#i also worked on this in public at a cafe fyi

[cursedtrekedits]

Not that it requires that much editing but Khan Big Naturals

it was genuinely difficult to make this distinguishable from what his chest normally looks like

[sinimake]

Part 3 of my Johnshi headcanons !!!

In my previous headcanon, i said Kenshi loves nature and hiking so Johnny often takes them on vacations around the world for Kenshi to enjoy and he even bought a private jet so that Sento doesn't have to go throught TSAs

Johnny has many big celebrity friends and it specially amazes Raiden and Kung Lao like what do you mean you know Lady Gaga? Fyi, We had a game night at her place last month

Johnny learns japanese. While he's not entirely fluent, his accent is immaculate. Locals always get shocked to see a very handsome white guy speaking their language like he's born to do that

^ also Johnny does the most of talking to strangers in Japan bc people get scared when Kenshi approaches them

They both try to go incognito on the streets but Johnny gets always stopped by people, not bc he's recognized, but people are just mesmerized by him

^ one time, a salesman tried to hire him at those male maid cafes and Johnny called Kenshi Ojousama (princess) for whole day to tease him

Johnny and Kenshi at Hanabi festival! Wearing yukatas! Playing matsuri games! And watching fireworks! Kenshi even wins prizes for Johnny in the festival games bc that's what couple do, and Kenshi has never done it for anyone before

Kenshi has a sister, Akane! She operates as the head of their clan and also a skilled swordswoman.

^ Johnny and Akane are menace combined. Kenshi cannot have a minute of peace when they visit his home

While Kenshi's family is always pleasant. Johnny's is not so much. Johnny mom is a shrewd looking woman, and Kenshi was nervous to meet her first bc of her being a cop and him being an ex gangster. But they came to like each other later. Johnny's dad is distant and obviously judgemental of both of them, but he's apprehensive of Kenshi's past enough to hold his tongue for unwanted comments. On the flip side, Johnny's brother? Not so much. He can hope to god that he won't run into the wrong side of Sento, accidentally

They have a small private wedding that represents both of their culture. Liu Kang is their wedding officiant bc he's literally their creator n everything but Johnny and Kenshi thought it would be funny since Liu Kang has put so much effort in them that he's essentially their wingman

Obviously, Kung Lao is Johnny’s bestman and Raiden is Kenshi's

They had to beg Baraka for at least 5 months to come to their wedding, and he finally concedes when Kenshi tells him how much of a good friend and companion he was during their mission to Outworld and they can't imagine their special day without him

They both walk down the aisle, holding hands, and Smoke cried real tears at that

Johnny's manager worked overtime to make sure there will be no paparazzi, and the only official pictures to public are posted on Johnny's instagram. Those are the first ever pics of Kenshi's face valiantly shown, and he's smiling at Johnny with so much love

Johnny's vow includes: "You saved my life. It's yours to keep now."

[7ndipity]

Dating a fellow Idol headcanons

Namjoon x Idol Reader

Warnings: mentions of angst, not proofread

A/N: Thank you to the lovely anon for sending this request! I tried to focus on the collab aspect like you wanted, tho now I'm just over here with a non existent song stuck in my head, lol.

Masterlist

Requests are open

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

(I actually think someone also in the music industry would be a really good match for him)

Despite being know as the accidental spoiler king for letting little things slip, Joon was super careful when it came to your relationship.

He was very hesitant about going public. Like, that shit kept him up at night, thinkingabout all the things that could go wrong.

He's very protective (admittedly, sometimes a little too much so) and really values your privacy together, so the idea of popping that bubble was kinda terrifying.

But even more frightening was the thought of someone else popping it for you, which had almost happened several times when y'all were spotted together on dates and at events.

You ran in the same friend circles though, so it was easy to deflect rumors, but after so many close calls, you both decided it would be best(or at least better)to be open and honest about it.

Luckily, your fans were mainly happy for the two of you.

You were that insta-goals artsy couple, most of your photos together consisting of aesthetic museum and cafe dates.

Juxtaposed by random, goofy ass clips, like him drunkenly laughing on your couch at like 3am about some dumb joke you'd told him.

One of your favorite 'dates' though were the nights y'all would spend in studio working on music together. It was natural progression that you decided to do collab together.

You had been credited as co-writers on several songs(that was actually how you met fyi), but you'd never actually sang or performed on the same track before.

The song you chose was about missed opportunities and the importance and going after what you really want, rather than hoping for any second chances.

After the collab was announced, there were a few people who accused you of using his popularity for your benefit, but most of that was drowned out by an overwhelming wave of excitement and support from the fans.

The video shoot was a strange mix of fun and awkward. The creative team had decided to film it in a nostalgic, home movie style, with glimpses of the two of you, intercut with different shots from around the city. So it was kinda like going a date, but with a script and a film crew in tow.

It was definitely worth it tho, it was really sweet, both you and the fans loved it.

[bacusdraculacape]

Adding onto the end of my latest AM thery kinda adding to it but not really.

The Boardwalk, Sheffield is closed and boarded up years now. Here's a photo of it from my visit not long ago to prove so:

And an article beneath it I found online:

The Boardwalk, if you’re not away, is the location where:

> Alex Turner worked his first job before he did professional rockstarring.

> It is also the place where Arctic Monkeys played many of their first ever gigs at (lots of other bands used play there too when it was open).

> It is also the location in which Miles Kane and Alex Turner first met at in 26th of May 2005 when Miles’ band at the time: The Little Flames- which he played guitar for, supported Arctic Monkeys’ at it.

My wild idea: What if Alex Turner ever buys The Boardwalk keeps it as The Boardwalk and reopens it simply for being that place that gave him his first job, first chances to play live, and the place he found his true love at? Or if not solely him then him and a gang of music friends like how last year in 2023 Matt Helders and a group of musicians chipped in to stop an iconic pub to musicians and the Sheffield public from shutting it’s doors. FYI, Matt owns two cafes in Sheffield, too, both called: Ambulo.

[scootydevlogs]

[Intro Log] Peanut Butter Hell!!!

Image: Temporary logo for the game

Welcome to my first dev post!???

This is a place where I (@powbrick) post game dev related content or the latest updates on any project I'm working on.

This post is a brief overview of my current project Peanut Butter Hell, which I've made regular updates on but haven't taken the time to fully explain.

Here's the Prototype Footage:

Game Overview

My goal is to make a Touhou-esque rhythmic bullet hell game where you play as Vincent the cat server who works at a small restaurant/cafe with his goat BF, Don.

One night, a starving gang orders a ton of peanut butter based meals which you are deathly allergic to. On top of that, they are messy eaters, so you must dodge their particles while you try to serve their orders.

Progress So Far

I have the main bullet hell and player mechanics functioning! The prototype is also playable without major issues.

It will be a while until I can release a public demo, but I'll let you all know when it's ready.

My latest update is the addition of some VN-style dialogue.

(fyi the visual novel part will be a small portion of the game since the main focus is bullet hell. I'm sorry if I disappoint)

Next Goals

I'm currently working towards making a semi-finalized version of the first section in the game. In short, that means more visual updates, fleshing out the introductory dialogue, and adding more bullet hell gameplay.

Lastly some FAQs!

I say FAQ but in reality only a few asked

Q. Who is working on the game so far?

All programming and character art are done by me!

Q. How serious is this project going to be?

Not sure yet. It's a solo hobby project but I do want to make it as good as I can, so I maaay bring in some people(??) idk

Q. How long as the game been developed?

For a month now! First week was figuring out which engine to heckin commit to

Q. What engine are you using?

Godot 4.0.2 using GDScript!

Q. is there sauce

no sauce sadly

Thanks for reading and stay tuned for updates!

