#and unfortunately a 7 am to 2 am kind of endeavour on some days

[mylittleredgirl]

sorry i’ve been entirely absent from the internet lately while i participate in the traditional post-funeral collaborative project where the cousins attempt to figure out what’s wrong with us by decoding and piecing together unreliable narratives about our late mothers’ childhood from people who are no longer available for clarification

[ninjasmart]

do you think fg will show up soon in his life? Where is she now with her life? And what does a future hold for hg and olivia? Is o in good relationship with hg family and friends? And how does hg rly feel about oliv?

So many good questions. Let me start. Will FG show up soon - No (6vof wands reversed). Has she shown already - Yes (The tower reversed).

The hidden part is king of wands - it is a person, with considerable power to manipulate and use his connections. This card / this person will continue to be in the shadows. He will continue to stand on the side and watch. I though at first glance that he is some type of messenger but he is there to make sure that no one is taken advantage of.

FG - she is resting, or in a way - withdrawn from society. She has opportunities coming her way and she is seizing them up. There is also the hierophant. Some kind of dealing with officials. The vibe that I am getting is - the architecture buro for some kind of permit.

Is O in good relationship with friends and family - it is a maybe (Queen of Swords reversed) and as hidden some are genuinely disliking her ( 6 of wands reversed).

At the same timec- when asking this question for friends only I got the king of wands and a yes. For family - Justice. Strong yes.

About the future of HG and 0- I got only minor arcana so this means that this is very short turn prediction. 8 of swords: tied down. They are both starting to feel it.

6 of wanda reversed came up again which is strange. Maybe something happened on the wedding that left a bad reputation to them as a couple. But something that us peasant won't recognize as tacky but the high profile people at the wedding knew instantly and dubbed HG's choice of bride ... someone used the word: unfortunate.

At least they have this wedding over with - 2 of wands reversed. It's done, it's over. There's no more fighting - 5 of wands reversed. The 6 of swords reversed is indicating that thr Grosvenors are happy that she is moving in with them and away from her family.

The good news about all of these cards is that they are short term. As for timingv- the 5 of swords is 5 months or January 20th to 29th. It was in reverse so - the timing is strange. I'd say 5 months backwards. Whatever conflict had started in end of January was finally concluded with the marriage and it's over with.

They might need a few days to shake it off completely. I'd say - about a month for the timing.

And then - the 3 months after that the focus will be on Ace of pentacles reversed: a failed enterpreneurial endeavour or a failed nee beginning. Could even be a failed IVF. (I've seen it to mean that in readings) .Something that didn't work in the past will be revisited right after the 1st month after the wedding.

And - how does HG feel about O. At first I misread the question to how FG feels about O and I got: 7 of cups reversed (she knows about her) and Magician reversed (that is a bit strong feeling, shw thinks O used some type of manipulation to get him)

Now onto HG - 8 of swords. That is not a good way to feel about your wife. He feels trapped and stuck. He sees her positively - like the 9 of pentacles. For him it is important that she does not make him feel suffocated and leave him be free (The fool). I can only imagine this type of dynamic when the other partner is clingy. However, O doesn't strike me as the puppy that follows along type of person. It's highly likely that HG married because it was time but he has a very strong sense of freedom and is bothered that this can be clipped by a wife.

[radramblog]

Linkin Park Retrospective, Part 1.

Sup I’m still a Linkin Park fan in 2021 and if you judge me for it then yeah that’s probably fair

Linkin Park is one of those bands where the eternal debate rages about when exactly they stopped being good. As someone who got into them late, in 2009ish, when the days of Nu-Metal were long-dead and most people had dropped off the LP train, I tend to put this a fair bit later than most people, but unfortunately, they did eventually get bad. Join me on this series, then, where I’m going to go through their 7 albums individually and discuss the merits of each in turn.

Hybrid Theory

The original, and to some, the best. I’ll never truly be able to understand what it was like when this album dropped and changed a genre completely, seeing as I was about a year and a half old when it happened. Listening through it now, I can kinda see why, as I think it still holds up even 20 odd years later. From the beginning it’s clear why Linkin Park exploded the way they did, as they had a few factors that made them stand out from the crowd of Nu-Metal- a few bands I’ve seen mistakenly (imo) labelled as a part of the genre, such as System of a Down, do compare, but nothing I can think of that is actually in there really does.

The first is a bit basic and probably biased, but the songs on Hybrid Theory are just better written than most others in the genre. Both lyrically and sonically- the hooks are great, the guitarwork is solid, and the percussion is punchy, especially on songs like Points of Authority and By Myself. I think this ties in with the second point- the DJ work by Joe Hahn does a lot of work to carry some of this early work, with the record-scratching never being noticeable but never overbearing, save of course for the track Cure for the Itch, which is pretty much just Hahn showing off for 2 and a half minutes.

I am, of course, beating around the bush a little, seeing as I’m leaving the most salient point to last. What Linkin Park really had that no one else did is the combination of the two vocalists- the call and response of Mike’s rapping and Chester’s singing/yelling is the magic formula that makes these songs work. It’s to the point where tunes where the formula is broken, such as Runaway, where Chester handles both lyrics and chorus, leaving Mike to the backing vocals, feel notable for that alone, although the trend they would set would eventually dominate some of the band’s later work.

