#i want to respect their distance to the maximum extent

[bucketofchum]

Hey do you have permission from the owner to be posting their artwork to your blog?

I wish I had the answer to that question.

[extorchic]

Sk8 the Infinity is my obsession but it ends up next week

Sk8 is special, it became kind of like an obsession in just about a month. I got invested in the story and 've grown to really care about the characters, specially Reki and Langa. I want to write a bit (well not really “a bit” because there’s a lot in my head) about Renga, I haven’t been as passionate for a ship in a while, it’s taken over my blog, for example. So by clicking “Read more” there’s some sort of a timeline of their interactions, some personal thoughts and its impact on me, as a gay man and rep and so on.

Now, some may argue that since it's a sports anime, it's supposed to focus on skateboarding BUT, the relationship between the characters takes the spotlight more often than in other shows of the genre. This may be a staple on Hiroko Utsumi's works, which has been previously portrayed in Free!, but I've seen that Sk8 has taken this to an eleven.

The relationship between Reki and Langa is one that grows progressively throughout the series, and skateboarding seems to be a sort of vehicle for that to happen:

They start as strangers that have found a common interest in skating, Reki had previously lost a friend and was desperately looking for someone to share his passion with and Langa had lost his father and his passion for snowboarding, which had sunk him in a state of disinterest for everything. This changes when they meet.

In episode 2 we see their bond expanding as Reki teaches Langa the basics and in episode 3 their friendship is solidly cemented.

Episodes 4 and 5 shows how this friendship grows into outright concern for each other safety, episode 6 once again show how protective they can be to each other but also introduces Reki's self-esteem issues which lead to...

Episode 7, the rift. Reki feels that he's getting left behind, maybe some bits of jealousy, and Langa's just too focused on feeling the thrill that is skateboarding that he just doesn't notice Reki's issue, that's why he thinks he wouldn't mind him breaking their promise. Episode 8 shows how heart-wrenching is for Langa to have this distance between him and Reki.

It is at this point that the relationship loses all the chances it had to be platonic, at least for me. Aside from the scene between Langa and his mom which seems to confirm that he indeed feels more that friendship, it also shows Reki longing for him but fearful of a reunion. That's why he goes undercover to see his race (after Joe's suggestion), and in episode 9, he not only defends Langa from people talking on his back, but also it's him calling Langa's name that gives the latter the boost to defeat Joe. Of course I can't avoid mentioning how Langa feels absolutely no thrill skateboarding unless Reki's there with him (as in "it's meaningless without you") and the beat of his heart returns only after he hears Reki calling for him.

Episode 10 has Langa continuing looking for Reki, as he's finally realized how much he cherish him and their relationship, but Reki still had to go through his own conflicting thoughts and emotions, which similar to what happened last episode, only surface when confronted to someone (Tadashi in this case) talking against something he loves, which makes him realize he loves skateboarding and doing it with Langa more than having any negative emotion.

Their reunion is probably the most emotional moment in the series: They skate together and enjoy it to the max, and not only that, Langa also tells Reki how much he means to him, not because Reki needed a compliment, but because Langa was overflowing with admiration for him. Then they share their mutual desire to skate with each other for eternity. Finally episode 11 shows them behaving like they used to, but Langa's more conscious on how he must appreciate what's dear to him and Reki finally going forward without fear. The renewed bond also boosts Reki during his race with Adam.

So, after all of this, it's safe to say that the show's plot relies HEAVILY on this relationship, more so than on skating itself despite also being centric to the story. Despite this, there are still some people, yes, "dude-bros" that argue on how they're "just friends" or "bros being bros". I'd disagree by saying that in even very close platonic friendships or even sibling relationships, there's a sense of separation, a division of some sort. It is also true that it's important to represent male platonic bonding, but Reki and Langa's relationship and how it’s been built goes a lot deeper than that just being platonic.

Is this LGBTQ+ representative? I've listed only some narrative points that very strongly suggest a romantic subtext, besides them there are plenty of visual features that support this approach (the eyes reflection thing, color-coding, symbolism, two freaking men in a love hotel, even if it was played for laughs) as well as the merchandise (specially the CindeReki CD drama). However, without a very explicit reveal or a confirmation, it'd be all left as subtextual speculation. And it'd be a bummer because we need this kind of rep, we need to see stories where two people meet after having left some traumatic experience, grow to care for each other and help each other to overcome those traumas, through laughing and sharing activities that they can both enjoy and be passionate about, even if there's obstacles on the way, so much so that when they're apart the pain is unbearable. I mean, of that isn't love, what is it?

As a gay man myself I've felt related to these two characters, in a way they already represent me, personally. But if that happened to end up as just fan interpretation, I’d feel something is missing somehow, dissatisified dissappointed to an extent, but I wouldn’t resent the series, nor the creators. The series relies heavily on the relationship for its narrative but it also offers other things: Amazing animation and music, lovable characters, an enticing story, I can tell it’s done with passion and most importantly it’s a lot of fun! Emotional, but fun! As I mentioned, it’s made me feel so many things in a single month and has inspired me as well. Besides, it’s quite apparent that they do love each other, they mean the world to each other. If I speak completely honestly, I just want the two of them to skate together in Okinawa infinitely forever, and that’s what they want to do. Maybe if we focus too much and judge on whether it is or not rep, maybe we can’t enjoy the series at its maximum, Yes, it is annoying to see some fans dismissing the romantic potential, but the normalizaton of sexual orientation diversity is, to this day, a work in process. I guess the best thing we can do is show our best side to the world, as queer people in general and as allies.

Now don’t get me wrong, I still freaking want this ship to be indisputably romantic in the canon, maybe more than I’ve wanted any of my ships ever before, and there’s still an episode left, I hadn’t lost hope, and hoping is the main thing you can do at the shipping game. What else can be done? To ship with honor, respecting everyone (fellow fans, creators, staff on the internet) and not getting into needless arguments or just creating a bad atomosphere in the fandom. It is a community after all, we need to get along, live and let live.

[theluckyyyoneee]

Guise

Pairing: Yoongi x Reader (ft. Namjoon)

Genre: Angst/Fluff(in later parts)

Word Count: 2.4+k

part 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 |

SoulmateAU! Where he hides his soulmate tattoo from everyone, especially you.

Twirling your mechanical pencil around between your middle and pointer finger of your right hand, you zoned off into the great distance, eyeing the chipping paint on the walls as you felt utterly drained and exhausted, in all physical, mental and emotional senses. 

The life of a rushed college student trying to find the right balance between studying and self care and also incorporating enough of a social life to remain sane was seemingly impossible, and you were terrible at time management as you proved to yourself time and time again. Especially when finals were approaching at a fearful rate and you felt like you hadn’t prepared nearly as much as needed to ace the exams.

Huffing as you collapsed onto the desk in front of you, you heard the throaty chuckle besides you as you peered at Namjoon through your lashes and a few strands of wild hair that crept on your cheeks. “Take a nap, I’ll wake you up in thirty minutes. I’ll make sure no one bothers you.” He sweetly offered, his dimples popping through as he eye smiled at you through his own fatigue.

Propping your head on your hand with your elbow resting on the table, you couldn’t help but observe the deadly handsome and gentle man next to you. 

He was such a good guy, you mused as you watched his profile, his own tattoo placed behind his right ear that would eventually bond him with his ‘soulmate’, a being who the universe had decided all on their own that would complete and make the other person happy. You wondered what kind of person his soulmate was. 

Namjoon and you were so close, you two had bonded over each other’s respective clumsiness and forgetfulness in your freshman year of college, yet you found it a bit odd how you didn’t really know his stance on the whole soulmate thing. He never talked about the physically minuscule mark on his body that would have an enormous role in his life. Always presented a stoic, almost indifferent expression when he laid eyes upon the numerous couples along campus, never had expressed any longing towards a significant other either. 

“Can I ask you something?” 

He childishly snickered a little and gazed down at you with that attractive little smirk (authors note: omg imagine if he rlly looked at u like that id be dead) he did when he was about to tell a predictable joke. “You just did.” You mouthed the words along with him and rolled your eyes at him, a smile finding your lips anyway. He nodded at you and waited expectantly and suddenly you found yourself the tiniest bit shy.

Briefly pondering what would have happened if the two of you somehow shared the same tattoo, if somehow the two of you were each other soulmates. Would he had hid it if he noticed it before you did like Yoongi? No, you reasoned, he wasn’t that kind of person. He preferred to confront situations head on. Maybe you wouldn’t have hated the idea so much if you had a soulmate like Namjoon.

Instead the universe deemed your ‘perfect other half that will definitely complete you’ as an egotistic, douchebag named Min Yoongi.

“What do you feel about the whole soulmate thing?” Your voice was as small as a mouse and you saw his face drop a bit from his peaceful expression, making you tilt your head in confusion. His jaw tightened and his overall presence and posture suddenly became very rigid.

Clearing his throat, he turned his attention back to his studies as he answered with stiff casualness, “I don’t really have an opinion on it. I’ll worry about it when it happens.”

You could tell that he seemed very uncomfortable with the topic and you wanted to apologize for ruining the light atmosphere. It all of a sudden felt thick with tension between the two of you and you had no idea why.

So you hummed as nonchalantly as you could and turned away, “Ah, I see...” reminding and praying that you remembered to try and get Namjoon to open up a bit when he was ready.

But for now you turned away to your own notes and thought of your own predicament you were dealing with.

Keeping your lips sealed after what happened in that cursed classroom a few weeks ago, you had told no one and determined that it was just a bad nightmare, an irrational and delusional nightmare you wanted to forget ever having. 

Namjoon was Yoongi’s friend... kind of. Well, you knew that they at least tolerated each other. 

Should you just tell Namjoon what had occurred and ask for advice about what to do next?

No, let’s not make him even more uncomfortable, you sighed and laid your head back on the desk and allowed your dreary eyelids to shut as you recalled what happened that dreaded afternoon. 

You really did not want to believe it.

Even if it turned out to be true, you wanted to run away even if it was cowardly but before you even knew what the hell you were doing, you were taking large strides to Yoongi’s frozen figure in the seat, both gasping at the shock and warm sensation you felt from finally making physical contact for the first time. 

You had heard people talking about it, how the two persons involved felt electrified and so connected to each other and their bond. And although you couldn’t really argue with that statement, you didn’t feel particularly too connected to him at that moment. You guessed the emotions were consequences of the particular revelation.

Yes, his skin was smooth and warm to the touch, and an insane part of you had the idea to run your fingers down his wrist to meet his own in an intertwined embrace. Until the more rational side, your preferred and more dominant side, clued in the jagged and broken pieces as best as it could and suddenly everything made sense, heart thundering in your chest as you broke down your late epiphany as best as you could.

Throwing his arm down harshly, you couldn’t get the image of your tattoo out of your head-the one slightly bigger than an inch-the one you somehow shared with the man in front of you. Only now were you able to decipher the strange intricate lines-it had been both of your initials in some abstract handwriting.

Looking back at it now, you felt like such an idiot to not see the MYG that was so blatantly and obviously there, mocking you, forever etched on your skin, not at all welcomed there.

Releasing a shaky exhale as you tried your hardest to remain calm, you stared at Min Yoongi, that damned loon that somehow thought it a good idea to keep such an important detail to himself, had still not moved from his frozen stature and had dark, wide unblinking eyes stare frightened back at you. 

“You’re my soulmate?” As soon as the words escaped your lips, it felt all wrong. “How long have you known?” 

How long had you known him for?

Why was it him?

Imitating a fish, his mouth opened and shut numerous times before uttering, “Since the day we met.”

The memory burned fresh in your brain. You had been completely and immediately enamored with him at the first glance of him, and had the vaguest feeling that your feelings were mutual. When he had suddenly grew even paler than he already was and his lovely eyes widened to their maximum extent, you wanted to ask what the matter was, your soulmate tattoo subconsciously in full view.

Until he gazed at you like you had just cursed him out with your finest curse, most disgusting insults. It had oddly felt like he took part of your soul with him when he disappeared that day. 

It had seemed he was avoiding you every time he caught a glimpse of you, there was no chance in hell you were going to get to know him better if you couldn’t even get closer than twenty feet of him. One second you were making eye contact with him, then the next he was pressed against some girl all the while keeping gazes with you, not understanding why your stomach would knot in jealousy and loneliness, when normally you were not like this at all.

“You...” He had known all this time. Of course, why would he suddenly start to wear all those hoodies and sweaters in this scorching heat, with beads of sweat clinging to his temple? How he always seemed to claw at his sleeves whenever you were near? How the gorgeous girls he had flirted with in front of you filled with such insecurities just from looking from afar?

Min Yoongi was your soulmate?

What a joke.

“You knew this whole time?” You stupidly had finally spit the whole phrase out into the open air, the silence deafening as the two of you faced each other, each heart thundering in your chests. 

Yoongi had finally risen from his fixed posture at the desk and stood up, taking a tentative step forward before stumbling back a few shaky steps.

“Why didn’t you just tell me?” You hated that you sounded so pathetic, so desperate even to yourself. 

It wasn’t as if you had even wanted to meet your soulmate, the fact that he hid it from you probably meant that he didn’t want you, right? So you should be happy you weren’t tied to someone who was going to tie you to him, but why did the thought of him possibly not wanting you break your heart into pieces?

Maybe there was such a thing as a soulmate bond after all, if your whole being was being torn like this, this much.

His demeanor seemed to change in an instant, and he had lost all past vulnerability and uncertainty. Jaw clenched and eyes narrowed on you he spat out, “You think this makes sense?” He gestured between the two of you quickly, trying to keep his voice low in case any other students were lingering out in the halls, although unlikely, and you could sense his shame from where you were standing. “Us? That you’re my soulmate?”

It was like the roles had reversed and now you were the frozen one, an ache formed deep in your stomach as you registered his words. But they were the ones you had wanted to say to him a few minutes ago, so why were you feeling this way?

“I’ll tell it to you straight,” he continued, not giving you a moment to collect yourself. “I don’t want people finding out you’re my soulmate. It’s embarrassing, and since you never bothered to hide it, I have to.” He bent down and grasped his discarded hoodie from the ground and shook it in your direction. “Do you know how fucking bothersome is it to always have to wear this twenty four seven? In this weather? Huh?”

You didn’t bother answering, feeling yourself get worked up over his words had you breaking out of your moment of dejection and nodded, exhaling harshly. Right, you could overcome this. But first you had to show him that you weren’t just going to stay silent and weak when he was insulting you.

