#i looked at the number (155) and thought

[briarpatch-kids]

I am not supposed to go outside in the next couple days unless necessary. I checked my garden earlier and you could TASTE the smoke.

[yawneneteyam]

ALL THINGS CONNECTED | j. flatters chapter seven — give us some commentary

summary: growing up on the set of avatar: the way of water was a dream. your friends had become your family, all except for one. jamie was the one person you always found yourself drawn to, in ways more complex than the title of 'best friends' [1.6k].

pairing: fem!reader x jamie flatters

notes: based on jamie flatters documentary: all things connected. co-stars/friends to lovers. inspired by @cacapeepee. shorter but I wanted to get something out. mentions of blacking out underwater.

⌙ pairing: jamie flatters x fem!reader

masterlist ⎸ chapter six | chapter eight

2018.

148…149… 150… 151…

your eyes were closed, the numbers in your head going up and up every second you held your breath for longer. usually, you could feel your heartbeat in your chest, but today, you were so zoned in you didn’t take notice of it. 

you were all in the tank, seeing who could hold their breath for the longest. jack had already come up, around 43 seconds in. he was watching intently from his place, now, outside the tank. it had been four months since you and jamie last had a competition to see who could hold their breath for the longest. you didn’t even care for the competition anymore, the fact of proving to yourself you could do it, mattered even more than beating jamie. 

152… 153… 154… 155…

you could feel your heartrate beginning to quicken. you opened your eyes and tried your best to try and slow it. you looked at jamie, who was ahead of you, the vision of him blurred by the water- but you could make out his silhouette anywhere. 

156… 157... 158... 

you saw his figure jerk a little. you furrowed your eyebrows and tried to make out what he was doing, but it only made sense when you realised he was beginning to sink. 

he had passed out. 

your heart was racing now. you heard splashed from above and saw other figures coming to help, but you got to him first. you tried your best to pull jamie up to the surface, but his unconscious frame was heavy underwater. you silently thanked the free-dive instructor for helping you pull him up. 

time slowed as the rest of the diving team hauled jamie out of the tank. bailey and duane had broken the surface, noticing the commotion. bailey asked you what had happened, but you didn’t register what she was saying; too busy trying to catch your breath, and watch the instructor get jamie to consciousness. 

he didn’t wake up instantly, or maybe he did.. you couldn’t tell. you weren’t sure if you were waiting for five seconds or five minutes, but jamie eventually came to when they were starting to contemplate cpr. 

you pulled yourself up the ladder quickly, realising he was waking up, but you kept your distance, not wanting to be in the way. 

“is he okay?” jack asked from against the railing. no one answered him, too busy trying to make sure jamie was okay. 

it all went really quick after that, jamie was with the medical team for a while before he was sent back to his trailer to rest. you ended up in there only 10 minutes after they cleared him. he had fallen back to sleep on the couch, his head fallen back completely. 

you rushed over to make sure he hadn’t become unconscious again. you said his name a few times but shook him when he didn’t respond. 

jamie took a deep breath before opening his eyes and letting out a groan. “y/n?” he asked.

“im sorry i came in,” you said quickly, “i was worried.. e-everyone was worried. i said i’d come check on you”. a lie. 

“it’s okay,” he gave you what you would pass as a tired smile, “i’m glad you’re here”. you tried to ignore the butterflies that let themselves into your stomach, especially at such an inconvenient time, but you couldn’t help it. 

“i wanna hang, but i don’t know how much longer i should be awake for. they told me to sleep it off,” he chuckled. 

“you’re so stupid for not coming up,” you shook your head, ignoring him. “why wouldn’t you come up?”.

he sighed, “i thought i had it,” he shrugged. jamie cleared his throat before readjusting his position on the couch, making room for you next to him. “i wanted to do well,” he admitted shyly, almost embarrassed. 

you shook your head softly, looking at him. you took in his tired demeanour; you could imagine that he would be wrecked after everything that happened. you were keeping him from resting, you knew that, but you were selfish in the fact that you just wanted him with you, so you could keep an eye on him.

“come on,” you stood up, holding out your hand, “lets get you back to bed.. in a real bed” you chuckled. jamie laughed along with you, if you could call it laughing. he felt like a shell of a man after the last hour. embarrassed he passed out, tired from the rushing and intensity of the situation, but happy that you were here. 

since your kiss, jamie couldn’t stop thinking about you. he felt helpless in a way he hadn’t felt before in his nearly 18 years on this earth. all of his thoughts were consumed by you, the thought of your lips, your laugh, your hips. he couldn’t help himself. 

if anyone came to check on him, he would want it to be you. 

“i’m not that tired, y/n. i’m fine,” jamie tried his best to reassure you, but there was an unspoken truth that you were aware of. 

“there is no way that you’re ‘fine’ after that, jamie” you shook your head, “you don’t need to lie to me,” and he knew that. out of everyone on this set, jamie knew that you were the one he could unapologetically tell the truth to, every single time. 

“i just would rather stay up with you,” he chuckled, resting his head against his knuckles. you both sat in silence for a little while longer, before you stood up and held out your hand to him. 

jamie raised his eyebrows at you, a little suspicious. you moved your hand at him again, showing your growing impatience, he haphazardly grabbed your hand. you pulled him into the back of his trailer and sat down on his bed. jamie didn’t let go of your hand as he sat next to you; he was drinking in your touch for as long as he could. 

“why are you looking at me like that?” you chuckled, suddenly getting nervous under his gaze. he noticed your change in demeanour, this was the first time you had ever acted like this when he looked at you. even in the dim lights of his trailer, jamie could swear your face grew a faint blush.

“i’m not looking at you like anything,” he smirked, shrugging his shoulders. a blatent lie from him, and jamie knew it. he was looking at you like he always does, like you hung the moon and the stars. 

you shook your head, trying to ignore the butterflies that were making their presence known in your stomach. “you need to rest, flats” you said. 

he knew you were right, but he wanted this time with you more than he did sleep. “we have the entire weekend to rest,” he rebutted, “i can relax at the beach with you tomorrow.”

“you’re crazy,” you laughed.

“how so?” 

you didn’t respond, just shook your head at him. “you need to let go of my hand so you can get into bed,” you suddenly took note of his fingers that were still intertwined with yours. jamie pulled away rather quickly, afraid he was making you uncomfortable. 

“we can lay down,” he said, shuffling himself towards the top of the bed, “but i’m not sleeping yet,” 

“you say that, but i know you” you laughed, switching the tv on, “you’ll pass out, flats.”

and that he did. you and jamie watched around twenty minutes of some movie he claimed was a ‘cinematic masterpiece’ before he dozed off before the plot could even move along. “night flats,” you whispered, pulling the covers over his body fully. you knew the medical team would check on him during the night, so you thought it would be best to head back to your trailer. you managed to slip out of his trailer, after picking up for a little while and leaving jamie a note. 

you went and saw bailey for an hour before you went back to your trailer, falling asleep, ready for your first free weekend in a while.

jamie was up with the medical team at two, four hours after you left him. he was so tired when they came, he was eager to go back to sleep. but when he woke up properly the next morning, he was finally in the right mind to have a shower and get ready for the day. 

jamie knew filip and duane wanted to go to manhattan beach again, spend their day lounging away in the sunshine and the sea. he wondered if he could rope you into coming with them, but he remembered you mentioning seeing your parents this weekend. 

he was about to head out to see filip, when a note sitting on his kitchenette caught his eye. 

“next time you’re up for it we can actually finish a film together. see you in the morning, superstar”

he couldn’t help the involuntary smile that found its way to his lips, or the way that his cheeks suddenly felt hot. he really was wrapped around your little finger, and he wouldn’t have it any other way. 

with a shake of his head, jamie quickly made his way over to filip’s trailer. 

“bro, what’s the rush?” filip asked from his couch after jamie barrelled his way into the trailer.

“i think i’m in love with y/n..” he blurted out. 

he and filip sat there in silence for a while, jamie being completely checked out after the realisation of how intense his feelings were for his castmate. 

“well..” filip sighed, “congrats on being the last one to find out,” 

[aihoshiino]

chapter 155 thoughts

Thanks for your patience! I had some stuff crop up IRL this week that kept getting in the way of my chapter review but we're so oshi no back

Chapters Since The 143 Kiss Happened And Went Entirely Unacknowledged And Unaddressed Count: 12

Aqua Hoshigan Status: White

i can't believe toxic yuri was the real core theme of this manga all along

With the long road to revenge seemingly conquered, Oshi no Ko eases us into a bit of a false high before the real finale comes barrelling in. As with 152, it feels like we're tying off a number of arcs that have lasted through the series, with certain characters getting what is clearly supposed to be their big emotional resolutions… and unfortunately, as with 153-4, while a lot of these beats are satisfying on paper, they suffer a lack of buildup that makes them ring a bit hollow. OnK's clumsy handling of certain characters during the Movie Arc has really come back to bite it during the finale, leaving me feeling like a lot of the emotional payoffs for them are undercut and the character work they're doing doesn't have the groundwork it needs to properly resonate. I defo didn't hate this chapter like some folks seemed to, but it has some pretty substantial issues in terms of micro and macro storytelling I am compelled to talk about. This is one of those chapter reviews I think comes across way more negative than it necessarily is lol but man did this one give me a headache…

To start things off, the thing that initially delayed this review: page fucking one!!! By total coincidence, this was the first chapter in basically forever where I didn't get a chance to look at the JP raws until like two days after it dropped and as such I was ripping my hair out trying to figure out who the narrator was on page one - the use of 'Mama' made me wonder if it was Ruby, but the visual flow of the page is much more biased in favor of Aqua and I probably don't need to tell you how fucking huge it would be for Aqua to have called Ai that for the first time!!! However, based on the speech patterns of the speaker in Japanese and the way subsequent pages flow from this intro, I'm pretty settled on it being Ruby - this chapter is a sort of closing of the book on her involvement in the revenge play or as my friend Mala put it, it's Ruby's homecoming so to speak. And like… honestly, thank god lol.

I get a lot of Ruby fans have wanted her to be more involved in this side of the story for a good while but I think the Black Hoshigan Ruby arc playing out like it did made it pretty clear that Ruby as a character is not super well suited to playing a role in the revenge half of OnK in the way that Akasaka wants it to be written. Not just that, but her actual post-BH characterization in relation to this arc has been such a wet fart that I really think it has taken away a lot more than it has added to her arc.

Not only that but… most of it didn't even happen onscreen lol! Not only did we get that absolutely baffling speech in 147 where she literally looked into the camera and Explained With Her Words the character arc she was supposedly having this whole time (just offscreen and nowhere the reader could see) but we now get Aqua going "well ruby decided to forgive him so it is what it is i guess". It feels so limp as a reason for him to have flipped on a dime like he did, especially when we still haven't fucking seen this supposedly lifechanging performance of Ruby's!!!! SO many characters have the resolutions to their Ai-adjacent arcs connected to how Ruby chose to play Ai in the movie but we're not actually seeing it. We're just sort of talking around it and having it exposited to us. I want to assume this is setup for us eventually seeing it ourselves but like… at this point, IS there any point to us revisiting the movie's content? Everything we might have learned from it has already been addressed by characters Telling Us To Our Faces How It Made Them Feel And Gave Them Therapy so it would ultimately be superfluous.

God. I hate still bitching about the Movie Arc now we're out of it, but it really is the albatross around the neck of this finale. So many of the issues littered through these last ten or so chapters are the result of the Movie Arc's fumbling and misuse of the cast and its failure to establish the emotional throughlines that should have been tied off by these chapters. I keep feeling like I'm repeating myself when I talk about XYZ Narrative Beat not being bad on paper but being less effective than it should do because of lacking underlying foundation but it really is the one central thing plaguing this arc right now.

i get what you guys are going for but. seeing aqua just let kamiki walk away when he has definitely killed people is really funny.

The twins' return to Miyako is another moment that I like in theory but honestly just feels frustrating. It's been over 25 chapters - a week short of an entire year since 125 came out where Miyako lamented her inability to reach the twins like a 'real' mother would and this thread was immediately dropped like a rock. She had zero involvement in the Movie Arc even during parts it was straight up absurd that she was not at least reacting to the events going on, didn't have any reaction to the movie or like… anything going on that could have more organically lead to this development.

I also have to say. The twins returning to Miyako performing this Snapshot of Aesthetic Motherhood (as u/DeliSoupItExplodes on the OnK sub put it) felt kind of. Weird and even a little icky to me in a way I've been struggling to articulate. Just that it felt extremely on the nose and kind of. eeeh.

that said. i won't pretend i'm not 4x critically weak to an 'okaeri' / 'tadaima' exchange at the end of a long quest or journey…

For all my complaints about the surrounding context, this scene in isolation is pretty much the one part of this chapter that just uncritically works. It's hard not to read it as a parallel to Miyako offering to adopt the kids in chapter 10 - except there, Aqua refuses to step into his new family. Here, Miyako pulls him into the embrace and the two of them finally engage not as peers but as a mother and son, as they've needed to do all this time. Her words here are so lovely and so, so sincere that it's really no wonder Aqua breaks down in tears. As much as I've bitched about the lacking work in his arc across the last major chunk of chapters, it's nevertheless been incredibly cathartic to see Aqua finally start letting down his walls, believing in his future and letting people love him. I just wish it had the buildup to really land.

also the twins just… still have not had a real conversation or interaction about literally anything lol.

Ichigo's back…! I already aired my major complaint about this scene vis-a-vis Ruby but I imagine this is the last time we're going to get a real Moment with Ichigo so I might as well get this off my chest now: it was and continues to be utterly bonkers to me that of the characters we saw having Feelings about the 15 Year Lie cast screening, Ichigo was not one of them. And it's even more bonkers that we got this whole bit waxing poetic about fucking Kaburagi and how he feels soooo bad about Ai when like… I'm sorry, but Kaburagi's feelings about Ai are so low on my list of priorities as to be functionally irrelevant. Quite frankly, he does not matter and it's INSANE that the story gave this misty-eyed moment to him and not Ichigo - you know, the agent of the industry that went on to exploit and kill her, her literal, actual dad whose guilt over what happened to her made him ghost his family for nearly twenty years? Can you imagine what an insanely powerful moment of resolution it would've been for that moment of Kaburagi addressing Ai through the 15YL poster to have gone to Ichigo instead?

