#birthday places san antonio

[greatevent89]

Wedding Venues San Antonio | Springhill Suites San Antonio Downtown Riverwalk

Discover the chic elegance of our newly renovated SpringHill Suites by Marriott, ideally situated just steps away from San Antonio's historic riverwalk. Whether you're planning a wedding, catering event, or any special occasion, our downtown hotel provides the perfect venue.

[shiftingwithjaidyn]

🎞️ ⋮ writer/fame dr

★┊ BASICS .ᐟ

timeline:

this dr takes place around late august of 2022 due to the fact i intend to be part of one of the films i work on right from its beginning

locations:

los angeles, california (main)

vancouver, canada

new york, new york

san antonio, texas

london, england

notes:

i scripted out a lot of things that occur in this reality (due to the fact i scripted the timeline of everything somewhat similar)

some movies in my filmography are book adaptations that do not exist in this reality however exist in mine and most tv-shows in my filmography are cancelled shows in this reality so i decided to make them continued in my dr (just incase of some confusion hehe)

★┊ ABOUT ME .ᐟ

name: lilian maricel villaécija

nicknames: lily, lia, celia, mary/mari

gender & pronouns: demigirl || she/they

birthday: august 11th, 1980

height: 5’6”/167 cm

zodiac sign: leo

mbti: enfp

nationality & ethnicity: american || filipino-chinese

occupations:

screenwriter

script supervisor

production designer

director of photography

make-up artist

storyboard artist

aesthetic:

★┊ CAREER .ᐟ

movies:

center stage (2000)

in the mood for love (2000)

uptown girls (2003)

eternal sunshine of a spotless mind (2004)

pride & prejudice (2005)

the devil wears prada (2006)

black swan (2010)

if i stay (2014)

la la land (2016)

lady bird (2017)

the glass castle (2017)

to the bone (2017)

the greatest showman (2017)

oceans 8 (2018)

crazy rich asians (2018)

always be my maybe (2019)

little women (2019)

all the bright places (2020)

pieces of a woman (2020)

last night in soho (2021)

everything everywhere all at once (2022)

one last stop (2023) [film adaptation of the book by casey mcquinston]

tv shows:

grey's anatomy (s2-s13) || 2005-2016)

rupaul's drag race (s5-s14 || 2013-2022)

rupaul's drag race: all stars (s2-s5 || 2016-2020)

anne with an e (s1- || 2017-present/ongoing)

the marvelous mrs. maisel (s1-s5 || 2017-2023)

pose (s1-s3 || 2018-2021)

instinct (s1-s3) (2018-2023)

the umbrella academy (s1-s4 || 2019-2024)

the haunting of bly manor (s1 || 2020)

bridgerton (s1- || 2020-present/ongoing)

yellowjackets (s2- || 2023-present/ongoing)

★┊ RELATIONSHIPS .ᐟ

╰┈➤ FRIENDS

(i have a lot of friends due to the fact i've been in the industry for quite a while now, but these are just my closest)

trixie mattel

shea couleé

katya zamolodchikova

kate walsh

emmy raver-lampman

sandra oh

nicola coughlan

gemma chan

simone kessell

a huge special mention as well to @ixzotica a.k.a. aaliyah sinclair in my dr!! the one and only best friend, neighbor, sister, and platonic soulmate of mine in every single universe <3

╰┈➤ PET

name: mari-pusa (Mariposa)

nicknames: mari, choco butternut,

gender & pronouns: female || she/her

birthday: january 15

zodiac sign: capricorn

mbti: istj

breed: tortoiseshell

╰┈➤ S/O

gonna keep him a redacted for now as i am not yet comfortable sharing much about my dr but i just wanted to let u guys know he's an actor, he's a libra, and that he exists HSHJSHDSHKJHL

★┊ EXTRAS .ᐟ

links:

patter banner || gradient divider || star divider || heart divider

note:

feel free to ask me about this dr or any shifting related thing in general!! i'd really appreciate it! : ]

[klanceficsthatmakemeripmyhairout]

it's five o'clock somewhere by soulreapin

rating: teens

published: 2024-03-09

completed: 2024-03-09

chapters as of may 22, 2024: [1/1]

word count: 8,180

summary: [ A sigh heaves out of Lance’s mouth and he props his elbows onto the counter before dropping his forehead into his hands. “Romelle. Bartender. We’ve been on the same shift for over a year.”

The bartender doesn’t say anything, contemplating. “Oh, she quit.”

“She quit?” Lance repeats, peeling his head from his hands and squinting at the bartender.

Now that they’re closer, Lance can see that there’s a faint scar on the bartender’s otherwise unmarred face, running from his jawline to the right side of his nose. His eyes are, like, forty different colors and Lance cannot tell for the life of him which one takes the lead, so he decides on a blackish-purple. They hide behind thick lashes and offer a no-nonsense look. “Yup. Quit two weeks ago. Don’t you work here? Why are you sitting at my bar?”

or, lance works at the san antonio riverwalk margaritaville as a waiter. during a horrible shift, he sits down at the bar expecting romelle, only to find she’s quit and someone new and beautiful has taken her place. ]

why i am ripping my hair out: what if i told you i am absolutely obsessed with margaritaville and the closest one to me is two hours away.. what if i told you that no matter your distance to the nearest margaritaville, you could experience those awe striking moments all over again from the comfort of your own home -- thats right, your own home!!!!

this fic is everything i love and enjoy in life, klance and margaritaville. im so serious. i went to margaritaville for the first time for my birthday and just thought about klance while i was there and also got drunk and dropped my phone in the toilet, but thats besides the point.

i have had this in my to rec bookmarks since it was written but ive been too busy to post and my retched formatting makes it difficult to rec on the go but anyways im back shout out margaritaville i absolutely adore this fic and it put me onto soulreapin shout out soulreapin if you read this i am subscribed

[richincolor]

9 QTPoC books for your 2023 Pride Month TBR

Happy Pride Month! Every year, I do a little round-up of YA books starring LGBTQ and BIPOC characters that have come out so far this year. This year was particularly exciting -- there were so many books that I loved or have at the very top of my TBR! So, without further ado, here's 9 of them for your TBR!

The Wicked Bargain by Gabe Cole Novoa El Diablo is in the details in this Latinx pirate fantasy starring a transmasculine nonbinary teen with a mission of revenge, redemption, and revolution.

On Mar León-de la Rosa's 16th birthday, el Diablo comes calling. Mar is a transmasculine nonbinary teen pirate hiding a magical ability to manipulate fire and ice. But their magic isn't enough to reverse a wicked bargain made by their father and now el Diablo has come to collect his payment: the soul of Mar's father and the entire crew of their ship. When Mar is miraculously rescued by the sole remaining pirate crew in the Caribbean, el Diablo returns to give them a choice: give up your soul to save your father by the Harvest Moon or never see him again. The task is impossible--Mar refuses to make a bargain and there's no way their magic is any match for el Diablo. Then, Mar finds the most unlikely allies: Bas, an infuriatingly arrogant and handsome pirate -- and the captain's son; and Dami, a genderfluid demonio whose motives are never quite clear. For the first time in their life, Mar may have the courage to use their magic. It could be their only redemption -- or it could mean certain death.

