#and then he cheated on his (3rd) wife when he was in his 70s and she was the NICEST LADY

[busylilbee]

For real please stop coming here. Also (and don't respond to this with "well *I* won't be like that") tourists (and a lot of non-native residents) tend to be extremely disrespectful to the land. Like. Levels of disrespectful that make me question the goodness of humanity. I can't get into because I'll raise my blood pressure too much but my friends know what I mean because I've called them several times while hiking to vent about it.

I really wish Hawai'i would pull a New Zealand and make it hard for new outsiders to move here, but I dont even know if that's *constitutional* or whatever the fuck because Hawai'i is technically legally a state (ew).

not to get political but im begging you guys to stop coming to hawaii. in maui theyre asking to put a ‘pause’ on flights bc we literally do not have enough room or staff to service you. the roads are so full that its causing a major backup when ppl need to get to work.

on top of this, i heard that by September? theyre expecting to get rid of the mask rule (if 70% of ppl are vaccinated/all goes well) but ill be honest w/ you, i know many locals arent getting the vaccine and i know plenty of tourist arent gonna take the necessary precautions.

[devilsroost]

George's backstory. I only went ahead and made it unnecessarily dark and heavy didn't I! Its not my fault, okay? I like dark awful things sometimes, especially for a horrible background for someone that has a nice, happy future. So here it is. Warnings for those not wanting to read about very dark subjects. Unnecessarily so maybe, c'mon Jess. Why!?? I listen to a lot of true crime, the dark depths of human desperation fascinate me.

In the 70s a man named Paul was a fucking shit head. He was an alcoholic, an abuser and beat his wife and children. They lived in near poverty in a small block of flats on the top floor, with the other people in the building turning a blind eye to his obvious cruelty. She escaped in the night, taking the kids and running away. Paul was enraged but couldn't locate them, luckily for them to rebuild their lives away from that monster. With no one to around to temper Paul his alcoholism got worse and he started to prowl nightclubs looking for men to take home. He was a closeted gay man, because 1970's, but now his wife had gone he was free to get with men. A young man was kicked out of his home for being gay (again, the 70's) and Paul saw an opportunity. He took this young man home with him and entered into a relationship. A coercive, hideous, contolling relationship. In which he beat and abused the young man. The young man felt trapped, kicked out of his home, controlled with alcohol as Paul would force him to drink with him. Paul’s mental health continued its swift decline exacerbated by his substance abuse. He would sing wildly from lavishing love and affection onto the young man to accusing him of cheating and hideous abuse, sometimes handcuffing him to the radiator when he accused the young man of seeing other men. This poor lad was almost tortured, but, as many abused people sometimes find themselves in a situation that they can see no escape from….

(YOU ENJOYING MY FUN STORY ABOUT GENGARS!????HMMMM???)

Anyway…

Paul saw an opportunity while watching TV. The cash pay outs for top winning pokemon trainers could be silly money! Paul couldn't keep a job down because of his alcoholism so thought perhaps he should give it a go, having never really been able to afford to keep any pokemon before and with no interest in being a trainer. The young man protested, saying it was incredibly hard to win battle contests. Enraged by him daring to speak against his ideas Paul shoved the young man into the airing cupboard with the boiler and barricaded it shut.

The young man was left in there for 3 days, begging to be let free as he was stuck next to the boiler, dying slowly and painfully from dehydration, the heat from the boiler speeding up his slow demise. On the 3rd day when Paul couldn't hear painful moans anymore he opened the cupboard to see the young man's body, and a gastly.....

No ordinary gastly. A grudge. A curse. When someone is violently murdered and suffers so much emotional agony that their spirit becomes part of the home in which they died. Their suffering becomes a stain that cannot be erased. Any person entering the threshold of that place is infected by the spirit's undying rage. However, as a gastly, they were not yet in connection with their terrible grudge power. They were weak. They needed to evolve.

Paul was thrilled. Through his alcoholic haze he felt he had the perfect solution. Train a gastly. He didn't have to waste money feeding it. Because it was already dead. Right?

Paul hid the body and began training the gastly. His methods were harsh, abusive and cruel. Gastly evolved to Haunter and the horrific treatment continued. Starving. Battling all the time being forced to be stronger and stronger. People in the flats knew about Paul. They'd hear his alcohol fueled tirades late at night and hear him crash around. Haunter caught the eye of a little boy that lived opposite them on the top floor. He pleaded with his eyes for help, but the boy, scared of Paul and ghost types hugged his polywag and turned away...

Paul had entered into a televised competition. A sort of entry level battle for a gym leader and had entered Haunter in. Right before the battle was about to begin Haunter evolved. Paul was thrilled. A powerful gengar at last! The Gengar opened its eyes, slowly turned to face Paul and grinned....

Paul commanded gengar to use its shadow sneak on the opponent but the Gengar did not obay. The Grudge was here... He blasted over to Paul so quickly he had no time to even scream as Grudge the ripped Paul in two. The arena was filled with screams as Grudge melted into the shadows and dissappeared. Grudge was going to enact his curse. Kill everyone in the flat. Everyone that knew and didn't help him.

It started as small haunting. People feeling unsettled. Having bad nightmares. Things being moved. The haunting then escalated to horrific haunting, psychological torture like an early 2000s Japanese horror movie. People began to dissappear, pieces of them turning up like a severed hand, or their dessicated husks of their body found left behind once Grudge had stolen their souls.

The remaining people in the flat moved out and the building was condemned as haunted by a powerful curse. People tried to enter and catch the incredibly powerful gengar that lived there, but, when anyone stepped over the threshold the curse would take effect. There would be no escaping it. Grudge would haunt you until your horrific and painful death. No matter where you went. People could never make it to the top floor. The angry spirits of those Grudge killed would protect anyone from reaching the place of Grudge's death.

The building was barricaded and guarded so no one would enter the place of the murderous gengar. Decades passed and people's interest waned. Little memorials were placed outside for those that died there but the bitter memories faded and the condemned haunted building just became a dilapidated place to be forgotten . Warnings placed all over to not enter or you'll be killed, and people stopped wanting to sneak into one of the worst haunted buildings there were.

Until Lydia entered the scene. Now in 2021, after the pandemic her anxiety got worse and worse. Lydia could barely do anything her anxiety was so crippling. She lived alone and lock down during pandemics meant she couldn't see her emotional support network. Living alone she only had a tentative acquaintance with an old man that lived in her building. She always had an obsession with gengars you could say. She heard of a gengar that haunted a building nearby. Without knowing the full story she asked about it. Did it belong to anyone, did it have a name? Could she go and see it? The old man only had some kind of rumour and that he thought its name was Grudge.

She misheard him, and thought he said George. So, she decides to bake a cake and take it to this gengar, that must be very lonely.

After many decades another victim dares cross the threshold of the Grudge's cursed lair. Lydia steps through the door meekly. She calls out to the darkness, saying how she's always really loved Gengars, she thinks they're beautiful and cool and she she baked him a cake. She placed it down and said he didn't have to show himself, she just wanted to know that he'd enjoy the cake and she'd be back tomorrow.

She leaves. Grudge floats over to the cake. Having never eaten food before in his entire afterlife he picks it up, eats a bit and is stricken. LOVE AT FIRST BITE!!! Oh no..

He can't kill this woman because then she wouldn’t come back and give him more of this cake! So, he decides to wait to see what will happen.