I also have to note this weird ongoing thread of 'the Dome' being framed as Ai's dream that Ruby is inheriting when it, uh, patently was not! I'm sure she felt some pride in her success but all she herself said on the matter back when it came up was that she didn't get what a big deal it was but that since everyone else was happy, she'd be happy too. I initially took this to be laying the groundwork to disprove this idea and make the characters work out what Ai really wanted in her heart of hearts but now the narrative seems to just be uncritically treating this as a value neutral fact. So… who even knows lol.

Short hair Akane returns…! I don't imagine it was planned, but it's a cute coincidence that she cut her hair in the manga right around the time anime Akane grew hers out for season 2. I've always liked short hair Akane best so this was a nice surprise…

I have to say it was uh, really funny to see so many people get so shocked and mad when Akane talked about 'imitating Hoshino Ai' and screaming that this was a retcon or ruining Akane's character when like… was this really news to you guys??? Even before she grew her hair out, she flipped her bangs to go in the same direction as Ai's as soon as she started acting as her and she was popping hoshigans all over the place when she was getting her career off the ground… like, seriously, was this really a shock to people???

Anyway uh. Vindication for me from this scene!!! I've been pointing out for over a year now that we should be very cautious about taking it at face value that Hikaru killed Gorou and Yura because the story has been very delicately implying that to be the case while avoiding confirming it outright in a way that reeked of a red herring to me. That combined with his failure to even mention these two victims while 'fessing up to Aqua really raised some additional red flags for me and finally, we see Aqua confirming that no, Hikaru was not the one person behind everything, Light Yagami style and the final boss of the series seems set to be B-Komachi's former Queen of Smiles. Fuyuko Niino.

And Iiiiiiiii… feel very uneasy about this twist!

First of all; I have to acknowledge that nope, we have no fuckin clue how either Aqua or Akane figured this out but we'll probably get the exposition in that regard over and done with next chapter. Also something a lot of people caught is that Ryosuke is referred to with a different name here - Sugano vs Kaihara, which was used during the Movie Arc. I've heard this called out as a mistake/retcon and it could be, but tbh I'm inclined to think it's just that Ryosuke's name was changed for the movie, since a point is made about needing everyone's permission to include them in the movie and they, uh… can't exactly ask Ryosuke!

But… back to the real point here.

Nino has been one of my favourite OnK characters since I first read 45510 and every subsequent expansion on her character and her relationship with Ai has only made me more invested in her. But the story setting her up as the final villain here is… it leaves me feeling a little cold and very uncertain about how it'll go.

First off, the framing of Nino on these last two pages is just so overwrought that it's a little ridiculous lol. The image of her squatting in her filthy room, listening to old B-Komachi tracks and staring at a poster of the old group with all the other members but her and Ai aggressively scribbled out… it feels downright parodic to an extent that I think honestly makes Nino that much less nuanced and human by its inclusion alone.

Like… a big part of what I loved about Nino's inclusion in the story and how her relationship with Ai was framed was that it was messy and honest in a way that felt like it wasn't judging Nino herself or making her out to be a villain. Her and Ai's relationship breakdown was a two-sided failure of communication spurred on in large part by Ai's own avoidance and inability to have frank, sincere discussions with the people who cared about her. Nino's tangled up feelings of admiration and desire, envy and resentment, love and hate were not flattering but they felt so real and so human. She was a young girl put into an impossible situation and without the power to change the invisible dynamics of the systems around her, she lashed out at the person in front of her that she could see. The impression I always got was that part of what so deeply fucked up her feelings about Ai was her lack of closure - that she had never gotten to say sorry or patch things up. That she had screamed I wish you'd die at someone she loved and then she fucking died. No wonder she was a mess.

All this though… maybe I'm overreacting when we're just a page and a half into this reveal but again, the framing here really does feel so exaggerated and shallow. It feels like it's falling into the trap OnK previously fell into with the GRSR relationship where it attempts to amp up the drama by massively overexagerrating the emotions at play, blowing them up to their hugest possible extreme and letting all nuance and subtlety get lost in the noise. Ultimately, this will all come down to execution and while it's possible for AkaMengo to get us back on track with the Nino I already liked… idk. Like I said. I'm uneasy.

I also can't let it go unsaid - accidentally or otherwise, the framing of Nino here leans extremely hard into the stereotype of the 'psycho'/predatory lesbian and I don't think I need to explain why that sucks donkey nuts, especially in the midst of a manga that is so insufferably hetero at all other times.

at least she has good taste in b-komachi tracks.

[choco-pudding]

Space Channel 5 Part 2: Sugoku Sugoi Guide Book p. 160-169 (Translations by @lavoszero and myself. Edits and typesetting by myself)

Last part of Report 6 and the beginning of the bonus content.

Imgur link to all of the Sugoku Sugoi Guide Book translations we’ve done thus far.

Plain text below.

p. 160 Noize's Evaluation: The Curtain Falls on the Rhythm Rogues' Attack

Whereabouts of the Blown-Away Purge Thanks to the Astrobeat Jr., I was able to watch, firsthand, as the dance energy of 86,429 individuals combined into something truly spectacular. But I wonder… what happened to Purge? I don't recall Ms. Pine arresting him… were you content with him being blasted away? I dunno. Looking at the lyrics, "All the whole wide galaxy dances for me; yes, I'll make each one of you very happy," maybe he really thought he was the good guy here. Near the end, I think he said something like, "I won't forget this!" Or maybe it was, "See you next week!" Honestly, I’m a lil' worried. Even Mr. Blank was able to covertly return, so…

Ms. Ulala Marching On Anyway, the last was really cool, wasn’t it. Just wow… The Super Ulala Dimension dance and melody was so powerful I could see and hear it from the outside, too. It felt like something straight out of “Ten Billion Days and One Hundred Billion Nights.” It was like a holy cosmic showdown! It really was… I wonder if the “power of love” did all that. To cap it all off, everyone joined in to do the Space Channel 5 pose. I was so relieved everything was finally over. After that, as you know, we marched away like it was a regal procession. I couldn’t just leave after Ms. Ulala cheered, “Let’s march to the ends of the galaxy!" so I ended marching about 24 more space kilometers.

That’s where the report itself ended. Ms. Ulala, though, she was still so full of energy, even after marching, that she went off to dance somewhere else (laughs). The day after that, my team had the day off. Not that we had much to do in the first place. By then, the incident became a huge story picked up by all the regular news shows, rather than special report teams. Despite the whole fiasco, the government didn't really give us anymore commendations, and everything soon went back to normal. Ms. Ulala is still being routinely scolded by Mr. Fuse. I don't think that will ever change.

-

Groove Guru 155

Up Up Down Down Hey Hey Toyota

p. 161

When Mr. Fuse Returned Sometime after I landed the Astrobeat Jr. to watch Ulala and the other’s grand march, Mr. Fuse came down to join me. While we were watching, I said to him "Nice job, Mr. Fuse. I can't believe you're alright." I really thought he met a gruesome fate after the Astrobeat was blasted down. Apparently, he was able to escape unscathed due a number of factors (you can hear the details right outta Mr. Fuse's mouth on the soundtrack CD released on April 24, 2002). I guess it was a traumatic experience regardless, since he went to his usual drinking spot as soon the show was over.

What Did I Do Next? Right now, I'm being interviewed by the Space Police… I don't really mind, they're being nice. But after the incident, I had my hands full! I was involved in the major project to recover all the antennas that had been modified by Purge; it happens when you’re a Technical Development chief with deep connections in the industry. At least the huge dance floor Purge constructed made it easy for all of us to work simultaneously. After about three days, we finally finished and I returned to modifying microphones for Ulala to use while incognito. I made some that look like an ice cream cone, an ear of corn, and a couple of other things.

-

Groove Guru 156

Up Toyota Up Toyota Down Down Down

p. 162 Fuse's Broadcast Notes

Report 6 & Repeat 6 Last but not least, here are the final instructions prepared by director Fuse for the live broadcast of "Ulala's Swingin' Report Show," presented in an easy-to-read fashion. Its contents show useful tips for succeeding on the secret input locations. Modifications made for the rerun broadcasts for "Ulala's Swingin' Report Show" (Reruns have unique features from the first airing) are also included. Note, the timing and locations of the secret inputs are exactly the same between the main (Lap 1) and rerun broadcasts (Lap 2).

The Hidden Inputs

[1~2] Return of Mexican Flyer It’s finally back, the last "Jan, Jan, Jaaaan!," featuring the fan-favorite second and third beat of "Mexican Flyer." After Report 2,"Mexican Flyer" took a long hiatus, but these "Jan, Jan" timings haven’t changed one bit! Let's go, all together now! "Jan, Jan, Jaaaan!"

Jan! Jan! Jaaan!

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Groove Guru 157

Down Down Down Down Hey Hey Toyota

p. 163

[3] Ulalaaa! U! La! La! Purge the Great had overwhelming power in the confined space of Dance Dimension X. Ulala skillfully dodged the volley of beams, but even she couldn’t outmaneuver an all-out attack, and fell unconscious. However, Ulala came to her senses once she heard the rhythm of her friends calling to her in her mind. But, there was only three seconds left before the Ballistic Groove Gun fired! That would've be the end of the report! What was your quote, Ulala? That's right, it was "when have I ever lost at dancing! Get the secret input "pikoon" right after "lost!"

When have I ever lost [beat] at dancing!

[When Ulala's face pops up, that's the signal that she's ready to shout. The ratings are almost at 200%, rise up and give it your all!]

Flub the Final Finale and Face the Staff Roll Be careful not to miss the final "Chu! Chu! Chu!" mixed in with all the hype. A few mistake here and there before then is fine—reasonable, even—but the ending of the game changes if you flub here. This ending is a not-so-special shortened staff roll against a pitch-black screen, devoid of President Peace’s song. Needless to say, there's no group "March to the End of the Galaxy" either. And on top of all that, Purge won't perform his last hurrah (an input that can increase your ratings by one percent) at the end of the credits! So, if you screw up right at the end, you'll have to redo the entire report again, no matter what! Try again!

[Here’s the rundown on the failure ending; Mexican Flyer plays and the credits roll by super fast. The ratings? 149% at the most.]

[Now, the successful ending. We get to march to the ends of the galaxy and you get to hear the full lyrics of President Peace's soulful song. You get the complete credits roll, too.]

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Groove Guru 157

Down Down Down Down Hey Hey Toyota

p. 164 Reference Material Direct Hit Interview with Pres. Peace, Post-incident

~Tachibana, interviewing Space President Peace~ Hey, Texas here. The following is an interview conducted by Tachibana of Channel 01. But really, I’m sneakin' this in 'cause Piney, who was with me during this, was being so adorable and hilarious while we moved through the crowd. After the battle with Purge was over, the press started surrounding President Peace, so the president had to walk with Pine leading the way.

Pine: Attention, all members of the press, Space President Peace is very tired at the moment. Reporters, please get out of the way immediately. Reporter 66: Mr. President, a word please… Pine: Please, move out of the way! Reporter 59: Mr. President, do you have any comments… Pine: Get out of the way! (The press still are pouring in) Pine: I said outta the way! Tachibana: Excuse me, Mr. President, may I have a word? Pine, who's heart skips a beat: Oh my gosh! It's Tachi, (Pine's nickname for him), my ideal man, so full of reason and intelligence aaaah!) Pine: Alright (ba-dump), Tachibana from Channel 01, you may approach. Tachibana: Mr. Peace, I hope you're in good health. Peace: Thank you, I'm as healthy as I can be. Tachibana: Could you comment on the recent disturbance? Peace: I believe I can disclose this now, since the case has been successfully and safely resolved… That being said, please, don't hate Purge too much. I don't think his goal to make the galaxy happy was overtly malicious. I think it was just… over the top? He meant well, but went about it the wrong way. Tachibana: I see, thank you very much. Reporter 21: Mr. President, may we have a comment? Pine: Shut up! Tachi is still talking! Reporter 21: Oh, my apologizes… wait, "Tachi"…? Pine: … (I'm done for, I wanna run away). Tachibana: I can ask the question for you, if that's alright? Pine: Ah, alright. (Angrily turns to Reporter 21) Since Mr. Tachibana also asked, I'll allow you to do so, too. But please, limit it to just one question. Reporter 21: Right. Mr. President, what do you make of Ulala? Peace: When I saw the live report of the "Morolian Incident" I was honestly so moved. The fact there are still youngsters who can deeply inspire others, it reminded me that how much good is still in the universe. Disregarding my presidential status, I cannot help by appreciate the fact she saved so many people, including myself, who were under the influence of dance beam. However, I'm not judging her solely as a reporter, but her nature as a person. That is all. Reporter 21: Thank you very much. Pine: Mr. Tachibana, would you like to ask one more question? Tachibana: Yes. Mr. President, what are your thoughts on the current security? Pine: (ba-dump) Peace: Even though I was abducted, I was saved and guided to safety by Miss Pine here, so I think she gets a passing grade. Aha ha ha ha ha! Now then, if you'll excuse me. (Pine shakes Tachibana's hand and slips him a piece of paper) Tachibana: … A phone number??? Pine: (Tachi…)

-

Groove Guru 159

Up Down Toyota

[[Translator’s note: I believe it’s implied that Pine’s internal dialogue is all Texas’s interpretation of her sister’s thoughts. Basically, she’s teasing her.]]

p. 165 Bonus

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Groove Guru 160

Toyota Toyota Toyota

p. 166 Miss Ulala’s Changing Room

Costumes Cleaning isn’t in Miss Ulala’s repertoire, so the burden of tidying up the Changing Room always falls on us. She'll swear she’ll pitch-in but she never follows through. It’s kinda irritating. Most outfits are returned as soon as the report ends, but some aren’t collected until a few hours after. So, it’s not unusual for some to go missing during that gap. I wonder when we'll have them all again.

01: Channel 5 Retro Gear [Unlock Requirements] Unlocked from the start.

