#here after the 2.2 live core

[valleyoftheedolls]

sigh

I'm excited for the r99 2.2 rumors, where they're going across the equator to a rainforest...

I've been looking at maps, and the most likely options are Southamerica or Indonesia (or nearby regions), but it could also be Central Africa. I really do hope they don't botch it and give us more light-skinned PCs from non-light-skin regions, no matter which region they end up in.

EXACTLY, if you're developing a game that focuses on primarily exploring different kinds of regions and their individual history then it wouldn't be a problem to give us more diversity in skin tone. i'm speculating it might be somewhere around south america too from what i've heard, brazil is mentioned and teased multiple times throughout cn (newspaper clippings) but aside from that, very hyped for 2.2 !!!!!! HOPEFULLY bluepoch won't let us down and give in to the snow bunny curse

[ihaveforgortoomany]

The Mandela Effect

Theory on R1999 so spoilers for 2.2, spoilers for 1.9 and onwards. This is not Global Friendly especially for 1.9 and 2.2.

This will only make sense if you have gone through the first three patches of 2.0.

This will be major major spoilers for 2.2 for the implications this has so anyone following CN servers feel free to message me about this.

(May Vertin nui block the spoilers!)

Alright then.

The Mandela Effect is the type of memory that occurs when different people incorrectly remember the same thing, eg if the Monoploy man wore a monocle at all, logos having a different design in comparison to how some people remember it.

2.2 introduce us to Mr Duncan, a Zeno military veteran who lives in Sao Paulo. Both Sotheby AND Vertin both mistaken Mr Duncan for Mr Karson, and remember either of them had a chance to take a photo of Mr Karson or anyone else in 1929 before the Storm occurred. Duncan mentions having a war friend of his who had a child near Sotheby's age. This seems to concidental to be a throwaway line. Appearance wise their eyes look the same but I hear you ask, but Mr Karson looks older in 1929 and its confirmed 2.2 occurs in 1990s how can they be the same person?

See Paulina from 2.0: she is the one mentioned in Book 4 by the narrator, someone who was caught by the Storm and only her hand remained. We meet her brother Joe in 2.0 who goes to confirm her "death", sees her leftover hand (wow not expecting that) and then looks at her photo and immediately thinks the Foundation was lying. In some sense their are two Paulinas here, the one Joe remembers and the one the Foundation remembers but more or less are the same person.

Vertin with Mr Duncan has outright confirmed that:

One Mr Duncan is in fact Mr Karson, that there are multiple instances where people or events have been altered from recorded history.

Two.

THE PEOPLE WHO ARE REVERSED DO NOT DIE IN THE STORM!

With Marcus and Heinrich we confirm the Storms do not just make time go backwards but instead reverse a certain era to a different period, just not beyond 1999. Therefore we can for example, be in the 1950s and be reversed to 1980s but never going past 1999.

We confirm that the Grandfather Paradox does not apply to this world, so killing someone in one time will not necessarily led to the death of their family line.

The Storm can be accelerated by causing or accelerating critical points in history, leading to them happening earlier than expected = changing the original timeline.

So what if the Storm reversing places to completely different era backwards and forwards actually does the same to people?

Take Mr Karson: the 1929 Storm could have flung 'him' into the 1990s, his core history of being a war veteran would not change but now he isnt looking after Sotheby instead lives in Sao Paulo. Being flung into the 1990s has caused a butterfly effect in a sense to his own history: what if he remained in Sao Paulo at the end of his war service for example?

R1999 is playing with the Mandela Effect here: the Foundation will remember recorded history prior to the first Storm, and now history is being slightly altered by the Storm. The changes would eventually become so often and with so many to record the true original history may be forgotten entirely. It will become harder to tell what was the original until that new altered history becomes the memory incorrectly remembered by others.

So all victims of the Storm are not dead then are flung to different eras and places, slightly altered but in essence that original person. However it would be hard to investigate what would happen if a person were to be caught in multiple Storms, reverse in one and again in another (maybe thats what is happening to Martha Urd Bessmert)

Someone like Schneider then would still be alive somewhere, maybe in Italy, maybe a little bit different but in essence the same one we met in 1929 but doesn't know us. Same goes for Isabella, the Ring, people of Aperion and etc etc. Maybe we met 888 before she ever found the island, see the Ring potentially at the age he would be now in Scotland since he is implied to be Scottish.

This opens up the table for any of the people Vertin had met in the past to met them again.

Playable Schnieder or at the very least her return is no longer off the table and very possible now, this doesn't take away the impact of her 'death' as likely she will have no recollection of the time spent with Vertin and co, they did just meet within 24 hours. (BP would be so cruel if we met her in an Orange farm in Italy).

(I need a second opinion on us tbh, 2.2 at the end was really dropping huge things to set up the 2.0 story wow)

[dreamingclockwork]

Interview

(Spoilers for the Trailblaze quest from 2.2)

Dreams. Incorporeal as they are, they are built from humanity’s hopes, desires and fears.. In Penacony, the land of dreams, the impossible becomes possible. Nonexistence becomes existence, spawning manifestations of the subconsciousness. Those born from thoughts and memories are what people have dubbed “memetic entities”. Mikhail Char Legwork. The Watchmaker. Father of Penacony. He is all of them. He is none of them. He is a memory. He is a fragment of hope. He exists. He does not exist. His journey has ended. His journey has not yet begun. Who.. and what is he? What was meant for him? Was he truly meant to be nothing more than a figment of a memory? A tool to guide the nameless, only to then vanish into the depths? Was he truly satisfied with that? His time as simply “Misha” may have been short, but it meant everything to him. Getting to be a bellboy, listening to the stories of all who passed him by. Being inspired by tales of adventure, dreaming that one day he could go on his own journey across the stars.. But, because of the nature of his existence.. Was that dream impossible? He knew he wanted more out of his short existence. The watchmaker’s journey has already happened. Yet the journey of the innocent spirit he left behind had not. His fate was perhaps a cruel one, as the moment he was born within the dream bubble, his destiny was simply to fade away alongside the world that he called his home. What if though..? What if rather than oblivion, by some miracle, or perhaps the grace of a higher being, the dream was allowed to find existence? Allowed to find his own identity? Allowed to live the life he wanted? Allowed to go on the adventure he always wanted? What if the boy that was born from dreams was allowed to dream, himself? “H-Hello! My name is Misha! Um, if it’s not too much trouble.. Please let me journey with you! ..For at least a little while!” Doing a little curtsy in front of the Astral Express and its crew was a young looking boy, with pale blue hair and curious violet eyes. Though his stature was small, his voice light and a little weak, an adventurous spirit burned brightly within his core. Doubt crossed one of the crewmember’s expressions, however. The boy looked like such a fragile, young little thing..  “Are you sure you’ll be alright, Kid? I mean, journeying like this is serious business, you need to be strong. and you look rather, well…” the man trailed off. While he didn’t want to crush the boy’s spirit, he was worried he could get hurt, or worse.

“Well.. It’s true I'm not the strongest..” That wasn’t a lie or his way of downplaying his skills, it was just a fact that physical strength never was his forte. He was destructive maybe, but that was purely because he was kind of clumsy.. Not the best record for him to have perhaps, but strength (or the lack thereof) wasn’t all he had in store! ���But I have other skills I could offer.. Maybe? I-I’m good with machinery, and I’ll make sure everything stays tip top clean!” He was once a bellboy, after all. Keeping the hotel spotless was his job, as was taking care of the appliances. The idea of simply replacing parts was a little sad to him, so If he could he’d always prefer repairing over replacing. “Please.. It’s always been my dream to travel amongst the stars, and to see the vast universe. I.. I won’t get in your way, I promise!”

He always wanted, for as long as he could remember, to go on adventures as a trailblazer. A part of him wondered too if, maybe, this is how he could carve a legacy of his own. Mikhail might be remembered, as both a nameless as well as the father of Penacony, but he had long since passed. Misha, however? The boy that stood on the plush carpet of Penacony’s space port, here in the real world? He was.. Nothing, really. All his adventures took place in the depths of his mind, known to nobody but himself, Clockie and Miss Mirror. As is, he wouldn’t be remembered by anyone, having been a dead man’s shadow. But that would change. He would become known for his own, real adventures. As Misha, a dream who’s wish carried him into reality.

“Well.. okay, sure. But I want you to be very careful, okay? This isn’t a vacation. Pack your things then, We’ll leave soon.” The crewmember spoke after a moment of deliberation. Delight sparkled in Misha’s expression, forming a bright and grateful smile. “T-Thank you so much..! I promise I’ll be careful!” And he thankfully already packed his bags. They were right.. Huh? As he turned around, the suitcase he had packed up was suddenly gone! Where did it go..? Looking ahead, he saw his suitcase had been mistaken for a guests’ and was carried off into a Trolley! “Oh no, my suitcase! W-Waaait…!” He shouted after the attendant that was currently rolling his belongings away. Running after it, he tragically was unable to see a bag that was on the ground in front of him. His foot caught on it, and he fell to the floor with a painful thud. “Owww….” If he ever wasn’t sure about his existence, the pain he was feeling in his knee certainly would remind him with every spill...

[feliciadraws]

*SPOILERS FOR FINAL FANTASY XIV*

Ahhhh shoot, my recap of the Another Turn In The Coil is looooooong overdue (I've been busy with art projects and stuff, plus it was my birthday on the 13th hehe, also Another Turn in the Coil was an emotional rollercoaster for me and I was frickin REELING afterwards so...yeah), but since I'm a big chunk into Through the Maelstrom I might as well since I don't want anyone to miss a huge chunk of one of my favourite parts of the story so far so here we go! Patch 2.2 - Another Turn in the Coil (recap) So, having found where big boi Bahamut was entombed beneath Carteneau Flats and regenerating, the Warrior of Light headed back to the Waking Sands to report to Urianger, bringing with us news of not just big boi Bahamut being alive but also, seemingly, the legendary grandfather of Alphinaud and Alisaie, Louisoix, who until now was thought to have perished in the Calamity while sealing Bahamut away. Urianger passed along his findings to the Sons of Saint Coinach, who put forward a theory regarding Bahamut and how the big boi is connected to not just Dalamud but the Allagan Crystal Tower too; it turns out Dalamud was designed to gather the sun's energy like a giant solar battery, which would then be channeled into the Crystal Tower, using Bahamut as a living conduit within the moon itself, serving as its 'living core' as Urianger put it. Alisaie also put forward some unsettling findings of her own, stating that the things keeping Bahamut bound were known as "interment hulks," each one designated "Ragnarok-class," which thus renders my initial thought that it was some kind of giant Allagan spacecraft moot. And here's where it gets creepy; these interment hulks, which Alisaie mention act as binding coils, are not only meant to hold Bahamut but to FEED him AND keep him in some state between alive and dead, AND that somehow, since Bahamut is technically a primal but isn't worshipped by anyone like the other primals we've seen in the game, the Allagans who designed the coils have managed to simulate the power of PRAYER to keep the big boi from losing his solid form and turning back into aether mush. All of which is actually pretty terrifying. So, it came down to deactivating the coils and destroying whatever is keeping Bahamut bound, but amid the main objective, poor Alisaie found herself fighting an internal battle of her own, grappling with the notion that her beloved grandfather Louisoix might still be alive after all this time.

Not gonna lie, this was already getting off to a heartbreaking start, and it only gets worse from here.

So, on the trail of the binding coils, the WoL was sent to the Twelveswood, following word from Gridania that a fragment of the moon Dalamud had been discovered. But before long, we were joined unexpectedly by Alphinaud, who mentioned Urianger had informed him of the upcoming expedition into the fragment, but also spoke of Alisaie's admiration of their grandfather and of her own personal struggle in making Eorzea's salvation 'her own personal crusade' , voicing his concerns that her emotional involvement would turn the quest to save Eorzea into what would effectively be a wild goose chase. Interestingly enough, before departing, Alphinaud requested that we don't tell Alisaie that he was there or make a big thing of it.

MAN horsestandingonbeachmeme.jpg

Journeying into the Black Shroud, with Alisaie in tow this time, it was found to be full of corrupted aether crystals, which became visible when they previously weren't due to aetheric disturbances, which made for a very funky exploration experience.

A funky exploration experience, and more heartache for Alisaie...

Further exploration of the area and finally making our way in to the fragment itself took us into an Allagan structure, and a meetup with a figure who Alisaie recognised from the past, another figure who was thought to have perished around the time of the Calamity;

According to Alisaie, this figure was none other than the Garlean Imperial Legatus who spearheaded the Meteor project, Nael van Darnus, but yet there was some confusion; this Nael claimed to be a different one who had perished in the prelude to the Calamity, speaking like a fricked up religious zealot who worshipped and served Bahamut, saying that he was given the name Nael by Bahamut, before t-posing and diving backwards into oblivion in the most gratuitously extra way possible.

And things got crazier from there; after a few intense battles with some freaky-deeky chimera creatures which may or may not have been created by the Allagans, another trip further down into the depths of the fragment opened out into this whole other space that shouldn't have even been down there, as if we passed through some kind of portal.