She does return. Day after day. Some days she comes in to weep, have a panic attack in the dark, speaking into the darkness about her fears, before apologising and leaving to say she'll come again tomorrow.

As weeks go by Grudge grows fond of her. He wants the cake. And she seems so damaged and burdened by the world. He's only ever known humans as selfish and cruel, but here this girl is, delicate, soft, and kind to want to feed a creature she's never even seen.

Grudge reveals himself to her. Which delights her so much! The rest is the story of her slowly building his trust with her kindness. Them recognising they could be a perfect companion for one another. Grudge brings her a pokeball one day. She weeps with joy and catches him. George. Her companion for life. She takes him home to spoil, dote on, and utterly love. And he soothes her, keeps her grounded, helps her be bold. And... She never finds out about his horrific past. All the people he's killed. He puts that behind him to be the best pet he can be for her.

They start a cooking youtube channel together which gets pretty popular. It actually really helps her anxiety and gives her more purpose. People make fun of George because they can track him gettiing fatter and fatter each season, until Lydia is surreptitiously starts making a lot of salads and healthy recipes for the channel... which he’s annoyed by. But that’s them. She has a big, plump, cuddly spooky friend, and he has a kind, gentle loving companion.

[catnapsandbooks]

Daisy Jones & The Six REVIEW!!

Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

I really enjoyed this book and thought that Taylor Jenkins Reid did a great job with the crafting of this story.  Each of the characters was described with such great detail due to the direct quotes from every character in the story.  Each character is very complicated and has deeply emotional story lines which makes the story feel even more realistic.   

I will say that the format of the book is not for everyone - it did take a little getting use to, but I will also say that I really grew to love the format as the story went on.  I don’t know that you would feel as connected to the characters if the book was written in any other way.  As it is, you feel like the characters are talking directly to you about their lives as members of The Six.  

Now let’s get into the plot...

This book is set in the mid-60′s - late 70′s and follows the journey of how a band, The Six came to be, and how all subsequent events led to their eventual downfall.  This book has lust, sex, drugs, rock and roll, heartbreak and joy - what more could you want out of a great band oral history?

The book starts off with introducing Daisy Jones, a beautiful young teenager with copper red hair and cobalt blue eyes who becomes a groupie on the LA Strip.  You are also introduced to Simone, Daisy’s best friend, who stands by her through the thick and thin.

Billy Dunne and his brother Graham decide to start a band together, originally known as the Dunne Brothers.  They eventually brought on drummer Warren Rhodes, bassist Pete Loving and a rhythm guitarist Chuck Williams.  Chuck ended up being drafted for the Vietnam war and died during his deployment.  The band brought on Eddie Loving, Pete’s brother, as their rhythm guitarist, and Karen as their keyboardist.  By the end of 1970 the band was renamed The Six and they began creating some of the most iconic music of the 70′s.

While playing at a wedding, Billy met Camilla, a cocktail waitress, who stole his heart from the first time he saw her.  Camilla and Billy eventually got married and subsequently had 3 children together.

Daisy began writing some of her own music and dating the singer of a band.  During one of their shows Daisy got onstage with him to sing a duet.  After the performance everyone felt that she needed to try and record some of her own music.  She eventually went and recorded a demo and signed a record deal with the same label that signed The Six.  

The Six went on their first tour which turned out to be a disaster for Billy.  He began using a lot of drugs and drinking excessively.  Each night he was with different women and cheating on his wife.  During the tour Camilla found out she was pregnant with their first child and told Billy that he had until the baby arrived to do whatever he wanted, but as soon as the baby came he needed to show up.  When Camilla went into labor, Teddy, the band’s manager, came and picked Billy up from the tour and told him he had to go home because his child was almost there.  Once at the hospital Billy could not go in.  Teddy ended up talking with Camilla who gave Billy two options: he could either go be a good father and be present at that moment or he could go to rehab.  Billy chose to go to rehab and get clean.  He did not see their first born child for her first few months of life.

After Billy finished rehab and the band started working on more music, their label wanted them to work with Daisy Jones and create a hit single, which ended up being “Honeycomb”.  Toward the end of their tour they brought Daisy along with them and eventually had her join the band to work on their 3rd album.

Their album with Daisy ended up being a smashing success, leaving the band wondering how they could ever write anything so great again.  

Throughout their time working together, Daisy and Billy had a very tense relationship.  Billy was trying to remain sober while Daisy was doing all the drugs she could get her hands on.  Daisy eventually ended up falling for Billy, and subsequently hating him after he denied her advances.

The fateful end of the band comes when Camilla asks Daisy to leave The Six.  Once Daisy has decided to leave, so do the rest of the members of the band.

That’s a pretty quick synopsis without giving away all the juicy details of the book.

Overall thoughts:

Daisy Jones & The Six was one of the greatest works of fiction I have read in quite some time now.  I was captivated throughout the entire book and didn't want it to end.  I definitely could have finished this book within a day but tried to pace myself so that I could savor it bit by bit.

I was a bit hesitant to even read this book, as many of the reviews I had seen were not very positive - with a general distaste for the format in which the book was written.  I personally really enjoyed how the author pieced the story together as an oral history with quotes from all the different characters - it made me feel very connected to every one of the characters, not just the main characters.  

I'll be honest - going into this book I thought it was a work of non-fiction and after the first few pages I found myself trying to find the music from the band.  I then found one of the greatest quotes that stuck with me throughout the book "This is the greatest band that never was".  Every time a new song was described all I wanted to do was go and listen to it for myself.

I was incredibly happy to see that a mini-series on Amazon is in our near future, after Reese Witherspoon bought the rights with the writers of 500 days of Summer and A Fault in Our Stars helping to write the screen play.

[christenpressing]

91 Question Tag

thanks to @vanillabeanniall and @selkatha for tagging me :)

THE LAST – 
 1. Drink: Water


2. Phone call: my friend Sarah who happens to call me randomly like everyday

3. Text message: my sister- “yep” in response to my mom asking if we were okay

4. Song I listened to: Sledgehammer by Fifth Harmony (always a bop)

5. Time you cried: last monday 

HAVE YOU EVER –
 6. Dated someone twice: kind of?

7. Been cheated on: i mean not technically but my ex did flirt with someone else while we were together

8. Kissed someone and regretted it: i just don’t like spin the bottle

9. Lost someone special: yeahhh

10. Been depressed: ohhhhh boyyyyyyyy

11. Gotten drunk and thrown up: nope

LIST 3 FAVORITE COLORS –
 12. pastel pink

13. lavender

14. darker shades of red

IN THE LAST YEAR HAVE YOU –
 15. Made new friends: oh for sure. they’re super great and nice and i love and support them

16. Fallen out of love: never love

17. Laughed until you cried: one time in history class and bunch of my friends and i just watched a bunch of marching band fails and i died

18. Found out someone was talking about you: hahahaha yes

19. Met someone who changed you: yeah, a couple people


20. Found out who your true friends were: i believe so

MORE – 
 21. Kissed someone on your facebook? nope

22. How many of your facebook friends do you know in real life? a lot

23. Do you have any pets? three golden retriever rescues (comet, cinnamon, london) & four horses (scooter, eli, benny, calvin) & two betta fish (circe, rhea)

24. Do you want to change your name? i dont think so

25. What did you do on your last birthday? i went to this really nice italian restaurant with my family cause my grandma’s birthday is like right after mine so we did a combined thing

