#but may still try to make the peacock ones later

[candlewitches]

once again considering learning how to solder jewelry

[twisted-wonderland-shenanigans]

Twisted Monsterland: Messy Toddlers

Little kids can always cause a mess, whether it’s with paint, markers, food, or dirt and mud. It’s a fact of life, and while a hassle to clean up, it can be fun!

So what happens when you have a tiny human living amongst the monsters in Twisted Wonderland who tends to get messy? How about we take a look at some of the dorms and see!

//At Savanaclaw//

Mini!Yuu: *playing in a mud puddle, singing random things as they smoosh and stir the mud with their hands*

Grim: “What’cha doin’, Yuu?”

Mini!Yuu: “Makin’ mud pies for everyone!” *pulls out clumps of grass before sprinkling it over the mud pile* “Time to add the sprinkles~!”

Grim: “What a waste of perfectly good grass…”

Ruggie: *walking up to the two* “There you are, Bugaboo. What’cha playing with this time?”

Mini!Yuu: “I made a mud pie!” *scoops up the pile, globs falling onto their clothing as they hold it up to him* “Try some!”

Ruggie: “Oooh, looks pretty tasty.” *pretends to get a piece and chews, grinning as he gives a thumbs up*”"Mmm…perfect blend of flavors, though you might wanna ease up on the seasoning. Shishishishi~!”

Mini!Yuu: “Hooray!”

Ruggie: “Wouldja look at the time? It’s almost time for you to head back to the teachers, and you’re a mess.” *hoists them into his arms* “Come on, it’s bath time.”

//At Diasomnia//

Mini!Yuu: *playing with finger paints on a canvas*

Lilia: “I’ll be right back, little one. Silver? Would you keep an eye on the little one while I’m gone?”

Silver: “Of course, father.”

*ten minutes later*

Lilia: “I’m back.” *pauses before snorting, smiling at the sight of Silver asleep on the couch with paint on his face and tusks* “My, my. Had I known you needed a bigger canvas, I could have gotten a white tarp for the floor.” *glances over at Malleus before bursting out laughing* “Oh! It looks like you two are having fun.”

Malleus: *sitting nearby with mini!Yuu standing on his lap, painting his horns with bright colorful flowers* “The Child of Man wished to do face painting.”

Mini!Yuu: *has paint on their face that looks like scales and sticky fake stones on their forehead like Malleus’* “I’m making Mr. Horns feel pretty!”

Lilia: “So you are, little one. And what are you supposed to be?”

Mini!Yuu: “Silver made me look like a dragon, just like Mr. Horns! Rawr!”

Lilia: “And a mighty little dragon you are~!”

//At Pomefiore//

Mini!Yuu: *scribbling on a wall in the hallway with a pen they found, singing a happy song as they’re drawing swirls*

Epel: *comes across Yuu and yelps* “Yuu, no! What are you doing?!”

Mini!Yuu: *startled* “Drawing?”

Epel: “Oh no…oh no, Vil is going to throw a fit if he sees this!”

Vil: “If I see…what?”

Epel: “Ack!?”

Rook: “Ooh, it looks like mon chou is showing their creative spirit!”

Mini!Yuu: *nervously looks between the wall and Vil’s stern stare* “Am…I in trouble?”

Vil: *hums for a moment before kneeling down, pulling out his own pen* “Your form is good, though perhaps we can add a little something to this one.”

Mini!Yuu: “What?”

Vil: “I’m thinking…leaves would be a good start.” *begins drawing, creating beautiful shapes following the swirl that get bigger and bigger* “What else should we add to it?”

Mini!Yuu: “Mmm…flowers!”

Vil: “Very well. Will you help me draw them?”

Epel: *staring wide eyed between them and Rook as the two continue drawing, leaning in to whisper to Rook* “Am…am I dreaming? Vil would have gone bonkers if any of us ruined the walls!”

Rook: “Ah, but why stifle the creativity of our little mon chu when they are clearly expressing their individuality? Even Roi du Poison sees the beauty in this.” *goes to kneel next to them, pulling out his own pen* “May I join in?”

Epel: “…huh.”

(Later, the art is still on the wall, a mix of child-like drawings mixed with elegant and fun pictures depicting rabbits, apples, and a peacock)

//At Heartslabyul//

Mini!Yuu: *sitting on a stool, watching Trey mixing dough into balls for bread and trying to mimic him with their own ball of dough*

Trey: “Oh, I need to get the butter out of the fridge. Sit tight, okay?” *dusts hands off and goes over to the fridge*

Mini!Yuu: *hums as they look at the one they’re working on* “Mmm…needs more flour!” *reaches for the bag of flour, trying to lift it up*

POMF!!

Mini!Yuu: *coughs as they’re covered in flour, the bag on the ground and the counter coated in flour*

Trey: “Huh?? Pfft…I should have known something like this would happen.” *reaches out to pat away some of the dusty flour* “Guess when we’re finished baking, it’s bath time again.”

//----------//

That’s all I can think of off the top of my head, but these are just some cute things that came to mind~

The Pomefiore part was actually based on this one post I came across, though I could only find the pictures. While I had initially thought of it happening at Heartslabyul or even Scarabia…I just got soft thinking of Vil indulging mini!Yuu and helping to create good art QvQ/)

[ninadove]

Hello, all respectfully, may I ask, why do you want emilie to be dead? I mean adrien deserves to have his mom back, don’t you think? You can answer it thru private chat if it makes you more comfortable.

No that’s perfectly fine! I love getting a chance to overanalyse and write down my own thoughts! 📝

So, I have a complicated relationship with Emilie as a character, but I don’t hate her by any means. I do believe she is a lot less pure and innocent than we were first led to believe, but that makes her much more compelling, so as far as I’m concerned it’s a great writing choice.

The reason I think she should be dead, or more accurately, stay dead (the nuance is crucial), is simply storytelling.

As fun as the show is, it is also pretty serious when it wants to be, and these 5 seasons were written with a couple of core messages in mind:

Part of the experience of being human is to accept that there is no magical solution to our problems. Sometimes things don’t work out, sometimes we lose the people we care about; and actions bring consequences, always. This is why using the Peacock carries such a heavy toll, even after it is fixed, and why the Lucky Charm primarily relies on Marinette’s intelligence and creativity (characteristically human qualities) rather than being an automatic problem solver.

Whenever these losses occur — you have to move on. Staying stuck in the past means depriving yourself of a chance to enjoy the present and plan for the future. All of the events of these 5 seasons were triggered by Gabriel’s inability to accept the concept of death, and by his attempts to drag all of Paris down the pits of grief (symbolised by the akuma attacks) with him — starting with his own son.

Of course, Adrien deserves to be happy and loved! And Emilie herself explains how it can happen:

By letting her go.

Adrien is an extremely strong and loving kid who, unlike his father, is able to shoulder the pain while still opening himself up to the world. Gabriel trying to bring Emilie back did nothing to fix the sorrow his son had to deal with; in fact, it cost him his other parent and a normal childhood in the process.

But the thing is — Adrien does not need Emilie anymore.

He has a girlfriend who loves him so much she gave his dad one last chance to make the right choice, despite all the pain he caused (and will likely continue to cause from the grave). He has a cousin who loves him so much he was willing to burn the world down, then help fix it to protect him. He has amazing friends who supported him through this entire ordeal (special shout-out to Nino, who has been on Gabriel’s case since S1 E9), even when he did not feel comfortable enough to share the full extent of the abuse he was going through. He has Amelie and Nathalie, who will provide him with the motherly love he needs in his life, and Tom and Sabine, who are already packing him his breakfast every morning because they’ve carved him a place in their family and hearts. Also, he has a cheese-eating demon who lives in his pocket.

No one is entitled to raising the dead, and Adrien would never even consider it. But he does deserve love and care and happiness, things his father deprived him of in his senseless quest to defy the laws of nature — things he was able to build for himself because he chose to be kind and vulnerable despite his grief.

Season 6 will be terrible on him, but he will come back stronger on the other side. And in doing so, he will send an important message to the core audience of the show: young children who will sooner or later have to mourn a loved one themselves, but will know they can be OK thanks to his example.

And you know, sometimes us adults need a little reminder too. 💚

[princess-of-the-corner]

Miraculous Gaang

So, General rambling.

1.) So like. My general idea for the Peacock was just that Sozin grabbed a Miraculous to use to sort of “prove his point”, but made a giant senti that went nuts, and he and Roku had to fight it. But, of course, Sozin leaves Roku to die, and runs off after the other miraculous (or tries to). The Peacock Miraculous breaks during this, so Sozin can’t use it without harming himself. He still keeps it, trying to figure out how to fix it, and warning his kids about it. Ozai eventually gives it to his “Mayura��� conveniently leaving out that detail, cause what does he care? (This is where the initial “Azula as Mayura” idea came from, but like. I feel like Azula would be smart enough to go “Ok, you haven’t been using it this whole time for a REASON, I am sceptical of your motivations for handing me this.”)

Zhao absolutely works, though who’s your “Avatar!Ty Lee” OC?

