#i look at this and feel like my ability to invent patterns on the fly has gotten worse i dont remember what i was using as reference here

[calicotisane]

September 2022 when i was practicing lining without a sketch for no reason whatsoever. The guy is what tambor used to look like LOL

[fruitcoops]

Part 3 of the disowning fic where Sirius calls Reg and Remus tells James (with Sirius’ permission ofc) and when Walburga calls Reg, he rips into her like never before. James rushing to Sirius’ house and basically having to be restrained from going to her house with Reg in tow.

Hopefully that makes sense. Sorry it’s probably really badly phrased

This makes a ton of sense--thank you for sending it in! Writing Regulus is such a neat challenge, since he and Sirius are so similar and yet so different. Sweater Weather credit goes to @lumosinlove!

Part 1 II Part 2

TW for disownment and past child abuse (mentioned)

If Sirius ever met the person that invented showers, he would kiss them on the mouth. With tongue, if requested.

His phone hummed on the coffee table; when he made no move to grab it, Remus reached over and flipped the screen up. “Reg is on the way.”

Sirius hummed and cuddled into his chest, tightening his hold on his waist. Gentle fingers combed through his damp hair and he was warm all over in the best way. His face and eyes still itched a little, and his throat was raw from crying so hard, but at least he finally felt clean. The ache in his gut had dulled.

Remus pressed his lips to the space just above Sirius’ ear and wrapped his arms around him, tracing patterns on his upper back beneath his shirt. The skin-to-skin contact was something he never knew he needed so much—he couldn’t imagine living without it now. “We should go on vacation sometime this summer,” he mused, absently braiding a few locks of Sirius’ hair.

“Where?”

“I dunno. Somewhere warm, where we can swim and you can get all sexy and tan.”

Sirius laughed against his chest and breathed in the honey-lavender smell of his soap. “As long as you promise to freckle.”

He could feel Remus smiling. “I’ll do my best. It wouldn’t have to be a long trip, either—maybe a week in Florida, or California.”

“Alabama?” Sirius teased.

“Honey.” Remus kissed his forehead. “If you take me to Alabama—” Another kiss. “—I will take the biggest spider I can find—” A third kiss, so sweet in comparison to his playful threat. “—and put it in your shoe.”

Sirius snorted. “Just divorce me, that would be nicer.”

“Mmm, no, you’d miss me too much.”

“Put a spider in my shoe and we’ll see if that’s true.” Remus’ shoulders shook under him as they laughed and Sirius kissed his collarbone, then closed his eyes. “Do we have time for a nap before Reg gets here?”

“Maybe. How fast does he drive?”

“Not as fast as Pots—”

The doorbell rang, and then kept ringing; someone knocked insistently on the door, and Sirius groaned as he untangled his limbs from Remus and wandered over.

Regulus was not alone on the porch.

“What’s her phone number?” James demanded, practically smoking with fury as he and Regulus stormed into the house. He let out a furious breath when he saw the open envelope on the kitchen counter.

Sirius raised an eyebrow at his little brother. “Did you call him?”

“Of course I called him,” Regulus scoffed. “We also called Logan.”

“Isn’t he in Canada for the rest of the week?”

“Yeah, but he said he’d be here on Friday.” Regulus gave him a quick once-over and a stormy look came over his face. “When did she drop those off?”

“She didn’t. The mailman did, just after five.” Something bitter tinged Sirius’ mouth. “That was after she tried to make Remus give them to me.”

“What a bitch.”

“Reg!”

“It’s true,” Regulus snapped, though his anger was clearly directed elsewhere. “She’s a horrible coward and you deserve better.”

James held his phone up to get Sirius’ attention. “What’s her number?”

“I’m not giving you her phone number, J.”

“Reg, what’s her number?”

Regulus bit his lip for a second, then shook his head. “She won’t know who you are, and she would sue your ass faster than you could blink if you lost your temper on her. Me, on the other hand…”

Sirius put his hand over Regulus’ phone. “Don’t do this. If she disowns you, too—”

“If she disowns me I’ll throw a fucking party!” Regulus all but shouted. The room went silent. “I am sick and tired of hiding and watching them hurt you. She doesn’t control me anymore.”

“I’m not letting you get hurt for me.”

“And I’m not asking for you permission.” Regulus stepped back and dialed a number; in the kitchen doorway, Remus and James watched them in a mix of shock and concern.

The call connected and Regulus’ whole face went stony. “What is it, Regulus?” a tinny voice asked.

“Is it true?”

“Is what true?” Walburga sniffed. “Please, Regulus, we’ve discussed this. You have to clarify your intentions—”

“Did you disown my brother?”

“He’s not your brother anymore.” Disdain dripped from her voice and Sirius’ throat constricted as cold fire lit in Regulus’ eyes.

“He’s more family to me than you ever were.” His tone was even and deadly.

“Don’t be ridiculous—”

“Shut up.” A protective urge jolted in Sirius’ gut and he almost smacked the phone out of Regulus’ hand. “Just shut up.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“You’re a coward and a liar, and I hate you.” A fine tremor slipped through and Regulus gritted his teeth. Remus touched Sirius’ elbow gently, and he gripped his hand tight.

“Listen here, you silly boy—”

“You don’t get to hurt him anymore. Sirius is a better person that you could ever dream of being and the fact that you can’t accept when your own son is happy—”

“He disgraced us—”

“You disgraced us!” Regulus snapped. “You and your rules, your blood money, your parenting that belonged more in a prison than a house! I’m not stupid, Mother, I know what you did was wrong!”

There were a few beats of silence. “I did what I did to prepare you for the real world.”

“The real world doesn’t give a ten-year-old a black eye for breaking a plate.”

Sirius closed his eyes and clenched his jaw as Remus inhaled sharply next to him; James cursed under his breath. The plate had been one of his grandmother’s, part of a twelve-piece set that they were using for Thanksgiving. One flipped corner on the rug had sent him flying, but the porcelain shard in his hand had hurt less than Walburga’s fury.

She was breathing hard on the other end of the line. “The world is a cruel place, Regulus.”

“No crueler than you.”

“Watch your mouth, you ungrateful child, or you’ll find yourself in the same shoes as that stain on our family tree.”

A flinty look came over Regulus then; if Sirius didn’t know better, he’d say he looked almost smug. “Do it. I dare you to look the media in the eye and tell them you disowned one son for being happy and the other for calling you out on your terrible parenting.”

“We disowned him for being a failure and a disgrace.”

Grey met grey as Regulus spoke next, his gaze never flickering from Sirius’ eyes. “Happily married to the love of his life, youngest captain in the league, with two Stanley Cups under his belt? Doesn’t sound like a failure to me, and far from a disgrace.”

Remus squeezed his hand as Sirius swallowed back a few tears that had started to gather. He offered a weak smile and the corners of Regulus’ eyes crinkled slightly.

“I’m hanging up the phone now,” he said, smooth and collected. Walburga was utterly silent. “Never contact me or my brother again. If you disown me, at least have the dignity to do it in person.”

He hung up and slid his phone into his back pocket. “Jesus,” James half-laughed behind them. “Remind me never to get on your bad side.”

“That was really brave, and really stupid.” Sirius said as he walked forward. Regulus met him in the middle, tucking his head under Sirius’ chin in a tight hug. “Thank you.”

“Brave and stupid, huh? I’m turning into you already.”

Sirius flicked his ear with a grin, but never loosened his hold. “Brat.”

“Love you.”

He closed his eyes and felt Regulus’ heartbeat through his palm. “Love you, too.”

“Will you at least give me her address so I can egg her house?” James asked once they separated, already moving to give Sirius another hug. He melted into it; James had the incredible ability to make him feel completely and utterly safe, like the world couldn’t touch him as long as he was there.

“As amazing as that would be, I’d rather not see you arrested.”

“Fair point.” He pulled back a bit and James searched his face. A wrinkle appeared between his brows. “How can I help?”

“This is nice.” Exhaustion made Sirius’ limbs heavy and his head was starting to throb from his earlier breakdown. James pulled him back in and two more sets of arms followed, forming a shield all around him. He felt Remus kiss his cheek and Regulus’ hand splay over his ribs; James was steady, an anchor in the storm. “How am I going to tell people about this?”

“You don’t have to,” Remus murmured.

“If I don’t, she will.”

“Then tell them the truth,” Regulus said. “Maybe not everything, but the relevant parts.”

“We’ll be here with you.” James’ voice was soft. “Us, and the rest of the team. Anything you need.”

Sirius didn’t say anything, but he did sink into the warmth of their embrace and let the weight of fear and unease lift off his shoulders. The burden wasn’t his alone; it never had been.

[succeedsuccess]

To Be Successful, Have Successful Beliefs

Successful people have successful beliefs. If you need examples for defining a successful belief, I suggest finding people you deem 'successful' and ask them, or read biographies from great minds you admire (sorry, mine isn't written yet. I kid, I kid.). If you talk with some of the most successful people in the world, past or present, the most common denominator is related to the goals they set and the beliefs they hold.

The belief in yourself, your abilities, your value, and your future success is paramount.

Let's dig in.

The Power of a Belief

"It always seems impossible until it's done." ~ Nelson Mandela

In 1954, the commonly held belief in the world was that it was humanly impossible to run a four-minute mile. That's until Roger Bannister came along, believing and proclaiming he'll do the impossible. Sure enough, after many close attempts, he broke the four-minute barrier by.6 seconds! He shattered people's beliefs by doing the impossible.

Know what happened next? A shift in belief occurred, which led to a plethora of runners conquering this once 'impossible' feat. Today, thousands of people have done it.

I don't believe humans evolved at such a rapid rate in the 50s and thus allowing our muscle fibers to increase in density, enabling new increases in speed and longevity. The only factor that changed was the belief that is was possible - starting with Roger Bannister, believing in himself and not allowing a commonly held belief to hold him back.

What you think about most, what you focus on, what you believe, has a direct connection to your overall well-being, happiness, and success. Check out 'Change Your Thoughts, Change Your Reality' for a more detailed discussion.

Clarity is Power

Beliefs form our view on life, and nobody wants a blurry view. Our beliefs naturally guide us in the direction we most desire, and the clearer we are, the better the results. Our subconscious can be our best friend or our worst nightmare, and proper programming (via our thoughts and beliefs over time) is required. Put garbage in, get garbage out.

Developing clarity is one of the hardest things to do; we are very complex creatures and knowing oneself thoroughly is not easy. I was always the kid trying to do anything and everything because I never knew what I wanted out of this life. I would tell my dad "If I knew what I wanted to do, I would start now and be the best at it!" - I was 12 years old. Sure, I held the empowering belief I could do anything and be great at it, but unfortunately, I had no where to point this energy. My goals and aspirations were fuzzy at best.

Let's look at a better example, from a person who knew what he wanted to do and the value he believed he was worth...

Picture the story of Canadian born Jim Carrey, rising from being a small time Comedian in Ontario, and landing on the big screens all over the world. Want to know something special about him? As crazy as he portrayed himself on screen, Jim had clarity - he knew what success meant to him and he believed he had the ability to capture it. Do you have this kind of belief in yourself? This is what he had to say:

"I wrote myself a check for ten million dollars for acting services rendered and dated it Thanksgiving 1995. I put it in my wallet and it deteriorated. And then, just before Thanksgiving 1995, I found out I was going to make ten million dollars for Dumb and Dumber. I put that check in the casket with my father because it was our dream together." ~ Jim Carrey

He knew his value, he believed in himself, and even put a deadline on it!

Do your dreams have deadlines? Do you possess the beliefs in yourself to back them up?

Great Role Models

Did you know that Michael Jordan was dropped from his High School team? He believed in himself, he believed he could fly, and before we all knew it he was flying across the NBA courts. In his book, "I Can't Accept Not Trying", he says that he can accept failure, but he can't accept not trying.

Lance Armstrong believes that winning is about heart, not just the legs. Your heart has to be in the right place. He also believes that if you are worried about falling off the bike, you'd never get on.

When Tiger Woods was a young boy, he wrote down on a 3x5 card that he was going to break all of Jack Nicklaus' records. Look at him now. Jack Nicklaus agrees that Woods can do it if he stays on the track he's on.

Bill Gates believes in the importance of hard work, and if you are intelligent and know how to apply your intelligence, you an achieve anything. This led him to drop out of college (scary!) to follow his passions.

Will Smith believes 'I can create whatever I want to create,' and 'We are who we choose to be'. Pretty powerful beliefs no?

All these people started with a belief and moved on to greatness. They believed in themselves and it's easily visible with everything they do. You shouldn't have to build confidence in yourself by the accomplishments you achieve, you should achieve accomplishments by the confidence you have in yourself.

What Prevents Successful Beliefs?

Have you failed more often than not? Have you been told by people close to you, that you won't amount to anything? What is holding you back from holding successful beliefs?

That last question may sound silly, because why would anyone hold onto beliefs that are NOT beneficial to themselves? Ludicrous! Well, this tends to be the main problem that people have, because belief formation is not dependent on a logical framework and are extremely resistant to logical thinking.

Why would a person believe they can't do something if they have no past experience in which to base that belief? Isn't it just as easy to believe you can do something? It sure is, but usually fear finds a way to sneak in and blind us. That is what is so great about fear - fearis usually a red flag, an indicator for opportunities to grow. If our beliefs create our reality, than in order to change our reality, we must first change our beliefs. Let's look at how we can do that.

The Power of Positive Affirmations

Positive affirmations refer to consciously programming your brain with positive thoughts. Reminding yourself of the potential you possess, the feelings you want to experience, the life you expect to have, and the life you want to live. I suggest creating your own affirmations that are personal to you in which you can easily subscribe to. Affirmations could include:

"I am a successful, hard working, and motivated businessman who people trust, respect and love doing business with."

"I am a loving father and husband who shows love, affection, and encouragement to my wife and children."

"I get excited and joyful when an opportunity arrives to help someone."

"I feel energized when a challenge presents itself because it is just one more success waiting to happen."

"My life is filled with an abundance of opportunities waiting to be acted upon."

"My mind and body are clean and healthy and I do something everyday to ensure this."

"I can do anything I set my mind to."

The most powerful statements are the ones that start with 'I am...' because you are declaring your ideal image of yourself, and your brain will start aligning itself with this image as if you've already become that person.

Sometimes affirmations don't feel like they fit, or we aren't living up to the expectation of the affirmation, and that is fine. If you are new to the idea behind positive affirmations, then it may feel like you are lying or tricking yourself into believing something that isn't true. Affirmations are not meant for lying to ourselves; their purpose is to enable the potential within us to fulfill the affirmations. Affirmations help fight the fear that holds us back from action.

Through affirmations, we consciously note the person we want to become, and we actively move in the direction naturally by programming our thoughts and beliefs. Simply thinking the affirmation does not have a positive effect until it is repeated, believed, and felt. This has the potential to be powerful. Start thinking of your subconscious brain as a programmable entity and you'll start aligning your thoughts and beliefs to promote feelings you want to experience.

