#and he’s a poet like the original so his comebacks >>>>

[iamgonnagetyouback]

𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐒𝐄 𝐅𝐄𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒?

♡ ︎ꜱʜɪᴘ: Charlie Dalton x Reader

You were used to it by now—Charlie Dalton’s constant flirting, his smooth lines, the way his hazel eyes gleamed when he was about to say something utterly ridiculous. And you? Well, you never let him get away with it, always armed with some witty comeback that made the boys around you laugh.

"Hey, beautiful, ever wonder what it’s like to kiss a poet?" Charlie smirked, his voice dripping with that usual arrogance.

You raised an eyebrow, rolling your eyes. "Not quite. Maybe I should kiss Todd and find out?"

The boys howled in laughter, Todd burying his face in his hands as Neil playfully nudged Charlie’s shoulder. But, as usual, Charlie wasn’t fazed. He only leaned closer, mischief dancing in his eyes.

"You know," he said, voice lower, "one day you’re gonna run out of sass and finally admit you’re in love with me."

You opened your mouth, prepared to give the perfect retort, when something strange happened. Your cheeks grew warm. No, scratch that—they were on fire. You blinked, suddenly hyper-aware of how close Charlie was standing, how his teasing smile wasn’t just playful anymore, how his eyes were fixed on you, waiting.

What the hell? Why were you blushing?

You quickly muttered something half-baked, barely coherent, and walked away before Charlie could notice the redness that had surely taken over your face. You didn’t understand. You had always been able to brush him off, but now, for some reason, your heart was racing like it was trying to beat out of your chest.

This was new. And horrible.

What was worse? Charlie had noticed. His teasing eyes followed you all day, smirking like he knew something you didn’t. It was unbearable.

You needed help. Desperately.

So, naturally, you sought out the only person who could possibly understand your predicament—Todd Anderson.

It wasn’t hard to find him. Todd was sitting on the lawn by the lake, writing something in his notebook while Neil was off trying to convince Knox to join his latest idea. You marched over, sitting down in front of him without ceremony.

“Todd,” you said, a bit more forcefully than intended.

He looked up, startled. "Yeah?"

"I need your help. It’s about Charlie."

Todd’s eyes widened. "Charlie?" His voice squeaked a little, and his hand twitched, as if just mentioning Charlie’s name brought anxiety. You could relate.

You groaned. “I think I’m broken or something because today, he said something to me, and I—I blushed, Todd. I blushed. Do you have any idea how horrifying that is?”

Todd’s face softened, but he looked like he was trying hard not to laugh. “Uh, maybe it’s not so bad?” he offered, weakly.

You groaned, collapsing backward on the grass. "It is bad. It’s very bad. You know what it’s like. You blush when Neil says… anything remotely nice to you. What does it mean? Am I… Am I in love with Charlie Dalton?"

Todd hesitated, his face growing red at the mention of Neil. "I don’t know," he mumbled. "Maybe. Or maybe he just got to you. He flirts with everyone… right?"

That hit you like a punch to the gut. You threw your head back, laughing, but there was no real humor in it. “Yeah,” you muttered, a bitter taste creeping into your mouth. “Yeah, exactly.”

He flirts with everyone. Why was this any different?

Why did it suddenly matter?

"But it never bothered me before. Why now?"

Todd looked down at his notebook, fiddling with the pages. "Sometimes," he said quietly, "it hits you when you least expect it."

His words stuck with you, echoing in your mind all day, all night. Hits you when you least expect it. Could that really be true? Could you—no, you weren’t about to fall for Charlie Dalton, of all people.

The next day, Mr. Keating announced a new assignment: "Each of you will present an original poem tomorrow. A poem that reveals a part of yourself you keep hidden."

Great. Exactly what you needed.

The whole evening, you tried to write something, but every word felt forced, every line too… wrong. How were you supposed to write about a feeling you didn’t even understand? You stared at the page, and the only thing that came to mind was Charlie. His grin. His stupid, smug face. The way your stomach twisted every time he called you "beautiful" now.

So, you did the only thing you could think of. You wrote.

The next morning, you walked into Keating’s class with your heart in your throat, clutching the folded piece of paper as if it would burn you.

“Ah, (Y/N),” Mr. Keating greeted warmly. “Ready to share with us?”

“Not really,” you muttered, but stepped forward anyway. The boys were watching, but most of all—Charlie was watching, leaning back in his chair with that lazy grin you hated. No. You didn’t hate it anymore. That was the problem.

You unfolded the paper and took a deep breath.

“A boy with words like arrows, Sharp and playful, but always shallow. Until one day, his arrows land, Not in jest, but in my hand.

How do you laugh when you’re struck? How do you breathe with no air? What do you do when the jokes stop feeling like jokes, And start feeling like… something else?”

Your voice faltered, but you kept going, feeling all the confusion and frustration pour out.

“The world tips sideways, Colors all wrong. Why does he make me stutter? Why do I feel like I’m walking on a tightrope, One wrong word from falling into his arms?”

The room was quiet now. You could feel every pair of eyes on you, but none more than Charlie’s. You didn’t dare look up.

“Maybe this is what love feels like: Messy, sharp, unexpected, Like an arrow in the dark.”

Your eyes met Charlie’s, and for the first time in a while, there was no teasing in his gaze. He looked... serious.

Todd gave you a small, supportive smile as the silence hung in the air. And then, without saying anything, you took your seat.

But the confusion? It remained. Maybe you’d never understand it. Maybe it didn’t even matter if Charlie flirted with everyone.

What mattered now was how you felt.

[sorenphelps]

Rockstar AU album covers

I hyperfocused on a tiny detail again, so I drew all the album covers of rockstar Sirius, and also came up with a “backstory” for all. I put the descriptions under the cut, with some more details of this rockstar AU! Beware, long post! (also someone please write this)

Albums (Sirius’ age indicated):

Practically Royal (20): A sharp, system-critical punk album that dived deep into social and political commentary. With its raw energy and defiant tone, the album offered an aggressive critique of authority, consumerism, class and societal norms, aiming to spark discussion and challenge the status quo. This debut album was a huge success, launching Sirius into instant stardom and becoming an important public figure and activist in political and societal discourse. He firsts got arrested for engaging in civil disobedience / demonstrations related to an anti-government movement. He was heavily criticized by both parties because of his rebellious actions and undeniable privilidge of his noble birth.

Stray Dog (22): After his brother died, Sirius released his second, highly personal album that showcased diverse musical influences, blending multiple genres into a complex soundscape. Despite its personal depth, it struggled to find a clear identity and the eclectic style left many fans disappointed. The album was considered a flop financially, which added yet another layer to Sirius’ personal struggles and scandals.*

Orange is the New Black (29): This album contained almost entirely cover songs, a bold move that alienated fans who were hoping for original material. It failed to resonate with listeners who wanted Sirius’ distinct voice and creativity, rather than renditions of already well-known songs. The album was released a little after Sirius had served his prison sentence,* and was very despised by the audience, who referred to it as „only a desperate money-grab”. Sirius got heavily criticized, with many arguing that his time had passed and his music no longer stood the test of time, becoming overly commercial. This album was so disappointing that fans began to rediscover and appreciate his second album more.

Wasted Potential (33): After a long hiatus and a period of public controversies and scandals, Sirius returned with his forth album, which was a huge commercial and critical triumph, marking a powerful comeback. It blended his core sound with fresh ideas, and successfully proved that, despite previous doubts, he still had the musical chops and authenticity that made him a fan favorite in the first place. The album became Platinum in 3 months, and dominated the Charts, the titular song spent 3 consecutive weeks as No. 1 of the Billboards Hot 100. The album was nominated for a Grammy, and won the Brit Awards and multiple categories at the AMAs/VMAs.

Fleurs du Mal (34): In response to criticism of his „less poetic” lyrics, Sirius released an acoustic album based entirely on the works of iconic poets like Rimbaud, Verlaine, and Baudelaire. The album received a mixed reception. On one hand, it introduced Sirius’ work to a new audience, gaining significant praise in academic and literary circles. On the other hand, it alienated the core fanbase, who were more attuned to straightforward rock songs.

Supernova (41): Released unexpectedly after another extended break, this album was a declaration that, despite aging, he still possessed the fire and creativity that made him a rock icon. The album featured multiple heavy hitting rock songs, dramatic ballads, grand and epic anthems, showcasing a renewed energy that surprised his fans and critics alike. It served as both a personal statement and a challenge to the idea that aging musicians lose their edge. The album was well-received for its raw vitality and confidence. It was a commercial success as well, the titular song broke the record of „Wasted Potential” by spending 5 consecutive weeks as No. 1 of the Billboards Hot 100. The album also won a Grammy.

*Further details:

Sirius got in touble with the law multiple times for various reasons:

Reckless Driving and Substance Abuse: speeding, drunk driving, drug or alcohol-related offenses, drug possession and addiction

Vandalism and Violent Behavior: trashing a hotel room and damaging private property (charged by Walburga as Sirius damaged Black family properties), physical violence against paparazzi

(Alleged) Fraud: embezzlement and tax evasion, actually comitted by his (asset) manager, Peter, who fraudulently used Sirius’ wealth and invested using his name in questionable business opportunities, mostly regarding property handling and real estate investments.

Criminal Negligence, Endangerment and Involuntary Manslaughter: A gas leak related explosion happaned at one of the properties that Peter got involved with in Sirius’ name, which unfortunately resulted in the death of 12 people. As Sirius was the landlord/investor, and he already had a criminal record, he had to face criminal charges, including imprisonment as on paper, he was the one recklessly ignoring safety regulations. After his second album flopped financially, and he got very publicly disowned, the rumor of his teorethical money problems sort of solidified the charges. It was later proven that he was not responsible as Peter fraudulently used his name and assets without his knowledge, so Sirius got released after 5 years.

[cirilla-fiona-riannon]

Fateful Love in Motion

Translations may not always capture the exact nuances or tone of the original text. Expect grammatical errors and inaccuracies.

2024 General Election (JP)

ღ Prologue

That night, upon arriving at Ōoku.

Mai: "Nngh, come on!"

I was desperately trying to climb the mansion wall.

Kanetsugu: "What are you doing up there? Get down."

Mai: "Kanetsugu? Whoa!"

Kanetsugu caught me as I lost my footing.

Kanetsugu: "If you're going to fall in a panic, don't climb in the first place."

Mai: "S-Sorry."

Kanetsugu: "So, who gave you this idea?"

Mai: "Huh?"

Kanetsugu: "Who helped you?"

Mai: "No one! I just wanted to get out of here."

Kanetsugu: "You mean you were trying to escape without any plan? That's a sloppy move for a princess."

Mai: "But I couldn't stand it! I understand my responsibility to take over the family, but it's only possible with the right partner."

Mai: "It's not okay to get close to someone you don't respect or date multiple people simultaneously!"

Kanetsugu: "You're right. Your point is valid."

Mai: "Really?"

Kanetsugu: "But if you're dissatisfied, don't act impulsively. Plan your moves and outsmart those around you."

Kanetsugu: "If you're that determined, I can at least help you become wiser."

Mai: "You're not going to tell my father?"

Kanetsugu: "Your methods are wrong, but I agree with your stance."

Kanetsugu: "Even if you're a princess, your dignity as a person should come first."

Mai: "………"

(He respects me not just as a princess but as a human being.)

It was from this moment that I started to like him.

The very next day, his lessons began.

Kanetsugu: "Your father has instructed me to educate you through Chinese poetry."

Kanetsugu: "However, the essence of poetry and songs is not merely their beauty; it lies in their spirit and passion."

Kanetsugu: "Understand the thoughts and emotions of the poet, and make them your own."

Mai: "Got it!"

A few days later一

Kanetsugu: "Are you an idiot? You can't even distinguish between Mencius and Confucius."

Mai: "Ugh. Please, one more time!"

Kanetsugu: "You seem to have more guts than I thought."

