#i was originally not planning to post these cuz its bit different vibe from what i usually post BUT

[rox-of-iu]

ive been afflicted with weird priest in brain disease

[missmaywemeetagain]

PINK SCARF AND LIFE UPDATES

Hello my babies! I wanted to jump on and give you some updates since I know I’ve not been posting/responding much since PS ended…

The long and the short of it is that I’ve been rather overwhelmed. Life is being A LOT. One of my sisters is very, very ill with late stage cancer and we are currently gearing up for her to (hopefully) get a stem cell transplant within the next month. This process is very involved and complex and scary and it’s one of those things that could just as easily kill her as make her better. This coupled with the family dynamics involved as we all try to navigate the situation has been emotionally exhausting.

In addition to that, I started temping back at my old job a couple weeks ago which is not what I wanted to do, but I gotta pay the bills, but it means my time is more limited and I’m way tired cuz my stamina is for shit lol.

And whilst all that’s been happening, I did some research and discovered that there is no way I can publish Pink Scarf as is. *sobbing* Turns out after Elvis died, Tennessee had to create a law specifically for him to protect his rights and image posthumously. This includes using not just his image, but his name and likeness as well. All this meaning I could get sued if I publish, and I DEFINITELY do not want to invoke the wrath of EPE.

Needless to say, this made me very upset cuz I know how much y’all want Pink Scarf on your bookshelves.

HOWEVER, before we all slide into the pits of despair, I think I have come up with a bit of a solution/compromise. I’m planning to rework PS into something just slightly different, changing some things that make it too specific to Elvis. I’ll likely have to change the title, too. But the plot and much of the writing will stay the same. But at least this way, I can still get it out to y’all in paperback form! (And lord knows I certainly can’t help who y’all picture in your heads while you read, soooooo…😉)

I know this is disappointing, y’all, and I’m so sorry I can’t make PS happen in published form as is. I am hoping that this new version is good enough for y’all to still want, and I’m gonna make it the best I can for ya. Honestly, I am thinking having something really close is better than having nothing at all. And of course, PS will still be online in its original form, so it’s not going away!

So, in the midst of all this insanity, I’ve started working on this newer version which is a project in its own right, but it’s taking time and my energy has been zapped with everything that’s going on. 💗🧣💗

For those who have asked about if there are any new Elvis fics in the works, the short answer is yes! I have a post-army fic that I am verrrrryyy slowly working on. The vibe is different from Pink Scarf (more of a slow burn), but I hope y’all will still enjoy it!

Anyway, thank you as always for your support and I’m sorry I haven’t delved into answering all your wonderful asks and comments. I very much appreciate them, I’m just a bit depleted at the moment. I’m still lurking around, just maybe not as active for the time being. But maybe I could jump on Discord or something next weekend if that would be fun for people!

Love ya always 💗🧣💗

Madisyn 💜

[themoonstarwarrior]

PLAYLIST SHUFFLE TAG!

Okay, so @viterbofangirl tagged me in this and I need to start learning to post my own shit, so what the hell, why not?

Rules: you can usually tell a lot about a person by the type of music they listen to! put your favorite playlist on shuffle and list the first 10 15 songs, then tag 10 people. no skipping!

(I couldn’t stop at 10 so I added 5 more, sue me)

I have very random music taste and I listen to my music on shuffle alot, so I made a playlist of the ones I like the most (that way I don’t hafta skip 150 songs to get to the one I feel like) so I’m gonna use that one.

1) History of Violence - Theory of a Deadman

Hoo boy starting off light huh?.... Yeah so, I was in the drive thru at Sonic when I first heard this on the radio and was immediately like “holy shit”. Instead of like metaphors and poetic subtlety, it’s just straight up like “here’s a poor abused woman who resorted to murdering her shitty boyfriend/husband cuz she couldn’t take it dum dum dum”. Even though the actual situation is not the same, this song is perfect for getting across the internal issues and turmoil of my character Mikey. Its so perfect I’m even planning to animate something for it...... if I ever get around to learning animation that is.....     

2) The Vengeful One - Disturbed

Two songs in and I look kinda emo.... But hey this song is soooooo cathartic! I love me a good heavy rock song, and the drums and electric guitar are perfect for my ears to absorb. This song gives off a feeling of overwhelming power mixed with a coldness and disdain for the bad in the world. Obviously, thats not my usual temperment, but its an interesting one to explore! Especially when I’m trying to get into the head of characters that exude that like my OCs Spark or Ryu. Plus its fun to sing in the car X)

3) Enter Sandman - Metallica

Okay this one is just a classic! Same thing with the drums and guitar they both slap SOOOOO GOOD. I don’t really associate this song with any of my characters or fandom favorites, but it DOES give me a super strong urge to learn the drums. EXXXXXXXXIT LIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT! OFF TO NEVER NEVERLAND!!

