#i almost said 8 but saw raisins at the last minute

[louiseleblancdiggory]

Congrats on 900 followers! Can I request “we could get arrested for this” for rowaelin?

I love Rowaelin!! They’re my favorite couple ever and both Rowan and Aelin are my comfort characters. Writing this was fun and I am seriously thinking about doing a smaller part two, just to show what happened afterwards. Hope you enjoy!!

Word Count: 1762

We could get arrested

--

Rowan was pissed.

Actually, pissed didn’t cover half of what he was feeling right now. He should currently be at his apartment, sitting with Aedion and Fenrys. Studying.

Rowan was on his last year of college, pre-law was fucking kicking his ass and although he loved his classes and loved law, he had to admit that he was starting to feel the weight of the next three and a half years closing in on him. He and Aedion would need to take the LSAT in a few months, Fenrys taking the MCAT around the same time. They should be locked up in their apartment reading their textbooks until their eyes looked like raisins.

Instead, Fenrys had left to meet with Asterin around 8 PM. Bored out of his mind, Aedion convinced Rowan to take a quick break and go see his girlfriend at a pub by the end of the street. Just a few minutes, he’d said. Then we can go back to our misery.

A few minutes became a few hours and now Rowan was sitting at a booth with the most insufferable being he had ever had the displeasure of meeting. Aedion and Lysandra had ditched him, both going back to her dorm and leaving him with Aedion’s cousin. Aelin was everything that annoyed him. She was loud and talkative, never knowing when to shut the fuck up. The girl was always being sarcastic or teasing anyone around her, and she seemed to think that annoying Rowan was an art form. While Rowan was serious and contained, always the stoic law student, Aelin was an explosion of colors and and cheerfulness. She was in her sophomore year of college double majoring in art and history, and that somehow fit her personality just right.

Like a magnet, his eyes fell on her face again. Creamy golden tan skin, bright blond hair and full lips, Rowan more times than not caught himself staring at her. She was alluring in an infuriating way.

“Can you stop with the pouting? I’m gonna start thinking you don’t like me very much, Ro.” She smiled at him, blood red lips fully parting. As much as it pained him to admit, Aelin was gorgeous. Probably the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. The first time he saw her by Aedion’s side, he contemplated asking her out.

But then she opened her pretty mouth and started talking.

“I don’t.”

Her blue eyes ringed with gold gleamed at his response, almost as if he had asked her to try changing his mind. He groaned, drinking the rest of his beer. He was half tempted to just go back home, but as much as he didn’t like Aelin, he wouldn’t leave her alone in a pub at 2 in the morning. Her dorm wasn’t that close, and she had been drinking. Maybe not enough to be drunk, but slightly tipsy.

As much as Aelin managed to get under his skin with just a few words, he wouldn’t leave her to walk to her dorm alone. Damn, he wouldn’t even leave her at the bar alone. Not because she couldn’t manage herself, because Aelin Galathynius could very well stand her ground, but because he would be preoccupied until the next time he saw her. He kept telling himself he would feel like this regarding any of his girl friends, but Aelin wasn’t his friend. He would then tell himself that it was because she was Aedion’s cousin.

“I am not that bad, you know.” She said, his head whipping at her direction when he heard her hurt tone. The last thing he needed was to get on Aelin’s bad side, which would also lead to Aedion’s bad side. And Fenrys’s. And Lysandra’s. She was, however, smiling at him. She placed a hand above her heart in a mocking gesture. “You break my heart when you act like this, baby.”

“You’re a fucking child.” He got up, grabbing his jacket. It was almost Yulemas week, and Orynth was fucking frigid during this time of the year. It was a miracle that it wasn’t snowing. “Get your pretty ass up, Princess. I’m taking you home.”

“You think I have a pretty ass?” She laughed but got up once he narrowed his eyes at her. “And called me princess… Maybe you don’t hate me as much as you think you do, Whitethorn.”

“I’m just tired of playing your babysitter. I can find more interesting things to do.” He sighed, grabbing her coat and handing it to her, not letting go even when she grabbed it. He was too focused on her eyes that gleamed again but a little differently this time.

“I think I can find more interesting things to do and ways in which you can play with me, too, Ro.”

He was too stunned by her words that when she pulled her coat from his hands, he simply let it go. Aelin had always been flirty with everyone in their friend group, always joking around, but the way she had said it had been different. There was a buzzing inside Rowan’s head, and he swallowed as he watched her put on her coat.

Maybe he was imagining things. He had drank a few beers, and the lightning in the pub was terrible. He was just imagining that she was serious about her words, that he would have been struck dumb by any girl saying that. Any girl with bright golden hair, the most enticing blue eyes he had even seen and full red lips. He was just imagining that her voice had dropped, that her eyes had darkened and that her smile shifted so slightly.

Just imagining.

Right.

“You coming, buzzard?” She called after him and started walking towards the exit. With her normal attitude back, he snapped back to reality. Rowan clenched his jaw and did not stare at Aelin’s back profile. It was unfair how the rest of her was just as beautiful as her face.

“Brat,” he breathed.

“Brute,” she replied.

Because she couldn’t see his face, Rowan smiled a little at that.

Once they stepped outside of the pub, the cold air immediately punched them full force. As Aelin had been born and raised in Orynth, she was already used to it. Rowan, however, still missed the very mild winters from Doranelle.

“Can’t handle a little cold?” Aelin teased.

“If you think that this is ‘little cold’ I really don’t want to imagine how it was during your childhood.” He grunted, shoving his hands inside his pockets. To his dismay, Aelin looped her arm through his and started walking in the general direction of her dorm. “This is torturous for anyone who grew up in a hot place.”

“Doranelle, right?” He merely nodded, his face too stiff to talk. “The accent gives away. And the fact you can’t handle a little cold.”

“Aelin, I am sure I can feel my fingers freezing.”

“And I am the fucking child?” She laughed up at him, the sound of her voice making him relax a little. She pressed into his side, passing an arm through his middle. “There, I’ll make sure you don’t freeze to death. I’m hot enough to do that.”

It was his turn to laugh, but it sounded more like a snort. They walked in silence for a while, and it wasn’t a horrible experience. Walking with Aelin through the streets of Orynth, seeing the Yulemas decorations with her pressed against his side wasn’t that horrible. He wouldn’t mind doing it again.

What?

Before he could stop and think about that thought, Aelin’s voice rang out. “I meant it earlier, you know?” And suddenly his heart was pounding on his chest, the blood roaring on his head and he miraculously wasn’t cold anymore.

“About what?” He tried to keep his voice calm.

“About me not being that bad.” He was filled with relief and disappointment at the same time. He had certainly been thinking about something else she had said. “I know that you are all serious and boring,” her voice was normal, but she was smiling at the words. “But I am actually more than your best friend’s annoying cousin.”

“Oh yeah, I know. You were never Aedion’s annoying cousin in my head, just a random annoying person. All by yourself, so don’t worry.” He said seriously, but the corner of his lips were turning upward. It was hard to keep from smiling especially when Aelin looked up at him with narrowed eyes.

“You are an asshole. Like grade-A asshole.”

“As I have been told.”

“It’s probably a lawyer’s thing.”

“Said the art major. Isn’t being an asshole part of your curriculum?” He said, earning a pinch to his side in response. He laughed, seeing his breath in front of him. He looked around a bit, realizing that they weren’t even going in the direction of Aelin’s dorm anymore. “Galathynius.”

“Yes?” She said sweetly, as if she had already realized that he had realized they weren’t where they were supposed to be.

“Where are we?”

She started walking slower when they reached an old building. Aelin pulled him into an alley, stopping right in front of a back door for the building. She let go of Rowan and crouched, taking a pin from her head and starting to pick the lock.

“What the fuck are you doing?”

“You’re a smart boy, you already know. I’m breaking and entering.” She said matter-of-factly.

“We could get arrested for this, Aelin!” He was trying to keep his voice down, but he really wanted to scream at her right now. “It’s not like I can afford going to jail. Stop this shit and let me take you home.” He was about to say more when he heard footsteps behind him. When he turned, there was no one there. Rowan was about to leave the alley to see if it was someone when Aelin let out a triumphant noise and the door opened. “No. No, no no, no.”

“I’ve been here before alone. The building doesn’t have security cameras, and it is abandoned.” She said, stepping in. “Live a little. You’ll have time to be a holier than thou, perfect law abiding lawyer for the rest of your life. Right now let me show you my special place.”

He was still wary. “Why?”