A portal that seemingly led to the past, to the prelude to the Calamity itself, as Dalamud was crashing down to the earth, where we were once again met by Nael van Darnus, who chided Alisaie and the WoL, claiming that we had 'violated Bahamut's sanctuary' and that he was going to make this our grave. But just as Nael was about to charge up some kind of energy attack, Alisaie stopped him just in time and, using her own magic (GO ALISAIE!) knocked the mask right off of Nael's face and...

It turns out this Nael van Darnus is actually a woman, and not only that, but Bahamut used his own power to channel the last of the essence of the previous Nael and use it to possess this woman, making her a vessel for Nael so he/she could continue serving Bahamut...or something (from here I'm gonna be using she/her to describe the current Nael for clarity).

After channelling the essence of Bahamut himself, Nael transformed into a huge woman/Bahamut hybrid demon lady thing, and a battle ensued, with the Calamity seemingly raging in the background. With Nael herself defeated, a series of increasingly odd occurrences happened;

For starters, it turns out the whole battle took place in a huge augmented reality simulation type room, with the Calamity being a mere simulation that dissipated after Nael's defeat.

After that, Nael, or rather, the woman Bahamut was using as a vessel for Nael's aetheric essence, appeared to be still alive, albeit greatly weakened.

What's more is that Nael appeared to express remorse for her actions, speaking as though she were free from Bahamut's control, which very much confounded Alisaie, who I guess had only her prior knowledge of how the tempering of primals works and how there's no cure for being tempered, but then she reasoned that big boi Bahamut had merely 'relinquished his claim.' Hmmm... Nael continued, this time warning Alisaie of the despair that lies ahead on the path she currently walks, but before Alisaie could get any answers, mainly concerning liberating her grandfather Louisoix...

THIS HAPPENED. I gotta admit this broke my heart because I actually felt sorry for her in this moment, and she seemed genuinely guilty for what she had done and what became of her.

A mysterious, ominous voice called out from the shadows, maybe the voice of the one who just impaled poor Nael with that magical energy spear thing...at first I thought it may have been an Ascian, but then Alisaie said she recognised the voice, but didn't think he would say such cruel words...Louisoix? And things just got crazier and crazier from here, and infinitely more tragic.

On to the deactivation of the coils, which seemed to go relatively well, although big boi Bahamut seemed to regenerate much quicker than Alisaie had initially hoped. But just as she had successfully shut down one of the coils, thus slowing Bahamut's regeneration and bringing us one step closer to turning him back into aether mush, out from the darkness stepped none other than Louisoix himself.

But what should have been joy for poor Alisaie turned into nothing but anguish and heartbreak, as he seemed to have turned EVIL and was actively working to RESTORE Bahamut, hitting her with a magic blast and knocking her prone. Just as he was about to blast her again, the WoL stepped in front of her, shielding her from Louisoix's magic, but Alisaie noticed something particularly harrowing...

The light glowing in Louisoix's eyes...Alisaie saw the same light with Nael, saying to her that Louisoix himself had been possessed and was now under Bahamut's control, which just dug that old knife further and further into Alisaie's ever increasingly broken heart, but far from wallowing in her grief, Alisaie swore she would take down Bahamut for doing this...

My heart breaks for her... In the aftermath, back at the Waking Sands, while it did become clearer, the whole truth, as divulged by Urianger, was somehow just as harrowing; he described the true nature of this fake Louisoix we had encountered, in that it was nothing more than what he called an 'aetherial shadow', basically an aether clone created by Bahamut to serve him, using the image of Louisoix, who really had died when he attempted to call on the power of the Twelve to seal away Bahamut during the battle of Cartenau, which to be quite freaking honest is even more heartbreaking. Following on from that, Urianger then went further into the case of Nael van Darnus; it turns out the original Nael van Darnus, who was in fact a guy after all (the Nael we saw was merely a vessel for his essence), sought to bring about Eorzea's destruction, using the lesser moon Dalamud as a weapon. The noble house the OG Nael belonged to were also 'safeguarding' knowledge regarding ancient Allag, and turned to alternate means of communicating with Dalamud, which resulted in both Bahamut inside being awoken AND Nael's soul being enslaved by the elder primal. And after the original Nael's death, Bahamut transferred his essence into the woman we knew as the current Nael van Darnus we met when exploring the fragment. But little did anyone know, that Alphinaud, perhaps concerned for Alisaie's welfare, was eavesdropping on the whole conversation before skulking away. -

Man...that was...intense. And I'll admit I was an emotional wreck after finishing Another Turn in The Coil. Like as if it wasn't bad enough that big boi Bahamut had killed Louisoix, but was then using his image as an aether puppet to serve him, tormenting poor Alisaie. Poor, poor Alisaie...man my heart was breaking for her the whole time, and even Urianger was greatly affected by the whole thing, even suggesting that Alisaie take some time out from exploring the coils. Gosh, I hope Alisaie and even Alphinaud get at least some closure in later parts, or some resolution, especially Alisaie, like my heart was breaking for her this whole time, and even now as I'm typing this I'm feeling heartbroken for her all over again. She just wanted to see her grampa again, only to be met with that...it just makes my heart hurt and I want to give her a hug...😭

Well, following on from this, I should be posting a recap of my progress so far of Through the Maelstrom!

[bellyfatlosses]

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[matryosika]

in control

pairing – chan x reader

word count – 2.2 k

warnings – softdom!chan, sub!reader, mentions of safe word, maturbation (f), slight sadism, mentions of blood (very subtle, reader just bites her lower lip too harsh), edging, praising, bondage (position described: frogtie), use of toys, squirting, dacryphilia.

note – i haven't read this so i apologize for any grammar mistakes in advance, please keep in mind that english is not my first language. have you all missed me? i kind of missed writing as well!

if you want and can, please support me by buying me a ko-fi!

"do you remember your safe word?" chan inquired, tightening the ropes that were gripping both of your wrists against your back.

"mhm", you hummed, your face buried on the mattress while chan finished his little masterpiece. your arse was completely arched for him while your legs were fully bent on your knees and your ankles were tied up against your thighs.

the position itself looked uncomfortable but, as the seconds passed by, you found yourself getting used to it maybe a little bit took quick. the embarrassment of being completely naked and tied up with your cunt exposed while he was still fully clothed only made your core ache, the visible throbs making chan's cock twitch under his pants.

how you ended up in the bed of your attentive, sweet, caring and thoughtful roommate wasn't really a mystery. what was a mystery was how things escalated so quickly, from an innocent chat about your daily struggles up until being tied up and at his mercy.

"i feel like i am losing control over my life" you had confided chan with tears streaming down your cheeks, the uncontrollable sobs and cries making chan's worriness a bit too obvious.

after giving you some solace, he told you that he wanted to make you feel good and help you deal with control, but you never thought he would mean something like this.

but now, you were too deep into it to back down.

"remember the rules," chan's raspy voiced mumbled, one of his digits caressing your slit without a previous warning causing your whole body to shake under the ropes, "you can't cum unless i give you permission to".

"yes chan", you replied your gaze focused on the wall right next to his bed. chan grabbed a fistful of your hair and forced you to face his way, giving you a reasurring smile as soon as he spotted your nervous countenance.

"i will take care of you, yeah?" he whispered, pushing the hair covering your face back and swiping away the small droplets of sweat that were starting to show on your forehead, "don't be scared, i'm right here".

you swallowed hard at his words and nodded as much as you could, feeling his fingers once again prudding in your wet hole.

"good girl" he whispered, noticing his glistening fingers against the dim light that emanated from the window, "getting all worked up for being tied up?"

your cheeks turned bright red at his comment, feeling the embarrassment of getting turned on by so little. "have you ever done this before?"

"no" you replied, repressing the little whimpers that threatened to escape your lips every time chan traced your wetted slit.

"so i'm your first?" he questioned with a smirk, admiring the way your body got covered in goosebumps everytime his digits brushed against your bundle of nerves. cute.

you nodded again, whining once you stopped feeling any kind of stimulation against your core. your eyes drifted on chan's figure that walked all the way to a drawer in his nightstand, one of his hands opening it and taking out what looked like a wand vibrator.

even though you had been living with him for over a year now, your relationship with him wasn't precisely close. you didn't really knew much about him and this was definitely a surprise.

"why do you have that?" you questioned, your hitching breath increasing as you heard the odd sound coming out of the toy.

"let's just say," he replied, putting one hand over the rope tying your wrists while the other maneuvered the wand, "that i enjoy this kind of stuff".

and, although the answer didn't satisfied your curiosity, your whole mind shutted down as you felt a slight pressure of the toy against your exposed clit.

"fuck" you whispered, the ropes on your thighs and ankles imprinting into your skin while you tried your best to stay still.

"does it feels good?" he questioned, his gaze focused on how your weak body fought the restraints.

"yes" you whispered, getting used to the new sensations that chan was providing to your body.

"you are dripping wet," he mumbled, paying close attention to the grimaces of pleasure in your face, "when was the last time you touched yourself?"

"a while ago" you shyly admitted, buring your face deep into the mattress while you tried to repress your whines.

"i don't think you are going to last long," he mumbled, one of his knees getting on top of the bed while applying more pressure to the vibrator against your bundle of nerves, "and i need you to".

"i will," you moaned, your hips pathetically humping the air while your cunt throbbed at the vibrations of the toy, "i will try to control myself".

he gave you a soft smile as he pressed the vibrator even harder against your dripping cunt, making your whole body squirm.

"can you please look at me?" his soft voice queried, him not being too fond of you having your eyes closed. you followed his sweet request, fixing your gaze on him. "why don't you start counting for me out loud?"

"wh-why?" your broken voice questioned.

"i want you to focus on something else" he explained, caressing your arse and back, "that way you will be able to control your orgasm longer".

you looked at him with hesitation, not sure if his tip would work on you. even so, you did as you were told.

starting from 1, you started counting the numbers out loud. as you did, the whines and moans became harder to repress, slipping out of your lips every time you said a number.

"you are doing so good, y/n" he praised, pushing the hair on your face back, "keep on counting for me".

"i can't" you cried, the veins in your forehead popping out with a higher intensity, "chan i can't hold it".

"yes you can and you will," he mumbled, his thumb caressing your lower lips, "aren't you in control?"

you let out another painful cry, your vision getting clouded with the tears that threatened to come out at any second.

"you better not cum yet, y/n" chan whispered his eyes drifting from your face to your cunt. the image of it throbbing almost aggressively was everything he needed to fuck himself inside your pussy until you both came.

but, if he was teaching you about self-control, he needed to show it too.

"keep on counting, i didn't tell you to stop".

"eighty-three" you cried, both of your legs attempting to close together but failing due to the ropes tying you up, "g-god, eighty-four".

"good girl" chan praised, drying out the tears in your eyes, "it's not that hard, is it?"

"chan, it hurts" you mumbled, feeling the overwhelming sensation of having to hold your orgasm longer than usual. even though the feeling was rather new to you, you couldn't deny it felt good.

"i know, princess" he softly cooed, his available hand caressing your hair, "hold it a little longer".

your whole body moved agressively against the ropes, chan's warm touch reassuring you that you were okay and that, as long as you were with him, you were going to be alright.

"eighty-five" you groaned, your painfully hardened nipples brushing against the fabric of the bedsheets and providing you even more estimulation for the promising orgasm, "fuck- i"

"you can't cum" he interrupted with a much more serious tone, "if you want to stop just say your safe word, if you don't then keep on holding your orgasm".

you closed your eyes shut while you pathetically squirmed under him, your hips bucking against the toy while your whole body got covered in your own sweat.

"chan-" you gasped, "i need to-"

"look at me" he demanded, lowering the vibrations on the toy as he looked down on you with empathy, "hold it".

"it hurts so bad, channie" you cried, the drops of sweat decorating your forehead while tears streamed down your cheeks.

chan's cock twitched inside his sweatpants once again as soon as he saw your teary eyes. there was something about this specific sight that had him on edge, knowing that -in that moment- you were nothing but a mindless cockslut made him harder than ever.

you carried yourself around your daily life with so much pride and dominance that seeing you completely submitted to him while you cried and beg for your release did something to him that he hadn't felt before.

"my poor princess can't take it any longer?" he queried with a soft whine, his lips slightly pouting while his hand removed the sweat from off your skin, "it's just a litte bit of pain, i am sure you can handle it, y/n".

you arched your arse even more for him, burying your head further down the mattress and drowning all of your pleas and cries. you couldn't doubt for a second that he could take you both to heaven and hell in a matter of seconds.

"i wish you could see how pretty your body looks tied up like this" he praised, the tip of his digits tracing the sides of your body and touring along the ropes restraining your wrists on your lower back, "you have no idea how bad i am controling myself to not fuck that needy hole of yours right now".

"please-" you panted without breath, moving your hips against the toy once again, "i don't- not the toy- i want you".

"awwww-" chan cooed with endearment, looking at your fucked out face that was struggling to even face him, "look at you, you are not making any sense princess".

"chan-" you cried again, feeling how he pressed down the wand against your core as soon as you tried to speak up, "ple- god".

"use your words" he demanded, "and do it loud so i can hear you properly, can you do that for me?".

"chan-" you whined, the ropes imprinting on your skin and leaving a red-ish tone on it, "please let me cum".

"stay still" chan ordered as soon as he caught you fighting the restraints, "you are going to get your pretty body marked if you keep on moving, princess".

