#goodman pendants

[alittleveggies]

Family Room Open Houston Large 1950s open concept dark wood floor and brown floor family room photo with white walls, a standard fireplace and a plaster fireplace

[jpbjazz]

LÉGENDES DU JAZZ

PAQUITO D’RIVERA, AMBASSADEUR DES MUSIQUES DU MONDE

‘’Music was in my soul and in my heart. I never had the idea to do anything else."

- Paquito D’Rivera

Né le 4 juin 1948 à La Havane, à Cuba, Francisco de Jesús Rivera Figueras était le fils de Francisco ‘’Tito’’ D'Rivera, un saxophoniste classique et chef d’orchestre qui vendait également des instruments de musique. C’est aussi le père de D’Rivera qui lui avait fait connaître les disques de Duke Ellington et de Benny Goodman. Le père de D‘Rivera l’emmenait aussi dans des clubs comme le Tropicana et à des concerts.

Enfant prodige, D’Rivera avait commencé à suivre des cours de théorie et de saxophone avec son père à partir de l’âge de cinq ans. L’année suivante, D’Rivera avait participé à son premier concert et avait interprété une composition écrite par son père. À l’âge de sept ans, D’Rivera était devenu le plus jeune musicien de l’histoire à endosser les célèbres saxophones Selmer. D’Rivera avait seulement dix ans lorsqu’il s’était produit avec le National Theater Orchestra de La Havane en 1958. Formé initialement pour jouer du saxophone soprano, D’Rivera était par la suite tombé en amour avec le saxophone alto et avait appris à jouer de cet instrument en autodidacte avec l’aide d’un manuel.

À l’âge de seulement douze ans en 1960, D’Rivera était entré au Conservatoire de musique de La Havane, où il avait suivi des cours de saxophone, de clarinette et de composition. C’est aussi durant ses études au conservatoire que D’Rivera avait rencontré le pianiste Chucho Valdés pour la première fois. Cinq après son entrée au conservatoire, D’Rivera avait été soliste invité avec le Cuban National Symphony Orchestra dans le cadre d’un concert qui avait été radiodiffusé à travers le pays en 1965. D’Rivera avait continué de jouer avec plusieurs groupes au cours de son adolescence, dont le Cuban Army Band, avant de co-fonder l’Orchestra Cubana de Música Moderna avec Valdés. D’Rivera avait d’ailleurs dirigé l’orchestre pendant deux ans.

DÉBUTS DE CARRIÈRE

En 1973, D’Rivera avait co-fondé avec Valdés le groupe Irakere, qui fusionnait le jazz, le rock, la musique classique et les rythmes afro-cubains. Composé de trois membres de l’Orchestra Cubana de Música Moderna et de trois autres musiciens, le groupe était devenu extrêmement populaire après s’être produit dans le cadre des festivals de jazz de Newport et de Montreux.

En 1979, le groupe avait remporté un prix Grammy dans la catégorie du meilleur enregistrement de jazz latin pour son premier album éponyme. La même année, le groupe s’était produit aux côtés de musiciens de rock et de jazz dans un festival appelé Havana Jam. Les performances du groupe avaient été enregistrées et avaient éventuellement donné lieu à la publication des albums Havana Jam et Havana Jam II (1979), faisant ainsi du groupe le premier ensemble cubain de l’époque post-Catro à signer un contrat avec une compagnie américaine.

De plus en plus insatisfait des contraintes imposées à la pratique de la musique par les autorités cubaines, D’Rivera avait expliqué qu’après avoir fait la rencontre de Che Guevara, son désir de quitter Cuba s’était encore intensifié. Au début de 1980, alors qu’il était en tournée en Espagne, D’Rivera s’était rendu à l’ambassade des États-Unis et avait demandé l’asile politique. D’Rivera avait laissé sa femme et son enfants à Cuba, après leur avoir promis de les faire venir aux États-Unis.

Dès son arrivée aux États-Unis, D’Rivera avait obtenu un grand soutien pour lui et sa famille. Sa mère, Maura, et sa soeur, Rosario, se trouvaient déjà aux États-Unis à l’époque. Elles avaient quitté Cuba en 1968 et étaient devenus citoyennes américains. Sa mère Maura avait travaillé aux États-Unis dans l’industrie de la mode, et sa soeur Rosario était devenue une artiste et femme d’affaires respectée. Après avoir obtenu sa résidence permanente, D’Rivera avait joué avec Dizzy Gillespie, David Amram, Mario Bauza et d’autres musiciens américains bien connus.

D’Rivera s’était particulièrement fait connaître après la publication de ses deux premiers albums, Paquito Blowin' (juin 1981) et Mariel (juillet 1982). Il avait aussi été en vedette dans le Time Magazine et dans des émissions de télévision comme CBS Sunday Morning.

Avec Gillespie, D’Rivera avait participé à la fondation du United Nations Orchestra en 1988, un groupe de fusion de quinze musiciens qui faisait la synthèse entre le jazz et la musique latine. La même année, D’Rivera avait joué comme soliste avec le National Symphony Orchestra et le Brooklyn Philarmonic Orchestra.

En 1991, toujours comme membre du big band de Gillespie, D’Rivera avait participé aux côtés de James Moody, Slide Hampton, Airto Moreira, Flora Purim, Arturo Sandoval et Steve Turre à l’enregistrement de l’album Live at the Royal Festival Hall.

En plus de ses collaborations avec l’orchestre de Gillespie, D’Rivera s’était produit avec de nombreux autres groupes, dont Triangulo, qui jouait du calypso et de la salsa, et le Caribbean Jazz Project. D’Rivera avait également formé deux groupes qui combinaient sa passion pour le jazz et la musique classique, le Paquito D'Rivera Big Band et un groupe de musique de chambre appelé le Paquito D'Rivera Quintet. D’Rivera avait aussi commencé à composer pour d’autres groupes, dont le Gerald Danovich Saxophone Quartet de Montréal (qui a enregistré sa célèbre ‘’New York Suite’’), le Caracas Clarinet Quartet, le Cuarteto Latinoamericano, le Quinteto D’Elas et le Aspen Wind Quintet.

ÉVOLUTION RÉCENTE

D'Rivera avait continué d’enregistrer et de se produire en concert durant les années 1990 et 2000. En 1999, D'Rivera s’était produit à la Maison-Blanche et au Kennedy comme artiste invité dans le cadre du concert Americanos. En 2000, D’Rivera avait publié les albums Music From Two Worlds et Habanera. Brazilian Dreams avait suivi en 2002. En 2001, D’Rivera avait aussi été un des principaux solistes du film Calle 54 du réalisateur Fernando Trueba.

En 2003, D'Rivera avait remporté ses cinquième et sixième prix Grammy, respectivement pour les albums Brazilian Dreams et��Historia del Soldado. En 2017, D'Rivera avait publié l’album Paquito D’Rivera presents the Vitral String Quartet. L’album comprenait trois compositions de D’Rivera intitulées ‘’Afro’’, ‘’Wapango’’ et ‘’Kites Over Havana.’’ Dans son compte rendu de l’album, le New York City Jazz Record écrivait:

“In the realm of chamber music, string and brass quartets are a well-established tradition, which allow the melodic colors of their instrumentation to weave a deeply satisfying harmonic tapestry…The Vitral Saxophone Quartet (Oscar Gongora: soprano; Roman Filiu: alto; Alejandro Rios: alto and tenor; Raul Cordies: baritone) is a prime example of the beauty that four saxophones can produce. Kites Over Havana is a gorgeous entry into the canon.” 

Reconnu pour son travail de musicien et de compositeur tant dans les domaines du jazz que de la musique classique, D'Rivera avait également décroché plusieurs commandes, notamment pour sa composition "Gran Danzon (The Bel Air Concerto)’’, un concerto pour flûte qui lui avait été commandé par le Rotterdam Philharmonic et le National Symphony Orchestra, et qui avait été présenté en grande première au Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts de Washington, D.C., en 2002. Le critique Joe Banno avait écrit au sujet de l’oeuvre dans le Washington Post en février 2002: ‘’... Best that night was Paquito D’Rivera’s Grand Danzon (The Bel Air Concerto) in its world premiere. A spiky and imaginatively colored piece of Latin American orchestral writing.’’ L’oeuvre avait de nouveau été présentée par le Baltimore Symphony Orchestra au Lincoln Center en avril 2006. En 2000, le Jazz at Lincoln Center avait également commandé à D’Rivera une "Pan American Suite" dans le cadre de la série As of Now. L’oeuvre avait éventuellement été diffusée sur le réseau NPR.

D’Rivera est également l’auteur d’une sonate pour clarinette intitulée ‘’The Cape Cod Files’’. L’oeuvre, qui avait été commandée à D’Rivera par le Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival en 2009, a été présentée en grande première par la Silicon Valley Symphony en mai 2011. D’Rivera avait également composé pour le Turtle Island String Quartet, le Ying Quartet et l’International Double Reed Society. En 2002, la Bibliothèque nationale du Congrès avait commandé à D’Rivera ‘’Fiddle Dreams’’, une fantaisie pour violon et piano qui avait été écrite en hommage à la violoniste Regina Carter.

La composition de D'Rivera, ‘’Lady in White’’ a été présentée sous forme de ballet par la José Limón Dance Company en 2012. En 2019, le concerto pour trompette de D’Rivera ‘’Concerto Venezolano’’ a été présenté en première à Mexico City par l’Orquesta de Mineria dirigée par Miguel Prieto. Le soliste était Pacho Flores, pour qui l’oeuvre avait été composée. En juin 2022, le New Jersey Symphony Orchestra avait également présenté un Concerto pour cor français qui comprenait des mouvements écrits par quatre compositeurs, dont D’Rivera. L’orchestre était dirigé par Xian Zhang. Le soliste était Chris Komer. Parmi les autres concertos de D’Rivera, on remarquait ‘’Conversations with Cachao’’. Concerto pour contrebasse et saxophone, l’oeuvre qui rendait hommage au légendaire contrebassiste cubain Israël ‘’Cachao’’ Lopez, avait été présentée en grande première à Caramoor en juin 2007. Une autre composition récente de D’Rivera était intitulée "Three Poems from the New World", et s’inspirait des oeuvres de Fortunato Villarrondo, José Martí et Dana Gioia. Les trois poèmes qui exploraient les thèmes de l’intolérance raciale, de la haine et de l’injustice, tentaient de leur substituer des valeurs comme l’amitié, l’amour et le respect de la vie.

D'Rivera avait aussi été artiste en résidence au New Jersey Performing Arts Center, et directeur artistique de la New Jersey Chamber Music Society. Il a également été compositeur en résidence au Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts en 2007. Depuis 1995, D'Rivera est aussi directeur artistique du Festival International de Jazz en el Tambo en Uruguay. Il est aussi directeur artistique du Duke Ellington Festival de Washington, D.C.

Parallèlement à ses autres activités, D'Rivera continue régulièrement de se produire en tournée avec différents groupes à travers le monde, dont le Paquito D'Rivera Big Band, the Paquito D'Rivera Quintet et le Chamber Jazz Ensemble. Le groupe régulier de D'Rivera, le Paquito D'Rivera Quintet, est formé du trompettiste argentin Diego Urcola, du pianiste Alex Brown, du contrebassiste péruvien Oscar Stagnaro et du batteur Mark Walker. Le groupe s’est mérité un prix Grammy pour le meilleur album de jazz latin en 2001.

D'Rivera a aussi fait de fréquentes apparitions comme soliste invité avec des orchestres comme le London Philharmonic et la Costa Rican National Symphony. Parmi les autres orchestres avec lesquels D'Rivera avait collaboré, on remarquait le National Symphony Orchestra, le Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, le Florida Philharmonic Orchestra, le Baltimore Symphony, le Bronx Arts Ensemble, le Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra, le YOA Orchestra of the Americas, l’American Youth Philharmonic et le Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra.

D'Rivera a publié une autobiographie intitulée Mi Vida Saxual (My Sax Life) en 2005. Le prologue de l’ouvrage avait été écrit par l’écrivain cubain Guillermo Cabrera Infante. Également auteur, D’Rivera a publié une nouvelle intitulée ‘’En tus brazos morenos.’’

D'Rivera vit actuellement à North Bergen, New Jersey, avec son épouse, la chanteuse Brenda Feliciano. Le fils de D'Rivera, Franco, est également compositeur et a collaboré avec son père dans le cadre de compositions pour l’American Saxophone Quartet de New York. 

D'Rivera avait toujours rêvé de réaliser une sorte de symbiose entre ses deux passions: le jazz et la musique classique. Les prix qu’il avait remportés et le respect dont il avait bénéficié tant dans le domaine du jazz que de la musique classique semblent démontrer qu’il avait parfaitement atteint cet objectif. En fait, D’Rivera était devenu si renommé comme compositeur classique que le Kammer Orchester Schloss Werneck avait développé en 1999 une série intitulée ‘’Paquito & Mozart’’ dans laquelle ses compositions de musique de chambre avaient été présentées aux côtés de celles de Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart ! Le point culminant du concert était un Adagio composé par D’Rivera qui comportait des éléments du concerto pour clarinette en A Majeur de Mozart. Peter Linhart écrivait dans le Main Echo Aschaffenburg de Montag en juin 1999: ‘’The orchestra as well as the soloist executed the work with perfect intonation and precise interpretation. At no time came the impression that two different musical worlds were colliding. The concert was an offering of excellence by virtue of the soloist and the orchestra, led by Ulf Klautsenitzer. With a focused tone and intonation, he effortlessly graced through the various registers unwavering...’’ En 2000, D’Rivera avait également obtenu une nomination aux prix Grammy pour son album Music of Two Worlds, qui comprenait ses propres compositions aux côtés de celles de Schubert, Brahms, Guastavino et Villa Lobos.

Excellant également dans le domaine bebop, D'Rivera est le seul artiste à avoir remporté des prix Grammy dans les catégories de jazz latin et classique en 2003. D'Rivera a également été juge lors du 5e et du 8e gala des Independent Music Awards destinés à récompenser le travail des artistes indépendants.

Paquito D'Rivera a remporté de nombreux honneurs au cours de sa carrière. En 1991, dans le cadre d’une performance à Carnegie Hall, la National Hispanic Academy of Media Arts and Sciences avait décerné à D'Rivera un Lifetime Achievement Award pour sa contribution à la musique latine. En 1999, à l’occasion de son 500e anniversaire, la Universidad de Alcala de Henares avait accordé à D’Rivera un prix spécial afin de souligner sa contribution aux arts, son humanisme et sa défense des droits et des libertés des artistes à travers le monde.

