#gotta love the assonances

[hermesmoly]

Kinda interesting that besides the former King Cronus and Queen Rhea, Theia and Hyperion are assumingly the only couple who were able to have a lineage mighty enough for their children to be the personification of the Sun, Moon, and Dawn respectively. Not to mention being able to KEEP that role despite no obvious alliance with Zeus during the Titanomachy. (Helios and Selene get semi-replaced by Apollo and Artemis but still maintain their positions enough that Helios has a role in Hephaestus, Demeter, and Heracles' stories) (also Zeus never seeks out a replacement for Eos as the goddess of Dawn which makes me think that they are amiable with each other)

Compare that to Iapetus' four sons getting fucked in four different directions, Coeus and Phoebe's only real relevance being Leto and their grandchildren by Zeus and being grandparents to Hecate, Oceanus and Tethys producing and losing Metis while their other numerous children play minor to adequate roles, and Crius' sons merely being "husbands" to more well-known deities (Eos, Styx, Asteria). (Astraios being the biggest research disappointment because you'd think the husband of the Goddess of Dawn would be the God of Dusk and have an active role during sunset but no, he's just a God of the stars sadly).

(Of course, there are also Themis' and Mnemosyne's daughters by Zeus, who are very important, but like Leto's case it helps that their children's father is the King of The Gods and Zeus x Titanesses is almost 99% guarantee they get good roles) (then there's Prometheus Bound where Prometheus' mother is Themis only which is cool but I mostly consider Clymene as his mother)

[myluckymoon]

Lmao I can see her getting along with some of my ocs already

Lmao the arson part, gotta love some good old asson

Hiii

I just wanted to say I love your oc and who ever says otherwise don't listen to them. Been wanting to RP with you for a while but didn't know how to start

//Oh it's ok if people hate or dislike her. Miki is not at all a hero, but not really a villain, emotionally. No one is good or bad, they're a character.

I would suggest using locations to get a good idea on who to use, or how to start an rp. She is either in a random apartment she broke into (killing the occupants), in an abandoned vintage Japanese house in the woods, sneaking around the Port Mafia, or committing arson in decomposed neighborhoods.

[seance]

HAPPY NAMES REVELATION DAY!

[shoezuki]

yo it isnt cocky at all (and even if it was, pride is a christian sin), andshit dude you ARE a good writer. It's literally insane? Smh people are so convinced that you gotta hate yourself to be creative/on tumblr/EXIST and like no dude. I support ppl w mental illnesses but it's become such a social norm that its EXPECTED which is so fucked cause?? We arent supposed to hate ourselves????? Anyways use this ask to rant about how pog you are if you want I wanna hear ur introspection, tell me how cool u are/srs - andy

GGGGBBGBGBGBBHVHVHVHHVVHHVVFHGHGHTUTHBHB BRO I LOVE YOUUUUUUUUUUUU YOU FUCKING. RIGHT!!!!!!

i like my writing a lot ive put SO much effort into it n even if i am not ‘serious’ n this is ‘only a hobby’ i love writing and my own writing so much. one a the favourite things a mine is like i studied poetry and poetic devices which i Use while writing to give it more Feeling. 

like its not so obvious in the Understanding Techno fic because its more dialogue heavy and more lighthearted/jus some homies fuckin round so im less mindful of it. but some things i do when writing is like. things Everyone uses like hyperbole and personification etcetc cuz its Natural to use it

but One thing im always mindful of is euphony and cacophony. like. its when words either Sound and Feel good or bad to say. words like ‘moist’ and ‘stupid’ and ‘sludge’ are cacophonic because they Sound and Feel bad to say. the use of consonants like harsh ‘p’’s and vowels slamming into ‘k’ and ‘d’ type sounds. euphony is the opposite and honestly easier to find with words like ‘breathe’ ‘air’ ‘smooth’ ‘freeze’. all that soft vowels n sounds n shit

but its REALLY COOL you can change the entire Vibe of a sentence or a paragraph by just using synonyms with different Tones. like if you describe someone falling on ice if you use ‘slide’ (euphony) it sounds not so harsh, jus a small lil fall. but if you use ‘trip’ or ‘tumble’ (cacophony) itll feel more sudden, jarring, clumsy. 

like things like connotations and onomatopoeias and alliteration and consonance/assonance etc etc. literary and poetic devices are so useful and i always keep em in mind when writing n tryn to figure out what Emotions i wanna get across and thats some bombass shit of me 

[frustrated-writer-skyeknight]

S.q.u.a.d. reacts to the Lion King

Based on this article: I watched The Lion King as a grown-ass man.

"Man, Disney should just stop with the remakes already." Jamie sighed as he took some textbooks from his locker, "I mean, I think the Lion King one was just a CGI version of the original."

Jack frowned, scratching the back of his neck. "There was an original version?"

"What? Dude, of course there is. It's a classic. Everyone's seen it." Jamie snorted, turning towards the approaching brunette trio. "Hey guys, you know about the old Lion King movie, right?"

Dimitri shrugged, "I know there's a new lion movie out." He said. "Looks more like a documentary thing, if you go by the trailer."

"Didn't have cable growing up," Jim replied, "still don't. Plus, Disney is overrated anyway."

Hiccup hummed thoughtfully, "What's lion king?"

Jamie stared at his friends dumbfounded. "Okay, we are so having a movie night now." He said.

Later that Friday evening, Jamie and his friends find themselves in the den of his home, parents out with the younger sister, and three bowls of popcorn with different flavors; cheese, butter, and barbeque. Plus, two boxes of pizza.

"Wow, Jay," Astrid whistled as she settled on a spot next to him, "you sure went all out for this."

Jamie shrugged, "Disney is my childhood." he said.

"I still say they're a gold digging empire," Jim deadpanned, but took a handful of popcorn. "But I never say no to free food."

Dimitri took a slice of pizza as Jack had too, and they 'toasted' to it, "Preach."

"Okay guys," Jamie rolled his eyes as he set Netflix on the television, "at least wait for the movie to start. Since I brought it up earlier, let's start with 'The Lion King.' I've got tissues ready in case you need it."

Jim snorted, rolling his eyes. "It's an Animated kids movie." He said. "Nobody cries over those.

───────────────

🎶On the day we arrive on the planet~🎶

"Well, opening song sounds good." Jack hummed, "wouldn't mind getting it stuck in my head. Unlike that overrated Queen Ella single one."

