#east bay underground

[justdreamsandmusic]

Urban exploration ; September 16th, 2021 ; underside of Washington Bridge, East Providence end. Sincerely, a Concerned Citizen

[syrupfog]

It's not hard for Law to pass for an alpha, but that doesn't mean he wants to do it. Dousing himself in pheromones makes him gag, and he knows suppressants aren't good for long term use. 

"You'll get used to it," Doffy had whispered in his ear. "And if you don't? That's too bad."

Doflamingo holds too many things-- too many lives-- over his head. Freedom is a pipe dream for Law. 

"You're going to get me this political alliance with the Goa kingdom," he tells Law, sickeningly sweet. "All you have to do is manage not to be rejected by their prince."

The reality is more complicated than that; of course it is. The third prince of the Goa kingdom is a strong willed omega who's run off every arranged marriage his grandfather has attempted to set up. They have to be desperate if they're looking as far north as Swallow Island.

The good news is that no one that far east will know Law is lying about being an alpha. That's a point in his favour. The bad news is that Law's looking at living a lie... for the rest of his life, for the sake of his friends that he'll likely never see again.

The boat docks at Goa and Law's ushered up to the castle so fast, it's clear they're trying to get this over with before he can back out. 

He meets the three sons (and their grandfather) at dinner, an elaborate affair he has no appetite for (unlike the four of them).

Luffy, the youngest, his betrothed, barely looks at him. He eats what must be double his weight in meat and then takes off, the other two not far behind; at least the oldest asks his name before he runs off. 

Then he's left with the grandfather, the king. That's much worse.

The king says, "He's a handful, but he needs a good strong alpha to put him in his place." 

Law nods. Plays the part. "I'll be what he needs," he says. 

The king laughs. "I like you, boy," he says. "Have a drumstick." 

Law accepts it, but doesn't touch it. He feels queasy.

In the coming days, it's difficult to meet Luffy. It's difficult to even find Luffy most of the time, he's off like a whirlwind every day. When Law does manage it, he finds himself trailing after Luffy, just doing what he can to keep up, while Luffy complains about his scent.

"You reek," he says, frowning childishly. 

'I know,' thinks Law. The pheromones clash with his omega scent terribly. He hates it. 

"I don't want to marry someone who stinks," Luffy says. 

"You'll get used to it," Law says. He sort of doubts it, though.

Then he has to spend a good twenty minutes running to keep up as Luffy's gotten word from his brothers of an underground fighting ring in the city. 

(Luffy beats everyone in the ring and then shuts it down). 

(Law thinks about how Doffy would have encouraged it continuing).

The problem is, as Law follows Luffy day after day, he watches this man do thing after ridiculous thing, and each time the citizens prosper for it. 

The problem is, each time it happens, Law is horrified to find himself falling a little in love. 

That's not part of the plan.

Especially because Luffy doesn't feel the same way. 

The goal was and is still marriage. But looking forward to a spouse that resents him makes Law want to curl up and hide, his omega suffering from the potential rejection already. 

And having to act an alpha the whole time.

But, as long as LAW doesn't formally reject the marriage, Luffy won't have a choice. The date is set for the end of the year. He just has to make it through, follow Doffy's orders, keep his friends safe. An emotional rejection will be fine, Law knows logically it's not personal.

"You've made it longer than anyone else," the middle brother, Ace, tells him at one point. 

"I have to," Law says, before thinking better of it. 

Ace gives him a bemused look. Law wonders how much longer he can live in Goa without even one person (bar their odd king) liking him.

The problem really comes when his heat is due. 

The suppressants keep most of it at bay, but the need for comfort, for an emotional connection of any kind, pulls at him. Dousing himself in alpha pheromones nearly makes him vomit and he has to suppress a whine.

He ends up not seeking out Luffy at all that week, instead holing up in his quarters, desperately hiding inside a nest made of the few things he's kept that smell like home. 

For just a moment, he thinks maybe none of this is worth it, wants to just crawl home, seek comfort.

But then he steadies himself. This isn't about him. 

He doesn't come out for meals, claims he's sick when the servants ask. 

After three days, the door swings open with a bang and Law is startled out of his half asleep state as part of his nest caves in over top of him.

"Hey," says Luffy, crawling into the nest. "You haven't come to see me. Are you leaving?" 

He would prefer that, wouldn't he? 

Because the only person here whose opinion of Law matters hates him. 

Law, to his utter horror, opens his mouth and nothing but a sob comes out.

He's in heat, on suppressants, and being rejected, okay? He curls in on himself, clutching the brim of his hat over his eyes, clenching his teeth to keep from making more noise, although that just leads him to shake harder, overwhelmed. 

"Whoa!" says Luffy. "Shit, what's wrong?"

And then, to Law's utter horror, Luffy says, "Huh. You finally smell good." 

Fuck. He hasn't reapplied the pheromones since he made his nest. 

Everything Law is feeling is broadcasting through his unadulterated scent. 

"I mean, you smell sad. But you smell good. You know?"

Then Luffy is literally crawling over top of him, nuzzling into his neck, releasing a calming scent that Law didn't even know was possible for someone as chaotic as Luffy. 

"Wha—" Law tries, voice cracking from held in tears. 

"I'm making you feel better," Luffy says.

And well, he is— Law's already stopped shaking, eyelids drooping from exhaustion, but—  

"Aren't you— curious? About my scent?" 

"Yeah, sorta" says Luffy. "You smelled all wrong before. But you smell better now. I like it. You should stop spraying that other stuff."

Spraying—

"You knew?" 

Luffy stops nuzzling, blinking down at him. "Knew what?" He tilts his head. "Oh, that you're an omega? Not at first. Ace n' Sabo told me, said they had you ivenstigated 'cause they didn't trust you." 

Awesome. Great. Law's failed. Everything's done for.

"Hey wait," says Luffy. "Your scent's gone all upset again. What's wrong with being an omega?" He puffs up his cheeks. "I’m an omega!" 

"That's exactly what's wrong with it," Law snaps. "Nobody wants two omegas sitting on the throne!" 

Luffy reels back and fixes Law with a glare.

"I don't care what anyone else thinks," he says. "And you shouldn't either! Why do you even want to marry me if you can't even be yourself? What's the point?" 

Law clams up. He can't just— he can't tell him. 

"Traffy," Luffy says lowly, staring down at him with wild, steely eyes.

Law keeps his mouth shut. He thinks, dimly, that this is the first time Luffy's called him by his name (albeit, not quite his name). 

Luffy leans forward slowly, and Law feels like a bug under a microscope. "Traffy," Luffy says. "Who's hurting you?" 

"What?" Law asks, dumbstruck.

"You're not a bad guy," Luffy says. "You're stubborn and a stickinamud, but you're not mean and you don't yell at me." 

Law has definitely snapped at him a few times. 

"You don't yell at me about stuff that matters," Luffy corrects, at his look. "You're a good guy, Traffy. Who's hurting you?"

Law feels a bit like he's a child again, getting grilled by his parents after taking the fall for his sister busting out the window with a ball. 

"I-I—" he tries. "I can't—" 

"Is it that Mingo guy?" Luffy asks, and Law is starting to wonder if Luffy just. Knows everything.

"Ace 'n Sabo told me about him too, that they think you might be a bad guy because he's your dad and he's a bad guy." 

"He's not my dad," Law snaps. He thinks of his father. Thinks of Cora, even. Doffy could never be what they were. 

"Oh," Luffy says. "He's the one hurting you."

"You don't— it's not that simple," Law pleads. Pleads for Luffy to understand. There's no easy way out of this, not when Doffy holds all the cards. He's shaking again, cold like he's outside in the Swallow Island winters. Luffy's calming scent so far away.

"It is that simple," Luffy says. "But that's alright. We can fix it, now that I know. Okay?" He leans down again, slotting his cheeks between Law's neck and shoulder, and—

"You don't care?" Law asks, voice embarrassingly small. "That I'm an omega?" 

Luffy— Luffy laughs.

"You are an omega," he says, like that explains it all. 

"Do you want me to call the wedding off?" Law asks. Luffy holds the cards now. He knows Law's just under duress. 

"Nah," says Luffy. "You're a good guy, and I like you. We'll get married, then I'll kick that guy's ass."

"You can't just—" Law doesn't have it in him to explain just how vast Doffy's networks are, his crime syndicates. He plays both sides of the underworld, rules both of them. 

But— 

If anyone could— 

Law feels crazed. He feels like Luffy isn't real, can't be this... perfect.

"My friends," Law says. "He's going to kill my friends. I can't be the reason they die, Luffy." 

Luffy nods (into Law's shoulder) (He smells like candied bacon). "Okay," he says. "We'll get them out first. Sabo's good at that shit." 

Law is pretty sure Sabo hates him.

"He also doesn't hate you." 

Law is more convinced Luffy is all knowing. 

"He doesn't hate you because I like you, so he has to like you." 

Luffy says things so simply, like there's no option other for them to be true. 

Law doesn't get it, sort of hates it, does believe him.

"Can— I'm in heat, Luffy," Law says, because he's overwhelmed and ten seconds away from another meltdown. "This isn't really appropriate." 

"That's okay," Luffy says. "I don't care about appropriate much, anyway." 

That's true, Law knows that.

The nest smells like back home, and now it smells like Luffy. 

Luffy, who is good, in a way that doesn't make sense. 

Luffy, who is wrapped around him like a jellyfish. 

Luffy, who says he's just going to fix everything. 

Law has nothing to offer him in return.

If— if Luffy manages this, even just to get his friends out— Bepo, Penguin, Shachi... Cora... 

Law's seen him do odd miracles every day. He believes him when Luffy says he'll do this too. 

Shuddering out a breath, Law soaks in Luffy's scent. 

It's sweet, it's omega.

It's strong and powerful and unique to Luffy. 

Law wants to drown in it. 

He whispers a prayer to the forgotten sun god of his childhood island that everything will work out. 

Luffy whispers back that he should go to sleep, because it will.

[mapsontheweb]

Super Mario World - Belfast Lough! - Standing Northeast facing Southwest to give full view of the Lough and surrounding areas. likely the last of the Northern Ireland series I'm doing, unless i go ahead with a Lough Neagh one! have a great day everyone, thanks for looking! large image, tap for full!

