#badlands in Montana

[shea-like-the-butter]

Saturday, October 26th 2024

Wash me in the water

You can cut off all my hair

And I’ll be changing like the weather

But I’ll never be like him

[muhammadgiovanni]

Handful of shots from my journey...

[chuuphic]

this is so interesting

[janesgms]

< How you act when you're in love >

5H/7H house ruler in scorpio/8H house/8°/20° degrees: can, at its worst, make someone very obsessive, possessive, explosive, jealous and even an stalker when they're in love with someone ☠️ help. at its best, can make someone very passionate, intense, powerful, protective and sensual when in love, the type to go to the moon and back just for their lover. it's giving very ride or die vibes. The same definition can apply to venus aspecting pluto. Songs:

Him and I - G-eazy & Halsey

Woo - Rihanna

The whole Reputation album - Taylor Swift

The Weeknd songs

Paparazzi - Lady Gaga

Collide - Justine Skye

Middle of The Night - Elley Duhé

Babydoll - Ari Abdul

Animals - Maroon 5

Crazy in Love - Beyoncé

The whole Ultraviolence album - Lana Del Rey

Unforgettable - French Montana

Heaven - Julia Michaels

The whole Badlands album - Halsey

Killbill - SZA

L.E.S - Donald Glover

5H/7H house ruler in cancer/4H house/4°/16°/28° degrees:: can, at its worst, make someone extremely manipulative, moody, vengeful and irrational when in love with someone. at its best, can make someone very caring, loving, protective, nostalgic and nurturing when in love, they really like to spoil their partner emotionally. The same definition can apply to venus aspecting moon. Songs:

The Heart Wants What It Wants - Selena Gomez

Highschool Sweethearts - Melanie Martinez

Reminder - The Weeknd

Paparazzi - Lady Gaga

Part Of Me - Katy Perry

Te Amo - Rihanna

Alejandro - Lady Gaga

Sweather Weather - Arctic Monkeys

I wanna Be Yours - Arctic Monkeys

Cinnamon Girl - Lana Del Rey

deja vu - Olivia Rodrigo

Outside - Calvin Harris

Earned It - The Weeknd

The whole Born To Die album - Lana Del Rey (including the paradise songs 😘)

Ocean Eyes - Billie Eilish

5H/7H house ruler in pisces/12H house/12°/24° degrees: can, at its worst, make someone delusional, blind, influencial, escapist, and moody when in love. at its best, can make someone sensitive, empathetic, dreamy, empathetic, creative, profound, feeling unexplainable feelings, and VERY romantic when in love, they're probably the types to write poetry and imagine a fairytale with their loved one. The same definition can apply to venus aspecting neptune. Songs:

Love you like a love song - Selena Gomez

Love Story - Taylor Swift

Bad Romance - Lady Gaga (a song deditaced for their terrible taste in men, specially, but in women too 💞)

Training Wheels - Melanie Martinez

I'm yours - Isabel LaRosa

Renegade - Aaryah Shaah

The bridge of What a Life - Jhene Aiko

Why'd You Only Call Me Whem You're High - Arctic Monkeys

#icanteven - The NBHD

Happiness Is A Butterfly - Lana Del Rey

I Love You - 2ne1

Loonatic - LOONA

America - XYLØ

High Enough - K.Flay

The whole soundtrack of Euphoria - Labyrnth

Psyechedelic Addict - Anuka

As someone with these 3 placements (scorpio/pisces/4th/8th houses), I really liked doing this post since it's something very personal to me! 💕 Also, one thing I notice is that all these placements usually listen to a lot of music, more than the usual, when in love.

Mini tutorial in case you don't know how to see your rulers. Look at the signs in your 5th and 7th houses, then look at where the planets who rule these signs are in your natal. For ex: I have a 5th house in sagittarius, so I need to look at my jupiter, sagittarius ruler, who is in scorpio in the 4th house. For this, I indicate for you to look at the modern rulership, but in case you don't identify with the characteristics, look at the traditional ruler.