Embarrassing? He was embarrassed of you? He should have just told you when he had first found out, that way things wouldn’t have been this twisted. The two of you could have coolly and casually gone your separate ways, but for some reason you felt betrayed. 

“Look, we have nothing in common, and to be honest, this whole soulmate shit is really fucking unfair.” It seemed he was becoming a bit drained, like his newfound energy had dissipated as fast as it had come. 

“I wouldn’t say we have nothing in common,” you trailed off, meeting his glare with one of your own, though his faltered a bit at your unexpected words, looking at you the tiniest bit puzzled. A bitter smile gracing your lips, you raised your eyebrows a bit as you continued, gaining a bit of satisfaction at the look of surprise on Yoongi’s face. “It’s not like I want you, either.”

“Y/N wake up.” You were being shook gently back and forth by Namjoon, his dimpled smile being the first sight you see when you open your eyes. He chuckled under his breathe as you sluggishly lift your weary body up, and groaning in pain as you feel one your ribs were pressing on the edge of the table, an ache forming and stabbing every time you moved. Sitting up, you noticed a very familiar light cardigan draped around your shoulders, and you gaze starstruck and touched up at Namjoon, silently thanking him for covering you, knowing you always got cold when you slept. 

He ruffled your hair affectionately in answer as you attempted to rub the remaining sleepiness from your eyes and fix your appearance so it was more presentable, handing the cardigan back to him. “You were sleeping so soundly, I didn’t want to wake you,” he smiled apologetically. “but the library is closing soon, and I’d feel better if you slept in your own bed instead of this stiff chair.”

It was only then you noticed the lack of people around and you felt heat crawl up your neck and cheeks, wondering why if you had slept so long why you felt even more exhausted than before. “Thanks, and sorry for making you study by yourself...” you trailed off, standing up and slinging your bag on your shoulder as the two of you slowly made your way out of the library, nodding politely to the librarian behind the wide oak desk.

“No worries, but I do expect some coffee from you tomorrow, just saying.” It had gotten a bit dark and there was a bit of a breeze and you froze as Namjoon suddenly draped the cardigan over your shoulders once again. Your fingers met when you both fixed the collar and it made you grip the fabric tighter around yourself when he quickly pulled away, clearing his throat and avoiding your gaze. 

You agreed to his proposition as casually as you could and stumbled a little when you made eye contact with the one and only Min Yoongi, who was also just seemed to leaving for the day, his strong gaze alternating between you and Namjoon, and the cardigan around your shoulders.

wow i have not written this much in a really long time so i’m actually pretty proud of myself lol. lmk what u guys thought down in the comments or messages! as always thanks to everyone who is reading and to everyone who left those supportive comments they really made my day and i appreciate all of you!!<3

T O    B E    C O N T I N U E D .  .  .

tag list: @hoodiebangtan​ @xanny91​ @babeejeon​ @chocolatemilk1221 @fuckthatfeeling​ @cremextart​ @secretlypg95​ @littlegryffindorsavage​ @paracii​ @tragicrosemoons​ @sunshinein17​ @xxluckydreamsxx​ @skzleaf​ @lidda​ @thesugatoyourtae​ @marycarabell​ @pawschimchim​ 

[midnightactual]

Critical Analysis & Tactics IV (CAT-4): Yoruichi vs. Soifon Part A

How strong is Yoruichi? That’s actually a very involved question. I’ve decided to create a series of articles detailing my thoughts on the matter by looking at military incidents and confrontations involving her. This is the fourth, and you may consult the others at your leisure:

CAT-1: The Hollowfication Incident

CAT-2: The Central 46 Trial Breakout

CAT-3: Yoruichi vs. Byakuya

CAT-5: Yoruichi & Soifon vs. Aizen

CAT-6: Yoruichi vs. Yammy

CAT-7: Yoruichi, Kisuke, & Isshin vs. Aizen

CAT-8: Yoruichi & Co. vs. Yhwach

CAT-9: Yoruichi vs. Askin

I’ve obliquely talked about this fight before (here) as it relates to Yoruichi’s disinclination to use her zanpakutō, but not in great detail. It says quite a lot about their respective powers and abilities, but to an even greater extent it reveals the exact nature of their relationship prior to Yoruichi’s departure from the Seireitei. These are all matters which I feel there are points of confusion and misunderstanding on by others. Given that, I’m going to give my own perspective on all these issues.

Since the is a long post, let me as usual put the basic conclusion here up front: this fight wasn’t particularly serious in terms of physical danger, as Yoruichi was hardly trying and Soifon radically underestimated her abilities. This fight is far more about psychology and mutual understanding of one another.

01. I’ve discussed this in the past (here), yet it bears not just repeating but additional emphasis: Yoruichi is at her absolute weakest ever during the Soul Society arc, as she herself alludes to in chapter 119:

She drops Ichigo like a sack of potatoes despite him being injured and slumps against the wall because she’s so winded, and openly comments on the fact that she’s wildly out of shape. It’s abundantly clear that she isn’t performing at anywhere near her previous or future maximum abilities during this arc.

02. Yoruichi’s attire also bears some scrutiny. Notice how she’s dressed above. She has on her stretchy pants, and we know from earlier scenes with Ichigo in chapter 116 that she’s wearing a turtleneck (plus you can see the sleeves poking out of her jacket). Also notice her footwear. All throughout Ichigo’s bankai training, Yoruichi is wearing shoes with integrated greaves. These appear to be flats based on the shoes she wore as a Taichō (and which Soifon still wears as one) but modified to suit her preferences. By the time she fights Soifon, however, her outfit has notably changed, as seen here in chapter 157:

The turtleneck has been replaced by the keisen shōzoku-inspired top, as she later reveals and which even here is evident from the lack of sleeves. The shoes have also been replaced with boots instead (which are capable of dispensing anken). She has cloth wrapped around her arms, and her shins are wrapped in gaiters. She only wears this variation on her outfit when fighting Soifon. (As seen in CAT-6, when she later fights Yammy, she’s wearing an outfit identical to when she trained Ichigo.)

In reality, gaiters largely exist to protect against scratching, puncture, or friction. The wraps on her arms are similar to puttees, and serve a similar function, while the remainder of her scarf functions like a neck gaiter. One might ask why she’d discard hard greaves for soft gaiters, and the answer is that their protective power is actually likely superior.

As noted in CAT-3, in chapter 117, Yoruichi completely halted Byakuya’s release of Senbonzakura using a cloth ribbon, and as noted in CAT-5, in chapter 177, did similar to Aizen. I would suggest that that cloth ribbon is special, and that her arm wraps, gaiters, and neck gaiter are made of the same material. I would also suggest so is her hair wrap, given it repeatedly survives Shunkō, to include her Raiju Senkei form where electrical Kidō is literally running through her hair. What this cloth material is and what its exact properties are remains unknown, but it seems incredibly durable. (Given it appears to be a tan color, it might not be related to the Ginpaku Kazahana no Uzuginu of Byakuya’s scarf, but it could be the same material but processed or treated differently, possibly explaining the immense value of that scarf beyond mere rarity.)

This assertion is supported by the fact that during the actual fight, in chapter 157, Yoruichi both takes and deals several blows to areas protected by these garments, suggesting they were made specifically for fighting with Hakuda:

A question becomes apparent at this point, which is: where did Yoruichi get this stuff? More than likely from the storage depot above the study chamber, which is likely where she also got the first outfit she used for this mission (since she obviously didn’t bring it with her to Soul Society given she came as a cat). In other words, I think it’s very clear that Yoruichi specifically equipped herself to fight against Soifon, knowing she would likely be dealing with Hakuda and might have to use Shunkō and dressing to compensate for her own weakness.

03. Yoruichi and Soifon’s reunion is very telling regarding how truly familiar they are with one another. Here’s how it starts:

I want you to pay attention to how close Yoruichi is before Soifon notices her approach. Part of this is due to Yoruichi’s speed, but remember: she’s not flash stepping at anywhere near her optimum, and would be conserving her energy heading into battle. Part of this is due to Yoruichi’s stealth, but remember: Yoruichi felt Renji’s ambient reiatsu approaching even at a notable distance through solid matter. Soifon doesn’t notice Yoruichi until the very instant before she’s tackled off of Kiyone. (The closing-in panel at top-left suggests the bottom panel is indeed Yoruichi’s own perspective, as she hits Soifon in the very next panel.)

But I want to make a point regarding reiatsu detection before proceeding: Shinigami who are very familiar with each other will naturally detect one another’s reiatsu at distances at which other, more powerful Shinigami won’t. An example of this is Rukia detecting Ichigo’s approach before Byakuya does in chapter 581, presumably due to the nature of Ichigo and Rukia’s bond:

And another example is Yoruichi and Yūshirō detecting one another at a great distance in the Soul King’s Palace in chapter 628, while not noting anyone else on either end, presumably because they’re related:

In other words, people with strong bonds should have a distinct advantage in identifying one another even if one part is moving quickly or attempting to conceal themselves. This suggests that Yoruichi and Soifon do not actually share such a bond, a point which will repeatedly be made over the course of their fight, but especially two pages later back in chapter 153:

Stop and think about their situation. Soifon can see the eyes and skin color of Yoruichi at this range, and likely also feel her reiatsu... and she still doesn’t recognize her. How many dark-skinned, gold-eyed people are there in the Seireitei who wear orange jackets and move quickly and stealthily? It’s worse than the translation here lets on, by the way:

The original Japanese here at the bottom-left is, “何者だ貴様!!” which translates to Romaji as “Nanimonoda kisama!!” Yes, that kisama. The literal translation would be something like, “Who are you, you bastard!!” I think Soifon calling Yoruichi “kisama” is all the proof you need to firmly establish she has no idea who this is, and doesn’t recognize it as Yoruichi until she hears her voice. I also think that reaction panel firmly dispels any idea that Soifon is acting and doing this just to insult Yoruichi, because this is a face of shock:

It’s very obvious that Soifon is surprised by the fact that she’s seeing Yoruichi again, despite all those visual indicators, which is... strange, and perhaps suggests something about Soifon’s powers of observation. Regardless, this can be taken in contrast with the next page, and Yoruichi’s reveal:

Which is surprisingly playful. Yoruichi isn’t stressed at all here, and remains fairly upbeat and comparatively unperturbed for the first section of the fight until Soifon tears the (breakaway?) sleeves off of her uniform. It’s pretty clear that Yoruichi doesn’t go into this fight expecting a hard slog, even if she took precautions with her outfit. Indeed, I would say she expected it to be merely a performance review.

The point remains: Soifon didn’t identify Yoruichi until well after they’d made contact, and past the point when it should’ve been obvious who was accosting her.

04. Starting in chapter 154, we’re treated to repeated scenes presenting Yoruichi and Soifon as equals:

This first panel makes it very clear visually, and that sets the tone for what follows.

It’s also echoed in the way that they trash-talk each other.

And also reflected in the visual framing of their exchanges; these panels are clearly designed to kind of ‘reflect’ one another. Take notice here of Soifon’s further trash-talking: she’s asserting that she was a better warrior than Yoruichi even when Yoruichi was her Taichō! How’s that for confidence? And it should tell you a lot about how Soifon looks back upon Yoruichi’s tenure, which we’ll get into later.

This apparent equity is also reflected in them trading hits. Yoruichi’s injury seems more grievous, given she’s coughing up blood, but Soifon doesn’t seem to regard it as a more notable injury than she herself suffered, nor does it actually impact Yoruichi’s performance any more than Soifon’s does her. (Nor will Soifon’s strikes with Suzumebachi seemingly do anything to slow Yoruichi down as the fight goes on.)

This sense of equity will persist right up until after Soifon reveals her shikai and starts to speed up, at which point she will reveal that she’s been “going easy” on Yoruichi and that (in her mind) they’re not equals.

I think it’s because of this rather thorough visual symbolism (and Yoruichi’s reactions of surprise as Soifon’s performance) that many people walk away with the impression that Soifon and Yoruichi are equal in performance, not just in this fight and this arc, but throughout Bleach. We already know, however, from (01), that that simply isn’t true: Soifon here at her maximum output can only just rival Yoruichi at her weakest.

This is emphasized by the fact that Soifon will go on to fail to score two consecutive hits with Suzumebachi on Yoruichi, and by the fact that we know (from her escape from Byakuya with Ichigo) that Yoruichi isn’t going all out with her flash steps here either. This is not only Yoruichi at her weakest, this is also Yoruichi fighting in a very conservative fashion. And Soifon still can’t take her out despite earnestly trying.

05. The motivations of both parties are rather plainly established. Soifon’s motivations are revealed by the panels above with her, “Which of us... is the better warrior?!” and, “Now do you see? I’m better than you!” remarks. This further emphasized by a panel in chapter 158:

Soifon is obsessed with proving she’s better than Yoruichi, and rubbing Yoruichi’s face in the fact.

Yoruichi, meanwhile, rather obviously turned up to see where Soifon was at in terms of her progression, as chapter 154 alludes to:

Yoruichi is there to see whether Soifon has filled her proverbial shoes. This shouldn’t be surprising as we know from Soifon’s flashbacks in chapter 159 that:

Yoruichi added Soifon to her bodyguard unit in the first place because she “[admired her] skills” and was “expecting great things from [her].”

In other words, Yoruichi showed up to see how Soifon had been getting on in terms of her skills for all this time, and seemed to largely expect a fairly casual encounter (although she was prepared for it to escalate). She wasn’t anticipating Soifon’s mindset and drive to actually try and kill her. Soifon, meanwhile, is resolute in her determination to punish Yoruichi for what she regards as having been abandoned.

Click here for Part B!

[astudyinfreewill]

So this excerpt that Maggie tweeted appears to be a quote from Cicero’s Laelius, also known as De Amicitia (On Friendship), and it means as if another self / just like another self.

I went to look up the Latin passage because I wanted to see how this worked within the paragraph, and after quickly translating it in my head, I thought it had some interesting potential for discussion.