4) We Are Giants - Lindsey Stirling ft. Dia Frampton

I don’t really to listen to music by band or artist, but I LOVE Lindsey Stirling!!! She’s probably my favorite musician! This is such a good song, especially for someone like me. Its a positive song that talks about feeling alone in a crowd and unimportant to the world, but how you really do matter and shouldn’t be afraid to dream big and shoot for the stars. It really speaks to me and the vocalization is so good (especially for singing), not to mention the official music video is animated and AMAZING!

5) Cetus - Lensko NCS

I dunno if anyone knows this song, but damn its good. Its one of those Royalty-Free songs that people look up for their channels, which is how I found it in the first place, but I loved it immediately. Its a peppy 8-bit electronic bop that turns a little Irish jig at the end and honestly I think if I ever start an animation channel I’m totally gonna use it! (Also go support Lensko he make good beats!)

6) Sanctuary - Utada Hikaru

I did not grow up with Kingdom Hearts, and only played KH2 within the past year n’ a half. But good God, the moment that Cinematic Opening came on and this song started playing I swear I astral projected into a daze of feelings without names. I know that “Simple and Clean” is the quintessential Kingdom Heart song that gives everyone feelings, but IMHO Sanctuary blows it out of the water. As beautiful as the animation was, or how curious the occasional backwards lyrics are, or how weird it is having high-res Goofy and Donald in what is essentially an anime opening, I really can’t be distracted from this song when I play.

7) Chemical Plant Zone (Rock Remix) - Zerobadniks

Chemical Plant Song is like, one of the TOP Sonic songs by popular vote (and we know how awesome the Sonic series is musically so thats saying something!), but I could never quite vibe with the normal 8-bit version. I think I first heard this as someone’s ringtone and was immediately like “THATS PERFECT THATS EXACTLY HOW I NEED IT!”. The rock makes the song soooo much better and honestly gives the song the perfect vibe. Unfortunately, it took FOREVER to find cuz none of the Rock Covers of this song were the right one. In fact, tbh, I’m not even sure whether Zerobadniks is the correct artist..... that’s just who everybody was crediting when I found it. 

(imma include the link i found since its a little hard to find: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqJiZEM6aPI )

8) The Wolf - SIAMES

YOU WANNA TALK ABOUT ANIMATED MUSIC VIDEOS???? THIS IS A GOD-TIER ANIMATED MUSIC VIDEO. I found the video first, and seriously, if you haven’t seen it YOU NEED TO!!! The beat works perfectly with the images on screen and the story being portrayed is really intriguing, with the lyrics adding to atmosphere without necessarily describing the visuals shown. Even without the animation, the song itself is a banger. It bring to mind the feeling of intense motion forward, but unable to decide whether its movement TOWARD something or AWAY from something. I love listening to this on a nighttime drive.

9) Burn the House Down - AJR

If you ask me, the best way to make a pop song better is to add either violins or trumpets. For this song, it was definitely the trumpets that first caught my attention, and the rest of the song kept me listening. I don’t really know how to describe the vibe of this song, and I don’t have a specific character or story in mind when I listen to it, so its a little hard for me to talk about it. I think the best way I can describe this song and what draws me to it is a feeling of nonchalant go-with-the-flow attitude to shenaniganry. Almost an undertone of “We’re hooligans in a situation that we probably should get out of, but hey we’ve got life and each other so why worry?” At least that’s the closest I can get to a verbal description heh...

10) Slim Pickens Does the Right Thing and Rides the Bomb to Hell - The Offspring 

DANCE, FUCKER, DANCE, LET THE MOTHERFUCKER BURN!!!

So this also has a KICKASS animated music video, but its technically combined with the song “Dividing by Zero”. Now the video works SO well with both, and the shifting artstyles reflect the differing tones of the songs PERFECTLY. However, I have a preference for both the animation and the song on the Slim Pickens half. Its fun to listen to and sing at the top of your lungs and its SO CATHARTIC. Again I cant really describe what my head does when I hear it, but I think you can probably feel a similar vibe if you watch the music video. 