If I had to rank it, though, I’d probably put Hybrid Theory lower than most people would relative to the band’s later work. Most of that is bias towards said later work, but there’s a little more there, and it’s not all Linkin Park’s fault. To me, Runaway sounds like what someone who’s not a fan of the band assumes all their music sounds like, being the dullest variation on the themes of the album, and a bridge that just feels like a waste of time. And I genuinely have a hard time listening to Crawling these days, considering how the track was memed into oblivion back in the day- In the End is similar, but gets a better rap seeing as its just a better song. (In the End is actually kind of genius, in my opinion, and that piano line and all the little distortions to Mike’s verses are burned into my brain.) I kind of wish some of the B-sides/Rough cuts from that era were on the album instead- while My December is pretty wank, High Voltage and Step Up absolutely deserve premiere status.

 Meteora

Meteora is not my favourite Linkin Park album, and again, we’ll get to that, but I might be tempted to argue it’s the best one. It takes everything that made Hybrid Theory good and refines it, producing a stock that does what the first album did better and doing experimentation that would later be characteristic of the band. The raw emotion from Hybrid Theory’s lyrics still remains, but the variation in instrumentation lets it be explored a little better than that album manages to.

Track-by-track on Meteora is probably an actual worthwhile endeavour, unlike with Hybrid Theory. While HT is a great album, there’s only so much you can say about With You into Points of Authority into Crawling into Runaway into…. You get the point. Meteora doesn’t spend as long on the same theme- while the first few tracks (excluding the Foreword) superficially resemble that, the tracks feel more different, from Somewhere I Belong’s softer verses that really struck a chord with a younger more awkward Raderph to the downright sinister opening to Lying from You. I actively adore the chorus to Hit the Floor, over the top screaming and all. With all that said, I think it takes until Faint for the album to really hit its stride.

Faint comes in out of nowhere with that bizarre strings/electronic line that carries through the verses and sounds like nothing I’ve heard before or since. The rest of the song is largely just a very solid example of everything else the band has been doing up until that point, but the verses, between the aforementioned line and Mike pretty clearly giving his all on this one, are just excellent. After Faint comes Figure.09, and while it certainly has an interesting name it doesn’t get to stand out seeing as its surrounded by Faint and the best song on the album.

Breaking the Habit was my favourite song for a long time, and it genuinely still might be. A more electronic song on the album, cutting back on the intensity of the instrumentation and letting Chester’s vocals shine through- but he’s not doing any screaming until the bridge, with the more tragic and self-loathing vocals making a song that apparently was real enough for him that he actually broke down at live shows about it. Even when we get to the bridge, the screaming is more pared down than the rest of the album, clearer, more representative of the clarity and self-acceptance of the end of the song. I could go on, but I probably won’t have time, so I’ll leave Breaking the Habit there, but I recommend watching the music video because that is some anime shit right there.

Much like Figure.09, From the Inside suffers from its placement, but I think the build of the song is worth a mention. After it, though, comes Nobody’s Listening, with some of the grittiest instrumentation the album has in its chorus, but given an airy vibe by the flute (?) running through it and the verses. The verses are actually probably my favourite of Mike’s on the record, complemented excellently by the more sparse instrumentation- he’s doing a lot on his own there, supported by only a basic drum machine line, that flute going off, and Hahn fucking around with some effects and shit (wait was that a cowbell). It sounds almost dirty, grimy, and I love it for it.

Beyond that we have again, a track sandwiched between two great songs, but in this case Session doesn’t suffer as much, being an instrumental interlude, followed by the album’s closer, Numb. Numb is, according to Spotify, Linkin Park’s second most popular song, behind In the End but followed by Numb/Encore from the Jay-Z collab album (its better than it sounds), and it’s a well-earned title. I think it’s probably better than any of the singles on Hybrid Theory, In the End included, and while it is a fair bit Mike-Light (in bottleshops near you now), I think it serves as the perfect closer to this album and this era of the band.Numb was the last song that would sound like this, as the band moved onto bigger (ehhh..?) and better (haha no) things with the third album, Minutes to Midnight.

Next time whenever I continue this series: Minutes to Midnight and maybe A Thousand Suns, but I kinda want to spend more time on the latter, so we’ll see.

[maraudersmessrs]

Remus Lupin and the Prisoner of Azkaban--- Chapter 5: What It Will Be

Ao3 link

Chapter 1 / Chapter 2 / Chapter 3 / Chapter 4 / Chapter 5 / Chapter 6 / Chapter 7 / Chapter 8 / Chapter 9 / Chapter 10 / Chapter 11 / Chapter 12 / Chapter 13 / Chapter 14 / Chapter 15 / Chapter 16 / Chapter 17 / Chapter 18 / Chapter 19 / Chapter 20 / Chapter 21 / Chapter 22 / Chapter 23 / Chapter 24 / Chapter 25 / Chapter 26 / Chapter 27 / Chapter 28 / Chapter 29 / Chapter 30 / Chapter 31 / Chapter 32 / Chapter 33 / Chapter 34

He returned out of memory with his head in his hands, staring at the rough brown blanket of his bed. The sun shone hot on his back and the pipes gave a mighty shuddering thump. His toilet cistern gurgled softly and then went quiet and he could still smell the egg sandwich he had managed to force down earlier. His eyes were still hot. And they were gone from him once again.