26. What time did you wake up? 10:30 which is like the first time i’ve gotten to sleep in this summer

27. What were you doing at midnight? watching phineas and ferb

28. Name something you can’t wait for: to go to north carolina to see my girlfriend and for my best friend to come home

29. When was the last time you saw your mother? yesterday


30. What is one thing you wish you could change about your life? i wish my girlfriend could live in my town

31. What are you listening to right now? my fan

32. Have you ever talked to a person named Tom? yep

33. Something that is getting on your nerves? my mother trying to dictate my own relationship????

34. Most visited site: tumblr lmao

SCHOOL – 
 35. Elementary: okay heres the thing i went to a private school for a long time and skipped 3rd grade BUT THEN when i transferred to public school i had to do 4th grade over again so i was with people my age again BUT THE JOKES ON THEM cause i knew everything and i was the smartest kid in the class

36. Middle: 6th grade was a nightmare i try to forget about but we did a 180 in 7th grade and i was popular (probably cause of my track career which lasted all of one year) and then 8th grade was a mess and i thought i was bi but i was actually gay so theres that

37. High: so far so good except for some drama last year but thats over with and im ready to embrace the junior year death this year (bonus: im playing soccer this year and im so out of shape lmao)

38. College: i really want to go to school up in the portland area but who knows??? major in english/education so i can be an english&creative writing teacher who also writes on their own time on the side

ME – 
 39. Hair color: brownnn but i have natural highlights so thats neat

40. Long or short hair? its long rn but imma cut it soon

41. Do you have a crush on someone? my girlfriend i guess?

42. What do you like about yourself? i ride horses really well and i never give up on things and im passionate at what i do

43. Piercings? just my ears

44. Blood type: who tf knows

45. Nickname: jules is a common one


46. Relationship status: taken by the greatest girl ever

47. Zodiac sign: capricorn

48. Pronouns: she/her

49. Favorite TV show(s): phineas and ferb, supergirl, pretty little liars (rip), girl meets world, miraculous ladybug (oops), b99

50. Tattoos: not yet but one day!!

51. Right, ambidextrous, or left-handed? right 

FIRST – 
 52. Surgery: i had one on my pelvis in 2013? i think

53. Piercing: ears

54. Sport: i mean i’ve been around horses my whole life but didn’t start seriously riding till after i started soccer

55. Vacation: god idk i don’t even remember the first time i was on a plane. maybe disney world?

56. Pair of trainers: i dont know????

CURRENT – 
 57. Eating: nothing


58. Drinking: nothing


59. I’m about to: finish these questions

60. Listening to: my fan

FUTURE – 
 61. Waiting for: my girlfriend and i to be in the same area for once

62. Want: a successful career and a wonderful wife and daughter


63. Married: oh for sure

64. Career: teacher

YOUR TYPE – 
 65. Hugs or kisses? depends on my mood

66. Lips or eyes? i think you can tell a lot about someone from their eyes

67. Shorter or taller? taller cause it makes me feel more safe i think

68. Older or younger? probably older but i’m good with both

69. Nice arms or nice stomach? both are wonderful

70. Sensitive or loud? i cannot STAND loud people


71. Hook-up or relationship? relationship definitely

72. Troublemaker or hesitant? hesitant i am literally the most timid person on earth

73. Kissed a stranger? nope


74. Drank hard liquor? nope


75. Lost contact lenses/glasses? i dont have either


76. Turned someone down? okay okay okay sooooo i may or may not have initially turned down my current girlfriend but i quickly changed my mind and now here we are

77. Sex on first date? depends how well you know the person

78. Broken someone’s heart? i wouldn’t say thattt but you’d have to ask my girlfriend

79. Had your heart broken? no thank god

80. Been arrested? i am a child of god

81. Cried when someone died? when i was at nationals in 2014 a horse got so freaked out when they were putting roses (the prize for winning) on him that he reared up and flipped over himself with the rider still on him (somehow she managed not to get crushed) but the horse snapped his neck once he hit the ground and died instantly and it was so awful to see and i cried for at least an hour and im still scarred

82. Fallen for a friend? a couple times

DO YOU BELIEVE IN – 
 83. Yourself? not reallyyy

84. Miracles? listen a couple happened to me last week 

85. Love at first sight? i dont think so

86. Santa Claus? no


87. Kiss on first date? oh yes

88. Angels? nah

OTHER – 
 89. Current best friend’s name: vasi

90. Eye color: brown


91. Favorite movie: aladdin, jurassic world, the lego batman movie, beauty and the beast

i tag @kellexohara @spnife @atypicaltomato cause you guys are nerds

[illuminating-tarot-blog]

“Shining down so bright on the harbor lights.”

If you’ve taken a walk through the new age community today, you’ve likely heard people talking about the Lions Gate Portal and the 8.8 energy (some will attach a 3rd 8 formed by the 1+7 in the year…kinda cheating IMO).

So what is this Lions Gate? To understand we have to go back to ancient Egypt. As you may or may not know, the fixed star Sirius is considered the brightest naked eye star in the night sky. It’s name comes from the Greek Seirios, meaning “glowing” or “scorcher".  Sirius is twice as big as our Sun and 25 times more luminous. Known as the Dog Star, it is the neck of the Canis Major constellation, located at the feet of Orion. If you’ve heard the expression the Dog Days, you’ve been introduced to Sirius.

Due to the Sun’s orbital path, for approximately 70 days in late Spring, Sirius disappears from visibility, being obscured by the Sun (the last sighting this year, known as the heliacal setting, was May 22). Egyptian myth suggests that the god Osiris, who was killed, remained dead for 70 days. His death known because his star - Sirius - was no longer visible. During this time his wife Isis cried a river of tears as she worked to revive his body. At the end of 70 days, his revival, and Isis’s river of tears, were confirmed. Sirius was again visible on the horizon, rising and setting now with the Sun, and the river Nile flooded. This flooding caused an abundant flow of water, in the otherwise scorched Egyptian valley, meaning food and water for the people. Every year the return of Sirius would coincide with the rising of the Nile. It was for this reason that sighting of Sirius on the horizon became the official start of the Egyptian new year. The days surrounding the rebirth of Sirius, being the hottest of the year, is where we get the Dog Days of Summer expression from.

We know now that the river Nile was not filled with Isis’s tears, rather with water from monsoon rains between May & August in the Ethiopian highlands. But, as of yesterday, August 7, Sirius is once again visible in the sky. For the next 40 days, Sirius and the Sun, will travel together in the sky. The Sun being in Leo, the sign of the lion, and directly receiving all of that energy from Sirius is what causes us to call this the Lions Gate.

We also know that the number 8 in numerology is the number of abundance. This may come our readapted Gregorian calendar, placing the abundant flooding of the Nile in the 8th month. In China the double 8 is known as Double Happiness and often associated with richness. It’s likely that the  may come from the symbol of infinity that is similar to the 8. But where does the infinity symbol come from? Our ancestors who tracked time by the movement of the planets & the stars would surely have logged the annual movement of the Sun. The geometrical pattern could have translated into the idea of continuity, persistence of existence, abundance. The Egyptian Sun god Ra carried the key to life in his hand.

