#it's so rare for a movie to use practical effects nowadays

[leftysage]

Fnaf movie was so freaking good you guys. It wasn't perfect, but it was everything I wanted as someone who's been a fan since the beginning.

[billysdigiblog]

The Role of Art Criticism in Today's World

My understanding of the art critic’s impact in today’s world is frankly confusing and inherently contradictory. From research, it’s apparent that the role of an art critic in today’s world is described as a dead or dying thing, with only around ten contemporary critics in the United States able to get bread on their table from the job (according to Josh Baer in a conversation with Saltz). Others say, with no small derision and regret, that the wheel of the art market is directed by the covert hands of the art critics, who sit like bejeweled gargoyles at the top of the art food chain and live only to propagate a money-obsessed marketplace concerned with artworks insofar as their capacity to be investments. One thinks of Hughes in Nothing if Not Critical (Hughes, 1990 cited in: Gerry, 2012):

“So much of art – not all of it thank god, but a lot of it – has just become a kind of cruddy game for the self-aggrandisement of the rich and the ignorant.”

Then there is the middle-men; who, operating on the premise that the profession is indeed within its death throes, or that it is a rare profession to begin with, abandon the exercise of describing in pursuit of prescribing the appreciating value of the critic in light of this Ozymandian plight. In summary: assertion A is that critics have hold little to no sway nowadays, assertion B is that they have enough such that they generate a sort of monopoly within elite circles, and assertion C is that while art critics may be rare and few between, they are nowadays more important than ever due to their increasing scarcity. (Personally speaking, this fallaciously begs the question that they are inherently beneficial to the art world, fons et origo). Difficult though the exercise may be, I will endeavor to give a personal appraisal of the practice, using the classic pro-con model.

For fear of falling into cliché, I will not quote Anton Ego from Ratatouille, but in true pop fashion I will make reference to the spirit behind the movie’s words: the notion that the ‘new needs friends’. Art critics can give new voices a platform, and allow new styles, approaches, and artistic philosophies to take center stage, where they would otherwise have been drowned out by the dull totalitarianist clamor of consensus and trend. 

In the classical sense, the role of the critic is to act as an intellectual mediator between an audience and the artwork; contextualizing, providing perspective, and deepening appreciation, if done well. It follows the hermeneutical tradition: the interpretation and comprehension of human intellectual work, ascribing meaning to the animating principle behind these actions, evaluating the merits and values of the artwork in terms of what it has affirmed or provided for the human race. This is well anthologized in the beginning of Eleni Gentou’s (2010) Subjectivity in Art History and Criticism:

“…the approach of the art historian should have a scientific character, aiming at objectively valid formulations, while the critic should give equal consideration to subjective factors, acknowledging international artistic values, often taking on the additional role of philosopher or theorist of art.”

In effect, this creates a certain incentive among those who practice art criticism to - for lack of a better term - ‘sell you the idea’ (of the artwork). Perceiving the glass as half full, this generates a type of literary criticism that becomes an artwork within itself. As Jonathan Jones (2012) said in praise of good old Robert Hughes to the Guardian, “[...]he made criticism look like literature”. This factor is really what delineates the critic from the historian; as Ackerman (1960) eloquently said: “The typical critic is a specialist in expressionistic prose, the historian in esoteric facts.” 

Inversely perceiving the glass as half-empty, this also leads to a cult of a pithy, insipid and lazy appraisal of truly mediocre work, work which only can (and is) prettied up retroactively with pretty words. In this regard, critics can truly be the conman’s wet dream; they’ve thought up excuses for his meritless work before he’s even thought of them himself. 

On a further note sympathetic to their craft however, the role of critiquing art is not without risk, despite general perception that the artist is more or less a trembling spring lamb offering its brave work to the reptilian jaws of the wicked critic. Art criticism in the past has endeavored to debase something contemporary to the period, that, in the long run, became treasured and admired by humanity - impressionism being the obvious example here. One age’s pejorative often becomes another age’s badge of honor, and with the convenience of retrospect, the world isn’t kind to critics on the wrong side of history. At the risk of inviting accusations of moral relativism, I will venture to say that we operate under the spirit of their time and that people are a bit too prone to thinking ‘I would have been on the right side of history had I been there’ for my liking. The same way they gnash their teeth and imagine that they would have saved Van Gogh’s work from obscurity and suicide had they just been there in time for his early (initially pretty terrible) work. 

In summary, I have tried to paint a balanced portrait of art critics, if a bit magnanimous. They are perceived as parasitical by some, by others they are appreciated for the perceived artistic value of their writings - as such, the latter group is not really concerned about what the art critics do for Art inasmuch as how they do it. There are several traps that critics may fall into, such as the excessive defense of the old; the “[...]settled expectations and unquestioned presuppositions” (Kuspit, 2014), and to the contrary, a spineless adherence to anything and everything whose only virtue is that it's new in some way. One mustn’t think that we’re immunized against the error that the naysayers of the Impressionists fell into; at the same time, don’t let’s shut our prefrontal lobes down because one more artist decantered themselves into the currently already overfull and very sexy ‘questioned the boundaries of what art is’ pool.  The illegitimacy of both utter skepticism and utter dogmatism is equally insupportable.

References

Ackerman, J.S. (1960). Art History and the Problems of Criticism. Daedalus, [online] 89(1), pp.253–263. Available at: https://www.jstor.org/stable/20026565 [Accessed 19 Oct. 2023].

Cargill, O. (1958). The Role of the Critic. College English, 20(3), p.105. doi:https://doi.org/10.2307/371736.

Kuspit, D. B. (2014). Art criticism. In: Encyclopædia Britannica. [online] Available at: https://www.britannica.com/art/art-criticism.

Development, P. (2023). Jerry Saltz | The Baer Faxt Podcast. [online] www.thebaerfaxtpodcast.com. Available at: https://www.thebaerfaxtpodcast.com/e/jerry-saltz/.

Gemtou, E. (2010). Subjectivity in Art History and Art Criticism. Rupkatha Journal on Interdisciplinary Studies in Humanities, 2(1). doi:https://doi.org/10.21659/rupkatha.v2n1.02.

Gerry (2012). Robert Hughes. [online] That’s How The Light Gets In. Available at: https://gerryco23.wordpress.com/2012/08/07/robert-hughes-greatest-art-critic-of-our-time/ [Accessed 16 Oct. 2023].

HOWE DOWNES, W. (2023). ART CRITICISM on JSTOR. [online] Jstor.org. Available at: https://www.jstor.org/stable/23938988 [Accessed 20 Oct. 2023].

Hughes, R. (2015). The Spectacle of Skill. Vintage.

Jones, J. (2012). Robert Hughes: The Greatest Art Critic of Our Time. [online] The Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/jonathanjonesblog/2012/aug/07/robert-hughes-greatest-art-critic. [Accessed 16 Oct. 2023].

Pepper, S.C. (2013). The Basis of Criticism in the Arts.

[stardusttrashed]

Quick Trip

Pairing: Katsuki Bakugo x Fem! Reader

Word Count: 1.7k

Summary: Katsuki always has your back, even if it means helping you get some sleep

“Hey, gramps,” you managed through your yawns. Your eyes were probably the heaviest they’d probably ever been. As excited as you were to go to training camp, you would kill for just a few extra hours of sleep. The early morning sun felt like some kind of sick joke as you waited with the others to get on the bus.  

“The hell you just call me,” Katsuki barked, his lips curling up into a snarl. His eyes darkened with rage. It was bad enough being up this early in the middle of summer, and your new nickname for him wasn’t helping. You always had some stupid nickname for him. It was annoying but cute. “I’ll-.”

You stifled another yawn, utterly unbothered by his shouting. “Keep it down, will ya. Not everyone goes to bed at like 8, gramps.” Katsuki’s growling and Kirishima’s snickers brought a tired smile to your face. “Hey Kiri,” you said as cheerfully as possible. 

“Hey sleepyhead,” he smiled warmly. He held his arm out as an invitation, which you gladly accepted. You leaned your head against his shoulder casually, feeling him wrap his arm around your shoulders as he held you close.

“Don’t come complaining to me bout being tired. I told ya to go to bed early,” Katsuki growled, his irritation growing by the second. Did you really have to lean against Kirishima? What the hell made him so special? The half-lidded content expression on your face as you looked up at him was annoyingly adorable. He wanted to stay angry, but you were making it extremely difficult. You always made it hard for him to stay upset. Not that you really even seemed to care when he acted that way anyway. His face had relaxed into his signature frown as he jammed his hands into his pockets. “What time did you go to bed anyway?”

You shrugged, snuggling closer into Kirishima’s arm. “Couldn’t sleep and didn’t wanna wake you, so I did some training. I lost track of time, though.” You ignored the quiet ‘dumbass’ that fell from his lips. Nowadays, it felt more like a term of endearment than an insult. “I just need a little more shut-eye, and I’ll be fine. Oh, speaking of,” you pulled away from Kirishima and looked around for Fumikage. A small rush of adrenaline flowed through you once your eyes landed on him. With a small wave to the two boys, you skipped over to him.

Katsuki couldn’t keep his eyes from flicking down your figure as your skirt swayed with each jump. His eyes watched every jiggle your thighs did with each movement. He’d agree to cuddles just for the chance to have his hands on them. To grope and kneed at them. Not to mention the bounces that your skirt could barely hide. He found himself in a daze at the sight of you. That was until Minoru pulled him out of his trance. 

“The girls of class A and class B,” he drooled. “It’s like a buffet of bombshells!”

Katsuki clenched his fist, his knuckles turning white from his grip. He kept trying to tell himself the tiny creep was always like this. It was a slim chance that Minoru was talking only about you specifically, but his pervy comment got under Katsuki’s skin nonetheless. He’d pummel that little turd into the pavement before he’d let Minoru check you out. “Watch your damn mouth, you little runt! I’ll kill you!” He watched as Minoru scurried behind Denki for protection. Smoke rose from his fists, his anger continuing to boil over. “What the hell does she even need to talk to bird brain anyway,” he asked in a somewhat quieter voice, shifting his anger towards you.

Katsuki hated the envious feeling that coursed through him. No, that wasn’t it. He was used to the feeling. It’s what drove him to work as hard as he does. No. He hated that something as simple as you talking to Tokoyami and not him caused the feeling. He hated how jealous he could get when you weren’t the center of his attention. What the hell was he, a child?! 

“Alright, everyone, the bus is here,” Tenya announced authoritatively as he waved his arm in the air, guiding everyone to the bus.

“Dude, chill out. Your crush on Y/n is kinda showing. Just man up and tell her already,” Kirishima said with a nonchalant shrug. He crossed his arms behind his head and walked off. “Now, let’s go; we don’t wanna be the last to get on the bus.” 

Katsuki jammed his hands in his pockets as he begrudgingly followed Kirishima, getting into the line of people clambering into the bus. 

You could feel Katsuki staring intensely, his eyebrow quirk up in curiosity as you sneaked past your assigned seat. You shot a quick thankful smile to Fumikage as you crept further and further past your spot. Only a few people took notice of you, most namely Tenya. Thankfully he kept quiet as you stopped in front of Katsuki. “If you got something to say, make it quick,” you whispered as you climbed over his lap, plopping down in Fumikage’s seat. 

He opened his mouth to argue but quickly closed it. As confused as he was grateful that you were by his side and not bird brain. It was going to be a whole hour with you by his side. A faint blush painted over his cheeks. Katsuki looked down at his lap in an attempt to hide the blush.

“You gonna say something, gramps, or are you just gonna admire me the whole time?” You poked his cheek teasingly. 

“Stop calling me that, idiot,” he snapped, slapping your hand away. It wasn’t hard enough to hurt you, just enough to keep your hand away.

You quickly ducked down in the chair and glared at him. “Shh before you get me caught, idiot,” you quietly hissed at him, slapping his arm. 

He took a calming breath, composing himself before continuing. “Why’d you sneak over here anyways?” 

“I can go to my seat instead,” you grumbled disappointedly. You weren’t sure what you were really expecting from him. You moved to get up from the seat but stopped short. Katsuki’s hand quickly wrapped around your wrist, holding you still.

