#i have a love hate relationship with getty images

[hetluv]

why is this funny to me

[i-care-4u]

five years ✹ timothee chalamet

INSTAGRAM + TWITTER AU

PAIR: TIMOTHÉE CHALAMET X COSTAR!READER + HECTOR BELLERIN BEING THE READERS EX-BOYFRIEND

REQUESTS ARE CLOSED | MASTERLIST

→ TWITTER

Pop Base @/PopBase

After 4 years of dating, Y/n L/n and Hector Bellerin called it quits.

best of y/n l/n @/ynfiles

they’ve WHAT

. @/arg_28007

messi better

via ⭐️ @/saintln

love isn’t real anymore

🦷 @/junkyardbabe

in loving memory of the it couple that was once y/n and hector 😔

blair @/courregescunt

can one of them hmu right now ☺️

10 MONTHS LATER

→ INSTAGRAM

enews

Liked by user1, filmstuff, arthouseee, and 17,383 others

enews Y/n L/n is going to have another hot summer nights with costar Timothée Chalamet after eating together at lunch and coming out with a bouquet of flowers. 💐⏭ Link in bio for the couple’s history. (📸: Getty Images)

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user1 such an ANGEL

user2 they’re so precious oh my god

user3 she’s so desperate

↳ user4 user3 let’s be real, you’re the desperate one here, get a job

user5 *your ship name* is finally happening!!!

yourusername

Liked by zendaya, lntheitgirl, ynarmy, and 3,477,470 others

yourusername 🎹

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ynsources let’s not compare timothee with hector. y/n and hector are on good terms now, yet y’all are making y/n the bad person without knowing anything about their relationship. please respect their decisions!

user1 the way we can tell who this is

↳ user2 user1 who is it?

↳ user1 user2 timothée chalamet, they were in hot summer nights together

user3 ms moving on so fast 🙄 calm down

↳ ynfandom user3 it’s been ten months

filmfanatic the it couple 💕

chalametsunrise so beautiful

boneschlmt i’m sorry you’re getting these comments, y/n. you’re one of the sweetest people out there, yet these “fans” are saying all these things as if they know the situation.

pinkyn lovely 🥰

tchalamet

Liked by zendaya, ladybones, beautifultimmy, and 3,059,386 others

View all 8,490 comments

halchlmt now timothée…

tcfilms timmy at y/n’s house ouuu

user1 sorry to break it to you timothée but…

ynlnfanpage everybody knows

user2 hector better lmao

↳ user3 if hector is better, then why did he fumble the bag with y/n?

↳ user4 and how do you guys know if hector or timothee is better? hector and y/n are on mutual terms, and they literally said not to spread hate on each others fandom. y/n also said not to attack her relationship with timothee. leave them alone.

timmystats so fine 😍🫶

ynfan1 send me an invite timmy

lnarchive y/n got a type and i don’t blame her for it

→ TWITTER

Pop Base @/PopBase

Y/n L/n on her romantic relationship with Timothée Chalamet and ex-boyfriend Hector Bellerin in a recent interview:

“Me and Timothée didn’t realize how much we had in common when we met on set five years ago, and we eventually caught up almost a year ago. […] Hector and I were in different points at our career and decided to end things romantically. We’re still cool and we care about each other, and that won’t ever change about us.”

Who can reply?

People @/PopBase mentioned can reply.

[riverdale-retread]

OSCARS 2024 UPDATED 3:19 P.M.

I’m Not Over Charles Melton’s Oscar Snub

New York Magazine, February 2024

Photo: Monica Schipper/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images

I don’t consider myself particularly invested in awards shows, but this year has proven to be different. Somehow, I’ve taken on the role of the unofficial Best Supporting Actor campaign manager for Charles Melton. Blame it on my years obsessed with Riverdale (seasons one through three only, don’t hate) and my love for an underdog, but so far, the “job” is off to a great start. That was until the Oscar 2024 nominations were released and CNN falsely promised me his academy award nomination. Turns out, his name was nowhere on the list of nominees, and May December was almost shut out entirely.

While he may not have won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor, at least we were treated to a wholesome red-carpet moment between Melton, dressed in custom Giorgio Armani and a tiny sparkly earring, and his mom, Sukyong. Was that not a wholesome enough moment to guarantee we witness it once again on March 10? If the Golden Globes are a hint at anything, it’s probable Oppenheimer’s Robert Downey Jr. will take home the Oscar, though I’d much rather it go to Mark Ruffalo for his absurd performance in Poor Things.

In any case, Melton has already taken home two trophies for his role in Todd Haynes’s May December, in which he plays Joe Yoo, a man in his mid-30s reckoning with his relationship — one that started when a woman began grooming him when he was 13 — as he sends his children off to college. Next to Julianne Moore and Natalie Portman, it could’ve been easy for Melton to blend into the background, which is sort of what he did in the ensemble cast of Riverdale (while he played a hot high-school jock, he was definitely not the “It” guy), but instead, the actor steals every single scene he’s in with his thoughtful and breathtaking portrayal of Joe.

Disappointment over this snub aside, if Melton’s first major film performance has garnered this much attention already, the sky seems to be the limit for what’s to come. This is a man who often honors his mom at awards shows (cute), is obsessed with Todd Haynes (same), and generally seems eager to get better at his craft (we love a man with ambition). If you haven’t seen May December yet, you might question Melton’s recent claim that spending six years on the CW was basically like going to Juilliard, but if you’ve watched Riverdale, then you already know that acting on a series with that many outrageous subplots is enough to train a performer to be great. C’mon Oscars, look at what you’re missing out on.

[90363462]

Getty Images

15 Pre-Sex Rituals That Could Make Sex A LOT More Pleasurable

What you do before sex can say a lot about what happens during it.

Shellie R. Warren

Dec. 10, 2021 05:59PM EST

Let’s dive right in. When you know that you’re about to get some, what do you do prior to it, in order to prepare? If some of y’all are looking at your screen and shrugging your shoulders, I mean, if “nothing” has been working for you this long, I guess all that I can say is, “Do you, sis.” If the rest of you are like, “I mean, I take a shower” (good) and sometimes dress up (cool), this might be something that you’ll want to check out. Because what I am about to share are 15 things that you can do, pre-sex, that could actually make sex even better for you and your partner. Because while I know that the saying is that the devil is in the details, I tend to think that mind-blowing orgasms are. Real talk.

1. Hand-Wash Your Delicates

Gain (the detergent) and I have an interesting relationship. I like the price. I like the smell. It cleans well. However, when it comes to my undies, it can irritate my va-jay-jay like no other. It’s in “honor” of my love/hate relationship with it that my first recommendation for pre-sex rituals is that you handwash the lingerie that you play on wearing because there is nothing worse than itching during sex or a couple of days after, all because your detergent was too harsh on your “gentle parts.” By the way, if you want to learn how to make your own detergent (especially if you have really sensitive skin), there are some recipes and instructions here, here, and here.

2. Apply Some Waterproof Mascara and Sweet Almond Oil to Your Eyelids

A full face of make-up during sex seems like a lot (to me). I do think that there is something to be said for putting on a couple of coats of mascara and a little bit of sweet almond oil on your eyelids, though. Mascara is dope because it has a way of opening up your eyes and making them appear sexy and seductive. The oil is cool because it can make your eyes look alluring (almost like you have eyeshadow on but…don’t). Just make sure that your mascara is waterproof. The last thing you want to be doing is squinting hard because it’s running into your eyes and irritating them.

3. Exfoliate Your Lips

Last year, I wrote an article for the site entitled, “Umm, What's Up With These People Who Hate Kissing?”. Everybody’s grown and definitely to each their own, yet I personally can’t imagine having sex — especially great sex — without A LOT of kissing going down. And who wants to do that on rough, chapped lips? That’s why I think that another important sex ritual is to exfoliate them ahead of time. You can do it with your toothbrush, you can rub some brown sugar on them (while they are wet) or you can make an exfoliant. Homemade for Elle is a site that features 13 different recipes right here.

4. Drink Some Fruit Juice 

No matter what you’ve got planned for the evening, I’m pretty sure your mouth is going to be involved on some level (wink). That’s why it needs to be properly hydrated. Water will certainly do the job. Personally, I recommend fruit juice (even if it’s half water/half fruit juice) because it will add some flavor to your mouth. Speaking of mouths, I once read that something a particular woman does as a part of her own pre-sex ritual is to massage her jaws beforehand. Again, everyone is grown, so I’m pretty sure you get why. Anyway, I think that’s a wise tip, right there. Definitely worth considering.

5. Put Some Shea Butter on Your Nipples

The reason why I wrote “So, What If ‘Typical Erogenous Zones’ Annoy TF Outta You?” for the site is because, while I personally am sitting at a whopping 36H, interestingly enough, my nipples aren’t even in the top five of erogenous zones for me. And yet, not one of my past sex partners avoided treating them like a trip to Six Flags. Since anybody’s spit can dry out skin, it’s a good idea to “lube up” your nipples with some shea butter. Because there is nothing worse than dry and/or itchy nipples following a sexcapade. Trust me.

6. Dab a Little Essential Oil Down Below 

When a male friend and I were discussing cunnilingus one day, he said that what irritates him isn’t the taste of a woman’s vagina but the fact that she will put “smell goods” on every other part of her body but where his face is going to be for (if she’s lucky) 10-15 minutes (LOL). Good point, sir. That said, don’t forget to put some of your (or his) favorite perfume on your inner thighs and on your buttocks. As far as smell goods go, I personally would recommend essential oils (check out “8 Natural Aphrodisiac Scents, Where They Go & How To Make Them Last”). It has multiple health benefits, it tends to last longer and the blend of pumpkin and lavender oils has the great reputation of increasing blood flow to a man’s shaft by as much as 40 percent (you’re welcome).

7. Pumice Your Feet

Do y’all remember when Taylor Swift once said that shaving cream is basically soap, so she doesn’t see the need to actually wash her legs? Then she added to that that she doesn’t wash her feet either? Chile. The way that Black Twitter damn near had a heart attack about that leads me to believe that I don’t have to emphasize how important it is to do both, whether you’re planning on having sex or not. What I will say, though, is if it’s been over a week since you’ve had a pedicure, make sure that you pumice your feet; especially your heels. Afterplay is something that’s really important when it comes to sex. No one really wants to cuddle up to rough ass feet, though. Straight up.

8. Tug on Your “Hairs”

OK, so what am I talking about? What do you think that I’m talking about? Hair is constantly shedding, even in the pubic region and so most of us have gotten a couple of those in our mouth at some point or another. 

While it’s perfectly normal, that doesn’t mean there aren’t things that can be done to avoid it too. One is to make sure that you gently “tug” on your pubic hairs (especially the ones that are covering your inner lips, just to see if any loose ones come out. It might be something that you’ve never considered before but it’s worth the extra couple of minutes of effort.

9. "Seal" Your Skin

Soft silky skin is a must if you want to have a wonderful night. One of the best ways to achieve that is by “sealing your skin” while you’re in the shower. All that means is after you do your final rinse and before you get out to towel yourself dry, you apply some type of carrier oil to help to “lock in” the moisture that the water provided. Coconut, avocado, grapeseed, jojoba, or sweet almond oil are all great at getting the job done. I’d avoid olive oil, though; it has a slight stench to it.

10. “Scent Up” Your Bedding

The same perfume or essential oil that you used on your thighs and butt is the same that you should put on your bedding. Aside from rolling around on really comfortable sheets, there is nothing like the lure of ones that have an enticing scent to them. Some scents to consider include jasmine, vanilla, rose, sandalwood, and cinnamon.