This morning when thinking about the Lions Gate I was drawn to the Magician card. The man stands bathed in light, with the infinity pattern hanging over him like a halo. In his hand a sceptre which channels the power of light that he directs to earth. He stands before his material tools and gifts of natural abundance, able to make whatever he wants happen. He unifies the sky & the earth.  He is “by the power vested in me”. He lives in each of us. By the power of the Lions Gate light of the Magician, happy 8/8. ✴️

[wbwest]

New Post has been published on WilliamBruceWest.com

New Post has been published on http://www.williambrucewest.com/2017/07/21/west-week-ever-pop-culture-review-72117/

West Week Ever: Pop Culture In Review - 7/21/17

I haven’t been doing such a great job with my movie tally for 2017. We’re more than halfway through the year, and I’ve barely watched anything. Well, I kinda made up for that last weekend, as I caught Keeping Up With The Joneses on HBO. This is one of those movies that came and went, and might find a fan base on TV, but will probably just be forgotten. If it should be remembered for anything, it’s that it features both Gal Gadot and Isla Fisher in lingerie. That’s about all it’s got going for it. What’s it about? Well, Isla Fisher and Zack Galifianakis star as a milquetoast suburbanite couple who become suspicious of their new neighbors, Jon Hamm and Gal Gadot. So, they’re pushed out of their comfort zone when they find out Hamm and Gadot are spies, and they get wrapped up in their latest mission. This is the kind of movie I would’ve killed a chunk of a Saturday afternoon on had it aired on Fox 5, but I can understand why nobody went to see it in theaters. Folks loved Don Draper, but for whatever reason, they have no desire to help along Jon Hamm’s movie career. And this was pre-Wonder Woman Gadot, so there was no heat on her yet. It doesn’t suck, but it’s got no Wow Factor either. Once it hits FX, it might be a good way to waste away a rainy Sunday afternoon.

I finally got around to watching The Nice Guys, too. I’d tried a few months ago, but I only got as far as the Ryan Gosling fully clothed in the bathtub scene, where I went, “What the eff am I watching?” I wasn’t ready for the absurd that night, but I was ready now. Like everyone had told me, it was really good. I still have trouble with heist/mystery films because my brain doesn’t work as fast as the film, so sometimes I have to reflect back on the thing when it’s over just to make sure I didn’t miss anything. Ryan Gosling is a private investigator who teams up with local tough guy Russell Crowe to track down a missing girl. Sure, there’s some stuff about porn, and the Detroit auto lobby, but that’s the gist of the movie. It’s got a precocious kid, a cool 70s aesthetic, and titties. Can’t really hate on any of that. Anyway, I could see this as one of those movies I drop everything to watch whenever I see that it’s on. If you haven’t seen it, definitely check it out.

My new favorite reality show debuted this week on Bravo, called A Night With My Ex. It’s just what the title says: a former couple spends the night together to see if the spark is still there and/or to reopen old wounds. In the premiere, 28 year old virgin Rachel is reunited to smarmy douchebag ex-boyfriend Fabian. They dated for four years, but he cheated on her with a sexy Tinkerbell at a Halloween party because he had a major case of blue balls. When the show starts, you don’t think Fabian is really that bad of a guy. He knows he made a mistake, and he even plans to propose to Rachel because he wants her in his life forever. But things go south quickly. He chastises her for scraping her plate with her fork as she eats, and he tries to make her give him a handjob once they’re in bed. All the while, she’s trying to actually apologize for basically pushing him to cheat by withholding sex, but he never lets her get a word out before saying/doing something stupid. Finally she declares that she deserves better than him, and basically laughs in his face when he proposes. That was some damn good television! If anything, I’d say the show is too short at 30 minutes, but they only spend one night together, and not the whole weekend, so I guess that’s all they could edit together. It’s a lot like MTV’s old show, The X Effect, only the couple’s current partners aren’t spying on the date like they were in that show. Anyway, it’s only been one episode, but I count me in for the next nine!

In TV news, it was announced that Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss have lined up their post-GoT project, Confederate, which is an alternate history series set prior to the United States’ 3rd Civil War. Well, this rang some alarm bells for some folks, as you can’t really get into the Confederacy and Civil War without dealing with slavery. And folks weren’t really happy about these White showrunners making what some considered to be “slavery fanfic”. What hasn’t been covered extensively, though, is that the project is really just coasting on the fact that the GoT showrunners are attached, but they’re not the only ones involved. Husband-wife team of Malcolm Spellman and Nichelle Tramble Spellman , who are Black, will be partners on the show along with Benioff and Weiss. Plus, the show it’s so deep in its infancy that there aren’t even character names or an outline yet. It was originally developed as a two-hour movie, but they decided it could be fleshed out and taken to television. There’s basically nothing on paper for it yet, though, so there’s not much for folks to be upset about at this stage other than mere speculation. The Spellmans acknowledge the criticism, but say that they’d rather it had followed the premiere of the show instead of starting now, as it’s being announced. At this point, I think it’s safe to say that this criticism will go into shaping the show going forward, so we may never get what they originally intended to put out.

We got a new trailer for Marvel’s Inhumans. Still looks like garbage. I’ve loved Iwan Rheon since Misfits, but I can’t follow him here. This just looks so bad. Look, I’m gonna watch it, but I really don’t see how there’s any damn way I’m paying for an IMAX ticket to see it in theaters.

We also got a new teaser for The Defenders, which teases the Punisher series at the end. People are going nuts online about this thing because it’s narrated by Stan Lee, but I actually think he’s tonally wrong for this clip. When I think of Stan, I think of his marquee, larger than life characters – NOT the street-level vigilantes. I almost feel like it would’ve been better narrated by Bendis or Brubaker, but they don’t have the recognition factor that Stan has. I get that. Still, it just feels like a hollow waste of a cameo.

 Things You Might Have Missed This Week

The good Lord answered my prayers, as Chris Hardwick and Comedy Central have “mutually decided” to end @midnight. I won’t miss his smarmy face or those stupid hashtag games.

I guess the third time’s the charm, as Paige Davis will start her 3rd hosting stint on Trading Spaces when it returns to TLC later this year

Ed Sheeran was on Game of Thrones this week, and I guess some folks didn’t like that. I dunno. I kinda couldn’t care less about Sheeran or GoT, but folks were hatin’!

Meanwhile, it was reported that Lena Dunham will join American Horror Story for season 7, and folks lost their shit about that, too. Apparently she’ll only be in one episode, but that was enough for some folks to claim they weren’t gonna watch anymore.

Transformers: Titans Return will debut in November as an animated micro series on the Go90 app, featuring the voices of Green Ranger Jason David Frank and the original Rodimus Prime himself, Judd Nelson.

MTV is in talks to reboot Teen Wolf before this iteration’s final season has even concluded. Slow it down!

Sega broke up with Archie Comics over Twitter, thereby ending the Sonic The Hedgehog comic after 24 years of publication

Seacrest IN! Ryan Seacrest has officially signed on to host ABC’s revival of American Idol. I feel like I’ve written this sentence 3 times in the past already, but now it’s for real for real.

Coming as no real surprise since The Vampire Diaries ended, The CW announced that its spinoff, The Originals, will end after its upcoming season.

In an odd choice, the directors of the original Catfish documentary (the movie, not the show) are in talks talks to helm a Mega Man film that will be produced by Masi Oka of Heroes fame.

Words with Friends is being developed into a television game show. Ya know, so it’s basically the Scrabble game show being rebooted.

