#edit because I remembered from their rank 10: ‘your wishes became one’

[iwritenarrativesandstuff]

so. I just got to Maruki’s attempted persuasion of Ren before the deadline and. hey what the fuck. what. what.

Akechi is the sole bargaining chip? Akechi’s life and their continued connection is what Ren wished for?

[duckprintspress]

I'm confused about the scoring system. It was said on the website that people were scored (numerically) and yet someone with much higher scores than I got didn't get accepted nor was offered the mentoring/beta/get to know discord.

I can't help but feel there is an error here. Is there a way to explain this?

Hi anon!

So there are a few things going on here, and I’ll try to explain them all.

Thing the First:

The scores on the rubrics are raw scores. Once we really got down-and-dirty with rating things, and I did some data analysis, I discovered that some of our raters were being a bit more generous than others. By the time we were done with all the scoring, there was nearly a 2 point split between the most generous and least generous scorer, on average. This was clearly a fairness issue - if one writer got our three most generous raters, and a second writer got our three least generous raters, even if they submitted identical stories, the second writer would get a lower rating. Rather than leave things like that, I did some research on statistical models that would standardize our ratings.

Basically, with the help of an excel algorithm (the “STANDARDIZE” function), we calculated the average that each rater gave, and that rater’s deviation from the mean (standard deviation), and plugged that in to convert their ratings from the 0 to 20 scale to a different, standard scale - which ran roughly from -2.5 to positive 2.5. What the standardization really did was - for each rater, whatever score they personally gave on average was 0 (so, if rater one’s average score was a 15...that was standardized to zero. And if rater two’s average score was 10...that was also standardized to zero. So now instead of comparing apples to oranges, we were comparing apples to apples). Then, if they rated a fic 1 standard deviation above or below their average, that became a 1 or a -1. If they rated it 2 standard deviations above or below their average, that became a 2 or a -2. And so on. This ensured that all of the stories were rated on the same scale and everyone was treated equally - standardization of test scores erased the differences caused by some people rating more strictly.

So, if you and your friends are comparing rubrics (which you’re welcome to do!) and you noticed that some of you did better, numerically, but had different outcomes, that’s likely a factor - one of you may have had more generous or more strict readers.

(Here’s some more information on how Standardization, here’s the very basics...there are other forms of standardizing, such as fitting folks to a bell curve, or curving the entire score, but those were not suited to our needs)

Thing the Second:

The top 20 authors, statistically adjusted for fairness, were invited to contribute to Add Magic to Taste. As it turned out, these top 20 DID roughly correlate to our top 20 by raw scores; comparing the two rankings, there are only two people out of the top 20 who wouldn’t have made it based on raw scores but did when their scores were adjusted to be standardized against the same scale.

The next 20 authors (ranked 21 to 40, when statistically adjusted for fairness) were also invited to Discord, and we’ve also invited them to potentially be involved in a second anthology. Depending on how many of them say yes, we may be able to open that opportunity up a bit more, but we’re not sure yet. Two of these people, by raw score, would have made the top 20, and three of these people, by raw score, would not have made the top 40. However, again, when we standardized the data to reflect the differences in rater strictness, these were the results.

That leaves another 62 people, who had various ratings all below those top 40. Some of them had a raw score fairly similar to their standardized score...and some of them didn’t. For example - my wife was an applicant to this, and she gave me permission to use her numbers for this example. By raw average? My wife came in 49th. However, one of her raters was someone who USUALLY rated very high, and gave hers a (relatively, compared to that person’s usual hig haverage) low score - when that was adjusted statistically, it caused my wife’s fic to plummet to 64th, because even though the raw number itself wasn’t bad, it was statistically well outside the norm for that rater. So, believe me when I say - these standardizations can make a big difference. If you, or anyone reading this, would like, I’m willing to send you what your standardized scores were (while still maintaining reviewer anonymity). I was originally thinking of adding them to the rubrics but doing so would have been a lot of work, and so I passed - next time we do this, they’ll probably be on there.

Thing the Third:

Often, what separated a fic that succeeded from a fic that didn’t was the range of raters scores. For example, the fic that ended up with the highest rating (by both calculations) wasn’t anyone’s favorite fic - but all three readers thought it was solid, and that was enough. My personal favorite fic? Didn’t even hit the Top 20. What often happened was -

Top fics: either all three people liked it pretty well, or one to two people adored it and the other person or people liked it well enough.

Second tier fics: either all three people thought it was okay, or one person loved it and two people were fairly meh about it.

Middle-range fics: either all three people thought it was average, or one person loved it and two people didn’t like it, or two people thought it was pretty good but one person hated it.

Lower quartile fics: either all three people didn’t think the fic was “up to snuff,” or one or two readers really hated it while a third thought it was average.

This isn’t universal, of course - but a fic that had one really high rating could easily do worse than a fic that had three so-so ratings, because...that’s how averages work. And that’s also why we had three readers for each - to try to even out some of the differences that would arise if someone had an extreme reaction to a fic that others didn’t. Obviously, it’s not a flawless system - no system was flawless - but with the resources and manpower we had, we thought this was a fair way to handle things, and we truly did our best. As soon as we broke 20 applications, we were never going to be able to accept everyone, and so we strived to create a transparent system that treated all of our applicants equally.

Thing the Fourth:

Now, in addition to the “why might scores be higher/lower” aspect of your question, there’s the aspect of “getting the Discord invite.” Now, the top 40 folks got Discord invites automatically, and those offers were based solely on the rating they received.

The other Discord invites that we sent out were not based on ratings alone! Just like we had a “reader subjective feelings” category on the rubric, when we’d finished rating all the stories, we were left with a conundrum - all of us had fics we liked that didn’t make the top 40. Maybe it was that “one person love it and two people didn’t like it” permutations. Maybe it was that all of us thought it was “good” but not “great.” Maybe some aspect of the story caught our eye. Based on our reactions, and the fics we saw that we wished had made it, we selected people to get invites. Those Discord invites were sent out based solely on subjective criteria.

Yes, we worried about doing this. Yes, we went back and forth about doing it at all. But in the end, what we decided was - we didn’t want to give Discord invites to everyone, because there were plenty of people we didn’t think their writing was quite ready yet - mentoring is an intensive prospect, and one for which we won’t get paid up front and might possibly never get paid, and while this all looks wonderful from the outside please do remember that we’re running a business - one that I’ve been working my ass off on for more than four months and have yet to earn enough to draw a single paycheck. So inviting everyone was never in the cards. And on the other hand, if we chose to give invites to no one, that would mean potentially having some people that caught our eye “slip through the cracks.” What if they got too discouraged to reapply? What if we missed the chance to work with them, after they’d impressed us?

To use an analogy - we saw something in everyone who applied, but in some it was “this is an uncut diamond, and we aren’t in the position to take it from raw to finished,” and in others it was, “this is a diamond with a crack, or a flaw, or a rough spot...and we think if we put in the work, we can get it to perfection.” And our verdict on the uncut diamonds isn’t, “this is uncut and it will never be cut,” it’s, “all of these diamonds have spent years honing themselves and working hard to strive for flawlessness, and but some are clearly farther along that journey than others. Once these uncut diamonds have shaped more of their rough edges themselves, we hope they’ll come back when they are ALSO only one flaw from perfection, and work with us then!”

There was no way for us to win, and there was also no fair way to distribute invites based solely on the raw scores, or even based solely on standardized scores, because some of the scores were sometimes not reflective our actual opinions of the writing. For example - if someone wrote a grammatically perfect story, with a compelling use of language, but the plot and characters were inaccessible to us because it required fandom knowledge we didn’t have, that might have scored very poorly, but we have every reason to think that if they’d chosen a different work that was more accessible they’d have done much better. Or, as another example - if someone’s writing was really sloppy, because of a lack of editing or possibly because English isn’t their native language - but they have a skill for creating characters, or setting a scene, or had excellent pacing - then again, they could have ended up with a score that didn’t reflect the actual potential that we saw in their work - using our judgement and expertise.

So, flat out - yes, there are inequalities in how the Discord invites were distributed to the 62 people who didn’t make the cut for either anthology. And yes, we agonized over whether to give them out at all. And no, I won’t swear that we always made the right choices - we were going by the one story submitted to us, and we had to use our best judgement based on what we were presented - what each applicant chose to submit. In the end, we invited the people who - regardless of their score - we personally thought were the closest to being sellable - in the sense of, “probably only missing one piece that would help with to get them from ‘didn’t make it’ to ‘now we’re talking.” And I truly, truly wish that we could have everyone. But if we spend all our time mentoring people, then we won’t have time for doing any of the other aspects of this business. We are not a writing school. We are a book publisher. This ISN’T just fandom, and I DO have to think about what is sellable and what isn’t, because in the end...I’m trying to make money, and pay my staff, and give our authors the highest royalties possible, and, and, and.

As a further note on this topic? We are still issuing new Discord invites, based on e-mail conversations we’re having with people. Several people who didn’t initially get those invites? Have now gotten them. It just depends on how people are responding to us, and the conversations we’re having, and lots of other factors.

And, as I tried to say in the post I put up earlier today about notifications: even the people who didn’t get invites have potential. Every single writer who applied has potential. All of you, even if you struggled with multiple areas, had some aspect in which you shined. In a perfect world, we would help you all. But this isn’t a perfect world, and I don’t have the hours in the day to bring up the people who aren’t already close, and I’m sorry about that. So, please, please - if you didn’t make it, don’t be discouraged, and don’t give up. You’re the only one who can tell your stories - if you don’t do it, no one else will. Find fandom friends who will give you honest critique. Learn to read your own writing with a critical eye. Track down stories that really speak to you, and read them like a writer - to see how the original writer put them together, and deliberately emulate what you thought worked. There are many, many ways to improve writing craft, and if ya’ll want to be published, either with us or with anyone, we strongly encourage you to examine whichever ones appeal to you and work for you.

There’s isn’t a single person who applied who couldn’t, one day, be published by Duck Prints Press.

We were never going to make everyone happy, however much we hate making people sad.

We did our best to make as many people as possible happy, while also doing what we feel to be best for Duck Prints Press.