Aelin understood the question, that he wanted to know why she was showing him her ‘special place’. She smiled broadly at him, fully entering the building. “Because you said I had a pretty ass, Ro.”

[aboutcaseyaffleck]

Actor Casey Affleck Reflects On The Past And 'The World To Come'

The last time I saw Casey Affleck was after an 8:30 a.m. Sundance Film Festival screening of “Manchester by the Sea,” which left my colleagues and I so emotionally drained we were pretty much useless for the rest of the day. Affleck finds this very funny. “Oh man, that’s awesome,” he laughs. “That was a tough screening. At Sundance I’m usually just going to sleep at 8 a.m.” We’re talking on the phone a few days after the festival’s virtual premiere of his latest movie, “The World to Come,” which made its Sundance debut last month under very different circumstances. “It’s so strange doing these things sitting in front of your computer,” he sighs.

Directed by Mona Fastvold, “The World to Come” is a powerful period piece about a forbidden love affair between pioneer women played by Katherine Waterston and Vanessa Kirby, set in upstate New York during the early months of 1856. Affleck produced the picture, in which he plays a supporting role as Waterston’s uncomprehending husband, and he did his best to soldier through a crowded Zoom Q&A after the Sundance screening, with results pleasant enough, but nonetheless missing that in-person festival magic. “I used to love going to film festivals and talking to journalists and seeing all the movies and talking to other filmmakers,” he laments. “Sitting here alone in a little office in my house is such a drag. But it was nice to know that the movie was getting seen, at least.”

While big brother Ben plays Batman in studio pictures, Casey has exhibited a restless independent streak ever since he was a student at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School. (Our ninth-grade classes competed against each other in the Mass. High School Drama Guild Competition. His won, perhaps unsurprisingly.) A longtime friend of the Brattle Theatre and former creative advisor for the Independent Film Festival Boston, the younger Affleck has always seemed more at home in indies. Not a lot of actors would follow an Oscar-winning role in “Manchester by the Sea” with a microbudget art film like “A Ghost Story.” But then his internalized, minimalist acting style is often at odds with the concerns of contemporary blockbusters. There’s a weird dissonance watching something like Disney’s hokey Chatham sea adventure “The Finest Hours,” with Affleck going full Montgomery Clift while surrounded by CGI silliness.

“The World to Come” is the most ambitious project yet from Affleck’s Sea Change Media, which partnered with Pamela Koffler and Christine Vachon’s legendary NYC indie institution Killer Films for the arduous production that began with a conversation between Affleck and novelist Ron Hansen nearly a decade ago. “When I did ‘The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford’ I got to know Ron Hansen, just because I loved the book so much. Ron has a very unique talent for writing 19th century language. He’s just from another era. I asked him if he had something he wanted to work on together, and I thought he would send me one of his things. Instead, he sent me this story by Jim Shepard. It was beautiful. I said, why don’t you and Jim write the script? And they took about six years, but it came together beautifully. Good things come to those who wait, I guess.”

The film eventually shot in Romania with a break built into the schedule to accommodate the changing seasons that are so crucial to the movie’s rugged, outdoor textures. “We were way out in Transylvania, out in the mountains,” Affleck explains. “We were just in some valley and they built a couple of farmhouses. I like being far away in a new place. It makes you feel outside of your life. And I love working in weather. There are so many aspects of moviemaking that are artificial, but when there’s extreme weather, it’s real. I did this Disney movie about a boat rescue, and it was, like, December in friggin’ Quincy and they were just soaking us with water every single take. There’s not a lot that you have to quote-unquote act. You’re just standing there, teeth-chattering, shivering, just being.” This reminds me of the scene in “Manchester” when he and Lucas Hedges have an argument walking in the blistering cold and can’t remember where they parked. “I forgot about that one,” he laughs.

I’d never say so on the phone, but I consider Affleck’s performance as Lee Chandler in “Manchester by the Sea” among the finest I’ve seen in my 22 years of reviewing films, worthy of discussion alongside Brando’s Terry Malloy in “On the Waterfront” in its aching, inchoate longing. Lee holds his grief somewhere very private and dear, as if to begin to forgive himself would be an act of betrayal. The movie nails a gruff, emotional constipation popular among men of a certain stripe, especially in New England. (My mother offered my favorite review of the film: “Why don’t they just talk to each other? Jesus, this is like watching you and your father.”) Words don’t come easily to most of Affleck’s movie characters, but he chafes at the description of them as inarticulate. “It’s funny, I find the characters in ‘Manchester’ to be sometimes very articulate,” he argues. “There’s misunderstandings, but they end up communicating what’s inside.”

“The World to Come” is rife with such mixed signals and miscommunications, about which co-star Katherine Waterston raved during the Zoom Q&A after the Sundance screening. “It was so much fun to play the scenes with Casey,” she said. “A lot of these scenes are written as dances, where somebody tries to reach out and engage and they’re misunderstood. Inarticulacy is a very interesting thing to see in film. The failed attempts. Failed communications. It’s actually fun to play those things. You don’t know what the other person’s going to throw at you. It keeps it really alive on set. Mona and I felt if we had the money we could have kept shooting this thing for months, because the scenes were so much fun to explore.”

Affleck agrees. “When Katherine’s character writes in her journal or she starts talking to Vanessa, they have this beautiful, expressive way of speaking to each other,” he enthuses, whereas his character “says what he’s gotta say in as few words as possible. He’s very brusque and curt, which I enjoyed. The way that he talks is the communication equivalent when he gives her a birthday gift of sardines and a tin of raisins.”

Indeed, her increasingly florid diary entries — originally intended as a ledger to keep track of the farm’s monthly expenses — become the heartbeat of the film, providing an emotional release otherwise suppressed by the rigid formality of the era and the ugly drudgery of day-to-day farm life. “The World to Come” is ultimately a movie about the need to share our stories, and how through telling them we make sense of ourselves. As producer Koffler explains in the press notes, “Part of the film’s vision is to dramatize a very basic human impulse: to create, to connect, to say ‘I was here, and I mattered.’”

This has become a recurring theme in Affleck’s recent work. In 2019, he wrote, directed and starred in “Light of My Life,” a little-seen but strikingly tense post-apocalyptic road movie about a father and daughter hiding out in the wilderness after a pandemic has wiped out most of the women in the world. The film begins with Affleck telling the little girl a bedtime story that runs almost 13 minutes and sneakily sets up the movie’s major themes. Then in last month’s well-acted but regrettably soggy “Our Friend,” he starred as real-life journalist Matthew Teague, whose soul-baring Esquire story about his wife’s struggle with cancer became a national phenomenon.

“Matt Teague wrote that article and then wanted it made into a movie as his way of processing everything that had happened,” the actor elaborates. “You transform pain into other things as you go through life. That was all him working through it. I like stories about storytellers and I like stories within stories. Obviously, I wrote and directed a movie that starts with a 12-minute bedtime story. I love that. I know that other people don’t love it as much as I do, so I have to be careful about it.”

That kind of love led to last summer’s “Stories From Tomorrow,” a project initiated during lockdown by Affleck and his schoolteacher mom Christine, encouraging children to send in poems and short stories to be read on social media by celebrities like Matt Damon and Jon Hamm, as well as his “The World to Come” co-stars Waterston and Kirby. “That was something I started out at the very beginning of the quarantine as a small project to encourage kids to write creatively, because I know it can be a great way of processing anxiety and working through feelings that you aren’t really talking about or aren’t aware that you’re having. It wasn’t something I thought would go on forever; once the kids are back in school that ought to be where they should be doing all that kind of work. But while they were sitting at home, I thought it would be a good way to get their attention off the awful news and into something more imaginative. And I also got a chance to read all these super-cool stories! Really creative stuff that kids sent from all around the world.”

Finally, as a Boston publication it would be dereliction of duty not to mention the hysterical Dunkin Donuts commercial parody from when Affleck hosted “Saturday Night Live” in 2016, so dead-on in its depiction of a local 'regulah customah' that on one of my critics’ poll ballots that year I tried to nominate the sketch for Best Documentary. Alas, the performer shoots down a pet theory I’ve been hanging onto ever since, that the dirtbag Boston guy in the Bruins hat is secretly a grown-up version of Affleck’s scene stealing, bug-swallowing Morgan from “Good Will Hunting.”

“I hadn’t thought about that, dude. That’s really funny. It never crossed my mind." He pauses before confiding, "I wasn’t that great on SNL… I just wasn’t all that funny on the skits, because it’s live and you’re reading the cue cards and it was my first time. But when we went to make that little pre-recorded short film of the Dunkin’ Donuts ad, I really felt like that was my wheelhouse there. I could’ve played that character in a movie. I could have gone to work and played him every single day, and I would have had a blast. That was really fun to do. I would love to do another one of those. That would be funny to see that character again.”

