spread out. There aren't a lot of skyscrapers compared to Tokyo and Shanghai. It has the largest subway system in the world, but the subway stops are very far apart, so you end up walking a TON to get anywhere. Most people ride bikeshare bikes from the subway station, but we couldn't get the apps working for my brother and dad, despite trying multiple different bikeshare apps - it's a big hurdle for foreigners. If you use Didi (their version of Uber) or take the bus, the traffic is often really really slow.

So, although Beijing has a ton to see, I'm not in a rush to visit it again unless I'm going to meet up with a friend there or as a landing point to visit somewhere else.

As usual, I also did a ton of shopping when I was there, and brought back an extra suitcase (which I also bought) full of stuff with me. I also did some online shopping when I was there. Taobao wouldn't work for me because Alipay wouldn't accept foreign credit cards on it (although you can use Alipay for a ton of other stuff there, including the subway, and I used it quite a bit), so I used Jingdong. It's dangerously convenient! I discovered that Taobao does work in Canada, though, with your Canadian credit card. This could end up being a bad habit!

Haha, I was only gonna write a short post but I got carried away. I need to get ready for work. More perhaps later. Let me know if there's anything in particular you would like to hear about.

[journalsouppe]

A LINK TO THE PAST!!!! I love and adore this game so much. I love and adore my little pink son he's so sweet despite witnessing some fucked up things. This is one of my favorite spreads, I love the color combination I chose plus the stickers are really cute :').

I bought two different sticker sheets: The pixel inventory stickers are by Comstock Cafe The chibi/character collection is by Pashmakshop

Writing typed below!

Rating: 8.5 Played: Fa 2022 Port: SNES Switch Online

Comments

I am so glad the switch has save points

I love that Ravio is dressed as dark world link, also glad I played ALBW first!

Harder to figure out in between dungeon objectives

I love how this is the game that is the origin of human Ganon

The game is a lot more cryptic than intuitive

Flute boy is so dark but also so interesting

Moldorm was so annoying

oh Link is the last of the Hylian knights

yay new decrease damage armor! idk why the hat isn't also blue

i think turtle rock island was at the lake in ALBW ... interesting

when you start the game, why do you start with 1/2 health?

I'm still surprised the 7 sages were originally the 7 maidens

i hate ice dungeons T-T

the design of ganon's tower is really cool

omfg the mirror shield is so big it covers most of link's face

i like the bunny beam

you can see all the insp ALTTP had on OOT

i think the blue and red mail should be farther apart (play time wise)

omfg the lynels are terrifyingly fast T-T

LMAO vulture recap

THANK GOD NO DEAD MAN'S VOLLEY AHHHHH

Ganon's tower is SO LONG

oh? talking directly to the triforce essence? interesting

UNCLE ISN'T DEAD? AHHHHH

Sumary:

I can see why this game is so popular, it revolutionized the Zelda franchise. It is still a pretty cryptic game at times, but it was a lot of fun and very charming. There was amazing character and world designs, the artists absolutely killed it. I love how this game was the origin to a lot of things for the future: human Ganon, the ocarina, the dark world, the lost woods (although it was technically in zelda 1), ahhh it's so cool. I'm glad ALBW changed and improved on many things, giving more depth to the dark world, but I will say both have their fair share of annoying bosses. I hope Nintendo will continue to expand on the dark world in the future, especially because it's never been 3D. What a very charming game, I think I might replay it in the future since it's such a short game. I'm excited to finish the rest of the 2D games!

[positively-knotted]

Dissertationposting 7: The Guys Appear

Let's recap where we are. This one might be a bit long, but it's worth it for the neat geometric argument.

We have an SYS manifold M, and a (non-compact) manifold X without boundary. We're assuming for a contradiction that M#X has a metric with positive curvature.

We have Y, an infinite cover of M#X formed by cutting along Σ, a hypersurface representing a homology class that shows M is SYS, and gluing infinitely many copies together in a tower.

