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https-furina · 1 year ago

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https-furina’s 2023 genshin impact recap !!

2023 is officially about to end so i wanted to go over my genshin account and all the progress i’ve made this year. this isn’t a brag post ! i want to record my progress especially since i took a year break and a lot of things have changed. maybe you want to do this too?

this is like an insight into my genshin account if you guys just want to be nosey.. ehe. let’s get started (it’s gonna be long !!)

i started genshin in march 2021 !! i took a break from september 2021 to april 2023 however i came online multiple times during 2022, i just didn’t stay for good. i came back this april (with no specific date.) i came back with no 100% map, way too many quests, no fully ascended characters, no lvl10 friendships and no built characters.

this year i have fully ascended diluc, hu tao, lyney, zhongli, furina, kazuha, wanderer, heizou, cyno, alhaitham, nilou, kaeya, xingqiu, miko, jean, diona, ganyu & childe !!

the first character to be fully ascended & lvl90 was diluc !!

these characters have reached lvl90: diluc, hu tao, cyno, alhaitham, zhongli, heizou, wanderer, kazuha & nilou.

these characters have reached lvl10 friendship: diluc, hu tao, lyney, furina, kazuha, wanderer, heizou, alhaitham, nilou, miko, diona & chongyun.

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when i came back i had three 5* weapons: wolfs gravestone and 2x aquila favonia.

i now have: r2 wolfs gravestone, 2x aquila favonia, 3x skyward harp, r3 lost prayers, r1 lost prayers, r2 vortex vanquisher, staff of scarlet sands, splendor of tranquil waters & staff of homa.

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these characters are built to my satisfication (and i’ve probably used in spiral abyss): hu tao, alhaitham, nilou, kazuha, furina, zhongli, heizou, ganyu, shenhe, miko, layla, wanderer, xingqiu, shinobu, qiqi, baizhu, collei, lyney, cyno & ayaka

who do i think my best builds are? cyno, ayaka, heizou, zhongli, furina, kazuha & hu tao.

i came back on spiral floor 6-1 and 2023 is ending on spiral floor 11-3.

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5* characters that i’ve obtained this year are shenhe, jean, miko, alhaitham, wanderer, dehya, lyney, hu tao, wriothesley, venti, furina, cyno, ayaka, navia, nilou & baizhu.

4* characters that i’ve obtained this year are gorou, thoma, yun jin, heizou, lynette, freminet, charlotte, faruzan, layla, collei, yaoyao, kirara, kaveh, candace, shinobu, mika & dori.

5* cons i’ve acquired this year: c2 zhongli, c3/c4/c5/c6 diluc, c1/c2 jean, c2/c3 mona, c2 qiqi, c2 keqing, c1 dehya, c1 ayaka.

characters i have c6 (not necessarily from this year alone): diluc, diona, chongyun, kirara, xinyan, barbara, rosaria, kaveh, xingqiu, yanfei, xiangling, razor, thoma, sucrose, beidou, sayu, charlotte, dori.

i’m missing neuvillette, yelan, ayato, kokomi, raiden (not for long), xiao, klee, albedo, itto, nahida, eula & tighnari.

—

story quests i’ve finished this year: raiden shogun (both acts), yoimiya (both acts), zhongli (act 2), lyney, furina, wriothesley, neuvillette, nahida (act 1), baizhu, kokomi, itto, tighnari, nilou, cyno, eula, ayaka, ayato, kazuha, miko, alhaitham.

hangouts i’ve completed (not necessarily this year): heizou, gorou, thoma, barbara, noelle, bennett, chongyun, diona, faruzan, kaveh, shinobu, ningguang.

my favourite story quests are neuvillette, lyney, tighnari, zhongli, yelan, cyno.

my favourite hangouts are heizou, gorou, faruzan, thoma.

—

i have four areas left to 100% on my map (previously, i hadn't 100% any areas.) i have a total of 789 achievements done! i have maxed three out of five statues. i have maxed three reputations; mondstadt, liyue and fontaine. i have maxed the frostbearing tree and the sacred sakura! my favourite areas to explore was the hypostyle desert, dragonspine and tsurumi island! my favourite nations are fontaine & inazuma. my favourite nation osts are liyue, sumeru & inazuma.

i came back in april 2023 as a diluc, diona & chongyun main. i am ending december 2023 as a hu tao, zhongli, ayaka & heizou main.

i am ending 2023 on ar57!

questions for 2024: hoyo, where's dain? /hj but also, why do i have a really uneasy feeling that celestia is watching our every move?

#this was so fun to look back on my account and everything i've managed to do since april...#let's see how much changes by the end of 2024 <3 #https-furina's genshin recap !!#will make that tag pretty later uuuu...#see u all in 2024 (with actual fics i swear. im writing rn)#https-furina

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thisiskatsblog · 5 years ago

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You know what, if larry isn’t real, I Wanna ask louis why he got the dagger tattoo that is perfectly complementary with Harry’s rose. its so ?? and its not like were making things up that its a matching one. He deadass got one and hets are like ok but L got an E tattoo which points to elk and i’m like uhm u serious it can also stand for edward so 👀

I dig the Edward theory, anon!

The dagger tattoo is perhaps the most significant of them all. Not because he got it, after a year, but because of the timing that he got it. November 2014 was one hell of a fucking ride. Looking at all the facts, it was one loud scream for freedom and a big fuck you to everyone keeping them in the closet. It was as loud as he could get. And it was necessary.

A quick recap of the preceding events:

2012: Louis and Harry start getting complimentary tattoos - mostly nautical - here a (non exhaustive i think) overview

Source: 78.media.tumblr.com

September 2013: Harry gets the rose, fans start speculating that Louis might get a dagger, but they get the anatomical heart and arrow. No dagger for a year.

….

30 October 2014: Apple CEO Tim Cook comes out as gay at which occasion the rainbow apple logo is revived by the papers. Interestingly the “not that important” and “don’t knock it til you try it” interviews are taped that same day. The fandom is still blissfully unaware though.

3 November: The “not that important” interview comes out - in short, asked which traits they find important in a girl, Liam says “female”, and Harry replies “not that important”.

4 November: Harry’s statement is all over the papers and speculations become loud, everyone is asking: did he just come out as bisexual? Harry instagrams an armchair captioning “seated”. Might as well have said “where is the popcorn?”

5 November: Rainbow Direction launches the rainbow heart badges to show support to Harry’s “coming out” of sorts and create safe spaces for fans to discuss LGBTQ+issues - 22.000 people download them to their profiles that week - rainbow hearts are everywhere.

Later that same day, the live FOUR hangout is announced for Sunday Nov 9th and fans can send in their questions.

7 November: Louis shows up at the X factor rehearsal wearing a rainbow apple shirt. Considering context of the past week’s events, a LOT of people see that as support to Harry, and Tim Cook

9 November: The Independent’s Jenn Selby ’s article is published saying “Louis Tomlinson supports gay Apple CEO Tim Cook - days after Harry Styles’ comments on gender and sexuality” also referring to the fandom’s support for Harry with the rainbow hearts. This is how it’s featured on the front page:

That evening the FOUR hangout is broadcast and it’s the most akward interview ever. Rather than coming from fans, several of the questions seem to be set up to give Louis and Harry the opportunity to deny their rumoured sexuality/relationship . Except they don’t. (if you’re brave, watch 12 cringy long minutes from 8 to 20). Also, it’s November and it’s cold, but they are in their T shirts, matching tattoos out, and Louis keeps adjusting his boatneck “It is what it is”. Also Liam asks “Have you read the article in the Independent?” Louis “No, is it good?” Liam “Yeah"

10 November: We get papshots of Louis at the lawyer’s near Harry’s public house and he’s looking cheerful and therefore so are we, but that doesn’t last long. Late that afternoon shady agenda anons start imbuing the fandom with “it’s just the vintage apple logo” but we’re not having it. That evening, @Louis_Tomlinson tweets Jen Selby the same shit, but worse,it gets personal, it’s homophobic, it’s vicious and I’m not in a mood to recap or link it, may it disappear from the face of the earth. Interestingly a few minutes later followed by the more vague “Ridiculous I even have to tweet that shit” - some people think this is real Louis shading 1DHQ - we’ll never know - but I like to think so.

11 November: Louis’ tweets to Selby get noticed and suddenly the story about that Independent article and @LT’s homophobic reaction is all over the place. Harry captions the following pic on his IG with “funny money”

???: Lottie :( on Twitter

14 November: Harry instagrams twice, one picture of a cracked wall saying “lovely view”, and another “no such green” which we think links to the funny money.

15 November: The interview in which Harry says to Niall - “Don’t knock it til you try it” about sex with a man (also filmed 30 Oct) is aired. TMHFN/Rainbow Direction ask for an apology.

17 November: on Elounor’s anniversary, this appears on Jay’s Instagram

It’s is deleted minutes later and her twitter says it was a hack.

Also, interestingly, Lottie tweets “no point in sorry when the damage is already done. some things can’t be forgiven”

It’s a hectic few days, as while they are in Orlando, Zayn doesn’t show up for a gig, Harry serenades Louis, oh and news comes out that our beloved security guy/tour manager Paul quits. Supposedly something to do with Zayn. November 2014 was so wild on all levels.

23 November: At the AMA’s Harry serenades Louis *again* and he also sits next to Louis’ parents.

26 November: we see that Louis got the long anticipated dagger tattoo, a quote (given a chance), and a second smiley xx) this time on his wrist

And in case we missed it, next shoot, he’s pointing right at it:

I call that LOUD, LOUD, and LOUD.

They were trying to break out of the closet in November 2014. Their family were trying to help them break them out of the closet in November 2014. Everyone wanted to help them break out of the closet in November 2014. 1DHQ pushed back. And Louis responded in the only way he could. I don’t see how you could interpret all of this any differently.

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incorrectstarcoquotes · 4 years ago

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Incorrect Recap - S2

Alright @seddm, Round 2 it is! My first round and his first round. Let’s get it on!

My New Wand - Star learns wandless magic in order to prevent starco from being canon early because why would we want that? It’s just the only thing everyone wants.

Ludo In The Wild - A nature documentary is the best way to show what Ludo has been up to.

Mr. Candle Cares - Tom does something wrong again and everyone still spends four years trying to convince me that he didn’t, and even if he did, it’s okay.

Red Belt - A Marco-centric story is the best way to catch up on some character development. Also, the Diaz’s are afraid of the store?

Star On Wheels - A car chase through a southern California freeway is the best way to show Star and Marco’s trust deepening.

Fetch - A dog from another dimension tries to fry its own brain to catch a break. I’m sorry, what?

Star Vs Echo Creek - Star runs away from accepting responsibility from a crime she committed and Marco spends all day and all night trying to look for her (but we don’t see that part).

Wand To Wand - Wand to wand, man to man, hand to hand. Both Star and Ludo learn to use their half of the wand.

Starstruck - Star learns the same lesson we all do, never meet your heroes.

Camping Trip - River travels dimensions through sheer force of will to be a third wheel to Star and Marco’s camping trip.

Starsitting - Babysitting is the best way to show how Star and Marco’s dynamic would be married with children.

On The Job - Buff Frog does as any good single dad would do and goes out to try to bring home the bacon...er, corn.

Goblin Dogs - The show beats down the Marco money joke until we’re introduced to a character I slowly start to hate.

By The Book - Glossaryck uses his omniscience to fuck with Star, and we learn that Ludo does know Marco’s name.

Game of Flags - Star makes her own team of two with Marco at a family reunion as they a play a game that everyone is a little too into. It’s like playing football at Thanksgiving in Texas. Even the people who don’t like football are suddenly experts.

Girls’ Day Out - Star and Janna totally become friends as Marco gets a reminder of that Jackie body. I mean, DAMN.

Sleepover - A magic box voiced by Goku forces the characters to develop.

Gift of the Card - Star and Marco act more like a canon couple than most canon couples and my favorite character name is introduced.

