#and everyone else was on like 11s and i was still on 5s

[bubaluv]

There and back again

[incorrect-sdv-quotes]

Okay so I know this is a SDV Incorrect quote blog but I really wanted to show off my SDV headcanon’s so you may ignore this post if you wish (I’ll go back to the normal posts after this, I have like 13 quotes queue’d up right now) 

Headcanon’s under the cut:

1.Alex’s real first name is Alexander he just prefers to go by Alex

2.Alex is a trans male so he was born female but transitioned to male at age 13

3.The bachelors ages are (listed youngest to oldest):

 Alex: 19 

Sebastian: 19 (one month older then Alex)

Sam: 20

Harvey: 25-30

Elliott: 36

Shane: 38

4.Despite Sam being older then him Alex is taller (if you put them side by side Sam looks taller but that’s only cause of his hair if you flattened it you could see Alex was taller)

5.Sebastian is secretly a vampire (He does look like one anyway)

6. Haley and Alex kind of have a Hazel and Xander from Bunk’d relationship where they’re kinda friends but one of them *cough cough* Haley *cough* has a huge crush on the other to where it’s at yandere point- Haley is not QUITE as crazy about Alex that Hazel is about Xander and unlike Hazel Haley can hide the craziness she does have around people but when it’s just her and Alex she’s all crazy and clingy- 

Like, she’ll call him pet names like “My jock prince” or “Alex-zandy-” or “My knight in shining armor” Etc. etc- or hug him and never let go until someone LITERALLY prys her off- Talk about nutty nutty nut-so-

7. My headcanon voices for the bachelors are: (Well some of them, if a name is in strike through that means I don’t have one for that one- yet)

Alex: Shining Armor from MLP

Sebastian

Sam: Rottmnt Leo/2020 Sonic the Hedgehog/Dewy from Ducktails (this one might change)

Harvey: Fozzie Bear (Harvey: WaKa WaKa (I’m sorry))

Elliott: Gunther from Shake It Up

Shane

8.Shane is basically the god of chickens he’s such a good caretaker of chickens that he could summon an army of chickens to peck the eyes out of everyone in town with one “Babock” CHICKEN ARMY!!

If you decided to read this post and you liked my headcanons then this is it for now more might be added later as I play the game and scroll through the SDV tags on Tumblr more 

EDIT 1: More headcanons!:

9: Elliott is an amazing actor but a horrid horror-movie actor (It’s just his screams are unrealistic he will literally just say “Aaaah” otherwise it’s the same as the rest of his acting) (This scream-glitch is an easy fix if you yell “Ghost” more on that in 10)

10: Elliott is TERRIFIED of ghosts even those cute and/or clearly fake ghosts (Why else do you think Spirits Eve/Halloween has Skeletons every year and not ghosts? No one wants to scare anyone Too bad.) Actually Alex dared Elliott to watch the Disney Junior show Vampirina which went fine until Demi came on screen- Elliott literally wet himself and screamed for 3 whole hours- (Poor Alex who had to listen to that the whole time-)

11: Elliott treats his pocket crab as his ACTUAL son, not as his pet but as his actual biological son (it’s actually really cute)

12: The portraits in this video for a portraits mod is how the characters actually look to me (Excluding Elliott Sam and Sebastian they still live in my brain with their cannon looks): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmBW8BzSZpU&list=WL&index=1&t=5s

13: Krobus is Sebastian’s father (yeah you THINK it would not make sense along with Hc numb.5 but if you think about it if his father is a monster and his mother is human he’s gonna be born as a human-looking monster! Which is a Vampire!)

EDIT 2: Damnit. I was scrolling through this and I realized I missed a Hc and it slipped through the original post and the EDIT 1!

14: Alex has Dyslexia (this bugger Hc belonged in the original post but it slipped through both edits)

EDIT 3: MORE HEADCANNONS-

15: Both Abigail and Sebastian used to have hair to match their parents (Abby’s was brown (Like said in game) and Sebastian’s was Ginger) but due to their “Unusual” parents (Abigail: Wizard Sebastian: Krobus) their hair changed color when they got older and their mothers just pretended they died their hair so both the towns people and Abigail and Sebastian themselves would not freak out 

16: Sebastian has snake bite piercing's but he only wears them when he’s alone (he got them in the first place cause 1: Sam dared him and 2: he decided it would be a fun way to rebel against dead to Sebastian Demetrius, he didn’t have to keep them but he ended up liking the look) 

17: Sebastian owns a giant frog plush, it’s twice the size of him, is really soft and is incredibly fat (it’s to the point it’s just a circle that has stubby legs) he loves it more then anything Excluding Alex but he does not want anyone finding out he loves it let alone owns it so he stuffs it under his bed when people are in and/or near his room

18: Sebastian’s first word was literally “Froggy”

Ex:

Robin: Can you say “mama”?

Baby!Sebastian: ...Froggy!

Robin:

Robin: Out of all words your first word is “Froggy”? Really?

19: The shortest to tallest Bachelors are:

Shane

Sam (If you take his hair and go *Squishes flat*)

Alex

Sebastian

Sam (If you count the added height from his Mullet)

Harvey

Elliott (Tall stinky sea dude)

20: Sam got Sebastian to scream “Bubbles” for 5 hours straight 

Details on that:

Sam: It’s impossible to say “Bubbles” threateningly

Sebastian:

Five munities later:

Robin: Uhhhh Sam? Why is my son on the roof screaming “BUBBLES”?

21: Sebastian owns a biker jacket but he only wears it when riding his motorcycle cause the jacket makes him look way more goth then emo and he prefers the emo look over goth look despite he acts more like a goth

22: One Feast of The Winter Star Sebastian got everyone an empty box and when they opened it Seb said: “It’s a void of nothingness. Just like life.” He did not get in trouble or nothing cause your allowed to give what you want but he did not do that again

23: Sebastian requires glasses to read, he can see perfectly but when it comes to reading on a computer or on paper he needs glasses

24: Sam does a perfect Darth Vader voice and Darth Vader breathing noises

25: Sebastian has vampire powers (cause he is a vampire (Hc 5)), he knows about them and is chill about it but he does not use them unless necessary cause he just does not feel the need to use them otherwise (His powers include, immortality (he also can’t be killed cause on my take on Vampires the stuff that “Traditionally” harms/kills them is just a mith and actually does nothing to them), super strength, increased speed, fast self-healing, telekinesis (I know this is not “Traditionally” a vampire power but Seb does have it) and the ability to change into a bat)

26: Both Sebastian and Elliott are actually pretty jacked (Not Alex level jacked but still) you just can’t see it unless they’re shirt-less (but in Seb’s case at least loose the hoodie)

27: Harvey’s doctor’s mallet weapon is just as heavy and as big as himself so he rarely goes into combat cause he has trouble welding his own weapon- 

Harvey: Time to explore the mines! *grabs his giant doctors mallet*

Harvey: Nope going down. *falls backward with a thud*

28: Elliott carries at least one very sharp pencil with him at all times so if he sees a very annoying person or a slime that escaped the mines he’ll grab it and go *StAb*

29: Everyone else makes Hermit jokes around Elliott which he finds funny and annoying at the same time (They used to do the jokes about Sebastian as well but they stopped cause when they did Seb strangled them Darth Vader style) Ex of the hermit jokes:

*singing* Someone’s on the beach with a hermit! There’s a hermit on the beach I know I know! Someone’s on the beach with a hermiiiit! And the hermit’s name is Elliott!

30: If you think Elliott’s cannon SDV schedule is anti-social you should see how anti-social he gets when writing a book-

EDIT 4: Surprise, there’s more

31: Elliott is a mermaid merman (he’s a human by day half human half fish by night but he’ll change forms sooner if you dump water on him- found that out by Haley throwing water on him in hopes he’ll melt-)

32: When in ‘fish’ form Elliott’s tail is incredibly strong (if you get hit by it you’ll go flying 900 feet in the air in 5 seconds at full strength)

33:Elliott only lets Harvey call him “Elly” if anyone else does so expect Elliott to dump water on himself then hit you with his fish tail)

34:Vincent will sing The Little Mermaid song “Under the sea” around Elliott and Sebastian (Sebastian cause think about it and Elliott cause he’s an IRL Mermaid)

[fromthecouch]

I have always watched too much tv - an introduction.

A personal history of my relationship with the small screen.

My grandparents, who were my main parental figures growing up, didn’t work 9 to 5s. My grandfather worked as a bus driver for the Chicago Transit Authority, for over 20 years. His schedule often fluctuated. My grandmother worked as an expeditor for architectural firms. She made her hours and often came home later in the evening. For a significant part of childhood and all of my adolescence, I spent a lot of time alone. Sometimes I would go to my friends’ homes after school or my younger cousin would stay for the evening; however, from 3:00 PM-8:00 PM on weeknights, my main source of connection to other humans was through our living room television, the screen of my family’s desktop, and the pages of fiction.

It was not until recently that I learned of the term ‘latchkey kid.’ I had been watching the A&E Freaks and Geeks documentary on Amazon Prime when I noted the phrase. It had been used during an interview portion of the documentary when one of the production team members used it to describe Bill Haverchuck. The documentary cut to a scene of Bill, one of the show’s “geeks”, sitting in front of a television, laughing hysterically, with grilled cheese and Entenmann’s chocolate cake on a TV tray. The interviewee recalled their childhood similarities to Bill —the experience of a latchkey life. I was immediately intrigued and paused the documentary to turn to Google.

Freaks and Geeks, Episode 14: Dead Dogs and Gym Teachers

The search brought me to the Wikipedia definition, listed as “a child who returns to an empty home after school or a child who is often left at home with no supervision because their parents are away at work.” I reflected more in-depth on this and found myself assessing my relationship to fiction and how it raised me.

I have always watched too much tv. I used to read voraciously. I would buy random ‘pre-viewed’ DVDs from Blockbuster and played them in rotation until I got my hands on a new batch and a new rotation started. My grandparents often enabled my habit as a reader, yet I would go through books too quickly for my family trips to the library or Borders to keep up. Most of my planned reading for the week would be completely consumed by the end of the night on Tuesday or Wednesday, so the rest of my weekly time alone, I would turn to watch things.

At a young age, I viewed watching television as infinite. Since it was before the era of eBooks, there was a limited number of hours that my books could sustain me for each week, but television would always be there for me. I watched everything — movies, children’s shows, reality television, teen dramas, daytime television, sitcoms, documentaries, sometimes even infomercial channels. Fifth grade is when I truly became in awe of all that the small screen had to offer. My grandparents had upgraded to the premium package on Comcast. We went from a few dozen channels to having HBO, The N, Discovery Kids, multiple channels of MTV, channels that played history docuseries around the clock, the Filipino variety show channel, and so much more.

As a kid, film, literature and television was how I got to know the world. When I was a teenager, I more actively started to engage with what I was watching and reading. Fiction helped me dream of what I wanted for my life. How I consumed television and film during those years laid the groundwork for who I am as a person now. That was also when I had begun to use fiction to feel less lonely, to escape from the pressures of turbulent home life, to relate to my peers. I had curated a group of friends that also had independence thrust upon them at a young age. Watching tv with each other over the phone and renting films to watch together on the weekends was a big part of how we related to one another �� the common interests that bound our friendships, as mutual indoor kids. My high school years also coincided with Netflix’s shift from delivery rentals to mainly streaming, which allowed us to consume a new set of content, in an entirely new way. With adulthood approaching, we segued into the era of series binge-watching.

I was diagnosed with panic disorder and major depression when I was in my sophomore year of university. It was around that time that I became more cognizant of the way that I used television and film as coping mechanisms. Sometimes they served healthy coping mechanisms, sometimes they became more like distractions, and numbing agents. Whatever the case, I sometimes doubt that I would’ve gotten through some of my lowest times without the fictional characters, places and storylines of my favorite shows.

In 2017, I struggled with some chronic health issues, nothing serious, but very debilitating. It took me a year to stabilize. At that time, I hardly saw my friends. I had to quit my job and was unemployed for a full year, living with my boyfriend’s family in an unfamiliar suburb. I was too ill to hold down a full-time position. I was always in pain. I entered the longest depressive episode of my life, which made reading, my first love, feel daunting. I also struggled with a lot of vestibular migraines. The aftermath of those lingered for days and sometimes left me in a fog that made the words on a page feel painful.

I still had television though. On my worst days, I often only had the bandwidth to make doctors’ appointments, eat oatmeal, and rewatch television series I had already seen. The Chinese Restaurant episode of Seinfeld made me smile when I otherwise felt numb. Buffy the Vampire Slayer made me feel resilient when I felt incapable of basic human functions. Daria made me feel understood when I felt completely isolated from my peers. 