[coyote-west]

shaped by time and water | in the Montana badlands

pastel and color pencil on paper, 8x8"

[farcillesbian]

things I'm looking forward to about my road trip:

going through states I've never been in before (liquid, gas, plasma if I'm lucky... er. I mean. Maine, New York, Maryland, Virginia, Tennessee, Missouri, Iowa)

Wawa 😁😁 also gonna check out Sheetz..

sleeping in my trunk for the first time at some of my stops, hopefully! I've been wanting to test out how nice it is with how the seats flatten out in the Outback.

driving along the Blue Ridge Mountains!

hitting many of the places mentioned in the song wagon wheel

DIRTY SODA... I have bookmarked every dirty soda shop along my route and will try to stop at each one. because I'm a freak who loves creamy pop.

good Mexican food... I want a burrito

going to Nashville and having a hot chicken sandwich and maybe getting to catch some live music

trying toasted ravioli in st Louis !!

Kansas City BBQ 🤤

Kwik Trip in the Midwest...

driving thru Badlands in the winter

maybe devil's tower in winter..

Montana in winter 😁 and hopefully it'll be nice enough weather to take the more scenic route to Canada!

Southern Alberta.... I haven't really ever been, I don't think

staying overnight at friends' houses for like half my stops (a couple of them i get to meet for the first time!! yay 😊)

getting the good ice at gas stations >:)

things I'm not looking forward to:

99% sure I'm getting my period right when my trip starts😭

also border crossings. I'm crossing 4 times 🥴

[bonkwosher]

omg if you wrote more alan grant x reader i will literally name my firstborn after you. you write him so well bless you 🥹

A/N: Lmao, will do Anon. I have no prompt from this so I'll figure out my own one.

Prompt: "4. understanding each other without words 5. recognizing the sound of their steps 15. watching their oblivious s/o lovingly 38. craving their company after a stressful day" From this prompt list (I've used it before for Benoit Blanc). 1000% friends to lovers rn.

Pairing(s): Teacher!Alan Grant x Colleague!GN!Reader

Contains: Teacher!Alan, Teacher!Reader, Alan having a long day with back pain, mentions of trauma (Jurrasic Park incident), panic attacks

Word Count: 2k

It was stupid, your little crush on the lead paleontologist at the dig site. You were the site manager, in charge of ensuring everything ran smoothly. Really you were just a Business 101 teacher, but Dr. Alan Grant himself requested that you manage the site. How could you say no? Your break room crush wanted you all the way out in the badlands of Snakewater, Montana with him. Okay, maybe not just him but there's something here, right? You've known each other for years, you sit in on his lessons when you're not teaching. He smiles when he sees you enter the room. You could only hope there's something special.

For now, you sit in the teacher's tent reading some papers that were dropped off with the food for the week. Dr. Sattler, the lead paleobotanist, was making some food for herself. A cup of tea sat on the table in front of you, occasional sips being taken. You heard footsteps move past you outside the tent. It was a light stomping & slow, it was Alan, & boy did he need coffee.

"Morning, Alan," you spoke the moment he grabbed at the tent's curtain door.

Alan was taken aback a little, shaking his head before pinching his nose, "Good morning, Y/N."

It was cute, the way he stumbled to the coffee machine. It was already on considering Ellie used it. He lazily pressed each button, rubbing his face with both hands afterward.

"Rough night, Dr. Grant?" You spoke, a teasing edge on your voice.

Alan froze for a split second before speaking, "How did you know?"

"Is it not obvious?" Your reply caused him to turn around, coffee now in hand.

Alan turned to Ellie with a confused look, to which she responded, "Looks like normal Alan to me."

"Well, I did have a rough night. I tweaked my back near the end of the day yesterday, sleeping was hell."

The dark circles under his eyes were becoming obvious. You couldn't help but pout a little in response. It would be weird to offer a massage. He's just a work friend.

"Well try to rest today," you suggested with a reassuring smile.

He waved off your suggestion, figuratively & literally, "No, no, some of the students found a really good fossil with that computer thing. It would be a shame to miss out on that, & I can't let them mess up such a beautiful fossil."

You stood up from the table & set the papers down, "Well I'm all caught up on work on my end. Mind if I come with you? Tap a few bones with a chisel maybe?"