We want to find a function h : Y -> [-∞,∞] that is only finite on a bounded region - that region will be our Riemannian band.

It turns out that the way to do this isn't too hard. Fix a copy of Σ in Y, and let v(x) be the (smoothed) signed distance to Σ. That is, v(x) < 0 if you're "below" that lift, v(x) > 0 if you're "above" that lift, and v(x) = 0 in that lift. Then let h(x): [1]

Grow like tan(v) inside lifts of M, ie the main "tower" of Y.

Grow like 1/(C-v) inside the lifts of X, ie the "arms" of Y, for some constant C (that will depend on which lift).

These need to be scaled and shifted a bit to make sure they're smooth over the joins, but we only really care about the growth rate. In particular, the region where h is finite is definitely bounded as v is Lipschitz.

Why tan(v) and -1/v, out of all the functions that go to infinity? Because Lemma 7 (the stability inequality for μ-bubbles) links h² with |∇h| and:

tan(v)² - |∇tan(v)| ≈ tan(v)²-sec(v)² = 1,

(-1/v)² -|∇(-1/v)| ≈ 1/v² - 1/v² = 0.

Hopefully you can believe (and if not, see [1] and use compactness of M) that we get the following after doing all of the scaling to make sure that h is smooth, and accounting for that fact that |∇v| isn't exactly 1 after smoothing.

Lemma 8.

For h defined above, where it is finite, it satisfies

Note that the curvature term is just coming from the fact that R>0 everywhere, and by compactness of M, we can assume R>2 on lifts of M.

We're now ready for our first μ-bubble! Take the band B to be the closure of the region where h is finite; u=1, h as above, and ω to be the region of B above Σ (ie with h>0, although this actually makes little difference). Let Ω be the component(s) of the μ-bubble such that ∂Ω ∩ ∂B+ is homologous to a lift of Σ in Y. [2] In the picture below, the μ-bubble is pink and Ω is darker.

Follow the following steps to make a manifold Z:

Take all of the lifts of M (ie blocks in the main "tower" of Y) that meet B. Remember this is only finitely many, as B is bounded.

Glue the top and bottom copies of Σ together.

Cap off the remaining boundary components however you like, remembering these are all inside lifts of X.

This doesn't quite give you a cyclic cover, but it gives you the connected sum of a finite cyclic cover of M along Σ with finitely many bounded-so-compact other guys. But cyclic covers and connected sums are exactly the constructions that SYS behaves well with, so Z is SYS!

Nearly there now. Let Λ be the copy of ∂Ω \ ∂B+ in Z (red above). By the choice of Ω, Λ is homologous to Σ and so is SYS. (I mentioned this is post 5, but didn't number it.) However, combining Lemmas 7 and 8 [3] lets us conclude in exactly the same way as Theorem 5. If n=3, use Gauss-Bonnet; else, compactness and Lemma 3 (with V= R×constant again) gives that the conformal Laplacian has a positive eigenvalue λ, and we can scale the metric on Λ to show that it's PSC, a contradiction. Hence we have proven:

Theorem 9.

If M is SYS, and X is any manifold, then M#X is non-PSC.

Some observations before I let this post end:

We never actually use that Z is SYS, it's just a nice fact.

This argument has no dependence on n≤7, until the final step where we contradict Theorem 5. So if we get that in general, this comes for free.

Even though Λ is not stable minimal, it is the boundary of a μ-bubble, so we can argue in the same way.

In a preprint published this April (!), Shi, Wang, Wu & Zhu prove a more general version of this statement, by defining "non-compact SYS manifolds", but it involves using a non-standard homology theory! [4]

Glad someone reads these!!!

[1] This is just the details of h. It really isn't very interesting but took me hours to work out constants and bounds that don't break any steps in the proof.