[taezhu]

soccer player!yuta

yuta is a bit of a loner

AS IN he keeps himself to himself the majority of the time!

unlike Johnny, Jaehyun and Lucas who make themselves known around university he is on the quieter side

he spends the majority of his time in the library with his two close friends Taeil and Sicheng

but also sometimes with his other friends Kun and Taeyong who hang around in the university buildings

so he’s a nice guy, that’s obvious, he just doesn’t make an over the top effort to be close to everyone 

especially as the left mid of the soccer team 

if he had a personality like Johnny or his friends then he would have his own group of fangirls 

and that is his worst nightmare

so unfortunately, it’s quite hard to get a chance to talk to yuta unless you know him through class

which you don’t 

it’s quite stupid how you meet, actually

you’re both at the library cafe waiting for your food and you both ordered the same thing and when they call out the order you both go to pick it up 

and look at each other like.. oh.. hey?

yuta isn’t really in the mood to be nice since he’s just had practice, he has coursework due later that week and needs to get on with it

so he looks pissed when you explain to him that you ordered that 

and you’re pretty sure (so is he) that you were in the queue first 

you offer for him to take it and for a second yuta considers but he remembers when Taeil told him to be nicer to strangers to get his karma up

so instead he tells you to take it and gives you a smile that is quite.. suggestive 

yuta is a flirt, on the other side of the coin

he is quiet around people, since he doesn’t particularly want to initiate any conversation with anyone

but the second he is talking to someone a flip switches and suddenly he has the innate ability to talk to anyone and make a big deal out of it too

“so you can take it, if you wait for me and we can sit together to eat”

“do I look like I'm joking about it?”

you know who yuta is because he’s always on the website for the university when they win soccer games

you particularly remember him from that picture on instagram when they beat your rival university 

and you think about telling him to leave you alone 

but there is also a part of you that thinks why not

it is yuta nakamoto after all, you might find out something interesting from him 

you both sit and eat together which takes a lot longer than you anticipated for it to take

yuta is actually really interesting and knows how to tell his stories

he also asks a lot of questions, so it’s not even just one sided

you’re happy to say you enjoyed your time with him and it was possibly the best thing you did for a while

turns out he is an engineering student and that kind of makes sense as to why he looked like he was taking notes of everything you say

and... it explains later why he is so knowledgable, it’s like he remembers everything you say

since your subject studies in the same building as he does, you end up seeing him around after that more often

not that you didn’t expect to see him, you did leave with his number and you spoke regularly over text

but from previous interactions with guys at university you just never see them around after

but yuta is always walking past you and stops you to talk about how your day is going 

and occasionally when you’re both free he’ll invite you to sit with him, taeyong and kun for a while until you have your next class

though yuta prefers to keep you to himself for the majority of the time 

and that’s explained when he softly confesses you to one time at the library 

and you don’t even think you hear him right because it’s really unexpected

you’ve been used to yuta low key flirting with you the entire time that you’re sure it’s just his personality and you never actually guess he likes you

“I would really love to date you, to be honest”

“oh. have I not made that very clear this entire time”

“want me to make it clearer?”

when you ask him what he means he’ll move his chair closer to yours and turn his head to the side a little 

“if I kiss you does that make it clear?”

it does make it clearer fyi ○□○

but don’t worry, yuta makes another confession a few days later after he leaves things bit awkward

like he doesn’t really say much else. he doesn’t ask you to be his, he just kinda... acts like nothing changes

and when taeyong and taeil finds out they almost kill him because you can’t just leave it like that you dumbass!

so yuta finds you after your class and he pulls you aside and tells you that he’s sorry for not finishing before hand

and tells you that he actually has some feelings for you and then corrects himself to say a lot of feelings for you

that is how you start dating 

and he doesn’t change too much when he becomes your boyfriend 

he is still flirts like crazy and anyone who didn’t know you were together would think he was some guy hitting on you

actually, one of his team mates say that to him one time when he sees you walking past the football field and starts shouting something to you

you’re pretty sure he was shouting out dokidoki or something like that which is stupid but he made a thing of saying it whenever he was around you 

“because my heart beats so fast whenever I'm around you, do you know why?”

he says that mostly to annoy you in public

like when he’s walking you to classes because he has one an hour later in the same building 

and in the middle of the hallway he’ll stop and kiss you

“it’s because I love you, idiot”

other than that, he doesn’t make the biggest deal of you dating

sure, you’ll be on his instagram a lot. you take pictures together and he’ll put a pretty generic caption

and he’ll get some comments from his friends back in Japan asking him who you are

which he ignores quite easily because apparently he knows they’ll start messaging you and he doesn’t want that

don’t take it as yuta doesn’t care that you’re dating him, he’s just not overly projective of having a significant other

he sees how jaehyun runs over to his girlfriend before practices and he hates how cutesy they are

so instead he decides to keep in on the down-low and make sure you feel valued in the relationship

he does a lot of small stuff, like buying you lunch and getting you hot water whenever you feel sick

speaking of, whenever you are sick he goes into full on mom-mode and will have you live in his bed for a few days as he gives you everything you need

you’d think his bedroom wasn’t the best place to be since It was a germ breeding ground but yuta is cleaner than anyone you know

but yuta also makes you dinner on different days whenever you’re at his and puts his soul into it

in a nut shell, yuta really would do anything for you

you’re pretty sure he was looking into your diary to see what work you had due that week 

and that he started doing some research for it when he was free to help you out

it’s not what you imagined a relationship with him to be like since he appeared to be so cold

the only soccer game he does encourage you to go to is the cup final where he knows that it’s going to be hard 

“I didn’t want you to come to the other games because it’s cold and I didn’t want you to stand there in that weather”

“this game is inside and you know I need you there because if you’re there then I'll show off and we’ll do well”

it’s as though yuta forgot all the games you did come to against his wishes..

but as expected his team win it, mostly because of the great teamwork between yuta and jaehyun

and you go out with yuta and the whole of his team to celebrate which is cool, since you’ve never really spoken to any of them before

taeil tells you one time when you’re waiting for yuta to find the book he was looking for that you’re changing him for the better

not that he wasn’t great before, but yuta is just happier 

he doesn’t complain all the time and spend his nights looking up random topics to learn for whenever he needed them

he spends his time being social and taeil likes it a lot!

so really, you’re both perfect for each other in the end

and no matter what happens, yuta will be on your side

so make sure the relationship lasts ~ (°◡°♡).:｡

[simgurl]

Forthwright Publishing Company

Founded 85 years ago, by famous author Bernadette Forthwright, the Forthwright Publishing Company has attracted promising and accomplished writers. The company has published thousands of diverse books that have achieved major commercial success. 

Come and join one of the top publishers of San Myshuno today!

Details:

No CC

Lot size: 30 x 20

Cost: $328,540

Lot location in my game: Fountain View Penthouse, San Myshuno

Lot type: Café, and can also be converted to a Library

Lot trait(s): Fast Internet / Convivial / Peace and Quiet

 Notes:

This lot can be used as either a café or a library.

It is very useful for the Freelance Writer career, or as a club for writers.

I have all expansion, stuff and game packs; but “Get Together” is required for the cafe to work. The icons at the bottom of this page shows where the other objects come from.

Enable the “bb.moveobjects” cheat before placing the lot.

FYI - Additional images are located here.

Enjoy!

Download options:

This lot can be found in the Gallery under my Origin ID: erisema or via: #simgurl

You can also download via this link: Download / SFS

**My TOU: Play with and modify this lot as you will; but, do not claim this creation as your own. ** 

[collegecate]

Unpopular Library Opinions

Instead of working this afternoon, I researched this rant for you...enjoy! And get a fucking public library card. BPL eCard

Opinion 1) Throwing away books is not bad

Fact: libraries throw books in the trash. We try to sell them, donate them, give them away for free, and then we recycle as many of them as we can afford (yes, this costs money), and we throw out the rest. Deal with it. Because this outrages some people (especially geek culture) libraries have to use all these code words like “weeding” and “refreshing” collection. Bottom line: if you want the latest George R.R. Martin we have to throw out the old books that you don’t check out any more.

Alternatively, don’t read the latest bestseller, may I recommend The Sheik by E.M. Hull (1919)? A bestselling book that “crystallized erotic fantasies of the Middle East…around images of the desert, the slave market, the houri and the harem” (1). Sounds like a real page turner that’ll be good for your blood pressure

Opinion 2) Having a lot of books does not make you a smarter or better person

There are studies (2) that show a correlation between books in the home a children’s academic success. Sounds like a no brainer, right? Wrong. The causation relationship here is about money. Kids who grow up in households with more money tend to do better in school and those same households tend to have more of everything in them, including books (I’m not arguing that money is the only path to academic success or that school is a measure of intelligence).