Meanwhile on Black Twitter, R. Kelly is allegedly running a sex cult, Usher paid a woman $1.1 million for her to keep quiet about the fact that he gave her herpes, and Kevin Hart allegedly got caught cheating on his pregnant wife. I’m just waiting for some crazy Steve Harvey news to round out the week.

At San Diego Comic Con, MGM announced Stargate Origins, which appears to be a prequel webseries that will run on the Stargate Command website this fall.

Shazam! will be the next DC film to go into production, following Justice League and Aquaman, but it’s unclear if Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson will co-star as Black Adam.

There might soon be a new Cutco salesman on the block, as OJ Simpson has been granted parole from the armed robbery that landed him in prison nine years ago. The Juice is almost loose!

I love those weeks when the West Week Ever recipient presents itself early in the week, ’cause it’s pretty much smooth sailing after that. This was one of those weeks, as history was made across the pond. The Doctor Who franchise is over 50 years old, but every time the Doctor regenerates (a clever in-story mechanism for recasting the actor), he just turns into another White dude. That’s pretty much been the unending pattern since 1966, when the first regeneration occurred. Folks have been saying it’s time for a change, and they were hoping we’d either end up with a Doctor of color (with The IT Crowd‘s Richard Ayoade coming up in a lot of the discussions) or a woman Doctor. Well, half of them got their wish, as Attack the Block‘s Jodie Whittaker was announced as the 13th Doctor. And, as you’re probably not surprised, folks lost their shit.

We’re always taught the the Brits are so proper and upstanding, but the comments sections of several sites proved that they can troll with the best of them. At the end of the day, it’s a bunch of folks who are afraid of change. A friend of mine, however, did point out that the victors in these circumstances also tend to trigger the backlash against themselves. For example, it would be one thing if this was seen as a bold move forward for a progressive franchise. The problem, however, is that some people take it too far, and get on the “I’m savoring these fanboy tears” soapbox, making it about something that it really didn’t need to devolve into. Sometimes the winners can suck just as much as the losers in these scenarios. This can be seen as a “win” for some without it being a “loss” for someone else. How about framing it as a win for everyone? Nah, the internet doesn’t really work like that.

I have never gotten into the Doctor Who franchise because it just seems so daunting. Sure, folks claim you really only have to start with the Eccleston season, but when I get into something, I go ALL IN. To me, that’s like telling someone they can start Star Trek with The Next Generation (which I’d probably do, since I hate The Original Series, even though I’d still feel like I was cheating them out of an experience). I feel like I’d have to watch all 54 years of the show, which is impossible because those seasons ain’t streaming anywhere, and a good chunk of them have been lost to time. It’s a franchise that cannot be wholly consumed! I hate mysteries that can’t be solved. Still, I can respect a longstanding institution, and I understand when change is a big deal. It’ll be interesting to see how fans take to the new Doctor, but the one thing to remember is that she’ll probably do it for 2 years, and then regenerate into another old White guy (the Doctor role has the retention rate of a community college). So, everyone gets their wish! I am kinda curious about the next season, though, as rumor has it Kris Marshall (Colin: God of Sex from Love Actually) is going to be the Doctor’s next companion. I loved that dude!

Anyway, I know which side of history I want to be on, and it’ll be interesting to see this all play out. The way the franchise works, we won’t see her until the Christmas special, and then won’t see her again until late 2018 at the earliest. So, folks have got some time to get used to the idea. Still, I think it goes without saying that Jodie Whittaker had the West Week Ever.

[backroadblues]

June 6th, 2017 - Frankfurt, Germany

The time has come to bring our grand European Adventure to an end. it is befitting that it would be grey and rainy on this morning in Germany. It is as if the Country itself is sad that we are leaving. We make our rounds through the home that we rented in the small town of Rossdorf, we close all the windows, empty the trash and say farewell to Gretchen, the 70 year old tortoise that lives in the back yard. We load our things into the back of our trusty little min-van, a Ford Galaxy, that we picked up about 3 weeks ago at Ciampino Airport in Rome. We close and lock the door to the house and drop the keys in the Post Box as requested and we are off at about 9:00 am to head to the airport in Frankfurt.

The traffic around Frankfurt is a bit heavy. The GPS continually re-routes us trying to help us beat the traffic tie-ups. The trip that ordinarily should have takes us about 30 minutes takes about 40 minutes. At 9:00 am we are on the tail-end of the morning commute. Frankfurt is a very large and sprawling airport - seemingly built under the roof of one huge terminal. In spite of its size, airplanes still often must park on the tarmac and have buses retrieve the passengers. We are flying on Lufthansa on the way home, which departs from Terminal 1, but the rental car return is near Terminal 2. We will have to take the bus to Terminal 1. We make our way to the Hertz rental car return, and fortunately, it is not that busy there. The attendant points us to a space where we can park the car - a saucy lass from England is working the returns today. She quickly hands me a receipt after inspecting the car and we are off and on our way.

Here is an interesting aside - well interesting to me, but the rest of you are free to skip this paragraph. I look at the receipt and see that we drove a whopping 4,766 kilometers - for the unconverted in the USA - that’s over 2,955 miles. I am shocked, I had no idea we had driven that much. To make the math simple - if I assume we averaged 60 miles/hour that means we spent a total of 49 hours of our time in Europe driving from point “a” to point “b”. We were in Europe for a total of 27 days - if we further assume that 16 hours of each day (24 hrs / 16 awake hrs) that’s 66% of the day that we are awake and can be spent doing fun stuff. That means we had a total of (27 days x 24 hr/day x .66) 428 hours available to us for fun stuff and we spent 49 hours of them driving or a little over 10%. I decide that wasn’t a bad trade-off when I consider all the neat places we got to go and the fact that a lot of those driving moments will be unforgettable - like cheating death by driving along the Amalfi Coast and cruising through a sea of pedestrians in Bellagio. Those moments are priceless. I’m sorry I had to turn this into a math problem, but that’s just the way my strange mind works. The reason I went through all of this is because some people think that simply relying on trains or flying from point “a” to “b” is the way to go. The disadvantage to that of course is that when you get to point “b” you’re sort of stuck - sure you can take cabs or buses but if you factor in the “hassle factor” knowing us, we would have missed a lot of the really special places we got to see because we were able to simply hop in the car and go. There is also the fact that when you drive, you are setting your own itinerary and schedule - if we want to make a side trip to Volterra or Porto Venere, we can and were are certainly happy we didn’t miss these places. So, if you are a little adventurous, my recommendation is to go ahead and rent a car. It is not that tough to drive in Italy or Germany.