11) No Heaven - DJ Champion

The first time I finished the original Borderlands, I had been playing for days on end, had just finished a long battle with the Destroyer, and sitting back relieved to have beaten it and reflecting on how much I had enjoyed the adventure. Then this song started playing. For what I believe was forty minutes this song looped on my TV while the credits rolled. By the time the credits finished I was pulling up the song to listen to again! What an absolutely PERFECT cherry to add to this experience. This song perfectly encapsulated the chaotic, trigger-happy, morally ambiguous craziness that I had enjoyed and absorbed in this game. Every time I hear it now, I imagine myself in the wastelands of Pandora, driving haphazardly across the sandy dunes as my companions and I shoot and blow up everything in sight. You know, living the dream.......     

12) Hit & Run (Wolfgang Lohr Remix) -  The Electric Swing Circus

I fucking LOVE electro-swing! The electronic beats and rhythm blend so well with the wild and energetic freedom of swing. A lot of electro-swing gives me a vibe of wild movement, reckless abandon, and freedom from constraint. I think this song melds all of these feelings the best! As the last song might have indicated, despite my general nice and sweet temperament, there is a part of me deep down that is an absolute gremlin secretly enamored with chaos, insanity, and a general disdain for law and authority X). But whereas anything Borderlands related has a more “morality is an illusion blowing shit up is real” air about it, this song is far more peppy. More of a “good-hearted but insane” type of chaos, like an 100mph car chase where you end up sailing over the train tracks JUST as the train passes.

.... I may have gotten a bit off track lol 

13) Kickstart my Heart - Motley Crue

I love this song, but I have to be VERY careful when and where I listen to this. I love songs that make me feel like I’m going a million miles per hour, like I’m gotdam Sonic the Hedgehog. Unfortunately, I may or may not have had multiple instances of listening to this song in the car and abruptly realizing that I’m going like 15mph above the speed limit...... So yeah, regardless of absolutely perfect it feels to play this song while speeding down a nearly empty highway, please be careful and drive responsibly!!!

14) I’m Born to Run - American Authors

Imma just up and say it. This song is a Sonic song; like not like actually from the series but a song for the character. This song encapsulates Sonic as a character better than some of his ACTUAL THEMES (and remember Sonic music are bangers!). Its a song about freedom, living life as it comes, and not letting anything slow you down. Frankly I’m surprised they didn’t make this song FOR the Sonic series, or even the movie! Speaking of which, ironically I heard this song right after watching the Sonic movie in theaters, so yeah there’s no way I can associate it with anything else. 

15) Opa Opa - Antique

Oh, what a PERFECT way to end this list! This may be one of my absolute favorite songs of all time! I don’t remember exactly how I found this song... I think I had just relistened to Dalar Mehndi’s “Tunak Tunak Tun” and was looking for other catchy non-english songs and BOY HOWDY I found one! I know nothing about the band or what the song’s about (its in greek and i dont speak it), but this song is just a masterpiece of retro, pop, and dance sounds. This song feels like the musical and lyrical manifestation of dance and movement. I really REALLY wish I could dance JUST so I can express how happy and free this song makes me feel! This is the BEST song for me to end this list with!

***********************************************************************************

JESUS, this got long..... Sorry about that XD. It was fun though, and hopefully somebody was vaguely interested in my ramblings.

Guess I need to tag people now? How about @tharkflark1, @rockmilkshake, @neonbuck, @drawingsdrawingseverywhere, @birthgiverofbirds, @puccafangirl, @kalcat, @biblestudybussybopsbabey, @monstrous-milktea, and @memecage! I think there are a couple of people here I haven’t talked to though soooooo..... hi, I hope you don’t mind the tag X)

 Anyway hope you enjoyed and/or want to do this too! This took for-fucking-EVER to type, so imma go fuck off and watch youtube or something now...

[underwaterwoods]

so i saw the star war

spoilers ahoy

i guess this is just gonna be random bullet points

* i actually feel pretty chill about it. yay for being spoiled. also like.... if you ignore the ridiculous stuff there’s actually a lot to have fun with in this one. i don’t know how i’ll feel about it once i’ve processed it more. i just know i had fun while watching it, which i know isn’t true for everybody. i totally understand the negativity - it all makes sense to me. i’m just glad i sort of.... FORCED myself to have enough distance to just go in like ‘i’M PrepArED fOr wHAtEveR’

*i did like all the jumping around between locations in the first half and how ben would show up everywhere rey was. what a ‘you’re everywhere i go’ pairing. /chef’s kiss/. also having the different locations gives a sense of spaciousness (even if it’s all happening over a short period of time) which i missed in tlj.