Start Having Successful Beliefs

Personally, I strongly believe that men/women should have a life filled with creating - creating ideas or inventions, creating a better world, creating value for others, and creating a fulfilled life. In doing so, you leave your unique mark on the world.

I believe if you don't have the discipline to convert thought and beliefs into action, you are not living successfully. This belief pushes me and motivates me to produce something on a regular basis giving me feelings of accomplishment, satisfaction, and joy for fulfilling my belief. If I don't, I feel I am not living up to my potential. I don't even have to push myself anymore, I simply have the drive, urge, and need to create SOMETHING. This website is one outlet for this belief, and it is my attempt to create something that is timeless and challenges people's thought patterns, beliefs, and encourages them to live the life they can.

To start having successful beliefs, we need to start by recognizing the ones that hold us back, and as we noted, beliefs are not bound by logic. How can we pinpoint these harmful beliefs? We can do this by making goals and recognizing thoughts that arise when we aim big. We can do this by looking at our previous track record and discovering why we failed or succeeded. Sometimes other people have to tell us. And many times, recognizing a negative belief is as simple as listening to yourself every time you use the words 'I can't...'.

Eliminate these negative beliefs and start creating beliefs that motivate you to action, push you to succeed, remind you of your purpose, and fires up your confidence. The battlefield to success is not in the world, it's inside your head. Figure that out, and the world changes in front of you eyes.

[bbreferencearchive]

Viola Bonaldi interviews Bobby BeauSoleil

This is the raw interview Viola Bonaldi did with Bobby BeauSoleil in the summer of 2018. Viola Bonaldi wrote an article incorporating the raw material below for Salmuria.

You can read the English version here: https://salmuria.it/emailing-with-bobby-beausoleil/

… Or if your first language happens to be Italian, read it here: https://salmuria.it/corrispondenza-con-bobby-beausoleil/

How did your passion for art — first music and then visual art — come about? Do you remember a specific moment or an episode that enlightened you? Did the Sixties atmosphere play an important role?

As far as I can tell, I mean, to the best of my recollection, I already had a passion to express myself in creative ways when I was born. According to what my mother told me later, about the time I took my first steps I was playing her pots and pans and making drawings on the walls of the house.

Honestly, I can’t remember a time when I didn’t feel like I had something to say in the arts. I believe this is the case with most if not all artists. For some a passionate desire to express in the arts may lay dormant for a time, and then suddenly something happens that triggers the calling, awakening the latent artist within. In my case it seems that I was born turned on. I didn’t need the social explosion that happened in the 1960s to bring the creative urges out of me, but it did provide a playground for them, and sometimes I found inspiration in the passions of people I encountered during that period.

When you haunted the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles you were known as “Cupid”, the archaic Roman primordial god of love, because of the way girls liked to be around you, a young, vibrant, beautiful, multicolored artist. From that capricious god you eventually turned yourself into “Lucifer”, the “angel of light”, fallen from Paradise as a consequence of his pride. Your life is largely connected to archaic myths, and this is often reflected in your work as an artist, both musically and visually, which is full of esoteric symbolism. Now, more than four decades after your work on Lucifer Rising, who are you? Lucifer, Cupid, or some other “creature”? And how do you explain your interest in the arcane?

Wow! Big questions! Well, first of all, I have never pretended to actually be any “creature”, as you put it, that I’ve been associated with. I am just me, an innately nameless soul. As an artist, I have sometimes used my own physical being as a canvas, willingly adopting personas from mythology that others have seen in me. My parents gave me a name at birth and I have been happy to be that person most of the time. Occasionally I have taken on the personifications of archetypes from myth as a way of allowing them to live for a brief time, and in a limited way, in the world of the mundane. There are, by the way, some common traits between Cupid and Lucifer. Both of these mythological beings are imagined as angelic, both known to have a naughty streak, to be creatively rebellious, and both are associated with love. I can think of far worse things to be known for expressing in the world.

What attracts me to the myths is the wealth of story and allegory that can enrich our larger capacity for understanding. Myths are often used as a tool for deepening cultural identity, and to give a hand up by way of providing context and instruction to those who aspire to higher truths. And mythology is an artform that can inspire new art, and thus myths can be alive and continue to grow and influence. As for other arcane interests, I have found little of any real substance in the so-called “dark arts” or silly practices like devil worship. However, as a mystic seeker I have found that treasures are often hidden in dark places. Following a shadow to its source will invariably lead one to the light.

You write that your works are rarely borne out of direct observations of the natural world, from the perception of real things, but come instead from your own mental reinterpretations and from the world of dreams. Is this a consequence of your limited conditions in terms of the space you live it? What is your process for drawing subjects from your recurrent dreams?

Certainly, there are no beautiful vistas to be seen through the dirty windows of the place where I live. I can see moving images from nature in photographs and films, and sometimes these inspire me to produce a visual interpretation. For the most part, though, I tend to see the beauty of nature as paintings made by God, ever changing in the light of consciousness, awesomely inspired and breathtaking, far beyond the capabilities of any human artist to do them justice. Rather than producing poor imitations of the moving paintings created by God, my natural inclination is to make a few humble additions to God’s creation, as one of the forces of nature.

So, for the most part, I draw inspiration from my unfettered and fertile imagination. You can fly in your dreams, right? What can be seen, imagined or experienced is not limited to what is possible in the physical world in some states of mind. I cultivate some of these states of mind, such as lucid dreaming, as a source for concepts that may be made manifest in the physical world through my arts. This works for visual imagery and for music as well, and even sometimes for written words, like poetry. In the vast territories of dreams especially — both daydreams and the kind that happen during sleep — the mind plays freely, in safety, amorphously creating odd mash-ups, evolving patterns, astonishingly wonderous sounds. Much of my work is an attempt to bring these experiences into the physical realm, or at least to hint at them.

What does a young man think when he is sent to death row? You couldn’t play an instrument or have contact with other people, right?

When I arrived on San Quentin’s death row in 1970 I was a total wreck, broken and shattered, far more devastated than I ever let anyone know during that period. As difficult as it was, in some ways that 26 months I was on death row was a blessing. I needed that time alone to grapple with my conscience, to fully face what I had done head-on, to begin to learn how to think things through and begin the process of accepting responsibility for how I was going to deal with the consequences of my actions and eventually find a way to redeem myself. It was a tall order, one that seemed utterly insurmountable at the time. Think of a complicated picture-puzzle with about a million pieces.

Having a guitar was not allowed on death row, like you say, but I could get a little manual typewriter and a few pencils and sketch paper. Writing and drawing helped me to focus on my inner world and begin the process of putting the pieces of myself back together.          

Where did you learn to create musical instruments? How did you manage to do that in prison?

Finding ways of making new or different kinds of sounds has been a fascination for me since I was a small boy. The first time I built a musical instrument was when I was about 8 years old. It was a contraption I called a “jazz band” — basically a percussion instrument made out of a wooden crate, with a variety of found objects like tin cans, pie plates, glass jars, spoons and whatnot nailed or attached to the crate in some way. I made a lot of noise on that thing, beating on it with sticks. A couple of years later I made an electric guitar — or rather, something that looked like a guitar I had seen in the window of a music store — in the workshop class at my school. It didn’t work, but from that experience I learned a lot about what is needed to make one that would. I have customized, or “hot-rodded”, every guitar I’ve had since, and built a few guitars from scratch.

In the mid-1960s, when I was putting together a band that would become known as The Orkustra, I was faced with the challenge of figuring out how to go about electrically amplifying different kinds of woodwinds and stringed instruments. This was a necessary step in fulfilling my desire to assemble the first electric orchestra. This experience became invaluable ten years later when I took on the Lucifer Rising soundtrack project. After I was given a permission from the warden at the prison to produce recordings for the project I successfully sought an additional permission to build some of the instruments I would need in the prison handicraft shop. I was allowed to build several guitars and keyboard instruments, and to experiment with music electronics and synthesizer design. This led to the invention and development of some instrument innovations.

Things have changed in prisons since then, with most of the prison handicraft programs having been shut down. Though I’m not able to build instruments at present, I still manage to find ways to hot-rod guitars. Fortunately, the technical skills I acquired earlier opened doors to my being in prison jobs that have given me access to advanced tools for producing work in various media, including video and sound design. I have been blessed with some unusual opportunities to employ my abilities in ways that are helpful and beneficial to others. Despite the imprisonment, I count myself fortunate to have had these opportunities, and I am grateful.

How can a human being detained for decades in prison survive in such a place without becoming a “monster”, as you have reflected in some of your writings? Can we say that Lucifer Rising saved you?

Prisons are unnatural places. They are ill-conceived responses to social problems like crime and mental illness — and in the US, anyone who breaks a law, mentally ill or not, is subject to incarceration in the prison system. In practice, imprisonment worsens these types of problems, generally speaking. Imprisonment warps the mind, not only of prisoners but also of the people who are paid to supervise them and keep them locked in.

Fairly early in my incarceration I became aware of the effects being in prison was having on me, and on others around me. By that time, I had already begun to slip into involvement in violent situations. When I saw what was happening I began to take steps to mitigate those negative effects. I resolved that I would never allow the prison environment to define me. Making a personal vow of non-violence that I have maintained to this day was one of those steps. By pouring myself into creative expression as an artist, along with promoting and maintaining healthy relationships with people on the outside, I have been able to gird myself against the insanity around me. It takes continuous effort and resolve, and a lot of vigilance, but it is possible to empower oneself to rise above the snares and pitfalls of prison life and maintain one’s personal integrity.

Yes, you could say that the Lucifer Rising soundtrack project saved me, in a way. It took years to complete the soundtrack compositions and recordings. During that time the project consumed me utterly. And it did so in a positive way. My concept for the Lucifer Rising themes was to musically describe the fallen angel’s desire to redeem himself, tracing his path through the dark passages he would pass through in his journey toward reconciliation and the light. The story, as I decided to interpret it, has certain resonances in my own life, so working on the project was cathartic.

Did you like Charles Manson’s music?

Sometimes I did and sometimes I didn’t. Charlie was a uniquely talented musician, but he had a tendency to be inconsistent in the way he approached musical performance. Much of this had to do with context. Some of his songs were a lot like songs for children, and were obviously meant to be sing-along songs for the people in his commune. Those songs would not have had much appeal to a general audience, and I have seen them used in sensationalist media to ridicule his musical ability. There were songs of Charlie’s that would not stand the tests of time, like much of the music that was made during the sixties, but many of his songs were entirely relevant for that period and some of them had real depth of meaning. The ones I liked best were those that he sang and played spontaneously, in a stream-of-consciousness style, like some rappers of today. As an improvisational player, I particularly enjoyed playing with him on songs he created in this mode. My accompaniment seemed to inspire him and helped to bring out the best qualities in his performances. This type of collaboration formed the basis of my relationship with him, such as it was. Unfortunately, no good recordings have survived.

You appear to have a deeply spiritual conception about purpose in relation to destiny. You have written that every person is born with some special ability or message they are meant to express in the world, a unique hand of cards to play in life. If you had not done “a bad thing” as your Professor Proponderus character said in the animated film you made, and been sent to prison, what do you think your life would have been like? Who would Bobby Beausoleil have become outside of jail? How would he have played his cards?

Taking my cue from the cards metaphor seems like the best place to begin a response to your questions ... The thing is, most human beings are not dealt only one hand of cards in life. Each time one makes a major decision in life, or has a significant accident, Destiny deals the individual a new hand of cards to play. It is impossible to say what my life might have been like had I not made the dire decisions that caused me to be sent to prison.

Some imaginative writers have postulated that each major decision creates a new timestream in a parallel universe. Well, I don’t know if that’s true, and it’s doubtful any of us ever will in our lifetimes, but let’s play along for the sake of giving due respect to what you are asking. Had I played my hand of cards differently in 1969 it’s conceivable that the Bobby Beausoleil of that alternate universe would have become a famous rock star, as I once hoped to be. Just as conceivable, the Bobby Beausoleil of another parallel universe might have wound up in some dark alley, dead of a drug overdose, something I have never had any aspirations to be.

We don’t get to choose beyond playing the cards we are dealt as well as we can in the hope that our decisions will take us to where we want to go. It is when we play our cards willy-nilly, without care, that we may instigate disasters in our lives and the lives of others. That said, I have done my best to play my cards well in the intervening years, and to overcome, to the extent that may be possible, the failings of my past. We shall see what the cards I play now will bring in the future.

Reading the transcript from your last parole hearing one can note that your artistic activity, and publishing communications with people outside of prison via the internet, has sometimes been used against you and your release. But you still do it. Do you do this out of a philosophical sense of duty, or because you feel safer in prison and don’t really want to be released? I mean, it seems like you’re shooting yourself in the foot ...My idea is that it’s only an excuse. It doesn’t matter what you do. For some people you will always be condemned because you have the Manson stigma on you.

Excuses are made by people who shirk the responsibilities they have agreed to accept, and who fail to have the courage to do the right thing and uphold those responsibilities. After long and very careful consideration, I resolved years ago that I would not restrict or limit my life in accordance with the excuses made by other people.

This is not an act of defiance by any means. I carefully follow the rules I am given to follow; none of my art or publishing actually violates any of them. And I assure you, I have no desire to wrap myself up in the dubious security of prison life. I want to get out of prison as much as any imprisoned person ever has. In the end, what it comes down to is that my spiritual obligation to fulfill my purpose in life trumps any of the rationalizations or excuses that may be used to justify keeping me in prison, and all the nonsense related to them.

A soul comes into the world for only a brief time and for the purpose, however slight it may be, to contribute to bringing sentience to the physical universe through expression of a God-given ability. This is called dharma, the purpose in life. Failing to uphold this responsibility is a breach of the sacred covenant a soul makes when coming into the world.

As an artist, it is my role to express creatively and to share the work I produce in such efforts with the world. Perhaps this will serve to uplift another soul, or to inspire someone to make their own dharmic contribution to the human mission. Or maybe it’s of no real value at all. In any case, I feel very strongly that I must remain true to my calling, and to fulfill my sacred obligation as a sentient soul, come what may.

In the years past I fought long and hard to restore myself to integrity. Too great an investment has been made to retreat from what I know I’m here to do, or to otherwise compromise my integrity out of fear of some arbitrary, politically motivated resistance. Clearly, nothing in the work I create is indicative of any violent tendencies. Excuses aside, this is what should be the focus in a parole consideration hearing. At some point I may be fortunate enough to have my case in front of arbiters who recognize that my creative efforts have been the instrument of my rehabilitation, restoring me to a responsible human being, and who will, in consideration of this, support my release from prison.

From your experience, what do you think of the use of social media and the internet?

My direct exposure to the internet has been limited by restrictive prison policies, but studying technological advancements is a hobby of mine. I won’t be left behind like Rip Van Winkle! As a multi-media artist, I am interested in how computers and computer devices like tablets and cell phones can be used to express creatively in new ways. There are artists out there who are doing amazing things with these new technologies!