A little about our trusty little mini-van. When I was making plans for the trip, I had a special offer from Avis to rent a nice E class or CL class Mercedes sedan for our trip. I was all ready to go for it. I had visions of us screaming down the Autobahn at some un-Godly speed, flashing our headlights at everything in our way, but then I looked at the trunk capacity in these cars. I even suggested that everyone watch Rick Steves video on how to pack lightly for a trip to Europe. Sure we only need 1 pair of shoes and 3 changes of clothes all stuffed into a soft sided backpack. If we could all do that, we could easily fit luggage for 4 passengers in the trunk of the Benz. if your have read any of my other posts (#rick-steves-is-an-idiot) you know by now that most of the people on our little trip elected not to follow Rick’s sage advice. So I went from looking at Autobahn pavement burners to looking at soccer-mom mini-vans. This is how we ended up in the Ford Galaxy. Now after having driven it over 2,900 miles, I have to say that I have no regrets at all. Our little 4-cylinder, diesel engined van had plenty of pep and allowed us to cruise at (Elisa and Carolyn - don’t read this part) over 100 mph with ease on the Autobahns in Germany all while getting great fuel economy. The driver’s and co-pilot seats were very comfy and I never had a sore back from a long days drive. The rear seats were equally comfy - so comfy that our rear seat passengers converted some of those “awake hours” to “sleeping hours”, but then there is Trent, he starts to nod off when he simply lifts the handle to open the car door. Let’s not forget to mention the ample amount of cargo capacity in this little van. With the 3rd row seats folded totally flat we had enough room (though just barely) to accommodate Carolyn’s suitcase that we affectionately named Moby, leaving just enough room to spare for 3 other suitcases. As the trip went on, it did seem as if the number of pieces of luggage was beginning to multiply. Either there was some suitcase hanky-panky was going on back there, or it may have simply been due to the many shopping sprees Carolyn and Elisa would embark upon. Also, there was a large retractable cover that would conceal all our goodies out of sight when we parked. If I had one complaint about the Ford Galaxy, it is that the turning radius on that little mini-van was pretty horrible. Many a time what should have been a simple 3-point u-turn on street would turn into a 9-point turn. The turning radius of the car when coupled with the narrow streets we encountered, made for a lot of hand-over-hand turning of the steering wheel. All things considered, I would highly recommend a diesel Ford Galaxy to anyone that needs a comfy cruiser for 4 people and their luggage.

Reflections - Elisa:

I asked Elisa to comment on what she felt were some of her most memorable moments on this trip. The first thing that came to her mind had to do with the main reason for our trip. We had been invited to attend the wedding of her cousin Alessio. They were getting married in the same Church in the small Tuscan hill town of Suvereto where her parents got married in 1955. Elisa had a faded photograph of her parents on that wedding day in 1955 and was always surprised to see how many people seemed to be on the steps of the church as her parents were emerging after saying their vows. Elisa had always wondered who were all those people and why were they all there. Then here we were on the steps of that same church in 2017 some 62 years later and her questions would be answered. When we exited the church after Alessio and his bride Dana had finished taking their vows, we saw that the entire town had convened on the steps of the church and on the plaza in front of the church. There was a band playing music and lots of rice being thrown. Many of the people knew Alessio, but many did not - it is just what Italians do - they celebrate the important things in life. All those people were out there and we were bathed in joy their joy as we stepped out into the sun. Elisa now understood what it was that was happening in that faded photograph back taken back in 1955 and she was filled with tearful emotion. As she milled about the towns people, she actually met a woman that was standing on those steps on that very day back in 1955 and she was there celebrating the wedding of Elisa’s parents just as she was on this day in 2017, celebrating another marriage. It was clearly very emotional for Elisa.

Elisa and I have been to Italy and other parts of Europe many times. We have usually traveled with our kids or kid and their friends and each of those trips have been special to us, but Elisa really believes that this was our very best trip (so far). Traveling with my brother Trent and his wife Carolyn made it special. Even though we had been to many of the places we took Trent and Carolyn to before, re-experiencing them again with and through them made it more special for us. Like, we usually do when we travel to Italy, we visit a lot of Elisa’s relatives and by introducing Trent and Carolyn to all of them they are quickly embraced in true Italian culture, which revolves first around family and secondly around food. There were lots of both to go around.

Another highlight of this trip for Elisa is our stay in the tiny town of Grainau in the German Alps near Garmisch-Partinkirchen. We stayed at a vacation rental called Ferienwohnung-Zugspitze and our hostess Carolin did such a fine job on the accommodations and God lent a helping hand by placing the majestic Zugspitze mountain right in the backyard of our apartment. We were there for only 3 nights and we could have spent several more. It was so relaxing there. There are a number of things we would have liked to have seen but we missed - Bertchesgaden and the Eagles Nest. We would have like to have spent a day in Munich. We would have like to pay our respects at Dachau. This gives us a reason for another trip.

Lastly for Elisa, the trip was special because she was able to reconnect with her long lost high school friend Terri Rooney and meet her terrific husband Gary. Although the 2 hadn’t seen each other for over 30 years the friendship picked up right where it left off. We also got to make a great new friend in Gary, her husband of 25 years. He is a terrific guy and the only person I’ve gotten to know that has more karaoke stuff that Elisa and I have - a lot more.

Reflections - Rex

For me, I agree with Elisa that traveling with Trent and Carolyn made the trip a lot more fun, They hadn’t been to Europe before and It was great fun sharing with them some of the many things we had seen and done before. By doing it with them, we would learn so much in the process as well. The best thing about this trip is that there is so much we did not get to cram into our schedule - such as - trip up the Italian and French Rivera. We love Santa Margherita and Porto Fino. We didn’t get to take in San Tropez or Nice or Monaco. We didn’t get to venture into Switzerland. We missed Paris, the Bordeaux region and we also missed London, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. All of these could make up a nice itinerary for another trip some day.

Another highlight for me, was the different personalized tours that we took. Usually, Elisa and I would read up on a location, take information from guidebooks and then explore on our own. Our experience with Roberta in Rome has convinced us that it is well worth the extra money to find a knowledgeable and friendly guide that speaks English well. We really think it is worth the extra money to arrange for a private tour. By doing this, you and the guide can interact and she can tailor the tour to what it is that you are most interested in.

Driving in Italy - The Amalfi Coast - I never tire of seeing it and driving it. Yes the roads are narrow, the cliffs steep and the Italian drivers all think they drive Formula 1, but I am glad we got to go there again. Once again, we had great accommodations there with great views. Our dinner at La Tagliata was also a real highlight for me and if I could only name a few of my most favorite things about the trip, La Tagliata would have to be on the list. When it comes to driving, I will never forget driving into the town of Bellagio and having to wedge our car into that tiny street with pedestrians inches from our car. That was unforgettable and now that it is over, I look back on it and find it to be fun and exciting, while at the time, it may have seemed a little terrifying.

Lastly for me, I would have to put our cooking lesson with Chef Sylvia on the list. It didn’t hurt that our menu was featuring Italian Mussels that are harvested right here in La Spezia and I love mussels. But Chef Sylvia was funny and friendly and we really appreciated her opening her kitchen up to us. Even though her staff was preparing for another busy day of serving lunch to locals and tourists that flock to this Michelin rated restaurant, they made us all feel like this day and this kitchen, had been set aside just for us to learn a few of Chef Sylvia’s favorite recipes. The fact that we would get to walk the open air market with her Husband Alessandro, and shop for some of the ingredients we would use in our cooking was also a very nice touch.

I do have to cram one more highlight in here - our trek to find Carolyn’s ancestral roots was also very fun. I am so happy that we not only found the little town of Lugliano, but that we got to find a living relative our her Great-Grandfather. It was another emotionally unforgettable experience.

Closing out the trip…. Elisa and I spent spend a total of 27 days there, 23 of which were with Trent and Carolyn. We all got along well and had a great time. With all the neat places we weren’t able to fit into the busy itinerary we will surely be traveling together again at some point. A sad fact is that we have more days behind us than we have ahead of us - so we have to do it while we can. And when we do - I’ll try to write about it so that maybe I can inspire some of you to remember, that our lives are not only about working and making money - it is also about experiencing the world we live in and getting to know and help our fellow passengers on this journey we call life.