The average carbon footprint for a single book is 7.5kg (3). Say you buy 44 books in a year, that’s the same as a flight from Boston to San Francisco, more if the books you’re reading are bigger. That’s a lot of dead tree you’re hording in your house. Also, if you hadn’t bought those books, you could have donated that money to charity AND made more use of your public library (which could then argue for more funding). Or you could have just saved those dollars, which is probably a good thing for your retirement and the long-term economic health of the country. According to a Book Riot survey (4), their readers (who we can assume read a lot), spend an adjusted average of $625 per year on books. If a 35-year-old person stopped doing that and saved that amount in a good savings account instead they’d have over $58,000 by age 65 (5).

3) There is more to life than books. There is more to Libraries than books

Maybe someday in the future when we’ve stopped being racist, sexist, transphobic, and ableist, we can devote ourselves to other causes. This would be mine: Libraries do not equal books. Libraries do SO much more than provide you with reading material. I hate it when folks say to me “Oh I love libraries” and then are shocked to learn their library offers something as basic as DVDs. The exclusive association of libraries with books is bad because it emphasizes the physical nature of the library. But you can use your library without going in person.

Anyone with a Boston Public Library has access to Overdrive (ebooks and audiobooks) and Hoopla (audiobooks, comic books, music). And FYI: EVERYONE who lives, works, attends school or owns property in the state of Massachusetts can get a BPL eCard online, for free, no questions asked RIGHT NOW (https://www.bpl.org/ecard/). So go do it! Use your goddamn library and stop spending so many resources on books that you don’t have time to read or don’t spark job. If you get a book from the library and you love, buy a copy for yourself. Don’t love it? Return it and get a different one. And while you’re at it, download the Hamilton sound track, a Wonder Woman comic book, and eat a scone in your library’s cafe while learning a new language and waiting for your free class on how to write a good cover letter. Ask a librarian to look up your local congress critter’s phone number and call and tell them how awesome public libraries are. Don’t tell them you love books, tell them you use your public library every week and mean it.

(1)  Garland, Sarah. "Ornamentalism: desire, disavowal, and displacement in EM hull’s The Sheik." Must Read: Rediscovering American Bestsellers: From Charlotte Temple to The Da Vinci Code (2012): 197. NB: my libraries copy of this book has never been checked out.

(2)  Carroll, Julia M., et al. “Literacy Interest, Home Literacy Environment and Emergent Literacy Skills in Preschoolers.” Journal of Research in Reading, no. 1, 2019, p. 150.

(3)  Ritch, Emma. "The Environmental Impact of Amazon's Kindle." The Environmental Impact of Amazon’s Kindle The Environmental Impact of Amazon’s Kindle (2009): PDF.

(4)  Schinsky, Rebecca Joines. “What’s Your Annual Book Budget?: Poll Results.” BOOK RIOT, 11 June 2014, https://bookriot.com/2014/06/11/book-budget-poll-results/.

(5)  Using the Bankrate investment calculator, estimating an annual return on investment of 6.5%. https://www.bankrate.com/calculators/retirement/investment-goal-calculator.aspx

[i-want-my-iwtv]

I'm going to be living in the french quarter for a week in march for work - any recs on places i should visit etc?

Yes! A whole week is plenty of time to wedge in VC location visits around the work-related stuff ;D

FYI in my list, I have things in the French Quarter, the Garden District (you can take the streetcar to get there, or walk, if you have the time/interest, it’s 2.5 miles away), and then outside the city are swamp tours (which I really want to do next time I visit) and the plantation houses (Pointe du Lac!).

These aren’t in any geographical order, just the order I’m thinking of them:

+ Gallier House - A must-visit, this is the flat AR based Rue Royale on. They give tours bc it’s a historical site. It’s not expensive, book in advance. They also have a gift shop and I got a nice necklace there. 

^My estimation of the room assignments bc reasons. Re: “slave quarters,” that’s unfortunately part of the history of that building :P but I think by the time L/L were there, those rooms were used for storage bc there’s little closet space in the living quarters, and the maids they hire don’t live with them.

Note: @gairid considers the flat across the street (1127) to be the true home of L/L bc the balcony is much more verdant, and you know Lestat would have all kinds of flora on their balcony! It’s a private residence, though.

+ Oak Alley Plantation - this was used for Pointe du Lac plantation in the movie. It’s a ways away, like 45 min outside NOLA?  Maybe more, but worth the trip! You can pay for the bus tickets and tour package, get there and wander around, there’s food and historical info, highly recommend. Allegedly, Brad Pitt still visits and he stays in one of the guest houses.

Note: They also filmed at neighboring Destrehan Plantation, but I haven’t been there, idk if it’s worth going.

+ Madame John’s Legacy - 632 Dumaine St, this is the scene in which a family’s worth of coffins are carried out; Lestat & Claudia had been so gluttonous. This building is sometimes open to the public, the last time I was there they had a cool ceramics exhibition.

+ Jackson Square - mentioned in canon pretty often, you can’t really go to NOLA and not visit.

+ The Cabildo at Jackson Square - I didn’t go in, I think you can. This is where Lestat watches Claudia kill, that same gate is there, you can go hang out in front of it and pretend to watch your vampire daughter kill a victim.

+ Court of Two Sisters - 613 Royal St, I really enjoyed the Sunday brunch, there’s a cute little courtyard with fountains, and live music sometimes. They had this oreo pie that like… dangerous. 

+ Cafe Du Monde - mentioned in canon, they serve like 2 things, beignets and coffee (nothing super fancy), very affordable, and are almost always crowded, but totally worth it. If you go around the back there’s a window where you can see them making the beignets!

+ Arnaud’s - very good restaurant in the French Quarter

+ Port of Call - 838 Esplanade Ave, stardustschild, I see in your profile that you’re not over 21, but for OTHER ppl reading this post, this is a good place for a go-cup drink ~$10, it’s large and 1 is enough to catch a good buzz.

+ NAPOLEON HOUSE - Muffalettas, po’ boys & other Creole staples in a circa-1914 house with a palm-filled courtyard. @gairid recs the SAZERAC (for the 21+ people reading this post, not you, stardustchild) here.

+ French Market - that’s a pretty standard suggestion so I have to include it but I didn’t think it was all that big of a deal. 

+ Trashy Diva clothing boutique - 537 Royal St, they have a few locations. I got a great little black velvet jacket here!

+ 2301 and 2524 St. Charles Ave, Garden District - AR’s childhood homes

- (Not a location really) 1233 COLISEUM ST. - where the Coliseum theatre was in the scene when Louis goes to the movies, it burned down ;A; But that neighborhood is kind of fun to walk around and just look at the nice houses on your way to Lafayette Cemetery. 

+ Commander’s Palace, Garden District - good restaurant but pricey. I had an elder flower liqueur cocktail that was pretty special there. This restaurant is a favorite of the Mayfair family.

+ 1239 First Street, Garden District - This historic property was for many years Anne Rice’s primary residence. 

+ Mayfair house, Garden District  - 3711 St Charles Ave. Not really as crucial on my own list of locations but still.  @cloudsinvenice had posted: “Anne Rice’s former New Orleans home is back on the market again, as per this Curbed.com article, from which I’ve selected some photos. This is the house that inspired the Mayfair witches’ haunted family home…”

+ Lafayette Cemetery No. 1, Garden District - mentioned in canon, free but only open during daylight hours tho!

+ St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 - There are tours and I think Nicolas Cage’s very weird pyramid tomb is there, he’s paid for it, and that’s where he plans to be when he’s shuffled off this mortal coil…

+ Bourbon French Parfums - 805 Royal St. bc Louis was all about the jasmine and stuff, they have great sets of perfumes and their own concoctions.

+ DeVille Coffee House & Creperie - 2045 Magazine St, I just really like their crepe suzettes

+ New Orleans Pharmacy Museum - I didn’t get to go here but it was on my list. I think it’s like $5 to go.

+ Marie Leveau’s Grave and Voodoo Shop - has cool stuff, like coffin nails!

+ Boutique du Vampyre - 709 ½ St. Anne Street, IIRC I got a cool poison ring here, they have vampiry wares.

... A few additions!