Mai: "It's because you're serious about teaching me. I want to give it my all in response."

Kanetsugu: "That's the only thing I'll praise you for."

(He smiled for the first time.)

I immersed myself in studying, wanting to see him smile again.

Sometime later一

Father: "Enough is enough. If you have time to read books, choose a husband!"

Mai: "With all due respect, Father, this is for our family's sake."

Mai: "If I lack education, I won't be able to pick a good husband. The quality of the husband directly affects the quality of the heir. It's a serious matter, you know?"

Father: "Kuh. You've become unusually clever!"

I let out a sigh of relief as his footsteps faded away.

Kanetsugu: "I see. That was a good comeback."

Mai: "It's the first time I've outwitted my father! Although, it seems like it'll be the first and last."

Kanetsugu: "Is your escape plan ready?"

Mai: "Yes. I'll leave for the port tonight and set sail."

Mai: "That's why you should escape with me!"

Kanetsugu: "What?"

Mai: "I love you. I've made preparations so we can be together."

Kanetsugu: "What are you saying?"

Mai: "I'll become even smarter to avoid being caught. I'll do anything to live with you."

Mai: "I love you."

Kanetsugu: "........."

Kanetsugu: "I have no right to be with you."

Mai: "Huh?"

Kanetsugu: "If you leave the palace, you will lose everything. Initially, I intended to dissuade you from escaping."

Kanetsugu: "But I grew attracted to you and became selfish, not wanting to give you to another man."

Kanetsugu: "So I taught you how to survive. Someone as insincere as I am doesn't deserve your love. And yet..."

Kanetsugu: "I don't want to give you to anyone else. I want you in my arms."

Mai: "Please, love me!"

Unable to hold back, I hugged him, and a sweet scent filled the air.

Mai: "I don't think you're insincere. The fact that you helped me when I was about to flee without a plan remains unchanged."

Mai: "So please, live with me."

We kissed over and over again, pledging our love to each other.

ღ Collection Events Masterlist

[4uru]

My big ol' Bangla song post:

All time favourite artists

world poet, Rabindranath Tagore. My mother has one of the original publications of the 'Geetanjali' from around WW2 and you have to pay respect to it before u touch it. Safe to say i grew up on Rabindra sangeet since birth. And he is the one writer who truly wrote songs for every possible emotion felt by a human.

My country's national poet Kazi Nazrul Islam. His "karar oi louho kopat" made my kid brain explode, thats how u write a fucking song about freedom, he is regarded as the bidrohi kobi, "the rebel poet". His "dur dipo bhashini" rattles me to this day. The line from that song, "proshanto shagore, toofane, o jhore, shune chi tomari oshanto raagini" like holy shit if someone sings this for me, i would put a ring on it so fast-

Anupom Roy, mans writes the prettiest most heart wrenching lyrics but most of the time the metaphors fly right over my head-

Arnob, bro.... "Tomar jonno nilche tara" is how you get me to marry you.

Moheener ghoraguli, they debuted before my dad was born. My dad heard their comeback album as a teenager which was their album released 20 years after their prime. Now i listen to like 5/6 songs by them. They are an indian rock band and they describe their style as "baul jazz"

Papon's bangla song collection drives me insane (i wear to god the rasp in his voice-)

Arijit singh's bangla singing✨✨✨

[hyperpotamianarch]

Yeah, sure. But. Let's take those scholars' personality, as seen from their books, into account.

Rambam, I think, had low tolerance for stupidity. If you look at the preface to his Mishnah commentary (which he admittedly wrote at a young age), he's very quick to call people who take Midrashim seriously stupid. As a matter of fact, he paraphrases a verse from the Torah to say that. So, if he heard someone saying something dumb, I think he'd give them a stare, possibly call them idiot to their face.

Rashi, on the other hand... well, we only have his commentary. He doesn't give much personality there, which leads me to the assumption he just wants people to understand - though I'm projecting a little. Another bit of personality we see is when Rashbam, his grandson, says they argued and Rashi eventually agreed with him. In addition, he occasionally says: "Yeah, I don't really know what that means, sorry." So, I think he'll be polite and simply explain where they are wrong.

I'm less qualified than usual when it comes to Ramban. However, here's a fun fact we know about him: he participated in a religious debate with Christians and probably won - but still had to flee Catalonia because Christians can sometimes be sore losers. In his commentary, he's not afraid to say when he thinks something is wrong and sometimes uses strong language. So, I think he really is a safe bet regarding putting people in their places.

There are two additional players I'd like to bring to attention, however: Ra'aba, AKA Ibn Ezra, and Ra'avad, Rabbi Avraham Ben David. Both of them are known for devastating comebacks to people they disagree with ("the only friend a bull has is Ben Zuta", "you should burn this guy with the Chametz", respectively. Well, I'm probably misremembering on the latter, but he does have very strongly-worded commentaries). A friend of mine says that Ibn Ezra would make a great rapper - which I disagree with mostly because he was also obsessed with proper metre and rhymes. As were all Sepharadi poets of the time.

I would've said that you should turn to Sepharadim for a withering takedown while Ashkenazim would make for a polite explanation, but that's inaccurate because a. Ra'avad was from Provence. Which technically means he wasn't Sepharadi or Ashkenazi but a secret third in-between thing, but it's easy to categorize him as Ashkenazi. b. Two words: Rabenu Tam. He takes pity of no one, be they his deceased grandfather, or even his older brother who's just trying to complete grandpa's life work. c. Rabbi Yehudah HaLevi. Which would make for a hilarious situation if someone brought up the Khazarian theory of Ashkenazi origin. Point is, he's a Sepharadi Jew, and from what I know of him I think he'll take the polite conversation route.

I think I made this too binary, and I don't really know much about all those people's personalities. So if you have a better idea, go ahead!

Whenever a goy says something dumb about Judaism or Tanach i mentally picture them saying that same thing to rambam and than getting torn to absolute shreds verbally.

[kuroken-lovechild]

the way I just know musical tumblr and the rest of the internet would be obsessed with Mula sa Buwan (musical retelling of Cyrano de Bergerac set in 1940s WWII Philippines) but it’s locked behind a language barrier

[tatyana-dreaming]

Eugene Onegin: Finale Analysis

*apologies in advance for a LONG POST! any TYPOS! and also that the Russian has been latinized (is that what we say?)*

I have often read opinions and observations about the finale of Eugene Onegin along the lines of “there’s no new theme;” it’s “not as intense as the Letter scene;” it’s “anticlimactic...” etc. (those last two comments are found in Eugene Onegin: The Opera Lively Guide by Luiz Gazzola).

Clearly, these are just opinions and I’m not here to disprove anything... but I am here to retaliate with a whole lot of love for this particular 14 minutes of music so buckle up :) I’m going to try to mainly be objective here and just offer my observations/analysis. Maybe you’ll find some newfound appreciation along the way...and please pitch in if you have your own comments or have noticed things I haven’t necessarily picked up on!

Before we start, you may want to pull a recording of the finale (this one is my favorite of course), and potentially your favorite CD/recording of Eugene Onegin, if you want to listen along and compare. If I had more time and skills I would have done this for you in a video or added trimmed audio bits throughout this post but alas. Maybe one day! For now, enjoy these screencaps from the 2007 Carsen production at the Met with Fleming and Hvorostovsky.

1. Gazzola points this out in his book - and thank goodness, because I’m not sure I would have made the connection myself. The final scene opens with a motif that is more or less a repetition of Gremin’s theme (in rhythm, at the very least), “Lyubvi Vsye Rozrasti Pokorni/Love conquers all ages,’” foreshadowing Tatyana’s decision/steadfastness to the mature, stable love or contement, or whatever we want to call this - we can have an analysis of ‘love’ in Eugene Onegin in another post! Already I’m thinking back to the opening of the opera when Larina and Filipyevna sing in unison “Privichka svishe name dana, zamyena shchastiyu ona / Habit is sent us from above in place of happiness.” Tatyana’s mother used to read and dream like Tayana herself and was even in love, but eventually had to marry someone else and “became resigned and settled down.”

And as @lizlensky​ recently reminded me, of course Filipyevna did not get to marry for love either, not that Tatyana was really listening to her story. In fact, maybe I’m looking far into deeply, but it seems to me the strings underneath this “Gremin motif” at the opening of the finale and also when Tatyana eventually sings to that tune “Onegin, ya togda molozhe/Onegin, I was younger then”  are also mimicking the strings underneath Filipyevna when she sings the morning after the Letter Scene, explaining how her mind is getting older and reflecting upon her youth (I’m generalizing a bit - Tatyana certainly isn’t complaining about having an old brain but she is thinking of the past). Make of that what you will! But it gave me chills.

2. Oh no, I’m already getting ahead of myself though. Before Onegin even comes on the scene, we also hear what some call the “Fate motif” but what I prefer to call the “Dream motif” (if it is fate, why does it follow Tatyana all over dreamy Act I but disappears except for this tiny reminiscence? But of course, up for discussion as it’s the prelude/introduction to the opera, and it comes back when Yevgeni does, haunting her like a ghost, which I suppose is fate-y). Here it is again when Tatyana sings “Kak budto snova dyevochkoi ya stala/It’s as if I’m a young girl again” - which is then followed by what I might personally call the fate theme, since it foreshadows the anguish Tatyana will face when she is rejected in Act I, and before she rejects Onegin in Act III.

This is where I wish I had an audio clip but I think you know what I mean; it’s the really dramatic climax that comes right when Tatyana enters the stage in Scene 3 of Act III (before “Zdyez on, zdyes on, Yevgeni!”) and right before Onegin comes onstage in Act III, Scene 2. Or ha, maybe this is just “Onegin’s Arrival Theme” since there’s a similar kind of orchestral panic before he arrives in Act I (though of course, not in Scene 1 of Act III since it is Tatyana who enters rather than Onegin who was in the room already, at least in the productions I’ve seen.)

3. Okay, so now Onegin’s here, what does he have to say for himself? We hear a bit of the Onegin aria theme -  “Mechtam i godom nyet vazvrata, nye obnovlyu dushi moyei/Dreams and years cannot return, I cannot renew my soul!” as he (in some versions) falls to Tatyana’s feet, exclaiming “O, szhaltes, szhaltes nado mnoyu!/ Have mercy on me!”  Clearly has some srs regerts. But also perhaps Tchaikovsky foreshadowing what is to come... not only that we shouldn’t expect Tatyana to act with any less honor (or prudence/reason) towards Onegin as he did towards her in Act I, and that indeed she sings “proshlogo nye vorotit/you cannot bring back the past.”  I know I’m grinding a lot out of this particular moment, but... would you expect anything less from me? Or (thinks of Petya) HIM? :)

4. As Tatyana reminds Onegin how he rejected her and begins to question why he is suddenly in love with her now, we get to revisit some of the music from the Letter Scene - at least in the orchestra. Tatyana’s line differs slightly than her original melody in the Letter Scene when she sings “Togda, nye pravda li pustine, vdali ot suyetnoi molvi/There in that backwater, far from vain society” - and just so, as it is far from its dreamy, romantic parallel in her letter - “Y v eto samoye mgnovyenye ne ti li, miloye vidyenye/And in that very moment, wasn’t it you, beloved vision [...who whispered to me words of hope].” I find this throwback incredibly clever and gutwrenching, as I believe it’s clearly a bitter and ironic jab at the hope that Onegin crushed, even honorably as he did, and now the two of them have changed positions. Whose dreamy hopes (which are... questionable at best at the moment) are getting schooled now? Cmon’ Onegin, “learn to control yourself....”