Newly-supplied company reporting fatigues. Made from ultra elastic material for easy movements.

02: Flower Costume [Unlock Requirements] Clear Report 2.

Aromatic Multi-Functional Suit. Regulates body temperature and humidity for extra pleasant reporting at all time.

-

Groove Guru 161

Toyota Toyota Hey

p. 167

03: Gogo Gear (w/o helmet)  [Unlock Requirements] Clear Report 3.

Designed to protect the human body from space dust at high speeds.

04: Gogo Gear (w/ helmet)  [Unlock Requirements] Clear Report 4.

Must have for any space-roaming citizen. The helmet can usually be stored in the back.

05: Spy Suit [Unlock Requirements] Clear Report 5.

Designed for infiltration. A special wire attached to the back allows the wearer to move like a spider.

06: Old Retro Gear [Unlock Requirements] Clear Report 6.

The company-issued suit Ulala used during the Morolian Invasion. It was in her closet.

p. 168

07: Old Retro Gear (Dirty) [Unlock Requirements] Clear Report 6 (Extra Mode).

Designed to protect the human body from space dust at high speeds.

08: Super Ulala Costume [Unlock Requirements] Clear Report 6.

A super costume that is an amalgamation of dance energy. Rumored to be just underwear.

09: School Uniform [Unlock Requirements] Clear 24 consecutive trials in Ulala's Dance Mode.

A modified version of a uniform from School M. Altered by Ulala herself.

10: China Dress [Unlock Requirements] Clear 100 consecutive trials in Ulala's Dance Mode.

Used for the undercover investigation of the Shanghai Restaurant.

p. 169

11: Woolen Wear [Unlock Requirements] Clear Report 1 with the Ratings at 100%

This was a suit that Ulala used to wear for her part-time job a while back.

12: Stealth Suit [Unlock Requirements] Have save data for Rez (PS2). Have save data for Rez (DC).

A super futuristic suit that apparently looks like a wire frame.

13: Pudding Costume [Unlock Requirements] Clear Report 2 with the Ratings at 100%

A costume of Pudding. You can also use it to imitate Padding, who is imitating Pudding.

14: Pine Costume [Unlock Requirements] Clear Report 3 with the Ratings at 100%

A costume of Pine, the Eastern Galaxy Space Police Chief. It can also be used to dress up as Texas, of the Western Galaxy Space Police.

-

Straight Up Filthy Groove Guru 164

Honda Honda Honda Honda

[thesunsethour]

welcome back to part 3 of eve procrastinating her final exams by ranking her favourite songs by her favourite artists. today it is The Beatles' turn

(as always i must stress this is my opinion only. but i am also very nosey, so please tell me *your* opinions too)

(i'm ignoring songs in different languages, naked versions, and also any cover songs, so focusing exclusively on anything penned by lennon-mccartney or harrison or starr)

(this took me a week and a half. for context my killers' list took two days and hozier took four hours)

without further ado:

189. Wild Honey Pie (spoiler alert: i'm not a white album fanatic)

188.       Dig It (vibey but odd little song)

187.       Maggie Mae (didn't know for years this was a liverpool folk song)

186.       Only A Northern Song (not weird enough to justify itself)

185.       Revolution 9 (it achieves john's goal. still hate it though)

184.       All Together Now (worse precursor to the frog chorus)

183.       It’s All Too Much (i would like to apologise to yellow submarine)

182.       Flying (criminal that this is so far down actually. i only have myself to blame)

181.       I’ll Get You (bit samey)

180.       Savoy Truffle (i wrote down 'harrison's own muzak')

179.       Everybody’s Got Something to Hide Except for Me and My Monkey (wtf john)

178.       Thank You Girl  (harmonica has been utilised better)

177.       Every Little Thing (pretty okay)

176.       You Like Me Too Much (george still in songwriting training)

175.       I Want To Tell You (the beginning of george's 'i don't know' refrain in his songs. keep an ear out)

174.       The Inner Light (SO very george)

173.       Her Majesty (i'm irish so this had to be this low)

172.       You Can’t Do That (great john vocals here tbh)

171.       Honey Pie (you can so clearly hear the music hall inspiration. very paul)

170.       When I Get Home (bit samey but catchy enough)

169.       There’s a Place (better harmonica)

168.       I Need You (lovely harmonies)

167.       Not a Second Time (i always forget this song exists sorry to john lennon)

166.       It’s Only Love (i always think this ones on rubber soul)

165.       I’ll Cry Instead (conversely this is very beatles for sale coded i think!)

164.       Little Child (i am a sucker for the harmonica it has to be said)

163.       You Know My Name (Look Up The Number) (really campy ad-libs. a fan)

162.       I’m a Loser (john's voice is so deep in this one??)

161.       I Don’t Want to Spoil the Party (little foot tapper of a song)

160.       Piggies (george had been reading orwell! good for him)

159.       Don’t Pass Me By (ringo! hello!)

158.       I’ll Be Back (solid enough)

157.       Doctor Robert (one of the earliest examples of 'we will sing a song about a little random man')

156.       If I Needed Someone (solid george effort)

155.       Why Don’t We Do It In The Road (apparently about two monkeys fucking. okay paul)

154.       Baby’s in Black  (clever little lyrics)

153.       It Won’t Be Long (adore the coming home line)

152.       All I’ve Got to Do (sweet enough little thing)

151.       Hold Me Tight (classic paul asking for love. a staple of the genre)

150.       What Goes On (hiiiii Ringo!)

149.       Yer Blues (my notes say 'proto-morrissey-esque, but worse)

148.       Good Night (reminds me of a musical song. also originally thought this was a paul song)

147.       She’s a Woman (really dynamic paul vocals)

146.       What You’re Doing (solid paul job)

145.       No Reply (i cannot think of this song without hearing the bloopers of YOUR FACE)

144.       Happiness Is A Warm Gun (i may get killed for having this so low. reminder that this is only my opinion)

143.       Don’t Bother Me (i *think* this is the first album song that george ever wrote!)

142.       P.S. I Love You (he loves his epistolary songs does Paul)

141.       I’m Just Happy to Dance With You (another solid foot tapper)

140.       Any Time At All (love the piano in this)

139.       I’m So Tired (same)

138.       Birthday (i hate the beginning of this song with a visceral passion. rest is grand)

137.       The Night Before (very '50s)

136.       Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise) (the only bad thing about this song is that it means the album is over)

135.       Another Girl (bitchy little paul song)

134.       Tell Me What You See (song gets better as it goes on i think)

133.       The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill (hello yoko)

132.       Long, Long, Long (reminds me of my sweet lord)

131.       Ask Me Why (real jazzy like)

130.       Rocky Raccoon (i'm not mad on this song but the middle is so catchy it reels me in)

129.       Old Brown Shoe (ringo reference check!)

128.       Revolution 1 (not as good as revolution the single)

127.       Cry Baby Cry (love paul's little jaunty section)

126.       Yes It Is (sexy)

125.       Dig A Pony ("everything has got to be just like you want it toohoohoohoohoohooo"

124.       The Word (reminds me of grease)

123.       Hey Bulldog (some bits of music here remind me of 'Across the Universe')

122.       I’m Looking Through You (GREAT guitar)

121.       Sexy Sadie (can't remember which journalist said that AM's 4 out of 5 has this vibe and YEAH)

120.       I Me Mine (i will always adore the "flowing more freely than wine" lyric. thank you george"

119.       Things We Said Today (paul's so good in this one)

118.       Tell Me Why (catchy bop)

117.       Run For Your Life ("that's the end" SO good)

116.       Good Day Sunshine (nicely jaunty)

115.       Rain (love the instrumentation in this one)

114.       I Will (quintessential mccartney this)

113.       Love You To (making this list and hearing george's improvement as a songwriter was amazing actually)

112.       Octopus’s Garden (bless ringo)

111.       I Feel Fine (SO catchy)

110.       With A Little Help From My Friends (ringo's very best)

109.       Martha My Dear (i'm scared of dogs but i'll let this one go)

108.       Drive My Car (the beeps beeps always annoyed me as a kid)

107.       For You Blue (it is what it says - sweet and lovely)

106.       Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (love the laughter in it)

105.       Good Morning Good Morning (the guitar here is simply too cool for this song. elevates it greatly)

104.       You’re Going To Lose That Girl (beach boys vibes?)

103.       She Said She Said (john and george buddies and pals)

102.       Wait (john and paul's voices go SO well together do you ever get emotional)

101.       Think For Yourself (ANOTHER great foot tapper)

100.       I’m Down (well *somebody* thinks they're elvis)

99.         Misery (just. great structurally)

98.         I Should Have Known Better ("this could only happen to me" oh, john)

97.         Can’t Buy Me Love (one of the more Lennonesque mccartney songs)

96.         One After 909 (how did paul not know what this was about for over a decade)

95.         I’ve Just Seen a Face (absolutely gorgeous guitar)

94.         This Boy (thaaaasss boyyyy)

93.         You Won’t See Me (fab little chorus)

92.         Maxwell’s Silver Hammer (BANG BANG MAXWELL'S SILVER HAMMER CAME DOWN UPON HER HEAD 🔨 🔨🔨)

91.         Dear Prudence ("the clouds will be a daisy chain" is a line i've always adored)

90.         Yellow Submarine (i remember being 6 and our teacher playing this for us on her guitar)

89.         Mean Mr Mustard (love when john does a bit of narrative songwriting)

88.         Revolution (superior revolution version)

87.         Now and Then (cried on the tram on the way to college listening to this when it came out. as you were)

86.         Polythene Pam (love when their accent peaks through)

85.         Baby, You’re A Rich Man (a true lennon-mccartney collab with john not finishing something and paul adding his two cents, or rather, ten or twenty cents)

84.         Hello, Goodbye (i love the end of this song so so much)

83.         Mother Nature’s Son (soft and sweet, poignant but not sappy, one of the most underrated beatles songs of all time)

82.         Free As A Bird (cried listening to this too)

81.         Glass Onion (intertextual metanarrative: the song)

80.         Taxman (baby's first political song <3)

79.         I Wanna Be Your Man (hiiiiii again ringo)

78.         From Me To You (harmonica time again baby!)

77.         Being For The Benefit of Mr Kite! (i think of this as a spooky halloween waltz)

76.         Within You Without You (quintessential george)

75.         I’m Only Sleeping (underrated on revolver methinks)

74.         Your Mother Should Know (these songs WERE a hit before my mother was born)

73.         All My Loving (pure vintage mccartney)

72.         Do You want to Know a Secret (baby george and his fab vocals)

71.         Here Comes The Sun (okay nobody kill me. stop looking at me like that. its been winter for seventeen months george i can't fucking see the sun)

70.         Julia (so beautiful)

69.         Love Me Do (how were they pop song professionals already?)

68.         I Saw Her Standing There (paul loves a good scream in the middle of a song)

67.         A Hard Day’s Night (most iconic beginning of any song ever)

66.         Magical Mystery Tour (he loves a bus does paul)

65.         And Your Bird Can Sing (john's vocals are GREAT here)

64.         Sun King (the superior sun song on abbey road)

63.         Please Please Me (just. iconic)

62.         Eight Days a Week (for how good it is i can't believe paul didn't play it live till like 2013 or smth)

61.         Real Love (i never knew this was a beatles song when i was a kid!)

60.         The End ("the love you take is equal to the love you make"... yeah...)

59.         Back in the USSR ("my-my-my-my-" very billy joel actually)

58.         Ticket to Ride (mouth-watering guitar)

57.         For No One (the wario of 'And Your Bird Can Sing' no i won't explain further)

56.         All You Need Is Love (the she loves you yeah yeah yeahs at the end...)

55.         Blue Jay Way (so wonderfully eerie to me)

54.         She Loves You (love the long and powerful held note on the last "glad")

53.         I Want To Hold Your Hand (they were children my god)

52.         Across the Universe (some of my favourite vocals)

51.         Carry That Weight (paul going through it, writing bangers)

50.         Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da (desmond and molly jones are close friends of mine at this stage)

49.         Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds (overrated a bit imo but still simply iconic)

48.         Penny Lane (sorry paul, john won the MMT round w strawberry fields but its okay this song still is a bop)

47.         Tomorrow Never Knows (fucking well done on this one lads. love it)

46.         Getting Better ("a little better all the time" v "it can't get no worse" is just. peak lennon mccartney)

45.         Got To Get You Into My Life (INSTANT banger)

44.         Michelle (i am a sucker for french as long as its not spoken by french people <3)

43.         Lovely Rita (i always loved this one because paul says "book" like how my nanny says it)

42.         Helter Skelter (loud, fast, and brilliant)

41.         Get Back (billy preston the man that you were)

40.         She Came In Through The Bathroom Window (best of the abbey road medley)

39.         I’ve Got a Feeling (i LOVE paul's deep voice)

38.         When I’m Sixty Four (i love paul's granny music. sue me)

37.         Come Together (john was so good at writing these nonsense songs)

36.         The Fool on The Hill (adore the "ohHhHhHhHhHhh")

35.         Fixing a Hole ("when i'm wrong, i'm right" is so very paul)

34.         Girl (BRILLIANT middle)

33.         Help! (vulnerable without overdoing it. just fantastic)

32.         Day Tripper (unashamedly sexy)

31.         And I Love Her (i love basically everything about this song. ranking got so hard from here)

30.         You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away (john was ON IT for Help!)

29.         Nowhere Man (my brother thinks this will be the name of john's biopic)

28.         Lady Madonna (my favourite genre of paul songs are songs where he voyeuristically imagines someone's life. they always slap)

27.         Paperback Writer (i also write at shitty newspapers and want to be a paperback writer. this song feels too targeted)

26.         In My Life (so pretty. SO pretty)

25.         The Ballad of John and Yoko (imagine the vibes in the recording studio. john. yoko. paul. and yet they made this banger)

24.         Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) (my first ever favourite beatles song. has since been demoted but i still adore it)

23.         I am the Walrus (john at his weirdest best)

22.         She’s Leaving Home (i love when they write narratively)

21.         If I Fell (angelic harmonies)

20.         Don’t Let Me Down (fifth beatle billy preston supremacy)

19.         Because ("love is all, love is you"

18.         I Want You (She’s So Heavy) (vocals, instruments, lyrics, vibes, all incredible)

17.         Two Of Us (and if i said this was the best album opener?)

16.         Here, There, and Everywhere (paul says this is his favourite beatles song and you know what? he's so right for that)

15.         Oh! Darling (wario of the long and winding road. no i will not elaborate either)

14.         You Never Give Me Your Money ("OUT OF COLLEGE MONEY SPENT SEE NO FUTURE PAY NOT RENT" that is... me right this actual moment)

13.         Something (george said is anyone else gonna write one of the best love songs of all time? no okay i guess i will. and he did.)

