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johannesviii · 2 years ago

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Top 10 Personal Favorite Hit Songs from 2022

Another pretty decent year for pop music ; a very slow one, with a lot of trash, but the good stuff was so good making a top 10 took me ages, unlike 2021 where it was way easier. Outside of the top 100, some incredible stuff dropped this year too, so yeah - even if the charts don't always reflect it, music as a whole is currently very interesting to follow.

Disclaimers / Rules:

I’m using both the year-end top 100 lists from the US and from France while making these lists. There’s songs that charted in my country way higher than they did in the US, or even earlier or later, so that might get surprising at times.

No song that I already put on a previous list is elligible.

No old hit song that is re-charting due to a holiday or a trend is elligible either.

Of course there will probably be stuff in French somewhere on this post. We suck. I know. It’s my list. Deal with it.

My musical tastes have always been terrible.

I have sound-to-color synesthesia which justifies nothing but might explain why I have trouble describing some songs in other terms than visual ones.

So. Uh. Again, again. How was your 2022??

Still didn't catch covid but I did catch a very nasty cold a month ago. Still drawing and writing a lot, and also spending more and more time customising my clothes with dumb patches and embroidered messages and stuff.

I went to a LOT of concerts this year, and they were all fantastic for completely different reasons! I'm so glad I finally have the budget to do this without feeling guilty or cutting down some more vital stuff. So yeah. I went to see My Chemical Romance, The Soft Moon, Sigur Ros, Placebo and Enter Shikari. Before that the last concert I had attended was VNV Nation all the way back in 2019!

Speaking of which, let’s start with the good or interesting albums that came out in 2022 or in late 2021, and this is going to be pretty long.

Albums

I have to mention that I tried to get into Ghost this year. It's definitely not for me apart from a couple of songs, but also, Impera was pretty bad. Probably wasn't a good idea to start listening to these guys in their current era.

I also have to mention that I've been thoroughly disappointed by Mainstream Sellout, because I'm one of those weirdos who actually liked Tickets to my Downfall by Machine Gun Kelly. But yeah, the guy became self-aware, and that's the worst thing that could possibly happen. Awful. Emo Girl is unintentionally funny, though.

Not sure this counts as an "album" since it's an EP, and a five minutes-long one at that, but Snake Eyes by 100 Gecs made me even more excited for their new album in 2023.

Electric Callboy's Tekkno is dumb and funny in all the right ways and I'm glad they got so much positive attention out of it. That's trolling with actual effort and passion put into it and it's kind of a lost art form at this point. The music videos are amazing too.

Rakshak by Bloodywood is exactly the kind of thing Nu Metal needed to move forward and I love the fact that energy came from India, of all places. A lot of fresh ideas, generally interesting topics and politics ; I'm sold. This is great. More, please.

Muna by uh Muna didn't leave much of an impression on me at first but I kept thinking about it and I eventually came back to it to relisten to it several times later in the year. I'm not sure what it means. Probably something good, though. Maybe it will be one of my faves of the year in retrospect..? Also it's very gay, which never hurts.

I'm somewhat conflicted about Being Funny in a Foreign Language by The 1975. Objectively, it's probably their best album ; it's straightforward, it's very well produced, it has a couple of bangers. Subjectively, I'm not even sure I'd place it above Notes on a Conditional Form, which if you recall was a GIGANTIC MESS, just because the highs of this mess were stratospheric compared to the ones the new album has. Still really good, but I miss the chaos.

Death's Dynamic Shroud's Dark Life has SO MANY different ideas going in so many different directions it's kind of a miracle that the album stays so coherent. The colors and the textures are sometimes so complex and layered that just listening to them to try to pick them apart becomes a stim to me. Beautiful.

I only found this album last month but Dimensional Bleed by Holy Fawn is one of the best post rock things I've ever heard since Sigur Ros stopped releasing new music

Exister by The Soft Moon comes so close to being my album of the year. SO close. Among all the musicians trying to become the new Trent Reznor, this guy's the only credible candidate for me, just because he's not afraid to try really weird shit. When I saw him live in October, the last thing he played had a castanets solo over huge electronic beats. And it went hard as hell! I sincerely hope his future stuff will be even better. I'm sold.

But uh. Guys. I'm sorry.

I'm so predictable. Never Let Me Go, Placebo's comeback album, is my favorite album of the year. Of course, when one of my favorite bands ever decided to release new music after nearly ten years of nothing, I was thrilled, but also worried it would disappoint me. The first singles were amazing, but what if? What if the rest of the album wasn't as good? And yet, by the time it was over, I was trying to determine if it was my third or fourth fave album in their discography. Even now, I'd only put Meds and Sleeping With Ghosts above this one. It's distinctly them, but full of new and interesting ideas. I'm beyond happy things turned out so well.

Unelligible Songs

There's a TON of them! Because that year was very good! This is kind of a non-hits rec list of sorts, but you know the drill.

Should I start with some Gecs? I feel like I should start with some Gecs. So here's Doritos and Fritos, Hey Big Man and Torture Me. You're welcome.

While we're at it, if you've never watched any of the recent Electric Callboy music videos, your day is about to get slightly better. I suggest Pump It and Spaceman. Also both are actually good songs on top of being funny.

I might have trashtalked Ghost's new album earlier but Spillways is like Poison 2.0. That's a compliment by the way

I've not always enjoyed what these guys made post-Hot Fuss, but Boy by the Killers should definitely have been a hit.

What I Want by Muna also has this "should have been a huge hit" aura. I'm feeling every line of this chorus in my bones. Best song about delayed adolescence for queer people

Are we making a list of songs that should have been hits? Let me add Metric with What feels like eternity, then

However, American Teenager by Ethel Cain might still have a slight chance of becoming a hit song in the future. I want to believe

Hey do you want some cringe. Cause here's Slaughterhouse by Motionless In White oops

JEZEBEEEEEEEEEEL IF YOU'RE THE HUNTER THEN I'M THE PREYYYYYY

At this point I'm pretty sure I've listened to Precious Hearts by The Birthday Massacre for about six hours over the course of 2022 but since I'm an old idiot who only listens to music through .mp3 files and doesn't use spotify I have no way to check

My very first contact with Bloodywood was Dana Dan, and what a first impression that was. Turn the subtitles on, by the way.

Go_A dropped an absolute banger called Kalyna at the very start of the Ukraine war and it might just be their best track so far.

I am legally obligated to mention The Foundations of Decay by My Chemical Romance. Is it their best song? Hell no. Is it mixed like shit? Yes. Is it way to long? Absolutely. Do I enjoy it? Immensely. Also it had no music video and no promotion. What a power move

Nurture by Porter Robinson, which I mentioned last year as one of my favorite albums in a year full of incredible ones, was still one of my most listened-to albums of 2022, so it feels right to mention a song he released outside of any album this year (Everything Goes On).

Avantasia is back, with a..... an album I didn't like very much, oops, but damn, The Moonflower Society is one of their best songs ever. Long live ridiculous over-the-top power metal with super-serious poetry as lyrics.

Born Yesterday by Quadeca sounds like Sigur Ros trying to make a radio-friendly song, and it sounds absolutely immaculate. Also it's about someone who killed himself just before his birthday and his ghosts deeply regrets that decision

This is not the end by Gareth Emery might be standard EDM, but it's also genuinely comforting to hear these lyrics

I need to put a break here otherwise Tumblr won't let me post this thing. Are you still there? Ok good.

El Alma Que Te Trajo (Safety Trance ft. Arca). Send tweet

It's kind of funny that emo came back a couple of years ago through 8-o-8's and sad rappers with face tattoos. It's even funnier that I genuinely enjoyed some of their stuff. It's even-even funnier that some of them are straight-up doing pop punk stuff now. All of this to say that I love Girl Next Door by Lil Lotus

If you've followed anything in the metal scene this year you already know that Lorna Shore absolutely killed it in 2022. Hell yeah let's put some melodies in deathcore, I'm all for it. Anyway Sun//Eater is great

I should probably recommend some cool music that cool people like before I humiliate myself further by recommending more edgy shit, so this is the perfect time to say that Judgment Bolt, Neon Memories and Messe de E-102 are now permanently etched somewhere in my brain. Seriously please listen to Darklife by Death's Dynamic Shroud if you have the slightest, smallest interest in electronic music I beg you

Ok back to the cringe. Speaking of neons, here's Neon Grave by Dayseeker. I've never liked a song by these guys before so this was a bit of a surprise for me

Also I've listened to it again and again but I still want to cry every time I hear This is what you wanted by Placebo. Not sure why it's my absolute favorite track on an album full of fantastic tracks. Not sure what it says about me. Not sure I want to know

I think I mentioned an Enter Shikari concert. Not sure I can call myself a fan yet, but I spent an ungodly amount of hours listening to their old and new stuff in 2022. Turns out one of my favorite songs they ever made is one of the newest ones, The Void Stares Back. This is exactly the kind of surreal and borderline apocalyptic lyrics I need in my life. I even bought a t-shirt saying "I'm the child with the telescope eyes" at that concert oops

Oh Caroline is one of the best songs The 1975 ever made and, like all my fave songs from that band, it's deeply awkward and embarrassing. It's a guy begging his ex to come back and it gets humiliating. Perfection. Thank you

Just when you thought this list couldn't get worse I'm about to confess I love The Boy in the Black Dress by Yungblud. Can't get the image of a teenager trying to remove his nail polish with his teeth after a teacher told him he looked girly out of my head now. God I love narrative songs so much

We've reached the terminal velocity of musical cringe so here's sTraNgeRs by Bring Me The Horizon because OF FUCKING COURSE I love sTraNgeRs by Bring Me The Horizon. You must be new here. WE'RE DYING TO LIVE AND WE'RE LIVING TO DIIIIIIIIIIE

Also I'm not going to recommend too many the Soft Moon songs but Become the Lies is now a classic for me only six months after it came out, and I've been obsessed with Him (ft Fish Narc, who kills it as the evil twin of the narrator) to the point of making fanart of the mental amv I have for it. Might even upload it after finishing this post, I'm not sure.

Honorable Mentions

Tití me preguntó (Bad Bunny) - I swear I had this song playing in my brain for days and I'm not even sure I like it.

Jour meilleur (Orelsan) - I'm usually not the biggest fan of the guy, but this one is really nice.

As it was (Harry Styles) - Perfectly serviceable little pop tune.

Where are you now (Lost Frequencies) - A great earworm.

Enemy (Imagine Dragons) - Listen. It's bad. But I can't get over the fact that an overly-hated band made a song where the chorus literally screams "EVERYBODY WANTS TO BE MY ENEMYYYY", it's so much fun to sing along with it

Shivers (Ed Sheeran) - Do I really like Ed Sheeran now. Is this my life. Is this what growing old feels like

Belly Dancer (Imanbek & BYOR) - I'm going to the gym now and this is on their playlist. It's completely brainless but it had a serious chance to end on my actual top ten at some point. I physically can't listen to it without at the very least tapping my foot on the floor.

One Right Now (Post Malone & The Weeknd) - This WAS on my list at some point but I ended up cutting it. Nobody seems to like this song, and I love it for all the wrong reasons. Namely, the fact that a duet between two male singers talking about someone cheating on them sounds like they cheated on each other. And I think that's unintentional comedy gold.

Bad habit (Steve Lacy) - The very last cut I had to make. It's a wonderful song, and I simply adore its vibe, but I tend to lose some interest after 2:20 for some reason. No idea why.

Pretty sure there's nobody still reading this post. Which might be good because there's one deeply humiliating pick on this top ten. Let's do this

THE ACTUAL TOP TEN LIST

10 - Santé (Stromae)

US: Not on the list / FR: #90

I still can't believe this idiot climbed his way out of depression and burnout just to tell every emergency worker to join a union. What a king. Legends only

Also I seriously considered putting it at the top of this list in very early 2022 if the year turned out to be mediocre. I never expected it to be placed so low in the end. That's a good thing, by the way

9 - Break my soul (Beyoncé)

US: #38 / FR: Not on the list

So uh. As far as I know there's still no music video for this one, which is kind of a power move in this day and age, not gonna lie. But yeah. You know me. Can't resist a eurodance diva. And Beyoncé as a eurodance diva is all I ever wanted and more. What the hell happened this year, music-wise, seriously

8 - J'la connais, pt. 1 (Emkal)

US: Not on the list / FR: #89

Okay, the autotune is a bit grating. Doesn't matter.

Look, I usually dislike this kind of songs and singers always talking about girls cheating on them and stuff. But no, this dude right there is singing about people telling him his girlfriend is going to cheat on him, and he basically tells them he trusts her more than them ("Cette fille, j'la connais, eh, mais toi, tu es qui ? On se connaît ?" ("I know that girl, eh - but you? who are you again?"). Very refreshing. Well played, sir.

7 - Thunder (Gabry Ponte)

US: Not on the list / FR: #59

BEHOLD. THERE IS NOW A GOOD SONG CALLED "THUNDER" ON THE CHARTS. AND IT'S COMPLETELY BRAINLESS.

So uh, this one also plays at the gym. It's just some very basic and very commercial EDM. For some reason, it kinda sounds like a pirate song to me, the kind of thing you'd drink to on an adventure or something like that. There's not a lot that can be said about it. The colors are especially trippy, though.

Does it look like I'm stalling for time? Uh, maybe I am.

Oh god, here comes the really embarrassing part.

6 - Bad habits (Ed Sheeran ft Bring Me The Horizon)

US: #13 / FR: #53

So uh. This was in my honorable mentions last year:

And it was slowly exiting the charts when this new version dropped all of a sudden in mid-February, with way more guitars and bombast, and of course Oli Sykes screaming his head out at the end. And it climbed up the charts all over again.

And since I'm a major sucker with no taste, of course I loved it.

Doesn't make up for the fact the lyrics are still very vague and Ed Sheeran is still Ed Sheeran, but clearly that wasn't enough to keep this version of the song off my list. It's enough to make me question my choices, though. Steve Lacy should probably be there instead.

Eh. Too late now.

5 - Numb Little Bug (Em Behold)

US: #32 / FR: Not on the list

I initially put this one higher ; I'm not tired of it or anything, it's just that I don't listen to it as often as some things above it. And it got popular through TikTok, too - I'd ask if the kids are okay, but we all know the answer to that question, I think. I can't get over how brutal these lyrics are for what's essentially a cute pop song. And yeah, that's a huge mood. Do you ever get a little bit tired of life? Yes! Quite often actually! Glad we're all on the same page, at least. It's somewhat comforting.

Imagine how bleak and scary that song would be if it was more serious and less upbeat, though.

Oh. Oh shit.

4 - L'Enfer (Stromae)

US: Not on the list / FR: #46

Guess we don't have to imagine. Guess it already exists. Guess it's on the French year-end chart. And it's absolutely terrifying.

Look, I'm glad Stromae is back. I'm glad he feels better. But uh- yeah. This track is genuinely hard to listen to. I'm pretty sure it's objectively better than the three songs I placed above it, but yeah.

J'ai parfois eu des pensées suicidaires, et j'en suis peu fier (I've had suicidal thoughts at times and I'm not proud of it) On croit parfois que c'est la seule manière de les faire taire (Sometimes you think that's the only way to shut them up) Ces pensées qui me font vivre un enfer (These thoughts that make my life hell)

Yeah.

3 - About Damn Time (Lizzo)

US: #12 / FR: Not on the list

I had a hard time deciding where to rank this song between #3 and #2. Maybe I should say it's a tie. It changes day to day with my mood, really.

But yeah, thank you Lizzo for being a combo breaker in this short series of songs about addiction and depression and death! This one is impossible to resist. You hear it and you just have to move or tap your feet and smile. And-

I'm way too fine to be this stressed, yeah Oh, I'm not the girl I was or used to be, uh Bitch, I might be better

Favorite lyrics of the year? I don't know. Maybe. Amazing, in any case. Thank you for this gift, madam.

2 - That's What I Want (Lil Nas X)

US: #14 / FR: Not on the list

Aaaaaaaaand back to the sadness. Well, not really. The song itself is pretty upbeat. In any case, you've probably seen that one coming from a mile away because of my 2021 Unelligible Songs list:

And yeah! It's elligible at last! I'm so, so happy. And I want Lil Nas X to find love and be happy too. Montero was gay as hell, Industry Baby was a victory lap, but this one? This one is the guy bearing his soul and you can feel it even through the impeccable production and pop sensibilities. Cry your heart out to this upbeat tune, my friend, it's gonna be okay. And we love you.

