#i have only read thru day 6 upon this posting

[life-b4-death]

God Nale fuckin sucks. Worst Herald ever. Fuck that guy

[spaceageloveblog]

I watched an Anthony Fantano video about Pitchfork's AOTYs for each year of the first decade of the 2000s. Had the idea to listen to each of the 10 albums and share my thoughts on them. Plus talk about my favorite albums from each of those years. And other music I remember from those years. And maybe other memories I have too. But I haven't gotten past the year 2000 yet.

PJ Harvey's Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea is my favorite album from that year. And upon reflection it feels like a transition pick representing a transition year for me. 2000 might be the earliest year I could go back to, pick my favorite album with hindsight, and it also be something I liked back in that year too. That is, I assume if I picked 1999 and earlier, the album I would call out as my favorite now is likely not something I was into in 1999.

"You Said Something" is my favorite song on that album and is still something I listen to on regular rotation to this day. A couple months from now, when I'm absentmindedly creating a quick playlist for some random reason, there's a reasonable chance I throw that song on there. I often wonder what the "something" "said" that she "has never forgotten" and "was really important." Probably something like "I love you" if I had to guess. But every once in a while I like to think it was something zany that'd be impossible to guess.

Why was 2000 a transition time in my life? I turned 21. I hadn't lost weight yet, that'd start the next year, though I daydreamed about it. I think I even tried lifting weights in the basement of the house my friends and I lived in over the summer. I remember hearing to "Californication" on WEBN nearly every evening while lifting. Then I'd come upstairs and go get Hardees for dinner. Even my other fat friends were like, what are you doing?

Though I was into Oasis and The Verve and the post-Britpop bands those bands got me into, I was still more in a Korn and Rage Against the Machine phase of life. Limp Bizkit was still big though my friends were more into them than me. But that was more of what I was listening to. PJ Harvey was a departure, but that album would take me more toward the music I'd start listening to. I remember toward the end of the year, ending the evening watching videos on MTV2, "Catch the Sun" and "Yellow" were on regular rotation, and I loved those songs.

So the kids and I were up in Ohio visiting my mom and my brother's family last week. And we did the 15 hour drive straight through bath ways. On the drive back I needed something to keep me interested so we only listened to music from the year 2000. We started with Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea and it sounded perfect took as my first sip of the Americano I ordered in the drive thru of the Alliance Starbucks at 6:35 in the morning, the first coffee stop on the journey.

We listened to Kid A next, Pitchfork's AOTY for 2000. I've listened to the whole thing before. Radiohead are perfectly acceptable to me, but others obviously like them much more than I do. Like seemingly everyone my age, I like the song "Creep." I remember it on played endlessly on MTV the summer between 8th and 9th grade. I really like The Bends album which came out during high school for me, probably my favorite of theirs, though I know the critics preferred what came next much more. OK Computer is good of course, but I always go back to The Bends more so that's why it's my favorite. Kid A came out when I was living in the fraternity house in college and it wasn't for me at that moment in time. Don't think I listened to it in its entirety until years later. Think I lost track of Radiohead after that, but maybe 5 years ago, I read something somewhere that In Rainbows was their best album. That came out in 2007 and I had no idea. I was busy with work and starting a family and listening to pop music during that time in my life. I listened to it when I read about it and it wasn't for me.

The kids didn't notice I was doing this 2000 thing yet. I know they've heard me play PJ Harvey songs before, so those probably washed over them unnoticed. And they probably thought Kid A was just another one of those weird things Dad likes.

I then mixed in songs off other albums from Pitchfork's top 10 of 2000, most of which--if not all--I had never heard before: Sigur Rós, Modest Mouse, Yo La Tengo, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Grandaddy, The Microphones, Les Savy Fav, Clinic, Smog. Some of it was fine, just wasn't the best situation to deeply absorb new music, careening down I-77 from Ohio to West Virginia to Virginia to North Carolina to South Carolina, timing gas stops and bathroom breaks, looking for good coffee and clean fast food places, still having to cutover on I-26 to I-95 to make to Georgia then Florida. The only album of those I listened to its entirety was Modest Mouse's The Moon & Antarctica because I like their other stuff. And I guess it was fine. Bu it's been a week or so and I haven't gone back for more of any of it yet.

Then I started playing stuff I remember liking--or at least sort of liking--that came out in 2000: "One Armed Scissor" by At the Drive-In, the singles from the Marshall Mathers LP and Outkast's Stankonia, and "Music" by Madonna. That led to Alice Deejay and other Eurdance stuff I remember from that year. I went to Europe for the first time in spring 2000 and Eurodance music was the soundtrack of my trip. "Kernkraft 400" and "Freestyler" were the songs I remember most fondly, besides all the Alice Deejay bangers, "Better Off Alone" being the most bangerest of all her bangers.

Many pop songs that were big here in the U.S. were also omnipresent in my travels in France and Belgium and The Netherlands and Germany and Italy. Like "Oops!...I Did It Again" and "The Thong Song." That led me to start going for stuff I remember regardless of if I liked it or not. That's the funny thing about nostalgia I've noticed, things I disliked in the moment, I can listen back to now and have warm feelings about them. Like Savage Garden or that "Absolutely (Story of a Girl)" song.

At some point in the trip, probably during a switch from one Redbox DVD rental to another, one of the kids requested a song, but I told them we were only listening to songs from the year 2000. The were slightly annoyed at first but eventually acquiesced because although I'm a pushover on many subjects, they know that when I get the idea of listening to 15 consecutive hours of music from the year 2000, there's no moving me off it.

Some of the songs led to interesting conversations. Mostly with my oldest, a 14 y/o boy who just finished his freshman year of high school and was sitting shotgun, throwing me random hypotheticals and trivia to keep me awake. At one point I made the comment that it was harder to find playlists of 2000 as opposed to say 2001 or 2007, because when you search 2000 specifically, you find more decade-based playlists, whereas if you search for 2005, you find playlists for the precise year.

That led him to ask me, when inquiring about when someone was born, how far back to you have to go to not care about the precise year and only care about the decade. I said, well, there's a big difference between someone born in 1950 or 1959, because someone born in 1950 was a young adult during the turmoil of the late '60s and early '70s, while the person born in 1950 was in elementary school at the time. So we settled on the 1940s. If you were born during that decade, we don't need the precise year.

My son then started talking about draft, that someone born in 1950 could have been drafted for the Vietnam War. Then he asked why that even happened. And I said it seems like a mistake looking back but cautioned him on hindsight bias and having skin in the game when assessing decision-making. And all I could talk about pulling from personal experience was the buildup to the Iraq War, and I felt it was crazy at the time, but I was just out of college and it was easy for me to say, I didn't really have any skin in the game. And then we had all sorts of conversations about expert opinions and who to trust, but at some point he has to decide things for himself. His mom and I could tell advise him on how to live his life, but in the long run, he has to live with his decisions, not us. I think he listened, and I like to think some of what I said resonated.

I saved Coldplay's debut album for the end, another one of my favorites from the year. I told my son how I really like their first two albums but I sort of lost interest after that, but they obviously became much more popular after that. He humored me and listened to me talk about music I liked when I was young. Then that album ended and there were still 45 minutes to go in our drive, so we listened to Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea again. I told him this was my favorite album from 2000. He said he recognized some of the songs and continued to humor me and not say anything critical. I even caught him singing along to a few of the lyrics of "You Said Something."

If I live long enough, maybe in 2052 we'll take a long drive and he play me his favorite music from 2029.

[oldsalempost-blog]

The Old Salem Post

                   Our  Local Tamassee-Salem SC Area News each Monday except holidays                                         

Contact: theoldsalempost@gmail.com                 

Distributed to local businesses, town hall, library.                            Volume 8 Issue 4                                                                                 

Week of December 16,  2024                https://www.tumblr.com/settings/blog/oldsalempost-blog                         Lynne Martin Publishing                                                                                                                                                          

EDITOR:  This will be the end of the year issue of The Old Salem Post until after the New Year. Although I have already been preparing my heart during this joyful Advent Season, I need to prepare my home for Christmas.   As we all prepare our homes with delicious meals, goodies, and fun festivities to make precious memories with loved ones and friends, let us share most of all the Joy that Christ brings to us through all the holidays of Christmas and every day of our lives. Lynne R Martin      Quote this week by Mother Teresa:  “ It is Christmas every time you let God love others through you...yes it is Christmas every time you smile at your brother and offer him your hand. It is not how much you do, but how much love you put in the doing. If we were humble, nothing would change us-neither praise nor discouragement.”                                          

TOWN of SALEM: 5 Park Avenue  Monday-Friday 8AM-5PM. Closed 12-1 for lunch.  864-944-2819 We will be closed Dec 23 thru 27. Will return Dec 30,31 then off New Year’s Day.  We wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Salem Library:  5 Park Avenue Monday 10AM-6PM, Tuesday-Friday 9AM-5PM.  Closed 12-1 each day for lunch. Will close Dec 24-26 for Christmas and on New Year’s Day. Call 864-944-0912

Jottings from Miz Jeannie  by Jeannie Barnwell   How Do You Get From Tamassee to Seneca?   If you were my package, YOU DON'T!!   On 12/2, my package traveled to Charlotte.  Then it globetrotted to Greenville, where it sailed off to Seneca.  On 12/6 the limp PACKAGE (without its contents) arrived at the home of my friend, Peg.  She immediately contacted me. Upon visiting the local P.O., I informed the agent that I WAS P.IFFED.

I was extremely  PIFFED!     (Background information) I am a refined Southern woman.  I detest hearing that common expressed "Pi_ _ed Off!   Straight-laced Southern women (who never sweat-- WE GLISTEN) prefer to be PIFFED OFF! The agent informed me that it was all my fault for not using Turbo-Maxed- to the 10th Power Tape.  I don't know why she did not inform me of such when she accepted my $5.45 postage fee.  She provided me with a list of phone numbers for all the post offices where the package had sojourned.  "Call them, but be patient.  They rarely answer their phones," says she.   My Parting Request  to her:," Please refund my postage charge." To which she declared: "I am only too happy to do that, as soon as you fill out  #29HE686LP  FORMS in triplicate.  Unfortunately, we are out of them at this time."  By the way, the book I sent to my friend Peg was entitled "Lord, Teach Me Patience, BUT HURRY."  Gentle Readers:  I wish you a very Merry Christmas! I'll love you forever and Like You for ALWAYS!  Miz Jeannie

ASHTON RECALLS by Ashton Hester     LIFE IN 1850s RECALLED IN 1924 LETTER TO THE EDITOR— (The following letter to the editor from Wm. E. Emery of Galloway, Ohio was in the October 8, 1924 Keowee Courier). . .Editor Keowee Courier. . .As a reader of your paper I will drop you a few lines, and if you think they will interest your readers you can insert them; if not, I know that you have an ample waste-basket for all unacceptable manuscripts. . .I was reading in the "News from Bounty Land" and it made me think about by-gone days. I went to school at Bounty Land when I was quite a small boy (I think it was in the year 1856). I will mention a few families from whose homes children attended school at that time: The Striblings, Bowers, Halls, Doyles, McCrarys, and a great many others that I could mention. . .An old gentleman, Mr. Penney, was the teacher. Sam Dendy attended the school at that time. He was quite a nice young man. He was a favorite with the small boys. . .The writer from Bounty Land mentioned in her news items about visiting Oconee Station and the buildings at Tamassee. I wondered if those buildings are on the old Tamassee farm? I was partly raised on the Tamassee farm. My father moved on that farm in the year 1847. Elam Sharp owned the farm at that time. He employed my father as overseer. We lived in what was called the red house. It was a big two-story house on the west side of Little river. Mr. Sharp built a brick house on the east side of the river afterward. . .The first school I attended was at the old Cheohee church. An old Mr. Cowan was the teacher in the summer and old Mr. Sheppard taught the winter session. . .   TO BE CONCLUDED NEXT YEAR!   

JOCASSEE VALLEY BREWING COMPANY,(JVBC) & COFFEE SHOP* 13412 N Hwy 11  Hours:    Wed–Sat 9am-9pm & Sunday 12pm-7pm.  Events this week:  Wed:   BLUE GRASS JAM 7PM    Thurs:  Bring something to share for a CONSERVATION CHRISTMAS  6:00PM    Fri: Food:  BLUE RIDGE GRILL 4PM  Music: JAZZY TRINITY CHRISTMAS 6:30PM  Sat:  Food:   Dogs & More Catering  Music:  Freddie Vanderford  & Brandon Turner at 6:30PM   Sun: 12pm-7pm  Music:  Marshall Goers & Lucy Allen Christmas at 4PM.  Pot Luck Dinner.

EAGLES NEST ART CENTER 2024 UPCOMING EVENTS                                                                                                                                 Christmas at Eagles Nest Art Center:  View the Tamassee-Salem Elementary Christmas Art in the auditorium hall.   

The Christmas Talent Showcase on December 14 at 6:00 p.m. can be viewed on Sony 107.9 wfbs website. A huge thank you to Jeff Bright for being a wonderful Master of Ceremonies! The program will air again Sony 107.9 on Christmas Eve 7PM .

December 21 at 7:00 p.m. features the Johnson Edition Christmas Show- bring the whole family out for a wonderful Christmas evening.  Tickets$10 online at eaglesnestartcenter.org or at the door.  Doors open at 6:30 p.m.  Come early to enjoy refreshments and shopping our Treasure Store.                            

Eagles Nest Senior Exercise Program:  The week of Dec 23 thru Dec 30th the exercise group will break for Christmas.                                 Join friends to exercise at the Eagles Nest Art Center!  Classes  each Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 9:30AM –10:30AM with Stretching and walking geared for 55 plus.  Cost $2.50  each class you attend.    For information call 864-280-1258                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

CHURCH NEWS    Find a wonderful Christmas service to attend.

Bethel Presbyterian Church (PCUSA),  580 Bethel Church Rd Walhalla, 29691. Worship at 10:30 a.m.  Mel Davis will give the Message 12/22 We will have a Candlelight service Christmas Eve at 7:00 PM                                                                      Boones Creek Baptist Church, 264 Boones Creek Road, Salem invites you to join us for regular worship service on Sunday morning with Sunday School at 10am and followed by worship at 11am                    Calvary Baptist Church, 235 East Main Street, Salem, SC 29676   Sunday School at 10AM and Worship at 11AM                        MOUNTAIN VIEW WESLEYAN CHURCH, 129 Mountain View Road, Salem SC.  Call for more information 864-280-5663     Salem Baptist Church 151 Crestwood Dr, Salem, SC 29676  864-944-7200

Salem Seventh-Day Adventist Church, located 240 W Main St , Salem,  cordially invites you to join us every Saturday at 9:30am

Salem Methodist Church: 520 Church Street, Salem.  9am for breakfast, 9:30am for Sunday School, and 10:30am for Worship.  You may tune in to our live service on Facebook or view it later on our website.                                                                The 3rd Advent candle was lit on Sunday to represent Joy. Next Sunday the 4th candle of  Love will be lit.  The center white Christ candle will be lit at our Christmas Eve service at 6PM as we welcome Baby Jesus to our world. Please bring your family and join us.

