#anyhoo 10/10 would participate again :)

[yaboieif]

YOOOOOOOO SO MUCH COOL ART YALL ARE TALENTED ASF

these were mine + the oli snail

Finished picture of the Whiteboard, plus zoomed in screenies under the cut (theres a LOT)!!!!! Thank you all so much for participating, it was a blast! I'll have to do it again soon! There's unfortunately too much to be able to properly credit, but feel free to claim whatever drawings you did!

Part 1!

[apexart-journal]

Tasha Dougé, Day 12

Today started bright and early with a Landmark Commission Public Hearing.  There were 10 locations on the agenda.  The first one was the Kimlau War Memorial.  The minute I heard the name, I was like I know that memorial.  It brought me right back to Day 4.  I got to hear more history about the memorial, but it was nice to hear people talk about the impact the memorial has on them.  I heard individual stories from people reflecting on how their families migrated to the States for the American Dream, while others shared how representation matters to them and how they show up in community.  If was clear that the  memorial’s presence impacts them and adds immense value to the community.  Now my memory of the that area is infused with their stories.  The Landmark Commission will convene again on June 15th to make a decision.  I hope it gets approved. 

Next, I was supposed to head over to the Park Slope Center for Successful Aging.  NYCares partners up with them to deliver meals to seniors.  I called to let them know I was running late, but I was informed that they already distributed all the food and didn’t need any more volunteers.  Dang that was quick.  I asked what was their schedule for delivering food.  I was told Tuesdays and Thursday.  I said thanks.  In my mind, I made a mental note to let Abbie know what happened and try to get this back on my schedule.  Sad I missed it, but the day still had much to offer me.  Next stop, Prospect Park.

I’ve been to Prospect Park a few times, but had no idea how nice the park was.  If I was going to an event, that was exactly what I did.  I would beeline my way to the event’s location, not paying any true attention to my surroundings.  Nor did I think to look up what was actually in the park.  So my trip today was a scavenger hunt to find the Camperdown Elm (tree) and the Quaker cemetery, all while staying open to whatever else I discovered.  Early on in my walk to these places, I walked under this gorgeous underpass.  I couldn’t help myself, I just had to take a pic.  I didn’t think it was possible, but I think walking through it was some sort of time travel because I look even younger.  Forty where? (Not in my face, but in my knees. lol)  The Camperdown Elm was located a few steps away from the underpass.  It looks like something out of a fairytale.  It gave me Chronicles of Narnia vibes.  Mr. Tumnus, are you there?  If you get the reference, know that I love you.  Anyhoo, the Camperdown Elm is special because its branches grow parallel to the ground.  Its branches are really do majestic.  I was definitely getting Ferngully vibes. (I love that movie! Avatar is like the people version to me.)  It was almost cut down, but through the efforts of an artist/poet, Marianne Moore, the elm was saved.  The poem she wrote about the tree is renowned.  Not to far from the elm is the boathouse. There was a bride getting professional pictures taken and I could see why.  Absolutely gorgeous!  I could have stayed by the water for much longer than I did.  I watched the momma swan and her babies, and the turtles sunbathing on a log further out.  The moment was serene and tranquil and much more.  Abbie called me back and we caught up.  We sorted everything out with my schedule for the remainder of my time.  Thursday, I would go deliver food to the seniors and Abbie said finally get to kayaking.  I mentioned since I had a gap in my schedule and the weather was clear, I would try today.  She said go for it.  I continued on my walk until I got to the Quaker cemetery.  It’s closed to the public and it made think that maybe they was silence in death as well.  Doesn’t look like there will be any music clubs happening here.  En route back to the train station, I passed by the boathouse again and you won’t believe what I saw.  A Black-crowned Night Heron!!!  You already know that I took a picture.  I immediately thought about Marlys and how she is going to love hearing about this.  For me to see this bird again (in a different park), what were the odds?  I just had to look up the symbolism of the heron.  Here are some clips of what I found:

  “Heron symbolism is important because the heron meaning refers to tranquility and stillness for us humans. We need to understand these two elements well if we wish to recognize the opportunities in life... Primarily, the bird is a symbol of beauty because it prospers and flourishes in the majestic realm where the land and shore dance in a symphony. The result is a wondrous spectacle. The marriage of the two elegant energies of water and land is included in the meaning of herons. The heron shows us the abundance of life in the sea, for when we see the peace, contentment, and tranquility that the heron finds at the edge of the waters, we are assured of the plethora of life present inside the waters.”