Seinfeld, Season 2 Episode 11 The Chinese Restaurant

On my better days, I could venture into a new series, which involved more attention. I mainly consumed television rather than movies for the most part, as I didn’t like having my time spent with characters and plots to feel limited. (The major exception to this was the MCU, due to the span of central, interconnected plots.) With access to Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime and HBO plus, I found television to again feel like my main connection to other people. When I felt like I didn’t have anyone else, I had Mr Robot, Atlanta, Glow, Mozart in the Jungle, Westworld, Stranger Things, Game of Thrones, Black Mirror, Big Little Lies, Insecure. When the pain from my migraines, GI issues, ovarian cysts, and mundanity of my newly “sick” life made me feel terrible, watching the fictional lives of others helped me escape. Watching these fictional lives, helped me feel like I was surrounded by others and living their lives with them when my own life felt on pause and isolated.

In 2018, I was fortunate enough to get on a successful diet and medication combination that allowed me to stabilize my health, move back to the city, reestablish my friendships, and resume my career. Even so, I still have more mild depressive episodes. I still get medical flareups. I am still a normal person who occasionally faces conflict, as that is just life. When I’m in those darker places, television is often both a distraction and connection that helps me recalibrate. Now here I am, at my current age of 27, and I still depend on fiction to be there for me.

Once the COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions started in March of 2020, I, like everyone else around the country, found myself limited in social interaction. I maintained some level of relatedness to others through my cat, my boyfriend, group texts with friends, and my Zoom work meetings. Yet, television was again a big part of how I related to the human experience. Television persisted in reminding me of what life was like pre-pandemic and what it could be in the future. It has helped me keep boredom and restlessness at bay. Through this time, I’ve found myself watching many series that I would have never watched otherwise. I have also found myself analyzing the series that I watch more thoroughly and with more curiosity than I had the capacity to in my youth and during my time of medical distress.

This year was also the first year that I have started writing for leisure, since high school. Being so online over the past year, I’ve often found myself with many thoughts to collect, package cohesively, and express, yet I’ve felt very limited by the current platforms I often interact with. I often feel like I cannot articulate meaningful thought on platforms like Instagram and Twitter, which are limiting by word limit and social media norms. My newfound revived interest in writing has often collided with my enthusiasm for television, film, and pop culture, more broadly.

It may be true that I watch too much television. It may also be true that television was one of my first true friends and in many ways an extra parental figure. I want to move beyond watching too much television. I want to openly explore television, what it means to me, what it means to the collective, and examine the things that we love to watch or have loved to watch with a critical lens. That is what I hope to express on here.

[makingspiritualityreal]

Numerology Master Numbers and Astrology

As an astrologer, I am definitely not the only one who uses the celebrity base on astrotheme as an endless supply of natal charts to learn from. It gets even more interesting, when you mix your knowledge of astrology and numerology. 

Planets in the astrology chart are often linked to numerological vibrations. For example, I have been surrounded by many life path 7s in my life, mostly family, and all these people tend to have 6th/12th house natal planets. They often have difficult lives, oriented not towards material gain but service to others and gaining spiritual humility. Life path 5s often have dominant mercurial vibes - in some way, those energies rule their chart, I’ve seen mostly Virgo and Gemini risings. Life path 1s often have Aries/1st house or some sort of action motivated/fire ruled energies in their astrology charts.

Those with master vibrations in numerology tend to have a hard life and bloom later in life - often in their 50s. That happens due to the fact, that master numbers have two different energies to master in one lifetime. The intensity is overwhelming for the human body to deal with, and it takes time to do the double work, it takes twice the time to find balance and fulfillment with such intense energies. I had people be jealous of my life path 11, but I always tell them that if they like it so much, together with this vibration they would carry the burden. So you get double the homework - blending both the energy of 1 and 2 into your life, and constantly preserving the balance between them. Same with all other master numbers. 

Obviously the double work explains, why many people with those vibrations can suddenly skyrocket to fame as they approach their 50s, and suddenly, as they gain maturity, their intense energies blossom with strong gifts, after a lifetime of working on them or maybe even not tapping into them at all. That happened for example to the famous author of the 50 Shades of Grey novels, a LP 11 who openly says that she is surprised her midlife crisis writing lead to success, since she didn’t write before her 40s at all, and her writing was more of a guilty pleasure for her. 

However, this situation does not apply to every master number. Why? Because the layer we are talking about is only the success in the material world, and fulfillment, happiness and balance in life doesn’t rest solely on that. There are people, who became successful while still young, born with master vibrations - my favorite examples are Harry Potter actors, Tom Felton and Emma Watson, both LP 11s, child actors. Tom Felton’s chart doesn’t have his birth hour, so I’m not gonna shoot in the dark, but Emma Watson’s chart is filled with planets auspicious for public success, like Mars in Dhanishta or Jupiter in the 10th. This is an example of how people’s astrological energies can win them public acclaim in lives easier, even as a master number. However, this success does not have to equal fulfillment in their lives. It’s just one area of life, where these people’s energies flow easily so it was possible for them to be easily successful to the public. Which may explain, why we haven’t heard anything groundbreaking from these actors, since their childhood careers - they will probably reemarge with something more substantial, after they mature. 

Nevertheless, we have no idea what kind of emotional suffering these people carry behind the veil of early success. Every master number has SOME area in life where they struggle and it will take them years to master that energy. Or they may have only resolved it moderately while they were young, they were used to operating those energies on an average level and suddenly, later in life the problems may find resolution and their level of fulfillment explodes compared to how their life was before. I have a LP 11 friend, who has a moderately successful career, but her personal relationships never lasted and brought her a lot of pain. Her work friends have no idea about her struggles, and still view her as a very positive, accomplished person. An image of success does not have to equal balance or happiness.

Bottom line is - if you are a numerological master number, study your astrology chart thoroughly. As a master number, you incarnated to guide and serve humanity in some way. It is more important for you than everyone else to understand which energies in your life will be easier to navigate, what you can use to give to others, and which energies you need to give A LOT of patience and time. You can have an easier time especially with the gifts of your Ketu, because this is something you did over many lifetimes, and as a master number, you had many past lives, and you're highly spiritually connected, so it will come very easily, almost automatically. For example, I have my Ketu in the 8th house. When I first picked up tarot, I had an immediate, instinctive understanding of it, and I was feeling confident even with little practice. Same with astrology, I always had an intuitive understanding of its energies, before I studied it in depth. I also could always seamlessly relate and grasp everyone’s traumas and psychological complexities. Mental flexibility and natural acceptance of controversial, painful topics, and also being able to transform through those energies in my own personal life is simply something I did so many times I will always have an easiness channeling it for others. It is however important not to stop at just tapping into those past life gifts, but simply use them to propel yourself forward and force yourself to leave the comfort zone. Even if it’s painful, shameful and takes years of work.

Most importantly, no matter what your Life Path Number and Astrology Chart say, remember that it is never too late for you, and you can always blossom, no matter what hardship you left behind, and how long it took to build what you always dreamt of.

[tenleaguesbeneath]

On the one hand, I love random stat generation, especially for games where survival is not assured, but also, like, I like meeting my character for the first time when I roll for them.

on the other, 3d6 in order is a weird ritual that you do at the beginning of the game, before new players have any context for what that means.

I like the level 0 funnel I’m running. One thing that I’d change about it though is that it starts the PCs with major penalties to all stats b/c of severe dehydration; I’d change that to a straight reduction to minimum functional for all of them, and delay attribute rolling until they can drink.

Maybe even then. Maybe you get, like, roll 1d6 and 1d5 for one strength and one weakness (or a d30 table), then 3d6 twice. then you have a few choices:

- Put the better roll in the thing you’re better at and the worse in the thing you’re bad at

- Put the “reverse” of the worse roll (21 minus the roll) in the better attribute, and either the better roll or its reverse (whichever is lower) in the worse attribute.

There’s still a (not insignificant) risk that both will be about average; since results in the 9-12 range show up about half the time on 3d6, if we want to avoid this we can add another special rule, perhaps changing 3s to 2s and 4s to 5s (or even 1s and 6s) on die results that are in the 9-12 range (removing them entirely, going to a d4 marked 1,2,5,6, only reduces the odds of an average result to 3 times in 8).

Or just reroll if that happens, I guess. Since this system something changes every even number going up/odd going down, we’re only concerned with things piling into the 10-11 range. That only happens about a quarter of the time, so 1/16 on both results. which is rare enough to justify rerolling.

Then roll everything else when it comes up. If someone asks “who’s the strongest in the group” you can invite everyone who hasn’t rolled it yet to roll for strength. If people are looking for someone to try to translate an inscription, the same for intelligence.

[discovisiondreams]

Top 15 First Watches of 2020

I’ve never been good at staying current on pop culture, and that became especially pronounced in 2020. A year where most of the anticipated theatrical releases were pushed to VOD (and the price nearly tripled) meant that a lot of flicks I was excited for got added to the end of the “Maybe Someday” watchlist. 

But in this strange year, I did manage to watch 245 movies- and 195 of those were first-time watches. Some were new, only available on the (virtual) festival circuit. Some were Criterion mainstays, films I’m horrified to admit I hadn’t seen before. But this year, when movies cemented themself as my biggest joy, I began to really track what I watched- including a “top 5 first watches of the month” roundup for every month. These top 5s weren’t ranked, and weren’t even based on technical ability, strength of dialogue, or critical acclaim. They were just the 5 I loved the best. 

So without further ado, here are my top 15 of the year- one selected from the top 5 of each month, with some bonus entries thrown in as well. As a general rule, I only included features on this list- I was fortunate enough to catch shorts that streamed at Chattanooga Film Fest, Celebration of Fantastic Fest, and more, but to add them to the running would have made writing this listicle absolutely impossible. 

HONORABLE Honorable Mention: The Holiday. Inspired by the fine folks at Super Yaki, I finally watched this Nancy Meyers classic. Why is it two and a half hours long?! Why is that two and a half hours so significantly lacking in Jack Black?! The scenes that Black is in, though, really shine. This one is going to be a Christmas mainstay in the Disco household (and not just because I spent money on the DVD).

15: The Love Witch (Honorable Mention, April). This one came highly recommended to me by friends of all sorts, and like most of my 2020 first watches, I’m deeply embarrassed that it took me this long to get to it. Upon finally watching it, on a rainy Sunday, I described the movie in general (and the color palette, specifically) as “sumptuous,” which is one of the most complimentary visual descriptors I can bestow upon a movie. The plot felt a little convoluted at times, but I still found The Love Witch incredibly enjoyable and am hoping to explore more of writer-director Anna Biller’s filmography in 2021.

14: The Guest (Honorable Mention, October). The Guest is one of the few movies I watched multiple times this year- and the only one I watched twice in one week. From the sultry industrial soundtrack selections to the numerous visual nods to Halloween III: Season of the Witch, The guest was Extremely My Shit. The casting here is truly tremendous- especially Maika Monroe, who was similarly brilliant in It Follows. Also of note: Lance Reddick, one of my current favourite character actors. 

13: The Fast and The Furious (Honorable Mention, May). 2 Fast 2 Furious (and its bespoke theme song, Act A Fool, by Ludacris) came out when I was in the 6th grade. Do you remember the music and movies that entered the world when you were in 6th grade? Do you have an inexplicable zealous love for them? 2F2F was the only film in the Fast Cinematic Universe I had seen for a long, long time. Then I saw Fate of the Furious. Then I bought the series box set, as a joke?? And then, slowly but then also all at once, I genuinely started to love this franchise. Some of them are truly ridiculous. Some of them are genuinely bad. But the first one? The Fast and The Furious (2001)? Timeless. Point Break updated and adapted for the early-aughts, The Fast and the Furious walked so The Italian Job (2003) could run. Without The Fast and The Furious, Paul Walker would just be “the guy from Tammy and The T-Rex” to millions of casual cinemagoers. The cultural impact of The Fast and The Furious simply cannot be denied!! 

12: Come to Daddy (Top 5, July). Honestly, this is the exact flavor of bonkers bullshit I’ve grown to expect from Elijah Wood, and that is not an indictment. Wood’s genuine love for genre film is evident here, in what can only be described as an uncomfortable film of family, reunion, and redemption. The tense and abrasive first half gives way to a surprisingly relieving wave of violence and exposition in this critically-acclaimed flick. 

11: The Stylist (Top 5, September). The feature-length debut of writer-director Jill Gevargizian, based off her short of the same name, is female-led horror that pays homage to genre mainstays like Maniac and Psycho while still being decidedly singular. Not only shot in Kansas City, but set in Kansas City, The Stylist made my midwestern heart happy. This is one that I really, really would have loved to see in a crowded theater auditorium, were this year a different one. 

10: In The Mouth of Madness (Top 5, March). Despite being the beginning of pandemic awareness, March was a slow month for me, movie-wise (even though it’s not like I had anything else going on??). But I finally made time for this Carpenter classic, and I’m so happy I did. I’ve long been fascinated by stories about stories, and the people who find themselves trapped within those stories, and this one is truly, in the most basic sense of the word, horrifying. Sam Neill proves that he belongs in horror here, making his role in Event Horizon seem like a natural fit. Also a highlight: noted character actor David Warner, best known (to me) as “Billy Zane’s bodyguard guy in Titanic,” who never ever fails to be unsettling. 