-

Ozai getting the Butterfly, was like (broad strokes). So, Gyatso has spent YEARS hiding the Miraculous, but he’s beginning to feel like maybe hiding away isn’t the BEST idea? And he meets someone who really wants to help people, so he convinces himself to lend out the Butterfly. This results in a chain of events that end with this person dying, the Butterfly getting “lost”, and 3-year-old Aang being orphaned. Gyatso ends up adopting Aang, cause he doesn’t have anyone else, and tries to keep a low profile, while also keeping a vague eye out for the Butterfly. I’m not sure if the Butterfly gets “lost” because it was stolen, like either Azulon caused all the drama to steal it, or if it ACTUALLY got lost, and Azulon found it later. Then, like, part of Ozai scheming to kill his dad is because he finds out the old man has the Butterfly, and Ozai wants it. Iroh would be unaware of all of this, focusing on his family, and trying to leave the whole “Hunting Reality Warping Objects Of Power” behind.

2.) Not sure how well this works, but when I tried to envision the Gaang as Heroes, only Zuko was actually wearing a mask, the rest had face paint. Cause I was cross-referencing with the show, and besides Zuko, most of the time, when these kids want to hide their identities, they wear face paint. So, I thought, like. A combo of eye-coverings, masks, face paint? Like.

Zuko’s mask apes the “Blue Spirit” one he wore in the show, but red and gold. His hero outfit is a bit “Fire Nation”-y.

Sokka has a mask, but it covers most of his head, but more “hood” style? His lower face is visible.

Katara has the “Painted Lady” make-up.

Suki has the Kyoshi Warrior face-paint, but snake influenced. Stuff like that.

Oddly attached to Tiger!Toph having eye coverings that are basically a fancy blindfold.

Also names! Names have been knocking around my head, but I only have a few! 

Also also! I’m just going to REALLY lean into my headcanon that the Miraculous weapons are magic and so (within reason) are a bit malleable, and can change a bit to suit the wielder. This is variable, and you may feel free to disregard this portion! Also, as always, open to suggestions!

Ladybug!Sokka - honestly, I feel like “Captain” should be in there somewhere, but not sure. So far, I’ve got “Captain Harmonia” based on Harmonia axyridis, which is a large variety of ladybeetle, also commonly called a harlequin beetle. “Captain Harlequin” could also work, I guess? Costume, Lord Beetle crossed with Water Tribe armor? Oh, and an on running joke that his “Lucky Charms” are either Macgyvre-esque nonsense, or a boomerang. He gets boomerang a LOT. Eventually, he just starts carrying one with him everywhere. Tikki shows him how to make a magic one.

Black Cat!Katara - name, again, got very little. “Panther” something feels appropriate, but also, enh? Are there cats that LIKE swimming? Like. All I really got was “Painted Panther”. Costume … yeah, I got nothing. Also, on weapons, Katara’s water bending manifested a lot as whips, so I feel her staff should have a “cat-o-nine-tails” mode.

Turtle!Aang - Lion Turtle. His hero name should be Lion Turtle. Mostly cause I have zero other ideas. I’m thinking his season 3 monk look, but with sleeves, for his costume, with a hood, maybe some goggles? Weapon … So like. He HAS to have a shield, but I’m really attached to Aang’s glider, so. Is there a way to combine those, you think?

Snake!Suki - um. First thing I thought of was Diamondback? Not sure how well that works … Teal Mamba? Ok, Black Mamba’s are super poisonous, but Teal Mamba sounds silly. Kyoshi Warrior, but like. A bit more form-fitting. Face-paint, and Snake eyes. Weapon is her fans, or if makes a bit more sense, the harp can have a chakram mode.

Tiger!Toph - honestly, first thing that popped into my head was “the Blind Tiger”. Costume a take on her in-show outfit, but with a tail, Kitty ears, and a fancy blindfold. Only one who I don’t see the weapon changing, maybe just giving her some awesome boots, but would she have Clout, Invisibility, or eventually both? Is that her arc, learning to both be seen, but also to hide?

Dragon!Zuko - Name, uncertain? Like, “Blue Spirit” is an actual alias he had in the show, but “Blue Dragon” sounds odd. “Druk” is what he names his ACTUAL dragon, but I see that as his pet iguana. He DOES have a version of the Blue Spirit mask, though, as part of his costume. The sword can easily be the two dao swords he actually uses.

Fox!Azula - uh. Yeah, for Azula I have. Basically nothing. My girl, I am failing you, I am so sorry.

Rabbit!Yue - “Chang'e” is apparently the name of the moon spirit in Chinese folklore, that gets equated with the Moon Rabbit, but I’m not sure how that feels as a name? Got basically nothing for you either, Yue, my darling, forgive me.

Pig!Jin - also nothing here.

Bee!Ty Lee - or for you.

Mouse!Mai - or you, really, my brain is failing all of you.

Other people! Figured out who could be drafted into this if we needed other Miraculous users!

Ox!Haru - Haru, the earthbending guy the Gaang saved from that prison on the water? Katara gave a big speech, but everyone was apathetic, and then later they gave him a dumb moustache.

Monkey!Kuzon - Aang’s friend from the Fire Nation before it all went to hell! Here, he’s Aang’s only real friend before Aang starts going to school! 

Horse!Teo - the kid in the wheelchair, who’s dad made him the glider, so his kid could fly? I like the idea of the wheelchair transforming with Teo, so he’s got some kind of insane ride.

-

1.) Okay so my one note is that I think Ozai getting the Butterfly should be more recent. I don’t think he would’ve waited

Also the OC! She’s uh. Actually her name is funny because I chose Noriko completely forgetting that got used in the comics for Ursa’s new identity and I thought about renaming her but the name’s stuck.

I made her initially for the Avatar!Ty Lee AU because since Azula joined the Gaang, I needed someone to fill the roles she had in Canon re: the major antagonist for Book 2 and a side-threat in Book 3.

But she’s. I say ‘Nathalie but more unhinged and evil’ but she’s literally the Harley to Ozai’s Joker(yes that’s a joke on his VA). She matches his freak in being a power hungry asshole down to murder. Like her introduction is saying ‘wow I can’t wait to kick off my honeymoon with the execution of my traitorous step-children!’.

2.) Actually I really like this idea of everyone having various facepaint for masks. And Zuko having a proper mask makes sense because he still has his scar, so he’d feel like face paint wouldn’t really hide his identity as well.

The rest of the notes on outfits are great!

Haru can work, as can Teo. Kuzon is debatable in the sense of like. We don’t ever really get to see him in canon so idk how to handle him.

[clock-06]

Is it midterms week? Yes. Has the idea and dynamic of Nathalie, Gabriel, and Emilie from Mircaulous, especially as it relates to my fic, just absolutely devoured my every waking thought? Also yes. So at the advice of a friend, I’ve set a thirty minute timer to get all this out on tumblr. I may hit the word limit <3

THEY MAKE ME SICK. I love the complications in the idea behind their relationship.

Quick rundown, Nathalie first falls in love with Emilie when beginning to work for her, and only truly catches feelings for Gabriel when she’s taking care of that pathetic wet rat after Emilie becomes comatose. Emilie is in love with Gabriel, but is more than happy to have multiple people infatuated with her and actively uses Nathalie’s feelings to boost her ego & leads her on (at most they hook up, but it’s probably just a drunk kiss here or there). Gabriel is in love with Emilie, and is begrudgingly ok with Nathalie’s feelings for his wife, especially because it means she’ll be a more loyal worker, and starts to develop feelings for Nathalie when he grants her use of the Peacock miraculous very briefly, and is then wracked with guilt about having feelings for her while Emilie is comatose.

TLDR Emilie is using Nathalie, so is Gabriel until feelings hit him like a truck, and Nathalie puts the Disaster in Bisexual with her horrible taste in people

Both Nathalie and Gabriel are fucking heartbroken and go into deep mourning when Emilie doesn’t wake up. Eventually they lean on each other, but their fangs are both still bared and there’s lots of fights, which lead to them both saying things they regret (ie; “If you hadn’t played with fate and the laws of magic, she’d still be here” from Nathalie and “The only reason I keep you around is because she wouldn’t want me to discard you like the trashy lowlife you are.” from Gabe). They mourn in very different ways, as Nathalie isolates herself and spends a lot of time reminiscing, but Gabriel actively stays in the denial stage for uh. well. forever. you’ve seen the show, if he had accepted losing her he never would’ve become hawkmoth. He also is incredibly irritable and desperate, lashing out at anyone within range. Because he’s constantly erasing Adrien’s memories of this abuse, he gets actively frustrated when he can’t do the same to Nathalie, and she initially buys extra locks for her room so he doesn’t try anything crazy like lobotomizing her (he would).

The locks come off after Gabriel comes to her room, pounding on the door before a very loud thud, at which point she opens her door to find her boss pale and shivering on the floor, eye bags deeper than a sea trench, bleeding aggressively from his hand. She wraps and tends to his wound, and discovers him incredibly feverish and dehydrated. (Nursing back to health enemies to lovers arc!!) After this point Gabriel ends up trusting Nathalie enough to lend her the Peacock miraculous later down the line, but stops cold and snatches it back off her the moment she starts exhibiting symptoms; he’s already lost one woman he’s loved to the damned thing.

Nathalie ends up having underlying chronic health problems (KEEP HER IN THOSE COOL MECHANICAL LEGS OMFG I LOVE THEM), but because she relinquished ownership, the symptoms don’t get any worse.

Gabriel is actively evolving due to his use of the butterfly miraculous, which doesn’t make him a better father to Adrien but DOES make him a better partner to Nathalie because he’s horrible like that <3

While they are kinda romantically affiliated, that doesn’t stop Gabriel from akumatizing her when it’s useful. While some of the times are like in the show, where they’re kinda playful with each other, there’s a time Gabriel goes too far.