5. Let me take a moment to admit and agree with many analyses/critics (although Tchaikovsky knows what he is doing, convince me otherwise) that Onegin is pretty fragmented and lacks a coherent theme, and certainly has no original “love theme” of his own to offer Tatyana  - after all, Onegin as a character, especially in the book, is pretty hollow, someone who isn’t so much a “self’ as a person who knows how to go through the motions of life... He’s intelligent but not creative, full of potential but lacking any real direction. (Ohhh I am going to cry because that’s so sad but also so relatable, but crying is coming up next so I’ll hold off). The opposite of Lensky’s “poet spirit” that lives life romantically, and is in love with life itself, seeing the infinite everywhere rather than seeing life so pessmistically (with the mask of pragmatism/”maturity”) as Onegin does, a mask that keeps Onegin from truly engaging with life or his own sense of self.

So as Onegin sings, we hear that lack of originality, though I will pull a Valery Gergiev here and say one “cannot be impartial” to Onegin’s music here (*clutches chest - that’s Tchaikovsky, even though I think it’s clear Onegin is not his fav) - Onegin may not be original, but there is no less truth or heartfelt emotion in what comes through. Luckily, Tatyana knows that it’s still not a good choice... he’s still not very substantial, at best, and at worst truly is only infatuated with her because of her reputation. It would mean ruin for her either way so :( (read: Anna Karenina) (here are some sad Onegin pictures just for fun because it’s all been Tatyana mainly but also: sorry this is Tatyana’s big moment so)

6. Time for tears! Do you hear a familiar theme when Tatyana sings “Ya plachu/I’m weeping?” It’s Lensky’s aria theme making a comeback- what!??! And particularly, the same melody as these two phrases, when Lensky sings: “Shto dyen gradushchi mnye gotovit/What does this day hold for me?” and perhaps more salient to this moment: “Pridyosh li, dveya krasoti, slezu prolit nad rannei urmoi/ Will you come, maiden, to shed a tear over my untimely urn?” Ahhh, I see what you did there, Petya.

But wait, Onegin hates crying! This isn’t explicitly in the opera of course, but Onegin in the novel all but tells Tatyana that her tears (as he rejects her) only vex him - another reason marriage would be a torment for them (not a bad reason and look, we always respected his honesty, right?). But now? I think it’s a crucial moment; it shows there has indeed been some development on Onegin’s part and uh oh, he’s actually in love (ironically in a very Lensky - that is, poetic - way)  even if it’s not for the best of reasons.

7. Fun (pain) pact: “Tak blizhko! [happiness was] so close!” is the only time Onegin and Tatyana sing together or are on the same page, so to say. Nice. (*cries*) The only other times people sing completely lined up together like this in this opera, choruses aside, are when:

Larina and Filipyevna sing “Privichka svishe name dana, zamyena shchastiyu ona /Habit is sent to us from above in place of happiness”  in the opening scene

Onegin and Lensky sing “Nye zasmeyatsa l nam, poka ne obagrilasa ruka, ne razoitis li polyubovno? Nyet... /Shouldn’t we burst out laughing, rather than staining our hands with blood, shouldn’t we part as friends? No...”  before the duel

Moments of truth. And mostly pain. :) Again, please chime in if there are others, I’m sure I’ve missed something.

8. Time for Tatyana to refuse! This is where I completely disagree that there is “no new major theme” in the Finale; Tatyana’s “rejection theme” holds its own in my books. Interestingly, it’s in D-flat major, just like the main themes in her Letter Scene (”Puskai pogibnu ya/Let me perish,” and “Kto ti? Moi angel/ Who are you? my [guardian] angel..” aka the descending/Russian 6th theme). Tatyana is just as earnest/decided/resigned* (yes, all three of those adjectives) in her decision in the finale as in the Letter Scene, so maybe that has something to do with it. (I always remember her words in the Letter scene: “Uvi, nye v silakh ya vladyet svoyei dushoi!/Alas, I am unable to subdue my soul!” but just like Onegin learning to be endeared by tears - she has indeed learned to subdue her soul, or perhaps she has simply matured and her priorities have changed. (And of course, who lectured her to subdue her soul in the first place, even though he meant well? Yours truly!)

*resigned might seem an interesting way to describe the Letter Scene, but don’t forget “No, tak i bit! Sudbo moyu otnine ya tebye vruchayu/So be it. Henceforth my fate belongs to you....”  I tend to interpret that as Tatyana actually taking her fate into her own hands and deciding to go all in with her decision, despite the words that seem to make her position passive. In the finale, she is ‘resigned’ in a similarly active manner - this is not a passive resignation. But I still would use the term resigned, if only to draw the parallel between Tatyana and her mother....  “I became resigned and settled down.”  And so she has, even if she has to struggle to push Onegin away from the settled life she has, loving him all the same.

And in comes some of my favorite music of all time - Onegin’s desperate, even malicious pleas and a good dose of mansplaining how Tatyana “can’t” abandon him, quoting back her letter. Extra ouch, because do you remember in Tatyana’s letter when she tells Onegin if he has any pity, “vi nye ostavite menya/you won’t abandon me.” And what does she have to beg him to do over and over until she finally runs offstage? “Ostav menya!/Leave me!” heheheheh *laugh-cries*  everything is fine.

9. And we’ve nearly reached the very end. Almost a year into listening to this particular piece of music and I only recently realized what was going on - yeah, I know. When things get really heated at the end and pain reaches a maximum, Tatyana sings “Gluboko v syerdsta pronikayet, yevo otchayanni priziv no, pil prestupni podaviv/His anguished cries penetrate my heart, but the fire of passion has been extinguished” (well, I’m still not quite sure on the ‘correct’ English translation but it doesn’t sound good for Yevgeni regardless...)

That melody in that last line calls us back to its twin sister at the end of Scene 1 in Act I when Onegin is talking about how bored he was with his uncle, waiting for him to die. So a) I hear this as Tatyana “ending things once and for all” (parallels between the death of Onegin’s uncle, and the death of their relationship), as well as possibly (again I read 10,000% too much into things) b) Tatyana realizing that Onegin’s words to her back in the garden were true - habit [routine] would kill their love; they would become bored (or at least he would). The passion would burn out.

Which brings us back to c) heaven sends us habit in place of happiness [=passion?]- which, OH, RIGHT, OF COURSE has the same rhythm of the aforementioned “boredom” theme and “the fire of passion has been extinguished.” But you all probably already realized that because oF COURSE.. that’s how the opera OPENS... and now how it is CLOSING... AHHHH!!!

I know I’m not original or anything for realizing that parallel, but yeah. I’m pretty happy about it.

Tchaikovsky is absolutely genius. Unbelievable. And paired with Pushkin? I’m not surprised I’ve clearly lost my mind over this masterpiece.

Anyways, this was an extremely long post but I hope you enjoyed it immensely, especially if you read this far!! Please chime in with your own comments! I LOVE THIS PIECE OF MUSIC!

[mldrgrl]

prompt: Mulder and Scully being competitive with each other over silly things - Jeopardy? solving the case before the end of an episode of some sort of forensic crime show? how many slices of pizza they can eat? a board game? etc.

Loved this one, Anon, thank you so much.  And I was in the mood to whip up something humorous.  Went to sleep last night thinking about it.

Half and Half

by: mldrgrl Rating: PG

“I’m dying to get out of this suit,” Scully says.  “Give me ten minutes and then we can go through the report?”

“I’ll leave the connecting door unlocked,” Mulder says as they exit their rental car and head to the doors to their rooms.  “Come over when you’re done and we’ll order in.”

She sighs in relief as she kicks off her heels at the door.  She tosses her blazer to the side, unbuttons her shirt, and loosens her skirt.  She clips her hair back, washes her face, and changes into a pair of sweats and a t-shirt.

File folders under her arm, she taps lightly on the connecting door before she pushes it open.  Mulder is sitting at the edge of the bed, tie off and buttons undone at the neck.  His shirtsleeves are rolled up and he’s yelling at the TV.

“What is Mork & Mindy!” he yells.  “Mork and Mindy, you idiots.  Everyone knows ‘nanu nanu.’”

“We were looking for, ‘What is Mork & Mindy?’” Alex Trebeck says.

“Obviously,” Mulder says.  “How did you people even get on the show?”

“What are you doing?” Scully asks.

“Playing Jeopardy.”

“TV Catchphrases for $400, Alex.”

“Book ‘em, Danno.”

“What is Hawaii 5-0,” Mulder yells, just as Scully says, “Hawaii 5-0.”

Mulder makes the sound of a buzzer.  “You have to answer in the form of a question, Scully, or it doesn’t count.”

“I still knew the answer.”

“You mean, the question.”

“Do you want to debate the semantics of Jeopardy or go over the reports?”

“Sure, sure.”

“Let’s try Shakespeare Who Said it? for $200.”

“Double double, toil and trouble.”

“Who are the witches?” Mulder answers.

“Who are the three witches of Macbeth,” Scully says at the same time.

“Who is Macbeth?” answers the first contestant to ring in.

“Oh, come on,” Scully says.  “You can’t be that dumb.”

“Right?”

“Not quite what we’re looking for,” Alex answers.  Finally, the second contestant answers correctly.

“Shakespeare Who Said It for $300.”

“I prithee daughter do not make me mad.”

“Baptista, maybe,” Mulder answers.  “Who is Baptista?”

“No, who is King Lear?” Scully disagrees.

“Who is King Lear?”

“Who is, King Lear.  Act 2, scene 4, referring to Goneril.  And that will lead us to our first commercial break.  More to come after these words from our sponsors.”

“I should’ve known that one,” Mulder says, scooting over to make room for Scully on the bed.  “$600 to $500, I’m winning.”

“How do you figure that?”

“You lost Hawaii 5-0 to incorrect phrasing.”

“You didn’t establish the rules.  $600 to $900, I’m winning.”

“I didn’t have to establish anything, those are the inherent rules of Jeopardy.  Everybody knows that.”

“Mulder, I’m here to go over these reports,” Scully answers, holding up the file folders that have been tucked under her arm the whole time.  She is still standing.

“How about a little wager?”

“On what?”

“Winner orders the pizza of their choice, loser pays.”

“Come on, Mulder.”

“You don’t think you can beat me?”

“No, I know I can beat you.  I just want to get this review done so I can go to bed.”

“Scully, it’s 7 o’clock.  The review can wait.  Unless you’re just chicken.”

“Very mature.”

“Triple dog dare you?”

Scully held her hand out as though to shake Mulder’s.  “We start with a clean slate going in from the commercial and we make our own wagers on Double Jeopardy questions.”

“I’ll keep score!”  Mulder leaves Scully’s handshake hanging in the breeze and jumps up to grab the complimentary pad of paper and pen on the motel desk, which she snatches from him as soon as he comes back to sit down.

“I’ll keep score,” she says.

“You are the math geek.”

They sit through contestant bios and Alex Trebek’s vaguely sarcastic comments on the tidbits they’ve chosen to share with the audience.  When the game starts back up again, there are two answers left in Shakespeare Who Said It? and every answer available in Civil War Nicknames, The Old West, and American Folklore.

Unsurprisingly, Mulder dominates the folklore category, but they tie for two answers.  They both struggle with The Old West more than Civil War Nicknames, but the answers there are easier to decipher within the clues.  Mulder is up $700 when the first Daily Double comes up in The Old West.

“$200,” Scully says.  “I already don’t even want to know the answer.”

“$500,” Mulder answers.  

“Suffering from tuberculosis and alcoholism, this dentist turned gunslinger died in a sanitarium at the age of 36.”

“Who is Doc Holliday,” Scully answers.

“Who is Bat Master..dammit!” Mulder replies just a beat behind her.

“You should’ve known that one.”

“It was the first thing that popped into my head.  What’s the damage?”

“We’re tied.”

“All right, next round, it’s getting serious.”

“Prepare to pay for a large vegetarian with extra olives.”

“Ugh, vegetables on pizza is the antithesis to the point of pizza.”

“And what is the point of pizza?”

“All the pepperoni you can handle and then add in some sausage for good measure.”

“You’re a heart attack waiting to happen, Mulder.  When was the last time you had your cholesterol checked?”

“In May, actually.  Fit as a fiddle.  Here we go, round 2.”

