#it was fun though never again that water was salty af

[trlblzd]

im back from the ocean sailors did u miss me

[waitingforwinterwinds]

A Clash of Kings - 00 PROLOGUE (pages 01-26 )

Maester Cressen of Dragonstone refuses to take his retirement lying down, instead, he'll take his retirement lying down. Meanwhile, Stannis's pursuit of the Crown is off to a shoddy start.

-

The maester did not believe in omens. And yet... old as he was, Cressen had never seen a comet half so bright, nor yet that color, that terrible color, the color of blood and flame and sunsets. He wondered if his gargoyles had ever seen its like. They had been here so much longer than he had, and would still be here long after he was gone. If stone tongues could speak... Such folly. He leaned against the battlement, the sea crashing beneath him, the black stone rough beneath his fingers. Talking gargoyles and prophecies in the sky. I am an old man, grown giddy as a child again.

Sounds like he's having a nostalgia fueled rewatch of Gargoyles. (That's a cartoon that ran from 1994-1997 for you young folk.)

Speaking of prophecies in the sky though: That description of the comet's colour really captures the up coming events in a nicely vague way. Fire, blood, and sunsets. (fire and blood being obvious, but 'sunsets' as in those things that happen right before the night falls~)

When pylos returned the girl came with him, shy as ever. Behind her, shuffling and hopping in that queer sideways walk of his, came her fool.

Ah! Patches! The guy they struck from the show completely and... has some kind of prophetic madness? Or at least he spouts nonsense that sounds like it could be prophetic if you know everything that's going on? Which kind of brings up its own thing about evidence and conjecture and interpretation done to fit know facts...

AND SHIREEN!!!! Hi baby girl~

"I had bad dreams, Shireen told him. "About dragons. They were coming to eat me." The child had been plagued by nightmares as far back as Maester Cressen could recall. "We have talked of this before," he said gently. "The dragons cannot come to life. They are carved of stone, child. -"

Hmmm *squints suspiciously* gimme a sec, I just wanna ... check a family tree... and a prophecy...

Okay, I know I said I wasn't here to drop hot takes, but I can't just let a crack theory this fun slip past me: Shireen Baratheon is Azor Ahai!!

I'm sorry, but Cressen's inner monologue really wants us to know this place surrounded by the salty is is smoky AF.

"- It was the Valyrians who raised this citadel, and they had ways of shaping stone since lost to us. A castle must have towers whenever two walls meet at an angle, for defense. The Valyrians fashioned these towers in the shape of dragons to make their fortress seem more fearsome, just as they crowned their walls with a thousand gargoyles instead of simple crenelations."

Okay so, are the ways "lost to us" like Egypt's trade partner's location and the recipe for Roman concrete was lost to us, because everyone thought it was obvious so no one wrote it down and then ... events transpired, or because the Valyrians didn't share their stone working technologies and... events transpired??? (So either way everyone who knew died out. Also: we've (and by we I mean an international team doing science) figured out the recipe, it was sea water, not fresh water~) Also, also, ngl, this castle sounds epic, I want to steal it.

"If the gods are good, they will grant us a warm autumn and bountiful harvests, so we might prepare for the winter to come."

I would love to know the logistics of the seasonal cycles, like I know GRRM has said it's magic, BUT. Is Autumn a proportional length of time? Like if summer lasts for X years then Autumn lasts for xx% of those years? What if the Autumn is really short? Can it be as slim as a few months? Weeks? Days?

What are the measurements the maesters are collating and comparing? day length? average temperatures or rain falls? And how do seasonal plants grow? There are some real world plants that need their sleep between seasons, like there's one fruit tree that literally cannot refruit until it has experienced at least a brief (but uninterrupted) period of cold (winter) weather. The logistics George! GIVE THEM TO ME!!!!

"It is always summer under the sea," he intoned. ... "Under the sea it snows up," said the fool, "and the rain is dry as bone. -"

hmmm, sounds kinda like underwater volcanic regions.

There was a single chair in the room, carefully positioned in the precise place that Dragonstone occupied off the coast of Westeros, and raised up to give a good view of the tabletop. Seated in the chair was a man in a tight-laced leather jerkin and breeches of roughspun brown wool.

I want this tablemap also. "Roughspun"= 🥛 First drink of the book~

"- That Lysene pirate Salladorhor Saan will be there with the latest tally of what I owe him, and Morosh the Myrman will caution me with talk of tides and autumn gales, while Lord Sunglass-"

OMG Hei Yanjing is in this?! Crossover crack is back in the- Oohhhh, Sunglass not Sunglasses. My bad, never mind. "- mutters piously of the will of the Seven." ooh, yeah, definitely not the guy I was thinking of.

"Why should I avenge Eddard Stark? The man is nothing to me. -"

Oohh, he doesn't know Eddard tried to get him the throne~

On the bottom shelf behind a row of slaves in squat clay jars he found a vial of indigo glass, no larger than his little finger. It rattled when he shook it. Cressen blew away a layer of dust and carried it back to his table. Collapsing into his chair, he pulled the stopper and spilled out the vial's contents. A dozen crystals, no larger than seeds, rattled across the parchment he'd been reading. They shone like jewels in the candlelight, so purple that the maester found himself thinking that he had never truly seen the color before.

oh, oh, oh, oh! These are, um... Tears of Lys? Strangler? The, um, the poison crystals that are in Sansa's purple wedding hairnet. I mean not the exact same ones, obviously, (probably,) but it's the same stuff? I think?

All the world knew that a maester forged his silver link when he learned the art of healing - but the world preferred to forget that men who knew how to heal also knew how to kill. ... In the Citadel it was simply called the strangler.

Strangler, that's it.

... hmmm, should I add maester chain metal meaning to the drinking game? 🤔

Around her throat was a red gold choker tighter than any maesters chain, ornamented with a single great ruby.

And rubies. They also cropped up a few times in the first book. (mostly in relation to Rhaegar getting the snot beat out of him at the Trident, iirc.)

"A man your age must look to where he steps," Melisandre said courteously. "The night is dark and full of terrors." He knew the phrase, some prayer of her faith. It makes no matter, I have a faith of my own. "Only children fear the dark," he told her.

It's not the dark you need to be afraid of, Cressen, It's the things hidden by it.

"It is not too late to spill the wine, maester." "No," he whispered hoarsely. "No." "As you will," Melisandre of Asshai too the cup from his hands, and drank long and deep.

Kind of wondering if this futile effort by Cressen was actually an intended self inflicted death. If part of him knew his mind was going, understood that he was being removed from his post before he died at it, and thought "no, I don't want to die like that. I'll die doing something for my son."

He had to know he wasn't walking away from this, even if he'd managed to kill Melisandre, some part of him had to know it. Right?

Alas poor Cressen, we only knew you for a chapter, I'm sure you were just out there doing your best.

-

Experimenting with indents in the quoted passages. I just thought it might make the text blocks a little easier to read. That's why we have them in books after all. (unlike computers and digital copies where a few hundred spaced paragraph breaks don't matter much and don't turn a 500 page book into a 600 page book.)

I've also changed my profile pic to reflect the current book~

[peace-coast-island]

Diary of a Junebug

Fireworks, paper lanterns, and glittering stardust

The Sea of Lights is so beautiful! Lanterns and fireworks decorate the sky like constellations, little specks of stardust scattered about. I enjoy taking the time to craft a lantern, make a wish, and watching the lantern float away until it's nothing but a little speck in the sky.

Prepping for the Sea of Lights was a lot of work. Once again, the camp has held the honor of hosting a big event so naturally, we had to go all out. Luckily, we have some friends helping out with the festivities - two who happen to be a part of the committee.

Rika and Elowyn have been part of the Sea of Lights crew since last year so they pretty much know how to make the festivities a hit. Alma and Milana aren't directly part of the crew but they've been to the festival a few times so they were also able to chime in.

Elowyn hopes to get the couple to volunteer for next year but since they have to do a lot of work for the annual cherry blossom festival at their hometown, I don't think they're too interested in helping run another big event. Let's be honest, Alma and Milana are mostly here for the food - I mean, who isn't? That, and also the fact that they're finally visiting the camp after all this time!

Things have been pretty much the same at Corentine, well for the most part. Alma said there's some new guy who's been scouting the outskirts of the village due to rumored abnormal supernatural activity. It's not unusual for them to have strangers walking around these areas though it's frustrating for everyone - especially the stranger - when the mission's unclear. Despite suspicions nothing's been confirmed so the poor guy's been scouting the woods for weeks with absolutely no progress or direction. And since he's gonna stick around for a while, the town council insisted on providing him a place to stay so he's staying in Alma's old room.

Rika hasn't had too much of a chance to get to know the guy but from what she and the others learned, he acts all tough but gets startled easily. Knowing these girls, they've been messing around with him quite a bit. Alma says he's cool, probably a bit shy and prideful, but once his guard's down he has a good sense of humor. Milana wants to use him to test out her latest contraptions as she's in need of a newbie to critique her inventions. RIP (or good luck?) to the new guy.

Alma and Milana are enjoying their new house, which is only about five minutes from Alma's family house. They both figured that now they've been married for over a year, it's probably time to leave the nest and finally give Alma's father some peace of mind. However that still doesn't stop Alma from using him to occasionally get away with chores. Milana says that if Alma keeps this up, they might as well hire him as a housekeeper and pay him by the hour. Then Alma promised that she'll try to do her share of the chores so they could instead use that money to either dine out in a fancy place or go on a fun vacation.

There's never a dull moment with these two. They can be a bit much, especially when you throw in Rika, Elowyn, Emerald, Jade, and Kei into the mix. It's been forever since I've seen the latter three - last I've heard, they joined Rika in Jamie's entourage for a bit before it disbanded. I think all three transferred to Seashore Path so I guess Emerald and Jade probably graduated or will be soon by now while Kei's probably got another year to go.

Rika's been working on some new projects, teasing us as usual. They're always up to something. As of last week Rika now goes by she/they, which feels right for them. The elders are a bit out of touch but they try to be supportive. Ojiichan started complimenting Rika by saying they look gnc af and now all the other elders are saying it, which is sweet! The big mystery though is who taught Ojiichan that and whether or not he fully knows what it means. Still, it's nice to hear how supportive everyone is.

They have also taken up pickling veggies, which sounds kinda surprising but isn't at the same time. Given how much she loves kimchi, it makes sense that she'd want to make her own. My mom sometimes makes her own kimchi and she says it can be a hit or miss. It also looks like a lot of work so kudos for Rika for being successful! It also takes some patience and even then you never know how they'll turn out until they're ready. They plan on doing beets next. After that it's daikon and carrots, and then garlic - all which sound good.

As for the kimchi, it's great! They like it super spicy though so I was only able to eat a little bit before I couldn't handle the heat anymore, but it's tasty. The veggies are perfectly crisp and it's not too liquidy and salty. Rika plans on refining the recipe as well as make a mild version for those who can't take the heat - she means a weakling like me - which is something to look forward to, Buuut Rika's definition of mildly spicy and mine's is probably very different so either way I'll be chugging a lot of water or tea between every bite.

Rika's also been helping Elowyn start her own Patreon, which is exciting! A friend's friend of theirs is also gonna launch a Patreon too so I'm gonna keep an eye out for that as her work seems interesting. The friend had just moved from Japan a few months ago and she's an artist who has an ongoing manga/webcomic about a high school girl who becomes bonded with a young ghost whose job is to keep order between spirits and mortals. According to Rika and Miki - who knows her as well - the story's inspired by true events that happened to the author.

The premise sounds interesting and an english translation by a friend of hers who also serves as an editor/beta reader is usually uploaded the day after so when I have time, I'll definitely read it. From first glance, the art style looks nice so I'm intrigued. It definitely has the vibes of a deceptively cute and lighthearted story that's complex and tragic underneath. The manga's ongoing and usually updates twice a month.

Elowyn's also gonna be in a short fantasy murder mystery film directed by her brother called The Scythe. A few weeks ago she appeared in a music video as a backup dancer for Avery Ronnie. In between gigs Elowyn practices magic with Rika by going on various missions. Though Elowyn says it's no different than being an unpaid intern, except with an increased risk of dying and things going terribly wrong.

Rika and Alma are alike as they're hard working but also kinda lazy. Without prompting they can accomplish something cool and badass but ask them to pick their things up from the floor or do some cleaning around the house and they'll make up some excuse. We roast them for it but at the same time we get it - and it's not like they can't take care of themselves but sometimes they do need a bit of prodding. Both also have this charm that let them get away with it half the time so it's kinda on us too.

We've been hard at work setting up the stalls and decor as well as making lanterns and planning out the fireworks show. To our surprise, Rika and Alma have been pulling their weight, though I think bribing them with food helped with that.

Rika got some glittering stardust from a friend and wanted to put that to good use by adding some spark to the lights. We tested out the fireworks with it and it produced some dazzling effects. Problem is that glittering stardust is super flammable so we have to be super careful. So that's why I left fireworks duty to Rika while the rest of us kept our distance.

Making lanterns was a lot of fun! A while back Pai and Connie sent me a lantern they made for a similar festival in Bonsai Harbor. Apparently the two really got into making lanterns so they started giving away a bunch of them to friends.

Yeah, I think we also kinda went overboard with our lanterns. But they're so much fun to make! Well, I could just give them away too - I know a bunch of people who would love to have a souvenir from a festival. I'm gonna keep a bunch to decorate the camp and cabin when we're in a festive decorating mood. As for the inevitable surplus - I'll figure that out later.

The fireworks and lanterns were easily the highlights of the night, second to the food. Thankfully there were no incidents with the glittering stardust - we did a bunch of test runs to make absolutely sure that there's no chance of the lanterns and fireworks colliding to create a possibly catastrophic explosion as glittering stardust is dangerous around anything that involves flames.

(I mean it turned out to be a great idea, but why the hell did we take such a risk by using flammable stuff around fireworks? Then again, it's Rika and when they overlook something, we tend to follow suit too because it's too easy to get caught up and carried away. It's not our fault that she makes it easy to get away with a lot of dangerous stunts - but it all worked out for the better so it's good.)

Being surrounded by fireworks and lanterns, I feel light on my feet. Wishes floating up in the sky, finding their way into the black night sky. I wonder how far will the lanterns fly before their lights go out.

I wonder how many wishes were released throughout the night.

[saltpepperbeard]

A Jotato’s THG Story (novel?)

So a few days ago, the lovely @everlarkedalways asked me to Weave My THG Tale™. And, in being VERY on brand in regards for my THG Story, I’m late to the party lol! Mostly because of work, partly because I was avoiding Ballad spoilers, and a tad bit because...I’m a potato. BUT, now that I am free of any large projects and finally have Ballad in my hands, I’m finally able to look past my potato roots and talk about how a certain wATER POTATO ARCHER CHANGED MY LIFE lmao.

Ara has jokes though, let me tell you. “Keep it short” l m a o; THIS IS ABOUT TO BE A NOVEL AND WE KNOW IT. ARE YOU READING BALLAD? HERE’S A NEW 500 PAGE BOOK FOR YOU TBH-

I’ve told this story a few times before, but it’s always delightful to look back on things and see all the twists and turns I’ve experienced with this franchise. The most notable being, I started out HATING Hunger Games lol!

I was in ninth grade when THG started to become like, a global phenomenon. Everyone was reading it, everyone was talking about it, and it was everywhere. And for whatever reason, instead of actually sitting down and, idk, GIVING IT A TRY LMAO, my reaction instead was to DESPISE IT. Guess it was that edgy, irate, “I’m ABOVE the general masses ha look at me,” fresh-out-of-middle-school mentality. And also, my justification for hating it so much was along the lines of, “Wow it’s just a series about kids killing each other? WHAT’S THE APPEAL???”

Which like fjlksjdksds...If I could look back on my early 2012 self?

She had no idea what was in store for her lmao.

Anyway, the premiere of the movie came and went, and I was still hard set in my ways. THAT WAS, until that same summer. I can’t exactly remember which clips I stumbled upon first? But I know I came across the Joshifer+Liz Banks interview, and also a ton of Perfectly Legal Movie Clips™ on YouTube. Both of which silently chained my soul without me realizing LMAO. I remember thinking that the main actors were so cute and played off each other well (AGAIN LMAO, GIRL, BIG STORM COMING), and also remember being totally intrigued by all the clips I watched. It was mainly clips of Katniss in the arena, and I think it made me realize that wow hey, there’s an ACTUAL STORY HERE, WITH A FEMALE PROTAGONIST NO LESS.

The story gets a tad fuzzy for me here, but I do believe I got the books and quickly read through them shortly after I essentially watched the entire movie on YouTube through clips jdksljdks. I can’t really recall what I thought about the books really? Because, I think I BREEZED through them. I was so excited that I just ZOOMED TF THROUGH. I inhaled the series in one GIANT GULP. I think I even read THG in a single day jdlsjklaads. It definitely wasn’t a cautious read through to get a better sense of the detail and literary devices. 

