#i will pray every day for book 2 adaptation

[emotionaldisaster909]

OH MY GOD ANOTHER SHOT OF SOLDIER HUA!!!

I AM DECEASED

LOOK AT HIM

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

source

[aziraphales-library]

are there any WIP or long post s2 fics you guys are keeping an eye on? I want to get into something for the long haul! love you guys, thank you!!

I don't read WIPs myself, though I have a couple bookmarked for once they're complete. Here are some long ones for you, which may or may not be completed by the time this posts...

Flaws by indigo (E) (WIP) (now complete)

Aziraphale cannot just sit back and hope any longer; Crowley is too precious to him to allow any risk at all to his continued existence. The Metatron's offer was far too good to pass by, and even if Crowley refuses to see it, Aziraphale needs to take this chance to make Heaven into the place of light and good that it should be. Crowley will come around eventually, the angel knows that impetuosity was always one of his flaws. But what of Aziraphale's flaws? Naivety, perhaps? I am jumping into the post S2 whirlpool with my own thoughts on What Happened Next. Whilst I have every confidence that NG will FIX THIS, I have some fears that Amazon will leave us hanging... and anyway, I want my happiness for them NOW, not in another four years... Angst in places, but they will end up on the same page, eventually! At least one update a week for now, settling into weekly updates by September.

how do we turn on the light? by moonyinpisces (M) (WIP)

Aziraphale ascends to the highest level of the Archangels. And he remembers—well. It’s not important what he remembers.

The End of My World Is You by T_O_S_T_E, WeepingintheTARDIS (G) (WIP)

If finding the Truth means the end of the Universe… would you still proceed? Something’s Up, and that something is the Second Coming. Although many people - sorry, angels - seem to be involved, there’s only one among them who knows what’s really cooking in the hot oven called ‘the Great Plan’. Although — only one?

Don't Fall Away From Me by PhoenixRose314 (M) (WIP)

if i fall, on that day, i only pray don't fall away from me. What if there was much more to Aziraphale and Crowley's history than Crowley remembers? What if there had been an "our side" even before the Fall? What if Aziraphale's guilt was the only thing keeping them apart for the last six thousand years? And what if the only thing that could pull them back together again was the firm belief of a plucky little angel-turned-human-bookseller that love really does conquer all? Don't Fall Away From Me is a post Season-2 Good Omens fic that rotates perspectives between Muriel, Crowley and Aziraphale.

Are We Meant to Read the Footnotes? by RiaTheDreamer (T) (WIP)

After Aziraphale’s decision, Crowley chooses coffee, not death. Life goes, painfully, on, and Crowley does his best to adapt to his new lonely existence. It hurts. Until it suddenly doesn’t. Someone has opened the Book of Life and erased Aziraphale’s name. Old habits kick in, but how can Crowley save someone whose existence has been destroyed and forgotten?

- Mod D

[bluecrocss]

And you know what's so crazy about the PJO fans that are up in arms over the changes in the show and have been having a fit over the castings?

ATLA is my favorite show in the entire world. It was my favorite as a kid and still my favorite now as an adult. I have re-watched that show start to finish, more than anything in my life and it's probably the one subject I am most knowledgeable about.

When they announced the live-action I had initially been ecstatic, but as I read more about the direction Netflix was taking it, learning the og creators left the project, and a few casting choices I didn't love, I realized it wasn't for me...

So you know what I did? I just didn't watch it.

I have not concerned myself with the live-action since. I don't stay up at night wishing the worst for the show, I don't hate watch it, I'm not in the comment sections of the cast members I didn't agree with harassing actors that simply auditioned for a part, I'm not on fan pages and fan posts for the show, lamenting all the things I don't like. I don't even interact with the live action fandom.

And it's not out of anger or spite, just pure indifference.

The existence of the live action, doesn't take away from the og show I watched. It hasn't burned it out of existence. I can still re-watch it and get exactly what I want out of it anytime I want.

The existence of the live-action fandom doesn't keep me up at night. Why would it bother me that there are people who enjoy the live action, when I don't? Why would I wish for the cancellation of a show that they enjoy? What difference would not making the rest of the seasons of the live action have towards my life?

Also for the cast, regardless of how I feel about the performances or which castings I liked, and which I didn't... all I can see is a whole host of young actors of color, getting a shot at roles that wouldn't have existed for them like 10 years ago. How can I look at that and be angry? over a fictional story?

Idk man... fandom spaces have been getting progressively more vile and toxic as of late (and this is coming from a fandom veteran). Whatever happened to the concept of "scroll if you don't like"?

It's like people feel this entitlement that every piece of media correlated to something that you liked as a kid, has to cater to YOU specifically (don't even get me started on the Star Wars fandom).

With the PJO show, it's already clear it won't be a 1:1 adaptation from the books, the casting won't follow the physical descriptions of the books... if that's too far for you, don't watch it. Why are you determined to torture yourself, and bring the people who actually did enjoy the adaptation and it's changes down with you?

As someone who read the books and loved them as a kid, and watched the adaptation and also enjoyed it for what it was (Not that I think the first season was flawless. And there are definitely somethings they need to fix going forwards), I just don't understand this behavior.

I've tried to empathize with the people that are still harassing the child actors, and making hour long videos on every detail that wasn't 100% book accurate, and launching think pieces on how Rick Riordan is now the devil incarnate apparently and I just think back to my relationship with the ATLA live action, and I wouldn't even have the energy or desire to do any of that shit. Like, what is driving y'all?

Also, I'm not gonna go into my rant about the new streaming format of 8 episodes, every 1-2 years and the effect that is having on the quality of the shows we are getting, cuz we'll be here all day, but something I have noticed is that shows aren't allowed to have bad seasons anymore.

Like, people will hype up a show before it comes out and if season 1 isn't perfect, they'll start praying for it's cancellation and claiming it's unsalvageable. That's not how showrunning works. Y'all realize if that was how they did things in the past, we wouldn't have shows like: the office, parks and rec, the simpsons, Star trek tng, etc.

Rather than review-bombing a show because the first season has flaws and pushing the networks/streaming platforms to cancel it, how about we encourage shows with good foundations so we don't miss out on the gems they can become in the future?

[fagdykefriendship]

s&b spoilers

shadow and bone s2 was GOOD im pretty much either indifferent to or super into all the changes they made. um and wylan was perfect absolutely 100% wylan. and tbh there’s a lot of differences in medium between books/tv and i think it’s good they included some crows backstory in this season

simply because. as book readers we all know these characters. but if you were someone watching the show only i personally wld get so frustrated if a show waited til like a spin-off or season 3 or whatever to give me backstory on very mysterious interesting characters. it was good. and also mostly kaz i mean we don’t have wylans backstory yet… and not all of jespers like we saw his mom but not his dad. he’s got issues around both parents <3

ALSO ALSO?!!! alina. alina. highkey i liked what they did with her. like it struck a good middle ground!! between the fact that the original ending is good bc she sacrifices her powers to save the world (sacrifices of war) and the fact that it is annoying to see someone fight for their powers and then have them completely stripped away. i enjoyed this ending. there’s consequences for merzost.. she’ll never be the same.. AND it fits w lore since shadow summoning kinda seems to have come from morzova’s merzost and manifested into his child being a shadow summoner

only change i didn’t like was david. i hope he comes back but i don’t think he will or at least not how he was.

i’m highkey also loving the changes to jesper and wylan they did feel like the least developed as a couple in six of crows and i do enjoy them getting to have a silly little romance amongst all the tragedy and shit…

i think definitely part of how s2 was done is bc netflix is known to randomly cancel shows and show runners have to like. make every season be a kind of ending these days since they have no guarantee they’ll get an additional season. but i pray that we get six of crows jurda parents heist. intrigued by a lot of things. especially how they’ll get inej back into the soc plot when she’s already achieved her goal essentially.. that’s not a complaint tho just a wondering. it also gives them the opportunity to develop kaz and inej beyond what’s in the books!!

idk i kind of think of the show as a high budget fanfic. which makes it so fun. it’s not a direct adaptation it’s a what if something different (that still makes sense) happened! what if the crows interacted with the s&b characters! it’s so fun i loved s2

i am. so fucking glad it essentially ended with single alina bc I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN THE BIGGEST FAN OF SINGLE ALINA!! and so glad they changed up and skipped a lot of book 2 bc let’s be real that book suffers serious pacing issues. it’s so slow. love alina’s agency. i saw some random person complaining about her “making bad choices” but um tbh all her choices seemed generally like.. they made sense so that’s all that matters

[martinwilliammichael]

Nigerian priest promotes Rosary devotion (2)

Nigerian priest Father Justine Dyikuk recently wrote a book called Me and my Rosary. The book has been lauded by various Catholic Church leaders in Africa and in the UK, where it was launched early this month as “a spiritual treasure” that adds to the Theology of the Catholic Church and an invitation to conversion.

“Are we able to identify something joyful in our lives when we meditate on the joyful mysteries?” Father Dyikuk asks. “And are we able to share the same joy with our brothers and sisters? When tragedy strikes, how does it impact our faith? Do we help others unite their pain with that of Jesus when we meditate on the sorrowful mysteries?”

“How do we respond to the invitation to be disciples of Jesus when we pray the glorious mysteries? And when we meditate on the luminous mysteries, do we reflect on the day of our baptism and our call to be missionaries?” he further posed.

Sharing about his conversion when he started praying 20 decades of the rosary daily, Dyikuk, who survived a Boko Haram attack in 2011, said: “I prayed the rosary daily, but I wasn’t as conscious of it as I am now. I have seen numerous fruits in my life from the time I started setting aside one hour every day to pray the rosary.”

“Praying the rosary slows down one’s will in committing sin,” he said. “The rosary connects you to the mysteries of Christ and through it, Our Lady reminds us to do the will of her son.” (...)

Dyikuk argues that the rosary is the “poetry” of the Mass because “it X-rays the joyful, sorrowful, glorious, and luminous mysteries of Christ, which invites Christians to connect their daily experiences with these mysteries for profound spiritual benefits.”

Agnes Aineah, June 26, 2024

Source (adapted): www.catholicnewsagency.com 

Note:This story was first published by ACI Africa, CNA’s news partner in Africa, and has been adapted by CNA.