Because he’s emotionally distanced from even himself, Gabriel spends his (dead) wife’s birthday waiting for a master akuma to make, and finds it right under his roof in the form of Nathalie, who has been hit hard with grieving. And despite a warning from her, he goes forward with it, and creates [REDACTED]; the akuma I’m most excited to write and design because OMFG this battle is so fun.

Anyways that’s pretty much it.

Nathalie is very Mitski about losing Emilie. And Gabriel’s curiosity-created-the-nuke mad scientist self is more so a caged animal about her. And they find each other through it.

Important thing to keep in mind is that Nathalie is the only healthy component in any of these relationships. Both of these people are incredibly bad for her, but they give her what she craves so she stays.

[nicistrying]

Sat 27th April

Well I made it to the weekend although yesterday at work was kind of rough just purely from an anxiety point of view

Got up early to walk Maggie, I needed to get outside. Was a beautiful morning but still v chilly

Matt's mam text him at 7.30am asking to meet us for a walk. I said please no, I've set myself a boundary that I just want one fucking quiet weekend. But they did need to drop his bday presents off. Turned out later that they couldn't meet us for a walk as they needed to help a friend get a tractor out of the mud, thank god, but they came round to 'drop the presents off' and they were here for over an hour. Interrograting about the wedding, wanting us to invite more of their family as a couple of people can't make it etc , bearing in mind I have already ordered place settings and am about to order the table plan so I don't want the guest list to change. Matt said we may invite my maid of honour's parents and his mam came back with 'well they're not really important are they' like excuse me they literally took me in when my mam kicked me out at 16. They took such good care of me when I was in a shitty place. Fuck you 'they're not important'. Now I want to invite them just out of spite.

So that pissed me off straight away. Then it was 'let's get these pies in your freezer, oh god your freezer is so disorganised, the whole thing needs sorted out' like ok i'm sorry I didn't have time to reorganise the fucking freezer on my cleaning spree before you arrived, trying to not give you anything about the house to complain about.

'When are you going to do the escape room with your brothers why are you so disorganised' we're fucking busy! In the next 2 months, we have 3 weekends free and that's before Matt takes his shifts at work for June.

Like please, make me feel even more shit! Please do that! I really need that right now! Just say one fucking nice thing, would that actually kill you?? I complimented his mam's hair and she just went 'meh I don't like it they cut it too short' Just say thank you! Jesus christ

I'm seriously losing patience with them. They seem so pissed that we actually spend time with my family occasionally, as if we should spend every spare second with them. Like no, there are two people in this relationship and we both have family to see. Our entire existence does not revolve around you

Had a nap when they left (it was 11am lmao) and we went for a walk in a park where we used to live and it was lovely and nostalgic. Pets' Corner was open so we went to see the animals - billy goats, pygmy goats, ducks, rabbits, guinea pigs, guinea fowl, lots of sweet little birds, and a beautiful peacock and peahen. This dude was looking particularly handsome today

We got ice creams, and had a lovely walk. I started getting mega anxious on the way back to the car thinking wtf am I going to do when we get home and Matt has to go work on his assignment.. turns out I'm sitting in my pyjamas feeling gross and irritable and sad. He wants us both to go walk Mags but I need to just sit here and decompress I think

[tellthemeerkatsitsfine]

Finished it. Finished the radio show. Here's one more post about it.

Finished the 196 hours of Peacock and Gamble, and now I can be free of it. Sort of. I do have other Ray Peacock/Ian Boldsworth stuff lined up to get into, but I can do other things first. I’m still not going to listen to anyone talk about ghosts. Same reason I don’t want to listen to people talk about food, it’s just not an interesting entertainment subject to me. So those are a couple of avenues for following their later work that are immediately shut down. But there’s a whole Patreon full of other Ian Boldsworth stuff, and FUBAR Radio has archived his shows with Angela Barnes that I want to hear, and I think I’ll pick and choose the episodes of his solo radio show with guests who look interesting (so the ones with comedian guests, pretty much).

It ended pretty well. The second-last episode was really rough, but they brought it back and finished strong with the last one, which I think is how things like this often go. They start to run out of steam after they’ve been doing it a while, and then in the final episode, when they know they don’t have to conserve any energy or ideas for later, they’re really good. Though usually that pattern applies to things that have been running for more than six months. It was a long six months, it seems. Drained their individual and combined creative energies in ways that would usually take years.

To be fair to them, most of the worst stuff from the last couple of episodes was down to some of the listeners who called in getting fairly weird. But to be fair to the listeners, that was mainly Ray Peacock and Ed Gamble’s fault. And to be fair to Ed Gamble, it was mainly Ray Peacock’s fault. There were times in the sort of middle episodes when I thought he was playing with fire a bit in the way he messed with the listeners. Stuff that worked really well when he was doing it with Raji James, a professional actor who knew him well and who’d helped to plan this beforehand. Ray started trying it with unsuspecting listeners, a few of whom were pretty young (there was a weirdly high number of quite young fans who called in regularly), and it was often very, very funny.

But it did come back on him later, as some listeners seemed to not understand things like boundaries or how comedy shows worked, entirely understandably, given that they were young and Ray Peacock wasn’t drawing lines very well. Seems like the type of thing where he may have known better if he’d been in a clearer mental state,. I don’t know that for sure, obviously, but someone who’s done that much compering work probably knows how to keep control of an audience interaction, most of the time. So all that stuff in the middle episodes where he went unprofessionally off the rails due to a breakdown – it was very funny, but it turns out that some of those rails exist for a reason, and sometimes there are consequences to going off them.

It happens to be a specific thing that I find it really really difficult to listen to. People talk about cringe comedy that’s hard to watch due to the second-hand embarrassment, like Peep Show or The Office or Alan Partridge, and I’m normally fine with those. I find them funny, and I don’t feel the need to look away. Maybe Mark Corrigan’s eating a dog or something, but David Mitchell’s fine, this isn’t real and isn’t a big deal.

However, one thing that will trigger extreme second-hand embarrassment in me is a real-life incident of fans who try too hard to get attention from the people they’re fans of. Or just fans who misread situations, who try to get involved in things more than is appropriate. Audience members interacting with the performer during comedy shows - heckling, or even just crowd work where the crowd member answers a question with one more word than is necessary - makes my shoulders tense up.

John Robins has a story about how he was a huge fan of Adam and Joe’s radio show, back when he was new-ish to comedy (not completely new, but before he’d ever been on the radio or was well known within the comedy community, so Adam and Joe wouldn’t have known who he was), and one time, while drinking a lot, he wrote them a very long email with about five different stories in it that he hoped would get read on their show, and he also wrote emotional stuff about how much they meant to him and how listening to them had got him through difficult times. And they never read out any of his stories, but in the episode after he sent that email, they mentioned that the listener emails are getting too long, so please keep them shorter. And I do not understand how John Robins is able to tell that story as just another one in his long list of stand-up/radio “shame well” stories, which is what he calls his funny stories about embarrassing moments from his past. That shouldn’t be thrown in with the time he accidentally insulted his girlfriend’s mother or whatever. That should be in a category of its own. That is the worst one. I’m tensing up just thinking about it. And now I’m thinking about the time his friend let me know he’d found my Tumblr blog and I’m tensing up even more, even though the guy was very nice about it. That one caused so much first-hand embarrassment that I decided to stop following John Robins’ stuff altogether, and in fact, would very much like to stop writing about it now. The idea of getting attention from people I like - I find that so embarrassing that I can hardly even listen to other people get attention from people they like.

It doesn’t even just have to be a fan interaction, though, that’ll trigger that major second-hand embarrassment in me. It’s anyone who’s in a situation where they’re not in charge and they overstay their welcome. Daniel Kitson had a bit in some of his stand-up for a while about finding it difficult to listen to interviews on the news, in which they don’t schedule enough time for a guest to say everything they want to say, and the news presenter has to hurry them along to make sure the show keeps happening on time, and you can hear the presenter get increasingly anxious as the guest takes too long to answer, and you end up cringing on everyone’s behalf. I feel that way when I listen to the news a lot. Peep Show and Alan Partridge are easy for me to watch, I don't get the second-hand embarrassment there, but I get actively anxious when listening to interviewees who talk too much in a radio show on a tight timeline.

Peacock & Gamble’s radio show was hardly run on a tight timeline – quite the opposite – but it still had little moments like that throughout its run. That’ll happen to some extent on anything that takes calls from listeners, where at some point the presenter will start trying to hurry them off the phone, and the listener will start speaking faster to try to get everything across, and I’ll think, “Oh my God just please hang up.” But it got much worse in those last couple of episodes, largely due to Ray Peacock having spent several weeks in a row playing with younger listeners who understandably thought this now means they’re part of the show. And possibly also thought other things.

To their credit, Peacock & Gamble seemed to recognize that it had got out of hand, and tried to shut it down. But this led to a couple of episodes in a row with excruciatingly awkward listener phone calls, some of the worst second-hand embarrassment I’ve ever felt. I managed to listen to them, but barely, and several times I very nearly just said, “Fuck my relentless completism that means I have to listen to every moment of a show or doesn’t count, I’m skipping ahead.” It got bad.