“...categories are: Before & After, Science, Word Origins, Potpourri, The Body Human, and finally, Astronomy. ”

The contestants seem fixated on Potpourri and Before & After, to Mulder’s relief.  He isn’t ready for Scully to completely smoke him in the Science and The Body Human categories.  He figures if he can do well enough in the first two, he might be able to hold firm and maybe they might get to Astronomy where he can make a comeback.  Sure enough, she responds so quickly in the first two Science answers he can’t even get a word out.

“Born this year, a sheep named this introduced the world to cloning.”

“Dolly!” Mulder yells, too excited about knowing a Science question he forgets to phrase it properly.

“Who is Dolly,” Scully corrects.

“Dammit!”

“Your rules.”

“I know, I know.  Still, dammit.”

Blessedly, the contestants leave Science and migrate to Astronomy and since the first answer is the planet nicknamed The Red Planet, a Jeopardy equivalent of low-hanging fruit, they stick with it.  The first Daily Double of the 2nd round hits them at the $800 question in Astronomy.

“I’m up by $1,600,” Scully says.  “You have $3,900.”

“I’m going to make it a true Daily Double.”

“Seriously?”

“Yes.”

“$600,” Scully says, after a few moments hesitation.

Mulder worries his bottom lip with his teeth and waits for the answer to come.

“This spiral galaxy is named for an Ethiopian princess in Greek Mythology.”

“What is Andromeda!” They both yell.

Mulder realizes he’s sweating after the last question and even though it paid off, he vows not to make that kind of gamble again.  Scully berates herself for not being more confident in her astronomy knowledge as she now trails Mulder by $1,700, which may or may not be easy to recover from.

Time runs out before all the clues are revealed and the 2nd Daily Double is never found.  By final Jeopardy, they’re nearly neck and neck, with Mulder at $9,100 and Scully at $8,500.

“The final category is: Computers.”

“Good thing The Gunmen aren’t here,” Mulder says.  “Gimme one of those sheets of paper and we can write our wagers and guesses like the others.”

Scully rips off a piece of paper and they both take nearly all of the commercial break to come up with their wagers.  Scully folds her paper in half with the wager face down.  Mulder turns his over and places it on the bed.

“And here we go with the final answer.  Born in 1815, this daughter of a famous poet published an algorithm for a mechanical calculator and is believed by some to be the first ever computer programmer.”

Mulder writes his answer immediately and Scully taps her pen against her teeth as the final Jeopardy music winds down.  She finally picks up her paper and memorializes her guess before the final note.

“Whatcha got?” Mulder asks.

“I want to see their answers first,” Scully replies.

Mulder bounces his knee in anticipation.  The contestant in 3rd place answers incorrectly with Dora Wordsworth, but only wagered $1.

“I hate when they do that,” Scully says.  “It’s not The Price is Right.”

“Listen, if the category was Nuclear Physics, I might only be waging $1 as well.”

“Too bad it wasn’t.”

The contestant in 2nd place also answers incorrectly with “Who is ____?” and ends up with $4500.  Mulder shakes his head.

“At least put something,” he says.

“Seriously,” Scully agrees.

“And now Judith, our three day champion, currently in the lead with $13,800.  What did she guess?  Who is Ada Lovelace?  Daughter of Lord Byron, known for her work on Charles Babbage’s Analytical Engine, August Ada King, Countess of Lovelace, or Ada Lovelace.  And how much did Judith wager?  $7,000, bringing her three day total to $65,941.”

“Alright, Scully, moment of truth.”

“Count of three?” she asks.

“Is that one, two, reveal?  Or one, two, three, reveal?”

“One, two, reveal.”

“Okay.  One, two…”  

They both turn their papers around.  Both answered Who is Ada Lovelace?  They both grin.

“Frohike would be so tickled with your familiarity with the mother of computer programming,” Mulder says.  

“Yeah?  How does he feel about your familiarity with her?”

“Pretty jealous, actually.”

“What was your wager?”

Mulder turns over the paper again to show her.  “$3,000.  You?”

Scully bites her lip a little and then flips the fold of her paper for Mulder to see.  “$8,000.”

“$8,000!”

“Go big or go home, right?”

“Damn, Scully.  You’re a monster.  In a good way, obviously.  But, damn.  So, I guess that vegetarian is on me.”

“Extra olives.”

“With extra olives.”  He grimaces and gets up to grab the Yellow Pages in the nightstand.  

Scully opens up her file folders and begins sorting the reports for review across the end of Mulder’s bed as he searches for a pizza parlor.  He’s on the phone fairly quickly after browsing the phone book.

“Yes, I’d like to place an order for delivery,” Mulder says.  “A large.  Vegetarian.”

“Half vegetarian,” Scully interrupts without looking up.  “Half pepperoni and sausage.”

“Sorry, half vegetarian, half pepperoni and sausage.  Extra olives on the vegetarian side, please.  Yeah, I’ll hold.”  Mulder drops the phone to his shoulder while hold music plays and smiles slightly.  “Scully, you interested in a rematch tomorrow night?”

“Depends on how interested you are in buying another pizza.”

The End

[stillinmyroom]

Daniel Caesar takes a page out of Frank Ocean’s book for his sophomore studio album

In 2017 there was an abundance of amazing, new R&B albums. SZA dropped her popular album Ctrl, Khalid had his debut with American Teen, and many more artists such as Syd and Brent Faiyaz also delivered solid projects. However, out of all the R&B artists that released projects in 2017, Daniel Caesar was the only one to hit icon status. His debut studio album, Freudian, was an almost flawless collection of silky smooth R&B ballads that flowed beautifully from front to to back. While most of the songs on Freudian consisted of Daniel utilizing his unbelievable range to discuss topics of love, there were also philosophical themes throughout the album such as the struggles between the id and ego, and the title obviously references Sigmund Freud. The album was instantly deemed a classic by many critics, and when Daniel went on tour most of his shows quickly sold out, exhibiting the dedicated fanbase he had now obtained. 

Before Freudian, the last R&B/urban contemporary album to have such an impact for a new artist was Channel Orange, created by none other than the legendary Frank Ocean. While Frank Ocean’s rise to fame was pretty different, as he gained cult-like fans through his time in Odd Future, his solo debut album officially gave him the status of icon. Releasing a critically acclaimed debut album can be a very difficult situation for an artist though, because fans then expect every following project to be at the same quality or better. The pressure for these artists to live up to the reputation of their first album, has led to many second projects failing to be as well-received, and this effect became known as the “sophomore slump.” So what did Frank Ocean do after releasing an album that was instantly recognized as one of the best R&B/urban contemporary releases ever? Well, just like the avatar when the world needed him most...he vanished. Frank went silent for four entire years after the Channel Orange phase, not releasing any songs of his own and only making a handful of guest appearances. Yet, because of the icon status he had reached and his cult fanbase, he didn’t lose any of his hype; in fact, his mysterious disappearance only led to his next project gaining more buildup than almost any album released in the past decade. When Frank finally decided to break the silence, he delivered two incredible albums, Endless and Blonde. Now I’m sure most of you are aware of Frank’s epic comeback, but just in case, I’ll give a brief summary. Endless was a visual album that Frank released on a live stream while building a staircase, and although it was a very raw project with a unique minimalist sound, it never saw an official release with a split tracklist and the usual album formatting. Blonde on the other hand, sounded practically nothing like Channel Orange, but became one of the most experimental albums of modern music, and many believed it even surpassed the high expectations created by Frank’s previous album and a four year hiatus. Now how did Frank Ocean successfully handle the pressure of living up to his freshman project? He did exactly the opposite of what the music industry tells artists to do. He disappeared for four years, created an avant-garde classic with a genre-defying sound, created a second album on a livestream to escape his contract, and used practically no promotion at all because his fanbase had created all the hype he needed. And while all this was happening, Daniel Caesar was taking notes.

Besides his song “Who Hurt You?” and a couple of features here and there, Daniel Caesar was very quiet in the time after the Freudian phase. Now this shouldn’t be unusual for an artist that needs time to plan and perfect his work, but in the current state of music where artists are releasing multiple projects a year and posting on social media multiple times per day, fans can get impatient when an artist decides to stray away from these industry norms. People began to wonder what Daniel Caesar had in store, as he occasionally posted or live streamed on Instagram, but other than the rare social media display, Daniel continued to remain silent (except for an appearance with Dave Chappelle on John Mayer’s show and some remarks about YesJulz). Then, on June 26th, Daniel Caesar suddenly took to Instagram to announce his sophomore album, CASE STUDY 01, that was set to release on June 28th. Much like Frank Ocean, Daniel did not need the promotion tactics of a normal artist due to his loyal fanbase and the extensive amount of hype he still retained from Freudian. Fans had been waiting in anticipation to find out if Daniel Caesar would attempt to make another silky R&B album filled with smooth ballads, but as they would soon find out, Daniel decided to go a different direction. It became pretty clear that Daniel had payed attention to artists like Frank Ocean, who had immense expectations to live up to following the release of a classic. Daniel designed a more experimental, yet also minimalist sound on his sophomore album by combing aspects of R&B, bedroom pop, and alternative rock, mixed with  psychedelic, lofi production. Songs such as “TOO DEEP TO TURN BACK,” “SUPERPOSITION,” and “ARE YOU OK?” use hypnotic guitar melodies as Daniel channels his inner poet. The track RESTORE THE FEELING, almost feels like something out of a psychological horror movie with the eerie lofi guitar beat and the high pitch vocals of Sean Leon, Jacob Collier, and Daniel. Furthermore, Daniel utilizes his voice in a more unique way throughout the entire project. He uses voice inflections in OPEN UP to place the listener in a trance and even incorporates some dancehall influence and autotune into songs like CYANIDE. However, the most important aspect of what makes CASE STUDY 01 sound more distinct than Freudian may be the themes and subjects of the music. While Daniel still discusses topics such as love and loneliness, there is a lot more focus on ideas such as life, death, and spirituality on this album. There are also various mentions of Daniel using psychedelic drugs such as LSD, which may have influenced the deeper and more profound themes. Much like CASE STUDY 01, Blonde also contains many deeper themes such as spirituality and the purpose of life, and Frank mentions the use of psychedelics throughout the album as well. Every single song on Blonde has a sound that is very distinct and separate from those on Channel Orange, and the same can be said about the songs of CASE STUDY 01 and Freudian (except for possibly the Brandy accompanied track, “LOVE AGAIN”). Ultimately, Daniel Caesar successfully defeated the sophomore slump pressure and ended up creating a project with a more experimental and original sound than his critically acclaimed debut. While many people may still prefer the classic serene R&B vibes of Freudian, I think Daniel ended up delivering a more creative and enticing sound in his sophomore project. And just as I prefer Blonde over Channel Orange, I also believe that CASE STUDY 01 is a better overall album than Freudian because of the artistic risks that Daniel wasn’t afraid to take.

[salttotasteblog]

“Great photography is a combination of beauty and intrigue.” William Steel.

I’ve filled my site with incredible images. Some stock, and some of them I technically hold rights to, despite never snapping a decent picture myself or having paid for the privilege of using them. There’s no fair use policy, I can do whatever I want with the beautiful shots, even if that means printing a poetry quote over the top and posting them to Instagram as my own creations. I’m afforded this freedom by an incredible photographer, my friend, William Steel.

View this post on Instagram

"Closed Eyes" Read the full piece on wordpress. #glennthomaspoetry #poetry #writersofinstagram #poetrycommunity #quotes #poem #love #writing #wordporn #poetsofinstagram #poet #writer #quote #writersofig #poems #quoteoftheday #words #art #poetryisnotdead #lovequotes #thoughts #quotestagram #inspirationalquotes #wordsofwisdom #writerscommunity #poets #qotd #instapoet #poetsofig #life @bymepoetryeurope @bymepoetry @bymepoetryamerica @oltmblog @cries_of_pen

A post shared by Glenn Thomas | Writer (@writtenbyglennthomas) on Jul 28, 2019 at 12:54pm PDT

  When William Met An Aspiring Rapper

I first met Will at University, and we both knew we’d never be friends. We were too different. Me, the rapper turned poet from East London, and Will, the son of a South African businessman. But we were thrown together by the struggles of freshers, in that all we did in our first year was drink unhealthy amounts of alcohol that cost more than we should’ve spent. We built a friendship on single malt scotch and Grey Goose vodka.