Friendenemies - Tom and Marco actually bond over boy bands and karate movies. I’d actually buy into this if Tom fans hadn’t been talking shit to me this whole time.

Is Mystery - Buff Frog goes up the ranks of everyone’s favorite character list by furthering the main plot.

Hungry Larry - An interdimensional terror is the best way to teach Rafael that adult fear is legitimate fear.

Spider with a Top Hat - My eight year old niece turns to me and asks, “Are we still watching Star vs?” because neither one of use could believe the crap we were looking at.

Into the Wand - We learn that Toffee is corrupting the wand and the magic but Star doesn’t figure it out until much later.

Pizza Thing - Pony Head makes everything worse for Marco because she’s Pony Head. It’s kind of her thing.

Page Turner - Star proves that she’s a Gen Z-er by believing that ancient dark voodoo whatever isn’t a big deal.

Naysaya - Tom does something wrong again and again everyone tries to tell me that he didn’t, and even if he did, it’s okay.

Bonbon The Birthday Clown - Star vs pulls a hard Toradora by having Star realize that more Jarco time does mean less Starco time. Ludo steals the book and changes the game for the characters and the plot.

Raid the Cave - Star and Marco pull a Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Star’s parents do what all leaders do and try to downplay the severity of the crisis.

Trickstar - "Weird” Al Yankovic sucks the joy out of people which is the opposite of what he does IRL.

Baby - A cute little cat thing gives Star a reality check.

Running with Scissors - A crazy episode about Marco getting his own dimensional scissors has so many terrible ramifications through the fandom. Like my God I fucking hate all you dumb motherfuckers “He’s 30. He’s 30.” THINK FOR FIVE FUCKING SECONDS YOU PIECES OF SHIT. DID NO ONE THINK WHILE MAKING OR WATCHING THIS EPISODE? AARKDAKL;SDF

I’m sorry. I lost my head for a while there.

Mathmagic - Star almost destroys the multiverse because she’s not good at math.

The Bounce Lounge - Star tries to save her favorite hangout and...that’s really it.

Crystal Clear - There are few things worse than watching a dumbass try to be smart, as Star learns.

The Hard Way - Ludo learns a spell. One spell. Singular. Toffee shows himself again.

Heinous - Marco’s parents will believe anything.

All Belts Are Off - Marco tries to get the approval of someone who really isn’t worth it, and turns out, Star really is a bug.

Collateral Damage - Star learns how crazy the people of Echo Creek actually are and Marco becomes an odd number because he literally can’t even in this episode.

Just Friends - The show pulls a Toradora for the second time but far worse.

Face the Music - Patrick Stump figures out what took everyone else two seasons to learn that STAR BUTTERFLY IS IN LOVE WITH HER BEST FRIEND...and his name is Marco Diaz. Star’s parents face political blowback because they’re just the worst.

Starcrushed - All of my worst hopes and fears come true until that last minute.

#star vs the forces of evil #svtfoe #starco

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wezzaner · 6 years ago

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Evie’s and Doug’s relationship develops the best, Pt. 3.1: Descendants Timeline

Yes, there’s going to be another part to this. Even if you aren’t an Evie/Doug person, just give this a read. It’s more of a timeline analysis, actually.

This has taken me a lot longer than parts 1 and 2 did for a lot of reasons. The most important one was that I was very conflicted about what to write. And my conflict had absolutely nothing to do with the Evie/Doug relationship at all.

My conflict was strictly about how the writers did all the characters dirty with the canon timeline. All of them, I am making no exceptions. I am very confident in my interpretation of the Evie/Doug relationship that I actually have two different analysis depending on which timeline I chose to work with, but I am not choosing the canon timeline.

Why I chose not to work with the canon timeline:

Simply put, I am not about to do those characters a disservice.

If a year and a half have actually passed between D2 and D3, then I will lose all the admiration, respect, love and appreciation I have for Evie, Uma, Ben and maybe Mal. And I am not okay with that. And they don’t just screw over those four, it’s almost everyone. “They’re just characters”, yeah, I know that. But I grew up with them. And that’s not okay with me, screwing them up doesn’t sit well with me.

And the canon timeline is messed up anyway, I think.

Here’s the supposed canon timeline of the movies:

Over two years have passed since the VKs were brought from the isle.

The VKs supposedly being brought at the beginning of an academic year, around September.

Six months between D1 and D2 that would mean D2 took place between mid-February and late-May (second semester of an academic year, I am playing loose with the six months not being exact).

For D3 to take place a year and a half later, it would be mid-July to late-August. (Audrey is in the middle of summer school, again I am playing loose with the uttered timing being exact).

The problem is, someone posted about Jay being 17 and Carlos being 14 in the first book, and another pointed out yet somehow in D3 Jay is 18 and Carlos is only a year younger at 17. If someone could clarify that to me, I would be grateful.

The second discrepancy is Audrey’s royal return. Audrey says, “It has been a bit of a tough year.” Then proceeds to recap the entirety of the first two movies. Now, we know that Cotillion takes place six months after the coronation (televised report thing in the beginning of D2), that means Ben’s proclamation was passed SEVEN months before the events of D2 (which takes place over, like, three days). That actually leaves only five months between the events of D2 and D3 (again, playing loose with the ONE YEAR thing).

I am sorry, I just can’t get behind the canon timeline suggesting that:

Evie, heart of gold, compassionate, striving for goodness and equal opportunities Evie, put Dizzy and the other VKs on the back burner for a year and a half. I mean, Dizzy was sent an invitation straight away after cotillion, it probably took a few days. That’s not the Evie that was revealed after a strong character arc in D1 or the one developed in D2. I refuse to take that, I am sorry.

Uma, fiercely determined, a leader in her own rights, a rebel seeking retribution and a fair good life, just swam for a year and half around the barrier and in her time outs, discovered coconuts? What the actual hell? Uma is proactive, she won’t just hangout, staking the premises for a year and a half. She has her magic now, she would have done something, anything. But not make her presence and whereabouts known for 18 months? No, no way.

Mal left her arch enemy roaming. If there’s one thing Uma and Mal have in common, it is that they are both proactive. Mal won’t be sitting still, watching around for Uma. Mal would have scoured the freaking lands, seas and where ever else.

Finally, King Care Bear. Ben is the only AK who has been to the isle aside from guards and Lonnie. He saw, he knew, and he promised. He extended Uma the olive branch, he admitted he got sucked into his duties of being king and that the plan was always to start with four kids and expand the program. And he just abandoned ship for a year and a half? Going with the canon timeline destroys Ben’s… everything.

I am not okay with how this went. Not at all. It’s pissing me off and that’s why I refuse to take the canon timeline and just run with it.

Which is why, I have worked on putting together my own timeline, and I even put together a few points that prove it. This is gonna be all over the place, I hope you can follow.

Let’s establish the timeline, shall we?

Like I said before, I was going nuts trying to fit the timeline to the supposed narrative. I was almost loosing it when I found the clip (well, the poorly disguised recap really) that is Audrey’s royal return.

It made me pull my hair out, really.

Now, assuming that:

The academic year starts in early September and ends in early June (maybe late May),

Ben brings the VKs at the beginning of the school year (which is a perfect time, actually), then D1 takes place throughout September and early October and D2 occurs around early April. That gives space for Audrey to have a leave off her second semester and all, instead of just dropping out mid semester. (re-check the second discrepancy in the canon timeline for further detailing).

Now assuming that Audrey was accurate when she said, ‘a year ago’, that would place D3 around September, which I highly doubt because D3 takes place in summer. So, let’s assume she wasn’t accurate and that D3 takes place, say, mid- July.

That would make sense regarding:

The Dizzy situation. Maybe three months is how long it took for the arrangements of establishing the VKs integration program and all.

It would also explain how Uma spent only three months circling the isle because, as I said before, my girl Uma is a proactive, crafty little shit who wouldn’t just passively swim around for a year and a half waiting for shit to happen.

Also, Mal tells Ben they’re getting more guards for the Uma problem (scene right before the proposal), I don’t think they’d wait all this time to get more guards where the King resides, really.

Granted, that wouldn’t explain how much the isle changed and how everyone wants in on the move to Auradon and how all the parents are suddenly nice, good people looking out for their kids. But come on, D3 was a giant, unexplainable plot hole anyway. (I got issues with almost every minute in the movie, but I appreciate it for what it is. But come on, there should have been a screening process for people getting off the isle. Wasn’t that the point of the applications?)

This timeline though means that we’re in deep shit regarding how old everyone is:

Ben turns sixteen in D1 on coronation day and he’s still sixteen ya’ll, it hasn’t been a full year yet.

Jay is graduating, so Jay is eighteen.

I know Carlos and Jane are supposed to be younger, so I assume it is Jane’s sweet sixteen celebrated in D3.

I have no idea what’s up with Evie’s and Mal’s ages, though. But taking into consideration the birthday incident from the book, I suppose they are the same age? They’re either Ben’s age or they are seventeen. I keep going back and forth and that’s the only thing I can come up with.

From the whole sandbox/Shrimpy backstory Gil tells in D2, I can only assume Uma is the same age. No idea about Harry and Gil though, but I am assuming Uma’s age for them, give or take one year at most.

King Care Bear IS too young to be proposing. Ben’s and Mal’s relationship moved way too fast for a couple of sixteen-year olds. At least from my POV, you’re free to think what you want.

The entire franchise is just one major plot hole. That I love so much.

Please, please, please, take the time to let me know If I missed anything. This has been bothering me since I first saw the movie. Maybe I overlooked something or another. Either way, let me know what you think.

Relationships I’d consider canon-confirmed:

Only FOUR romantic relationships became canon in the actual Descendants timeline. Ben and Mal, obviously. Evie and Doug. Chad and Audrey (broken in somewhere between October and April). Carlos and Jane (Got together in April).

I am adding Jay/Gil in D3, we all saw that, right?

Harry/Uma post D3. Because you know it and I know it. And we all talk about how it will happen. Because it will happen.

The only couples who are confirmed true loves are Mal/Ben and Evie/Doug.

Harry/Uma will be confirmed post D3. Evie and/or Audrey will match make. Uma, tired of his flirtatious behavior, will seek Mal’s help to put Harry under a spell so she could save him with a true love’s kiss and assures Mal it will work. But she will get cold feet and Evie will get her sweet, sweet revenge.

He will be saved, of course.

Extra point I’d like to highlight:

Mal states in D1 that there’s no dating on the isle, that it’s mostly gang activity. That statement alone just explains all the relationship dynamics in the franchise involving any VK, but everyone is overlooking it.

It explains (somewhat, but not really) why Mal was hesitant about being in love in D2, thus doubting the concept of love, letting the pressure get to her and running off to the isle.

That explains Jay’s playboy attitude, as well, if you think about it. Which is close to Evie’s flirtatious personality pre-Doug. That explains Carlos’s hesitance to ask Jane out, he hadn’t done this before and he’s only fifteen.

That explains why Uma and Harry aren’t “together-together” even though they are together. Like I said above, Uma and Harry should be considered future-canon because “Uma knew, try as she might, she couldn’t hurt his feelings. It was all part of the game of question-and-rejection they’d played forever.” I haven’t read the books but thanks to tumblr, I know this exists.

Like for the core four, the isle wasn’t a safe environment for a relationship. It even explains why she would be reluctant to get with him and it develops Harry’s own flirtatious behavior. Like Jay! And, again, Evie pre-Doug.

You’re welcome, Huma people!

Now that the (well, MY) timeline is out of the way, I can go back to topic. I don’t know about what you think, but this timeline and the whole “gang activity” ordeal adds to Evie’s and Doug’s motive to take things slow.

Next part will all be about Evie’s and Doug’s relationship. I have a lot to say about that one.

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grandtheftstarship · 6 years ago

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I Will Spend My Whole Life Loving You (Spock x Fem!Reader) [Request!]

“Fic Request: Spock x Fem!Reader (Vulcan/Human hybrid) go on a romantic date!”

