#country heather candle

[y2kbeautyandother2000sstuff]

Yankee Candle Country Heather Pillar Candle

early-mid 1990s I think? It's old at least (and $680!!)

Found on ebay, user itsnew2u

[halljavalge]

Source: livetpaasletten

ℍ𝐚𝓵ｌ נ𝐀 𝔳คĻǤẸ

[angmarenthusiast]

More Total Drama Incorrect Quotes

Duncan: What's your greatest fear? Heather: Being forgotten. Duncan: ... Duncan: Damn, that's deep. Duncan: Mine is the Kool Aid man, but I feel kinda stupid about it now...

--------------------------------------------------------------

Scott: ‘Technically legal’, the two best words in the the English language, right before ‘cowboy spectacular.

--------------------------------------------------------------

*During a game of Hangman* Courtney: Nope, there’s no Q. You lose. Heather: Are you kidding me?! You can still add something! Courtney: I already added a belt, four earrings and an extra arm! YOU LOSE!

--------------------------------------------------------------

Noah: I just wanted to say that over the years, I have come to regard you as… people I met.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Justin: Yesterday, I watched Cody try to eat a decorative rock from Harold's potted plant. Trent caught them and told them they can't eat rocks. Cody started whining something about no food being in the house before walking away.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Jo: All in all, a 100% successful trip. Brick: But we lost Anne Maria. Jo: All in all, a 100% successful trip!

--------------------------------------------------------------

Mike: Lol. Heads up if you try to make a candle with food coloring, the food coloring will just sink to the bottom of the glass, and when the flame eventually reaches the bottom all the food coloring will catch fire and become one giant tall flame that you cannot possibly blow out and the glass will start to crack and then you’ll throw your tea on it in a panic and then the extremely hot food coloring will boil and sizzle horribly and then the glass will shatter. Please take my word on this. Cameron: What did you do Mike? Mike: a Mistake.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Brick: *eating a cinnamon roll* Anne Maria: Cannibalism. Brick: *confused chewing noises*

--------------------------------------------------------------

Sierra: I know what you're up to. Izzy: Really? Because I barely know.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Cody: *is visibly upset* Tyler: Cody, what happened? I haven't seen you like this since you found out candyland wasn't an actual country.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Izzy, in Eva’s window: I thought I’d find you here! Noah, climbing past Izzy: WE COULD HAVE USED THE DOOR-

--------------------------------------------------------------

Cody: Could you guys at least try to see this from my perspective? Harold: *crouches down* Justin: *kneels down* Trent: *sits on the floor* Cody: Cody: I hate all of you.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Sam: Without ugly, there would be no beauty in this world. Dawn: Thank you for your sacrifice, Scott.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Sam: Pick a card, any card. Scott: Fine. Sam: Wait, that's my credit card! Scott: You said any card.

--------------------------------------------------------------

*Beth and Lindsay are in a mirror maze* Beth, seeing Lindsay: C'mon, you got it! Almost through! Lindsay: I see you! *runs straight into a mirror, shattering it* Beth: *screams*

--------------------------------------------------------------

Heather: Gwen- Gwen: *sighs* Courtney used to call me Gwen... Heather: ...Because it's your fucking name.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Zoey: Hey bro, what do you want to eat? Mal: The souls of the innocent! Mike: A bagel. Mal: No! Mike: Two bagels.

[w3ath3r-0f-sw34t3rz]

remember that time i chose a top ten for all of my favorite artists? no you don't but i'm gonna re-do it. and so

forcing myself to pick a top ten (in no particular order except for the top 3) for my favorite artists. why? because!

cavetown

this is home

boys will be bugs

it's u

devil town

pyjama pants

snake & the prairie dogs

smoke signals

a kind thing to do

pigeon

let them know they're on your mind

cavetown offline edition

rocket ships

rain

evergreen

alien waves

winter coat

thank you

petrify

ghost boys

vacation with the ghosts

candle

conan gray

alley rose

fight or flight

the exit

comfort crowd

winner

best friend

footnote

lonely dancers

heather

bourgeoisieses

chloe moriondo

take your time

waves

killbot!

cry

exhausted

hotel for clowns

plastic purse

cdbaby<3

slacker

hearteyes

taylor swift

you're on your own, kid

cardigan

who's afraid of little old me?

enchanted

don't blame me

you're losing me

new year's day

champagne problems

lover

cowboy like me

boywithuke

migraine

out of tune

bad things

zoning out

so cold

falling for you

kind of sick of life

bad luck

heart of ice

problematic

penelope scott

cigarette ahegao

gross

moonsickness

born2run

lotta true crime

rät

runaway

sin eater

lavender

shuffle

beabadoobee

take a bite

1999

bobby

the way things go

the way i spoke

talk

coming home

apple cider

coffee

this is how it went

melanie martinez

evil

field trip

nymphology

pacify her

drama club

teacher's pet

carousel

brain & heart

cry baby

glued

mother mother

the matrix

arms tonite

bit by bit

weep

legs away

wisdom

forgotten souls

oh ana

love and truth

until it doesn't hurt

olivia rodrigo

obsessed

deja vu

vampire

all-american bitch

lacy

ballad of a homeschooled girl

traitor

teenage dream

good 4 u

can't catch me now

phoebe bridgers

graceland too

the gold

i know the end

scott street

would you rather

funeral

chinese satellite

icu

motion sickness

demi moore

mitski

first love/late spring

texas reznikoff

my body's made of crushed little stars

bag of bones

geyser

francis forever

crack baby

a pearl

strawberry blond

washing machine heart

tv girl

the blonde

blue hair

better in the dark

taking what's not yours

loving machine

pretty boy

not allowed

it almost worked

louise

summer's over

alex g

i wait for you

16 mirrors

thorns

runner

break

early morning waiting

mis

treehouse

time/space

know now

the neighbourhood

sweater weather

you get me so high

ferrari

flawless

the shining

greetings from califournia

reflections

sadderdaze

lost in translation

softcore

lana del rey

happiness is a butterfly

fishtail

the greatest

music to watch boys to

chemtrails over the country club

not all who wander are lost

born to die

let the light in

say yes to heaven

west coast

beach bunny

good girls (don't get used)

vertigo

racetrack

deja vu

prom queen

scream

painkiller

rearview

blame game

ghost

arctic monkeys

r u mine?

why'd you only call me when you're high?

fluorescent adolescent

arabella

mardy bum

balaclava

the jeweller's hands

fireside

505

i wanna be yours

who is this for? me. thank you

[bookish-monster]

RECOMMENDATION

Bees and Honey: A Swamp Monster Love Story

by Victoria Weyland

Storygraph Link contains info such as publication date, number of pages, community-created content warnings, and more.