“Tch. I didn’t say you had to move, blockhead.” Katsuki quickly let go of your wrist, worried you’d feel how sweaty his palms were getting. They were practically drenched in sweat. It was kind of gross if he was being honest. Almost as gross as the hammering in his chest. Only you had that effect on him.

“Then shut it,” you yawned. You hesitantly slid your hand into his. A quiet giggle fell from your lips as you felt him tense under your touch. His pink tinted cheeks told you everything you knew he wouldn’t say. “Wake me when the bus stops, will ya?”

“Yeah yeah. Just don’t go snoring in my ear or drooling.” His tough-guy appearance was slowly dissipating.

“Who said anything about me being close enough to you for you to hear me snoring?” You smiled cheekily and leaned closer to him. His grip around your hand tightened momentarily. 

“Tch, do whatever you want. Go ahead and get a crick in your neck from leaning against the window. See if I care.” He met your tired gaze with a cocky smirk, “as long as I get to beat ya at your best, I don’t give a shit.”

You rolled your eyes and nudged him with your shoulder. “Almost sounds like you care about me, Ka-chan,” you purred with a sly smirk. You leaned into him and rested your head on top of his shoulder. 

His body tensed as you laid your head on his shoulder. He wanted to wrap his arm around your shoulders to help you get comfortable, but he couldn’t get himself to move an inch. It wasn’t the first time he held you close, but it didn’t stop him from getting lost in the feeling. He tried to ignore the constant wiggling you kept doing beside him. Every tug of his hand. Each tickle from your curls. All the brushes of your breast against his arm. He tried to ignore all of it, but everything about you gave his heart a jumpstart like being on a rollercoaster. “Stay still, will ya?!” 

You sighed tiredly, feeling the bus finally begin to move. “S-sorry, I just can’t get comfy.” You couldn’t decide if that was really the problem, or if it was hard to sleep because of all the butterflies in your stomach. You failed to hold back another yawn. “It’s whatever. I’ll be fine,” you sat up with a defeated huff. 

Katsuki almost felt bad with how tired you looked. He had only seen you this tired on the rare nights you’d stay with him to study or watch a movie. His adam’s apple bobbed nervously as he thought of a solution. “Tch. Switch seats with me.” He avoided meeting your confused expression to hide his flushed cheeks. “Make a big out of this, and I’ll make you stay up the whole way.”

You nervously did as he told, watching him lean his back against the window. He held his arms out to you with a quiet grunt. Your cheeks felt like they were set ablaze. You nervously glanced around, checking to see if anyone was looking. Everyone was in their own worlds, either sleeping or too busy talking to take notice of either of you. You hesitantly leaned into his warm embrace, your heart thundering in your ears. A content sigh escaped your lips as he wrapped his arms around you. “Thanks, Katsu,” you purred as you snuggled your face into his neck. 

Katsuki watched you with a gentle smile on his face. “Told you not to make a big deal.” Everyone else faded away until it was only you and him. You were like a blanket, engulfing him in comfortable warmth. He held onto your waist with one arm, keeping you in place, while his other hand played with your stray curls. The stupidly cute smile on your face sent his heart into overdrive. 

“You’re such a dumbass.” As much as he hated it, he wanted the bus to take as long as possible to get there. Having you sleeping beside him just felt right.

“And you’re my big softie,” you whispered, your breath fanning over his neck. 

“Tch. You better not tell anyone.” There was no point in denying it anymore. He’d be your big softie forever if that’s what it took to put a smile on your face. “Now go to sleep before you run out of time.”

[behindheremeraldeyes]

sasusaku month 2020

day 04- drink me under

title: Inebriating Love

summary: Modern AU - it’s a lonely, Sunday night and Sakura doesn’t want to spend it alone with her memories.

a/n: I suck at summaries hahaha okay, I LOVED writing this one! I had this idea a while ago when I was listening to an old song and I just had to use that feeling of two lovers in the night with SasuSaku. I’m not sure if it worked the way it was meant to, but I’m happy with the result! I hope you guys enjoy this one, and I also hope you forgive me for my mistakes. My beta is still busy, so all the typos and grammar mistakes are on me. Have fun!

Rated T

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Though Sakura has always considered herself to possesse a wild imagination, her 13-year-old self would’ve never pictured she would eventually grow up to become a regular costumer at the nearby pub. In fact, being the goody two-shoes she used to be, her younger self would’ve laughed at whoever said anything that stupid about the brilliant future that certainly awaited for her.

First, I will graduate high school with the best scores, then I will be a famous doctor. I’ll stay away from any addictions and I’ll marry a wonderful guy so we can have two, wonderful kids before I turn thirty!

She would answer that whenever someone asked her about what she wanted to be when she grew up, and there would be no doubt lingering in her voice regarding it. Sakura had everything planed for herself, and anything slightly different from that scenario would be unacceptable.

Poor, little girl, she thinks now, taking a sip of her double scotch. There’s a smirk decorating her lips as she places the glass back on the wooden counter, and she closes her eyes as the liquor slips down her throat.

It doesn’t burn anymore. Hasn’t burned in ages, in fact. The alcohol now is no stranger to her body, but unfortunately, it’s not as effective as it used to be when she first started coming to this place. She rarely gets drunk anymore, needing many doses to make her pass out, but she doesn’t know if that’s something that a small-town girl should be proud of.

Her life was supposed to have been different. Maybe not exactly like the one she had pictured, but she should’ve been able to do more after she actually managed to become a doctor and work at a prestigious hospital. She believes she has become a successful woman— a strong one, as some of her young patients usually call her— but that alone isn’t enough to protect her from a lonely night.

If it were, perhaps, she wouldn’t be all alone in a pub, drinking her problems away and talking to her only friend in the city, Uchiha Sasuke— the pub-owner.

Tonight, since most of his employees are off duty, he is the one serving his clients their drinks, and right now, he is giving another dose of whiskey to the old man sitting some benches away from her. Her green eyes carefully observe him from her seat as he slowly pours another dose while telling him that, maybe, he’s had enough for the night. There aren't many people drinking on this Sunday night— 4, including her, all of them men around their fifties— and she couldn’t help but feel a bit greedy.

Maybe it’s the alcohol or maybe it’s the night itself, but Sakura doesn’t want to share him tonight. She enjoys his company more than she cares to admit, and seeing him so far away makes her rosy lips turn into a pout. He’s the reason why she keeps coming back to this place, and he’s also the only person who makes her feel less shitty about herself— and that says a lot.

At first, the pinkette thought it was just the way he treated all the other costumers, but slowly, she realized that was not the case. He’s a cordial man to everyone, at most, but it’s become easy for her to tell that he actually likes her. He is always sincere whenever he asks her about her day, and more than once has he closed the pub earlier so they could have a drink or two while sharing a pizza. They talk about a lot of things, and she simply loves to hear the weird stories about some weird costumers and their weird stories.

Whenever she hears about these people, a part of her just hopes she’s not just another weird story in his repertoire.

Ever since she arrived in the city and destiny brought them together, he has been there for her, giving her tips on the urban life and even telling her which restaurants she should order food from whenever she didn’t feel like cooking. Eventually, they discovered that they have a lot of similar interests, such as mystery books, horror movies and old, American songs— the kind that would always start playing whenever she came by— and it’s undeniable that they feel comfortable enough around each other to share some personal memories, too.

In the same way he knows about her life before she ended up where she is, Sakura knows about his family. Knows that he has lost them in an accident over 10 years ago, and that he gave up on his layer carrier after that. She also knows about the fan tattoo he has on his right forearm and that he has a snake named Aoda in his small apartment.

He’s a very interesting guy, indeed. He holds an unique and mysterious charm behind his obsidian eyes and stoic features, and even after years of coming and going, the pinkette still feels herself being drawn to him.

How intriguing, she thinks, propping her elbow on the counter. Unconsciously, she rests her chin on the palm of her right hand, squinting her eyes a bit as she continues to stare at him. She notices that he slightly turns his head to spare her a side glance, and instead of looking away when their eyes meet, Sakura holds his stare for a couple of seconds too long until, eventually, he has to break contact in order to pay attention to his other costumer. There’s a sly smirk decorating her face now, and she also notices the way his lips twitch upward.

This is something they do on regular basis, now. She didn’t really notice it, at first, but eventually, Sakura realized that it’s not unusual for their eyes to meet whenever he’s serving another person. It used to be shy and unconscious, but after a while, she started doing it on purpose, just to see what his reaction would be.

It’s a bold move of hers— or, at least, she thinks it is. An unspoken challenge between their eyes, as they tease and expose each other with every exchanged glance. It’s an amusing and harmless flirt, and though they have no idea of how to beat this ruleless game, neither of them seem to be in a hurry to end it or anything like that.

However, losing this game doesn’t seem to be that bad.

Once he finally manages to walk away from the older guy, the Uchiha doesn’t waste his chance to come to her. His steps are slow, but soon, he’s standing across the counter from her. The warm lights that illuminate the bottles behind him highlight his handsome features, and she knows she could just stare at him for hours without stopping.

“Having fun with your other costumers, Sasuke-kun?” She asks, her eyes now holding a joyful gleam.

“You can say so.” He says, simply, organizing some of the glasses and bottles near his reach. “In fact, he’s curious about you.”

“Me?” She furrows her brows.

“Aah. He doesn’t understand what a pretty girl is doing all by herself in a place like this.”

“Well…” She starts, the tip of her tongue smoothing her lower lip. Sakura loves hearing that question whenever she comes by, especially since she doesn’t know the answer herself. Every time, she makes a new excuse and creates a different lie, just to see how people would react to her crazy stories. Tonight, though, she doesn’t really feel very creative. “Tell him it’s just a lonely night playing its tricks.”

“…I see.” He nods, knowing better not to press on her matters. Though he has heard her problems many times before, Sasuke has learned that, on some nights, nothing really can be done. He knows when she needs space and when she needs a shoulder to cry on, and right now, it’s clear that it’s the former. “He's been ordering the same as you, but I don’t think he will be able to stand for too long.”

“It takes years of practice to reach my level, right?”

“Years, right?” His lips curl up slightly at her words, probably remembering the girl she used to be when they first met. On that day, she had ordered a diet coke, and she made him swear at least three times there was no drop of alcohol in her glass before she took a sip. And even if nowadays there are times when she really just comes for her diet coke, she knows he’s a man worthy of her trust.

“Yeah.” She giggles, then, taking the last sip of her drink. “Tell him that befriending the pub-owner does that to you.”

“Oh, so now this is on me?”

“Of course. If you weren’t such a nice guy, perhaps, I wouldn’t be here tonight.”

“Hn.” He closed his eyes, pouring some more in her glass. Though she didn’t really use words to ask him, he already knows how to read her unspoken wishes. “I'm glad I’m a nice guy, then.”

“Very nice, indeed.”

She takes another sip of her new drink, and allows her mind to drift back to the moments they shared. Though she really believes him to be a nice guy, Sakura can’t help but feel a certain heat pooling in her stomach because of the times when he wasn't really that nice.

Her eyes land on his hands— so strong and firm— and she remembers how warm they feel against her bare skin. The way his muscles tense at her touch and the marks he leaves on her hips whenever he pins her against a wall are signs of his hidden roughness, and she bites her lower lip at the memory of his kisses trailing down her neck.

Though that black shirt might make him look composed and recollected, she knows better than to believe that professional facade of his. His intense stare and his dark locks hide more than anyone can tell, and she likes to believe this is their little secret.

It has happened a few times already and even if they say they can’t keep doing this forever, it’s a lot easier said than done. They share a deep connection neither of them really understand, and from time to time, their souls seek for a certain comfort that they can only find within each other.

It’s more than just physical need, they know. It’s more than raging hormones and alcohol, for there’s an intimacy neither of them had counted on when they first started their rendezvous. They’re already past that one-night-stand thing, but to say it’s something more—well, perhaps she’s still too sober to dwell into this.

“You're oddly quiet tonight.” He says, breaking her from her thoughts.