I bet that guy’s got some stories.

“The World To Come” is now in theaters and will be available via video on demand Tuesday, March 2.

[source]

[hot-diggety]

Not sure if you write for Brahms Heelshire- my apologies- but if you do, can you write Brahms with a child!reader? Just as friends of course- I just think it would be adorable

Of course!

Brahms Heelshire and a child reader.

There were thunders outside. You were sitting in the backseat of the car, looking out the window and up to the dark sky; not a single light could be seen out in the storm. The rain spattered against the windshield, and slid down the wind leaving thin trails behind.

The car of the Heelshires was an old, but expensive model. The seats were wrapped in a beautiful white velvet, and everything else was a shiny, dark gray. You curled up in a reduced space very far to the side; if you were to make a mess, you'll never hear the end of it.

—“Is everything okay back there, sweetie?”

A shaky voice approached you, and you noticed the old man watching you from the rear-view mirror.

—“Mhm, thank you, sir. Are we there yet?”

—“Haha. We're almost there.”

You've been sitting for nearly two hours since you left the orphanage, and worried that you didn't see a single house on the way. The mansion really is in the middle nowhere.

You turned back again to the window and watched the hundred raindrops fall against it, like a busy road. You pretended they were having a race, hoping it would distract your 8-year-old mind. But as your chest grew tighter, you found that nothing that interested you before provided you the slightest bit of entretainment.

Your gaze fell upon the structure rising marvellously along the crowns of the trees. The mansion provided enough light to be seen through the foggy view of the thunderstorm; it looked like a fire had started on the inside.

The vehicle began to slow, and came to a stop when it reached the curb of the house. The light from inside loomed over them, a starry night in the black sky. Rain pattered on the roof of the car.

You got out. While a servant dressed in black came to take care of the luggage, you stared at the long hallway that extended in front of you. It shined in dim light, no corners were left dark, and yet you felt like something sinester lurked around.

—“Go inside, hurry! You'll get wet!” A hand in your back pushed you gently, making you hurry inside the building. Miss Heelshire ran in with you. “God, honey, you're soaking!”

Suddently aware of your state, you took a look at yourself; she was right. Your hair and clothes were dripping onto the bright velvet carpet.

—“Oh golly” Mister Heelshire closed the door behind him, leaving his hat in the rack besides it. “Why don't you go take a warm shower, young lady? I'll show you the way to the bathroom.”

You followed behind him. He took the opportunity to show you around a bit on your way to the restroom, but you weren't quite paying attention. You couldn't catch anything he said.

—“It's here. You'll find some fresh pajamas on top of the toilet. It's late, so why don't you get some rest, do you? Tomorrow morning we'll give you a little tour.”

You nodded and he left. You went in.

The bathroom was nothing you've seen before. It only had an old window, wearing a foggy crystal, that didn't seem like you could open it. The mirror in front of the sink took most of the wall, except for a thick space that traveled from the floor to the very ceiling; three frames hanged from it vertically, each depicting the same little boy with different expressions. “What a crooked little bathroom”, you thought.

You turned on the water of the shower, and vapour immediately started to pour out. You took off your damp clothes, and got in quickly; the water was deliciously warm, you felt your muscles relaxing at the touch of it.

Several minutes later, you came out looking like a raisin. You didn't realize how long you've been in the shower until you saw the clock that was hung also besides the mirror: at least 30 minutes of water wasted. You felt a little embarrassed, but the water bill was nothing a pair of billionaires couldn't handle, anyway.

Thump. You were putting on your pajamas, that smelled new, when a noise caught your attention. Once, it sounded gentle. Thump thump. Twice, a little louder. Then it wouldn't stop.

Desperately putting on whatever you could, your heart throbbed at the aggressive noise that seemed to unravel around you. It sounded like a giant beast running inside the walls.

The last noise ended just in the other side of the bathroom door. Filled with adrenaline, you ran outside slamming the door open.

—“Hello?!” The echo was the only thing you heard back. The sound of the creaking walls stopped abruptly as if you scared off whatever was making it. Or that's what you wanted to think.

You looked around for something that produced light; anything would do. And when you found a candle, which flame could barely stay alive, it was enough for you. You took it with one hand, keeping it as far from your body as possible, and thought about what to do next.

You didn't know where your room was. Even if you knew, this house had at least 20 rooms per floor; there's no way you could find it.

But you remembered the way to the main hallway. The hallway that led to every room in the house, but it would now be dark, silent, and much more horrid.

You forced you legs to start walking.

“There's nothing to fear.” You thought to yourself, looking down the red velvet carpet that lied under your feet. You reached the end of the wall, and the hallway was just around the corner. All you needed to do was look up and walk through, it wouldn't even take you a minute. So you raised your head.

You could see the siluette at the end of it. You could've convinced yourself it was just a lump if you didn't see the moon shining against his face. His face made of porcelain.

The wind was raging against the trees, making the leaves moan an omnious sound. The flame burning in top of your candle danced along your heavy breathing.

—“Hello.”

You froze in place, and felt your blood cold in a split of a second. Your eyes narrowed; everything felt like a living fever dream.

—“Don't be scared. I wouldn't wanna hurt you.”

The childish voice resonated in your head; there was no way it came from him. You managed to splurt out a stuttering sentence. —“Who are you?”

He approached shyly, like a little kid. —“I'm Brahms. I live here.”

Something seemed off, but you couldn't put your finger on it. You had no choice but to believe him. You had no reason not to.

—“How old are you?” You asked.

He hesitated. —“I'm... 8 years old.”

You were as well. —“You look like you're a big year old.”

—“I'm just really tall.” His hands started fidgeting; he looked nervous to meet you. You felt a little bad for him.

You stretched out your arm towards him. —“I'm (y/n). Nice to meet you.”

—“Nice to meet you...” He repeated while taking your small hand in a handshake. You smiled.

—“What's up with the mask?”

He tilted his head. —“I'm playing a game. Do you want to play with me?”

You hesitated. The flame on the candle was shaking weakly while silence filled the space between you two. It was too late in the night to play.

—“Please.” He spoke as if he read your mind. “Just for a bit.”

The flame died out. It was pitch black.

—“Okay.”

And you were the last child the Heelshires adopted.

[Author's note: Sorry if this looks a little rushed! I just feel like this blog is kind of abandoned. I'm alive though!]

[jaceyneedsabetterusername]

All I Need~ Part 3

Pairings: Josh Dun x Pregnant!Reader

Overview: You move to Columbus, Ohio to live with your brother after your ex-boyfriend becomes abusive after telling him of a surprise pregnancy. You become involved in the church and unknowingly befriend the Dun family. After finally meeting Josh, there’s a connection between the two of you that lands you in some complicated situations.

Warnings: None for this chapter.

Y/N = Your Name

Y/B/N = Your Brother’s Name

A/N: I am so sorry this update took so long! My plan when I started writing this was to update weekly but school has gotten CRAZY. I’m just going to write and post when I find time. Sorry for the inconsistency.

A/N 2: The story is going to pick up soon! This is a slow half-pointless chapter but I feel like it’s a little necessary to establish a friendship.

“Oh my… mother flipping… gosh dang it! Agh!” You groaned as you jumped in your skinny jeans, struggling to get them to button over your ever growing belly. It was just a small bump but it was actually noticeable at this point. “Ugh!” You moaned, lowering yourself to lay down on your back, sucking everything in as a last attempt to get these jeans on. Miraculously, it worked.

You hobbled into the living room, adjusting your pants as you went, and plopped onto the couch next to your laptop, “I am definitely going to invest in some more leggings.” You said to your brother who was in the kitchen. You opened your laptop and began doing another endless bout of pregnancy research. “Look at this. I feel like I’m too big to be nine weeks.” You looked closer at the screen filled with nine week pregnancy bellies.

Y/B/N sat next to you and inspected the pictures, pointing at one, “Look at that one. She’s just as big as you. It’s probably a person-by-person kinda thing. Don’t worry about it.” He tried comforting you but your nearly bursting jeans told you otherwise.

Suddenly, your phone went off next to you.

Unknown: Hey! It’s Josh. My mom wanted to know if you could stop by the house but her phone died.

“Who is it?” Your brother asked, seeing your face as you read the message.