Anyway, aside from that it was a strong ending. The last episode was excellent overall, incredibly funny, the two of them just messing around with the “Don’t give a fuck what happens because we’re done with this place” energy that they’d had for a while, but without all the bitterness that was usually behind it, because they’d finally decided that they actually were done, for real, so they didn’t need to be upset anymore. The part of me that likes dark comedy quite enjoyed listening to their increasing bitterness at the radio station and everything in it, but it was a good time to hear them end on a note of shedding all that and just playing stupid songs and having fun.

I think I need to take back what I said in a post about the earlier episodes, that I thought maybe Ed Gamble is playing his straight man role too hard not just for double act role reasons, but because he genuinely finds Ray Peacock’s schtick less funny at age 28 than he did at 21. I don’t think that’s true anymore. Once Ed relaxed a bit, Ray Peacock regained his ability to make Ed Gamble laugh until he sounded like he was going to die, and that was always delightful. I’m back to my theory that maybe in the early episodes, Ed was just trying to make the show run smoothly so he could use it to advance his career, possibly in “proper radio”. Or maybe, less cynically, he was just new to radio and didn’t know what was allowed. Or they hadn’t worked together in a while, particularly not in unscripted situations, and it took them a bit of time to remember how they fit together that way. Whatever the reason, I can now barely remember how Ed Gamble seemed to be “too professional” in those early episodes, he dropped that altogether and they got to close the Peacock & Gamble double act on lots of childish silliness where they were at their best. Singing along to songs together, yelling at anyone who came near them, not giving a fuck.

On the subject of Ed Gamble – to the person who sent me a message some time ago that asked if there were any references in his older work to Ed Gamble dating a teenager at the time – yes, one. In the 2014 radio show, there was one point when they were discussing some early time when Ed Gamble was first getting to know the person who became his girlfriend, and Ray was complaining about something else Ed was doing at the time, and threw into his complaints the phrase “And she was only about ten.” To be extremely clear, as is always worth doing in these situations, she was not, in fact, ten. Ray Peacock was employing comedic exaggeration, to comedically exaggerate his point, which was “She was too young.” And that was the only reference to it that I caught, in seven years of double act.

I’ve thought of that Ed Gamble dating a teenager situation thing this week, as Tumblr is full of people posting about the parasocial thing where fans get so attached to people in the public eye that they feel hurt if they find out something bad about them, like they’ve been personally let down. I’ll admit that’s happened to me before (of course it’s happened, I dedicated years of my childhood to Harry Potter), more often when I was younger and more naïve, less as I get older and expect less from people in general. I used to use an analogy about where I put the few scraps of the faith in humanity I have left. I had a few scraps tied to JK Rowling, so when she went hard right-wing, those scraps disappeared and my dwindling faith in humanity got even lower.

It’s happened to me before, but I really don’t think that’s what happened here. I don’t think I had any scraps of faith in humanity tied up in the idea that Ed Gamble never dated a 17-year-old when he was 24 (that’s what happened, in case anyone’s reading this without context, I want to be careful not to irresponsibly imply that it was any worse than that, but also, it probably doesn't matter because I’m assuming no one’s reading this post). I did have an emotional reaction when I first learned that, a couple of months ago, but I don’t think any of that emotion was about feeling personally let down by Ed Gamble. I just get emotional whenever that topic is brought up, because it makes me think of all the teenage girls I’ve known/worked with/coached/been in a position of power over and desperately wanted to protect, who’ve been sexualized by adults. It also makes me think of some stuff that happened to me as a teenager, and generally, I have a strong visceral reaction to the idea of teenagers being sexualized by adults. When I did some math on Ed Gamble's relationship, I don't think I got any more upset that I would have if I'd read about some guy I'd never heard of doing the same thing.

So I had that reaction, but once that initial emotion faded away, I was just annoyed. I didn't feel betrayed, I didn't feel let down, it was just fucking annoying that something else has been tainted now. I don’t think sleeping with a girl who’s of legal age, even if only just (I worded that sentence in a way that avoided saying “barely legal” because I think that's an absolutely disgusting term and I don't want to use it... but the fact that I had to put effort into avoiding using that term is not a sign that I'm talking about a good thing), means Ed Gamble is a terrible person and listening to his stuff is morally wrong. I don’t feel any moral obligation to stop subscribing to podcasts where he makes money or anything, it’s not a situation like that.

It just means that whenever I enjoy his work, I now have a voice in my head saying “Think about all the time you’ve spent in your life fighting against adult men who creep on teenage girls, if you enjoy the work of this adult man then you’re a hypocrite.” And that’s an irritating fucking voice to have in my head when I’m trying to enjoy a comedy podcast. I’ve been enjoying the work of Ed Gamble for ages. I think the Taskmaster podcast is very good, I’ve liked him a lot in many different roles on other people’s TV shows and radio shows and podcasts, he was one of my all-time favourite Taskmaster contestants, (his stand-up's not great but that’s fine), all that is the reason why I went looking for his earlier stuff in the first place. And it’s really, really annoying that I now can’t enjoy any of that stuff without the voice.

The voice was there the whole rest of the time that I watched/listened to Peacock & Gamble things, but I tried to stop mentioning it in posts so much, because I figured it’s my issue, I don’t need to keep going on about it. I’m doing one more mention of it as I wrap this up, and then I’ll hopefully be done. I kept listening to Peacock & Gamble because it was entertaining enough to still be very funny even if the voice did taint it a bit. It takes a lot, though, for something to be so funny that it's worth hearing that voice. The Taskmaster NZ podcasts have started airing, and I’m skipping those. If Andy Zaltzman weren’t on the next season, I’d probably just unsubscribe from it. Podcasts discussing a non-Zaltzman Taskmaster season would probably not be enough to be worth putting up with the voice. But I think I can’t miss a chance to hear them talk about Andy Zaltzman. So that’s how far my principles go, I guess.

So as much as Peacock & Gamble has been worth it, it’s sort of nice to now be done with that and move on to things that don’t put that voice in my head. I’m going to re-listen to Ed’s ComCom episode because I want to hear his retrospective on Peacock & Gamble now that I have a lot more context to understand it, and that’ll be it from him. There’s lots more I want to hear from Ian Boldsworth, I don’t feel the need to hear a lot more from Ed Gamble. Not until Andy Zaltzman starts appearing on Taskmaster, anyway.

There is one quote from the final episode of their radio show, that -

Ed Gamble: Sometimes logic goes out the window and you’re just left with the residual chemical feeling of anger. Ray Peacock: All I have is my anger, and I need somewhere to direct it.

That exchange won't have the same impact written down as it did if you can hear the context and delivery, but I did stop when I heard that one to think, I kind of want to get that embroidered on a throw pillow to look at in my living room every day. Or possibly printed out in calligraphy and mounted on my wall. Maybe turn it into a mantra for if I ever take up meditation?

I was going to say that Ray Peacock and Ed Gamble suddenly taking a moment out of their comedy show to dissect the nature of anger in minute detail will be one of those tiny moments that sticks in my head for a surprisingly long time. Which made me wonder what other very small moments from the ~60-hour radio run will surprisingly stick in my head. I have to admit, the first little exchange I thought of was from way back in episode 2:

Ray Peacock: Would you fuck Jar Jar Binks? Thom Tuck: No. Ray Peacock: No, I mean, as a punishment. Thom Tuck: ...For who? Ray Peacock: For him.

It was the tone of voice in the way Ray cleared up the misunderstanding. "Oh, no, sorry that you incorrectly thought I meant for pleasure, let me make it clear that I am somehow talking about something weirder than that." "Let me make it clear that I am somehow talking about something weirder than that" is a great summary of many of Ray Peacock's best punchlines. From thence the humour arose, I guess.

It's weird what little things get to you. It's been a couple of months now since I watched the documentary about The Ray Peacock Podcast, and I now briefly picture Raji James every time I open a cupboard, due to Ed Gamble dropping the amazing line: "If you knew Raji, you'd look for him in cupboards as well."

Anyway, that was a good time. I think I went through that pretty fast, even for me. I've just checked, and I downloaded The Ray Peacock Podcast on May 7, so that's when I started this. 196 hours of Peacock and Gamble in about nine weeks. I'm going to keep paying Ian Boldsworth money for a while, I'm definitely not done with his stuff. But for the moment, I have a whole bunch of new stand-up that I'm quite excited to listen to, now that I'm free.