12.         Golden Slumbers (cried to this as well. must stress i am not one to cry)

11.         Eleanor Rigby (the pinnacle of the MVS - McCartney Voyeuristic Storytelling)

10.         A Day in The Life (orchestra used to scare me when i was younger)

9.           While My Guitar Gently Weeps (george's best beatles song hands down)

8.           I’ll Follow the Sun (THE MOST UNDERRATED BEATLES SONG and i will die on this hill

7.           Yesterday (my father's favourite beatles song)

6.           The Long and Winding Road (my go to song to sing in the shower for some reason?)

5.           We Can Work It Out (pure lennon-mccartney baby!)

4.           Let It Be (the first and only song i ever learnt on ukulele and i was so proud of it)

3.           Strawberry Fields Forever (do i even have to say anything?)

2.           Blackbird (everything about this song is so beautifully perfect. paul mccartney is the best songwriter of all time okay. i've spent days upon days at this list and it's now making me emotional)

1.           Hey Jude (there's a reason it tops so many best songs of all time lists. a perfect 10. no notes. iconic. the first beatles song i played on repeat. would die slash kill to experience this live)

[autistic-autumn]

I began my tenure of Overseer of Gerbilgod in the year 155.

1st Granite, Early Spring, 155

I was immediately struck with the horrors! A vicious weretortoise bolting directly for the fortress entrance. My first order of business would be to take down this beast.

Just kidding! I have no clue what to do, nor do I care. Plenty of tasty dogs out there and a useless angry fisherdwarf.

As it turns out the weretortoise was almost completely useless in battle and was able to be taken out by a bunch of useless civilians with only one casualty. However it seems a bunch of dwarves were in combat and now may be infect with the curse.

Now of course I could simply expel these dwarves, but I have a more interesting idea in mind.

There was a few poets and others who I have no control over who seem to have got infected so just kind of hoping they leave.

While I prepare that there was a number of general fortress administrative businesses to attend to.

There was an unfortunate number of petitions to get through. All rejected because they sucked, except of the petition for a temple by the Order of Embracing.

With that all sorted I decided to unpause again (still 1st granite) and long behold!

Wonderful! the perfect time for a siege.

2nd Granite, Early Spring, 155

I don't know how burrows work in the new version. Those idiots better know how to move.

The goblins all seem well armored and skilled, although only totaling about 12 goblins.

3rd Granite, Early Spring, 155

Idiot fishdwarves server as good cannon fodder. We are creatures of earth and stone! Those who dare defile the good dwarven name with fishing get what they deserve.

Decided to just set the military out against them because it's a smaller siege than I anticipated and they probably will be fine.

the trap hall does seem to be doing a good job at trapping everyone but the goblins (heard rumors from a previous overseer that the hall is hostile to local dwarves).

I think it's caught a few dogs in the system.

4th Granite, Early Spring, 155

Siege seems to have been broken with only a few causalities. I think that's a success at least.

Back to the fortress business and there is a temple to build. This of course is The Order of Embracing who worship Ano, the god of fertility and love.

There is of course the rather aptly shape 'Giant Cock room', although that is currently filled with animals.

In the end I decided to go for a simply heart design on the floor below the star temple. While I'm sure there are many hilarious phallic objects I could have made for the temple of fertility and love I thought this was a better option.

There seem to be a few injured dwarves, worryingly some of the sacrifices dwarves who fought the weretortoise. Hopefully they recover before the next full moon.

26th Granite, Early Spring, 255

So it turns out there were two travellers that was infected with the weretortoise curse. Nothing I can really do at the point.

Also one of the dwarves from the hospital who was yet to leave to the sacrifice room ended up turning as well.

I'm going to remove all visitors from the fort in an attempt to remove anyone who may be infected.

Results: All the were-tortoises were quickly killed, although I am yet to check if there were any infections. I have carefully sifted through the combat logs to either expel any children bitten and get the remaining bitten dwarves into the sacrifice squad.

There is also now a tavern brawl occurring.

23rd Slate, Mid Spring, 155

Turns out there are 11 weretortoises in the fort. My best efforts to contain them all seem to have failed. The sacrafice chamber has four of them contained but preparations for the ritual are not going well.

A collection of the weretortoises. A lot seem to be in places that can be locked down and contained.

most seem to have been killed successfully however I am also too lazy to attempt to look through all the combat logs to find all instances of citizens being bitten, particularly given it proved to be unsuccessful with both one and four weretortoises.

I have simply decided to expel anyone in the vicinity of a weretortoise corpse that is also injured. I was hoping to do more interesting stuff involving sacraficing the were tortoises to forgotten beast although it seems futile. I would rather keep the fortress intact for now.

With everyone injured out of the fortress the current population is 107. Any visitors who were injured I was unable to do anything for. I was also unable to evict one of the monster hunters and the mayor. They shall be added to the sacrifice collection.

Currently anyone else injured has been locked in the hospital with the assumption that they are a weretortoise.

14th Felsite, Late Spring, 155

A new forgotten beast has appeared in the third cavern layer. I believe it is stuck in the caverns for now so hopefully it'll be fine to ignore.

There also seems to be a bit of a rotting corpse problem right now.

21st Felsite, Late Spring, 155

The weretortoise problem seems to be resolving itself, only two wild weretortoises and I have continues to expel all those that are injured. I shall continue to keep the hospital as a quarantine zone for the time being.

One of the sacrafices also went up against the burninator, although seems to have been quickly killed off.

One of the exiles seems to have returned as well. They were killed by a bunch of war dogs and attack no citizens.

Current population: 96

9th Hematite, Early Summer, 155

you know what I thought would be a great and awesome idea. Capturing the Burninator. Unfortunately all the dwarves are completely useless and didn't bother flicking the lever (probably all too busy being "upset") when needed. Anyways, this should all go well.

11th Hematite, Early Summer 155

Good news everybody!!

flying web beast!

It was even kind enough to let itself in on the first cavern layer (Right where it has access to the surface). However, if the dwarves can figure out how levers work we should be fine.

12th Hematite, Early Summer, 155

Praise be! A caravan of human traders have arrived!

also the minotaur was in a wooden cage and is running towards the tavern.

15th Hematite, Early Summer, 155

The beast has been successfully trapped, albeit in completely the wrong location. Don't know what happened to the minotaur but probably dead because people aren't complaining about it.

Unfortunately the caverns are now blocked off with an even more dangerous beast so can't even reclaim those. (There of course is a fun solution to his problem)

Current population: 51

16th Malachite, Mid Summer, 155

Metal deadly dust forgotten beast! This is the third forgotten beast this year, it seems perhaps the world doesn't want us in the caverns.

19th Malachite, Mid Summer, 155

It is too my horror to discover the third caverns were in fact, not sealed.

1st Galena, Late Summer, 155

I believe I have captured the beast in the room opposite the other beast. I have simply locked the doors, likely ineffective solution but no dwarves are available to place walls in.

Currently there are 11 dwarves remaining: 1 Weretortoise mayor, 9 badly wounded, unconscious, rotting dwarfs and a monster hunter who is convinced he is socializing in the oily chestnuts.

6th Galena, Late Summer, 155

I have moved all the dwarves to the old hospital, where the weretortoise mayor was residing. I have him recovering the patients and attempting to treat them. However with the curse I am going to have to prepare carefully and isolate him away during the full moon.

15th Limestone, Early Autumn, 155

The Dwarven merchants have arrived, although I have no plans to trade. The populations is down to seven citizens now, three of whom can't do labour as they aren't full citizens. The weretortoise mayor and another dwarf are currently attempting to keep the remaining hospitalized dwarves alive. Unfortunately a few have died of starvation or dehydration as there is enough dwarves to tend to everyones wounds.

20th Limestone, Early Autumn, 155

None of the remain dwarves in the hospital survived. The fortress currently contains two functional dwarves and three monster hunters.

21st Sandstone, Mid Autumn, 155

A new hope appears on the horizon. With that the population is up to 13. Hopefully the fort can begin to be tidied up.

28th Sandstone, Mid Autumn, 155

Fourth Forgotten Beast for the year. This one has direct access to the fortress through the third cavern layer, although there appears to be a door I might be able to seal to keep it out.

23rd Opal, Mid Winter, 155

Progress in the fortress has been much slower. The population is at 20, however many of these are poets, musicians and monster hunters who have requested residency. As such there is only a small number of dwarves able to do labour.

Saying that the temple from earlier in the year has been finished, and while anyone part of the Order of Embracing has since left the fortress, it still stands as a grand temple for all those that wish to worship Amo.

1st Obsidian, Late Winter, 155

Concerning news. One of the new migrants must have been a vampire and has killed the manager, one of the only two surviving dwarfs from from the earlier attacks. I has a strong suspicion on a dwarf named Domas given they have a vast amount of skills, including one or two legendary skills. They also happen to be almost 160 years old. Given there are many possible suspects I had decided to just simply evict this guy rather than try conduct and investigation.

11th Obsidian, Late Winter, 155

A final Forgotten Beast appears before the end of the year. Makes a total of five in one year. This one is stuck in the third cavern layer where it can fight it out with the eight-legged Dimetrodon.

28th Obsidian, Later Winter, 155

That concludes my time as overseer of Gerbilgod. Overall probably a general success with only minor grievances throughout. I am somewhat confused as to how powerful doors appear to be in the steam release. I recall a locked not being enough to stop a werecreature or forgotten beast but they seem to be enough in this version.

The fortress still needs tidying and the catacombs need to be expanded. The mayor is still the Werebeast and remains his office during the full moons to avoid him attacking anyone. There is still the webbed beast in the cavern layer that could theocratically be captured but I didn't dare attempt. The lever and bridge system is place from the attempts to capture the Burninator.

As for naming my dwarf I chose the new fortress manager. She also happens to be the bookkeeper, broker and chief medical dwarf as there weren't many with any skills in the fortress.

[kariachi]

Hey, because I’ve got the Dragonlover’s Guide open in my lap right now, who wants its breakdown of the initial human population on Pern?

Unmarried Individuals- 2000

Married Individuals- 2020

Single Parents- 120

Individuals Over Childbearing Age- 223

Nomadic Individuals- 721

Children- 939

For a total of 6023 humans in the initial colony. Seems a decent enough number, a good chunk over the minimum viability estimates I’ve seen for humans and well enough to fill three ships alongside all the crap they brought with them. A few thoughts that enter my head looking at this-

Damn that ‘married’ number is even, given that multi-person marriage is something that’s going to be so coded into law it stays in place for millennia (but then, are we surprised, having read the books?)

Holy shit so many children got brought to this planet

The fact the nomadic groups are just classed as a whole rather than being included in the other demographics of the breakdown rubs me the wrong way

So the child number is even higher because Sean and his sisters and cousins and all the other kids in their position would be under ‘nomads’

If we assume the number of children in proportion to adults remains the same in the nomadic groups as outside of them (about 21.5% of the population, btw) then the nomadic groups contain about 155 children, bringing our total number of children up to approximately 1094 upon arrival on Pern

If we assume that the two nomadic groups brought to Pern were of equal size, then we lost over 360 people when the Tuareg were wiped out (which, still, for fuck’s sake Anne), with how many depending on how many children they had and if they had people marrying in and joining them

I still want to know what happened to those two babies who survived, those poor fucking kids

I have to wonder if single parenthood would’ve altered the pressure put on people to have So Many Kids with So Many People. Like, was there a difference in expectation for people who were unattached and proven fertile compared to those who didn’t already have kids?

[badassbarmaid]

I posted 2,001 times in 2022

That's 404 more posts than 2021!

386 posts created (19%)

1,615 posts reblogged (81%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@wildxcardrebel

@stoicfulmuses

@yeahinmyhead

@870503

I tagged 1,911 of my posts in 2022

Only 4% of my posts had no tags

#tifa - 260 posts

#stoicfulmuses - 157 posts

#ooc - 155 posts

#wildxcardrebel - 109 posts

#cloti - 103 posts

#the journey - 92 posts

#yeahinmyhead - 64 posts

#aerti - 57 posts

#sanguinepeccatorum - 46 posts

#cloud strife - 43 posts

Longest Tag: 98 characters

#plus it was my wedding anniversary yesterday and i was spending it going over divorce paperwork so

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

“Ya’nno...have you ever thought about not doing that?”

26 notes - Posted January 31, 2022

#4

@strifebound​

The last few weeks had been interesting, to say the least. The energy in Edge has shifted, with people seeming to look forward to the future more brightly. Now that the stigma had been mostly eradicated, children were finding homes and shelters, businesses were being revived, and hope filled the air. It was like a plague had been cured.

While that was nice and heartwarming, Tifa’s focus was primarily on her family. When her friends left to return to their respective lives, she set her sights on Denzel and Cloud.

Now that he was no longer sick, Denzel came out of his shell more, laughing and playing with Marlene and doing more around the house. He was acting more like a child his age, which gave Tifa warmth to witness. Cloud had returned home, no longer hiding in the ruins of his memory.

It was still and adjustment, though.

Preparing for opening that night, Tifa was lost to her own thoughts. She was reflecting on their latest shared adventure, the conflicting argument they had while Rude and Reno looked on, the shift in their dynamics within the home...and the fear she had that he may bolt again.

31 notes - Posted June 23, 2022

#3

Hit the heart for a lil starter from Tifa.

36 notes - Posted September 11, 2022

#2

@wildxcardrebel​ | continued from here

She paused, looking at him closely, curious as to why he really felt the need to fight the brutes. Was it because he wanted to be macho? Prove himself? Or try and impress her? Or was his heart just that pure? Tifa didn’t know, but she also didn’t care.