Alan looked down & chuckled at your statement before shaking his head once more & looking up. A cheery sigh escaped him as he looked into your eyes.

"There is much for you to learn about paleontology, Y/N."

You were standing across from Alan as he was sprawled out on the ground, brush in hand, lightly brushing dirt away. You didn't notice the dopey smile you had on your face till Alan looked up at you, a chuckle escaping his lips.

"What?" You asked, laughing & putting your hands on your hips.

"You're standing around lookin' cute, I thought you were going to join me in the dirt," he teased back.

You both blushed. Not that either of you noticed the other was freaking out just as much. Alan couldn't believe he was so forward &, frankly, you couldn't gather that he might actually have feelings for you. You quickly turned around to hide your blush, Alan's heart sinking. You turned back around, with equal speed, brush in hand. You kneeled down on the dirt, leaning on your elbows & finding yourself in a similar position to Alan. You began brushing the dirt away. You tried to sneakily watch Alan to see if you were doing it right. His brows were furrowed as he brushed at the bone in front of him.

"Dr. Grant! I brought the supplies from this week's dropoff!" A student called out, a pile of boxes high enough to block their vision was shaking in their arms.

You couldn't help but freeze as the kid stepped towards the site. A few more steps & he'd surely step on the bones, inevitably freaking out & accidentally dropping everything. He'd be dead by dawn if Alan had anything to do with it. Luckily, Alan intervened early, shooting up quickly to stop the kid. A groan escaped him as he reached his hands out.

"James, the table is this way!" He tried not to sound too upset.

"Sorry, Dr. Grant!" James apologized as he turned towards the aforementioned table.

Alan's right hand darted to his back, applying pressure as best he could. You stood up slowly, noticing Alan's attempt at hiding the pained grimace on his face. You began walking towards him as he gripped his hat on his head, crushing it between his fingers.

"Professor!" Your focus was drawn to someone shouting your title, considering you were the only non-doctor here, "You got some faxes, the receipts from today need to be revised & sent to the school!"

You realized now it was your assistant calling out, a student volunteer getting work experience in the weirdest of locations. You thanked them as you grazed a hand over Alan's back.

"Please rest," you whispered to him as you walked away.

As you went off to do your work, it was Alan's turn to freeze. He may be good under pressure, when deadlines are coming, or even when dinosaurs think he would make a perfect midnight snack; But god did he feel absolutely helpless under your touch. He felt himself leaning into the touch & now he was stuck in this awkward bent hip position. He sighed as he adjusted his posture, convincing himself that it wasn't your touch that suddenly made the pain go away. Coincidence, he'll call it. He got back into an uncomfortable position, determined to get a good look at this fossil by nightfall.

By the time you left your "office" tent, it was dark. You looked towards the dig site to see some floodlights pointed towards the fossil. A couple eager students, & likely, Dr. Alan were hard at work. Dr. Sattler would soon come to end their fun & make sure the students got their 8 hours of rest in. You decided bed sounded much more comfortable than attempting to get them to sleep anyways. You opened the door to your trailer, letting it shut behind you. You toed off your shoes & took off your button-up & pants, changing into less dusty clothes before climbing into bed. You gave it one last good stretch before plopping onto your bed. You got comfortable, adjusting a couple pillows before feeling right.

A couple knocks hit your door, "Y/N, are you awake?"

Alan was trying to be quiet in case you were asleep but you could tell he needed to see you. You stood up slower than usual, you were tired after all, & opened the trailer door. Alan's arms twitched up slightly, he retracted them.

"Can I-"

You interrupted him, "Of course."

Alan's arms darted around your waist. From his place, a step below you on the trailer stairs, his head reached the crook of your neck. He nestled into place quickly, as if you had done this a million times. In reality, you & Dr. Grant had hugged once.

That time he hadn't asked, he knew he caught you off guard & he beat himself up about it ever since. It was his first day back on campus after he mysteriously left for an island with Dr. Sattler. You had come in to check on him after your classes, which happened to be late that night, & found him in his office. He was hunched over his work, head in his hands. The office door was left ajar, maybe he was still running office hours? Nonetheless, you pushed the door open slightly & knocked as you did so. You seemed to scare the life out of him. He jumped back & out of his seat, throwing papers into the air with him.

