#i had to repaint it and the blue multiple times

[teahatts]

finished the wip. i really do love these two

[soobnny]

drunk in love — seo changbin.

trope. best friends to lovers. college au. mutual pining.

synopsis. getting drunk for the first time with the one person you trust the most doesn’t sound like a bad idea, right? even if you’re madly in love with them?

word count. 2.2k words

warnings. drinking, puking, and just everything that comes with being drunk, curse words

note. been in a changbin mood recently

Everything looks so hazy.

With a shot glass clumsily in hand, you tilt your hand to look around Changbin’s living room in wonder. Everything looks as it has always been, the same pieces of furniture in the same places, and yet it felt totally different.

The walls look a different color, and the television seems to have grown a new pair. How silly to keep two TVs side by side each other.

You giggle at the thought, eyes unfocused as you keep staring at his television with curiosity. Your best friend, currently seated beside you on the couch, carefully grabs the shot glass from your hand to prevent any accidents – taking advantage of the moment where you’re distracted.

A few minutes ago, when he had attempted the same thing, you had gotten upset. Changbin would rather roll down multiple flights of stairs than have you be upset with him again, even if it was unintentional and under the influence of alcohol.

He doesn’t even know what had prompted you to drink in the first place. You had just texted him, completely out of the blue; can we drink tonight lol

And before he could even respond, you were already knocking on his door with a bottle of tequila in hand and a sheepish smile painted on your features. He accepts the offer. For one, he could never say no to you. And secondly, he had no classes tomorrow and he hadn’t drank in a while.

He could use the taste of alcohol to hide behind when it comes to his feelings for you. It’s grown tenfold over the past few weeks, and although he could never trust himself drunk around you (he knows his blabber mouth would confess in one way or another), a few shots wouldn’t hurt.

Plus, he has never drank with you either. To his information, you’ve never drank before either. At all.

Changbin had asked if you wanted to invite any of your friends over, even the guys, but you had asked if it was alright that it was just the two of you for tonight.

It’s because you trust him the most, but you don’t need to tell him that.

If you did, he would’ve exploded. But you didn’t have to know that either.

With the shot glass successfully out of your reach, Changbin doesn’t even try to understand what you’re giggling about. He knows you’re hit, and the wholesome way you’re smiling is too adorable to question. He just lets you stare at his television like it was a Nobel prize winning discovery.

After gawking for a few minutes, you turn your attention to Changbin, scooting so much closer that your knees are pressed together now. Leaning in with a hand covering your mouth, you whisper into his ear.

“Why do you have two TVs?”

Changbin feels like crying at how cute you are.

“I think you might’ve had too much to drink.” You pull away from his face, eyebrows knit as you shake your head in disagreement. You’re too shy to admit you’ve already been hit hours ago.

“I’m dizzy, but I can still understand what’s happening around me. So, I’m just tipsy, right?” You don’t even give him a chance to respond when you start talking about something entirely different, abruptly getting up from your seat to point at the walls.

Changbin follows suit with his hands stretched out in case you fall over.

“When did you get the time to repaint your walls? I liked the old one better.” Eyes blinking rapidly, you step forward a little unsteadily and Changbin has an arm hovering around you in record time. “It changed again just now!”

“Think you’re really drunk, darling.”

“‘M not drunk. Your wall’s being weird.” You brush his statement dismissively, attempting to stumble towards the painted walls to see them up close.

Though, you don’t think your feet want to cooperate with you very much.

Changbin has to pull you to his side before you can trip over your own feet, and you can feel the heat spreading from your neck to your face but you’re unsure if it’s from the alcohol or the close proximity to your best friend.

“Okay. You’re not drunk. I believe you.” His grip tightens around you, and you smile victoriously at the small accomplishment of convincing him you aren’t drunk, even though he knows otherwise.

“Thank you.” You politely respond, bowing unsteadily before looking up at him with your crescent eyes and your crooked grin, and the boy really has to try his best not to get carried away with the overwhelming amount of feelings he has for you.

Especially when you’re looking at him like that.

He fails, of course, hearing his own heartbeat quicken and his palms start to sweat, but at least he tried anyway. In trial of calming himself down, he places his palm on the entirety of your face and pushes you back down to sit on the couch.

Changbin hears nothing but muffled protests from you, but he takes the limited time he has with your eyes peeled to clear his throat and recompose himself before he pulls his hand back.

Get it together, Changbin.

Though, even after having calmed himself, he still finds himself thinking about the way you perfectly fit by his side, like he has always been meant to wrap an arm around your waist.

He wants you so fucking bad, and it really doesn’t help that your cuteness has heightened from the silly lens you’re viewing the world in right now.

Preparing himself for your scolding, he finds that you’ve completely forgotten the way he had manhandled you back on the couch. Instead, you’re gripping at your shirt with your eyebrows twisted, lips pressed in a thin line as if you’re trying to discern the way you’re feeling right now.

“Binnie, I’m a little dizzy now.”

And then you’re getting up again.

“Careful.” He mumbles under his breath, stepping forward. You always trust Changbin to be there before you fall.

Though, ironically, you’ve been falling for a few years now. But you haven’t crashed yet and there’s still time for Changbin to open his arms and catch you if he wanted to.

You can tell he’s tired. You don’t even know what time it is anymore. Everything’s so distorted and it’s all just static to you now. All you know is that you have to get home so Changbin can get his much needed rest.

“Gotta get home now.” You hiccup, body swaying in an alarming way as you try to make a run for his front door.

“Not so fast.” He pulls you back, allowing you to rest most of your weight on him when you stumble back. “You’re sleeping here tonight. Can’t let you go home like this. Hmm? Who’s gonna take care of you?”

“You gonna take care of me?” Your voice has grown incredibly soft now, hands gripping his arms to keep yourself standing.

“Mhm.” He leans forward to brush away the hair falling in front of your face, tucking the loose strands behind your ear so it doesn’t bother you so much.

“Thank you, Binnie. You always take care of me.”

Changbin thinks he’s gonna pass out again because here you are, looking at him again. In some delusional way, it makes him think you feel the same as him, even though he thinks it’s just wishful thinking.

“Stop looking at me like that. Makes it really hard for me.”

“Makes it hard to what?” You’re standing on your tiptoes to try and mirror his height so your face is directly in front of his now, and Changbin has to hold both of your arms to prevent you from falling on top of him completely.

“Not to kiss you.” He mumbles begrudgingly. It’s okay, you won’t remember this tomorrow. He thinks. Or, he hopes.

But if you do, he’s equally hoping you admit you’ve always wanted to kiss him too.

“What’s stopping you?” Another hiccup.

“You’re drunk.” Changbin deadpans, pinching your cheeks, and immediately regretting his decision when a pout sports your lips and your eyebrows knit together in the most adorable way possible.

“I told you ‘m not drunk!” You let your head fall on his shoulder.

Only a few seconds of silence pass before you’re speaking again. Although, your tone’s a little more troubled. “Uh oh. I don’t feel too good.”

You don’t really remember how you got to the bathroom. The only thing you can feel is a hand rubbing your back and another pulling your hair back as you’re hunched over his toilet seat, vomiting out whatever you had for dinner earlier.

Tears prick in your eyes, and then you’re hurling again, coughing out as if it’ll help you feel any better about the circumstance you’re under. You don’t even notice Changbin has left your side until he comes back with a glass of water, making sure you drink all of it after wiping away the corners of your mouth.

“Sorry.” You frown, lips starting to tremble as you stare down at the floor, clearly dejected and ashamed.

Changbin sits down on his bathroom floor next to you, continuing to rub your back like he did earlier. “It’s okay. This kind of thing happens.”

“But it’s gross, and now you’ll never like me. You’ll like someone else who doesn’t vomit in your toilet.” He lets out a breathy laugh at how sad you sound, and you’re starting to feel embarrassed.

“Hey. I like you even when you vomit in my toilet.”

You look up at him with doe eyes, and you suddenly feel so much better. “Promise?”

“I promise.”

“Mkay. Thank you.” You smile stupid to yourself, playing with your fingers and suddenly feeling shy.

Changbin finds the sight endearing, and feels his heart expand in fondness every time you say ‘thank you’ at even the most minuscule thing – when he “believed” you were drunk, when he had let you stay the night, when he told you he still liked you even when you puke.

He snaps out of his thoughts when he catches you yawning.

“You tired? Gonna get you some clothes to change into, okay?”

“What’s wrong with my clothes?”

“Not gonna let you sleep in that. You’ll be uncomfortable.” He pats your head once he’s stood up from having sat on the bathroom floor next to you.

“Oh. You’re right.”

You don’t protest further, humming to yourself as you wait for him to come back.

He returns with some of his spare clothes and a damp face towel. After wiping your face, he allows you to change into your clothes after having convinced him you could do it. He can’t help but laugh when you walk out of his bathroom with his shirt on backwards.

You immediately fall face first on his bed, groaning out at how comfortable his bed was. Changbin smiles fondly at the sight, helping you tuck yourself in comfortably. You blink up at him, patting the space next to you.

“Come to bed now.”

“Gotta change too, okay? Give me a few minutes.”