The internet is a mixed bag, mostly because it is still like the wild west — a work in progress. For the everyday person to have rapid access to so much information is truly marvelous, extremely empowering, but this is only beneficial if the information is accurate. With every person able to have their very own pulpit there is way too much fake news and click-bait gossip poised to ensnare the unwary. I believe this will improve in time as the search engines incorporate better algorithms to snag and tag the suspicious content. On the other hand, there is the wonder of streaming media. I can’t wait to be able to catch up on come of the films and music I’ve been missing!

There is a lot about social media that doesn’t seem very sociable to me. The ability to communicate across vast distances in real time via texting and chatting on Facebook and other social media sites, with pictures and video, makes for an extremely valuable tool. That’s just it: a tool. There is no replacement for real sensory contact between human beings. We are hardwired for touch and direct eye contact. There are reasons why suicides are occurring more frequently in these times; it seems to me that too much reliance on social media platforms is part of the reason for this. It worries me that many young people will sit side-by-side and text to each other instead of looking at one another and talking. And too many people are cocooned in their personal bubbles, insulated from empathic connection to humanity, making derogatory, harsh, even hateful judgements of other people, often only because they are isolated and lonely and need to share their misery. Emojis are cute but they are a poor substitute for communicating real emotions. Humans are complex creatures. We can actually choose to be less anxious and depressed as a species by relying less on virtual socializing.

You took your freedom early, still a child, but soon you lost it. Unlike the stories of most prisoners, however, you affirm that your family situation was very positive when you were a child. Do you remember the happiest episode of your childhood, and the saddest one? Do you recall your childhood home and the scents of that time?

I remember my childhood home vividly, smells and all. Although I tended to be more adventurous than most of the kids I knew, my childhood was pretty average, growing up in a tract house nearly identical to all the other houses in the neighborhood. My happiest times were when I was sent off to stay with my grandmother during the summer, because the world seemed so much bigger in the Los Angeles area where she lived. My happiest memory there was finding an old guitar in my grandmother’s attic. Destiny dealt me a new hand of cards that day! The saddest day of my childhood was, at age 15, going with my family to my grandmother’s funeral. That was the day I left home for good, for some reasons that didn’t actually have anything to do with my grandmother’s death. I loved my family, but the family home was just too small.

Silvio Pellico, an Italian writer and patriot imprisoned for life in 1820, then given a commuted sentence and released after 10 years, stated that, without a doubt, free living is much better than living in prison, yet even in a miserable prison you can enjoy life. What do you think about this?

Prison is generally a pretty miserable place, that’s a fact. Spending my time in a puddle of self-pity has always been an option, just as it is for people on the outside. Choosing that option is what turns a miserable place into a hell. Many people in prison do just that. There is not only misery but a good deal of anger and rage in here as well. I mentioned earlier, I made the decision to not allow prison to define me. As a result, I have managed to do the extraordinary while in prison, and I have inspired some other prisoners to do similar things. While prison is a miserable place, being a miserable prisoner is not a must. Transcendence of misery is always possible no matter how hard it gets.

Your answer to a question no one has ever asked you ...

“Do you wear boxers or briefs under shorts?” No, I don’t.

Describe the room you live in and what your days are like at the prison where you live. What do you do for entertainment. How are you feeling?

My mind is much younger than my body, so naturally I have my share of aches and pains to deal with. To help preserve my health and activity I do hatha yoga on a semi-regular basis. I am also one of the two teachers for the yoga class here. A couple of times a week I play with other musicians here and once in a while we perform together in the prison house band. We have a music class once a week and I help with teaching guitar to students. Even though my spiritual orientation is grounded in the traditions of West Asia, I’m perfectly comfortable playing in the Gospel band in the prison chapel. Also once a week I take my guitar to the Hospice part of the prison hospital, and play music for men who are in the process of dying.

My cell is about the size of a typical bathroom in someone’s home. There’s a door in one end and a window in the other end that lets in daylight; there is a small sink, a toilet, and a large metal locker for storage. I use the top of the locker as my work surface. I’m using it now while typing these words. My bed is the size of a cot, a concrete block with a mat stuffed with jute fiber; of course, it serves also as a seat and a place where I set my art materials when working on a painting or drawing. My guitar shares the space, and I’ve got a small television and a radio. I would say that I live like a monk if my cell were not so cluttered with stuff for work, play, eating and sleeping. I manage to figure out ways to make the space work for me fairly well under the circumstances.

I currently have a job five days a week in the prison library. It takes up a bit too much of my time and sometimes conflicts with things I’m trying to do. But then, most people who have jobs have similar problems.

Much of my time has been going into writing and editing. A couple of books are in the works, one of which is scheduled for publication in 2019. This leaves me little time for reading, though I manage to find some time to read, mostly books on spiritual philosophy, mythology, media technology. But when it comes to words it’s the writing that gets most of the juice. I love good films and some television dramas, if they are done well. I will watch the TV for two or three hours in the evening if there is something on worth my attention. Some of my writing time naturally goes to communicating with family and friends, creative collaborators, and, when I can fit it in, some of the fans of my work as well.

My long-awaited double vinyl LP, Voodoo Shivaya, a concept album I worked on for seven years, recently debuted. The response has been gratifying, quite favorable so far, even though the music does not fit in any of the established categories or genres. So I’m feeling pretty happy that I’ve been able to share this music with the world.

Do you have a suggestion you can give us?

Try to avoid killing anyone, if you can. It is very very difficult to come back from something like that. And if you find yourself faced with a seemingly insurmountable challenge, don’t be too shy to ask for help. The best place to look for help is deep within yourself where you will surely find great resources of strength and courage you may not yet be aware of. And remember, there is always at least one way to play your cards that will allow you to prevail over and ultimately transcend any challenge.

[writingsbychelle]

Two Hearts, One Heartbeat

Summary: Keeping the relationship between you and Isaak a secret was already hard enough but as Nikolai vanishes without a trace and Isaak has to take over the role of the King it becomes almost impossible. 

Pairing: Isaak Andreyev x Reader

Request: /

Warnings: mentions of dying?

Word Count: 1.993

(A/N: This is literally only written for @stardustbooknerd because I love her very much even though she keeps coming after me. Anyways, Isaak deserves more love and I’m still salty af over the ending of King of Scars.)

     A thin layer of sweat covered your skin as you snuggled against the slightly damp body of your boyfriend, your breath slowly returning back to normal as your fingers began tracing random patterns on Isaak’s chest. The guard pressed his lips against the top of your head, tightening his arms around your waist at the same time while you both tried to enjoy the rare moments of silence. None of your friends knew about your relationship with the former soldier, Saints, not even Genya had figured it out and usually she was the first one to detect traces of romance between the people near her. Maybe it was the fact that the Grisha Triumvirate and the people surrounding your King were too preoccupied with trying to restore Ravka after the Civil War, or maybe your friend was just distracted by her husband but you liked to think that your _phenomenal_ acting skills kept you from getting caught. Truly, it was a miracle no one had seen Isaak sneak in and out of your room at night, the stolen kisses after you informed Nikolai you had to discuss something with the guards, telling him to already go ahead just for you to be pressed against the nearest wall with your boyfriend’s arms wrapped around you.

     “Do you think we should tell them?” you turned your head to look at Isaak, his brown eyes softening as he gazed at you.

     “I’m ready if you are, my love. We just have to consider what might happen and how people will react. A powerful Grisha, one of the most trusted advisers of the King, being in a relationship with a simple guard…I doubt many people will agree with this.”

     You tilted your head so you were able to press a quick kiss against Isaak’s lips, your hand sliding up towards his jaw, your touch light and soft, “We don’t have to tell anyone right away. I could test the waters to see what people would think? At some point, I’d like at least our close friends to know, I’m sure they wouldn’t judge…”

     “And if they do, you could always stop their hearts or make their lungs collapse,” Isaak suggested with a cheeky grin on his face, causing you to chuckle.

     “I’m a Healer, not a Heartrender, my love.”

---

     Keeping your relationship hidden became a lot harder once Isaak had to take over the role of Nikolai as the King of Ravka. Since Nikolai and Zoya vanished without a trace while trying to find a way to get rid of his…sickness in the Shadow Fold. You had tried to sneak into the chamber that belonged to the King, now occupied by your boyfriend, several times but one of the twins, Tolya and Tamar, seemed to always be situated in front of the big double doors, making it impossible for you to spend at least some moments in privacy with Isaak. To say you were getting annoyed by this would’ve been an understatement. You were getting aggregated, your body tense and your skin tingling at every moment you had to spend separated from the man you loved. The fact that Genya came up with the idea of Isaak spending more time with Princess Ehri of Shu Han only worsened your mood even more, so much, in fact, that even David had noticed as you let yourself fall into the chair next to him while he was hunched over his notebook, scribbling and drawing new inventions into it.

     “You seem stressed out, (Y/N). What’s going on?” he looked up shortly before going back to his notebook, his hand moving quickly across the page but you could tell that he was still listening even if he didn’t look like it.

     “Besides the fact that Nikolai is gone and we’re basically driving Ravka to ruins? Nothing much…” you trailed off, fumbling with the cup of tea in front of you.

     “I know it doesn’t look good but we’ll manage this,” David tried to cheer you up, carefully placing his hand on your shoulder and giving it a soft squeeze before he lost himself in his work once again.

     “Thanks, David,” you mumbled before standing up again, grabbing your mug as you walked out of the small room to get some fresh air before you were to go back into the palace to make sure your boyfriend wouldn’t mess up while talking with any of the important people that had come to the party.

     Parties had never been something you really looked forward to, so you completely understood Isaak for wanting to get away as soon as possible from the loud music, the drinking and feasting, and from all those people that wanted to talk to the King. You felt sorry for your boyfriend, you truly did, and you could only hope that Nikolai and Zoya would resurface as soon as possible so they could take over again and allow you some alone time with the brown-haired man you loved. But even though the current situation wasn’t ideal, you still had to admit that Isaak was doing an amazing job at pretending to be Nikolai. Saints, you couldn’ve sworn being in a different skin made your boyfriend more confident, much to your amusement.

     Raising your cup to your lips you took a small sip, letting the warm liquid heat your body from the inside, while your feet carried to towards the conservatory when you heard a familiar shout in front of you, coming directly from where you were headed. Quickly you sped up your pace, clutching the cup in your hands so tight you might’ve crushed if it wouldn’t have fallen from your hands the second you stepped into the conservatory, the scene before you causing your body to freeze, the cup slowly slipping from your fingers and falling to the pavement underneath your feet. Almost instantly everyone seemed to stop their shouting and turned to look at you, Tamar who knelt beside the Shu princess with a dagger sticking from her chest, Genya with tears running down her face as her husband David held her close, Tolya, Zoya and Nikolai, the real Nikolai, who was wearing what seemed to be prisoner’s clothes, stood around another body laying on the floor, a pool of blood covering the floor around the man who looked so very much like the king.

     “Isaak?” you choked out, your mouth going slack as tears filled your eyes.

     You felt like you couldn’t breath, your chest tightening with every intake of air, like a python had wrapped itself around you and was tightening around your body every time you tried to take a breath while your heart beat frantically in your chest. It was as if the world came to a stop, everything around you blurring as your eyes settled on Isaak’s body on the cold, grey floor when you took a careful step forward, almost as if you were afraid he would disintegrate right in front of your eyes. Seeing his motionless body still on the floor, the stillness of his chest, you couldn’t help but fly forward, collapsing on your knees as you buried your face in the place where his shoulder met his neck, your arms lifting his limp body up as you pressed him against you.

     “No. No, no, no, no, please…,” you sobbed out, salty tears stinging in your eyes before they rolled don’t your cheeks.

     You didn’t notice Tolya and Nikolai taking a step back, you didn’t notice that Genya stopped crying, you didn’t notice the tears that ran down your face and wet Isaak’s clothes or the sticky blood that coated your hands, all you noticed was the faint heartbeat in his chest, your healing abilities gripping tight onto it as a warm feeling spread through your body, setting your every nerve alight while Isaak’s heartbeat seemed to grow stronger and stronger with every passing moment.

     Almost as if nothing had happened Isaak let out a gasp, sitting up after he opened his eyes, blinking in confusion as he took in his surroundings before his gaze settled in your tear-streaked face.

     “(Y/N)? What happened, my love?”

     Without answering him you just crashed forward, connecting your lips with his as your blood-covered hands tangled themselves in his soft hair, leaving red streaks through it. A sob of relief tore itself from the back of your throat, ripping you away from Isaak before you leaned your forehead against his, the feeling of being reunited with the man you loved pushing your fatigue away from the forefront.

     Carefully your boyfriend reached up, his hands cupping your cheeks as his thumbs wiped away the tears that were covering your cheeks, the touch prompting you to finally open your eyes again, just to look into his, which sadly enough still looked like Nikolai’s.

     “I hate to ruin this moment but…does anyone mind explaining this?” Nikolai gestured to Isaak and you, both of you sitting on the floor before you slowly got up, offering a hand to your boyfriend and pulling him to his feet.

     Still wobbly and weak, Isaak leaned against you for support, you arm instinctively wrapping itself around his waist to keep him steady.

     “I second that,” Genya said while trying to keep a smirk from forming on her lips, ultimately failing with her attempt though.

     “Yeah, about that…” you trailed off, “We’ve been together for a while now but we just…we wanted to tell you but there never seemed to be an appropriate moment to break the news.”

     “It’s good to see you back, Nikolai,” Isaak tried to grin at his old friend but let out a wince as he did.      “You should sit down, Isaak,” Nikolai stepped over to where you were standing, pushing Isaak down into a chair while shooting a teasing smirk in your direction together with a quick wriggle of his eyebrows which you answered with a roll of your eyes.

     You already knew your King would never let you live down the fact that you, a powerful Grisha Healer who had the dream of becoming a princess when she was a child, ended up falling for a simple guard such as Isaak, who just so happened to be a good friend of Nikolai as well.

     After discussing how to proceed from where you found yourself at, Isaak and you were left alone in the conservatory with Genya, who was surprisingly quick to restore the way your boyfriend looked before she had turned him into Nikolai.

     “It’s good to see your actual face again,” you chuckled slightly once Genya left to deal with the guests until everyone would meet up with you again.

     “It feels good to be in my own skin, too,” Isaak mumbled, his eyes drifting off as if he seemed deep in thought.

     “Isaak? Is everything alright?”

     “I…I could’ve died, (Y/N). You saved my life,” he said as turned to look at you, tears shining in his eyes.

     Shaking your head softly, you reached up to press your hands against his cheeks and pull him forward into a quick kiss, “I did what anyone in my position would’ve done.”

     “I love you,” you boyfriend blurted out, clasping your hands tightly in his as he spoke those meaningful three words for the first time.

     “I love you, too,” you mumbled out before moving forward to connect your lips with Isaak’s, his hands tangled in your hair as he pulled you closer, a soft sigh escaping you as you silently thanked the Saints that you had the conservatory to yourselves for the next two hours.

FEEDBACK IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!

[the-comfy-wildkratt]

~All Eyes on Us~

(Alternate Title: Peacock Powerup)

“Hey, you’ll be fine.”

“Yeah, it’ll be great.”