9: Profondo Rosso (Top 5, April). Before this year, my only Argento exposure was Suspiria (which is phenomenal), but Deep Red goes off the deep end in all the best ways. The score (by frequent Argento collaborators Goblin) is truly groovy. The number of twists and turns the plot takes is kind of mind-boggling, but also delightful. Daria Nicolodi (RIP)  is at the top of her acting game here. This quickly became one of my beloved background movies- if I opened Shudder and Profondo Rosso was playing on one of their live-streaming channels, it stayed on while I was cleaning or cooking or paying bills. Profondo Rosso is a must-watch for those hoping to get into giallo.

8: Crimson Peak (Top 5, November). This one was definitely not what I was expecting, but it was GORGEOUS. I loved the world immediately (a Del Toro trademark, to be honest). As a longtime Pacific Rim stan, it made my heart happy to see Charlie Hunnam and Burn Gorman reunited under Guillermo Del Toro’s vision. 

7: Palm Springs (Top 5, August). I am not typically a time-travel movie enthusiast- but I am a sucker for witty repartee and Andy Samberg. This one made me ugly-cry, which I should probably be a bit more ashamed to admit. August had a lot of really great first watches, but the Hulu exclusive takes the cake due to its novel premise, some truly heart-wrenching reveals, and the amazing casting (is there anything JK Simmons cant do?). 

6: Scare Package (Top 5, May). Is there any format I love more than the horror anthology? While there have been so many over the years (Creepshow, All the Creatures Were Stirring), Scare Package might be my favourite of them all. A variety of fun and inventive stories combined with a genre-lovers dream of an overarching narrative make this one a must-see- in fact, it was the whole reason I bought a pass to this year’s online version of Chattanooga Film Fest. There’s a cameo here that absolutely knocked my socks off (and continued to do so even on repeat viewings). While the scares here are honestly minimal, Scare Package is a great love letter to the genre at large.

5: Do The Right Thing (Top 5, June). Yes, it took me until 2020 to watch Do The Right Thing for the first time. The palpable tension, the interwoven stories of Bed-Stuy’s residents, all seem timeless. Giancarlo Esposito is, as always, a joy to watch. 

4: Knives Out (Top 5, February). “It’s a Rian Johnson whodunnit, duh,” states the SuperYaki! T-shirt famously worn by Jamie Lee Curtis, star of Knives Out (2019). This one has received worlds of critical acclaim, I truly do not know what I could even hope to add to the conversation. I want more old-school murder mystery cinema.

3: The VelociPastor (Top 5, January). It should be testimonial enough that The VelociPastor beat out Miss Americana, Netflix’s Taylor Swift documentary, as the top pick for January- but in case it isn’t, let me end 2020 the way I began it; by evangelizing the HECK out of this movie. Written and directed by up-and-coming triple-threat (Director/songwriter/prolific cat-photo-poster) Brendan Steere, The VelociPastor is a true love letter to genre cinema, complete with a big wink to the criminally underloved Miami Connection. Alyssa Kempinski shines as Carol, a doctor/lawyer/hooker with a heart of gold. The VelociPastor premiered in 2019 but gained tons of attention in 2020 (thanks in part to YouTube sensation Cody Ko)- attention that it truly deserves. A sequel is rumored to be in the works, but mark my words, anything to come from the imagination of Brendan Steere will be worth a watch. 

2: Dinner in America (Top 5, October). I genuinely feel sorry for the other movies I watched in October (there were a lot) (they were all SO GOOD). Dinner in America, which I caught during the Nightstream hybrid festival, was not at all what I was expecting. While the other features were all very solidly genre flicks, this was…. A comedy? A modern love story?? I’mn honestly still not exactly sure, but I do know I loved every second of it. I laughed. I cried. I threw my hands up in the air exuberantly (in front of my laptop, looking like a true fool). I did not shut up about this movie online for weeks. I told anyone and everyone that Kyle Gallner is the most underrated actor of my generation and I still believe it! Dinner in America, the story of a punk band frontman who unwittingly takes refuge from the police in the home of his biggest fan, was an unexpectedly heartwarming tale of family, young love, and arson. Watch it as soon as you can. 

1: Promising Young Woman (Top 5, December). This last-minute debut from Emerald Fennell, originally scheduled to hit theaters in April of this year, finally made its way to the big screen on Christmas Day, and became the 2020 entry on my annual “Christmas Day Trip to the Theater” list.* Carey Mulligan is an icon and deserves all of the awards for this. The soundtrack is sublime. The casting choices are truly incredible. While I have no doubt that the general themes of the movie will be polarizing, I absolutely loved this one- I sat in my car in the theater parking lot for a WHILE, considering just buying a ticket for the next showtime- that’s how badly I felt like I needed to see it again immediately. I look forward to writing its inevitable Criterion essay.

*Nobody else in rural iowa was interested in seeing this movie at noon on Christmas Day. I’m shocked.

[dashuisofanubis]

Another ghost AU

Okay the premise for this one is sort of a what if they figured out Nina was the chosen one and performed the ritual, but its also an AU.

KT, Eddie and Willow move into a boarding house for the prestigious Ankh school. They notice there are a lot of awards and items in the school dedicated to a group of students.

It turns out that on the 7th of July, around 50 years ago, these 7 students were discovered dead. The cause was believed to be poisoning as the students were all from the same house and the two surviving students admitted to having skipped meals at the house that day. The house mother was arrested and sentenced for murder, despite rumours that she was innocent.

The truth of the tale is different:

An ancient Egyptian artefact was believed to have power beyond scientific knowledge, and, once assembled, was said to grant immortality. However, nature must maintain a balance, and for every life extended, another has to be cut short.

Despite all their research, the Secret Society were not aware of these consequences, or most likely were at some level but chose to ignore it. So, when the ritual took place and life was transferred, they had what they wanted, but at a cost.

The Immortals:

Victor Rodenmaar. Location unknown. Has been off the grid for 25 years after vanishing one night in the middle of the school year

Daphne Andrews. Still a teacher at Ankh. Taught many student's parents and has said she will retire next year for the past 20 years

Eric Sweet. Eddie's father, and a man he's always admired and looked up to. He's not what he seems, and is a lot older than Eddie believed.

Mercer, father to one of the lost students. Has realised immortality is not all it's cracked up to be. Having lost his wife 10 years ago, he lives a lonely life and regrets ever joining the society and offering up his daughter.

Jason Winkler. Joined due to degenerative illness, hoping this would be a cure. It was, and he lives a mostly happy life, when he can forget what part he played in the tragedy.

Doctor Delia. Now the CEO of the local hospital, she's experimented with her immortality, to see if there is a way to transfer part of her life to a patient. It took a lot of work, but 11 years ago, she finally had some success. 14 year old Sophia was fatally injured in a car crash, and Dr Delia used her blood in a transfusion, saving the girl.

Rufus Zeno is the final immortal. It was supposed to be Roebuck, but Rufus broke in and threatened the Chosen One, unless he got what he wanted. Wanting to save the girl, and being the only one who hadn't drunk from the cup, Roebuck sacrificed his chance.

(Had he known the girl would die anyway, it might have been different)

Rufus is out there, somewhere, and he's dangerous.

Back to the story:

(Idk what the plot really is but here goes)

The trio (Eddie, KT and Willow) discover the students used to live in Anubis House.

One night, they're playing truth or dare with their housemates: Stella, Marco, Anna, Raf and Peter. KT is dared to go down into the cellar, where she finds a secret panel. Behind it, she finds 7 balancing scales, an intricately decorated cup, and an empty bottle.

The scales have discs with names written on them. The names match those of the 7 students who died. However, the discs are only on one side of the scales, suggesting there were 7 more previously. KT takes the bottle to prove she went into the basement, and something compels her to take the discs as well, which she shows to Willow once they're back in their room.

They let Eddie know about it the next morning and the 3 begin to wonder if the students' deaths were really as they seemed.

Eddie is walking up the stairs when he trips on a loose floorboard. Annoyed, he goes to try and put it back into place when something catches his eye. It's a metal disc, tarnished with age. He cleans it up and sees the word Zeno printed on it.

He tells KT and Willow, and KT realises it must be from the scales she found. Something doesn't feel right, so they decide to investigate.

Eddie jokingly suggests they hold a seance, and despite Willows warnings, they do.

It doesn't seem to work.

The next day, Willow discovers an intruder in the house, someone who looks very similar to photos in the school...

Willow is unnerved but curious, so she says hey to them. They turn around, apparently spooked that someone can see them, and vanish.

Willow tells the others, who initially disbelieve her, but soon they come to meet the former residents of their boarding house.

The ghosts were obviously affected by their own deaths, and the fact that they're ghosts, but it's been 50 years now, so they're getting over it. They generally try to stay out of the students' ways, as they learnt that people generally freak out at the sight of ghosts.

They appeared as ghosts the same moment their lives transferred to the immortals, but were extremely weak and found it hard to keep themselves together. They were unable to dissipate completely though, something was keeping them there. They had to watch as Trudy was arrested; as their house was put out of action till an increase in students forced them to open it again 15 years later; as Victor still wandered the halls; as all the students came and grew and left while they were trapped in the house.

Unable to die, but unable to live.

Slowly, they began to gain more power, and for the past 10 years they've been able to hold a corporeal form for lengthening times, meaning they can actually do things and go places. They're capable of leaving the house for short distances and periods of time, though if they're out for too long they fade away and reappear back in the house with a killer headache.

They think (hope) this means the immortals are weakening, but it could just be they're getting used to the whole being dead thing.

Their lives were tied to the balancing scales and the person on the opposite side, so they each have some connection to an immortal

This means they get fleeting impressions/feelings from their immortal, which strengthens with their proximity.

Connected Immortal and Ghost:

Rodenmaar - Nina

Sweet - Fabian

Andrews - Amber

Delia - Alfie

Roebuck/Zeno - Jerome

Mercer - Joy

Winkler - Patricia

Amber gets the most impressions because Ms Andrews still teaches at the school

Nina and Jerome receive hardly any because both Zeno and Rodenmaar are unknowns

However, recently they've started getting fleeting emotions and visuals that aren't their own. The two missing immortals are becoming active and they're heading for the house.

The ghosts can't do much on their own so Eddie, KT and Willow have to be prepared to discover what these two immortals want and put a stop to it.

Eddie finds out that his dad was once Eric Sweet (he chose a different name after leaving the school, to distance himself), the former headmaster of the school and is horrified by the part he played in all this. A confrontation goes down.

There's a bit where they track down Mick and Mara, now in their 60s, and bring them back to Anubis House to reunite with their former housemates. It would be a really emotional scene because while most of them weren't close, you can't live in close quarters with people for a long time, without forming a bond. And when it ended so abruptly with no goodbyes...well.

They also track down the other immortals and bring them to the house to face their ghosts (literally). Ms Andrews regrets it immensely; Delia has no (some) regrets, but argues she's able to save many more lives this way, Jason is in denial.

Don't imagine immortal!Mercer finally seeing his daughter again, only she's a ghost and he caused her death. He's full of apologies, but they're all based around how he missed her, not how he cut her life short.

There would be a lot of regret and grief all round, and anger on the ghosts' part.

While Trudy probably wouldn't be alive after all this time, the trio and the ghosts want the immortals to clear her name.

Zeno and Rodenmaar arrive at the house. They're both searching for an ancient artefact hidden in the house.

(Is it the mask? Is it the Book of Isis? Robert Frobisher Smythe? Who knows? Not me.)

They also want to try and end the other because, why not. Grudges can last forever.

The trio also meet Sophia at some point, who is undergoing weird transitions as a result of the blood transfusion. Her body is fighting it while also trying to embrace it, and it causes her to randomly absorb life/energy from plants or other people. She can also transfer energy to other beings, but this causes her to collapse. She also still looks 14 when she should be in her 20s by now. The trio befriend her and try to figure out a cure.

While their existences are tainted with regret and bitterness, the ghosts still make their own fun. Sometimes they'll pull pranks on unsuspecting students, or just sit in the back of the class room to listen to the lessons like they're students again. They know for a fact Ms Andrews hasn't changed her curriculum in 50 years and can now recite her lessons by heart. They also like to play games in the house like tag or hide and seek, and they will admit its more fun when you can phase through walls.

When they reveal themselves to the trio, they enjoy tormenting them, but also help them with their games nights, charading the answers behind the other 5s backs. Everyone's had near misses with the 5, but somehow they remain oblivious to the SEVEN GHOSTS living in their house. But then again everyone else is oblivous to the fact the 5 are on some Arthurian quest.