"just please let me cum, please" you cried, biting your lips and moving your hips in circular motions. the undeniable knot on your lower abdomen was too strong to be held and chan knew that.

it didn't took him long to realize that you were at your limit. toes curling up, your cunt visibly throbbing and dripping on the bedsheets, a small cut on your lower lip from how hard you were biting on it and your painfully hardened nipples sold you out this time.

"on the count of three, you are going to let go," he mumbled while sweeping away the small drop of blood forming on your lower lips, "understood?"

"yes, yes" you tried to nod in despair, the neediness and relief of your cries sounding like heavenly music to his ears.

"good girl" he praised, caressing your hair, "one..."

you furrowed your eyebrows while closing your eyes shut, feeling the overwhelming sensations on your bundle of nerves as soon as you felt the vibrations of the wand increasing once again.

"two..."

the sweet release was closer than you imagined and all your body wanted to do was to behave well for him. you wanted to follow his orders around, do as he pleased. for that one second, there was nothing in this world you desired more than being submitted to him every single day of the week, waiting for him to come home while being tied up to his bed with both of your legs spreaded and your cunt exposed.

you wanted to be his personal little fucktoy and you were determined to behave well for him.

"three". he spoke and, just as if your body followed only his words, your hips bucked aggressively against the wand while you came undone on top of it.

you felt your juices dripping out of you and making a mess on the toy an his bed sheets, feeling both aroused and humiliated.

"that's a good fucking girl" he groaned, his eyes lost in the way your arousal leaked out of your core, "cum for me, show me how well behaved you are".

moaning his name over and over, you cried and whine as you felt the nerve-wrecking orgasm washing up on your whole body. chan's hand slowly started to withdrew the toy away from you, admiring how your body twitched and trembled every few seconds as you tried to overcome your high.

"thank you" you panted without breath, feeling the skin on your cheeks getting hotter by the minute, "thank you, thank you, thank you-"

like a mindless slut, all you were able to do was chanting those two words for him over and over again. the buzzing soud of the wand stopped as he placed it over his nightstand and the next sensation you felt was his digits tracing your wetted slit while getting coated with your own orgasm.

"you did good" he praised, approaching both of his fingers to your helpless mouth. he didn't had to gave you any instruction for you to suck on them eagerly, drooling all over them while tears kept on streaming down your cheeks, "how does it taste to feel in control, y/n?"

[zelkams-art]

#ShowYourProcess

From planning to posting, share your process for making creative content!

To continue supporting content makers, this tag game is meant to show the entire process of making creative content: this can be for any creation.

RULES — When your work is tagged, show the process of its creation from planning to posting, then tag 5 people with a specific link to one of their creative works you’d like to see the process of. Use the tag #showyourprocess so we can find yours!

I was tagged by @milkcrates​, who showed her process of making this gorgeous piece with Wei Wuxian and little A-Yuan!! It was awesome to see how it came to life - and thank you for tagging me! ✨

So I got tagged to show how this Yunmeng brothers + golden core art happened! I already included the digital sketch for it in my sketch vs final compilation, but I guess I can show some more!

This is gonna be long because I like talking a lot, so putting the rest under a cut!

1. Planning

SO.  A golden core pic was on my to-draw list as soon as I finished watching the show. I had a WIP of a different pic for that waiting, but actually I noticed that a very similar thing has already been drawn, so that was kinda dropped. But I’m glad I waited until the idea for this one slapped me! It was pretty much a moment of “w a i t a second” and I had to grab a random piece of paper to sketch it while I still had it in my head.

This is the sketch - as you can see from the coffee stains, it has been through some stuff. On the left I actually tried out some different ideas for the golden core - the 1st one was the winner and led to the whole leaking/water/rain theme. I ended up mirroring the whole sketch because I didn’t want Wei Wuxian’s hand to cover Jiang Cheng’s front hair wisp, as that would make that area too crowded.

Meta-wise: I wanted to show that the whole thing was kept as a secret from Jiang Cheng. But we also knew about it - so Wei Wuxian is breaking the 4th wall and looking at us [the audience] directly, shushing to keep it a secret as well. Then there’s his hand hovering over the blindfold - it was included in the show, but also sprinkles in that extra symbolism. Then there’s the rain - the sky crying for the two brothers, so you’re not sure if those are raindrops or tears on their faces + lotus pond for the Yunmeng vibes. As for the golden core, I wanted to make it kinda messy and leaking like blood + shining and make it the main light source of the piece. Also kinda like a glow stick liquid.

I also like finding fitting music to go with my art and this one was actually supposed to go with Avicii’s Hey Brother, but when I was looking it up on Spotify I saw Kodaline’s Brother right above, gave it a listen and then the lyrics hit me. So I already knew that they’re gonna go in the caption. Also apparently it’s like The Song for them and yeah, makes sense.

2. Creating

2.1 Set up and tools

I use Paint Tool SAI + Wacom Intuos S to do all my art! The entire pic was made on a 2000 x 3000 px canvas, since I don’t like to work too big because of limited brush sizes in SAI + I don’t want to torture my laptop, as my art takes up quite a lot of processing power with a lot of layers and modes and sometimes things like to crash at the final steps 😬.

2.2 Planning and composition

So I started off by doing a digital sketch and focusing on the composition a bit more - I wanted something geometrical, so I went for the diamond shape with Wei Wuxian’s silhouette and the placement of the lotuses. Also the composition is vertical, all the important info is in the middle column - you could cut off 2/3 of the picture and it would still tell the story.

2.3 Lineart

Then I did the lineart over the sketch layer (there was a more detailed one than the “planning” sketch, but it looks like I deleted it once I finished). I usually draw more than I have to and on separate layers, so that I can move/modify things easily later - for example JC’s headpiece here didn’t really make it that much into the final piece but It Was There. Once I was satisfied with the lineart, I cleaned it by erasing overlapping things, like Wei Wuxian’s clothes behind Jiang Cheng’s head.  

2.4 Planning the lighting

After doing the lineart I blocked the characters with a single color and planned the lighting. The golden core is the main light source here, so it dictates which parts are gonna be lighter and which darker (although there is gonna some ambient occlusion from the background + reflected light from the water). I also added water and lotuses in the foreground + painted the background.

2.5 Shading the characters

After that, I started shading the pic. I usually do two steps here - one with “base” shading - focusing on the details and values based on the light source, then the mood shading with more coloring - based on the setting the characters are in. The first one is mostly done with the Multiply tool and base layer blending/painting, the second mostly with layer modes like Overlay and Luminosity. I also colored some parts of the lineart to make the shapes stand out (see: wwx’s front hairs)

2.6 Environment and touch-up details

Then it was time for the water and lotuses + the “special effects” for the rain and all the stuff associated with it - water splashes, mist, sparkling drops! Also some more mood lighting. Lots of new layers to keep everything organized and separated.

2.7 Finished pic

And done! After finishing I usually adjust the contrast/gamma/saturation of my art (or just edit it all in curves) + sometimes sharpen it to bring out details → I make a few different versions and pick the one that works the best. Although with this pic I was satisfied with the raw result so no major changes happened.

3. Posting

For posting I always scale down the pictures and upload them as a draft on this art blog. Then I check if things look okay on mobile as well - from what I’ve noticed my phone makes everything more warm-toned. Depending on the time I finish drawing, I either post it right away or wait until the next day, when there is more traffic on tumblr. I finished this one around 8PM of my local time, which is fine - so I posted it right away (also I was just excited, couldn’t wait 😅)!

As caption I used the lyrics from Brother by Kodaline, as mentioned before!

So yeah, that would be it! 

If you made it till this part - thank you and I hope you have an awesome day! ✨

Let’s keep the artist vibes here - I’m gonna tag (not 5 ppl but shh) @still-snowing​ and this piece that still breaks my heart @driszol​ and this Song Jiyang pic that lives in my head to this day @kushexi​​ and this pic with fox Wei Wuxian and A-Yuan bc it still makes me melt → no pressure of course! or if you want to do some other piece that’s awesome as well!

[robertreich]

SIX RESPONSES TO BERNIE SKEPTICS

After decisive victories in New Hampshire and Nevada, and a second place finish in South Carolina, Senator Bernie Sanders has emerged as the clear front runner. Right on cue, the establishment on both sides of the aisle has raised a four-alarm fire about Bernie’s electability and his chances against Trump. Here are 6 responses to these Bernie skeptics.

1. “America would never elect a socialist.”

P-l-e-a-s-e. America’s most successful and beloved government programs are social insurance – Social Security and Medicare. A highway is a shared social expenditure, as is the military and public parks and schools. The truth is we have already have socialism... for the rich (bailouts of Wall Street, subsidies for Big Ag and Big Pharma, monopolization by cable companies and giant health insurers, giant tax-deductible CEO bonuses) – all of which Bernie wants to end or prevent. And Bernie is not a socialist, he’s a Democratic Socialist, which is very different and very American. FDR was a democratic socialist, just not in name. Democratic socialism, as practiced in Europe, hinges on the same three core principles that used to be practiced in America, before big corporations undermined them -- strong safety nets; public investment in healthcare, childcare, and education; and tough regulation of Big Business.

2. “He’d never beat Trump in the general election.”

Wrong. The best way for Democrats to defeat Trump’s fake anti-establishment populism is with the real thing, coupled with an agenda of systemic reform. This is what Bernie Sanders offers, and it’s what the polls are reflecting. All of the pundits proclaiming that Bernie has no chance against Trump are using a political framework that may have been correct decades ago when America still had a growing middle class, but it’s obsolete today, as more and more Americans feel politically disempowered and economically insecure. The real political divide today isn’t left versus right. It’s democracy versus oligarchy.

In the latest polling average from RealClearPolitics, Bernie beats Trump by the widest margin of all candidates. After his decisive victory in Nevada, a Morning Consult survey found that Democratic voters view Bernie as the best candidate to take on Trump. And recent polls show Bernie beating Trump in Michigan and Pennsylvania, two crucial battleground states Hillary Clinton lost to Trump in 2016. If you’re a moderate Democrat whose chief concern is beating Trump, Bernie is the clear choice.

3. “But how would he pay for it?”

Nearly every time the media discusses Bernie’s transformative plans, they ask the same tired question: How will he pay for it? Funny that they never ask how we’ll pay for endless wars or bailouts, tax cuts, and subsidies for the top 1 percent.

Nonetheless, Bernie’s campaign just released a detailed memo outlining how they plan to pay for his policy ideas. Take college for all and canceling student debt. Sanders will fund the $2.2 trillion proposals with a modest tax on the very Wall Street speculation that crashed our economy in 2008. 40 countries throughout the world have imposed a similar tax, including Britain, South Korea, Hong Kong, Brazil, Germany, France, Switzerland and China. Sanders’s wealth tax would also go a long way toward paying for his other ambitious plans, like Medicare for All. Speaking of Medicare for All, it will leave us spending less over time. Single-payer systems in other rich nations have proven cheaper than private for-profit health insurers because they don’t spend huge sums on advertising, marketing, executive pay, and billing. Multiple studies have found that Medicare for All will save us billions in the long run, including a recent study which found that Bernie’s plan would save $458 billion annually and more than 68,500 lives every year. The nation already pays more for healthcare per person and has worse health outcomes than any other advanced country. Leaving our cruel, for-profit system in place will eventually become more expensive than implementing Medicare for All. At the end of the day, the question shouldn’t be how will we pay for it. As long as proposed spending will be less than the future costs of insufficient public investment in education, climate change, and inadequate healthcare, it makes logical sense to enact these plans. 4. “He couldn’t get any of his ideas implemented because Congress would reject them.”

First of all, Bernie has served on Capitol Hill for nearly 30 years -- working across the aisle to advance a host of legislative priorities. He worked alongside Republican Senator John McCain to reform the veterans’ health care system, and has co-sponsored bills with Senator Mike Lee of Utah, one of the most conservatives members of Congress, to restrict executive war powers in Yemen and Iran.

He’s stood staunchly behind his bold ideas while still delivering Democrats key legislative victories when his vote was sorely needed, like when he voted to pass the Affordable Care Act and Dodd-Frank. And here’s the most important reality of all: If Republicans maintain their majority in the Senate, no Democratic president will be able to get much legislation through Congress, and will have to rely instead on executive orders and regulations. But we have a better chance of flipping the Senate if Bernie’s political revolution continues to surge around America, bringing with it millions of young people and other first-time voters, and keeping them politically engaged.

5. “He’s too old.”

Untrue. Have you seen how agile and forceful he is as he campaigns around the country? He bounced back with ten times the energy after he had a minor heart attack. These days, 70s are the new 60s.

(Just look at me.)

In any event, the issue isn't age; it's having the right values. FDR was paralyzed and JFK had Crohn's disease, but they were great presidents because they fought adamantly for social and economic justice.

6. “He can’t unite the Democratic Party.”

Wrong. The establishment keeps mistakenly assuming that moderates appeal to a broader swath of the electorate. Their analysis is woefully out-of-touch, and they’re operating within an echo chamber with an outdated mental framework of how politics is supposed to work.