1 - Meet Me At Our Spot (The Anxiety)

US: #74 / FR: Not on the list

I think I've listened to this one more than any other song this year and yet I'm still not entirely sure why I love it so much, especially considering it took literal months to grow on me. I can't even describe its vibe. Is it melancholy? No, it's too happy. Is it happy then? No, it's too tired. But it has energy, too. Is it romantic? Not really. What is it?

One thing's for sure, whichever vibe it is, I got lost in it for hours, to the point of creating entire scenes set to it in my mind. Which led to drawings. Which led to me inventing characters completely disconnected from the song and writing a story where the initial scene I visualised is only a small one in the grand scheme of things.

There's magic in this song's vibe, and I've been on a quest to transcribe it, and I will probably fail. In the meantime, thank you for meeting me at this spot. It's been a wild ride. See you next year!

#Johannes’ bad not good pretty terrible music lists #music #eye contact tw #suicidal ideation tw #that's for some of the songs not for me thankfully #this post is a bit late I'm sorry #I had to make most of the gifs myself this time

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crispylycoris · 4 years ago

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Above is a drawing I did for another, currently ongoing, prompt list! This is for week one of the childhood memories 2021 prompts! I’m actually posting this one as it’s going on because I reached the character limit for the post on Instagram 😭 So I’ll go into more detail in this post under the read more!

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The prompt for week one was toys/games. And when I think back on some toys and games I think about my GameBoy Advance SP which I think was my first gaming system. It’s like the one in the drawing. Adorned with Pokémon stickers! 😊 I actually used mine as reference and drew the game that was in it when I grabbed it and it was Pokémon pinball: ruby and sapphire edition! And I know there’s a black boarder around the screen but I remembered it as I was finishing coloring Pokémon pinball and it was too late 😭. And I had shared games with my brother, who had his own GBA SP, but his was silver.

For the content of the picture I’ll start from the top and go counterclockwise and I’ll share my memories with the games:

✨On the top we have a little Spongebob waving. 👋[I don’t recall ever playing a GBA Spongebob game, maybe? But he’s here because I had one of those white game cards that was just videos! I think one of the videos was the bubble stand one! Because of it’s a giraffe. And I think another one may have been the one where Squidward gets into an accident or something and Spongebob and Patrick take care of him because of firmly grasp it!]

✨Then of course we have Claire from Harvest Moon: More Friends of Mineral Town. [I know it’s like now Story of Seasons, but you know, not at the time kinda thing. Anyways, my grandpa, or 公公 (gung gung) (according to google that’s how you write and spell it), got me this game as a kid and I loved it 💖 It’s a wonderful game and I love the art and stuff and caring for the cute animals, the people, the aesthetic, and almost everything about it 🥰 It’s what pulled me into the series and into farming Sims like Stardew 💕 I think I’ve played this game into the 10s of years. And I chose Grey ❤️ I’ll always treasure this game 🥰].

✨Next is a pink lightning bolt symbol ⚡️ from the evergirls game. [I don’t remember what this game was about or even know why I picked this game out. I don’t even know if I completed the game. I think there was some character customization?]

✨Then we have the girl and a dog from the Dogz GBA game. 🐕 [I only vaguely remember this game but it had cute art and I loved it. Though I think it had short gameplay 🙁 I wanted to play with my pup forever... But I think it ends after a certain amount of time? I wanna play it again. And I remember carrying the dog for a bit! And also playing the reversi mini game].

✨At the bottom is Cream the Rabbit from Sonic [I barely remember anything about the Sonic game I played. I think that it was one of my brother’s games. Like I remember her and a light blue character I think was Chao? I remember running from Dr. Eggman as he was chasing me in a flying machine and the art was nice. 😊].

✨Then we have Leaf and a Bulbasaur! 🍃 [I think that Pokémon Fire Red was the first game I had! And bulbasaur was my first ever starter 🥰 But I also remember I was playing a new file in the car and I had over-written all of my progress 💔😭. My second starter is technically charmander... And I remember battling my brother and losing a lot. But I beat one of his Pokémon with a metronome toxic once and that’s memorable between the two of us 😊 I think I still lost though lol].

✨Then we have Michelangelo (or Mikey) from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. [I think this was one of my brother’s games because I don’t recall playing much of it. I picked to draw Mikey because I recall the sewer skateboarding mini game! And I also remember that one time I got some kinda score on it and bowed and like tripped or something and hurt my lip lol].

✨To the right of Mikey we have Mega Man. [This was another one of I borrowed my brother’s game. I honestly don’t know what Mega Man game this is. Maybe Battle Network? I only really remember Roll and a cactus enemy].

✨Then we have the girl character from Mario Golf Advanced Tour. [Again a game I borrowed from my brother. And I guess the girl’s name is Ella? I just looked it up. Anyways I don’t remember progressing the story all too much. I thought it was really cute. And I drew her crying because I only remember getting bogeys lol].

✨Next to her we have a cat as a representative for Catz. [Another game borrowed from my brother. I’m sad I don’t remember much of this game, but it’s probably like Dogz where it’s short but you take care of a cat].

✨Then we have Spyro. [Probably also a game from my brother. I don’t have like any recollection of playing Spyro games at all. Like I think I played as him as he was defending something on a wooden bridge as things were getting shot at him. I don’t know. I included him anyways].

✨To his right we have my game chest which holds some of my games! I painted it myself!

✨And in the center is my red GBA SP! It’s playing Pokémon pinball (I think the Ruby level). And on it you can see that I have Cyndaquil, Chikorita, and Eevee stickers. [I loved this game so much and played it a lot but I don’t think I ever actually got to catch Jirachi 🥲].

I had other GBA games I played but might not have remembered them. Some I do vaguely remember are finding Nemo, Winnie the Pooh, SMB 3, That so Raven, Pet resort, Pokémon games, other harvest moon games, hot potato, and some kinda game that had other games like a racing one and dig dug.

Other games I played in general were like Jack and Dexter, computer games, and maybe Raymon?

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And in terms of the drawing, I’m happy with how it turned out! And I think I’m gonna do lighting like how I did with Leaf’s hair from now on! Sneaking hearts in where I can. And I have just noticed that I messed up Cream by drawing on the wrong layer 😭. But I think that the colors remained pretty much consistent from what I had on my laptop at least.

If you read all that, thank you for enjoying my art and taking a trip down memory lane with me! 💕 Have a wonderful week! 😊

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will-die-without-chai · 4 years ago

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I have great taste!

A/N: This is my entry for Muskan’s 500 followers celebration! Congratulations again on this follower milestone Muski ( @thebookwormslytherin ) and I can’t wait to write for more such follower milestone celebrations. Also, thank you for hosting this!!!!! Love ya!.And forgive me for this less than subpar submission.

Also this is the first time I’ve tried writing for Sam Wilson so all feedbacks and criticism are most welcome! Hope I haven’t done too bad lol.

Pairing: Sam Wilson x desi!reader (she is not as desi as I wanted but whatevs)

Words: 2752

(College au, roomates au)

Warning: A couple of swear words (And this fic isn’t beta-ed...so)

Prompt: “You got a crush on me? Ew”

Summary: Y/N gets cheated on and had to move out of her ex’s boyfriend’s house. Luckily, Sam’s roomate is moving out as well creating a vacancy. Who knows what outcome staying with your friend can bring about?

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“I know I am stupid and I never should’ve moved in with him so soon” Y/N sniffled and rubbed her red puffy and tear filled eyes dry with the sleeve of the shirt she had on as she whispered and hiccupped through berating herself after the revelation she had made that very morning. “But I cannot stay in that house Natasha! Not anymore! What do I do?” Natasha, ever concerned, patted her back, sympathy etched deep into her features whilst Y/N continued to whisper her despair into the table top where her head lay. .

Y/N had just that very morning discovered her boyfriend, or rather ex-boyfriend with his tongue deep in some other person’s mouth, while naked, on the bed they shared. Y/N had been out for the night, studying with Natasha for the upcoming exams and had unexpectedly gone home early in the morning to grab some notes only to be met with the devastating sight.

Needless to say, Y/N bolted out of the very apartment she called home for the past few months, holding back the bile and the tears rising to surface rapidly and rushed back to Natasha’s place which was only a couple of blocks away to unleash the slew of tears and heartbreak.

The sound of the jingling of the lock and the shuffling of shoes against the hardwood announced the return of the boys who had left the girls the night before to their own devices and had shifted themselves to do whatever it is that college boys do. Steve, Sam and Bucky certainly hadn’t anticipated the sight before them and already had their hackles raised, ready to have a faceoff with whatever had caused unease to their friends, but instantly settled down when Natasha motioned them to. Y/N also had significantly been drawn out of her crying stupor at their entrance.

The boys had the decency to not pry into the matters and let things be told to them, they had learned from previous experiences after all. Nat looked at Y/N and she nodded.

“Y/N went to her apartment this morning and saw Rumlow sticking his tongue deep into someone’s throat. So…” The room went into an uproar and chaos ensured as if all hell had broken loose. A chorus of “Damn it” and “I’ll fuck him up” and certain more colorful words were heard, which were then stopped and the rage was coaxed down by one menacing gaze from Natasha and a tearful sob from Y/N.

Steve immediately found his place beside Y/N and held her under the crook of his arms, hugging her tightly and Bucky and Sam settled for sitting across from them, sympathy and rage and sorrow in equal measures creeping into their features as she once again resumed crying into Steve’s shirt.

After loads of incomprehensive mumbling and sobbing till her throat felt like sandpaper and she could go no further due to exhaustion, Y/N raised her head to face the rest of the group around her. “Now that I have sufficiently rubbed tears and snot all over Steve’s clothes” She snorted causing chuckles to emanate from other’s mouths, “I have to figure out where I am going to stay, given my imminent homelessness.”

“Stay here! I can crash on the sofa, you can take the room. Nat and Buck already sleep in their room.” Steve piped in from beside her. Bucky nodded in agreement as did Nat.

A small frown took over her face. “No, no” She shook her head. “I can’t. You three are already… I can’t make you sleep on a couch in your own house, Stevie. And I cannot couch crash with the amount of stuff I have. I am definitely not going to let that asshole keep my furniture. They’re too cute and costed a fortune” This was enough to cause smiles to spread on their faces.

“That’s my girl!” Bucky cheered on.

“Yeah so I need more permanent options.”

“What about Tony? We can talk to him—“

“Not Tony!” Y/N cut Bucky off mid sentence. “I am not going to stay with Tony for the same reason Steve won’t. He wouldn’t accept rent and I’ll feel guilty and highly uncomfortable living in that state of art house. How the fuck do you have sex there Steve? Aren’t you afraid you’ll break something?” Steve turned red at the mention of his sex life and Bucky and Sam snickered like a schoolgirl. Natasha, noticing the very apparent discomfort cleared her throat pointedly.

“What about your old apartment?”

“I think the landlord already rented it to someone else.”

Sam, who had been silent thus far finally decided to speak up, “Riley is moving out in a couple of days. I haven’t looked for anyone yet and I am sure I can’t afford the rent by myself.” He looked at her meaningfully.

Y/N’s eyes brightened. “Of course! Oh you’re a savior Sammy!” She jumped up to hug him and sagged in relief when he wrapped his hands around her.

“Yeah, yeah.” He tried to say nonchalantly but the tender kiss he placed on the top of her head that was buried into his side and the tense look he shot at Natasha who had been wiggling her eyebrows at him betrayed his emotions to the rest of the occupants of the room if not to the object of the emotions.

All of Y/N’s stuff had been picked up and packed into the second-hand pickup truck Bucky owned. ‘It has a certain amount of personality’ he had said when buying it against the wishes of everyone around him. Certain choice words had been spat at Rumlow and papers had been thrown at his face dramatically and tears had been held back satisfactorily. Sam had to be contained to avoid him throwing punches and the party had been successful at extracting all important things from the apartment, furniture included.

It didn’t take much time for Y/N to settle into her new living space. She was fairly familiar with the apartment given all the time she previously spent there trying to make sense of her chemistry notes with Sam. And even though it was a house previously lived in by a couple of boys, it was surprisingly very clean. Her furniture, after a lot of moving it around was satisfactorily placed and dare she say complemented the preexisting stuff in the house very well. (The blue of the couch matched the gray of the curtains Sam had picked very well. He did have a good taste after all!)

It took merely 2 months for them to settle into a nice routine. Sam, the early riser, was responsible for breakfast. Pancakes or waffles or eggs and bacon. He was a masterful breakfast cook and Y/N was forced to adopt healthy eating habits after not much persuasion. Sam had replaced his caffeine fix with Chai*. Although chai was left to be Y/N’s department of expertise. He had tried making it once and it ended with what looked like a grimace and a forced smile on Y/N’s face. Tea making was a talent he didn’t possess.

After her classes finished for the evening, Y/N would go and hang out in the café Sam part-time worked at so they could head back home together. Dinner was on Y/N and her grandma who guided her through video calls had apparently taken a liking for Sam. He had definitely heard whispered conversations in a language he didn’t understand much of and his name being mentioned often. Anyhow, study nights were all the more easier when both the members of the group occupied the same house and there was no fear of notes getting mixed up and rushing over to each other in between lectures to exchange them back. . Life was a well oiled machine when lived with appropriate people, after all.

They had also adapted the system of movie nights. Both had found each other lacking in their own definition of pop culture and had decided to teach the other and make them a respectable member of society, wise enough to get popular references. Saturday nights were mostly unoccupied and hence were conveniently movie nights. Each picked one movie, unseen by the other on alternate weeks. And oh boy, it was an event.

The couch was loaded with throw pillows and blankets, temperature was brought down and hoodies were worn for utmost comfort. Popcorn was popped, candies were bought a plenty and if the occasion called for it, or the ambience of the movie, beer was welcomed. And on occasion, they even fell asleep on the couch (If their backs were witches, they would’ve been cursed by now).

One such night, after loud exclamations of ‘How could you not have watched it!’ and ‘She was my bi awakening!’ and ‘This would not be borne’, Pride and Prejudice was the movie they settled upon. By the end of the movie a half asleep Y/N had ended up draped halfway over Sam with her head comfortably nestled into the crook of his shoulders and neck, her every breath peacefully lulling Sam into the state of drowsiness. Sam knew from previous experiences aplenty that he would regret sleeping like this in the morning but he couldn’t be bothered right now. Future Sam could deal with a bit of back pain.

“It would be nice to have someone to tell you that they love you most ardently. I wish I could have someone tell me that they love me most ardently and mean it.” Y/N mumbled with her eyes closed.

“I will if you let me.” Sam subconsciously let it slip and then tensed up immediately when he realized what he had said. When he did not feel any reaction, he relaxed back again but not without a frown. He half wished she were awake and could listen to what he had said. At least that way it would have been out and on the table. It would also be terribly painful if she didn’t feel the same and ended up feeling uncomfortable around him.

It had taken a very long time for Y/N to again be comfortable and confident after her breakup. She was apparently very serious about the asshole and he had broken her heart. Good thing Sam reciprocated by breaking his nose! (Don’t tell Y/N though. She thinks Brock broke his nose when he fell down the stairs. This was not completely a lie… Sam did push him down the stairs as well. Don’t worry. There were just 5 steps)

Anyhow, it was getting tough for him to control his emotions around her. He couldn’t help but stare at her when she laughed so openly at his lame jokes. He couldn’t help but stare at her lips when she tasted his newest experimentation on pancake batter. He couldn’t help his eyes when they inadvertently went towards her table, when he was supposed to pay attention to the order in front of him at the café. He couldn’t help but deviate towards her at any given chance. He couldn’t help but savor all her little touches. And he was afraid that he was painfully obvious. If not to her then to everyone else around him.

All these thoughts kept encircling his brain and he fell asleep, clutching Y/N a little bit closer than before, burying his nose further into her hair. Morning came and Sam surprisingly woke up alone with a blanket draped over him. Generally he was the first to wake up. He got up and followed the noises coming from the kitchen to see Y/N making breakfast. And of course, chai. Some old Hindi song played on the radio softly and he could see the hello kitty apron he had bought for her as a joke hastily thrown on, its back untied.

It was a picture of serenity, to an outsider maybe. But Sam knew there was something off. Y/N getting up this early, cooking and old hindi songs playing was a deceptive picture that screamed something was bothering her.

“You cooking something, hon?” He said out loud as he made his way to the dining table. Y/N jumped slightly at being startled and then nodded enthusiastically. Almost too enthusiastically. Sam narrowed his eyes. Without turning to face him Y/N explained further. “You were asleep. I woke up early and thought I could make something. It’s been days since we’ve had poha*, no?”

