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andypantsx3 · 4 years ago

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statistically significant | 3 | bakugou/reader

length: 23,490 words | 7 chapters

summary: You’re the scientist who developed a neural net to model the value of assists. Now that your work is feeding into the hero rankings, pro hero Ground Zero has a bone to pick with your results.

tags: romance, enemies to lovers, sexual tension, reader-insert

warnings: aged up characters, eventual smut, m/f threats of violence, problematic behavior

note: I cannot overemphasize that this interpretation of Bakugou is based on season 1 Bakugou, which means he behaves very questionably at the beginning. Please heed the warnings!

The next Monday found you anxiously nursing a coffee, carefully looking over Bakugou’s latest results.

You’d let the model retrain overnight, just to get a more up-to-date picture of Bakugou’s work, and you’d barely slept a wink while it ran, fretting over your first meeting with him. After waking up earlier than ever, you’d found yourself restless all morning, so you’d made your way into Miruko’s agency well ahead of schedule and had spent your time since sucking down coffees and eyeing Bakugou’s assist and rescue scores warily. They still sat well beneath his kill and capture scorings, and you mentally braced yourself for the near impossibility of getting him to prioritize those aspects of his work.

With Mina’s help, you’d been able to con him into working with you. But just because he’d agreed to your bet, you were not stupid enough to think that meant he was going to make anything easy for you.

Bakugou, for his part, seemed the very antithesis of nervous when he met you in the surveillance room. He barged into your makeshift office mid-morning, looking well-rested if annoyed. The door banged loudly off the opposite wall and rebounded closed with a slam that rattled the AV equipment.

“Let’s get this over with,” Bakugou growled, throwing himself down in the seat opposite you. He was dressed in dark training clothes--simple athletic fabrics that suggested that he meant to book it to a training room the second he was done with you. His whole manner suggested you should keep things short.

You sat frozen, fingers paused over your laptop keys. “...Good morning to you too.”

He looked at you incredulously, blonde eyebrows raising. “I didn’t fucking come here for small talk. Get on with it, nerd.”

You suppressed a twitch of irritation, looking away from him where he sat in an agitated pile of strong lines and tense muscle. God you hoped this was all going to be worth it, at the end of things.

You sighed and clicked into the model results screen, knowing it was only going to work him into a lather if you pressed him on social niceties. “Okay, so I did some analysis--”

“Big fucking surprise.”

“--and,” you continued loudly, “as you well know, you need to adjust certain priorities on the field.”

A scoff issued from his direction. “I don’t need to adjust shit.”

It took everything in you not to roll your eyes. He was literally here to discuss adjusting shit. What was the point of him being so defensive?

You eyed him speculatively, taking in the oppositional slant to his broad shoulders, the thin slash of his mouth as he regarded you irritably. Your observations from last week floated to the forefront of your mind, that this was a man who would not easily do anything he didn’t want to do. And it was clear he did not actually want to do this--he had only been baited into it by the grace of his meddling, pink-haired friend.

You mentally resolved to play as nice as you possibly could, to minimize the amount of fussing from his side of things.

“As I think I explained last year,” you began carefully, “the model I train relies on a set of weights, and you’re ranked on that. Your work is divided up into categories: public perception, kills, captures, property damage, rescues, and now assists. Some of those categories are weighted more heavily than others, so if you do well in them, you’ll outperform your peers in the rankings who do just as well in other categories.”

Blood red eyes darted up to a monitor as you projected your laptop screen onto it, the model results translated into neatly organized and color-coded graphs.

“You are unmatched in kills, fairly unmatched in captures as well, and you’ve kept property damage to a surprising minimum in the last few years considering your quirk. You’re also wildly popular, particularly with young people, according to public polls.”

You glossed over the fact that his appearance probably had a lot to do with it, considering the tidal wave of interest from the female bracket of respondents. The fact especially did not bear thinking about when he was alone in a tiny office with you, bare arms and the hard planes of his chest displayed prominently in his training gear.

“Just fucking---out with it,” Bakugou demanded, turning to glare at you again. “I don’t have all damn day.”

The tiniest hint of smoke and sweetness hit your nose as he leaned closer, and you pushed away from him, baring your palms in the universal gesture for peace.

“Okay, okay. So you’re good at those things, but your rescue scores need work, and your assist score puts you in the top ten least cooperative heroes in the entire industry,” you explained, watching as a muscle in his jaw jumped in obvious irritation. “Rescues are the highest weighted category in the rankings model, and assists are the third highest. So no matter how good you are in other areas, you will not surpass anyone who performs well in these categories.”

Bakugou made an annoyed sound, his brows drawing together. “Quit fucking talking to me like I’m a baby. I fucking know--tell me exactly what your fucking nerd-ass model needs me to do and I’ll fucking do it.”

You breathed out of your nose very slowly, quelling the rising tide of annoyance within you. Everything out of his mouth was so abrupt and demanding.

Software engineers, picture the software engineers.

“Okay so I ran deeper analyses on those two categories and compared your movements with generalized results from the top ten heroes from each category,” you continued.

“The thing that stood out in terms of rescues, is that you were almost twice as fast as other heroes to leap into combat with a villain. This means you’re spending less time assessing the situation than other heroes, and therefore spending less time processing victims. So if I had to make a recommendation here, it’s that you should actively look for civilians before jumping into a fight. You might still find that the smarter thing to do is leap into the fight instead of evacuating them, but you at least need to slow down before you do.”

The crease between his brows erased itself and he leaned back in his chair, tension bleeding out of him somewhat, which was--unexpected. You’d have thought he’d get more defensive as you explained his shortcomings to him.

“Fine,” he said shortly. “What else?”

You pulled up two videos and projected them side by side, bright little clusters of dots collected over the location of each hero. “For assists, it looks like when you’re in range of other heroes, you actually do help, at least a little. I only found an issue when I generalized results from the top ten in this category and ran calculations about their movements in comparison to yours.”

You let the videos play, watching Bakugou’s eyes track the movements with unblinking precision. He said nothing as you let the loop repeat, the tense lines of his body inexplicably unravelling even further with each loop. He looked as close to relaxed as you had ever seen him.

After a few loops, he finally let out a scoff. “Those needy fucks stick closer to other heroes,” he concluded gruffly. “That’s what the dots are tracking.”

You nodded. “On average, you move three times farther away from other heroes on scene than the top ten heroes do. So you’re less likely to be in range to help.”

He rolled a powerful shoulder, unwittingly drawing your eyes straight to it. You gave your leg an annoyed pinch under the table, forcing your gaze back up to his face once you realized what you were doing.

“So I have to look for weaklings and stay closer to these b-list fucking clowns, that’s what you’re telling me?” he prompted, running a hand through his mess of blonde hair. It looked unexpectedly soft under his fingers.

You drew your eyes away from him again, focusing hard on the relief you were feeling that he seemed to be processing and internalizing your feedback. “Yeah, you need to assist civilians and stay in range of your team. Those are the only areas in which you really need help.”

There was a sharp crackle, and tense movement caught in the corner of your eye. You turned to find that all of Bakugou’s unease had suddenly returned, a snarl riding his mouth.

“Help?” he demanded. That scent of smoke and sugar suddenly pressed in on you again, sharp and dangerously hot.

You blinked at him in confusion. “...Uh, yeah?”

His gaze darkened and he leaned over the table between the two of you, a calloused hand catching the collar of your shirt to yank you towards him. The corner of the table dug into your ribs, and his fingers were hot where they brushed the skin under your collar.

“I don’t fucking need help,” he spat, crimson eyes boring into your face like a drill. Your hands came up to grab his, trying to untwist it from your shirt, but his fingers only tightened, unyielding.

“What--? Yes you do?” you garbled, fingers scrabbling over his. “What do you--?”

He pulled you further across the table, so that his face was scant inches from your own.

“Fuck you if you think I need anything from you,” he growled in a low tone, voice almost dangerously soft. Your blood iced over in your veins, limbs freezing. He stared at you for a long, heavy moment.

Then, in the next second, you were being shoved backwards into your chair, and then Bakugou was gone, door slamming behind him with a force that shook the walls.

You stared after him in shock, mouth gaping open. He had been fine up until a couple of seconds ago, even seeming to relax under your analysis. But then his temper had suddenly flared for no fucking reason.

What….what the fuck was wrong with him?

You spent the rest of the morning in a state of restless agitation.

What the literal fuck was wrong with Bakugou? Why had he just stormed out like that? What had flipped the switch for him in the space of mere seconds?

You replayed the conversation in your head nonstop all through your next few meetings and over your lunch break, where you furiously wolfed down a bento without tasting any of it. Your frustration carried you all the way into the afternoon, when a head of wild pink curls poked itself through your door.

You looked up into Pinky’s dark eyes and brilliant smile.

“Y/N!” she chirped happily, closing the door behind her and sprawling into the seat across from you.

You returned her friendly smile. “Ashido-san,” you greeted her politely.

She laughed and waved a rosy hand, leaning forward over the table. “I would never ask stats girl to be formal with me. Call me Mina!”

You huffed an embarrassed laugh. That was sweet, but the nickname stats girl needed to die a brisk and fiery death.

“Mina, then,” you amended, pulling up her model results on your laptop, trying to tamp down on your embarrassment. She was almost overwhelmingly friendly.

Her dark eyes flickered over you curiously and a cautious smile played about her mouth. “Heard it didn’t go well with Katsuki this morning.”

You looked up at her in surprise. “He told you?”

She laughed. “No, I just saw him annihilating a training room. I know him well enough to know when he’s throwing a tantrum.”

An awkward, hot sense of shame welled up within you at the thought that you’d pushed him to that, though you didn’t know how. You got the sense that you’d taken one step forward but two steps back. So much for your promotion.

“Uh yeah, he kind of...stormed out? He’d been listening, actually, and I thought things were going weirdly well. The bet was a good idea, so thank you,” you said. “I just…somehow I screwed it up, I think.”

Mina rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest, splaying out flat in her seat. “God, you know what? I’m just so tired of my best friends being guys. They’re so dramatic and so fussy about their tough guy image. And take themselves so seriously, for no reason, even fucking Denki. I have sat every single one of them down and forced them into make up so it’s absolutely baffling to me that they still stomp around like they’re so serious and so tortured.”

Your mouth dropped open as what she’d just said caught up with you. Take themselves seriously...when she’d forced them into make up? “No. Even…?”

Mina smirked. “Oh yeah, even Katsuki. No idea why he thinks he’s such a tough guy when all it takes is a couple of tears and boom, he’s working a smokey eye and tiny little pigtails.”

You choked on a laugh, trying to dispel the horrifying image in your mind of Bakugou in mascara and lipstick. The idea of him in make up was somehow even more intimidating than his usual appearance. You did not want to know more.

It certainly did beg the question, however, why he was such a difficult jerk if it was that easy to get him to acquiesce to something that horrifying. Maybe the answer lay in Mina’s powers of manipulation. She’d known to make the bet with him, after all. And if she knew how to get him into eyeliner and lipstick, then she might know how to get him to agree to let you help him.

“Wow,” you murmured. “That’s...terrifying. How did you even convince him though? I can’t get him to spend more than two seconds around me without blowing his top like a volcano.”

Mina grinned conspiratorially, leaning over the table. “You just have to know how to work him. Trust me, you might have good numbers sense, but I have pretty good people sense. Katsuki is all smoke and fire until you dig underneath.”

You almost did not want to know what was underneath. “That’s--but he’s so volatile. I can’t predict any of it.”

Mina's grin widened. “Actually, it’s pretty straightforward. He’s actually super in control all of the time, even when it seems like he’s lost it. He’s only really sensitive about one thing.”

“For example,” she leaned forward, her smile morphing into something dark and leery. “I heard he burned through your dress at the Hero Awards.”

You put your face in your palm. “Yes. This is what I’m talking about--I thought he was gonna fry me to a crisp.”

Mina snorted, raking a hand through her mess of curls. “Maybe I only see it because my acid is similar--but it’s pretty hard to only burn through a tiny strip of fabric and not touch anything underneath, even if you’re not out of your mind with anger. It requires some precise control. Wouldn’t you say?”

You froze in your seat, staring at her. Implications began to creep over you like a dark shroud. “What?”

She grinned. “He didn’t touch you, right? Only the dress?”

You gaped at her. “Yeah--only the dress.”

She cut her dark eyes to you, looking like she was trying to suppress a laugh. “Very interesting that he managed to sear straight through your dress, then, without burning you. One might think he did it on purpose.”

You floundered. “But I--but he--! I told him to do better and he got all worked up and intense!”

Mina laughed out loud. “I bet he did. Katsuki’s a total control freak but he loves a challenge. That’s why he took your bet, and that’s why your meeting didn’t go as poorly as you thought it might at first, and that’s why he was so fixated on you after the Awards.”

Your face heated. “Don’t put it like that.”

She chuckled. “I don’t know how you feel about him, but I can guarantee he’s very interested in you. He loves girls who don’t take any of his shit. Why do you think he signed with Miruko? It’s actually kinda gross,” she made a face.

Your face was on fire. A hot wave of embarrassment washed through you and you resisted the urge to dive under the table and hide. This is not the turn you thought the conversation would be taking.

“Uh, so,” you managed, fingers fluttering. “So--um, why did he freak out earlier then? I did tell him everything he was doing wrong. But then he lost it, I think when I told him I would help.”

Mina’s grin settled back into place. “He’s so fucking predictable. He hates being looked down on, and the word help implies that you think he’s weak enough to need it. I’ll bet you anything that’s why he totally flipped.”

You considered this. “But I didn’t mean it like that--”

“It doesn’t matter. He’s got a very specific way of looking at things. He’s way better than he used to be but that’s the one thing he’s still sensitive about.”

You mulled that over. It did explain, then, why he’d reacted so poorly when he’d seemed to be fine with your critique. “Does he really need to be seen as strong that badly?”

Mina picked idly at the fluff on her costume’s jacket, thin fingers tangling in the white strands. “He has insane expectations for himself, and he’s only comfortable when everyone else has those too. It’s like if you think he can’t live up to those standards, that you don’t truly see him.”

So that was it. The mystery of Bakugou’s volatile nature explained--a weirdly deep-seated inferiority complex wrapped up in layers of crankiness and--you blushed--an interest in girls who gave him shit. You quickly buried any considerations on his romantic inclinations, and focused on the inferiority complex.

Whether you’d intended to or not, this morning you had managed to convey to him that you thought he was incapable, and not in a way that personally challenged him like the bet had, or your demand he do better at the Hero Awards. It was so ridiculous, you thought, but then so was he. And if you wanted to make any progress on your promotion, then you were gonna have to suck it up and work within those constraints.

You sighed. You owed him an explanation, maybe even an apology.

Mina regarded you approvingly from across the table. You also owed her a drink. Maybe several.

“Got it,” you acknowledged, clicking back into your model results and pulling up her ranking analyses. “And thank you--I owe you a ton. Now let’s get to what we came here to do which is to talk about how you can kick even more ass.”

Mina grinned, leaning forward in delight. “You’re welcome. And hell yeah, this conversation was so not passing the Bechdel test.”

You snorted, suppressing a wild smile. Oh, you really liked her.

You would apologize and get things back on track with Bakugou. And once Bakugou netted you your promotion, you were gonna turn back and rocket Mina up the rankings to give him a run for his money.

#bakugou x reader #bakugou katsuki #bakugou katsuki x reader #bnha x reader #my hero academia #bnha #katsuki bakugou x reader #katsuki bakugou #tw threats #tw gendered violence

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soramei · 3 years ago

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Intentional - Part 5

Pairing: Bang Chan x Reader (she/her)

Summary: Landing your first real job at JYPE was something short of a miracle. You were prepared to face the new struggles of this elusive career whilst moving to a new country, however, nothing could have prepared you for him. Will stolen glances, secret touches, and hushed nights spent in the recording room ever be enough for the both of you?