Fake Dates and Mooncakes by Sher Lee Heartstopper meets Crazy Rich Asians in this heartfelt, joyful paperback original rom-com that follows an aspiring chef who discovers the recipe for love is more complicated than it seems when he starts fake-dating a handsome new customer.

Dylan Tang wants to win a Mid-Autumn Festival mooncake-making competition for teen chefs—in memory of his mom, and to bring much-needed publicity to his aunt’s struggling Chinese takeout in Brooklyn.

Enter Theo Somers: charming, wealthy, with a smile that makes Dylan’s stomach do backflips. AKA a distraction. Their worlds are sun-and-moon apart, but Theo keeps showing up. He even convinces Dylan to be his fake date at a family wedding in the Hamptons. In Theo’s glittering world of pomp, privilege, and crazy rich drama, their romance is supposed to be just pretend... but Dylan finds himself falling for Theo. For real. Then Theo’s relatives reveal their true colors—but with the mooncake contest looming, Dylan can’t risk being sidetracked by rich-people problems.Can Dylan save his family’s business and follow his heart—or will he fail to do both?

Ander & Santi Were Here by Jonny Garza Villa Aristotle and Dante meets The Hate U Give meets The Sun Is Also A Star: A stunning YA contemporary love story about a Mexican-American teen who falls in love with an undocumented Mexican boy.

Finding home. Falling in love. Fighting to belong. The Santos Vista neighborhood of San Antonio, Texas, is all Ander Martínez has ever known. The smell of pan dulce. The mixture of Spanish and English filling the streets. And, especially their job at their family's taquería. It's the place that has inspired Ander as a muralist, and, as they get ready to leave for art school, it's all of these things that give them hesitancy. That give them the thought, are they ready to leave it all behind?

To keep Ander from becoming complacent during their gap year, their family "fires" them so they can transition from restaurant life to focusing on their murals and prepare for college. That is, until they meet Santiago López Alvarado, the hot new waiter. Falling for each other becomes as natural as breathing. Through Santi's eyes, Ander starts to understand who they are and want to be as an artist, and Ander becomes Santi's first steps toward making Santos Vista and the United States feel like home. Until ICE agents come for Santi, and Ander realizes how fragile that sense of home is. How love can only hold on so long when the whole world is against them. And when, eventually, the world starts to win.

She Is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran A house with a terrifying appetite haunts a broken family in this atmospheric horror, perfect for fans of Mexican Gothic.

When Jade Nguyen arrives in Vietnam for a visit with her estranged father, she has one goal: survive five weeks pretending to be a happy family in the French colonial house Ba is restoring. She’s always lied to fit in, so if she’s straight enough, Vietnamese enough, American enough, she can get out with the college money he promised. But the house has other plans. Night after night, Jade wakes up paralyzed. The walls exude a thrumming sound, while bugs leave their legs and feelers in places they don’t belong. She finds curious traces of her ancestors in the gardens they once tended. And at night Jade can’t ignore the ghost of the beautiful bride who leaves her cryptic warnings: Don’t eat.

Neither Ba nor her sweet sister Lily believe that there is anything strange happening. With help from a delinquent girl, Jade will prove this house—the home her family has always wanted—will not rest until it destroys them. Maybe, this time, she can keep her family together. As she roots out the house’s rot, she must also face the truth of who she is and who she must become to save them all.

Venom & Vow by Anna-Marie McLemore, Elliott McLemore Keep your enemy closer.

Cade McKenna is a transgender prince who’s doubling for his brother. Valencia Palafox is a young dama attending the future queen of Eliana. Gael Palma is the infamous boy assassin Cade has vowed to protect. Patrick McKenna is the reluctant heir to a kingdom, and the prince Gael has vowed to destroy. Cade doesn’t know that Gael and Valencia are the same person. Valencia doesn’t know that every time she thinks she’s fighting Patrick, she’s fighting Cade. And when Cade and Valencia blame each other for a devastating enchantment that takes both their families, neither of them realizes that they have far more dangerous enemies.

Cowritten by married writing team Anna-Marie and Elliott McLemore, this is a lush and powerful YA novel about owning your power and becoming who you really are - no matter the cost.

You Don't Have a Shot by Racquel Marie A queer YA romance about rival soccer players from author Racquel Marie, perfect for fans of She Drives Me Crazy .

Valentina “Vale” Castillo-Green’s life revolves around soccer. Her friends, her future, and her father’s intense expectations are all wrapped up in the beautiful game. But after she incites a fight during playoffs with her long-time rival, Leticia Ortiz, everything she’s been working toward seems to disappear.

Embarrassed and desperate to be anywhere but home, Vale escapes to her beloved childhood soccer camp for a summer of relaxation and redemption…only to find out that she and the endlessly aggravating Leticia will be co-captaining a team that could play in front of college scouts. But the competition might be stiffer than expected, so unless they can get their rookie team’s act together, this second chance���and any hope of playing college soccer―will slip through Vale’s fingers. When the growing pressure, friendship friction, and her overbearing father push Vale to turn to Leticia for help, what starts off as a shaky alliance of necessity begins to blossom into something more through a shared love of soccer. . . and maybe each other.

The Dos and Donuts of Love by Adiba Jaigirdar A pun-filled YA contemporary romance, The Dos and Donuts of Love by Adiba Jaigirdar finds a teenage girl competing in a televised baking competition, with contestants including her ex-girlfriend and a potential new crush - perfect for fans of The Great British Bake Off and She Drives Me Crazy!

“Welcome to the first ever Junior Irish Baking Show!”

Shireen Malik is still reeling from the breakup with her ex-girlfriend, Chris, when she receives news that she’s been accepted as a contestant on a new televised baking competition show. This is Shireen’s dream come true! Because winning will not only mean prize money, but it will also bring some much-needed attention to You Drive Me Glazy, her parents’ beloved donut shop.

Things get complicated, though, because Chris is also a contestant on the show. Then there’s the very outgoing Niamh, a fellow contestant who is becoming fast friends with Shireen. Things are heating up between them, and not just in the kitchen. As the competition intensifies, Shireen will have to ignore all these factors and more― including potential sabotage―if she wants a sweet victory!

My Dear Henry by Kalynn Bayron In this gothic YA remix of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, a teen boy tries to discover the reason behind his best friend's disappearance—and the arrival of a mysterious and magnetic stranger—in misty Victorian London.

London, 1885. Gabriel Utterson, a 17-year-old law clerk, has returned to London for the first time since his life— and that of his dearest friend, Henry Jekyll—was derailed by a scandal that led to his and Henry's expuslion from the London Medical School. Whispers about the true nature of Gabriel and Henry's relationship have followed the boys for two years, and now Gabriel has a chance to start again. But Gabriel doesn't want to move on, not without Henry. His friend has become distant and cold since the disastrous events of the prior spring, and now his letters have stopped altogether. Desperate to discover what's become of him, Gabriel takes to watching the Jekyll house.

In doing so, Gabriel meets Hyde, a a strangely familiar young man with white hair and a magnetic charisma. He claims to be friends with Henry, and Gabriel can't help but begin to grow jealous at their apparent closeness, especially as Henry continues to act like Gabriel means nothing to him. But the secret behind Henry's apathy is only the first part of a deeper mystery that has begun to coalesce. Monsters of all kinds prowl within the London fog—and not all of them are out for blood...

As You Walk On By by Julian Winters The Breakfast Club meets Can't Hardly Wait with an unforgettable ensemble cast in another swoony YA contemporary from award-winning author Julian Winters!