[2] It's not trivial that we can make such a choice of Ω. However, Σ is separating and hence so is each lift, and the union of the components of ∂B+ inside the main "tower" must also be separating. So these cobound a submanifold with some lift of Σ, and hence the components of the μ-bubble meeting those components of ∂B+ also cobound a submanifold with the same lift of Σ. This is green in the picture.

[3] Again, details, but it's fairly straightforward. The hard bit of this proof is really showing that h is well-behaved and that Λ is well-defined. (Also the second= below should be an ≥, oopsie)

[4] This is really cool. So, let M be any manifold, and let K_i be an increasing sequence of compact subsets of M that also cover M. Then inclusion gives maps H(M, M\K_j) -> H(M, M\K_i) for i<j. We define compactly supported homology to be the inverse limit of H(M, M\K_i). In some ways, this gives you "what the homology of M would be if it was compact". If you define SYS using csupp homology, then all of the results still hold true, but for any manifold. In particular, if M is SYS, M#X is too, so is definitely non-PSC.

[xeter-group]

Exceptional Automorphisms of S_6

The symmetric group S_6 has a special property that S_n does not have for ANY n ≠6. Really? 6, of all numbers?? How odd.

For any group G, and every g in G, the conjugation map f_g: h ↦ g h g^-1 is an automorphism of G. That is, it is an isomorphism from G -> G. The group of these particular automorphisms (under composition) is called the group of inner automorphisms of a group. Did you know that for every symmetric group S_n EXCEPT n=6, this is the entire automorphism group?

For some reason, S_6 has basically ONE (and only one) weird automorphism. What I mean by this is if we denote the inner automorphisms of S_6 by Inn(S_6), then S_6/Inn(S_6) ~= Z_2. (In other words, you can pick a single automorphism sigma such that the automorphisms of S_6 that are not inner automorphisms can be written as a composition of inner automorphisms and this one sigma.)

So we have this weird situation where |Aut(S_2)|=|Aut(C_2)| = 1, which is kinda trivial, |Aut(S_6)| = 2n!, and |Aut(S_n)| = n! otherwise. Kinda weird, huh?

What is also interesting is the proofs that there are no outer automorphisms for n≠6. Basically you can eliminate all but finitely many n, then you can pick off cases, and you are left with an n=6 shaped hole in your cases that CANNOT be filled, which feels so weird to me. If I was proving this myself I'd be going crazy having proven it for every case except 6, and having to resort to some proof which for some reason doesn't work for finitely many values.

Construction

There are so many different ways to construct the weird automorphism of S_6 - I have some links at the bottom. I particularly like the graph theory/geometric ones. Something about using factorisations of K_6 or a dodecahedron just makes the 6 feel more unique. I will admit I don't think I understand what is fundamentally special about 6 enough yet, though, on a philosophical level.

Practically, though, the constructions all basically boil down to the fact you can put a copy of S_5 inside S_6 in a way that isn't the obvious way, which you can only do for n=6. That is the special part.

After that, you have these 6 cosets of S_5 inside S_6 that S_6 acts upon. In other words, each element of S_6 permutes the 6 cosets of S_5 living inside it. But the group of permutations of 6 cosets is S_6. So we have a mapping from elements of S_6 to S_6 - an automorphism! Is this automorphism an inner automorphism? Each construction shows why they are outer differently, but a common theme is to show that the mapping S_6 to S_6 does not take transpositions to transpositions, but inner automorphisms preserve the cycle type.

Some proofs and examples

The wikipedia article. I like the construction about graph partitions. It does not, however, have much detail sadly.

Fortunately, the graph partitions thing from wikipedia is explained here. It's very short and to the point, also quite nice to look at:

Fairly elementary explanations, followed by more intense ones:

Requires only basic group theory to understand the first few explanations they provide (although it isn't trivial if you just learned group theory). Bonus points for "MyStIc PeNtAgOnS" (capitalisation mine):

Allegedly useful, but I can't grab a copy: (I think its on mathscinet under MR1240362 as per David Leep's personal website's publications section)

Combinatorial Structure of the automorphism group of S6 by T.Y. Lam and David B. Leep, Expositiones Mathematicae11 (1993), no. 4, pp. 289-903.