Genre: idol!bang chan au, forbidden relationship, coworkers to eventual lovers, slow burn

Warnings: cursing, eventual smut

Word Count: 4.0k

Masterlist

A/N: yeah so about that upload... i was really busy this whole week but i hope to start uploading mondays again! thanks for understanding!!

Taglist (reply to be tagged!): @planetdemon @hvunvely @fluffybitch0325 @fashi0nablee @juststop88 @straykisz @theultimaterad @margaritas-en-la-montania @meowtella

There was a pause in the phone call.

You started biting your nails, instantly regretting what you had just done. Basking in your stupidity, you could only wait for his response, for it was too late to retract what you had just said. Your day must have been worse than you thought. It must have been so bad that you had the nerve to ask Bang Chan — an idol, a person with a strict schedule, somebody who you had an argument with — to come over to your pathetic little apartment.

You kept nibbling on your fingers.

“I’ll get my jacket.”

You froze, eyes wide.

“Huh?” You were bewildered. You weren’t even expecting an answer, much less this.

“It’s cold this late at night,” he explained, “I’ll be there soon.”

You didn’t know what to say. You heard rustling on the other side of the call.

“Wait, I’ll tell you my address,” you blurted out.

“You did,” he said.

You frowned, trying to remember if you did or not. That’s right. You blushed at the memory of your first day of work.

“Oh yeah, umm, I’ll hang up now.” You awkwardly said, hanging up before Bang Chan could fit another word in.

You were a statue in your own apartment, clinging on to the last words exchanged on your phone. In actuality, you didn’t know why you asked him to come over. It was just blurted out in the moment. Or maybe it was a result of your extremely frustrating day. Either way, you felt extremely embarrassed that you did so, especially so late at night.

You started boiling some water, still trying to rationalize what you had just done. This was normal for friends, right? Na-eun and Yoojin came over just yesterday and you were friends with both of them. You knew for a fact that you two were friends, but you still couldn’t find an explanation for the strange feeling in your chest whenever you were around him.

Turning your phone on, you checked your face in the selfie camera. It was a miracle that your makeup didn’t smudge off. You thanked your new ‘CLIO’ foundation cushion, it looked like all that time you spent doing your makeup didn’t go to waste. You stared at your reflection for a couple more seconds before turning your phone off. Why did it matter what you looked like anyways? You wiped off any remaining lipstick with the back of your hand.

The kettle started rumbling, letting you know that the water was ready. You took out your mug to prepare some tea. It was a bad idea to have tea this late at night, but there was something about your mother’s tea that could knock a grown man out.

Sipping your tea, you turned on Youtube to an episode of a Korean web-drama that was getting really popular. It was another one with some rich CEO and a clumsy average girl, but you still watched, fully enamoured. On the recommendations list, there was a video with Felix — the other person you saw at the cafeteria on your first day — on the thumbnail. I can never escape from work, you thought to yourself, rolling your eyes.

You clicked on it anyways, just to pass the time. Watching through the video, you were shocked by the production value. Well, that, and Bang Chan. Whether it was hair and makeup or just his acting, he was so different from the person you knew in real life. You were in awe by his natural charisma gleaming at you through the screen as it was a rare quality that few people you knew possessed. Embarrassingly, you found your eyes drawn to only him in every group shot. He looked good in an apron.

You got distracted by more random videos before clicking back on your drama. The next episode was just about to start when the buzzer to your apartment rang.

It was Bang Chan.

Hurriedly, you shuffled towards your door. With your hand on the handle, you took a deep breath before opening the door.

“Hey,” you smiled.

“Hey,” he smiled back. He was leaning over you, his forearm on the doorframe. His coat was bulky, almost engulfing his whole upper body. He was wearing the same beanie you saw on multiple occasions, and in his hand was a white plastic bag.

You stepped aside, silently gesturing for him to come inside. He took your hint and sauntered in the room, head turning left and right to observe his surroundings.

“It’s not much,” you blushed, realizing how small your apartment really was. You could basically see all your belongings from the center of the room.

“No, it’s cute.” Bang Chan looked at you, taking his hat off. His dimple peaked out. “I brought some leftovers from that barbecue place. The kids and I went there after our shoot today.”

So that was what the bag was. With only food on your mind, you rushed to help hang Bang Chan’s coat before setting the table up.

The food was really good. They were leftovers, but it was so good. Stuffing a bite of pork belly in your mouth, you sighed. Where was this food earlier today?

“It’s good, right?” Bang Chan asked whilst chewing on a piece of meat. “I’ll take you next time.”

It was like he read your mind. You nodded eagerly in response, to which Bang Chan replied with a smirk.

“So, uh,” he scratched the back of his neck, “how was your date today?”

You rolled your eyes, not wanting to remember that embarrassment of a night. It was such a pity too, because that man was probably the most gorgeous man you’ve ever witnessed. You swore he had just stepped out of a webtoon when you first met him.

“It was alright,” you shrugged. It was difficult to reflect on the date without putting a damper on your mood, but maybe vocalizing it would have helped ease your discomfort. “He compared me to a model, you know.”

Bang Chan chuckled, making you look up in confusion.

“Was it because you looked exactly like the model?”

“No,” you replied.

His face immediately fell. “You’re kidding, right? Y/n, tell me you don’t believe anything that loser said. He’s got to be something below garbage if he was comparing two women.”

“Thanks, Chan.” You tried to force a grin on your face. “I appreciate it.”

There was a pause.

“I know my opinion means nothing, but Y/n, I think you’re beautiful.”

You stared into Bang Chan’s eyes, frozen like a statue. Your heart was beating so loud that you could hear it more than you could feel it. He stared back at you from across the table; mouth parted, breaths uneven.

You’ve received many compliments before, to which you would always reply with a smile and a quick ‘thank you’. However, it felt as if your brain malfunctioned in this moment and your heart was the only thing keeping you alive. You could still feel your body, but you couldn’t think.

“Thank you, Chan.” You awkwardly coughed, blushing profusely. Immediately focusing your eyes at the table, you couldn’t bear to keep looking at him.

The two of you ate in silence, with only the tapping of chopsticks adding to the ambience of the room. You wanted to make conversation with him, but you did not want to be the first one to break the silence. It frustrated you that you were so shy right now as you’ve never been like this back home.

To heck with it, you thought. There was no need to be shy around him.

“So,” you still couldn’t look him in the face, “any shows you’ve been watching lately?”

Small talk was good. You could do small talk.

“Actually, I’ve been wanting to watch this Transformers movie for quite a while.”

“Transformers?” You’ve never heard of that one. It must’ve been an American movie.

“Seriously?” his eyes widened. “You’ve never seen Transformers before? Oh, we’ve gotta watch it now.”

“You wanna?” you smiled. “I haven’t used my TV since moving in.”

“Mhm, let’s do it.” He stuffed the rest of the leftovers in his mouth before standing up and clearing the table.

You watched him clear the table in a trance. You should have offered to help since it was your own home, but watching the veins on his hands appear and disappear was way more interesting. Watching him, you suddenly remembered the hoodie.

“Oh, that’s right!” You exclaimed, shuffling over to the bag with the hoodie in it. Taking Bang Chan’s black hoodie out, you held it up to him with both hands.

He looked down at you and chuckled.

“Keep it,” he took it from your hands and slipped the hoodie over your head. “At least until you buy a new jacket.”

“I will.” You rolled the sleeves of his hoodie higher to show your hands. You turned the light off, leaving only the floor lamp to illuminate your apartment. Grabbing the remote from your coffee table, you summoned Bang Chan over to the couch.

You turned on the TV, fooling around with the remote control for a few seconds before giving up.

“I give up.” You sighed. Pouting, you handed the remote over to Bang Chan. He took it from you and started reading the buttons.

“Netflix, right?” Bang Chan asked, to which you nodded. “There we go.”

He scrolled through the titles, looking for the coveted movie. Once he found the movie, he quickly selected it and turned the subtitles on. That was nice of him, you thought. Although you also studied english in university, it was nowhere near the level of watching a full english movie.

The title sequence started and you tried to immerse yourself in the movie. You watched in awe, surprised at the fast pace of the action already.

Fully engrossed, you started to sink your back into the couch. Half-way throughout the title scene, you felt Bang Chan stretch his arm behind you to rest on the back pillow. Suddenly, you started feeling too aware of your surroundings. You sat up straighter.

Throughout the whole movie, you caught wafts of Bang Chan’s cologne everytime he moved. He smelled like safety and familiarity.

You turned your head up a little to get a glimpse of his profile, mapping out every edge and curve of his face. The light illuminated the tip of his nose, along with his dewy cheekbones and chin. The plum of his lips were let slightly open, allowing his teeth to peek out slightly. You unconsciously let out a sigh.

“Something wrong?” He turned his body to face you.

You shook your head and focused on the movie.

The rest of the movie was pretty good, although it lost you at parts. You watched the end credits in silence, not knowing what to say.

“So,” Bang Chan cleared his throat beside you, “I should get going now. Since it’s late.”

You turned your head to face him, not realizing how close the two of you had physically gotten throughout the movie. Looking up at him, your face was inches away from his. His face was almost enveloped by the darkness of your apartment. You heard his breathing get heavier.

“Yeah,” you breathed out, “you should.”

He didn’t get up though.

You heard his staggered breath as you kept looking in his eyes. The end credits had long been over by now. Your own breath was just as shaky and you heard your heart beat out of your chest.

He started leaning in. Slowly.

Your eyes widened. You gulped, your nerves snapped you back to reality all of a sudden. Wasn’t he supposed to be your friend? This wasn’t what friends did… Right?

Clearing your throat, you leaned back shyly.

“You should go. I don’t want the others to notice you’re gone.”

Silence.

“Yeah.” Bang Chan’s lips flattened in a line. Without another word, he stood up and walked towards your door.

You followed him in silence, hoping to at least send him off. Wrapping your arms around your torso, you watched as he put his boots on in the dark. He tied his laces, and with a nod, he opened the door and stepped out.

You were left with a sour taste in your mouth and a cloudiness in your head. Still standing in front of your door, you tried to process what had just happened. However, you couldn’t. All you could think about was the soft curls of his hair, the delicate threads of his eyelashes, and his lips. The dusty rose of his lips. The parting of his lips. Inviting you in.

You were frozen, looking at nothing particularly. The only thing on your mind was Bang Chan.

The door opened.

“Hey, sorry, I forgot my jack-”

His sentence never got a chance to complete itself as you rushed to him, wrapping your arms around his neck. As your lips touched his, you felt a fire ignite in you like nothing you’ve felt before. Your fingers clawed at the nape of his neck, wanting more. Wanting to be closer.

Almost immediately, Bang Chan responded. He was taken by shock at first, but his hands didn’t waste any time to grip your waist. You felt the muscles of his shoulders tighten as he pulled you closer.

He moved you back into your apartment by the waist, lips never leaving your own. You blindly shuffled backwards, only focused on trying to get closer to him. If that was even possible.

You ignored the clunking of his boots against your clean floor, allowing him to guide you to the couch. A whimper left his lips as you used your hand to comb through his hair, pulling it. His soft brown curls were silk against your fingertips.

The back of your legs hit the couch and he turned you around so he could sit on the couch. Your lips finally left his. You gasped for air, trying to steady your deep breaths.

Bang Chan’s breathing was synchronized with yours, his equally as unsteady. He reached his hands out again, grabbing your waist and pulling you on top of him. You were a ragdoll, responding to whatever he wanted to do to you.

With each knee on either side of him, you gripped his jaw and kissed him again. The fire inside of you instantly reignited. It was addicting.

The two of you didn’t dare to separate from each other, only parting to gasp for air every now and then. Even in the dark, you could imagine the plum of his lips and the threads of his eyelashes. This drove the fire in you more.

“What if the boys realize you’re gone?” you breathed out the next time you parted from his lips. They were most likely sleeping, but the thought still worried you.

“Fuck them.” Bang Chan exhaled. Grabbing the back of your neck, he reconnected his lips with yours. You gladly complied.

His sloppy kisses slowly moved from your lips to your jaw, then to your neck, eliciting a soft whimper from your throat. This seemed to only edge him on as kept leaving sloppy kisses against your neck, all the while running his hands up and down your waist.

His cologne surrounded you, keeping you safe. Soon later, the adrenaline left the two of you, leaving only the sound of heavy breathing to fill the room. You brushed your thumb under his eye to which he deeply inhaled.

“Chan?” you said. He was leaving kisses all over your collarbone.

“Hmm?” He didn’t seem to pay much mind to what you were saying.

“It’s half past three. I really think you should get going.” You didn’t want him to leave, but you were almost sure he had another packed schedule for tomorrow.

“Mhmm.” Your words went in one ear and out the other as he made his way up your neck again. You couldn’t help but close your eyes and let out a small moan.

“C’mon, get up. How did you even get here, by the way?” It took everything in you to break away from his touch, but you were starting to get sleepy.

“Taxi.” He said, helping you get up from his lap. He stood up after you, brushing his hand against your waist one last time before making his way over to his jacket.

“You’re allowed to ride a taxi?” You tilted your head, sceptical.

He slipped his jacket on.

“No.” He peppered little kisses on your cheeks. “You don’t know how long I’ve wanted to do that now.”

You giggled, pushing him by his shoulders out the door. He played along, pretending to stumble with every step he took back.

“Text me when you get home,” you said, repeating what he said to you on your first day of work.

He nodded in response and winked before turning around to head home. As soon as the door shut, you slapped both hands against your face. Your little act of impulse had spun your head in spirals. You didn’t know whether to feel relieved at the fact that Bang Chan reciprocated your impulsive actions, or to worry that you had not only just kissed your coworker — but also a freaking idol. No one — not Manager Chen, your friends, or even anyone in the general public — could know about this. If they did, both your careers would be screwed.

You doted on this thought as you got ready for bed, only the worst possible outcome came to mind. If either your manager or his manager knew about what happened tonight, you could get fired. Or even blacklisted. You sat in bed, nervously biting your nails.

Your phone buzzed.

Bang Chan: Hey, I got home. Nobody’s awake… ^^

Bang Chan: Don’t think too much, alright? It’s late, go to sleep…

You felt relief reading his text. For some reason, he knew you were overthinking your actions. You decided to listen to his words and go to sleep.

The next day, Sunday, was very uneventful compared to the day before. You texted Bang Chan back when you woke up, but because of his busy schedule, he hadn’t had the time to reply yet.

Yoojin called in when you were eating lunch, asking about your date. You told her the truth, explaining how there would definitely not be a second date with that man. She sounded disappointed and vehemently tried to set you up with another man in her pool. You politely declined, thinking about your restless night with Bang Chan.

You finished some work ahead of time to free up the next week. Since you were invited to work with Manager Chen at the content shooting, you assumed that you could lessen your work stress ahead of time.

The shooting days were allocated for Friday and Saturday, with there being an overnight stay at the mountains. Whilst you didn’t know the arrangements for Stray Kids, you were informed that the production crew booked a small lodge for the team. You were excited to not only see a behind the scenes of a real shoot, but to also possibly form a closer relationship with Manager Chen.

You were thankful that you did some work ahead of time as Monday’s workload was so much lighter than usual. People were still coming to you with their ideas for the project, but with your other work done, you had the time to go through everybody’s ideas.

You didn’t hear from Bang Chan the whole day, which was nothing out of the blue. You remembered him showing his schedule to you once. The amount of things he had to do everyday had your eyes bulging out from their sockets. All of a sudden, you were thankful for your nine-to-five job.

The next couple of days ran the same way as your Monday, with you easily breezing through your workload. Since you had more time during your breaks at work, you took to exploring the part of the building that you could. You admired all the art, the trophies, the awards and memorabilia. Of course, you also spent more time with your new friend Na-eun.