This review has also been published in the May 2023 edition of the wonderful @monstermag (which you should definitely check out if you're a fan of monster romance; download past editions here)

Bees and Honey: A Swamp Monster Love Story is a fun little novella set in modern, rural Louisiana—specifically, it’s set in a very real place known as Honey Island Swamp, which is (according to Google) one of the least-altered river swamps in modern America. It has seen very little real estate development or other construction. It’s a wilderness that has been only lightly touched by humanity, and the fictional characters that populate it in this novella want to keep it that way!

Our story focuses on Heather, a born-and-raised Southerner who moved to Honey Island Swamp after a disastrous breakup that sent her life into a tailspin. She pulled an apiary (bee farm) up from the ground and built a business as a beekeeper selling honey and candles to the locals. Now, however, her home and business are threatened by McMasters, a white city slicker who wants to buy her and her neighbors’ properties and turn them into country clubs and homes for rich people. Heather is angry. Heather is more than angry, actually—she’s furious. But her helpless rage is turned into something much more actionable when she meets Honey, the ageless reptilian guardian of Honey Island Swamp.

I really enjoyed this story and consumed it in a single sitting! Weyland is a great storyteller with approachable prose and a writing style that’s easy to settle into and enjoy. I liked all of the Southern mannerisms and terms of speech that she peppered into Bees and Honey, and how she and her protagonist share a clear love for the flora and fauna of Louisiana. There are some nods to the realities of living in the Deep South—Heather’s neighbors, an aging, interracial gay couple, aren’t exactly welcome at the local church events—but overall, Bees and Honey focuses on the sweeter things in life such as community, friendship, and love.

This book is very LGBT+ positive, too, which is always great to see. Heather, upon meeting the swamp monster known as Honey, asks for his pronouns, which he gives her without fuss. Heather herself uses the pansexual label. 

And let me just say that I loved Honey. He came across as extremely masculine and sexy without veering into the realm of toxic masculinity at all, which was a relief—all too often with traditional human romances, the male lead is a complete dick and I end up wishing the heroine got together with someone nicer. Not so with Honey! He asks permission for various acts during a sex scene with Heather, and doesn’t attempt to take away her autonomy or control her life and happiness in any way. 

The plot with McMasters getting his comeuppance is very satisfying. If you live in a rural area that is undergoing rapid urban development the way I do, you will sympathize with Heather, Bubs, Cliff, and the rest of the fictional residents of Honey island Swamp. McMasters is an (unfortunately slight) exaggeration of an all too real breed of rich white landowners who use scare tactics to bully poor folks into selling their land, and it felt good to read about him losing his war to turn Honey Island Swamp into a playground for rich people with more money than sense. 

Lastly, I loved the Bee Facts™ that Weyland sprinkled throughout the story. They’re funny as well as educational, and as each is generally 1-2 sentences long they don’t distract from the story itself. Overall, I’d definitely recommend Bees and Honey: A Swamp Monster Love Story. It was a great way to spend an evening and I enjoyed Honey and Heather wholeheartedly. They had a bee-utiful romance and I’m very excited to read more of Weyland’s work!

buy the book on Amazon Kindle (US)

[pbandjesse]

Happy Valentine's day! Today was a pretty good day overall. I am very much looking forward to sleep. But I had a good day and I feel pretty happy.

I actually went to work today. Which was only mildly difficult. I slept alright last night. My cough was still bad but not as constant. It could come back with force later in the day but for the majority of today I was mostly okay.

I got washed and dressed and tried my best to feel normal. James had packed me a nice little breakfast and some soup for lunch. They leave out the back door and I leave out the front so we said goodbye and headed to work.

I had a nice drive in. I was surprised that there was snow on the ground at camp. But later Heather would show me pictures of her yard and it literally looked like a blizzard it was crazy. It was cold out though and I was happy to be in the office.

I had to print my valentine for James. And I would spend some time working on stuff for workshops. Print outs and such. The day was dragging though and everything I had planned to do I was basically done by 930. Ugh.

Today wasn't all boring though. Eventually I was able to get Alexi and Heather to give me some work. Mostly by volunteering to do things that they were giving me parts of. Like they would ask me to do a part of something and I was like. What if I did more of it? And that filled a lot of time for me which made me feel better.

I did have some bored moments though. So I spent a lot of time on Etsy looking at charms. I am just window shopping. I really don't want to buy anything. But it's still fun to see what's out there in the world.

I would go for a few walks up to the art building. I needed to get my felt I had stored up there and I wanted to borrow the scissors as well. I would get really really cold walking up there and my hands hurt! I was very surprised. But when I got back to the office I warned ho with my soup and watched a video and things were fine.

The afternoon I had some stuff to work on for the CIT program. And some other scheduling stuff. This felt really productive and good. I also attempted to learn origami but I continue to be terrible at it.

Celia came in to feed the animals and it was really nice to see her. She's coming over to make arrangements on Friday. But for now she told me about a possible job she was offered and I really hope she takes it. It's with the parks service and even if it's a 10 month contract it would be so good on her resume.

Alexi brought a pelt from her dad's closet that was going to get thrown out and gave it to me to possibly use for materials. I might see if James wants it as a rug in their room first because it doesn't have much wrong with it. But it's a very cool piece of leather regardless.

I would get lots of compliments on my overalls today. Alexi's mom came in even and thought they were amazing. Made me feel really good. I love these overalls, and only wearing them this time of the year keeps them special.

For the last half hour of the day I mostly just played on my phone. But as soon as I couldn't do that anymore I said goodbye to everyone. And headed to the grocery store.

I wanted to get James a plant for Valentine's Day. I ended up getting two. It was funny seeing all the country guys, of all ages, buying roses and cards. And then me in line with them. Just felt silly. Cute.

I walked in the door moments before James did. I was excited to give them the flowers but we decided to wait for our little dinner to actually exchange things.

James would take the car and went to pick up our half baked pizza. Matthews does a half cooked pie that you finish at home. Which is such a good idea. While James was gone getting that I set up our TV tables with a table cloth and the flowers I got. James also got me flowers and a cube shaped balloon!! We also had candles. I tried to make it all really nice.

James got back and put the pizza in the oven. I also got to try the bread they made than morning and it is such an excellent loaf. Turns out it may have been our oven not being the right temperature the whole time because this was a very good loaf of bread.

I did some moving around of things in the studio while we waited for dinner. And then it was time to eat!