The link says so much more that resonates with this moment, where I am in my life and what the future holds for me.  God, Universe, Ancestors, Lwas and other deities, I hear you and I receive it.  Thank you Prospect Park.  Now I really want to go to the water.  Kayaking here I come.  Unfortunately, my excitement to be on the water was met with a closed gate.  How sway?  No rain and still no kayaking.  At least, I tried.  It was disappointing for sure.  I’ve kayaked on the Hudson before, but it was so long ago.  I was really looking forward to doing again.  The Sunset Mediation was exactly what I needed to settle this day.

Socrates is my park homie.  My sister actually moved to Astoria about 4 years ago.  Once she got her dog, we frequented the park more often.  However, never have I ever participated in mediation in the park.  There was a decent size group in the park.  As per the name, the sun was setting and that meant the temperature was dropping.  The facilitator had a mic, but they were barely audible.  To be honest, it didn’t matter because we were there to be still and mediate.  The coolness of the grass sent electricity through my body and then, there was calm.  My calm did get interrupted with some of the city sounds.  Yet, after the city listening exercise, I was able to incorporate some, not all, of the sounds into my mediation.  The session ends at the same time as the park, so with about 20 mins remaining, the park attendant started to announce that the park was closing soon.  He did so again 10 minutes later.  With the remaining time, the facilitator asked that we turn to our neighbors and chat for a bit through intros and reflections on how we went.  The folks next to me paired off really quickly, but two women called me over to join them.  There names were Morgan and Jenna.  They were nice folks from the neighborhood.  We shared what brought us to meditation.  I told about the residency, but not my art.  lol.  It was a good mini convo.  We left each other saying that we may see each other again.  Calm and coldish, I headed on my way and that was the end of my day.  

[ziggystardust8675]

AN: Howdy, this is probably gonna be kinda short because I really wanted to write something but I have zero ideas... Anyhoo I know you're probably sick of hearing about quarantine and Corona so I'm gonna write a cute fluff fic away from my usual angst. Who better to be quarantining with than Loki right? rIgHt?! Anyhoo, hope you enjoy and a comment always brightens my day :)

Ahhhh yes, quarantine, the time where everyone feels disgusting and time doesn't exist. You better like the person you're quarantined with, because you're gonna be trapped with them for god knows how long. Who better to be quarantined with than Loki? He's fit, sexy, a gentleman, as well as incredibly whiny. Ahhh, what a time to be alive.

You had no idea how many days you've been in quarantine, as you lost track awhile ago. The boredom was starting to get to you, all the days were blending together, making having a good mental state hard. This is where the idea of a self care day came in, and of course you were gonna make Loki participate. Despite the illusion he put up, you knew the quarantine was getting to him too.

Deciding that a self care day was the perfect idea, you started to make a list of things to do with what you had. You got everything ready to go, now there's only one thing left to do, and it might be the hardest yet. Get Loki on board with this whole thing.

Setting down your list, you got up from the couch and went on an adventure to find Loki. You decided to check the bedroom first because according to Loki, it's the only room with a lock that isn't the bathroom or the front door. Seeing that the bedroom door was wide open, you did a quick scan before deciding he wasn't in there. Next place to check was the small reading nook you guys had. Quickly walking to where the reading nook was, you saw Loki lounging on the couch you put in there, reading a decently sized book.

You took a few moments to admire the way he looked. He was so peaceful sitting there without a care in the world, doing something he loved. You took a moment to see how his wavy black hair was framing his perfect face. Moving down to his built torso and down to his long legs that-

"Are you going to stare at me all day? It's rude you know?" Loki said without even looking up from his book. You felt heat go to your face and quickly looked to the ground, embarrassed by being caught.