Seventeen-year-old Theo Wright has it all figured out. His plan (well, more like his dad's plan) is a foolproof strategy that involves exceling at his magnet school, getting scouted by college recruiters, and going to Duke on athletic scholarship. But for now, all Theo wants is a perfect prom night. After his best friend Jay dares Theo to prompose to his crush at Chloe Campbell's party, Theo's ready to throw caution to the wind and take his chances.

But when the promposal goes epically wrong, Theo seeks refuge in an empty bedroom while the party rages on downstairs. Having an existential crisis about who he really is with and without his so-called best friend wasn't on tonight's agenda. Though, as the night goes on, Theo finds he's not as alone as he thinks when, one by one, new classmates join him to avoid who they're supposed be outside the bedroom door. Among them, a familiar acquaintance, a quiet outsider, an old friend, and a new flame . . .

[nice-bright-colors]

Stuck between a rock…

…and a hard place.

Warning: Ranting to follow.

Nothing has been going my way this year. It has taken far too long to get started on things, and I still need to wait another month. It’s been 14 months since this work was first initialized.

I’m tired of waiting.

I’ve also come to the realization that I’m rarely happy, unless I’m working, or alone.

Attempting to plan something for us to do requires: a) food she can eat, b) bathrooms that aren’t “outdoorsy”, c) relative easy conditions, d) more food because god forbid she goes 3-1/2 hours without eating, e) beers that aren’t anywhere near the hoppy side, f) don’t get me started on hard seltzer or cider, g) air conditioning, h) shade, because the sun is bad, i) me to figure out how to get there, j) me to drive, k) me to figure out a place to stay, l) me to get us tickets, m) did I mention the snacks required in between meals, n) more water than is humanly possible to consume, o) must have a scenic view, p) it would help if there are no people, q) must have some shopping to do there, and r) if there’s something therapeutic or whole earth body thing about it that will help.

At least when I travel for work, I’m making money. Plus I’m getting reimbursed for money I’m spending. Most of all, I’m alone.

No. This month has a trip planned for us to go visit my family in Michigan. It will also be our 28th wedding anniversary weekend. Let’s see, shall we…

1) 85 year old Aunt has fallen twice in the last months. Plus she’s had a concussion. Plus they think she might have the start of dementia. 2) 80 year old Father has learned his car frame has a crack, and can’t afford anything new. Plus has forgotten numerous things over the last few months. Plus does nothing but watch MSNBC all day. Plus has imminent kidney failure. Plus doesn’t want to start dialysis. Plus wants me to eat a steak with him to reminisce about something he did for my 19th birthday (over 32 years ago). Plus has verbally told anyone who’ll listen he is ready to die. 3) My BIL has gambled away whatever money he had from his parents dying. Plus the $40K my Father have them. Plus has failed to secure disability for 3 years now (guess what? they’ve probably followed you to the casino). 4) My 53 year old sister will be lucky if she makes it to 60. Her matriarchal lineage would have her on track to die at 65. 5) My 59 year old cousin has graciously invited everyone to her house, when she has gone on record to not allow my BIL or nephew there anymore. 6) My 20 year old nephew doesn’t work, is afraid of everything and everyone, absolutely hates his father, and is threatening to run away to the arms of an older man in Florida.

I’m just so tired of having to manage and do everything for everyone else. Tired of being the rock in this family that is stoic enough for everyone.

I really hope I can coast Oct - Feb on this shit down in San Antonio. Then if nothing else comes my way, my ass will be buying a single, one-way ticket to “who fucking knows, and don’t fucking ask”. Never to be seen or heard from again.

Fín.

[a-party-to-murder]

<•WELCOM TO A PARTY TO MURDER!•>

The year is of fall, 1936. A country estate in Connecticut, right outside of New York.

Francine Bentley is throwing a lavish birthday celebration for her dear friend Abigail Pennyworth, AKA Penny. Kay Chandler is Francine’s personal assistant for this party and is sort of the main character.

It first takes place in the morning around 10:00 am. Everyone is gathering at the Seven Chimneys Estates which was inherited by Francine Bentley.

The play takes place ONLY in the living room and all of the characters are in black in white costumes aside from accessories like nails, a clutch, a hat etc. which are in full color.

There are twists and turns; expected and unexpected; and its very UNCLEAR who the killer is until the end.

“We are a non-profit based in San Antonio, Tx with a passion for youth of all backgrounds and needs providing an opportunity for them to embrace their limitless abilities, develop their confidence, and express their inner artist. We’re committed to working together to deliver high quality, innovative theatre instruction, production and expression.”

If you have any questions or theory’s about the play go ahead and ask!! But be warned: it might not be spoiler free!

<<ALSO!! The person running this blog is one of the actors of this play!! I am a minor so yeah, respect please!!>>

<<Updates for the play will be on mostly Mondays and Wednesdays I will try to be consistent but I’m very busy with irl things!! Please don’t be mean im trying 😭>>

[moon-and-stars-selfship]

Birthday rant:

So, it really all started a few days ago. Originally, I wanted to go to San Antonio for my birthday because I've never been and you can see some really big hills from there (I want to see mountains, but that's as close as I can get without driving a full day). While this was still on the table my mom texted me, telling me that she was given a hotel room by FEMA and wouldn't be using the final night it was available and that if I wanted I could use it on Sunday (the night before my birthday). The hotel was right next to the beach and, honestly, sounded pretty nice because Adri and I wanted to go to the beach at least one more time this summer. Over the weekend the plan became go to the beach-side hotel, spend the night, then drive to San Antonio on my birthday.

I was looking forward to going to San Antonio, but the AC in our vehicle has been out for some time. After some deliberation I decided that it would be more responsible to skip the day trip because I didn't want to subject either of us to that heat (Adri reacted very badly to the heat during Pride, so that was a big factor). The beach still sounded nice though, so the new plan was to stay the night at the hotel, spend some time that morning on the beach, then go to one of our favorite cozy little restaurants.

Saturday I get a text from my sister reminding me that we had all arranged to meet up with my dad on Sunday (long story here, but the TLDR is he wanted to discuss "family affairs. Also my parents are divorced, it was UGLY, and my mom never misses a chance to cause problems when we see him). I'd forgotten about this because she had arranged it while I was at work a month ago and hadn't touched base since, so the plan gets a bit more convoluted, adding meet up with my dad before everything. And then it goes downhill from there. We meet up with my dad after my sister has been nagging me and asking where I was (work) at around 4, and this very quickly goes from meeting up for a few hours into an all-afternoon/evening affair. My dad was already drinking when I got there and got more drunk throughout the evening, which always makes me feel somewhere between between "a little awkward" and "completely uncomfortable." It was starting to get late and we were talking about heading out soon to meet up with my mom and get the hotel room key when she (my mom) begins blowing up my sister's phone with texts, asking where I am and telling her that she's waiting in the hotel room (I thought we were meeting her back at her place, her being AT the hotel had never been mentioned to us), and that turns into her telling my sister that's she's been drinking all day anyways. Only then am I texted informing me that I need to bring my brother to drive her home because she's been drinking all day, which was quickly followed with her telling me "not to worry about it because she's tucked in already" and how she's "disappointed".