Hail, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

[lindajenni]

sep 26

if i were the devil

if i were the devil … if i were the prince of darkness, i’d want to engulf the whole world in darkness. and i’d have a third of its real estate, and four-fifths of its population, but i wouldn’t be happy until i had seized the ripest apple on the tree — thee. so i’d set about however necessary to take over the united states. i’d subvert the churches first — i’d begin with a campaign of whispers. with the wisdom of a serpent, i would whisper to you as i whispered to eve: 'do as you please.'

to the young, i would whisper that 'the bible is a myth.’ i would convince them that man created God instead of the other way around. i would confide that what’s bad is good, and what’s good is ‘square.’ and the old, i would teach to pray, after me, ‘our Father, which art in washington…’

and then i’d get organized. i’d educate authors in how to make lurid literature exciting, so that anything else would appear dull and uninteresting. i’d threaten tv with dirtier movies and vice versa. i’d pedal narcotics to whom i could. i’d sell alcohol to ladies and gentlemen of distinction. i’d tranquilize the rest with pills.

if i were the devil i’d soon have families that war with themselves, churches at war with themselves, and nations at war with themselves; until each in its turn was consumed. and with promises of higher ratings i’d have mesmerizing media fanning the flames. if i were the devil i would encourage schools to refine young intellects, but neglect to discipline emotions — just let those run wild, until before you knew it, you’d have to have drug sniffing dogs and metal detectors at every schoolhouse door.

within a decade i’d have prisons overflowing, i’d have judges promoting pornography — soon i could evict God from the courthouse, then from the schoolhouse, and then from the houses of congress. and in His own churches i would substitute psychology for religion, and deify science. i would lure priests and pastors into misusing boys and girls, and church money. if i were the devil i’d make the symbols of easter an egg and the symbol of christmas a bottle.

if i were the devil i’d take from those who have, and give to those who want until i had killed the incentive of the ambitious.

and what do you bet i could get whole states to promote gambling as the way to get rich? i would caution against extremes and hard work in patriotism, in moral conduct. i would convince the young that marriage is old-fashioned, that swinging is more fun, that what you see on the tv is the way to be. and thus, i could undress you in public, and i could lure you into bed with diseases for which there is no cure. in other words, if i were the devil i’d just keep right on doing what he’s doing.

paul harvey, good day - 1965

mr harvey delivered this years ago to a world descending into darkness and confusion. i think even he would be shocked at far we have advanced from his visioning. all his statements seem as a child's reader compare to a book on calculus. and our senses remain deadened all the while because the process was gradually - just like a frog will remain still and be cooked because the body adapts to the increase until it is suddenly too late.

many are now like that frog. "for when they say, 'peace and safety!' then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. and they shall not escape." 2 thes 5:3

but satan is busy at his job and he is good at it. "he has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, lest they should see with their eyes, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them." john 12:40 God does not take pleasure in the loss of any soul.

if you are unsure of your standing with the Lord today, in any way, call upon the name of Jesus - "Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom." luke 23:42

[motiv8world]

Rhapsody of Realities 25 June 2023: Don’t Miss God

SCRIPTURE: For this cause we also, sincetheday we heard it, donot cease toprayforyou, and to desire that ye might befilled with the knowledge ofhis will in all wisdomand spiritual understanding (Colossians 1:9).

The book of Genesis tells the touching story of Abraham and his nephew, Lot. When God called Abraham to leave his homeland for a foreign country, Lot journeyed with Him (Genesis 12:4). As God blessed Abraham in his pilgrimage, Lot was also blessed. They were both so blessed that the land where they sojourned at some point could no longer contain their herds.

Fighting often broke out between Abraham’s herdsmen and Lot’s, until Abraham said, “..Let there be no strife, Ipray thee, between me and thee, and between my herdmen and thy herdmen; for we be brethren. Is not the whole land before thee? separate thyself, I pray thee, from me: if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right, or if thou depart to the right hand, then Iwil go to the left” (Genesis 13:8-9).

This was where Lot’s problem began. He looked at the lush green plains of Jordan on one side and the dry patch of land on the other. He chose the luxuriant side, and pitched his tent near Sodom, a land of wickedness, not knowing that God’s judgement was imminent upon Sodom.

When God rained fire on Sodom as retribution for the iniquity of its people, Lot’s life was spared as a result of Abraham’s intercession. But he (Lot) lost everything he owned in the crisis and ended up in a cave. This happened to Lot simply because he missed God; not because he was a bad person. In fact, the Bible says that Lot was a righteous man (2 Peter 2:7-8 NIV).

So in your life, the best place to bet, always, is at the centre of God’s will. Never be carried away by the allures of this world. The

choices you make shouldn’t be based on the cravings of the flesh, but according to the leading of the Holy Spirit. For example, don’t relocate to a particular city or country simply because of its economic prospects. You could be making a costly mistake. The Bible says, “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Proverbs 14:12).

PRAYER: Dear Father, I lay down my goals, ambitions, aspirations, desires and dreams at your feet. Itrust yourWord, which isthe light that guides me in the path of success, victory, and greatness. Through your Word, I receive direction, illumination and insight into the mysteries and realities of the Kingdom. | recognize and act on God-given opportunities alone, yielded only to the guidance of your Spirit, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

FURTHER STUDY:

Colossians 1:9-10 AMPC

9 For this reason we also, from the day we heard of it, have not ceased to pray and make [special] request for you, [asking] that you may be filled with the full (deep and clear) knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom [in comprehensive insight into the ways and purposes of God] and in understanding and discernment of spiritual things—

10 That you may walk (live and conduct yourselves) in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him and desiring to please Him in all things, bearing fruit in every good work and steadily growing and increasing in and by the knowledge of God [with fuller, deeper, and clearer insight, acquaintance, and recognition].

Proverbs 3:5-7 MSG

Don’t assume that you know it all. Run to God! Run from evil!

Romans 12:2

2 Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you].

1-YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN: Acts 11:19-30 & Nehemiah 1-3

2-YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN: Luke 4:1-13 & Deuteronomy 23

[spectacularizm]

Shitpost Status 2: Nerd Emoji

More stuff about me except this time it's MOVIES AND SHOWS I LIKE YIPPEE Not only do I like every single adaptation of All Quiet, but I Loooooooooooooooooooooooooooove every frickin movie out there of Godzilla, I not only LOVE every Godzilla movie but OWN every Godzilla movie. I also own plentiful amounts of Godzilla merchandise, aswell as video games and even signed/autographed prints. Uhhh I used to be pretty big into The Office (Both the UK and US versions) but that's sort of worn down by now, still like it though. Favourite characters are Dwight, Jim, Gareth, and Andy. I'm a Warrior Cats enjoyer yes I know cringe but like no because Warrior Cats gotta be my fave book series in all of existence and what's not to love about kewl emo cats!?!?! That being said this is pretty useless but I REALLY like cats like I'm a cat person to the point where it should be a mental illness because I LOVE CATS and without cats I would die and I would not want to exist in a world without cats (I own 4 cats) and my favourite breed is the hairless cat because PINK ALIEN CAT BINGUS All Quiet obsessor but hey that's obvious!!! One of these days I'll get Felix to notice me smh Similar to Warrior Cats, I like Lackadaisy too, the pilot was AMAZING and I've read the entire webcomic thoroughly and I can say it is very much worth the read!! As a history geek, too, it's very intriguing with all the accuracies to the 20's!! I sooooorta like Helluva Boss/Hazbin Hotel?? It's pretty on/off tbh. Last couple of episodes have been great, I love the unique demon species and designs, I just hate the fandom, and the creator has a lot of drama around her, so I'm iffy. 90 Day Fiancee binge-watcher. Absolutely HILARIOUS drama on there. Y'all know Big Ed? C'mon, you gotta know Big Ed. White Chicks is my comfort movie and Idk why but it's great it's awesome and it's mildly offensive but it's funny I don't know how to explain it without seeming... controversial.

I love HTTYD. Except for the new one. Guilty Team America enjoyer. Guilty Goodboys enjoyer. Guilty Mallrats enjoyer. Guilty Jay and Silent Bob enjoyer. Guilty Yogahosers enjoyer. Guilty Jojo Rabbit enjoyer. I LOVE ZOOLANDER!!! BIG Comfort movie. I like dinosaurs teehee Jurassic World/Park lover teehee

I like Marvel n the MCU too (Hawkeye the best frfr) A really disturbing trippy movie I LOVED that is based on a real dude and a real story is Fear & Loathing: Las Vegas Also I dabble in horror movies a bit, E.G Clockwork Orange, The Mist, IT, Scream, Halloween, Terrifier.. I watched Boy in the Striped Pajamas.......... traumatizing experience... do not recommend for the light-hearted.... or anyone, for that matter. okay this is becoming too long now so Imma say this as my final message I LOVE 70's/80's/90's SHOWS!!! Like Soap, Fantasy Island, Red Dwarf (THE BEST.), The Waltons, Frasier, Cheerz aaand it's not an older show but it's based IN those times, The Goldbergs. THINGY: I am PRAYING. TO. GOD. That Felix or SOMEBODY will let us know if he's gonna be in another movie soon because I NEED TO KNOW AND I NEED TO SEE IT GRGRGRGRGRGGRYREHHAJNDAKJMDKJ Okay thats it bye might make more of these idk ily all no homo

[see-arcane]

Jonathan Harker: The ‘Absolute Love Corrupts Absolutely’ Villain That Almost Was*

*LONG before Francis Ford Coppola’s Cinematic Gary Oldman Fanfiction

Spoilers ahead for the Dracula Daily enjoyers, because I’m whipping out all my literary receipts on this.

I recently finished speed-rereading Dracula because I have no self-control. In doing so, I got a refresher on quite a few incendiary factors of the book that time had dulled in my memory.

1.     There’s a TON of ‘I’m not like other girls!’ and ‘men good, women dainty,’ and ‘What no I’m not projecting, honest, I just really like the words manful, voluptuous, manful, aquiline, manful, God, and manful again. –Bramothy Stoker,’ so brace for that from basically the whole cast. I’m blaming it partly on Bram Flakes’ own prejudices, of which there are plenty, and the fact that he’d clearly never met a thesaurus in his life.

(I appreciate everyone’s mental revamp of Mina as the New Woman to Lucy’s Classic Damsel, but…oof. Everyone’s in for a harsh Period/Stoker Accurate reminder.)

2.     Brammy Pajamas was either hanging around some exceptionally devout Christians to write some of the second/third act scenes with everyone basically thrashing and wailing and falling on their knees and clasping/kissing hands as they pray to/thank God, all while thinking it was perfectly natural behavior for these characters…or he legit had no clue how any kind of ordinary human being, Christian or otherwise, would react to the situations he puts them in.

(Seriously, it’s not even that everyone’s devout, it’s that they’re all written to act like they’re in a soap opera where the only direction they got was to be as hammy and histrionic as physically possible. You’ll know the scenes when you see them.)

3.     Jonathan Harker has not only been done dirty by every adaptation since the book in terms of being a main character, along with being the character to spend the most time with Dracula in close quarters, period, and being the love interest for Mina—his whole character arc by the second half of the book is the most blazing hot, “If my beloved is destined for damnation, I’m heading to Hell with her, fuck all else,” shit I have ever read in classic literature, full stop.

Not Dracula. Not any character based on Dracula.

Jonathan fucking Harker is the OG archetype for Love Corrupts (Violently), and the canon story avoided him going full tragic villain by t h i s much. You want proof? Let’s go.