Church Prayer Group  It is imperative we continue asking - pleading - with God that He be Glorified and turn more hearts to His Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ.  Linda Springstead (our pianist) has agreed to facilitate our prayer group while I am away.  She has such a heart for the Lord and a desire to serve Him.  Prayer group will resume in January and will occur at 11:15 - 12:00 noon following Bible Study on Monday mornings at Salem Methodist Church.   ALL are welcome even if you don't attend Salem Methodist Church.  Prayer is a blessing from God for everyone. Blessings,  Sandy Steblin

MOBILE PRIMARY HEALTH CARE thru the Clemson Rural Health Mobile Unit  Offering primary  and care that includes chronic disease management. Call  864-656-3076 for January dates in the New Year.                                                                                                                                   May you find Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love as we find Christ in Christmas!  LRM                                                                         

[kurtstinypurse]

blaine in s6: a journey thru plaid

While digging into season 6 as I so often do, I couldn’t help but notice how much plaid Blaine wears. Typically known for his bright colors, bowties, and the occasional hat, Blaine's sudden affinity for plaid - as well as darker and more muted colors - got me thinking. As I dug deeper, I realized that Blaine wears plaid in all but one scene with/about Kurt leading up to their reunion kiss, and then his wardrobe changes again. What could this symbolize? 

Warning: this could be totally reaching (okay, it absolutely is). I fully believe RIB did not do most things intentionally, but filling in the gaps of Blaine is one of my favorite things to do. At the same time, the wardrobe department kicks ass, so I wouldn’t put it past them to have done it on purpose. 

Thanks to a meta post exchange with @spaceorphan18​ for getting me to finally finish this post off after sitting in my drafts for the better part of the summer!

This is pretty long, but the screencaps should be worth taking a gander at, at the very least.

My general thought is that plaid symbolizes Blaine’s desperate attempt at a new life - a new life without Kurt. Moving back to Ohio, working at Dalton, dating Dave (the big whopper here). Blaine is in a dark place after his breakup with Kurt - it had to have been bad for him to drop out of NYADA and move back to Ohio, and it was bad enough for him to need therapy (the therapy he already so badly needed, but that’s for another time). Bowties come in and out throughout season 6 - sometimes a bowtie is the only plaid, and sometimes there is no bowtie at all - but regardless, the plaid is oddly consistent.

Dave wears a lot of plaid. He’s a simple flannel guy, we all know that. History aside, we find out that Dave is pretty damn understanding of Blaine’s situation with Kurt in the end. While he and Blaine are together, he seems happy, agreeable, and easy. Blaine craved something easy after the struggle of breaking up with Kurt and everything that led up to it, too. Dave was really different from Kurt, too, yet somehow he was intrinsically connected to Kurt, which was an odd transitional state that likely helped and harmed - either way, he didn’t quite fit Blaine. Dave wore plaid, so then Blaine wore plaid. The plaid/color pallette were really different from his usual choices, and they didn’t quite fit him, either, but there Blaine was, trying to make it work in an attempt to move on. You can read more about my general Blainofsky meta here.

Here are most of the outfits (with some notes):

Pre-Season 6: The Breakup

The breakup finds Blaine in a plaid button down, bowtie-free, and a dark maroon cardigan. Though it’s pre-Dave and pre-season 6, this can foreshadow what’s to come, at least the loss that’s about to occur. The general color scheme and lighting of this entire scene is very dark, too. The breakup wasn’t out of nowhere - their relationship had been in a dark place for some time (and you can read more about my analysis of their breakup & reunion here).

Blaine & Rachel at the Lima Bean

Our actual first look at Blaine in season 6 is when he updates Rachel about what she’d missed and tells her about the breakup. Plaid bowtie.

Blaine meets Kurt at Scandals

This is a tough scene for Blaine, and it’s one where I would’ve liked to see more of his perspective. Like I’ve said before, I don’t think he ended up dating Dave out of spite or “revenge” towards Kurt. He had no reason to think Kurt wanted anything to do with him, let alone he’d be coming back to Ohio. It’s more likely that things with Dave took off and snowballed, and it wasn’t until Kurt wanted to meet up with him at Scandals that Blaine had an “oh shit, this might hurt” moment.

Outfit-wise, this is his first deep-dive into muted plaid, and of course, Dave is right there with him. 

Blaine yells about Jane 

Alright, look. I’m not trying to say this theory is perfect, and it’s a bit of a shame it takes a hit right off the bat. But this is the only time Blaine doesn’t wear a lick of plaid between 6x01 and 6x08. There may be a reason, and there may not be. He’s definitely projecting here, and he’s making an unfair stab at Kurt by accusing him of poaching Jane on purpose after seeing Blaine with Dave. Regardless of wardrobe, it’s a bold indicator that Blaine’s not as over Kurt as he might think he is.

More plaid along the way...

Klaine in the Elevator

It’s interesting how not Blaine-like Blaine looks in this scene. Shirt unbuttoned, bowtie off, all frazzled and muted colors. Visually, he looks nothing like himself, and he’s never been more in denial of his feelings for Kurt than in this moment - and like it or not, healthy or not, a huge part of who Blaine is is his love for Kurt. 

“This doesn’t mean anything.”

Yeah, okay.

More plaid in between...

Blaine breaks up with Karofsky/runs to Kurt

Not only do we have a plaid shirt in these scenes, we have the bowtie from the proposal. It’s a great connection here between what Blaine’s holding onto in his present - Karofsky - and what he’s finally learning to accept and hopes to grab onto for his future - Kurt. This is a pivotal moment for Blaine, but it’s not quite time yet for him and Kurt.

(Also, can I just say, his face here hurts my heart)

Kurt runs to Blaine/Klaine reunion kiss

Finally, finally, the moment has arrived, and “everything’s fine now” (yeah, okay, I’ll let you have that for now, Kurt), and they’ve gotten their acts together. Aside from “Somebody Loves You,” this is the most colorful Klaine scene we have, and finally, too, Blaine is sans-plaid. We’ve got bursts of color from the wildly decorated apartment, echoed in his stripes, we’ve got the blues and the yellows that carry over from their long-ago proposal outfits, and it’s all happy and beautiful and birds chirping and the rest of it! (Hmm, birds.)

Post-marriage outfits

Something interesting here is that Blaine’s wardrobe has definitely evolved from his McKinley days in particular. Gone are the crazy bold color combinations and flashiness, and though the color- and pattern-mixing and color-blocking remains, he tends to wear darker tones. I’d like to think part of this is him accepting himself - although he didn’t spend a lot of time single after the breakup with Kurt, removing himself so far from Kurt in many ways did give Blaine the opportunity to grow without him for the first time in ages, and there are definitely indicators of that, though I would’ve loved to see more of it on the show.

I’ll admit, I first thought that the plaid rarely reappeared after the wedding, but upon closer inspection, it’s definitely still there - but there’s something to be said for the fact that I missed it. Apart from his outfit when Sue gives them a honeymoon, plaid is no longer the mega-standout and focal point of his clothing. His wardrobe evolves again, and though he retains the plaid, his style once again looks more like him. It’s a matured amalgamation of who he once was, who he tried to be with Dave, and who he is now and will continue to become. 

But if Blaine’s growing, and if Blaine’s learning to accept himself, he no longer has such a need for flashiness and to stand out. He’s growing up, and he’s maturing, and you can see that in his clothes, though he still retains his own quirky flair. 

As an aside, I’m a huge proponent of Kurt and Blaine continuing therapy, both separately and together after the wedding. A girl can dream that they learned from their mistakes that a ring or two isn’t a quick fix. At the end of the day, though, season 6 offered an important journey that Kurt and Blaine so desperately needed in order to come together again in a healthy, compatible way, and I do think they learned a lot from their time apart.

Blaine is a tough nut to crack in a lot of ways - there is so much under the surface, and there are so many gaps to be filled in. It’s the unfortunately inevitability of Blaine being characterized in retrospect, considering he was never meant to be such a permanent fixture to the cast and to the show. It’s difficult finding ways to anchor a character that lacks a foundation, especially a character as dependent on another as Blaine is to Kurt in so many ways. However, I find it really interesting to weave the thread between everything Blaine offers and make it make sense - and his wardrobe in season 6 is an interesting parallel in this part of his journey.

[pyrodarknessanny]

call out post for Krystal

Well I was originally going to be the bigger person and just walk from this , but since you INSIST on cussing me out over FB  and have asked your followers to check my accounts / contact me to pass on messages that you your self are too cowardly to pass on . seriously . I’m not hiding I’m right here and you DO have the means to make contact. this is for you  narcissist.

you’re so worried about your stepdad finding you,  well he already has , he IS YOU. and you don’t even care but I’m the enemy for calling you out. for those playing at home lets go over ALL of the receipts since they want to vilify me. I was really hopping that you would be there at the wedding ,and I had already gone to a huge effort making sure that would be a safe space for you,  and your special requirements because I wanted you to be there as your self and be comfortable.  But  you needed to tow the line a little bit too and improve your mental health , I have spoken to you about that on many occasions  we even discussed it in person when I came up  early in the year to see you.   I’ve been understanding of your circumstances , tried to help you but you just want to mope and go for the cheapest possible pity points imaginable.    

We have expressed concerns over your constant suicide posting and depression posting.  Given legitimate  advice for help.    

As part of planning for the big day I cannot be emotionally invested in constantly checking to see if you are stable.  It is not fair on anyone to put that responsibility on them.

You are an adult in control of your own life.  Several of us have told you that you have made us uncomfortable with these posts. you never communicate your issues and instead blow up on us over the smallest thing.  Shifting the blame off of yourself. 

You have zero consideration for how your extreme actions are making those around you feel.   You got told off for harassment but that’s not your fault because you’re stressed out ?  we are all stressed out. from just this weekend. mum asked you politely to not comment negatively on her posts because you were causing her distress. A person who has been nothing but kind and accepting to you!, but instead of backing off you doubled down. then I politely asked you to leave her alone, saying if you didn’t agree with the content of her posts to mute her and not interact.  

But once more you doubled down and  immediately made a Facebook post making out like this was a personal attack.    

you refuse to acknowledge that the problem we have with your comments had nothing to do with the fact that the posts were about religion . the PROBLEM was that you were making people uncomfortable , were asked to ease off but then chose to make them even more uncomfortable. so I called you out about that in a chat with 2 other close friends. I pointed out what was problematic about your behaviour  and asked you to seek help because once more you were making us uncomfortable even though we were being accommodating to you.

I told you that if you didn’t get a handle on it  you would be uninvited to the wedding because you are stressing everyone out with how you are behaving and  as the primary organizer of said wedding I am under an intense amount of stress already without having to deal with this fire that you lit on yourself. others in the chat also reaffirmed that they wanted you to get help and could see the pattern of negative behaviour .   instead of taking anything said on board you twisted it around and made excuses for it .

You then  IMEDEATLY took to face book and posted how  mean we were being and how fragile you are.  followed by several suicide posts and a post  that reads 

“ you should just unfriend me right now, for your own good”

cool! I did just that!    

You don’t see how your actions are not only hurting you but also hurting the people around you!  So yes  I removed you from my FB and revoked your invitation to the wedding.

because your behaviour is a major liability at present.   I told you we all have things going on that are causing us stress.  And I told you that it is not fair on anyone to put the responsibility of your mental health on them.  You need to take accountability to that   if you can’t hold a conversation with people you know closely without being triggered or set off then you are NOT coping as well as you make out to be. yes I did call the police to perform a welfare check on you.  

If you really think you can fill your FB  with hourly posts about committing suicide without getting that kind of attention, then there is something seriously not right going on in your head.  

That is not a normal thing to do,  and if you are that distressed then you NEED TO BE GETTING HELP. 

 Not posting for pity points. 

I honestly do hope that they put you on some kind of crisis list, or keep you  under observation because you need it.   

but sure, I’m the heartless evil cunt for doing that.   You are unstable and out of control lashing out at anyone who disagrees with you and then playing the victim  when called out about it.

2 more things of note.

stop telling people I owe you money.  There is NO COMMISSION. you wanted me to purchase something for you from overseas,  you have your goods  that transaction is completed.   I OWE YOU NOTHING. as for your OC.  I will be wrighting them out of the story  immediately. 

However  you get no say in how it’s done.

You voided that right  the second you decided to go down this path.  

This is the biggest loss  my readers were really fond of her,  she was one of the more popular members of the cast.  

But since you don’t want me using her anymore and quite frankly the idea of keeping her on disgusts me now she will be removed from the story. the fact that you would tank our entire friendship over something as minute as being asked to leave someone who respected you and acknowledged you for you and was making an effort not to dead name yous  comment section alone because it was distressing them.

Says volumes about the type person you have turned into. when I first met you , you were meek , scared  but you still had kindness in you. now all I see is  an abusive manipulative spoilt brat who can’t handle even the slightest inconvenience.    

I mean it with FULL CONVICTION when I say you have become the very person you have been running from all this time.    

I have ended friendships over less in the past and you have had a front row seat to that.   I honestly thought you were a better person than this, but you have only proved me wrong. I’m not going to fight for a friendship when the other person only wants to be coddled and treated like a delicate flower. Life isn’t like that. I hope the rest of you also wake up to what this person is doing.  

They self-sabotage on purpose. we have been close friends for over 6 years. I’ve helped her thru several crisis points during that time and have been nothing but supportive of her.  but you won’t hear about any of that.  because now I am a “snake” as she so puts it.   

I know what abuse looks like , I’ve lived thru it my self I know that the signs are. I know what its like to be suicidal  I HAVE been in that position my self. but the people who weaponize their conditions to get their way , or to get out of being accountable for doing something selfish and harmful to others are the absolute worst kind of people.   this friendship is over. you have given nothing and made no attempts to save it. cuss me out all you like .  tell your followers what ever the fuck you like.

but you will never be able to escape the fact that you wrought this upon your self by being selfish. you burnt this bridge.

[flipthispage]

I’ve spent a lot of time thinking over the year that’s passed.. & honestly? Idk who even reads the shit I post here anyway, but if you do, Idk, here’s me & my life in all it’s transparency.