A soft smiles crosses her lips as her fingers start playing with the brim of her glass. She looks down, at first, then her eyes return to him. “I guess I don’t know what to talk about.”

“Anything is fine, I suppose.”

“Uhmm…” She hums, trying to think about what to say. “I guess it would be easier if I was like the others that come here with marriage problems or because they got fired.”

“But you’re not like them, Sakura.” He states, his dark eyes intensely staring at her. Her heart starts pounding faster in her chest, the air feeling too heavy inside her lungs. She feels defenseless under his stare, as if he is stripping her of her good senses, and although she really came by just for a couple of drinks and a nice talk, something inside her urges for more. His sincere concern is probably his most charming feature, and he knows exactly when to use it against her.

Damn it, she really hates him for that.

“Well...” She starts, a teasing smile on her lips. “You would probably know exactly what to tell me, right?"

“It depends a lot, to be honest.”

“How so?”

“If the problem had anything to do with your job, I would probably just tell you to try again since this is the main reason why you came to the city in the first place. Your job is important to you, and even if you complain about it every now and then, we both know you love what you do.”

“This is a very good advice, indeed. Very professional.” She giggles, tilting her head to the side. “And what if it was about marriage problems?”

“In that case, I don’t think I would be able to give you a real advice on that.” He starts, looking around, as if he is checking his surroundings. She can tell he’s mostly messing around, but by the time he leans towards her, she doesn’t miss the way his eyes grow a bit darker. Their faces are bare inches apart, and the smell of his cologne invades her nostrils as he whispers to her. “I don’t think I would be able to remain impartial.”

Her eyes drift to his lips for a second, and it’s as if she can feel his warmth irradiating towards her body. Sakura is very aware that he’s teasing her, and even if she would normally be a bit more cautious with her words around him, right now, she doesn’t really seem to care about extending their little game for the night. “I guess I would be talking to the problem himself, right?”

A smirk grows on his face at her words, and slowly, he returns to his previous position. He’s towering over her now, only the wooden counter standing between their bodies. They don’t move for a couple of seconds, their lustful eyes still too busy flirting with each other to even pay attention to the world around them. And if not for his other costumer calling his name, they would’ve remained like that for who knows how long.

Once their eye contact is broken, she looks down at her drink once more, her lips still holding the memory of a smirk. Seeing how bothered his face seems right now is incredibly amusing, and for that, she decides to forgive that man for interrupting them.

He just wanted his drink, after all.

“Someone’s calling you, mister barman.”

“Tch.” He scoffs. “Don't go anywhere. I’ll be right back”

“Oh, don’t worry. I’ll be right here with my drink.” She starts, her eyes now sparing his other costumer a side-glance. “But I don’t think our pal over there is gonna last that much longer.”

Sighing defeatedly, the raven haired boy makes his way towards the other guy. He’s speaking louder now, his words coming out with no connection between them. For what she could understand, he was trying to say anything about being an excellent drinker, and that he could drink more than everyone in that pub. He seems completely sure about that, but to no one’s surprise, it doesn’t take long before his head falls face-first on the counter top. At first, both Sasuke and her worry that he might have stopped breathing, but as soon as the Uchiha confirms that the man is just asleep, she relaxes again. Apparently, instead of an ambulance, they believe calling a cab should be just fine.

Her eyes are still looking at Sasuke from afar as he ponders his next options with his sleeping costumer. Judging by his face, the Uchiha seems troubled, and this is enough to make her laugh. It’s an honest laugh, she knows, and she realizes she hasn’t laughed like that for a while now. She rests her head on her left hand this time, and allows herself to appreciate that rare moment of joy in such an awful night.

When she left home that evening, the pinkette could’ve never imagined she would actually be able to laugh at a drunk man, and she believes she has to thank Sasuke for that. Though she knows her problems are still lingering in her mind, haunting her for even daring to show signs of happiness, Sakura is not a woman who willingly chooses to remain unhappy. As long as she can identify a valid way out, she’s always fast to ignore whatever is bothering her, and even if that doesn’t solve anything, at least it works as a coping mechanism.

Sometimes, she thinks, overthinking is just a useless, human reaction. There are times when worrying about something won’t really do anyone no good, and tonight is one of those times.

Sure, she could have chosen to tell him about her childhood best friend who got married in her home town and even the fact that she wasn’t invited for it. She could tell him how those severed ties made her really homesick, and how missing her family makes her remember her grandmother’s harsh words when she first told them she was moving out because of her new job.

Sakura could’ve really told him all that, but what difference would it have made tonight?

Knowing him, Sasuke would probably try to tell her not to let those things get to her, but at least for tonight, it’s already too late. It’s already gotten her— a lot more than she thought it would— and now it’s just too late to fix anything.

Not that she even tried, to begin with.

At the same moment she decided to come by for a couple of drinks, the pinkette had an idea of how her evening would end. She never really planned on getting a different point of view on that matter and she certainly wasn’t looking for any advice on what to do next.

Sakura was just thirsty for a drink or four and some good company. His company, more specifically.

By the time she makes up her mind, the Uchiha has already called that man a cab and the other costumers are also taking their leave. They all pay him for the drinks and the service, and when they’re finally left alone, Sasuke decides that it should be fine if he closes earlier tonight. She’s still sitting on her bench when returns from the now locked door, her glass now almost empty, and her eyes follow him as he starts placing the bottles back on the shelves.

“Do you want some help with anything, Sasuke-kun?” She asks, sincerely.

“Thank you for the offer, but don’t worry. I’ll just organize a couple of things so Naruto can finish everything tomorrow morning.”

“I bet he’s gonna love the surprise.” She chuckles, her mind already imagining the blonde cursing his boss. “You should give him a raise.”

“Not happening.” He denies, firmly.

“Well, I’ve tried.” She shrugs, a smile on her face as she closes her eyes for an instant, her mind drifting back to his other costumer. “I guess that guy still has some training to do if he wants to beat me.”

“He really didn’t know what he was getting himself into.” He nods, wiping the counter top from peanut shells. “Barely he knew you would be drinking him under the table so early.”

“They never do.” She says, proudly, before finishing her drink.

There’s a smirk on his face at her words. Thinking that such a small girl would actually be able to handle so much alcohol without even losing balance really amazes him. “Do you want another drink?”

“Oh, no. I’ve had my share for tonight, thank you, Sasuke-kun.”

“Are you sure? You don’t have to work tomorrow or anything and you didn’t even drink that much tonight.”

“I’m sure.” She says, and it’s as if she can feel her eyes turning a darker shade of green as she looks at his back. Her heart is beating faster now, and she knows she won’t be able to hold an innocent conversation for too long. When he turns to face her, then, she holds his stare for a bit too long, and unconsciously bats her eyelashes. She’s blushing now— just a dust of pink on her cheeks— and she takes a deep breath before her voice comes out almost as a whisper. “I might not be close to drinking myself under, but…as they say, another drink and I’ll be under the host.”

Her eyes are half-closed now as she looks at him, and slowly, she makes a bridge with her fingers that lingers just below her pouting lips. Sakura is very aware of what she’s doing right now, and judging by the way his eyes grow fonder, she can tell he knows it, too. They’re way past subtle advances now, but they know better than to just skip the steps.

A little romance never did anyone no harm, after all.

After they maintain eye-contact for a couple of seconds, the Uchiha is the first to break it, as he clears his throat, causing the smile on her face to widen a bit. Once he finishes what he was doing, he grabs a bottle he keeps under the counter and a clean glass before walking away so he can join her on the other side. He takes a seat next to her, and carefully, he pours them another dose and handles her the previously-empty glass. He’s also holding one, now, and her expression softens as he comes closer.

“Then let’s make it worth it."

Their faces are just inches apart when he says that, and she can’t find words to describe how good this feels. Though it’s far from the relationship she had pictured for herself a long time ago, Sakura believes this is much better than settling for what’s considered to be normal all over the world. Sasuke has brought an adventurous charm into her life, and he has showed her how beautiful the rain is even in the middle of a storm. He’s probably the most simple, yet most intriguing part of her life, and right now, she can’t really imagine herself without him anymore.

He has turned her small and monotonous world upside-down, and made her learn that, sometimes, people can grow thirsty for one another and there’s nothing wrong with that.

They clink their glasses before drinking the liquor, and they giggle a bit to that. His hand is now cupping her face, and his thumb softly brushes her cheek. They don’t need any words to express their feelings now, and when he finally kisses her— so roughly, yet gentle and passionate— it’s like all the alcohol she has consumed during the evening is making her throat burn. Her stomach is on fire, her heart is racing and she’s growing intoxicated by his touch.

Uchiha Sasuke is certainly the strongest and most inebriating thing in her life, and in this big and lonely city, he’s the only one who can quench her thirst.

fin.

[ishramasuhud]

My Media Literacy Gallery Walk, Hi everyone this is my blog relating the media literacy, Im going to share some thoughts and ideas about the media literacy.

The European film import

In Spanish colonial the lumiere brothers, Auguste and Louis Lumière Invented Cinematographe film camera and projector with the help of Spanish soldier named Carlo Naquera. Naquera flashed several Spanish-language to chosen audiences in 1987 and he run out of short film so he took the cinematographe around town and shot local scenes, which he subsequently displayed as a short documentary. The Imported films from America appeared early in the early theaters in Manila during the 1900’s In American Colonial. The “Dalagang Bukid” was the earliest film that was produced by a filipino who is Jose Nepumuceno, He is the father of the Philippine cinema in 1919. Hermogenes Ilagan who’s a filipino tenor, writer, stage actor, and playwright made a movie adaptation of a popular musical stage play starred by Atang Dela Ramja.

The Broadcast Industry

The broadcasting industry is composed of radio and television stations and networks that helps create content or to obtain the right publication prerecorded television and radio advertising. Broadcasting is to give out or the distribution of audio or video content to dissipate audience via any mass communications but typically use electromagnetic spectrum in a one or to many model. Broadcast signals then move from a station's transmission tower to the antennae of televisions and radios through cable television connections, satellite distribution systems, or the airwaves. The programming can be received by anyone having a radio or television in the signal region.

Local online media

Dissemination of Records, Masters, and/or Videos via downloads or streams over the internet, or any other electronic or online form of distribution now known or yet to be discovered or invented, including but not limited to dissemination to mobile phones and other devices, is referred to as online media.

The three classifications of media

Print in media

This is the print medium of communication. Information is disseminated by newspapers, periodicals, books, banners, billboards, flyers, brochures, business cards, and other means.

Broadcast media

The broadcast media refers to the dissemination of digital content like videos, audios, photos, and written content through broadcast channels. This mainly refers to the use of TV, radio, movies, and more offline digital channels.

Online media

The Internet is the lifeblood of online media. It is when content is shared through online platforms in the form of audio, video, and text. They can be shared in different channels that we’ll shed light on later in this article.

Types of Online Media:

Social Networking Sites

online forums

podcast

Media Sharing Networks

Content curation network

Blogging and Publishing Networks

Emails

Consumer review networks

The State of Media today

The state of media today is a matter of opinion for some, though a recent report from Vocus shows a picture of ongoing decline. The continued loss of jobs in television, radio and print media paints a dire picture of the evolution still required from the aging industry. The debate over folklore versus new media has been raging for a few years now–consumer demands are shifting a significant amount of activity to digital formats giving options for instant gratification when it comes to when, where and how we enjoy our media fulfillment. In the last year, 293 newspapers have gone out of business, with nearly 100 of them closing in the first quarter of 2009. Across major publications, 600 employees were laid off. With 10,000 jobs lost, the radio industry found itself in an even more difficult situation. Over 100 television stations in the United States declared bankruptcy, owing largely to their parent companies filing for Chapter 11. The slowdown effect of this had on the media industry has pushed professionals into the online sector, with Internet-based publications taking the helm towards new ways of thinking. Those displaced employees of various publications and stations have found themselves shifting to a new industry all together or taking up the profession of blogging and similar jobs in order to remain in their familiar line of work.