Belfast Lough, standing Northeast facing Southwest to give a full view of the waterway and surrounding areas. Belfast Castle, Carrickfergus Castle, Donaghadee Moat and Bangor Castle. Scrabo, Helen's Tower, Knockagh Monument. Giant's Ring and other stone heritage sites represented. Belfast area, Glengormley, Newtownbreda, Dundonald, Castlereagh, Holywood, Strandtown, Whiteabbey, Newtownards, Bangor, Moneyreagh, Carryduff, Comber, Greenisland, Helen's Bay, Donaghadee, Whitehead, Ballyclare, Islandmagee, Copeland Island etc all marked with game exits. 2 Lighthouses at land's end, 1 lighthouse in Belfast Harbour. Cavehill and Black Mountain. River Lagan. Underground levels for the 2 stone quarries and 1 salt mine.

I've had to exaggerate sizing and tried to keep accurate placement of cities/towns/landmarks as much possible that the graphics would allow, so if something is a little too east or too far west etc. please allow some leeway and have some imagination! in case you're wondering what Yoshi's House is....its where my Uncle and Aunt live! thanks for looking!

by Wide_Environment3107

[blueiscoool]

Sunken Temples of Aphrodite and Amun Found off Egyptian Coast

New discoveries off Egyptian coast reveal ‘treasures and secrets

New “treasures and secrets” have been revealed at the site of a sunken temple off Egypt’s Mediterranean coast, the European Institute for Underwater Archaeology (IEASM) announced in a news release Tuesday.

An underwater archaeological team, led by French marine archaeologist Franck Goddio, has made further discoveries at the site of a temple to god Amun in the ancient port city of Thonis-Heracleion in the Bay of Aboukir, the institute said.

The team investigated the city’s south canal, where huge blocks of stone from the ancient temple collapsed “during a cataclysmic event dated to the mid-second century BC,” the institute said.

The temple to god Amun was where pharaohs came “to receive the titles of their power as universal kings from the supreme god of the ancient Egyptian pantheon,” it said.

“Precious objects belonging to the temple treasury have been unearthed, such as silver ritual instruments, gold jewelry and fragile alabaster containers for perfumes or unguents,” IEASM said. “They bear witness to the wealth of this sanctuary and the piety of the former inhabitants of the port city.”

The archaeological excavations, conducted jointly by Goddio’s team and the Department of Underwater Archaeology of the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities of Egypt, revealed underground structures “supported by very well-preserved wooden posts and beams dating from the 5th century BC,” the institute said.

“It is extremely moving to discover such delicate objects, which survived intact despite the violence and magnitude of the cataclysm,” said Goddio, who is president of IEASM and director of excavations.

The discoveries were made possible thanks to the development and use of new geophysical prospecting technologies that can detect cavities and objects “buried under layers of clay several meters thick,” the institute said.

Relics from Greek presence, too

East of the Amun temple, a Greek sanctuary devoted to Aphrodite was discovered containing bronze and ceramic objects.

“This illustrates that Greeks who were allowed to trade and settle in the city during the time of the Pharaohs of the Saïte dynasty (664 - 525 BC) had their sanctuaries to their own gods,” the institute said.

The discoveries of Greek weapons also reveal the presence of Greek mercenaries in the area, IEASM said. “They were defending the access to the Kingdom at the mouth of the Canopic Branch of the Nile. This branch was the largest and the best navigable one in antiquity.”

The remains of Thonis-Heracleion are now located under the sea, 7 kilometers (4.3 miles) from the present coast of Egypt, IEASM said. The city was for centuries Egypt’s largest port on the Mediterranean before the founding of Alexandria by Alexander the Great in 331 BC.

“Rising sea levels and earthquakes followed by tidal waves triggering land liquefaction events, caused a 110 square kilometer portion of the Nile delta to totally disappear under the sea, taking with it the city of Thonis-Heracleion,” the institute said.

The city was discovered by the IEASM in 2000.

By Radina Gigova.

[alphabetboyluvr]

something borrowed | jjk

VIBES | first loves, a lil angst, a lil... infidelity (don't scream at me!!), no smut (a little teeny lips to kitty moment but no actual smut) jungkook's nose be doing things (smelling <3) cause when is it not?, mafia au

SOUNDTRACK | moth to a flame - swedish house mafia, the weekend ; mirage - elina

HOLLY'S NOTE | (originally posted april 2023) was in a tiktok hell hole of moth to a flame edits, and this is the product of it loool. posted on wp first!!

WORD COUNT |  2.8k

GLOSSARY OF TERMS | all relating to korean gangs 

Gyeongsang - the ancient name for what is now known as the Yeongnam district of Korea. It includes Daegu, Busan, Ulsan, and both Gyeongsang Provinces. It's essentially the South-East of the country.

Honam - the district of Korea which includes Gwangju and both Jeolla provinces. Essentially, it's Yeongnam's counterpart - the South-West of the country.

Pa - the term for a 'mob' in Korean, often affixed to regions or identifiers of specific gangs

Jopok - a term for someone involved in a gang 

THEY SAY you never forget your first love; that it's some sort of earth-shattering, universe-bending, life-debilitating experience. You learn from it; how to behave, how to act, how to break a heart, and - sometimes - how to heal one, too.

They're a funny thing, first loves.

Virginities are given and taken in all aspects of life; sex, declarations of affection, scathing remarks in the midst of arguments.

Jeon Jungkook has all of your firsts, and you all of his.

It had been a too-hot summer, and you'd been rebelling.

Fresh-faced, and terribly bored of the confines put in place by your father, Jungkook had seemed like a safe bet. 

Jungkook had always been a rebel. You made no change to that.

You'd gone to Busan looking for trouble. Like father, like daughter. He usually went there to fuck with Gyeongsang-pa goonies who didn't know their left from their right; to remind them that what Honam-pa may lack in their underground history, they made up for in their sheer moxie.

You'd gone there to fuck with Gyeongsang-pa goonies, too, just in the literal sense. You were on the cusp of nineteen, and still being held prisoner to Honam-pa hierarchy, or so it felt.

An easy target was found in the form of a boy skimming rocks against a settled bay. Leather jacket and a face of thunder, Jeon Jungkook had wanted nothing to do with you. Heard the tone of your dialect and knew you were one of them.

"Ain't no place for Honam bitches," he'd told you. Had made you laugh.

"And who are you?" You'd replied, voice condescending, eyes innocent. "Too scrawny to be Jopok."

He had smirked. Shook his head. "Yeah, and you're too vapid to be asking questions like that in a city that ain't yours." The pebble he sent hurtling into the ocean skipped once, twice, three times before sinking. He turned to look at you. Sighed. Figured you were at least a little bit more interesting than pebbles. "What's your name, Honam?"

As you stand in front of a mirror, seven years since that summer, you know Jeon Jungkook will be getting all of your lasts, too.

You're smoothing down a dress; white, lace, and everything a girl dreams of.

Well, everything a girl who wants a traditional wedding with all the bells and whistles wants.

You've always considered yourself an elopement kind of girlie; last-minute charity shop dress for you, and second-hand tie for your groom, in a city worlds away from 'home'. That's what you would have liked.

But you're Honam's Princess. 

This was always gonna be the way.

You'd never expected yourself to have a Gyeongsang-pa groom, but sometimes life works out in funny ways.

"It's bad luck," you say quietly as Jungkook approaches the doorway. It's a little before noon. Nuptials are at two. You've sent away your ladies in waiting, favouring these final moments alone.

"To see the bride?" he questions. He's not even started getting ready yet. Still in a pair of sweats and an old shirt that you remember from that very first summer. You wonder if he's wearing it deliberately now; if it makes him feel like he's young again.

He'd been so fresh-faced back then. His broad back hadn't yet been tarnished by a dragon, and his eyes had seen far less violence. His hands, too.

You nod. "Remember? I told you. You shouldn't see the bride on the morning of the ceremony."

Jungkook just shrugs. Pushes the door to, and walks further into the room to stand behind you. It's warm, but his presence gives you chills. It shouldn't do. Not when you know him as intimately as you do.

His fingers reach up to toy at the vintage clasp of your necklace. He asks, "Something old?"

You're silent as you study him in the mirror. He's not aged a day. Not really. Not in his eyes. The scar on his cheek looks a little deeper from his face filling out, and he wears his hair differently - he doesn't subscribe to the Gyeongsang-pa standard of short sides, long top anymore - but his eyes are just the same.

"Something old," you nod.

He sinks his teeth into his bottom lip, and lets the very tips of his fingers trail down your spine, until they reach the fabric of your dress.

"Your Grandmothers," he says. "I remember it."

You don't hide your surprise.

"What?" he smirks, when he notices the tiny little hum of confusion you do. "Was that first summer. You left it in my car once. Was karma for you chatting shit about your sister inheriting the opal ring."

"It was too small for her fingers!" you immediately protest, still standing by the fact it would have been cherished by you - though you do have an opal ring, now. 

It normally sits snug on your fourth finger, awaiting a dainty silver band to keep it company, but it's off today. Symbolic. Your wedding band is to be threaded on first, held in place by your opal forevermore.

"The necklace suits you," he offers. 

Thinks it really does; a small silver chain, links twisted with a single teardrop pearl resting on your chest. It goes back generations. Is a status symbol. Losing it in Jungkook's car had left you terrified for you both, no matter who would have found it - Gyeongsang-pa goonies or Honam-Pa. Would have been fucked either way. Fraternizing with the enemy was one thing - but fucking them?

Your father would have had Jungkook's head on a butcher's block within an hour of finding out.

Funny, how things change.

He strides over to the dresser, where a white shoe box sits open. Tissue paper sprouts from the packaging, and nestled inside are a pair of heels that he thinks are befitting of you. They're white, to match your dress, with ornate silver leaves trailing up and around the heels. You'll be a good few inches taller with them on, but he'd still dwarf you if he were to stand across from you.

A little taller than he was that very first summer, Jungkook is far more confident, too. Not in a brash, false bravado kind of way, but in such a way that he's learned his worth. Knows where he is in the pecking order. Works so much harder than you ever will, and yet will never be of equal status. Not in Honam Pa, not in Gyeongsang-Pa.

He sits on the chair beside the mirror and holds a shoe in each palm. His legs are spread, smile arrogant, as he taps the shoes together.

"Something new?"

"Careful," you say, not looking at him, tweaking a little bit of your hair back. "Yes. Something new."

He raises one of shoes, and nods to where the skirt of your dress pools on the floor. "May I?"

"Shouldn't even see-"

"See the bride, yeah, yeah, I know," he says softly. "Next time I see you, you're gonna be one of us. Let me at least spend a little time with you while you're still Honam."