Reaching over, she took hold of the ice and placed a very gentle kiss over where it had been, ignoring how cold his skin was. “Thank you,” she murmured, lifting the ice back to his face.

“I may be pissed at you, but I appreciate the help.”

42 notes - Posted July 9, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

@wildxcardrebel​ | continued from here

Tifa chuckled at the messages, shaking her head and sighing to herself.

What would she wear? She could do a kimono number, or maybe something else?

[txt]  Sounds like a plan.

[txt] You don’t have to dress up either

[txt] Though I bet you’d be cute in a kimono...

[txt] ;P

42 notes - Posted July 9, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[dumdumsun]

I posted 2,661 times in 2022

155 posts created (6%)

2,506 posts reblogged (94%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@youcandalekmyballs

@fiveisnumber1

@madmadmilk

@yurtletheturtlehenderson

@sbyderman

I tagged 316 of my posts in 2022

#stranger things - 91 posts

#suns inbox - 78 posts

#stranger things x reader - 54 posts

#lost and found - 52 posts

#lucas sinclair - 49 posts

#stranger things fic - 48 posts

#will byers - 45 posts

#mike wheeler - 45 posts

#st x reader - 45 posts

#will byers x reader - 45 posts

Longest Tag: 136 characters

#luke the nerve if they actually had the sparrows be actual people and numbers second while the umbrellas all got shit- like its unlikely

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Lost and Found

A/N: Welcome, lovelies! I'm finally back to uploading and let's just say that this one has been a long wait for me. I've been so friggin excited to finish and upload this story. I miss this show so much and I can't wait for season four to come out. This fic was all I thought about for a long time and now that it's done, I can obsess over writing the other two installments of it. But for now, I hope you enjoy this first chapter!

Warnings: bullying, brief racism (Troy towards Lucas), mentions of vomit

Word Count: 3254

—————————————

Chapter One: The Vanishing of Will Byers

On a dark autumn’s night, at the edge of Maple Street’s suburban cul-de-sac, sat two sprinklers. They spat out their water to refresh the newly mowed lawn of the Wheeler residence. This lawn, amongst other aspects, was a symbol for the perfect nuclear family residing within the two-story home. Below those two stories, within the basement, sat the four members of Hawkins Middle School’s Audio Visual Club and players of the current Dungeons and Dragons campaign.

“Something is coming. Something hungry for blood,” whispered the president of the AV Club, Mike Wheeler, eyes trailing across his three friends who sat around his square table. “A shadow grows on the wall behind you, swallowing you in darkness. It is almost here.”

“What is it?” The soft voice of Will Byers impatiently asked across from Mike.

“What if it’s the Demogorgon?” Dustin Henderson raised his brows at his friends. Will sighed out and slumped against his chair in distress. “Oh, Jesus, we’re so screwed if it’s the Demogorgon.”

Lucas Sinclair, across from Dustin, widened his eyes and spoke with gestured hands, “It’s not the Demogorgon.”

Mike smirked at his friends’ groans and moans before grabbing a figure from behind his cardboard covering and slamming it upon the board in the middle of the table. “An army of troglodytes charge into the chamber!”

“Troglodytes?” Dustin grinned at Lucas, who smugly smiled back at him.

“Told ya.” He chuckled.

After the three unsuspecting boys’ laughter trailed off, a moment of silence passed before Mike’s face dropped in feigned confusion. “Wait a minute. Do you hear that? That… That sound? Boom… boom… Boom!” He banged against the table, causing the boys to jump and gasp. “That didn’t come from the troglodytes. No, that… That came from something else.”

Lucas and Dustin shared a knowing look before Mike slammed another figure onto the board. “The Demogorgon!”

Three sets of groans filled the basement, Dustin smacking his hand against the table. “We’re in deep shit.”

“Will, your action!”

“I don’t know!” The Byers boy exclaimed.

“Fireball him!” Lucas said as if it were obvious.

“I’d have to roll a 13 or higher!”

At this, Dustin widened his eyes. “Too risky. Cast a protection spell.”

“Don’t be a pussy. Fireball him!”

“Cast Protection.”

The argument between Dustin and Lucas ended abruptly upon Mike banging his hands against the table yet again. “The Demogorgon is tired of your silly human bickering! It stomps toward you. Boom!”

“Fireball him!”

“Another stomp, boom!”

“Cast Protection.”

“He roars in anger!”

From above the basement, on the other side of the closed door, a figure leaned against the wall, listening to the clamoring of the boys. Her sock-covered feet excitedly tapped the hardwood floor as a small smile graced her features. At Dustin’s chants of ‘oh my god’, a soft giggle escaped from her throat. From behind her, she heard the approaching footsteps of her mother, Karen Wheeler. The woman moved to her side and opened the basement door, revealing Mike at the bottom of the staircase, seemingly searching for something. “Mike!” She called out.

See the full post

195 notes - Posted March 14, 2022

#4

Upon A Smile | "Wild World" Part 2

A/N: Due to popular demand, I have made a part 2. Thank you so much for the love and support "Wild World" received. I hope you enjoy ❤️

Warnings: broken limbs, a bomb ass song, a large amount of the words "shit" and "fuck" in one setting, mentions of death/dying and S4 SPOILERS!!!

Word Count: 4139

—————————————

“You don’t have a favorite song?”

(Y/N) looked up from her stack of cassettes to meet Steve’s look of disbelief he was throwing over his shoulder. She rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to sifting through the options in her hands that they had already deemed unworthy. “No, I don’t.”

“Everyone has a favorite song.”

“Well, not me.”

The group consisting of Dustin, Lucas, Robin, Nancy, Max, Steve, (Y/N) and Eddie made their way through the woods. Dustin’s head constantly moved up and down between his compass and the woods before him as he led them all to their destination. Lucas was the only one who knew not to question anything his friend was doing since he had been the only one in the group to have gone through something like this with him before. But, since everyone had all encountered the unspeakable at least once before, they were all learning not to doubt any of Dustin’s theories.

Understandably, they were all on edge for obvious reasons. The most obvious being the possible demise hanging over Max and (Y/N)’s heads. The former had already escaped Vecna’s grasp before, but the latter was on thin ice. For the past twenty minutes, she and Eddie had been thinking and pondering any song that had personal meaning to her, but they always drew up a blank. Still, it was a good distraction for the both of them.

Steve sighed and his eyes turned solemn, a look (Y/N) hated receiving from anyone. “You gotta make a decision soon, (Y/N). You need to be prepared for this asshole.”

“I know, Steve…”

Eddie hummed as he held up a cassette. “You think Stevie Nicks is gonna save you?”

“I doubt it.” (Y/N) chuckled, taking the tape from him and adding it to the stack in her hands. “I-I don’t even have a favorite artist, honestly.”

“Too bad you have none of my songs on tape,” He nudged her. “I just know those are your favorite.”

Everyone thought they had been dreaming when they heard the laugh (Y/N) let out. No one had ever heard her laugh out loud like that. Like she was genuinely living for once, like she was finally finding joy in something, in someone. It wasn’t a particularly loud or boisterous laugh, but they’d never seen (Y/N) react to anything that positively. Of course, Eddie Munson would be the one to make it happen. Little did they know, she surprised him every time she laughed. He always tried his hardest and prided himself in humoring the statue that was (Y/N) (L/N). Her laughing subsided as she shook her head. “You wish, Munson.”

“Oh, I really do.” He leaned closer to her face in a mocking manner before holding up another tape. “AC/DC?”

“Mm-mm.” She shook her head. Eddie sighed dramatically and handed it to her.

“What about Foreigner?”

“Probably not.”

“Black Sabbath?”

“Uh-uh.”

“Bon Jovi? Led Zeppelin? Fleetwood Mac?”

(Y/N) perked up and plucked the cassette from his hand. “Hey, maybe.”

A sudden gasp not loud enough for anyone but (Y/N) to hear came from Eddie as he slowly presented a tape to her. “Oh, my dear… dear, (Y/N)... Where, oh, where have you been hiding this?”

“Give me that!” She quietly hissed, snatching it from him and putting it at the bottom of the stack before leaning close to Eddie. “You will tell no one.”

“Tell what?” His volume lowered to match hers. “That the reclusive, stoic, mysterious (Y/N) (L/N)... listens to Madonna on the down-low?”

“Yes, that exact information.” She felt her face burn at the wicked smile that spread across his stupid face. “Eddie, I’m serious. I know it’s stupid, but please.”

He held his hands up innocently. “Your dirty secret is safe with me, sweetheart. I promise.” He chuckled and went through the other options in his hands. “I didn’t know you listened to Cat Stevens.”

See the full post

241 notes - Posted June 10, 2022

#3

Lost and Found Masterlist

—————————

*if there's no link, the chapter has yet to be posted*

Chapter One: The Vanishing of Will Byers

Chapter Two: The Search for Will Byers

Chapter Three: The Weirdo on Maple Street

Chapter Four: One Day

Chapter Five: Holly Jolly

Chapter Six: The Heroes

Chapter Seven: The Body

Chapter Eight: In Contact

Chapter Nine: The Flea and the Acrobat

Chapter Ten: The Compasses

Chapter Eleven: The Monster

Chapter Twelve: Just Like Me

Chapter Thirteen: The Bathtub

See the full post

478 notes - Posted March 10, 2022

#2

Wild World | Eddie Munson x Reader

A/N: This may be a bit later than I said I’d post this. But this is a treat for helping me reach a milestone of 500 followers. I said I’d give you an Eddie x Reader oneshot, so I made you one ❤️ This may not be my best work since it’s my first time ever writing for Eddie, so I hope I did good. Lmk if you want a part 2. I kinda already have something in mind. Enjoy ❤️❤️

Warnings: implied self-harm, mentions of death, blood, marijuana and corpses. S4 SPOLIERS!!!

Word Count: 3735

—————————————

She had never truly smiled until she met him.

(Y/N)’s journey through life had always been more of a trek, a trudging through the cruel and unapologetic wild. She couldn’t exactly call herself a gazelle, for even a gazelle destroys for its own benefit. (Y/N) was more of the grass that sprouted and grew from the dirt. A natural, living organism that is constantly taken advantage of. Trampled over, cut, burned, eaten alive. The gazelle uses her for its nutrients, only to be hunted and preyed on by the lion, the most superior, who no one in the wild is safe from.

On her rainy days, even when it feels she may drown, she is strengthening. So that on those bright, sunny days, she may flourish and prosper with the brawn of the lion, but with the vulnerability of the gazelle. And the knowledge that this will not last. When the cold falls over, she will wither and dry, she will break easily under the pressure of the winter snow. She will shiver and weep and she will freeze nearly to death until the spring takes her stand to rain and shine upon her again, continuing the cycle.

(Y/N) found herself existing in a cycle she desperately wanted out of, but lacked the knowledge on how and the desire to even get out of bed to do so. She couldn’t remember the last time she smiled, truly smiled. She had her friends; Steve and Robin were a hilarious duo that always kept her guessing. Nancy wasn’t as humorous as them, but (Y/N) didn’t need humor to break out into a small smile. The kids, ever since starting their freshman year, were around her more than they had ever been. Everyone she was close to was around her, save for El, Will and Jonathan. She had fought alongside this group. She shed sweat, blood and tears with this group. She fought off the Demogorgon in Joyce Byers’s home with the teens in the fall of ‘83. She helped Steve with the kids in their journey through the Upside Down in ‘84.

They held her as she sobbed her eyes out after defeating her flayed mother who had attacked her in the summer of ‘85.

Everyone had noticed her shift in emotion since then. The girl had never shown much emotion before then, but now she was hollow, a shell of the girl they had befriended and loved. She hardly reacted to humor besides a huff of a laugh and a hint of a smile she felt she had to give. Conversation with her was mostly one-sided. She claimed she never had time to hang out, always disappearing after school. Sometimes, she would resurface at the supermarket where she worked. Sometimes she would simply be at home. They knew someone had to take care of the house while her father was at work. They also knew that he had told her she didn’t have to, but (Y/N) felt herself partially responsible for her mother. She was home alone when she was flayed. She was alone because her father was working and (Y/N) was late coming home.

(Y/N) knew it was unwise to blame herself for her mother’s death, but who else would she be able to blame? The Mind Flayer? It was dead, it wouldn’t be able to feel her wrath on a daily basis, it wouldn’t know that it ruined her life, that it ruined Hawkins and sent it into the deepest pit of despair it had been in yet. She couldn’t blame her father, he did nothing wrong. He was completely unaware of interdimensional creatures intending on wiping out the human race. She couldn’t blame her friends. Not after everything they had done for her. She was the only one left to hurt.

She suffered under her own hands, under her own words. She started during her mother’s funeral. Her father held her in his arms and she felt the sob he was holding shudder his entire body. Afterwards, she told him that she didn’t want him to hold in his sadness, she wanted him to freely grieve under their roof. He didn’t need to be strong for her. He needed to let himself feel. Meanwhile, she was the one holding in everything. She couldn’t tell her father how his wife had actually died. That she had been possessed, that she had attacked their daughter against her own will, that it was between the two of them. That (Y/N) had come close to dying that night and had to bash her mother’s head with a frying pan continuously until she watched her melt into a pile of meat right before her very eyes. (Y/N) held the truth, the anger, the sadness, the guilt, all within her sternum. And one day, she would die with it. It would die with her.

(Y/N) tried everything in her power to push Eddie Munson away. He wanted to get close, he wanted to peek behind the walls she put up. He wanted to break them down to see the real her, the one not everyone gets to see. But (Y/N) was terrified. Everyone knew her mother had died in the “fire” that engulfed the Starcourt Mall, but he made her want to tell him everything. He could have intimidated her at first glance, but she had been through enough. She had him in a class or two and was surprised the past two years when seeing him in classes, swearing to herself that he should have graduated in ‘84. She didn’t mind, he was intriguing. His tresses of brown curls and crazy hot tattoos pulled her right in. His charm and his alluring voice held her down. But once he let go, once he allowed her to decide, his caring nature and ability to see right through her was what made her want to leave, but ultimately was what made her stay.