11. Pull Your Hair Back

Listen, I don’t know what kinda sex y’all be having but I don’t see the point in my hair being all in my face the entire time. While there is nothing like a good hair tug, as you can see from the feature pic in the article “Contrary To Popular Assumption, Black Women LOVE Getting Their Hair Pulled During Sex,” a ponytail can get that accomplished. Just something to think about.

12. Pee and Then Use a Perineal Bottle on Your Vulva

Even when I watch movies where a couple is about to get it in and one of them stops and says they have to pee, a part of me turns up my nose when they just come out and immediately simulate oral sex because toilet paper doesn’t always get rid of all of the urine. Let’s be real. 

That’s why, even though it is a good idea to pee before sex (you should do so before and after because it flushes bacteria out of your urethra), it’s a good idea to follow that up with a quick lil’ “flush” via a perineal bottle. It’s basically the kind of bottle that a lot of new moms use after giving birth in order to soothe their vulva and vagina with water. Typically, they aren’t very hard to find. Many drugstores carry them

13. Put Some Sex Condiments by Your Bed

One time, in a land far away, I went on a date with a guy at a restaurant that doesn’t exist anymore (The Cooker). They used to have something called The Cooker Pie that was, whew lawd. Anyway, if you ordered it to go, you would get the toppings for it in little containers. Some of them included caramel, fudge, and whipped cream. When we went back to my hotel room, right before I hovered (some of y’all will catch that later), I put some of those toppings on my vulva. “OH MY!” he said. It was hilarious — and amazing if you know what I mean. While I do agree with an ex of mine who once said that if you have to rely on condiments to make your food taste good, you didn’t prepare it right, I am totally for sex condiments — because clean skin tastes great. With a little bit of honey or frosting, though? Even better (check out “12 ‘Sex Condiments’ That Can Make Coitus Even More...Delicious”).

14. Turn Down Your Thermostat

In the article, “So, Guess How Long (Many) Women Want Sex To Last?”, I shared that, according to some research, it would appear that many of us want sex to be around 13.41 minutes. Whether that makes perfect sense to you, you’d prefer to add an hour of foreplay to it, or you like to go more than a couple of rounds, each and every time, it never hurts to turn that thermostat down. You know, I’ve got a friend who says that while she thoroughly enjoys sex with her husband, he literally sweats buckets which can be annoying as all get out. If you can relate, a “hack” around that is to make sure your thermostat is no higher than 65-68 degrees. At least until y’all get the job done.

15. Get Mindful

At the end of the day, being mindful is simply about being fully present (orgasmic meditation is something that can help to make this happen, by the way). You know, I recently read a study that said that when married couples remain in the moment and are intentionally non-judgmental towards their partners, it helps them to have more consistent orgasms. Present with your partner. Loving on them without judgment. I can’t think of a better way to end this pre-sex ritual tips article, can you? Yeah, me neither. Have fun! #wink

Featured image by Giphy

How Long Do Women Want Sex To Last? - xoNecole: Women's Interest, Love, Wellness, Beauty ›

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andscape The Keke Palmer incident isn’t anything new. Usher has been driving guys crazy for decades.

Check out ‘The insecure man’s guide to hating @usher’ as told by @daviddtss on andscape.com 💻

There’s male artists who been doing the same thing he’s been doing for decades. If there’s one insecure guy who acting like this because his girlfriend/wife/baby mother/life partner is being serenaded by usher, imagine the insecure guys before hand that acted like this when their girlfriends/wives/baby mamas/life partners were serenaded by someone like Chris Brown, trey songs,teddy pendergrass, Marvin Gaye, or these other musician heartthrobs.

the same can be said for all the female musicians who brought the men onto the stage like Janet Jackson. But I don’t think the women in the audience of those concerts would act like that towards their boyfriends/Husbands/baby daddies/life partners because even if they are jealous they don’t take it publicly on social media.

Sent from my iPhone MUSIC

The insecure man’s guide to hating Usher

By David Dennis Jr.@DavidDTSS

July 19, 2023

It seems like every show at Usher’s Las Vegas residency has created a new viral moment: from 21 Savage singing with him to his smooth skating fall to his serenading of Saweetie. And of course, when Usher sang to actress Keke Palmer — prompting her boyfriend to call her out on social media and leading to a barrage of insecure men voicing their concerns about how “their” women should behave. This shouldn’t come as a surprise – Usher has been terrorizing insecure men for 25 years.

I should know, because he used to make me feel insecure, too. 

When an 18-year-old Usher released his second studio album, 1997’s My Way, with his first major single, “You Make Me Wanna,” his smooth moves, silky voice and, yes, even the small glimpses of rap ability made him an instant heartthrob. All the girls loved him — including the girls I had crushes on. Sure, I was 11 at the time and my chances of actual relationships with any of these girls was as likely as any of them ever meeting Usher. But it didn’t matter. Usher was public enemy No. 1 for prepubescent David Dennis Jr. 

PAUL MORIGI/GETTY IMAGES

But Usher struck a different nerve. And that nerve gets hit every time he does this with a woman we deem as belonging to someone else. Because too many men see married or coupled women as no longer their own person. Instead, they belong to the men they are tethered to.

Take, for instance, Usher’s history with Beyoncé. When he brought her on stage to perform his song “Bad Girl”, they grinded, touched and teased each other and the crowds who watched. 

But they also made insecure men angry. They haven’t seen Beyoncé as a whole person going on two decades now — ever since she was partnered with Jay-Z, a person men have used as a proxy for our own hypermasculine aspirations. We’ve grown up with “Big Pimpin” Jay-Z, who many believed would never stand for his woman to be touched like that. I remember the casual conversations about the dances. The affair accusations. The conspiracy theories that Jay-Z had Usher on some hit list for taking liberties with something that was his. We created fan fiction to justify the fact that Usher was allowed to roam the streets without ramifications from Jay-Z. HE TOUCHED HOV’S WOMAN. 

Even now, people are imagining a world where Usher brings Beyoncé up on stage and Jay-Z puts the hammer down. Twenty years later. 

RELATED STORY

Keke Palmer dresses like a mothaRead now

The Usher-induced panic has only increased during his residency in Las Vegas. Every show features a personal serenade from Usher. Often, he calls celebrity women to the stage and woos them with his voice and those dance moves that ruined my childhood chances at love. (Sorry, got distracted.) 

Recently, Palmer was the target of his musical romancing. The actress and new mom was eating up Usher’s antics as he hugged her and sang into her ear. She was wearing a sheer black dress over a bodysuit, continuing her roll of post-labor gorgeousness that has stunned the internet with every snapshot. As soon as the clip of her hugging Usher hit the internet, her boyfriend and father of her child, Darius Jackson, took to social media to criticize Palmer and the entire event. 

“It’s the outfit tho.. you a mom.” He followed it up with more chauvinistic opining: “We live in a generation where a man of the family doesn’t want the wife & mother to his kids to showcase booty cheeks to please others & he gets told how much of a hater he is. This is my family & my representation. I have standards & morals to what I believe. I rest my case.”

The insecurity radiated off the tweet. As well as the fact that Jackson seemed to relegate Palmer to her roles as wife and mother and the services she provides to him as her boyfriend, the father of her children and a man who wants to police hiswoman. 

RELATED STORY

In 2022, Usher once again proved he’s far more than a ‘Superstar’Read now

Jackson’s outrage may have torpedoed whatever career he had as it caused the internet to dig up old, troubling tweets, forcing him to delete his social media. Palmer has addressed the incident indirectly (including releasing a sweatshirt with the phrase “I’m a MOTHA.”) 

What Jackson’s comments revealed was another layer of how many men view the women in our lives. Mothers. Girlfriends. Wives. They are augmentations of our own images. Vehicles of our own greatness and how we’re perceived by the people around us. Certainly not as their full human selves. 

And the cause of that disruption is just a guy who sings his heart out. A man who’s been there singing and dancing his way through life and somehow making too many of us feel like less than by simply existing. Life would be so much easier if we just sat back and enjoyed the show.

David Dennis Jr. is a senior writer at Andscape and an American Mosaic Journalism Prize recipient. His book, The Movement Made Us, will be released in 2022. David is a graduate of Davidson College.

THIS STORY TAGGED:Keke PalmerUsherBlack WomenMusic

[sciencespies]

Looking Back at the Legacy of 'The Great White Hope' and Boxer Jack Johnson

https://sciencespies.com/history/looking-back-at-the-legacy-of-the-great-white-hope-and-boxer-jack-johnson/

Looking Back at the Legacy of 'The Great White Hope' and Boxer Jack Johnson

SMITHSONIANMAG.COM | Feb. 25, 2021, 8 a.m.

“There’s nothing you need to make up about Jack Johnson.”

Documentarian Ken Burns would know. His 2005 series “Unforgivable Blackness,” based on the book of the same name by historian Geoffrey C. Ward, brought the true story of the life and career of Jack Johnson, the black boxer who fought his way up through the pugilism ranks to become the world heavyweight champion, to television.

But before Burns, those who weren’t around for the so-called “Fight of the Century” that saw Johnson outslug James J. Jeffries in 1910, would have known Jackson’s story through the play and movie The Great White Hope. That work of historical fiction, by playwright Howard Sackler, perhaps reveals more about the time in which it was written than the time in which it is set.

The play’s message about the nature of racism and racial conflict succeeded in providing audiences with an opportunity to better understand different perspectives through the prism of its characters, but the film adaptation failed to deliver the same powerhouse impact. That said, both served to launch the careers of two actors on the rise and brought to the public a poignant story of interracial romance and the struggle for interracial couples to find acceptance in America.

Alexander and Jones in a publicity still from the 1970 film

(Photo by Afro American Newspapers / Gado / Getty Images)

Sackler’s much-lauded play arrived in 1967, as the civil rights movement’s struggles were at last bearing fruit. In The Great White Hope, black boxer Jack Jefferson—a name change borne out of legal concerns—becomes so successful that a fight is set up between Jefferson and the reigning heavyweight champion of the world, a white man. In addition to developing a story which focused on an equivalent of the Johnson-Jeffries fight, Sackler constructed a storyline based on the relationship between Johnson and his first wife, a white woman named, Etta Terry Duryea, represented in the play by the character of Eleanor Bachman. In addition to mirroring the tensions Johnson and Duryea endured in pursuing an interracial relationship during the early 20th century, Eleanor’s ultimate fate mirrors that of Duryea, who died by suicide in 1912.

The play’s title came from the descriptor assigned decades earlier to any white boxer who stepped into the ring to challenge Johnson, although it was most famously used to describe Jeffries, who had retired from the ring more than five years before the landmark fight. Upon being wooed into returning to the ring, Jeffries made his reasons perfectly clear, publicly announcing, “I am going into this fight for the sole purpose of proving that a white man is better than a Negro.”

As history reveals, Jeffries proved no such thing: not only did Johnson win the fight by a technical knockout in round 15, but as fellow boxer John L. Sullivan told the New York Times, “Scarcely has there ever been a championship contest that was so one-sided.”

Sackler drew inspiration from these events, seeing in Johnson an opportunity to tell a story about a man who becomes a hero but is nonetheless destined for a downfall, someone who many—including the play’s director, Ed Sherin—likened to the titular character in William Shakespeare’s Coriolanus. “It’s about a man who essentially moves out of his tribe and gets clobbered,” Sherin told The American Theatre in 2000. “And in [Sackler’s] mind, it wasn’t about black-white. The historical circumstances made that the paramount issue in the play. But it’s not. And it taps off white guilt about the way the black man was dealt with, but that was not [Sackkler’s] position at all. He wrote a play about a tragic hero, somebody who oversteps himself—as Coriolanus did.”

***********

The Great White Hope began with a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to Arena Stage, a Washington, D.C. theater, which at the time was best known for being the first integrated theater in the city. To find the right man for Jefferson, Sackler reached out to actor James Earl Jones, an established performer was working in Europe.

