#driving school St Peters

[dontforgetukraine]

Nestor Bilous was born in 1889 in the village of Lebiazhe, Kharkiv region. He completed three grades of the church-parish school and participated in World War I. He began keeping a diary in 1911, but his most detailed entries describe the beginning of the Civil War, the mass man-made famine of 1921-1923, and the Holodomor of 1932-1933. Bilous essentially became a chronicler of the Soviet government’s destruction of Ukrainian villages. In 1937, Nestor Bilous,who was then the manager of the collective farm “Chervonyi Kolos,” was arrested by the NKVD for “discontent with party policies.” During the search, the NKVD confiscated a notebook with his notes, that became the main evidence of his “counter-revolutionary activities.” Bilous spent six years in forced labour camps and only returned home a year after Stalin’s death. Here are just a few entries from his diary: —Holodomor Museum

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April 30, 1933 It rains often, and it’s cold. Sowing is progressing very poorly because there is no grain, no horses, and even if someone has a horse, it’s too weak to work a full day in the field. So, this year there will be even less sown. People are constantly dying, and they bury six in one grave because there’s no one to dig individual graves. On April 27, Mykola Fedorovych Butenko died, a young man, 22 years old, a real guard, tall and handsome. He had to die of starvation just because the village council didn’t give him a certificate, as the son of a dekulakized father. Without it, no one would hire him. And in the spring, when he was already too weak, there was work, but he couldn’t do it, and he died of starvation.

---

May 13, 1933 The warm weather started on May 8, and all the crops are sprouting. Beetroot and seedlings are being eaten by beetles and fleas. We need rain, but there isn't any. The collective farms keep sowing; they will probably be sowing until St. Peter's Day. People are still dying of hunger. On May 12,Paraska Chorna,an activist and party candidate,died of famine. When people were being sold out for not meeting the grain requisition quotas, she danced in the school out of joy in the evening,and now she has died of hunger, like a dog.

---

May 20, 1933 Every day, people die of famine. The village council has appointed a sanitary commission to collect the bodies and bury them because there is no one to do the burials. Now, the village council drives people out to dig a large grave for about ten people, and then they bury them. Many adults and children, and when you look at them, they are living corpses.

---

Since the beginning of the invasion of 2022, Bilous' native village Lebiazhe was in the grey zone for a long time, suffering from Russian shelling. The crimes continue... —Holodomor Museum

[octuscle]

Fewer wheels, more balls

Stephen cursed everything. His parents, because they hadn't paid for him to study medicine and he had only become a nurse. St. Peter because he sent a shower of rain at the exact moment he rolled out onto the road on his new motorcycle. The mechanic, because he had offered him the motorcycle as a replacement for his car, which had finally died of old age. And himself, because he hadn't had the backbone to insist on having the car repaired and had this bike sold to him instead. Yes, he had taken his driver's license back then. But he hadn't ridden a motorcycle since driving school. And this beast, a twenty-year-old Triumph Rocket III, was far too big for his frail body. And with the silly rain overalls that the mechanic had given him, he looked more than silly.

Especially in this weather, Stephen hadn't expected to get home on his bike without breaking down. But even he was surprised that it should be so far after just four miles. With the last of his strength, the bike rolled under the highway bridge. At least it was dry there. And now? Stephen had no idea about engines. He was an ambulance driver. He knew all about cars. At least a little. But with motorcycles?

If you're at a loss, ask ChatGPT. Stephen pulled out his cell phone and described the problem. He was advised to remove the spark plugs and dry them out. Shit, yes, he'd heard about that. It was a common problem with that model year. He had an oily rag in his upperall. He dried and cleaned the spark plugs. And the machine started. Perfectly! Nevertheless, Stephen sent up a prayer to heaven. And it was answered. The rain subsided and he made it home without any further problems.

Stephen dried his bike and hung his wet leather suit on a hanger. His garage, which was also his own little improvised workshop, was kept tidy. That was important to him. Otherwise, he wasn't the tidy type… As he stood in front of the toilet in his wet underwear and pissed, it occurred to him that he could clean again. Shit, this was a man's household. And he worked in the Red Cross workshop on engines and car bodies. He didn't need a sterile environment. He still had some pizza left in the fridge. He didn't have to leave for work for another hour. That was enough for food, drink and a wank. Then he put on a dry leather suit, sat on his 140 hp baby and set off for work with the engine roaring.

Stephen liked the late shift. He could wait for the vehicles in peace and didn't have to constantly watch out for vehicles coming in and out. The bad weather also meant that there were fewer people on the road. There were fewer motorcycle accidents in particular. Stephen didn't care about the weather. He had once had a car. But he needed the wind around his nose. He drove in all weathers. Nevertheless, he preferred it when no bikers had to be taken to hospital after an accident. Here in the neighborhood you can. Most of them were at least distant acquaintances. I mean, Stephen was an authority in the biker scene. When it came to engines, nobody could fool him. And whether it was his Triumph, his BMW or his Ducati, he had every bike under control.

It was almost 05:00 in the morning. The replacement would be coming soon. Stephen was standing in the coffee kitchen with a couple of paramedics, smoking a cigarette. His parents had always wanted him to become a doctor. He was sure that he could do a much greater service to the health service with his job. And tomorrow it would continue, tomorrow he would give it his all again. But not today, today he was happy when his baby was in the garage and he was in bed.

It was 08:00 when Steve was woken by a honking horn. Shit, he had slept in his clothes again. It had been a long evening with the boys. And yes, he'd probably had one too many beers to drive home. But his machine knew the way. Another honk. Bloody hell, couldn't anyone wait these days? "I'm coming" boomed Steve's bass over the service station. Some fucking city slicker who was too stupid to fill up the tank himself. Steve had a hard time hiding his morning wood when he went to the gas pump to fill up the show-off Porsche. Steve positioned himself so that the driver had no other chance than to stare at the bulge in his pants. "That'll be 80 bucks, buddy," Steve grunted. "Anything else I can do for you?"

Steve had once seen a drawing of a gas station where the attendants not only refueled and repaired cars, but also served hot customers in other ways. It was some guy from Denmark, Sweden or something… Tim? Tom? It didn't matter. Steve turned around, his hand on his bulge. Three, two, one... He would have bet the 80 dollars that the Porsche driver would come up behind him. The first coffee of the day would have to wait. He had an ass to fill for now.

Interested in your own TF story? DM me, there's a community on Tumblr for that!

[jessicaloons]

Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince:

Chapter 3

Masterlist - Previous - Next

Miss Americana

October 2022:

"… and then Miss Larimer said that we can pet the puppies…" Gabriel said excitedly, jumping up and down "They are so cute, Rach, I swear! I want one! Do you help me to convince dad to get me one? Pleeeaseee?"

Rachel only listened half-heartedly, reading the text on her phone while unlocking the car.

"Rachel! Please! I swear I’ll always eat my veggies, brush my teeth and go to bed when you tell me to, for the rest of my life! Please!" the little boy kept going but his nanny still didn’t react, her eyes still trained on her phone "RACHEL!"

She flinched looking into the rear view mirror at Gabriel who rolled his eyes.

"Sorry, what did you say?" she stuttered, trying to calm herself down.

"I said that Miss Larimer brought her puppies to school today and we could pet them and they were so cute and I want one! Can you help me to convince dad?" she saw her own set of puppy eyes in the mirror and laughed.

"Your dad is allergic to dogs, Gabe. You know that… are you buckled in?" Rachel started the car, driving off the parking lot, after Gabe nodded.

"That sucks…" the boy puffed out, looking out of the window, watching the boats and yachts in the harbour "One day I want to be a vet and then I can hang out with animals all day long."

"A vet? That’s an amazing idea, Gabe!" Rachel smiled and he nodded "And I’m sure you’d be an amazing vet!"

"You think so?" the blonde boy asked, making big eyes.

"Are you kidding me? Do you remember when we were at the zoo and you weren’t afraid to hold the snakes? Or touch the tarantulas! You even held up this definitely not cute looking lizard and cooed at it like it’s a sweet, fluffy puppy." the nanny recalled and Gabe smiled, thinking back to their trip to the zoo a couple of weeks ago.

"All animals are cute somehow." he shrugged and Rachel chuckled.

"See? You would be a perfect vet."

"You’re taking care of people and I’m taking care of animals. We’re both lifesavers!"

"Oh well, I’m not there yet. I only started my practical studies 6 months ago… as of now I’m not a lifesaver…"

"Yet. You’ll get there." Gabe chimed in and Rachel nodded.

"I will."

The rest of the car ride was spent in silence and when they arrived at home Gabe sat down at the kitchen island, starting with his homework.

"I’m back in a minute and then I make you a snack before we leave…" she said more to herself and walked out the back door, hastily making her way into her little studio.

She closed the door, pulling out her phone. With trembling hands she opened up the messages she got earlier.

I was at your university today.

According to your schedule you sent us you should’ve been there.

Where were you?

Also, isn’t it interesting that in the dormitory you’re supposed to live no one knows you?

Where the fuck are you, Rachel.

Tony. He was here. With trembling fingers Rachel dialled Stuart’s number.

"Hey Rach…"

"The app that’s blocking others from tracing my phone works, right?" Rachel cut him off and there was silence, the girl thinking her friends might’ve hung up on her "Stuart?"

"Yes. Of course? What’s going on?" her friend sounded concerned "Where are you?"

"At home. But-… they’re here. They checked in on me. But I wasn’t at university, because I didn’t update them on my new schedule… they won’t like that I specialised on paediatric… they were at my dormitory-…"

"Your dormitory? You don’t live here?"

"Yeah, but I didn’t tell them… I said that I was living at St. Julie Hall, they shouldn’t know that I saved a shit ton of money because I work and live outside of campus…" Rachel breathed out.

"Ignore it. You were at the hospital today. Answer tonight. Say that you moved to a different dorm and thought that you told them but must’ve forgot…" Stuart suggested.

"And what if they decide to come back?" her voice barely above a whisper.

"We’ll figure it out."

"They can’t find out about Gabe and Peter…"

"They won’t. Rach, they can’t track your phone. The only location they will get is the campus or the hospital, Marcus took care of it. You have a good excuse. It’s going to be fine, okay?" Stuart reassured Rachel, who took a deep breath.

"I have to take Gabe to his soccer practice now." she got up, checking herself in the mirror.