The larger passage it comes from is as follows:

digni autem sunt amicitia, quibus in ipsis inest causa cur diligantur. rarum genus! et quidem omnia praeclara, rara, nec quicquam difficilius quam reperire quod sit omni ex parte in suo genere perfectum. sed plerique neque in rebus humanis quicquam bonum norunt nisi quod fructuosum sit, et amicos tamquam pecudes eos potissimum diligunt, ex quibus sperant se maximum fructum esse capturos.[80] ita pulcherrima illa et maxime naturali carent amicitia per se et propter se expetita,nec ipsi sibi exemplo sunt, haec vis amicitiae et qualis et quanta sit. ipse enim se quisque diligit, non ut aliquam a se ipse mercedem exigat caritatis suae, sed quod per se quisque sibi carus est; quod nisi idem in amicitiam transferetur, verus amicus numquam reperietur: est enim is qui est tamquam alter idem. (Cic. Lael. 21, 79-80).

And this is the translation (I didn’t feel like re-doing it all from scratch myself and making it pretty, because I was possessed by the feral urge to make this post, so I am using the one from this excellent website) -- emphasis mine:

Now they are worthy of friendship who have within their own souls the reason for their being loved. A rare class indeed! And really everything splendid is rare, and nothing is harder to find than something which in all respects is a perfect specimen of its kind. But the majority of men recognize nothing whatever in human experience as good unless it brings some profit and they regard their friends as they do their cattle, valuing most highly those which give hope of the largest gain. [80] Thus do they fail to attain that loveliest, most spontaneous friendship, which is desirable in and for itself; and they do not learn from their own experience what the power of such friendship is and are ignorant of its nature and extent. For everyone loves himself, not with a view of acquiring some profit himself from his self-love, but because he is dear to himself on his own account; and unless this same feeling were transferred to friendship, the real friend would never be found; for he is, as it were, another self.

While Cicero’s work is, as you can tell, a philosophical discussion about the value of disinterested/unselfish friendship, somehow I don’t think that’s quite what’s being discussed in the excerpt. There are a few other angles that could come into play here:

dream doubles: it’s pretty clear from the excerpt that Adam is visiting Ronan in one of his dreams, most likely by scrying/astral projecting (that is, unless Adam’s somehow figured out how to disappear in real life). So Adam could be taking the quote of context to explain how he’s there, not really physically but through a projection of his essence, “another self”

Lindenmere: Maggie replied to the original tweet saying that the excerpt might make more sense if you’ve read the Opal story. The first thing that came to my mind was Ronan struggling to make the new Cabeswater, because he wants to make it perfect, like the old Cabeswater but better, and Adam reassuring him that “it won’t be what you imagined, but it will be just as good”. So Lindenmere could be seen as Cabeswater’s “other self”. This also has additional meaning for each of them, because Ronan manifests Lindenmere as he manifested Cabeswater, and therefore they are a reflection of his soul (another self?); and though Adam’s special connection to Cabeswater was caused by his sacrifice to awaken the ley line, it’s possible that Lindenmere, being a manifestation of the same entity, taking energy from the same line, being Cabeswater’s other self, remembers him and might be responsive to him, making it easier for him to scry into it (and Ronan’s dreamspace). Currently, I believe this is the most likely option.

But there’s another level of it that intrigues me, and really, one that I think is true regardless of whether it’s what the characters are referencing. If you look at the passage I bolded, you’ll see that it compares disinterested friendship and sincere affection to loving oneself: we all love/care for ourselves in some way, at least a little bit, even if it’s just survival instinct, and we can’t have any ulterior motives in loving ourselves, because we have nothing material to gain -- only acceptance and happiness. It’s that concept of being “dear to someone on our own account”. And that, ultimately, is how Adam and Ronan feel about each other. Now I personally think -- watch me be clowned, but I’d bet on it -- that Ronan is going to struggle a lot with the dangers his dreaming poses to Adam (both in itself and because people are hunting him down) and I can see him trying to distance himself to keep Adam safe. So it’s not a stretch to imagine Adam showing up in Ronan’s dreams and Ronan telling him that it’s dangerous, that he shouldn’t worry about Ronan, that he needs to look after himself, and Adam replying that that’s ridiculous, because he cares about Ronan as if Ronan was Adam’s own self. And mayhaps I’m emo about that, because it really is the truth, whether or not it’s what the quote means here.

So, until November 5 rolls around and we find out for sure... have fun picking your favourite interpretation (or heck, all three of them - I know I am), and if you have any other ideas, let me know what you think!

[malcolmadrian97]

Reiki Therapy For Anxiety Astonishing Useful Tips

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Can Reiki Cure A Cold

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Reiki Symbol For Third Eye

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[wherespacepooh]

Brian Orser on Yuzuru’s 4Lo and the discussion after Skate Canada (excerpts from Team Brian 2)

(Picture is of Yuzuru at the medal ceremony in Helsinki. It didn’t come from Team Brian 2, but I always wondered what and how much it took the team to get there.)

There is actually a lot to marvel about, in terms of how Yuzuru's season came together so beautifully in the end. As we look forward to the next season, let’s review how the last season began with three excerpts from Team Brian 2. 

From Brian’s perspective, we can see the concerns and worries over Yuzuru's health, his at-the-time troubling 4T (in contrast to its 3A-toppling status now :o), the immense belief and strength (and stubbornness) it took for Yuzuru to persevere with the 4Lo, as well as the discussion post-Skate Canada that lead to mutual understanding and ultimately, a successful season overcoming those difficult challenges. Cheers and kudos, Team Yuzu! 

(Conclusion: Brian gains 15kg from the last six months of 2016 and loses 1kg in hair.)

Translated by gladi. Feel free to repost in entirety with credits.

Three excerpts from Chapter 5 of Team Brian 2 「チーム・ブライアン：３００点伝説」第五章 より

Yuzuru's 4Lo is first and foremost rehabilitation for his injury ユズルの４回転ループはまず怪我のリハビリとして

Yuzuru had been absent from practice for 2 months due to the Lisfranc injury in his left foot after the 2016 World Championship. He didn’t participate in ice shows, and as it was better not to walk, he really took a rest.　Instead of returning to Japan, he did muscle training to the extent possible in Toronto. By early spring, he was looking healthy and we looked forward to resuming practice in June. However, although he started at the end of June, his left foot wasn’t yet fit to bear weight. In restarting his training for quads, we decided to take things step by step. 

The 4Lo was the best in terms of not burdening the left foot. The loop takes off on the right foot and lands with the right foot. Although Yuzuru had successfully landed them in practice, no one had landed one in competition. Tackling a difficult jump while injured might have seemed like an illogical approach, but I deemed it the safest option for the current situation. 

Since the quad salchow uses the left foot, although Yuzuru had landed that many times last season, it took a while for the success rate to go up again. Since the 4T, which Yuzuru was very good at, was the jump that caused injuries, he wasn’t able to practice the 4T until just before the Autumn Classic in September. Doing the 4T hurts because he has to hit the ice with his left toe pick on takeoff.

Let's talk about the loop. Scores wise, a 4Lo is one above the 4S and the 4T. 4F and 4Lz have higher base values, but since you take off with both feet, it is easier to get a good height/distance and they were landed in competition before the Loop. Because the Loop takeoff is done with a single foot, getting the timing right is a delicate matter. Depending on the athlete, some may really like it (be good at it), so might hate it (be terrible). 

Actually I was bad at loop jumps. Since I was Mr Triple Axel, I really focused on practicing the axel, and only started practicing the loop late in my competitive career. My first triple was the Salchow, then the toe loop and the lutz, after which I successfully landed the triple axel. I learned the flip and the loop later, but now that I think about it, it was one of the bigger failures in my skating career. Since I started training too late, I only really landed them when I was 25, during the last season of my competitive career. 

There is this saying, "You can't teach an old dog new tricks.” Jumps are things your body can get a feel for when you are still young. Since I became an old dog, although I understood the theory, in practice I wasn’t able to do a loop jump naturally. 

Both Yuzuru and Javier are able to do the loop jump easily. Especially Yuzuru, who has a natural-born quality. Given how beautiful his triple loop is, you know he has the ability to do the quad. And it's no longer what I should teach. The skater must commit his own unique timing to muscle memory and us coaches are there to correct the skater’s form based on theory. 

Once he actually started practicing, Yuzuru became obsessed with the 4Lo. That was natural since he would be the first to land that jump in competition if he succeeded. Because he was too focused on the quad loop, he got into a state where he wasn’t able to concentrate during practice sessions of his programs and in skating class. I began to think, “Hey, that’s not what we said before?” I just thought the quad loop was good for the rehabilitation process. I didn’t suggest to train only the quad loop. As for whether or not there really was a need to put it into competition, we were going to decide after we checked the level of completeness. 

Essentially, during off season, it is important to practice techniques for skating, spins, steps and so forth, and the scores won’t increase without training the program in its entirety. As it is, successfully landing the quad loop alone––the scores won’t go up. I thought this had become a situation like a youngster who didn’t understand how scoring worked, crushingly defeated even though he’d landed quads. As a coach, I felt like I had a lot I wanted to say. On the other hand, when I saw Yuzuru do a really beautiful quad loop, I was unable to negate [his efforts] either. Such speed, and a beautiful curve––a natural jump. It is a truly fantastic thing to behold when he [lands it] cleanly. The success rate has also gone up to around 70%, which was more stable than both the salchow and the toe loop. 

Why was Yuzuru focused on succeeding with the 4Lo ４回転ループ成功にこだわるのはなぜなのか

Yuzuru, having acquired the 4Lo during the summer, naturally suggested to bring the 4Lo into competition beginning with the first competition in September. Based on the success rate and high level of quality, my opinion as a coach was “GO.” But I also felt the possibility that [we might be] losing sight of the direction built up from last season if we were to simply say “Yes, let’s do a 4Lo.” So I pointed out the conditions to Yuzuru. 

It is great to put in the 4Lo, but also do the other jumps properly and pay attention to both the performance and the skating. If [you were to] perfect the program as a total package, then there is meaning in bringing the 4Lo. 

Thereupon, Yuzuru then proposed such a jump layout. For the short program, 4Lo and 4S. For the free skate, 4Lo, two 4S, one 4T––four in total. Compared to the last season, not only adding a new type with the 4Lo, but also increasing the number of quads in the free skate. 

If it were according to my strategy, to accomplish “2 in short, 4 in free,” I would begin with mastering the program [choreography] in its entirety. Skating, transitions, steps…I would perfect the elements outside of jumps first. That way, instead of banking on jumping quad after quad, [we] focus on executing quads that are high in quality and increase the number of quads––2, 3, and 4––throughout the season. This way is actually quicker. 

To explain this training method in greater detail, it’s like this: Jumps vary in timing and the way force is applied, depending on the type. Therefore, when we add a new jump to the program, we are inserting an element that differs from the present rhythm. If we prioritize and only consider the rhythm of the 4Lo, the rhythm of all the rest of the jumps would collapse. In other words, in addition to the technique of the [new] jump itself, the technique of making all these jumps with different rhythms coexist within a single piece of music is necessary in order to achieve the perfect performance. 

Therefore, in order to challenge a new jump within the program, we must work in the newcomer while maintaining the rhythm that was in place. This is a difficult world that is hard to understand without experiencing it. Youngsters who’d abruptly added many quads in 2016 have yet to experience the “difficulty of adjusting the rhythm” when putting in three or four types simultaneously. Successfully landing each one in practice and weaving everything together with the music are completely different techniques. 

Both Yuzuru and Javier had experience from last season in that respect. The body remembers the rhythm combining “three quads.” I wanted Yuzuru to leverage this. To fit in the 4Lo within the balance of the program rather than letting the rhythm of the 4Lo affect everything else. 

However, Yuzuru is the type who always wants to bring the maximum of what he is capable of. A young one who wants to challenge the impossible––that is also Yuzuru. As much as possible, he prioritized acquiring the 4Lo and tried to do that while practicing his program in his spare time. Then, during run-through, when he failed to land the 4Lo, he ended up losing motivation for the rest of the program. On the contrary, when he nailed the 4Lo, he was satisfied and the rest became sloppy. That was the same way as a junior kid. Even when Javier danced through the best program or landed a second half quad in front of him, he didn’t look stimulated at all. 

At times, I had even doubted Yuzuru’s motivation as to why he was so fixated on succeeding with the 4Lo. [I wondered if], instead of “challenging his own limits,” it was because “other skaters are jumping 4F and 4Lz.” If so, he had lost sight of the sense of purpose. But Yuzuru has a very stubborn personality. Until he succeeded with the 4Lo for the first time [in competition], I thought he would probably just turn a deaf ear to whatever I said. The title of “world’s first” was right before his eyes and he also had the physical ability––as an athlete, that was a natural thing [to want]. Although this was a completely different course of action from my strategy, [which was rooted in] my hope for Yuzuru to smile happily at Pyeongchang Olympics, I decided anyway to let Yuzuru do as he wished until [he landed 4Lo for the first time in competition]. 

Discussion and understanding 話し合い、そして理解

This happened sometime after Skate Canada ended. Yuzuru and I had a meeting. Tracy was with us as well. 

“It’s time you listen to the advice of your coach. There is no need to jump the quad loop every day, and you should also practice your programs. Succeeding on the quad loop at Autumn Classic was wonderful, but the performance was sloppy. You didn’t have the stamina to skate the program in its entirety, did you?  Doing it this way, you won’t complete the program with all the quads in it, however long you take." 

It was not just about scoring. I was worried about Yuzuru's injury as well. 

“What dangers do you think arise when you skate your program without enough stamina? Recklessly attempting jumps like the quad salchow and the toe loop in the second half of the performance when you are tired? And when you do that, you land [poorly] and create burden for your foot with a possibility of severely injuring yourself. Rather than focusing solely on the quad loop at the start, this is the time when you should be practicing to bring the whole performance together as a total package, and training for stamina to skate with full energy until the very end." 

Then, Yuzuru who has thus far silently trained the quad loop without speaking a word of his own opinion at all, looking like he’d made up his mind, opened his mouth. 

“Up until Skate Canada, it is true that I’ve been practicing the quad loop a lot. But that was because, to me, the quad loop is an [integral] part of the performance. To me, a program without the jumps landed is not a total package." 

That was unprecedented. This was the first time that Yuzuru had put his opinions clearly into words to such an extent. He wasn’t merely stubbornly focused on the quad loop––indeed, Yuzuru had Yuzuru’s own theory. Upon expressing our opinions to each other, [we realized] the goal we were aiming for was the same. 

“Succeed on all the quads and, on top of that, produce a sublime performance.” 