“It’s Josh.” You answered in disbelief. He actually texted you, “Laura Lee wants me to come over today for something.”

“OOOOOH! Or Josh wants you to come over for something.” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

You shoved his shoulder, “Gosh, how old are you? 13?”

You: What for? And what time?

Almost immediately you got a response.

Josh: Whenever you can. It’s for the church bake sale.

Internally, you groaned. How did you forget about that? There was a little community street fair and the church was baking goods to sell to raise money for the youth group. Glancing at the clock, you saw it was only 9:14 in the morning.

You: I have to run an errand but I can be there around 11:30?

Josh: Awesome :) Thanks!

Y/B/N leaned in until his face was only centimeters from your cheek, “So…?” He cooed in your ear.

Rolling your shoulders to push his face away, you stood up, “I’m gonna go help Laura Lee bake some stuff for the youth group fundraiser.” You walked into the kitchen and grabbed a granola bar that you ate while putting on your converse and shouldering your purse.

“They should start paying you.” He joked when you opened the door.

You rolled your eyes, “Tell me about it. Keys?” You asked and he threw the keys to his car to you. Then it occurred to you, “Oh wait, you don’t need to go anywhere today, right?”

He shook his head, “Nah. I have a crap ton of work to do for school.”

“Alrighty then. See ya!” You closed the door behind you and drove off to buy some leggings. You weren’t ready to give in and buy maternity pants yet. Even though you were well aware that you obviously got bigger when you were pregnant, you refused that you were big enough to need maternity pants.

An hour and two leggings later, you left the store with a bag in hand. You sat in the driver’s seat and glanced at the clock. 10:45. Maybe your errands wouldn’t take as long as you expected.

You: Hey Josh. Errands went faster than expected. Might be there a little early. Is that OK? Do you need me to bring anything?

Josh: Yeah she’s been baking since 8 so it’s no problem. And we have everything, thanks though.

You: Cool be there soon :)

~

You knocked on the door and Bill opened the door, “Hi Y/N! Come on in!”

“Hey Bill! How’re you doing today?” You asked, walking into the house and towards the kitchen.

He chuckled a little, “I’m doing pretty good. I tried helping Laura Lee but I put the sugar in the wrong bowl and almost got hit with a rolling pin so I’m just trying to stay out the their way.”

You laughed, “It was a valiant effort.” When you got into the kitchen, you were attacked by hugs from Laura Lee.

“Aw thank you for coming over! Oh my, you guys are growing more and more every time I see you!” Her hands found your belly that was much more prominent in your tighter tank top now than it was a week ago at the barbeque.

You leaned back, looking at your belly with a warm smile, “Yeah, it’s getting more and more real every day.” You laughed.

“Hey Y/N!” Ashley and Josh greeted from various spots of the kitchen.

You waved, “Hi guys! So what can I help with?”

She walked around the kitchen, pointing things out as she went, “So we have chocolate chip cookies currently baking right now but we have to bake at least three more batches. Josh is working on snickerdoodles. Ashley is doing peanut butter cookies. I’m doing sugar cookies. You can work on oatmeal raisin.” As she pulled out everything you would need, your heart dropped a little bit. All of these delicious cookies and you get stuck with oatmeal raisin.

“Alright.” You said to yourself as you tied your hair up in a messy bun and washed your hands before reading the recipe. Six cups of flour, two cups of sugar, etc… Geez, how many cookies did you guys need to make? You looked around for the flour and couldn’t see it anywhere. “Does anyone have the flour?” You asked.

“I got it right here.” Josh said, carrying the large bag over to you. When he set it on the counter, you couldn’t help but laugh as a large cloud of flour covered his face in a light mask of white.

“Thanks.” You giggled, handing him the nearest washcloth you could find. “You get a little too into your work.” You teased.

He wiped his face clean, “You gotta give 100% or nothing at all.” He smiled back. Josh glanced around for a moment before handing you the measuring cups and returning to his small baking station.

Twenty minutes later, you leaned against the flour dusted counter, hands resting on your belly as you recovered from the extensive amount of abnormally large cookie batter mixing you had just done. “Are you alright over there?” Laura Lee asked, taking cookie pans out of the oven and replacing them with unbaked ones.

You gave her a reassuring smile, “Yeah, I’m fine! Still just getting used to getting tired so easily.”

“Well if you’re done with the batter why don’t you get a glass of water and sit down for a few. There’s not much we can do right now anyways. The line of cookie dough to be baked is backed up for at least the next few hours so we have some time to kill.” She was laughing a little bit at you out of sympathy as she grabbed a cup from the cupboard, handing it to you.

You muttered a thank you as you filled the glass and sat down at the kitchen table with a sigh of relief. Josh came by and sat next to you, “Thanks for the free slave labor.”

“You mean I’m not getting paid?!” You exclaimed with sarcasm.

He sucked in a breath, “Wow… this is awkward.” You both laughed a little bit.

“Hey, how long are you in Columbus for? Like don’t you have band-stuff to do?” You asked, sipping your water.

He shrugged, “I have two more weeks of play. Tyler and I are both up here visiting family before we start getting ready for a big tour.”

“Does that ever suck? Touring that much? It must get exhausting.” You pried.

“Ehh, I mean Tyler is like a girlfriend so it doesn’t get lonely-”

You laughed, “Oh gosh, you guys are like this in real life too?”

Josh put his hand on his heart, “Tyler is the love of my life!” He joked.

You rolled your eyes, “Don’t tell Jenna that.”

“She already knows!” Laura Lee yelled from the kitchen and you couldn’t help but giggle.

Josh stopped laughing with a grin, “But I mean, it does get tiring but walking on stage every night with all those people there because your music means something to them… it’s surreal. It’s the best feeling in the world.”

You almost got lost in what he was saying, “That sounds amazing.”

“It really is.” He smiled warmly, “But enough about me, how are you guys doing?” He nodded to you and your belly, “If anything is amazing and surreal it’s having an alien growing inside you.”

“It is, isn’t it?” You couldn’t help the warm feeling in your chest when he said that. It wasn’t until now that you really thought about how cool it was that you were growing a human being inside of you. Up until now it had been financial concerns, wondering how you could take care of a baby, and trying not to burden your family. “But we’re doing pretty good. The little guy or girl has officially upgraded from embryo to fetus, too.”

Josh had a strange look on his face, “That’s cool.” He said trying to understand why that was important.

“It means they’re finally baby-ifying.” You giggled.

His eyes lit up, “Ohhhhh! Okay, yeah that’s good. Do you have any ideas for names?”

You sighed, “Not yet. I probably should start thinking soon though. Naming a human is kind of a big deal. I don’t want to give the kid a name they’re going to hate and resent me for.”

“As long as you don’t name them some weird celebrity name you should be fine.” He pointed out.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right. Wouldn’t want to name them some celebrity name like Josh or something. How embarrassing.” You stuck your tongue out before sipping your water again.

“I would definitely not want that name.” He joked. Next to you, your phone buzzed.

Y/B/N: I need the car. R u done soon

You sighed. You really didn’t want to leave yet.

You: Ugh whyyyyyyy

“Who is it?” Josh inquired.

You shrugged, “My brother. He wants the car back.” Again, the phone buzzed.

Y/B/N: Left something at school I need to study.

Rolling your eyes, you stood up, “I’m sorry. I have to go.” You said sadly.

Josh stood up next to you, “Awe man! Can’t he walk?”

“His legs might fall off.” You said sarcastically, walking to the living room to say your goodbyes to the rest of the family.

Josh walked you to your car outside. You turned and leaned against it, facing him with a smile, “Well thank you for a wonderful day of baking.”

He stretched his back, “Thanks for helping out!”

“I’ll see you later, I guess.” You said, giggling a little.

“Yeah I’ll see you soon.” He replied, leaning in and pulling you into a hug. You were taken back for a second by the hug, not entirely expecting it but not rejecting it by any means. Josh must not have realized how hard he pulled you in because the second your slightly swollen belly touched his own stomach, his grip immediately lightened. “I’m sorry!” He said worried he hurt you or the baby.

You put your hand on your belly, “It’s all good! Don’t sweat it! We’re good.” You laughed, “I’ll see you later.” You climbed in your car and began pulling away into the street, seeing Josh waving at you from your mirrors.

Now that you were alone, you fully embraced the crimson that stained your cheeks. Your skin still tingled from where Josh touched you when hugging you. You found yourself biting your lip in fantasy before shutting down your hopes.

“No, Y/N. He is a famous gorgeous drummer who could have any girl he wants. He probably doesn’t like you like that but even if he did you would not burden him with a baby and make him feel obligated to love you.” You scolded yourself.