Dimitri groaned, "Ohmygod, yes." he groused, "People will not shut up about it!"

"Okay boys." Astrid rolled her eyes, "focus."

They did so, but it didn't take long for someone else to speak up. "Whoa, now hold up. So, that monkey dude..." Jim frowned, and Jamie felt the need to pause the movie. "I mean, come on, this monkey chief dude comes hobbling around on a walking stick earlier, and you expect that he can hold a damn newborn over a cliff? That's shady, man."

"Just watch." Jamie rolled his eyes, smirking at his friend's offended expression. "Also, I'm gonna have to preemptively warn you to suspend your disbelief for a lot of these movies." He hits play once more.

And they watched.

"He's as mad as a hippo with a hernia."

"That's some mad alliteration skills," Jack mused, "ugh, alliteration. Still confuse that with assonance."

Hiccup stared at his boyfriend, "The fact that you even bring that up casually..."

"Okay, feeling that Scar's the bad dude here." Astrid interrupted, "but I'm liking the accent."

Rafiki is painting Simba on his tree...

"There's that shady baboon butt again, doing grafitti without his goddamn walking stick." Jim snorted, "I don't trust that punk."

Dimitri chuckled, giving his boyfriend a one-arm hug. "Pup, you have trust issues. It's your thing." He cooed, "it's a cartoon monkey, he can't hurt you."

"But he can hurt his fellow cartoon animal peeps." Jim countered. "Shady bastard."

Dimitri rolled his eyes, "and they say you're a cold, insensitive prick." He snorted.

"Wait, a Lion in a Pride mates with all the lioness..." Hiccup frowned, his eyebrows knitting together. "He's literally sleeping with his wife and the rest of his, uh, concubines in a single..."

Jamie groaned, "You're ruining my childhood here."

"So, this is that famous overmemed scene." Jack snorted, "pretty grand, I'll give it that. Tempted to google what the shadowy place is, though."

Jamie shook his head, taking Jack's phone. "No spoilers." He said. "It's coming up soon anyway."

"Forgive me for not leaping in joy. Bad back, you know."

Hiccup nodded faux sagely, "Scar is me at every social gathering." He said.

"No, no! Don't, you gullible lion cub!" Jim shouted at the TV, much to everyone's amusement. "THAT DARK PLACE IS OBVIOUSLY NOT AN ELEPHANT GRAVEYARD, SIMBA. DON'T DO DUMB SHIT. LISTEN TO YOUR PARENTS. GO TO LION CUB SCHOOL!"

Dimitri snickered, gesturing to his soulmark. "He's talking in capslock again." He said.

🎶"I just can't wait to be king~!"🎶

"Okay, I'm so finding a playlist in Spotify now." Jack mused, scrolling at his phone that Jamie returned earlier. "These tunes are gonna be my jam."

Hiccup shrugged, "I still find it funny that the animals are so okay with their predators being their king. No revolution sparked by discontentment at all." He pointed out. "Sounds kinda fishy."

"Okay, anyone else feeling kinda awkward with Simba and Nala's sexual tension?" Jim voiced out, "I mean, they're kids... Or cubs... Whatever. They're young."

Hiccup nodded, "Not to mention, cousins. Being in the same Pride..." He trailed off as Jamie kicks him lightly on the shin.

"Again, ruining childhood for me." Jamie sighed, and Astrid rubs his arm soothingly.

Jim points at the screen accusingly, "Ah! An elephant graveyard!" he gawked. "okay, was wrong on that, but still creepy as hell. Especially now that practically everywhere in the Savannah is an elephant graveyard... Even a rhino graveyard."

Jack shook his head, "Guys, you need to chill."

"Okay, these hyenas reminds me of that old Cartoon Network show, Ed, Edd 'n' Eddy." Hiccup mused, "Especially Ed, who's basically Ed. Can't be a coincidence."

Astrid snickered, "He's also you; laughing or making jokes to laugh about in inappropriate situations." she teased. "Got us in trouble a lot in those 'bring your kid to work' events."

"Aaaand Mufasa comes in to save the day," Jack slow clapped, "knew it. But boy, is Simba grounded. You done fucked up, kid."

"I'm surrounded by idiots..."

Jim huffed, leaning back against the couch and Dimitri's arm. "Mood." He deadpanned. "Also, calling out their cruelty to animated zebras."

"I know right?" Dimitri humored him, "where the fuck is PETA when you need them?"

Jamie snorted, smirking at them, "Uh, I don't know... Reality?"

"Doesn't feel like it either." Astrid quipped, "elephants still dying everywhere."

Jack rolled his eyes, "Fucking chill guys."

"Ah, Hiccup, look. How's that for discontentment?" Astrid pointed at the screen, "Scar's not satisfied with being sass king of the jungle. Wants to run for real king, that can't end well."

Hiccup shrugged, "I'll take it." He said, "and it's not a jungle, actually.

"Dude has mad pipes though." Jack pointed out, "I'd definitely attend the opening night of 'Scar: The Musical.'"

Jamie hummed thoughtfully, "Huh, a lion king remake with his perspective instead would be an improvement." He said.

"Simba, it's to die for!"

"Okay Hiccup, take notes." Astrid quipped, "Scar's pun game is topnotch."

Hiccup snorted, tossing a throw pillow her way. "Must've learned from me." He shot back, "I'm a master."

"Still," Astrid said, laughing as she threw the pillow back, "I have the feeling this is the point of the movie I'm gonna start hating Scar."

Jamie cringed as the stampede started, and he paused the movie much to everyone's frustration. "Okay, guys. Again, maybe you need ti—" he trailed off.

"PLAY THE DAMN MOVIE!"

Jamie did so. And he found it strangely satisfying when everyone cried out a despairing 'NOOOOOOOOOO!' along with Simba as Mufasa fell to his death.

"Mufasa is dead?!?!" Jim gawked, "he died?!!? Just like DUMBLEDORE?!?!?! Just like MY FATHER?!" He whimpered, leaning on Dimitri as his boyfriend reached for the box of Kleenex from Jamie. "Feeling unusually upset right now. It's a damn kid's movie. It has no right to be hitting it home, and right to the feels."

Dimitri sighed, patting his back consolingly. "There, there..."

"Fuck you, Scar. Just..." Jim groused, "Fuck. You."

Astrid sighed, taking a sheet from the Kleenex herself. "Gotta say, though," she started, "for a schemer like Scar, he sure does skimp on the quality of his henchmen. Letting Simba go is gonna bite him in the ass someday. Guaranteed."