Sam kept quiet and decided to take out plates and set the table instead. They kept working silently but the silence was too heavy. It settled over his skin thickly and Sam didn’t like the feeling. Once they were sat on the table Sam decided to bring up the subject again, the silence and awkwardness becoming a little troubling.

“What’s wrong Y/N? You know you can share it with me. I am here.” He said, placing a comforting hand on hers. Her eyes that were focused on her plate shot unto his face.

“I heard what you said last night.” She blurted out, eyes still trained at him. Sam was stunned into silence and his heartbeat rose rapidly. It was incredibly unexpected and sudden and Sam was caught off guard. Incredibly so.

“You- you did.” He stammered stupidly. Y/N nodded. “I was on the verge of drifting off and I heard it and I-“ She fell silent, her eyes slipped to where his hand rested on hers, her teeth automatically trapping her bottom lip between them.

“I like you. Like like you. I have, since the day we met at Steve’s party and you went on and on about tea and how to make it and how coffee could never compare and you weren’t even drunk!” Y/N let out a chuckle at that and Sam continued. “I couldn’t help but fall for you and I looked for reasons to spend time with you, snatching every opportunity to have you around me. I know I am sounding like the cheesiest cheesy person, like a kraft’s dinner but add cheddar to it level of cheesy, but you being happy makes me so fucking happy! And that’s the point. I can bear to see you be sad and if this makes you uncomfortable, tell me to stop. I will. I won’t mention this ever again and we could go back to being us and you aren’t obligated to reciprocate my feelings or anything. But I think I don’t have it in me to keep it in anymore.”

He finally looked up to look at her and maybe take a breath after the rant he just had in one go and found her still staring at their hands. Assuming that it made her uneasy, he proceeded to take it away, his heart sinking. But he was stopped by her fingers grasping at his sleeves.

She peered from under her tear laced lashes to look at him. “You have a crush on me? Ew” she let out a sound that sounded like something between a sob and a snort and a smile spread across her lips. “I thought you had better taste.” She joked albeit a bit bashfully.

Sam felt a weight lift off his chest and the urge to bang his head against an iron pole reduced significantly. “Hey, I have great taste! I picked up those gray curtains that go so well with your blue couch and that you love very much. Also I introduced you to real maple syrup and took you away from that ‘aunt jemima’ bullshit you were poisoning yourself with.”

“Hey I am a college student who earns just enough to fulfill my bare necessities so give me a break! That shit is costly. And I was the one who introduced you to Mukesh*, okay?” She held his hand now and intertwined her fingers with his.

“Goes to say how good my taste is.”

“I like you too.”

Silence fell over them once again as they giddily looked at each other and held hands, the chai long gone cold and the poha turned a little stiff. But the silence now was palatable, pleasant even.

A couple days later, chaos ensued again in their little group when Y/N planted a sound kiss on Sam’s lips before separating from the group with a quick cheeky ‘goodbye’ to go to her class. The chorus of ‘How?’ and ‘When?’ and ‘I want details’ and a quiet call of ‘who won the bet then’ left hanging in the air for Sam to answer.

*Translations:

Chai: Chai is tea ofcourse. But its also more than tea. Its an concoction made of tea, water, milk, sugar and spices all meticulously brought to a boil and then heated some more. It is a thing that requires practice, but also some magic.

Poha: Poha is a breakfast food made of flattened rice flakes sauted with onions and other vegetables and spices, according to one’s preferences hich is served warm with a dash of lemon and a sprinkling of coriander (Varun Thakur’s stand up, anyone?)

Mukesh: A very illustrious, very very famous indian musician from the 60′s and 70′s. He had the voice of an angel.

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Hope this was a bearable read! As said earlier, feedback and criticism is always welcome!

Tagging: @spiderrpcrker @officially-tonynat-shrine @hoeticulture @dragoncreek319 @severelytinyeagle @lgbtonystarks @cynical-ravenclaw @fandom-is-my-middle-name @emilyshurley @fiovske @bispiderson @moonbeambucky @revengingbarnes @shurisneakers @kuuhakublank00 @stardustandbucky @infj-slytherclaw @anjali750 @your-villainous-neighbour @viktorkrumn

#Muskan's 500 followers writing challenge #Sam Wilson reader insert #Falcon reader insert #marvel reader insert #Sam wilson x reader #desi reader #college au #roomate au #marvel fanfiction #marvel fluff #marvel #Sam wilson #Falcon

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dreaming-of-assclass · 5 years ago

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Hi! Can I please have some Karma and Sugino friendship beadcanons? ❤

*cracks knuckles* I’ve been waiting so long for this...😤💚

I literally adore this friendship! Definitely my fave Karma relationship (next to Kayano uwu).

I guess I could sum it up as...Sugino is such a popular, friendly, socially intelligent guy. Karma is “cool,” edgy, and very socially awkward. They’re literally the most iconic type of sitcom duo

Anyways, sorry I was freaking out for a sec there 😅

So...they get off to a rocky start, but I imagine they get super close over the year. At first Nagisa is kinda a middle man, but eventually, they can hang out and vibe without him around.

Sugino overcomes his prejudice and biased view of Karma, and sees the good qualities in him. His respect for Karma grows and he thinks of him as a trustworthy guy.

Karma thinks Sugino is ingenuine at first, but realizes he’s just purely nice. Sugino is very honest and easy to talk to, which is great for someone like Karma, who doesn’t trust people easily at all.

Now...for some headcanons hehe

Sugino is one of the few people that Karma will voluntarily help with studying. He may joke that Sugino owes him a favor or needs to supply him with wasabi or some shit, but he’s honestly just doing it bc Sugino is a close friend.

They’re the most confrontational in Group 4 and may end up verbally disagreeing just bc of their clashing personalities at times. Except it’s usually with little things, like directions, what to do, etc.

(In the future) Everytime Karma is mistakenly given the opportunity to drive, Sugino is such a backseat driver. He’s legitimately scared sometimes that Karma will kill someone...

They fight over the aux, and Karma somehow manages to get it every single time.

Sugino has accidentally hit him in the head with a baseball far too many times...Karma can’t even get pissed bc they are accidental.

Whenever they’re paired in PE, neither of them are taking it seriously. They’re just messing around so much bc it’s honestly so lighthearted. When they do take it seriously, it’s always an interesting match. Karma has faster reflexes, but Sugino beats him in agility. Sugino also has more raw strength, but Karma is a quicker thinker.

Sugino is canonically very talented at a lot of things: sports, art, acting... Karma jokes around that Sugino might finally beat him as the Class Talented Genius, but it’s not out of jealousy at all. It’s his way of complimenting Sugino and showing his support.

Surprisingly...Karma doesn’t ship Sugizaki. Of course, they’re both his friends, but he’s still way closer with Sugino. And he can’t help but see the delusional fantasy Sugino is living in where he puts Kanzaki on a pedestal. It bothers Karma but he isn’t sure what to say. He just hopes Sugino gets over himself eventually, but in the meantime, he’ll quietly support him.

The two of them and Maehara are the ones to come up with “get-rich-quick” schemes...they always invite Isogai but he just sighs and says “Don’t break anything. Don’t kill someone. Or each other.”

They once make a bet with each other that neither of them can indulge in their guilty pleasure for a week, and whoever caves first loses and has to do something embarrassing. Karma can’t eat any junk food or sugar, and Sugino can’t touch a video game. They constantly bait each other during the week while they’re both losing it. Sugino eats snacks in his face, including his precious strawberry milk. Karma rubs it in his face that he could afford the newest version of Sugino’s favorite game. They eventually end it without either of them lasting the week, and tackling each other in a fight. Group 4: “I literally can’t with these dumbasses”

They end up in a ballet class together with Kimura. It was suggested by Korosensei that it improves their balance and skills, but Karma shrugged it off and Sugino said he’ll pass. A couple days later, they change their mind bc dammit, Isogai and Maehara beat them AGAIN. They drag Kimura too bc why not, athletes and chuuni’s stick together. They leave having great ballet skills, and return to assassination. But Isogai and Maehara still be winning 😔

Karma is shook at first in the beginning of their friendship when he notices how many times Sugino nearly jumps into fights/starts shit. He brings it up, and Sugino just sheepishly responds “Oh you know, I only do it when my friends are being messed with. I really should handle things better though.” And Karma just stares at him like ?? “No Sugino don’t change. Now that I hear that, I finally have some respect for you lmfao.” And Sugino is like “oh cool! ...wait that was an insult.”

But that really is a part of Sugino that Karma respects and appreciates a lot. He knows that Sugino has got his back whenever he needs him there, whether it’s assassination, street fights, etc.

Sugino is a chaotic well-meaning idiot, but Karma never wants to use him as a minion like Terasaka. He’d prefer Sugino by his side, like a right hand man, with his support close by.

Karma lives to scare Sugino with his edgy stories, but of course, that goes away the longer they know each other and become friends. Sugino just either accepts it or eggs it on. Karma: “what if I drop this spider onto your head and it infects your mind?” Sugino: “do it bitch.”

Both of them get the same present format for each other on their birthdays. One joke/prank gift and one useful/practical gift.

I HC that Sugino becomes friendly with Gakushuu too at some point, so whenever the rivals are being petty and ready to kill each other, Sugino is just like :D

It’s a pain doing laundry at his apartment since his family has so many clothes and sweaty sports gear to wash, parents are usually busy, their machine doesn’t work sometimes, and he hates leaving things to air-dry... So Karma lets him wash his stuff at his house UwU

Karma always makes sure to watch his baseball games in the future. Not in person all the time, and not the whole game, but at least a couple minutes of the screen. Just to make sure Sugino is doing alright. If he’s having a bad day and isn’t in the lead, Karma texts him like “wtf u better win bitch >3” and Sugino replies “ur right but fuck u”

Karma has a field day whenever girls are flirting with Sugino and he’s so oblivious. Over the years, he has: pretended that he was Sugino’s boyfriend instead and “back off hoes,” basically arranged dates for him just out of fun, and catfished Sugino (as adults)

Sugino’s home isn’t perfect at all, his family is far from perfect. But it’s still way better than the emptiness that Karma is surrounded by. So he invites Karma over a few times for dinner and such, and Karma appreciates it a lot. He also bonds with Sugino’s wild little brother and they create so much chaos.

Sugino can’t trash talk at all, and Karma tries to teach him but it doesn’t work. He’s too wholesome, and Karma just gives up after ten minutes of hearing harmless, stupid shit come out of Sugino’s mouth.

Overall, they’re the Iconic, Talented, Sitcom Duo with so much comedy potential. I love this friendship so much!

#assclass #assassination classsroom #karma akabane #tomohito sugino #ansatsu kyoushitsu #headcanons #thank you so so so much #i love this friendship and i will take any chance to write about sugino uwu #group 4

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growntolovesecrecyfic · 4 years ago

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Grown to Love Secrecy - Chapter One (Petekey)

Can be read here.

Summary: Mikey Way hates Oscar Wilde but Pete Wentz convinces him to read The Picture of Dorian Gray.

Chapter One: All Art is Quite Useless

“Let’s fall in love for the summer.”

Mikey chokes on his spit and goes into a fit of coughs managing to squeak out a measly “What?” in between coughs.

Pete hands Mikey a can of Coke before responding, “Stop loving me in September.” Pete looks around before he pats and rubs Mikey’s back to ease the coughing a bit.

Mikey nods, taking a sip from Pete’s soda. His coughing calmed, he sucks in a deep breathe before saying, “I know what you said.” He stops for a moment to think, looking through the fence that separated the bands and the rest of Warped Tour. Admiring the orange and pink hue the sunset paints the field they’re in. He forgot which town they’re in and it’s only the fourth day.

He looks back at Pete who was picking at his lip while staring off into the distance. It’s a bad habit, they both know this, but they have worse habits to deal with.

Mikey sighs, grabbing Pete’s hand, “Hey, stop that.” Pushing his hand away from his mouth, his fingers quickly wrapping around Pete’s palm. Pete scans the area, giving Mikey’s hand a quick squeeze before placing a small peck to his lips. Mikey smiles, looking at the ground before back at Pete again.

“Yeah. Sure, I’m down,” His smile falters, looking away from Pete for a moment, “Only for the summer?” His eyes are back on Pete who’s now smiling, “Of course!” Pete pulls Mikey in a bit closer, indulging in Mikey and drinking in his scent of sweat and a hint of cologne before asking, “Why would it be longer?” He inspects the area once more before he uses his free hand to push Mikey’s hair out of his face, cupping his cheek and pulling Mikey in for a kiss.

Later that night, Mikey was deep in thought in his bunk on the My Chem tour bus, skimming through the pages of an old book he brought with him. He fingers the small tears at the corners of the hardcover book, the maroon cover with gold lettering was all too familiar yet the contents inside remained unread. He turns the book and reads the cover, his fingers feeling the golden indents on the leather.

The Picture of Dorian Gray.

He stole the book from his old job at Barnes and Noble. They weren’t fond of him asking for weeks off when performing across the East Coast with his band and their friends from Midtown. Fired after two years but at least he has this and their band name as a memory.

Not that he read the book or anything. He worked in the music section; books weren’t really his thing but something about this one caught his attention. Gerard had an Oscar Wilde phase during his last year of high school after reading The Canterville Ghost, so Mikey is somewhat familiar with the author.

He opens a random page and reads briefly before stopping and setting the book aside, letting out a long sigh. He curls up in himself, hugging his knees and staring at the page before his train of thought was interrupted by a light tapping on the wall outside his bunk beyond the thin, navy blue curtain.

He remains silent before a small voice spoke out, “Hey, Mikes? Are you there?”

It’s Gerard.

Mikey leans forward and pulls open the curtain, revealing his brother behind the navy shield.

“Can I come in?” Gerard asks and before Mikey could answer, he crawled in, making himself at home. Sitting against the wall next to Mikey, mimicking his position.

“Sure.” Mikey responds faintly in hopes of filling the silence that plagued the bunk and that part of the bus. The rest of the guys were probably out goofing off with Cortez or maybe at the front of the bus playing video games. Mikey didn’t know and frankly, didn’t care either.

The pair sit there for a while, simply enjoying each other’s company before Mikey notices Gerard’s gaze, silently cursing himself upon the realization that he’s reading the page that Mikey left off.

Gerard would constantly pester him to read the book and he never got around to it, ultimately convincing himself that at the age of 23 Oscar Wilde isn’t worth reading.

“Live. Live the wonderful life that is in you.” Gerard reads out loud, seemingly towards Mikey. Mikey just holds himself tighter, looking away from Gerard and the book.

He remains silent as Gerard reads him the rest of the passage.

“Be afraid of nothing,” Gerard finishes. Gerard grabs the book and closes it, looking over at Mikey. “What are you afraid of, Mikes?”

Mikey is suddenly filled with annoyance. He knows his brother means well but he really doesn’t want to answer, and he knows if he doesn’t Gerard will start asking questions. Ask him about where he was all day, why he’s so quiet, why is he finally reading Oscar Wilde after officially declaring his personal beef with the dead author while drunk after one of their shows a couple of years ago.

“The water and cutesy animated films.” Mikey answers and Gerard replies with an annoyed sigh. Mikey rolls his eyes, turning to meet the eyes of his brother for the first time since he got into the bunk.

“Where were you all day?” Gerard asks, “I know you’re old enough to watch over yourself, but I haven’t seen you since after our set.” Mikey looks away, he knows what’s coming next.

“Is it a girl?” Gerard asks his brother, gingerly placing a hand on Mikey’s shoulder.

Mikey frowned.

He knew his brother was the feminist type, often advocating for women’s rights on stage and in person. He always admired that about his brother, his courage. Just like how he wore makeup for the first time when him and his parents left to go to blockbuster when Gerard was 16, or how he would wear drag to school just for the hell of it or how Gerard would kiss Bert for the Taste of Chaos tour. That was a riot. Pissed off a lot of dudes from the scene but Gerard didn’t care.

He always knew his brother was brave like that, kissing and hugging dudes and holding them close and not being weird about it. He wishes he didn’t spend his first two years sleeping with every girl he could find to make up for the fact that he was questioning his sexuality.

The way he dressed and carried himself didn’t help either.

After the few incidents he was faced while on the bus, he decided that it’d be best if Gerard was his personal chauffeur rather than being asked by some older dude if he’d like to have a “good time” with him and some of his buddies at some shady club.

But that’s beside the point.

“No.” He answered coldly.

He was close with Gerard, yes, but he hadn’t talked to Gerard about his sexuality crisis. He knew that Gerard would understand but he’s not sure if he’s comfortable enough to talk about it himself. He didn’t want to push the responsibility on Gerard for him to deal with and then run off to whatever new problem or crisis is in his life.

