#and yet another rid 2015 figure

[loversys-x3]

Me being extra normal and proving my ex wrong by getting a bundle of obscure/rare Transformers merchandise for my collection for like. Relatively cheaply too. (A lot of it is Bumblebee related because I'm unreasonably normal about him.)

[battle-of-alberta]

me: yeah so the election is going to suck the life out of me and subsequently this blog so don’t expect anything anytime soon

also me: uh oh sisters my epl hold on cowboys came in never mind

[cheerful-sixears]

TF[RiD’15]: Steeljaw X G/N canine/wolf-bot reader

•Fandom: Transformers: Robots In Disguise [2015]

•Theme: Steeljaw x G/N Canine-bot reader

•Title: "Freedom Awaits"

•Rating: PG; [mentions of clawing and typical Steeljaw behaviors] pretty sfw

•Notes: A rewrite of an old fanfic. Comrade used for G/N comfort. Steeljaw is just being a desperate loner looking for pack mates. Might be a part two of this if there is any interest. [fic below the cut]

"Most would say that fate whispers to the wolf; you cannot withstand the storm, but this wolf whispered back....I am the storm," Rushing through soon-to-be clawed up trees with talons lashing and frantic panting, you recited the quotation within your troubled and frantic mind, having learned it somewhere in the past but unaware of the real source. You strode on hind and front paws, then on two legs after exhaustion began to kick in. You'd been on the run from the autobot, "Bee" for what seemed hours. You only knew a portion of his name because the ignorant, red painted, flamboyant bot with him was obnoxious and crude when obviously and simultaneously failing to follow orders.

You soon stopped behind an aged, large tree, panting, and yet, as You tried to muster up the fuel supplies to get up and attempted to run...to no avail. Your joints and coils trembled in your exhausted frame, which resulted in a dramatic collapse before miles and miles of more forest. Your pointed, lupine audial gave a sudden twitch and swiveled around when you picked up the slightest sound of moving debris: a twig or branch snapped beneath what sounded like a large, robotic life-form, "A possible ally?" You whispered with glistening fangs readily apparent to snap as you heaved and panted for air. Your glossa hung from your lower jaw like that of an over-exhausted canine, "Show yourself..." You spoke within raspy breaths. Your optics glowed within the dim lit low lights of the sun falling beneath the trees.

Your audials fell back and your muzzle formed into that of an almost crooked smile with fangs exposed. A fearful gesture, and yet when you were ready to ward whatever it was off with a fear-inducing growl, you were suddenly whacked across your chassis with something sharp and searing. Instead of the growling, all you could muster up was a soft whimper of sudden shocked pain and discomfort, "Who are you? Why would you do that??" You continued to pant and bare your fangs as you backed yourself further into the tree. Your assailant's optics became visible in the impending darkness provided by the clustered trees and their foliage. Claws dug holes into the Earth and rake-marks into the tree's tender hide. You became so frightened that you hadn't noticed your own tail between your trembling knees.

After several moments of taunting from the intruder amidst the shadows, it finally spoke aloud, "Fear makes the wolf bigger than he is, you know," The seductive, almost soothing tone seemed quite eerie and disturbing behind the darkened visage of the night. The sudden sound of raking against the bark of another innocent tree struck your audio receptors enough to create a small spark of static and disruption, "Dear...comrade, what are you doing so exhausted and lost in the wilderness of this...backwater planet? Have you endured the same torture? The rude welcoming committee, and worst of all...the Autobots?" The figure stepped toward the small patch of light before you and revealed himself. His appearance was familiar, but you knew not his scent.

"Who are you?" You asked as your voice cracked under anxious pressure, "I will not fall prey to another-" Your words were cut short as a clawed digit pressed itself up against your maw.

"-Trap? No need to fear dear comrade, I bear the same marking as you. We are both-I assume-two cons' trying to make a living on a new planet. A new home to call our own without being treated as...criminals... and morseo...equals," He nodded his head as you glanced down at the deep claw marks through your chestplate. You winced at the still-lingering pain, "I'm sorry about that, loner. I was merely covering your tracks. You'd have probably been caught by now and stuffed back into one of those...stasis pods, again,"

"Thanks....I guess," You crossed your servos over your chassis and glanced away from your assailant, but you glanced back without hesitation, "Who are you?" You raised an eyebrow and rose off of the ground slowly-the tree supporting your still-weakened knees, "I would like to know the name of my...savior," You faltered at that final term, but kept the same, almost blank expression as their optics met.

"My name is, SteelJaw, and no need to thank me, comrade...all I ask is that you join me..on the hunt for more comrades; brothers and sisters...just like us," He clenched a fist and thrusted it to his chassis, showing confidence with every fluid motion of his being, "Again, will you join me, co-"

"My name, call me by my name," He glanced at You, seemingly startled by your retort, with a raised brow and leaned against the tree in which he clawed into shambles, as if he awaited your reply, "It's, (Y/N; first part)" You cut yourself short momentarily, not wanting the devious wolf-mech to catch your full name. You were an extremely cautious Decepticon/Autobot as odd as it seemed, and you were so tired of the rash betrayal or being hunted down by other Decepticons or even being turned in by undercover Autobots.

"...what? You seem to have...come off a bit short?" A sly grin formed on the maw of the wolf-like muzzle sported by SteelJaw. His razor-sharp fangs were visible to you as you shifted and swallowed hard before offering a reply...

"(Y/N; last part)," With defeat in your chords, you lowered your audials and glanced over at the wolf’con, who seemed to be rather amused by your strange behavior and body language, "Don't tell anybody else about my name....or me," Your pointed a claw at least inches away from Steeljaw's chin as he chuckled with utter amusement at your newly delivered threat.

“(Y/N), my dear, why would I do that...Join me. Join my...pack as it would seem I am but one..." He seemed to be playing a rather pitiful card as You saw through his pack of lies rather confidently, "I just might accidentally alert the nearest autobot of your whereabouts...unless you stick with me to...avoid that scenario, don't you think?" The sly lupine con bore his fangs in a gnarled grin as he knew he'd won. He approached you much closer, almost muzzle to muzzle, "I take that as a...yes?"

"....Yes,"

End Part

[trilobi-te]

Chipspeech Twitter Archive Update

Hi I should have done this months ago.. I do not know when (or if) I am going to finish that website lmao. So I am just going to share my notes from Google Docs. Should be easier to read than the original posts and helpful as a starting point if anyone else decides to make a website :3

The documents are all on commenting mode so feel free to make comments to bookmark things for yourself or write your thoughts or whatever. Under the cut I have put some formatting notes.

It's a folder, each year of Twitter posts is its own document (I tried to compile them into one but it lagged too much). There is also a document with all of the original Tumblr posts (from the accounts I could find, no tags yet but I will go back and get them eventually, also no dates but they're all from 2015), and one with the bios from the official website for ease of access.

The formatting is a little (a lot) weird and there are probably pictures that need resizing/transcription but I figured it's better to give people access now. The text is small (to keep the page count as low as possible) so you will have to zoom in.

It goes by day, organized with a bulleted list. The top level bullets are each character that tweeted that day. The second level bullets are original tweets/retweets by that character. The third+ level bullets are comment threads under that tweet, the organization here is inconsistent but imo still readable (if you think something needs an edit for clarity let me know and I'll fix it).

For each character's section of the list, normal text is that character's tweets/comments. Italicized text is anyone who is not that character. If it is labeled with unitalicized text, it is that character/important account (e.g. the official Chipspeech account), otherwise it is a fan. I also included some labels and/or clarifying comments for Vocaloid producers I like, they're not central to the story though

I got rid of the line breaks within the tweets when copying them down because it was easier to format. Sorry about that. Idk how to fix it other than going through everything again but it doesn't take away from the story so I'm leaving it for now.

If something came from a website other than Twitter, I tried to provide the link (unless its content was deleted). I did my best to transcribe the Clyp posts that were not deleted.

If something is a text-only retweet, it is marked with [retweet]. If it includes an image, it's probably a screenshot of the whole thing. I only included retweets that felt story-relevant (so no miscellaneous cat pictures, Apple-related aesthetic images, etc.), but if people really want it I can go back and add the rest.

Deleted tweets are noted with [deleted tweet], with the characters they came from if applicable. Idk how Twitter works but it the person in the thread is replying to the username of a certain character, I assumed it was that character's tweet that had been deleted. If something says [deleted Dandy thread], assume there is a deleted Dandy tweet in between each of the listed tweets (or another character, but it's usually Dandy). That was meant to be a temporary time-saver and I've gone back and fixed the ones I've found, but there's probably more I accidentally skipped.

Anything not in English is translated in a comment. Except the X-Sampa (I will fix that sometime but there's not much of it). Also it was done with the built-in Google Translate feature so it may be a little incorrect. Unclear pictures and whatnot also have clarifying comments. I can add more clarifying comments (or image IDs) if anyone needs them.

I tried not to include any unattributed fanart but there are some that I forgot to copy the handle for (I am also fixing these when I find them).

As for any future updates to this folder as a whole, I kind of want to go back through each account's liked tweets to see if there's anything funny in there but idk when that will be. That would probably be its own document.

Honestly I should have given everyone access back in June.. oops. If you have any questions you can put them in a comment on this post (or reach out to me another way, idk). As I mentioned before, feel free to use all of this as a starting point if you're making your own website.