From Globalization to Glocalization

It starts with Globalization that process a company to brings its business to the rest of the world. It gives local businesses wider access to a bigger target market in different cultures. And when glocalization comes which also a product or service that is developed and distributed globally but is is adjusted to accommodate the user or consumer in a local market.

The local landscape

Local Landscape Areas are areas of land and water that are recognised as having. high landscape value. Landscape can be described in terms of the contours of its landforms, and any visible evidence of the geological. processes which shaped it, its geomorphological and geological. Nature sites and areas of countryside can be 'designated', which means they have special status as protected areas because of their natural and cultural importance. Protection means that these places have clear boundaries. have people and laws to make sure that the nature and wildlife are not harmed or destroyed. These elements of design include mass, form, line, texture and color. In the landscape, they are used to transform space and create a unique experience. While color and texture add interest and richness to a design, it is mass, form and line that are critical to organizing space and providing structure.

Media Ownership

Due to the assumption that ownership can have an impact on the contents and practices of journalism, media ownership is of interest in journalism research. The ownership of the news media can take many forms, including state ownership, family ownership, political party ownership, trust ownership, and public or corporate ownership. The main concern with ownership in journalism scholarship is market concentration and monopolization, as well as the unintended consequences for media diversity, public opinion formation, democracy, and journalistic autonomy. The potential financial and political benefits of owning journalistic media are assumed to be ownership motivations throughout the research. Benevolence is rarely assumed, as the problematic aspects of ownership are addressed from both the management and critical political economy perspectives in the research.

Mainstream Media

Mainstream media (MSM) is a term and abbreviation used to refer collectively to the various large mass news media that influence many people, and both reflect and shape prevailing currents of thought. The term is used to contrast with alternative media. Mainstream media, which simply refers to where most Americans get their news, generally included a person’s local newspaper, local TV affiliate, and one of three national broadcast news programs. Nowadays, the media landscape is more complex. It has broadened from traditional news sources (print, TV, and radio) to video, AM/FM radio, podcasts, satellite radio, and social media. It also now includes news producers and aggregators. And as it has expanded, it’s become more fragmented, so that even traditional media can have narrower and narrower audiences.

Alternative and Independent media

Alternative media are media sources that differ from established or dominant types of media (such as mainstream media or mass media) in terms of their content, production, or distribution. While Independent media refers to any media, such as television, newspapers or Internet-based publications, that is free of influence by government or corporate interests. The term has varied applications. Within the United States and other developed countries, it is often used synonymously with alternative media to refer to media that specifically distinguish themselves in relation to the mainstream media. In international development, the term independent media is used in relation to the development of new media outlets, particularly in areas where there is little to no existing media presence.

Community Media

Community media are any form of media that function in service of or by a community. It is the rise of all kinds of alternative, oppositional, participatory and collaborative media practices that have developed in the journalistic context of ‘community media,’ ‘we media,’ ‘citizens media,’ ‘grassroot journalism’ or any radical alternative to on and offline mainstream journalistic practices. In other words, it is having access to or creating local alternatives to mainstream broadcasting, like local community newspapers, radio stations, or magazines. Community Media aids in the process of building citizenship and raising social awareness. “Participation” and “access” are a large aspect in the rise of community media. Those who create media are being encouraged to involve themselves in providing a platform for others to express views. Community media is often given parameters when being defined by groups, but often challenges these boundaries with its broad yet narrow structure.

State-owned Media

State media, state-controlled media, or state-owned media is media for mass communication that is under financial and editorial control of a country's government, directly or indirectly. These news outlets may be the sole media outlet or may exist in competition with corporate and non-corporate media. State media is not to be confused with public broadcasting and public sector media (state-funded), which is funded directly or indirectly by the state or government but over which the state does not have editorial control.

What is your opinion regarding the closure of ABS-CBN? Do you agree or disagree with the congress decision? Explain your answer.

I agree because ABS-CBS abused the freedom of press, they’re using their company for their own self interest. And it came to the point that they’ve became a power player in philippine politics. They took advantage in giving government positions to those people who are under their power.

[summonerswarhack]

Marketing On Instragram

This different means though might not be absolutely vital however may help. When wanting by way of your phone at your topic whereas shifting via a full circle, you will see how the shifting route of your mild sources can uncover some incredible effects, and shocking results. Think from the viewpoint of the spectator, what would you prefer to see and plan your posts accordingly. Create suspense about your subsequent put up, make your posts fascinating have contests and polls, assist individuals understand your services through fascinating and informative movies. This is definitely a worthwhile funding for your enterprise as the consultants can be recommending your services or products. You may go according to your advertising and marketing funds, begin by approaching one influencer ask him/her to post a video evaluate about your products and services, if that works effectively for you, you may get in touch with more influencers. Traditional media corresponding to radio, Tv, and print had been around lengthy sufficient that there have been 1000's of case studies one could examine the success or failures of particular person campaigns. There are a lot of apps on the market which are good for easy unfollow Instagram motion. It is best to always set sensible Instagram goals that tie back to what you are promoting objectives.

SummonersWarHack

Set up the weblog related to a specific niche. You'll be able to publish something in your story, the most recent weblog replace, some normal information, reductions and presents, quotes and many others. Make it a behavior to submit Instagram tales persistently and this can add up to your model consciousness. You can even post photos and updates about the newest happenings. Instagram is such a social media platform that permits its users to make use of images and short videos to promote and sell their products to potential clients. Doing this allows individuals who are usually not Instagram subscribers to see your pictures and click on in your link, which may lead to improved gross sales and profit. You may experiment posting at varying times of the day to see which time your posts do finest. If you look around nowadays it is a rare sight if you do not see someone glued to their telephone, utterly unaware of what's happening round them. If somebody takes time to comment in your posts then you must reply, it shows you love to listen to out of your followers. You want to advertise your personal products and never someone else's. For entrepreneurs, this is probably the most highly effective and trending social media app that can greatly profit in the marketing of merchandise.

Remember, Social Media (and particularly Instagram) is all about perception. No matter how you utilize Instagram for your corporation, be genuine and true to your model. I determined I might credit the web page the place it got here from no matter what. At all times be friendly to everybody and recognize their time to attach with you in your web page. Instagram has leveled the playing discipline in right now's neck-throat competitive world, and in diverse business sectors, But driving actual results is just not a stroll within the park; it requires us to draw up a strategic motion plan to advertise what you are promoting' Instagram page. Don't forget to also invite people to comply with you on Instagram. As folks assume that Instagram is best for vogue and trending industries they are incorrect. It's proved that the Instagram posts that make use of the appropriate hashtags achieve an increased consumer engagement compared to the posts that do not.

SummonersWarHack

Ideally your Instagram posts must be a mixture of information, fun posts, photos, videos and so on. The thought is to get folks fascinated and engaged. Present Insights- analytics tool, that exhibits status about the impressions and attain of your posts. This can make it easier to to make your ad campaign more practical. This is one of the most effective methods of reaching out your target audience because it appears more real to your viewers. The principle feature to get the participating audience right here is through hashtags, that are trending or popular. The point here is to know the status of the house owners of the system if they can be trusted especially if it's important to obtain an app to your desktop for use. You grow your network sooner: in case you have signed up for an account for enterprise objective, no doubt you'll wish to develop your account as fast as doable. The observe, the picture likes and other activities show your fame and strength on the network. After all it will not be every picture you publish, however it is something to try for. When a photo or video is posted on instagram it will be shown in your profile. Many users nonetheless do not have the concept how to achieve followers on Instagram.

[works-of-magic]

Music tastes!

It’s Jess again! I’ve been listening to a lot of good music lately, and I can’t help wanting to share what my main team’s Top 3 are! Of course my Pokemon can’t order music online by themselves; they don’t have access to my debit card. Even Mistress doesn’t have fingers to type! But between playing music while traveling, cooling off from a battle, soothing our nerves, processing heavy emotions, practicing for contests, cooking, cleaning, and sometimes just wanting to dance: all of my Pokemon are exposed to a wide range of music! Anything I play, they tend to listen to. But everyone has their own favorites, and that’s what I’ll be outlining here!

tl;dr - I love symphonic metal and orchestral rock but also enjoy soundtracks and EDM. - Ninetales loves power/progressive metal. - Excalibur likes classic rock and Broadway soundtracks. - Murky headbangs to 00′s alternative rock. - Missie dances her heart out to Top 40 music and Lindsey Sterling. - Mistress shares my taste in symphonic metal and folk music.

So a bit about where this passion for music started: Before I set off on my Pokemon journey, I was in my school’s show choir for 5 years. I also took piano lessons for 2 years, and my favorite instrument is the theramin. (I’ve never played one, but someday I’d like to learn how.) I also like the hydrophone (the horror movie sounds one), the hydraulophone, and the glass armonica. More typical instruments I like include the harp and music boxes. Music has always been an important part of my life, so naturally it remained a part of my daily routine when I set off on my Pokemon journey. I prefer to play it aloud and sing along, so my Pokemon are exposed to my music through proximity.

Nowadays, I listen to a somewhat broad range of music, but my favorite is symphonic metal! My absolute favorite band is Evanescence. (I know, I know. Put the pitchforks away. I’ve been listening to their new album all day, that’s part of what put me in the mood to share music.) Anyways, other favorites include Tarja and A|ex Da||iance, though my MP3 player has everything from J-Pop to classical to folk songs to soundtracks.

As for my team? Everyone’s individual tastes kind of shift and blend, crossing genre lines and even sometimes totally defying expectations.

Ninetales, for instance: Don’t let this fox fool you, he’s very calm and quiet, but he has a taste for adventure and loves music with lots of energy. His favorites are various metals, like power and progressive! He loves Dragonforce, Kamelot, and Alestorm.

Excalibur’s actually the one with the most mellow preferences. He likes 80′s rock ballads, gets really into Broadway soundtracks, even play-acts out musical dialogue scenes with me, and he’s enamored with musical movies.

Murky is fun: He loves the era of 2000′s rock and seeing him try to headbang with those big hat feathers is hilarious. He gets most into bands like Linkin Park, Breaking Benjamin, and Disturbed. (I don’t sing along with them very well, but to be entirely fair, neither does he. He still tries really hard, though.)

Missie will dance to practically anything, but she likes really bouncy music like Top 40 hits and Lindsey Sterling. I think she’s taking a liking to Within Temptation too, but it’s hard to tell if that’s more her preference or because Mistress lets some of her rare passion show to it, which draws her best Poke-friend into the experience.

Mistress shares my taste in symphonic metal, taking a particular liking to certain songs by Xandria and Epica. She also really likes Trans-Siberian Orchestra, and sometimes, if she likes a folk song or a sea shanty enough, she’ll sing along and add really neat overtones and sound effects to my mezzo soprano!

Other music you might hear us enjoying includes Danny Elfman, Delain, Edenbridge, Ghost, Good Charlotte, John Williams, Jonathan Coulton, Lacuna Coil, Midnight Syndicate, Muse, My Chemical Romance, Nightwish, Nox Arcana, Puffy AmiYumi, Red, Simple Plan, and “Weird Al” Yankovic. Pretty much anything but country and rap. There’s way more but I think this list is already long enough, and I think you get the idea!

Anyone have any recommendations?

[marauders-groupie]

Movie Survey

I was tagged by my one and only soulmate @alltheworldsinmyhead. Thank you, Nat! <3

Rules: You can only use a movie once, no repeats.

Favorite movie: Practical Magic. I’ve had a love affair with that movie since I was like seven years old and whenever I watch it, there’s always something new to fall in love with. Tbh my exes wish they had the appeal of Practical Magic. 

Movie that makes you remember your childhood: The Fifth Element. I named my turtle after Leeloo - I was obsessed. And I recently rewatched it, and guess what? Still kicks ass!

Favorite Tom Hanks movie: The Da Vinci Code. I really love mysteries!

Movie that makes you cry:  I rarely rewatch movies that have made me cry (enough drama in my life to avoid seeking more in movies), but I’m like 73% sure Baby Driver made me cry? I usually cry when things turn out better than expected. 