On Thursday, the day before the shoot, you were helping the producers by translating some notes for the script. All was going smoothly, when you got a text.

It was from Bang Chan.

You weren’t going to lie; you were curious as to what he sent you. He was basically silent the whole week so far, and if you were being honest, you missed hearing his voice. And seeing his face. And feeling his hands brush against your waist.

Bang Chan: Come to my recording room… I’ve got something to show you.

Your eyes lit up right away, curious as to what he wanted to show you. Quickly checking the time, you decided to take your lunch break then and there. After all, you didn’t have much work left for the day anyways.

Locking up your computer, you zoomed inconspicuously past all the other cubicles and made your way to the elevators. You weaved through the hallways of his floor, praying that your memory didn’t escape you. It seemed like your memory was on your side today as you found yourself in front of a familiar set of doors. You didn’t bother to knock before going in.

Inside was Bang Chan: feet up on the desk, drinking from his iced coffee, concentrating on his producing software. You smiled. He looked so comfortable, even in an ‘office’.

He had his headset in, and didn’t seem to notice that you had entered. You went up behind him and tapped his shoulder. He turned around, and immediately threw his feet off the desk and stood up upon seeing that it was you. You smirked.

“I should really put a ‘please knock’ sign on the door.” He cursed under his breath. He reached behind you to close the door.

You giggled.

“So, what do you have to show me?” you wondered aloud.

“A new song. Since the filming is tomorrow, the producers put me on a time crunch to finish the song by today.”

So that was why he was so busy, you thought. You didn’t realize how the sudden filming would have impacted his schedule for the month. Especially since it would take up two whole days.

He let you sit in his chair, and hovered over you to press play on the song. His chair smelled like his cologne.

As he was playing the song, your eyes drifted up to see his face. The face — even after only four days — you missed. The dark circles under his eyes were prominent. That, along with his disheveled hair, told you that he truly was dedicated to his work. You imagined him sitting where you were, two in the morning, sipping on his iced americano.

“You like it?” His eyes drifted towards you, resembling a puppy bringing a ball back to its owner.

“It’s amazing. I don’t know how you managed this in just a few days,” you said. And you were sincere too. You couldn’t imagine yourself doing any of this.

“Eh, you know, late nights.” he shrugged. “Wanna see another?”

You nodded, and the two of you began listening to another one of his songs. You listened in silent wonderment.

However, the silence didn’t last long as the two of you soon found yourselves on the couch: hands all over each other, lips the same. You were lying underneath him, his arms resting on either side of you to hold his weight up. Your lips never left his as you ran your hands up and down his defined biceps.

The two of you couldn’t stay away from each other. The sound of the songs that he had put on shuffle filled the room, along with a fleeting sigh of moan every now and then. Bang Chan’s hand had started wandering up your blouse when, all of a sudden, the door opened.

“Hey, I have the lyrics h-” He stopped mid-sentence, eyes wide.

Crap.

#stray kids #stray kids imagines #stray kids scenarios #stray kids smut #bang chan smut #stray kids x reader #stray kids fanfic #stray kids fluff #bang chan scenarios #bang chan imagines #stray kids angst #bang chan angst #skz scenarios #skz imagines #stray kids fanfiction #bang chan fanfiction

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unluckyxse7en-moving · 5 years ago

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Allister and Neurodivergency

Ok so this was sparked by a youtube video recommended to me that was some edgy theory "is Pokemon's Allister POSSESSED?" And regardless of their reasoning I'm gonna go into why that's actually not a good idea to do with a character like this, even if he is a ghost type trainer. Even if the creators themselves did it on purpose and left hints as a wink-wink, nudge-nudge, it's not cool of them to do that either for the same reasons it's not cool to theorize.

In case the title didn't give it away, the tl;dr is, "Allister is clearly modeled off of the "weird kids" you see in school that are actually undiagnosed neurodivergent kids, and whether he's meant to Actually be autistic or anything else or it's just some celebrity persona thing in canon, turning these mannerisms into the fuel for shock-value/creepypasta theories is ableist in that it alienates the behavior and dehumanizes it, and any person who exhibits these behaviors."

Everything I'm writing is based on what I know from seeing Allister during the battle, plus the trainer cards you get on him and the blurbs they come with (I read the wiki on the Rare League Card haha). I have no clue what the anime or manga spinoffs have or will do with him, and I don't know what the game has done with him after the first gym battle because I literally just beat him in my run, just an fyi. I will be citing everything you can find on the wiki's quotes sections, or in any screenshots of him so while I'm ok with providing proof please also understand this isn't subtle stuff.

Neurodivergent-coded behaviors we see Allister exhibit:

his ghost hands - a ghost mimicry in popular culture like vampires saying 'bleh', but also considered 'raptor hands' as an autistic behavior.

He does not throw his pokeball with one hand. Instead, he cups the pokeball in both hands and flings it in a double-handed underhand throw. This isn't a specific neurodivergent trait that I know of, but is 'odd' and does not fit the narrative of it being a persona, there's no way to link this behavior directly to ghosts or an eerie persona (it looks awkward more than anything at best.) This may be more a characterization of his youth than anything but given it's 'odd' this may be something people latch onto so I'm adding it to the list.

speech patterns imply he talks slowly, quietly and stutters: "...'M Allister." "H-here... I go..." - these are hallmark behaviors of any kid who is shy, or anxious, and also slow or quiet speech can occur in neurodivergent people in general. Plus in my experience shyness go hand-in-hand with any social awkwardness linked with being neurodivergent.

"The silent boy of mystery!" - which it's been a bit but if I recall correctly is his introduction made by Chairman Rose. This links back to his quiet speech and being nonverbal or selectively mute can also, again, be associated with many neurodivergency, chief example coming to mind being once again autism.

He's the youngest of the Gym Leaders, but also not the weakest. He's furthermore supposed to have seen ghosts at the age of four. While it's not outright stated, this strongly implies a 'child prodigy' setup - which most child geniuses or prodigies, wait for it... are often neurodivergent. They excel in one area and are recognized and praised, but often 'struggle' in the eyes of the neurotypical masses, which is usually forcibly underplayed to maintain their appeal in the eyes of the public.

The mask - This is easily where the persona concept comes in, but also canon text implies it's not exactly a persona taken on as a gimmick - if anything it comes off more as a protection mechanism. He always wears the masks in public spaces- his trainer card states he's "never been known to remove his mask in public", and he even goes so far to keep spares "should his mask fall off for some reason." He goes extra lengths to keep a mask on hand and on his face.

There is a photo of him without his mask on his Rare trainer card, in which he looks troubled. Scared. The card bio talks about him 'confronting the fears and insecurities he feels within'. If his 'public persona' is based on seeming nervous or scared, it shouldn't follow that he is actually feeling that way, if it's an act. This is a different type of persona. The Public Face that neurodivergent people have to put on every day just to avoid getting mocked and derided and treated horribly every day, for being 'off'. The mask is to protect Allister and be a 'brave face', and not an entertainment gimmick.

I'm sure there's probably more out there, but to put it simply, Allister's behavior isn't for entertainment, or he'd be less consistent overall. He would have 'off stage/on stage' behaviors that contradicted, and probably wouldn't think of things like the pokeball throw. He's pretty clearly meant to be neurodivergent in some way.

Even if he isn't, that's what his behavior/persona/whatever you want to call it is modeled off of. So taking these behaviors and using them as reasoning that he's 'possessed' or some other edgy reason is pretty nasty, because you're implying anyone who exhibits these behaviors would only do it if possessed - a concept that doesn't have good connotations mind you. It's rare people talk about "possession" in terms of benevolent or holy beings, so you know this is about displaced spirits at best, demons at worse. This is a kid we're talking about here. A kid who's definitely not meant to be neurotypical. I shouldn't have to explain why that's not great.

I will say too that while I'm not some authority on this or anything, this doesn't mean you can't come up with 'Allister being supernatural' theories at all, but you need to really think on it. Changeling or shapeshifter for example, has negative associations historically with neurodivergent kids. But something not connected to these behaviors at all, e.g. Conspiracy theory that he is actually Immortal? Go ham, personally idc.

But if you're making these vilifying or 'other'-ing headcanons because of how he acts, that's ignorant at best, and ableist at worst and propagating negative associations to neurodivergent people. Please reconsider your headcanons and theories if they're like this, I'm begging you.

-Signed, an autistic person who sees a lot of their own behaviors mirrored in Allister.

#long post #allister #pokemon shield #pokemon swsh #pokemon #allister swsh #ableism #neurodivergent #nd #analysis #blablablah

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languagemadness · 6 years ago

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38 Classic Polish Books You Should Know (About)

requested by anon

That’s a hell of a Buzzfeed title, wow! I focused solely on books, but you need to remember that poems play a HUGE part in Polish literature in general. Instead of doing a list of "classic Polish texts", which would include full-on books, poems, dramas, everything, and would be probably 18637 positions long, I did only some of the most important books, dramas, and comic books. If you’d like me to tell you more about anything on this list, cover something more in detail, or make another list — shoot me an ask!

I ordered the list NOT by how much I like these books or how strongly I’d recommend them. The list is ordered from the easiest ones to the toughest ones -- literarily, not linguistically.

Also, I know that the ask was about classical books, which I too included in this list.

Let’s start with something approachable — comic books and "normal" books that are so easy and pleasant to read. Except for the two books about war — they’re approachable but the topic doesn’t really make them pleasant.

Pan Samochodzik by Zbigniew Nienacki

A series of books about Pan Samochodzik, who’s an art historian and a detective, and his job is to solve theft, smuggling, and forgery cases. He’s basically a mix of Indiana Jones and Hercules Poirot. The background for the books is life in Polish People’s Republic, but it’s actually shown not as rough as it was in real life. Apart from that, they’re basically children’s books — very light, easy, and funny.

I’d definitely recommend them, I mean, who doesn’t like stories like that? Plus, you don’t need to be God knows how good with Polish to read them.

adaptations: There are 4 movies and a TV show based on the books, each based on a different book from the series.

Podróże z Herodotem by Ryszard Kapuściński

You can read it even when you’re like 10 because it’s a very nice, easy, pleasant story. An autobiography where the author describes his travels to Asia and Africa and compares them to the travels of Herodotus. Very interesting, often funny, it gives you a full view of different people and cultures and how rich the world is. It teaches you a little bit of history, it teaches you a little bit about the modern world (I think the story starts in the 1950s), and the comparison between these two — it’s really fascinating to see that, generally, the world hadn’t changed that much.

I would wholeheartedly recommend it to everyone.

W pustyni i w puszczy by Henryk Sienkiewicz

The only book I cried on and not because it was so beautiful, but because it was so painful to read. Okay, I was like 11 when I read it, but technically it’s a book for kids, so…

It’s a story about two kids who get lost in Africa and they hike through like 5 countries to find their fathers (who worked in Africa and just happened to forget to take their children one day I guess?). Really, it’s about friendship, dedication, love, all the important values in life. But that doesn’t change the fact that it’s painfully boring to read.

It’s a wonderful story, don’t get me wrong, and I loved it as a child — but the movie. The book I hated. So I do recommend it, but the movie.

adaptations: 2 TV shows and 2 movies (the one from 2001 being the most popular).

Tytus, Romek i A’Tomek by Henryk Jerzy Chmielewski

Comic books. Two friends try to humanize a monkey while traveling and exploring different areas of science and history. It’s funny, absurd, educational, and understandable for non-advanced learners of Polish.

Do I recommend? Absolutely.

adaptations: 2 episodes of a short TV show, a video game, and a movie from 2002 titled "Tytus, Romek i A’Tomek wśród złodziei marzeń" — but it’s not based on the comics, only on the characters.

Kajko i Kokosz by Janusz Christa

A series of comic books which is basically a Polish version of “Asterix”. It’s about two Slavic warriors who have all kinds of adventures and fights with Zbójcerze. It’s all fictional and to be honest, I don’t really remember much from the comics, but I know that I loved them as a child. There are also renewals of the old volumes as well as new stories based on the original story and they’re coming out even in 2018.

I wouldn’t say it’s something you absolutely have to read, but if you want to, then it’s worth your time.

adaptations: A TV show that’s still being made and a video game.

Zemsta by Aleksander Fredro

Language-wise, it is pure genius. Not too easy, though. The jokes, the phrases, the sayings — it is the base of common Polish language. Story-wise, it’s basically Polish Romeo and Juliet. Two families live in a castle and hate each other, a girl from one family is in love with a guy from the other family. We also get some more important side characters, they’re very nicely written, iconic even. The whole drama is hilarious, so yes I would calmly recommend it to people who are somewhat fluent in Polish.

adaptations: 2 movies (the one from 2002 being more popular).

Wiedźmin by Andrzej Sapkowski

I think it’s the definition of contemporary classic. It’s a series of short stories, later an actual book, later comics, and finally a movie and a video game. The book is about this witcher and a child of destiny who’s a witcher-in-training. The main character needs to protect her. The stories and comics, however — they’re obviously about the witcher, but I don’t know the details.

If I’m 100% frank, I have not read the stories, the book, the comics, nothing. So I can’t fully recommend it to you, but I can tell you this: everyone who’s into fantasy is crazy about it. I suppose if you like fantasy, Wiedźmin’s a must.

adaptations: A movie from 2001, a TV show from 2002, and a video game.

Solaris by Stanisław Lem

This one’s, on the other hand, is a must if you’re into sci-fi. It’s about contact: with aliens, other civilizations, the unknown — but it’s not specified, which actually makes the book so interesting.

It’s been translated into multiple languages, so I’d say it’s easy to get, and if you’re either into sci-fi or into modern Polish literature — do read it.

adaptations: 3 movies (in 2002 Soderbergh made it a movie, so I suppose it’s worth checking out, but I personally haven’t watched it).

Kamienie na szaniec by Aleksander Kamiński

A story of 3 boys who just graduated from high school when WW2 broke out. It’s an actual story of actual people and it is heartbreaking. If you want to read anything about the WW2 that isn’t very technical or boring, this book is definitely for you. It’s about normal lives in abnormal circumstances and you get very attached to the characters and their stories, and the book actually makes you feel things.

Would recommend.

adaptations: A movie from 1977 titled "Akcja pod Arsenałem", which is based on the book, and a movie from 2014 under the same title as the book, also only based on it.

Medaliony by Zofia Nałkowska

An omnibus of short stories about WW2. Very short, very shocking, sometimes even disgusting. The stories are about people who survived the war and they are actual things that actually happened. I don’t think I get appalled easily, but those are horrifying, really.

A good recommendation for someone who wants to learn about the more (or less) humane side of the war. I would actually say it’s a must if you want to at least begin to understand the tragedy that WW2 was.

And now we’re moving onto some more… mature books. Those are usually compulsory readings in middle school and high school, and to get what they’re about, you need to have some common knowledge. Nothing too specific, though. And there’s a lot to them that you can enjoy even if you don’t know much about general Polish culture and history, so I would say giving them a shot is definitely worth it. Plus, you can learn a lot if you’re a careful reader.

Lalka by Bolesław Prus

Hands down my favorite Polish book of all times. The best thing they made me read in school and I swear this book made the 12 years of tears and pain that I spent in school worth it. Long story short, it’s about a dude from quite a poor family and he becomes rich for an aristocrat he loves very, very deeply. But she’s a total bitch and uses him like an old rag. Don’t get me wrong, I really don’t like romance but Lalka… I mean, the lengths he went for her, the things he did for her… I don’t want to spoil the book but it’s full of dramatic events, interesting characters, surprises, and most importantly — it’s absolutely exciting for the reader! It truly sucks you in. Not to mention the book in a phenomenal way shows how Polish society of the 1870s functioned and thought. And don’t even get me started on the psychology of single characters. I’ve read only a few books in my life that made me feel so passionate about their characters. Character-building-wise, Lalka is the peak of art.