I'll pin this post so it's findable in the future. Also sorry for disappearing for several months (it will happen again).

[the-firebird69]

T-800 vs T-3000 - Final Fight Scene - Terminator Genisys (2015) Movie Cl...

Hell did not die in the power source and that was Lost in space the movie people were upset and it was a Mac who tried to nail him and another Mac kills him here and they don't like him for some reason he's not real good at what he does he's a failure looks like they're upset with what he's doing and he's probably tricking them to make it look that way and he's not a good rebel he is a backstabber and a whiner and he started a civil war or help start it this is how he dies and Schwarzenegger goes back to his own body and starts fighting trumpsters like madness like a plague and he organizes tons of people to take out his others. As Trump is dying he's saying just the most arrogant crap you've ever heard consistently the last thing Schwarzenegger says to him is you are full of hot air and that was it and he's screaming and yelling stuff but moron he is such an a****** and moron and it's unbelievable that he's stuck to our son like he is this is not too long from now and he is killed completely. Marcus is not his son it might be a cheeseman who goes on to become president before and he is Clinton Adidas he does the blade runner movie is saying he's a slave and it means back proper and you say it's Ken and he's not a bad rebel but the move is a disaster by the time he gets to it because of what Trump is doing based on his delusion and it's horrible and he doesn't have hardly anything just runs it anyways

Thor Freya

We did help compile the statement but we're actually surprised to figure out that it was him not that it's surprising because of what he's saying but because of the character and what happens to him you think it would be the ruskies but they're not there yet and they don't fight like that to get there but it'll look like it and the Mac proper wanted and eventually it happens but boy what a nightmare this guy is he has an appointment here with this guy what's a n***** the guy Schwarzenegger

He dies for the hand of the max themselves. And there's analogy in there against us and so forth

Hera Zues

It's very true this is going down and they're trying to use him for a bunch of stuff and they get rid of him completely and he's dead and cheesemeen going to be president trymps bidy is too far gone

What an amazing story and a really bizarre fantastic and to a huge huge idiot and it motivates his people to go after the Mac proper and they find them in the Midwest and eventually the ridge line because they remove the pseudo Empire but this happens before that soon before January 20th and Trump's character start falling like flies and sun goes to a whole bunch of funerals and their excuses America is falling apart the phone isn't coming across the border and you'll see a lot of Latinos tons of them and it is one reason why but mostly it's because of what he's doing and doing to himself and he's a weirdo and thank God it's going to be over soon

Thor Freya

Olympus

[icedbatik]

I have never known Sid to quit, to give up. Every time he hits a slump, if it lasts long enough, people start talking about how he's over/done with/too old or he's fed up with the coach and is working to get him fired. Almost without fail, we've later found out that there was something else in play, something we were unaware of. (Like a broken foot, or a wrist that needed surgery.) (And, seriously, he's losing face-offs and his shot has been off. That screams *wrist* to me.) In 2015-16, when the world thought he was either feeling his age (the horrors of 28, OMG!) or actively tanking to get rid of the coach (and, yes, it did get rid of the coach) or both, he later acknowledged he was having an existential crisis about how everyone keeps calling him old and what that meant for his hockey. He snapped out of it and the Pens came back that year to win the Cup. This season? Sure, he's had a few years to get used to people calling him old(er). But, good grief, it has to be exhausting. He may be playing along in NHL ads poking fun at his age, but that doesn't mean he enjoys knowing he -- and his closest friends -- are among the oldest guys in the league. That Flower is retiring (and he has to face him on Tuesday). That Geno likely has only one more season after this one. That he might only have two. He still corrects people that he's not old, he's older. Because it still chafes. Add to that the fact that he probably has known Rusty might not be 100% -- and definitely isn't after the other night -- and that he, himself, might not be 100% -- but isn't going to sit out when his team is struggling. Not as long as he has a leg on which to skate. He's also a handful of goals away from 600. And Sid almost always hits something of a slump before he hits a milestone. Maybe it's another thing weighing on him, driving home his age. Maybe it's a tad overwhelming to realize who he's going to pass on the points list. And, yes, maybe he still misses Jake. Rusty moving into Jake's house and taking over Jake Shakes doesn't make up for Jake not being there. And it doesn't give Sid the second of his two favorite wingers to play alongside. (Rusty, great as he is, hasn't yet figured out how to clone himself to play both wings.) (Seconding @pimpim90, yes, Sid set up the play the other night that made Geno's goal possible. And he paid for it by being absolutely wiped out on the ice by a Canuck. No one's talking about it because Geno collided with the post and was (very) slow getting up, and not long after Rusty had left the game for good. Any other time, Sid's going down would have received far more attention. Who knows what injuries that could have caused or exacerbated.) We also don't know what might be going on in Sid's off-ice life. Which, contrary to popular belief, he does have. And while, ideally, he wouldn't let off-ice issues affect his on-ice play, who among us hasn't left problems we're dealing with outside of work affect our workday performance on occasion? In Sid's case, if Sully ever were to sit him, I'd hope it'd be a gift, not a punishment. An order to heal, not an admonishment to think about his sins and repent. Sid deserves nothing less than every possible consideration. He's earned it. With practically every breath he's taken for the past 19 years and most of the 18 before that.

send sid down to the ahl 2024

[werebiyourside]

Bi-Invisibility - The Abyss Stares Back

Pennasilico’s discussions of the public’s fear of the bi identity doesn’t just limit itself to the fear itself. It also shows off how the public, and the LGBT+ community, try to discount bisexuality and biromantics as not truely existing. I had talked in the first post how biphobia and misconceptions in general create a feedback loop of misinformation and fear towards the bi community, and it truly does show.

Pennasilico states the following:

Bisexual invisibility can be observed on a day-to-day basis because it is widespread and normalised in all social contexts: figures of speech, typical rhetoric, and media representation serve as prominent examples. Bisexual invisibility is due to a social phenomenon Kenji Yoshino called the epistemic contract of bisexual erasure (Yoshino, 2000). By ‘epistemic contract’, Yoshino means the social response from the heterosexual and gay communities to the fear of the threat that bisexuality poses on the current system in which these communities are invested. (2019, pp.24)

Yoshino is actually referenced in both this and Morrison et. al (I would love to read his research one day), but both Yoshino and Pennasilico point out that this is all a social phenomenon. Hate begets hate; misinformation and fear of change brings the desire to get rid of that fearful thing. The way history can make facts seem like there were either straight or gay moments - like historical figures having multiple partners as simply gay, or homosexuality in ancient Greece covering the fact that males were still expected to take wives even if relations with male students was allowed - and how politically-based terminology had “gay-spaces” or “the gay community”, “gay pride”, and only the subject of “homophobia” (2019, pp.23-24).

These words have changed over time, yet they also still very much remain. I remember in highschool my pride club being known as “Gay Straight Alliance”, which in wording is so limiting. Nowadays it’s nice that my college’s club is called “Allies” instead of pointing out one specific part of the group, and that pride is just called pride. The implications of the past, however, still feel visible in the present with the lack of visibility still on the bi community. Pennasilico’s study points out the lack of thought put into  the bi community’s mental health, and that their invisibility leads to higher cases of depression, and that the minority stress makes them less likely to seek medical help (2019, pp.25-26). Marcus (2015) similarly showed how, in much more extensive detail, the absence of thought for the bi community in legal affairs and the like harmed them. Both in what the invisibility has done to the community at large (pp.299-306) and both the evidence of erasure in litigation and the specific harms that that causes - proving your “gay enough” for immigration and sanctuary, being deemed unfit parents in custody and adoption cases due to their orientation or history, and same-sex rulings affecting the bi community in varied ways (pp.306-324) - it shows the imbalance in the legal system for proving ones worth to society. 

Change is happening to make the community and the public at large more inclusive. The bi community, in one way or another, benefits from both being recognized personally and from queer and pride communities accepting the whole LGBTQIA+ spectrum. Yet still, even in the more modern contexts, there must be more change to fully recognize that bisexuality and biromantics are real. We see them and we want to be bi their side as they get more and more recognition and respect in these talks.

Citations

Marcus, N. C. (2015). Bridging bisexual erasure in LGBT-rights discourse and litigation. Mich. J. Gender & L., 22, 291.

Pennasilico, A. (2019). The invisi_les: Biphobia, bisexual erasure and their impact on mental health. The Invisi_les: Biphobia, Bisexual Erasure and Their Impact on Mental Health, 22-28.

[mariacallous]

How the Polish criminal code continues to muzzle media freedom.

“Article 212 of the criminal code, which allows for the taking of a journalist’s freedom for two years, should cease to be in existence.”

This was not yet another call by an international media watchdog alarmed that Poland’s media freedom has deteriorated even further. Rather, these words were spoken almost 15 years ago by none other than Poland’s current de facto ruler, but then opposition leader, Jaroslaw Kaczynski.

Although his party, Law and Justice (PiS), has had numerous occasions to live up to those words since it came to power in 2015, its MPs have never got round to it.

Worse, according to the statistics of the Justice Ministry made available to BIRN, the number of convictions in relation to Article 212/paragraph 2 have actually ballooned since then, rising from 70 in 2015 and reaching 137 just two years later, 119 and 91 in the 2019 and 2020 years respectively, and 68 in first six months of 2021.