As shown by his dominant win in Nevada, Bernie’s brand of populist politics unites people from all walks of life. He won with 29 percent of whites, 51 percent of Hispanics, and 27 percent of blacks, according to entrance polls of Democratic caucus-goers. He won a staggering 65 percent of caucus-goers under 30 years old, and he carried every other age group except for caucus-goers over 65. This is precisely the kind of multiracial, multi-generational coalition that is needed to defeat Trump in November. And as I mentioned, Bernie beats Trump in multiple polls by the widest margin of any of the candidates, including in key swing states. No other candidate has this kind of data to back up their electability case.  

The Democratic establishment is wrong to think Sanders is too liberal to win a general election. To the contrary, he’s the Democrats’ best shot at taking back the White House.

[meem-didi]

Journal: Final Reflection

The fashion industry has complex links to many other sectors, including manufacturing, advertising, raw material processing, transport, and retailing. The immense profits to be gained in the retail industry give rise to the desire to engage in unethical practices. When suppliers, distributors, designers, or customers are exploited or treated unfairly, fashion industry executives have an ethical duty to improve the situation.  

Within Fashion Ethics and Culture course, we were given the opportunity to explore the breadth of creative, aesthetic, and social/cultural expression of design through the lens of ethical and historic considerations – as it is and how it needs to change, the role of the MENA region and its relationship to fashion media.  

As a student of DIDI, I felt the same link and inspiration between the Fashion Ethics and Culture course and my vision of how I want to be as a future designer and how I should change the current fashion industry status quo with my future career path. The course creates a creative paradigm for learning ethical fashion design through the lens of ethical and historic considerations. Students are introduced to fashion history, cultural criticism, contemporary culture, and the diversity of representation including ethical considerations and perspectives.

In my opinion, this course plays as a moderator between all other fashion courses we study and extend to other courses with depth like sociology and design histories and theories to link and emphasis all courses material in a dynamic way. We covered various subjects relating to Body Image Problems, Fur Trade Issues, Cultural Hegemony and Appropriation, Consumer Over-consumption, Environmental Effects, and Concerns, Advertisement Conflicts, Brand Name Forgery, Sweat Shop Working Conditions, and Exclusiveness and Injustice Issues; that simultaneously vary from micro to macro scale through lectures, group activities, open discussions in class, and individual presentations.

The True Cost Formula 

Investigate your Wardrobe

Doughnut Economics

ATCAC-Disrupting the Fashion System

Earth Logic: the turning point

Careers in the Fashion Industry

The future of Garment Technology in Circular Fashion

Market Segmentation

Fashion for Good: Virtual Tour

Fashion & Society

Made in America

“Luxury: Behind the mirror of high-end fashion”

Empathic Design Process

SOKO Kenya - A people first company

Innovative Fashion Marketing

Key trends innovating Fashion Marketing

Fashion for Good: Virtual Tour

Untangled Egyptian Beauty Standards

The Fashion & Race database

The Modist- Modest Fashion Dream

About Time: Fashion and Duration

The It Girl: Ashley Al Busmait

I enjoyed the above-listed topics and guest lecture discussions we had this semester, but certain to a whole new way of perceiving the world. I would love to deepen and expand my knowledge on the technology and circularity of the fashion industry future as well as focus on modest fashion and ethical practices and success and failure aspects of the Modist business experience. Whether through merging my learning outcome within this semester to my nest fashion studio or final thesis.

Here's my list of the most meaningful subjects for me and some of the highlights of my recent blogs on these topics:

ATCAC-Disrupting the Fashion System

ORIGIN AND HISTORY

Atacac is a Swedish fashion studio that Jimmy Herdberg and Rickard Lindqvist created in 2016. Atacac is designed to disrupt the current fashion system. Atacac is like a laboratory for developing ideas and principles. Then they work as consultants sharing that with other brands to improve their design. The other way they work with other designers is what they call Share-wear. When they release a new product in their online store, they also offer the 2D pattern and the 3D model of the garment for free download. This builds a community of home sellers and independent brands that use their patterns and designs. In certain terms, you can do whatever you want. There is a Credit Common Licence connected to the Share-wear which means you can use it commercially in any way you like, and you can make improvements to it, But you need to give credit back to Atacac if you use it commercially and market the product. You also need to make your development available for other people to keep developing further.

For me ATCAC is a brilliant business module example that is trying to blow the entire system to the ground, I loved how I saw ATCAC embodying every principle, I have been learning for the past 3 years. This blog post and the investigation behind it gave me hope that I can succeed in doing something different with my future dream brand.

Innovative Fashion Marketing

Stretchy Kids’ Clothes Petit Pli gets a growing identity

A sustainable fashion design example that offers apparel that evolves as the wearer grows older has an innovative branding that sounds like “more human” and “less professional." The idea is to reduce the waste of apparel and save parents’ money as children progress up a range of sizes in the first three years of their lives.

It needs time and education to promote meaningful behavioral change. We assume that we are too late for much of our generation. We assume, though, that we are just in time for the next era of LittleHumans. The brilliance of the brand strategy is in anchoring on the opportunity where new parents and young children are more open to improvement and learning than any other part of our community. They do everything not only to promote constructive behavioral improvement but also to make it as seamless as possible.

Marketing as a term became cliché of how much brands are using it without actually making the right –positive impact on their users, within this blog post example of how marketing approach could be current, supportive and extending the brand value to further stage where the client loyalty will be granted due to that extended value, this reminded me of applying the product-service systems methodology, where it's not only the brand responsibility to produce and market a product but they innovate different approaches to extended their after-sale services and product value to emotionally engage their clients.

Empathic Design Process

Empathy is the core of the entire process of Design Thinking. Putting ourselves in someone else’s shoes reinforces our ability to interpret information, and lets us understand how other humans perceive the world around us.

 The realm of fashion design is shifting from an external focus on the industry, or an internal focus on integrating technology, to an empathetic focus on people. While it’s not too difficult to rally people around this general idea, it can be hard at first to understand how to translate it into tactics.

I ask myself as a designer, how do we make a good connection between a fashion worker and a customer? My solution to this question is to make fashion employees the hero of the story, create brand ideals around them. Plan company modules to be a win-win for staff and stakeholders. As designers, we should reconfigure how the framework is giving back to the societies through which we work. I expect, as a future fashion designer, to build a secure working environment that will help better the lives of single mothers in Egypt. By offering comprehensive educational opportunities and curating future working talents. The Empathy Concept process will be incorporated not only to understand the consumers but also most critically, to understand the true needs of the heroes behind my future brand.

Technology & future of Circular Fashion

Fashion has always been a major hub for innovation — from the invention of the sewing machine to the rise of e-commerce. As technology, fashion is both forward-looking and cyclical. At $2.2 T, the apparel industry is now one of the top sectors in the global economy. Nowadays, apparel technology is rising more than ever. From robots that sew and cut clothing to AI algorithms that anticipate style patterns, to VR mirrors in dressing rooms, technology automates, customizes, and speeds up every aspect of fashion.

In the optimistic scenario, the future will be led by innovators and collaborators, the industry will leap forward in developing digital passports for clothing that carries an internationally recognized digital asset trigger that could be accessed by designers, retailers, recyclers, and customers alike. This type of standardized infrastructure and labeling approach means that not every brand or approach provider has its own patented approaches, leaving customers stuck in the sea of things to consider. In this way, the future of fashion technologies could truly unify the industry around common practices that would make circularity more visible to everyone.

Reference list

Accenture and H&M Foundation (2018). Circular x Fashion Tech. [online] Available at: https://www.accenture.com/_acnmedia/PDF-74/Accenture-GCA-Circular-FashionTech-Trend-Report-2018.pdf [Accessed 3 Oct. 2020].

By Insider Trends (2019). Why does Swedish clothing brand Atacac give its patterns away for free? - Insider Trends. [online] Insider Trends. Available at: https://www.insider-trends.com/why-does-swedish-clothing-brand-atacac-give-its-patterns-away-for-free/ [Accessed 14 Sep. 2020].

CB Insights (2020). The Future Of Fashion: From Design To Merchandising, How Tech Is Reshaping The Industry. [online] CB Insights Research. Available at: https://www.cbinsights.com/research/fashion-tech-future-trends/ [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

CHANGE, W. (2020). THE WARDROBE CRISIS. [online] THE WARDROBE CRISIS. Available at: https://thewardrobecrisis.com/the-magazine/2020/8/26/4-tech-innovations-that-will-change-the-future-of-sustainable-fashion [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

CLO (2020). Live Q + A with Fashion Studio Atacac. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHpiD5u0e1w&feature=youtu.be [Accessed 14 Sep. 2020].

Dawood, S. (2019). Stretchy kids’ clothing Petit Pli gets an identity that grows. [online] Design Week. Available at: https://www.designweek.co.uk/issues/1-7-april-2019/stretchy-kids-clothing-petit-pli-gets-an-identity-that-grows/ [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Design Indaba (2013). Data Dress: A tangible representation of your online movements | Design Indaba. [online] Design Indaba. Available at: https://www.designindaba.com/articles/creative-work/data-dress-tangible-representation-your-online-movements [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

Dezeen (2017). Ryan Mario Yasin’s Petit Pli kids clothing expands to fit as children grow. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJ8VSvkz_4w [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Dubai Design Week (2019). GGS Success Story: Featuring Petit Pli by Ryan Mario Yasin. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3a2eIix1rUI [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Dyson on (2019). Petit Pli: The unlikely fashion brand that wants to end industry waste by making clothes that grow. [online] Medium. Available at: https://medium.com/dyson-on/meet-the-inventors-fabric-fantastic-c5f18d7639bf [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Fashion United (2020). The future of garment technology in circular fashion. [online] Fashionunited.uk. Available at: https://fashionunited.uk/news/business/the-future-of-garment-technology-in-circular-fashion/2020091750927 [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

Givens, D. (2020). ASOS Unveils Its Made In Kenya Collection Collaboration With Soko Kenya. [online] Black Enterprise. Available at: https://www.blackenterprise.com/asos-unveils-its-made-in-kenya-collection-collaboration-with-soko-kenya/ [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

GLOBAL FASHION AGENDA (2020). Design for Longevity. [online] Designforlongevity.com. Available at: https://designforlongevity.com/page/about [Accessed 14 Sep. 2020].

Herdberg, J. (2020). Kokokaka - Work. [online] Kokokaka.com. Available at: https://kokokaka.com/work.html [Accessed 14 Sep. 2020].

Krantz, J. (2017). Atacac uses game tech to disrupt the fashion system - MAGIC FABRIC. [online] MAGIC FABRIC. Available at: https://magicfabricblog.com/atacac-uses-game-technology-change-fashion-system/ [Accessed 14 Sep. 2020].

LeVine, S. (2018). Automated fashion is now a reality in new Chinese store. [online] Axios. Available at: https://www.axios.com/fashion-automated-alibaba-china-store-d476b4a4-d74d-410e-9518-bea2449203da.html [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

Morrison, H., Petherick, L. and Ley, K. (2019). THE FUTURE OF CIRCULAR FASHION A COLLABORATIVE REPORT BY ACCENTURE STRATEGY AND FASHION FOR GOOD ASSESSING THE VIABILITY OF CIRCULAR BUSINESS MODELS. [online] ACCENTURE STRATEGY AND FASHION FOR GOOD. Available at: https://d2be5ept72nvlo.cloudfront.net/2019/05/The-Future-of-Circular-Fashion-Report.pdf [Accessed 2 Oct. 2020].

NB Studio (2019). Petit Pli - Brand Identity. [online] The Drum Awards. Available at: https://www.thedrumdesignawards.com/drum-design-awards-2019/brand-identity-design/petit-pli-brand-identity [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Partners, K. (2017). PROTOCHIC. [online] PROTOCHIC. Available at: https://www.protochic.com/stories/2017/3/17/kenyan-manufacturer-soko-kenya-partners-with-british-retailer-asos [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Petit Pli (2020a). MISSION 2: FUTURE OF HUMANITY Earth’s Hidden Figures. [online] Available at: http://ryanmarioyasin.com/hosting/BLMcomic.pdf [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Petit Pli (2020b). Petit Pli. [online] Petit Pli. Available at: https://shop.petitpli.com/ [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Petit Pli (2020c). Unstick The Sticky Alien! [online] Petit Pli. Available at: https://shop.petitpli.com/blogs/news/unstick-the-sticky-alien [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Pfaff, M. (2018). Amesterdam University of Applied Sciences. [online] AMFI.nl. Available at: https://amfi.nl/news/technology-is-transforming-the-fashion-industry [Accessed 14 Sep. 2020].

Sherriff, L. (2020). This Company Is Making Children’s Clothes That Actually Grow As The Kid Does. Forbes. [online] 16 Feb. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/lucysherriff/2020/02/24/this-company-is-making-childrens-clothes-that-actually-grow-as-the-kid-does/?sh=81b30233f70f [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Sohini Dey (2018). Can artificial intelligence and fashion create a smart stitch? [online] mint. Available at: https://www.livemint.com/Leisure/Vp81luEXDz3lWuvvYVYIdO/Can-artificial-intelligence-and-fashion-create-a-smart-stitc.html [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

SOKO Kenya (2020). SOKO Kenya. [online] Soko-kenya.com. Available at: https://www.soko-kenya.com/ [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

The Trampery (2019). Petit Pli : Future Design for “LittleHumans” - The Trampery. [online] The Trampery. Available at: https://thetrampery.com/2019/12/02/petit-pli-future-design-for-littlehumans/ [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

‌

[micoco]

FOOD WASTE

At the beginning, my three broad topics are introverts, food and body size. And I want to combine food and body image. I found some people have eating disorders who are anxious about their body figures. However, I do not want to talk about beauty (body image) here, or there are other ways I can go if anyone has any other suggestions! Thank you so muchhhhh! 