William’s passion for photography shone in those days, but he never expressed much of a desire to pursue his dream full-time. We spent most of our time drinking and messing around because our future careers seemed miles away, but the pub was down the road. The first time I experienced Will’s photography was in the student filled nightclubs while we all crammed onto a sticky dancefloor.

As we danced offbeat to the latest music without a care in the world, Will would crouch down and snap a selfie. He’d repeat the same shot until he managed to get a decent picture of our group. Later, he’d began jumping into a crouch and yelling, reverse angle selfie. Everyone huddled together and laughed at Will’s excitement. Back then, he experimented by having fun and still does.

One of his earliest shots came from a trip to Wales when we were both still at University. The contrast of colours makes this image one of his more visually striking, although he would argue that this isn’t one of his best pictures.

The Pursuit of Photography

Will was born in Johannesburg, but he grew up in Botswana, a country he credits with giving him the passion for the wildlife that forged his photography style. I have one of Will’s earliest practice shots of a cheetah devouring a recent kill, and to mine and Williams knowledge, it’s the only copy in existence. Which means I have a vested interest in his career. One day the original image may be worth millions.

In 2016, Will and I were joined by another friend from university on a road trip around the southern countries of Africa. On this trip, we witnessed Williams obsessive compulsion with snapping the right shot. As we drove through national parks, we’d stop for what felt like hours as Will tried to capture the perfect image of a bird, insect, giraffe, elephant or anything that appeared in a strange or unusual way.

It was during this trip that Will began to experiment more and more with different photography styles. At Khama Rhino Sanctuary we watched Will chase the stars for hours trying to capture rotating earth with a slow shutter speed to make the light appear as if shot across the night sky. Throughout Namibia, he’s focus was on the beautiful landscapes. And in the rain of Victoria Falls, the reverse angle selfie made a comeback.

I was sat next to Will in Chobe national park, and he managed to capture my version of this image, but Will deleted it to save professional face, either that or mine was so out of focus, he worried someone might have found it on his camera and think he’d taken it. The Daily Mail featured this image on their website.

Wildlife Photography

There’s a wealth of wildlife in African national parks, but most of it is under threat of extinction. Wills images help remind the world that these animals are worth our protection. Our abnormal human activities have destroyed habitats and disrupted the natural order, but the fightback begins with charities and wildlife photographers showing us the damage we’ve caused.

One of my favourite images involves two cheetahs exploring Will’s GoPro camera. The picture shows the inquisitive nature of growing animals, in which all humans can relate. All of us, growing up, search for new experiences, and we still do as we grow. After all, isn’t that why we dream about travelling?

View this post on Instagram

The "is this thing recording" face.

A post shared by Wildlife | Photography (@williamsteelphotography) on Feb 28, 2019 at 12:30am PST

Travel and Street Photography

Williams’ Photography branched out from wildlife into street photography as he began to explore abstract styles of photography. Will still loves wildlife and wants to spread a positive message about our world, but he can’t spend his life in natural parks, despite a despite yearning to live amongst animals. However, without the wildlife, Will stills feels a compulsion to use his camera.

From his exploration of streets around him, and the world, Will began recording his adventures around the world. It was an extension of a portfolio he first began exploring during our road trip around Southern Africa. Unfortunately, he lost the hard drive with most of the memories from our adventures which means his work doesn’t feature in our shared Travel Tales. Since then, Will has documented his travels around South East Asia on thepatienttravellers.com.

Accomplishments

Will devotes a lot of time to his photography. When he isn’t stalking wildlife, looking for a new shot, he’s scouring the internet and magazines looking for competitions to enter. He has regularly entered the Wildlife Photographer of the Year award, and his work has earned him numerous awards. His most recent award was in the Best Portrait category of the Bird Photographer of the Year 2019 competition.

In addition to awards, William has seen his work published in numerous books and magazines. A comprehensive list of his publications can be found here, but his proudest publication is the Remembering Elephants and Remembering Rhinos series by Wildlife Photographers United. The group aim’s to spread awareness and protect wildlife from the destruction of their habitats and poaching.

Will took a break from publishing and promoting his own images to work for National Geographic Film Unit where he was a part of the team who put together the Savage Kingdom documentary series. This role earned him a listing on IMDb. However, despite the numerous accreditations and publications, Will’s proudest moment was becoming an ambassador for Sigma South Africa.

There’s a story behind this natural-looking image. Will left our group to photograph a street he’d seen earlier on and met this incredible man. He’d looked up and found William taking pictures. The man began posing for Will, but after a conversation with Will about Vietnam. the man agreed to return to his natural pose. Will and the Man were all smiles afterwards, happy with the incredible image.

What’s Next for The Professional Photographer and The Rapper Turned Poet From East London?

Both Will and I are dedicated to exploring the world and documenting our adventures through our respective arts. I have numerous travel tales that feature Will, and I’ve found myself the subject of many of his photographic experiments.

We’ve climbed sand dunes in Namibia, got lost in the Medinas of Morocco, and I almost drown in Vietnam. We’re currently looking at travelling around South America and I’ve even begun learning Spanish in preparation.  Whether these plans come to fruition or not, Will and I remain great friends who continue to push each other and look for interesting ways to work together.

Do you remember that time you jumped off a boat at Ha Long Bay, forgetting you can’t swim?

Thanks for reading, I hope you found it interesting. You can find more about William Steel on Instagram and Facebook. But if you want to learn more about him or buy a picture for your living room, you can find him at www.williamsteelphotography.com.

  William Steel Photography: Profiled by A Writer “Great photography is a combination of beauty and intrigue.” William Steel. I’ve filled my site with incredible images.

[aaronexplainsitall]

what (who) is Mks?? (I swear i googled but it came up with a productivity solutions firm rip in peace)

Ah, to tell the story of MKS, I must tell the story of the band of legend, the Sugababes. Are you sitting comfortably children? Good, then I’ll begin. 

Once upon a time, in a magical land named ‘Britain’, there was a mythical band, born of legend, known as the Spice Girls. Together, they conquered the world, bringing girl power back to a dire pop landscape filled with moody American boy bands and turgid R&B. They were on a quest to spread the message of girl power and pop music far and wide, and to everyone’s shock and awe, they were successful! 

But then, one fateful day, their kingdom began to crumble around them and they went their separate ways to pursue far less inspiring and interesting solo careers (except Geri because Scream if You Wanna Go Faster is a bop you can @ me if you disagree you’re wrong). A dark cloud fell over pop music and for 100 days and 100 nights the kingdom of Britain descended into the coldest winter it has ever known. 

Then, the evil men in the record companies hatched a dastardly plan. What if, they wondered, another band could rise up to take the infamous Spice Girls’ place? What if, they continued, we threw away everything that made the Spice Girls wonderful, and unique, and although they were manufactured actually quite organic in a way if you really stop and think about what organic even means in the context of pop music? What if, they squealed, we could RECREATE the Spice Girls with music that wasn’t as good and girls who weren’t as inspiring, FOR MONEY? 

They all wet themselves in unison when they thought of all the money they’d make. 

And so a new generation of girl bands rose from the ashes of the Spice Girls. Some were Genuinely Fantastic (Girls Aloud), some were Pretty Abysmal (B*Witched), some were So Terrible They Were Actually Quite Enjoyable (Atomic Kitten). But none were quite like the Sugababes. 

Three working class girls, Mutya, Keisha and Siobhan, were walking home from school one day when they stumbled into a deep, dark recording studio owned by nefarious sea witch Ron Tom. “Come, my pretties,” croaked Ron Tom, “I will make you rich and famous and beyond your wildest dreams!” “Um, cool?” said the girls in unison, “we’d sort of rather just sing though, because we’re all quite good at it?” Ron Tom laughed, and laughed, and laughed. What a funny joke, he thought. 

The three girls became known as the Sugababes, because originality wasn’t important to Ron Tom or the sea witch overlords at London Records, and to everyone’s Shock! And Surprise! they released a Really Very Good Indeed first album. However, because the general public are largely morons, they sold roughly 17 copies of their RVGI first album. The sea witch and his overlords were most displeased. 

Meanwhile, the Sugababes had bigger problems. Fighting! Arguing! Chaos! Like so many bands before them, they had fallen prey to the cancer which rips through pop groups… Infighting. No one really knows what went on behind the closed doors of Ron Tom’s ocean cavern, but legend says that the youngest Sugababe, Keisha, bullied the whitest Sugababe, Siobhan, so viciously that she escaped the ocean cavern by crawling out of a window (that bit apparently actually did happen you can look it up not the ocean cavern mind you but the window). 

The sea witch overlords were most displeased and they dropped the Sugababes. 

But! A shining ray of hope at the end of the tunnel appeared! Atlantic Records swept ashore a new contract and a brand new member, Heidi! Heidi was perfect, the slightly less withered sea witch overlords at Atlanic Records promised! She had been in ATOMIC KITTEN, they gushed! She would make you LIKEABLE, the cried! WHAT IS THE POINT IN LIVING IF PEOPLE DON’T LIKE YOU, they screeched, their masks falling slightly and their sea witch overlord noses poking out! 

And so for four blissful years, the Sugababes ruled British pop. They sold a lot more than 17 copies of their next three albums, each one going double platinum, and scoring 5 number one singles. They had made POP MUSIC, they sea overlords cackled, that GROWN UPS AND CHILDREN could listen to. They wet themselves again, because of how much money they were making. 

But the Sugababes were Unhappy. Rumours of infighting, bullying, ferocious arguments about Britney Spears’ Toxic (you can look that up too that’s true as well) followed them wherever they went, and they were branded moody, miserable, nasty, mean girls. How awful, cried the British press, festering in pools of their own shit, that women would not be instantly likeable? IT SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED, they howled, shit filling their mouths. 

So the Sugababes were dogged by bad press and quite possibly the fact that they actually didn’t really like each other because okay they were quite different people all things considered, and eventually, after the birth of her first child, Mutya left the band. 

Darkness fell across the kingdom once again. What would the sea witch overlords do now? Their pot of gold appeared to be washing out to sea, and who, oh who, would bring it back to them. 

Until a second dastardly plan was hatched. Why not, wondered the sea witch overlords, just replace her? It worked once? Beyoncé did it 412 times with her back up dancers in Destiny’s Child? We couldn’t get away with it… they wondered… could we? They did. Amelle was introduced to the band, and in a strange twist of fate, she was exactly like Mutya, only not quite as good, but really who was paying attention anyway?

And for another four years, the Sugababes trundled along, not quite as magical as they once were, but equally commercially successful, so WHO CARED? They pocketed more number one singles and platinum albums, made more money, faced more press scrutiny for supposedly not being perfect little ladies who always smiled and curtsied, business continued as usual. 

But before our Babes of Suga could count their considerable number of coins, a new evil appeared on the horizon… infamous shit monger, Jay-Z, and his band of cretins, Roc Nation. Like so many before and after them, the Sugababes were seduced by the bright lights and empty promises of Roc Nation. “I’ll make you a star!” cried Jay-Z, stroking Becky’s good hair. “I’ll make your wildest dreams come true!” The babes were seduced. 

And so Roc Nation and Jay-Z set to work stripping away everything that made the Sugababes unique and interesting and replacing it with literal festering garbage produced by RedOne, who by now it was known, wasn’t actually an interesting musician but had been bolstered by the considerable talent of Lady Gaga and got the credit for Just Dance, Poker Face and Bad Romance because he was a Man and she was a Woman, so he had to be the brains of the operation, right? 