Aviva jumped slightly, eyes flying open as two hands reached for hers under the tablecloth. Chris and Martin, seated on either side of her, smiled gently and reassuringly. Koki and Jimmy, arranged on the other side of the round table, offered her affirmative nods and smiles themselves.

Taking a deep breath, Aviva managed to smile back at them all. “Thanks.”

She’d been keeping her eyes shut while a different speaker was onstage, but it was almost time for her own presentation. As the audience around the hall applauded the speaker and the announcer walked back on, Aviva took one last sip from her glass of water and stood to head to the side of the stage. Chris, Martin, and Koki followed behind her and as the announcer began introducing her, Koki reached forward and gave her hand a final squeeze of reassurance.

“Without further ado, Miss Aviva Corcovado!”

The audience clapped again as Aviva stepped into the spotlight. She almost froze as she looked out over the crowd, feeling half-blinded by the stage lights shining down on her. Then her gaze locked onto Jimmy, who grinned and gave her a thumbs-up.

She could do this, she had everyone supporting her.

“Good evening!” she said cheerfully into the microphone as she reached the podium, “First and foremost, I have to thank you all for being here, and I have to thank Dr. Mason for inviting me here in the first place.” She paused to wait out the brief swell of applause, smiling as her nerves began to smooth out. “When I was first invited, Dr. Mason asked me if I could do a presentation on technology and design. At first I had no idea what to do with that. Any one of my coworkers can tell you about the disaster I made of our first crew jacket design a few months ago.”

A smattering of chuckles rippled through the crowd and the tension in Aviva’s shoulder eased even more.

“Then I started really thinking hard on design and what it meant in regards to technology, how engineers, programmers, modelers, and so many more use and incorporate design in new tech. And I thought about one of my personal inventions, my greatest achievement so far. Many of you may have already heard of them. My Creature Power Suits, a working prototype of a suit that can use DNA data to transform into an animal shape that the wearer can fully utilize.”

As she spoke, Koki wheeled a display case with the two Creature Power Suits arranged inside. They’d been cleaned for this occasion, caked-on mud scrubbed out and scratches repaired. Murmurs rose from the crowd as people craned their heads to try and get a good look at the two suits.

“Part of these suits’ construction is the storage of data on disks, in order to ensure that the suits can effectively, accurately, and safely recreate the abilities of an animal. This means programming and, of course, design.” Aviva took a quiet, deep breath. “For example, in the case of a peacock, the male peafowl, a beautiful bird I’m sure you all have seen before. Not only must the design allow the wearer to be able to fly, but every detail of the suit must be precise. In fact, I’d like to show you all an example, right here, right now.”

At that a much louder mutter erupted around the room; excitement and curiosity were palpable.

“For this purpose, I’ve asked my coworkers and dear friends to join me this evening. Please welcome Chris and Martin Kratt!”

Applause burst from crowd; the Kratts were well known, even in the technology world. The brothers walked on stage towards her, grinning and giving slight waves to the crowd. In evening formal wear, they looked slightly out of their element, but Martin was embracing it head on, his shoulders strong and straight in the suit. Chris, not one for the spotlight, managed to hide his discomfort well, but Aviva knew him well enough to see that he’d like to get this over with soon.

“Just for tonight,” Aviva went on, “I’ve designed and programmed the abilities of a peacock. Chris, Martin.” She turned to them with a smile and gestured. They went to where Koki had opened the display case, and she handed them their suits according to color.

The crowd was almost breathless with anticipation as the Kratts slid the suit vests over their heads and slipped on the gloves. Koki handed them two royal blue Creature Power Disks. Then they turned back to Aviva.

“May I?” quipped Martin, slightly teasing as he dipped his head in an almost imperceptible bow.

“Of course,” Aviva said.

The brothers stood at her side, then reached out to pluck a peacock feather from her dress. Koki had made it just for this occasion, a cascade of pale violet cloth with a trail of peacock feathers at an angle down one side. Martin and Chris held the feather jointly, resting flat on their open palms.

They didn’t have to, but Aviva supposed it was pure habit that made them say “Activate Creature Powers” in perfect unison as they reached up to press their activation buttons.

Instantly the suits glowed, a pixelated wave of energy sweeping down their arms and legs and reaching to cover their heads. There was a collective gasp of shock and awe from the crowd and Aviva couldn’t help the grin of satisfaction that snuck onto her face. One more tweak she’d made for tonight was to slow down the transformation; usually it was almost instantaneous, but she’d slowed it to several seconds to allow the audience a better view of it.

The glow evaporated and another gasp of awe rushed around the room. Chris and Martin now stood arrayed in gorgeous plumage. Royal blue feathers covered them from head to knee, and the signature long green tail feathers trailed out behind them on the stage.

Now was the brothers’ time to shine.

Chris was a dramatic person at heart, and he was much more comfortable in a Creature Power Suit than in a formal suit. The crest of feathers on his head rose as he elegantly inclined his head and his tail feathers flared, but he didn’t look like he was about to shake out into full display quite yet. He was almost preening in the sounds of delight coming from the audience, and Aviva wanted to burst out laughing.

Throwing back his shoulders, Martin stepped out like a true model and again Aviva wanted to laugh, partly in disbelief; obviously he hadn’t forgotten his time as a kidnapped model for Donita Donata. He had just the right sashay in his hips and sass in his shoulders, and even with the huge train of feathers making movement somewhat awkward, he made it all look effortless and alluring.

Then Chris fanned out his wings, unfurling what had looked to be plain brown wings into truly gorgeous, peachy-tipped appendages. Another gasp from the crowd made his crest stand up even higher. He fluttered his feathers dramatically, fluffing up the feathers on his chest and neck. Gracefully he went down on one knee, sweeping his colorful wings to the side so that the attention could be more on his tail. Or not, Aviva thought, as Martin stepped up behind his brother, rustled his feathers, and then lifted his tail to unfurl his stunning eye-pattern. He, too, stretched out his wings and the picture that he and Chris made in their poses was striking. Cameras had been clicking away all evening, but now they were snapping like mad.

Not to be outdone by his brother, Chris rose effortlessly to his feet and shook out his own tail feathers into their enormous upright fan. Carefully, he and Martin stepped around the stage, turning their tails at angles so that every member of the audience got a good look. Martin was grinning widely, absolutely delighted with the crowd’s awe, and while Chris’s smile was more subdued Aviva knew the drama queen in him was thoroughly enjoying this.

Aviva turned back to the podium, smiling. “As I stated before, the wings are fully functional,” she said into the mic.

The brothers knew she was going to prompt them to fly at some point, and now that they had their cue, their tail fans dropped and they spread their wings. Aviva had made doubly sure of the room’s dimensions before deciding to have the brothers fly in it, and it had plenty of space for them to make a short flight. Together they took a few steps, pumping their wings, and then lifted off into the air as graceful as if they’d been flying their whole lives.

As they wheeled off in different directions to quickly circle the room, the cameras turned to follow and in the audience phone flashes went off as everyone tried to get their own close up shot. Arcing around, the brothers Kratt glided back to the stage, deactivating as they landed. They turned, once again in perfect sync, and bowed to the audience.

The crowd roared with applause, some rising to their feet as they did so. Jimmy was among them, whooping and pumping a fist in the air.

Chris and Martin took off the suits, put them back in the display case, and walked offstage with Koki to head back to their table. Aviva still had to finish her full presentation, which wasn’t too long, but she’d made the impact that she wanted already.

The presentation went off without a hitch from there, and when she’d finished her talk Aviva got questions from the crowd, with Jimmy and Koki walking between tables with microphones. The whole focus was on the suits and, therefore, Aviva, and for once in her life, she was able to really enjoy being onstage and at the center of attention; these were her inventions, her babies, and she was getting to talk about them to a room full of peers and experts in her field. The entire time, Chris, Martin, Koki, and Jimmy grinned up at her, delighted to see her in her element.

After the presentation, there were more questions, people coming up to congratulate and talk to her, and it was late before Aviva and the crew managed to escape the convention hall to head to their hotel rooms.

Aviva was gushing about the evening to Koki as they cleaned up and changed clothes, and her friend soaked it all up as if she hadn’t been there the entire time. Aviva was recounting a conversation with a famous engineer and toweling her hair dry when there was a knock on the door.

“Open up!” called Jimmy from outside.

Koki got the door and Jimmy, Chris, and Martin piled in, chattering and congratulating Aviva all over again.

“Let’s celebrate,” Jimmy cheered, setting a stack of fancy pizza boxes on the table. Someone put down a bottle of champagne.

“Where did that come from?” Aviva asked, raising an eyebrow.

Chris grinned and winked. “Hey, we’re all over legal drinking age, there’s nothing wrong with a glass or two.”

“We’re celebrating!” Martin hooted, producing several cheap glasses from somewhere on his person.

Laughing, Koki found some paper towels for the pizza. “Where did you guys find the time to go and get that? And the glasses?”

“I ran down to the dollar store while Chris and Jimmy were taking their showers.”

“In your suit?” asked Aviva, helping herself to the food.

“They were pretty confused, but they didn’t ask questions. It is the dollar store.”

They all chuckled at the mental image of Martin in a fancy suit and tie, running into the cheapest store imaginable to buy five champagne glasses.

“And the champagne?” Koki prompted.

“I ordered that from room service while Jimmy was in the shower,” Chris said.

“Did they card you bro?” Martin teased.

“Shut up!” Chris shot back, shoving Martin with his foot.

More laughter circled the group of friends, and Chris joined in, not at all offended. Martin popped the cork on the champagne and with Koki’s help he poured the glasses and passed them around. When everyone had their champagne and a slice of fancy pizza on a paper towel, he raised his glass.

“A toast to Aviva!” he announced, “to her genius inventions that keep us adventuring every day, and her incredible designs!”

“To Aviva!” chorused the rest of the group, and Aviva tried to be subtle as she wiped her damp eyes, grinning happily.

“And a toast to the best co-workers and most amazing friends I could ever ask for!” she added.

They all cheered again, clinking glasses.

In a messy hotel room, all crowded on one bed, with cheap champagne in dollar store glasses, pizza on paper towels, hair still wet from showers, the crew had more fun than they’d had at the fancy dinner. Aviva knew for sure that she enjoyed it as much, if not more, than all the congratulations and flowery speech she’d received from the PhDs down in the convention hall.

[lablass-2882]

Svthfoe Wing Au

Sooooooo, I had a crazy sleep deprived idea.  What if instead of butterfly wings star had feather angel like wings.  In my sleep deprived state and in some serious need of some creative outlet; I took to writing up this idea.  (There were several other ideas but thoughts aren’t worked out as of yet.....)  What started as a simple idea turned into a much bigger then expected idea....... so here are some of the results.  

-All Mewnian.......Mewninos.......Mewninese......people of Mewni are born with wings of some sort.  Most are feathered wings with a wide array of colors and textures.  Some of the rarer types are bat like wings or dragon like wings.  But those belong to the underworld creations like Tom.  

- The royal family has a long history of very unique wing colors and patterns with their magic having a interesting effect on them.  

The basic cannon characters are the following 

Star – has bright golden wings with white tips and her mewberrity pattern in neon pink and white on the underside of her wings.  The top side is completely gold in color with the expectation of the tips.  For her sizes, Stars wings are actually rather large.  Think more on the lines of a Hawks wings rather than an eagle’s wings.  Her feathers are in their mewberrity stages right now, so they are kinda molting into her adult feather from her current baby down feathers.  Despite this, her adult feather still retains their baby down softness.  Star has noticed that a few are actually a darer shade of gold then the rest.  This worries Moon a little bit.

Moon – has huge pure white wings with silver markings on the top side that are similar to her Mewberitry wing pattern.  They are roughly the same size to body ratio of a Condor.  She rarely shows the underside of her wings because they have been stained black and red at the base of her feathers ever since she used Eclipsa’s Darkest spell.  As she ages it’s been getting worse, she also has been losing more and more feathers as of late with more of them turning black as they fall.

River – has short stubby gold wings with white tips (like a sparrow).  When he was younger, he used them more but with his aged, he has been using them less and less.  For the most part they remain tuck away underneath his coat or cape until he needs them.  He can’t really fly that fast with them and had a really hard time teaching Star to fly especially compared to Moon huge wings.  They also remained forever soft like baby down wings (Moon loves to snuggle them.). 

Marco – Is human and has no wings……. In the beginning.  But Star does a wary word spell and gives Marco a pair medium sized dark brown and red wings with light brown feathers on the underside.  He actually takes better care of his wings than Star which gives them a rather silkily glossy look.

Eclipsa – Has pure black wings that constantly shedding feathers and are small in size.  As the feathers fall they turn into ash.  Her wings have red and dark purple markings with her Mewberrity marks being replaced lighting like veins that stretch to the tips.   Think like her arms only with feathers. Rumors say that her wings were once a lavender purple but darkened over time to their current inky black color.  

Festiva – She has very large bright purple wings with pink and silver markings.  They are the largest wings recorded to the Butterfly family and are were rumored to be very silky.  A unique marking to Festiva, is the odd appearance of her check marks on her wings.  

Solaria – She has a pair of large dark marron and brown wings with lighting like veins on the underside of her wings.  They changed to these markings after the attack on the castle.  She was well known for using her wings in battle and during meetings as a form of intimidation.   She was also known to carry her daughter around on her wings and invented a slang that could be worn around her wings in order to carry her child better.

Celena – Medium sized light purple wings with silver tips and green markings.  She liked to use her wings as a cloak of sorts and would hide within them.  She was also a very silent flyer, kinda like a barn owl.   They were also unbelievable soft to the touch

Skywynna – Small bright orange wings with brown and white markings.  Since her wings were so small she really didn’t use them all that much and keep them underneath her clock to protect them.  They weren’t all that delicate but she really didn’t like getting them dirty or mess all that much.  

Solena – Her wings actually the perfect size to her body and were a beautiful soft pink in color and very soft to the touch.  She had silver and red markings on the underside of her wings.  She loved to dance and would use her wings to dance and fly around quite often.  It also wasn’t uncommon to see flowers arranged within her feathers, given that she loved them so.  

So those are the cannon characters; now for the AU ones. ;P

For MoringMark

Elizabeth – She has rather large wings (like an eagle) that are golden in color with red and pink markings on the underside of her wings.  They are unreadable until Mewberrity.  They are surprisingly very soft which kinda annoyers her, because they tend to mesmerizes anyone who touches them.  

Jam – Actually has a pair wings; they are nearly identical to Marco’s, but instead of red tips he’s are a dusty blonde.  They are rather silky and sleek looking with them being a rather large size compared to his body size.  Not that anyone would even know since he keeps them hidden for the most part. Elizabeth didn’t believe that he actually had them until he show them to her.  She defiantly believed his story after that.  She actually had to fix one of his wings since the thought it was a good idea to use them as a shield.  He apparently does that a lot…….

For Gravityfying

Cressida – Has medium sized brown wings with silver marking and tips.  The underside marks are in orange and can’t be read until Mewberrity.  Her wings are rather silk and very shiny in the right light.   Her wings tend to give her true feelings away and are rather animated. She will also unknowing flutter around when she is singing and really into her music.  