She proceeds to text my brother and sister all sorts of things that quickly derail the night, and by the time we're all ready to leave it's fairly obvious that the motel room is off the table (because she's wasted and, even if I manage to make it there before she blacks out, I don't really want to see her after all this). My sister's in hysterics about how if she doesn't take my brother home (3 hours away) then my mom will take him home and, on top of hounding him for money, guilt trip both of them for days afterwards. All of this turns into my sister making it about her, and how she's "expected to do everything" despite the fact that she's the one that tries to control everything (also I forgot to mention that she offered to let my brother stay in the hotel room with me and Adri...without consulting me). I should probably mention it was always "all about her" between my parents. I decide to resolve this by offering to let him stay at my place tonight, and I'd take him home tomorrow (on my birthday). Before we all depart my dad gives me $100 for my birthday...and gives them each $100 for...Reasons? I wasn't really too beat up about it at the time, but I did find it a little strange.

Anyway, to make a long story short my brother comes over, spends the night, I give some mushrooms free of charge and the next day we take him to his place. This takes a little more than 3 hours (with no AC mind you), I foot the cost for gas and food, and we still have to make it back. By the time we get home it's 7:30 and the restaurant I wanted to go to closes at 9...With a 45 minute drive, plus needing a shower after being in a hot car for anywhere between 6-8 hours. So...I didn't really get to do anything today, a good amount of my money is gone, and I'm stuck with the lingering headache of family drama.

I got to spend all day with Adri, though, plus I've got a pretty nice ice cream cake we picked up a few days ago. Just as I'm finishing this post I hear something that sounds like a door opening in the living room, Adri asks "did someone just come into our house?", I reassure him no while I go check it out, and suddenly I hear the hair dryer turn on. Turns out the cats knocked it down (first sound) and I guess it hit the ground in just the right way to scare the absolute shit out of us. "Happy birthday Owen, enjoy your fucking heart attack!"

[blurglesmurfklaine]

OKAY TUMBLR I NEED YOUR HELP MAKING A DECISION:

It’s kind of a long story, but let me set the scene.

It’s 2021. I am working on the South Side of San Antonio. Unhinged, unmedicated, underpaid and still looking for dates on a stupid app because idk I was bored and sad or whatever!

I match with this girl, let’s call her Alexa. We’re texting and vibing it’s all going well and we decide to meet up. The date does not go well in my opinion—she didn’t ask me any questions about myself, talked over me frequently, and just generally gave me the vibe that she wasn’t looking for companionship so much as like. an audience. Date ends, she says we should do it again.

Let me preface this by saying I KNOW I WAS IN THE WRONG HERE. But as you can guess, my passive ass was like: sure! And then proceeded to ghost. Because I am The Worst I KNOW OKAY

Flash forward to 2023. New job on the East Side. I’m working closely with the theatre teacher at new job. She is from out of state—same place Alexa is from. I don’t think anything of it. Then she mentions her former roommate, Alexa.

It’s a pretty common name right???? Surely it cannot be THE SAME PERSON I GHOSTED THREE YEARS AGO??? I look up on Facebook. It is.

Theatre teacher and I are very close now. We are working besties. I have been invited to her birthday party. Where Alexa may or may not be.

[woundgallery]

Hunter Deely Extant Writing

I was thrilled when @wintercorrybriea messaged me to request more writing by my dear friend Hunter Deely. This post contains links to PDFs of his extant writing, as well as a reflection on his work. 

Hunter was a Texan-born poet, musician and activist who died of a heroin overdose in New Orleans in 2012. He was barely twenty-two years old when he left this world but was already one of the most fully realized, remarkable poets and souls I have ever encountered. Hunter and I met as teenagers in San Antonio, Texas where we were part of a small, fiercely devoted group of friends who bonded through art and through a feeling, suffused with the zealotry of youth, that we alone saw through the hypocrisy and banality of South Texas suburbia. For the two years we all spent together in San Antonio, we felt we held the key to a mysterious, vibrant world-beneath-the-world. Our friendships and the insights they provoked felt consecrated, shot through with passion and truth. It was a holy ground. We reveled in this hidden world, and in each other, even as the same contrarian spirit that forged our devoted kinship drew us, careening, closer and closer to the edge. In 2009, Hunter, in the full-throes of heroin addiction, left for college at Tulane. In December of that year, our beloved friend Luther Maddox committed suicide three weeks before his eighteenth birthday. Luther’s death fundamentally changed the way all of us understand the universe and our positions within it. This first, intimate encounter with death shattered the invulnerability and ecstasy of our co-authored, insular world.  Within three weeks of Luther’s death, Hunter and two of Luther’s other closest friends left for rehab. 

The bulk of Hunter’s extant poems were written after he returned to college at Tulane following a year at rehab and a sober-living transitional setting in Irving, Texas. Luther’s death, as well as Hunter’s recognition of his addiction and how closely it brought him to his own end, drew him into a more intimate communion with the world, with the kingdom of nature, with generation and decomposition, the place where the disintegration of our individual egos and selves brings us into harmony with the always-there of the essential, material universe. A year after Luther’s death, Hunter wrote in a letter to our friend Kat, “I don't get sad about [his death] anymore, though. Because fundamentally, I have changed the way I view the world. I still consider myself an atheist. But I think Luther knew, and I now know, that there is more to life than our waking existence.” The spiritual sense that Hunter developed in the few years before his death was firmly rooted in the physical world; a celebration of the dissolution of the little ego under the resonant knowledge that we are all connected, through matter in a united, harmonious whole. “I believe that for something to "exist" is must be a part of nature,” Hunter wrote in a letter from Irving, “I do not believe that anything exists outside of nature, because anything outside of nature would be incomprehensible to the human mind, and therefore cannot "exist." That said, I think there is a lot to the universe we don't understand….there are forces at play we simply cannot see, to be sure, and other forces we see only fleetingly, in dreams. I think dreams are just as real as waking life. “I believe people are the masters of their own destinies. I also believe everything happens the way it was meant to happen. And I don't care if those two ideas contradict each other.”

Much of Hunter’s writing is an intellectual and spiritual working-through of these ideas. Assertions of individual will are interrupted by surrender to numinous whole. In a journal entry written in 2010, Hunter reflects on an atheistic spirituality—a belief that one’s spirit is not bound to the individual self and needn’t be seen as existing outside of the natural, the material. Hunter writes, “A favorite division among recovery groups is physical, emotional, spiritual. Ultimately, all of these things are physical, that is, there is no immaterial aspect to them…I do believe that the  spirit” far extends our understanding—and in the sense that time is fundamentally illusory, and that aspect of our psyche which is the spirit is an aspect which connects with the timeless aspects of existence, might even agree that it exists before we are born and is eternal. But it is only our spirit while we are living.” Hunter grew to understand death as a return to oneness with the always-there of the interconnected the universe, a mingling of basic elements which overtakes individuality and integrates us with the eternal-all. His poems map his growing belief in the mysterious connections between all matter, the awed conviction that “you are me/the ash is not the log, no,/but the heat diffuses like clouds/the filaments never leave the center”, that everything we have touched has existed from the beginning of time. The spirit radiating through Hunter’s work is the assertion that, as Wendell Berry writes, “I claim, and act, and am mingled in the fate of the world. Hunter found solace and meaning in the knowledge that everything we are, and touch, and experience was once joined  in a single dense point of energy, that “each tree in this forest/rises from a single system of roots that never/dies,” and that, linked in this way, we “only appear separate”, and “there is no such thing as being alone” (“The Idea of Order at No Place in Particular”). 