You whine childishly when he makes his way to his bathroom. “Binnie, where are you?”

“Just a few more minutes.”

“But Binnie! I’m cold. And.. and… what if someone suddenly came in and took me away! It’ll be all your fault.” You try to play with the cards that you’re dealt with, scheming to say anything that could guilt trip Changbin into speeding up in the bathroom so he could be beside you right now.

“Okay, okay. I’m here, I’m done.”

You’re grumpy now, even with his favorite blanket wrapped around you. When he sits down beside you on his bed, you’re scooting away slightly to really sell the part.

“You mad at me?” He whispers, smiling to himself when you nod your head.

“You left me all alone.”

“Just so I’m wearing clean clothes when I cuddle you.”

“You’re gonna cuddle me?” You ask with wide eyes.

“You said you were cold, hm?”

It doesn’t take much after that before you’re wrapped in his arms instead, head resting comfortably on his chest as you sigh out in relief. This feels nice. His arms feel warm and comfortable. It’s warmer than it was when you were just under the covers.

“You still mad?”

“‘M not mad anymore. You’re forgiven.” Changbin grins, threading his fingers through your hair gently to help you sleep quicker. He knows you’re tired, from the way you drawl out your words, and the way you simply collapse into him.

He rests his free arm around you comfortably, just by your hips, and he continues to look down at you attentively in case you jolt awake in need of something. He only completely relaxes when he hears soft snores from you.

Placing a soft kiss on the top of your head, Changbin allows himself to shut his own tired eyes closed. Even though he had been exhausted from the events of the day prior, he finds he’d do it all over again for you if you asked him to.

As for you, you’re not quite sure you want to drink as hard as you did today. One thing you are sure of is you never want to leave, with your head resting just below Changbin’s neck, and his hand running through your hair.

You don’t wanna be anywhere else but with the one person you trust the most.

[valtionrautatiet-official]

An introduction to VR passenger carriages, part 1: the blue carriages

In our next series of introducing our rolling stock, we will be looking at passenger carriages. I was actually thinking of doing multiple units next, but @hapotonradio requested I do the blue carriages and a lot of people seemed to like the idea so here we go.

A Dr13-hauled train consisting of blue carriages arriving in Turku Harbour, 1995. Falk1, Wikimedia Commons

I can already hear foreigners (and non-rail enthusiast Finns too) going "what the hell are the blue carriages?" Well, the blue carriages were/are the first Finnish steel-bodied passenger carriages, with over 600 units (depending a bit on what you count as being actual blue carriages) of different types built between 1961 and 1986. Today, almost all of them have been retired. Which is a shame, because they were sexy.

The first 15 blue carriages were built by the West German Maschinenfabrik Esslingen, who also designed them, in 1961. This original batch were equipped with different types of boggies, from which the Minden-Deutz boggie was chosen for the eventual mass-produced series built in-house by the VR Pasila workshop starting from 1964 (Valmet also built a small number of carriages).

A combined 1st and 2nd class carriage as built, 1964. At this point they still had steel covering the underbody from the sides. These hems were later removed to better display the arousing technical bits. Olavi Karasjoki, Suomen rautatiemuseo.

President Kekkonen (the bald dude) visiting the above carriage. Olavi Karasjoki, Suomen rautatiemuseo.

The initial batch consisted of ten 2. class carriages (littera Eit), four combined 1. and 2. class coaches (lit. CEit) and one 1. class coach (lit. Cit). As you can maybe figure out, the -t at the end stood for teräs, steel, to distinguish from the old wood-bodied coaches. In addition to the regular first- and second-class coaches, the blue carriages' base design was adopted for restaurant cars (litteras Rbkt, Rt, Rkt and Rk), combined condutor's and luggage cars (lits. Fot, Efit and Efiti), sleepers (CEmt), aggregate cars to use on non-electrified tracks (Eifet), carriages with children's playrooms (ELht), postal carriages (Pot), military transport (Ems), prisoner transport (Nom), special carriages for the president and cabinet (A), and even a one-off disco carriage. The latter in particular fucked severely. All those sweaty bodies having it on inside a train...

Some sources also list the Eil-class local traffic coaches as blue carriages, but since they had some structural differences and were originally painted red rather than blue, I'm going to cover them in a separate entry.

Interior of a 2nd class carriage. My photo

Over the quarter of a century the blue carriages were in production, numerous improvements were made to the original design; most notably, the original top service speed of 120 km/h was increased first to 140 km/h and then to 160 km/h in some units.

By the time the last blue carriages were delivered in 1986, their star was already waning. In 1988, the first new Intercity carriages (in a white and red IC delivery) were delivered, and Intercity trains replaced the blue-carriaged special express (erikoispikajuna) trains as the flagship product. With the arrival of the Intercity carriages, and the double-decker carriages from 1998 onwards, the blue carriages were phased out.

Blue carriages at the Turku depot, an Eifet aggregate car repainted in the Intercity livery in the 1990s and CEmt sleepers (both carriages visible behind the Eifet; the sleepers have asymmetric window arrangements). My photo

Today, the only blue carriages still in use in the iconic original livery as sleepers in night trains to Lapland, and prison transport carriages. Some restaurant cars, aggregate cars and conductor's carriages still exist, but they have been repainted in the newer liveries. Several blue carriages have also been preserved by different instances and they're relatively commonly seen in heritage/museum trains these days.

[simp999]

A New Home Ch. 34

Various! Splatoon Manga x Skilled! Isekai'd! Reader

Wc: 1k

A/N: sorry chat ww uh go read some past chapters for comfort idk

Warnings: Agressive language (swearing), abusive past significant other.

A/N 2: you can avoid reading this part if you think it'll make you uncomfortable,- it's just backstory and doesn't pertain to the story too much.

Back to the start! Previous Next

With a heavy heart, you arrived home and helped Milo make supper for the family. The night went by slowly with Milo's sister on your mind, but recognizing that he didn't seem as heavily affected by it anymore did help soothe you.

That night, you all fell asleep watching a movie; you in Milo's arms while he petted your tentacles. It was difficult not to fall asleep with how gentle he was- he must've had lots of experience.

The following day, Tasha was cleaning her weapon when you noticed a furrow in her brow. She then quietly said that she would be going to stop by Sheldon's today. Ah, she must have noticed a scratch or something. Either way, you figured it would be a good opportunity to spend time with her, so you asked if you could tag along. With a soft nod, she told you when she'd be leaving. Sooner rather than later- she'd rather fix her weapon as quickly as possible. You figured you'd get your weapon checked too while you were there. Seemed convenient.

It didn't take long before the two of you left the house, Tasha making sure not to scratch her weapon further. She held it close on the subway.

Maybe today you'd get to find out why she took such good care of the thing- if a reason at all. You're sure there had to be one, though.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

You gave your weapon to Sheldon when you arrived, and he seemed shocked.

"The ink isn't fully going through! How have you been battling like this?"

... you've been at a disadvantage this whole time? He compared it to missing multiple Ink Saver abilities- it was really confusing.

Finally, Tasha carefully handed Sheldon her E-liter, pointing out the scratch he had to buff out. With a pleasant smile on his face while he analyzed the weapon, he said;

"Pristine as ever, Natasha! I admire your dedication to your weapon! If only others were as diligent as you..."

You noticed how Sheldon was looking at you when he said that, and you looked away out of embarrassment. Well, hey- you're sure Leo was much worse; you once caught him using nail polish to repaint a scratch on his dualies after dropping them.

"...Told you not to call me that." She quietly replied.

The two of you left Ammo Knights shortly, making your way to the lobby. It was a hot day, that blazer of Tasha's was probably way too warm. She was about to take it off when you caught her freeze in place.

She appeared terrified. You followed her gaze- and it was at some octoling boy. His tentacles stood out- a sort of mohawk fashion going backwards. He toyed with his Nautilus 47. He wore a wicked smile on his face. His eyes were closed and his sharp teeth showed. He sat next to what you assumed was his twin; a matching forward mohawk and a big frown. An octobrush sat next to him. The first one- the smiley one had pink tentacles, the second, frowny, had blue. The first laughed like a hyena as some girl he sat with told a joke, his arm around her with a seemingly painfully tight grip.

..he seemed like he was holding her hostage. Damn.

You looked back at Tasha and she seemed to cower even further as she stared at him. She held her weapon with shaky hands- wait, Tasha? With shaky hands? What the hell happened between these two?

The two of you had to walk by them to get to the Subway. You slowly tried to reach for her back, gently rubbing circles as you guided her, placing yourself between her and the twins.

But you were still noticed. You suppose she does stand out a bit with her height.

The pink-tentacled one stood up.

"Hey there sweetheart! S' been a while, love. How ya been?"

He got much too close, breath mixing with hers. She held her weapon even closer. She kept her head down. His hand left her shoulder when she flinched and she quickly tried to walk off, and you heard him mumble under his breath; "Tch. Bitch. Got what you deserved anyways."

Her hand shook as she held it in front of her mask on the subway. She was still frozen and you could see her tearing up.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

You trailed behind her as she rushed to her room. Despite what you may assume, she continued to hold your hand. She needed company. She didn't want to be left alone.