D’Rivera a été élu ‘’Jazz Master’’ par la National Endowment for the Arts en 2005. D’Rivera avait accepté son prix en lisant la déclaration suivante:

"Since I was a kid, my father, a classical tenor who loved jazz, introduced me to the music of Lionel Hampton, Count Basie, Benny Carter and Teddy Wilson. Later on I grew up listening to the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Golson, Max Roach, Ella, Sarah {Vaughan}, Carmen {McRae}, Dave Brubeck, The Heath Brothers, Gil Evans, Clark Terry and Jackie McLean.  Now, 50 years after my first public performance, it feels like an incredible dream, to share the NEA Jazz Masters distinction with these giants that gave my life meaning."

Toujours en 2005, le gouvernement américain avait décerné à D’Rivera la National Medal of Arts. Nommé clarinettiste de l’année par la Jazz Journalists Association en 2004 et 2006, D'Rivera a également été nommé Living Jazz Legend Award par le Kennedy Center de Washington, D.C., en 2007. D’Rivera est aussi récipiendaire d’un President's Award de l’International Association for Jazz Educators en 2008. En 2009, D’Rivera avait également été décoré de la médaille d’honneur du National Arts Club. L’année suivante, le Spelman College avait décerné à D’Rivera un African-American Classical Music Award.

En 2017, D’Rivera a aussi remporté un Bogomolny National Service Award de la Chamber Music America en reconnaissance de ses efforts pour inspirer les nouvelles générations de musiciens. La National Hispanic Academy of Media Arts and Sciences a également rendu hommage à D'Rivera en lui décernant un Achievement in Music Award. D’Rivera a remporté huit prix Grammy au cours de sa carrière.

Lauréat d’une bourse de composition de la Fondation Guggenheim en 2007, D'Rivera s’est aussi mérité plusieurs doctorats honorifiques, provenant d’institutions aussi prestigieuses que le Berklee College of Music (2003), la State University of New York à Old Westbury (2012), la Manhattan School of Music, l’Université de Pennsylvanie, la City University of New York (CUNY) et l’Universidad de Alcalá de Henares, en Espagne.

Toujours très attaché à son pays d’origine, D'Rivera  avait sévèrement critiqué le guitariste Carlos Santana pour avoir porté un T-shirt à l’effigie de Che Guevara lors du gala des Academy Awards en 2005. Dans sa lettre, D'Rivera  avait rappelé le rôle joué par Guevara dans l’éxécution de contre-révolutionnaires cubains, dont celle d’un de ses cousins.

D’Rivera avait toujours rêvé de devenir musicien et n’avait jamais songé à faire autre chose. Comme il l’avait déclaré en entrevue, ‘’Music was in my soul and in my heart. I never had the idea to do anything else." D’Rivera a enregistré plus de trente albums sous son nom au cours de sa carrière. Sur son site internet, la National Endowment of the Arts avait écrit au sujet de D’Rivera: ‘’He has become the consummate multinational ambassador, creating and promoting a cross-culture of music that moves effortlessly among jazz, Latin and Mozart.’’

©-2024, tous droits réservés, Les Productions de l’Imaginaire historique

 SOURCES:

‘’Paquito D’Rivera.’’ Wikipedia, 2023.

‘’Paquito D’Rivera.’’ All About Jazz, 2023.

‘’Paquito D’Rivera.’’ National Endfowment for the Arts, 2023.

‘’Paquito D’Rivera Biography.’’ Net Industries, 2023.

[gothhabiba]

[ID: an ad with the banner "sponsored by Prof. Jane Goodman: Prof. Jane Goodman's faces reader." the body of the ad shows two women: on the left, Princess Diana, a woman with light skin, short blonde hair, light eyes, and thin lips wearing a white choker and diamond pendant and a black dress: on the right, Meghan Markle, a woman with brown skin, thicker lips, light eyes, and long, wavy black hair. both images appear to be AI-generated, with lines that don't match up. Diana's cheek and jaw are selected and labelled in green "deeply loving" and "selfless," respectively; Meghan's nose and mouth are selected and labelled in red "liar" and "narcissistic," respectively. small text over the image reads "Disclaimer: For Face Reading Purposes Only." the text of the ad is "Get your Face Reading ♥ - I can't find my true calling and don't know which way to go? - Is my current job the..." text cuts off. the ad leads to facesreader.com. end ID]

ok i found it. this is it. this is the worst ad ive seen on this site.

[carbone14]

Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington et Benny Goodman au Club Downbeat - Manhattan - New York City - Etats-Unis - 1948

Photo de Herman Leonard

[autismsupermusicalassassin]

Moonlight 🌙

Moon boys x fem reader

Plot: your name is Zed Goodmen Or is it Emmy Brendan or Camilla Martian , your are a daughter of a super hero known as the Moon Knight alongside your twin brother Icarus. After the death of your mother the moon knight , you accepted the role for Artemis the moon goddess as her champion as her moon light (moon knight) or as Emmy mrs. knight. Months after you were chasing the a Greek monster that was summoned by Circe and accidentally transported to a different universe where the Egyptian moon god Khonsu instantly dislike you due to some feud with Artemis, but his avatar the moon knight instantly find you …..stunning . Will you return to your world or you’ll be stuck in this universe forever?

p.s.: you are undisogues of ether MPD or ASSD (the sister to DID)

Warning:( meation of rape, DC comics and Marvel charthers, In accurate depiction of DID and such, Medtation of death , blood, aduse )

Prologue:

Greece many centuries ago,  Artemis the goddess of the hunt, wildlife and the moon, mourns and was not angry at her hunters but she was mad at her half sibling Athena for turning Medusa a rape victim of Poseidon to a monster and other woman and children that were harm by mortals, the worst is the mother of three girls was beaten while she fought off her abuser, hearing the woman's prayers she granted her to live again and become not just her champion, but the one to be name Moon Knight , since then years later from mother to child they take on the mantle of the Moon Knight. while the Gods didn’t respect her champion so she banish herself in her own temple for centuries.  1992, a  archaeologist Mariana Cruz Spector( also known for being the step cousin to Marc and Randall Spector ) was with her friend and partner June Moon (later the Entrances) in Greece where she got poison by a viper near the temple , Mariana was dying in the temple of Artemis where Goddess gave her became her MOON KNIGHT, giving her godly healing, flight, weapons, becoming her champion. During Mariana years as the Moon knight , she fought Wonder woman, fought monster that harm the innocent, killing the evils of  and outsmart Batman. But then she Fallen in love with a man name Robert Brendan and to Artemis Surprise given birth to you Emmy and your twin brother Icarus. Due to knowing what will happen Mariana fear that one of their children will become moon knight, when at the age of 5 you suffer verbal and mental abuse  from you step grandfather and your father’s father  after the death of your father in the car accident, At 7 you were force to be separated  from your brother by your mother due to the fear if anything happen  and the moon goddess was banish and became your pendant unknowing. Years past Emmy now as Zed Goodman  an american graffiti artist/ mythology nerd reunited with your brother and fallowing death of your mother when battling a cult followers of The Titan MENOETIUS after freeing Artemis you Became The New MOON KNIGHT or better yet MOON LIGHT when your zed and when your Emmy MS. Knight. After defeating them along with your brother and his friend Greg , you balance your  school life and superhero life when Emmy and Zed met your other personality or alter Camilla Martian, a protector, seductive to her at least, English lantia ,person who isn’t afraid to kill anybody in order to protect you or if it’s necessary . You  and your other personality or Alters are working together to protector of  people of the night and no one in anyway take your title.....expect one adventure may change her view on being the only moon knight , and now let the story began...... 

 A/N: Are you gals ready ?

[karimac]

...in the details, part 1

A/N: Warning for this series: 18+ audience (minors DNI), some cinematic level violence, some fluff and angst. Doubt that smut will be involved, but it may be implied. I’ll make sure that is noted clearly if it pops up.

Please do not repost or translate my work. Likes, comments and reblogs are greatly appreciated.

All mistakes are my own.

Word count: 1,198

“A sorcerer is a wizard without a hat.”

Sam Wilson said it. You heard it. Damn, you felt it. And it hurt. He knew it was more than that, and that joke was just not funny. And you’d tell him that. If you could.

The problem was that Sam was nowhere near where you were at the moment. By all rights, anything that even smacked of The Avengers was now marked on a page in the latest tome about your life with a very definitive “The End” written in swirling calligraphic script at the bottom of the page, followed closely by the same words written in Ogham. That was an alphabet not seen much these days beyond necklace pendants or old rock formations found in farmer’s fields on the road to one Irish town or another. That in and of itself still seemed weird.

If this had ended when you were working at The Daily Bugle, then it would have closed with a -30- before you logged off your screen. But this was not your ill-fated stint at The Bugle. Jameson was such a pompous twit, and he never took a moment to even try to understand why the world needed a friendly, neighborhood Spider-Man, let alone how a teen had been left to carry that mantle and had to now lift an even greater burden since his mentor was gone. That poor kid was going to need help, but you knew anything you had to offer would likely be more curse than boon.

But this nonsense with Sam? This was something you really couldn’t put your finger on yet.

Weeks ago, wait, it was months ago now, The Avengers saved the world one more time. You were there, right in the middle of the insanity before Tony Stark snapped his fingers and turned Thanos and his army into nothing more than dust.

As deaths for wannabe gods go, that one was justified, lame and incredibly sad all at the same time. And you should know. You’d seen almost every manner of death in the 1,500 years, give or take a day, which you had walked the Earth. It was not a warrior’s end.

The warrior’s end was saved for Stark. He reminded you so much of his father at that point. Supremely intelligent. Unflinching. Loyal.

When Howard Stark and Peggy Carter met you, you went by your birth name of Kari MacOrish. At least that was the Anglicized spelling of it. The true Irish spelling was a bit hard for others to wrap their heads around at times.

Your name is, was and always would be Kari MacOrish. You had gone by hundreds of others as time ebbed and flowed around you, but this was you. You had been, since your birth on a battlefield in what was now called County Kildare, Ireland, the earthly avatar of the Celtic battle goddess The Morrigan, and that was a lot less fun at times than it sounded.

But back to Sam.

You could now see the person he was talking to. Bucky Barnes. And Bucky was bringing up Gandalf? Why in the name of Heaven were they talking about fictional magic wielders? It was too bad Barnes had not started reading those Potter novels he had been gifted in Wakanda during his deprogramming and rehabilitation. Thank Thanos for that one. You were sure that Shuri had left them for him, and you were pleased he’d have one more thing to take his mind off the parts of his past that likely still dogged him.

But why in the world were you even thinking about that? You never were really an Avenger. Or more correctly, you had never let yourself fully embrace the title.

You would likely never have known if Barnes read those books or not anyway. He was a nerd. A kindred spirit. That was why that little detail mattered.

This, on the other hand, was just not making any sense.

Or maybe you just weren’t used to this new sense of not being a part of their lives just yet?

Getting up and leaving places much too soon had become a habit. You hated explaining to people about your secret, so you usually left Dodge before anyone caught on to the fact you were an immortal.

This should have been different. Thor knew you and called you a friend. You joked once that you and Thor would have been in the same year of high school if gods and avatars of goddesses shared such mundane things.

Hell, Loki even called you an ally at times. You had always hoped he would use the word “friend,” but that level of trust needed to be earned. And now the chance was lost.

Steve Rogers knew you, and so did Bucky, back from those days in the camp where they were sent out on those missions to hunt down The Red Skull and his Hydra minions. You had had to explain that you looked a bit different back then. Explaining glamours to those not versed in magic was a pain, but in this case, it had to be done. You also had to pour them drinks like you did in the old days and sing a few bars of “Taking a Chance on Love,” that Benny Goodman tune that Helen Forrest sang so well. Dum Dum Dugan loved that damned song. That sealed the deal.

Was it possible that the spell you had so painstakingly crafted to make them all not care about you once Steve had gone back to the past was actually working? That the only forms of magic they registered in their minds were brought about by books, movies and TV shows and, when they were part of the fight, Thor, Stephen Strange and Wong? No red haired wild woman with a sword? No bit of Irish sparkle in their days?

But that didn’t explain whatever this was. If the spell had worked, why were you able to be an eavesdropper on this conversation, wherever it was happening? It looked like an airport hangar, but there was no way you could be sure of it unless Sam turned around.

And why Sam? The brief time you were last with The Avengers—sitting in the middle of that fight at the compound as Thanos’ forces brought hell to Earth once more—you had been closer to Bucky during the fighting. It just worked out that way save for the few times you had to go skyward to keep some idiot from raining ordinance down on someone’s head. Wong’s wizard corps was very good at putting shields up as needed, but sometimes you had to get in an opponent’s face to take care of business.

Power stunts like that bugged some of The Avengers a lot. Then you reminded them that you were damned hard to kill, and that, if you did die, you had been around the track a lot more than any of them had been except for Thor.

But Asgard and a bloody battlefield in County Kildare were worlds apart from this place. The large sign told you that right off the bat.

Welcome to Westview!

[dd20century]

The Diva of Design: Elsa Peretti

“Elsa brought out all these things—the bone bracelet I remember best. Everything was so sensual, so sexy. I just loved it. It was different from anything I’d ever seen, and I’d seen a lot.” – Liza Minelli

On March 18, 2021, the design world lost an artist who was as elegant and unique as her iconic jewelry designs, when Elsa Peretti “died at her home in Sant Martí Vell, Spain…. For 50 years, her designs inspired countless women and left an indelible mark on the jewelry world”(1). She made her mark in the 1970s as many young women were rejecting traditional homemaker roles and striving for successful careers of their own instead. Elsa Peretti designs resonated with this generation of women, spurning the fussy ornamentation of their mothers’ generation, but still yearning for beauty and elegant sophistication.

Elsa Peretti at work in New York City, 1970. Photo credit: PL Gould/Images Press/Getty Images Image source.

Peretti’s Early Days 

Elsa Peretti was born on May 1, 1940 in Florence, Italy to a wealthy family. Her father “Ferdinando Peretti founded Anonima Petroli Italiana (API), a large Italian oil company”(2). Young Elsa received education in Rome and Switzerland. When she was twenty-one, the strong-willed Elsa broke with her family and “as a result, she was cut off from any financial support”(3). To make her own way, she worked first as a French teacher and later as a skiing instructor in the Swiss Alps. She returned to Rome to study interior design, and eventually worked for architect Dado Torrigiani (2).

Peretti Becomes a Successful Model

In the 1960s, Elsa Peretti was drawn to the intellectual life in Barcelona and began her modeling career there. In 1968 she went to New York City on the advice of her modelling agency (3); however, she arrived in the city “with a black eye from her [former] boyfriend who opposed of the move”(1). In New York she met designer Halston “whom she met while he was still a milliner at Bergdorf Goodman”(2) and became one of the regular group of models who he favored (3). The pair would become close friends and sometimes collaborators. Their relationship has been dramatized in the recent Netflix mini-series, “Halston.”