It was just that Yuzuru gave more weight to the importance of jumps. Because that didn’t align with my opinion, he had kept quiet about his own. But this time, Yuzuru insisted with resolve and an understanding that it might turn into an argument, “Jumps are not a part of technique, but a part of performance.” He told me that, with this train of thought in mind, he’d started from practicing jumps in order to hone his performance. 

By getting down to our real intentions, we made our purpose clear, and I also felt mentally refreshed. It has been the fifth year since we formed a team with Yuzuru. I knew he trusted me and I also saw Yuzuru as the best partner from the bottom of my heart. There are many things in a relationship between the coach and the athlete––misunderstanding each other, disagreeing in opinions, and then going hand in hand once more. In this kind of relationship, we learn from each other. 

As our meeting came to a close, I said this. 

“All right. Aren’t we joining in this quad race too? I am not going to play safe. Instead, we go the strategic route. We will add the quad loop, and three types of quads––to a total number of four––in the free skate. We will be attentive to the performance and skating. Only never lose awareness of the total package." 

[yuzu-yuzuru]

There is actually a lot to marvel about, in terms of how Yuzuru’s season came together so beautifully in the end. I thought it’s a good time right now to review even as we look forward to the next season, so here are three excerpts from Chapter 5 of Team Brian 2. ` From Brian’s perspective, we can see the concerns and worries over Yuzuru’s health, his at-the-time troubling 4T (in contrast to its 3A-toppling status now :o), the immense belief and strength (and stubbornness) it took for Yuzuru to persevere with the 4Lo, as well as the discussion post-Skate Canada that lead to mutual understanding and, against all odds, a successful season overcoming those difficult challenges. Cheers and kudos, Team Yuzu! ` (Conclusion: Brian gains 15kg from the last six months of 2016 and loses 1kg in hair.) ` Translated by gladi. Feel free to repost in entirety with credits. ========================================== ` ` Three excerpts from Chapter 5 of Team Brian 2 「チーム・ブライアン：３００点伝説」第五章 より ` Yuzuru’s 4Lo is first and foremost rehabilitation for his injury ユズルの４回転ループはまず怪我のリハビリとして ` Yuzuru had been absent from practice for 2 months due to the Lisfranc injury in his left foot after the 2016 World Championship. He didn’t participate in ice shows, and as it was better not to walk, he really took a rest.　Instead of returning to Japan, he did muscle training to the extent possible in Toronto. By early spring, he was looking healthy and we looked forward to resuming practice in June. However, although he started at the end of June, his left foot wasn’t yet fit to bear weight. In restarting his training for quads, we decided to take things step by step. ` The 4Lo was the best in terms of not burdening the left foot. The loop takes off on the right foot and lands with the right foot. Although Yuzuru had successfully landed them in practice, no one had landed one in competition. Tackling a difficult jump while injured might have seemed like an illogical approach, but I deemed it the safest option for the current situation. ` Since the quad salchow uses the left foot, although Yuzuru had landed that many times last season, it took a while for the success rate to go up again. Since the 4T, which Yuzuru was very good at, was the jump that caused injuries, he wasn’t able to practice the 4T until just before the Autumn Classic in September. Doing the 4T hurts because he has to hit the ice with his left toe pick on takeoff. ` Let’s talk about the loop. Scores wise, a 4Lo is one above the 4S and the 4T. 4F and 4Lz have higher base values, but since you take off with both feet, it is easier to get a good height/distance and they were landed in competition before the Loop. Because the Loop takeoff is done with a single foot, getting the timing right is a delicate matter. Depending on the athlete, some may really like it (be good at it), so might hate it (be terrible). ` Actually I was bad at loop jumps. Since I was Mr Triple Axel, I really focused on practicing the axel, and only started practicing the loop late in my competitive career. My first triple was the Salchow, then the toe loop and the lutz, after which I successfully landed the triple axel. I learned the flip and the loop later, but now that I think about it, it was one of the bigger failures in my skating career. Since I started training too late, I only really landed them when I was 25, during the last season of my competitive career. ` There is this saying, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” Jumps are things your body can get a feel for when you are still young. Since I became an old dog, although I understood the theory, in practice I wasn’t able to do a loop jump naturally. ` Both Yuzuru and Javier are able to do the loop jump easily. Especially Yuzuru, who has a natural-born quality. Given how beautiful his triple loop is, you know he has the ability to do the quad. And it’s no longer what I should teach. The skater must commit his own unique timing to muscle memory and us coaches are there to correct the skater’s form based on theory. ` Once he actually started practicing, Yuzuru became obsessed with the 4Lo. That was natural since he would be the first to land that jump in competition if he succeeded. Because he was too focused on the quad loop, he got into a state where he wasn’t able to concentrate during practice sessions of his programs and in skating class. I began to think, “Hey, that’s not what we said before?” I just thought the quad loop was good for the rehabilitation process. I didn’t suggest to train only the quad loop. As for whether or not there really was a need to put it into competition, we were going to decide after we checked the level of completeness. ` Essentially, during off season, it is important to practice techniques for skating, spins, steps and so forth, and the scores won’t increase without training the program in its entirety. As it is, successfully landing the quad loop alone––the scores won’t go up. I thought this had become a situation like a youngster who didn’t understand how scoring worked, crushingly defeated even though he’d landed quads. As a coach, I felt like I had a lot I wanted to say. ` On the other hand, when I saw Yuzuru do a really beautiful quad loop, I was unable to negate [his efforts] either. Such speed, and a beautiful curve––a natural jump. It is a truly fantastic thing to behold when he [lands it] cleanly. The success rate has also gone up to around 70%, which was more stable than both the salchow and the toe loop. ` ` Why was Yuzuru focused on succeeding with the 4Lo ４回転ループ成功にこだわるのはなぜなのか ` Yuzuru, having acquired the 4Lo during the summer, naturally suggested to bring the 4Lo into competition beginning with the first competition in September. Based on the success rate and high level of quality, my opinion as a coach was “GO.” But I also felt the possibility that [we might be] losing sight of the direction built up from last season if we were to simply say “Yes, let’s do a 4Lo.” So I pointed out the conditions to Yuzuru. ` It is great to put in the 4Lo, but also do the other jumps properly and pay attention to both the performance and the skating. If [you were to] perfect the program as a total package, then there is meaning in bringing the 4Lo. ` Thereupon, Yuzuru then proposed such a jump layout. For the short program, 4Lo and 4S. For the free skate, 4Lo, two 4S, one 4T––four in total. Compared to the last season, not only adding a new type with the 4Lo, but also increasing the number of quads in the free skate. ` If it were according to my strategy, to accomplish “2 in short, 4 in free,” I would begin with mastering the program [choreography] in its entirety. Skating, transitions, steps…I would perfect the elements outside of jumps first. That way, instead of banking on jumping quad after quad, [we] focus on executing quads that are high in quality and increase the number of quads––2, 3, and 4––throughout the season. This way is actually quicker. ` To explain this training method in greater detail, it’s like this: Jumps vary in timing and the way force is applied, depending on the type. Therefore, when we add a new jump to the program, we are inserting an element that differs from the present rhythm. If we prioritize and only consider the rhythm of the 4Lo, the rhythm of all the rest of the jumps would collapse. In other words, in addition to the technique of the [new] jump itself, the technique of making all these jumps with different rhythms coexist within a single piece of music is necessary in order to achieve the perfect performance. ` Therefore, in order to challenge a new jump within the program, we must work in the newcomer while maintaining the rhythm that was in place. This is a difficult world that is hard to understand without experiencing it. Youngsters who’d abruptly added many quads in 2016 have yet to experience the “difficulty of adjusting the rhythm” when putting in three or four types simultaneously. Successfully landing each one in practice and weaving everything together with the music are completely different techniques. ` Both Yuzuru and Javier had experience from last season in that respect. The body remembers the rhythm combining “three quads.” I wanted Yuzuru to leverage this. To fit in the 4Lo within the balance of the program rather than letting the rhythm of the 4Lo affect everything else. ` However, Yuzuru is the type who always wants to bring the maximum of what he is capable of. A young one who wants to challenge the impossible––that is also Yuzuru. As much as possible, he prioritized acquiring the 4Lo and tried to do that while practicing his program in his spare time. Then, during run-through, when he failed to land the 4Lo, he ended up losing motivation for the rest of the program. On the contrary, when he nailed the 4Lo, he was satisfied and the rest became sloppy. That was the same way as a junior kid. Even when Javier danced through the best program or landed a second half quad in front of him, he didn’t look stimulated at all. ` At times, I had even doubted Yuzuru’s motivation as to why he was so fixated on succeeding with the 4Lo. [I wondered if], instead of “challenging his own limits,” it was because “other skaters are jumping 4F and 4Lz.” If so, he had lost sight of the sense of purpose. But Yuzuru has a very stubborn personality. Until he succeeded with the 4Lo for the first time [in competition], I thought he would probably just turn a deaf ear to whatever I said. The title of “world’s first” was right before his eyes and he also had the physical ability––as an athlete, that was a natural thing [to want]. Although this was a completely different course of action from my strategy, [which was rooted in] my hope for Yuzuru to smile happily at Pyeongchang Olympics, I decided anyway to let Yuzuru do as he wished until [he landed 4Lo for the first time in competition]. ` ` Discussion and understanding 話し合い、そして理解 ` This happened sometime after Skate Canada ended. Yuzuru and I had a meeting. Tracy was with us as well. ` “It’s time you listen to the advice of your coach. There is no need to jump the quad loop every day, and you should also practice your programs. Succeeding on the quad loop at Autumn Classic was wonderful, but the performance was sloppy. You didn’t have the stamina to skate the program in its entirety, did you? Doing it this way, you won’t complete the program with all the quads in it, however long you take.” ` It was not just about scoring. I was worried about Yuzuru’s injury as well. ` “What dangers do you think arise when you skate your program without enough stamina? Recklessly attempting jumps like the quad salchow and the toe loop in the second half of the performance when you are tired? And when you do that, you land [poorly] and create burden for your foot with a possibility of severely injuring yourself. Rather than focusing solely on the quad loop at the start, this is the time when you should be practicing to bring the whole performance together as a total package, and training for stamina to skate with full energy until the very end.“ ` Then, Yuzuru who has thus far silently trained the quad loop without speaking a word of his own opinions at all, looking like he’d made up his mind, opened his mouth. ` “Up until Skate Canada, it is true that I’ve been practicing the quad loop a lot. But that was because, to me, the quad loop is an [integral] part of the performance. To me, a program without the jumps landed is not a total package.” ` That was unprecedented. This was the first time that Yuzuru had put his opinions clearly into words to such an extent. He wasn’t merely stubbornly focused on the quad loop––indeed, Yuzuru had Yuzuru’s own theory. ` Upon expressing our opinions to each other, [we realized] the goal we were aiming for was the same. ` “Succeed on all the quads and, on top of that, produce a sublime performance.” ` It was just that Yuzuru gave more weight to the importance of jumps. Because that didn’t align with my opinion, he had kept quiet about his own. But this time, Yuzuru insisted with resolve and an understanding that it might turn into an argument, “Jumps are not a part of technique, but a part of performance.” He told me that, with this train of thought in mind, he’d started from practicing jumps in order to hone his performance. ` By getting down to our real intentions, we made our purpose clear, and I also felt mentally refreshed. It has been the fifth year since we formed a team with Yuzuru. I knew he trusted me and I also saw Yuzuru as the best partner from the bottom of my heart. There are many things in a relationship between the coach and the athlete––misunderstanding each other, disagreeing in opinions, and then going hand in hand once more. In this kind of relationship, we learn from each other. ` As our meeting came to a close, I said this. ` “All right. Aren’t we joining in this quad race too? I am not going to play safe. Instead, we go the strategic route. We will add the quad loop, and three types of quads––to a total number of four––in the free skate. We will be attentive to the performance and skating. Only never lose awareness of the total package.“

[postgamecontent]

Studio Pixel Spotlight: Cave Story

Original Release Date: December 20, 2004

Original Hardware: Windows PC

Chances are good that if you've only played one game in this spotlight, it's Cave Story. It's Daisuke "Pixel" Amaya's most famous and successful work, and it's been released on far more platforms than any of his other games. It has sold millions of copies, a fact made all the more impressive when you consider that the game in its most basic form has been available for free since the day it was released. It's also an important game, serving as a herald for the indie game boom that would follow in its wake. Its success not only won Pixel his financial independence, it also helped establish indie publisher Nicalis. Oh, and it's also a really terrific game. Any game that makes it this far on word of mouth would have to be, wouldn't it?

Of course, Pixel wouldn't have had any way of knowing just how big his little game would become as he toiled away on it for five long years. His previous games, Ikachan and Azarashi, hadn't garnered a lot of attention, after all. Still, he had a dream and refused to give up on it. As long as he could make something that would bring joy to someone else, that was good enough for him. So for a half-decade, Pixel went to his day job working on software for printers and came home to his personal project. There were false starts, ideas that never made it in, and items originally were meant to have purpose that ended up being vestigial. By the end of the process, Pixel was sure he would never make another game again. The game was finally completed as the year 2004 came to a close, and on December 20th, it was uploaded to Pixel's site. He didn't charge anything for his game, partly because he just wanted people to play it, and partly because he couldn't be bothered with the process of trying to collect money.

Before too long, the game caught the eye of a fan localization group called Aeon Genesis. They're one of the more respected romhacking groups around, with games like Shin Megami Tensei, Clock Tower, and Treasure of the Rudras under their collective belts. The group picked up Cave Story and did their thing with it, releasing the first English version of the game only a month after its Japanese release. By August of 2005 they had finished their final version, and the game had already begun to catch on in a surprisingly big way. With no AAA budget, marketing, or store presence, Cave Story had to rely purely on people enjoying it and spreading word of it around to their friends. That it became as big as it did at a time where social media consisted of MySpace and AOL Instant Messenger is a minor miracle.

Fans were soon porting the game around to just about anything that could handle it. A 2007 port to Sony's PlayStation Portable was one of the more popular non-emulator pieces of homebrew software for the system. For his part, Pixel had already moved on to making other games. He wasn't unaware of the popularity of his game, but if there's one word to describe Pixel, it's 'humble'. While there had been talk about bringing Cave Story to platforms like the Game Boy Advance, talk was all it was until he was approached by a man named Tyrone Rodriguez, a former editor at American gaming website IGN. In 2007, Rodriguez founded Nicalis, a small developer/publisher that targeted the burgeoning digital marketplaces on consoles. He convinced Pixel that the game would be a good fit for Nintendo's upcoming Wiiware service, and a partnership was formed that persists to this day.