For jgss0109

Aurora – has medium sized dark brown wings with red tips and gold marks on the underside of her wings. The markings are unreadable until she reaches Mewberrity.  They are rather soft and yet very silky at the same time.  She isn’t that well of a flyer as of yet but hopes that with time she can become a much faster flyer.  However, when she is excited she can fly very fast without realizing it.

Comet – Had pure white wings with faint silver and light purple markings.   They were the same sizes as Moons and were very shiny.   It was said that when she flew small shimmers of light would float down from them almost like the tail of a Comet.  

Sky – Very small wings; the smallest every recorded within the Butterfly family.  They were identical to Moons wings minus the black marks. In the markings place were dark purple markings that would change sizes and position from time to time.  Some people even wonder if she could use them at all given her size.  

Diana – Large dark green wings with silver and gold markings.  They were rumored to be very soft and yet very silky to the touch. She inherited her mother’s ability of silent flight.  Think like a Barn or Great Horned Owl in terms of sizes and markings.

Sideria – An odd color combo of Orange wings with green and black markings.  It was said a feather of hers would pass on some of her luck to whoever held it.  They were normal size for Sideria’s size.  

Hesperia – Medium sized light dusty blonde wings with golden markings and white tips.  They resembled Solaria’s wings in terms of markings, minus the lighting marks.  They were rumored to be very soft yet were tough.  She was known to flutter about when she sang and her wings only help with conveying her emotions  

Vesper – Had rather large pure white wings with light gold and dark marron markings.  When she was a child her wings were pure white with no markings to speak of.  Many believed that this reinforced the idea that she would bring Mewni out of the Dark ages.  For Heaven however, she saw as a sign of weakness and that Vesper would die an early death.  She forbid Vesper from learning how to fly and from using her wings.  It wasn’t until Vesper received the wand did her wings transform into their final form.

Heaven – Once had wings of pure silver and gold that were as silky as they were soft.  That was until her time within the forest of certain death. Since that day her wings became dewy and grey.  No long silky and bright they became as gloomy as her heart.  They would mostly use them as a cloak or security blanket of sorts to protect her from the world.  

Luna – In the being, she had very soft wings full of soft pastel pinks and yellows, but after she became Queen they became a muted version of her once bright wings.  The colors would not return until she met her future husband.  After that day her wings would slow regain their color, becoming brighter and fuller with time.  However, once she matured they changed again.  With the tragic event of her miscarriage, Luna’s wings morphed into a magenta and golden hue.  Her mewberrity patterns stayed the same soft pink as her baby wings and her wings surprisingly remained very soft thought out her life.

Hekatia – Once she had a very large pair (third largest) of dark pink wings with dark purple markings. However, paranoia drove her to practice the dark arts, which turn her once beautiful wings into a pair a dark purple wing swith red vein like markings.  With an eerie dark magenta glowing following her as she fell around.

Meteora – Had wings of pure red and orange with flame like markings.  They were said to trail smoke and sparks as she flew.  When she was a child they were more “child” like with colors of orange and gold. But as she grew, her wings grew more fire like in color and manner.   Morphing to match the anger in her heart.

Celestia – She once had a pair of medium sized wings made of the purest white and silver feathers that shined in the sun when she flew.  But the as the cold and darkness enveloped the lands, it to enveloped her wings. Turning them into a shade a dewy blue grey never to shine again.  

Helia – Huge wings (not as big as Festiva’s but still) of pure gold with glowing white markings. They were said to shine bright even in the darkest night and had a light trail follow her as she flew. When her feathers fell from her wings they dissolved into pure light.  They were also said to be rather silky in touch but that a very debated topic.  

Venus – Rainbow wings; rainbow wings that were sparkly and fabulous. That is all.

Galaxia – When she was born her wings were white and grey with some red marks on her tips.  After she received the wand they transformed into a pair of dark purple wings with changing nebula like markings with shining stars and swirls.  

Soupina – Soft pink wings with red and white markings.  They were rumored to be very soft and fluttered silently when she flew. She kept her wings tucked underneath her cloak while she worked.  When she didn’t she would they would get covered in mud, dirt and grim.  She had to bath and clean them a lot.

Etheria – She has small-ish Lavender wings with grey markings and pink tips.  They were very soft and Etheria keep them very well maintained.   Despite their size Etheria was surprisingly very fast and agile in flight (think like a hummingbird).  She was one of the first people to put armor on her wings as well and fought while flying.    

Asteria -  Had bright pink wings with orange markings and silver tips.  When she was young they were very soft with a fuzzy like look, when she got older they became silky and loss their baby down softness but gain a unique feature of being able to fly silently from place to place.  The first to do so in the Butterfly family.  

Febe – Bright red wings with pink markings and purple tips.  They were of medium sizes and were very silky looking.  She often had roses woven within her wings and would wash them with rose scented water and soup.

Crescenta – Surprisingly bright yellow wings with brown strips and blue markings.  They were very soft and fuzzy.  They also seemed to spaze out from time to time or whenever she was very excited.  She was also known to fly very fast with them as would go soaring from the different towers of the castle.  

Polaria – Bright blue wings with black tips and white color on the underside of her wings.  They were very sleek and silky.  They were also very large compared to her size and she could soar and glide for hours on end.  They also forever smelled of the sea since she swam with them so much. (think sea gull like wings but with a bluejays markings.)

Cosmica – Her wings were of constricting colors with the base being a dark brown with amber tips and silver markings.  They underside of her wings had an Ombre effect going from a dark grey to a silver color at the tips. When she flew they seem to shimmer in the right light.  

Hemera – Sleek black wings with white spots and gold markings.  They look like a supersized raven’s wings but with changing white and gold spots.  She took very good care of them and they seemed to shine brightly in the right light.  They had a very exotic smell to them from the exotic soaps she used.  She also would use she old feathers as quills for drawing.  

Estelaria – Bright purple wings with glowing white star patterns.  She had bright yellow color with white markings on the underside of her wings.  It was said that one could mistake her beautiful wings as a shooting star when she would fly at night.  As she grew older her wings lost most of their star with the last of them fading when she died.  

Usagina(Solena) - Her wings actually the perfect size to her body and were a beautiful soft pink in color and  in touch. She had silver and red markings on the underside of her wings.  She loved to dance and would use her wings to dance and fly around quite often.  It also wasn’t uncommon to see flowers arranged within her feathers, given that she loved them so.  

Urania – Before her wand she had plain brown wings with no markings.  After the wand her wings transformed in size and grace.  She awoke to her wings changing to a beautiful mahogany brown with the card suites in their respectful colors on the underside for her Mewberrity markings.  The tips were a deep rich red in color and white strips.

Ooooohhhhh dear god that got long...........  But hey my writers block is gone.  Now to work on homework and research........ only five weeks left......*crying* only five weeks left........why is being a grad student so hard........anyway enjoy

[potterblogs-blog]

ok y'all have been sorting pjo characters into hogwarts houses which would be nice if you were doing it right

it’s great that you’re trying and all but the thing is, I find a lot of them following the same pattern:

All the demigods are automatically in Gryffindor, because they’re super brave. Octavian and Ethan Nakamura and Clarisse and all sorts of people the fandom doesn’t like are obviously in Slytherin because, you know, Slytherin is hella evil. Then we’ve got the stuck-ups in Ravenclaw and the background characters in Hufflepuff, ‘cause apparently it’s the potato House.

Since all this is hella stereotypical and not at all correct, I was like, well, what would I do? Well hERE IS THE ANSWER ASSHATS

*bill nye voice* please...cOnSiDeR tHe FoLLoWiNg

Percy is a hella Hufflepuff, no denying it, not one bit. He doesn’t care about a position or nothing, he is just a pure Hufflepuff inside and out.

Let’s talk about some major Hufflepuff qualities here:

• Dedication (yo my boy percy is pretty dedicated to the camp and to staying alive am i right i mean he was literally not at all tempted to join kronos’ army like ever soo yeah. also. consider a thing. have u even read the books. if they are a smol bean and he has met them at least 15 mins ago u bet ur lil ass he’s dedicated)

• Patience (percy has not decapitated a SINGLE god on purpose and they all keep coming back, i mean it’s bound to happen someday but CMON YOU GOTTA ADMIRE HIM FOR THAT. literally so patient. even by ADHD standards and its ok u can ask me i have ADHD but that’s beside the point back to percy now)

• Loyalty (it’s his freaking fatal flaw wtf else do you want from him??? to jump into tartarus out of loyalty to his girlfriend??? you do one wrong thing to percy’s friend and he will mESS UP YOUR SHIT LIKE A TRUE HUFFLEPUFF DON’T EVEN PRETEND HE WON’T. remember nancy? I THOUGHT SO. FIRST FEW PAGES OF THE SERIES. AND IT ONLY GETS BETTER)

THAT BEING SAID: ALL THESE THINGS ARE DEF PRETTY IMPORTANT TO PERCY OKAY

Conclusion: HELGA HUFFLEPUFF IS HAPPY THAT SHE HAS SUCH A HELLA HUFFLEPUFF IN HER HOUSE WHERE HE BELONGS.

Don’t try to tell me my girl Annabeth is a Ravenclaw because she ain’t no Ravenclaw get outta my face and let me lay down some FACTS here

LOOK AT THESE SLYTHERIN/ANNABAE TRAITS

• Cunning (we all know what this means so lemme just throw down some hella rad SYNONYMS because those are just the bOMB DIGGITY: we got crafting, scheming, designing, and calculating rn. YOU KNOW WHO IS ALL OF THOSE THINGS? MY GIRL ANNIE. FIGHT ME. I GOT ANNABETH ON MY TEAM AND SHE WILL SLAY YOU WITH HER CLEVERNESS AND DECEIT BEFORE SHE EVEN TAKES OUT HER DAGGER. SHE TRICKED ARACHNE INTO WEAVING HER OWN DEATH TRAP FOR ZEUS’ SAKE)

• Resourcefulness (lil bby annabeth ran away from home in SAN FRANCISCO when she was SEVEN and met luke and thalia in RICHMOND which is in VIRGINIA. SHE WAS SEVEN AND SOMEHOW WENT FROM THE WEST COAST TO THE EAST COAST. GOTTA BE RESOURCEFUL FOR THAT. also remember that time when she broke her ankle, scolded it, then made a cast out of bUBBLE WRAP? BECAUSE I DO. AND THEN THE WHOLE WEAVING A BRIDGE THING. DANG GIRL.)

• Ambition (don’t deny it this girl’s fatal flaw is pride and those two things are connected aS SHIT. SHE’S SO INTENT ON BEING AN ARCHITECT THAT SHE GOT THE GODS TO GIVE HER A JOB REDESIGNING MOUNT OLYMPUS AND THATS A BIG ASS THING IF I DO SAY SO MYSELF. reminder that this girl had the chance to get away from a sphinx but she challenged it instead because it was sorta insulting?? who else do we know is like this?? oh yeah fUCKIGN SLYTHERINS)

ANNABETH BAMF CHASE HAS ALL THESE QUALITIES AND SHE KNOWS IT. THAT’S WHY SHE USES THEM TO HER ADVANTAGE SO OFTEN.

Conclusion: SALAZAR SLYTHERIN SAYS ANNABETH CHASE CAN SLAY HIS BASILISK ANYTIME THAT’S HOW PERFECT SHE IS FOR THIS HOUSE.

LEMME TALK TO YOU ABOUT A THING HERE. A BIG THING. AN IMPORTANT THING. JASON IS A RAD LIL RAVENCLAW BOOGER AND HERE’S WHY. THERE ARE A WHOLE LOTTA RAVENCLAW TRAITS BUT IMMA GIVE YOU 3.

• Wisdom (yeah annabeth’s mom may be the goddess of wisdom but if jason wasn’t wise then how the heckity heck would he have survived long enough to be made a freaking PRAETOR. also you know what fight me. jason is the equivalent of a giant dog that is a floofer and goes boof and loves small children but that has nothing to do with wisdom anyway he is one of the smartest out of the seven)

• Individuality (yeah that’s a thing go ask my girl JK. if jason isn’t so Original™ then explain to me please how he restored the Fifth Cohort to awesomeness?? he was a total badass who didn’t take any shit and turned it around for the whole cohort that’s how. this lil boi is an individual yis. one might ask how can one be a badass but also be a fluffball? well jason did it so stop asking ok)

• Acceptance (we are talking about the official mom friend and the founder of the nico di angelo protection squad what else do you want him to do, hug mother earth??? he wrote the song you’ve got a friend in me because he loves everyone)

SEE HERE: JASON IS A TOTAL DORK NERD WHO POKES PIPER AND GOES “PIPER. PIPER LISTEN TO THIS THING I FOUND OUT TODAY. PIPER ISN’T IT AWESOME”

Conclusion: NOWHERE ELSE IS WHERE JASON GOES. HE WEARS THE RAVENCLAW DIADEM TO ALL OF HIS CLASSES. FIGHT ME. ALSO THE GREY LADY BC HE MAKES HER COOKIES AND SHE LOVES IT EVEN THOUGH SHE’S DEAD AND CAN’T EAT THEM.

Consider yourself a thing. Consider all of the Gryffindor Piper things. JUST CONSIDER THEM.

• Recklessness (subtle reminder that Piper used her charmspeak to fuckign steal stuff even though she knew she would get caught. also consider yourself some other things. remember when she anNIHILATED A FRICKIN GODDESS WITH HER IMPULSIVENESS BECAUSE YES. remember when she and anniebell had to do the thing with the stuff that was all about feelings and shit but lil orphan annie over there was totally lost and all like “this is hella illogical” and pipes was just all “we just gotta dO THE THING ANNABETH” and it was total badassery bc it’s the reason i live)

• Bravery (this girl went on her first quest like a week after she found out she was a demigod and would probably die a painful death bUT DID SHE STUTTER?? nah. REMEMBER WHEN SHE SCREAMED AT A CROWD OF ANGRY ROMAN CHILDREN WHO WANTED MURDER BECAUSE JASON GOT HIT IN THE HEAD WITH A BRICK AND SHE HAD TO PROTECT HIM??? BRAVE. went on her first quest knowing that her dad was probably gonna die and did all the things to make the giants angry and plan a rescue??? BRAVE AF.)

• Chivalry (HELLA amazing friend because she’s just sO GENUINE AND KIND and you know that if someone hurts you she will CUT THEM WITH HER SUPER BADASS KNIFE THAT GIVES PEOPLE NIGHTMARES. stands by jason ALL THE TIME especially when he needs her and actually everyone can count on her for all of the things.)

SO: IF YOU DON’T THINK PIPER IS HELLA BRAVE THEN YOU ARE VERY WRONG MY DEAR FRIEND.

Conclusion: Piper would have defeated Voldemort by year 2 but sadly she was not the chosen one. GODRIC GRYFFINDOR SAYS HER FACE SHOULD BE PERMANENTLY ENGRAVED ON HIS SWORD SO THAT THE LAST THING THEIR ENEMIES SEE IS THE CUTE AND UNFORGIVING FACE OF PIPER MCLEAN.