The last ‘holiday’ I had was back in 2017, after I completed my 1st year in Uni. The 3.5/4 months break was such a relief after a year of frantically studying to make good grades. But when school started, I realised so many of my peers had taken on internships/PT jobs to build their resume. My grades were always mediocre at best, and I felt like I had to do something to. From being in my CCA exco and holding the top 4 positions for 3 years straight, to interning during the summer holidays, during school semesters where the work load was lighter (comparatively), teaching tuition PT, I worked myself to exhaustion & landed myself in the A&E because I’d (nearly) passed out. I rushed through modules because I felt that no matter what, I’d never be a straight A student so I had to do whatever it took to get a leg up in society. I cleared my modules in 3.5 years with the intention of doing an internship while I finished up my FYP, hoping the company would convert me. During the search, I stumbled upon a job ad at Dyson and tried my luck. Who knew that my over ambition at being able to work and study FT would be a blessing in disguise because COVID hit.

For the longest time, I felt guilty every time people shared their worries or struggles about finding a job. I get guilty that I had more than them. And it took months before I realised that hey, they could have had what I had if they’d made choices similar to me. I created my own path that allowed me to be one step ahead. Was it easy? Definitely not. I spent hours working on my FYP late into the night, turning up for work distracted and lacking sleep which led me to having to OT to complete my work. The cycle just goes on. My colleagues & boss were amazing at giving me the support I needed to finish school on time. For that, I’ll always always be grateful.

But life hasn’t always been so easy, it hasn’t always been smooth sailing. In my final semester in Poly, my parents separated and that was the last I saw my dad. 6 years, without a word. The only reason I know he’s still alive is because he meets my sis once in awhile. Halfway thru Uni, my older sis left & the house because some sort of war zone. Mother had depression and tbh? I really didn’t know what to do. I was an unemployed 21/22yo with a. Good 2-3 years of Uni ahead of me and dropping out wasn’t an option. People always say I live a good life because I’m always seen enjoying good food & going overseas. But people don’t see the fight I’ve put up against all odds.

I’ve had every reason to give up. People would have been sympathetic to my situation. But each time life threw something at me, I fought threw every emotion that was holding me back, and used it as a springboard to go even further. Sometimes I wish life were easier, simpler. But it isn’t. Sometimes I feel like giving up. But I don’t have that option. So sometimes I lay in bed, let all the bad things wash over me, let the tears flow freely, and wake up telling myself that it’s time to fight another day. And that’s me. In all transparency. Far from the perfect life, still struggling like crazy, but learning to see the good amidst all the bad.

[mulderspice]

have you ever watched an episode of the Emmy award winning sci-fi drama, The X Files?  Maybe you’ve read my original post and yet you’re still wondering where the hell Fox Mulder got all those strands of hair on his jumbo gigantic head.  I am back and here to help you find the answers to some of your burning questions; as we celebrate the hard work and triumphs of the hair and makeup department on the Fox Lot and team up with my big huge brain and my New York State Cosmetology license to give the people what they want once again: another top ten guide to Mulder’s fucking hair..

upon making this post a second time (rip 😔), I realized that just about every episode (yes, every. single. one. even the ones without Mulder and the latest season where he has to share headspace with [redacted]) has its own important and iconic hair looks... You may recognize that some of these are slightly repeated from the last post but that’s ok! What I'm here to do is enforce! So lets get started..

#10 s6:e21 Field Trip: Here again we begin our journey into cosmetic superstardom with a personal favorite of mine.  Mulder rolling with the times by getting a haircut fresh off the FTF wave left our nation in fucking shambles. Can’t imagine going to see a major motion picture in theatres jam packed with Mulder’s most supreme hair looks only to come back to my tv screen to see it all gone away.  For students reading this post for educational purposes, this caused a worldwide walkout on popular salon franchise Supercuts in the year 1998.  However, a haircut didn’t necessarily mean Mulder forgot how to take care of his hair.  The precision and placement as each strand of hair perfectly outlines his jumbo head is revolutionary and inspiring.  Mushroom induced drug high? K. Lemme still grab my teasing comb and my hairspray and make sure I look presentable for when my partner walks into my apartment screaming abt “where's Mulder” and wanting “answers”.  The answer is this: this look is about giving people like myself with big heads rights and looking fuckable while doing so. 10/10 for inspiring hope.

#9 s1:e9 Space: Imagine you’re a few episodes into a show, the core plot is developing right before your eyes and you’re beginning to get to know The X Files three main characters; Fox Mulder, Dana Scully, and Mulder Hair Strands #1-3.  All is well except, you still have no clue how crucial, and critical Mulder Hair Strands 1-3 will become to the show and to your life and I am here to tell you that you are in for a very rude and bold awakening.  This message goes out to all the haters and all the people who didn’t believe Mulder’s hair was valid prior to season 4. He is here to tell you he DID know how to use dry shampoo and even the occasional blow dry oil and you can suck a dick abt it. Bold of you to assume he wouldn’t pull the round brush and the biosilk out the drawer to impress a visit to fucking NASA. 10/10 for involving science.

#8 s4:e6 Sanguinarium: I sit here writing to you today as the song ‘Handmade Heaven’ comes on shuffle; strikingly fitting for this raw and ethereal image of straight up beauty and wonder and magic and heaven in hair. This special, freshly washed and air dried smells like strawberries and sandalwood and fuckability. The look reaches through your TV and wraps its hands around your neck and sucks the life right out of you.  Are you gonna let it happen? You sure are.  Lucky for you, I just so happened to be there when the angels hand sewed each strand of hair onto his head and here’s what they had to say about it:  this is everything and more and the way Mulder has just washed his hair with fresh mountain water droplets hand collected like nothing else mattered. Put his clothes back on and went on his merry way. Can’t imagine being in Scully’s shoes ready to walk on in her partners room unannounced to go over serious case related matters and theories.  Woulda went bonkers. This truly is a handmade heaven.  Hand crafted by Mulder for Scully and for the good viewers of the globe. 10/10 for embracing me in its arms.

#7 s4:e3 Home: A look from one of primetime TV���s most notorious banned episodes.  Viewer discretion IS advised not only for the horrifying and cringeworthy content displayed in this episode, but for also making it painfully blunt to the viewer that Mulder’s hair follicles are happier and healthier than anybody else's will ever be in their lifetime.  In fact, I can feel my own hair falling out and being respawned onto HIS head as I type this and I’m sure you can too. The way the sun glistens off his golden brown strands makes me want to walk into oncoming traffic.  You might also notice how effortless this look was, as it probably only took a quick run thru with his fingers, and Mulder’s passion and need to look sexy at any time of the day at all times. It’s obvious that this kind of thing comes naturally to him, which just comes off as insulting to men everywhere. 11/10 for striking fear into men’s hearts.

#6 s4:e20 Small Potatoes: Genuinely took every bone and nerve ending in my body to not put this look in the top 5 even though it so clearly deserves it.  Here at mulderspice we believe in diversity, meaning it wouldn’t be right to make my top five greatest hairstyles ever produced on The X Files just of Mulder’s iconic and revolutionizing middle part (though really who is stopping me..). This screenshot in general has me up in arms at how perfectly the blue background matches his eyes, and how it accentuates his hydrated skin and lips.  But you’re not here for that. It’s the hair particularly that really pulls the shot together, as Mulder took the time that morning to spray it with some tinted dry shampoo that most defiantly and absolutely smells like chocolate.   This look feels like a warm hug on a frigid winter day. I feel EMBRACED and I feel CARED FOR thanks to the wonderful staff and team @ Mulder’s head and hair follicles. What the fuck could be better than this. 16/10 for making me feel some type of way.

#5 s4:e8 Tunguska: Currently you may not think anything of Krycek to the left of this image though ill have you know he plays an extremely vital part of this look and all the words I’m about to speak to you directly. So listen up: Krycek may have heroically slayed Mulder’s father in cold blooded and justifiable murder, but we thank him for this, as it caused Mulder to lash out in the best way possible: through looks. “Un-shun: Krycek do you think I’m good to bring my Redkin Rewind 6 styling paste with me or will the Russian TSA think of that as contraband? :Re-shun”.  A sweaty, manly and highly illegal treck through a Russian testing facility and a stint in a violent foreign PRISON surely was not going to stop Mulder from keeping his hair properly hydrated, styled and parted. That’ll really ruffle Krycek’s feathers and make him feel sorry for what he did…. The sexiest way to avenge the death of your deadbeat father. 24/10 for you know why.

#4 s1:e6 Shadows: In the year 1993, Mulder steps onto the scene, young, fresh faced, bright eyed and ready to give men around the globe what they (so desperately) needed: the encouragement to care about their hair.  Any backstreet boy you may know have this scene to thank directly, as this is what encouraged them to reproduce Mulder’s hair onto their own heads time and time again.  What I would give to see with my own eyes Mulder length times width times height his head to equal this perfectly proportionate look of volume and sexy. And who can I write a warrant out to for allowing this shot to take place.  Oh to be the various and expensive hair care products in Mulder’s bathroom …… 899/10 for starting a movement (-1 for making us do equations).

#3: s1:e10 Fallen Angel: The biggest regret I’ve ever had in my short little life was not adding this moment to the last post.  And tumblr deleted it in order to give me this opportunity to present this to you today.  By the way, that absolutely is in fact a choir of angels singing as you view this image. Go ahead and try to think of something on this earth that could be better than this tossled bed headed im-stressed-becos-my-partner-of-2-weeks-isn’t-seeing-the-big-picture-about-how-we’re-all-key-pawns-in-an-ongoing-government-conspiracy hairstyle hand crafted by Mulder all while holding his head in his hands hard at work trying to break through to the truth.  Scully [insert photo of Scully with her eyes popping out of her head here] and I both wanna rip our own hair out and throw it in the garbage. 2000/10 for making our hearts ache..

#2: s4:e10 Paper Hearts: Behold- the image I’m slamming down on the desk at full force when I finally get myself a therapist. I need a licensed professional doctor to help me understand the various angles that this purposeful shot affects my life health and well being. In a paranoia induced out of body experience Mulder took his pinky finger and parted his hair down the middle, took a protractor to perfectly round the tendrils falling ever so gracefully on his forehead and ran out of his apartment and through the woods of DC.  Doesn’t matter if he’s crazy? Doesn’t matter if its fuck all 4am? Who knows if the discoveries of this night is finally going to answer the heartbreaking questions regarding Mulder’s baby sister? Fuck it we’re just gonna make sure Scully has something to look forward to after being awoken yet again in the middle of the night and asked to come wrangle and control this stupid idiot.  This just makes me unhinged.  50000/10 for waking up in the middle of the night and doing the most for us all.  

#1 s4:e3 Teliko: This one will remain number one for as long as I shall live.  I’ve dedicated my life to this cause and I’m ready to make you painfully aware of it. Grab a pen and paper and get ready to do some heavy math with me because this look right in front of your eyes is the equation to happiness and sexiness. Can barely find the words to describe to you how this picture makes me feel. Each strand of hair is personally reaching down and wrapping his head in one big giant hug of protection and solitude.  Unbelievable that Scully didn’t head back to her hotel room and scream at the top of her lungs right after this. There’s no way she went about her day as normal without wanting to kick the shit out of him and then put him back together with soft feathery kisses.  What you are witnessing here is the very turning point of the show where Scully looked into into the very center point of that part and said “guess I have no choice but to fall in love with him 🚶🏽‍♂️”. Chris Carter’s idealistic version of Mulder and the one we actually ended ups seeing as viewers were so drastically different that it’s blatantly clear that he had absolutely no idea the cultural implications that were about to rock the world to its core and tip it on its axis when David Duchovny showed up on set looking like this. I could write a thesis about this. I could conduct research and studies about this.  I got kicked out of college because I cared more about this than I did actual schoolwork. I feel like I’m in a very sexy chokehold. Wish I could live forever in one little square pixel of this image.  Nothing means more to me than this.  1000000/10 no further comments.

and the honorable mentions go to....

s8:e16 Three Words: Dead? Did you die? Did you die and miraculously defy god by rising from the dead and coming back to life? Just got home from the morgue? Think nothing is the same? Left guessing if you’re a soon to be 5 minute father? Did you just fucking die? He’s lost his family and his job and the world just went on without him like it was nobody’s business.  Walked out of the morgue right to his apartment and what did he have left? His expensive array of hair styling and finishing products that’s what the fuck he had left.  Being an all around reject from society didn’t at all stop him from taking his fingers and dipping it into that Big Sexy styling pomade and fluffing his head to high heavens. As a personal fuck you to god and to John Doggett too.  He’ll never let you know the emotional hellstorm going on in his life in that moment but he WILL make it known to you that despite being 8 feet under ground for 6 months he’ll never give up on his hair. For the PEOPLE. Try and go through the nightmare of death and then rejected fatherhood and see if you come out of it with any hair at ALL.  An itty bitty glimpse into what would have been Untitled Mulder Abduction Story (2001)....

I Want To Believe (2008): Here you will see the sluttiest moment in major motion picture history.  Shh im not using this opportunity to show you this screenshot for the 800th time I’m trying to keep you educated.  BREAKING NEWS; Man hiding in home office for 6 years fully off the grid has FULL head of hair and is getting regular sex *not clickbait*. So what if Mulder has gone fully unhinged and off the walls bonkers he’s also gone FULL slut and it shows in that sexy thick voluminous head of slut hair.  If you ever for a second thought prior to seeing this movie for the first time that Mulder would show up a full on son-less wreck and a half think the fuck again babes.  He’s managed to hold on to every single little strand ever grown on his head even well into his middle aged madness and its about time we give him the credit he deserves.  (PS. Please know I wrote this entire spiel without even viewing the shot shown here. Its just permanently etched on the inside of my forehead so its there when my eyes roll back into my head.)  For this we say…..; Whore rights.

s11:e3 Plus One: Incase you were unaware, I have been going through a very slow and painful process of erasing Season 11 from my brain completely.  Its been a long road but its achievable and the end result will save me from a lot of future heartache and trauma.  This however, is a moment I will cherish forever and though you may think its for the hot sex (which is like maybe 30% the case) its actually because it puts together everything I’ve ever loved and believed about the show in only a few thousand pixels. How old is Mulder here? 30? 31? Still has hair and still has an unbelievable amount of love to shower Scully in for as long as they both shall live (which lets face it, she deserves one million times over.)  What this has taught me was to hang up my “Mulder deserved…” hat for good and just be thankful for what I’ve got. I ended up with no son or happy dreamy ending where Mulder gets to die with a family he’s never had in his life, but here we are left with the little things.. Like Mulder and Scully’s unconditional love and most importantly .. The hair on Mulder’s head. Its called growth and acceptance and I am learning it.  Also I just wanted to show you what it would look like if you were like 57 and sexy and still had all ur hair. That’s it :-)

[toddbeeson]

Ghost Busting

The spirit appears and works in mysterious ways.  Last Tuesday, I revisited my collection of writings to find something I had written in November of 2006 and had posted to my MySpace account.