He yelled something barely intelligible, sounding maybe like, "GET BACK!"

"Alan! It's me, Y/N," You tried to calm your colleague as you walked toward him, his eyes were going everywhere but in your direction.

You managed to get a couple feet in front of him, his hand was clutching his chest & his breathing was beyond fast.

"Alan, I need you to take deeper breaths," You spoke as you reached out to touch his hand, "Please."

Finally, his eyes met yours, your hand wrapping around the one that held his chest so tightly. The genuine look of concern in your eyes grounded him. He looked around the room to see he was safe in his, albeit, now messy, office. Without thinking he scooped you into a hug. You were shocked at first by the sudden movement, your hands took a moment to find their place. In the moment, Alan didn't process that he caught you off guard, that would haunt him later. Right now, you were the one thing making him know he was safe, & holding you felt right. He had barely spoken to you before this. You were another teacher in the giant school that was U of M. But in the few times he's spoken to you, he's fallen hard. It surprised him that you stopped by, he was hoping you weren't there to ask him about Jurrasic Park.

You never did, & after that night you were always around. You sat in on his lessons & he even sat in on yours on the rare occasion. You offered to talk to him about whatever happened if he ever wanted, he never did. Alan was stubborn that way, he didn't like talking about feelings.

So you'd be lying if you said it didn't shock you when Alan asked to come into your trailer late that night. He sat down on the "kitchen" chair & looked up at you, pulling his hat off & setting it in his lap. His eyes quickly decided looking at the floor was more comfortable.

"Sorry, if I'm intruding, I had a rough day."

"You're not intruding, Alan, you never are," you tried to find eye contact but there was none, "You want to talk about anything?"

A long moment of silence sat between you. Alan was clearly fighting himself on something. Finally, a sigh escaped him.

"Do you remember... that night in my office?"

He didn't have to explain, of course, you knew, "Yes."

"It happened again, last night."

"I'm so sorry, Alan."

"Don't be," He had a clear train of thought & you couldn't break it, "I fell & hurt my back, I was terrified. I wanted to run to you but the fear that something was outside kept me trapped."

He wanted to run... to you?

"I've been in so much pain all day," he continued, "& it felt so isolating to keep last night to myself, bad isolating. When you just knew something was wrong-"

Alan stood up & took your hands in his, his eyes found yours just as quickly, "How did you know?"

"You looked, not like you, if that makes sense. I just knew."

Alan's hands darted to the sides of your face but yet again, froze. His eyes were filled with determination & fear. You weren't scared. You lifted your hands to guide him. His hands now resting on each side of your jawline. In the silence, Alan lightly traced a line across your cheek with his right thumb. You gave him the smallest of nods, looking deep into his eyes. Alan pulled you in for a deep kiss, a sigh escaping him when you kissed back. In a moment, you were separated again.

"Mind if I stay the night?" Alan spoke softly.

"I would love that."

A/N: This took me so long & I can't believe I didn't get burnt out. I am so happy with this.

[frog-squire]

Ok i saw a post making fun of states that have "nothing" in them or how places like the sahara have "nothing" in them and thats just! not true! wastelands are man made, both physically and conceptually. In Montana and Wyoming, there is yellowstone and the bear lodge (devils tower) bison and pronghorn and wapiti and snow capped mountains reaching into the blue sky! In South Dakota, there are Pahá Sápa (the Black Hills) and Washun Niya (wind cave) and Mako Sica (the badlands), ancient and sacred lands like nothing you've ever seen! Places like the Sahara (or any desert) are teaming with life and their own special ecosystem like any other biome, if only you take the time to look at the details. Some would describe a place like easter oregon as desolate, but slow down, and kneel, and look closely and realize all the little plants and flowers and bugs that surround you! Places only become filled with "nothing" when we make them so

[cowboyhatesithere]