”Headcanon or Fic Request: fem!Reader being married to Spock!”

“Request: Spock x Human-Vulcan Fem!Reader get married on the Enterprise. Preferably TOS Spock please.”

- @sovereignoblivious

Hi there! Thank you for requesting :) I decided to mash these all into one since they are all kind of similar. I hope you don’t mind! Also, I write for mainly AOS but nothing really distinguishes it from TOS so you can imagine it taking place in TOS if you would like! I also totally forgot about the vulcan/human hybrid until I was about 1k words in, so if it’s not as well represented I’m so sorry!! I tried to fit it in as best I could :(

I wrote this like a recap of your relationship with Spock, so there’s not much dialogue. I tried to be as detailed as possible!

Also, sorry for the lack of updates... the school year just ended and I went on vacation for two weeks to visit my family in Hawai’i! I had no wifi for nearly 10 days and let me tell you it was AWFUL. Haha. I’m so glad to be home. The rest of this summer will hopefully be full of updates! Keep the requests coming!

ALSO, THANK YOU GUYS FOR THE FOLLOWS!!!!! I gained 20 more followers while I was away! I love you all so much :D!!!

Word Count: 2377 Warnings: fluff, swearing, mentions of self-harm/self-loathing

Send a request!

You had absolutely hated Spock at first. Boiling, raw, pure hatred for him, even though your reasons were unfair and you knew it.

Your initial thought was to just avoid him as much as possible, but that plan was eventually foiled when you realized how difficult that was going to be when he was in almost all of your classes, his dorm was literally directly across the street (like you could look out your window and see right through his window, how you both happened to be on the 17th floor in separate buildings and the same room number was beyond you) and you saw him probably more than ten times a day.

He was there on the walk to class in the morning, there during class, there during lunch hour, even there sometimes on the walk home after class. Once you thought it couldn’t get any worse, your professors started pairing the two of you for group projects. When you asked why, all of their answers ran along the same lines: ‘You both need to learn to get along’ or ‘You could learn a lot from each other’ and other shit like that. You started getting suspicious when you suddenly had four projects assigned with him as your partner. You asked your friends about it when you were getting frustrated and all they did was share a look between each other and shrug. When you and Spock set a date to finally start working on all of your projects, you started dreading it. You found yourself lingering around, whether it be to ask a professor a question that you already knew the answer to after class was over or staying late at the library so that you wouldn't have to go to bed and wake up the next morning, a whole day closer to doomsday. You tried to tell yourself that the reason you were doing that was because you hated him and didn’t want to be around him for any amount of time, but when the familiar burning sensation you always felt when thinking of him started morphing into something else you got scared. The change startled you, suddenly feeling self-conscious and unsure as opposed to your typically confident nature. It was all so new and it was especially frightening when you didn’t have enough time to unpack it before your workday with Spock, so, instead of dealing with it, you tried to push it all down.

When the day finally came, it took every ounce of willpower you had to roll out of bed and get dressed. It was a Saturday so you didn’t need to be dressed in uniform, so you went with some black sweats that had ‘STARFLEET’ written down one side and a [f/c] tank top. It was a little chilly outside, so you threw your favorite hoodie on as you walked out the door. You tied your hair back in the elevator, careful to leave enough down to cover your ears, put your keycard into the side pocket of your backpack and you started the walk to the campus library.

If there was one thing you were most self-conscious about it was your Vulcan ears. You didn’t like your Vulcan side as much because of your father. He was half-Vulcan half-human, while you were three-quarters human and only one-fourth Vulcan. You were glad you only inherited the ears, not the eyebrows. You and your father didn’t have the best relationship, or any relationship at all, really, and you never knew why. He was often strict and unfeeling, never exercising his human side in front of you. He left when you were eight years old for a Vulcan science mission and never came back. Your mother still loved him, though you never saw him show any sign of affection back. You always believed your mother deserved better, and that was when your hatred for Vulcans started to manifest. Starting with yourself.

A few years after he left you fell into a dark place, although you were exceptional at hiding it. You would often stare at your sharply pointed ears in the mirror and pull on them, hoping that if you pulled hard enough from the bottom they would even out. You would wear earmuffs year-round so that nobody would see. When you were fifteen, you snuck out and got them pierced several times so that they would appear more human. They also compelled you to become more emotional to appear less like your father.

You shook yourself out of your reverie as you walked out of the front entrance of your building.

Luckily for you, Spock was not walking down the opposite sidewalk so you slid your headphones under your hood over your ears and shuffled your playlist. The walk was much shorter than you would’ve preferred and you sauntered up the steps into the vast hall. Since everybody was off, the library was used more as a hangout area than a quiet study hall, save for the actual study hall in the back, so it was a bit louder than usual.

You spotted Spock sitting at one of the smaller open tables next to one of the windows overlooking the grounds. The fluttery-anxious feeling was back again, causing you to swallow hard as you approached him.

“Hey,” you called as he looked up from the window.

“Hey,” he greeted, somewhat awkwardly. Setting your backpack down, you sat down across from him. He was wearing casual clothes too; a plain green sweater and some jeans, though you thought it was cute how he still wore his badge. You shut your eyes tightly and cursed yourself.

I don’t think he looks cute, I don’t think he looks cute, I don’t think he looks cute-

“[y/n], are you feeling alright?” he asked.

You opened your eyes and glared at him.

“Fine, just mentally preparing,” you snapped.

He did what you could only assume was his version of an eye roll, but what surprised you was the flicker of a smile that passed over his features. It was only there for a fraction of a second, but your cheeks reddened as your heart raced.

What is happening to me?

“Would you like to begin?” he started pulling out papers and you gulped.

This was going to be a long day.

Surprisingly, that wasn’t the case. You had never really sat down and talked with Spock before, and to your astonishment, he was a really cool person. You both talked for hours, barely getting any work done, and before you knew it the library was empty and it was almost nine pm. You packed up your things and headed back towards your dorms you continued to talk and he continued to make you laugh and once you made it to the front entrance of your building you couldn’t even remember why you had hated him in the first place.

You smiled and told him goodnight, feeling the heat creep up on your cheeks. You swore that you saw his own cheeks tint green. You both stared back at each other for a moment, feeling yourself gravitate towards each other for a brief second before you realized what you were doing and leaned back a little. He bid you goodnight and with the tiniest little smile you had ever seen, he turned away and crossed the street. You shook yourself out of your daze and hurried inside, texting your friends to meet you asap in your dorm. Even though it was late, you knew your friends and their Saturday night habits.

You asked them about Spock again, this time a little less aggressively. They looked shocked at your calm, almost lovestruck expression settled over your features, glancing worriedly between themselves.

Your friends were there for hours talking with you about your feelings and how you were to deal with them until you all fell asleep. They told you that this was just a case of misinterpretation of feelings, so when you felt so strongly towards Spock you mistook it for hatred when it was really admiration and infatuation. The confirmed that the same thing had happened to Spock, though he had realized much sooner. When you asked them what that meant, they dropped the bombshell on you.

“[y/n],” [friend’s name] said gently. “Spock has been smitten with you since midterms. Almost everyone knows, except for you apparently.”

You sat and stared for a minute, unsure how to react. Giddiness rose above all the other emotions you were feeling, forcing a smile to form on your lips. You felt all choked up, excitement raising your heartrate and slowly taking away your ability to breathe.

“So, even the teachers know?” you managed to force out. Your friends chuckled.

The teachers assumed something was going on, but didn’t know for sure since you acted so hostile towards him all the time so they went out of their way to pair you and Spock together.

You thanked your friends and invited them to stay the night.

The next day you had planned to work with Spock again, so you left your friends a note and told them they could stay as long as they liked as long as they locked the door before they left.

You met Spock at the library again but this time you actually did get some work done, and quickly. When you both finished, you packed your things and took a walk around the grounds. You talked all day about random things, interests, favorites, childhood (you tried your best to leave out the part about your father) and a little bit about your hopes for the future. You did most of the talking, though Spock did contribute on occasion, like he talked a bit about his love (or as he put it, ‘subtle interest’ but you knew better) for music and his passion for science.

Hours passed quickly and the sunset came quickly. You and Spock were sat on a grassy slope overlooking the San Fransisco Bay, watching the sunset.

“[y/n], I have something to confess,” he broke the silence. You turned to him.

“Go ahead.”

“The truth of the matter is that I harbor no malice or hatred towards you,” he started, looking away from you. Even in the dim golden light from the descending sun, you could tell he was uncomfortable. “My... feelings towards you are quite the opposite.”

You stared blankly at him for a moment. Even though you had already known, hearing it come from his was a totally different story. You scooted a little closer to him and placed your head down on his shoulder. He relaxed beneath you, accepting the action as one of reciprocation. You felt his hand brush over yours and the spark that followed after confirmed a Vulcan kiss. You raised your head up to meet his eyes, which flickered between your lips and back up. You leaned in slowly to give him time to back out if he wasn’t comfortable, but to your surprise, he was the one to close the distance.

This kiss was sweet and only lasted a few seconds. When you pulled away, you could see the tiniest hint of a smile on his lips. Your smile faded, though, when you remembered your lie.

“I have to tell you something,” you said softly. He nodded slowly, letting you remove your hand from his light hold.

You pulled your hood back and tucked your hair behind your now exposed ear. You couldn’t look him in the eye as he stared at your earring-ridden ear that mirrored his.

“You’re... Vulcan?”

“A quarter,” you replied softly, wringing your hands in your lap. Spock reached out to grasp them in his own, forcing you to look back up into his eyes.

“Why did you feel the need to hide this from me?” he asked you gently. “It would not and does not change the effect that you have on me.”

So, you explained in the waning sunlight what actually happened in your childhood and the issues with your father, why you ended up hating all Vulcans and that’s why you hated him too in the beginning.

“You don’t need to be ashamed of your heritage because of him,” he told you when you finished. “You don’t need to hide part of who you are because of his mistakes. I can assist you in exploring our culture to help change your views if you would like.”

You threw your arms around his neck in a tight hug.

“Thank you,” you murmured.

_____________

You and Spock stayed together for the remaining years at the academy. You brought him home to meet your mother (who instantly approved) and you did almost everything together. Date night was your favorite time of the week, which ranged from movie nights or fancy dinners. Your favorite one was when he took you out of the city to go stargazing and set up the cutest little picnic complete with lanterns and fairy lights. It was romantic and beautiful being there with him and listening to the wildlife as the stars made themselves known. He showed you all the constellations he knew of.

Before you knew it you were both assigned on missions. At first, you were separated; you on the USS Bradbury and him on the USS Enterprise, but with some convincing, you were reassigned to the Enterprise.

After your first run-in with danger when Nero attacked and your near-death experience, Spock decided it was time to pop the question. You were married not long after by Jim, who you had gotten very close to because of Spock. You had asked Nyota to be your maid of honor and Spock chose Leonard (who agreed despite his recurring annoyance with the Vulcan). You were awarded a larger, shared quarters and time off duty to spend time together.

Married life was much more normal than you had originally thought it was going to be. Everything just started to slow down around you, and you always had a sense of calm whenever Spock was near you. The butterflies you always felt when he was around died down and instead you felt an overwhelming amount of safety and comfort.

He was all you had ever wanted, and he was forever yours.

#star trek #star trek fanfic #Star Trek Fanfiction #star trek aos #star trek aos x reader #star trek aos reader inserts #spock #spock fanfiction #spock x reader #spock imagines #spock x femreader #star trek spock fanfiction

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wits-writing · 6 years ago

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Earth’s Mightiest Retrospective Ep 27: “The Private War of Doctor Doom”

(Directed by Gary Hartle, Written by Christopher Yost, Original Airdate: April 1, 2012)

“The Private War of Doctor Doom” marks the beginning of Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes season two and there are noticeable differences from the start. Season two went into production around the time Jeph Loeb became Executive Vice President of Marvel Television and starts being officially credited in the opening as one of the show’s executive producers. It’s not a big deal since much of the original creative team stayed on but may have to do with elements from the comics this season chooses to adapt. EMH’s animation quality gets cleaner this season while maintaining the show’s overall aesthetic. This episode begins by showing a “previously on…” segment of clips from season one recapping major story points, where such segments were absent from season one altogether. Though the most disappointing thing comes down to the show’s new title sequence. The opening visuals set to the high energy theme, “Fight As One” by Bad City, has been replaced with narration by Alex Désert as Nick Fury reciting the “And then there came a day unlike any other” speech followed by introducing the core members of the team. I don’t know why they felt the need to make that specific change, but their solution was weak.