"Okay," Jamie paused the movie. "intermission. Who needs a bio-break?"

Jim just stood up and went for the bathroom. The rest finished the pizza and Dimitri made sure to leave some for Jim.

"You good, Jim?

"Shut up and play the movie." The brunette groused, "ugh, I can't believe I cried. Damn you Scar."

Jamie laughed as he plays the movie once more. "Told you you'd need tissues."

"Screw you, man."

───────────────

"Mufasa's death was a terrible loss..."

Jim eats his pizza. He continues to curse Scar as he speaks of Mufasa's death. "Don't fall for his crap, come on!" He scowled. "Zazu, he fucking slammed you to a rock!" He sighed, "Why the hell are you letting him become king? This is why you animals are getting extinct."

"It's.... really not." Hiccup protested.

Dimitri massaged his shoulders, "Jim, you can print out a picture of Scar and dart him, okay pup?" He soothed.

"The hyenas look like they can get shit done, though." Jack mused, "well, except for giving Simba the slip."

Jim hummed, "Oh, baboon guy. Almost forgot about this dude." He said. "Cutting him some slack because I feel he's going to drop some Yoda shit on this bitch."

"You get so feisty when you're irritable." Dimitri mused, "and this is why Scroop secretly has a thing for you."

"WHAT!"

"What?"

"Don't worry," Dimitri shrugged, kissing the tip of his nose. "I don't share."

Jim huffed, "Well, I bloody hope not!"

"You gotta put your behind in your past."

"Gotta get a tattoo of this Pumbaa quote." Jack joked, "words to live by 101."

Hiccup audibly whimpered, taking Jack's hand. "Please don't " he said. "Your skin's perfect. It's bad enough that my choice of words already marred it."

"Aw, babe..." Jack hugged him, "you know I love it."

Astrid blew a raspberry. "Get a room."

"Uh, my house, so no." Jamie protested.

Jim blinked, "Wait, I know this is Timon and Pumbaa because I had them on a pencil case when I was eight or something. Then, I got one of space and that was that." He started. "But damn, I didn't know Hakuna Matata was from here. I have heard this song before, I am not entirely ignorant."

"I'm so hungry, I can eat a whole Zebra."

"I'm condemning this casual Zebra slaughter," Hiccup declared. "Let it be known. You can't just eat a whole Zebra, Simba. Come on."

Astrid gagged, "Insects? Really?" She shakes her head. "Simba's diet is fucked. I'm not a nutritionist or a zoologist, but I really, really, don't think insects are enough to get Simba through all those years in the jungle. I mean, it's like asking humans to survive on dog food alone."

"And yet he has grown into a fine-ass lion over the course of about three bars of song." Jack whistled, "Intriguing. Switching to insect-based diet after the movie."

Hiccup shakes his head, "Snowflake, I rather you go vegan."

Rafiki appears and takes Simba's floating fur with the dandelions...

"There's monkey Yoda again," Jim snorted, "jumping down on trees, not a walking stick in sight. He's on to something though, so I'll let it sli—HOLD THE PHONE!" The brunette balked, "Did baboon man REALLY figure out Simba was still alive from smelling dandelions that floated from miles away?"

Dimitri rubbed his back in circles, "Pup, stop being antagonized by the damn monkey already." he snickered, "it's cute, but I'm worrying over your mental health."

"Don't tell me what to do, dimwit." Jim scoffed, "I mean, really, this insane Yoda monkey with inconsistent usage of walking aids might be the movie's last hope. How to feel about this, I don't know."

"AAAAAAH!"

Hiccup hummed, faux sadly. "We're gonna lose Pumbaa. I can feel it." he said. "Life's just not fair, and warthogs just aren't fast."

"Oh, wait, it's Nala!" Jack cheered, "Yaaay!"

The freckled brunette snorted, crossing his arms. "Nala goes from hunting Pumbaa one minute to having a conversation with him after Simba vouches for him?" he shook his head, "So, tell me how there aren't any riots with the predators being friends with some preys, and others not? Unjustifiable exceptions."

"Guys, suspend your disbelief." Jamie sighed, "I think I gave out that warning earlier."

🎶...You needn't look too far; Stealing through the night's uncertainties, love is where they are~🎶

"Whoa, 'Can you feel the love tonight' was from this movie? Okay, it's official, I'm in love with this soundtrack." Jack made an exaggerated bowing down motion towards the screen, "Hands down one of the best soundtracks I've ever heard."

Dimitri narrowed his eyes at the screen, in scrutiny. "They totally boned at this scene, right?" he deadpanned. "I mean, did you see those bed room sex eyes?"

Jim stuffed him with a pillow, "At least the sexual tension between them doesn't feel as awkward now."

"You said you'd always be there! But you're not... it's because of me..."

Hiccup nodded his head, "Sexual tension replaced with crippling self-loathing, just like real life." he sighed, "feel ya, Simba."

"God, I don't know how many therapists mom made me see until I finally got over blaming myself for my sperm donor leaving us." Jim sighed, shaking his head. "and then guidance counseling when we found out he killed himself a few months before Freshemen year started."

Dimitri stared at his boyfriend worriedly, "Pup, do you need a hug?" he embraced him without waiting for a response.

"It ain't your fault, Jim. Shit happens... Especially stampedes if you're in a forest."

Jamie sighed, "Savannah."

"Real talk, though," Astrid mused, "shit happens when you've got scheming uncles who planned to push their brother off the buffalo freeway."

The brunette stared at his girlfriend before picking up his phone, "I'm tweeting that."

Rafiki appears humming incoherently...

"I swear to god, this monkey is on meth." Jim snorted, shaking his head. "Yeap, he just called Simba a baboon. This primate is trippin'."

Dimitri stared at the rest of his friends, as if he was in 'The Office'. "I'm never gonna hear the end of this, am I?"

"Better not bring him to any Zoos soon," Jack advised. "He might try to throw rocks at the monkey containment."

"Okay, I take it back." Jim raised his arms, "This is going to be some pivotal revelatory shit." he started.

"Correction, I know your father."

Jim glared at the screen, pointing an accusing finger. "Okay, still trippin'" He scowled at the meditation monkey, "I hope this really is Mufasa and not some metaphorical mambo-jumbo. If not, I call subterfuge."