1. Acadia National Park, Maine

2. American Samoa National Park, American Samoa

3. Arches National Park, Utah

4. Badlands National Park, South Dakota

5. Big Bend National Park, Texas

6. Biscayne National Park, Florida

7. Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Colorado

8. Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

9. Canyonlands National Park, Utah

10. Capitol Reef National Park, Utah

11. Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico

12. Channel Islands National Park, California

13. Congaree National Park, South Carolina

14. Crater Lake National Park, Oregon

15. Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio

16. Death Valley National Park, California & Nevada

17. Denali National Park, Alaska

18. Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida

19. Everglades National Park, Florida

20. Gates of the Arctic National Park, Alaska

21. Gateway Arch National Park, Missouri

22. Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

23. Glacier National Park, Montana

24. Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona

25. Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming

26. Great Basin National Park, Nevada

27. Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado

28. Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee & North Carolina

29. Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Texas

30. Haleakalā National Park, Hawaii

31. Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii

32. Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas

33. Indiana Dunes National Park, Indiana

34. Isle Royale National Park, Michigan

35. Joshua Tree National Park, California

36. Katmai National Park, Alaska

37. Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska

38. Kings Canyon National Park, California

39. Kobuk Valley National Park, Alaska

40. Lake Clark National Park, Alaska

41. Lassen Volcanic National Park, California

42. Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky

43. Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado

44. Mount Rainier National Park, Washington

45. New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, West Virginia

46. North Cascades National Park, Washington

47. Olympic National Park, Washington

48. Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona

49. Pinnacles National Park, California

50. Redwood National Park, California

51. Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado

52. Saguaro National Park, Arizona

53. Sequoia National Park, California

54. Shenandoah National Park, Virginia

55. Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota

56. Virgin Islands National Park, United States Virgin Islands

57. Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota

58. White Sands National Park, New Mexico

59. Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota

60. Wrangell—St. Elias National Park, Alaska

61. Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, Montana & Idaho

62. Yosemite National Park, California

63. Zion National Park, Utah

[fatehbaz]

So 26 February 2023, Grist re-publishes a piece originally from InvestigateWest, after InvestigateWest got their hands on some sensitive emails/documents revealing that the EPA rather than fairly supervising mining companies “they’re supposed to regulate” has instead assisted the companies “by attacking researchers and smearing peer-reviewed science.” (Surprising nobody; Montana is a resource extraction colony.) The piece is titled “Newly revealed records show how the EPA sided with polluters in a small Montana mining town.”

So I’m like “oh, is this gonna be about the natural gas boom near Sidney on the North Dakota border right alongside the Bakken oil fields, an operation so big and extensive that it artificially lights up the night sky over the open prairies of the northern Great Plains in a way that, from a satellite view, makes the least densely populated and remote corner of the contiguous United States glow brightly as if it were a massive city or as if the entire region were on fire? Or is this gonna be about coal mining in the remote southeastern corner of the state in the badlands and shortgrass prairie near Crow and Cheyenne reservations, where coal companies in the Yellowstone River watershed traditionally have extracted millions from near the Powder River and Black Hills?”

But nope, it’s about Butte.

“Small Montana mining town.”

This city is still among top 5 or top 10 most culturally and economically significant cities in the state. “Significant city” would be more apt than “small town.” But beyond that.

This is the place known as “Butte, America.”

Butte was the epicenter, the home base, the foundation of the Gilded Age copper boom that electrified the world and lit the streetlights and parlors of turn-of-the-century London and New York.

All that copper wiring, that’s from Butte, or from the industries that Butte’s barons established. This was the city where mining magnates ran the Anaconda Copper Mining Company which spear-headerd the pillaging of Latin America (referenced in the “open veins of Latin America”). Anaconda established the century-long tradition of Canadian and US mining companies destroying lives and landscapes in the Andes.

By 1899, Butte was one of the most significant US cities between the Mississippi River and the Sierra Nevada. This was the home of the Copper Kings.

The Anaconda company, in 1919, completed construction on a smelter smokestack 585 feet high, which remains the tallest surviving brick structure on the planet.

The wealth of Butte in the Edwardian era is unfathomable. They had a rollercoaster. In a single year, merely just those local mines along the edge of the city could produce $23 million ($700 million today). And that doesn’t include all of the wealth stolen from Latin America or other mines in the western US.

