#caroline 'carrie' astor

[alienas]

COSTUME APPRECIATION Carrie Astor, The Gilded Age

[lesbiangummybearmafia]

The Gilded Age season 2, episode 1: You Don't Even Like Opera spoliers...

First I have say I'm so happy The Gilded Age is back! I've waiting since they showed us the teaser for season 2, thought I'd lose my mind. But finally...

I'm so glad to see Bertha there in all her glory. Reminding, re-reminding, annoying, giving a headache to especially Mrs. Astor and showing them all they need to be falling under her reign. I definitely think that lovely surprise at the end of her dinner helped greatly. Mrs. Astor was squirming like worm on hook. Which I personally couldn't been happier about. Because some time in first season I completely fell under Bertha's spell I'm good with that still. It's not just that she's attractive because well duh, but it's that she's cunning, brilliant, devilish, crazy intelligent, 6 steps at least a head of anyone else, always has plan, suffers no fools, old money/new money she'll can take you down faster then you snap your fingers. But I do think she's a loyal friend and a good person to those who prove to that her too. So I have very deep affection for her character.

My heart went out to Peggy and her Mom that they didn't get to her son in time. That whole arch just put me in tears time and again. To get that close to her son only to lose him like that was just cruel. I really want to see happiness for her character. I still will never be ok with what her father did but I understand a little more why he did it. Especially back then, they have soften his character which helps to see where he may have been coming from trying to protect his daughter. It would be nice to see Peggy as some point have a relationship with her father again. Her father know the pain he has caused to both his wife and daughter. It's easy to the guilt and pain he himself is feeling.

Same for Marian after what happened last season, I hated watching her fall in love for first time to that low life who didn't deserve her. I doubt it would happen but I think her and Bertha's son Larry would make a wonderful couple. He definitely likes her, we seen that last season. I just like to see happiness for her. I really think Aunt Agnes needs get over Marian teaching water painting to upper class girls at a private school one day a week. Give me a break, it's so not a big deal. Even for back than it's shouldn't be a big deal.

I have such a I like her/I dislike her relationship with Aunt Agnes. All last season I was like this omg one moment I wanted smack her upside the head and next I was nodding my head agreeing with her. I feel it may be another season of that with her.

Then there's Aunt Ada in middle trying to keep to peace or keep the house from burning down. Their like sisters that got custody of an adult teenager which it basically was back then when you had an adult young woman in your house. But I really love Aunt Ada. I know she's always keeping the peace but she did say in episode sometimes yelling could be a good thing so. But she has such a loving heart and she truly wants everyone to find happiness. I'd like to see her get happiness also. I could easily seen her be a wife and mom. So she deserves her own amount of happiness.

Now I know, we all know there is no way that Bertha is going to allow Gladys to marry Oscar. But what I'm trying to figure out is this is that good or bad? Now I see Bertha wanting have what happened with Cora on Downton Abbey, with Gladys ends up marring a English Lord or Duke. Not Oscar Van Rhijn that's for sure. But what about for Gladys at first I was against the idea because shouldn't she find a man that actually want to be in love with her? With Oscar because he's gay that's never a true possibility. But after what Oscar said in episode it got me thinking. Because back then it wasn't like a wife square and equal partner in a marriage. Depending on husband it was expected for the wife to have the husband's opinions on things, to keep in line. Gladys being married to Oscar she would have freedom she most likely never have in any other marriage. But she would also never have romantic love, I definitely think she'd have love with Oscar. Now I'm a lesbian so it is different to say the least but some of my closest friendships have been with gay men. One I consider the brother I never had. So Gladys could have a very deep emotional relationship with Oscar that's love just not romantic. So I'm lost what to think, however Oscar would need to show that wanting to marry Gladys isn't just for his own selfish reasons.

Than the mess with the robber barons. Which I wonder is just ment to mirror so many CEOs, Executives, Studio heads and etc... that are fighting the unions in our own time? I don't know if labor unions started because of robber barons or not. However I wouldn't be a bit surprised if they did. At that meeting with George Russell and the other robber barons is having talking about workers wanting medical care, better housing, better pay, 8 hour work day. While they choke on their own wealth but don't want to give the very people that are making them that wealthy a better life should be definition of greed. Is this how America became the greedy horrible place we now live in? That's why I use the term robber barons instead of successful heads industrialists. One tell everyone plainly what exactly what they were. But in the show it hard to know where place my feelings. Because the show is based somewhat in reality but the Russell's are fictional. But say that George Russell had been a real robber barons of the time. A large part of me wants to hate his character, but the problem is I actually like his character quite a bit. I want to see him put in ethical workplace practices for his workers, I want you see him do the right thing for the people that work him. Now I'm somewhat fearful what the show will have them do. Most likely mirror history no doubt.

Because I'll attempt it I love seeing Bertha in all her gorgeous, insanely beautiful dresses. Their so many of her's I was drooling over in this episode along, (she has the best wardrobe of whole cast). But if we were talking realistically, where is all that money coming from to pay for those dresses and grows. Off the backs off works who live in poverty. Does now, just like then makes so much sense why all jobs and industries need labor unions. But perhaps ultimately that's a part of the show. Because those two very thoughts were fighting against themselves at the same time in US right then. I do like the idea of the Gilded Age making us really think about that.

I'm so looking forward to whole new season!

I'm 100% on Bertha Russell side. She's basically Regina Mills cousin to me, don't ever ask me explain that outside my own mind lol.

Oh yea can't wait to see all the gorgeous clothes.

[senatormellies]

The severe lack of Bertha Russell/Lina Astor fic is homophobic

[djkerr]

TGA 02x08 In Terms of Winning and Losing

My favorite costumes from THE GILDED AGE (2022- ) | 2x08 "In Terms of Winning and Losing"

Costume Design: Kasia Walicka-Maimone

[claudia1829things]

Ranking of "THE GILDED AGE" Season Two (2023) Episodes

Below is my ranking of the Season Two episodes from the HBO historical drama, "THE GILDED AGE". Created by Julian Fellowes, the series stars Christine Baranski, Carrie Coon, Morgan Spector and Cynthia Nixon:

RANKING OF "THE GILDED AGE" SEASON TWO (2023) EPISODES

1. (2.05) "Close Enough to Touch" - Socialite Bertha Russell makes final preparations for the societal event of the summer season with a dinner to honor the Duke of Buckingham in Newport. Peggy Scott and her employer T. Thomas Fortune encounter hostile whites at a black-owned restaurant, while covering a story in Tuskagee, Alabama. And Ada Brook finally marries her new beau, the Reverend Luke Forte, despite the disapproval of her older sister, socialite Agnes van Rhijn.

2. (2.03) "Head to Head" - The Opera war between Bertha and Mrs. Caroline Astor escalates. At Bertha's fundraiser, a surprise guest in the form of Bertha's former maid, now socialite Mrs. Enid Winterton, reveals an unpleasant secret regarding her husband, George Russell. Peggy offers to join Fortune in covering the new dormitory story at the Tuskegee Institute. And George attempts to woo union leader Mr. Henderson.

3. (2.01) "You Don't Even Like the Opera" - In the season premiere, the Scotts visit Philadelphia to attend an Easter memorial service for Peggy's dead son, who had ended up adopted. Ada meets Luke Forte for the first time following Easter service. And after being snubbed by Mrs. Astor's opera community, Bertha decides to support the new Metropolitan Opera over the senior Academy of Music.

4. (2.08) "In Terms of Winning and Losing" - In the season finale, the fate of the van Rhijn household is uncertain after Oscar van Rhijn loses his family's fortune to a con artist. Footman Jack Trotter's alarm clock patent is approved. Arthur Scott thwarts the New York Educational Board's secret attempt to close African-American schools. Later, Peggy decides to end her employment with The New York Globe, wary of her attraction to the married Mr. Fortune. Marian Brook decides to end her whirlwind engagement to Agnes' nephew by marriage, the wealthy Dashiell Montgomery. And the Duke of Buckingham becomes the pivotal figure in the Opera war between Bertha and Mrs. Astor.

5. (2.07) "Wonders Never Cease" - New York City citizens celebrate the final construction of the new Brooklyn Bridge. Marian harbors doubts about her engagement to Dashiell. Oscar discovers that Miss Beaton, the young socialite he had hoped to marry, is a con artist who had tricked him of most of the van Rhijn money. The van Rhijn-Forte household suffers a personal tragedy.

6. (2.04) "His Grace the Duke" - Bertha discovers the funding for the unfinished Metropolitan Opera House has run out. Ada fears Agnes will disapprove of her meetings with Reverend Forte. Peggy and Mr. Fortune travel to Tuskegee. Bertha insinuates herself with the Duke of Buckingham at a dinner held by her former maid, the socialite Mrs. Enid Winterton. George and other business owners conspire to subvert impending labor strikes. And Bertha forces Larry's new lover to end their romance.

7. (2.06) "Warning Shots" - Mrs. Winterton demands Bertha's center box at the Met in exchange for her support. Peggy asks Mr. Fortune to investigate the New York Education Board's decision to close the Black schools. Reverend Forte receives unpleasant news, following his and Ada's honeymoon. George and a number of military soldiers face striking workers at his Pittsburgh steel plant. And Marian receives a surprising, yet very public marriage proposal.

8. (2.02) "Some Sort of Trick" - To escape the tense atmosphere at her parents' Brooklyn home, Peggy rejoins the van Rhijn household as Agnes' secretary. Both Peggy and Agnes warn the latter's maid Armstrong to treat the former with more respect. Gladys Russell put an end to Oscar's pursuit of her with a rejection of his marriage proposal. Her brother, the newly architect Larry Russell, becomes romantically involved with his new client, a woman twice his age. The Russells discover that Bertha's former maid has married a wealthy elderly member of New York society.

[fredborges98]

A elite brasileira é mesmo a elite do atraso? | Luiz Felipe Pondé

It was 1883, and the socially ambitious Mrs. William Kissam Vanderbilt (née Alva Erskine Smith) was determined to become part of New York’s high society and get on The List.

This was the famous list of “The Four Hundred” people who were New York’s high society of the Gilded Age. But to get on The List, Alva would need to go through the queen bee of New York’s social hierarchy, Mrs. Caroline Schermerhorn Astor, known as "The Mrs. Astor."

Upholders of old money and tradition, Astor and Ward McAllister, the self-appointed “arbiter of social taste” and creator of the Four Hundred, were the gatekeepers of all things upper class. It was up to them to decide if your bloodlines were pure enough or last name was respectable enough to become one of the elites.

They decided that the Vanderbilt family was unacceptable for high society because they thought nouveau riche family patriarch, Cornelius “Commodore” Vanderbilt, the ambitious entrepreneur who made his fortune in the railroad and shipping industry, was too crass and distasteful.

This did not sit well with Alva, who was married to Cornelius’ grandson, William Kissam Vanderbilt. She became determined to bring the Vanderbilts into what she thought was their rightful place in society and onto the list of the Four Hundred.

Her first step was hiring renowned American architect Richard Morris Hunt to build an extravagant French château-style mansion for her and William at 660 Fifth Avenue that overshadowed the opulent townhomes already lining the avenue. The super-sized estate was nicknamed “Petit Chateau.”

When Petit Chateau was done, Alva decided to have a housewarming party, but not just any housewarming. She wanted a party on a much grander scale, and on Monday, March 26, 1883, she hosted one of the most amazing parties that New York had ever seen.

Uniformed servants hand-delivered invitations, young socialites had practiced quadrilles (dances performed with four couples in a rectangular formation) for weeks, and, according to the New York Times, “Amid the rush and excitement of business, men have found their minds haunted by uncontrollable thoughts as to whether they should appear as Robert Le Diable, Cardinal Richelieu, Otho the Barbarian, or the Count of Monte Cristo, while the ladies have been driven to the verge of distraction in the effort to settle the comparative advantages of ancient, medieval, and modern costumes.”

With a mountain of wealth at her disposal, Alva spared no expense. She used every available resource, including the press, and invited journalists to take exclusive photographs of the decorations beforehand to help build hype. Alva also supposedly pulled one more trick from her sleeve: According to gossip, she used good old-fashioned manipulation to get on the Four Hundred and used Mrs. Astor’s daughter, Carrie, as a pawn. Like all young women of marrying age, Carrie had practiced a quadrille with her friends for weeks and anxiously awaited her invitation. When all her friends got theirs, and she still hadn’t, she asked her mother to find out why.

Alva claimed that since Mrs. Astor had never called on the Vanderbilt home on Fifth Avenue to introduce herself formally, she had no address to send an invitation to, so Mrs. Astor reluctantly visited Petit Chateau and left her visiting card. Their invitation was received the following day.

Some 1,200 New York socialites began arriving in carriages at the mansion at 10 p.m. as the fancy dress ball got underway. Police had to hold back crowds gathered to catch a glimpse of the society “it” men and women in their creative and over-the-top costumes. Mrs. Astor and Ward McAllister even attended.