BUT, despite my excitement, I still hadn’t reached the God Tier “OBSESSIVE” stage yet. The light bulb hadn’t fully come on yet. It wasn’t until late 2013 when Catching Fire came out that I REALLY STARTED TO GO BALLISTIC LMAO. Actually, one of my fondest THG memories comes from this time, because I think it was really like, the OFFICIAL starting block for my obsession.

I was riding on a bus to a Theatre Competition, and my best friend had just gotten the CF Soundtrack for us to listen to. I remember being absolutely enamored with it- Mirrors, We Remain, and Lean in particular. And idk, something at that point just kind of told me that Catching Fire was going to be my anchor. Sure enough, after the competition was over, said friend and I went to go see the movie together.

And I astral projected lmao. I ACHIEVED HUNGER GAMES ENLIGHTENMENT. THE LIGHT BULB SWITCHED TF ON.

I was quick to see it again the following day, and I think saw it another two times in theaters after that. I also started drawing fanart of it, and looking for more pictures/interviews. And the want for more content, the DESIRE to go crazy about it, is what eventually lead me to finding the fandom here on Tumblr. I had had a Tumblr since 2012, but never really used it with a purpose. But when I realized there were people posting all sorts of stuff about THG? Boom- another light bulb. I followed tons of people, and officially changed my url to what it is today. “Star’s” for my internet alias at the time, and “Mahogany” for my love of Effie/that Iconic Line.

HOWEVER LOL, Tumblr would lead me towards a different side, something I didn’t expect to get pulled into so hard at all. Because, I distinctly remember coming on one night in December of 2013, and seeing @joshmopolitan and a few others posting about Josh going to the UK game. And that of course, lead me down the Celebrity Rabbit Hole, and lead me towards the Chaotic, Wonderful, Crazy-

JOSHIFER FANDOM.

((Also, before you crinkle your nose, *raises cane* BACK IN MY DAY, EVERYONE SHIPPED JOSHIFER LOL. *Snow voice* DON’T LIE. Like, everyone thought they were cute to some sort of degree, or believed they were going to get together. Shoutout to the Joshifer Golden Days, man.))

And thank goodness for it tbh. Because it was JUST when I was itching to write fanfiction with everyone else, and just when I was struggling HARDCORE with writing Everlark. @joshmopolitan and @youarebeingridiculous were sort of my introductions into RPF, with @youarebeingridiculous giving me nudges towards my first Everlark fic, before also nudging me towards my first Joshifer fic. And when my first Joshifer fic garnered attention/when I had a blast writing it? ANOTHER. LIGHT. BULB LOL.

So I was dead af from that point on. I was absolutely drawn in. Even though I was still invested in THG, Joshifer was definitely my main focus from 2014-2016ish. I was there for the typical ship wars, there to read and write all the fanfiction, there to read all the theories, and there to partake in all the crazy moments. Shoutout to Cannes 2014 in particular lmao; I was in the car and my phone started going off like CRAZY, with many of my friends SCREAMING at me about the events/articles that had transpired.

Being attached to Joshifer also allowed me to write my first, and so far only, full length, These Words are a Lie. It started out as just a four part series, two parts of which I actually published. Befffooorrre getting to the third part and realizing I had WAY too much to deal with/explain/write, which consequently lead to me pulling them down and expanding upon them! And thus my messy, lovely, 25 chapter peanut journey started lmao. Though I look back on it now and realize how disjointed it was, I’m so thankful I was able to see that story completely through. I’m also very thankful for the SUPPORT and following it got. Wouldn’t have gotten through without y’all! 

ANYWAY LMAO, because this is my THG story and not my Joshifer story, let’s get back to that. 2014 was WHACK because...LG was utterly tripping with its promotional material. And to think, it was just the START of odd/lacking promo, seeing as they were SOMEHOW WORSE WITH MJ2 LMAO. But even though I was incredibly salty at the time, it was so fun to be mad and chomping at the bit with everyone else lol. The SUFFERING OF NOT HAVING ANY NEW CONTENT BROUGHT US CLOSER TOGETHER. Also, going to Best Buy to watch the teaser trailer under Heavy Guard??? Was an EXPERIENCE LOL??? But man was I so stoked to get my poster and pin, because that was some of the first merch I got!

ALSO, MJ1 was the time where I got the idea to create a small YouTube series called “Tributes React.” I really really wish I could have been in the fandom earlier, because it would have been, dare I say, FIRE LOL to react to more than just the MJ1 and MJ2 trailers. But it was so so fun regardless, and everyone’s participation was incredible! And now all of our early, embarrassing, INTENSE fangirling is stuck here/memorialized forever PFFFF.

And, not to mention, Fran Solo himself watched one of them. Someone tweeted the video at him, and he tweeted back that it made all the hard times worth it. MY GREATEST FANDOM ACCOMPLISHMENT RIGHT THERE???

And finally getting to watch MJ1 in theaters lmao omg. I went with my friend before, and also one of my guy friends. And the entire time, he was HARD STARING AT ME WAITING FOR ME TO CRY LOL. SO HE COULD TEASE ME. AND HE GOT HIS WISH BECAUSE OF COURSE THE LAST 30 MINUTES OR SO UTTERLY RUINED ME. I remember shivering so so SO bad when the rescue mission for Peeta started, and having to hold my friends’ hands when they were creeping through the Tribute Center, and utterly SOBBING when Peeta attacked Katniss. Because...hello...I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again...WAY WAY MORE INTENSE THAN THE BOOK LMAO??

And then came the beginning of the end. I remember that promo time was even DRYER for MJ2 lmao, and that we were all DYING. Like, I think the big trailer didn’t release until like, SEPTEMBER??? WHICH...LG WHAT THE ACTUAL-

And we were also back to watching trailers in Best Buys jfkssdkdlsk. My Best Buy was also DUMB and didn’t have any posters, but @infinitegraces​ was awesome enough to send me numerous copies! Bless you, thank you; I had them on my wall all through college lol! DESPITE THEM BEING A HAUNTING REMINDER OF HOW HARD LG SMACKED US LMAO.

Despite my salt towards the INITIAL promo though, the premieres and what not definitely lead to MJ2 having a special place in my heart. I had just gone off to college, and was a timid, lonely little freshman with nowhere to turn. But the fandom was there for me, and MJ2 promos/premieres gave me something to be excited for. It all kept me going through that ROUGH first semester, and was there for me before I met my best friends. So thank you MJ2, and thank you all for sharing that excitement with me! <3

Also, I’d like to mention that I was SO desperate to continue the tradition of seeing the premiere with my friend thaaaaatttt...I left for Thanksgiving break two or three days early/skipped class JUST to make it back home in time to see it with her lol! I WASN’T HERE TO PLAY GAMES, Y’ALL. THG > ACADEMICS APPARENTLY PFFFF.

After that though, things kind of quieted down. I found friends and activities in college, the movies were done, and Joshifer was dying out. It lead me to use Tumblr sporadically, not posting AS much as I had before. I still had tons of love for everything, and still enjoyed coming on whenever I did!

Then I sort of stumbled upon our “renaissance,” like the lovely @everlarkedalways​ posting re-reads and re-watches. It tugged me in again, and made me excited to post content! I also branched out and began to write Everlark, and began talking about them/the books/meta more than I did in my earlier years. 

And of course, said renaissance lead me to attending TOASTCON LMAO. Which I somehow managed to name. On accident. *Dabs unironically*

That of course, was such an amazing experience. Going to movie filming sites has always been on my bucket list, so getting to go to HUNGER GAMES SITES??? WITH FANDOM PEOPLE???? GOD TIER??????

I was also suffering from major panic/anxiety problems that summer, having just graduated college and being thrown out in the Real World™. So once again, THG and its fandom were there for me when nothing else could be. And despite me feeling off mentally, despite me feeling plagued by fatigue, I still thoroughly enjoyed meeting everyone/having such a once in a lifetime experience. Also, getting to FLEX on my friends when we watch the movies and go like “I WAS THERE! I WAS THERE!! I WAS THERE!!!” is...A Time PFFFF.

Then of course, I started working a full time job, and shifted a bit away from Tumblr/the fandom. Not DELIBERATELY; more like, I was too Mentally Tired to really do much after work. But now that Ballad is here, and now that we have new content once more? I feel like I’m waking back up. Hell, I even went to Atlanta to see MORE film sites right before the virus started to make its rounds.

And so here I am lol! A SEASONED THG VET WITH SEVEN YEARS AND COUNTING UNDER MY BELT. I would very much love to tag everyone who had an impact on me, and/or who I’ve interacted with and shared fun times with over the years. But A. Everyone really out here CONSTANTLY CHANGING THEIR URL’s, and B. The number would be Too Great and I would inevitably forget someone on accident.

SO THEN, if you’re reading this, and we’ve ever shared some kind of THG experience together, thank you, from the bottom of my heart. THG has been such a wondrous experience for me, and it’s lead me to meet all sorts of amazing, talented individuals. It’s also been there for me during darker times, and has supported me in every way possible.

I love you all, I love being here, and HERE’S TO MANY MORE TAGS/RAMBLES IN THE FUTURE LOL! Like lmao, a new movie, you guys??? WHAT??? TRIBUTES REACT ANYONE???

-Jotato Out <3

[solemncadaver]

Friendsim Trolls According to my Girlfriend who hasn’t played Friendsim

Ardata (Cobalt): w... who took bites out of her horns? Can and will kill you in your sleep. Plotting evil plans 23/7 (the 24th hour is for drinking coffee with LOTS of milk and sugar)

Diemen (Rust): Always eating food (why is that hot dog bun GREEN-), will never call you by your name, only nicknames like bro, dude, man etc, probably owns a skateboard but can't drive it

Cirava (Gold): Oo funky! Has a horrible backstory and doesn't talk about it EVER, is chill all the time, likes 70s-80s fashion and actually wears it with style! Is as extra as the fact they've got 4 horns

Amisia (Indigo): definitely an artist! The "weird kid", has not slept in 5 days because she just HAD to finish that one painting, cuts her own hair with scissors not meant for cutting hair yet it looks amazingly good! Probably either super pure and nice or will kill you if you breathe in her direction

Bronya (Jade): The cool big sister, helps you do your makeup and dye your hair, if you hurt one of her friends those boots will land in your face, probably has a tumblr with aesthetic images

Skylla (Bronze): Yeehaw howdy pardner! Isn't only from a ranch, she OWNS one! Can and will punch you for no reason, makes you do her chores if you wanna stay at her place, has never seen a hairbrush in her life

Tagora (Teal): Tries his best to be edgy and frightening, sometimes almost fails at that, could be in one of those "barber: say no more fam" memes, thinks he's an evil overlord but is actually just a delinquent, probably doesn't get a redemption arc and only like 2 people are mad about that

Vikare (Bronze): Wants to be a pilot/is a pilot but DON'T TRUST THEM WITH AN AIRPLANE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, pretends wearing that pilot hat is a fashion choice when in reality they can't take it off again with those horns, nobody has ever seen them sleep and people are concerned

Polypa (Olive): The most feral being (or she fell down the stairs and is mad about it), problems balancing with only one eye able to see, could claw out your heart and not bat an eye, the hole in her horn is from when someone tried to take her out, nobody has ever seen that person afterwards

Zebruh (Indigo): Looks like an ASSHOLE. What are his horns doing they're not pointed that's not how horns should work, very smug! Has a shitty job and is pretentious about it to people w/o a job, looks like the cryptic bartender in a stereotypical drama thriller that the detective has to interview to know who killed the rich guy's wife

Elwurd (Cobalt): Look at those extra af horns! Def owns a motorcycle, flirty but has never received actual affection, has a mental breakdown every 2 days but pretends EVERYTHING'S FINE, makes 5 puns a minute

Folykl & Kuprum (Gold): What a goal: Carry your bud around in your giant ass backpack! I......don't know who is who tbh but! They both have cool spider looking horns! The best evidence for 'opposites attract', the only friends they have are each other, secretly planning to overthrow the government

Remele (Cobalt): The x on her left eye symbolizes that she has found her next victim. It's you. Run. Could probably use her horn as a climbing hook, v passive aggressive, makes her own clothes, works out a lot and is stronger than she looks

Konyyl (Olive): My fight, flight or flirt instincts have been activated. Could snap you in half by looking at you yet can be super soft if she wants to (you gotta be REAL close to her though), likes matcha ice cream and yells at it when it melts, is NOT tidy

Chixie (Bronze): Shy babey. Will probably be interrupted 3 times when trying to speak because she's just so quiet, has been left on her own and now has no idea how to survive yet is too shy to ask for the way. Someone come help her please.

Tyzias (Teal): Bored college student. Will NOT help you in an emergency so don't even ask. Secretly likes cryptids, is Done (tm), nobody has ever seen her outside of campus, roasts people in the most monotone voice ever

Chahut (Purple): F-... fear ':)? Eh, that's probably just paint! Right? Right???... Is probably being forced to do horrible things, can't remember their childhood, looks scary but only unintentionally, I'd still smooch tbh

Azdaja (Gold): Reminds me of that ching prince from FMA:B tbh, has a weird aesthetic going on, has the upper hand everywhere without trying, probably has 3 fake names, is always cool but can slip up and make goofy remarks

Zebede (Gold): Smol round boi! Probably played soccer in 5th grade, now makes v interesting and functional machines from Lego, probably owned a pet hamster at some point, has no sense of danger

Tegiri (Teal): Is that a KATANA-.... Still not out of his weeb phase, is VERY devoted to his aesthetic, talks either in one word sentences or dramatic quotes from a show nobody has seen, shop owner who sells you weapons

Mallek (Cobalt): Oh look it your hubby! He looks like a trickster tbh yet all the fanart looks sweet and pure!? (Also how do you pierce horns-) how many piercings has he though? Is there fanart- 👀... anyways he kinda looks like the popular kid and the emo kid combined, but like in a good way!?! Probably has a secret key for the whole town that he shouldn't have, can store everything in that hoodie pocket (it's like Hermione's bag :3!)

Lynera (Jade): Looks like the weird art/music teacher, v nice though! Has a lot of weird hobbies that her friends politely decline to join, likes to bake for everyone, likes children or absolutely loathes them

Galekh (Indigo): Is this Roman from Sanders Sides? Jdhdkd he looks like the strict angry teacher, will absolutely refuse giving help and does not allow any flaws (both in you and in himself) can spot someone doing illegal things from a mile away, is not afraid to call people out

Tirona (Teal): Look at that spider hair! Looks good 👉👉, is probs v shy and awkward but tries to talk to everyone anyways, has some exotic pets that she doesn't tell anyone about bc someone once said it's weird, just wants to be accepted, clumsy af

Boldir (Olive): Hiding ..... something ...., private but not stealthy investigator, is distracted way too easily, is the detective I mentioned back at Zebruh's, v loyal, will absolutely get you arrested if you're *in the way*

Stelsa (Teal): Looks like a cool but bitchy mom, probably gets a manicure every week, she looks just like my mom which is scary wth, will not hesitate to roast Karen at the school bake sale, those lemon bars are horrible KAREN, why didn't you let your third husband help K A R E N

Karako (Purple): What- ?

I-.... I'm confused! But okay!

Never makes sense, nobody has ever seen them eat or sleep, appears in your room at 2 am when you have sleep paralysis

Marsti (Rust): Probably is like the classic mechanic, can weld 👌👏👉👉👍, is done with everyone's bullshit but will still try to help (occasionally), drinks too many energy drinks and not enough water, everyone asks her for favors and she is having none of it

Charun (Olive): Peaceful gardener, don't stand in their sun and they won't bother whatever you do, just wants a little farm house near a small town with his pet cat, don't walk on their vegetables or they'll chase you with a rake

Wanshi (Jade): Just a nice person. A total sweetheart. Just wants to have fun, very optimistic, the most functional person you'll ever meet, drinks a lot of green tea and hot chocolate

Fozzer (Rust): Nice person but not very bright, doesn't know how electronics work, has a flip phone from like 2006 and that's enough for him, has a lot of houseplants but can't really keep them alive

Marvus (Purple): 👀👀👀 You know how I think about him (😭🍀😏😎🍀💖🌾❤ 11/10 best ti🅱🅱y window would allow him to stab me)

Daraya (Jade): Smol but will fight you. Is super done and will not help you, but also won't stop you. Probably has 2-4 knifes somewhere on her body at all time.