Onto the actual content of the episode, it’s mainly concerned with building on the Avengers’ place in the wider world of this show. Doctor Doom’s involvement in this episode is the first thing established and uses him prepping to attack the Avengers as a chance to get us up to date on the lineup, namely that Thor’s still in Asgard and Hank Pym hasn’t been seen in a while. Whenever Doctor Doom shows up in a story, the Fantastic Four are sure to follow as the show finally gives characterization to its version of Marvel’s First Family. We get treated to two different Avengers/Fantastic Four hangouts at their respective bases. Ben Grimm, aka the Thing, and Johnny Storm, aka the Human Torch, arrive at Avengers Mansion for a friendly poker night with Hawkeye, Captain America, The Hulk and Black Panther. Though the term “friendly” can be applied looser when it comes to the Hulk in this scenario, since he starts a fight with the Thing any chance he gets (“Grimm’s just sore he’s never won a fight with me.”)

Along with the hotheaded Johnny and gruff Ben, the other half of the FF are similarly on-point in their personalities. Seen when Wasp and Iron Man, using an older suit of armor since he didn’t get to keep the Asgardian one, get to the Baxter Building to catchup with Sue Storm, aka the Invisible Woman, and Reed Richards, aka Mister Fantastic. The time spent at the Baxter Building plays around with the differences between Janet and Tony’s worldviews. Each of them takes the chance to describe their adventures in Asgard.

Tony discusses how he’s certain he’ll be able to quantify magic from now on thanks to his observations in that realm to an absentminded Reed, more focused on researching ways to restore Ravonna from her time stasis. He says he has all the proof he needs that it’s simply another kind of science. Tony manages to get his old friend’s attention by making a pass about how he might talk to Sue about it. Reed responds to mention how distant Sue’s been with him recently. Janet’s attitude about the trip contrasts against Tony’s as she energetically raves to Sue about how amazing it was to witness real magic, highlighting how she got to ride a flying horse through space.

Any pleasantries at both bases come to a halt when they’re all attacked by Doombots. There’s not much to remark on about how either fight plays out except how Hulk still can’t resist messing with the Thing throughout, at one point using the other hero as a human club on the machines. There’s more to note in how the heroes at both bases can’t put together Doom’s motive. Black Panther notes how the attack feels like a move made in desperation, which is apparently unusual for the tyrant. While his motives remain unclear, the results become apparent when they realize the bots kidnapped Jan and Sue. The two are swiftly taken to Doom’s castle in his nation of Latveria, where they’re put in a machine that scans them for something. The rest of the heroes from both teams are left to figure out how to get their friends back without starting an international incident on Doom’s sovereign territory.

The answer ends up being that they nearly cause exactly that, as Doom’s able to sniff out their attempts at stealth and distraction almost immediately. How well Doom’s unflappability gets portrayed this episode makes me happy, since Doctor Doom’s one of my favorite supervillains. He doesn’t have time for anyone’s snarky banter, puts his vast resources to use fighting the heroes and no-sells a punch from the Hulk. The fight of the Avengers and Fantastic Four against him ends abruptly with him telling them he already has what he needs, freeing Janet and Susan. He lets them leave to wonder what he was after in the first place, since he’s not the type to concede a fight.

Turns out he got exactly what he wanted when we’re shown the results of the scans he was doing earlier, revealing Sue Storm’s yet another person replaced with a Skrull infiltrator. This secret invasion will be one of the major arcs of season two with most of its details building in the background. That kind of slow build-up gets to occur among the Avengers with the Skrull that replaced Captain America, henceforth to be referred to as “Skrull-Cap” in future recaps for clarity until Steve returns. Skrull-Cap asks a lot of leading questions about the state of the world, like what’s Doctor Doom’s deal and the capabilities of the Fantastic Four. Though the other heroes brush off these questions, assuming they’re a byproduct of the Captain’s misplacement in the modern day. The infiltrator also gets differentiated from the real Cap with a costume redesign that evokes the Ultimate Marvel version of the character rather than the classic suit.

This episode makes a strong start for the new season by giving a better sense of the casual lives the heroes lead among each other, giving a classic Marvel villain a well-presented highlight, and serving as a reminder for where the meta-plot is heading. Season two of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes marks the beginning of where my recollections of the season before this re-watch start getting hazier, so getting something strong on superhero action and casual characterization made a great way to begin the second half of these retrospectives.

Next time, the remnants of AIM go after Tony Stark.

If you like what you’ve read here, please like/reblog or share elsewhere online, follow me on Twitter (@WC_WIT), and consider throwing some support my way at either Ko-Fi.com or Patreon.com at the extension “/witswriting”

#Avengers #Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes #Earth's Mightiest Retrospective #Wit's Writing #TV Review #Marvel Comics #Marvel #superhero tv #superhero animation #animation #comics

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jmsami · 2 years ago

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A recap of my time with Chris and bracing myself for heartbreak 13

We saw each other for the first time in about 6 months at Two Penguins on March 12, 2022. We were kissing passionately within minutes. He even followed up a couple days later because he knew I was going to a concert and asked how it was. I was going to go on a second date with this guy on Friday March 18. I wrote in my journal I probably screwed up big time when I cancelled last minute after receiving an invitation from Chris to go see live music on Friday, March 18. Even though my car got towed due to illegal parking we both enjoyed the show very much and he posted about it the next day. There was also a lot of kissing and physical affection. I wrote in my journal you can cut the sexual tension with a knife. Then went awhile without any contact thus beginning the hot and cold. I thought at the time the behavior did not affect me emotionally as much as it would have between April and October of 2021, but after 9 months of occasional hangouts where we didn’t have sex most of the time; thought we formed a stronger friendship including improvements in opening up and sharing, I am back to being emotionally affected, probably even more so. I wrote in my journal in April about not seeing Chris for 5 weeks and I'm feeling like I need to have a conversation with him soon about why I've kept him around. I wrote “Mother fucker is probably dating someone else again” I’ve know since April how sad and emotional I feel when the amazing in person dynamic between us isn't occurring more frequently and it was also around the time I knew a serious talk was in order. The next time we saw each other, about 54 days later, was a local comedian comedy show showcase at Comedy Works on May 11. Learned via twitter that his friend Andie Main who he once went out / made out with was not very happy he came to the show with me. Maybe since I went on four dates with another guy, at the time I was not as emotional / sad as I was the previous month about the amazing in person dynamic between us not occurring more frequently, thought I had accepted it and still wanted to have a serious talk with him if he'll allow I think since he went on a long vacation in June to Hawaii, the next time we saw each other was 69 days later for the James Taylor concert on Tuesday, July 19. I was also hanging out with this guy Tom at the time and Pat / Michael Hoffman every once in awhile. I saw Chris again 9 days later for the Jackie Kashian comedy show on Thursday, July 28. This was after being pressured into sex by Tom. He actually initiated uncomfortable conversations which should have happened a long time ago and I was very taken aback and very happy at the same time. The next and last time I saw Tom was Wednesday, August 3. He wanted to have sex but I declined. I told him I wasn't in the mood, but the real reason is because I had still been entertaining other men and started having "what the hell are we doing" discussions with Chris. The next time I saw him was 14 days later on Thursday, August 11. I had an amazing evening walking around Cherry Creek reservoir. I found myself opening up and sharing about how past traumas have affected my life, and what an impact he has had on my life. I felt that things were absolutely amazing in person but weird that we’d go long stretches without contact in between hanging out. I also wished the amazing in person dynamic was happening more frequently. We came close but didn't have sex that night. I was not sure I could do the get to know new guys thing at the time especially after the recent progress / break thrus with Chris. I entertained other men but found it challenging to really enjoy and appreciate them when I knew I liked Chris the best and wanted things to progress. 18 days later, I went to Dry Dock with Chris on Monday, August 29. We had sex. Then things got distant again. I saw him 37 days later on Wednesday, October 5. I met up with him at Living the Dream brewery to show him the new car and have a couple beers. We made out the whole time on the back patio area. It was amazing. Not sure it was very smart of me that we ended up having sex our next meetup which was 56 days later on November 30 when we went to a comedy show. This creates a situation that I don’t want which is only having sex with someone I like, want to spend time with, and truly get to know better about once a quarter and a little reminiscent of the hot mess express train I rode with Mike, but I’d like to think Chris and I are better friends than that. The last time I saw Chris was 46 days ago, he came to my RMFC concert on Monday, December 12. I started thinking for the sake of my sanity that I need to have a serious talk with him soon about what I want, need and expect. That has not come to fruition. I asked if we could get together a couple weekends ago or so and he said he would, but he’s in the Springs all weekend for his son’s hockey tournament. At this time, he has not responded to the text I sent two days ago asking if he was available to get together. I will not accept another ghost. I am going to try to have this talk. It’s long overdue.

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adventuresinclientservice · 5 years ago

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How to find a (first) job in advertising.

For veterans and newcomers alike, advertising always has been a competitive, winner-take-all contest, but recent college graduates still could find their way into entry-level jobs, assuming they were reasonably motivated and talented, with many getting their starts as assistant account executives or its equivalent at one of the thousands of shops around the country. If the grads were fortunate enough to matriculate to an agency like Ogilvy & Mather, they might find themselves being schooled by more experienced, capable veterans, the best of whom led training programs and provided other forms of guidance and mentorship.

These days, in a Covid-19-decimated industry where thousands upon thousands upon thousands of jobs have evaporated, unlikely to return, training is mostly a memory. Hiring has become a never ending, often discouraging quest for many a recent graduate.

I heard from one such graduate a couple of weeks ago, who got in touch to say how useful he found The Art of Client Service, saying:

“ I couldn't put your book down and finished it in two days. As someone who has been doing interviews for AAE and AE positions in current time, I found this book to have a lot of good reinforcements and ways of thinking that will help me in my career, as well as during these interviews. Thanks for the great read.”

An exchange of email ensued; at some point a question emerged: “ What advice would you give someone looking to crack the advertising account management world in a time like now?”

It would come as no surprise if that grad is searching for the proverbial magic-bullet solution; just about every job candidate wants to find a way to stand out, make an impression, and get hired. If this describes your job-seeking self, you might as well cease reading, given I have no bullet to offer. What I do have is a point-of-view, a methodology that, while hardly unknown to you, might at least bring a degree of focus to your approach.

What follows is more than double what I customarily post, so if you prefer to skip to the end, here’s a summary of the four obvious-but-often-overlooked things to help find a job :

Think of yourself as a client, not a candidate.

Write a Scope of Work for that client, focusing on a prioritized list of prospects you can approach not to ask for a job, but instead to ask for advice.

Follow this with a Creative Brief that will help you craft or improve a resume, a cover letter, an overture email, post-interview follow-up communication, or anything else that is evidence of your job-worthiness.

When an opportunity arises, do deep-dive homework on the company and the person(s) about to interview you, including a tightly edited, short list of questions that demonstrates your preparation and insight.

If you’re inclined to read on, here’s an edited version of what I included in my email:

I suspect most people go about searching for a job in a fairly ad hoc way, responding to this ad, getting in touch with that person, without thinking like the account person you trained to be and are trying to become. My suggestion: think less as an individual, and more as someone pursuing a new business opportunity, bringing to bear on this the same strategy, creativity, and executional skill you would try to deliver for a prospective client, only in this case, the prospective client is you.