"Okay… take care Rach, and if you need anything, call, text, whatever…"

"Thanks Stu."

Rachel was tense and on alert the whole afternoon, looking around, searching the park and parking lot for someone from home, but thankfully she didn’t spot anything out of the ordinary. When she stood in the kitchen, preparing dinner, her phone rang and she took a deep breath, before she answered the call.

"Rachel?" her father.

"What’s up dad?"

"Don’t what’s up dad me! Where have you been? Why didn’t you answer your phone?" he was mad.

"What are you talking about? I just left the hospital when you called? I had a training shift today." Rachel lied, trying to sound confused and annoyed at the same time.

"You were at the hospital? Not on the campus?"

"No. I have more and more training shifts now, I’m getting my practical hours in now and I swear I love it." fake excitement.

"That’s good to hear, Rach… but Tony said it was weird that no one knew you in your dorm…"

"What? Why was Tony at my dorm?"

"He wanted to check in on you-…"

"Why? We had a deal! I’m allowed to finish my studies and not be bothered!"

"I don’t know, okay? He came over and told me that he visited you… something about checking in on their investment…-"

"Their investment? I’m here on a scholarship! None of you is investing anything in my education! I have a deal with his father. And I have no problem in calling him and telling him the deal is off the table if you lot don’t hold your end of the bargain!" Rachel was furious and didn’t even had to fake it.

"I don’t think his father knew that he was visiting you… Tony just stormed in here and told me that you weren’t at the campus and no one knew you at your dorm-…"

"Because I moved! When I came back after the summer a fellow student told me that there is an open spot at Fennell Hall, the dormitory right on campus. She knows the RA and so I got the spot. It’s a little more expensive but I only need 5 minutes to classes now. I told you that!"

"You did?" her fathers voice faltered.

"Yeah, right after my first week back. It’s a new term and when I came back I didn’t know most of the students in my old dormitory anyway, so I thought a change would be nice." Rachel said casually, when she saw Gabe getting off the sofa "Listen dad, it’s been a damn long day, I’ve been awake since 5 am. I just want to drive home, take a shower and sleep. Are we done here?" she fake yawned, hoping her father would believe her.

"Yeah… sure. Take care, Rachel." he said and Rachel thanked the universe for making him believe her.

"Will do. Good night dad." she hung up, right when Gabe sat down at the kitchen island, sniffling the air. She calmed herself down, smiling at the young boy.

"Smells good, what is it?" he asked.

"It’s a beef stew, here, have a taste." she scooped up some of the stew and blew cold air on it while Gabe walked around the island "Careful, it might be still a little hot."

The young boy chewed his food, making big eyes, swallowing his bite down.

"That’s good!" he exclaimed and his nanny smiled "Will dad be here to eat with us?"

"He said he will."

"Good. I want to tell him that I want to be a vet when I grow up."

"A vet? Where did that come from?" Peter walked into the kitchen, loosening his tie "What happened to rocket scientist?"

"As a vet I can hang out with animals all day long…" Gabe shrugged taking the plates from Rachel, setting the table.

"Well that’s true." his father laughed, squeezing his nanny’s arm "Are you okay, Rach? You’re a little pale?"

"I’m fine, it’s just a lot right now, everyone is starting to prepare for the exams…"

"Already? Wait? When are the exams?" he looked confused.

"We still got time, but yeah. Preparation is key, that’s what our professors love to say." Rachel rolled her eyes and Pete laughed, getting himself a beer.

"I can’t believe that in not even 8 months you’re done. God where do I find another amazing nanny just like you again?" he pouted, sitting down on a stool "A nanny that can cook like you!"

"Why don’t you stay with us forever?" Gabe looked at his nanny "I don’t want you to go."

"Believe me, Gabe, I don’t want to either, but when I’m done, I’m a nurse, I’ll have to take over so many shifts and I just wouldn’t have enough time for you." Rachel ruffled his hair a little.

"But you come visit us? Right?" he asked and she swallowed hard, nodding.

"Of course, little one." Rachel lied, feeling sick doing so.

The girl was quiet during dinner, listening to Gabe and his father, enjoying the family time. She knew that as soon as she graduated she would be gone. Telling Peter a half truth why she had to leave so fast, promising to stay in touch, knowing it would all be nothing but lies. She dreaded that day, over the past years she really grew close to the father son duo, loved them wholeheartedly. But she couldn’t risk them getting into harms way. And she wouldn’t do it. But she knew that leaving them behind would break her heart. And when she sat down with Gabe after dinner, all cuddled up on the sofa, watching cartoons, the first crack in her heart already formed.

"I’m going to miss you so much… you’re my best friend." Gabe whispered, making Rachel close her eyes, trying her best to not cry.

"I’ll miss you too, buddy, so damn much."

June 2023:

With her diploma in hand, Rachel walked off the stage, waving at Peter and Gabriel, the only ones to attend her graduation. After shaking some more hands and joining her fellow graduates for the hat toss, she walked over to Peter and Gabriel. The boy running up to his nanny, hugging her tight.

"We’re so proud of you Rachel!" Peter said, hugging her as well "Valedictorian. Wow. Amazing."

"Thank you for coming." the young girl blushed a little, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"Are you kidding me? We would never miss this opportunity!" Peter smiled "And now, I’d love to take you out for dinner, if you haven’t planned anything yet? You didn’t say that you would celebrate afterwards so I reserved a table at La Chabelle just in case."

"Oh wow, Peter! You didn’t have to." Rachel blushed even more.

"You worked so hard over the last four years. You deserve a treat!"

"Okay…" Rachel began when she felt her phone vibrate "I umm- I just want to say goodbye to a few of my classmates and then we can leave."

"Okay, we’re waiting by the car." Peter and Gabriel walked off and Rachel took out her phone, reading the text.

"Rach-…" Stuart grabbed her shoulder, making her flinch "Hey, it’s me. Sorry! I didn’t want to scare you."

"I need to leave as soon as possible." she just said and Stuart looked confused "Here…" she shoved him her phone in his hands and he read the text.

"Next Friday? Didn’t you say that your graduation is on Friday?"

"They want me to come back immediately after. They’re sending someone to help me with my stuff… I have to play my part to make them believe I’m still here. They can’t know that I’m gone. They would send someone after me immediately. I should leave now. Yes. I’m leaving now."

"Okay, take a deep breath for me. Look at me Rach. I call my contact person and tell them you’re coming earlier than planned. But for tonight you’re going with Peter and Gabriel to La Chabelle, you’re enjoying your last night here. I’ll go to your place and start packing your stuff, we’ll figure it out okay?"

"But what will I tell Peter and Gabe? I have to tell Peter the truth. I planned it all out. Fuck this is ruining everything! But he has to know that I’m leaving. I can’t just disappear…"

"You will tell him tonight. It’s fine."

"Okay-… I- I have to go now, they’re waiting for me." Rachel looked towards the parking lot and Stuart nodded.

"You go, I take care of the rest. It’s going to be fine, you’ll see." he reassured the blonde girl and she nodded, then she pulled him in a tight hug.

"Thank you Stu, for everything. You’re a true friend…"

"It’s okay Rach, really. Now go."

With one last look she walked off, towards the sleek, black Mercedes of her boss, getting in as soon as she reached it.

"Ready?" Peter asked and Rachel nodded.

"Ready."

"Me too!" Gabe said from the backseat and they laughed.

"Then let’s go." Peter steered the car onto the busy road, driving across town and stopped in front of La Chabelle.

"Good night, buddy." Rachel kissed the young boys forehead, ruffling his hair while getting up.

"Good night…" Gabe mumbled, almost drifting off to sleep immediately.

The nanny carefully walked over to the door, quietly opening it before turning around once more, looking at the boy she took care of for the last 4 years. All the memories of the past years came to her mind. She felt her heart ache, not ready to say her final goodbye, although deep down she knew she had to. In order to keep Gabe and his dad safe, Rachel had to disappear. She took a deep breath and quietly closed the door, gathering herself for the conversation she would now have with her boss of the last 4 years. Peter was amazing. He paid Rachel more than well, took her and Gabe on little trips here and there. Always treated her like a part of the family, rather than a subordinate. She would miss him as well.

"Rach? Can we talk?" the girl flinched when her boss appeared out of nowhere in front of her, stopping her train of thoughts.

"Umm-… sure, I actually wanted to talk to you as well…" she gulped, following him downstairs.

"Yeah?" Peter replied and pointed to the sofa "You want a drink? Because I sure as hell need one…" he poured himself a glass of scotch, before looking at his nanny "Oh I forgot, scotch tastes like washing detergent, was it?"

"Yeah…" Rachel chuckled, accepting the can of coke her boss handed her "So- umm… about what did you want to talk to me?"

"Gabe and I… we’ll leave next week…" he blurted out, rubbing his neck, and Rachel tilted her head a little "Of course you’re free to stay until the end of the month in the studio, as we agreed on. But Gabe and I, we won’t be here until then…"

"You’re going on vacation?" the girl asked, although she was sure that she would’ve known if her boss had planned something.

"No. Not on vacation. Rachel, Gabe and I, we’re moving to Austin. I got a new job there…"

"Wow! That’s amazing!" a big smile spread on Rachel’s face, in Austin they would be safe "You didn’t tell me that you were looking for a new job? But I’m so happy for you!"

"Yeah, it was… well my boss contacted me out of the blue last week and offered me the job… they need me there as soon as possible… but this job, it’s the opportunity of a lifetime, you know?"

"Sounds amazing and I think Gabe will love it, he can become a real cowboy then…" the girl laughed, looking at the man in front of her, a serious look on his face "It’s going to be fine, just don’t let him alone with a horse for too long or you have to buy it!"

"Yeah… probably." Peter smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes.

"Okay, what’s wrong?" Rachel asked, looking at him intently.

"Is it too rushed? I don’t know how Gabe will take it? All his friends are here? Tearing him away from everything familiar?"

"You know your son, he can deal with everything. He will find new friends in no time, don’t worry!"

"Yeah, you’re right…" he sighed a little, scratching his chin "And what is it you wanted to talk about?"

"Oh- umm… I wanted to say that some friends asked me if I wanted to join them on a little trip… we would leave in the next days, I don’t know when exactly. I know, it’s a little spontaneous, but yeah…" Rachel lied, smiling innocently.