Peretti Finds Lasting Success as a Jewelry Designer

The following year, Peretti began designing jewelry, “She created pieces for herself at first, then expanded to” friends and fashion designers she had met through her work. Her first design was a “inspired by a small bud vase found in a flea market”(2). She began designing jewelry for Halston in 1971,(2) then her work really got noticed. That same year her work appeared in Vogue Magazine, and Ms. Peretti received “the 1971 Coty Award for jewelry design. In 1972, the New York City Department store Bloomingdales “opened a dedicated Peretti boutique”(1). During this time, Peretti and Halston “were the center of a fun, clubby clique that included [designer Giorgio] Sant´Angelo, the illustrator Joe Eula, Victor Hugo (Halston’s boyfriend), designer Stephen Burrows and Andy Warhol”(3).

Elsa Peretti, Bud Vase Pendants (1969). Photographer unknown, Image source.

1974 was a milestone year in Elsa Peretti’s career. “Halston introduced her to Walter Hoving, the then CEO of Tiffany”(3). Hoving hired Ms. Peretti to design jewelry in sterling silver – “the first time Tiffany had sold jewelry in that material in 25 years”(4). Ms. Peretti’s designs were organic, sensual, and embodied a sense of fun that appealed to younger women. Since the silver designs were more affordable, “in a break from tradition, women were shopping for themselves rather than being gifted jewelry by men” (5). “But, the affordable prices never detracted from their beauty or desirability”(1).

Elsa Peretti, Bone Cuff in 18K Gold (1975). Photo credit: Tiffany & Co. Image source.

Elsa Peretti’s Iconic Work 

One of Elsa Peretti’s most famous designs is the Bone Cuff, which many have compared to the cuffs worn by the comic book female superhero Wonder Woman (1). Like the Bone Cuff much of Peretti’s “minimalist, biomorphic designs were inspired by simple, natural things” 1: The Bean Pendant, The Scorpion Necklace, Open Heart, High Tide, Starfish and Snake among others. For Tiffany & Co., Ms. Peretti also designed dinnerware, pens, key rings, and ashtrays (4,6). The Thumbprint dishes and bowls make up her most successful dinnerware collection (6).

Elsa Peretti, Thumbprint Bowl in Sterling Silver (1985). Photo credit: Tiffany & Co. Image source.

In 1977 Ms. Peretti’s distinctive designs garnered her the cover of Newsweek magazine. By the end of the 1970s Ms. Peretti was Tiffany’s star designer, and “designed over thirty collections for” (6) the company. Today “Peretti’s products account for roughly 10% of Tiffany’s sales. So important is her work to Tiffany’s bottom line that they paid her 47 million plus royalties to renew her contract in 2012 for the next 20 years” (3).

Elsa Peretti’s Life in the Fast Lane 

Elsa Peretti’s “personal life always grabbed attention” (4). Although never married, Ms. Peretti was in a serious relationship with photographer Hemut Newton during the 1970s. One of Newton’s most famous images is that of Ms. Peretti posing on a Manhattan apartment terrace wearing a version of a Playboy Bunny costume (2). Of course, “The costume was her idea,”(1) for a Halloween party (2).

During the late 1970s, along with designer pal Halston, Peretti was a frequent patron of Studio 54, “the storied Manhattan disco that attracted celebrities like Andy Warhol, Bianca Jagger, [and] Cher”(4). Ms. Peretti’s exploits at the club were legendary, one night after a misunderstanding with Studio 54 co-owner Steve Rubell, Peretti smashed a bottle of vodka on the floor (4).

Elsa Peretti, Snake Necklace in 18K gold (1985). Photo credit: Freeman’s Image source.

Falling Out with Designer Halston

Peretti’s alcohol and drug use, particularly cocaine, increased as the 1970s wore on, however, her partying never affected her professional work (4). To complicate matters, the more success Peretti gained, the more her strained relationship with Halston became. “Things came to a head during a… dinner at Halston’s townhouse. The night ended with Peretti throwing her sable coat from Halston into the fire”(3). Soon after this episode Peretti left New York to live and work in her adopted home of Sant Martí Vell in Catalonia, Spain (3).

Elsa Peretti’s Philathropic Work 

In 1977 Elsa Perretti founded the Nando Peretti Foundation, “with the inheritance from her father, with whom she reconciled just months before his death” (4). The foundation funds projects that support the environment, social inclusion, social welfare, human rights and the rule of law, education, scientific research, and arts and cultural history (7). The organization “was renamed the Nando and Elsa Peretti Foundation” in 2015 (2).

Elsa Peretti, Bud Vase (year unknown). Photo credit: Tiffany & Co. Image source.

Elsa Peretti’s Lasting Legacy 

Over the years celebrities Liza Minelli, Sophia Loren, Diana Ross, Sarah Jessica Parker, and tennis champion Maria Sharapova have worn jewelry designed by Elsa Peretti (4). “Ms. Peretti’s designs are in several permanent collections, including those of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the British Museum in London, and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston” (4).

During her career Ms. Peretti was awarded the President’s Fellow Award by Rhode Island School of Design in 1981 and 1996 Designer of the Year by the Council of Fashion Designers of American Accessories. Honors awarded to the designer include the 2013 National Prize of Culture by the Catalan Government, the order of Merit of the Italian Republic, and the Order of Malta (1).

In 1990 an exhibition of Elsa Peretti’s work was held at the Fashion Institute of Technology. In 2001 the same institution awarded the designer an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree (6), and Tiffany & Co. established the “Peretti Professorship in Jewelry Design at the Fashion Institute of Technology, the first endowed professorship in the history of FIT”(6).

Although many of Elsa Peretti’s designs were produced over 50 years ago, they still “maintain their style and beauty”(6) and are remain popular with women all over the world. However Elsa Peretti is remembered, whether as jewelry designer, fashion model, saavy business woman, outrageous celebrity, or philanthropist, this remarkable woman and her prolific work will be admired and acknowledged for many years to come.

References

Shirley, K., (22 March, 2021). Remembering Tiffany Jewelry Designer Elsa Peretti (1940-2021). https://www.forbes.com/sites/kristenshirley/2021/03/22/remembering-tiffany–co-jewelry-designer-elsa-peretti-1940-2021/?sh=5a5a0d2867d3

Wikipedia, (16 April, 2012). Elsa Peretti. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elsa_Peretti

Muller, J., (16 Ocotber, 2018). The Lasting Legacy of Elsa Peretti. http://www.primadarling.com/fashion/the-lasting-legacy-of-elsa-peretti/

Gates, A., (21 March 2021). Elsa Peretti, Star Designer of Elegant Jewelry, Dies at 80. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/21/fashion/elsa-peretti-dead.html

Borrell-Persson, L., (19 March, 2021). Jewelry Designer Elsa Peretti Has Died. /article/elsa-peretti-jewelry-designer-obituary

Tiffany & Co, (2021). About Elsa Peretti. https://www.international.tiffany.com/world-of-tiffany/about-elsa-peretti/

Nando and Elsa Peretti Foundation, (n.d.). About the Foundation. https://www.perettifoundations.org/en/page.php?project=0&page=5&cat=6&con=8

[annacadogan]

O P E N S T A R T E R

The sea softly dowsed the shoreline. The sound a gentle and pleasant hum to Anna’s ears. A stark contrast to the wild waves that once carried her here to Hedeby, a foreign land with foreign tongues. It had been over a year since she was brought over by the Vikings. Torn from her home, her family, her status and all that she knew. In between her new duties, she’d kept an open ear, noting their words, traits and traditions. Even as a mere servant, communication was essential. Over time she’d picked up a few words, and though she was far from fluent it was enough to get by.

Her fingertips absentmindedly drifted to the carved bone pendant hanging loosely from her neck, carved by her own hands. She yearned for her homeland. It pained her to think she’d never see the lush green hills of Wales ever again, but it was a future she had to accept. She hummed softly, an old Welsh lullaby that drifted into her thoughts as she reminisced of home.

[sartorialadventure]

1. Akha hilltribe girl, Chiang Mai flower festival, Thailand by Steve Vidler 2. Pamee Akha woman with traditional headdress with silver coins, Thailand by Jim Goodman 3. Akha woman of Laos 4. Tachilek Akha 5. Akha girl in Laos 6. Akha woman and child, Thailand 7.  That Xieng Tung Festival, Muang Sing, Laos. Akha young girls in the welcoming committee. On their arrival, visitors will have a color ribbon pinned to their blouse in exchange for a donation.

The Akha are an indigenous hill tribe who live in small villages at higher elevations in the mountains of Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, and Yunnan Province in China. They made their way from China into Southeast Asia during the early 20th century. Civil war in Burma and Laos resulted in an increased flow of Akha immigrants and there are now some 80,000 living in Thailand's northern provinces of Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai, where they constitute one of the largest of the hill tribes. Many of their villages can be visited by tourists on trekking tours from either of these cities.

Due to rapid social and economic changes in the regions the Akha inhabit, particularly the introduction of Western modes of capitalism, attempts to continue many of the traditional aspects of Akha life are increasingly difficult. Despite these challenges, Akha people practice many elements of their traditional culture with much success.

The Akha people are often noted for their very recognizable sartorial practices. Akha women spin cotton into thread with a hand spindle and weave it on a foot-treadle loom. The cloth is hand dyed with indigo. Women wear broad leggings, a short black skirt with a white beaded sporran, a loose fitting black jacket with heavily embroidered cuffs and lapels. Akha women are known for their embroidery skills. While traditional clothes are typically worn for special ceremonies, one is more likely to see Akha villagers in full traditional garb in areas that have heavy volumes of tourists, particularly in Thailand.

The headdresses worn by the women are perhaps the most spectacular and elaborate items of Akha dress. Akha women define their age or marital status with the style of headdress worn. At roughly age 12, the Akha female exchanges her child's cap for that of a girl. A few years later she will begin to don the jejaw, the beaded sash that hangs down the front of her skirt and keeps it from flying up in the breeze. During mid-adolescence she will start wearing the adult woman's headdress. Headdresses are decorated by their owner and each is unique. Silver coins, monkey fur, and dyed chicken feathers are just a few of the things that might decorate the headdress. The headdresses differ by subgroup.

According to an article about the variations in Akha headdress, "High Fashion, Hill Style", the

"Ulo Akha headdress consists of a bamboo cone, covered in beads, silver studs and seeds, edged in coins (silver rupees for the rich, baht for the poor) topped by several dangling chicken feather tassels and maybe a woolen pom-pom. The Pamee Akha wear a trapezoidal colt cap covered in silver studs with coins on the beaded side flaps and long chains of linked silver rings hanging down each side. The Lomi Akha wear a round cap covered in silver studs and framed by silver balls, coins and pendants and the married women attach a trapezoidal inscribed plate at the back."

^Myanmar (Her teeth have been intentionally dyed black, a relatively common practice in parts of east and southeast Asia. The lacquer used prevents tooth decay.)

^Laos

^Laos

^Thailand

^Thailand

^ Ban Mae Chan Tai, Chiang Rai Province, Thailand

Akha society lacks a strict system of social class and is considered egalitarian. Respect is typically accorded with age and experience. Ties of patrilineal kinship and marriage alliance bind the Akha within and between communities. Village structures may vary widely from the strictly traditional to Westernized, depending on their proximity to modern towns. Like many of the hill tribes, the Akha build their villages at higher elevations in the mountains.

Akha dwellings are traditionally constructed of logs, bamboo, and thatch and are of two types: "low houses", built on the ground, and "high houses", built on stilts. The semi-nomadic Akha, at least those who have not been moved to permanent village sites, typically do not build their houses as permanent residences and will often move their villages. Some say that this gives the dwellings a deceptively fragile and flimsy appearance, although they are quite well-built as proved over generations.

Entrances to all Akha villages are fitted with a wooden gate adorned with elaborate carvings on both sides depicting imagery of men and women. It is known as a "spirit gate". It marks the division between the inside of the village, the domain of man and domesticated animals, and the outside, the realm of spirits and wildlife. The gates function to ward off evil spirits and to entice favorable ones. Carvings can be seen on the roofs of the villager's houses as a second measure to control the flow of spirits.

The traditional form of subsistence for the Akha people has been, and remains, agriculture. The Akha grow a variety of crops including soybeans and vegetables. Rice is the most significant crop and is prominent in much of Akha culture and ritual. Most Akha plant dry-land rice, which depends solely on rainfall for moisture, but in some villages irrigation has been built to water paddy fields. Historically, some Akha villages cultivated opium, but production diminished after the Thai government banned its cultivation.

The Akha have traditionally employed slash and burn agriculture, in which new fields are cleared by burning or cutting down forests and woodlands. In such a system, there is usually no market for land. Rights to land are considered traditional and established over many generations. This type of agriculture has contributed to the Akha's semi-nomadic status as villages move to clear new farmland with each successive burn cycle. The Thai government has forbidden this practice, citing its detrimental effects on the environment. The Akha have adapted to new types of subsistence farming, but the quality of their land has suffered as they are no longer allowed to expand onto new plots. In many cases, chemical fertilizers are the only option for re-fertilizing the land.

Akha religion — zahv — is often described as a mixture of animism and ancestor worship that emphasizes the Akha connection with the land and their place in the natural world and cycles. Although Akha beliefs and rituals involve all of these elements, the Akha often reject the casual categorization of their practices as such saying it simplifies and reduces its meaning. The Akha way emphasizes rituals in everyday life and stresses strong family ties. Akha ethnicity is closely tied to the Akha religion. It might be said that to be considered an Akha ethnically by other Akhas is to practice the Akha religion.

The Akha put a heavy emphasis on genealogy. An important tradition involves the recounting by Akha males of their patrilineal genealogy. During the most important ceremonies the list is recited in its entirety back over 50 generations to the first Akha, Sm Mi O. It is said that all Akha males should be able to do so. The recounting of this lineage plays a role in the incest taboo: If a male and female Akha find a common male ancestor within their last six generations, they are not allowed to marry.

Rights, issues, and activism

Being an ethnic minority with little easily accessible legal recourse, Akha everywhere have long been subject to rights abuses.

Perhaps the most important issue facing the Akha pertains to their land. The Akha relationship to land is vitally connected to the continuation of the Akha culture, but they rarely have "official" or state-sanctioned land rights or claims to their land as land rights are considered traditional. These conceptions of land are at odds with those held by the nation states whose land the Akha now occupy. Most Akha are not full-fledged citizens of the country they inhabit and are thus not allowed to legally purchase land, although most Akha villagers are too poor to even consider purchasing land.

It has been reported by rights groups that several land seizures of Akha land have been undertaken in the name of the Queen of Thailand. Originally a semi-nomadic people, the Akha are often relocated by the presiding national government to permanent villages, after which the government allegedly sells to logging companies and other private corporations access to lands formerly occupied by the Akha. The land onto which the Akha are displaced is almost always less fertile than their previous plots. On their new lands, the Akha can rarely produce enough food to sustain themselves and are often forced to leave and seek employment outside the villages, thus disrupting their traditional culture and economy.