Much like at the prom, the guests had the opportunity to have their photo taken at the event of the year, or perhaps the century, by Mora, a Cuban refugee who was the photographer of the rich and famous.

Alva dressed as a Venetian Renaissance lady, while her sister-in-law, Mrs. William Seward Webb, went as a hornet and wore an imported headdress made of diamonds.

Other guests included Miss Edith Fish dressed as the Duchess of Burgundy, with genuine emeralds, rubies, and sapphires adorning the front of the dress, and Miss Kate Fearing Strong, who dressed as her nickname "Puss" and wore a disturbing costume that consisted of seven cat tails sewn onto her skirt and a taxidermy cat head she wore as a hat.

One of the most dazzling costumes of the ball was worn by Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt II. Designed by Charles Frederick Worth, her costume, representing “Electric Light,” was made of yellow satin and gold and silver thread and decorated with glass beads and pearls in a lightning-bolt pattern. It even had a torch that lit up, thanks to batteries hidden in her dress.

At 11:30 sharp, the ball officially began with the hobby-horse quadrille, and guests danced down the mansion’s grand staircase in their lavish costumes. Dancers in the Dresden quadrille wore all-white court costumes and looked like porcelain dolls. The costumes were just as elaborate for the Opera Bouffe quadrille. Miss Bessie Webb, dressed as Mme. Le Diable was described in the New York Times as being “in a red satin dress with a black velvet demon embroidered on it and the entire dress trimmed with demon fringe - that is to say, with a fringe ornamented with the heads and horns of little demons.”

The ball went into full swing after the quadrilles ended. Dozens of Venetian noblewomen and Louis XVIs, Joan of Arc, a King Lear “in his right mind,” and hundreds of other costumed guests drank champagne and danced around the flower-filled house and the third-floor gymnasium, which had been converted into a forest filled with orchids, bougainvillea, and palm trees. A small staff of servants served dinner at 2 a.m., including chicken croquettes, Maryland-style terrapin, fried oysters, beef, ham and chicken in jelly, salmon a la Rothschild, chicken salad au celery, sandwiches a la Windsor, and several kinds of ices.

The dancing continued until sunrise when Alva led her guests in a final Virginia reel. Then, just like that, the grand ball was over. Men in powdered wigs stumbled down Fifth Avenue toward home, and Alva’s fantasy world turned back into reality.

Most contemporary sources put the cost of the ball at $250,000 (around $6 million in today’s money), including $65,000 for champagne and $11,000 for flowers. All of the extravagant pomp and pageantry worked: Newspapers across the country praised Alva’s tastes and classiness and reported the most minute details. There was some backlash, however. The New York Sun published an article that took issue with all of the excess when there was so much suffering in the same city:

Some kind-minded persons argue that entertainments of this kind are both charitable and patriotic, for they cause money to circulate and give work to those whose lot it is to toil. This is sentimental rubbish. The needy American workingman and workingwoman do not make a cent by the importation of Worth’s dresses, the purchase of new diamonds at Tiffany’s or the resettling of old family jewels ... the festivity represents nothing but the accumulation of immense masses of money by the few out of the labor of many.”

But we’re guessing that all the party revelers, especially Alva herself, gave not one whit about what The Sun thought of her extravagant costume ball because, as of March 27, 1883, the Vanderbilts were on The List that was no longer limited to 400 people.

Perhaps that’s why Mora later added birds to Alva’s photo - to symbolize that she was finally flying as high as the other social elites.

You can see more extravagant ball costumes in the photo album at The Museum of the City of New York.

Original dos Países Baixos, a família Vanderbilt já foi uma das mais famosas da história dos Estados Unidos. Com uma fortuna avaliada em mais de 200 milhões de dólares, eles começaram seu império transportando cargas pela baía de Nova York.

Com empresários, atrizes, apresentadores e herdeiros, os Vanderbilts, quase tanto quanto os Rockefellers, têm uma trajetória repleta de polêmicas e tragédias. Em meados de 1930, a família, abalada por novas tecnologias, declarou falência.

A promessa do sonho americano não é algo recente, e data da própria fundação do país, em 1776. Procurando um lugar para enriquecer, a família Vanderbilt foi dos Países Baixos para a América e, Commodore Vanderbilt realizou o cobiçado desejo, se tornando um dos homens mais ricos do país.

Com um empréstimo de 100 dólares de seus pais, começou a transportar cargas pela baía de Nova York com seu barco, que não muito tempo depois ampliou para uma frota. Os transportes marítimos foram intensificados com a guerra contra o Reino Unido, e sua fortuna aumentou ainda mais.

Aparentemente, Comodoro pressentiu que sua fortuna um dia iria sumir nas mãos de seus filhos. William e Cornelius II não eram de confiança de seu pai, o homônimo foi enviado para um hospital psiquiátrico ainda na juventude.

Já William era considerado um tolo por seu pai, e viveu um bom tempo na fazenda da família em Staten Island, conseguindo ampliar seus negócios. Com isso, ele foi o herdeiro da companhia e responsável por dobrar a riqueza dos Vanderbilt.

William Henry Vanderbilt ampliou os negócios da família e começou a investir em estradas de ferro. A fortuna dos holandeses, que já era maior que o tesouro nacional americano, dobrou de tamanho, ultrapassando 200 milhões de dólares.

Após a sua morte, William dividiu o dinheiro entre seus 8 filhos, e a companhia foi herdada pelos dois filhos mais velhos, Cornelius Vanderbilt II e William Kissam Vanderbilt. A partir desse momento a promissora história da família começou a mudar drasticamente.

Com mais interesse em gastar do que propriamente ampliar a fortuna da família, os Vanderbilt se acostumaram com uma vida de aparências e riqueza. Como forma de construir uma imagem poderosa na alta classe nova iorquina, diversas festas eram dadas nas inúmeras propriedades luxuosas da família na costa leste.

A esposa de William Kissam, Alva, sediou em sua mansão um evento conhecido como o Baile Vanderbilt, em 1883( Acima descrita). A festa fantasia foi considerada na época pelo New York Times como um verdadeiro conto de fadas, com grandiosos vestidos, joias espetaculares e outros excessos. A festa custou cerca de 6 milhões de dólares na cotação atual, dinheiro vindo diretamente da fortuna da família.

Porém, as gastanças vieram a coincidir justamente quando os negócios não iam bem como anteriormente. Na década de 1930, os transportes por navios deram lugar aos carros, barcas e caminhões.

Buscando compensar essas perdas, a família Vanderbilt começou a vender ações das suas estradas de ferro. Porém, o que eles não contavam era que grande parte da empresa seria comprada pela concorrência, que se uniu para lentamente levar os antigos líderes de vendas à falência.

Mesmo assim, eles conseguiam se sustentar com a sua fortuna histórica. E mesmo com o iminente fim do dinheiro, o nome Vanderbilt buscava se firmar por meio de ações filantrópicas em auxílio à população do estado de Nova York.

O próprio Cornelius doou um milhão de dólares para a construção da Vanderbilt University, em Nashville, no Tennesse. Já William Henry tinha uma ampla coleção de artes, e a paixão se refletiu em seus filhos. A família financiou galerias de artes e museus, inclusive financiando um cinema a céu aberto na cidade de Hyde Park.

Nem mesmo as boas ações da família os salvaram do óbvio, e a fortuna desapareceu rapidamente. Dentro de trinta anos após a morte de Cornelius Vanderbilt , — em 1877 — conhecido como Comodoro, nenhum membro da família estava entre os mais ricos dos Estados Unidos. Em uma reunião familiar de 1973, entre os 120 presentes na confraternização chegava, nenhum sequer chegava a ser milionário.

O mais notório descendente ainda vivo da família é Anderson Cooper, âncora do canal televisivo CNN. Filho de Gloria Vanderbilt (uma das únicas da família a se sustentar por conta própria, sendo uma estilista e atriz reconhecida), Cooper não terá direito a nenhuma herança.

Ao que parece, ele está muito bem com isso e já afirmou publicamente não se preocupar com a situação devido ao seu ótimo salário na emissora.

Fazer parte de uma elite significa pertencer a um grupo dominante na sociedade ou a uma camada hierárquica superior.

O termo "elite" pode ser usado para se referir a:

Grupos que têm a capacidade de tomar decisões políticas ou econômicas

Grupos que estão em posições sociais superiores, como as classes sociais

Grupos hierarquicamente superiores dentro de uma organização burocrática, como unidades militares

A expressão "circulação das elites" foi introduzida por Pareto para designar o movimento de integração dos elementos da classe dominada na classe dominante, e a eliminação dos elementos ineficazes da classe dominante.

O termo "elite intelectual" é usado para se referir a grupos de pessoas que se destacam pelo seu intelecto elevado. No entanto, esse termo pode ser atribuído de forma pejorativa, pois pode promover uma visão de superioridade cultural, social e intelectual.

Vanderbilt- A Entropia da Elite Brasileira.

Texto: Bilíngue( Inglês e Português sem tradução)

Créditos:

The Vanderbilt Ball of 1883 em :https://www.antiquetrader.com/collecting-101/the-vanderbilt-ball-of-1883 de Kris Manty.Mar 23, 2022

IA Google.Gemini

A falência dos Vanderbilt: Como uma das mais ricas famílias dos Estados Unidos quebrou por:

Caio Tortamano Publicado em 01/05/2020,

https://aventurasnahistoria.com.br/noticias/reportagem/historia-tragedia-dos-vanderbilt-familia-estados-unidos.phtml

Por: Fred Borges( Autor e Editor-Líder)

Elites são avaliadas em seus comportamentos, muito mais que em sua intelectualidade ou seu dinheiro, mas num país que a aparência vale mais que sua essência é decadente fazer parte da elite brasileira pela sua falta de moral ou falhas morais como formar cartéis, " máfias" , monopólios, oligopólios, sustentada pela corrupção endêmica e sistêmica.

Elites são elites quando agregam valor à vida humana, a qualidade de todos ao seu redor, e definitivamente isso não significa a distribuição da pobreza,mas da riqueza.

Esse ano obtivemos a menor taxa de desemprego e desocupação, mas que emprego e que ocupação? Que qualidade de emprego ou ocupação? Definitivamente quantidade da fortuna não significa qualidade da fortuna, fortunas se auto alimentam, se auto sustentam, se auto investem, não há fortuna que se crie com uma população empobrecida ,deseducada, mal informada por meios fidedignos, pois credibilidade é tudo para a fortuna ser mantida.Nós somos naquilo que acreditamos, com as fortunas e os serviços financeiros não é diferente, o maior capital do mundo é a credibilidade, credibilidade institucional, credibilidade empresarial, credibilidade de uma sociedade que elegeu um corrupto e ladrão e agora caiu em si, alguns dessa elite, e procura desesperadamente uma alternativa aos seus ganhos de capital.

A esquerda que ganhou as últimas eleições é corrupta,incompetente, e inviabiliza a médio e longo prazo os ganhos de capital, e os ganhos de capital não se fazem somente em aplicações financeiras, mas no investimento na produção industrial, agrícola, etc.Esses investimentos estão relativamente paralisados por uma " elite" cartelizados, monopolista, comprada pelo Estado incompetente, ineficaz e ineficiente, para não dizer deficiente de visão, manutenção, crescimento orgânico das organizações privadas e públicas.

A elite é limitada, estéril, impotente, inconveniente, educada em escolas privadas entra em paradoxo, nunca em conflito com a classe trabalhadora formada em escolas públicas de péssima qualidade de ensino, essa péssima qualidade de ensino se dissemina também em alguns segmentos do setor privado como nas IES( Instituições de Ensino Superior ) Privados.Fora algumas instituições do terceiro setor como Institutos e Fundações onde o conhecimento se une a pesquisa- extensão- graduação e pós graduação regulando e auto regulando o conhecimento.

Aliás sem comportamento de pouco adianta o conhecimento, conhecimento com comportamento leva ao saber ou sapiência, não podemos dizer genericamente ou universalmente que no Brasil a sapiência formou nossa elite, a elite do " velho dinheiro" se encontra com a elite do " novo dinheiro" e de comum tem ambos dinheiro, mas novamente para que dinheiro sem conhecimento, se sapiência, sem humanismo ou humanidade.Não estou pregando o socialismo ou comunismo falido, engana-se que dinheiro fruto da especulação torne as elites ricas, mas afinal o que é a riqueza?

Riqueza é um conceito que pode ser entendido como a soma de recursos, ativos e oportunidades de uma pessoa ou comunidade. Ela pode ser expressa como o patrimônio líquido de uma pessoa, que é calculado pela diferença entre o ativo e o passivo.

A palavra riqueza pode ter vários significados, como:

Qualidade de ser rico

Abundância de bens

Prosperidade

Ostentação

Opulência

Magnificência

Luxo

Fartura

Fertilidade

Classe dos ricos

A riqueza é muitas vezes confundida com renda, mas os dois termos descrevem elementos diferentes, embora relacionados. A riqueza é composta pelos itens de valor econômico que uma pessoa possui, enquanto a renda é o fluxo de entrada desses itens.