Our pizza was really good. And we talked about our days and then after food we exchanged cards. We had a huge laugh when James almost drew me the same card I drew them and we almost got each other a very similar thing. I had also pointed out earlier that they had very pretty earrings on, and it turns out they had bought them for themselves to get a ring for me (the sale price was based on an order minimum). And the ring they got me is beautiful. I love it so much. It has such a nice weight to it, the engraving goes all the way around the band. It's perfect. They also got me a different cherub hair clip. So now I have two of those! I got James a baby lobster that will be released from a hatchery in the UK, and a penguin (it's a bracelet where you can track a rela penguin). We also wrote each other cards and it was just really special. I love my husband so much.

James also worked really hard to make me chocolate covered pretzels. Which was so kind. And obviously a lot of work! I will have those tomorrow at work. I'm very excited about them.

I started coughing again really badly after dinner. I thought maybe taking a bath would help. James would end up sitting in the bathroom with me while I tried to take a marginally comfortable bath with kettle water. I was hacking and gagging a ton but James kept telling me how beautiful I was still. They are very kind. I am very uncomfortable.

Honestly since then my throat has felt very swollen again. But I'm trying to be gentle with it. We have been watching funny videos since then and just being together and with sweetp and it's been so nice. I feel so much love. I feel so lucky.

I hope we can sleep easy tonight. I hope you are all safe and happy. I love you all. Goodnight!

[scotianostra]

I’ve posted many times regarding Glasgow and it’s history with fire, but in older times Edinburgh was the main town that was prone to the dangers of fire.

If any early fire precautions and firefighting provisions were practised in Scotland they have not been recorded. There is no mention in the Scottish records of fire precautions until as late as the reign of James I of Scotland, when, in 1426, the town officers of Edinburgh were instructed to have ‘seven or aught twenty Jute ledders as well as three or Joure sayes (saws) to the common use, and sex or ma cleikes of iron (long poles tipped with iron hooks) to draw down timbers and ruiffes that are fired’ . 

This belated concern in Scotland about fire control measures is surprising for the lowland and border burghs of the northern kingdom were even more vulnerable to fires than most English communities . Besides the fires which began by accident, the Scots had also to cope with the incendiarism which was an accompaniment of every English invasion. The French historian Froissart, who visited Scotland during the reign of David II  may have been correct when he wrote that the Scots country people 'did not mind much when the English burned their houses, as they could build them again in a few days with five or six poles with branches to stretch across them’. 

I think it is unlikely that either the citizens of Edinburgh (then a sizeable place for its time of about 400 houses), watched the destruction of their city by the English army sent north by Richard II, very cheerfully, or that the monks of Melrose and Dryburgh took pleasure in seeing their abbeys burning.

There were acts and resolutions before 1703, most notable in in 1426 an act resolved that 'no hemp, lint, straw, hay or heather or broom be stored near a fire’. Edinburgh merchants selling such wares are permitted to use lanterns but not candles and citizens in general are forbidden to carry naked flames from house to house. 'Na fire may be fetched fra ane house til ane uther within the town bot within covered weshel or lanterne, under pain of ane unlaw.’ That brothels and the homes of 'ladies of the town’ in general were considered a special fire risk is also shown by a clause in the Act which commands that 'common women’ should be housed at the outermost end of the town where 'the least peril o fire is’.

In 1621, another important Act was passed concerning 'the supply ing of water to the city from a distance'   a three-inch pipe, which was installed by a German plumber at a cost of £2,950. It ran from a catchment in the Comiston area to a reservoir on the Castle Hill which, in its turn, fed ten of the city’s public wells.Incidentally (though this is only mentioned later), as there were :fire points’ on the pipes running from the Castle Hill to the wells, Edinburgh in this respect was in advance of other cities. While Edinburgh remained with. The reservoir is now occupied by a large gift shop, and several of the wells survive down the Royal mile, and, as in the pic, at the bottom of The West Bow, on Grassmarket. 

What first shocked the Edinburgh City Fathers into taking thought about improving the existing situation was a particularly disastrous fire which broke out on February 3rd, 1700. Some of you might remember I posted about this on the date.

According to a report written about the fire some time later….

'The flames broke out about 11 o'clock at night, in the north-east corner of the Meal Market, a small court of buildings then chiefly occupied by lawyers, situated upon the north side of the Cowgate , immediately behind the Parliament Close. From this spot the fire spread up the hill to the Parliament Close, destroying all the buildings called Kirk-heuch, which was then a sort of shoe-market, and at length reached the High Street where houses continuous to the cross were involved in the general ruin .' 

The Royal Exchange, the Bank of Scotland Building and part of the Advocates’ Library, were among the public buildings damaged or destroyed by this fire in which close on 200 families were driven from their homes. It was the worst fire that had occurred in Edinburghsince 1544 when an English army commanded by the Earl of Hertford, after overcoming the resistance of a small force of militant citizens, fired both the city and the Palace of Holyrood. 

The phrase above 'shocked the City Fathers into thought’ was used by intent for action did not come until April 21st, 1703, when an important Edinburgh Act was passed for the formation of a ’Company for Quenching of Fire and Rules to be observed by the inhabitants thereanent’ . . A reproduction of this original bill with the provisions of this Act, is included among the pics but as both the print and the old Scots wordings may present difficulties, the following translation may be of help.

The Act (of the Provost, Bailies, Council and Deacons of Craft, 'ordiner and byordiner’) states and ordains that: 'Owing to the sad desolations made in this city within these years by the terrible and dreadfulfires which broke out in the Meal Market and Land Market, and made so sudden and great progress that a great part o( the city was in danger of being consumed, if God in his great mercy had not put a stop thereto, the Council, judging it their duty to lay down methods and means, that through the blessing of God may prove effectual in the /ike or great conflagrations, have concluded the following rules to be observed in time coming: That the Council do name out of the Burgesses and Freemen 0.( this city, twelve men, to be called by the name of firemasters, and each firemaster be empowered to name six assistants to himself to be ready at all times upon the occasion o tfire. The firemastersn to receive their orders from the magistrates and the assistants from their respective firemasters, who are  all to present themselves to the magistrates each first Monday of February and August yearly in the New Greyfriars. 

That each Firemaster have in his hand a batton and each assistant a leather cap on his head with an iron cross-bar on it, and a badge of pewter on the front of the cap bearing the number from 1 to 72, to be made by such persons as the Council shall appoint and by none other. That each Firemaster and his assistant have a large hand axe, made with luffs nailed to the shaft, and a sledge hammer, with a hand saw, all marked with the Town’s mark and twelve links alwise lodged in the Firemaster’s houses. That each Firemaster have his name above the door of his house or close-head where he dwells, bearing them to be such, and a list of the whole lodged in the town guard. The Council appoints to be made 24 says and thirty-six stings with knogs, whereof six standing full of water with stings hanging by them and some buckets, with six shovels and six mattocks with the good Town’s mark upon them, to be lodged on the north side of the weighhouse, under a shade made for that end (several other stations are mentioned), that each Firemaster shall have a key to open the several shades.