“Howard suggested that I start getting into shape, which was really important—the man was a boxer—but which I was not and am not and will never be!” says Jones, laughing. “In fact, the young man who was my understudy onstage, Yaphet Kotto, resembled Jack much more than I did.”

James Earl Jones looks at his reflection in a Broadway dressing room mirror on December 10, 1968.

(Photo by Harry Benson / Daily Express / Getty Images)

For the role of Bachman, Sherin went with an existing member of the Arena Stage company: actress Jane Alexander, who would later become Sherin’s wife. Despite the racially charged subject matter, Alexander had no hesitation about diving headlong into the material.

“I really looked forward to doing things like that,” says Alexander. “Of course, civil rights were very high at that time in the ’60s, and we did not shy away from controversy at Arena Stage. We did quite a lot of things, tackling the Vietnam War and racism and so on, so I didn’t have any problem with the subject matter.”

Alexander also politely disagrees with her co-star’s self-assessment. “[James] is a big man—he certainly looks like a heavyweight champion!—and he got in such great shape,” she says. “He was just gorgeous-looking at the time. But he was formidable…and when he gets that look in his eyes, he’s scary!“

The Great White Hope only played for a few weeks at Arena before its success catapulted it to Broadway. Although the audiences were initially almost entirely white, Alexander says that the number of black theatergoers began to increase steadily as the play received more acclaim, hitting the 50/50 mark by the end of the first year. As a result, she also began to notice that black audiences reacted differently to the play than white audiences.

“They didn’t like my character at all…and who could blame them?” concedes Alexander. “I was causing him all these problems! So they would sometimes cheer or laugh at my death…and that was not easy for James Earl, because [he] looked at it as a love story. He had a very difficult scene to perform over my dead body, and they were sometimes not happy with him being emotional about me.”

Even worse, Alexander also began receiving hate mail. “Sometimes they were just disgusting letters from white bigots, male and female. Really awful letters. But I got a couple of death threats. That’s when I said to my stage manager, ‘I can’t open my mail.’”

Jones, for the record, didn’t receive any such threats, but the fact that his co-star did receive them, he says, “sort of measured the height of the bull****.”

Both Alexander and Jones received Tony Awards for their work in The Great White Hope.

(Photo by NBCU Photo Bank / NBC Universal via Getty Images)

Muhammad Ali at a November 12, 1968, performance of The Great White Hope on Broadway

(Photo by Tom Wargacki / WireImage)

Fortunately, those who appreciated The Great White Hope far outweighed those who didn’t, and one of the play’s biggest fans was one of the most famous men in the world: Muhammad Ali, who understandably saw some parallels between himself and Jones’s character. (“What Ali actually said was, ‘This is my play, except for the white chick,’” recalls Alexander, laughing.)

“Muhammad Ali had just done a Broadway play himself—or, rather, a musical—called Buck White, where he played kind of an activist,” recalls Jones. “He considered himself a stage actor, I think, so he’d come back and wanted to talk actor to actor about my work. When the audience left the theater, he used to love going up on the stage and say, ‘Watch this!’ And he’d take a crack at a scene, and then he’d say, ‘And that’s the way that ought to be done!’ I loved it. And the way he’d interpret it? He wasn’t always wrong!”

Ali was also responsible for one of Alexander’s most cherished memories from the Broadway run of The Great White Hope, during the third of his backstage visits.

While the film version of The Great White Hope received its fair share of critical acclaim, with both Jones and Alexander—in her film debut—earning Oscar nominations for their work, few would disagree that it’s a lesser work than the play. The first sign that Hollywood had done some major streamlining: the play originally ran for three-and-a-half hours, whereas the film version clocks in at a streamlined 103 minutes.

“I missed some of the lyricism in the beautiful long monologues—or soliloquies, if you will—that some of the actors had, specifically [James],” says Alexander. “They were cut, a lot of them. “

Jones pulls no punches when offering his take on the play’s cinematic adaptation. “I apologize for the film, because it wasn’t right,” he says. “The big mistake happened when the decision was made not to have Ed Sherin direct the film. It was a big investment on the part of 20th Century Fox, and they made an attempt to work around the cost of filmmaking. They decided to make it… I wouldn’t say ‘cheap,’ but they thought they couldn’t afford to take a gamble on [a first-time film director].”

“They made a decision to shorten it by using a formula which… Well, I won’t try to define it, but they wanted to make it a romance,” says Jones. “Which it was in real life, but it was a mistake to try and ignore all the dynamic stuff going on in that man’s life in favor of trying to make it a love story of this poor black guy and this poor white girl who wanted to be together in life. But America just didn’t let them do it.”

Jones’s description of the film’s romantic plotline is dripping with sardonic wit, something which becomes evident when he abruptly begins chuckling.

“The truth is, I think Ken Burns’ documentary is more important than the film or the play we did,” says Jones. “I thought there was no way you could capture all the dynamics of that man’s life, all the gorgeousness and physical beauty, the human beauty of the man called Jack Johnson. But Burns captured it. Whether you’re a boxing fan or not, whether you have any corner of the race issue you want to explore, it’s something everybody should see.”

Jack Johnson (right) defeated Jim Jeffries in a 1910 boxing showdown.

(Photo by PA Images via Getty Images)

“He stuck around late enough that the stage manager had already put the ghost light onstage. Only the doorman was left, and I was in the wings. And Muhammad Ali walked out in that dark theater and turned to a naked, empty house, and he reprised the last line of the second act: ‘I is here! I is here! I is here!’ It was amazing. And nobody ever witnessed that but me. “

**********

The success of The Great White Hope soon led to conversations about adapting the play into a film, but those conversations didn’t include Alexander until after the show swept the Tony Awards, winning Best Play and earning Jones and Alexander trophies for their roles, too. The acclaim even extended beyond the traditional theater community, with the play winning the Pulitzer Prize for Drama as well.

“I was told that [film director] Martin Ritt offered it first to Joanne Woodward,” says Alexander. “She turned it down, saying, ‘You should get that girl who did it on Broadway.’ And then he went to Faye Dunaway, and Faye turned it down! And then what happened after Faye turned it down? The Tony Awards happened. And the next day, I got the offer.”

Burns, who interviewed Jones for “Unforgivable Blackness,” believes the problem with the film adaptation extends well beyond trying to force it into being a love story.

“The much more important thing is something that you find throughout well-intentioned history and art about African-Americans, which is that somehow they always need to have a white person around to justify them,” says Burns. “In The Great White Hope, here’s this incredibly talented physical specimen who plays in all these incredibly dangerous tropes about black people, and yet somehow you need well-intentioned white handlers in whatever form—romantically or fight-wise—to sort of nudge you to the right direction, as if they’re unaccompanied minors who need to be accompanied.

Adds Burns about the real story he found while making the documentary, “What’s so important about Jack Johnson is that he defies all conventions we want a heroic black man to be in. He doesn’t want the job of hero. Somehow we want our African Americans to conform to some version of our idea of an acceptable black person. Jack Johnson just takes dynamite and pushes the plunger on that.”

“I admire the play, and I admire the movie, and it’s heart is in the right place, and it’s intentions are good, but it’s in a narrow bandwidth that doesn’t permit the full scope of Jack Johnson, good, bad, and otherwise,” concludes Burns. “It constrains him with narrative devices that aren’t needed.”

Boxer Jack Johnson

(Photo by Sean Sexton / Getty Images)

Jones in boxing attire

(Bettman via Getty Images)

Even with its flaws, there’s no question that The Great White Hope made an impact on those who saw it, on stage or screen.

“I remember walking down the streets of New York for the next decade, and black men would just come up and say, ‘Hey, Jane, how are ya?’ or something like that,” says Alexander. “I remember once I was in an airport, and Snoop Dogg yells across the terminal, ‘Jane!’ I recognized that he was a big music star, but I didn’t know who it was, so I just sort of inched over a little bit…and he just said, ‘Hey!’ That’s all! But I felt very warm inside that black men recognized me, seemed understanding and supportive, and… I think they were saying that they knew that it was a difficult role.

“It was surprising to me the number of white people who wondered why I had done the film. There were a lot of firsts there. The racism was not as overt as it is today, but it was there, and I was surprised it was there in my parents’ friends, who would just question me and say, ‘Why did you have to do that for your first film?’ I was thrilled! Race relations were different at that time. We didn’t march in the same way. If you look at the marches in Selma, Alabama, you won’t see a lot of white people. But I was part of the Poor People’s March in Washington (in 1968), and I went and listened to Martin Luther King speak. But now we have Black Lives Matter, and there are a lot of white people and black people walking side by side. That’s progress.”

#History

[ingek73]

01-22-2112:00 PM

‘Time is running out’: Prince Harry calls for social media reform after U.S. Capitol riot

In a Q&A with Fast Company, The Duke of Sussex responds to social media’s role in the Capitol attack and explains why the next step must be to hold social platforms accountable.

[Photo: Samir Hussein/WireImage/Getty Images]

BY KATHARINE SCHWAB

LONG READ

Over the past year, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, have become increasingly outspoken advocates for healthier social media—a topic that is clearly near to their hearts, given the horrendous vitriol and harassment they have faced online and in the press.

By partnering with organizations that aim to understand technology’s impact on society and vocally critiquing the state of online life in the media, the couple are using their clout to push for change in the current digital ecosystem. In an essay for Fast Company last August, Prince Harry called on business leaders to rethink their role in funding the advertising system that underlies the misinformation and divisive rhetoric that’s often shared on social platforms.

“This remodeling must include industry leaders from all areas drawing a line in the sand against unacceptable online practices as well as being active participants in the process of establishing new standards for our online world,” he wrote.

Now, social media is facing an inflection point, just weeks after a violent mob stormed the Capitol in an attack that was conceived, plotted, and stoked primarily online. Powerful platforms including Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube responded by suspending Donald Trump’s accounts, while Amazon and Apple cut ties with Parler, a social network that was used by the rioters. But experts and regulators believe that more must be done to reform social media.

Against this background, Prince Harry is once again imploring people to pay attention to the problems social media have wrought. In a wide-ranging interview with Fast Company, he explains why social platforms must be held accountable for the Capitol attack and the circumstances that enabled it, and why we must remodel the digital world before it’s too late.

FC: Six months ago, you wrote an essay for Fast Company in which you asked companies to take action to ensure the meaningful reform of our “unchecked and divisive attention economy.” How has your perspective on social media’s role in society changed over the last few weeks since the attack on the U.S. Capitol?

Prince Harry: When I wrote that piece, I was sharing my view that dominant online platforms have contributed to and stoked the conditions for a crisis of hate, a crisis of health, and a crisis of truth.

And I stand by that, along with millions of others who see and feel what this era has done at every level—we are losing loved ones to conspiracy theories, losing a sense of self because of the barrage of mistruths, and at the largest scale, losing our democracies.

The magnitude of this cannot be overstated, as noted even by the defectors who helped build these platforms. It takes courage to stand up, cite where things have gone wrong, and offer proposals and solutions. The need for that is greater than ever before. So I’m encouraged by and grateful for the groundswell of people who work—or have worked—inside these very platforms choosing to speak up against hate, violence, division, and confusion.

FC: Why is this topic so important to you? How was your outlook affected by the well-documented online harassment you and your wife have faced in the U.K.?

PH: I was really surprised to witness how my story had been told one way, my wife’s story had been told one way, and then our union sparked something that made the telling of that story very different.

That false narrative became the mothership for all of the harassment you’re referring to. It wouldn’t have even begun had our story just been told truthfully.

WE ARE LOSING LOVED ONES TO CONSPIRACY THEORIES, LOSING A SENSE OF SELF BECAUSE OF THE BARRAGE OF MISTRUTHS, AND AT THE LARGEST SCALE, LOSING OUR DEMOCRACIES.”