A riqueza de um país não é medida apenas pela produção de bens e serviços, mas também pela distribuição de renda entre seus habitantes.

E aqui é o grande diferencial dos países ricos.Líderes fazem líderes, ricos fazem ricos, a riqueza é um aprendizado, é um fluxo, dinheiro tem que fluir, é pura energia que deve perpetuar o bem por toda uma sociedade, " você pode até nascer pobre, mas morrer pobre é por sua única e grande responsabilidade e conta!"Ella Wheeler Wilcox

A história dos Vanderbilt é rica e conta um pouco da história da riqueza tem relacão somente com conhecimento e comportamento, mas sorte, instinto, estar no lugar, momento, e pessoas certas pode ser a fórmula do sucesso, mas sucesso é contexto, é conjuntura, mas principalmente estrutura!

Estrutura principalmente moral, moral oportunista, consumista, consumerista, com um código de ética que abomina a traição, a infidelidade, a deslealdade e pune detonando o mercado, implodindo-o e assim vimos na quebra da Bolsa de Nova York, Crise do Petróleo, Crise do Suprime dentre outras.

Bolhas sempre irão existir, bolhas de " sabão", bolhas financeiras, especulação, jogo de poker com estratégias e táticas como:

Controle: Se a mão não for forte, passe e pague apostas.

Jogar para o longo prazo: Ser paciente e aperfeiçoe suas habilidades.

Observar os adversários: Julgar como eles jogam e se adaptar.

Posicionamento: Quanto mais próximo do botão, melhor para você.

Começar em um nível adequado: Começar em jogos de valores mais baixos e subir gradualmente. Diversificar as jogadas, blefar e especular.

Abordagens: Existem abordagens diferentes, como "tight", "loose", "agressivo" e "passivo".

Analisar e agir com base em informações incompletas: O poker ensina a tomar decisões com base em informações incompletas.Mas mesmo as incompletas devem ser fidedignas e de credibilidade inquestionável.

O que vemos atualmente é o desfile do " rei nú", de uma elite que se vendeu, de uma elite que nunca deveria ser considerada uma elite, já que lhe falta: credibilidade, comportamento, bases ética e moral, cidadania, civismo, estadismo, parasitas do parisitismo omisso, conivente, anuentes, doente,de PPPs( Parceria Público Privado) de um jogo de Poker de cartas marcadas, de concorrências públicas manipuladas, viciadas, elites viciadas em serem elites, se auto fecundam, hermafroditas, simbióticos, protótipos de um baile, baile das elites que se justificam tão somente pelas suas condições financeiras,mas um dia o dinheiro acaba, fortunas não se mantém, onde realidade sempre ditará fantasias elitistas, bailes de gala regadas a champanhe, caviar, e " festas do guardanapo" em Paris, no apartamento de Fernando Henrique, representando uma elite intelectual que quando soube fazer o certo, o correto,o coerente, o consistente, criou o Real( nossa moeda) e quando não soube elegeu Lula da Silva como presidente do Brasil.

[iftheshoef1tz]

Ho! Ho! Ho!

Sorry for being gone for a few days, I hope you are alright, my dearest secret santa recipient.

I need to tell you something…and this is that I feel like you are reading my mind (which is slightly creepy, but in the case of present planning actually quite fortunate!) I had a story idea in mind that kind of fits perfectly what you answered - the non-fiction aspect, the angst-fluff ratio and mean Eris…just perfect (like you and your blog😏).

And now, since I am your secret santa I obviously don’t come without presents or in that case (at least for now) questions.

Would you mind telling me your favourite tropes, and maybe if you have a favourite line from Azris? Or a line one says about the other? Can of course also be from fanfiction?

And maybe we can also talk about music? Do you have any favourite songs/pieces of music? Ones you love? Ones you can listen to all the time? And maybe also songs you connect with Azris? You can of course also name classical pieces (could be relevant for the story👀).

You can go into as much detail as you want, I love reading your answers and I am still incredibly happy that I get to gift you.

Yours sincerely,

🤶🏻

Oh god, I’m so excited, omg.

Okay, favorite tropes. “Only one bed” is probably one of my ABSOLUTE favorites. And the moment when one of them looks at the other’s mouth before they’ve acknowledge the Tension ™️ between them!! I am also a sucker for the moments where it’s ��will they won’t they” and they both clearly want it in that moment, and then something pulls them away from each other. I don’t have a snappy name for that one lmao. As for favorite lines, i don’t think i have any in canon or in fanfiction, but the more romantic/makes-you-want-to-cry poetry lines always get me. Pablo Neruda (Love Sonnet XVII), Mary Oliver (Wild Geese), ee cummings (I Carry Your Heart) etc. (And ofc select Richard Siken poems.)

In terms of artists whose entire catalogue I could listen to on the regular, Vienna Teng (Dreaming Through the Noise especially) and Keane (Under the Iron Sea especially) are up there. I’m a new convert to Taylor Swift, and “Bigger Than the Whole Sky” kills me every time. (So does “Paper Rings,” but for different reasons.) When it comes to classical music, I love basically anything by Shostakovich and Tchaikovsky. The last movement of Strauss’s “Four Last Songs” (Im Abendrot) gives me goosebumps when it’s not making me cry, and I always cry when I listen to Hilary Hahn’s recording of the second movement of the Barber Violin Concerto. I love Oblivion by Astor Piazzolla; but unfortunately my favorite recording is by Joshua Bell. Caroline Shaw’s Partita for 8 Singers changed me the first time I heard it.

I associate Eris with “This Bitter Earth/On the Nature of Daylight” which is a, like, mash up of Dinah Washington and a string quartet playing a different piece (I think?) and it is so achingly perfect that it haunts me.

But Azris songs? Man, where to start lmao. First, DELIRIOUS BY SUSANE SUNDFOR. Gimme! Gimme Gimme! By ABBA. Never Be the Same by Camila Cabello. Desire by Meg Myers. Closer by NIN. Flesh by Simon Curtis. Hatefuck by The Bravery. Touched by Vast. Close by Nick Jonas and Tove Lo. Everytime We Touch by Cascada. Stray Italian Greyhound by Vienna Teng. So Heavy I Fell Through the Earth by Grimes. Tongue by MNEK. Middle of the Night by Elley Duhe. I Will Possess Your Heart by Death Cab for Cutie. (Strangely, I don’t have any classical pieces that jump out as Azris-coded, mostly just things that make me want to write (which is usually azris lmao))

I think that’s all I’ve got, I could literally go on for hours, tho. I’M SORRY IF IT’S TOO MUCH INFORMATION

Also thank you for calling them pieces?? Most people don’t know to call them that! (Songs have to have words, ofc.) I’m so excited to have you as my secret Santa, sounds like you’ve got some rad ideas kicking around in your noggin!

[reviiraes]

"  for  me  or  for  the  memorial  ?  "  montgomery  hummed  ,  seemingly  occupied  with  peppering  kisses  on  her  neck  ,  inhaling  her  sweet  scent  ,  utterly  intoxicated  by  it  already  .  "  dove  ,  you  know  i  am  a  simple  man  ,  "  his  lips  finding  its  way  to  her  ear  ,  chuckling  huskily  .  "  no  frills  ,  no  glitter  ,  no  feather  .  you  in  nothing  would  work  just  fine  ,  "  dark  eyes  caught  a  glance  of  their  reflection  in  the  mirror  ,  smirking  at  his  own  words  .  his  mind  briefly  raced  elsewhere  as  it  always  did  when  he  was  with  caroline  .  his  wife  was  his  weakness  ,  as  she  should  be  .  "  of  course  that's  only  for  my  eyes  to  see  .  i  would  pluck  the  eyes  out  of  every  single  person  in  new  york  if  they  beheld  that  sight  ⸻  now  ,  if  it's  for  the  memorial  ,  "  he  slightly  pulled  away  ,  "  go  with  the  second  one  .  it  matches  my  tie  .  " A  part  of  him  dreaded  attending  the  memorial  .  George  had  been  a  cherished  friend,  and  the  news  of  his  sudden  demise  had  hit  hard.  In  truth,  it  had  been  shockingly  abrupt  .  He  found  it  difficult  to  fully  grasp  at  how  fast  it  all  happened  .  Deep  down,  he  harbored  a  sense  of  unease,  a  nagging  feeling  that  there  was  more  to  George's  passing  than  met  the  eye  .  He  couldn't  shake  the  suspicion  that  something  was  at  play  . "  the  duponts  —  or  well  the  new  ones  —  would  still  be  grateful  we  dropped  in  .  you  know  full  well  that  we  don't  even  need  to  give  a  reason  .  "  a  perk  of  having  an  astor  surname  .  his  mother  would  not  encourage  such  behavior  but  not  even  diana  astor  could  hold  montgomery  back  from  doing  what  he  wanted  .  "  promise  me  you  and  your  friends  would  go  easy  on  the  duponts  .  they  are  still  related  to  george  and  have  inherited  george  owned  .  "  montgomery  would  not  say  it  out  loud  but  they  still  needed  the  connection  .  he  was  not  sure  how  these  new  duponts  would  serve  the  astors  but  they  needed  the  paper  ,  they  needed  the  press  especially  in  his  new  position.  "  mrs.  fisher  made  sure  they  were  ready  an  hour  ago  .  lina  i  think  is  napping  right  now  ,  "  assuring  his  wife  .  "  if  you  really  wanted  to  give  a  reason  we  can  say  .  .  .  "  his  voice  trailed  off  as  fingers  trace  the  details  of  carrie's  dress  ,  keeping  his  brown  hues  glued  to  on  carrie  .  montgomery  took  his  time  with  the  dress  until  he  had  found  what  he  was  looking  for  "  we  can  say  your  dress  was  a  little  tight  ,  "  toying  with  the  laces  the  buttons  .

  anyone  with  enough  sense  was  aware  that  the  memorial,  auspiciously  held  after  the  family  had  been  granted  time  to  settle  into  their  new  home,  was  less  of  a  respectful  send - off  for  the  late  george  dupont  and  more  so  an  introduction  into  high  society  (  and  the  city,  as  a  whole  )  for  his  distant  relatives  ─  on  her  part,  caroline  was  not  about  to  be  caught  lacking  at  such  a  moment,  choosing  something  that  was  suitably  mournful  but  still  gloriously  extravagant  to  cement  her  position  as  the  one  to  impress.  standing  before  the  mirror,  she  considered  one  of  the  two  options  for  a  hat,  holding  up  the  wide - brimmed  hat  against  the  fabric  of  her  dress  to  see  if  the  shade  of  black  was  agreeable  when  her  husband  called  out,  drawing  her  gaze  through  the  mirror. raising  a  dark  eyebrow  at  the  grin  that  slowly  curled  at  his  lip,  caroline  stifled  a  small  noise  of  amusement  as  he,  predictably,  lost  track  of  his  sentence  in  favor  of  showering  her  neck  with  attention.  sighing  softly,  she  leaned  against  his  chest,  tilting  her  head  to  the  side  to  allow  him  more  space  to  adore  her  even  as  she  tsked  at  his  words.  ❝  is  it  too  much  ?  ❞  it  was  not  but  while  caroline  cared  little  for  the  opinions  of  sheep,  she  did  care  for  what  her  husband  thought,  though  judging  by  how  his  arms  wrapped  around  her  waist,  pulling  her  close,  he  had  very  little  complaints.  ❝  mhm  ...  and  what  excuse  will  we  give  the  duponts  for  our  tardiness  ?  we  live  right  down  the  street  from  the  church,  monty.  ❞  she  made  no  motion  to  dissuade  him,  however,  resting  a  bejeweled  hand  on  his  forearm.  ❝  you  look  very  handsome  ...  did  you  check  to  see  if  the  children  are  ready  ?  ❞  perhaps,  if  the  children  were  ready,  there  might  be  some  time  to  spare.

[uhyeahmaybenoidk]

Part 2&3 of ‘I’ve connected the two dots’ the Gilded Age edition

I don’t like the intro. Way too much is happening out there for my taste.

Butlers are the only sane people in this show.

One of these days ladies will gang up on Marian. She is walking on thin ice.

The tea party was pure comedy. Nobody is subtle and Agnes is one step from murder.

Marian: I wish I understood what brings you to New York. Me: Girl, are you blind?

I love the ‘we like riling Agnes up’ club.

Listen I have nothing against Marian but please spice her up a bit. I have like no interest in her as separate character apart from potential love triangle. So far she looks to be a Mary Sue dressed in historical clothes. Honestly, Julian, you can do better.

On the other hand, I’m really intrigued by Peggy. Her past is a total mystery. Frankly speaking I know nothing about America of that period so I cannot tie whatever happened to her to any real life events that would explain why she needs a lawyer. That is why my totally wild and uneducated guess is that she married someone in Pennsylvania against her father’s will and now she’s like ‘oh shit that was a mistake but I won’t admit it to him’. Yep that’s a cliché and dumb theory. I know.