In Thailand, laws have been passed that curb people's rights to the forest, including the 2007 Community Forest Act. According to the network of indigenous peoples in Thailand,

"These laws and resolutions have had severe impacts on indigenous peoples' rights to residence and land. Under these laws and resolutions millions of hectares of land have been declared as reserved and conservation forests, or protected areas. Today, 28.78% of Thailand is categorized as protected areas. As a result, thousands of farmers previously living in the forest or relying on the forest for their livelihood have been arrested and imprisoned and their lands seized. Cases have been filed against them for the so-called encroachment on government land."

Despite having signed and ratified the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Thai government has not changed laws to adhere to those recommendations emphasizing respect for the rights of indigenous peoples and their full and effective participation in protected areas management and policy-making.

The reasons given for Akha relocations vary, but a common response on the part of the Thai government is to cite a concern for the preservation of forests and the promotion of more sustainable agricultural techniques than the slash and burn agriculture traditionally used by the Akha.

Despite their numbers, the Akha are the poorest of all the hill tribes. As roads bring accessibility and tourists, they provide relief from the poverty of village life, especially for the younger generations who increasingly find themselves engaged in labor outside the villages. Many villages report a population decrease as many leave to find work in the cities, often for very long periods. Many Akha complain that the younger generations are becoming increasingly less interested in traditional culture and ways and more and more susceptible to outside, mainstream, cultural influences. According to one author, where the village squares were once "filled with the sounds of courtship songs", radios are now more likely to play pop hits.

As it becomes increasingly difficult to remain self-sufficient through agriculture, and as roads open up the villages to the cities, the Akha must contend with the sometimes corrosive effects of the tourist industry. Not all Akha are happy to let tourists come in and observe village life.

Many Akha complain of the missionaries that come to the villages to convert them, sometimes forcibly, to Christianity. Many Akha feel that the missionaries generalize about, or in this particular case, "paganize" the Akha traditional belief system, demeaning their longstanding beliefs. Some of the claims made against missionaries include the kidnapping of Akha children into orphanages and forced labor, the sterilization of Akha women and the forced or underpaid labor of Akha on farms. Many rights groups make the claim that the money spent by missionaries on building churches and furthering Christian education could be better spent on helping the Akha with medical and sanitation improvements that are greatly needed in most villages.

[spacereadinglesbian]

You’re okay

Summary: Tj has a bad panic attack during a depressive episode, and Cyrus is there for him

Trigger warnings: self harm, get light mentioning but please don’t not read if you are triggered

Disclaimer: everything TJ’s therapist says is what my therapist has said to me.

Word count: 2043

“I’m not enough.” Those words kept echoing through TJ’s head until it was the only sound he could hear. His head started to throb, and tears slowly started pouring out of his eyes. I do not want to feel like this he thought, I just want to feel normal, I just want to feel whole again. The tears suddenly came rushing out of his eyes and he couldn’t stop thinking ‘I’m so fucking weak’ he got off his bed and started to tear his room apart,thinking it would take out his anger and frustration that was bubbling inside him. He threw the grey and blue comforter on the floor, followed by the sheets of constellations,ripping them off like some type of demon possessed him. As soon as he got the sheets off of his bed he punched his mattress as hard as he possibly could, but he still felt numb inside. Thinking that he needed another output he then headed to his desk. He knocked off the alarm clock, shattering the plastic that projected the red numbers, the picture of him and Cyrus on his 15th birthday suddenly fell to the floor littering it tiny pieces of glass, and the last thing on his desk was his grandfather's cross necklace. With all his might he broke the chain in half, the only thing left was the pendant, he put it in his sweatpant pocket. He tried everything but he couldn’t get the rage out; he had this built up for long, the next thing he knows he’s on his bedroom floor rocking back and forth with his arms clutched to his knees.

Whenever he has an “episode” it’s usually brought on by a trigger but TJ can’t think of any trigger. Right now his life is almost perfect. His grades are amazing, including math, he even got a B+ on the last test, the basketball team hasn’t lost a game yet and hopefully will be heading to states soon, and him and Cyrus are doing amazing, he practically lives at the Goodman’s. He can’t think of why he feels this way. Or why he doesn’t feel at all. His therapist said last week that these episodes can be brought on by little things piling into big things, but what little things are piling in his life to get him to this point?

Nothing, nothing’s piling, i just feel this way because I’m a fucking waste of space

TJ then remembers the whole conversation his therapist and him had.

“Sometimes episodes can have triggers, but they aren’t necessary. You don’t need a trigger to have an episode, you have a chemical imbalance in your brain and it acts up in strange ways. Just remember whenever this happens, you aren’t weak.”

I don’t need a trigger

“When this happens let’s have a plan of what you can do okay?”

“Umm, can I call Cyrus and have him here while we make the plan? It might be easier for me since he’s the first person I go to.”

“Of course”

Cyrus, I need Cyrus. TJ thought so he pulled out his phone and texted him.

To Cy- cy can you come over please

I really need you right now

Like as soon as possible

I’ll be okay till then I promise

Ambers not home so I have nobody here, it’s just me

To Teej- I’m on way

Cyrus has never moved as fast as that moment when he received those text messages. He ran down his stairs shouting “TJ’s home alone and needs me, I don’t know when I’ll be back I’ll text you guys when he calms down. I gotta go.” He tore his bike out of the garage and biked as fast as humanly possible to the Kippen household. When he arrived he flew up the stairs into his boyfriends bedroom. He has never saw it this way before. There were no sheets on his bed, glass all over the floor, and some clothes sprawled around, but there was also a sobbing TJ in a ball of blankets. Cyrus lightly said “TJ I’m here. I’m here. What do you need me to do.” He slowly walked up to him, not wanting to startle him, but TJ automatically clung to his arms. When Cyrus entered he heard quite sniffles but now TJ was sobbing, clutching onto the grey fabric of the hoodie Cyrus was wearing.

“Cyrus! It’s so nice to meet you!” TJ’s therapist, Sam, said

“Nice to meet you too!”

“Well TJ wanted you here to talk about what to do when he’s in the middle of a bad episode. We made a little list. TJ why don’t you start off.”

“Can you announce that you’re there and not automatically hug me. I know how that sounds but sometimes hugging just makes it worse, and sometimes I need it so if I need it during an episode I’ll let you know. Also rubbing my back in little circles and ice water really helps. And breathing. And showers help to.” Sam cut in

“TJ what did we say about showers. You’re leaving something out.”

“Before I get in the shower can you go into the bathroom and get all the razors, hair clippers, nail clippers and scissors out? And I’ll leave the door unlocked and cracked open just Incase I need you.”

Cyrus held TJ in his arms rubbing his back with small circles for about five minutes until his sobs subsided “Hey TJ, stay right here okay.” Cyrus said softly while heading to the bathroom. He looked around the bathroom and took out every sharp object he could find, after that he tripled checked to make sure he didn’t miss anything, he then left the bathroom and placed them in Mr. and Mrs.Kippens bedroom, this way they’ll know he had an episode, he also texted them as soon as he arrived to the house. Cyrus walked back into the torn up bedroom and got to TJ’s seemingly untouched dresser, what actually surprised him. He dug out a pair of dark grey Nike sweatpants, a navy blue NASA tee shirt, and a clean pair of underwear and set them on the toilet seat in the bathroom with a clean towel, and placed a clean washcloth in the shower.

“Teej, you’re all set to shower now, okay? Make sure to leave the door cracked open, I’ll be right here if you need anything.” TJ simply nodded slumping to the bathroom, Cyrus has never seen his boyfriend look so weak, so drained.

As TJ showered Cyrus began picking up his bedroom. The first thing he did was get a dustpan and swept up the glass and plastic shards, thankful that TJs bedroom was wooden flooring and not carpet. The next thing he did was go into TJ’s closet and get a clean set of sheets. As he was looking for a set of sheets Cyrus couldn’t help but smile at what a dork his boyfriend was. He didn’t have on pair of plain sheets.

“CYRUS COME HERE!!! LOOK AT THESE SHEETS THEY ARE SO COOL!”

“TJ you are almost 16 years old, you do not need a pair of sheets with space ships on them.”

“Are you kidding me yes I do! I’ll be falling asleep feeling like I’m exploring the sky! I’m buying these and you can’t stop my Cyrus Goodman.”

Cyrus picked up the blue pair of sheets with grey and green space ships all over it, slightly smiling, and started to make TJ’s queen sized bed. After the sheets were on his bed Cyrus debated whether to put the grey and blue comforter back on but decided against it, and got his black and white checkered comforter from the closet. His bed was freshly made with new sheets, new pillowcases, and even a clean comforter! Cyrus took the dirty bedding to the laundry room and turned over the laundry, then headed back into the hallway of the bathroom. “Hey, are you alright T.J.”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I’m almost done anyway.” And with that he heard the shower turn off. Cyrus headed to the kitchen and got a nice of glass of ice water and some ibuprofen, knowing how TJ’s head gets after crying. He set those down on his night stand and continued picking up the bedroom until it’s the way Cyrus has always seen it.

TJ steps out of the bathroom in the clothes Cyrus left for him. He looks better than when Cyrus arrived but he still looks defeated. He walks over to Cyrus and asks for a hug, Cyrus quickly obliges pulling the taller boy in for a hug, rubbing his back in smooth circles and whispering positive reinforcement in his ears. TJ is the first one to step away from the hug and look around the room.

“Cy, you didn’t have to do this for me. I could’ve done it.”

“I wanted to do it for you. Plus we both know you would’ve put those sheets back on your bed when you needed clean ones anyway.” A smiled appeared on his face with a “you’re right” look in his eyes. TJ motions for them to both sit on the bed and they do, intertwining their fingers. They sit in a nice silence until Cyrus looks at TJ’s arms. He notices the faded scarring from last year but he notices something else too. They aren’t scars? But what are they? Cyrus moves his boyfriends arm so he can inspect it a little more and notices that they are scratch marks.

It was Wednesday which meant that TJ has his weekly therapy session. Today he had a lot to get off his chest. He felt like there was a big weight in the middle of his life and he didn’t know where it came from, and all he wanted to do was cut away the problems, figuratively, and sadly literally. He told this all to Sam as he listened intently. Sam suggest to paint on his arms or even write on his arms, or do something to get his fingers moving which wasn’t causing harm to himself. The next week TJ went in and asked if scratching yourself could be considered self harm, Sam nodded his head, all he can think is that he relapsed.

Cyrus gently looks at TJ’s emerald green eyes and says “look at me. It’s okay, it wasn’t a cut, it’s just a minor set back. You’re going to be okay I promise. It’s just a few scratches.” At this Cyrus pulls his phone out and texts Sam, he has his number for emergency purposes only. He takes a picture of TJ’s arm and sends it to him with a short message

“He didn’t cut, which is a good thing but he did scratch hard enough to draw some blood. I’m here now and I’m probably spending the night. I texted his parents and let them know, but I wanted to let you know too. He’s safe now, but if there is anyway he can get an appointment tomorrow, that would be incredible.” Cyrus phone vibrated a few short minutes later with a text from Sam

“Cyrus, thank you so much for letting me know. He can come in at 9 am, you are welcome if he wants you there.” Cyrus tells this to TJ as he drinks his water and takes his ibuprofen. TJ lays downs, his head in Cyrus’s chest playing with fingers.

“Cyrus. Thank you for being here for me. I know I’m a lot. I know you probably don’t want to love somebody with these issues, but I’m so lucky to have you. If you didn’t come when you did I don’t know what would’ve happened. I had glass everywhere.” Cyrus looks into his boyfriend's eyes

“TJ I love you more than the world, I would do anything for you. It’s going to be okay. But let’s get some sleep. You have therapy at 9 tomorrow.” At this the two boys lay down, with Cyrus being the big spoon, and they fell asleep. When his parents got home later that night they looked into his sons room and realised how lucky they were to have Cyrus Goodman in their lives.

[mariposalass]

Detective Pikachu Rhymesona AU

And I got the Rhymesona fever right now. Since @husband-of-lucoa and @star-platinums-wife made Rhymesonas in the Detective Pikachu universe, I decided to jump into the bandwagon as well. In case you need some clarification, a Rhymesona is a OC, a SI, or an AU version of an existing character who lives in Rhyme City, the main location of the spin-off game and movie.

Side Note: My partner Pokemon and Philip’s partner Pokemon are capable of Mega Evolving and we do have Mega Stones on hand (Anya’s Mega Stone is a pendant in my choker necklace, while Frederick’s Mega Stone is integrated into Philip’s watch’s wristband). Maybe I might do some of this for Harry, Kairi, Issa, Marina, Sora, and Kirby someday.

Me: I’m a Creative Writing graduate student in the city who also works part-time in the university library and writing a series of young adult book series about a group of teens controlling the 5 elements of nature and have partner Pokemon of the corresponding elements they control. I also do write for the university’s newspaper as a news and literary writer and do swimming and badminton. Both me and Philip first met in a freshman orientation for Arts and Humanities students in our college years, though we only started dating in our third year, plus I’m also a roommate of our mutual friend Theodosia Burr (who’s quite a cheerleader for our relationship) in the graduate students dorms. For some reason, I did bumped into Tim Goodman and Detective Pikachu during their search for Tim’s dad Harry in the cafe discussions scene, but that didn’t last for long as they quickly returned to their quest some time after that.

My Partner Pokemon: Anastasia the Gardevoir, or just Anya, is my partner Pokemon since I was a little girl and she was a little timid Ralts: she has become more outgoing, stronger, and braver over time. She’s my best Pokemon friend, security blanket, and unofficial assistant: she’s named after the youngest daughter of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna. The girl enjoys listening to my silly stories, reading, drinking tea, music, & getting groomed by me, and does live up to her Russian namesake to some extent: being a feisty spitfire who enjoys exploring the arts as I do. Anya doesn’t like it when people try to bully me due to my Asperger’s Syndrome diagnosis or people taking advantage of others (human, real animal, and Pokemon alike). Knows Moonblast, Psychic, Shadow Ball, and Shock Wave.

Philip: Philip’s actually a Law student at his father Alexander’s urging (he did took English Literature as a pre-Law course though) upon entering graduate studies in here, and also writes for the school newspaper. As I said before in this AU, he and I first met in a freshman orientation in college. He’s Theo’s childhood best friend and she’s the one who managed to get us together, despite me being a hot-mess when it comes to dating. A cool upstanding big brother for his 7 siblings, can’t hold his liqueur when he gets drunk, and is an unashamed hopeless romantic dork who will send me letters in nearly all locations in the university & swoon me through his piano playing which he learned from his mom Eliza who’s an accomplished pianist.