Montana was a state that pioneered the “corporations are people” stuff. Its very statehood itself, the christening of Montana, was a gift to the Copper Kings. Every important state office was practically purchased, owned by those mining barons.

This is also why Montana was the site of some of the earliest and most important labor struggles. Because the entire state of Montana was functionally a copper mining company town. Among notable events: the 1914 Butte labor riots, the 1917 brutal assassination of Frank Little, and the 1920 “Anaconda Road Massacre” in which company guards shot and killed 17 fleeing people.

This is why, depending on who you ask, Butte is either A Company Town or A Union Town.

Butte claims to be the home of the “largest population of Irish-Americans per capita of any US city.” This may or may not be true, but this Irish influence evident in the local popularity of pasties. In the Edwardian era, Butte was also the site of an important Chinatown neighborhood and a large Chinese community.

Locally, Butte is famous/infamous for being the site of the Berkeley Pit. Or “The Pit.” The remaining scar of an open-pit copper mine. It’s one mile long, half-mile wide, almost 2,000 feet deep, filled with 900 feet of acidic water laden with cadmium, sulfuric acid, and arsenic.

Just sitting there. In the city.

“Oh, well, of course, back in the Gilded Age, in the 1890s, US businesses got a little out of control, and boom-town communities weren’t really thinking long-term, and they also didn’t know all The Science, so they allowed for the creation of, like, giant toxic death-pits in their residential areas,”

Nope. They built that open-pit mine in 1955 and operated it until 1982.

Anyway, that’s kind of what the 2023 investigative report is about. There is a newer mine (copper and molybdenum) currently open and operating in the city, right next to The Pit.

And the current mine is owned by the richest man in the state of Montana, Dennis Washington. And the EPA is like, “Don’t worry. The mine in the city is fine, it’s all good.” Because that’s what US government land management agencies do: File due diligence paperwork for land-owners while others get poisoned.

The largest open pit copper mine (by extracted volume) on the planet, and the second-deepest open-pit mine of any kind on the planet, is at Chuquicamata in the Atacama region of Chile. This mine was the property of the Anaconda company.

The towering smokestack. The Pit on the edge of town. The gaping wound at Chuquicamata. The legacy of the Copper Kings lives on with the continued theft and poisoning of those in both Montana and the Andes.

[raz-writes-the-thing]

Unpredictable // Ian Malcolm

Never in a million years did Lyanna Grant think that she would be a part of something this big. She also never thought that she would have accomplished as much as she has by the age of just twenty-eight.

The best part of her job aside from the joy of digging up prehistoric creatures of the past, is that she gets to work with her uncle; Alan Grant, one of the most respected and renowned palaeontologists of the century.

But when John Hammond, one of their primary investors arrives at their site in the Badlands and offers to fully fund their dig for another three years and all he wants in return is for the two of them and Lyanna's unofficially adopted aunt Ellie Sattler to go to a park he has created and give it their endorsements... Well, who are they to say no?

Little do they know that one decision would set off a chain reaction of chaotic events that were essentially unpredictable.

CHAPTER ONE

Lyanna Grant, niece to Alan Grant finds herself working on her uncle's latest dig site in the Badlands, Montana.

CHAPTER TWO

Alan, Ellie and Lyanna meet key investor John Hammond who has an interesting proposition for the three of them...

[csny]

Alaska: Igloo, Kodiak bear, Iditarod sled dog race, Denali

Hawaii: pearl harbor, pineapple

washington: Space Needle, apple, mt st helens, rainier national park

oregon: roses, lighthouse, crater lake, oregon trail, hiking

california: redwood tree, white water rafting, gold, golden gate bridge, silicon valley, yosemite national park, wine country, sierra nevada mountains, hollywood, joshua tree

nevada: silver, las vegas strip, hoover dam

idaho: gemstones, potatoes

montana: rocky mountains, glacier national park, grizzly bear, bison

wyoming: yellowstone national park, old faithful geyser, bucking bronco

utah: great salt lake, zion national park, skiing

arizona: lake mead, grand canyon national park, montezuma castle, turquoise, saguaro cactus

new mexico: pueblo, yucca plant, carlsbad caverns

colorado: rocky mountain national park, columbine flower, elk

north dakota: oil, wind energy

south dakota: crazy horse memorial, the badlands, mount rushmore

nebraska: chimney rock, bald eagle, train

kansas: tornadoes, dodge city, sunflower

oklahoma: tomato, wheat, osage shield

texas: cattle, prickly pear cactus, oil refinery, the alamo, NASA Johnson space Center