But then his face popped into your mind: his pink hair sticking out from under a black baseball cap, beautifully colored arms sticking out of a white muscle tee, his gorgeous smile that could make you feel so comfortable and yet so inferior, the adorable way his eyes squinted when he laughed. His strong hand slipping into your own. Okay, maybe you knew you couldn’t actually have him but that didn’t mean you couldn’t dream, right?

[wolfy58]

1827 May Friday 11

6 3/4

11 35/60

twentyfive minutes on the pot without doing anything - Did not sleep well – at my desk at 8 – wrote the lines of yesterday – From 8 1/2 to 8 40/60 writing to Mary – then so suddenly bilious and giddy obliged to lie down on my sofa – Madame Sené came in about 10 minutes – had her in, but she saw how bilious I was and merely staid to ask my aunt and myself to dine with them to meet Mrs. and Miss Barlow next Sunday week – said my aunt had not been to well these last few days – I feared her legs were now dropsical and really could not answer for her – but would let them know – just mentioned expecting a friend in autumn – could the Senés let us have 1 of their bedrooms – saw this could not be – Monsieur Sené constantly coming over – said I should not think of it – should move my book cases, and have a little (lit) de sangle in the recess – dozed till near 10 then skimmed over the paper – Miss Lynn died at Tours on the 4th instante and in about an hour wrote the letter 1/4 p. (page) 2, and p. (page) 3 of my letter begun Tuesday 1 May – mentioned (quoted) what Isabella Norcliffe said about coming – and that I should say we should be glad to see her – said Miss Maclean’s coming to France was uncertain – from what my aunt now said, the swellig of her legs seemed to be already decidedly dropsical – At present not improbable I should be with Mary next year – what she said about the buying the living of Lawton all very well but she must remember that a person holding a living ad interim could not be compelled to give it up or pay damages the whole transaction being according to a very late decision, simoniacal – said I was better in the country – It could not be Paris that disagéed with me – it was the anxiety to which I returned – the bad account of her had given me ‘considerable pain’ – a better account would do me moregood than anything – her illness perpetually present to me – had been obliged to lie down, till my time was almost expanded – but was rather better on closing my letter sent it off at 11 40/60 to ‘Mrs. Lawton Lawton hall, Lawton Cheshire, Angleterre (port payé)’ – went to to give my aunt the paper and tell her of Miss Lynn’s death – then wrote the last 17 lines, and breakfast from 12 to 12 40/60 – still very bilious – settled the accounts of yesterday – wrote 2/3 p. (page) to Mrs. Lynn – then between 1 and 2 lay down again on my sofa – slept – my aunt awoke me at 3 to ask if we should dine at 5 – yes! then slept again till 4 – had just got up when Mrs. Barlow came to me at 4 10/60 with some ribbonds for me to choose one for my aunt – from 4 20/60 to 4 50/60 finished dressing Mrs. Barlow came to me at 4 3/4 – dinner at 5 10/60 – Left the dining room at 6 40/60 – went to Mrs. Barlow – at 6 50/60 – we walked beyond the barrière de l’Etoile to the left to the Passy barrière – left Mrs. Barlow at her own door, and got home at 8 3/4 – settled with George for butter got yesterday – paid him this morning for the rest of what was got yesterday – prepared my bed room – wrote the last 3 lines – went into the drawing room to my aunt at 9 10/60 – Jane in bed all the day with a bad cold – Looking over Mrs. Starke’s traveller’s guide – came to my room at 10 1/4 – ate a bunch of raisins –

[adventureswithtyntyn]

8/12-(3 mile run, 1 mile walk+strength) Happy Sunday! Today will definitely be a low movement day for me, because we are driving 6 hours to Denver!

So this morning we got up, packed our car, ate some breakfast & we were on our way! For breakfast I had the same thing as yesterday. Oatmeal with cinnamon, & Greek yogurt with honey, blueberries & Raisin Bran. We set out & stopped basically every hour or two to either use the bathroom or walk or eat. Our first stop was just to get gas in South Dakota. Then our second stop was in Lingle, Wyoming (population 450). We stopped to go to the bathroom, stretch etc. Then our last stop before Denver was Cheyenne, Wyoming. Somehow the biggest city in Wyoming? We ate at a diner, supposedly one of the best restaurants in the city, but it really wasn’t that good. I got eggs scrambled with cheese & spinach. The eggs were pretty good, but I wasn’t crazy about the potatoes. The biscuit was okay, but greasy. While waiting for our food I literally walked up & down the street for 20 minutes. People probably thought I was crazy😂 As for road trip snacks my favorites tend to be rice cakes, cereal, chocolate & granola bites! I didn’t do much while in the car. I listened to music mostly, iced my back & that was basically it. The service was extremely spotty. I didn’t really feel like reading either. I kind of hate road trips/long car rides especially with my back issue, but it wasn’t horrible, just tiring.

Once we arrived at Denver I changed super quick & headed to the hotel gym. It was a super nice gym tbh. I started with a quarter mile walk before transitioning into running. I ran 3 miles for a time of 28:37 or 9:45 pace. Okay so I maybe got some tingling, but it just felt so good to run....I know I’m kinda dumb, but it’s so hard for me to not run. I just feel 10X better when I do. As I was running I kept thinking about something I saw on Instagram that said “I can do hard things”. For me not running is a hard thing. Looking at my workouts this time last year & comparing them to today that’s a hard thing. I’m at a completely different fitness level now, but the silver lining of an injury is that I can work back to that eventually. Then I did 20 minutes of strength almost all arms with literally 3 minutes of lower body. It felt good to lift, I didn’t feel as well as I did last week. After the strength I finished with another half mile walk for a mile total! Also I have no idea why my legs look so tan? After that we got ready & went to dinner. For dinner I had chicken with some corn salad thing. It was good & tasted really fresh. Then we went to bed early because we were tired.

Injury update: tingling getting slightly better. Glute a bit sore & tingling got worse with running, but it wasn’t horrible.

Snacks: cereal, chocolate, rice cake

Today I’m thankful for where I live (after driving through all these small towns) & just being able to run at all

[the-coconut-asado]

Goodbye Veganuary, Hello Prague

Veganuary came and went and I can’t say I mourned its passing. And for those trying to make Febru-dairy a Thing, leave it out and stop crying over spilt milk.

For someone who auto-smells barbecue whenever a cow walks past and has to start the day with two eggs, I do actually love eating plant-based dishes provided they taste delicious. And since watching Game Changers on Netflix, Adam and I have been trying to eat less meat and dairy during the week so we can improve our fitness. I’m not so fussed about the phallus-lengthening properties of celeriac, but each to their own. If you are bewildered by this reference, just watch the programme.

But I must admit, a surfeit of vegetables and a scarcity of sunlight in January did make me think alot about my trip to Prague last summer, with its abundance of sunshine and array of macho meat dishes.  I went with my daughter Lara and best friend Sue, bucking the trend of the wave of stag weekends that spill over into the city when Amsterdam fills up. That said, we saw but a handful of stag-celebrants on segways sporting a mix of bravado and embarrassment, and that was about it.

First thing to say about this extraordinarily pretty city - and this may be a nod to its Men Behaving Badly heritage -  is that it ain’t PC. A Picture-Post ‘buxom wench’, embonpoint spilling out of her dirndl top, cheers to you from a poster with two flagons in each fist as you walk through the arrivals lounge;  two hours later and the first bar we went into was adorned with discarded bras, mounted on the wall in a possible imagined tribute to Carry on Camping.

More agreeably, the next thing to note is that everything in Prague comes ‘with a twist’. You may be happily surprised by the tourist-to-cocktail-bar ratio in the city. You will be even more happily surprised by the quality of cocktails on offer, just don’t expect business as usual. My Negroni came with a ‘twist’ of passion fruit at Bon Vivants, a cosy little bar with an attentive waiter who made you realise where Borat got the inspiration for his accent; the Winter is Coming cocktail in the legendary Hemingway Bar came in a flagon straight off the Games of Thrones ‘set’.

Perhaps the biggest twist of all is that Prague boasts a vineyard in the middle of the city. St Wenceslas Vineyard (Svatováclavská vinice)  sits at the foot of Prague Castle, with its restaurant perched on a hillside at a slightly challenging gradient, a vine arboretum sheltering us from the scorching early September sun. 