If we hurt you - we’re sorry. We said in the application process that we’d be giving honest feedback, and we’ve never made a secret of the fact that this is a business and our goal is to publish books that sell - nor did we pretend that we’d be able to take more than 20, but we were so impressed by the quality of what we received that we did everything we could think of to open the doors to more folks, while still maintaining the core integrity of our business model. That means we have to narrow the pool; we can’t just take everyone, especially now, when we’re so small and new. Our desire to take as many people as possible is why anyone who wasn’t in the top 20 got an invite, and why we planned an entire second anthology on the fly, instead of no one below the top 20 getting anything except a rejection letter.

Now, as a final thing - it IS possible we made a mistake. We’ve spotted one big one already, and we’re working with that author to rectify the situation. If you truly believe we made a mistake, please e-mail us, and we can look into it. Our email is info @ duckprintspress dot com.

Sorry this got long - but I figured, if one person wondered this, others too, and as we have since day one - our goal is to be transparent, and so I thought it better to answer more thoroughly rather than less.

[aprilskyforever]

Henny ranks Eurovision 2021: third and final edition, after the show

 we waited two years... and just like that, it was over. but what a YEAR! there really aren’t many songs in here that i actively don’t like, i can see some appeal in pretty much all of them. alas, if i have to rank them, this is where they end up:

1. italy. (+10) yes, i too got on board the italy hype train in the end. and yes, i too wanna sleep with the whole band, all at once if possible. this is just oozing sex appeal both in melody, riffs, lyrics and of course, their look and charisma. and i’m HERE for it. what’s so interesting with italy is that, when they won sanremo i felt like yeah this is a decent song and it will probably get a decent placing but it won’t win, because that’s usually the case with italy you know, and i’m fine with that! and then... it’s like with love, isn’t it. it happens when you stop expecting, stop looking for it. 

2. switzerland (+1) the staging for this was not what i expected but i was absolutely on board. and gjon is flawless. the song, his voice, everything about this is perfect.

3. malta (-2) i lowkey wish destiny had kept the dress she had in the first rehersal. this was everything i wish toy was, in a way. 

4. iceland (+3) like i said in my first post, daði really knows how to make a beat. this became one of my most streamed songs this season, but the performance was ace as well, even if i’m not sure about the sweater/nerd aesthetic. although at the same time, i can’t really imagine what it should have been instead?

5. ukraine (+13) probably the biggest grower for me this year! i adore it. it feels like a trip, a punch in the gut, it tur11ns your world around. oh, i love it so much.

6. lithuania (+3) the most solid song of the season. i just didn’t grow tired of it, and it’s been out since what, january? 

7. russia (-1) she’s just. a queen. an icon. i love her. 

8. norway (-3) this song and this man just makes me soft. i feel for him so much.

9. sweden (-7) oh tusse deserved so much better!! i get why we didn’t score that well in this year so i’m not mad but, in statistics, this place is equal to robin stjernberg in 2013 and that’s just.... WRONG. robin wasn’t even the winner of the televote in melfest that year. and tusse won EVERY age category this year. we love him! he deserved better.

10. france (+5) i’m still not best friends with this song but i, too, can see the appeal of this, i can see why it’s good, it’s just not for me. 

11. bulgaria (-3) beautiful... but a bit boring after a while, no?

12. san marino (-8) yeah it’s senhit’s vocals that sinks this but I STILL LOVE THE SONG and i stand by that. they deserved so much better.

13. moldova (-3) it lacked live.. but the song still hits

14. cyprus (+14) oh look a grower!! the lyrics still make me cringe but DAMN elena is a good performer. i have to give her that.

15. finland (+10) like i said in my first post i’m glad that people like it and that finland gets to do well, especially considering their results ever since.. softengine? but it’s not for me.

16. netherlands (-3) i still love the vibe of it all. deserved better.

17. serbia (+18) clown nose on. maybe i did enjoy this in the end after all.

18. azerbaijan (+4) it’s a bop but like, a hollow bop? it’s okay.

19. croatia (+2) deserved qualification! i enjoyed it.

20. portugal (+17) the power of staging, folks. hot damn.

21. spain (+1) no this was beautiful actually. even though this is the song i’ve had the hardest time to remember this season.

22. uk (-6) the song is good but james is not a performer and bbc can’t stage for shit. there’s that.

23. greece (+9) so stefania is great live! but the staging was not as cool as they thought it was and i still don’t really like the song.

24. albania (+7) it’s still very albanian 101 but sacha can create magic and angela sings it really well.

25. denmark (+8) maybe i saw some appeal in this after all. it’s cute. 

26. germany (-12) in my first post i said uk was like a chewing gum but no, THIS is the chewing gum of the year. and now by the final all flavour was gone and could barely blow a bubble anymore.

27. israel (+7) you can only polish a turd so much i’m afraid.

28. austria (+2) the staging for this was beauuuutiful and i love the chord progression in the melody. but it still gets a bit repetitive.

29. romania (-3) roxen did do everything right but it wasn’t enough in this competition i’m afraid.

30. belgium (-7) i never got around to it, i still like the verses but not the chorus, it’s just.. boring.

31. slovenia (-12) yeah, i let it go. it’s ok but not more.

32. czechia (-15) ohhh this is nooot how you stage something like this. it needed so much more. i’m sad, i still like the studio.

33. australia (-4) it’s just. too weak! verses are nice but the chorus is just not working for me at all. 

34. north macedonia (+2) i gotta give him that the performace was quite nice even though the song is corny in the bad way as fuuuuc

35. ireland (-15) oh lesley ): why did you let me down like this

36. georgia (-12) still a great song to rock forth and back in a hammock to. just wanna lie in one and listen to all the sounds of nature when i hear this. but in the competition? it’s a no from me.

37. latvia (-25) yup, this years biggest let down by FAR. and poor samata was off key for the most part. i can’t rank this higher even if i like the song a bit.

38. poland (+1) still cringe as fuck ew but it lowwwwwkey bops so

39. estonia (-1) nope. just no.

[miss-musings]

My List of Top 10 Blacklisters

Let me say right off the bat that it was really difficult to compile this list. Because while I feel a lot of one-off Blacklisters are pretty much throwaways, especially all the different cults and kooky people that the show likes to keep introducing, many of the better ones (IMO) were bad guys who had been around for multiple episodes, maybe even entire arcs or seasons.

So, picking out my Top 10 -- based on how unique they were, how memorable they were, how intimidating, how threatening they were to the main cast, etc. -- was relatively easy, but ranking them was difficult. Because, again, a lot of them get way more screentime than others.

So, I'll try to rank them based on a combination of how much I personally liked them, how much of an overall impact to the story/characters the Blacklister had relative to their screentime and build-up, how well the actor did with the role, how unique and memorable they were, etc.

You'll notice that people like Laurel Hitchen, who was an antagonist but not technically a Blacklister, isn't on the list; and you'll notice that "good guys" like Dembe or Marvin Gerard who were technically Blacklisters, but weren't antagonists for Red or the Task Force aren't on here either. Tom, who flip-flopped between good guy and bad guy as the show progressed, isn't on here either; but that's because there's so much material to judge from as he was a main cast member for at least three seasons, which is unfair.

Anyway, without further ado: my list. Again, feel free to disagree and make your own lists if you like.

(EDIT: I’ve done a follow-up list of ‘Top 10 Best One-Off Blacklisters’, because so many of the below entries had multiple episodes in which to be menacing.)

Note for future reference: this list only includes Blacklisters up through the end of S5.

###

HONORABLE MENTION: MR. KAPLAN

I really wanted to put Mr. Kaplan on this list, and I had at one point, but then I realized I forgot one of the more imposing Blacklisters and had to slide him into the spot where I had Mr. Kaplan. The only reason I took her off completely rather knocking every lower-numbered entry down a spot, was because while I really liked Mr. Kaplan up until S3c, I hated how the showrunners forced the storyline where she had once been Liz's nanny and hated Red for doing her and the Keen family wrong. I love Susan Bloomaert and think she's a very talented actress who's incredibly underrated; but I loved her character more when she was on Red's team -- his cleaner, his friend, his confidant. Granted, there were some really good episodes with her as an antagonist, but I hated the way she died -- throwing herself off a bridge.

Anyway, again, I want to emphasize that this list is purely subjective. So, if you think I've done Mr. Kaplan a disservice, feel free to make your own list to give her to honor you believe she deserves. As I said: I loved Mr. Kaplan, but I felt the whole S4b storyline completely assassinated her character as we knew it up to that point.

P.S. I also feel like GREGORY DEVRY should get a shout-out, but I’ll probably include him in my list of Best One-Off Blacklisters.

10. LEONARD CAUL

This is one of those entries where I guess I kind of cheated. Caul didn’t really end up being an antagonist for Red, Liz or the Task Force. But he was introduced to us a little ambiguously with him developing photos of Liz and Red, listening to the police scanner -- and then holding Liz at gunpoint (briefly) in Red's Bethesda apartment... I really liked all of that and how it was kind of vague from the beginning whether he was on their side or not. Granted, he doesn't get much screentime even in his own episode, and honestly, after S2, I'm not really sure what happened to him. I know he was hanging around with Red up until the S2 finale or thereabouts, but yeah, whatever happened to that guy?

Anyway, it was a really tense episode, and I felt like Caul brought a level of adrenaline and urgency to the situation with Red and the Cabal, as well as the show in general.

9. IAN GARVEY

You'd think Garvey would be higher on this list, but I was never really a big fan of him. Granted, he did pose a pretty serious threat for our main crew, after he stole the Real Reddington’s bones, killed Tom and his goons knocked Liz into a coma. And the actor did a fine job. But, I just felt that -- up until his connection to the Reddington family was revealed -- he was just kind of cartoonish. A dirty cop who runs a drug cartel? Yeah, I don't care.

But, again, while I don't really like Garvey, I felt like he had such an impact on the show and the characters that he deserved a spot -- even if it was a low one.

8. MADELINE PRATT

The only female Blacklister to formally make it onto the list. (Sorry, Mr. Kaplan.) I thought her character and this episode was incredibly well-done. It was a little bit of a heist storyline, and Pratt was a good foil for Liz and Red, forcing both of them to open up in ways we hadn't seen before (up to that point). Liz became more comfortable doing criminal-type things, using her slight-of-hand, infiltrating locations and lying/manipulating people; while Red, conversely, became more human and opened up about why he has been so distant with people and the hurt he has experienced in the past.

Also, Madeline is one of the few past/current love interests of Red that we see on the show, and I really like Jennifer Ehle (mostly because of the 1995 version of Pride & Prejudice). I felt like she matched well with Spader and wasn't overpowered by his always-charismatic performance. And, while we only ever saw her in this episode and briefly in 2x14, I felt like she deserved a spot because she was such a unique character and that episode introduced a lot of character details and traits that became important later.