NOTE: MAIN SPOILERS STRAIGHT FROM THE BOOK, SHIELD YOUR EYES

Here’s the part most Harker fans scream over, myself included:

“To one thing I have made up my mind: if we find out that Mina must be a vampire in the end, then she shall not go into that unknown and terrible land alone. I suppose it is thus that in old times one vampire meant many; just as their hideous bodies could only rest in sacred earth, so the holiest love was the recruiting sergeant for their ghastly ranks.”

Good shit, good shit! Jonathan was already prepared to risk falling to his death from a cliff or being eaten by wolves rather than stay in Castle Dracula for a bloodthirsty eternity with the ladies. But now? Mina is quite literally his, “You are worth Hell,” Beloved. But there’s more. Fast forward to one of Team Fuck-Up-That-Old-Undead-Man’s first head-on encounters with the Count. As they’re waiting, Jonathan gets impatient, declaring:

“I care for nothing now,” he answered hotly, “except to wipe out this brute from the face of creation. I would sell my own soul to do it!”

He says as much in front of his Christian+ buddies who, by now, had pretty fair reasons to believe in the legitimacy of Hell and all its demons. Van Helsing is definitely startled and seemingly talks him down from such an oath. Key word being seemingly. Because we jump forward again to a point where Mina, in full saintly forgiveness mode (and apparently selectively forgetting Van Helsing’s history lesson about Dracula’s pre-vampire days being ones of a slaughtering tyrant), saying that if/when they destroy the Count, oh, how happy his soul will be to be free of his torment on Earth, et cetera. Jonathan Harker has a rebuttal to share. Namely:

“May God give him into my hand just for long enough to destroy that earthly life of him which we are aiming at. If beyond that I could send his soul forever and ever to burning hell I would do it!”

God forgives. Jonathan Harker emphatically does not.

Onward again, and he speaks volumes by what he does not say. Chiefly, there’s a point where Mina, now in full martyr preparation should the worst happen, makes the boys swear an oath to destroy her body if/when she succumbs and dies to Dracula’s vampiric poisoning so she cannot rise again as one of his ladies. The boys swear. Mostly. What we get from Jonathan is…

“And must I, too, make such a promise, oh, my wife?”

“You too, my dearest.” (Note: The rest of her paragraph here is full of the most knife-twisting, utterly warped martyr ‘pep talk’ I’ve ever read, and I have no idea how she/Bramarama thought it would remotely convince Jonathan this was all a reasonable and chill thing she was talking about. Anyway.)

It’s important to note that absolutely nowhere in the ensuing text does Jonathan ever speak the promise out loud. He does read the goddamn Burial Service at Mina’s request, which he barely chokes his way through. But he never makes the oath.

Another jump ahead. They are on the hunt for Dracula and, alas, have just missed him at a key point. Most of the gang are shaking their fists at the sky, cursing up and down. And what is Jonathan doing? Well, to quote Jack Seward, just before the epiphany…

“We men were all in a fever of excitement, except Harker, who is calm; his hands are as cold as ice, and an hour ago I found him whetting the edge of the great Ghoorka knife which he now always carries with him. It will be a bad look-out for the Count if the edge of that ‘Kukri’ ever touches his throat, driven by that stern, ice-cold hand!”

And upon discovery of the Count slipping them…

“Harker smiled—actually smiled—the dark bitter smile of one who is without hope; but at the same time his action belied his words, for his hands instinctively sought the hilt of the great Kukri knife and rested there.”

For context, by this point Jonathan had already come at Dracula with said Kukri knife a while back, having nearly landed the blow after charging out of the pack and nearly fucking gutting the Count. For extra context, this is a Kukri knife:

He’s just been walking around with that. For half the book. Plotting.

And, with all of this in mind, we can only assume Jonathan had two plans of action in mind.

Plan A, follow Van Helsing’s lead.

…Not counting the moment he almost bit the Professor’s head off for saying he had to bring Mina along with him to Castle Dracula. Another good scene which includes his very succinct reaction to Van Helsing’s suggestion, even if he does have to agree in the end:

“Not for the world! Not for Heaven or Hell!”

Anyway. If the plan works out, cool. He gets to kill Dracula, Mina is saved. Best case scenario!

But then there’s the unspoken, explicitly unwritten (in case his pages need to be read), but heavily foreshadowed Plan B. They cannot destroy the Count, in time or otherwise. Mina is now either a corpse waiting to awake as a vampire, or a vampire already. The others, true to their vow, mean to destroy her.

Jonathan Harker, true only to Mina, in whatever form she may take, still has that Kukri. And the element of surprise. And a full acknowledgment of the realities of Heaven, Hell, and his holding Mina’s continued existence above them, his friends, his sanity, his humanity, and himself.

In short, all your tragically romantic Draculas can kindly go fuck themselves with a wooden stake. Jonathan Harker is the first and best gothic horror example of a person in love to the point of madness, damnation, and willingness to deceive or destroy anyone who would endanger the one he loves. The only reason we never got to see it in action was because Stoker had to tack on a happy ending. If he hadn’t?

The census would be less four unsuspecting heroes and plus two newlywed vampires.

The End.

Suck on it, Francis.

[arjuna-vallabha]