Nihkee (Indigo): Looks like a pirate captain + professional wrestler in one, like! Probably drinks their coffee black just so people respect them more, will show off every trophy they have (a lot) if someone decides to listen to them

Lanque (Jade): 👀👀👀👍 the most dramatic and salty being alive, v stylish, takes 2 hours a day just to get ready, probably has 16 meetings a day, could work as a model, will cut anyone and everyone that says he should change something about him

Soleil (Purple): Ah yes, the obligatory twins. Probably cursed by a spiteful witch at birth, have never been seen seperate, occasionally like to scare people by pretending to be the twins from shining

I’m crying

[punchmedanny]

Chicago II July 25, 2018

Alright strap yourselves in cuz this is gonna be a long ass post WITH SPOILERS for Interactive Introverts. I will mark where spoilers begin if you want to read about pre show stuff. If you don't want any spoilers whatsoever, don't feel obligated to read this even if we're buddies! Feel free to send me an ask/dm instead 😅

Alright folks, let's go!

Playing the Waiting Game

I was supposed to get to the venue at 4 for m&g, but I got there before 3 because a) i'm terrified of being late and b) my uber driver made excellent time.

The venue was not open yet, so my bf and I walked to a nearby mall. We passed by the tour buses (presumably dnp's plus other performers'). There was a group of people hanging around them looking v stalkerish (please don't hang around the buses before the show)

We got back to venue around 3:50 and waited in line outside till 4 when the venue let us in. We were near the middle of the line, so if you want to be closer to the front, get there sooner lol

Turns out I was behind the lovely @noodlephil in line (although I didn’t know till after!)

Two internet friends were meeting for the first time and crying (it was adorable)

Inside, there was a table with staff that checked and marked our tickets then gave us silver paper wristbands

We got in a second line where we had a bag check (our venue allowed sealed water bottles, but that might vary) and were scanned by a wand metal detector. After that, staff scanned our tickets 

We went to a third line which was the actual line for m&g and were told the m&g itself would start around 4:30

Marianne came by and said we would be waiting a bit longer for "latecomers" (im p sure dnp were the latecomers because most people were there at that point haha)

Marianne walked like a frickin goddess and her voice was beautiful

She made a speech giving us a rundown of how m&g would work, which I recorded

The m&g area was set up in the lobby to the side of the theatre doors

Dan and Phil entered from our left (towards the back of the theate)

They jogged across the m&g backdrop where we could see them better and waved. Dan did the cutest bouncy jump ever while waving. He stayed out longer than Phil

There was a table to set your bag on as you approached the backdrop

The music was loud af and there was NO WAY to see or hear other people's m&g - it was v private even though there were tons of people

Marianne was at the very front of the line and asked what she could do to help. I was like uhhh (because I'm eloquent like that) and she asked if we had anything for them to sign. My bf had golf balls lmao and gave them to her. I said I wanted to take a Polaroid for them to sign. She had me turn the camera on because apparently they’d had issues with Polaroid cameras in the past

I thanked her for the way everything was being run and joked a bit while we waited

When it was our turn, the people in front of us were completely gone (I repeat: v private). Marianne gestured and verbally told us to go on in

Meeting Dan and Phil

Phil was wearing his red jacket and good vibes t-shirt just like the beginning of "week in the life" He welcomed us with open arms and I went in for the Phil Hug. Wow. Phil is an excellent hugger and his arms felt a lot stronger than I imagined. And, yes, he waited for me to let go first

As soon as I let go of Phil, I stepped to the side and and looked at Dan. He was wearing his II denim jacket over a white t-shirt. He also had his arms wide for a hug. And lemme tell you, that boi has a fuckin wingspan. Dan gave a more gentle hug than Phil and we let go at like the same time

I am not a hugger and wasnt even 100% sure before I went in that I would hug them tbh

After the hugs, I stepped back and took them both in that's what she said. My initial impression was confidence and class. Literally, the most confident people I've ever encountered irl

Everyone says they're tall, but they are, as my bf said, taller than advertised. He's 6'2 and still looked up to both of them. I feel like they're both close to the next inch up honestly

They are wide. Like we've all noticed the Phil is wide, but Dan is too! They are literal giants

The cameras do NOT do them justice. Phil looks his age irl and I mean that in the sexiest way possible. He does actually have pores and tiny wrinkles (gasp), but I think they only make him more attractive. He oozes understated masculinity. But he also has serious nerd energy and idgaf attitude. Basically, he seems kind of badass

Dan looked flawless. Like I know every so often people wonder about if he wears makeup and all imma say is either he does OR he has the best damn skin care routine and/or genetics ever. He looks like someone after they use a filter

I'd say dan is suave and phil has swagger

(I'm about to sound real fucking weird) They both had such strong auras or energy or whatever you want to call it. It was palpable and BIG - like it extended off of them a couple feet. Dan's felt more static-y, while phil's felt more like balloon about to burst. It merged together between them to where I couldn't tell where one stopped and the other started

Marianne handed Phil the golf balls and he and Dan just stared at them in his hand in confusion for a second then Phil said "golf balls?" before my bf explained it was because they were the caddy lads. They chuckled and Dan said it was "the only series that has any value"

I am now the proud (?) owner of photos and video of phil holding two balls in his hand and I feel really weird about it

Dan asked if I had anything for them to sign, so I told him I wanted to take a Polaroid to which Dan replied, "D'ya want me to attempt the rare Polaroid selfie?"

Then I actually gently teased Dan (!?!?) because I'm a little shit lol I said, "I successfully did one this morning, so I hope you can"

They both seemed mildly amused and he did the thing where he touched his chest lightly in mock offense and said, "Well, let's see"

Tbh I think this was why I got genuine smiles in my pic

Dan said, "Beautiful" and Phil said "Amazing" lol (it really was tho)

Dan described the signature he'd be doing as "the tiniest little dan" and he used the highest voice ever

Phil's signature was so bad im pretty sure dan laughed at it lmao

Dan offered another selfie with my phone (i love him)

I shook their hands before I left and they seemed surprised, but appreciative. They both had excellent handshakes: firm, but not too hard. They both had soft, warm hands with Phil's being about average and Dan's being warmer than average

Overall, they were incredibly kind and professional. The vibe to be was sort of like talking to a boss who isn't your direct boss at a work party: fun, but still guarded

The saying goes "Never meet your heroes," but whoever said that obviously never met dan and phil. This was one of my happiest memories of all time

1500+ word description of the meeting including a sommelier worthy account of how the boys smell

And here’s the (real shit) video of my m&g

The Pre-Show

After meeting the bois, we were immediately given our goodie bags (one of them was double stuffed, lucky me)

Staff asked if we’d be staying in the theatre or not. Upon telling them we’d be leaving, they let us know we’d need to scan out so we could re-enter later

We bought merch (tie-dye/marbled look tee, long sleeved tee, and denim jacket). The line was basically non-existant, so if you have VIP 100% get your merch at this time

We scanned out and were told we could re-enter at 6 along with general admittance ticket holders

We had dinner then got back around 6:10. There was no line this time and we went through security and ticket scanning again

There were so many people everywhere and everyone was so cute! Why are we such a good looking fandom??? The line for merch was EXTREMELY long. RIP those folks

So was the line for the restrooms (and multiple men’s rooms were turned into ladydoors women’s restrooms)

We got 2 drinks (both for me) then went to our seats. We were front and center - I could literally touch the stage with my shoe from my seat. At this time I met @phandommom and @crunchytoasted1

The pre-show music was loud af where I was seated (I actually put in ear plugs lol). Lots of people were dancing and I got to witness crunchytoast dance to “Ladydoor” live which was a treat. At one point various people were running across the theatre with various LGBT+ flags to plenty of cheers. ‘Twas glorious. People did the whole waving the phone flashlights thing and sang along during “Welcome to the Black Parade”

My bf got me 2 more drinks

Showtime! 

THIS IS WHERE THE SPOILERS START!!!

It was so, so weird to see them onstage after having the m&g. I legit wanted to climb onstage and like be close again, but, ya know, I didn’t cuz I know what’s socially acceptable

We were called Susan. Classic

Phil was wearing waffle socks. As in socks with tiny waffles all over them

We sacrificed Phil to Satan and Dan died in a furry nightclub

None of mine or my bf’s answers got chosen and I’m a bit salty lol

We sacrificed Dan (the only correct choice fite me)

At intermission the line for the bathrooms was sooooo long omg. I got myself 2 more drinks at this point and called @h-owllslide to gush about the show. I spilled one of my drinks on my bf a little when I sat back down.

Danny was 3 centimeters away from loosing his dick and he got paint on his shoe. He seemed legit irked lol

Nick Jonas was in Dan’s box, but I don’t recall the other two cuz that was the only one that mattered imo

I got a piece of the sign and when they threw it into the audience it was a bit disturbing how everyone tore into it like a swarm of pirahnas

They wore Cubs baseball shirts over their usual shirts during the rap/song finale which was absolutely precious. I LOVED the finale so fucking much - it was magnificent

END SPOILERS!!!

Closing Thoughts

I wish I hadn’t drank so much (6 wines for those of you keeping track at home). I was getting real embarrassing by the end (as in screaming excitedly too much/ too often) and I don’t remember it as clearly as I wish I did. I was just freaking tf out and my anti-anxiety meds weren’t cutting it

I was struggling incredibly hard not to disassociate the entire time

I wish I could go to another show. It was so fun!

The following day, I had a major mood drop. If you’re prone to this, maybe have a plan to hang with someone and do something nice, but lowkey the next day

This was literally the most fun thing I’ve done in at least two years and was one of my happiest memories ever. We’re talking patronus conjuring levels of happy

If you can go, go. If you can’t, don’t feel too bad. It was EXTREMELY intense and not for everyone (especially m&g). Plus they are putting it up later, which I’m looking forward to because I think I’ll be able to better absorb it

Please feel free to ask me anything about the show! I’d love to go on about it lol

[purplesurveys]

378

For a change. I love Internet people for never running out of survey ideas.

Just say what you think of (doesn't have to be one-word answers) when I mention these. Quick, simple, just for fun. Curtain: I remember a story JM told us of when he nearly burned his house down when he was younger - he was flying paper airplanes but not without lighting the tips on fire. One of the planes landed on the curtain and I think it burned that particular room pretty bad or something. Door: I have a door to my right at the moment. It’s brown and I know my dog is waiting outside because I can hear his paws. Shoe: We went shoe hunting yesterday for Joacky, because he wanted a pair of the Nike Cortez. It’s widely popular in the PH right now so even though we visited like 7 shoe stores yesterday, we weren’t able to find one in the color that he likes. Pants: I finally got a pair of mom jeans yesterday and I can’t wait to wear it for school. I’m tired of wearing the same bottoms. Wig: I attended a workshop a few months ago where the speaker disclosed that she has leukemia, and she took off the wig she had been wearing the whole time to show us her head. I also remember the RuPaul Stans part of Twitter because they say ‘wig’ all the time...

Makeup: Kate made me her subject last Thursday and she played with my face and put makeup on it. Ended up feeling really pretty because she did a pretty awesome job. Instagram: I snubbed Instagram for the longest time but thought that a ‘one-pic-for-every-day-of-the-year’ dump account wouldn’t hurt, so I made one of those for 2019. My photography skills are absolutely nowhere to be found, and my gallery is super haphazard, but I really want to make an effort to store memories this year. YouTube: Hmm first thing I thought of was PewDiePie. I subscribed to the dude when he had like 60,000 subscribers eight years ago and only had a couple of Amnesia montages up. I always feel like a proud momma/early bird whenever I remember how far and how big he’s gotten since. Life: Exhaustion, mainly. It’s gonna start snowballing by next year when I graduate. It’ll be nonstop from there - facing the prospect of coming out to my parents, graduating, getting a job, getting my first credit card, moving out, paying bills...it’s all very exhausting, exhilarating, exciting, and overwhelming to think about. Chili: Gabie and I had Japanese for early dinner last week, and I was a little weirded out by the restaurant because each seat had a red chili pepper on the placemat? I’m talking every damn seat in the place??? Idk if it’s some sort of good luck charm for the owners but it made things very slightly unsettling hahaha. Cherry: There was a WWE Diva named Cherry like ten years ago who had the gimmick of a 50′s chick, I think...I was never quite sure what her character was supposed to be, but she had roller-skates every time she went to the ring and would sometimes wear outfits with polka dots so I thought she was pretty cute.   Neil: Armstrong. Haha I was going through Reddit awhile ago when I saw a video of Buzz Aldrin punch a dude who went up to him and said that the moon landing was a hoax. Not exactly Neil Armstrong but still a good story. Drive: I like watching car chases. It’s almost...therapeutic when the suspect crashes or loses control of his car and finally gets caught. Murder: I never got into How To Get Away With Murder. It’s too fast-paced for my life. I feel like I’m the only person who doesn’t understand legal concepts because so many people are able to catch up with this show even if Viola Davis speaks a thousand words a minute and they’re all really deep words??? Idk HAHAHA. I watched like two episodes and felt super dumb after. Ice cream: OMG I hate a la mode desserts. I’d eat anything, but I wouldn’t eat two separate things with different textures. Get your ice cream away from my brownie. Water: I can’t wait to go back to the beach. Hard: Hammer? It was the first image to pop up in my head. Anne: Harry Styles’ mom is named Anne hahaha the Directioner in me jumped out, sorry not sorry. Cow: There’s this video that went viral a few months ago of a girl who was playing the accordion; all of a sudden this adorable herd of like 15 cows come running up to her and just intently watch the kid. Wholesome af. Frog: Frog legs are served in some Philippine provinces. Tastes like chicken. Cheese: My lactose intolerant ass will grate half a block of cheese (exaggeration, but you get the point) for my spaghetti. That’s the only way to enjoy pasta. Bowl: Can’t really think of anything except that bowl cuts look so cute on babies hahaha. Television: Is something I never use nowadays unless I’m staying over at a hotel. Other than that, I cannot tell you the last time I held a TV remote control to change the channel or something. Skull: There’s an episode of Friends where Phoebe brings home a skull and nonchalantly sets it on the table where Monica, Rachel, and Chandler were hanging out. Chandler goes, “Pheebs...skull?” Phoebe says, “Yeah, it’s my mom’s,” and Rachel shrieks until Phoebe clarifies that her mom owned the skull, and that the skull wasn’t of her mom. Underrated segment. Rachel’s mini-meltdown was hilarious. Seasons: I had to watch Rent for film class several months ago. Terrible movie. Cemented my dislike for musicals. This is what I remembered because afaik this is the musical that has the minutes song. Language: I can speak two and can understand some archaic/modern Spanish because they conquered us for 300 years and subsequently ruined my country. Trump: McDonald’s. An international embarrassment. Chocolate: We found this AMAZING Chocnut spread at the mall yesterday. I had my initial doubts - I thought it was gonna taste like a cheap Nutella rip-off. But it tastes exactly like Chocnut, just in the most perfect spread-y form. I plan to finish the entire jar just with a spoon. Stove: I’m terribly afraid of using any and every kitchen equipment because I have a big fear of setting the house on fire. I only ever use the stove when I’m deathly hungry and I have to make something by myself. Toy: My family recently went to a kid’s birthday party that had giveaway bags with toys inside, but seeing as we’re all teenagers now who had no use for it, it was earning dust in the house. Now, the Philippines is abound with street children so when we went out yesterday, my mom gave the bag to a couple of kids who were knocking on our car. I know I’m not supposed to romanticize the situation, but they had the biggest smiles when they realized what they got and I saw them playing merrily at the side of the street and even invited some other kids to join in. Again, not glamorizing it - I’m just happy they were happy. Video: I could never run out of things to watch on YouTube. It’s one of my favorite websites, especially when bouts of depression have to happen. Kiss: It started out with a kiss, how did it end up like this? It was only a kiss, IT WAS ONLY A KISS. Glass: The glass section of department stores always creeped me out. One wrong move and you can knock a whole shelf down, and the ‘You break it you pay for it’ signs all over the area don’t help at all. Light: Light and queen come together in this survey and all I remember is Lightning McQueen. Queen: ^ Moon: Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Moon river, wider than a mile, I’m crossing you in style some day.  Blue: My organization’s color is blue, so I have a soft spot for blue. Cream: I like soups that are creamy. I say this because my sister had ramen yesterday and it was so oily and salty and fatty and creamy and ugh I loved it. Dead: The Misfits. They’re more horror than death, but still. Purple: My great-grandma loved the color purple and I remember when her house used to be peppered in purple stuff. All her dresses were purple. I’m fairly sure it was the reason why it was my favorite color as a kid. Lace: Underwear, hahaha. Cardboard: Gabie was munching on sunflower seeds when I picked her up last week. I’ve never tried those, so I asked for some and I said it tasted like cardboard. I’ve never eaten cardboard but I would imagine that that’s what it tastes like. Elephant: Majestic. Deserves to be saved and properly cared for. Harry: One of my fave members of the royal family. He’s so precious. Leather: Is bad. Paisley: Isn’t there a country singer with this name? Italy: Pasta and stuff. Joey Tribbiani. Immature: I saw the gun girl Kaitlin-something on Twitter because she got viral again for a dumb-ass tweet she made. She posted pics of herself in the snow and tweeted “Look at all this global warming,” like seriously America??? Wtf do they teach y’all in your schools?????? Crime: Raisins in cookies. Angel: I had a friend named Angel - talked about her a lot in old surveys. She migrated to Canada when we were 12 and I haven’t seen her since. We do follow each other on Twitter but all she tweets about is K-pop so I had to put her on mute. Great memories with her. Boil: When I read this tweet aloud in my head, what I did think of was Charles Boyle from B99. Key: Key lime pie. Never tried it, but I’m always down to try anything. Sacrifice: The Catholic schoolgirl in me remembers the crucifixion because textbooks and teachers would overuse the phrase, “Jesus sacrificed his life for our sins” or “God sacrificed his son to save the world,” and all those cheesy lines. It’s as though the Bible’s favorite word is ‘sacrifice.’ Larry: Punk and AJ’s dog is named Larry Talbot. Dog: ^ Psychology: I took one psych elective last semester, but the prof was average at best so it didn’t really win over the course as a whole to me. Psychology was one of my ‘what-if’ courses so at the start, I was excited about taking it - but the class that I had was just so boring and the prof gave tests that were way too hard for otherwise fairly easy topics, so I quickly ran out of enthusiasm for the class. Rag: I hate touching rags. Especially wet ones UGH. Sun: Hate it, unless I’m at the beach. Lips: My friends dragged me to the makeup section of the department store last week and there were rows upon rows of lipstick testers. As someone who’s never purposely browsed for makeup, I ended up swatching like 20 shades on my wrist and looked like a five year old who doodled all over her whole left arm. Cage: The UFC ring, because it looks like a cage. Alarm: I had/have several alarms set on my phone throughout today to tell me to start working on various deliverables. For example, I had an 8 AM alarm to work on my J 196 paper; then from 8:30 AM I had an alarm to compose letters that I needed to write as my org’s secretary; then at around 10 AM, my alarm was for finishing up my readings for Kas 154 (short for kasaysayan, which means history). Official: I have a batchmate from high school who just got engaged...she was honestly one of the weirder ones back then so as much as I didn’t want to judge, it was hard to take it seriously at first, but it’s whatevs. I have no business in her life and I’m happy she’s happy. King: I finished my history readings this morning and there were so many mentions of kings. Lost: That show. The general consensus is that they ended the show crappily, but other than that I know nothing about it. Dating: There was once a dude who joined a dating show. Ended up being a serial killer. I forgot his name though. Balm: I was at a Korean store yesterday and saw an array of lip balms and glosses. I was never much of a makeup girl but the collection they had was just so cute, it made me think if I should start investing in makeup as well hah. Tomato: Ketchup is my second least favorite condiment after mustard. Game: Hmmm I downloaded a bunch of new game apps on my phone because I recently realized that I’m so boring??? and I only have social media on my phone??? I got ten new apps to make my phone more alive haha. Lotion: Is slimy, but smells nice and makes my skin smooth and look better. I got two hand creams for Christmas last year and it was then that I knew I was getting older because I was genuinely excited to try them both out. Expensive: Everything is. Powder: Reminds me of babies. The smell calms me down so well. Cross: I was shopping for clip-on earrings yesterday and there were several designs with crosses on them, which just reminded me of Christianity and it kinda peeved me for like 3 minutes lol. History: My favorite subject. I’ve never been so excited to be dumped on with such a thick stack of readings until this semester. Sex: Haven’t had it in a bit, too busy. Rainbow: We watched a film called Rainbow’s Sunset, which was really promising because it told a story about two men, both very old, and are lovers. In a traditional, conservative, poisonously Catholic country such as the PH, it’s a very bold move to produce a feature film that tackled such a horrible, taboo, horrifying thing (please note the sarcasm/mockery). We didn’t escape the guffaws and the loud ew’s whenever the two leads would kiss, which was sad. 