Wines - delicious. Service - offhand verging on the affronted. But as Flambeed Chorizo was featured on the menu, we took the dodgy service in our stride. Properly torched and served with french fries (of course) it was a meaty treat, and went well with the Estate’s highly alcoholic white varietal.

Lara had managed to seek out some intriguing things for us to do and places for us to eat. Pork Knee featured on the menu at Mlejnice,  a classy little bistro on the verge of town - succulent as only a fall-of-the-bone, slow cooked cut can be. And if you craved something sweet, a tiny courtyard tucked off the main tourist trail to St Vitus’ Cathedral offered herbal teas and a toothsome slab of carrot cake, meltingly moist and jam-packed with nuts, raisins and spices in a ‘don’t even mention a light sponge’ kind of a way. 

Did I say that the biggest twist of the trip was the St Wenceslas Vineyard? Well,  I lied. Lara’s top find was, wait for it…. the Beer Spa. Literally a day spa where you sit in a barrel of beer while swigging pilsner straight from the tap, to the strains of a Czech cover of “Better Love Next Time Baby.” Take a look at their website and you are whip-lashed back into a 1970’s soft porn flick, the men all droopy moustaches and bright grins, the women looking like they are having the most fun you can have in a bath of Budvar while waiting for the ‘plumber’.

Here’s how it works: you book a room for two, three or four for an hour. You sit, alone or in pairs,  in a barrel filled with warm beer and beer minerals. Two beer taps are only an arm’s reach away, together with two chilled pint glasses. And there you sit for 30 minutes, drinking and giggling. When the timer goes off (classy touch),  you disembark, wrap yourself in a towel and recline on a bed of straw for another 30 mins (you’re barking with laughter by now), before dressing and departing. You’ve no reason to feel shamefaced, but somehow you do, and your punishment is that Dr Hook earworm for the rest of the evening. But the beer was damn good and our mood was upbeat.  

We stepped out into an early evening bathed in sunlight and, with skin pleasantly smoothed by all those minerals, we headed for a kerb-side Italian restaurant in one of the achingly lovely cobble-stoned squares that make up the Old Town. This Italian trattoria specialised in gluten-free everything, and their bread basket could almost persuade me to leave gluten alone for the rest of my days. Or at least until I next walk past the sourdough counter at Ole and Steen.

If meat and cocktails with a cakey pudding (or puddingly cake) are your thing, then try out my alternative Sex-in-the-city menu. An otherwise Hungarian Beef Gulyas with a now-legendary Prague twist: parsley dumplings and a helping of flavour-bomb smoked paprika ; mop up the juices with a spicy if gluten-full Turmeric and Shallot Soda Bread. Then let that all settle before you cut yourself a slice of  a homage to the carrot cake - this time with Butternut Squash and Ginger.

And flame yourself a chorizo while you’re at it.

Beef Gulyas and Dumplings

This is the perfect Saturday night, curl-up- in-front-of-a-good-movie dinner. It cooks in a couple of hours, tastes even better the next day and freezes superbly. Serves 4-6

Ingredients

1 kilo stewing beef, cubed

2 tbsp. Plain flour

2 tbsp. Olive oil

2 tbsp. butter

2 red onions, sliced

2 garlic cloves, chopped finely

1 tbsp. Sweet paprika dn 1 tbsp. Smoked paprika

Handful of fresh lemon thyme leaves, stripped from their stalks

2 tbsp. Tomato paste

½ litre red wine or beer

½ litre beef stock

1 tsp caraway seeds

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

For the dumplings:

15g plain flour

1 tsp. Baking powder

30g salted butter

75 ml milk

Generous handful of flat-leafed parsley, roughly chopped

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

How to make:

Toss the beef cubes in a bowl with the flour and season generously.

Heat the butter and oil in a large casserole, and when hot, shake the flour off the beef and add the cubes in small batches to the pot, turning them and letting them brown before removing transferring the meat to another bowl before adding the next batch.

When all the meat is browned. Add the onion and garlic to the casserole dish and saute for about 5 minutes, until softened and starting to brown. Add both paprikas, caraway seeds and lemon thyme, then stir before returning the beef to the pan and giving another stir.

Add the wine or beer, the stock and the tomato paste, bring to the boil then reduce the heat to low. Season again then cover and simmer for 11/2 - 2 hours, or until the beef is tender. At this stage you can cool and leave the gulyas overnight, allowing the flavours to steep, or press on with the dumplings.

If you are going to eat this as soon as it is cooked, then start making the dumplings 10 or 15 minutes before the end of your cooking time.

Sift the flour and salt into a bowl and make a well in the centre. Melt the butter in a pan over a low heat, then add it into the well of flour, along with the milk and the chopped parsley. Stir everything together until a dough forms, then divide the dough into 7 or 8 portions and roll each portion into a ball.

Remove the lid from the gulyas, pop the dumplings on top of the beef in a single layer, then cover and simmer for 15 minutes, until the dumplings are cooked through - wobbly yet firm.

Serve with some buttered, braised savoy cabbage and mop up the juices with a slab of Turmeric and shallot Soda Bread (see below)

Turmeric and Shallot Soda Bread

This loaf, based on a recipe by Sarah Cook, looks like a large yellow rock and tastes of crackling fires (almost like the one burning in our Beer Spa cabin). It has a fair bit of turmeric and that’s a good thing. Serves 6-8.

Ingredients:

225g plain flour

225g wholemeal flour

2 tsp. Coriander seeds

2 tsp. Ground turmeric

1 tsp. Bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp kosher salt

25g butter, diced and chilled

75g Jumbo oats

2 shallots, peeled and finely chopped

375ml kefir or buttermilk

How to Make:

Heat the oven to 200C fan or 180C/ Gas 6.

Toast the coriander seeds in a small pan for a couple of minutes until they start to smell aromatic, then crush in a pestle and mortar. Leave to one side.

Mix together all the dry ingredients except the jumbo oats, then rub in the butter until you have a crumbly texture. Add the oats, chopped shallots and coriander seeds.

Pour over the kefir or buttermilk, then cut into the dry mixture with a metal spoon until just mixed, then get your hands in and knead gently until you have a relatively smooth dough (it will be a bit gnarly, but that’s the nature of soda bread).

Form into a ball and pop onto a baking sheet. Cut a wide cross quite deep into the loaf - almost all the way down. This will allow the loaf to fan out into the classic sourdough shape as it cooks.

Pop into the oven and cook for 30-35 minutes, or until the base of the load sounds hollow when tapped. Cool and serve with your Gulyas and lashings of butter.

Butternut Squash and Ginger Bundt Cake

I slavishly subscribe to all known foodie magazines and am forever ripping pages of inspiration out of them. This recipe is based on one from Waitrose Magazine. I tried it out once and couldn’t believe the texture and depth of flavour. It’s now a household regular and to my mind, much more moreish than it’s carrot cousin. 8-10 slices.

Ingredients

200g unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

225g plain flour

300g butternut squash, peeled and diced

2 tsp fresh ginger, grated

50g golden syrup

1 tsp. bicarbonate of soda

11/2 tsp. baking powder

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. Ground ginger

½ tsp. Kosher salt

50g ground almonds

250g dark brown muscovado sugar

2 large eggs, beaten

150ml buttermilk

For the icing:

150g icing sugar

25 ml buttermilk

A generous squeeze lemon juice

Pieces of chopped, crystallized ginger

How to make:

Heat the oven to 170C/ Gas 3, and grease and flour a large bundt tin.

Steam the squash, or boil, for around 15-20 minutes, then mash with the grated fresh ginger and golden syrup.

Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, spices and salt into a large bowl, then add the ground almonds and mix. In a separate bowl beat the butter and sugar for a few minutes until pale and fluffy. 

Add half the beaten egg, mix again, then add the second half of the egg and beat again. Fold in the flour and almond mixture, the mashed squash mixture and the buttermilk until you have a smooth-ish batter.

Pour the batter into the bundt tin, level out and then pop into the oven for 40-45 minutes.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 15-20 minutes in the tin, then turn out onto a cooling rack and leave until cool.

To make the icing, whisk the icing sugar, buttermilk and lemon juice (adding more lemon juice as necessary) until smooth. Pour over the cooled cake, and keep scooping up the pools of icing to re - drizzle over the top. Decorate with chopped crystallized ginger.