“It’s a very handy club that you can beat the media with,” Polish investigative journalist Wojciech Ciesla tells BIRN, explaining the reluctance of politicians to get rid of the infamous law regardless of domestic and international pressure. “If you have something behind your ears and a journalist reports it, as a politician or public figure you can simply claim it’s all untrue and sue them using [Article] 212.”

Now head of Reporters Foundation, a founder and member of the international collective Investigate Europe, and himself an investigative reporter for more than 20 years, Ciesla knows what he’s talking about. “I had a couple of those – we call them ‘Twelves’,” he says, in reference to the digits of the relevant Article in the criminal code.

It’s a very swift option and handy political tool, he explains, adding that it’s also very uncomfortable for journalists, as they are the ones who need to prove that they were accurate and truthful in their coverage.

[writing-realityawayfromreality]

*I’m thinking about having this part in the story that I am currently working on but it is a bit different so PLEASE let me know what you think. I’ve had this idea in my head for awhile now and spending time with my niece has made me really think about kids of my own one day. Also please note that this story is supposed to take place when Harry is 30. I’m hoping the one direction reunion comes WAYYYYY before that but to just make the story flow a bit better I had to make him older.  Anyways, as always, all the love,

K*

“Where daddy?” your youngest daughter asked as you and your children take your seats in the front of the crowd. “He’s back stage.” your oldest daughter  said. “Why?” Your two year old daughter asked once again. “Because that man right there” she points to James  “is going to ask him some questions for tv.” your oldest daughter tried to explain as best as a five year old could. You just chuckled to yourself listening to your daughters talking when you felt your phone go off.

 Harry-

Did you guys get to your seats alright? 

You quickly answered knowing that he was about to come on stage at any moment. 

Just sat down, the girls are excited to see you preform.  

Harry-

See you soon my loves. 

You were going to respond when you heard James ask the crowd to put their hands together for Harry styles. Your two daughters jumped out of their seats and started cheering for their dad. Harry had walked out from the back stopping briefly to wave at his daughters before giving you a wink. You could feel yourself blushing, there wasn’t a day that went by that you didn’t love Harry as much as you loved him when you first started dating. Your two daughters called out to their dad as he sat down next to James which only caused him to laugh a bit before blowing them kisses. 

“Harry...” James said making Harry chuckle “James.” Harry said getting serious and looking him in the eyes.  “It’s been awhile since we had you on the show.” James started out. “How’ve you been?” “I’ve been amazing. I just put out another album, spending a lot of time at home with my beautiful family, just kind of basking in this time together before going on the road again.” He said looking at you. “Well I think you just answered all the questions that i had prepared for the show tonight so... ladies and gentlemen, Harry styles.” James said laughing as everyone started clapping.  Harry gave a joking shrug and stood up pretending to head backstage. “No no no I’m just kidding. Sit down.” James continued laughing. “You took some time off from touring and in that time you made this album, you want to talk about the new album a bit? I mean during your one direction time if felt as though you guys were always on the road and then the hiatus happened and you all had your solo careers and you put out your self titled album, toured. Took some time to put out fine line, toured then the pandemic happened so it pushed tour off a bit and then you finished tour, took a year to  write your third album, toured that one and now you’re putting out your fourth album? James asked looking at Harry. 

“Yeah...” *coughs* “So, the first five years of one direction we put out an album each year and we toured almost all of them besides the last album which we still yet have to do... ” Harry smirks as the crowd cheers. “I love touring and whether you were here from the one direction days or just discovered my music yesterday I really appreciate all your support and I know all the rest of the boys appreciate it as well. I had just met my then girlfriend before hiatus happened. On tour actual, it’s a funny story. But anyways I took some time off after the hiatus hit and really I tried to find who I was. I was in two movie “Dunkirk” and also “Don’t worry darling”.  As far as music I had then put out my self titled album and toured that. Took some time off to write Fine Line, started touring that a bit but like you said the pandemic shut everything down so i had to wait a year to tour that album. And then I took about a year to write the third album, wrote most of that while touring Fine line.  I toured that one of course , and then I took year and a half... not really off, but instead trying to write a album that meant a lot to not only me but my family as well. Can any of you guess what I am going to do next?” Harry asked gesturing towards the crowd. “Tour!” they all yelled back as harry smiled. “So tell us about your album that is coming out.” James said.

“Well, so like I had said, i took sometime to figure out who i was as a solo artist and you know when you’re performing a certain type of music for so long you yourself kinda get lost. But I had my now wife y/n by my side and she kinda helped me to reconnect with myself and be comfortable with making the music on my first album, she has supported me day in a day out and I can’t thank her enough. I then went onto write Fine Line and that album was written while y/n and I had broken up and we were seeing other people and there was just something about y/n that I couldn’t let go...” Harry stopped when he heard people the crowd awe. “Don’t worry, we ended up back together... clearly.” harry laughed. “But by the time the third album came out I was already married and now i took some time off to spend with my wife and daughters and that’s how the fourth album was born, it was based on all the emotions that I was feeling. I was surrounded by friends and family, so this album is upbeat and happy, it’s about love, loving yourself, being in love, loving life, and loving one another. 

“Not to switch topics but you mentioned your wife...” James said. “I did... can we get a round of applause for my beautiful wife.” Harry asked as both him and Jame as well as the crowd started to cheer and clap. “You both are hardly ever on social media...” James started as Harry just nodded in agreement. “But when you guys are the fans get the best content, whether that be either you doing something or her doing something, sometimes it’s something your kids have done or something about your pets, and the fans just love it. A lot of the comments that i see is them asking for you two to be their parents. How does that make you two feel?” James chuckled. “Uh, well, my wife and I both agreed that we wanted to raise our kids out of the spot light so we try not to post too much but we would welcome whoever into our family with open arms... we just want everyone to feel loved and treated with kindness.” Harry said looking to the crowd as they clapped. “Speaking of welcoming people into your family, your latest post that the both of you posted was that you two are expecting your third child together!” James announced. “Wait a minute, three children?” Harry asked as though he was in shock by the news. Harry started to count on his fingers “Darcy... Angelique... and um... baby styles...” He held up three fingers “One, two, three, yep three... ” Harry pursed his lips and blew out air while still looking like he  was in shock causing everyone to laugh  “ladies and gentlemen give a round of applause for the expecting couple” James exclaimed. “I remember when you were on here when you two were first engaged and the next thing I knew you two were having your first child together and then your second, and now third!” Jame stated. “Well, that’s how it works James, you can’t have your second child first...” Harry Joked.

“Your wife is here today, is she not?” James asked. “She is, and my two beautiful daughters are here today as well.” Harry stated. “Almost three children now, what is that like?.” James said looking to Harry. “Honestly I don’t think I could had picked a better partner to raise children with. I don’t know how y/n does it all. Together y/n and I have two beautiful daughters with another child on the way. Darcy, our oldest had just turned five last month and Angelique our newly middle child will turn three in two months. They are both keep us on our toes, and are both super sassy, we think they get that from their uncle Louis...” Harry laughs. “But they are truly a blessing to the both of us. They love traveling with us, and are generally well behaved, um they do fight like normal siblings but at the end of the day you can find them cuddled up together on the sofa watching a disney movie, that comes from their uncle Liam” Harry stated looking at you and your children. 

“You really give a lot of credit to your wife, you guys have been married for four   years now? Where did you find the time to make music and get married and have children?” James questioned. “You’re really going to have me gushing over my family on live tv?” Harry asked smiling at James. “The fans want to know, you guys are pretty private.” James said laughing. “ We did get married in 2020, before covid hit, we found time in between touring, so we’ve been married for 4 years now. “How long had you guys been dating prior to getting married.” James asked.  “ 5 years actually believe it or not. I met her back in the start of 2015, I was 21 and she was 18 and the moment I saw her I was head over heels for her. She wasn’t too keen on me however and really made me work to even take her out on our first date.” Harry said looking over as you recalled your first date. “Why didn’t you just walk over to her and say “hello love,  I’m Harry Styles, member of one direction one of the worlds biggest boyband...” I mean come on you are super famous. I’m sure that would had won her over.” James laughed. “It might have but I don’t really like to bring fame into my relationships.” Harry said. “So, how did you win over such a gorgeous lady?”  James questioned. “I just happened to go on a trolley ride that she was working on that day, it was an amusement park trolley. It was a private ride for the guys and I. Her and her coworker put on this little show, taught us about the history of the park we were at, they got dressed up as different people and sang songs. It was just amazing. Later that day I had asked if she could give me a tour of the park itself and we went on rides, I asked her to come to the concert that night but she declined. I think it was close to 2 months after meeting I asked her on a date to which she turned me down. It was maybe six months into knowing each other that she finally agreed to go on a date with me,” Harry laughed. “SIX MONTHS? Y/N! WHAT WERE YOU DOING TO THIS POOR BOY?” James questioned you. “She was in college and working full time and helping out her family and playing sports... but yes ladies and gentlemen it took me, Harry styles six months to get a first date with y/n. Which was a beautiful picnic and then I...” Harry stopped laughing a bit. “I set up this homemade movie theater type thing  later on that night” Harry stated which made the crowd awe once again.  