The Wiiware version from Nicalis wasn't just a straight port, however. Pixel and Nicalis felt that they should put their best foot forward with Cave Story and decided to touch up the game's presentation. They also wanted to add in some bonus content. After all, the game had been free up until this point. It might take some sweetening of the pot to convince players to pay. All of this work took time, and the Wiiware version of the game met with a few delays before it finally released in North America in March of 2010. A European release would follow several months later. Interestingly, this version of the game was never released in Japan. Pixel's home country would have to wait for the Nintendo DSiware version. That game launched in November of 2010 in North America, and came out almost exactly a year later in Japan. November 2011 also saw the PC release of Cave Story+, which was basically an enhanced version of the upgraded Wiiware port. This time, PC players would have to pay for the game if they wanted it. There were some gripes about that, but the game did just fine anyway.

That wasn't the only Cave Story action in November of 2011. That month also saw the release of Cave Story 3D on the Nintendo 3DS. As opposed to the enhanced but ultimately faithful ports of the game that had been released thus far, Cave Story 3D was a ground-up remake. All of the gorgeous pixel art was replaced with polygonal models, a change that didn't exactly go over well with a lot of players. This version of the game was also missing a lot of the extra content from the other versions of Cave Story, without much to make up for it. Truthfully, the most noteworthy thing about Cave Story 3D is that until the recent release of Cave Story+ for the Nintendo Switch, it was the only physical version of the game produced. It also features an appearance from Prinny, owing to the game being published by Disgaea creators NIS.

I played through Cave Story 3D earlier this year, and while it's certainly misguided in a lot of its changes, it's not terrible. You can tell it's coming from people who aren't accustomed to working with 3D graphics, however. Certain elements don't stand out as well from the backgrounds as they should, and everything just looks low-budget in a way that the original game ironically does not. The timing of the controls feels slightly off in places, too. I don't know if that's coming from any actual lag or is just a consequence of the dramatically different visual feedback, but it makes for a worse experience overall. If it's your only choice, the original game's quality still shines through well enough to give you a good time. I can't see how it could be your only choice, though, as the 3DS received its own native port of Cave Story for the Nintendo eShop less than a year later. I suppose it also has merit for die-hard fans just to see what a different version of Cave Story looks like, if nothing else.

As already mentioned, the latest release of the game is for the Nintendo Switch. I haven't played this version yet, so I can't speak to its quality. Since it's based on the Cave Story+ version of the game, I can't imagine that there's anything particularly wrong with it. Nicalis has quite a bit of experience with this title at this point, after all. The presentation seems to have been buffed up a little more, and a co-op mode will apparently be added to the game via a free update later this summer. The main draw here is that it comes in a lovely physical edition, complete with a NES-style manual, a mini soundtrack CD, a keychain, and other assorted goodies. For Cave Story fans, it's the first chance to own a real copy of the original game since it launched more than 12 years ago.

That's probably enough talking around the game, though. Let's talk about the game itself, because it really is a special one. Cave Story is a non-linear action-platformer in the vein of Metroid. You play as an amnesiac boy who wakes up in a cave. Once you've made your way out, you find yourself in a village of rabbit-like creatures called Mimiga. After a little looking around, you'll meet some of the antagonists of the game. Balrog and his sister Misery will be thorns in your side for most of the rest of the game, and you'll likely have your first fight with the former here. You don't have to, mind you. He'll ask if you really want to fight him, and you can say no. He'll just go away if you do. Either way, they'll take off with one of the villagers, setting the stage for you to finally leave the village.

While Cave Story plays out a lot like Metroid, it doesn't have a large, contiguous world. Instead, it's broken up into separate areas that you need to use transporters to travel between. Generally speaking, it's impossible to get to certain areas until the game wants you to reach them, so you can't sequence-break to the extent that you can in some games of this style. Nevertheless, there's plenty of exploration to be done. Items that increase your maximum life points and missile ammo are tucked away in various hiding spots, and there are plenty of secrets that have little point to them apart from being amusing. Outside of a couple of important areas, you usually don't need to backtrack to previous sections unless you missed something the first time. Most areas are also capped off with a boss battle, giving Cave Story more of an action-game feel than you might initially expect.

Taken in that context, the levels in Cave Story are really well-designed. Long enough to feel like an effort, but they never overstay their welcome. Even when the game presents you with a tedious fetch quest, you rarely have to track your feet over much of a distance. The worst instance of this is when Balrog's aunt asks you to find her five dogs. There's a particularly annoying stretch filled with enemies that you'll have to cross back and forth a few times. You'll also have to do a little backtracking if you want to get the game's best ending. Not that you're likely to stumble across that particular chain of feats without being told precisely what to do, mind you. Pixel set it up so that you would have to fight your gamer instincts four or five times without fail. Are you really going to let someone fall without checking on them? Search a boss room before talking to your friend? Not leave an injured but stable person to rest in a bed? It's kind of brilliant, in a slightly evil way.

It's part of what makes Cave Story so special, if you think about it. Pixel knows you. He sees you. He understands what you're going to try, for the most part, and makes sure something happens if you try it. One of the most frustrating things for me when I'm playing a game like Uncharted or Tomb Raider is when I climb, jump, or get myself to an out of the way location where it feels like there should be a treasure, only to find nothing. There should be a treasure here! That never happens in Cave Story. There's always something where you expect to find something. It might not have any point, but Pixel knew you would try it, and he left a little note of some kind for you.

I suppose one thing I could criticize is the difficulty curve. Cave Story is surprisingly easy on its default difficulty setting until the very end. Upon entering the Final Cave, the game takes a big step up and doesn't let up until it's over. It's not impossible or anything. If you can beat the average Mega Man X game, you can get through this. But it's a very noticeable incline for a game that is otherwise pretty gentle and smooth. The game does try hard to coach you, at least. You can power up your weapons by collecting experience dropped by enemies after they're killed. Taking hits will cost you some of your current weapon's experience in addition to taking away some life. Losing your maximum level on a weapon dramatically decreases its usefulness, so you'll really want to avoid getting hit. I'm not sure if this was deliberate or not, but this essentially teaches you to strive for perfection when everything else in the game allows for quite a few errors. Theoretically, you should be ready for the last sequence of events by the time they come. Theoretically.

Considering the fact that the game was made entirely by Pixel on his own, it's incredible that there aren't any serious weak points, though. The graphics have a retro look to them, sure, but they feel authentic rather than opportunistic. The music is absolutely incredible. That's the one thing you can always count on with Pixel's games. Even the mini-games will have at least one or two outstanding chiptune tracks. Cave Story is packed with them. Most versions of the game beyond the initial release also have a lot of extra modes and unlockable goodies to check out.

For example, you could always find Curly Brace's panties by going through a secret area in her house, but they never did anything in the original version. In later versions, that item unlocks Curly Story, which lets you play through the game with the main character and Curly's roles reversed. That's a really weird way to open up a new mode, but it is what it is, I suppose. The point is that even though the main game offers a respectable 5-6 hour playthrough, there are lots of reasons to revisit Cave Story. This game goes above and beyond what you would expect given, well, just about everything about its origins and circumstances.

Ultimately, Cave Story is a genuine work of heart, the kind that wears that on its sleeve proudly. This game exists for no other reason than the fact that its creator wanted it to exist. It wasn't made to make money, or even to be popular. It wasn't made to make Pixel famous, and he even kind of fought his fame for a while. That alone doesn't make it entirely unique. I know many independent developers who are essentially doing the same thing. With the utmost respect to their work, however, not many of them turn out games of this size, scope, and level of polish. Even Pixel himself has had a lot of trouble doing it again. Cave Story is one of those lightning-strike moments in gaming history. I'm not sure if I'd put it on exactly the same level as Super Metroid, its chief source of inspiration, but it's not far below. And just like that game, it's utterly timeless. You would think a game like this would mainly appeal to people who grew up in the 8-bit/16-bit era, but the game is apparently quite popular with kids, too. That bodes well for the game's long-term status in the gaming canon, I'd say.

The dark side of that kind of success is that a lot of people keep looking to Pixel to do it all again. I'd argue that his most recent game Kero Blaster finally fulfilled that request in the broad sense, but not everyone would agree with me on that. Perhaps we all just need to accept that if someone can turn out a game like Cave Story even once in their life, that's a real miracle. Pixel has made many other fun games, and I'm quite sure he'll make many more. But Cave Story is Cave Story, and like any true piece of personal expression, it's doubtful that its creator could replicate the feelings it evokes even if he wanted to. I'd much rather that Pixel do the thing he was doing to begin with when he created Cave Story: whatever he feels like making. I'm sure he's got a lot of great ideas in him that don't involve going back to the well.

In the meantime, I have little doubt that we will continue to see re-releases and enhanced versions of Cave Story for a long time to come. A game that began its life as freeware has seemingly only gained value over the years, and people seem to be quite content paying to have the game available on whatever their newest piece of hardware is. For a game whose story is essentially about trying to get home, it's funny that so many people, including myself, find themselves coming home to Cave Story again and again.

Previous: Ikachan & Azarashi

Next: Megane & Guxt

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[adrift-in-writing]

Going Beyond - Day Five (Respect)

Read on AO3

Falling | Pedant | Rattle | Saccharine

Author’s Note: This chapter is longer than I initially anticipated.

______________________________

Somehow and somewhere in one of the older Overwatch training facilities, Lena had wanted to prove herself to Amélie that she’d be more than capable of keeping up with a hypothetical kill-count if they ever worked together. That, and it was to see how much she improved over the years. She wanted to prove she really was as fast as people made her out to be, even if it meant trying to claim an empty reward that was no longer relevant.

Though the facility itself was rather in shambles in some parts, overall the Watchpoint was still functional to an extent. Fresh water still ran when needed, lights came on when it was needed, doors still opened, and the automated systems in general all worked properly. Even an outdated version of Athena was up and running, albeit it was not obeying the common commands it was assigned due to the command center being decommissioned.

They had wandered the halls for a bit, searching for a shooting range of sorts. Naturally, every single Watchpoint was interconnected globally; if one person participated within the training sessions, it’s likely they could have encountered their friend on a completely different side of the planet and battle them should they desire.

“How much further are we going?” Amélie had asked, for she was quite tired with having to walk long distances. They were getting side-tracked by all the nostalgia from Lena’s own whims.

To calm her, the smaller Brit assured her they weren’t too far. “I just gotta take a look at one other thing, then we’ll go straight there!”

She knew that dilly dallying wouldn’t do them much, so Lena had picked up the pace by blinking to her final destination: her old room. It was out of the sake of revisiting a small memory of course, but much of her belongings were still there. After all, Overwatch was not given the opportunity to pack up and go easily.

A picture frame of when she was merely 15 years old still stood on the lonesome side-table, and a now deactivated accelerator recharge station sat over in the corner.

Through these empty halls, Lena had felt like they were visiting her home away from home. For Amélie, it felt a little worrisome that they were here alone. It concerned her that this place was allowed to stand. What if potential thieves or looters came in?

Lena returned after a few minutes, carrying with her a small stack of photos. She placed it within her satchel bag that Amélie agreed to carry along, and cautiously stowed the photos away.

After some while of searching - and a bit of playful behavior by Tracer along the way - they had found the training facility. In stark contrast to the sleek and clean hallways, the facility was darker, and dust had settled and encrusted some bits of the terminals.

Because Lena had known Overwatch and how things operated in these terminals, the sniper proceeded into the course first. With a push of a few buttons, the young girl kicked in one of Athena’s old programmings so that she could join Amélie.

From that point on, they had to be identified as Widowmaker and Tracer only, to simulate and immerse themselves if the situation was ever real. What was once a dark room within the training course now became something...else.

Blending in a mixture of battlefield manipulation, room expansion, and overall simulated reality, the training grounds now became an entirely different world.

It wasn’t just the room that changed, for Tracer was now wearing standard issue Overwatch attire. Widowmaker was due a cosmetic change, but the program failed to register Amélie as a member. A practical shooting range was deployed, and a large holo-board filled with scores from international agents unveiled itself.

At the top sitting in the #1 spot was Captain Ana Amari, followed by McCree in a few extra points or so, Strike Commander Morrison in third position, Gabriel Reyes in fourth, Genji in fifth, and none other than Tracer in sixth position. Several other members not familiar with Lena were beneath her, but she didn’t bother with them.

The two looked at each other, and Tracer gave a big smile to Widowmaker, who in return had a rather blank stare. “I want you to give it your best, yeah?” 

“Oui (Yes). Expect nothing less.”

Tilting her head, the young girl chuckled and nodded. “Try and beat me.”

With a nod, Widowmaker affirmed it. “Give it your all, ma amour (my love). I will do the same.”

Before she knew it, Lena blinked right into her personal space. She didn’t flinch, but she what she was not expecting was a quick little peck on her cold lips.

“Kiss of good luck. You’ll need it if you wanna beat me then!” Once more, Lena had proclaimed it while snickering. “G’luck, luv~!”

Scoffing, Widowmaker turned her attention to what was now in front of her: a countdown to when the practice would begin. In approximately 30 seconds, holographic projections - produced by hardlight technology - would continuously spawn non-lethal robotic target dummies for them to take down.

Amélie took a long and deep breath, now scanning the scoreboard. She promised to end up in first place, but even then she could simply beat Tracer. By then, Lena had taken her position and stretched her legs, bouncing up and down to warm herself up.

Pulsefire pistols at the ready, the young Brit was determined, and even the aura of her giddiness was remarkably visible. Past this point, she had to treat Amélie more like a teammate than a significant other, and vice versa.

“5...4...3...2...1...” The timer ticked while Athena counted down the numbers. “Begin.”

The countdown now changed to a timer set for a mere 5 minutes, and the score showed 0 to 0 for both.

A swarm of mindless bots appeared in a flash. As if by instinct, Lena dashed around and began firing while Amélie scoped in, wasting no time on aiming more than a second.

Every target Tracer was going after was immediately struck down by Widowmaker’s bullet. One by one, they cracked and disappeared into the void of programs only to respawn at a later point. Though it would not be long before the young adventurer would catch up as she kicked it into high gear. For every one move Widowmaker made, Tracer had to make two.