*one of the things that gave me the most joy as the hux thing ??? X’’’D it was EXACTLY like that ‘the farce awakens’ ep where hux LITERALLY JOINS THE RESISTANCE cuz he can’t stand kylo. like what kind of fanfic...... how do the hux fans out there feel? (i really love the hux fans they’re a great bunch XD). shame that he was gone right after though.

* i actually enjoyed the trio dynamic? like i get the desire to move away from ‘trio mentality’ but the rey/poe tension with finn as mediator was fun. and finn and poe as joint generals? adorable. shame that the whole finn/poe thing got a bit clouded by.... stormpilot baiting and rose erasure and all the things... Also i’m not anti any character - i like zorii - but.... let poe stay a gay icon? i guess he can still be a queer icon it’s all good i’m down for whatever.

*speaking of finn.... loved seeing more of his humour back. didn’t love that there was no unpacking of how he feels taking out stormtroopers. but loved the found family of jannah and the other ex-stormtroopers. i feel like that gave SOME resolution/depth to finn’s origins. and finn being a non force user but seemingly super attuned to the force and its ways? i can roll with that.

*more speaking of finn... i wonder what they were doing with the ‘thing he wants to tell rey that he never gets to tell rey’. seems like an obvious ‘i love you’ thing. but at the same time we got reylo (/basks in that for a second/). it feels to me like throwing a bone to the finnrey people? like they didn’t get it in this movie but it could be a thing in the future? regaurdless, i did like how finn and rey were very connected and back to that loving friendship they had in tfa. we never quite got the ‘you have a force bond with the supreme leader?!!’ conversation but we got.... SOME conversation.

* speaking of the supreme leader... kinda love that we got renperor AND ben solo TM. i prefer to view ben more holistically (he is both ‘ben’ and ‘kylo’) but i get that making them two distinct identities was a helpful shortcut of sorts. he could ‘kill’ kylo and switch to being ben in a single scene. i always prefer Soft Boi Ben but if we were gonna get Bad Boy Kylo i’m glad they established it right out the gate. it was like ok, this is what to expect; this is where we’re at with this character. 

*ben with his costume change at the end....... omg. gave me BIG smuggler!Ben vibes. urgh, give me all the AUs. ben deserves more.

*the amount of swagger when he was fighting the KOR

*idk i feel like i’m not even touching on the big stuff. this was just a ‘get all my side thoughts out of my system’ post.

*adam’s smile after the kiss though......... ...  /the most beautiful thing in this world/

*truly iconic that people were right about the strategic, covert introduction of force healing via baby yoda like one month before tros.

*oh yeah it was wILD that so much of the imagery from the trailers/tv spots etc was in like the first five mintues of the movie ??? i totally assumed the ‘i have been every voice you’ve ever heard inside your head’ moment would be climactic rather than right up front

*oh yeah the vader mask.... that didn’t really mean anything in the end then did it?

* re: ben’s death. maybe it’s because i was braced for it but in some ways it’s the best way he could have gone. he was definitely happy and reunited with the light - both through love of rey and of his family. hIGHKey could have done with ben’s force ghost also appearing at the end? the only good thing about not seeing it is.... LF deciding to retcon his death ? ??XD obs they’re not gonna but if you want a crackpot silver lining there it is.

*what exactly does rey’s future look like, may i ask?

* oh yeah, Passing The Saber Through The Force. maybe my favourite moment. the force bond as a bare concept is so romantic to me i would watch a whole trilogy just exploring the magic system of that - it’s limitations and possibilities. 

* i do like that jj developed the visual style of the bond. we got to see them occupying the same space, the way each of them would be seeing the other (’can you see my surroundings, i can’t see yours, just you’)

*i miss that rian johnson sound editing on the bond though..... god, the iNTIMACY of the tlj bond scenes....

*’i DID want to take your hand’

*also just the word choice of ‘take your hand’/ ‘i offered you my hand’. it’s extremely marriage.

*there was also a moment in the hanger when ben was like ‘we’re one’ basically? he was saying it in the context of rey’s lineage but still...............the validation. one soul. 