It was rare that he let his thoughts stray back that far, or even farther past a few days from his current situation at all. It was better that way; safer. But he supposed it was some sort of volatile combination of his impending return to school and the fact that the moon was so close. Things were shaken up and rose to the surface and even the touch of the joyful ones hurt. They all hurt, now. So I won’t touch them, he decided hollowly. All I need to do is get through 2 more Changes, 2 more months. I can do that. I’ve done it longer before.

And so, Remus drifted. He warded and soundproofed the basement of an old factory on the edge of town as best he could and Changed. If it was ever discovered before it was torn down, he supposed the Muggles would have to come up with an explanation for the claw marks and utter decimation of anything even remotely breakable. Injuries that month were neither the worst, nor the lightest he had ever inflicted upon himself, so he had managed to rinse up, dress himself painfully and limp home on the public bus. He made himself his “wolf time tea” full of willow bark, chamomile, and spearmint and started doggedly writing a schedule. He received letters back and responded in kind, placing orders for books and thanking them for guidance. Eating was no longer such a hazard as it was leading up to the full moon, but his savings were dwindling, so he survived on the day old bread bakeries sold and peanut butter.

When he was publicly presentable and able to leave bed for more than a few hours, he searched for a job during the day and returned to fall asleep writing his curriculum at night. Bad idea, and he had known it, too. So soon after the Change, little sleep and a bad diet; he got sick. It is how it is, his father would say, placating. It will be how it will be. He pushed through–got a job as a waiter. It was frustrating because it wasn’t debilitating, he was just sore, exhausted and congested, but they sent him home his second day; can’t be sick around food. It lasted about a week before they let him go. Rather gently, compared to some. It will be….He had taken to sitting on his bed when his eyes were too tired to write and too tired to read, running his thumb over the golden lettering on his suitcase. Professor. Professor. A promise of what’s to come.

He couldn’t make rent. It is what it is. As far as landlords went, this one was middling, being neither overly aggressive nor overly compassionate. Dispassionate, perhaps. She knocked on his door to give him the news and he opened the door, suitcase and key in hand, electric kettle under his arm. She took the key. Bade him good luck. Remus thanked her and went to sit at the library to continue writing. The kettle received some odd looks, but he was left alone. That night, he slept in the park with his wand under his hand, suitcase tucked under his knees, and a secluded tree to his back. The nights around this time were balmy anyhow.

He drifted. The job search continued. He was revising his curriculum by night at bus stops. A great deal of introspection did not seem appealing at this time, and so he tried to retain a vague acceptance of outward stimuli. Sleeping was difficult, and he had once been roused by a kindly police officer who helped him gather his things from under the park bench and go to the train station. She hefted his kettle under her arm and seemed to be under the impression that he was a college professor that had fallen asleep revising papers in the park. She was nice and chatty enough, wished him good luck as she left him on a platform he had randomly indicated. The fluorescent-green lighting of the station hurt his eyes. He longed for lantern light and then tried not to long for much of anything at all. Just 1 more change, he reasoned. Just one more month. It will be what it will be. His gold lettering was looking a bit worn.

The next Change was harsher. He was less well rested, less well fed and it showed in the wolf’s crazed zeal, as if it fed on his weakness. He had managed to use the factory again, but when he had awoken, he recalled the memory of the wolf howling, tearing at the metal-and-magic reinforced door, rattling it on it’s hinges. Because it had smelled someone nearby. The blanch of nausea that accompanied this recollection brought up nothing, which enormously soothed him. But it was too close. It was lucky he would have the Shack again, at Hogwarts

The corner of his suitcase’s P was peeling.

Somehow, he managed to recuperate enough in his circumstances to secure a job as a gas station clerk. The days walls were gray, the manager was grayer, and it fair reeked of cigarette smoke, but he had enough to eat again. He muddled through. It is….

A letter found him outside the library one day, where he was reading in the sunshine, about 2 weeks out from school starting. He had been wishing he could dredge up the energy for excitement, but seeing the tawny owl dive low to perch beside him on the bench seemed like the electric jolt he needed. It suddenly seemed real again, a drop of ink in a colorless world. Blooming. He tore open the letter eagerly, feeding the owl little shreds of his fried chicken. Inside was a letter written in Dumbledore’s own flourishing hand, reading;

Dear Hogwarts Professors and Staff,

Greetings! I’m hoping your summers have been fruitful in spiritual and intellectual endeavours! Unfortunately, the complications of this year will bring my heartfelt salutations to a close early in this years letter.

As you all well know, the fugitive Sirius Black has still not been apprehended–

Remus’ insides gave a lurch. He hadn’t known–his focused daze had not even thought to entertain such thoughts.

And so the Minister has decided that drastic measures are warranted. There has been developing reports and we are now certain that Black is targeting a student at our school; Harry Potter. This not only endangers him personally, but each individual and especially student at our school if he makes an attempt to infiltrate our halls. I believe that Hogwarts is one of the most fortified places in the Wizarding World, but I would not want to let my arrogance blind me to the fact that we as a society previously thought this about Azkaban. The Minister, thankfully, agrees with me. Unfortunately, this has led to him deciding that our grounds require an extra amount of security, and he intends to use Azkaban’s Dementors.

I am sure you well know my feelings on the subject of Dementors. I have made these clear to the Minister, but he believes the benefits outweigh the risks. I will defer to his authority on the matter.