7. THE STEWMAKER

I really, really liked the Stewmaker -- both the bad guy and the episode. The only reason I didn't put him higher on this list is because I feel everyone else is too good (or bad, depending on how you want to look at it) to be displaced.

So, I remember reading on one of those TV-watching websites that if you weren't entirely sure about a show but you wanted to give it a chance, you should watch at least four episodes to see whether it was any good. By the fourth episode, the show should have established its characters, its dynamic, its continuing plot points, its feel, etc. Pilots, of course, always feel a little different than the shows themselves because they're filmed months before any other episode; so you have to give shows a chance to establish themselves and walk on their own two feet.

So... when THIS was the show's fourth episode... oh, buddy.

The Stewmaker posed a serious threat as he was the first person to ever hold Liz captive and feel the wrath of Red for such an offense. The episode gave us the infamous Parable of the Farmer; and continued the then-mystery of Liz finding out about Tom's shady past.

But, as for the character himself, he was just really weird. Walking around naked while he was working, but having that mask on; disintegrating bodies; having his dog with him; actually being a family man but having this criminal work on the side. And, also, we had a little bit of interaction where Liz was actually trying to do her job (for once) and profile him and use that info to her advantage.

He was a character that I feel the show has tried to redo several times -- the kooky weirdo who's very calm, apologetic and doesn't like violence but who is also fascinated by death, bodies, etc. But, of course, this was the FIRST time the show had used such a character, so it was much more memorable then and not so watered-down.

In any case, I really liked the Stewmaker and thought he was a fantastic Blacklister for the show to have in its fourth episode of the entire series.

6. MATIAS SOLOMON

So, this is actually the spot where I had Mr. Kaplan. But, while I was doing some background research on my #1 choice, I ran across Edi Gathegi's name and remembered that I left Solomon completely off the list. He had been an antagonist throughout the whole of S3a and then came back for his namesake episodes where he and his crew attack Liz and Tom's wedding, Liz gives birth to Agnes, and later she "dies" with Red by her side.

Solomon is either directly or indirectly responsible for a lot of major shit that happened on this show -- hell, just in those two episodes. And, I really like Gathegi's performance, especially considering how Solomon was a little Extra™. So he had to play him as dramatic with a penchant for flair and style ... but without him becoming cartoonish. He was just a little bit eccentric but could still hold himself and lead a team of goons in shooting up a church.

Again, I hated to leave Mr. Kaplan off the list but I felt it was a greater disservice to not put Solomon on it, considering how much of a threat he posed to our main cast throughout various points of S3.

5. THE DECEMBRIST (A.K.A. ALAN FITCH)

This is basically just an outlet for me to talk about how amazing Alan Alda is and how much I love him and wish the show hadn't killed his character off. Seriously, he's just so adorable, and it was hilarious to see him partly playing against type here. Fitch was intimidating, but I also kept wanting to give him a hug.

And, I felt like that was how Red felt toward him. He hated Fitch for the whole bullshit in that raid on the Post Office, but yet, he also respected him. That look on his face when he's having that last conversation before the bomb on Fitch's neck goes off... just heartbreaking.

And while so many actors seem to bow under the weight of Spader's performances, Alda is also one of the few actors who I felt like was on-par with him in terms of charisma and acting chops. It seems he just strolls onto the set and does whatever is required of him without a care in the world. "Need me to be gruff and menacing? I can do that. Need me to be sad and fearful? I can do that. Need me to look bored and indifferent? I can do that." God, I just love Alan Alda, and I want to give him a hug. 

But, seriously, Fitch was a Blacklister who's impact on the story goes all the way back to setting Berlin on Red decades before S2 takes place, and he was one of the few people (at that time) who seemed to know Reddington from the pre-Night of the Fire era. (It's unclear now whether that was actually true; he probably knew the REAL Reddington, but never knew our guy was an imposter.)

Anyway, Fitch had a major impact on the story because he was the one person/thing who had a connection to the raid on the Post Office, the Cabal and Berlin. So, he definitely deserves a spot on this list. And also, ALAN ALDA!

4. BERLIN

This is a weird entry, because Berlin is hardly in either of his two namesake episodes; and even when he is, his identity is obscured until the very end of "Berlin: Conclusion."

Berlin had been built up for a long time, and while I still am so frustrated that it was never addressed how he organized a giant criminal syndicate from inside a Russian prison. Honestly, for as much as for as long as he was built up, I feel like the pay-off was a little bit disappointing. Which is why he’s at number four for me.

Still, when he came back in the first half of S2, he was such a good baddie. I absolutely love when he and Red meet on Coney Island, and that weird, dynamic and layered conversation that they have. And overall, Peter Stormare's performance is fantastic. He's mustache-twirling, sure, but he was so intimidating at the same time... threatening Liz, capturing Naomi, being responsible for the attacks on Cooper and Meera, etc.

He had a tremendous impact on both S1 and S2a, so he definitely has to have a spot.

3. ALEXANDER KIRK (A.K.A. CONSTANTIN ROSTOV)

Like Berlin, Kirk is hardly in either of his namesake episodes, but we get to see him more fleshed out as a character/villain in S4a.

Unlike most villains, we actually got to see quiet moments of Kirk, where he was caring, respectful, loving and just ... generally not villainous. Most of these other Blacklisters never got those opportunities, and Kirk -- in hindsight -- was built up as a kind of hero out of a Greek tragedy. Odette tells Liz that he was a kind, caring and gentle man up until he found out about Liz’s identity as Masha and her connection to Red. Then, he flipped his shit and did whatever it took to get his (step)daughter away from him. And, honestly, I really liked his little farewell speech to Liz about how she would only ever remember him as a villain who kidnapped and threatened her and her child; and she would never remember him as the young, happy father who held her in her arms, excited at what the future would hold for their family.

God, just thinking back to that speech makes me feel such sympathy for the man... not the one he became but the one he used to be. Kirk was hurt and betrayed multiple times by Katarina, the Real Reddington, the Fake Reddington, and all these other people who played him like a puppet for their own ends. Really thinking back on it, it’s no wonder he became the broken man he is, so desperately trying to cling to this frayed prospect of happiness with the family he once had. Yes, he was hoping that Liz or Agnes would help cure him of his disease, but I truly believe that was only a bonus in his mind and he was really hoping to piece his family back together -- to have a second chance in his (step)daughter’s life and help her with her newborn.

He’s also one of the few villains with his own arc who WASN’T killed off at the end of said arc, so I REALLY hope he comes back. I doubt it, but I would really like to see it. Maybe he could help Liz understand what all happened with Katarina, Real Reddington, Fake Reddington, and everything on the Night of the Fire.

And, again, like with Fitch, he was a really important Blacklister as he was connected to both Red’s past and Liz’s. And, that scene where he’s about to kill Red, and the two stop to reminisce about Katarina, who she was, and how important she was to them ... that’s the kind of depth we don’t get out of most Blacklisters.

Honestly, even though his introduction to the audience was a little too Darth Vader/Alias-esque, I still really enjoyed the range of emotions Ulrich Thomsen got to run through in his portrayal, especially in that final episode. And while he doesn’t really have a lasting effect on the story once his arc is resolved, he was a major threat to everyone, including Liz, and the main characters to make major decisions in the latter half of S3 and the first part of S4 that showed us who they really are.

So, yeah. IMO, he deserves to be this high on the list.

2. ANSLO GARRICK

It might seem a little weird to have a one-off villain this high on the list, but Anslo Garrick -- both the character and his namesake episodes -- was an actual game-changer. Here we were, skipping along through S1, pretty complacent and chill. And then all of a sudden, Anslo Garrick shows up and turns everything on its head. The Post Office is under attack; Ressler gets seriously injured and he and Red have to make due hanging out together inside the box; Cooper et al is captured; Liz and Aram, who have little field experience between them, have to team up to try to get to safety. Luli is killed; Dembe is almost killed; Liz is threatened; Red is captured and later escapes.

God, so much happened in those episodes, and I still think “Anslo Garrick: Part One” might be the best episode of the show to date. Seriously. Even though Red and Liz have zero screentime together, that episode is just SO GOOD. Intense, dark, with high-stakes and important character moments -- and there have been very few episodes like it since.

But, anyway, as for Anslo Garrick himself... he isn’t really all that much. He was a rabid dog sent by Fitch to bring Red in. He was intimidating, coarse, violent and gave zero shits about his actions.

This entry doesn’t really celebrate who the character of Anslo Garrick was, but more of what he represented and the major impact he had on the show at that point in time. He introduced us to Fitch, who first brought up the whole “Cabal” storyline, which was responsible for a lot of shit in S2 and S3a.

Again, Garrick woke us viewers out of our little complacency that Red & co. were just going to glide through their Blacklisters with only a few cuts and bruises and no real stakes (outside of the Tom/mystery storyline that was going on at the time). This was a good kick in the pants to make us realize that we were wrong.

So, yeah. I feel like he deserves to be Number 2.

1. THE DIRECTOR

So, you’re sitting there, wondering who the hell could be sitting at Number 1... above Garvey, above Kirk and Garrick and Fitch and everyone else?

It’s the man who if I could push a button and bring any of the show’s dead character back to life, he would be the one I’d pick:

Peter Kotsiopulos, The Director ... played by the amazing David Strathairn.

Even though he appeared in 12 episodes over what amounted to an entire season of the show (from 2x09 to 3x10), I really wish The Director hadn’t been killed off. Seriously, I have no idea how much money TPTB had to throw at Strathairn to get him to appear for as long and as many times as he did, but it wasn’t enough. I've always said that this show deserves a Big Bad (assuming that Red isn’t it), and he would’ve been great as the Big Bad for The Blacklist.

While Strathairn's basically just reprising his role as "Unethical and Shady AF Government Official and Resident Mustache-Twirler" from The Bourne Series, it's a role he's REALLY good at. And even though he didn’t get a lot of quiet moments to be humanized or come across as sympathetic, like Kirk did, I still feel like it was such a bitch move for Red and his crew to play on The Director’s feelings for/obligation to his wife as their opportunity to abduct him. I know that Liz was facing trial for murder and desperate times called for desperate measures, but I can just imagine that poor lady sitting in her therapist’s office, wondering where her husband was only to find out that he was a villain who had ditched her and fled the country, when that wasn’t the case AT ALL.