[frostbite-the-bat]

WHAT AN AMAZING COLLECTION !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i love the dragons protecting the display OOOOOOOUGH SHARKS TEETH YEAAAAAAAAA Do you have any specific favorites? (& What about them said Pick Me to you? (i love rocks sm but have none space so i only have a lil bag of my own) )

YESS!!! THANK YUOU!!! and ofc i gotta have dragons B)

and HMMM OKAY lemme THInks

so *now* pick and buy gems at trinket stores whenver i go travelling and see any tha i just dont own yet (or if theres a piece that's really pretty to me that i DO have, but it's just unique and cool and i want it)

but back then id just..! buy whatever was Cool to me . id always buy so many at once my god

my favorites are defo my extra silly fancy lookin gems!! lemme show em here (older pics) (some are fancier bc i took them for my personal collection list google doc)

bismuth!!

these quartz! i was told they are some type of quartz! these are special to me because i got them a year ago during a school trip to germany - i only had a few euros on me and i ended up spending it all on gems. we checked out the christmas markets and there was an friendly old fellow who was selling gemstones and other things! he even had a cutter and could speak english. we chatted a bit and i listened to him talk about things (like how these lil fellas are formed. i know nothing about chemicals but i just think these things are interesting!!!! i actually get most my gems from giftshops near cave tours because i love visiting them and think it's interesting ^^

anyways he had a little box of various "rocks" that could possibly be geodes that he'd cut and see if they are! the price depended on their size. he said that i could guess with the weight and feel of the "rock" and let me pick from a few that could possible be ones. i said it didn't matter to me if it's gonna be hollow or not, since it's cool to me anyways!

so while my classmates waited and stared at me i just watched this guy cut it nicely in half like this - and he then even cut the smaller flatter piece of it, too. it was very nice! it's also where i bought the tooth, the bismuth, and some other things that i forgot as well... oops. i got a lot of gems

this shimmery pretty goldstone / aventurine glass ! wacky picture quality but i don't feel like getting new pics (+ im on pc now) (lie: i ended up getting new pics later)

. it's a man-made lil' mineral, but it's very lovely regardless! i honestly only care about the "realness" only i it's a scam of some sort. any rock, trinket, gem or mineral, man-made or not is very niceys to me. (i still want an opal tho i only got an opalite which was mislabeled. i dont think on purpose since these stores sometimes accidentally mislabel or misspell things. or use czech names which gets confusing. yeah i may have inaccurate names for some of my gems but i try my best to be accurate. im no pro im just a collector little beast)

some type of peacock ore! (either treated chalcopyrite or bornite, as i've previously written down. i'll trust my past self)

aura quartz! one of my first 3 pieces ive ever gotten that sparked my collection

all of these little fellas i bought at the same place for really cheap! filled my lil collection quite a bitso. i loves tghem. theyre like cereal To Me

in order: garnet, carnelian, emerald, tusquoise (why isnt this one in my list. oh my god how many gems did i miss. i still have a few to add that ill list on the list later that i need to re-check what gems they are. lord.) opalite, chalcedony, snowflake obsidian, obsidian (?), onyx. + not pictured an aquamarine which...? i cant find? im not checking if i put it behind a bigger gem and i cant FIND IT.

i really need to do a new and better gem list . oops. i cant always rely on my memory for these names

my EYES! in order: tiger's eye 2x, hawk's eye, bull's eye

my funny silly mosly multicolor fellas idk they fit the Vibes. i likes thgem (appreciae this secion i had to make sure and like re-identify half of these but i still could be incorrect)

in ORDER... lapis lazuli, sodalite 2x, elbaite (most likely), chrysocolla, rhodonite, blue apatite, amazonite, kyanite

dalmatian jasper and unakite

...some kinda jasper?

so ya!! thats some of my Rocks. this took a while bc i had to look what some of these are again @_@ i loaves them . todays guzma enrichment: this

[donfadrique]

Part Two

4/🗡️

I'm in love with the screenplay (I hope I won't regret it later xD). It is close to the book and at the same time original; there is logic in it and there are no errors that could force historians to cover their ears; it is made for people with a sense of humor; the characters’ lines are like aphorisms; the screenplay is the backbone of the movie and makes it dynamic and interesting.

5/🗡️

So Diego returns home. He doesn’t know why his father needs him and thinks that nothing has changed in California during his absence. And we see that the true Diego is not only a brave cadet. The true Diego smiles nostalgically and charmingly in a tavern while listening to a local folk song. The true Diego is polite, but he is used to giving orders.

NB! Diego is dressed in expensive and beautiful traveling clothes not because he is pretending to be a fop, but because he is the son of the Mayor (Alcalde), His Excellency Don Alejandro.

6/🗡️

Having met Capitán Pasquale, Diego still does not wear the mask of a sissy. He asks the Capitán in a harsh tone what the hell is going on and why his house has turned into barracks. However, upon hearing that power in the city now belongs to the new mayor, who is supported by the military led by Pasquale, Diego forces himself to smile sweetly (Power perfectly portrays a man who has to think very quickly and change his style of behavior on the fly).

Capitán Pasquale, reveling in his power, is showing off in front of Diego, the son of the FORMER Alcalde, and his flattered chuckle in response to Diego’s remark "How can I refuse a man anything with a naked sword in his hand?" is especially noteworthy. (If any of you were waiting for ambiguous remarks and situations, then they got the first one of them. However, irony and "multi-layered" jokes are characteristic of the screenplay and make it so wonderful.)

I toy with the sword. Do you fancy the weapon? © Capitán Pasquale

You may see a double bottom in or not, but the idea of flirting (wittingly or unwittingly) was introduced by Capitán Pasquale. (And this was unexpected, yeah.)

NB! Looking straight ahead, Diego is frowning and worried, but turning his face to the Capitán, he smiles kindly. Thus, the viewer sees that Diego is pretending so as not to get into a trouble before meeting his parents.

The idea to portray a dandy is also not entirely Diego’s! By lying to Pasquale that he was not interested in weapons, Diego hid the fact that he was a duelist and a military man. When Inez Quintero, the wife of the corrupt Alcalde, enchanted by the handsome young caballero from Madrid, invites Diego to accompany her while she goes shopping, Diego instantly complements his new personality with new details, thus becoming a sissy and a fop.

Luis Quintero: That's one little peacock that won't give us any trouble.

Pasquale: You think not?

Flattering nickname "Cockerel" vs derogatory one "Peacock" — what an excellent play on words!

Luis Quintero: Ha-ha! The Capitán is jealous. The fop has pricked the fencing master. Touché.

The implication is that Diego has charmed Inez (whose lover the Capitán wants to become, and the Alcalde has to put up with it, so he's glad the Capitán has a rival).

So YES, in this movie the sword is not only a sword, but also a euphemism, a phallic symbol. (Nowadays they have almost forgotten how to joke so subtly, alas. They talk about sex rudely and directly, which is why this masterpiece is considered "old-fashioned".)

Well, Diego now needs to try to charm and fool Pasquale (while Diego himself is enchanted by the young Lolita).

It's funny how Rathbone managed to sit on the table in such cavalry boots, and sit elegantly! He was a very talented person :)

7/🗡️

Wow, Lolita is interested in Diego, but Inez tells her to calm down and not rush to get married, otherwise she will send Lolita to a convent. Everyone is competing for Diego's attention 😏

8/🗡️

Don Alejandro says "Two wrongs don't make a right". He refuses to go against the government he served for 30 years. He refuses to break the law the way local authorities do. In addition, Don Alejandro understands that the caballeros' uprising will be easily suppressed by the soldiers. But Fray Felipe is indignant, and when Diego pretends to be indifferent, the Fray is disappointed in him.

Fray Felipe: To think that the boy that I helped to raise, the boy that I taught to hold a firm wrist behind a true point, has turned into a puppy! Bah!

Don Diego Vega: Well! Tsk, tsk, tsk! How vexatious!

[stinkyhyena9000]

Literally me today

[everything here is hc btw]

So basically on my walk home today, I had a very vivid idea of Clay and Boudreaux's band. Three Day's Grace's "I Hate Everything About You" perfectly shows off my voice HC for how young Clay sounded, as well as their band's overall sound.

Other bands that also work are the Foo Fighters, Taking Back Sundays, and Sleeping With Sirens. (Yes these are all popular emo/rock bands ik)

At the time, Clay was also dyeing his mane and tail black, or atleast the small bit of hair he could call his mane. He was already a good ~5years on testerone, but his mane was taking a long while to grow in, which is why he takes such good care of it and takes a lot of pride in it now. Also he no longer dyes his mane black now, but he still does dye his tail, as a fun little memory of the past.

Oh yeah did I also mention I'm putting my trans Clay headcanon in this? Yeah.

Anyways his band "Crimson Car Fire" advertised themselves a bit as a couple of hotties. Clay was into the idea too, even though he's definitely demi. He even went far enough to wear a fishnet tank with nothing under it to most of their shows.

He was terrified at first to try this though, since had much more recently gotten top surgery. Yes, we're back to that headcanon. Anyways, he was worried because his scars would show through his fishnet tank. Luckily (mostly) everyone was supportive, so he kept sporting it!

What else he would wear is some black cargo pants, with some chains. He also had some black leather fingerless gloves of course, black leather boots, and for necklaces he had a cross necklace and a necklace of his first guitar pic from his (late) father. He still wears these to do this day.

If he's not wearing only his fishnet tank, he's always wearing some tshirt from bands he went to concerts for. He also wears these to this day, and Ash and Johnny likes to refer to them as vintage. Although correct, Clay always insists that they're not vintage! (they definitely are).

Oh yeah back to the band. Clay is the main singer and playing some bass, with Boudreux (peacock) being the main guitarist, ane Julie (finch) fronting the drums and sometimes vocals. They're actually from the Sing equivalent of New Orleans (They did move to Calatonia and play most of their shows there, though).

As you can imagine, Clay was definitely shocked to see Calatonia again when he finally went to live their again with the Moon Crew. And to think they didn't keep a single drive-in movie theatre! (Will get back that with Clay and Ruby dates.)

Speaking of Ruby, she actually met Clay through the band. Was she a fan? No, actually, she though their music was too cheesy. She was just dragged there to one of Clay's bands shows by her friend. Clay may have winked at her and Ruby may have felt that.

The real crushing began outside of the show, though. They bumped into each other and Ruby recognized him from the show. I'll go more into this later, but yeah.