I found a list of 20 things that I written about, made some slight edits and added another item to the list!

See if you can detect what song was the subject of 19-21.

Read below to find out!

Connecting thru music!

More musical gifts Current mood:  awake

I can’t sleep…I feel like a detective possessed by solving a mystery…kind of like they do in the movies…the person has no real home life, they just have to solve the mystery.  Ever since the Rick Allen incident, I have been followed by Def Leppard music. Lately it has turned itself up a notch…the songs come flying at me instantly. Check out these recent events involving Def Leppard and a few companions…I will type this up in a chronological form.

1) Oct 9th, 2006.  While  I was driving back home to LA from El Capitan Canyon, north of Santa Barbara, I pondered on a Jack FM concert that I saw in August.  Before that concert, I had told my brother that I would only go if I could go as a VIP.  Well...that never happened...until the actual day of the show my good buddy Jason had an extra couple of tickets--  he won VIP tickets.  It featured Def Leppard as the headliner.  I thought about that band a bit on my drive.  As I was driving I had to pull over to go to the can at a gas station near Calabassas…and somehow met the Def Leppard drummer, Rick Allen (i wrote a song called “Whistle on the Pot” inspired by the story.  Long story short– we were in line for the bathroom…however he didn’t even end up going to the bathroom– so it seems he was there just because I thought of him– it was very surreal.)

2) I started hearing Def Leppard songs everywhere…I wish I had written them down…but you’ll see how they showed up in November.

3) Fast Forward to Friday, Nov 3. I had a date that night…on my drive to her place, my choice of car music was the U2 album “Unforgettable Fire.”

4) Saturday, Nov 4. Oops…I find out I left a mark on my date’s neck.  It was embarrassing, frankly.

5) Sunday, Nov 5. The very next morning while walking in Trader Joe’s I heard “Love Bites” by Def Leppard– Laughed out loud…now that is funny!

6) Monday, Nov 6. My radio alarm clock wakes me up to “Foolin’” by Def Leppard.  True! Not foolin ya!

7) Just before bed time, I sent an email to that same woman I am dating w/ the song “Sugar” in it by Dan Wilson and express that it was beautiful when she mentioned the word “Surrender” to me a few weeks previously.

8) Tuesday, Nov 7. The next morning, I woke to a song called “Bad” by U2 from their “Unforgettable Fire” record... just before Bono sings the line “Surrender.” Amazing...

9) Later that evening, I entered my studio w/ my Itunes on random playing the song, “Pour Some Sugar On Me” by Def Leppard…thousands of songs and it happened to be a DL song w/ the word “Sugar” in it.  Wowza...

10) Wed, Nov 8. My date called to say she heard a song at yoga class and wanted to know what it was…she sang a few lyrics, I knew it to be “Landslide” by Stevie Nicks/Lindsey Buckingham. I told her that Lindsey Buckingham is actually playing The Wiltern Theater and that I would mail her an mp3 of “Landslide.” I found “Landslide” on “The Dance” album of Fleetwood Mac. Also on it, an amazing version of Lindsey playing and singing “Big Love” acoustically and forwarded that song as well.

11) Thurs, Nov 9. I taught the song “Blackbird"  to a guitar student. Later, I did an IM (Instant Message) with a friend who just happened to be emailing with the songwriter, Paul McCartney, at that moment.

12) I visited my friend’s place and told him that I am reading the book "Living, Loving, and Learning” by Leo Bascaglia…he then pointed to a bunch of furniture in his home that used to belong to Leo.

13) I made arrangements to attend the Lindsey Buckingham concert…which I gracefully got to attend for free.

14) Friday, Nov 10. I attended the LB show…walked into it late…but perfectly about 10 minutes before LB plays “Big Love.” He performed it intensely and the crowd erupted…I sat and then stood in wonder.

15) Sat, Nov 11. Upon returning home from the health club in my car, I listened to a radio station that was going to play a song by a band called Wired All Wrong…I turned the station because I thought that the name choice is not very ultimate (My band, The Lift, had a song called Wired- -which is about being connected to peeps) and turned it to a station that happened to be playing “You Can Go Your Own Way” by Fleetwood Mac, sung by Lindsey Buckingham…and performed by him the night before…now that was the station for me! The next song, “Pour Some Sugar On Me.” Okay…I am starting to go thru the roof with this…thankfully, I was driving my bro’s convertible!

16) Sun, Nov 12. I told a few friends all these stories…including my bud, Braden.

17) Mon, Nov 13. I got in my car to go teach elementary schooI and  turned on the radio to find a re-broadcast of the in-studio appearance w/ Lindsey Buckingham– within a minute he is playing “Big Love” live…I called Braden to tell him…he happened to be listening to “Landslide” at the time. HOLY FREEKIN $#*t!!!

18) I emailed a few peeps about #17- including my brother, Brett.

19) While emailing my brother during a school break, a student came back into class during recess..and mentioned that her “uncle” had written and recorded a popular movie soundtrack song from the mid 80’s– I told her that I happened to know him and that his wife was my modeling agent.

20) Ten minutes later, I called my brother to get his reaction from 1-18…he then said, “I don’t know what to think about it, though I did hear a song twice today, and I had not heard that song in years.” That song happened to be the song in #19.  He had no idea of #19 when I called him...

Speechless.

21) Tuesday, October 13, 2020, I read this writing for the first time in years…and I had just one guitar lesson for that day…and guess what…my student asked to play the song that was the subject of #’s 19 & 20.

[sunny-day-sky]

Tagged by @elinaline 💜 thank you for this! I like these things!

1. What is the colour of your hairbrush?

Pink

2. name of a food you never eat?

Bananas 🍌 generally, I’m not too picky, but I can’t stand banana at all! 

3. are you typically too warm or too cold?

Too warm! I am a Furnace 🔥

4. what were you doing 45 minutes ago?

Looking at memes and replying to a few messages!

5. what’s your favourite candy bar?

I don’t like candy that much, so probably just a plain dark chocolate bar that isn’t too big or sweet

6. have you ever been to a professional sports event?

Like semi-professional, I guess? My mom got free tickets through work, and I hated every minute of it

7. what is the last thing you said out loud?

“Tomorrow, they will take my blood.” (I have to get a blood test done for one of my medications LOL)

8. what is your favourite ice cream?

Strawberry or coffee, but if it’s frozen yogurt, then cookies-and-cream!

9. what is the last thing you had to drink?

A Monster energy drink (the pink one). But actually, I should probably have some water. What a good reminder!

10. do you like your wallet?

Yes! It’s a little red designer wallet that one of our family friends gave me as a graduation gift after my senior recital in high school, and it makes me look like I have more money than I do unless you open it! :D

11. what was the last thing you ate?

Leftovers from dinner, but it was breakfast food, because Emily and I are ADULTS and ANARCHISTS 😤

12. did you buy any new clothes last week?

okay yes but it only cost a few pounds, and I hardly ever do, like this is the first time in a long time, so please don’t judge me :(

13. last sporting event you watched?

I actually don’t know! I don’t tend to watch sports! I think the last one I was even near was the televised horse race with robot horses, but I was cooking at the time, so I didn’t absorb much!

14. what’s your favourite flavour of popcorn?

I have to say, nothing really beats classic salt and butter, but tajin is a good addition 😋

15. who was the last person you sent a message to?

Chanel!

16. ever go camping?

Not willingly.

17. do you take vitamins?

I take vitamin D when I’m reminded to 😅

18. do you go to church every Sunday?

Not unless I’m performing or with family

19. do you have a tan?

Nope! I did once, when I did outdoor PE in summer to get it out of the way before my sophomore year of high school, but it r e a l l y didn’t suit me LOL

20. do you prefer Chinese food or pizza?

Chinese food all the way! Especially “real” Chinese food (like, the kind I would cook for my relatives, you know), but commercial food is delicious too!

21. do you drink soda with a straw?                      

No, I drink it with alcohol 🧐

22. what colour socks do you wear?

Black, because then I don’t have to sort them, and Emily and I can just grab! I have some cute socks from Daiso, but I left them in California by mistake

23. do you ever drive above the speed limit?

Only like 20 miles above if someone is riding with me, but when I’m by myself, all bets are off 🚗🌬

24. what terrifies you?

It’s a good question! I feel like I’m afraid of really random stuff. I also don’t want to make this post too depressing or Deep, so I’ll just name one! I’m afraid of dark windows at night, especially when I’m looking out through them.

25. look to your left what do you see?

My water bottle, neglected all day 😭

26. what chore do you hate?

Washing dishes. It’s the worst! Even cleaning the bathroom is better!

27. what do you think of when you hear an Australian accent?

To be honest, when I hear any accent that isn’t mine, I sort of linguistically analyze it and think to myself how cool and awesome it is. I like to hear linguistic variation, and it makes my ears so happy to hear other people talk!

28. what’s your favourite soda?

Probably ginger ale, but I don’t really drink soda unless it’s a mixer

29. do you go into fast food places or drive thru?

It depends on what I’m ordering, if I have a coupon, or if I’m in a hurry (or wearing an ugly outfit LOL) but I usually like to go in!

30. who was the last person you talked to?

Emily in person; Natalie over text!

31. favourite cut of beef?

It’s hard to say! I think it really depends on how I’m cooking it, and for whom. Brisket is great for slow-cooking, but if I’m making a steak, I’d rather use a more tender cut. Probably the best is strip steak, because it’s cheap 😅

32. last song you listened to?

Anywhere by Rita Ora

33. last book you read?

I’ve been doing really bad with reading lately, unfortunately, so probably Proust?

34. can you say the alphabet backwards?

If I tried, I probably could! But when you really think about it, why is the alphabet in that order? Does backwards really mean anything? 🤔

35. how do you like your coffee?

Cream, no sugar

36. favourite pair of shoes?

That’s a tough one! I love shoes! Maybe my black heels that I got just before the lockdown (they were on sale), or else my pink pumps

37. the time you normally go to bed?

When I’m on a healthy (for me) schedule, around 11 or midnight, but lately, my sleep cycle is all kinds of messed up, and it’s been closer to 4AM :/

38. the time you normally wake up?

I prefer to wake up at around 6:30 or 7, but recently, it’s been... not that.

39. what do you prefer, sunrise or sunsets?

I think it depends on my mood. I love both, but for different reasons. Sunrise feels fresh and beautiful, while sunset feels exciting and cool. But right now, I think I would like to see a sunset!

40. how many blankets are on your bed?

Just the one

41. describe your kitchen plates?

We all sort of use each whatever is to hand, so there’s no cohesive theme. I do want to buy a matching set for me and Emily when we move out, though!

42. do you have a favourite alcoholic beverage?

Whiskey all the way!

43. do you play cards?

Not well, but my siblings and I do like to play together when we hang out, especially on holidays. There are four of us, so it’s convenient for dealing!

44. what colour is your car?

Black! But I had to leave her in California-- unfortunately, it’s frowned upon to bring cars on international plane journeys :(

45. can you change a tire?

I know how to in theory, but I’ve never done it

46. your favourite province?

I’m going to interpret this as “state” because I am but a simple American :/ California is the best, of course!

47. favourite job you’ve had?

Violin teaching 🎻 unless you count working at the psycholinguistics lab in college, but I didn’t get paid for that LOL

48. how did you get your biggest scar?

Most of my scars are not fun, but I do have a cool crescent-shaped one from my one and only car crash!

49. what did you do today that made someone happy?

I told Cesar where to read the Hunter X Hunter manga, and I feel like that should count for something 😛

I’m not explicitly tagging anyone, because this is very long! But if you see it and want to do it, just go right ahead and say that I tagged you :D You can even list me as “an anonymous source who tasked you to do their bidding” if you want :D

[theseadagiodays]

May 4, 2020

This is Not a Performance

Irving H Bolano’s incredible repurposed newspaper fashion for the Met Gala Challenge on Twitter #HFMetGala2020

May the Fourth be With You as you reach the next chapter of this current sci-fi drama we seem to be living through.   As the saying goes, reality can be stranger than fiction.   But it just happens to be a many red-eyed virus rather than an evil, black-masked father that we’re fighting as we all walk around like Storm Troopers.  

There are so many aspects of our lives, during Covid, which make it feel like we are actors in a make-believe story.   First of all, we’ve all become movie stars, with our faces, homes, and even pets showcased on our own silver screens.  As isolated as we are, our private lives now play out in the public sphere more than ever - no paparazzi required.    For some, this invasion of privacy is unwelcomed. But for many people, it satisfies a secret longing to share themselves with a wider audience.  After all, deep down, everyone wants to be seen and heard (I guess, me included, since I have this blog, after all).  It’s why TikTok and YouTube and Facebook have become multi-billion dollar companies so quickly.  And now, while this pandemic is a harsh daily reminder of the impermanence of all things, it makes sense that these digital missives are an attempt to seek immortality, in some strange way.

As someone whose work responds to human’s need to have a voice, I truly get why this is the case.  And I love that this time has turned housewives into opera stars, and health care workers into hip hop dancers, and housepets into circus performers. But, at the same time, I have become very aware of the masks that we wear, even inside our homes, to portray a certain self to the world that may stray quite far from our authentic selves.  The expression “dance like no one is watching” acknowledges the fact that we all tend to perform when we have an audience, and perhaps we’re only truly ourselves when we don’t.   I understand that the way we “perform” ourselves online gives each of us a chance to reinvent the fictions we want our stories to have.   So, while I surely take some guilty pleasure from intimate glimpses into strangers’ lives, I also do so with a certain skepticism about the veracity of what I’m seeing.  

This became particularly true for me when I received a recent link from my friend and amazing singer/songwriter, Dominique Fricot. Capitalizing on this current trend of oversharing, he cleverly asked his fans to film their morning routines for the music video of his new song, Wake Up, by his duo, Flora Falls.  Dom’s warm tenor voice blended with his partner’s breathy tones feel just like a lazy morning in bed.  But I’ll leave it up to you to decide just how accurate these portrayals of people’s idyllic daytime rituals actually are.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EbsqXou5FeY

May 5, 2020

Homeschool Heroes

About twenty years ago,  I was invited to adjudicate a youth music competition in the Yukon.  Travelling to one of the northernmost inhabited spots on earth, I imagined that my greatest surprise might have been a polar bear or Northern Lights sighting.  But it turned out to be something entirely different.  Among the 25,000 residents of the thriving metropolis of Whitehorse exists a treasure trove of talent.  I could not believe the incredibly honed skills and nuanced expression with which these 11-18 year-olds played.   Wondering why, I developed a theory that I now call SLoW: Sheltered Living Wonder.  When long, dark days, cold climates or pandemics force people indoors, they tend to spend inordinate amounts of time on creative endeavors and skill development.  In other words, they slow down and take time for wonder.