"You've always hated that I'm Honam," you remind him.

He doesn't deny it.

"Just let me help you get ready for your party," he says, stern but gentle. He's always been like that with you.

He calls it a party, because he refuses to call it a wedding. Wedding is too romantic. Too foreboding.

You don't want to smile. He's so abrasive at times, so frustrating. You wonder how you ended up here; eyes full of adoration as you nod. "Alright then, Prince Charming."

You lift your leg just a little bit, but Jungkook knows your body, so doesn't give it a second thought as he reaches down to leverage it up. He strokes at your ankle, the heel of your foot, the arch. Smiles to himself when you shudder a little when his fingers ghost across the tiny ticklish section.

"Don't," you smile. "I'll fall."

He just shrugs. "I'll catch you."

That's the thing about Jungkook; he always does. Trusty, dependable, reliable. 

Sure, maybe occasionally he would be the one to tie your laces, but he would always catch you.

You've no laces on now. Any falling? All of your own doing.

Jungkook doesn't let the sentiment linger. Asks, "Something blue?"

You look down at him as he slides the second shoe onto your other foot, and wonder if showing him really will be pushing your luck - but hey.

He's already seen the bride.

What harm would it do if he sees a little more?

He holds on to your ankle for longer than he really should. Strokes his thumb across the top of your foot. Smiles. You press the pad of your now-heeled foot into the tiny space between his spread legs, keeping it elevated, and give him a look that grants him permission to explore.

Both of his hands stroke up your raised leg, smooth and silky, the fabric of your dress moving to reveal what's hidden beneath. He reaches your knee. Leans forward a little. Presses those lips you know so well against your skin. Keeps stroking upwards, hands spreading across your thighs before reaching a roadblock. Chiffon and lace intertwined, a baby blue garter is hooked around your leg.

Jungkook's lips trail from the top of your knee to just shy of the material that stopped him from venturing further.

"Something blue," you whisper.

He nods. Lets his nose rest against it. You've sprayed it with your perfume. He fucking loves your perfume. You've been wearing the same one since he met you, and it always gets him a little heated at times he shouldn't be. 

Isn't his fault though. He thinks you conditioned him. 

And yeah, maybe you had sprayed it in his car vents on more than one occasion, and maybe you had deliberately layered a pheromone-infused oil beneath it that entire first summer. Not your fault he happened to like it a little too much. Not his fault the scent always takes him back to those stolen moments with you.

Jungkook's teeth sink into the material. Draw it back. Let it ping against your skin.

"Kook," you whisper, as if your hands aren't in his hair.

His hands push further up your legs. Both of them, now. They reveal the lacey white underwear you purchased especially for the big event. It's a matching set.

"Thank God it's not a Church wedding," he husks, a sigh exhaling. His breath tantalisingly chills your now-wet folds. So inconvenient. "You'd burn the second you stepped inside."

Jungkook's lips trail further. Leave little evidence. He's learned how to do that over the years. Has left no traces of himself, well, ever.

There's hustle and bustle in the garden out of the rear window. A traditional-style wooden screen preserves your dignity; hides your Gyeongsang-pa goonie from sight.

The venue wasn't your choice. It's Gyeongsang territory, for a start. Your father had said it would be good. Would help with the treaty. Very little about your 'party' has been planned by you. Like most of your life, your father has an iron vice on proceedings.

Your underwear was the one thing you had total control over. Had even considered wearing none at all, as a bit of a 'fuck you'.

Jungkook pauses. Takes in the sight of you. Grips the flesh of your upper thighs. Curses to himself. 

It feels like he's staring at your lace-covered cunt for an eternity before his lips finally press against it. Your grip in his hair tightens.

You'll need to change your underwear before you walk down the aisle. That's fine. This underwear was never intended for anything other than this, regardless.

Because while yes, the groom shouldn't see the bride ahead of the ceremony, it's not like that matters here. Jungkook was always going to see you before the wedding.

His lips are slow as he withdraws, and simply says, "Something borrowed."

The implication is heavy; heart-stopping. Cataclysmic.

"By you?" You whisper, as his deep dark eyes meet yours.

He looks so pretty in defeat. It pains you - but you both know this is the least painful outcome for you both.

Jungkook shakes his head. Let your dress gather by the floor. Smooths it over. Reclines into his chair.

"By Min fuckin' Yoongi."

Neither of you speak for a moment. Hearing his name, especially uttered from Jungkook's lips, makes your blood run cold. For so long, you've avoided the topic.

It's impossible, now.

See, it doesn't matter if Jungkook sees you before the ceremony.

He's not your groom.

Yoongi is.

He's your counterpart; the son of the Gyeongsang-pa King. A marriage born out of a sacred treaty between the gangs; the promise that together they'll obliterate Sudogwon's unruly mobs that have been making their way south in recent years.

"It's not too late," Jungkook whispers.

But it is, and you both know it. You've come too far to back out now.

Negotiations have been made. Peace treaties signed. Deals across clans finalised.

You're Honam's Princess, but one day you'll be Gyeongsang-pa's Queen.

Jungkook will only ever be a pauper chasing after the big boys.

So you'll say your vows and exchange your rings, and Jungkook won't object.

He'll sit quietly, like a good boy should, and watch you seal your fate.

Will watch Min Yoongi slide a wedding band onto your ring finger.

Will smile to himself when notices your engagement ring holding it in place a few months from now.

Will remind himself of the old tales that go hand in hand with opal engagement rings. If the legends are anything to go by, you'll be a widow within four years. He can wait that long. Has waited far longer, already.

And if, by four years, his time still hasn't come?

Kings can be overthrown. Jungkook is as Jopok as they come. He'll fight dirty.

For you?

He thinks he'll fight to the death.

"You're too good for Gyeongsang," he tells you, neck stretched, the crown of his head resting between his shoulder blades. You're scratching at his hair, looking at him.

With a smile, you shrug. "I'll still be Honam. For you, I'll be Honam."

Jungkook nods. Closes his eyes. Leans into your touch.

"My Honam girl," he says quietly, and it makes you wish that you had just run away with him that very first summer. You'd suggested it after you first thought you had lost your necklace. Thought it would be the only way to keep one another safe - until Jungkook found it between the seats.

You'd thanked the God that you don't believe in at the time. Clutched the necklace over your heart, head tipped to the heavens, all while Jungkook looked only at you. Lucky, he'd said, unaware that it was the worst possible outcome for you both.

You should've run.

Should've fuckin' run.

"Go," you whisper, knowing it's too late for any of that now. "We've got a party to attend, and you can't show up in a pair of sweats."

He likes that you don't call it a wedding, either. Nods. Also knows he can't be caught sneaking from your room. There'd be hell to pay.

Jungkook gets to his feet. Kisses your cheek. Tell you how pretty you look. Slowly walks to the door, then turns to look at you one final time. Spares you from a final remark that could make you feel even worse about the situation.

"Kook?" You call, just because you can't bear to let him leave. Not yet. It's too soon.

He hums a response. Doesn't open the door just yet. Waits for you to speak.

"I wish we never met."

Jungkook looks at his feet. Smiles. Nods. 

"Me, too, babe."  And then, just because he needs it to be known, "I love you."

You don't turn to face him.

"I love you, too."

[mapping-elysium]

Coast Orb: Snow Shivers

WEST

More coast with abandoned buildings and piers

Pre-revolution effort to gentrify the coast

Coal city

Boom town from when revachol was powered mostly by coal

“in the shadow of Saint-Martin”

Supplanted by offshore petroleum and hydropower from Esperance

Infrastructure crumbled. Now a poor area “only the weakest remain”

Below the mines: L'Ossuaire Municipal, Revachol's underground cemetery

Les Petits rats attempt to to find Le Royaume (royal burial chambers)

EAST

Canal and Martinaise

[see PLAZA ORB] whitest part of town

Run-off point of a long forgotten canal

NORTH

Church

1 of 2 remaining stave churches

Originally of a set of 8 called Les Sept Souers “other six sisters were destroyed during the revolutions”

World’s end

Islets

Sea Fortress: The 114th Anti-Aircraft Division of the 4th Army of the Commune of Revachol

Résurrection: Popular spa for  Ozonne residents

A couple of other islets scattered and uninhabited

Martinaise Inlet

Bay of Revachol

1200 m depth

Ozonne

SOUTH

8/81 - raised motorway

Separates Martinaise from Jamrock

Buildings under the motorway (Labyrinthine alleyways)

The Pox

Once a park for the Old Military Hospital

In the 20s was a quarantine center during measles outbreak

Abandoned after the outbreak

Completely wild now, overrun by feral dogs and wolves

Police keep deepest corners cordoned off

Precinct 41

Line of motor garages 

Repurposed silk mill

Central Jamrock

Utility district - Library, florist, saramisizian restaurant

Brothels, drug dens and Zemlyaki(gang) chopshops

Built around lake formed by meteorite strike [Ship in the middle]

Below

sand poisoned with industrial run-off. The storm drainage. Hidden bunkers

NOTES: This is unfortunately the last of the notes I had written ahead of time so things may move slower. Hopefully I've made enough posts that you all can understand the format I'm going for. Joyce's Reality Lowdown is going to take a long time to work through

Shivers - Winter, slow to let go of Revachol, flecks some more wet snow from above...

You - Look around you.

Shivers - The snow falls lazily, making the beach sand paler still, mixing with the rust-coloured sewage run-off.

Shivers - And to think -- it seemed as though it were already spring.

You - How does it feel?

Shivers - Your teeth chatter as the snow melts on your exposed skin, running down your chest and your back in icy rivulets. To distract yourself, you look around...

Replaced with "Your teeth chatter as the snow melts on your exposed skin, running down your chest and your back in icy rivulets. The toes of your one bare foot are growing numb. To distract yourself, you look around..." if HasShoes() == false and (CheckEquipped("shoes_snakeskin_left") or CheckEquipped("shoes_snakeskin_right"))

Replaced with "Your teeth chatter as the snow melts on your exposed skin, running down your chest and your back in icy rivulets. Your bare feet are growing numb. To distract yourself, you look around..." if HasShoes() == false

You - What's in the west?

Shivers - More winding coastline lined with abandoned buildings. Crumbling piers, salt water lapping at their dark piles. Grey and red, forgotten city blocks. What remains of the pre-revolutionary effort to gentrify the coast.

You - And beyond that?

Shivers - The waters turn black. Coal City in the shadow of Saint-Martin, a boom town, back when coal extracted from countless shafts near the city was needed to power Revachol.