The comment by Matthew Towers here is also interesting:

[pallastrology]

what i read in 2023

hello! here's what i read over the last year, including some stuff i read/re-read for uni. all in all, it was a great year for reading, despite having a newborn who didn't sleep much lol. i haven't been able to write detailed reviews because i never take notes (oops) but here are my thoughts on what i read. hope you enjoy :-)

the prophet, kahlil gibran - 4 ⭐️ i originally rated this a 3.5 but have revised that rating... reading anything deep when sleep-deprived with a newborn is not a good idea, although i believe this was a lovely novel, i can't remember it all that well and will have to read it again to write a fair review.

lady chatterley's lover, d.h. lawrence (audiobook) - 4 ⭐️ i think i would prefer to just read this myself, rather than listen to it as an audiobook. i'm not really one for "spicy" books but this is very tame going by today's standards, and the story was gripping. when you consider the historical significance it makes it all the more interesting too in my opinion.

the professor, charlotte brontë - 3.5 ⭐️ i usually love anything brontë but was a little bored reading this. i didn't really like the protagonist and just found the plot a bit dull. not a bad novel by any means, but not my cup of tea.

watership down, richard adams (audiobook) - 5 ⭐️ beautiful!! just beautiful. i watched the film as a kid and was slightly traumatised, but the book runs rings around it. it's something that can be enjoyed by all ages and balances fantasy with reality. as a bunny servant, i really appreciated the level of detail the author went to to ensure he wrote rabbits correctly too!

the turn of the screw, henry james (audiobook) - 3.5 ⭐️ didn't hugely like this. i'm not a massive horror fan because i'm sensitive lol, but i find classics like this aren't too much for me. if anything i almost wished it were a bit more intense at times, it felt more sad than anything.

the time machine, h.g. wells - 4.5 ⭐️ really interesting story with a thought-provoking ending. i read it over the course of a day and it stuck with me ever since. it's also become inextricably linked with joanna newsom's album divers for me, with its themes of time travel, war and walking through ruins. would definitely recommend!

the fellowship of the ring, j.r.r. tolkien (audiobook) - 5 ⭐️ a completely and utterly beautiful book. i could probably write a whole book myself on how much i adore the lord of the rings, but now isn't the time or place. i was hooked instantly and as someone who grew up with peter jackson's trilogy, it was lovely to get to know the hobbits more at the start and explore the world more fully.

the cats of ulthar, h.p. lovecraft - 4 ⭐️ sinister and gripping short story. it takes something like ten minutes to read so i'd recommend it to anyone to be honest, especially if fantasy or horror are your cup of tea. i haven't read anything else by lovecraft to compare it to, but as a fan of lots of games that borrow from his lore i think the story probably fits into his world nicely.

the two towers, j.r.r. tolkien (audiobook) - 5 ⭐️ the opening to the second novel in the series was just heartbreaking, but still, i was glad to be back in middle earth. again, the level of detail in the books compared to the films is just astounding, and i found myself going back to relisten just to take it in fully.

a room with a view, e.m. forster - 4 ⭐️ i started this years ago and ended up putting it down. i'm glad i came back to it, though i still found it hard to get into actually. it was definitely a slow burn for me, but i do really enjoy books about the lives of regular people.

the return of the king, j.r.r. tolkien (audiobook) - 5 ⭐️ cried a little bit when i finished this. i truly love lord of the rings and this first listen to the audiobooks will hopefully stay with me forever. this year i hope to read the physical books and dive into middle earth all over again.

icons of the iron age: the celts in history and archaeology, susan a. johnston (audiobook) - 4.5 ⭐️ only because i listened to this through audible and sometimes found the presentation a little hard to follow. very informative and a great intro to the subject of the celtic peoples.