She didn’t want him to see why she was hurting and she definitely didn’t need him to read her aloud like a storytime book when they were alone for the first time. It made her feel transparent, like anyone would be able to see her, but she soon realized that his ability to see through walls was what made him different.

“You could be a tree.” He had shrugged, bringing the joint up to his lips. (Y/N) frowned and turned to him, her mind hazy from how much she had been inhaling from that same joint. Eddie saw the confusion on her face. “Your little analogy on who you are in this world. The grass, the gazelle, all that. Doesn’t have to be like that. You could just be a tree.”

She hadn’t even realized she was speaking that much. Fuck marijuana, honestly. “A tree?”

“Yeah,” He pulled the joint from his lips and blew the smoke up to the ceiling of his bedroom. The two were sprawled out on his bed, a safe distance, but close enough to pass the smoke to each other. “You know, you could be like a tree. You’re already this grand, beautiful creature, if I may be so praiseful, if not flirtatious.”

“You may.” She accepted the offered joint, a small and bashful smile on her face.

“Well, alright then,” He grinned. “So, yeah, you’re beautiful and amazing and you know you are. You’ve always known. You don’t need me to tell you, you don’t need anyone to tell you. Deep down, past all that guilt, you know who you are. You stand firmly in place where you know you belong and you exist for yourself. You change through the seasons and you’re still you, even when your leaves turn brown and fall away from you.”

“Eddie-”

“And you wanna know what the best part of it is?”

She released the smoke from her lungs with the shake of her head. “What?”

“There would be no gazelles or lions to eat you and use you. No feet to trample you.”

“But I’d still be cut down at some point when I’m in the way of what someone wants to do.”

Eddie sat up and waved his hands about as he spoke. “I hate to break it to you, honey, but aren’t we all gonna be fucked over at some point? That damn lion that eats the gazelle that ate you, the grass, is gonna end up some rich asshole’s mat in their bedroom. And then that asshole that uses that lion? The one who ordered for you, a possible tree, to be cut down? His life would soon end and everyone would say ‘oh, man, he’s dead! Who gets his money now?’, like they actually gave a shit about him. But you? You will be avenged, you beautiful creature. Because… we need the trees, (Y/N).”

She looked up to find him staring tenderly at her. She couldn’t help the wide grin that spread across her features.

“We need them.”

Her heart never got used to seeing Eddie or hearing his voice. It still sped every time his eyes locked on hers and it burst whenever her name left his lips. God, those lips… She never got used to him, not even when they felt that they knew each other more than anyone had ever known them. They didn’t care for labels, didn’t care what people thought of the two of them spending so much time together. (Y/N) was certain they weren’t dating. That would require too much trust, too many obligations. She didn’t want either of them to get hurt, especially not Eddie. He didn’t deserve any of that.

“(Y/N)!” She heard him call out to her in the crowded hallway. She continued on without looking back to acknowledge him. A few seconds later, she felt his hand on her arm. “Hey, you never showed up yesterday. I had to get high all by myself. And let me tell you, it is not the same anymore without you.”

See the full post

562 notes - Posted June 2, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

I need Eddie Munson x Reader content STAT

632 notes - Posted May 27, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[cha-melodius]

I posted 1,437 times in 2022

That's 43 more posts than 2021!

242 posts created (17%) (a large number of which are your asks)

1,195 posts reblogged (83%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@heytheredeann

@mirilyawrites

@coaldustcanary

@abitofboth

@clottedcreamfudge

I tagged 1,437 of my posts in 2022

(last year I tagged this tumblr year in review post as 'in which i am napollya trash' and it looks like that definitely still applies this year)

#tmfu - 417 posts

#napollya - 293 posts

#mcu - 218 posts

#loki - 168 posts

#lokius - 158 posts

#asks and answers - 155 posts

#fanfic - 121 posts

#illya kuryakin - 94 posts

#napoleon solo - 91 posts

#the man from uncle - 87 posts

Longest Tag: 137 characters (what a tag, lol)

#the face you make when you found out you've just been tortured because your allies decided your life was worth using as a bargaining chip

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

See the full post

71 notes - Posted May 31, 2022

#4

Guess who rewatched TMFU last night???

I feel inspired to talk about the end of the movie and our favorite spies' first mission as UNCLE. Caveat that these are all just my interpretations/headcanons, and aren't the only ones out there! I've been thinking about this recently because of Hard to be Soft, Tough to be Tender, which I set very early in their partnership. Namely, we get this moment, where they all look, as @heytheredeann always so accurately puts it, entirely victimized by the news that they have to keep working together:

Now this comes not long after this little moment, where Illya allows his fondness to slip out in that tiny smile, and then realizes what he's done and immediately hides behind his glass of Scotch.

See the full post

92 notes - Posted March 27, 2022

#3

No thoughts only Illya Kuryakin in short shorts.

(A bit of a different WIP Wednesday for you... this is what my brain has decided is taking over my spare time recently. And oh yeah, there's a fic that goes along with this.)

123 notes - Posted May 18, 2022

#2

I HAD to do it, y’all. (insp. [with original meme], insp.)

221 notes - Posted August 30, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

UNCLE Headquarters, 1965

Detail crop and inspiration below the cut.

Inspiration:

See the full post

299 notes - Posted July 20, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[sereniv]

Weight talk, positive outlook, health related goals with 1 slight mention of looks, numbers mentioned

Ive reached 165 pounds! not going to get too excited because keeping this diabetes better portioned diet is hard

i havnt noticed really any physical difference, i was plateud for a long while at around 175 maybe 178, and would also gravitate maybe to 168

but 165 is what i always seem to reach and plateu at

my goal is to be 150 and thats it. i think thatll be healthy (as in not too low). 150 is where i was i think before i gained like 30 pounds from medication, maybe less since i think it made me gain 40 pounds, and i was maybe 190 and was so afraid of reaching 200

but i would love to go back to that weight. i still had some fat on me (positive) but i overall likes that weight

i definitely would love to keep some of my squishy fat tummy and maybe even in my chest

but for diabetes i think 150 is it.

though idk a doctor might want me to lose more but i dont want to

ive had some meat on me for a long time and ive grown to love it. i want to slim down in my face (only thing thats really for looks) and back and maybe legs (so pants fit a little more comfortable)

but most definitely i have an issue with my upper abdomen under my chest. like that underboob strip

for health reasons i need to figure that out. its kind of extended and it wasnt always like that. but if i lose weight and its still there then i can get a doctor to look into it

but yeah its hard not eating whatever whenever. having my meal and then waiting 2 hours to test blood and only then eat again

but its working out and it kind of feels nice. i realize now that im not actually always hungry, i was just bored. i feel more free in a way.

and food feels more special again. like a part of the day, something i can look forward to rather than mindlessness

i frel like i have a better relationship with food. before it was really nothing. and now food, though it still stressed me out (a nutritionalist will help) just feels like...idk i can feel thankful for it again

like when i first went vegan before i realized i could eat junk food. when i first went i thought i could only eat salads and maybe sandwiches or soups and just plain bean burritos

then i found out about cookies and cakes and just snacks and sweets and totally abandoned eating healthy

but in that first like month or so of just going vegan and eating healthier, i felt happier, excited for eating, i felt more relaxed and lighter and idk. actually being aware and conscious of what i was eating felt so good

and i feel like im getting back to that.

and i im able to feel that way around junk food too, healtheir versions

healthier to me specifically

so yeah as stressed as i was about this diabetes diet, im starting to understand what i need to do

im able to even like...whats the word? willpower?

like when i want to snack to where i feel manoc, im able to calm myself. i wait until i can have a portion of a snack and not binge

bc this diabetes reallllly started triggering me, i was getting manic like every day and getting anxiety

but ive managed to wrangle that in, to calm myself, to be gentle, and finding those Hippeas chips IMMENSELY helped like took my anxiety right away

it feels really good and i hope i can keep this

i hope i can get to 150 and keep it there for good

maybe even 155, idk.

ive also noticed i dont crave snacks as much. or even sweets

i also am still able to have plant based eggs so that is wonderful

[excusethequality]

My 2023 in Film

Part 4:

151-200

With this I am finally past the halfway point! Huzzah!

Link to Part I Link to Part II Link to Part III

* = rewatched

[++] = I loved it [+] = I liked it [=] = I am indifferent about it [-] = Not my thing [--] = I hate it

Click on the list number to get a trailer for it.

151.

Tucker and Dale vs. Evil (2010) * ---Comedy Horror

[Not putting a link to the trailer, because the trailer spoils the shit out of a ton of the movie. Consider yourself warned.]

The typical slasher story is turned on its head when two best friends head to the woods to fix up their new vacation shack. But a misunderstanding with a bunch of college students is about to show that you can't judge a book by its cover. [+]

152.

The Invisible Man (1933) * ---Sci-Fi Horror

After discovering the secret to invisibility a brilliant scientist desperately tries to discover the secret to undoing it before he goes insane. [+]

153.

Barbie (2023) ---Comedy Fantasy Adventure

A Barbie from the magical world of Barbieland has an existential crisis. Now unable to get rid of her thoughts of death and cellulite, she journeys to the real world in search of a cure. [+]

154.

Princess Mononoke (1997) * ---Animated Fantasy Adventure

A cursed prince must leave his home on a journey to find the source of his affliction and to see what he can learn with eyes unclouded by hate. [++]

155.

Twins (1988) * ---Comedy Crime Adventure

Jeez, this movie has no right being this hard to describe. Ummm...two long lost twins (and products of a genetic test) are reunited after 35 years and go on a mission to find their mother. They're also trying to sell a stolen prototype fuel injector, and get away from a vindictive loan shark, and fall in love, and avoid being murdered by the man who rightfully wants to sell the stolen prototype fuel injector. [=]

156.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (2023) ---Animated Action Comedy

A family of mutants living in the sewers of NYC dream of being able to join the humans up above. But when they meet a group of mutant criminals they're forced to choose a side. [++]

157.

Mortal Kombat (2021) ---Fantasy Action

I honestly don't remember the specifics and I refuse to look it up. Basically a boring dude and others get weird powers and fight each other because of reasons. [-]

158.

Predators (2010) ---Sci-Fi Action

A motley crew of killers from around the world awaken on an alien game reserve where they are being hunted for sport. [=]

159.

The Invisible Man (2020) ---Sci-Fi Thriller

A woman flees from an abusive relationship with a tech genius. Although she is finally free, a series of incidents leave her grappling with her sanity and wondering if she's being haunted by her trauma or something more sinister. [+]

160.

Encino Man (1992) * ---Comedy

A pair of teenagers discover a caveman frozen in an ancient block of ice. When unthaws and awakens they decide that he might just be their ticket to popularity and enroll him in high school. [=]

161.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992) * ---Coming-of-Age Fantasy Action Comedy

A teenage girl learns that she is the next incarnation of an ancient line of vampire slayers. The only hiccup is that she has no interest in slaying vampires and just wants to be a normal teen. [+]

162.

Joy Ride (2023) ---Comedy Adventure

What started as a business trip turns into a search for family when four Chinese-American friends travel to China. [+]

163.

The Matrix Resurrections (2021) ---Sci-Fi Action

I could try to break down what this movie was about, but it would take more time than I want to invest. Imagine if someone remade the first one, but got weirdly meta about it and generally did everything worse. [--]

164.

Waking Ned Devine (1998) * ---Comedy

In a rural Irish village an old man named Ned Devine has just won the lottery. The only issue is that Ned Devine has also just died. Now the village is on a mission to bring him back (in a way) so they can claim the winnings. [++]

165.

Medusa Deluxe (2022) ---Mystery

When someone is murdered at a hair styling competition it's hard to know if anyone has seen anything out of the ordinary. [=]

166.

Paprika (2006) * ---Animated Sci-Fi Adventure

A psychotherapy researcher secretly working under the alias "Paprika" utilizes a brand new technology that allows her to enter her patients' dreams. But when the technology falls into the hands of a terrorist she may be the only person with the skills needed to stop them. [++]

167.

Game Night (2018) * ---Comedy Adventure

A group of friends meet for their regular game night only to learn that this night might not be so ordinary. [+]

168.

The Hangover (2009) * ---Comedy Adventure

Three friends wake up after a wild bachelor party they can't remember only to find that they can't find the groom. [=]

169.

Lakota Nation vs. United States (2022) ---Documentary

A chronicle of the United States' interactions with the Lakota nation. [+]

170.

Event Horizon (1997) * ---Sci-Fi Horror

A rescue team is sent to investigate the mysterious return of a prototype spacecraft called the Event Horizon. [+]

171.

3 Ninjas (1992) * ---Action Comedy

Three young brothers have been trained in the ways of the ninja by their grandfather. But when a ruthless criminal has set his sights on their family he quickly learns that they won't go down without a fight. [+]

172.

One for the Money (2012) * ---Comedy Crime

A desperate former lingerie saleswoman tries to take up bounty hunting in order to make some quick cash. [=]

173.

Talk to Me (2022) ---Horror

A pack of teenagers discover a mysterious statue that allows whoever touches it become a conduit for the dead. [=]

174.

Barbie (2023) *

See #153

175.

Shiva Baby (2020) ---Drama Comedy

A struggling college student attends the shiva from hell with her parents. [++]

176.

Bottoms (2023) ---Comedy

Two teenage lesbians start a women's fight club at their high school in order to get laid. [=]

177.

What About Bob? (1991) * ---Comedy

A therapist starts to lose his grip on reality when an obsessed patient won't leave him alone and no one else seems to find it odd. [+]

178.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) * ---Action Comedy

A family of mutant turtles is all that stands in the way of a gang of ninja from taking over NYC. [++]

179.

Hardcore Henry (2015) ---Action

I wish the plot actually mattered, but it doesn't. All you need to know is that it's an action movie shot entirely in first person perspective and that there's a very good reason why movies so rarely do that. [-]

180.

Office Space (1999) * ---Comedy

A depressed office worker gets a new lease on life when his hypnotist dies in the middle of their session. [++]

181.

Wayne's World (1992) * ---Comedy

Two best friends find themselves in battle against a corporate bigwig when a network tries to buy their public-access program. [+]

182.