She took her mask off as she shook. She was so vulnerable.

That's right. Her scars.

Wait... is that how she got those?

What the hell did that asshole do?!

Sobs wracked her body as you held her free hand, her other thumb rubbing her weapon, soothing her.

Once you offered her a soft hug, and you got her to breathe properly again, she began to explain. You wiped her tears as she went on.

"My weapon malfunctioned once and only once. The night I ran away from him.

...the night he gave me these scars.

I couldn't defend myself."

You looked at her with sympathy, and rubbed your thumb over the palm of her hand to soothe her. You stood up once again and held her head close to your chest, resting your chin on her head as you pet her tentacles.

Milo heard from Leo that the twins were in the square. Trav n' Marx. Milo put two and two together and raced down to Tasha's room to try to comfort her. He wrapped her in a blanket and quickly let his motherly instincts take over.

According to all you've gathered, she had an abusive boyfriend.

Tasha of all people.

Goes to show it can happen to anyone.

Poor girl...

.

.

.

Mar.26,24

Next Part

[ciaossu-imagines]

Can you do the ‘what color was their childhood bedroom?’ prompt for Bokuto?

C

Of course I can, especially since I know how much you like the owl boy! It’s always fun writing characters for people when you know how excited and happy those characters make a person 😊

WHAT COLOUR WAS THEIR CHILDHOOD BEDROOM?

Because it was his parents, or really his mother, who chose the colours of his childhood bedroom, she had chosen a soft, almost sky blue colour for the walls. It’s the colour his nursery was and the colour the room stayed even as he grew up into a toddler.

However, Bokuto was a very active toddler who could get into some trouble, here and there, without meaning to. As a little one, around two or three, he loved drawing, especially since his mother always encouraged his drawings and praised them. When he ran out of paper, he’d use the walls to draw on, so his mother could still see his pretty paintings.

Despite his mother scolding him, he did it multiple times. Tired of cleaning the walls each and every time, his mother simply waited until he grew out of the phase and then repainted the room.

When they repainted Bokuto’s room, it just was done in a simple, neutral white. Since his mother believed he was growing up and getting more of a definitive personality, but knew that his personality and interests would change often as he got older and older, she figured that white would be the easiest, since he could change out accessories and such to get the colour needed in his bedroom.

[planeturi]

staff number 1: the galaxy staff!

its a bit flawed, but a pretty good result for a first attempt at building a prop, especially since i was practically winging the whole process.

more about the building process under the cut

the pole is taken from a random wooden broom, the top piece is a painted hollow styrofoam egg, all held together with hot glue and sticky-sided foam sheet cuttings. the same foam cutting were also used for the soft handle, to protect my hand from the spikes.

the spikes were made with puffy paint, which is silver but got repainted over with the blue to black gradient because man i was highly indecisive while making this thing.

overall this is what ive learnt from this project, learn from my mistakes:

foam sheets can be painted after being primed with a nice layer of glue. i used matte mod podge, but im sure other thick glues will work fine.

however, my mistake was applying the foam cuttings BEFORE painting them. had i painted them individually instead of all together, it wouldve created a more cohesive/consistent look. it wouldve taken much longer but wouldve also been more worth it!

you can get rid of that icky styrofoam visual texture with the noticeable circles and lines with multiple layers of mod podge. but its kind of ineffiecent. i think ill try using something like painters duct tape instead next time.

you cannot reuse foam cuttings. even if you manage to tear them off successfully. it wont look or stick the same.

PLEASE have a proper plan PLEASEEEE

[uristmcdorf]

There is not, on this lonely little blue marble floating in space, even one single human being who can actually call themselves “self made”.

Every single one of us is the product of the care and resources and work of others.

Today I did the following things:

Got up and did the morning routine

Travelled with my partner to the petrol station to top up the car

Travelled with my partner to the calor gas site to pick up some gas to heat my home

Tidied the front room

Entertained a friend for 30 minutes so they could pick out some spare embroidery threads from my collection they needed

Attended my fortnightly trans art club hangout

Made and ate dinner with my partner

Did some knitting

Let’s just pick a single one of those things.  Petrol station trip to top up the car.  Hell, let’s reduce that down even further:  owning a car and driving it on the road.

Who built those roads?  Other people, not us, who built these roads long before we were born knowing they would likely be used long after they had died.  Who maintains them?  Other people, not us, who get paid far less for their work than what it would cost the world should we suddenly lose access to those working roads.  Who fills pot-holes and repairs traffic lights and roundabouts and crossings and junctions and repaints the road with signs and symbols?  Who maintains the signs up alongside the road that direct us?  Who ensured that the roads and the car could fit each other adequately?  Who checks the roads to ensure no one has parked on them or otherwise blocked one off causing hazards to travellers?  Who created a series of laws and regulations governing cars and driving and road use, to ensure that the other drivers would not be a significant risk of harm or danger to us?  Who built the car we’re travelling in?  My partner and their father often work on the car to maintain it, but they still take it for an annual MOT at the garage where professionals, trained and certified to a required minimum standard that we can feel assured guarantees their ability to repair the car correctly, check it over and certify it safe for continued use. 

In the simple act of stepping a foot onto pavement outside I am benefitting from the labour and effort and time and care of hundreds of people, both ones working now and ones long-dead.  The street cleaners who ensure the pavement is free of mud, leaf litter, trash and dog mess and other hazards.  The maintenance crews who repair cracks and pour salt on the road in Winter to prevent ice.  The town planners and construction workers who planned and designed and laid the road. 

The day I was born I was the product of one woman’s arduous physical labour and the combined skills of multiple doctors and nurses who had each trained for years specifically to be able to do the work they do, as well as the cleaners and hospital staff who built, created, managed and maintained a safe, hygeinic space for the birth to take place.

The people who decided to plant walnut trees along the roadside didn’t do it because they wanted to harvest walnuts for themselves.  They knew damn well they’d be dead before those trees first bore fruit.  They did it so their children and grandchildren and the children and grandchildren of their neighbours would enjoy walnuts one day.

That’s what society is.  It’s the entire point of having one.

We are supposed to care for each other.  We are supposed to provide for the most vulnerable.  We are supposed to create resources together that we then share together.  We are supposed to strive to create a world that will provide the next generation with less work and more resource.

[isleofavalonart]

Let me tell you a tale of ADHD and the too much gene.

I recently moved to a different state to start graduate school. I moved a whole month early because I’m disabled and know I require a shit ton of decorations to feel comfy in my house, which requires a lot of work.

For some reason I decided a week in to start repainting my bookshelf. This bookshelf was already painted blue and had some spindly gold stars. I imagine a teenager painted it since that’s the kinda thing I did at that age, but who knows.

I have no ability gauge how long projects will take, it took multiple evenings painting for 4+ hours to realize, I’d fucked up.

By the time my semester started I’d finished one side and half of the top. I’m proud of my focus for that. But it took another month before I finished varnishing that side and painted the other half of the top.

This was a problem because I keep many knick knacks on top my bookshelf and I couldn’t do that until it was finished. So they sat in a box in the middle of my living room forever, taking up space and acting as toe stubbing fodder. Until one day, miraculously, I had the energy, not to go to class, but to paint the top and arrange knick knacks.

“What about the other side?” you may ask. Shhhh. We don’t talk about that side. (It’s unpainted and shoved against a wall to hide my shame.)

[dannysartscf]

1.

A) Unity & Variety: Unity is the harmony of all visual elements in a composition, creating a cohesive whole. Variety adds interest by using contrasting elements to break up monotony. For example, a garden with a uniform color scheme of green (unity) but with flowers of different shapes and sizes (variety) demonstrates this principle.

B) Balance: Balance refers to the distribution of visual weight in an artwork. It can be symmetrical (evenly distributed) or asymmetrical (uneven but still balanced). In architecture, the design of a bridge with evenly spaced pillars shows symmetrical balance, while a city skyline with different-sized buildings may show asymmetrical balance.

C) Emphasis & Subordination: Emphasis is the focal point or area that draws attention, while subordination supports the emphasis by being less prominent. A billboard's main headline is emphasized through large, bold text, while the smaller text provides additional information without overshadowing the main message.

D) Directional Forces: These are lines or paths in an artwork that guide the viewer's eye through the composition. Roads or pathways in city planning often use directional forces to direct pedestrian traffic, such as a well-designed park that naturally leads people from the entrance to key attractions.

E) Repetition & Rhythm: Repetition is the use of the same element multiple times, creating a sense of unity. Rhythm is the pattern created by repeating elements, adding movement and flow. Repeated window patterns on a building or streetlights along a road create visual rhythm in an urban landscape.

F) Scale & Proportion: Scale refers to the size of elements in relation to each other, while proportion is the relationship between these elements. In a living room, a large sofa paired with a small coffee table might feel unbalanced in scale and proportion, whereas furniture that fits together comfortably creates a harmonious environment.

An artist like Piet Mondrian uses balance and unity in his paintings by employing grids of horizontal and vertical lines, creating a structured but varied visual composition with blocks of primary colors.