If you want to read only one book from this list, this is the one.

adaptations: Tons of plays, a movie (1968) and a TV show (1978). Pretty accurate, but I personally didn’t like them.

Potop by Henryk Sienkiewicz

There’s a trilogy: Ogniem i mieczem, Potop, Pan Wołodyjowski — and they tell the history of Poland in the 17th century. For some reason, only Potop is considered an absolute must, but if I’m honest I didn’t read it, so I personally can’t recommend it to you. Potop itself is about a guy who wants to marry this girl but she thinks he betrayed the country, so he needs to clear his name by fighting by the king’s side. It sounds very fairy-tale-like, but the background is actual history and the author himself operates incredibly well with the real and the imaginary.

The thing with Sienkiewicz’s historical books is that they are pretty damn good, so even if you’re not too much into that kinda stuff but there’s a tiny part of curiosity in you, I don’t think it’s a mistake to check it out.

adaptations: A movie from 1974.

Krzyżacy by Henryk Sienkiewicz

Basically when Poland was all… under occupation and non-existent, Sienkiewicz wrote this book to bitch about Germanization, as well as to remind the Polish people about their country. The book is about the great times of Poland, from 1399 all the way to the greatest battle of 1410 when Poland kicked Prussia’s ass. But we also get some romance, some schemes, some awful deaths… The full set if you will.

A lot of people say it’s a super ass boring book, but in my opinion, it’s absolutely fantastic. The details, the numerosity of threads (that somehow doesn’t confuse you at all), again the imaginary intwining with the real… I do recommend it not only to people who are into history, but to anyone looking for a good read that would explain a bit of Polish nature.

adaptations: A movie from 1960.

Quo vadis by Henryk Sienkiewicz

Honey is this one fantastic… It’s a story about a Christian girl in Nero’s Rome and a non-Christian guy who’s in love with her. Of course, at first it looks like a love story, which it is, but there’s so much to it. The book is a knockout of a description of what life was like in ancient Rome. Everything from history, through society, to things like the time of bathing of each social class — there’s everything. And, what’s even better, it’s not boring at all! Actually, the book is unbelievably well-balanced between eventful, not overwhelming, and detailed.

I would definitely, definitely recommend. It’s not exactly a must and if you want to read a Sienkiewicz historical book, then Krzyżacy or Potop would be a better idea since they’re about Poland, but Quo vadis would most definitely not be a waste of time.

adaptations: 6 movies (the one from 2001 is the most popular one), a TV show, and a ton of plays.

Ferdydurke by Witold Gombrowicz

A book you either love or hate. I personally love it, I’m kin with this book, whatever. While reading it, I agreed with every single sentence, with every single opinion, I felt like it was me who wrote it in my past life or something. Just. An. Extraordinary. Book. Remember when I said that Lalka was the reason why I didn’t hate school? It was, but Ferdydurke is the reason I’m alive, kids.

It’s about a 30-year-old man who’s a writer (kinda), but he can’t write. Suddenly, he turns into a kid and is forced to go to school again. That’s just the plot of the book, however, because the story is simple, absurd, inconsistent, weird, and you don’t really read the book for the story. It’s what the story stands for. It’s about how pointless society is. How society creates idiotic rules to standardize people and to take away any creativity or any will to live. How people need to protect themselves and their originality but they can’t because originality doesn’t exist. And our main character explores all those philosophies. It’s a fantastic criticism of society, school, systems, classes, life.

Language-wise, it’s also a very interesting book. Definitely not an easy one. Gombrowicz was the master of language, the words and phrases he came up with, the ideas he hid within them. The language of his books creates, not only describes, the world from the books. His language is a whole different, self-sufficient being. Rare, striking, awe-inspiring.

As I said, somewhat philosophical and very metaphorical. You need to feel from your very heart what Gombrowicz means to understand this book.

adaptations: A theater performance from 1985 that you can watch on Youtube and a movie from 1991. I wouldn’t recommend watching them, though.

Sklepy cynamonowe by Bruno Schulz

Weird, metaphorical, a bit… insane? I love it. It’s an omnibus of short stories that are a description of the adult world through a child’s eyes. It’s like a dream, it’s impossible, it’s very soft and delicate and magical, really. It’s unlike anything. You feel like you’re reading a description of some very sensual dream. The stories make you wonder about the way people think, the way childhood affects your future life, the way the world works, and they make you realize that you don’t understand anything ever. But if you’re not looking for a deeper meaning, you can read the stories just for pleasure because they are honestly so sensual, sexy (but not porny, more like seductive), fascinating, and just strange, you actually read the stories with all of your senses. Makes you enter a whole different world and I will not exaggerate when I say that it changes your perception of everything.

As I said, it’s unlike anything you’ll ever encounter in life. A million out of ten would recommend.

adaptations: There is a short film from 1986 based on one of the stories from the book. It’s called "Ulica krokodyli".

Cudzoziemka by Maria Kuncewiczowa

One of my top 10. It is a story of the last day of a woman’s life. She knows she’s dying and she knows that all of her life she was in pain. So she recalls her entire life, all the big decisions she ever made, to find the source of her misery and to escape reality. It is a very sad book, but rather that depress the reader, it makes you think. It’s a story about alienation — the main character lived in a foreign country, never got to do what she actually wanted to do, never got to be with whoever she wanted to be with, and so everything she did, everywhere she went, everyone she spent time with, she felt out of place. The book was revolutionary in terms of composition and it explored the main character’s psychology very deeply. A fascinating, thought-provoking, original book.

Definitely would recommend.

adaptations: A movie from 1986.

And finally, books for the strong, books for the advanced, books for the masters. To get these, you actually need some strong background knowledge on Polish history and culture, especially society- and politics-wise. Don’t get me wrong, they’re not bad, they’re just… demanding.

Granica by Zofia Nałkowska

It is about… uhh… society, morality and the lengths a person can go to achieve what they want. Sounds complicated and serious, and it sort of is, but it’s also totally worth your time because it doesn’t really tire you as much as you could think it would. And it’s thought-provoking as well. It’s about this dude who has a wife, a career, and a lover, and he basically ruins his life and the lives of everyone around him — which is quite exciting and somewhat frightening to read. So if you’re into ambitious, psychological stuff, then I say yes! Go for it.

adaptations: A movie from 1938.

Chłopi by Władysław Reymont

It’s basically a longass description of one year in Polish countryside in the late 19th/early 20th century. Personally, I think it shows and defines the society of that time extremely well and it surely is admirable that someone wrote almost a thousand pages describing in detail things such as preparing cabbage for dinner or collecting crops. Reymont actually won the Nobel prize for this book.

Would recommend if you’re not looking for anything too thrilling. Even though the book has some iconic moments like taking away Jagna on a wheelbarrow cause she was a slut…

adaptations: A movie from 1922 and a TV show, which was later turned into a movie, from 1972.

Przedwiośnie by Stefan Żeromski

A Polish family in Russia (actually in Azerbaijan but before WW1 it was Russia, so). They live awesome lives until WW1 breaks out and the father has to leave the family. Then, the son goes a little nuts and joins communists and then there’s a revolution, the son gets traumatized and he runs away to Poland (where he’d never been before) where he’s looking for a prosperous life that his father had promised him. And Poland had just regained independence, so everyone hopes that it will be the oasis of prosperity and well-being once it’s renovated. The book is about how hope and gullibility (but mostly hope) are heartlessly crushed by reality. It is also a story about growing up because we follow the main character all the way from his careless youth through his war-and-revolution trauma to a point where he has to decide about his future. But most importantly, I think, it’s a historically important story. It was written when Poland was a new country and it was supposed to remind people that communism is bad and politics, in general, is crap, as well as propose some political solutions for the new country. That’s the general message but there are lighter moments like descriptions of Polish countryside, a lot of flirting with pretty girls, and even a murder.

It’s a good story, it’s a deep story — but not too complicated. And it’s actually very interesting, and I can promise you it’s not as heavy as I made it sound.

10/10 would recommend.

adaptations: Two movies — one from 1928 and one from 2001.

Pan Tadeusz by Adam Mickiewicz

It’s an epic that describes life in the countryside in the 19th century. It was mainly written to remind Poles who had emigrated to France what a wonderful country Poland originally was, even though it was entirely under occupation, completely wiped off of any map. Naturally, everything there is presented through rose-colored glasses but still, if you’re looking for the classic of the classics, I suppose Pan Tadeusz is the book for you. If anyone wants to understand Polish literature, this book is a must.

Would I recommend? Sure if you’re here to sink in Polish culture or if you like quite full of adventure and yet easy reading. Easy as in the story’s nice and pleasant, the language is rather tedious.

adaptations: A surprisingly good and accurate movie from 1999. And the script is actually the text of the epic.

Dziady by Adam Mickiewicz

I think every Polish student hates Dziady. I didn’t, though. It’s a drama, actually, there are 4 parts of the drama, the last one not quite finished. I think the problem with Dziady is that no one really knows what it’s about. It was written in the mid 19th century, so again — Poland’s out of every map. The tzar is a bitch and Adam Mickiewicz disses him in the wildest of ways, but it doesn’t make sense until someone explains it to you. If you asked me what Dziady were about, in my opinion, all 4 parts are about love. Love for your country, love for your lover, love for yourself, love for other people, love for your family — all possible kinds of love. Sounds nice, right? That’s because it is nice. The problem with Dziady is that if you don’t delve deep into it, you won’t get it at all. The words as you read seem just like random words in a random order, no point whatsoever, skipping from topic to topic, all four parts at first seem completely unrelated. But the deeper you dig, the more you see. It is a very rich drama, there’s something in it for literally everyone, but it requires a ton of commitment and probably someone to guide you well through it.

Add it to my recommendations only if you are desperate to read it and if you have all the things above, aka time, commitment, and help. And language skills. The 2nd part, however, is short and it’s the easiest one, so do check it out.

adaptations: "Lawa" from 1989 is based on the second (which, in order, is the first) part of Dziady.

Wesele by Stanisław Wyspiański

It is such a deep drama that you just don’t get it. Kind of like with Dziady, except this one is waaay shorter and basically just disses everyone. In Dziady, the main character’s idea to show people love was to take control of them. Wesele, however, was about motivating people to do stuff by offending them.

Personally, Wesele is one of my favorites because it is just so problematic. Wyspiański attended a wedding in 1900 and then described it. Each guest in the drama (and at the actual wedding) represented an attitude that the general of Polish society had towards the country’s situation (occupation). And after 105 years of occupation, it seemed that the society didn’t really care anymore and just accepted their fate. Wyspiański was very much against that attitude. So basically what he did was he publicly washed the society’s dirty linen by pinning it onto his real-life friends. When Wesele premiered, people were actually chasing Wyspiański down the streets because they hated him so much. Not to mention that in the drama the whole offending thing is actually pretty profound and harsh. So much so that actual real-life guests weren’t enough for him — Wyspiański needed to introduce ghosts from the past, people who played an important role in Poland’s history. Of course, that was the author’s idea of motivating people to fight for their freedom.

The drama is full of references to Polish literature, Polish culture, and Polish history, so unless you’re fluent in these three, I wouldn’t tell you to read it.

I love Wesele with all my heart. If you want to give it a shot, instead of reading the actual drama, I’d suggest reading the story behind it and the summary and interpretations. This way you can enjoy it, which I think anyone should, without knowing much of the background. If I’m honest, you can’t really get much out of the drama itself. But I definitely recommend spending some time on this book, it’s definitely worth it.

adaptations: From 1973, it’s pretty good and quite accurate, but just a bit tiring.

Szewcy by Witkacy

Oh boy. A grotesque, modernist drama about the future of society, where the author basically talks about how people are doomed and headed for inevitable self-destruction. There’s a lot about how mechanic and inhumane people have become and of course tons of criticism towards society, revolution, capitalism, communism, and fascism.

I didn’t like it, I wouldn’t recommend because I didn’t really understand the language. It was a pain in the ass reading this book and if I had read it earlier in life, I assure you that W pustyni i w puszczy wouldn’t be the only book that made me cry from pain.

adaptations: Tons of theater performances that you can watch on Youtube.

Tango by Stanisław Mrożek

It’s a drama about generation gap and some ideas to live by (like conformism or anarchy). Sounds complex, but it actually keeps it very simple and short, a kid would get it, really, and yet the story actually stays with you. It also makes you wonder about a place and meaning of an intellectualist in society. Not to mention the hilarious and absurd situations like convincing your grandma to just die already.

Personally, I enjoyed it. Even though it’s about quite serious stuff, it’s hilarious, so you do read it with pleasure.

adaptations: There are multiple theater performances available to watch on Youtube.

Balladyna by Juliusz Słowacki

The main idea behind the drama is how good and evil both function simultaneously in this world and the fight between the two. A nymph sends a prince to the main character’s house. The main character wants to marry the prince, so she does a lot of awful things. Basically. It’s a nice story, though strange. A story that you would read to a child, except the language of the drama is… complicated. Let’s be honest — it’s Romanticism after all.

I would recommend it, but I wouldn’t die to make someone read it.

adaptations: There is this absolutely awful movie from 2009 (English title: The Bait). It’s loosely based on Balladyna.

Kordian by Juliusz Słowacki

It’s about this guy who plans to kill the tzar. There was a deeper meaning too but don’t ask me about it, I just don’t remember. To be honest, it was surprisingly pleasant to read and sometimes quite funny (I don’t think it was supposed to be, though). But I wouldn’t recommend it unless you know a whole lot about Polish history and culture — or unless you’re dangerously interested in it. And I mean like, you’d kill and die for it.

Nie-Boska komedia by Zygmunt Krasiński

To be honest, it’s a weirdly good story and what surprises me most about it is that it’s actually understandable, even though it’s quite a typical romantic drama. Interesting, huh…

It’s about a man who is looking for his artistic self, leaves his family to pursue his art, and then there’s him trying to protect his country. It was actually written to criticize this romantic way of thinking and living, so there are a few moments where the author just dissed other authors of the time, but most importantly, the story is a comment on the current (current for them) political and sociological events, as well as religion, and a way for Krasiński to express his opinions.

Recommend? Meh. It’s a good read but it’s not a must and you gotta be in a mood for it. Also, a solid historical and literary background would make the reading way easier.

My advice if you’re planning on reading any of these? Check the time period of the action. I swear if you do that and you pretty much can tell what the background for Poland was at the time, even just like one basic piece of information, it will make reading the book possible.

I think that’s about it. There are hundreds of other great Polish books that I can go on and on about (I can also talk about these for at least a few hours), so again -- if you have any questions, opinions, requests, anything, ask away.

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you-can-write-this · 6 years ago

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How to Construct a Villain

Make sure that your villain does what she does for a reason!! You can do more than “bad for the sake of being bad.” You can connect to that character!! I believe in you!!

Here’s a list of villainous motivations and how to write them!

Selfishness - In the real world, this is probably the most common motivator for so-called “villains.” The selfish villain feels threatened and acts in self-preservation; this may be preservation of her life, of her pride, of her belongings, etc.

Reasonable variant: The reasonably selfish villain sees an actual, real threat and evades it, screwing everyone over in the process. This villain is sacrificing others in order to survive. She may appear impulsive and afraid, or thoughtful, patient, and furious. Whatever helps her sleep at night.

Unreasonable variant: The unreasonably selfish villain imagines a threat which is not there. She acts in self-preservation when she or her possessions are not in danger; maybe she thinks that innocent black kid in a hoodie is going to kill her. Greed also goes under this category; she sees anyone who takes potential money from her as a threat. She’s creating a narrative which is completely unreal, and responding to it accordingly.