Now I did mention to other band mates, Boudreux and Julie. Boudreux was a hot shot peacock who played guitar, and him and Clay met at the end of highschool. There was a lot of unresolved romantic tension between the two, although it's gone now after they split up. He was definitely jealous when Clay and Ruby started hanging out, but what reason would he have to stop them? Him and Clay were never actually a thing, just a few in-the-moment instances.

(Oh yeah incase it needed to be stated, Clay is demiromantic, demisexual, and bi. Boudreux is a demiboy and flaming homosexual, and Julie liked girl in red. She also had a partner too who always supported her and came to her shows. They were definitely a colorful cast).

Anyways eventually the band split it. Julie had to move out of state to stay with her partner, and there was a little drama between Boudreux and Clay about Ruby.

Cut back to present-day, with Clay living with Rosita back in Calatonia, Clay likes to watch Ash's concerts, since it makes him nostalgic for his band days. (Picture Clay wearing an Ash concert t-shirt btw).

At one of her concert's his eyes actually catch someone familiar among the sea of heads. The impossible, unforgettable plumage of the one and only Boudreux.

Clay catches him after the show. Boudreux is surprised to see him again and gives the big lion an even bigger hug. Despite everything, they're still best friends, and they had a lot of catching up to do. I need you to realize, this is like 30-40 years later.

Boudreaux comments on how they both seemed to have grayed, and Clay can't help but give of a hearty laugh. They apologize for the rough ending back then, and some tears are shed. Boudreux asks about Ruby. "That girl was always at your side, where she at?" Clay is stuck, unable to speak. Lion's caught his tongue.

That's when Ash finally makes it ouside to meet back up with Clay. She notices that familiar grimace, and swiftenes to ask him what's wrong, "and who's this?"

Clay, seeing her daughter, that bright shining star, he gets back together again. He introduces him as an old friend. And then he continues "Boudreux, she's gone now. I'm so sorry."

Boudreux's usual snarky front immediately softens, and he quicky replies "No, no, why are you apologing. Stop crying this isn't your fault" and he begins to tear up, too.

Also yes, Ash is just standing their confused.

After a couple of minutes of silent sobbing, conversation starts back up again.

"Y'know, did you hear about Julie?" Boudreux begins.

"Oh my god, Julie. What happened" Clay responds in a hushed, weak tone, still recovering from the news he just gave.

"She, uhm. She was found somewhere in the upper states. Sam rushed her to the hospital. She uh, passed from a heart attack, I think."

Clay begins to smile a bit, despite the news. "That Sam of her was always there for, wasn't they?" He word out through his waterworks.

"Damn right they were. Perfect couple I'd say," the peacock answers.

Another silence passes.

Ash is on the side of them furiously texting her phone. Clay and Boudreaux forgot about her, actually. Ash is texting Buster and Rosita, saying they're gonna be a while, before putting back down her phone, out of courtesy.

[motownfiction]

loon

Lucy sees a loon on the lake in early May, and she panics.

It’s about a week before her graduation with her master’s degree, and she’s preoccupied with thoughts of moving to the East Coast. She’s supposed to be there in three months. Her distant-ish relatives keep saying she’s going back home. That she lived in Connecticut until she was six, and being in New York would give her a great opportunity to explore the life she could have had back home. They don’t get it. The East Coast is all they’ve ever known and loved, and they can’t imagine anyone longing for anything else.

But they’ve never sat on the beach in front of a Great Lake before.

She feels peaceful and easy before the loon shows up. But as soon as she sees that bird, Lucy panics. She’s never been that fond of birds – probably why she eats so much chicken. Pigeons always scared the hell out of her, and forget those peacocks roaming around the Detroit Zoo. Back in second grade, when her class went on a field trip there, Lucy even made her mother chaperone so that someone could shield her from the peacocks.

The loon is a different story. It scares her more than any of the other birds ever have. She can’t remember the last time she saw a loon, and that makes her even more afraid. It’s rare Lucy forgets anything. If she can’t remember why she’d be so scared of a silly little bird on the lake, then what else is she forgetting about her own life?

“Oh, man,” Will says after she tells him about her worries. “You really don’t remember?”

“Obviously not, Will,” Lucy says. “If I did, do you think I’d be this freaked out?”

“It was a little while after you moved here, in first grade. We had that weird music teacher for a year, Ms. Manwell. In the first month of classes, you were supposed to memorize a song and sing it on your own. This ringing a bell?”

Lucy nods, but she wishes she could still block it out.

“You were smart,” she says. “You picked ‘The Farmer in the Dell.’”

“The cheese stood alone,” Will says, solemn for the joke. “And you … already an overachiever …”

“I picked ‘The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill.’ Which was inappropriate for a six-year-old child on more than one level. And I pulled a Steph Armstrong and fucked up the lyrics.”

“‘So Captain Marble zapped him right between the eyes.’”

Lucy feels herself turn red, almost twenty years later.

“I didn’t read comic books!” she says. “I didn’t know there was such a thing as Captain Marvel, much less that there ended up being two of them. God, I’m still humiliated.”

“You don’t have to be,” Will says.

“Yes, I do. That Ms. Manwell. She was horrible to me. Said I tried too hard, and trying too hard would never get me anywhere. That’s why I’m afraid of loons. She had that big loon brooch she wore every week in music class. Every week, I’d sit there and wonder how that big loon brooch would berate me that day. The first teacher who ever hated me.”

Will sighs. He threads his fingers through Lucy’s, and she smiles because he’s not looking.

“You’ve tried really hard,” he says. “And it’s gotten you everywhere. Look. It’s getting us all the way to New York. Just because of you. Just for you.”

Lucy turns around and tries not to cry.

“What if I’m afraid?” she asks. “What if I don’t know what I’m supposed to do once I’m there?”

“Then that’s good,” Will says. “It’ll give you more time to look around.”

Lucy thinks about that for a minute. She never looks around. She always wants to, always fantasizes about running through the fields and doing something she’s never done before, but work always pulls her back in. Work is where she feels comfortable. She’s not happy unless she’s trying too hard, just like Ms. Manwell warned her about. She sighs. She turns her head to see the loon again, just to see if she can look it in the eye without losing her breath.

But when she turns to face the water again, the loon is gone.

She thinks she knows what to do with that.

(part of @nosebleedclub june challenge -- day xvii! still behind, but at least it’s not egregious)

[flameraven]

Misc Thoughts on Pokemon Scarlet/Violet

-The opening was definitely slower than I'd like, I was a little bored, but once you get let out to explore the world it's really fun! Very similar to Legends: Arceus but much improved. Key detail: you can pick up items while mounted! This was really annoying to not be able to do in PLA.

-I've been pretty lucky and not run into any major glitches. Sometimes the background is a little wobbly but the overworld has run okay. I definitely noticed some major lag as the game tried to load each item when I was shopping. -The world is big and exciting but still feels awfully empty. The towns have these huge wide streets and giant houses, but there's not really anything to do in them. You can't even go inside NPCs houses, there's only the shops -I feel like they split up the clothing shops in the main city to make it seem bigger and more full, but it just made shopping inconvenient. What's the point of a giant castle/city if there's nothing THERE? -I'm still not thrilled with the school uniform but it's not as ugly as I feared. Still hoping that we get some real clothes post-game, or possibly as a DLC option. (Why does the new kid get to wear her Eevee hoodie and I can't??) -that school is definitely not ADA compliant, wtf are all those stairs -I'm enjoying riding around on my giant motorcycle dragon a lot more than I thought, and Koraidon running with his legs looks a lot less stupid than it did in the trailers (he tucks his tail in to make the back "wheel"! What a cool detail!). Cannot wait to climb up walls. -Your dragon making a catlike "Brrrp!" noise when you summon it is perfect, A+, 11/10 -I do find the map a bit hard to navigate, it can be hard to find the bridges to cross rivers and such and figure out how to get to different areas. -I really really wish we could mark places on the map like BotW! I found a cool glowy sword in the ground I couldn't reach, and I know I won't remember where it is later. -The variety of pokemon available and how many new pokemon you can find are really cool. I do like that they didn't show most of the new mons because it makes them more fun to discover. I think there's also a good balance of Pokemon spread out in the grass, sometimes they clump up, sometimes they're single, but it's not obvious "sections" the way SwSh Wild Areas were. -I love that the game is like 'BTW the crater is SUPER DANGEROUS, don't go there!!' so we all know where the plot is going to end up. Spoilers on Pokemon/Evolutions below:

-I got spoiled on the starter evos and... yeah honestly not a fan of the final forms. Giant spooky crocodile is okay but not as cool as the idea I had in my head, Grass Cat is just kind of boring and similar to Delphox, and Quaxly is just... WTF. I heard "fabulous" and "peacock" before I saw the images, and I think an actual peacock would have been cool, but instead we got... that. D: Nintendo, please stop with the anthro starter evos, they're not good. -Paldean Tentacool is a horror show, I hate it. X) -Pawmi is ADORABLE, I love him. Although the 2nd and 3rd evolutions are awfully similar, seems like it could have just been a 2-stage pokemon. There are SO MANY new pokemon I want to try out, though, I keep switching things in and out of my team, it's really fun. So far my team is: Clodsire, Azumarill, middle stage Fuecoco, Pawmot(? the third one), the tiny fire megaman, and the Flamingo, which is WAY stronger than I expected. Bulbapedia says it has a base attack of 115?! That's huge! Also working on evolving the little floaty psychic thing because apparently it becomes an ostrich?! There are a lot of new bird pokemon in this game, I approve. May need to do another run someday with an all-bird team.