Favorite 80’s movie: Does Grease (1978) count? Because Grease! The music is A+, the outfits are amazing!

Favorite comedy: SO MANY, OH MY GOD! I really, really love comedies! The last one I really loved was Little Italy. My all-time favorite is the Cornetto trilogy; Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz in particular.  

Favorite sports movie: Bend It Like Beckham - nothing will ever come close to it, fight me!

Favorite courtroom movie: None, I don’t watch them. 

Favorite war movie: Again, I do not like tragedy. If Inglorious Bastards count, then that’s the last war movie I saw. 

Favorite animated movie: Moana! When I was a kid, I used to love the Little Mermaid but after Moana came out and wrecked my heart (I bawled y’all), it’s my #1 animated movie. 

Favorite horror movie: Does Ready or Not count? Because I love it! I used to have a horror movie phase when growing up, so I feel like I totally saturated my need for horror movies. I haven’t seen one in literal years up til Ready or Not came out, and I love it because it was so damn entertaining. 

Most overrated movie: Unpopular opinion, but I really don’t get the hype around the M/arvel universe. The characters would be amazing, if they were given a chance to shine. I feel like 99% of the movies are just special effects and they are too damn fast!

Favorite gangster movie: I’m a simple gal, I love everything by Guy Ritchie, Rocknrolla in particular. 

Movie you can watch over and over: I gotta agree with Nat - Mamma Mia. Also Practical Magic, and the Tomb Raider series with Angelina Jolie. 

Movie with the best soundtrack: Amelie! The year I discovered the joy that was Amelie, I had Yann Tiersen’s OST on repeat the entire summer. I still recognize it in commercials nowadays! (Also Mamma Mia pt I because - ABBA!!!)

Movie you’re most embarrassed that you love: I actually love Adam Sandler’s comedies. They’re goofy, but they’re not hard to process. 

Favorite Christmas movie: Love Actually. :)

Favorite sequel: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Fucking brilliant, that movie was what made me read the books.

Alrighty! Now I’m gonna tag @craniumhurricane @goodqueenalys @jasperjoordan @important-metaphors @kinetic-elaboration @nefarioustortellini @carrieeve @catja + everyone else who wants to do this!

[thethreemages]

Neeeew batch of boys coming in to join my Three Mages cast~! Took me a bit to finally get them all down but I’m glad I pushed myself to complete their looks and bios! :D Hope you all enjoy! 

More info about their characters can be found below~

-Antoyn is Fevrier Ballastine's robotic butler companion, and joins his young master in acting as a protective bodyguard back in St. Ravilda's. Created and commissioned around the same time as Fevrier's accident by the boy's parents to give their son some better protection, Antoyn started off as just your average subservient android with a variety of talents to both entertain and nurture the then-younger Fevrier. But then... a few years down the line there was an incident where Fevrier's mother accidentally released a soul of a deceased Bard from one of her jarred collections (a common practice of hers as a Necromancy mage)... and the soul ended up embeding itself deep within Antoyn's body. While Fevrier's parents at first wanted to get rid of this soul from the robot... little Fevrier remained insistent on letting his best friend keep it since he saw how much it made Antoyn "happy" to get a moving, working body again. So, after some consideration they decided to respect their son's wish and modify Antoyn even moreso to let him feel at least somewhat more "human". And now, several upgrades later Antoyn is more than just a dedicated butler... but also a wise, collected, and pretty snarky mentor figure to the now brattier Fevrier. When he's not spending his days at his master's side trying to make sure he doesn't get into trouble... he also likes to practice a variety of other hobbies like fencing, puzzle-solving, sprucing up on his lute-playing again, studying up on all the recent historic events that he missed in his deceased years, and occasionally trying to smooth-talk some of the "charming" single-mothers he comes across here and there... to his master's embarrassment. -Zephyr Platyna is among one of the newer students of St. Ravilda's, joining in the same year as Zia, Noira, Frevier and Mila. Being a universe traveler, he often comes between both Clock Diamond; his actual home, and Graystone (the main setting of "Three Mages"). His gothic-like appearance may give him the impression like he's a villainous rebel type, but in actuality he wants to change that perspective for the better ("Heroes can be Goth too" being his main motto whenever the subject's brought up to him). He's one of the rare specialty mages to hone more than one element, being both metal and ice (creating some pretty "wicked" magic displays whenever he's asked to give demonstrations during class). Though some teachers wondered if this could be too much to handle since it's not very common for them to get dual-magical mages like that (let alone who dressed so "scarily", in Professor Barnaby's words)... Headmaster Auran (who was usually accepting of all students) and Professor Devonna (being a fellow goth mage herself) urged the others to give Zephyr a chance once they saw how much the boy wanted to use his powers for good. During school hours, Fevrier has formed a bit of a rivalry with Zephyr... both in the field of mastering metal magic (and Mila's eye of affection), which seems to be more to Zephyr's favor as the elven boy is not only more "courteous" of his magic, but also more genuinely considerate of Mila's timid tendencies since the two of them met on his first day at school. Sensing how lonely she was from most others, he offered to be her friend and steadily they've seem to lean more to "deeper" levels for how protective and caring he is towards her. Even Zia and Noira seem to want to nudge Mila into asking out the boy... but combined with Mila's shyness + the Zephyr & Fevrier rivalry, it's bound to not be an easy task as the school year goes on. -Kalybir Shelrovet (also known as "Kaz") is a former student of St. Ravilda's who was once the main leader of the "A-Lister" group there. The sole heir to a mana stone mining/jewelry-making company called "Shelrovet Dreams", Kaz grew up to carry a big ego and a haughty attitude towards most of his peers... even Prince Kain and Prince Elas weren't really safe from his showboating since every student at Ravilda's was treated equally regardless of their backgrounds. Things got especially tense with Kaz and Kain in particular since the latter was also pretty full of himself too... leading to them establishing themselves as "sworn enemies" for quite a few years (in one instance, a big magic fight between them lead to Kaz losing one of his teeth, now replaced as a shiny gold one). Towards other students, Kaz didn't change much of his attitude around them either... any number of "friends" that he did have seemed to most likely only hang out with him for his money. The only one that stood out from this was Ana White... an equally haughty popular girl who often had an off-again/on-again relationship with Kaz up until things went quiet between them post-graduation. There might still be some signs of some "lingering flames" between them though... given how Ana tends to get so blushy and surprisingly docile/flustered upon hearing his name. In terms of magic, Kaz controls the power of a "Poison Mage"... giving him abilities of producing acidic liquid blasts to melt through obstacles, stinging his foes back with illness/burns, and/or trapping them in place via-melting the ground to quick sand-like levels. -Hoagen Blanchard (likes to be called "Zeppelin" as a stage name) is the son of St. Ravilda's teacher Ms. Blanchard, younger brother of Beau (who's part of the King's Elite squadron) and a current member of Argent's underground metal band. Though for many years he was known for being a dorky, kinda clumsy nerd... following around the time of his father's passing, he felt more inclined towards the gothic subgenre (specifically for himself, as a "steampunk" goth) to start hanging out more with the likes of Argent. Granted, he's still generally pretty dorky but nowadays he likes to play himself more "confidently" when it comes to the stage... trying to nudge for Argent to be more sociable now and then (though it doesn't always work) as well as being pretty friendly and open to their current fan following. On his off-time, Hoagen likes to partake in hobbies such as comic collecting, sprucing up on some his favorite action movies, trying his best to hide his not-so-secret "crush" on a certain traveling singer while failing each time she gets brought up, and also just generally sprucing up more and more of his goth look to be "cooler". As he used to go to St. Ravilda's, Hoagen's main magical skill involves controlling the power of a "Storm Mage"... being able to create thunderous lightning clouds to engulf his foes as he wishes. Though for Hoagen, this type of magic is generally kind of dangerous to get a hold of... so he tends to just limit it to some cool "stormy" effects for the bands' stage performances.

[smokeybrandreviews]

Smokey brand Movie Reviews: Sexual Tyrannosaurus

A few months back, i reviewed one of my all-time favorite films; Alien. I absolutely adore Alien. Horror films don’t really work on me, at all, but Alien pulled that sh*t off effortlessly. That flick was the first movie to ever really scare me. The performances, the direction, the atmosphere, the aesthetic; It was all incredible. A few months later, i stumbled upon a film called Predator in my Grandpa’s Beta Max collection. I was curious and checked it out as he took a nap. My mind was blown. This movie was everything that Alien was not, and i loved ever second of it. How was that a thing? How can something be the opposite of what i adore, and i still adore it? I wanted to revisit that flick, like i did Alien, and see if my adoration for this movie has held up over these past few decades.

The Great

Out the box, i have to commend the dialogue in this flick, man. It’s outstanding. It’s full of those great, 80s action, one-liners that you can’t hep but love. “I ain’t got time to bleed” and “You are one, ugly, motherf*cker” are just classics. Absolute classics.

Arnold Schwarzenegger as Alan "Dutch" Schaefer is the archetype for 80s action star. You can keep all of your Commandos and Cobras and Rambos. Give me Dutch Schaefer and we are good. This was my first experience with Schwarzenegger and made me an instant fan.

Jessie Ventura was f*cking hilarious as Blain Cooper. Dude was always great on the mic, you can tell just by looking at his time in wrestling, so this character fit him perfectly. All of that macho bravado and casually sexist rhetoric is hilarious. I imagine cats nowadays would fined that character problematic, most likely this entire movie come to think about it, but I'm too old to be offended by every little thing. This movie and this character is a product of it’s time an that needs to be taken into account when giving it a viewing.

I want to give a shout out to the late, great, Kevin Peter Hall. This gentle giant plays the actual Yautja, the Jungle Hunter, and he does it without uttering a word. Every move of this beast was so animalistic, so alien, that it strikes a deep chord with the audience. I bought that this massive, reptilian, monstrosity was from another wold and so much of that has to do with Hall’s brilliant physical performance.

The rest of the cast was pretty dope, too. Sonny Landham, Bill Duke, Elpidia Carrillo, Carl Weathers, and Shane black all turn in great supporting performances. I particularly like Weathers, landham, and Duke but i need to make specific mention of Peter Cullen. That’s right, Optimus Prime, himself, is the voice you hear, when the Predator does his shrieking. That sh*t is awesome!

While we’re on the subject of vocalizations, i have to tip my hat to the sound design in this flick. My, goodness, is it great! I mean, the Predator shrieks and hisses are ridiculous but the eerie ambiance of the jungle sets the mood perfectly. The little clicks, the overlapping rampage shootings, the epic score; All of it it adds as much to this film as Schwarzenegger or Hall. This movie would not be the same without the sound effects to help carry that emotion.

Speaking of effects, this movie has some of the best. I grew up on 80s films so practical sh*t will always hold a special place in my heart. Matte paintings, miniatures, in-camera optical effects, and suits will always take precedent over computer imagery for me and The Predator has two of the best examples of this tactile film making; The cloaked Yautja and the Yautja suit, itself. Stan Winston built this thing on the fly, after scrapping the original design. The f*cker is amazing in every aspect, and very uncanny valley, which lends itself to the extraterrestrial nature of the film.

The action in this thing is some of the best the 80s have to offer. It’s over-the-top, absolutely ridiculous, and delightfully tongue-in-cheek. I love how everything is just slathered in a thick, pungent, sticky, Masculinity as toxic as it is vibrant. It’s sweaty, filthy, muscly, goodness that is unapologetic about it’s violence. Predator is absolutely reptile brain viewing, for sure. That sh*t is rare nowadays but quite prevalent way back when. I miss this type of movie sometimes.

It takes a steady hand to manage all of these egos and effects and still coalesce al of that chaotic energy into one, digestible, film. The director of this flick had to have the patience of a saint to take on such a challenge but John McTiernan nailed that sh*t. Dude has a number of hits under his belt, Die Hard and The Hunt For Red October for example, but those came after Predator. It was never a question of talent but more ability. McTiernan delivers both in spades, gifting the art form, arguably one of it’s best examples in action, ever.