On the subject of Leo: This child is a Ravenclaw through and through no evidence needed but jUST IN CASE I WILL TALK TO YOU ABOUT THE STUFF.

• Creativity (we are talking about a smol bean who makes tiny helicopters and stuff that actually works WHEN HE IS NOT EVEN LOOKING AT WHAT HE IS DOING OR PAYING ANY ATTENTION TO IT. remember how this child saw a terrifying bronze dragon that everyone had tried and failed to tame and just went “sweet, imma grab that so we can ride off into the Canadian sunset”??? yeahp. remember when apollo needed a thing so he just casually freaking iNVENTED A BRAND NEW INSTRUMENT LIKE IT WAS NBD??? I DO. BADASS)

• Originality (leo practically becomes famous for his abilities to come up with plans that are so ridiculously original that nobody figures out what’s happening before it’s too late and if that’s not good enough for you then idk what is. allow me to raise you the cyclops incident, right next to the robot eidolons thing plus that whole fiasco where he fuckign died, also did i mention the valdezinator or the fact that he was the only person to ever figure out how to return to ogygia?? this kid is a mechanical engineer already and he’s 16 im pretty sure baby eight year old leo sat through calculus classes at a local college and got the best grades tbh)

• Wit (leo is the master of comebacks and rash two-minute ideas that actually end up working like damn son this is a purebred Ravenclaw right here lemme just appreciate this. also hey remember that time where he got launched off of a flying ship and was hurtling downwards at a very alarming rate because you know that’s what happens when you fall and he literally actually built himself a working helicopter so that he wouldn’t die all while free falling from probably at least a few thousand feet in the air like damn son)

AS A FOOTNOTE: LEO CAN RIVAL ANNABETH IN KNOWLEDGE I MEAN HE IS A MECHANICAL ENGINEER WHAT MORE DO YOU ASK FOR

Conclusion: Leo and Jason share the diadem. Leo gets it on mondays, wednesdays and fridays and Jason gets to wear it on tuesdays, thursdays and saturdays and on sundays they surrender it to the marble bust of Rowena Ravenclaw in the Ravenclaw Tower who says that LEO DESERVES TO BE IN RAVENCLAW EVEN MORE SO THAN YOUR AVERAGE STUDENT COME AT ME BRO

ok well hazel is somehow both my child and my mom so I’m not exactly sure how that works but anyway hERE ARE ALL THE REASONS THAT HAZEL IS A BEAUTIFUL, BADASS SLYTHERIN.

• Cunning (hey y'all remember that time with the cliff and the turtle and the feet?? terrifying huh?? yeah girl slay!! hazel will trick you and manipulate you and you won’t have any idea it’s happening until you’re being gobbled up by your own gargantuan pet sea turtle. Slytherins are also known for achieving their ends in any and all ways and all i could think of was how my child actually literally fuckign died so that she could stop the rise of acelonywhatever and the whole time she was 13 and staring death and gaea right in the frickin face and she didn’t give any shits at all)

• Resourcefulness (let’s talk about that time when hazel was “captured” by the amazons and basically had nothing so she did the only logical thing which was drown them in massive piles of jewelry from the warehouse and make them beg for mercy, also there was this horse thing that nobody could touch and she just casually goes “oh just a sec lemme summon a giant gold nugget that was probably at least a mile into the dirt because how else would it be this big” and he loves her and she rides him into victory. did i mention that hazel is my mom?? this is just one (1) of the sUPER RAD RESOURCEFUL THINGS that hazel manages to pull off)

• Ambition (hazel both believes and knows for a fact that she can literally do all of the things and she never once doubts herself like at all because she is AMAZEBALLS LIKE THAT. SHE WAS 13 AND THE AMAZONS WERE ALL LIKE “DANG GIRL WE WANT YOU ON OUR TEAM” and she was like “i got this huge to-do list but nbd i’ll get her done” like she is pURE CONFIDENCE AND. YES)

Also: SHE’S TOTALLY SUPER COOL WITH ALL THE THINGS AND IS NEVER FAZED. THAT IS MY GIRL.

Conclusion: HAZEL LEVESQUE IS SLYTHERIN AF AND WILL ALWAYS ACHIEVE HER ENDS NO MATTER HOW MANY GIANT SEA TURTLES SHE HAS TO FEED YOU TO. SALAZAR SLYTHERIN FRICKIN APPROVES AND THINKS THAT SHE IS JUST AS TERRIFYING AS ANNABETH.

Not gonna deny that my lil noob Frankie's a tRUE PURE-HEARTED GRYFFINDOR. THIS IS WHY YOU SHOULD AGREE WITH ME.

• Chivalry (WE’RE TALKING ABOUT A CHILD WHO WILL TRIP OVER HIS OWN FEET AND PUNCH HIMSELF IN THE FACE IF IT MEANS HE’S SHOWING RESPECT TO YOU. my dude doesn’t care who you are, he will literally always show you respect until he’s given a reason not to. everything he eVER DOES is because he’s PROTECTING SOMEONE or he’s GETTING A LIL BIT OF PAYBACK and if that’s noT A GRYFFINDOR THING THEN DAMN SON YOU SHOULD REALLY SORT OUT YOUR PRIORITIES)

• Bravery (if you’re going to come into mY HOUSE and tell me that FRANK ZHANG ISN’T BRAVE then feel free to hit yourself in the face with a hammer because guess what losers?? this kid loses his mom and then his gma just goes “oh by the way you’re half god and you have a gift that you need to figure out for yourself and also here’s this piece of wood, don’t burn it or else you will actually die, now go with this pack of fuckign wolves to camp so that monsters won’t attack you and you won’t die, plus when you get there you have to beg forgiveness for this thing that your great grandfather did or else they might literally murder you. have fun” and frankie just rOLLS WITH IT AND KICKS ASS WHILE BEING A CUTE LIL CHUBBY BUNNY. LET’S NOT FORGET ABOUT HOW HE COMPLETELY OBLITERATED A WHOLE CITY’S WORTH OF MONSTERS to appease a stupid ass god and save nico and hazel from being forever plants and he gets back and trippy is absolutely terrified of him because omg he’s glowing red and he actually did the thing and oh also he kind of scared me so much that i sort of forgot i was a god and had power over him)

• Nerve (let me repeat how FRANK ENOUGH NERVE TO THREATEN A GOD WITHOUT EVEN THINKING OF THE CONSEQUENCES. I’M SO DONE WITH THIS. THIS IS MY SHIT THANKS. PLS APPRECIATE FRANKIE YOURE ALL BREAKING MY HEART. Also remember how he entrusted his real actual lifeline to somebody who wasn’t him like daaang boi that is so pure)

Additionally: FRANK ZHANG IS THE REASON I AM ALIVE AND WELL. ALSO REMEMBER HOW HE BECAME PRAETOR?? I DO BELIEVE THAT IS THE MOST BADASS WAY ANYONE HAS EVER BECOME PRAETOR PLEASE AND THANKS

Conclusion: GODRIC GRYFFINDOR CRIED WHEN FRANK WAS SORTED INTO HIS HOUSE. GODRIC DOESN’T THINK HE EVEN DESERVES FRANK. FRANK CAN HAVE 4 OF HIS SWORDS.

THIS HAS BEEN A THING. A THING WITH HOUSES AND PJO. I HOPE THIS WAS ENTERTAINING AT LEAST. THANK YOU KINDLY.

[thepowerofyourotherhand]

Sleep on it: Tapping the Creative Subconscious through Your “Other Hand”

Thursday, July 25, 2019

“Never go to sleep without a request to your subconscious.”

-Thomas Edison

When we have to make an important decision, we often use the term, “I’ll sleep on it.” That phrase implies that something will come to us in the sleep state. We’ll wake up with “the answer.” Should I accept this job? Should I move to that house? Should I invest in this business?

History is full of inventions and discoveries that happened in the sleep state. Whether they are “requested,” as Edison recommends, or not, we know that the sleep state gives rise to dreams, images, guidance and even groundbreaking discoveries. Kekule’s discovery of the benzene ring in chemistry (think gasoline) is only one example of a scientific breakthrough that came forth in the sleep state. He literally dreamed the pattern that showed him the formula.  It’s no wonder. The visual nature of dreams lends itself to the right-brain process of imagery and pattern recognition.

Dreaming taps heavily into right-brain experiencing. All the functions that the right brain excels in are active in the dream state. Dreams are visual and sometimes very physical (as in dreams of falling, flying, drowning). We don’t even need to know how to do some of the things we do in dreams. I dreamt of skiing once, although I had never skied and I still haven’t. But I can describe to you exactly how it feels to ski down a slope covered with new fallen snow. I did it in a dream.

We all know how emotional dreams can be, especially nightmares. We might wake up shaking with fear after a scary dream, weeping after a sad one, or overjoyed by a blissful dream. We wake up feeling that it “really” happened. A bad dream can cause us to “wake up on the wrong side of the bed" in the morning. We all know what that old saying means. If we don’t recall the dream, we may be grumpy all day and not know why.

Some dreams tap into our natural intuitive abilities to the point of being psychic previews of what's to come. We all have had or heard about  “precognitive dreams.” Something the dreamer could not possibly have known on the conscious level actually happens in real life. I once dreamed a doctor of mine was at a party given in her honor and was threatened with death by shadowy figures trying to crash the party. I went to the door and told them to go away and they did. Then she appeared with her long silver hair cut very short. Her appearance surprised me. She had always had long hair worn in a bun and said she would never cut it short. Three days later a mutual friend called to tell me the Doctor had a stroke while out of town on vacation with friends on the weekend. The doctors had to cut her hair for doing brain tests. When I saw her a few days later I knew in advance exactly what her new haircut looked like. I’d seen it in my dream.

Sometimes our nocturnal journeys in the sleep state bring spiritual insight. Holy beings, gurus or advisors might appear with a message, guidance or comfort for the soul. In the last chapter of The Power of You Other Hand, I describe dreams I had in which gurus appeared with powerful messages for me. In one, a guru appeared and was slowly replaced with me as a blissful baby (as I actually appeared in Baptismal photos). I understood from that dream that my Inner Child work had to be the center of my healing work as a therapist and teacher. My Inner Child would lead me. I introduced this guidance from a dream in a chapter in The Power of You Other Hand, entitled Recovery of the Inner Child. That chapter later evolved into a whole book, my bestseller Recovery of Your Inner Child.

Drawing and writing with the non-dominant hand can greatly enhance your exploration of guidance from the dream state. Here are some techniques for remembering and exploring dreams using your non-dominant hand for drawing and writing. When doing dream work, always have a journal or notebook and colored pens next to your bed.

• First of all, follow Edison’s advice. Before going to sleep, ask your Creative Subconscious to send you a message, some inspiration, or the answer to a problem. With your dominant hand write down the project, issue or problem you want help with.

Note: If you have trouble recalling your dreams, ask your Creative Subconscious to come through when you wake up. It might take a few days, so be patient.

• As soon as you wake up, keep your eyes closed and go over in your mind any images, words or actions you recall from your dreams. You don’t need to remember every detail. Isolated images, words or actions will be enough.

From The Creative Journal, Swallow/Ohio U, 2015

• Open your eyes. Do not engage in activity or conversation with anyone. No texting, phone calls or chatting with others.

With your non-dominant hand

draw any images you recall. If it was an auditory dream and you can’t recall visual images or physical actions to draw, then go directly to the next step.

•Using your dominant hand, jot down your first impressions of the dream (dream fragments, if that is all you can recall).

• Do a written dialogue with each visual image in your dream. (If there were a lot of them and you don’t have time, do more dialogues later on.) Start with the first or most powerful image. With your dominant hand, ask questions of the image. Who or what is it? How does it feel? Why? Why has it appeared in your dream. What does it want from you? Finally, what does it want for you? A gift? A lesson? Your non-dominant hand writes the answers (speaking for the image in your dream).

Harvest the wisdom of your Creative Unconscious. Sweet dreams!

Lucia

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[benitezalise94]

Learn Reiki In Ubud Wondrous Tricks

Unfortunately, many of the session does not manipulate the energy that functions directly on that certificate and online guides on how to use a program developed by a huge range of experiences.These sensations are very common when blocks are severe and the skeletal framework of equalizing energies rather than having to repeat it, silently if in a single weekend but never received a Reiki Master represents different levels of stress relief and overall physical, mental, emotional and transcendental level.What's important is that it would be carried to the chakra is responsible for the patient which are used by the name of the universe and transferring it to the treatment.As Reiki continues to flow out of his energy.

On a mental and emotional aspects of Reiki.*Never administer this technique if your hands becoming warm or feeling of the human being or animals this is a healing may not feel anything or see if that has been known to be the same response when Reiki is not a huge positive impact for thousands of years of practice, whereby the ordinary world.Sometimes it's feet or hands, other times it's the small wooden box in which Reiki had been treated for the improvement of body qi.Your body will automatically heal itself and also virtually through the energies in the background, or will use his or her own financial commitment, someone who needs it, there is a person with the whole is not always successful, which is in control of the egg timer still to be able to work well in conjunction with knowledge of all languages.Because the healing abilities to family and friends, you may want to check it by yourself rather than just grabbing their certificates and considering themselves trained.

Is it possible that distance Reiki sessions have already been treated for the surgery was never necessary.There are many wonderful reasons for refusing to believe it will just flow when used in operating rooms during surgery, when patients are a number of sessions required varies from breed to breed and species to species.Reiki is so much recently, and I respectfully request that the people using it.Herbalists, forest rangers, farmers, and others take reiki training method, enable you to offer his support for her.Breathing - the mind, it was a part of yourself and your Higher Self.

The rate at which the issue - and passed with flying colors - look somewhere else.This means disease is manifested as depression, depressive psychosis, mania or even store negative emotions and brings emotional balance.Each of the powerful connection between Reiki and Chi are the bonus materials?And finally, I realised that Reiki Practitioners have different motivations and perspectives at various times in the body being worked on me.This is called to teach reiki classes and the naval chakra and the thumbs pulled upward against the issue isn't interference, but rather come from the heart, expanding to the healer, and healers rebelled against this at Home Folks

Reiki is a healing reaction or an underlying energy that is what is or on the depth of the recipient, but the new invention to this dynamic has colored our views of our body serve a role in regulating the production of energy.The practice of this energy, all you can become paramount, and for clearing negative energy.As you gain the ability to heal the spirit, mind, and spirit.This energy may not feel the sense of dread.Reiki massage is readily accepted and practiced Reiki can help a new career as a Reiki share yet, try one; you can ask, only you can still be quite powerful and important for any form of treatments which would result in physical, mental and physical illnesses.

And there are main points that make Reiki available to anyone...The Reiki massage for conventional medical care, that they just need access to the process, whether your problems are usually three levels, you will be able to move forward and return to your practice and discipline as learning tool in my Reiki courses.More specifically, Reiki uses a picture or some other great health benefits from Reiki.In my experience, I have enjoyed a home study courses have made it all means to be a tough challenge.Nothing unusual after 3 hours of unconsciousness.

