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[spacemagictea]

The Meaning of Your Name

After the previous part I immediately set out to writing this part, which is what I wanted to write the most from the stories about the two lovebirds.

Enjoy part 3 of Eye of the Storm, story of Amir Beckett and Kaylessa the Drifter.

Fluff and cheese inbound.

The Meaning of Your Name

May 15th, 1999

Last few weeks have been fairly calm for the Hex, effective strikes against purge squads leaving Scaldra command no other choice than to lick their wounds and recruit new members for the meat grinder. This gave Kaylessa more time to spend with the rest of the Hex, and she considered all of them her genuine friends. But nobody else she enjoyed spending more time with than with Amir. Whether it was her talking about her favorite animals and plantlife she read about in books stolen from an abandoned bookstore while he was playing games in the arcade or him visiting her in her cozy backroom, showing her movies, cartoons and comics he loved or talking about tech in general, the closeness and spark between them was something she could not deny. They were truly open and vulnerable with each other like with nobody else, talking about their experiences, their nightmares, their joys and their sadness.

And after the situation that almost got Amir captured, Kaylessa could swear she’s been purposefully assigned to missions with him and with him only. And that was not helped with the fact whenever she came to visit Arthur and Aoi and Eleanor were present, the women gave her knowing looks and smiles.

For months her feelings towards the Hex tech specialist grew. He was so much more than a friend. And yet, she lacked the courage to admit her feelings to his face for far too long. No more. It reached a boiling point for her that she had to finally confess, no matter the response. Pondering how to confess, the Drifter decided to pay Eleanor a visit. And she had an idea in mind.

-Hey Ellie. Since you’re a writer I was wondering if I could ask you a question that’s a bit… language related?- while she asked the question mostly to see if she could find a hook for asking out Amir, she was genuinely curious about the languages of the Old World too.

‘Color me curious, Kay. I do know a little bit of this and that, comes with the profession.’ Eleanor’s mind voice sounded very amused and she gave Kay a knowing look that caused the red haired woman to blush.

-Do names have… meaning in the Old World? Let me explain with an example, perhaps. There’s a Warframe, named Dagath, whose name has a long story to it. And her name means “the mirror that accuses”. She also has a ghost steed named Rakhali whose name means “freshness-after-rain”.- Kay tilted her head with a smile. -Yes, there’s a certain purpose to this question but I’m actually curious.

‘I’d definitely like to hear that story. Yes, they do, though there probably isn’t any magic to it. For example, Lettie’s name means “happiness, joy”. Aoi means “blue.” Quincy’s name probably comes from “five” in Latin. Arthur’s name comes from an ancient legendary king, while mine’s of French origin, but I don’t know the exact meaning.’ 

Kay could feel the purposeful suspense for the name she wanted to hear the most.

-What about Amir?- the mention was enough to bring heat to her cheeks.

‘That one means “prince” or “commander”. How romantic of him to… command your heart like that.’ - an honest laughter filled Kay’s mind and she was also quite amused at the joke, giggling in response while pretending to be embarrassed.

-Eleanor! Well, you aren’t wrong. Yes, that’s exactly what I was looking for. Now, let me tell you that story in return for this favor- Drifter frankly itched to tell the full story as she found it fascinating so all in all, it was a great time for her.

After a joyful storytime, she headed for Aoi’s music store that was also her room. She was greeted with the sight of Aoi folding beautiful metal cranes. Seeing a pile of these cranes nearby, she looked in awe at the graceful craft.

-Hey, Kay, what’s up?- Aoi’s greeting broke the Drifter off the train of thought and she smiled awkwardly, looking up to meet Aoi’s eyes.

-Hey, Aoi. I was wondering if I could get some… guidance?- Kay purposefully toned down her voice, as if a bit afraid Amir would hear them from the arcade. -It’s about… Amir.

-Ah, sweets, you finally worked up the courage?- Aoi matched the Drifter’s low tone, making her feel like she was a part of the conspiracy. -If you ask me, just be honest. Wear your heart on your sleeve, just like he does.

Kay nodded, as if she realized this was the most obvious thing that she just… didn’t think of.

-Yeah… you’re right. I think I’ve just been afraid of rejection the entire time, but I cannot hold it anymore. So I’ll go and be honest, regardless of what the answer is.- Kay remarked, the response sinking in fully and then giving her friend a cheerful grin -Before I head to meet my fate, why don’t you show me what new tracks you’ve found recently?

—

Sun was starting to set over Höllvania when Kaylessa left Aoi’s music store, filled with glee over time spent with her friends. She took a deep breath as she stood in front of Amir’s arcade, knowing it was time to take this final step. Whatever happened, she hoped that it wouldn’t change her relationship with Amir for worse.

Heart pounding, she entered. Seeing Amir particularly focused on the Caliber Chicks 2 cabinet, she decided to not disturb his focus and wait for him, leaning against the wall near the entrance and watching him play. The dim lights highlighted his sleek face and it felt like the most beautiful thing in existence. Looking at him felt like a balm to her heart and a smile sprang on her face.

After a while, a Game Over screen flashed on the screen and Amir looked up, his focus breaking off from the screen. Feeling a presence, he glanced to the side and saw Kaylessa, who in her usual “don’t want to disturb you” way stood there waiting for him to finish his game round. His heart skipped a beat, a spark in her green eyes showing up as their gaze met. He utterly adored her sweet and gentle nature, her endless patience with him, how she selflessly tried to take care of everything and everyone… and yet, she seemed to neglect herself so often. And beneath it all there was a capable and strong woman, a survivor, an embodiment of “don’t judge a person by the first look”.

-I hope my favorite chronospatial freakshow was not waiting for me too long!- he turned towards her, quite excited she was here wanting to spend time with him.

-I can wait as long as I need to, Amir.- Kay giggled, standing up and stepping a bit closer. -I’ve got something to… tell you?

-I���m all ears.- Amir tilted his head but he could feel his heart beating faster now. The air between them was electrifying, not in a literal sense, but it felt like it could be. He knew this was something big.

-Well… I don’t think it’s any secret that I care about you a lot. But…- she put her hand on her chest where the heart is, looking down to regain her composure before meeting his eyes again, her cheeks blazing hot and red.  -What I want to say is that I care about you more than as a friend. Will you be my prince, Amir? Can I give you command of my heart?- His eyes widened in shock and surprise, a blush springing up on his face too.

‘Gods, could I be more embarrassingly cheesy?’ Kay thought to herself, expecting that she completely fumbled, but what she saw instead was elated disbelief.

-Oh wow, oh-oh wow.- Amir stood still and yet it seemed like he’s going to start running around at any moment in pure excitement. And that encouraged the Drifter to push her words in further.

-I love you, Amir Beckett. I want you and me… to be us.- her heart now wanted to jump out of her and waiting for his response, however brief, felt like an eternity.

-M-me? Really? U-us? Oh… Ohh…YES!- the enthusiastic response finished with Amir leaping towards Kaylessa and taking her into a tight embrace faster than she could even blink. She sighed with relief, wrapping her arms around him too. And as her brain was trying to process everything, she was swept off her feet as he effortlessly picked her up and spun around with her before placing her back down and leaned towards her ear, his voice now a whisper. -I love you too, Kaylessa. I love you too, my sweet angel from the future.

He picked her up again, speeding over to the terrace atop the mall. Warm sunset rays cast their gleam over the pair as Amir gently placed Kaylessa back on her feet and pulled her closely, taking off his glasses. He leaned his forehead on hers, Kay running her hand through his hair. Their hearts soared, her green eyes locked in with his grey eyes. He cupped her cheek and the world felt like it stopped as their lips met. At first softly, like the beams of Sol shining on them, the kiss got deeper and more insistent as their yearning, their need for each other they held onto for such a long time surfaced and bubbled over.

When they finally broke the kiss, quietly gasping out each other’s names, Amir broke the silence, his eyes filled with loving excitement. 

-This… This is everything I dreamed about butIdidnotdarehopeitcouldbearealityandyet… here you are.

-I am not even sure why I was so afraid of telling you. But I couldn’t be happier that I finally did. Granted, it took a lot of encouragement from Eleanor and Aoi.- Kay’s response made them both laugh before they turned their heads to watch the last rays of the setting Sol, wrapped in each others’ embrace. And all felt right in the world now.

[fallstaticexit]

well i maybe have some theories/questions

you already know i came from tiktok😏

1. so i’m sensing that Edin is going to be Adie’s future love interest/friend/enemy/?… I MEANN they’re both toddlers currently and they’re both supernatural

2. I know you mentioned before that you wanted to do like a magic school type of story for Adie which I think is so fucking cool!! Maybe they’ll meet when they enroll whether that’s as children or teens.

3. And for miss Ellie she’s currently a human right? Will she become a werewolf like her siblings when she becomes old enough? And if she does will she be going to that school as well or is it just for spellcasters? And is that the same for Rhys who’s currently a child or is he going to just stay in normal school? I assume Amir is too old to go and he already has a story of his own.

4. This one may be a stretch but I love reading the Sims 4 lore. There’s a character with a similar name to Adelina— Avelina who was Greg’s late wife. We’ve seen Greg fight Amir in that one episode and we know that Greg is miserable because he’s all alone now (lore wise). If they are related we know that Greg and Avelina used to be mooncasters (idk if it’s the same as spellcasters) before they became werewolves. Is there any link here or am I tripping? I mean I know you read the lore too because Lux DeMarco appears in Amir’s story (😉)

5. off topic but I love Amir. Like that’s my son with his little boyfriends. 💙💙 You got 2 men obsessed with you I know he’s living life.

6. L. Faba is obviously up to no good.. I mean she is the sage of mischief magic. This ties into my first statement about the magic school story. We know there’s going to be more to the plot then Adie just going to school. She’s gotta fight someone and save the day right??!!!! So I wondering if Miss Faba is trying to cause something to happen— I assume to Tomax because she was deadset on trying to make the man practice Dark Magic.

What if something happens to him that makes him evil?? Or even do something to Simeon or Grace?? We know in the lore Grace and Tomax are roommates (and they were roommates..🤭) and in your story they’re very close.

ok this is it for now i feel like my brain is fried

SO glad you came over to Tumblr with me, your comments give me life everytime lmao 🥹🤌🏾✨

maaayybbeee 🤭

I did want to do a magic school type beat but that was a bit before I expanded the lore. Right now (In the next update, I'll touch on it a bit) Nora does NOT want Adie in the Magic realm or any of the sages to know about them. at all. She wants nothing to do with them, the past, her involvement in the war, all of it and honestly, her little magical trigger finger is itching to finish what she started tbh , more on that later.