The Sugababes became a national laughing stock, and their ‘comeback’ single, the appropriately awfully titled Get Sexy, was ridiculed far and wide across the land of Great Britain. The British press rolled around in their own shit laughing uproariously. “Ha, ha, ha!” the cried, “How we love to tear women down!” their own shit caked in their own hair. 

But a worse disaster would surely fall upon our Sugababes. Amidst the critical disaster of their new material, two of the Babes were scheming and plotting against the other, whom the goblins at Roc Nation were said to have favoured over the two other bitter and forgotten members of the group. Amelle and Heidi launched a plan, a dastardly, dastardly plan to oust the only remaining founding member of the band and seize the glory for themselves. 

They crept quietly into the sea witch’s cave. 

They tiptoed silently up the cracked stone steps. 

They shuffled noiselessly across to the sleeping sea witch. 

They whispered breathlessly into his ear. 

“Oh sea witch, we’ve been so sad,” they intoned, “The nasty girl has been so bad. Send her away, sea witch,” they begged. 

The sea witch woke with a start, and immediately set to work carrying out the wishes of Bitter Babes because he didn’t have the foresight to imagine what a monumental cock-up that would turn out to be, despite literally every other person who worked in the industry at the time saying, “hmm, maybe don’t do that, because she’s the last founding member of the group and the shit gremlins from The Sun and The Daily Mail might just assassinate you?” 

But listen he did not, and Keisha had been sent away in a cloud of shame and dishonour. The shit gremlins at The Sun and The Daily Mail (and even the slightly less shit-covered gremlins at publications like The Guardian, which was quite interesting really, because who’d have thought The Guardian would care about this really?) stayed true to form, and fired off their canons of diarrhoea in the direction of the sea witch’s cavern. 

Keisha was replaced by someone who’s name I genuinely can’t remember and that should tell you all you need to know about her, and the kingdom of the Sugababes crumbled in a heap of total and utter misery and mediocrity. Their final album, released without Keisha, received such rave reviews as “bland, soulless, and repetitive”, and the Roc Nation goblins promptly dropped the band on their shiny behinds. 

The nation of Great Britain wept. In the streets, the children screamed. The profits cried, and the poets dreamed. Not a work was spoken, the church bells all were broken. Who would save us from this misery? Who would restore peace to our land? 

Three long, dark years passed. Years characterised by no joy, no laughter, no love. 

But then, just as the land had given up hope, and collectively lay down to die, on the New Year’s Eve of 2013, a miracle happened. In a tiny club in Central London, three young women took to the stage for the first time in 12 years, with one simple mission. To save pop music. 

Mutya. 

Keisha. 

Siobhan. 

The original Sugababes (now called MKS for a variety of legal reasons but of course they branded it as the desire for a fresh start and no one really argued because WHO CARED THEY WERE BACK) had reformed. Ne’er a brighter day had shone across our fair land. They grass grew back, the trees blossomed, our winter of discontent had ended. 

They toured, performing Sugababes songs both old and new, taking a fresh control of their legacy and promising the nation that they’d be remembered not as the band who kept splitting up, but the band who GOT BACK TOGETHER! OH HAPPY DAY! That summer the three young women released the finest pop song known to man, ‘Flatline’, ahead of their sure-to-be unstoppable return album. Nothing could go wrong, nothing stood in their way now, the saviours of pop music had arrived in the world’s unlikeliest trio! Anything felt POSSIBLE!

and then they split up again without releasing the album because no one bought the fucking single the end

[richincolor]

Poetry Month

Some readers avoid poetry, but I run toward it with open arms so Poetry Month makes me smile. Here are a few of the newest poetry books I’ve been enjoying.

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo HarperTeen [Audrey’s Review]

A young girl in Harlem discovers slam poetry as a way to understand her mother’s religion and her own relationship to the world. Debut novel of renowned slam poet Elizabeth Acevedo.

Xiomara Batista feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood. Ever since her body grew into curves, she has learned to let her fists and her fierceness do the talking.

But Xiomara has plenty she wants to say, and she pours all her frustration and passion onto the pages of a leather notebook, reciting the words to herself like prayers—especially after she catches feelings for a boy in her bio class named Aman, who her family can never know about. With Mami’s determination to force her daughter to obey the laws of the church, Xiomara understands that her thoughts are best kept to herself.

So when she is invited to join her school’s slam poetry club, she doesn’t know how she could ever attend without her mami finding out, much less speak her words out loud. But still, she can’t stop thinking about performing her poems.

Because in the face of a world that may not want to hear her, Xiomara refuses to be silent.

For Every One by Jason Reynolds Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books

Originally performed at the Kennedy Center for the unveiling of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, and later as a tribute to Walter Dean Myers, this stirring and inspirational poem is New York Times bestselling author and National Book Award finalist Jason Reynolds’s rallying cry to the dreamers of the world.

For Every One is just that: for every one. For every one person. For every one dream. But especially for every one kid. The kids who dream of being better than they are. Kids who dream of doing more than they almost dare to dream. Kids who are like Jason Reynolds, a self-professed dreamer. Jason does not claim to know how to make dreams come true; he has, in fact, been fighting on the front line of his own battle to make his own dreams a reality. He expected to make it when he was sixteen. Then eighteen. Then twenty-five. Now, some of those expectations have been realized. But others, the most important ones, lay ahead, and a lot of them involve kids, how to inspire them. All the kids who are scared to dream, or don’t know how to dream, or don’t dare to dream because they’ve NEVER seen a dream come true. Jason wants kids to know that dreams take time. They involve countless struggles. But no matter how many times a dreamer gets beat down, the drive and the passion and the hope never fully extinguish—because just having the dream is the start you need, or you won’t get anywhere anyway, and that is when you have to take a leap of faith.

A pitch perfect graduation, baby, or love my kid gift.

Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books

A cannon. A strap. A piece. A biscuit. A burner. A heater. A chopper. A gat. A hammer A tool for RULE

Or, you can call it a gun. That’s what fifteen-year-old Will has shoved in the back waistband of his jeans. See, his brother Shawn was just murdered. And Will knows the rules. No crying. No snitching. Revenge. That’s where Will’s now heading, with that gun shoved in the back waistband of his jeans, the gun that was his brother’s gun. He gets on the elevator, seventh floor, stoked. He knows who he’s after. Or does he?

As the elevator stops on the sixth floor, on comes Buck. Buck, Will finds out, is who gave Shawn the gun before Will took the gun. Buck tells Will to check that the gun is even loaded. And that’s when Will sees that one bullet is missing. And the only one who could have fired Shawn’s gun was Shawn. Huh. Will didn’t know that Shawn had ever actually used his gun. Bigger huh. BUCK IS DEAD. But Buck’s in the elevator?

Just as Will’s trying to think this through, the door to the next floor opens. A teenage girl gets on, waves away the smoke from Dead Buck’s cigarette. Will doesn’t know her, but she knew him. Knew. When they were eight. And stray bullets had cut through the playground, and Will had tried to cover her, but she was hit anyway, and so what she wants to know, on that fifth floor elevator stop, is, what if Will, Will with the gun shoved in the back waistband of his jeans, MISSES.

And so it goes, the whole long way down, as the elevator stops on each floor, and at each stop someone connected to his brother gets on to give Will a piece to a bigger story than the one he thinks he knows. A story that might never know an END…if WILL gets off that elevator.

Solo by Kwame Alexander & Mary Rand Hess Blink [Crystal’s Review]

When the heart gets lost, let the music find you.

Blade never asked for a life of the rich and famous. In fact, he’d give anything not to be the son of Rutherford Morrison, a washed-up rock star and drug addict with delusions of a comeback. Or to no longer be part of a family known most for lost potential, failure, and tragedy. The one true light is his girlfriend, Chapel, but her parents have forbidden their relationship, assuming—like many—that Blade will become just like his father.

In reality, the only thing Blade has in common with Rutherford is the music that lives inside them. But not even the songs that flow through Blade’s soul are enough when he’s faced with two unimaginable realities: the threat of losing Chapel forever, and the revelation of a long-held family secret, one that leaves him questioning everything he thought was true. All that remains is a letter and a ticket to Ghana—both of which could bring Blade the freedom and love he’s been searching for, or leave him feeling even more adrift.

And here are a few on my TBR:

It’s Not Like It’s a Secret by Misa Sigiura HarperTeen

*Not a book of poetry, but it does include poems*

Sixteen-year-old Sana Kiyohara has too many secrets. Some are small, like how it bothers her when her friends don’t invite her to parties. Some are big, like that fact that she’s pretty sure her father’s having an affair. And then there’s the one that she barely even admits to herself, the one about how she might have a crush on her best friend.

When Sana and her family move to California, she begins to wonder if it’s finally time for her to be honest with her friends and family, especially after she meets Jamie Ramirez. Jamie is beautiful and smart and unlike anyone Sana’s ever known before. The only problems are: Sana is pretty sure Jamie’s friends hate her, Jamie’s ex isn’t totally out of the picture, Sana’s new friend Caleb has more-than-friendly feelings for her, and things with her dad feel like they’re coming to a head. She always figured that the hardest thing would be to tell people that she wanted to date a girl, but as she quickly learns, telling the truth is easy…what comes after it, though, is a whole lot more complicated.

Voices in the Air by Naomi Shihab Nye Greenwillow Books

Acclaimed and award-winning poet, teacher, and National Book Award finalist Naomi Shihab Nye’s uncommon and unforgettable voice offers readers peace, humor, inspiration, and solace. This volume of almost one hundred original poems is a stunning and engaging tribute to the diverse voices past and present that comfort us, compel us, lead us, and give us hope.

Voices in the Air is a collection of almost one hundred original poems written by the award-winning poet Naomi Shihab Nye in honor of the artists, writers, poets, historical figures, ordinary people, and diverse luminaries from past and present who have inspired her. Full of words of encouragement, solace, and hope, this collection offers a message of peace and empathy.

Voices in the Air celebrates the inspirational people who strengthen and motivate us to create, to open our hearts, and to live rewarding and graceful lives. With short informational bios about the influential figures behind each poem, and a transcendent introduction by the poet, this is a collection to cherish, read again and again, and share with others. Includes an index.

Black Girl Magic by Mahogany L. Browne with illustrations by Jess X. Snow Roaring Brook Press

Black Girl, they say you ain’t ‘posed to be here

Much of what twenty-first century culture tells black girls is not pretty: Don’t wear this; don’t smile at that. Don’t have an opinion; don’t dream big. And most of all, don’t love yourself. In response to such destructive ideas, internationally recognized poet Mahogany Browne challenges the conditioning of society by crafting an anthem of strength and magic undeniable in its bloom for all beautiful Black girls. She has travelled the world sharing her vision of Black Girl Magic, and now in collaboration with artist Jess X. Snow, presents her acclaimed tribute in a visual form.

Black Girl Magic is a journey from girlhood to womanhood and an invitation to readers to find magic in themselves.