This theory has surely applied during these past few months of sheltering in place.   One of the most remarkable examples has been the inventiveness that many of my friends have brought to their first attempts with homeschooling.   So, I wanted to give a few shout outs to some of these Homeschool Heroes and the highly imaginative projects they’ve done with their kids.

Stunning Easter Eggs made from natural materials and dye, by my friend Jane Cox and her kids  (Botany lesson)

Candy Covid virus, made by Amelia, my friend Jen Sanke’s daughter, as she learned about the virus’ proteins (Biology lesson)

But perhaps the prize for most complex homeschool project has to go to my architect friend, Bryn Davidson, who upon returning from Australia, in late March, had to fully quarantine for 2-weeks.  So, with his 5-year old son Bei as helper, this Physics lesson allowed him to enjoy home delivery beer while in isolation.  Just brilliant!

https://youtu.be/FF9-2dWoUtc

May 6, 2020

Living in livestream

So today, 5 million British Columbian’s awaited our “sentence” with baited breath, as word spread that our provincial prime minister would deliver the Re-Open BC plan at 3 pm.   I have to admit, it felt a bit like when you were “grounded” as an adolescent and then your parents returned certain privileges to you.  Of course, I’m well aware that our province has already been far more licentious than many places around the globe.  We’ve been fortunate to maintain reasonably low numbers of infection (just over 2,000), with counts as low as 8 new cases per day, at this point. So, while our provincial parks closed, our beaches never did.  While we were encouraged, within a reasonable range of home, to be active outdoors, we were not restricted to walks only within the 100 metre radius of our house, as my Israeli friends were.  And while we could still shop at gardening and furniture stores, to make sheltering at home more enjoyable, New Zealanders had nothing but grocery stores and pharmacies open, for two months.  

I have sensed the gratitude my fellow Vancouverites have felt about these privileges.  But that does not mean that we aren’t still anxious to return to other aspects of living which we’ve missed.  When lockdown began, ominously on the Ides of March (the 15th), I’d harboured a secret hope that certain restrictions might be lifted on my birthday (exactly two months later).  And it turns out that Phase Two of the BC ReOpen plan will commence on May 19th, just 4 days later than I’d hoped.  What I most look forward to experiencing again are small gatherings with friends, (we’ll soon be allowed to socialize in public with up to 10 people); meals inside certain restaurants and pubs (those that are able to function within WorkPlace BC’s safety regulations); visits to registered massage therapists; and hugs with select people, (”using one’s own ‘risk assessment’.”)

But in the long-range plan, the harsh reality for artists has been laid out, as Phase Four (which includes resuming large-venue concerts, conventions, and international travel) can not occur until either a vaccine has been developed, an effective treatment plan is widely available, or herd immunity is achieved.  And this is not estimated to occur until mid-2021 or later.  So, the prospects are still bleak for symphony orchestras, opera and dance companies, artists who perform in crowded bars, or musicians who travel for arena shows and festivals.  This likely means that in order to satisfy audiences’ need to access live performance, and for artists to continue to share their creativity,  livestream formats will still have to persist for some time.  Therefore, I thought I’d share a few regular weekly livestream arts events here, both from Vancouver, LA & NY.

Canadian National Live Art Champion, Dmitri Sirenko, who we featured at our non-profit’s annual benefit on February 20th, 2020

Every Monday Night at 7 pm PST (Vancouver) Poetry Slam: https://www.facebook.com/Vancouverpoetryslam/

Every Thursday at 5 pm PST (LA): LIVE Art Battles - Watch painters do their magic in just 20 minutes: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWJoWGVwzGtk99nTOCib9vg

Every Thursday at 8 pm EST (NY): Spotlight on Plays - famous actors perform readings of theatre pieces, online: https://www.broadwaysbestshows.com/post/the-best-of-series/

May 7, 2020

Collateral Blessings

So many thoughtful writers are adding to the discourse, as we all strive to make meaning from what can feel like a senseliess time.  I have so appreciated the abundance with which people are sharing these missives, right now.  Every day, bursts of inspiration or flickers of insight come my way, thru texts, emails and Facebook.  Like adventurers, traveling together thru the dark of night, we shine light on guideposts, anywhere we can find them, as we collectively quench each other’s thirst for wisdom.  

One of the most profound writings I‘ve recently discovered came from a stranger’s blog.  In The Examined Family, Courtney Martin, without ever diminishing the gravity of the havoc that this virus has wreaked, writes about some of the assets that have also come out of this time.  New friendships with neighbors.  A long-neglected puzzle completed with her kids.   The time to draw and truly notice an artichoke in her back garden. My good friend Juan calls these collateral blessings.  This reference to the accidental gifts that this cruel virus has given us, is a beautiful twist on “collateral damage”, a term coined to explain accidental friendly-fire deaths during the Gulf War.  Commenting on the anticipatory nostalgia that she projects she will feel about certain things, once this time has passed, Courtney writes:

“I instantly feel overwhelmed at the prospect of schedules and stuff. I don’t want to go back to our former accumulation or frenetic pace. I don’t want to stop texting (my neighbor) my little triumphs. I don’t want to forget about the artichokes in the garden. I don’t ever want to forget this happened--the grief and the beauty of it. I’m not even sure that will be possible, but if it were, I wouldn’t want it. I don’t want to vote like it didn’t happen. I don’t want to eat like it didn’t happen. I don’t want to consume like it didn’t happen. I don’t want to schedule like it didn’t happen. I don’t want to mother or daughter or befriend or neighbor like it didn’t happen. I don’t want to sit inside this little life, noticing and appreciating and breathing, like it didn’t happen. There is unnecessary suffering all around me, and inside of me, too, but there is also necessary meaning. May we hold on to that.”      

You can read her full entry here: https://courtney.substack.com/p/unnecessary-suffering-and-necessary?token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjo3OTg0NDcyLCJwb3N0X2lkIjozNzU1NDMsIl8iOiJCTnk2VyIsImlhdCI6MTU4NzA1MjgyMCwiZXhwIjoxNTg3MDU2NDIwLCJpc3MiOiJwdWItMjA5MjIiLCJzdWIiOiJwb3N0LXJlYWN0aW9uIn0.puI9NMne-783ypInpvTkJ96T237WcrTo2ItDhqlkMiY

May 8, 2020

Nostalgia

I’m rarely one prone to nostalgia.  My childhood photo albums are in storage.  I have no family heirlooms displayed in my home.  My tendency is to revel in the present or dream about the future.  But this pandemic has strangely turned me into a sentimental fool.  Perhaps this return to simpler times, where we seldom shop, where we wander mostly by foot, or where we get to know our neighbors better, makes us long for the past in certain ways.  

For me, I’ve honored this by resurrecting my daily teenage Twizzler habit - a candy I’ve rarely eaten since then, but that now feels so satisfying during my Netflix & Chill evenings (while watching films almost as old like Groundhog Day & Anchorman).  

I’m also listening a lot to Old School Hip Hop, where the explative-free rhymes of the 90’s feel so strangely innocent.  It’s refreshing to listen to these musicians spit verses that merely celebrate the joys of dance and rap, rather than ranting about gun violence and other societal ills.  Run DMC It’s Tricky (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-O5IHVhWj0) and Beastie Boys Body Movin’ (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvRBUw_Ls2o) happen to be personal favorites.  

Last month, I was tickled by an old memory while planting a lilac bush in my backyard.  I suddenly remembered a story about my college boyfriend, whom I hadn’t thought of in 30 years.  Our relationship started a bit secretively, so as not to hurt his ex’s feelings.  So, one May afternoon, we snuck away to a distant park that was hosting a Lilac Festival.  Unfortunately, our ruse was quickly spoiled when a candid photo of our picnic under the purple blooms was plastered all over the front page of the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle the next morning.  

Another sweet memory returned in culinary form. Every Tuesday, for 7 years, my mother selflessly drove me an hour from home and back, for my flute lesson.  And to break up the long drive, we regularly stopped at Bickford’s Pancake House for my favorite adolescent treat: breakfast for dinner. Their specialty was the Dutch Baby Apple.  And I finally made my first homemade attempt at this deceptively easy delicacy, last Tuesday.  

This has also been a time to return to bedtime stories (some I’ve read to friends’ kids, and others for adults to hear.)  The Great Realisation by British performance artist, Tom Foolery, has been making the social media rounds. But in case you missed this touching tale that looks back on this time as if the tale is being told in a not-so-distant future, it’s a wistful story about some aspects of modern life that we may never long for in the future:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nw5KQMXDiM4

[the50-person]

HONG KONG UPDATE 22 NOV 2019

Day 7 of Siege of PolyU

Related reading: https://the50-person.tumblr.com/post/189609691598/hong-kong-update-22-nov-2019

21-22 Nov night: Yuen Long. At least 23 arrests. Massive police presence. When citizens exited Yoho mall at 2200 after the mall sit-in, they were pounced upon.

21-22 Nov night, posted 0611: PolyU. 6 more ppl left campus at night, walking hand in hand thru main exit to be arrested by police. Over course of 21 Nov, about 20 left in total. Dozens estimated to be remaining.

Reminder: This is the sequence of events from 8-18 Nov. Chow Tsz-lok’s death on 8 Nov led to the week-long Operation Dawn and a 21yo being shot with a live bullet, which led to full-on sieges on multiple major universities and the most infamous CUHK siege, which led to students of all major universities barricading themselves inside in fear and anticipation of further attacks, which now leads to the ongoing police siege of PolyU. 

Apple Daily reports that some who left PolyU without arrest but with ID recorded were detained when they tried to leave HK. Their lawyer called it unreasonable to impose travel restrictions on someone who hadn’t been arrested. A group of youths had ID recorded and did not arrest them at PolyU. The police did not arrest them or contact them further after the recording of details, nor did the police say that they would not be allowed to leave the city. The group planned to travel for a trip to relax and even consulted lawyers, who said that it was ok for them to leave. K, one of the members of the group, had previously been able to leave HK for a trip even when on bail, so they figured it would be ok this time since no one was arrested. However, when the group went to check-in, an airline employee told them that their names had been placed on a list for reporting, and once they conduct check-in procedures, the airline would have to inform police. The employee advised them not to leave the borders. After discussion, the group decided to send one of their members to test (unarrested, no previous arrests, only ID recorded at PolyU). Immigration Dept detained him and K and the rest of the group left upon seeing it. The friend was brought to a police stn, where police arrested him on ‘rioting’ charges and denied him bail.  Problem: They were not arrested. They were not charged, nor on trial, nor denied bail, nor sentenced, nor serving time. Their travel docs were not confiscated. Police have ZERO rights to block them from leaving borders. Even under bail, police can only ask for monetary guarantee and binding over, and no other additional bail conditions may be implemented, including the confiscation of travel docs and restriction from leaving and entering borders. ONLY COURTS have the power to do that. Police have executively violated the Basic Law, which guarantees citizens the freedom of movement across borders.   A barrister points out that even for the arrested, “as long as they are not in court, you cannot restrict their freedom of movement across borders at all, not even for one day.” The barrister questions police: “He is not wanted by police, nor missing, why did you not arrest him on the spot (at PolyU) and yet arrest him now?” K questions the police: “So does it mean that I have no crime so long I stay within HK, but once I try to leave, you will arrest me?” K criticises police for limiting freedom of movement. “You cannot even keep any promise! You said that nothing else would happen after registering ID details, but in fact it’s not true, you come back to settle scores again after everything.” “If police don’t arrest me for my entire life, then it is unreasonable to restrict me from leaving HK for my entire life??? Don’t use these methods to trick ppl into coming out and make them believe it is just mere name registration, and then proceed to arrest ppl later.” Because such ppl are not technically arrested nor detained yet, they are also denied legal methods of protection such as application for protection order. K suspects that it is also to create white terror in preparation for the 24 Nov District Council elections.

0202: PolyU. Two types of citizens, one roams openly, one hides and is invisible. Number hiding unknown.

0339: PolyU. 6 just surrendered.

0412: PolyU. A first aider is searching for remaining citizens to convince them to surrender. He says he has convinced at least 20 to surrender as a group.

0517: PolyU. A social worker goes around checking for more citizens. It seems like there is still a group in hiding and scattered around the campus in isolated spots.

0840: Gov announces that they will deploy riot police to guard District Council elections. Antony Dapiran: Why not ordinary uniformed police? Deploying police in full riot gear with faces masked for all policing situations in HK has been a disturbing trend. Research by the overseas experts invited by the Gov have shown that it immediately raises tension and increases chances of conflict. HKers: “And that’s leaving aside the fact that they have a proven track record over the last 5 months of being complete lunatics.” ”They want to provoke a reaction and call elections off because of ‘voting violence’. I know this is tin foil hat time but the stationing of riot police instead of police uniforms is ridiculous.” ”Will ppl queuing to vote be attacked for unlawful assembly?” Heh, maybe that’s the point?

As of 21 Nov morn, out of at least 728 on trial, 3 protesting citizens convicted, all young (21, 16, 12 yo), 2 plead guilty. The cases of the 16yo (laser pen and umbrella boy) and 12yo (spraypainting boy) are ridiculous, if you have been following my posts. 1 Chinese 24yo pleads guilty, says he isn’t a protester. 1 pro-CCPer pleads guilty to assaulting students.

21-22 Nov: Police officer tells students still trapped inside besieged PolyU that they are irresponsible, brainless rubbish that he looks down upon. He says that the students eat cold bread that’s usually eaten by poor old ppl while police go to Shenzhen for hotpot and beer. Context: The bread the officer refers to so dismissively is Garden Life Bread, which he describes as being smth “usually eaten by grassroots elderly rubbish pickers” is actually a cherished Hong Kong icon. It’s like defaming national brands like Wonder Breads in US, or Warburtons in UK. Life Bread has a long history. In 1973, it was made nonstop 24hrs for 7 days to provide for soldiers to fight against Japanese intrusion. In 1956 riots, the factory was burnt down cos it protected the police (who were the good guys at that time fighting the Communists rioters). Now the police look down on it. :))))) Yooo take note of this point, it’s gonna become a recurring gag later on. HKers: “This shows police didn’t study well because PolyU students have alr been achieving higher grades but police are only satisfied in Shenzhen hotpot. The level of human needs is part of secondary education syllabus.” AKJLKJSKSKS “Hotpot and beer in Shenzhen...hotpot made with gutter oil.” “That’s what gives it that special flavour though. <_<” “I don’t understand why they (China) are called communism, more like fascism. There’s nothing wrong with living a humble life. That attitude of insulting someone who’s less fortunate...” “Reflects police ignorance. What citizens are fighting for is not temporary enjoyment of food, but for justice and liberty and the future of HK.” “The key point is that the police officer said that he and his colleagues will go to *Shenzhen* after work for hotpot and beer. They should just stay there.”