I don't know how this story would end, but the best outcome is that they fight Zeno and Rodenmaar, and some truth comes out that Rodenmaar has discovered a way to reverse what was done and needs an artefact from the tunnels to conduct the ritual. Zeno, meanwhile has discovered another ritual that would give him the power from the other immortals to essentially make himself a god.

Naturally, both are trying to stop the other from achieving their goals.

Initially, KT, Eddie, Willow and the ghosts (and Sophia) attempt to stop both parties, but when they discover Victor's plan they work to take down Zeno. Once he's subdued (taken down by Sophia draining his energy), they summon the other 5 immortals.

Some of them take some convincing, but others are all too ready to give up this immortal life. They get time to tie off loose ends. Ms. Andrews hands in her resignation, Delia entrusts someone (Sophia?) with her work, Mercer has a long talk with his daughter, Eric has an even longer talk with his son. Victor spends his time in Anubis House, telling the kids his story and apologising for taking so long to fix his mistake.

Eventually, the ritual takes place, and the next day sees 7 new students enrolled who look uncannily like the students in the pictures.

(It takes them a while to adjust to the fact they can't walk through walls anymore)

[megan-jayne-blog]

Confidence in Education

From a fairly young age of about 8-9 I had always thought of myself to be an average student. I was sitting comfortably in the middle of the class as far as grades were concerned. I enjoyed writing and took a huge passion for it, I would spend hours upon hours writing made up stories . I always knew that Maths was my weaker subject but I just figured out that I took a bit longer to learn things which I have no finally accepted.

It was then one day when I about 8 I was taken out of Assembly at my Primary school to practice my times tables. I found it a bit embarrassing at first but soon I just felt left out. Why was I the only one doing extra Maths? Everyone else was in the Assemble singing songs and listening to visitors when I was just stuck doing extra Maths-not knowing why I was being singled out. This is probably the first time I realised that I was weaker at this subject more than my other class mates.

Being only 8 I didn’t think too much of it. But I then saw small things happening. We were in class 2 and class 3 was were the year 5s and 6s were. Our teachers thought it would be a great idea for some students in our year to have a taster in the bigger class. Fine I thought. I then realised that this would be a permanent thing for Maths and English. I noticed the clever ones going up and leaving us kids in the other class. Why was this? I asked My teachers why we weren’t going up and she replied “The more able people get to go up” I asked why being a very curious child and she said “Because the work it harder up there,”

Now why in the world would you split 8 years old in half. Putting the more “Able” Students in one class and the other ones in another. It’s like prioritising the clever ones and saying to the “not so clever ones” You are too dumb to go into that class, the intelligent ones can go because they get higher marks on their test paper. That’s what my 8 year old mind thought at the time. And quite frankly at the age of 14 i still feel the same way. 

This whole maths thing carried on into year 6 (at 11) the start of SATS! (which if you don’t know is exams on maths and english that help you to get setted in high school) I was bombarded with these practice exams and formulas i hadn’t even heard of! It’s sad but I actually got used to getting my maths results back and feeling disappointed. Not to mention hearing other students getting 30+ marks out of 50 and me sitting there with 9. It’s no one’s fault that I felt this way. But I have constantly felt this since I understood what a good mark on a paper meant. A lot of people would say “Oh get over it, it’s just a number,” or “There are worst things to worrying about that,” But when your self esteem has gone from an 8 out of ten to a 2 in a space of a few months it’s really not as simple to just “get over it”

So after a bunch of hard work and revision for my Maths SATS in particular I got my paper back I realised that I had failed Maths. Well that lowered my self confidence massively. I passed English as I know I’m not bad at English as I had one several awards for poetry so I knew that when I got into high school I would probably do quite well in that aspect...

Before I go on to the next here are the sets for the subjects: Set 6=bottom                                                                                                            Set 5=bottom (slightly higher than 6 though)                                                          Set 4=Middle                                                                                                        Set 3=Middle                                                                                                          Set 2=Top                                                                                                            Set 1=Top                                                                                                                But guess what. Got into High School, not to mention the anxiety of a new environment and making new friends to top it all of just a few days in I realised i was put into set 6 maths which is the lowest. I didn’t seem overly surprised but at the same time wondered whether I could have been a set higher. And then English, the subject that I thrived in and spent hours on end writing stories and novels, I was put into set 6 for that, set 6 for science, set 6 for Languages, set 6 everything! My thoughts of being an average student was completely wrong. My whole outlook on my abilities in class changed, I from then found myself saying this like “I’m dumb,” “I’m bad at Maths,” “I’m going to fail my GCSE”. Sets was a thing which didn’t even cross my mind in year 6 had a sudden impact on my life, the thing that I thought about and dwelt about night and day. I found myself trying to get out of lessons quickly or after everyone else just to avoid having to walk of a set 6 class and my friends seeing me with people in my class.

You may say this “But it doesn’t matter, a set is a set nothing more,” Well that’s true but even though it may be such a small thing it affected me and still does to this day. I was confident in year 6 and confident in my abilities (mostly) but when I hit year 7 my confidence went from a 2 that had already been knocked down to a 0.

I realised that Primary School really didn’t do me any good as confidence was concerned. My friends were all middle or top set and i was at the bottom.

So i thought, if my primary school thought so little about me then maybe I could prove them wrong. I knew I was so much better at English than I was made out to be. Maths I knew I wasn’t incapable. And science I knew that I was better than set 6. 

My aim was to move up to Middle for English (either set 4 or 3). For Maths I wanted to move up 1 set so i could sit comfortably in set 5 but still to be happy there. Science I wanted to move up to either set 5 or 4.

I worked my Butt of. Especially in English. I pushed myself to the limits. Revised for every test, incorporated in Lesson frequently and  just hoped that I was doing my best. I achieved good test results that clearly proved to people I was in the wrong set. When the summer rolled along and the sets were being made, I found out an amazing discovery. I had been put up to set 2 in English! Take that Primary School teachers! I hadn’t just gone up 1 set but went up 5 sets which is almost unheard of! I was so pleased. And couldn’t wait to walk into that classroom followed by the clever students. I no longer had to walk into my English class embarrassed or had to duck so my friends didn’t see me coming out of there. I finally felt like I had achieved my goal!

Maths also improved. I went up to set 5 which I was happy with. Even though still bottom I improved and now can happily say That I’m top of the bottom! In Science I moved up a set which although i would have liked one more I was ok with it.

Now I know this massive essay like piece of writing is what a lot of people would class a “Dramatic” But as I have looked back on how I have felt since 8 years old I had no idea How much it affected me. I understand that yes it can be a lot worse and yes I could have had things a lot tougher but this caused me anxiety, stress and overall an unhealthy relationship with education which I’m still trying to gain to this day. If you have any questions or experiences you would like to share please tell me! 

[oathkeeper-oblivions]

KINGDOM HEARTS MEDIA MASTERPOST

I’m dropping links to the manga, novels, and other stuff for anyone else who wants to live through the story again as a refresher before kh3. (There are still plenty of content untranslated so if you have any links shoot me a message and I’ll add it in! THIS WAS AN ABSOLUTE KILLER TO MAKE SINCE NO ONE READS THE LIGHT NOVELS AAAAA) Enjoy! However, I’d like to remind everyone to PLEASE support the official release of the manga and the light novels! You can find both the mangas and the light novels on amazon. 

VIDEOS I RECOMMEND: 

Kingdom Hearts Timeline: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4eRniOT6_5c&index=1&list=PLhcSrKyqhfh5USKgcHjwTjeVbngw7Y0pr 

Why I Chose it: I cannot recommend this one enough! It’s an amazingly edited and modded version of the Kingdom Hearts story that includes things like cut scenes only seen during orchestra events and the Ansem Reports for a wholistic story-telling experience! It includes edits to help with comprehension, like flashbacks, and modded gameplay to make scenes feel alive! It really allows you to delve deeply into the KH story and get attached to the characters all over again. By Jan. 13th, 2019, the final KHT episode will have been uploaded. 

Kingdom Hearts Story Summary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oV2DcmIK1rU&t=5s

Why I Chose it: Considering the 2 mil views, I assume most people have seen it already but just in case you haven’t, this is a great summary for those who need to catch up on the plot, but only the plot. 

MANGA:

Note: kh2 is an ongoing manga, meaning that the link may become outdated some day!

Kingdom Hearts Manga: https://www.mangareader.net/kingdom-hearts/1

Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories Manga: https://mangakakalot.com/chapter/kingdom_hearts_chain_of_memories/chapter_1

Kingdom Hearts 2 Manga: http://ssom.mangatown.com/manga/kingdom_hearts_ii

Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days Manga: http://www.mangahere.cc/manga/kingdom_hearts_358_2_days/v01/c000/

(Note: The Kingdom Hearts Final Mix Manga DOES have differences from the original KH Manga but I can’t find any online versions of it. Instead have a link of the differences the manga has compared to KH and decide if you want to buy it yourself!) https://www.khinsider.com/editorials/Kingdom-Hearts-Final-Mix-Manga-Impressions-Comparisons-3308

LIGHT NOVELS:

Note: These aren’t FULL/OFFICIAL translations, so only some of the novels have been translated fully or they have been translated roughly. There are still plenty of volumes and stories that haven’t been translated yet, so if you have any information please shoot me a message and I’ll edit this post! 

Fan translation masterpost: https://forums.khinsider.com/kingdom-hearts-ii/124835-kh-novel-translations-official-thread.html 

Random Chapters from KH Novels (p.1): https://im-so-flattered.livejournal.com/tag/%5Bnovel%5D

(Note: For the link above, you need to create a live journal account and join the community in order to read the translations.) 

Random Chapters from KH Novels (p.2): https://stray-mikeneko.livejournal.com/tag/kingdom%20hearts

Random Chapters from KH Novels (p.3): https://khyaoi.livejournal.com/636693.html

KH1 Prologue/Front and back covers/Character profiles: https://kh-novel-trans.livejournal.com/tag/kingdom%20hearts%20vol.%201

Re:Coded, KH2 Short Stories Vol. 1, BBS Vol. 1 translations: https://www.kh13.com/forums/topic/57046-full-english-novel-translations-bbs-vol-1-recoded-kh-ii-short-stories-1-2/ 

(Note: You’ll need to make a free account at https://www.dreamwidth.org/ and then at http://pageaday.dreamwidth.org/ you need to “join” the pageaday community in order to use the links listed in the link above. If that’s too much work for you, I can work on making a google doc of all the translations put together, with credit of course, to make it easier to read. Just send a message and I’ll start working on it!)

KH2 Short Stories Vol. 1 (yeah, again. Personally this one is easier to navigate.): http://kingdomheartsnovelsstar7crystal.tumblr.com/  

KH2 Vol. 1 (up to chapter 4): https://ruthyuki999.livejournal.com/137933.html

BBS Vol. 3, Story 10: https://www.kh13.com/forums/topic/21463-dark-memory-translation-vanitas-backstory/#ixzz2Qj2REr00

BBS Vol. 3, Story 11: https://remember-kingdom-hearts.tumblr.com/post/28870649241/bonus-translation-of-the-novel-chapter-contrast 

BBS Vol. 3, Final Chapter: https://sqex.wordpress.com/2011/07/07/birth-by-sleep-vol-3-to-the-future-translation-final-chapter/

Transcripts:  http://neriede.tumblr.com/post/28129735302/kingdom-hearts-novel-transcripts-master-post 

ULTIMANIA:

Note: I’m literally so tired from the light novel section I haven’t really looked into ultimania that well so like. just send a link if you want okay i’m going to sleep lkjsdfkl;jd

General Ultimania Translations: https://kh-ultimania.livejournal.com/

Kingdom Hearts Series Memorial Ultimania Translation (pt 1): http://kh-info-block.tumblr.com/post/108383642606/kingdom-hearts-series-memorial-ultimania

Transcripts: http://hyperion2009.tumblr.com/downloads 

[adult-female-with-aspergers]

So I did something today. LONG

We had a poverty simulation today at the school I work at. The students acted as little families and had a set amount of money and we had volunteers act as the community and we had them go thought what it would be like in the life of poverty for one month. This was defined as people living pay check to paycheck and not having a backup network. Like I feel like I live pay check to pay check, but I can depend on my dad. If I lost my job I could live with him. If these people lost their job their parents are also in the same situation and would be homeless. I thought it was really interesting. I was the teacher. When the simulation started the students, who were kids came to me and I handed out a slip what they had to pay for school supplies. They took a quiz and at the end I gave them surprise cards. It could be good. Like they won $50 in an art contest or bad, they brought a gun to school and they go to jail. On the first day of school I had 11 students and 8 seats, so students had to pair up. The next week of classes I only had 4 students. The 4th week back up to 8 students. They were nice during the first week but by the second they were so frazzled I noticed that they were beginning to ace like the people I went to school with. Nobody had 1’s for pay for school supplies, so they paid in 5 dollar bills. I only had 5s and they couldn’t get change. That made them mad. On the second week the person playing the cop planted sugar packets (drugs) on one of them and they had to go to jail. The 3rd week was a week off of school so the people playing the parents had of figure out what to do with their kids. I had someone come in that I wasn’t trained before had to deal with.