1000% Ellie will be a werewolf. At this point it's kinda like a family business/rite of passage. Amir is grown grown now 🥹 but Sonny and his bunch will continue to hold down their ranch and keep vampires in check. But they actually play a pretty big part in what's to come and when my Briar legacy and Fallen Angel series meet, we will see ALOT of them.

No link. The only link werewolves has is that they are descendants of Mooncasters and once upon a time they lived in the Magic Realm with all the occult before the Spellcasters got all high and mighty. Now werewolves just do their own thing and fight vampires. But I really don't see them having much involvement with Spellcaster drama other than possibly whooping vamp ass when needed.

I love those boys. Other than my OGs Honey and Amina, def my favorite couple(s) 🥹

L. Faba really about to put Tomax in a world of hurt...which is crazy because he's really already emotionally and mentally in shambles. I suppose that's why she picked him. He's the weakest. This update should be out in a little bit

I saw that they were roommates which made me go hmmmmm 🤔 interesting 🧐 and exactly why we'll see them roll around in the hay from time to time. But from my most recent update, I expand on Grace's ability to heal a little and really she's all about making people feel better via touch...so maybe there’s romance involved maybe she’s trying to help out an old friend because therapy doesn’t exist in the Magic Realm ig lmao 😵‍💫

[allieebobo]

Helloo! Loved the new update!! The match got me physically sweating lmaoo I love it so much 🥰 Your writing is so lovely!!!

I remember you mentioned that Rayyan has a large family and suffers from oldest sibling syndrome (i can relate babe 😔) and got curious about the other ROs family too! Can you give some more facts about Rayyan's family and Tobin's, G's, and Sam's? If its not too much of a bother of course!

Thanks for the great question! I love it! It sparked a whole page of scribbling on my notebook. Some of these may be subject to change as I tinker with the storyline and actually write the scenes, but here’s some of the things in my head currently: 

Tobin

Only kid

Loving parents, a little strict - really emphasised the importance of kindness, respect, and hard work.

Parents were really busy growing up, so Tobin has always been either hanging out with the neighbours' kids, or home alone (probably why they cook so well, and why they’re really good at getting along with other people. Hence the almost paradoxical extroversion + self-sufficiency.

Sometimes feels a little ‘older’ than their age, and has learnt to take care of other people / be the ‘glue’ for their family and friend-group(s) very early on.

G

Parents are divorced; Has an estranged brother, Pierre (much older) and a step-brother, Antoine (younger, closer to their age)

Pierre has always done his own thing and left G to their own devices, so G grew up pretty independent, reading, listening to music and hanging out with kids their own age. 

G’s father and Pierre moved back to France after the divorce, and they haven’t seen each other since then.

G’s mother re-married around the time they went off to university, so they’ve not known Antoine for very long.

Sam

Has an older sister who, growing up, involved Sam (and MC) in a lot of her crazy schemes / shenanigans and was always totally OK with them tagging along. They’ve stayed close. Sam tells her (almost?) everything. She’s since relocated for her job, though, and Sam misses her a lot.

Family is tight-knit, zany, eccentric, a little bit nerdy, and very loving - all of them champion the merits of being true to oneself. 

They’ve always encouraged Sam’s wild adventuring and supported their varied interests (sometimes even joining them). Home has always been a safe harbor. 

Rayyan

Has four siblings, all younger. Two brothers and two sisters.

Amir, two years younger than Rayyan, is responsible and conscientious, a little shy. Ishaq, three years younger, is mischievous and rascally. Mahaila, five years younger, idolises Rayyan. She is gregarious and laid-back. Yeira, the baby of the family, is nine years younger than Rayyan and the only one born in America. She is Rayyan’s dad’s obvious favorite. Her name means “illuminate”, as though she’s lighting the way forward in a new land.  

Rayyan’s father is traditional, stern, and very proud. He’s a hard man, but with lots of love for his family. Mother is more practical, but also more indulgent and adaptable. Rayyan’s grandfather is kindly, forgetful, and loves poetry. Rayyan’s grandmother is sharp, witty, and a little terrifying. 

They are all fiercely protective of each other. Rayyan’s father always says: “aāʾilatiī hiya quwatiī wa ḍaʿfiī (عائلتي هي قوتي و ضعفي)” - my family is my strength and my weakness.

*Note: Rayyan’s portion got long, but I think it’s fitting, because they have a more complex relationship with family and tradition than the other 3 ROs. Family really takes center-stage for them.

[centrally-unplanned]

Been seeing a lot of Afghanistan memes these days containing the idea that Britian, like the Soviets and the US, suffered some costly humiliating defeats in Afghanistan, such as this one:

Problem is that this isn’t really true! Britain’s role in Afghanistan is not its finest hours but it went well enough for them and generally obtained their strategic goals. The British government never wanted to conquer Afghanistan in the traditional sense - they understood that their power was in the sea and Kabul was way too distant to any naval base to make it a viable permanent stronghold, and Afghanistan was from the standpoint of revenue-generating exports a barren wasteland devoid of value. Instead starting in the 1830′s Britain became honestly irrationally obsessed with the idea that Russia was going to invade India eventually, and so they wanted to secure the Russo-Indian border with as many friendly client states as possible. This whole process led to three separate conflicts from 1839 to 1919.

First Anglo-Afghan War: Outlining the aims here is the hardest as this was a classic comedy-of-errors war as only the peak of imperialism could bring. In 1838 Russian relations with Afghanistan broke down, while Russian-friendly Persia was invading Afghanistan, which convinced local British officers that Russia’s invasion might be soon. So they gathered together an army of local sepoy soldiers led by an British battalion, and picked up a disgraced ex-Emir chilling in a London flat to serve as a causes belli and puppet ruler.

Then the Persian invasion...failed, and a crisis in the Ottoman Empire found Britain and Russia allied together. So no need for a war! Except, I mean, the army was already gathered, and the puppet ruler sent for, and like...glory and king and country, right? And thus the British expedition was launched anyway - and this is where all the memes come from. The British expedition was initially successful, and they left a bit less than 10,000 troops in Afghanistan to shepherd in the new puppet ruler. But he turned out to be a total incompetent, so the troops stayed longer than normal, things quickly turned south, and after a series of missteps the UK forces were bled away, and thousands died in 1842. These deaths were hugely reported in the UK media, so it seemed like this epic disaster - but really most of the deaths were camp followers, and the ‘British’ army in Afghanistan had as mentioned only one actual British battalion (so less than 1000 men). A big defeat, sure, but with net military casualties typical for a lost battle.

And the conclusion of this chapter is, recognizing that their puppet ruler was an incompetent and never intending to occupy Afghanistan anyway, the British sent in a second army and by August of 1842 they had occupied Kabul again, burned some of the city in revenge, and the Afghan forces sued for peace. The British permitted the old Emir to reign as their client ruler - he was paid a subsidy and in return permitted no Russian military advances or presence for the entirety of his reign. Which was the UK’s actual goal - they won this war! And essentially lost one battle. It was absolutely not worth the cost and that loss was avoidable, but that is war sometimes. 

Second Anglo-Afghan War: This one is really quick - the new Amir of Afghanistan permitted a Russian envoy in 1878 and blocked the British envoy, so the UK got spooked and invaded. The UK decisively defeated them, then the Afghan forces slaughtered their diplomatic mission during peace negotiations, so the UK sent in more troops and beat them again. They put in place their choice of Emir and blocked all Russian presence in the country successfully for the next decades. They lost ~2k soldiers in battle, though as is typical for the time many more died of disease. This war is an overwhelming UK victory where they won every major battle.

Third Anglo-Afghan War: Its 1919, Afghanistan has been a UK client state for almost a century now, and despite repeated attempts by the Germans and the Ottomans to get them to invade British India during WW1 they resist and honor their relationship with the UK. However the times are changing, the Paris Peace Conference is outlining the first steps to a post-imperialist world, British India is agitating for more autonomy, etc., and in particular Russia is embroiled in a huge civil war and the idea of a Russian invasion of India seems pretty quaint. Instead of asking for independence, due to domestic issues the Afghanistan Emir kindof needs a war, so they launch a quick assault across the border.

This war is extremely short, lasting only ~3 months, and the British hold back the invasion, inflicting 1000+ deaths for their ~200 lost and holding on to most all relevant territory. The UK at this point isn’t really interested in an Afghan client state anyway, and certainly not interested in any wars after WW1 so its happy to sign a deal ending its subsidy to Afghanistan in return for their independence, and due to their tactical victories they get the border defined in their favour to boot (the famous Durand Line). This is barely even a war, more of a very aggressive negotiating tactic, but its a win for Afghanistan without being a loss for the British, a very rare “win-win” war.

And that ends the UK’s designs on Afghanistan! Really this track record is fine - *one* lost campaign stemming from some hubristic local commanders that was immediately avenged, and otherwise mission successful. Afghanistan certainly proved itself tough in a way the Mughal empire, for example, did not, don’t get me wrong, its a decent record for them too. But I don’t think they deserve at all to be compared to the USSR or the US, who spent far far more blood and resources on far grander ambitions that failed much more utterly.

[johannesviii]

Top 10 Personal Favorite Hit Songs from 2016

I think everyone will agree that 2016 had “Impending Doom” written all over it, and as a result a lot of pop music became very depressed very quickly, and as such, I’m less enthusiastic about this list than some of the previous ones.

Disclaimers:

Keep in mind I’m using both the year-end top 100 lists from the US and from France while making these top 10 things. There’s songs in English that charted in my country way higher than they did in their home countries, or even earlier or later, so that might get surprising at times.

Of course there will be stuff in French. We suck. I know. It’s my list. Deal with it.

My musical tastes have always been terrible and I’m not a critic, just a listener and an idiot.

I have sound to color synesthesia which justifies nothing but might explain why I have trouble describing some songs in other terms than visual ones.

For a year that was so cataclysmic worldwide, 2016 was pretty mundane for me, so let’s just skip to the albums that came out that year and which I consider relevant to my tastes. Obviously (and unfortunately) there was David Bowie with Black Star. We should have known we had jumped right into the Worst Timeline when the year started with the death of Bowie. Nine Inch Nails also released Not The Actual Events, which was pretty good, and as I said previously I consider Coldplay’s A Head Full of Dreams to be more of a 2016 than a 2015 album. And then there was the biggest surprise of all, the return of Enigma after eight years of silence, with the very good Fall Of A Rebel Angel (even if A Posteriori is still my favorite “modern” Enigma album). EDIT: I forgot Ghostlights by Avantasia. Took me YEARS to listen to it & realise how good it was.