“Then what is it?” Gerard’s voice was tight, and he was closer now.

Here goes nothing.

“It’s not a girl.”

Gerard was about to ask another question before Mikey cut him off.

“I was spending the day with Pete.” He started to stammer, “And uhm, He uh, he asked me if I could… uh.” Mikey was having some second thoughts, unsure if he could finish his sentence then Bob interrupted their conversation and Mikey thanked the God that he no longer believes in.

“Hey, Toro and Frank are wondering if you guys wanna stop at a 7/11 for some slurpees. We have the entire day tomorrow before we need to be at Dallas.” He asked the pair, his hands occupied with poker chips in one and Ray’s blue DS in another.

Mikey was quick to answer, “Sure.” Quickly getting up and out of the bunk, leaving Gerard behind with Bob.

“Tell me something, Frank,” Gerard asks his best friend who’s occupied with stuffing candy bars in a slurpee cup.

“Mmm, something.”

Gerard grumbles and Frank snickers at his annoyance.

“Ugh, no. I was talking to Mikey earlier and he was talking to me about Pete and how he asked him to do something, but Bob interrupted us before he could say anything.” Gerard crossed his arms, carefully watching his brother and the other bassist fuck with the nacho cheese machine, laughing amongst themselves and Gerard swore that there was a moment between them. He knew he had to get to the bottom of it.

“Well, I mean, do you think it’s anything important?” Frank asked as he attempted to shove another bag of skittles in the cup, completely oblivious to the pair that Gerard is watching.

“I think so. He was stressed earlier, and I didn’t think we wanted to tell me anything in the first place.” His eyes were off Mikey and Pete now as he didn’t want to be accused of anything later.

“Then don’t bother him.” Frank says bluntly, grabbing another cup for an actual slurpee while Gerard follows him to the machine.

“Why? He obviously seems bothered. Do you think Pete’s bothering him?” Gerard looks back at the pair who were now in the chip aisle, Pete picking for them both it seems.

Frank turns to look at Gerard, “Dude, he’s not 19 anymore and even if he was, you have to stop treating him like a child. Him and Pete seem perfectly fine. Maybe Pete asked him to play a show for them or something and was nervous to ask you if he could practice with them instead? And even if it wasn’t that. It’s totally fine. You know Mikey, he doesn’t get hurt easily.”

Gerard was a bit stunned by Frank’s response and just stared at Frank as he filled his cup with cherry-flavored slurpee. He knows he’s right, but he can’t help but worry about Mikey sometimes. He is a bit reckless but an adult. If he needs help, he’ll ask.

The two bands meet up at the cash register, their bassists in the back of the group while the others talk. Their chatter filling a mostly empty 7/11 while Pete and Mikey stand close together, their pinkies locked as they drink their slurpees feeling like the only people in the world.

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lgcchenglei-blog · 5 years ago

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hello friends !! my name is jada, and...i’m so excited to meet you all !! this is my absolute heart and soul zhao chenglei, one of the newest additions to the legacy family !! i am actually...so stoked to be here, this group looks so cool !! i look forward to meeting you all, but i’m going to jump straight into things ! chenglei / lei is 20, a dance fanatic, and a lovebug ! you can find his info as well as a few connection ideas below, and his profile here !! the other pages are wip, but i’m sure we can figure something out from there !! oh, and don’t forget to like this if my boy’s caught your eye and you’d like to plot together !!

alright so !! he’s from hong kong, and born to a mom who was a model for a popular skincare company and a father who’s an anesthesiologist !!

his parents are quite ambitious & his name means “become great” since as their first child, they had high hopes !! he’s often called lei for short around friends.

his mom wanted him to follow in her footsteps so for the early part of his life she was obsessed with booking him baby modeling & acting gigs!! he was in a few commercials and an extra in some small shows, but didn’t gain much fame from it.

his family is originally from mainland china (which is why he’s pretty good at mandarin) but moved when he was born because they liked the atmosphere for him better ! also his mom started getting more opportunities to work there and rather than keep traveling when she had a newborn the whole family packed up and left !

to say the least he was raised pretty comfortably !!! his parents had a lot of influence in their respective fields and he lived well, always getting the things he asked for & such !

but honestly, he’s not the type of person that is obsessed money but that’s probably because he’s used to it? like ofc it’s nice to have, but he’d be perfectly fine living a normal life.

his parents don’t feel the same, they’re very invested in getting & keeping money, so they would always get mad bc he had a tendency of giving his friends things if they didn’t have it !!

he’s been really adamant on creating his own lifestyle recently though, so is trying to make his own name for himself & make his own money instead of relying on his parents forever.

he went to a private school in the city, which is where he learned english. it was widely spoken where he was anyways, but there were some exchange students who helped him too.

also totally irrelevant headcanon but one of the students he became close with was australian & he traveled there in high school, so when he speaks english he’s a bit influenced by the accent !!

a dancing machine for real !! first got into dance 1t 5 when his mom thought it’d be cute for him to do ballet?? he hated it only because his friends made fun of him for it, but the more time he spent doing it the more he was kind of like...oh !! this is kinda nice !!

and then he fell in love with it, and to this day ballet remains his favorite type of dance. the older he got though he took more classes, and eventually joined a competitive dance team the city had !

he first got interested in kpop by a few friends in middle school, and that reflected onto his love for dancing! he began learning all the dances he could, and the more he saw them the more he felt he could turn his love for dance into a real dream.

long story short, his parents were v unhappy to hear he wanted to be in such a risky career, but after constant begging allowed him to audition! they promised thinking that he wouldn’t make it past first cuts, but when he did they were very shocked and kind of just in awe let him start training??

his first few months training were a huge struggle to face. right off the bat he could hardly speak korean, and it’s when reality really set in ?? as much as he said he wasn’t dependent on his wealth it was a big adjustment to go from his life in hong kong to living in dorms with other trainees. it was just...wild!!

not to mention chenglei can be an introvert when in situations he doesn’t know people in, so he was probably really quiet at the beginning !!

but he definitely opens up once he becomes comfortable around others. he’s still on the quieter side, but definitely v sweet and even a little mischevious around the ones he’s close too !! so by now it can be assumed he’s this way around the trainees he encounters often.

but when he’s in work mode ?? totally different lei !!! he takes training very seriously, takes staff criticism hard, and just kind of beats himself up to work harder !! not the best method, but if one thing’s for sure it’s that he serious about improving and doesn’t put anything above that when it’s time to get serious.

and performing lei !! also very different. he’s definitely a worrier all the moments leading up to performance, but becomes some confident dancing machine when he gets on stage ! he doesn’t worry about looking too weird, just focuses on delivering a powerful performance. very different than his usual self !

he’s currently in his 2nd year as a university student, and it is h-a-r-d !! since he practically goes straight from school to practice, he’s burnt out 80% of the time and lives off of coffee and a prayer.

oh in terms of languages !! he speaks cantonese as his native tongue, learned mandarin through talking with his family in the mainland, learned english through school, and is still actively learning korean ! he’s only completely fluent in cantonese, but learns korean the most out of all of them on a day-to-day basis.

he’s a little creative boy !! lovesloves to draw and paint and you can always catch him doodling things that went on during the day if he’s bored !!

also plays piano, which he was kind of forced into by his parents lmao ?? but it’s always a plus when he mentions it and it’s fun to play.

he’s quite a softy?? especially for a guy, he’s very affectionate, v loyal, and always looking out for his friends in any way he can ! it probably comes from his dad always being off at work, and his mom ( who is the more nurturing of the two ) being the most present, so he took after her and is very caring & sweet !

i’m not gonna lie...he’s a little bit of an eboy ?? let the sighs of shame arise lmao !! but honestly he’s like if an eboy & art hoe had a baby, but who’s also soft ?? the chaos !

he’s also a bilie eilish supremacist ?? don’t know how that happened since i don’t even stan her that much myslf ?? but like....if you couldn’t tell from his audition video he loves her & will cover each and every of her videos

he’s a baby pan !! he hasn’t really “come out” officially to his friends per se, but has vaguely expressed interest for something outside of a relationship with just girls ! he’s terrified to tell his parents & if he ever will...who knows !! but he’ll become more comfortable with his sexuality soon enough, at least.

his end goal, well semi-end goal, is to become a choreographer !! he wants to be an idol / dancer above all things, but he knows that career won’t last forever so he hopes when he gets out of it to help others achieve their dreams !! he’s very strong on the belief that what’s given to you must be paid back, so he wants to show his appreciation for his eventual debut by helping others reach theirs, too !!

i think i’ve talked waaaay too much already, so...let’s move onto some quick plot ideas !! i promise i’ll have a legitimate plots page soon. xx

maybe some awkardness ? maybe lei thought he was helping this muse out by giving them presents & money, but they took it a different way as him flaunting his money or treating them like a charity case ? i think it could be interesting !

another foreigner ?? the classic helping each other out duo, but i think it could be really important for the both of them considering they’re still trainees navigating a new country together !

a senior he really admires ? even though they’re all trainees, lei treats those more experienced than him with lots of respect, so he’d probably do everything he could to learn from & get on their good side ! maybe a cute friendship could develop out of it !

on the flip side, someone younger / he’s senior to he can baby ! he’s kind of used to being babied around, but he tends to become a lot more protective & caring over those under him ! please give him someone to spoil & instill confidence in pls thanks

sibling-like friends ?? i need someone he can just be silly with, ruffle a few feathers with, and even have the occasional dispute, but in the end they’ve gotten really close and no one can mess with one without the other ready for a fight !

maybe lei’s got a boy / nb crush he wasn’t expecting ?? he’s a softie so i think it’d be adorable for him to have a little crush on someone, requited or not !

university students rise !! give my boy someone else to share his pain with and complain about how it’s impossible to get good grades and have good evaluations !!

little competition !! he’s mainly a dancer, though he also sings, so i think it’d be fun to have someone he competes with & is often compared to ! maybe they’re actually really close and help each other, maybe they’re true rivals trying to bring each other down !

#( behind the curtain - ooc. )#i am so late omg...sorry !!

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attract-mode-collective · 6 years ago

Video

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Exactly 79 Photos & Videos Concerning The Game Boy (plus other handhelds)

So... hope you’ve all been following me on Twitter, which is more or less the unofficial new home for Attract Mode. Mostly cuz Tumblr’s days are, alas, numbers, plus I haven’t warmed up to Medium as much as I had hoped to. Though I’ve actually spent the past two months republishing every single post that contains mainline Game Culture Snapshots, so it has remained somewhat useful at least.

Now, for a while there, I had been compiling every single thing tweeted. But because I’m now so damn active on that end… plus I’m busier than ever with other projects… I’m way behind with those digest posts, and the very idea of playing catch up legit gives me anxiety. Yet I have been sharing lots of cool things, which all deserve to be in the blog proper… and because a lot of them are specific to the Game Boy, I figure, why not just focus on that?

Like the above, which is a technique for producing full color photographs via the Game Boy Camera, and yet another thing that I can’t believe hasn’t made the rounds!

Sticking with Game Boy photography, here have a pair of mods that will greatly enhance picture quality. The first involves mounting SLR lens onto a Game Boy Camera (via ekeler.com)...

And the second has one shoving a Game Boy Camera into a SLR itself (via @MaxKriegerVG)...

As someone who was into video games as a kid, and also interested in photography, the Game Boy Camera was the first camera I was able to call my own. Am pretty sure this was the case for others as well?

I also remember seeing this ad in Nickelodeon Magazine (which I would eventually writer for, not too long later) and being absolutely gob smacked (via nintendroid.org)…

Though as much I loved Nintendo brand of FUNtography, I would quickly discover… as did everyone else I also assume… that taking pictures is serious business (via @PolandNintendo)…

Not only did I have a Game Boy Color, but I also had the Game Boy Printer (I still own both, for the record). Unfortunately my snapshots from Link’s Awakening have long since faded, but as with many things, you can find copies online (via gameandgraphics.com)…

Speaking of the world of print, coming soon is a handy guide to Nintendo handy game machine (via miki800.com)…

That one magazine ad featuring Princess Peach catch your eye as well? Well here’s a much better look at it (via suppermariobroth)…

I love handheld gadgets of all kinds, yet some of the popular ones confuse me. Like Hudson’s Shooting Watch; it makes no sense to have a gadget that can detect button presses without a game attached. Guess I’m not alone (via instagram.com/kazzycom)…

A realization I made while sifting through Game Boy related content is how popular the color yellow is with many. Cuz Pokemon? Anyhow, the final post from a blog that specializes in gorgeous photographs of gorgeous hardware, which I just brought up again very recently (via hard-aware)…

How your parents used to trade Pokemans online (via melonjaywalk)…

And no, Game Boys weren't the only things that one could connect to keitais ya know. And yes, Game Boys aren’t the only portables I’ll be showcasing (via anthony10000000)…

I own quite a few VMUs and am always looking to expand my collection… but nothing yellow, sorry. Instead, I want the one covered with dolphins (via anthony10000000)…

So my new favorites artist is Eri Kitamura, and not just cuz she makes pretty looking Game Boys…

She also makes pretty looking girls playing Game Boys (well, this one is technically listening to music)…

Was originally going to post the first thing from Eri that caught my eye, which is a Game Boy with a girl on it, but instead here’s a Game Boy with a girl on it playing a Game Boy…

Time for two more videos from the same individual responsible with the process for producing color photographs at the very top. And it’s what everyone has been waiting… specifically the backlit Game Boy Color mod everyone has been waiting for.

The process is detailed in this two-part video, and here’s the first one (it’s about 50 minutes long cuz spoilers: this shit ain’t easy)…

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And here’s part two, which is ONLY 40-ish minutes long…

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The author of the videos actually has a store, so if the process seems a bit too daunting, you can purchase a pre-modded unit for $250. Actually, this one is $260, cuz of the dual shells. Quite the price tag, yet somehow totally worth it (via instagram.com/esotericmods)…

Now might be a good time to mention how… remember that GBA with the GameCube finish from eBay a few months back? Well, I decided to get the one that resembles a Super Famicom, something I’ve been lusting over for years.

Well, here’s what the aforementioned seller had in his listing…

And this is what I got instead…

Yeah, that green shoulder button is not the right shade. After some complaining, I got the seller to admit that the one in the picture was hand painted; he didn’t know where it get ones that it’s exact color as on a Super Fami controller.

He also had a no refund policy, yet I bitched & moaned enough to warrant an exchange, for another Cube-esque model, one sans the stick. Cuz it’s comparatively boring to look at, here’s a version with the stick…

Again, mine just has the standard d-pad. As for my replacement… the colors of the A & B buttons are not an exact match, once again. But it’s close enough (am mostly just sick of dealing with that guy, aka johnnys_merchandise, whom you should all avoid btw), plus I have started to scour AliExpress for replacements.

BTW, my failure to obtain a modded handheld that channels another form of hardware has me wondering if I should go for something completely different instead (via instagram.com/wakuwakuisland)…

Up in the mountains, flower bloom amongst Game Boys & Game Boy Colors, whereas deep in the forest, you’ll find mushrooms and Game Boy Advances (via pxchinko)…

Some say memories are fuzzy, though for others, they're leafy (via lyosphe)…

I’ve looked all over for tinycartridge's original post, but no luck, so you can all instead have my personal copy of the earthy wallpaper that was shared years ago (and which I still to this very day)...

The Game Boy Micro, DS, and DS Lite are like family, and like siblings, there can the occasional squabble (via benkyo-es)…

@frankcifaldi: When I met this guy in 2003 and he told me he was going to make an extensive fan site about the Supervision, a Taiwanese Game Boy knockoff, I was like "sure dude." 15 years later he actually launched the thing??

Meanwhile, the Game & Watch Perfect Catalogue just came out, with the full low down on all 59 models. BTW, had no idea there were 59 in total until @ionadisco mentioned it…

How Game & Watches were sold in America; I fondly recalls this ad in-between the pages of Amazing/Spectacular/Web of Spider-Man (via suppermariobroth)…

And how Game Boys were sold in Japan, one day one apparently, which would explain this salesperson’s rather perplexed demeanor (via flashbak.com)…

Silly as it sounds, and as silly as he looks, the US version of Firebrand is nonetheless a warm & welcoming face from my childhood (via nintendometro)...

Mario dropping a knowledge bomb (via suppermariobroth)…

Here’s Peach seemingly kicking Toad’s ass in Super Mario Bros Deluxe, which I’ve been meaning to tweet for a while now, but now seems like the right time & place for obvious reasons (via nintendometro)…

A cute comic about someone finally beating a game after ten years, or at least I believe that's the case (you know, language barrier and all; via @desune593)

Sailor Moon seems to enjoy handheld gaming more so than in the arcades (via uglygreenjacket)…

It saddens me that ravages of time is robbing me of my precious memories, including the names of 90s anime, hence why I had to ask on Twitter who exactly is this (answer was Tenchi Muyo; via shxtfased)...