 The Council appoints 300 leather buckets or more to be made, and that there be lodged thereof in the Town Guard as many as can with convenience and the rest be hung up in the Old Kirk, as also 12 leathers, whereof 3 of them of 46 foot, 3 of them 30 foot , 3 of them 20 foot and 3 of them 15 foot long, all to be hung up in the Old Kirk . The Council appoints the whole muck-men to have each of them a creel, and to repair to the fire with their creels full of horse-dung or muck upon the first alarm. The Council appoints the wells to be put in good condition and the fire-cocks in good order, that the whole Firemasters may know how to put the water on to the firecock, and to make the water run to any side of the street by the help of a timber spout, which the Council appoints to be made to that effect. The Council appoints the captain of the guard upon the first alarm of fire to send to the magistrates and hail! Firemasters and the keeper of the good town’s stores and advertise them thereof, and to call the hail trainmen and water carriers and inform them to carry water to several places, where the firemasters shall judge most convenient. The Council appoints the captain of the guard for the time to cause two men of the best qualified of their squad to walk nightly through the streets, with a large batton in their hand, five or six foot long, who are hereby appointed to give notice immediately to the firemasters and the guard in case of fire, and the said captain is to take notice of the vigilance each morning. And lastly, the Council discharges the selling, pledging, or re-setting or any warp, imbasling of the said materials, certifying the transgressors they shall be fined and imprisoned and other ways punished at the will of the magistrates.“

In addition to the provisions above, citizens were required to keep a supply of water in their houses in case of fire and occupants of tenements to provide themselves with ropes of the height of the building plus an additional 'four fathoms’. This last provision, has aroused smiles at the idea of elderly grannies swarming their way down from the upper windows of the high Edinburgh’ lands’. But the length of rope additional to the height of the buildings, was clearly intended to allow for a loop in which those who were unable to help themselves could be lowered to safety. As for the item concerning the city muck-men, there was much more sense to this than at first appears. The creels of (wet) muck (mostly horse-dung) must have been useful addition to the limited supplies of water available; the dung when heated gave off fumes of ammonia which acted as a natural chemical fire extinguisher.

The firemen attached to the new organisation were of course what we would now call auxiliaries. They only turned up at an alarm, otherwise they followed their customary occupations. There is no record of their receiving any instruction in fire-fighting and probably they had to learn the hard way, by experience. For their services they were paid £8 Scots (i.e. 16s. 8d. in the English currency of this time), per annum. Despite this meagre reward there does not seem to have been any shortage of volunteers. 

One puzzling thing about the Edinburgh Act of 1703 is that it makes no mention of any fire engine though it is known that a James Colquhoun of Edinburgh built machines, described as such, for Edinburgh and Glasgow as early as 1650. A possible explanation is that these engines were simply 'squirts’ of the kind used in London during the Great Fire and that Colquhoun’s 'engine’ was either found of little use or had been destroyed in the interval.

[treesandwords]

Roy G. Biv tag game

Tagged by @somethingclevermahogony , I adore this concept!

Jamos Dalion had travelled a good deal in his youth, and the evidence was abundant in his private room. Books on the shelves were written in no language Jerod recognized, scrolls of parchment he had never seen the insides of piled along the tops of them. A small chest in the corner painted bright red with delicate gilt inlays came from Dalsa in the Latavni Empire, and a Baleric wood carving stood on another shelf high above. There were little copper lanterns and jewelled cases, clay pots and shards of a sharp black stone, a fish made of red glass...Jerod wondered if it was a kind of collection, akin to the one hidden in his own drawers. And of course, there was the map.

As it had been Nysel’s father – or what remained of his wealth – that gave shape to much of the celebration, things from her country, and from the Imperial lands her mother hailed from, were brought to Durrigan when the time was near. Much of it being food. Pomegranates and oranges and southern red quail, black plums and soft cheese and flat, spiced bread, barrels of a drink made from honeyed wine and the juice of lemons. Other things came from them too. A canopy of orange silk. The bride’s clothes.

He shook himself. Here he was, at home, under green and yellow silks in springtime. His brother was getting married. The air carried a scent of heather honey, and blue moths flickered at the lit torches. Right now, there was nothing to fear.

Time passed in great swaths. One of the old men began a hacking cough and Jerod felt the dust surrounding his own throat, the cracks in his lips, the blood drying on his face. Old memories swam to the surface of his mind; a piece of twisted old metal cool between his fingers, a black orb so dark he could see no light within it. A stub of wax candle and a bowl of blood cradled in rust-coloured leaves. A woman with a face like old parchment, cloaked in emerald green, a lantern in her hand.             And older ones. Green veins creeping up the length of a dead boy’s arm. How old had he been? The sleeve of his tunic had been slashed and jostled so that his wrist was visible, the old mark caked in blood and dirt. Were his veins green too, now?

Laedir was of a different sort, and did not look much like his father. Were he not who he was, he would not be half as intimidating. But his younger siblings found him so, because he was the eldest in the family and the heir to Durrigan, because at twenty four he already had a wife and young child of his own. He was not very tall. A dark blue travelling hood covered his hair, darker and curly like his mother, but his eyes were like Jamos’. They too gave little away. He had square hands and a square face of quiet, closed features. Often he did not smile.

Despite everything, he could not help noticing the warm touch of her arm, of the way the lantern light played across her cheeks. Violet night-shadows mingled with the gold radiance, shade and light together sharpening the lines of her nose, her jaw. Jerod had a brief but vivid image of himself sitting across from her and sketching the lines of her face with his charcoals, bringing those shapes to life on parchment.

Tagging: @kaatiba @writingmoth @on-noon

[school-in-london]

20231021 10TH ANNIV. TOUR [KOCHI]

■ DJ: 村田タケル

Tramhaus / The Goat

bar italia / Nurse!

Yard Act / 100% Endurance

Jockstrap / Glasgow

Cate Le Bon / Crab Day

feeble little horse / Tin Man

Tanukichan / Like You

bar italia / Harpee

King Krule / Seaforth

Drug Store Romeos / What's On Your Mind

bar italia / Clark

■ DJ: okaken

Gabriels / Offering

Geese / 3D Country

Viagra Boys / Punk Rock Loser

Spoon / Devil & Mister Jones

Alan Palpmo / Nudista Mundial '89 (feat. Mac DeMarco)

Gareth Donkin / Falling For You

Yard Act / Payday

Alien Tango / B.F.F.