Yeah, I know The Director’s an absolute piece of shit who’s responsible for threatening the entire Task Force, publicly demonizing Liz and almost killing Red... but he was so good at being bad that I wanted him to stick around long-term. I wanted to see him and Liz have more interactions; and again, Stathairn was one of the few actors who held his own in scenes with Spader without any effort.

He was also the first one, as I recall, to set Liz on this path toward Katarina Rostova’s backstory and finding out how alike the two of them were. Remember in 2x19, he remarks how much Liz looks like her mom, and I feel like that sends Liz down a road to get answers from Red about who she was and what his connection was to her mom and her family.

But, anyway, yeah. I just love David Strathairn; I loved him in this role, on this show; and I loved how diabolical, manipulative, and just conniving his character was. I also just absolutely love the look on his face in 3x10 when he and Red are watching Laurel Hitchen on the TV and Hitchen just outs The Director as a member of the Cabal. He just goes from angry and staring daggers at Red to flustered and “oh shit” in an instant.

So, just like my Fitch entry was my opportunity to celebrate how amazing Alan Alda was, this is my chance to celebrate how underrated David Strathairn is as an actor and how much I wish he was still on the show.

But, putting all of that aside, why should The Director as a character be ranked above all those other people as a better Blacklister?

Because, The Director represented the Cabal, which was an entity that had been built up from 1x09 as a major force that had power to easily destroy everything Red, Liz and their crew was trying to work toward. They sent Braxton after info about the Fulcrum, they sent Karakurt to frame Liz, they sent that team of commandos to attack Red. They were a force that seemingly could not be stopped, and the Director was at the head of it all.

And, while I can’t find it anywhere (so help me out if you know what I’m talking about), I know there’s a saying about how the worst man is the one who does evil in the name of good. And that’s The Director. He is the embodiment of all the worst parts of The Blacklist’s villains, actual real life government officials and humanity at large. He has dozens of people killed without batting an eye because it’s all in the interest of “national security.” Or so he tells others. But, deep down, we all know that he’s only really concerned about his own self-interest.

Now that the show has killed him off, obviously, there’s no way for Strathairn to return as The Director; but perhaps, if/once the show delves more into Katarina and Red’s backstory, maybe we will see a Young Director in a flashback so that we can see exactly how he was connected to Katarina, the Cabal, and that whole mess with the Fulcrum.

Plus, I can’t get over how awesome his interactions with Liz were, and Strathairn’s delivery of the now infamous line, “I know who you really are, Raymond -- who you are TO HER.”

###

Again, if you disagree, feel free to reblog with your comments or your own list. This is all purely subjective, but -- because we’re on this crazy-long hiatus until January -- I felt like it was good to fill the time with SOMETHING. My goal with this isn’t to give a definitive list and that’s it; but rather, to prompt discussion about the topic.

Thanks for reading all the way to the end and cheers! ~mm

[prettyallfriends]

Pretty Rhythm: My☆Deco Rainbow Wedding Chapter 17+18 English Translation

(Tumblr's new text editor doesn't support moving images so I'll leave this up here)

Chapter 17: A Pop Test with a Testy Rhythm

Mia: You’re soooo lucky you got to face up against Serenon! I love their manzai~! You keep piling up experience, huh? Though, I was wondering… have you seen Rinne at all since that fashion show? She didn’t even enter the Gold Spiral Cup. I’ve seen her on TV, in magazines and in movies, but I can’t get her sad expression out of my mind… Whenever we come close to learning about Rinne’s secret, we end up back at square one!! What we know right now is… Rinne wants the Rainbow Wedding, and she’s forgotten something. But the thing I’m most concerned with is how she always looks really sad. She’s your rival in terms of getting the Rainbow Wedding, but she’s also a fellow idol. We can’t just leave her alone… And she looks her happiest when she gets to watch your shows, or when she gets to talk to you, Player. Maybe you’re not the only one who wants to save Rinne from her sorrowful heart!? ...Is what I want to say, but I still have no idea what I can do! It’s really pissing me off!!!

??? (Rizumu): Morni~ng!

Mia: Ahh!! Who’s there!? What kind of idiot goes around hugging people from behind!?

Rizumu: Ta-dah! It’s Rizumu!

Mia: Wha- Rizumu-san!! You scared the hell out of me!!

Rizumu: Sorry, sorry. You looked like your were having a bummer of a convo so I wanted to lighten the mood a bit! Ahahaha! Ooh? No way, are you Player? I totally know about you! Aira and Mion, hell even Serenon have told me all about you. You’re collecting the power of the seven coords to complete the Raingowdam…

Mia: It’s called the Rainbow Charm, Rizumu-san!

Rizumu: Yeah, that’s it! Ahaha, must’ve gotten a bit mixed up there!

Mia: Jeez… and people say that I should be a funny guy… I’m the straight man compared to Rizumu.

Rizumu: Aw, c’mon! Keep complimenting me and I’ll get flustered! Ahaha!

Mia: It wasn’t a compliment!!

Rizumu: Anyway, I was thinking of helping you get the power of the seven coords… Aira helped you before, right? By giving you a Coord Rank Test?

Mia: Oh, that makes sense! Rizumu’s a member of MARs too, so she can give these tests too! But… Rizumu’s sense of style is, uh… unique. Honestly… it’s a bit… weird…… Y’know, she wore a pumpkin mask, and she centred a coord around radish sprouts. What’ll you do? Are you really going to trust Rizumu enough to take her Coord Rank Test?

Choice: Of course! / I’m… a bit scared…

Mia: What do we do!? I wouldn’t even be able to look at you in whatever weird outfit you’d be forced to wear!

Rizumu: What are you two whispering about? We’re starting the Coord Rank Test now, hurry up!!

Mia: No!! Player’s being taken away! Well, looks like you can’t escape anymore, Player! Good luck!

Rizumu: I’m testing your pop coord rank! Bring me 10 pop My☆Deco stones! Once you do that, we’ll compete in a prism show! This test has a special edition prism show! We’ll be competing in an all-dance prism show. All-dance mode doesn’t have any jumps, so as the name suggests it’s a prism show that’s always in dance mode! Doesn’t it sound fun?? Just letting you know, my dancing skills are unbeatable! So, will we start the test? My spirit is fully charged!

(prism show. Also zenbu dance mode is the best mode, i hate doing prism jumps lmao)

Rizumu: Oka~y! That was such a poppy show~! Congrats, you’ve passed the pop Coord Rank Test!

Mia: Ah!! The Rainbow Charm…

(5 slots filled, 2 left)

Mia: The power of the pop coord returned to the Rainbow Charm!

Rizumu: I’m glad I could help. How was all-dance mode? Shows without jumps are good too once in a while! It’s perfect for when you just want to dance your heart out!

Mia: Thank you, Rizumu-san! This is great, Player! We only have… feminine and star left. It feels like we’re really close to finishing the Rainbow Charm! Though… does being close to getting the Rainbow Wedding also mean you’ll have to face off against Rinne? If only we could just get it over and done with!

Rizumu: Whenever you talk about this Rinne girl, you seem pretty testy, huh? Is Rinne your friend, Player? …...Looks like you can’t answer. But you’re interested in her? I’m sure you’ll eventually be able to become friends with her, since she makes you feel that way. I’ve been through a lot with Aira and Mion, too. We’ve fought a lot, but in the end our fights brought us all closer together, and gave us a deeper understanding of each other. And now we’re the best of friends!

Mia: But how do we become friends with Rinne…? It’s pretty hard to befriend someone you know nothing about…

Rizumu: It’ll be fine! We have prism shows after all, right? MARs became close through prism shows, we formed our bonds on the path to the Aurora Rising. You’re bonded to Rinne because you’re both after the Rainbow Wedding. Believe in your heart and work hard! I’ll definitely be cheering you on, Player!

Chapter 18: Aurora Wings

Mia: Rizumu has a really good point! Her advice has a way of worming itself into your heart! 'Bonds that form through prism shows’, huh~

Rizumu: Player and Rinne will definitely end up as close friends.

Aira: Rizumu-chaaan!

Mia: Grrr…!! That voice must be… Harune Aira!

Mion: Mion’s here too, you know.

Penguin-sensei: Me too!

Mia: Gah! Mion-san! ...and Penguin-sensei…

Mion: What do you mean by ‘gah’!?

Mia: Yikes. I feel another test coming~

Penguin-sensei: We won’t be giving you another Coord Rank Test. MARs have gathered here for something else… They have a special lesson for you, Player!

Mia: What kinda special lesson?

Penguin-sensei: The rainbow is not the only light that shines in the sky.

Mion: We want you and Rinne to create another light… MARs will tell you all about the light of the aurora!

Mia: The light of the aurora!? Wait, you can’t mean…

Aira: You’ve worked hard on lessons and prism shows up until now, Player. Your current self can definitely pull off the Aurora Rising!

Mia: You want Player to perform the legendary jump, Aurora Rising!?

Mion: It will be fine. We’ll all help out.

Aira: Wear the Gold Spiral Dress, and you’ll be able to perform the Aurora Rising! The light of the aurora is the light of dreams that brings the world together.

Rizumu: The colours of the aurora will give your heart power too. They’ll become the key to opening up Rinne’s sorrowful heart! Like, ‘that is it, the Aurora Rising!’ So, will you show the new light of the Aurora Rising to Rinne?

Choice: I want to show her / Can I really do it?

Mion: Nice prism! Your straightforward heart will definitely allow aurora wings to form.

Rizumu: It may seem impossible at first, but you still have to try! It’s better to try and fail than to not try at all! I’ll make a wish for the Aurora Rising to link Rinne and Player’s hearts!

Mion: It seems that Rinne is currently in Sweets Café. Let’s go there at once.

Rizumu: Whoop! Let’s goooo~!!

(they go to the sweets cafe)

Mia: We’ve finally arrived, but is Rinne still even here?

Rinne: Player……

Mia: Rinne!?!?

Rinne: ………

Aira: Aw, don’t look so sad! We came here today to give you a present, Rinne.

Rinne: A present……?

Aira: A very happylucky present from Player to you!

Rinne: Happylucky…… for me?

Mion: Now, Player! It’s time!!!! Wear this dress!!!! And fly!! With aurora wings!!!!