*palps was like ‘you live and die together’ which made me REALLY think of skytalkers podcast. obviously assumed they would both have to LIVE together but.... /deep sigh/

*blah this could go on forever i’ll add more later

edit #1:

* OH YEAH! reverse anidala was such a thing! why did it have to be SO reverse anidala though? X’D instead of taking her life, he gives her his own. (i know it’s not clear anakin totally killed padme etc etc but ya feel me)

* ok i hate that ben died obvs obvs but, taking that for what it is, it was very romeo and juliet. i kinda love just the imagery of it. like... the physical blocking/choreography of adam getting daisy into his arms, holding her, then he falls and it’s her holding him. the way she catches his neck. really reminded me of the smoothness of the bridal carry. and rey’s flexed foot in that moment of shock. love the body language. back to that kind of ‘’staccato’’ rey of tfa days.

edit #2:

*lololol @ LF trying to establish how ‘bad’ kylo is by having him kill a bunch of people in the beginning. it was just.... Hot.

edit #3:

* rose deserves better. obviously. she looked so good though. i like that she had some moments with connix too. 

* ben called han ‘dad’......

*ben standing there, overlooking the waves, with his leG EXTENDED BEFORE HIM. wanderer above a sea of fog. wanderer above a sea of foggg.

* rey having compassion for the snake thing. we been knew. kinda nice to have it in there. obviously good set up for ~later force healing shenanigans~

* OH YEAH OH YEAH. i kept thinking about atla. i know people have been making comparisons to it from the start and i’ve been DEEPLY INTO those comparisons. but it was truly a blessing for me to remember.... there is a version of this out there that you love and that is Good Content TM. legit i can just go watch atla again to heal from this. omg yeah cuz REY HEALING HIS WOUND ALSO HEALED HIS SCAR. very crystal cave.......... nah but nah but - the ‘you are every jedi’ was EXTREMELY avatar-esk..... like, engage avatar state. i don’t like how it ended up being the same old conflict between jedi and sith - ‘good’ and ‘bad’ - OBVIOUSLY THE POINT IS TO INTEGRATE THE CONFLICTING PARTS OF SELF; THE SHADOW SIDE; TO TRANSCEND OLD DICHOTOMIES - but i did love hearing all the voices from past jedi. that’s some good ‘the ancestors are with you’ shit.

edit #4:

* i think the first thing we hear rey say is ‘be with me’? ngl i was like ‘pls be invoking the force bond’ X’D i am a clown. that was a beautiful shot though. and love that a version of the bond kicked in like two seconds after that. 

edit #5:

*there’s that bit where reylo are fighting on the death star ruins and he’s winning and rey kinda falls to her knees panting and lowkey defeated and, not to be a shallow bitch but..... it was Hot.

*also dark rey......... was HOT. SHE WAS SO KIRA, WHATEVER THE FUCK THAT MEANS, AND I WAS INTO IT LIKE HNGGGG

*obvs i wanted rey to be truly no one. but casting jodie comer as rey’s mum ? ????? urgh, pefection, i love it.

*palps was so random i stg..... his plan was.... convoluted to say the least. 

*also who was under all those hoods?

*the KOR just kinda... being around again was hilarious. no explaination required. the boys are back in town. ben facing them without a mask and essentially wearing his pjs? loved it. 

edit #6:

*seriously though ben’s redemption outfit.............. /heart eyes emoji into the sunset/.......... you can see his collar bone.............. /cares about the important things/.................

edit #7:

*one thing i loved about the reylo was how Space Wizards TM they both were in this movie. it so highlights their connection by making it clear that they are each other’s only peer. i thought it would be a thing of ‘why is the supreme leader constantly interacting with/going after this girl?’ but it’s not because it’s so clear that they are the only two people on each others’ level. no one would dare question the fact that they’re constantly circling each other in a lustful murderous rage.

[corishat]

Mmmmkay so.....

I was trying to do a little video summary of my thoughts, because I didn’t think they were extensive enough to warrant a lengthy post, but I guess they are. So I’m just going to do it this way instead. With this post, I am not implying J.K. Rowling or David Yates did anything wrong, nor am I trying to say I know how to do it better than them, nor am I giving a really complete review of things. These are just a few things that maybe could’ve been implemented to make the plot a little smoother. 