Minnesota: lake of the woods, wolf, deer

iowa: prairie grass, corn

missouri; Hog, gateway arch

arkansas: razorback hog, banjo

louisiana: crayfish, mardi gras, jazz music

wisconsin: dairy

illinois: Willis tower, tractor, lincoln

michigan: copper, iron ore, automobile manufacturing, motown

indiana: Car

ohio: Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, tires

pennsylvania: street mill, liberty bell

new jersey: constitution

maryland: blue crab

virginia: mount vernon

north carolina: wright brothers national memorial, tobacco farm, great smoky mountains national park, appalachian mountains

south carolina: fort sumter

georgia: peanuts, peach

florida: oranges, kennedy space center, alligator, everglades national park

alabama: cotton, civil rights movement

mississippi: magnolia

tennessee: country music

kentucky: horse racing

west virginia: coal

new york: apple tree, financial market, statue of liberty

massachusetts: american revolution

vermont: maple syrup

new hampshire: fall colors

maine: acadia national park, moose, lobster

And don’t make me repeat it!!!!!!!

[discordantdream]

Currently in the process of packing for our first long vacation in years. We're leaving tomorrow as early as I can drag ass out of bed, and will be on and off driving for 10 days. I have podcast lists downloaded, I have a special playlist made, I have audiobooks on CD from the library, I might bring my old CD wallet, I have a free XM trial from getting my car serviced at the dealership for a recall (lol), and I have a husband who will alternate between snoring next to me, talking wildly about the most hilarious things, and playing games on his steam deck while I drive. Did I mention we'll be celebrating 21 years married while we're on vacation? Our planning has us at the Badlands in SD on that wonderful day. We're also gonna stop at as many offbeat roadside attractions as we can, because that is what we do. Corn Palace here we come. Nominally the trip is to go visit where I lived in Montana after college, to show him that area, but mostly we just want to see parts of the country he's never seen and spend time together on the road.

Only hard part is we had to board the cats and I'm worried sick about the little furry jerks. At least they're boarded at the vet.

[pop-punklouis]

Hi Hope, I've been meaning to ask and I hope that's a fun question: which albums (specifically released in your lifetime) would you consider 'timeless'? In the sense of I can't believe there was a time when this piece of music didn't exist, for me examples include Lorde's melodrama and Beyonce's lemonade, but I'd love to hear yours 💕

oooo this is a fun question. i think for me some of my most timeless albums released in my lifetime would be:

Twist in My Story - Secondhand Serenade

Take-Offs and Landings - Rilo Kiley

OK Computer - Radiohead

Oops!... I Did it Again - Britney Spears

Sound of Silver - LCD Soundsystem

Neon Bible - Arcade Fire

American Candy - The Maine

Transatlanticism - Deathcab for Cutie

Back to Black - Amy Winehouse

Kill the Moonlight - Spoon

So Wrong it's Right - All Time Low

Stankonia - OutKast

I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning - Bright Eyes

Sempiternal - Bring Me the Horizon

The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess - Chappell Roan

Self-Titled - Fleet Foxes

In the Aeroplane Over the Sea - Neutral Milk Hotel

Exile in Guyville - Liz Phair

Spirit - Jewel

To Pimp a Butterfly -Kendrick Lamar

Lonerism - Tame Impala

Melodrama - Lorde

Some Nights - fun.