(prism show)

Rinne: Amazing…… Amazing……. The aurora’s light… was beautiful…… It was shining in all the colours of the rainbow. It was as if a curtain was drawn over the night sky.

Aira: That was the light of Player-chan’s heart, Rinne-chan.

Rinne: The light of Player’s heart…

Mion: A girl’s heart is a prism, you know.

Mia: It is! When we experience lots of happy or sad moments, when we cry or laugh… our hearts spin round and round, changing colours and creating shining bright!! That’s why they’re so beautiful…

Rinne: But I… don’t know my true self. I’m empty…

Aira: It’s alright.

Rinne: Huh…?

Aira: Player-chan’s heart is overflowing with light.

Mia: Player could definitely My☆Deco your heart, Rinne.

Rizumu: That’s right! After all, you looked so happy during Player’s show! If you cry together and laugh together, if you have lots of experiences together… you’ll be able to see hearts with many more colours of light!

Mion: Split the happy times in half. Split the sad times in half, too… That’s what friendship is.

Rinne: Friendship… Player and I…

Aira: Now, join hands! Together with Rinne-chan!!!!

Rinne: Aurora…… RISING!!!!

(white flash)

Mia: The light of Rinne’s heart mixed with Player’s… is shining in the sky!

Rinne: Player… I… don’t know my true self. Where did I come from? What do I want to do? I don’t know that, either… Even so… Will you be my friend? ………...Thank you. Your heart is so warm. I want to make my heart shine like yours… no, I will make it shine!!!!

(white flash, and… refer to the image above)

Rinne: ……

Mia: Ah! Rinne’s coord… changed again!

Rinne: What is this…?

Penguin-sensei: H… How is this possible!? That’s the Seventh Coord Star Dress! How on earth…!?

Aira: What a happylucky coord… Your clothes are so happy they seem like they’re shining.

Mion: The shining white light of a star. That’s the colour of Rinne’s heart!

Rinne: I’m not lost anymore, Player. My seven-hued heart, not being able to remember anything… Everything…

Aira: The power of on of the seven coords, star, seems to have returned to Rinne-chan.

Mion: In order to complete the Rainbow Charm, you’ll need Rinne’s star power. Completing the Rainbow Charm and getting the Rainbow Wedding… Who will do it? Rinne… or Player? I won’t be able to look away from you too until one of you wins.

Rizumu: But, but! There’s an important tournament to think about before the Rainbow Cup! The last Spiral Cup, the Platinum Spiral Cup. If you put your passion towards reaching the Rainbow Cup, there’s no way you’ll lose!

Rinne: Player, here…

(meganee screaming about the deco parts rinne just gave us)

Mia: Hm, what’s this? A My☆Deco frame?

Rinne: It’s to thank you for today, Player… For My☆Deco-ing my heart. I know you’ll be abel to make a wonderfully lovely or cool coord…

Mia: Then it’s the frame of friendship! With this, you’ll be able to win the Platinum Spiral Cup like kaboom!!

Rinne: Thank you, Player. For… becoming friends with me. I’ll look forward to the Rainbow Cup.

[polardtwin]

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[chickenstuffedwithmozzarella]

Yaaay!! Thank you Soraya's inbox, sorry i blamed you on eating the last ask😂😘. You did great. Nono, he wasnt a torero, he looked like a prince. (Which is not better bcs i dont like any of those  figures but... whatever). Ooh, talking about suits, did you see the ranking hsfashionarchive did of the suits he wore this tour? Bcn was winning, pink suit was second and Mdd was third!! (1)

[I hope this works 😜🙏🏻, bc this was TOO long, jajajaa.]

Ohhh. Your mom is the best. So supportive! Petition to give her that award. She is clearly the winner. (1D clinex? capitalism in its pure state 😂. Did they really made those? Glad i didnt find it on time bcs i would have definitely brought them as a joke to my sister or something). You are already playing Niall’s songs to her? Did she like them? Does she have anything similar to “pikachu get away” she had for SOTT?. (2)

JAJAJAJJA. Netflix always does that to me too. Dont know why. I started watching Black mirror backwards bcs of that. Did you understand anything of chapter 7 os ST? (Did you finish the show??). Yep. The 8th season is the last one, and i dont know hoe to feel about it. Dissapointed by the shows? As in with the ending?? Or how? (3)

You sound like a devoted cat lady, yes. Ooow, i have little cousins too, though they are reaching the age of “too cool to be seen with you, old girl” Of course they make me laugh. Honey is a menace and i appreciate it. JAJAJAJAJAJAJA. He ate the chorizo?? Honeeey!! 😂😂😂 that made me laugh at loud int the train and now my neighbour is looking at me weirdly. I see, you’ll never get bored with him. (4)

When i was younger and + close minded, i didnt like tattos. Considere also that the ones I had saw in real life were the tribal ones, so there’s tgat. But then i grew up and started liking them (you can partially blame larry for that). Nobody in my family (cousins and so) has one, and thats kind of a encouragement, I’d love to piss them, but my dad has threaten me to disinherit me (we dont heven have that, lol) and i dont have any tatto on mind, so i wont do it… maybe in the future, yes. (5)

I MISS LOUIS TOO! I hope he is fine. Resting and so. Im sure that creating the album that will destroy us all takes a lot of effort. (Seriously, where is heeeee?). Heeey!! I wont get bored. Or mad! I have such a great time talking to you. If i dont talk more its bcs of the character limit and bcs im always worried about pressuring or imposing. Dont be dumb. If i dont answer its bcs im busy with finals and so. Nothing more. Promise. (6)

THANK YOU FOR UNDERSTANDING. i know i know. It makes sense and its a smart move, but… i cant stand raeggeton/latino, its not for me. Sad. I havent lost hope though. Maybe ill change my mind later Yeah, i have the same problem with my friends, they only listen to trap and raeggeton and i die everytime. We mostly agree to put something neutral like pop or the radio. (Disney songs never get old😂). (7)

Ay. I just saw that i wrote “heven” instead of “even” and now i want to delete myself. I was walking while writing the asks and i didnt proofread it. I feel so dumb. Anyway, sorry for sending so many asks (today i made a record xd) and, as always, good night!!————————————————————————-Hi!!!! Yes! I saw the ranking. But it isn’t exactly a ranking. It’s more to like chose wants your favorite suit. I did it and guess what? My first choice in the Madrid one, jajajaa. Second the kilt. And third the jumpsuit. Very accurate.

Oh, you’re telling me! My family bought me a bunch of 1D merch (unofficial all): the clinex, a hair brush, a bracelet, 2 books!, one perfume (this I love it, it smells so good), a make up box… I can’t even remember everything. Ah! A birthday card too!! Where they talk when you open it. I always use to wish happy birthday to people (the audio) 🤣🤣🤣🤣. I had to tell them to please stop wasting money on those things. I don’t even know where I have it. And if a can ask, I’d rather they give me the money so I can go to their concerts,jajajaja.EDIT: I can’t believe I forgot the poster!! I have it beside my head right now,jajaja, and I only realized it was there when I looked at the boys to ask for inspiration,😅😅)

Oh, my mom loves Niall’s album too. But I don’t think she “knows” any of the lyrics,jajaja. Though, she knows the hmmmm in This Town. But that’s all. She and my sister, both separately were like: “oh! who’s him??” When they heard Fire Away. And I was like: “ehhhhh, it’s Niall’s album, so guess who’s it?? What, you like it? See, Harry’s not the only one who can sing…” jajajajja. It’s because of comments like this, that they think I don’t like Harry. And I get so offended when they hint at it! Like, of course I like Harry. But I like all of them too!! God!! I love Niall’s album so much (I’m hearing it right now, bc I couldn’t remember what song was the one they liked it so much, and now I can’t stop 😅). Harry’s and Niall’s albums have been lining in my car since they were released. I had Harry’s playing in a loop till I got Niall’s one and I interchanged them. Then Harry’s came back a month or so before his concert. And now it’s time for Niall’s again. (You can’t imagine how hard it’s being writing this with honey laying on my arm!! Jajaja, I can’t barely move my fingers😅).

AND WHAT DID YOU DO WHEN YOU REALIZED YOU WERE WATCHING BLACK MIRROS BACKWARDS??? I’ve watched canter 1 and 2 of ST afterwards, but I hadn’t gotten to watch the whole thing yet. I can’t stand to be looking at a screen for 50minutes without doing anything. And don’t get me wrong, lol, I can be on tumblr for hours, jajaja, but a have to move my hand, and I can go from a blog to another… y'know, jajajajaja. And when I watched chapter 7 of ST i was like, okay… now they have to investigate what happened… or a guessed they would be doing flashbacks… jajajajajaja. Then I realized my mistake and thought I was stupid, 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣“I see you from a different point of view🎶🎶” ( sorry, that’s me singing,jajajaja, Seeing Blind. I LOVE that song)And shows have disappointed me in the sense that they turn out to have an awful ending (seriously, I know you do it for the audience, but end a show how it deserves it, don’t turn it into shit just for a handful of money); or bc they just end it bc they don’t have enough audience. It’s always a matter of audience,jajaja.if they have a lot, they want to explode it. And if they don’t have enough they finish it ASAP. 😒

Honey is a menace, yeh, I couldn’t love him more,jajajaja. He can’t see me petting Liam, he gets jealous and comes to me and headbutt my hand so I pet him too. And Liam is so patient with him. They’re totally like liam and Louis, jajja. Hey! did I tell you the story about when I got Liam? no!! Well, someone gave my dad 4 kitties (they were sooooo small). So, guess their names (it was post March 25, 2015…) yes!! They were named (by me) Louis, Niall, Harry and Liam, jajajajajja. But Harry died a couple of days later, because he was really really young. He couldn’t survive without his mom ☹️. And the other three, my dad took them to a place we have were he has a little garden (?) with vegetables and chickens and proper farm-y, jejeje. I wasn’t too (any) into cats back then, so… Then he brought home one of them, to have our home free of mice. AND IT WAS LIAM!! And I adopted him. I took care of him. We started loving each other. And he became useless with mice, jajaja. He’s totally domesticated now 😝. And that’s his story. The rest? Louis became a big alpha male at their new home. But s car ran him over last summer, and he died 😔. And Niall is a female, jajajajaa. And I hate her. Because she hasn’t been able to keep her kitties alive once!! (She’s pregame again, and we’re praying this time she knows who to be a mom🙏🏻) Ah!! And Honey had siblings the other day!! The guy who gave it to my dad is my brother’s friend and he show him a pic. There are two white cats!! I WANT THEM!!! But they don’t let me have anymore cats! Jajajajaja.