the silmarillion, j.r.r. tolkien (audiobook) - 5 ⭐️ definitely one to reread later on down the line, with a notebook so i can take notes, it’s so detailed and dense that it’s hard to remember recurring plot points and characters at times. but a beautiful book depicting a mythology.

the lifted veil, george eliot (audiobook) - 3.5 ⭐️ an interesting but, for me, unmemorable novel. i think i'll come back and read it again before i write anything significant about it however.

the last of the wild days, volume one: the howling hunt is nearing..., daniel j. loney - 3.5 ⭐️ a lot of potential, with engaging characters and intriguing lore and story, but lots of technical errors and issues with pacing and wordiness. looking forward to more instalments, but the book is definitely in need of an editor.

ogwen blues, george veck - 4.5 ⭐️ very dark, very gritty. left me feeling quite depressed afterwards to be honest, though the novel was an excellent and immersive read. not something i'd usually pick up but i'm glad i did.

cranford, elizabeth gaskell - 5 ⭐️ a really lovely little book. very quaint, exactly the kind of thing i love, just the goings on of regular people. i really enjoyed it, especially as 'brain bleach' after ogwen blues.

tender is the flesh, augustina bazterrica - 3 ⭐️ a quick and intense read but not a book i can say i’d recommend… very well-written but the content is highly unpleasant and not for the faint-of-heart. an interesting and horrifying commentary on the meat industry and, i suppose, how far humanity will go to keep up appearances of civility.

sir gawain and the green knight, pearl, and sir orfeo, j.r.r. tolkien - 5⭐️ really beautiful translation, with especial care taken to retain the alliteration of the original poems.

sir gawain and the green knight, brian stone - 4.5 ⭐️ loved it, but skipped through much of the original text section as i can’t read medieval english (maybe someday).

[csolarstorm]

First two days of Tears of the Kingdom.

Tears of the Kingdom came out on my birthday.

Back when I was a sprightly lad in my late twenties, Breath of the Wild was a revelation to me. Before that, every game was a plaformer, a Pokemon, or Minecraft. I'd never played an open world game and suddenly I had the caviar of open world games. I remember that summer when I spent months mostly fishing, before I got so annoyed with the Bokoblins interrupting me that I went down a rabbit hole that ended in defeating Ganon. Fishing was a lot easier after that.

Six years later, Breath of the Wild was my gateway drug; I played Skyrim, No Man's Sky, every Pokemon game desperate to emulate BOTW, and now that wondrous experience exploring Hyrule for the first time...is in the past.

It took me a day for Tears of the Kingdom to really click with me. Instead of starting out in the wild, the Great Sky Island is a garden, and a ruined city. Mechanics and machines are the main event now, instead of just the simple, intuitive foraging and strategy of the first game. It makes for a less relaxing but more creative experience.

One time I had to figure out how to get a Zonai Wing flying without a runway to escape a sky island while also trying not to freeze. I died maybe five times before figuring out the chain of events was:

Ultrahand the Zonai Wing into the air and drop it

Start Zonai Fan

Get on the Zonai Wing

Rewind the Zonai Wing

Although I know the building system was inspired by the crazy vehicles and flying machines people made in BOTW, the physics of the Zonai devices can't help but make me think of No Man's Sky. *sighs with happy memories* 😊

Ultimately my favorite experience of the tutorial section on the Great Sky Island was getting on a vehicle and just walking around freely on it while it moved! Just this simple feature must have taken so much programming, no wonder it took so long. It blows my mind to get on a glider and just walk around it while it's sailing through the air.

But it wasn't until I finally dived off the island that it all clicked. I was home, in the good old "Wild". The fields and forests of Hyrule. After some wandering, it all came back to me. No planet in No Man's Sky can hold a candle to seeing a shrine in the distance and climbing, swimming, and slashing your way to everything in order to get to it - and then getting distracted and going to do something else anyway.