I miss Hunter profoundly, but I am eternally grateful that his work reminds me that we are never truly separated from each other. The links below contain the bulk of Hunter’s extant writing, sadly only a small portion of his entire body of work. I hope you enjoy visiting with him through his words. 

Links to Hunter’s Work

Hunter Deely Poems: Main Group 

Hunter Poems: Other Group

Hunter Prose

Peace and love to you, 

Linnea

[greatevent89]

Wedding Venues San Antonio | Hyatt Centric Mountain View

Discover the heart of Silicon Valley at Hyatt Centric Mountain View, located at the Village at San Antonio Center. Immerse yourself in the vibrant community, surrounded by diverse restaurants, retailers, and entertainment, including the adjacent Fairchilds Public House.

[citrine444]

character basics ⋅˚₊‧ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅

Abril Valdivia picked up her key from the front desk two months ago. The twenty-four year old uses she/her pronouns and is a Graduate Student and Tattoo Apprentice at Caos Tatoos on the Catalina from Tijuana, Mexico. According to her apartment application, people have told her she looksa lot like Andrea Chaparro and the character they identify with most is Eleanor Shellstrop from The Good Place. Santa Moneda gives you a warm welcome, and we hope you enjoy your stay. (sophie, 24, she/her, gmt - 8)

-- Basics

full name: abril valdivia-sosa

hometown: tijuana, mexico / san diego, ca

sexuality: (closeted) gay

birthday: april 9th

zodiac: aries sun, gemini moon, cancer rising

height: 5'6"

languages spoken: spanish, english

relationship status: single

traits: witty, creative, resourceful, protective, loyal, defensive

-- Background (tw death, addiction)

abril was born in tijuana, mx to loving parents maria elena and antonio. life in her formative years are remembered fondly, as she grew up with two supportive parents who offered her the best experiences they could. however, tragedy struck just days after turning eight, when abril unexpectedly lost her mother to a rare heart condition, leaving her and her father heartbroken.

abril's father, overcome with grief, sought solace in the pursuit of wealth and success for him and his only daughter. what began innocently with weekend trips to the casino soon escalated into an all-encompassing gambling addiction. his relentless pursuit kept him away from home for days on end, chasing one get-rich quick scheme after another.

as days turned into nights, her father's absence became routine for abril. with no siblings to rely on, abril was left to live with her ailing grandmother. working at the local laundromat, commissioning her doodles, performing chores for neighbors, and even seizing opportunities to pickpocket became her strategy for survival.

although not particularly fond of school, abril was encouraged by her grandmother to pass her classes in hopes of forging a new path for herself. a diploma meant a ticket out of the city that reminded her of her parents. years of mourning the loss of her mother in isolation, coupled with the neglect of her basic needs, led to the resentment towards her father for the choices he made a desire for a stable future. once she graduated high school, she attended university in san diego, ca. during her senior year of school, her grandmother passed away. she never got to see her graduate. even after receiving her degree, the city's proximity to her home town served as a constant reminder of the life she wanted to escape. she needed a fresh start.

following graduation, abril decided to pursue a graduate degree in psychology in a valparaíso. abril is determined to seize the opportunity for the new beginning she craved. however, years of maturing at an accelerated rate have set her up to make some reckless choices as a young adult with newfound freedom.

-- Personality

abril operates primarily in her self-interest, and her demeanor is marked by a sense of self-assuredness. she tends to be judgmental of others and their choices as she has a history of being let down by those she loves and trusts. her fear of commitment manifests in a tendency to engage in casual relationships, and her dry wit, though sharp, can be occasionally off-putting to those around her. despite these qualities, abril possess a scrappy resilience that has served her well. her loyalty to the people she loves is unwavering, and her street smarts make her a resourceful and trustworthy companion when things get hard.

-- Headcannons

loves art, doodles and paints in her spare time. sometimes she takes commissions from shop owners to add street art to the walls of their businesses.

tattoo apprentice

chases a good time (gimme one margarita)

loves astrology and crystals

is very financially conscious

has a cat named flora

commitment issues queen

-- Connections

short-lived romances: abril does have some, how do u say commitment issues. i'd love to see her forage an enemies-to-lovers type of situationship. enemies with benefits if u will.

the best friend from childhood: abril moved to chile after finding out a childhood best friend of hers lives here and is thriving. i'd love for her to have a connection with someone she can let her guard down around!

caos tattoos: u have been promoted ! any of her friends who work at this parlor that she practices tattooing, gossips with, or goes out to party with after her shift.

the unlikely duo (taken): it's hard to imagine abril in an established friend group, but i'd love to see her befriending someone with a sunnier personality! perhaps they bond over a shared love for art <3

shop owner (taken): someone to commission her to do street art on their building for tourists

queer girl romance (taken) &lt;3: abril's queerness is going to be something that she is going to explore now in the city (denile is a river in egypt). i'd love for there to be a queer woman or nb person in her life that she secretly adores and just can't seem to figure out why (she needs them biblically) .

[ubeerosophy]

Paths Might Have Made

The most frequent question I get asked as an Uber/Lyft driver is, “What’s the craziest drive you’ve ever done?” There are a few that stand out, but my mind generally goes all the way back to an incident that happened the first weekend I started driving.

Some quick context first…

When I initially heard about Uber and Lyft, or ridesharing as they are collectively called, I thought it sounded incredibly sketchy. The notion of getting in a complete stranger’s car and letting them take you somewhere just didn’t really jive with my skeptical and oft times paranoid way of thinking. Eventually I found out that my uncle was driving for Lyft down in San Antonio and it softened my perception a little. A few weeks or months later, I decided to go ahead and check it out as a passenger while going to a Brewer’s game in Milwaukee. The car was nice, and the driver was professional, so I shed the rest of my skepticism.

That summer I was planning a nearly two-week road trip with my then 13-year-old son, and while considering ways to finance it, my uncle threw out the option of a sign on bonus. If I drove for Lyft and accomplished so many drives within a certain amount of time, using my uncle’s referral code, we would both make several extra hundred dollars. I decided to give it a try, and the rest is history. I’ve done nearly 7,500 drives in going on 6 years. But I almost didn’t make it past the second day.

As a passenger you can set your ride for multiple stops. Perhaps you want to take your kid to school and then go back home after you drop them off, or maybe you want to stop by the gas station for coffee on your way to work. When the ride comes through on the driver’s end, we can see that before we even accept or deny the request. The first time I encountered multiple stops was on this particular drive.

The initial pick up was at the public library downtown, and the passenger was not happy. She had a toddler on her side and was waving her phone in my direction. As she got in the back seat, she informed me that she had been attempting to call me. I can’t remember what the issue was as far as why she was allegedly trying to get a hold of me, but I politely informed her that no calls had come through on my end. Agitated, she looked out the window and I notified the app that she was in my car. I was to take her to Walmart, and then somewhere else. Home I’m assuming.

When we got to Walmart, she told me that it would only take a minute, so I said I would wait just past the entrance with my hazard lights on. It didn’t take just a minute. I sat awkwardly near the front of an extremely busy Walmart for I’m guessing at least 20 to 30 minutes. When she finally came out, she still had her child on her hip and approached the back seat. I always offer to help people load and unload groceries, but this was my first experience with the whole concept, so I just waited. If I remember right, it was only a small box and single sack.