But no. Surprisingly enough, my favorite album of the year wasn’t any of those. It was... oh god, that title. Here we go. It was I Like It When You Sleep for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It by The 1975 - which I like to call “The 1975′s second album” instead, because what the hell, guys. Anyway. It had been a while since I had found a new band I’d consider to be one of my favorite bands. I really liked Chocolate from their previous album but that was it. But this one? What a breath of fresh air. A Change of Heart, She’s American, Please Be Naked, The Ballad Of Me And My Brain, Somebody Else, The Sound, This Must Be My Dream? That’s only the songs I listened to on a loop and that’s already nearly half of the album. Great music, love the vocals, but I especially love the writing, full of strange and awkward details and lines that make everything feel so alive. The first time I listened to some of these songs, some lines actually got a chuckle out of me, like the American girl wanting the narrator to fix his teeth, or him hopping on a bus to ask the passengers if someone found his brain, or his girlfriend complaining about his shoes and his songs then immediately adding “I thought that you were straight, now I’m wondering”.

As someone who’s constantly puzzled by human relationships and tends to act super awkwardly, all of this is extremely relatable. So yeah. Album of the year, love this band - impatiently waiting for that fourth album!

As far as unelligible songs go, as you can guess I’m furious The Sound (The 1975) wasn’t a hit because I was and I’m still listening to it on a loop. And that’s about it. Wait there’s also Kids by One Republic. It was super good. Apart from that, there’s also one (1) elligible song that I’m gonna put on the 2017 list instead because I really struggled to find enough songs I liked for that list, and that particular one is elligible for 2016 thanks to the French year-end list and 2017 thanks to the US year-end list, so eh.

Time for some honorable mentions.

This Girl (Kungs vs Cookin’ on Three Burners) - Number one of the year here. Every time I heard it (and I heard it a lot) I enjoyed it until that wretched drop.

Fast Car (Jonas Blue ft Dakota) - Not a good cover, but I love the original so much I’d be lying if I said I hated this completely.

Sucker for Pain (Lil Wayne & Imagine Dragons) - No, that slow, heavy, tortured beat that all recent Imagine Dragons songs have doesn’t work on topics like being a natural at something, being a believer, or describing thunder. It does work, however, with a chorus saying “I'm just a sucker for pain”.

Cheap Thrills (Sia ft Sean Paul) - Sean Paul, and a song about having fun without any money. Everything I want from an average hit song on the radio.

In the Night (The Weeknd) - This would be much higher if I didn’t find The Weeknd’s upper register slightly painful to listen to.

J’ai Cherché (Amir) - Hey look, the guy France sent to Eurovision that year. He’s still around, too. He’s pretty good, and that song is super cute.

Ride (21 Pilots) - Not the last time they will appear on this list.

Je Suis Chez Moi (Black M) - Pretty good song about racism, and the singer explicitly calls out a far right political figure who said some pretty terrible shit about him, and it’s a good answer.

Perfect (One Direction) - This is just Style by Taylor Swift all over again except slightly less good. But as I said before, copying good songs isn’t always a bad thing.

Human (Rag’n’bone Man) - Would definitely be on the list if listening to it didn’t feel like working.

Into You (Ariana Grande) - The last cut. The ending is wonderful and explosive, it’s just a shame that the entire song doesn’t sound like that.

And now... the list.

10 - Stressed Out (21 Pilots)

US: #5 / FR: #9

Defining song of the entire year, whether you liked it or not.

Fortunately, as you can see, I liked it a lot, even if I don’t have anything interesting to say about it.

9 - Don’t Be So Shy (Imany, Filatov & Karas remix)

US: Not on the list / FR: #2

I often joked that the melody sounded weirdly similar to Goldman’s “Envole-moi” by singing the lyrics of the verses over the Don’t Be So Shy verses, and it fits nearly perfectly. But apart from that, great song, great remix, very overplayed but never to the point of being annoying.

8 - I Took A Pill In Ibiza (Mike Posner)

US: #15 / FR: #29

There’s nothing I could say about this song that Todd hasn’t said before in what I consider to be one of his best reviews, if not the best, so here it is.

7 - Heathens (21 Pilots)

US: #21 / FR: #23

Super ominous and tense. It’s rare when a mostly grey song looks interesting, and this one definitely does. I also like the ending a lot. Don’t hang out with too many toxic people, guys, they will influence you over time.

I had no idea this was made for the Suicide Squad movie until very recently and frankly I wish it hadn’t because it’s way better on its own, especially the hand grenade line which works a lot better as a metaphor for self-destructive tendencies.

6 - Starboy (The Weeknd)

US: #58 / FR: #16

As I said before it took me ages to like The Weeknd. His voice is great but I found most of his songs fairly boring or disliked their lyrics. And then he teamed up with Daft Punk and to be honest, I didn’t even care if the lyrics of this one included weird lines about drugs on furniture, the beat was completely worth it and the singing was great. Not enough to put it on my mp3 playlist, but a delight every time it was on the radio.

5 - Faded (Alan Walker)

US: Not on the list / FR: #11

I adore this post-apocalyptic, contemplative music video. The music itself has this weariness and this quiet despair that felt super relevant, and even the drop is a bit slow instead of energetic. I usually don’t like this kind of song but this one found the perfect balance. If we really need to have more sad, exhausted hit songs, more like this, please.

4 - Closer (The Chainsmokers)

US: #10 / FR: Not on the list

I usually don’t like love songs if they are just that, random love songs without a good melody or good colors or good stories. If the melody isn’t particularly great and the colors boring, it needs to paint an interesting picture, and the more details the better, even if they are super awkward, like, as I said previously, in some of The 1975′s best songs mentioning bad shoes, or people’s jobs, or how a car smells like.

So yeah, what I’m trying to say is that my favorite thing about this song is the over-abundance of weird and kind of off-putting details that most people consider to be its main flaw. To each their own, I guess.

3 - Never Forget You (Zara Larsson & MNEK)

US: #46 / FR: Not on the list

See, this is one of the reasons why I decided to make these lists: to find great stuff I missed over the years. I discovered this song while making the 1.0 version of the lists on a google sheet in early December, and now this has a spot on my mp3 player. And it’s so weird because this song shouldn’t work. The drop is ridiculously lifeless compared to the soaring quality of the chorus and it actively works against the rest of the song. It takes a while to get used to it and I’m still not entirely sure it does work, at all.

But what can I say, framing is, once again, everything, and songs about imaginary friends are super rare, and that music video made me cry and catapulted this song from “that’s pretty good” right into the “holy shit that’s fantastic” category. And it made me rewatch Where The Wild Things Are, so yeah.

2 - Perfect Strangers (Jonas Blue)

US: Not on the list / FR: #70

This, on the other hand, stayed on my mp3 player for about two years, and the music fits the lyrics perfectly. It’s not a groundbreaking song, it’s not even that original, but in such an average year for pop music, “happy energetic song with beautiful colors and nice lyrics” meant the world to me. It’s kind of telling that it was enough to put it as high as #2, though.

1 - Hymn For the Weekend (Coldplay ft Beyoncé)

US: #73 / FR: Not on the list

And with this, Coldplay has officially topped as many of my lists as Linkin Park. If, back when The Scientist dropped, you had told me how much I would love this band in the future, I would have laughed pretty hard, but here we are.

But yeah, it’s one of my favorite songs on the album and it’s a super weird combo of heavy and aerial sounds, soft and super colorful notes, and I love the lyrics that completely mirror that feeling, feeling “drunk and high", “poured on a symphony when I’m low, low, low”. A great party song that’s also strangely melancholic. Exactly what I needed.

And then the Seeb remix happened and added a truely fantastic drop on top of an already great song, like turning the saturation up and adding little pulsing lights and transparency effects and shit. It’s sincerely hypnotic and visually so complex and fragile I’m afraid I won’t be able to draw it if I ever attempt to turn it into a synesthesia drawing. Just like A Sky Full of Stars, I was driving the first time I heard that remix on the radio, and I wasn’t expecting that drop at all, and I was gawking.

Godspeed, Coldplay, I’m so glad you’re still a positive force in my life, especially in these trying times.

Next up: Oh my god are you telling me that after 15 years I can finally put a song from that other band at the top of one of my lists

[ramajmedia]

Ben Schwartz’s 10 Best Roles (So Far), Ranked | ScreenRant

Most people know Ben Schwartz for his hilarious and layered performance as Jean-Ralphio Saperstein on Parks & Recreation. But he’s been doing comedy, especially improv, for years now. He currently voices Leo in Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and appears in Bojack Horseman as Rutabaga Rabitowitz. Right now, we’re all awaiting his first starring role in a big studio movie: Sonic the Hedgehog.

We won’t know enough to rate his performance as Sonic in Sonic the Hedgehog until the film is (finally) released a few months from now. Until then, here are Ben Schwartz’s top ten roles, so far.  

RELATED: BoJack Horseman's 10 Saddest Moments, Ranked

10 BB8 — Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)

Hardcore Star Wars fans might have looked this up by now, but for the rest of us who didn’t know, the initial work for BB8’s personality and conversations with the other characters was first acted out by Ben Schwartz. In initial run-throughs, he worked with actors like Daisy Ridley and John Boyega, responding to their lines in English, and then those lines were translated into the beeps and boops that make up BB8’s lines. 

It took a lot of rounds of trying to get the sounds just right. Apparently, the initial try sounded too human. Schwartz has said he isn’t sure how much of his voice is in the movie and how much of BB8 was digitally created, but he will always be one of the people who helped create BB8’s persona.

9 Bill Hoyt — Undercovers (2010-2012)

This comedic take on undercover spies was created by J.J. Abrams and Josh Reims. It only lasted for 13 episodes, 2 of which didn’t even air until years after the first 11. It was canceled pretty quickly, before it was really given a chance to breathe, and Abrams has taken the blame for that, saying he was trying to do something light and frivolous when that’s simply not in his wheelhouse.