The Strokes / Brooklyn Bridge to Chorus

Choir Boy / Sweet Candy

Passion Pit / Eyes As Candles

Water From Your Eyes / Out There

Girl Ray / Everybody's Saying That

Bell & Sebastian / The Party Line

Romy / She's On My Mind

■ DJ: 遠藤孝行

Troye Sivan / Rush

The Orielles / Old Stuff, New Glass

Talking Heads / Don't Worry About the Government

Mock Media / Modern Visions

The Lounge Society / Burn The Heather

Courting / Flex

Pixies / Here Comes Your Man

Primal Scream / Gentle Tuesday

Viagrea Boys / Girls & Boys

O. / Slice

Battles / My Machines (Featuring Gary Numan)

Nirvana / Very Ape

Fountaines D.C. / Jackie Down The Line

shame / Born in Luton

The Garden / :(

PIGBAG / Papa's Got a Brand New Pigbag

XTC / Living Through Another Cuba

Spoon / You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb

■ DJ: タイラダイスケ

Shame 69 / If The Kids Are United

Lizzy Mercier Descloux / Fire

Wet Leg / Ur Mum

Liquid Liquid / Optimo

Nirvana / Drain You

Wednesday / Chosen to Deserve

DYGL / Wanderlust

Kitty, Daisy & Lewis / Baby Bye Bye

Bill Haley / Rock Around The Clock

THE HIGH-LOWS / 即死（※Spotify無し）

Home / Lucy

Mura Masa / Whenever I Want

Baby Keem & Kendrick Lamar / The Hillbillies

Tierra Whack / Millions (Jumbo Sounds Mix)

Romy / Strong (feat. fred again..)

Blur / Cofee & TV

Slowthai / Sooner

C2C / Happy (feat. Derek Martin)

Justice / D.A.N.C.E.

Fontaines D.C. / A Hero's Death

The Doors / Break On Through (To the Other Side)

bed / Kare Wa

Confidence Man / Angry Girl Feat. CHAI

■ DJ: Jeremy

Bell & Sebastian / Your Cover's Blown (Miaoux Miaoux Remix)

Charlotte Gainsbourg / Sylvia Say

Girl Ray / True Love

Duran Duran / Pressure Off (feat. Janelle Monáe and Nile

Rodgers)

Fickle Friends / Swim

Yard Act / Dark Days

Gorillaz / The Valley of The Pagans (feat. Beck)

Le Tigre / Hot Topic

Wet Leg / Wet Dream

The Strokes / Hard to Explain

The Ordinary Boys / Little Bitch

Spitz / 僕の天使マリ

Arcric Momleys / Fluorescent Adolescent

Warpaint / New Song

Mura Masa / No Hope Generation

The 1975 / Give Yourself A Try

Janelle Monáe / Tightrope

Jurian Casablancas / My Drive Thru (feat.Pharrell Williams & Santigold)（※Spotify無し）

The Strokes / Machu Picchu

■ DJ: 村田タケル

Snail mail / Valentine

HighSchool / Forever at Last

bar italia / Polly Armour

bar italia / punkt

Computerwife / Oops

Terry / Centuries

Lifeguard / I know I know

Straw Man Army / Faces In The Dark

The Cool Greenhouse / Sod's Toastie

Yard Act / The Trapper's Pelts

Porchlight / Noel

Radiohead / Myxomatosis (Judge, Jury & Executioner)

PVA / Bunker

Doss / Strawberry

Sextile / New York

Crack Cloud / Image Craft (Live in London)

Deerhunter / Disappearing Ink

ISS / Elevator Shaft (feat. Miss Lady)（※Spotify無し）

Italia 90 / Funny Bones

Chronophage / Summer To Fall

Horsegirl / Billy

~Ending~ bar italia / guard

[newcountryradio]

New Country 26e jaargang  #1194 (753) van 11 september   2023  (wk 37) tussen 19.00 -21.00 op Smelne fm

Album van de week:   Warren Zeiders – Pretty Little Poison   

           Artiest                         Title                                                    

Zach Brown Band - Highway 20 Ride      maandartiest

Luke Bryan – Sunrise, Sunburn, Sunset    #1 2018

Jelly Roll w/ Lainey Wilson – Save Me

Billy Currington - Anchor Man  

Charlie Robison - My Hometown  

Larry Fleet – Ain’t Mad at Jesus   

Ronnie Dunn -  Ain't No Trucks In Texas* *truck song of the week  

Warren Zeiders – Pretty Little Poison            album

Warren Zeiders – Inside Your Head    cd

Chris Stapleton - Think I 'm In Love With You

John Michael Montgomery – I Swear      1994

Luke Combs – Love You Anyway        #1

 Vince Gill /Amy Grant – Longer * juweeltje

Dolly Parton – Old Flames Can’t Hold a Candle To You       

Cody Johnson – – The Painter      favoriet    

Zach Brown Band – Knee Deep

Drew Baldridge - Big Prayers *sofi

Buddy & Julie Miller - Don't Make Her Cry

The Lasses - Lads Among Heather

Old Crow Medicine Show ft. Willie Watson – Miles Away.

Aaron Watson - Million Reasons (feat. Morgan Myles)

Dallas Moore - Truckin' Outlaw Blues

Warren Zeiders – Cowboys Rides Awayy      cdvdw.

Shania Twain – Come On Over   25 years

Tim McGraw – Standing Man Only   17

Turnpike Troubadours – A Cat In The Rain  9

Zach Bryan / feat Kacey Musgraves – I Remember Everything       

Willie Nelson.  -  Are There Any more Real Cowboys

Chris Stapleton - Traveller .

[conifer-cottontail]

⚘ ❧ bunny regression tips & ideas ! ☙ ⚘

includes toys, books, shows, snacks, gear, and general tips! click the read more to see the whole thing!

toys! :

❥ you can buy these willow balls that are often used as rabbit toys as decor! theyre used as little decorative accents pretty often!

❥ i like how wooden things look, so i have this little wooden fidget toy!! its a ball bearing n you can roll it around and i rly love it :>

❥ carrot or bunny shaped stuff, obviously! teethers or chewy jewelry made with food-grade silicon are good to gnaw on hehe!!

❥ this teether/pacifier if you also do agere or just like pacis!! its called a razbaby, it is baby-sized but look how cute it is!

it also comes in a version where the berry is blue, and in pastelly ice cream-type colors like this pink!

❥ these little rollers with bells in them! theyre a common rabbit toy and used as sensory toys for little kids so you can get them made for people too!

snacks!!:

❥ fruits & veggies obviously! carrots, celery, lettuce, cucumber, apple, berries, etc.