Don’t make greedy characters into hateful people. Hatred does not drive greed. Self-preservation mixed with an inflated importance towards money is what creates greed. She wants more for herself, not less for others. Greedy people don’t kick puppies, spit on children, or for that matter, rub their hands together devilishly.

Don’t think of your villain as selfish in all ways, at all times. Your villain is committing a selfish act (or promoting a selfish idea), but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t take care of her family.

Don’t have her act “maniacally.” She believes she’s doing something perfectly normal in her selfish act: protecting herself. Otherwise, she’s guilty-- all the more reason to not be maniacal.

“Protecting her own” sub-variant: The very most selfish people have trouble promoting their values, because nobody gains anything from Mrs. “I come first, so fuck you.” Group selfishness is far more dangerous: people can become allies under selfishness. Consider fascism, as well as other forms of aggressive group hatred. Her selfishness extends to a group beyond herself, but not infinitely. Maybe she wants to protect her friends. A man “protecting his family” can do some weird shit.

Revenge/“giving them what they deserve” - Some villains are motivated by hatred, anger, or spite. Villains who want revenge see the hero (or victim) as the embodiment of a trauma. A villain who “gives them what they deserve” hates the hero (or victim) for some other reason; it could be personality, minority status, or anything else.

Don’t rely heavily upon monologues or flashbacks. A monologuing villain is a sign of an overcomplicated motivation. Like jokes, the best motivations need not be explained.

Reasonable variant: Some villains seek revenge for a genuinely atrocious act. This puts the hero (or victim) in a shade of moral gray, and your audience will be absolutely intrigued and elated.

Unreasonable variant: More often, villains want revenge because of some unintentional or insignificant slight committed by the hero; the hero accidentally slipped the villain’s secret, and all of a sudden the villain is out to kill. This puts the hero in the moral clear, while still allowing the villain some believability. But the reasonable variant is far easier to justify than the unreasonable variant.

Don’t make the slight too small. You won’t make the villain seem more intense; you’ll make the villain seem ridiculous.

Destruction out of sadness - Some destructive behavior comes from deep feelings of emptiness. Think of your villain’s foul action towards others as a sort of suicide; instead of destroying herself, she destroys whatever she can find. She may consider her feelings to be sadness, but she may also consider this boredom (either conclusion is valid from the observation “nothing makes me happy and I don’t feel anything”). She may have a very clear and concise excuse for why she’s targeting something/someone, but the true answer, as you the writer know, is destruction out of sadness.

Don’t just blame mental illness. Mental illness can be aggravate destructive thoughts or feelings, but mental illness on its own does not cause destruction. A person with a particular disposition may react to mental illness in an unhealthy fashion (e.g. depression causes empty feelings, but most people do not respond to these feelings by destroying things). It is the unhealthy reaction which causes destruction.

Don’t make these characters stoical as they act. These characters usually appear intensely emotional, and are filled with a great desire to feel something; anything.

“Giving up” variant: When plunged into a depressive state, your villain no longer finds joy in those things held dear. She has probably lost her previous motivation (e.g. the person she tried to save has died), and with all hope lost, and nothing good to do, she only has bad to do on her radar. She will probably have an excuse, a story in her head, about why her actions are suddenly destructive (e.g. “it’s your fault she’s dead”).

“Always empty” variant: Rather than giving up, maybe your villain never had hope in the first place. Maybe she has always been building up to this level of destruction.

Don’t rely on flashbacks to illustrate that she’s always been this way. You should have an idea of how long this destructive pattern has lasted, but the audience doesn’t need to know that. Other characters also don’t have to explain how long she’s always been this way.

Because she can get away with it - Some people want to see the world burn just because it’s not supposed to. They’re told not to do something, and when you look away, they will absolutely do it, just for the sake of it. This is actually far more common than you might think-- package thieves, shoplifters, and even serial killers usually feel powerful by existing above the law. This is often an extension of destruction out of sadness; characters who feel empty unconsciously seek a thrill through rule-breaking. To consider more believable thrill-seeking villains, I recommend this brief video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyszHongpf0

Don’t make thrill-seekers out of those comfortably in power. The “because she can get away with it” motivation relies upon a desire to break rules, not to make rules. I’m calling out Hunger Games (as fun as that series is). No thrill-seeker wants to see suffering unless it’s taboo and they’re curious. (Hint: Most Roman colosseum fights portrayed in fiction are historically inaccurate.) If your police officer villain is abusive on the job, unless she’s doing something that could threaten her employment, it’s probably not for the thrill. She has something else going on. She might be trying to demonstrate her power above others out of insecurity, so try "selfishness” (at the top of this post).

By accident - Villains who commit foul acts accidentally are potential heroes with bad luck; the most tragic villains. Your villain might have been on drugs, or maybe there was an element of miscommunication. Fantastical elements, like transformations, create most accidental villains. Regardless, your villain is probably not in the ethical clear. Why was she on such dangerous drugs? Why would she do something so extreme just because of a rumor?

Don’t assume that your villain deserves forgiveness. Many fantastical romance stories forgive villains too quickly. Be careful not to structure your story around the assumption that the accidental villain just needs help or love; on drugs or not, we cannot just pretend that she didn’t kill a man. The bigger the rule broken by your villain, the harder it will be to forgive your villain (e.g. any form of killing in a society like ours should be near-impossible to forgive). The logic of fault is irrelevant; it’s about the emotional trauma or shock, which your characters should not forget easily. If you frame your accidental villain as forgivable, your audience may stop suspending their disbelief.

Don’t just blame mental illness. Mental illness is not like mind control. It does not take over a person’s being to have her commit a certain act. A person with a particular disposition may react to mental illness in an unhealthy fashion (e.g. depression causes empty feelings, but most people do not respond to these feelings by destroying things). It is the unhealthy reaction which causes destruction. Although mental illness can coincide with many motivations, the accidental villain cannot be caused by mental illness.

Differing morals - If used alone, this is probably the easiest motivation to justify. Your villain believes herself to be acting ethically, and she has a genuine argument against the actions and beliefs of your protagonist. Your story may argue against the villain’s beliefs, or it may play around with her philosophy. This motivation can also be layered onto any of the above motivations.

Don’t make her dialogue smug in regards to her philosophy (e.g. “Oh, but don’t you know? So-and-so-a-moral was the true meaning all along.”) This is a cliche, and will also put her in constant danger of info-dumping her relevant ideas and character traits via monologue. If she wants to convince the protagonist of her beliefs, have them argue back and forth. Don’t let her dominate the conversation.

Don’t assign her a moral which is too obviously immoral. If your villain represents the ethical implications of white supremacy, readers may feel patronized or bored by constant arguments of “racism is bad.” Just about everyone theoretically agrees that racism is bad. If you argue against a popular moral stance, or debate something morally non-obvious, readers will feel a lot more respected.

She “had to do it” - Many villains do not consider themselves powerful agents of their own making, but rather, slaves to a cause. Sometimes the most dangerous person around is an underling or a follower. She may be loyal to a specific person, alive or dead, or maybe she works to put the words of a god/s in motion. She may understand this person/cause as intended, or she may be misunderstanding it completely.

#writing tips #writeblr #writing inspiration #writing help

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joekourieh · 6 years ago

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Early Thoughts On Mobile Gaming

For the video game lover with a busy schedule, mobile games can be a good part-time alternative to traditional console gaming. The costs of consistent console use nowadays are modest, with a new game usually released at $50-60. This may sound pricey at first, but considering that a big name title at this price offers dozens if not hundreds of hours of high-quality entertainment, it can be a less expensive hobby even than frequenting the cinema. And while it is a perfectly good hobby for its devotees, due to that low price tag it can pose a major distraction for some of us who budget are time (such as graduate students). However, mobile games are a compact, low-commitment way to satisfy the itch for interactive entertainment. With this in mind, I’ve perused some of the highly rated games on the Google Play Store over the past few months. Here are some general thoughts.

Choices: The initial shock of getting into mobile gaming is at the sheer volume of games available. The list seems endless, with hundreds of titles even in just the upper level of popularity for each category. It seems that every time I open the Play Store I’m instantly sucked into a list of never-ending recommendations, and run the risk of spending more time browsing the selection than actually gaming. Though the selection of console games is also vast, players tend to know what they’re looking to invest their time and money in, at times even counting the days until their favorite series or developer drops their new release. On mobile, it’s a free-for-all, and can get overwhelming, especially considering that the categorization of games is far from precise.

Gameplay Mechanics: Without a doubt the most obvious drawback of mobile gaming is the lack of a controller. As games have become more and more complex, users expect more and more features, and that means more and more stuff to display on screen. The latest action/adventure console games tend to have enough icons and info displayed around the HUD to make inexperienced users’ heads spin. This can be a real problem when a game of that caliber comes to a smartphone. With on-screen real estate so precious for displaying vital data, the last thing you need is two big thumbs hanging about, blocking the view. It becomes awkward having to find just the right position for them. Furthermore, on-screen “buttons” only exist visually, often requiring a quick glance to coordinate a tap. Though this doesn’t matter in turn-based games, in the action games I tend to favor, every second counts, and having to locate the buttons each time you need to activate one is a far cry from the instinctual, almost bionic relationship of the gamer and their console controller. Though the entertainment value is there on mobile, it still doesn’t quite sooth the itchy fingers that drive gamers to pick up the sticks each day.

Playability: With many of even the best mobile games that I’ve played, the thrill only tends to last a day or two at most. The root cause of this is that, obviously, only so much quality content can be packed into a game platform that usually only reaches a GB even for a big game. Compare this to the routinely 50 and above GB console games, and it’s obvious why the mobile offerings are ephemeral. However, my experience with the games is not marred by running out of content altogether, but hitting roadblocks in quality content. For example, the developers of RPG-style games may self-sabotage by increasing the difficulty level too quickly in fear of players flying through it, which then forces them to “grind” repetitively through basic levels to advance at all. Worse yet, some games may offer a gradual increase in challenge but skimp on story, leaving little incentive for players to continue, especially considering the legions of games available as a constant alternative. It makes me wonder whether it wouldn’t be better for the game to have a balance of only mildly challenging gameplay with a strong, original plot that does eventually end altogether before the file size becomes too large. The fact of the matter is that players will stop playing sooner or later. The question is, as a developer, would you rather it be because the game ended, or because they got bored midway through? These issues exist for games on all platforms, but for free mobile games, they are magnified significantly.

Price: That brings us to one final but supremely important point: through my entire initial dive into mobile gaming discussed here, I have not spent a single penny on them. For this reason I suppose I am myself part of the problem facing the evolution of mobile games. Besides being tightfisted in general, I still think of mobile games as unworthy of spending money on. It’s an astonishing contradiction: I consider myself a gamer, have spent thousands over the years on console games, and now want to earnestly explore the world of mobile games, and yet I still scoff at the idea of paying for one, even just a few dollars. There’s something to be said about being insulted by the idea of microtransactions (as in small fees that players can pay in order to advance more quickly through a game or enhance their abilities in-game), but a one-time purchase for a game is something entirely different. It’s simply paying for quality content. And even in today’s economy in which entertainment companies are getting increasingly creative in finding revenue sources, it’s still worth just paying them for a better experience. My next step is to put my money where my mouth is, and judge whether it’s worth it for the part-time but passionate gamer. To be continued.

#interact19 #gaming #mobilegaming

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prixmiumarchive · 6 years ago

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Don’t Hug Me I’m Confused

Disclaimer: The following post contains some personal critique of certain fandom patterns and habits that I personally find strange, don’t relate to, or don’t enjoy. However, this post really isn’t that deep in those areas, and so while I’m not talking about kink at all, just kind of consider this a sort of KINKTOMATO disclaimer. What you enjoy and how you enjoy it is not my business, and your art and cosplays are things that a) seem to be of high quality and b) I could not actually accomplish so kudos to you for doing it even if it’s not my thing in its expression. You do you, and I’ll do me, and I’m not trying to hurt anyone’s feelings. This is just a personal blog post / semi-review that I’m tagging in case anyone else who has watched dhmis wants to read it. This post may likely come across as pretty “anti-shipping,” but rest assured that I probably ship some weird stuff in other fandoms so I’m not judging you, or whatever.

Nursing a headache better and responding to a text, I was reminded of the existence of a weird web series on YouTube that, apparently, was released over the course of several years. The first installment of Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared was shown to me by a former friend sometime after its release many years ago now. Naturally, I was pretty unsettled by it at the time in a sort of nervous-laughter, later-haunted-nightmares sort of way. However, at the time and with its sole initial video being around, the way I processed the video and its purpose was quite different from the way I process it now. I had seen that there were a couple more videos over the years, but I had never actually managed to watch the little series to its sixth installment because at some point I got disturbed ever time and quit. However, in a state of resolve and slightly greater desensitization, I finally finished it up. And I’m strangely satisfied and intrigued, particularly after watching a couple of commentary videos about it.

Rather than rehashing someone else’s explanation, I’ll simply refer to The Film Theorists two videos on the subject. I think that this YouTube channel sometimes gets a lot of raised eyebrows and bad press for reaching really hard to get shock-value, click-bait-y ~dark theories~ out of benign or extremely popular media. I haven’t really consumed their other material, so I can’t speak to that, but I can say that the two videos on DHMIS are not reaching for even more darkness and edge. Rather, they seem to be well-researched, well-reasoned explanations for what is otherwise a strangely difficult work of art to process. I say “work of art” not terribly lightly nor terribly dogmatically because I really don’t know what else to make of something that intrigues, bothers, pleases, disturbs, and fascinates me that is intended to communicate something even if that something is the particular sense of unease I am describing.

As is my custom when I don’t really know what to do with feelings about a particular work of fiction, I opened a tab to AO3 to see if fanfiction exists for that “fandom” to see if a quantifiable fandom is actually there. To my surprise, DHMIS actually had over 100 fics. So, I scrolled through the first couple of pages to see what they tended to be about or whatever. I had no particular craving or desire to read fic about this at the moment; I just wanted to know what the environment was like. And what I found was really, really deeply not what I expected.

A major part of the fandom seems to be something called “p/adlock” shipping which I’m censoring so that I’m not picking on someone’s OTP. Again, disclaimer, not judging, simply commenting. It seems to be shipping the Sketch Pad from the first installment with the Clock from the second. I really don’t know where people came up with this or why it seems to be so passionate, but I am not here to judge. It just seems like it is strangely misaimed and sort of misses the central themes of whatever the hell is going on in DHMIS. Even if I’m not sure what is going on, I’m pretty sure that it is not a romantic love story, subtextually or otherwise. Of course, there’s shipping in everything. Before you get mad at me, let me also say that it reminds me of another fandom I’m involved in in which I am one of the weird maybe-missing-the-point shippers, so I’ll get back to that.

Perhaps one of the reasons that this is such an interesting experience for me is that I feel like I’m experiencing my discovery of this fandom much the way those who discover the Portal fandom and poke around not knowing what to expect must do. I came looking for commentary or elaboration on the universe that seems to have been established in these little shorts. Instead, I find shipping that I cannot really find the thread for at all. Now, of course, I would argue that I do find subtext and reasoning and so on in Portal fandom and “chelley” (Chell/Wheatley) shipping. I also find reasons to believe that Wheatley being in a humanoid or android form makes sense in some cases. I don’t see why there are humanoid forms of already anthropomorphic set pieces and characters in DHMIS. See the above videos for a theory I’ve pretty much bought into, I think, that these characters represent props or animations or such anyway while only Red Guy, Yellow Guy, and Duck are real characters/people/performers. (I realize they have names, maybe.)