These are some points and what people learned: • Kids made everything harder. (this is literally the first thing they said when briefing afterwards) Interesting that poor communities have such poor information on birth control and planned parenthood • Everyone was thinking about money all the time. Had no time to think about kids or spouse. The average age of our students is about 37 and we still had one person forget their baby (a doll) for a week. Even a professor who just has a kid says he can now understand how people can accidently leave their babies in a car after his kid was born (unrelated to this simulation, he told me this a few months ago). Also, this means that parents are to stressed to parent ‘correctly.’ They will be Authoritarian (disciplinary) instead of Authoritative (nurturing) and will often spank. It is a middle class mindset and acting on your privileges as such to call it child abuse. • One family who said she was trying to put her family first and let her kids go on a field trip that I handed out slips for ended up losing her home. She said she realized she could not let her kids happiness be her priority • The ‘cop’ got ‘shot’ and one person robbed his corpse to pay rent. • By the 3rd week people were looking to steal to get money. • One of the students tried to steal my money the 4th weeks so I had to sit on it • Middle class niceties do not apply to people living in poverty. Someone who was friends with someone else robbed the other person twice to get by. • Climate change will effect these people most. These people will often live in flood and fire areas. They literally have nowhere else to go. • Studies have shown that people living in these conditions are the same and people living in war conditions

This didn’t cover people with mental health issues. We didn’t have bars for people with drinking issues.

• This was just poverty, not low or deep poverty • This relates to the caravan coming to the United States

[smoshimagine]

Okay... okay. Listen to this idea. All the (current) Smosh Games crew with a non binary reader who LOVES baking

Im all for this!!!!

-y'know that meme? The uhh, “listen up 5s a 10 is speaking?”

-Boze actually says it one day and everyone flips their shit

-she was standing on a lil chair and yelling at everyone to be quiet

-and yknow who she pulls aside to talk to?

-y/n

-who’s trying not to laugh while saying “im not a 10 im an 11, but okay.”

-Literally, you guys go back scolding like parents and Wes is arguing that he is a big kid

-you guys will draw wholesome memes of encouragement or nice things on sticky notes a lot!

-y/n has probably found like 80 in the pockets of their clothes that are complimenting their cooking skill

-you bake them cakes for celebrations of things often! Like the return of Maricraft, or a new subscriber hit, etc.

-you taught Wes how to make nice tasting frosting and it’s the worst thing you have ever done

-he makes frosting at 3 in the morning frequently

-now he’s even more hyper

-oh! You made Joven some star wars cookies for his birthday and he totally geeked out! Super excited

-and Damien is usually the one you have bake with you

-you guys are all super lovey dovey by the way!

- “hey y/n guess what?”

- “yeah Boze?”

- “I love you!”

-oh, and Mari actually teaches you, Joven, Wes, and Damien to say basic things in japanese

-mainly curse words

-you guys have done huge dates at restaurants and it’s really expensive tbh

- you guys hate snuggling cause you get to warm and it’s annoying as hell

-and pretty often you all help Wes with his cosplay’s and give ideas or help make it

-everyone sometimes breaks into smaller trios and duos of love, and it is very sweet!

-you guys still tease and yell at each other for the fun of it, but still no malice in it’s meaning

-and if anything hits too hard, everyone gives you support and reassurance on it! With everyone else too

-you’re all just adult nerdy kids in love

[ryo-hirakawa]

thoughts on 2021 f2 monza r1:

i appreciate the recap of silverstone starring guanyu

david and jüri front row :)

some things are constant in life: death, taxes, deledda starting last

nooo jake stalled :(

marino went off :(

BSGDHSJFJ WAIT

TICKTUM SPUN

theo and him went off and then felipe went into him rip

help who was going past as the marshals retrieved ticktum's car. he be like tf happened here

this is a good top 3 boys can we be safe and not crazy from this point on

enzo being given a 5s penalty as he dnfs is so...odd

not ralph wanting to hold on till he gets a meatball flag. why is everyone's nose broken anyway.

LIAM NO

robert crossed the line at pit exit?

FELIPE NOOO

guanyu pulling an overtake and a fastest lap just before the vsc is pretty cash money ngl

that was quite a bonk hope felipe is fine

did marino's car just lose pace for a bit?

lmaoooo liam is mad mad

PREMA ON PREMA VIOLENCE

holy shit that overtake of oscar's was nuts how did he do it

jehan's front wing too??

ah no david locked up

BSHFJSJFKS HELP SO MUCH IS HAPPENING

that vsc saved jüri from getting jumped tbh

nissany spinning and jesus was his car on fire?

marino in the pits?? richard too??

alright a full safety car

5s pen for robert for going off track at the start. naughty.

shoutout to jake in p12 rn after stalling at the start.

oop ralph under investigation for pitting under vsc

"if all the blocks were still there, you wouldn't be able to prove a feeder race had happened" 💀

nooo jake's pit got fucked up

david is sinking like a stone rip

deledda is p10??? cursed

marino is 5 laps down 😭

theo in the lead!!

holy shit jüri's defending

theo literally took the lead and peaced out into the distance

both art cars doing well?? who would have thought

naww jüri locked up

robert has his 5s pen so are you telling me christian lundgaard has gone from p19 to p3.

lirim also dropping like a stone

wait he's dropping too much what happened

oh.

jüri's tyres are fucked rip

bent up 11 places? p7? in a trident??

lirim's car just there 🕴️

theo's radio 😂

david will be starting on pole again for race 2 this is a win

the marshals ushering everyone else off and only letting the podiumers through is sending me for some reason

"what a man. love you zhou" idk who was that guy who said that but i agree

did theo swap his trophy with the team's one because it was bigger 😭 pls

omg i just realised this was the french race winner in monza i manifested hell yeah

[dwtsfun]

Dancing with the Stars Season 29 Week 2: Y’all Already Starting to Piss Me Off

So listen. Tyra is not perfect. Tyra is not making this show bad. Tyra did NOT yell at Derek. Like anyone else, Tyra is finding her footing. Tom, Lisa, Samantha, Brooke and Erin all had to do that. And they were all granted the ability to learn and get used to it (not really Lisa since they dropped her after season 1). And damnit, y’all will give Tyra that same opportunity. Also, let’s talk about this “yelling” situation. I have seen enough comments and I just know people are going to write articles about that bullshit. Stop. What is different between when Tyra told Derek to hurry up and when Tom was telling all them judges to hurry up every week? They used the same exact tone of voice and same volume. So again, what’s the difference. Anyone saying that she yelled, why? Why do you say that? Be honest. What is the difference? I just told you all that it was delivered similarly. So what is it? Is it the recipient? Instead of it being an elderly man, it was a young and attractive white man? Or is it the fact that Tyra is a Black woman and Tom is a white man? Ask yourselves that. I don’t wanna have to get on here every week, mad, and have to address things like this because people are being stupid racist. But I will if I have to. Trust that I will. You don’t have to like her, but be fair. Some of these critiques are not fair at all.

Anyway, I thought the intro was cute. It was a nice way to remind everyone that there was an elimination tonight while being fun and allowing Tyra bring a little more of herself to the table. As for the show, it was very meh. A lot of wtf scores were given out. The elimination was bs in my opinion. And most of the dances were mid. So with that said, let’s just get this ranking started.

1. Kaitlyn and Artem- They got the highest score of the night (a 22) and I think it was well deserved. Last week I talked about how soft and pretty she moves and how it’s something that I don’t like in Latin? Yeah, well this week, it worked perfectly for this foxtrot. It always does. Kaitlyn’s lines were gorgeous and she was incredibly graceful and elegant. There were a couple of iffy moments in there though I wasn’t able to quite catch what happened. The camerawork was kinda sloppy tonight. I think she may have slipped which makes me think that the floor was pretty slick tonight as many people slipped. But yeah, she had a great showing.

2. Nev and Jenna- This dance was the most shocking of the night to me. I’m a Nev believer now. He’s got what it takes to go far. Now his dance was slightly awkward in my opinion. He danced really high tonight. Some of that may come from his shoulders, but some of it felt like he was just lifting his entire body up unnaturally. It was strange. But other than that, he’s actually a lot better than I expected he would be in Latin. As far as the whole Jenna situation goes that was revealed recently, I don’t know y’all. I just can’t get behind them. But they’re good.

3. AJ and Cheryl- Right now, AJ is the best mover of the men. I say that cautiously because there are two more who might be better once they really get settled into the competition (more on them later). I thought this foxtrot was really good. AJ was elegant. And he actually leads Cheryl pretty well. My big issue with this dance is actually kind of petty But it was that I wanted him to close his mouth. It was wide open for most of the dance and it really bothered me lol. I know I know. I thought they did a great job though. I wish they would have been scored properly. He should’ve gotten a 21.

4. Jeannie and Brandon- I waffled back and forth between Justina and Jeannie for this spot. I ended up going with Jeannie though because I though Brandon’s choreography was better than Sasha’s. Jeannie was much improved from last week. She had a lot more hip action and she was more controlled. As Bruno said, she needs some more polish and she still needs to reign in her energy a bit more. But she is definitely one to watch. As far as the score goes, bogus. She should’ve gotten at least two 7s. She didn’t trip and the judges said she improved. So that should’ve translated into scores.

5. Justina and Sasha- I just realized that I don’t really care for Sasha’s foxtrots. This dance was nice and pretty. Justina performed it well. But I was left feeling kinda whatever about it. I’m sure the singers had something to do with that. Sorry to Whitney and Mariah. That vocal was atrocious and I honestly couldn’t even focus on the dance the first time around because they were so bad. Anyway, Justina has issues with her turns, but otherwise, she’s still a contender.

6. Skai and Alan- From the score that these two got, you would have thought that this dance was a complete disaster. But it was far from that. A samba in week 2 rarely goes over well. The rhythm, technique, bounce and hip action needed are all very complicated to put together this early in the competition. It should be done no earlier than week 3. With that said, I think Skai did a pretty okay job. She did slip but it was one moment that she recovered from. I think the floors were very slick last night because quite a few celebs stumbled. Straight 5s were just really low considering the fact that the rest of the dance went fine and many other celebs that had worse dances than her scored similarly or higher.

7. Johnny and Britt- The choreography was very interesting and I have to really commend Britt for what she came up with. It was really dynamic and just very intriguing. Unfortunately, Johnny struggled a bit. He seemed to have issues keeping up and I’m not quite sure what made that happen. He also just seemed a little clumsy throughout the dance. I do think it’s a confidence thing and once he really starts to believe that he is capable of doing this, that he will truly blossom. He is one of the two male celebs that I think has the potential to be a better mover than AJ. 

8. Anne and Keo- I can’t remember if I said this last week, but I think Anne is the actual dark horse. She’s doing alright. She’s going to get better. She has a very endearing personality. And her partnership with Keo is one of the best this season. The judges were right in their assessment of all that energy in Anne’s upper body (specifically her shoulders) and that it needs to be calmed down. Other than that, I’m enjoying these two together and I can’t wait to see what they bring next week.

9. Nelly and Daniella- Nelly is the other male celeb that I think can be a better mover than AJ. The reason that he’s not right now is that he’s just not fully letting go. That’s not saying that he’s not committed to doing the show. He clearly is. I mean his technique and his attention to the smaller details should make that crystal clear. But I just think he doesn’t want to look goofy. Him getting custom made dance shoes that look like Jordans (genius by the way) revealed that. But to be honest, he will never look goofy. Once he loosens up some more and lets go of the image he wants to uphold, I think he will shock a lot of people. Also let me give kudos to Daniella for meeting him where he’s at and working with him so well. She is doing a great job so far.

10. Jesse and Sharna- I did not understand the score this dance got or the praise that was heaped on it at all. I don’t think it was worthy of 7s. I think he should’ve gotten the same score as Monica. He wasn’t smooth and his posture was bad. His technique also wasn’t great. I do see he’s good at leading, but that’s really it. I didn’t see what the judges saw. It was forgettable and not great. It wasn’t bad, it was just very meh.

11.Vernon and Peta- Something about Vernon’s costume felt very off. I don’t want to call it amateurish because the costume department is usually very very good at their jobs (the best along with makeup). But that costume? Yeah well, it happened. As for the dance, I didn’t start out liking it, but as it went on, I enjoyed it more. Vernon settled into it and gave a very respectable performance. Now the issue was that his shaping was off. His butt kept going further and further out. He also dances kind of small and for such a large man, he can’t do that. They’ll be fine for now. I just can’t wait for Vernon to have his breakthrough. He is definitely a diamond in the rough.