Shivers - No more. The coal was supplanted by petroleum from the ocean floor and hydropower from the Esperance. Everything crumbled. These days, only the weakest remain in Coal City. Their hopes of getting rich linger in the defunct shafts under their feet.

You - What is there?

Shivers - Below the old mines -- L'Ossuaire Municipal, Revachol's underground cemetery. *Les petits rats* brave the underground passageways, trying to get to Le Royaume...

You - Le Royaume...

Shivers - ...where the Filippian kings were interred, with their doctors and their admirals. Mausoleums, burial chambers, leaf gold still remains on the Double Door of the Morning.

You - That's where Cuno said he's gonna go...

Shivers - Yes. To peel the gold off with his fingernails.

You - Les *petits rats*...

Shivers - Children under 14. They go underground, looking for artefacts to sell to foreign museums -- and for fabled relics. Their parents let them. They go deeper...

You - Deeper...

Shivers - ...after rubies, melchiorite, lapis lazuli plundered from Safre and Seol during the time of the Suzerain. In the burial chambers of the kings: Grand Old Filippe, Guillaume II, and even in the mausoleum of Filippe the Opulent.

Shivers - Two kilometres underground, in a winding shaft along whose walls mirrors have been placed so that daylight may eternally fall upon the richest of all the kings.

Shivers - The mausoleum contains untold quantities of gold -- and that special, purest-of-the-pure magenta cocaine favoured by Revacholian royalty.

Electrochemistry - Did someone say *untold quantities of cocaine*? Drop everything immediately and go looking for this hoard!

Logic - How can it be pure if it's magenta?

You - Wipe the snow from your shoulder.

Shivers - Few *petits rats* return from the shafts -- and even fewer find what they're looking for. A small child steps out of a black tunnel, with silver trinkets in her pockets.

Shivers - All around her, white snow on the extinguished coke furnaces, and on the weather-worn shacks, where fathers beat their sons after drinking. The snow melts on your fingers, turning to water.

You - What's in the east?

Shivers - The canal you crossed to get here, and beyond it -- Martinaise proper, the district the police forgot to police. There is laughter, lights, attempts at entrepreneurial activity, cynicism.

Shivers - Someone is scraping snow off their windshield. At the roundabout, in the midst of which a statue of Filippe the III serves as a destination for grade-school field trips and a fine perch for winter birds.

You - And further...

Shivers - A fenced-off yard. There's a truck belonging to a logistics company parked next to the gate. Bright light from a building behind the fence reflects off its hood.

Replaced with "A fenced-off yard. There's a truck belonging to a logistics company parked next to the gate. You've seen it. Bright light from a building behind the fence reflects off its hood." if Variable["jam.dlc_truck_shivers_orb_done"]

Replaced with "A fenced-off yard. There's a truck belonging to a logistics company parked next to the gate. You've heard about it. Bright light from a building behind the fence reflects off its hood." if Variable["village.idiot_cocaine_dlc"]

Conceptualization - Clean white light, coming from the windows of a clean cube-shaped office building hidden amidst ruins. A secret...

You - What's in the north?

Shivers - The abandoned church. One of two remaining stave churches which were collectively called les Sept Soeurs. The other six sisters were destroyed during the Revolution.

You - And further north?

Shivers - A serpentine strip of land weaving its way into the Martinaise inlet. Unfortunates on the run -- from the law, from themselves -- sometimes hide out on nearby islets. Little dots in the ocean that are occasionally submerged when the tide is high and the weather foul.

You - And on the islets?

Shivers - The remains of a camp on a jagged piece of rock -- a tent, old dishes and cutlery. Long since abandoned. A hermit crab scuttles among the debris, looking for a new shell.

Shivers - Further out, the lights burn bright on Résurrection; way beyond Martinaise -- a popular spa destination for ample-bodied Ozonne kids with equally ample pockets.

You - And on the other side of the inlet?

Shivers - Then there's Ozonne... but the snow falls too thick. You cannot see that far.

You - Before that? Before the curtains are drawn...

Shivers - The Bay of Revachol, vastness, great depth -- over 1200 m at its deepest. Water, air brinier than here. It is crisscrossed by huge cargo ships bearing company logos: Wild Pines, ZAMM, Moriyn.

Shivers - And, at the farthest reaches of the Bay of Revachol -- the shadow of Coalition Warship Archer, on perpetual patrol duty, ready to unleash artillery fire if you were to rise up against the market. You shudder.

You - What's in the south?

Shivers - The raised motorway, 8/81, separating Martinaise from Jamrock. Vehicles whoosh past one another day and night, while those who reside in the labyrinthine alleyways beneath the motorway attempt to carry on with their lives in the snow and the slush. And south of the 8/81 is the Pox.

You - The Pox...

Shivers - ...was once a park, a place for reflection and recuperation for the patients of the Old Military Hospital. In the Twenties, it was used as a quarantine centre during a measles outbreak that killed many children. Most everyone has avoided the hospital and surrounding park ever since.

Shivers - The Pox is completely wild now. Evergreen thickets covered in snow and industrial dust. Feral dogs and even wolves roaming in packs. The police try to keep the deepest corners cordoned off.

You - But still...

Shivers - ...heavy drug users do slip through and hole up in the Old Military Hospital, hoping to find something to get high on among the hastily abandoned supplies. Or just to overdose in peace.

You - Further south...

Shivers - A line of motor garages with armoured carapaces, hunched in the cold. A mechanic is hard at work, patching up bullet holes in the side of a Coupris 40. These are the garages of Precinct 41. Snow settles on the roof of the re-purposed silk mill that serves as your station. Shivering RCM personnel hurry in and out of the main entrance.

Mack Torson - "Wonder if Vic's found his hetero-sexual life partner yet." The man in the fishnet wifebeater looks over at Chester McLaine.

Chester McLaine - "Damn, I don't know. Even a real *bröderbund* like that can't survive everything..."

Shivers - Around you, the snow continues to fall. To the west, the ocean swells.

You - No, it was home. I want more.

Shivers - The stairs descend -- to Central Jamrock. A man named Kuklov has a snow-covered stall there, in the market across the bridge. He sells kebab infested with fly larvae to your colleagues who believe eating it will make them immune to food poisoning.

Shivers - Snow falls on the utility district: the library, the florist, the Saramirizian restaurant that offers homemade wine. And also on the brothels and drug dens, and the chop shops of the zemlyaki.

Shivers - All of this built around a lake that formed in a meteorite strike. At the centre of this lake, there is a little ship. There are lights at the bottom of its hull. They are lights directed toward the sea floor, looking for something, like whiskers...

You - For what?

Shivers - A chill comes over you, crawling down your back. The sand under your feet is wet. Somewhere in the south, tarpaulin flap in the wind.

You - What's below me?

Shivers - Layer upon layer of sand poisoned with industrial run-off. The storm drainage. Hidden bunkers. Rats scuttle...

You - Tell me a secret of the sands, wind.

Shivers - Someone's stuffed a big old polar anorak into a concrete pipe under the boardwalk. It would keep you warm. You will probably never happen across it, but who knows.

You - Stomp your feet for warmth, brushing off the snow. [Finish thought.]

Kim Kitsuragi - "We should keep moving. Who knows when this snow will let up?"

[justforbooks]

Trina Robbins

American cartoonist and author whose pioneering work in comics included being the first female artist to draw Wonder Woman

The American illustrator and writer Trina Robbins, who has died aged 85, began her career in comics in her native New York in the 1960s as a contributor to the counterculture newspaper East Village Other. She also drew and wrote strips for Gothic Blimp Works, an underground comic.

Then came comic strips, covers and spot illustrations for the underground publications Berkeley Tribe and It Ain’t Me, Babe, often described as the first feminist newspaper, before before she put together an all-women comic, It Ain’t Me, Babe Comix (1970), followed by the anthology All Girl Thrills (1971) and the solo comic Girl Fight Comics (1972).

Her black heroine, Fox, was serialised in Good Times (1971) and another of her characters, Panthea, who first appeared in Gothic Blimp Works (1969), was a regular in Comix Book (1974-76).

She also became one of the 10 founders of Wimmen’s Comix, an all-female underground comics anthology published from 1972 to 1992, and in the late 70s was a contributor to High Times, Heavy Metal, National Lampoon and Playboy.

Later she adapted the 1919 novel Dope, by Sax Rohmer, for Eclipse Comics (1981-83) and wrote and drew Meet Misty (1985-86) for Marvel. She was also the first woman to draw Wonder Woman, in The Legend of Wonder Woman (1986).

Robbins’ wider interest in the history of girls’ comics led her to co-write a book about the genre, Women and the Comics (1986), with Catherine Yronwode, and later A Century of Women Cartoonists (1993), followed by a number of biographies of female comic pioneers, including Nell Brinkley, Lily Renée, Gladys Parker and Tarpé Mills.

Born in Brooklyn, she grew up in Queens, where her mother, Bessie (nee Roseman) was a teacher. Her father, Max Perlson, was a tailor who later wrote for Yiddish-language newspapers and published a collection of stories, A Minyen Yidn (1938), that was turned by Trina into a comic anthology in 2017.

At the age of 10 she graduated from reading wholesome animal comics to Millie the Model, Patsy Walker and others with female protagonists. The Katy Keene comic was especially influential, as it encouraged Robbins to make paper dolls and design clothing for them. She was also a huge fan of the jungle adventuress Sheena.

Having discovered science fiction at 14, Robbins began attending conventions, and at one such gathering she met the short story writer Harlan Ellison. At 21 he was five years her senior, but they dated briefly and he later wrote her into his film The Oscar (1966) as Trina Yale, played by Edie Adams.

Trina attended Queens College before studying drawing at Cooper Union, although she dropped out after a year. In 1957 she married the cartoonist Art Castillo; they moved to the Bay area of Los Angeles until he disappeared to Mexico and the relationship ended.

Working for a time as a model for men’s magazines, she was a cinema usherette when she met Paul Robbins, whom she married in 1962 following Castillo’s death. Her new husband wrote for the LA Free Press, which gave her access to the Byrds, Bob Dylan and other musicians, and she began making clothing to sell to musician friends, including Mama Cass.

Returning alone to New York in 1966 (she and Robbins eventually divorced, in 1972), she opened a boutique called Broccoli on East 4th Street, making clothes for exotic customers and having flings with a number of them, including the Doors’ singer Jim Morrison and the activist Abbie Hoffman; she also had longer relationships with Paul Williams, editor of Crawdaddy magazine, and the cartoonist Kim Deitch, with whom she set up a cartoon art museum on East 9th Street.