Like a ballad of beautiful violence, gunshots, distinct swishes, and the occasional explosion filled the air. Amélie kept her calm, simply planting bullets into the robotic heads and moving onwards to the next target. If it was a group, she would deploy one of her venom mines and quickly finish them off with her Widow’s Kiss assault mode. 

The scoreboard showed that the sniper was now in a 20-kill lead - or roughly 200 points -  but Tracer was closing the gap. Every dash equated a few squeezes of her pistols. Holograms of those robots ended up disappearing as quick as they appeared, and it really looked like the young girl would get the lead. The first pulse bomb was thrown out, and it eliminated a grouped up crowd of five bots. There seemed to be no sign of exhaustion coming from Lena, but even Amélie knew she was pushing herself.

Like a light show, the arena became something along the lines of blue streaks blinking all around the battle. Though her accuracy was of no concern, it was her reaction times that mattered more in the moment. Widowmaker would fire, but she would end up missing because in the split second alone, Lena had already confirmed her kill. Suddenly, the gap became closer and closer.

Widowmaker simply could not keep up at this rate. She moved strategically around the arena, but never moved in comparison to Tracer. but just as Lena was behind by two simple kills, her accelerator short-circuited. Next thing she knew, Lena stumbled and fell to the ground, combat rolling to ensure she wouldn’t lose momentum.

“Agh! Dammit!” Lena had cursed herself in the moment, but she kept her determination high and moved onward.

Without her accelerator, Lena was in a bit of a snag. She wasn’t nearly as fast, and Widowmaker saw it as an advantage on her end. It was then she had grappled upwards in the air just to show off. One bullet made its mark, and another headshot came to pass all while she was in the air.

Two minutes passed in the time they had already spent in the training room. A score of 120 to 116 in Amélie’s favor seemed to be a new record at this point in time, beating out Ana’s old record of 112 in two minutes.

There was no banter between them, for they were too focused on trying to constantly one-up each other.

Things escalated from here on out. More bots showed up in increasingly larger volumes, and it became a lot more harder for Widowmaker to eliminate them all without having to leave some behind. Lena’s accelerator came back up and allowed her to move as she once did, but it would repeatedly sputter and fail every few seconds.

Perhaps that was because of the overexhaustion of the functionalities, but if push had come to shove even if this was just a friendly competition, Tracer would do it. After all, the room still kept her anchored in time in case of critical malfunctions. There was no holding back - like Tracer had promised initially to Widowmaker.

Those two more minutes passed by increasingly quicker than anticipated, and now the final minute to win the match was here.

Rather than continue on with an onslaught of bots, there were only a maximum of five being presented every few seconds. The scoreboard now was 353 to 331, a massive 22 point lead for Widowmaker. Lena had gained an upper hand for the second minute leading in with 265 to 247, but her accelerator kept failing at each turn. Thus, her lead was lost.

One minute became thirty seconds. By these final moments, Lena and Amélie were increasingly exhausted from overextending their strength. They breathed heavily, and it was harder to hold their weapons the more they continued.

The sniper was exhausted, that much was true, but she didn’t nearly exert as much power as the young girl before her. Truth be told, she was very impressed that a person with such a small stature had that much energy to keep up. Perhaps...?

For the final set, only three bots showed at one point, but they were in rapid succession. Though it was seemingly guaranteed for the sniper to win, it was nevertheless Lena would give all that she had in swiftly eliminating those three bots.

As soon as the first group was digitally reconstructed by the hardlight tech, Tracer madly dashed and eliminated them in quick succession, giving little to no time for Widowmaker to react. Upon those bots falling, the next set arrived, and so did the fifth pulse bomb from Lena.

But she was getting a little bit careless. Tracer would occasionally just go on ahead to the next stack of mindless targets while she left one alone, and that would be one Amélie would pick off, but the lead Amélie once held was now just two points away from being lost. There were about ten more seconds left on the board, and the scores were now 359 to 358.

Widowmaker took aim at the next group of three, making only one kill while Tracer took home two. Their scores were now tied up, and it seemed like Lena would be able to take it...until her accelerator crashed once again. She groaned audibly to the point where it almost seemed like she was about to swear.

The very last training target appeared right in the middle of the field. Lena took notice of it and swallowed hard, but she wouldn’t let Amélie take it. At the range she was in, there’d be no way she could land a hit. It was right in the sniper’s sights, and she was scoped in for the final point.

But she didn’t pull the trigger. Instead, she watched as her love was running furiously at it while spraying her pulsefire pistols at it. There was a smile - and a genuine one - when Tracer managed to break the tie with 360 to 361.

Practice was over. Widowmaker had lost on purpose, but she didn’t seem to care. More or less, she did it so Tracer wouldn’t be so bitter over it. After the simulations ended and the arena had reverted back to a simple black room, Lena fell to her knees, taking off her goggles and chuckling at her victory. Her accelerator chugged along, turning itself on again. The blue glow on it had been much paler and less radiant, and overall the juice was nearly depleted.

“I win!” The young Brit could be heard speaking weakly. Her breathing was a bit shallow from running and overexerting herself, but it was all worth it.

Amélie’s visor moved itself out of her eyes, and she casually sat down with Lena. “So you did,” She smiled and had a warm smile on her lips. “Outstanding, chérie (sweetheart/dear).”

With a breath of relief, Lena eased her muscles and lurched forwards. Her body had flopped in the direction of Amélie, and the woman responded by holding onto her.

“I did good, didn’t I?” Her voice had muffled off of the catsuit she was buried in.

Rest assured, the woman had nodded her head in agreement and gave Lena one tender kiss on her forehead. “Only because you pushed yourself harder than I did.”

Lena glanced upwards and blinked a few times. “...Whatcha mean?”

The sniper’s warm smile became something more of a comforting one, and she cocked her head to the side. “When we tied, I had all the opportunities to fire. But, I didn’t. The reward for me was something...better.”

For a moment, Lena spent some time registering the thought before swallowing and snickering. “Your love for me overrode your pride, then?”

Correct she was, and Amélie nodded once. “And in that moment, I saw not a sweet, foolish girl...”

The woman leaned into Lena’s left ear and softly spoke into it. “You are now, to me, a sweet girl.” Her head moved back, so now they were facing each other. “No longer foolish. No longer...annoying.”

In a flash, Lena lurched forward some more so now she had made Amélie fall on the floor. She started smooching the cheeks of the cold woman rather ecstatically, and Amélie in return laughed - her first actual laugh that felt quite nice to her. The woman’s hair became displaced, strands moved out of their proper position and drooped over Amélie’s temple.

“That’s the best compliment I’ve ever gotten from ya, luv!”

After her barrage of kisses swiftly ended, Lena got off of Amélie and went back to sitting down. “Best day of my life hands down!”

Amélie moved her locks of hair out of her face for the time being and stood up. “I would very much like to get out of this place,” she said. “Not very comfortable. That, and I’m a bit thirsty.”

Come to think of it, even Lena was weary of this training facility now. She scanned the scoreboard, now with her name moving from 6th position to the newly 2nd place - and Amélie being in 3rd - she stood up and happily agreed.

“Could crash in my bunker if ya want?” Her hand hovered over her accelerator, and immediately her watch indicated the accelerator was running on less than 6.4% life. “I need to at any rate.”

Nodding, Amélie picked up her gun and the satchel from earlier, slinging the latter over her shoulders. “Is there, by any chance, food as well?”

Grinning, Lena blinked forward to the exit as the doors opened up. “I’m sure we could find some nutritious stuff or somethin’ ‘round here. All the natural ingredients are probably way past expiration.”

Together, the two walked out of the training facility, keeping close to each other. From that point on, Amélie escorted Lena to her room and went by herself to search for rations, for she had more energy to do so. They wouldn’t leave the facility until later...

Much, much later.

[little-p-eng-engineering]

2.4.7 CAESAR II Hanger Design Control and Options

June 7, 2020

P.Eng.

Meena Rezkallah

CAESAR II provides a number of user specified options for controlling its automatic hanger design. The control options may, for the most part, be applied to the system globally, or at specific locations. These options are fully described in the CAESAR II User's Manual, but are discussed to some extent here:

Actual cold load calculation — This is described in more detail above. The user should specify Yes, if:

The spring installation load is to be adjusted with the pipe resting on the spring and free to move vertically otherwise (i.e. there isn't a steel strap around the spring base and the load flange, preventing movement of the load flange when the spring is adjusted in the cold position).

The piping adjacent to the spring is very flexible and/or the stiffness of the spring is very high.

Fluid filled systems are installed and set empty, and the user wishes to know the empty installation load.

Use short range springs — CAESAR II's hanger design algorithm first tries to select for an application a short range spring, followed by a mid-range, and then a long range, spring. On some construction sites short range springs are considered specialty items, and are only used where available spring installation clearance is small and where travel from cold to hot is small. In these cases, the user may instruct the design algorithm to bypass consideration of short range springs (and start with mid-range springs first) unless space limitations require it.

Allowable Load Variation — As noted above, this is computed as:

Var = I CL-HL I /HL = I k Δ th I /HL

The maximum possible load variation inherent in recommended ranges of the spring tables approaches 100% when the Hot Load is less than the Cold Load, and is approximately 50% when the Hot Load is greater than the Cold Load. Typical values for the permissible load variation range from 10% to 25%. A constant support may be forced at a location by specifying a minuscule load variation requirement at that location.

Rigid Support Displacement Criteria —Where feasible, rigid supports are considered preferable to springs supports, for reasons of economy (purchase, installation, and maintenance) and vibration prevention. Therefore, if a rigid support can be chosen instead of a spring at a location, the engineer will usually want this to occur.

One definition of a spring support is: "a restraint that supports a given load through some thermal travel". If the thermal travel is zero, or very small, then it is hypothesized that a rigid support can be used in place of the spring. This is indeed true providing that the surrounding pipe is relatively flexible as compared to the rigid rod.

The extent to which rigid supports are chosen can be controlled by this criteria. At any support location where the vertical displacement calculated during the operating load case for hanger travel is less than the specified Rigid Support Displacement Criteria, a rigid rod will be selected and used in subsequent load cases.

Note that this may not be desired at spring locations in the vicinity of pumps or other rotating equipment or on risers, since this may result in high nozzle loads or thermal lockup/liftoff of the support. It is best if this criteria is used in conjunction with some pre-design of support locations, such as that discussed in Section 2.4.5 of these seminar notes.

Free Anchors/Restraints — Often a major objective of hanger design is the minimization of equipment nozzle loads due to weight. This is done by forcing an unbalanced hot load (usually an overload) at the hanger location nearest to the equipment nozzle. This unbalanced force pulls on the nozzle, thus relieving it of some of the weight that would normally fall on it under a natural distribution — ideally, the hanger would be sufficiently unbalanced to make the load on the equipment nozzle as close to zero as possible. In an attempt to force this unbalance, anchors at equipment nozzles are often "freed" during the restrained weight case, forcing all of its weight to the hot load of the nearest support.

This technique should be used sparingly in those configurations where no hangers are located within three pipe diameters or so in a horizontal direction from the nozzle being released. It is also recommended that care be taken when releasing more than just the Y-direction force at a anchor/restraint, as release of additional degrees-of-freedom may cause gross angular and vertical displacements, resulting in unrealistic hanger design loads.

Manufacturer's Tables — This entry is used to designate the manufacturer of the springs (and thus the hanger table) to be used, as well as certain design criteria relating to selection of the hangers within this table. The selection criteria include:

use of maximum (vs. recommended) load range,

centering of the spring in the table, and

cold load (vs. hot load) design.

Most hanger vendors provide hanger tables with two ranges defined: 1) a restricted, or recommended load range, and 2) a maximum allowed load range. In order to provide margin against analytical uncertainties, it is best to use the recommended range. The maximum allowed load range may be used in certain situations, such as to permit the use of variable support hangers instead of the more expensive constant effort support, or when an already-owned spring is to be used over a new one.

In cases where the expected analytical uncertainty is especially high, maximum margin may be provided by selecting the spring which most closely centers the loads in the hanger table.

Cold load design balances the weight loads in the cold, rather than the hot, condition. This may be desired in those systems where installation is difficult due to flange fit-up problems caused by unbalanced cold loads, and where nozzle operating loads are not critical.

Available Space — In certain cases, the distance between the top of the pipe and the steel overhead; or between the bottom of the pipe and the foundation or platform below, govern the type (and number) of springs which may be used at a specific location. This value may be specified at individual hanger locations for use in spring selection. Figure 2-34 defines the available space as used in the CAESAR II spring design.

The available space option together with the "number of springs allowed" option lets the user design multiple spring support systems.

Number of Allowed Springs — If there is physically more than one spring can at a given hanger location, that number may be specified here. Likewise, the maximum number of springs that the user will permit may be specified (in the event that CAESAR II has to split the load in order to meet space criteria). In the case of multiple springs, CAESAR II will split the load evenly among all springs.

User Defined Operating Load — In some piping configurations the program selected operating (or hot) load on the spring doesn't unload the equipment nozzle sufficiently to satisfy manufacturers allowables. In these situations the user can force a hot load (higher or lower), overriding the program calculated value in an attempt to tune weight distribution and bring the equipment loads within the allowables. The user's entry in this case should normally be a variation of the value initially proposed by the program spring selection algorithm. Before adjusting the operating load the user should determine if a preferable course of action is freeing the problem nozzle during the restrained weight case (as discussed above).

Old Hanger Redesign — In cases where part of a piping system is redesigned, it is preferable that the hanger design algorithm re-select the existing springs in the system wherever possible. Where they can be re-used, new load ranges may be identified for them, and only a readjustment of the load flange in the field may be required. Where the existing springs can't be used, new ones will be recommended. The Old Hanger Redesign capability allows the user to do this.

Multiple Load Case Spring Hanger Design—This option is useful whenever the piping system has multiple thermal states that are sufficiently different such that the results from each thermal state should be considered when doing the spring hanger design. Figure 2-35 illustrates this idea:

The hanger at "A" should be designed with the main pump running, and the hanger at "B" should be designed with the backup pump running. Once the springs are designed for their respective thermal cases they are inserted into the piping system and the various operating conditions run to check for stress or equipment overloads.