12. Chrishell and Gleb- I did not like this dance at all and I have to blame that all on Gleb. What Chrishell did was fine for the most part. But Gleb gave her very little content and the choreo was just strange. It honestly just didn’t make sense. Idk. I feel bad because Chrishell had some goregeous lines and some nice movement in that dance (even if she lacked hip action). I can see how much potential she has. But I just don’t think Gleb is going to be able to pull it out of her.

13. Monica and Val- These two are a non-event for me. Monica isn’t doing anything wrong. I like her fine. I actually think she’s a cool person and would be willing to sit down and hang out with her. But this dance was strange. The set was odd. I don’t understand what that was about. Their costumes made no sense either. The choreo felt aimless. And then Val added in that unnecessary lift. Listen, I get taking risks to try and a big splash. Sometimes it is necessary to sacrifice the scores in order to separate yourself from the rest of the pack. But that risk has to actually mean something. What was the purpose of that lift that he added? It did nothing for the dance. It was just there. And Monica is not someone who can sacrifice points at this time. I do think that she’s in the danger zone and if they don’t really make a splash, they could be eliminated soon.

14. Charles and Emma- I liked Charles’s dance this week. He improved a lot and I don’t think he should’ve been eliminated. Based on what we saw, I felt as though he had more in him than Carole has in her. It just is what it is. It frustrated me that for the second season in a row the first person eliminated was actually better and showed more promise than the person that was saved.

15. Carole and Pasha- Was this an improvement? Yes. Did Carole do all the steps mostly right? Yes. Did I still hate this dance? Also, yes. This was strange. I hated it. The cat theme went way over the top and it went from cute to just flat out creepy. I hated it. Now I’m not sure what voting is like this season, but I feel that Carole may see a slight vote increase since she ended up in the bottom 2 last night and also was emotional in her package and during her interview with Tyra and all that. This wouldn’t be an issue normally because I would still fully expect for her to be in the bottom again next week. But I am not sure how Chrishell, Monica, Jesse and a couple others are doing with fans. So she could be spared next week and not even end up in the bottom 2.

So that’s that. Hope you all liked last night’s show. Again, it was just alright for me. Let me know your thoughts and I will talk to you all soon.

[satisfaction-explorations]

I want to talk about what’s happened in the Bahamas, because this has brought up so, so, so many questions around what recovery steps they need to take and the mental health of all the people there. People who have already been in a previous category 5 storm need to be very careful of not retriggering PTSD and control what they watch and don’t watch.

The video at 6:07pm on September 5, 2019: https://edition.cnn.com/us/live-news/hurricane-dorian-bahamas-aftermath/index.html

https://www.google.com/search?q=bahamas&tbs=qdr:w&tbm=nws&tbas=0&source=lnt&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjwgYnu9r7kAhVN7nMBHd_-AG0QpwUIHw&biw=1254&bih=740&dpr=1.25

What do they need? What is the recovery plan to keep people alive in the next several months?

“It sounds like there is no infrastructure left (on the two big northernmost islands). We've seen in disasters before that if clean water isn't addressed within the first days and weeks it could cause secondary humanitarian crises. Water, food, electricity, medical care and emergency shelter are huge needs and there are a lot of people still sleeping on the streets.”

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/bahamas-face-critical-shortages-in-dorians-horrific-wake

What is the recovery plan for tourism, for people’s houses and for the economy/income (which is one of the huge engines of recovery past the medium term)?

While 90% of structures on the 2 big northernmost islands were flattened, the Bahamas is made up of over 700 islands and a full 90% of their hotels are in places that >>weren’t impacted by the hurricane. 

https://www.bahamas.com/article/14-islands-bahamas-are-ready-welcome-visitors-open-arms

https://twitter.com/tourismtoday242/status/1170749900721664000

https://twitter.com/tourismtoday242/status/1171079581547163649

60% of their GDP comes from tourism, and much of the remaining economy is dependent on vacationers, so they have said that any tourist income will be shared across their economy to help the islands that were affected. How can their economy return to normal? And here’s a big question- the islands will be in a strange mental state after what just happened. How does this mix with tourists? I personally love adventure, new things nobody has experienced before and helping people, but to be a vacationer... what is the solution to this?

>>>>> https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2019/09/11/bahamas-asks-tourists-sustain-reconstruction-by-returning-after-hurricane-dorian/ 

>>> What is the recovery plan for clean water, shelter, medicine, etc in the two northernmost islands?

Who are the most at risk/ vulnerable people and groups and how can they be reached with everything?

What is the mental health, community, PTSD and loss plan? How can they best be helped?

>>> People think PTSD is the biggest problem, but I think the biggest problems might be how to mentally deal with really unfair loss (e.g. houses, buildings, communities, neighbourhoods), followed by high uncertainty for income and what the future will look like, followed by how to mentally deal with fear of future Category 5s. One idea is to build extremely strong community shelters in smart places but that’s still not going to fix how to deal with ongoing fear of Category 5s and their businesses/houses/property.

If a person has lost everything, or 50%, or 70% of what they built up for years- or decades- how do they mentally come to terms with this kind of loss, with their future, and with unfairness? How do they do the rest of their lives from here forward? How do you mentally process something like this? i.e. unfairness?

I think the overall recovery process is a symptoms and roots problem- if there are 50 goals, what are the 8 or 12 engines or generators that will most strongly create momentum to reach these? 

Minimising secondary crises, death, violence, any form of mental health problems and any further losses in the weeks and months afterwards.  

First of all, the people have been severely traumatised, and not just from the storm itself, but the amount of huge loss that has occurred for it (e.g. the prospect of complete homelessness, losing businesses, resorts and shops that were worth more than houses, losing beloved landmarks, and just- complete change and huge lose). However, at the same time, the people need to be strongly supported in becoming active rather than passive in the weeks, months and years after this. 

Where does hope come from? It is very important that everyone in the Bahamas becomes active, rather than dependent from the shock, which is a high risk thing for a lot of people. While the day to day people in the Bahamas have very little power to fix the bigger things, how can they be highly activated to attempt 50 attempts each at the most difficult 3%s required there, over the next year (as the process of rebuilding will take time, so the effort needs to be sustained). How can they be highly motivated? Education levels may be way higher in places overseas, places overseas actually have internet, people overseas can do so much more to help. But at the same time, how can the Bahaman people be activated as much as possible to each attempt at least 30 of the most challenging 3%s this year? The very first step seems to be community support and problem solving how to get things up and running again, which they can tell others. It is very important to know that their resources are extremely limited to do this, so as well as being highly motivated, they- and all other places affected by Category 5s, need strong overseas support with these tasks as well

Mental health support and strong hope in the face of experiencing huge serious loss will help with energy, work, hope and doing everything to avoid falling into despair. The biggest problem is hope versus despair, and how that will affect people in the next month, year, decade. Hope must be generated. I don’t know what it’s going to be from but hope is the source point of any other solution. How would we create many, many, many hope points for the hardest hit by this Category 5 Hurricane? 

Strong community support often helps with mental health. 

Helping the government be as effective as it can be in whatever way help can be given

Creating plans for regenerating (1) income, (2) houses, (3) infrastructure (it’s a boring word- but people everywhere really depend on it) and (4) what else? What can people access via mobile phones (the power is very likely down for everything else). How can hope be sustained very long term? 

What other major engines and generators are likely to power the movement to these 50 or so goals? Is there a top 8 or 12 engines or generators? How can people flattened by a Category 4 or 5 best be supported to get there? 

Apparently Hurricane 5 storms are not that common, but how can houses be built to withstand them? Can there be community centres built like bunkers and put in places that won’t flood?

Instead of just praying for the Bahamas, how can you offer them- or anyone else affected by Category 5 storms- practical support? Because this is a complex, multifaceted, issue, how can you contribute by helping with some of the most challenging 3% problems of recovering from these monster storms? How can the momentum get rolling on the hardest parts? And specifically- (1) what about people who have lost all their assets and have nothing now, and what about (2) public services (e.g. electricity, medical clinics, clean water)? How can we each problem solve at least 3 x the hardest 1%s of these? Two simple ideas are generating long-term motivation for helping survivors of Category 5 Hurricanes and somehow creating hope for the most vulnerable who are in this situation right now.

Lenny Kravitz talking about the bipartisan plan from members of Congress considering whether to waive visa requirements- “because, as you can see in the footage, it’s been flattened- these houses are destroyed. There’s no infrastructure.

It's very hard to get things in right now, so how are these people going to survive?

Lenny Kravitz: “A lot of Bahamians have friends and family, especially in Florida, and I’m sure all over the United States,” said Kravitz, who has a home in the Bahamas. “These people need a place to go right now.” 

> i.pinimg.com/originals/21/f6/45/21f6458ab90fe512229ec0f978096c20.jpg

However- only do this if this is a good fit for your mental health capacity. Some people have been caught in the past Hurricane 5 storms before and may get PTSD of what happened to others retriggered every time they remember them. Only do this if it is within your mental health capacity. The world is filled with problems. If you’re going to be a V.I.P. and help move 15 or 20 of the hardest 3%s (4-5 per 3 months), make sure you’re picking your choices within your mental health capacity.

[golfnomad]

Bay Area Trip, Part 1: East Bay Seclusion

I recently returned from a quick 3-day trip (I guess 4 days if you count the drive up on Sunday night) to the Bay Area. When all the smoke cleared, I played 12 courses, including a number of short courses in between the main rounds. This will end up being a 5-part series to cover all the rounds. The main reason for the trip was to take advantage of an invite to play California Golf Club of San Francisco. I played that on Tuesday afternoon, right in the middle of the trip. However, that one will get its own review and you’ll have to wait for it. It will come last.

Part 1 will focus on the first three courses I played Monday morning in the East Bay Area...

Lake Chabot Golf Course • Oakland, CA • 6/19/17

This is a course that has always intrigued me, and I wanted to make it a point to play here on this trip. The main reason for the intrigue is the 18th hole, which is the only par-6 hole left in California. I’ve never played a par-6 on my travels and they are quite rare these days. I know there used to be one at El Rivino down in Riverside, but that closed long before I had a chance to play it.

I booked a 6:34 tee time on GolfNow for $24, which turned out to be much cheaper than the $42 listed on the course’s website. I arrived early and the pro shop wasn’t open yet. They didn’t open up until a little after 6:00, but there wasn’t much of a crowd and I was able to get off first on my own for a very quick round.

On my drive into the course, I was able to get a sneak preview of much of the front nine. In fact, this is perhaps the worst-designed entry road of any golf course I’ve played. The road goes right through the middle of a bunch of holes and will very much come into play. Luckily, I played on a slow day, so there weren’t many cars coming through while I played (and there weren’t too many golfers hitting as I drove out afterward). Otherwise, on a busy day it would be very uncomfortable for golfers teeing off on these holes and very dangerous for drivers coming or going from the clubhouse. It is a very strange set up for the road.

The front nine where the road is in play is rather repetitive. Most of these holes have a downhill tee shot over the road and then a steep climb back uphill for the approach. The holes definitely get a lot more interesting after this initial stretch. However, there is a predominance of uphill/semi-blind approach shots. Almost every green on the course is elevated. It can get tiresome.

The one hole that helps make up for this is the par-3 9th, which is one of the most severe downhill par-3s I’ve ever seen. From the blue tees, it plays at 175 yards and is a completely blind shot down into a small canyon. There is a pole behind the green to give you an aiming point, but otherwise it’s just bombs away. Hit it and hope! If you are playing the white tees, you can see at least part of the green, but it is still a tricky shot to judge. 

Beyond the initial repetitive stretch on the front nine, Lake Chabot is anything but boring. The course overall is not long, topping out at just 6,006 yards from the blue tees. It is very hilly and tight with a lot of trees and steep slopes in play. It is definitely target golf, which I personally enjoy. The setting is also nice and secluded, and you are afforded some great views from the elevated greens. The setting definitely adds to the appeal here. With the morning sun and the elevated approaches where you can’t see much of anything, it was hard to get pictures. You’ll see most of my shots are from on or around the greens with the elevated vantage point. Not much else turned out.

After a very fun middle stretch of holes, Lake Chabot culminates with its signature hole. I was excited to play the par-6 and see what it was all about. The 18th measures 667 yards from the blue tees. The tee shot is somewhat demanding with a slightly downhill shot and what feels like a narrow landing area. The fairway also slopes pretty hard from right to left. 

Then, the hole makes a sharp left turn straight down the hill. It is a steep drop-off with the cart path zig-zagging back and forth across it kind of like Lombard Street. I suppose that is for safety because a straight downhill path along one side or the other could get dangerous, especially in winter. This steep drop runs all the way down until about the 100-yard marker and then the hole goes slightly back uphill for the approach shot to a two-tiered green. 

It’s great that Lake Chabot has this par-6 gimmick to market around, and based on the short overall distance of this course (only one of the three par-5s measures over 500 yards), I guess it makes relative sense here. However, I would argue by most standards it should be a par-5. I am not a long hitter. I hit a pretty good (not great) drive that ended up in the middle of the fairway up top. Then, I hit a really good 3-wood over the corner for my second shot. 