The Verdict

I still love this movie. It’s absolute, 80s testosterone, He-Man, nonsense. There is no subtlety to be found in this movie whatsoever. It’s full on, Rambo-esque chaos and it’s glorious to see. Where Alien is this tight, atmospheric, exercise in panic, Predator is this garish, wide-open, deceptively horrifying, action extravaganza. The script is tight, the pacing is brisk, and the direction is focused. There isn’t much of a story to tell, it’s basically the bones of a narrative used to string together ridiculous set-pieces, but it’s one of the best, brainless, explosion riddled, blockbusters out there. The dialogue is outstanding, the one-liners come fast and furious, which is testament to the writing but the real gem here are the performances given by the main cast. These Beefaroni ass f*ckers are great, Schwarzenegger in particular.

This role is what made me pay attention to him. This role is what lead me to Terminator and Conan and Total Recall and True Lies. Even with all of that awesome under his belt, it was his Dutch that made me a fan. Predator is not a great movie but it is a fun ass time with outstanding performances, saturated in this macabre camp that infects every aspect of this production. It’s Bayhem at it’s best, vapid action overlord, executed by a director who is competent in his craft, not lost in his ego. If you’ve never seen it, definitely check it out. It’s totally worth a watch. Keep in mind, though, if you’re triggered easily, this might set you off. It’s completely 80s in tone and sensibilities. If you can’t separate that, definitely give this one a pass.

[percentmagazine]

Matrix Pill 2020

The Matrix has you…

The cultural overview over "The Matrix Trilogy" and how it foresaw the social trends.

"The Matrix" trilogy by the Wachowski brothers is the most iconic and groundbreaking movie trilogies in cinema history. Terms like "The red pill", "Dessert of the real", "There is no spoon", "Follow the white rabbit", "Why, Mr. Anderson? Why?" and many other phrases from the film became the golden quotes of the new millennium, shaping the entire culture of the "generation Y"… also known as "the millennials". "The bullet time" effect with fancy acrobatic moves and bullet waves turned into the most quoted gimmick for decades in action films, parodies and video games. The slow motion has never been so cool and slick, as it was after "The Matrix", not to mention sunglasses at night and dark looks with fashionable black leather tailored coats.

Its been 21 years since the theatrical release of the first "The Matrix" film. It came out in November of 1999 (the most revolutionary year in cinema history, since it is the release year of such groundbreaking hit titles like "Star Wars: Episode I. The Phantom Menace" by George Lucas, "Fight Club" by David Fincher, and "The Matrix", of course, by the Wachowski brothers). Four years after the great success of the film, "The Matrix" was reloaded with two worthy sequels: "The Matrix Reloaded" and "The Matrix Revolutions" — turning a movie franchise into a full-time trilogy. There was also "The Animatrix" — an anthology of animated short films set in "The Matrix Universe" directed by highly acclaimed Japanese animators, and a video-game "Enter the Matrix" which told a story that went parallel to the story of sequels, explaining some of the unanswered questions in the films. Thus "The Matrix" franchise has become one of the first inter-media franchises where all available storytelling formats told one epic story from different angles and points of view. And unlike other attempts of creating such inter-media franchise around movies (like it was with "Star Wars Expended Universe" or "The Terminator" franchise) it wasn't just pure merchandising and cash-grabbing schemes with questionable product quality having a famous brand logo on it… no, '"The Matrix" franchise was one well thought out project and story from the very beginning, created and curated by the Wachowski brothers. Nothing more or less.

In the year of 2020 "The Matrix" is being reloaded once again with its new instalment being in production. Internet is filled with shaky mobile phone behind the scenes footage of "The Matrix 4". We see Neo, played by actor Keanu Reeves and his stunt double, jumping of high buildings and riding fancy motorcycle with Trinity, played by Carrie Ann-Moss, while the streets of San-Francisco are being turned into a chaotic war zone with explosions, car chases, extras running all over the streets and helicopters flying.

Usually such big blockbuster film productions are being held in secret in order to prevent unnecessary leaks and story spoilers… most of the extras and crew members don't even know what movie they are filming up until the very end. During such big productions fake movie titles are made. But this time, as it seams, filmmakers don't really care about production secrecy, as actor Keanu Reeves and film director Lana Wachowski keep on hanging out with random people on a street during the filmmaking process. What is it? A new viral social media format of film advertising? Or the new way of entire filmmaking approach? Or maybe both?

Either way — Lana Wachowski is the visionary artist that is going to bring something fresh and unexpected into the cinema format and into the new "Generation Z" culture. The Wachowski brothers have foreseen the future with "The Matrix" film almost in every way possible… and I'm pretty sure they are going to do so again. They spoke of cyber-crimes, data privacy and internet control long before Edward Snowden incident, WikiLeaks, Anonymous group, social medias and etc. They showed aircraft controlled by so called "terrorists" hitting skyscrapers years before 9/11. "The Matrix" also tried to warn us about the dangers of virtual realities, and here we are 20 years later using VR systems and spending our lives in endless MMO RPG games (by the way, "The Matrix" franchise even had its own MMO RPG video game "The Matrix Online"). The virtual values have become much more valuable that the material ones. Bitcoins and Facebook likes are considered to be much more precious then real money and even gold by many. Instagram pages are viewed as the only true portraits of their users, however bright filters, happy faces, flattering camera lenses and photoshop have nothing to do with reality. It is merely a "Residual self-image", as it was named in the film, "A mental projection of your digital self". The person sees himself whom he wants him to be, not whom he really is.

And I think that this topic is the most overlooked topic by critics and contemporary culture scholars.

Just think about it — the Wachowski brothers are the physical manifestation of their own concept of "Residual self-image", as both of them saw themselves as someone different. Both brothers were men, but they considered themselves to be women. Their physical reality didn't match with their mental projection of virtual self. Thus they had to do surgeries and go through sex change procedures. The Wachowski brothers are officially sisters. Nowadays in 2020 it is a common practice that can't surprise anyone, however in 1990s during the production of the first "The Matrix" film it was a big deal… so big that Wachowski brothers had to rewrite the screenplay. In the earlier drafts of the script there was a fully flashed out transgender character. She is still present in the final film, but her role and concept has been reduced. Character Switch — portrayed by Belinda McClory — was a transgender, and her name "Switch" meant too illustrate her constant transitions from one form into another, as she was a female in the real world, but in the Matrix her personal "Residual self-image" switched her into a masculine male. For Wachowski brothers it was a very important topic to explore, since both of them dedicated their lives to transgender worldview, but in 1990's the film studio and producers thought that such concepts would be too confusing for average film viewers and difficult to follow, thus it was all cut out during pre-production. Even their first film "Bound" that featured lesbian love story was met with numerous misunderstandings during pre-production, during its filming and, of course, during its release, since such themes were considered too risky… almost taboo, as they could easily put off many unprepared audiences.

But now… look how the world and culture has changed?! In 21 years everything is upside down. It is almost impossible to find a big blockbuster film or franchise or T.V. series or even a video-game that has no lesbian, gay, transgender, bisexual, pansexual or any other "something"-sexual character. It is true for both "rated R" and "rated M" media and for media oriented for children. Disney's life adaptation of animated classic "Beauty and the Beast" is the prime example… not to mention more.

I must say that unorthodox sexual orientation of characters were always present in cinema, they were never the subject of prohibition and never will be, however before "Wachowski era" their orientation always played some sort of narrative purpose. No character was supposed to be gay or transexual just for that sake of being such. But nowadays we see LGBT characters all over visual media… and the fact of their orientation rarely enhance the story or add anything to it. For the most part it is just being there for no reason other then being there. No wonder we have so many poorly written stories today. "Chekhov's gun" is the key to good storytelling, isn't it? If you put something into a story, it must heave a purpose, because without purpose it's just a filler, a white noise… this means it shouldn't be there at all. And here I'd like to quote Agent Smith from "The Matrix" films:

"But, as you well know, appearances can be deceiving…" — even here Wachowski brothers point out the previous "Residual self-image" topic. "…which brings me back to the reason why we're here. We're not here because we're free. We're here because we're not free. There is no escaping reason; no denying purpose. Because as we both know, without purpose, we would not exist."

Curious… Wachowski brothers were pioneers in LGBT mass-media, yet even they were smart enough to exclude these themes from "The Matrix trilogy", even having a total creative freedom over the sequels, as they knew that it would serve no purpose in their story. Yet they used much more sophisticated tricks to pinpoint their agenda and worldview. Get ready for some hard drugs! Wachowski brothers urged the protagonist and film viewers to take "The red pill" and "Free our minds". They also urged us to fight against all rules and stereotypes, and young generation loved it. In the film it simply meant "rage against the machines", but in our world where this film was "The red pill" for young people, this fight against the established order had much deeper purpose.

Upon the quick view on the lives of the Wachowski brothers over these two decades we can tell that their "red pill" they were giving us, was simply a androgyne hormone for transgenders and their main "Matrix" they were fighting against, was the sexual orientation stereotypes. They succeeded in their revolution, as LGBT themes are no longer taboo in mass-media. But there were also other important cultural topics Wachowski brothers presented with their trilogy: multiculturalism, racial diversity, feminism and even "toxic masculinity" and war against white men and patriarchy… long before these themes became mainstream in pop-culture.

"The Matrix" franchise had always a diverse cast, didn't it? It also has strong and independent female characters right from the start. And it wasn't just a copycat trend to appeal some social minorities, as it happens today. It was the personal philosophy of the authors. However, despite all their diversity and equality, one social group was shown deliberately one-sided. Just think about it. All evil characters in all three films were male and white. Agents are white middle aged men, Cypher — white middle aged man, Merovingian — white middle aged man, Architect — white man, Bane — white middle aged man, etc. Some can argue on this topic, since white men where also on the side of good guys. True, "but, as you well know, appearances can be deceiving…" says Smith. All white men on the good side of the story are… well, questionable. Whom can we name? Councillor Hamann — played by Anthony Zerbe — is a white man… a father figure in Zion, however he is shown to be an irrational and rhetorical weak old man. Comparing him to other leaders of Zion we can easily see his incompetence. Even Neo makes fun of him, pointing out on a fact that Hamann's solid age doesn't make him wiser (and it is the only time in the whole trilogy when the main protagonist ever trolls anyone). Then there is the Kid — played by Clayton Watson — another white man good guy, but he is just an immature naive boy… in "The Animatrix" he in the moment of danger finds no better way out then a suicide… a very questionable role model, don't you think? Who's next? Mouse — portrayed by Matt Doran — once again a young teenager full of sexual hormones and nothing more. There is also Captain Roland — played by David Roberts — and his ship crew, but a single black woman Niobe — played by Jada Pinkett Smith — turns out to be wiser and much more competent then any of them. Meanwhile all non-white and non-male characters are shown in the positive light. Wait… but what about Neo — the one himself — played by Keanu Reeves — he is a white man — the hero of the trilogy. True. However originally "The Matrix" creators wanted to cast Will Smith for the role of Neo, but Will Smith declined the role and chose to act in "Wild Wild West".

In other words Wachowski brothers brought up anti-white men SJW themes in their films long before such topics became mainstream and part of pop-culture. Thus they weren't even noticed by the time of film release. But it is worth mentioning that Wachowski brothers were depicting anti-white men subplots not because they were following some kind of fashion or social agenda like mass-media does today, but because brothers WERE white and men, and they wanted to do something about it. And they did. For real.

However next generation of filmmakers and artists took the Wachowski brothers' personal issues and turned it into a viral trend, changing the culture forever. It can be even said that the modern SJW and LGBT hysteria is the Matrix, created by Wachowski brothers. I wonder, will their new "The Matrix" film change the world once again?.. and how?

Text: Jurii Kirnev

Omnifinery Editorial: Article 003

[wrenarrior]

Your Guide to Death

The following is a work of fiction. You have been warned.

△ preface △

Congratulations!

Now that you are 13 years old, you are officially old enough to begin practicing the death ritual.

Before we go into great detail about the ritual itself, it’s time to lay down some background information. First of all, you may be asking yourself: “Well, what is death? Why should I care?”