His Partner Pokemon: Frederick the Garchomp is his main partner Pokemon: Philip found him as a lonely abandoned Gible at childhood and raised to become where he is today, a terrifying looking & powerful but lovable goofball who likes to bite on people and Pokemon as a sign of affection, not knowing that he could hurt anyone with his teeth. Quite energetic, he enjoys taking long walks and jogs with Philip, napping when he’s tired, and training with other Pokemon for fun and learning. He’s upset that he can’t hold books the same way humans do to help Philip in bringing books and study materials everywhere they go. Somehow acts like a puppy when not in battle. Knows Fire Fang, Sand Tomb, Dragon Rush, and Iron Tail.

[laurent-bigot]

Interprétée par le clown Red Skelton et la nymphe Esther Williams, cette comédie musicale de 1944 crée l’événement à sa sortie grâce à ses étonnantes séquences aquatiques. 

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

Esther Williams n’a encore joué que deux petits rôles quand la MGM lui donne la vedette de cette comédie musicale aquatique. Il faut dire que la jeune fille est jolie, bonne comédienne, mais surtout championne de natation. Elle campe donc une nageuse qui enseigne dans un collège. Un musicien est amoureux d’elle. Malgré son imprésario, qui n’accepte pas leur liaison, il se fera engager dans l’école pour être près d’elle. L’intrigue, squelettique, n’offre aucun intérêt. Qu’importe ! Ce Bathing beauty est un grand succès. La grâce de Williams, son sourire éclatant malgré les efforts, la beauté des figures exécutées par plusieurs dizaines de nageuses au rythme d’une mélodie entraînante, dans des décors oniriques et colorés, les pitreries sympathiques de Red Skelton enchantent le public. L’avenir de la belle naïade est tout tracé. Pendant une dizaine d’années, elle enchaîne plongeon sur plongeon dans des comédies dont l’histoire prétexte ne sert qu’à introduire des ballets spectaculaires minutieusement réglés. Avec sa mise en scène kitsch et son atmosphère gentiment surannée, Bathing beauty reste un plaisir des yeux. [Gérard Camy – Télérama.fr]

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

Pour préparer la sortie de Bathing beauty (Le Bal des sirènes), les publicitaires de la Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer ont installé à Times Square un immense panneau d’affichage montrant Esther Williams en plein plongeon, agrémenté du slogan : « Venez, elle est bonne ! ». Le moins qu’on puisse dire, c’est que le public a répondu à l’invitation, faisant même un triomphe à la comédie musicale de George Sidney.

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

La jeune Esther Williams, dont c’est le premier film important, se voit ainsi propulsée du jour au lendemain au rang de star, et la MGM ne va pas manquer d’exploiter la nouvelle voie ouverte par Bathing beauty  : celle des comédies musicales comportant des numéros aquatiques.

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

Si le film de Sidney n’en compte que deux, les œuvres suivantes d’Esther Williams en offriront plusieurs, pour le plus grand plaisir d’un public subjugué par cette nouveauté que n’aurait pas reniée Busby Berkeley. Pour autant, l’actrice ne tournera pas uniquement des “aqua musicals”, comme on les surnomme à Hollywood: elle partagera notamment avec Gene Kelly et Frank Sinatra la vedette de Take me out to the ball game (Match d’amour). Mais ses dons pour la natation synchronisée en feront la naïade la plus célèbre du cinéma américain, et c’est à ce titre qu’elle reste connue aujourd’hui.

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

Si Bathing beauty est resté dans l’histoire du cinéma comme le film le plus célèbre d’Esther Williams, il a en fait été bâti sur la popularité de l’acteur Red Skelton, qui en est la véritable star. En effet, quand le film est mis en chantier par la MGM, la jeune Esther est encore une inconnue : cette ancienne championne de natation n’a tenu à l’époque que deux petits rôles à l’écran, et c’est une grande opportunité pour elle que de se voir confier le principal rôle féminin de Bathing beauty.

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

Durant le tournage, le titre choisi pour le film est d’ailleurs M. Co-Ed (“M. Mixte”), qui fait référence au personnage joué par Red Skelton, et ce n’est qu’après avoir découvert la première version du montage que les responsables de la MGM, impressionnés par la prestation d’Esther Williams, décideront de changer leur fusil d’épaule. Le titre anglais du film devient Bathing Beauty (“Beauté au bain”), et c’est l’actrice qui est choisie pour figurer sur l’affiche – en maillot de bains, comme il se doit.

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

Réalisé par George Sidney (Anchors Aweigh, The Harvey Girls), Bathing beauty est un film de prestige en Technicolor, pour lequel la MGM a mobilisé certains de ses meilleurs artisans tels le chef opérateur Harry Stradling et le directeur artistique Cedric Gibbons. Par ailleurs, plusieurs vedettes du disque viennent tenir leur propre rôle dans le film. La mode étant aux big bands, deux célèbres formations sont invitées à se produire : celle d’Harry James, trompettiste de renom, et celle de Xavier Cugat, chef d’orchestre d’origine catalane qui a contribué à faire découvrir au public américain les rythmes latins. Ces big bands accompagnent ici trois chanteurs : Helen Forrest, une artiste connue à l’époque pour avoir fait partie des orchestres d’Artie Shaw, de Benny Goodman, et d’Harry James ; Carlos Ramirez, un chanteur colombien devenu étonnamment populaire aux USA ; et Lina Romay, qui sera plus tard la fameuse pin-up du cartoon Senior Droopy. L’organiste Ethel Smith est également de la partie, et la version de Tico Tico qu’elle joue dans le film se vendra à plus d’un million d’exemplaires…

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

Mais, plus encore que sa bande originale, ce sont les prouesses aquatiques d’Esther Williams et de ses compagnes qui vont constituer l’atout principal de Bathing beauty, en distinguant d’emblée le film des autres comédies musicales du moment. L’équipe dispose pour ces séquences d’une grue articulée permettant des mouvements de caméra fluides, et d’un grand caisson vitré pour les prises de vues sous l’eau. La célèbre costumière Irene Sharaff (Meet me in St. Louis, An American in Paris) s’est vue confier spécialement les tenues du ballet final, tandis que les maquilleurs ont mis au point un procédé permettant aux naïades de s’ébattre sans faire couler leur rimmel. Bien que les autres chorégraphies soient signées par Robert AIton et Jack Donohue, la MGM a tenu à ce que ce ballet nautique soit réglé par John Murray Anderson, un spécialiste du genre (la jeune Esther Williams avait collaboré avec lui lorsqu’elle se produisait dans des spectacles aquatiques).

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

Sorti en juillet 1944,  Bathing beauty ne déçoit pas ses promoteurs : le film connaît en effet un tel succès qu’il se place en troisième position dans la liste des films les plus rentables jamais produits par la MGM, après Ben-Hur (1925) et Gone with the wind (1939).

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams

Programme musical (sélection)

Bill Goodwin – C’est sur les ondes que se fait d’abord connaître le californien Bill Goodwin (il est né en 1910 à San Francisco). Collaborant à de nombreuses émissions, il se distingue dans la sitcom radiophonique de George Burns et Gracie Allen, et se joint au couple lorsque le programme se voit adapté à la télévision en 1950. Au cinéma, l’acteur tient des seconds rôles dans des films comme Wake Island (La Sentinelle du Pacifique, 1942), Incendiary Blonde (La Blonde incendiaire, 1945), Spelbound (La Maison du Dr Edwardes, 1945) et Tea for Two (1950). Il succombe à une crise cardiaque en 1958.

BATHING BEAUTY (Le Bal des sirènes, 1944) – George Sidney avec Red Skelton, Esther Williams et Bill Goodwin

    Esther Williams n'a encore joué que deux petits rôles quand la MGM lui donne la vedette de cette comédie musicale aquatique. Il faut dire que la jeune fille est jolie, bonne comédienne, mais surtout championne de natation. Elle campe donc une nageuse qui enseigne dans un collège. Un musicien est amoureux d'elle. Malgré son imprésario, qui n'accepte pas leur liaison, il se fera engager dans l'école pour être près d'elle. L'intrigue, squelettique, n'offre aucun intérêt. Qu'importe ! Ce Bathing beauty est un grand succès. La grâce de Williams, son sourire éclatant malgré les efforts, la beauté des figures exécutées par plusieurs dizaines de nageuses au rythme d'une mélodie entraînante, dans des décors oniriques et colorés, les pitreries sympathiques de Red Skelton enchantent le public. L'avenir de la belle naïade est tout tracé. Pendant une dizaine d'années, elle enchaîne plongeon sur plongeon dans des comédies dont l'histoire prétexte ne sert qu'à introduire des ballets spectaculaires minutieusement réglés. Avec sa mise en scène kitsch et son atmosphère gentiment surannée, Bathing beauty reste un plaisir des yeux. [Gérard Camy - Télérama.fr] Interprétée par le clown Red Skelton et la nymphe Esther Williams, cette comédie musicale de 1944 crée l'événement à sa sortie grâce à ses étonnantes séquences aquatiques. 

[jpbjazz]

LÉGENDES DU JAZZ

COZY COLE, LE SEUL ET UNIQUE

‘’Cozy was one of a kind. There'll never be another Cozy, that is for sure."

- Jonah Jones

Né le 17 octobre 1909 à East Orange, au New Jersey, William Randolph "Cozy" Cole avait cinq ans lorsqu’il avait commencé à jouer de la batterie. Cole était issu d’une famille de musiciens. Les trois frères de Cole étaient également musiciens de jazz. Son frère Herbie était aussi batteur.

Même s’il avait été influencé par Chick Webb, Buddy Rich, Louie Bellson, Gene Krupa et Jo Jones, Cole avait surtout été marqué par Sonny Greer.

DÉBUTS DE CARRIÈRE

Après avoir étudié durant deux ans à la  Wilberforce University en Ohio, Cole s’était installé à New York où il avait commencé à être fasciné avec le jeu de Greer qui se produisait alors avec l’orchestre de Duke Ellington. Cole avait amorcé sa carrière professionnelle en 1928 avec le groupe de Wilbur Sweatman, un chef d’orchestre bien connu de Harlem.

En 1930, Cole s’était joint aux Red Hot Peppers de Jelly Roll Morton, avec qui il avait fait ses débuts sur disque dans le cadre d’une pièce qui avait été composée spécialement en son honneur: "Load of Cole", sur laquelle il avait interprété un long solo. Après avoir joué de 1931 à 1933 avec le groupe de Blanche Calloway, la soeur du célèbre chanteur et chef d’orchestre Cab Calloway, Cole avait fait partie du premier orchestre de Benny Carter (aux côtés de Teddy Wilson, Chu Berry et Dickie Wells en 1935-1936) et du groupe de Willie Bryant (1936-1938) avant de se joindre au petit groupe du violoniste Stuff Smith (1938-1939) puis à l’orchestre de Cab Calloway (1939-1942).

Grande vedette du swing, Cole s’était aussi produit avec le pianiste Teddy Wilson et accompagné les chanteuses Billie Holliday de Mildred Bailey. À l’époque, Cole avait également travaillé avec d’autres grands noms du jazz comme Henry ‘‘Red’’ Allen, Bunny Berrigan, Bud Freeman, Chu Berry et Lionel Hampton.

Poursuivant sur sa lancée à la fin des années 1930, Cole avait joué avec le Jump Band de Pete Brown, les Delta Six de Joe Marsala, Wingy Manone, Duke Ellington et les All Stars de Leonard Feather. Dans le cadre de sa collaboration avec ce dernier groupe, Cole avait notamment joué sur des pièces spécialement conçues pour mettre en évidence ses habiletés de batteur comme ‘’Ratamacue’’, ‘’Paradiddle Joe’’ et ‘‘Crescendo In Drums’’. En 1943, Cole avait aussi fait une apparition dans la revue Carmen Jones (une adaptation du célèbre opéra Carmen de Bizet) dans laquelle il avait joué en solo sur la pièce ‘’Beat Out That Rhythm On A Drum.’’ Commentant sa performance dans le cadre de la revue, Cole avait déclaré: "I think I'm the only drummer to have been featured in a big Broadway show with his name on the program."

Par la suite, Cole avait joué et enregistré avec Lionel Hampton, Coleman Hawkins, Roy Eldridge, Jonas Jones et les Louis Armstrong’s All Stars. En 1943, Cole était devenu un des premiers de musiciens de couleur à briser la frontière raciale lorsqu’il avait été recruté par le directeur musical de la radio de CBS Raymond Scott. Lors d’une entrevue accordée en 1985, Scott avait précisé: "Cozy was the most professional musician I've ever worked with." Cole avait continué de travailler pour CBS jusqu’en 1945.

En 1944, Cole avait co-dirigé un petit groupe avec Benny Goodman au club Onyx de New York.

Poursuivant parallèlement sa formation au milieu des années 1940, Cole s’était inscrit à la prestigieuse Juilliard School of Music où il avait suivi des cours de théorie, d’harmonie, de piano, de timpani et de batterie avec le réputé Saul Goodman du New York Philharmonic Orchestra. Un an plus tard, Cole avait enregistré avec Benny Goodman, Ella Fitzgerald et Louis Armstrong. En 1949, Cole s’était joint aux All Stars de Louis Armstrong avec qui il avait joué pendant quatre ans. Peu après, Cole avait ouvert la Krupa and Cole Drum School avec son ami Gene Krupa. Soulignant l’importance de l’éducation, Cole avait commenté: "The more you study, the more you find out you don't know; but the more you study, the closer you come." L’école avait remporté un grand succès et était demeurée en activité jusqu’à la mort de Krupa en 1973.

Cole et Krupa avaient aussi souvent joué en duo au club Metropole de New York dans les années 1950 et 1960. Comme professeur, Cole avait également fait des lectures à la Capital University à Columbus. Il avait aussi brièvement enseigné à la Juilliard School of Music. Parmi les étudiants de Cole, on remarquait le futur batteur Philly Joe Jones.

Plutôt inhabituel pour un batteur des années 1950, Cole avait fait deux brèves apparitions dans des films qui illustraient des styles complètement différents: ‘’The Glen Miller Story’’ en 1954 avec James Stewart, June Allyson et Gene Krupa et ‘‘Don’t Knock The Rock’’ avec Bill Haley, Little Richard et le groupe The Treniers en 1956. En 1944, Cole avait aussi joué dans le film ‘’Jammin' the Blues’’  aux côtés de Lester Young, Red Callender, Sid Catlett, Harry ‘’Sweets’’ Edison, Illinois Jacquet et Barney Kessell. Il avait également fait une apparition dans le film ‘’Make my Music’’ avec Benny Goodman.