Tell Me I Love You (2020) ---Queer Rom-Com

3 best friends wind up in a polyamory-ish marriage predicament because of reasons. [=]

183.

The Smoke Shack (2013) ---Comedy Short Film

A day in the life of a worker at a smoke shack. [+]

184.

Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989) * ---Comedy Adventure

Two best friends are about to flunk out of school when they're given a most excellent opportunity: a time machine! Now they must gather the greatest collection of historical figures they can in order to ace their history test. [+]

185.

Plus One (2019) * ---Rom-Com

During a rough wedding season two best friends agree to be each other's plus ones in order to make it through, but wind up questioning the nature of their relationship in the process. [=]

186.

Reel Injun (2009) ---Documentary

A look at the history of Native American representation in film. [+]

187.

The Quiet Earth (1985) ---Sci-Fi

A science experiment goes terribly wrong and now 3 people are seemingly the only ones in the world left alive. [-]

188.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991) ---Action Comedy

The Shredder decides to fight fire with fire and endeavors to create his own mutant army to defeat the turtles and conquer NYC. [+]

189.

First Cow (2019) ---Period Drama

Two unlikely friends start their own business in order to carve out a life for themselves in 1820s Oregon, USA. [+]

190.

Short Term 12 (2013) ---Drama

A staff member of a group care facility for troubled teenagers tries to fight her impulses towards self destruction when an old trauma comes back to haunt her. [+]

191.

Zoom (2015) ---Fantasy Drama Comedy

Three people discover that their worlds are all products of each other's various creative pursuits. [-]

192.

Dead Man's Curve (1998) ---Crime Thriller

Two roommates concoct a plan to kill their other roommate in order to exploit a college loophole and get an automatic 4.0 GPA. [=]

193.

Tendrils (2023) ---Short Film Drama

Two friends are preparing to part ways and decide to make a time capsule in honor of their relationship. [=]

194.

Watching the Detectives (2007) ---Rom-Com

A film nerd falls in love with a manic pixie dream girl, but begins to blur reality with movies. [-]

195.

Scrapper (2023) ---Comedy Drama

A 12-year-old tries to make it on her own after the death of her mother. But when her estranged dad comes back to take care of her she's going to have to face reality. [++]

196.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III (1993) * ---Action Fantasy Comedy

A chance encounter with a strange artifact transports the turtles to early 17th century Japan. [+]

197.

Theater Camp (2023) ---Mockumentary Comedy

When the director of a theater camp falls into a coma it's up to her wannabe-influencer son to keep the place together. [=]

198.

Four Kids and It (2020) ---Kids Fantasy

While on vacation a group of kids come across a magical being that can grant wishes. There's only two catches: it can only grant one wish a day and each wish only lasts for 24 hours. [=]

199.

Cassandro (2023) ---Queer Sports Biopic

The story of the rise of Saúl Armendáriz aka the Mexican luchador Cassandro. [=]

200.

Fat City (1972) ---Sports Drama

Two men at opposite points in their boxing careers see a glimpse of their past/future in one another, but not necessarily liking what they see. [+]

[ablackburnarts102-02]

Process Blog Three

Reading Responses:

Chapter Six of the textbook reading (Becoming a Graphic and Digital Designer: A Guide to Careers in Design, by Steven Heller, pages 120-137) is about designing book interiors and book covers / book jackets. It was quite interesting to read this chapter, as the designs were phenomenal, and it brought my attention to designing book interiors which I had never really considered much before. While I understood that book interiors and layout had to be designed, I didn't realize that there were designers who devoted their entire careers to the typography and flow of the fairly simple seeming pages of books.

Chapter Seven of the textbook reading (pages 138-147) is about editorial design such as magazines and newspapers. Personally I think I would prefer designing magazines over newspapers, as I already have a little bit of experience designing a magazine layout for my high school art magazine. However, I feel like designing a newspaper would allow for the designer to focus more on the layout and the flow of the design rather than worrying about how to fit in all the images with their variation in sizes and style.

Chapter Eight of the textbook reading (pages 148-155) is about social innovation through design. Using design as a tool for social innovation is incredibly meaningful and important, however I can't really see myself going out of my way to pursue it in a career or without someone prompting me to pursue it.

Chapter Nine of the textbook reading (pages 156-161) is about branding and packaging. I also have slight experience with branding and packaging, as I had a number of assignments previously with rebranding certain companies and designing product packaging as well. I feel as though I fit better with designing products and branding rather than product packaging as I have slightly less experience with packing. However, I could completely see myself focusing on these in my design career and I would be thrilled to design product packaging and branding for my own company.

Chapter Ten of the textbook reading (pages 162-184) is about illustration design. While illustration design is beautiful and I love to look at it, I am not particularly interested in making illustration design myself. When it comes more to creating visuals in this sort of way, I would prefer to draw or paint in a way that focuses less on how to 'design' it.

Reflection:

The class project that our class has been working on since the last progress post is our Great Ideas Poster. I started off with a quote that I liked by Marcus Aurelius where he said "The soul becomes dyed with the color of its thoughts." I chose this quote because I thought that it would pair perfectly with some really colorful imagery, which I thought would be really nice and fun for a poster design.

Then I refined these designed on my iPad in Procreate and created three refined sketch images.

I had a lot of fun playing with the colors and looks of all three images, but the third image was my favorite conceptually as I really liked the simplistic and less messy look as I had become very used to the messy look while designing the first two. I did however LOVE playing with the text and color gradients in the first image.

I then began to create the shapes of the third image in Adobe Illustrator for my final poster.

Once I had the shapes the way I wanted, I brought them into photoshop to play with the layer options as well as to add in the text. After that, I brought it back into procreate to add some colors and character back to the image that I lost when I chose the simple design over the chaotic ones in the refined sketch process.

[fuckthisshitimin]

(Copy-pasting the comment instead of putting a screenshot and adding a description:)

@bonzos-number-1-fan said "CHBD was coloured by the community rather than us getting it coloured. Red is just names whose ID didn't match their initials. It's very likely that's just junk data to fill up the sheet rather than anything important."

Ooooh, yeah that makes sense, I didn't know they were colored by the community! Maybe it's junk data, or a red herring, but also, the letters at the start of their file number aren't random, it's [First letter of the fist name]+[Next letter in the alphabet], so, idk, maybe something a computer might do if it lost some data? I have no idea how computers work. If you're right and it's just junk data I'm spending much time over nothing but at least I'm having fun.

Also, all their file numbers start by "09". So I looked at all the files starting by "09"; that's 155 kids, including the 77 the community highlighted in red and Ruby Ellis who wasn't even though their file is "QR09867" instead of "RE" or even "RS", which is an anomaly among the anomalies, along Remy Edwards "QR09608"

And the names still looked weird, okay? I felt I got a lot of initials who already matched the alphabetical order, like "AB/Aiden Bishop", "BC/Bella Curtis", "CD/Connor Dyer", "DE/Dexter Evans" and so on. But I was looking for those and so the feeling this was a proof was not reliable, so I counted, and of those 155, 36 did NOT have file numbers starting by "One Letter/The Following Letter" and that's... One of five, so that's more than I thought. If we discard the 78 files whose title don't match the initials that's 36 of 77, so almost half, so... I don't know how names work, so you know, I looked at the 94 lines whose number did not start by "09" and of those, three had file numbers starting with "AB/Aria Burgess", "JK/Jayden Keegan" and "KL/Kelsey Lawrence". So it IS weird. It doesn't have to mean anything but it is unusual.

Also, what had weirded me out at first was the "Foster" kids in red. There are three of them: Skye, Sierra and Solomon. Okay, maybe it just so happens that their first name starts by S, who cares?

Among the kids in red, three have a last name that starts with G: Umar, Ulysses and Una... Starting with H, Winnie, Willa and Ulysses. Oh! So that doesn't work. Ulysses is file "WX09654". WHY?

And it does not work for every letter, so it's not an absolute rule it's just... weird, again. Why is this happening. I have not theory to make sense of it but it bugs me so much. Why do we have three kids whose initials are GZ, three IA, three KB, three MC, three OD?

There is a possibility having to come up with so many names they did it using a system that made the initials so not-random looking, that's my only explanation, but it still so bugs me.

I don't even know if the "09" are relevant in any way but among them we have Connor Dyer (CD09663), Freddie Gilbert (FG09514) and Mason Norris (MN09764) whose initials also follow up. Does this have anything to do with anything? I DON'T KNOW I WILL LOSE MY MIND OVER THIS.

If anyone has theories. Please. Is there like a universe-specific Apocalypse ritual but instead of gathering the fourteen Fear Entities in one person you have to complete the alphabet with thirteen kids?

THAT DAMNED SPREADSHEET

DOES ANYONE TO HEAR ABOUT MY ADVENTURE IN THE SPREADSHEET?

Cause I'm pretty damned sure I know what getting "High" on Milgram means.

Talking about his being rejected by the Magnus Institute, Samama said:

[That definitely feels like when it all started. […] Well, after that it all just went downhill. Didn’t get into Oxford, so I went to Nottingham.]

And that does not sound like what one would say about something that happened when they were, like, eight. So I went to take another look at the spreadsheet. Of course I was wrong, because The Magnus Institute burned in 1999, so he couldn’t have been more than nine, but I found out other stuff.

A thing that bugs me in how I’ve read some discussing the spreadsheet is that Sam has the highest empathy score, and that it made him “too nice/good” for the Institute’s purposes (not necessarily this directly but it has been implied, including in the “recruiting future avatar theories, and… well, implying that low empathy makes you more likely to become a literal monster is quite disgusting, actually).

First, I think we got one thing wrong on the Kohlberg column. Since they are kids, it doesn’t seem shocking that they’d be around stages 1 to 3 of his “Six stages of moral development”; but it doesn’t say Stage 1, 2 or 3 it says Level 1, 2 or 3, and I don’t think it’s a mistake.

His six stages are divided into three levels: Pre-Conventional (1,2), Conventional (3,4) and Post-Conventional (5,6).

People in stages 1 and 2 (Level 1) have a sense of morality that is linked to the direct consequences of their actions on themself — stage 1 is “don’t hit the dog because you’ll be punished” and stage 2 “give her half your banana and you’ll get half her chocolate bar” (very simplified).

People on stages 3 and 4 (Level 2) have internalized their surrounding’s sense of morality and act accordingly — stage 3 being “I’ll get a good grade in being a person by following the rules” and stage 4 “the rules I learnt are true and real, failing to follow them is Wrong and upholding them is Right” (idem).

People on stages 5 and 6 (Level 3) have a personal sense of morality that is critical of societal norms — stage 5 being “there are rules, and those rules can and should be changed through compromise to be fair to the greatest number”, and stage 6 “unfair rules should not be followed, direct consequences like punishment are irrelevant when it comes to deciding to do what it right” (very, very, very simplified).

If I’m right, the spreadsheet is so much more understandable.

First thing I wanted to do was put numbers on how singular Sam’s results are:

He gets “High” on both Milgram and Asch when the overwhelming tendency is that the higher your other scores are, the more likely you are to get “Low”, and the numbers were, indeed, that among the 49 children who scored “High” on both, 33 were in Piaget’s stage 1, 15 were in stage 2 and only Sam was in stage 3.

The 33 kids who were in stage 1 are the opposite of Sam:

(Abbreviating so it’s easier to compare values but P=Piaget, K=Kohlberg, Ps=Prosocial, S-A=Sally-Anne, U=Ultimatum, EI=Empathy Index)

33K: (P) Stage 1 :: (K) Level 1 :: (Ps) Low :: (S-A) Fail :: (U) Unfair :: (EI) ≥62%

Sam: (P) Stage 3 :: (K) Level 3 :: (Ps) High :: (S-A) Pass :: (U) Fair :: (EI) 98%

So that’s weird. And when I went to filter by Kohlberg levels… absolutely no kid that was on “Level 2” scored High on Milgram and Asche.

In fact, among the 99 kids on Kohlberg Level 2, none got “Low” for prosocial, none got “High” on Milgram, only 2 got “High” on Asch.

And when we read “Level 2 (Conventional Morality) instead of “Stage 2 (Pre-Conventional Morality, what benefits me directly)” we can make sense of this: 

“To reason in a conventional way is to judge the morality of actions by comparing them to society's views and expectations. […] Conventional morality is characterized by an acceptance of society's conventions concerning right and wrong. At this level an individual obeys rules and follows society's norms even when there are no consequences for obedience or disobedience. Adherence to rules and conventions is somewhat rigid, however, and a rule's appropriateness or fairness is seldom questioned.” (by Kohlberg himself, from Wikipedia)

Adults can be Level 2, by the way. Adults can even be Level 1. Subjects of the Milgram experiment are displaying peak Level 2 behavior.

“High” on Milgram is “Did not electrocute/Disobeyed”

“High” on Asch is “Did not conform”

GOSH THAT IS SATISFYING

Bonus: the average empathy index is 79,1%, the median is 82% with 116 kids below 82%, 13 kids at 82% and 120 kids above. Of the 116 kids below the median, 11 got “Low” on Milgram. Of the 13 median kids, 3 got “Low” on Milgram. Of the 120 kids above, 91 got “Low”.

If we take the average instead, of the 163 kids more empathetic than the average, 100 got “Low” on Milgram, and 2 got “High”, of the 86 less empathetic than the average, 5 got “Low” and 59 for “High” on Milgram.

So actually here, low empathy is inversely correlated to willingness to hurt if ordered to.

And it makes sense. Low empathy is often associated with anti-social personality disorder, autism, depression — and you know what’s very associated with anti-social personality disorder? Disobedience.

Now I have to make another post about the weird kids in red's names.

[indigo474]

Tuesday- waxing crescent-2-21-23

the moon was so low in the sky- I want to grab it and pull it down. or better yet pull myself up and sit- right on the edge and watch .. just watch . I love this moon- my favorite, so pretty in the sky. Planets too.. i thought they were airplanes.. nope planets.. venus and jupiter. I saw Kika tonight, she's 8.5 years old. i lifted hard tonight. or rather heavy.. 155.. the coworker who introduced me to James asked me if i wanted to workout on Saturday- YES YES i do. I would love to have a work out friend. I've been asking the Universe to please bring the right people into my life. PLEASE- i few years back i was suppose to get together with this same person and we never did- so she may just be one of those people who like to talk..i'm pretty sure i deleted her number out of my phone. it's probably NOT going to happen but damn yes please send me a workout buddy.