 RELATED: Parks & Rec: 10 Episodes That Actually Tackled Deep Issues

Nevertheless, Schwartz is hilarious as the awkward computer nerd Bill Hoyt. Bill worships the leading male spy, Steven Bloom, and is so into the whole spy gimmick that he insists on using all the “lingo.” If you’ve ever wanted a comedic James Bond, this is the right show.

8 Milk Man - Jake & Amir (2009-2014)

There are several episodes of CollegeHumor’s web comedy show Jake & Amir that Ben Schwartz has guest-starred in over the years. His role as Milk Man (and doctor) in 2012 is probably his most iconic episode though. He comes in as a milkman who pours rotten milk all over Amir then helps him deliver a shoe. Schwartz does a lot of improv comedy and it really shines through in his Jake & Amir appearances. 

Because Ben Schwartz kept making up his own hilarious character names in Jake & Amir, Redditors have actually created a Ben Schwartz Name Generator inspired by the insane combinations of phonemes he’d put together.

7 Josh Bath — The Earliest Show (2016)

In this miniseries, Ben Schwartz stars with Lauren Lapkus as two co-hosts of an early morning TV show. Guest stars on the show include comedians like Jake Johnson, Eugene Cordero, Reggie Watts, and Thomas Middleditch.  

Josh Bath gets dumped live on air, and he and Samantha Newman (Lapkus) have to struggle through the rest of the show as he deals with the seven stages of grief. They hilariously harass, comfort, and are comforted by the guests that take a risk on this weird morning talk show. Schwartz is hilarious and heartfelt. He won an Emmy for Outstanding Actor in a Short Form Comedy or Drama Series.

6 Rutabaga Rabitowitz — Bojack Horseman (2015-2017)

This fluffy bunny is not at all that he seems. Schwartz plays Rabitowitz, a scheming, sarcastic, and relentlessly cheerful agent on Bojack Horseman. The character has a romantic relationship with another agent, Princess Carolyn, who he then hurts by not divorcing his wife. He also has a tendency to steal roles for Princess Carolyn’s clients right out from under her nose, something which drives her crazy. 

RELATED: The 10 Best Guest Stars from Bojack Horseman, Ranked

For people used to the high-pitched sing-song voice he’s done for other roles, Schwartz’s voice is almost unrecognizable here. But he brings so much life to this character that we’re glad the part didn’t go to someone else.

5 Clyde Oberholt — House of Lies (2012-2016)

Don Cheadle and Kristen Bell also star in this comedic take on a group of management consultants who get the job done, no matter the cost. Schwartz plays a consultant who specializes in marketing and spin. He is often cruel, jealous, and beyond arrogant. One of the only emotions he ever shows is anger, but he’s always down for a good time. He can read people like a book and uses their weaknesses against them. 

Schwartz’s normally silly brand of comedy works surprisingly well with a darker spin. His presence pulls the show toward a helplessly darker while the rest of the characters largely pull him back from the dark side.

4 Leo — Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2018—)

The new remake of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was greeted with skepticism, but has been steadily getting better and better reviews as the shows continues. The show’s brighter colors accompany a lighter adaptation, something a bit more fun and humorous than previous versions. 

Leonardo is normally the taskmaster of the turtles, but in this new take on the characters, Leo actually gets to have fun as a teenager. He still retains his leadership and analytical qualities, but he isn’t annoying or domineering. It’s that fun-loving spirit that Schwartz brings to the voice. He gives Leo the brevity he needs to be a fun teen once again.

3 Dewey Duck — DuckTales (2017-2019)

In this adaptation of DuckTales David Tennant stars as Scrooge McDuck and Ben Schwartz plays his grandnephew Dewey, the adventurous and funny triplet. He’s a classic middle child, always trying to stand out from the crowd, including starting his own internet talk show.  As always, Schwartz brings depth to the role. We see hints of Dewey’s deep-seated fear that he’s just an ordinary duck. He is constantly trying to prove himself by throwing himself into dangerous situations. 

RELATED: David Tennant's 10 Best Roles, Ranked

This role and Schwartz’s role as Leo (see previous) only rank as 3 and 4 on our list because so much of the hilarity of Ben Schwartz is the physicality he brings to his comedy. While these roles are great—and he deserves every leading role—the next to let us see the full spectrum of Schwartz’s comedic talents.

2 Rabbi Charles “Boner” Grodner — This is Where I Leave You (2014)

This movie is a powerhouse of comedic talent. Ben Schwartz plays Rabbi Charles Grodner, who was friends with Adam Driver’s character in high school and earned the nickname Boner, for obvious reasons. After the four Altman siblings moved away to start their lives, he stayed behind and became a rabbi. When he handles their father’s funeral, they struggle to take him seriously and he falls back to his old high school insecurities as he tries to earn their respect. 

Even though he’s a side character, Schwartz does so much with the time he’s given. He has heart and brings so much warmth to a role that would have come off as pathetic in the wrong hands. 

1 Jean-Ralphio Saperstein — Parks & Recreation (2010-2015)

This is the role Ben Schwartz is most recognized for, and deservedly so. Every time Jean-Ralphio appears on screen as Tom’s ridiculous, grossly sexual, and trouble-plagued friend the comedy soars to new heights. He is outlandish and ridiculous, but also has so much heart. Jean-Ralphio always thinks he’s killing it and never seems to realize that he is his own worst enemy. He’s basically a puppy, and no matter what terrible thing he does, it’s impossible to be mad at him. He’s maybe not the best friend anyone wants to have, but everyone needs a Jean-Ralphio in their corner to cheer for them and encourage them to let loose sometimes.

Schwartz appears in 21 episodes of the show and each one is a brilliant performance. In anyone’s hands, the character would be frustrating, but Schwartz makes him a memorable and amazing character.

NEXT: 10 Amy Poehler Quotes That Are Too Funny For Words

source https://screenrant.com/ben-schwartz-best-roles-ranked/

[callmeweeeh]

Character Question Tag!

Rules:  Pick one of your characters, answer these questions, tag some people

I was tagged by @ragethewriter thanks for thinking of me! ^.^

I picked Naliah one of Dune’s protagonists.

~ ~ ~

1) What was the first element of your OC that you remember considering (name, appearance, backstory, etc.)?

Since Amir is a very happy and gentle character (at least he pretends to be) and Mazum is quite serious and duteous, I wanted to create someone who would be a pain in the ass for them, a seemingly cheeky and arrogant character. That’s how Naliah was born.

2) Did you design them with any other characters/OCs from their universe in mind?

I think question 1) answers that quite good but I also considered her to be Amir’s love interest. Due to me being way too lazy to design another family just for her, I simply turned her into Amir’s cousin (so she won’t be his love interest!). I think she fits into the Bak family quite well, bc she can also deeply care about her fellows.

3) How did you choose their name?

Since my cat is called “Nala” and she can also be quite moody from time to time, I instantly thought of her when designing Naliah. Still I wanted her name to sound more special and I remembered one of pigeonbooks’ characters was called Naliah. I really liked that name, so sorry for kind of stealing it from you ^^’

4) In developing their backstory, what elements of the world they live in played the most influential parts?

The people of Suthri aren’t allowed to wear makeup or jewellery, only on special occasions. The nobility however is allowed to wear them whenever they like. Since Naliah is a rebellious character, she still wears a little bit of eyeshadow, lipstick and some bracelets all the time. By doing so, she not only wants to look good and show disobediance but she also likes to pretend not to be poor.

I also like that she is skilled in sewing cloth :)

5) Is there any significance behind their hair color?

Not really, I just thought that brown or black hair might the the typical and natural haircolour for people living in the desert (correct me if I’m wrong!)

6) Is there any significance behind their eye color?

Since I really like green eyes, I decided to make hers green too. Mazum has brown eyes, so she has inherited her eye colour from her mother, who left the family long ago.

7) Is there any significance behind their height?

I don’t even really know how big she is, so no :D

8) What (if anything) do you relate to within their character/story?

I can definetely relate to her pretending to be someone else. I often think about the stupid things I may have said or done like one hundred years ago and hope that one day I’ll wake up without my 'bad' traits. But hey, that’s life and you learn from it, right?

9) Are they based off of you, in some way?

Number 8) answers this, but that’s the only trait we share I think.

10) Did you know what the OC’s sexuality would be at the time of their creation?

I mean, she was intended to be Amir’s lover but since I changed that, I haven’t really thought about it. Unlike “The Taste”, Dune has little to no romantic scenes in it (at least none that I already thought about/ planned). I like to think of my characters as pansexual when creating them and don’t focus much on their sexuality until I find a fitting spot to mention it or a character that would be a great match for them.

11) What have you found to be most difficult about creating art for your OC (any form of art: writing, drawing, edits, etc.)?

To give her an entrance in the story! I decided to just let her burst into a scene XD

12) How far past the canon events that take place in their world have you extended their story, if at all?

I still have to write Dune, let me breathe! XD

13) If you had to narrow it down to 2 things that you MUST keep in mind while working with your OC, what would those things be?

1) * Think of Regina George from Mean Girls while writing her *

2) * Don’t let her be too rude, she still has a soft spot that will be revealed sometimes *

14) What is something about your OC that can make you laugh?

The first thing she does when she has an argument with Mazum is awkwardly cry in front of Amir, who totally can’t handle it.

15) What is something about your OC that can make you cry?

The sadness she tries to hide underneath her masquerade.

16) Is there some element you regret adding to your OC or their story?

Not yet but since I mess up about 80 percent of my stories, the regret will sure as hell come. help

17) What is the most recent thing you’ve discovered about your OC?

That she has beautiful natural curls but she always straightens her hair.

18) What is your favorite fact about your OC?

That even though she can be very rude and often hurts others, she’d give her own life for the people she loves.

I’ll tag @marewriteblr, @writebruh and @ivonoris. You absolutely don’t have to do this but I’d love to hear more about your OCs! Have fun! :)

[lifewithoutmeds]

July 9, 2022

Saturday afternoon. Waiting on my fishing youtube video to upload/”process.”

It’s been an okay week.