Mrs. Chamberlain is another intriguing character. She is married or she was married. Oh I have a theory! She is a widow who married a very rich but old man who died soon and after his death she got herself a toy boy or whatever they called it in 19th century. That does sound scandalous enough to make Anges’ blood boil, doesn’t it?

I have a question about the dress worn by Carrie Astor in the last scene: what the heck? Did she lose a bet and has to wear this atrocity for a week?

I kind of respect Mrs. Astor. Is she a snob? Yeah. Is she a clever snob though? Hell yeah.

Raise your hand if you don’t trust Tom Raikes. *raises hand*

I mean… yeah I get it sex before marriage is a taboo so if you want to get some, you need to put a ring on it and blah blah blah but dude seems to be too hasty with proposal even for a horny teenager, let alone grownup gentleman.

Agnes is right about him, isn’t she? I bet he is an opportunist indeed. However, what can a middle class lawyer get from this marriage? Money? Nah, Marian is penniless and he knows it. Social status? Eh it isn’t of much use for him.

Unless she isn’t penniless after all. Remember they were talking about shares in railroad companies or something like that which he claims are worthless? What if they are actually worth a freaking fortune?!

Will it have something to do with the station George Russell is about to build? Maybe. IDK. It sounds reasonable now but we’ll see.

I still want to giggle every time George Russell is mentioned.

That freaking maid… She is too clever to seduce George just for the sake of seducing him.

Is she planning to become his mistress? Bitch please. Bertha will twist her neck.

Is she planning to blackmail him? Bitch please. George will twist her neck.

Someone wake Larry up.

Dude, remember that blond neighbour you were flirting with? Yeah it’s time to act. Now!

Give Gladys a sock and set her free.

I seriously try to look at it from 19th century perspective but boy oh boy.

Option #1: Oscar van Rhijn. Is he the worst thing that can happen to a young lady? *remembers what was said about late Mr. van Rhijn* Probably not.

Option #2: whatever her mother planned for her. That one sounds like Gladys is about to be shipped to England and search for a husband with a title. It worked for Cora from DA but a long time ago I’ve read about those American heiress who ended up totally miserable as a result of it so that sounds scary…

Option #3: the boy she mentioned. Archie? I cannot remember the name. Anyway, as Agnes van Rhijn said: ‘sounds dull enough to be respectable.’

I feel for John Adams who lies there imagining quiet life with Oscar and their three corgis while Oscar goes on and on about money and how wonderful Gladys is.

Marian gets on my nerves. Seriously, I get it: she’s strong, fearless, modern woman and all that stuff. But it’s 19th century higher society for Pete’s sake and Marian acts like a time traveler from 21st century. She seems to have no control over her mouth and just says the first thing that comes to her head. In the company of the family it might be sassy and endearing but with strangers she sounds really dumb.

Like how many times can she ask why they don’t include Mrs. Russell? Does she expect that if she asks it a hundred times, they’ll get tired and give up? I really struggle to understand this character.

On paper her lines are clever, in action though… She ain’t one and only dowager countess of Grantham. Sorry not sorry. She’s just too young and her position in society isn’t high enough for her to speak her mind so freely in public.

Ada still creeps me out at times but I felt really sorry for her.

However, it’s one more proof that Agnes sees right though people.

Peggy doesn’t deserve this shit. Period.

I should have seen it coming, right? Yet I didn’t. I was so happy for her and ugh. I hope when she becomes a famous novelist, she’ll write in one of her books something like ‘Dear assholes from The Christian Advocate, screw you!’

‘Do you think we should kneel?’ line aged well.

I naturally disliked Patrick and Anne Morris. They deserved punishment for their actions but daaaamn not like that. I didn’t expect this show to go so far.

How many brain cells does Anne have? Zero?

Somehow Aurora Fane pisses me off even more than Anne.

The boy toy theory… yep I was an idiot.

[costumeloverz71]

Caroline 'Carrie' Astor (Amy Forsyth) Blue walking suit w/red stripes. The Gilded Age (2022-).. Costume by Kasia Walicka-Maimone.

[selena-snape]

Sexta Generación:

¤ Lilith Moira Riddle y Julian Cameron Gray

¤ Bloom Larissa Peters y Sky Aurelius Peters

¤ Hazel Opal Peters y Magnus Roman Watson

¤ Theodore August Peters y Meredith Mavis Monroe

¤ Aaron Christopher Weasley y Verena Michelle Dyer

¤ Joshua Stephen Weasley y Esther Amalia Holt

¤ Charles Samuel Weasley y Ruby Stephanie Saffron

¤ Iris Aurelia Weasley y Marshall Everett Conrad

¤ Theophania Calliope Richardson y Corinne Roxanne Everleigh

¤ Arabella Beatrix Richardson y Henry Oliver Brooks

¤ Kai Dominick Richardson y Flynn Milo Wolf

¤ Willow Cosima Levin y Nicoletta Pomona Wilford

¤ Fern Violet Levin y Marie Honoria Ollivander

¤ Euphemia Alessandra Levin y John Florean Palmer

¤ Dorothea Giovanna Levin y Elladora Eloise Gibson

¤ Salazar Lucius Levin y Holly Avalon Barnes

¤ Eleanor Hope Levin y Savannah Genevieve Shaw

¤ Gracie Isadora Novak y Marvin Declan Sullivan

¤ Alec Aurelian Novak y Claire Piper Johan

¤ Mason Ezekiel Novak y Clementine Octavia Albion

¤ Lotor Comet Snape y Giovanni Benjamin Lestrange

¤ "Moon Demon" Darius Angelo Snape y "Dark Angel " Arianne Alysson Snape

¤ "Killer Shadow" Lazarus Ignatius Snape y "Ice Demon" Urania Calliope Snape

¤ Morterius Viktor Snape y Hisirdoux Artemas Casperan

¤ Regris Niven Snape y Acxa Valda Snape

¤ Kevin Ethan Snape y Gwendolyn Stephanie Tennyson

¤ Regulus Orion Snape y Abel Austin Khemse

¤ Cygnus Arcturus Snape y Frederic Alistair Weasley

¤ Elle Rigel Snape y Matsuda Touta

¤ Beyond Aurelian Snape y Mikami Teru

¤ Alexander Valens Snape y Magnus Sebastian King

¤ Lysander Nikolaus Snape y Vladimir Micah Masters

¤ Gwendolyn Hiroko Snape y Tanaka Misaki

¤ Ezra Yamato Snape y Luveva Rosemay Sutherlamd

¤ Ryan Yoshio Snape y Avery Daxon Sinclair

¤ Keith Akira Snape y James Oliver Griffin

¤ Yuudai Riley Snape y Danielle Edna Young

¤ Yuriko Harley Snape y Debra Kathleen McIntosh

¤ Clarice Suki Snape y Alphard Delphinus Black

¤ Mako Ethan Snape y Giovanna Naomi Hamilton

¤ Morgana Kendra Voorhees y Karin Delilah Summers

¤ Carrie Margaret Voorhees y "Sue" Susan Danica Snell

¤

¤

¤

¤ Jessica Lorna Kimble y Steven Malcom Freeman

¤ Audrey Andromeda Malfoy y Andre Perseus Bourgeois

¤ Gabriel Bastian Malfoy y Emilie Calliope Graham de Vanily

¤ Roynard Hydra Malfoy y Violet Rowena Deekers

¤ Raymond Lynx Malfoy y Cedric Atticus Diggory

¤ Draco Lucius Malfoy y Astoria Coraline Greengrass

¤ Merle Ariel Malfoy y "Jesus" Paul Finnegan Rovia

¤ Hope Leah Malfoy y

¤ Carl Thomas Malfoy y

¤ Levi Armand Malcoy y

¤ Daryl Hunter Malfoy y Rick Jonah Grimes

¤ Vitale Astaroth Sparda y Luka Nicholas Sparda

¤ Neron Asura Sparda y Kyrie Serena Kiernan

¤ Merak Emory Sparda y Portia Manon Hendrix

¤ Armand Vincent Sparda y

¤ Nicholas William Sparda y

¤ Septimus Canyon Sparda y

¤ Loretta Margot Grace y Calvin Raphael Foxglove

¤ Julius Grant Grace y Ivy Roxanne Baxley

¤ Benjamin Vidar Grace y Edgar Zachary Maddox

¤ Ophelia Nozomi Jensen y Cordelia Avery Bkwie

¤ Eileen Victoria Jensen y Silvius Dael Sinclair

¤ Thomas Lysander Jensen y Othello Natalie Reeve

¤ Nova Genesis Jackson y Allison Leah Reid

¤ Losa Iris Brooks y Briar Anais Tedford

¤ Nina Rosie Brooks y Asa August Harding

¤ Connor Cyrus Brooks y Sandra Sabine Simmons

¤ Esme Aurora Donovan y Maxine Riley Crosby

¤ Arabella Cassidy Donovan y Robert Dashiell. Davenport

¤ Arianne Odette Donovan y Terrence Gideon Graves

¤ Kendra Alessandra Donovan y Alexis Scarlett Bishop

¤ Cassandra Abigail Donovan y James Anthony West

¤ Pansy Genevieve Parkinson y Theodore Phineas Nott

¤ Avalon Forrest Parkinson

¤ Damien Emory Parkinson

¤ Ursa Alexa Corvinus Y Narcissa Hazel Ripley

¤ Nora Alyssa Corvinus y Lydia Skylar Abernathy

¤ Annabelle Danica Corvinus y Rowan Vladimir Norwood

¤ Luna Pandora Lovewood y Rolf Elijah Matthew Scamander

¤

¤

¤

¤

¤ Ronan Artemis Marcelly y Adam Timothy Reed

¤ Giovanni Octavius Marcelly y Robin Mikhaila Mckinley

¤ Ivan Alistair Marcelly y James Christopher Peters

¤ Mika Valentina Donnelly y Arthur Ethan Bowers

¤ Damien September Delaney y Melione Rowena Robinson

¤ Kira Dominika Delaney y Marlon Oliver Williams

¤ Kanna Amelia Delaney y Gael Ethan Byron

¤ Nicholas Hadrien Delaney y Madison Edith Emerson

¤ Armand Demetrius Corwin y Persephone Aspen Cormac

¤ Tatiana Aubrey Corwin y Marcella Carolinne Cervenka

¤ Pandora Evageline Corwin y Cecilia Honoria Van Frietag

¤ Natasha Piper Dresden y Donna Mary Berkshire

¤ Emily Alisha Ansel y Nana Eliza Martin

¤ Isabelle Veronica Ansel y Carmen Emilia Reyes

¤ Kenneth Paul Dollins y Ella Isabella Evans

¤ Joseph Herman Dollins y Juliet Corina Rogers

¤ Hailey Amelia Flint y Lucia Naomi Barnes

¤ Ashley Jasmine Flint y Maxwell Benjamin Norton

¤ Piper Savannah Flint y Louis Howart Daxton

¤ Chase Akira Braken y Felix Lucius Quinn

¤ Florian Narcissus Braken y Colin Leonard Frone

¤ Callum Daniel Fox y Marjorie Katie Vance

¤ Dante Ezra Fox y Leila Juniper Thomson

¤ Nathan Soren Fox y Matthias Isaac Parker

¤ Magnus Gideon Fox y Desmond Ethan McReynolds

¤ Lucian Harrison Fox y Apollo Anthony Greene

¤ Jude Eli Hudson y Theodore Declan Vesper

¤ Olive Genesis Ivanovich y David Cameron Canyon

¤ Tate Roman Ivanovich y Molly Aurora Wiley

¤ Ivory Leah Ivanovich y Diane Barbara Jennings

¤ Devon Julian Kane y Ophelia Pauline Colins

¤ Claudine Barbara Kane y Matthew Benjamin Rothchild

¤ Castiel Dominc Kane y Charlie Isaac Lauder

¤ Natasha Bella Kane y Mackenzie Riley Hills

¤ Caroline Samantha Kane y Sarah Emma Fuller

¤ Harper Eva Kane y Daniel Michael Baker

¤ Henry Jasper Kane y Duncan Joshua Evas

¤ Nathan Pietro Kane y Elijah Maxwell Crimson

¤ June Opal Kane y Felix Octavius Rhodes

¤ Jane Ophelia Kane y Angelo Dominic Lowell

¤ Aldora Corinne Prince Amora Lyra Stout

¤ Odolette Lila Prince y Thalia Cora Fulton

¤ Amon Rowan Prince y Elira Bianca Thorton

¤ Amelia Robin Prince y Nicolo Dorian Guthrie

¤ Alastor Robert Prince y Dinah Pandora Pearson

¤ Gavin Marshall Prince y Megara Eloise Lang

¤ Sean Colin Prince y Rebecca Odette Douglas

¤ Renee Tara Prince y Miles Edgar Lambert

¤ Eric Lance Snapey y Millicent Corinne Curtis

¤ Marlon Levi Snape y Lily Alyssa Yancer

¤ Luther Garth Snape y Judith Naomi Tailyour

¤ Hannah Ebony Snape y Lincoln Nathan Penfold

¤ Marie Clarice Snape y Leslie Regan Eastwood

¤ Jade Tiffany Snape y Leah Eliana Rees

¤ Grant Devin Snape y Geraldine Annalie Harfield

¤ Dean Leighton Snape y Fiona Charity Wheeler

¤ Mason Riley Oakley y Cartie April Willis

¤ Morgan Harley Oakley y Ian Paul Wenman

¤ Robert Damian Lake y Marion Corinne Turner

¤ Roy Ethan Morrinson y Griffin Rhett Essex

¤ Joy Ebony Morrinson y Kilian Lee Rowell

¤ Holden Ethan Snape y Eleanor Nadia Heron

¤ Corey Silas Snape y Jane Lydia Orchard

¤ Astrid Juliette Snape y Rhonda Hope Pataki

¤ Tate Julian Snape y James Ronan Poole

¤ Soren Jaspn Snape y Carmen Marianna Rojas

¤ Edgar Samuel Snape y Ingrid Ianthe Lauder

¤ Castiel Gabriel Dream y Cecilia Ember Bonavich

¤ Callum Paul Dream y Avalon Ginevra Carmichael

¤ Cedric Ernest Dream y Bathilda Sibyll Irvine

¤ Garett Elia Dream y Padma Orla Astor

¤ Austin Jordan Dream y Magenta Pomona Hearst

¤ Daryl Silvanus Dream y Nuru Sura Van Doren

¤ Calliope Scarlett Dream y Gemma Pomona Windsor

¤ Cordelia Maribelle Carter y Ivar Rainn Kline

¤ Howart Steven Carter y Sylvia Peyton Bechtel

¤ Lysander Casimir Carter y Enid Jivanta Galumba

¤ Pierre Milford Afton y Kylie Olivia McKeehan

¤ Rupert Stanley Afton y Andrea Jocelyn Varner

¤ Warren Philip Jefferson y Michelle Sabine Castle

¤ Ellie Audrey Jefferson y Shireen Monroe Marks

¤ Giselle Corina Leighton y Mia Velvet Bushnell

¤ Odette Marina Leighton y Nicoletta Verona Goldstein

¤ Larissa Dirina Leighton y Winry Carmina Montgomery

¤ Magnus Cassidy Edevane y Harry Leroy Baker

¤ Stella Andromeda Orville y Harold Russell Mcquiston

¤ Lucille Arabella Orville y Jace Colton Rutledge

¤ Lee Amos Evans y Zoey Makayla Camfield

¤ Cadmus Orion Evans y Trudy Nayala Lovell

¤ Florean Newton Evans y Xenia Sybil Herron

¤ Ivory Ooal Evans y Edmund Wilfred Frankham

¤ Luisa Veronica O'Kelly y Connor Evan Carson.

¤ Finn Andrew Harley y Portia Marilyn Curtis

¤ Abel Nolan Harley y Bonnie Thea Proudley

¤ Louis Xander Harley y Petunia Jamie Deakins

¤ Claire Norah Harley y Lance Chandler Western

¤ Camille Loena Harley y Myrtle Denise Golby

¤ Cora Adelaide Harley y Selma Kelsey Hicks

¤ Juliette Theodora Harley y Daisy China Kempster

¤ Cyrus Maximua Harley y Meredith Shannon Crocker

¤ Horatio Gideon Harley y Heidi Antoinette Deacon

¤ Dorothea Euphemia Harley y Terence Xavier Croucher

¤ Violetta Leopoldine Murphy y Franklin Leonidas Burton

¤ Nova Orion Murphy y Faustina Spencer Odam

¤ Comet Sky Murphy y Yvonne Wilhemina Hibberd

¤ Phoenix Bianca Murphy y Rosalie Simone Stratton

¤ Celestine Xiomara Glenwood y Rylan Waylon Mills

¤ Isla Cosima Glenwood y Neil Rowan Lee

¤ Jacqueline Glenna McCoy y Jarome Staley Orline

¤ Ann Marie McCoy y Ridley Everett Anderson

¤ Apoline Elian McCoy y Simom Edward Thompson

¤ Aubrey Lynn Orson y Braxton Hunter Young

¤ Amelia Faith Orson y Ryland Linden Allen

¤ Lucy Ella Volkov Jacob Jhon Wright

¤ Freya Leah Volkov y Rome Canyon Adams

¤ Martin Lane Volkov y Brianna Mirella Collins

¤ Monet Valentina Volkov y Callahan Anselm Morris

¤ Robinia Venus Carrington y Aragon Glorianne Watson

¤ Damon Micah Carrington y Selie Nia Rise

¤ Calla Seraphina Balckwood y Ariel Calyx Reid

¤ Adriana Norah Blackwood y Windsor Athen Foster

¤ Trevor Narcissus Blackwood y Larry Eugene Fraser

¤ Heather Kalina Moore y Lucilius Nicholas McIntosh

¤ Bernadette Alexa Moore y Ares Gabriel McLean

¤ Althea Ruby Lexington y Trinity Elizabeth Bland

¤ Camellia Iris Lexington y Damian Anthony Boswell

¤ Taylor Sidney Lexington y Fabian Dominic Bartlett

¤ Elena Vittoria Lexington y Athena Aubree Birch

¤ Oris Edward Goodwin y Ryleigh Nadia Chapman

¤ Archer Emrys Goodwin y Paisley Autumm Pannell

¤ Raphaela Esperalda Goodwin y Ryder Quentin Hamilton

¤ Ike Neron Goodwin y Bailey Stephanie Adams

¤ Lilianna Persephone Blackwood y Jared Fabian Crawford

¤ Albert Christopher Blackwood y Gemma Alyna Gibson

¤ Alfred Stella Blackwood y Nicholas Julian Munro

¤ Rose Mary Blackwood y Sebastian robert Walker

¤ Bernard Alden Blackwood y Katherine Calliope McGregor

¤ Benjen Isaiah Blackwood y Seraphina Harper Docherty

¤ Lewis Beckett Blackwood y Samirah Luna Ross

¤ Vlaire Harley Blackwood y Aurora Isabelle Gordon

[awalkoflife-arc]

nobody really understood what it felt like --- the severity of all the loss in his life, the trauma that he was too young to remember but experienced all the same. the kind that was embedded deep into his psyche, the one he carried around with him day after day after day. death seemed to follow harrison morgan like a plague; images of his mother who was murdered right in front of him, of his father who was killed in the wake of a natural disaster and of hannah, his stepmom, who was diagnosed with a terminal illness just when things felt like they were starting to get good. it might have been easier to accept had all of it been true but not all of it was.

dexter morgan wasn't dead, not in the physical sense, or in the way he'd let his son believe for ten whole years. the letter he wrote to hannah confirmed this and when she passed, harrison set out to find answers. he spent six months in foster care, where he met the worst of humanity --- it was a place he'd learned to fight in order to protect those who were more vulnerable than he was. little kids who didn't know better, who couldn't defend themselves against physical or emotional abuse. undoubtedly, that was the hardest part about leaving the system --- knowing what was going on --- but the second he turned eighteen, harrison didn't look back, couldn't look back. living under the alias of jim lindsay, in the small town of iron lake, he found his father. their reunion was hardly a celebration but for the first time in his life, he didn't feel so isolated. the comfort of it all was short-lived however. after a period of attempting to settle into the community with the man who abandoned him, it didn't take long for harrison to realise that dexter was better off disappearing.

looking for him was a mistake, a mistake that quickly turned into a nightmare, a mistake that made him a murderer. returning to miami in the wake of it all was a decision he made impulsively. he tracked down astor and cody fairly easily, but chose not to insert himself back into their lives --- they looked happy, at peace and harrison knew it would be selfish to disrupt that. he visited his mom's final place of rest and spent the day apologising to her for who he'd become; a monster, just like his dad, the man she married who led her to her grave. then, with nothing else to stay in miami for, he got into his truck and drove back to the only place that ever truly felt like home.

on arrival, the small town looks like the same as the day he left and when he walks up the familiar gravel path to the house he grew up in, she hits him like a shot to the chest. oh my god. the words are repeated over and over and it takes a second for it to register whose voice they belong to. harrison's hands immediately attach to her waist, where they instinctively pull her closer to him. it doesn't feel real that she's here, that he's home and yet --- ❝ caroline? ❞ it's been two years and her hands are grasping at him, she's clinging to him, like no time has passed at all. the speed at which she's talking is one he can't keep up with and fuck, she's all consuming. ❝ hey, hey, slow down. ❞ it's almost like he can feel the erratic pulse beneath her skin, and when he raises his hand to gently cup her jaw, he's fighting against every single urge he has to kiss her. ❝ i'm here. ❞ he's not sure if that's a comfort to her, but the way their bodies are responding to each other is reminding him of the night they shared before everything in his life changed; the same night he learned how she tasted, how perfectly he fit inside of her, how she was the best he ever had... ❝ babe, breathe. ❞ he guides her into his embrace, wrapping his arms around her tighter, so that she can feel all of him. ❝ i'm sorry --- ❞ he tells her, the weight of the words sinking into her skin, as his fingertips squeeze the soft flesh of her waist. ❝ i'm so fuckin' sorry, babe, i'm so sorry... i'm sorry. ❞

there are all kinds of rumors about what happened to harrison morgan. it’s not like he just disappeared — there’s no missing persons case or big media storm or anything major. it’s just that one day hannah dies and the window across from hers stays dark. bags are packed and things are boxed up and the house stays empty and he’s just… gone. she asks liz about it once or twice, but she gets some vague answer about confidentiality and a hollow assurance that he’s fine. then she asks audrey, who says that she overheard her mom mention something about foster care.

the rumors, of course, are a lot more entertaining. some people like to claim he was kidnapped. that he found out he has a long lost, uber-rich uncle or cousin or dad or something and he went to live with them. the others are a little more ridiculous: a porn career, modeling gig, jail, he ran away and hopped a train to nowhere. caroline’s learned not to pay them any attention, but through the years she’ll still often catch herself looking out her bedroom window, across the small space between her house and hannah’s towards the window that used to be his. she’ll remember how funny he was, and how he was one of the only people who ever understood her. and she’ll remember that night at a party, drinking too much, touching too much, how right it had felt when they’d kissed and how wrong she’d felt the next day when she saw audrey. 

the circumstances surrounding his disappearance never really mattered to her as much as the simple fact that he was gone. no answers. no calls or texts or letters. no real answers. 

it’s a normal day  ( dewy grass, overcast sky, crisp air )  when she hears a car pull into the driveway of that house. his house. ( she’s always just assumed that liz and audrey’s mom kept it in his name, or something, because it never went up for sale. )  she’s tired, and college courses are kicking her ass and liz had a bad night at the hospital while she was getting chemo. a car engine shuts off as she’s turning her key in the front door, casting a look over towards harrison’s house as if it’s an afterthought. it starts as a little prickle on the back of her neck, a shiver that skitters down her spine, and then it just feels like this cosmic tug that makes her turn to regard the man more fully. tall. handsome. not quite as gangly and awkward as she remembers him being.  ❝ oh my god, ❞  it’s beneath her breath, her bag slipping from her shoulder and falling with a gentle thunk onto her porch,  ❝ oh my god! ❞ her feet are flying down the few steps, carrying her over the small patch of grass between their driveways, and practically launching her into a hug before she can even tell herself to maintain composure. she squeezes, one hand curling behind his neck, feeling the warmth of his skin — it’s pathetic, how she almost instantly wants to cry.  ❝ oh my god — ❞  caroline finally pulls back, her heart flipping as she looks up at him.  ❝ oh my god, i totally should have asked before doing that — is this real? you’re here right? ❞  her palms find his chest, fingers curling ever so slightly into his jacket. tangible. solid. warm. her breath stutters on an inhale.          /          @awalkoflife   +   plotted things bc i couldn’t resist anymore :)) 

[typicalmidnightsoul]

𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝓒𝓻𝓸𝔀𝓷 𝓟𝓻𝓲𝓷𝓬𝓮𝓼𝓼- Chapter 7

𝔸 𝕘𝕒𝕞𝕖 𝕠𝕦𝕥 𝕠𝕗 𝕝𝕠𝕧𝕖

love is not cruel, we are cruel, love is not a game we have made a game out of love.- Rupi Kaur

Chapter  1, 2, 3, 4 5, 6 <- here 

In this chapter we have:The party, an introduction to Rask, an introduction to  the first love in Nesta's life and a distraught Nesta seeking Azriel's help.

(Nesta’s dress down below)

The entire inner circle was waiting in the foyer. Caroline had sent Feyre a message saying the Queen of Rask had wanted them at the anniversary ceremony a few days earlier to give them a tour of Rask. Feyre had agreed. Now they were waiting for Audrey, Luna and Nesta to arrive. A crackling wind blew outside and Elain rushed to the window.