[cyarskj1899]

I will never forgive peacock for this ever

21 Totally Accurate Tweets About Peacock’s Casey Anthony Docuseries

Xaviera BryantDecember 8, 2022

Peacock‘s Casey Anthony docuseries, “Where The Truth Lies,” may have given the network a boost in ratings, but it did nothing to change her public perception.

Throughout the exclusive three-part documentary series, Casey finally tells “her side of the story” and addresses the public that has made so many assumptions for the past 13 years.

In 2008, Casey’s 2-year-old daughter, Caylee, disappeared. 

She waited 31 DAYS before reporting her missing.

Six months later, the child’s remains were found in a wooded area near the family home. 

Casey was ultimately charged with murder and during her 2011 trial, her legal team said that Caylee had drowned in the family pool. 

On July 5, 2011, Casey Anthony was acquitted of murder, but she was convicted of four counts of providing false information to law enforcement and served prison time. 

In “Casey Anthony: Where The Truth Lies,” the 36-year-old makes several shocking claims and alleges that her father, George Anthony, staged Caylee’s drowning.

Casey recalled the events of June 16, 2008, saying, “I wasn’t feeling that great, and I wanted to lay down. I had her lay in bed with me.”

“I was awoken by [my father] shaking me and asking me where Caylee was,” she continues. 

“That didn’t make sense. She would never even leave my room without telling me. I immediately started looking around the house. I go outside and I’m looking to see where she could be.”

Casey claims she saw her father holding Caylee.

“He was standing there with her. She was soaking wet. He handed her to me. Said it was my fault. That I caused it. But he didn’t rush to call 911 and he wasn’t trying to resuscitate her. I collapsed with her in my arms. She was heavy, and she was cold.”

“He takes her from me and he immediately softens his tone and says ‘It’s going to be ok.’ I wanted to believe him. He took her from me and he went away.”

Unfortunately, Casey Anthony needs more people because no one is buying her latest version of what happened to Caylee.

Read 21 totally accurate tweets about “Where The Truth Lies” below.

I don’t give a deum how they flip it ,switch it,turn it ,toss it Casey Anthony is a disgrace of a mother and she shouldn’t have a uterus.I don’t feel bad for her or for the daddy YALL KNOW WHAT HAPPENED to that baby !!!!

— Cardi B (@iamcardib) December 5, 2022

I watched the Casey Anthony shit unfold in real time, no documentary, or conspiracy theories on apps can tell me she did not murder that baby, idc idc idc. Its disgusting that she did not get convicted actually

— Tittygate 2022 (@jiggyjayy2) December 7, 2022

The Casey Anthony case was probably one of the wildest of our generation. Chloroform in the car, the grandma saying the car smelled like a dead body, the duck tape, the trash bags, the Google searches, how long she took before she reported that girl missing, her partying…WILD.

— nat king carr ?✨ (@laugh_track_nat) December 7, 2022

Convinced Peacock released that Casey Anthony docu just to reunite us all… because if we can all agree on anything, it’s that she is a liar and got away with murder.

— Ali (@danielson_ali) November 29, 2022

I’m tired of seeing people talk about how Casey Anthony could be innocent. What mother waits 31 days to report her 2 year old missing? A guilty one.

— taylor (@tieyoo) December 7, 2022

i would rather take a cheese grater to my eyes than to watch a series that lets casey anthony try to convince the world she isn’t a child murderer.

— holly (@wahaholly) November 29, 2022

Still blown at how Casey Anthony blamed a made up Black woman for killing her kid. Like just made her completely up and had to the police looking for someone, anyone that was Afro-Latina.

— Aerin Creer (@FromAerin) November 25, 2022

Casey Anthony can make 10 million documentaries. The world knows the truth. We know what you did. No one waits 31 days to report their child missing and is innocent. Period.

— Enna_j (@J_bitty101) November 30, 2022

Soo Casey Anthony lied about being pregnant until she showed, lied about who the dad was, lied about what she searched on the family computers, lied about working at universal, lied about the “nanny” etc && YALL still think she’s being honest about not killing Caylee? Hellll no.

— FL girl (@thtFLgirl) December 1, 2022

My face the entire time I’m watching the casey anthony documentary pic.twitter.com/laU4RtSkuo

— macin (@MacinRigg) November 30, 2022

If you miss being gaslit by a narcissist I highly recommend the new Casey Anthony documentary on Peacock. You get hours of gaslighting, narcissistic behavior without having to contact your ex!

Seriously who thought this documentary was a good idea?

— ??????? (9-3) ❤️? (@HeatherKleinXo) November 30, 2022

Anyone notice how in Episode 2 of the Casey Anthony documentary on Peacock she says she didn't remember her fathers abuse till she was in jail. Then in episode 3 she says she kept Caylee away from her Dad as an infant bc of the abuse. This idiot still can't keep up with lies.

— Grace (@grace_hackney) November 29, 2022

Casey Anthony getting a documentary is the definition of white privilege.

— jazmean (@_jazmynbliss) November 29, 2022

Watching this Casey Anthony documentary and I swear I hear someone in the background feeding lines to her.

Please tell me y’all hear that voice saying “that I caused that” in the background before she says it! pic.twitter.com/aHcIcZlkzB

— THIQUE COZY CHURCH GIRL 켈리 (@RainbowQuartzz) December 5, 2022

the only thing i’ve gathered from this casey anthony documentary is that her and her daddy are guilty pic.twitter.com/jPHaTkE2pe

— Your Fave (@PartitionBeat) December 4, 2022

The Casey Anthony Peacock documentary is a great way to recalibrate your spidey senses. If you hear her dramatic tone and see her faked affect and believe a word she says, do not trust yourself to be a good judge of anything lol

— Gretchen Lynn (@Bubola) November 29, 2022

i turned the casey anthony documentary off as soon she said caylee drowned. she was literally found in a plastic trash bag with DUCT TAPE over her mouth. i'm not listening to 3 hours of lies.

— dyslexic heaux (@dxhoex) November 29, 2022

imagine making a 6 hour documentary to convince everyone casey anthony is innocent and instead it makes everyone go “oh i believe she did it even more now actually”

— ashley ray (@theashleyray) November 30, 2022

Here me out…watch the new Casey Anthony documentary on @peacock then rewatch every other documentary related to the death of Caylee Anthony and ask yourself why was George Anthony never fully investigated as a suspect or person of interest? Let’s chat ?

— K E V O N T É (@kevonteford) November 30, 2022

casey anthony is such a bad liar how can anyone take this documentary seriously pic.twitter.com/LZqKV7Wdrl

— dyslexic heaux (@dxhoex) November 29, 2022

Not even two minutes into the Casey Anthony documentary and for the 100th time, this bitch is guilty.

— Moooeee?? (@Edgar_Allan_Moe) December 1, 2022

Let me know your thoughts in the comments below or join the convo on our socials. (Facebook, Instagram)

Let me know your thoughts in the comments below or join the convo on our socials. (Facebook, Instagram)

Sent from my iPhone

[forestofforever]

🔁 (either surprise me orrrr Benjamin, Wester, or Mary?)

@kxllerblond

Clark held little patience for these sorts-—megalomaniacs, as they were. They served as nagging reminders as to what he could easily slip into becoming if he didn't keep himself in check and their presence alone made him uncomfortable, made him want to grind his teeth and scrunch his face. Still, he regarded the other with that painstakingly practiced flat expression; he did little more than blink slowly and glance elsewhere as if to try and reason with himself as to why he should even bother with a reply and not merely turn tail and leave. ❝ -— Strange how easy it is that gods forget their very existence lends to the existence of the godslayer. Only fools would yearn for such an inevitably toppled position. Power will not remain stagnant and in the hands of one for long and any idiot with a brain would understand that attempting to hold onto it in such a manner is as good as trying to grasp flowing water. ❞ he wouldn't have usually been so direct with his indirect and catty insults, but the other had admittedly offered up the first blow. ❝ I find it easier to gain what I need when I am without so many eyes on me. My ego is well-fed and not so shamefully starved and gluttonous that I require such a pitiful following. So, no. I suppose I do not know what it is like, dear. ❞ He already felt so drained, so tired. He was already such an impatient thing and yet he often willingly assumed the role of the one that attempted to roll with the punches, the nonsense, in order to reach some sort of goal. ❝ I have seen plenty of your sorts, the world has no shortage of them, so if you're quite done peacocking-— may we please actually talk professional affairs? If you just intend to goad me into some sort of power contest, I will ask we reschedule to a later date. I came to speak with another adult about adult things, not threaten some position I have no use in stealing away. ❞

"Now, now. I never claimed to be a god, did I?" His voice remains calm and somewhat amused. If he is insulted, he certainly does not show it. His smile is warm and almost somewhat inviting, though his eyes remain unpleasantly empty, like staring into a mirror.

"A god. No. I am not under any such impression, I do not consider myself as such." Wasn't God usually treated like the sort of individual who liked to remain hands off? Who liked to let his creations roam freely? Benjamin wasn't quite so merciful. Not a god, though perhaps a puppeteer of sorts. The comments on keeping power go unacknowledged. There is no point in arguing with these types, they always think they're right, don't they?