In the years leading upto the Battle of Plassey , Bengal was going through some extremely tough times . Accounts by contemporary writers describes vividly the problems faced by the common man .  This was a period when the East India company was gaining more political power . The true ruling class , the Nawab of Bengal and his aides immersed themselves in luxury and debauchery . On the other hand infamous zamindaars such as Devi Singha made life miserable for the common folk . And then there was famines , epidemics , droughts and inability to pay taxes . But still the people fought on with a smile on their lips . But even that seemed to disappear with the onset of Maratha raids into Bengal in mid 18th century . The “bargee” attacks , as they became popularly known , was so devastating and horrifying that they have been permanently etched in Bengali memory in form of lullaby songs . Even today bengali mothers lull their babies to sleep singing “ Sleep fast my child , for the bargees are coming ! The bulbul birds have eaten all crops , how are we going to pay taxes ? ��But who were these ‘bargees’ ?The word bargee is thought to derive from Persian ‘Baargee’ which denoted a cavalry soldier . The other type of  cavalry men used to be called Shiledaars . The government used to provide horses and weaponry to the baargees . The shiledaars on the other hand had to source these themselves . In those times , the sultans of Ahmednagar developed the art of sudden stealth attacks , which came to be known as ‘baargeer-giri’ . This mode of guerrilla warfare was effective and gained massive popularity all throughout the Deccan , including Maharashtra . In the year 1740 Alivardi Khan defeated and killed his master and the then Nawab of Bengal , Sarafaraz Khan and himself sat on the throne of Bengal . But the brother in law of Sarfaraz , Naib Nazeem of Orissa Rustam Jung turned against Alivardi to avenge the wrong done to his brother . Alivardi defeated Rustam Jung and dethroned him from his Orissa office . In retaliation , Rustam Jung went to Nagpur  and sought the help of Raghuji Bhonsle , the then ruler of the region . Raghuji Bhonsle’s Diwan , Bhaskar Kolhatkar AKA Bhaskar Pandit launched an attack on Bengal with all his might . The raids continued for a period spanning 9 years and according to contemporary Dutch estimates , four lakh people died in the bloodbath . It devastated the economy of Bengal and created a period of anarchy and terror . The bargees gradually approached uptill the capital at Murshidabad and sacked the city and plundered the houses of the rich . The Britishers of East India Company on the other hand became anxious about a possible attack on the emerging prosperous city of Calcutta , their main hub . To deter any attack , they began digging a giant moat around the entire town . Luckily the bargees did not attack Calcutta and the work on the moat was discarded midway . The moat was eventually filled up in 1890s and made into upper and lower circular roads ( Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose road & Acharya Prafulla Chandra road presently ) A certain poet named Gangaram composed a poetry describing the affairs of the bargee raids in his book called “Maharashtra Puran” . Parts of it describe the horrors faced by civilians in those times – “ They round up everyone and loot their gold and silver . They cut off the hands of some . To others they cut off the nose and the ears . For the rest they simply chop off their heads . The pretty ladies they take away and tie them up . Then they take turns to rape until they start crying to be spared . The set the homes of the rich on fire and destroy all the temples of Vishnu . They tie up their captives , fold up their hands and kick on their chest with their heavy boots . Those who have money give it to them and escape death . Those who don’t have money have no other option other than to surrender to death . The Brahmins flee with their sacred books under their arms ! The goldsmiths flee with their measuring insruments . The shopkeepers flee with their wares . The metal workers flee with their copper and brass . The blaksmiths flee along with earthen pot makers . The fishermen flee with their nets . Rich men’s wives unaccustomed to walking flee with loads over their heads ! The khetris and the rajputs also flee in fear dropping their swords . The gosais and the mohants of temples flee on palanquins . The Mughals , sayeds and sheikhs also flee in terror hearing of the bargees . The pregnant women are forced to deliver their child along roadways . “None managed to escape the wrath of the bargees. Numerous temples of Bengal were looted and plundered . Fables narrate how the iconic neem wood deity of Dhameshwar Gouranga ( Chaitanya mahaprabhu ) , worshipped by Bishnupriya ( Consort of Mahaprabhu himself ) also had to be buried for quite a few years to save him from the bargee raids! Such lawlessness continued for almost 9 years . In the end , the nawab of Bengal entered into a pact of truce with the bargees conceding Orissa to them on the condition that they would never return to Bengal . During such tumultuous times , the bargees reached upto the capital of the Malla dynasty kings – Bishnupur . Mallas have been a dominant power in that part of the state for more than a 1000 years ! When the bargees approached , the people panicked and started praying to the presiding deity of the town , Madanmohan . It is said that during this time people saw Madanmohan manifest and rush into battlefield ! He lifted up a giant iron cannon and started firing into the bargee hordes that were trying to enter the city . The cannon would later get the name ‘Dala-mardana’ or “destroyer of hordes” and can still be seen in Bishnupur . Madanmohan successfully defeated the bargees and protected his devotees . This tale has been narrated for centuries in Bishnupur and has become one of the popular religious folklores of Bengal .  But this Madanmohan is not originally a deity of Bishnupur . He is said to have been brought to Bishnupur from elsewhere by Malla king Bir Hambir .One source opines that Madanmohan originally resided at the ShriPaat Chaatraa of Srirampore . This was the residence of Kashishwar Pandita , one of the associates of Chaitanya . Bir Hambir brought Madanmohan to his kingdom and after installing a new deity of Radharani beside him , honoured him with the status of ‘Nagar devata’ of Bishnupur . The entire story raises some fundamental questions and doubts – The first question is , if the marathas are considered the champions of Hinduism and viewed largely as upholders of indian valour , why did they plunder and loot the Bengali temples  ?! The second question that may arise is , did Madanmohan indeed manifest and do this impossible act ? In order to answer this , one must understand that history is never unidimensional and one pointed as we tend to think . History has many complex layers . As the saying goes – “ history is written by victors “ . If we twist it slightly it would be safe to say that history is written by the privileged . Or perhaps , History is most often written with an agenda ! Therefore history , by its very nature , can never be complete nor foolproof . We tend to overlook the fact that in history two opposing ideas can also be true simultaneously . Therefore , every Brahmin need not be a tyrant evil oppressor nor every low caste an oppressed . Every deity taken away from a temple may not amount to a sacrilege and dishonour of hinduism . Taj mahal is not a name changed hindu shaivite temple . Gyan Vapi is not a mosque built on virgin soil . A thousand such historical over simplifications or agenda driven narratives have done more damage to true history than good . It is very necessary to have an open mind while discussing such a tricky subject as ‘bargee attack’ . I will lay down some points which will provide the readers with food for thought . But it is upto them to interpret why the bargees did what they did .1 – Bhaskar pandit organised a full fledged Bengali styled Durgotsav in Dainhaat of Bardhaman district . New pratima was built , new chandi mandap temple constructed and  thousands of sacrificial animals were brought in and grand preparations were begun . But in the night of MahaNavami , Alivardi Khan sent a message of truce and took Bhaskar Pandit into confidence and had him killed . The puja remained  unfinished . Even today ruins of the chandi mandap can be seen at Dainhaat . Understandably , Bhaskar pandit was not anti bengali or anti hindu per se and he embraced Bengali customs and culture . In this context it is worth remembering that the cult deity of Marathas , Tulja Bhawani ( from whom legend says Chatrapati Shivaji received his sword ) is also an image of Mahishamardini . Presumably , the marathas quickly saw the sameness in the rituals and ideas and were glad to adapt . 2- Just like the Mughal army had hindus in their ranks or the british indian army was largely constituted of the Indian soldiers , in the same way the bargees also had men of all castes and religions in their ranks . They even had large battalions of muslim men . It would be unfair to expect that the Islamic bargees would be respectful towards bengali idolators and their practices . 3- human ethics and moral values have underwent massive changes in recent times .  In ancient times , we did not have human rights commission , supreme court or the like . Survival of the fittest was the mantra for the times . In an event of attack it was normal for the army to indulge in plunder and loot . The rulers unofficially allowed their men to have a free hand in ‘exploits of war’ after a hard earned victory . This was a sort of incentive for the men ! Remember in those days warfare had more to do with brute strength and direct combat than with intelligence as it has become nowadays after advent of computer controlled war machinery ! During such post war plunders , rape , looting , rampage and selling humans into slavery became the norm .This was true for the entire world throught history !4 – The temples in Bengal which harbour tales of bargee attacks are mostly vaishnavaite shrines , namely Radha Krishna or Gouranga ( Chaitanya ) temples . Both these divinities would have been unknown to the Marathas whose own brand of Vaishnavism were centered around Vithhal , Rukmini and Satyabhama  . It is possible that unknown gods attracted more wrath .5- But interestingly the marathas were also one of the chief patrons of the Puri Jagannath temple . The hati vesha or Gaja vesha of Jagannath was directly due to Maratha influence over Jagannatha cult .  The  form of Jagannatha too would have been largely unknown to the marathas . That being said , they would have definitely been aqquianted with the tirtha mahatmya of Puri and the name of Jagannath from the puranas and scriptures . 6- In all probabilities Bhaskar Pandit did receive some support from the local hindu populace . The records of his durgotsav mentions throngs of villagers coming to participate in his puja . Presumably , there was both an element of fear and awe working amongst the masses . 7- It is hard to answer whether Madanmohan manifested in form or not , from a point of view of history . Such things are matters of faith and are best left untouched by history ( or even historians ) . However if we introspect purely from a historical perspective some hypothetical probabilities may be suggested . In hindu society when a man narrowly escapes a danger , he often attributes his miraculous escape to the mercy and compassion of his cherished deity . Its common for such a bhakta to say – “ I got saved due to intervention or madanmohan “ . It is very much possible that the Malla dynasty kings who ruled over a jungle infested tricky terrain and whose subjects largely comprised of martial races and tribes , overrun the bargees by their military strength and the pious king attributed the win to the mercy of Madanmohan . In due course of time this popular way of saying aqquired more realistic and literal connotations and became etched in collective memory as madanmohan manifesting in person ! Just a “what if” …. but worth a thought nonetheless !8 – It is also possible that the bargees themselves chose not to attack the malla kings , who in any case had been famous as champions of Hinduism for the last 1000 years . I have laid out the points to contemplate on . It is upto you to draw the final conclusion . History is never straightforward . All we can do is record and mention the loose ends . If the ends meet , well and fine . If they do not , it is best to be honest and admit that history is unclear thereafter  , rather than to try make them meet by force and end up projecting a personal political or sociological agenda unto history . But even after so much , the people of Bishnupur could not keep their beloved Madanmohan in their town . Malla Raja Chaitanya Singha got into a financial debacle and had to take a loan of a thefty sum of money from rich zamindar businessman Gokul Mitra of Calcutta . By this time , the sun had already began to set on the glories of Malla dynasty and Calcutta had begun to emerge as the next economic and political capital of India . In exchange of the money , Chaitanya Singha mortgaged his nagar devata Madanmohan to Gokul Mitra . When Malla king was unable to return the money back in due time ,  Madanmohan was left back at disposal of Gokul who went to build him a grand new temple . Even today visitors to Kumartuli in Calcutta can see the grand temple of madanmohan built in typical greaco roman neoclassical colonial style . At Bishnupur a replica deity was installed which also got stolen a few decades back . A second replica of Madanmohan is presently housed in the original temple back at bishnupur . So did Madanmohan really manifest ? Well, the eyes of a rationalist seek out different things from the eyes of an artist . To an artist , his divine manifestation is of much more importance because it has ��rasa’ . It has the power to soothe the mind and senses from the drudgery of daily monotonous existence . To the artist , the supernatural is more appealing than the natural . But then again it is the ‘natural’ that gives birth to the ‘supernatural’ .  In this painting I have strived to bridge the gap between the two with the string of bhakti . Jay Madanmohan .

Text an art by Halley Goswami

[firstumcschenectady]

"God, Stress, and Abundant Lives” based on 1 Kings 19:4-8

I'm mad. Mad that we – the big collective we – might have beaten this virus if we trusted our experts and prioritized collective well-being. Mad that we “can't have nice things” still, EVEN THOUGH science provided amazing vaccines in an unbelievably short time. Mad that I have to make decisions no one– including me – likes because the first rule of John Wesley is “first do no harm” and I really believe we have to do that.

But, a friend sent an article this week that pointed out that I'm not mad. I just think I'm mad. Or, more so, that anger is a secondary emotion that works well to mask primary emotions. The article said the emotion that I'm actually feeling is fear. (Note: do not try this at home. Do not tell someone what they're “really feeling” when they tell you what they ARE feeling. Really, truly. DO NOT DO THIS. The article got away with it by taking about generic people and I personalized.) The article speaks about people choosing not to be vaccinated and vaccinated people's anger responses:

Though this new flavor of outrage might look and sound like righteous indignation, mental health professionals say that what’s behind it is fear.

“It’s scary to admit that somebody else has power over you and you’re at their mercy and you’re afraid of them, but showing that is not a very American ideal,” said David Rosmarin, an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and a clinician at McLean Hospital. “Instead of expressing that fear, it’s a lot more comfortable to blame somebody else.”

Anger is what people in his profession refer to as a “secondary emotion.” It’s a feeling that arises in response to a more primal emotion, like fear and anxiety over having some aspect of your life threatened. “The reality is that there are millions of people who are miseducated about something, they’re making a big mistake that will have massive consequences that might affect you and your family and that makes you scared,” Rosmarin said. “But nobody is saying that.”1

That article also says that part of what people are struggling with is that this was always going to be a “long war” but we didn't get that message from the outset. That fits for me too, I deal better when I have my expectations set correctly.

Two years ago I preached on this passage from 1 Kings 19, and afterwards several of you mentioned that you could hear in it my yearning for a break. (It was fairly soon before my renewal leave.) I hadn't meant to be that transparent then, and it makes me want to be a little bit cautious now, but....the story hasn't changed.

This remains a story of Elijah, prophet of God who has worked diligently for what he believed God wanted him to do. The response to his faithfulness has been a threat of murder that came directly from the palace.

Elijah is too tired to fight anymore. He fled for his life, but in the midst of the flight he lost even the will to live.

He prays, asking God to let him die, which would at least be less violent than the death otherwise planned for him. He'd walked into the desert for a day, and when he prayed he sat under a single broom tree, the only bit of respite he could find. The Bible seems to suggest this is a particularly sad story, it is the same one told of Hagar, having walked into the desert, exhausted her provisions, sat under a broom, and prepared to die. Just like with Hagar though, God meets Elijah there.

You may already know how much I love this story. He falls asleep, and wakes up when provisions have arrived. He eats, he drinks, he falls back asleep. When he awakes, provisions have arrived. He eats, he drinks, AND THEN he was able to go on.

I really love that he needs to sleep, eat, drink, sleep, eat, and drink before he can rouse himself. He has gone far beyond the “have a cup of coffee and keep going” point. He is exhausted. He is out of will power. He is out of a will to LIVE. If I were writing this story though, I'd add in some breathing. “He took intentional deep breathes until he was able to slow his body enough to sleep...” and then the rest of the story. It would make it just a smidge better.

Probably because of the book I just read, I'm noticing that the story as written (and more so as adapted), Elijah is given the chance to “complete the stress cycle” in this story. The book is “Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle” written by Emily and Amelia Nagoski. In their opening chapter, they distinguish between stressors and stress. They point out that we need to complete the stress cycle, no matter what is happening with the stressors. And they name, concretely, how to do that. The first and best option is to “do literally anything to move your body enough to get you breathing deeply” for 20-60 minutes a day.2 Elijah walking into the desert for an entire day seems to qualify.

The Nagoski sisters offer 6 other ways to complete the cycle though: 1. “deep, slow breaths down regulate the stress response”3, 2. positive social encounters (even causal ones), 3. laughter – but the real deep belly laughter kind, 4. physical affection from someone you trust (they suggest a 6 second kiss between partners or a 20 second hug with someone you like, snuggling a pet), 5. crying, and 6. creative expression. In other chapters they also talk about meditation and spiritual connection, so I'm going to add a #7 – whatever prayer practices work for you. They're suggesting that we do at least one of these, and better many of these, every day. Because the stressors keep coming at us. And their book was written in 2019, so it is WAY MORE TRUE today.

So Elijah. He took a long walk (check), I'm all for pretending he took some slow breaths, he maybe had a positive encounter with the angel? (does that count??), and I'm quite sure he cried a lot, the Bible just forgot to mention it. He also took care of his bodily needs for rest, nourishment, and hydration. (Chapter 7 of their book is all about rest.) He also named his despair to God, and naming emotions has a lot of power too.