The options available in CAESAR II for combining data from the various design load cases are shown below:

Design per thermal load case 1

Design per thermal load case 2

Design per thermal load case 3

Design for maximum operating load

Design for maximum travel

Design for average load and average travel

Design for maximum load and maximum travel

Read More:

Piping Design for loading Types

TAGS:

CAESAR II

Hanger Design Control

Engineering Consulting Services

[havenforthesuperfluous-blog]

My thoughts on humility transitioning into mathematical equations

As a disclaimer, the following is comprised of some of my more suppressed thoughts. I’m not trying to absolve myself of any criticism that accompanies those with similar mindsets, simply clarify that this is not the mindset that I use to make any decisions in my life, simply one that comes to mind in times of idleness.

Does humility come readily to anyone? Even as I write these words I attempt to make them come off humbly. To put it plainly, some things come easy to me. My school and standardized testing results show this ease. I’m not necessarily a smart person, I believe myself to have slightly above average intelligence, but I guess I just care more about school than most. I might go into the reasons for that at another time, but I do have some basic motivation for doing better than average in school.

As a result of doing better than most in school, I have some ways to show it. I’ve scored in the 99th percentile on the SAT, received a perfect score on the ACT, and maintained the title of valedictorian for the duration of my high school career. Simply put and obviously, people don’t feel good when you talk about things that you’ve done much better than them in. I’ve come to school excited about my high test scores for people to simply say that I’m making them feel bad. Not everyone responds like this, but it’s pretty simple to see that most people would feel neutral at best after hearing of my accomplishments. There’s the odd person that would feel proud or so, but my intuition tells me that being told of superior accomplishments will most commonly bring thoughts of disappointment or self-consciousness.

Let’s take a pause. Of course anyone would willingly gain academic success if it meant they had to endure the mild inconveniences that I’ve felt. Back to my tragic tale.

As a result of this social predicament and my moral obligation to not be a nuisance on society, I don’t express the full extent of emotions felt when accomplishing these things. I have had the gift of some friends that I feel comfortable expressing myself totally to, but this has been a somewhat recent development. So what is the purpose of this post? I guess I feel a need to officially note this feeling of mine. Maybe on a more complex note, what purpose does this feigned humility serve in society? What does purpose does humility in general serve in society?

Humility, or humbleness, is often seen as a significant personal virtue. A noble person is almost always humble. Humbleness is defined as the quality of being presumptuous when considering one’s own abilities. With that definition, even if I celebrated to my heart’s content after success, that wouldn’t be presumptuous, as I’m simply celebrating my actual success. So what am I doing if I celebrate this? Is it just being impolite? Polite behavior being defined as behavior that is respectful and considerate to others, unpromptedly telling others about superior success must be negative by reason of inconsiderateness. This all links back to my initial reasoning to not talk too often about my success: a choice not to negatively affect others.

So has this discussion and thought been in vain? A slightly further look into the reasons behind one of my slight social hindrances hasn’t given me any insight. I guess a hypothetical look into my situation might be helpful.

There’s an interesting crossroads when considering this. I want to be at a point where I can politely celebrate my success, but also at a point of maximum success. So there’s a trade-off at play. My thoughts can be expressed in the form of a graph (as seen below).

So looking at this graph, someone would plug in their performance rating for any given thing. Let’s assume that the line crosses the x-axis at (100,0). To find one’s ability to celebrate success without being impolite, they should plug their performance rating into the equation y= 100 - x, with y being one’s ability to celebrate success without being impolite, and x being one’s performance rating. If on a given task, your performance is rated at 35, your ability to celebrate success without being impolite should be a 65. These numbers are meaningless though without context. Your performance rating, since looked at in relation to others, should be based on the average score in the group you’re in. In a group that scored 20, 30, and 25, on a test (not including yourself) a performance rating of 50 would correspond to a score of 25 on the test. A performance rating of 100 should correspond to the highest viable score, which will most often be a perfect score or performance. Then, by use of logic, the distance between a performance score (PS)  of 50 and a PS of 100 (50 performance points) is equal to the distance between a PS of 0 and a PS of 50. Therefore, if quantifiable, the actual performance (AP) corresponding to a PS of 0 would be 

average score of group - (maximum viable score of group - average score of group)

or

2(average score of group) - (maximum viable score of group)

 If subjective, the AP corresponding to a PS of 0 can be reasoned out with intuition. Now, let’s define the meaning of ability to celebrate success without being impolite (ACS). Quite simply, ACS shall be defined as the percentage of one’s true feelings that one is able to politely express. WIth an ACS of 100, one can express the entire gamut of their emotions.

Let’s apply this graph to a situation. Giancarlo, Helen, Rashad, and Spencer got scores of 15, 20, 17, and 12 respectively on a test. Tom, a member of the friend group, got a 16 on the test. The average score of the group is 16. The highest viable score is 25. After translating to performance score (by considering PS100=AP25 and PS50=AP16 and then simply reasoning), we find that an AP of 17, Tom’s score, translates to a PS of 55.55. After plugging this into the equation, we can see his ACS is 44.45. This means Tom can express 44.45% of his emotions on the topic while still being entirely polite.

Here is a summary of the equations and identities used.

Actual Performance = AP (expressed in units used for real task)

Mean Performance = MP (expressed in units used for real task)

Highest Viable Performance = HVP (expressed in units used for real task)

Performance Score = PS (no units)

PS =(AP-MP)/(HVP-MP)(50) + 50 (conversion formula for any given AP)

Ability to Celebrate Success without being impolite = ACS (expressed as a percentage)

ACS = 100 - PS

So now, whenever receiving a score from a test, or a grade in a class, consider using the above formulas and logic to calculate just how much you can celebrate your success in any given group. With this trick, you’ll be able to know just how much you can be polite. These benefits, though, do come after you take the score of every person in a group to calculate the MP, and hopefully have a group discussion to figure out your HVP. After that though, you’ll be a social maestro.

[ecotone99]

[MF] A Gods Scorn

Two men sat lazily on the tower walls chatting and laughing happily, exchanging many obscure and odd jokes. They should be vigilante at their post but the neigh impregnable wall that they sat upon hadn't been attacked in centuries. These men wore bright and shiny armor that twinkled brilliantly in the sun. The armor only bolstered their arrogance.

Suddenly one of the guards perked up seeing that his superior and also close friend was heading their way. As he jumped up preparing to welcome his friend, he stopped midway noticing that he was guiding two lavishly dressed people with noble and upright auras radiating lightly from them.

The guard quickly smack his friend and signaled to him with his eyes. Not missing a beat the other guard quickly stood to his feet and stood at rapt attention.

As the group neared the two guards they stood as straight as they could manage, even to the extent of their spines making slight popping sounds.

"Ah! Your majesty! These here are my finest warriors! They have achieved maximum scoring in all respective tests!" The man leading the two said. A amiable smile resting across his handsome face. His eyes resting ever so slightly on the woman that followed a half beat behind the man. However, it was only for a brief moment as he would never dare to look to heavily at her figure as she was many times stronger than him. In fact if she so wished it she could wave her hand and he would explode into mist never knowing how he died. But truly the guard couldn't be blamed. The woman was gorgeous. Her hair flowed behind her like waves of silky fabric and reflected the bright sun making it look like she was glowing. Her eyes blue like the most pure water and a perfect face that only the gods could have crafted.

"I see." a gruff voice responded. The man standing in front of the woman wore a brilliant purple robe embroidered with countless jewels and gold. A majestic crown stood upon his head shining brilliantly. The mans face was also immaculate. His face the picture perfect of symmetry. He had stern brown eyes that shown with radiance. It truly was no exaggeration to say that these two people embodied beauty.

The king looked over the two guards silently as the guards stood even straighter not daring to look him in the eyes. "They are passable. I will allow them to become guards to the palace and if they do well enough they may move further." the king said lightly. Although his voice was soft the authority carried in his voice was natural, bringing awe to the three guards.

The king then turned to leave but he suddenly stopped looking over the wall seeing a figure walk ever so slowly towards the grand wall they stood upon. The figure looked poor and the clothes were all in tatters making for a truly miserable sight.

The two guards followed their kings eyesight and also spotted the lone figure. One guard seizing the initiative plucked a bow from the ground and knocked an arrow. Sneering he pulled back the string with all his strength and aimed at the figure. The guard released the arrow and as if it was a bullet fired from a gun and the arrow shot forward nearly invisible to the naked eye.

But to their astonishment the bullet like arrow missed and the figure was no where to be seen. The guards look at each other in confusion before gasping in utter shock.

Behind the guard that had fired the arrow was the same rough looking figure that they had seen below. They now noticed that the man had a blindfold covering his eyes and an aura of solemnity surrounded him. Before the guards and the king could react further they all felt an invisible pressure weigh down on them making them completely incapable of movement. Even opening an eyelid was a strenuous task to them.

The kings eyes widened ever so slightly under the pressure realizing the power was something very similar to him and without hesitation he dropped to the ground and knelt before the figure. Seeing their majestic and mighty king kneel, the guards and woman without hesitation followed suit and knelt.

"I wish to have an abode and food." The rough looking man said staring directly at the king.

"Of course lord! My daughter, the princess, will guide you!" The king said without even raising his head. The man looked over at the woman slightly and grunted in affirmation the invisible pressure disappearing from their shoulders. The king, woman, and guards all let out a sigh of relief inside but didn't dare do so on the outside and kept their poise.

The Princess not missing a beat stood up and bowed with a flattering smile "I will guide you my liege." The woman's voice was soft and gave a calm comforting feeling.

The rough man only grunted in response. Although she was given a rude response the woman didn't bat an eye and her smile stayed firm on her face not even twitching slightly.

As the two walked away under the guide of the princess, the guards felt a surge of jealousy and disdain appeared in their hearts. In all regards other than strength they were better than the man! In looks and status they are obviously better but the princess is guiding him purely out of the mans strength! He was also blind!

Noticing the three guards distorted faces the king said nothing only sneering at them in his minds. That mans strength was at the realm of gods! Who would dare go against or think disdainful thoughts about such a being. Most likely if that man wished it he could change his form at will. He will have to dispose of these idiots later as they might cause trouble for his kingdom.

The two walked through the cobble stone streets in silence. The people of the streets made way for the pair for one simple reason. The princess was walking through! The princess was the jewel of their kingdom. She was a talented demon-slayer as well as a pious follower of the church. Not to mention her stunning looks! All the men of the kingdom worshiped her but didn't dare dream of her in any capacity. Seeing the man following her with such ragged clothes and a blind fold indicating that he was blind contempt shone on their faces. Such a terrible person! He dares walk with the jewel of the kingdom! His mere presence is destroying her highness's beautiful image. Indignance and disgust was written clearly on the peoples faces but none dared to act as it was her highness choice with which who she walks with.

The man continued to follow the princess and had clearly noticed the peoples gazes but thought nothing of it. He was used to such gazes.

After arriving at the castle and entering smoothly the princess guided the man into a luxurious room. The room was adorned with paintings, smooth comfortable rugs, and padded furniture. Moving a chair out from the table he sat down quietly.

"Your lordship would you like some food?" The princess said giving a slight bow.

The blindfolded man simply nodded at her question.

The princess acknowledged the meaning behind the gesture and left the room signaling a maid to bring food to the room. The princess then re-entered the room and stood behind the man respectfully.

After a long period of silence the food finally arrived. The maid said nothing as she kept her head down while setting the table. After setting the table and placing down the food the maid left hurriedly as she wasn't qualified to stay in the room without her highness's permission.

The princess watched the man as he simply looked at the food. Fearing something was wrong the princess hurriedly examined the food "Your lordship is the food not to your liking?"

Saying nothing, the man continued to look at the food. Finally he picked up one of the many fruits on the plate and took a bite. After taking a bite he followed it with another and another until he cleared the plate near instantly.

Sighing in relief the princess didn't move and continued to stay to his side waiting for any instructions.

The man picked up the napkin and dabbed his mouth slowly. "Tell me what you want." He said slowly.

The princess's eyes widened in surprise but recovered hastily "I wish to be your lordships student and learn under you!" the princess said kneeling down.

The man said nothing and simply looked off in the distance. After a long agonizing silence for the princess he finally answered "You are not qualified."

At his answer the princess's eye couldn't help but twitch. Not qualified?! She was indignant. She is the most talented person in Haven and none of the other kingdoms shelter city geniuses could hold a candle to her! If she isn't qualified then who?! She also had never heard of this man. He was treated so well simply because of his power display! Given a few years she would definitely be stronger. Finally unable to keep her anger restrained she blurted out "Why not?! Why am i not qualified?!"

"... do you truly wish to know why?" He said unhurriedly.

"Yes!" she said nodding fiercely.

"Very well. I'll tell you." He stood up slowly. As he stood the pressure that he exuded before on the walls came back once more.

The princess shriveled back in fear as the pressure got heavier and heavier.