Jamie was starting to wonder if this whole movie marathon was a good idea. They were just starting with the first one, and Jim already seems like a lost cause. Maybe there was a reason innocent children were the target audience.

"CALLED IT," Jim growled at the television, "that's a reflection, you punk-ass monkey. Way to let a brother down." He shook his head, frowning as the screen shows cloud Mufasa. "Aaaaand now he's slipped Simba some acid. Just great."

Definitely a bad idea.

"Wow, it worked." Even Hiccup is surprised. "who'da thunk it. Hm, might wanna check for hidden projectors, though. Monkey might've pulled a Mysterio... Well, for a good cause, but still. Jim's got it right with subterfuge."

Dimitri glared at him, "Dude, spoiler alert."

"Oops." Hiccup blushed, "sorry."

Jack blinked at the screen, "What the fuck," he scowled, "He just left Nala behind and returned home? When it was her idea in the first place? Bro, that's your soulmark. Boy, is he in for some pain."

"I think this came out before the discovery of soulmarks." Hiccup patted his hand soothingly. "there, there.... What we should really be questioning is that desert. I'm still wondering how there's even an oasis in this movie."

Jamie face palmed, "Suspend your disbelief, suspend... Oh, forget it." he groaned.

🎶"He eeee's a big pig (Yup, yup). You could be a big pig too. Oy!"🎶

"In a movie filled with amazing songs," Jack snickered, "Timon's luau song's gonna be my personal favorite. Bonus points for presentation."

Astrid sighed, placing a hand on her forehead. "And they fell for it," she tossed her hand in a 'I'm so done' manner. "This is why you hire quality hit man, Scar. You can't half-ass a coup and not expect repercussions."

"Well, if he was Loki-smart," Jamie shrugged, "well, there's no Avengers to beat him up and the heroes don't win."

Jim snorted, "Simplified hero-winning's overdone." he said. "Villain redemption arcs like Zuko's should start catching on."

"So, you have no cable for Disney," Dimitri started, "but you know ATLA?"

Jim shrugged, "A therapist was a fan," he explained, "and she thought it'd help with my father abandonment issues. Confirmed: It did."

"I killed Mufasa..."

Hiccup face palmed, and groaned as if he was in real agony. "Aaaagh, typical villain behavior." he groused, "shut your damn Zebra-holes, and finish the job for once, you idiots never learn."

"Chat shit, get banged, Scar." Dimitri snickered, "Chat shit, get banged."

Jim stuffs a pillow at him once more, "Stop it with the innuendos!" he sighed, as he stared at screen. He raised a brow, "Amidst this all-out melee, meth-monkey is doing some serious damage. How, I do not know."

"Well, guess he's been hiding his pizzaz all along."

Simba and Scar finally battle it out

"NOOOOOOO!"

"YEEEEEEEEES!"

Jack cheered, "SIMBA WINS." he grinned, "And the hyenas have also found a temporary solution to their food shortage. Win-win."

"This was a kid's movie..." Jim narrowed his eyes at the screen, "and they heavily implied Scar getting gang-devoured."

Jamie snorted, and snickered. "You should see the one when the villain got hanged from the treetops."

"WHAT!"

"Remember who you are..."

"Feel like 'The Eye of the Tiger' would be a proper song for this moment," Jack mused, before pausing in thought, "wait, wouldn't that be 'Eye of the Lion', then?"

Hiccup laughed, shaking his head. "And just like that, the land is glorious again. No mention of rehabilitation process with might have included replanting trees, and attracting livestock with lucrative real estate prices." he mused.

"Let's just hope this heralds a decline in the merciless killings of animated Zebras." Jim snorted, "still unsure as to how meth-monkey hasn't managed to drop a cub off the cliff yet."

Jamie shook his head, as he went back to Netflix's home screen, and grinned towards his friends, "Now, as payback for effectively ruining my childhood, here's a little piece of info to mindblow you guys: The Lion King is basically Hamlet but with lions, and a happy ending."

"WHAT!"

"Ohmygod!" Jack balked, "IT IS! IT SO IS!"

Hiccup frowned, shaking his head. "I can't believe I didn't see it," he frowned. "And I fucking love Hamlet. I feel like I've let Shakespeare down."

"Baboon man should've made like Yorick and turned into a skeleton head..." Jim snorted, "Wait, was that why they made Scar hold that skull in a certain way?"

Dimitri rolled his eyes, "And here I thought we moved past the whole Rafiki antagonized drama."

Jamie laughed outloud, clutching his stomach. "Just wait till you see the Romeo and Juliet sequel."

"Can we get a movie with more..." Astrid scrunched up her nose, "... humans please?"

[jate-kara]

Just gotta say that I love your writing (how can you do summaries so well???). Out of curiosity, how do you find the motivation to write so many fics over a relatively short period of time? I was checking out your AO3 and it just astounded me.

Thank you so much!! (I just like consonance and assonance - a bit too much sometimes, if I’m honest).

To answer your question: it’s the quarantine write or die challenge

[louhearted]

Do you have any favourite poets? Poems? Why are they Ur faves?

this is such a sweet question!!! and i’m gonna be shit at answering it because i dont read enough poetry dkgjldfh i can say that i don’t think i’ll ever be able to choose ONE favourite poet ever. because that’s like…. there’s just so much OUT THERE. everyone is a tiny star that needs to be admired.

okay then in no particular order i’m gonna list a few poems

first one, the shakespeare one that’s even quoted in my header, Sonnet 36.

it’s just so…. soft and full of love and kindness and forgiveness and so wonderfully gay?

i also really love that the rhymes in the quartrains are built with light vowels, like a and e, making it seem so hopeful while the message is so sad, and then the couplet uses the dark o vowel while the message here is actually the hopeful one. so this pain always goes hand in hand with the beauty of love, you know? i just …. wow. yeah i cry everytime.

then charlotte smith’s Written in a Churchyard at Middleton in Sussex

i actually wrote a paper on that one and just the more time i spent with this poem, the more i was baffled by it’s beauty. it’s so beautifully written, how the words and the rhyme mimes the crushing of the waves, a constant ebb and flow, the beautiful use once again of assonances and dark and light vowels, wow.