Her clothes-making got her into a song by Joni Mitchell, who wrote in Ladies of the Canyon that “Trina wears her wampum beads / She fills her drawing book with line / Sewing lace on widows’ weeds / And filigree on leaf and vine”.

After she had sold her boutique in 1969 and began to make her living in comics, there was no looking back.

Apart from her writing and illustrating activities over the years, in 1994 she became one of the founders of Friends of Lulu, a US-based charity that promotes the reading of comic books by women and the participation of women in the comic book industry.

Her later work on the history of women in comics produced three further books, From Girls to Grrrlz (1996), The Great Women Cartoonists (2001) and Pretty in Ink (2013).

She also wrote a number of books for children, starting with Catswalk: The Growing of Girl (1990), and including the Chicagoland Detective Agency series (2010-14) of bizarre high school mystery adventures.

For adults she wrote The Great Women Superheroes (1996), Eternally Bad: Goddesses With Attitude (2001), Tender Murderers: Women Who Kill (2003) and Wild Irish Roses: Tales of Brigits, Kathleens and Warrior Queens (2004).

Her most recent comic was Won’t Back Down (2024), a pro-choice anthology.

She is survived by her partner, Steve Leialoha, a daughter, Casey, from her relationship with Dietch, and her sister Harriet.

🔔 Trina Robbins, writer and illustrator, born 17 August 1938; died 10 April 2024

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

[astarab1aze]

Nations and Their Cities (4)

Norhaven - north of chimachi across the bay of lights, south of the barrowfells and east of breslin

Capital: Stönmead

Cities: Hakkon, Blodfjor, Edda, Vulkholm, Calder, Andervik, Ealdermorne, Brithfar, Virith, Bogwood, Juniper, Dyrheim, Holmesberg, Balta, Skivik, Florstad, Beorn, Norsiche, Helm, Røyk, Smibølg, Mjødjord

Sights: Bonnesäx Forge (the largest dragon bone forge on the continent), Khuthd's Well (lava flow under the forge), Ruins of V'hai (ancient elfhen ruin beneath Stönmead), Alfskog ('forest of elves'), Trollhammer (grave of the trolls), Dødsflamme (monument to those who died from dragon attacks), Bay of Lights (shared with Chimachi for funerary rites), Flaxen Fields (fields of blessed golden grain), King Ragnvar's Apiary (royal beekeepers), Steinhage (a 'garden' of carven stone statues), Hvit Isfelt (ever frozen pools people use to skate or fish), Kjempoppe (cliffside site of a massacre, used for suicides now near Skivik), Lord Seidr's Mysterium (arcane emporium belonging to renowned diviner Seidr of the Open Mind), the Seething River (river of boiling-hot sulphuric water), The Bee & Bear Meadery (famous meadery run by bees and bears in Mjødjord), and more.

Strigane - west of myrrdin, south of viostra & kavast, northwest of nilmyrion

Capital: Sisyphia

Cities: Aylmunt, Vina Morte, Blodmire, Femura, Radialis, Lyka, Grimshkari, Craven, Balefiera, Coffindwell, Heartland, Sepulchria, Sangesivin, Orga, Medens, Rufus, Gravis, Upira, Libitina, Stricat, Schelet, Sacrificare, Exutus, Iumenta, Vivere, Frigor, Aortia, Vaalichia, Nixtriga, Enavryn, Kharne, Kainsgrove, Nospirita

Sights: Dead Fens (wetlands full of preserved bodies from previous conflicts), Night's Sacred Ground (the land on which Sisyphia is located), Night's Cathedral (a bastion of Strigani education for both humans and undead), Sanguinach's Pit (a still active volcano in the Strigani Dragon's Spine), Castle Severa Gor (a glorified prison), Sanctum Ossus (castle built from bone), Letum Dominus (monument to a long-dead lord), Sanctus Os Infernum (the Strigani gate to the hells), Memoria Insidium Pools (a series of small, blood red pools mirroring the hells), Kaer Dēle (witcher school), the Bloodwood (ironically named forest of pines that bleed red sap), Ashblight Gap (plains and forests still effected by the Mad Empress' war), Zâneferus Garrán (fey pools), and plenty more.

Breslin - east of the dustveil, north of the a'virda fhal'tir, west of norhaven, yuurei, and chimachi, northwest of kopari & j'verdien

Capital: Briquette (locally pronounced 'Bricket', like cricket with a b)

Cities: Vinia, Myrrmid, Raidd, Shadecopse, Peartree, Dead Sow, Cottonwood Village, Buckhorn, Almasc, Vettiver, sister cities Close and Far (in relation to the capital), Braeburn

Sights: Owlit Valley (a valley almost totally inhabited by owls), Blackthorne Brush (an ill-omened extension of the Vitalean Blackthorne Bramble), Crown of Bonnesäx (the true tomb of the famed dragon), Hargraven's Refuge (sanctuary lands for animals), Coldfire Fortress (old citadel built into the mountain near Briquette, serves double as an underground tunnel to the Barrowfells), Forbidden Nesting Grounds (ancient dragon nests), Pettablossom Church (heretical dragon worshippers in the Nesting Grounds), Progenitor's Start (temple honoring the Firsts of mythical species, gods unto themselves), the Copper River (muddy-orange river flowing out of the mountain), The Dragon's Wall (flat, sorta cliffside of the mountain), Drakehaven Manse (Knights of the Dragon headquarters), and so on and so forth.

[midnightostara]

*Hearing about Lebanon being attacked by Israel and Israel starting a war against Lebanon*

🇮🇱: We are not at war with Lebanon but they have underground missiles in their house and hiding Hezbollah in them!

🇺🇸 & the supporters of 🇮🇱: We support you! We will give you more weapons and armory to help you!

Me: 😐😐😐😐😐

Palestine was just a test run and now Israel is continuing what they did in Gaza to Lebanon. They will go after the Middle East or other countries but no one will bay an eye while they do this due to they blindly follow what Israel says.

We already know about Israel’s plan for the “greater Israel”, by expanding their country to other countries.

That is what they’re doing right now.

People is Israel are not human.

They’re black hearted souls and cruel to those that are not like them.

[omegaremix]

July 21, 2022.

The biggest music haul ever had been made. So big that I needed two visits to the same store, Jesus, and fucking Mary to pull it off. High Fidelity’s stock has gotten so stuffed that there were piles and piles of disorganized vinyl records, discs, and cassettes all over the place. Under the bins, on top of the bins, on the floor, up high on the wall that you can’t reach. Mark the owner was so bad with overstock that he moved two blocks down to a bigger space and that wasn’t enough. His downstairs stock room he once boasted was off-limits and even a stack of vinyl records almost fell on me from above. It was a literal death hazard - but I survived. You’d think that two round-trips and $893.00 spent would be the penultimate event to cap off another intensive record-store victory tour. No.

There were two other stores I’d yet to visit. Plainview’s Vinyl Bay 777 and Amangansett’s Innersleeve Records. The one time I went to Vinyl Bay- was when I walked out empty-handed because they marked all of their stock three to four times more what other stores sold. There was no reason for me to pay more than I should for a vinyl record I could find elsewhere for a third or fourth of the price. Vinyl Bay was disqualified. That left Innersleeve Records a place of interest. I didn’t go in the previous round and had considered making the ninety-minute trip out to the East End to check it out - until I saw their latest social media post. Ouch! Their prices were even higher than that of Vinyl Bay’s and on new pressings. Vinyl-price cockfighting at its finest. I wanted no part of it. That moment I declared my island run of stores done. Nope. That’s it. I don’t want to hear it any more. La la la la la la fuck you.

Though, there was one store in New York City I was meaning to visit. That was Greenpoint’s Captured Tracks. My show Omega WUSB had just done a three-hour label tribute about the feel-good label and we always played their artists when we found them. They were around for years with no sign of stopping, so why not come take a ride and check it out? Let’s have another bonus round with another city jaunt, shall we?

Late July’s weather isn’t the most colorful but it’s certainly the brightest when it has cloud cover. I stood at the Central Islip platform and look up to see the lit white skies in 80*F weather. I board the train westward to Penn Station and…what a surprise? It’s thunder-storming and raining mercilessly. I didn’t see this coming, so I have no choice but to deal with it.

Deal with it I did. God didn’t give me lemons but instead gave me a 9/2 offsuit. I arrived at Penn Station and transferred to catch the ‘E’ line. It was insufferable. This was a sneak preview of the 7th Circle Of Hell. Everyone dealt with post-rain humidity in a limited underground space and were dying like dogs. I was drenched in sweat and felt like my clothes were falling off. The ‘E’ arrived and what a saving grace. I felt the cold chill of the air conditioner settling on me, erasing the half-an-hour of disgusting unease. The ‘E’ ended its travel and I transfer to the ‘G’ line to Greenpoint. In five minutes it was all over.

I walk up the stairs to Manhattan Ave. and I see nothing but hazy blue skies and sharp sunshine beaming on me, as if the rainstorm never even happened. I’m back at my element. I walk south on Manhattan Ave. to observe and breathe in what was Brooklyn to me. Two blonde women in Polish tongues walk past me as I process the storefronts, the graffiti, sticker vandalism, and cramped crooked sidewalks. I approach and turn the corner on Calyer Street only to learn that I walked past Captured Tracks?! I turn around and I finally found it. The way to The House of Mike Sniper was downstairs. It was a dream, was it? I never had to take a downwards path to any establishment. I hobbled below and here we are: a dense but neatly-packed music store with plenty of boxes of 45”, pricey first- and rare pressings, bins to fumble through, and several lower shelves of records not for sale designated for their Discogs store. It was going to be another intense day digging in the bins.

Three hours and $117.00 later, I finally declared my record-store victory tour of ‘22 finished for good. Nothing else fitting to cap it off with another perfect day in Greenpoint. I walk up Manhattan Avenue with my tote of vinyl records away from the clear sharp sun as its intensive rays bake into my skin. The skies bluer and the air much dryer. Then I notice something I didn’t expect to find: Sunshine Laundromat. Here’s another place I was dying to visit since my post-operation; one which my radio station friends decided to go without me. I’m here, so why not? I’m about to walk into a surreal dream - in reality.