❥ i feel like some cereal looks quite a bit like rabbit pellets hehe! stuff like all-bran or maybe rice krispies!

❥ juices or sweetened milk (like with vanilla and cinnamon and sugar) arent too bunny-accurate but are still very cute n tasty!!

❥ sorbet if you want something summery!! its not too dairy-y and mainly tastes like fruit and sugar hehe!

❥ tea !!! but make sure to let it cool so you dont burn your mouth hehe!

❥ pretzels! esp yogurt covered pretzels hehe!!

❥ fruit gummy

tips to get more into bunspace:

❥ i like to make a nest in my fav soft blankets n sit in there all cozy!!!

❥ watch videos or find pictures/gifs of bunnies acting how you want to act, esp if they look like how you imagine your bunny self ! that tends to help me get into the headspace!

❥ find smells or sounds or textures you really like and get stuff of them!! i rly like bells and cinnamon smelling things so i have a little bell rattle and a cinnamon candle i can smell hehe!

❥ try wearing socks & sweatpants & long sleeves (all comfy n loose of course), it makes me feel more like im covered in fur!

❥ imagine that you have big bunny ears & bunny paws!

things to watch that have bunnies in them!:

(these are all kids shows & so are the books because i think most ppl like stuff for children when theyre in petspace!!)

❥ the beatrix potter animated show thats fully available on youtube! (important note though, it has little bunnies in danger a lot which was too sad for bunny-me haha!!)

❥ max & ruby

❥ the calico critters netflix shorts

❥ wish-me-mell from sanrio (though this is only in japanese theres no english versions!)

❥ my melody, also from sanrio!

things to read that have bunnies in them:

❥ beatrix potter again!!

❥ the country bunny and the little gold shoes

❥ goodnight moon

❥ the runaway bunny

❥ guess how much i love you

gear! :

❥ obviously, bunny ear headbands hehe! id look on etsy for reputable sellers so you can get a good product & support small artists!

❥ if you dont like headbands, you can buy or make beanies or hoods with bunny ears on them! pawstars is a smaller business that sells bunny ear beanies that arent cheap fast fashion so look there or etsy again!!

❥ heathered fabric clothes!!! i love heathered fabrics cus they look more like fur to me than just plain fabric

❥ mittens or gloves or specifically paw gloves ! (bunnies dont have pawpads though hehe!) these make hands feel more clumsy n pawlike i think

⚘ ❧ youve reached the end of the post !!! ☙ ⚘

[halljavalge]

Source: livetpaasletten

ℍ𝐚𝓵ｌ נ𝐀 𝔳คĻǤẸ

[roobylavender]

do you have any specific non-comic quotes that remind you of bruce?

any asshole can open up a museum / put all of the things he loves on display / so everyone can see them (it's a hit, rilo kiley)

but grieving people are selfish. they won’t let you comfort them and they say you don’t understand and they make you feel useless when all your life you’ve been functional to them. (the piper’s son, melina marchetta)

i should live in salt for leaving you behind (i should live in salt, the national)

oh joy i'm afraid of the light / as the jewel of my mind begins to fall apart / do not destroy what has taken its time / as the lord would abide in murder and crime (murder and crime, sufjan stevens)

grief paralyzes. motion continues; time departs. something’s left with no means to retrieve it. a candle out in the down-clap of darkness. then to wade and wade—in grief: i, detached from place and time. (dream of the divided field, yanyi)

one peculiar way to die of loneliness is to try. pretend november has a sliver of ice in her throat. (trances of the blast, mary ruefle)

shame creates imaginary worlds inside your head. this haunted house you’re creating is forged from your shame. no one else can see it, so you keep trying to describe it to them. you find ways to say, “you don’t want any part of this mess. i’m mediocre, aging rapidly, and poor. do yourself a favor and leave me behind.” you want to be left behind, though. that way no one bears witness to what you've become (i'm broke and mostly friendless, and i've wasted my whole life, heather havrilesky)

i've spent most of my life and most of my friendships holding my breath and hoping that when people get close enough they won't leave, and fearing that it's a matter of time before they figure me out and go. (shauna niequist)

cause if i can learn to love your shadow / when your shadow hits the light / and there ain't no trace of what we've been through / then i'll shout it 'til the day i die / but i'm still in sight / your fast machine / always holding your love supreme (45, bleachers)

a loss of innocence is the impetus for a journey to find inner truth. in the film, dorothy returns to the world of oz to find its landscape in ruins and its citizens turned to stone. only she can find the ruby slippers and return peace to oz. only we can save ourselves, but first we have to remember who we are. (sufjan stevens)

shall we look at the moon, my little loon / why do you cry? / make the most of your life, while it is rife / while it is light (fourth of july, sufjan stevens)

the bleeding heart, on the other hand is fundamentally incapable of being anything other than themself. they love the way an open wound does. it’s hemorrhagic and contagious. faithful to a fault. they will jump without hesitation, though they’ll hit the ground consumed with guilt. (hauntdom)

i’ve listened to people in the media say that nothing beats the love between a mother and the child she births. i’d have to challenge that. nothing beats it, but something equals it. because i feel a deep love at my heart’s core for this child. i truly believe we were meant to be. (the gift of love, melina marchetta)

hector believes in—he believes in institutions, he believes in—in country, he believes in family, he believes in the army. isn’t it funny how hard it is to describe a good man? he’s a brave man, but deep down, he’d rather be taming horses. (an iliad, lisa peterson) 

responsibility is what is incumbent on me exclusively, and what, humanly, i cannot refuse. i am i in the sole measure that i am responsible, a non-inter-changeable i. i can substitute myself for everyone, but no one can substitute himself for me. such is my inalienable identity of subject. (ethics and infinity, emmanuel levinas) 

the violence that superheroes commit against themselves, for the good of the community—sometimes pushed by a community that worships them, fears and loathes them at the same time—is akin to the violence of every self-sacrifice, even if it is not performed by a masked champion or by the son of god. (christ, batman, and girard, lorenzo magnani and tommaso bertolotti) 

we keep fixing what we know is only bound to break / what's worth saving is never worth letting go to waste / i want to mend what i've got, instead of throwing away (theseus, the oh hellos) 

froi saw the foolishness of dreamers, and he decided he'd like to die so foolish. with a dream in his heart about the possibilities, rather than a chain of hopelessness. (the lumatere chronicles, melina marchetta) 

[bellamysgriffin]

the ultimate valentine’s day movie rec list!

because i spend so much time watching movies and because i LOVE love, i made this list that no one asked for