Clearing your throat, you looked anywhere but Loki's stunning eyes. After taking a few seconds to collect your thoughts and remembering why you were here in the first place, you decided to finally speak,

"I, uhm, I was just wondering if you were busy or not?" Loki finally looked up at you and being the smart-ass he is replied with,

"Darling, we're stuck at home, what could I possibly have going on?" You just gave him a small glare and he just smiled innocently back at you.

With that you decided to finally get to the point of why you were here.

"Okay, so I had an idea, since we've been at home for so long and it's taking a tole on us, I thought we could have a self care day, or a spa day if you will." Finishing off your sentence, you decide to add a sweet smile for effect. After a few seconds of silence, Loki gave you a short,

"No." And went back to his book. Groaning, you rolled your eyes and tried to again,

"Pleeeeeeease Loki? Come on, you'll look fabulous!" Hearing that Loki immediately perked up and said,

"...I'm listening."

You showed Loki the list you made and decided you guys would have a bath first. Loki was in charge of getting comfy clothes and fluffy towels for when you get out. Your job was to actually set up the bath it’s self. You filled the bath with warm water and bath salts, then you went to the closet and grabbed some nice candles and a lighter.

When everything was set up, Loki came in with the pjs and towels nicely folded. Then you noticed bathtub was just about full, so you turned it off and started to undress. When you had your shirt off you started to undo your pants, but you noticed that Loki wasn’t getting undressed and he was just watching you.

“Loki, don’t be a creep.” Loki just smirked at you and started to pull his shirt off while saying,

“You know dear, if you wanted me naked so bad you could have just asked.”

“Loki...no.”

Loki got in first, and you sat so you were in between his legs and your back was against his chest. You guys sat there for awhile, relaxing and enjoying each other’s company, despite Loki’s occasional suggestive comment, and getting clean of course. By the time you both were all pruny, you guy’s got out, dried off, and put your comfy clothes on, ready for the next thing on the list.

The next thing to do was make tea, do face masks, put on calm music and read. You put Loki in charge of making tea since he claimed he was the master of it. You went to get the stuff for face masks, and put calm music on your record player. Next was books, so you went back to the reading nook to retrieve Loki’s book from earlier, and you grabbed your favorite book off of one of the many shelves.

By the time you walked back with both books, the tea was done and Loki was carrying them into the living room where you were at. He set them down on the coffee table, and you set the books down next to them. Now all you had to do was apply the face masks. You read the instructions and applied Loki’s first before doing your own. When your masks were on, you grabbed your designated books and got comfortable.

After about 10 minutes you guys got up to wash the masks off and went back to reading and drinking tea. Sometime later you yawned for the third time in 10 minutes. Loki had this unspoken rule, where it was always time for bed after you yawned 3 times. He shut his book abruptly and said,

“Time for bed.” At this point you were tired enough to not protest and got up right away.

Loki led you to the bedroom made you lay down, before shutting the blinds and climbing in next to you. You got situated and Loki wrapped his arm around your waist and pulled you too his chest. After a few beats of silence, you whispered,

“Thank you for spending time with me.” You just felt Loki smile against your neck before replying,

“Dear, I love spending time with you, because I love you.” You smiled lightly before whispering,

“I love you too.” And falling into a peaceful slumber.

[dfnews]

Episode Recap of "Kendra's Got a Secret"

Season 10, Episode 4 November 5, 2019

"Kendra surprises Joe when she finds out she's expecting baby #2; Jessa recruits her brothers to build a deck for her house before the new baby's arrival." It appears that the new baby will be sleeping on the deck.

I'm gonna shorthand this recrap. Crap is the theme of this episode. Let's pull off this band aid quickly and get back to real life.