Anyway that’s not my point and what I really want to say is that the film was ultimately terrible, it was terribly-executed and it portrayed gay men in such a cheesy manner which in the long run, probably contributes to the continuing negative image of LGBT people in the Philippines. Gab, the bigger film buff between the two of us, felt so offended by how bad the movie turned out to be lol. Bay: Bayley, from WWE. She was a huge star like 3 years ago, but I think the bookers ultimately fucked her character up and now she’s stale. I feel so bad. Seth: Seth Rollins, also from WWE. Also very attractive. Pepper: I had okonomiyaki for lunch yesterday and there was like a thicker chunk of pepper that made it to my plate. Didn’t particularly enjoy that bite. Necrophile: Katie Vick. Google it to believe it. Wrestling is fucking dumb. Gravel: Funnily enough I do have a memory for gravel. Akeelah and the Bee was one of my favorite movies growing up; I watched it so many times that I had chunks of dialogue memorized at one point. One of the first scenes had Akeelah joining her school’s spelling bee, and one of the kids spelled grovel as g-r-a-v-e-l. He couldn’t understand why he got it wrong so the judge had to tell him that the word ‘grovel’ actually exists and what it means. Deep: I had a mental picture of the ocean when I read this word, so there’s that. Stephen: Hawking. Bucket: Chum Bucket. Hahaha Spongebob forever. England: Rugby? Grown: I always use the term ‘grown-ass’ haha. Spell: Spelling was one of my favorite activities in grade school and I would always score the highest in spelling exams. Kind of led me to my favorite job of proofreading/copyediting, really. Bark: My dog barked at nothing for five whole minutes a couple of days ago and it was hilarious. I shot two minutes of it. Long: Trees? Fan: Pamaypay, or hand fans in English.

Australia: First things that came to mind were the Sydney Opera House and Vegemite. Iron: Gabie’s nose bled last week. It wouldn’t stop flowing out of her nostrils and it smelled like rust for a good 15 minutes while she was trying to wash all the blood off, so it didn’t exactly help my case as someone who’s squeamish to death at the sight of blood. Melt: Chocolate. Beanie: Too warm for this country’s climate. Wax: Candles. Vigils. Burning your finger. Staying up all night to pray. Catholic school. Disease: Zombies. Resident Evil. Cannibal: The band Cannibal Corpse. Tried to get into them because Punk listened to them but it was too heavy for me. Flight: Airplanes, flights, vacations, away from everyone, nothing to worry about, good food, fighting with my siblings for the window seats. Porn: People be having weird fetishes sometimes. The thumbnails I see on websites...some of y’all crazy. Pot: I thought about how college life is so crazy. People would sell brownies or cookies with weed in them IN SCHOOL, meanwhile I still don’t even know if weed and pot are the same or if they’re two different things ohmygod HAHAHAHA I’m so sheltered wow I’m hopeless?????? Style: Taylor Swift and that subtle shade to Harry. People were shookened five years ago. Floss: Pork floss is really good. Star: There was a local celebrity who recently tweeted a pic, supposedly of a tiny tiny star that was beside the moon at like 5 AM, and she was asking what it was. Someone replied that it was Venus and explained what she just saw for her. Super cool. Nate: I don’t know anyone named Nate. I DID, however, remember the Naked Brothers Band. The older brother is named Nat, so it’s close enough. Soft: Pillows are soft. Orange: Hayley Williams’ hair 11 years ago. Witch: Philippine superstitions and how crazy and obsessive Filipinos can get. My mom, one of the most rational, no-nonsense people I know, scolds me every time I mock witchcraft or what we call ‘kulam’ cos she believes something will happen to me if I do. I’m all for honoring our mythology and traditions but sheesh, not to the obsessive extent. Mound: Ants. Root: Gabie used to watch this show where she shipped two girls named Root and Shaw. Oil: Massages. Hot: Deserts. Disc: Childhood, blowing on it to make it work, double-sided discs for longer movies, if a disc had scratches expect it to die soon. Soil: Plants. Planting trees. Muddy. Ugly: That scene in Spongebo where Patrick tells the story of the ugly barnacle. “Once there was an ugly barnacle. He was so ugly that everyone died. The end,” which didn’t help Spongebob who at the time was feeling super ugly hahahahaha. Sugar: Maroon 5. Also, my grandma used one particular jar for sugar throughout my entire childhood. It’s plastic, it’s clear, and it came with a red-orange lid. I’d often eat sugar on its own so I saw that jar quite a bit and it gives me a sense of nostalgia. I’m not so sure if that’s still the jar being used in the old house. Bone: Ribs :( Been craving for some. Sigh: Air??? I don’t know. Throne: Game of Thrones. I had to watch a 26-minute documentary of a GoT production for my broadcast management class. It’s insanely hard. So much respect to everyone involved in its prod. Calendar: I’m secretary for my org, which means that I always have to update everyone about our calendar of events. Carpet: Fancy. Flesh: The Walking Dead. Cement: Dangerous. Vow: The movie with Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum. One of my guiltier pleasures. Sweet: Desserts. And now I’m hungry.

[chvnchan]

is this an intro post by i, monique? i never actually know what to write down, and it’s taken me forever for me to finish the bottom of this so let’s both pretend i’ve written something very interesting and insightful and call it a day??? thank you, hit that pretty the cute little heart if you’d like to plot and i’ll come hit you up!

╰ ° ☆「 PARK JIMIN, CISMALE, HE/HIM 」— was that CHAN i just saw walking down the street? you know, the MAIN VOCAL of EVR10? i heard the TWENTY-TWO year old WAS ALMOST KICKED OUT BECAUSE OF A SCANDAL but i doubt it’s true. they’re way too CHARISMATIC and PLAYFUL for that. i guess only KIM CHANYEOL knows the truth though. ⋮ monique, 23, she/her.

backstory

01 - - - it’s the title of your life; not good enough. it’s a title that split your nails and bruised your fingertips as you attempt to get rid of it —— change it into something, something more hopeful. it’s their eyes that weigh you down from a young age, those skeptical eyes paired with their disappointed sighs that dance around your head and no matter how much you try to shake them away, tear them away, not good enough turns into you’ll never be good enough. The lavish lifestyle you lead is a bandaid over a wound torn way too wide, but you make do believing that maybe, it’ll scar over one day.

and so they pamper you with things to keep you quiet, two people who brought you into this world but are nothing more than strangers who reside, sometimes, at the same residence. Your mother is the maid who helps you get ready for school, your father is the chef who always prepares you snacks late into the night because —— he feels bad for you. That handsome man in the pressed suit who shares your name? a stranger who pretends to be more in front of his high class “ f r i e n d s. ” that beautiful woman whom you look so similar to? a stranger who wears you like an accessory when it benefits her.

a family only when it is convenient. it’s a concept you get use to —— it’s either adapt or suffer ( you suffer, you’re a needy child who seeks attention and is denied affection ). but you understand the concept. you find comfort in music and dance; two things you’re good at ( your parents aren’t impressed, they’d prefer it if you spent your time studying and not on “ useless hobbies ” ). but it’s something you won’t give up —— can’t give up, so you pursue it and in doing so you’re introduced to potential happiness.

02 - - - the butterflies in your stomach are present and it almost gets the better of you. but you stay for your audition, your voice shakes but you recover, and somehow you make it to the end. it doesn’t surprise you when your parents are not accepting of your choice to become a trainee, but for once you couldn't care less what they think. you move into the dorms and begin your new life.

there is an image you want to craft for yourself. someone cool and dependable, unlike your real self. not soft and needy and lonely, but confident, strong and talented. you lose kim chanyeol and find chan, a person you want to be, but someone you are not. but you’re not entirely sure you like your real self, so you continue to hide behind a tougher exterior,

you experience heartbreak for the first time, she rips the beating thing out of your chest and stomps on it ( you’re being dramatic, you understand why, but it doesn’t change the fact that it hurt you ). you’re ready to give up your career for her, but she’s not as stupid as you are and so she gives you up. you should be thankful, she saved your career, but all you feel is bitterness.

EVR10 becomes your main focus, your only focus. there’s a void in in you again and so you try to fill it with the group, with practice, with long nights dancing and throwing water bottles because damn, once again you’re thinking you’re not good enough. you helped pave the way, but part of you fears ever10 will become a distant memory in the wake of CATHEXIS.

personality

there is something almost sinful about chanyeol on stage. his actions are purposeful, his gaze lingers on the faces of his fans and his bottom lip is prisoner between his teeth. the way he moves his body is alluring, and his stage presence is deadly. he feeds off the energy of the crowd, lives for it, he loves being on stage —— performing —— and it shows. to put it simply, he is a huge flirt on stage, in fan meets, during vlives. —— he is raising his eyebrows, smirking, running his fingers through his hair, biting his lips and licking them.

there are certain elements of chan that he tries to incorporate off the stage. he wants to be that confident and bold, but he often comes off more as playful off stage. he’s approachable and warm; a soft heart that he tries to hide behind something cool and impressive. he’s rather insecure, his group members catch him training late into the night and might assume he’s just a hard worker, but most of the time he’s still practicing because he’s frustrated with himself, thinks he’s lacking, letting every down.

he is a ball of sass; he likes poking fun of others, but he tends to mean well the majority of the time. he’s that person looking for his partner-in-crime, he’s that person breaking certain rules because he wants to have a good time. he’s that person laughing so hard and so loud, hoping he’ll drown out the screeching of his own insecurities and self-doubt. he’s thoughtful and protective, but he can also hold grudges and be extremely bitter and salty toward people he’s not on good terms with.

in a nutshell

- rich boy with parents who were workaholics with high expectations, didn't really do a good job with the whole parenting thing and he's pretty bitter because he'd have preferred their time to presents. also bitter that they made him feel like he could never be good enough for them.

- became an idol without their approval. he got his bitterness from them and so at first, they cut off contact with him. after evr10 reached success, of course they changed their tune. too little, too late he's still incredibly bitter toward them.

- as a trainee he was constantly in trouble for hooking up with other trainees and people in general outside of the industry. but, like, he's always been like this so it was hard for him to change. and then after he debuted he met haena and fell in love way too quickly, but she gave him attention and he was hooked?

- aur found out about their relationship and gave them an ultimatum: break up or get the boot. he was 100% ready to leave, but haena broke up with him because she's smart and knows love doesn't equal money or stability and they're young af. chanyeol is just bitter now, but, like, she saved his career so he should be thankful. all of these flavors and he chooses to be salty, can relate.

- biggest flirt? he's here. also super dumb so watch out, he might catch feelings for anyone who gives him the time of day. and yet at the same time after haena, he's reluctant to even entertain the thought of being in a relationship.

- soft af, for real. he tries to hide it, but sometimes he just can't??? fans say he's got hella duality, but he'd prefer if they just see his sexy side and stop gushing over those videos of him completely losing it and being the softest bun.

- holds grudges forever. but, like, usually not over petty things.

- pretty shameless, ngl. claims he's not, but this boy is a liar.

- feelings get hurt very easily and he gets very mean when someone hurts him.

- works very hard, but he's super insecure so he's always trying to go the extra mile.

- lowkey worried about cathexis gaining more popularity. glad they're doing well, but he doesn't want evr10 to be forgotten. 

plots

01. his best friend? please? partner in crime, always going out for drinks and doing dumb things and narrowly keeping from getting caught by aur staff?

02. on the opposite, an enemy? these two can't stand each other? throwing shade at each other and lowkey in interviews too, but no one knows who each other are referring to except them? but then acting chummy when being recorded together because aur ain't having any of their shit?

03. something romantic? chan doesn't do romance but change his mind, break his heart again because i love angst. something unrequited on either side? one of them finds out and it's super awkward now? more than friends, but less than lovers? fans ship these two together and it's hilarious but maybe they're onto something these two are oblivious to or ignoring?

04. sibling-like bond? chan can be an absolute mess so someone who can keep him in line would be great?

05. anythiiiiiiiiiing. 

[bowiebond]

Uma x Reader - Childish Love

Requested: Yesss I'm gay af for Uma and I saw that you've started doing xfem!readers so I'd like to request a onehsot where reader is a childhood friend of Uma's who has always messed with her and generally driven her crazy but is highkey head over heels for her?

Warning: Swearing, almost drowning. ~~~

“Uma~!” You sang as you came into the chip shop, skipping to an imaginary beat as you suddenly hoisted yourself up fluidly to sit on the table right where she was coming out with trays of food. “How’s my dear friend?” You grinned.

“I am not your friend. Not today at least.” Uma growled, braids dyed burnt orange.

“Aw, come on Uma. I had to try it out on you!”

“Before what?” Uma glowered, shoving a tray of food towards a customer angrily.

“Before nothing. It’s so we can match.” You pulled off your pirate hat to let your hair fall out and show the burnt orange locks. “It’s temporary, but I thought we’d be super cute like this.” You winked her way as she grumbled under her breath, turning away from your sight to hide her burning face.

“I’m still pissed.”

“Well, I have to mess with something, Uma.” You smiled fondly at her. You two had been friends since diapers, even before Harry and Gil. You never knew your parents, but you were adopted by a lion of Scars pride. You adored your adoptive mother and the freedom she gave you.