"Sounds wonderful! You should go, Gabe and I will be fine… we need to get used to a life without you now anyways! Unless you want to join us in Austin?" he smiled, a tinge of hope in his voice.

"As much as I appreciate the offer, I already have some job interviews lined up here, so…"

"Understandable, but you know that you’re always more than welcome!" Peter said and the girl nodded.

"I know Pete, and I really appreciate it…" she got up "I guess it’s time for me to pack my stuff then, maybe Stu can come in tomorrow and help me with it, so I don’t have to worry about it after I come back and you’re long gone…"

"Right, yeah… will you help me tell Gabe tomorrow?"

"Of course!" she smiled and kissed his cheek "Good night, Pete. Best boss in the world…"

"Night Rach, best nanny in the world…"

She chuckled and left the living room, through the kitchen and out into the backyard, the light in her studio already switched on.

"Please tell me that everything is arranged?" Rachel asked as soon as she closed the door behind her.

"Everything done." Stuart replied and she looked around her room.

Her life fitted into 2 cardboard boxes, a suitcase and a backpack.

"That’s all?" she mumbled and her friend nodded "I can’t take the boxes with me…"

"I know… I put all your personal belongings, pictures, books and stuff like that in your suitcase… the boxes is stuff you won’t need anymore, also some clothes I don’t want to see you ever in again…"

"Ouch, thanks…" Rachel chuckled "When am I leaving?"

"Sunday morning."

Rachel looked out of the window, as the plane slowly made its way higher up into the sky. She looked back one last time at her home. She knew, would she ever return, it wouldn’t be by her free will, she would be forced. It meant they found her and she had to make sure that that would never happen. She leaned back, closing her eyes. She still felt her heart ache, thinking at Gabe’s tear stricken face, but she knew that what she did was right. In two days they would be gone as well. Far away from Boston. Gone. No one would know she ever worked for Peter Hastings. No one would ever bother them. No one would know she’s gone until next Friday.

And when they would try to figure out where she was, when they followed her trace, she’ll be long gone. All planned out by Stuart. Rachel didn’t know what would happen to her old life, she didn’t ask. She didn’t want to know. But one thing was for sure, as soon as she would land in Montreal the life of Rachel Lombardi would end.

Chapter 3 - Goodbye Rachel’s old life, this looks like the start of something new… I know I’m rushing a little through the timeline here with big time jumps, but this is all just backstory to prepare you and our characters for the main plot, so please, bear with me 😅

Please leave a comment/ like/ reblog/ message and tell me how you liked it! I'm dying to hear your thoughts!

If you want to be added to the taglist, drop a comment!

Last but not least, English is not my first language and although I tried my best: please excuse any mistakes I made!

Taglist:

@glitterquadricorn @lottalove4evelyn @janeh22 @itsjustkhaos

[thetourturedwritersclub]

Finis vitae sed non amoris-its the end of life but not of love

Chapter six: February

February 4th 1977

Dear diary

Today was a fun day. I met with the book club and we discussed Pride and Prejudice. It was a great book overall. I depicts topics of importance when it comes regarding our society. Very well written. I have started talking to Lily more often. She is really kind and really nice. Very intelligent and very argumentative. We all have debates regarding our opinions for certain topics

Goodbye for now

R. A. B

February 8th 1977

Dear diary

I have been invited to one of Professor Slughorn club meetings. I don't think I will be attending.

Goodbye for now

R. A. B

February 10th 1977

Dear diary,

Well. I ended up attending thanks to Panda. She accompanied me since I refused to go anyway else. I didn't want to be stuck with idiots. But you know who else I happened to see there? James Potter himself. Why was he there? I don't know. In the middle Panda left me to go see Lily and James spotted me. When he saw me he smiled so brightly. A smile I would give anything in the world to be seen by me only.

In that moment I realised the sings I was giving. I have a crush on James Potter. This is definitely going to end in a disaster.

Goodbye for now

R. A. B

February 12th 1977

Dear diary,

Since realising I have a crush on James Potter my mind hasn't let me think about anything else at all. It's driving me crazy

Goodbye for now

R. A. B

February 14th 1977

Dear diary,

St Valentines. The day of love. When will it be my turn to feel that type of love. Every couple celebrates their love and they organise surprises for significant other. It's sweet but sometimes its annoying.

Goodbye for now

R. A. B

February 18th 1977

Dear diary,

Well me and James haven't been scheduling more tutoring session so that does give me an excuse to avoid him untill these feelings fade away.

Goodbye for now

R. A. B

February 25th 1977

Dear diary,

What a tiring week. So much homework. So many subjects. So many lessons to attend. Tomorrow is our last Quidditch match for the season. Griffidoor versus Slytherin it's going to be fun. I will also have no excuse to avoid seeing James's face.

Goodbye for now

R. A. B

February 28th 1977

Dear diary,

Well. They won the match and the Quidditch Cup. I am upset about it because all of our efforts and training went down the drain. I hoped we would win. But there is two years left to have the cup. One if I want to beat Potter.

Nonetheless I did attend the party in the Gryffindor common room. After all, Gryffindors are known for throwing the best parties at Hogwarts. And not for bad reason. So there I was, in the party 3 cups of fire whiskey in and 2 cups of rose lemonade. I was staying in a corner taking in the atmosphere.

Barty and Evan were singing Karaoke, singing their hearts out. Sirius and Remus were dancing. Remus looked like he was going to die of embarrassment while Sirius was having the time of his life. Peter came next to me and we got to chatting since the silence was a bit awkward. Turns out he's great to chat with. Intelligent and funny. Spontaneous and chaotic. We talked about the match, the party school. Then he left finding his girlfriend Emmeline.

James approached me then and we talked. Just a short conversation. The pleasantries, a little about the match and then before he had to leave he gave an envelope. After he left I opened it and it said:

Meet me tomorrow in the Room of Requirements, at 4'o clock.

J. F. P

Goodbye for now

R. A. B

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

.... Hello!! I'm back! I'm sorry for the small disappearance but now I'm back!

So this chapter features angst, starchaser, rose killer, Pandora and a cliffhanger. (Teehe)

The list of amazing people who wanted to be tagged :

@raine-ray

@ivy-is-chaos

@permetutotheworld

@reddamselette

@blurstardust

@that-stressed-out-chic

[littlequeenies]

Carmen Jane Plant

Carmen Jane Plant is the daughter of Maureen and Robert Plant. She works as a professional dancer and teaches belly-dancing and ethnic dancing. She produced the 2018 show ‘The Serpent Slayer’.

Early Years and Family

[Robert, Maureen, and little Carmen at the family's farmhouse near Kidderminster, Worcestershire, 1970]

Carmen Jane Plant is the eldest children and the only daughter of Led Zeppelin's frontman Robert Plant and his wife Maureen née Wilson. She was born on 21st October 1968 in Birmingham, England and has two younger brothers, Karac Pendra Plant and Logan Romero Plant. She has a younger half brother from her father's side, Jesse Lee Plant aka Jordan Plant.

Carmen is of Indian descent from her mother's side and of Romani descent from her father's. The 1972 Led Zeppelin song, “The Ocean,” actually references Carmen in one of the lyrics: "‘I’m singin’ all my songs to the girl who won my heart/She’s only three years old but it’s a real fine way to start".

[Robert with his children Karac and Carmen at their farm, filmed in 1973 and seen in Led Zeppelin film's "The Song Remains the Same", released on 1976.]

During the 1970s, she attended the Elmfield Rudolf Steiner School in Stourbridge, West Midlands.

On October 2007 Robert admitted he regrets staying on tour throughout the 1970’s because he feels his daughter grew up without knowing who he was. Robert claimed she once mistook him for a burglar after he came home from a particularly long tour: "What I recall for the first two years is my daughter not really knowing who I was and getting rather agitated when I came back off tour, as she thought I’d come to rob the house."

In an interview for the People magazine (December 20 1976) Robert explains: "Carmen used to think she had two fathers—the one whose singing she heard through the speakers and the one on whose knee she was sitting. They [Carmen and Karac] love it when I come back to tell them tales."

Car accident and Karac's death

[The Plants with Scarlet Page (C) in 1976]

Carmen was also a passenger in Robert and Maureen Plant's car involved in a road accident on the Greek island of Rhodes on 4 August 1975. Maureen was driving a hired Austin Mini with her husband and their children plus Scarlet Page. The Plant family were seriously injured when the car skidded off the road and collided with a tree but Scarlet Page was unhurt. In the back-seat, Carmen suffered a broken wrist, cuts and bruises. Scarlet's mum Charlotte Martin and Maureen's sister Shirley Wilson, who were following in the car behind managed to get medical help.

In 1977, Carmen also became ill with the same stomach enteritis which took the life of her younger brother Karac Plant, aged only 6.

Personal Life

[Carmen and Robert in 1988]

On 21 November 1989, Led Zeppelin reformed with Jason Bonham on drums, for Carmen's 21st birthday party at Hen & Chickens public house in Oldbury, West Midlands. They performed 'Trampled Under Foot', 'Misty Mountain Hop', and 'Rock and Roll', with Chris Blackwell and Phil Johnstone in support. The Nashville Teens and Jimmy Page's daughter Scarlet Page, were also in attendance.

[Carmen with Charlie Jones]

Carmen Plant got married to Jimmy Page and Robert Plant's bass player Stephen Charles "Charlie" Jones (born 13 Oct 1965), at St. Peter's Church, on 18 May 1991. Their wedding reception was held in a series of marquees at Robert's farm at Kidderminster. Roy Harper's song 'Evening Star' was written for Carmen for the occasion.

Carmen and Charlie Jones have three children, their eldest a daughter named Sunny Plant-Jones (born 1993). The family lives in Bath, Somerset.

Professional Career and Recent Years

Carmen Plant Jones works as a professional dancer and teaches belly-dancing and ethnic dancing. She was tutored in belly-dancing by Serena Ramzy, wife of Hossam Ramzy who performed in Page and Plant's "No Quarter Middle Eastern orchestra". Carmen Plant has appeared at the Rivermead Womad Music Festival, Glastonbury Festival, and with the Babylon Arabic Ensemble.Carmen continues to carry on the family’s musical legacy through Middle Eastern-inspired performing arts. In a 2018 article about her dance production ‘The Serpent Slayer’, Carmen Jane Plant acknowledges her fortunate upbringing: “I come from a musical family, obviously through my dad, my husband, and my children as well. Thanks to my dad, I grew up listening to an alternative and eclectic range from a young age and that really provided the inspiration for me to get involved with all kinds of music. It’s all that I’ve known really, so it’s great that I can put this all in to practice.”