@nixsrebellionoflies​ added: may i add that you can go into port of call if youre not 21 and over? they have great burgers and a very interesting aesthetic. you might have to wait a while tho to get in

^Thanks for that! I haven’t tried their burgers myself, now I have to be sure to put that on my list for my next trip ;)

@jeezycreezysuperstar​ added:Some of the cemeteries are now only open to the public via tour group, just fyi

^RIGHT I forgot about that, it’s a relatively recent rule, within the last few years I think? Partly bc of the vandalism that was happening, and offerings/graffiti on some of the famous tombs like Marie Laveau's Tomb. But do take a tour if you have the time/money/interest, bc they are informative and spoopy.

[onestarromcoms]

December 4: “A Dogwalker’s Christmas Tale”

December 4: “A Dogwalker’s Christmas Tale” (Hulu)

FYI: This movie is terrible. It does, however, feature cute dogs throughout, and the story and characters are a TINY bit more fleshed out than others on this list, so some people might like it. It features Jonathan Bennett as our adorable leading man, Dean (you’ll know him when you see him), cuddling with the cute dogs. This movie also introduces the common Christmas movie trope I like to call “Socialism Doesn’t Work - Unless It’s Christmas.”

In the first act we enter the leading lady Luce, who loves Christmas, getting dumped by her boyfriend for not having enough ‘substance’ (granted, he sounds terrible - she’s better off). She’s established as relatively materialistic as she shops for expensive gifts with her friends. Unfortunately, her friends leave for Christmas and her parents are in Botswana, so she’s stuck at home alone for the holidays. Luckily, her rich neighbor invites her to a Christmas party before handing her dog, Hank, over to Luce and running off, leaving Luce to walk Hank to the nearby dog park. 

Enter our man Dean, who is at the park hanging out with all the local dogs. Dean and Luce have a classic Dogwalker’s Meet-Cute, when Hank barrels into Dean and causes Luce to fall on top of him. They realize the dog park is closing because a developer is turning it into a day spa - oh no - BEFORE CHRISTMAS! Dean, of course, immediately calls City Hall to investigate. (Is that how you deal with that? Also, isn’t a dog park municipal land? Why would the City sell it to a developer?)

Luce takes Hank the dog back to his rich owners and we encounter a common theme that is featured in almost every one of these Christmas movies but never in real life: Capitalism is Bad and Socialism is Good. I blame this on Jesus, who preached things like Love Thy Neighbor and fed fish to people. Turns out, the developers tearing down the dog park are Luce’s rich neighbors, Paxtons! They’re interested in investment opportunities to increase their personal wealth! The dog park makes NO MONEY AT ALL so they’re not even re-building it, because “The public agenda is for the politicians and the protesters.” This movie 100% has a socialist message that can only exist in the context of Christmas, when it’s acceptable to claim that the public good is more important than private equity.

Eventually, Dean and Luce are on the same page about saving the dog park, and they manage to wrangle the locals for support and throw a party/festival in the park to bring awareness to the issue. The party turns into some sort of sit-in, and when the rich Paxtons come to see what’s going on, Luce is able to show them the power of friendship (with dogs) and also pitches some revenue-building ideas like a coffee stand, a cafe, and historic landmark privileges. The Paxtons are sold, and the dog park is saved. In a final Christmas Miracle moment, Luce spends the money she made from walking Hank to buy Jonathan a plane ticket home for Christmas, and they kiss. What this movie has going for it is Jonathan Bennett’s comedic acting skills and his chemistry with Luce (played by Lexi Giovagnoli). He truly takes this movie to the next level. Add the dogs into the mix and you’ve got a solid feel-good movie with subtle socialist messaging.

SPOILERS: Dean and Luce kiss and all is well. This movie is terrible, but the dogs are cute.

[hotarla]

My Thoughts: “Quan Zhi Gao Shou” Episode 9 Summary and Review: “Everyone’s Public Enemy”

Excited greetings to you, my fellow QZGS fans, here is another edition of “My Thoughts!” This episode has a lot of reshuffling of events when compared to the novel so I'll try to point them out to you. I was actually genuinely surprised at a few things which I will discuss later. (BTW, I translated the title myself so it could be wrong...)

As with always, a warning about spoilers ahead! As an FYI, the start of the episode has us around chapter 148 and ends around chapter 178, (give or take) since some of the chapters were completely cut out from this episode (or are, in fact, going to be shown in episode 10).

The episode starts us off with some totally unnecessary fan service (I'm joking, it's TOTALLY necessary for all the screaming fangirls lol!) of Zhou Zekai’s dreamy visage before cutting to the Internet cafe where Ye Xiu is talking to Wang Jiexi about how the constant challenges from Tiny Herb are wearing him down. Tang Rou disagrees with him, saying that he's just playing around with a bunch of champion “three-legged cats” (in Chinese, a “three-legged cat” means that you're a “jack-of-all-trades and master of none”). At this point, Bao pops his face in and asks about what they're going to do in-game today. Just as this happens, Ye Xiu gets a PM from Seven Fields…

We cut over to Congee City’s Exchange Market where Bound Boat from Blue Brook Guild is talking to Blue River about Lord Grim setting the record for Desolate Land for the Full Moon Guild for the cheap price of four parts of the Scarlet Moon set (a level 30 set for Battle Mages). Blue River reacts to this with disbelief but it's all true. His QQ messenger lights up and he watches as leaders from some of the other big guilds complain about this. When the server announces later on that the Full Moon Guild has beaten Blue Brook’s record, the other guilds begin to declare: this Lord Grim is our enemy!

Left with no other choice, Blue River has to make a tough decision: ask for help from a higher dimension...

Meanwhile, Lord Grim and Co. are in Congee City as well, picking up new weapons for themselves now that they're at level 30. In the novel, this event actually happens before setting the record for Full Moon. Steam Bun dashes from one stall to another in excitement while Tang Rou wonders out loud about the steep prices. Lord Grim goes up to a stall and asks if they're buying uncommon materials. The man gives him the affirmative as he turns around and...ah! It's Bound Boat from Blue Brook! Why are you selling back the materials we gave you!?

Elsewhere, Blue River has arrived in the Heavenly Domain on his main account, Blue Bridge Spring Snow. I have to admit, the detailing and almost divinely-inspired instrumental for this scene is totally on point and totally gorgeous! Also, if you pay close attention, Blue River’s main account has a ponytail! Not QUITE the long hair I was imagining though!

We finally get to meet two characters I was actually not expecting to see: guild leader of the Heavenly Domain for Blue Brook, Changing Spring, and Poplar Beach, Blue River’s biggest rival in Blue Brook. To be honest, with all the stuff the donghua was cutting out, seeing these two characters was last on my list. I am a bit disappointed on the totally bland character designs for these two though.

Blue River informs Changing Spring about Lord Grim’s efforts in the 10th server while Poplar Beach scoffs in the background. Changing Spring decides that it's time to bring out the big guns: he will personally go to the 10th server to set the record for Desolate Land! Blue River goes to inform Bound Boat but, instead, he gets a complaint about Lord Grim’s shameless bargaining techniques! And, somewhere in the shadows, danger lurks…

Lord Grim and Co. group back at Desolate Land after getting some new weapons. Steam Bun detects a killer intent and dashes away to ambush the person. But, it turns out that the newcomer is not an enemy but a friend!

It's my favourite cinnamon roll, Qiao Yifan! He's come to the 10th server on his new level 30 Ghostblade account, One Inch Ash, to get some God-level training from Ye Qiu (Ye Xiu). Steam Bun is confused: was I wrong about that killer intent I felt? Lord Grim smirks: you're not wrong, it's right above you!

Looks like they've been surrounded! And, judging from the Battle Mage who attacks first, it looks like it's Chen Yehui, guild leader of Excellent Dynasty! A battle ensues and we finally get a bit of action! I was starting to despair a bit about the lack of action. The novel covers a lot of battle scenes, including lots of monster battles from Wild Bosses to dungeoning for records. The donghua, unfortunately, cuts out a lot of this, probably due to budget and animating concerns. On top of that, a lot of the battles in the donghua have become what I call “dust covered light shows:” all you see is dust and flashy lights.

Another FYI: this particular “encirclement” actually occurs before the record setting of Desolate Land and before Blue River goes to the Heavenly Domain to ask for help. For more information, please check out chapter 155-56.

