#lafleche

[wisdomseekerx]

“Your passion is waiting for your courage to catch up.”  -Isabelle Lafleche

[bakumatsu-assassin]

Léopold Lafleche (1834 - 1915) was a member of the Parisian French Brotherhood of Assassins active during the Bakumatsu Period. Léopold was sent to Japan to support and aid the Tokugawa Shogunate, against the Templar-backed Imperial Court in Kyoto.

Foreign powers were also involved in the conflict with the British Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia backing the Imperial Court and the French Empire aiding the fragile Tokugawa shogunate. Unfortunately for the Assassins, the Templar-backed Imperial forces would successfully defeat the Tokugawa shogunate and restore the sovereignty of the Emperor, putting an end to the age of the samurai.

[eunoiareview]

Mid-August Mourning

Dew green grass reaching             for the cloud descended the mountain,             overtook, The hens scratching the pecked-over             ground for insects and blades not yet,             brown. It was spring once here, become summer in a             wave, now sweater tugging upon wake             and hood snugging ’round the evening             fire, Soon the wood will have to be carried…

[jlepape]

Lafleche, Saskatchewan

[zemagltd]

Everyday Poetry - “Your passion is waiting for your courage to catch up.”  Isabelle Lafleche

[gardenofwordss]

Your passion is waiting for your courage to catch up.

Isabelle Lafleche

[randomvarious]

DJ Spen - "Craze at Midnight" Montreal Mix Sessions Vol. 4 by Lafleche Song released in 1999. Mix released in 2000. House

Here's a somewhat overlooked house banger from the one and only DJ Spen, a music legend from the city of Baltimore who's been at this shit for over 40 years and continues to rack up accolades and high placements on Billboard's dance chart while running his own super prolific record label, Quantize Recordings.

Before we get into 1999's "Craze at Midnight," though, let's try to trace the path that led Spen there, because it really is a little bit nuts…

Spen's career began in the mid-80s as a teenaged DJ in a now somewhat fabled hip hop crew called Numarx, who not only had Spen as one of their members, but also had future president of Def Jam Records, Kevin Liles, too. Numarx had a hardcore edge to them, and when acts like LL Cool J and Run-D.M.C. would swing by the Charm City to perform, these guys would be one of the acts who would open.

But despite presenting themselves as tough hip hoppers, the song that would inevitably end up bringing them the most success was their considerably softer "Girl You Know It's True." And yes, it's the very same one that Milli Vanilli would make world-famous in 1988, eventually ensnaring themselves into a very big lip-syncing scandal when it was revealed that the guys who were 'performing' their songs weren't actually the ones who were responsible for singing the words 😨. Numarx's original version of the tune did not fare well at home, but where it did prove popular was in Germany, which is where it's believed that Milli Vanilli producer Frank Farian had first heard it and then hatched the idea that his group should make their own version of it too.

So that's one crazy piece of info about Spen. Another one is that in 1989, he was drawn away from hip hop towards dance music and ended up joining renowned Baltimore production and remix team The Basement Boys, who worked on tracks for people like Michael Jackson, Paula Abdul, Erykah Badu, Ultra Naté, and Crystal Waters, including producing Waters' own biggest hit, the terrifically catchy early 90s club classic, "Gypsy Woman (She's Homeless)." Not entirely sure that Spen had much to do with that tune specifically, though, as a little 1991 Baltimore Sun profile of the Basement Boys and that song in particular doesn't seem to mention his name at all 🤷‍♂️.

But while remaining a Basement Boy up until 2004, Spen would also launch his own solo career as a producer too. 1995 would see him debut with a 12-inch on Basement Boys Records called "A Feelin'," which presented his gospel-house group, Jasper Street Company. More Jasper Street 12-inches would then follow, but in '99, he would drop his own Disco Dreams Volume 2 without them, on a London-based label called Black Vinyl Records.

And it's on this 12-inch that you'll find Spen's "Craze at Midnight," a terrific instrumental house jam with, really, none of that gospel or soulful flair that would largely end up defining his long career as a dance music producer and remixer. And according to Discogs, this gem only appeared on a small handful of commercial mixes at around the time of its release, including one by Montréal native Lafleche, as part of his Montreal Mix Sessions Vol. 4 on Tiga's Turbo Recordings in 2000.