Monday was July 4th, a holiday, so I had the day off. I went hiking with jadai and cooper at Switzer, which was really fun. the water level was good and coop found a lot of little pools to go wading in, and i could tell he was really enjoying himself. he gets a different kind of energy in the forest, and it’s palpable.

the rest of the day i lazed about, fighting off a kind of weird inner twisting feeling. it may have been a bad move to spend so much enjoyable time with jadai. it reminded me of how well we got along, how much i loved her, how much we appreciated one another. she kept saying how nice and thoughtful i was. we kept congratulating ourselves on our great decision making (getting to the hike early, getting fantastic parking, leaving before it got too hot, the list went on.) it was so good and then we just rather abruptly departed, having arrived back at my place, and it was weird, it was almost like the beginning stages of dating, except i knew i shouldn’t text her back right away to say what a good time i had and how i couldn’t stop thinking about her. i waited til the next day and then said it super casually, coupling it with the offer to walk coop now and then, at a rate of $30/45 minutes. i wanted to make it something that we could mutually benefit from so it felt more like a business transaction than a weird favor.

tuesday - thursday was work, but a weirdly hard week, despite how short it was. i was miserable and whiny and chantal wasn’t there on tuesday to help cheer me up, reason with me. wednesday i went out with danielle and we got pretty drunk on mai tais and drank water at my place to sober up, before i passed out around 10. i woke up exhausted and unable to function properly the entire next day, and dreaded that i had agreed to go to another backgammon night with amir after work, and also had a facetime with kelda, which was probably serendipitous.

thursday i just ate a lot of chips and made small talk with people at the club, then went home, with much protesting from amir, who wanted to make a night of it, but i really wanted to just sleep, especially as i planned to go fishing early the next morning.

yesterday i woke up at 4:15 a.m., got ready, learned at 4:45 a.m. that rhiannon would not be joining me, and i headed out for a quite enjoyable day of fishing. i caught 2 yfc, 1 corbina, 1 guitarfish, and 3 perch. i chatted with tim a bit, and fought charlie off of the fish. then grabbed in n out on the way home and fought off sleepiness, then went home, rinsed off, and just kinda laid around for the rest of the day.

today was a fairly productive day. i jogged my mile, did some chores, downloaded the gopro footage and edited a youtube video, and checked rhiannon’s mail (she just got laid off and flew to austin, but is afraid of missing out on time-sensitive unemployment-related mail.)

tomorrow i don’t have many plans. maybe vacuum the floors, swiffer them, and go to the korean market with my mom at 8:30 a.m. i will hopefully jog as well and get in maybe another journaling and/or reading session.

highlights: fishing on friday, hopefully a vid to be posted later

[naurin-of-the-east]

Tagged by the wonderful @cuthalion

1. Fictional character you relate to?

There isn’t really anyone I 100% relate to but the story of Amir from the book Kite Runner has always been something I felt connected to? Probably because of the whole cultural identity thing of being from another country and having that culture and emotional baggage from there and then growing up in a completely different place. Really staggering. Tolkien-wise, I probably relate the most to Caranthir. I kinda get the feeling from him that he just kinda wanted to be friends with Haleth and live in his own little place without the effect of silmarils and I feel that. I just want to have a quiet peaceful life too. 

2. Book you can read over and over without getting tired of?

Something simple like the Hobbit or North & South by Elizabeth Gaskell. It needs to be something that I can’t think too much about because I tend to get bogged down in details and considering ‘what-ifs’ a little bit too much.

3. What’s your favourite comfort movie/show?

Again... North & South the BBC series lol. I also tend to watch Grey’s Anatomy because I love medical dramas and their repetitiveness is kinda soothing. LOTR is more of a thing I do when I’m feeling uninspired or just need some awesomeness in my life.

4. Which fictional character are you most defensive over?

 MAEDHROS. Honestly, I’ll defend this boy to high hell. Like, I get he’s done horrible things but my interpretation is he didn’t want to and he was kind of enslaved by the oath and he’s genuinely remorseful and my poor, poor boy. He’s suffered enough. 

5. Show you fell out of love with?

Literally every kdrama ever other than My Love From the Stars, Moon Embracing the Sun, and Scarlet Heart. Also the Hobbit. I enjoyed the first two films because Thranduil and elves and Bilbo is adorable and I love me some passive-aggressive Hobbits buuuuut.... the last film was just bad and Tauriel was not a good move to play on such a loyal fandom and the dwarven-elven thing was badly done and most importantly... It was a key tonal change from Bilbo’s Journey to a typical action film with crappy tragedy placed in there and I didn’t appreciate that. Not happy. I did like Smaug though - that was well done. 

6. Show you’re most excited for?

The Amazon Tolkien thing but I’m also hella wary for it. Most excited for season 3 of Crown though ngl. And season 2 of Victoria. Yes, I love period dramas...

7. What’s your aesthetic?

Oh no. Well I’m a Lolita so ‘kawaii’ aesthetic, I guess? I also like the ironic fake-deep stuff. I like foresty aesthetic a lot but I don’t suit the look unfortunately. Also ~~vaporwave~~ because why not. 

8. Favorite fanfic tropes?

Enemies turned lovers is bae. Reluctant friendships leading to strong friendships or precious romances. My absolute favourite is one half of an OTP is super emotionally damaged and seeks help from a reluctant but competent other half and together they become closer through various hiccups and fights and just UNF tbh. Doesn’t necessary lead to a ‘healed’ person because that’s not how mental health works but it’s certainly a bonus if it does.

Tagging: @vezely @verymaedhros @first-son-of-finwe @cuilpantielthesleepyscribe @peredhellen

[stupid-jeans]

S@oracle0429 asked for Amir (The Brave) and Zoe (Valor) for the fandom ask meme. I’ll do one first, then the other. do I like them: Yes!!!!!!!!!! Totally my unexpected (male) fave.

5 good qualities: Only 5? Ughhhh. 1. He speaks like 12 languages. And he sounds really good speaking all of them. 2. HIS EYES 3. His undercover serious voice. 4. His insane cooking skills. 5. His stupidly dry sense of humor.

3 bad qualities: I’m sorry, he has none. Zero. Zilch.

favourite episode/etc: It’s All Personal. Obviously.

otp: AMIR/HANNAH.

brotp: Amir/Jaz

ot3: You know, I don’t think I have any OT3s in this show yet which is super fucking weird for me (as you well know :-p)

notp: Him and Jaz. I know some people ship them (romantically) and that’s fine, you do you. But nope. Much prefer their friendship dynamic.

best quote: ugh I don’t know. Everything out of this man’s mouth is solid. Him totally ribbing on everyone and fucking with them during Stealth was pretty phenomenal.

head canon: Since he’s been living in my head for the last few weeks demanding I write him at every possible opportunity, I have many, many Amir headcanons. He was a hellion child and a punkass teenager until his sister died. His father never really forgave him. His mother is stupidly proud of him and tells everyone who will listen that her son is off being a hero. Amir hates it but tolerates it because it’s the little bit of happiness she clings to, so he lets her. Since it’s his fault (in his eyes) that her perfect prodigy of a daughter is dead. (Sorry,I realize this particular train of thought is hella depressing haha.) ZOE do I like them: She is my favourite. I love her. Little ray of gay sunshine.

5 good qualities: 1. She is unapologetically out. In the Army. Which is...hella brave. 2. She looks really damn cute in plaid. 3. She beat the hell out of Smitty, was brave enough to tell Gallo he attacked her, and then was also brave enough to go to Haskins and take that fucker down. And THEN she told off Coogan for questioning her. 4. She and Thea having their super causal fling but still being adults, addressing that it was a one time deal (ha), and still talking/communicating/working together/respecting each other? Like WOW, what a concept. 5. Her being a stonecold badass and figuring out what was going on while she had a freshly broken foot and they were in the middle of a fucking terrorist compound.

3 bad qualities: (these are headcanon things, mostly) 1. she gets jealous super duper easily. 2. she doesn’t generally feel she deserves good things. 3. she’s really bad at TRYING to pick up girls. If she’s not trying, she’s got them fawning all over her. But otherwise.

favourite episode/etc: Whatever the one was where she slept with Thea? Or the one where Smitty attacked her.

otp: Zoe/Thea <3 They both need/deserve unproblematic love with lots of hugs.

brotp: Zoe/Nora, as previously mentioned. Being the only two female Shadow Raiders, there’s a ton of camaraderie there and they both just support the hell out of each other.

ot3: Ummm Zoe/Thea/Hannah, as we discussed. :-p Crossovers wheeee.

notp: Literally any guy.

best quote: Her barb to Coogan after his comment about she and Nora being on the same cycle, about how that was a biological function to stop men from being assholes was pretty great. Or the part where she told Nora to go over Gallo’s head to talk to Haskins about flying the mission her way.

head canon: Oh boy, this one’s depressing too haha. Zoe grew up in a military family. Her dad served in the Army. He sustained some pretty serious combat-related injuries so he was honorably discharged when she was 5. He pretty immediately started drinking. In excess. But he wasn’t a violent drunk at all. He loved the hell out of her mom. He never hurt or yelled at Zoe. He just got really quiet when he’d been drinking. And Zoe’s mom didn’t want to hurt his reputation so she kept her mouth shut. Because he was a good husband and a good father, when he was sober. Memorial Day weekend when she was 7, he drove them home from a barbecue and went off the road into a tree. Zoe’s mom died. After that, he got cleaned up for a little while, but he was just...broken. The love of his life was gone. And Zoe looked just like her mom. So he kept her at a distance. By the time Zoe was in middle school, he was back to nonstop drinking. He still climbs on and off the wagon at regular intervals. He still lives in the house where she grew up. He’s stupidly proud of her for enlisting,doesn’t care at all that she’s gay, but half the time when he sees her these days, he thinks she’s her mom.So she really only sees him on holidays. But she calls him once a week.

[bunnykidiary]

Secret Superstar - Movie Review

Source: http://www.koimoi.com/bollywood-news/whoa-is-that-aamir-khans-new-look-from-secret-superstar/

Okay so a lot of people liked Secret Superstar. Given Amir Khan's recent track record and hearing all the praises, I obviously had to watch this new movie. I didn't like it. So obviously I expected everyone around me to stop praising it. However, since people were being unreasonable and since I have this incessant need to disagree with most popular opinion, I thought I would try to provide some logic to my dislike. It's basically me being "I have an incessant need to disagree from you but wanting to be liked simultaneously so hope we're still good". I need help.

Anyhoo, I think dislike might be a little too harsh. Let's say I had higher expectations given Khan's recent movies and this movie just didn't live up to the benchmark set by Dangal or even PK. Instead, it was a reminder of the cringe-worthy Dhoom 3 that I fortunately started watching at home and turned off after less than half hour. Yes I know Dhoom 3 was a huge hit but it was one of those Shahrukh Khan-type movies in which you have to forget you have a brain and watch only for the songs, glamour, special effects and the pretty boy/girl/s.