*CHECK OUR CARMEN PLANT PHOTO ALBUM HOSTED AT GOOGLE PHOTOS*

[blitheringmcgonagall]

P.S. I Still Wait for You

Every time I think of you I always catch my breath And I'm still standing here And you're miles away And I'm wondering why you left And there's a storm that's raging Through my frozen heart tonight I hear your name in certain circles And it always makes me smile

 I spend my time Thinking about you And it's almost driving me wild And that's my heart that's breaking Down this long distance line tonight

I ain't missing you at all Since you've been gone away I ain't missing you No matter What my friends say

Missing You by John Waite (1984)

 @jilychallenge @jilychallenge2023

@sosohh My partner in fic: just about made it in unfinished 🤣🤣

Prompt:

Words we should never have left unsaid and/or PS I still wait for you

  He still doesn’t know why she left. She never explained. Worse than that, she never said goodbye. He can’t even remember what she was wearing the last time he saw her. He hadn’t spoken to her for a few days, she had been busy with her new job, he’d been busy with his. They’d just won the war. A miracle. He was trying out for a place on the English Quidditch team, she had just been accepted onto the Healers Training Scheme in St Mungo’s. They had been together for two years, sharing a flat. He had never felt happier. Sirius had just done the preliminary exam for the School of Law – and been accepted, much to Walburga’s horror, if the Howler had been anything to go by. Remus had turned down his offer to finance him through an apprenticeship or to buy him a bookshop to manage, and instead had gotten himself a precarious job in a second-hand bookshop. Typical Moony. Peter had started a shit job in the Ministry of Magical Transport and promptly started looking for another one, rightly so.

It was a time of potential, excitement, euphoria. Voldemort was dead. And then she had disappeared.

She was fine. Marlene and Dorcas had been in touch with her. Relocated to Canada. Montreal. He didn’t even think she could speak French. He didn’t know what she was doing there. She had cut herself off from the wix world completely.

He isn’t missing her at all, since she’s been gone, it’s been nearly three years. He’s fine. He gets up every day, showers, apparates to Puddlemere United grounds in Dorset, and trains himself into the ground. Meets up with his mates regularly. Eyerolls at the obliviousness of two of them – dancing around each other, saying nothing. The evenings are the worst.

He spends too much time thinking about her. He needs to stop. She’s fine, he’s fine, they are all fine. He still has a tiny passport sized picture of them in his muggle wallet, taken at a funfair in a photo booth. He is grinning like an idiot, glasses askew. She has her head thrown back, mouth wide open, eyes shining. It’s in black and white and doesn’t move. He pretends he’s forgotten. But it’s still there, behind the pound notes he hardly ever uses. Like his heart. Still stuck in 1981.

He hears her name in certain circles – acquaintances from the class of ‘78. Despite everything, despite himself, hearing her name always makes him smile. He’s transported back to his school days. The incessant banter, the witty comebacks, the arguments over the tiniest things – excuses to talk to each other. Both smitten. Both madly in love. Or so he had thought. So had they all.

But they had been wrong.

“Lily Evans – do you hear much from her?”

“Do you guys keep in touch?”

“What’s she at these days?”

He pretends it doesn’t hurt, each time.

“We lost touch,” he says, making it sound so relaxed, so trivial, so grown up and disinterested.

He tried dating other people since she left. For two years. It wasn’t fair on them and it wasn’t fair on him. Now he doesn’t bother. He just needs to get his arse into gear and meet the right person. Or perhaps he still waits for her - an irrelevant, outdated postscript. He hasn’t tried contacting her. He isn’t a weirdo. He respects her decision. He just thinks if he knew what he did wrong it would somehow make it all more bearable.

 ***

 Remus and Sirius finally get together. He moved out, hoping that might move things along. He’s right. When it finally happens it’s domestic, uncomplicated. They talk late into the night one evening, over a bottle of red wine. Sirius has been hinting for years that he loves Remus, but the oblivious arse is too thick to notice it. And yet, he is the one to make the first move.

There’s no turning back. They get together in September – warm sunshine, hazy languid warmth hanging on to the glorious ebbing of summer. By October they are engaged. November and it’s done nothing but rain for weeks on end and they are planning a wedding. He and Peter are best men.

The date of the Wedding is December 21st, Winter Solstice. She had left on December 22nd, 1981. He isn’t missing her at all.

“She’s coming,” Sirius tells him, sticking his chin out, ready for a fight; but his eyes are guarded, like he’s concerned, protective.

“What?”

“We invited her.”

He knows who she is.

“Why?”

“Remus wanted her to be here. I wanted her to come. She was one of our best friends.”

He doesn’t answer, clenches his jaw and fidgets with the mug of tea in his hands. He can’t veto his best friends’ wedding guests. But he wants to. So badly. He clears his throat, stares at the grain of wood on the table, says nothing.

Sirius waits. He doesn’t feel anything. Except perhaps frozen.

“Alright,” he says eventually.

His voice sounds gravelly, scratchy, like someone else is talking. Sirius stands behind him, places a hand on his shoulder, squeezes it tight.

“Thank you,” he says.

Like he understands how big a thing this is.

He has four weeks to get used to it.

He doesn’t.

[justforbooks]

Roger Corman

American film director and producer who liked to describe himself as the ‘Orson Welles of the Z movie’

Although Roger Corman, who has died aged 98, directed more than 50 films, he will be remembered mainly as an influential producer and genial godfather to the New American Cinema of the 1970s. The list of his beneficiaries makes up a Who’s Who of contemporary American film. Martin Scorsese, Peter Bogdanovich, Francis Ford Coppola, Monte Hellman, and Jonathan Demme were all directing proteges of Corman.

“You can see right away that the guy’s a superior producer,” said Jack Nicholson, who appeared in five films directed by Corman. “He’s the best producer I’ve met in the business. The man carried me for seven years. I feel tremendously indebted to him.”

But to pre-70s cinemagoers, Corman was an auteur in his own right, describing himself as the “Orson Welles of the Z movie”. The schlocky titles of the majority of his films disguise the fact that Corman was an extremely cultured, elegant and well-spoken man, without the slightest hint about him of the rock’n’roll counterculture in which he played an important part. He also had cameo roles in about 30 films, including as an FBI director in Demme’s The Silence of the Lambs (1991), and a senator in Coppola’s The Godfather Part II (1974).

Corman’s filmography as a director can be roughly divided into three groups: the quickies (1955-60), the adaptations of the works of Edgar Allan Poe (1960-64), and the mainstream experiments (1966-70). In the first period, on a tiny budget and in rented studios, he produced and directed such Z movies as Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957), Teenage Caveman (1958) and She Gods of Shark Reef (1958). Science-fiction horror with tatty special effects, cut-price monsters and unknown casts, they were aimed at the drive-in movie youth market.

He would produce up to seven films a year, his fastest being The Little Shop of Horrors (1960), which was reputedly shot in two days and a night. It was filmed using the same sets as A Bucket of Blood (1959), a self-referential black comedy. Corman once joked he could make an epic about the fall of the Roman empire with two extras and a sagebrush.

In slight contrast was the Poe series, amusing shockers in widescreen and colour. These included House of Usher (1960), The Pit and the Pendulum (1961), The Raven (1963), The Terror (1963) and, perhaps the best, The Masque of the Red Death (1964).

Greater commercial success came with such films as The St Valentine’s Day Massacre (1967) and Bloody Mama (1970), but soon afterwards Corman retired as a director. His reasons were manifold: he had made around 26 films in 10 years and felt the need of a rest; he also complained that when he made cheap films nobody tinkered with them, but as a big-budget director everyone seemed to think they had the right to maul his work. “Specifically, a picture I made called Gas-s-s-s for AIP [American International Pictures], which was completely recut,” Corman said.

“It was a controversial kind of a comedy, and AIP cut all the funny stuff right out of the film, including the entire ending. The film was never shown anywhere as I shot it, and I felt, frankly, they emasculated the picture and destroyed any possibility of success.”

He was born in the city of Detroit, Michigan, to William Corman, an engineer, and Anne (nee High). His paternal grandparents were Russian-Jewish immigrants, and his mother was of German ancestry.

The family moved to California and Roger went to Beverly Hills high school before beginning an engineering degree at Stanford University. It was the middle of the second world war, and he spent two years as a navy cadet before finally graduating in 1947. He entered the movies at 20th Century-Fox as an errand boy, but then, under the GI Bill, took off to study English literature at Oxford University for six months, followed by six months in Paris.

In 1954, Corman sold a low-budget script to Allied Artists. It was released as Highway Dragnet, for which he insisted on an associate producer credit. But he was disappointed with the film and, believing that he could do a better job as a producer, scraped $12,000 together to make Monster from the Ocean Floor (1954), directed by Wyott Ordung.

After selling the film for a profit of $100,000, Corman scripted and produced The Fast and the Furious (1954). Shot in 10 days by the film’s star, John Ireland, it was distributed by a small new company, American Releasing Corporation, later renamed American International Pictures, with Corman as its house director.

In the early 60s, for AIP, he made his series of adaptations from Poe, a favourite writer of his since childhood. Using the team of the designer Daniel Haller, writer Richard Matheson and cameraman Floyd Crosby, he created garish, camp and amusing shockers, taking their tone from Vincent Price’s sibilant, ghoulish hamming.

They were sometimes referred to as “late wife” movies because, in most of them, Price had a deceased wife lying around a castle. Taking only 15 days to shoot, they contained scenes and sets interchangeable from one film to the next, but they were popular and gathered a cult following.

A departure from the horror genre of the period, and one of Corman’s favourites, was The Intruder (1961), a gritty social drama in which a rabble-rouser (William Shatner) arrives in a southern town to disrupt racial integration in the schools.

Corman’s taste for updated American Gothic was evident in the biker movie The Wild Angels (1966), which featured actual Hells Angels, and The Trip (1967), an indulgent plunge into psychedelia written by Nicholson. Both starred Peter Fonda, who went on to produce – and star in alongside Nicholson and Dennis Hopper – the Corman-influenced Easy Rider (1969).