2. I remember a time when I repainted my room to a light blue hue. The cool hue created a calming atmosphere, reducing my stress levels after long days. The value of the color was perfect—it wasn't too dark or too light, just a soothing middle tone. The intensity was soft, not overwhelming, which helped maintain a serene environment. The low saturation kept the space feeling open and not too intense, which was crucial for a small room.

If I had to pick a "color scheme" for my life, I would choose an analogous palette of blues and greens. These colors reflect tranquility and growth, resonating with my desire for a peaceful and balanced life while constantly evolving and learning.

3.

4.

Good Layout Design

Why it’s good: Apple’s product ads are highly effective due to their minimalist design, which utilizes a clean layout with ample white space. This approach allows the viewer to focus entirely on the product, without any distractions. By featuring a high-quality image and minimal text, the ad communicates its message quickly and clearly. The limited color palette; typically black, white, and shades of gray, this adds to a sophisticated and modern look that aligns with Apple's brand image. The simplicity and elegance of the design make it memorable and easy for the audience to digest.

Intention: The intention behind Apple’s design is to highlight the product’s sleek design and key features while reinforcing its high-end, premium brand image. The minimalist approach positions the product as the centerpiece, creating a sense of exclusivity and luxury. By avoiding unnecessary elements and keeping the focus on the product itself, Apple aims to make its offerings appear cutting-edge, desirable, and unique. The design also seeks to appeal to customers who value simplicity and sophistication in both aesthetics and functionality.

Does it fulfill its purpose? Yes, the design fulfills its purpose by capturing the viewer’s attention and focusing it squarely on the product. The use of high-quality images and strategic white space draws the eye to the essential details, effectively communicating the product's premium qualities. By not overwhelming the viewer with excessive information or visuals, the ad ensures that the message remains clear and impactful. As a result, the design successfully conveys Apple’s brand values of innovation, elegance, and luxury.

[mi5018tomberry]

Compositing Analysis

To get a better understanding of this project and compositing as a whole I looked into some videos explaining VFX work in the film industry. This is a video I watched a year ago on a similar topic about the VFX process behind Davy Jones beard and why CGI from 2006 still looks better than some VFX work today. The art direction understood how to play into the strengths of the software by designing a character which avoids the uncanny valley that CGI characters of the time fell into. Bill Nighy's emotive performance was captured in the Davy Jones model because they allowed the eyes and brow area to retain their humanity and convey the subtlety of his acting. All of his scenes are in lighting and weather conditions that compliment his character; the issue of rubbery CG characters at the time was played into by designing a squid like character which looks natural when shiny and wet because he's a captain of the sea. Furthermore the costume hides most of the body and allows more time to be spent on the tentacles which add a lot of expression to the character.

When looking for a new video to learn about compositing I found this short video about The Mask briefly explaining how they achieved the cartoonish aesthetic with a mixture of props and CGI. You've got to keep in mind amplifying distances to make room for VFX that is layered on top of your skin, I'll keep this in mind for any attempts at mapping VFX on top of or directly interacting with people.

This video covers in depth the use of VFX in District 9 and why a film from 2009 has better looking effects than some films today. Contrary to CGI in the past which usually took centre stage in dramatic sequences District 9 immerses characters into the scene by disregarding their importance, acting as though they are just another person in shot. It makes these outlandish characters feel grounded within each scene despite their insect like character design, they also managed to sell their emotions by applying a human rig to the insectoid models which adds to the realism because we can understand the subtle changes around the eyes and brows. It is also important to consider using an actor as a stand in for a CG character so that other actors have a fixed focal point throughout the scene instead of guessing where they are supposed to look. District 9 couldn't get around all of their issues with a quick fix and had to brute force their way especially when it came to keying out the characters and have to manually repaint the backgrounds for each frame. This is because they couldn't capture a clean plate for each shot because of the handheld aesthetic used for the documentary style filmmaking.

To add some context to some of the techniques we are learning about this video explains some of the main techniques used in the compositing process. Including:

Keying - removing green/blue screens

Rotoscoping - manually cutting out selected parts of a shot

Paints Outs/Removals - getting rid of wires, unwanted props by painting over them

Matte Paintings - creating background from 2D painting on a glass plane with forced perspective to embed it into the shot, nowadays done digitally

Day for Night - shooting during the day and tweaking lighting in post, its easier to reduce light in post than create it

Assets - embedding 3D assets into a shot or special effects like fire/magic/smoke

CGI -

Passes - multiple layers of a render for diffuse, reflections, illuminations, lighting, etc.. the separation of these layers allows for more control during post production

[agnelid]

Replacement CAS for single color

I was inspired by FWAY, but their replacement had the disadvantage of changing color depending on the time of day, if during the day it had a normal shade, then by evening or night it turned blue or blackened. So I decided to make my own replacement, well, I fixed it.

But it took me a long time to figure out how to do it, and in this version I was only able to make 8 colors, because the repainting here is complex and requires multiple restarts from game to game to check the result. And unfortunately I don't know how to make it easier, but it's already something.

Well, here it is:

Download / Mirror

Choose only one!

Update: Oops... I just realized I had reshade enabled, maybe the CAS is actually a bit darker.

[sleepytoycollection]

Sleepy Reviews: Deuce Gorgon (Amazon Exclusive)

G3 Deuce Gorgon ($24.99) with his accessories

The boys of G1 Monster High have been my favorite boy dolls of any doll line ever, to the point I have gone out of my way to collect one of every single boy character that had been made. I adore them immensely, so obviously, when I had to pick one to review, I had to pick the original Manster himself, Deuce. 

He’s got a lot to live up to, so is Mr. Gorgon a worthy entry to my massive MH boy collection? Let’s find out:

This particular Deuce Gorgon is Amazon Exclusive, but there is another version in a 2-pack with Frankie that is target exclusive, which is honestly pretty amazing considering Mattel’s seeming aversion to boy characters previously. Two Deuce dolls right out of the gate? Go off then.

Keep that energy up Mattel and you have my attention. Especially if Jackson and Holt return. Please Mattel I’ll do anything. Anything. 🥺🙏

Ahem. 

Anyway, the box design is serviceable. I don’t love it, but it gets the job done.

I think of lot of it is this artwork. It’s not bad, and it’s clearly trying to tie into the style of the Nickelodeon MH show, it just doesn’t grab the eye as much as I wish it did. 

The back features more of the same art, as well as a full body image of Deuce, as well as a short profile for the character. 

Not a lot of info, just the basics in multiple languages. It’s fine. 

Some unique symbol art work for the edge of the box. A nice call back to the original boxes. 

Let’s get him out of the box for a closer look:

Boom. Out of box. Magic of television. 

He’s a handsome fellow, I like the new sculpt, and it’s fun they made him green. 

Back view for everyone. 

I love the way his eyebrows are painted. The individual hairs and expression bring a lot for me. 

The only thing I might’ve changed is just the color of his snakes, I feel like they clash with his skin just a little. If they had more of a yellow undertone than blue, or maybe were just a shade or two darker, I think it would’ve looked a lot better. 

Not a deal breaker, but I might add a paint wash later to adjust the color and bring out the detail though. 

I do like the actual sculpt of the scales though.

I loved Deuce’s fainted mohawk look in G1 and I think it was a nice choice for his default here. 

Let’s move away from our boy here for a sec, and look at his accessories. Let’s start with his pet:

Perseus returns with his own redesign. 

It’s alright, I actually loved the original MH pets, so I don’t mind them being included, but they look more like the modern Barbie pets this time around. which is hit and miss. 

Honestly I do think he’s cute, I just wish he was maybe more in scale. All the pets are the same size and general shape this time around, and with the even more cartoon-y design they end up looking less unique.

He does still have his twin tails though! 

All the ghouls come with iCoffins (Are they still iCoffins? Surely a few monsters have spooky-pun Androids), and Deuce is no exception.

His phone case is, of course, snake themed:

How cute. I love snakes. 

Along with phones, everyone also comes with a snack and a drink, for some reason, totally not trying to pad out the box, but anyway:

I tease, but actually I do think the little snacks are cute. I like his Medusa head water bottle.

The cupcake has a snake for frosting! Frosting snake! How cute.

Deuce also comes with a little tin of what I presume is scale wax. Gotta keep those scales shiny. 

Like all Deuce dolls, he has a pair of sunglasses, with, one again, a snake design. It’s all snakes here folks. 

See? Snake back back. I’d made to look like it’s made of snake skin. Which feels a little like a human carrying a bag made of hair. Hmm.

It does open though:

I do think the color is a little... bright. Actually, it’s not even the brightness, it’s just that it clashes. Def repainting this one. 

Deuce is a barista in this generation of MH, so his doll comes with a little apron:

It’s fine, and I’m glad his love of cooking seems to be making a comeback, but it does feel a little... idiosyncratic, but does make a good segue into...

Clothes!

The most important part of a fashion doll. 

Let’s start with his jacket, because I love it. It’s made of a nice denim-esque material, it has real pockets, it’s finished nicely, and just generally looks great.

Hope you’re not tired of snakes yet though, because we have more! 

Snake shirt! 

Also very nicely made. 

Snake pants! 

Construction of them is fine, but the material does feel pretty cheap. My least favorite of the fabric pieces.

Snake shoes! 