Anyway, digressing a bit from the strange experience of seeing how a subset of fandom that is really transforming the original work (again - kudos even if not my thing, I think) being the majority when you don’t really get it from the other side of it, I also want to comment on how worth-it I found finally finishing DHMIS. It went from what felt like a strange, occasionally darkly humorous, occasionally dark-dark-dark exercise in internet meme-y nihilism to something that became so much more. Initially, watching the first couple of episodes, it felt like something that existed that sort of titillate and affirm that particular vein of teenage, edgy, oppositional defiance-y, XD-random, I wear black as it is the color of my soul, I have fantasy colored hair despite it not being goth because I like color secretly and because it bothers some conservative people, I’m angry at societal structures that have failed me and am determined to throw all the babies out with all the bathwater because I’m so angry frustration. Now, I still relate to a handful of those things. If my life allowed for it I would be a pink-hair-but-wearing-all-black kind of person some of the time. However, I find that the depth of that particular soft-laughter rage that comes with being a teenager with the experiences to develop it sort of off-putting as someone who has both been-there and has become a teacher in my adult life. I see myself in it, but I also see things that I hate both on their own merits and that I hate in the form of hating it for a person who has to go through it or go through the steps to have gotten there. In the end, though, I found that DHMIS was less late night Cartoon Network programming is the pinnacle of artistic expression and more some kind of play on nostalgia, capitalism, anxiety, power structures, creativity and its opponents, institutionalized violence, and even, maybe, the meat-packing and commercial food industries. In a way, watching it all the way through sort of felt like going through a fast-motion montage of going from being a sort of disturbed teenager to being an adult on the other side of it with a whole other set of frustrations and anxieties that can still be found in the same sort of imagery. It felt like growing up in a weird way.

Still in episodes I had seen before, I remarked to mentioned texting friend that Red Guy was my favorite when she indicated that she was watching a bit of it. I wasn’t even sure why, but in particular his reactions to the clock in the second episode really sold me. All of the characters had strange reactions to a lot of things, but his deadpan, monotone confusion, and the way in which he complies to this-might-as-well-happen sorts of circumstances until he cracks in the end and has some kind of epiphany really resonated with me. Then, I realized, it was because he was, in fact, that avatar of the adult in this situation, and that is its own kind of mind-blow because initially one does not really conceive of these characters as anything but ageless muppets. Which is its own layer of unsettling. In any case, I am really impressed with this little series. Whether or not the “film theory” is right, I feel more satisfied in the end. However, I would really recommend those videos because it totally flipped my perspective on the ending of DHMIS from “there’s no hope and not escape from this hell” or, possibly, “you might escape hell but you’re dooming someone else to replace you,” to something entirely and much more hopeful bout the drudgery of a creatively inclined adult trying to slog through the obstacles and soul-drains that our present societal pressures place on us. I really hope I figure it out in the end like Red Guy.

One final, mostly off-topic note: upon a glance, I think that maybe that film theories youtube channel is, perhaps, more genuine in its efforts to dissect internet memes than in the clickbait it produces for blockbuster movies. But then again, in a a world dictated by ad revenue, whatcha gonna do?

Given that our focuses on what we like about the series seem to be wildly different, I doubt that I’ll be hard-joining the DHMIS fandom for the most part. I enjoyed some of the content in the tag, and if you’re reading from outside it, you might check it out.

If you like or hard-relate to Red Guy and enjoy scifi (Doctor Who, The Expanse), other web series (Carmilla), or other common fandom stuff (superhero shows, DC/Marvel, select anime), you might consider messaging or following me. I’d love to talk about Red Guy with someone who kinda gets it, but again I’m not really interested in shipping in this fandom.

If you read this far, thanks and have a lovely day!

#dhmis #don't hug me i'm scared #long post /#conventional blogging tag #red guy

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clymax · 4 years ago

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Seo social media marketing, email, marketing, PPC advertising: Where do you start and how do you use these to get more traffic to your website If you're, a beginner to digital marketing - and you want to cut through the noise, then keep watching? Because I'm going to show you how all of these work, based on a decade of experience, rather than just theory, Stay tuned, [, music, ]! What'S up marketers Sam, Oh here with Ahrefs the SEO tool that helps you grow your search, traffic research, your competitors and dominate your niche Today, I'm going to share 7 digital marketing strategies that I have personally used and gotten results with, And if there's only one thing that you take away from this video, it's to not try all of these at once. Instead pick one of these strategies, experiment, and master the channel before moving on to the next, Let's get to it. So before we dig into these strategies, you need to make sure that you're adopting today's mindset of the consumer Today we live in a `` content. First'' world People are looking for information before they buy, So you need to really put yourself in the buyer's shoes rather than allowing yourself to get. Blinded by how great you think your products and services are, The mentality you need to adopt is to help people rather than trying to cold sell them. When you help people solve problems through free and valuable content that is relevant to your business, you reach larger audiences and build trust. The best part is that you get the opportunity to show people how your products and services can help them solve their problems and fulfill their desires and needs Alright. So the first internet marketing strategy is blogging with SEO in mind. Now blogging isn't writing about what you did today, or even something nobler like an epiphany, you had That'S a diary, But don't get me wrong. This kind of content can work well if you have an existing and loyal audience, But for most of us, that just want to get more traffic leads and sales. We need to intentionally target problems that your target audience wants to solve In the world of blogging. This whole process can be summed up as a technique called a keyword. Research. Let me show you two clear-cut examples of how keyword research works. In the first example. Let'S say you sell physical products like computer parts and accessories. What do you think future customers might be searching for in Google? Probably questions like Why is my computer so slow How to build a computer, How to speed up a computer? These are all very real problems, and people are looking for solutions. In fact, Ahrefs' Keywords Explorer tells us that these exact search queries get tens of thousands of searches each month. Now the best part about these specific queries is that you can help people solve their problems while integrating products from your store in the content ``. Why is my computer, so slow'' could come down to a hard drive, CPU, or ram problem So help your readers, diagnose the problem and offer product solutions within your post `` How to build a computer'' would be a super easy plug for any computer components, They're already Showing intent to build so it's unlikely that they've already purchased parts and peripherals. Alright, second example: Let's say: you're a real estate agent and you're compensated when someone buys sells, or rents a property. Now the thing that most agents do is boast about how many homes they've sold or how they won an award that you, nor I have never heard of My point is that the average buyer or seller doesn't care And to prove my point, no one is searching for things like which realtor won the most awards in New York, But again, potential customers are looking for solutions to their problems. Problems like How to invest in real estate How to buy a house What credit score is needed to buy a house And again, these all, have the potential to attract a massive audience By ranking in Google for something like `` how to invest in real estate. ,'' you're now attracting potential buyers with deep pockets and they likely have intent to buy Content on ``. How to buy a house'' would likely require the work of an agent at some point which could be you ``. What credit score is needed to buy a house'' is a great way to show that your knowledge and intentions go beyond making a sale. The best thing about blogging for SEO is that once you rank you'll, be getting free, consistent, and passive traffic from Google. If you're new to SEO, I highly recommend watching our SEO for beginners video, which will give you a nice overview of what SEO is, how it works and how you can get it to work for you I'll, also link up some additional resources on doing keyword, research That grows traffic and revenue, as well as a video on how to write a blog post with SEO in mind. For now, let's move on to the second strategy, which is to invest in video content specifically on YouTube YouTube is the second most visited search engine in existence To top that off video carousels nearly doubled in 2017 in Google's search results, Video isn't just the future. It'S the present And the same principle of helping potential customers works for video too. When people go to video search engines like YouTube, they're, looking to find answers to their questions. For example, if you bought a so-called `` new'' iPhone X on eBay, you might search for `` iPhone X, unboxing'' and see if all of the contents are in the box And according to Ahrefs' Keywords, Explorer 108,000 searches are happening each month globally on YouTube alone. For this keyword, In fact, this video that you're watching right now was chosen, because I can see that people are specifically looking for digital marketing tutorials for beginners To come up with topic ideas that people are searching for in your niche head over to Ahrefs' Keyword, Explorer Switch the search engine to YouTube and search for a broad keyword in your niche Let'S use `` makeup'' as an example Now `` makeup'' as a standalone keyword, isn't a problem. So let's go to the Questions report where you can see popular questions, people are searching for on your topic, And right away. You'Ll see a great topic. Ideas like `` how to clean makeup brushes'' and how to cover acne with makeup. Now, when you're creating these videos try and keep the fluff out and pack in as much necessary value as possible Doing this has helped us grow. Our YouTube views to over 150,000 views per month and best of all, all of our videos, show how our SEO tools can help. It'S led to thousands of new paying leads and customers specifically mentioning that they found us through YouTube. Most of our video growth was done through YouTube SEO, so I'll leave links to a tutorial to help. You rank your videos and get more views. Next up is social media marketing Rather than covering every social media network. I want to pass on a couple of important tips that will help you grow your social channels. The first is to focus on just one social media channel when you're just starting out It takes time to build a following, But numbers aren't everything. What you want is a loyal following When you dip your toes into every possible social media network out there, your attention gets divided and the results get diluted. So which social media marketing channel do you choose? That leads us to the second tip, which is to go where your target audience is and cater to the platform? If you have to choose just one social network, it's not about choosing the one with the most active users, It's all about understanding the audience that's there and if you can serve the reason for them being there, You really need to think about why someone is logging Into the specific social media network, For example, people usually go to YouTube to learn how to do something or to be entertained, But Facebook is different. Think about it. Have you ever logged onto Facebook, hoping that you would see an unboxing tutorial Or better yet have you ever opened your Facebook app hoping you would find a limited time offer that's 97 % off only for the next 37 minutes, Probably not People don't check Facebook with a credit card in hand. People like and share things that are helpful, interesting, shocking, or funny. So if you are going to try and bring people into your world present your message as a story, video, or something else that will likely stand out from the endless feed of vacation vanity shots Pinterest, on the other hand, is primarily a social search engine where people Can control what they want to search for The primary intent of users on this platform is to get inspired, learn things and plan to do things So create content that caters to their intent for being there. So if this is your audience, take advantage of a less competitive landscape from both ads and organic perspective. Speaking of ads, that's the next digital marketing strategy on the list. For today, When it comes to paid advertising, please do not throw your money blind into an ad network, because you read that it was good. What works for one person won't necessarily work for the next person Instead think about the ABCs of paid advertising. A is for audience B is for budget and C is for commerciality. We'Ve already covered the audience part. You want to engage on social networks where your target audience hangs out. The budget is the next one. Bloomberg reported that Google and Facebook own a combined 58 % of the $ 111 billion dollar market. Now the way ads work is usually based on auctions, The more advertisers there are, the more expensive it gets. You - and I So let's say you're in the ultra-competitive industry of conference, calling If we search for that keyword in Keywords Explorer with Google set as the search engine you'll see that the cost per click from Google Ads is $ 20, If you have an ad budget of let's say $ 1,000 per month, then you'd only be able to ge

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stormmall27-blog · 4 years ago

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Facelift For females

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The modern-day OED listings 'couth' as a 'funny' word, implying cultured or improved, as well as a 'back development from words 'rude' significance crude, which by the 1500s had become a much more commonly used definition of tacky. This 'back formation' applies to the recent definitions, not the word's beginnings. Originally, concerning 1300 years ago 'couth' suggested acquainted or known. It was stemmed from the previous participle of the old English word cunnan, to understand. An old variation of tacky, 'uncuth', implying unknown, is in Beowulf, the significant old English text of c. 725AD.

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This definition appears to have actually assembled with the Celtic words 'Taob-righ' (' king's celebration'), 'tuath-righ' (' partisans of the king') as well as 'tar-a-ri' (' come O king'). They began calling themselves 'Conservatives' in 1832, but the Tory name has continued to stick. toe the line - comply with regulations or policy, act as called for - from very early 1900s, initially originating from army usage, related to ceremony drill, where soldiers' foot placements were called for to line up with an actual or imaginery line on the ground. tit for tat - retaliation or revenge, an exchange disrespects or strikes - 'tit for tat' evolved from 'pointer for faucet', a center English expression for impact for strike, which also meant a profession of spoken disrespects.

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These mottos, words and also expressions beginnings as well as derivations show the ever-changing complexity of language and communications, and are excellent free materials for word problems or tests, as well as team-building video games. Cliches and expressions are provided alphabetically according to their keyword, as an example, 'save your bacon' is provided under 'b' for bacon. Some expressions with 2 keywords are detailed under each word. worth his salt - a valued member of the team - salt has long been connected with a man's well worth, since it made use of to be a far more beneficial commodity than now.

What are the negative effects of CoolSculpting?

Some common side effects of CoolSculpting include:Tugging sensation at the treatment site. Pain, stinging, or aching at the treatment site. Temporary redness, swelling, bruising, and skin sensitivity at the treatment site. Paradoxical adipose hyperplasia at the treatment site.

Hike is English from around 1800, whose beginnings strangely are unidentified prior to this. The alliterative quality of words hitchhike would certainly have encouraged popular usage. walking - elevate or require up sharply - according to Chambers, hyke as well as heik initially showed up in colloquial English c. 1809 significance walk or march vigorously. The definition encompassed hitching up a pair of pants/trousers during the mid-late-1800s as well as was first taped in 1873. And also prolonging from the above, around 1904, walking was initial recorded being used in the sense of greatly raising incomes or prices. The same usage is initial recorded in American English around 1930.

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Top 4 treatments to lift, tighten and rejuvenate your neck 1. Thermage® or Ultraformer III – to tighten and lift skin. 2. Laser Genesis™ – to smooth wrinkles. 3. Chin sculpting injections – to reduce a double chin. 4. Anti-wrinkle injections – to reduce platsymal bands.

Tat evolved from tap partly because of the alliteration with tit, but additionally from the spoken disagreement element, which made use of the impact of the Center English 'tatelen' implying prattle, which likewise gave rise to tittle-tattle. ( eg 'tip as well as run' still defines a bat and also ballgame when the gamer hits the sphere as well as runs, as in cricket). Tit for tat was absolutely in operation in the mid-late 16th century. As with lots of these old expressions, their use has actually been reinforced by comparable appearing foreign matchings, especially from N.Europe, in this instance 'dit vor dat' in Dutch, as well as 'tant pour tant' in French. Skeat's 1882 dictionary of etymology references 'tit for tat' in 'Bullinger's Works'.

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Ironically much of this usage is as an alternative for the word rude, as an example in referring to crudity/rudeness/impoliteness as "not extremely couth", and also similar variants. Alternative poetry vernacular are cream crackers and also cream crackered, which gave rise to the expression 'creamed', suggesting tired or defeated. a feline might view a king/a pet cat might take a look at a king/a cat may make fun of a queen - humble individuals are entitled to have and also to express opinions about apparently 'premium' individuals. The different variations of this very old proverb are based upon the initial variation, which is very first referenced by John Heywood in his 1546 publication, Adages. The origin is unknown, yet it stays a superb instance of how reliable sayings can be in conveying rather complicated meanings making use of very couple of words. is usually that no-one is actually above objection, or immune from having fun poked at them by 'minimal' individuals for behaving wrongly, irrespective of their standing.

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The expression stems as far back as Roman times when soldiers' pay was given in provisions, consisting of salt. learn more about Lipo Freeze 2 U expanded from the one Maker recommendations in 1870, 'real to his salt', meaning 'faithful to his company'. tories - political Conservative party and also its members - the initial tories were a band of Irish Catholic outlaws in Elizabethan times. The word stemmed from the Irish 'toruigh', from 'toruighim', implying to invade suddenly.

on tenterhooks - really distressed with expectation - an allegory from the very early English cloth-making process where cloth would certainly be stretched or 'tentered' on hooks placed in its seamed sides. ' Tentered' derives from the Latin 'tentus', meaning stretched, which is also the origin of the word 'tent', being constructed from extended canvas. teetotal - avoiding alcohol - from the very early English tradition for a 'T' to be included after the names of individuals who had pledged to stay away totally from alcohol. Likewise, people who had actually signed the abstinence promise had the letters 'O.P.' (for 'Old Pledge') included after their names. If anybody understands anything regarding the abstinence pledge from early English times please tell me.