PRINCE HARRY, THE DUKE OF SUSSEX

But the important thing about what we experienced is that it led to us hearing from so many others around the world. We’ve thought a lot about those in much more vulnerable positions than us, and how much of a need there is for real empathy and support.

To their own degree, everyone has been deeply affected by the current consequences of the digital space. It could be as individual as seeing a loved one go down the path of radicalisation or as collective as seeing the science behind the climate crisis denied.

We are all vulnerable to it, which is why I don’t see it as a tech issue, or a political issue—it’s a humanitarian issue.

From an early age, the guiding principle in my life has been about the duty to truth, the pursuit of compassion, and the alleviation of suffering. My life has always been about trying to do my part to help those who need it most, and right now, we need this change—because it touches nearly every single thing we do or are exposed to.

FC: Where do we go from here? What do you think needs to change to create an online atmosphere where truth, equity, and free speech are all prioritized?

PH: I ask the same thing every day and lean on the experts to help give guidance on how to reform the state of our digital world—how we make it better for our kids, of course, but also for ourselves—now.

The avalanche of misinformation we are all inundated with is bending reality and has created this distorted filter that affects our ability to think clearly or even understand the world around us.

What happens online does not stay online—it spreads everywhere, like wildfire: into our homes and workplaces, into the streets, into our minds. The question really becomes about what to do when news and information sharing is no longer a decent, truthful exchange, but rather an exchange of weaponry.

WHAT HAPPENS ONLINE DOES NOT STAY ONLINE—IT SPREADS EVERYWHERE, LIKE WILDFIRE: INTO OUR HOMES AND WORKPLACES, INTO THE STREETS, INTO OUR MINDS.”

PRINCE HARRY, THE DUKE OF SUSSEX

The answer I’ve heard from experts in this space is that the common denominator starts with accountability. There has to be accountability to collective wellbeing, not just financial incentive. It’s hard for me to understand how the platforms themselves can eagerly take profit but shun responsibility.

There also has to be common, shared accountability. We can call for digital reform and debate how that happens and what it looks like, but it’s also on each of us to take a more critical eye to our own relationship with technology and media. To start, it doesn’t have to be that complicated. Consider setting limits on the time you spend on social media, stop yourself from endlessly scrolling, fact-check the source and research the information you see, and commit to taking a more compassionate approach and tone when you post or comment. These might seem like little things, but they add up.

Finally, there’s a responsibility to compassion that we each own. Humans crave connection, social bonds, and a sense of belonging. When we don’t have those, we end up fractured, and in the digital age that can unfortunately be a catalyst for finding connection in mass extremism movements or radicalisation. We need to take better care of each other, especially in these times of isolation and vulnerability.

FC: Since the Capitol riot, big tech companies from Twitter to Amazon have exercised their power by making determinations about who gets to use their products. Do you think companies should have the power to make decisions about who has access to some of the most prominent platforms on the internet?

PH: We have seen time and again what happens when the real-world cost of misinformation is disregarded. There is no way to downplay this. There was a literal attack on democracy in the United States, organised on social media, which is an issue of violent extremism. It is widely acknowledged that social media played a role in the genocide in Myanmar and was used as a vehicle to incite violence against the Rohingya people, which is a human rights issue. And in Brazil, social media provided a conduit for misinformation which ultimately brought destruction to the Amazon, which is an environmental and global health issue.

In a way, taking a predominately hands-off approach to problems for so long is itself an exercise in power.

Recently, I’ve been thinking about Speakers’ Corner, an area in London’s Hyde Park which is home to open-air debate, dialogue, and the exchange of information and ideas. I used to go past it all the time.

This concept of a ‘public square’ isn’t anything new—it can be traced back to the early days of democracies. You get up there and speak your piece. There are ground rules. You can’t incite violence, you can’t obscure who you are, and you can’t pay to monopolise or own the space itself. Ideas are considered or shot down; opinions are formed. At its best, movements are born, lies are laid bare, and attempts to stoke violence are rejected in the moment. At its worst, intolerance, groupthink, hate, and persecution are amplified. And at times, it forces lines to be drawn and rules or laws to emerge or be challenged.

I THINK IT’S A FALSE CHOICE TO SAY YOU HAVE TO PICK BETWEEN FREE SPEECH OR A MORE COMPASSIONATE AND TRUSTWORTHY DIGITAL WORLD.”

PRINCE HARRY, THE DUKE OF SUSSEX

I’m not saying we should abandon technology in favour of Speakers’ Corner. Rather, it’s that we should avoid buying into the idea that social media is the ultimate modern-day public square and that any attempt to ask platforms to be accountable to the landscape they’ve created is an attack or restriction of speech. I think it’s a false choice to say you have to pick between free speech or a more compassionate and trustworthy digital world. They are not mutually exclusive.

With these companies, in this model, we have a very small number of incredibly powerful and consolidated gatekeepers who have deployed hidden algorithms to pick the content billions see every day, and curate the information—or misinformation—everyone consumes. This radically alters how and why we inform opinions. It alters how we speak and what we decide to speak about. It alters how we think and how we react.

Ultimately, it has allowed for completely different versions of reality, with opposing sets of truth, to exist simultaneously. In this, one’s understanding of truth does not have to be based in fact, because there’s always an ability to furnish some form of “proof” to reinforce that version of “truth.” I believe this is the opposite of what we should want from our collective online community. The current model sorts and separates rather than bringing us together; it drowns out or even eliminates healthy dialogue and reasonable debate; it strips away the mutual respect we should have for each other as citizens of the same world.

FC: How do you plan to use your platform to push for change when it comes to hate speech, algorithmic amplification, and misinformation in 2021? Since you’re not a trained expert on these topics, why do you think people should listen to your perspective?

PH: I know enough to know that I certainly don’t know everything, especially when it comes to tech—but when you see this as a humanitarian issue, then you see the spread of misinformation as requiring a humanitarian response.

This is why my wife and I spent much of 2020 consulting the experts and learning directly from academics, advocates, and policymakers. We’ve also been listening with empathy to people who have stories to share—including people who have been deeply affected by misinformation and those who grew up as digital natives.

What we hope to do is continue to be a spotlight for their perspectives, and focus on harnessing their experience and energy to accelerate the pace of change in the digital world.

FC: Your Archewell Foundation has collaborated with several groups and institutions that aim to rethink technology and study its impact on people. As a philanthropist, why are you supporting research efforts within this space?

PH: If we’ve learned anything, it’s that our dominant technologies were built to grow and grow and grow, without serious consideration for the ripple effect of that growth. We have to do more than simply reconsider this model. The stakes are too high, and time is running out.

WE HAVE TO DO MORE THAN SIMPLY RECONSIDER THIS MODEL. THE STAKES ARE TOO HIGH, AND TIME IS RUNNING OUT.”

PRINCE HARRY, THE DUKE OF SUSSEX

There are a lot of incredible people and digital architects thinking about—or already working on—innovative and healthy platforms. We need to support them, not only because it’s the right thing to do, but also because it can make commercial sense. And we have to look at the state of competition and ensure that the landscape doesn’t indiscriminately squeeze out or incentivise against fresh ideas.

I believe we can begin to make our digital world healthier, more compassionate, more inclusive, and trustworthy.

And it’s time to move from rethinking to remodelling.

FC: Given your concerns about divisiveness, misinformation, and hate speech online, how have your views on using social media yourself changed over the last few years? How do you approach it now and are you planning to make any changes?

PH: It’s funny you should ask because ironically, we woke up one morning a couple of weeks ago to hear that a Rupert Murdoch newspaper said we were evidently quitting social media. That was ‘news’ to us, bearing in mind we have no social media to quit, nor have we for the past 10 months.

The truth is, despite its well-documented ills, social media can offer a means of connecting and community, which are vital to us as human beings. We need to hear each other’s stories and be able to share our own. That’s part of the beauty of life. And don’t get me wrong; I’m not suggesting that a reform of the digital space will create a world that’s all rainbows and sunshine, because that’s not realistic, and that, too, isn’t life.

There can be disagreement, conversation, opposing points of view—as there should be, but never to the extent that violence is created, truth is mystified, and lives are jeopardised.

We will revisit social media when it feels right for us—perhaps when we see more meaningful commitments to change or reform—but right now we’ve thrown much of our energy into learning about this space and how we can help.

FC: Are you optimistic or pessimistic about our ability to build a healthier online ecosystem?

PH: Optimistic, of course, because I believe in us, as human beings, and that we are wired to be compassionate and honest and good. Aspects of the digital space have unfortunately manipulated (or even highlighted) our weaknesses and brought out the worst in some.

We have to believe in optimism because that’s the world and the humanity I want for my son, and all of us.

We look forward to being part of the human experience—not a human experiment.

[pxjiminsi]

Walk of Shame

Chapter 3 from the Series: Before you go

Pairing: Jimin x reader, Taehyung x reader, Jin x OC, OT5 x reader platonic love

Fic Type: Slice of life au

Genre: slice of life, fluff, mild smut, and a healthy amount of angst

Warning: few cuss words, slight humping, love bites

Word count: 2.8k

A/n: Hi! Leave a message if you liked this chapter! I’m just happy to get my first likes on the first chapters! Enjoy!

It’s been 2 weeks since you’ve landed in L.A, and so far it’s been great. You explored the city with Soo Yun and her family, specifically loving the Architectural tours as Soo Yun’s father is an Architect himself. Visiting the Getty Center and Museum was your peak. Its view overlooking the whole of Los Angeles relieved some of your burdens, relieving your guilt in leaving your life in Korea. You also visited the LACMA, The Broad, and the Hollywood Bowl, such Architectural porn that you haven’t seen before. 

Sleepovers were also your and Soo Yun’s thing back then and you’re doing it all now again. Watching horror movies in bed while wearing matching pajamas with hot popcorn, ice cream, and cola between your legs. You both particularly liked slasher films over anything else and you think that the Final Destination series are *chef’s kiss*. 

In the middle of Final Destination 3, Soo Yun casually slid if you'll ever meet with Jimin again. Though you highly doubt it’s you and Jimin she’s thinking about. She kind of developed a crush on Jin, I couldn’t blame her of course. You were as captivated just by hearing his voice on the phone, but seeing him was entirely different. From his height to his broad shoulders Soo Yun fell deep. He’s just not your type though. 

After your last encounter, you told her everything. From having no real friends ever since she left, that issue you had in school which forced you to quit and leave Korea, your uncertain relationship with Jae, and your falling apart with your parents to that wonderful time with Jimin at the plane and to the bag mix-up. And these 2 weeks were nothing but great because of your friend’s support, you got one by your side and that’s enough for you. 

“Did you know about their upcoming showcase? I heard they’re free.” She asked while chomping on popcorn not leaving her eyes on the screen. “How did you even know about that?” surprised that she’s more updated than you. Though you have no obligation to keep up with their schedule. “I have a friend at school who knows them. I even bragged about meeting 3 of their members” her grin almost reaching her ears for being so pleased with herself. “I’m surprised at Jimin for not getting your phone number from Jin, some guys will go for it even if you told them not too, you know?” she paused the movie to get more popcorn downstairs. 

But some other guys are not Jimin, you thought as you leaned back to your pillow to stare at the ceiling. And duh what he did is nothing to be proud of, it's like the threshold for basic manners. But what do I know, I have been in a relationship for a year now and I don’t even know if this is what relationships should look and feel like. I know that I shouldn't base and compare my relationship to movies or any Nicholas Sparks’ books, but why do I feel like it’s much closer to Stephen King’s works.

“Jae would like to video chat with you” your phone vibrates. Speaking of the devil. You answer and immediately see him with eyes focused on the screen probably playing Diablo or God of War. “Hi babe, what’s up, where are you?” he said. 