That’s all for now.

Rex

[everlarkficexchange]

Available Prompts.

Time's almost up! 

Submissions for the @everlarkficexchange will close on Sunday April 2nd at 11:59pm EST. 

 We're still waiting for some of our awesome authors to submit their pieces, but we also have some prompts that haven't been chosen yet. 

Why don't you take a look at our newest list? You might find some instant inspiration there. If you find a prompt you like, let us know. We'll take it off the list for you. 

Happy writing!

Available Prompts Springtime Edition 2017

Prompt 18:

“This is the most intimate I’ve ever been with another person.” “But haven’t you- “Sex may be intimate, but it’s only a fraction compared to the nights we lay awake talking about our fears. Nights like that you bare your soul to me, and that’s never happened before.“ submitted by someone who’s fallen in love before [@is-a-prompt]

Prompt 21: Everlark Pride & Prejudice AU please!! M rating because we all know we want it🙈😂 [submitted by Anonymous]

Prompt 22: Katniss loves her and Peetas daughter so much and she wants to give Peeta a second child before her body can’t anymore. Peeta is more than happy to agree, and they let their love create life for a second time[Canon, if you please<3. Probably should be rated M, but I guess it doesn’t have too]. [submitted by Anonymous]

Prompt 24: Everlark in the 1980s with day-glo and jelly shoes and electro-pop!!! [submitted by Anonymous]

Prompt 29: Peeta has a great idea to get closer to Katniss AND help her struggling family – he will pretend to have new and more symptoms and pay Mrs Everdeen in bread and coin from his allowance money for all her medical treatments! Will this plan work or backfire? [submitted by @567inpanem]

Prompt 32: Neither one experienced in sharing a bed, Peeta and Katniss are still learning to communicate their desires. [submitted by @567inpanem]

Prompt 35: Every time you remind me you’re alive, it gets a little easier to breathe [submitted by Anonymous]

Prompt 37: Katniss has to make some difficult decisions about life after grad school. Peeta wants to help her, but she’s reluctant to let him. Their relationship status and level of HEA is open for interpretation. [submitted by @hutchhitched]

Prompt 38: Katniss and Peeta are wanting to adopt a baby and have someone from the adoption agency coming to their home to interview them. Lots of mishaps occur. [submitted by @peetaspikelets]

Prompt 39: Everlark ‘How to lose a guy in 10 days’ AU or something similar. [submitted by @peetaspikelets]

Prompt 43: Everlark meeting at the midnight release for a book/film. [submitted by Anonymous]

Prompt 45: An Everlark fic based on Outlander! [submitted by @viloula]

Prompt 46: Age gap everlark where Peeta has a younger Sister and Katniss is his sister’s Best Friend. They’ve all know each other since young and Katniss has loved him forever. Eventually Peeta gets married but the Wife cheats and eventually dies. A broken man, he finds no purpose until he realises Katniss’ existence. He’s still scared she’ll be like his ex and cheat on him so things aren’t so easy and smooth for a while. [submitted by Anonymous]

Prompt 47: How about a fic that goes more into detail at the end of mockingjay. Starting where Katniss wakes from a nightmare and Peeta is there to comfort her with his *lips* and the both of them growing back together. The wonderful parts of the story that were sadly left out in the original. As always smut is welcomed. [submitted by @amazinglovers747]

Prompt 50: For Science Club, Katniss is caretaker to the bio teacher’s menagerie and assists in his animal shows by letting kids touch the snakes, rats, alligator, armadillo, giant roaches, tarantulas, etc. Peeta impulsively joins to get close to the girl with the braid. Problem? He’s squeamish and ignorant. :) [submitted by @567inpanem]

Prompt 52: "What the hell is your drunk ass doing in my tent?!” Everlark meet at a music festival. [submitted by @peetaspikelets]

Prompt 54: Katniss as Jane Eyre, Peeta as Mr. Rochester. [submitted by @mega-aulover]

Prompt 58: An AU where Peeta has a toddler nephew and Katniss has to take care of him while Peeta is hijacked. [submitted by @winkrookie]

Prompt 60: An au where Katniss is from D13 and she's the one who saves Peeta when Snow punishes D12 for inciting rebellion by bombing them [submitted by @elaine-spades]

Prompt 62: Somebody Everlark Zootopia for me!!!! [submitted by @alliswell21]

Prompt 64: Petty criminal Peeta Mellark has been talked into helping with the stupidest scheme his best friend has ever come up with. But if it works, they'll be set for life. All they need to do is kidnap Katniss Everdeen. [submitted by @andthisisthewonder]

Prompt 65: Canon divergent fic where everlark convinces Snow of their relationship and after their Capitol wedding Katniss and Peeta are contacted by D13 and given the task to assassinate President Snow [submitted by @elaine-spades]

Prompt 67: Katniss flashes back to the time at which her and Peeta chose their children's names; Willow and Rye. [submitted by Anonymous]

Prompt 68: Everlark To All the Boys I've Loved Before/PS I Still Love You AU - the 3rd/final book in the series is coming but we all know it'll be PG13 at most so hit me with some smutty Peter K/Lara Jean moments using Peeta and Katniss instead. [submitted by Anonymous]

Prompt 70: Any Katniss and Peeta telling their children about the games? [submitted by Anonymous]

Prompt 71: What about a drammatic/angst FF from Gale POV who goes back to Distric 12 and sees Katniss happy again with Peeta [submitted by Anonymous]

[frankiepaigewrites]

Notes on craft: Point of View

Since last year’s PNWA conference, I’ve been doing everything in my power to delay writing up my notes. Moved house. Decided to hire an editor and substantially rewrite the manuscript. Sprained a thumb. (Playing tag with a five-year-old. Sheesh.) Decided to write submissions for three categories of this year’s PNWA contest. Got flu. Decided to sort out all of my husband’s childhood LEGO (and got diagnosed with “collection OCD” by the guys at my local used LEGO store). So, yeah... 

We still haven’t properly unpacked, but I’ve just found my 2016 notebook, so let’s take it from the top. First on the agenda, Point of View as explained by the award-winning writer and instructor, Scott Driscoll. 

Word of warning: this is not your usual POV approach, where the question is only Who Speaks? For Scott, the issue is much larger:

Three main POVs:

Flaneur

Objective Observation

Free Indirect Discourse

Four elements of POV:

Who Speaks?

To Whom?

On what Occasion?

From what Distance?

     Who Speaks?

Types of speaker (these are broken down differently by different people, but I find this one clear):

3rd person - closed - limited - omniscient

2nd person - “you” as “I” - “you” as “you”

1st person - singular (“I”) - plural (“we”)

(This is taken from https://theprintedglobe.wordpress.com/2009/09/29/welcome-back-writers/, where you'll also find good examples of each speaker. In that post, however, POV is equated with Who Speaks. One closer to the one attempted here is available from https://prezi.com/iwnzl_wgvhxy/point-of-view.)

Other things to consider when analysing the speaker are: is the speaker part of the story, outside of it but part of the universe, or entirely external?

    To Whom? Who’s listening?

Types of listener (not exhaustive):

contemporary, future, past

peer, superior, child etc.

internal or external (self and/or anyone interested - typical in flaneur POV)

There can be different listeners even within the scene, with a character listener pitted against the one the speaker is actually addressing (on the outside of the story world, or at a different time within the story, for example).