It’s SethEverman, just playing some pokemon blue…

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Speaking of music, it again saddens me that I wasn’t about to make the trip to Japan to catch chiptunes at Square Sounds, and various associated venues. At least @bit_shifter_ took this great snapshot of Glomag at Cyberpunks Osaka…

Meanwhile, here in NYC, we actually still have record stores. And you can grab Josh’s latest release, his first in 12 years(!) at Rough Trade (via bit-shifter)…

Though back to Japan; attended Square Sounds would have also afforded me the chance to check out Tokyo Game Show, where I could have gotten that VMU shaped USB drive that was being sold at the Sega booth (via miki800)…

A few weeks before TGS, there was an earthquake in Japan, in northern island Hokkaido. Many were left without power, but one person was able to keep up with the news, thanks to an old DS peripheral that basically provides bunny ears (via kotaku.com)…

On a semi-related note, here’s someone watching old ECW VHS tapes on their Game Gear (via heavyelectricity)…

Sorry, but the only other thing I have that’s related to Sega’s Master System on the go is this gif from a pizza ranch salad dressing (yikes) commercial, which was cross-promoting Sonic Chaos (via sonicthehedgeblog)...

I have no idea why I'm so amused by this Getty Image of a Neo Geo Pocket that was confiscated at summer camp. Or perhaps no explanation is needed? (via hellomrkearns)…

Speaking of the Great Outdoors, here’s my buddy Steve enjoying some Mario Kart 8 in the middle of a forest (via instagram.com/vitaminsteve)…

And speaking of Mario Kart on the Switch, Bowser seems like a pretty cool dood to have a car trip (via suppermariobroth)…

The Switch is so beloved that people are doing fan art, not for any particular game but the simple the act of playing with it (via annazees)…

Granted, one of the best things about the Switch is all the different ways in which one can play (via kanekoshake)…

If you enjoy your Switch on the go and are looking for a way to store games… and are a diehard Breath of the Wild fan as well… plus if you have access to a 3D printer (via miki800.com)…

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It’s a tribute to Star Wars… games… all of them… featuring Princess Leia focused on her DMG (via deviantart.com/robduenas)...

BTW, do you still have your Game Boy? If not, here ya go (via anthony10000000)…

When the realization hits that your Game Boy Color library is incomplete (via @Bootleg_Stuff)…

Back to my buddy Steve, who visited the Primark at the Staten Island mall and took pics of the game related apparel that, sadly, were no longer in stock by the time I was able to swing by. With the one thing I really wanted being this shirt…

This pair of Super Mario Land X Air Jordans is only $1,350.00 (via miki800.com)…

I’m sure you’ve seen him already, but for the sake of completion, here’s that grandpa from who rigged this bike with 11 phones to become a Pokemon Go master (via bbc.com)…

Yet another sign of our times, literally (via fuckdragonballz)…

This image features a PSP and a MacBook, both of which are from the mid-2000s, yet feels very late 1990s/early 2000s. Why? Those USB cables (via jcgraphix)…

And last but not least, here’s Paris Hilton with her DS in 2005 (via @ParisHilton)…

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bigevidence · 6 years ago

Text

The Picture

Browsing Reddit I stumbled upon this image of Room 100 of the Central Building in the New York Public Library. Its catalog details are dateless but the clothes, hairdos and office equipment seem to place the moment in the teens of the 20th century.

My New York chauvinism presumes this was state-of-the-art in the go-go days of early modernity. Room 100 would have been its brain, the system’s central processing unit with its card catalog system indexing a vast database of manuscripts, objects and books.

I count thirteen women and six men, a healthy two-to-one ratio. This suggests, anecdotally, the early days of information management system culture were dominated by female knowledge workers. Then I see a guy, that stern-looking guy in the back. His hands clasped behind in the classic pose of ready reproach. This is the boss. Some things in business change more slowly than others, and males dominating the management class remains infuriatingly one of them.

We Were Warned

Aldous Huxley, writing in 1932, imagined his Brave New World of techno-dystopia as a huge card catalog index. He might have guessed wrong on the storage media, but his prediction betrays an insight: library sciences in the early 20th century was the innocent precursor for the Wild West information economy we inhabit today.

So, how did we get from that mostly girl-powered Room 100 to the brave new marketplace of facial recognition and black-box algos? In less than a hundred years we galloped from an open-access, community-financed, human value-add information culture to something Huxley basically nailed: a violent chaos of data energized by the cold logic of value extraction - a surveillance economy.

Boys and Their Toys

History’s short, brutal arc from our image above to that touch-screen you’re staring at this very moment has a defining characteristic - phallo-technic. An insurgent whiff of testosterone infuses every leap beyond the analog. Turing’s machine thinking starts sparking early innovations like Colossus, the mighty Allies’ crypto-breaking war machine. From there, the guys blast genius paths to stored memory on tubes instead of cards, and by the 60s they came up with microprocessors and CPUs. Big businesses formed around these break-throughs - companies like Sperry Univac, IBM and Intel all laying claim to the emerging frontiers of cutting-edge tech. Then the 70s happened, and the soon-to-be unholy trinity of business, government and academia spawned the defining product Eisenhower warned us about - Messrs. Cerf and Kahn’s development of TCP/IP and the birth of ARPANET. Recognizing early they had a naming issue, somebody in the vast military-industrial complex had the branding smarts to re-christen their new everywhere machine, the Internet.

The battle matrix for humans versus machines was locked and loaded. If only there was a simple way to connect it all. Thinking through the problem of what regular people might be able to with all those connected servers, Tim Berners-Lee came up with the protocol for the World Wide Web. The lowly but lovely browser was born and released into the early 1990s world with the promise of a “free and open” web for the world.

And so began the most fertile, frenzied fifteen business years the planet has ever known. A handful, you guessed it, of guys puttered their way from garage labs to an almost total takeover of the Web. Today was born, the state of human affairs defined dystopically by the *FAANG-ilization of everything. Huxley, dude – how did you know?

Theft as Gift

If there’s a key to understanding how we got here it’s the human data-theft at the heart of our devil’s bargain with the FAANG/BATs* (*adding the emerging Chinese tech conglomerates Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent.) A theft calculated by the imbalanced exchange of our data for their “free” services, utility and content. The swindle sealed by a brilliant if insidious deception, that what was sensed as newfound control turned out to be full frontal surrender.

This human data theft premises, privileges and permissions the dominating platforms to treat this new connected culture lab as their shareholder piggy bank, ringing up billions in $s, ¥s and €s each hour with its super-efficient violence of value extraction by-design.

Capital’s OS

There’s nothing new about the insight connecting the human male with aggression. The history of everything – science, philosophy, art, sport, invention – has always been told through the muscular narrative of men on the march. Business and its platform of capital perhaps even more so. But the 20th century’s technological advances, along with their owners, sponsors and profiteers were definingly male, fueled by states, their militaries and compliant academic accomplices.

Marx in all his prescient insight about how capital morphs and snakes through a social system couldn't have predicted such omnipotence. No one (if only Huxley’s insight was more economic) could have imagined how capital might behave when unleashed across the digitally collapsed frontiers of nations, markets and human autonomy itself.

But here in the teen years of the 21st century, capital has found its most perfect operating system. Essentially owned and operated by the FAANG/BATs, finally exceeding states' powers to regulate by cutting them in on the deal. The merits seemed obvious, for a few cycles. But now the darker downsides unsettle, even if muted by the seeming benefits. All we have to do is lean forward, accept the terms of service and enjoy the pleasing haze of surrender. Or not.

Fork You

One of my more unlikely sources of insight is Audre Lorde. In the late 70s, in her call-to-arms for a broader reset of culture, politics and governance she suggested, “the master’s tools will never dismantle the master’s house”. Lorde added a caveat to her provocation – “in the long run, anyway…”. I take her qualification as inspiration for an alternative path to our shared futures together.

Lorde understood that, in the near term, sometimes the fastest and most efficient way to ignite change was to borrow from the master's tool-box. So, from our reigning overlords of the technosphere I borrow a term – forking. Originally coined by application engineers working in the early Unix operating system, it describes how a system makes a copy of itself in order to launch a new program or procedure.

It’s useless to ponder what if we hadn’t succumbed so completely to the current techno-economic regime. But it’s not crazy to suggest an act of shared re-imagination about what’s next – and doing something about it. Given the choice and taking the chance, ask ourselves what a more equitable human fork beyond this replicant economy might look like.

Look at Me... I matter!

Fredric Jameson and Slavoj Žižek lay equal claim for musing, “it’s easier to imagine the end of the world than the end of capitalism”. We won’t be solving for capitalism, but it’s certainly within our imaginative grasp to re-engineer a fresh fork in the fabric of our shared technosphere.

Our first leap together is the toughest, but everything depends on it. We must re-imagine a reward incentive to replace the predatory value extraction at the heart of the current model. Imagination without insight is an empty exercise. The stakes are too high and the opportunities too sweet. We arm ourselves with an insight grounded in the ancient core of human need: recognition and affirmation.

This is the essential human insight driving our behavior together since we sat around communal fires 50,000 years ago to tell stories and share things like food, heat and protection against the forces from without. It’s the insight we’ve been baking into our creative briefs for a more radical marketing for the past twenty years.

It’s also an insight we’re all intimately familiar with, given our newfound togetherness on socially connected devices. Whether you’re a lurker, a poseur or somewhere in between, that feeling you get when someone likes your lunch picture or comments on your pithy comebacks is a pleasing if minor reward. A gift minted in a scalable social currency of affirmation and recognition.

If we need an insight to spark our imaginative leap into a different future of everything, I’m going with - “Look at me... I matter!” The challenge remains what we do with it to disrupt the disruptors out of their ubiquitous ownership of our 24/7 lives.

The Big Lie

Our primary solve for applying this insight is cost. The cynical lie at the heart of the surveillance economy is that the companies who give us all this free stuff – image storage, social connectivity, email and massaging, document management, navigation tools, video services – need to pay for them with advertising.

I’ve been in the global advertising and marketing racket for over thirty years and I can tell you, as we say on Madison Avenue, this is absolute bullshit. From the radio soap operas of the 1930s through to the sitcoms of the current twilight of linear TV, the default economic model was to exchange content costs with eyeball reach.

But advertising is an increasingly moribund model when it comes to getting and keeping customers. Brand marketing teams, agencies, publishers and broadcasters have known this for the past several years and are frantically trying to figure out alternative models. Don’t expect what they come up with will have you the human at the heart of its value equation.

Note well: if we’re imagining a more equitable human technosphere, someone will need to pay for it. The shareholders of the FAANG/BATs – full disclosure that includes me – aren’t candidates. We, and that includes everybody, will need to be ready to offer up some value in exchange. This new currency of exchange, unlike the attention we spend under today’s regime, will be something quite different.

Identity and Attention

Under the dominant rules the most valuable asset we control is not our attention. It’s our identify itself.

In the past fifteen years Google, Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, Apple and LinkedIn (the shortlist) all have aimed for a lock on owning and managing our identity. Each developed APIs and competed for publishers to offer their credentialing service in return for reducing the friction of visitors to their sites or apps to register. This was a brilliant strategy for aiming to "own" human identity on the Web. The winners would become the custodians of our identity, allowing them to monetize our attention and continue gathering our personal data trails, even when we were off their sites and networks.

We underscore this founding and enduring connection between identify and attention, and the pair's critical role in the business model of platform value extraction. Pundits coined the benign term the “attention economy” to sugar-coat the brutal mechanics of the emerging surveillance economy. But what we thought we were so freely exchanging wasn’t really our attention. That was simply the metric (see views, impressions) of their very last-century media model. What this economy was actually based upon was the signs and manifestation of our identity itself - our behaviors, our transactions, our attitudes and our fears, our desires and our demographics. Our human identity data serving as fuel for all this perfidy.

If identity is how we signal our authentic and autonomous presence, attention is merely just one of the things we do with it. With our forking leap grounded in the human desire for connection and affirmation, human identity is a critical first principle. Our digital, just like our IRL identities, must be integral, persistent, authentic, privately and personally owned and controlled. Unlike the current mess we’ve surrendered ourselves into, it must be ours. Identity has been the golden goose of the surveillance economy’s value model. We want it back.

For several years infosec geeks, technology activists and a handful of marketers and payment solutions companies have been talking about the personal information economy. There is much to be inspired about here. But we can’t kid ourselves about the daunting task of challenging the profit at stake in the walled gardens of the hegemonic platforms.

The Diamond District

To the platforms, attention was always a zero-sum competition. Ever wonder why links are rare on Instagram or why those redball notification counts are so addictive? The platforms engineered everything they could to keep you on their sites and apps when you got there and get you back soon and often when you left.

There’s a problem with this idea about attention being zero-sum – it isn’t. Yet, in order to more fully monetize our identity through our attention, the platforms and the complicit brands they've duped all had to believe the same things about human desire, value exchange and the very nature of competition. They got all three wrong.

I teach a graduate course in Competitive Strategy at NYU. On the 19th slide of tonight's first lecture deck are three words in 90 point type – FUCK THE COMPETITION. The insight here is one you won’t get from traditional business theorists (99% men by the way). They advise we obsess over the competition, so to better annihilate them. This defensive zero-sum thinking informed the product, interface and technical design strategies for all the big box platforms. Hold that thought.

For evidence to support my profane advice, I suggest my students take a walk down 47th Street between Sixth and Fifth Avenues. If you know Midtown New York you know that block is crammed with jewelry stores selling ~$400 million worth of diamonds every day. Each one of those shops is competing with each other. Observer’s intuition tells us this is dumb. Why would all these competitors within a single category put up their shops next door to each other. The answer is because this is where the customers are.

Each of those stores is forced to compete for customer attention, dwell-time and purchases in one of capitalism’s most Darwinian exercises imaginable. Here’s the insight: this commercial system is the anti-thesis of zero sum. Everyone’s a winner, but mostly the customers who know exactly where to go, how to compare and who to buy from when they’re diamond shopping.

Better Business Building

The key that connects our forking strategies to these gathering insights is value. Our brief is bold: how do we enable humans to come together with each other in their shared worlds – cultural, social, commercial, political, economic, aesthetic – in moments of mutually satisfying value exchange. And, when the moment presents, get and keep them as customers.

I have a disclaimer which my cowardice can no longer contain. I’m a selfish business strategist (if a slightly more interesting value marketeer). My aim of strategic attack remains true: mine and articulate fresh insight powerful enough to be transformed into value. Value first for humans and then, the selfish part, the businesses who hire me. My call for forking radically from the predatory platform models of today isn’t altruistic. It’s good for business. Better business, different business. Sustainable and organic business.

Recent business history is rife with inspiring cases…

One of history's most commercially disruptive business models exploded at the heart of technology itself, the open source software initiative. Launched in 1998 it was intended to foster a community of creators, software developers, around the principles of free speech. The software wasn’t meant to be free, but its collaborative creation and distribution was. Within ten years of its founding the reigning software industry incumbents Microsoft and SAP were forced to succumb to variations on its themes, or become marginalized and irrelevant.

Wikipedia was founded in 2001 on the same principles of collaborative value creation, or in the words of its Wikipedia entry (as meta as you wanna be...) - “based on a model of openly editable and viewable content”. Within four years, independent comparative reviews of the quality and extent of its entries against the dominant incumbent encyclopedias essentially put those publishers out of meaningful business.

Bandcamp is another business model based on the refreshing new rules of respectful mutual value recognition and exchange. It’s counter-intuitive post-platform axiomatic confounds Hayekians fully: the pricing posted by musicians for purchasing their music is set as a floor, and 40% of the time customers choose to pay more. Music and media critic Steve Smith suggests Bandcamp’s growth and popularity is due to its “responsible and ethical business model more equitable to artists than any other retailer of comparable size, but also a savvy grasp of social media’s power of peer-to-peer persuasion, implemented through public-facing “collections” meant to function as virtual record shelves to be pored over and emulated.”

Another jewel in the crowd of emerging better businesses is GitHub. Launched by two developers in 2008 it was acquired by Microsoft in mid-2018 for $7.5bn because, well, the Internet… More specifically, like other companies forged upon the exponential power and value of community, GitHub offers its code repository and hosting services absolutely free. As long as you’re cool with all your work being public. This is a lower barrier than you might imagine. According to this paper analyzing its business model, “GitHub currently hosts millions of free repositories, including many powerful projects like MySQL and Ruby on Rails used by GitHub themselves to power the platform.” Italics added and you can see why.