First off, I loved:

1) The cinematography. WOW! This was the most visually unique and impressive Harry Potter film ever, in my opinion. The cinematography was speaking, and that was really great to see. I loved the bit with Pickett and the button at the beginning, and then we see Leta from Newt’s perspective. I was little taken aback at first because I was wondering why everyone was SO CLOSE, but my husband pointed out maybe they were trying to communicate how uncomfortable Newt is with interacting with people, so that’s warranted. I also really loved the visual motif of rain with Queenie and Jacob. When they fight in the street, and it starts raining after she leaves. And then when she hears him later, and it starts raining. Touching back on the first movie and the rainstorm when they kiss....this was a lovely visual moment. Also really loved the motif with the sheet and Leta’s story. We see it as the Boggart, and don’t really know what it is, and then when she’s telling her story and we see the sheet fall over her mother, BUT THEN its actually her brother sinking in the water....that was a REALLY beautiful visual motif to include. LOVE LOVE LOVE. Another great shot was when Queenie is in the apartment and you just see Grindelwald’s reflection really small in the mirror.....that was nice. 

Now, some things I didn’t love or maybe could’ve been twisted to flow a little better (because I think the acting was there, the characters were there, but the thing that didn’t work was the jumbled plot)....

Weaving character’s stories together more smoothly and foiling characters alongside each other. For instance.... Using Grindelwald and Dumbledore to play narratively against Queenie and Jacob. I truly don’t understand why Dumbledore and Grindelwald’s inabilities to fight absolutely had to do with something magical (the blood pact, which was never explained WHY or WHEN they did this, by the way). Why couldn’t the reason Dumbledore couldn’t move against Grindelwald be that he loved him? And why couldn’t Grindelwald’s inability to fight Dumbledore be because of deep-seeded guilt about not only Ariana’s death but his betrayal? It didn’t have to be revealed to any of his followers, but at least played for the audience. Does this makes sense? And IF they would’ve had the BALLS to flesh out that love story, they easily could’ve mirrored this against Queenie and Jacob who cannot be together 1) because of law/wrong perceptions by others and now 2) because of not seeing eye to eye. The inclusion of the blood pact only dampened the tragic story of two friends (more than friends) forever hurt because of mistrust and misunderstanding, and now attributes it to something we know nothing about.

OR including another love story to play narratively against Queenie and Jacob. I had this thought after seeing so many people pointing out that McGonogall wasn’t born yet despite her appearance at Hogwarts. And I thought.... If they wanted to give some fan service, why couldn’t they have introduced Isobel Ross as a major character (as an ally, or a friend of Newt’s or Dumbledore’s, whatever) and written in the story of her meeting Robert McGonogall. I mean, fans would’ve loved to see that. And it would’ve played SOOOOO WELL with the allegory they’re building and all the other star-crossed lovers’ storylines they’ve got going. If the entire point of the original Harry Potter series was that love is the most powerful magic, they had SUCH an opportunity to use that in this continuation to say that love doesn’t always work out like we expect and love has a cost. 

I also really don’t understand why it was so important that Credence be from a notable bloodline. This plot just has many holes in it. I’m not saying that this series has to say the same things as the Harry Potter books, but I think series work the best when they link thematically in some way. With the original series, people were seeking power and notoriety by following rumors and putting trust in things that turned out to be meaningless (the prophecy, perhaps). That’s why the foil of Harry and Neville work so well. At the end of the story, the idea of The Chosen One is meaningless because...well that’s the point. I feel like they’re trying to do the same thing here, but its pretty weak because they keep pushing the idea that Credence is definitely of notable birth. It would be fine if Grindelwald only suspected that Credence was a descendent of Dumbledore based on the symbols of the Phoenix and the obscurus, but now he’s got a first name and I guess he’s the real deal now? Or Grindelwald is indeed lying and just made up a name? IDK. I think maybe it would’ve been stronger narratively if Grindelwald had just kept on suspecting, only to be proven wrong in future installments (which maybe could still happen?). Maybe he’s just someone? Maybe his obscurus truly only developed because of the suppression of his magic. Also, doesn’t really make sense that Grindelwald KNOWS Credence isn’t Corvus. If he definitely knew the baby on the boat was Aurelius, he would’ve had to know that Leta switched the babies, which means the entire thing would’ve had to be a set-up. Which is super twisted. Not saying it can’t happen, cuz that’d be pretty sick, but it wasn’t explained and so I’m confused and sort of thinking they don’t have a plan either. 

A minor detail, but I was kind unimpressed by Newt’s house and the laboratory. The Nifflers playing was a cute bit, but the lab gave me Frankenstein vibes, not Soft Gentle Mum’s Here vibes. 

And on that note, poor Bunty. I want to know more about her. Who is she? Where did she come from? Did Newt hire her, or did the Ministry appoint her? How are we, as an audience, supposed to feel about her? I got nothing. She’s cute, but she did absolutely nothing besides pine and then disappear. 