[noodlenutter]

i met my childhood idol TWICE this weekend and i dont think im gonna be the same ever again

super longwinded and probably kinda cringey/obsessivly detailed post under the cut

ok so when i was 11 there was a show on cbbc called mission 2110 and the main character, caleb, was this cyborg dude w a robot arm and headset and he was fighting against evil robots who’d taken over the world, and most importantly, he was played by stuart goldsmith. 

i saw a sign around uni for a comedy show at the basement, york, by (you guessed it) stuart goldsmith. so of course i had to go, if only to make childhood-me happy

i turned up alone and Very early. i waited outside the venue for a while and saw stu leave and go for a walk around york but I wasn’t 100% sure it was him so i didnt approach him then

when we finally got in i sat on the front row between a group of elderly people and a drunk hen party - as soon as stuart got on stage, he started his introducing himself/the show, talking about the venue and warming up the crowd spiel, but instantly froze when he saw the hen party (he was surprised that they were there and kept sort of forgetting his train of thought and going back to the fact the entire front row was a hen party, cos they’re not his usual audience)

he started the gig and im not gonna go into huge detail about that in this post cos there’s no way i’d do any of it justice thru words (plus theres gonna be a tour dvd sometime ;) ) but at some points he interacted with the audience (usually the front row) so i’ll mention those 

the first Direct Interaction was when he spat directly onto my shoe while talking. he looked right at me, stopped his joke, and said ‘yes, i know what just happened. i know. it was Entirely Intentional.’ and kept going as if nothing had happened at all (it was fuckin hilarious cos no one else even saw it happen so the crowd was like ?????)

& for the part where he asked about jobs, he asked me and i said i was a student so he firstly asked what i wanted to do after - but straight away asked what i studied. i shrugged as a response to what i want to do after the degree (cos who knows lmao) but he took that as a response for what i study and made some quip about me not even knowing what i study n how that’s just a Typical Student Thing isn’t it?

(apparently when robots take our jobs, psychologists will be replaced by tape recorders on legs)

during the break (NOT an interval) i was talking to the people beside me (not the ones in the hen party) about york and scarborough and floods and bands and everything, they were so nice 

not much happened in the 2nd half of the show (other than the fact i almost CRIED laughing, honestly that dude is SO funny), but he said he was gonna hang around afterwards to sell tshirts and say hi to people, so i decided to ask him about cbbc’s mission 2110 (which was my favourite show ever and also the place i know him from)

so, after he’d told his last joke (one about raisins, which i remembered on the drive home and had to pull over cos i was laughing so hard i thought i was gonna crash the car), he said goodbye and got off stage etc etc, i queue up to say hi. straight away he reaches out to shake my hand & say ‘hi mate, thanks for enjoying the show’, that kinda thing

i asked him about m2110 and his face LIT UP, i thought he was gonna hate me for reminding him of it but he was happy and said that was his dream job, all the robots were played by his street performer friends, and he cant wait for the day that one of the kids from the show turns up to his gig

i asked him for a photo after that and he was like ‘yea, of course!! ill even do the pose!’ and put his hand to his face like caleb from m2110 did (im grinning at the memory while typing this, its such a dumb photo but i look insanely happy and he looks exactly as i remember caleb looking)

i asked how m2110 ended (i never got to see the last ever episode), and he looked like he was going to tell me but when i said i hadn’t seen the last ep he said ‘i’m not gonna tell you then!!’ (cmon mate its been deleted off the internet for like 8 years now :(!! )

all in all i think the first show was just how a typical comedy gig goes, but the 2nd show things got different (in a good way)

i decided to go again when i found out he was going to be in leeds 2 days later, and i took my friend who was disappointed that she’d missed the first show

we got to the front row and had to sit directly in front of him (we were gonna sit a bit further across but other people wanted to sit there first), so when he came up on stage to do his intro he glanced at me, then snapped back to do a double take - ‘are you BACK???’ he asked, pointing at me, ‘you were in york the other day, weren’t you?’

i gave him a thumbs up, high enough for most of the crowd to see, and he grinned, crouched a bit and started talking to me about the york show’s crowd - the fact there was a hen party, how surprised he was about them, and then that the weren’t as rowdy as we both thought they were going to be - after a minute or so, he stood up again and said ‘this is more of a chat than a show, isn’t it?’ & got on with the show.

i honestly can’t stop thinking about the “what’s your name, where you from, where d’you do your howling?” part of the show cos it’s never something i thought of before, but every day since then i’ve screamed in my car to a song and it’s kinda therapeutic (he pointed at me when he asked about howling, he points at a random audience member for each question) (also SOIL) (also also the bit about wanting to do a mic drop but with a microphone made of meringue) 

in the break, the person behind me tapped me on the shoulder and asked whether it was different from york or better/worse than york, and whether i’d been a fan for long, etc etc 

after the break, stu got back on stage and thanked us all for coming back - then asked whether there were any ‘guilty empty seats’ next to anyone. the guy in the seat next to mine didn’t return after the break, so the person next to him and i pointed at the empty chair on the front row (he said something about how he respects that decision cos the guy came alone anyway) 

“shall we mix this part up a bit? could you shuffle these?” he asked, and gave me the flashcards while explaining how this part of the show worked (he workshops jokes from flashcards, they’re in a set order for every other show but he wanted to make it different for leeds, and so gave me the cards to decide the order)

i panicked a bit though cos I was so shocked, so i just shuffled them randomly instead of reading the cards and what they said (oops), and i put an interesting one on top - it just said ‘R’ in a circle and i couldn’t think what joke that would have been so i put it first.

i gave him the cards back and he looked at the top one like ‘uhh, no, i cant do this one first, that’s possibly the best bit of them all it’s gotta go at the end’ (which made me realise it was the raisin joke at the end of the show, so i told him how it really is because I had to pull over on the drive home it made me laugh so much - to which he fist pumped and yelled ‘now THAT’S a review!’)

before moving onto the content on the cards he talked about how he wishes he could go on stage to an audience who’s already ‘warm’ to him so he doesnt have to waste his 2nd best joke so early in the show, so he was planning ideas to get the crowd hyped before he even came out. he sat on the empty chair next to me and talked about how if everyone’s hyped enough then he’ll get a standing ovation etc etc, then stood back up, jumped on stage, and we all stood with him and clapped - ‘yeah, keep going!!! no one sit down! dont do it!’, after a few seconds i was losing my balance but i thought it’d be Funny if someone sat down, and Funny if that someone was me, who everyone knew had been to the show before. so i sat. 

‘NO!! she’s sat down! that’s it i guess, it’s over isnt it, alright then, you can all stop now i suppose’ (tbf i feel slightly bad for it BUT it made it all funnier anyway so it’s chill, i hope)

because i hadn’t looked at the cards every time there was an unexpected one he glanced over to me, ‘is this really what you want? you want this one?’, sighed ‘okay then’ and did the bit. the one about the squirrel (’you really want the fuckin squirrel one???’) kinda flopped cos it built off a previous one in york so he said that at least he’s learnt that it has to be in a certain order to be funny (youre welcome)

after the show when i went to say hi & thank you for letting me control the cards etc (i never actually said that cos i got distracted, ended up talking about how one of my twitter friends & her family is friends with him and his family but he asked who i was talking about and im like ‘uhhh i dont know her name we use nicknames online uhhhhhhh sorry’ lol), when he saw me he lifted his arms and went straight in for a hug (I HUGGED MY CHILDHOOD IDOL) & thanked me for coming back again so soon

i asked if he could sign something for me but all i had was a yellow envelope (’oh! a yenvelope!’) nnd a sharpie wrapped in tissues cos it leaks (’uhhhh lucy, why is it wrapped in tissue? oh, it leaks? well, if i were you i’d wrap it in something, maybe a tissue?’) & signed the envelope with ‘you are too big a fan! :)’ which is the most true thing anyones ever said about me, ever. he also asked if i wanted a photo or anything but i said i’d already got one n he was like ‘oh of course you do’ lol

anyway yea we left after that and i’ve been screaming internally ever since cos i never thought id ever even meet him but then i saw him twice in 3 days and he recognised me, let me influence the show AND hugged me. im still amazed. im in awe. stuart goldsmith is such a wholesome guy and im waiting (im)patiently for his next tour

EDIT: i just remembered that during the last joke i was laughing so much that i was crying and i was fanning my face, and he saw and was like ‘are you ok there?? you good??’ which made me laugh even more, jesus,

[eurotraveltales-blog]

Day 12: Lucerne

Update from last night, since this happened after I made the post: there is what we assume is a hostel cat!! Makes up for the lack of WiFi and power. Saw the cat on our way back from the lounge to our rooms to go to bed last night. It was just dozing away on the rug next to the cow statue in the lobby of the hostel. He/she was soooo sweet and let us pet it even though we woke it up accidentally. Back to today - long post ahead, we did a LOT with our full day in Lucerne.