Corman’s blood-splattered recreation of 1928 Chicago in The St Valentine’s Day Massacre was more tightly controlled and wordier than his usual product, with impeccable performances from Jason Robards as Al Capone and Ralph Meeker as Bugs Moran. In the cold-eyed and unromantic Bloody Mama, Shelley Winters let rip as Kate Barker, the murderous matriarch of a gang of outlaws, with an unknown Robert De Niro playing her son.

Corman followed up that success with a tale of another female gangster, Boxcar Bertha (1972), hiring a young Scorsese as director.

He gave up directing after The Red Baron (1971) nose-dived at the box office. Phony German accents were dubbed in against his wishes. However the dog fights, actually filmed in the air, gave the first world war flying sequences authenticity.

In 1970, he set up his own company, New World Pictures, and continued to produce formula films for the youth market, abiding by the profitable philosophy “make ’em quick, make ’em cheap and make ’em popular”. These included motorcycle movies (Angels Die Hard); sexploitation flicks (Night Call Nurses, Fly Me, Caged Heat!, the latter directed by Demme) and horror films (Night of the Cobra Woman), but the company also distributed films in the US at the opposite end of the creative scale, such as Ingmar Bergman’s Cries and Whispers (1972) and Federico Fellini’s Amarcord (1973).

In 1990, Corman sat down in his director’s chair once more and made Frankenstein Unbound, with John Hurt and Raul Julia, which proved he could still spin a gory tale, though, alas, without the success of earlier years.

However, the title of his 1998 autobiography, How I Made a Hundred Movies in Hollywood and Never Lost a Dime, still rang true. He continued to produce and executive produce films into his 90s. In 2009, he received a lifetime achievement Academy Award.

He is survived by his wife, Julie Halloran, a film producer, whom he married in 1970, and their four children, Roger, Brian, Mary and Catherine.

🔔 Roger William Corman, film director, producer and actor, born 5 April 1926; died 9 May 2024

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at Just for Books…?

[novashelby]

My favorite thing about Evie

She sticks up for other women no matter what.

TW: Rape and sexual assault...

John being an actual fucking king of a man. Uncle John Shelby is the best fucking uncle...end of.

(Not a story, but like a blabble of my thoughts)

Did you know that when Evie's classmate, Ruth Boyd, was raped at a party by one of the boys from St. Michael's, Evie protested his re-admission. That's right, he was allowed back into the adjoining school and could still play football(soccer). He was facing no consequences for what he had done...typical 1920's....Evie begged her father to do something about it, but Tommy warned her to "stay out of it." But Evie was having fucking NONE OF IT. She warned her father that she would be protesting every day until someone did something. Evie made signs and everything. Tommy wasn't happy about this and Evie did not give a single fuck. That next morning, she stood at the steps of St. Michael with her sign, putting that absolute trashbag of a boy on blast. Around mid day, Tommy drags her home and expects full support from his family. Arthur agrees that Evie needs to stay out of it. But John asks Evie, "Evie, is this real important to you?" She nods and he smiles. That next morning, John and Esme drive her to school, but park their car. They protest with her from morning to night...standing on those steps. Slowly, each family member of her's joins her side, and before she knows it...the whole damn girls' school walks out and her boyfriend, Peter, gets the boys' school to walk out.

Other than normal teen things, this was like the only time Evie ever truly defied Tommy's wishes and didn't give a fuck. And while he would never admit, Tommy was damn fucking proud.

[fuckyeahfanfictions]

Rating: Mature

Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply

Category: M/M

Fandom: Teen Wolf (TV)

Relationship: Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski

Characters: Derek Hale, Stiles Stilinski, Talia Hale, Laura Hale, Cora Hale, Peter Hale, Papa Hale, Original Hale Character(s), Original Stilinski Character(s), Original Child Character(s)

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe, Alive Hale Family, Dead Sheriff Stilinski, POV Derek, Teacher Derek, Single Parent Stiles Stilinski, Werebabies, Misunderstandings, Derek is a Softie, Stiles Leaves Beacon Hills, Derek Wears Glasses, Past Character Death, Past Relationship(s), Past Violence, Non-Graphic Violence, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Domestic, Family Feels

Language: English

Words: 17,939

Chapters: 8/8

Summary:

Derek hates to admit it, but he can always tell which kid is going to be a problem on the first day of school. He’s been teaching kindergarten at St. Bernard’s Elementary for five years now and knows it’s just as much about learning to play nicely with others as learning the alphabet and basic arithmetic. Some children are quiet, shy, or lacking in basic social skills but others…

There’s always one that drives Derek up a wall, and this year, it’s Erica Prudence Reyes II.

[dailyunsolvedmysteries]

Nicola Bulley investigation: The six unanswered questions

The search for missing mum Nicola Bulley has now entered its 12th day with still no real clues as what has happened to the mother-of-two. Despite extensive searches of the river and surrounding area no trace of the 45-year-old who was walking her dog after the school run has been discovered.

Her phone was left on a bench never the River Wyre in Lancashire and her dog Willow was found nearby. Police officers said they are working on the theory that the 45-year-old , who has been described by friends as a strong swimmer, fell into the river, but that line of investigation has been questioned by friends and family. Lancashire Police has consistently said there are no signs of any third-party involvement in her disappearance.

Here are 6 questions that need to be explained.

1. The lack of CCTV

There were images of Nicola shared from her own door bell camera that showed her packing up the car ready for the school run, but there is a lack of CCTV from the towpath area. The CCTV camera at a residential park on the upper field of the path had one camera not working. If it had been working it would likely have been able to pick up what happened around the bench.

Superintendent Sally Riley says: "Several exits of the riverside area have CCTV covering them or exits are locked and therefore couldn't have been passed through by Nicola. There's only a very small area onto Garstang Lane toward the A586 which is not covered by CCTV and that's why we're appealing today for dashcam footage or for people who may have been walking on Garstang Lane or driving in the area to come forward if they can."

2. The 10 minutes not accounted for

Lancashire Police has said there are 10 minutes they cannot account for, between the last sighting of Nicola at 9.10am and 9.20am, when Nicola's phone was found on a bench still connected to the work call she was on.

On Tuesday (February 7) police gave up update on timings:

8.26am Nicola left her home address with her children

8.40am Nicola dropped her children off at school

8.43am seen on the river path towards the gate and bench on lower field

8.47am someone who knows Nicola saw her with dog, and the two dogs briefly interacted

8.53am she sent email to her boss

8.59am she sent message to a friend

9.01am she logged onto a teams call

9.10am last confirmed sighting of Nicola

9.20am Her phone was located on the bench

9.30am teams call ended

9.33am Nicola's phone and dog were found by a witness 

3. Why no one saw anything

Police have revealed that more than 700 drivers are being approached in the hope they can offer clues in the search. Police are speaking to hundreds who travelled through the town of St Michael’s on Wyre around the time Nicola went missing.

A team of 40 detectives are currently investigating approximately 500 different lines of enquiry. At a press conference, Lancashire Police Supt Sally Riley said: ‘We have now identified around 700 vehicles that drove through the village on that morning on the 27th January at around 9.10am - 9.15am.

"We are in the process of speaking to all of those drivers to try and find out if they have any dashcam footage, what they saw on that day or anything else that may be of value to the police inquiry."

4. Question over the river

According to forensic search expert Peter Faulding, the part of the river where Nicola was last seen is not fast-moving. He has described it as 'black murky water' that can be difficult to see in.

He told the Blackpool Gazette: "It's not a fast tidal river. It's around two or three metres deep, but there are a lot of shallows."

Mr Faulding said he would have to check for any drains in the riverbed while re-checking all areas already probed by police., adding: '"You can search one day and the body can move down from another location so everything has got to be rechecked."

Superintendent Sally Riley, who is leading investigation, described the river as a "complex" area to search. She told a press conference on Tuesday: "It is not a still water it is a fast flowing moving water which is tidal in parts. This makes it particularly complex. We have already discounted particular areas of the river but as they are tidal we have re-searched them to make sure nothing has been washed back into those search areas.”

5. Why the area around the bench has not been cordoned off

Police reconfirmed on Tuesday that their belief remains that "Nicola sadly fell into the river, and this is a missing person enquiry."

Supt Riley said: "We believe Nicola remained in the riverside area." She added that the search was being extended out to the sea due to the nature of the river.

6. Why the phone was left on a bench

When Nicola's phone was found on a bench near to where she was last seen it was still dialled in to a work call and was alongside Willow's harness. Some people have suggested that she left it there to deal with something, with the aim of coming back to it once it was over.

Mr Faulding did say that the phone may have been left behind as a 'decoy' by a 'third party' involved in the disappearance. This comes after he noted that had she fallen in the water, her dog Willow - who was found at the scene - would have caused a disturbance.

[battleangel]

Your Life Is The Truman Show

This place, our "current reality", the Upside Down which is definitely a Stranger Thing, isnt a fit for me.

Its not like it was before.

I noticed it as soon as I started high school, my first day as a freshman at Bishop Ahr in September 1995.

Everything felt so motherfucking fake, forced and contrived.

The stupid mandatory pep rallies I was forced to attend in the gymnasium and having to pretend that I gave a shit that we were playing our rivals, Colonia.

I didnt.

Being forced fo sit in the cafeteria every day for an hour when I would finish my Lunchables, Sour Gushers & Hi-C in ten minutes.

Attempts to hide in the bathroom stall and the school library were met with threats of detention and an insistence that I stay in the cafeteria every day for my full lunch hour per my schedule.

Extracurricular activities were n e v a h a social fit at all, neither in junior high or high school.

I wasnt talking and I was socially isolated due to my social anxiety but I could never shake that forced and contrived feeling I already mentioned.

Everything was artifice.

Marching band playing the fluit in junior high, wind ensemble playing the flute in 4th through 8th grade. I'm front row, second from the right.

Softball for a decade for St .Peters (3rd through 8th grade) & Franklin Township Little League (2nd grade through 10th grade). Im in the middle holding the bat.

Girl scouts - junior high, French club & Students Against Drunk Driving - high school.

Spring & winter track - varsity lettered sophomore year - high school.

Youth choir - church - 11 to 13 years old, Counselor in training - Inman Park - Summer 7th grade, Theater program - Villagers Theater - Summer 7th grade, Candy striper - St. Peters Hospital - freshman & sophmore years - high school, Intervarsity For Christ - freshman year - UDel, Talent Competition - junior year - high school; Talent Show - 8th grade; Vacation bible school - church - 11 to 13 yeara old.