A maintenance worker was out there managing the sprinklers and luckily he saw where my ball ended up. It got hung up in the little bit of rough that lines the cart path that zig-zags across the fairway several times. It is not much rough to stop your ball, but I think the combination of that and the freshly watered fairway was enough to slow my ball down to a stop. Even then, I ended up about 2/3 of the way down the hill and I only had 160 yards in for my third shot. If my ball didn’t stop there, I might have easily gotten as far down as the 100-yard marker at the bottom of the hill.

Of course, I still missed the green, wasn’t able to get up and down, and ended up with the most disappointing par ever! Either way, a short hitter like me shouldn’t have that easy a look at getting on the green in under regulation. 

I’m told that in the winter, when things are wet and soggier throughout the course, this hole definitely plays as a true par-6. You won’t get the same kind of roll-out you do in summer. I actually think a really long hitter (a pro perhaps) could hit a big high draw (right-to-left shot) over the corner off the tee and get all the way down the hill, leaving just a short wedge in and a putt at double eagle.

So, in some ways it’s a silly hole that is questionably rated as a par-6. That said, it is a very fun hole design with the big dogleg and steep fairway drop. A lot of good and bad things could happen here. I happened to hit the ideal first two shots for my game, but it wouldn’t take much to make a complete mess of this hole. 

The course was in decent shape and it seems they are making an effort. They were doing a lot of watering on the fairways with sprinklers that I had to shuck and jive around at times. Some tee boxes were a bit unlevel, but fine enough. Fairways were inconsistent, but mostly lush and nice to hit from. The rough was more hit and miss. There are very few bunkers on this course (I think only a couple fairway bunkers I noticed and no greenside bunkers I can remember?), so no comments there. The greens were soft and rolling medium/slow, getting quicker as they started to dry out. They were sometimes a bit bumpy and had a few bad spots here and there. They were not terrible, but not great either.

Whatever you think of the 18th, Lake Chabot ends up being a pretty fun layout. Keep it in play and you can post a really, really good score. Get offline just a bit and you will be hating life. It’s not a course everyone will enjoy, but I had fun there and I definitely liked the peaceful, secluded setting. I saw wild deer and turkey roaming the course, and I also made friends with a couple goats that were in the yard of one of only a handful of houses that border the course. 

Some pictures from Lake Chabot Golf Course (6/19/17):

Below is all you can see from the blue tee on the downhill par-3 9th. Unfortunately, it was still dark in that spot, so you can’t see much:

I wasn’t done at Lake Chabot. That’s because they actually have a second course here...

Lake Chabot Golf Course (Par 3 Course) • Oakland, CA • 6/19/17

The short course at Lake Chabot is just a 9-hole par-3 track, but I wouldn’t necessarily call it a “pitch and putt.” The holes range from just 66 yards up to 162, so you actually get a pretty good mix of lengths. 

The Par 3 Course is walking only (cost me $11 to play) and also doubles as an 18-hole disc golf course (with two baskets near each green). I brought one of my discs just to throw a couple times. Though only nine holes, the course is a pretty good hike up and down some hills and along the edge of a canyon. A few holes are pretty narrow from tee to green, as well. Then, the 4th hole is a fun one that plays straight downhill.

Conditions were spottier on this side compared to the main course. The tee boxes were pretty chewed up and most of the areas in between the tees and greens were brown grass or just bare dirt. The greens themselves were decent enough, though probably a couple notches down from the other course. Everything was adequate enough for a short course of this caliber.

The short course at Lake Chabot is a fun side option or place to work on your short game, but not something that is worth too much trouble. 

Some pictures from Lake Chabot Golf Course (Par 3 Course) (6/19/17):

After grabbing a quick breakfast, I was ready for my next golf stop nearby...

Redwood Canyon Golf Course • Castro Valley, CA • 6/19/17

Redwood Canyon is not far from Lake Chabot as the crow flies (it is just on the other side of the actual lake/recreation area). That’s the main reason I picked it for my next round. However, it is an indirect drive that will take 15-20 minutes.

Redwood Canyon used to be called Willow Park. I am not sure why the name changed. I can definitely understand the “canyon” aspect because this whole course runs down through a beautiful little canyon area. I am not sure where the “redwood” name came from, as I didn’t see anything resembling a redwood around here.

I made a 10:18 time online for $27, but the course wasn’t crowded at all on a Monday morning. I teed off by myself a little before 10:00. I caught some groups about halfway through the front nine. Ultimately, I joined up with the twosome ahead of me at the turn. The back nine went slower with a foursome in front of us that seemed to get more sluggish as the round went on. Still, it was only a 3:20 overall pace. 

Like Lake Chabot, Redwood Canyon is not a long course. It is a par-71 that stretches out to only 5,801 from the blue tees. I would probably also consider it target-oriented, but not quite as much as Chabot.

Despite the lack of any redwoods, the most appealing aspect of Redwood Canyon is the secluded canyon setting. It is very pretty and peaceful out there with no civilization anywhere around the course. You are enveloped by the natural surroundings and it is a great backdrop for the course.

The course itself is just okay. Each nine goes out and back in different sides of the canyon, but there are no changes in elevation. It is pretty flat overall. A creek runs down the middle of the front nine and can come into play a lot. There is a little less trouble to get into on the back nine. Trees definitely are a factor throughout the course. There are many big old trees that come into play and affect your shot decisions. A number of front nine holes have trees guarding the front left of the greens, which I must say was a real nuisance for me trying to play my fades.

I don’t know if I would consider anything a signature hole at Redwood Canyon, but the best parts of the course are the two par-3s furthest away from the clubhouse on either end of the canyon. I’m talking about the 5th and 13th holes. There isn’t anything overly distinctive about the holes themselves, but they are probably the two prettiest parts of the course because they are the most removed from anything resembling civilization.

The course was in mediocre condition, to put it nicely. I would say consistently inconsistent. Many tee boxes were rock hard and it was difficult to get the tee in the ground. I suppose they were level enough, though. The fairways were kind of hodge podge of grass/weeds/hardpan/dirt/etc. and not always cut to consistent lengths. Some areas were pretty good and others were not so good. The rough was more of the same, but even spottier. I was in one bunker and it had very nice soft sand. The greens were soft-ish and rolling at medium/slow speeds. They were bumpy at times and had some ugly spots here and there.

Of the two, I would definitely pick Lake Chabot. I loved the setting of Redwood Canyon more than anything about the course itself. Still, I had a fun time at both locations and the prices were reasonable. The seclusion each property provides is a welcome relief from the hustle and bustle of the Oakland/East Bay congestion. 

Some pictures from Redwood Canyon Golf Course (6/19/17):

I ended up playing twice more on Monday, with one more regulation course (Metropolitan Golf Links) and one really crazy short course (Montclair Golf Club). I will review those in Part 2, so stay tuned... 

[feedbaylenny]

People who know me can never, ever say I’m not loyal to people I like and respect. You’ll see that in a moment, along with an example of the opposite. (Is your mouth watering yet?)

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/mike-jerrick-good-day-philadelphia-morning-show-format-20180319.html

Yesterday, one of Philadelphia’s daily newspapers published an article called “Is the morning news format that fuels Mike Jerrick’s ‘weird uncle’ shtick on its way out?”

I’m going to give the writer the benefit of the doubt because reporters don’t usually write headlines, and the headline goes after the format rather than the person.

The article started by criticizing Mike Jerrick’s on-air behavior on International Women’s Day, March 8. It quoted Peter Jaroff – assistant professor of media studies and production at Temple University and a former WPVI-6ABC producer – who described the situation perfectly.

Jaroff told the paper,

“You’re supposed to chat and fill up time and be engaging to your audience, and that can get you in a lot of trouble.”

Let me repeat: “Fill up time and be engaging.”

He didn’t say for how long or how often. Let’s look at the situation.

WTXF-Fox 29 puts on a six-hour morning show.

(I mentioned people who know me. They also know I hate the phrase “show” rather than “newscast” because a newscast is special with the responsibility of informing people about important current events and controversies – even though they typically air too much crime and too many fires, often without putting any of it in perspective. A “show” can be anything.)

Jerrick is on the air for four hours straight, from 6 to 10am. His broadcast, Good Day Philadelphia, actually starts at 4. (Yes, it’s the same name as all the other local Fox stations call their morning shows because they copy.)

Speaking of copying: Today, were we supposed to look at this and know where St. Mary’s County is? No clues. The company itself owns three Fox 5s. That doesn’t include affiliates. But this didn’t cost a cent!

It begins with hard news. Certainly, a lot of the content is from the day before because very little happens between 11:30pm and 4am, except for the crime and fires.

Jerrick is as good as anybody when he goes on the air at 6.

But let’s start before 6.

Mike’s bio, but is it FOX or Fox? (Absolutely NOT Mike’s fault!)

I worked with him for 15 months. I’ve seen him at 5:30am daily, before the public at 6, telling producers and an executive producer his intelligent, educated, experienced opinion – usually right – on what stories he should be talking about and which shouldn’t air. Four hours, or actually six, can be a long, long time – and a lot can happen to change things.

There will never be a TV station that has the staffing it really needs.

Jerrick would start out doing the news, correcting mistakes in scripts based on what aired earlier, what has changed since then and what he knows is the truth. (In other words, somebody else’s mistake.) He won’t let a live reporter go without making sure viewers have all the facts they need.

That may throw off the time, and producers have to go almost by the second – which probably makes them crazy – but realize Good Day Philadelphia producers do two straight hours in the control room. That’s a lot, even for the most disciplined, attentive, anal person trying to get as much new material on as possible.

The producers can’t read every script before they air. Scripts are still being written moments before, especially in breaking news situations. Jerrick and his counterpart, Alex Holley, may be told a few quick points in their earpieces and given a line or two. Very few TV news anchors can do that as flawlessly as they do multiple times every morning, while keeping tabs on what the live picture is showing, or if the signal goes bad.

At 7:30am, there’s often a live interview with a newsmaker, victim, etc. Jerrick and Holley consistently show the right tone, depending on the situation.

I haven’t forgotten their great job with the return of a station intern, wounded in the Orlando Pulse nightclub shooting, who lost a loved one. Or the controversial Philadelphia sugar tax that mostly affects soda. Or the superintendent of the School District of Philadelphia about needing 1,000 new teachers when the other teachers hadn’t gotten a raise in five years and put up a billboard on busy I-95, making sure everyone sees the claim Philadelphia doesn’t value its students. I remember Jerrick and Holley making sure to present both sides, playing devil’s advocate when necessary, and give everyone a fair shot – for journalism and conscience.

Mike Jerrick: http://www.fox29.com/about-us/mike-jerrick-good-day-philadelphia-co-host;       Alex Holley: http://www.fox29.com/about-us/alex-holley-good-day-philadelphia-co-host

I know because in each of those situations, I took notes and when each was over, I quickly got in and out points to put the video on the web, and wrote stories that started with the new information Jerrick and Holley were able to gather. Often, they made the interviews memorable experiences and that’s exactly what TV goes for: memorable experiences involving people associated with your station. The bosses get credit, the station makes money, but it’s Jerrick, Holley and company who actually do the work.

I’ll tell you now, I have not watched for a moment since I left last Aug. 10. Too painful. And that personal story is far from over. The people I’m writing about may not know that but their bosses sure do!

So how can Jerrick and Holley go from being hard news people – bringing viewers every new fact possible while guaranteeing their accuracy, while sitting inside a studio – and suddenly become time fillers at 9? They’d have to be extremely talented and well-rounded, or bipolar!

Sure, they report breaking news the executive producer decides is important enough until 10:00, but the *show* transitions from hard news to arguably nonsense and no matter how slowly that process takes, and the audience changes, it still involves the same on-air people.

http://www.fox29.com/about-us/steve-keeley-fox-29-reporter

It’s very rare, but I remember the morning hero, reporter Steve Keeley, breaking three new stories live at three different locations one morning! It’s a combination of his sources and reading everyone’s social media (and I included every police and fire department’s tweets in three states when I wrote everyone’s).

The station is too cheap to hire other people.

STOP FOR A SIDEBAR: All I ever got from the station, other than hard times, was a green t-shirt and hat for the St. Patrick’s Day parade in 2017. Most other places give gift bags when you start.

But I got a Good Day Philadelphia Weekend shirt that one of the anchors, Bill Anderson, actually spent time and money to make all by himself! Don’t believe me? He did that to connect with viewers and increase ratings – and then the bosses took him off the show and gave him a reporting franchise, For Goodness’ Sake! Some thanks and appreciation!

Bill is still doing what he does, great reporting, substitute anchoring, and wardrobes.

https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FBillAndersonFox29%2Fposts%2F2016119442044194&width=500

Yes, folks. This is the fourth largest TV market in America and this is what a local native – great person, great at his job – obviously feels forced to do. Somebody should be ashamed, and it’s sure not Bill!