   On what Occasion?

The reader needs to know what's coming to have the patience for what leads to The Occasion. This needs to be established quickly, so the reader can see the purpose of listening to all the details of the world and the character's life. It gives the reader an inkling of how the events being described fit into the overall purpose of the story. (And it helps the writer decide what is not essential and can be taken out.)

  From what Distance?

Can be temporal, physical or psychic, and each of those can be set at different levels (near ↔ far). For example, something can be happening right now, but be retold with great detachment from the speaker, or might have happened a long time ago and far away, but still cause deep emotion.

-------------------

Flaneur, Observation, and Free Indirect Discourse are the three main narrative devices (POVs) that create contrast within the story. Contrast is necessary if the reader is to stay involved and have the patience to listen to all the details. It is established by moving between the three levels (views) in a way that creates pace, breathing space and context.

FLANEUR is the “highest” point of view. It is a floating, dispassionate consciousness. It offers commentary (through adverbs, metaphors) and conclusions, and usually uses words the character wouldn't use (longer, more insightful, with more complex syntax). Flaneur's listener is him/herself, the reader, and anyone interested. It can be used in any person (1st, 2nd, or 3rd). It often manifest as a discourse on a subject, and does not “tag back” to the designated character (speaker) while it's in use. It is not an omniscient narrator, because it does not offer ready values, meanings and does not pass judgement. It's more of an objective observer offering an insight that links the events of the story to broader human experience. It is necessary because it illuminates the character's values, and “every character who matters stands on a value.” Otherwise, the reader won't care for their experiences. Flaneur voice is best used after an observation, or else it feels forced by the author. It is also best left for after the reader’s already hooked and knows what’s coming, or they won’t have the patience for it.

(Metaphor, adverbs are commentary, they come from narrative distance, so use sparingly. They are useful when your character is really suffering and you want to create some breathing space for the reader.)

OBJECTIVE OBSERVATION is the workhorse of narration, it's the voice that gets the job done. (Those doors won't open themselves!) It accounts for about 70-80% of fiction content that's not scene or dialogue. In the objective observation POV, there's no character at all. This is the level of surface noticing, where the reader gets connected to the world. It is vital if the reader is to believe what the author offers on the other two POV levels.

(Try this: pull out something of yours that feels stale, and deliberately exaggerate surface noticing, detail.)

FREE INDIRECT DISCOURSE is the closest to the character. It's inside the head of the character (but not the voice in character's head). It's whatever voice you use for that character, but usually delivered in fragments, short bursts (snapshots) of internal experience. If carried on too long, it becomes stream of consciousness, and can quickly tire the reader due to its claustrophobic nature. Free indirect discourse, like flaneur, does not tag back to the character. (“He thought...” or “She wondered...” take the reader out of the character's head and into objective or subjective observation.)

Contrast is thus created by mixing up those three POVs, but this cannot be done chaotically. The two most common (natural-feeling to the reader) ways of doing this are:

pyramid scene structure: flaneur (wide POV) → objective observation (closer) → subjective observation (closer) → free indirect discourse (extremely narrow)

(Most common and transfers the reader naturally, with the contrast existing between scenes rather than within one scene.)

diamond scene structure: subjective observation (close) → objective observation (widening perspective) → flaneur (commentary, human experience) → free indirect discourse (back to narrow perspective)

(With this structure, the reader feels like they've stayed close all the time, but they get a 3D experience. The contrast between the scenes is not as obvious, with the transition feeling more seamless.)

-------------------

Some examples:

Flaneur

Death Comes for the Archbishop, by Willa Cather

(Setup: toward the end of the novel, the French priest who'd spent most of the story trying to wrestle New Mexico back for the pope from the rogue Mexican church, on returning back to Europe, contemplates the changes in his world and his place in it; the novel was recommended as arguably the best example of skilful use of POV; the fragment below is spoken from the flaneur POV, indicated by the sophisticated vocabulary and complicated syntax, not belonging to the relatively simple character.)

Beautiful surroundings, the society of learned men, the charm of noble women, the graces of art, could not make up to him for the loss of those light-hearted mornings of the desert, for that wind that made one a boy again. He had noticed that this peculiar quality in the air of new countries vanished after they were tamed by man and made to bear harvests. Parts of Texas and Kansas that he had first known as open range had since been made into rich farming districts, and the air had quite lost that lightness, that dry aromatic odour. The moisture of plowed land, the heaviness of labour and growth and grain-bearing, utterly destroyed it; one could breathe that only on the bright edges of the world, on the great grass plains or the sage-brush desert.

Objective Observation

Olive Kitteridge, by Elizabeth Strout

(Setup: the main character, Kevin, has just arrived in the town of his birth to commit suicide and nobody else knows about his arrival and intentions.)

The bay had small whitecaps and the tide was coming it, so the smaller rocks could be heard moving as if the water shifted them. Also there was the twanging sound of the cables hitting the masts of the sailboats moored. A few seagulls gave squawking cries as they dove down to pick up the fish heads and tails and shining insides that the boy was tossing from the dock as he cleaned the mackerel. All this Kevin saw as he sat in his car with the windows partly open. The car was parked on the grassy area, not far from the marina. Two trucks were parked farther over, on the gravel by the dock.

Jealousy, by Alain Robbe-Grillet

(Setup: the main character is stranded on an island with his openly cheating wife, and copes with the experience by focusing on nothing but the surfaces; an example of camera view narration, no insight, no subtext, nothing but objective observation all the way through – yikes!)

It would be better to pit the truck in the shed, since no one is to use it at the beginning of the afternoon. The thick glass of the window nicks the body of the truck with a deep, rounded scallop behind the front wheel. Somewhat farther down, isolated from the principal mass by a strip of gravel, a half-circle of painted metal is refracted more than a foot and a half from its real location. This aberrant piece can also be moved about as the observer pleases, changing its shape as well as its dimensions: it swells from right to left, shrinks in the opposite direction, becomes a crescent toward the bottom, a complete circle as it moves upward, or else acquires a fringe (but this is a very limited, almost instantaneous position) of two concentric aureoles. Finally, with larger shifts, it melts into the main surface or disappears, with a sudden contraction.

Free Indirect Discourse

The Ocean at the End of the Lane, by Neil Gaiman

(Setup: prologue of the novel, the character recalls a funeral he attended. I’ve crossed out the flaneur and put FID in bold. The rest is - mostly subjective - observation. FID has to be mixed up with other POVs or else it becomes an unbearable stream of consciousness.)

I wore a black suit and a white shirt, a black tie and black shoes, all polished and shiny: clothes that normally would make me feel uncomfortable, as if I were in a stolen uniform, or pretending to be an adult. Today they gave me comfort of a kind. I was wearing the right clothes for a hard day.

The Odd Woman, by Gail Godwin

(Again, FID in bold, flaneur crossed out, and the end is observation, some of it subjective.)

It was ten o’clock on the evening of the same day, and the permanent residents of the household on the mountain were restored to routines and sobriety. Jane, on the other hand, sat by herself in the kitchen, a glass of Scotch before her on the cleanly wiped table, going deeper and deeper into a mood she could recognize only as unfamiliar. She could not describe it; it was both frightening and satisfying.  It was like letting go and being taken somewhere.  She tried to trace it back.  When, exactly, had it started?