Since the diaper days, you enjoyed messing with Uma. It was never public humiliation like Mal, but it was things you knew would annoy her, but she’d forgive you for

Like singing off key, braiding her braids when she was distracted so they tangled, and it took her a few hours to undo them, coating the desk of her ship with wax so her crew members would slip, dying her hair and poking fun as her until even she laughed.

It was fun messing with Uma. If you didn’t, she didn’t give your desired amount of attention. Which basically meant most of her attention.

“Uma.” You poked her shoulder as she washed dishes after the shop had closed. “Uma.” You poked her again. “Uma, stop ignoring me, your hair looks fine.” You whined.

“If you’re going to stick around, why don’t you help with the dishes before my mother notices I’m ‘slacking off’.” Uma snapped. You pursed your lips, knowing that topic was sensitive.

“Okay… Pass me a rag. You can dry.” You could see how red her hands were getting from the water temperature and nudged her aside with your hip, giving a playful grin. She rolled her eyes at you, taking a tee-towel and drying the dishes she had already washed.

You didn’t mind the boiling water. You figured it was trait you got from your parents. You weren’t affected much by temperature. You two spent the next hour in silence, working together. It was times like this Uma enjoyed. The soft quiet between you two that was anxious or overbearing or even intimidating. It was comforting, and it made her feel a rare moment of peace.

You really were her best friend in that aspect.

“Thanks for helping, (Y/N).” Uma smiled softly. “Most people can barely stand the water.”

“It’s cool. It means I can do this.” You collected a small piece of white foam and made a moustache on your face. “Oui oui and bonjour.” You weren’t exactly fluent, but you beamed when Uma laughed.

“You’re an idiot.” Uma’s voice was affectionate though as she said it.

“I’m your favourite idiot though, aren’t I?” You nudged her with a grin.

“Yeah, you are.”