So I decided to only focus on food, specifically food waste. I was interested in this area because the food live broadcast (MukBang) is so popular right now through eating a lot of food, much more than normal adults. Then some of them were exposed that they vomited food after eating or during eating because of fake video editing.

Through these phenomenons, I wanted to talk about the food waste! It is still a broad topic, It is related to a lot of things. Combined with research, I will list them as much as I can. (I don’t know if we should ask more questions or write down what we have researched until now……)

1.Food wastes in manufacturing & society 

- Why are there so many food wastes in manufacturing? It includes how many different kinds of waste like issues in machines or employees’ management or others?

- Do any legislation in food manufactures prevent more food wastes? 

- In the holistic food chains, why is food manufacturing important in this chain? How many different fields is it related to? 

- How and why food waste in manufacturing will have important effects on others such as food businesses or customers, or the environment? 

- Any management or methods to prevent food manufacturing wastes? 

- The problems have lasted for a long time, why is it difficult for manufacturers to change and reduce the food wastes, any social or financial reasons? 

- As customers or food businesses, do they care more about issues during food manufacturing?

- Research core words from “Food industry wastes” : recycled society: reuse, avoid, recover, treat… / Green production which combines manufacturing industry and industrial ecology / Sustainability / Combine societal system and natural ecosystem (Some words I think relate to this areas) 

- MORE>>>

1.1. Methods: 

- Interview with food manufacturing managers:Any approach and methods they did to prevent the food wastes and food loss? 

- Taking videos and photos of working in the food manufacturing: How they work there and show the realistic senses of their ways to deal with food wastes or food loss?

- Surveys with customers: Do they care more about food manufacturing? Do they look at the dates and labels of food manufactures on the food packaging? How do they understand them? 

- MORE>>>

1.2. Research references: 

- Book: “Food waste and food labelling issues affecting the durability” 

- Book: “Food Industry Wastes: Assessment and recuperation of commodities” by Colin Webb and Maria R. Kosseva 

- Book: “Handbook of Lean Manufacturing in the food industry” by Michael Dudbridge 

- MORE>>>

2. Food safety: 

- Relating to food manufacturing, how can they prevent food safety problems? Why is it so important in the whole food chain? 

- For each part of the food chain, can they reduce the food waste and maintain the food safety at the same time? 

- What are the challenges to food safety? How can people measure food safety? 

- Looking at the food products in the markets right now, are they purely safe? 

- What different elements are related to food safety from production to consumption? 

- MORE>>>

2.1 Methods: 

- Interviews with food manufacturing managers: How do they maintain food safety?  Any important requirements for machines to workers? 

- Same interviews to the food businesses: restaurants, hotels or canteens, how do they deal with the problems? During the process, do they have more food wastes, or less? 

- Datas to show the food wastes during manufacturing. Different countries and different kinds of food…...

- Surveys or questionnaires of customers or businesses: What kind of levels they cared about food safety? Any different social background or educational background will influence them? Do they have basic knowledge on food safety? Do they trust any products or food products which are called high food safety? Any thoughts on relationship with food wastes and food safety

- MORE…..

2.2 References: 

- Book: “Make it safe: A guide to food safety” by Cairo Food CSIRO Food and Nutritional Sciences 

- Book: “Consumer Food Safety” by Chris Griffith 

- Food Radiation scanner to measure the food safety https://designawards.core77.com/2014/recipients/food-radiation-scanner/index.html

- Tupperware-style to show the food lifespan https://www.dezeen.com/2018/05/29/smarterware-ovie-smart-tupperware-internet-of-things-food-waste/

3. Food business: restaurants, hotels or canteens 

- After food manufacturing, why do they also have a lot of food wastes? Any influences on the environment and customers?

- How do they deal with the food wastes? Any good methods? Do they have chances to avoid food wastes?

- Why do food services (hospitality) also relate to food waste?

- For special situations like quarantine, do they have more food wastes or less, how do they deal with foods?  Any different bad or good effects will happen on them because of the special time?  

- I cannot think more…..

3.1 Methods

- Interviews I wrote before, also ask owners or workers in restaurants, hotels or canteens: how much food wastes they have per day? How do they deal with that? Do they have any awareness of food wastes and MORE…/ any costs on food, services…..

- Data on food wastes in food businesses

- Questionnaires: How customers look at food wastes in the food business? How do they think about some existing methods of preventing food wastes like “finishing 90% of your dishes” in a buffet……

- Taking videos and photos on restaurants or hotels I wrote before. 

3.2 References: 

- Book “Prevention of food waste in restaurant, hotels, canteens and catering” Talking about the avoidable food wastes / the relationship with food wastes with hospitality (food services) / some methods they used. 

- CULINARY SLOW FOOD PROJECT 

4. Consumers & others: 

- For consumers, what do they think about the food wastes in different industries? Do they have strong or less awareness of it? 

- During pandemic time, why have people changed behaviors and thoughts on food? They wanna to be more healthy or unhealthy? Do they have new different thoughts on food wastes? How many kinds of elements they relate to the customers’ behavioral changes, such as economics, sociology or psychology? 

- How can they avoid food wastes in daily life? If they have changed, what kind of results will happen, massive or small? 

- Why is connecting with relationships with food important? Such as through five senses? Do they largely affect people? 

- Do they know well about the different kinds of food? Are problems of food packaging as serious as food wastes? Do they relate with each other? 

- MOREEEEE - questions written before. I can not think more. 

4.1 Methods

- Questionnaires: Do they have different levels of awareness of food wastes(social, educational backgrounds) / any reasons they change the behaviors or thoughts on food? / do they accept the new innovation on food? 

- Data on consumers’ food waste 

4.2 References: 

- Change the way of looking at food . https://www.media.mit.edu/projects/transformative-appetite/overview/

- 3D printing food waste / different ways of using food waste / change the ways https://www.dezeen.com/2018/10/03/upprinting-food-elzelinde-van-doleweerd-beijing-design-week-upprinting-food-design/ https://www.dezeen.com/2017/11/29/creative-ideas-change-food-marije-vogelzang/https://www.dezeen.com/2016/12/29/universal-studio-produces-colourful-chocolates-from-3d-printed-moulds/

- Value our food in a different ways to reduce food waste: Good Food https://designawards.core77.com/Interaction/61179/GOOD-FOOD-Empowering-Food-Decisions

- Sage Project https://www.core77.com/posts/54916/Sage-Project-is-Changing-the-Way-We-Learn-About-Food

- Food Maps https://designawards.core77.com/2014/recipients/food-maps/index.html

- Ted Talks about how senses change the ways we look at the food? 

FINISHED

[thevengeanceuniverse]

Touch in the Dark Ch 2.2(Tony)

Tony helped Sarah make dinner that night, deciding on a simple but filling cacio e pepe with a nice wine accompaniment. He used his mamma’s pasta maker to start from scratch and let memories of her teaching him how to use it wash over him. Sarah was wonderful and took good care of him and Peter but it still ached to think about his mamma. She would have loved the warmth of the Rogers household, loved sharing recipes and gossip with Sarah in the kitchen, the two of them giggling like schoolgirls. She was the one who would pull him to dance with her in the kitchen, twirling around to the sounds of the radio. He missed the lightness of her spirit that was so visibly absent by the time of her death. He hoped Howard rotted in hell for the abuse that he had put his mamma through.

Pushing away the dark turn in his thoughts, Tony relaxed into the lull of working with his hands, letting it sooth him. Inevitably, his thoughts turned to his recent meeting with the Russian mob lord. He was worried about how to bring up the meeting with James to Steve, about the deal they had struck. His lover was so protective that he might outright reject the idea, but Tony knew that he couldn’t live with always needing to be protected. He knew what he was signing up for when he decided to keep living with Steve, work with him and love him. But Tony was still terrified. Howard may not have been his biological father but nurture was half of the equation. What if he ended up like the abusive bastard, crossing a line he couldn’t come back from?

He thought back to the things James had described. Killing Howard had been quick, one shot to the head and he was dead. Killing someone with a knife…drawing it across their neck and feeling the blood pour hot and wet over his hand…Tony felt his stomach lurch. God, what had he gotten himself into?

“Tony?” The sound of his brother’s voice snapped him out of his thoughts. Turning around, he moved to take 9-year old Peter into his arms.

“Hello, dear one. Did you finish reading your book?” Tony murmured into his hair in Italian.

Peter peeked up, eyes shining with excitement. “Yea! Oh, it was so fun, there was this pirate and his best mate and they sailed all around the ocean saving people from an evil king who wanted to rule over everyone! And there was this girl and everyone thought she was a spoiled princess but she was really an assassin and she ended up being the one to end the king and save everyone!”

“That does sound fun, cucciolo.” Tony leaned down and tickled his little brother’s sides. “Maybe one day you’ll run off and sail the seas, huh? And leave your poor brother all alone here?”

Peter screeched and wiggled to get away. “No! I pro-pro-promise I won’t leeeeave! Stoooooop!” He dissolved into giggles.

Tony kept going mercilessly, loving the look of joy in his brother’s face. He had filled out more and had lost that pinched look of worry that had been there when they were living with Howard. Being in the Rogers' household with lots of love and food from Sarah had been good for him. For both of them.

“What in the world is going on here?” Speak of the devil, there stood Sarah with her arms propped on her hips, and an incredulous look on her face. She faked a stern look towards Peter. “I thought I sent you to get the dishes to set the table, young man. And here I catch you playing?”

“N-no! It’s not m-my faaaaault!” Peter gasped helplessly. “Tony’s torturing me Auntie b-b-because he thinks I’ll run off and be a pirate!” At his name, Tony eased up, causing Peter to sag in relief.

Sarah chuckled, eyes shining at the two boys. “Well, come on then, stop lollygagging. Grab the plates, little Captain.”

“Yes, ma’am!” Peter saluted her before scurrying off and Tony exchanged a fond glance with Sarah over the boy’s dramatics.

The rest of dinner was reasonably calmer, Sarah and Steve asking Peter about any new friends in school and his lessons while Tony watched, feeling reflective and content. He did steal a glance here and there at Steve, but when the man raised a brow in question he merely shook his head and smiled.

After dinner, Tony and Steve made their way to the study on the first floor. They spent the time after dinner together, a private moment to just talk or dance to one of the records housed in the study or even just to cuddle. Whatever it was, Steve had made sure that any business he had didn’t cut into his personal time with Tony.

Tony settled on the couch, making himself comfortable as he thought of how to bring up his conversation with James.

Steve settled next to him, leaving a foot of distance between them so he could brace himself against the arm of the couch. His blue eyes were warm but assessing when they regarded Tony.

“You’ve been really quiet tonight.” Steve reached out to cup Tony’s cheek, brushing his thumb over the apple of his cheek in a light caress. Tony held the hand to his face, turning his face to press a drop a light kiss to the palm before pulling the hand down to hold on his lap.

“Do you remember when I first came here? You told me you were holding onto Howard, that you were saving him for me so that I could choose how to end his life?” Steve nodded but stayed quiet.

Tony took a deep breath. “I went to see James today.” But Steve simply nodded again. Of course he knew.

“I decided to take him up on his offer. I want to learn how to fight with a knife. I want to be able to stand beside you as an asset.” Steve didn’t bother to address that point just yet, he just sighed as he tugged Tony sideways into his lap, wrapping his arms around him.

“Are you sure?” His voice was soft. “You’ve already had a lot of violence in your life. Dealing it out is going to take a toll on you. It will make your nightmares worse, make you more paranoid about an attack, bring up a lot of dark memories even as it carves new ones into you.”

Tony leaned his head against Steve’s shoulder. He had thought about all this before going to see James but it still didn’t make the decision any easier. There was a part of him that wanted no part in hurting anyone. That remembered how even Howard’s arguably quick and merciful death had haunted Tony and wanted to let Steve continue to protect him.

But there was another part, one that he had tried to keep buried but it burned with a dark core in the pit of his stomach. It was the part of him that was angry at being hurt for so many years, the part of him that made him pick himself up after every drunken night and treat the bruises from his father’s fists. It was bitter that the people around him had just turned a blind eye to his suffering, never stepping in no matter how loud or vicious Howard had gotten. He had stopped waiting for someone to save him years ago, surviving only so that he could look after Peter and distract Howard from trying to take his anger out on the younger boy. That part of him was vengeful against the world and it wanted to carve out its own brand of justice.

“I don’t want to be a victim anymore, Steve.” Tony’s throat ached with anger and remembered pain. “I would rather die than be helpless again. I know that this will probably make things worse and cause more nightmares. But I need this. I need to be able to stop looking over my shoulder because I know that I have no way to defend myself. I need to have the power to take my safety in my own hands to protect myself and our family.” Tony reached up to bracket Steve’s face in his hands, letting him see the determination in his eyes. “And if that means learning to chop off the hands of anyone who wants to hurt Peter or Sarah or you, I’m going to do it.”