Each of these modestly alternative businesses share at least five key characteristics, distinguishing them from the reigning predatory models.

They leverage community to scale contributive value through collaboration.

The rewards reaped by all participants are either symmetrically aligned, or equably unbalanced to the mutual benefit and happiness of all involved.

The core behaviors of value exchange are essential public acts of private production.

The exchange of products and services generate uniquely exponential surplus value. One plus one isn’t three – but, potentially 3 million (see characteristic number 1).

Although none rely on decentralized technology a la blockchain (that’s another chapter…), both trust and authority exist within and emanate from the contributive crowd.

It’s Tomorrow Again

In 2009 Google sent a crew of corporate flacks into Times Square to ask people “what is a browser?”. The self-serving video they promoted elicited the desired response. People thought of their browser as their search engine. Lol, what sweet dear idiots. In retrospect, Google’s stunt seems more strategic than mean-spirited. Exactly a year before wading into Times Square, Google launched their own web browser Chrome, and it wasn’t yet ripping commanding market share from the then dominant Microsoft Internet Explorer.

Google’s insight from their video was used to ignite a market-share grab that soon proved those poor misguided people were actually right. Today, Google enjoys almost 70% of the browser market and over 90% of the search engine market. And we don’t even have to trouble about going all the way over to google.com to search --- just pop those search terms into your browser’s URL box. Combining these two interfaces and offering both ‘free’ remains the founding act of the extractive surveillance economy. An economy that generated about $120 billion for Google in 2018 – nearly 33% of all the advertising income cashiered globally.

This sort of commercialization of online attention through the primary entry-point into our connected world probably wasn’t what Tim Berners-Lee had in mind when he founded the W3C as a not-for-profit organization in 1994 to release his invention of the World Wide Web to the world, “available freely, with no patent and no royalties due.”

But it most certainly was a factor inspiring Berners-Lee (TimBL to the digerati) to found another organization, the World Wide Web Foundation in 2009. At the time, he announced the move as a necessary step to, "advance the Web to empower humanity by launching transformative programs that build local capacity to leverage the Web as a medium for positive change."

TimBL was making a point. The “positive change” he had imagined was not about the unimaginable market cap realized by the surveillance platforms who have been monetizing his invention since he went all pay-it-forward and gave it the world “free” twenty years earlier.

I say we have a winner. Our pivot model is Tim Berners-Lee and his founder’s intent for what was to be done with his invention called the Web. We don’t need to fork from the chaos of extraction dictated by the FAANG/BATs of today. Philosophically and strategically we aim our imagination and make our fork from the same ethical, technical and social location Berners-Lee set the damn thing free in the first place.

Real Feels

Here on the edge of the 2020s the digital fumes of a pervasive, violent system of connected platforms sicken our lived experiences on the planet. Recall the data theft and value extraction at the heart of its formula for exchange. We’re proposing to subvert, reject and eventually replace that life-negating technosphere with the more touchy-feely kumbaya model as imagined by Berners-Lee and his fellow do-gooders from the World Wide Web Foundation.

Go ahead, place your bets. But then hold my beer…

Reconsider the picture atop our wandering manifesto. Imagine yourself one those primeval knowledge workers. What got you going each day? My guess is it was a passion for knowledge and a love for sharing it. Here’s another question - don’t you think they would’ve wildly embraced Berners-Lee’s quixotic quest to “empower humanity by launching transformative programs that build local capacity… as a medium for positive change”?

Me too.

The reason 40% of music purchasers on Bandcamp pay more than the musicians ask is because they love their music and it makes them feel good to pay more. They will never forget that feeling of munificence, of genuine generosity. It makes listening to that music, and the emotional relationship to its producers, different and special.

How about those developers giving their code away on their no-charge GitHub because, what the hell: maybe someone can improve it, do something with it I might not have done. Better together rules.

How about all the thankless hours nameless Redditors spend moderating their subreddits or Wikipedia editors competing to nurture their entries. I imagine they'd all say it was time well-spent.

We improve each other when we share and give. And that, if you’ll pardon the warranted exuberance, feels fucking great. It’s a little bit vain sure. It’s a little bit self-serving, adding to the bank of our social currency among communities that matter to us. Communities of people – customers, employees, partners, clients – that matter to my happiness.

There’s a final insight we can lean on to inspire us to start building and sharing things differently, whether it's products, services, companies or communities. Importantly, it’s the same insight about why we spend so much time on social networks and what we get and give in return. Belongingness. We gather in these communities to affirm our place in the world. To prove to ourselves we matter. We belong there, here among the like-minded, like-employed or like-impassioned.

Passion. That’s the thing we’ve got to bake into the core of our replacement formula for value exchange. The passion to create, to nurture, to add not subtract to something of minor meaning in the world. Feelings, real feelings, are the domain where the rewards for this work are both sown and reaped.

But is it possible to imagine, never mind develop, a candy brand, or clothing brand, a soap brand or a pharmaceutical brand inhabiting the marketplace under such a feeling-based regime? Well that’s the job at hand. So we’d better figure it out.

For inspiration, we take one more loving look at those long-gone library staff. They showed up to contribute. Their work gave them worth. Their service was of a particular and very special value. Their passion for helping knowledge sustain and spread was a potent and positive force in the community of their customers, users - humans.

Not bad poster-children for a brazen fork towards a world of humans, brands and the technology that connects us all.

This article is adapted and excerpted from Kennon’s upcoming Madland: A Radical Marketing Manual to be published in the Fall of 2019.

http://www.freeradicals.marketing/2019/01/31/real-feels/

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noiseartists · 5 years ago

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Beauty In Chaos- U.S.A. finding beauty in the storm before the calm

Guitarist Michael Ciravolo has worked with an amazing array of musicians (see some below) over his career. As his project, Beauty in Chaos (BIC) is about to unleash its new album, The Storm before the Calm (love the title), Noise Artists meets with the head honcho.

But first let us thank Michael. Fanboys/girls that we are at Noise Artists, we are awed by the kindness Michael always had for fans like ourselves, and the time spent this article and the previous one. This is an honor.

Also a shout out to Shauna, from the Shameless Promotion PR that introduced us and represent BIC, and many other exceptional artists.

In January 2019, Michael had the gentleness to record his experience in creating and recording the songs of the first album, finding beauty in chaos, with the various featuring artists. A gem. You can find our article, Stories of an all star recording told by Michael Ciravolo , THERE.

The various artists that have been working with Michael on the BIC albums are: Simon Gallup (The Cure), Wayne Hussey (The Mission), Robin Zander (Cheap Trick), Pete Parada (The Offspring), dUg Pinnick (Kings X), ICE-T (Body Count), Michael Aston (Gene Loves Jezebel), Michael Anthony (Van Halen), Dirk Doucette (Gene Loves Jezebel), Ashton Nyte (The Awakening), Pando (A Flock of Seagulls), Evi Vine, Betsy Martin (Caterwaul / Purr Machine), Marc Danzeisen (The Riverdogs), Kevin Kipnis (Purr Machine / Kommunity FK), Rudy Matchinga (Red Scare), Johnny Indovina (Human Drama), Tish Ciravolo (StunGun/ Daisy Rock Guitars), Steven Seibold (Hate Dept.) Rafe Pearlman, Curse Mackey (My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult, Pigface EVIL MOTHERS), Kat Leon (Holy wars) and Adrienne LaVey

Needless to say that you should rush to buy not only the new album, but also the previous one. Some gems from great artists in a generous range of genres. You can find the music on the band’s website.

Now discover the project and the music with this interview given by Michael.

INTERVIEW

Who are the group members?

The consistent members in Beauty In Chaos is our producer Michael Rozon and myself. The ‘BIC Family’ as we like to refer to the amazing artists that have lent their talents is constantly revolving and evolving. The Mission’s Wayne Hussey and The Awakening’s Ashton Nyte amazing voices have each been featured on four songs to date. Other rock ‘luminaries’ include Simon Gallup (The Cure), Al Jourgensen (Ministry), and Robin Zander (Cheap Trick). Former Gene Love Jezebel’s drum Dirk Doucette has played on many of the tracks, and along with bassist Tish Ciravolo, have appeared in many of our videos.

In addition to Hussey and Nyte, our new album, ‘The Storm Before The Calm’ features new BIC Family members Curse Mackey, Steven Seibold, Rafe Pearlman and Holy Wars’ Kat Leon.

How did you come up with your name?

The name Beauty In Chaos was inspired by a photo I saw that some friends took of an abandoned building. While the structure was dilapidated and falling down, trees and vines had begun to almost reclaim it. Something about it struck me as ‘beauty’ in the middle of the destruction. I think each of us have both beauty and chaos in our lives … what those are my vary.

What is your music about?

I think we set the mood for light and dark, beauty and chaos. I always feel the best lyrics are the ones that are open to interpretation by not being so literal. I think all of the BIC singers do that extremely well.

What are your goals as an artist artistically/commercially?

Artistically I want to make a record that I am proud of. I feel that if I please myself, at least a few others will enjoy it. As far as commercially, that’s sort of a hot button with me. I think today there is a totally lack of ‘value’ placed on the art of making music. Maybe there is too much music out there. Maybe with some technology it seems too easy to make music. I hate the idea of streaming. To me, and I’m probably dating myself - music should be heard on vinyl. The entire experience of it. It is truly something special that many never experienced and sadly don’t care to experience. For BIC, I would just like to sell enough physical product for our label, 33.3 Music Collective to want to continue to release physical albums and CDs. I honestly don’t know if I would still do this if our only avenue was strictly digital.

What are you trying to avoid as a band?

While not being a typical ‘band’, I still try to make everything BIC does unique and different. This includes individual songs, albums and our videos … all while keeping a common thread throughout. I never want our albums, which feature different singers to sound like a ‘compilation’. It is a tall order but I think we have navigated this challenge remarkably well.

Why do you make the music you make? Is it in you? Is it your environment?

Beauty In Chaos started out for a fleeting moment as my ‘solo’ record. I wanted to prove to myself (and probably a few others) that I could do it. It quickly turned into something more … a lot more.

What inspire you for the music or for the Lyrics?

I’m inspired to create soundscapes to move our various singers to create something special. The simple phrase ‘beauty AND chaos’ is really all the input I give them. The music, which certainly contains both elements seems to set each on a path. It is almost like Christmas morning when I get their vocal parts back … which is always been a pleasant surprise!

Tell us what you are looking when trying to achieve your sounds. Do you experiment a lot or have a clear idea of what you want?

It varies. Some songs had a very clear path and some others twisted and eventually evolved. On our debut album ‘finding beauty in chaos’ I set some self-boundaries or limitations. I would play all of the guitars and there would be no synths. I wanted to create a heavily orchestrated sounding album, with lots of textures and all created with the electric guitars. Even though I think those ‘limitations’ were missed by many, I do feel we did just that. We employed so many different devices to manipulate the guitar on ‘FBIC’. 100+ guitar pedals, E-Bows, real violin bows, a crazy device call the ‘Gizmotron’ and more.

Describe your palette of sound.

Anything and everything! We certainly ‘play’ the studio, if that makes sense? I love guitar effect pedals, and in many instances the sound that happens when I step on a combination of pedals is the genius of a song.

Who would you want as a dream producer, and why?

I have my dream producer! BIC would not be possible without Michael Rozon. He pushes me, sometimes to the point of insanity … but this always leads me into doing something better than I thought possible. Besides being a world-class producer, he’s a great musician and as much as I hate ‘music theory’, his knowledge has proven invaluable. Number #2 on my ‘dream list’ is Tim Palmer (The Mission, Tears For Fears, Tin Machine, Robert Plant, HIM), and we have been blessed to have him do several remixes on our ‘beauty re-envisioned’ release. Tim is also onboard for the next ‘remix’ record (currently dubbed ‘Out Of Chaos Comes …’ which we hope for a Halloween release). Not often do you get to work with the top-2 on your list!!!

If you could guest on someone else’s album, who would it be and why? What would you play?

I’d love to play guitar on the new Cure album.

What musical skills would you like to acquire or get better at?

I think my lack of being a guitar virtuoso has led me to creating my own specific style. Not sure if that is good or bad, but it is a fact. I have started to attempt to broaden my ‘guitar chord’ repertoire. I did use some different chord voicings on some of the songs on our new album.

Which other musician/artist would you date?

Ha! I married her! My wife Tish Ciravolo, who has played bass on several tracks on our debut album and co-wrote and sung the amazing ‘Look Up’. But if you are looking for dirt I’ve always had a slight crush on Shirley Manson 

Is there a band that if they didn’t exist you wouldn’t be making the music you make?

Wow, that’s hard to say. I guess I have to look at the bands that made me want to be in a band from my teen years. T. Rex, Slade, David Bowie and The New York Dolls. These artists changed my path from wanting to play football to wanting to play guitar. I quickly learned girls liked guys in bands more than jocks!

You are from the USA, what are the advantages and inconvenient?

I was born in a very musical town, New Orleans, but have lived in Los Angeles since the mid-80s. I think everything you could want is here … and that is a blessing and a curse. There is a lot of ‘phoniness’ in Los Angeles. You do need to weed through the fake people. I think technology has leveled the playing field quite a bit. Everyone now has a chance to be heard.

What are some places around the world that you hope to play with your band?

In the beginning, I never looked at BIC as a ‘live entity’, but I have begun to wonder both ‘how’ and ‘what if’. I think BIC has a lot of fans in Europe … so I would say London, Rome, Paris and Berlin would be a great way to start. Time will tell.

When is the next album/EP due?

Our new full length ‘The Storm Before The Calm’ will be released on May 22nd, which coincidentally is World Goth Day. It is available on 180g vinyl (including a LTD Edition Black and Blue vinyl), CD and Digital. You can order any and all from our BIC STORE (www.beautyinchaosmusic.com)

Some artists you recommend.

I think any one artist that is part of our family is very worthy of delving into their individual catalogs. Ashton Nyte has made some glorious records, as has Evi Vine. We have some great singers on our new album that might not be as much of household names as some on our debut… but they sure as fuck should be! I really implore everyone to check out what they have done, as it is stunning.

Anything else you want your fans to know?

As I got on my soapbox about the lack of ‘value’ placed on music. I ask that everyone realize that Spotify and the likes do NOT allow artists to continue to make music. It is their touring, merchandise and physical product sales that support them. If you like a band or artist and you would like to hear another album from them … go see them live. Buy their T-shirt but above all . BUY their music. This is really not just in reference to BIC, I sincerely mean it for all Indie Bands.

Find Beauty In Chaos here:

website

facebook

instagram

twitter

All photos by Anabel DFlux

#Beauty in Chaos #New Orleans #USA #Rock #Indie

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kadobeclothing · 5 years ago

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Self-care tips for moms: 10 Things to do during #LOCKDOWN

So, here we are… Day 1 of South Africa’s 21 Day LOCKDOWN. You’ve got the kids sorted… Stocked up on food and toilet paper to last at least a week or two… You may be working and “momming ” OR just full-on, full-time “momming” and homeschooling… One thing, or rather one person I know you’ve forgotten about is YOURSELF. 21 Days in the same spot can make even the most stable, optimistic of us, STIR CRAZY!!!!!! That’s why you need to make time for yourself too, even if it’s just for a few minutes daily. Mamas, sit back and have a glance at our “Self-care tips for moms: 10 Things to do during #LOCKDOWN”. You’re sure to find something that “feeds your soul” during this time. For the foodie mom… If cooking is your thing… Why not learn from the best, for FREE! Yuppiechef is giving everyone 30 days FREE access to all of Yuppiechef’s Online Cooking School courses! Professional chefs, Peter Goffe-Wood, Sarah Graham and Franck Dangereux, will be teaching you all about meats, french classics, quick and easy dinners, sauces, breakfast favourites, how to cook fresh, treats, dessert, chocolates and how to prepare a Christmas feast! I’ve already signed up and will start watching my 1st video tutorial tomorrow! Click HERE to join too.

For the mama wanting to grow… Why not take this time to invest in YOURSELF! Caitlyn de Beer is a mom, a life-coach and basically all-around girls gal. She wants every woman to LOVE HER LIFE -just as it is and helps so many through her incredible online courses. This week she launched the “Chaos to Calm”, self-paced online course aimed at helping YOU create a safe space on your journey towards greater self-awareness. Through 5 downloadable audios and 4 worksheets, you’ll grow from being self-critical, always running from uncomfortable situations to a woman that knows how to manage herself and her feelings in a positive, inspirational way. There’s no right or wrong answers, no deadlines to meet… You work at your own pace.