Hey, we might have in common the reason why we started liking tats, jajajjajaa. And, well, to piss off the family is as good a reason as any other,jajajaja. And why are dads like that?? When my sister and I got our lips pierced he went to pick up at the train station and as soon as he saw us he turned around and walked to the car without saying a word,jajajajja. I HAD TOLMY PARENTS WE WOULD BE DOING IT!! I asked my mom:hey mom, if a get a 10 in maths, can I get a piercing?? And she say okay. So I got a 10 (I might cheated or not on this, bc I already knew I had a 10, but wel…), and I got a piercing.my sister only got it, bc I was 16, she had to go with me as an adult, and giving she was already there, she got one too,jajajaja. (My granny almost kill us 😅)

Oh, louis has a BIG responsibility on his hands. He will be killing a lot of people when he puts out his album. He has to chose the proper songs to do it. It will be considered a massive destruction weapon, so he better be careful. But god, for real, when will Louis and Liam release their albums. At this pace, Harry and Niall will be releasing their second one before LiLo has finished their respective tours. And when they finish, Narry will have release their second one, and will be promoting them. So Lilo will start working in their seconds one. And… and… AND ONE DIRECTION WON’T COME BACK EVER BECAUSE THEY CAN FIX A DATE WHERE ALL OF THE BOYS HAVE NOTHING TO DO, AND WHAT WILL I DO??? 😭😭😭😭😭 (sorry, I panicked a bit there,oops).

Uggggg, I can’t stand raeggeton either. I can’t stand the music, argggg. Or the culture of it (the how it treats women, and glorifies sex). I can’t I can’t.and you can’t go out without hearing it. My friends and I went on road trip once. And it was my friend’s car. And she only listens to raeggeton. And after 10, 15, 40? minutes I had to ask her “will this song ever end???” And she told me it was already a different one. And I swear I almost jump out of the car,jajajajaja. We were crossing a bridge, and I wanted to jump out of the car!!!!! I couldn’t listen to that any more!!!!!  Ejkbvwirbfeuirnfrvoieefvnv The she caved and we switched to movie’s soundtracks,jajajaja.

Ha! Don’t worry about sending a lot of ask, I learn something, you’ll see,jajajajaa.Also, I forgot to ask early. Is your sister a 1d fan too, then? She goes to concerts and knows the song… how lucky! you have someone to talk about all the gossip!! (And they know what you’re talking about…) or is she a “casual” fan, and doesn’t get into fandom drama? She just likes the music and doesn’t care about their lives?are you both into drama?? God, I don’t discuss drama very much online, but if had someone face to face to talk about it… I would be the happiest person in the world,jajajajaa (what an exaggeration 🙊).

I think this is all. I LOVE ORPUR CONVERSATIONS!! Jajajaja( I hope I did it correctly and all this is under read more, jajaja)Byeeeeee!!!! 😚😚😚😚

[blackyeshuadepictions]

Transfiguration

Matthew 17.1-9

And after six days Jesus Yeshua took with him Peter and James and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain apart. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his garments became white as light. And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. And Peter said to Jesus Yeshua, “Lord, it is well that we are here; if you wish, I will make three booths here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” He was still speaking, when lo, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces, and were filled with awe. But Jesus Yeshua came and touched them, saying, “Rise, and have no fear.” And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus Yeshua only. And as they were coming down the mountain, Jesus Yeshua commanded them, “Tell no one the vision, until the Son of man is raised from the dead.”

Mark 9:2-8

Now after six days Jesus Yeshua took Peter, James and John, and led them up on a high mountain apart by themselves; and He was transfigured before them. His clothes became shining, exceedingly white, like snow, such as no launderer on earth can whiten them. And Elijah appeared to them with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus Yeshua. Then Peter answered and said to Jesus Yeshua, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one Elijah” because he did not know what to say, for they were greatly afraid. And a cloud came and overshadowed them, and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “THIS IS MY BELOVED SON, HEAR HIM!” Suddenly, when they had looked around, they saw no one anymore, but only Jesus Yeshua with themselves.

Luke 9:28-36

At that time, Jesus Yeshua took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And as he was praying, the appearance of his countenance was altered, and his raiment became dazzling white. And behold, two men talked with him, Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure, which he was to accomplish at Jerusalem. Now Peter and those who were with him were heavy with sleep, and when they wakened they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus Yeshua, “Master, it is well that we are here; let us make three booths, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah” - not knowing what he said. As he said this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, my Beloved; listen to him!” And when the voice had spoken, Jesus Yeshua was found alone. And they kept silence and told no one in those days anything of what they had seen.

John 1:1-17

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came for testimony, to bear witness to the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness to the light. The true light that enlightens every man was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world knew him not. He came to his own home, and his own people received him not. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God; who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father. (John bore witness to him, and cried, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, for he was before me.’”) And from his fulness have we all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

Yeshua Calms A Storm in Gospel of Mark 4.35-41:

On that day, when evening had come, He said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” And leaving the crowd, they took Him with them in the boat, just as He was. And other boats were with Him. And a great storm of wind arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do you not care if we perish?” And He awoke and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?” And they were filled with awe, and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even wind and sea obey Him?” Lord Yeshua the Messiah, True God, have mercy on us! प्रभु यीशु मसीह, परमेश्वर के सन्तान, हम पर दया कर!  We learn from St. Mark that, in the words of the St. Athanasius the Great, “The Lord Who rebuked (the storm) was not a creature, but rather its Creator.” St. Basil the Great further teaches us that “by these encounters we are meeting the Father of the Son, the Father Who creates through the Son.

HANNUKAH (Chanukah) MIRACLE! 

2 Maccabees 10:5-9 

It happened that on the same day on which the sanctuary had been profaned by the foreigners, the purification of the sanctuary took place, that is, on the twenty-fifth day of the same month, which was Chislev. And they celebrated it for eight days with rejoicing, in the manner of the feast of booths, remembering how not long before, during the feast of booths, they had been wandering in the mountains and caves like wild animals. Therefore bearing ivy-wreathed wands and beautiful branches and also fronds of palm, they offered hymns of thanksgiving to him who had given success to the purifying of his own holy place. They decreed by public ordinance and vote that the whole nation of the Jews should observe these days every year. Such then was the end of Anti′ochus, who was called Epiph′anes. +

John 16:33

+New American Bible Revised Edition:

 “I have told you this so that you might have peace in me. In the world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have conquered the world.” 

+Revised Standard Version:

 “I have said this to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” 

+King James Version:

 “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” 

+DouayRheims:

 “These things I have spoken to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you shall have distress: but have confidence, I have overcome the world.” 

+Disciples’ Literal New Testament: 

“I have spoken these things to you in order that you may have peace in Me. You have affliction in the world, but take-courage— I have overcome the world”.

Apostle Peter On Yeshua’s Transfiguration in 2 Peter 1:16–18 

For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Yeshua the Messiah Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For when he received honor and glory from God the Father and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,” we heard this voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain.

YESHUA EATS FISH & ASCENDS TO HEAVEN in Luke 24: 36-53 ++LORD JESUS YESHUA THE MESSIAH CHRIST, PRE-ETERNAL BISHOP (TRUE HEAD OF THE ORTHODOX CHURCH) & SON OF GOD, HAVE MERCY ON US SINNERS! ++ 

… Jesus YESHUA himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you.” But they were startled and frightened, and supposed that they saw a spirit. And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do questionings rise in your hearts? See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself; handle me, and see; for a spirit has not flesh and bones as you see that I have.” And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. And while they still disbelieved for joy, and wondered, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate before them. Then he said to them, “These are my words which I spoke to you, while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and the psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you; but stay in the city, until you are clothed with power from on high.” Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. And they worshiped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple blessing God.

YESHUA’S ASCENSION from the Acts of the Apostles 1:6-11 (NOT the Gospel of Luke) 

So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit (Ruach HaKodesh) has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samar′ia and to the end of the earth.” And when he had said this, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

Song of the Theotokos in Luke 1:46-55 

And Mariam (Mary) said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has regarded the low estate of his handmaiden. For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. And his mercy is on those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm, he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts, he has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted those of low degree; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent empty away. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers, too Abraham and to his posterity for ever.”

[dailyofficereadings]

Daily Office Readings August 26, 2020

Psalm 119:1-24

Psalm 119

The Glories of God’s Law

1 Happy are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord. 2 Happy are those who keep his decrees, who seek him with their whole heart, 3 who also do no wrong, but walk in his ways. 4 You have commanded your precepts to be kept diligently. 5 O that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes! 6 Then I shall not be put to shame, having my eyes fixed on all your commandments. 7 I will praise you with an upright heart, when I learn your righteous ordinances. 8 I will observe your statutes; do not utterly forsake me.

9 How can young people keep their way pure? By guarding it according to your word. 10 With my whole heart I seek you; do not let me stray from your commandments. 11 I treasure your word in my heart, so that I may not sin against you. 12 Blessed are you, O Lord; teach me your statutes. 13 With my lips I declare all the ordinances of your mouth. 14 I delight in the way of your decrees as much as in all riches. 15 I will meditate on your precepts, and fix my eyes on your ways. 16 I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word.

17 Deal bountifully with your servant, so that I may live and observe your word. 18 Open my eyes, so that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. 19 I live as an alien in the land; do not hide your commandments from me. 20 My soul is consumed with longing for your ordinances at all times. 21 You rebuke the insolent, accursed ones, who wander from your commandments; 22 take away from me their scorn and contempt, for I have kept your decrees. 23 Even though princes sit plotting against me, your servant will meditate on your statutes. 24 Your decrees are my delight, they are my counselors.

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Psalm 12-14

Psalm 12

Plea for Help in Evil Times

To the leader: according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.

1 Help, O Lord, for there is no longer anyone who is godly; the faithful have disappeared from humankind. 2 They utter lies to each other; with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.

3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips, the tongue that makes great boasts, 4 those who say, “With our tongues we will prevail; our lips are our own—who is our master?”

5 “Because the poor are despoiled, because the needy groan, I will now rise up,” says the Lord; “I will place them in the safety for which they long.” 6 The promises of the Lord are promises that are pure, silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times.

7 You, O Lord, will protect us; you will guard us from this generation forever. 8 On every side the wicked prowl, as vileness is exalted among humankind.