Steve groaned at the sharp edge in Tony’s voice before dragging him close for a desperate kiss. “You have no idea how beautiful you are when you’re vicious,” Steve whispered against his lips before leaning in to nip and suck at the lushness. The darkness in his veins growing heated, Tony clutched onto Steve just as fervently. Toppling himself back towards the cushions, he pulled at Steve’s lapels to pull him hard and heavy on top his body. Steve sank into the vee of Tony’s spread thighs, pressing against him with delicious friction. Things were quickly going out of control. They had never done anything other than kissing outside of their bedroom. Even in their home, the thought of being walked in on by Steve’s mother was too humiliating to bear.

But Tony couldn’t help it. He never expected Steve to respond like this. He had been worried that Steve would want to keep protecting him, unable to see him put himself at risk. And maybe a part of him always will, Tony didn’t delude himself, he felt the same need to protect Steve especially after nearly losing him. But this, this fevered need that seemed to delight in Tony’s desire for violence had been unprecedented. If he had known Steve would react in this hungry way that made him want to have Tony immediately, he probably would have spoken sooner. Talked about fighting and making life threats every damn day.

Steve rose a bit to pull at Tony’s shirt roughly, uncaring of buttons flying every which direction. He used his new access to his advantage, knowing how sensitive Tony was. Tony moaned at the feeling of Steve tongue on his nipples, fingers twisting and plucking the neglected one like a guitarist. He hissed at the sting when Steve bit lightly at them, then quickly soothing the hurt with his tongue. Tony started to feel fuzzy, like a wildfire was running in his blood and settling in his stomach to wind tight with anticipation and need. Steve’s mouth moved further downward, pausing just above Tony’s waistline to tease while his hands stroked his inner thighs. The strokes were firm but didn’t move closer to the spot where Tony desperately wanted to be touched and Tony whined with impatience.

“Steve, Steve,” he managed to gasp out, pulling at the short blond hairs at the nape of his neck to get his attention. “Please, I can’t wait.”

“I know, love, I know, just let me,” Steve murmured, reaching out for a small discreet drawer on the side table. He pulled out a small bottle of oil with one hand as he used the other to unbutton both their fronts.

“Come here,” he pulled at Tony’s arm, encouraging him to straddle Steve’s thighs and perch on his lap. Steve drizzled some of the oil in his hand before encircling both their members together. Tony’s breath hitched at the warm slickness, undulated his hips and fucking himself into Steve’s large hand. He was so beautiful, looking delightfully debauched with his blond hair mussed from Tony’s eager hands and lips red with Tony’s kisses. But it was the heat of Steve’s gaze on him that pushed Tony further to the edge. Overwhelmed with the feeling of being pressed tightly against each other, Steve’s firm strokes on them both, Tony threw back his head, back arching as his mind blanked out with pleasure. Spilling out into Steve’s hand, he was vaguely aware of Steve coming soon after, leaning forward to press his forehead against Tony’s chest as he choked out a muffled groan with his own release.  

Tony opened his eyes at the feeling of gentle lips on his, gazing down at a smiling and satisfied Steve. He smiled back, feeling the same satisfaction in his lax limbs. He knew their clothes were probably ruined, stained with oil and other fluids and his shirt hanging half off his body but he couldn’t find it in him to care. They’d have to sneak upstairs at some point and take a shower or at least wipe down with clean cloths but that could wait a minute. Right now, he just tugged his lover back close and they traded easy, lazy kisses, wrapped up in each other’s arms.

Read more on AO3 if you want: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23556382

[80s-roger]

a night to remember 2.2 - roger taylor {two females}

summary: tonight Roger would bring another female after the deal you both made when Freddie joined your sex life. Now you're the one who doesn't like to share her man with a girl. He low-key wants to take revenge.

warnings: FMF, f receiving, scissoring, pl, dt, swearing, face sitting, oral, protected sex (we don't want accidents!)

word count: 2475

masterlist

note: it was requested, however i was thinking if I should make a pt two or nah. but since you liked it, here it is! thank you for the unholy support! we're the best fandom and I say it on my experience, I was at the little mix fandom for many years, it was toxic af.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After that remarkable night you spend with your boyfriend and Freddie, it was about time to return Roger's favour. A female joining you this time. You didn't want another girl fucking your man, he's literally one of the most attractive men in the world; every female would like to spend a night with him. Your jealousy surpassed the limits.

He'd bring Jess, the girl with the big tits he was telling you about. You couldn't handle the competition. What if she's better than you on everything at sex? What if he just wants to sleep with another woman but he's throwing it like a favour after your request. Many questions bombed your head. Many insecurities came after your doubts. Aren't you good enough? Is he looking for a woman with big breasts, unlikely you? What if she's thin? Supermodel's height and weight? You wouldn't know until he would bring her home.

You didn't dress sexy, just some pyjamas, you didn't care. You would also leave these two in the bedroom do the dirty to avoid any body insecurities. You sat in the living room, watching tv until he opened the door and Jess walked first, looking at the house decoration impressed.

"Hey baby." He greeted you, placing a kiss at your lips.

"Hi." You greeted.

"This is Jess!" He was so excited, more than you were with Freddie and him. Jess came next to Roger, giving you her palm to introduce herself.

"Yeah fine, it's Y/N." You impolitely ventured.

Jess looked at Roger triggered. Roger tried to save the unsaved. You walked inside your bedroom, closing the door, unsure about everything. That could be abuse. Roger walked a few seconds later, closing the door, leaving just you two inside.

"Why are you being like this now?" He questioned, removing his black leather jacket; that one you love tearing off when you're both drunk.

"Because I don't want to do it!" You firmed.

"But you agreed with it!" He firmed back.

"Yeah because I wanted to do that! It wasn't some kind of revenge! What are you trying to prove me? You're a good fucker? I trust you!" You barked annoyed.

"I am, Y/N! But deal is a deal! And you have to accept it whether you like it or not!" He hissed.

"Fuck the deal! Just think about it; a woman I don't know is going to touch my privates! Do you have any idea how uncomfortable this makes me feel?" You stuttered.

"But she's a female, female body is the most attractive thing in the world." He moved his shoulders.

"That doesn't make sense Roger. You want me to touch her but you didn't want Freddie to touch you. That's unfair." You mocked him.

"Yes because that's not up to my standards. Its easier to get along with a female." Your voices got lower than it already was before. "Please, love, give it just one chance. Just one." He begged. "She's waiting outside." He whispered kissing your lips and later moved to your neck.

"I'm doing this because I love you." You consented, hugging him. You didn't tell him a single thing about your body insecurities. She must have the body.

"Jess, come inside!" Roger yelled at her. "Take off these pyjamas, they hide that fine body of yours." His voice got deeper. You let him undress you, leaving you at your lingerie. "I love that ass of yours." He bit his lip and squeezed your butt cheeks.

Jess walked inside wearing only her red lingerie. She was taller thank you, close to Roger's height. She was thin, having big tits, an average ass, a small waist, blonde long hair and juicy lips. Of course he would bring a woman like that.

"Hey beautiful." Jess smiled at you, hugging you provocatively, getting you away from your man's hug. She placed her hands at your cheeks and her lips at yours, kissing you gently and slowly. She smiled after your kiss. "I hope you'll like this. For your information, I'm bisexual, if that makes you feel better. I won't steal your man." She stated and that made you feel really better. You looked Roger relieved.

He removed his clothes, staying on his underwear, watching you two making out in front of him. You liked kissing her. Her hands caressed you everywhere. Roger was laid at his pillow, teasing his dick. He was in heaven right now.

"Y/N, don't be shy." Jess said between the kiss smiling. You weren't shy. Just the first time with a woman and your boyfriend watching. You had to overcome the obstacle of awkwardness so you just moved your hands at her back, removing her bra. Her breasts were now exposed to you. You looked at Roger, watching his reaction or if he'd like to see the rest.

"Fuck my baby, go on." He moaned.

You had her tits on your mouth, sucking them and licking them. She was softly moaning when her hands finally removed your bra too. You were both just on your panties' now both of you kissing and touching.

Roger stood up, facing you two. He gently grabbed your head kissing your lips while Jess sucked your nipples.

"You're so dirty when you want it." He whispered in your ear and moved to your neck biting you.

"Your dick is inside me tonight, I don't care." You provocatively said, grabbing his hair.

"Fine, you are so good already I can't say no." He closed his eyes when his hands touched your panties. "And wet too." He added.

Jess took off your panties, being the first of you all naked person. She gave kisses at your thighs, until she reached your pussy.

"Lay down beautiful." She smirked at you and Roger helped you get laid on bed.

Jess was between your legs, spreading them and revealing a wet pussy ready to be eaten out.

"I know you're liking it, already." Your boy whispered in your ear and walked behind her, removing her panties. She didn't really pay attention to him but to you. Her tongue began moving like crazy at your small lips and reaches your favourite part; your clit. Her two fingers were already inside you, thrusting inside-out. Roger was back at her, licking her pussy but you didn't bother as soon as she was more interested in you.

"Fuck..." You moaned biting your lip and your hand was pulling her hair, closer to your core.

"And you were hesitating..." she giggled and laid on top of you, kissing your lips and finally receiving a taste of you.

Roger was sitting right there, watching you. He already took his protection, ready to get inside you, standing between your legs while Jess, was sitting on your face.

"I really want to know how good you're going to eat me out." she grabbed your hand, and began moving her hips back and forward. Your other hand, grabbed her hip, squeezing it gently as your tongue started moving at her pussy. You couldn't deny how hot it was. You enjoyed that moment, you enjoyed sucking her.

"Baby, you're getting it right now, don't lose your tempo." Roger caressed your stomach, destructing you from the moment you shared with the model. You moaned as a sign of agreeing with him.

His dick, was inside you, moving in and out slowly. His hands were caressing and squeezing your hot curves and he was nothing but a moaning mess, seeing you in a middle of this explosive threesome. He sexually liked you even more than a week ago when Freddie was with you. "You're so tight baby, I can't stop moving inside you." He moaned.

"Fuck me Roger..." You said back, when your fingers began fucking Jess's pussy. She was up there, on top of you, rubbing her clit.

"Ah yes y/n, you're so good!" She loudly moaned and laid next to you, still rubbing her clit while watching Roger taking the entire control on you. He was standing on top of you, his face on top of yours, kissing you and biting you while he was still inside you. It was just you at the moment. He grabbed your thighs and his thrusts were more intense and slow against you.

"Fuck baby, I'm cumming." He said at your ear while your hands  were scratching his flawless back.

"F-Fuck, shit..." You gasped as he removed himself from you. Both of you breathing fastly. Jess got at him, jerking his dick off fastly, she was intensely looking at his eyes and put his size inside her mouth.

"Ah fuck... Fuck me." He moaned closing his eyes. She sucked his entire size like it was the easiest thing in the world, unlikely you, ready to be choked by the lack of air and the thickness of his penis. Instead, you got behind Jess, eating her out again. You got obsessed with that action.

She finally blew him off, and he just laid himself at the bed ready to see more. Jess was masturbating after the second orgasm you gave her, next to Roger as you got on top of him. Your tits were bouncing up and down at the beat you were moving around him.

"I want to taste you baby, I want you to cum on my mouth." He provocatively told you and bit his lip as you got up to his face. Enjoying the view, his tower. Jess took the chance and sat on his dick, moving at the beat you got to fuck him seconds ago. Roger was living the dream. Two women on top of him. Jess was playing with your nipples as you moved your hips on Roger's head.

Roger rubbed your clit as he found out you were on the edge of cumming again. He knew, you didn't have to tell him. When you came on his mouth, you sat at his stomach, making out with Jess when she was still fucking your boyfriend's material. "You enjoy fucking my boyfriend, don't you dirty slut?" You finally said a word, Roger didn't expect to.

"Wow fuck baby, that was unexpected." He moaned, unable to move.

"Get off his dick." Jealousy took over you and she laid next to you, watching you taking his size inside your mouth, accepting the challenge.

"Holy shit y/n... Ah..." He shouted when he pulled your hair, closer to him. "That's... f-" you stopped him by biting some of his skin down there. You finally got his entire size inside your mouth, reaching your throat until you couldn't stand the air lack. He looked at you proud and pulled your hair behind your ear. "You wanted another female to do that before you?" He smirked at you.

"No." You foretold. "I was awakened." You added winking at him.

"I knew you'd like it babe." He leaned in kissing you.

"But there's something more to try out." Jess opened her legs. "Just sit there and watch Roger. Jerking off is highly recommended." She implored.

"I'm so ready for this." He shook his head in anticipation.

You followed Jess's lead. She had your one leg on top of hers, sitting on top of her pussy.  "Move your hips baby..." She softly said touching your moving hips.

You did as she told you. Your pussies moving together, mixing your liquids that came out of them. Roger couldn't stop seeing you moving so harmonically when his dick was around his hand. He enjoyed watching you doing things with another female, especially scissoring.

"Ah fuck Jess..." You moaned when heat was about to take over your body.

"You eventually like this dirty whore?" She moaned, pulling your hair back and both of you moved faster.

"I can't do this anymore." You loudly said, when pleasure took over you. "Fuck." You said laying next to Roger when he cummed with you.

"That was perfect." Roger commented kissing you. "Good job my baby. You have to agree it was better than the previous time." He kissed your hand.