Where are you? What the fuck, you’ve been in L.A for 2 weeks and he asks where are you?? ARE YOU KIDDING ME?? 

“Babe, I'm in L.A remember. Soo Yun and I are watching movies. And it’s like 3 pm there, why aren’t you in school?” you calmly said clenching your jaw, checking the time on your phone. 10:23 pm. “Uh, okay mom. I didn’t feel like going, I feel like I might follow your step and quit school this time.” he snickers. He knows you don’t enjoy bringing up that topic, but what did you expect? “Kidding babe, lighten up. I called because I miss you, I miss your cooking, I miss cuddling, and I miss you between my --" you stop him as Soo Yun enters the room again.

"Hey, it's Soo Yun, Soo Yun's here Jae, say hi!" Panicky facing your phone in front of her. "Hi Jae, still a dick to y/n?" she said without even looking at your phone. You look at her not believing she said that rolling her eyes at you in return. "Hi Soo Yun, and no, if there's an award for best boyfriend, I’m winning that effortlessly."

"Babe we're going to finish the movie and head out early tomorrow for a tour, I’ll call you tomorrow. I love -- " ignoring Soo Yun's death stare at you to hang up the phone now.  "Mmkay, bye" he overlapped then hung up.

"Romantic." Soo Yun sarcastically said, rolling her eyes then clicks play on the remote. You sink in your place sighing, placing a pillow on your face.

10 a.m and you're ready for the last stop of your tour before starting to look for work. You admire yourself in the mirror, liking what Soo Yun picked for you to wear today. A yellow sundress to go with your white air force 1's, accessorizing it with your gold necklace with your initials, small gold hoops, and sunglasses. You wear your mid-length hair down, but you have a scrunchy in your wrist if it starts to bother you.

Your last stop for today is the Hollywood sign and the Walk of fame before heading to lunch then movies afterward. You hopped in the car and set-up the GPS to the Hollywood Sign while waiting for Soo Yun and his dad to drop you two off. Feeling giddy as road trips were always your stress reliever. 

As you reach your destination, you close your eyes feeling the warmth of the sun wrapping around your skin, the sun shining brightly. Being the city girl that you were, you don’t mind the busy street, the hustle of people rushing off for work or running errands, people on the phone strutting while handling coffee carefully, these things puts you at ease. You smiled subconsciously at the busy scene, it makes you feel like you’re not alone. No dark clouds hanging over your head. After you took pictures in the Hollywood sign, Soo Yun appealed to go to your next destination. Of course, she wasn’t as excited as you. She’s been seeing all this for years now. 

You went inside the car humming, excited as you're a sucker for street performances, which are very well known in L.A. Nearing the Walk of Fame, traffic became apparent, so you Soo Yun’s dad decided to drop you both off. Soo Yun left you to meet some friends, but it was okay because you’re looking for some alone time too. 

You were like a child whose first time visiting Disneyland, meandering eyes everywhere, tasting every street food available, from pretzels to hotdogs to falafels. Once full, you started taking photos of everything in sight, and when I tell you everything, it’s EVERYTHING. From street performers to passing cars, to the fucking stars of each artist you knew. You especially love Cate Blanchett’s The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Classic actresses like Marilyn Monroe, Aubrey Hepburn, your romance movie idols. You take pictures of your favorite singers this time until THWACK you stupidly slammed yourself and fall on the floor butt first, putting your bare thighs on display and your dress through your midsection exposing your white lace panties for all tourists, street performers, and Californians to see. 

Thankfully and Instantly, someone threw their jacket over your thighs and handed their hand with their head turned around. “Jimin?” you asked hazily. You don’t know if you bumped your head too much and you’re hallucinating Jimin now. “Ow!!!!! That fucking hurt” you squinted on your side and see Taehyung bent over his knees holding his forehead with both hands. You don’t know which is more embarrassing, Californians and tourists seeing your undergarment, creating a commotion to hundreds of people, or Jimin seeing your panties. 

Why are you even alive, contemplating, you quickly used Jimin’s hand to lift yourself, brushed the dust off of your dress, and rushed to see Taehyung. “Tae, I’m so sorry. Are you okay?” Ready to cuss with his tiny fists raised and widened eyes, he looked at his attacker, “Yah!” he then quickly realizes it’s you, and his facial features immediately softened, still teary-eyed from the pain. “Y/n?” he exclaimed, eyes wide open. ”Hi Tae, nice bumping into you” you try, that's okay. You offered your hand to help him. ”Ha, funny.” he said with a straight face while taking your hand lifting him.

”What are you both doing here anyway?” you asked the both of them taking a peek at Jimin whose ears are still red and not giving you a chance to see his whole flustered face as he still has his back turned away from you giving flyers to passersby.

You don't want to see him too anyway, admit it or not, you missed him. Also in this past week, images of him and you pop at unconventional times of the day. When watching romantic films, taking a bath, especially when you're horny as fuck. Imagining his arms pinning you down while he glides his body on you, his eyes deep within yours, kissing every part of you starting from your lips, to your neck, to your breasts. Him sucking your nipples with those thick luscious lips while his free hand playing the other makes your pussy wet so much that you usually use the showerhead to relieve yourself. You hate yourself most times because of these dirty thoughts, so no, you don't want to see him.

”We're handing out flyers for our concert in 3 days, Tae over here, killing it especially with the ladies.” Jimin finally faced without giving you eye-contact. ”You look pretty, by the way,” he said in a soft voice, almost not wanting you to hear his words, while handing out more flyers to Tae to distribute. ”Thanks, you're both not too bad” You smiled at the both of them eyeing Jimin's perfectly brushed black hair, as usual, plain white tee and grey sweatpants. Taehyung's brown hair was perfectly swept with his red snapback, white tee, and black shorts.

”I'm very irresistible, I know that.” there he goes flashing his smile. You didn't doubt it though, he has this cute innocent face that is very alluring, notably his boxy smile that you would give him anything if he asked. He can easily approach people and get something from them, yet he has this audacity proclaiming he's shy all the time. The three of you laugh as if you know each other for a while now, forgetting the embarrassment you all had earlier.

”Y/n, you're bleeding!” his smile disappeared within seconds when his eyes accidentally roamed through your knees. You probably grazed them when you fell. You see the sudden concern in Jimin's face, but before you can do anything about it or say anything, he suddenly shoved the remaining flyers to Taehyung's chest and in a flash, your arms were wrapped around his neck as he lifted you from your place. You were too stunned to speak as his feet started to scurry. Leaving a shocked Taehyung in the streets. ”Wh-what? Where are we going??” he doesn't answer you, but he looked at you with that pretty smile that you missed so much and said,” I got you, I missed you, y/n.”

”What the hell, Jimin, your job was to hand flyers to women, not kidnap one!” this guy with skin white as snow and very cute squinty eyes exclaimed as he opened the door of their van for you and Jimin. ”This is y/n, we bumped into her earlier, literally. Y/n this is Yoongi, one of our members and the one who most annoys me recently.” he uttered as he plopped you in the seat behind the drivers and scampered the van for the first aid kit. ”Hi, I'm y/n, sorry for the intrusion” you can see he’s not paying attention to you because his face has confusion written all across his face. He scrunches his eyebrows as if he's remembering something.

Jimin started to tender on your bruise, initially taken aback as he needs to touch your bare legs, you notice that his ears are starting to blush again. Seeing how Jimin is flustered while attending to your leg, laughter bursts in Yoongi's mouth, exposing his cute gummy smile which you first thought was unexpected of his personality. ”You're y/n, the one who broke our Jimin's heart, he won't stop talking about you since last week!” he can't stop laughing as he continues to smack his hand at Jimin's back.

What? Broke his heart? 

You can't help but widen your eyes to Yoongi's sudden announcement. Jimin’s mouth dropped as he shoved Yoongi out of the van and closed the door, leaving the two of you in awkward silence. ”Hey!! I'll be going to Taehyung to help him, don't leave the van, okay? Have fun love birds” as he taps at the window goodbye. The car is so quiet you can hear Yoongi strut away. 

He started to dab disinfectant to your wound, as soon as he felt your sudden twitch because of the sting, lightly and carefully as possible, he blew on your wound. You stare at him, heart pounding. Thinking about what Yoongi said. Was everything true? That he missed you? Because you want to say you missed him too, that he hasn't left your mind too since then, that you're sorry for leading him on, that you also want to get to know him better, that you don't want anything at all at this moment but to be held and kissed by him. You feel your heart ready to burst out from this overwhelming noise in all this quietness. He slowly lifts his head meeting your gaze. It's as if he heard everything that your heart wanted to tell him. He slowly begins to lean in on you, closer, closer, your eyes admire every aspect of his face as he comes close to yours. His slightly widened eyes, to his flushed cheeks, and his lips. You try to control yourself, but seeing him made you stop thinking and over-analyzing. 

You finally close the gap between your lips. He cupped your face, allowing him to slide his tongue to your mouth, as your head automatically tilted to the other side of his face, moaning slightly in his. Your hands slowly wrapped itself to his neck pulling his kiss deeper into you. He slowly roamed his hands from your legs to your thighs, his innocently flushed face looked at you, looking for approval, you closed your eyes and nodded. He began to trail kisses from your cheeks, then your ear, to your neck. Jimin couldn’t stop the moan coming from your lips as he started to pull the strap of your dress away from your shoulder with his teeth then proceeded to kiss your shoulders, using his hands to tug your dress away from your upper body, exposing your black brasserie. You also quickly pulled off his white shirt, leaving you completely blown away by his amazing abs. He laughed at your reaction, placing kisses on your thighs. You felt in your leg that he's already so hard in those pants. As he began to pull your lace panties down, your phone began to ring. You try to ignore it completely as you're too indulged in this moment, but you realize Soo Yun is going to panic if she doesn't reach you. ”Sorry, I have to get this.” he nods, sitting behind you as he sweeps your hair off of your shoulders and gently leaving love bites on it. 

”Where are you? I've been looking for you everywhere. I'm with Jeongguk, Jin, and Namjoon right now. I bumped into them while looking for you. They invited me for dinner so we're heading back to their car right now.” Your eyes both widened as the both of you scrambled to get dressed and fix your appearances. ”Uh I'm actually with Jimin, I bumped into him and Tae earlier..” You breathlessly exclaim as you both exit the van roaming your eyes to Jimin's group and Soo Yun. ”Oh okay, we're almost there, we can see you two now!” she hung up the phone. Leaving you two, again, in awkward silence.

”I shouldn't have done that, I'm sorry, y/n ” head looking down. You can see his frustration in his face as he kicks rocks to vent. You felt guilty. You're the one that's sorry. You cheated on Jae and you let Jimin feel bad again. ”No, I'm sorry. As much as it was confusing, I don't regret kissing you. Let’s talk about this later” tugging the end of his shirt and quickly letting go, ending your complicated encounter as Jimin's friends and Soo Yun approached the car.

[pandoramajora]

[Images courtesy of Fenty Beauty & ColourPop]

Happy Jojo Friday! 

This is a tentative list of some lipsticks I was request to compile that gave me that Jojo-esque vibe. These are mostly lipstick colors I see character wear (also their color of their outfits) and have found real life matches for or just colors I feel fit in nicely with that Jojo aesthetic. I will definitely continue to add if I do find newer lipsticks that feel are worth mentioning. 

Never be afraid to experiment with color. There is never not a good time to wear bold colors. I wear one crazy lip color once a week, usually on Jojo Fridays. The first time you go out wear a green lipstick, yes, you may feel odd because people might stare. I have never gotten a bad comment. If anything, I get compliments and get told they wished they could wear green or blue lipstick. My reply? “What’s stopping you?!” But don’t be embarrassed! Live boldly! Fuck what other people think.