“They’re here!” She fizzed.

Before they could arrive at the door, Elain threw it open and trapped Nesta in an embrace. Luna and Audrey chuckled and Elain pulled them all inside.

Feyre greeted them with a warm smile.

“Hello.” They all nodded.

Luna waved a hand, and a group of same size boxes appeared on a nearby table. Rhys crossed the room and picked one up.

“What’s this?”

Audrey smiled, “In Rask it’s tradition to give a gift to the members of our alliance.”

“What are they?” Cassian asked snatching one of Rhys.

Luna smiled at Nesta.

“It’s a newer invention we have been working on,” She said, “We were inspired by the grief of many people from the war who have little to no proof their loved ones existed. Except of course memories.”

Elain opened one. It was a mirror. A small, rectangular one with an ornate frame and single jewel crested on top.

“This… captures memories. How… how is it even possible?”

Nesta jerked her chin to Luna.

“Luna’s power is vitrikinesis, also known as-”

“Mirror manipulation.” Amren finished.

Rhys gaped at them, “That sort of power is only known to belong to-”

“Celestial fae.” Nesta finished the three of them mock bowing.

Audrey chuckled at their faces, “I think you’ll find that there are many celestial fae in habiting Rask.”

“So the Cauldron made you a…celestial fae?” Elain asked.

“Well, technically I stole way too much power from it which landed me in a different breed of fae.”

Feyre managed to suppress her gasp. The cauldron had a wicked sense of humour. Placing Nesta in a place where there were many more people just like her.

“So how do the work?” she instead asked.

“This will be fun.” She dragged Feyre to a nearby mirror in the hallway. Feyre locked her gaze with Nesta in the mirror.

“In this mirror you see yourself, obviously, but it’s your mind’s eyes that form the opinion of whether you look beautiful, or tired, or- you get what I mean. So technically you are seeing yourself from your mind’s eyes.” She held up the rectangular mirror in Feyre’s hand. “Now this mirror is basically useless, it’s a… dummy if you will. But this”- she picked up the small gem crested on top-“Is where the magic happens. This gem contains a droplet of Luna’s power, which has been multiplied. You can throw this in any mirror and it would work as a communication device or as a mean to keepsake your memories.” She threw the sky blue gem in the mirror but instead of it breaking the mirror just… engulfed it. Ripples forming on the surface of the mirror.

“Put your hand in, let the mirror psychically connect to you.” Nesta ordered.

“Do I have to?”

“Yes, because until then it won’t work. The gem psychically connects to you so you can command it to do anything. Not anyone else.”

Feyre nodded and put her hand in the never ending ripples. There was a short sting then she pulled her hand out the gem now in her hand glowing.  

“Now put it back in the mirror and think of a memory for the mirror to keep safe.”

Feyre closed her eyes and thought of the time when she first saw Nesta, striding down the stairs in that golden gown.

“My skin looks horrific.”

“No it does not,” Luna protested.

“It looks cakey.”

“That’s the lighting.” Feyre opened her eyes and saw the memory now playing on the mirror.

“You can also use it to communicate.”

Audrey pulled out her own rectangular mirror and brushed a hand over the gem. The mirror in front of Feyre went blurry. She could feel a whisper in her head. ‘Audrey Astor wishes to talk’

Feyre inwardly nodded, too shocked to say anything.

And Audrey’s face lit up the mirror.

Feyre gaped.

They all did.

“What are they called?” Azriel asked.

“Keepsakes.” Luna replied, giving Az a seductive smile.

Nesta shook her head muttering, “This girl,” under her breath.

They all did as instructed linking to their stones.

“Now, we take you to the most heavily warded city in our Kingdom, Marcia.”

“The capital?”

“Yes, but we will have to leave you there, I’m afraid. We have a close friend giving you the tour, taking care of your needs and showing you to your residence. Once we winnow you there you’ll have to knock for him.” Nesta glanced at the clock, “He is probably helping his mother in the kitchen now.”

They all nodded and with no warning Nesta winnowed them all to Rask. As the haze of gold mist cleared, Feyre with squinted eyes looked at the house in front of them. It was a small corner house with steps and greenery around it. It was labelled ’12.’ Feyre shrugged and climbed the steps to knock on the door.

“Mami! They’re here I need to go!”

“Wait you imbecile let me open the door, you find your shoes!”

The door opened to reveal a female wearing a thin dress and a bandanna. Feyre smiled.

“Hello my dear, welcome to Marcia.” She gave Feyre a hug then Elain. “You two do look so like the prince and princess. Please don’t let my son ruin my reputation, he does act really stupid sometimes.” The male in question pushed past his mother. He had dark brown hair and honey skin. He wore a fitted beige tunic and matching trousers.

“Welcome your majesties. I’m Warren. Your tour guide for the day.”

He shook all their hands. “Good to see you’re wearing practical clothing. We’ll be moving a lot.”

“Keep your pathetic charm to yourself and represent your city well.”

His mother shouted from the window.

“Yes Mami.” He rolled hi eyes and led them out of the alleyway.

They walked through the street.

Elain walked to Warren’s side, “Um, this is not the city we dined in.”

“Ah yes. Caro’s restaurant is in her territory this is the capital.”

Elain nodded.

“Lady Elain, where would you like to go first? The bazaar or the floating market?” Warren asked.

“Oh please it’s just Elain and um… the bazaar first please.”

“Of course,” He outstretched an arm towards a different alleyway.

Behind them Feyre was walking with Cassian.

“How do you feel about all this? You have been unusually quiet on this matter.”

Cassian dropped his head, “She’s happy. I want to see her happy but I...I’m delaying a conversation with her. I’m staying quiet because I’m afraid my presence will disrupt her happiness.”

Feyre shook her head, “I may not know Nesta as well as I thought I did but I do know that that is not the case.”

He smiled at her.

“Welcome to the Marcia Bazaar.”

The bazaar was thrumming with life, everyone wearing light, airy clothes due to the heat. There were so many colours. People were shouting, promoting their goods.

Feyre went past a shop with Elain where a male sat arranging his goods. There were wooden bowls strewn all over with different things. Rock salt, lapis lazuli, spices, cloves, cinnamon sticks, coal, small bowls.

He nodded at them, “Well, it seems the Night have come to stay.”

“How did you recognize us?” Elain asked.

“The similarities between you and the princess and prince are uncanny.” He smiled and handed them a bowl of white sweetmeat, “A gift.” Elain thanked him and they moved to the next shop.

This shop was being inspected by Rhys and Cassian.

It was a shop stacked with clothes of different materials, textures and colours. Each embroidery different.  

The next shop was a confectioner’s shop. She also recognized them and handed them bowls and packages of different confectionery.

Other than that word had quickly spread that the Night Court were in town and now they were getting hoards of stuff for free.

As they left the bazaar, Warren laughed at the stuff they carried. With a flick of his wrist he made them all vanish.

“They’ll be at the villa.” He looked at his watch and tutted.

“What’s wrong?” Amren asked.

“Nesta asked for you to be at the villa before dawn and since I am in no mood to piss her off… fancy a jog?”

“A jog?” Elain asked, “Surely Nesta wouldn’t mind if we came tomorrow-”

He grabbed her hand and started jogging with her, “Nonsense, never leave a good thing unfinished that’s what my Mami says.”

Everyone started jogging to catch up with Elain.

“This is ridiculous!” Cassian said to Rhys, “We have wings.”

“If you flew, everyone would stare.” Warren shouted out.

He stopped and let go of Elain’s hand. Elain’s cheeks were tinged with pink, a grin on her face which turned to a gasp as she beheld what was in front of her.

There was a swarm of boats, some had goods some were buying goods of said boats and piling it onto their own. Warren hired two boats from a nearby male.

“Ladies on the front boat and males on the back one”

Warren climbed into the front boat.

Cassian raised a brow, “You class as a male.”

“True but my Mami raised a gentlemale and a gentlemale would not let ladies row a boat.”

Feyre snorted climbing in.

“Would any of you like to buy anything?” He asked.

“No, I would rather observe,” Elain said.

“Well that’s good because I am rowing us to our next destination.”

“Where’s that?” Amren asked.

“The Twilight streets. These are where all the making of things happens like, the bangles, jewellery, the dresses, the prayers are held there, the colours are made there, the flowers are gathered and nurtured there.”

He caught the glimmer in Elain’s eyes and said, “The Thousand Gardens are there and the keepers work all throughout the year. This is different from the bazaar as you can see the work being done in front of you, you could sit there for days and no one would say a thing.”

He reeled the boats in to the dock and helped the females off. He checked his watch again and bursts into a run.

“Keep up!”

They rolled their eyes and followed.

He led them through to a secluded road, to the villa. He stretched an arm.

“Welcome now hurry to the roof. Quick.” They did as they were told. And on the roof the most beautiful sight of the Marcia city greeted them, there were rugs and blanket spread out with food and drinks.

And then…

Hot air balloons started lifting into the air. Different coloured ones that were just beautiful next to the setting sun.

They all stared.

“Nesta wanted you to see this, this villa is hers and she thought you’d get the best view form here.”

Feyre turned, “Thank you Warren.”

He waved her off, “Don’t sweat, I’ll see you at the anniversary.”

He left whistling all the way home.

------

The engagement party.

 The inner circle had worn traditional Rask clothes sent by Leona. They stepped through the crowd of brightly clothed males and females. Caroline had walked over to them, Jonah behind her.

“I am so glad you could make it.” The tinkling sound of anklets snapped away her attention. Feyer saw Cassian’s awed expression before she saw her exquisite older sister. Nesta was dressed in a red matching bodice and embroidered skirt. She had an oversized nose ring that had dropping gold pieces. Her whole midriff was showing the bodice. They all started praising her and the chatter did seem to be taking place, mostly between Az, Feyre and Elain. Cassian turned to Nesta. Jonah stiffened.

“You look stunning Nesta,” The words were quiet and full of sincerity.

“Thank you,” She said not meeting his eyes. She turned back to Caroline, Cassian staring at her for a second more before turning to Azriel.

Warren had come over and had asked Elain to pass on a tray of scented rose petals to Nesta. Nesta was flitting about the hall fixing decorations checking the food, and attending to guests.

The dais where Jonah and Caro would sit was hidden from sights with a curtain, Nesta and the others going in and out fixing things.

She had come to Elain in search for the petals, as she thanked Elain for holding onto them. Caro dropped her wine glass.

Her eyes fixed on a sight in the distance.

Nesta didn’t seem to notice.

“Clumsy,” She smiled at her and went to take the platter off Elain. She turned back.

And dropped the platter.

The rose petals scattered across the floor. The followed her line of sight. A male stood there his breathing ragged, his clothes torn as if he’d crawled his way out of hell.

His eyes were locked onto Nesta’s.

“Tyrus?” Nesta whispered softly.

Nesta picked her skirt up and ran. Everyone parting like the red sea for her. She stopped in front of him, tears slipping out of her eyes.

She let out a sob and wrapped her arms around him.

He did the same. Audrey broke into a run, Leona pushing past everyone, Luna outright winnowing to them, they all seemed scared. Caroline reached their first and flung her arms out stopping them 3 meters away.

Jonah growled at his mate. She gave him a stern look.

“You recognized me.” Tyrus said.

Nesta pushed him examining his face, “Of course Ty I’d recognize your shadow if it crossed me.”

“Enough, Nesta.” She looked up, “I need you to hide me.”

“Hide you? From who?”

“Nesta please-”

“I had a feeling you’d come here brother,” A voice said.

Nesta turned, guarding Tyrus with her body. Then softened.

“Oh God, Torin! You’re here too!”

Torin with short golden hair and sleek silver armour looked at Nesta.

He looked so different to Tyrus, who had black short hair, and dark gold armour tinted with emerald.

“Nesta get away from him.”

“Why? You…He’s hiding from you?” Nesta was baffled.

“Tyrus you bastard, you’re going to play with her emotions and not even tell her why.”

She turned to him.

“What is he talking about?”

Tyrus stayed silent.

“TELL HER!” Torin shouted.

A muscle flickered in his jaw, “I did what was right.”

“YOU BETRAYED YOUR PEOPLE.” Torin roared.

“What?” Nesta’s voice was broken.

“I did what was best.”

“By betraying your people and trying to remove father and kill me?” Torin laughed cruelly.

“Did you do that Ty?” Nesta asked her face turning cold “Did you?”

He nodded, “But there are so many other factors that play into this.”

“Any factors that explain why you would kill the male who raised you?”

He stayed silent.

“Torin, take him. I have nothing to say to him.” Torin did so and said to Nesta, “I’ll be in touch.”

She didn’t answer.

They left Nesta went to the kitchen, Feyre, Audrey, Luna, Elain, Cassian and Az followed.

“Who was that Nesta?” Elain asked.

Nesta didn’t answer. Silent tears falling down her face.