If I were searching for job these days, I would begin, by writing a short Scope of Work, outlining the tasks to be performed:

The objective: it might seem easy – find a job – but I would take some time thinking about not just a job that will pay the bills, but trying to envision what you’d like your career to look like.

The prospects you can contact for counsel, who might be able to put in touch with others. Think about other people in the business you know: friends, friends of friends, family and relatives no matter how distant, fellow students, anybody who might be willing to help. What about your professors? Any of them work in the business, or used to?

You want to think of your target list as a series of concentric circles, starting close in with the people you know really well, extending outward to others who might be willing to help. And you want to think of these people as not necessarily offering you a job, but rather, as possibly offering you perspective and counsel, along with some additional people you can contact, in order to grow your network. The reality is, it is easier to ask for advice than it is to ask for a job, so start there and see where it leads. You might be surprised how this nets out.

Job search is more about networking, and less about focusing on Job Boards and other public search options, but don’t ignore these. Pursue parallel paths instead, working your contact list while not overlooking any possibility that surfaces “cold” on LinkedIn, ADWEEK, or any other source.

The “deliverables” you need to create: a customizable resume you can version, a kick-butt cover letter to go with it, an overture email you can use to make an initial approach, anything else that might support your case.

A schedule to execute these tasks.

If you need some additional perspective on how to create a Scope of Work, the latest edition of my book has a chapter devoted to it.

Scope of Work complete, I’d then turn your attention to writing a Creative Brief that will drive the crafting of your resumes, cover letters, email overtures, and any other piece of material you need to create. Again, the latest edition of my book has a four-chapter section devoted to Brief writing. If you need guidance, it might help.

The Creative Brief will drive the formulation of a resume, or assuming you already have one on hand, its re-formulation. The outcome is a set of materials ready for use, which you can tailor to specific opportunities.

Let’s say an opportunity surfaces – through a contact, perhaps via a Job Board – you now need to interview. Given the country is under Covid-19 siege that is not likely to abate anytime soon, changes are that first interview will be by Zoom or some other video platform like GoToMeeting or Google Hangout. You’ll need to prep for this, starting with doing research on the company considering you, formulating responses to questions they might ask you, crafting a short list of questions you get to ask, should an opportunity present itself. You already know this, but getting ready for an interview is not something to approach cavalierly; think of it as you might a new business pitch, and prepare accordingly.

So, to recap what I said earlier, here are the four suggestions:

Think of yourself as a client, not a candidate.

Write a Scope of Work for that client, focusing on a prioritized list of prospects you can approach not to ask for a job, but instead to ask for advice.

If you’re inclined to read on, here’s an edited version of what I included

Everything I’ve shared so far should be stuff you know. What I’ve tried to do here is synthesize a process you can follow.

Job hunting has always been a challenge, but these days, it is incredibly, incredibly hard. I know you’re looking for things to help you gain an edge or stand out, but truth be told, I have no easy solutions to offer.

Instead, what I can do is encourage you to be methodical, consistent, resilient, and unrelenting in your quest, knowing that if you stay after it, if you don’t quit, you will find that first job.

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damagemirror94-blog · 6 years ago

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Day 3 & 4 of My Bachelorette to Mexico

We're back with the second part of my bachelorette party in Mexico! With this final post I feel like it's really over :( I still hope you enjoy the recap as much as I did!

Day 3:

If you missed day 1 & 2 from the trip, you can catch up by reading this post. We're now on to Saturday of the four-day trip and our last full day in Mexico. We had to wake up really early for our excursion. We met at the buffet around 7am and grabbed all the food we could before we left at 7:20. The original plan was to drive to Cancun, take a boat to Isla Mujeres to snorkel, spend the day at the beach, shop, swim and parasail back to the hotel. But when we woke up that morning it was pretty overcast and super windy.

As it turns out, once we arrived in the lobby they decided to cancel our tour. The water was way too choppy for us to go out and the ports in Cancun closed. I wasn't too disappointed because I'd rather they cancel it early than cancel it once we got to Cancun. So we went back to the buffet for a real sitdown breakfast. I was easily the most overdressed person there lol.

After breakfast, some girls went back to the room to sleep, and others to the pool (like me) to read and hangout. I took a nice little nap as captured by Morgan's photo below haha.

We spent most of the morning at the pool. A few girls went to explore downtown and have a bite to eat. The sun was peaking out here and there but nothing like the day before. Thankfully it was still warm, and the spot where we were in the pool was blocked from a lot of the wind!

Also, this was my favorite look from the trip! I felt so sassy and bridal. It was fun.

There was also a foam party at the pool. Of course I wanted to view it from afar, so we hung out in the pool but far away. It was still super windy so some of the foam bubbles were flying over to us. One of them smacked Caitlin right in the face and it was pretty funny.

Ultimately, we discovered another excursion very similar to the one we were originally going to join. Instead of a full-day it was a half-day and instead of Isla Mujeres, we would go to Cozumel. We decided to go for it. In hindsight, I probably wouldn't do it again but it sure is a fun story to tell! Because the docks were closed in Cancun, we left out of downtown Playa Del Carmen. It was about an hour long ferry ride straight across the ocean. It was still super windy so the dock area was a little crazy. I've never been sea sick like this before! Thankfully the further away from Playa Del Carmen and closer to Cozumel we got, the more the water calmed down.

The excursion was a catamaran tour. I've been on a lot of excursions in my life -- Andrew and I take one or two every trip we go on -- so I can say it wasn't the best, but it also wasn't miserable. If the weather was better and the music louder, it could have been more fun. The sun would pop out here and there and the water was calm enough, but the hosts were kind of "meh" about the whole thing.

What made it fun was having everyone in Lilly! I originally wasn't going to make it a thing, but after we had hopped in the pool in the morning, I thought a quick outfit change could be fun. Lilly Pulitzer was so kind to us for my bachelorette. They gifted all the girls a swimsuit and dress of their choice from their current collection. It was fun to see everyone in their swimsuits and have most of us matching!

One-piece on Jen, Allison and Ashby / Bandeau top on Kim, Morgan and Caitlin & bottom / My one-piece

The first stop was for snorkeling and only Ashby joined. I love to snorkel, but didn't feel like hopping in. Most of the other girls didn't either. I've been to some of the most amazing snorkel spots in the world and I didn't think I'd be missing much at this location.

This is where the trip kind of went dull. It was a very long and drawn out process of getting to the ferry, waiting to get on the boat, waiting to leave, waiting to get to the snorkel spot, waiting an hour at this spot, going all the way back to the other side of the island to swim ... everything was just long. And a lot of us were tired. The weather wasn't nice either.

BUT THEN it all turned around when we got to our next spot. They docked the boat and said this was a great place to swim. Me, my sister, Ashby, Caitlin and Morgan were going to jump in, but when we got there, no one really felt like it. We were sitting around and playing games (starving also btw lol) and then the sun popped out. And it stayed!

It was really nice and I really had to pee (haha), so I jumped in. We all banded together and said, "If you jump in, I'll jump in." So my sister, Caitlin and I decided to go for it. Morgan joined at the last minute and we all jumped off the front of the boat into the warm blue water!

This was the best part of the day! We had SO much fun in the water. We were laughing and flashing the girls on the boat and being so silly. We had a wonderful time. The sun stayed out, the food came and it was like a whole new burst of life. It was a lot of fun as we went back to the docks to catch the ferry back to the hotel.

The waters were fine and the sun was setting. And then we got closer to the Playa Del Carmen dock...

The next part of this story turns into a drama. The sun had completely set by the time we reached the dock. We all looked around the boat, and it was tipping from side to side. We were parallel with the waves as we waited for the other ferry to leave the dock. We were getting thrown around pretty good. Then we tried to dock.

These waves were NO JOKE and were hitting the boat hard. These poor guys out on the dock are trying to wrangle in the ferry as they're being hit by the waves and pulled by the ropes. It was crazy. The waves were so big they were reaching the second floor. One even came up to the third deck and drenched a bunch of people sitting behind us.

The mentality on the boat was pretty much, "Kids and elders get off first." The stairs to get off were packed with people so we decided to wait it out. As we're seeing the boat get thrown around by these waves and people flying around, it clicked: we need to get off this boat ASAP. Honestly, I was surprised they even docked. It was NOT safe, but there was no way I was staying on that ferry or going back to Cozumel. We needed to get home.

We made a bolt for it. Ashby and I got off first and it was a race to run off the boat. They had workers holding us back until it was safe, then they were yelling "big steps!" and "move fast!" as we ran off. It got pretty scary at the end of it all. When Ashby and I made it to land we hugged and jumped and were like, "Let's get the F out of here."

Everyone made it off safely in our group, although Allison gave us a scare. The bridge from the ferry to the dock swung her left and right before she jumped off. It was crazy and scary and funny. How did we let ourselves get in this situation?!

We were supposed to be back around 7pm, but didn't arrive until around 9pm. Thankfully everyone was a trooper and we decided to quickly get ready for dinner and put on our Lilly for our last night.

Dresses from Left to Right: Allison, Catherine, Ashby, Kim, Me, Caitlin, Morgan, Jen

I think I got ready in record time and we headed to the last restaurant we hadn't eaten at yet. I think it was an Italian/seafood place. We all got drunk quickly because we could feel ourselves still rocking from the ferry. It was a wonderful last dinner and we ended up closing the place down (and ordering about three meals each lol).

We wandered a bit after dinner looking for dessert, but 11pm on Saturday night was a dead time for the hotel. It was so weird! We went back to the room to play more games and have some fun girl time before leaving the next morning.

Day 4:

Sunday morning we all met for brunch at the buffet and yet again stuffed our faces lol. Morgan, Catherine and Jen had early flights, so soon after brunch they were off to the airport. Caitlin and I got ready in our room to take some blog photos. Ashby was at the pool and would help when we were ready to shoot. My sister and Allison went into town to do some shopping.

Sunday was another overcast, humid day, so I didn't mind leaving! After we were done shooting, we packed up our bags, hung by the pool a bit longer and then were off to the airport.

The rest of the day was spent traveling home and watching GOT! Nothing overly exciting. Just a no-fuss travel day. All in all it was an amazing bachelorette and I cannot thank my friends enough for such a wonderful weekend. I'm so sad that it's over. But I'm happy I can stop stressing over it! Honestly, I want to go back asap.

What does make me really excited when I think about it was how well everyone got along. Not that I was worried about that, but it's so wonderful having your friends come together like we did. It meant the world to me! It's great because we'll all be reunited again (except for Catherine, she's dead to me!!!) at the wedding.

Now I'm on to planning our couples shower which is happening in less than a month!!

-----

You guys also sent in some questions via Instagram stories that I wanted to help answer for you as well:

Peak and pit from the day?

Pit was the weather not being amazing 100% of the time. Peak was the girls!!

What would you do differently?

I keep going back and forth, but probably the excursion. Did you go into town? Did you feel safe? I never did, but a lot of the girls did and said it felt totally safe. What was your favorite part of the trip? Gingham night! It was really fun to see it come together like it did and it was just a very me way to celebrate. How did you decide on location? How did you decide where to go? You can find a detailed story about this in my Q&A bachelorette party post. Are you glad you opened it up to friends? Yes! Especially since I technically only have one bridesmaid. How did everyone get along? Everyone got along really well! I don't deal with dramatic people in my life, so I wasn't worried about this at all.

How did your makeup hold up? It was great! I'm doing a new routine that I LOVE and it worked like a dream.

Did you use a travel agent/were you able to get any deals through the blog or for being a larger group? No, we just booked directly through their website. My sister was able to get a discount because she was a Hilton rewards member, and we booked/paid right away with no option to cancel.

Average cost for the trip? I honestly don't remember what I paid. But outside the reservation and excursion (which was $100 pp) there were no other costs.

Pros and cons of the hotel? Pros -- all-inclusive, great staff and a fun time Cons -- drinks were weak

Who planned what for the trip? I like to think I was involved with pretty much all of the trip's planning. I gave input but the coordination of most everything else was my sister (MOH).