STANDARD

(these are your typical, you know exactly what you’re in for romantic movies, whether they are rom-coms, or just some good romantic drama, these are your go-to for fun romantic valentine’s day goodness!) ((NOTE: there are no lgbt+ films in this section, that’s because i have a whole section dedicated to those, so it’s easier to find)

the edge of seventeen

brooklyn

when harry met sally

amelie

obvious child

the princess and the frog

easy a

you’ve got mail

stuck in love

hercules

juno

love rosie

set it up

about time

10 things i hate about you

the big sick

palm springs

pride and prejudice

clueless

whisper of the heart

sleeping with other people

emma

to all the boys i’ve loved before

the adjustment bureau

just like heaven

13 going on 30

a cinderella story

groundhog day

defending your life

dirty dancing

CLASSIC HOLLYWOOD

(these are movies from roughly the sixties back. lots of screwball comedies and LOTS of fun!)

the apartment

it happened one night

splendor in the grass

bringing up baby

brief encounter

my man godfrey

mr. deeds goes to town

an affair to remember

singin in the rain

charade

the sound of music

bell, book and candle

to catch a thief

marty

sabrina

it should happen to you

born yesterday

on the town

the big sleep

laura

casablanca

the philadelphia story

my favorite wife

his girl friday

the awful truth

theodora goes wild

top hat

TWISTED

(love is at the core of these movies, but they’re dark, sometimes they’re murderous, sometimes they’re toxic, sometimes they’re self-destructive. maybe good watches if you’re not feeling particularly romantic this year)

the talented mr. ripley

heathers

ex machina

breathless

double indemnity

jennifer’s body

rope

three colors: white

modern romance

bonnie and clyde

vertigo

gun crazy

the heiress

gaslight

la bete humaine

LGBT

(your standard romantic films out of these are starred)

love, simon*

moonlight*

but i’m a cheerleader*

portrait of a lady on fire

entre nous

my beautiful laundrette

god’s own country*

booksmart

carol

imagine me & you*

san junipero

rafiki*

UNCONVENTIONAL

(a little bit bizarre, but still incredibly romantic. good if you want something with love, but not ur typical v-day watch)

the nightmare before christmas

eternal sunshine of the spotless mind

stranger than fiction

ruby sparks

arrival

hang the dj

thelma & louise

black orpheus

wings of desire

happy death day

the lobster

her

seeking a friend for the end of the world

moonrise kingdom

wristcutters

princess mononoke

rear window

SAD/BITTERSWEET ENDINGS (beware of spoilers)

(these are movies that do not end happily, so read at ur own risk. sometimes they’re affair films, divorce films, or romance films in which they do not end up together. these are for if you need a good cry)

the last five years

la la land

one day

the age of innocence

if beale street could talk

a star is born

marriage story

blue valentine

my brilliant career

[hansolmates]

give me the night

banner done by the fabbbbulooouss emotional support bud @chwepen​

summary; minghao has long stopped clinging to the love you and him created years before. when he sees you however, new seeds are already sown.  paring; photographer!minghao x student!reader (f) genre/warnings; exes to lovers, hurt/comfort, fluff bc this couple is so shy n’sensitive, feelings of longing, pining, casual alcohol consumption w/c; 1.2k prompt; “i’ll meet you halfway.” a/n; for the cwc’s valentine’s gram event! this is for you yunn @starboywoo​ i hope u have a wonderful lovable weekend enjoy!! 🖤 🖤 🖤 

He’s a sensitive soul. Junhui makes a point to always poke and prod at Minghao’s soft heart, calling him gummy and doughy and full of love. 

Malta’s pretty. It’s muted, but delightfully charming. It doesn’t have the obvious romantic appeal that Paris or Rome has, but it’s still beautiful. It’s obvious due to Minghao’s constant clicks of his phone, his starry eyed expression when he sees the strung up lights at the pier, and the bounce in his soles when he stumbles upon road after narrow road of clunky cobblestone paths. 

“She goes to school here, right?” 

Junhui is walking backwards, hands in the pockets of his sweatpants. He’s smirking at Minghao, knowing how testy he gets whenever you’re brought up. It’ll only take one push for Junhui to stumble, Minghao muses. Then, he can go back to the townhouse they’ve rented and sketch, or watch television, anything other than drinking. 

Mingyu has been waiting, pregaming and trying his luck with the pretty girls seated at the table opposite him. 

It’s then Minghao chokes on his saliva and realizes that you’re seated in the very middle, unbeknownst to Mingyu’s apparent ogling. 

Junhui immediately swivels Mingyu to his attention, forces Minghao and a seat, and orders a round for them in the matter of a minute. Junhui has a mission tonight, and it’s to not warble around and carry a broken heart (or two) home. 

The tiny table you’re pressed up against is cramped to the brim, and you’re surrounded by a hearty group of friends. Your jewelry sparkles against the little tea candles in the centerpiece, cheering with a shot glass to some random thing a boy is shouting. The liquid spills across your bracelet, but you still drink eagerly. You’re beautiful, more beautiful than what the social media and his memory could remind him. 

You left your home country for this prestigious study abroad program in the beginning of college, evidently ending your love story with your highschool sweetheart. Minghao’s over it, he really is. If anything that’s lingering in his heart, it’s the memories of having so much fun, so much love between each other. You two are far different now, and neither of you would be able to go back to that fleeting youth. 

Honestly, Malta is one stop out of many for his spring break. He thought his two days here would be over in a wink, and he could move onto the other niche destinations Mingyu and Junhui planned.

Minghao underestimated the fact that Malta’s tiny, and you’re at the heart of it. 

Just as fast as you’re there though, you’re getting ready to leave. The night is still young, yet you stumble to your feet like you’ve been out all evening. Your friends tell you to get a cab, saying it isn’t safe to walk home alone. 

“I’m not walking home alone, a friend is here,” Minghao hears you say, and he wonders if someone’s waiting outside for you. Someone tall, handsome, potentially his replacement. It makes Minghao sink into his beverage, swallowing away his unwarranted jealousy. 

Yet you come to his table with confidence, holding out a hand to him. 

“Take me home?” you pose this as a question, yet the flicker in your eyes betrays your need for his immediate acceptance. 

Everyone’s looking at him, he thinks absently. He can hear your friends whispering and giggling to themselves, while Mingyu is audibly drooling next to him. Junhui is reaching for you, clawing across his lap to invite you for one more round before you head off. 

“Come for breakfast, Junnie,” you placate, tugging Minghao by the sleeve of his hoodie before he can catch his breath, “we should leave now,” you say, waving politely at Mingyu. You have no clue who he is because Minghao befriended him later in college, but from Minghao’s peripheral vision your eyes are pointed in minor affliction. He knows that look too well, like you have the urge to close his jaw and put him in his place. 