I walk in and I couldn’t believe it. It’s the first time I walked into a laundromat since my stay in Lindenhurst. I walk down the narrow space past the rogue pinball tables and there was the secret door disguised as stackable units that led into the back room arcade. A speak-easy if I ever saw one. All that stood between me and that Murphy door was the nice lady who ran the place. She told me they would re-open the pinball speakeasy as soon as the city OKs their alcohol license. Sounds hopeful if you ask me. I thanked her for the good news and walked out knowing there will be another reason to come back to Brooklyn.

I head on to the ‘G’ to transfer and ride on the ‘E’ line back to Penn Station. It’s 7PM and the visible sun is coming down for the day; slowly sinking against the perfectly clean sky blue backdrop with no clouds in sight. I board the train back home and take a window seat moving backwards. The train motions and the blinding sun peeks through the window as I feel the frigid blanket of the air conditioner. There’s a sparse placement of riders in the same car as me. I can sit and relax knowing that my entire run of spending money all over New York City and Long Island has come to a satisfying end.

New Mexico Stargazers: “Santa Fe Cruiser”

Did You Die: “We Can Do Whatever”

True Dreams: “Reaching”

Vasco Rossi: “Siamo Soli”

Queensway: “Return To Dirt”

Pinch Points: “Am I Feeling OK?”

Public Service: “O Sabine”

Offset: Spectacles, The: “Snags”

Grimes: “Shinigami Eyes”

Schedule 1: “Show Your Children”

Mom: “Things Come Into Place”

Paper Dollhouse: “Swans”

Bad Kiss: “Gimme Action”

Strangers With Guns: “Somebody Needs A Hug’

Offset: Spectacles, The: “Color”

Offset: Spectacles, The: “Dead Air”

Deeper: “Only A Shadow”

Totally Unicorn: “All”

Paper Dollhouse: “Moon”

Spellling: “Queen Of Wands”

Krallice: “Crystaline Exhaustion”

Daniel Johnston: “In A Lifetime”

Sasami: “Say It”

INVSN: “Slow Disco”

Traps PS: “Voids”

Life In Vacuum: “9 To 5”

Jesus Fucking Christ: “Sadistic Madness”

Black Dresses: “Hertz”

Free Love: “May You Be The Mother”

Belk: “Question Of Stress”

Michael Berdan: “God Won’t Help Me (Cause Man Won’t)”

[y2k-aesthetic]

I am the Queen

Call me the Princess

Give the the fucking crown! already

Spent all day

Gettin’ ready

With shoes made for ballet

As I dance around my house

And I pretend to be a mouse!

I’m a mouse, lol, welcome to my house!

My little hidey hole

I don’t know

I don’t even think so

dude

don’t chase me

don’t chase me

don’t chase me to the void in the basement

(yeah)

don’t chase me

don’t chase me

never chase me downnnnnn

ooooowoooooowoooooaaaoooooooo

Let’s get it poppin’

Wooooooooooooooooah

Just wanna dance

(bitch!)

Ooooooooooooooooooooowwwwwwwwwwwwwwooooooooowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww

We’re gonna throw a party

We’re gonna throw a party

Right on up into space!

Cuz it’s an

It’s an abduction baby

Woooooooooaaaoooooaaaahh

And it’s a rape!

oops but yeah

oh yeah

You dare not speak its name

yeah

oh yeah

you give it power

yeah

oh yeah

you silly billy boys

Hit the green room and sit

the fuck

DOWN

it’s time to partay

owooooooaaaoooooh

you know I need attention!

ALL EYES ON ME GUYS

ONE TWO THREE

WE POPPIN IT

OH!

WE POPPIN IT

OH!

WE POPPIN IT

OOOOWOOOOAAAOOOOOOOAAAH

Because we dance

We dance we dance!

Because we dance

We dance we dance!

We’re gonna put on a show

wink wink wink wink yeah

I’m gonna put on a show

Let’s get the party started!

I’m gonna put on a show

a show!

a show!

I’m gonna put on a show

a little play

all my girls say hey, hey, hey!

we in the club

what what what

uh

we getting drunk

and you can talk to the hand

BITCH BITCH BITCH GO

AWAY

what what

You know I said

GO

AWAY

MOM

I love you but it is

Time for me

to spread my wings and fly

You know I can get by

I just wanna fly

I wanna fly away

Have a getaway

Down in the everglades!

And visit disney!

Ohwoah

And universal!

Owoah

And maybe even Bush Gardens

Ohwoahwoahwoah

And we’ll head down to Saint Petersburg by car

Then we’ll get down and toast down at the bar

We’ll tap our drinks

we’ll tap our drinks

drinks

drinks

Wash in the sink with ya hands

and fix your lip gloss

we’re gonna put on a show!

ohwoahwoahohohoh

And when I get down and dance

Please don’t look down at their pants!

Is that a banana?

Or are you happy to see me?

(Happy to see me!)

You know I like to get sleazy and get down

and get down

And I live down underground

The Underground!

I’ll be down at my mom’s house

He’ll get his cock out

And fuck me like

I’ve never

Been fucked before

I went and laid out a trail of roses

leading to my room

Ohwoahohohoooaah

And you can come any time

Ohwoahwoahwoah

And feel the dark undertoe

oh woah woah woooaaaaaaaaaoaoah

snatch me up

snatch me up

snatch me up boy!

[clap clap]

I’m in my childhood bedroom right now

Just typing a poem on my laptop

It’s just a backdrop

To my life

And you can come any time

Ohwoahwoahwoooaaaooh

And we’ll dance in my garage

Ohwoahwoahwoooaaaaoh

Give me a nice good massage

Ohwoahwoahwoooaaoooooooaoah

And when I’m in the girls’ room

ooooaaahahwooooaaaahhhooooohhhhoh

You can park out outside

Come in the front door!

If you think you wanna dance

Then you’re my hunter!

Snatch me up and drag me deep down under!

There’s a chasm in the earth

And you’ll lift up my skirt

But first

Feed yo kids

Get some rest daddy

I love you daddy

Kiss

Kiss

Kiss!

I know you won’t ever miss

You love my lifestyle!

So I went for a walk

and then the Karens

(then the Karens)

Well, they saw what I’m wearin’

And when they thought I could dance

ohwoahwoahwaooooahh

Then they saw their husbands’ pants!

And looked the door

I need a metaphor!

They called the cops

Called the cops!

On me

On me

Cuz I was shinin’ fancy free

Fancy free

I’m Fancy Free

And when they thought I was a hooker

Ohohohooooaaawoooaah

I’m such a looker

They called the cops and then they stopped by

Stopped by

They took a lol and said “K thx bai!”

Sorry to bother you miss

I mean like, can you even believe this?

They shut me down

Shut me down

In my own damn neighborhood!

East Hill Streetwalker

I don’t even play soccer

But these feet love to move!

Move

And I wear ballet shoes

When I walk down on the street

So I have time to think

Time to think

And then I don’t even blink

Even blink

They called the cops and shoooed me home

No really though!

Imprisoned in my tower once again

Once again, for goodness’ sakes!

I can just levitate

Levitate

I got my theme song

I’ll never be wrong

And I can dance anywhere, anytime

I just wanna grove and dance!

(in my underpants. tee hee!)

And I just wanna party

Just wanna party baby

Let’s throw it down

Make a sound

Make some noise

And maybe we’ll invite some boys

Invite some boys!

And we’ll sit in my garage

And we’ll drink some siroc!

A gin and tonic baby

And I’m not even crazy

You guys just don’t understand me

Stand me

And if you could hand me

hand me

The mike!

I wanna fight!

I wanna fight!

owoowooowaaaoooaaooooon

Start a fight at the show

And I’ll see it

And I’ll see it

I wanna be it!

Those toxic men can suck their own cocks

We’re sick of their shit

For goodness’ sake take a breath

A breather

Wooaaoohohohohoh

And hit the basement!

And the living room

And the dining room

Maybe even the sun porch

Ohohohohwoahoh

As you can see, my room has a horse

A horse

Actually several

They’re kinda metal

Boys like fast cars

Women love a horse!

Of course! Of course!

If you believe it

Well then you’ve just got to see it

And you can come and drop by

Any time!

(any time!)

See you in late july!

(late july!)

We’ll sit out on the porch

of course

woahohohohohoh

And have some coffee and cake

Woahohohohohoh

And watch a bitch levitate!

Woahohohohohoh

Come check out my outfit!

Check out my oufit!

Come see this skirt!

See, I’m an aesthete

I’m an aesthete

And I can’t be beat

at all

woahohohohohoh

And when I strut my stuff

It’ll never be enough

For the boys

To even wanna stop

Let’s do it baby!

Let’s do it ladies!

Let’s start the chain!

Let’s start the train!

WE ARE WITCHES!!!

(We’re not witches!)

We are not bitches

are not bitches!

See, we can be really sweet

So get me something to eat

Cuz I need a sweet treat

Woahohohohohoh

Take me out to eat

Get me a glass of wine

Thats sounds hella fine

And you can talk to me

Tell me your story, see if we vibe

See if we vibe

And then I met Mike!

And he felt just right!

I’m not alone anymore

Woahohohoh

The product of eternal girlrot

Woahohohohohoh

Down so deep beneath the earth

Beneath the earth!

The earth!

I stretch my roots down like a tree

Like a tree baby

And I read all I can see

That I can see baby!

I’m constantly reading

And not ever eating

And I think that’s okay!

Ohohohohwoahohoh

I eat like a bird

But that’s okay

That’s okay

I’m gonna be nourished

And hydrated

And I think that my phone just vibrated

Maybe it’s my guy

Take me to the sky!

And I just have a great message you guys

I AM THE EARTH

THE SEA

I’M ME

I’M ME MYSELF

COME ASK FOR HELP!

I’M HERE TO HELP ALL THE FOLX

AND FIX PROBLEMS!

AND I GATHERED UP KNOWLEDGE

IN THE LIBRARY

AND IN MY PHONE

LIBGEN.IS

SHOUT OUT

SHOUT OUT

AND THEN ZLIBRARY

IF YOU GUYS WANNA VIBE WITH ME

THEN COME GET ME TONIGHT!!

AND COME ABDUCT ME!

Abduct Persephone

Persephone

Then you will see

You will see

You will see

Got such boss bitch energy

Ohwoahwoahwoahohoh

I came from the basement

ohwoahwoahwoahohoh

I got a corset with a lacement

Oh woahwoahwoahwoahwoah

I got a snatched waist

And a cute face

And long lean legs

And a tight little butt

And a cosmic space pussy!