Maker in 1870 suggests for 'tit for tat' the referral 'Heywood', which should be John Heywood, English dramatist (not to be confused with another English dramatist Thomas Heywood ). According to James Rogers dictionary of quotes and also mottos, John Heywood made use of the 'tit for tat' expression in 'The Spider and also the Flie' 1556. thunderbolt - fictional strike from above, or a massive shock - this was old mythology as well as astronomy's effort to discuss a lightening strike, prior to the appreciation of electrical power. The initial ancient expression was 'thunderstone' which originated from perplexing rumbling as well as lightening with meteor strikes and also shooting celebrities, as well as was later superseded by 'thunderbolt' (' screw' as in the brief arrowhead discharged from a cross bow). Words 'thunderbolt' offered increase directly to the a lot more recent saying indicating a huge surprise, 'screw from the blue'.

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Which is better Emsculpt vs CoolSculpting?

While Emsculpt can disrupt adipocytes (fat cells) leading to a reduction in circumference, the golden standard for non-invasive fat reduction remains CoolSculpting. Furthermore, CoolSculpting can target bulges from a double chin down to fat pockets above the knees.

Thirdly, and probably extra probably, double cross originates from an old significance of words cross, to defraud or fix a horse race, from the 1800s (the term evidently shows up in Thackeray's 'Vanity Fair', to define a fixed competition). Dual cross specifically explained the method of pre-arranging for a steed to shed, yet after that breaking the fix as well as enabling the equine to win. couth/uncouth - these words are very interesting because while words uncouth remains in popular usage, its positive and coming from opposite 'couth' is not popularly used. Many individuals think it is no longer a 'correct' word, or don't know that words 'couth' ever existed whatsoever. In fact 'couth' is still a completely reputable word, although it's not been in typical English usage given that the 1700s, and also was noted in the 1922 OED as a Scottish word.

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Neither 'the knees', nor 'big as a knee' appear in 1870 Maker, which shows that the expression grew or became prominent after this time. Based Upon Nigel Rees' well investigated and reliable dating of 1923 for first recorded use, it is likely that earliest real usage was perhaps a couple of years prior to this. The money slang area contains money jargon and word origins as well as meanings, as well as English cash history. Cliches and also expressions provide us many terrific numbers of speech as well as words in the English language, as they develop through use and mis-use alike. Numerous cliches as well as expressions - and words - have remarkable as well as unexpected beginnings, as well as numerous prominent presumptions regarding significances as well as derivations are mistaken.

It's worth keeping in mind that playing cards were a really significant element of enjoyment as well as enjoyment a few hundreds of years ago prior to TELEVISION as well as computers. cake walk, piece of cake/takes the cake/takes the biscuit/takes the bun - very easy task/wins - from the custom of giving cakes as prizes in rural competitions, and also most likely of US origin. Brewer informs of the custom in USA enslavement states when slaves or totally free descendents would walk in a procession in sets around a cake at a social gathering or party, the most elegant set being granted the cake as a prize. The variants of bun and biscuit most likely mirror earlier meanings of these words when they explained something closer to a cake. On which factor, I am recommended that the American variation expression 'triumphes' probably comes before the British variation of 'takes the biscuit'. Maybe, maybe not, because 'takes the biscuit' seems to have a British claim going back to 1610 (see' takes the biscuit '). This all increases additionally interesting questions concerning the different as well as altering significances of words like biscuit and also bun.

How much weight can you lose with fat freezing?

CoolSculpting can naturally diminish between 20-25% of the fat cells in the areas it covers. It will not help you lose weight, however, it can improve the shape of your body, making it appear as though you've dropped pounds. This is because a 20-25% reduction can make a huge impact on the appearance of stubborn bulges.

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Contributing also to the meaning of the cliché, black dogs have have for centuries been fiendish as well as threatening symbols in the superstitious notions as well as mythology of numerous cultures. Bees have long been a metaphorical symbol due to the fact that they are icons every person can acknowledge, equally as we have lots of expressions consisting of similarly appealing icons like pet cats and also pet dogs.

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he's/ she's a card - an uncommon or remarkable person - opinions are split on this set - almost certainly 'card' in this sense is based on based on playing cards - indicating that a person is a challenging one (' card') to play. Brewer describes that the full expression alike use at the time (mid-late 1900s) was 'card of your house', indicating an identified person. If the Shakespearian origin stands this definition probably blended with and also was subsequently more popularised by the having fun card metaphor. Interestingly Brewer checklists numerous other currently out-of-date expressions likening individuals and circumstances to cards.

Wilde kept names of bad guys in a publication, and also together with those that made his defense by providing him with beneficial information or paying adequately he marked a cross. When they ceased to be of usage Wilde added a second cross to their names, as well as would certainly transform them in to the authorities for the bounty. Apparently Wilde was at some point betrayed and also mosted likely to the hangings himself. Another explanation is that it associates with the name of a British intelligence team in The second world war, took part in tricking German spies to issue.

Biscuit in America is a different thing to biscuit in Britain, the latter amounting the American 'cookie'. Bun to many individuals in England is a straightforward bread roll or cob, however has many older organizations to sweeter baked rolls as well as cakes. Early Scottish use of words cadet, later caddie, was for an errand child.

The original definitions of couth/uncouth (' known/unknown and also 'familiar/unfamiliar') modified over the following 500 years to ensure that by the 1500s couth/uncouth referred to polite as well as well-mannered as well as crude as well as awkward. At some phase in this procedure the words ended up being much rarer in English. Their usage was protected in Scottish, which made it possible for the 'back formation' of rude right into typical English use of today. Unfortunately throughout the 1800s and 1900s couth shed its popularity, as well as its condition as an 'official' word according to some dictionaries. Technically couth stays a proper word, meaning cultured/refined, but it is not utilized with excellent confidence or sentence for the factors offered over.

brass neck/brass-neck/brass necked - daring or impudence/audacious, disrespectful, 'cheeky' - brass neck as well as brass necked are combinations of two metaphorically utilized words, brass and also neck, each independently indicating impudence/impudent, audacity/audacious. As pertains to brass, Brewer 1870 lists 'brass' as indicating insolence. Several of these definitions connect to brass being a low-cost replica of gold. A few of the significances additionally relate to brass being a really hard and also resistant material. Phonetically there is likewise a resemblance with brash, which has comparable meanings - impolite, vulgarly self-assertive. At some phase throughout the 20th century brass as well as neck were incorporated to create brass neck as well as brass necked. black canine - anxiety or sullen mood - an expression incredibly old beginnings; the saying was made famous in current times by Britain's WWII leader Sir Winston Churchill describing his own anxieties.

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razzstrid · 4 years ago

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Why Virality is More About an Emotional Connection than Luck

The element of surprise has proven again to dictate popularity in the age of the internet. “There is no such thing as bad publicity” meaning that media coverage, even in the context of a scandal or controversy, is beneficial to the person because it brings publicity and promotes their relevance. This modern proverb is linked to the idea of virality -- it is irrelevant whether the content evokes good or bad emotions in consumers, it just must evoke a strong enough emotion (which is dictated by shock value) to be shared with others to incite the same emotion.

The first viral content I was shown was the 2007 YouTube video “Charlie Bit My Finger.” Looking back, the content is pretty underwhelming and I’m not sure why this fit the criteria for virality -- two British brothers (Harry who was 3 years old, and Charlie who was 1 year old) sitting in a chair when all of the sudden Charlie bites Harry’s finger. Harry exclaims “Charlie bit me,” and proceeds to he put his finger back into Charlie's mouth (smart move), and to everyones’ surprise, it gets bitten harder. Harry repeatedly says “ouch” and Charlie giggles... the video ends with Harry smiling repeating “Charlie bit me. And that really hurt.” Believe me, I am just as confused as you are.

I did some research and according to Wikipedia the received 2.6 million views on YouTube by the start of February 2008 and 12 million views by March 2008. In December 2008, it was the 12th most viewed video on YouTube with 65 million views and by April 2009, the video had received 92 million hits. It became the second most viewed video in August 2009, and became the most viewed video on the internet by the end of October 2009, when it surpassed Evolution of Dance. On top of being the most viewed, it was also the “most favourited” and the second “most discussed” video in the United Kingdom. In 2014, Jimmy Kimmel parodied “Charlie Bit My Finger” (renamed to ‘Bitman Begins’) during his “After The Oscar's Special” ... it featured Tom Hanks, Meryl Streep, and Chris & Liam Hemsworth.

WHAT THE F*CK!

It is overtly baffling as to how a terrorizing internet myth like Slender Man, and a cutesy, underwhelming video like “Charlie Bit My Finger” have the capacity to receive the colossal amount of online coverage and attention they both did. I can’t even begin to fathom how to harness the power of virality, let alone grasp the reins... the more I think about it the less it makes sense. Slender Man makes sense ... but a baby biting a finger? The video barely provokes any emotional response of sorts on my end, but I’m curious as to those it did provoke an emotional response.

To make better sense of the digital virality phenomena, I’m going to try to think of it in a purely algorithmic context. The internet is dominated by algorithms that provide recommended videos, searches, sponsored posts, and many other sorts of notifications that are tailored to each consumers individual data. How does a YouTube video start getting recommended to various users and why? How effective is this? I’m trying to think of Spotify’s curatorial process in play-listing songs for users in their “Discover Weekly.” Spotify’s algorithm for play-listing is based on how users engage with the music. If it doesn’t resonate with an audience, the data reflects that, and the same goes for if it does resonate with an audience. It’s based on streams; in order for a stream to count, a user has to listen to at least 30 seconds of that song. If a song is skipped at a high rate, it counts against the song -- the same goes for artists and playlists. If a Spotify curated playlist has songs that are listened to in their entirety and that are saved to the personal playlists of listeners, it helps both the song and the artist. When a user saves many songs by the same artist on a Spotify curated playlist, the Spotify algorithm filters the songs into more users’ discovery algorithms which create the playlists. Very complicated and convoluted process that I probably butchered but that’s what I’ve been learning in my Music and Media class.

So I’ll conclude with this question: Is there a similar process in determining the virality of other content across a vast variety of different platforms (YouTube, TikTok, Instagram)? How does the capacity for virality differ from platform to platform?

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geekysweetie · 7 years ago

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Top 2018 Nintendo Switch Games for Girls

30 New Games For Girls on the Nintendo Switch in 2018

One of the most popular posts on this site is our Top 2017 Nintendo Switch Games for Girls

With a new year, I decided to take a look at the upcoming releases for the Switch in 2018 and make a few suggestions as to what games girls should be looking out for in the year ahead. (There may be a few games that released in Q4 of 2017 also on this list as I wasn’t sure of a few of the release dates). Enjoy! And leave me a comment to let me know what games you’re looking forward to on the Switch in 2018. 🙂 I’ll also soon add a list like this for PS4 and PC games as well.

Top 2018 Nintendo Switch Games For Girls

1.) Project Octopath Traveler

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Originally scheduled for a 2017 release, and part of our Top 2017 Nintendo Switch Games for Girls list, Octopath Traveler blends gameplay elements from 16 and 32 bit classics such as Chronotrigger and Saga Frontier. The retro game feel is sure to appeal to many visitors of this site. But that’s not all, Project Octopath Traveler also offers a variety of endings and a branching plot line that is shaped by decisions you make within the game.

2.) Kirby Star Allies

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He’s pink, cute, and the gameplay is fun. Kirby has been a fan favorite of Nintendo gamers for several decades now. In his new adventure, up to four players can join in and you can combine different power ups, as demonstrated in the Nintendo Direct Video above.

3.) Toe Jam & Earl Back in the Groove

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Toe Jam & Earl was a childhood favorite of mine. I spent countless hours (or days, or weeks) playing the original two games on Sega Genesis with my best friend. It’s one of the best multiplayer games of my childhood and this new take on the classic, originally slated for 2017, will grace Switch consoles now in 2018. For those unfamillar with the franchise, you run around colorful crazy worlds with zany characters and crazy powerups playing as 2 funky hiphop aliens.

4.) My Time At Portia

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My Time At Portia is a cross platform title that features sandbox gameplay in a large open world enviornment. It blends together many gameplay elements from Harvest Moon, Stardew Valley, Rune Factory, and Atelier. In this game you can raise animals, grow crops, and restore an abandoned workshop. The developers say the game takes place in a post apocalyptic world where humans are few and that you search for relics from the past to create inventions for the betterment of society. Also just like in Harvest Moon and similar games, all of the NPCs have their own schedules, they will go to work, school, and have their own stories for you to discover by interacting with them.

5.) Avabel Online

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This is perhaps an interesting one to make the list. Avabel Online is a free to play MMORPG that is already available on many platforms, including Android and IOS devices which makes it already portable and playable on the go. Despite that, I’m including it in the list because I do think the gameplay will appeal to girls. Right now, for example, they are running a special Sanrio promotion (makers of hello kitty). You can get cute (sometimes strange) items to decorate your house or dress up your characters. https://avabelonline.com/landing/sanrio

6.) Moonlighter

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A Shopkeeping RPG Simulation game with retro style graphics. You can explore and fight for valueable treasure, as well as craft your own items, and then sell them in your shop. You can also communicate with the NPCs to discover what items they want to purchase. The dungeons are procedurally generated and present new challenges and new loot each time.

7.) Atelier Lydie & Suelle: The Alchemists and the Mysterious Paintings

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Coming in March 2018, Atelier Lydie & Suelle: The Alchemists and the Mysterious Paintings is the first Atelier title to hit the Nintendo Switch. Atelier games focus on gathering ingredients and crafting new items. As you can see from the trailer, they feature beautiful anime graphics, and deep stories. Their gameplay is often long, and at times it can get tedious, however, for those who love crafting and exploring, Atelier offers the ultimate crafting system.

8.) Destiny Chronicles

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This game looks beautiful, and it is inspired by many classic JRPGs. It features action combat and extensive skill tree customization as well as a light hearted humorous story line. You can enchant and upgrade your equipment, as well as interact with your party members and NPCs.

9.) Revenant Saga

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With a level cap of 999, and tons of equipment to collect, Revenant Saga looks to offer some incredible replay value. The ability to tranform in battle and unleash special powers makes combat fun and exciting. While the cute and colorful graphics and dark fantasy story are sure to appeal to fans of classic JRPGs.

10.) Wonderboy: Dragon’s Trap

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This remake of Wonderboy III lets you play as a girl. It also lets you toggle between the original Sega Genesis graphics and soundtrack, or the all new graphics and soundtracks created for this release.

11.) Untold Legacy

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The retro style graphics appeal to me (and probably most of the readers of my blog). But what really appeals to me is this statement that the Devs make about the storyline: “You will be brought to tears as you uncover the twists and turns in this emotionally story-driven experience that will leave you shocked and surprised as you discover the secrets the world of Touchstone has to offer.” – I am a sucker for a heart tugging story. The Devs also indicate that “The Untold Legacy sets out to recreate some of the most heartfelt and gut wrenching moments imaginable.” These two statements make me very interested in this game.

12.) Yoshi

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This game features an art style similar to Paper Mario, and the main character is the lovable, Yoshi, the green dinosaur who first debuted in Super Mario World. The colorful graphics and addictive platformer style gameplay make this game perfect for our list of 2018 Nintendo Switch Games for Girls.

13.) Croixleur Sigma

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With a 9/10 and “Very Positive” Rating on Steam, this anime style hack-n-slash RPG is coming to Switch in 2018. The gameplay is reminicessent of several of the newer Hyper Dimension Neptunia games. The local 2 player co-op makes it perfect for the Nintendo Switch. And playing as the cute anime girls make it a game girls will love to play together.