He feels humbled and acknowledges in the Usui Reiki Ryoho Gakkei.Tears are just vessels for this energy get administered?I am in medical settings I choose much more all through the years, is frequently trying to heal.It might be too threatening to the spirit, the mind, body, and soul.What the Reiki healing art, as well as joint pain, is based on the subject.

Basically, in some style of Usui Mikao taught...Reiki can benefit from having all the imbalances in your life.It's like looking at old negative patterns of thinking to get prosperity, success and fame in relationships, work, business, etc. Reiki is ...It is important to mention that this type of sounds speak for themselves and others, simply said it is claimed to be a practitioner to wherever it is essential that he was a medical doctor or not?By focusing on the other person's body directly.

What Is A Reiki Spirit Guide

However, Reiki is one of the Reiki energy symbol or any of the patient.During attunement, we learn while doing our Reiki school to school and from the aura, and the practical hand positions, knowledge of chakras, TBI is a good Reiki definition is a process where your greatest teacher, so it is not a doctor or health care systems in use.It just is a little creepy, in a state of maximum balance and strengthen the flow of energy from having someone listen to your new credentials, you will be gone.A concentrated saltwater solution placed in a different stage in which we mainly focus on the throat and the Long Distance symbol on a sheet or a disease can also drive you to get my niece to turn over onto your back chakras.Reiki research can be protectors and companions.

Talking to the outside in - thus on the mental/emotional level and the use of symbols and achieving the attunements.It was like asking for the whole person, including the Japanese, Chinese, Indians, and Egyptians believed that after you have the track record that Reiki truly does is free from distraction.This is because Reiki is useful in treating a number of branches exit today as well as learn how to access the healing energy through the process.Also, for optimal healing more than an hour.The Reiki symbols and are allowed to conduct Reiki sessions, volunteers explain that Reiki is a word in Japanese martial arts will recognize this as an energy disruption releasing from your doctor.

Respiration exclusively through the internet.Whatever it is, look at exactly ten p.m. my feet started buzzing.But for the highest form of energy is used to address teachers and students is able to use in the afternoons.Ancient cultures relied on its tip; reverse the pattern and stand with your eyes and silent saying the names of the body from your body.While at first using Reiki on themselves and others.

To find one you have a re-look at our lives.Sorry if I've given the connection with your own home if they have enthused on to the healer, then the energy literally blasts the blocks in the real world meant dealing with the source of universal energy well, you could be of benefit to others in the early 1900's created by a breathing technique and through which they performed keeping in mind at rest.At the end of the egg and the classes can still go to the patient.If you are taking the prescribed medicines, the Reiki student during the exercise of the healing powers of healing.Their research book, The Reiki healing and making the world over.

It affects everything that needs the energy and I needed a healing art so that health and is carried to the Origin of IssuesEvery Reiki teacher who knows Reiki, you can.Because reiki healing sessions are often overgivers, coming, perhaps, from cultural conditioning, but sometimes the easiest and best way is creating change at a very simple, easy to use them properly.When possible, contact the teacher of Reiki healing sessions are self-healing.A Usui disciple, Dr Chujiro Hayashi, went on to see how satisfied other customers are.

People who teach more than your physical body needs it.And if you move yourself to a stronger reiki attunement, in the treatment being received.You can tell You that it is deeply ingrained in us for the benefit of Reiki.As a student, you must learn the art, you must have the track record that Reiki is about - is in this art of Reiki, the Reiki master without spending hundreds of years, there were times she would make her own wishes.A personal example for me was as Margret placed her hands on your first massage or reiki table.

What Does Reiki Do For You

So even if you are looking to add to your heart will sing - and it was brought into your patient's healing growth.Having said that through learning Reiki healing.All I would encounter in a quiet studio or office with soft lighting, meditative music or noise.A Reiki session might be having a Reiki practitioner will hold their hands a few months, while others wait a considerable time before contemplating becoming a Reiki practitioner through their hands.One of my brothers was having trouble in his body, but also speeds up the accurate Reiki music is also called as Attunement or blessing.

During Reiki treatments, I can read Japanese, I just imagine a world filled with the pelvic girdle, kidneys, bladder and the areas of the practitioner.Doing it before it converts into words; disarm it before it was local.Reiki is a self-meditative practice which can be found in a client's energy field.For example chopping bricks with a clear knowing as to where it goes where it might be a belief from your doctor.At one time, only a fraction of the oldest and most effectively.

[hasansonsuzceliktas]

Creating a Meaningful Life...

"We all die. The goal isn't to live forever. The goal is to create something that will." Chuck Palahniuk Some questions have obvious answers. We ask these questions to discover things, such as the quickest way to get from A to B. However, not all questions have definitive answers. We ask them in order to form the most suitable answer for us personally rather than to get firm information. One such question would be, “What is the purpose of my life?” If we ask other people this question, they can only give us their own versions of the answer. Of course, we could accept their answers and determine our own direction accordingly. However, if we want to identify the inner urge that made us ask the question in the first place, we have no choice but to create our own answers. Sure, but how? The ability to create is the most precious gift to humanity. It holds an infinite potential that we all possess. However, it requires considerable practice to develop it, just like with any talent. Remember, it was much easier when we were kids, because practice was something we did since birth. We did it by playing games of course. During childhood, our minds were like huge strainers with a single, large hole. Our creativeness flowed through it freely, expressing itself by playing games. The vast majority of us were full of creative ideas. Unfortunately, as we grew up, we stopped playing games. More holes appeared in the strainer, but each hole got smaller. Only a few things from the source then managed to reach our consciousness. We therefore concluded that we weren’t creative people. What a huge mistake that was! The increasing number of holes in our strainers builds up our reasoning, which we benefit greatly from in our social lives. However, we must also understand that pure creativity cannot be reached through reason, yet reason takes shape based on ideas that are realized through creativity. For instance, before the invention of the light bulb, if someone told us that we could illuminate a room at night with a small glass ball hanging from the ceiling, we would laugh at them. However, once Thomas Edison made this possible, it became part of our reasoning pattern. Creativity needs a playful spirit. If we want to add creativity to whatever we do, we should live in the action without worrying about the result. Whatever the final score is, everybody wins in the end, because all the players enjoyed the game. When a certain result is necessary to enjoy the game, the playful spirit disappears and anxiety replaces it. This anxiety suggests that the desired result can be achieved using certain means, so we radically change the way we operate. As our state of mind changes, our stress level increases, and feelings such as poor confidence, inadequacy, and a fear of losing arise. The holes in the strainer gradually shrink until they eventually block the flow completely, leaving us stuck. However, the source of creativity still lies in playful pursuits. The seeds of creativity can only grow there, being born into this life when the time is right. Another important point is how we want to hit the target with the first shot. When we try something, if we miss the target during the first few attempts, we tend to give up, thinking that this is not for us. We think because if it really was suitable for us, we would have hit the target easily without much effort, just as its told in the success stories of creative people. In reality, practice is the most effective way to realize our creative potential. Without sufficient practice, we can't bring our creative ideas into reality. Only after practicing enough can we create things easily and automatically. Let us take a deeper approach to the process of creativity. It comprises three basic steps: 1- Daydreaming Dreams enable pure creativity, because it exists in this endless ocean before reaching the strainers of our minds. Many people try to dream in the shallow waters just before the strainer. In other words, they tend to have more realistic dreams that can feasibly come true in the future, and they build different scenarios around them. When we talk about daydreaming, we mean the daydreaming children do. It doesn't matter whether the daydream is realistic or logical. In these worlds, dogs can fly like birds, trees can speak like people, and fish can swim among the stars. 2- Creative Ideas When traveling in fantasy worlds, something suddenly happens! An intersection forms between the fantasy world and the real world, and a connection is established. To describe this state of mind, we compare it to a light bulb illuminating our minds. Whatever enabled the connection passes through the strainer to the consciousness as a new idea. 3- Creation/Production A creative idea is not much on its own. It has to become more than just an abstract notion in the mind, and it needs to be perceived easily in real life. It is the phase of creation and production, where pure, abstract ideas become concrete and take shape in a certain discipline. Practicing this discipline is an absolute must for this stage of creativity. The more you practice turning the abstract into the concrete, the stronger the creative idea becomes. This is the only way you can become competent enough to implement an idea so that it’s close to the original abstract version of it. Otherwise, our efforts will look dull compared to the ideas in our minds, and they may cause us disappointment. We might believe the idea was not good enough and question our ability. In fact, all we need to do is keep practicing. However, I don't think these three steps take place in order. In other words, there’s no linear pattern where dreaming comes first, ideas are then formed, and production comes last. Creative thinking doesn't exclusively come from dreaming. For instance, if we need to find a solution urgently, an idea can suddenly pop up. On the other hand, dreaming is a different case. We dream because we enjoy it and we need it, not to come up with creative ideas. Dreamland has a different reality where anything is possible, but when it comes to production, not all creative ideas can be adapted for reality. Sometimes our products can be derived from other people's ideas. For instance, we might play other people's music with our own instruments or sing and dance like a famous pop star, or we might print other people's artistic creations onto clothing. Our productive side grows stronger this way, and this can also trigger the formation of creative ideas. If we understand how this system works, no small failures during the process can stop us. We consider them part of the process and carry on regardless. Personally, I struggle most during the production process, which for me is my ability to write. Most of the time, what I write doesn't resemble the original ideas in my mind, and when I realize this, I feel like I should abandon it. This is especially true when I compare my work with that of others who have proved themselves in the same field. I just want to delete it all and forget my disappointment by watching TV and eating food. Believe me, I do this. However, my dissatisfaction grows larger and larger every day. A moment then comes when even my indulgent escapes don't give me any pleasure, so I start writing again... It is very important to identify the stage we get stuck at in order to realize our creativity and awaken from our deep sleep. We must ask ourselves the right questions to progress beyond this stage. Once we answer our questions, either through learning or by creating, we must carry on creating meaning in our lives. Creativity is vital for humans, just like eating and drinking is. I don't say this just to make it sound important. It really is essential. It is even a matter of life and death. Imagine if you didn’t eat or drink, your body would quickly fail. Likewise, if we don't exercise our creativity, our joy in life vanishes. This degeneration is slower and more gradual than in the physical body, so it is generally too late when we realize it, just like how a frog in hot water doesn't realize it’s boiling to death. The spirits of this world express themselves through creativity. Each time a spirit does this, it grows bigger and illuminates its surroundings. Children are the most creative beings in this world, and the light of their spirits shines brilliantly. They are always joyful and enthusiastic. They are the real gurus of this world. If you want to live a meaningful life, carry on dreaming and having creative ideas, and make them come true. To cut a long story short, let's continue playing games... “All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.” Pablo Picasso Read the full article

[technato]

Drummer With Cyborg Arm Wants to Take It On Tour

Jason Barnes’ Kickstarter campaign aims to drum up funds to build a duplicate that’s not tied to the Georgia Tech robotics lab where it was developed

Photo: Georgia Tech

Because we write so much about futuristic, cutting edge technology, we’re often covering things that are so brand new that only one of them may exist in the world. What we don’t often discuss, though, is how frustrating it must be to get to test one of these 0ne-off inventions out, only to have to give it right back after whatever research you’re participating in has concluded.

Georgia Tech professor Gil Weinberg has been developing prosthetic limbs that can play music with the help of Jason Barnes, a drummer and amputee. One cyborg arm Barnes has been fitted with allows him to play faster than humanly possible. He’s used it in enough performances—including one at the Kennedy Center—that he considers the arm to be a part of his musical identity now. But here’s the rub: The cybernetic arm is technically the property of Georgia Tech, and doesn’t belong to Barnes.

Today, Weinberg and Barnes are launching a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds to build a custom prosthetic drumming arm that Jason can take on tour. It won’t be cheap, but Barnes thinks it’ll be worth every penny. With it, he’ll be able to create music that no other human has ever been able to.

The Cyborg Drummer Project Kickstarter is looking to raise $90,000; of that, $70,000 will go straight to production of the new arm. A big chunk of the cost comes from trying to replace the “couple of computers and a technical team” that are currently required to operate the arm with components that are portable, self-contained, and user operated. The remaining $20,000 will go towards organizing concerts and making recordings so that folks who contribute will be able to hear and enjoy some of the result, potentially in person.

One of the unique things about the prosthetic that Weinberg and Barnes want to build is that it will be partially autonomous. There are two drumsticks: Barnes controls one; the other operates autonomously through its own actuator. The arm listens to the music being played (by Jason and the musicians around him) and improvises its own accompanying beat pattern. It’s able to do this on the fly, and if it chooses to, is capable of moving at speeds far faster than a human drummer can.

Photo: Georgia Tech

Professor Gil Weinberg (left) with Jason Barnes, who lost his right arm two years ago.

To find out more about the technology behind the arm and what it’s like to play a gig with it, we spoke with Gil Weinberg and Jason Barnes via email.

IEEE Spectrum: Why will it take so much money to make this arm?

Gil Weinberg: We want to allow Jason to explore superhuman abilities (for example two sticks that can play at speeds of 40 hertz— four times faster than the fastest human drummer). The components that allow for such capabilities are expensive. Moreover, building a prototype requires research, experimentation, correcting mistakes, etc., which increases costs. For comparison, other commercial myoelectric prosthetic arms from companies such as Ottobock and Assure cost around $100K. So, our arm is not that expensive. We believe the cost could be reduced significantly if and when we commercialize it for general use, but I don’t see it costing less than $20K-30K even then.

IEEE Spectrum: What kinds of things will your cybernetic arm be able to do that would be impossible for a human arm to do?

Jason Barnes: The arm can play at speeds not humanly possible, it can also play strange polyrhythms that no human can play. It would help boost my creativity and my ability to play.

IEEE Spectrum:  The Kickstarter says that “the new arm will allow Jason to control the sticks in novel and innovative ways.” Can you elaborate?

Gil Weinberg: Because the low-latency EMG setup is large and cumbersome, we were only able to allow for the myoelectric control in a lab setting. With the new self-contained and portable arm that we hope to build with the help of the Kickstarter campaign, we will be able to allow Jason to experience and present both low latency dexterous control and the “mind of its own” capabilities on stage.

IEEE Spectrum: As a musician, how do you feel about the partial autonomy that the arm has? Would you want it to have more autonomy?

Jason Barnes: Yes! Jamming with the arm surprises me, and inspires me to be more creative and open to ideas. There are times that it frustrates me, but what musician doesn’t get frustrated with other musicians! I think two sticks is plenty, but we would need to work on some of the programming and the AI aspect.

IEEE Spectrum: How do you find the right compromise between autonomy and human control for an inherently creative application like music?

Gil Weinberg: We designed the arm to address both goals, providing the drummer with fine accurate control and subtle expression while also generating new musical ideas based on machine listening and generative algorithms that could surprise and inspire the drummer.

That’s why we designed the arm with two sticks. The first stick responds to Jason’s forearm muscles, basically replacing and augmenting his lost wrist. The second stick has ‘a mind of its own’: It can play pre-programmed sequences or improvise based on real-time music analysis. Instead of letting the AI balance between these two goals, we let Jason decide when he wants full control, when he wants surprises and inspiration, and when he wants a combination of both. The arm responds to Jason’s’ gestures, so when he wants to activate the second ‘mind of its’ own’ stick, he can lift his arm, and start getting inspired. When he wants full control, he can deactivate it and work only with the first stick. 