Trained in neuroenticement

Neuroenticement

See, I’ll do it just right bitch

just right bitch

This is my anthem

Ohwoahwoahwoahohoh

My manifesto

It’s got some zest tho!

So hear me out

Widen the streets!

I got bad bitch energy

Dark femininity

And I just came her to sing

Came here to sing

I can’t hear my phone ring lol

Phone ring lol

And I look like a fuckdoll!

Lmao!

And I don’t even know how

I achieved it

Beauty. Grace. All up in you face!

In yo face

Face

Face

And you see, I’m wearing lace

Lace

Lace

Lace

I’ll make them dudes levitate

So don’t even hesitate

You got my socials baby

So call me maybe

We gonna get

The night

The party

The vibe

STARTYED STARTED!

COME ON LET’S GET IT STARTED!

My bro made Cleanly Joes

And I’m ready to go!

I got one thing on my mind

Ohwoahwoahwoahohoh

I am Odette and Odile

A Disney Princess

Princess!

Ohwoahwoahohohoh

Yeah, see, I’m Daddy’s little princess

Princess

And I’m his princess now

And you all know how!

And he can come anytime ;)

And because we vibe

And he loves me

You see, he is the guy that gets to fuck me

He won!

Woahohohohohoh

Y’all should be more like lhim

Like him!

And it’s sink or swim

I’M GONNA SAVE THE WORLD TONIGHT

woahohohohohoh

I’m gonna put a show

Ohohohohohoh

And I got a whole ass shpeil

Gonna turn the wheel

We gonna stop time

Stop time

STOP TIME!

And we’re ready go in 3 2 1, Live!

And now we;’re live

And I’ll wear a disguise!

Raise the curtain baby

Cuz

We

Are

Live!!!

And I got such energy

Energy

So what’s it like to be me, to be me?

Well, it’s a hell of a road

And rocky

But they’re never gonna fucking stop me

I clawed my way

My way

Out of the dirt

And often it hurt,

Ohwoahwoahwoahwoahwoah

But I like the pain wink wink

And as I start the chain

And I dig right in

And go for a swim

So hit the highway!

Hit the highway!

Unless you do it my way

MY WAY!

And I got such energy

energy

hang on, gotta use the bathroom lol

and put on a shawl!

I’m bedecked in finery

They all wanna cry with me

I’ll make you smile

Make you smile

Just for a while

For a little while

You can be happy

And content

And you can truly be free

COME FREE YOSELVES!

Humanity

And I got such energy

I LOVE YOU ALL!

I’m not a sponge for hate

and your anger

And it often turned out I was in danger

Of being bit

By a snake

By a sneaky snake!

Cuz he’s a snake in the grass

And he saw me

And he wanted my ass!

He coveted me as his own, you see.

Aredthel and Eol

But it then got old

And so I done up and left, and has his baby!

But baby don’t worry, it’s all gravy!

All gravy baby!

It’s wavy!

I know who I am

And what I’m about

I am my only friend

And my only foe

And I know how to love myself tonight

And my soul and my body feel just right

Come get me

And take me home to the umderworld

I’ll reign as your queen

And we’ll live unseen

Beneath the ground, where shadows abound

And we’ll dance to the silent sound.

Please daddy snatch me

Know you can catch me

With your big strong arms

In your bougie white car

Gonna make me a star

Make me a star

AND RAPE ME

DESECRATE MY IN MY BED AND

PLUCK THAT FLOWER RIGHT OUT OF MY BODY

AND DADDY, YOU KNOW THAT I’VE BEEN VERY NAUGHTY

I’M A SPOILED BRAT, YOU SEE

GOT THAT BAD BITCH ENERGY

DADDY KNOWS WHAT TO DO

HE WILL CARRY ME TO MY ROOM

TO MY ROOM

IN THE BASEMENT

THE UNDERWORLD

YOU KNOW WHAT’S ABOUT TO HAPPEN GIRLS!

SO K THX BYE!

KAY THX BYE!

FOR JUST A WHILE, TTYL!

I’M NOT LONGER IN HELL

TAKE MY HAND BECAUSE

I’LL DRAG YOU OUT OF HELL

FOREVER

CUZ I LOVE YOU

I LOVE HUMANITY

THE EARTH

AND SPACE!

SO TAKE MY HAND AND I PROMISE

YOU’LL UNDERTAND

WHAT I’M ABOUT

AND I JUST WANNA SHOUT

I AM

THE AVATAR

THE AVATARA

KALKETTE

A SAUCY COQUETTE

IN MY SCHOOLGIRL SKIRT

PLATINUM BLONDE

I’M GONNA ROCK THE WORLD TONIGHT

AND I WILL SAVE YOU ALL

I’LL SAVE HUMANITY

AND I WILL SAVE THE EARTH ONCE MORE FOREVER!!!

GOT THAT BAD BITCH ENERGY!

I’M THE DIVINE FEMININE

I JUST WANNA SHOW YA

I AM EMILIE ANNE

AND I AM KORE

KHTHONIA

THE MAIDEN OF THE UNDERWORLD

AND I ASCENDED TO EARTH

TO START THE SHOW!

[nicklloydnow]

“I grew up in the 1960s in Hermosa Beach, California – a golden South Bay surfer city. My father, Freddy Pfahler, was a legendary surfer who was in Bruce Brown documentaries, including The Endless Summer (1966) and Slippery When Wet (1958). It was an idyllic time, when surfing was our American Renaissance and the lights of consciousness were being turned on. There was so much ritual, mythology and non-traditional religious custom in my life – like getting up at 5am with my father to watch the tide.

(…)

Mary Heilmann, Lorraine O’Grady – in fact, I was in a performance this year with Lorraine, Laurie Anderson and Anohni at The Kitchen in New York called She Who Saw Beautiful Things. It was dedicated to the late Japanese trans performer Dr Julia, who played with Anohni and the Johnsons. And, in 2008, my work was shown alongside Mary Heilmann’s at the Whitney Biennial. I’ve been incredibly lucky to work with some of my favourite teachers and artists. I didn’t care for Joseph Kosuth, though. He once screamed at me: ‘Kembra, what are you?’ At first, I turned away, because his words really hurt me. Then I looked him in the eye and said: ‘I’m an availabilist. I make the best use of what’s available.’ Sometimes, anger can point you in a direction, and that’s what happened to me that day. I invented availabilism because he enraged me.

(…)

My first husband, Samoa Moriki. When I first saw him, he was dancing on the bar at the Pyramid Club in the East Village. We were married and worked together for 21 years. He was from Hiroshima and adored Japanese theatre: Butoh, Noh and playwrights like Yukio Mishima. But he especially loved extreme outside performances, in which people would dive from the sky into pools of water: physically courageous, beautiful acts. Samoa appeared at one of the first Wigstock drag festivals with Lady Bunny and collaborated with the great performance artist Tanya Ransom, who sadly died of AIDS. Ransom was queer but had a child with a woman called Paula Swede. At the time, many of us were gender fluid and simply didn’t talk about it: the language was only just being born. Later, important people like Ron Athey, Bruce LaBruce and Vaginal Creme Davis would articulate it.

(…)

I loved all of Karen Black’s films: she was somehow beautiful yet ugly, and her consciousness was so expanded. One day, Mike Kuchar, the underground filmmaker, said to me: ‘Oh, Kembra: your work looks voluptuously horrific.’ And that’s how the name started. Karen Black actually came to the band’s first L.A. performance, in 1991, and introduced us saying: ‘I’m not sure if this is meant to be an insult or an homage: does voluptuous mean I’m curvy or fat?’ Then she took my hand and said: ‘You’re an artist and this is a creative project.’ She never sued me; she just let me be an artist.

(…)

I do feel the need for community and I believe the greatest changes are wrought through open-mindedness and grassroots activism – the principles of which are still the most vital to me. Important as it is to collaborate and meet others, though, I still spend a great deal of time isolating myself, instinctively protecting this painful humanity. But I learned the value of contrarianism from Lydia Lunch. So, when I crave retreat, I remind myself to go out.

(…)

There’s a very thin veil of freedom and truth over what is currently known as democracy. I would love to invent a different vocabulary for what exists now, but I can’t articulate it today.”

“Perseverance is something I don't think about. I don’t really suggest anyone navigating their work in any way unfamiliar to their own instinctual process. The harm comes when people start doing work for others instead of themselves or by doing what’s popular. As long as an artist stays true to their instincts there’s never a moment of despair. It’s a luxury to be able to do creative projects. Many can’t because they’re taking care of their families or their children. Art isn’t cool anymore, it’s for greedy suckers. Being creative is freedom and sharing what you make is like a celebration of that freedom. But art is for creeps these days, it’s become so disproportionally monetized people feel like failures when they don’t make money. Money has deformed art and money itself should be redesigned. It’s aesthetically so ugly. Change the size paper! Have someone do a sharpie drawing for the 2 dollar bill. The government has been so creative with stamps, they should get creative with money. I’m not sure if I answered that question either.

(…)

The girls of Karen Black I haven’t spoken about enough Christian Music, Alice Moy, Jackie Rivera or Chloé Blackshire. These women have illustrated the songs with costumes and a strong dislike of show business. The show must not go on. We aren’t in the entertainment business, we are just artists who accidentally formed a band that at times has more of an outreach than decorating a wealthy person's home. I like that it’s hard to put a picture frame around what artists do collaboratively. I don’t have a team, a manager, or anyone advising us on relevancy. I don't care if you think I’m relevant. I don’t have a career. I have a life and it’s fun to share things we learn or discover. That’s where art serves its greatest purpose. What else do we do? War? Make prisons for sick poor people or create shit jobs that don’t pay? Being creative and sharing is a benevolent human trajectory that’s difficult to irradiate even under the most heinous conditions. It lifts the spirits.”

“TVHKB is an interdisciplinary rock band established by my first husband Samoa Moriki and myself. We were married for 21 years. The band is named after one of my favourite characters in the 1975 fi lm Trilogy of Terror by director Dan Curtis. In terms of the new album, it took me about ten years to compile the lyrics. I don’t have a label that supports me and therefore I don’t have any time constraints. My last album I shelved and didn’t put out … I guess I’m fortunate because I don’t have people pushing me for management of my time. When I was a child in Los Angeles, I decided that I didn’t want to live on that side of the tracks, in terms of representation and what not. People were always asking me, “What’s up with your makeup?” and “Why do you dress like that?” I’d say, “What makeup? I’m not wearing any makeup, I usually wear full body paint!” [Laughs] It’s a lifestyle choice, I guess. I chose to be who I want to be. I have very intelligent friends and family so I have the tools to learn how to not listen to people telling me that I can’t do what I want to do.