'As I must,’ was almost written in invisible ink in the margins, his cold voice came through so clearly.

I urge you to tailor your arrival needs accordingly. Until we meet again;

Most sincerely,

Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore

Remus reread the letter, twice, before folding it carefully and pocketing it. He looked to the owl, who gave a soft hoot. “Well,” he said, mildly. “Looks like I need to wake up.”

[enaasteria]

Answered Asks // 2

Under the cut~~~

Anonymous said to enaasteria: April 15th 2017, 9:14:00 pm · 6 months ago Ok, don't answer to this because I will not see it anyway. I was @jamlesspyo and I say was because when you'll see this my blog will already be deleted, personnal reasons. So I want to tell that you are one of the most amazing writer I had the chance to read a story of. You are also the sweetest person so thank you so much. I hope that one you will have enough confidence in yourself because you deserve it so much. Love you and stay healthy

I will answer this bc you might come back and I’ll def miss you. Thank you for all your warm encouragement and help throughout my struggles and I couldn’t have asked for a better reader/friend. Miss you and wishing you all the best!

Anonymous said to enaasteria: April 20th 2017, 10:59:00 pm · 6 months ago you might not read this for awhile and when you do you don't have to reply, but i just wanted to tell you that all of your writing here is beautiful and amazing! finishing your story is so worth waiting for and i can't wait to read the ending! thank you for sharing your writing!

You might not think this after you read chapter 16. It’s a kind of flargh chapter but needed to be in there so T_____T I’m kinda nervous about it but hopes everyone enjoys and feel it was worth the wait.

Anonymous said to enaasteria: April 23rd 2017, 1:14:00 am · 5 months ago Freaking heck, you are an amazing and professional writer!!! I'm reading through Apartment 5108 now and I can't think of words even close to satisfactory enough to compliment your writing!! All the best for your writing and future endeavours! :)

Ahhhhhh you are too kind to me. Thank you so much for reading and no worries. please don’t stress over what to write or compliments because I enjoy any kind of feedback tbh. Spazz messages are the best!

@sassyunicorns2​ said to enaasteria: May 11th 2017, 8:31:00 am · 5 months ago I won't lose hope! I know you can do it, because you are an amazing writter and you always have great ideas!!! I am here in the other part of the world cheering for you! 🙌 FIGHTING!! 💪👊 P.S.: I'm sorry for the errors.

I hope you enjoy this chapter and thank you so much for your continued support. It means so much to me and I’m so glad you love this story!

@whosexo​ said to enaasteria: May 11th 2017, 3:57:00 pm · 5 months ago SEND 💖 THIS 💖 TO 💖 THE 💖 FIFTEEN 💖 NICEST 💖 PEOPLE 💖 ON 💖 TUMBLR 💖 IF 💖 YOU 💖 GET 💖 5 💖 BACK 💖 YOU 💖 MUST 💖 BE 💖 PERFECT 💖 Miss you hope you're doing amazing!!

No words can amount to how much i love you too! I apologize for my year long disappearance. I’m a terrible person. UGH. But I shall blame it on work and daily stress. T___T Hope you are well too, love!

@dream-exo-fantasy said to enaasteria: May 11th 2017, 3:58:00 pm · 5 months ago SEND 💖 THIS 💖 TO 💖 THE 💖 FIFTEEN 💖 NICEST 💖 PEOPLE 💖 ON 💖 TUMBLR 💖 IF 💖 YOU 💖 GET 💖 5 💖 BACK 💖 YOU 💖 MUST 💖 BE 💖 PERFECT 💖 (A side message: I hope you're not stressing too much about writing. Take your time and stay healthy 💕)

You are the sweetest and thank you so much. 2017 was unfortunately the most stress filled year i’ve ever experienced but hopefully the latter end will treat us all better, yeah? T.T

Anonymous said to enaasteria: May 12th 2017, 1:46:00 am · 5 months ago wah yay! okay take your time! i (and many others) can't wait to see your masterpiece! 💕

Love you!

Anonymous said to enaasteria: May 20th 2017, 12:32:00 am · 5 months ago So I was wondering did ahri told sehun about what happened to her while sehun went after jiyul like she drank the juice and was taken to hospital or did sehun already knew or anyone told him bc I think you didn't mention that?..

Soi definitely told him---actually her wrath probably yelled at him and was infuriated with his poor actions. he probably got scolded by everyone tbh.

Anonymous said to enaasteria: May 29th 2017, 6:07:00 pm · 4 months ago Youre probably busy with apartment 5108 but i really hope you do come back to keepers! Chapter 1 left me on edge and im still eagerly waiting for the next part!! Much love sent your way❤️❤️❤️

I CANT WAIT FOR KEEPERS. I want to write it two ways but I might just do two endings bc I’m a sap and a total angst fest lol

Anonymous said to enaasteria: June 5th 2017, 8:41:00 pm · 4 months ago enaaaaaaa i miss yoooooouuuuuuuuu ):<

I MISS YOU TOOOOOOOOOOOO

@unsungthoughts said to enaasteria: June 5th 2017, 9:19:00 pm · 4 months ago Apartment 5108. I'm beyond in love w this story! I was so into the story to the point where I could literally feel everything, the emotion esp. It is truly an amazing piece of writing. I'm new here (since yesterday and just finished 5min ago) --cont.cont.-- and yet to explore ur other stories, which I will definitely do cz I LOVE YOUR WRITING SO MUCH 💕