also a woman poet? at that time? i love them all. a woman writing about how she envies the dead? i fuckign love her

let’s stick to women and pick my gay mother who RAISED ME Carol Anne Duffy and let’s pick the poem Pygmalion’s bride but tbh everything that flows from her pen is just…. awesome

when i first read that one, which was while i was sitting in a poetry seminar, i started tearing up and almost had to leave the room because it touched me so much. i don’t have anything else to say. i cant even like… properly analyse this poem as i did the once before because just… it’s just tears. but i will say the fact alone that she took this old story and turned it around??? fuckign magical. fuckign powerful.

then ofc i gotta mention good old percy b shelly who ofc was….. a bit of an asshole in his private life and inconsistent in his political views (he’s gonna tell you he was very consistent and he hated wordsworth etc for abandoning their rebellious ideals in their old age, but tbh i’d rather have someone turn their backs on their youth’s ideals than always claim to be a democrat and humanist (which he WAS OFC and i LOVE HIM FOR IT) while also always saying how much he hated poor people. stupid aristocrat who didnt really understand the world and treated my MOTHER mary like SHIT sdjgndlfh anyway his poetry is amazing djgndfh) and i’m gonna pick the Ode to the West Wind, especially part V, because just…. wow.

oh OH before i forget i really have to mention Michael Faber’s Old BIrd, Not Very Well. i cried so HARD when i read that poem, the entire collection actually (Undying Love). That poem actually inspired a tattoo idea for me and im desperately saving money to get it done. the story behind it is haunting and the imagery just as beautiful. once again i cried so much while reading this that i cant even pinpoint specific lyrical devices atm. it just…. fuck.

what else what else…. OH Robert Frost Fire and Ice

simple. to the point. and just as destructive as its message. the rhymes chosen so smartly that you stumble over the words, a self destructing poem so to speak. i fucking love it.

im pretty sure there are another THOUSAND poems out there that i could list right now but just…. all of them sgjnlfg im even pretty sad about the fact that i cannot list a favourite german one at the top of my head :( that shouldnt be :( i’ll come back to this post once i can remember one hahah

man i just fucking love poetry. what would we do without poetry :( it’s EVERYTHING

[trifling-untalkative]

#joey is so fucking skilled no joke#he's like 'i will pepper in the fact that i studied language in university' and then floods your ears with assonance and alliteration#'let foul men band and heed your hum / for that ancient hymn you heard me strumming /#'is nought but fumble falls and guns / and tumbleweeds—love run /#'it's nought that rum won't solve / though some would harm you / none not one no none /#'would raise to you a hand nor thumb / not while by you i stand and hum / love run'#like dude#you don't gotta seduce me babe i'm already there

tags via @avocadohertl

everyone talks about Lin-Manuel Miranda’s rhyming in ‘Hamilton’ (dissidents-difference, burr-sir etc.) but no one talks about Joey Batey rhyming fridge’ll with Vigil in ‘Drinking Song for the Socially Anxious’. and that’s a crime!

[soulstructuredlines]

NaPoWriMo self analysis, personal highlights and thoughts

Since the somewhat exhausting yet extremely fun experience of NaPoWriMo has now reached an end, and because it was my first go, I thought I'd have some fun critiquing myself. Oh my god, what kind of person has fun evaluating themselves? Well... me of course! LOL. I am going to talk about my personal standouts, both good and bad, in chronological order. So, let's get to it!

Day 1: Between Stanzas: I had no idea what to write about and wanted to start on my own because I didn't know how I was gonna feel about doing NaPoWriMo. Then, the idea of working with alliteration crossed my mind, and I thought it would be cool to create a message within that. Then this came out! It did take some serious brain work to put it together, but I was happy with the result.

Day 4: Leucine-enkephalin: I loved the idea of creating a riddle type poem but had no idea where to go with it. At first I totally thought I wasn't gonna be able to do it, and felt disappointed. Then, I started writing, and the concept sort of came to me as words began to flow out. I had no idea what to title it, but then I'd remembered something I'd learned, and that's where it came from. I was happy with how it turned out.

Day 5: Commewnication: I felt like I captured the relationship between my cat and I really well, so, I was happy with it because when I read it back, I smile and feel all warm inside recalling the love we share. My lovely girl. ❤ 😻 I also liked my title, felt like my alternate spelling was pretty fitting. I do love cat related puns quite a lot.

Day 11: Smile: Well, I'd never written a bop poem before, actually found it rather challenging. I was mostly happy that I managed to do one lol. I was happy with the message it conveyed, because it is something I feel strongly about and truly believe is an important issue. However, I felt limited and like things were missing, it was driving me crazy to have to take out certain things that I'd written and felt were important. I rewrote some parts several times, it was becoming emotional for me. This poem was the most emotionally intense struggle of the month. It's hard to put something with so many dynamics into simplistic form like that. Perhaps that was my mistake, tackling a complex issue like that with such specific requirements to follow. Oh well, I can always write more on the subject without limitations some other time.

Day 12: Internet of Stupidity: Well, I was hardly inspired that day. I didn't feel like I followed the prompt as well as I could have, I know I can do much better with alliteration and assonance. And honestly this just felt more like a rant than any type of elegant poetry. It doesn't surprise me in some ways, because I am an emotional writer. I know that feelings are where I do best, and that I do better with this type of subject in essay form or something along those lines. But it was all I had that day to make me feel any type of emotion, so I tried to work with it the best I could.

Day 16: A Thank You Letter: I think this one speaks for itself. I loved how it flowed out because it was just so natural, I didn't have to think about anything. It was one of those moments that reminds me of the writing style that comes natural to me. That is, to just feel and lose myself in it. In those moments it's like the words come out before my brain can process them. Then the next thing I know, I'm finished and have something to read over to check for typos and the like. Hard to explain. It sure feels amazing though, one of my favourite feelings related to writing.

Day 17: Blank: I feel like I pretty much perfectly conveyed how I feel on days where I just can't find inspiration no matter how hard I try. Writing really is mood dependent for me, I can't force it and have no idea how people do. It does amaze me when I can draw inspiration from those uninspired moments and come up with something, but it takes exhaustive work. It feels like I'm draining myself of every bit I have left. So this title worked because it described the state of my mind and I just couldn't come up with anything better.

Day 18: Think: Oh god, the most terrible poem of them all. Haha! The prompt that allows for the creation of new words. Slightly disappointing as I often have fun creating new compound words or inventing words that just make sense to me and I feel would fit into English language. These choices were not a good representation of that. But this, everyone, is the result of trying to force things! I totally was not in the mood at all that day and I tried way too hard. I'd have been better off not following prompt. But, that's okay, it didn't throw me off or anything as I knew that the result of writing so many poems this way, some were bound to suck. Anyway, if I'm gonna shine light on the good, gotta shine it on the bad too, so there you go!