“Did she know who you were?” James asked. “She knew of us because of her sisters being fans but it wasn’t something that made her think “Oh man I need to date this man because he’s in a boyband.” Harry laughed. “Did she meet the other lads speaking of boyband?” James questioned. “She did, she had met them here and there a few times before dating but once we were dating she invited all of them over for a dinner... “ Harry laughed  “I remember she made this HUGE dinner because she wanted to make sure everyone had something that they liked to eat and she made a bunch of desserts. She was so nervous that it actually made me nervous just watching her it was like a chicken running around with their head cut off.  By the time the boys got there she was covered head to toe in all different types of spices and flour.” Harry finished laughing. You could feel yourself chuckle recalling the event. “The boys went home with a lot of leftovers that night.” Harry said while James and the crowd laughed.  

“Anyways...So we were officially dating in June of 2015 and a year passed.  We had you know, moved in together basically spent every day together, so November of  2016 that I had asked her to marry me. You know I was feeling really good, I was casted in a movie and my album was nearly finished. I knew that I was going to be going on tour and I wanted her to come with me.” Harry said “I take it that she said yes?” James joked. “No, she waited another six months to give me an answer...” Harry joked back. “No, no she said yes right away. *coughs* so then 2017 my self titled album came out and dunkirk and that was going great y/n had come with me on tour for a bit, but y/n and I had decided to break up only a year after being engaged and it was pretty rough. We thought we were moving too fast, she was still trying to get a degree, I wasn’t really home and our schedules weren’t lining up. So I finished up the tour in 2018 for my self titled album, um  y/n and I had reconnected in september of that year after both of us had dated other people.  I spent that year writing Fine Line, so that’s what that album is about. But we both agreed that we still had feeling for one another and we wanted to pick up where we left things so we were re-engaged in 2018. Beginning of 2019 Fine line was released and we had also found out that we were expecting our first daughter. We both talked about getting married as soon  as we found out about our baby but after a many many long conversations we agreed that we didn’t need to be married before having Darcy but in 2020 we finally tied the knot, we actually waited until Darcy was able to walk so she could be our flower girl. Freddie and Bear both carried the rings down the aisle for us, it was great to have the guys at the wedding. Not long after we were married we found out that we were expecting Angelique.” Harry finished looking at you and smiled. “Wow, so you guys have been together for roughly 9 years, married, 4 albums out and now expecting your third child together. Would you had ever thought that you would be a father?” James asked. 

“Oh for sure, I’ve always loved children. While in One direction we had Lux around. All the boys and us are now fathers and it really is something, i wouldn’t change it for the world.” Harry answered. “Any more children after this one?” James asked as Harry looked to you and smirked. “ I think that is up to the misses. I mean, I’m 30 now, she’s 27 with a five and almost three year old and a new baby soon. we still have time if we would want any more children.” Harry finished off the statement. 

[autobot2001]

Unpopular Story  Ideas

I have some likely unpopular ideas with these three Transformers.

1. Sunstreaker

I know people write Sunstreaker falling in love with their OC, but he's portrayed as yandere and possessive. That's not how he'll be in Haven and future stories. Yes, I know; my story so I can write what I want. Though if it'll make people mad, do I dare? Anyway, I believe there's a logical reason behind Sunstreaker's decision to not demand Jamie be a submissive femme. If course, the story isn't going to start out good and will have good moments and rough moments. Sunstreaker's possessiveness isn't going away 100%

2. Knockout

I know at the end of Transformers Prime, Knockout could have been a sore loser and simply saying he's joining the winning team, but there's Shockwave, Soundwave, and Dreadwing who'd refuse to surrender, yet Knockout did easily. Unpopular opinion; I feel like he would have joined the Autobots if given the time. Shame they didn't do anything with this in RID ( 2015).

So I'll be writing a story, Forbidden Friendship, starting at the beginning of TFP with changes, chapters between chapters based on episodes, and after the last episode. Though I haven't figured out how many chapters I'll write after the show ends before starting the RiD (2015) story.

I was thinking about changing things and adding Crosshairs and Drift, but I'm not sure. Should this be unpopular opinion 3? 😆

3. Slipstream

She's a character with different stories depending on the series. A clone of Starscream, a con in TF Cyberverse ( but she died so...), and a member of “The Rise”   in the 2019 IDW comics, but it's been over a year since she's been in an issue & she was in 3 issues.

So....my likely SUPER UNPOPULAR idea.

👉🏼👈🏼

Slipstream meets Jamie and is beginning to realize being a con is scrap.

This is one of the ideas I'm really not sure about. Definitely don't want to write if people will be livid. Also, Knockout & Slipstream ship? Not sure... put that under maybe unless you also hate this idea.

The plan; This will have to be a story where a few members of The Rise are accidentally sent to another dimension, and accept being under Megatron in that dimension command. They are sent to attack some Autobots, and Jamie is with them. Further details pending

I’m not sure if Slipstream has the same design and just looks different in the comics, but I like how she looks in the comics. If that’s a different design then I’m going with that one. I couldn’t find a picture of IDW Slipstream without a background. If it’s the same, then easy for me to describe LOL.

4. If you read Transformers fanfiction, even if it's not mine, you've likely come across an OC X Transformer ship. They're always dating. One story I know of that goes further, but as of now, it's discontinued.

So...👉🏼👈🏼

I want to write that kind of story with my Drift X Jamie ship, but this would be an alternate universe to my fanfiction series for several reasons. There will be changes.

The funny thing is while I'm uncertain if people will like the idea, I've made this a series and already wrote 40 chapters for the first book. 😆

So, what do you think about these story ideas?

[45paperplates]

More about Olivia Rodrigo: On her Lyrics

Starting some time in 2018 or maybe a little earlier, Olivia Rodrigo began to play original songs, or more often pieces of songs, one verse and a chorus, apparently unfinished, for her followers on Instagram Live. She was about fifteen at the time, although one of the more complete songs (“Naive Girl”) can be confirmed to date back to 2014 or 2015, when she was twelve years old. I began to listen to these songs, all but one of which are available to hear conveniently compiled into a single twenty-five minute Youtube video, when my appetite for her music was only beginning to grow to its present size, after I had listened to the album on repeat for a good three or four days straight. They are the kind of thing only obsessive fans can really gush over, something akin to Bob Dylan’s early Minnesota Hotel Tape from 1961: badly recorded and casually created by a young artist who never intended them to be anything more than they are, a fun and easy way to show off their talent at a time when a wellspring of inspiration was already pouring forth with no better available outlet.  

These little pieces, however, establish finally for sure what a major label pop debut with other ambitions, no matter how special it may be, can only hint at, which is that something within her is driving a preternatural attention for detail, currently unmatched in it’s free naturalism, imaginative power, and consistency, only possibly consistent as a result of its being deeply possessed and long established, despite her youth. I have already touched on what I think that something may be in my first post about her. But whatever it is, it is immediately apparent in her performances here, an instinct that had already cemented deeply considered vocalization as her default, as a simple creative necessity, although a few of the earliest recordings have added even another layer of Broadway-like drama that has since been stripped away, I am guessing as a result of the nascent growth of some level of creative confidence.

Songwriting, then, is to some degree shown to be a third result of that engrained ability, after said holistic sincerity and its resultant vocal intuition, and yet a good chunk of the songs are lyrically composed as well with a just as holistically sincere and intuitive affect, presenting very well-understood conundrums, pared down to koan-like solids one would think by years of rumination. A few are, I would dare to say, more tightly constructed and figuratively multivalent than the songs on her album, many of which share their succinctness but not the violently prismatic irony that seems to be able to overpower the sincere creative drive that gave it life in its brightest inspired flashes. “drivers license” in fact excels by flattening that figurative prism into a simpler and more benign shape, allowing the casual listener to both easily understand and retain some wisp of hope in the end, even if it is only implied.

I would not be so stupid as to claim that Olivia intended these best-written of her unreleased bedroom productions to be metaphysical poems somehow toeing the line between classical balance and baroque terror in their meditation on the reciprocal quality of human sin. That would be silly, not because I don’t think a teenager is capable of such a thing (teenagers have, in fact, always been capable of making high art) but because these few songs focus on themes common to all of her songs: teenage insecurity, uncontrollable jealousy, and betrayal both social and self-inflicted. The depth of her imagery comes instead, I think, from an intuitive understanding of where the cultural meat of an issue lies, and when she writes a song her drive craves and so aims for power and gets rid of whatever there is that lacks it. Perhaps working with a co-writer somewhat slows that drive.  

“Pretender” is a song about being “fake” and how it works both outwardly and internally. It’s personification, the “pretender” of the title, is accused, envied, pitied, and ultimately, understood. It moves through four key lines.

Pointing her finger at this automaton, about whom she alone knows the truth, Olivia first wishes vindictively,

If only they knew what I knew.

But then, now envious of the figure, she prays,

I wish I knew what you knew.

Maybe as a result of these two contradictory desires, she is forced to admit with regret that the pretender can only be a fantastic image rather than a full person, a strawman created by her mind to both embody her sublimated desire and reflexively maintain her own superiority when it goes unfulfilled:

I created you to be plastic and deadly.

Finally, in a relentlessly logical conclusion, she must admit, as the construction falls to pieces, that this is obviously all about herself:

I created you to hide my own envy, ... Maybe I’m a pretender like you.