You didn’t want to think of the day that you weren’t her favourite idiot.

~~~

“I can’t believe you!”

“What? It was just a joke – “

“My entire crew was watching! You completely made a fool of me!” Uma screeched as you flinched.

“Uma, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to take it so far – “

“It’s not the taking it too far, (Y/N), it’s that you’re an idiot who can’t read a situation and impact of your actions.” Uma stormed off the ship, wet teal braids jumping with every angry stomp.

“Well, well, ye finally pushed the limit, didn’t ye lass?” Harry giggled at your despair, wrapping a lock of your hair around his hook. “This is why I’m first mate, and ye ain’t even a part of the crew.” He grinned, wide and prideful as you pushed him away with a huff and ran after the sea witch. “I’ll make sure to make ye a coffin, sweetie!” Harry called after you, only making your mood darker than previous.

You were heartbroken. Had you really messed everything up with just a bucket of water? Maybe it was too much like the shrimp incident? Dammit, you had messed up everything!

You couldn’t find Uma in the chip shop, and she obviously wasn’t on the ship, so you went to the one place she could be.

“Uma!” You called out towards the water, barely touching the raising shoreline. You had been taught from a young age to not go near water. Your mother was a feline after all.

“Go away.” Uma’s head barely popped above the surface as she addressed you.

“No. I came to say sorry. Please, Uma, let’s not break our friendship over something this petty.” You didn’t want to lose her. You needed Uma in your life.

“Well, I’m the Queen of pettiness, so piss off.” Uma growled.

“Please, Uma…” You swallowed down your nerves, stepping into the water and slowly making your way to her.

“What are you doing?” Uma’s voice rose in panic.

“Uma, I didn’t mean to humiliate you, I would never do it deliberately, you’re my best friend.” The water slowly rose to soak your pants, reaching your waist.

“(Y/N), you can’t swim, what are you doing –?”

“And I know I’m a pretty crappy friend, I drive you crazy and it’s probably not even funny anymore, but I like when you’re paying attention to me.” You shuddered at the cold water lapping at your shoulders.

“Yeah, well I’m paying attention now, so get out of the water!”

“Not until you understand that I like you!” You snapped right back at her order, tilting your head back on your tippy toes as you almost reached her, water tickling your ears.

“We’re best friends, you idiot! Of course, I like you, and I forgive you, just get out of the water before you drown!” You screwed your eyes shut, going for gold.

“I don’t mean friends, Uma! I know the Isle’s not the perfect place, but you promised me Auradon one day. I wanted to wait for that day, but I’m impatient and reckless, so yeah. I like you, Uma.”

“I don’t get you…” Uma shook her head with a sigh. “If we aren’t friends, then what do you want? I offered you a spot on the crew – “

“I love you, you idiot!” You laughed, begging the tears to stay in your eyes as you stared up at the sky that looked at grey as your heart, trying to stay afloat. “You can leave me to drown now if you want, but…I had to say something, Uma.”

“You…You idiot.” You yelped when you suddenly felt arms around you, knocking you off balance as Uma brought you back to shore. You shifted at the uncomfortable feeling of sand sticking to your backside, but paused when Uma started laughing above you.

“What?”

“You are so childish.” She buried her face in your shoulder, shoulders shaking with amusement. “You could have just told me.”

“I was scared.”

“You were scared to admit you liked me, but you can go drown just fine? You are so childish.” You pouted, crossing your arms at her teasing.

“I wanted it to be special. When we were finally in Auradon and everything would be…okay, you know?”

“Oh, it was very special. I love having to save my girlfriend from drowning.” Uma drawled.

“G-Girlfriend? Really?”

“Yes, really. As long as you stop humiliating me in front of my crew! And outside of them would be nice too…”

“Not a chance on that last part!” You tackled her in a hug, uncaring of the itchy sand sticking to your skin as you squeezed her midriff. “I love you.” You cooed.

“Ugh, sickening…” Uma grumbled. “Say it again.” She ordered when you went quiet.

“I love you.” A smile crawled up your face. “I love you.” You tilted your head up with a smirk. “I love you, Uma.” You pressed a kiss to her lips, soft and gentle and tasting like salty sea water, but you’d live. “Do you love me?” You hummed, enjoying the red tint on her dark skin.

“Shut up and get off me. You’re heavy.” Uma muttered, pushing you off as she stood. You shrugged to yourself.

You could take that as a yes.

[glassy28]

Christmas tradition?

This is written for Day 11 ‘Snowboarding/Skiing’ of straykidschristmas2017 by @felixsfreckles. Thank you so much for making this possible. I’m actually so glad, that I was able to finish this before the day ends… Might contain some mistakes since it’s not proofread yet. But soon.

Also on ao3

Genre: slice of life, no angst, humour, romance Characters: Stray Kids (OT9); Bang Byungchan (Chan, Chris), Kim Woojin, Lee Minho, Seo Changbin, Hwang Hyunjin, Han Jisung, Lee Felix, Kim Seungmin, Yang Jeongin Relationships: Changlix, Chan/Woojin Summary: The members of Stray Kids are trying to decide what to do on their free day during the December month. Word count: 1356 words Disclaimer: I am in no way a professional skier, snowboarder or teacher in these sports. I’m taking my experiences as a beginner in skiing only. I have no idea about snowboarding but I did some research. Also I have never been to Korea and don’t know anything about their ski resorts.

A/N: I think Minho, Changbin and Felix can snowboard; Chan, Seungmin and Jisung can ski and Woojin, Hyunjin and Jeongin can do neither.

Enjoy reading this!

All the members of Stray Kids were sitting on the couch in their living room and discussing potential places to go to during their days off. They were all huddling on the sofas and chairs while drinking hot beverages.  Due to it being cold and snowy they came to the topic of winter sports. They still remembered how they went ice skating during their show and having a lot of fun, but what Chan didn’t expect was that Woojin, Hyunjin and Jeongin can neither ski nor snowboard.

“What do you mean you three have never skied or snowboarded in your life?! How have you guys never been to a ski resort?!”, asked Chan incredulously.

“It literally means that we have no idea how to ski or snowboard and our parents have never brought us to a ski resort, because they can’t do it as well,” answered Woojin in a matter-of-fact tone.

Chan almost wanted to cry, because his parents always brought him to a ski resort since he was five. Since then they always went and even had annual passes, but since coming to Korea he wasn’t able to ski anymore because no one would go with him.

This gave him the perfect opportunity to finally go skiing again and he was adamant to get his way. “It’s decided! We are going to a ski resort and that’s final!”, Chan exclaimed and pulled out his laptop. “We just need to find a place first and rent some gears.”

“But ehm… Chan-hyung, what if we break our legs or worse our neck?”, Jeongin asked hesitantly. The maknae actually had a fear of heights and wasn’t sure if he was able to ski on high mountains, but he didn’t want to tell them. “Don’t worry about that. If you fall, try falling sideways and with your legs parallel to each other. Also the snow will cushion your fall, so you don’t have to worry too much,” Chan replied easily and already started searching up ski resorts near Seoul.

After doing some research and various discussion rounds, they finally decided on going to the Vivaldi Park since it’s so close and pretty popular with the younger generation and the only thing left to do is wait for their free day to arrive.

Finally the day has come and they decided to split into two cars while Woojin and Chan drive them to the ski resort. There, they lend the necessary equipment and quickly went inside to spend as much time as possible skiing/snowboarding.

“Should we split up into teams? One skiing team and one snowboarding team?”, asked Changbin while adjusting his shoes on his snowboard and was met with an answer by Chan:“Sure! That way it’s easier to go around.”  

After they stood in their team Minho noticed how he was in the snowboarding team with only Changbin and Felix. He had a brief deja-vu moment and his face contorted into horror. “Wait! I think I changed my mind,” he almost shouted. He definitely didn’t want to be a third wheel again. During their filming in the park he was constantly a third wheel and didn’t want to experience that ever again. Humanity should ban the possibility of being a third or even a fifth wheel. It’s literally the worst feeling ever and Minho wanted to avoid this as best as possible. Additionally, the Changlix lovey-dovey stuff was annoying him to no end. During the car ride they were sitting besides each other and were in their own little world, whispering things, laughing at not funny jokes and puns and being very touchy. To his horror he had to sit besides him because he didn’t shout ‘Shotgun’ early enough. Jisung beat him to it and he almost wanted to vomit during the whole ride. Many times he wanted to shout for them to get a room, but sealed his lips shut and looked out the window.

“But why?”, asked Felix with a saddened expression. “Don’t you like us?” Minho only rolled his eyes and felt Felix’ puppy eyes on him. “It’s not you guys. It’s me. I think I’ll stick close to our beginners and see if they need help.” “Sure, hyung. Whatever. Have fun with them,” Changbin said and headed towards the lift to finally start snowboarding. Felix quickly scrambled behind him and waved at the other members:“Have fun!”

“Well, let’s start with lesson 1!”, exclaimed Chan enthusiastically and ignored the groan coming from Minho. Jisung and Seungmin noticed Minho’s piercing and annoying glances when Chan was starting with the basics and looked at each other briefly and decided then to drag Minho towards the lift. “Hey, Minho! You wanna ski the hard courses with us?”, asked Seungmin at which Minho perched up. 
He nodded vigorously, but stopped himself. “I mean, only if you planned to go there too…” Seungmin smiled at him and told him that it was fine. “Chan can take care of them and occasionally we can go look after them. They’ll be fine. Let’s go!”, Jisung exclaimed and dragged them towards the lifts.

Meanwhile Chan explained every little step about skiing to his new ‘pupils’ and was happy that all three were actually interested in learning. Jeongin was a little wobbly on his feet but gained confidence when Chan praised him for getting something right.

Changbin and Felix never stopped by to look at Chan’s teaching, but would rather snowboard all the different routes and try doing various tricks. They didn’t bother because they knew Chan would do amazingly and they didn’t want to see Chan and Woojin obliviously flirting with each other. Even though they weren’t better, they weren’t at the stage of not being together. They resolved their matter after the picnic filming and since then they couldn’t get enough of each other. Chan and Woojin on the other hand were flirting and dancing around each other to test out the waters. Neither would go for the first move, but all of the members knew they would eventually end up together.

Seungmin and Jisung contrarily took some breaks and helped Chan out. They were always happy to see the progress their friends would make, but seeing them fall down was an added bonus.

When the sun was starting to set, all of them met up again and Jeongin was so excited to tell them all how much fun it was and how much he has learnt from Chan. He actually enjoyed it very much and wasn’t even that scared of the height since they stayed at the children’s mountain. “Can we come back again?”, asked Jeongin hopefully and looked at Chan. It melted Chan’s heart and he could only agree. “If everyone else would love to come back, than sure!”

“Shotgun!”, Minho exclaimed and ran towards the passenger seat when he saw Woojin and Chan taking out their keys. “Damn it, Minho!” Jisung was momentarily distracted by his conversation with Changbin about rap and forgot to call shotgun to be able to avoid the situation Minho was in previously. “HA! Now you get to be the one dealing with the couple. Have fun back there!”, Minho said gleefully and stuck out his tongue for good measures. Jisung wanted to stomp his foot like a child but settled for pouting and crossing his arms in front of him. The rest of the members only looked at them as if they have grown two heads, but didn’t comment on it. They were exhausted from today and wanted to get home quickly.

At the end of the day, they all huddled together in their living room and drinking hot cocoa again. “We should do this again sometime,” Woojin finally said when he put his head on Chan’s shoulder. Everyone nodded along or voiced out their agreement. Chan was content with his new ‘family’ sitting around with some hot chocolate after a day of skiing/snowboarding. He was a little worried that he would force it on them too much, but he was happy to see them enjoying it and wanting to do it again. Maybe they could make this a christmas tradition…

Note: I’M SALTY AF ABOUT THE LAST ELIMINATION. FELIX IS MY BIAS AND HE JUST RIPPED HIM OUT OF THIS GROUP AND I JUST CANNOT DEAL WITH THIS. I literally cried a river when I saw a clip of Stray Kids crying about Felix’ elimination. Well guess what?! We want OT9 (I feel bad that I didn’t include more descriptions of the scenery but whatever… too lazy to change that now.)

[thugthe8]

Wait, He’s Flirting? | Soonhoon

College!Soonhoon | Word Count: 2.2k | Fluffy af

Anon asked: “Hi!! Could you do soonhoon as college students? Thanks a bunch xx”

Writing this was way too fun, I hope it’s okay! Fluffy college soonhoon is a good concept 10/10

Masterlist

Jihoon was okay with being more on the introverted side. He had a friend circle, he had schoolwork and music to keep him occupied, and his roommate Mingyu was extroverted enough for the both of them. Jihoon wasn’t lonely, he insisted.

“Hi!”

Jihoon jolts, snapping the lead of his mechanical pencil as he dates a new page in his notebook. He hates this required Fundamentals of Biology class, he hates the professor for always assigning projects that take way too long, and he hates that it’s his earliest class. It should be an unwritten rule that no university courses can start before 8 AM.

“I’m Soonyoung, you’re Jihoon right? I think we’re supposed to be partners for the next project.” The boy who had startled him was speaking far too quickly for Jihoon to process anything at this hour of the morning.

“Um, cool. I’m Jihoon. But you knew that.”

Soonyoung unleashes a blinding smile, and Jihoon feels like he’s been annihilated by a ray of sunlight.

“Yeah. Is your dorm okay for collaborating? I’m in a suite with 5 other guys and it’s kind of a disaster all the time…” he begins rambling about toothpaste and nunchucks. Jihoon can’t take this much energy so early in the morning.

“Yeah it’s cool. We can figure it out later, yeah?” Jihoon knows he’s being a little rude interrupting, but he didn’t have time to get coffee this morning. Besides, this Soonyoung guy doesn’t seem like he’s ever been unhappy in his life, so Jihoon probably didn’t hurt his feelings.

“Cool! I’ll get in touch with you later then. Bye, Ji!” Soonyoung beams at him again and leaves a dumbstruck Jihoon at his desk. No one has called him Ji since elementary school. It’s been a weird morning.

The only part of Jihoon’s schedule worse than Biology was lunch on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Every person he knew on campus had some sort of class at 11:30, leaving Jihoon to fend for himself in the dining hall. He wouldn’t admit eating alone bothered him, but in a dining hall full of socializing people it felt awkward to sit in the corner on his own. Making friends is hard, though, and Jihoon decides he’d rather be lonely in the corner with his oranges than talk to a stranger.

But when he spots Soonyoung eating by himself too, he wonders if he should make a move and sit with him. Mingyu would be so proud of him if he actually talked to someone new, and Soonyoung was certainly too nice to reject him or anything. Jihoon resolves to be courageous. He’s got this.

Turns out he doesn’t got this, because he’s standing behind Soonyoung with his mouth open and nothing is coming out. It’s awkward.

It gets more awkward when Soonyoung actually notices him standing there.

“Hey, did you wanna sit with me?”

Wow, it sounded so easy for him to say that. Jihoon is salty that he wasn’t gifted with Soonyoung’s social skills.

“Um, if you don’t mind. We should probably get to, uh, know each other for our project. I guess,” Jihoon’s eyebrows furrow at his own lame reasoning.

“Good idea! I never have anyone to eat lunch with on these days anyways. Now we’re lunch buddies!!” Soonyoung says, all the while stacking his Oreos into a tower. Jihoon isn’t sure why he has so many Oreos or why Soonyoung is making such an intricate tower, but he doesn’t question it.

“What’s your major?”

“Engineering,” Soonyoung rolls his eyes. “But I spend all my time dancing. I’d switch majors if I could, but I’m a little tied up.”

“Well you seem to be good at… tower-building?” Jihoon gestures to the Eiffel Oreo tower.

“I’m actually just terrible at sitting still. You should see me on caffeine, that’s a good one.”

“Are you telling me you’re actually that energetic during bio every morning? Like without coffee?”

“Yup!! But this one time time I drank three cups of black coffee by accident…”

Jihoon is amazed. He’s never held such a good conversation with a new friend before. There was no talk of the weather, no awkward silence, no desperation to think of a new topic for conversation. He tells Mingyu about his newest acquaintance.

“Oh my god, you actually made a friend… I’m so proud!!” Mingyu pretends to wipe away a tear.

“I’m not that anti-social, Mingyu.”

“Says the guy who skips parties to work on Garageband until 4 AM.”

“You only go to those parties because that Wonwoo guy goes to some of them. Oh, and Soonyoung is coming over tomorrow night for the project.”

“Wow, you’re moving fast there buddy, I’ll clear out so you two can have some fun,” Mingyu wiggles his eyebrows excessively. Jihoon rolls his eyes in exasperation.

Soonyoung comes over, and things are incredibly normal. He makes jokes, Jihoon laughs, and they get some work done. Things feel right with Soonyoung, Jihoon thinks. Weeks pass, and Soonyoung continues to crash Jihoon’s dorm despite their completion of the project. Jihoon learns about Soonyoung’s part-time job as a dance instructor, his fights with his parents about changing his major, and his weird obsession with Star Wars. Soonyoung, in turn, learns about Jihoon’s late night lyric writing sessions, his collection of Skitty plushies, and is pleased to discover how cute and soft Jihoon gets when he’s sleepy.

Mingyu walks in one day to find Jihoon in his rolling chair playing one of his songs off the computer, with Soonyoung resting his chin on top of Jihoon’s hair. It’s adorable, actually, and Mingyu is ready for the ship to sail.

“How are things going with Soonyoung?”

“Fine?”Jihoon raises an eyebrow. “I don’t know what ‘things’ you’re referring to, though.”

“Come on, you guys flirt more than anyone I know, and I know a lot of people,” Mingyu gives him a knowing look.

“We don’t flirt, Mingyu. We’re friends.”

“Okay, fine. But he’s hot right?”

“I mean, I won’t argue with that. Objectively speaking.”

“Also you guys cuddle every week on movie night. And you wear his shirts because they’re big and you like it. And you talk like you’ve been married for years-”

“Okay! I get it, thank you,” Jihoon’s ears are red. “…wait do you actually think he’s flirting though-”

“Did you listen to anYTHINg I just said hyung? And he calls you Ji! No one does that, man. I think you guys are into each other. You gotta start noticing the signs man.”

Jihoon nods, resolving to start picking up on these things.

“Are you gonna eat your cherry?”

Soonyoung was treating Jihoon to ice cream sundaes at the campus dairy bar. He insisted on paying, and Jihoon felt guilty, but he refused to let a perfectly good cherry go to waste. Soonyoung picked up the cherry and held it above Jihoon.

“Open up!”

Jihoon flushed red as he let Soonyoung feed him. Ever since his talk with Mingyu, he started noticing. He noticed now how often Soonyoung would grab his hand to drag him somewhere but forget to let go, or when he’d smile widely and ruffle Jihoon’s hair. But it never seemed romantic, and Jihoon had no idea what to think anymore.

“I have a dance showcase in like, two weeks. It’s crunch time! But also my legs hurt,” Soonyoung stretched and yawned.

“Make sure you rest, Soonyoung. Your endless energy supply scares me, cause someday you’re gonna run out of steam and end up like me.”

“Like a zombie, you mean,” Soonyoung grins, and feeds Jihoon more of his ice cream. “Don’t you worry about me, Mr. Late-Night DJ. I’ll manage.”

“If you overwork yourself I’ll fight you,” Jihoon threatens, but he looks so soft with his hair in his face and sweatshirt three sizes too big.

“Okay Ji,” Soonyoung ruffles his hair affectionately.

The next movie night, Jihoon finds that he’s now very aware of Soonyoung’s every move. They’re tucked side by side on his bed like always with laptop playing Dr. Strange, but Jihoon can't stop thinking about how his arm is right up against Soonyoung’s. Tentatively, he leans his head on Soonyoung’s shoulder, just to test out the waters. Soonyoung glances down at him, and with a faint smile slides his arm around Jihoon’s shoulders. Jihoon has trouble remembering to breathe.

Jihoon knows Soonyoung’s showcase is coming up this week, but they haven’t talked about it much at all. Jihoon hadn’t really seen Soonyoung dance before other than a lot of Sistar choreography competitions in their dorm, but he knew Soonyoung had some serious talent beyond that of Touch My Body.

He drags Mingyu to the auditorium with him, in case he requires emotional support after what he’s about to see. Nothing, however, could have saved him from those leather pants.

Soonyoung dominates the stage like nothing Jihoon has ever seen. He can’t look away for a second, even if his blood boils with jealousy as he dances with Yuju, one of the prettiest girls on campus. Even Mingyu is amazed by Soonyoung’s dance skills, not to mention how good he looks in that red and black leather jacket.

After the showcase, Mingyu goes off and leaves Jihoon to wait outside the performance hall in the cold. Nearly everyone else has left the building when Soonyoung finally comes out, dance bag slung across his chest.

“That was amazing,” Jihoon walks up to him, happy to congratulate his friend.

Soonyoung stops dead in his tracks, staring at Jihoon with wide eyes.

Jihoon pauses, confused. “Um, what’s up?”

“You… you came. To watch me?”

“Of course I came,” Jihoon says incredulously.

They stare at each other, before Soonyoung swiftly steps forward and pulls Jihoon into a hug, tight and warm and emotional. Jihoon reaches his arms around his back gently as Soonyoung buries his face into Jihoon’s neck. They stay there for a bit, Soonyoung is warm, and Jihoon can hardly breathe.

“Thank you… for coming,” Soonyoung finally murmurs into Jihoon’s ear. He pulls back, and looks down at Jihoon intensely. “My parents… never really came to watch me dance growing up. So I- it means a lot that you came, Ji.” Soonyoung swallows and looks away.

Jihoon grabs Soonyoung’s hand, lacing their fingers together shyly.

“Let’s go home.” Jihoon gives his hand a little tug.

Jihoon falls asleep in Soonyoung’s arms that night.

“Oh my god, I’m so over my mom.”

“What’d she say?” Jihoon doesn’t look up from the track on his computer. Soonyoung is flopped on the bed, texting his parents.

“Still a big no no on switching majors. And they want to know why I don’t have a girlfriend yet, yikes.”

Jihoon’s heart sinks, but this is his chance to do some digging on Soonyoung’s flirting habits. Yes, Jihoon still has no idea what constitutes as flirting and what’s platonic, but he’s trying.

“Why don’t you ask out Yuju, you guys danced well together.”

“Nah, she’s too tall. I like the short ones,” Soonyoung says, flipping over onto his stomach.

“Okay, well… dark hair or light hair?”

“I like blondes.”

Jihoon barely stops himself from touching his own dyed blonde hair impulsively.

“You’d probably want to date a dancer though, right?”

Soonyoung sighs. “Honestly, I’ve kinda always been more into the singers. The musical ones.”

“Oh… well someone outgoing would probably be a good match for you too…”

“Actually, I like the ones that hole themselves up in their rooms until the early morning hours and don’t know how to function in social situations.”

Jihoon feels like he’s being toyed with, and he doesn’t like it. He turns his chair around and gets up, glaring at Soonyoung who’s already staring back at him.

“What are you doing Soonyoung?” Jihoon sighs in frustration.

Soonyoung stands up and walks towards Jihoon, in fact he doesn’t stop until Jihoon is trapped between the desk and his arms. He stares down at Jihoon, the same intense look on his face from the night after the dance showcase. Jihoon slowly meets his gaze.

And then they’re kissing, and it’s soft but intense and everything Jihoon didn’t know he needed. Soonyoung’s hands slide around his waist as Jihoon pulls him closer by his belt loops. There are fingers in hair, hands grabbing shirts, and heavy breaths when they pull apart.

“You’re so cute, Ji,” Soonyoung beams at Jihoon’s pink cheeks.