Secondly, the members on Ye Xiu’s side actually included Seven Fields and Sleeping Moon (from the Full Moon guild) and Thousand Creations (from Blue Brook); Yifan’s character One Inch Ash hadn't even joined up with Lord Grim’s party yet as his level wasn't high enough. I believe the reason that Yifan and his Ghostblade appeared earlier than expected was because they had to make up for the fact that they wouldn't be animating the record setting of Desolate Land that included Yifan helping them. Lastly, this “encirclement” actually occurred in Line Canyon (the dungeon after Desolate Land), not in Desolate Land itself, which is what happened in this episode.

Anyways, getting back to the episode at hand, the members of Excellent Dynasty attack and we can all see the merits of having a supporting Ghostblade member on the team with the usage of Sword Souls (and Dual Linking Ghost Boundaries) buffing up the team. I have to admit, it's all very flashy! I love the action sequence for Lord Grim’s Sword Soul and how his umbrella splits apart into a sword and sheath. Ye Xiu praises Yifan on his timing for his Boundaries and Yifan just lights up at the compliment. You can truly see the way Yifan works so perfectly with the team, and how happy he is to just be a part of it!

The ambushers are finally defeated in a team wipeout and Lord Grim and Co. pose majestically at the end of it. (Insert some more shameless Yifan plug in lol)

Suddenly, another attacker comes from above! It's Poplar Beach! He arrogantly introduces himself before attacking Steam Bun. Lord Grim and Changing Spring intervene and more introductions are made. Lord Grim makes a comment on the new record set by Blue Brook for Desolate Land: how come I don't see Blue River up there? His dungeoning is much more stable and consistent than Poplar Beach who would excel more at PKs. (Another small note: in the novel, this conversation actually happens before they set the record and Blue River is not on scene when it happens) Poplar Beach becomes incensed at the insinuation that he's bad at dungeoning while Blue River is visibly touched by Lord Grim’s words (his face has the most beautiful show of emotion I've ever seen on him!). Poplar Beach starts to arrogantly challenge Lord Grim in the world chat. Ye Xiu smirks at this while Blue River and Bound Boat worriedly look on…

At Excellent Era, Chen Yehui (FINALLY we get official confirmation that he IS Chen Yehui!) is grinding his teeth in anger after his failed attempt to kill Ye Qiu (Ye Xiu) in-game. We get a flashback of him getting denounced for having inefficient skill to play a higher position in the team, on the recommendation of Ye Qiu (Ye Xiu). It looks like he's not through with him yet though, as Chen slowly scrolls through his friend list filled with members from other guilds…

Yifan, on the other hand, is talking to Ye Xiu about the high record for Desolate Land. Ye Xiu tells him that he's confident that they'll be able to set the record with Yifan and his Ghostblade’s help. All they need are three chances (since after this, Lord Grim and Co. would reach level 31 and they would not be able to set the record anymore). Yifan panickedly tells him that he's still not very adept at using a Ghostblade but Ye Xiu reassures him: you're a pro player too! These words, spoken to him by a God-level player, is enough to convince Yifan: three chances are more than enough! And, as expected, the record is set!

I get so many feels from this every time I see it: Yifan needs this kind of acknowledgement of his skills more often. He feels overlooked because of his friend Yingjie so every time he gains a little bit more confidence in himself, I just get all teary-eyed and emotional.

After setting the record, Chen Guo congratulates them. Ye Xiu wanders over and asks Chen Guo something: can I borrow your Heavenly Domain maxed leveled account, Chasing Haze? And, at Blue Rain headquarters, we watch as the IRL version of Changing Spring (Liang Yichun for anyone who's interested) approaches Huang Shaotian while looking for Yu Wenzhou…

Eeee, Yu Wenzhou! Another hottie appears, like a rare Pokemon! (Although, the chances of meeting a hot guy in this series seems pretty high lol!) Glad to see Shaotian again, I miss that adorable chatterbox! I can't wait to see more of them in the next episode! And what does the next episode bring?

Oho! I wasn't expecting the donghua to cover the battle between Poplar Beach and Chasing Haze (played by Ye Xiu). To be honest, I thought that they would cut it out completely (it only lasted two chapters in the novel). And a covered up Su Mucheng? Wasn't this scene chronologically supposed to happen a bit earlier (like in THIS episode)? Well, we didn't see much of her in this episode so I guess it's all right. And that turbaned fellow, he couldn't possibly be Concealed Light, right? Goodness what is with the pacing of the donghua? It's all over the place! I guess all we can do now is wait and see! Until next week!

Profile of the Week - Qiao Yifan’s Ghostblade, One Inch Ash

[weilongfu]

At last! The crucial thing missing to this pseudo-scientific food babble.

PEER REVIEW!

And from a white-listed reviewer! <3 @ctl-yuejie

(FYI for people not in academia, you as the author of a paper, can tell a journal if there are people you do want to review your paper (white-list) and people you think should not review your paper (black-list). However, all journals usually take this as more of a suggestion than a rule. Sometimes, depending on if there isn’t a real big conflict of interest as to why a person shouldn’t review your paper, some journals might actually send it to the black-listed reviewers so they get a more in-depth review from someone wanting to take the work apart into tiny pieces rigorously as opposed to someone who might be very nice and say very polite things before recommending it be published. All reviewers they would send your paper to are also “experts” in the field. So unfortunately, you cannot request your mom review your paper for publication. I certainly wouldn’t. My mom is hard enough to please.) 

Short answer for why not infuse the milk? I absolutely forgot to list that as an option. Sowwy...

Long answer for why not infuse the milk? Here are my considerations!

First, part of my methodology was to start with small changes that anyone in a standard kitchen without too much stuff could do. Honestly, my pantry is stocked with a wide variety of things you won’t find in the average American household so if I wanted to make Dalgona Coffee Super Spicy Edition complete with three different kinds of chili powder and a dusting of ground Szechuan peppercorns on top, I could do it, but the average person wouldn’t be able to do it, much less drink it. (WWX is that you?) So sticking to small things like extra sugar, adding honey, or adding vanilla were things I figured were easily obtainable and would add to the relatability of the reading experience.

Second consideration was time. Making simple syrup or infusing milk is not skill intensive, but they are time intensive. If you want your Dalgona Coffee hot, then this isn’t a big deal, but I am interested in keeping it cold. Infusing milk would require steeping time (15-30 min) then require cooling time (depends on how much milk you’re infusing). Simple syrup would also need to be cooled. So I’d have to prepare these ingredients for experimentation more than hours in advance. While I do have the time now, I wasn’t eager to start with such a large investment of time when this fascination might not amount to much, especially if nothing was working. Now having some positive experiences means that investing a little extra time might be worth it.

Third consideration was the current recipes on the internet. The few that I looked up were adding things to the foam itself, implying that this actually imparts flavor. Now as a scientist, I should also be the first to say that just because someone publishes a method (especially without peer review, damn those recipe and lifestyle blogs) that doesn’t make it the best or correct method. Furthermore, there were some news articles about the addition of honey and syrups to the drink as well, but no actual recipes, meaning that these are commercial things that people add when selling it at cafes. This also adds a bit of burden as they can keep massive amounts of stock syrup or what have you around and I can’t. Even wanting to try several different syrups/infusions and prepping them all ahead of time would take more space than i can logically provide at the moment and just increase the time frame between updates.

So... That’s really it. I’m not opposed to trying milk infusions now, although I think my safest bet is to make infused syrups, dilute them in milk, then mix in the coffee foam and that would be the “best” flavor. But it is also going to be the most labor intensive and time consuming. But I guess we’ll see how far I choose to take it!

Dalgona Coffee Trials: Part 3 - Twists on a New Fad

Part 1 / Part 2

Hello everyone, it’s been a while since the last Dalgona Coffee Trials post. But, I’ve got a few variants and variables to discuss and two mugs of the stuff sitting in front of me for my final taste test while I write this, so let’s get going!

Obviously, the easiest variation to try is to do ANYTHING to increase the sweetness of the recipe in case you are like me with a massive sweet tooth and you can’t seem to taste any of the sugar.

To restrict these experiments, I decided to keep this part’s batch to things you’d be very likely to find in common household kitchens. Perhaps the next report I write will include more exotic things and arcane processes. 

As stated in Part 2, I tried adding another Tbs of sugar. Using hot water did help dissolve the sugar better, as did just mixing everything cold and then heating it up before whipping! However, the taste is still very much an instant coffee flavor, made mildly saccharine by the addition of just sugar.