Psalm 13

Prayer for Deliverance from Enemies

To the leader. A Psalm of David.

1 How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? 2 How long must I bear pain[a] in my soul, and have sorrow in my heart all day long? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?

3 Consider and answer me, O Lord my God! Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep the sleep of death, 4 and my enemy will say, “I have prevailed”; my foes will rejoice because I am shaken.

5 But I trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. 6 I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me.

Psalm 14

Denunciation of Godlessness

To the leader. Of David.

1 Fools say in their hearts, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is no one who does good.

2 The Lord looks down from heaven on humankind to see if there are any who are wise, who seek after God.

3 They have all gone astray, they are all alike perverse; there is no one who does good, no, not one.

4 Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers who eat up my people as they eat bread, and do not call upon the Lord?

5 There they shall be in great terror, for God is with the company of the righteous. 6 You would confound the plans of the poor, but the Lord is their refuge.

7 O that deliverance for Israel would come from Zion! When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people, Jacob will rejoice; Israel will be glad.

Footnotes:

Psalm 13:2 Syr: Heb hold counsels

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Job 6:1

Job Replies: My Complaint Is Just

6 Then Job answered:

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Job 7

Job: My Suffering Is without End

7 “Do not human beings have a hard service on earth, and are not their days like the days of a laborer? 2 Like a slave who longs for the shadow, and like laborers who look for their wages, 3 so I am allotted months of emptiness, and nights of misery are apportioned to me. 4 When I lie down I say, ‘When shall I rise?’ But the night is long, and I am full of tossing until dawn. 5 My flesh is clothed with worms and dirt; my skin hardens, then breaks out again. 6 My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle, and come to their end without hope.[a]

7 “Remember that my life is a breath; my eye will never again see good. 8 The eye that beholds me will see me no more; while your eyes are upon me, I shall be gone. 9 As the cloud fades and vanishes, so those who go down to Sheol do not come up; 10 they return no more to their houses, nor do their places know them any more.

11 “Therefore I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul. 12 Am I the Sea, or the Dragon, that you set a guard over me? 13 When I say, ‘My bed will comfort me, my couch will ease my complaint,’ 14 then you scare me with dreams and terrify me with visions, 15 so that I would choose strangling and death rather than this body. 16 I loathe my life; I would not live forever. Let me alone, for my days are a breath. 17 What are human beings, that you make so much of them, that you set your mind on them, 18 visit them every morning, test them every moment? 19 Will you not look away from me for a while, let me alone until I swallow my spittle? 20 If I sin, what do I do to you, you watcher of humanity? Why have you made me your target? Why have I become a burden to you? 21 Why do you not pardon my transgression and take away my iniquity? For now I shall lie in the earth; you will seek me, but I shall not be.”

Footnotes:

Job 7:6 Or as the thread runs out

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Acts 10:1-16

Peter and Cornelius

10 In Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of the Italian Cohort, as it was called. 2 He was a devout man who feared God with all his household; he gave alms generously to the people and prayed constantly to God. 3 One afternoon at about three o’clock he had a vision in which he clearly saw an angel of God coming in and saying to him, “Cornelius.” 4 He stared at him in terror and said, “What is it, Lord?” He answered, “Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God. 5 Now send men to Joppa for a certain Simon who is called Peter; 6 he is lodging with Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the seaside.” 7 When the angel who spoke to him had left, he called two of his slaves and a devout soldier from the ranks of those who served him, 8 and after telling them everything, he sent them to Joppa.

9 About noon the next day, as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. 10 He became hungry and wanted something to eat; and while it was being prepared, he fell into a trance. 11 He saw the heaven opened and something like a large sheet coming down, being lowered to the ground by its four corners. 12 In it were all kinds of four-footed creatures and reptiles and birds of the air. 13 Then he heard a voice saying, “Get up, Peter; kill and eat.” 14 But Peter said, “By no means, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is profane or unclean.” 15 The voice said to him again, a second time, “What God has made clean, you must not call profane.” 16 This happened three times, and the thing was suddenly taken up to heaven.

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

John 7:1-13

The Unbelief of Jesus’ Brothers

7 After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He did not wish[a] to go about in Judea because the Jews were looking for an opportunity to kill him. 2 Now the Jewish festival of Booths[b] was near. 3 So his brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea so that your disciples also may see the works you are doing; 4 for no one who wants[c] to be widely known acts in secret. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.” 5 (For not even his brothers believed in him.) 6 Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. 7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify against it that its works are evil. 8 Go to the festival yourselves. I am not[d] going to this festival, for my time has not yet fully come.” 9 After saying this, he remained in Galilee.

Jesus at the Festival of Booths

10 But after his brothers had gone to the festival, then he also went, not publicly but as it were[e] in secret. 11 The Jews were looking for him at the festival and saying, “Where is he?” 12 And there was considerable complaining about him among the crowds. While some were saying, “He is a good man,” others were saying, “No, he is deceiving the crowd.” 13 Yet no one would speak openly about him for fear of the Jews.

Footnotes:

John 7:1 Other ancient authorities read was not at liberty

John 7:2 Or Tabernacles

John 7:4 Other ancient authorities read wants it

John 7:8 Other ancient authorities add yet

John 7:10 Other ancient authorities lack as it were

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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Which manufacturer updates their phone fastest? Android Oreo edition As Android Oreo approaches its first anniversary, and Android P looms on the horizon, we thought it was time for a bit of a retrospective. Android Oreo, the latest major Android version, officially released n Aug. 21, 2017. Some of you might be lucky enough to now own a device running it. Many of you — apparently around 94 percent — are still waiting. Editor's Pick Android 8 review: Oreo is for everyone Three years ago Google introduced us to its new design language called Material Design. It was flat, graphical and colorful. It was the visual change that ushered in the beginning of a new age for … Third-party manufacturers have had plenty of time to adopt the new software and deliver it to their handsets. Which did it quickest? If you’re eyeing a smartphone upgrade and want one that delivers timely updates, we’re here to point you in the right direction. The coverage below should provide insight into which manufacturers take OS upgrades seriously, and who you can probably trust to deliver a quick upgrade to Android P when it eventually arrives. Enjoy. Some notes: The information is based largely on our Android Oreo update tracker page: you can find all the relevant links there. We’ve placed a greater focus on flagship devices because they’re the ones that tend to be updated fastest and are in most people’s hands. We’ve also favored the U.S. market, though we’ve included OEMs that don’t sell phones there. We don’t include Google because it’s the starting point for Android updates, so it’s the fastest OEM by default. If you simply want a phone that is guaranteed to be updated quickly, get a Pixel. We’ve ranked Android manufacturers from best to worst based on our own estimations of their performance. This is a quick-and-dirty guide rather than the final word on updates. Take it for what you will. 1. Sony Time to roll out first U.S. Oreo update: 63 days. Sony became an unlikely hero of Oreo — an Orhero, if you like [I do not like — Ed.] — getting six of its latest devices up and running with Android 8.0 by mid-March. Sony was also one of the few manufacturers to get Oreo out at the back end of 2017, slapping it on the Xperia XZ Premium on Oct. 23, and rolling it out for the Xperia XZ, XZs, and X Performance on Nov. 27. The Xperia X and X Compact followed this year on Feb. 5. Those later updates to Sony’s 2016 line-up put the March timeframe in which many other Android OEMs first released Oreo to shame. Sony also took just ten days to confirm which of its existing handsets would receive the new Android version, making it accountable, and setting some fans’ minds at ease. Sony hasn’t exactly been a standout Android manufacturer in the last couple of years, but it has made a concerted effort towards timely updates, and could be a safe bet for fast updates in the future. 2. HMD Global (Nokia) Time to roll out first U.S. Oreo update: 95 days. HMD Global is up there with Sony. Not only was it faster than most in delivering its first Android 8.0 update, rolling out Oreo to the Nokia 8 last November, it kept up the pace early in the New Year, getting Oreo to Nokia 5, Nokia 6, and Nokia 7 devices before the end of January. HMD Global is also open about when and where it is rolling out updates (follow the company’s affable chief product officer Juho Sarvikas on Twitter to stay up to date) and has already promised to upgrade all of its smartphones to Android P. That vow might be easier for HMD Global to make than for a more established Android OEM, considering its relatively small catalog of devices. Yet by the same token, it also lacks the resources of larger Android manufacturers, so it’s still bold, transparent, and, most importantly, incredibly consumer friendly. Looking ahead, a Nokia device could be a great move for your next Android phone — it’s just a shame HMD has yet to truly compete with the most premium flagships on the market. 3. OnePlus Time to roll out first U.S. Oreo update: 90 days. The ever-controversial OnePlus managed to roll out Android 8.0 in a timely fashion, releasing it for the OnePlus 3 and 3T in November, and the OnePlus 5 and 5T in January. The company followed up with Android 8.1 Oreo for the OnePlus 5 in March and to the OnePlus 5T in April, before some OEMs had even released the first build. Like HMD Global, OnePlus has a smaller catalog of phones and a UI that’s very similar to stock Android, giving it less work to do when Google drops new software. OnePlus is also communicative about updates on Twitter and in its forums, and deploys frequent, incremental upgrades based on user feedback. The company was good about upgrading its phones to Orea, but it’s important to remember the news from 2017 that the OnePlus 2 will never receive Android Nougat. This was expected, given the device’s lifespan and flagship-killer moniker, but we can’t rule out the same happening again for future OnePlus flagships. Furthermore, the OnePlus 5T was released in November 2017 and really should’ve just had Oreo out of the box. Regardless, based purely on the Oreo updates it’s rolled out, OnePlus has been among the better performers. 4. HTC Time to roll out first U.S. Oreo update: 98 days. HTC’s mobile business may be in the middle of a pretty serious rough patch, but for the past two years it’s come out near the top end of the Android OEM pile for update speed. HTC got the Oreo ball rolling in 2017, updating the HTC U11 and U11 Life in November, and pushing the update to its 2016 flagship, the HTC 10, the following February. HTC also updated the U Ultra, released February 2017, with Oreo this April. Considering the company’s restructuring and layoffs earlier this year, whether it will be able to continue in the same vein going forward is anybody’s guess. HTC also lost its beloved update promoter earlier this year, the man, the myth, the legend, Mo Versi, so even if future updates are nippy HTC may not be as open with its communication. It’s also worth noting the company’s 2018 flagship, the HTC U12 Plus, launched with Android 8.0 Oreo instead of 8.1. It would have been nice to see the latest version of Android running on the $800 phone. 5. Asus Time to roll out first U.S. Oreo update: 130 days. Asus released Oreo for the Asus ZenFone 4 and Asus ZenFone 3 in December and January, respectively — a decent start. It kept its head down until March with the Asus 4 Pro update, and updated the Asus Zenfone 3 Zoom and Deluxe in May. It was patchy, but the rollout for its major devices puts Asus ahead of some of the bigger players, which counts for something. You might want to avoid variants like the Zoom or Deluxe editions if you wish to dodge late deployments in future, though. 6. Xiaomi Time to roll out first U.S. Oreo update: 131 days. Xiaomi celebrates new versions of its MIUI software like few manufacturers do, even when it sometimes only produces minor improvements (nature inspired notifications, anyone?). It also spends a lot of time on them and tends to roll them out in batches. However, Xiaomi managed to update the Mi A1, Mi 6, Redmi Note 5, Redmi Note 5 Pro, and a couple of others, between January and June this year. Xiaomi has historically been a manufacturer to avoid if you’re after timely updates, and it’s still far from the best, but the Android Oreo upgrades flowed far better than in previous years. 7. Huawei / Honor Time to roll out first U.S. Oreo update: 163 days. Huawei had a better run with Oreo than previous Android versions. The Chinese giant got its 2016 flagship Mate 9 up and running with Oreo just before February 2018, and updated the P10 and P10 Plus — and Honor 9 and Honor 8 Pro from its sub-brand Honor — by March 15. Like its local rival, Xiaomi, Huawei has historically lagged behind most manufacturers with updates, tending to update several devices at once with a new version of its highly customized Android interface EMUI. In the past, this has been many months after a new Android version is released. With Oreo, Huawei upped its game. We’d hardly call it a brilliant showing, but it’s at least a positive step for Huawei and gives us hope things will get better again when Android P rolls around. 8. Lenovo / Motorola Time to roll out first U.S. Oreo update: 123 days. Lenovo has been the architect of several notable disappointments recently, yet somehow its update rollout speed might be the worst of them all. It updated the Moto Z2 Force to Android 8.0 in December and the Moto X4 to Android 8.1 Oreo in March. Other main devices didn’t receive any kind of upgrade in the U.S. until May or later — some still sit on its to do list (at least it has a list, though). What’s even more frustrating is that soak tests were seen for some of the Moto Z series back in 2017, and it’s not like the phones have a highly customized Android skin to retool like Huawei or Xiaomi. As with HTC, Lenovo has also fallen on hard times lately, with layoffs and rumors of a canceled phone. It has a comparatively broad catalog of phones, but only a fraction have been updated at all. I wouldn’t bet on the brand for fast updates to Android P and we could be waiting some time for all of its eligible phones to get Oreo. 9. Essential Time to roll out first U.S. Oreo update: 204 Putting Essential on the scale is tricky. It offered Oreo in open beta form way back in November last year, and improved the software several times over the course of the beta, rolling out OTAs on a monthly basis. This meant fans could try the work-in-progress version of the software on their phones ahead of the official rollout. We must give credit to Essential for providing the option — not all manufacturers offer a beta period, let alone making it open and offering OTA updates — but Essential didn’t deploy the complete Android 8.1 Oreo software until around March 13. That’s still a long wait for Essential Phone owners who don’t want to flash early software builds on their devices (most users). Things may improve with Android P, however, as Essential has a beta build of the new software up and running on its flagship already. Reports suggest an Essential Phone sequel may not be on the horizon, but the company hasn’t forgotten about its first device. 10. Samsung Time to roll out first U.S. Oreo update: 207 days. Samsung rolled Oreo out to its flagship Galaxy S8, S8 Plus, and Note 8 phones by around mid-to-late-March, more than six months after the software’s release. The update began rolling out with carriers before hitting the U.S. unlocked models in April. Samsung rarely excels at updating its phones, but this was a shockingly poor performance. It should be a warning sign for potential Samsung Galaxy buyers — not to mention current Galaxy S9 owners. You could be waiting for several months in 2019 to see the Android P update roll out. Samsung is in the process of updating the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge to Oreo, meaning it is providing the 24-months of support we (rightfully) expect from Android phones. The South Korean company has also updated some of its lesser-known devices, like the Galaxy A series, in certain regions. Hey, it’s something. Hopefully, Samsung can take advantage of the benefits of Project Treble to improve going forward. Goodness knows it needs to. 11. LG Time to roll out first U.S. Oreo update: 203 days. LG got off to a reasonable start with Oreo in South Korea, updating its then flagship the LG V30 before the new year. Unfortunately, things took a nosedive after that. U.S. carriers didn’t begin updating the V30 until March, while LG pushed Oreo to the U.S. unlocked handset only in May. Editor's Pick Android version distribution: Oreo installations jump a full percentage point in one month The newest batch of Android distribution numbers of 2018 are in, and Android Oreo (both 8.0 and 8.1) is now installed on 5.7 percent of all Android devices! That represents an increase of more than … LG said it was updating its second most recent flagship, the LG G6, in late April, but it didn’t reach U.S. carriers until May and the U.S. unlocked models until June. LG confirmed Oreo is in the works for the LG G5 or the LG V20, but there’s still no sign of it. It’s a disappointing situation, especially given that LG doesn’t have many important phones to update, but LG seems aware of the problem. The company opened a facility in South Korea in April dedicated to rolling out faster updates. It’s yet to bear any fruit, but for Android P, LG might be one to watch. You might as well write it off for Android Oreo, though. 12. Razer Time to roll out first U.S. Oreo update: 238 days. The Razer Phone is the first smartphone from gaming hardware company Razer, so a period of acclimation is only to be expected. Still, Razer only started rolling Oreo out to the Razer Phone on April 16, putting it at the back end of our list. Razer was at least released a preview build for users to test out, but even that only landed a couple of weeks before. We’ve heard rumors that Razer is working on a sequel. Here’s to hoping updates are one of the areas it improves. Which manufacturer has most impressed or disappointed you with Android Oreo updates? Give us your thoughts in the comments. , via Android Authority http://bit.ly/2tk3EcW

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Rham excited by home debut at Valderrama has been published at http://www.theleader.info/2017/08/30/rham-excited-home-debut-valderrama/

New Post has been published on http://www.theleader.info/2017/08/30/rham-excited-home-debut-valderrama/

Rham excited by home debut at Valderrama

“I look forward to playing in front of the Spanish fans.”

“Valderrama is one of the best layouts I have ever played”.

“What is happening this season is past my wildest dreams”.

Jon Rham will make his first professional appearance on Spanish soil at the third edition of the Andalucía Valderrama Masters, hosted by the Sergio García Foundation and sponsored by the Autonomous Government of Andalusia, from October 19-22. Rham currently ranks 5th in the OWGR and in the FedEx Cup, and 3rd in the Race to Dubai in his impressive rookie season. He won the Farmers Insurance Open, his maiden PGA Tour title, in January. In July he earned his first European Tour victory by winning the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open by six strokes.

The Spanish rising talent (born in Barrika, Vizcaya 10/11/1994) is relishing his home debut. “I really look forward to playing in front of the Spanish fans. Right after the Irish Open I went to Valderrama to practice for October. I felt a big sense of anticipation as I teed up on the first hole. I wish to encourage everyone to come and support us and watch some great golf. If the public enjoys it, we will enjoy it.

“My first round at Valderrama was five years ago when I played the Sotogrande Cup with the Spanish national team. It was a different experience because my game has changed a lot since then. I remember playing in a gale.

“Valderrama is one of the best layouts I have ever played. It is visually attractive and wonderfully maintained. Golf courses don’t need to measure 10,000 yards to be challenging. I find Valderrama very exciting and a good test. You really have to think your way through and play all kinds of shots. Mistakes can be costly, so it keeps you on your toes.”

Jon was two when Valderrama staged the Ryder Cup; his father Edorta recalls how the 1997 showdown introduced golf to his family: “We are a group of friends from Bilbao who enjoy a lot of sports together, particularly skiing. Two of our gang were invited to the ’97 Ryder Cup. They had no idea of golf, but they returned home full of enthusiasm. Two years later, Eduardo Celles opened his golf academy in Bilbao and we all started taking lessons. My wife Ángela, and our sons Jon and Eriz took up golf in 2003.” 

The family became so addicted to golf that they took a week’s vacation every year to go to Valderrama for the Volvo Masters. Jon has vivid childhood memories of those tournaments where the trophies he collected on the course were the autographs of his idols.

“I remember my first visit with my father during the 2007 Volvo Masters. The first player we saw was Thomas Björn on the 7th. Then we went to the first to watch Poulter and Sergio tee off. We followed Poulter who played a great shot on the first. I went ahead of my dad and was lucky enough to see Justin Rose ace the 3rd, but my dad didn’t see it. We followed Poulter along the 4th and we waited for Colin Montgomerie on the 5th. The next thing I remember is the 17th, a great hole. You need a perfect drive to a tight fairway and then you are facing a daunting second – it reminds me slightly of the 15th at Augusta.

“On the 18 green I got my shirt signed by Nick Dougherty, Paul Casey and Miguel Ángel, but I don’t think he remembers. Harrington had won the Open Championship that year and I asked him for his cap but he couldn’t give it to me. I didn’t bring home any balls, hats nor gloves, only my shirt with six signatures on it. We went from there to the putting green and to the driving range to see some more golf.”

Ten years after collecting those autographs, Jon returns to Valderrama as one of the world’s top players. “In October I will be proud to play my first professional event in Spain. I look forward to playing the Andalucía Valderrama Masters in front of my home crowd and will do my best to give a good show.

“The boy that went to Valderrama in 2007 is still there, with the same dreams and the same ambition. I am extremely fortunate that my dreams are coming true, but this year feels more like a Steven Spielberg film – winning at Torrey Pines and again in Ireland the way I did doesn’t even happen in the wildest dreams.”

Edorta Rham shares the same feeling. “I never imagined that Jon would get so far so fast. You dream that your son will make it, but being realistic, we insisted that he should complete his studies. I only started to believe that the dream could come true in 2015, when he finished 5th at the Phoenix Open playing under an invite as the leading world amateur.

“All our family and friends will go to the Andalucía Valderrama Masters – we are looking forward to a great week.”

www.andaluciavalderramamasters.com/en