"You are not qualified because you are stained. Your arrogance and disdain towards those lesser than you is well hidden but is clear as day to me. Your despise of the people that live in the hell like landscape that is the outer reaches is disgusting. You think that they are worms tainted with blighted blood and heretics that are to stupid to be aware of gods. You disdain people that do all they can to survive in hell while you yourself live in heaven. You're disgusted by the prostitutes that sell themselves to get food but your ignorant towards the lack of choice that they have and the fear of being powerless. You never want for food so you never feel the pains of hunger, the gnawing sensation that eats at your core and makes your mind befuddled and weak. You've never needed to worry about money but you're disgusted by people that do anything for it. You use water copiously and wash at least two times every day but you hate the smell of someone who has never bathed in their life because the water is strictly for drinking. You hate them for their lack of faith or knowledge about the gods even though they have never once been introduced even the knowledge of such a being existing. You think you have power but it is nothing in front of me. The so called 'gods' that you follow and the 'power' they gave you is nothing but a sheet of glass to me. Worst of all however is that you don't realize your weakness. You don't realize that without your 'divine' power granted by the 'gods' you are nothing. You are a weak an vulnerable human without them but you still persist in arrogance that you are superior." He walked towards her the pressure turning so strong that everyone in the castle felt suffocated "Not just you either. Your people and all people from all the different 'god chosen zones' are arrogant and conceited. Do you know where my power comes from? I can assure you it doesn't come from the 'gods'. No. It comes from myself. I have weathered all the terrible things this world could throw at me and became stronger because of it. Your heart that has experienced no struggles is like glass. While my heart is iron. When i was 10 i was weak and a poor scavenger. One day a beast horde came and killed the fellow scavengers that lived near me. Fearing death i dove into a cave to survive. In the cave even more terrifying beings existed and for two more years i survived. Then one day i was caught by a demon." He removed the blindfold covering his eyes to reveal the are where his eyes should be but instead only skin was seen. "The demon sew my eyes shut and tortured me for four more years. By that time my skin had grown and attached sealing off my sight forever. In the process however i learned to control my senses to the maximum gaining a sixth sense in the process. The demon was off guard because after all how could such a weak boy that was blind do anything to such an exalted being. But in the end i killed it and consumed its blood gaining strength in the process. I then looked for more demons, intoxicated by the strength gained hoping that once i gained enough strength perhaps my eyes maybe restored. So i hunted. At first it was difficult with a lot of close calls but eventually it became child's play. Demons were nothing more than bugs beneath my feet. Then one of your 'gods' took notice and offered me in all of his grace for me to become a loyal follower. So i dragged him down from the sky and killed him consuming his blood." Unnervingly he stared straight at the princess as though his eyes still existed "You are not worthy 'princess' the only one worthy of learning is one of the so called 'wretches' in the outer reaches struggling for survival. Only those with a pure soul that persevere in times of pain and suffering and don't turn black deserve my teachings. But you princess, your soul is black and dirty." Leaning back he put back on his blindfold before turning to look at the princess cowering in the corner defecating on herself. With a sneer he looked out the window towards the city and bellowed "SO TELL YOUR PEOPLE! TELL YOUR SO CALLED GODS! I AM A TRUE GOD! ALL OTHER GODS ARE LIES! THE GODS FIGHT BUT CAN NEVER KILL EACH OTHER BUT I CAN! I AM A GOD SLAYER AND I SCORN THOSE SO CALLED GODS THAT SIT LOFTILY IN THE CLOUDS DISDAINING THOSE BELOW! I CARE FOR ALL HUMANITY, FOR ALL THOSE THAT CRY OUT IN DESPAIR OR FEAR I CARE FOR THEM!" The voice was heard throughout the whole city. He then turned back to the princess and gave a bright smile "You are not worthy."

Edit: I did this for fun! SO if you like it let me know and if you dont tell me what i could fix! I know my grammar is bad so try to bear with it! Thanks!

submitted by /u/Demrian [link] [comments] via Blogger https://ift.tt/2JLr6I8

[the-fitsquad]

How to Save Money on computer workstations uk

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[thefeministherald]

The sanctuary for women is nestled next to a monastery deep in the Moscow suburbs, down a narrow snow-covered road with a white archway. Its name, Kitezh, is a reference to a Russian myth about a city hidden under a lake to protect its residents from attack. It fits for this small peach and white house, a shelter for victims of domestic violence who fear they aren’t safe anywhere else.

Inside are lime-green walls and rooms with bunk beds. Drawings of butterflies are displayed on a bookshelf. One woman with two kids came here after she was raped by her husband. Another was choked by her father before he kicked her and her young son out of their shared home. A third woman’s story is so traumatic she can’t bear to share it.

The rise of the #MeToo movement has pushed women’s issues to the forefront in the United States and other parts of the world. But deeply patriarchal attitudes still reign in Russia, as President Vladimir Putin’s government implements policies emphasizing the country’s alleged traditional values — including scaling back protections for abused women. It’s been a year since Russia decriminalized all but the most egregious or repeated domestic violence, and the penalty for a first offense that results in bruising or bleeding, but not broken bones, is a minimal fine or a maximum 15-day prison sentence.

The Russian Interior Ministry has estimated that 40 women a day and 14,000 women a year die at the hands of their husbands, while 600,000 face violent domestic abuse each year. Those numbers are incomplete because research indicates that as many as 60 to 70 percent of Russian women do not report domestic abuse.

“People have started to feel like there won’t be any punishment,” said Alyona Sadikova, director of the Kitezh shelter, run by a nongovernmental organization whose main sponsor is Rostelecom, a long-distance telephone provider. A few feet away, a five-year-old daughter of one of the women staying in the shelter folded pink and silver wrapping paper before pushing around a pink baby carriage.

itezh is often a last resort for these women and their families. Some stay for three months. Some leave after a few days. Some return to their abuser. The stories of how they got here are often similar. They called the police first, but with the penalty for domestic violence lessened to keep government from intervening in family matters, authorities are hesitant to act and often encourage reconciliation. 

After one woman at the shelter filed a report, she saw those same officers she spoke to smoking outside with the husband who beat her. These women didn’t know a doctor had to note the extent of their bruising in great specificity to prove injury. If a woman’s husband is deemed guilty, the fine is typically taken out of the family account, so the woman is essentially helping to pay for her husband to avoid prison.

Conservatives aligned with the influential Russian Orthodox Church helped the legislation to decriminalize domestic violence breeze through parliament last February by citing the importance of maintaining “traditional families.” Yelena Mizulina, a member of Russia’s upper house of parliament, the Federation Council, told reporters in 2016 that women “don’t take offense when they see a man beat his wife” and that “a man beating his wife is less offensive than when a woman humiliates a man.” She reasoned that the problem isn’t domestic violence, but not enough respect and affection in relationships, particularly from women.

“The state just stopped calling these actions criminal actions,” said Nadezhda Zamotaeva, director of the Sisters Sexual Assault Recovery Center in Moscow. “The abuser now does not think that he’s committing a crime. He does what’s permitted, and he does what the state approves.”

Women outnumber men in Russia. According to 2015 United Nations data, Russia has among the fewest men per 100 women (86.8) of any country in the world. The divide begins around age 30, as suicide, alcohol and alcohol-related accidents begin to take a toll.

“If you even have a husband, you’re happy,” journalist Anna Zhavnerovich said. “He’s drinking and beating you, but at least you have one. If you’re born a boy, then it’s like you’re already a czar. If you’re born a girl, you didn’t get lucky. Just by birthright, men are on top of the world and the head of the family. So, women think if they complain, then maybe he will leave, and it’ll be worse. Even in today’s world where women are taught to strive for something more, it’s better to be wed. Maybe you won’t marry well, but you’re considered lucky because you’re the one who married out of your 10 girlfriends.”

Zhavnerovich’s story isn’t so different from the women at Kitezh. She filed a report with the police a week after she said her then-boyfriend beat her unconscious in 2015. She was miffed by the line of questioning by authorities; she said they asked her why she didn’t have any children or if she was married. She didn’t hear anything for several weeks and the case was eventually dropped with her ex-boyfriend never questioned.

Zhavnerovich felt the police were suggesting the attack was her fault. An episode of victim-blaming caused Ukrainian activist Anastasiya Melnychenko to start the #ImNotScaredToSpeak social media campaign. She was angered by an online discussion in 2016 that questioned what a rape victim was wearing or if she had been drunk. Melnychenko then shared her story of sexual violence and harassment that had started at age 6. The hashtag went viral, and other Ukrainian and Russian women followed suit. But there was online backlash, too, even from other women.

In an interview about the Harvey Weinstein scandal, Russian actress Agniya Kuznetsova told the website Meduza that the victims had “themselves to blame, they don’t have to act like prostitutes. Poor man, I feel sorry for him.”

With heightened political tensions between Russia and the United States, some of the pushback on stricter domestic violence legislation is often associated with fighting influence from the West. It’s what activist Alena Popova sees as the main hurdle as she now lobbies members of the Federation Council to support a law that would create restraining orders. An online petition in favor of such legislation has collected more than 250,000 signatures, and Popova is hopeful the law will be reviewed by the Russian parliament’s Committee on Family, Women and Children within the next six months.

“I’m literally running after these [parliament] deputies,” Popova said. “Just last week, for 22 minutes a deputy was in the men’s room so as to not see me. I asked him, ‘Do you think I will just leave? I will wait for you.’ ”

A restraining order could offer some protection for the women staying at the Kitezh shelter. The center temporarily closed on Feb. 7 to repair the upstairs flooring. Just as shelter director Sadikova started to list the tragic stories that lead women to the peach and white house, she got a phone call. The person on the other end of the line wanted to know if she had room for another woman.

“We’ll definitely take her,” Sadikova replied.

[bjjgianduniforms]

BJJ GI and Karate Uniforms

1.       BJJ GI

A.      What’s the BJJ GI full form???

Actually BJJ GI stands for Brazilian Jiu – Jitsu. It’s Uniform name that is most popular or you can say commonly use in japanese.  It’s the tradition of those who is interesting in  to get skill. On the other hand, You can consider it that people may take it by their fitness their Health & their Businesses that’s actually related Import Export.

B.      Have you enough knowledge about the BJJ GI???

So The All readers!

Let’s talk about the interesting point that is definitely important but many people can’t pay attention to their knowledge about what they sell or what they have? As far so, to be a largen extent people should pay attention to their Knowledge about the products. If they have no information about the Products So sorry to say But they can’t earn the money they can’t do Business as they think or as they want to do.

C.      What is it using for?

Many things that we usually buy or Purchase We don’t know how it works. I’m again concern about the Knowledge, about the Information, About the Product Features. W e buy something but we don’t know about it’s uses so it’s useless for us.

But don’t need to worry here I’m going to describe about the product properly. As you can say that you are of course satisfied after reading all the details related Product and I show you our Company Product also . Im sure  that  you will be like it.

D.      Uses of BJJ GI as well???

When we use the BJJ GI word it’s a normal thinking or you can say it’s a use to information  Martial Arts. MMA is the mixer of Mixed Martial Arts Products. And we start thinking about the very poducts that is part of the Martial Arts. Like the Products are below here

1.       Karate Uniforms

2.       BJJ GI

3.       Judo Gis

4.       Kung Fu Uniforms

5.       Belts

And many more products are pin pointed by the word Martial Arts. Now we elaborate about how it use? Every wearing stuff has it’s own features Similarly, this Product have it’s own. We can use it when we take training from our coach about the karate. Because the main reason behind is that when you don’t dress up you will never confident about your work and whatever you want to do. You have to dress up related your work | your training | your Job | your event.

No-one know about this secret that Who is successful it’s aim in short term timing That’s in so case when you fully attention to your work. Dress up is the big point that is shows your connection to your work | to your learning passion.

BJJ GI is using for the training along it using for the defeat others and for own safety.  It’s the part of fighting also. Guidelines and records states that every one kinds of martial artwork practitioners have to have a uniform to differentiate themselves as practitioners of different arts be it karate, judo, jujutsu or the BJJ. Further BJJ GI is a uniform for the sports with which plenty of rules are related even the tailor has to follow the ones guidelines even as making the get dressed which resembles a lot.

If BJJ has many articles of which article thirteen is the most interesting which specifies coloration codes for the belt and the GI and even the position of 'patches'. The patches are symbols for teams, though the thing makes an exception for the teams in which colour coding might be observed. The patch placement may be made on thirteen pre-defined locations on the BJJ GI. folks that want to take up the game as a ardor will certainly revel in the rich background that the Brazilian Jiu - Jitsu follows!

2.        Karate Uniforms

A.      What’s  in a Karate Uniform?

If you're going to be doing karate for a long term, a terrific nice Gi is a great investment. but how do you outline "correct great"? There are a shocking variety of variables whilst choosing a karate uniform that can have an effect on whether or not if it proper for you. maximum of them the common person likely may not think two times approximately - there's nothing wrong with going to the closest sports save, locating the proper one on your height and carrying it for some time to look how it feels, but if you need one to ultimate some time which you enjoy sporting, it's really worth weighing a few matters up.

B.       Sizing

The maximum simple factor of Gi sizing is the peak in cm (used for ecu Gis), though sizing is also dependent on weight and different various dimensions. Gis in Japan are given a variety of instead of a peak dimension; the numbers correspond to the approximate heights proven inside the table beneath. these numbers can be essential if ordering from a jap source. note those sizes additionally rely upon the manufacturer! Care need to additionally be taken due to the fact the Gi can shrink, specially after warm or repeated washing, and Gis from one of a kind producers shrink to one-of-a-kind extents. it's miles not unusual to shop for a slightly oversized Gi to permit for shrinkage.

Here is a sample chart displaying conversion between the Japanese size and the corresponding approximate top of the character.

For those with non-popular body dimensions, jackets and pants can be purchased one after the other. A number of the top manufacturers offer length customisation, with many one-of-a-kind modifiable dimensions which can be unique upon ordering. For the trousers you may specify duration, waist circumference, diameter / circumference on the pinnacle and backside of the leg and the distance among the pinnacle of the pants and in which they break up to the legs. For the jacket the peak, length of the arms, period of the relevant part of the jacket and the circumference / diameter of the arm piece close to the shoulder and wrists can be varied. Customisation manifestly adds to the cost of the Gi.

C.      What’s the material uses in BJJ GI and Karate Uniforms?

Material Details:

          The material is use in the BJJ GI

1.       Cotton

2.       Canvas

3.       Rip stop

The material used in the Karate Uniforms

1.       Cotton

2.       Cotton polyester

Our Products

Our Products are the unmatchable and unique. The reason behind is the High Quality Material. Our products is our company Reputational  view. Our products describe the peak level of our company. We never ever manufacturing the low level products because it’s they way where we lose. When a product manufacturing by bad or cheap Material. It effects on the customer’s skin also and the dealing reputation. We are not thinking about us only we are caring about our customers as they are our dealers. We had been working since 8 Years and It’s very honorable thing that we had no ever one of the case that we thing about and realize “That was not to a small extent Disturbing deal”. We care our customers and respect their demands as well.

Company Overview

It’s the specialty of my Company that we won’t to give a single chance to complaint. Our Company doing Dealing or any deal related to our business here is no issue related dealing or you can say after dealing. We work as we say. We pay all attention towards our commitment. It’s important to a larger extent what we deal about and what we are talking about.

When you come to dealing with us. You actually admit that We are the Company that deals professionally and having good Business Relationship.  We co-operate with our Customers as they want to deal with us. If they have any problem so We discuss about the matter and as far so we find the solution soon.

Company is not about the one man who is setting at the office alone. It’s the management of working a team. Our team is humble as they know how to handling the trouble situation. As we hire a number of people for the Company’s success. They work as well as they spend their time not only for working also for Giving Ideas that is definitely in benefited  to the company. A Working Place becomes a Company by the working of team. RC Fitness Wear is name of Rare Company that is actually unique | It’s the name of Royal Collection that is not able to matchable to anyone | It’s the name of Rebel Closet that is not Similar to anyone.

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