Best of all, the course is only R200 (you’ll get access immediately) with R100 going towards a local AIDS orphanage in need of support during the Covid-19 pandemic. Purchase your “Chaos to Calm” short course HERE. For the mama in need of some retail therapy… Nothing wrong with wanting to spoil yourself – just a little, and I’m sure chocolate is seen as an essential, right? Rather just stick to staying in your pajamas and shopping online. Woolworths, Pick n Pay, Wellness Warehouse and Faithful to Nature are all taking orders and delivering to your door. For the photo-loving mama… I know you’ve got a phone FULL of photos or a hard drive about to crash… And there’s just never anytime to make up that family holiday photobook… The FujiFilm My PhotoBooks website is still up and running which means you can download their FREE photobook software while taking your time to create a beautiful photobook filled with your precious memories.

It’s SUPER easy! Download the FREE software. Choose photos you’d like to add to your book. Drag-and-drop your images into the album templates – they have so many themes, borders and extras to choose from. Save your beautiful book to your computer. And place your order after lockdown. For the organised mom… What better time to “spring clean” than now, it’s not like you can go anywhere… Why not consider taking up Project 333 – sorting out your winter wardrobe. “Wear just 33 items for 3 months and get back all the JOY you were missing while you were worrying about what to wear.” It’s also never too late to join the Marie Kondo train – visit her blog for the BEST “Tidy Tips” Or start with something small, like organising your children’s arts and crafts (I know you have them stored somewhere, collecting dust). Decide which pieces you’d like to keep, throw out damaged or less important works and after 21 days, order yourself a Bumble Box Artbook. These are incredible PLUS there’s never been a more important time to support small, local businesses.

For the dancing mama… Get your feet moving (and your mind in the right vibe). Join Spotify!

FREE music on your phone or computer. It’s amazing. I’m actually listening to our Lockdown Shakedown playlist as I type this. You’ll find us rocking out to local bands The Narrow, Desmond and the Tutus, BOO and other favourites like Pharrel, Katy Perry, Florence + The Machine, Imagine Dragons AND LOADS MORE! For the creative mom… Simply look for the hashtag #quarantineartclub on Instagram. You’ll find loads of art challenges to join in and keep you inspired. Even just following the hashtag puts a smile on my face. Local photographer/momblogger extraordinaire Shante Hutton is also running a #21ShutdownShots photo challenge which started TODAY! All skill levels welcome.

For the faithful mom… If you’ve been following us on social media you’ll know I haven’t stopped posting about the 11-week devotional I started last year. “Walking with God in the Season of Motherhood” is a must-read for all moms, no matter your religious belief actually. I have followers from so many backgrounds commenting and loving the lessons, truths and scriptures shares in this book. Purchase and download the eBook HERE via Takealot.com for only R239 – you could be reading it tonight.

For the active mom… We can’t leave our homes but there’s no reason to not keep our bodies moving. We are going to need all the “feel-good hormones and endorphins” to flow! Have a look at our Mommy and Baby Workout Routine to see how you can get fit with your baby, nothing else needed. Fit mama Angelique van der Linde from Just victorious Living has also been sharing home workout tips via Instagram this week and Li Yoga just launched online yoga sessions to enjoy in the comfort of your own home. For the reading mom… ISSUU online magazine platform is the place to be… Buy your favourite local and international monthly publication for a fraction of the price. Every issue can be downloaded and enjoyed completely paperless. Less waste and less old magazines stacked in your home.

We are in this together mamas and we need to stick together. Find strength, calm and peace in the chaos by choosing to do just one of the options above or even a few… It’s all up to you. Just remember to take a moment for yourself during the next 21 days. Ps: Remember to pass this post along to any of your mom-friends too. You never know who might need some inspiration during this time. xxx PHOTO CREDIT | Selected photos by Anje-Ilana van Dalen from Madison & West Lifestyle Division.

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source https://www.kadobeclothing.store/self-care-tips-for-moms-10-things-to-do-during-lockdown/

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patheticphallacy · 5 years ago

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Hallo!

So let’s start this post by referencing the major creative crisis I went through this month, stemming from a blogging rut I found myself in beginning in July. I’ve got through it now, and I have basically the next month and a half of content already scheduled in preparation for my return to Uni, but the rut was real, guys.

I spend a lot of time on my posts and I found myself very low regarding the content and the amount of response I get to what I post. I know blogging is a lengthy process, I’m not going to immediately get response considering the blog is only just over two years old, and I genuinely love writing these posts and reviews. It’s a worry I tackle often, but sometimes it just gets to me and makes me feel kind of hopeless of ever getting over my general anxiety regarding interacting with other people. I keep my distance just because I don’t know how to make friends in the community, and I feel like that translates over to my blog sometimes too, but I’m really trying to change that by talking to more people!

Other than that: August was boring. I read, I watched random stuff, and I worked overtime shifts so I have enough money for rent when Uni starts. I’m honestly a pretty boring person during off-time from University just because of how far away I am from people, combined with my lack of money. Maybe next Summer will be more exciting.

I also want to add that my blog is going to be a lot busier now the end of the year is approaching. I always seem to have a calm period in November, but every other month, expect chaos! Good chaos, though. Friendly chaos. October is a great month for me as I love horror and supernatural things, which means I have twice as many post ideas.

READING WRAP UP

Assassination Classroom Volume 3-4 by Yusei Matsui– I expect to read more Assassination Classroom this month, but I ended up starting another popular manga series (that’ll come up later). I did enjoy these two volumes, and we got some intriguing looks into Korosensei’s backstory.

Ibitsu by Haruto Ryo– I hated this. Straight up. It felt very targeted towards the humiliation of teenage girls with a lot of unneeded torture and nudity, and I just felt sick after reading it, and not in a way I can enjoy with some stories.

Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love Volume 1-4 by Yayu Sakuragi– This is an age-gap romance between an 18 year old and his childhood friend who is… six/eight years older than him, one of the two. There were some really weird moments, for sure, and I won’t dispute that the age gap was kinda gross at points, but I feel like by the end the conversations on adulthood and the main character finally having his frustrations recognised meant a lot.

My Love Story Volume 7-13 by Kazune Kawahara– I’m in a perpetual state of mourning now that I’ve finished this series. It’s one of my all-time favourites. The ending is so heartfelt and they get into heavier issues towards the final volume that I feel helped carry the main relationship from feeling young into adulthood as the characters began college. It addresses jealousy and feelings of incompetence, while never belittling the trust these characters have in one another. It’s handled so maturely and so unlike other stories, and I’m satisfied with the conclusion, even if my heart is broken.

My Hero Academia Vigilantes Volume 4 by Hideyuki Furuhashi– Not as good as volume 3, but has some solid character development and we finally have a showdown of sorts. This does end on a cliffhanger, fair warning.

Starlike Words by Junko– Reaaaally didn’t like this. Poor development of character and relationship and the nudity felt gratuitous and gross, especially considering these characters are only 15/16.

These Witches Don’t Burn by Isabel Sterling– Another one that disappointed me. I have a review for this linked at the end of this post, just know that I had issues with the treatment of toxic relationships and a victim blaming attitude.

Peter and Alice by John Logan– An OK read that’s very meta, a play that imagines the meeting behind Peter Llewelyn Davies and Alice Liddell in 1932. It’s very tragic and the weaving of the characters they inspired into their own stories was incredible, but I found myself thinking the whole time about how this… probably didn’t happen. I know I should have suspended my disbelief, it just felt impossible.

One Piece Volume 1-11 by Eiichiro Oda– EE. This series is great! I literally started the longest running manga series I’ve come across so far and I don’t regret starting it, even if I did at first. The first 100 chapters have flown by with incredible character development and a wonderful world being shaped, and I adore it.

Their Body and Their Afterthought by Shelby Eileen– Not my favourite poetry collection. I don’t want to be too harsh, but it felt like it reiterates what I’ve read in other collections on similar themes and issues without ever offering anything new with form.

I Hate Fairyland Volume 1 by Skottie Young– I previously read this volume years ago. After a re-read, I’ve lowered my rating. I’ve just read way too many different comics and manga and whatnot to not be slightly critical. The art is still great, but it felt like I was struggling to get through this at points, especially after starting volume 2 and having to stop from boredom. It feels repetitive.

Sunshine, Sadness and Other Floridian Effects by Shelby Eileen– This collection was better than Their Body, luckily! It has some stunning imagery, calling up impressions of water and the turning of the tide in tandem with loss coinciding with moments of happiness, and I do recommend it.

Faithless #3/#4 by Brian Azzarello– Starting to get bored with this series. There’s only so much shocking stuff and nudity without any kind of explanation for it before you grow tired. I’ll carry on reading for a few issues; I’m just ready to drop it if nothing much keeps happening.

Pochamani Volume 1-5 by Kaname Hirama– Ohhh this was such a great series! It’s out of print so I had to read it online, and only the first five volumes are actually translated, which was so disappointing but I still recommend this series. It’s got the first fat main character I’ve seen in a manga series, and has so much conversation surrounding body shaming and positivity and the constant grappling with self-hate when you have a fat body. It means a lot to me, and seeing a romance where a fat girl is adored by her boyfriend is so wholesome.

The Diary of a Bookseller by Shaun Bythell– I literally started this last year and it took me that whole period of time to read 140 pages, and then in the space of a week I read the last 150. There’s definitely a sense of elitism and anti-genre fiction (especially what is typically branded as targeted towards women) which aggravated me, but the general humour was great and there was an interesting insight into the running of independent bookshops.

The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling– I feel like I’ve gone OFF about this book on here in August, but this book deserves it. It’s an intense psychological sci-fi horror where main character, Gyre, goes on a caving mission that ends up being more than it first appears. I love the relationship that develops between Gyre and Em, and I highly recommend the audiobook!

My Life with Bob by Pamela Paul– I have a whole review on my Goodreads that I feel summarises my issues with this book. I enjoyed this, but same with Shaun Bythell’s book, there’s a definite sense of elitism in some ways. I think Pamela Paul was willing to paint herself negatively in some respects and show the harmful thought processes she could have, and I appreciated that. My review is a lot more elaborate! Sorry!

Pen & Ink by Isaac Fitzgerald and Wendy MacNaughton– This is a fun side-by-side of tattoos with the explanations behind them from the people that have them. The stories are whacky and fun, in some places, but are also sentimental and heartfelt in others, and I like the different thought processes behind getting them and the way everyone still seems to love them.

My Hero Academia Volume 19 by Kohei Horikoshi– SO. GOOD. The real strength of this series lies in how well developed the characters and their relationships are, and this volume especially reaffirms that. Aoyama is so sweet and if he’s the traitor I’ll riot!

TBR JAR PICK FOR SEPTEMBER IS: WILLFUL MACHINES by Tim Floreen! My best friend picked this one out for me, thank you friend!

THINGS I WATCHED

I FINALLY went to the cinema again and watched BTS: Bring the Soul. I loved it.

I re-watched Daddy Day Care (don’t ask, it’s literally the only film I watched on Netflix the whole month and I hate that) and it opens with Ben– Eddie Murphy’s in-movie son– climbing out of bed and putting on the exact same Spongebob slippers my sister and I had when we were younger and it was amazing. I’ve never felt so nostalgic over something so unintentional in a film.

Not a watch, but a listen: the Teenage Scream podcast hosted by Kirsty Logan and Heather Parry, where they read and breakdown classic Point Horror novels from the 90s.

As always, I watched random stuff on deep dives on YouTube. This included: An Aesthetic History of The 1975, fat people don’t belong in magazines (it’s not what it sounds like), Being Lowborn w/ Kerry Hudson (an author interview! yes!), and I guess I’ll recommend the latest paperbackdreams video because I love Kat’s channel!

POSTS

University: Second Year Breakdown

A Bookshelf Tour: Part 1

REVIEW: These Witches Don’t Burn

Shakespeare Plays as Taylor Swift Songs

REVIEW: The Luminous Dead

Top Ten Tuesday: Read Books I Wish I Owned!

A Bookshelf Tour: Part 2

If you liked this post, consider buying me a coffee? Ko-Fi.

Goodreads|Twitter|Instagram|Letterboxd

August Wrap Up Hallo! So let's start this post by referencing the major creative crisis I went through this month, stemming from a blogging rut I found myself in beginning in July.

#august #books #movies #reading wrap up #tv shows #wrap up

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zak-graphicarts · 7 years ago

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Why Animation? Pt 2: Animation as an Art

In my mid project review, I discussed how it was important that I explore the context of animation in more depth. Additionally to exploring my own personal reasons for animating, I wanted to compare the craft to other visual art forms. I’ve talked about why I’m choosing animation, but I’ve been reluctant to discuss why I’m choosing the medium in comparison to another visual art form, like film or comics.

Animation by Richard Williams, exploring different types of animated characters walking.

To begin, I’ll define animation. It’s the technique of photographing successive drawings or positions of puppets or models, to create the illusion of life when the film is shown as a sequence. Animation is about movement, and most importantly - creating that illusion of life. Animation is able to breathe life into anything the artist can imagine - characters, objects, lines or shapes. With animation, the possiblities are endless - bound only by our imagination and technical skill.

Animation is primarily used for entertainment purposes, with cartoons such as Tom and Jerry or films like Toy Story coming to mind. It’s a medium that’s used in almost every motion picture, from subtle computer generated animation to entire films using the stop motion technique. These examples often feature larger than life characters, whether that be anthropomorphic animals or button-eyed girls. With animation, you can do pretty much anything. That’s something that these other visual art forms don’t allow you to do: whether that be film, comics or even computer games.

With film, I’m limited to what I can record on a camera. Obviously there’s endless potential here, but it can be quite restricting when you’re starting out. Whilst film is obviously a visual storytelling medium, I’m also interested in character design and bringing life to my own creations. It’s about this idea of the illusion of life - I’m creating something from nothing - a piece of paper and a pencil. When you film something, or an actor, it’s already there infront of you. There’s a great deal of talent and effort that goes into filmmaking, but with what I want to do - it’s not as interesting, to me, as animation. Film is used to tell stories about human characters, but there’s greater potential for audience engagement when we tell those stories through a universal lense, via toys, robots or monsters. Animation lets us tell stories about human characters through whatever vehicle we want - it allows us to create enthralling characters and render impossible worlds into a reality.

In animation, there’s a heightened sense of reality. Anything is possible, and as an audience, we know that. In an animation, if there’s a racoon and gum ball machine that just starts talking to each other - we don’t question it. Your mind never says ‘that’s impossible’ - it’s the nature, the inherently magical quality of animation. If we were to take the same idea and make it work in live action film, the film would have to establish a clear set of rules for this universe that allow this surreal event to take place, and make sense when it does so. As an audience, we’ve been conditioned to expect anything from animation, as they’re just drawings, or figures on a screen. With a live acton work, however, we expect a certain sense of reality and rules. In order to see something like this in a live acton film, there would have to be a heap of boring exposition saying how two humans switched bodies with these animals - or how they’ve advanced to the point of conversation and thought. With live action, you need to explain everything. With animation, you just need to show it.

‘Regular Show’ - an animated series following the antics of a talking blue jay, racoon and gum ball machine

Unlike film, or even computer games - we don’t need a big budget for animation, no stunt men or fight choreographers, just the ability to draw and pose characters or models. I’m a huge fan of film, and thus I know that live-action has the potential to transcend barriers and tell brilliant stories that resonate with audiences. Despite this, I do believe that animation speaks to everyone - and is universally more appealing to any audience, if done right. The main purpose of film is to tell stories, to entertain or educate the viewer in some way, shape or form. Some of these are more entertaining than others, for example a film like The Raid isn’t really trying to teach you anything, and something like Schindler’s List certainly isn’t trying to make you laugh. But in a medium that’s so focused on visual storytelling, it’s restricted by the use of actors, props and locations.

If we’re comparing animation and live action film, we’re stripping film of any computer generated imagery and animated tricks. I’ve discussed how limitation encourages creativity, but in this instance, it can effectively prevent it. Live action film is suddenly restricted to just stories of human characters, and thus any fantastical, escapist value an audience member might gleam from film has been ripped away. Animation is able to take the ideas of film, acting, directing and cinematography and combine these with limitless creative potential - allowing creators to tell any story they want, regardless of budget or acting schedules.