1. Kendra is cooking and Garrett is pooping. He leaked josh all out of his diaper while sitting in a bouncy seat on the kitchen counter. Kendra changes him but leaves the soiled bouncy seat sitting near her cooking area. So that's the secret ingredient in tater tot casserole! She calls Joe who is barely working at the family's car lot. It's 2:00 pm and she wants him home for dinner. This is the car lot that Jed claims to own and which sits on land where Pastor Caldwell or Josiah live. Both their names show up in the address search. Anyhoo, it's basically a job supplied by Jim Bob to keep his sons away from the general public. He doesn't want his kids to be working for anyone other than himself…that is unless it's a hate group based in Washington, DC. Kendra has prepared a bowl that has a sticker on the bottom that says she's expecting. She fills that bowl with ice cream and waits for him to read the "surprise" message while I hope for Joe to choke on it. Joe is the most boring vanilla guy around so him eating plain vanilla ice cream was perfection. He only breaks out of his grumpy looking monotone after he finally reads the message. He seems happy and Kendra tells him she's five weeks along. Poor Garrett seems sick as a dog with a horrible cough and glassy eyes but he's ignored as they continue eating ice cream and piling on the children.

2. Ben and Jessa hire some of the other Duggar boys to build a deck onto their house. This is the other Duggar family business owned and managed by Jim Bob. They volunteer to watch Spud as Ben and Jessa take Hank to the doctor. Spud is as overwhelmed by his big family as most people are. He says his daddy is his favorite uncle and can't remember the names of his real uncles. Hank is headed to the ENT due to his lack of speech. It's nice to see the Duggars show concern about a child's development and actually go to a professional for advice. It's also nice to hear they fixed his tongue tie when he was an infant. These people actually do see doctors!!! Hank just turned two when this was filmed and doesn't have much to say yet. He's probably fine. I had a friend whose two year old wasn't talking and she was all worried and a few years later he was singing on Broadway. He was also a second child like Hank. Actually, I have seen this a lot with second children. I'm sure Hank will be reciting Bible verses and retelling hero Trump stories to the kids at the park in no time but in the meantime he will be seeing a speech pathologist.

3. Jinger and Felicity exercise. They drove all the way to San Antonio from Laredo to participate in a Stroller Strive class? Jinger is the only mom there who is exercising in thick leggings and a skirt. Felicity seemed embarrassed. What was the purpose of this short scene? To convince women that they need to remain in shape for their husbands? Total crap!

4. Spud was able to sneak away from the daddy's boys long enough to eat two ice cream sandwiches in the house. Thank God he was eating junk and not sitting in the middle of the nearby highway when they found him. Then Jed decides to bring Spud outside in order to keep a better eye on him. Great idea, idiot! Spud safely stands near the table saw blade and announces he has a poopy josh filled diaper. None of the daddy's boys want to help out this little kid so they end up calling Jessa to find out where she is. I'm guessing if Jessa wasn't available they would have called 911. Jessa gets home and defends her lame brothers, but coming from her family where sexual abuse has occurred, I can see her being happy that her brothers didn't change him. Ben gets joshed on by a bird and heads in for a shower leaving heavily pregnant Jessa with the sugared up poopy toddler. Men! Later they have a weird gender guessing party at Jessa's house. Lots of Duggars squeeze into the little house to play a game and try to guess the sex of Jessa's next baby. After the game Jessa opens the floor to anyone who has an announcement to make. I was hoping Jana had something to announce, like getting her own apartment, but instead Joe announces they're expecting again. They had baby Addison last week. These episodes are getting so far behind that by the time we see Spud finally potty trained he'll be graduating from homeschool in real time.

[charlesjening]

Meanwhile, In Canada: Rich Guys Are Still Fighting the Tax Man Over Their KPMG Offshore Tax Shelter

KPMG is in the news again this week, and again it’s for something they probably wish would go away. Now, I combed our extensive archive going back 10 years (read: spent five minutes Googling) and wasn’t able to find any coverage of this case save for an ANR link here and there, which means either there is too much other tomfoolery going on at KPMG for us to report on all of it all the time or we’re bad and hate Canada. Maybe a little from Column A and a little from Column B. Anyhoo, let’s get caught up.