1243: Police Commissioner Chris Tang says police planning a high-profile presence arnd polling stations on 24 Nov and voters will feel safe when they see his officers are there. Hah. Sure. The only time ppl feel safe these days is when the police are NOT around. More like voter intimidation than voter protection.

1250: Medic gives detailed and disturbing acc of PolyU siege. “The HK Police have fallen far below accepted intl norms...The arrest of [medical] personnel is almost unheard of in civilised countries”. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(19)32909-5/fulltext Medical staff were threatened with arrest for rioting and some were tied up by the police. A presscon is later held where a consultant surgeon describes the horrific injuries at PolyU and the international violations committed by the police.

1453: PolyU. For the first time ever, canteen is devoid of citizens. Only ‘Chef’ left. He says he is staying on until police beat him to death. There is news that many citizens trapped inside are not in a good state of mind and grow increasingly recluse and mentally disturbed as they isolate themselves for a growing amount of time. As mentioned before, there are reports that staying inside is a form of psychological torture, so I’m not surprised that there are ppl gradually approaching insanity.

1457: CityU. Campus appears to be turning into a fort courtesy of university management, who have hired contractors to set up tall white boards to cover up perimeter of the campus...probably to prevent students from entering.

1536: Central, Tai Koo. Lunchtime protests. Loaves of Garden Life Bread are alr making their appearance. They are placed along the streets in silent mocking of police.

Emerson: 61% of US voters are watching or following the political protests in HK. A significant majority at 50%% think HK shld be independent from China. Asians as an ethnic group were the most in support of independence at 78%.

Do not assume that all District Council election candidates that list the 5 demands are pro-democracy or bona fide. Beijing has placed fake pro-protest candidates to split the pro-democracy vote. 1. Look for the Power for Democracy symbol on their banners. They are supported by the mainstream pan-democrats. But it must also be noted that this not necessarily mean they have mainstream views. It just means they’ve undregone prelims/negotiations with the traditional pan-dems, though there are also ppl aligned overall with the pro-dem movement but where negotiations btwn them and the pan-dems have failed. 2. Look for an endorsement by a more established pro-democracy figure, as shown in banners, leaflets and Chinese media reports. Rare but not unheard of for veteran politicians to be tricked to endorse candidates wit ulterior motives. There are a bunch of ppl who have been taken on as proteges by the veteran pan-dems - Claudia Mo has some, and I know another guy selected a successor. 3. Look at the date they submitted their nominations. Not conclusive but bona fide candidates from pro-Beijing and pro-dem camps usu submit candidacies early. Later, someone throws their hat into the mix. 4. Look at Chinese media coverage. Check out coverage on Apple Daily, InMedia, Stand News. 5. Look at whether they have any other platforms.

Chinese fake news shows photos of PolyU students who surrendered wrapped in blankets, and says they had hypothermia because they were addicted to drugs, not because they had been attacked by water cannons. “No wonder they were so crazy and brave, because they were on drugs.”

HK hospitals: Hospital staff express concern that police entering hospital rooms to arrest and interrogate are becoming a commonplace occurrence and that it may lead to protesting citizens requiring medical care avoiding the public health system for fear of arrest. HK Public Doctors’ Association questions police’s actions and stressed the need to protect the rights of the patient. Staff argue that admin managers of the Hospital Authority are also suppressing freedom of speech among health care professionals. The HA has instructed staff not to participate in public assemblies and express opinions on protests, claiming it affects hospital operations. Reporter Galileo Cheng shares his personal experience: Police suddenly crashed into ward D4 on 22 Jul 0637, woke him up and tried to interrogate him about 21 Jul pro-CCP triad attacks. Doctors forced them away. He comments that it’s going to be harder now since police have become more armed since then and now carry firearms.

Police Commissioner Chris Tang says that there is no deadline for clearance of besieged PolyU.

1625: PolyU. There is still fresh fruit left. Canteen has been cleaned up and supplies have been consolidated. Trash has been picked and packed into bags and recycling has been sorted out. But overall, the canteen and entire campus are still a big filthy mess. Starbucks is burnt and destroyed but nothing looted from there. 7-Eleven looted, seemingly because supplies are running low (it was already low on the first day of the siege). Ppl still mostly ate from the pantries and the supply stocks though.

Posted 1718: 21yo shot by police on 11 Nov is discharged from hospital after losing a kidney and half a liver. Is charged with unlawful assembly. Contrary to evidence and reality, police originally said he was suspected of assaulting officer and attempted theft of pistol, and the boy could be charged with additional offences. Charged with participating in an “unlawful assembly” and it becomes solid enough ground for shooting him at point-blank range? This charge also just proves that the police officer misjudged the boy’s intention. Police officer is also not fired, disciplined nor prosecuted. No action taken against him.

Posted 1735: 15yo boy shot in head by teargas canister in Tin Shui Wai on 13 Nov is still in critical condition after 9 days and has not regained consciousness. He is able to breathe on his own again without the aid of a machine.

Posted 1812: Hermit shares that he now knows of 2 separate groups who have successfully broken out of the PolyU cordon. He says that the latest breakout was done in broad daylight because the kids are smarter than the police assigned to kettle them inside. Obvsly, Hermit doesn’t reveal the escape details to prevent the police from discovering the security gaps but he is also deliberately releasing such news so that police will waste extra resources to look for the holes and become distracted.

1828: High Court rules mask ban unconstitutional and NOW REINSTATES IT FOR SEVEN DAYS. Legal clarity and judicial independence NOT. Gov has asked court to temporarily suspend its ruling while the issue goes thru the appeals process. Court says it would not do this and only agrees to grant a short interim suspension until 29 Nov “in view of the great public imptance of the issues raised in this case and the highly exceptional circumstances that HK is currently facing”. Rubbish of an excuse. HKers: “If it’s unconstitutional, it’s unconstitutional right from the start. What do you mean allowing smth unconstitutional to carry on until a certain date? What logic is this?” “A court issuing a suspension of its own judgement?” “High Court?! High on what I wonder...” “ ‘I know that is wrong, but let’s continue doing so.’ ” “I really don’t think it would happen in a society which values human rights. How can a judge rule to sustain a law that is unconstitutional and violates human rights if humans are valued?”

1903: icablenews files complaint against police for their “violent treatment” of its 23 journos and news workers, such as throwing teargas canisters, spraying water cannon and pepper spraying them. First media organisation to file complaints collectively.

Posted 2158: PolyU. Reporter Laurel Chor says that there seems to barely any citizens left inside, estimating 15-50. At least, she doesn’t see any.

[marias-studyblr]

Hey! How are you? You doing okay? I don't know if your exams started already but good luck! You can do this!! Also I wanted to ask, did you make any goals for 2019? If so, what are they? (if you're ok saying them) For me I want to get my erasmus placement, raise my level of spanish and manage my time better so I can do more of the stuff I like outside of college! Silly one: what Hogwarts house are you? anyway, I hope you're well! Good luck and take care 💛

hello!!

before I give you my update, this is really interesting: I used pottermore to sort myself in a hogwarts house in my 8th-9th grade, so 5-6 years ago, and I got sorted into gryffindor. and since then, i considered myself a gryffindor. and I hadn’t taken the test again.. until today. I was interested in how the website had changed (was pleasantly surprised) and overall curious if I would be sorted into the same house, so i created a new account and retook the test.

and I got sorted into 💛 hufflepuff!💛

i was so surprised because I was expecting to see gryffindor, and as i was taking it in, it made 100% sense to me. I completely see myself as a hufflepuff, and have been for a while buried in my subconscious.

in these 5-6 years I changed to the core of my being. i am not recognizable inside out. I am NOT the same person I was. it is only natural my house would change. upon reflection, I feel like I do have strong traits from both houses, but from people who know me and from looking at my own habits, tastes and personality traits, I think dear dear hufflepuff profoundly suits me best.

I am very fond and proud of my house. 💛🌱

just imagining the sweet common room with the tones of yellow and brown, wood chairs and tables, filled with plants and tangling warm sunlight coming thru the window, with the sound of the singing birds and the fireplace in the background, makes me feel extremely warm and safe.

somewhere i’d be very happy! in the future, it will be fun to see how i will decorate my apartment and what environment i will create for myself and call home.

I continued the sorting and did my patronus, which wasn’t around when I last did the test (the quiz was really really cool) and my patronus is a Borzoi! i love it. so. much. :’’’) 💓 (you can read more about what it means here)  i wasn’t expecting a dog, but once again, it matches perfectly with my personality. i definitely am a dog person, i find safety with dogs. and a true story: i have a stuffed dog ever since i can remember that was given to me when i was a child and that has been guarding my bed still to this day.

I don’t remember what my wand was, I retook it and my wand is a cherry wood with a phoenix feather core, 10 ¾" and quite bendy flexibility. this is the info about the wand (: in case u also obsess over this like i do :)

🌱 ~ cherry: this very rare wand wood creates a wand of strange power, most highly prized by the wizarding students of the school of Mahoutokoro in Japan, where those who own cherry wands have special prestige. The Western wand-purchaser should dispel from their minds any notion that the pink blossom of the living tree makes for a frivolous or merely ornamental wand, for cherry wood often makes a wand that possesses truly lethal power, whatever the core, but if teamed with dragon heartstring, the wand ought never to be teamed with a wizard without exceptional self-control and strength of mind.

🍂 ~ phoenix: this is the rarest core type. Phoenix feathers are capable of the greatest range of magic, though they may take longer than either unicorn or dragon cores to reveal this. They show the most initiative, sometimes acting of their own accord, a quality that many witches and wizards dislike. Phoenix feather wands are always the pickiest when it comes to potential owners, for the creature from which they are taken is one of the most independent and detached in the world. These wands are the hardest to tame and to personalise, and their allegiance is usually hard won.

🍵 ~ quite bendy flexibility: wand flexibility or rigidity denotes the degree of adaptability and willingness to change possessed by the wand-and-owner pair - although, again, this factor ought not to be considered separately from the wand wood, core and length, nor of the owner’s life experience and style of magic, all of which will combine to make the wand in question unique.

i would love to know what yours are too :3 feel free to lmk! ~~  

update:

today was my first exam and ⭐ I PASSED my pharmacology class!! ⭐

¼ done! I didn’t get an A, which was my goal, I got a B, but still am very proud of myself. I learned a lot from this class, I love knowing more and more about medicine.

one of my academic goals for 2019 is to raise my gpa so that’s why i want to have more A’s.

I wrote my goals for 2019 in my planner, divided them into sections “finances”, “habits”, “physical health”, “mental health”, “academic” and “social media”. each one has more specific goals like

save enough money for a trip with my mom in 2020

read 30 books

start using downtime more mindfully (more educational videos, documentaries, books, editing)

maintain normal fitness (blood pressure, blood sugar, weight)

maintain a healthy lifestyle - specifically eating habits and exercise regimen

sleep. SLEEP like a normal human for the love of god maria, please sleep your deserved 8 hours and don’t settle for 4-6 

improve my gpa

continue enjoying my university journey, with disciplined and organized studying

go eat with friends more

as always, keep improving the quality of my posts on social media and post as frequently as I can

overall I am striving to feel accomplished, organized, disciplined, happy. I want to be able to trust myself completely. leave behind, let go of anxiety, sadness that has happened. be able to handle challenges that will come for sure.

one year can change so much. can’t even begin to imagine what this 2019 will bring.~ 🌱💕

everyday we grow more and more.

as always thank u sooo much for writing to me, i really really appreciate it you angel ❤❤ it’s always amazing to hear from you. 🐇 have a great day/night!

[johnchiarello]

Mark 7

POSTED BY

CCOUTREACH87

⋅ APRIL 16, 2017 ⋅

LEAVE A COMMENT

MARK 7[Happy Easter to all] 2 Corinthians 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations https://youtu.be/zqFdLxeaDtI Mark 7 https://ccoutreach87.files.wordpress.com/2017/04/4-11-17-mark-7.zip https://ccoutreach87.com/4-11-17-mark-7/ ON VIDEO- [I also taught the verses from past Sunday’s Mass- and CCCF] .Honor the heritage of your fathers .Was Jesus forsaken? .Yes .Bishop Mulvey got it right [Pastor Don too] .Wash your hands? .Oral tradition .Not just words .Corban .Primary focus on giving in the N.T. – meeting the needs of community .See the dogs .True apostolic teaching .Polycarp .Easter- resurrection- Good Friday .Some have made it about money [sow your best type thing- and get a harvest]. .It’s not about that- at all [New teaching below] 18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; 19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Peter-

NEW- Before I get into Mark 7- I want to share an insight I had right before making the video. I was mediating on this verse Exodus 31:17 It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.

As I was thinking about the season we are in [Easter]. I thought ‘how does God rest’. After all- he is God. Never runs out of energy- knows everything- you know- the classic attributes of God. During this time we celebrate the death- and resurrection of Jesus. In is humanity [not deity] he was able to die- to be the sin offering for man. After his death- he was raised. But that’s not all- he ascended into heaven and SAT DOWN on the right hand of God. Yes- he rested. The bible says- Acts 15:18 Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world.

In a way- God rested after the creation of the heavens and the earth. Jesus was slain form ‘the foundation of the world’- Revelation 13:8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

Yes- the predestined act of death and resurrection and ascension- already took place- before all things were made. God is outside of time. So Jesus not only experienced the pain and agony- but after the assignment was completed- He rested- at the right hand of God- Hebrews 1:3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high: In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations Hebrews 10:12 But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations

Amen.

NEW [Mark 7] In this chapter Jesus is questioned by the religious leaders- Mark 7:5 Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashen hands? Now- The Pharisees – with all good conscience- truly believed the Tradition of the Elders was part of authentic worship of God. They believed that God passed down ‘traditions’ given to Moses- that were not contained in the Old Testament. So- the question could have been answered by Jesus simply explaining the difference between the sacred scripture- and tradition. But look at his response- Mark 7:6 He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. Mark 7:7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. Why so mad? We read that they did lots of other things- beside this- Mark 7:13b and many such like things do ye. The 3 year ministry of Jesus- was not only doing all the miracles- but also perceiving how far the people were from God. And they simply had no idea that they were missing the mark. Jesus teaches his men that true purity is not an outward matter- but one of the heart- Mark 7:15 There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man. The sins of the flesh proceed from a corrupt heart- the religious leaders managed to purify the outside- but inside were ‘full of dead men’s bones’- Matthew 23:25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Matthew 23:27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness.