This landscape feels real. These trees feel real - oh crap what the - the trees are Alolan Exeggutor now?! The first time a tree came to life was hilarious. And they wallop you EXACTLY like Alolan Exeggutor. Why does the forest hate me.

Horriblins have a great name and they are weird. This was another fun "what the hell is that" moment. For instance, I got too close to a pit of gloom, and hell itself rose out of it to throroughly chase me down and murder me. That was weird, but I will definitely remember it! It's always fun and unusual to encounter a brand new monster, especially since they have a slightly different art direction than the old enemies, since you know, six years have passed.

Purah managed to re-age into her design from Hyrule Warriors! What a coincidence. It makes total sense because enough time has passed and totally isn't because they wanted to keep her a teenage girl.

The Skyview Tower is incredibly amusing. From invasively grabbing Link with recycled Guardian arms to shooting him into space on a bungee cord, Purah is pretty savage. I can't wait to do again for the next tower. It's so much better than the Sheikah towers.

And now I'm so into the game that I have to set my 2:00 am rule again. Vehicles building is starting to come more naturally, but to be honest, the whole vehicle system sticks out from the rest of the gameplay.

That's my overall experience. The new features are wondrous, original, and sometimes they clash with the simpler, more organic elements of the Breath of the Wild that are still an important part of the game. You can get stuck in certain places and be forced to teleport because the new gameplay style they start you out with makes you wait for glider. This game forces you to be resourceful and think on your toes a lot sooner than Breath of the Wild. But just like Breath of the Wild, it's still addictive enough to stop yourself at 2:00 in the morning just to get some sleep so you're not too tired to play tomorrow.

After all, I'm not getting any younger. I need my sleep.

Have fun everyone. 👍

[reiding-writing]

Heyy i was wondering if i could have a workshop session? Also congrats on reaching 2k i literally lovee your posts.

So i had this idea about early season spencer and a movie director reader, so basically sorta like the episode with lila archer except reader is really famous and makes mostly sci-fi movies or something spencer would watch, and someone on her set is a witness for a crime or connected to one and now that they dissapeared the BAU sent spencer and maybe derek to ask reader about what they know. But spencer is lowkey kind of silently fan girling lmao like when he first met rossi. I hope this idea isn't too cringe but its just something i thought of, and also its like 3am so my brain isn't functioning properly. Anyways thank yeww

STARstruck — SPENCER REID!

Spencer is a nerd who appreciates accurate scientific knowledge in the media he consumes, and you, are his literal idol in that aspect.

s1!spencer x fem!director!reader | 1.2k | fluff | 2k book fayre !!

a/n — this idea is so cute bro i love it

main masterlist. | event masterlist.

The late afternoon sun filtered through the towering glass windows of the Hollywood studio, casting a golden glow over the sleek set design.

Cameras, lighting rigs, and intricate models of spaceships and futuristic cities filled the massive room, the scent of freshly brewed coffee and slightly burnt popcorn lingered in the air.

Spencer took a deep breath as he stepped onto the set, eyes wide with a mix of awe and nervous excitement.

“You okay, pretty boy?” Morgan smirked as he nudged Spencer in the arm. “You look like you’re about to pass out.”

Spencer quickly adjusted the messenger bag on his shoulder, fiddling with the leather strap. “I’m fine,” He mumbled, although his gaze kept drifting toward the bustling crew members setting up for the next scene.

It wasn’t just the high-tech equipment that caught his attention; it was the fact that you were somewhere on this set. A literal legend in the movie world who had created some of Spencer's favourite films, the mind behind the intricate worlds he had spent years analysing and rewatching.

Not just a famous director, but one of the most influential minds in science fiction cinema, with a literal PhD in theoretical astrophysics, your movies weren’t just blockbusters—they were intellectually stimulating.