Day 24: Shape of My Words: I woke up with the concepts of shapes in my head that day. Then I started writing and made this. I had fun with the wordplay hear and the way that I started out with the concept and then seeing how listening to music ultimately helped form the shape of what this piece would become. It was very random and just flowed out. So, I liked it because it just felt good to me.

Day 26: Future Discovery of a Poetry Collection: The intriguing prompt calling for exploring a site of study from a future scientist's perspective. I didn't know if I was going to follow it or not, mostly because as I discussed earlier, I'm just not good at poetry that doesn't involve feelings lol and I didn't know how to bring that into this concept. But then I guess I figured it out, because this idea came to me and it made me reflect on the world and the state of humanity as well as what it could become. I liked how it felt when my mind went here. I guess I could have taken on the character's POV and written a narrative from that perspective instead of third person, but, I didn't. Lol. Still, I was happy to explore that territory and these ideas.

The rest I didn't talk about aren't necessarily because I disliked them, it's that I don't really have anything special or interesting to say about them. Overall I thought I did pretty well, I'm satisfied with my efforts. This experience taught me about different types of poetry (Skeltonic verse is probably the favourite that I learned/could picture myself using again) and I got to challenge myself in several ways. I also got to create some poems I really like. It even inspired me to write some more unrelated to NaPoWriMo. So, I'm thankful for all of that. I'm equally grateful to have read some beautiful, inspiring words of others and that some of mine were enjoyed, means a lot to me. I hope to keep writing more and to revive creative juices. I hope you will continue to join me. Feel free to share your thoughts/feelings if ever you like, I'm always open to feedback. Thanks for reading! And thanks NaPoWriMo! For inspiring me to give this once neglected blog some more consistent attention. 😊

[rockofeye]

And...we’re off! Today, we’ll start from the beginning with the first video (linked above). We have the fancy number countdown, some credits including noting which district in Jacmel we will be in, and then there are some short clips of things to come in the documentary--I won’t explain them all here, as it’s all coming up.

Manbo Maude is seated in front of the tables set for fet Ogou, and she is explaining a bit about what is to come. Generally, the parties are a time to celebrate and feed Ogou, and there is a clip of Ogou Sen Jak enjoying some akasan and labouyi, which are both sweet pudding-cereal type dishes. She notes that the esko Nago/Nago escort/nasyon stretches over the Rada esko as well (and the Petwo, for that matter). All Ogou get included in our house (Sosyete Nago) and are celebrated with drums/drumming and dance, and the big rara coming up (which also includes drums and dancing) with the bull that will be sacrificed for Ogou. The rara is a big party that will process all over the district (and it sure did) to celebrate Ogou. After the rara is over, there will be another ceremony that night (which will be shown) where the lwa are called down in possession to celebrate the house and, since it is Ogou’s house, Papa Ogou. The first night will be for the lwa, Ogou Sen Jak who is a more Rada Ogou within the Nago esko. He is very associated with the military (as all Ogou are, but he is very much the general in charge), and as such the uniforms are in khaki and red, which reflect the uniforms of the Haitian military. She details a little bit of what will happen--it will be a big part, and a bunch of different things will happen!

We are at timestamp 4:30 and it is Premye Jou, the first day. Ogou’s bull is being led, or is at least being attempted to be led. This is Ogou’s bull, though, and so it did exactly what it wanted, when it wanted. The rara is beginning, led by the asson, libations for Ogou, dwapo/ceremonial flags, candles in our hands to bring light, and a general happy vibe. The whip is cracked to heat the road, the rara, and the spirits, and the whistle is blown for similar reasons right along with the machetes being hit together. We want this to be a great rara and a great sacrifice for Ogou, so it’s gotta be hot!

At 5:40 or so, you see my manmi enjoying the rara (and Houngan Matt and Manbo Sarah to the left of the frame in the background!), and at roughly 6:00, the rara arrives at the carrefour/crossroads, where we salute Kafou and keep moving forward. At 6:55, we have arrived back from the rara (mostly cut) and we are just outside the compound and start to move back in. I cannot express how hot it was out--this was really my first day out in the world after kanzo and it was H-O-T and bright.

At 8:00, we are making our way into the lakou/yard of the compound> Manbo Maude’s property is quite large and supports a lot of people year-round. In the crowd, you can see the traveling bar held in a large basin on a woman’s head, towards the right of the frame. It was full of various bottles of rum, beer, cigarettes, and snacks for purchase--it’s not a Haitian party without a little rum! Haitians are super ingenuous when it comes to making a dollar and having a good time.

At 8:30, we are circling The Tree. Trees are really important in vodou, and especially in Haiti proper. This tree belongs to the spirits of the bitasyon/family land, as well as some other spirits.  A lot of ceremony is focused around the tree. The red and blue bunting is draped especially for fet Ogou. A houngan presents the libation of rum, salutes the spirits, and pours some rum. In the background, you can hear the machetes being beat together--this is a way that we signal or call certain spirits.

At 9:30, we are dancing and processing back towards the temple, and dancing in the Petwo peristyle. At about 10:30, a spirit starts to come in a priest, whi is being held up by another man. His shoes are removed, and he is greeted by another priest in the manner of many Petwo spirits (linking elbows to test our strength). The spirit (named Gwo Woch) asks for a mushwa/scarf to be tied around his waist and then.....

At 11:40, we cut to the first night of Fet Ogou! The temple is quite full, the drums are going, and people are dancing yanvalou, a dance most associated with Rada spirits. At 13:30, you can hear some songs for Papa Loko, the first houngan and the owner of the asson, and can see a houngan using the asson to salute other hougan and manbo asogwe, the type of priest that can hold the asson.

The houngenikon/song leader/person on the microphone has to be an expert at what he/she does--they have to know the songs for the regleman/ritual order, and have to be able to improvise between verses--they tell stories that go with the spirit/song/house. They also have to be able to ‘read’ when a possession is coming on, and so change or alter the songs to create the most hospitable environment to do so. It’s not unusual that a spirit will come and ask for a specific song, and they have to know it. My mother has incredible singers--most of them are not priests from her djevo, but are priests who love her and what she does so much that they will come sing for her, to the point of canceling/rescheduling their own ceremonies to be there (which happened this year--one of the men who does a lot of the singing had a bunch of parties scheduled, and canceled them so he and his house could attend the kanzo and party cycle).