You make me blush! I’m so happy you enjoyed this story and I’m glad it made you feel things. I hope 16 treats you well and that you’re having a great time on tumblr! welcome, welcome. AND I LOVE YOU TOO

Anonymous said to enaasteria: June 15th 2017, 11:47:00 pm · 4 months ago power through love! you got this! 👏🏽👏🏽

I was jamming to POWER as I wrote this chapter. Lord knows I needed the help. orz

Anonymous said to enaasteria: June 23rd 2017, 2:25:00 pm · 3 months ago this is kinda random but Charlie puth's Attention reminds me of Red 😅

Imma go listen to this and add it to the playlist! TY ANON!

Anonymous said to enaasteria: June 24th 2017, 11:31:00 pm · 3 months ago ena, i just wish you can fathom 1/16 of the greatness you've omitted onto the exo fandom. you're writing is absolute perfection. fandom writers are just not appreciated enough! you're art is just as important than the art exo creates. you are able to create a story and a character. just think about that. a person and their life. real or not, you've created a character all of us can relate to in one way or another. i hope you keep finding joy in what you do and never lose this passion. 🌺

I remember reading this message 3 months ago and it made me want to cry. Thank you so much for your kind words and thank you for appreciating fanfiction as an art form. I think this writing is such a lost art and people don’t appreciate the time and effort going into a story. But reading this made it so worth it and thank you so much for your kindness!

Anonymous said to enaasteria: July 7th 2017, 7:22:00 am · 3 months ago Omg i just followed you now bcs of apartment 5108 and others too. Geez why i havent discovered you then?! Seriously for me its really hard to find fanfic that matches with my reading style gosh its pretty damn well written and you succesfully made me feel like im the character. You mess my feeling hun'. You did it. Seriously youre one of the best writer i ever known in tumblr. Im looking forward to ch 16 and others too. I hope u doing well!!!! Lots of love from your lovely reader💛

Thank you so much for your kind words! It’s such a huge compliment to see you hold my writing to such a high regard and I hope this next chapter doesn’t disappoint. I’m so glad you like it and please let me know what you think of the rest of the chaps!

Anonymous said to enaasteria: July 7th 2017, 12:45:00 pm · 3 months ago I've been following you for about a year now and DAMN HOW I LOVE YOU. Its been a year since you last updated Apartment 5108 but you still log in to check on your fans. Writers block is an ass but all you need is some inspiration and then you'll be firing away with the Seahri feels. or Ahrun feels. However you decide to ship them. Also Chanyeol is my fav and the fic you wrote called Two killsss meee. THANK YOU! Also, I'm Egyptian. Pretty cool knowing you have international readers eh?

I’m so sorry you’ve had to wait so long for a chapter!!! It’s so amazing how there are international people reading this and I can’t thank you enough for your kindness and also for sending me this comment but ALSO SEAHRI. LIKE THIS KILLS ME AND ITS SO CUTE AND ADORABLE.

Anonymous said to enaasteria: July 7th 2017, 1:56:00 pm · 3 months ago Hey Ena! Just wanted to tell you that I literally open your page every single day (its been 3 months LOL) , just to check if there's any update for apt5108, no rush but that just show how much i adore your work, i just freakin' love your story! I never felt so desperate waiting for the next chapter.. but I believe good things take a long time, and I believe your work could be one of the good things, even better the best thing!! Love, Your biggest fan💕

IM SO SORRY FOR THE WAIT. I don’t know what to say other than this year has been a mess and a true struggle but I dearly wanted to write this chapter and forced myself to do it and post today. I’m so sorry if it wasn’t worth the wait but hopefully it’s a good continuation to their story T____T

@sehun---addict said to enaasteria: July 20th 2017, 10:07:00 pm · 3 months ago Personally i would rather wait until you finish the story and post it in one go bcs waiting game for each chap is pure torture . Much love♡

I wish I could’ve posted it all but 16 nearly killed me to just finish so I hope this is a good chapter to hold you off until 17 T___T

Anonymous said to enaasteria: July 20th 2017, 10:14:00 pm · 3 months ago In reference to your tag in the previous ask- I think posting the chapters as you finish them would be preferable for me. That way I wouldn't have to wait as long for another update? But I'm wondering if writing it all and posting it generally at one point would be easier on you, so that it could kind of be one and done. Either way, I appreciate you taking the time to write this story! You are so incredibly talented and I find it so kind that you take time out of your day to write.

16 is going up soon. I hope you enjoy it and I’m so sorry for the wait. Thank you for your patience and I hope you read with low expectations because I’m a bit nervous about this chapter. It’s excruciatingly long T.T

Anonymous said to enaasteria: July 20th 2017, 11:46:00 pm · 3 months ago please post 16 when it's finished! that way we can have a new chapter at a time to enjoy!

It’s going up!

Anonymous said to enaasteria: July 23rd 2017, 4:47:00 am · 2 months ago I know I'm late but about the end of appartment 5018 I'm really curious about Polaris. Will it be build ? Will it be insignifiant ? I really like it so yeah that's what I'm most curious about :)

This will be addressed in 17! :D

Anonymous said to enaasteria: August 2nd 2017, 9:53:00 pm · 2 months ago same anon who recommended moondust~~ i have another one for you ena ^^ it's the house we never built by gabrielle alpine <3 best of luck on the story!