En 1958, Cole était devenu un des premiers batteurs à atteindre la première position du Billboard avec la pièce ‘’Topsy Part 2’’ dans laquelle il avait interprété un long solo. C’était une des premières fois de l’histroire qu’un solo de batterie atteignait le sommet du palmarès Billboard. La pièce s’était également classée à la première position du palmarès R & B. Le disque, qui s’était vendu à un million d’exemplaires, était une nouvelle version d’un grand succès de Count Basie en 1937. La pièce avait été reprise par Benny Goodman en 1938. En plus de ‘’Topsy Part 2’’, le groupe de Cole, surnommé The Cozy Cole Combo, avait connu d’autres grands succès avec des pièces comme "Jersey Jump-Off", "Willow Weep For Me" et "Night Wind." Cole avait fait de nombreuses tournées avec son groupe en plus d’enregistrer à l’occasion. Comme soliste, Cole avait également participé à des tournées en Europe avec Jack Teagarden (1957) et Earl Hines. 

Après avoir été engagé en 1949 par Louis Armstrong pour travailler avec ses All Stars, Cole s’était produit le 7 juin 1953 aux côtés d’Armstrong et de la chanteuse Velma Middleton dans le cadre de la 9e édition de la Cavalcade du Jazz tenue au stade Wrigley Field de Los Angeles. Produit par Leon Hefflin, le concert mettait également en vedette de grands noms du jazz comme Roy Brown and his Orchestra, Don Tosti and His Mexican Jazzmen, Earl Bostic, Nat "King" Cole ainsi que Shorty Rogers and his Orchestra. Cole participe aussi à des tournées en Europe avec le groupe en 1949 et 1952.

Après avoir quitté Armstrong en 1953, Cole avait formé son propre groupe qui avait poursuivi ses activités jusqu’en 1969. La même année, Cole avait retrouvé son vieil ami, le trompettiste Jonah Jones, avec qui il avait joué au début de sa carrière dans le cadre des groupes de Stuff Smith et de Cab Calloway. Le duo avait continué de faire des tournées et d’enregistrer dans les années 1970.

En 1959, Cole s’était aussi produit à la Peacock Alley de St. Louis avec son épouse Lee Parker, une danseuse qui avait étudié sous la direction de Katherine Durham.

DERNIÈRES ANNÉES

Reconnu pour sa versalitité, Cole était réputé pour pouvoir jouer dans n’importe quel style. Il avait même enregistré du rock n’ roll avec Eddie Fontaine. La chanson intitulée ‘’Nothin Shakin’’’ avait éventuellement été reprise par les Beatles en 1962 sur l’album Live At The Star Club. Cole avait également enregistré ses propres albums comprenant des chansons comme ‘’It’s A Rocking Thing’’, ‘’Organ Grinders’ Swing’’’ (qui avait été popularisée par l’organiste Jimmy Smith en 1965) et ‘’Whole Lotta Shakin’ Going On’’ de Jerry Lee Lewis. Loin d’être réfractaire à l’apparition du bebop contrairement à plusieurs musiciens de swing de son époque, Cole avait même enregistré avec Charlie Parker et Dizzy Gillespie en 1945.

Titulaire d’un doctorat honorifique en arts musicaux de l’Université de Columbus en 1978, Cozy Cole est mort d’un cancer le 9 janvier 1981 à Ohio State University Hospital de Columbus en Ohio. Il était âgé de soixante et onze ans. Cole s’était installé à Columbus en 1976, lorsqu’il était devenu artiste en résidence et lecteur à la Capital Universty.

Décrivant le style de Cole, le professeur de percussions de Capital University, Bob Breithaupt, avait déclaré: ‘’What he did between his hi-hat and bass drum were primarily tap dancing things. Then he’d simply play on top of it. But during the ’30s, that was pretty significant because no one was doing it. His solo techniques were really amazing. He found he could superimpose rhythms on top of one another and get some real interesting sounds. He obviously had some coordination that most people didn’t have.” Considérant Cole comme le Spinoza de l'histoire du jazz, le compositeur et multi-instrumentiste Alan Gerber l’avait décrit comme ‘’le représentant de la rigueur lumineuse et patiente, infatigable artisan d'évidences.’’

Batteur sobre et discret, Cole était avant tout un joueur d’équipe qui cherchait à mettre en valeur les autres musiciens. Grand pionnier de la batterie un peu comme Sid Catlett, Gene Krupa et Chick Webb, Cole n’avait rien d’un exhibitionniste. Comme le soulignait le violoniste André Hodeir, Cole s’appliquait surtout à ‘’créer une infrastructure propre à soutenir en toute circonstance le soliste.’’

Au cours de sa carrière, Cole avait joué avec les plus grands noms du jazz, de Teddy Wilson à Henry ‘’Red’’ Allen, en passant par Bud Freeman, Chu Berry, Bunny Berigan, Stuff Smith, Lionel Hampton, Jack Teagarden, Cab et Blanche Calloway, Jonah Jones, Roy Eldridge, Coleman Hawkins, Fats Waller, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Count Basie, Don Byas, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker et Louis Armstrong.

Décrivant sa longue amitié avec Cole, le trompettiste Jonah Jones avait déclaré en 1996:

"Cozy was like my brother. He was the most wonderful person I ever met. I first met him in 1936. I was new to New York and Cozy, being from New Jersey, showed me all around. In those days Harlem was full of great musicians and I was having a difficult time, because no one knew me. But old Cozy, he saw to it that I was offered jobs. One time Teddy Wilson offered Cozy a gig to record with some new singer. Cozy told Teddy that he would only take the job if Teddy hired me. That was how nice Cozy was. When Cozy and I got down there with Teddy, we met Johnny Hodges and that young singer's name was Billie Holiday. Cozy was one of a kind. There'll never be another Cozy, that is for sure."

Plusieurs batteurs de rock avaient mentionné Cole comme une de leurs principales influences, dont le batteur Cozy Powell.

©-2024, tous droits réservés, Les Productions de l’Imaginaire historique

[paysagesinterieurs]

Texte 276 : conversation entre Julie Mehretu et Smooth Nzewi

April 4, 2019 Williamsburg, Brooklyn Conversation between Julie Mehretu and Ugochukwu-Smooth C. Nzewi hosted by ISCP Trustee Sophie O. Riese.

Se programmer une soirée exceptionnelle et la désirer au point d’en rêver même éveillée. Se voir performer en La Journaliste. Rêver de mon audace ou pas de faire un max de selfies. Je trouve cela intéressant de se figer soi-même à tel moment, à tel endroit avec telle personnalité. C’est comme si on s’incrustait par côté dans l’Histoire. Alors voilà, je vais rencontrer Julie Mehretu dans quelques heures. Je songe à ma gueule en La Journaliste, et me voilà convaincue qu’il me faut trouver un aplanisseur de rides et de grains de peau. En vieillissant ma peau se crevasse, et le maquillage que j’utilise exagère ça plutôt que de l’amoindrir. C’est ce que j’ai dit dans un anglais titubant à la vendeuse de chez Ricky’s. Je lui ai acheté le matos qu’elle m’a conseillé en rêvant d’y croire alors même que sa peau emplâtrée se craquelait. Jeune pourtant la meuf. Je m’emplâtre à mon tour, au point de me rater, réalisant le pire des maquillages. J’enfile ma robe dentelle que je considère parfaite comme tenue de « cocktail », mes collants dentelle noire, mes chaussures de danse de salon latino scintillantes, et mon manteau en laine trouvé dans une fripe américaine. Je descends l’escalier. Au bord du trottoir, je lève le bras pour choper un taxi, j’en ai un de suite, d’habitude je fais le singe pendant plusieurs minutes, je me sens américaine. Il est 6:17pm, le taxi me dépose devant la porte vitrée de l’immeuble, une jeune femme souriante m’ouvre, me demande mon nom, je lui répond: - Sophia El Mokhtar. - Oh! Nice to meet you Dear Sophia El Mokhtar! Je dépose mon manteau, et je prends l’ascenseur. Les portes s’ouvrent directement dans l’appartement, je passe le hall d’entrée annonciateur d’un loft de dingue et je suis accueillie très chaleureusement par la directrice d’ISCP, Susan Hapgood, qui me présente ensuite à la propriétaire des lieux, Tracey Riese, puis à Sophie O. Riese qui est la curatrice d’ISCP, puis Jeanne la grand-mère de Sophie qui parle très bien français et l’on papote toutes les deux comme deux vieilles amies avec nos verres à l’allure semblable, l’un contenant de l’eau, l’autre de la Tequila. Elle me dit que je peux aller partout dans l’appartement, elle me conseille d’ailleurs l’étage. Il y a des œuvres d’art partout, c’est Art Basel dans un loft, de belles pièces, jusque dans la salle de bains. Ma mâchoire lâche prise. Nick Cave dans un appart ça a de la gueule, y’a pas à dire, et cette grande peinture de Mickalene Thomas elle t’emporte dans son tourbillon de couleurs pour te hacher menu, c’est l’Olympia de Manet revue et corrigée en version black. Yeah! j’adore ça crache bien dans un salon. C’est peut-être la pièce maîtresse de la collection Riese. Il y a aussi une œuvre qui m’est rentrée dans la tête façon bulldozer, de Samara Golden située au-dessus d’un lit, œuvre 3D c’est bon ça. Et puis les deux œuvres de Titus Kaphar qui m’ont pas mal percutée aussi. Deux personnes s’assoient pour assister à la conversation, je m’approche et le jeune homme me dit: - Oh! Nous ne nous sommes pas présentés, Daniel Kapp! - Sophia El Mokhtar! On s’échange les « nice to meet you » puis il me demande ce qui m’amène ici et comment j’ai eu vent de cet événement : - blabla Social média... blabla French visual artist... Je lui propose de choisir une carte de visite, blabla follow Mehretu depuis 2012. And you? - Je travaille pour la Marian Goodman Gallery me dit-il dans un français parfait. Il me donne sa carte, je lui dis que j’étais présente au vernissage de William Kentridge, et que je vais assister au Reich/Richter event du 9 avril, il check si il travaille ce jour-là. Oui! On se verra, on est contents. Après que Sophie O. Riese et Susan Hapgood ont fait les présentations, Julie Mehretu et Ugochukwu-Smooth C. Nzewi prennent place, la discussion débute et je comprends rien. Mon cerveau fournit plus d’effort à se foutre de ma gueule et à s’imaginer triomphant dans un corps maîtrisant l’anglais, qu’à fournir des efforts pour essayer de comprendre ce qui se dit. La conversation terminée je tourne autour de Julie Mehretu et de Smooth Nzewi, comme un requin, c’est que je les veux mes photos. J’erre autour des îlots de personnes, pas trop près, pas trop loin, j’attends le moment pour tenter une incrustation de mon corps dans le cercle prestigieux. J’y suis, je la salue, lui dis des mots de politesse, probablement maladroits, je lui dis que j’aime son travail, que je la suis depuis Art Basel Miami Beach 2012, et que je suis heureuse de voir prochainement son travail à la 58ème Biennale de Venise. Bam - sourires, câlinette de tête, photo quoi! Puis je croise le regard d’un homme, 35 ans, beau, noir, il a l’air cool, on se sourit, nous nous présentons. Il s’appelle Nate Lewis, il est artiste, il est à la Fridman Gallery dont le Galeriste est présent ce soir, il réalise que je parle mal, mais il ne me rejette pas m’invitant même à danser. Très sympa. Tranquille. On s’échange nos cartes. Son Galeriste, lui est discret et très observateur, il ondule parmi les gens, en silence, il tâte le terrain, il scrute les expressions, peut-être encore plus que moi. Il se déplace dans l’espace en lignes droites, tête penchée sur son épaule gauche. Voilà, il est 9:30 pm, je salue mes hôtes et repars pour Manhattan.

Professionnal kisses from New York where I have the desire to penetrate many art circles and realise selfies! 💋💋💋

[dawnjeman]

Interior Design Ideas: Neutral Home

  Hello, my friends! It’s wonderful to be back here with a new “Interior Design Ideas” post. Today, I will be featuring a beautiful home designed by the talented The LifeStyled Company (Recently featured on Home Bunch here: New Desert Home).

This home was certainly designed with family life in mind. Each and every room feels warm, inviting and unpretentious. As you browse this post, you will find a home that feels elegant with a neutral color scheme and ideas that should inspire and hopefully leave you feeling relaxed.

Pin your favorite interior design ideas and have a good time, everyone!

  Interior Design Ideas: Neutral Home

Black metal and glass French doors open to a foyer with herringbone brick flooring with direct view of a neutral dining room. Notice the hung lanterns! Isn’t it a fun idea?

Dining Table: Living Spaces Walden – similar: Extension Dining Table – Other Beautiful Dining Tables: here, here, here, here & here.

Host Dining Chairs: RH – similar here & here.

Side Chairs: RH – similar here, here & here.

Lanterns on wall: Pottery Barn.

Paint Color

The paint color is very similar to “Benjamin Moore HC-172 Revere Pewter”.

Olive Tree: here & here– similar

Planter: here.

Mirror: here – similar

Rug: CB2 Carat Black Jute Rug (Discontinued).

Chandelier

Chandelier is Gabby Home Bailey Chandelier.

Woven Vases: Large & Small.

Olive Branches: here – similar.

Inlay Herringbone Flooring

The foyer features a stunning inlay brick floor tile in a herringbone pattern. How inspiring!

Entry Inlay Brick: MSI Brick 2-1/3 in. x 10 in. Glazed Porcelain Floor and Wall Tile – also available here.

Sliding Doors: Jeld-Wen – Other Barn Doors: here & here.

Barn Door Pulls: Top Knobs in Black.

Foyer Decor

This foyer beautifully combines board and batten wainscoting, wood flooring with inlay herringbone brick flooring, a beautiful mirrored cabinet and a black a white horse framed art. The decor complements the remaining elements found in this space.

Beautiful Horse Artwork: here, here,here, here, here & here.

Mirrored Cabinets: here, here & here.

Table Lamp: here – similar.

Hardwood Flooring

Hardwood flooring is Mannington Antigua Collection Mercado Oak MRC07LIN1.

Lighting: Ballard Designs – similar here – Others: here, here, here, here, here & here.

Trim/Base/Case/Millwork Paint Color: “Dunn Edwards White DEW380”.

Kitchen

This large white kitchen is filled with inspiring ideas! Paint color is Dunn Edwards White DEW380.

Lighting: Visual Comfort Goodman Antique Nickel Pendant- Large – Others: here, here, here, here, here & here.

Kitchen Cabinetry

Cabinetry is AZ Cabinet Source Timberlake Cabinetry- Kinsdale Collection- Painted Harbor with Ember Glaze.

Kitchen Islands

Now, how cool are these “islands”?! The designer added a pair of large console tables as prep-islands!

Prep-Islands: Console Table 72″ – Other Solid Tables: here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here & here.