They’re fine. I’m indifferent to them tbh.

It’s all snakes! 

It’s also the last of his outfit, so let’s look at what’s under the clothes:

G2 MH/BTS body, G3 MH body, G1 MH body

As you can see, this body uses a different sculpt to previous Monster High boys. It’s shorter, and the thickest in the waist do far, but also has smaller hands and feet.

Honestly, I like the other two bodies better, but I don’t dislike this body either. Mostly I miss the bigger hands and feet.

See what I mean? If you were hoping G3 shoes would fit the G1 boys, unfortunately, they do not. I wonder if this change was made so kids could use Ken shoes with the boys? 

Deuce’s body also have a few quality issues:

That seam line is deep, and there’s a very noticeable ridge there.

Plus he’s got a little warping from the packaging, but that can at least be fixed with hot water. 

Let’s go ahead and put our boy back together, with all his accessories:

Is it just me or does he look a little... disjointed? I think it’s the shoes. They’re a different color in the box art, and I think they looked better there. 

Yeah, they had more green and seemed to be a bit lighter.

Final thoughts? 

He’s just a little hit and miss for me, unfortunately. I feel like they were trying to hard to stick to a certain out line of what each doll gets to come with, that it ended up with him coming with things I think would’ve ben better left off or exchanged with something else. 

Instead of an apron, it would’ve been cool if he could’ve had a belt, or instead of snacks, maybe an armband, earring, ect. 

I like the snacks, they’re cute. but why come with this doll? Why not save them for another?

Also, some of the color choices feel random. I’m all for unique color schemes, but we’ve got 5 different greens and four different purples. It doesn’t feel intentional, and more like an error. 

But there’s also things I do like, I like his face sculpt, his jacket is fantastic, and I think it would be very easy for me to fix what I don’t like with a restyle. 

Mind you, I’ve opened up a few other G3 dolls, and some are better than others. 

At the end of the day you have to decide what’s a deal breaker for you. For me? I’m happy with him, despite my criticisms. I’m happy to add him to my collection, and in general I’ve been enjoying G3. 

Do I think I’ll collect G3 boys with the intensity I had for G1? Eh. Bring Jackson and Holt back and then we’ll talk. 

Please Mattel I am begging. At least give us that Holt Reproduction. Please? 

[ashvampire]

My Nerevarine and Vivec meet for the first time. It’s a longer one. I’ve decided to go with ze/hir pronouns for vivec.

--------------------------

The doors loomed in front of her, daunting despite being simple doors. They were far more intimidating than the Ordinators that guarded them, Niryn found.

They were surprisingly mundane doors for such a grand palace.  Although, she did spot what looked to be faded paint across the worn wood – clearly no one had gotten around to repainting it. The rest of the palace was in a similar state – once looked at closely, it became clear that it had not been properly maintained for some time. Maintained enough that, looked at from a distance, one wouldn’t notice the ageing doors, or the unswept path – nor the dirt slowly gathering on the stairs. The walls, fountains and roof were kept well maintained. If anything, the palace simply seemed… unused. Kept tidy because it had to be, but without the care it once had.

Niryn stopped at the top of the stairs. Her heart was pounding in her ears, and her breath was short and quick. The Ordinators eyed her with disdain, or perhaps suspicion – as if she might be a threat to the living god behind the doors.

This is it, Niryn thought bitterly to herself. She dreaded walking in. She dreaded seeing hir face. She didn’t know how she would react – with tears or with curses. A small part of her was eager to walk in – maybe even excited. She shoved that part of her aside, took a deep breath, and strode forward.

The Ordinators pulled open the doors for her. She hesitated as she stepped over the threshold, keeping her eyes trained on the floor. The doors rattled behind her as they were shut once again, the sound echoing around the spacious room.

She could feel hir presence. Power radiated from hir in waves, making her skin tingle and her eyes sting – so much so that she worried she really would cry.

“I’ve been expecting you,” ze said. Hir voice sounded as if multiple people were talking, echoing over the top of each other. “We have business, you and I.”

Niryn’s eyes watered as she forced herself to look up. Ze was sitting cross legged in the room’s centre – in the air. Hir skin was split into different colours down hir middle, one side the blue-ish grey of the Dunmer, the other side appearing as the deep gold of the Chimer. Even hir eyes were different colours – the Dunmer side was red, but the Chimer side was yellow.

Vivec moved from hir sitting position, hir feet reaching the ground. “Why don’t we sit down? We have much to discuss.”

Niryn followed Vivec to a small alcove in the room, heart racing and palms sweating. Plush chairs and a low table filled the small space, strangely cosy despite being in such an empty room. A small spread of food sat on a platter, a steaming pot of tea next to it.

Vivec sat down on one of the plush chairs, and Niryn sat across from hir. She sunk into the chair, keeping her eyes on the floor rather than Vivec. She couldn’t bare to look at hir any longer – it caused memories and emotions to flare, ones that weren’t entirely hers.

Silence followed. Niryn felt Vivec’s eyes on her, and ze seemed content to simply observe her from some time. Niryn was speechless – her thoughts were a tangled mess. If she opened her mouth, she had no idea what would come out.

“Do you want some tea? It might calm you,” offered Vivec.

Niryn flushed with embarrassment – ze knew how anxious she was. How much did ze know about her? Was ze reading her mind?

Vivec went ahead a poured some tea into an ornate mug, then carefully slid it towards Niryn. Niryn took the mug with a quiet thank you, resting it atop her leg.

“Take as long as you need,” said Vivec, “the presence of a god takes awhile to adjust to.”

“It’s not that,” Niryn muttered. She tapped her fingers against the hot mug, and bit her lip.

“No? Are you worried I am trying to poison you?”

Niryn shook her head no. Poison had crossed her mind – Vivec had already made efforts to have her killed. And ze hadn’t taken any tea of hir own. Yet, Niryn felt that if ze really wanted her dead, ze probably would have struck her down the moment she entered.

“Are you… nervous about being here? What I have summoned you here for?”

Again, Niryn shook her head no. She knew why – or at least she had a good guess. A Nerevarine wasn’t wanted – a Nerevarine questioned the nature of the Tribunal, and that caused problems. She expected Vivec to try and convince her to stop, or to contest against her claim as Nerevarine.

“Are you unwell, perhaps?”

“Yes!” Niryn blurted. She moved suddenly as she spoke, and her tea spilt over her leg. She ignored it. The scalding water didn’t hurt her, anyway. “Seeing you makes me feel sick!”

Vivec looked taken aback, and took a brief moment to compose hirself again. “I should have guessed that you would despise me. After all, this is what this Nerevarine business is all about, isn’t it?”

“No, I-I don’t… despise you,” she felt tears begin to fall, the emotions she was trying to keep buried starting to break through.

Vivec leaned forward, looking intrigued now. “Then what is it?”

Niryn couldn’t respond. Instead she tried to wipe her tears away, but more just kept coming.

“I have no intention of hurting you, Niryn,” said Vivec, “I admit my attempts to have you killed. You threaten the faith of my followers, and I need them to keep back the darkness. Circumstances have changed now – I need you, just as you need me.”

“H-he loved you,” Niryn gasped, “He raised you. You were like-” She was unable to say anymore, cut off by sobs she couldn’t hold back anymore. She let go of the tea – not caring as it fell and spilt the rest of it’s contents. The mug cracked as it landed, loosing a piece of it’s brim. She covered her face with her hands, not wanting to look at Vivec, wishing she could run and find somewhere to hide herself until she could calm the storm of emotions within.

“So… You are Nerevar reborn, then?”

Niryn peaked through her fingers, taking a quick glance at Vivec. Ze had paled, ears drooping, eyes wide.

“I… I had thought it more a title. Someone chosen by Azura to simply act as Hortator – using his name to gain fame, nothing more.

“But it seems I was wrong. Maybe I was just hoping that would be the case. Alas.”

Niryn sniffed, wiping away tears. The sorrow she felt – the grief – was still there, but the tears had slowed. She looked at the the spilt tea and the broken mug. Embarrassment dawned on her again – she had cried and made a mess in front of a living god.

“Are you Nerevar reborn?” said Vivec, “Perhaps you only carry some of his memories? Or maybe his spirit is with you – guiding you on your journey?”

Niryn took a deep breath. Her emotions were more manageable now – she knew what she felt, and why she felt it. Grief, because Nerevar had loved Vivec, as one might love their own child, and because it all ended so dreadfully. Anger and disappointment at Vivec, because ze has done terrible things. Pride, because Vivec had also done great things. Fear, because Vivec could easily kill her, if ze so wanted. And anger again, this time at the daedra and fate itself – who had made it this way.

She acknowledged each emotion and left them to the side. She had to make herself focus on the now – not let those old memories creep up on her again. She couldn’t ignore them forever, though. They were like her emotions in that regard – always there, trying to break free – and would surely drown her if she didn’t hold them back.

“I am Nerevar reborn,” she said, “But I am not Nerevar.”

“How so? How does that work?” asked Vivec.

“I… I’m not sure.”

“Can you explain it? What makes you think you are Nerevar reborn?”