With her catalog in mind, the canonical interpretation is pretty obvious. The pretender is someone who is perfect and happy and Olivia is jealous of that. By the guilt left in the wake of her accusation, she realizes, indeed it should have been quite apparent from the start, that perhaps the person who seems to be happy is actually not happy. She perceives by juxtaposition that maybe others see her, Olivia, the same way, and in a sinking conclusion, perfect happiness, the other’s and hers as well, is shown to be only truly possible in image and never in the fullness of experience. It is a song about the difficult process of empathy and its bitter personal rewards. This interpretation prevails in Youtube comments, specifically in reference to her other songs about the jealousy encouraged by social media. “I’m happy for them, but then again, I’m not.” Maybe Olivia’s own fun and carefree public-facing presence is just as false?

The genius behind this songwriting, however, is that this other person does not need to exist for the song’s structure to function. This is by design, no doubt; she could very well be speaking only to herself the entire time. If Olivia is pretending too, as the final line suggests, then why could she not have been the pretender all along? Indeed, how else could Olivia be the only one who knows “the truth” about this figure in the first place? A personal struggle with identity, that is the meat of it all.

Her first wish for the pretender’s exposure is based in personal remorse, for lying to the world about who she really is. That her own social facade might be justly but violently forced open to expose the truth would be a painful but cathartic release. She makes her second wish as she recoils in the face of such an embarrassing prospect, hoping against reason that maybe it’s somehow all avoidable, that by abandoning any loyalty to the truth and to herself altogether she might in fact achieve the paradise that the pretender affects, soulless but free of the pain of having a soul too. Third is the realization that this is evil, that her desire is sinful, both grotesque and inhuman (“plastic”), and cruel (“deadly”). Fourth and last she can no longer pretend that her original finger-pointing isn't itself the result of this same worldly desire, as narcissistic an attempt at personal redemption as the outward facade is itself. Insecurity and jealousy, no matter how embarrassing or ugly, no more compose an understanding of identity than any more knowingly-constructed and performative self-image, and are just as self-serving in their own twisted way.

So in this song she is deconstructing herself, from outward composure to cryptic narcissism, shattering layer after layer in an alarmingly accelerating regression. Unfortunately, all that is left in the end is what she has done after what she is—performatively, emotionally, intuitively—has fallen away, specifically the intended result of the accusation she threw at the pretender to begin it all: once again, guilt. What else but guilt is exposed now to be the substance left of the human individual? For Olivia, deep down at least, guilt is always the together creator and eraser of human pleasure, the identity that is desire, and the only thing that fears the emptiness that would be left without it.

That a teenager could write such a penetratingly self-critical work is of course impressive, but the fact that guilt, desire, pleasure, happiness, identity, and fear are shown ultimately to be one and the same generative source is far more exciting. Here she exposes the potential versatility of her created and creative ability, that in maturity this raw power without singular definition could be manipulated into many other things completely new, things only Olivia and not I can imagine now.

[freefallingup13]

I posted 38,889 times in 2021

405 posts created (1%)

38484 posts reblogged (99%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 95.0 posts.

I added 397 tags in 2021

#whump - 128 posts

#jaren's puppy - 40 posts

#tumblr ads - 36 posts

#whump scenario - 30 posts

#whump inspiration - 29 posts

#answering asks - 29 posts

#jaren’s puppy - 28 posts

#whump drabble - 27 posts

#whump writing - 26 posts

#backseat commentary - 24 posts

Longest Tag: 140 characters

#imagine being so fucking blind to the fact that white people colonized like 3/4ths of the globe that you literally just do not remember that

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

I turned this baby

Into THIS BABY

Took me about 6-7 hours total thanks to the fact that I have fast-drying acrylic paint

Touched up the claws, painted over most of the body except the underside and tongue, and it’s all covered with sealer so I don’t have to worry about paint getting scraped off

I don’t have a name for him yet, but I have three more of the 2015 figures to paint and I’m looking forward to it!

60 notes • Posted 2021-05-10 20:22:36 GMT

#4

Cryolophosaurus, a dinosaur specimen found in Antarctica! The skull they found shows interesting crests above their eyes, making a distinct silhouette.

I wanted to put teal on it and turns out I associate teal feathers with those green macaws! I think they turned out pretty!

Base is by PhearOsaur on deviantart!

62 notes • Posted 2021-05-17 20:15:27 GMT

#3

Whump idea;

Getting a whumpee is somewhat of a game. You have to be resourceful, clever!

All the possible whumpees are released into a gated forest, and the whumpers go out after a time limit to hunt them down. Any whumpees that manage to evade capture after 24 hours is set free. Any whumpees that are caught now belong to the whumper that caught them.

There may be a fine to pay to get into this game as a whumper, or perhaps it’s a free game from a company to get rid of unsellable, “discount” whumpees.

Either way, the chase is on.

75 notes • Posted 2021-06-06 15:14:59 GMT

#2

Intimate whumper things; holding the whumpee roughly by the chin and kissing them deeply, then tossing them back towards the floor like they’re nothing-

111 notes • Posted 2021-04-15 19:03:30 GMT

#1

…… playful whumpers?

“Well, you’re just a cute little shit, aren’t ya?” *pinches Whumpee’s cheek*

~

*drops wrench* “WHOOPS! Aw, it’s got a little ding in it now. Oh well! Now you get PERSONALIZED marks, Whumpee!”

~

“I’m bored. Take a shot on that basketball hoop, the one on the door.”

*Whumpee takes a shot, misses, and gets hit with a rubber band on the arm* “OW!?”

“You missed. I want nothin’ but net, Whumpee.” *readies another rubber band*

128 notes • Posted 2021-06-25 00:41:16 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

[femalechibiblogger]

5 Underrated Cartoons That Were Cancelled Too Soon

1. Clone High

Clone High is set in a high school in the fictional town of Exclamation, USA, that is secretly being run as an elaborate military experiment orchestrated by a government office called the Secret Board of Shadowy Figures. The school is entirely populated by the clones of famous historical figures that have been created and raised with the intent of having their various strengths and abilities harnessed by the United States military. The principal of the high school, Cinnamon J. Scudworth, has his own plans for the clones, and secretly tries to undermine the wishes of the Board (Scudworth wants to use the clones to create a clone-themed amusement park, dubbed "Cloney Island", a decidedly less evil intention than that of the Board). He is assisted by his robot butler/vice principal/dehumidifier, Mr. Butlertron (a parody of Mr. Belvedere), who is programmed to call everyone "Wesley" and speak in two distinct intonations.

The main protagonists of Clone High are the clones of Abraham Lincoln (referred to as "Abe"), Joan of Arc, and Mahatma Gandhi. Much of the plot of the show revolves around the attempts of Abe to woo the vain and promiscuous clone of Cleopatra, while being oblivious to the fact that his friend Joan of Arc is attracted to him. Meanwhile, John F. Kennedy's clone (referred to as "JFK"), a macho, narcissistic womanizer, is also attempting to win over Cleopatra and has a long-standing rivalry with Abe. Gandhi acts in many of the episodes as the comic relief. Also on a few occasions, the characters that we see learn most of "Life's Lessons" the hard way.

Why it was cancelled: An article in Maxim Magazine depicting Mahatma Gandhi being beaten up by a muscular man sparked outrage in India. Clone High was caught in a crossfire when citizens in the country conducted internet searches on the Maxim article but also found out about the show's Gandhi character on MTV's website. This sparked an outrage in India over the show's depiction of Gandhi. On January 30, 2003, the 55th anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi's assassination, approximately 150 protesters (including members of parliament) gathered in New Delhi and vowed to fast in response to Clone High. Tom Freston, the head of Viacom (owner of MTV), was visiting the network's India branch and was "trapped in the building", according to Miller. In 2014, he recalled that protestors "basically threatened that they'd revoke MTV's broadcasting license in India if they didn't take the show off the air". MTV offered a quick apology, stating that "Clone High was created and intended for an American audience", and "we recognize and respect that various cultures may view this programming differently, and we regret any offense taken by the content in the show". Miller would later recall that executives at MTV enjoyed the show, and asked for the duo to pitch a second season without Gandhi. Lord and Miller's two potential versions of a second season included one that made no mention of Gandhi's absence, and another that revealed that the character was, in fact, a clone of actor Gary Coleman all along, and the show continued as normal. "We pitched that, and it went up to the top at Viacom again and it got a big no," he remembered.

2. The Awesomes

The show follows a group of superheroes who step in and replace the members of a legendary but disbanding superhero team. Under new leadership, The Awesomes attempt to put themselves back together in the face of intense media and government skepticism.

Why it was cancelled: On December 17, 2015, Hulu canceled The Awesomes after three seasons and did not renew it for a fourth season due to low ratings. The Awesomes was the first time Michael Tavera composed music for an adult animated series.

3. Invader Zim

Zim dreams of greatness. Unfortunately, though, he's hopelessly inept as a space invader. Desperate to be rid of the annoying Zim, his planet's leaders send him on a mission to infiltrate Earth, providing him with leftover, cobbled-together equipment. To their consternation, Zim succeeds in setting up a base on Earth and infiltrating human culture, posing as a human child as he plots the planet's downfall. Only Zim's archnemesis, Dib, recognizes that Zim is an alien, and of course, nobody believes Dib's claims.