Imma check this out after I answer these messages and add it to my playlist! Thank you so much!

@yoruu-gen said to enaasteria: August 21st 2017, 1:01:00 pm · a month ago Happy Fanfic Writers Appreciation Day to my most favorite fanfic author in existence ❤ Apt 5108 is by far the best thing I've read on this website and I look forward to continue stalking your Google Docs 👀 I'm so thankful that you pulled me out of the writer's block abyss and I hope I won't disappoint in the future lol. Thanks for always being such a great friend and for always dying with me about our biases 😅 Love u lots~~

YOUUUUUU. I LOVE YOU. I also thank you so much for helping me with this chapter. You are such an inspiration and I know you feel like you’re not that great of a writer but honestly---you are one of the two I really, truly, look up to on this platform. I always enjoy your words, your stories, YOUR STRUGGLES with your biases but also so thankful for your friendship. 

Anonymous said to enaasteria: August 26th 2017, 9:36:00 am · a month ago Red is my favorite fic and it impacted me so much in a way i can only be thankful. Getting away of a one-side love relationship was really a big choice i should have made before but it's really scary to do so. Reading Red helped me aknowledge what i was doing to myself after denying it for too long and i finally decided to take care of myself for once. So i'm thankful because your amazing way of using words helped me realize i should do what's better for me and no one else. Take care of yourself

Red is honestly one of my favorites too. It was so easy to write (compared to apt) hahaha and although Sehun wasn’t a good character in it, I enjoyed the progression of how real the characters were? Like---this happens in real life and not all things end happily with rainbows and butterflies. It is a struggle to see a person go through something like this but it’s also a testament to their character and their willpower to walk away from it and say when they’ve had enough. I hope you’re doing well, anon.

[finchbeak]

Madagascar - Days 9 and 10 - Anjajavy

Yesterday was epic. Walked over 20km. Saw all the birds and geckos and snakes and chameleons (and more than a few Sifaka). 

Radu and I got an early start, leaving the lodge at 7:30. It was a good day for birding. Saw everything from the Crested Coua to Madagascar Bee Eater to the Cattle Egret (who was standing on the back of a Zebu traversing a small pond). We spent over 7 hours out on the trails. I managed to only step in Zebu poop once. Given how much Zebu poop is all over the place, this is a minor miracle.

We trekked for 14 kilometers before stopping for lunch. The lodge was kind enough to pack us some rather delicious sandwiches (I had chicken, pickle, and tomato). But by the time we had stopped for lunch I had nearly exhausted our water supply (it was hot yesterday, and most of the landscape was open Savannah). Luckily we stopped at a natural spring where I was able to refill my Grayl twice before tackling the last 6 kilometers to the airstrip (where I was pleased to see one of the lodge's trucks - I'm not sure I had another 7 kilometers in me at that point).

By the time I got back to the lodge, washed off the copious amounts of red dirt all over my body, and changed my clothes it was time to head over for tea in the garden and await the appearance of lemurs.

Instead of lemurs, I was greeted by three more groups who joined the lodge. Two of which consist of very loud and obnoxious Americans. And one of those have 3 fucking children with them. The normally peaceful garden 'oasis' is now ruined by three children screaming and running around and some asshole who keeps saying, very loudly, that he better see some "Sikafa" soon.

I quickly downed my lime juice and went back to my cabin to read my book on molluscs.

I heard this morning that the lemurs never arrived....

Between tea time and dinner several of the lodge employees put on a show. I was wary of such a thing. Displays of local culture for the benefit of white tourists has always made me uncomfortable. But Lucien, one of my intrepid guides, was MCing the event and implored me to attend. 

I am glad I did. It was lovely. Great music. Great dancing. Hawt men in skirts... All on the beach, sun setting in the background.

This morning I had a late start! Met Ernest at the front of the lodge to walk over to Anjajavy village at 8:30. Sunday is market day in the village, which means other people from the lodge would also be making their way there. I was the only one who walked. Everyone else took the lodge trucks.

On the path to the village we have to wade through a stream. And that is where I nearly lost my shit with excitement. MUDSKIPPERS! MUD FUCKING SKIPPPERS! 

In theory I knew mudskippers were in Madagascar. I just never expected to find them! And yet, here they were! In abundance. I made poor Ernest hold my sandals while I took copious amounts of pictures. I couldn't stop laughing and giggling I was so excited.

But onward to the village we must go. 

Anjajavy village is built on sand. Beautiful, white sand. Very pretty. Very not so good at growing anything. Except palms. Palms abound.

Our first stop is with the local sculptors. Two gentlemen in the village carve absolutely gorgeous pieces out of found wood (it is illegal to cut most hardwood in Madagascar, but if a branch falls, it's free to use). I had to stop myself from buying all the things.

While I was perusing the shop a gaggle of children gathered at the door and windows. 

Me: Salama (hello)

Gaggle: Fits of giggles

Me: In vovo? (How are you)

Gaggle: Scatters, two fall down trying to get away

The two older gentlemen cannot contain their laughter. I buy all the things and then all the children come running back because they want to take a picture with me. I happily oblige. 