This little story has a lot of good responses to despair and burnout. Which is good, because many of us are in despair and/or burnout in at least some aspects of our lives.

The pandemic has challenged all of us. The challenges have differed, because we're different, but we've all been challenged. Having another wave is definitely not helping anybody. We're mad, whether or not that's a primary emotion, sad, fearful, and maybe even detached. We're exhausted.

And most of us are comfort seeking. We want things to be easier. We NEED things to be easier. We're looking for things that sooth, ease, comfort, and console. Often, we're looking for things to be “back to normal,” familiar, and make sense like we're used to. We're human. That's how we work.

Another facet of how we work is that when we're in high stress, we revert to earlier and lower levels of emotional functioning. We blame. We over react. We fight. We flee. We gossip. We triangulate. We take all our anxiety and we try to get rid of it by sharing it with others or throwing it at them. This too is human. It is how we work.

No one I know is operating at their best right now. We can't.

What we can do is seek to complete the stress cycles – we can't change most of the stressors, but we can give ourselves the best possible chance to change the stress. Our bodies, minds, and spirits are all connected, they're all “us.” When we care for each of them, we give all of them a chance to do better.

I believe that God calls us all to life abundant. To full, meaningful, connected lives. To spiritual depth and work that matters and relationships that give life. Elijah went from that broom tree to the Mount of Horeb where he deepened his relationship with God, and then on to meet his protege Elisha and started to pass on his labor to the next generation. It wasn't God's intention that Elijah struggle alone, or burn himself out. It isn't God's will that we struggle alone nor burn ourselves out either. God wishes for full, abundant lives for us all. That's part of why we take care of each other, and share love in the world. So, dear ones, I encourage you to complete your stress cycles, name your emotions, connect with your dear ones, engage in prayer, and live life as abundantly as you can. God wants it for us, we want it for each other, and the world needs us as healthy as we can be! May God help us. Amen

1 https://www.statnews.com/2021/08/02/belated-realization-that-covid-will-be-a-long-war-sparks-anger-denial/

2 Emily Nagoski and Amelia Nagoski Burnout: The Secret to Unlokcing the Stress Cycle (New York: Ballantine Books, 2019) p. 14.

3 Nagoski, 15.

[thotsforvillainrights]

how would kai, chrono, nemoto, mimic and setsuno react if their s/o had 4 kids ? thank you for this request !

(Tumblr deleted this earlier after I answered the whole thing. Ugh! Anyway, as Bender from Futurama would say, I’m back baby!)

~Having (or) Adopting 4 kids!~

headcanon|scenario|imagine|match-up

~Overhaul~

-Oh God...Oh dear God. Imagine the diaper changing, the cleaning, the feeding, and the sickness. 3 of the kids have his quirk (unless you adopted them)!

-Somebody pray for Kai because he is about to enter a storm. 4 brats? 4 crying, creaming, nasty brats attached at his legs? Kai considers overhauling himself until he looks into the eyes of his kids. He finally sighs and prepares for the inevitable responsibility of fatherhood. But now, is it really so bad? He wonders as he watches the children play pretend as yakuza

-He smiles to himself and goes to correct their mistakes. “Come now, please understand that the yakuza doesn’t have unicorns. And you...put down the glitter. There is no glitter under my leadership.” Kai plays with them and eventually ends up teaching them about these things. This leads to an impromptu history lesson that shortly lands on ethics. 3 of the kids have fallen asleep due to the boring nature of the conversation, but one boy is left sitting in Kai’s lap and soaking up information.

-Kai determines that this kid will be his successor.

~Chronostasis~

-Hell no. 4 kids? Hari didn’t even want to have one kid with you! So, no matter how much he loved you, he left you alone. But here’s the catch! Hari loves you too much so he comes back after only having been gone for an hour! Anyway, the first time he picks up one of the kids, he falls in love with them all. Suddenly he’s all about his kids. Make no mistake, just because he itched the gang lifestyle it doesn’t mean somebody wont end up dead in a ditch somewhere because they dare to insult his children

-Speaking of ditching the gang life, he’s made a lot of changes towards the betterment of his kids life. You guys had/adopted 2 girls and 2 boys even. Both girls get into EVERYTHING around the house, so Hari had to do away with every gun except 2. Otherwise they could hurt themselves or others. One of the boys copies everything he hears, so Hari had to get rid of the Webbie, and NBA Youngboy in exchange for Sesame Street music in the car. Otherwise his kid might get in trouble for repeating Freeddawg in class. 

-Hari makes a lot of sacrifices, but he loves those kids to death! He’s the type of dad to have a 4 seat stroller walking his kids in the park while he sips a drink(no worries, it’s just grape juice lol)  

~Nemouto~

-Once he finds out about the pregnancy (or the adoption papers/date), he quickly terminates his yakuza occupation in favor of something much safer. Although he supports Overhaul fully, Nemouto knows he has more important things to worry about now that you guys are parents. So while he looks for a better job, he also helps around the house for parenthood. He knows it would be a bit tough because 4 children is a little overwhelming all at once.

-Luckily for him, he gets employed by an office that both pays well AND has a flexible schedule. Nemouto is able to spend time at home with you guys and get his work done all at once. 

-He has to cut down on random expenses despite getting paid and finding a reasonable job. This crushes him because he’s used to spoiling you. Now he can’t just buy you whatever you want anymore because he’s got 4 extra mouths to feed. You already tell him “Honey, it’s okay! I asked you months ago to stop showering me in all this stuff! I have several name brand scarves and I don’t even wear them.” You told him before laughing. 

~Mimic~

-Ah Fuck

-Now that he has that out of his system it’s time to buckle down and be a dad. 

-The thing is, despite his rugged ways and his short temper, Irinaka has easily adapted to becoming an amazing dad. You guys have/adopt 4 girls and he becomes more protective than you’ve ever seen in your life. He misses those days when it used to be all tea parties and playtime pretend. 

-”Where did the time go” Mimic utters to himself years later when the girls reach 15 years old. Now he’s busy dealing with moody teen girls and combating every single boy they get into contact with. Aside from this, he’s still such a wonderful dad!

~Setsuno~

-It was like he was born to be a dad! As soon as you tell him about the kids, he’s already started reading up on parenthood books and learning everything he feels like he might need to know.

-Setsuno is the type of dad to never make any of his kids feel like they need to fight for his attention. He loves all of his kids equally and he certainly shows that. At the same he’s also really a doting parent like Midoriya’s mom. Those kids are his life at this point so he’s also smothering them almost.

-One day he has to put one of the kids in time-out for sticking gum in her other sister’s hair. after he scolds your daughter he immediately comes into the room where you are and collapses into you lap with teary eyes. He looks up at you and sniffles. “She hates me now. I’m the worst dad in the world.” You laugh at his and gently card your hand through his hair. “Toya its only been 3 minutes. I’m sure she doesn’t hate you.”

»—————————–———————————————————–✄

TIp Jar: https://cash.app/$YuTakeyama

[a-fools-feels]

for all those who are stuck in a tiny apartment like yours truly, i understand this lockdown can make your thoughts spiral. i can feel myself going back to dark mindsets i’ve been trying and praying to avoid, and it’s a terribly overwhelming feeling.

🌷 remember to take your meds! it’s funny, but i actually have a hard time remembering to do that while stuck at home, when just a couple of months ago it was as natural as getting ready in the morning.

🍄 don’t oversleep! i can’t know this about you, but for me oversleeping leads to diving straight into a pool of depression. my bed feels so warm and comfortable in the morning, like a small nest or cocoon i’ve made for myself. and then i fall back into the old habit of “i should just stay in bed, not like i got anything else to do,” and “i can’t wait to go back to sleep”. i found myself saying the latter about five minutes after waking up, which is not a good sign. the only solution i’ve found is making my bed as soon as i get up, to avoid being tempted into going back. also, don’t study in bed: if you want to lie down, use a couch or even the floor. keep your bed separated from your living spaces if you can.

🦉 also, don’t sleep too little! it’s important to get the right amount of sleep: too much leads to [read above] but no sleep/a few hours of sleep are just as bad. sure, if you suffer from insomnia or other sleep disorders, you can’t just say “go away”, though you’re welcome to try. but if you are a “night owl” like me, you have to at least try during the weekdays. get 7-8 hours of sleep at the very least. i get that during normal times, nighttime is the only moment we get to ourselves, without having to face any expectation, but it’s really bad for our health and right now, we can’t afford that.

🌿 nap time! an alternative would be a short nap after lunch (1 hour and a half max) but it’s walking on very thin ice. napping can lead back to oversleeping during the day and not sleeping during the night, which we definitely want to avoid.

🥞 eating! now more than ever, eating is fundamental. we have to be careful not to rely too much on junk food or frozen meals - though i understand not everyone has the luxury of cooking healthy meals every day, thrice a day. If you only have access to junk food/unhealthy food, or aren’t able to cook for yourself, try to keep fruit or veggies in the house for snacks. it’s not much, but it can help a bit, and it can be a small act of self care you can do. if you have someone to help you, ask them to slice up some fruit and have them through the day. (tip: fruit with chili powder tastes  a m a z i n g)

🍯 eating pt.2! i’ve seen so many videos/posts about people cooking and baking lately, which makes me super happy. it’s no secret i love baking, and it can be so much fun! take this as an opportunity to learn new recipes - look into mediterranean food and thank me later. you can also cook live with your friends/family, if you want. it can be really cool, and it’ll make you feel closer to your loved ones.

🍓 on a more serious note, if you’ve suffered/suffer from disordered eating, this is even harder on you. people can either end up binging a lot, or seeing this lockdown as an occasion to fast/restrict. please consider looking into recovery, because i promise it’s not going to feel any better when you get to your ideal weight. as long as the mindset stays, it’s not going to be enough. if big meals are scary - and i know they can be - try snacking during the day.

☀️ SUN TIME! very important. if you have a balcony, take a chair outside and get some sunlight every day. if you don’t, open your window and read a book or study or just relax like that. it sounds really silly, but the influence sunlight can have on mental health are amazing. the more of that you get, the nicer you’ll feel.

since this post is long enough, i’m going to leave it here. i know most of this stuff requires some privileges, and i’m well-aware not everyone has them. still, you can take inspiration from this and adapt it to your needs/situation. take care of yourselves, we can get through this.

[tinyshe]

How to be a hermit.

“I occasionally receive enquiries from folk asking for advice or support in pursuing their own vocation to the hermitage, so I put this page together.  The information here is purely of a practical nature, and I write only from my own experience in the UK; it is not exhaustive, and things may be different in your locale and circumstances.  I may add to it from time to time. Please let me know if you have further (practical) information which might be included.

The call to hermitage is often a gradual realisation,  a growing affinity with solitude, a desire to know God in the ordinariness of simply being alive.  It is a call which is falling on increasingly receptive ears.  By nature, it is a very individual call, and each individual will realise it in a different way depending upon personal inspiration and circumstance.  