"Of course, let's get to business, shall we?" Always eager to make a deal, though admittedly he fully intended to keep his guard up around the other. His sort was dangerous. Powerful but holding back, still aware of his power though and probably not afraid to utilize it if the situation called for it. That required a careful approach, no impulsive decisions or trying to upstage the other, only trying to regain some sense of control and hopefully the upper hand.

[princess-of-the-corner]

Miraculous Gaang

Ok so. Ideas.

Sozin Actually used to be part of the Guardian Order, but got into a fight with them over the fact that they are just sitting on these objects of power, not using them to “improve” the world. Eventually results in Sozin stealing the Peacock, then him and Roku duking it out, the Order getting destroyed, and Sozin spending the rest of his life searching for the rest of the Miraculous. Roku dies making sure other people can escape. So, total count of people who manage to flee the Order imploding:

Sozin, with a damaged Peacock Miraculous he can’t use now. He starts his company as a cover to search for the rest of the Miraculous, but he turns out to be a very good business man, so is actually successful. He eventually marries, has kids, and imparts on them the knowledge of the Miraculous, hoping one of them will succeed where he failed.

Roku’s girlfriend, who was pregnant at the time. Of course, the Order didn’t know they were dating, or that she was pregnant. Moves to another city, rebuilds a life, has her kid. Eventually tells them of the Miraculous, when explaining what happened to Dad.

A small assortment of monks, who immediately go into hiding to “preserve their knowledge”.

Gyatso, who was a child at the time. Roku entrusted the kid with the Miracle Box, under the assumption the other monks would protect him when they found him. Instead, Gyatso ended up mostly on his own, and has vowed to protect the Miracle Box as best he can.

Other idea, that Gyatso mostly uses the Turtle, which extends his lifespan, but briefly, much later, tried to use the Butterfly to help people, which resulted in it getting lost, someone dying, and Gyatso adopting baby!Aang. He is trying REAL HARD to balance “Good Parent, let kids be kids, freedom is important” with “Guilt™, Protective™, Oh God, I can’t let you get hurt like that”.

Then, so far, I think we have:

- Ladybug!Sokka

- Black Cat!Katara

- Turtle!Aang

- Dragon!Zuko

- Rabbit!Yue

- Pig!Jin

- Bee!Ty Lee

- Mouse!Mai

- Fox!Azula, or Monkey!Azula

- Tiger!Toph, or Ox!Toph

- Tiger!Suki, or Snake!Suki (for the record, I feel like the weapons could change a bit to match the wielder, so Suki could still have fans)

Also, if this isn’t Paris, we can just set it in Modern Style, Ba Sing Se?

(thoughts, feelings, opinions, ideas?)

-

Okay okay okay

So I think my main thought is that we now have an explaination of sorts for the Ursa/Ozai pairing.

Which is that ofc Sozin passed the torch of looking for the Miraculous to Azulon, and he eventually discovered Roku’s descendants. Azulon looks at that and goes ‘hey my youngest son is single and roughtly the same as that girl. Ozai you up to seduce her for information?’.

I don’t think Ursa would fall for him. Partly because she def still had her own fiance already but also like. Ozai can only do so much ‘charming’. So he probably ends up intimidating her into a relationship. Either because he’s trying to get information, or from some entitled ‘how dare you turn me down?’ thing.

I think I’m gonna lock in Tiger!Toph and Snake!Suki. And Azula with the Fox is too tempting considering Vulpyro.

Also yeah It doesn’t have to be Paris. Some modern city. Idk if i’d use Ba Sing Sae like it works but I think there could be like a name for the city itself while the different districts are named after the atla locations.

My thoughts on the Peacock:

/technically/ it’s not needed, but I can have some fun. I know it was mentioned on giving it to Azula, but I want Azula unaware of what Ozai’s doing. Mostly because she has more of an early redemption (she was still in contact with Zuko and Iroh so while she’s not fully redeemed she’s not loyal to him), so if she knew what he was doing she’d rat him out. He’s mostly using her to rile people up to be Akumatized.

So we have two options for the Peacock in my mind. One  is the OC I had made for the Avatar!Ty Lee AU because she’s /basically/ Nathalie if she was more unhinged and evil.

The second one is Zhao because tbh while we dunk on him at times, he was Book 1′s main villain and was actually good at what he was doing.

[newmaniawe]

How I Fix Peacock Not Showing Up On LG Smart TV

LG Smart TVs are popular for their ability to access various streaming services such as Peacock by NBCUniversal. However, sometimes Peacock may not show up on your LG Smart TV, and this can be frustrating for users. I have uncovered all the reasons which cause Peacock to not work on your LG Smart TV which I will briefly explain. There are many solutions for this issue and some of them have worked for our LG TV and ultimately, We were able to show up Peacock on our TV.

Reasons: Why Peacock Not Showing Up On LG Smart TV?

Network Connectivity Peacock requires a stable internet connection to work properly. If your LG Smart TV is not properly connected to the internet, you may experience difficulties in accessing Peacock. Subscription You may not have an active subscription to Peacock which is why it has stopped working App Issues Sometimes, issues with the Peacock app itself can prevent it from working on your LG Smart TV. You may need to update the app or reinstall it to fix any problems. Geographical Restrictions Peacock is only available in certain regions. If you're trying to access Peacock from outside its supported region, you may not be able to access the service. Compatibility Peacock may not be compatible with your LG Smart TV. Make sure your TV meets the system requirements for Peacock. When You are able to resolve all these issues, you can watch Peacock on LG Smart TV.

Fix Peacock Not Showing Up On LG Smart TV in 7 Steps

Restart Your TV The first method is the easiest one to try. It is a simple reset method. First, unplug your TV from the wall outlet and wait 60 seconds now don't be impatient here wait the whole 60 seconds then plug it back in this is very This is different from turning your TV on and off with your remote control. This is what we call a hard reset of your TV so make sure you do this method carefully.

Reset Your Router Unplug the power to your router for 60 seconds and then plug it back in. Sometimes, connectivity issues can cause problems with streaming services, so resetting your router can help. Check Internet Speed Make sure that you have an active internet connection. Because slow internet speed might not allow Peacock to work. You can search Speed Test in your browser search bar and check your connection speed. The normal speed for this streaming is around 9-10 MBPs.

If your Internet speed appears to be unreasonably low, then you may need to contact your Internet  Service Provider for help. Clear App Cache Go to your device settings, and then scroll all the way down to “General”; and tap on it. Then tap on   “iPhone storage”. From here, search for the app,  and tap on it. Once you’re on this screen, you need to tap on “offload app”. Tap again to confirm. It’ll take a bit for processing,   and then a reinstall button will show up,  Simply tap on it to reinstall the app.

Disable VPN Services VPNs sometimes make the server down which is why we have to face issues with certain apps and streaming services crashing on our Smart TVs. So, ensure that you disable them before using them. Update Your LG Smart TV The next step is to update your LG Smart TV. An outdated TV software can cause issues with streaming services. To update your LG Smart TV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7We3QjdvEI Go to the home screen on your LG Smart TV. Navigate to the Settings option. Click on the General option. Select the About This TV option. Check for software updates and install them if available. Check Server Status Sometimes,  this issue can happen due to server issues. First, you need to open up this webpage on your web browser and check its server status. In case, you find a temporary outage, wait for some time and try again later. But, if you experience no outage here, and still encounter this issue;  then you need to completely reinstall the app.

Re-Install Peacock App If you have tried all the above methods and you are unable to resolve the problem. You might need to uninstall the app and re-install it on your device. You may need to consider using a different streaming player, such as a Roku stick, Fire Stick, or Apple TV 4K. These devices are affordable and easy to use. You can plug them into your TV and use them as your main streaming player to access Peacock TV. Check Your Peacock Subscription If Peacock is not showing up on your LG Smart TV, it may be due to an issue with your subscription. Make sure your Peacock subscription is up-to-date and active. You can check your subscription by logging in to your Peacock account on a web browser or another device. Contact LG or Peacock Support If none of the above solutions work, you can contact LG or Peacock support for assistance. They will be able to troubleshoot the issue and provide a solution.

List of Peacock App Compatible LG Smart TVs

You must check that your TV is compatible with the Peacock streaming service. Here is the list of all compatible LG Smart TVs. LG OLED TVs (2020, 2019, 2018) LG NanoCell TVs (2020, 2019, 2018) LG UHD TVs (2020, 2019, 2018) LG Smart TVs (2020, 2019, 2018) On the above-mentioned models, you can watch Peacock streaming service. For installing other Third-party apps on LG TV, you can check their compatibility separately.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I install Peacock on my LG Smart TV? Yes, you can install Peacock on your LG Smart TV. You can download and install the Peacock app from the LG Content Store, which is accessible from your TV's home screen. If you can't find the app, try searching for it using the TV's search function. Do I need to subscribe to Peacock to access its content on my LG Smart TV? Yes, you need to subscribe to Peacock to access its content on your LG Smart TV. Peacock offers a range of subscription plans, including a free plan that offers limited content with ads. To access all of Peacock's content, you'll need to sign up for a Premium or Premium Plus subscription. What should I do if Peacock is buffering or not playing correctly on my LG Smart TV? If Peacock is buffering or not playing correctly on your LG Smart TV, there are a few things you can try to fix the issue. First, check your internet connection to make sure it's strong enough to stream Peacock content. You can also try restarting your TV and router, as well as clearing your TV's cache. If the problem persists, try contacting Peacock support for further assistance. About Author Read the full article