"Yeah because you had to fuck two females." You answered.

"Don't be petty, girl. He's a lady's man. What do you expect from him?" She genuinely asked looking at both of you. "I better get going. It was a hot night." She stood up, wearing her lingerie from the floor.

"Let me get the door for you." Roger said, wearing his underwear. "I'll be here in a minute." He turned his gaze at you.

"Enjoy the rest of the night." You greeted her when she vanished from the bedroom with your man.

"I could tell she's bisexual. So opening to the positions." Jess laughed when putting her clothes in the living room.

"I thought she'd literally leave when you stepped inside our home." Roger jested.

"Same but I changed my mind when she walked towards your bedroom." She wore her coat and opened the door.

"It was nice having you Jess." Roger smirked.

"Same Rog. Tell your girl, she had some good mouth skills." She laughed.

"Oh you better be sure about it." Roger bit his lip. "Goodnight." He held the door.

"Night Rog." She left and he closed the door returning to you.

"Where were you hiding these mouthing skills?" He laid next to you, destructing you from daydreaming.

"In a place called competitive department of mind." You ironically asserted.

"You've got a big mouth, don't you, young lady?" He grabbed your chin.

"I do have a big mouth." You raised your eyebrow, staring at his eyes.

"Do you think we should tighten it a bit?" he bit your lip within a short kiss you shared.

"No, it's not beneficial for your size." You mocked him but laughed on the joke.

"After praising my size, I won't tighten it." He laughed and pulled you closer to him. "I think I can happily die now. I had a threesome including a bisexual model and my future wife. I can say I did that with you." He said looking proud. Of course you wanted to marry him and have kids with him, you literally wanted to jump from happiness but you had to keep a low profile and probably jump on him another time, when he actually proposes because his words go with the flow.

"You would marry me when I'd let you bring a female in our bed? You can be an asshole from time to time." You shook your head annoyed.

"I'd marry you anyway. You just give extra credits." He boasted and both of you, turned opposite sides to sleep. "Oh. And I'm always an asshole." He bragged about it like it was an achievement.

"Fuck you and goodnight." You closed your eyes ready to sleep.

"Sure, with you tomorrow morning." You heard him murmur and rolled your eyes.

What a sex animal. He's never tired.

[jamesliamme]

realme C12 Review with Price in Bangladesh

Bangladesh, Oct. 27 -- Every month new phones are hitting the market with advanced features and smarter designs. But only a

few brands can keep the balance between the quality and price range. The trend-setter Smartphone

manufacturing company realme has acquired huge reputation among the mobile-enthusiasts for

offering quality phones with reasonable price-tags. In this legacy, realme has launched its latest

innovation realme C12 on the 26 th October, 2020. Stay with us to read the full review of realme C12

with its price in Bangladesh.

realme C12: Review of Key Features

Massive 6,000 mAh Battery

What makes realme C12 out-win the pricier competitors is its staggering battery power. realme shook

the world by offering an incredible 6000 mAh battery in its latest C12 Smartphone. It would be certainly

helpful for the users who would like to use this gadget for participating online classes/virtual meetings,

watching full movies/ TV series, playing high definition virtual games, doing social media lives, or many

more things.

More specifically, on a full charge, the realme C12's 6000mAh battery can support call time for 46 hours,

or PUBG gaming for about 10 hours, or YouTube video streaming for 28 hours, or music play for 60

hours. What is more? realme C12 promises about 57 days of standby support.

It often happens that the unused apps drain the battery of phones. Thanks to realme for providing C12

with the 'Quick App Freeze' app that assists in preserving battery life by closing with idle apps after

crossing the pre-specified time boundary. Furthermore, realme C12 is blessed with the 'Screen battery

optimization' feature that can slightly downgrade the resolution and display effects with the purpose to

extend the battery strength.

The box includes a 10W charger that supports reverse charging. On the moment of necessity, you can

utilize this phone as a power bank to charge up other phones via USB cables. What else you need?

Superb Nightscape AI Cameras

Nowadays, most of the consumers bear high expectation on the camera section while choosing any

Smartphone. The realme phones come with smart camera configuration and the latest C12 keeps up

this tradition. In this realme Smartphone, you get a triple AI rear camera setup including a 13MP

primary rear sensor, 2MP B&W and 2MP macro lens. On the front side, there is a 5MP selfie camera.

Its 13MP prime rear sensor featuring f/2.2 aperture can take decent photos under ample light

conditions. However, using the provided NightScape mode, you can improve the quality of photos

captured in low light situations. Moreover, this prime camera is bestowed with a 4X zooming capacity

that facilitates in taking lucid shots from long distance. It is a blessing for the amateur photographers.

The 2MP black-and-white portrait lens with f/2.4 aperture is capable of providing higher exposure while

detecting the edges of main subject correctly. This sensor also makes out brilliant contrast between the light and dark colors. And its 2MP macro lens bearing f/2.4 aperture aims to capture clear photos of tiny

objects. This 4cm sensor can cherish your desire for macro photography.

While taking snaps with rear camera series, you can apply the wonderful photographic features, such as

Portrait, Beauty, Expert, filter, HDR, Slo-mo, panoramic view, Time-lapse, etc. Speaking of the overall

image quality, the realme C12 does a great job considering its price range.

Now turning to the front screen of realme C12, you would find a 5MP selfie camera featuring f/2.4

aperture and 3p lens. This sensor takes attractive photos in adequate light conditions. The provided

creative photography functions including Portrait, Beauty, filter, panoramic view, Timelapse and HDR

would facilitate you in capturing versatile photos.

Despite being a highly affordable Smartphone, realme C12 can be used for shooting video clips. You can

shoot up to 1080p footage at 30fps. This phone also supports 720P slo-mo video shooting at 30fps. This

phone's video shooting option is enriched with a bunch of handy functions like panorama mode, HDR,

time-laps, etc. If you have a passion for video-graphy, realme C12 can certainly help you!

Elegant Slick Design

The realme C12 bears a 6.5-inch LCD multi-touch screen featuring an HD plus display with 1600-by-720-

Pixel of Resolution capacity. Its fantastic mini-drop design with an amazing 88.7% screen-to-body ratio

would blow up your mind. This wide screen can be prolific while doing professional works, watching

media or playing games. C12's display is protected by the Corning Gorila Glass that can save the screen

from accidental scratches.

realme claims that C12 offers about 420cd/m2 typical brightness at maximum. Certainly, this is good

news for those people who stay outdoor long hours of the day and expect great sunlight visibility. Unlike

other phones, the realme C12 lacks any camera bump that not only reflects its design efficiency; but also

makes this phone highly compatible for rough use in everyday life.

The realme C12 will captivate you with its elegant geometric gradient design. On the rear panel, it

presents the magnificent visual effects of diverse color-shades, and angle of lines induced by a creative

trapezoid divider. The realme C12 has a fingerprint sensor on its back panel. This phone is available in

two fascinating colors: Coral Red and Marine Blue.

Reliable Performance with Terrific Speed

The realme C12 is equipped with a 64-bit octa-core processor built with Cortex A53 cortex architecture.

This CPU sports the MediaTek Helio G35 12nm Soc combined with the PowerVR GE8320 GPU. The Helio

G35 is a gaming friendly chipset that assures an amazing combination of speed and efficiency. With the

utmost clock-speed of 2.3 GHz, realme C12's processor can deliver stunning performance while

operating diverse apps and running the latest gaming software. This phone is programmed with the

realme UI on top of Android 10 OS that runs fluently in day to day operations.

The realme C12 packs a LPDDR4X RAM of 3GB capacity. By virtue of its standard RAM power, C12's

graphics performance can be boosted up by 20 percents. In C12, about 32 GB of internal storage is

provided that is quite enough for regular applications. However, if you require much storage, insert an

external memory card up to 256 GB capacity.

The realme C12 can support dual nano SIM cards with a microSD card. Here you also get a 3.5mm

Headset Jack and Micro-USB. This Smartphone has all the essential sensors including Fingerprint sensor,

Light Sensor, Magnetic induction Sensor, Proximity Sensor, and Acceleration Sensor. Its navigation

system includes GPS/Beidou/Glonass.

realme C12 Price in Bangladesh

The price of realme C12 is only BDT 10,990 in Bangladesh. However, the price may vary depending upon

circumstances.

Verdict

The realme C12 presents a proficient combination of software and hardware. Here you get a 6.5-inch

HD+ display, 6000 mAh huge battery, 3GB RAM, 32 GB internal storage, triple AI Nightscape camera and

the Helio G35 gaming processor. Considering the price-range realme C12 packs exciting features. If you

are on the search of the best Smartphone under 11000, don't miss realme C12!

Read: realme 7 Pro Review with Price in Bangladesh

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from United News of Bangladesh.

[pcttrailsidereader]

8 Tips for Preventing Injury and Making the first 100 PCT miles a Success

Originally posted on February 26, 2018 on 2 Foot Adventures  . . . this advice is very wise.  I have seen lots of otherwise strong hkers in agony not far from Campo because they went too far, too fast.  Blisters, stress fractures, and strains can all derail the best plans.

The PCT is a journey, not a race. This can’t be overstated enough as you embark upon the first 100 miles of your 2,660-mile hike to Canada. Injury is among the top reasons hikers leave the trail in the first 100-300 miles. The tips provided below will help you avoid injury and keep you walking happy and healthy well beyond these first miles.

BEFORE THE TRAIL

8. Train - So many thru-hikers neglect this part. Being physically fit before starting the trail is the #1 way to avoid injury on the trail. It’s not a requirement, but it is REALLY REALLY helpful and makes the first 100 miles a little easier. Even if you are fit, the first 100 miles is still tough and will challenge you in ways you never dreamed before. If you live in a place not conducive to training outdoors there are lots of ways you can train indoors. The areas of focus should be:

~ Time on your feet with your backpack fully loaded. One hiker in 2017 told me she lived way up north, almost in the Arctic Circle, and she walked circles in her living room for up to 8-hrs a day to get her body ready. Maddening! But she arrived strong and fit and ready for the trail.

~ Develop strong legs, core, back, and shoulders. When you hike for many hours a day with a backpack on your body gets tired and your body mechanics begin to breakdown. Once your body mechanics breakdown you need to stop hiking ASAP! Continuing on can quickly develop into an injured knee, hip, shoulder, etc. Strengthening these areas ahead of time is better than doing this on trail.

~ Develop a stretch routine that targets all your major muscles. Having a stretch routine before the trail will make doing it on trail much more likely and it’s a very good habit to get into when hiking for 8-10+ hrs/day.

ON THE TRAIL

Certainly not THAT much!

7. Carry just enough water - I know, you’re starting your hike off in the desert. It’s hot. All the books/blogs say there’s no water for the first 20 miles. Have you looked at the PCT Water Report available here? Often times there is water in the first 20 miles it's just a short hike off trail, but there is water. In a wet year there are numerous water sources on trail during these miles. IF you decided you don’t want to walk off trail to get water then consider these items when planning the amount of water you’re going to start with.

~ What is the weather? - If it’s a cool cloudy day and rain is expected (this does happen) then you won’t need to carry the conventional 6L of water at the start.

~ Are you a small, medium, or large guy/girl? - A small female will not need to carry as much water as a large man. Analyze your size and water needs. I am a 120-lb female and started my PCT hike on a day with temperatures topping 100 degrees Fahrenheit. I hiked 15 miles to Houser Creek my first day. I used water in a lunch, dinner, and breakfast before reaching Lake Morena. I began with 4 liters of water and still had some left when I reached the lake. I’m from Southern California and was well acclimated to exercising in the heat.

~ How many miles are you hiking your first day? - There’s no need to hike all the way to Lake Morena on Day 1. You can split it into 2 days. If you haven't be able to train enough, plan to do it in 1.5-2 days and plan on walking the short distance off trail to get additional water so you are more comfortable during the hours and miles you are walking on the first couple of days. You’ll have plenty of time to do this and take numerous breaks.

Water is heavy, weighing approximately 2.2-lb or 1-kg per liter. It’s important that you know where your next water supply will be so you carry just a tad more than what is needed to get there. Be realistic about your water needs and know in many places you can hike a little off trail and get more water if needed. Know where those sources are BEFORE you set out each day and don’t rely on water caches. While 3rd Gate is usually stocked during the season, even if it’s out, there’s a hose a little further off the trail where you can get water.  

6. Reduce your food - Most hikers carry way too much food their first 100 miles. They dump half their resupply box into the hiker box and groan about the wasted money and weight they’ve been lugging around for the past week. When packing your food consider the following:

~ Hiker hunger doesn’t kick-in for a couple weeks, sometimes longer.

~ When it’s really hot most hikers don’t feel like eating a whole lot.

~ When you’ve walked all day in the heat and you’re exhausted, you don’t feel like cooking a hot dinner. Although if you’ve followed the advice above you won’t be exhausted. You will have taken plenty of breaks and not walked more miles than your body was ready for.

~ There are cafes/restaurants and resupply options available every 20-35 miles for the first 100 miles. Make use of those and don’t carry so much food with you to start. Your backpack will be lighter, your body will feel better, and this will reduce the chance of injury.