At some point, as the woman was standing outside the back seat on the passenger side, a young lady from a group of people that had been standing nearby recognized her and walked over. I couldn’t see their faces or hear what they were saying, but I assumed that they were just friends or acquaintances. After a couple of moments, a skirmish broke out and they very rapidly moved around to the other side of the car. A Walmart employee that was in close proximity began moving toward the scene in an attempt to break it up and I grabbed my door handle to exit the car. The assailant took off and I have no recollection of where she went or even what direction she took off in. The passenger’s lip was split open and bleeding, and her wig was barely connected, hanging down well past her shoulders. As I continued to take in the scene, I noticed that a birthday cake she had apparently been in the process of placing in my car had fallen out of its box and gotten icing all over the blacktop, back seat and floorboard. The most shocking aspect of the entire incident, however, was that through it all her child had been on her hip.

The woman was clearly and understandably shaken up and the police were called. I don’t remember or know that I ever knew who called them. Presumably the victim or the Walmart employee. I had no idea what I was supposed to do, but it didn’t take long for several officers to show up. After speaking to the woman, one of them came up to me and said I might as well take off because it was going to be a while. I placed the woman’s items in a cart, wheeled them into her and then drove away.

When I try to glean some kind of meaning out of the whole thing, the closest I get is to think about how different my life would’ve been for the past six years had I let that experience scare me away from doing Uber and Lyft. It would’ve changed everything. My occupation. My schedule. My acquaintances. It would’ve changed my life. It was a side gig for several years, but these days I do it full time. The flexibility is hard to beat, and I love how it’s always something different. New places and new faces. Still, it really is amazing to me that I continued to do it after having had that happen right out of the gate. I’m glad I did, because overall its been a positive experience. I’m sure as far as that particular incident goes we could discuss what might’ve led up to that moment outside of Walmart, or maybe even find a way to apply human nature and ethics in general, but this particular post was more just for entertainment value. People love to ask me about crazy things that have happened to me as a driver.

I’ve had many sketchy or perplexing experiences over the past several years as a driver, and hopefully we’ll get to most of them in this blog, but I figured that was a good one to start with. The original. The mother of all my enthralling Uber and Lyft tales.

The UBeerOsopher

And now…a haiku:

it is one moment when without warmth or warning the winds of change blow

“But how could you live and have no story to tell?” ~ Fyodor Dostoevsky

[babydin]

ONE FOR SORROW: Synopsis & Characters

Plot is just rough for now while I get an idea of interest, I will write it up properly when I write it up properly! Comments are appreciated, I’d love to know if people will actually be interested in reading this! Alternatively I have a poll running HERE so you can vote if this is something you wanna read or not.  WARNINGS: Horror themes, grief, thoughts of suicide, character death, death in childbirth.

BASIC PLOT

Sarah’s mother died in childbirth. It was violent and horrifying.

Joel raised Sarah with a little help from Tommy until she was 4 when he met Birdie Melancon at an open mic night.

They had a one night-stand in a motel and married 2 years later.

Sarah died the day after her 12th birthday. While playing in the yard she stepped on a nail; Joel pulled it out and cleaned her and patched her up, but bacteria entered her bloodstream quickly and a post mortem determined that septic shock shut down her organs overnight. He blames himself.

Since Sarah’s death Joel has been in and out of therapy to silence thoughts of suicide and try and help with the nightmares.

On what would’ve been Sarah’s 20th birthday, Joel receives a package containing a taxidermy raven skull. Soon after the skull takes place in the house, Joel’s nightmares get worse and he starts hearing things around the house and he’s pretty sure he’s seeing things too.

CHARACTERS (headcanons present)

Joel Miller LOOKS LIKE: Pedro Pascal AGE: 48 Born in Austin, Texas to an American father and a Latina mother. Eldest of two boys. Fiercely proud of his Latino heritage. Works as a freelance carpenter and contractor with his brother. Whittles in his spare time. Loves to cook. Strums a guitar when he’s feeling thoughtful, or sad. Enjoys baths. The grief has worn him down but underneath his weather beaten exterior is a soft center that longs to be held. You know who he is.

Birdie Mavis Miller LOOKS LIKE: Meagan Good AGE: 42 Born in Henderson, Nevada and raised in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Birdie is the oldest of six children. She met Joel at an open mic night in San Antonio, where she was singing. He asked her where she was from before he asked her name, and for the longest time he called her Nevada. She is strong willed and kind, determined and passionate, unapologetically loud about things she is emotional about. Hopelessly romantic but pretends she isn’t. Lover of the macabre. She works as a sales assistant in a record store until she can get her ‘big break’ as a singer.

Melissa Sarah Miller LOOKS LIKE: Logan Browning Melissa was Joel’s first wife. They married young and Melissa fell pregnant with Sarah by accident after a previously failed pregnancy; the fetus died in utero at around 26 weeks and Melissa was induced. It was 3 years after that that Melissa announced her pregnancy and it was far from the happy occasion it ought to have been. It wasn’t until after the 26 week mark that they started to get excited. During labor, Melissa suffered eclampsia, which caused placental abruption. Sarah was delivered safely but Melissa was losing more blood than they could supply her with and it ultimately lead to her death.

Sarah Ines Miller LOOKS LIKE: NICO PARKER Sarah was raised by Joel and her Uncle Tommy for the first four years of her life. She was a happy child who loved music and movies, and her father very much. She rarely cried and Joel always said it was because she’d already experienced the worst pain imaginable in losing her mom. She was wise beyond her years and had a lot of compassion for her local community. She died after stepping on a rusty nail on her 12th birthday.

Tess “Puck” Anderson LOOKS LIKE: Hilarie Burton-Morgan Tess is Joel’s therapist. He has never once called her by her real name; He had nicknamed her Puck because she's like a mischievous woodland sprite, and she always has ways of getting him to open up. She never manipulates him she just does her job and she’s good at it.

[lastedqz]

[ kat graham ] – have you heard about [ kourt stone ]? [ she/her ] lives at the qz. i think they’ve lived there for [ eighteen years ]. they’re [ thirty ] yrs old and seem very [ nurturing ]. i’ve also heard they can be very [ assertive ] as well. they’ve been assigned as a [ nurse ]. they often daydream about [ drinking a mimosa on the beach ]. i’m curious to know more. | vi. cst. she/her.