Niryn took another breath, making sure to keep her emotions at bay. “I’ve always had dreams and nightmares of war and death… and of people and politics,” she explained, “I’ve had them since I can remember. As a child, they made little sense to me. As I grew older, and understood more about the world, they became a little clearer. I only started to fully understand them once I accepted that I am the Nerevarine. And now I remember more and more – not just in dreams, either.

“I don’t know… maybe I just carry his memories. But I remember more than just that – I remember how he felt when things happened, and what he thought. Or at least, sometimes I do. I think I only remember clearly what Nerevar did, before he died. I don’t think I can remember what he didn’t.”

“The question seems to be – what makes a person?” Vivec began, leaning back against the pillows behind hir, “Is it just our memories and experiences that make us? Or is there something more? I cannot deny – you look like him. You have his face.

“And if you share similarities physically, as well as his memories – then perhaps you are truly Nerevar reborn.”

Niryn shrugged uncertainly. “Maybe. But I… I don’t feel like him. But I feel connected to him. Like… I was him. But I’m just not anymore. And… I don’t really want to be him. I don’t want to be what I was back then.”

“Hmm,” Vivec eyed Niryn with curiosity, “You have regrets, then? You wish you – Nerevar, I mean, had done things differently?”

Niryn had to think on that. There were things she felt regretful for. Things she wished that Nerevar hadn’t done. But her biggest regret was how it ended.

“I’m not sure,” she admitted, “I just… I don’t like the idea of being Nerevar. But… I mean I am Nerevar, I think. I don’t regret the choices Nerevar made, for the most part. But I… I don’t want to be called Nerevar. Not anymore. I don’t want to be seen as Nerevar... I want to be seen as me. As Niryn. Nerevar died in Red Mountain.”

Vivec nodded slightly. “I see. Think I understand now.”

Ze said nothing more for awhile, hir expression darkened and brooding. Ze looked troubled – hir brows were drawn, hir mouth in a slight scowl. Niryn waited awhile for hir to say something, but ze seemed too lost in thought.

Niryn didn’t like the silence. With nothing to distract her, the memories and emotions began to swell again, constricting her chest and making her eyes water. Images of things that had long passed flashed in front of her, memories of Vivec. Ze looked so much different back then, when ze were a small child. Nerevar had cared for hir deeply, so deeply it made Niryn’s heart twist when she looked at hir now – a total stranger, wearing a familiar face.

She realised, suddenly, that that was how Vivec must have felt, too. She was a stranger to hir, with the face of someone ze had seen die. No wonder ze now looked so grim.

“I don’t despise you,” she repeated herself from before, this time a little louder. “I’m angry. And sad. And proud. And confused. But… I don’t hate you. I just wish things had of been different.

“I wish the Dwemer never found the Heart of Lorkhan. I wish we could have trusted each other, and not lied and schemed behind each others back. I wish we could have grown old, and died peacefully.”

“You wish for a lot of things,” Vivec replied quietly.

“They are pointless wishes. I know I should not dwell on what could have been, but there are times I cannot help it.”

Vivec nodded, and remained silent for a moment more. Then ze sat up straight, looking at Niryn in the eyes. “We have much to discuss, Niryn. Let us begin on our most urgent problem - Dagoth Ur.”

--------------------------------------------

Congrats! You have made it to the end! Thank you for reading <3

I just want to say that I don’t ship Vivec and Nerevar. Hopefully it doesn’t come across that way.

I’ve gone with Nerevar being a father or brother like figure to Vivec, especially when ze was young. Nerevar himself felt like a father to Vivec. That being said, I think (or headcanon, anyway) that their dynamic changed a lot after the creation of the First Council. 

If you have any feedback, please share! I’m wanting to improve my writing, so feedback is great!

[valtionrautatiet-official]

An introduction to VR passenger carriages, part 2: Eil commuter carriages

Like the blue carriages, the Eil and Eilf carriages are rare these days, with most of them having been scrapped. They are also close relatives to the blue carriages, and indeed some consider them to be blue carriages. However, as a colour-oriented person I never approved of this, as the Eils were never blue, but rather had a sexy unique look never shared by other carriages.

An Sr1-hauled commuter train made of Eil coaches at Hyvinkää, 1984. Mikko Lumio, Suomen rautatiemuseo.

The Eil carriages were built in 1982 and 1985-87 by our Pasila workshop in Helsinki (the last class of carriages built entirely in-house by us) primarily for use in the commuter services around Helsinki. Their arrival allowed us to retire the last wooden-bodied passenger coaches.

Eil 25025 at Joensuu in a long-distance train, 1995. Falk2, Wikimedia commons

Like all of our passenger carriages at the time, the Eils were designed in-house by our own design department. To facilitate fast loading and unloading, doors were moved from the ends of the carriage (as they were in all blue carriages) to the middle, and widened into double doors to allow double penetration - a construction very similar to the Sm1 and Sm2 electric multiple units already used in the Helsinki commuter services. Seating arrangements were also similar to the first two Sm series, with groups of six and four facing sets. However, the seats were fabric-upholstered individual seats to give better comfort and make the Eil carriages better suited to use in long-distance trains if needed. The carriages were given a unique livery, with similar stripes as on the blue carriages but using red instead of blue.

Interior of an Eil carriage, 2007. Psl10i, Wikimedia commons

The Eilf carriages were otherwise identical to plain Eil carriages, but had a space for the conductor. In total, 50 Eil:s and 7 Eilf:s were built. The original top speed of the carriages was 140 km/h, but this was upgraded to 160 km/h in the early 2000s. Starting from 2011, they were repainted in our current corporate image, unfortunately making them less easy to distinguish from long-distance trains.

A rake of Eil coaches at Kouvola in the current livery. Nimimerkki951, Wikimedia commons

With the delivery of new trains for use in the Helsinki commuter train network, the Eil-carriages were retired in 2017. They languished in layup until 2020, when some of them were reactivated for use in locomotive-hauled commuter trains. However, scrapping sorry, marketing department told us to say recycling also begun the same year, and at the time of writing only 16 Eils and 4 Eilfs survive. If you're lucky, you can still spot the attractive carriages filled by hot, sweating workers in Z and R trains during the rush hour.

[chiefbeifongcanrailme]

Hi! Can I request 19 on the prompt list for linzolt?

Hi there! I'm just getting around to some of these requests; don't worry I haven't forgotten about them! Since you haven't picked which category you wanted, I went with Angst #19: “Would you have said yes?"

You can also catch it on AO3! Enjoy.

Part of this prompt list.

The bolt clicked shut behind her as she exited her office for the evening. Between having just been promoted to Chief, breaking up with her long-term boyfriend and skewing relations with her sister and mother all during the course of the same month, Lin was growing to love being overworked. 

As soon as she stepped foot on the pavement outside the building, she saw a shiny blue bolt of lightning strike through the darkened sky. The sound of thunder followed seconds after and just as she trudged forward in the direction of her satomobile, there was a downpour. 

Of course, when things were bad, there was always room for them to get worse. 

Now, drenched and devoid of any devise against the rain, instead of scowling, Lin found herself shrugging in the middle of the street. She was already wet, it didn't matter whether she walked or ran to her satomobile now. What was done was done, and what had to happen had already occurred. 

Perhaps this called for a change of plans. 

Every overworked being deserved to blow off some steam every now and then, and lucky for Lin, she had just the errand to run. 

Lin tossed the keys back into her pocket and walked down the street from across the station. While the common thief wouldn't be caught dead in a ten mile radius of the Police Station, crime lords and mafia bosses liked to have their 'offices' just down the street from them. Whether that was to mock the enforcers or tease the tensile construction of the law, it didn't matter since unlike the police (as she was complained to on multiple occasions), these guys always had their doors wide open. 

Lin was in her past, one to exercise the jeopardy of these open doors- but she had different reasons back then. She certainly wasn't playing hooky on the job she so loved; she was merely attending to a social call. 

She hiked in the rain, keeping an even pace despite the exhaustion from her day catching up with her. It was no help that her mother had left a barrage loose ends when she had her own additional day-to-day tasks to complete in addition to her transitional duties. Matters were really starting prove to be impossible and Lin was being spread thinner and thinner in trying to put out every fire. At least she had the bravado to face anything life had to throw at her now; she had finally acquired the phase of numb acceptance.

By the time Lin had arrived she found that the metaphoric open doors were actually closed. 

If the mafia takes more days off than she does, what crimes were her officers even bringing to justice? 

Lin sighed, remembering how a worsened situation could still morph into the worst. She had to give up- the day was through. She decided to take her failures in her stride and walk back to her satomobile in the pouring rain and finally get some rest at home. 

But just as she turned away, she heard the sound of a metallic shutter gliding up. 

"Thought I sensed a narc." 

Lin turned back around. 

Lightning Bolt Zolt was standing there, leaning against the entrance, sporting his usual devilish smile. 

"You're soaked. Come on in." He gestured with his hand and disappeared inside. 

Lin didn't have a good enough argument to decline his offer, so she followed after him. 

The place hadn't changed all that much over the years. The walls looked like they had recently been repainted, the furniture was all the same even though the covers and sheets must've been changed colors and designs, although there were a lot more plants around the place than what she remembered. She took the sight in. The dangerous familiarity gradually trumped the cold torrent outside. 