Why it was cancelled: On the subject of why Invader Zim was cancelled, creator of the show Jhonen Vasquez said, "I could go on and on with variations of the most fantastic reasons for why the show was cancelled, but in the end, even I couldn't give you the whole and accurate truth for why the show got pulled," he wrote in a lengthy post on his website in 2010, nearly eight years after the show wrapped. "The most likely culprits are simply ratings and the sheer expense of the show, which was monstrously expensive at the time, especially when compared to more modern, flash-based savings fests."Nearly nine years later in 2019, Vasquez was interviewed by Syfy and said:

I never point to any one particular thing [as the reason for why Invader Zim was cancelled. The show could've come out at any point in history and I don't think it would ever really be appropriate... I think there's always horrible things happening in the world and genuine comedy comes from horrible things. At the time, it just happened to be things like Columbine and 9/11 and then people freak out because they don't want to offend anyone's sensibilities. It's a justified response to a certain extent; there's people who have been affected and they don't want to be reminded of this awful stuff… I just think that it did not jive well with Nickelodeon's image.

In an interview with Syfy in 2018, Richard Horvitz, the voice of Zim, was questioned about why the show got cancelled; he responded:

There's been a lot of rumors that have abounded for years about why Invader Zim was canceled. People think it's the Bloody GIR episode, because there's a quick subliminal shot of GIR all bloodied, but that’s not it at all. Nickelodeon knew about that shot and they didn't seem to mind. But what [the cancellation really was] is this plain simple fact: We had horrible ratings. There were two things that were going on in 2001. Our ratings were not doing well, our demographic at the time was not The Fairly OddParents demographic, which is what we premiered with, and we premiered to really, really good critical acclaim. But ratings-wise, the only real barometer [was the] target audience, 6 to 10 year olds, and I think that it was a little too much for that [demographic], and the parents also might have thought it was a little graphic for them. Our ratings never really got off the ground. One other thing that people often forget, is that the show premiered in March of 2001. By September of 2001, we had the horrible downing of the twin towers. Given the mood of the country at the time, I don't think people wanted to see shows that were about any kind of destruction or anything that had to do with someone trying to conquer the Earth.

4. The Oblongs

A clever comic parable of society's ills, "The Oblongs" depicts the warped world of a bizarre yet loving family of have-nots who live in a toxic valley and can't seem to beat the caste system of the beautiful people living high on the hill. The animated series is based on characters created by author Angus Oblong ("Creepy Susie and 13 Other Tragic Tales for Troubled Children").

Why it was cancelled: Could not find a specific answer. The WB network just decided to cancel it even though it had good ratings. 

5. Wander Over Yonder

The series follows Wander, a nomadic and overly-optimistic intergalactic traveller and his best friend and steed, Sylvia the Zbornak, as they travel from planet to planet helping people to have fun and live free, despite the continuing encroachment of Lord Hater, one of the most powerful villains in the galaxy, and his army of Watchdogs.

The show's first season is episodic; there are very few strong ties between episodes, and they can be viewed independently of each other. In the second season, however, a more sequential story is introduced; as Lord Dominator begins to conquer the galaxy, the show's tone becomes more serious and the focus moves from stopping the rather incompetent Lord Hater to stopping the extremely competent Lord Dominator. As a result, the episodes are more closely linked and there are several developments in the overarching plot.

Why it was cancelled: The creators of the show were not given a specific reason, even though they had plans for a third season.

[unexpectedreylo]

Yes, It’s Been Half A Decade Since TFA Was Released

Five years already?  Geez!

If you’ve been following my humble Tumblr blog since the beginning, you’ll know I was not truly a Reylo until I saw TLJ.  Before then, I was dealing with a movie that left me with a lot of mixed feelings.  Why?  I missed George Lucas for one thing.  He has an indelible style that few can match and few really cared about that universe and its characters as much as he did.  I was very unhappy to hear a month before TFA’s release that Disney tossed out his story and came up with something he didn’t really like very much (as later confirmed in Bob Iger’s memoir).  As a long-suffering prequels fan I didn’t like either the vaguely anti-prequel tone the pre-release hype took.  Whatever you do in life, don’t disrespect the man who created the GFFA. 

The post-release hype probably annoyed me even more.  Remember the doofuses screeching on t.v. that it was the best SW movie since TESB?  LOL.  (No, that would be ROTS and the only thing that came close since was TLJ.)  I hated that a movie I felt was flawed not only got passes from the media that really trashed Lucas and everybody who worked on the prequels, but also got lavish Best 10 lists and award nominations.  I was one bitter chickie for a while and later got a good laugh out of the backlash.

I thought it would be funny to post what I thought at the time, with added commentary:

Oh yes, the movie. My mother called it…it’s good, we all enjoyed it and were entertained, but Lucas’s touch is definitely missing. The romantic epic sweep of Eps I-VI, the goofy and whimsical touches, the feeling of being immersed in another galaxy, and Lucas’s gift for aesthetics aren’t there. The visuals don’t have that beauty and some of it is kinda ugly. The creature designs just aren’t as good. It’s not the kind of movie you watch dozens of times to catch little things. Even John Williams doesn’t have a knockout track like “Duel of the Fates” or “The Imperial March.” But it’s hard to think of how this was ever going to live up to any of it any more than I’d expect Suzanne Collins to write a Narnia book as good as C.S. Lewis. We lost those things when we lost Lucas.

I like the visuals a lot more now but TLJ’s cinematography rules the ST.  Still feel the same about creature design; I see better aliens and creatures on The Mandalorian.  One weird thing about the ST is how the filmmakers seemed to have avoided putting in anything at all that we’ve seen before.  No Jawas, no Togrutas, no Twi’leks, no Zabraks, no Quarren, etc.. Just Chewbacca and Admiral Ackbar.

The music didn't leave much an impression on me at the time but now I love “Rey’s Theme,” “Kylo Ren’s Theme,” and “March of the Resistance.”

As long as we’re on that note, I’ll get to the film’s flaws first. The movie has a lot of snappy, arch, and funny dialogue but you can tell the script was cranked out in a hurry. It lacks the careful structure of its predecessors and cribs a little too much from ANH. Poe disappears and you are led to believe he’s dead then he suddenly shows up healthy and hale with no explanation. Abrams’s first Star Trek film was riddled with unbelievable coincidences and unfortunately this movie has some of those too, such as when Han and Chewie just happen upon the Falcon in space. The film does very little to set up what’s going on and why, such as why the hell is the Republic fighting the same a-holes after all of these years. Abrams prefers instead to keep the action going instead of doing much exposition, which is pretty much what he did with the Trek films. Those little moments in Lucas’s Star Wars films don’t happen much here. Things must always be occurring, which dumps all of the responsibility for character development and world building on Rian Johnson and Colin Trevorrow. I have no idea why they decided to be all teasy-weasy with who Rey’s parents are instead of just telling us. (I suspect Luke is her father.)

LOL!   I guess the adoption by proxy thing at the very end of TROS proved me right or...did it?  Yes, my first assumption after seeing TFA was that Rey and Kylo Ren were cousins.

As for the rest of it, I still feel the same.  Rushed script, borrows too much from ANH, precious few explanations/set-up, not as good structure but still full of humor.

BB-8 is a charmer, Finn and Rey (who are so going to hook up) HA!  But remember I thought Rey and Kylo were cousins! have some charm and potential growth as characters, and it was great seeing our old crew again even if not under ideal circumstances. (Personally I would’ve preferred NOT to have broken up Han and Leia.) Hux had some mustache-twirling moments and Abrams was at least smart enough not to kill off him, Ren, or Snoke just yet. Finn and Poe have a good rapport (maybe they’re going to hook up).

Stormpilot definitely pinged the slash-dar.  It was completely unsurprising to find fans shipping them.

Abrams seemed to have avoided the mistake James Cameron made in “Avatar” when he killed off his most threatening villain while planning sequels. As you might have guessed, I was really shocked at Snoke’s death in TLJ.  I wasn’t expecting that until IX.  I was also really shocked at the casual, quick-get-rid-of-him ways both Hux and Ben were killed off in TROS.

The most compelling aspect of TFA for me was the Skywalker family drama, which made me wish it was more up front rather than a subplot. Ben Solo/Kylo Ren is a conflicted guy with a huge chip on his shoulder and it makes you wonder exactly what happened to him because I think he may have mental issues. Leia knows there’s still good in him but can a guy who commits patricide be saved? (RIP Han…I so knew this would happen because I figure it was the only way Ford would’ve done another film). Can his cousin/half-sister or whatever Rey save him? Would she want to? With Luke back in the picture and Artoo activated again, what will happen next? Even though they split up Han and Leia I liked the banter between them; it’s sad because they clearly still loved each other.

This is still true for me.  A few days after posting this it struck me just how nihilistic TFA was because I found Han and Leia’s split unnecessary (had Han gone out for Chinese food or on a mission for the Resistance instead of just being a loser smuggler, it wouldn’t have changed anything that happened in the film) and what I thought was Kylo’s certain fate to be a narrative bummer.  TLJ made me think they weren’t going on that direction only to be proven right in TROS (sadly).

I’ll dispense with the stupid Snoke is Plageuis theory and my dad wondering if Finn was Mace Windu’s lost son or something, though I’ll give him half a point for Finn turning out to be Force-sensitive after all.