Put on your green lipstick and go out there and make Dio proud!

[long post, so everything is under the cut! also PS: no affiliate links/not sponsored. I just like makeup and Jojo. If you like this sort of content and would like to see more, let me know!]

Advice: Before you jump into this list I do have some advice.  Make sure to prime and line your lips! Not lipstick is completely immune to transfer or fading. So also keep you lipstick color with you to reapply when it starts to fade. 

Priming: You want to protect your lips the same way you protect your face when you apply makeup. Using a lip primer (I use Ozone from Urban Decay and NYX glitter glue) will help the colors last and help it go on smoothly. With certain colors that I know fade at the water line fast, I use both Ozone and NYX’s glitter glue. I go in and use Ozone then apply a tiny amount the glitter glue on my bottom lip, along the water line. After letting that drying I go over it again with Ozone. After that I go in and line my lips before applying the lipstick.    

Lining your lips: These colors do tend to feather around the lips after sometime, so lining your lips to keep it from feathering or bleeding out is a must!

“But I can’t find a lip liner in blue or green!”  Find yourself a white lip liner or a shade closest to your natural lip color. I use one that is slightly darker than my lip color and I have had no issues with feather or color bleeding. 

ColourPop 

Under $10

By far my favorite makeup brand. I have never had any issues with any ColourPop product. They are an indie brand that is also very budget friendly. I put them first on the list because they are affordable and when trying out these colorful lip colors for the first time you may not want to spend $15+ on something you may or may not like.  

ColourPop Lux Lipstick – Sweetener (cool fuchsia)

ColourPop Lux Lipstick – Cheetah (lilac/cool-toned lavender)

ColourPop Lux Lipstick – JV (cool dark denim

ColourPop Lux Lipstick – Confetti Cake (teal green)

ColourPop Lux Lipstick – Getty (deep teal)

ColoruPop Lux Lipstick – Trill Seeker (periwinkle)

ColourPop Lux Lipstick – Check, Please (yellow-orange)

ColourPop Lux Lipstick – Around the World (red-orange)

ColourPop Lux Lipstick – Aeronaut (Black)

ColourPop Lippie Stix – Chi Chi (true orange)

ColourPop Lippie Stix – Are You Surreal (Vibrant hot pink)

ColourPop Lippie Stix – Tickler (“neon” pink)

ColourPop Lippie Stix – Heart On (cool-toned magenta)

ColourPop Ultra Stain Lip – The Rabbit (bright fuchsia)

ColourPop Ultra Matte Lip – Dr. M (deep green)

ColourPop Ultra Matte Lip – Friday (Black)

 Anastasia Beverly Hills

$18-$40  Anastasia has always been good to me. Great pigmentation. Their mattes don’t dry out my lips and they last a long time. They are a bit on the expensive side. I only own the more colorful shades from this brand because of their longevity and comfort. I don’t own any of their nude color lipsticks. 

Anastasia Beverly Hills Liquid Lipstick – Insomniac (Faded teal)

ABH Liquid Lipstick – Requiem (metallic blackened teal)

ABH Liquid Lipstick – Nocturnal (Indigo Blue)

ABH Liquid Lipstick – Violet (cool-toned purple)

ABH Liquid Lipstick – Clover (“stormy” lilac)

ABH Liquid Lipstick – Rio (blue-toned hot pink)

ABH Matte Lipstick – Insomniac (mint turquoise)

ABH Matte Lipstick – Cobalt (cobalt blue)

ABH Matte Lipstick – Midnight (black)

ABH Matte Lipstick – Rage (vivid grape)

ABH Lip Palette (palette for mixing lip colors to create a custom color)

 Fenty Beauty

$18

If you ask, you will get mixed comments about these lipsticks. I like what I have used, but you do have to prep and prime because they do wear at the water line fast. Or they just don’t apply well to the water line. But with proper priming, they last. I love the shade One of the Boyz (it is definitely the shade Abbacchio wears) and Midnight Wasabi (or as I like to call it, Dio green). 

Mattemoiselle Lipstick – Midnight Wasabi (deep green)

Mattemoiselle Lipstick – Turks and Caicos (deep teal)

Mattemoiselle Lipstick – Ya Dig? (periwinkle)

Mattemoiselle Lipstick – One of the Boyz (lilac)

Mattemoiselle Lipstick – Violet Fury (Vivid Violet)

Mattemoiselle Lipstick – Clapback (True Navy)

Mattemoiselle Lipstick – Tiger Tini (orange)

Mattemoiselle Lipstick – Saw-C (tangerine)

 Urban Decay

$19

I own more of their nude and vampy colors, but they do last and wear comfortable. 

Vice Lipstick – Control (Blue)

Vice Lipstick – Heroine (navy blue)

Vice Lipstick – Pandemonium (Purple)

Vice Liquid Lipstick – MAD (Shimmery bright purple)

 NYX

Under $10

NYX is a brand I have a love/hate relationship with. Most of their products I either enjoy or I just end up returning or throwing out (thank goodness they are relatively inexpensive). Jet Set so far has been the only liquid lipstick from their lipstick lines that I liked and don’t have issues with. But perhaps you will fare better. 

Liquid Suede Cream Lipstick – Little Denim Dress (sky blue)

Liquid Suede Cream Lipstick – Jet Set (Royal Blue with purple under-tone)

Notable mentions:

TooFaced: I own some of their Melted Mattes and they are great, but they do tend to dry the lips and can sometimes flake off when you reapply throughout the day.

Kat Von D: I still own some of her liquid lipsticks. They are great and she has a wide range of colorful shades, but I no longer support her brand and try not to purchase from her if I can help it. 

Black Moon Cosmetics: Tons of colorful shades! But I’ve never tried this brand before. They are on my list to try next.

[makistar2018]

Inside Taylor Swift's Personal Diary Entries: Read All of the Biggest Revelations

By Tomás Mier August 24, 2019

Photo: DIA DIPASUPIL/GETTY

Lover of Diaries

Fans got an inside look at some of Taylor Swift’s most personal thoughts when they bought the deluxe version of her new album, Lover.

Along with some behind-the-scenes recordings, each album featured a 30-page booklet with excerpts from her personal diaries — some even from she was just 13!

“I’ve written about pretty much everything that’s happened to me. I’ve written my original lyrics in those diaries, just feelings,” she said on an Instagram Live announcing the booklets. “It’s everything from pictures drawn, photos of that time in my life, I used to like tape stuff in my diaries.”

Here are the top 10 takeaways from her personal diary entries.

Photo: CHRISTOPHER POLK/GETTY 

Swift the Lyricist

If the diary entries are filled with anything, it’s a deep dive into her song lyrics.

“Red” was born on a long flight — and everyone she played it for loved it.

“Its [sic] so different than anything we’ve done,” she wrote in 2011. “I can’t even tell you how alive and worthwhile I feel when I’m writing a new song and I finish it and people like it. It’s the most fulfilling feeling, like getting an A+ on your report card.”

The diaries also share early versions of “All Too Well” and songs like “Long Live,” “White Horse,” “Holy Ground” and “This Love.”

In a 2014 entry, she writes about the creation of her ultra-hit “Shake It Off.”

“The best way I know how to describe it is that the chorus just fell out of the sky,” she wrote in 2014.

“We all went home and I wrote the first and second verses and brought them in the next day. We wrote this chanty cheer leader bridge that I absolutely LOVE,” she continued.

As for the album cover that would accompany “Shake It Off,” she wrote that she “saw it within 10 seconds.”

“The craziest moment came when something caught my eye. The cover photo is photo 13. I kid you not,” she wrote about the polaroid cover to 1989, which she accompanied with a sketch.

Photo:  HENRY LAMB/BEI/REX/SHUTTERSTOCK

A Glamorous Gala

In a diary entry, Swift writes about being invited to “this event called ‘The Met Gala.’”

To an 18-year-old Swift, that day was “THE party of the year.”

“The paps started SCREAMING for me. It was crazy,” she wrote in May 2008. “We made our way up the red carpet, posing for everyone. All of the women looked so glamorous in their gowns.”

Along with meeting Anna Wintour, George Clooney, Julia Roberts and Giorgio Armani at the event, she wrote that “models stood as decorations, standing still and wearing gorgeous gowns.”

Once inside, she lists “every celebrity ever created” at the event, including Scarlett Johansson, Tom Brady, Beyoncé, Victoria Beckham, Tom Cruise and Jon Bon Jovi “who called me over to talk to him.”

Photo: LARRY BUSACCA/GETTY 

Borchetta's Beginnings

Weeks before the release of Lover, a public feud involving Swift and her old label Big Machine made headlines when the label’s founder Scott Borchetta sold the label (and ownership of her masters) to Scooter Braun.

But years before, Swift had nothing but kind things to say about the label founder who signed her.

After meeting with Capitol Records and not being offered “the deal I would want,” she met with Borchetta — and left with feelings of excitement.

“I really loved all the stuff he said in the meeting, and he stayed for the whole Bluebird show,” she wrote in November 2014. “And he’s SO passionate about this project. I think that’s the way we’re gonna go, I want to surround myself with passionate people.”

A meeting with Borchetta also made “Sparks Fly” as she came up with the name of her second album.

“We were talking about the record and I had this epiphany,” she wrote in April 2010. “I didn’t talk in interviews about how I felt about much of what has happened in the last two years. I’ve been silent about so much that I’m saying on this album. It’s time to Speak Now.”

“Scott freaked out. He loved it,” she wrote in April 2010. “We have a title, ladies and gentlemen!”

Photo: SPLASH 

"The Hunters Will Always Outnumber Me"

Swift also opens up about the lack of privacy that comes with being a celebrity — and how she’ll never get used to seeing “a group of people staring, amassed outside my house, pointing, camera phones up…”

“They could never imagine how much that feels like being hunted,” she wrote.

Swift compares her “mostly perfect life” to “being a tiger in a wildlife enclosure.”

“It’s pretty in there, but you can’t get out,” she described in the August 2013 note.

“No matter how big my house is or how many albums I sell, I’m still going to be the rabbit,” she added. “Because the hunters will always outnumber me. The spectators will stand by, shaking their heads, going ‘that poor girl.’ But the point is, they’re still watching. Everyone loves a good hunt.”

But her feelings about being “hunted” also translated into worrying about her generation’s obsession with taking photos “so that they can spend all day checking the comments underneath.”

“They will never truly experience a moment without attempting to capture it and own it,” she wrote, comparing pulling a flower from the ground to take photos. “Nevermind that picking a flower kills it, the same way taking a picture of a moment can ruin it altogether.”

Swift has notably kept comments off of her post to improve her mental health.

“I’m training my brain to not need the validation of someone telling me that I look 🔥🔥🔥,” she wrote in Elle. “I’m also blocking out anyone who might feel the need to tell me to ‘go die in a hole ho’ while I’m having my coffee at nine in the morning.”

Photo: AL MESSERSCHMIDT/GETTY

From Fearful to "Fearless"

Though Swift is now known for her jaw-dropping stage presence, as a young singer she wrote that she would “get stage fright every time I walk onto a stage.”

“I wish it wasn’t so, but I can’t blame my mind for freaking out about performances,” she wrote in 2010, days before releasing Speak Now. “Criticism of my performances has been the biggest source of pain in my life.”

“I sometimes feel like my college degree is in acting like I’m ok when I’m not,” wrote a 20-year-old Swift.

But even as a burgeoning singer at just 13, she would get hate while on stage. During one performance, her guitar pick broke in half and fell while she was playing.

“There was this huge silence! It was awful! I had to bend over and pick it up in front of everyone!” she wrote next to the broken pick. “And while I was singing, this guy was shouting stuff like, ‘Go on, b*#@! Sing that country bulls#*%! Go on motherf—!.’ It was awful.”