Films layered with complex theories of time travel, quantum physics, and human evolution. Spencer had spent hours after screenings debating the logic behind your plot twists, tracing your influences back to classic literature and obscure scientific studies.

He might have even written a paper about your work for one of his side projects.

Maybe.

“Alright, fanboy, whatever you say,” Morgan chuckled, clearly noticing the star-struck look on Spencer’s face. “We’re here for business, remember? We need to talk to her about the missing witness.”

Right. The reason they were actually here. One of the set designers from your latest film had disappeared. They had been linked to a crime scene across town, and now the BAU was trying to piece together their whereabouts.

As the two made their way past towering green screens and actors in elaborate futuristic costumes, Spencer’s heart rate quickened. There you were, standing near the director's chair, deep in conversation with a producer.

Morgan was the one to actually call your attention, flashing his FBI badge. “Excuse me, Doctor, I’m Agent Derek Morgan, and this is Dr. Spencer Reid, we’re with the FBI.”

Your eyes widen momentarily, before settling in understanding. “Pleasure to meet you both,” You motion for the two to follow you away from the busy set for the impending conversation.

Spencer tried to find his voice, but it was like his brain had short-circuited the moment you looked at him. The woman who had crafted entire galaxies and explored the intricacies of human consciousness in film now actually knew he existed.

“I—uh—” He stammered, glancing at the wall behind you before meeting your eyes. “I just wanted to say I’ve been a huge fan of your work for years. Your understanding of nonlinear time theory in Chrono Rift was... incredible—”

Morgan’s grin widened, and Spencer could feel his cheeks burning. He was not making a good first impression.

You, however, smiled warmly, your expression softening. “Thank you, Dr. Reid. It’s always nice to meet someone who appreciates the science behind the ‘science-fiction’.”

The way his eyes seem to soften in the wake of your thanks is endearing, matched with a pink flush to behind his glasses he attempts to brush a stubborn lick of hair from his eye.

It’s a natural attractiveness, one that’s sweet and a little awkward.

“But I assume you didn’t come here just to talk about quantum mechanics?”

Spencer cleared his throat, refocusing on the case. “Right, yes uh— We’re trying to locate one of your set designers, Adrian Moss. We believe they may have been involved with a recent crime, and they disappeared shortly after. Did Adrian mention anything unusual to you? Anyone they seemed nervous around?”

Your brows furrowed slightly in concern. “Adrian? No, they seemed fine. A little… distracted maybe, but I thought it was just the stress of the shoot. I had no idea they were involved in anything criminal.”

Morgan took over to save himself the second-hand embarrassment of Spencer’s stammering, smoothly steering the conversation. “Is there anyone on set Adrian might’ve had conflicts with? Or someone who seemed to be paying them too much attention?”

You paused, considering the question. “Not that I can think of, but I can ask around. The crew is like a family you know? People talk— if Adrian was in trouble, someone will have noticed.”

As the conversation continued, Spencer slowly found his footing again, chiming in with more questions about Adrian’s behaviour and their role on set. But every now and then, his mind drifted to the fact that he was standing in the presence of one of his idols. And not only were you brilliant, but you were also kind.

After wrapping up their questions, you pulled out a small business card, handing it towards Morgan. “If you need anything else, please don’t hesitate to give me a call. I’ll make sure the crew knows to cooperate fully with your investigation,”

Morgan pocketed the card with a small nod. “Thanks for your help. We’ll be in touch.”

As they turned to leave, you called out, “Oh, Dr. Reid?”

Spencer froze, turning back to face you. He genuinely felt like he might explode.

“If you ever want to debate time travel paradoxes or poke holes in my logic, I’d be happy to grab a coffee sometime.”

Spencer’s brain went blank for a second, and all he managed was a stunned, “Uh, yeah! I mean—yes, that sounds great.”