Am I missing any great poetry books from this year or the last? Please let us know in the comments. Also, if you want to find more great poetry titles, check out our previous posts here:

Pieces of Poetry (2017)

Poetry Link Round Up (2016)

Novels in Verse (2014)

Piles of Poetry (2013)

[dying-tragedy-blog]

Modern au six of crows

Just some hcs about the dregs gang in modern times I guess

Kaz Brekker -black coffee -lock pick -honestly like the rest of them will Come in and he’ll already be inside -I’ve been waiting for you -magician -pick pockets his “allies” all the time -gloves? Yes -has a slight fear of touch -it used to be really bad but he’s Overcoming it -cane? Yes -he fell out of a tree when he was little and broke his leg so he uses his cane -plus It’s fun to hit people with - has the dregs tattoo because he loves crows and he’s an extra little shit who’s an edgelord -he’s in fights like all the time -they don’t call him dirtyhands for Nothing -so smart -has social media but only posts cryptic aesthetic shots or out of context remarks -uses his talent for evil mostly -his teachers still love him tho???? -very fascinated in psychology -and business - b o o k s -mostly crime but he’s such a closet Nerd. -you can pry Harry Potter from his Cold dead hands -hacker -loves the stars -and the moon -and Inej -has to put up with the constant -points to random crow -kaz it’s u -actually the originator of #getbrekked -will never admit it -all started when Jesper pranked him -covered every inch of his room with post stick notes. It blew up on YouTube -well the is kaz Fucking brekker -was he going to stand for that -no. -so he sets up his own YouTube account -films his first video -his revenge -he tinfoils all of jespers room. Even the socks. -the video blows up he gets tons of subscribers and his revenge -but most important from this one comment. From one account that has never been active since the tag -#getbrekked -was born. Inej Ghafa -ultimate secret keeper -knows everything tbh -the one who can just turn up out of nowhere?? -where did you come from -this place called outside -instagram queen -it’s usually loads of aesthetic shots and sunrises but every now and again there’ll be a video of her shouting parkour and chasing after a squirrel -loves to dance -jackets -hats -earrings -the best at hide and seek -only uses Snapchat for blackmail -Kaz?? Sleeping??? S n a p -keeps a photo book you can fite me on this -poems -cats -her parents took her to the circus when she was little and she fell in love with the tightrope and the acrobats -so she became great at it -really good -sometimes she does it to scare kaz -he pretends it doesn’t work but sometimes he’s so freaked out Like how are you bending your body like that??? Wtf???? -doesn’t swear -the original fricketyfrack -interested in culture history language and photography -aspiring poet -social justice - plans to start a movement when she’s old enough -tea over coffee -marshmallows

Nina Zenik -one word: queen - her and Matthias are everyone’s otp - social justice in high heels - every social media - YouTube? You bet ya - fashion hauls make up tutorials and The ever growing list of videos Featuring Matthias - likes indie music would die for Ed Sheeran - really interested in languages and fashion - she wants amazing designs to stay the same in plus sized clothes -high heels - cannot cook - at all - blew up a microwave trying to Warm up leftovers - hot chocolate and blankets - binge watching tv -somehow knows everyone??? - hey Nina - hey zoya - who’s she - oh just somebody - smart but will never revise - why revise when I can eat - grades Nina - waffles matty - red - once tried to start a band - can speak three languages Jesper Fahey - ADHD? I’m gonna say ADHD - danced but doesn’t do it seriously - mostly does it to embarrass Wylan - Jesper please - what? My hips don’t like wy - listens to shakira - huge gamer - debates - politics - he’s smart but he never tries. Prefers to argue about homework then do it - finger guns - with sound affects - 80s music - and you better believe that he once entered the classroom singing all star - constantly flirting with Wylan - freakishly good aim - hey kaz, do you bet I can throw this pencil in ninas bun from here - do it - worst and best taste in fashion simultaneously - one day it’s great. Shorts and t shirts, hats and then the next it’s lime green checkered pants. - red cowboy boots - farmer sayings - loves it when Kaz gets them - p r a n k s t e r - youtube Chanel is literally just pranks but he has so many subscribers - always puts things on the highest shelf Wylan van Eck - Wylan van sunshine or Wylan van rekt there’s no In between. - usually quite sweet and innocent but every one Knows he’s anything but. Eveynow and again these comments just slip out like - yeah that’s not the only thing Kaz wishes he could be doing - r u n - was bullied pretty bad for his dyslexia but now he just doesn’t really care??? - I’ll just draw my bullied drowning - a r t I s t - his art teacher adores him - only has tumblr to post his art work - really big on tumblr - dog person - massive nerd - superheroes?? Sign me up - amazing at chemistry and maths - puns - so many puns - you think you can beat me at mariokart? I was a lonely kid with no friends and too much free time. You will never beat me at Mario kart - fuck - watch your fucking language Wylan - sweaters - always covered in ink??? Kuwei yul bo - the odd one - he’s always there but he’s always not - the child of the group - he’s basically the weird thought you have at 4 am - not innocent - not at all - he kinda just sits back and observes - but that means he knows everything - he and Inej share so many looks - he’s a nerd in every imaginable level - him and Wylan fight over things all the time but they’re bros - has memorised the entire periodic table song - somehow has kissed more people than both Nina and Jesper - it’s 3 am and there’s a murmuring voice in the darkness - this is the periodic table nobl- - shut u p - chemistry and physics - can actually cook - rly close to matty and Nina - that one kid who purposely makes things explode - fire? FIRE - rlly bad at comebacks sometimes he just walks away

Matthias helvar - sports fan - all sports - doesn’t actually play them that much? He mostly just hits the gym - long hair - very philosophical - the mum friend - when I’m the voice of reason you know something’s wrong - can cook really well - always baking for Nina - gives the best piggybacks - everything looks so high from up here - Wylan loves it - tattoos - so many deep meaningful - he can’t go a day without saying they’re all horrible - he’s always searching for the truth - can tolerate really cold temperatures - plants - the sea - stands up for what he thinks is right - is actually how he met the crows - he was beating up some kids who were mocking someone with dyslexia - so he bears them up and when he rounds the corner guess who’s there - Kaz Fucking brekker - and so the induction starts

[worldjeongguk]

Smeraldo: What we know so far lol

The source code of the blog contains words like 스메랄도 = smeraldo and 석진꽃 = seokjin flower Ok, so the things I’m about to say are NOT PROVEN to have a relationship with BTS’s comeback, but the possibilities are high so stay with me cause I'll go quick in 5,6,7,8 (I’m so sorry)

THE STORY OF SMERALDO

credit to: @ / rosoidae on twitter! https://twitter.com/rosoidae 

There's a story called, 'La Città di smeraldo' that takes place in a small town in Italy in the 1500s-1600s. The story's about an 'ugly' man who hid in an old castle alone. Because of his looks he received lots of hate & cruelty while growing up, he never opened his heart to anyone. Whenever they tried to approach him, he hid in anger. His happiness was to plant flowers in his garden. 

One day a woman appeared near the man's castle. She jumped over the garden fence and stole a flower. this angered the man at first, so he watched his garden all night. But when he fell a sleep, the woman took another flower. This continued for several nights.

   The man pretended to be asleep and watched the woman steal a flower. He started becoming curious about the woman. He began waiting for her without realizing he kept waiting for her to come and the next day seemed a little brighter.

Following after her one day he realized that she was selling the flowers that she stole from him to make a living. The man desperately wanted to help the woman,  but he was afraid she would be terrified by the way he looks. He knew she would not love his 'grotesque' appearance.

   He came to a conclusion that the only way he would be able to help her is to let her continue stealing flowers from his garden.   The man decided to make a flower that doesn't exist on the planet, so that the woman could sell them at an expensive price.  

He began to make the flower in his castle. After many unsuccessful attempts, the man made a flower that didn't exist and filled his garden,but the woman stopped coming. No matter how long he waited, she never came to his garden. He eventually found out that the woman had died.

BigHit representatives revealed that bts' next comeback's theme will be about loving yourself. In the story the man did not love himself.   If he had loved himself he could have showed his face to the woman, and helped her before she had passed away.

THE RELATION TO BTS’S COMEBACK! (This is messy pls stay with me lol. AGAIN: CREDITS TO ALL OWNERS, MESSAGE ME IF YOU WANT ME TO TAKE IT DOWN! :))  For the upcoming paragraph, credits to: @ / rosoidae on Twitter

 Jin tweeted a selca today, holding the Smeraldo flowers. These flowers were, according to a screenshot, discovered on june 12, 2013; the day of BTS’s debut showcase stage.  The screenshot:

It's  석진시 (seokjin o'clock = 12:04 because his birthday is december 4th) at the top of this screenshot (credits to @ /  xuichi on Twitter)

On Instagram, there is an account called flowersmeraldo (https://www.instagram.com/flowersmeraldo/)

It has posted a picture, that says in korean: “The true feelings that could not be expressed” The handwriting looks oddly like Jin’s writing, check for yourself:

This account is believed to be owned by BTS, posting hints.

With the (fake) discovery of this smeraldo flower, the florist "Testesso" is gonna "open" a flower shop mid-september, I smell a comeback. (Check their captions and bio for more info since my Korean is very very poor!) 

The name of the blog is “te stesso”. If you translate the Italian phrase: “Ama te stesso” into English, you get “love yourself.” Haven’t we heard this before, guys? 

In every post, there’s a link to a certain website: www.flowersmeraldo.com This website leads you to a Korean Naver blog, which is also (obviously) believed to be owned by BTS.

The name of the blog is “te stesso”. If you translate the Italian phrase: “Ama te stesso” into English, you get “love yourself.” Haven’t we heard this before, guys?  Also,the meaning of the Smeraldo flower is "non potevo dire la verità,” which means "i couldn't tell the truth" or "the truth i couldn't tell.” They also have that phrase repeated on both the IG page and the blog itself.

Apparently Hobi once posted the source of the blog, and 

( credits to @ / ctrlbeat on twitter!) (upcoming info completely comes from their account!)

the source code of the blog contains words like:

 스메랄도 = smeraldo, and

석진꽃 = seokjin flower

The blog posted an event asking people to submit stories with confessions to family or anyone and 7 people's stories will be relayed. The winner’s will receive a special gift (Apparently a bouquet and a card or something? I’m not sure and also tired)

The stories have to be emailed and submitted before august 15th, 10pm kst. The last Bon Voyage episode also happens to be on this day. Maybe it’s a special date? :)

There are 7 episodes on the blog explaining the history of Smeraldo and the 5th mentions a "William Ashbless" who is a fictional character, and a poet. The fictional William Ashbless from Italy created playing cards and the blog mentions "The flower card", influenced by Smeraldo flowers.  

The Smeraldo flowers were supposedly discovered in "La Città di smeraldo" = "The emerald city", commonly known from Wizard of Oz.

Lastly, this blog was created july 4, 2017, on the same day the BTS logo video was released.

 THE SMERALDO ACADEMY // FACEBOOK

It’s about to get even more confusing, I’m so sorry~

Well, The Smeraldo Acadamey, TSA for short, is a fictional academy. The academy was originally founded on sept. 12th 2013, on Rap Monster’s birthday. The first attendee was ‘Inbloom BTS’ Screenshot:

 As you can see in the screenshot, their fourth anniversary is this year. So is BTS’s. Coincidence? I think not. 

if you email academysmeraldo@gmail (from the TSA FaceBook page) you get a reply from "Ashbless Will"

On the FaceBook page, there is also a post about Hawaii. Bon Voyage, I guess?

(credits to user @ / nvrwlkln on Twitter) 

Here is the conference schedule:

(credits to user @ / beiataehung on Twitter)  

RANDOM CLUES!

We have arrived at the last paragraph of my longest post in the history of Tumblr, I’m proud of you for getting through all that!

The flowers on the edges of HYYH part 1 and 2, may be Smeraldo’s.

(credits to user @ / shinebrightRM on Twitter!)

In the I Need U MV, do you guys remember Jin holding flower petals. Right. You see where I’m taking this. Also, they used EXACTLY the same flowers/flower petals in the I Need U shoot. Here are some pictures:

(credits to user @ / namjoonned on Twitter!)

There’s also a Twitter account to match the blog and the Instagram account, https://twitter.com/FlowerSmeraldo . This account has posted something just 11 hours ago. Sadly enough I can’t really read Korean. Their last post said something about being open in September (I can SMELL a comeback)

(END OF POST. ALL CREDITS GO TO ORIGINAL OWNERS. I CLAIM NOTHING OF THE ABOVE AS MY OWN (despite the shit that I figured out myself thx). IF YOU WANT ME TO REMOVE STH, MESSAGE ME! I WILL REMOVE YOUR CONTENT! THANKS FOR SHARING THIS INFO WITH US!

CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE OFFICIALLY MADE IT TO THE END AND AS OF NOW, YOU ARE COMPLETELY UPDATED ON THE ONGOING THEORIES! I hoped you enjoyed reading it because I put A LOT of time and effort into translating, looking up, and overall typing to create this post. Let me know what you think about their upcoming comeback, because I’m super excited :)

And to BTS, if you’re reading this you owe me some aspirins (and some love) because I got a headache of all this typing damnit i love you bye

[balarouge]

The Account Behind Edmonton's Boreal Electroacoustic Popular music Society|Pathway Edmonton

Whether you are actually a fan or even artist along with an affinity for the impressive and avant-garde, looking for like-minded souls, there's merely been actually one Edmonton continual over the final 3 many years-- the Boreal Electroacoustic Songs Culture, aka LIGHT BEAMS.

Since its own starting in 1989 through a group of CJSR DJs, BEAMS has actually been devoted to the development and promotion of experimental sound-oriented craft. The charitable culture places on numerous concerts around town a year, contains sessions and periodically discharges audios by its own participants, which feature not merely specialist performers as well as authors considering pushing the borders of popular music, yet functionality artists, dancers and poets.

This kind of inclusiveness is one of the core canons of the culture.

"Regardless of the kind of trial and error you enjoy, there's room for you in BEAMS," points out Shawn Pinchbeck, the present president of the association. "Some people enjoy analog synthesizers, others enjoy sound music, and also then there are actually individuals like me, that are into sound compositions, where we take sounds found on the planet unconfined and also switch them into music items."

Pinchbeck, that presently deals with an audio workshop and instructs courses in songs innovation at Grand Plain Regional College, is actually a pioneer in Edmonton's speculative popular music scene. He's belonged to BEAMS due to the fact that its own beginning, even functioning as the company's head of state for a time frame in the '90s prior to starting his second assignment in the role in 2017.

Having actually looked into the fringes of sound fine art since the '80s, Pinchbeck has actually helped spread out the word regarding Alberta's electroacoustic neighborhood with his journeys, which have taken him all over the globe-- he's played display in Europe as well as has spoken in Estonia, Finland and also Latvia.

RAY OF LIGHTS is actually almost as old as Edmonton's digital popular music performance on its own.

"There was actually fairly a big digital popular music setting in Edmonton in the very early '80s," Pinchbeck recollects. "A handful of bands were participating in electronic songs reside, and also Marcel Dion had a radio program on CJSR contacted Partings that played speculative music. Our experts were actually all affected due to the music he was actually spinning on his series, so our experts began making our very own variations of it."

For Pinchbeck, his passion in technology drives him to experiment musically.

"There's a great deal being actually developed in regards to the innovation made use of to make songs nowadays, the opportunities regarding what you may find out and also carry out with it are actually boundless," he says. "I possess a Ph.D in electroacoustic songs, yet I seem like I have actually merely scratched the surface of what there is actually to find out about it."

Other artists have actually built a much deeper gratitude for experimental songs after finding out BEAMS, like Chris Samsonow, who additionally works as the culture's treasurer.

"I was a follower of a handful of performers that helped make speculative songs growing, however it wasn't up until I found out about BEAM OF LIGHTS that I ended up being passionate regarding it," he mentions. "The people involved along with the society truly motivate you to be actually as imaginative as achievable."

"I presume it is essential to be your distinct personal as well as certainly not merely follow what everyone else performs," he carries on, clarifying just how BEAMS has helped him drive his very own music limits.

This is actually the niche market that BEAMS completes Edmonton-- it works as a main hub for performers with an unshakeable impulse to explore the unexplored. "Our company pleasure our own selves in doing something different," points out Samsonow. "I'm not knowledgeable about a similar organization in Edmonton that blends experimental fine art and audio in the way that we carry out."

This previous July, Samsonow aided arrange a totally free outside concert to celebrate the association's 30th wedding anniversary. It is actually an accomplishment that still hasn't fairly sunk in yet for the group, whose subscription has varied from 30 approximately participants at its own smallest to practically 100 today.

Along with the proliferation of social networking sites over the final years, in addition to the simple fact experimental music remains to increase both as a musical style and a subculture-- EDM (electronic dance songs), some of the category's additional mainstream incarnations, experienced a huge comeback over the last years-- BEAMS has managed to spread its notification additionally than ever previously, and also its own registration continues to grow. However also at its leanest, there's always been actually a tight-knit and also enthusiastic bedrock of members that has kept BEAM OF LIGHTS going.

"It is actually totally insane," states Pinchbeck, reflecting on the three many years that BEAMS has actually existed. "There are no other groups like it in Canada, as well as it mentions something regarding each Edmonton and also Alberta that our team've taken care of to keep it rolling for all these years. There's a larger act currently than there is actually ever been. We wish it keeps growing, and our company intend to remain to belong of it."

This content was originally published here.

[kr-writing]

17 on Tumblr (Jun)

hohoho here is the requested Jun on Tumblr! can you believe I actually got around to continuing this series lmaO

*cracks knuckles* *rubs hands*

let’s get started hohoho

okay so we all know Jun reads novels online and what not right

and seventeen has shamelessly, on a few occasions, admitted to searching themselves up online

so one day, Jun, being, well, JUN, searches up a fanfic about himself and he’s casually scrolling through naver when a title catches his eye

and it’s a posted on tumblr fic

at first he’s all like “????????” and innocently wonders what tumblr is, but then he asks vernon who then widens his eyes because yknow tumblr is mainly known for porn

he decides to venture into the unknown anyway

he starts off by reading the fic that got him there in the first place, and wow is he hooked

he kinda forgets that he’s the main character because it feels so surreal and different but at the same time similar to his own personality

but damn! he’s enjoying this fanfic way more than he should be

(don’t imagine an emo wen junhui staring at his phone intently at 3am about to internally explode because fic-him and the oc are giving each other the cold shoulder)

(and don’t imagine him stifling his laughs with a pillow to avoid waking up the other members)

yeah 

don’t

and let’s face it, he probably didn’t realise tumblr existed as a mobile app until he finished reading the entire fic

when he realises it is a mobile app he’s so excited and literally falls over himself downloading it

his username is probably some shit like “wjhui179696″

he searches up the fanfic that he read by the title, and finds the blog that posted it

and he’s awestruck

the blog is so pretty and the theme is so warm and the description is so nice and!!!!!!!

THE HEADER PICTURE IS A GIF OF HIM SMILING BRIGHTLY WITH SO MUCH JOY

he falls in love instantly

guess who owns that blog

that’s right

you

and you don’t just post 17 fanfics, you also post a great deal of other writings and poems and short stories, but your svt stuff always seemed like the only things that got reblogs so you stopped writing your poems and stuff for a while and focused more on the fics

and wen junhui is so enamored he finds himself scrolling through your entire blog and looking through all your pre-svt stuff and he’s like

shit not only are they a seventeen fan, they’re also generally just a really good author and poet who puts out really meaningful things!

and you have this one poem written in chinese for a module you took a long time ago and it’s so beautiful 

that jun took a quote from that poem and used it as his kkt status

obsession?? noOooOoOOooo what psh

anyways

he notices you don’t write such stuff anymore and he gets kinda sad 

so he sends you an anon ask that goes “Hello I’m a new follower but I realised that you stopped posting your original poems and short stories after a while, is it okay if you let me know why?”

and you receive the ask and !!! you didn’t actually think anyone would notice that you stopped putting out those poems and stories because they never got many notes anyways

you’re kinda touched and a small grin forms on your face because someone actually noticed? 

and you reply with 

“nah it’s nothing I just thought people would rather read my 17 fics instead. but thank you so much for sending this ask in”

jun reads it an d lmao guess what he says

“Oh if that’s the reason then just send those poems to me! I’d be more than happy to be your only audience ;-)”

FROM 0 TO 100 REAL QUICK WEN JUNHUI

and you’re at this point giggling and smiling to yourself because THIS ANON IS SO GREASY AND THEY’RE ONLY ON ANON but they’re also really cute so you reply with 

“sure but first reveal your username ;-)”

so he messages you with a “wassup i’m the ;-) anon”

and from then on blooms a beautiful beautiful mutual friendship thing

like it’s super cute because the both of you tag each other in 17 shit and other funny stuff and while jun always knows the 17 stuff beforehand (because, he’s well, part of seventeen), he always finds himself chuckling at the stuff you tag him in

not to forget you keep by your agreement and send him a bunch of your poems and stuff, and he’s always so happy and ! to read them

plus he’s always really excited to check the message you leave him, especially if svt had a really grueling schedule and he was dead tired and exhausted

and he finds himself being more drawn to your personality as y’all talked more and more??

you’re also under the impression that his name is wendy because when you first asked for his name he typed wen and then regretted it immediately so he did a Save and now he’s wendy

ok fast forward a few months

jun just had a comeback and he’s dead tired

you still don’t know he’s The Wen Junhui

(also he has a habit of referring to himself as The Handsome One)

(and Hot Boy 101)

(and Sizzling Shenzhen Babe)

the list goes on

but one day you message him and you’re kinda curious about how he looks like so you’re all like

“hey Muscle Man shouldn’t you at least show me your face once and let me see for myself how hot you actually are?”  

“sorry y/n i’m really tired now, another time maybe?”

but you don’t think he’s being serious so you say “lmao then what bout a skype call? you can just sleep and i’ll just stare at your face, we both win”

when jun reads your message he gets upset and disappointed because! he’d just gone through a day of shit from everyone

he had to deal with recording for an hour because woozi wasn’t pleased with his one line

and he had to suffer through hoshi’s relentless nagging and tiring choreography

and he thought maybe opening up tumblr would make him happier but instead he came on to see you asking for a pic and not even taking no for an answer???

so he’s just like 

you know what fuck it i’m just going to stop replying them

anyway it’s not like they can know i’m wen junhui

so boom

jun ignores you for a good whole week

but then !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

in that week you actually manage to get tickets for seventeen’s fansign !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

you’re so pumped and hyped because YOU FINALLY GET TO MEET JUN AND !!!

he’s the literal love of your life how can you not get really excited

except, you still feel kinda shit because wendy (jun) hasn’t replied you for ages

okay maybe it’s just a week but still

so before you go for the fansign you drop wendy (jun) a message telling him that you finally get to meet your idols and that you’re sad he can’t be with you :’)

and then right before he gets onto the fansign stage, jun reads the message

he panics for a while but manages to stay calm because lmao its not like they know i’m their online friend psh it’s all aight

but when he gets up there he sees a person sitting in a corner alone, with no fancy dslr but a small iphone camera, eagerly waiting for him to come out and 

he knows that’s you

you look so happy yet slightly :( and he can’t help but feel slightly guilty

so when it comes to your turn with jun,

you tell him how much you adore and love him (at this, jun blushes and eye smiles) but then you ask him for advice on how to apologise to a friend

and he goes from :-D to :-( real quick

because although that confirmed his suspicions about you being his amazing author memey mutual, he felt really really bad about making you feel shitty

so he’s like “wait let me show you a magic trick”

“take out your phone”

“you wanna apologise through text right?”

at this you nod your head fervently 

jun takes out his phone too

and he’s like “okay go to your chat, and on 1,2,3...”

a new message bubble pops up and 

“why use facetime when the real deal’s in front of you?” 

he shows you his phone screen with the exact same chat log as yours

and you’re just like !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHAT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

he smirks and puts a finger to his lips

“sh’’

when the fansign ends, you’re so certain that it’s all a dream that you check your phone again

at this point another message pops up 

it’s an selfie of jun at the fansign location with his finger poking a far off image of you in the background

“how’s this for a picture? get home safely ah my dear carat! ;-)”

and that’s when you realise your mutual’s name isn’t wendy, but wen jun hui

!!!!!!! finally done with 3/13 of this series! i’ll finish the rest and update the masterlist in my free time so please be patient!

requests are open!

love, jyn