How did you coordinate outfits? Caitlin emailed everyone in advance saying that we were having a gingham night. Everyone was aware and had time to shop. Lilly let everyone pick out an outfit and swimsuit for the trip as well (that will be tomorrow's post). They knew we'd be wearing that for one night.

How did you convince friends to join due to timing and price? I didn't really need to convince them. I feel like since we're older and have money (vs. right out of college) it wasn't an issue. It just so happened we found a weekend that worked for everyone. The price, being that it was an all-inclusive was too good to pass up!

Most thoughtful thing the girls did for you? I really liked the marriage game and how they each had a little part of putting it together!

How detail oriented were you with scheduling the weekend? I was super chill about what we did and when we did it. No plans other than a gingham night, an excursion and a Lilly night. It was all up to us when we did what.

How was the beach? We actually didn't end up going. Well, I didn't! A few girls dipped their toes in the first day. Playa Del Carmen isn't really known for their beaches. I heard from hotel staff it was super rocky!

And if you missed it, here is a link to Day 1 & 2, here is more information on our trip and a large Q&A on it, here are all the links to my outfits and here is what I gave the girls on the trip.

Source: http://www.coveringbases.com/2019/04/day-3-4-of-my-bachelorette-to-mexico.html

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jlf23tumble · 4 years ago

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Hi! I just stumbled on a recap you did for X Factor UK when Louis was a judge and I'm wondering if there are any more?? I didn't watch the show and I can't find it!! Not sure if you still post about this fandom but I would love to see more if you have them, have a lovely day!

Hello, and I’m sorry it’s taken me all day to get back to this--but I did see two people in my notifs looking at random mid-series recaps and wondered what was so good about episodes 7 and 8, lmao, so mystery solved! They should all be under #recap, but god only knows if this blog is truly searchable (for real, I can’t find episode 18??), so I’ll just post them here, for reference, plus other recaps. And yeah, I do post about the D from time to time, but a) not much is actually going on right now and b) I have exactly zero time for this fandom’s special blend of misogyny and handwringing, so I keep my dash clean of it all, but I’m happy to post fun stuff! If you want to come chat about fun stuff, go for it! Looking back at these recaps, I always wonder if I’d write them differently, knowing what we know now about what Louis was dealing with at the time, but maybe not--at any rate, I will forever stand by my love for Dermot and Louis’s pens, that shit’s eternal! I do hope you can find this series somewhere and watch in full for yourself--he was such a treasure, week in and week out, the gifs never did him justice, and I will die mad about his “true fans” opting not to watch one minute of it because they cared more about their own performance over his, but I digress! Here are some chunks of text and terrible screencaps for you, I hope you enjoy!

XFUK episodes 1-5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23 and 24, 25 and 26, 27, and 28

Radio City Live 2012, Do me a favour?, The wind makes nice waves, Kiss Kiss 2012, Four Hangout, ABC News special x2, That whisk!, Late Late Show

One D Day hour 1, hour 2, hour 3, hour 4, hour 5, hour 6, hour 7

And if you read nothing else, the very best one, 44-minute twitcam (though, please, for the love of god, watch it in full yourself)

#one direction #recap #so much recap!#some people write fic #i recap entertaining interviews and other shit

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yetanotherbuffyblog · 8 years ago

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Werewolf FIGHT!

Alright we got ourselves a problem, folks.

Netflix took down Buffy the Vampire Slayer on the first of April. Which makes watching this show a bit difficult for me. I would have gotten to you guys sooner but I gave up Tumblr for Lent and all. Realizing I might not have a chance to do these recaps if I don’t go ahead with it, I decided to watch some episodes and type these up outside of Tumblr, and then post later. I don’t intend to give up this blog, so I’ll need to find some other way to watch the show. Suggestions are welcome.

Anyhow. On to the episode.

There’s another werewolf in town! That female singer Oz has been checking out? Yeah it’s her. And when it’s time to wolf out, they get into some...skeevy situations. Which obviously has Willow worried, even before she finds out that they’re doing furry werewolf shenangians….

Also there’s some conspiracy going on with guys capturing monsters that we still haven’t gotten to the bottom of.

Hurm...

-Buffy your heartburn pune wasn’t very good.

-Spike gets tazed. I’m wondering how that would affect a vampire? Like, would electricity hurt an undead body the same way it would a living body?

-Does no one think it’s weird that college kids still go to the same hangout place?

-Giles hanging out in the Bronze and insisting that he’s cool reminds me of the fact that Anthony Head brought a pink Nintendo DS on the set with him to BBC’s Merlin.

-Also I’m not a music guy but this music is so 90’s and I still don’t know how I feel about it.

-Where did they get Oz’s cage? It’s different than the one in the high school library.

-Also I want to reiterate that I hate the way the werewolves look on this show. It’s like really fuzzy yetis on all fours. The original design wasn’t great, but it was better than what it is now.

-Does having sex as werewolves have any side effects? There’s a Dresden short story where two of the Alphas have been doing it in wolf form and that ends up getting them magic parasites that start affecting their rational decision making skills. I’m just wondering if there’s anything like that in the Buffyverse.

-Giles is exactly the sort who’d watch game shows and get all the answers right.

-Why is talking to Oz Buffy’s second stop in finding out about the werewolf attacks? Wouldn’t it be your first stop?

- “I need a translator from the ‘y’ side of things.”

- “You seem more monosyllabic than usual.”

-Someone get Oz a better cage. Reinforce it somehow. Really there’s got to be some kind of magical binding you could do.

-Alright but this werewolf attraction thing sounds like a trashy romance.

-CHEATING IS NOT GOOD GUYS DON’T DO THAT

-Willow had an excellent point in that Oz easily could have told somebody about there being another werewolf. He should have told someone that his cage broke, that there was another werewolf out there, that this was going on. And I get that he was sort of embarrassed about the whole thing, but the cage he uses to not kill people as a werewolf was broken.

-Wait the female werewolf’s name is Verruca?

Like, the warts on people’s feet?

Yeah we’re definitely not supposed to like her.

- “I conjure thee by Barabas, Satannas and the Devil”--WHOA WILLOW I know this situation sucks but no need to call up infernal powers? Like, what happened to like Hecate or some New Age-y type deities?

-Oh good Buffy recognizes that the guys in tactical gear from Halloween were probably up to something after running into one on campus.

-Oz’s departure seems pretty abrupt to me, but I really don’t know what they would do with his character? Xander has his hole “Wanting to fit with college crowd” and Anya plot, Giles is...well, Giles, Buffy’s our protagonist, and Willow’s got plenty of room to go with her witch plot. But a lot of the werewolf ideas have already played out, and I don’t know what I’d write for him in that position. Maybe the writers felt the same way? Or maybe they’ll bring him back later. I dunno.

-WEREWOLF OZ RIPPED OUT WEREWOLF VERRUCA’S THROAT HOLY FATHER FRANCIS

-Alright I mean she was trying to kill Willow because she thought Will was holding back Oz’s werewolf side or whatevs but still that got hardcore fast.

-I really don’t know if I buy the whole ‘the wolf is always inside of Oz’ thing? This episode seems to imply that around the full moon, even outside of transformations werewolves get more...wolf-y (which is how it was in Being Human, at least the one that aired on SyFy). But unless I missed something (which is possible) that wasn’t the case before this episode.

-So for some reason when I posted this from when my Google Doc it put a bunch of spaces in there? And made that last notation “I really don’t know...this episode” the very top of the post and bolded it. Why? I dunno. Tumblr’s weird. Ask the @staff.

#4x06 #Buffy The Vampire Slayer #Buffy Summers #Oz #werewolves #review #Willow Rosenberg

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mikkalaia · 7 years ago

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2017 IN REVIEW

Last 2016 I also did a review on my year, it was just a short recollection of my “best of 2016”. But this year I’ll try to expound on my year a little bit more. As you all might not know, I do multiple journaling, one for my daily recollections, a planner for my to do list and schedules, and another for my notes and lessons it’s basically just a notebook for random quotes and thoughts. This time I’ll try to share with you how this year went so far. I’ll share to you my best and worst of 2017, no frills. Just so you know this blog started last year and I haven’t been able posting that much. But this year I liberated myself, I took this year to find myself and I think I did- in a way lol. 2018 get ready for a wiser me!

Recap, last time I decided to take up my MBA which I didn’t by the way because of work-related reasons. lol so that’s that. haha

JANUARY:

I decided to cut all my hair off and it was the shortest haircut I ever had. I needed to learn how to put on wax and fix my hair which I barely did even if I had my hair long and that was one of my misconception about cutting your hair really short that you won’t get to fix it. I was going for the Audrey Hepburn look but ended up looking a lot like Eleven from Stranger Things instead. So basically, I had to put wax on my hair and beat my face with makeup just so I can still look like a girl with no cancer. It was one of the most liberating things I’ve ever done this year – I took off one of the things that defined me and made someone new again and not even the shiny and new kind. I was naked and free.

Had my first trip out-of-town for work reasons, of course, we were bound for Subic to visit the BCB branch. I also organized and hosted my first media event. and it went well – one of my best accomplishments at work. Next to coordinating a TV feature for “Taralet” – a travel tv show with Andi Eigenmann. They were late but it was okay. Then had my first wine event at Speakeasy – that went okay as well.

Binge watching on Narcos for this month. hahaha and

And for the last day of my January, I was able to go to Sto. Tomas/Mt. Cabuyao for lunch at Cafe in the Sky with the officemates and bosses. It was my first time there, the view was to die for but the food was substandard. But I’ll come back for the view, and I did 11 months later. Dan turned 21 this year and we had Japanese Buffet at BCC.

FEBRUARY:

for February one highlight of this month is that I had dinner with AC at Hill Station and he gave gifts like a hard case for my MacBook Air, a Lang Leav book collection among other stuff (Thank you AC!) and waited for Angela to celebrate her birthday and blow her candles. 2 good friends visited me at work today Chad & AC what are the odds? we all ended up having drinking games. I was honestly mostly drunk this month. drinking with bosses & friends and I guess this is what it’s like to work in a brewery. lol

I also had the chance to organized a staycation for bloggers at the Villa Cordillera and hosting at The Other Office. Food was great but the staycation was a bit creepy I admit haha. and It was my first time to see and feed a dear so that was different. and for this’ month’s travel bumming around in ELYU for a day with friends. and squeezed in a blogger activity at Sugar Artisan.

For Valentine’s Day I was working and hosted my first ever four-course meal and craft beer pairing – and it was damn cold that day. Hosted Larry Guevara a famous bartender for a guest bartending at Speakeasy.

“I’m Drunk, I Love You” with Cati & Jen. I cried! haha. and I still have to post my review and commentaries for this film cause it was so good.

MARCH:

Micah & I celebrated our birthday together on the 14th at @ Monterazas for bbq, wine, and smores with friends. On the 17th AC planned a surprise dinner together with my family and friends. I cried so much cause I was unprepared and I was ugly hahaha. and on the 18th Chad and Micah surprised me again at work! they gave me a box of 23 cream puffs and a watch from Chad. then after that, we hangout had takeout and movies with friends. And back at the office, I had another surprise! they gave me 2 bottles of mead from sir Ar, messages from the BCB team, cake and wine and all things nice. This month was loaded with surprises, I just feel so blessed. and thinking about it 2017 ain’t so bad at all.

For a Blogger event, we went to try out Joie de Vivre for a blogger meet up and hosting the place had a great view. and Ma’am Sheryll hosted her first ever Study Circle at the Library.

Logan, Kong, Beauty & the Beast and Power Rangers with the squad. Not my kind of film but this is the most month I went to the movies. But nothing beats “English Only, Please” and “Ang Kwento Nating Dalawa”, “Sana, Dati” and “Sakaling Hindi Makaraking” at CAP and meet the director & bought postcards and stole posters hahaha.

For work I hosted a brewed and BBQ party, it went super well but the cops kept driving by cause it was too late and noisy lol. but yeah friends were there to support me so yeah It was good.