Kitchen Hardware: Lowers: Top Knobs TK775BLK Flat Black Channing – Uppers: Top Knobs Lily Pull 6 5/16 Inch.

Countertop

Made out of reclaimed beams and Bluestone countertop, these kitchen islands are almost indestructible.

Countertop

The main kitchen island and the perimeter countertops are Arizona Tile Nouveau Calacatta Quartz.

Backsplash

I love the combination of the tile in this kitchen. The designer did a great job!

Kitchen Backsplash: Range Inlay: Ivy Hill Tile.

Remaining Tile: Ivy Hill Tile.

Pot Filler

Pot filler is by Kohler.

Kitchen Faucet

Kitchen Sink Faucet: Kingston Brass.

Sink: Magnus Home.

Kitchen Nook

The kitchen nook features a L-shaped banquette with custom cushions and pillows.

Dining Chairs: here, here, here & here – similar.

Dining Table: here & here – similar.

Pillows: here – similar.

Rug: here – similar.

Family Room

This open space is perfect for entertaining. Notice how long is the main kitchen island.

Chairs: Swivel Chair, Ivory – also available here – Others: here, here, here & here.

Chandelier

Chandelier is Troy Lighting – on sale! – Others: here & here.

Rug: Rug Gray 9×12 – Other Rugs: here, here, here, here, here, here & here.

Bench: Arteriors – Other Benches: here, here, here, here & here.

 Bookcase

The bookcase paint color is Dunn Edwards White DEW380.

Lighting: Wall Sconces In Matte Black.

Kitchen Hardware: Top Knobs TK775BLK Flat Black Channing.

Leather Chairs

Leather Chairs: West Elm Slope Lounge Chair, Saddle.

Coffee Table

Coffee Table: Restoration Hardware Mercer Round Coffee Table in Zinc – Other Beautiful Coffee Tables: here, here, here, here & here.

Sofa

Sofa is Alder & Tweed Furniture Private Label Wholesale Hunter Sofa (Available through the designer) – similar here, here & here.

Laundry Room

This farmhouse laundry room features white cabinets, white Quartz countertop and flat black cabinet hardware. Flooring is set in a herringbone pattern.

Laundry Room Signs:here, here & here.

Flooring: here – similar.

Paint Color

Paint color is Dunn Edwards DEW380 White.

Kitchen Hardware: Lowers: Top Knobs TK775BLK Flat Black Channing – Uppers: Top Knobs Lily Pull 6 5/16 Inch.

Master Bathroom

The master bathroom feels serene and timeless. Cabinet countertop is Nouveau Calacatta Quartz.

Bathroom Floor: Marazzi Calacatta 12×24 – similar here & here.

Bathroom Sconces: RH – similar here.

Faucets: Rohl.

Chair: Orient Express.

Chandelier: Pottery Barn Ventura Chandelier.

Beautiful Runners: here, here, here, here, here, here & here.

Tub

Master Bathtub: Signature Hardware Rosalind Acrylic Pedestal Tub.

Tub Filler: Signature Hardware.

Beautiful Ceramic Stools: here & here.

Home-Sweet-Home

Make of your home a place where you leave all of the noise behind and be surrounded only by the people and things you love.

Beautiful Hanging Chairs: here & here.

  Many thanks to the interior designer for sharing the details above!

Interior Design: The LifeStyled Company (Instagram)

Photography: Taylor Cole Photography.

  Best Sales of the Month:

Thank you for shopping through Home Bunch. I would be happy to assist you if you have any questions or are looking for something in particular. Feel free to contact me and always make sure to check dimensions before ordering. Happy shopping!

  Wayfair: Up to 70% OFF Black Friday in July!!!

  Serena & Lily: 30% OFF Pillows and 20% OFF Custom Furniture!

  Joss & Main: Up to 70% off “Don’t Think Twice Sale”!

  Pottery Barn: 20% OFF your order plus free shipping. Use code: SUMMER.

  One Kings Lane :20% Off on order over $600 with code OKLSTYLISH20

  West Elm: 30% Off Bedding, Bath, Rugs & more!

  Anthropologie: Take an Extra 50% Off Sale!

  Urban Outfitters: Take an extra 40% off all sale items.

  Horchow: Up to 30% off the entire site!

  Neiman Marcus: Take an Extra 40 to 50% off !!!

  Saks Fifth Avenue: The Designer Sale: up to 75% off!

  Nordstrom: Anniversary Sale – Incredible Prices!!!

  Posts of the Week:

Beautiful Homes of Instagram: Modern Farmhouse.

Florida Beach Cottage.

Beautiful Homes of Instagram: Coastal Farmhouse Design.

Florida Beach House Interior Design.

White Kitchen Renovation.

Kitchen with Blue Island.

Coastal Shingle Home.

Coastal-inspired Home Renovation.

Southern-inspired Modern Farmhouse.

Coastal Farmhouse Home Decor.

New Desert Home Design.

Beautiful Homes of Instagram: British Columbia.

Reinvented Classic Kitchen Design.

New England Home.

Beautiful Homes of Instagram: How to Build your own Home.

Interior Design Ideas: Home Renovation.

2019 New Year Home Tour.

Beautiful Homes of Instagram: Urban Farmhouse.

Beautiful Homes of Instagram: Fixer Upper.

Small Lot Modern Farmhouse.Beach House Interior Design Ideas.

Tailored Interiors.

Modern Farmhouse with Front Porch.

Dark Cedar Shaker Exterior.

Classic Colonial Home Design.Grey Kitchen Paint Colors.

Follow me on Instagram: @HomeBunch

You can follow my pins here: Pinterest/HomeBunch

See more Inspiring Interior Design Ideas in my Archives.

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If I am wrong, right me. If I am lost, guide me. If I start to give-up, keep me going.

Lead me in Light and Love”.

Have a wonderful day, my friends and we’ll talk again tomorrow.”

with Love,

Luciane from HomeBunch.com

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[bluerosesburnblue]

Liz Liveblogs Bravely Second: Chapter 5, Part 1/2

The final stretch is here. Welcome to Chapter 5: This is Our Coup de Gravy!

I’m splitting Chapter 5 into two parts due to length. This part features an amazing climax boss, and is then followed up by the Sidequest Roundup, which ended up longer than I expected! We’ll resume with the plot next go around. I understand if anyone wants to skip this one, since it is mostly sidequests, but at least read the beginning because reveals abound and the plot starts to really kick into gear. No more messing around this time!

No introduction is needed. It’s time to end this before it begins. Let’s make sure the Kaiser rests in oblivion

“I deny you all” you know, Oblivion. Buddy. Synonyms exist. Try them sometime

Between the start of the scene and actually attempting the fight I started drinking some hard cider. So if the team members are siblings, I’m the tipsy extradimensional aunt at the reunion. Let’s punch Kaiser’s blond chinstrap beard in

Aw, damn. They switched Magnolia’s and Edea’s positions in my party. Muscle memory is gonna smack me down in this fight

Edea took out about half of Kaiser’s health in one full BP volley. Not so tough now, huh? Really should be buffing your defense, instead of the attack power of everyone on the field

Oh no. The magical domino mask that everyone seems to think hides your identity but really, REALLY doesn’t fell off

Kaiser is Yew’s missing big brother. I’ll... get into why that doesn’t surprise me in a minute

...that’s not the pronunciation I expected. Denys Geneolgia. I read the name as “Dennis.” Yew just pronounced it “Denny.” It’s... uhh... I can see why he went with “Oblivion,” even if it does make him sound like an edgy 13-year-old trying too hard

So. Yeah. One of the few things I was spoiled on was that Kaiser’s real name was “Denys Geneolgia,” and after Yōko’s prank with the Danzaburō illusion and the zoom-in on Kaiser’s prosthetic hand... I kinda figured he had to be Yew’s brother. I’m sure there was probably some foreshadowing that I missed, but I feel like I caught a fair amount of it

Fuck, I can’t believe Yew’s brother is the restaurant chain Denny’s

I can’t believe Denny just got arrested before he could give us exposition. That’s totally unexpected for a JRPG. Wow.

GOOD NEWS THOUGH. Tiz and Agnès are finally in the same room as each other. I... perhaps should not have made him a ghost knight for this reunion, but she’s seen him wear worse. It’s fine

AAAAAAHHHHHH that hug was so cute. “...You came for me!” HE SURE DID. ACROSS TIME. All for you, Agnès! Tiz will never let you down!

And from her perspective, Tiz is still in a coma. It’s like he came back to life miraculously just because she needed him

AND EDEA’S MADE IT A GROUP HUG. AHHHHHH. WHERE’S RINGABEL GET HIM IN HERE FOR THIS

Nevermind, Magnolia and Yew are joining in and that’s cuter. But still. We’re missing our sixth teammate, Ringabel~

Time to give Alternis, Braev, and Agnès the low down on the end layer, and how we sent player with the Bravely Second

Agnès can actually remember parts of it because she’s also synced up to the hourglass, but since she didn’t travel through time with the party, it’s more of a dreamlike recollection

One last job. Kaiser’s in jail, but his soldiers aren’t. We need to take them down and extract or destroy the Ba’al locked in Skyhold. But this time, we complete the ceremony and join the Orthodoxy and Duchy. Two forces once at war with each other, now at each other’s backs to save the world

Ag... Agnès maybe don’t base your speech on events that now no longer happen because I changed the past?

Apparently there was quite a bit of time looping for her. She was whisked away to the edge of time “over and over” again? Was that the result of being in a timeless space, or is she referring to various new games on the cartridge, of which there are none because I only have the one (now two due to New Game+), so...

This speech almost doesn’t work because they don’t make the player go through several meaningless loops this time, so even from a meta perspective, she was only kidnapped once. So unless Agnès has lived through save files I never made, I don��t know what she’s going on about

Didn’t take the Empire long to bust Denny out of prison

Altair didn’t even help with Anne’s bestiary entry! Why couldn’t it have been written without him?!

...glad the chest key for blue chests was just sitting out on the floor of the church there

Yeah, of course it was Janne and Nikolai who broke him out. We can’t have pancake night without Denny’s!

“Does the name Jerome Balestra mean anything to you!?” Janne... Janne you fucking idiot. Mook #4 didn’t kill your dad. None of these guys know what you’re talking about. But no, kill them. Fine. You useless brat

I DON’T THINK THESE GUYS, SPECIFICALLY, KILLED YOUR DAD, JANNE! They all look the same! How can you tell?!?!?!?

You. Are. SUCH a child. Get over yourself

Nikolai should not be that acrobatic

Oh good. Bella and Cú are back. Hey, Bella, is it awkward that Yew’s rocking your getup right now? It is, right?

Denys, why are you enabling the use of “coup de gravy”? No self respecting older sibling would let him get away without some serious teasing for something so cringey. I’m an oldest sibling. I’m speaking from experience here

After Bella’s speech, I can’t tell if the Empire is just Denys accidentally adopting people who need help, or a cult

Bella mentions crimes against “her sister.” She’s a “Dark Vestal” with black hair and seems to give prophecies of doom. Is Sylvie her sister? Did Bella do something to make her mute? Sylvie was one of the big mysteries from last “arc” that never got answered, so I’m hoping for payoff here in some fashion

Not even a moment to breathe (or save). Time to battle Bella and Cú once more!

Okay, so Bella’s sister was killed on the night Eternia was founded, by the “witch” who began the Plague, mentioned in the last game. Seems that may have been started by the Crystalguard

She tried to revive her sister, much as Geist tried to revive his son. But all she made were monsters. And Cú, whose resurrection she messed up. But none of them were Donna. (So, not Sylvie. Should’ve just given her a minute to monologue). She named her doll after her sister

Cú wasn’t even technically resurrected. He’s just a statue that she managed to animate

My Spirit Magic is so much stronger than Bella’s at this point it’s comical

Cú. You’re using up Edea’s special. Hurry this monologue up

Dammit Cú. I had Critical up by 300%. Thanks for wasting that

We spared them. Of course we did! This is the Best Timeline™, guys! No one dies, no one gets to economically ruin a nation!

Yew’s determined to show Denys’s people that the word can change so long as people are willing to work for it. Stop living in the past and wishing you could undo mistakes. Time to start working for a better future. And I can’t think of anyone better to show them than Agnès

“We can’t risk her Holiness...!” Othar, Agnès killed Ouroboros, the Devourer of Worlds. I think she can handle Sad Bella and her horse man without her useless bodyguards

I like Cú. He’s a man... horse of honor

And Agnès let Bella keep Donna, her doll. So sweet

Oh just let me save the game already!

We called in Braev, Alternis, Norzen, Kamiizumi, Goodman, and Lotus to hear our story. Lotus... has no idea who we are, unless we either called him from Sagitta and told him offscreen, or he somehow also had his memories hooked up to the Second

At least Norzen won’t arbitrarily attempt to kill us this timeline

Eisen and Eternia are teaming up to make sure Agnès can’t be kidnapped to use to awaken the Crystals

Magnolia’s got a plan to take the Skyhold. “Lord Arima and Sakura remember you well. Together, we’ve been preparing for this day.” Is this Kingdom Hearts logic, where all memories are connected, so as long as we remember the last timeline, so does everyone we befriended? Who, exactly, was memory synced to the hourglass?

...is it me? It uses the player’s SP, so as long as I remember the events of the story, so do they? Lucky for you guys I’ve been doing a liveblog, huh?

...that’s actually gonna suck if the sidequests remember Bad Timeline events, because now it’s a betrayal

Agnès has given everyone pendant pieces, so we’ve got a group call with the team now

“Take back the compass”? I don’t believe they’ve stolen it yet, Magnolia

Thank GOD. I can finally save and take a break

Denny’s got the team together to recoup after having his little brother time travel just to punch his face in. Understandable

He does genuinely seem to care about his underlings, so I’m pretty sure “savior of the lost” is the kind of person we’re dealing with here

“They went down fighting for the cause.” Janne, stop. They’re not dead. Best Timeline™

So Denys, Nikolai, and Janne all remember the past timeline, too. Who... who does and does not remember? Someone needs to get me a comprehensive list. Alternis may or may not get super pissed that I intend to “betray” the orphans this go around if he remembers

I like the fact that the villains in this game are as perceptive as they are. “If we remember, then I’m sure they do, too. No element of surprise with our plans, so we need a change of course”

“My friend...” Denys is the same as Yew. He adopts people. The empire is to him what the party has become to his brother: a second family to make up for the one they botched

They’re sending Geist to claim the compass instead of Minette this time. If the catsassin ain’t a secret, may as well go with our strongest operatives

New Game+ means both New Enemies+ and all sidequests from past chapters are open, so let’s go clear out some Catmancy skills, then fix the mess I made of the last timeline and see if I like the quests any better when I like the ending. We’re leaving the Bestiary until I get the Yōkai job’s Obliterate skill to make it easier on me

I’m gonna take the quests in order of appearance, so first up is Jackal vs. deRosa, where we side with Jackal instead of letting deRosa maybe accidentally start a Cold War for the sake of making some kid happy about his thesis project

Okay, they did exactly what I was hoping they would when I realized that everyone retained their memories. Event scenes are heavily abridged, but it seems like only the party remembers everything. So they go “hey, is this what’s happening? Okay, we can help let us fix this.” instead of having the situation explained. That’ll make it easy to collect the rest of the jobs

deRosa may remember. He knew everyone’s noodle orders, but doesn’t seem like he remembers anything about the Wellspring Gem. So... I dunno

Also, WHY DID YOU TELL HIM. You know it just causes a fight with Jackal!