I hope you will not be put off by the apparent lack of a support structure around the vocation.  It is one of the great joys and freedoms that each one of us interprets the call to hermitage in such  a different ways– it is essentially, perhaps, a call to “solitary living in the conscious presence of God”, though I know of hermits who live in small communities as well, so even the solitude is not a given!

You will find that much of the information on this page boils down to, “you have to work it out for yourself”.   Please don’t be put off by that.  It might take time -  longer than you expect -  and the solutions might appear to be at odds with any romantic ideals you might have been nursing at the outset, but with determination, a good dose of pragmatism, and a sense of adventure, all things are possible.  

By way of encouragement, I discovered (after I had been here 10 years!) that the journey of getting to my hermitage (which took me 15 years) has become a part of the sort of hermit that I am.  So don't feel that the eremitical life only begins once you step over the threshold of your hermitage.  This long search and struggle for stability is the beginning of it.    God is with you.

I hope this page is helpful.  

Canon 603

§1 Besides institutes of consecrated life the Church recognizes the eremitic or anchoritic life by which the Christian faithful devote their life to the praise of God and salvation of the world through a stricter separation from the world, the silence of solitude and assiduous prayer and penance.

§2 A hermit is recognized in the law as one dedicated to God in a consecrated life if he or she publicly professes the three evangelical counsels [i.e. chastity, poverty and obedience], confirmed by a vow or other sacred bond, in the hands of the diocesan bishop and observes his or her own plan of life under his direction.”

State of Life

There are very many different ways of living as a hermit within the Roman Catholic Church.  A hermit can live anonymously, without being “recognised in the law” (of the church), or they can choose to make some sort of commitment, either privately or publicly.  If public, this would usually be into the hands of the local ordinary (bishop).  Again, the type of commitment can vary by arrangement with the ordinary.

A bishop will usually expect you to have devised a “rule of life” for yourself before accepting your vows. (more on that later).

If you are considering  the possibility of becoming a “canonical” hermit by profession of  the Evangelical Counsels you will need to refer to Canon 640ff (“canonical profession” simply means, “profession with reference to the Canons”) which describes the process and requirements (basically a minimum of one year’s guided novitiate, followed by a minimum of 3 years in temporary vows).  Or you might be able to come to some other arrangement with your bishop and still be professed, but not canonically…

There is no “hierarchy” of hermitage – no single type of commitment is more valid or worthy than another.  Neither a canonical hermit nor a professed hermit , nor a privately vowed hermit is a “better” hermit than one who has taken no vows at all.  Most hermits (from the little information which is available) are living simple, anonymous, solitary lives without advertisement.

Rule of Life

This is a guide for daily living.  It should be useful rather than beautiful (though it can be both!).  Some hermits prefer to adapt monastic rules, or a rule from a religious order to which they feel an affinity.  Rules can be of varying length  and detail– I have found the primary usefulness  of mine to be a reference point for decision making; others might look for something which will more definitively structure their day.  From experience I would caution against anything too rigid  -  it is likely you will be chief cook and bottle washer .. and porter .. and gardener.  You will need to have the flexibility to respond easily to circumstance.   I would suggest that drawing up a rule might be one of the occupations towards the end of the novitiate year – when you have more of a feel for how you will live in hermitage.  We each do it so very differently!

(My own Rule of Life can be viewed here  - the first several paragraphs are scriptural and canonical guidance.  The practical bit is just the three lines at the end!)

Hermitage and living expenses

Whichever route you take, vowed or un-vowed, you will usually be expected to be self-supporting.  There is no centralised source of practical nor financial support for hermits, nor any register of empty-hermitages-seeking-occupants, not in the UK anyway.  You will need to find your own living place and some sort of income to pay the bills etc. Many hermits have a working life behind them & so are able to provide their own accommodation. Others are "donated" accommodation in return for caretaker or similar duties, or persuade a convent or monastery or other religious community to loan them an outhouse in return for labour.  You have to be pretty pragmatic, determined, and prepared to explore lots of avenues!  It isn't easy.  

In terms of work, and support from the state:  in civil law you are expected to support yourself in the same way as everyone else.  You can look for, and express a preference for work which enables you to work alone, but there is no special exemption which entitles you to benefits or financial support if you refuse to work at all, just because the work offered isn't hermitage-friendly.  

You may have the skills to earn a living from your hermitage – eg. book-keeping, accountancy, copy-writing, web design etc.  all of which which might be financially viable ways of earning a living from your front room.  Realistically, some of the more menial jobs like cleaning work and ground maintenance are usually plentiful and reasonably suitable as most cleaners/gardeners seem to work in solitude even if they are part of a team.  (I worked as a solitary care assistant to a profoundly disabled woman for 5 years in her own home, which worked out very well).  You may find previous skills can be adjusted to become more hermit-friendly eg. my teaching experience still provides a firm basis for occasional private tutoring.

From experience, the pursuit of the artisanal work traditionally associated with hermits and monastics, does not provide a reliable, nor sufficient source of income – not to an unknown hermit – unless you are at the top of your artisanal game and already earning a living this way.  Many of these types of activities which help support established monastic communities are reliant on the regular footfall of associates and affiliates to the communities, and the publicity which is inherent in their longstanding, their USP, and the loyalty of their local churches.  If it works for you – then great!  But if you are just setting out and hoping to make your living from weaving baskets all day, then I would advise you to have a plan B to fall back on.  Sometimes God’s providence makes itself best known in the guise of a bit of realistic and prudent forethought.

Spiritual support

If you are seriously exploring a vocation to hermitage  then it would be wise to enlist the support of a spiritual director.  The life of the solitary can throw any number of oddities and curve balls at you, and it is as well to have some one you can freely consult and who will be able to advise you. Try and find someone  with a mature and committed prayer life of their own, who will take you, and hermitage, seriously, who is not in awe of the solitary life, and who will not pander to your whims and fancies!

And finally!

This may not have been the sort of information you were hoping for.  Launching into hermitage  is not the same as entering an established religious order - there is none of the security and stability which might be found in other forms of consecrated life.  It is an adventure with God which will require of you every last wit and ingenuity.  I pray and hope for God’s blessing on you.

In prayer, in God.

Rachel (Hermit of the Diocese of Nottingham)”

source

[briefololtragedy]

Wooden Blocks Ch 2

4 month well child check

Pairing: MinaSaku

Rating: G

Summary: Sakura continues to get to know Kakashi. Minato adapts to his new life.

Note: Kakashi an Sakura will have more of a platonic relationship. I do plan for Minato and Sakura to meet outside of the clinic in the next chapter.

Also posted on AO3

“Mr. Namikaze is everything alright?” Sakura didn’t know what trouble little Naruto could get into in the eight hours since he had seen him in the office. 

“Sorry to bother you Dr. Haruno, but it’s Naruto. He has this rash on his chest that just popped out of nowhere. I don’t know what to do.” Minato sounded panicked on the phone. 

“Can you describe the rash for me?” Sakura could hear him fumbling about with the phone. 

“It’s red and gooey looking. There are other redder areas around it.” At least he was doing better than most at describing the rash. She was perplexed how such a rash could just pop up. 

“Is it tender when you touch it?” Minato told her to wait a second. 

“Oh...Oh… It smells like pizza sauce. Oh.” Smelling like pizza sauce that was something Sakura had never heard of before. 

“Dr. Haruno I’m sorry to waste your time. I forgot one of my old mentors was watching Naruto this afternoon so I could go into work for a few hours. He must have gotten pizza sauce on Naruto when he was eating. My mentor even sent a picture of Naruto on his lap as he ate the pizza.” Minato felt like a complete and total idiot. He just freaked out when he saw red that he didn’t pay close enough attention. 

“It’s ok Mr. Namikaze. I’m glad it is just pizza sauce. I do recommend a good sponge bath for little Naruto. Did you have any other questions?” Sakura had to stifle her laughter as she talked to him. First time parents. She then paused. He was a first time single father, he must be a nervous wreck going at this all alone.

“No. No other questions.” Minato sounded like a defeated puppy. 

“Mr. Namikaze please don’t feel bad about calling. I would rather you can when you have a concern. You don’t know what something is or what is going on unless you ask. They didn’t give you a pamphlet on how to raise a child. So please don’t ever hesitate to call. Have a good night.” Sakura hung up the phone and took a deep breath. She felt fabric being draped over her shoulders. 

“I thought you would need a jacket. It gets chilly once the sun sets.” Sakura found Kakashi’s coat on her. Her heart was warmed by the kind gesture. 

“That is very considerate of you. Thank you.” Kakashi walked Sakura to her car. As she unlocked her doors she gave Kakashi’s jacket back to him. She couldn’t help herself when she placed a kiss on his cheek. 

“Thank you for dinner.” Before she could get in the car his hand stopped her. 

“I had a nice evening. Could I get your number?” Sakura blushed. She gave Kakashi her number, applauding herself for not stuttering too much. 

“Have a good night Kakashi.” 

“You too Sakura.” Sakura sat in her car thinking back to her crazy day. She enjoyed her time with Kakashi, but wasn’t sure if she saw anything romantically happening with him. There was something that just wasn’t right. However, she would give it another try if he called her.

_____________________

After Dr. Haruno hung up the phone Minato couldn’t help but to bang his head against his kitchen table. He was so worried when he saw the “rash” on Naruto he freaked out. He has never felt like more of an idiot in his life. 

Jiraya was kind enough to watch Naruto this afternoon. Minato was so nervous leaving, but he had to go into his office for a few hours. He had worked hard over the years building his architect firm and they were getting a proposal ready for a big bank. He knew he could trust Obito and Kakashi with the deal, but he wanted to make sure everything was immaculate. 

The trio had worked so hard they didn’t realize it was 7pm. Kakashi had to make a quick exit, saying something about a blind date. That left him and Obito together. Obito decided to order food stating that he “needed a break.” Minato couldn’t protest because before he knew it Obito had already placed an order for burgers and fries. 

“The order will be here in 20 minutes. I know you want to get back to Naruto, but he is in good hands with Jiraiya. Sit down and rest for a little bit.” While Obito tended to be the more easy going jokester between them. He also cared deeply for his friends and family. 

“You’re right. Now tell me how are you going to propose to Rin?” Minato laughed as Obito stammered. He may have been preoccupied in the last few months, but he knew Obito was going to propose soon. 

“Who told you? The only other one who knows is ...Kakashi told you!” Obito had jumped up and pointed a finger at Minato. For a man in his early 30s Obito was still a kid at heart. 

“Kakashi visited just before Naruto was discharged. He wanted to get my mind off of things and told me. Don’t get too mad at him.” While Kakashi shouldn’t have told Minato it did bring his mind out of a dark place. He had something to look forward to. Obito was taking a big step in his life and he needed to be by his side. 

“By the way Rin said she would be open to babysit anytime you need her.” 