Additional clues this place has nevah been a fit:

•During my 15 year career in corporate which spanned from 2007 to 2022, I worked twenty mostly jobs which were mostly contract assignments with only a few permanent jobs with all of my tenures being a year or less with the absolute max tenure for any one job being two years, additionally I worked over a dozen temporary jobs during that same 15 year tenure in corporate, that ranged from a few days to a few weeks to a month or possibly two at most.

•I left four jobs in six years with no job lined up (Bank of America - 2015; International SOS - 2017; Dow Jones - 2019; Amazon - 2021).

•I left Amazon (6 month contract, $55/hr) after seven days.

•College (University of Delaware) was a thousand times worse than high school and even less of a fit because now I was living in a dorm on campus surrounded by people pledging sororities, partying, driking, doing LSD and hooking up left and right and I was interested in exactly none of that.

•Corporate exposed an extremely clear pattern that had emerged where seemingly nothing was a fit for me in terms of established accepted societal structures (sports teams, marching bands, girl scouts, church choir, summer camp, high school, 4 year college, corporate America).

•Ego death and self awakening in 2023 that included my third eye opening, kundalini awakening, ego death, self ascension, self actualization, aligning & activating all seven chakras.

•Receiving regular esoteric downloads from the Akashic Library and posting them to my tumblr and TikTok.

•Daily trips to the dreamscape at night when Im "dreaming" where I put the current days version of myself to sleep in the dreamscape and download "the next days" version of myself then I "wake up", temporarily leaving the dreamscape and traveling back to our current reality, the Upside Down, when in reality when I am asleep and dreaming I am awake in the dreamscape and when I "wake up" from my "dream" I am actually asleep in the false reality of our virtual reality simulation of what we call "life", where Im typing this, the Upside Down.

•Esoteric realization after opening my thirf eye that our "reality" is nothing but a simulated virtual reality videogame version of the dreamscape, which is actual reality.

Where we are now, where Im typing this and youre reading this, is nothing but a dream.

Limited 3 dimensional bullshit.

Car notes, mortgages, doctors appointments, electricity bills, fear of death, ridiculously extending life with insane interventions which make no logical sense as we can only delay and not stop death so it is better to self awaken accept death and realize that it is a beautiful transformation and it is nothing to fear or avoid or fight or struggle against as it is your final metamorphosis back to the beautiful ascended limitless energetic eternal butterfly you are as death is nothing but shedding the temporary cocoon of your physical manifesration of a human evolving beyond your current 3D caterpillar self back to the butterfly you are and were before your extremely temporary manifestation as a physical human being, loans, debt, credit cards, 9 to 5s, jobs, emails, Slack, Outlook, team meetings, agendas, mandated schedules, time, alarm clocks, schools, politics, duopoly, elections, propaganda, diets, gyms, fads, trends, crash diets, master cleanses, 24 hour news cycles, cultural zeitgeists, streaming services, Black Friday sales, Prime 1 Day sales, 1 hour deliveries, stock market, derivatives, stock options, investment portfolios, RSUs, promotions, mid-year reviews, performance reviews, year end reviews, cross-lateral moves, layoffs, redundancies, reductions in force, firings, hirings, sign-on bonuses, ESOPs, EBITDA, CEOs, ExCo, board members, shareholders, slave wage, labor, contracts, exploitation, gaslighting, manipulation, lies, sabotage, character assassination, false narratives, agendas, misinformation campaigns, ruthlessness, mercilessness, torture, phosphorous, chemical warfare, misogynoir, war crimes, maas graves, rape rooms, death squads, false imprisonment, guilty till proven innocent, driving while black, unknown & undetermined cause of death, unlicensed medical examiners office, its just another dead black guy, the case is suspended until further notice because were not investigating it, black people dont own homes they rent, all black baggy jeans black shirt black shoes black skin black car dead nigger, theyre all the same, theres a ton like him in newark, dump him in the hallway and ill try to do the autopsy in a month, false memories, false narratives, false cause of death, patriarchal dick, fake ass head of the family sociopath, convicted felon, state prison in georgia, first degree forgery, paper brother alpha phi alpha legacy brother only got in because his brothers actually got hazed, 3M offer letter in the file cabinet in the basement, parole officers, daughter printed out and kept in files, possessive jealous controlling hebephile obsession fixation predilection predation...

Aphid attraction.

•Dreamscape is unlimited 10 dimensional, walk through walls, walk on water, fall through the sky endlessly without dying, kaleidoscopic explosion of light color supernovas lucid lush lurid visceral acid dreams. The dreamscape is limitless because its your mind and imagination. We all intrinsically know that noone and nothing can limit our imagination and we can literally think of and dream of and imagine anything. Thats all the dreamscape is.

Where we currently reside and what we currently inhabit is a fake bastardization Upside Down version of the Dreamscape with false limits, rules, ordinances, laws, mandates, requirements, obligations, taboos, shibboleths, electrified third rails, shoulds, have tos, cants, shouldnts, donts, not allowed, need permission, need authorization, need a permit, need notarization, need a seal of approval, need a stamp of approval, need a license, need to be certified, need a degree, need letters after your name, need the clout, need the zeros in your bank account, need the wealth, need the prestige, need the status, need the company brand name, need the job title, need the red heeled shoes, need the louboutins, need the louis vuittons, need the SRTs, need the birkin bag, need the fendi, need the knockoffs, need the couture, need the flex, need the luxury, need the validation, need the approval, need the attention, need the distraction, need the gloss, need the shine, need the airbrushing, need the photoshop, need the CCs, need the BBL, need the lip filler, need the cheek implants, need the nose job, need the augmentation, need the lipo, need to inject your stomach fat into your butt cheeks, need the laser sculpting, need the brow lift, need the face lift, need the botox, need the fillers, need skims, need spanx, need a tinier waist, need abs, need muscles, need butt gains, need a thigh gap, need a 20 to 22 inch waist, need to look like the girls in the kpop industry, need hip dips, need v lines, need curves, need to be thicc, need to be thin, need to be skinny, need bigger boobs and a bigger ass...

I constantly see the Truman Show all around me.

I see Bryan Cranston stepping on set like Asteroid City at a family members streamed funeral to narrate the scene.

I see the boom mic and lightbox crash onto the set of my cousin giving birth to her first child.

I hear the director yelling "Cut!" because one of the Marine officers wasnt standing on the black X and didnt hit his mark at a family members burial.

I hear the director asking for a 25th take when a family member falls and injures herself after a work event.

I see the Black Friday Walmart ad that has a dozen items in squares and when the squares are flipped over two sets of prices are revealed: "Was $XYZ" & "Now $XYZ", however, many of the before and after prices are the exact same and many of the "now" prices are actually MORE expensive than the "was" prices.

During Amazons Black Friday Football game, I see a Dolphins defensive player lower his helmet to deliver a hit then crumple and collapse to the turf.

After the game, the same Dolphins player is interviewed for his remarkable 99 yard pick 6 earlier in the game.

Laughably, the Dolphins list the player's injury after the game as a "knee injury".

I pulled up the player, Jevon Holland's (#8) injury history, and he had a very hard collision with a fellow Dolphins defensive player last month during a game on 10/23/23.

Holland laid motionless on the turf for several minutes after the collision. He was then taken to the lockerroom and the Dolphins reported he "cleared concussion protocol" and he was put back in the game.

The very next morning, on Monday (10/24/23), when Holland reported to the Dolphins team facility, he reported concussion symptoms.

Holland was placed into concussion protocol and he was then cleared to play exactly a week later on 11/1/23.

3 weeks later, as I already mentioned, during Amazons Black Friday Football game, Holland lowered his helmet to deliver a hit, collapsed to the turf, was never checked on the sidelines or in the medical tent for a concussion and the Dolphins later reported his injury after the game as a "knee injury".

On the broadcast, Al Michaels said after Holland collpased to the turf that the NFL was trying to remove this play from the game because players lowering their head to deliver a hit is unsafe especially to the player delivering the hit.

After Holland collapsed to the turf, Amazons Black Friday Football broadcast stepped away for an injury timeout and, after commercials, once the broadcast resumed there was a graphic shown onscreen of the current AFC playoff picture.

The viewer could see that Holland was no longer on the turf so he had clearly left the field during commercials, however, Al Michaels and Kirk Hebstreit, Amazons play by play and announcement team, never updated the fans on Holland.

As I stated earlier, after the game ended, Holland was interviewed by the sideline reporter about his incredible 99 yard pick 6 and the Dolphins win.

Holland was in very high spirits.

What concussion?

Did Jevon Holland, as he did last month, report concussion-like symptoms to the Dolphins trainer today when be reported in to the team's facility after sustaining yet another collision in-game that he wasnt properly tested and diagnosed for by the teams unaffiliated neurological consultant (UNC)?

Does anyone even care?

Did anyone even notice?

After Al Michaels mentioned that the NFL legislated helmet to helmet hits out of the game to protect both the defensive and offensive players when Holland lowered his helmet to deliver the hit then collapsed to the turf, the injury timeout happened, the broadcast went to commercials then once the broadcast resumed Al Michaels & Kirk Hebstreit never mentioned Hollands injury again.

As the viewer, we saw Holland lower his helmet, deliver the hit, collapse to the turf, injury timeout, commercials, back to the broadcast, Holland had left the field during the commercials but instead of at least an update from Al Michaels saying that the Dolphins hadnt provided an update or at least state that Holland was able to get up under his own power something, we were instead as the viewer shown a graphic of the current AFC playoff standings and Al & Kirk discussed how the Dolphins were currently dominating in their division and conference.

Jevon Holland had scored a 99 yard pick 6 earlier in the game so all discussions about Holland focused on this both after he collpased on the turf in the 4th quarter of the remainder of the game as well as the post-game broadcast.

The broadcast team (Al Michaels & Kirk Hebstreit) as well as the post-game team (Carissa, Fitz, Sherm, Whit and Tony G) only discussed the pick 6 when discussing Holland. Same with the sideline reporter who interviewed Holland after the game.

The broadcast was acting like Holland was never shown, including in a slow motion replay, lowering his helmet to deliver a hit that immediately resulted in him colllapsing to the turf.

Holland also seemed perfectly fine during his post-game interview and he was extremely high-spirited about his 99 yard pick 6 as well as the Dolphins winning.