“For every five years our research is delayed, the world suffers a decade of sorrow...” Okay, kid. Stop being dramatic. Your thesis project is not some high-end deal and not worth destroying at least one, maybe several towns over. He isn’t even a high ranking Al-Khampis student. Sorry, dumbass, I’m not letting you make a fantasy nuke

At least he’s got his heart in the right place. He’s gonna find a solution that doesn’t need the Gem, so that everyone benefits and they don’t have to destroy a city to do it. G... good job? You should’ve considered that from the start

Hey, I’ve got an idea. Let’s find Gho Gettar and slyly whisper to him that there MAY be an owl-man hanging out in the Northeast of Eternia that MAY have what he’s looking for ;)

Weird that the Gho sidequest starts up with meeting him and Mephilia in the woods to deliver Kamiizumi’s letter when the event we got the letter from didn’t happen in this timeline. Maybe he handed it off to us during the big peace talks in Gathelatio?

I’ve been listening to Critical Role too much, because when I heard the voiceover for Kamiizumi’s letter, I couldn’t picture the character, just Liam O’Brien’s goofy smile

Follow your dreams, Gho. I promise, Amaterasu is just a (very long) boat ride away

Kamiizumi thinks we’re being naive, because being a low-ranking worker isn’t anything shameful, and we’re encouraging Gho to be a quitter. And I agree, yeah, there’s nothing wrong with being a labor worker. BUT! It’s also not for everyone. Some people are AMAZING at those kinds of jobs, and some people shine in other areas. I don’t see Gho shining as a factory worker. I just see it crushing his spirit. And his sense of dedication is not an issue, because he is putting in just as much effort into summoning Amaterasu as he did working in that factory, but the summoning work makes him happier. He’s no less a hard worker for focusing his efforts on a strenuous process that makes him happy than one he doesn’t care about

“You counsel a guileless youth, still ignorant of the world, to throw up his hands at the first hint of hardship.” But we aren’t, though. You think there are no hardships on the path to his dream? That it won’t be difficult? No, we just refocused his efforts on something he cares about. He’ll struggle through just as many hardships, but with this he’ll want to go through them, want to make it through because they’ll be for something he’s passionate about. He’ll actually have the motivation to get through those hardships, and he’ll be more pleased with the results. Sorry, Kamiizumi. Just because it’s not for a job you particularly find tasteful doesn’t mean he’s not working just as hard. Maybe even harder, since he’ll be more excited to do it

The Kamiizumi fight is much easier once you remember that your Hawkeye has the Condor ability that can pierce default

And this is what I’m talking about. Gho is getting frustrated that he still can’t summon Amaterasu, he’s putting in so much effort, but now it’s for something he’s passionate about. It might not be as fast as he accomplished something of note as he did in the vs. Mephilia ending, but he’s accomplishing just as much, and I’m proud of him. Sometimes it takes just a little longer to do something truly great, as opposed to just something good

Oh, wow, I forgot about Sage Yulyana. Not his existence, but the fact that he hasn’t been relevant to this game. We still haven’t been to the Yulyana region

According to Mephilia he fought a Ba’al about a year ago, told her about Amaterasu and one other summon (Susano-o, the one she was searching for last game, or Charybdis, the other new one from this game?) and then either left this world to hunt down the Ba’al... or just died. Honestly, either would be pretty in-keeping with the good old sage. Just as well we probably won’t be seeing him, though; I only ever used Conjurer for Obliterate

Yeah, I’m happier having Gho follow his dreams than slave away at a job he hates, even if he managed to make that job more efficient. I’ve got faith he can do just as much, if not more good like this

Well, on to the next... oh. Oh god no not Holly vs. Profiteur again oh good lord come on, let’s try to stop this economic disaster before a child gets lost in the freaking mines again

Huh. This timeline they’re all just... talking it over like mature, responsible adults. And while Profiteur is going to make sure his economic argument is sound, Holly is... going to gorge herself in Heartschild. Great. Just go to Barras in Florem and leave the rest of us alone, you loon

And even the girl is more sympathetic. She still wants to stay, but she’s scared of her granddad having to go out and fish on the open water every day if they do stay there. And, kid, I got wrecked by a Monoceros out there and this party is TRAINED to fight, that is a very good fear to have

Oh thank GOD it’s not making me chase Profiteur down again

Greater good! GREATER. GOOD!

Oh, cool, Holly’s fucking drunk. Really making a good argument for yourself there, hon

Profiteur’s plans will “only help the few?” How so? Seems to me a flourishing economy benefits EVERYONE. Besides, I’d rather side with someone taking the situation seriously than one drunk madwoman

I’m almost happy that they made Holly so unsympathetic this go-around

But... now the kid’s back to being a brat. She’s throwing a tantrum because she doesn’t want the house sold. Too fucking bad? How many kids do you think would end up homeless if they didn’t sell? I don’t think an eight-year-old should be making the financial decisions in this family. They’re not good big-picture thinkers

Also, no need to be so hostile to Profiteur, Edea! Holly’s feelings aren’t the benchmark of morality, either!

I still have so many problems with the way this quest is written, as though the conflict is modest-but-happy lifestyle vs. lavish-but-empty lifestyle, when it’s really a needs of the many vs. needs of the few scenario. As though someone being sad is a decent argument for a large decision like this. As though kids are good at making rational decisions. Sometimes families move, sometimes things change, and it’s hard and sad and difficult to adapt to, but you need to. And this opens up so many possibilities for her that she can’t even see yet. Better schooling, a better home, good jobs, heck, she’ll be able to spend even more time with her grandpa if he doesn’t have to work all the time to get her food!

The one thing this quest has going for it is that I totally buy Profiteur’s redemption from the last game. He’s still a moneygrubber, but he’s a moneygrubber who’s genuinely looking to open up some honest jobs and help a country out

“You can trust in Erutus Profiteur! If you think I am taking too long [making this country a better place], you may come to blast me away at anytime!” God speed, good sir. He sounds so excited to make this work, and I’m glad to make it happen

Sidequest still wan’t great, but much more bearable than the first time. A kid didn’t even have to almost die this time around!

Well, now it’s time to go get stuck in Grapp Keep. If we were smart, we’d tell everyone to get out before the place collapsed, but then we wouldn’t have a conflict? Oh well. Let’s go kick Ominas and his baby dragon’s asses

I don’t foresee that fight being a problem, since I have Magnolia as an Astrologian with Elemental Barrier

...at least Edea tried to avoid slamming into that guy this time

The saga of Magnolia’s cooking continues. Seems she’s gotten to be a much better chef

Oh god it just hit me. The Edea punching the wall scene happened again. We caused the damn cave-in

And they tried to warn them of the cave-in, but we still got trapped. But of course

And Artemia and Ominas definitely don’t remember the last timeline. This time, though, we’ve told Risotto’s father to form a rescue party in advance. No worry about a search party not showing up. Now we have even less reason to side with Ominas! Food for everyone! Femto Flare later, when not under threat of hunger

Ominas, dude, just learn Femto Flare when we get out of here. World isn’t screwed because a tiny dragon didn’t learn it this second. Besides, the way this is going, it ain’t gonna matter much this timeline, anyway

Man, that is such a nothing quest. No real stakes, no real emotional involvement. Nothing. Cool. Moving on

...why does the Bestiary make it sound like Bahamut is dead when the actual epilogue says he’s fine?

Kikyo vs. Heinkel was enjoyable. Let’s hope it is again, yeah?

I like the premise of “oh we already know who did it, let’s set up a trap to catch the culprit”

And they aren’t even pretending it wasn’t Whitson. Hell, Edea’s blatantly guilting him, without actually saying his name

Let’s get Sholmes in on the police force. He needs to learn a little temperance. His big problem is jumping the gun with his intuitive responses. Putting him in a position that encourages him to think more logically and put together better evidence for his reasoning can only benefit him. Intuition is best used when you understand why you’re having that gut reaction in the first place, and it’s not the only thing that makes a good investigator

Kikyo’s still an annoying fight what with her constant evading and Transience skill, but Ninja was one of my top classes last game so it’s good to have it back

Yes, yes, we know what the truth of this incident was. I don’t need to hear it again, game

And you know, I’m liking this new, mature Sholmes. Good. I’m glad he’s finally wising up

Still a decent quest, I just almost wish the stakes were higher. ...then again, this game has proven that higher stakes in these quests tends to lead to higher stupidity from Edea, so maybe it’s for the best this stays low-scale

Who feels like opening up the first co-ed school in Florem. I do! Equality of the sexes!

Straight to the fight! This one was pretty straightforward

A co-ed school with optional enrollment is moving too fast? Really Einheria? Shut the fuck up. Both of your sisters are smarter than you right now, and one’s a psycho summoner and the other grew up in the woods

I just Summoned a Friend. He named his attack “Shot thru the <3″ and had Yew’s finishing line be “You’re to blame.”  What a freaking legend

Oh no Rhea’s crying. What a shame

Einheria can’t even remember her name while proclaiming her loyalty to her. God, how could you forget a name like Rhea Veeling

And Swetti’s crush is still a thing. Great

Barras has licenses to teach various forms of martial arts and 22 fields of medicine? Dude, hey, go down to Eisen, find your drunk girlfriend, and go settle down yeah? Keep her out of trouble because you’re clearly the responsible one in this relationship

Eugh. Rhea’s Bestiary entry says she only joined the Bloodrose Legion after they ruined Florem, and her whole “making up for the sins of the past” shtick was an act to get the teaching job. Wow. Fuck her, glad this is Best Timeline ending

“Regardless, she is probably the most rational of the three Venus sister...” Not in this scenario, Tiz. Not at all

Back to Florem to respect the wishes of a deceased artist. Arca Pellar’s song will see the light of day. And then eventually Praline can remix it, but I don’t think she’s gonna have the patience to, honestly

So Pellar... remembers the last timeline? But Praline and Barbarossa don’t? What... why??? What are the rules for cross-timeline memory!?

At least it doesn’t seem like we have to trek through the Witherwood again. Good

And our plan is scream our answer into a microphone so that Praline and Barbarossa hear it and the loser challenges us to a fight. We’re just provoking the boss at this point! Why???

*mic voice* FUCK PRALINE. SHE AIN’T SHIT

I still can’t hear her over her background music

“Why not recreate that song as something people today will be able to enjoy?” Why not make your own freaking song!? There’s market for both genres! It’s not like the freaking Beatles are any less popular because their stuff’s old, you know?

Praline I am far too cynical to fall for false tears. I didn’t even cave to a child’s real tears. You think that’s gonna stop me?

Oh lord her awful song’s the boss music. You know, I like Jpop every once in a while. It’s a decent genre! This... this is not a good song

See? Barbarossa just handed Praline a commission to do a song for them. It... was for Arca’s song, though, invalidating everything I’ve done. At least this time the sailors are working with her to keep true to the original spirit of the song

Well, that totally invalidated my entire choice, but at least everyone’s happy?

The Bestiary has a few interesting tidbits. Rabbits are sacred on the moon (because this game was made in Japan, of course they are), Praline has been lying about being 17 for a long freaking time, and Nikolai was apparently a fan. I... Nikolai, buddy, really? Never would’ve thought

Time for one last diversion: solving the economic crisis of Grandship. Alternis may have his heart in the right place, but his clouded judgement will wreck Grandship in the long run. Let make the Best Timeline one worth living in, where everyone’s happy

It just occurred to me that there’s over 30 Jobs. That’s nuts

Just heading straight to the council meeting, huh? Just as well, we already know who we’re here to support. Though I wouldn’t have objected to hanging out with Datz, Zatz, Alternis, and the Proprietress for lunch again

(Also, side note: The salted caramel tea I’m drinking right now is ~amaaaaaazing~. I’m not even really a salted caramel person. Bigelow teas are a gift to this earth. Alternis is gonna get a beating while I sip tea dramatically)

Shoot. The elevator’s still locked. Guess I’m dungeon running with encounters off again. Teeeeediuuuuum~

(I get the point is probably new encounters but: I don’t have Obliterate yet and I’m still overleveled. So!)

We aren’t abandoning the orphans, you overdramatic dork!

Wow. That might be the first boss I’ve lost to.

Alternis, you’re proposing now!? In the middle of combat over the economic security of orphans!? Learn some tact, doofus!

Minus Strike is complete bullshit when Alternis has 100x the max health we do. That’s just an instant kill

And Khamer seems really devoted to helping the poor despite all this. “Maybe we can have our cake and eat it, too.” Yeah, I like it!

Oh, sure, cut to starving orphans to make me feel bad

Oh, I love the Proprietress. Now that people have money to spend, they’re spending it on helping the poor! And the kids are being offered an apprenticeship and schooling! Exactly how it should be. I was worried they were gonna vilify my choice for a second there

I forgot Edea was only 18. These kids really are all younger than me

Ah, that’s cute. Magnolia wonders how terrifying Alternis’s face must be in the Bestiary and Edea can only reply with “...” Yeah, mmmhmm. Good response to the pretty-boy pompadour guy

Thank God those are over. I love this game, but that was basically an hours-long boss rush. Most of those were a bit more tolerable than the Bad Timeline runs, but I still don’t think they were written well. The flaw is in the fundamental conflict setup... but I think I’ve talked enough about my problems with them in previous entries, so let’s make like a New Timeline and cut the chit chat because we already know what’s up

I’ve finally escaped Morality Sidequest Hell. Now, there’s at least two more sidequests in the game, but I have high hopes for them. Mostly because they won’t be confined to the Choice structure that all of the others have been stuck in which means: 1. no moralizing (probably) and 2. development for party members other than Edea, because the Tiz, Yew, and Magnolia might as well have not been there at all for all they contributed to these quests

Wow, that ended up being way longer than expected. I was hoping to get right into the story this liveblog, but I guess that’s not gonna happen. Well, check back next time when I go race Geist to the spacetime compass. He... unfortunately has a good headstart considering I just did eight sidequests, but now the whole party’s level 60 and ready to go! He doesn’t stand a... geist of a chance