At 14:50, my godmother (on the right) and her natural mother (in the middle) yanvalou at the drums. The temple and compound currently has three generations of family living there. At 16:00, they are joined by my manmi’s natural daughter, who is heir to the lineage--some big stuff at the drum platform right there, and the houngenikon is talking about that.

17:00: I posted several photos of the ceremony called La Plas, where dwapo dance with the machete bearer, first led by a priest and then on their own. They salute at various spots around the temple, and then dance. This shows strength and the protection of the house.

21:10: This is basically called soti govi or maybe sometime mache govi, where govi (earthenware or clay vessels) that have been ritually prepared are danced out on the heads of house members. The spirits are drawn into them to empower them, and, as they do so, the dancers become possessed and are hustled into the backroom. The large govi on my godmother’s head (I picked the most badass godmother ever) is for Larenn Kongo/Queen Kongo. She came in my godmother as she danced with this govi and stayed for a bit--the govi never became unbalanced and Larenn danced and danced.

23:10: Larenn came during the govi dance, but we sing for her and dance as part of regleman anyway! These are Kongo drumbeats, even though we are still in the Rada rite. You can see me shuffling away in the background--I had not yet realized dancing body mechanics yet in the ‘you have a bigger body, so make bigger moves’ sort of way, which means my white boy shuffle makes me look like I have to pee. Also, massive clothing fail--I lost so much weight in the djevo that I spent a lot of time literally holding my pants up!

24:45 My mother is center frame and is making her way up to the drums to dance, which is special--my mother often lets others dance instead of getting up front to enjoy herself. Then something funny kinda happens....

25:23ish In the right of the frame you can see my sister Kyrah, in a red head mushwa/scarf, red top, and khaki skirt start to really move as Larenn Kongo comes on her head.

26:00 Larenn bumps into my mother and makes it clear that she has arrived, and my mother cedes the dance floor because what can you do? The Queen wants to dance so who is gonna take her shine? Larenn is fanned with mushwa as she dances.

28:10: Manbo Sarah salutes Ezili Freda and, at 32:10, salutes other asogwe priests, 32:40ish salutes our mother, and 33:15 all other priests and hounsi as well as those who saluted with her and carried the light.

33:40: A spirit begins to arrive in my godmother. This is Klemezin, a lwa who arrives and cleans/cleanses by sweeping. My godmother has a gorgeous Klemezin. When people get to their knees as she greets them, she cleanses them with her broom and then sometimes turns with them to complete the interaction. She finishes her time with people by greeting my mother/the lineage head, which is proper...and then checks to make sure someone will catch her before she leaves.

38:15ish Salye Lovanna/Salutation Lovana. At about 42:30, Lovanna arrives in the manbo doing the salute. Lovana is also concerned with cleanliness, and in her case, she is the lwa who specifically washes things. She waits for her basin and starts scrubbing her dress in a ‘I need things to do’ sort of way. Once she has her basin, she blesses it and begins to wash what’s there for her. I had never seen Lovanna come down before, but she’s too cute for words. She blesses people at her basin and with the mushwa she washes. At about 45:53, she leaves.

46:00 Bossou has arrived! Bossou is a whole family of spirits, and this Bossou has come as the bull. A houngan sprays him with rum to help seal the possession. This one in particular locks his fists at his head in imitation of horns. Folks rush in and prepare the chwal/horse as the spirit seats itself--shoes get removed, pants legs get yanked up, and a mushwa in the right color is tied in the right place. Often you’ll see people grabbing phones and glasses, too, so those don’t go flying across the temple or get broken.

As the bull, Bossou is not gentle. He greets people by butting them with his head and/or locking arms and testing their strength/swinging them around. The lwa can be MUCH stronger than the body they are inhabiting. He smacks his head against the poto mitan/center column to bless it and show strength.

Then he greets my mother, and the whole temple held it’s breath. I think we were all waiting for him to spike her like a football, but he loves her and set her down gently. He dances for a moment, and then he leaves.

49:50: Salye Agaou/Salutation Agaou. My mother salutes Agaou, the spirit of the hurricane, thunder, the wind, and other things. He is a spirit from Jacmel, where my mother’s temple is, and so he LOVES to come down and dance. The song being sung during the salye is one of my favorites, and Agaou holds a special place in my heart. The salute is accompanied by a priest holding a baton and a hat on it, since those are two things that Agaou likes very much when he is in possession.

The head drummer is always very watchful of what is going on--he is responsible for making sure the drums follow the spirit, and helping beat the spirit (via drum beats) into the chwal’s heat. Notice that when possession is imminent, the drums change.

53:30 Agaou begins to come in my mother’s head. She soldiers on because she likes to finish salutes, even if it’s a spirit in her head interrupting it. She spits rum on the asson, which is a sign of respect and empowers it.

She greets some priests, and then Agaou starts sort of kicking the door in hard. Her shoes are removed, the asson is used to draw the spirit even more, rum is spit to ease the way, and then Agaou is there as he greets the priest he turns. Agaou is a met kay/master of the house, and so a bunch of us are on our knees while he is dressed up and my Manmi’s dress is tucked up so he doesn’t trip or catch it on fire or something.

57:15ish Agaou salutes the drums--most lwa will do this, and will also salute the singer and possibly the poto mitan. He pours rum in front of all of us, invites us to our feet, and then we turn for him.

My mother’s Agaou LOVES to dance. He’d rather dance than talk to people sometimes.

59:25 He turns my godmother with his baton. Sometimes when a spirit turns a person, it can result in a spirit coming into them or, as is here, a pase/pass through--the spirit sort of sweeps through them and they lose control of their body.

And that’s it for part one!

Please feel free to ask questions if you’ve got’em. A time stamp is definitely helpful, but ask away!

[200wordsaday]

What's your favorite work of art? What do you love about it?

"He go back downstairs, more time to think/Her brain wasted, she tellin' me to stay patient/She don't know I'm cool as a fan, gat in hand. I don't wanna blast her man."