“Who was it?” Feyre asked.

“Nesta.” Azriel took a step towards her.

“That was my first love. That was my childhood love. The male that left me crying on the steps of my father’s mansion. The male who left because I was human. He promised me he wouldn’t leave and he did. And I just sold him out.”

She winnowed away.

--------

A week later, Illyria.

 Azriel had just finished up a meeting his hand was throbbing from pointing out the rebel camps to Cassian’s camp leaders. They all filed out of the tent, Azriel following. They all stopped. He pushed past them and saw Nesta Archeron standing in front of the tent. Her eyes seemed to be red from crying. He glared at them all and they left.

“I needed someone to talk to. And I didn’t know where else to go.”

He stilled, considering. Then nodded.

 They looked out onto the mountains in a cabin. Azriel finally turned to her, “What’s on your mind?”

“How do you think he feels?” She asked almost immediately, “Do you think he feels betrayed or sad or upset he probably didn’t want me to sell him out, he trusted me and I betrayed it what-what will I do-”

He put his hands on her shoulders, “Calm. Down. Take a deep breath. This is not for you to feel. He is not the man you once loved.”

“That’s the thing though; I don’t know what I’m feeling. I don’t know if I still love him or not.”

“Tell me what you think you’re feeling.”

“Well,” she started, “I hate that I fell in love with my best friend. That maybe my idea of love is fake. Because he was my best friends and he didn’t want me and left and then I couldn’t even talk to him. I miss our bond. I miss talking to him.”

“It seems to me like you miss your best friend.”

“I don’t know.” She whispered.

“What do you miss about him?”

“We were young when he gave me flowers as bookmarks,” she chuckled, “He read me passages from books. He would dance with me. We would pick berries in the garden together, he would make me flower crowns and unlike other men he didn’t demean me for being a woman.”

“And then what happened?”

The smile died, “We grew up. Well he did. He knew he was other. And I was a weak human. He said loving me would be destruction and he couldn’t allow that.”

Az waited a few minutes before saying, “You love him. But not like you used too. You were young, you fell in love. But now you need the boy you talked to, your friend. Not your first love.”

She considered, and then nodded.

“Cassian’s coming” Az announced, “You should talk to him.”

“There a lot of males I need to talk too. One step at a time.”

She winnowed away.

-------

The kingdom of Natava Prison.

 Tyrus bounced a ball against the wall, standing in his finery.

“Ty.”

He turned, “Hey Nes.”

She smiled. “How’d you get in?”

“Your mother gave me full permission to come and go as I please.”

He chuckled, “She always loved you.”

“Are you upset?”

He looked at her, “The guilt is eating at you isn’t it? Well I’ll consider that a sufficient punishment. Don’t sweat, I understand, and to be honest, I don’t really care.”

She eyed him, “Drop the act.”

The glamour faded bit by bit, leaving a ragged Tyrus against the wall.

“You always found out.”

“Tyrus I am so sorry.”

“No need. It is not your fault, Torin found me if you did protect me you would die. I am much better now you are here.”

She took a shuddering breath, “I want you back. I want my best friend.”

He gazed distantly, “Your best friend was also your first love.”

“I think I can l live with was.”

He laughed, “Me too.”

“I need to go, but I promise I will get you out of here.”

“Don’t. Just tell me one thing. You love him don’t you? The winged male with long hair. Don’t you?”

She turned, “Read me.”

Because that’s what they did since they were kids. They read each other.

He examined her, “I might’ve been your first love but he will be your last.” He closed his eyes.

She winnowed away.

Tags:@mis-lil-red @wannawriteyouabook​ @my-fan-side​

[fantasychica37]

Possible full names for the Dreemurr kids

Chara:

Birth name Charles (if pronounced “char-a” - there’s probably a similar girls’ name if Chara’s AFAB) or a name like Caroline (GLaDOS parallel!!!!)/Carol/Carrie/Carolyn (if pronounced “care-a”), alternatively Chara is AFAB and Greek and Chara was their birth name (Chara’s a Greek girl’s name apparently, it means “joy”!!!!!)

Chosen middle name Togore or Goriel (so they can be named like Asriel was as they’re as much Toriel and Asgore’s child as him and because those names both have the word “gore” in them - and Togore uses the opposite name elements as Asriel and is “toe gore” which I think they’d enjoy, but with “Asriel” and “Togore” being perfect opposites Frisk is a little bit of an awkward third wheel, although “Astor” for Frisk is a good solution, see below)

Alternatively their birth surname was Astor (they’re white and Astor is a European name) which they keep as their middle name so they can be named like Asriel and their name can be Chara A. Dreemurr (Chara, a dreamer) but that would take away the only middle name idea I have for Frisk so maybe not

Frisk - birth name Francisco/Francisca/Francesco/Francesca/Franziska Lee/Astor, chosen name Frisk Astor Dreemurr

Those first names all have the consonants in “Frisk”, possible origin of that name, also they mean “French person” and “France” is from “Frank”, a name of an ethnic group deriving from a type of spear they used, but the English form, Francis, is associated with a very peaceful and good saint - so either a peaceful loving person or “people of the spear”, which is the choice we make as we control Frisk

Astor because it’s a real last name that’s also a combination of Asgore and Toriel’s names, as though it were destiny (I headcanon that Chara grew up with abusive parents and Frisk was given up for adoption as a baby and grew up in the foster system and only knew lack of love, not active malice, so Chara was angry and hated humanity but Frisk was desperately determined to do anything to make friends - so Frisk might have cause to keep the surname Astor because they don’t hate their birth family since they never knew them and by keeping Astor they can be named like Asriel.) Also, if Chara’s middle name is Goriel, Frisk can be their opposite in middle names just like Frisk and Chara are opposites in many thematic senses. If Chara’s middle name is Togore, Astor is a combination of the first elements of “Asriel” and Togore” with an extra letter added, just as Frisk is a combination/mix/middle ground of Asriel’s and Chara’s worldviews with stuff added that enables them to break the barrier and break everyone’s old flawed mindsets. Finally, Frisk’s name would be Frisk A. Dreemurr (Frisk, a dreamer).

Lee because it can be either Asian or European in origin (and black and Native American people can have European surnames), thus giving Frisk the maximum number of possible ethnicities - I’m confident the reason Frisk looks ambiguous is that they’re supposed to look like you but 4′10″ and with a certain hair length - and also because when people hear Lee they think Asian and it’s a joke about how Frisk’s appearance, which was designed to be perfectly ambiguous, also happened to wind up looking like if a racist person drew an Asian

Also Lee because 1) if they made Lee their middle name it sounds like a first or a last name so is the perfect middle name and 2) if their middle initial is I or A (Astor, perhaps) they’re Frisk A. Lee or Frisk I. Lee which sounds like “Friskily” (a la the joke about Chara’s middle name being “Cter”, which I will include in this post as soon as someone proves to me that “Cter” or “Ter” (middle initial C) is a real name somewhere in the world)

Kris: birth name Kris P. Lee (”crispily” - the thing about “Lee” being for multiple ethnicities and Kris looking ambiguous applies here as well as to Frisk) or Kris P. Bacon, with Kris probably being a nickname for something; chosen name Kris Togore Dreemurr because Kris would also enjoy “toe gore” and because there is no third Dreemurr child Kris can have the opposite middle name of Asriel without blocking anyone out

Asriel - birth name Asriel Dreemurr, chosen name Asriel Chris Dreemurr

Middle name Chris to fit in with humans on the surface who have middle names - especially human royalty with long names - and to expand his name after he’s been through so much and grown so much, and to pay tribute to Chara and Frisk as “Chris” is like a combo of their names)

Alternatively the long form of “Chris”: Christopher or Christian (so all his names don’t come from other people - he chose a middle name that was part derived from the names of other people but also part unique), and here’s a rationale behind each name

“Christopher” is “Christ-bearer” and Asriel bore a heavy burden to give the monsters salvation

I as a Christian often joke that the reason Asriel isn’t suffering a soulless eternal fate worse than death in Deltarune is because God’s in Deltarune (there’s a church) and God would never let anyone be a zombie in lonely torment and unable to be truly happy for eternity, and I guess the corollary of that is that if Christianity was in Undertale Asriel could be saved, so!

Even without that line of reasoning, the reasoning behind “Christopher” would be an endless reminder of Asriel’s suffering, which he may or may not want (some people wish for scars to prove they survived, while other people wish them gone, for example), and a Christian is someone who believes in hope and mercy and love and that things will always get better, and in miracles.

For example (not that Asriel knows this - he doesn’t know his world isn’t real, thank goodness), you could be faced with people who want to kill you and be nice to them instead of attacking back, and by a series of miracles have it always work - and then find that because you were nice to everyone it will by “chance” set off a series of events that leads to enough people being together in one place for the villain to have enough power to absorb enough souls to break the barrier and get you your happy ending! (I also think that if Asriel and Chara were saved, it would be because Asriel used all that soul power to do it! I mean it’s the power of a god, right? And don’t gods create souls and give people life in most religions?) The creator of the world made us the promise that the angel Raphael made to the boy Tobias (yes that was his name I’m not making this up) in some apocryphal Old Testament book: “Do what is right and no harm (well, no permanent harm, even if you die 128 times like me) shall come to thee.”

The Dreemurr children in every universe try to get free king suite or whatever tickets to the fancy hotel called the Waldorf-ASTORia because of this (and in Undertale, it’s because they’re actually royalty so they deserve the king suite and free room service, right? No? Darn it)

(@askroyalchildren, I’m not trying to say my ideas are better than your middle name ideas you came up with, but what do you think?)

[barinacraft]

Stinger ↠ Drinks Up History As Crème de la Crème

High Society's After Dinner After-Party

A Stinger is a classic cocktail (of sorts) mixed with Cognac and white crème de menthe.* Perceived as an upper class after dinner drink if you will, its mint flavor has deceived many with ordinary brandy as their swill.

How To Make The Perfect Stinger

Stinger Cocktail Recipe:

1 ½ oz brandy or Cognac

½ oz white creme de menthe

1 mint leaf for garnish

Add to a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake ingredients thoroughly. Strain into a chilled glass and garnish with a mint leaf.

Many Stinger drink variations call for a lower ratio of Cognac to liqueur of say 2:1 or even lower. If you're unsure, its easy to start with that recipe and then adjust to taste by adding more brandy to stiffen the spirits if desired. Or, vice versa.

History of the Stinger Drink Recipe

The Backstory - Let Me In, I'm Filthy RICH!

The Stinger has long been associated with social status, which itself was once defined by the Vanderbilts who symbolized American Royalty during the Gilded Age. Patriarch Cornelius "Commodore" Vanderbilt built the family business from scratch by turning a $100 loan from his mother into a $100 million fortune before his death in 1877.

But, his was new money ...

And to be truly accepted into the upper echelons of 'Society' you had to be on Caroline Astor and Ward McAllister's list of the 400 people who were considered fashionable. Old money dominated the elite New York socialite crowd back then and Lina thought railroad riches were distasteful.

Often identified, qualified and then picked from the Social Register, members of the aristocracy lead the way in a clash of old money versus new money struggling for acceptance in the Social 400. This meant Alva, wife of the Commodore's grandson William Kissam Vanderbilt, would have to find a new way in.

She decided to flaunt her wealth and make a list of her own.†

It all started by building an opulent mansion on Fifth Avenue followed by a lavish housewarming party hyped in the press and held on March 26, 1883. Her exclusive guest list included invitations to all of society's highest ranking members along with a select group of young debutantes with one notable exception, Mrs. Astor's daughter Carrie.

Social customs dictated that Miss Astor couldn't be invited since her mother had never visited the Vanderbilt home. Or so Alva claimed.

As a result, Mrs. Astor came calling and the Astors' invitations arrived the next day. A reciprocal request to attend the Astor's upcoming annual ball meant formal acceptance of the Vanderbilts into New York society's upper echelon.

Guess it pays to have a plan.

4th Generation Vanderbilt Mixology

Fast forward a few decades and it was time to check in to see how things were going inside The 400.

After inheriting over ten million dollars and then another five when his brother Alfred died a hero aboard the RMS Lusitania in WWI, Reginald Claypoole Vanderbilt was living it up as an equestrian down on the Sandy Point Farm in Portsmouth, Rhode Island.‡ With a reputation as a playboy and avid gambler, Reggie was also famous for his country estate's "home bar."

Modeled after one in the William the Conqueror tavern in the seaside resort town of Deauville, France in the Calvados department of Normandy, it was spectacular and a status symbol like no other. What better way to celebrate the good life than a round of drinks among friends in grand style?

Long the stuff of legend (reputed to suck down lots at his favorite NY speakeasy, The Colony), this 1923 article made the scuttlebutt official and forever associated Reginald with his specialty behind the bar, the Stinger.1 He fancied himself an expert bartender and did everything from the squeezing and the shaking himself. That included the serving, even though he had servants.