BACK TO THE STORY: At 9, one of the 4-6am anchors usually joins Jerrick and Holley. They’re given a list of topics to ad lib about. That means no real scripts for them or their director, who has to make sure the right video is playing. Reporters who were on the air earlier usually change stories – not because of news happening, but planned events. Everyone’s time is planned out so there’s no waste, or rest on a bad day.

There’s a lot for the anchors to keep track of while making small talk with weathercaster Sue Serio, the most open, genuine human you’ll ever meet – and traffic reporter Bob Kelly, who has to keep track of all roads and transit in the region, get all the facts as they change without getting confused, and then find the live shots or make the graphics you see without any help. Oh, and then it’s Kelly’s Classroom or Camp Kelly, depending on the season, and Breakfast with Bob weekly.

Sue Serio: http://www.fox29.com/about-us/sue-serio-fox-29-weather-anchor;       Bob Kelly: http://www.fox29.com/about-us/bob-kelly-fox-29-traffic-reporter

So there’s a hell of a lot that goes on that viewers don’t see, except for the same faces, over and over again. How they seem to know everything – and at that hour – is incredible! They deserve credit, not scorn.

Of course, the viewers want the local angle, rather than the network or cable morning shows. There’s a place for it but honestly, it’s not for me.

I’ve often thought of Mike Jerrick as Johnny Carson. Who except Dom DeLuise and Joan Rivers ever had a public spat with Johnny?

Wikimedia Commons

Wikipedia

Flickr

I mean, Jerrick is from the Great Plains (Kansas), smart, funny, and – yes – older. That’s valuable and lacking in too many places today. I wasn’t around when Carson (from Iowa) started on The Tonight Show in 1962 and wasn’t allowed to stay up late enough to see him until I was old enough, and still, a lot was over my head.

No, not everything goes as planned. That’s the nature of live TV. How the people on-air react is what separates amateurs from professionals. The anchors you see on that station I really don’t like are professionals.

So Mike and Alex’s job is basically to fill time, and it works because they’re often #1 in the later time periods. That means they do very, very well – especially because one of their competitors is the nation’s powerhouse station.

Something ironic: The article with the title about a format possibly being on its way out barely touches on history. It used to be a white guy doing the news. Or two white guys. Same with weather and sports. Then came Adam and Eve – a man and a woman. The article quotes University of Maryland journalism professor Linda Steiner as saying network executives see that “as the kind of ideal nuclear family.”

But this isn’t Leave it to Beaver. This is Fox. So you have to expect a little pushing of the boundaries, especially from a station with the brand We Go There.

Maury Povich

Jerry Springer

As seriousness turns to silliness, children have headed out to school. If they’re home sick, how would you compare Jerrick’s behavior to afternoon soap operas in the past? Or to the lowlifes too often seen on daytime talk and reality shows, these days? Do you want your kid watching Maury (a KYW-TV3 alum) or Springer? The difference is, Mike is the serious newscaster, earlier in the morning. (I’ve never asked him which role he prefers, if either.)

And HBO’s John Oliver used Jerrick as an example of someone who spent “the entire day (International Women’s Day) acting inappropriately.”

Yes, times change. Jerrick – with daughters and grandchildren – would be one of the first to support #MeToo.

He also keeps colleagues on their toes and the audience interested. I give management and the parent company no credit for that. Absolutely none. It’s the people you see, and I don’t have a bad thing to say about any of them. And when the show is over, they clean up (if necessary), meet to discuss the good and the bad of the morning, plan the next show, and then go out to shoot all the special segments viewers see. It’s usually not far from 12-hour days.

Do you think all the pre-NFL Draft features happened on their own or by magic? It was big planning, changing clothes and going with the flow – just like at the newsdesk but with a little more wiggle room.

Kellyanne Conway, Wikipedia

So he said “bullshit” when President Trump’s assistant Kellyanne Conway – a local woman – used the phrase “alternative facts” about the Trump inauguration’s crowd size. WHO WASN’T THINKING THAT? And he took his punishment knowing he shouldn’t have used the word, and knowing the station had to pretend to care about Federal Communications Commission rules.

Tom Snyder – who anchored here at KYW-TV in the late 1960s – shot a bird on WABC in New York, in the early 1980s. This is how he remembered it, years later, on CNBC.

I can imagine the same situation here.

And who was totally honest about needing to take a few months off?

Nobody is perfect but Mike Jerrick – with the job he has – is pretty damn close. (I can say the same about Alex Holley who, among so much else, has made her own family out in Texas, our own family.) It has earned him promotions and made him a national figure. And I sure hope he’s not working for the money. (I’ve always said money is freedom.)

Ryan Lochte, Wikipedia

  And don’t tell me Ryan Lochte (pre-2016, Rio) didn’t deserve to be laughed at after his interview,

Robert Kardashian (right) & O.J. Simpson, 1995

along with anything to do with the Kardashian family. (See the newspaper article link.) When I hear that name, I still think about lawyer Robert from my O.J. Simpson days, rather than his unbelievable ex and offspring. (So I’m also a fuddy duddy. Act surprised.)

Dave Garroway, 1955, Wikimedia Commons

I’d never put any of them on my show and I doubt Mike would either, unless they did something SO ridiculous that everyone was talking about it.

The article pretty much says Jerrick found his niche and compares him to the Today show’s first host, Dave Garroway, buried here at West Laurel Hill Cemetery.

So bottom line: Mike Jerrick is the right person for the job, the station is lucky to have him and I will blame any future fall in ratings with changes in front of and behind the camera, or the end of an era – not Mike.

(For the record, I was NOT in contact with ANYBODY associated with the station for weeks before, or while writing. The thoughts are completely my own.)

Speaking of people I like, I can’t say enough about the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre survivors outside Fort Lauderdale. They’ve spoken forcefully and eloquently about the need for stricter gun laws.

Just wait, but some of them and other high school students will be old enough to vote by this year’s midterm elections. Mark your calendar for Tuesday, Nov. 6. Every member of Congress will be up for (re)election, along with about a third of the Senate.

Plus, 39 states including Pennsylvania and New York (I’ll get to that one in a few moments) will be (re)electing governors, and there will be many state legislature elections. (If I remember correctly, in ancient times in Florida, you could register to vote at 17 but not actually vote until your 18th birthday.)

Then, in two (hopefully) short years, more than half of today’s high school students will be able to vote in the 2020 presidential election.

Anyone who dismisses the Stoneman Douglas student group over their ages is stupid because they’ll be voting before you know it, and are already convincing other voters! Same for that Fox News host, Todd Starnes, who was troubled by how Cameron Kasky took down Sen. Marco Rubio, the one-time presidential candidate, over would agree to refuse further political contributions from the National Rifle Association during a CNN Town Hall. (Click here to watch and read it all.)

Cameron Kasky, CNN’s Jake Tapper (a Philadelphia native), Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.)

The young people are absolutely right about the need to make gun laws stricter. As for what changes, there are many so I won’t be specific. However, as powerful as this group and their supporters become, I worry about all the federal judges President Trump is appointing, and at least one justice so far on the Supreme Court. The young people and 100 million other Americans may convince some legislatures to vote their way, but those bills-turned-laws will have to be upheld if challenged.

Wikimedia Commons

I’ve mentioned Kasky’s mother has been a friend for many years. Besides beating a sitting senator in a debate, he’s the one who had to leave the 60 Minutes interview that aired last Sunday for a family dinner. (Ask them, not me.)

TVNewser called that episode “on pace to finish with 10 million viewers, which would make it one of the most-watched episodes of 2018.”

It’s not my place to name Kasky’s mother because she has not spoken out publicly (nor does she have to, with her son doing the job much more than adequately), but for those who are getting over school shootings or need a reminder of how devastating the situation has been for not only the community but 17 families, his mother shared this post on Facebook on Sunday.

No, there are no words that could comfort that father – certainly not from this NRA woman…

nor people who come up with crap like this…

nor this self-proclaimed “physical education instructon and football coach” in an outer Atlanta suburb with whom I have two friends in common. He apparently feels it necessary to use some dumb “gun permit” that never expires, that somebody made up, as his profile picture. I’ve read his take on gun issues too many times. I think his priorities are off and he has too much time on his hands. I hope we never meet.

Before leaving the topic, a possible solution to the guns-in-schools problem.

This morning, Axios reported “How urban schools avoid mass shootings” (that’s the headline) via the Associated Press that

“As schools around the U.S. look for ways to impose tougher security measures, … they don’t have to look further than urban districts such as Detroit, Chicago, Los Angeles and New York that installed metal detectors and other security in the 1980s and 1990s to combat gang and drug violence”

Also,

“Security experts believe these measures have made urban districts less prone to mass shootings, which have mostly occurred in suburban and rural districts.”

And,

“Officials in some suburban and rural school districts are now considering detectors as they rethink their security plans after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.”

Let’s hope tougher security measures including installing metal detectors is a solution to save lives.

Now, a slightly less vicious political story (and I mean slightly):

Yesterday, I mentioned Sex and the City’s Cynthia Nixon running for governor of New York against fellow Democrat Andrew Cuomo. (I’m shocked this politician doesn’t have his picture at the top of his official webpage!)

People magazine reported she tweeted alongside a two-minute video,

https://twitter.com/CynthiaNixon/status/975794613221982209

“New York is my home. I’ve never lived anywhere else. … I was given chances I just don’t see for most of New York’s kids today. …Our leaders are letting us down.”

In the video, Nixon noted she grew up with her single mom in a one-bedroom fifth-floor walkup.

She has been a vocal critic of Gov. Cuomo’s educational policies. According to People, she accused the two-termer of being the main cause of the divide between the state’s “richest” and “poorest schools.”

Today, JTA reported, “Her two eldest children from her first marriage are Jewish and have both been bar- and bat-mitzvahed.” (I hate that phrase! You can’t simply add an –ed to a word that’s not English!)

It also said she’s

“an active member of Congregation Beit Simchat Torah, Manhattan’s most prominent LGBTQ synagogue, and has spoken there multiple times”

including her June 2011 Friday night sermon, the same day same-sex marriage became legal in New York state.

Back then, she lavishly praised Gov. Cuomo for his leadership in making that happen. I wonder if she changed her mind.

Nixon is getting support from former co-star Kristin Davis…

https://twitter.com/KristinDavis/status/975802099014381568

and fellow lesbian actress/activist Rosie O’Donnell…

https://twitter.com/Rosie/status/975795478473396224

but now, the New York Post is reporting Nixon is being “denounced” by arguably the Big Apple’s most prominent lesbian politician, former City Council Speaker Christine Quinn.

Besides being the first openly lesbian governor in the U.S., I think Nixon would be the first governor in the U.S. to go topless. Just a thought, for those interested. Or would you have preferred to see Richard Nixon topless?

And rather than me leave you on that last note, there’s an update after I showed you:

* how Rupert Murdoch wanted money from Facebook for having his content on its site (no, people who work for him put it up, in hopes the public will click and see his websites’ articles and advertisements, and help his businesses), and

* how CNN’s Jeff Zucker accused Facebook and Google of having a duopoly or monopoly on money from digital content, and wanted regulators to look into the two companies (even though CNN was a monopoly on 24-hour cable news from June 1, 1980 to 1996 when MSNBC started on July 15, and Fox News Channel went on the air on Oct. 7, except for the 16 months ABC/Westinghouse’s Satellite News Channel competed).

Rupert Murdoch, Wikimedia Commons

Jeff Zucker

Today, there are two articles that ask, “Can Amazon Chip Away at Google and Facebook’s Digital Ad Dominance?”

Adweek reports that yesterday,

“Data aggregator eMarketer … released a report indicating Google and Facebook’s (aka “the duopoly”) dominance of the digital ad market is about to be less dominant, as “smaller players” like Amazon and Snapchat are on the rise.”

And according to Recode,

“Google’s share is expected to decline from 38.6 percent last year to 37.2 percent in 2018, while Facebook could shrink slightly from 19.9 percent to 19.6 percent.”

I guess that should make Zucker, who I compared to a sore loser, pretty happy. He’ll have less of a problem!

Meanwhile, Recode also reported Facebook and Google banned cryptocurrency advertisements, and Twitter is planning to do the same.

Ironically, it says Sky News – which Murdoch owns a minority interest in and is competing with Comcast/NBC to buy the rest, so he can sell it to Disney/ABC – first reported Twitter’s plan late Sunday night!

So let these crypto companies call good ‘ol Rupert and advertise on 21st Century Fox and News Corp. websites. That’s even though Recode says,

“the crypto industry is still new, unregulated and fraught with fraud.”

Shouldn’t stop the mogul from accepting a dollar, or pound, you think?

Be nicer to Mike Jerrick, and other thoughts on what’s making news People who know me can never, ever say I’m not loyal to people I like and respect.