Our next stop is a women's cooperative that does needlework. Yes. I buy all the things here as well. It's hard not to. One - the craftsmanship (womanship?) Is excellent. Two - the prices cannot be beat. And three - this is one of the best ways I can positively contribute to Madagascar (besides being here in the first place).

Ernest and I then walk through the regular market, where the locals get together to buy and sell wares and foodstuffs and socialize. I end up buying a counterfeit Barea shirt, and Ernest dutifully shakes his head at me and probably thinks I'm a dumb faza. He stops me from buying smoked molluscs from an old woman.

We walk through the rest of the village, meeting people, stopping in at the bar (too early for a THB, unfortunately), and petting all the goats.

Right before we get to the beach proper a woman runs up with her baby. She and Ernest exchange words in Malagasy. She wants a picture of her and her baby. I ask Ernest for clarification, since I can't exactly print out photos. Apparently she just wants to see the photo. So I am happy to take the photos and show her the results on the preview screen. She spontaneously hugs me. (Pretty sure that baby got a bit squashed). I do my best in Malagasy and French to thank her and coo at her baby. I am hoping I can somehow get a print of the pictures I took to her. 

Ernest and I walk down the beach towards Kinnga. Along the way I notice amazing shells. I end up stuffing my pockets (and, when we get to Kinga, a coconut shell, since that's better protection than my pocket).

Ernest, apparently, has gone off script. We weren't supposed to go to Kinga. That's an entirely different endeavour. But Ernest is very young and apparently called in his favors to take me out today. (Poor Lucien got stuck with one of the annoying groups of Americans). We are met by another gaggle of children. I hear whispered 'Menas'. Mena is 'red' in Malagasy.

The only way to get back to the lodge from here is to either 1) go all the way back to Anjajavy; or 2) take a canoe across the lagoon. Ernest didn't account for the fact that all the adults in Kinga would be in Anjajavy for the market...

He's clearly panicking a bit. I just go off in search of something to hold my shells. One of the young boys helps me sift through a pile of burnt detritus to find a coconut shell that will work perfectly.

Much to Ernest's relief, he finds a teenager still in the village who will take us across the lagoon to the other beach. I get to ride in a traditional Malagasy canoe for all of two minutes.

We walk back to the lodge. I eat lunch, read my book, skip tea time since the Sifaka came through an hour earlier and I saw them, walked the beach in search of cool shells, and went on a night walk with Lucien where we saw 3 types of mouse lemurs.

One more full day in Anjajavy. I cannot believe I go home in less than a week. Madagascar is magic. And I am not sure I want to leave. 

[decandnicoletraveladventure-blog]

Weeks 5 – 7

(Around 23rd October to 6th November)

 Okay, here comes blog post number three. I’ve got to be honest; I’m finding the prospect of writing this one a little bit daunting, as we have had quite possibly the busiest two weeks of our lives. As per usual though, I’ll start where I last left off. ..

When I last wrote, we were staying at Danbulla national park. What I forgot to mention was that on the way to there, we made an impromptu stop off to go and explore a waterfall and gorge that was signposted. This tuned out to be a brilliant decision, as it was here that we saw a tree kangaroo! Yep, turns out they’re thing, I was shocked too – who knew?!

Anyways, on the second day of staying at Danbulla, we were just packing up to leave when a wonderful older woman named Sue came toddling over through the rain to our van, offering us the use of her kayak to explore the lake on. We had been quite keen to move on, but her incessant generosity soon changed our minds and, after dragging us over to her van and FORCING us to eat some delicious, freshly caught Yabi, it didn’t take long before I found myself sitting on a kayak in the middle of the lake feeling very at peace with the world.

 The originally gloomy day only proceeded to get better and better for us, as we heard a knock on the van later that evening and opened the door to reveal the most welcome sight I ever did see. There stood Sue – wonderful, brilliant Sue – with an entire freshly baked loaf of Banana Bread in her hands, iced and adorned with big chunks of walnut, which she had cooked especially for us. I still don’t know what we did to deserve such wondrous generosity. All I know is that Sue was a blessing which we could never have anticipated, but very readily accepted. 

All good things must come to an end, and in the morning we waved goodbye to Sue and carried on with our exploration of the Tablelands. Or at least, we attempted to. Nature had another plan, though.

 It was only a few minutes into our wet, rainy journey that we were quite literally ‘stumped’ by a huge tree that must have fallen during the night’s storms. After a lot of heaving from Dec and myself (I’ll be honest, I mostly overseeing and directing the procedure), we earnt ourselves a couple of leeches for our efforts (ew) and a clear passage for Sherman. Hoorah!

Onwards we went to our next planned outing: Undara Lava tubes. After a very long, desolate drive, we finally arrived. It felt like we were in the middle of nowhere. Unfortunately, we hadn’t done so well at planning ahead and researching our destinations, for it was here that we discovered the lava tubes were only accessible through an extortionately priced tour. Unprepared as we were to dish out the funds, we decided to make the most of the location and instead explore some of the free trails surrounding the area. This turned out to be yet another great choice, as it was here that we had some of out greatest wildlife experiences. We encountered Cows, Parrots, and Lizards but, most importantly, we saw heaps of Kangaroos and Wallabies – many with their baby Joeys! I was lucky enough (i.e pushed the limit enough) to stand literally a foot away from a Joey and its Mumma. It was an insane experience and a real highlight for us both.