BASICS - 

name: kourt stone

age: thirty-two

birthday: june 14th

zodiac sign: gemini

birthplace: san antonio, texas

age at outbreak: 9

job: barn manager

siblings: MIA (presumed dead)

positive: quick-witted, inquisitive, dauntless, resilient, adaptable, adroit, ardent, magnetic

negative: assertive, abrasive, deceitful, opinionated, spiteful, treacherous, easily angered, resentful,

children: N/A

FUN FACTS - tw: mention of death

kourt grew up on a ranch in san antonio texas, with 2 brothers and 2 sisters.

growing up surrounded by family, she took after her MD mother and began helping her aid her siblings sicknesses and injuries whenever they happened— quickly growing to love the science of medicine.

as she planned for her future, everything fell into place with her making the decision to become a doctor and own her own private doctors office, hoping to help those in need. all of those plan came to a grinding halt once she turned on the news to find out the world had stopped.

when the outbreak happened, her family got separated so she ran with her little sister to find sanctuary somewhere.

they both bounced from group to group, learning different skills like fishing, hunting, archery. they were still both very young so when raids/attacks happened at the groups they learned very quickly to become as stealthy as possible to avoid being killed.

when kourt was 14, their camp in ohio was attacked and she had to fight while her sister went to hide. when they won, she went to tell her sister the good news but could not find her. she spent days trying to find her sister, along with the rest of the camp, but after 2 weeks she was presumed dead.

heartbroken, kourt left that group after causing a scene and inciting a war within the camp that left most of them dead.

that’s when she found the pittsburgh qz, and has been tending to the wounded ever since.

elena has RAGINGGGGGG trust issues because she never wants to love anyone like she loved her sister— because she’s gone.

she spends her time at the bar when she’s not at work, or flirting with the men in the alley just because she’s bored.

she comes off as sweet, but has a BAAAAAD mean streak if you get her to that point.

she’s almost always at least 3 shots in and loves to give unsolicited advice when she’s drunk.

she does not trust fedra but keeps her comments to herself because of what she caused at her last camp. (they weren’t fedra, she just caused a lot of people to fight by spreading lies)

she’s vindictive, and she’ll get even no matter the cost. if you cross her, she’ll make it her mission to get you back one way or another.

AFTER PITTS -

coming very soon hehe

wanted connections

SIBLINGS - younger sister preferably but any will do

someone from her last camp that survived (this would be v cool)

ex love (someone she fell for at the qz)

friends with benefits

someone she has a crush on but they don’t know yet

enemies (for any reasons)

platonic soulmates

[stylishdemon]

How to survive in a post Nuclear War

-A Journal By StylishDemon[Part -1]

26/9/2023

It was just an any other normal night with one expection being my birthday, I was never really such of a party person.

As usual I was warming up my bed so that it won't feel cold at night, as I get up to chug in some water so to clam my churning stomach..."BOOM"

My ever so seemingly strong roof crumbles down, "Wtf man!?" Suppressing my surprised tone, a huge wave of air as if released from a hot oven bursts through the huge hole and gifts me with first and second degree burns.

"Ahhh!!" Fortunately, the full sleeves struck on my body saved most parts of the skin however the bare structures immediately become red with light swelling.

"Water! I need a cold shower!!"

Scrambling my way in now ruined house I swung open the refrigerator's freezer then broke the bulked up ices, "Haa... haaa...!"

'What's happening!?'

I was fast, at least my hands were, the premonition I felt was no good. Quickly unlocking the vibrating phone with messages I read a few.

[Emergency! An nuclear explosion has occurred in several places including San Antonio! New York! Chicago! Los Angeles! Survivors are recommend to stay hidden...]

'There is no time!'

As a student of major from science, I was fully aware of the seriousness.

The time was clocking out, moving my weak limbs I dressed myself with a trecking suit, "I can't stay here for too long..."

It wasn't just dangerous, one would die if were to stay more than 10-15 min out in the air after a nuclear explosion.

Grabbing whatever left on my emergency medi kit, I stuffed the few rations left inside my jacket and the rest into a nearby backpack.

"Let's head to the basement!"

"It's dangerous to stay out on the open! Follow me to the underground basement with whatever you could grab!!!"

On the way, I yelled at the people of my apartment but only a handful of them were in their right mind to listen my words.

The rest were too dazed or too panicked for acting at present, with no help to be done I shut off the basement shutters then tightly locked them with heavy structures that could be found here.

The survivors with me were too stunned for a rationalizing thinking, as the five of us huddle together in the darkest chamber.

I fell asleep due to mental and emotional exhaustion.

[newstfionline]

Tuesday, March 7, 2023

Miami faith community strains to help new exiles, migrants (AP) A few days after selling all she had to flee Cuba with her three children on a crowded boat, Daneilis Tamayo raised her hand in praise and sang the rousing opening hymn at Sunday worship in this Miami suburb. “The only thing that gave me strength is the Lord. I’m not going to lose my faith, whatever I might go through,” she said later, sitting on a mattress in one of Iglesia Rescate’s classrooms. She and her children, ages 16, 8 and 3, have been sleeping in the church’s improvised shelter since the promises of help made by her contact in the United States turned out to be “all lies.” In the past 18 months, an estimated 250,000 migrants and asylum-seekers like Tamayo have arrived in the Miami area after being granted only precarious legal status. It often doesn’t include permission to work, which is essential to building new lives in the U.S. The influx is maxing out the migrant social safety net even in Miami’s faith communities. Miami’s faith leaders and their congregations remain steadfast in their mission to help settle new migrants. But they’re sounding the alarm that the need is growing unmanageable—and could get worse without federal reforms providing permanent legal status and work permits.

4 Americans kidnapped in northern Mexico, officials say (AP) Four U.S. citizens have been kidnapped after gunmen opened fire on their vehicle in the northern Mexico border city of Matamoros, the FBI said. The four had entered Matamoros, across from Brownsville, Texas, on Friday and were travelling in a white minivan with North Carolina license plates. The FBI San Antonio Division office said in a statement Sunday that the vehicle came under fire shortly after it entered Mexico. “All four Americans were placed in a vehicle and taken from the scene by armed men,” the office said. The FBI is offering a $50,000 reward for the return of the victims and the arrest of the culprits.

A generation of Venezuelan children know only struggles (AP) Valerie Torres’ mother has tried to shield her from the worst of Venezuela’s protracted crisis—the deadly protests, the sick people begging for help, the malnourished children with protruding ribs. At school, her teachers don’t even broach the subject. But just shy of her 10th birthday this month, the girl is perceptive beyond her years. She knows her fourth-grade classmate lied to their teacher saying he forgot a book at home when in fact he was still saving up to buy it; that neighbors, friends and even her grandmother have all fled the country in search of a better life; that her mother is bringing home fewer groceries. Valerie is part of a generation of Venezuelan children who know only a country in crisis, whose lives so far have been spent amid hardship and under the government of a single president, Nicolás Maduro, who took the reins a decade ago Sunday when his mentor, Hugo Chávez, died of cancer.

Unions vow to shut France’s economy down amid pension battle (AP) Roads blocked, oil refineries disrupted, planes grounded and trains halted—unions are threatening to shut down France’s economy this week in what they hope is their toughest riposte yet to President Emmanuel Macron’s plan to raise the retirement age. The first actions are expected Monday, as truckers are being urged to block major highway arteries and interchanges in go-slow actions dubbed “escargot” operations. Unions plan an open-ended strike on the national rail service starting Monday evening. The government is bracing for the biggest disruptions Tuesday, when strikes are expected across multiple sectors and protests are planned in cities across France against the retirement bill. The reform, which would raise the official pension age from 62 to 64 and require 43 years of work to earn a full pension, is currently under debate in parliament.

Russia’s population nightmare (Economist) A demographic tragedy is unfolding in Russia. Over the past three years the country has lost around 2m more people than it would ordinarily have done, as a result of war, disease and exodus. The life expectancy of Russian males aged 15 fell by almost five years, to the same level as in Haiti. The number of Russians born in April 2022 was no higher than it had been in the months of Hitler’s occupation. And because so many men of fighting age are dead or in exile, women outnumber men by at least 10m. War is not the sole—or even the main—cause of these troubles but it has made them all worse. According to Western estimates, 175,000-200,000 Russian soldiers have been killed or wounded over the past year (Russia’s own figures are lower). Somewhere between 500,000 and 1m mostly young, educated people have evaded the meat grinder by fleeing abroad. Even if Russia had no other demographic problems, losing so many in such a short time would be painful. As it is, the losses of war are placing more burdens on a shrinking, ailing population. Russia may be entering a doom loop of demographic decline.