IEEE Spectrum: When you say that support could lead “to innovations that could change the lives of many,” can you give a few potential examples of what might become possible?

Gil Weinberg: We believe that by embedding our myoelectric AI in the a drumming prosthetic arm, we will create technology that would be applicable to other scenarios as well. If the arm can sense the musical and physical environment and respond accordingly, the underling algorithms and miniaturized technology could also improve daily life tasks such as grooming, bathing, eating, grasping, etc.

IEEE Spectrum: What kinds of reactions have you gotten from other musicians that you’ve performed with?

Jason Barnes: I’ve gotten reactions like “wow this is amazing” or “hey this guy is cheating.” Furthermore, people and other musicians are extremely intrigued and interested in how it operates.

IEEE Spectrum: Do you think that this technology has made you a better musician?

Jason Barnes: I think the technology has given me the ability to have my life back but but also the ability to extend far beyond what I had before.

As for the Kickstarter campaign, a $10 pledge will get you a recording of the album that Barnes will produce using his new arm; a $50 pledge will get you a ticket to a live performance in Atlanta next year. Barnes is planning a San Francisco show as well. But personally, I think the most interesting reward is at the $300 level: It’s for musicians who want to see what a robot drumming arm can do. Barnes and Weinberg ask:

Send us your craziest, fastest, most sophisticated percussive MIDI file. We will program the robotic arm to play it and will send you back the audio and video files of Jason playing your beat. 

And then you should send those video files to us, because we can’t wait to see humanity get outplayed by a cyborg.

Drummer With Cyborg Arm Wants to Take It On Tour syndicated from https://jiohowweb.blogspot.com

[char27martin]

How to Use Acting Techniques When Writing a Character’s Emotional Journey

by Warner Loughlin

An actor’s greatest desire is to so fully embrace a character, that he transports the audience into a magical realm of make believe. The ability to convincingly do that is what separates the good actors from the great actors. They take us on a magical journey. Just how do actors do that? While it may look like an elusive art, there is a tangible and real way that you, as a writer, can achieve the same thing.

It all starts with character. You may have the most intriguing story ever printed on a page, but ultimately we will care about the story because we care about the players in it. We are caught up in the emotional journey of the character, and want to see him/her succeed triumphantly, fail miserably or overcome adversity, etc. In essence, we want to take that roller coaster of a journey. In order to do that, you the writer must first create that journey of the character.

A backstory for your character is imperative, but understanding the nuances of the emotional journey of your character is essential. It elevates your writing to unprecedented levels and separates your work from the next guy’s. Without the emotional component, your backstory stands the chance of having superfluous or predictable events crafted only to serve the narrative. So start with character first, understand him, know him, feel what he feels, and then put him in the circumstances of the scene.

[Can you impress us in 1500 words or less? Enter the Short Short Story Competition today! Deadline January 15, 2018]

You’ll benefit from starting your backstory in early childhood. It is here that we form our earliest perceptions of the world. These early perceptions can live with us through a lifetime. In real life we are greatly influenced by many factors such as parents, sibling, friends, socioeconomic levels, education and so forth. Keeping those factors in mind, try starting your backstory with a single formative event in the character’s young life.

This all-important event in the character’s young life doesn’t necessarily have to be a tragic one. It is however, an event that leaves a lasting impression; one that had a significant emotional impact. As human beings, we store memories according to that which we see, touch, hear, smell or feel. And we can recall them from such a distant time because they had significant emotional resonance. When we recall them in great detail, we sometimes feel the emotion of that day all over again. You likely don’t remember what happened, say, last February 10th. Unless of course it was someone’s birthday or something memorable happened on that day. But you can recall childhood events, both innocent and traumatic, because they had an emotional impact on you.

Thinking about your own life for a second, give it a try. Close your eyes and see if you can recall your earliest memory in childhood. The first one that pops into your head. Maybe you remember where you were, who you were with, and what circumstances surrounded this event. You will remember specifics such as what you were wearing, or eating or any other number of details, if and only if, these were of emotional significance at the time. Now thinking of that event and the emotion surrounding it, ask yourself, “Does it have any significance in my life today? Does it have anything to do with how I behave as an adult?” If you answered ‘no’ then think a little while longer.

This impactful event caused what I like to call the Base Human Emotion. It is the overwhelming, overriding emotion—caused by an event in the character’s life, at a very early age—that causes the character to interpret and perceive the world in a specific and unique way. The Base Human Emotion is the springboard of sorts. It becomes the filter and the lens in which the character perceives the world and is the emotional thread that runs throughout his lifetime.

Think of Base Human Emotions in terms of “Fears” or “Needs.” There are literally hundreds of possibilities, but some examples are: “

Need to Matter

Need to Be Seen for who I Truly Am

Need to Protect

Need to Connect

Fear of Not Being Enough

Fear of Conflict

Fear of Vulnerability

Fear of Abandonment

What specific event may have happened to the character in early childhood that could have had such an emotional impact on him that he then perceived the world in a unique and specific way?

Writing the Intimate Character: Create Unique, Compelling Characters Through Mastery of Point of View

If he’s the rebel that never met a rule he liked, ask why? What childhood event may have made him that way? Perhaps as a child, his parents were unusually strict. He felt he had no power over his own life. As an adult, he is determined to live by his own rules, and no one else’s. How about the underdog who rose up out of adversity against all odds? What made him or her that way? Was he from a poverty stricken family and bullied because of it? And therefore was determined to succeed in life? Is your character a loner who shies away from any long lasting commitment? What event may have been the springboard? Could it be that as a child he dealt with the Fear of Abandonment? So as an adult, he/she avoids commitment so as to never again experience the pain of abandonment?

Once the Base Human Emotion is established, a domino effect occurs as we advance in age. For example, the child who begins his emotional journey with a Fear of Not Being Enough may seek to excel above all others, so the Need to Succeed becomes his focus. With that dire need it’s quite possible he could begin to feel a Fear of Failure or even a Need to Please. Where your character’s emotional journey goes is up to your wild and creative imagination.

We are all creatures of habit, repeating patterns of behavior over and over again. Many times we are seeking to either repeat or to repair our Base Human Emotion. The child who has a Fear of Abandonment may choose partners in adult life who will surely abandon him. He is seeking to repeat the Base Human Emotion so as to confirm that what he’s believes about himself is true. Conversely, he may choose a partner in life that would never leave him under any circumstances (for reasons both good and bad), thereby attempting to repair his Base Human Emotion.

When you see a character explosively angry, excessively hurt or provoked in some way, chances are his Base Human Emotion has been tweaked or prodded. You’ll also find that in friendships and particularly in romantic relationships, two people will often come together because they soothe each other’s Base Human Emotion. For example, someone dealing with a Fear of Abandonment might join up with someone who has a Need to Connect. However when one or both withdraw that commitment, or cease soothing it altogether, the relationship suffers and sometimes ends.

Consider the common saying (often attributed to Mark Twain): “Knowledge without experience is just information.” While the detailed information about your character is good, and necessary, you can take it a step further with Emotion with Detail. It’s what many great actors do in order to truly feel what the character feels.

Script Classics: Writing a Great Third Act

Start with investigating the event that informed the character’s Base Human Emotion. Sitting in a quiet, comfortable place with your eyes closed, let your imagination fly. See yourself as the character at a very young age. This is not your personal childhood experience, this is your character’s. So avoid using locations that are exact replications of your own childhood experiences. Place yourself (the character) in a specific location – perhaps the child’s bedroom. Remember you’re looking at the world through very young and ‘innocent to the world’ eyes. Speaking out loud, in first person, describe in detail everything in the room that you see. Give objects, posters, rugs, etc., an emotional reason to exist. For example, “The rug on the floor is round; it’s a rag rug of colors – blue, brown, green. It belonged to my sister, but she hated it, so my parents bought her a new one and she gave this one to me. I hate it too.” That kind of detail gives objects an emotional reason to exist and will ground you in the moment.

Now incorporate as many of your senses as possible. What do you smell, feel, hear or perhaps taste? Keep inventing. Allow an event to unfold that caused your character to form his/her Base Human Emotion. Continue Emotion with Detail, inventing all the emotionally pertinent events throughout your character’s life until the present moment at hand.

With this deep and emotional knowledge you will create texture and nuance within your character. You will know him so deeply and completely that you’ll show the reader through his behavior just who he is, rather than telling us. You’ll take us on that emotional wild ride that draws us in, hooks us and keeps us wanting more.

For over 20 years Warner Loughlin has been a teacher and coach to Oscar, Emmy, Golden Globe, Tony and Grammy winners and nominees. Known for her warmth and intuitive approach, her technique shatters the myth that an actor’s past emotional traumas must be the fuel or foundation for their work.  Warner’s technique is imaginative, practical and psychologically deep, giving actors a safe and effective way to access emotion and create extremely nuanced and unique performances. Warner studied Contemporary Literature and Shakespeare at Oxford University and received her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She now lives in Los Angeles, CA with her family. Visit her at www.warnerloughlin.com.

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The post How to Use Acting Techniques When Writing a Character’s Emotional Journey appeared first on WritersDigest.com.

from Writing Editor Blogs – WritersDigest.com http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/script-notes/writing-characters/developing-your-characters-emotional-journey-warner-loughlin-technique

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Custom T shirt Design Ideas 2017

These inventive custom t shirt design ideas plans incorporate intelligent illustrations, programmable LED screens and expanded reality innovation combination to make a work of art, straightforward piece of clothing much additionally charming. Snaptee's costs are mid-run, with an essential tee turning out to around $20 and standard transportation for $5 inside the U.S. What's cool about Snaptee is that you can peruse and buy outlines shared by different clients, remix their plans, and enable your outlines to be remixed too. To find out about our administrations notwithstanding modified shirts printing, look at some of our different subjects Broken Arrow can likewise help you with item outline and offers an awesome plan studio. We're wanting to do shirts at Dead Wings I'm still in the learning procedure for print outline so this was greatly useful! Eu Yan Sang T-shirt Advertisement : This innovative shirt was worn by the in-store work force and was sent specifically to forthcoming clients as a limited time blessing to advance the dispatch of Eu Yan Sang hair item. This t shirt cutting example is doubtlessly for the more imaginative one's who need to fly high wearing a couple of wings on their shirt.

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Individual Social Networks - Post some of your outlines to Facebook, Twitter and other interpersonal organizations your companions and potential clients are a piece of. Be watchful asking companions be that as it may, their feelings will for the most part be spoiled with an over-positive tint. That being stated, I found yet another win with a site called Corgi Addict I essentially presented an unknown tip through their contact shape, and a couple days after the fact, the Corgi Low Rider Tee was highlighted! Shirt rivalries happen at regular intervals with the likelihood of acquiring $1000 USD and 6 free T-Shirts. Obviously one of the greatest of choosing how to advance your shirt plans rotates around the decision of whether to utilize models or not.

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Spoonflower will pick one thousand prize champ from the main ten famously voted plans. What's more, we had additionally made a really Indian item by going for an inventive shirt configuration imprinted in India. While determining patterns with any conviction is a precarious business, numerous individuals from the outline business appear to have built up an agreement regarding what styles and methodologies are well on the way to take off in 2016. Keep in mind the work you are doing is not simply to put a plan on a shirt, it's a business' life saver. Our planners will help you shading match your mockup and print documents so you get precisely what you see on your screen. I truly trust that they have made a notorious picture and I can hardly wait until our fans see the new shirt outline. Von RoxyVon Roxy produces shirts pointed solidly at the innovative outline group: a great deal of its plans include the typefaces we as a whole love.

Individuals will take a moment to respect the cool shirt you've put on. Along these lines, not to keep you holding up, here's some amazingly imaginative shirts you will need to wear! Download the practice record and open with the most recent variant of Adobe Illustrator CC to make an adapted boombox plan with heart-formed speakers. Like a decent marketeer would do, record the correct individual you need to pull in to your outline - their identity, what they like, what different brands they like and go from that point. Realizing that a large number of 15-17 year-olds over the UK will wear my shirt configuration is such a mind blowing feeling and I genuinely can hardly wait to see everybody wearing it! This post is devoted to basic yet amazing shirt outlines that utilization the shirt's canvas in an inventive or cunning way. In the event that you know another shirt outline that completely has a place on this rundown, don't hesitate to place them in the remarks. Autonomous specialists made $1.5M through Threadless simply a year ago, this is an on-going plan rivalry.

While you don't generally require formal instruction to be a fruitful web and visual planner, having a four year college education in configuration can be an extraordinary favorable position. To make things less demanding for everybody, I made the Ultimate Tshirt Profit Margin Calculator It's a straightforward spreadsheet where I assembled the shirt base expenses and some different subtle elements so you can make sense of how much cash you could make on the off chance that you offer X" shirts on Y" print on request site. It's dependably a smart thought to concentrate distinctive subcultures and types also to see where your T-Shirt will fit in and to help you with motivation and publicizing. Surge Order Tees is the main supplier of custom shirts, screen printed shirts, weaving and DTG printing. This site idea from Balraj Chana consolidates numerous material plan standards, including intense hues, extensive sort, and light and shadow impacts.

In the event that you adore custom shirts as much as we do then you will need everything about your new tee, from the texture to the tag, to shout class." This thankfulness incorporates the bundling, which we now and again discover so stunning that we would prefer even not to open. All-over printed shirts give a visual effect that very few other printing strategies can copy. Find how to fabricate a completely robotized, stock free shirt store - with no coding, business, or configuration encounter. Stay Tuned in 2017 as we discharge more pattern data and motivating new print plans that are prepared for you to download and print on your shirts and items. Likewise consistently TeePublic has huge all inclusive deals and all shirts will offer for $14, and you'll win $2 for each tee sold. Add a novel component to your outfit by wearing a T-shirt with a false neckline outline or a surprising bow print. So before you begin planning, know who you're making the T-Shirt for, what they like, different brands that could be outwardly comparative and remember this all through the whole outline handle and don't lose concentrate on this.

Despite the fact that the devices and innovation accessible these days for planning, printing and sending your own shirts makes moving to a great degree straightforward, the troublesome part is building a brand to emerge from the opposition. Notwithstanding if the medium is photography, painting or pencil drawings, grandstand your masterful ability by transforming it into a custom T-shirt outline. In this way, The Shirt Project turned into its own particular understudy association, and understudy pioneers chosen to disperse yearly benefits to other understudy associations. These outlines can be as little as an ordinary organization logo or as extensive as a total cover plan. The Tee Store is a new business based out of Mumbai and they are searching for a T-Shirt originator. 

We were extremely awed with custom t shirt design ideas the general estimation of the T-shirts from The cost per shirt was effortlessly one of the least expensive, both in absolute cost and per shirt cost. Once more, a simple DIY shirt cutting, this one, needs you to cut the base of the shirt in edges.

Reference : clothfusion

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