I'm being a little unfair here. If there is a quality continuum in my mind where we have Dangal and PK on one end and Dhoom 3 on the opposite end, Secret Superstar will still rest way closer to the former.

So why didn't Amber Plumber like Secret Superstar? You see Amir Khan has set the bar up for the "believability factor" of his movie. By believable factor, I mean if something is likely to happen in real life, it will have a high BF. For instance, as shown in Dangal and especially since it was inspired by real life events, it was believable that two young girls from a village went on to represent their country on the International Stage for wrestling and won gold/silver medals for their country. That sort of thing is hard to achieve but possible. However, Amir Khan defying the laws of gravity in Dhoom 3 just isn't. Salman Khan receiving love notes from his bae through a pigeon just isn't. The dog in Hum Apke Hain Kon having the wisdom to deliver Madhuri's parting love note in the right hands to stop her from marrying her ex-BIL just freakin isn't.

I mean in normal life, a girl would puke at the thought of marrying her dead sister's husband and refuse it altogether. Or, she would tell her brother-in-law to get some grief counselling or lessons to deal with his social awkwardness. That way, he could attract another nice woman for himself who could be a good partner for him and a good step mom to his kid. Even if not, there has to be another marriage-worthy prospect in this world for him besides her. This girl wouldn't jump at the opportunity to sacrifice her life/dreams/plans so she could be a good daughter/aunt/confused ex-SIL. That's just plain dumb. Especially since she is in love with her BIL's younger brother. It's almost incest. Yuck. And even if she is this stupid, she wouldn't write a parting love note to her ex-bae and trust the family dog as her delivery-man. I mean I know this is pre-email/cell phone era but there were still better options than pigeon/doggy mail in the 1990s.

So that's what I mean by "believability factor". It didn't exist with Secret Superstar. You just don't make a youtube video through your laptop's camera with its crappy audio and expect to product anything halfway decent. Especially since the video is supposed to be about her beautiful voice "jiss ne poorey India mein tehelka macha diya". Even Lata Mangeshkar wouldn't stand a chance on youtube unless she had proper sound equipment. On top of it, it is not possible to have your video go viral unless you properly market and advertise it. This girl didn't even share it on facebook with her friends! There is an entire science behind marketing on social media. It just doesn't happen overnight as they showed it. So like I said earlier, believability factor was depressingly low.

That said, I'm not completely made of stone. Seeing the way she and her mom were treated by her father, I was totally sympathetic and rooting for her to succeed. Her living and family situation was totally believable. I have personally come across so many examples of girls and women who are treated miserably on account of their gender. Misogyny is a very real thing in South Asia and amongst Muslims. But that's another topic altogether.

The director did a stellar job of garnering sympathy and loyalty towards the main character and her mother. The reason this sort of movie resonates so much with South Asians is because a lot of girls and women can relate to it. Relate to being treated as inferior and unwanted. As being seen as a nuisance. As someone who has no standing on their own. Whose entire sense of identity and importance comes from their male relations. Girls who must be "married off" because they are a burden and a hindrance in the family's future plans. I have seen examples of this with my own close relatives. And my family is supposed to be relatively "enlightened" compared to the general lot.  So yes, I can totally understand how easy it was for any girl or woman to feel the pain, indignation and hurt that Insia felt in this movie.

What I didn't like, however, was the fantasy that was sold in this movie. I didn't like the simplistic solution. It's easy to dream of becoming an overnight superstar so you could claim validation from the world that your father didn't give you. It's so easy to go to bed with such a dream. It makes waking up the next morning and facing rejection the next day a little bit easier.

Amir Khan has raised the expectations bar with his previous performances. I didn't expect him to sign up to such a lazy script. I am calling it lazy because if they wanted, they could have spent effort to make this story believable. Have the same story, but instead of being lazy and "Bollywood typical" about reaching success, they could have shown her struggles to reach an audience initially. They didn't even show how she learned to play the guitar in the first place. This movie was all about innate talent and as Amir Khan put it "Talented children are like bubbles in this soda. Nobody can stop them from reaching the top". What the heck was that? Who doesn't know of talented people whose talents/skills have decayed due to life's circumstances or lack of perseverance from their side. This was deceiving advice to an impressionable audience that largely forms its opinions and thinking by watching movies.

They could have shown perseverance from her end in spite facing obstacles where she learns how to overcome them. They could have used the character of Chintan to help her in getting her video/voice before the right eyes, or even on how to use proper equipment for a quality video. There is so much they could've done to make her transition to success believable.

And for this reason, more than anything else, I didn't like Secret Superstar. The songs were amazing. Acting by all characters, especially the hateful father, was wonderful. There were several hilarious moments where I LOL-ed. Amir Khan as Shakti Kumar was a treat to watch for the most part. I just wish he had approached this movie with the same discipline and attention to detail as he had with Dangal. I expected more from an actor who refused to wear a fat suit and actually put on dozens of pounds of weight so that his character would appear believable. When an actor goes to such lengthy efforts for his work and follows that work with something lazy like Secret Superstar, I couldn't help but be disappointed. End of review.

[raahims]

hi im mo (she/her) and the only thing on my mind right now is angel.mp3 so i dont have anything else 2 say im sorry except pre-order fifth harmony by fifth harmony o im est and 20 

❝ ——･✧ ( ZAYN MALIK ) may the ark provide you a good life ( AMIR RAHIM ) !  you are now at the age of ( TWENTY-FOUR ), and identify as ( CISMALE ). around the ark you are known as the ( OVER-THINKER ), you’re a ( DETERMINED ) citizen even if you’re sometimes ( DIFFIDENT ) !  with your contribution to the ( ARROW ) station as ( A TEACHER ) we’re going to make this place a better home for us, and our future generations. 

i tried for a prettier label because we love pretty words! but he’s not a ponderer or daydreamer, he’s an over-thinker

it started as him just being v curious because when you’ve got an older brother who can vividly remember leaving earth to live on a spaceship?? you’d probably hear them speaking of it and then ask questions 

that stemmed into him being a very cautious person + someone who runs over a single thought until it’s flattened and can hardly even be considered a thought anymore because it takes no effort it’s more like an unconscious brain process 

because of that he can convince himself of anything (works in his favor and against him)

but even when he’s not really thinking of anyThing he’s just sort of stuck in this state where he’s separated from everyone else (probably because he’s made everything become so monotonous — sort of like when youre walking somewhere you always go and then youre like wait um where am i going but turns out youre going the right way because we love muscle memory) so ! may have 2 call his name a few times 

ask him why he’s a teacher and the answer can vary ?? is it because he has the patience (because that’s necessary if you’re gonna be finding the beginnings and ends of everything) or because he’s paranoid of Major Things like everyone’s home being destroyed once again but if it’s anyone who can prevent that it’s educated people and obviously that has 2 start at the root and it’s the most he can help w because he’s not Crazy Bright or he’s just good with kids !

but even though he’s in his head a lot he’s not a Reserved person in the way that he talks to no one like actually ?? he speaks because he learned how to so he knows how to talk how many of yall know how to talk! you bitches cant even spell talk 

so ya if he’s comfortable he may speak too much but it’s not like “hey how are you so i was thinking about how this could all collapse right” he’s not that socially inept :/ he knows boundaries because he spends his days telling kids that there’s no relation between anything theyre learning and their mother’s affair !

he has parents who had a life on earth obvi but idk anything about that we’ll figure it out as it goes but he loves them <3 maybe

i’ll post something with a list of wc in a little bit (but if you like now im gonna assume you like something i said here and want 2 plot !)

[eurosong]

My grand final review

Hey there, folks! It’s exhilaratingly close to the big moment, the beginning of this year’s grand final! Here's my rundown of the Eurovision grand final songs, in running order. I call this a "lights and shadows" list, as, for the sake of nuance, I've added something positive and some criticism for every song on the list. For those who missed it, this is the semi-skimmed version of this full-bodied critique of all the songs. Let's go!

Israel + If the hosts' robotic intro has put people to sleep, this will wake them up. - The lyrics make less sense than your average Edward Lear poëm. Rank: 24

Poland + Kasia has a good voice and sings with passion and conviction. - The song is an absolute dirge with no real sense of direction, and those rhymes are ridic. Rank: 17

Belarus: + Instant cute happiness, this is just so squeeeee - They could have fit another verse in to make the song less repetitive. Rank: 3

Austria: + He put a lót of work into promoting himself and his song, which is admirable. His covers of former ESC songs made him seem like a fan of the contest, which puts you in good steed with fellow fans. I think he got in the final by sheer force of personality. - Saccharine, plim-plom song. Those "hey naaaww" repetitions annoy the hell out of me! And I always mistrust someone so perma-cheerful. It comes across as forced, not quite right and makes me feel he's got human heads in his fridge at home. Rank: 21

Armenia: + Majestic. This song soars like the eagle of Artsvik's name. This kind of song is precisely why I love Armenia, a perfect mélange of traditional and modern that sounds like nothing else in the contest. Artsvik herself has got a special, almost regal poise. Feels like this song dropped out of outer space, love it. - She could have made it even better by including more dancers to closer emulate the surreal video. Rank: 4

Netherlands: + Their live vocals are impeccable. And as for the song topic, losing a beloved relative after seeing them battle a disease something, unfortunately, to which so many of us can relate, so it does pull on my heartstrings. - If they were a less popular country amongst eurofans, would folk consider the girls to be using their mother's sickness for sympathy rather than sympathising with them? My internal jury is out on that one. As for the music, it is derivative and dated - their voices deserve something a few decades closer to "contemporary." Rank: 8

Moldova + They perform this song with verve and do their best to bring the party. - This band's continued success goes to show how far getting adopted as a meme by confused American non-viewers of Eurovision can get you in the competition. Rank: 15

Hungary + Perhaps the contest's best example of how one can use dance to make the story of a song understood beyond linguistic boundaries. One of the most original songs in the contest, performed with passion, emotion and defiance, and certainly some of the strongest lyrics. - Many folk have an automatic dislike to rap at the contest and may get the wrong idea of his bars, seeing them as angry rather than as the deep and moving lyrics that they are. Rank: 2

Italy + Francesco embodies easy-going charm, and his satirical lyrics are amongst the contest's best. - The Eurovision version of the song has much less impact than the San Remo one; it slipped down by rankings because most of those biting and ironic lyrics were removed, leaving only half a verse where there had been two. Rank: 7