I’ve mentioned already that my initial interest was rooted in sequential art - comics. I still have a love for the medium, but it’s a craft that isn’t really suitable for a final piece here. I’ve created quite a few comics during this FMP, and a large part of my primary research and practical exploration has been around observational comics, inspired by Sam Elston and Aiden Koch. Drawing different characters walking across a street in panels, though, just isn’t the same as creating a walk animation. They’re very similar mediums, with near limitless creative potential and visual storytelling ability - but where animation creates the illusion of life, comics require the audience to bring those characters and stories to life themselves. Without this audience engagement and interaction, comics are just drawings in a sequence. It’s only when the reader engages with the art, that the story becomes real. Animation isn’t like that - it’s inherently magical and exciting because of the nature of the medium - it’s the difference between a ready-built chair, and one you have to assemble yourself. Both can be satisfying and successful, but one is naturally appealing to a universal audience and the other, might require a little more persuasion.

Anonymous. (2011). Aiden Koch.

I think, though, as an education tool, both animation and comics are just as effective and important as each other. Both mediums can be used to educate viewers, with animations able to capture the imaginations of all ages, from animating cartoon characters teaching kids about algebra to using motion graphics in presentations to allow audiences to understand what’s happening, from a timeline of how a product’s sales have increased or a pie chart - allowing people to visually see what’s happening to stock, or sales, if they don’t understand any jargon the speaker is using. Many companies and businesses have created computer games and animated shorts that are designed to help children learn, to develop their maths knowledge or spelling ability in a fun and entertaining way, rather than simply copying out of a textbook.

An animated video by hit Youtube Channel Crash Course, an educational series of videos on a range of subjects including history, science and psychology that make learning fun through motion graphics and flat design aesthetic.

In quite a low tech way, comics can be used to do the same thing. Unlike film or even computer games, sequential art is a universal language. Within it lies endless possibilites for easy instructions, as designers can simply draw what needs to be done rather than write it. Not only does this break down any language barriers, it also allows companies to market on a global scale. If a product has instructions that are simply a set of clear drawings, they are able to sell it around the world. I believe that both comics and animation are an untapped medium for education - a universal language that is able to reach audiences of any demographic and background.

Finally, let’s compare animation to the medium of computer games, and discuss their ability to tell stories, educate audiences and entertain them. With examples like The Last of Us, we’ve seen computer games be able to rival films with their cinematic approach to storytelling and ability to resonate with viewers, with exciting sequences but also very touching, emotional moments.

The Last of Us. (2013).

This, however, is one of a few examples where a video game is able to tell a coherent story, with a cinematic gravitas deserving of the big screen. Often, story and education can be swapped for user entertainment and interaction. In comparison to something like film or animation, computer games are not quite as effective a visual storytelling vehicle. They swap storytelling for experience, as the players control what happens in the narrative. With this loss of control arises a loss in the ultimate meaning and message communicated by the game - players can ultimately do whatever they want to, and thus may miss the entire point of the narrative or skip over cut scenes that flesh out characters and progress the story. In my experience, players don’t come to a video game expecting a rich narrative and developed characters - most of the time, they just want to kill things in exciting ways. I get that, but I think in that statement lies the reason in which I’m not exploring interactive media as a medium: often times, we sacrifice any artistic vision of characters, designs and storytelling for a purely entertaining experience. The message the artists are trying to send, or narrative they are trying to weave can be lost admist the chaos - and the face-value entertainment players receive after having slayed the hundredth demon.

Computer games are the best option when we’re trying to create a fun, interactive experience for the audience - when all we want to do is entertain our viewers with little narrative intentions, or teach kids maths skills through fun games. Film is able to convey raw human emotion, and capture an actor’s nuanced performance in a way that animation cannot, and comics are able to tell brilliant stories in rich, impossible worlds at a pace unrivalled by any other medium.

Animation, though, is able to breathe life into larger than life characters and educate audiences through simulations, demonstrations and engaging character designs. It’s a medium that takes elements from all of the visual art forms I’ve already discussed and blends them into one unique medium, in which the only limitations being our imagination, creativity and skill.

The purpose of this blog post was to discuss animation as a visual art form, comparing it to other art forms such as comics and film, and explore what makes the craft so exciting and unique. It’s a way for me to delve into the context of my project a little bit more, and evidence a critical understanding of the medium I’m choosing to follow.

I want to continue this discussion on my blog, exploring the various uses of animation in society and look at a possible real world application for my own work. However, this discussion will take place later on in my project. Having written my mid project review, I’ve identified a series of actions to complete and my focus at this time in my FMP will remain on exploring a range of animation techniques and approaches - making exciting practical work that challenges myself as an artist.

In the next post, I’m going to be exploring Adobe Character Animator and producing some animations using the software.

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Explore Adobe Character Animator, and produce some animations using the software

Continue this discussion of animation as a craft in a later blog post by exploring the uses of animation in society

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whitedreams47-blog · 7 years ago

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Chapter 1 – A Mildly Retarded Young Man.

Azkaban’s Rule to Surviving in Another World by Aeiddius

Note: Chapter still unedited.

Inviro was smiling brightly. The day he’s been waiting for in his entire life has come and he was now finally able to explore the world! When he became 15, his mother told him he was now okay to go outside their village. That’s why on the very same night, he packed all his stuff. His mother got furiously mad when she saw him bringing literally everything he had, including all the giant machines he invented.

Right now, he was in the middle of a road within the Talipus forest, south of his village. He was wearing a brown coat filled with lots of pockets. Underneath the coat was a white shirt. On his legs, he wore brown pants. His bag pack on the other hand was neither too large nor too small. This was what happened when his mother forced him to cough up every unnecessary tool he did not need.

Beside him was Pewpew, a grey wombat. Pewpew has been his best friend every since he was young. The two of them were inseparable. On Pewpew’s neck was a plain red collar with a golden cube in its center.

“Pewpew! Where should we go? Where should we go! I’m really excited!”

Seating down in a nearby tree, Inviro took out his map and looked at it. If any soldier saw this map, or any explorer, perhaps their mouth will bloody drop. In fact, Inviro might even be labelled of treason for having such an extremely detailed made map.

This was a map he wrote two years ago, just based on the description of the travellers that came in and out of their village. The only problematic thing, however, is that it was written with childish doodles and a completely unknown and unreadable language.

He was currently in the middle of the Tali forest. There was an intersection, half a kilometer away. On the map, there was doodle of a dragon on the north. On the south, there was a doodle of a fish. In the further east where the forests end, there was a doodle of a castle.

Pewpew, a wombat the size of a basketball sat in his lap. It looked towards the map and smelled it. Then it pointed to the south east where there was a skull doodle written.

“That’s the Malicious lands! Oh! I see what you want! You want to go hunting for food! Alright let’s go there! I heard from the travellers that there was a purple rose there that tasted good”

Actually, the traveller meant that if you ate a delicious purple rose in the malicious plains, you will be met with tragedy. It’s just that he forgot to say the latter part and proceeded to leave.

Now unknowingly, he brought a disaster to this young child.

Inviro kept walking, eventually he ended up in the intersection. Suddenly, he saw four carriage and two dozen warriors guarding it. Inviro smiled waved his hands at them. The carriages stopped. The first carriage’ window opened and a middle aged man waved at him.

“Hello there young man, is there anything we can do for you?”, the middle aged man looked at Inviro kindly.

‘He must be a young boy that travelled to the outside world for the first time!’, He can see how innocent and pure inviro was. This made him relax, momentarily away from the cynical world.

“I want to go here!”

Inviro showed the middle aged man the map that he made. Though it was extremely detailed, it was written in a language that only Inviro understood.

Looking at the map, the man found it familiar. It was when he saw the land shapes he was used to and when Inviro pointed at the skull doodle, he almost choked himself.

“W-W-Why are you going there young man!?”, The middle aged man exclaimed.

“Hm?”, Inviro tilted his head then smiled brightly! “They said there was a delicious purple fruit there! I wanna eat that fruit!”

Hearing the innocent looking young boy, all the warriors cannot help but burst into laughter. However, Inviro thought differently.

‘Ah! They must be laughing because I don’t know the way! Inviro still has a lot to learn!’

Suddenly, a shadow leaped from the forests. Arrows sneakily shot from the trees, targeting the guards. However, a light burst from one of the carriages, it was a person. That person, within those milliseconds waved his sword and all the arrows were deflected.

“Master! You must not reveal your identity!”, A girl shouted from the carriage.

“ I cannot stand by and see innocent murdered!”. He bravely announced. He was a handsome and dashing young man. His black hair was tied up in a pony tail. He wore a plain , white silky robe. On his right hand was a shining silver sword.

In the background, Inviro was clapping his hands. His eyes were shining brightly and he took out an old dark blue note book from his coat’s pocket. Opening the notebook, he took a pencil and crossed out some kind of bucket list.

|>Meet a dashing, handsome, righteous young master<|

The entry was listed under the title, [Cliché Section].

‘Awesome! I managed to clear one of Mastar’s entry on the first day! Yes! This is aaweesome!’

Inviro kept the notebook in his armpit and kept on clapping. Looking at the bandits and soldiers fighting, his eyes’ brightness intensified. Excitement showed in his face as he watched all of the people fighting around him.

‘A clichéd encounter where bandits ambush a caravan where a young master is secretly hiding!’

‘And the bandits are ugly too!’

The middle aged man felt nervous. Looking at the fight, he started to feel tense as he realized who they were fighting. The people inside the carriages were scared. They all cowered and prayed the soldiers will be able to defeat the enemy. Suddenly, he remembered the young man he was talking to before.

‘That’s right! Where did that boy go to?’

He started to feel worry as that boy was too innocent to be left alone. But then when he looked to the right, his eyes bulged out.

“Umm, Mister ugly bandit. Can you tell me how it feels to be a bandit?”

Inviro sat beside a heavily injured bandit seating on a tree. On his hand was a leather brown notebook and a pencil. The bandit stared at Inviro with strange eyes wondering where this idiot came from

“Oi, boy! Get away from him!”

The young master slashed his sword and three bandits felt in one go. He looked towards Inviro anxiously. But he had not time and a heavy sword appeared before him! He instinctively raised his sword and the two of them clashed!

He suddenly shuddered when he felt that man’s aura. ‘Level 5 warrior!’, The bandits around him were of level 2 to 3. He was just 18 this year and he was also a level 5. Even though the bandit with the heavy sword was in his 40’s, he was nevertheless, far more experienced in actual combat than him, putting him in a disadvantage.

He raised his sword and they separated. But then he suddenly sped up and appeared right just before his enemy. He slashed his sword many times but all were block! Then he moved around and like a snake, his sword found a gap and managed to hit the man’s liver part.

But what shocked him was that he felt a solid thud.

‘Thorium armor!?’

Suddenly, the man raised his sword instantly and slashed him! Barely dodging him, a small line of red appeared in his chest.

He took dozen of steps back. Looking at his surrounding, he felt something wrong. But he can’t pin point it. Suddenly, he remembered something and glared at the man.

“Who hired you? Was it the Orcas?!”

“Hmph! Guess who?”, the man did not answered but merely attacked and slashed. There was a sudden flash of light in the back and then a maiden clad in a commoner’s clothe brandished her dagger towards the bandit enemy.

The enemy, which seems to be the bandit’s leader, threw his heavy sword towards the young master and received the dagger attack with with his bare hands. His gauntlets blocked the attack. Looking closely, an orange glow covered his hands.

The woman retreated and wielded her dagger.

“I doubt a common bandit knows a high level Battle Art”

“You guys talked too much”, the bandit leader rushed to them with only his bare hands.

On the other hand, everyone has forgotten Inviro since the whole place has fallen into chaos.

He stood in the middle, drinking coffee from his leather bottle. His friend, Pewpew was seating in a pocket on his backpack. The wombat was looking over his shoulder and staring at Inviro’s notes.

‘I see…so they resorted to banditry due to poverty, hunger and because of useless and abusive lords. Also, they’re more likely to become bandits when one of their friends becomes bandits. Most of them don’t really like killing but that’s why they stayed in a low level syndicate like this…’

‘I see…I see…very interesting!’

Inviro squat in the side of the caravan, casually writing stuffs in his notebook. His mind started to work and all kinds of scribbles written in an unknown language started to appear in the notebook.

But then, a hand pulled him to the side. Inviro did not react and continued to stare at his notebook dazedly. The man then gripped his shoulder with both hands and stared at him.

“Boy! What do you think you’re doing! We’re in the middle of a fight! We must hide immediately or we’ll get killed!”

“…..”

“….Do bandits like…feel regret when they’re sleeping in their caves?”, it was a straight forward question. The middle aged man felt confused. But then when he looked at the boy, he felt strange. He was obviously innocent. Yet there was neither fear nor panic in his eyes. He was just…still.

‘What the hell?’

The man then heard some roaring and saw that the bandits were retreating. The boy in his grasps then moved out and took some kind of black object. He pointed it before his eyes and started to click it. Then sounds of flicker occurred.

The man was puzzled.

“Pewpew! Why did you not remind me to take pictures! Ughh…it’s such a waste!”

Inviro then ran and started filming a video. There was a bright smile hunging over his face and then an arrow passed him by, missing him by just three inches! Seeing this, the middle aged man felt goose bumps over his body.

But then, a loud thud reverberated. The young master waved his sword and caused the nearby hundreds of trees to fall apart. His speed became incredibly fast. But the bandit leader did not fall either! His heavy sword became deep orange in color and whenever he smashed anything, all of it instantly breaks! He wielded the heavy sword and caused a furious storm of strikes that continuously pushed back the young master!

The fight continues and one of the carriages was broken. The two fought, stones break, trees fell, sands swell and debris were everywhere. During this while, the bandits already left and they even took their wounded. But this strange act caused the dozen warriors to feel perflexed. On the other hand, the middle aged man was kneeling on the ground.

A red wound appeared on his left waist. The clothe on his right chest was also torn. Seeing this, his face immediately became grim.

‘Stolen…it was stolen! How could they know it was me!?’

His eyes became fierce. The usual gentleness he had was lost. He stood up and stared at the fight between the young master and the bandit leader.

‘They did not target the earl in the third carriage...but specifically me…...a traitor…there was a traitor among us! Which bastard was it!?’

Suddenly, the young master blocked a heavy strike causing him to fall away. He control his landing and fell in front of Inviro. The pain in his arm reminded him how powerful the enemy was.

‘Darn it…if only I had enough time to stabilize my soulqi...Now I’m even more vulnerable than when I was at level 4’

Suddenly, he felt a flicker and then he immediately turned to his left. He then saw Inviro taking pictures of him. He was puzzled. The boy then walked forward towards the bandit leader and also started taking pictures. The bandit leader also felt puzzled. Inviro then said…

“Say, say. What do bandits use to wipe their butt after pooping?”

The bandit leader opened his mouth then closed it. He then glanced towards the handsome young master who, upon seeing him, shrugged his shoulder.

Though they were enemies, they do agree in one thing….Where did this idiot came from?

‘Bah! I’ll just kill him! I need to get this over with and return’

He picked his sword and slashed it towards the young man. Seeing this, the young masters instantaneously speed up and appeared before Inviro. He picked him up and pushed him away. As he no longer had any time to react, he shifted his body and blocked the slashed with his gauntlet!

Boom!

Inviro was sent dangling in the ground till he hit a tree.

‘Aweesooommeee!’, was his thought…

A searing wound appeared over the young master’s chest. It was very deep, causing him to falter in movements.

“Hah! You actually sacrificed yourself to save that fool! Tell me!! Was it worth it!?”

Gans always hated people like him. People who would unhesitatingly sacrifice themselves for other people!

The young master did not talked and only glared at the bandit leader.

‘Celina should’ve reached them by now…you think you’ve trapped us? It is you fools we trapped!’

“Oh! Handsome dude, are you alright?”

Inviro stood up and spoke.

“Don’t come near! Stay away or you’ll die!”, he shouted at the young man. Right now, all he had to do was to hold on and reinforcement will arrive. With the item stolen, he was sure they’ll finally be able to trace those bastards down.

But then Inviro thought of something…

‘Handsome equals wealthy…wealthy equals many wealthy people…’, his eyes then opened wide.

‘I-I’ll be able to know how rich people poop!?’

“Handsome bro!”, he waved his hands, smiling really brightly.

“What is it!?”

“If I defeat that ugly dude, will you reward me?”

“Of course! No wait-what are you saying!?”

But his voice was cut off when Inviro pulled something out of his back. It looked like a white cylinder with a handle at the bottom. It looks like a metal with a faint glow. It then rotated and became longer. Inviro took hold of it with both hands and aimed at the bandit leader.

He then pulled the trigger.

*Boom**Boom**Boom*

Gunshots fired and before they knew it, the Bandit leader became a beehive, filled with vaporizing holes.

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