I then tried using honey instead. Honey, as additional liquid, did produce a much less stiff foam, but a much more mellow and sweet flavor with the added Tbs. Something more akin to a honey latte than just coffee. 

I then tried adding vanilla extract. Which was markedly less successful. Since vanilla is usually “strong” because it’s an extract, I tried to go from a small amount to a larger amount. Anything less than 1 Tbs added didn’t do anything. This much additional liquid without any additional sugar also did seem to impact the foam. I then tried adding 1 Tbs of vanilla in place of 1 Tbs of hot water. This yielded a watery foam, but the vanilla taste is only a tiny bit stronger. I’m not sure I would recommend this addition as is because vanilla extract is also Not Cheap and using 1 Tbs per time you make dalgona coffee is going to add up!

To see if more sugar would enhance the vanilla flavor, I tried a combination of the best vanilla method (1 Tbs in place of water) + 1 Tbs of honey (the more mellow sweetness and less likely to out compete the taste of vanilla). This also didn’t whip up very well, but there’s still a foam that develops at the top of the mug after mixing in the milk. The end result is still fairly mellow, definitely cutting the bitterness of instant coffee. The mellow honey is now replaced by a mellow vanilla, but it’s still nothing spectacular. I would even chance to say that the flavor of just adding the honey by itself is much better. However, if you like a more mild taste, then try it with honey and vanilla together. 

With these easy methods out of the way, there are chances for more interesting ways to introduce flavor, such as through the water used! If I have some more time in the coming days, I will try infusing the hot water by steeping things in it and we’ll see if that helps impart any other flavor notes into the dalgona coffee. My main goals are to try steeping in orange peels, cardamom pods, cinnamon, and a combination of the above. The best thing is that I can make all the variations of these infusions and save them aside in a container for later use if I have the space. It might also be possible to make a simple syrup to infuse with all these ingredients, mix in instant coffee, heat up, and whip!

I guess that’ll be Part 4!

[demitgibbs]

San Francisco Weekend in the Historic Castro

Spring has sprung in San Franciso and after a winter of heavy rains, the hills are emerald green and filled with wildflowers. The City by the Bay makes for a fun long weekend or even a vacation.

GETTING THERE

I took Southwest nonstop into nearby Oakland. Oakland International which suffers fewer weather delays than SFO where the parallel runways are too close together making for frequent issues. (FYI….my flight out was at SFO and was delayed 2 hours by a light rain which backed up all the fights all day.)

Both airports are served by the BART subway where you can buy a Clipper Pass good on all transit in the region. You transfer in the City to the Muni Metro (to the Castro Station). You won’t need a car in SF.

WHERE TO STAY

I always stay at Beck’s Motor Lodge at 2222 Market in the Castro neighborhood, still one of the best LGBTQ neighborhood’s in the world. 

You can walk everywhere from the motel and it is near transit including the F historic street car line which uses street cars from around the world to make the journey from the Castro to Fisherman’s Wharf. Peet’s Coffee is across the street and you can work out at the nearby SF Fitness or 24 Hour Fitness. If you have a car, the parking is free (unheard of in the City). Book your room at Becksmotorlodge.com. Tell Britney Beck I sent you.

Other Castro lodging options include the Parker Guest House at 520 Church Street and The Willows Inn at 710 14th Street. Check out Airbnb as well. 

Other affordable hotel options outside of the neighborhood include the new Yotel Hotel on Market Street or The Harbour Court Hotel in the Embarcadero waterfront area. There are also lots of hotels around Union Square. Check TripAdvisor for recommendations. However, I always try and stay in my old neighborhood away from the touristy areas.

WHAT TO DO

I went hiking out in the East Bay with the San Francisco Hiking Club (which I co-founded) to see the incredible display of spring wild flowers at Black Canyon Mines East Bay Regional Park. The Rainbow Chapter of the Sierra Club also has hikes. Don’t miss the display of California poppies and lupines which cover the green hill sides.

From Beck’s you can easily hike up to Corona Heights and Buena Vista Park for great views as well as up to Twin Peaks.  You can also head over to Dolores Park which also has incredible views of the Bay. 

A walk along Upper Market and the Castro Neighborhood is another must. You will find Victorian homes everywhere including on 20th Street above the Castro as well as stairs that climb to mini parks. 

Experience LGBTQ history at the GLBT History Museum at 4127 18th Street (glbthistory.org) to learn about the rich history of the gayborhood where slain supervisor Harvey Milk ran his camera shop (now a HRC store). 

Plaques on the sidewalk of the neighborhood commemorate LGBT icons (rainbowhonorwalk.org).

Take the F Street historic street car (streetcar.org) to the Ferry Building (think upscale farmer’s market) and have great Thai Food at the Rincon Center. 

WHERE TO EAT

There are restaurants everywhere. We tried Eric’s, a Chinese place at 1500 Church in the Noe Valley (accessible via the J Church Line). 

La Mediterranee at 288 Noe is always good as is Cafe Flore at 2298 Market. You will find Hamburger Mary’s at 531 Castro. 

Marcello’s Pizza at 420 Castro is good for a quick slice. 

NIGHTLIFE

Don’t miss a movie at The Castro Theatre, a historic gem on Castro Street. They often feature sing a longs and other interactive events complete with props as well as a great organist before the show. Check out what’s showing at castrotheater.com.

There are a lot of great bars. The Lookout on the second floor on Market Street (3600 16th Street) features a drag brunch every Saturday and has great views of the street scene. Nearby you can dance the night away at Beaux at 2344 Market. Toad Hall and Badlands on 18th Street are also fun. The Moby Dick at 4049 18th Street is another must. The Midnight Sun at 4067 18th Street is good for a cocktail or two as well. 

IF YOU HAVE A CAR

Don’t miss Pt. Reyes National Seashore north of the City as well as Mount Tamalpais State Park. In the East Bay, Mount Diablo State Park is another must. Drive south along the Coast to Santa Cruz on Highway 1 and then take Highway 17 back through the redwoods  to San Jose where you can come back to SF on I-280, the world’s most beautiful freeway (with more views of the coastal hills). Yosemite National Park with its spring water falls and Lake Tahoe are other options if you have time and wheels.

INSIDER TIPS

Under no circumstances go to San Francisco General Hospital or take an ambulance there. They do not take any insurance and the local paper had a story on a resident having to pay over $50,000 out of his own pocket for an emergency appendectomy even though he had insurance. A friend from Detroit was slapped with an $11,000 bill when he went in for observation after a fall. He had insurance as well, but to no avail.

Similarly, never park in a bus stop area as the parking fines are ridiculously high. Better yet, do not rent a car and skip the stress all together.

Apparently the City raises revenues in strange ways.

Do get a Clipper Transit pass for use on all the transit agencies (Muni Metro, BART, F Street Historic Streetcars, Cable Cars, etc.).

FOR MORE INFORMATION

The weekly newspaper, the Bay Area Reporter, is still going strong (ebar.com). Bay Times is the monthly LGBTQ publication that lists what is going on. You will find it at sfbaytimes.com. The Castro Guide is another source of what to do plus the history of the gayborhood. Another monthly is Gloss Magazine which features left coast nightlife and more. 

You can’t beat the Bay Area for a vacation, especially in the spring when the wildflowers are everywhere on the green hills. 

Bill Malcolm’s syndicated travel column appears in publications in Chicago and Florida and other cities. Based in Indianapolis, he is a former resident of San Francisco (the Castro), but resides in Indianapolis. All or part of his column may appear in other publications. His opinions are his own!

from Hotspots! Magazine https://hotspotsmagazine.com/2019/04/18/san-francisco-weekend-in-the-historic-castro/ from Hot Spots Magazine https://hotspotsmagazine.tumblr.com/post/184272169125

[cynthiajayusa]

San Francisco Weekend in the Historic Castro

Spring has sprung in San Franciso and after a winter of heavy rains, the hills are emerald green and filled with wildflowers. The City by the Bay makes for a fun long weekend or even a vacation.

GETTING THERE

I took Southwest nonstop into nearby Oakland. Oakland International which suffers fewer weather delays than SFO where the parallel runways are too close together making for frequent issues. (FYI….my flight out was at SFO and was delayed 2 hours by a light rain which backed up all the fights all day.)