5. Don’t carry “backup” anything - I can write a book about all the “back-up” and “extra” things hikers carry in their backpacks. You haven’t hiked the PCT before or any long trail so you (or your family/friends) have a long list of “what-ifs” that you feel you need to prepare for. 99.9% of those things will not materialize. You only need the absolute essentials. You don’t need an extra shirt or pair of shorts. You don’t need 2 books. You don’t need 3 flashlights and 2 extra fire starting items. You don't need bear spray or a machete or even a bear canister. What you do need is a backpack that is light enough that you are comfortable carrying your food, water, and essential supplies. You may think that you will have tons of time to do “insert some activity here”, but you’ll be too tired to want to do those things, or you’ll be too busy making new friends, making dinner, napping, or looking at what’s ahead for tomorrow.

4. Take Lots of Breaks - You’re walking far, very very far, almost 3,000 miles! Stop and rest. Take off your backpack. Take off your shoes and socks. Stretch. Eat. Hydrate. Taking frequent breaks helps your body avoid injuries by giving it rest and an opportunity to move in a different way. Overuse injuries are VERY common on the PCT and result in hundreds of hikers leaving the trail. It’s advisable that during breaks you take time to massage your aching feet and legs. Move your body throughout a range of motions that are different from walking. It will feel good, trust me! And this is a great habit to form.

OK . . . not THAT big.

3. Get really big shoes - Shoes are tough. Most hikers start with shoes they consider to be big. They size up a half or whole size and feel like they have lots of room in there for their foot to grow. The reality is your feet are going to swell up to 2 sizes during the desert and here’s why. You’re walking EVERYDAY. You’re walking FAR everyday. You’re walking with more weight than you trained with. You’re walking up and down mountains. You’re walking in 100 deg heat. All these factors contribute to big feet! Do yourself a favor and get really big shoes; your feet will thank you!

2. Leave your ego at home

- Sure, go ahead and laugh. You think you don’t have ego or you won’t fall into the pressure to hike more miles than you set out to do, but it happens…a lot. You’re in a new place. You’ve met a couple of really awesome people that you click with and want to hike with but they walk just barely faster than you. They walk a few more miles than you. Having them “leave you” isn’t something you want to think about so you do just a little more to keep up with them and then it happens….BOOM! You’re injured. Now you’ll get way behind them. Now you’re spending money resting in town trying to figure out if you can keep hiking at all. Don’t let this happen! Know that these awesome people will be in the next town when you get there. You will see them again and again and again. You will meet other amazing people. There’s NO reason to hike even slightly out of your comfort zone and it’s a REALLY bad idea in the first 100 miles. Let the speed demons go by you. You might see them laid up in the next town with a blown out knee or shin splints. HYOH - Hike Your Own Hike! Most importantly, Take Care of You!!!

1. Be a tortoise, not a hare

- What?!? Go SLOW! Take your time and ease into thru-hiking. Thru-hiking is incredibly strenuous especially when you are starting out. Your body isn’t used to the demands of hiking every single day with so much weight, in the heat, and up and down mountains that have trails that are slightly cantered to the left and then to the right. Make a plan for your first couple of weeks on trail. Be super conservative with your miles. Plan a couple of weeks at 10 -14 miles a day, less if needed. Plan to take a zero (no hiking day) at least every 5-7 days. Take several half days if you are near town. You don’t have to actually hike your planned miles every single day. Be realistic about your starting fitness. If you’re really fit, your backpack is light, and you’ve trained consistently, then maybe you can do 15-18 miles a day right off. For the vast majority of hikers, that’s too much. Don’t bother planning every day of your hike though. Things happen on the trail that you have no control over. Despite your best efforts you might have a nagging pain starting. There might be dangerous weather up on the ridge you where you were planning to camp. It’s good to be flexible with your plan, listen to your body, and take additional breaks.  

Keep in mind, the first 100 miles is indeed the toughest! That’s not to say that any single mile after 100 will be easy, but if you follow these tips, you’ll set a solid foundation for your PCT thru-hike that will last for many miles beyond the first 100.

[televisedbirdwatching]

Corbusian Hellscapes Vol. 2: Pruitt-Igoe

Last weekend, I watched a documentary on the Pruitt-Igoe housing projects in St. Louis (if you’re interested in watching it yourself, you can find it on Kanopy, which you probably have access to through your local library). The Wendell O. Pruitt Homes and William Igoe Apartments were high-rise development projects built in St. Louis in the mid 1950’s. Designed to re-house people affected by slum clearance policies popular with housing authorities in the early post-war period, the Pruitt-Igoe buildings were futuristic in their design, and were supposed to set a new standard for public housing policy. Instead, the project is uncontroversially regarded as a failure, and was demolished in 1971.

Many people know of Pruitt-Igoe’s demolition thanks to this scene from the cult movie Koyaanisquatsi.

“The Pruitt-Igoe Myth,” which borrows the name and repackages ideas from Katherine G. Bristol’s 1991 paper linked here, sets out to challenge the predominant idea that Pruitt-Igoe’s failure was a direct result of its design. When the first explosives brought down the first buildings, architecture critic Charles Jenks said “Modern Architecture died in St. Louis, Missouri, on July 15, 1972, at 3.32 p.m. (or thereabouts), when the infamous Pruitt Igoe scheme, or rather several of its slab blocks, were given the final coup de grace by dynamite.” Instead, Katherine Bristol argues that the demise of Pruitt-Igoe was primarily driven by social and economic factors.

"This paper is an effort to debunk the myths associated with the demolition of the Pruitt-lgoe public housing project. In the seventeen years since its demise, this project has become a widely recognized symbol of architectural failure. Anyone remotely familiar with the recent history of American architecture knows to associate Pruitt-lgoe with the failure of High Modernism, and with the inadequacy of efforts to provide livable environments for the poor. It is this association of the project's demolition with the failure of modern architecture that constitutes the core of the Pruitt-lgoe myth. In place of the myth, this paper offers a brief history of Pruitt-lgoe that demonstrates how its construction and management were shaped by profoundly embedded economic and political conditions in postwar St. Louis”

Pruitt-Igoe was a failure but it came from good intentions. Here, Mayor Raymond Tucker looks out over a section of the Mill Creek Valley slated for demolition in 1956- just as Pruitt-Igoe was beginning to peak in population. A 1950 report on slums in America had this to say “The 1950 census showed that of a total of 29.2 million urban dwelling units in the nation, 1.6 million were in dilapidated condition. But many of 27.6 million non-dilapidated structures were not much better. Of these 2.2 million lacked indoor toilets, 4.7 million were without private bathing facilities, 3.2 million had no bathtub or shower at all, 1.1 million lacked running water and 3.1 million had cold water only. In 1950 a total of slightly over six million homes, approximately 20 per cent of all city dwellings, failed to meet minimum standards of decency and sanitation.”

Part of this history includes demographic shifts that would create constant vacancy problems at Pruitt-Igoe. In the post-war era, predominantly black populations moved out of the rural south and into northern cities in search of economic opportunity. While black inner-city slums grew, middle and upper-class whites moved outside of the city limits, creating new towns and suburbs. Some of this phenomenon was motivated by shifting consumer preferences and the idealization of the suburban home. Some of this phenomenon was motivated by overt racism: a memorable moment in the documentary included archival footage from St. Louis local news, in which a new suburbanite tells the interviewer that he liked his new ranch home better than his city home since he no longer had to live near “ you know, trash people”. However, as middle-class whites vacated city properties, they created a market vacuum that allowed lower-income black residents to rent these properties, meaning there was less reason for Pruitt-Igoe-style housing (this is one, strange type of “filtering,” which I’ve talked about on this blog before). In effect, by the time Pruitt-Igoe was built, it was no longer needed. Occupancy peaked at 91% in 1957, three years after opening, and consistently declined until 1972.

Newsreel from 1968 in which many of the buildings lost heat and water over the winter. 

Pruitt-Igoe’s constant struggles with vacancy highlight an issue brought on by the project’s financial structure. The money for the construction of Pruitt-Igoe was federal money under the direction of the St. Louis Housing Authority. In a utilitarian effort to house as many people as possible with a limited budget, the Housing Authority chose to build Corbusier-esque high-rise apartments. The furnishing, the windows, and the electrical systems were cheap and inadequate from the beginning. The cost for maintenance and upkeep of the buildings, however, was not included in the federal grant and was instead funded through the rent paid by tenants. Since there were never as many tenants as expected, there was never as much money for maintenance as needed. A lack of funding combined with cheap initial construction meant that the buildings quickly fell into disrepair and disarray, re-creating the slums the residents had been forcefully displaced from a few years earlier.

What Bristol wants to argue is that economic and social factors were the primary causes of Pruitt-Igoe’s failure. However, this is not to say that the design features of the Pruitt-Igoe buildings are blameless. For example, the buildings featured “skip-stop elevators” that only stopped every three floors- the idea being that residents would have to walk through common areas in order to reach their apartments, creating social cohesion and a community feel. Instead, Bristol writes “The undersized elevators are brutally battered, and they reek of urine from children who misjudged the time it takes to reach their apartments. By stopping only on every third floor, the elevators offer convenient settings for crime. ....The galleries are anything but cheerful social enclaves. The tenants call them ‘gauntlets’ through which they must pass to reach their doors.” Jane Jacobs, writing in “The Life and Death of Great American Cities” about similar high-rise projects in Brooklyn, notes that in order to supplement the fact that children cannot play in apartment hallways, architects create play-spaces in the large flat areas between buildings. “In most cases… the most significant change is this: The children have been moved from under the eyes of a high numerical ratio of adults, into a place where the ratio of adults is low or even nil… To think this represents an improvement in city child rearing is merely daydreaming.” The design of Pruitt-Igoe, founded on Corbusian ideals, ended up providing excessive private space, away from public eye, where intruders and residents alike could commit violent acts, form gangs, and sell drugs.

Recommended further reading:

Bristol’s 1991 paper on Pruitt-Igoe.

This short video on high-rise public housing.

A report on slum clearance policies in the immediate postwar period.

[your-dietician]

Why CPI data is such a big stock-market mover this year

New Post has been published on https://medianwire.com/why-cpi-data-is-such-a-big-stock-market-mover-this-year/

Why CPI data is such a big stock-market mover this year

Another consumer-price index, another big market move.

U.S. stocks mounted a remarkable turnaround on Thursday with the Dow Jones Industrial Average surging nearly 1,500 points from peak to trough, after a sharp selloff early in session sparked by hotter-than-expected U.S. inflation data.

The consumer-price index increased 0.4% in September, higher than the 0.3% consensus forecast polled by Dow Jones, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, the core CPI is even more worrisome, jumping a sharp 0.6% against the estimate of a 0.4% increase. 

“They’re just not good news,” said Chris Campbell, chief policy strategist at Kroll. “What they (Federal Reserve) have done has not yet worked, so they brought out the big guns by raising interest rates, and more of the smaller guns by instituting quantitative tightening, but even those two together have not borne fruit.”

The hotter-than-expected inflation report sent three stock indexes tumbling early in the session with the S&P 500 SPX, +2.60% plunging 2.4% to its lowest level since November 2020, but the large-cap index finished 2.6% higher led by gains in energy and financials stocks, a swing of over 5% in total. It was also the first time on record that the Dow has risen at least 800 points in the same trading day that it was down at least 500 points at its low, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

See: Dow ends over 800 points higher as stocks stage massive turnaround after hot inflation reading

Michael Landsberg, chief investment officer at Landsberg Bennett Private Wealth, said what happened to stocks this morning was just a “knee-jerk reaction” and “you (stock market) are going to have to bounce here, but the trend is lower.”

Hot inflation readings have been responsible for some of the biggest declines for the S&P 500 occurring on or around CPI reporting days in 2022. Two of the S&P 500’s nine largest down days this year have come on days when CPI data was released, noted Nicholas Colas, co-founder of DataTrek Research. Without those nine down days, the S&P 500 would have been up 8.6% year-to-date through the end of last week, he wrote.

See: What stock-market investors will be watching in Thursday’s U.S. inflation report

Why is the CPI data so moving?

The Federal Reserve has made getting a grip on inflation its objective.

“The Fed is to become more aggressive in their stance and those aggressive moves have a significant impact on the economy and (on) public and private markets and what everyday Americans probably live their lives,” said Campbell. “Slowing down the economy, there might be slowing down inflation and [that] also typically comes with a reduction in jobs. It comes with a decrease in wages. All of those issues deeply impact many hard working Americans.” 

According to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool, as of Thursday afternoon, market participants priced in 96.6% odds of another 75 basis point hike at the Fed’s Nov. 1-2 meeting, and a 3.4% probability that the Fed will increase rates by 100 basis points.

See: Hot U.S. inflation is boosting market expectations for a 5% or higher fed-funds rate in a matter of months

Landsberg said the reason behind selloffs on CPI reporting days isn’t down to just the inflation data itself, but the fact that when investors see disappointing report, it tells them that the Fed is not stopping anytime. 

“We don’t really have inflation coming down meaningfully in the middle of next year,” Landsberg said, killing the notion the Fed is set to pivot away from its aggressive tightening pace.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average  DJIA, +2.83%  rose 2.8%, posting the largest one day percentage gain since Nov. 9, 2020, after dropping nearly 550 points at its session low. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 2.2%.

Read the full article here