Well, to give some context to why you should care, everyone is going to die. The world has existed before you were here, and the world will continue to exist until the end of time itself.

And no, unlike the movies, it is not an empty void of nothingness. To even perceive an empty void of nothingness, you would need a point of reference. Death means no point of reference.

So, there would be no “you” to perceive the lack of nothing. The “you” that is reading this right now will be wiped clean from the slate, almost as if you never even existed in the first place.

Are you beginning to envision the depth of what this means? Maybe you’re starting to panic, too. We understand. Confronting our own mortality is not something that’s easy for us humans to do.

So, that’s why we’re here to help you out. If you follow this guide word-for-word, you will be ready to die peacefully and completely. Because you know what they say, life is very fragile.

On the bright side, though, most of you won’t have to deal with the effects of death for many, many years. After all, you’re only 13. These days, the average human lives until around age 80.

While there is plenty of time to prepare for death, starting early is important. The earlier you think about and prepare for your own death, the more prepared you will be to leave this world.

Now, without further ado, let us begin exploring the process of the death ritual.

△ mechanics △

The death ritual consists of three major phases: costume, decay, and complete erasure. While these three phases will not always happen during a person’s death, they are good for practice.

1. Costume: When one begins of age and is ready to start the death ritual, it is important to buy the right costume to prepare. In small shops all around the country, you may be able to find the proper mask and sleeping attire. Prices usually run between $500-$1000.

2. Decay: With the proper costume on, you must lie back in your bed, clearing your thoughts as much as possible. Your mind will naturally go to sleep mode, but as soon as it detects the presence of the costume, special hormones are released, simulating death. This phase may be painful for some, especially when one is a beginner, so be careful.

3. Complete Erasure: The pinnacle of the three trials. It is only possible to gauge the success of this phase from an outside perspective. You, of course, will feel nothing, do nothing, and be nothing. From your perspective, when you awake, it’ll be as if no time has passed.

If you experience any side effects during your death ritual, please consult a mortician. In some rare cases, it has been discovered that a person has died without being aware of their own death. We call these cases “technical glitches” because their death does not follow the proper protocol.

On the other hand, it is normal to experience mild hallucinations while in the “complete erasure” stage. Our science may not be perfect, but we aim to bring you as close as we can to the complete death experience. If these hallucinations persist for a long period of time, let us know.

While it is recommended to perform the death ritual every single night, it is okay if you only do it 3-5 nights a week. A regular check-in with a doctor about your plans for death is a healthy alternative to these rituals as well. Being aware of your own mortality makes life easier to live.

△ acceptance △

By this point, you’ve either accepted that you’re going to die, or you’re trying to convince yourself that none of this even matters. Well, those who avoid accepting their own mortality often report a lower quality in life. So, yes, accepting that you’re going to die is essential.

Some of you may be wondering why it’s important or how to even accept your own mortality. And because we know it may be a difficult thing to process, we are here to help you with it.

First off, read the following sentence aloud ten times:

“I am going to die, and that is okay.”

Taste the words in your mouth. Feel the meaning. Let it sink into the deepest parts of your mind. Think about how important it is for you to understand this core concept. How essential it is.

Have you accepted it yet? If not, keep repeating that sentence. Repeat that sentence as long as it takes you. Repeat it in the classroom. Repeat it while riding the bus. Repeat it in the shower.

After a while, the words will become second nature. When that happens, you will no longer need to repeat them. The words will become a part of you. The words will become your new truth.

And that, my friends, is the first step towards accepting your inevitable death.

△ grief △ While it may be years before many of you will be personally affected by the impact of death, it’s always best to prepare for such things well in advance. After all, you will have only one death.

But you will experience many more deaths of the people around you. Therefore, having some pre-knowledge of the grieving process and how to prepare for it will make your life much easier.

(Side note: By possessing this book, you forfeit your right to sue us if your loved one dies during the death ritual. We hold no responsibility for the chemical makeup of the death ritual costume.)

In this modern era, the grieving process has simplified to three basic steps. Forget everything you might have heard of the so-called “five stages of grief” because those are woefully inaccurate.

Step 1: Jealousy. While you have to continue to go through the death ritual night after night, your lucky loved one had the honor of participating in the real thing. And now, they no longer exist.

Step 2: Guilt. After realizing your feelings of jealousy, you feel vast amounts of guilt. So much guilt that some nights, you begin to wonder if you were the one that led them to their death.

Step 3: Acceptance. You come to accept that death is a natural part of life, so you put aside all your negative feelings, focusing only on the peace that comes from the death ritual. You live on.

Compared to before, our obsession with death has grown more and more. There are entire industries dedicated to every step of the way. So, naturally, our feelings have changed, too.

It is completely normal to not follow the three-step-guideline, but nowadays, it is socially acceptable to do so. If you follow any other path, you may be closely monitored for your safety.

Those who die by suicide are said to suffer the most in their last moments. However, the outcome of death is the same for everyone, regardless of if you were a good or bad person.

In the end, we will all be wiped clean from the Earth, sprinkling matter everywhere. You may be asking about souls, but we haven’t been able to conduct research to prove the existence of them.

So, settle in and enjoy the long wait until your death. You could even turn it into a game. It’s common practice for large families or friend groups to bet on who would end up dying first.

△ closing note △

In conclusion, all things must come to an end, even this lovely guide which you have treasured so dearly. At some point or another, you must learn to say goodbye to the things you love most.

Through this guide, we have taught you the essentials of the ritual, how to accept your inevitable demise, and how to process your feelings when your beloved friends and family members depart.

If you would like to learn more about the whole process on a deeper level that goes beyond the scope of this introductory guide, please look for Your Guide to Death: Extended Version online.

We hope we’ve been able to help you find peace in your life because, spoiler alert, there is no afterlife for you to look forward to. Have a nice day and enjoy the rest of your meager lives.

[November 2018]

[flowerofiris]

📖+ YouTuber AU

“Hi, everyone! Welcome to Nino’s Magic Lessons! I’m your helpful instructor, doing my best as always, Nino!”

No one would ever know, but this was Nino’s fifth take just doing the title alone. She always felt like maybe she should have a fancier title, but she really couldn’t think of anything better... or maybe stop introducing herself by name in the beginning when she already said the title, but people said it was cute in the comments.

Why had she started doing this channel again? She surely wasn’t the best kind of person for recording videos; it took her a whole week to figure out a setup and how to make the recording look okay... Everyone did think she should be teaching others some magic, even if it was only a little bit, and this was the best solution she could think of. Everyone was on YouTube nowadays.

“Today, we’re going to be learning about the spell ‘Ginnungagap’! This is a very advanced spell, so please pay attention closely if you’re following along! First, some background! Founded by the sorcerer...”

She had been practicing this spell for a while. She figured it was inevitable that her viewers would want something a bit more flashy, since she had already gone over the basic spells. She could already hear the comments on this video. Her praise tended to come from two kinds of people; people who said she was adorable, and people who said her special effects were amazing, better than most movies they’ve seen.

It was just her little secret that these were not special effects, but real spells. Of course, there were other mages watching, but magic was very scarce in the days of technology; she was a rarity. Since it was so rare, she really wanted to help people... while also bringing some entertainment to others!

“...to conclude, it’s somewhat of a mix of dark and Anima magic. Please exercise caution when utilizing this spell, as well; it can leave your magical usage drained until you get another spell out of your system, but it’ll be very difficult to do so!” Nino hadn’t used Ginnungagap very often because of this, but it looked very cool, so this is what she decided on. Again, most of her viewers wanted to see something flashy, and she really wanted to impress, after all!

“Now, with that out of the way, it’s time to begin the lesson! Put your hands out, take a deep breath...” She had made up some little stretches when casting her spells; she wanted to make people feel caught up in the moment. In reality, she could cast most of her spells without much extra effort, but it was fun to do things like this. Besides, most mages could tell that she was just playing it up for the audience.

“...and when you’re ready, you chant the spell... Ginnungagap!” With her words, she felt the entire room go into a burst of darkness, crackling sparks all but destroying the room she had set up to cast spells in; this was normal, the room was mostly made of props that she could easily replace. The audience loved destruction, after all, but the spell was starting to make her tired. She kept her focus as some of the wall started to be chipped away as well, trying not to panic, she could always have it fixed later... before the spell finished, and she was left with a smoldering wreck of a room.

She turned back to the camera with her famous smile. “And there you have it! Please be careful when using this spell, and don’t lose your focus when you’re casting it! I hope you all enjoyed today’s video, please be sure to like and subscribe...” She ran through the motions of encouraging viewers to enjoy her content and all. “...and I hope you have a wonderful day today! Stay strong!” Those little motivational messages always added a nice touch, she felt.

“And cut!” She exclaimed, clapping her hands together and turning the camera off. She sat at her computer, her desktop full of little trinkets. She looked at the room... the wall looked a bit devastated, she’d have to find an excuse for the repairman when she asked him to fix what was basically the third wall this month, she couldn’t use the ‘weak foundation’ excuse forever. And worst of all... she looked at her computer, with her footage all saved... She’d have to edit that all before the day was over.

...She felt like she honestly should just get a real part-time job.

[cheswirls]

tether notes 1/3

long overdue, sry abt that.

pt. 1

why is there no change to the mines after 15+ years of destroying an environment?

i modeled the sinnoh region of tether almost exclusively on the hokkaido region of japan. from the layout of cities like sapporo, abashiri, and muroran, to geography like lake saroma northeast of veilstone and the hidaka mountain range for lower mt coronet, and especially, to the isolationism. i kept it trie to pokemon in the fact that sinnoh has no railways, unlike its real-life counterpart, which has plenty for traversing its vastness. a big part of hokkaido is how empty it is.

[on that note, though i mention both, i used muroran photography to model veilstone instead of abashiri, as its a proper port town. not super significant, jsu thought i’d bring it up, since muroran is sandgem’s counterpart.]

hokkaido is vastly underpopulated in ratio to its size. its mostly due to climate, and nature. things are far less technologized there. outside of sapporo, you won’t find very many glowing billboards and fancy casinos and active nightlife. you have to ride a train for hours to reach the next big town. the mountain range cuts the northern region in half.

when compared to this, little villages out in the middle of the wilds are far more isolated than towns. especially when they’re remnants of indigenous tribes. it’s sad, but it’s pretty standard process in the world nowadays -governments don’t care about the native people much. it’s prevalent in the united states, and if you’ve ever read commentary from fma’s mangaka arakawa, you’ll know the same is true for japan. the ainu are isolated to hokkaido. they aren’t looked after much.

so, even though it’s been a direct result of oreburgh’s mines’ negative effects, it’s still a matter of most of the sinnoh region not even knowing the village existed, and even if they did, not paying it mind. the wilds of sinnoh are difficult to traverse, and it’s more logical to take a boat to your destined city instead of traversing through them. that’s why so many of the big towns in sinnoh are located on a shore. for others, like jubilife and hearthome, there are airports that cater to people. and, for real life hokkaido, there are the trains.

i really wrote abt the mining incident in reference to bangladesh. in hokkaido, once all the prevalent mines started having accidents, the japanese government was quick to shut them down. in other eastern countries, especially bangladesh, the government is notorious for doing nothing abt the insane amounts of river pollution caused by factory waste. writing the river scene was heartbreaking, but learning about the trash rivers that prevail in countries with vast amounts of pollution, of the ones that run stark orange with mining waste, that was more difficult than anything i’d written for tether. 

so it comes down to being a mix of two things. one, sinnoh’s government viewing the production of the mine and the money it brings over the safety of the nature that surrounds it. and, two, no one noticing the damage anyway. it’s not like it ever affected oreburgh. or, maybe it did, but they installed the fresh-air vents to keep the mines clean, like the changes made in pokemon platinum suggest? the oreburgh mines are the sinnoh region’s majority of energy, after all (you can argue for sunyshore, but i’d say solar power only stretches so far from the source) so even if there’s a scuffle of it here or there, keeping it active is important.

also. my take of the pokemon world has always been a little gritty. so there’s that.

why hancock as champion?

i ask myself this question everyday. i don’t even like boa. why did i include her, if in name only? what was i thinking? oh well. it’s already been done.