On the commentary, Al Michaels didnt identify Holland by name, only stating that a Dolphins defensive player was down.

If you didnt notice the number on his jersey (#8), you wouldnt have connected that this was the same Dolphins player who had scored the 99 yard pick 6 earlier in the game.

Since Michaels & Hebstreit never mentioned Holland's collapse to the turf and/or injury again (it had occurred in the 4th quarter) and neither did Amazons post-game show, most viewers wouldnt have known who the player who had collapsed on the turf was and would have never connected that it was the same Dolphins player who scored the 99 yard pick 6 who was interviewed after the game.

Life is a reality TV show.

Theres boom mics, lightboxes, cameras, grips and dollies all around you every single moment of your life.

Theres a black X made out of black masking tape on the ground underneath you every time you stand and speak.

Theres a sign that flashes "Laughter" on stage behind you any time you tell a joke and people laugh.

When you crossed the stage at your college graduation to receive your diploma, there was a sign behind you in red letters that said "APPLAUSE" when the audience clapped.

The people weeping over you at your funeral are actually SAG-AFTRA actors hired as paid mourners.

The Mandela effect is real.

Deaths are faked, there are false news reports, green screens, hired actors, paid shills, fake journalists, sound stages, sets and Cigarette Smoking Mans.

Berenstein Bears, Berenstain Bears.

We are the champions my friend. We keep on fighting till the end.

We are the champions...of the world.

But now the song no longer ends with "of the world".

Mandela died in prison in South Africa in the 80s.

Mandela was freed and walked hand in hand down the streets of South Africa with Winnie Mandela in the early 90s.

Mayor David Dinkins held a celebration for Mandelas release at Yankee Stadium.

Mandela died in prison in the 80s and the story was broadcast all over the world.

There are four lights.

[forensicated]

Smiffina Episodes: 480

Smithy gets a call to head to the front office to collect something that turns out to be a bunch of flowers. Gina teases him thinking he's bought them for Kezia, however they're for her! From Peter! And Smithy absolutely LOVES winding her up.

Gina reads the card as Smithy leaves the room, whatever is on it, she's not happy about it as she screws it up and throws it across the room.

Smithy and Gina are investigating an old lag, Jimmy Collins, who hasn't gone back to prison after a home visit. They find him at his wife's house - despite her claiming innocence - and Smithy chases him outside where he gets in his wifes car and drives off - causing Smithy to do a rather impressive bounce!

To be fair though, it's not only Smithy who's having a bad day in this episode...!

Reg's famous hypochondria is back in action as Gina finds Diane waiting for him in the yard after she and Smithy have brought Jimmy's wife in. He's complaining of a gippy tummy that has 'knocked him sideways' . Gina tells him to go home or get to work but stop complaining.

Jimmy's wife tells them that he'd said he had 'a thing to do' that morning and then he'd go back to prison but he didn't tell her what that thing was. She says he left the house with her at 8.30, she went shopping and then the police arrived as she got home. Reg is only too happy to trawl through the CCTV looking for Jimmy's movements but Diane keeps begging him to go home because she wants to go out and about.

Reg finds Jimmy on the CCTV and he's clearly been hurt, holding his jacket to his side and limping towards a chemists where he steals bandages and painkillers.

Gina takes delivery of another parcel from Peter - his gifts have gone up in the world as this time it's a dress, shoes and shawl. "The mans got more money than sense!" Gina is horrified though Smithy is very amused. "Er, that's something you wouldn't hear most women complaining about!" Nikki arrives with a further delivery, tickets for the ballet! "As if someone likes me wants to see a bunch of blokes in codpieces prancing around the stage!" Smithy can barely hold his laughter in. "I'm not going!" she insists, even when Smithy points out that the tickets are around £500 for the two given it's a private box!

Look at that little shit...!!

Jimmy's car is found covered in blood, his last known associates are either in another country, in prison, or dead. If he is planning a job it's either by himself or with a new team he might have met during one of his home visits. However, given the amount of blood he appears to be losing, he can't have gotten far.

Diane asks Smithy if she can be paired with someone else because Reg is still refusing to go outside and she claims it doesn't need two of them to watch the CCTV. Smithy gently explains that he's not doing it on purpose, it's simply how Reg is processing Honey's death and that he wants to be at the station and in amongst the team. She sighs but gives in and goes to sit back with him.

June shouts down to Smithy and Gina after she's received the blood results from her stabbing case. There's two sets of DNA on the knife that stabbed the school boy that morning. The boy who was stabbed and Jimmy Collins. She knows Collins is the name of the prisoner they're searching for so they join forces to find out what the hell is going on. June explains that a school boy, Tom Ryan, has admitted stabbing the victim, Martin Clark and that Clark confirmed it but June didn't believe them then and really doesn't now. Tom has gone to youth court, Martin is still at St Hugh's and Jimmy's wife is back in the interview room. She tells them that she hasn't heard Jimmy mention anyone by Martin's name. She does however recognise Tom's name as the son of Jimmy's best friend who has died. He promised Tom he'd help look after him and has kept his promise.

Gina goes to Tom's mums house... and finds Jimmy there who tries to hold her hostage. Smithy realises after Diane and Reg update him on the CCTV and he rushes to get to Gina. In the mean time, Jimmy tells the two women that Martin Clark was bullying Tom. He followed Tom to school to make sure he was ok and then he was going to go to prison but then Martin appeared and started picking on Tom. Jimmy went to his aid, Martin got lippy and produced a knife and stabbed him - Jimmy lashed out and stabbed Martin in the struggle by accident. Jimmy told Tom to run, he picked up the blade worrying about Jimmy's fingerprints and threw it on the roof before running off as Jimmy made him go with him. Gina explains that Tom is saying it was him - and that Martin verified that. Jimmy nods and shows the wound on his side that is bleeding badly as he weakens, saying he wouldn't want them to know about it. Gina collapses and Smithy calls again. She tells him she's fine but that they need an ambulance immediately for Jimmy.

Smithy gets Gina to the car and tells her to go meet Peter. She thinks it's too later but he insists it's fine, he'll do the paperwork and that she should stop making excuses and go and enjoy herself. Peter has sent a limo to collect her and it's waiting outside as Smithy and June watch Gina approaching. "Those shoes won't stay on long!" June muses, watching poor Gina struggling in the heels. "... Let's hope the dress does!" Smithy grins.

[peterdalca]

PETER DALCA 101

Meet Peter Dalca—heir to a hospitality empire, king of the French Quarter for a brief, glorious moment, and now the proud owner of three establishments in the quiet town of New Bellevoux. Peter grew up with all the trimmings of a high-society life, learning how to master the art of not disappointing Dad. So, like any good Dalca heir would, Peter shook things up. Now, at the ripe old age of 39, Peter is trying to determine his next course of action. Return to the family fold and get back to business? Or stay in New Bellevoux, where life is quieter and the stakes are all his?

STATS

Full Name: Peter Dalca

Faceclaim: Sebastian Stan

Pronouns/Gender: He/Him & Cis man

Age & Birthday: 39 & March 24, 1985

Birth Place: Bellevue, WA

Marital Status: Single

How long have they been in town?: 7 Years

Living Situation: Grand Marquis – Gables Creek

Occupation: Businessman - Owner of the Artisan, The Electric Shuffle & Komodo

BIOGRAPHY

Peter was born and raised in Bellevue, Washington, as the oldest of three children of the renown Dalca family. His father, Andrei Dalca, is a driven businessman who helped elevate the Dalca name in the hospitality industry. His mother, Elena, played the role of a devoted housewife, ensuring that her children’s needs were met and that their home was a sanctuary.

The Dalca family name became synonymous with luxury and service. The Dalca Hospitality Group, now in its third generation under his father’s leadership, has grown from a small chain of restaurants and inns into a multimillion-dollar empire of high-end hotels, resorts, and fine dining establishments.

Peter and his siblings enjoyed a privileged childhood filled with global travel. They visited destinations around the world, attended prestigious private schools, and engaged in a variety of extracurricular activities. Andrei believed that a well-rounded education extended far beyond the classroom, and he wanted his children to understand that.

From an early age, Peter understood the significance of his family’s legacy. His father had always made it clear that there was a singular expectation for the Dalca children: to contribute to and elevate the family business. Although it was unspoken, the message was evident. Peter never resented this expectation but admired his father’s drive and vision.

Peter attended university, majoring in Business Administration with a focus on Marketing. While he respected the legacy of Dalca Hospitality, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he was meant for something greater. By the time he graduated with his MBA, he had developed a strong sense of self. Confident in his abilities and eager to make his mark, he returned to Bellevue to begin his career with the Dalca Group.

Starting at the bottom, Peter worked in various departments within the company. His father pushed him hard, demanding nothing less than excellence. As a result, Peter quickly climbed the ranks. However, as he approached his 30th birthday, he began to feel restless. He envisioned a strategy that could elevate the Dalca legacy even further. When he pitched the idea of incorporating entertainment venues to the Dalca board, it was met with resistance, and his proposal was dismissed.

Frustrated, Peter decided to pursue his idea independently. He left and moved to New Orleans, right in the heart of the French Quarter. Partnering with a college friend, Peter secured an investor and transformed a historic property into an upscale entertainment venue. His establishment quickly became a popular attraction for visitors, combining live music, theater, and fine dining in a unique way that set it apart from anything else in the city.

After two years, tensions with his investor began to escalate. Peter found himself at a crossroads: should he stay and fight to retain control, or take a risk and move on? Choosing the latter, he left New Orleans and relocated to New Bellevoux, a smaller, quieter town. Peter appreciated the slower pace and the opportunity to step back and reevaluate his life and career.

In New Bellevoux, Peter has spent the last seven years building a successful life for himself. He acquired The Electric Shuffle and opened two additional establishments: The Artisan and The Komodo. His businesses have become integral parts of the town’s cultural landscape, creating jobs and attracting both locals and tourists. Although Peter is far removed from the glitz of his family’s empire, he takes pride in what he has accomplished, having created something lasting on his own terms.

Now, at the age of 39, Peter finds himself at a crossroads once again. His father, Andrei, is aging, and the Dalca Hospitality Group has become a global powerhouse. Andrei has approached Peter with a compelling offer: to return to Bellevue, take on a leadership role in the family business, and help guide the company into the next generation. As he considers this offer, Peter faces a challenging question: Should he leave behind the life he has built in New Bellevoux to rejoin the family business, or should he stay true to the path he has forged for himself, satisfied with the growth and success he has achieved?