Woke up at 9:00 for the hostel's free breakfast, since their breakfast ends at 9:30 instead of 10:00, which is when all the other hostels' breakfasts have ended. They had a pretty generous spread of food, and I sampled almost all of it. They even had vegetable soup and rice, so I had a very healthy helping of those. I also had a bowl of their homemade muesli (a Swiss-German food), which is a really good combination of food that I had never thought of before. It's strawberry yogurt, oatmeal, and chunks of fruit (blueberries and strawberries, in this case). Deeeelicious. I also had a bowl of regular yogurt, two orange slices, an apple slice, a glass of orange juice, two slices of ham, and part of a slice of swiss cheese. It was a thick slice of cheese, not the thin ones we usually have in the US. Apriet finished the rest of my cheese, since I wasn't a huge fan. Apriet had toast with salami and cheese, toast with butter, orange juice, rice, and yogurt. I definitely ate enough to be able to skip lunch, which we pretty much did unless you count chocolate as lunch, but I'll get to that. After breakfast, we tried to get WiFi so we could look up which bus stop to get off at in order to go to the Glacier Garden. However, the WiFi seemed to be out, even in the lobby where it normally works, so we decided to just go and figure it out. We got off the bus and made a short walk to the Lion Monument, which is a sculpture of a dying lion who has an extremely distressed look on its face. It was sculpted in 1820 by Lukas Ahorn to commemorate the Swiss Guards massacred in the 1792 French Revolution. Mark Twain said it was the most moving piece of rock in history, or something like that. You'll see it in the pictures. We both wanted to go pet it and comfort it, but it sits on a cliff that is located on the far side of a pond, so nobody could get to it. In addition to its terribly sad expression, the lion also reminded me of all the other animals in the world that are dying or have died at the hands of humans, be it from poaching or hunting, and that just added on a whole other level of sadness. ...Anyway, we wanted to get access to the glacier garden, because once we had a ticket, we would be able to explore the natural monument, the glacier museum, geoworld lucerne, the Amrein house, the observation tower, and Alhambra mirror maze. Tickets were 15 francs per adult, and the first time we went to the window to try and purchase a ticket, the lady thought we wanted to go to the 3D panorama of Lucerne for some reason, so she told us to go to another window that was a minute away. We thought she was saying that's where all the stuff we wanted to do was, so we tried to find it. We never did find it, but in our attempt to get back to that window, we went up a ton of stairs that led to a path through a quiet and pristine Lucerne neighborhood. We went on a pretty long stroll, but we eventually looped back around to the glacier garden, and actually purchased the tickets this time.

First up is the natural monument, a preserved area where glaciers stood during the Ice Age. The monument was uncovered by chance in 1872 when Josef Wilhelm Amrein-Troller was doing building work on a wine cellar at the site. The glacial polish, glacial potholes, and boulders found at the site prove that Switzerland was covered by glaciers during the Ice Age. Some of the potholes were gigantic, almost cave-like, and they are caused by the erosion of sand and gravel at the bottom of a glacier when the glacier's melt water seeps into the glacier through fissures. Under high pressure, the water at the bottom of the glacier forms vortices that erode the rock. Pretty wicked, no? I had fun exploring all the exhibits in the museum, reading almost everything I could. I followed along with the guide we were given when we purchased tickets, because the exhibits are numbered and you can go through and read all about the subject matter both on the guide and on the exhibit itself. Museums are so much fun. Today I learned that woolly mammoths have six sets of teeth! And because they spend so much of their life eating and chewing their food, they wear their teeth down very quickly. When one set of teeth gets worn down too much, another set moves up to take its place. And when a mammoth runs out of teeth, it can no longer eat, so it starves to death. That's why mammoths typically don't live to be more than 60 years old. Isn't that fascinating? There was also a lot of sciencey stuff in the museum about ice, snow, water, glaciers, and crystals. Pretty rad stuff. The Amrein House was where the Amrein-Troller family lived, and it was full of Renaissance furniture and Swiss historical motifs. It was built in 1874, and it was very cool to get a sneak peak into how people lived in Switzerland during the 19th century. All the furniture was super fancy, and they even had a display of models of typical old Swiss houses. They also had a room full of the different types of rocks and minerals that can be found in the Swiss Alps. After the Amrein house came the observation tower. The path up to the observation tower was as enjoyable as the tower itself. They labeled all the different types of plants you could see on the way up to the tower, and I absolutely loved it. They also had a model of a glacial mill that illustrated an old theory of how potholes are formed. There was a diorama of an old mountain hut, and an arched stone tunnel. At the top of the observation tower was a glorious view over the city of Lucerne. My favorite thing about Lucerne is that you pretty much have a solid view of the Alps from wherever you are. You can even see them in the distance towering over everything when you're standing on the city streets! It's pretty wild. After the tower, we came to the mirror maze. It was suuuuper trippy. At first I kept almost running into the mirrors because it's very hard to tell when the mirrors are reflecting back space that it looks like you can occupy. Psych. After I got the hang of it, it wasn't too hard to find my way to the exit. At the end, there's a room with four mirror-related interactive exhibits. One was just two pieces of taut string, reflected by two mirrors at a 90 degree angle, creating a triangle. When you pulled one of the mirrors closer together, narrowing the angle, the shape made from the reflection of the strings would change to a square, then a hexagon, then an octagon, and so forth. Whew, that was a lot. Apriet was hungry after leaving the Glacier Garden, and when in Switzerland... where else did we go but a Swiss chocolatier? Their truffles were super fancy, and they also had numerous other types of chocolate for sale. I considered getting a set of 5 swiss chocolate bars (3 milk chocoolate, 1 with hazelnuts, and 1 with raisins) for 8.40 francs, but it was a lot of chocolate, and I figured it would melt in the heat anyway, so I just opted for some truffles that I could finish the same day. Apriet got a single hazelnut truffle, and then we shared another bag of 8 truffles for $13.39. I had three and Apriet had five. They were all delicious, of course. You can't go wrong with Swiss chocolate, let me tell ya. All of mine were dark chocolate with different types of ganache inside. My mouth is still watering. After the chocolate store, we went to a castle tower lookout area. It was a series of nine connected towers, but only three of the towers are open to the public. It was free to go in, so we climbed the very steep stairs up to the top of the first tower to soak in more views of the city. We then walked across a rampart that was halfway up the tower in order to get to the clock tower. It was super cool to see the pendulum swinging back and forth, and the machinery that moved the hands of the clock as we climbed the tower. At the top we saw the bell, but we didn't get to see it ring since we weren't there on the hour. We made our way to the third tower and descended the stairs to the bottom. We walked along a gravel road surrounded by wildflowers, with the rooftops of Lucerne to our right, and a castle wall to our left. It felt very European. After that, we just sat on a bench by the river and watched the pigeons for a good 15 minutes. I never tire of watching birds. Their feathers are so beautiful, and the way they move turn their heads all jerkily is pretty entertaining. I also think it's fascinating that they have a top and a bottom eyelid, so watching them blink is also entertaining. We decided to go to the lake after that short break, so we made our way to a covered bridge - different than the one we crossed yesterday. This one had a souvenir store, and we bought some souvenirs. Apriet says she spent too much, but we're only going to be in Switzerland once, right? We wanted to get at least one thing from each country we visited, but we’ve already messed up because neither of us got anything from France. Oh well, we had a puppy. When we got to the lake, we decided to see how much the paddle boats cost. We agreed that if it was 20 francs or less, we would get one, since that would really only be 10 francs per person. It turned out to be 25 because it was a weekend, but we did it anyway for a half hour. Folks, we were paddle boating on Lake Lucerne among the swans, with the city all around us and the Alps in the distance. Literally couldn't have been any more peaceful or serene. We made it back in time to not get charged extra. When we paid for the boat, we had to make a 20 franc deposit, and it scared us into not returning the boat late, because there was a chance they'd just keep the deposit if we returned late. After getting off the lake, we found a restaurant in the train station that had take out, since it had been a long day and we wanted to get back to the hostel. The restaurant was self-serve - you just grab a take-out box and fill it with anything you want, then you weigh it and pay. They had all kinds of food from all over the world - pasta, eggs, seaweed salad, kimchi, quinoa salad, lentil salad, curry, carrots, bread, peas, cheesecake, mousse, you name it. We each got a box for 10 francs each, then took the bus back to the hostel where we ate our food. Tomorrow we leave Lucerne for Munich, Germany!

Good times were had by all today. :)