I don’t know why people have said this takes them back to the ’70s because the film really is a 2015 movie made for an audience reared largely on the MCU, YA flicks, and other staples of contemporary geek culture. It is what it is and we aren’t going to get back the films of George Lucas and his influence. TFA might not be an awesome Star Wars movie but it is at least a good sci-fi action flick.

I still stand by most of this.  Time and TLJ made TFA a better movie in my eyes.

[reallifesultanas]

What brought Suleyman I to Hungary in 1566? How did he die? What caused his death and how they preserved his body?

This post is a translation of this article: https://24.hu/tudomany/2020/09/12/szulejman-hurrem-turbe-szigetvar/?fbclid=IwAR2uhezx-9l3UutOZEW5j7VCTjYpNgcagNjx0W7xtJ3bzDCdetfvFScTDqI

The joint project of the University of Pécs (PTE) and ELKH BTK ends in Szigetvár with a Saturday presentation of two summary study volumes and the film Life in the Shadow of the Turb. The main result of the eight-year, multidisciplinary work carried out in wide-ranging domestic and international cooperation was the discovery in December 2015 of Sultan Suleiman's tomb in Szigetvár, ie the tomb (türbe) erected above the place of his death. Suleiman I (the Great) is one of the greatest figures in universal history, known worldwide, and of the 36 Ottoman sultans, he is surrounded by the greatest reverence in modern-day Turkey.

The announcement was a world sensation, and by no means only in professional circles: the international “lay” press also wrote for weeks about Szigetvár and the discovery of the research group.

Although this was the main goal of the “Suleiman Research Group,” looking back from today, it still seems to be just the initial, first step. Over the course of eight years, almost the entire complex, which included the türbe and was surrounded by a complex, was reconstructed, the settlement organized around it - unique in the area of Turkish occupation - was discovered and, they outlined the destruction of Turbék (hungarian town), the death of Suleiman, the fate of his corpse.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjewdiFTdXk

Needless to say, the results have been the subject of numerous books and scientific publications, and about four-fifths of the area is yet to be explored. The continuation is almost certain, and we asked Dr. Norbert Pap, Professor of Historical Geography of the University of Pécs, the head of the research to look back for more interesting details.

Building complex above the tomb

The challenge in 2012 began with finding exactly where the türbe was set up at the site of Suleiman’s death stood. And this could decide a more than 100-year-old debate. The most serious theory put the türbe in place of the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Turbék or Turbékpuszta, as proclaimed by a sign on the wall of the church, while another in the area of today's Hungarian-Turkish Friendship Park. After archival research and the search of the area with modern geophysical tools, the remains of the buildings facing Mecca were finally located underground on the outskirts of Szigetvár, deviating to the right from road 67, near the dirt road to Turbék and Zsibót.

"Through targeted research, we first excavated the turbe itself, then the mosque, found the dervish lodge, the barracks, and the northern plank wall. The excavations took place on an area of about half a hectare" - Norbert Pap tells 24.hu.

The site of the türbe lies in a hill where the Sultan's military camp stood during the siege of the castle in 1566. In the center of the camp was Suleiman's tent, or rather a tent palace - more than 1,500 square meters - where he was temporarily buried after his death, then the türbe erected above from here surrounded by the other elements of the complex in a rectangular fortress wall.

The türbe became ready by 1576-77, but it was later built more (more parts of the complex) and beautified. It became an important and busy place of pilgrimage. For example Kara Mustafa also went there to draw strength at the head of his 4,000 horsemen before he embarked on the siege of Vienna in 1683.

The holiest place

In this capacity, the complex was really attractive to Muslim craftsmen, tradesmen, hopers for a better life. This is how from the travellers from Balkan, from the families of soldiers, the city of Turbek developed. Later, a Christian population also arrived - Croatian Catholics - but they settled separately, on the outskirts of the city, the civil settlements could only be identified in 2019. Further research will still have plenty to do: mosques, cemeteries, warehouses, Christian houses of worship, and the ruins of many residential houses may still be hidden by the earth.

Moreover, based on direct and indirect evidence, the professor believes there may be one more, but there may even be two türbes in the area, namely the mausoleums of Muslim martyrs. Sources suggest that the graves of Sheikh Kasim, a “holy life” who died during the siege of Szigetvár in 1566, and the first chief of order of the Turbék dervishes, Sheikh Ali Dede Bosznavi, who also died in 1598 during a campaign.

It is also worth mentioning here that although the body of the great sultan was laid to rest in Istanbul in 1566 according to its order and manner, his “empty” monument in Szigetvár, where he rested for only 42 days, was still revered in the Muslim world. The reason for this is that here, in this place, he suffered martyrdom, Suleiman became a sheikh, that is, a martyr of the faith.

Source of the picture: original article. Work of Nirbert Pap and Máté Kitancs

A thorough exploration of the city can hide unparalleled information for several disciplines. In the words of Norbert Pap, it is an “unparalleled, unique laboratory”, for it is the only known urban settlement of occupation that the Ottomans did not occupy and simply moved in there, but created themselves according to their own tastes and needs. Environmental history research has also been carried out so far, which already outlines the flora of the area reflecting the eastern influences, and we get a picture of the fauna that prevailed 450 years ago, which refers to the characteristics of a cooler climatic period.

The depressed Sultan

Let's continue with Suleiman the Great himself. The oft-repeated question about him is: at the age of 72, tormented by several diseases, why did he personally lead the army? Both external and internal factors contributed to this, and it must also be borne in mind that, although he was anxious, he was not at all as weak and fallen as posterity holds him in the last months of his life. It is true that he often carried himself on a chariot, but he did part of the journey on horseback, which suggests that he could not have had such a bad physique at the beginning of the campaign.

After the death of Hürrem, Suleiman became depressed, plus his family life was not in the slightest order: one of his sons was even executed, the other, the heir to the throne, was deeper and deeper in alcoholism. So with the years Suleyman turned more and more towards spirituality, the expert explains. He adds that the spiritual leader of the sultan, Sheikh Núreddínzáde Muszliheddín, had a great influence on him, he also played a role in convincing the ruler to personally lead a campaign against the unbelievers. He may have tried to get rid of gloom as well, but he was mostly trying to ease the growing internal tensions of the empire.

Constant conquest was a fundamental expectation from Suleiman, who connected vast territories to his empire and led 13 triumphant campaigns during his reign. By 1566, he had been on his throne for 46 years now — more than the average length of human life at the time — and the last years had been spent in peace, so the subjects grumbled. There were worrying news from the outside as well. In the eastern half of the Carpathian Basin, the Habsburg military invasions of the territories ruled by the Transylvanian prince John Sigismund threatened to lose the vassal principality. In the west, the raiding troops of Miklós Zrínyi wandered from Szigetvár to the Sava, endangering the safety of the Danube military road. Together, these projected the loss of the Hungarian conquests.

Thus, in a situation of domestic and foreign policy, military and spiritual crisis, the ruler had to prove that he still had to demonstrate a vigorous, powerful leader.

The campaign of 1566 was successful in terms of its goals, two of the three most important Hungarian border castles, Gyula and Szigetvár (Eger was the third), were awarded the werewolf flag, the vassal status of Transylvania was secured and the conquest was consolidated. However, Suleiman no longer returned home, he died in the last hours of the siege, at dawn from 6 to 7 September, around one or two o'clock in the morning.

He loved unhealthy food and had liver disease

It was disputed what diseases and organ problems led to his death in addition to his age, and this could not be solved completely. According to Professor Pap, several factors may have contributed, in addition to physical exhaustion, we know that he had severe gout, had problems with his liver, and could not benefit from his “greed”: He also consumed an astonishing amount of sweets from Ragusa during the campaign. In addition, disentery raged in the camp, which may have reached the Sultan also.

However, progress has been made during the research in what happened to his body after his death. For several reasons, it was very important that its deterioration and decomposition be postponed as long as possible, but at the same time classical mummification is forbidden by Islam. Since it is not known from any other sultan that his corpse should have been preserved, it has not been clear for some time what practice the Ottomans followed.

In the case of four sultans, who were left buried for a relatively long time, the researchers looked at how they treated their bodies and drew conclusions from them. There are several ideas about “treating” Suleiman’s body: for example, that they were wrapped in cloth, which was then smeared with honey and tar, sprinkled with strong perfumes to cover up the deterioration, but these ideas were shattered by the analysis of the book now published: that couldn’t be enough.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXKbSDtHY5k

They had to keep his body in good condition

Based on an examination of the soil and climatic conditions, the possibility of temporarily preserving it with ice, which had worked for a short time for two other sultans, could not be attempted. In the soil under the sultan's tent, at a depth of two meters, the temperature was 12-14 degrees. In the case of a corpse buried for 42 days, any ice (if any) placed with it meant nothing because it would have melted very quickly. However, it was not normally possible to transport unobtrusively - without preservative treatment - and this was key. On October 24, that is, well over six weeks after his death, he was shown in front of Selim II, Suleiman's soldiers, his successor, and the leaders of the army in Belgrade.

“It was like a play, but a very essential act: Selim was surrounded here, taking over the ruling power from his dead father, before the‘ eyewitnesses ’of the masses. We believe that Suleiman's face must have been recognizable, and perhaps even dignified. Later, in Istanbul, 83 days after his death, after a transport of 1,270 kilometers, he was made public again before the final burial, ” - explains Norbert Pap.