He told them that thru their tradition- they actually skirted the real Word of God- Mark 7:9 And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition. How? God commanded to meet the financial needs of their parents. The ‘tradition’ said- if you dedicate these things to God- the material and financial stuff- then you were ‘free’ from having to take care of your parents- Mark 7:10 For Moses said, Honour thy father and thy mother; and, Whoso curseth father or mother, let him die the death: Mark 7:11 But ye say, If a man shall say to his father or mother, It is Corban, that is to say, a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; he shall be free. Mark 7:12 And ye suffer him no more to do ought for his father or his mother; Mark 7:13 Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, So- thru their tradition- they disobeyed God’s word. On the video I got into this dynamic a bit more- and talked about how we in our day might be making the same mistake. Many believers give a portion of their income to the church- which is ok. But often times we feel that met our obligation- and if we see a person in need- well ‘we already gave at the office’ type thing. I have written about this dynamic before- and if I can find it I’ll paste it below. We end the chapter with another miraculous healing of a deaf and mute person. Jesus not only taught doctrine- but he demonstrated the compassion of God. He was able to see behind the façade that many had in his day. When we read of the sharp rebukes of Jesus- to seemingly ok questions- it’s because he saw the heart of man. In this chapter Jesus quotes Isaiah- Mark 7:6 He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. Mark 7:7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. I used to think just the first part was the quote [verse 6]

But I went and read the verse from Isaiah- Isaiah 29:13 Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men: He quoted the whole thing. Yes- the prophet of old- by the Spirit- saw the same condition. And when we read the ‘fury’ of an Isaiah- or John the Baptist- or even Jesus. It’s because the Spirit of God was revealing the hidden mystery of sin- John 16:8 And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: The people themselves had no idea how far off the mark they were. And it took this type of ‘radical preaching’ to show them the error of their way- so to speak. VERSES Genesis 2:2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations Genesis 2:3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made. In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations

PAST POSTS- Below are my past teachings- bible books I quoted on today’s video- and things that relate to today’s post- MARK 7 MARK- https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/02/28/jersey-city-ride-mark-1/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/03/02/mark-2-north-bergen/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/03/04/mark-3-isaiah-61/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/03/14/mark-4/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/03/27/mark-5/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/04/05/mark-6/ https://ccoutreach87.com/1st-2nd-corinthians/ https://ccoutreach87.com/john-complete-links-added/ https://ccoutreach87.com/galatians-links/ https://ccoutreach87.com/romans-updated-2015/ https://ccoutreach87.com/james-2015/ I talked about New testament giving on today’s video- below are my little books I wrote years ago- they deal with this subject as well- https://ccoutreach87.com/the-great-building-of-god/ https://ccoutreach87.com/house-of-prayer-or-den-of-thieves/ https://ccoutreach87.com/further-talks-on-church-and-ministry/ I mentioned Polycarp on today’s video- below are my past teachings where I mentioned him [see- that’s why you see these sections on the teaching posts] Introduction; Yesterday I took my kids to the mall after church, I usually get lost in the book store. Even though I bought an entire shelf of books a few months back, I still can’t help from buying more books! So I picked up a few more and found a comfortable bench and started reading the History of Christianity. At the house I am almost thru with another ‘history of Christianity’ that covers the story of the church from Pentecost to the present day. I own a few complete volumes and have checked out many from the libraries over the years. I read from both the Protestant and Catholic [Orthodox] perspectives. I also read from the ‘out of the institutional church’ perspective. These are the histories of various groups of believers who never became Catholic, Orthodox or Protestant. I consider all these groups Christian and appreciate the tremendous wealth of knowledge that these communities provide. Now, as we go thru Acts, I want to stay as close as possible to both the doctrine and practices of the early church as seen in scripture. We are not the first [or last!] study that has attempted to do this. That is attempted to ‘get back to the original design’ as much as possible. Historically you have whole categories of believers who fit into this mindset. They are referred to as ‘Restorationist’ as opposed to Catholic, Protestant or Orthodox. The Church of Christ, The Disciples of Christ, the Anabaptists and others fall into this class. I believe you find true believers in all of these groups. As you read the history of Christianity as told by the other perspectives, you will find it interesting as to the way the institutional church describes these ‘out of church’ groups. Some are called heretics [Waldensians] others are simply seen as fringe groups. The strong institutional church has branded those who would reject her authority as schismatics and heretics on the grounds of their refusal to submit to the hierarchy of the institutional church. As we go thru Acts, I want us to read carefully and see the story as told by Luke. We will not find ‘another more true group’ in the sense that I want to start some new denomination. I also don’t want to simply find proof texts to justify doctrine. Many well meaning believers can find the verses they like the most and use them to combat the other points of view. We will see verses emphasizing the importance of water baptism, or various truths on the outworkings of the Spirit. We will see prophets functioning and read texts that clearly teach Gods sovereignty [as many as were ordained unto eternal life believed]. Instead of getting lost on these side trails, I want us to read with an open mind and allow our beliefs to be shaped by ‘the story’. I will spend time defending my own view of Local church. Not because I believe ‘my view’ is the only thing worth arguing about, but because I believe we see the intent of God for his people to be a living community of believers in this book. Right off the bat we will see giving taught in a radical way. The early church at Jerusalem will ‘continue in the Apostles doctrine and breaking of bread and prayers’. They then sell their goods and distribute to all who had need. Where in the world did they get this idea from? The Apostles doctrine obviously taught the plain teachings from Jesus on sharing what you have with others. So instead of seeing an early tithe concept, you see an early ‘give to those in need idea’ straight from the teachings of Jesus. We will see this early Jerusalem group meet daily, as opposed to seeing ‘Sunday worship’ as some sort of New Testament Sabbath. Of course this group will meet at the Temple [actually an out door courtyard called Solomon’s Porch] and from ‘house to house’. But the simple realty of Christ’s Spirit being poured out on them as a community of people will be the basic understanding of what ‘church’ is. You will find citizens of many surrounding areas going back to the their home towns after Pentecost. These believers shared the gospel with those in their regions and this is how the early church would spread. Some commentaries will show you how when Paul will eventually show up in Rome there already was an established church there. They obviously heard the gospel from these early Roman Jews who were at Jerusalem during Pentecost. So we will see ‘church planting’ from the paradigm of simple believers going to areas with the message of Christ. Those who would believe in these locations would be described as ‘the church at Corinth’ or ‘the church at Ephesus’ and so on. So we see ‘local church’ as communities of believers living in different localities. We will see the development of leadership along the lines of ‘appoint elders in every city’. Not a top heavy idea of ‘Bishop’ in the later sense of Catholic belief, but a simple ordaining [recognizing!] of those in the various cities who were stable enough in the basic truths of the gospel, that in Paul’s absence these elders were to be trusted as spiritual guides. Now, many of our brothers can trace the historic office of Bishop as a fairly early development in church history. Polycarp and others were considered direct disciples of the Apostles who would be seen as Bishops and even write of the importance of Bishops for the church ‘Where there is no Bishop there is no church’. This will cause many well meaning believers to eventually become Catholic/Orthodox as they read the church fathers and see the very early development of Catholic Christianity. In many of the church fathers writings you will also see an early belief in the Eucharist as being the actual Body and Blood of Jesus. To the consternation of many Protestants you even find Luther condemning fellow Protestants for not taking literally the words of Jesus ‘this IS my Body’. Now, I will not defend transubstantiation, but try to follow the trend lines in Acts as to the lack of this doctrine being a part of the early church. We will find Paul’s letter to the Corinthians addressing the Lords Supper, but for the most part we do not see a strong belief in the transmitting of divine grace to the soul thru the eating of Christ’s literal Body and Blood as they ‘broke bread’. We do see the sharing of the common meal and the ‘Eucharist’ as one meal called the ‘love feast’. Only later on in church history is there a division made between the full fellowship meal and the Eucharist. So to be frank about it, I will challenge both our Catholic and Orthodox brothers on some very fundamental beliefs. Well I hope this brief introduction sets the proper tone for the rest of this study, God bless you guys and I hope you get something out of it. John. [parts]

Mark 7:1 Then came together unto him the Pharisees, and certain of the scribes, which came from Jerusalem. Mark 7:2 And when they saw some of his disciples eat bread with defiled, that is to say, with unwashen, hands, they found fault. Mark 7:3 For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, except they wash their hands oft, eat not, holding the tradition of the elders. Mark 7:4 And when they come from the market, except they wash, they eat not. And many other things there be, which they have received to hold, as the washing of cups, and pots, brasen vessels, and of tables. Mark 7:5 Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashen hands? Mark 7:6 He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. Mark 7:7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. Mark 7:8 For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do. Mark 7:9 And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition. Mark 7:10 For Moses said, Honour thy father and thy mother; and, Whoso curseth father or mother, let him die the death: Mark 7:11 But ye say, If a man shall say to his father or mother, It is Corban, that is to say, a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; he shall be free. Mark 7:12 And ye suffer him no more to do ought for his father or his mother; Mark 7:13 Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye. Mark 7:14 And when he had called all the people unto him, he said unto them, Hearken unto me every one of you, and understand: Mark 7:15 There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man. Mark 7:16 If any man have ears to hear, let him hear. Mark 7:17 And when he was entered into the house from the people, his disciples asked him concerning the parable. Mark 7:18 And he saith unto them, Are ye so without understanding also? Do ye not perceive, that whatsoever thing from without entereth into the man, it cannot defile him; Mark 7:19 Because it entereth not into his heart, but into the belly, and goeth out into the draught, purging all meats? Mark 7:20 And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. Mark 7:21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Mark 7:22 Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: Mark 7:23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man. Mark 7:24 And from thence he arose, and went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, and entered into an house, and would have no man know it: but he could not be hid. Mark 7:25 For a certain woman, whose young daughter had an unclean spirit, heard of him, and came and fell at his feet: Mark 7:26 The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by nation; and she besought him that he would cast forth the devil out of her daughter. Mark 7:27 But Jesus said unto her, Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it unto the dogs. Mark 7:28 And she answered and said unto him, Yes, Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the children’s crumbs. Mark 7:29 And he said unto her, For this saying go thy way; the devil is gone out of thy daughter. Mark 7:30 And when she was come to her house, she found the devil gone out, and her daughter laid upon the bed. Mark 7:31 And again, departing from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, he came unto the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the coasts of Decapolis. Mark 7:32 And they bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech him to put his hand upon him. Mark 7:33 And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue; Mark 7:34 And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. Mark 7:35 And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain. Mark 7:36 And he charged them that they should tell no man: but the more he charged them, so much the more a great deal they published it; Mark 7:37 And were beyond measure astonished, saying, He hath done all things well: he maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak. 7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. 8 And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9 Of sin, because they believe not on me; 10 Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; 11 Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. 12 I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. 13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 1Corinthians 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; 1Corinthians 15:2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. 1Corinthians 15:3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 1Corinthians 15:4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world. In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations Psalm 110:1 The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my righthand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations 41 While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, 42 Saying, What think ye of Christ? whose son is he? They say unto him, The son of David. 43 He saith unto them, How then doth David in spirit call him Lord, saying, 44 The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool? 45 If David then call him Lord, how is he his son? 46 And no man was able to answer him a word, neither durst any man from that day forth ask him any more questions. Matt. 22 2 Timothy 4:6 For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations

http://www.corpuschristioutreachministries.blogspot.com https://www.facebook.com/john.chiarello.5?ref=bookmarks https://ccoutreach87.wordpress.com/ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZ4GsqTEVWRm0HxQTLsifvg

https://plus.google.com/108013627259688810902/posts https://vimeo.com/user37400385 john chiarelloFollow On https://www.linkedin.com/home?trk=hb_logo http://johnchiarello.tumblr.com/ http://ccoutreach.over-blog.com/ Note- Please do me a favor, those who read/like the posts- re-post them on other sites as well as the site you read them on- Thanks- John.#

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Mark 5

Mark 1

Mark 3

[malmuses]

A Very Human Risk - Part 1 - Sam

Author’s Notes:

My very first fanfic, not to mention the first thing I’ve written in at least 10 years. Eek! This tumblr is really for myself, to prove that I can do it... but just in case anyone stumbles across it, here’s a quick Authors Note and summary.

There are 6 parts to this fic, from various character points of view, and an epilogue. (So technically 7 parts I suppose....) They are all already complete, but I plan on posting them separately over the next couple of weeks after proofing and editing. If anyone reads, I’d love a message or comment to say hi! I’ll likely post a more in-depth authors note when I’m done.

This fic is set during early to mid Season 13, shortly after Cas’s return from The Empty. 

Summary

Team Free Will’s thousand mile journey home from a routine hunt is going to take a little longer than planned. Sam’s patience with Dean and his Angel’s lack of true communication doesn’t last that far...

Destiel, Humor, Optional Smut. GO!

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5

A Very Human Risk

Part One - Sam

Blood. Miscellaneous viscera. A small chunk of what might be intestine… more blood. Sam idly examined the stains on his pants while he waited for the lights to change. He was sat shotgun in the front of the Impala, ignoring the thump of his possibly-concussed head so that Dean could swing them through the drive-thru of a small mom-and-pop burger joint near Zebulon, North Carolina. Something clear and kinda greasy… was that spinal fluid? Some days, it was definitely better to pick a food option where they didn’t have to get out of the car. In the wide back seat, Cas shifted his weight forward and reached into the driver’s space. He seemed miraculously clean himself, but he had no qualms or squeamishness about the lump of something-or-other he flicked out of Deans sandy hair. There was a tiny plop as whatever-it-was landed on the dashboard.

“Hey, watch the tunes…” Dean grumbled mildly, pushing a slightly yellowed cassette of Styx songs away from the chunk.

Cas made no response, instead retreating to his often worn silent-but-listening expression and returning his gaze out of the window.

A few minutes later, Dean passed a large brown bag of warmth and questionable nutrition over to Sam, who settled it on his lap among the stains and began to rifle through as they made their way back to the highway. “They forgot a fork for my salad…” Sam lamented quietly.

“Guess you’ll have to eat it straight out of the bowl, like a true rabbit.” Dean offered with a slight grin. His words were teasing, but his tone was thin and tired. He shifted in his seat, wincing sorely at an assortment of minor wounds.