[rsfannan6]

Day Five: Serendipity

Today we were off to see Castle Acre Priory.  It is a Cluniac priory in the village of Castle Acre dedicated to St. Peter, St. Mary and St. Paul.  Founded in 1089 by the second Earl of Surrey, William de Warenne, it was dissolved in 1537, as a part of the campaign by King Henry VIII to get rid of the Catholic monasteries, priories, convents, and friaries.  What is left is only ruins, but what fantastic and beautiful ruins they are.  The site is off the Peddars Way route a bit and it took a bit of finagling to figure out how to get there and back to the route as well as our next lodgings in the small town of Dersingham.

Over dinner the preceding evening, we had decided to walk there from Swaffham, only two miles away, and continued on to Harpley on the route where we would be picked up and driven to Dersingham, weather permitting.  Well, to coin a new phrase, weather refused to permit.  The forecast was for heavy rain and wind and it proved to be true.  As we ate our breakfast, the rain pelted down on Swaffham.  We did, however, find that there was a bus from Swaffham to the town of Castle Acre, a short walk from the priory.  Bundling up in our rain gear, we made it to the bus stop, only a couple hundred meters from our hotel.  As a result of my somewhat imperfect assessment of the situation, we were on the wrong side of the street when our bus came and left Swaffham, leaving us stranded in the rain and wind.  But, luck was our lady today.  A taxi just happened to be parked in front of the bus stop and Diane inquired of the driver how much it would cost to hire the cab to drive us to the priory.  The driver, a delightful soul named Mel, told us he could take four of us there for 12 pounds and then return to take the other four.  We jumped at the opportunity and as the trip only took ten minutes or so, in about a half-hour, the whole group was driven to the entrance of the priory for about the same price, give or take a pence or two, as the bus.  Besides having a simply delightful conversation with Mel, a native of the area, the taxi took us to the priory itself, about a mile or so away from the town where the bus would have deposited us.  Also, the weather turned about the time we got there, and we were treated to a gorgeous sunny day as we strolled through the ruins.  The only others visiting this site were a group of school children out on a field trip.  They only stayed a short time, after which we had the place to ourselves.  In my opinion, this place turned out to be the highlight, so far, of our adventure.  The audio tour was terrific and the site itself was somewhat magical.  I simply love learning new history, especially about stuff that I know nothing about.

Diane had spent a good deal of time last night figuring out how we were going to get from Castle Acre to Dersingham as the weather was an issue and the walk to Harpley was probably not going to happen.  But, the taxi company was amenable to picking us up at The Ostrich, a pub very near the priory.  But, that pub had been shuttered for the last six months and we did not know if it was ever to open again.  It was our only option, so we agreed to meet there anyway.  We were in luck once again as The Ostrich had reopened several days before our arrival.  We spent the hour waiting for the cab with adult beverages, crisps, nuts, and scintillating conversation.  I have to tell you that I am still amazed at the price of drinks here in this part of The U.K.  Not even half the cost of what it would be in California. As a side note, the restroom at the newly remolded Ostrich was the cleanest public facility I have ever been in.  No shit.

Perfectly on time, Steve came along in a big van to whisk us along to The Feathers Hotel and Pub in Dersingham.  

What had started out as a bit of a bust turned into a simply glorious day.

Serendipity indeed.

More to come…..

[bongaboi]

St. Peter's: 2023-24 Metro Atlantic Men's Basketball Champions

ATLANTIC CITY – They’re back!

Two years after Saint Peter’s made its inspiring run to the NCAA Tournament’s Elite Eight, the tiny school from Jersey City returns to March Madness looking to regain its Cinderella status.

The Peacocks punched their ticket with a 68-63 win over Fairfield in Saturday night’s MAAC Tournament championship game at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall, emerging as the No. 5 seed with its third win in as many days.

Sophomore forward Corey Washington led the way with 24 points, at the Peacocks won their fifth MAAC title overall, and their second in three years.

Saint Peter’s is the team that started New Jersey’s recent run of shocking postseason performances, the first of three New Jersey schools to advance against long odds, with Princeton reaching the Elite Eight a year ago, when FDU won two games at a No. 16 seed, including a takedown of top-seeded Purdue.

Now, with Mason having replaced Shaheen Holloway, now the Seton Hall boss, and just one player, MAAC Defensive Player of the Year Latrell Reid, who finished with nine points, remaining on the Peacocks’ roster from two years ago, they head back to the Big Dance.

The Peacocks now wait to find out their next opponent when the 68-team field is announced Sunday night. They figure to be a 16 seed and could end up in the First Four in Dayton, perhaps against NEC champs Wagner, coached by Donald Copeland, a former assistant coach to Saint Peter’s head coach Bashir Mason at Wagner. If they are in the main draw, it could mean a rematch with Purdue, who they beat in the Sweet 16 two years ago, or Houston or North Carolina.

Defense makes difference After Saint Peter’s built a 61-54 lead, Fairfield rallied with a steal and score by Jalen Leach and a drive by Brycen Goodine to make it 61-58 with 1:39 to play. Washington then missed the front-end of a one-and-one, with Fairfield getting a score from Goodine on a drive to pull within a point with 1:16 left.

When Washington went back to the line shooting two, he sank two to make it a 63-60 game with 1:07 on the clock.

It then came down to the Saint Peter’s defense, which came into the game ranked 12th nationally, getting a stop, with Marcus Randolph getting fouled on the defensive rebound with 50.9 left. He made one of two from the line to make it a two-possession game at 64-60.

Caleb Field then scored on a drive and was fouled for Fairfield, completing the three-point play with 39.9 seconds left. Clarke was fouled and made two free throws with 15.1 seconds. Fairfield’s Jasper Floyd missed a jumper at the other end, with Washington getting fouled with 2.9 seconds left, hitting both free throws to seal the win.

After going down 29-19, the Peacocks rallied with a quick 6-0 run, pulling within four points on a pair of free throws by Marcus Randolph with 1:53 left. But a Yetna tip-in put the Stags up 32-25 at halftime, with Yetna leading all scorers with 10 points over the opening 20 minutes.

Then Washington took over, scoring six straight points, with the final two coming after he blocked a shot at one end and took the ball coast-to-coast for the score, giving the Peacocks a 49-44 lead. It stretched to 52-46 on a triple by Clarke with 7:40 left.

[historyinthemakingamazingfinds]

👑 On this day ~ 28th January 814 👑

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👑 Death of Charlemagne - King of the Franks 👑

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👑 Charlemagne, or Charles the Great, was a medieval emperor who ruled much of Western Europe from 768 to 814.

Charlemagne was born on 2nd April 742, the son of Bertrada of Laon and Pepin the Short.

Charlemagne’s exact birthplace is unknown, although historians have suggested Liege in present-day Belgium and Aachen in modern-day Germany as possible locations.

👑 Little is known about the future ruler’s childhood and education, although as an adult, he displayed a talent for languages and could speak Latin and understand Greek, among other languages.

After his father Pepin’s death in 768, the Frankish kingdom was divided between Charlemagne and his younger brother Carloman.

The brothers had a strained relationship; however, with Carloman’s death in 771, Charlemagne became the sole ruler of the Franconians.

👑 Once in power, Charlemagne sought to unite all the Germanic peoples into one kingdom, and convert his subjects to Christianity.

In order to carry out this mission, he spent the majority of his reign engaged in military campaigns.

Soon after becoming king, he conquered the Lombards (in present-day northern Italy), the Avars (in modern-day Austria and Hungary) and Bavaria, among others.

A skilled military strategist, he spent much of his reign engaged in warfare in order to accomplish his goals.

👑 Charlemagne waged a bloody, three-decades-long series of battles against the Saxons, a Germanic tribe of pagan worshippers, and earned a reputation for ruthlessness.

In 782 at the Massacre of Verden, Charlemagne reportedly ordered the slaughter of some 4,500 Saxons.

He eventually forced the Saxons to convert to Christianity, and declared that anyone who didn’t get baptized or follow other Christian traditions be put to death.

👑 In his role as the defender of Christianity, Charlemagne gave money and land to the Christian church and protected the popes.

As a way to acknowledge Charlemagne’s power and reinforce his relationship with the church, Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne emperor of the Romans on 25th December 800, at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

👑 As emperor, Charlemagne proved to be a talented diplomat and able administrator of the vast area he controlled.

He promoted education and encouraged the Carolingian Renaissance, a period of renewed emphasis on scholarship and culture.

He instituted economic and religious reforms, and was a driving force behind the Carolingian miniscule, a standardized form of writing that later became a basis for modern European printed alphabets.

👑 Charlemagne ruled from a number of cities and palaces, but spent significant time in Aachen.

His palace there included a school, for which he recruited the best teachers in the land.

In addition to learning, Charlemagne was interested in athletic pursuits.

Known to be highly energetic, he enjoyed hunting, horseback riding and swimming.

👑 In his personal life, Charlemagne had multiple wives and mistresses, and perhaps as many as 18 children.

He was reportedly a devoted father, who encouraged his children’s education.

He allegedly loved his daughters so much, that he prohibited them from marrying while he was alive.

👑 Charlemagne was in good health until the final four years of his life, when he often suffered from fevers and acquired a limp.

Even at this time, he followed his own counsel rather than the advice of the doctors - whom he hated.

They advised him to give up roasted meat, which he loved, and to restrict himself to boiled meat instead.

👑 In 813, Charlemagne crowned his son Louis the Pious, king of Aquitaine, as co-emperor.

Louis became sole emperor when Charlemagne died on 28th January 814, ending his reign of more than four decades.

At the time of his death, his empire encompassed much of Western Europe.

Charlemagne was buried at the cathedral in Aachen.

👑 In the ensuing decades, his empire was divided up among his heirs, and by the late 800s, it had dissolved.

Nevertheless, Charlemagne became a legendary figure, endowed with mythical qualities.

In 1165, under Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, Charlemagne was canonized for political reasons~ however, the church today does not recognize his sainthood.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/537859523834021

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👑 Source~History. com

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☕ https://ko-fi.com/thetudorintruders

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👑 The Bust of Charlemagne is a reliquary from around 1350 which contains the top part of Charlemagne's skull.

The reliquary is part of the treasure kept in the Aachen Cathedral Treasury.

Source: Facebook

The Tudor Intruders