Photo: SCOTT GRIES/GETTY IMAGES

Done with Dieting

In her diaries, she also candidly writes about sticking to a diet as a teen.

Soon after Thanksgiving 2006, she returned to Nashville to her “own comfy bed” and planned to go out to eat with her best friend Abigail Anderson during a day off.  

“Oh and I’m dieting again,” she wrote right after.

“Over the holidays I didn’t watch what I ate and man its [sic] so weird how fast I can gain or lose weight… It’s crazy,” she ended the note. “So I’m going to lose some now.”

Earlier this year, she wrote about finally being okay with gaining weight.

“I learned to stop hating every ounce of fat on my body,” she wrote in Elle. “I worked hard to retrain my brain that a little extra weight means curves, shinier hair, and more energy.”

The “Daylight” singer also said that she’s constantly working on her body image.

“I think a lot of us push the boundaries of dieting, but taking it too far can be really dangerous. There is no quick fix,” she said. “I work on accepting my body every day.”

Photo: CHRISTOPHER POLK/GETTY IMAGES

"I'ma Let You Finish, But..."

“Ahh… the things that can change in a week…” wrote Swift in a Sept. 18, 2009 journal entry.

Five days had passed since Kanye West crashed Swift’s Video of the Year acceptance speech at the MTV Video Music Awards, but the whole ordeal was all she — and everyone else — could think about.

“If you had told me that one of the biggest stars in music was going to jump up onstage and announce that he thought I shouldn’t have won on live television, I would’ve said ‘That stuff doesn’t really happen in real life,’” she wrote.

“Well… apparently…. It does,” she ended the note.

Little did 19-year-old Swift know that West would cause more tumult in her life seven years later. In an August 2016 note, she simply wrote, “This summer is the apocalypse.”

The “apocalyptic” summer came when West referred to the singer as “that bitch”in his track “Famous” and featured a nude version of the “Shake It Off” singer in its accompanying video.

Then, Swift said she never approved of the lyric after his wife Kim Kardashianleaked a phone call conversation between the two singers.

“Being falsely painted as a liar when I was never given the full story or played any part of the song is character assassination,” she wrote then. That “Cruel Summer” ordeal would go on to inspire her sixth album, reputation.

Photo:  SPLASH NEWS

A Joe Alwyn “Love Story”

Like in Lover’s lyrics, Swift doesn’t hold back about her deep feelings for boyfriend Joe Alwyn in her personal diary.

Clearly writing about Alwyn, the singer confessed about wanting to keep their relationship under wraps as much as possible.

“I’m essentially based in London, hiding out trying to protect us from the nasty world that just wants to ruin things,” she wrote in a January 2017 note. “We have been together and no one has found out for 3 months now. I want it to stay that way because I don’t want anything about this to change or become too complicated or intruded upon.”

“But it’s senseless to worry about someday not being happy when I am happy now,” she concluded. “OK. Breathe.”

But Swift wasn’t always so sure about love being real — especially when it came to Valentine’s Day.

“I somehow feel like it’s my destiny to roll my eyes at happy couples and resent Valentine’s Day. I also feel like I’m the girl before ‘the one.’ I’m not ‘the one,’” she wrote at 19. “I’m the girl you think is the one for you, and when it doesn’t work out with me, you meet the next girl and realize she IS the one.”

And as a mere 13 year old, she imagined the first time she’d have her first kiss — and about being “such a romantic.”

“I just dream about looking into someone’s eyes and feeling something I’ve never felt before, you know?” she wrote. “I just never was able to put a face to my fantacy [sic]. But something tells me that my first kiss is really far away from happening!”

Photo:  LARRY BUSACCA/WIREIMAGE

The Night Before...

Before the 2014 Grammy Awards, Swift was confident her album Red would take home the biggest award of the night.

“It’s the middle of the night and I was at the Clive Davis party tonight which means… the Grammys are tomorrow,” she wrote. “Never have I felt so good about our chances. Never have I wanted something so badly as I want to hear them say ‘Red’ is the Album of the Year.”

Though she was up for four awards that year, Swift would head home empty handed.

Though she had won that award two years prior with Fearless, it wouldn’t be until her 2014 album 1989 that she’d take home the coveted prize again. In her 13-year career, Swift has won 10 Grammys from 32 nominations.

Photo:  MICHAEL LOCCISANO/FILMMAGIC

“This Might Be Worth Money Someday”

Though her diary entries are filled with some insight into the more complicated times in her life, the entries also feature some cute memories of her youth — including her middle school class schedule, some song lyrics and memories about listening to Sugarland for the first time.

Accompanied by drawings and the number 13, in her first journal entry, she signs her name and writes “(That could be worth money someday!! Just kidding hehe).”

Under “Journal #1,” a 13-year-old Swift writes a poem: “The world is as big as you make it / Never be shameful to fly / When a chance comes you should take it / May you never be scared of goodbye…”

After performing at a school talent show, Swift wrote: “I ❤ SCHOOL!”

Reminiscing on the grand day, Swift wrote, “I got a standing ovation and everything.”

People

[sounmashnews]

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[kingphifesblog]

So many people often look at Depression as a disability, as if those who suffer aren’t normal people and deserve to be looked at as the outcasts of society. Often we look down on people who have low energy or appear to be in a bad mood. What’s wrong with them? “I hate people who act like this way, they are not all there ‘upstairs'”, some may think.

It’s so hard for many to see any positive benefit at all in living with any mood disorder, depression or anxiety. I have found out that there are “gifts” in many so called disabilities and strengths in weakness.

The stigma of depression and mood disorder is one that stops people from getting help, it needs to stop! Most people are uneducated or misinformed and what follows is a misplaced label that society will place upon us for years to come. For years I imagine many in the gay community felt the same way, perhaps it even lead to more depression and discomfort. Fear to come out and be honest about who we are and the challenges we face will not empower us.

I want to start explaining why depression does not deserve the labels it gets and how for some its actually an amazing gift, but first I should give a few disclosures…

1. I’ve been a superhero fan since I was very little, not comic book nerd, but someone who loved the characters and really got involved with the story behind the Superhero and their powers. (Rip Stan Lee) 2. I’m not attempting to paint any mental illness as an easy road or something that I would wish on anyone. I simply want to give the world another way to look at things and hope that those struggling will relate in a positive way and seek the help that they really need to not feel ashamed. 3. Im a poet! I write in creative ways and use allegory and hyperbole to impress and exaggerate important ideas. So don’t take it as gospel but just be encouraged and enjoy the ride, because depression can certainly be a superpower…

OK with that out of the way, let’s get started!

I’ve recently been watching the DareDevil series on Netflix. For those not familiar with the character, I’ll give you a brief character summary as to how it relates to our discussion. DareDevil went blind at the age of 6 due to an accident. His father was a legendary boxer, and his mother, well, watch the series to learn more. Needless to say he turned his love of fighting and his passion for justice into a successful law firm to help the poor that were being taken advantage of by the system. He realizes very early on that he cannot solve all the problems thru the justice system and slowly but surely turns into a vigilante. Now the coolest thing about DareDevil, is although he is blind he has developed his other senses to other-worldly perceptions. He can hear blocks away, smell what someone had for lunch at dinner time, and tell if someone is lying by the rhythm of their heartbeat. Now throughout the years I’ve been able to accomplish some pretty amazing things, none of them include the list I just mention, but still quite amazing indeed.

Just like Daredevil when we look at our limitations as potential ability and work to develop and discover our new power and potential, truly amazing things can happen! Daredevil never wishes he can see again, he embraces his disability and it makes him stronger. Oftentimes, when our bodies lose one sense the body seeks equilibrium by chemically enhancing another one. The tricky thing about depression is it has ups and downs and can be hard to know when one ability kicks in and another weakens. Paying close attention to our inner self and not being impatient is the key to discovering our superpower.

When I allow my energy to flow and pay close attention to where my focus and attention are I become more in tune with different aspects of my abilities. Some of these abilities are more powerful and prevalent at certain times. As a matter of fact when I come out of a depression I find myself being extremely caring and gentle and ultra intuitive, it’s almost like I hear people’s thoughts. I’m only joking… or am I?

At other times before a depression sets in I have an other-worldly sense of creativity and spontaneity, I can do almost anything I can dream of. I’ve learned to taper this feeling and ability, because if used too much or pushed to far, it will cause me to be extremely tired and lethargic for weeks after. Sometimes I use it to its capacity, my wife has dubbed it “Lion Mode”, because I’m literally unstoppable. (For all the Kobe fans I’d prefer to call it “Black Mamba mode”.Go Lakers! ) Anyhow, Finding your superhuman powers within your depression and learning how to work with them and not against them is key.

Another one of my favorite superhero shows over the years has been the X-men. The mutants are looked down upon by society and only a select few have been strong enough mentally and emotionally to think of the mutation as a gift. Many mutants struggle with the fact that they are different from others, some have even gone to great lengths to try to get rid of their powers. Some of their powers are more noticeable than others and make it very hard for them to fit in.

I’ve always identified with this on a deeply personal level. It can be hard for many with very severe depression and anxiety to fit in to society, they are noticeably different from others. The pressure to experiment with medications or drugs and alcohol to escape can be quite tempting! Trust me I’ve been there, but it only made coping unbearable and clouded my ability to really perceive whats important. I needed to just meditate and concentrate on what was really going on with me. I discovered some amazing things about how I got here and what was really happening to me. All of which I plan to discuss right here on this blog.

I’d also be remiss if I didn’t mention one of the most recent and very relatable series on the CW, Black Lightning. While so much could be said about the show in regards to social, economic, racial and relationship issues I’ll stay on topic. I really love, amongst other things, how the show can give us so much insight as to the support role played by family members who help our Mental Health Superheros. The mother, Lynn, in the show, played by Christine Adams, although not a superhero plays a huge role in the support and guidance of the main characters. There are times when her lack of support is clear evidence of the reason why the superheros become unbalanced and make poor decisions. It’s almost equally as tough on her to try and maintain a relationship, career, and get what she needs in life to support her emotionally. She struggles with internal battle of wanting to live her own life separate of the superhero drama, but also remain loyal to a cause and commitment she knows can make change for the better. I can hear supporters of those afflicted by mental health and depression saying, Amen! It can be so hard to live your life in the shadows of someone else’s curse and gift. Especially when the family and you feel obligated, but all the while helpless. In the Black Lighting series Lynn’s daughter ends up getting super powers. In the 1st episode of season 2 we see Lynn wanting to get counseling for her daughter as she is in desperation for normalcy. This is also very relatable for supporters. I will be very soon writing an article on how supporters can remain healthy while supporting the ebbs and flows of a loved one with Depression.

Just think, Isaac Newton, Bruce Lee, Albert Einstein, Abraham Lincoln, Vincent Van Gogh, and even modern examples such as Heath Ledger, Dwayne Johnson, Jim Carey, Ellen DeGeneres, and Michael Phelps all suffered from Bipolar Disorder or Depression. Definitely a list of super-humans who although struggled though their journey at times learned the power it gave them and how to harness it for good.

“I’m constantly working on my abilities so I don’t harm myself or others. Looking at it like a gift instead of a curse can help a lot in recovery and acceptance of yourself.”

So enroll in the ‘school for mutants’, support a fellow superhero and help us to give others the help and support they need. Go to our Join CB🔆 community link and drop us a line to help encourage someone or simply provide us feedback so that we can better help our supporters and readers.

While you’re there, let us know what superhero you are….

R.I.P Legendary Stan Lee, you’ve inspired me and helped me grow…..