Which leads me to my next point. Too many loose-ends on your characters. I had no idea that Grindelwald’s henchwoman was a Rosier until I read it online after the fact. I had no idea who the Ministry guy was at the beginning until I saw it for a second time because....what did he do? It definitely felt like that had three ideas for different ways the story could go, and smushed them all together, and he could’ve played a larger role in another version, but ended up fading into the background in the end result. I feel that a movie should stand alone, without clues from the internet, and give a complete experience. Didn’t get that this time around. Also, you’re telling me that you’re going to reduce the notable alchemist, the creator of the Philosopher’s Stone, who has created it and kept it without using it, to comedic relief? ARGH. I will be forever salty about this. One of the most mysterious, elusive characters in the whole universe and you do this to him? Wow. Thanks.

Anyways, I didn’t mean to get so passionate and I only wanted to speak on things I thought could’ve been fleshed out a little more. I liked it, it was pretty good, not as horrible as people are saying, but not as great either. But everything has flaws, so that’s why we have fan fiction. ;)

[crashpaddiaries]

Dear Crashpad Diary #28

Helllllllooooooo my favorite beasts of the entire world!!

How´s going there?? Hope you´re ready for the summer and the outdoors season!! hahahahahaha

well… now I understand when some people defend that cold weather is better for climbing… after months of hot-boiling weather in SEA, I came to a conclusion that, summer in these places is not suitable for even a living, actually…. freaking hot hahahah I'm right now writing and dehidrating as I´m sweating hahahah

Today I´ll write about: Loads of falls, getting better on surfing, that´s why I don´t like policemen, drinking coffee that just came out of an animal´s ass, photo pranks, earthquakes…

I´m seriously having fun here while learning how to surf!! We´re currently in Bali and we´ve been going to some beaches that are better for learners and cookies hahaha The problem is that, when you are learning from someone that already knows what the story is, sometimes you lack some good information!! hahah The first morning we´ve gone inside the ocean I had a big board with good flotation… therefore… the thing would not dive right?!?! Yep!!

So there is no need to tell ya that whenever a huge wave was coming and I tried to dive with the board it would not work and I would go inside the wave in a washing machine state hahahah After 3 or 4 big waves I kinda felt that sth was wrong and I had to change the strategy!! ahahahaha

Ever since I almost died in Patagonia due to a sudden snowstorm allied to my excess of confidence I have always been afraid of nature and it´s power… maybe the ocean is the one that scares me the most… so… after all those huge waves, I was decided to leave the ocean and rest for a bit (or for days) at the beach… but my bro came and told me how to deal with them and it is actually pretty ok… you don´t feel like dying the whole time hehehehe And after that I could focus on standing up hahahahah which I did just after 4 hours… or 3 days…. not sure… I´m not controlling the time here!! hahahaha

Once in Bali, the rice fields and Ubud area are a must-see attraction… off we went then… We rented a bike… got my camera and all the stuff and venga!! 
 BTW… we have been using an app called Maps.me which is absolutely fantastic! you can use all the maps offline and download all the countries or areas you might need… freeeeeaking nice!! That saved us many times on the trip!!

And there we were… maps on one hand… Luh driving…. we had like 40kms in front of us… everything was fine till the time we got to a big avenue and the policemen stopped us… to check the docs… funny though that they were stopping only tourists…

As soon as he stopped us… Luh gave him the drivers license and all the motorbikes documents that were in pristine conditions as the bike was Wayan´s one, from the hotel we were staying… Anyways… does not matter if that was ok or not… they were stopping only tourists to get money out of them… they came with a story that the driver´s license was not valid here and bla bla bla… the police guy brought us to the corner and said that we would have to “fix the mistake”… we tried to discuss a bit but he asked for 500.000 rupees… we said we did not have, which was true, cuz who´d go out for a day trip in a place like this carrying the daily budget?? haha

He asked 50% then, and we said no… but in the end he got 150.000 from us and let us go…. fucker!! =(

Later that week we met some locals that told us it is pretty common… you only need to put like 50.000 inside the motorbike´s documents when you hand it off, they will take the money and let you go with no harm… it´s sad to see things like this happening tho!!

Forgetting about this shit happen… people like this policemen cannot dictate the way you face or remember the day… I just decided to write about to help people avoiding losing money for nothing!! 