The expectations for the condition of the corpse were obviously similar: the sight had to be bearable.

A forensic expert was involved in the research to clarify: could the use of available tar, honey, or other materials mentioned in the sources have been sufficient for preservation? The expert found that if they had not been treated with the right method and expertise and the internal organs had not been removed, the corpse would have arrived in Belgrade in a horrorist state, unrecognizable, practically liquefied.

The body was preserved by the Egyptian method

What could have happened? There are several indications that they used a method has been used in Egypt since ancient times. In doing so, the internal organs of the deceased are removed, and bags filled with salt are put in their place: in this case, it is typical to leave it for 40 days, the salt absorbs most of the moisture, significantly slowing down the deterioration and further decomposition. At a later stage, the body is filled with dry sawdust and sewn together.

We know from written sources that Suleiman was “prepared” in an unspecified way at the dawn of the seventh of September, then placed in a coffin and buried in a pit dug in the tent palace. Forty-two days later, he was picked up from there, “treated” again, and sent on his way to Belgrade. The remaining documents silently listen to the exact content of interventions that are not accepted in the Islamic world, but dictated by real political necessity. At the same time, the method used in the wake of political crisis management is very similar to the above method used in the Eastern world for millennia. It is not an incidental circumstance to know that Suleiman's body was treated by an accompanying doctor, a member of the old Egyptian medical dynasty, Ibn-i-Kajuni - so he had the necessary expertise.

Based on this, it can be assumed that the legend spoken in the broadest terms that the internal organs of the sultan were buried locally has a basis in reality. During the excavation, experts took a plentiful sample of land from the cavity dug into the temporary tomb and its surroundings, which is located right in the middle of the dungeon, two meters deep and two meters long - the chest had just fit. If human DNA is found in the samples, research could gain new momentum.

[fy-skz]

[TRANS] Beat Maker Series : Stray Kids Bang Chan

Your bag looks like a bulletproof bag. It’s my work bag. I thought it’d be good for working while moving around, so I bought it. My notebook, hubs, license, mini keyboard, charger, USB… I put in things that I must have when working on tracks. People say it’s like a weapon, so they call it the ‘007 bag’. I think they’re right? To Bang Chan, it’s a weapon, is it not? Ah, that’s right. It’s my weapon. If I carry this around, even on days that I’m really tired I can think of ideas. Amazingly. If there’s one thing you must bring besides you ‘007 bag’ when working on songs? A drink or jellies, chocolate. I have to eat something sweet while working to feel like my brain is working. I don’t drink coffee. I’m the type to avoid caffeine or carbonated drinks. Didn’t you say before that you like working during the night so you work on tracks with the lights off? Nowadays you must be constantly working regardless of the time. That’s right. Then, when I worked on tracks the atmosphere was really important. Nowadays I work a lot in planes. Since there’s not much to do inside the plane. I even work in the waiting rooms. Recently, there’s a track I worked on with Changbin and Seungmin, it’s a track I made in the waiting room on the day Stray Kids stood on stage on for the first time. Almost all the tracks on Stray Kids’ albums are made by the group’s internal producing unit ‘3RACHA’, made up of Bang Chan, Changbin, and HAN. I’m curious about 3RACHA’s collaboration method. It differs per song. There are times where we put the lyrics HAN wrote on top of Changbin’s melody… we work together with the most appropriate method for each track. Overall there’s lots of times when I take the role of organizing and arranging. I do almost all of the track work. Changbin and HAN and my colors and criteria are each a little different so when we work together it’s fun.

“The world of music if very deep and wide, so the feeling of excitement is very big. Since there’s so much that I’ve yet to try. I still get excited when I work on songs.”

Stray Kids’ new single ‘Double Knot’, released this past October 10th, is also 3RACHA’s track. It’s extremely powerful. What kind of song did you want to make? ‘Double Knot’ is a track overflowing with the fighting spirit of double-knotting one’s shoelaces and being ready to go anywhere. It has a mix of powerful genres like electronic, hip hop, etc. We worked together with the composer DalasK in America. It’s a song that runs straight in C minor, but I think we were able to capture the sound and feeling that I wanted so I’m happy with it. For ‘Double Knot’, I wanted to go with C minor from the start. When I played the chord and melody that I first thought of on the keyboard, it was C minor. Compared to D minor and A minor, it’s a bit more comfortable to sing. While making ‘Double Knot’, what were the keywords you thought of? I thought about the performance. The first thought was that I wished the performance would be really showy. I also wanted to express a showy and intense performance with the track. I especially paid attention to the impact during the drop. For some beats I completely got rid of all other sound and just focused on one instrument. ‘Bbam!’ ‘Bbam!’ Like this. I put emphasis and priority on the performance, formation, a strong and intense feel, and fighting spirit, etc. The fighting spirit was important. I wanted to make a song with fighting spirit. Generally, how you go about working on tracks? Do you have a specific method? It’s different depending on the circumstance. There are times when I start with the drums and layer sounds, and there are times when I play a few chords and then put chords that suit them on top. Do you tend to take a lot of time when working? It’s different every time, but sometimes I get caught up on one thing and finish within 2 hours. Of course, there are times when it takes a week. The song ‘Maze of Memories’ was like that. I wrote the rap really quickly. It was finished within an hour. The song ‘Rock’ on our debut album was like that as well. It took around that long. There are tracks that took a week to make but were still thrown out as well. When did you start really working on making tracks? I think it was around 2015. I already knew how to play piano and guitar, and around then I tried making sounds with Logic, but while Logic was comfortable it wasn’t suitable to really start working with. I put aside making tracks for a but and then around 1 year after I tried again with Cubase and it was definitely better. Now it’s been around 3~4 years since I’ve worked on tracks. During that time I’ve make around 7 albums. While release 7 albums, you’ve continuously been producing results, don’t you feel any creative strain? Occasionally there are moments, but the world of music is quite deep and wide so the feeling of excitement is bigger. Since there’s still so much I’ve yet to try. I still get excited when I work on songs. Ever since Stray Kids debuted you’ve continuously been both a player and a producer at the same time. From the perspective of someone doing both roles, I would think your way of looking at things must be different from someone who immerses themselves in just one. Maybe that’s why, but I think I’ve always been the middle-man. If there’s anything the trainees wanted to tell the company, it would always be that I would relay it in their stead. I liked it. I’m the type to like having responsibility, so to me, that role fit me well. I also have tendency to want to please everyone, I don’t know if that’s a positive attribute but… I have yet to experience any sickness from this kind of personality, since I’m living healthily, I’m thinking of continuing to run on like this. Haha. Between an artist and a careerman, what kind of person do you think yourself closer to? I don’t think I’m either. I’m just a person who wants to say something through music. A person who wants to approach people with music. To fans, Stray Kids members, and to people who listen to my music, if I can give a good influence and energy to them then that is enough. Those moments are happy and fun enough, that whether I am a careerman or an artist it doesn’t matter at all.

Nowadays, what do you want to say with your music? What theme have you become immersed in? The topic I want to handle is always very diverse. But in the end, I tend to think of the people who listen when I make music. When talking to the 3RACHA friends while making songs, we tend to go in that direction. Most recently, to talk about a personal idea, I want to make a song with a calm melody about the topic ‘I don’t like outside the blanket.’ Fitting for the cold winter, I hope it can be a song that contains the coziness of being under the blankets. Because I think there would be a lot of people who would relate. This is an idea I had while showering a while ago, but I only thought about it. I haven’t started it yet. Good melodies or good lyrics always come to me in the shower. Maybe that’s because that’s when you’re most comfortable, when you are most relaxed? That must be it. Because it’s when I don’t think of anything else. Since it’s comfortable.

“While working on songs the are times when I’m unsure, The words my members say from beside me become an immense help.”

If there’s a music producer you like in particular, who would it be? Hip hop producer Metro Boomin. And Drake and Travis Scott. There was a time whe I really liked Drake. I became interested in making songs after watching Drake’s engineer Noah Shebib work with sounds. I raised my dream thinking that it’d be fun to work together with those people later. I still look up to Metro Boomin, Drake, and Noah Shebib. Where do you get the energy to do good work? There are two. One is fans’ feedback. If they felt good through Stray Kids’ music, or when I hear they gained hope, I come to make the resolution that ‘I really must keep doing this’. Another one is when Changbin and HAN say, “Huh, hyung. This track is good.” From that one phrase a lot of strength flows forth. While working on songs there are times when I’m unsure, the words my members say from beside me become an immense help. I love receiving feedback from Stray Kids the most. As both a producer and player, what is the one point you worry about the most? Until now, with the series and the series we’ve talked a lot about our story, but from now on I kind of want to show a song or performance with a bit of a different direction. I am thinking a lot about a new way to show the genre that is ‘Stray Kids’ well. When you define the genre of Stray Kids, what is one word that must be included? Energy. Musically, or on the aspect of the group’s identity, ‘energy’ is the word that defines us. If there’s an artist that stimulates Bang Chan the most nowadays? People might not know them very well, but the kids called Stray Kids are quite good.

Source: ARENA KOREA Translation: Candace @ FY!SKZ ; take out with full credit