So, Mr. Vanderbilt is largely credited with making the Stinger acceptable as a cocktail for other occasions too including morning, noon and nightcap apparently. In the 1957 musical comedy High Society for example, Bing Crosby heads to the butler's pantry, one of many bars in the movie's mansions, and hands a morning drink to Grace Kelly as “doctor's orders” after a long night of champagne and wine. Asked what it is, he said:

Oh, just the juice of a few fresh flowers called a Stinger ... removes the sting.

This drink has been in the movies outside of the upper crust of high society as well. Other notable featured film and TV appearances include The Bishop's Wife (1947), Kiss Them For Me (1957), The Apartment (1960), Gorky Park (1983) and Mad Men season one episode "Nixon v. Kennedy," set in 1960 along with season three episode two "Love Among the Ruins," set in 1963.

Stinger Drink Timeline with Related Recipe Milestones

Nibbling Along - But Not Quite A Bite

Prior to actually being stung, there was definitely a "sting in the air." Several recipe formulations pre-dated the soon to be Stinger standard that could be classified as iterations or similar drinks like those listed below, but were left in the timeline to illustrate the progression.

1892 The Judge - It called for a 2:1 ratio of brandy to crème de menthe along with a few dashes of gum syrup to sweeten things up. Sound familiar?

The Paymaster - Same proportions as above with bitters replacing the sweetener. Plus, a lemon-peel garnish on the glass brim.2

1895 Brant Cocktail - A renamed Paymaster drink with Angostura bitters and white crème de menthe called out specifically as ingredients.3

1900 Ice Trust Cocktail - Eight years later, the "Only William" of lower Broadway, who created The Paymaster and The Judge drinks above, decided equal parts plain was the perfect potion.4

Finally Stung - A Cocktail Chronology

1909 The Stinger - William T. "Cocktail Bill" Boothby, San Francisco bartender extraordinaire, is said to have left a note tucked into the back of one of his earlier books supposedly for possible inclusion in a later edition. In it he credits J. C. O'Conner, the proprietor of the "handsomest cafe for gentlemen in the world," located on the corner of Market and Eddy Streets in S. F., Calif.

Mr. O'Conner's formula stiffens the predecessors with a 3:1 ratio and caters to those with more expensive taste by specifying Cognac over ordinary brandy. Its shaken and served cold in a sherry glass. No garnish.

As for the date, its sometime after 1909 since his establishment didn't exist prior. Just exactly how long after is unknown and open to debate.5

1912 1st bartending book to actually print the Stinger recipe—maybe. Even though there seems to be consensus, 'circa' clouds the circumstance and we have been unable to confirm the calendar.6

Equal parts Rex Cognac and creme de menthe (white). Frapped.

1913 Popularity is plausible according to the Washington Herald which stated that both the Stinger (half brandy & half white mint cream) and the Green Dragon (green mint cream topped with white absinthe over ice) were on the rise. In hindsight, it looks like the latter didn't fulfill its promise, but the former certainly did.7

Half and half garnished with a lemon peel is what's mixed up in what may really be the Stinger's first formal trade publication appearance. No spirits from a specific region in France had to be brandied about in this recipe though.8

Amer Picon is said to have been the main ingredient of the Bustanoby brothers version at their famous ladies bar Café de Beaux Arts according to the New York Times back then. Very Campari-ble [sic]

1914 Cognac is back. One half pony glass of each. Shaken with ice and strained into an ungarnished vermouth glass.9

1916 Absinthe makes the heart grow fonder, or so says this barkeeper's bible. A couple dashes is all that's needed along with a base of 75% of the good stuff and 25% minty cream liqueur.10

Apparently, Reggie V. liked to splash a little absinthe in his for some extra sting as well.

1917 Country Club Style - St. Louis Country Club style in particular that is. One jigger of really old brandy mixed with one pony of white creme de menthe. That's a 3:2 ratio for those of you following along at home. Shake well with ice, strain and serve.11

Date Check

1933 From Sawdust To Upper Crust - Why did a little bartending book from Oshkosh, Wisconsin (once known as the "Sawdust Capital of the World") contain what appeared to be the first Stinger recipe in print, instead of one from a fancy East Coast publishing house?

Circa bites again. Only this time it was supposedly 1910.12

However, unlike the one from two years later (listed above), we were able to confirm that this promotional booklet was actually printed right after the Repeal of Prohibition which itself was on December 5, 1933. This was followed by ads for the brochure from Wiese Auto & Radio Sales in the Racine, Wisconsin Journal Times and the Universal Motor Company's Mixing Guide For Boatmen in Motor Boating - The Yachtsmen's Magazine in late December 1933 and March 1934, respectively. Both urged you to obtain your own copy of 101 Drinks and How to Mix Them by either coming in person or requesting delivery by mail in care of an Oshkosh address.

Direct mail marketing added a shot of humor to the mix of this particular recipe by joking:

Our pet bee took a sip of this once and threw a jealous fit.

Good one.

Its Official

Although David Embury, Don Marquis, Joyce Kilmer and others may disagree, the Stinger is an IBA official cocktail in their Unforgettables category. Their 5:2 after-dinner formula may be beloved, but many dissenting comments have been made over the years as to whether that drink style in particular is applicable.

White mint and brandy shaken up together with cracked ice make a good substitute for a cocktail. ~ Joyce Kilmer13

Of course, a cocktail or two and an occasional Stinger, is something no one can well avoid taking, if one is dining out or having supper after the theater with one's own particular crowd. ~ Hermione14

Liqueurs should never (with the possible exception of a very few drinks such as the Stinger, which is not really a cocktail) dominate and overpower the flavor of the base. ~ David Embury15

You, of course, will have to judge for yourself. But, whatever its classification, it certainly is unforgettable.

Plus, here's something I think we can all agree on:

Cocktails should be sipped, not gulped, and should remain stinging cold to the last drop. ~ Embury

Hear, hear.

Party Perfect

Stingers are not really Christmas drinks per se, they're much more all season. But, the minty flavor does fit other Christmassy themes like candy canes and such so they definitely make for some happy holidays.

This drink is also a namesake for the Columbus Blue Jackets NHL hockey team mascot Stinger, the “Bug with an Attitude.” Chosen as a symbol of the people of Columbus, OH who are known for their hard work and team pride, Central Ohio is becoming a hardcore hockey hotbed.

Wonder if Reggie was a fan?

Drinks Similar To The Stinger Cocktail

Mixing brandy with green crème de menthe, in place of white, yields an Emerald cocktail / Green Hornet drink. However, many recipes claiming the same name(s) use other green liqueur substitutions and host a hodgepodge of hooch mainly for St. Patrick's Day concoctions.

You can also replace base spirits and include the alternate in the naming pre-fix as in Amaretto, Gin, Rum, Tequila and Vodka Stingers et al.16 The list goes on and on.

Others akin with a spin include:

Alexander's Sister - dry gin, green creme de menthe and light cream.

American Beauty - brandy, white crème de menthe, French vermouth, grenadine syrup, orange juice and port wine.

By The Sea - green crème de menthe, brandy and kirschwasser.

Devil Drink - an Emerald with a dash of cayenne pepper.

Dry Stinger - brandy, lime juice and white crème de menthe.

Gamma Ray - VSOP Armagnac, white crème de menthe, cayenne pepper and flamed lemon peel twist.

Gentleman's Cocktail No. 2 - bourbon whiskey, brandy, crème de menthe and club soda.

Hell - a Stinger dashed with red pepper.

Miami Cocktail - white Cuban rum and crème de menthe with lime or lemon juice.

Shamrock Sip - green cream of mint liqueur, gin and egg white with lemon and orange juice.

Snapper - white crème de menthe and gin.

Stingeree - half-n-half with a dash or two of absinthe.

White Way Cocktail - a Snapper with dry gin.

References

* - Not to be confused with the 'stengah' drink popular in the British Empire in Asia which is mixed with equal amounts of whisky and soda water. Derived from the Malay word 'setengah' meaning half.

† - Broyles, Susannah. "Vanderbilt Ball – how a costume ball changed New York elite society." MCNY Blog: New York Stories. 06 August, 2013.

‡ - While unrelated, ingredient-wise, the Vanderbilt cocktail was created and named for his older brother Alfred in 1922.

1 - "Behind the Curtains With The '400.'" The Indianapolis Star. 08 July, 1923.

2 - William Schmidt, The Flowing Bowl - What and When to Drink (New York: Charles L. Webster, 1891), 160 and 169. Print.

3 - George Kappeler, Modern American Drinks - How to Mix and Serve All Kinds of Cups and Drinks (New York: Merriam, 1895), 33. Print.

4 - "Summer Drinks." The Saint Paul Globe. 02 July, 1900.

5 - William T. (Cocktail) Boothby, American Bar-Tender (San Francisco: Anchor Distilling, 2009). Print.

6 - Holtz & Freystedt Co. Importers; compiled by E.J.M., The Great American Cocktail (New York: Holtz & Freystedt, ca. 1912), 26. Print.

7 - "Balkan Idea At Last Reaches Summer Drinks." The Washington Herald. 22 June, 1913.

8 - Jacques Straub, Straub's Manual of Mixed Drinks (Chicago: R. Francis Welsh, 1913), 101. Print.

9 - Ernest P. Rawling, Rawling's Book of Mixed Drinks - An Up to Date Guide for Mixing and Serving All Kinds of Beverages and Written Expressly for the Man Who Entertains at Home (San Francisco: Guild Press, 1914), 84. Print.

10 - J. A. Grohusko, Jack's Manual on The Vintage and Production, Care, and Handling of Wines, Liquors, etc. A Handbook of Information for Home, Club or Hotel (New York: McClunn & Co., 1916), 122. Print.

11 - Thomas Bullock, The Ideal Bartender (St. Louis: Buxton & Skinner, 1917), 47. Print.

12 - 101 Drinks and how to Mix Them (Oshkosh, Wisconsin: Direct Mail Associates, Inc. and Dean W. Geer Co., ca. 1933), 12. Print.

13 - Annie Kilburn Kilmer, Memories Of My Son Sergeant Joyce Kilmer (New York: Brentano's, 1920), 89. Print. Note: individual letter was dated May 27, 1914.

14 - Don Marquis, Hermione and Her Little Group of Serious Thinkers (New York and London: D. Appleton and Company, 1916), 150. Print.

15 - David A. Embury, The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks (New York: Doubleday, 1948), 8. Print. Note: He also comments on page 143 that the Stinger formulated with equal proportions, like the Coffee cocktail (typically sugar syrup, port, brandy and a whole egg), isn't really a true cocktail. But, it can be converted into a dry and very palatable one like the Miami by substituting brandy for rum in the latter.

16 - A Vodka Stinger has also been known as a White Spider cocktail as far back as 1959 when Smirnoff published their How To Give A Vodka Party promotional pamphlet. Their White Spider drink recipe was a 3:1 ratio of Smirnoff vodka to Heublein white creme de menthe.

[claudia1829things]

Top Favorite “THE GILDED AGE” Season One (2022) Episodes

Below is a list of my top favorite episodes from Season One of the HBO historical drama, "THE GILDED AGE".  Created by Julian Fellowes, the series starred Christine Baranski, Carrie Coon, Morgan Spector and Cynthia Nixon:

TOP FAVORITE “THE GILDED AGE” SEASON ONE (2022) EPISODES

1.  (1.04) “A Long Ladder” -  Recently transported Marian Brook learns more about New York society’s excluded socialite, Mrs. Sylvia Chamberlain.  Aspiring writer Peggy Scott meets the trailblazing New York Globe editor, T. Thomas Fortune.  Businessman George Russell receives an indecent proposal from his wife’s maid, Miss Turner.  Marian’s surprise visit to Peggy’s family home in Brooklyn ends in disaster.

2.  (1.06) “Heads Have Rolled for Less” - While George fights to protect his public image and business, the status quo of Marian’s aunt, Agnes van Rhijn, is disrupted by a mysterious letter about her butler.  Her maid, Miss Armstrong,  intensifies her racist campaign against Peggy.

3.  (1.03) “Face the Music” - George finds his new rail station under threat by local aldermen, plotting to manipulate his company’s stock to their advantage.  Marian continues to ignore Agnes' warnings about her late father’s attorney, Tom Raikes by seeking his company.  Peggy is offered a chance to be published by The Christian Advocate, but she is met with several racist demands. 

4.  (1.09) “Let the Tournament Begin” - Marian’s other aunt, Ada Brook, and the latter’s niece by marriage, Aurora Fane, rush to prevent the young woman from making a huge decision.  Peggy and her mother, Dorothy Scott, discover a major deception perpetrated by her father Arthur Scott.  Bertha Russell has her final showdown with Mrs. Caroline Astor over her upcoming ball.

5.  (1.01) “Never the New” - In the series premiere, the newly orphaned Marian meets Peggy before both arrive at Agnes and Ada’s Manhattan home in 1882.  Meanwhile, the Russells, who plan to break into New York society, move into their new home across the street.