(…)

To me, a renaissance is a golden time when the lights get turned on. I think New York in the ’80s was certainly a golden era, but of course things change. The years leading up to the ’80s in New York saw some really powerful ‘consciousness raising’ changes – those were the years that gave us people like Martin Luther King and Malcolm X and Alan Watts from the ’60s, when lights got turned on. Now, in 2021, it’s really nice to see young people getting to open galleries and run publications, but I think there has been a big change in corporate morality. There is still misogyny and racism here, those things have never been eradicated. I think a lot of larger corporations and galleries now monopolise on this.

(…)

The hard question is: how do we participate in capitalism knowing how virulent it is without utterly starving to death? It’s something young people, old people, everyone is dealing with. Dictatorships and facism have never been absent from the state of war, which transcends the modern day. It’s like that ACDC song, “War Machine” – it’s such an old song but it’s still so relevant today.

(…)

I would say, never compare yourself to other artists. That’s what I tell my students at Yale and Columbia. Be your own kind of artist.”

[drhoz]

#2207 - Thunbergia alata - Black-eyed Susan Vine

A perennial climbing plant from East Africa, but now naturalised in tropical and subtropical areas worldwide. Often invasive, and difficult to eradicate thanks to underground rhizomes.

Funnily enough, in the same family as Grey Mangroves, posted earlier.

Katikati Bird Gardens, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand

[thelongstrangedrivehome2]

playlist for the eleventh of april twenty twenty-four

Bruce Springsteen - Rosalita (Come Out And Play)

The Rolling Stones - Miss You

Dolly Parton - Wrecking Ball

Syd Barrett - Terrapin

David Bowie - The Jean Genie

T. Rex - Jeepster

Björk - Hyper-Ballad

John Lennon - Instant Karma

Shihad - Deb's Night Out

The Velvet Underground - New Age

Elton John - Honky Cat

David Bowie - Breaking Glass

The Rolling Stones - Faraway Eyes

The Smile - Open the Floodgates

Lou Reed & David Bowie - Hop Frog

Pink Floyd - The Show Must Go On

X-Ray Spex - Warrior In Woolworths

Nick Lowe - 36 Inches High

Staple Singers - (Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay

The Beths - I'm Not Getting Excited

Bob Dylan - The Mighty Quinn (Quinn The Eskimo)

Boy George - My Sweet Lord

Teenage Fanclub - Personality Crisis

Meat Puppets - Unexplained

The Long, Strange Drive Home — East FM 88.1 107.1

@michaelatkinsprescott | Linktree

[forfamily]

Given the size of Bianca's turf, I realized she'd need more than three capos to run it all, so I revamped a lot of things. Now, I may not ever write a number of them, but I do like to have the info on hand as it adds more depth. And I'm always a slut for deeper lore. Please remember that this is just how I visualize Bibi's turf/gang/whathaveyou and her rivals. I will not force this on others, especially those who are part of Passione and whom I interact with.

The city has ancient churches, narrow artistic streets, imposing palaces, and unique underground landscapes, many of which are situated within Zeppeli's turf. Naples is broken down into thirty quarters which are then grouped together into ten governmental community boards for administrative purposes. Zeppeli controls four of these administrative areas, for a total of nine quarters; these are marked in red above. Thus Zeppeli has eight capos, one assigned to each quarter with their share of soldiers. Now, you might be asking, Nana, you said there are nine quarters, so why only eight capos? Posillipo is watched over by Zeppeli's Underboss, Dante, himself.

1st municipality of Naples Posillipo An affluent residential quarter, located along the northern coast of the Gulf of Naples. Rocky, it is 6km (just over 3 miles) long and surrounded by cliffs with a few coves with breakwaters at the western end of the Bay of Naples. The stronghold of Zeppeli, palazzo Beatrice, is located here on the cliffs and is one of the safest properties within Napoli. Unless a certain spicy vampire is present in a particular verse. Chiaia An affluent neighborhood on the seafront, bound by Piazza Vittoria on the east and Mergellina on the west; one the wealthiest districts in Naples, with many luxury branded shops on its main street. It's also home to a business school, medical school, and a number of other public schools. A landmark is the large public park known as the Villa Comunale, developed in the late 16th and 17th centuries. San Ferdinando A southern district that includes the Royal Palace, Piazza del Plebiscito- the most celebrated square in Naples, the San Carlo opera house, and the church of San Ferdinando, from which the district is named.

5th municipality of Naples Arenella Sitting on Vomero Hill, above the city, and near the main hospital section, many years ago it was considered a place to "get away from it all". Vomero Up on a hilltop accessed by funicular, upscale, leafy, and dotted with gelaterias, alfresco cafes, and refined Italian restaurants; both chain and department stores cluster around Piazza Vanvitelli.

9th municipality of Naples Pianura Bound on one side by Soccavo and the other by the town of Pozzuoli, it's a lively residential area with archaeological sites like Roman mausoleums, and a Roman villa. Pizzaerias, dessert shops, and bars are in the historic center, where the 13th-century Church of San Giorgio stands in the main square. Bargain hunters often hit up the Mercatopoli Napoli Pianura thrift market. Soccavo A western quarter, bounded on one side by the area of Fuorigrotta and the other by the Camaldoli hill; at the base of the hill is a historic quarry, which gives its name to the area. While it's technically a division of Pozzuoli and not Naples, it was included within the administrative limits of Naples when it started being developed as a residential neighborhood in the 1920s.

10th municipality of Naples Bagnoli Beyond the confines of the original city, it's beyond Cape Posillipo, thus looking over the coast of the Bay of Pozzuoli. The North Warf is the longest promenade in Europe, while Città della Scienza is an interactive science museum for adults and children. Between the Astroni Reserve, which sits an extinct volcano, and the archaeological Terme area, there is Ippodromo di Agnano, the biggest racecourse in Italy and one of the oldest in Europe. Fuorigrotta Beyond Posillipo Hill, it is the most populated suburb of Naples, housing the San Paolo Stadium. There is a Roman bath, the Vesuvian Observatory, the oldest volcanological observatory in the world, and the Naples Zoo.

Within these quarters is Zeppeli's legitimate businesses: Restaurants, cafes, pizzerias, laundrettes, and nightclubs. Chiaia is the location of the five-star hotel, Beatrice; much like the palazzo was named for Bianca's grandmother, so too was Zeppeli's hotel chain, the first opening in Napoli back in the 50s. There is a Hotel Beatrice in New York, London, Tokyo, and Singapore, by 2001.

Of course, among all the glistening glamor, there is also the seedy underbelly of Zeppeli. Gambling dens, fight clubs, and whorehouses. But we'll get more into that later.

[thatndginger]

❤️ Happy WorldBuilding Wednesday! ❤️

What are your cities or towns like? Feel free to talk about the layouts or the people or the architecture, etc. and to talk about more than one if you'd like!

Tori how did you know

I've literally been brainstorming Shapeshifter's city all day. I stared at topographical maps of various port cities this morning for way too long lmao. Sidenote: maybe I should actually name the city instead of just calling it 'the city'?

Anyway, at the moment I have two original cities/towns in Shapeshifter:

'the city' which Cryptid gets mad about every time I describe as "a combo of New York, Seattle, Portland, and Gotham"

Perrin Falls - a small mountain town in the mid/west of Wyoming situated uncomfortably close to a Fae gate. Fun fact: me and the husband had one of our rare argument about the naming and geographic placement of this town because he's from the county I chose for Perrin Falls (that was deliberate lol) and he has Opinions.

And since I'm working on the city, I may as well infodump here~

The city is technically on the Pacific Northwest coast, but I refuse to actually give any legitimate geographic location. It's got a population of roughly 700k-800k, though with the metro area that bumps it up to over 3mil. The city started as a fur trading depot way back in the 1790's, and has always had some section of the population dedicated to smuggling and similar illegal activities. It slowly built it's way up from a small trading fort to a city of considerable size in the late 1800's due to it's convenient location: straddling a freshwater river that ran into a deep and naturally-protected bay. The original city was built above a warren of smuggler tunnels that saw regular use until the mid/late 1800's when a large part of the city burned to the ground, and city planners opted to grade parts of the city in an attempt to flatten some of the more steep areas. This destroyed some of the smuggler tunnels, but also buried parts of the city that had already been rebuilt, leaving a new layer of underground passageways for ne'er-do-wells to utilize. Many modern citizens of the city aren't even aware of these passages - though urban legends abound. Some brave souls venture down occasionally, but for the most part the underground belongs to the outcasts.

Life in the city is dark and damp. It rains roughly 330 days of the year, thanks to the mountains to the east creating a natural barrier for moisture rolling off the Pacific. Rain is usually light and misty, but occasionally a storm will roll in that turns the streets to rivers and chases even the most stubborn denizen inside. Most locals take the rain in stride - opting for water-resistant or magically charmed outerwear. To combat the dreariness of constantly-overcast skies, most businesses - and even the more outgoing residences - opt for bright neon signs and displays, and large awnings.

The city is most well-known for its statistically-large supernatural population; one of the largest in the United States. Roughly 15% of the population is supernatural - the large majority of these being shapeshifters of varying type. There are also an unusually large number of witches in the city, which only adds to the image of the city as one of the 'most magically charge population centers' in the States. Due to the fact that a distinct percentage of the population prefers to - or can only - exist at night, there is a very active and diverse nightlife. It's not uncommon to find events that are only held at night - such as markets and festivals - as well as businesses that opt to have 'night hours' as well as 'day hours'. (Unfortunately, even though a 6th of the city is supernatural, there are very few police precincts that will hire a supernatural, so many laws are skewed towards the mundane citizens.)

Economically, the city thrives on it's active port and trade capabilities, as well as a booming tourist sector. It also houses a large life sciences and medical research sector, with many companies focused on merging technology and magic. But everyone knows that it's still the criminal element of the city that holds the most power, the most wealth. Some flaunt their power, daring the (often understaffed and under-equipped) justice system to do something about them. Some prefer to work behind the scenes, buying out politicians and CEOs and chiefs of police to ensure they can continue to exist unmolested.

My current goal with the city is to make an actual map of it. Mostly just the overall geography and major sectors of it, so that I can better describe the important parts lol. As you can see, I am... very obsessed with the worldbuilding.