How to Be a Human Being - Glass Animals

Oracular Spectacular - MGMT

Voicenotes - Charlie Puth

Something to Give Each Other - Troye Sivan

Sinners Never Sleep - You Me at Six

FOUR - One Direction

Because of the Internet - Childish Gambino

American Spirit - Khalid

Badlands - Halsey

Self-Titled - The 1975

Love You to Death -Tegan and Sara

Animal - Kesha

American Idiot - Green Day (not including Dookie bc it was before my time rip)

Plastic Beach - Gorilaz

AM - Actic Monkeys (the cultural shift of it all lmao)

The Spirit Box - Michelle Branch

Let Go - Avril Lavigne

The Fame Monster - Lady Gaga

Plus - Ed Sheeran

Confessions - Usher

Highschool Musical 2 Soundtrack

A Little Bit Longer - The Jonas Brothers

Hannah Montana 2: Meet Miley Cyrus (changed me lmfao)

and thats all i can think right now but thats a lot dskeslkf i honestly couldn't imagine my life without these albums for a multitude of reasons like. they raised me lolol so

[hms-tardimpala]

For FFWF, I'm sending a question bomb back to you, friend <3 Soooo how is it going along with breaking in that ship tag? Care to tell us about them, like what sort of characters they are and what their dynamic is?

Or if you would rather talk about your experience with rarepair ships in general I would be interested in that too <3

I'm so happy to get this ask! Heads-up: it might get long.

So I'm not breaking in a ship tag, what I said yesterday was that I was writing for a small ship and, as a reader, I had found no fics for some pairings I were looking for. Your ask might change that however, but I'll say more about this a little lower...

I can tell you about the small ship I'm writing for currently! I'm entering Know No Shame mode so here it is: it's Alan Grant/Billy Brennan from Jurassic Park 3.

Yes, of all things. I'm the first who's surprised. This time around I'm seeing something in them that I want to explore. I think you of all my writer friends can appreciate a teacher/student dynamic best. They're two brilliant scientists (Billy has to be to be Grant's dig site manager) in the hot Montana badlands, they act sort of like a married couple in the movie (they're a package deal), Grant has a history of dating younger paleontologists and Billy is his very devoted easygoing assistant that acts as an intermediary for his misanthropic professor.

There's potential for: hero worship, We Shouldn't Do This™ angst, establishing a healthy relationship despite status and age gap, and I've never written a student character, especially one who has to finish a PhD after he's been traumatized by the animals he was studying, so that's interesting.

Like, the movie isn't much, but it gives me just enough to want to write a study of their relationship during and post-canon.

And now I realize that both fics I'm currently writing are about fixing an established relationship after a big falling-out (partly, at least). Well, well.

Now, for my experience of rarepairs. I mostly read (and write, so far) in big to huge fandoms and I'm generally into the main ship (which is why I see Billy/Alan as a rarepair, although you might think that with 181 fics, they're not in this category). But sometimes (often, actually) I get interested in a media that has a very small fandom and I happen to ship characters that very few people seem to be interested in.

When that happens, I end up reading as many fics about that ship as I can find, and I really make sure to kudo and comment to thank the author. Fandom is never more a community than when it comes to rarepairs.

As a writer, so far I'm enjoying the experience. I feel more free because virtually nobody is watching and I can really write the thing for me, and me only. That's such a pleasure! It's really just me and my notepad, that feels great. I feel like a kid!

And about breaking in a ship tag... One of the ships I failed to find fics for the other day is Juan Borgia/Christoforo Castanea, or really Juan Borgia/any man for the show Borgia. Christoforo in himself is a tiny and unimportant character, but I'm seeing some gay subtext around Juan Borgia, and I can't believe I'm the only one! There's something about the desperate way he kisses men on the mouth especially his brother that I want studied!

Your ask inspired me, and I now have a couple of interesting ideas to explore the character's possible homosexuality/bisexuality in a fic. That would include writing about him and Christoforo and him and his brother, so I would functionally be breaking in two ship tags: Juan Borgia/Christoforo Castanea and Juan Borgia/Cesare Borgia (because Juan is an ugly duckling but he deserves to be invited to the sibling fuckfest).

Thank you so much for asking me this, Nara, I loved talking about it. And thank you for the inspiration, I'm now going to let these ideas simmer. I love you <3