Zolt pulled the shutter down as she stood the frozen in place. 

"What brings you here?"

She turned in the direction of his voice, keenly taking note of how her hair splattered water on his carpeted flooring when she moved her head.

He raised his eyebrows and brought his arms together across his chest. 

"Right." Lin cleared her throat, "I won't be staying long. I just need a moment of your time." 

"How may I help, Chief?" He lips moved to one side, stifling the humor from spilling out of his sarcasm. 

"Does your gang have an informant from within my force?" She cut straight to it, "Because there's a lot of funny business going on-" 

"Lin," Zolt interrupted her, "There's a new triad. Don't tell me you haven't caught on to-" 

"What?" She slapped her forehead in disbelief. 

Of course it wasn't Zolt. Of course, a new gang had built up new tactics. But that still didn't rule out the possibility of a mole in her force. 

"They call themselves the Agni Kai Triad," He continued, "Also run by a Firebending leader, who I haven't had the pleasure of acquainting myself with.. Yet." 

She sighed loudly, momentarily shutting her eyes and pinching her nose, "Which would explain inconsistencies between the arrests made and the new crimes coming up." 

"That," He pointed two fingers at her, "Mixed with the vulnerable police force during its transition of leadership," He coughed, "No offense to you of course." 

"None taken." She replied all too quickly. 

But before Zolt could go on and explain to her the politics of these gangs, with new ones seemingly emerging, Lin took over, "Thank you for your time. That's all I needed from you today." 

Zolt bowed his head lightly- morals aside, the two of them shared a decent reverence for each other given the nature of their past relationship. 

"Also," He began as Lin was starting to turn away, "I know things are difficult for you right now," 

Lin stopped in her tracks, breathing hitched. The last thing she wanted to discuss was her personal life. 

"And I know you don't want to talk about it, so consider it a favor- a token, if you will- for old time's sake from me: my entire team has been recruited for a mission in Ba Sing Se, so we won't be any trouble here while you... adjust into your new role." 

She stood still, thinking about the sequence of words she should dispel in response to that. She didn't need any favors. Not from him of all people. But on the other hand, it was nice to know that at least her enemies had her back if not her friends and family. 

"Although, it would be nice if you didn't alert the authorities in Ba Sing Se." He joked.

Lin was about to roll her eyes, not that he'd be able to see it with her back facing him anyway, but what he did see was her shoulders drooping forward. She gave out a tired exhale, "Thanks. Though, if I have the time to radio Ba Sing Se, I will have to let them know. It's my duty. 

Zolt guffawed out loud, "You haven't changed one bit. Well, it's a good thing then that you have new triads to keep you busy." 

Lin turned around all of a sudden, startling Zolt out of his laugh as a couple of drops of water sprayed in his direction from her hair. 

"I'd imagine you'd be able to afford an umbrella on that Chief's salary; not that the Beifong fortune is insufficient in any way." 

He waltzed up to the corner by the door behind her and picked up the crimson red umbrella from the holder. He stood at arm's length from her- the closest he had been to her in years and proffered the umbrella out to her by the handle. 

"Here." He grinned, "Can't let a common cold torment you; that's my job." 

Lin rolled her eyes at his triteness. 

Unperturbed by the umbrella dangling in front of her, she maintained his gaze and refrained from accepting it, "It's just rain. I can manage fine." 

However, Zolt didn't accept rejections. And certainly not those without good reason. 

"You're drying up and taking the umbrella before you leave." He sustained. 

She was familiar with the route he would take if she declined. He really didn't take no for an answer. That was probably how he got to where he was. So she shrugged in agreeance. She did have some steam to blow off, right?

Lin was now clad in just her undershirt and pants. Her metal uniform was neatly placed on the floor by the couch she was seated on. Zolt had gone inside to the part of the office that had a tiny apartment-like set up for emergencies. Lin stood up once he entered the room with a couple of towels in hand.

"You've been standing about, dripping like a sprinkler this whole time getting water all over my carpet," He complained as he walked towards her. "Here, hold this." 

She raised her hands to her shoulders as he opened up and placed the fluffy white towel in her hands. 

Then, he grabbed a bunch on her black locks in his hands and squeezed straight into the towel. He also brought some heat into his palms to aid the drying process, as the water finally dripped into the towel instead of his floor. 

He continued on, combing his toasty fingers all through her hair and scalp and Lin was forced to shut her eyes and enjoy the sensation. She didn't realize when he had moved closer into her proximity, but she didn't care. This was the best she had felt in weeks, and she was not going to let her stupid elitist morals or ego get in the way of it- not right now, after all, regrets were made for a later time anyway.

But, she felt awkward when she finally opened her eyes. With their difference in height, Zolt's lips were directly in her eye line and she couldn't help but stare at them hungrily. In the past, they had been responsible for making her feel all sorts of sensations, so it was hard not to reminisce a little. Dwelling in the past never bodes well, but how terrible could drowning in it for a moments be? 

Lin let the towel drop to her feet since he was only just massaging her dried scalp at this point anyway. She reservedly brought one hand to either side of his cheeks and pulled him down towards her mouth. She slowly raised herself onto her toes, and in return, he immediately swooped her into his arms to support her. 

They kissed each other fully, their long-lost passion making a return for the first time in years. His balmy hands roamed all over her body, warming her up completely in the process as her own hands found purchase in his hair. He squeezed her tightly against him, unwilling to let go despite minutes having gone by. Falling back into old habits was the most slippery slope down memory lane. But Lin really needed this; she presented her thirst for him by softly whimpering into his mouth. That sound was it for him though. He wanted her just as badly, but while Lin was always burdened with being the stronger one, he felt like he owed her this one time. He caught a hold of her shoulders and pulled away from her mouth. 

The air between them was now filled with their frantic breathing. 

"I think I should leave." She commented in a daze. 

"I think you need to." 

Lin's eyes moved back to his lips as he moved towards her, only to pass her by and pull the shutter behind to see her out. She turned around to see him holding up the shutter door up for her, staring at the rain that had only increased since her arrival. 

"Will you be good to go?" He asked, hoping she'd say no. 

"Yes." She answered instead. 

"I'm serious though, take the umbrella." 

Lin didn't argue; the rain had gotten worse after all, and she wasn't in the position to wait around for the worst to happen. 

After putting her armor back on, she thanked him politely for the umbrella and for taking his mobster ways to another city while she settled in- which only seemed to amuse Zolt. He gave her a few generic words of encouragement and Lin took them graciously, uncertain if he meant them or only felt the need to say them, given their passion-fueled outburst just moments ago. 

Zolt continued holding the shutter up over him as she stepped outside into the rain with his umbrella. Lin knew from prior experience that he'd watch her go from his spot until she disappeared, so she didn't see any merit in asking him to get going too.

"Lin!" He called out suddenly. 

His voice was faint because of the rain, despite the short distance she had walked, but she turned around to hear to him shout into the shower nonetheless. 

"Ten years ago if I would have asked you leave your monk and be with me because I was in love with you," Lin took a few steps closer so he didn't have to scream, "Would you have said yes?"

Something about his question made her smile, even though it filled her heart with grief.

She exhaled, "If I knew then what I know now, probably." She spoke louder, "Maybe I would have said yes." 

"And if you didn't know?" He countered.

"Then, probably not." 

Zolt shrugged it off and spoke softly, "I'll see you here tomorrow then." 

Lin scoffed, "What?" 

Just because they happened to kiss in a moment of weakness didn't mean she was going to come back for seconds everyday! So much for blowing off steam if it was only going to come back to burn her. 

Seeing the vivid confusion on her face made him laugh, "Chief, I hope you intend on returning my engraved umbrella tomorrow. I don't want to go lurking to the police station for a stolen umbrella." 

She examined the gold engraved pattern that read his name beside a lightning bolt on the handle and rolled her eyes at him. 

"Goodbye, Zolt." She shook her head and turned away, picking up her pace this time. 

He never missed a chance to watch her leave, because oftentimes situations didn't leave him with enough of her to savor. To relive the past for a few moments while he watched her walk away, completed their arc in his mind, since there was no way of knowing if he'd be seeing her under the same circumstances again. 

Zolt hid his disappointment behind his amusement, "Huh." He considered and then screamed out loud for her to hear, "You know, I despise not being first in your line." 

He waited for his words to reach her through the pattering of the rain. He waited with hope and excitement for some reason.

Lin paused in her tracks and turned around again, this time, however resorting to yelling in defeat instead of walking back, "There's no line, Zolt." 

She didn't have a line of people in love with her. 

[dreamescapeswriting]

BTS Reaction | Teasing Baby Him [Request]

Seokjin:

You'd always been a fan of their music but you'd never taken the time to sit and watch the music videos. You were too busy with working and your personal life to watch all of the music videos but now that lockdown was happening you had all the time in the world. You'd already binged a new show and started a new hobby but you wanted to do something else, so you found the first-ever music video the boys did and started from there. You smiled as you looked at all of them, all so young and full of dreams it was adorable. One video led to another, and then another and another until you were lost in the whirlpool that was their music videos, and vlogs that they had done before they debuted. It was too cute for words.