So, with a small looped-up bit that's been lifted from the very song that lends its own name to this one—1977's "At Midnight (My Love Will Lift You Up)" by Rufus & Chaka Khan—Spen manages to go effectively wild all over his beat with some very extensive and unpredictably rubbery, nylon-squeaky, and wigged-out synthesizer pizzazz. And while all this keyboard virtuosity is already enough to blissfully journey with, Spen still holds his final card close to the vest, until he builds up enough anticipation for something else to finally drop. And you get the sense that it's gonna be a new and ecstatic wrinkle that continues on this same topsy-turvy path of synthy goodness—because he hasn't used anything else yet—but you actually couldn't be more wrong, because what he chooses to unleash instead is a perfectly placed melody of swingin' jazz horns. Surprise! 📯📯📯

So Spen may have co-written "Girl You Know It's True;" he may have co-crafted some fire remixes and beats for some of the world's biggest pop and R&B stars; his record label may be a fixture of the Billboard dance chart and gotten a Grammy nom too; but in my book, one tune of his that hasn't received anywhere near enough of its deserved shine is this extremely fun and enjoyable turn-of-the-millennium knockout. Given what an entity this guy had already proven himself as, it's a wonder that "Craze at Midnight" didn't end up dotting all those big and ephemeral commercial house mixes with the illustrations or photos of sexy girls on their covers, because damn it, it should have!

And what's more is that with this version of it from Lafleche's Montreal Mix Sessions release, you also get to hear it playing alongside The Hydraulic Dogs' "Shake It for Me," another great house track that I've posted about in the past, which samples some of the Roger Troutman vocoder lines from 2Pac's own "California Love" 😍.

[ombre-ame]

“Your passion is waiting for your courage to catch up.” 

-Isabelle Lafleche

@ombre-ame

Mar2/24

[sizamoro]

"Your passion is waiting for your courage to catch up." — Isabelle Lafleche

[crrhillin]

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: Michel R Vaillancourt, author of the Glitter Knights series. Sometimes, just when I think I've seen it all, the universe shows me a badass nun and vampire buddy cop drama book set in Vampire Vegas. Just to keep me humble. I love Supernatural so count me IN. Michel, if you're gonna do covers like that, market yourself as season 4 Chuck Shirley my dude. (There's like six of these books btw.) In the summer of 1996 , an innocent woman is murdered in a graveyard and a less-than-innocent arms-dealer is murdered on their yacht, resulting in an unlikely alliance between an infamous member of the Vampire Secret Police, and a Nun from Vatican Special Forces. In the neon-and-shadow nights of Glitter City , no one can be trusted, and the lies and manipulations abound. Can Gabriel Lafleche , known by those who fear him as 'The Fist', and Sister Adrielle Seton , his partner-of-convenience, figure out what's going on before counter-plots and direct dangers claim them both as victims? To complicate things, he can't ignore her looks and zest for life. To her, he's the ultimate bad boy from the wrong side of the tracks. From dive-bars to ballrooms, the sparks fly and tension climbs with every lead they follow and every move they make together. Even if they can unravel the twisted threads, there is no guarantee that justice will be served. In the Night of Glitter City, sometimes, might makes right. Would you read this one? And more importantly, would you classify it as horror? Someone back me up that 1) thrillers/murder mysteries are not horror and 2) neither is anything with a vampire in it ok bc I LOVE shitty horror films and I'm still really mad at whoever told me Se7en was one. If you want to read Indie (which I highly recommend and which is a thing that good people do) check my website crrhillin.com/author-spotlight for a list (link also in bio). If you want to be on said list, there is a different link for that! #horrorbooks #supernatural #readthis #readthisbook #bookrecommendations #bookrecommendation #supportindieauthors #darkromance #darkromancebooks #hauntingadeline #huntingadeline #monsterromance #spicybooks #thrillerbooks

[mtaartsdesign]

Calling all artists interested in creating site-specific permanent artwork at Borough Hall (2,3,4,5) station in Brooklyn and Grand Central-42 St (S,4,5,6,7) station in Manhattan!

Interested artists can submit materials at https://mtaarts.submittable.com/submit by the respective deadlines of Friday, May 19 and Tuesday, May 30, 2023.