 After Undara, we made a pit-stop to experience some natural hot springs in Innisfail. It’s definitely true that the sulphur creates rather a potent aroma of eggy farts, but it was the closest thing that we’ve had to a bath since being here, so we weren’t fazed.

And shortly after Innisfail, we made another little pit-stop to experience Millaa Millaa Waterfalls, where the view was as breath-taking as the freezing cold water. Nonetheless, with a total disregard for our core body temperatures, we plunged in and experienced the full force of the waterfall from directly below. Another crazy, awesome experience – it really takes your breath away to be pelted so hard with such cold water like that!

Unfortunately that night, we were less lucky with our camp-site choice than we had been thus far. We were blessed with the company of a very loud lunatic, who spent the night drinking and shouting at anyone who dared walk past him to get to the toilets. Needless to say, we didn’t hang around; once the sun was up, so were we, and we skedaddled out of there pretty pronto.

Our next drive was a long one, which saw us covering quite a stretch of long empty roads. Luckily, there were a couple of little fillers to help break up the day for us. One was a long, two and a half hour hike through thick, dense rainforest, which made us both acutely aware of how thoroughly we both dislike hiking through thick dense rainforest – it feels awfully claustrophobic when the trees are so dense all around and overhead that your barely reached by sunlight. The other was a much more successful ice cream stop at a very quant road-side shop which had lots of interesting fruity flavours, as well as Declan’s all-time favourite; Ginger. Needless to say, he was a very happy bunny.

We finally made it to our next free camp spot, and what a spot it was. Named Balgal Beach, the location allowed you to park up practically on the seafront, and permitted campers to stay for 2 nights per week. We relished our time there, enjoying yoga practices each evening and morning, and cooking up some great food on the free BBQs provided. We also met another far too generous individual, Steve, who was a welcome face to bump into again at our next camp stop, Saunders Beach. There, his kindness even excelled his humour, as he charitably helped us restore poor Sherman, whose sink and lights had stopped working, to his former glory. Once again, the considerate act was done simply out of the kindness of his heart – he wouldn’t even accept a pineapple as thanks for his hard work! Asking only for the two of us to ‘pay it forward’, which we promised and endeavour to do.

Once again though, we sadly waved goodbye to our newfound friends, and continued on our journey South. We zipped through Townsville, where I picked up a hammock, a bike rack, and a ‘pop-up ensuite’ from individuals on Gumtree – forever a bargain hunter -  and carried on down to Airlee Beach. Here, we FINALLY met up with Ian and Jordy. It was great to see some faces from home, and having their company made all of our shared experiences so much more fun. It was from Airlee beach that we went on a day trip to the Whitsunday Islands, a series of beautiful white sand islands surrounded by clear turquoise blue waters that are filled with amazing wildlife. We snorkelled with insanely huge fish, spotted turtles from the boat, and found the most picturesque lookout point to date.

The drive from Airlee beach to our next location, Hervey Bay, was a long one. 12 hours long, in fact. We broke it up with an overnight pit-stop, and attempted to take a lunch break in a mountainous national park. Unfortunately, Sherman was having none of it. The old man had worked far too hard, driving for 6 hours at motorway speeds, and simply refused the vertical inclines we were now attempting to have him do. So, whilst Jordy and Ian enjoyed a lovely lunch break with a bush turkey atop the mountain, we took poor old Shermy to a nearby mechanic. Luckily, all was deemed well, and so we continued on to Hervey Bay, successfully arriving without further issues. Fortunately, Shermy got a couple nights’ rest at a nice caravan park here, whilst we went gallivanting off on a tour of Fraser Island with Jordy and Ian.

 The tour was conducted in a HUGE four wheel drive coach (google it, they do exist and they are insane) and consisted of lots of lake visits, forest walks and sand-driving. What really made the trip for Dec and me was the Dugong sighting we caught, the baby Dingo which we stopped the coach to watch as it ran in front of the vehicle, the private plane tour of the island that we splashed out on that took off from and landed on the crazy gorgeous white sand beaches, the brilliant people that we met, and the hilarious evening that we shared with them playing a (classic) game of Ring of Fire. It was an awesome couple of days which totally wiped Dec and me out, so we left it a day before ploughing on to the next stop: Australia Zoo.

 I think Jordy, Ian, Dec and I all spent the entire day there crying (on the inside, gotta keep that game face) at the constant reminders of Steve Irwin filling the Zoo. It was as heart-breaking as it was inspiring to see the impact such an incredible man has made, and the memory and legacy he has left. The zoo itself was enormous, and took the entire day 9am-5pm to explore. The animal shows/demonstrations they held were fantastic, and we all had an exceptional day experiencing the wildlife close-up and learning about the Irwin family, and the zoos many conservation quests. Dec and I enjoyed ourselves so much, in fact, that we returned the following day to visit the adjoining Australia Zoo Animal Hospital, where we saw a poor little koala with his arm in a cast, and learnt a little more about the work they do to help animals far and wide.

 And that, my friends, was weeks 5-7. If you’ve stayed with me and read through it all, kudos to you – you’re probably as exhausted now from reading as I am from writing.  

We’re a little further on from where I am leaving off now, but I will leave writing about our latest adventures for the next post.

Until then, stay tuned.

 Nicole and Dec

 14.11.2017  Evens Head Library