Denmark + What Anja does very well indeed is connecting with the audience. It's a song about intimacy, so the number of long close ups communicate that well - it feels as though she's singing right in front of us. - Musically generic, and the aforementioned intimacy is undermined by vox that are beyond the border of shouty. Rank: 13

Portugal + Magnificently moving, ethereal song that has the timeless quality of an instant classic. Sang beautifully in a way that shows nuance trumps power. I never thought a song from this decade's ESC could challenge to be my favourite ever Eurovision song, but this does. - Whilst his interpretation of the song through movement is a key part of its appeal to me, it distracts some folks. My own biggest problem is that I'd rather see Salvador (and Luísa) up on the stage for hours rather than three minutes. Rank: 1

Azerbaijan + Best Azeri entry ever. Something genuinely stylish, mysterious and modern. - The staging seems a bit "GCSE Drama" and gimmicky. Rank: 9

Croatia + It's impressive to be able to sing a duet with yourself in two completely different vocal styles. It's bloody hilarious, too. - This is the ultimate example of the saying: just because you cán, doesn't mean you shóúld. This is more cheese than a tower made of Camembert and his fake smiles are creepy. Rank: 14

Australia + As a piece of music, I quite like the style. With another singer, I might well enjoy this a fair bit. - He sings as though his nose has never been blown, and his forlorn looks to the camera that seem like that of a puppy dog who fears he's going to end up served in a dish of bosintang seem fake and are very disconcerting. Rank: 18

Greece + Only lasts three minutes. Demy must be a generous soul, given the way she allows the backing vocalists to sing more audibly than she. - It takes me about 20 minutes to walk from my home to my workplace or vice versa. In that time, I reckon I could write 4-5 songs of higher quality than this. Utterly generic and disposable pop with lyrics which are just a stream of thought-terminating clichés. Rank: 26

Spain + The song has brought me hours of amusement, because my kids have made a game of making mocking references to it whenever they can. Before a pronunciation face-to-face challenge, one lad psyched another out by saying "are you ready to do it... for your lover?" - Wasted money voting on other songs only for a jury of the "winner's" friends to overrule the public vote. So that they could force this masterpiece in which "do it for your lover" or "just do it" is said, on average, every four seconds. Grim. Rank: 25

Norway + I listened to the acoustic version of this and they sing it well, and it sounds much better acoustic. They seem like nice lads. - Cold, soulless, robotic, and with silly rhyming dictionary lyrics. Rank: 18

UK + The BBC has finally upped its game and tried to create an impressive show. Well done. - Shame the song itself is part sleeping pill, part excruciatingly annoying. "This maaadnnesss..." Rank: 23

Cyprus + For us linguaphiles and/or Armenophiles, there was a great moment in a video where Hovig and Artsvik spoke at the same time, he in Western Armenian, she in Eastern Armenian. That was cool. - Pales in comparison to Rag and Bone Man's "Human" from which the music was ripped off without mercy. Also, physicists across Europe are weeping as Hoving considers gravity to be something that lifts you up ánd halts your fall. Rank: 22

Romania + The second dose of "adorable couple" tonight. This shouldn't work, this unholy blend of rap and yodel, but for me, it so does. Mostly on how happy they are and how that transfers to me in the audience. They're just full on adorable. And you know, as much as it's great that Eurovision has a great many serious acts, I love that something so wild and just plain carefree can get so far too. There's a really good message of living for the moment in this, too. - Ilinca's vocals are powerhouse; Alex' are more underwhelming and that might see them penalised by the juries. Rank: 6

Germany + When she was in the final of that ridiculous national final, duelling against herself, it seems obvious Levina wanted the other, marginally less terribad Wildfire, and felt lumbered by the public's pick of Perfect Life. Despite that, she's done a great job of wholeheartedly promoting the song and has travelled far and wide. I respect the work ethic. She had by far and away the best vocals of the national final, too (shame she got this song which doesn't play to her strengths.) - Usually, I cannot look past the ripped-off Titanium intro. When I can, the lyrics blow my mind in the worst possible. Almost a sinner, nearly a saint, people... Rank: 16

Ukraine + I love a good rock song. This is not so great, but is like a mirage in a desert - giving sóme hope of refreshment, even if it ultimately doesn't deliver. - Runs out of steam after the first minute and becomes a bit of a sludge after a few repeated listens. Rank: 12

Belgium + Absolutely spellbinding studio version. 50-60 years ahead of last year's throwback from Belgium. Minimalist and moving. I hold out hope in a really good final performance. - Poor Blanche has looked as though someone was molesting her dead pet dog in front of her during the semi final. More traumatised than vulnerable. Rank: 5

Sweden + The music, whilst nothing special, is quite catchy. Especially the instrumental parts with the synth-based flourishes. - I find it hard to look past the ugly and forceful "rapey rhyme" style lyrics, or the cringeworthy stage show aptly and succintly referred to by a friend of mine as "fuckboys on treadmills." Rank: 20

Bulgaria + Polished and contemporary song, sung with confidence. - As anything other than background music, it leaves me cold. I really find the performer to be highly offputting, too. Rank: 11

France + Not as good or half as charming as Amir and his song, but not a bad effort. Very French, which from me can only be a compliment. - Feels quite inconsequential after they removed the most meaningful lines and replaced them with a cliché English chorus. Rank: 10

My pre-final top 10, thus: 1 - 🇵🇹 - Portugal 2 - 🇭🇺️ - Hungary 3 - 🇧🇾️ - Belarus 4 - 🇦🇲️ - Armenia 5 - 🇧🇪 - Belgium 6 - 🇷🇴️ - Romania 7 - 🇮🇹️ - Italy 8 - 🇳🇱️ - Netherlands 9 - 🇦🇿 ️- Azerbaijan X - 🇨🇵 - France

[asl-scarlet-sorceress]

For the percy jackson qs All of them bc I'm a slut for u answering questions about the shit u love :3c

Aaaaaah thank you bae!!! This is super long tho because, you know me, I can talk A LOT about this universe. And also, if you have more questions, please ask me so that I can continue to gush about my favourite series in the entire world OTL 

1.How old were you when you read the Percy Jackson books?

I was 11 when I first started reading them 😂 I was a tiny bby

2.What year did you read them in?

Does this mean academic year or actual year? Because I read them in year 7 (6th Grade) so that would have been in somewhere around 2010 I think???

3. What caused you to read them?

My older brother had read them and recommended The Lightning Thief to me and a selection of books were being given out at my school for free to encourage kids to read and The Lightning Thief happened to be one of them. And the rest is history 😂

4.Which of the series have you read in the PJO universe?

All of them~ I have read every book in the PJO, HoO, KC, and MCGA series and I’ve just preordered The Dark Prophecy at my local book store so I can keep up to date with ToA. I’ve also read all the side books like Demigod Diaries and Demigods and Magicians, and the two books of Professor Percy and they’re all aligned in chronological order on my book shelve because I’m a fucking nerd OTL

5. What is your favorite series in the PJO universe?

Oh god help me. I don’t know??? I love them all for different reasons??? I find myself ranting most to other people about HoO but the Magnus Chase series is probably my favourite because not only is it a wonderful story but The Hammer of Thor was the first time I had ever read about a genderfluid character and the way Alex was portrayed was just so wonderful to me that I will reread that book over and over again, specifically on his pages because it’s kinda like seeing a little bit of myself in my favourite world. It heightens my sense of escapism and belonging there that’s for sure XD

6.Who is your favorite character?

From the PJO series- Thalia GraceFrom the HoO series- Nico Di Angelo/ Leo Valdez/ Reyna (DO NOT MAKE ME PICK!)From the ToA series- Will SolaceFrom the KC- either Sadie Kane (because I’m always here for another Ribena enthusiast) or AnubisFrom the MCGA series- ALEX FIERRO RULER OF MY LIFE!!!

7.Who is your least favorite character?

Overall?? Either Zeus (because he was the world’s first fuckboi) or Bianca Di Angelo. As an older sibling, I could never imagine leaving my younger sibling all alone just because I wanted a bit more freedom in my life. It’s incredibly selfish and I just can’t ever forgive her for it. She may have been a hero and an interesting character and I was really torn up when she died but I will never forgive her for the way she treated her younger brother.

8.What are your headcanons?

THERE ARE TOO MANY TO LIST!!! But one of my main headcanons that I will list here (I’ll message you others if you ever read the whole universe) is that Nico and Anubis know each other and get along. Now this started because they’re described as looking very similar to each other (black, shaggy hair, dark brown eyes, pale af with a similar fashion sense of just black on black) and it kind of snowballed once I read Son Of Neptune. Because to me, it would make so much sense for Nico to know about other pantheons long before the other demigods. Why? Because Death is universal across mythology. And Nico, as the son of Hades, needs to know about his death rituals which- I think- would lead him to researching the other pantheons and learning that immortality really is forever. But yeah, i just love the idea of Nico and Anubis being friends and looking out for one another because they both understand the stigma around death but they’re both actually kind of dorky the minute they stop being angry??? But yeah, there’s just one of my headcanons and look how long that took to summarise OtL

9.Do you read fanfic for these books?

Yesssssssss all day every day!!

10.Do you write it?

I try to OTL it’s just, with characters i love and adore so much I’m so scared of doing them a disservice??? If that makes sense? I’ve got a thousand scenarios in my head but when I try to write I end up starting at a blank screen for 30 minutes before going back and rereading the books again XD

11.What’s your favorite scene?

From PJO- When Percy offers Pandora’s Pithos to Hestia as an offering. It’s just such an important act at the time and I just love it so much!!!!From HoO- uuuurgh it’s a tie up between Jason comforting Nico after Croatia and then the ending with the two camps and Reyna being a badass. From ToA- I know this isn’t really a scene but when Apollo makes the remarked about Achilles, Briseis and Patroclus because Iliad jokes~~ 😂 but other than that, probably when Apollo starts to realise how shit a parent he actually is and feeling kinda guilty about it. I just love seeing him evolve as a person rather than stay the same immortal fuckboi forever. From KC- THE FUCKING CAN OPENER!!! I laughed for about an hour when I first read the bit when Carter finds out about Horus possessing him. I actually couldn’t read past that bit without laughing over and over again 😂 From MCGA- When Alex was lying down on the Bifrost. I always imagine it as a very beautiful scene because he’s got this rainbow light all around him but it also makes me feel sad for some reason I’ve yet to pin down. But yeah, Alex being pretty and melancholy surrounded by rainbow light~ From Demigods and Magicians- probably when Setne gets sucked into the snow globe. That was a good day reading that.