In liberated Ukraine city, civilians still pay price of war (AP) In this war-scarred city in Ukraine’s northeast, residents scrutinize every step for land mines. Behind closed doors, survivors wait in agony for the bodies of loved ones to be identified. The hunt for collaborators of the not-so-long ago Russian occupation poisons tightly-knit communities. This is life in Izium, a city on the Donets River in the Kharkiv region that was retaken by Ukrainian forces in September, but still suffers the legacy of six months of Russian occupation. Ukrainian civilians were tortured, disappeared and were arbitrarily detained. Mass graves with hundreds of bodies have been discovered and entire neighborhoods were destroyed in the fighting. Izium is a gruesome reminder of the human cost of the war. Six months after it was liberated, residents say they continue to pay the price. In this city, everyone has a mine story: Either they stepped on one and lost a limb or know someone who did. The mines are discovered daily, concealed along riverbanks, on roads, in fields, on the tops of roofs, in trees. “We have an average of one person a week with wounds” from mines, Dr. Yurii Kuzentsov said. “I don’t know when I will ever go to the river or the forest again, even if our lives are restored, because, as a medical professional, I have seen the consequences.”

A month after quake, survivors need shelter, sanitation (AP) One month after a powerful quake devastated parts of Turkey and Syria, hundreds of thousands of people still need adequate shelter and sanitation, and an appeal for $1 billion to assist survivors is only 10% funded, hampering efforts to tackle the humanitarian crisis, a United Nations official said Monday. The Feb. 6 earthquake and strong aftershocks have killed more than 46,000 people in Turkey, destroyed or damaged around 230,000 buildings and left hundreds of thousands of people homeless—making it the worst disaster in Turkey’s modern history. The U.N. estimates that the earthquake killed around 6,000 people in Syria, mainly in the rebel-held northwest. About 2 million survivors have been housed in temporary accommodation or evacuated from the earthquake-devastated region, according to Turkish government figures. Around 1.5 million people have been settled in tents while another 46,000 have been moved to container houses. Others are living in dormitories and guesthouses, the government said.

Bathhouses in Asia are in hot water (Washington Post) For almost 75 years, Tokyo’s Daikokuyu has been a community establishment where locals strip off, wash away the dirt and grime of everyday life, and then have a long soak together in big overflowing tubs. Generations of Japanese frequented their neighborhood bathhouses, sweating shoulder to shoulder in spirit of a tradition called hadaka no tsukiai, or “naked communion.” Now, bathhouses face a new, double existential crisis: Many bathhouses struggled or closed during the covid pandemic only then to be hit with huge heating bills, thanks to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. “The past few months have really been unbelievable,” said Daikokuyu’s third-generation owner Takuya Shinbo. With record low temperatures hitting Tokyo this past winter, he had to shoulder more than double last year’s cost to keep the water warm through cold nights. Daikokuyu’s monthly gas bill has more than doubled—from just over $5,000 in January last year to more than $12,000 in January this year. Compared to hard-hit European countries, Japan and Korea have seen relatively small hikes in energy prices resulting from the war in Ukraine, but the increased bills remain a daunting obstacle for already struggling bathhouse businesses in both countries.

South Korea Exporting Billions in Arms (NYT) A year after Russia invaded Ukraine, the war has spurred a global effort to produce more missiles, tanks, artillery shells and other munitions. And few countries have moved as quickly as South Korea to increase output. Last year, South Korea’s arms exports rose 140 percent to a record $17.3 billion, including deals worth $12.4 billion to sell ​tanks, ​howitzers, ​fighter jets and multiple rocket launchers to Poland, one of Ukraine’s closest allies. But as South Korea expands weapons sales globally, it has refused to send lethal assistance to Ukraine itself. Instead, it has focused on filling the world’s rearmament gap while resisting any direct role in arming Ukraine, imposing strict export control rules on all its sales. South Korea’s wariness stems in part from its reluctance to openly antagonize Moscow, from which it hopes for cooperation in imposing new sanctions against an increasingly belligerent North Korea. Countries throughout Latin America, Israel and others have also declined to send weapons directly to Ukraine.

Afghan women, divorced and remarried, now considered outlaws under Taliban rule (Washington Post) After her stepfather sold her into marriage at the age of 13 to support his drug habit, the young Afghan woman fought for years to escape an abusive husband. She eventually fled his home, secured a divorce and remarried, she recalled. Now, under Taliban rule, she’s suddenly on the run again, at risk of imprisonment for adultery. Under the previous government, this woman from western Afghanistan could get a divorce by testifying that her first husband was physically abusive, even though he refused to appear before the judge. But under the Taliban’s draconian interpretation of Islamic law, her divorce is invalid and, as a result, so is her second marriage. Former judges and lawyers estimate that thousands of Afghan women who earlier secured divorces without a husband’s consent are now in danger under Taliban rule, facing potential imprisonment and violent reprisals.

Lebanon adopts ‘dollarization’ as currency, economy crumble (AP) With the Lebanese economy in shambles and its currency in free fall, small businesses spend much of their time trying to keep up with a fluctuating exchange rate. Now they are increasingly leaning on one of the world’s most reliable assets—the U.S. dollar—as a way to cope with the worst financial crisis in its modern history. The Lebanese pound has lost 95% in value since late 2019, and now most restaurants and many stores are demanding to be paid in dollars. The government recently began allowing grocery stores to start doing the same. While this “dollarization” aims to ease inflation and stabilize the economy, it also threatens to push more people into poverty and deepen the crisis. That’s because few in Lebanon have access to dollars to pay for food and other essentials priced that way. But endemic corruption means political and financial leaders are resisting the alternative to dollarization: long-term reforms to banks and government agencies that would end wasteful spending and jump-start the economy.

A new generation of Palestinian fighters is rising up in the West Bank (Washington Post) A Palestinian militant named Mohammad Abu Dhraa strode boldly through this city’s roughest refugee camp last week with an assault rifle on his shoulder, an entourage of young men following in his path. The day before, Abu Dhraa had taken part in an hours-long gun battle with Israeli soldiers who raided Nablus’s city center, one of the deadliest confrontations here in years. Fighters like Abu Dhraa are not tied to a party or a political ideology. But they have easy access to guns and are committed to the fight. In their youth and independence, they represent a new kind of threat—not only to Israel but to an ever-weaker Palestinian Authority, run by unelected men in their 70s and 80s. In earlier generations, Palestinian political factions ran the brigades during street fighting against Israel. Now, cells of teenagers and young men in their early 20s from the neighborhood are calling the shots. It has been nearly 20 years since the last Palestinian intifada, or uprising. And while the dynamics have changed, observers say, the fundamentals are the same—occupation, despair and relentless violence. Across the West Bank, “the widespread public frustration and desperation is there” for another Palestinian uprising, said Tahani Mustafa, an expert with the International Crisis Group. “I think it’s going to be a lot bloodier, far more diffused, far more fragmented.”