In the late 1990s, KPMG’s Vancouver office came up with the bright idea to help a handful of rich clients “save money” on taxes otherwise due to the Canadian Revenue Agency, as well as potential future jilted soon-to-be-former spouses, through a tax shelter. In documents revealed to Parliament in 2016, KPMG had its people really pushing that jilted spouse thing.

From CBC:

In what was called the “initial client meeting script,” KPMG sales agents were advised to discuss the “primary benefits” of the scheme with wealthy Canadians.

The list of benefits included a section promoting “asset protection” which, according to KPMG, meant there would be “nothing” that an “ex­-spouse” could claim.

Steven Benmor, a Toronto­-based family law specialist, says those talking points are “potentially damaging” to KPMG, as the firm appears to be endorsing the idea of getting around Canadian divorce laws.

The question of course becomes, who is gonna get more ticked by some rich dude hiding money, the tax man or the ex-wife?

In October 2012, authorities — since hip to the tax dodge — ordered KPMG to preserve all documents related to their probe of the tax shelter. The following month, four Isle of Man shell companies set up by KPMG passed a resolution that “books, documents and all papers” be “destroyed,” according to records in the Isle of Man obtained by CBC/Radio-Canada.

Seven years on, the government is still trying to scrape up whatever documents they can related to the scheme and the filthy rich folks who bought into KPMG’s promotion of it. Two such rich bastards are Caleb and Tom Chan, billionaire brothers from Hong Kong whose $40 million donation to the Vancouver Art Gallery is considered the largest private donation to the arts the province has ever seen. No one is doubting their generosity, however, tax authorities are questioning their participation in the “Isle of Man” tax shelter sold to them by KPMG.

CBC reports:

Numerous internal emails filed in court this summer reveal the Chans’ involvement in a KPMG offshore scheme so secret that neither tax collectors nor even their spouses were ever supposed to find out.

The Chan brothers may be the most prominent of several wealthy families whose identities have been revealed over the past few years as being part of the scheme.

The records show the Chan brothers were part of a group of more than 20 wealthy Canadians whose families had at least $5 million to invest in a sophisticated KPMG tax dodge first developed out of the accounting firm’s Vancouver office in the late 1990s.

In one email from 2002, a KPMG accountant explained the Chan brothers did not want their spouses to learn about their offshore dealings.

“The concern is that the wifes [sic] are not to know about the assets of the husbands,” said the accountant’s email.

In the Isle of Man, where the shell companies were set up, the response was to “rest assured” that the Chans’ partners would not find out.

The documents show tax authorities were also not supposed to find out. The court records show the Chans did not disclose their offshore companies in the Isle of Man during a 2005 audit, even after being required to list all their global assets.

The Chans are currently cockblocking CRA from accessing more than 1,000 documents in KPMG’s possession, citing solicitor-client privilege. Additionally, authorities have requested general ledgers from the Chans’ offshore companies; however, in 2017 Caleb Chan told auditors he had no such thing.

No one knows exactly how much money escaped tax authorities through the “Isle of Man tax dodge,” but it could number in the tens of millions.

The post Meanwhile, In Canada: Rich Guys Are Still Fighting the Tax Man Over Their KPMG Offshore Tax Shelter appeared first on Going Concern.

republished from Going Concern

[hundredwattstudio]

Eye of the Beholder: A Short History Of Metallica Songs in Films and TV

We can all agree that the finest use of Metallica’s songs at a motion picture was Some sort of Monster. Cool songs, cool lyrics, trendy sweaters. But from the halcyon days earlier lifestyles determined deathstyles, you will be amazed to learn that the biggest of the Big 4 wrote four albums regarded even more highly than St. Anger. Below are our thoughts on the way TV shows and seven films used the stuff.

STRANGER THINGS, SEASON 2, EPISODE 8

Billy the Bully is not exactly the most three-dimensional antagonist in the storied history of Netflix and Chill, but he did rock “Whiplash” inside his bedroom to get pumped for a second sleepless night of threatening African-American children with physical harm. He’d [SPOILER ALERT] endure the final ’80s comeuppance, yet: his dad calling him a “f*gg*t” for egregious bedroom hair-tousling. ANYHOO, although zero high schoolers within this time interval hastens at varsity basketball and listened to Kill ’Em All, this song is totally appropriate for Billy’s character, which makes this a good score of 7 .