“Keep calling me cute and we won’t do that anymore.”

“You’re the boss,” Soonyoung throws his hands up in surrender before pulling Jihoon back in for more.

Jihoon is surprised that not much changes when he and Soonyoung begin dating. They hold hands more, and kiss, but their dynamic doesn’t change and Jihoon is happy about that.

“Wait, you really couldn’t tell when I was flirting with you?”

“Yes, we’ve established that I am terrible at romance, please drop it,” Jihoon says as they leave Biology. “We just got along so well that I thought we were weirdly destined to be great friends, or whatever. But then Mingyu said you were flirting and then I decided we should be boyfriends.”

“And yet, somehow I recall that I did all the flirting and made all the moves. I don’t think you’d recognize flirting if it hit you in the face.”

“Were you flirting when you took your shirt off that one time and threw it because that actually did hit me in the face.”

“Come one that- wait is this supposed to be you flirting right now? Are you flirting with me, Lee Jihoon?”

“Yes definitely.”

Soonyoung throws his arm around Jihoon’s shoulders and yanks him closer.

“You are terrible at this. But I love you anyways, Ji.”

“Love you too, Soon.”

Send me a request!!

[sage-nebula]

Five questions you want to answer but haven't been asked yet! ;D

99.) Pokemon Cards, Games, or Show?

Despite my unyielding, unending, unstoppable love for Alan, the games will always come first for me. (Of course, he’s had a shout-out in the games as well, so … ;D) The games are the entire reason why I was interested in watching the anime in the first place. The games are the reason why I was interested in the cards. As much as I love the anime and have a lot of opinions about it, the games always have and always will come first for me. The games are where it all started. Without the games, we wouldn’t have any of what we currently have. Without the games, the anime wouldn’t exist. Without the games, the hundreds of manga series (because there are a lot, which is why I get so aggravated when people talk about “the” manga when referencing PokéSpe) wouldn’t exist. The games started it all, the games are the source of everything. The games will always come first.

After the games, though, I do pick the anime. And then the cards, I guess, but I haven’t cared about the TCG in a very long time, outside of still being salty af that my biological mother threw out my card album (that had, among other things, my holographic first edition charizard card, and sentimental value aside, those still sell for upwards of $300 on eBay; I wouldn’t sell it, but damn, she threw away something so valuable out of pure spite and stupidity, I just). So for me it goes games, anime, and … everything else, haha.

98.) Pokemon main series games, pokemon ranger games, or pokemon mystery dungeon games?

The main series games come first, obviously, for all the reasons started above and more. I love the main series games. While of course I have some criticisms about some of them, and while of course there are some things that could be done better, I still adore the main series games and very likely always will. I love most everything about them and I can’t foresee that changing.

But that said, I also really, really, really love the Ranger games! Or at least, I really loved the one I played, which was Guardian Signs. The gameplay was a lot of fun, I love the concept of the Rangers and the Ranger Union, and how they differ from ordinary trainers but still do so much good in their own unique way. I love how they “capture” pokémon by not actually capturing them, per se, but rather by using their capture stylers to convey their feelings to the pokémon, calming them or soothing them and then asking for help from them. I also love the instances where this is done when rescuing pokémon from the poachers / villains. They send pokémon out to attack you, as any trainer would, but instead of battling and knocking their pokémon out, you use the capture styler to soothe and convince that pokémon to stop attacking. You, in essence, help that pokémon see that they don’t have to battle for this awful person! To be honest, having a device that can allow you to communicate with a trainer’s pokémon like that could be used for nefarious purposes, if put into the wrong hands, but capture styling is not as easy as it looks and I imagine that Rangers have to undergo tests and rigorous training to be certified. Regardless, I loved all these aspects, as well as the overall atmosphere, the story (even the silly bits!), and the characters … and I adored the Sign aspect of it, how you could draw, well, guardian signs with your styler in order to summon legendary pokémon. Did you know, Pokémon Ranger: Guardian Signs had Soaring long before ORAS! And you didn’t have to Soar on one of the Latis (though of course you could, and why wouldn’t you?), but rather, you could Soar on any flying-type pokémon you had bonded with during a “capture” session. It was great. And you could rampage across the countryside on Raikou, or Entei, or Suicune, just by summoning them with your styler. You didn’t own them, of course, they weren’t captured in a little monster ball, but you could summon them if you needed them for aid just by drawing their sign in the sky. (Or, er, if you wanted to get across Oblivia faster, but … >_>;; ) It was great, and that’s the kind of legendary pokémon partnership I’m okay with, rather than the utter nonsense of capturing one to use for battle.

Anyway, I really want to replay this game, and I might do that soon, but I really loved it! I wish we could get a new Ranger game sometime this century, but alas … T___T

(Meanwhile, I don’t see the appeal of the Mystery Dungeon games. At all. I never have. I tried to play the first one, I really did, but I was so bored I completely forgot I owned it after a little while. I’m glad people enjoy them, more power to them, but they’re not for me, and I wish we could chill out on getting new Mystery Dungeons to instead get at least one new Ranger game instead, but alas.)

97.) Gym Leader, Elite Four, or Champion?

I’m not entirely sure what this one is asking, if it’s asking which one I’d personally want to be, or which position I value more highly, or what. But either way, I guess my answer is Champion … but in the way I see it, rather than the way I think most people interpret it.

In all my years in this fandom / way of life, I’ve seen most people interpret “Champion” as simply “strongest trainer, gets lots of accolades, gets to sit on a throne and be cool all day”. And I can’t blame people for having that interpretation, because—in an effort to make this series accessible to kids,��which is not something I am faulting—Pokémon has not delved very deeply into politics. Again, just to make it extra clear, that’s understandable; kids aren’t here to play a game that dives deep into policy and procedure, even though Gen V really toed that line and confirmed a lot of the beliefs and headcanons I already had, even without explicitly saying so. But either way, I refuse to buy into the idea that the Champion is just there to be strong and take challenges. A Champion is more than that. A Champion needs to be more than that. Setting aside that this world has to at least try to have some form of functioning government in some way, if someone is going to hold the position of Champion—if they are going to be the ones that people and pokémon look to in times of crisis—then they need to earn that. In my view, a Champion is someone who not only handles all the policy and procedure that comes across their desk as it comes across their desk (fulfilling the executive branch, as well as tapping into legislative and judicial when the time calls for it), but they’re also a protector. They’re the very tip of the spear that is used to protect their region and all of those within it. In How to Train Your Dragon 2, Hiccup says, “The alpha protects them all,” and that’s the Champion, in my eyes. If the Champion is the strongest trainer in the region—and that’s something that all Pokémon media seems to agree on—then it is the Champion’s duty—their obligation and responsibility—to use that strength that they have to protect all of those within their region who may not be able to protect themselves. Regardless of anything, regardless of the danger or crisis, regardless of whether the people and pokémon in that region love them or hate them, they have to protect them, it’s their job. “It’s not about what they deserve. It’s about what you believe,” Diana says in Wonder Woman, and that, too. That’s absolutely true of the Champion. The Champion, as the strongest there is, is the one who must put themselves between their region and any oncoming danger. They need to be the ones looking out for the people and pokémon. They need to be the ones fighting for them, both in terms of literal fights (battles) and metaphorical ones (legislation, politics, et cetera). That’s their duty, first and foremost, before anything else. They have to be ready, and willing, and able to do it.

So to try and sum this ramble up, in my eyes, being the Champion is completely empty, meaningless, and worthy of scorn of all it amounts to is praise for being The Very Best™ and adoration from fans. That’s not what it should be about. If the only point to being Champion is to sit on a throne and look pretty, then I’ll pass, thanks. Being the Champion should be about being the people’s and pokémon’s champion. It should mean protecting those who can’t protect themselves. It should mean fighting for those who can’t fight for themselves. It should mean standing up, saying “no” when someone threatens innocent lives, and doing what’s right even when everyone else just runs away. (Thanks for letting me paraphrase you, Rose Tyler.) It should mean taking that skill and that strength you have and putting it toward what’s right, even and especially when it’s difficult, even and especially when you might not get thanks or recognition afterward.

Being Champion is not about accolades. It’s work. It’s incredibly difficult work, available only to a select few, but that’s what makes it so important and meaningful. That’s why I hold that position in such esteem, and also why I’m so selective about which characters I think could potentially do it, and do it well. It’s not just winning badges and tournaments. It’s so much more than that. So, so much more.

84.) Drought, Drizzle, Sand Stream, or Snow Warning?

And now for a shorter, less intense answer—Drought! Specifically, the Drought ability on my ‘Zard Y, which I then use to immediately Solar Beam any foolish water-types that thought they could take my dragon down. ♥

76.) Reshiram, Zekrom, or Kyurem?

Reshiram! In pretty much every single way, haha. Superior typing (dragon/fire), superior design, and I also prefer what Reshiram stands for (truth) over the others. Reshiram is right alongside Victini in terms of favorite Gen V legendaries. ♥

[opepin]

january: week one

02: i woke up late and waited for hillary to pick me up. i decided to go to gyu-kaku with everyone today but aimed to not get the all-you-can-eat. my stomach was feeling weird from the 3 arts club cafe burger. hillary picked me up and we drove to gyu-kaku. we found parking right in front of the place and then we went in and found out that the wait time was 1 hour and 30 minutes. we called up everyone and everyone said they were fine with it. so we met up with mindy and garrick and they got some coffee and we walked over to water tower. it was garrick’s first time there too! we ended up in “the limited” and i was so amazed by the fixtures and stuff. i would have bought some of it but i don’t think i needed anything. mindy, hillary, and ashley got things for real cheap because they were closing out. it was about time to head back and we got a call from them saying that our table was ready. we rushed back and sat down and everyone got $45 ayce because everyone wanted to sit together and just eat. we went for 3-4 rounds. i was the first one to tag out LOL. it was so salty and i just wanted dessert :( hahah. we managed to eat everything plus a lady m green tea cake. we were all dead after.

hillary drove home, mindy and garrick took a lyft, and then ashley and i walked to a starbucks near the red line so i could get on that and she could wait for her ride. hehe, thanks for guiding me, ashley! i got off diversey brown line and walked over to firecakes, where hen was working. i should have gotten off fullerton...because it was closer than diversey, but oh well, it was really nice to walk off some of the food. the clark st. firecakes’ location is so cute <333 hen threw out the garbage, i met her co-worker, and then we commuted home together because we were going the same way. we realized that everywhere was closed because new year is observed today so we just caught up on our ride back home. i’ve missed hen <33333 i love hanging out with her because i feel like she brings out something in me in a way she only can. we’re silly together. cluck cluck cluck. 

hen gave me one of her beautifully crafted milk bottles and a beautiful notebook and a very touching card. i love this girl so much and only wish the best for her <3 so happy that she was one of the few friends i made while at SAIC. i ended the night by exercising because i felt like poop and then talking to kevin because he’s coming back tomorrow~~ tomorrow is a jam-packed day. i can’t wait.

03: i managed to get up at 6:20 am and tom actually picked me up at 6:40 am! go us! the only thing is that it was extremely foggy outside. it was so foggy that i could see it in my neighborhood LOL. we drove out to foster beach and then talked and waited to see the sunrise. we talked about how we’ve been doing and etc and it was really nice. i feel like tom expressed feelings that i’ve been feeling but haven’t really said it out loud. it’s nice knowing that a friend is going through the same thing as you. it hit 7:19 am and it was brighter, but there was no sun to be seen LOL. i think we stayed there a bit longer and then tom drove us to yellow rose cafe in jeff park. this diner is great! our waitress/maybe owner greeted us and took our orders. she gave tom the homemade hot sauce and his reaction was lulz. she made fun of him for a bit. tom and i ate and continued talking. it was one of those deep conversations that i haven’t had in a long time so it was something i realized i needed. the conversations continued in the car on the way back to my house and then he dropped me off. thank you for spending quality 1-on-1 time with me, tom! ((:

it was around 10:30 am when i got back and i ended up napping for an hour. then i put my jacket back on and brought my book bag and stuff and commuted to SAIC to meet up with chewy! we got into the office and talked with kate and nancy! they were the only ones we knew there and apparently, it was their first day back in the office from break. it was nice talking to them and updating them on our lives. i love them so! i’m said vicki and theresa were still on break and i missed them. chewy and i went to russian tea time and got afternoon tea. we got the savory items, tea, and chocolate lava cake (as usual). he caught up, talked, and etc. I’VE MISSED THIS GIRL SO MUCH! she’s been out in LA doing her thing for so long ): it was really great seeing her again. i walked her to the train and then waited for my mom to pick me up. it was like i was in school again lol. we stopped by hong kong market (for an hour, wut) and then drove back home. my mom made dinner, i fell asleep again, woke up and ate, and then we drove to union station to pick up kevin!!! <3333

we talked about his vacation and then kevin gave my family some holiday chocolates, unpacked-ish, and ate dinner. i missed this bear! hehe. we spent the night catching up and making sure that he wouldn’t get sicker haha. we went to sleep pretty late either at 1 or 2 am, but i can’t wait to spend time with kevin again in chicago (((((:

04: kevin and i met up with nluu in ford for lunch. we got lunch at tomate and walked over. i got my chicken quinoa salad with a chicken tamale. kevin got a gordita and a burrito? or a taco? i forget. it was yummy though. we caught up and talked. ryan came by after his class and we talked. they made plans to go climbing every day LOL. we walked with ryan back to tomate and then drove him to tech. then we drove back home and chilled until kevin went climbing. i stayed home and worked out. then i showered and ryan picked me up to go to dice dojo! ryan also was the mvp for ordering and getting our dinner from 527 cafe. we found parking, walked over, and went inside. omg, it’s such a cool place! it’s also much more spacious than i thought it would be. everyone was down in the basement. kevin, ryan, and i ate while watching them play a code/picture game. my popcorn chicken salad was bomb af. i would definitely get this again. i was on a salad streak because i wasn’t eating enough greens x_x i was trying to make up for it LOL.

i played fluxx with winson, ryan, and kevin. michelle came through! then me and the guys headed to a viet restaurant so winston could fill his belly. he got pho, ryan got some spring rolls (he gave me half of one), and kevin got a chicken banh mi with taro bubble tea, which i ate 1/3 and drank some. i got a thai iced tea. ryan’s hate for new york is amazing LOL. i love how he puts it into words. i agree with him but it seems like he was scarred from a past event (he wasn’t), but he is so particular about his reasons for disliking new york. it’s great. winston is planning to get a new job and move out there so that’s what sparked the conversation. i missed everyone <3 we all ran to walgreens and got a pack of water bottles and ran back to dice dojo. ryan ran like he stole it from there or something LOL. winston got hiccups from running with us. it was great lololol.

we passed out the water and then i got strung into playing avalon, which i was confused by and really didn’t like. i effed it up for our team because i didn’t see that kevin was on my team. i thought there were only 3 spies?! so i passed it on accident...sorta, but my team guessed winston was merlin and they were right! yeah, never playing that game. then we paired up and played dix it. jia and i were in last place but oh well haha. peter and nluu were killing it for some reason, ahah. then everyone left at 12 am? i think that was closing time and we said our goodbyes. i was nice seeing matthew and winston again! hehe. kevin drove us home and then we showered and went to sleep. zzz. it’s been an eventful week so far.

05: kevin and i woke up late and then ate some congee. then we drove out to cafe orient 33 to pick up food and eat it while watching pokemon sun and moon episodes. we were going to watch ‘la la land’ but i decided against it because it was kind of cold and i don’t know if kevin would like it. so we ate (i have missed this food -- still so good) and then chilled until i needed to meet hen for dinner and kevin had to meet up with everyone to go climbing. i met up with hen at sabri nihari and the service was great. our servers were so funny. i got to spend more time with hen talking about food and life. the chicken biryani was huge and i sacrificed my stomach for mango lassi. the samosas were so good! the vegetarian one is still my favorite. everything was delicious. we ate wayy too much though. we decided to walk back home in the freezing cold. we walked together until devon and california. hen actually moved closer to me T__T we are so close but yet so far away now! then i toughed it out and walked the rest of the way home. hen had a bit less to walk but we both made it!

kevin was still out so i did an intense af workout. i mixed up videos and did 20 minutes of hiit, 10 min of intense abs, 10 min of blogilate abs, and 20 minutes of hip hop cardio. it felt good but my body feels so weak now. i took a quick shower and then opened the door for kevin. he drank all of the mango lassi i got him when he came back. he ate a lot today .__. he also ate spicy rice cake at joong boo market before climbing. lolool. did he even climb? idk. :P jk haaha. o we digested and then went to sleep after a long day of activity out in the cold haha.

06: kevin dropped me off at cupitol so that i could meet up with michelle and nluu. i got there first so i ordered tea and the gravlax and eggs plate with gluten free bread except that the cashier kept putting in the bagel and i didn’t want the bagel because it had cream cheese and he was confused whether or not i wanted gluten free bread or not. x__x another person helped us out and then i grabbed a seat at the only empty large table so i could save michelle and nluu a seat. my food was disappointing because the smoked salmon was cut so freaking thick and i only got one slice of bread LOL. then a large group of people came and they kicked me out of my seat and then they changed their mind about dining here. .___. finally, michelle and nluu came. i pretty much was anxious the entire time at cupitol. i do not recommend this place. i feel like they are also a bit on the pricey side. so yeah. omg, too many things happening in the morning for me.

we ate lunch together and chilled until nluu had to go back to research. michelle dropped him off and then we drove to ikea. i listened to the moana soundtrack and also showed michelle jay park’s album LOL. i love it so much but i hate the lyrics T_T we talked and stuff and i realized that i was being real oversensitive about things and maybe other things were contributing to how i was feeling about being back in chicago and seeing people. michelle was supposed to figure out what bed frame and sofa she wanted. we did that but also focused on buying kitchen stuff and smaller apartment things. we got matching funnels, ayyy! i also finally got tape measure for my apartment lol. i learned that other ikeas are set up with show rooms first then items unlike this one near chicago. it kind of blew my mind because this ikea is all i know.

we ended the trip with a soft serve and a freshly baked cinnamon rolll. mmm. we also got everyone else a six pack of cinnamon rolls. michelle drove us back and we talked about life lol. it sucks to be in your early 20′s. we stopped by ryan’s and then drove out from there. i didn’t know how long the ikea trip was going to be so i had the house keys so when kevin was done visiting his lab at nu, he couldn’t get his climbing stuff to go with ryan T__T i felt so bad. but he chilled at lab for a bit longer and then met up with ryan at his apartment after. also, sorry ryan! lol he ended up climbing alone. poop. anyway, we all drove to dengeo’s (after getting ashley and winston) where we met up with tom, peter, and honglin. we ate and then michelle went to get terence. then we all drove to the escape room in morton grove. the location is shady af LOLOL.

we had orientation and then we basically pushed into the room and locked in. it was terrifying. there was a butler to help give us hints (helpful or not) and he gave us the backstory. i hear chains in the background so kevin and i move behind some people. then the lights flicker and the zombie actress pops out of nowhere and screams OMG OMG OMG LOLOLOL. kevin and i jumped in the opposite direction HAHAHA. she couldn’t get anywhere though because her chain wasn’t long enough yet... we were all shitting our pants trying to find clues and kevin and winston volunteered as tribute to go into the bathroom area (where the zombie was chained). there were a few seconds of feeding time when the zombie was eating, but that time ended and they were locked in the stall LOLOLOLOL. they “died” (zombie taps you, you’re out but the butler revives you after you do something silly for him) and it’s safe to say that they were scared shitless. kevin was the martyr of the group and he kept dying. i would like to think that she aimed for him because he was the funniest to scare (kevin would literally run backwards to the furthest wall). she also liked scaring peter. POOR PETER! haha.

i don’t think i helped much other than doing the final step of getting the keys. i got a key out with my fingers but the butler didn’t accept it because we were supposed to get the tools hung on the bathroom stall to open the vent where it was stuck...i also got the key from a painting’s eyeball too after helping figure out the morse code via the top planks of wood. we only got 3 out of the 4 keys and then we all died hahaha. it was a pretty great experience tbh. the zombie actress was soooo good! she like threw things (kind of at us but not really) and acted her part real well. she wasn’t so scary after the game ended. we all drove to ford to play telestrations and it was great. sarah can draw so well!!! terence is also a pretty great illustrator. we munched on the cinnamon rolls from ikea and candy that ryan bought. we played until 12 am and then we all drove home. kevin and i hugged everyone goodbye. it was a great end to our trip back home. the escape room and telestrations seemed like they happened on two different days though haha. kevin and i drove back and showered and went to sleep. zzz.

07: you guessed it! our flight got cancelled. that was the first thing i saw when i woke up in the morning. kevin had the option of switching his flight online but for some reason, i didn’t. so i called and waited. luckily, there was a 4:40 pm flight tomorrow so we both signed up for that. kevin went climbing with ryan and i just stayed in bed. i eventually got up and ate leftover chicken biryani for breakfast. then i snuggled with my mom on the couch. she fell asleep and kevin came back. then she went to sleep upstairs because she felt like she was getting sick D: kevin and i just chilled in the bedroom the entire day. my body felt blech too. i ended up dosing in and out multiple times during the day. we did manage to make reservations at sumi robata for dinner so that we would get some outside time lol. i got my mom water from downstairs and my brother was hanging out with his friend in the living room. when it was about time to go, we changed and headed out. i dropped off victoria’s gift at her apartment and then got her delicious peppermint mocha cookies. OMG I’M IN LOVE. THEY’RE SO DELICIOUS. my throat hurt but i kept eating them anyway.