They had been on the road for several hours since they ganked a whole nest of vampires near the coast, trying to make sure they’d shaken a particularly curious traffic cop who pulled them on the way back from cleaning up the remains. He’d found no issue with the license of a certain Edward Halen, thank Chuck, but had seemed more than a little disturbed by the state of the car and its occupants. Dean had thought it best to ditch their plan to wash up in a nearby motel and stay on the road until they were well clear. Although filthy, beaten and in several cases bleeding, none of them were gravely wounded and they figured a good few hours of the road back home couldn’t hurt.

“You should rest soon.” It was a statement from Cas in the back. “Or at least shower…”

We must smell awful to him, Sam contemplated.

Dean opened his mouth to offer a quick retort, but after a couple of seconds he merely sighed and agreed. 

“Yeah. Let’s find somewhere with a room for tonight. It’s over a thousand miles back to Kansas, so we’re not getting back to the Bunker today anyways. Or at least a by-the-hour with a ton of hot water.” 

He paused briefly to check the traffic before swinging the car out onto the highway. “I’ll head towards Raleigh, there’s bound to be some kinda motel before we hit the city.”

Sam nodded idly, distracted by more pressing matters. “Dean, did you seriously order three cheeseburgers?”

“Yes.” His brother snapped, before rolling his eyes and relenting. “One’s for Cas, bitch.”

“Cas doesn’t eat, jerk.”

“Oh, but I can.” The speed with which Cas snatched the offending item from Sam’s hand was really unnecessary. Sam watched Dean’s eyes slide back to look at the angel as he unwrapped the greasy package, biting into the burger with a contented little sigh. His brother looked pleased with himself, a tiny smile curling his lip as their eyes caught and hovered for just a second too long, before Dean had to return his gaze to the tarmac. Sam said nothing; he’d been around these two long enough to know moments like that weren’t his to intrude on. The silence that followed though… that bugged him a lot more than it used to before.

* * *

Throwing the motel card to Dean, Sam ducked down into the driver’s seat of the Impala. 

“Go grab the first shower Dean, so we can get your injuries patched up…. Cas and I will run to that grocery store we passed and grab some beer and snacks for later.”

Without waiting for a response, Sam spun out of the Motel 8 parking lot. Looking over his shoulder he caught Cas’s slightly confused expression, but the angel said nothing and remained in place on the back seat, almost eerily immobile as the Impala lurched over the uneven gravel. It took only a couple of minutes to get to the Food Lion parking lot. As the car settled, Sam took the key and slipped it into his pocket, but didn’t immediately move.

“Perhaps I should fetch the beer, Sam.” Cas rumbled mildly. “For once, I may draw less attention.” He gestured to Sam’s splattered clothing.

“Yeah, I really took the brunt of the spray when Dean hacked that brunette.”

The door creaked as Cas began to open it.

“Cas?”

“Yes, Sam?”

Sam took a moment, before turning his giant form in the seat so he could look at the angelic face in the back, who still had one hand on the door handle. “Do you love my brother, Cas?”

A ghost of something shot across Castiel’s brilliant blue eyes before he responded. “Of course, Sam. You’re both family to me.”

Sam chuckled slightly, but it was a sad sound. 

“Of course.” Despite his tone, his smile to the angel was genuinely fond.  “But… I watched Dean grieve for you when you were in the Empty, Cas. I’ve seen him grieve plenty over the years…Grief for family. Dad. Mom. Bobby… For friends, for Charlie, Kevin, Ellen and Jo…. We thought you were really gone, Cas. Christ, I missed you too. It was awful. But Dean…. I’ve never seen him grieve like that Cas. He lost himself.”

The silence in the trench coat loomed for several moments.

“I’m so sorry you had to go through that, Sam.” His voice a soft, frustrated growl. “It was a stupid move on my part… I was reckless and you paid for that.”

“You made a snap decision Cas, we’ve all done worse,” Sam comforts. “But that’s not my point.”

Castiel’s gaze dropped down and he began to fidget uncharacteristically with his tie.

Sam thinks for a moment about how mad Dean would be if he knew this conversation was why he had kidnapped the angel from the motel. Eh. At least he’ll have something valid to be angry about this week.

“He broke, Cas. He hasn’t told you, but… When I say he lost himself? He almost died. I think he tried…..” Sam’s gentle voice trailed off momentarily as he became aware that he was now using the same tone to speak to Cas as he used to soothe distressed victims and the inevitable bereaved family members they often came across during hunts. “…I mean, I don’t know that he made the conscious decision, but… the day that you came back, he died. To find a ghost. He was gone for a long time… too long. I don’t think he really cared if he came back. Not with you gone.”

When the angel’s eyes rose back up to Sam’s face, the blue was dangerously dark and his brow furrowed noticeably. “You think Dean would give up like that? Because of me?”

“I think….” Sam spread his hands in a calming gesture. “I just think he was grieving for something… more.”

In a moment of bravery, Sam reached awkwardly into the back seat and rested his hand on the angel’s knee. “I just thought… if I told you, maybe…..” He trailed off, unsure now.

Cas looked down at the hand resting on his dress pants, his gaze giving away that it was a strangely alien sight. Cas and Dean shared friendly touches and personal space often. It was comfortable now, normal. But despite the occasional hug or shoulder clap in their history, Sam didn’t usually invade his space more than he had to. His brief smile was grateful.

His otherworldly blue eyes drifted out of the window and rested on an elderly man headed into the grocery store with a cart, following him for a long moment before he eventually looked back to the younger Winchester.

“Sam, you know that… closeness between Humans and Angels is frowned upon.”

It wasn’t quite an admission, but Sam caught it, a small smile breaking his huge face. 

“Being a rebel is hardly new to you, Cas… and it’s not like you and Dean could create a Nephilim or anything. At least, uh…” Sam’s brow furrowed. Could they? Angels didn’t even have a gender, so how much did the vessel really…..

As if watching the cogs in Sam’s brain turn, Cas interrupted briefly. “No. Male human, male angelic vessel. No Nephilim risk there.” He seemed slightly amused by Sam’s momentary confusion, something akin to a smirk briefly passing his lips.

“Right.” Sam’s laugh was somehow relieved. Good. That would be weird as fuck.

Minutes passed, in not totally uncomfortable silence.

“Sam?”

Pushing his hair back behind his ear, Sam quickly brought his attention back to the angel. “Yeah?” He tried for his best open, accepting smile.

“Am I to take it then, that… You would not be adverse to any change in mine and Dean’s… our… relationship? Such as it is?”  Cas seemed to stumble a little with the wording, finding his tongue betraying him in his moment of need, attempting to voice something he had kept unspoken for the best part of a decade. “I’m… nothing, really. Not quite an angel anymore, not quite a human…. and my vessel is male. Dean hasn’t ever indicated that he would, uh, want….”

Cas’s voice gives up the ghost entirely, a flush working its way out of his white shirt collar, much to Sam’s slightly cruel delight. He took a second to bite back a teasing response, not wanting to spook the angel in a pivotal moment. 

“Castiel.” Using the angel’s full name seemed to calm his gaze and bring his attention back to Sam. “You’re my brother, man. Maybe not by blood born...but damn, by blood spilled, you’re my brother. I can’t tell you what Dean wants, or for sure how he’ll react….but I know what I’ve seen, these past years. Life is too short… human life, anyway. I just wanted you to know so that… if you wanted to talk to him, you’d know you had my blessing and my support. Whatever happens.”

“What if he doesn’t want me, Sam?”

The gigantic Winchester was suddenly floored by the raw vulnerability in the angel’s voice. From his awkwardly turned position in the front of the Impala, all he can do is firmly squeeze Castiel’s knee.

“Well… that’s a very human risk, Cas. You may be an angel again, but you out of them all know what it is to feel…. and I think even as an angel you’re capable of sharing that terrifying little part of humanity. All I can tell you is that I’m here for you dude, as trite as that sounds.”

Cas can only nod, his gaze resting soulfully on Sam’s comforting hand.

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

That’s it for today! I’ll be back in a couple of days with Part 2, where we pick up with Dean.

Edit: This fic is now complete! 

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5 - Part 6

[cophoenixseo]

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[toddbeeson]

Guides/Ghosts/Spirits/Angels

I am going to remind you why I started these blogs to begin with...to point out that as a child I would point to lights and say “See.”  “See” was my first word.  This is directly such a story.

As a child my mother came to my room each night to pray with me and my brother, Brett.  Brett and I shared the same bedroom. We slept in twin beds. While my Pops was a traveling salesman and quite often away all week, my mom would prepare us for bedtime, turn out the lights, kneel down in the space between our beds and we would say the Lord’s Prayer.  If there was a special prayer request, she would include that as well.

Looking back at it now, it is a beautiful memory.  My heart is warmed at having shared time with my mother and brother in such an intimate, loving way.  Mom helped usher in the direct connection to God/Life/Spirit.

Also at that time, I would see shadowy figures standing around my bed. 

Yes, you read that correctly. 

They were different colors...and most easy to see when the lights were off. They almost looked like cartoon characters except for the fact that they appeared life size.  I couldn’t make out any facial characteristics.  They were just more of a shadow/shade thing that you could see through.  There actually was a real comfort in having them around during that time.  I never felt scared.  I do not remember how old I was when I stopped seeing them…maybe i was 5 or 6?...or probably shortly after I remember telling my mom that I saw such things as she was sure I wasn’t seeing anything.  She tells me now that she doesn’t remember this stuff at all.  i do-- I can close my eyes to this day and still remember what that bedroom and the shadowy figures looked like.

October 2002

After a traumatic weekend in Austin, TX that involved the closing of a relationship, the memory of the shadowy figures re-entered my mind.  I told a couple trusted friends about it.  They believed me and had heard similar stories, in fact.  My friend, Gigi, went on about how her child/son recalls details from his previous life...saying things and words that a child couldn’t possibly know.

I thought I was alone in sharing the expression that I had seen spirits.  I thought only “crazy” people see them!  But, I shared my memory anyway.  I had a feeling I needed to step into this truth and share it. (Btw- also in 2002 when I was staying at my ex-gf’s grandmother’s home in Galveston, I took pictures around her Historically protected home and although I didn’t realize it at the time that I was snapping pix, I did indeed capture a picture of a ghost-- you make out the details of an older woman! I have to find that picture!!)

After returning to LA a couple days later, I was asked to watch a 4th grade class for a half-hour while the homeroom teacher tended to another need.  She asked me to read a story, but could not find the book that she had wanted me to read.  So instead she had me read a story called,  “The Uninvited Guests.”  I was amazed as I read aloud to the class to find out that this “fictional” story was about a family that had moved to a house where ghosts lived.  The parents could not see the ghosts- only the children could see them!!!!!!

I told my truth and I felt validated.  My spirit was heard!   The timing of reading that story was perfect!!

Present Time

In keeping my interest of such stories and the wonderment of what happens to our spirit after we pass, I have read some books-- Brian Weiss’s “Many Lives Many Masters” -- which by the way I had actually attended his workshop in Austin, Texas that same weekend I was experiencing my break up and shared my shadow story with friends, Gigi and Josh...and most recently this past year my Pops gifted me books “Reality Unveiled” by Ziad Masri and “Journey of Souls-Case Studies of Life Between Lives” by Michael Newton. 

A week ago Saturday night, I felt exhausted and just wanted to sit back and watch some fun and silly movie before I faded to sleep...and had planned to watch Wayne’s World 2 as the movie just happened to illuminate itself from others -  I couldn’t even recall anything about the movie, so it would probably feel like the firs time watching it.  But before I watched it, I had a little ding hit me-- I felt inspired to read from Michael Newton’s book...so I picked it up off my nightstand and went thru the table of contents...leading me to wish to read the chapter on “Guides.”  

After I read a little bit and felt the gift of inspiration, I was now finally comfortable enough to allow myself to sit back and enjoy being entertained= I finally then felt it was now time to start watching Wayne’s World 2...and to my amazement and wonder, the movie pretty much started out with Wayne having a dream that he has a Native American Guide who connected him to Jim Morrison and on a mission...leading him to go on a faith-filled lark-- ultimately connecting to someone who had been guided by the same Native American Guide. Whoah!

It definitely now seems on this quiet Saturday night of relaxation and rest that I had again been led by a Guide to experience such a connection.  

I also had a flood of memories of those magical times I had been led in the past-- in previously posted stories.  To name a few:  I recalled having a dream in 2006 after a 13 year old girl I used to teach had died due to drowning while having an epileptic seizure while bathing alone-- in my dream she visited me in my bed to say she was fine.  I recalled my time being led to the Eden Prairie mall to run into a girl I used to date.  I recalled being connected with my ex-gf Lynn when she had lost her phone, but somehow happened to walk into the same place at the same time in a way that could never happen on a daily basis. Around 2007 I recall teaching my student, Charlie, the James Bond theme on guitar and being in such a flow I said now expect that your’e going to have a connection with James Bond-- and wallah-- I went downstairs to talk to Charlie’s mom...and she had a friend over who told a ghost story (out of the blue)-- one of which he mentioned he had visited an Irish castle that has a ghost-and he even added that he was there with the guy who played Q in James Bond movies(again w/ no knowledge of my having taught that song during my lesson)-- and many more stories= All feel Divinely guided.  

Last Monday (a couple days later) I woke up to the horrific news that a couple of old high school classmates (technically one was my year and the other was a year younger) had passed away unexpectedly.  Shocking and So so so sad.

It led me to picking up my Reality Unveiled and Journey of Souls books of my night stand at the same time...but I had to pick just one to read, obviously...and I settled on Reality Unveiled-- and just opening a random page.  I had a bit of trepidation to read that one at that moment, actually...as I heard my mind argue to just keep with the Journey of Souls per its magic last time.

But...as it turned out, I was correct...as the random page I opened to actually wrote specifically from the Journey of Souls book!  

It mentioned how when people die their spirits linger for a time on earth before going to a heaven place (no matter what their religion or beliefs, btw)..and that spirits are different shades of colors depending upon their vibrational frequency/energy.  Wow.  Dr. James Newton has scientific proof of such stuff having taped interviews with thousands of patients describing their in-between-time before re-incarnation.  

In a world where it seems that information/media/religion are being used for exploitation and selfish gain via misinformation, we can rarely trust what we see in front of us-- its even more clear that we need to carve quiet time-- to go inside/connect with our spirit and our guides...trust our heart and our truth...and know that without a doubt I have been shown so many ways that we are not alone in this life.  Ever.  We are always in the company of guides...and they help us in ways we might not even know.  

Its time to trust and remember this magic...more than ever.  

Thank you for reading this...I hope this helps you find peace, comfort, inspiration and trust in this world.

i wish you peace and magic.

Love, Todd  

Warmth by The Lift.