“Sure,” Minghao follows you out of the tiny bar, and he subconsciously inhales at the sight of the full moon and the hint of fresh air.

His steps slow once he makes it outside, the heat feeling like honey as he trudges half a step behind you. His eyes linger from your casual spring dress, to the kitten heels that buckle at your ankles. The cobblestone is uneven, but you walk through it like a seasoned exchange student. He doesn’t know where you’re going exactly, but wherever you end up he’ll follow. 

“You didn’t come over to say hi to me,” you say shyly, your hands fisting in your marigold clutch. 

He can’t help but smile at your sudden meekness, knowing that confrontation, especially one where there’s only two parties, makes you nervous. Especially so, considering you made such a grand gesture of attention and now that you’ve gotten it, you're overwhelmed. 

"You looked too pretty, I was intimidated," Minghao replies honestly, and his heart perks up hopefully at the heated flush that spreads across your face. 

The two of you talk into the night, throwing back and forth each other's new lives. Your muses have changed, your happiness is dependent on your dreams, all as it should be. 

Minghao thought he would run out of things to say, as he is the one who stayed home all these years. Yet, you ask eagerly about his studies, the amazing places he’s seeing and the work he’s proud of. You ask about the concrete city you can’t help but miss. He then asks about the limestone that encapsulates your world. The new kind of love that you’ve been craving, a love for yourself and the investments you’ve made in your successes. 

It’s different. It isn’t quick or to the point like your relationship once was. This one grows, a seed buried in the night sky. This one is a new relationship waiting to be tended. 

The walk home went fast. Even though you two stopped for gelato and admired the passing ships, the journey felt too short to Minghao. You live in a boarding house with other foriegn exchange students, a nondescript townhouse that’s warm and soft and oh-so perfect for you. 

"Thanks for taking me home," you murmur, in fear of your neighbors overhearing you, "even though I kinda didn't give you any choice in the matter." 

"Always," Minghao shakes his head, unable to think of a scenario in which he'd ever say no to you, "I'll always meet you halfway." 

He can’t bear to look into your eyes anymore. They still glow like before, a sparkle that reminds him of city lights and now, the lit-path down a cobblestone road. 

Before he can second guess the signs he turns to leave, but your figure curls around him like a warm blanket on a Sunday morning. Your nails curl into the soft cotton of his heathered hoodie, clutching him like he'll evaporate on the spot. Your cheek nuzzles fondly into his back, and he instinctively relaxes into your touch. 

"Stay the night," you request, already pulling him back into your room. 

As always, he can never say no to you. 

[hargrove-mayfields]

Harringrove April Day 19- Vines

Romance was never really a Billy Hargrove thing.

He’s just not a flowers kind of guy, and he doesn’t do sweet nothings or buy his sweetie chocolates before a date. Hell, he doesn’t even think he’s ever technically been on a real date.

For Steve, he can make the occasional exception, like bringing him his coffee in bed the morning after or throwing rocks at his window during the early hours of the morning, but for a long time they’re still in this sort of, undefined stage.

Billy’s alright with that entirely, because that just means he doesn’t have to worry about all the gooey romance stuff, but when Steve, who very much is a romantic, decides to put a label to this thing they’re doing, telling Billy he loves him and giving him some promise ring to wear for when they go off to college, he knows he wants to put in a little more work into this whole romance thing than just some cologne down his pants and hsi most charming smile.

So on the days when he can get away from Neil for long enough, Billy will take Steve on little dates to get midnight milkshakes at the diner or on long car rides into the city instead of just out to the quarry to end up in the backseat, but those hardly count as real romantic gestures.

It’s not that he doesn’t want to do nice things for Steve, it’s rather the opposite, he just isn’t sure what exactly he’s doing he’s doing here. What he has with Steve is a first for everything, well not really , but it’s the first he’d ever meant it, and he wants to do it right.

Their six months is in May, and Billy really wants to do something for it, to prove he’s as much into this as Steve is. He asks Max what is customary to do for an anniversary, and she tells him all kinds of things that’d have them dead in five minutes if they tried it, so she tries Susan, and she tells him all the same things, movie dates and candle lit dinners and meeting the parents (seriously Sus?).

He turns to Heather next, his last resort on all things dating advice, and she hits the mark a little closer, throwing things out there like going to a show in the city or smoking behind the dumpsters at Benny’s, but that one suggestion that really stands out to him is the vineyard.

That seems like the perfect mix of romantic, but not so romantic as to get themselves caught, and it seems very aligned with his boyfriends rich boy tastes anyways, so it just seems like the perfect idea.

There's one on the outskirts of Hawkins where it merges into Amish country, so that’s where he takes Steve, surprising him with the trip up a few days before the actual date.

To Billy, it’s very underwhelming, a little boring even, since the woman in charge doesn’t buy their IDs and makes them take the dry tour, but Steve seems to be into it. Billy can’t even imagine how many things like this he’d been dragged along to as a kid.

They’re walking through the endless rows of grapevine, Billy touching all the grapes like he’s not supposed to, Steve rolling his eyes at him for being such a kid, when Steve tells him, “You know we used to have grapevines in our backyard?��

“Nope. Why don’tcha anymore?”

“My mom told the gardener to cut them out because I’m allergic to grapes.” Steve says simply with a shrug, but Billy stops walking, “What?”

“Yeah, my dad showed me you could chew on grapevine and I did, but then my face got all itchy.” He eyes what must be a look of shock on Billy’s face, and asks, “I never told you that?”

“Do you really think I would’ve brought you here, where there are thousands of the little fuckers, if I knew that?”

“Well you took me to a flower field once, and I’m allergic to pollen.”

“I didn’t know that either!” Billy sighs, exasperated, “Stevie you have got to start telling me this stuff.”

“It’s really not a big deal.”

“It is though. Did this for the big day.”

Steve’s eyes widen, “You did? Billy, you didn’t have to do anything for me.”

“But I did . You’re always putting in so much effort and I’m just- I’m really bad at this, Steve.” He sighs, pulls a grape off its stem so he doesn’t have to look at him as he admits, “Need you to know how much you mean to me.”

“Hey, you say you love me, so I believe you. You don’t have to prove yourself to me, Bills.”

“You couldn’t have told me that before I brought you here?”

“Didn't know I needed to.” Steve gives him that look, the one that tells him there are better things to be doing right now than listening to old ladies droning on about wine, “Now what do you say we go home, and you can open my present early?”

And he knows he means it then, that he doesn’t hold him to all these fancy expectations like Billy’s been doing backflips to meet. Steve wants Billy, the real him, and quite frankly, he’s more than willing to give it to him.