With a smile, you waved them off, returning to your work.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Derek clapped Spencer on the back, laughing. “I’ve never seen you like this, man. Fanboying over a director? That’s a new one.”

Spencer gave him a sheepish grin, although not one that tries to dispel his accusation. “She’s not just a director, Morgan. She’s a genius.”

“Well, genius, genius or not, you might actually have a shot there. But let’s focus on finding this missing designer before you start planning your first date.”

Spencer chuckled, still a little dazed but ready to get back to work. He couldn’t help but feel that, no matter how this case turned out, his emotional outcome was going to be a net positive.

[dsandrvk]

Monday, April 1 - Granada to Cuenca

We had a very early start this morning, as we were up by 5AM, and on the way to the train station by 6. It all went smoothly, and this was our first AVE train - the truly high speed, which gets up to around 150mph. It still took about 4 hours to reach Madrid, since they went slower on the first part of the trip - retracing our journey back to Cordoba. Although it had rained most of the night, and a bit of and on in the train, we were lucky to have a dry morning to wheel to the train station.

We had an hour to change train stations in Madrid, but it's fairly easy, as there was a suburban train linking the two stations, and a ticket on it was included in our AVE fare. We had worried a bit about the timing, but we caught the suburban train very quickly, and got to our second station with 30 minutes to spare.

On the train to Cuenca we passed through several little rain cells, and we could see various areas being hit by storms. It was a change from the all-day rain, but it still could make it very wet. It wasn't raining when we got to the newish highspeed train station outside of Cuenca - it is at least 5 kilometers from there to the old train station, and an additional several kilometers to the old town where we are staying. We were debating hiring a cab when a bus pulled up - not only did it take us into town, but its last stop was the Plaza Mayor, about 100 yards from our apartment. It did rain a little on that short walk, but we dried out quickly.

Our apartment is quite cute, with a window looking down on the newer town well below, as well as the steep streets below. Cuenca is quite vertical - it is surrounded by steep limestone cliffs that rise above two rivers, one large and one small. The oldest part of Cuenca sits on top of the cliffs between the two rivers, and the old town spills down from there. Where the two rivers meet it is fairly flat and is the start of the plain, and the newer town has expanded into that area. As a result, there are a lot of steep stairs and roads up and down from where we were staying, and it's good cardio just to go anywhere.

We walked down to the new town to pick up a few groceries, and then back up to our place before setting out to explore. By this time the rain had moved on and the sun actually came out! Blue skies! Of course, it was still windy and about 45 degrees, but it really brightened our moods.

Leading off from the Plaza Mayor just above our place is a bridge across the smaller river far below. It links the old town to the Parador, which was originally a convent. It is a fairly inelegant bridge, being mostly steel sitting on very spindly looking supports. It does get a lot of use, as it overlooks the famous "hanging houses", which overhang the cliffs above the gorge. This group dates back to the 14th century, so they must be doing something right.

From here we headed up some stairs and back streets to the top of the oldest town, where the castle once stood. The castle and settlement were originally Moorish, but Alfonso VIII conquered the city in 1177. Nothing much is left of the castle but the gate, and that had some current construction. Because of the uniqueness of the setting and the hanging houses, the "Ciudad Alta" is a world Heritage site. Above the gate are more houses, a large parking area, and a zip line station for flying across the gorge. It wasn't operational at the moment, but should open when the weather improves. From here, the Parador that towers above the new town was well below us. On the way up we passed this one three story building that appears to be built entirely on some undersized beams and a couple of sketchy trusses. We didn't linger underneath.

Cuenca has lots of trails that go along the rivers or climb high into the cliffs above, and we hope to do a mix of trails tomorrow. We will probably get a latish start, since with daylight savings time, the sunrise isn't until around 8:30, and it will be a cold morning. Also, we got up early today, stayed out late wandering around in the beautiful sunshine, and need some rest. And sunset isn't until around 8:30 also. We are happy to note that there is no rain in the forecast for tomorrow!