Both airports are served by the BART subway where you can buy a Clipper Pass good on all transit in the region. You transfer in the City to the Muni Metro (to the Castro Station). You won’t need a car in SF.

WHERE TO STAY

I always stay at Beck’s Motor Lodge at 2222 Market in the Castro neighborhood, still one of the best LGBTQ neighborhood’s in the world. 

You can walk everywhere from the motel and it is near transit including the F historic street car line which uses street cars from around the world to make the journey from the Castro to Fisherman’s Wharf. Peet’s Coffee is across the street and you can work out at the nearby SF Fitness or 24 Hour Fitness. If you have a car, the parking is free (unheard of in the City). Book your room at Becksmotorlodge.com. Tell Britney Beck I sent you.

Other Castro lodging options include the Parker Guest House at 520 Church Street and The Willows Inn at 710 14th Street. Check out Airbnb as well. 

Other affordable hotel options outside of the neighborhood include the new Yotel Hotel on Market Street or The Harbour Court Hotel in the Embarcadero waterfront area. There are also lots of hotels around Union Square. Check TripAdvisor for recommendations. However, I always try and stay in my old neighborhood away from the touristy areas.

WHAT TO DO

I went hiking out in the East Bay with the San Francisco Hiking Club (which I co-founded) to see the incredible display of spring wild flowers at Black Canyon Mines East Bay Regional Park. The Rainbow Chapter of the Sierra Club also has hikes. Don’t miss the display of California poppies and lupines which cover the green hill sides.

From Beck’s you can easily hike up to Corona Heights and Buena Vista Park for great views as well as up to Twin Peaks.  You can also head over to Dolores Park which also has incredible views of the Bay. 

A walk along Upper Market and the Castro Neighborhood is another must. You will find Victorian homes everywhere including on 20th Street above the Castro as well as stairs that climb to mini parks. 

Experience LGBTQ history at the GLBT History Museum at 4127 18th Street (glbthistory.org) to learn about the rich history of the gayborhood where slain supervisor Harvey Milk ran his camera shop (now a HRC store). 

Plaques on the sidewalk of the neighborhood commemorate LGBT icons (rainbowhonorwalk.org).

Take the F Street historic street car (streetcar.org) to the Ferry Building (think upscale farmer’s market) and have great Thai Food at the Rincon Center. 

WHERE TO EAT

There are restaurants everywhere. We tried Eric’s, a Chinese place at 1500 Church in the Noe Valley (accessible via the J Church Line). 

La Mediterranee at 288 Noe is always good as is Cafe Flore at 2298 Market. You will find Hamburger Mary’s at 531 Castro. 

Marcello’s Pizza at 420 Castro is good for a quick slice. 

NIGHTLIFE

Don’t miss a movie at The Castro Theatre, a historic gem on Castro Street. They often feature sing a longs and other interactive events complete with props as well as a great organist before the show. Check out what’s showing at castrotheater.com.

There are a lot of great bars. The Lookout on the second floor on Market Street (3600 16th Street) features a drag brunch every Saturday and has great views of the street scene. Nearby you can dance the night away at Beaux at 2344 Market. Toad Hall and Badlands on 18th Street are also fun. The Moby Dick at 4049 18th Street is another must. The Midnight Sun at 4067 18th Street is good for a cocktail or two as well. 

IF YOU HAVE A CAR

Don’t miss Pt. Reyes National Seashore north of the City as well as Mount Tamalpais State Park. In the East Bay, Mount Diablo State Park is another must. Drive south along the Coast to Santa Cruz on Highway 1 and then take Highway 17 back through the redwoods  to San Jose where you can come back to SF on I-280, the world’s most beautiful freeway (with more views of the coastal hills). Yosemite National Park with its spring water falls and Lake Tahoe are other options if you have time and wheels.

INSIDER TIPS

Under no circumstances go to San Francisco General Hospital or take an ambulance there. They do not take any insurance and the local paper had a story on a resident having to pay over $50,000 out of his own pocket for an emergency appendectomy even though he had insurance. A friend from Detroit was slapped with an $11,000 bill when he went in for observation after a fall. He had insurance as well, but to no avail.

Similarly, never park in a bus stop area as the parking fines are ridiculously high. Better yet, do not rent a car and skip the stress all together.

Apparently the City raises revenues in strange ways.

Do get a Clipper Transit pass for use on all the transit agencies (Muni Metro, BART, F Street Historic Streetcars, Cable Cars, etc.).

FOR MORE INFORMATION

The weekly newspaper, the Bay Area Reporter, is still going strong (ebar.com). Bay Times is the monthly LGBTQ publication that lists what is going on. You will find it at sfbaytimes.com. The Castro Guide is another source of what to do plus the history of the gayborhood. Another monthly is Gloss Magazine which features left coast nightlife and more. 

You can’t beat the Bay Area for a vacation, especially in the spring when the wildflowers are everywhere on the green hills. 

Bill Malcolm’s syndicated travel column appears in publications in Chicago and Florida and other cities. Based in Indianapolis, he is a former resident of San Francisco (the Castro), but resides in Indianapolis. All or part of his column may appear in other publications. His opinions are his own!

source https://hotspotsmagazine.com/2019/04/18/san-francisco-weekend-in-the-historic-castro/ from Hot Spots Magazine https://hotspotsmagazin.blogspot.com/2019/04/san-francisco-weekend-in-historic-castro.html

[hotspotsmagazine]

San Francisco Weekend in the Historic Castro

Spring has sprung in San Franciso and after a winter of heavy rains, the hills are emerald green and filled with wildflowers. The City by the Bay makes for a fun long weekend or even a vacation.

GETTING THERE

I took Southwest nonstop into nearby Oakland. Oakland International which suffers fewer weather delays than SFO where the parallel runways are too close together making for frequent issues. (FYI….my flight out was at SFO and was delayed 2 hours by a light rain which backed up all the fights all day.)

Both airports are served by the BART subway where you can buy a Clipper Pass good on all transit in the region. You transfer in the City to the Muni Metro (to the Castro Station). You won’t need a car in SF.

WHERE TO STAY

I always stay at Beck’s Motor Lodge at 2222 Market in the Castro neighborhood, still one of the best LGBTQ neighborhood’s in the world. 

You can walk everywhere from the motel and it is near transit including the F historic street car line which uses street cars from around the world to make the journey from the Castro to Fisherman’s Wharf. Peet’s Coffee is across the street and you can work out at the nearby SF Fitness or 24 Hour Fitness. If you have a car, the parking is free (unheard of in the City). Book your room at Becksmotorlodge.com. Tell Britney Beck I sent you.

Other Castro lodging options include the Parker Guest House at 520 Church Street and The Willows Inn at 710 14th Street. Check out Airbnb as well. 

Other affordable hotel options outside of the neighborhood include the new Yotel Hotel on Market Street or The Harbour Court Hotel in the Embarcadero waterfront area. There are also lots of hotels around Union Square. Check TripAdvisor for recommendations. However, I always try and stay in my old neighborhood away from the touristy areas.

WHAT TO DO

I went hiking out in the East Bay with the San Francisco Hiking Club (which I co-founded) to see the incredible display of spring wild flowers at Black Canyon Mines East Bay Regional Park. The Rainbow Chapter of the Sierra Club also has hikes. Don’t miss the display of California poppies and lupines which cover the green hill sides.

From Beck’s you can easily hike up to Corona Heights and Buena Vista Park for great views as well as up to Twin Peaks.  You can also head over to Dolores Park which also has incredible views of the Bay. 

A walk along Upper Market and the Castro Neighborhood is another must. You will find Victorian homes everywhere including on 20th Street above the Castro as well as stairs that climb to mini parks. 

Experience LGBTQ history at the GLBT History Museum at 4127 18th Street (glbthistory.org) to learn about the rich history of the gayborhood where slain supervisor Harvey Milk ran his camera shop (now a HRC store). 

Plaques on the sidewalk of the neighborhood commemorate LGBT icons (rainbowhonorwalk.org).

Take the F Street historic street car (streetcar.org) to the Ferry Building (think upscale farmer’s market) and have great Thai Food at the Rincon Center. 

WHERE TO EAT

There are restaurants everywhere. We tried Eric’s, a Chinese place at 1500 Church in the Noe Valley (accessible via the J Church Line). 

La Mediterranee at 288 Noe is always good as is Cafe Flore at 2298 Market. You will find Hamburger Mary’s at 531 Castro. 