For family travel, we went to Vitalis Villa in Santiago, Ilocos. A day of learning how to swim with mom.

APRIL:

Went to Sagada with friends this month, I tried spelunking @ Sumaging Cave for the first time. Visited Mt. Kiltepan and had lunch at Guaia Cafe where they shot “That Thing Called Tadhana” (and yes I’m that Filipino indie film freak for sappy love stories), bonfire & boodle fight @ Lake Danum but nothing beats going there for the first time alone and experiencing the place and people. It is truly a place for healing.

This month blogger activity we had a food crawl organized by Chino and it was a success I was able to host them at the Brewery and Speakeasy as well but sadly I wasn’t able to join them. For work I hosted bloggers for Air Asia from Davao I think, anyways that was that.

“Lion” was this month’s favorite and “Eternal Sunshine on a Spotless Mind”. started watching the “Newsroom” this as recommended by my officemates and surprisingly it was good and I enjoyed it.

For this month’s family travel we visited the Grape farm at Bauang, Luna for the “Bahay na Bato” and Back to San Luis Del Mar, Bauang for an afternoon swim. We ate pizza and drank fresh coconut juice on the side of the road and it was cool.

MAY:

This month’s blogger event was an invitation at a spa opening. Me and Micah took the liberty to have a body scrub and bleaching – it was both our first time to experience it. I was okay. Published my first blog post after a long while “Don’t Think, Just Jump”

For work I organized a video shoot for BCB’s Aniversary, and the video was done by Hiromi Umatsu and his team. He was really good and we connected with the films and likes. This month I made a friend.

13 Reason’s Why was this month’s binge-watching series. which gave me nightmares by the way. The series was too heavy. and started to watch “How I Met Your Mother” again just to move on from “13 Reasons Why” “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” was okay. I kinda find it lame, to be honest. but It was funny lol. Other movies are, “Liberal Arts”, “Diary of a Teenage Girl”

Dad had a wedding exhibit at the mall this month. And for Dad’s birthday month and we had Tepanyaki @Hamada Restaurant, BCC. and surprised him with a cake at the Cafe. Cati, my friend also celebrated her birthday today, but we celebrated with kids at a church it was a nice outreach celebration.

This month’s adventure was at San Garbrielle’s Tangadan Falls, I went cliff diving thrice by the way I wish someday I can do it without a life vest. The habal-habal ride back to the main town was exhilarating, and it reminded me a lot about Baler.

JUNE:

For blogger activity, we visited the workshop at “Everything is Pine”, It was far but the view of the place was too good. I wanted to live there. For another event, we had a hosting at Zola, Dropout and one from Il Padrino. We’ve been basically just eating this month.

Still, binge-watching HIMYM and I’m done! “Moonlight” had cool take to a coming-out film. “Before I Fall” was okay. and for my first Koreanovela -“Descendants of the Sun” gahh I fell in love and gave all the feels.

A puppy visited us to work. and for this month’s event. BCB turned 3 – I felt like shit this day. I was so stressed, and annoyed. but yeah there we’re problems but it went okay in the end.

Had dinner at BCC for Father’s Day.

And for thrills and adventure, we went to Pugad Adventure with the bloggers. We tried out the ziplines & giant swing. I ALMOST DIED! then swam the whole afternoon. It was pretty chill.

JULY:

Still, on food assignments for blogger activities this time it was at The Camp – from Sala, Hardin, One-Sick-Damn- Joint. food!! and for Social Media Day we had a staycation at the Forest Cabin, this activity was super fun wine, food, games & friends. I needed this!! What I enjoyed the most was the bathtub. Can’t wait to have one of those. haha and, Cafe by the Ruins finally had its last Caniao it was a sad event actually.

Work has been rocky since June, but I was able to host other TV feature for BCB. Its been really slow and I’ve been working with BCB Cebu already and I was bound to Cebu for 10 days for its opening. I took the liberty to work hard on Cebu I’ve been beating myself more the 8hrs a day for the media hosting and grand opening. And I would go out drinking and have Karaoke with them until the sun is up. And in the afternoon I would go for a dip in the pool cause thank God they got me an Airbnb with a pool and it was near the site. and before anything else, I went around the city alone, rode a habal-habal from place to place. I liked this version of me that was carefree. I knew what made me happy – what made me. me. I really did love my own company, that I didn’t feel much alone when I was there. I learned to live, cook and care for myself. I was happy there.

And I did stand up comedy workshop with blogger friends and the next day It was my first time to put it to the test and I was so nervous but liberating to make fun of yourself in front of a crowd, it was the longest 3 minutes of my life and Thank God they laughed!. This month I was able to tick another box on my bucket list.

Also Mom’s birthday month! dinner as per usual on our favorite korean place -Wood Nymph haha.

Finally watched “Miracle in Cell No. 7” -I cried my eyes out! “Okja” did the same thing. watched “Kita Kita” in SM Cebu alone and cried again but I didn’t mind.

AUGUST:

Now back to my city, friends welcomed me home and we had dinner @ Slaughter. nothing fancy but the food was always great. I was able to meet a lot of my friends this month, I had coffee and beer with Janine, Jerrilyn and Zandra. Had dinner and wine with one of my favorite human Tom- we catch up and shared our sentiments in life. We just missed each other. I’m super proud of him!

Enrolled for Open University for an MA in Development Communications. Lunch at Canto with an officemate that is a good friend. and celebrated Paul’s birthday. this all happened in one day.

“Rebel without a Cause” was this month’s film. “Everything, Everything” made me kilig lol “To the Bones” was good as well. “100 Tula para kay Stella” got me crying real bad on the last part.

For this month’s adventure Micah and I tried to travel alone for the first time ever. bus ride after bus ride, and jeep and a tricycle we finally arrived in Batangas! Thank’s to AC for hosting us at Club Balay Isabel, we stayed there for 2 nights. he gave a tour of the resort, took tons of bikini pictures, and pool day all day. It was the life. a break from the stress. It was a good day.

SEPTEMBER:

Baguio day! Spent this day with my forever bestfriend Micah, breakfast at Cafe Adriana, did our blogger duties, fixed our schedules, made plans for The Local Folke and visited sir Jogin at 18 BC. We can feel that this month is going to be busy for the both of us. With school and work, friends, other projects, traveling and blogging I might lose it lol. We decided to make The Local Folke a community and planned for a gathering of creatives. The activity went super well, we had brunch at Arca’s Yard and Chiara bought the Raw Table and shared it with us. It was super inspiring.

Micah and I attended Maxine’s Lipstick line Launch at the Basement. The lipsticks were really nice, I really like the choices of shades. Had a few drinks, met and made friends. Climb Mt. Ulap for tree planting with Chiki (turistaboy) and Kuya A (ATravels), and it was raining super hard, so we decided to descend early had a fellowship, met new friends, it was a cool experience, no regrets.

This month’s film was “Boyhood” it was pretty mundane nothing much except you get to see the actors grow up on screen which was cool. Did a movie marathon Wes Anderson, Rushmore, The Shark and the Wale, The Darjeeling Limited, The Royal Tenenbaums, Aquatic Life with Steve Zissou, The Grand Budapest Hotel, and Moonrise Kingdom. I’m a super fan of this works and how it is curated, I’m super in love with his style everything!

OCTOBER:

This month was both a good and a bad month but nevertheless, I was always productive. We have our first solo hosting of the Gathering for The Local Folke at the Other Office, we were only expecting 10 attendees but ended up hosting 15! it was hard, tiring and consuming but we were able to pull it off and It was all worth it.

For work, I coordinated another magazine feature BCB at Travel Now Magazine. and we had a Halloween Party, us at the office took the liberty to dress up as well, I went for that 40’s tattooed pinup look. This is my first time to dress up for Halloween haha. Anyways this month’s food highlight is Aytron & Ebenezer’s sinigangan na Bangus is the bomb!

Chino had an art exhibit this month together with his dad at the Baguio Museum, we were all there to support this milestone of his. He was good and damn the guy can paint. We also attended the 4th year Aniv of The Other Office -the birthplace of The Other Blogger and played mini golf. it was my first time to watch fireworks up close it was breathtaking – magical even!

Wonder Woman on cable. started How To Get Away with Murder. lol It was really exciting to watch and mind puzzling. “What Happened To Monday” was a good futuristic action movie, really nice plot twist.

My slowest month yet, no travel but I was able to hang out a lot with friends and workmates.

NOVEMBER:

This month was sht to be honest. It was the worst. I resigned to a job that I love doing because my morals are being challenged and I simply had to choose. I wrote a two pages resignation letter and that was the bravest thing I’ve ever done this month. But I just felt like I had to do it. and for my last media hosting, CNN Philippines. -my finish strong. For a week I was depressed, I cried and drink and all that stuff. It was hard turning over, given the time. I felt powerless.

The day after my last day I was bound for MNL for a Blogapalooza @City of Dreams, It was my first time inside of a casino and I tried my luck as well. It was a bonding experience, the breakfast buffet at Nobu Hotel was really good. and the room interior was nice and clean. Right after the event we took the liberty to look around the city we visited the National Museum of Anthropology and I enjoyed so much that I didn’t even felt hungry, I was so amused by the artifacts and stories behind it.

Rewatching “That 70’s Show” my all time favorite show. Had a date with my brother, we watched Thor Ragnarok, we went thrift shopping, strolling and taking random pictures around the city. It was a good bonding day cause I barely had time with him.

This month I started jogging, and had wine with my favorite person -Micah and ma’am Ninj at Arca’s Yard and for the gathering, it was super intimate, honest. and I love that my brother was there and he was really good. Everything was so good, the people, the sharing, the love. everything. I tried to declutter and fix my things. I threw some things and kept some things. This month was hard.

DECEMBER:

December was light – It was a very light month and super jampacked. but still, there are ups and downs. We were able to do a 3-day garage sale, finished my first semester of my masters. Mom got bitten by one of our cats and I have to accompany her get her shots. We lost two baby kittens this month and it was devastating, we cried a lot.

We hosted the “Towards One Blogosphere” a blogger event for local Baguio Bloggers. the event went okay. after that WTB invited me to come with them for an exhibit at Oh May Gulay, it was my first time to go and I was able to meet the artist as well. I like these guys a lot! they’re so cool!

Had Christmas dinner with the friends and gave my gifts. and for our gathering that almost didn’t happen, we had a picnic and it was lovely, we’re happy with the outcome. Micah surprised me with a Where To Next Planner and right after we had life talks at 2600 while we eat chicken haha it was really fun and lovely day. and for Christmas day we went to Baguio City Jail to give out letter and toiletries among other things.

Climb Mt. Kalugong with my ex-officemate that is now a really good friend of mine. I also went to Winaca Village, I simply walked around and I relearn how to drive again yey! then on the same day, we drove to ELYU for food and drinks, we did a set and snuck on a beach hostel to drink. It was a very spontaneous experience with my college friends and best friends. It was pretty cool. and for my last travel up north, we went to Mt. Cabuyao, for sunset but it was too cloudy however the city lights got me – it was so gorgeous, I liked how cold it was I fell in love with everything about it. I’m coming back here every year. We had bonfire and beer, and habal-habal on our way back to the main road. Also received my camel backpack from Ebenezer! It was worth the wait haha.

And I was able to finally have my closure and it gave me all the right feelings. I was me again, I felt a lot lighter. I’m happy again. and I can truly say that now.

xoxo

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jlf23tumble · 6 years ago

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Four Hangout: Recap

Oh, man, I know I “owe” this one, so I’m doing it, but I hate it for about 15 different reasons, 14 of those being Ben Winston, which means I’m gonna keep this fairly short. The Four Hangout (lmao, I will never stop laughing at the attempts to team up with Google’s shitty tech) predates my entry into this fandom, so I’m not as on top of every little thing that happened around it (and my god, there were some doozies). I’ve found other posts that do a better job of transcribing some key moments), but I’m sure lots of others are out there, and as ever, I recommend taking 35 minutes to stare at this work of art for yourself.