THAT’S MY BOY

By Steve Buscemi and John Turturro to Al Pacino and Nicole Kidman, Adam Sandler has the Midas Touch as it comes to humiliating thespians that are legendary. 2012’s That’s My Lady continues this proud lineage by pitting Sandler’s eponymous son (Andy Samberg) against an egregiously slumming James Caan, enjoying a foul-mouthed, brawling priest. The subsequent beatdown is put to (sigh, again) “Whiplash,” however, the editor is too lazy to sync both the blow-landing freeze-frame montage to any trendy staccato parts (you know, like the iconic beginning). Lazy and stupid, but do you expect anything else? A 3 if we’re being generous.

OLD SCHOOL

Two wretched Hangover sequels and yet another Due Date along with War Dogs later, the bloom has long worn off the idea of Todd Phillips becoming Hollywood’s preeminent crass humor man. But almost all of Old School ages well, particularly the scene where Luke Wilson, Will Ferrell, and Vince Vaughn kidnap prospective fraternity pledges to the tune of “Master of Puppets.” Thumbs up to any scene which finishes with a protagonist threatening that a middle-aged girl in a supermarket parking lot, “You tell anyone about it, I’ll fucking kill you … I am kidding, I’m kidding, we’ll have him back by tonight. Okay, love?” Obvious choice, but expertly applied. Hard 8.

HESHER

Does not, won’t get any better. The title font is Metallica-style. This is the pinnacle of all Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s livelihood. It wisely uses five classic ‘Tallica bangers: “The Shortest Straw,”“Fight Fire With Fire,”“Anesthesia (Pulling Teeth),”“Battery,” and “Motorbreath.” The above mentioned scene applies “Battery” in its beginning and ending, and while I would strongly suggest skipping it and simply watching the whole thing, I can tell you that this is exactly how I would have treated a younger brother if my parents had granted me one. A perfect 10.

THE BIG SHORT

I am not a homeowner, nor do I really care about other people’s issues, nor do I presume of fourth-wall-breaking in films which are not , so maybe I am not best-equipped to examine Metallica’s usage in a film which I turned away after 10 minutes out of boredom. But unless many and sundry synopses have led me wrong, Christian Bale’s savant-like hedge fund manager Michael Burry predicted the housing crisis while drumming along to the likes of Mastodon, Pantera, along with Metallica’s “Master of Puppets” (“Eye of the Beholder” is later utilized.) Everyone but me seemed to actually enjoy this picture, therefore I’ll throw it a cursory 8, and I am pretty dumb.

ZOMBIELAND

Even the overstylized opening credits to the second-ever zom-com blare “For Whom the Bell Tolls” as many types of these undead hurl armed defenses off prison towers (two thumbs way up), chase down smoothie-toting yuppie girls (eh), dip right into a dress mid-toast (good stuff), participate in one of these father-son races where your legs are closely tied to one another (fine, positive), and far more. The song choice is if only half of the vision makes sense. 8

ANY GIVEN SUNDAY

Let us end with a one. How Metallica haven’t completed a Super Bowl halftime show is beyond me, although I know the concept is to counterprogram to cast as wide a Nielsen net as you can. (They might even create up with Axl and haul out him in their own stupid Jerry Rice Raiders jersey.) Anyhow, Oliver Stone’s foolish “evaluation” of expert soccer boasts a super-weird soundtrack, mixing great hip (DMX, Mobb Deep, OutKast) using opposite-of-great nü-metal (Godsmack, P.O.D.).   In this specific locker area interlude, the snowy linemen closed off their black counterparts’ pesky hippity-hop in favour of “Motorbreath.” Shouting ensues. I think this is something or commentary. 4?

from hundred watt studio http://www.hundredwattstudio.com/eye-of-the-beholder-a-short-history-of-metallica-songs-in-films-and-tv/