[side note, again. if boa’s in charge of sinnoh, considering her, erm, personality, is it hard to believe nothing was ever done abt the mine pollution? aka does she care abt anyone but herself hm hm ]

pt 2.

i introduce a pokemon known as driftzel rather early on. it’s luffy’s, and it’s an in-progress pokemon, a concept i thought would be interesting to use. you can see what driftzel looks like here. it also links to the blog i got the idea from. instead of it being like a natural evolution, though, the idea in tether is more of a middle evolution for pokemon with two lines. so, there aren’t any for three-line evolutions. i was originally going to introduce ricaru, an evolution between riolu and lucario, but i moved away from that idea somewhere around writing part 4.

herbalist!law is the solution i came up with in lieu of him being a doctor. i had so much fun with the berries. when i was doing my maps for each part of tether, i had separate maps marking out the locations of berries in the games and which ones law collects along the journey to veilstone. 

hearthome is the only city i didn’t base on a real world counterpart. i think because i had too much to work with already. the cathedral, the contest hall, the gym. all the architecture. the poffin house. i didn’t wanna change anything abt hearthome, and more importantly, i wanted to portray part of japan’s hospitality here, too. it does extend all the way to hokkaido, yes. people are nice, and friendly, and happy to have travelers, just as depicted in all the games. 

yes, all of ace’s pokemon are named after spade pirates. except for isuka, because i couldn’t resist. yes, striker is a spade pirate, it was his ship. 

[in reference to the night walk between hearthome and solaceon] remember to bring a compass, when you’re in a region with a giant magnetic mountain range at its center, because it will be a lifesaver.

Law can see how uneasy Luffy still is, but as they walk further from the coast, he eases up, so he chooses not to ask

^ in platinum, the opposite shore houses the hallowed tower where you can encounter spiritomb. sensing the presence of an evil spirit leaves luffy on edge, thus their dodge to avoid it.

why are lunar wings, an event-only item, brought up in hearthome?

you’re right. lunar wing is a rare dppt item, and you can only get it after encountering cresselia on fullmoon island. my inspiration came from an episode of the dp anime, where a stall in canalave was selling the feathers as homage to the game event. actually, to go further, the same thing happened in the darkrai movie, which is where i got most of the insp. especially for the charms made out of them -look at the picture here!! i figured, with the sinnoh region i was depicting being a place of mostly friendly and peaceful pokemon, cresselia was more generous with her feathers. they make for popular items, and if they work in keeping the bad dreams away, whats the harm? plus, they’re in hearthome, a hotbed for tourists and foreign activity, because they’d sell best there. a good luck souvenir from sinnoh? sign me up.

but they are still lunar wings, and they do work, as shown with chimchar. i really wanted a piece of practical merchandise i could show off, and once i got the idea for chimchar’s introduction, i tweaked the hearthome scene to include the feathers. if you pay attention, though, you’ll note that law no longer has restless sleep after luffy’s secured a lunar wing.

the solaceon ruins was a place i wanted to explore so badly, but it just didn’t make sense within the continuity of the story, especially when i decided to go the northern route and introduce tsuru out of the fog. my original ideas were split between that, and law/lu cutting through the mountainous area of the ruins as a shortcut to veilstone. i was really captivated with exploring the uncharted areas of sinnoh’s map, and i think at this point i had established enough, so i decided they would stay on paved routes this time. but! i did want to bring it up, which is where carmel comes in.

in the games, there are houses on the outskirts of solaceon, nestled between the trees, and very close to the ruins. there’s one house where a little boy will give you ball capsule stickers. that’s the basis for mother carmel’s house. she lives there with anana, the first of the captive granddaughters to be introduced. 

anana is creepy in canon. you can’t die that. i used carmel’s canon portrayal to match, and then the scene becomes a match of who’s creepier -the ruins or this old lady? the atmosphere around the ruins is weird. there are unknown there, so the space is distorted. it’s an old place. it’s quite possibly connected to giratina and the distortion world, since there are unknown present. it’s supposed to be eerie and strange and off-putting. it’s supposed to feel like a place where a wandering child can disappear into quite easily. though, maybe carmel’s just inattentive.

The trees out here are tall, towering over them in shades of deep green and dull orange, a byproduct left over from spring’s bloom

i mention orange trees in a section of the woods just past solaceon. they’re not orange from fall, though, they’re naturally so. oran trees! any off-colored trees mentioned -assume they’re berry trees. also another berry thing i had fun with, deciding which was a bushel and which was a plant and which was a huge tree. 

i had way too much fun depicting the fog forest. i actually listened to a lot of pkmn soundtrack while writing tether, and for this part, this santalune forest remix was on constant replay. getting turned around, not being able to see your map, hearing the sounds and calls of wild pokemon, and then getting so lost in it that you begin to hear what isn’t there. not being able to see in front of you, barely able to dodge attacks and sabotage from wild pokemon, and feeling like youre going insane from myriads of different tunes clashing together. the road between solaceon and the dragon tamer’s house is terrifying, and i wanted to use this to depict the dangers of traveling in the pokemon world. though most sinnoh pokemon thus far had been shown to have good intentions, it can’t be said about every pokemon. 

not to mention the big drop you have before the bridge, right when you get out of the fog! not really even out of it, as it sticks around near the dragon tamer’s house. could you imagine encountering something like that in real life? imagine how many accidents there would be.

so i had a bit of trouble in deciding if i wanted to use tsuru or not. this was fairly early on in wano, and i knew i wanted to use tama, but who to pair her up with for grandmother/daughter matches was iffy. looking back at my list, i had lots of other picks for the dragon elder. gloriosa, shakky, kureha, rouge, gerth, even! carmel, too, at one point was a pick, since i planned this part out early on into the story. i actually had marine tsuru on the list as well! in the end, i think i decided on wano tsuru bc of all the dragon tie-ins thus far. if i were to go back, now, i think i might change it to toki and hiyori, possibly. or, tsuru and hiyori. not that i dont love tama, though, i do. 

i had a small list of grandkids, too, depending on who was the grandmother. anana, rebecca, tama, marguerite, and a few choices for marine tsuru (the standout was, apparently, isuka. then i repurposed the name for ace’s talonflame. tashigi was another pick, but in the end in wanted little girls.) at another point i thought about hiluluk and chopper, and had another grandfather/son combo that i can’t remember anymore. those were scrapped early on, since i wanted all girls. i also thought abt chimney and kokoro, but i wanted them on a more coastal city, to mirror water 7. 

there were two things i really wanted to happen in tether. one was a pokemon joining a team. and another was an evolution. part 2 fulfills one of those w chimchar, the pokemon i always wanted luffy to have, and the one i never knew i needed him to earn. also, giving pokemon their own personalities is really cute.

also, just before this scene, i take a skip, marking the second time an indefinite amount of time has passed between scenes. i realized while writing the time through mt coronet that i was writing more passively than actively, and this was speeding up things more than i liked. it’s why i took a break and depicted hearthome for a couple days, so that things were happening more in the moment. still, i hope at this point it’s gotten across that it’s taken a long time to travel to veilstone. moving across the entire region is a long journey, after all.

introducting aura, a movie concept.

so. aura was the main reason i wanted tether to take place in the sinnoh region. it’s actually mentioned in the games once, and that’s from riley, one of the sinnoh quartet, on iron island. in the movie where the concept is introduced, it’s brought with a lucario, another region. in the anime, riley has an active role in aura. but, for those who’ve just played the games, or know next to nothing abt pokemon, i tried to explain my best in-story. 

aura takes the place of conquerors haki in this pokemon verse, basically. you’re born with the sensitivity to it, so it’s not something just everyone can unlock. it’s rare, and it’s widely unknown. like law says, in sinnoh it’s considered an old myth. outside of sinnoh, it’s hardly known at all. so finding others to learn from is difficult. most people go their whole lives without even knowing what it is, just considering it natural luck that they can perceive things than others cannot. luffy meeting shanks, and learning that they both are sensitive to aura, is an incredible thing. having someone to teach you how to manipulate aura rare, and pretty amazing, when you think of the chances. but luffy and shanks live in different regions, and luffy has his own life. it’s been a long time, training, and as he expresses in part 2, he’s still not as far as he wants to be.

aura guardians, what shanks is, are almost unheard of. with great power comes great responsibility. and with great power comes the desire to obtain it. aura guardians are secret for a reason -if someone found out a person had an incredible power, and had the desire to, would they not seek it out for themselves? even to other aura users, revealing themselves wasn’t wise. protect yourself first. it’s a motto you’ll see come into play later.

with that said, and with one of the last things luffy mentions in part 2: could that have something to do with why shanks has gone missing?

[bookmgs534-blog]

Is My Husband Cheating: Is My Husband Cheating If He Only Wants to Watch Porn?

Is your husband watching porn to the point where it's exasperating your marriage? Is it accurate to say that you are feeling unreliable and exceptionally tormented by the idea of him pining for other, potentially increasingly delightful ladies - when you're asking and sobbing for his adoration and consideration under the extremely same rooftop and in a similar bed he's resting and perhaps fantasizing and having suggestive dreams about them in?

Pornography is effectively open nowadays - I would even venture to such an extreme as to state it's nearly standard. You can purchase a girly mag in practically any general store, watch porn openly on the web, or even lease grown-up movies at the neighborhood video store insofar as you're 18 and up.

I for the most part am of the conviction that a couple should manage their own principles and guidelines as far as what is and isn't adequate in their conjugal bed. Nonetheless, if your husband watches pornography, this can be a clingy subject. When is he watching an excess of porn? Also, when would it be able to arrive at a point where it can - or does - influence your sex coexistence?

While it isn't quickly indisputable that your husband's pornography propensities don't promptly flag duping, there is something to be said for your absence of solace in his activities.

On the off chance that his porn irritates you, analyze why. Do you feel sexually contrasted with or scared by the ladies that he resembles? Do they don't look anything like you - which puts you off in light of the fact that it appears as though he's not into you sexually and physically? It is safe to say that they are accomplishing things you could never want to give it a shot?

In the wake of making sense of what troubles you and why, decide how to converse with him about it and perceive how he reacts. Ideally he's seeing however clarifies that porn is his method for living it up without you - that it doesn't start to reflect what he needs from you. Try not to be astonished in the event that he winds up cautious or hidden; porn can make nearly anybody feel put zoned out on the grounds that it's such a forbidden subject even its clients don't straightforwardly examine it.

On the off chance that he ends up shrouded, at that point enable yourself to chill and comprehend that he may be embarrassed. Attempt to put it out your psyche, and basically disclose to him you'd like to see him spare some activity for you since you're prepared and willing when he is. Being saucy about it enables him to feel less restless.

Once more, sexual wants are a private thing, so on the off chance that anybody should realize what pushes against positive or negative limits in your marriage, this ought to be kept among you. I can't by and by direct what's excessively or too little or even satisfactory for you and your husband, yet I can urge you to speak with him about your sentiments.

I concur that an excessive amount of porn can demolish a relationship - particularly if your closeness and sexual encounters become constrained and rare. Be that as it may, I would dither to state that your husband is undermining you in light of porn. The vast majority characterize deceiving as a physical or passionate act. As in he's bolting himself off to you, at that point yea, I can consider this to be a kind of swindling - by and by, I've managed this and it's an agonizing circumstance. Most men aren't mindful of how their sexual activities with porn can close us out, however I've once in a while observed a person whose into porn enable it to carry him to another live woman's bed or truly want it. These men generally take a gander at porn as a discharge... furthermore, some utilization it to really check physical wants.

Attempt to talk with him first and perceive how he responds before you drive yourself nuts. In the event that you feel he's reluctant to change, or extremely protective, at that point indeed, it's conceivable that he's truly enveloped with pornographic or potentially sexual fixation - however we'll cross that extension when we get to it. On the off chance that he concedes sexual enthusiasm for another woman or ladies, at that point truly, it's conceivable there's a connect to his porn and his wants to cheat - however not that he IS duping.

[ehlers70westermann-blog]

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