12.Most memorable quote?

‘With great power comes great need to take a nap’

13.Favourite romantic relationship?

I have a few! Solangelo is my favourite altogether tho because I love the contrast between the two (I’m a sucker for the night/day/death/life symbolism in a relationship) but I also love Percabeth, Jiper, Sam/Amir, Fierrochase, Sadie/Anubis/Walt (what is that relationship called??? I can’t remember OtL)

14.Favourite platonic relationship ?

Annabeth and Piper, Percy and Jason, Annabeth and Sadie, Piper and Hazel, Grover and Percy

15.Favourite familial relationship?

NICO AND HAZEL, NICO AND REYNA, NICO AND HADES, NICO AND JASON, (basically anyone who treats Nico like family and cares about him tbh) Percy and Sally, Thalia and Jason, Piper and Leo, Sadie and Carter, Sam and Magnus, Magnus and Annabeth (the little we’ve been given anyway), Sam and Alex, Apollo and his kids??? Like the way he’s actually starting to genuinely care and he feels mildly guilty at how much they’re supporting and caring about him when he’s done none of that for them???

16.What are your notps?

Reyna and Nico. Can’t stand that ship. Also Octavian and Rachel. Or anyone with Rachel really. Same with Percy and Artemis??? Like, no???? Artemis is a maiden for eternity, she has no interest in men whatsoever??? And Rachel is the oracle of Delphi so she’s sworn to not be with people for as long as she is the oracle??? I just don’t get it.

16.What house do you think Percy is in?

See this is really hard! Percy is certainly brace and noble enough to be in Gryffindor but he is fatally loyal to the people he loves and he works incredibly hard which are more Hufflepuff traits! But at the same time he can be cunning and tricky when he’s in a fight. But he’s not really ambitious enough to be a Slytherin and, while intelligent, he won’t follow up on an idea just because of the allure of knowledge so he’s not really a Ravenclaw…urgh I want to put him in Hufflepuff but idk. Either Hufflepuff or Gryffindor.

17.What house do you think Annabeth is in?

Either Ravenclaw or Gryffindor. Like she will battle past her ADHD and dyslexia for the pursuit of knowledge and to better specialise herself in the areas she wants to but at the same time she walked into her worst nightmares, then fell into Tartarus, got out of Tartarus, then went to war all within the span of a month and a half. That takes Gryffindor courage right there. So yeah, either Gryffindor or Ravenclaw.

18.Thoughts on Luke?

I always feel really bad for Luke. Because he’s so relatable. It’s easy to see how he made the choices he did because he honestly thought that the Titans could be better because the gods mistreatment was all he had ever known. And it hurts what happened to him because he is the classic tragic hero; he made the wrong choices and the minute he realises what a mess he’s made of things, it’s already too late to stop anything. But he was able to do the right thing in the end and I just get really emotional whenever I think of that scene. It hurts too much 😭

19.What race do you think Percy is?

I don’t really know. I mean, we know he’s got a lot of his appearance from Poseidon so that means he should look very Grecian/Mediterranean, maybe he even has a sort of olive skin tone??? Idk. I guess whenever I think of Percy I just think of the kids I used to see on skateboards down at the local park. But yeah, probably Grecian if I had to pick.

20.What do you think of Frank and Hazel’s relationship?

I think it’s really cute. I like how it’s so fresh??? Because with Percabeth that relationship grew out of friendship over five books and Jiper has a natural flow to it with all the fragility and insecurity of a new relationship so it still works. But Hazel and Frank knew each other for such a short period of time before they started crushing on each other and I think it’s sweet to see kind of the love and first sight thing but warped slightly due to the complications that come with their lives. It’s interesting to see them struggle through all the confusion of a brand new relationship but still trying to keep themselves together. It’s nice to see that kind of love rather than the comfortable love of Percabeth or the steady love of Jiper. 21.What do you think of Calypso and Leo’s relationship?

I love it!!! At first I was skeptical but their banter and denial was really funny and the way Leo was determined to make it back to her. I had always wanted someone to treat Calypso right and I’m glad that Leo has someone now who will see underneath all the humour as well as appreciating him for himself :)

22.Do you follow Rick on any social media platforms?

Yes! I follow him on Twitter and on Tumblr~

23.What did you think of the movie?

I liked the visual effects but that was about it. And even then it was like, nice snakes, now where’s the plot??? I really did not like those movies. They need to be buried with the Avatar movie that never existed in my opinion.

24. What are your thoughts on the upcoming musical?

I’m really looking forward to it! I think they cast a really good Percy and I really like what I’m hearing so far. I love musicals and I understand there’s a bigger limit on what you can do on a stage compared to a film so I’m more lenient towards differences between the stage and the book.

25.Do you own any of the books and if so, which ones?

HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAH…..I have doubles of all of them OTL but there’s a reason for that!! One copy for myself so that I can always read them and then I lend out the second copies to my friends who are curious about this world that I won’t ever shut up about.

26.Which character are you most like, personality wise?

Idk really. Maybe Will??? Because I’m kinda easy going and I try to help out other people but if you piss me off you will know about it??? And it always takes people by surprise if they don’t know me very well at how angry I can be??? But yeah, maybe Will.

27.Which character do you look the most like?

If any of the characters have rainbow hair, I have not been informed of this! Nah but I don’t know. Without my coloured hair I just kinda look like a ghost with brown hair and colour changing eyes OTL Maybe Sadie because I used to be blonde but I dyed my hair so many times it turned brown and she streaks her hair a lot so yeah, Sadie Kane :)

27.If you could cosplay as any character, who would it be?

Okay I have cosplayer Nico before but I’m going to be cosplaying Alex at the next con I’m going to (unfortunately without her heterochromia because I’m allergic to contact lenses OtL)

28.What’s your favorite cover from the series?

Is it bad to say Blood of Olympus because Leo’s got a chainsaw in it? XD but yeah, actually Hammer of Thor because the Wolf mask on that cover with the eerie green glow across it is really cool!!

29.What are some books you would recommend to another fan?

Assuming these are books related to the PJO universe then The Demigod and Magicians crossover collection are definitely worth the read (assuming you’ve read both HoO and KC) and the Magnus Chase series because they are definitely worth branching away from the Greek and Roman gods.

If that means other series in general then His Dark Materials for definite and probably the Iliad.

30.Do you have any merchandise related to the series?

I do! I have a tshirt with Percy’s quote about procrastination on it (deadlines don’t seem real to me until I’m staring one in the face), and I have a matching charm bracelet, hair bow, earrings and necklace set with pendants that all say Camp Half-Blood on them

31.Any fan casts?

Not really. As long as they look the age of the characters *glares at the film* and they have the majority of the same features *again glares at the films* then I don’t really mind too much.

32.What did you think of the ending of Heroes of Olympus, if you read it?

I personally loved it. I agree it did feel a tiny bit anticlimactic over in Greece what with the gods kicking butt for the first time in the entire series but what happened between the camps and Gaia’s forces there was really cool. And the reconciliation of the camps afterwards and how everyone was getting along was really nice. And of course, the fact that Calypso was finally freed was a big A+ in my book.

33.Would you want to be connected to the Greek, Egyptian, Roman, or Norse Gods?

I think, as far as connected in the PJO universe way goes, I’d want to be a Magician for the House of Life. Because at least then I get a choice in whether or not I want a god in my life. If you’re a Demigod you get no choice whatsoever. If you’re just a magician then other than fighting in the apocalypse, you have a choice on what you want to do with your life (plus magicians can use electronics without calling down monsters on their heads)

34.What character from the universe do you think you would be best friends with?

Idk. It’s a tie up between Sadie, Leo and Magnus because they all have a sarcastic wit which I find hilarious but they all have differences that make me want to befriend them. Like with Sadie I could hang out with her any time of the week, and she has a really gives-no-shit attitude that I love (because I give too many shits about things) but at the same time she really cares a lot about her family and her friends which is important to me. Leo is hilarious in general but at the same time really insecure about stuff and I love helping people out and learning from them so I’d probably latch on to Leo and not stop bothering him about machines because all of it is really interesting. And then Magnus is a sarcastic little nerd who tries to be tough but is actually a sunflower and yeah, I have a lot of friends like that 😘😘😘

35.What’s the saddest scene from all the books?

Bob asking whether Percy would say hello to the stars and sun for him. That kills me every time to even think about. Fuck, now I’m crying 😭

36.What scene makes you the happiest?

Any scene of platonic friendship and love is guaranteed to make me happy. But most of all, when Hades told Nico he wanted him to be happy. That just killed me inside because it’s such a difference from the Last Olympian and Nico deserves happiness after all the shit he’s been through.

Thanks bae~

[chanaqinn]

hello uh... i did it (5)

GTA V, which isn’t that old... just... about 8 years old. Yah, that’s not old– I never really played it before (just for a little bit years ago) because I wanted to finish some other GTA games before I did, in case there would be references here and there (there are), and I only acquired it recently. Less than a year ago, actually.

Just like IV, it has multiple endings. 3. I only did one though, and I have 1 save data. Well, I just finished the story, pretty much. Didn’t get 100%, especially because a lot of times, I didn’t rush and wanted to hear everything the characters had to say.

It’s nice :) there’s a mission with a bus :)

It’s the only GTA game with inside view (1st POV), I believe? Without mod, at least.

The mission with Franklin the dog whisperer is funny, until he finds the dude who “crashed” and the dog is gone. :(

Anyway, yeah, it’s great. GTAO scares me atm so I’m not really going there, but yeah, issolgud. Too bad there’s no seatbelt without mod >:( I did install that thing, Enhanced Native Trainer, when I started playing, but removed it to try GTAO and I didn’t put it back in there since.

Oh, and Johnny.................. why. Why pull a GTA VC like that? But worse? I played VCS so much when I was a young teenager, so when I started VC...... >:( Vince :’(

When will they finally announce anything related to VI? Just like TES V (Skyrim), GTA V lives on lol

idk what i’m typing anymore (it’s past 2am)

ps: oh!! I got some weapons in GTAO and I didn’t expect to see custom gold guns Yusuf Amir style lol He’s a character in The Ballad of Gay Tony and he’s funny, though some people may be triggered because he says the n word without knowing that he actually shouldn’t. I haven’t seen Tony yet though.