I was in 8th grade when Life After Death dropped and I worshipped Biggie because he was (barely) an adult, living the life the most adults didn't and couldn't flaunt. He drank champagne, had lots of sex with beautiful women, women whose skin was just right and whose hair shone and whose high heels elevated them past the girls I knew who only wore sneakers. And he could rhyme like a worm spins silk or like a bee shits honey. On "I Gotta Story To Tell," he took everything from my 8th-grade fantasy life and hero worship and distilled it into a storytelling song. For everything I hadn't done yet—danced at a club with a woman, smoked a blunt, drank cocktails, had sex, staged a robbery, cuckolded a pro athlete—Biggie laid out a clear portrait of how that should happen. He showed me that I could have dreams and that they could be raunchy and that I'd be the winner at the end of the story, especially if I told it from my view.

The song, which broadcasted a life I would soon live, whether I knew it or not, had gripped me in its transitions, twirled me in its idioms, and laughed at my surprise. And the slant rhyme, the assonance, and the funky verbal taps to the clicking rhythm, overwhelmed me with aural sugars. The story became violent and deceptive but only once the song had coated my brain cells with bronze candy to misdirect it. "Televisions...Versace heaven...When I'm up in em..." Biggie wrapped his tongue around an entire song and then released it in rolling syllables that tickled my spine and laid its bars around my lung sacs. The words had nerve and didn't care whether I was there to hear them or if they were too thick to recite. So I practiced over and over, belting the words until I could go back to first-period history with the song fully memorized.

[keithdcourtney]

Advice for Lyricists: Part One – The Writing Process

Whether it’s writing your first ever song or simply finding inspiration to write the next, a lot of people would agree that it’s the starting that is most difficult. Thankfully, there are many places lyricists can find inspiration and many ways to use it. It’s all about finding your inspiration and making a start.

Literary Techniques

Exposing yourself to language in all of it’s forms whether it’s other lyrics, poetry or novels is important; it’s helpful and rewarding as a writer to expand your vocabulary and your skills. Learning new words or literary techniques can also help to inspire you to write something new.

Certain literary devices can be important for lyricists to know and utilise in their writing. They can affect how your lyrics scan and how the song flows.

For example:

Assonance:

Assonance takes place when two or more words close to each other have the same vowel sound e.g. “I must confess that in my quest I felt depressed and restless.” – Thin Lizzy

Internal rhyme:

As apposed to ‘end rhymes’, where the last word of a line rhymes with the last word of another line. Internal rhyme is when a word in the middle of the line rhymes with one at the end of a line. Half or slant rhymes are when the words almost rhyme but it is not a perfect rhyme. This often works well within songs because it means you are avoiding contrived and forced rhymes. It is worth making yourself familiar with the different types of rhymes and rhyme schemes considering songs can rely on them so heavily.

Lyricists can use some of the same devices that poets do. Therefore, even though the writing process is different, reading poetry can be useful in learning these techniques.

Wordplay and double meanings are other types of literary techniques that can add another layer to your lyrics. For example, Panic! at the Disco’s ‘Nicotine’ includes the line “Your love’s a f**king drag”, which is a double meaning due to the title (and theming) of the song. Creating these hidden meanings within metaphorical language can assist you to create a theme and a feeling for a song.

Themes

If you’re struggling to come up with ideas or lines for a song it may be useful to first think of a theme. It helps if this theme isn’t too vague (as ‘love’ is a very broad topic and probably wouldn’t get you very far). That said, it doesn’t need to be anything too fixed or literal, the theme can be an image, a word or just a sentence that sums up the meaning of the song.

Again, thinking about the feel of a song can be helpful too. For example, you may want your song to conjure up images of a nightclub (this is where connotation comes in!) You could create a spider diagram (even if it’s a mental one) of relevant words and this may eventually turn into full lines. At this point the lines you come up with don’t need to be particularly poetic; just note down what you want to say in plain language and you can make it sound better later!

You can base metaphorical language around this theme (as mentioned earlier with the Panic! at the Disco song). Or you can just use these ideas as reference so that you don’t stray too far from your original meaning when writing. Having a strong theme can help the audience empathise and can make an overall more powerful song.

If you are a visual person you may want to create a mood board instead of, or alongside, your theme. Visuals and aesthetics can help to stimulate and inspire you to come up with new ideas for the feel or content of your song.

Becoming Analytical

We often do this by accident but as well as simply listening to or reading other work it can help to start analysing this work. You may find this comes quite naturally or you may need to work at it. however as somebody who is interested in writing themselves you will probably find it quite easy to analyse other people’s work.

This will also help you develop your own sense of style within your lyrics. Try to work out why you do or don’t like certain lyrics.

This can also be applied to the music, down to specific techniques used or just the feel of the song. Try to work out how they’ve created this.

Just Press Record

If you aren’t sure where to start or you’re stuck in a rut don’t underestimate your subconscious! It’s amazing what you can come up with on the fly so just press record and start singing.

It may feel uncomfortable for a start and sure, some of it won’t make sense but you may come up with a line totally by accident that you end up using. It’s amazing what you can come up with on the fly!

Setting Goals

Another helpful method is to set yourself ‘songwriting tasks’ – come up with a topic for each week or month and write about that. It doesn’t need to be perfect, it’s just a way of getting you writing if you perhaps haven’t for a while or have never seriously started.

You could get somebody else to come up with these themes or topics if you need more incentive. This is also a good way of writing about something different and pushing yourself out of your comfort zone.

Similarly, there is a method called the Seinfeld Strategy, in which the idea is basically to write everyday. You can make yourself a small goal to reach everyday (e.g. write for 15 minutes a day) and every time you do it cross it off. The point isn’t to reach a certain achievement but simply not to break the chain, this builds habit.

A lot of people may think that planning a song is blasphemy; that it destroys the art of it, that things should just happen. But let’s be real, writing is writing and sometimes it doesn’t ‘just happen’ as much as you would like it to. A novelist wouldn’t write a book without planning, why should lyricists be any different? Of course some of it will come to you when you’re in the shower or in bed (it’s never at a good time is it?) but some parts may need to be planned, and that’s okay! This plan can be based around your mood board and/or your theme. It doesn’t have to be solid and you can stray from it and change it as much as you want.

You Gotta Start Somewhere

Finally, the big take away is to just get writing. Try not to let perfectionism or judgement get in the way. You don’t have to write a masterpiece every time you sit down. Practise makes perfect, even if that practise doesn’t amount to a full song each time. If you’re passionate about it keep going! You’ve got to start somewhere. Most, if not all, artists do not start out being brilliant lyricists.

The post Advice for Lyricists: Part One – The Writing Process appeared first on Help For Bands.

This article is courtesy of https://www.helpforbands.co.uk