Marcello’s Pizza at 420 Castro is good for a quick slice. 

NIGHTLIFE

Don’t miss a movie at The Castro Theatre, a historic gem on Castro Street. They often feature sing a longs and other interactive events complete with props as well as a great organist before the show. Check out what’s showing at castrotheater.com.

There are a lot of great bars. The Lookout on the second floor on Market Street (3600 16th Street) features a drag brunch every Saturday and has great views of the street scene. Nearby you can dance the night away at Beaux at 2344 Market. Toad Hall and Badlands on 18th Street are also fun. The Moby Dick at 4049 18th Street is another must. The Midnight Sun at 4067 18th Street is good for a cocktail or two as well. 

IF YOU HAVE A CAR

Don’t miss Pt. Reyes National Seashore north of the City as well as Mount Tamalpais State Park. In the East Bay, Mount Diablo State Park is another must. Drive south along the Coast to Santa Cruz on Highway 1 and then take Highway 17 back through the redwoods  to San Jose where you can come back to SF on I-280, the world’s most beautiful freeway (with more views of the coastal hills). Yosemite National Park with its spring water falls and Lake Tahoe are other options if you have time and wheels.

INSIDER TIPS

Under no circumstances go to San Francisco General Hospital or take an ambulance there. They do not take any insurance and the local paper had a story on a resident having to pay over $50,000 out of his own pocket for an emergency appendectomy even though he had insurance. A friend from Detroit was slapped with an $11,000 bill when he went in for observation after a fall. He had insurance as well, but to no avail.

Similarly, never park in a bus stop area as the parking fines are ridiculously high. Better yet, do not rent a car and skip the stress all together.

Apparently the City raises revenues in strange ways.

Do get a Clipper Transit pass for use on all the transit agencies (Muni Metro, BART, F Street Historic Streetcars, Cable Cars, etc.).

FOR MORE INFORMATION

The weekly newspaper, the Bay Area Reporter, is still going strong (ebar.com). Bay Times is the monthly LGBTQ publication that lists what is going on. You will find it at sfbaytimes.com. The Castro Guide is another source of what to do plus the history of the gayborhood. Another monthly is Gloss Magazine which features left coast nightlife and more. 

You can’t beat the Bay Area for a vacation, especially in the spring when the wildflowers are everywhere on the green hills. 

Bill Malcolm’s syndicated travel column appears in publications in Chicago and Florida and other cities. Based in Indianapolis, he is a former resident of San Francisco (the Castro), but resides in Indianapolis. All or part of his column may appear in other publications. His opinions are his own!

from Hotspots! Magazine https://hotspotsmagazine.com/2019/04/18/san-francisco-weekend-in-the-historic-castro/

[nisahapsari]

Internship Experience at PT. Tirta Investama (Aqua)

hello it’s been a long time i’m not post anything yet ever since last year. so i do my apologize if there will be grammatical errors because i’ve forgotten my English written skill huhu. this make me cry a lot (sorry for being too much)

This was my college project on 5th semester that started since July, 17 2017 until August, 19 2017. Well, PT Tirta Investama Bandung is located at  Jalan Soekarno Hatta near Rancabolang. PT Tirta Investama is a private company that run in distribution field under the auspices of Aqua Danone Golden Missisippi. Aqua is a company that produce mineral water in packaging. Right after the products is already done in the factory, PT Tirta Investama distributes the products from factory into supermarket,minimarket, hotel, school, government,cafe etc. then, ready to be consumed by consumers.

source : google :( (it’s because the company doesn’t have icon identity in any corner)

the story begin when i came into wrong place, i went into Tirta Utama Abadi which is located in front of Tirta Investama. then i went to Tirta Investama after someone told me where the right place was. the project actually was made into group, so my group member consist of dini, fitri and my self. we went there, and we get safety direction because the area has a lot of trucks that quite dangerous. Fyi, the warehouse has bigger area than the office itself.  

we have to walk  on this yellow path in order to avoid accident that caused by the truck. on this photo we can also see that beside an indoor warehouse there’s also an outdoor warehouse near the parking lot. 

after we passed those areas, we went to the office. first we have to meet Mr. Tb. Sopyan as IR & GA in Human Resource Dept. Room. He is the person who accept us to do internship there. He told us to wear proper either formal or casual and it was not allowed to wear sandals on working days. Working days actually on Monday until Saturday from 08.00 am - 16.00. but because we’re only internship, the working days only ran until Friday. 

this is the front look of PT TIV office. 

Mr TB divided   us into 3 department, the first 2 week i work in HRD. this department consist of 3 positions which are Mr. Toto Suranto as Hr Dept. Head, Ricka Luciana as Company Benefit Supervisor and she also appointed to be my mentor as long as i  did my internship, and Mr TB as i already mentioned him before.

HR Dept. responsible for developing potential skills that the employees have. payroll, leave, allowances, training, mutation, rate the performances of the employees are also their main job task. as long as i worked there Mr. Toto told me a lot of knowledge and taught me huge experiences that i’ve never known before. he told me about, how hard  working environment that i had to face after i graduate, he told be how to be a good HR. you must understand your co-workers, you should listen more often and give positive  feedback. Openness  character are really needed to suit this position. To work as HR  also charged to understand the regulation that government had UU Number 13 year of 2013 about Employment. also during i was there, i was challenged to assess people‘s character by him. it was really hard tbh, but he told me that if i already getting use to it, there will no difficulty to find. in HR dept, i have responsibilities to input employee’s attendance that integrated with fingerprint system, archive employee’s files, validate employee’s allowance, calculating overtime employee’s , make job description that any position the company has. Mr Toto and Mrs Ricka love to talk a lot, sometimes it was hard to me to concentrate between my task and to talk with them at the same time. Otherwise, Mr TB is a serious person that talk less and i have to start the conversation first with him. I’ve made mistakes enough when i validate employee’s allowance because i didn’t do it properly as she wished. it was quite strain for me, bcs this is my first work experience. then Mr Told me that mistakes are common to made so i don’t have to feel afraid. but just remember that mistakes were made to learn not to repeat. he also told me that i have to add more skills such as English competencies, team work capability, public speaking, of course computer skills and do less activities that only waste my time such us hanging out etc. haha i really love hanging out with friends huhu

this is when i worked as HR to input employee’s attendance

On the 3rd week i moved to distribution department. This department responsible for inbound and outbound. i had to directly contact with drivers, because they had to bring documents from us when they take the products/goods from warehouse, deliver it to retail/hotel/school etc and also they need documents from us if the want to return those goods (jug rack, empty bottle). so for 1 week, i have to create BKB (bukti kembali barang), RIT (sales), BTB (bukti terima barang) documents. My mentors as long as i was there are Pak Uhe, Bu Abet and Bu Mega, they’re very friendly and funny. This department requires capability of team work hopefully,  it was really great to work with them. from distribution/warehouse dept. i learnt new software, it was called SAP. i don’t know what SAP stands for, because sadly none of them couldn’t afford to tell. People who worked in this department are divided into 2 shifts, morning and evening. this work was quite boring if you do it  continuously, because we had to work on the desk keep our eyes straight to monitor and typing also printing :’) but gladly, there were pak uhe, bu abet and bu mega that made time flew so fast :’) 

this my work desk, i was creating BKB for the next day.

after a week, i went to finance dept. i was responsible for arranging delivery note, invoice, so on. it was quite boring actually, because i kept on doing the same thing and didn’t get any knowledge at all. The real work of finance dept. wasn’t given to the intern. trust issue i guess. 

and this is my work desk. 

            Actually the place where i sit was for collector dept. in the morning there were many employees who worked as collector and after that they go to collect bill from consumers and they returned about 4 p.m. People there are quite friendly, and they love to talk a lot. until one day I found person who lived around my house and he quite recognize about my family. 

              this was a valuable experience, not all of my friend could have the experience i had. about working life, socializing, problem solving and so on. i got paid but not that much it was only RP 21.000,- each day. so i got around RP 450.000 and also certificate that proved i had been working there. I’ve passed about 5 weeks there but it felt like yesterday, wondering if only i have holiday will i be accepted to internship there again? it was a really worth and unforgettable experience that I’ve ever had.  so lucky to be there, can’t wait until i graduate and find my own job