we got a super close spot near sumi and then got seated. it was way busier than the last two times we went. there were some seating issues with another group and service seemed sloppier? we also had to wait for our tea for a while and had to ask for plates. they also no longer have the chopsticks and chopstick holders that we liked x__X idk. haha. overall, the food was great though. the chicken thigh and beef tsukune slider were still bomb af and their kakigori flavor was soo good. it was an orange creamsicle flavor. we also got baked scallops and the sweet potato fries, which were new to us but SO GOOD. we would eat that all day any day. after a day of staying in and eating, we settled back into bed and kevin tried watching a dota game but we both ended up falling asleep at like 1 am, ahahha.

08: we woke up later than i told my parents, but they weren’t really bothered by it. i think they were expecting it LOL. we finished packing and headed out. we went to cai to get dim sum and it was packed af! my mom managed to get us a table quickly :P she has real good bargaining skills. then kevin and i checked off things that we wanted and everyone ate pretty quickly. i obviously ordered the mango tapioca pudding with condensed milk <333 then i struggled to eat everything else we ordered. the mango mochi had a ton of cream inside, but it had chunks of mango in it too, which made me sad because i couldn’t eat all of it. the crab xiao long bao were disappointing...but everything else was fine. my parents drove us to midway and then we said goodbye. we got on the standby list for the 2:25 pm flight straight to boston. i realized that the 7 people in front of us were from the same family so i was hopeful that we’d get seats. gg us because they decided to take all 3 empty seats and split as a family -___-” wtf. we should have called earlier and asked to be put on standby :/

we waited until 4:40 pm to get on our original flight to kansas city. before we boarded, we were told our flight to boston would be delayed about 2 hours...we played pokemon on the flight and experienced some pretty bad turbulence before landing. we were then notified that our flight to boston would be delayed another 30 minutes. so kevin and i went to the nearest restaurant, which was a bbq place and got dinner. i got this less than avarage salmon salad for $17...and kevin got their beef brisket, which only tasted good dipped in bbq sauce. sigh. there was a lady in the same boat as us and she was so nice. we connected through this tragic flying situation and she offered us half of her fries LOL. we went down to wait and i tried walking around but there was pretty much nowhere to walk to because the airport was so small.

we played pokemon to pass the time. they also had boomerang and cartoon network playing on the screens, which was nice. we finally boarded at 9:30 pm and in the air at 9:50 pm. it was a long 4 hour flight (including the time difference). i played more pokemon, we tried napping, etc. we got wheat thins on this flight, which was nice. i sent an email to southwest complaining about my terrible experience all around and i hope they answer me. it’s fucking ridiculous tbh. anyway, we landed at like 2 am and got our bags. then we took an uber back and decided to stay up until 5 am unpacking, opening packages, reading mail, and making ourselves back at home. tomorrow is going to suck for kevin because he wants to go to work but we went to sleep at 5 am. this is my worst experience traveling so far. it was literally an entire day plus some of traveling.

[wanderlustlondon]

15 July

some of these days are so foggy already i’m glad i wrote them on my phone every night

today megan and i made sure to set our alarms an hour earlier than we actually wanted to get up so we wouldn’t have a repeat of yesterday. somehow i still got up and showered and put on makeup in like 20 minutes though, it was super impressive. we struggled a bit catching the right bus, mostly bc we couldn’t find anyone who spoke enough english to help us. carly and emily were getting super annoyed with megan bc we couldn’t get it right but they could���ve mapped it out??? ugh whatever. we found the bus stop and some little old lady was trying to talk to us but only spoke french and italian but we managed to tell her we were going to versailles and she said the city is bad but the palace is good. 

the bus ride was real chill. we were all so exhausted no one was really talking much. we got off the buss and struggled finding our way to the train station and once again people were getting annoyed but we’re in a new country this isn’t easy for anyone???? luckily we found the station and got on a sweet double decker train. the ride was super long but at least it was smooth. i really liked the countryside of france. 

we got to versailles and it as hot af outside but we got to skip a line that almost wrapped around the tire building, thank god for online tickets. the palace itself was absolutely gorgeous it’s hard to explain it. and the audio guides helped a lot since we couldn’t read the history (i could make out a few of them, especially given the context). it was also nice bc then it’s just a bit more on your own and not too much interaction. although it was packed as fuck, literally shoulder to shoulder at some points. we made it through a lot of it but then we found a restaurant. carly and emily wanted to stop and rest of us were clothing our wallets but carly was gone before we could protest. so our bill was actually cheaper than the night before but it was the slowest service i’ve ever had in my life. it was also weird they brought the food out as it was ready instead of all at once. i just got some bread with chestnut jam and wow i love chestnut jam. we finished off walking through the exhibits but it was clear carly didn’t want to be there anymore, but me michelle and meg were still enjoying it and i just want dot tell carly to stop plaining and let us do our thing since we were ALWAYS letting her do what she wanted. 

we asked four different people where the exit was and nobody could help us figure it out, but we finally found it on our own after 15 minutes. then back at the train station we couldn’t figure out how to get the tickets we needed, bc it turns out the tickets we’d been buying all weekend were only good within france’s city limits and we had to get more expensive tickets to get back. also mel got 2 water bottles from a vending machine on accident and when she asked who wanted it megan and i both said we did and then carly just took it and chugged it. like aright fuck you too i’ve had 0 water all day but your needs are always more important. well whatever we’re going back on another double decker train and it’s fine.

when we got back to our room again megan and i just decided to relax for awhile before we got ready for the cabaret. it only took us 10 minutes to get ready for the cabaret so we had plenty of time to just sit and talk. we started talking about carly and shit was being thrown left and right, we were both just so fed up with her and her constant needs. it was a good bonding experience for sure and it just further assures me i made the right choice in friends abroad. 

so carly and co show up late for the train to dinner as always, and right away carly is like “well i thought you guys would map it out” WE DON’T EVEN KNOW WHERE WE’RE GOING SHE’S THE ONE WHO MADE THE RESERVATION. but we figured it out on a map in the train station and headed over to the arc de triumph. it’s stunning but of course carly ins’t impressed (like earlier when she said she wasn’t impressed with notre dame bc she saw the sangrada familia and that was better). we admired it for a bit before going to find our restaurant. i was annoyed at this point that “dinner will be expensive bc there’s nothing cheap around here” but we walked past multiple mcdonalds and tbh i could always go for some nugs. so we got to our restaurant and right away i’m not feeling it. carly orders champagne immediately and a few others joined her but i just got water. i played it super safe and ordered a chicken and lemonade just to get something fun since others were ordering champagne and fancy drinks. the food is delicious and i make sure to eat slowly since i won’t be buying any other food for sure. the girls decided we should get a fully bottle of champagne for the table which, i guess splitting it 6 ways wouldn’t be too bad. they don’t have the one we asked for the but the server said this other one was only €6 more. the waitress only brings out 2 new glasses so the four bitches have their champagne and i just keep on my water. even megan had ordered a gin and tonic. 

a few of them ordered dessert but i already knew this was the most expensive meal i’d ever had so i passed on my chance at crème brûlée. so the check comes out and it’s €350. turns out the champagne was €82. the four of them spent over €70 and i spent the least at €28.70. it was still pretty pricy but at least i wasn’t completely broke.

we found a “cheap” place for drinks and we all got some sort of shot (it was bartender’s choice) and i got a piña colada bc i’m awful yet wonderful. while we’re drinking megan starts telling mel how funny i am when i’m drunk and we started talking about how i feel really comfortable with her and john and riley where i can do those kinds of things and i appreciate her patience with my weirdness and she just kept saying i’m so fun and so funny and i’m great to have around and she was very happy they got me drunk in bath and that i keep drinking with them

drinks were CHUGGED bc they took so long to come. we went across the street for our cabaret show and all of us are stumbling bc we just drank full drinks in 10 minutes. we got seated in the very front because we were such a big group and after i had my free glass of champagne i was most definitely drink but thank goodness because it was 20 performances and 16 of them were completely nude women. no way i could’ve handled that sober. but they had some cool lighting and mirror illusions at least. and these two tap dancing men that did all sorts of styles and they went for a really long time and it was one of my favorite parts of the whole weekend tbh. emily said something about how john would say he could do that and how he’s a cocky asshole and i was just glad we got separated before i could talk shit to her. 

so cabaret was over and we want to find somewhere with some more drinks. most of us wanted a bar but carly said she wouldn’t buy alcohol unless it’s at a club. so we start the hunt of club and it took us over an hour to find one. we kept asking people where to find one and eventually carly started just walking up to people and yelling at them in english to help us, which really was getting us nowhere in life. finally we found one, but i was pretty sober by this point. it was €20 just to enter and have ONE drink and so of course i’m already salty bc that’s hella pricey. i get my vodka lemonade and sit at the table, very overwhelmed by the blasting music and darkness. i got to he bathroom when they all went to the dance floor and just break down in one of the stalls. it was all just too much for me to handle, and it was reaching my peak amount of traveling. megan found me in there and took me back out to the basement, where they found a new place to sit. a few of them went to dance but i legit could not stop crying no matter what i did. it’s not heavy sobbing like the bathroom but just constant tears. i felt awful bc i knew megan wanted to be there for emily on her birthday but i just can’t do clubs, especially not sober.

we go to leave and look for the train station and i asked the security guy if he knew english and he said no but i fired back right away “ou best la station de metro?” and he guided us the right way and it was super easy to figure out go me and my french. when we got back to the room megan called her sister in the hall and i heard her just breaking down completely. when she came in i instantly asked her what was bothering her and she just had some MASSIVE bitching about carry not being a good human being and how megan doesn’t feel wanted anymore. i told her she’s my favorite person on this trip and i’ve never once been annoyed with her and she is always more than welcome to be a part of my life. it was a sweet little moment and kept apologizing for taking me to the club but i kept apologizing for making her leave and we both just had a long day and were ready for the day to be done, especially considering it was 2:30 am. 

[opepin]

may: week four

22: it was a semi-gloomy day but i got my exercise done in the morning. my quads gave out a lot earlier than i thought they would? but i made it through my hiit workout. i managed to leave on time but there were train troubles and ended up at the office at around 9:30 am again. it was a productive morning! i worked on my project and then went to subway with cole so he could get food before his meeting. i just went along for the walks. then i ate lunch and continued working. i got all of my work done by 4:30 pm and then headed out. cole and steve were still working (busy day for them). steve asked me if i wanted to go get a snack with him and i should have gone because he got bomb af chili from the hart and hearty soup place. @_@; ugh. the train had minor delays, but i still got back before 5:30 pm. i snacked on leftover cake and bread and then did my ab workout. i did an extra 10 minutes just to solidify it. my obliques are getting flabby again :( but i can work on it!!

then i showered and gamed while kevin got back home and showered. we had leftover burgers for dinner and then he cooked salmon for lunch. the salmon recipe was from blue apron and it was pretty good. i kept gaming until i found a good save point and then went to sleep around 12:15 am. zzz.

23: hmm my body woke me up before my alarm but then i slept in for another 30 minutes and then did my tabata workout this morning. then i showered and ate breakfast with kevin. it was a really chill morning. i did some more experimenting with axure and then went over some things for a meeting scheduled on thursday. oh, i was working from home -- i think my new schedule is to work from home on tuesdays and then work in the office on wednesdays. i really enjoy the quietness of the office during the middle of the week. i’m more productive in an empty office hhaha... after catching up with phil, i recorded one new video, edited it, and hopped on meetings for the rest of the day. my mind was mush after. kevin surprised me and came back home earlier than usual (his team left early). <3 so we got to spend a bit more time together and then he went to cook and i did inner thigh / leg exercises that killed me o__o my legs were jelly after. i showered and then we ate while we watched supernatural. apparently, it was the last episode of the season?! it was a good season finale though... i played bravely default and watched an episode of reign before going to sleep at around 11:30 pm.

24: my legs were dead this morning haha. i definitely worked out my inner thighs yesterday. i made it to the office at 9:15 am and then got to work. it was a semi-full office and i had a few meetings. i wore my new rothy’s flats today and the side kept digging into my skin underneath my ankle :( so i sent an email to their customer service to see if i need to size up? i also got a chance to talk with joe about the games he plays to get a better sense of him. i got to work on axure today and got into it. it’s so much fun learning new software and once you get it, you feel real good. i ate lunch at my desk and then took a 10 minute walk after eating lunch. then i went back to working on my axure project and then hopped on stand up. after, i did some testing and then i worked on my axure project until 5 pm. i packed up and the train trolled me again because the braintree train became the ashmont train -__-” so i waited a bit longer and the braintree train was packed due to delays. a lady trip out of the cart and i caught her along with a few other people. she was ok :) i got on and then commuted home. i snacked a ton when i got back because i was so hungry T_T i ate a bowl of cereal and finished the rest of the pasta chip veggie bag... i watched some youtube videos and then talked to my mom on the phone for like 30 minutes.

kevin came back early so then i spent some time with him before he showered and i started exercising. i showered after while he cooked dinner. lol we’ve been eating too many spicy foods so my body hates me. we ate and then kevin cleaned up and gamed and i went to sleep after spending sometime browsing for stuff on my phone. oh, i also ordered a size 7.5 for the rothy’s flats... so i hope that works out. they let me return my worn pair of flats lol oops. i forgot you’re not supposed to wear them out x_x but they made an exception! i wrote down people i made tentative plans with in chicago and then went to sleep at around 12 am.

25: i slept in and then worked out while kevin watched dota in bed. he was working from home today. then is showered and we ate breakfast and started our day. i had a call in the morning and my longest meeting was canceled so i could have worked in the office, but oh well. i hopped on my first meeting and then worked on my projects after. it was a pretty productive day. i did some more testing and mainly just finishing up my first go at wireframing. kevin and i went to good fortune at around 4 pm to pick up some onions and buns. i was going to buy lemon to clean our acrylic tub but i forgot. we got a coconut cream bun, fried egg and ham bun, char siu bun, corn cheese bun, and a taro bun. i wasn’t even hungry and i demolished like 1-2 with kevin xP he worked a bit more and i wrapped up my stuff. then i chilled and digested my food before working out. it was a very static workout today. i did lower back to tighten my core because i still have some untoned fat around the back of my obliques if that makes any sense. kevin was debating with jon about something so he lost track of time and cooked late ahahah. i showered and then scrubbed the crap out of the tub. apparently, i’ve been using the wrong cleaning spray and i should use antibacterial soap instead o__o what LOL. it worked really well actually!! the tub is like 10x cleaner but i still don’t know how to clean the bottom since there is texture on the bottom. ;( i was gonna use the lemons to clean some stains but the soap did most of the work. then we had a late dinner and kevin vacuumed and cleaned a bit because his parents were coming tomorrow~~ i talked to vivian for a bit and hillary before i ko’d on the bed LOL. i woke up and brushed and then went back to sleep at like 12:30 am or 1 am???

26: i woke up at 8:30 am and then worked out and showered. i had a leftover taro bun for breakfast. then i tried sorting out the asian snack delivery thing with victoria and ashley but then i forgot we had to spend $35 instead of $30 so i had to pause that. then i went straight into adding stuff to my axure project and talking with phil and connecting with mathew. then kevin went to go pick up his parents from the airport and i just continued working and found holes in my work while entering some functionality things for the tech team. :( i ate lunch and then went back to brainstorming. hopefully, we can come to something by the end of our meeting today. i said hi to kevin’s parents and then went back to work right after :P they had lunch together. i continued working and stand up kept being pushed back and back. we ended up in a meeting talking about prioritizing some stuff so we never got to talk about my designs, which are a bit down the road with the new map. then i went to workout in the yoga studio because kevin’s parents were ko’d on the couch, ahah. i came back, showered, and then helped kevin cook dinner. we all ate and then i talked with his parents about my job and etc. it was nice. :) then we just talked and relaxed until jessica got into the city. we drove up to south station and picked her up. we all talked while she ate and then i got really sleepy at some point. i spent some time in the room while the chen fam was catching up :P we ended up driving them to their hotel at like 2 am and everyone was so tired.

27: i woke up at around 10:30 am or so and worked out for 30 minutes. then i showered and ate congee for breakfast with kevin. lol kevin took his time getting up and cooking and cleaning so we ended up leaving at like 1:30? or something like that. i could have done my 60 minute workout so i was a bit salty at kevin, but then all of his family was salty at him because he picked them up so late LOL. we took the red line to park street and walked the freedom trail! we spent a good portion walking through boston common and the surrounding park area -- it was nice. then we tried booking a brunch cruise but there were only 4 seats and they couldn’t make any exceptions. i looked on the website and found a lighthouse brunch one and we booked that one instead for tomorrow. we walked all the way across the bridge to the uss constitution and then walked to north station from there. i almost sprained my ankle because i stepped on like a crack and bent my foot at a weird ankle. my foot was ok though! kevin and i freaked out a bit walking across the bridge because you could see the water below >_<”

we got back and ordered food from shaking crab. then we chilled until we needed to pick it up and then we ate it in the tasting room LOL. omg, the sauce was so spicy today. poppa chen was sweating and momma chen rq’d pretty early on. kevin ate a sausage in the spicy shaking cajun sauce and then left to get water and didn’t come back until like 15 minutes later and he said he was done LOL. i got pretty full pretty quickly too. so it was jessica and poppa chen who finished the rest of the shellfish. we had crawfish, clams, crab, shrimp, and lobster. we ordered the garlic mac and cheese and it was a disappointment. we will always just get the garlic noodles and fries from now on. we all had a food coma after that. jessica and the parents chilled in the living room, i retreated into the room for a bit, and kevin read fanfic and cooked veggies. i was done for the day though. i was pretty tired. we all retired at around 11 pm or 12 am today because we had to get up early-ish for tomorrow’s boat cruise and checking into their seaport area hotel.

28: i woke up at around 8:30 am to exercise and then kevin got up, we ate a bit of breakfast, and then we headed out to pick up the fam at the hotel. we left the tickets on the table so we had to head back to the apartment before hopping on the train. they took a bit longer packing their suitcases into the car and checking out so we had to hurry a bit to make it to the boat. we basically ran to the boat docked in the harbor near the aquarium. luckily, not a ton of people were on the boat and we weren’t late! we got seats and then looked around the boat and it had 3 levels! the top of the boat was amazing and they had cushiony seats. for brunch, they had all the dry goods and some fruit. then they opened the hot bar and there were soft boiled eggs, scrambled eggs, all the breakfast meats, pancakes, and potatoes!!! they also gave us cookies after. the food was pretty great. they also served jam in tiny baby jam containers <3 kevin and i mostly relaxed on the top deck and i got ginger ale while jess and kevin got mimosas. lol, kevin was out of it after eating so much food so when he went to show his id, he said he wanted ginger ale LOL. it was great. we took a lot of family pictures (yesterday as well) and one of the staff said she’d never seen someone take so many pictures (she was talking about poppa chen) so she gave him a copy of the constitution for free LOOOOOL.

it was a really nice cruise. an airplane was landing so we were right underneath it. it was a great. oh, there was also a very funny tour guide. he guided us along the coast and talked about the lighthouse structures we passed by. this cruise was around 2.5 hours and then we got off and they purchased the picture we took before we boarded. it got colder during the day so we did good on booking a brunch cruise. we walked back, went to the chase atm, and enjoyed the harbor breezes while visiting seaport and the boston tea party museum. i could tell kevin’s mom wanted a teapot so i suggested that kevin get her a belated mother’s day gift and get his dad a funky tie for father’s day. :) this reminds me that i need to remind kevin to order jess an alta hr haha. anyway, then we took the train back, got the car, and drove to the seaport hotel. kevin and i found a spot to wait for them to unpack and stuff. then we drove to osaka to get hibachi for dinner. i don’t think kevin’s parents were amused LOL... now we’ll never take them to hibachi ahah. it was an alright dinner as well because the food wasn’t cooked as well as it was the last time we went. kevin got a bit irritated at his family so the rest of the night was meh. we drove to harvard square, chilled there for a bit, and then kevin drove his family back to the hotel. oh, i got everyone to try speculoos! none of them had it before and there was a trader joe’s nearby. kevin and i stayed up doing laundry. he read fanfic and i talked to people on messenger and watched youtube videos. i think we ended up going to sleep at like 3 am. @_@; it’s a been a long day ahah.