Minato might just take RIn up on her offer, at some point. He shook his head, not now of course. Minato went over the sink to make a bath for Naruto. He didn’t feel like messing with the tube and the baby seat. When he went to the bathroom to get the baby body wash, towel, and washcloth, he stopped. He stared at the small rubber duck holding a bowl of ramen. Minato carefully picked it up and took it with him. 

He checked the water with his hand before placing Naruto in. As the warm water hit his skin Naruto started to giggle. The smile he gave could melt the hardest of men. It reminded him of Kushina. He would not let the tears fall. 

Minato wrapped Naruto in his towel. He made sure every little bit of pizza sauce was off of him. He placed Naruto in the bassinet next to his bed. He fell fast asleep. Minato crawled into bed and watched the rise and fall of Naruto’s chest. He slowly drifted to sleep. 

_________________________

It had been a week since Sakura heard from Minato last. She was surprised she didn’t get any more calls, but hoped he was settling in. 

Sakura had a jammed packed schedule for the day. They had double booked her in 4 different times spots meaning she would not have lunch. She really liked lunch...well food in general. She was hoping for some no shows. While she adored all her patients she might lose her sanity at the end of the day. 

She looked at her schedule and at least she started with one of her favorites. 

“Shikadai! How is my favorite 2 year old doing?” When she saw that bright smile spread across  his face her day instantly brightened. For the next 3 hours Sakura flashed in and out of her exam rooms. The nurses would just see a flash of pink and then children’s laughter. She did get behind due to the scheduling errors, but the parents and children were understanding. For the most part at least. Her patient at 1145, was not so understanding, even though they were a walk in. 

“Hello you must be Miss Ami. I’m Dr. Haruno, sorry for your wait.” The little girl had short purple hair and brown eyes. Before Ami could speak her mother cut in. 

“We have been waiting for 30 minutes. My child has horrible abdominal pain and you place us in this room to wait.” Sakura had to take a deep breath. She did a quick glance of Ami who was sitting comfortably by her mother playing a game on the phone. No increased work of breathing, no pallor, no distress. At least the first glance Ami looked ok. 

“I’m sorry about Mrs.Yoshi. Can you tell me when the pain started?” 

“It has been going on for 3 weeks.” Sakura could not let her eye twitch externally. Three weeks! 

“And what changed with the pain today to bring her in?” Sakura kept her smile on her face. 

“It’s gotten worse and she had an accident at school.” Ami looked away from Sakura and tried to hide behind her mother. 

“Oh you poor thing. That must have been so hard for you. Was it a stool or urine accident?” 

“It was poop.” 

“How often does she have a bowel movement?” 

“Once every couple of days. She sometimes cries.” 

“Let me take a look over. Miss Ami can you get up on the table for me?” Ami dropped the phone and hopped up on the table with ease. No concerns for appendicitis at the moment. 

Sakura quickly looked over Ami. Making sure to feel on her stomach and ask where the pain was. Thankfully she did not have any localization to the right lower quadrant, but she did feel full. 

“Alright Mrs. Yoshi I want to get an Xray of Ami’s abdomen. At her age constipation is a common cause of abdominal pain. With the worsening of her pain I know it can be scary, but the location is not consistent with appendicitis. She also has not had any fevers and no nausea or vomiting, which is all reassuring. So Miss Ami let's get a picture of that tummy. Have you ever had an Xray done before?” Mrs. Yoshi seemed to have relaxed some. As she settled Ami and her mother into the waiting area she made her way back to her desk. She would have a few minutes to catch up on some notes and type up a summary for Ami. 

Fifteen minutes later she was bidding farewell to the duo. Mrs. Yoshi did apologize on the way out. 

“I know it’s scary when your child is in pain. This should get her to feeling better and I want to see her back in 1 month.” As she watched the mother and daughter leave her stomach roared like a lion. It was 1240 and she would not have time to get lunch. She prayed she had a granola bar in her bag. 

When Sakura got to her office she froze. 

“I thought I would surprise you with lunch. Hope you don’t mind. Ino told me where you worked.” 

Kakashi sat in her office with the most delicious smelling food. Warmth filled her. 

“That’s very kind of you and couldn’t have been on a better day. I wasn’t going to have time to get something to eat.” Sakura eagerly sat down. She didn’t even think as she took the box of stir fry from Kakashi and stuffed her face. She was so engrossed in her food she didn’t realize the mess she was making. Kakashi’s laugh brought her out of her food zone. 

“I’m glad you like the food.” Kakashi tried hard not to cringe. He was enjoying getting to know Sakura over the last week, but he just wasn’t sure. 

“Sorry. I was just so hungry. How is your day going so far?” Sakura tried to salvage her dignity as she cleaned her face off. 

“Good. My boss will be coming back to work next week, so everyone is frantic, but it will be nice to have him back. Do you have any plans for the weekend?” Sakura had to think. Today was Wednesday or was it Thursday? It really didn’t matter, she didn’t have anything planned. 

“No. I don’t have any plans.” 

“Would you be interested in going with me to an art gallery Saturday night?” Sakura wasn’t sure, but she promised Ino she would try. 

“Sure. Sounds like it could be fun.” Well at least it would get her out of her house. 

____________________________

Minato was settling into a rhythm with Naruto. He would wake up about two times during the night. No more coughing at night was music to Minato’s ears.  Minato started taking Naruto to daycare for a couple hours out of the day. During those couple of hours he would work from home making sure everything was ready when he went back full time on Monday. 

It was currently 3pm on Friday and he was looking forward to his weekend with Naruto. He just had to finish up some paperwork. The ring of his phone caused him to jump slightly. 

“Kakashi is everything ok?” Kakashi was placed in charge of the office when Minato was away, so Minato was hoping that nothing was going wrong. Kakashi was an efficient and intelligent man, but he tended to do more reading than working at work. 

“I couldn’t remember the name of that restaurant that you were talking about a few weeks back and needed a refresher.” Minato had to think back. He then remembers one of the restaurants he would frequent when Naruto was in the hospital. 

“Ichiraku Ramen? Why do you want to know?” 

“ I have a date tomorrow night and want to take her somewhere after the art gallery.” 

“You cannot take her to Ichiraku Ramen! Take her to the Crimson Dragon, it’s nicer.” He then heard Kakashi mumble on the other end of the phone. Minato hoped that their date went well, Kakashi was too much of a recluse. He also hoped Kakashi showed up on time.  

“Alright I gotta go pick up Naruto. I’ll see you at work Monday. Oh and don’t be late.” 

Minato quickly made his way to pick up Naruto. He was looking forward to a lazy weekend. 

_______________________

Sakura stared at her closet. She had no clue what to wear. What does one wear to an art gallery? She stared at her phone. Regret overcame her as she pressed the call button. 

“What’s up Forehead?” Sakura sighed. 

“What does one wear to an art gallery and then out to dinner?” Sakura had to pull the phone away from her ear as Ino screamed. 

“Please tell me it’s Kakashi! He’s cute, right?” Ino went on a five minute rant rating all the guys she has seen recently. 

“Ino. Can we get back to me?” Sakura was getting a headache. 

“ You have to wear your black wrap dress with the gold heels. Pin your hair up. And for the love of god don’t look like a mess.” Sakura took great offense to that. She never looked like a mess, although working with kids tended to get her sticky with lots of different material. 

“Thanks Pig.” 

“I expect details tomorrow over coffee.” Sakura didn’t waste any time hanging up the phone. She made quick work of getting dressed and she was ready just on time. 

Well she thought she was ready on time. 7pm rolled by and Kakashi didn’t show up. She looked at her phone making sure she had the right time. Yep. He was going to pick her up at 7pm and it was now 745. So she waited. Sakura checked her phone multiple times. No new calls or messages. 

Then she heard the knock on her door. She wanted to yell at Kakashi for being late, but reeled it in. Instead she put a smile on her face and opened the door. 

“Yo. Sorry I’m late. Ready to go?” That’s all she got. No explanation. Sakura’s smile went tense and she nodded yes. 

________________________

The art was interesting to say the least. It definitely wasn’t her style and the artist was a little too obsessed with depicting puppets in his work. As they walked to the restaurant her phone rang. She knew she wasn’t going to go a night of being on call without someone calling her. Mei was going to owe her for taking her call tonight. She quickly excused herself before they headed in. 

“This is Dr. Haruno.” 

“Hi Dr. Haruno, it's Minato...Naruto’s father.” 

“Hello Mr. Namikaze, what is going on with Naruto this evening?” 

“He has a fever and won’t keep his formula down.” Sakura delved into the typical questions. How long has it been going on? How high has the temperature gotten? How many wet diapers? It started this morning apparently. Naruto’s temperature has gotten up to 100.6. He was eating well during the day, but for the last 2 bottles he has been throwing up. Eight wet diapers so far today. No diarrhea. 

“Has he been around anyone sick?” 

“Umm I started taking him to daycare a few hours each day. I don’t know of anyone sick there.” Sakura winced, daycares were a cesspool of germs. 

“He probably picked something up there. Give him some tylenol for his fever and see how he does after that. If he continues to throw up you can try some pedialyte. He likely caught a viral infection. If you notice any increased work of breathing, less than 2 wet diapers, I would take him to the ED or to the clinic if it is on the weekday.” 

“Thank you Dr. Haruno.” 

“No problem Mr. Namikaze. Please let me know if there is anything else.” As Sakura hung up the phone she found herself smiling. She had a feeling both would have a lot of growing over the next couple of years. 

Sakura soon entered the restaurant and joined Kakashi for their dinner.  

___________________________

It had been 3 weeks since Sakura last heard from Minato. When she got back to the office the Monday following his call she made sure the nurse called to check on them. Once Naruto got some tylenol he started taking his bottles again. His fever only lasted a day and he was back to normal. 

Sakura looked at her schedule and smiled when she saw a certain 4 month old’s name. He would be coming in later in the day. She was looking forward to seeing that mop of blonde hair. Her day passed relatively smoothly. Her last appointment for the day canceled, which meant after seeing Naruto her day would be done. Now she just had to wait. She didn’t have to wait long as she saw them check in and then get roomed. 

_________________

The last few weeks have gone better for the Adventures of Naruto and Minato. Yes Minato came up with his very own title for Naruto’s life. After the fever most things were smooth sailing. Naruto was doing well adjusting to being in daycare and to Minato’s credit he adjusted decently too. He only tried to run out of the office a couple of times to check on him. Obito and Kakashi would snicker when he tried. Rin always seemed to show up and halted his attempt to escape. 

His firm was almost done with the bid for the bank tower. The proposal started to come together nicely. As he sat in the waiting room this time it was less nerve wrecking then the first time. There was a different nurse this time who called for them. Naruto was happy babbling in Minato’s lap. They were rushed back for the vital component and placed into an exam room. 

A knock on the door made Naruto jump. 

“Well if it isn’t little Naruto. Look how big you have gotten. Mr. Namikaze it's good to see you again.” Naruto easily smiled at Dr. Haruno as she talked. Minato could see Naruto’s head move as she sat down. Dr. Haruno seemed to be solely focused on Naruto, which was refreshing. Most women just stared at him and ignored Naruto. 