Whenever I’ve seen gifs from this, the read is that at least two people are coming off a coke bender as we all focus on Ben’s rather ham-fisted attempt to get Louis to admit that he hates people thinking he’s gay. But in rewatching it in full now and knowing more about the context around it, the true vibe is exhaustion mixed with some very real anger/mulishness aimed at management in general and Ben in particular. Because the point of the Four Hangout isn’t to promote Four, the album, but to exonerate the D’s management team, blow smoke up Ben’s ass, and “clear the air” about whatever rumors have been going around that the D’s team doesn’t like, all posed as questions theoretically from the fans, yet weirdly management focused.

I’ve found lots of good blog posts that summarize these 35 or so minutes, but here’s an executive summary of my comments coupled with others I’ve found:

Ben Winston is an insufferable dick

The D is so fucking TIRED at this point, everyone’s low energy, but Louis’s voice is the softest, raspiest, most enchanting thing

They regularly creep on social media and are up on pretty much everything fandom related

There are no rumors they need to dismiss except that they’re currently alive, go on, ask them twice!

Liam is great at delivering the corporate spiel

Harry really did get them sneezes out

The Louis/Ben feud is one thing; the Harry/Ben feud is a whole other

Louis reads fanfic (and has some faves!)

Narry are ride or die WMYB, except for when Harry needs to have a go at Ben

Zayn has somehow made himself look even more godlike

Louis has super cute socks

With that in mind, let’s jump into some key moments, but I’m paraphrasing a lot because it’s so hard to hear over all the cross-talk, asides, and inside jokes. More under the cut!

Shout out to Louis's collarbones and quiff combo...his voice is about to give out, but he’s so OPEN and present for this total shitshow, even when he defiantly refuses to take the path he’s being guided down. Also, please @ god let me play some poker while we enjoy a bacon butty over brunch, his face as Niall introduces Ben as a “very, very good friend of ours” (me as both Ziam and Harry):

One of the most subversive things this band does is effusive praise when they’re pissed off, and never is it clearer than here, when Niall gushes on about all the wonderful work Ben has done for them, and the other boys pick up on it and start whistling and clapping (Louis: “My hero”; Harry: “LOOK AT THOSE TEETH!”) until Ben gets extremely uncomfortable.

We’re off to a good start, with Ben being sure to preface that all of these questions are from the fans, and then Harry asking Ben if he’s wearing makeup (Ben, mildly affronted, “No, I’m not wearing any makeup, but you guys do, you wear a lot of makeup, don't you, Harry” [Harry: “Tons”; Ben: “Well, you need to”]).

The first question is about the difference between this album and their first one, and it’s such a stupid, easy question that I want to answer it for Niall because I can do it in my sleep. Ben then asks Louis if he likes visiting the X Factor, if it reminds him of the old days (you know, four years ago), and AGAIN, this is a dumb-ass question, and Louis’s a pro, so what do you think he’s gonna say? (Of course he likes visiting, it’s lovely to go down and relive it). Is Harry nervous about playing there again tonight? Nope, it’s fun!! He can enjoy it this time around! Simon Cowell doesn’t give him ANY anxiety!!

The next question is about the simplicity of the old days, and my god, does my heart break for Liam saying that they had to work really hard back then, so it’s nice that four years later, they get a few more vacation days. Louis agrees, adding that the first American promo trip was a grind where they did 10 things a day (multiple interviews, signings, radio appearances, rehearsals, and shows)

Ben asks if they ever go back and watch clips of themselves from their early days (this genuinely does seem like a fan ask), and wouldn’t you know, Niall was just chillin’ out last week, rewatching all the video diaries again. Louis admits that his red trousers and braces were loud, but they worked for the time, “Or do you disagree, Ben?” (Ben: “No, I loved it.” Louis: “Thank you.”) And I wish I could travel back in time both so I could kill Hitler AND witness Ben showing up somewhere in a pair of Toms, only to be faced by Louis Tomlinson telling him that he wore that style two years ago, and he wouldn’t anymore, which Ben says cut him down to size (I highly doubt that, but I would have love to see it).

All of this fashion talk is side-winding into a question about who tells them what to wear and whether they have control over their image now. They all note that they wouldn’t have dared to push back in year one, presumably because “experts” were telling them what to do, plus it was all free (which makes all the dragging on their old looks extra fun to watch). Then Ben asks whether they make their own decisions now, and Liam says yeah as Louis smirks, lmaooooo, which morphs into, well, we have much more input than we used to have. I’m here for Harry giving a slow, long-winded answer as a construction project starts up somewhere in the studio, and Louis yells, “Keep it down” into his mic.

Ben, I mean, the fans want to know what piece of advice they’d give the fetus versions of themselves, if they could go back in time, and Louis advises his younger self to have a second glance in the mirror and see if he’s really sure about that particular outfit. (Ben: “Is that…really?” Louis: “No, Ben, I’m just trying to make a joke.”). Liam would fight the haircuts, and Harry would burn the supras (I’m assuming; Louis: “They were outrageous”). Zayn would tell his younger self to have a bit more fun, to try and take it all in and enjoy it more. :(

“The fans” are curious about the negative side of social media, how the D just exploded on YouTube and Twitter after X Factor, and does it ever go too far? Liam channels my inbox and says that people forget there’s a person on the other side of an anon message, that these guys see all the things that are said about them, and they’re self-conscious with cameras and comments, but it’s okay, they put up with it. Louis’s addicted to Twitter, and says that there are negative people there, but you’ll find negative people on every social media platform and in real life, too, it is what it is.

Of course, “the fans” are curious about how all this social media shit affects their girlfriends, and I would kill to hear more about what Narry, the two singles on this couch, keep giggling about in this ridick convo that I’m not even gonna bother to sum up.

Ben’s curious how the fans always manage to leak everything the band does, and yes, Louis, tell us more! How does it make you feel? Liam thinks it’s anticlimactic, Niall’s only beef is when something is leaked a week before it’s out, and everyone else just gets annoyed if it breaks the structure of a rollout, but nobody talks about songs that are leaked that were never meant for official release (cough cough, "Home”), and Harry’s just happy people get a sneak peek and then still buy the album, so all is good. Me as this exchange: Ben, incredulously, “It’s amazing they’re able to constantly do it”; Liam: “Lots of high-tech people out there.”

Probably my favorite part of this is the fanfic discussion, which kicks off with Ben’s “I've noticed, not that I’ve read it, but there's been a lot of fanfiction published about you boys, books published, have you any read it?”

Zayn avoids it at all costs, but Louis’s aware of a fic writer’s book deal (who????) and says that he’s come across some of it on twitter (!!!). He finds some of it utterly bizarre (looking at you, self-inserts), but he’s read some nice little stories, and he’s seen some that go very deep and very, very weird. Liam acknowledges that it’s a whole different world, that he gets the idea of it, of fans putting themselves in situations with them (and Jesus Christ, it kills me that they’ve had to read self-insert wattpad fics), but some of it blows his mind. Niall doesn’t know where to go looking for it, but don’t worry friend, Ben’s gonna hook you up with his favorites! Harry is noticeably quiet during ALL of this.

With a horrible segue, Ben says, “Speaking of things that are made up, what’s the biggest rumor you’ve heard about yourself, this is a question lots of fans are asking” (SURE THING), and Harry never gets enough credit for his dry delivery, such as the way he says, “We’ve all been dead a couple of times.” But Ben can’t let it go, and that’s when Louis does his whole, “No”….dramatic pause (he might be saying “Go,” but the point is, he lets this bit drop where it lands). Zayn jumps in with the rumor that Niall used to be a jockey, and god bless him, honestly.

Ben realizes he’s not getting anywhere with this, so it’s time to move on to the actual album, why is it called Four, etc. It’s not really all that interesting, tbh, nor is the name they didn’t go with as a band (Liam’s dad’s suggestion, which was USP, if you’re curious). Liam figures USP will flourish one day, and this whole section proves how funny Liam actually is. I’m curious about all the One Direction tribute bands they’re mentioning, and I’m totally down to check one out if they’re ever in my area, just fwiw.

Anyway, moving on! What song are they most proud of? Zayn loves “Where Do Broken Hearts Go,” and Louis is WAY into “Fireproof,” which Liam’s down with, too. The part that’s interesting gets glossed over because Ben’s an idiot, but they talk about how many songs they’ve written that don’t make it to the album, like, Liam has a tattoo that says “somewhere is a place that nobody knows” from a song we’ll never hear called “Man on a Mission,” and how many others are stored in this vault (23 or 24 were in the final running for this album, where are they)? Harry suggests those songs will be on USP’s first album, and I will absolutely buy it. His story about the Norway bus trip makes me want to dig deep (he was on a party bus in Norway and heard one of their songs, sung by them, that had never been released anywhere, and he was the only one who knew it).

Zayn hints a bit at what happens (voting), and Liam hints at all the meetings, but I would love to know so much more about this process, especially since Niall says that lots of people are in these meetings, with lots of opinions (Simon, label, other managers).

Ben says that another recurring question is about what “Stockholm Syndrome” means, and I love the Alex Turner-esque dodge we get on Harry literally describing what Stockholm Syndrome means, without any real insight into what the song’s about. Still, I live in the awkward that happens right after this drops, with Ben still somehow trying to get them to admit they don’t feel trapped, lmao:

Ben asks about which songs are about specific people, and god, I don’t care because all of this section is lies. Then he tries to get them to talk about songs they don’t like, and they aren’t here for that, like, Liam will say he can’t casually listen to WMYB, but he loves performing it, and the best part of this is Harry saying he’ll crank that song and mouth along, pretending that he’s Niall.

For their favorite songs, Liam goes with “Fireproof,” Louis goes with “Midnight Memories,” Niall goes with “Where Do Broken Hearts Go,” Zayn can’t pick one, and Harry says “Best Song Ever.” Ben likes “Through the Dark” because of course he does, and that’s when the needling from Harry starts about “Gotta Be You,” and I don’t understand, but I live for him on the attack, so geddit, son (also, Niall, with his “your boyfriend’s back, and you’re gonna be in trouble,” etc., YES).

Another question Ben kept getting from fans (got it!) is what would be the one thing they’d change in the past four years, and Louis starts with, “Why would you want to? It’s been great, there’s no point.” Liam agrees, and that’s that. Ben’s next question is what moment they’d relive in the past four years, and Niall says he was really nervous at MSG, although Zayn thinks it was a great gig BECAUSE they were nervous. Nothing’s really happening here, so Ben asks Harry what’s going on with his hair (I guess “the fans” want to know?), and Harry just says it tends to grow, that’s what hair does, and he’s letting it all hang out.

Another “fan” question that makes me laugh from Ben: “Who makes the decisions in One Direction? Is it always your call?” And they all say NO, but Liam jumps in with, “It’s totally us, people ask us now, ultimately we call the shots,” and there’s a LOT of back-chatter here, so draw what you see.

Ben tries to push how much they love the “Night Changes,” video, and AGAIN, Harry gets on his case about “Gotta Be You,” and someone else covers it better than I ever could, but this goading by Harry is wonderful. Ben’s creative process for video concepts is fascinating because he basically admits that it’s easy or it’s really hard (read: he steals it or just throws a shitty idea to a wall to see if it sticks).

Ben asks if they get nervous about people liking the album, and Louis says they care if critics like the album or not, but really, he’s out there on twitter searching different song titles to see the fan reaction. This is also when we learn they aren’t on ye olde social meeds that much anymore, but they all enjoy a good old-fashioned creep session (Zayn especially). Harry’s comment about feeling vulnerable when you release something you’ve been working on for a year feels especially poignant—he gets excited and nervous all at once—and I really don’t get this whole controlled leak promo thing they did for Four, but who am I to question Modest or Syco?? All I want to know is what Niall’s talking about on the side.

#recap #four hangout #get them sneezes out

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