14.) Your Four Knight Princess Training Story

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A “Raising Sim” similar to games such as Princess Maker and Graduation 95. Gematsu has an excellent article detailing how you will train your princess in this new 2018 Nintendo Switch Game. Basically it involves scolding or praising your princess at various times, for example during conversations or while exploring dungeons. The story and characters change based on your decisions and how you raise your princess. The princesses each have various parameters that you can train to unlock new skills or increase their stats to help them in battle.

15.) Legrand Legacy Tale of the Fatebounds

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Legrand Legacy Tale of the Fatebounds is an impressive indie title with full 3D cinematics and FMV cutscenes. It features tactical turn based combat and interesting city building and mini game mechanics. I’m really looking forward to this title which releases later this month (January 2018).

16.) Shin Megami Tensei V

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I haven’t taken time to organize these recommendations in any kind of “ranking” system, but if I had to pick just one game on this list to play in 2018 it would be Shin Megami Tensei V. Atlus’ dark RPG franchise that sparked the Persona spin off games is one of my favorites.

17.) Tohou Sky Arena Gensoukyou Kuusen Hime

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This looks like an anime brawler with cute girls and exciting special moves. It’s visually very pretty and looks like combat will be fun too.

18.) Valkyria Chronicles 4

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A new title in the tactical Strategy RPG series, Valkyria Chronicles. I’m a huge fan of this series, and this one looks great. It’s due out in March 2018. Valkyria Chronicles is a Sega series known for excellent characters and story lines as well as fun Strategy RPG combat.

19.) The Longest Five Minutes

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This humorous RPG launches in February 2018. The tale begins at the end, as you are facing the demon king, but suddenly you’ve lost all of your memories. From there, regain your memories, remember who you are, where you’re from, where you’re going, and your reason for fighting the demon king. The cute and colorful graphics and retro feel are sure to appeal to my readers.

20.) Mulaka

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With gameplay reminiscent of Zelda or Castlevania, this action RPG features a story and game world that draw inspiration from Mexican culture. The gameplay trailer above shows various abilities and fighting styles, including the ability to transform into different animals.

21.) Yono and the Celestial Elephants

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How could this game NOT make our list??! Look at that elephant. LOOK AT IT!! Has there ever been a cuter video game character in the history of video games? Nope. This adorable little game looks kawaii and charming AF and seems to have some fun puzzles to solve too.

22.) Wandersong

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Play as a traveling bard in this cute, happy, colorful paper-cut-out style world. Coming in early 2018.

23.) Goragoa

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This puzzle game features gorgeous artwork and requires some outside the box thinking. The soundtrack is also lovely and I’ve heard the story is quite sad as well.

24.) Wargroove

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Wargroove promises to be easy to pick up, but difficult to master. Up to 4 players can take control of an army and command it to victory. The colorful retro style graphics really look great and gameplay looks fun and interesting.

25.) Penny Punching Princess

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An Action RPG in Which Money Makes the World Go Round. That’s what Nintendo has to say about their latest RPG that lets you bribe monsters to fight for you. Many are comparing this game to Tingle’s Rosy Rupee Land – a game which I’ve never played (nor even heard of). The colorful and cute graphics caught my eye. I’ll be checking this one out in 2018.

26.) Fallen Legion: Rise to Glory

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Nintendo promises new content and features in this release. “Combining both Fallen Legion: Flames of Rebellion and Fallen Legion: Sins of an Empire for the first time on one console, Fallen Legion: Rise to Glory includes all new art, Exemplars, monsters, bosses and challenges not found in the original releases. I’d somehow not heard of this game until now, so now seems the perfect time to pick this one up.

27.) Lost Sphear

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From the creators of I am Setsuna, comes a new JRPG for the Nintendo Switch in 2018.

28.) Dragon Quest Builders

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Originally part of the 2017 Top Nintendo Switch Games for Girls, this title got pushed back to February 2018.

29.) Mega Man 11

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Fan favorite, and often requested, a new sequel in the Mega Man franchise is arriving on Nintendo Switch in late 2018.

30.) Bayonetta 3 – NINTENDO SWITCH EXCLUSIVE

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Perhaps one of the most exciting announcements, and why I saved it for last, is that a new Bayonetta Game has been announced and it will be available ONLY for the Nintendo Switch.

Top 2018 Nintendo Switch Games for Girls was originally published on GeekySweetie.com - Geeky & Kawaii Anime, Tech, Toys, & Game Reviews & News

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narelleart · 8 years ago

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How to Acclimate New Fish (Please don’t just float the bag!)

I did a video on this, but it was Really Bad, so I’m sticking to what I know: Big Long Text Posts.

I originally did the video because I saw so many pictures in the tag of people’s new fish floating in their tanks in the bags they came home in.

It’s common practice, it’s what the fish store employees tell you to do, but it’s not exactly the best way to do that? When you “acclimate” your fish by floating the bag, the only quality of your water that you are acclimating them to is the temperature. But there is so much more to water than that! Water has more to it than even just pH, KH, GH, DO…too many qualities to list here. “Hardness” alone can be broken down into the content of each specific mineral. And these are all qualities that we can’t see, and generally don’t test for.

The composition of the water your fish is living in has a direct effect on them. They are breathing that in. When a fish gets plopped from one volume of water into completely different conditions, they undergo some level of shock. For comparison, imagine teleporting from below sea level to the top of a mountain. For divers, compare to the bends. A sudden, drastic change in conditions of the atmosphere you are living in takes a toll on your body.

When your newly introduced fish immediately gets pale, breathes heavily, retreats to the bottom? That’s shock from being suddenly moved between vastly different conditions.

So what can we do to lessen that shock?

Drip Acclimate!

Drip acclimation uses airline tubing to slowly mix the store water the new fish are in with your tank’s water to allow your fish to adjust slowly, hopefully limiting the amount of shock they might go through.

Personally, I like to use a clear container to hold the fish while I acclimate, with just enough of the fish’s original water to completely cover them and allow them to move around a little. They don’t need much right now, and the more water you have in this container the more it will take to sufficiently mix. If you have an ammonia binding water conditioner like Prime you can add a drop or so of that to help keep the water safe while you acclimate, or use a product like Polyfilter that will absorb the nitrogen. Add an airstone to make it easier for your fish to breathe. (But don’t have it so strong they get blown away - all you need is very mild surface agitation. You CAN have too much DO.) I like to add something dark, usually a black shirt, over top of the container to keep the fish from stressing out and help prevent jumping.

Now that your container is all set up, you can run your drip line. As mentioned, you just need a length of cheap airline tubing, which you’ll use to create a siphon to drain water from the fish’s new home into their acclimation container. If the flow is too strong, tie a knot or knots in your line to slow it to a steady drip. The slower the drip, the gentler the acclimation, but it will take longer so you’ll have to watch your temps. More sensitive animals do best with longer, slower drip rates.

I like to let my containers fill at least so much that the water has a 2:1 ratio of new water to old water. (2/3 new, 1/3 old.) That’s a minimum, though, it certainly doesn’t hurt to do more than that.

If you have a convenient means of measuring your parameters, like digital thermometers and probes, you can check what values you’re able to, to make sure they match before you move the fish. But if you can’t do that, the above water ratio should be enough to sufficiently limit your fish’s shock. If you’re still worried about temperature, NOW you can float your fish to make sure it matches, as a last bonus step before you add them to their new tank!

Airline tubing is cheap, so I would always recommend drip acclimating over the “scoop water into the bag” method, where you periodically add water from your tank to the bag of store water. It does work on the same principles, so its not bad if you’re in a bind and don’t have airline tubing handy for some reason. Just not as gentle, and personally, takes too much attention and attendance. I let my fish drip and walk away, and just peek at them periodically to check the water level.

“But wait! Popular Fish Youtuber says that floating the bag is better, and that drip acclimating is unnecessary!”

When I first saw this, it made me mad. I’m still pretty mad.

So the argument here is that when you open the bag and expose the contents to fresh air, the ammonia in the water becomes more toxic, so its safer for the fish to float and then just plop them in?

UM, NO? If you add the Prime or Polyfilter, you don’t need to worry so much about the ammonia. Those products will buy you plenty of time. And while you drip in (what should be) clean, filtered water from a cycled tank, you are diluting the nitrogen and making it safer for the fish anyways. There is no reason your (healthy, not already on its deathbed) fish should come anywhere close to dying while you are drip acclimating it.

There is also a claim in this video that a fish can’t actually acclimate to new conditions (pH is specified) in the span of a drip acclimation, that it takes much longer, so trying to match pH is pointless. This may be true, but I’m not buying in to it without actual tangible proof? If anyone has any, please do share, I am genuinely interested. It just sounds like bad excuse to be lazy about introducing new fish to me.

But the thing is, either way - if you can safely drip acclimate (which you can with the right nitrogen neutralizing products), and try to give your fish the chance to acclimate to the many differing qualities of your water vs the source (remember - there are many qualities to water, not just pH and temp), why wouldn’t you? If there’s any chance you’re making their little lives easier, and their transition to your tank safer, shouldn’t you do it?

Fish can die of shock. Don’t you want to do everything you can to keep your new pets as healthy and safe as possible?

#fishblr #big long text post

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ericleo108 · 5 years ago

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Video Journal 11/27/19 - Writing Books

Hey, welcome to the Journal for Wednesday, November 27th 2019, “Writing Books.” Happy Thanksgiving.

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My name is Eric Leo, I’m a social psychologist and this is my journal where I talk about myself and my philosophy!

I stopped writing and doing anything really for a couple months. Then I decided to write a book. The book is called 108: The Story of Discovering Earth’s Consciousness. It’ll be available next year. At size 5x8”, it’s about 64 pages. It’s nonfiction and autobiographical. I present the evidence for planetary consciousness and then tell my personal story of how I got to that conclusion. I also talk about how I think the atmosphere is alive, sustainability, eugenics, and the meaning of 108. I’m done with the manuscript and been letting friends and family read it so I can make it more cohesive and understandable with their feedback. I plan on sending it to the publisher at the latest January of 2020.

I already have the presentation for 108 prepared. I’m working on the promotion and press kit. I scoured youtube for book promoting and marketing techniques, tips, and advice. I’m formulating a promotion strategy. I feel like this is going to be big eventually. I am pushing philosophy by suggesting we study god and what it is which solves a classic conflict between science and religion about god, namely, that there is one. I’m hoping to find a business manager. Someone who will set up events, interviews, podcasts, etc. for a percentage of the profit.

New Author

About five years back a gentleman found my YouTube channel about the MOGS (Machine Organized Gang Stalking) Program and he paid for the publishing of a book. Well, that lost momentum, and then I came to see Gang Stalking as wrong. So someone paid for me to publish a book and I’m glad they did. I want to be an author now.

This is just the start. I have already started writing my second book called “Can and Will Do.” Trust me it’s a lot better and thorough than the blog post I have already, by a lot. I want to find a publisher for “Can and Will Do.” I then wanna go to college and write a hardcore scientific and philosophical work about Knhoeing and get paid for it either by the college that is interested or a book publisher. By that point I’ll have momentum, be focused, and have (related) products of value.

I figured I’d give myself a year to write the second book, take the GRE, and get recommendations together. I like this approach because I’ll be a lot more focused and prepared. The ultimate goal is to be a professor.

Instead of getting my writings out through blogging, I think my work will be more cogent and compelling in longer writings that come up with an impactful conclusion. I’m really inspired by Malcolm Gladwell. I wish I could afford to take his MasterClass. I have a lot to say as a scientist and philosopher. I do like and have found blogging is incredibly helpful at developing ideas.

I have always been considered extraordinarily smart so I’ve dived back into studying philosophy and I feel lucid. I’ve been using some of the words and ideas from blog posts to write my books. I’m going to write much more about philosophy and science in the blog. I just wrote the post, “The Result of Corporate Rule in America” about gun control and abortion.

Lyceum Recordz

I’ve been writing songs to Tantu beats. I have about 14 songs, but only 9 I’m willing to publish on an album. I haven’t recorded it yet. I need roughly $400 in equipment (Logic and an interface) that I can’t afford. Unless I want to record an album on my phone I have to buy Logic and learn how to record vocals. I’m used to running Pro Tools but it’s ungodly expensive. I’m hoping to eventually get it done. I’m thinking about approaching a label just as I’m thinking about a business manager. All the products, the 108 and “can and will do” books, and the album would all compliment each other. My main focus is my writings, science and philosophy. I’m a better academic than hip-hop artist.

Philoso-Tz

I started growing Kombucha again after half a decade. You can get natural energy and probiotics for cents on the dollar per day by drinking Kombucha. Business is a lot of sophistication and work. I wouldn’t want to go into any business I didn’t love and wasn’t passionate about. But I love Tea and Kombucha. I can have it on Keto and it doesn’t give me heartburn of the jitters like coffee does. I’m still hoping to go into the tea business and make Philoso-Tz happen one day but I’m scared without help from someone who knows the business.

I’ve had sales jobs before, it's hard to sell. It's like fishing. You gotta find someone that wants your product. During the good season I tried to sell shirts at farmers markets. No one was really interested and I don’t have the money to pay for a spot. I have sold a few shirts to people who know me and want to buy one after they see me wearing it. I’ll keep going, but it’ll be slow. This is a long term play. When I have the money and notoriety too, I want to open a tea shop that sells philosophies in the form of a variety of products that usually start with the letter t.

Media: News, Music, Shows, Movies & Reading

I have been doing a lot of reading. I recently finished “David and Goliath” and “The Tipping Point” by Malcolm Gladwell. I have a whole list of books I am reading to write “Can and Will Do.” I saw “The Lion King” and “Aladdin” in theaters again and saw the ending. I love Old Dominion's “One Man Band.” I have been keeping up with the shows Rhythm and Flow, South Park, The Simpsons, Family Guy, Shark Tank, The Profit, and Back In The Game.

Emma Watson

All the other sirens (Hailee Steinfeld, Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez, Jennifer Lawrence) have really faded but I still think of Emma Watson every day. She’s a focal point in the 108 book. I’m trying to devise a way to befriend her.

I’m hoping the book (eventually) blows up and I think it will. I solve the age-old conflict between science and religion by proposing what is physically God and how we can study her. Even if it’s not popular, this book and I’ll be remembered forever, even if it’s in the endnote. It’ll also be known that Emma was a part of my religious experience and I claimed it was because I loved her.

I think Emma Watson is my cosmic love, meaning the planet and the sun think we should be together. Gaia encourages me a lot. That’s great and all, but the hard part is getting Emma’s attention, showing her why we belong together, and getting her to like me and respond. In my wisdom, love isn’t loving unless it’s expressed. I want to be able to say that I at least tried to love her.

In a different context, the gods gave me a reason to love. I’ve been single and celibate for six years. So Why not? I’d be shocked and the happiest gent in the world if she wrote back just to tell me I’m repugnant.

_________

This is a time-stamp. These are my top 12 favorite YouTubers and ASMR YouTubers. I watch ASMR almost every day at night to help take my mind off things and put me to sleep.

Top 12 YouTubers

Mark Rober

David Dobrick

Casey Neistat

Roman Atwood

Dude Perfect

Philip DeFranco

Drama Alert

How Ridiculous

Rosanna Pansino

Mac Lethal

Smarter Everyday

DALLMYD

Top 12 ASMR Channels

Asmrctica

JoJo ASMR

Marno ASMR

ASMR Zeitgeist

ASMR Bakery

Dennis ASMR

Let’s Find Out ASMR

Stacy ASMR

Madi ASMR

Fabled Fawn ASMR

Ally ASMR

Alana ASMR

________________

In Conclusion

Check out the Treatise and Journal Description List

If you think these VJs are ever going to come to an end your wrong

I will always be doing a VJ. Thank you for being here Thank you for watching, Thank you for being a part of my family You're awesome! I love you very much

#Video Journal 11/27/19 - Writing Books #Philosophy #Emma Watson

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