The trip that day was awesome… the rice fields were beautiful an huge… even after living in Hampi and having its great rice paddies as a constant background… I still have the capacity of fall in love with rice fields around the world… they seem to get greener and more vivid as the life goes on!! heheh

Something funny happened that day in the fields… funny for us… cuz for that lady twas not funny at all!! hahahah She was being photographed… and suddenly, she was covered by the mud and surrounded by rice hahahahah Yep… she fell inside one of the fields… and all the people present in that valley that day will remember the scared noise that one of her family member made as she collapsed!!

I can only imagine what happened: “Let´s take a pic people… Grandma… one step back… another one…. one last step for a better position!!”…. Grandmaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa….. hahahahahhahaha

Poor thing!! She was rescued fast without major injuries… she fell prob around 3 metres… but her clothes…. hahahaha I´m laughing but twas not funny for her… clothes!! RIP white shirt!! hahahahah

The next matter might sound a little awkward and maybe disgusting for some of yous…. but it was a valid, different and, I risk to say, delicious experience!! Someone had already told me about the most expensive coffee ever… a coffee that somewhat was extracted from an animal´s poo!! hahah And the best part of the story… it was somewhere in Indonesia!! hahaha

It happened to be in that area.. in Ubud… place where the animals were kept in captive… feed by the human and, after all the digestive process, the poo would be collected, roasted, ground and served as the most expensive coffee on earth… I have to agree that the coffee is indeed good… but as all the good coffee I´ve ever taken… Colombian, Brazilian, Kenyan… all of them were great too!!

So… I have been trying to understand why we keep these animals in a cage to make sth that we have already mastered without them?? Maybe it is a way to add some different value to the product.. but is it worthy?? dunno…

It seems that the human being have a fetich for the animals asses though!! Some time ago a friend of mine told me that vanilla flowers are extremely rare, therefore, original vanilla flavour is costly… reason why all the big companies found a way to artificially replace it… and the way they found, involves something found on otter´s asses…. seriously??? First you get the vanilla from the otter ass and now the coffee from the Luwak ass????

Can you imagine what would be a Luwak vanilla coffee then!! hahahahahaha

Well… with the unpredicted bribe expense, we decide to save some money using the app Tripadvisor to get info on cheap places to eat and all… silly mistake!! They have a way to rate the restaurants with € symbols… if the place has one symbol is cheap and so on…

It was easy for me and Luh to choose…. the ones with more than € were automatically out of scope hehe Unfortunately and fortunately, they have some sort of trouble to define what is cheap and expensive… cuz the cheap stuff they define was overpriced … that's the unfortunate part… cuz we walked to few of them for 2 or 3 times… got there starving and had to abort the mission because of the prices…. However… and that's where the fortunate part comes… we got to find some nice, delish and cheap local places!!! Yummy and in your face trip advisor!! don´t like ya!! haha odds of using apps haha

Talking about odds…. what are the odds of going to bed thinking out of the blue about tsunamis and thinking what would be the best action plan for us if that happened (I know… it's weird but it was pretty random thought) and wake up the next morning with an earthquake???

Weird, isn’t it??? I know!!

Maybe because of the thought of the previous night… I woke up, got out of bed and opened the door to leave the room in a split of second… when I opened the door my brother woke up and while he was trying to understand what was going on I told him to leave fast…. by that time we had few more secs of shakiness and then it stopped… checking the internet few mins later I could confirm that it happened 35km from our place and it was quite strong… 6.10 on the Richter scale!! wow… one can freak out when the safety of the ground vanishes that sudden!! I can remember the soundtrack of it all was provided by some old ladies that kept yelling for the whole length!! haha

In that same website… earthquaketrack.com, I saw that you can register to receive earthquake alerts on twitter!! hahahaha Imagine that… you get an alert like: “Holy Shit…. run!!!!” or “Fuck fuck fuck fuck!!” or even “Good night Mr. Jones, We´d like to let you know that in few mins from now you´ll feel like you´re losing it… don´t worry… it´s all good… if you live your home and head to a park or some sort of open air area like… NOW!! 

or... even the classic Douglas Adams advice: “Don´t panic!!” hahahahahaha

Sweeeeeet!! I hope you had good fun with this post… all the stories and infos are true, even the paragraph that I say I did get up on a surfboard!! hahahah

All the best smiles and sweet vibes from the great Indonesia!!

oh… and if you´re thinking about grabbing your backpack and travel the world… let me know…. I might join you somewhere!! =)

Cheers and good trip!!


Evan