HOLLYWOOD, CA – JUNE 28: Stan Lee attends the premiere of Columbia Pictures’ “Spider-Man: Homecoming” at TCL Chinese Theatre on June 28, 2017 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images)

Your friendly neighborhood Awareness Guru

CB🔆

My Superpower is Depression So many people often look at Depression as a disability, as if those who suffer aren't normal people and deserve to be looked at as the outcasts of society.

[90363462]

The Tale of Kanye West, From Dropout to Letdown

The story has gotten so far that not even fashion can save him now.

Original photo by Ron Sachs/Consolidated News Pictures/Getty Images. (Digital COMPOSITE BY SARA DELGADO)

In this op-ed, writer Shelton Boyd-Griffith examines how Kanye West’s recent behavior has affected his influence in fashion and beyond.

How did we go from this, “We shine because they hate us, floss ‘cause they degrade us/ We tryna buy back our 40 acres.”

And this, “I say f— the police, that’s how I treat ‘em/ We buy our way out of jail, but we can’t buy freedom.”

To this: “EVERYONE KNOWS THAT BLACK LIVES MATTER WAS A SCAM, NOW IT’S OVER, YOU’RE WELCOME.”

And then this: [questioning the cause of George Floyd’s death] “They hit him with the fentanyl. If you look, the guy’s knee wasn’t even on his neck like that.”

It’s the tale of Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, from a radical artist of the people to a mouthpiece of anti-Blackness.

When I originally started this essay, the thesis centered around Ye and his recent problematic antics within the fashion industry. I wrote that, if we’re being honest, Ye feels safe and at home in fashion because, systematically, fashion has always been a safe space for anti-Blackness, misogyny, fatphobia, and all-around bigotry. More often than not, the industry has bought into the same tropes and ideologies he believes in. Brand and corporate accountability have become especially important in recent years, a welcome sign of progress — particularly after the 2020 racial justice protests — though it doesn’t always last. In my view, the success of the demand for accountability has been hit or miss.

Things may be finally taking a turn, as storied fashion house Balenciaga has said they are severing all ties with Ye, as reported in WWD on Friday. In response to a query from WWD, the parent company Kering said, “Balenciaga has no longer any relationship nor any plans for future projects related to this artist.”

Of course, while this is big, Ye’s antics have ballooned beyond the fashion industry recently and, well, I have some thoughts about that too.

As for those shirts from Paris Fashion Week, this kind of anti-Black trolling is relatively standard for Ye. He is addicted to attention, and the folx of the internet and the fashion industry, in particular, kept fueling him up to that point. I personally believe he’s so incredibly focused on distancing himself from the notion of average Blackness that it does not matter with whom (45) or what (white supremacy) he associates himself with. He loves to exist within the “other” space. Somehow he’s convinced himself that he’s not like the rest of us [Black people] because he is supposedly somehow “enlightened.”

It’s apparent that Ye feels safe in right-wing-adjacent spaces, which is why it was unsurprising when he appeared on Fox’s Tucker Carlson Tonight, a platform known for its controversial takes on matters around raceand misogynistic rhetoric. Ye likely felt comfortable that Carlson and his fan base would provide a haven for him to spiral out, spewing his harmful ideologies and soundbites. “We’ve rarely heard a man speak so honestly and so movingly about what he believes,” Carlson said as an introduction to the interview (?—if you can call it that). It’s likely that a viewer would see Ye’s appearance on the show as a green light for the anti-Blackness Carlson regularly churns out.

During that self-administered interview (because Ye basically spoke to himself), the rapper continued to double down, offering up even more stomach-turning hot takes. From continuing to let the masses know that Trump was his “boy” (even with the current legal, moral, ethical, and antidemocratic storm surrounding 45, Ye still doesn’t show any desire to distance himself), to weaponizing religion and going on a fatphobic tirade.

“The media wants to put out a perception that being overweight is the new goal,” he says, using Lizzo (yet another Black woman) as a target for his internalized self-hate. He then went on to say that being overweight was neither in fashion nor in vogue, and — here’s the kicker — that promoting body positivity is “demonic.” As a Black fat body in the fashion space, I know this conversation all too well, but him weaponizing religion in this way takes on a whole other meaning. It’s dangerous. But at this point, that’s his intent. He seems to want to use shock and awe and weaponize his ideologies, which contradict the inclusive steps the fashion, media, and culture spaces must continue to take.

Following his Tucker Carlson performance, Ye took to his platform (social media), going on a series of antisemitic rants based on historically dangerous tropes, which resulted in him being locked out of Twitter and Instagram. Adidas recently announced that its Yeezy partnership was “under review,” and JPMorgan Chase also severed its relationship with the rapper weeks before his most recent tirades, according to The Daily Beast. We need more of this. More action.

He continued his press run, this time on Revolt TV’s podcast Drink Champs, dishing out several antisemitic comments (again) and disparaging falsehoods about the death of George Floyd. After the show aired, and Ye’s disgusting comments reached the masses, the family of Floyd stated their intent to potentially pursue legal action against the rapper. N.O.R.E., the cohost of Drink Champs,has expressed “regret over allowing Kanye West to make controversial comments during the podcast,” and Revolt has removed the episode from streaming platforms. Though there are questions around why the episode even aired in the first place (and why Ye was left unchecked about his tasteless comments in real time), I want to reiterate that this should be the end result. There should be repercussions for his rhetoric.

If, after seeing those shirts and after witnessing him double down on his anti-Black, antisemitic hate speech, you still choose to support Ye, you are making a bold statement. As a former fan, I’ve gone through the full scope of trying to dissociate the art from the artist, making excuses/creating dissertations about his actions, etcetera, but to loosely paraphrase The Devil Wears Prada, Ye sold his soul to the devil when he put on his first MAGA hat. From then on, it was clear that this was a deeply troubled man with some internal issues with his identity. I believe it’s the same space in which Black right-wing extremists (like his co-conspirator Candace Owens) thrive.

It’s dangerous to associate his ideology with mental illness. He’s no messiah. He’s not a genius. He’s an insecure man plagued with internalized self-hate who has reached a certain station in life that he feels somehow excuses him from the realities of being a “typical” Black person.

It hurts to see the complete lack of regard for Mike Brown, Manuel Ellis, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Philando Castile, and the countless Black lives that systemic racism and oppression have taken from us. And what’s even more painful is that he doesn’t care. In the past, he used his platform to shine a light on the issues and injustices disproportionately affecting Black people,and now he’s willingly a mouthpiece for the very things he used to rap about. It was even announced this week that he was in talks to buy the controversial conservative platform Parler (which is quite interesting, considering Ye’s friend Candace Owens’s husband, George Farmer, is the CEO). This is who he is now. He’s all in.

I want us collectively to let him and others like him exist in their own orbit and not feel the need to engage continuously. That’s what men like him want. It’s like his life force counts on the engagement, the clicks. As we push for more inclusive, safe-affirming spaces, there’s no room for this behavior. After weeks of watching him spiral, my message is this: Let’s all agree to leave him (along with other problematic voices in the industry) to his own devices, in his own orbit, and shift our focus instead to creatives using their practices and platforms to effect change, fashion brands that represent the world we aim to see, and issues that matter.

Way to self destruct your own career. Shutting up is free for a reason

[visible-disappointment]

i have a love hate relationship with getty images

[npr]

"Do you pray at all?"

It may as well have come in all caps, the way it landed like an accusation instead of a question. It wasn't the first time I'd received a text from my mother dripping with good ole Christian guilt. The only sin greater than letting God down is allowing your parents to find out your faith walk is no longer patterned after their footsteps.

Her text wasn't about Kendrick Lamar's album, DAMN., per se, but without knowing it she'd just triggered an existential debate I'd been having with myself since its April release. I was in the middle of laying down some definitive thoughts about the LP when the realization hit me. Just like her nagging text, the Compton MC had spent the better half of a year forcing me to reckon with my doubts about the wrath of God.

I've developed a love-hate relationship with DAMN. In some ways I suspect this is the response Lamar set out to provoke. I imagine I'm not alone. In order to have your LP debut at the top of the Billboard 200 chart — then remain in the top 10 for more than 25 consecutive weeks, while racking up double-platinum sales and seven Grammy nominations to boot — all of God's children, or a close approximation, must be listening hard.

Between its chart-topping success and cultural dominance, DAMN. is easily the most celebrated album of the year. It snatched the top spot on NPR Music's list of the best albums of the year by a long shot. It's clearly made for such a time as this — one in which politics and personal accountability are colliding with unprecedented force. The question is whether or not we're grappling with DAMN. — and being convicted by it — like Lamar no doubt intended.

The Prophetic Struggle Of Kendrick Lamar's 'DAMN.'

Photos: Rich Fury, Kevin Winter (2)/Getty Images

[nothingman]

[TW: Rape and Pedophilia “jokes”] Director James Gunn has been fired the upcoming Guardians 3 film in light of old tweets that were dug up by a conservative personality showing that Gunn made jokes about rape and pedophilia as late as 2012.

The tweets are truly vile, with Gunn making “jokes” about blowjobs from boys and all kind of other gross things that, honestly, should have already been scraped off the internet if Gunn had any sense of how truly despicable they were.

Gunn did take to Twitter with his own statement saying that he regrets those jokes, but that he doesn’t “blame [his] past self for this” and that he wasn’t living out any of the things he joked about which he says is a “weird statement to make, and seems obvious.” Except no, it doesn’t, and you should gladly shout from the rooftops to anyone who would hear it that you would never engage in rape or sex acts with children.

Disney has acted swiftly and made the following statement, reported by The Hollywood Reporter: “The offensive attitudes and statements discovered on James’ Twitter feed are indefensible and inconsistent with our studio’s values, and we have severed our business relationship with him,” Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn said in a statement.

Gunn being removed from Guardians was the right move, and while there will, of course, be those who will say “they were just jokes” and that he has “grown” since then, as far as I’m concerned, if he had really grown from them he would have (a) deleted them and (b) not frame the jokes as part of his “growth.” He made them in his 40s. He wasn’t some young child or a fresh kid trying to make a name for himself by being “edgy” on the internet. By 2009, he already had multiple films under his belt and went on to make Super the next year. Gunn should have been the hardest critic of himself if he had really grown from it, not say that he doesn’t blame his past self. He 100% should.

That being said, the fact that this was “unearthed” by a conservative personality should not be ignored. Not because it delegitimizes the criticism that Gunn is now rightfully facing, but because it was done to due to his politics. The person who brought these tweets to the public forefront is a pro-Trump, fake news promoter who spread propaganda about Pizzagate even though it was debunked. He is a racist, an anti-semite, and encouraged his Twitter followers to target one of the women who came forward about Roy Moore attempting to have sex with her when she was 14 years old.

This man doesn’t give a fuck about sexism, rape, pedophilia or the actual content of Gunn’s words. He did it because Gunn has been a very outspoken liberal and bringing up these tweets was a “gotcha” moment. He is a shit-stain and that should not be ignored when discussing this. Not to mention the hypocrisy of the other actors, writers, etc. Disney still has on their payroll.

Okay new, morally sound Disney. Gunn said some heinous shit. But is Johnny Depp still on your payroll for Pirates? Be consistent.

— Allyson Johnson (@AllysonAJ) July 20, 2018

I’m not doing to sit here and act like I’m sad about Gunn being fired—I probably would if his statement was a bit harder on himself about what he said, why he said it, and looking back on how he managed to be so stuck in that mentality in his 40s. Still, I loved Guardians Vol. 2 and the dynamics and character he created for the screen. Hell, I enjoyed Guardians more than Wonder Woman. I will miss that, but it is not worth defending the indefensible.

Gunn’s current pinned item on his Twitter account was a promo for the Hall H event he was meant to have Friday at 6:15 pm during SDCC.

He has yet to comment on his firing.

(via THR, image: Photo by Ian Gavan/Getty Images for Disney)

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via The Mary Sue