I was thinking, the guy who asked for my number did not even ask me my name- so disgusting. hey can i get your number. NO

so funny many many years ago i wanted to learn Reiki. X was against it as he did not want to pay for it and he said it was bullshit. Megs is a Reiki master. I miss her and love her and hope she is doing well. I should have spoken to my children about forgiveness. I don't remember it ever coming up when they were growing up. Mads and i talk about forgiveness.. or we have, for various reasons. i wish they would forgive me.

I was dreaming the other night- all night. I was at a house that i was told was Chatham Dr but it didn't look like it. It was new and shiny. I don't remember much.

I have off all weekend. I cannot freaking wait. No plans other than working out. I need new work clothes. new work shoes- new workout clothes.. I wish i liked shopping.. i guess it's fun sort of..

I'm seeing James 2x this week again. I hate upper body.. HATE.. its so freaking hard. I already dread it.

Drama in work amongst the reps. My promotion came just in time. they are cutting everyone's OT.. people aren't happy. I wouldn't be. I have 1 person on my team I do not like. I can't let her know. I'm hoping she takes herself out with little help from me. sometimes the trash takes itself out.

should i be spending $400 a month on a personal trainer? these are the questions i ask myself. I can justify it-i've spent more than that on drugs and cigarettes a month i'm sure.

I have to figure out a way to get off this machine called work- i can truly understand why people are depressed and medicate themselves. I get it- people are not supposed to live this way. trapped inside. so yeah i probably shouldn't be spending money on a personal trainer- i should be saving money so i can check out of this way life- at the same time it's keeping me sane and makes me feel good. I have to figure out what i am going to do.

the answers will come-

i watched a video - john lennon - i can't remember what song it was but in the video yoko was blindfolded, knitting. the comments were asking what she was doing. she explained it was some sort of symbolism. what i thought took away from the video was how john just did his thing and he let her do her thing. he wasn't bothered by what she was doing -it struck me and being an act of love-

[blackswaneuroparedux]

Anonymous asked: What are your thoughts on Rishi Sunak as PM after all the psycho-drama of Boris Johnson and Liz Truss? Is he too rich for Britain’s blood? Are the Tories finished?

It is a ‘psycho-drama’ as you correctly summarised the last seven weeks, where our country is now on its third Prime Minister. I was talking to my eldest sister on the phone back in England and we both realised that one of her children has already lived through three prime ministers, four chancellors and two monarchs. She is only one years old.

Britain is a punch bag at the moment. My work colleagues - drawn from other nationalities - are having a good laugh at our expense but what’s worse is when French friends who go from laughing at us to actually putting a consoling arm around your shoulder out of sincere pity, then you know you’ve hit rock bottom.

I don’t know about you but I am exhausted. Boring is best. We could all do with some ‘boring’ government. We need calmness and solidity, and above all, no-drama. Irrespective of our political beliefs, one should wish Rushi Sunak the best and I hope he becomes best boring Prime Minister that this country needs in this moment of crisis and instability.

I don’t know what you mean by if Sunak is ‘too rich for Britain’s blood’. But I can guess.

Rishi Sunak is Prime Minister number 57, in case anyone is counting. At 42 he’s a year younger than either David Cameron or Tony Blair were appointed Prime Minister. Sunak is the youngest Prime Minister win modern British political history and you would have to go all the way back to 1812, when Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool, was made Prime Minister at 42 - the youngest ever of course was William Pitt the Younger at a precocious age of 24 years old.

He’s the first British Asian of immigrant Punjabi Indian parents to be made Prime Minister, and that is definitely worth celebrating. But he’s not Britain’s first Prime Minister from a different ethnic background. That honour goes to other two former prime ministers.

Benjamin Disraeli remained Jewish regardless of the fact that he was baptised. The fact that Disraeli first held the office 155 years before Rishi Sunak demonstrates that Victorian England does not deserve the obloquy that it frequently receives for prejudices of which it was far less guilty than its contemporary counterparts elsewhere.

And then of course there was Boris Johnson. Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson was born an American. On top of which Bojo’s paternal great great grandfather was a Turkish politician, Kemal Ali. Ali Kemal was labeled as a traitor by many Turks as a result of his harsh criticism of the Turkish National Liberation Movement, and his hostile attitude and insults against Mustafa Kemal Pasha.

Perhaps including Johnson is a jokey stretch but I hope I’m making my point.

The Conservative Party doesn’t warrant such racist criticism. Not only will the first non-white Prime Minister be a Conservative; so are the first three women to hold the office. As for the other Great Offices of State: the first minority Foreign Secretary , the first two minority Chancellors of the Exchequer and the first three minority Home Secretaries have all been Tories. So much for white privilege then, as the left likes to carp on.

Needless to say, some on the Left will continue to carp, perhaps to distract from the fact that they have been much slower to promote women and ethnic minorities - just take a look on the other side of the Despatch Box in the House of Commons. But still critics say Sunak’s victory is just how white privilege works because he had to prove himself. Really? Isn’t that how life works? We all have to prove ourselves worthy of the trust and responsibilities given to us, don’t we?

In the political arena it is normal to have to prove oneself against others. Rishi Sunak lost to Liz Truss last summer mainly because he had been seen by some in the party as the principal assassin of Boris Johnson - who incidentally had promoted him to be Chancellor, replacing Sajid Javid (whose heritage is Pakistani Muslim), despite Mr Sunak’s relative youth and political inexperience. That he has taken until now to enter No 10 suggests not ‘white privilege’ but the opposite: dollops of luck which every politician needs and a ruthless meritocracy that tested his older and more experienced rival to destruction.

‘White privilege’ as a phrase may have some meaningful application in the United States, but it is positively mischievous and destructive when applied to modern Britain. Quite frankly I’m sick and tired, as many are, of how our genuine problems in our politics and society such as inequality and social mobility should always be seen through the distorting lens of American culture and politics, even down to the colonising of words such as ‘white privilege’, ‘inclusivity and diversity’, and ‘BIPOC’ (black, indigenous, and people of colour…which begs the question just who is indigenous in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland?)

The one minority that Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty are less keen to identify with are people of wealth. Nearly every article written about Sunak, especially now that’s Prime Minister is about his wealth. ‘Rich’ is by far the most commonly used adjective to describe him. It is true that one would have to go back a long way to find a Prime Minister whose personal wealth compared to that of Sunaks - whose wealth now exceeds the British monarchy.

But Rishi Sunak is almost certainly street smart enough to know that in British politics, wealth is best kept in the background. If he has any doubts, he should ask the former MP for Richmond, London, Zac Goldsmith, son of a charismatic billionaire, whose failure to become Mayor of London was followed by the loss of his seat, twice in three elections. Like so many monied politicians, he has ended up in the House of Lords, appointed by Boris Johnson, who had his expensive holidays paid for by Goldsmith. If the new plutocracy is now to encroach on British politics, too, then better far that the billionaires know their place - what MPs derisively refer to as The Other Place.

What reinforced the the filthy rich opprobrium was the scandal of his wife Akshata Murty’s non-dom tax status - a legitimate position but not the best optics - but which has now been rectified so she does pay tax. Unlike America, Britain still secretly despises wealth or be seen not to show it off. Sunak can’t win on this but he can lessen the target area. If he was smart he would think about creating a philanthropic foundation. The prejudice against the rich is one of the last that is still seen as acceptable.

The only answer to it is to give away as much of their wealth as they can bear to part with. She would be able to demonstrate her charitable credentials in a manner that the British public would immediately find sympathetic. Great wealth is tolerated in this country when it is combined with munificence. There is no other way to disarm the politics of envy, which the Opposition parties will undoubtedly deploy ad nauseam. Rishi Sunak deserves his success, just as his family do not deserve to have his position held against them. But the Sunaks will have to make a sacrifice of part, at least, of their fortune before the new Prime Minister will gain a fair hearing when he demands sacrifices from the rest of us for the sake of the country.

To me all this is a distraction. Britain faces serious problems and it needs serious people with serious solutions.

Rishi Sunak has the toughest of challenges against some serious head winds facing both party and country.

Sunak becomes leader of the Conservative Party and the country at a critical moment in our national history. Sunak’s inbox is, to say the least, daunting. His party is in free fall and it is not yet clear if it has a parachute. The Conservatives, remarkably, are now averaging less than 20 per cent in the polls, a historic low, and trail the opposition Labour Party by more than thirty points - a situation we have not seen since the 1990s. They are heading for a complete electoral wipeout and it is now down to the young Sunak, who only entered the House of Commons in 2015, to stop this from happening.

After the disastrous experiment with Trussonomics, the party has also squandered its reputation for fiscal competence and economic credibility. And on every major issue in the country, from the cost of living through to the National Health Service, the Conservatives are simply not trusted or considered competent by a large swathe of the country.

The Tories are also bitterly divided. Sunak inherits a party that is not only tanking in the polls but lacks a unifying message, ideology and dominant faction. And if voters don’t vote for competent parties then they certainly don’t vote for divided ones. On all the key issues of tax and spend, Brexit, immigration and how to level-up the country the party is not just split between two rival camps but several different tribes, all of which Sunak will have to carefully balance, manage and reflect in his key appointments. One reason why Truss’s fall was so rapid and dramatic is because she failed to do this.

In all my conversations with friends and peers who are closer to the political coal face in England, I don’t get this sense that they or indeed anyone within those political circles can answer some of the more existential questions that now face the Conservative Party. What exactly is the purpose of post-Brexit conservatism? What do today’s conservatives believe? Where do they want to take the country? And how do they plan to hold and expand their new electoral coalition (the so-called Red Wall made up of northern working class voters)?

Sunak, a Brexit supporter, will now have to answer these questions. To do so, he would be wise to avoid the mistakes of his two main predecessors by surrounding himself with serious thinkers and strategists. The Conservative Party does not need only to renew its leadership; it needs to renew its entire intellectual scaffolding and rebuild and re-energise.

He will have to do all this while grappling with the fact that many Conservatives, whether inside or outside the party, never wanted him to become leader and prime minister to begin with. Because he was not endorsed by voters, members or even a formal vote among MPs, he is vulnerable. Inside the party, there remain many people who are loyal to Johnson and see the events in recent days as a classic, top-down stitch-up among MPs. The changing of the rules within the 1922 Committee, the call for at least 100 nominations, they argue, points to a concerted attempt among MPs to stack the deck against Johnson and override the wishes of grassroots Tories.

Outside the party, meanwhile, there are many others who go further by viewing the appointment of Sunak as part of a ‘globalist Remainer plot’ to satisfy the interests of financial markets and return to the pre-Brexit status-quo. It might be tempting to dismiss all this as the stuff of a crank fringe but it is not hard to see how it could drive some kind of populist alternative which further reduces space for the Tories at the next general election or, more simply, drives higher rates of apathy among 2019 Conservatives who choose to sit the next election out, convinced that their party is no longer really interested in what they want or have to say.

And then there is the wider country. Spiralling inflation, mortgage rates, the end of the current energy freeze in the spring, no end in sight to the war in Ukraine and the prospect of across-the-board tax rises and sharp spending cuts all hand Sunak the most daunting inbox since David Cameron faced the aftermath of the global financial crash in 2010 and Margaret Thatcher was left to fix the legacy of the dismal 1970s.

In Sunak’s short, behind-closed-doors remarks to Tory MPs after he was elected he told them they had to come together and unite. That otherwise they faced an ‘existential threat’ and there would be no second chance. He has already had to face down clarion calls for a general election - something he has already ruled out. But if he puts a foot wrong with any of the MPs who backed rivals, the calls will start up again. And some.

Now we will see exactly what financial analysts so-called ‘dullness dividend’ looks like. Bond yields - which spiked in the aftermath of last-month’s ‘mini-Budget,’ fell after Boris Johnson announced on Sunday that he was not running for office again, heading for their biggest drop since the early 1990s. And there is much damage done. Truss’s time in office will come with a price tag, according to Bloomberg Economics. GDP is likely to be about 2% smaller next year relative to the forecast before the  ruinous Sept. 23 fiscal event. The economy is on track for a contraction of 1.4% in 2023, financial analysts say, compared to the 0.5% growth predicted back in early September. See below:

The verdict is painful but plain: Both monetary and fiscal policy are set to be tightened in unison as Britain attempts to regain credibility with financial markets. Talking to colleagues and peers in corporate finance, they predict a recession similar to the one seen in the 1990s, with what they call ‘peak pain’ due for the second quarter of next year. They also see inflation spiking at 12% in April, while interest rates will have increased to 4.25% by next May from 2.25% now.

Sunak may have a reputation for competence that is already reassuring the markets, but he’ll need a fair amount of luck, too. He will need luck dealing with all this while holding leadership ratings that are not all that impressive. The last time Rishi Sunak held high office he was deep into ‘net negative’ territory, not quite as deep as Johnson and Truss, but in net negative territory all the same. If, like Truss, he does not enjoy a significant bounce in the polls in the weeks ahead this will also make his job harder, not easier.

For all these reasons, then, the challenges that face our latest prime minister are immense and unlikely to fade from view. If he responds to them well, he may fancy his chances at doing what no other prime minister in our entire national history has ever done - leading his party to a fifth consecutive election victory. But if he responds to them badly, then he will soon find himself on our rapidly growing trash heap of former prime ministers.

There will be some who follow my blog who will not support Sunak’s politics. But I am going to go out on a limb here and say it is indeed a moving thing that the man charged with getting Britain back to good economic health was also the boy who as a devoted and hard working teenage son did the books for his hard pressed mother every Saturday in her pharmacy in Southampton. That’s the side of Rishi Sunak I wish he would remember when he sits behind his desk at Number 10 Downing Street, and it’s the side I wish the great British public, fair minded and decent, can put some hope in as we navigate the economic storms to come.

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