"Baby, what you-" Jin stopped when he walked into the living room and saw No More Dream on the screen - You'd just restarted the playlist again because you couldn't get enough of how young he looked. Jin put down his bag on the floor and stared at the remote on the coffee table, you followed his gaze and you knew exactly what he was going to do.

"Babe...Why don't you go and order something to eat?" You hummed at him and slowly got off the sofa and eyed up the remote, both of you were an equal distance away and you knew that Jin had the upper hand thanks to his long limbs but you were a little faster.

"Don't-" Too late, you'd already grabbed onto the remote hit full volume and ran in the direction of the stairs but he grabbed you from behind and began spinning you around.

"JIN!" You cried out as he started tickling your sides to get the remote from your hands but you started screaming the lyrics loudly to annoy him and he groaned falling onto the sofa with you still in his arms.

"Baby you looked so good!" You giggled getting out of his grasp and straddling his lap,

"Fire is my favourite, blonde hair with dark eyebrows." You faked a moan and he hid his face in his hands knowing this wasn't going to be the last of the conversation and you were going to tease him for as long as humanly possible.

Yoongi:

The boredom of lockdown was starting to get to you, you'd done everything you could think of to stop yourself from being bored. Cleaned and reorganised the shared bedroom, repainted the kitchen, repainted the living room and spare bedroom as well as get it all redecorated in there for when you had guests over...Which wouldn't be happening any time soon thanks to Miss Rona. Now you were alone in the house again, Yoongi was working on his mixtape and the new album so you had to find something else to occupy your time, usually, you'd be at work but that was out of the question. You were about to find a video game to play when your phone started to vibrate from the kitchen, Jungkook's text tone came through multiple times and you went to see what the huge deal was when you found him sending you all of the old Log videos back from 2013 and you screamed seeing Yoongi on one of them. He looked so young, his hair was blue and wavy and he was smiling so much that you couldn't help but smile back at him. 

[19:05] Enjoy your new form of blackmail, this is revenge for what he did to me.

You smirked to yourself and sent a bunch of screenshots of the video to Yoongi, teasing him about how cute he was back then before going onto the next one and dying about how cute he was there too. 

[20:45] You better unlock the front door and prepare to be punished.

As soon as the front door was unlocked Yoongi pinned you against the wall in the hallway and you stared at him, he was slightly less intimidating to you now that you'd seen baby Yoongi. 

"Baby Yoongi is so cute though," You giggled but he growled and bit down on your neck, 

"Baby Yoongi isn't here anymore," You whimpered as he whispered in your ear and bit down on your ear lobe. 

Hoseok:

Jimin sat down beside you with a bowl of popcorn, you had been condemned to your tiny apartment since you and he were showing signs of the virus, you knew you didn't have it but you still had to be careful and self isolate together.

"I found these." Jimin said holding up a couple of USB sticks and you frowned looking at them,

"Bon Voyage episodes, but season one things that didn't make it in." You smirked knowing how much your boyfriend - Hoseok - hated you watching all of their old videos. He'd caught you watching and dancing along to No More dream and Spine breaker a bunch of times and you always teased him for it all.

"He's going to kill you." You giggled watching as Hoseok appeared on the screen with Taehyung both of them dancing around and joking about something.

You were just getting into some more clips when there was a loud bang on the window, both of you turned to see Hoseok staring at you, he looked pissed off and you were glad he couldn't come inside and scold you for it.

"YOU LOOK CUTE!" You yelled through the window pausing the screen on Hoseok's face and smirking as he groaned, he hated that he couldn't come in and be with you. He missed you but now he hated that he couldn't go in there and stop you from watching all of the old videos. You walked over to the window and opened it a little so you could talk, you'd been doing it for a couple of nights in a row, it made the time you had to be away from one another less lonely.

"One more week and then I get you back, I'll remember this." He said as he pushed the bag of warm take out food through the window.

"I love you." You giggled at him as he walked away from the window.

Namjoon:

There wasn't much to do since lockdown had started so you began watching all of the old videos you'd missed when you first started dating Namjoon. Tweeting for videos to be sent to you, you'd finished all four seasons of Bon Voyage, you'd watched all of the Run episodes and music videos but there was one thing always being sent to you which made you die from laughter whenever you watched it and it was the clip of Namjoon feeding that one model on American Life Hustle, you smirked to yourself and headed out to the shops to plan what you were going to tease Namjoon with later.

Namjoon was laid on the sofa watching something while scrolling through his phone, you grabbed the bowl of grapes and went to sit on the floor in front of him,

"What've you got baby?" You looked up at him innocently as you popped a grape into your mouth,

"Just some grapes, you want some?" He nodded and shifted so there was room next to him on the sofa, you sat down and held a grape in your hand putting it near his lips and slowly pulling it away as he had done in the video. He blushed but you gave him the grape before doing it yet again with another one, only this time you didn't let him eat it you put it into your mouth and he knew exactly what you were doing.

"Been on twitter today baby?" He smirked taking the bowl out of your hands and laying you down on the sofa,

"N-No." You stuttered, your whole demeanour changing as he smirked darkly at you,

"Oh I think you have," He whispered kissing your jaw and down to your neck, you let out a whimper and he chuckled.

Jimin:

Being in lockdown at the dorms wasn't a total nightmare like you'd first thought it would be. You'd gone to be with Jimin for a couple of weeks and then lockdown happened and you couldn't leave, you thought it would be your worst nightmare living with seven boys but there was never a boring moment. While they went to work you cleaned the entire place from top to bottom as well as make sure they had food for the night, like a little housewife. But the longer lockdown went on the fewer things needed to be done to frequently and you were left being bored. Which was why that morning, Namjoon had handed you an old laptop full of old videos for you to go through, it was all old unedited items of Bangtan bombs, music video clips and bloopers to keep you entertained. You'd spend the entire day watching everything on the laptop that you hadn't even noticed time passing until Jimin touched your shoulder.

"Good day?" He chuckled looking down at you and then to the laptop when he noticed what you were watching,

"Who gave them the laptop?!" He yelled taking it away and rushing away from you, you sprinted after him yelling out quotes from the video only making him blush more.

"Jimin!" You squealed as he picked you up and put you over his shoulder and took you to the boys,

"You showed her Jimin's got no jams? I've only just stopped getting it from Army." He grunted and you started laughing while shouting it, he tickled your sides and you screamed before falling silent, Jimin knew he was never going to hear the end of any of it.

Taehyung:

Lockdown had started to take it toll on your sleeping pattern, you found yourself unable to sleep because of the lack of activity you had to do in the day so you were spending most of your nights laid awake on the sofa downstairs while Taehyung slept upstairs. It was no big deal, he understood that you couldn't sleep but he felt bad because there was nothing he could do to help. You were slowly running out of things to watch on Youtube when you decided to go into all of the old music videos, bangtan bombs and logs from BTS's time together and you were having a blast.

Taehyung rolled over expecting to find you laying next time him since it was 6 am and you were usually tired by then but he could hear the familiar tune to 'Jump' playing and he headed down the stairs, there he found you sitting on the sofa in one of his hoodies. The hoodie pulled up and tied tightly around your chin with a pair of sunglasses on, he was about to say something to you when he noticed you recording his rap part as though you were him and he held back a chuckle watching you.

"You look good!" You jumped and your phone flung onto the opposite side of the sofa as you tried to act as though he hadn't just caught you doing that.

"Sorry baby, you all just looked super cute." You giggled getting up and hugging him,

"We were manly and handsome." He protested but you started giggling and shook your head,

"Alexa play No more dream on youtube." The video started up and Taehyung groaned.

"Alexa stop." You giggled at him and started to tease him on everything you'd seen over the last night of your youtube adventures.

Jungkook:

Jungkook could hear you giggling when he walked through the front door of your apartment, he left you at home that day instead of taking you to work like he had been doing for the last couple weeks of lockdown. He was about to call out and ask what was so funny when he walked into the living room to see you sitting on the floor watching his graduation video with Jin sitting beside you. You were both laughing at how young Jungkook looked and he stared at you,

"Baby! Look! Look how cute you were!" You wiped your eyes and he noticed you were laughing so hard you were crying, Jungkook stared at the screen and wanted to cry as well but not from laughter. It was the unedited video of his graduation, him crying about how happy he was that the boys had come and then all of them laughing and joking together as they had a meal.

"You looked so adorable in your little uniform." Jin got up from the floor and patted Jungkook on the back as he left the apartment.

"My favourite clip," You got onto a clip of Jungkook shying away from a girl and he growled at you.

"Sorry baby, but the uniform-"

"Go get into your uniform baby girl, you know I prefer you in yours." You swallowed the sudden lump in your throat and you nodded obediently, getting up from the floor and rushing into the direction of your shared bedroom.

Tagline: 

@writingdreamsnottragedies @yoongisdumplingcheeks @snowy-meowl @lynnthevirgo @jooniesdarlingdimples @fan-ati--c @lyoongx @mitzwinchester @rjsmochii @callingmyangel @btsiguess-kpop @kneel-begyourpardon @taestannie @supresoo​