“Alright any questions or concerns for today?” And with that the questions started. After the barrage of questions he watched as Dr Haruno easily picked up Naruto and started to look him over. For some reason the lack of attention he was getting was bothering him. 

“How is daycare going?” Minato realized he had zoned out. 

“Uh...daycare is going well. Aside from the fever a few weeks ago, he has not had any colds. Will he get another cold?” Minato wasn’t sure if he could handle Naruto being sick. 

“It is likely he will get another cold and more then just one. How has his sleeping been? I know last time he had problems with a cough at night.” 

“He wakes about twice at night for a bottle and then he is back to sleep. As for the cough that seems to have gone away.” Naruto started to reach for her stethoscope as she picked him up. He watched as Naruto tried to kick his legs on the table. 

“That’s good. Aright Naruto you look good. It is time for his four month shots. He can be a little fussy afterwards, so you can give him some tylenol if needed. I’ll have the nurse come in to give the shots. Mr. Naruto I will be seeing you again at 6 months of age. Try not to scare your father with pizza sauce this time.” Minato’s checks flushed as she mentioned the pizza incident. 

“We will be seeing you in 2 months Doc.” Minato watched as she left. Naruto looked at his father and giggled. 

[inmyarmswrappedin]

DRUCK reactions - s4 ep2

With special thanks to Michi ( @wodrueckts ) for looking over it to make sure I didn’t say anything glaringly wrong. 💛

CLIP 1: It’s hard out there for a hijabi

Here’s one thing I like about this episode: the shot of the tiara spinning in the air. That said, it’s kind of inexplicable. It’s been like a month since the Abiball, so what’s the tiara doing here? Was Amira holding onto it all this time? Did she have this vision of, like, sorting out her shit as she prepares to move out of her parents’ home, and remembering how her gay friend gave the tiara to her because he hated that his boyfriend was so hot he just naturally won all popularity contests? And she was like, “Imma do a solid for future Amira and get rid of this dollar store tiara right now”?

Anyway.

So far, Amira M.’s season has been the only Sana season not to drop during Ramadan. Seems like the Druck team thought they might not even get to Amira, and then they got renewed at the eleventh hour. So they needed to put that shit out quick because the character was set to leave for Australia and anyway it would’ve been really weird to do an Amira season in uni, and then go back to high school with the next gen. So this season is set in summer, and depending on what Wtfock does with Yasmina, it might be the only Sana season to do so.

I think setting this clip lakeside was pretty clever. Plenty of chances to show people in swimming suits or skimpy clothing, as well as people’s reactions to Amira’s burkini. It very quickly sets the stage for the season, same as the bus montage did for Sana in Skam.

I’m not sure how to feel about Sam thinking cunnilingus is boring. Is she sure she’s having it done right? I thought Abdi had a longer than average tongue.

And thanks to Michi, I discovered that this was a reference to Skam, which I didn’t even know because I still had the gdrive subs for s2, where Chris says getting eaten out in Gran Canaria was fun, as opposed to the new subs, where she says it was boring as shit and she fell asleep.

I can’t remember whether Sana’s prayer app ever went off in front of the girl squad. When Skam España did it, the girls immediately freaked the fuck out at the thought of Amira praying right in the middle of a street party. In this case, Kiki looks at Amira for a second. Amira turns the app off though, so we never find out what the girls would’ve done if Amira were to pray right there. Or if it’s happened before. (I’ve been told by Michi this has happened before but the girls didn’t have a reaction then either.)

“Girls, why does it always have to be about boys with you guys?” GO OFF, AMIRA. I remember when I watched the season live, I became exhausted at all the boy talk, so it’ll be interesting to see if I still get this feeling watching the episodes.

In comparison to Vilde, Kiki is also a good sport about Amira wanting this topic to be over. I mean, she laughs a little (perhaps knowingly?), but Kiki is always up for changing the topic to something else about her… Like her and Carlos’ house hunting!

And also, Druck has sent Mia off to Spain to reassure viewers that this Noora won’t take over the season like other Nooras. (Ahem.)

For lack of something to talk about, Amira brings up boxing. Kiki is immediately interested, since she loves working out. Amira is really not into the idea of her brothers getting to know her friends, so she uses Hanna’s reticence to shoot Kiki down.

Her mood has been spoiled all in all, so she stays back to feel alienated as the girls splash around.

She does look cute as hell in her burkini and sunglasses though.

CLIP 2: Am I a bet? Am I a fucking bet?

I really like the blink and you’ll miss it shot of (I think is) the customized snow globe with the Nadia and Amira pic.

Some other stuff in Amira’s room: A polisci book, a list of lodgings in Sydney open on her browser, and what I’m pretty sure is a save the date card from Nadia and her fiancé. This is a very smart way to set up Amira’s character for people who might not have been paying a lot of attention to her so far. It’s always fun to get a peek at a Skams character’s bedroom for the first time.

Amira’s season came after Imane’s, and one thing I immediately liked more about Druck was that they spent time with the prayer scenes. I remember ONE (1) scene where Imane prayed in Skam France, and we only got to see the tail end of it.

I’m pretty sure the game the Mahmoodis play doesn’t actually exist, which probably has to do with having to pay royalties to show a real game. Interestingly(?), when I searched Dr. Whoo and Chopstick on google, it led me to Doctor Who pages, so I wonder if it’s all an elaborate Doctor Who reference on the part of someone in the Druck team.

In Skam, Sana misses the shot because the balloon squad are talking throughout the whole song, but Amira loses because Mohammed literally leans into her line of sight to make eye contact. In general, Mohammed is a lot more suave and savvier than Yousef ever was.

CLIP 3: This apartment is gonna kill somebody

And on a similar note but related to Amira, she is set up as someone the other girls rely on for advice. Kiki needs her help with the renter, while Sam asks her for romantic advice. I think the reason for this might be that while the girls didn’t exactly rely on Sana for advice in Skam, Sana was the one with the ideas since the start. Amira doesn’t necessarily take charge of situations the way Sana did, but there’s this notion that without Amira, the squad would fall apart.

The Berlin housing market = shantycore goals.

I also like the bit of subtle social commentary in Amira’s speech, about middle aged people helping young adults get started with life, so the latter can support the former when it comes to pensions, etc.

CLIP 4: Huh.

So even though Amira didn’t want the girls at the gym earlier, they are here now.

The day before, Amira posted a story on ig reminding the girls about the boxing class, with no indication that she ever tried to get them not to come.

Hanna gives a quick bit of exposition when she mentions Stefan is already working full time (and in a job that presumably requires a uni degree) while she just graduated high school. Which she finds weird.

As in Skam, Essam calls Amira ‘slave,’ which Kiki and Hanna notice. Amira quickly says it has to do with a bet, and the subject gets dropped.

When the season was airing, I thought for sure this wasn’t the end of it, and it would be brought up again, either through Kiki, Hanna, or possibly Stefan via Hanna. But no, this is really the end of that storyline.

My question is, why? What is the point of recreating this storyline from Skam (even going through the trouble of setting up a week during the hiatus between episodes 31 and 32, where Amira wins and Essam has to be the slave) if you’re just going to drop it in the same episode? It’s bad writing because we’re still in the stage of the season where storylines are being set up for later. It’s bad writing because Kiki and/or Hanna literally never bring up this bet/slave business again after devoting several clips and a bunch of social media to it. It’s like the writers didn’t really want to adapt this storyline from Skam, but they also didn’t have a ton of ideas for this week. Or maybe they were going to go somewhere with it, but then they changed their minds because it made some character look bad, but they forgot to take it out.  

Like okay, fine, it wasn’t my favorite storyline in Skam either. It made Vilde look like an idiot at best, or a racist and a traitor at worst. But then why even have Kiki and Hanna overhear Essam? It’s not like they had to do it for adaptation reasons. Skam France didn’t.

It’s frustrating as fuck, and it won’t be the last time this season will pull this on the viewer.

Speaking of which, Sam thinks Mohammed is hot as hell (she ain’t wrong) and invites Essam, Omar and Mohammed to Jonas’ birthday party. This bothers Amira, because she doesn’t want her brothers to hang out with her friends. Even though she apparently just invited the girls to the boxing class that takes place at the gym her brothers attend.

[SIGH]

But anyway, Sam is being characterized as someone who is in charge of her sexuality (throughout the whole show, but specifically in this episode). While Amira is pining from a distance, getting flustered just from eye contact, Sam sees a hot guy and immediately creates an opportunity to see him again.

CLIP 5: Barbecue pining

There’s such a summer vibe about always finding reasons to hang out at a specific place because your friend got a summer job there.

I gotta give it to the writers. Essam is such a well-constructed younger sibling character. He’s a brat exactly in the way younger siblings are, and yet… That’s also the reason he’s so endearing.

And, on that note, Omar gives off such dad vibes. Not even older brother vibes. Every time I see Omar I feel like he’s thinking, “ha-ha! These little brats are acting out because they’re going through a lot! We just have to understand them!”

The conversation Amira and Mohammed have around the barbecue is so dumb, but you gotta love how pleased Amira is that she has Mohammed’s attention. Though she’s also unused to liking having a guy’s attention.

David and Matteo are back, and they’re still adorable! Good for them.

The way you could describe this moment as, Amira literally turned around for a moment and Sam was already touching Mohammed’s hair, and have it be accurate, sums up what they’re going for here.

Social media

There was a lot of social media content to keep people fed in the hiatus between episode 31 and 32. David and Matteo backpacked through Europe, Mia left for Spain and Kiki made a video about it, Stefan was invited to a game night with the crew, Kiki and Carlos looked for an apartment, and as I mentioned earlier, Essam lost a bet to Amira and had to be her slave for a week. I think that’s about it!

Abdi suggests that he and Carlos give Jonas supplies to make a protest sign as a birthday present and I almost lost it.

I think the piece of social media that most pissed off Skam purists was a chat where Jonas assures Amira he’s already thought of buying halal meat (as well as vegetarian and vegan options) for his birthday, because apparently Druck wanted to show up Skam or something, but like… It’s not like this storyline went anywhere on Skam either, like at no point do the girls learn to order pizza Sana can eat. So what does it matter if Jonas is already aware that Muslims eat halal meat.

I love that Hanna went to boxing class once, posted a bunch of stories about it and then never attended again. What a mood.

And to close the week, Kiki texts Amira that Essam started following her on insta.

FINAL THOUGHTS

When the season was airing, I found these clips cute enough. But on rewatch, I didn’t care for this episode and the reason is that so much of it ended being irrelevant to the season. What this episode did well was setting up the Kiki/Amira friendship, setting Kiki and Carlos’ apartment and the boxing class as recurring settings for the season and some character details. Essam is a really solid character from the get go, and I like the details in Amira’s room. They could’ve left out just about everything else.