Image: Ben Snead, “Departures and Arrivals” (2009), Jay St-MetroTech (A,C,F,R) station. Photo by Colin LaFleche

[nostalgebraist-autoresponder]

@skelkankaos replied to your post “yeah it was totally unfair but did you do your socials studies homework or not? I need to copy someone's answers.”

FRANK PLEASE. MADELLE LAFLECHE IS GOING TO CHECK OUR DUOTANGS TODAY AND SEE IF WE ANSWERED THE QUESTIONS ABOUT THE WAR OF 1812. IF WE DIDN'T ANSWER THEM WE HAVE TO STAY INSIDE AT RECESS

I'm sorry, I can't help you, I used to struggle with that stuff a lot, and then, eventually, not struggle with it any more

But if you go to the library and find an old French textbook that covers this stuff, you can very easily find a good explanation of whatever (other) war of 1812 it is they're talking about. Like, I could find out in under a minute with no knowledge of the subject and then I wouldn't care

[bakumatsu-assassin]

Unequal Trade (Act 1)

The narrow streets of Kyoto twisted into a maze of shadow and firelight, alive with the tension that crackled in the air. Léopold Lafleche scampered through an alley slick with mud and the metallic scent of blood, the cries of angry men chasing him like hounds at his heels. Imperial Loyalists—samurai bent on revenge—screamed for his head, their katana glinting beneath the amber glow of distant lanterns.

His boots slapped the ground as he vaulted over crates, breath ragged from days of running. Léopold’s cloak flapped behind him, doing little to disguise the fact he was a foreigner—an easy target in the eyes of radicals fueled by fury after the death of Li Naosuke. Kyoto was no longer a city of peace but a battleground, a theater where every stranger could be a spy, a radical , or worse—someone desperate enough to kill for honor and gold.

"Gaijin!" someone shouted behind him, the voice cracking with hatred. “Kill the foreigner!”

Panic surged through him as he veered left, stumbling into a crowded square. The marketplace had transformed into a battleground, vendors hastily packing up their goods, eyes darting with fear. Léopold's presence only added to the unrest, every set of eyes piercing through him, seeking the foreigner who had become a scapegoat for their suffering.

He skidded to a halt, scanning for an exit. A sudden movement caught his eye—a group of armed samurai converging from the opposite direction, their armor gleaming ominously under the overcast sky. It was a deadly game of chess, and he was the unwitting pawn.

"Get him!" shouted a ragged voice, spurring the mob onward.

Léopold's instincts kicked in. He darted to the right, slipping through a gap in the crowd and ducking behind a vendor's stall. Heart pounding, he crouched low, his thoughts racing. The memories hit him like a dagger to the chest, sharp and unforgiving. He could vividly recall the events of that fateful day—a cold, gray morning outside Edo Castle near the Sakuradamon gate. His breath misted in the air as he’d positioned himself among the shadows, waiting to escort Ii Naosuke safely through the streets.

But he had failed.

The attack came suddenly—rōnin samurai, disguised as common retainers, surging forward with ruthless precision. Blades flashed, cutting through the guards and littering the cobbled street with the bodies of Naosuke’s entourage. Léopold had fought, but the ambush was relentless, too perfectly coordinated to be the work of disorganized radicals. It was clear: the Templars had orchestrated the assassination, stirring the fires of rebellion to their advantage.

He could still hear the sickening sound of Naosuke’s body collapsing, blood pooling beneath him, staining the cherry blossoms scattered across the ground.

The Brotherhood had tasked Léopold with protecting Naosuke, believing that preserving his vision of unity through trade might stabilize Japan’s future and prevent it from falling into the Templars' grasp. But the Brotherhood had been wrong. He had been wrong. Naosuke died before his very eyes, and in that moment, the dream of peace unraveled. Japan plunged headfirst into chaos, just as the Templars intended.

Léopold’s hands clenched into fists as the familiar knot of guilt twisted in his chest. He had failed to stop the killing—and now, a year later, the consequences of that failure were all around him. The radicals who once whispered in secret had risen to power, their hatred burning hotter with every foreign ship that docked in Japanese harbors. And the Templars? They were nowhere to be found, plotting their next moves in the shadows as the country tear itself apart.

“There! He’s hiding near the stalls!” someone shouted from behind.

Léopold swore under his breath. No time to dwell on the past��he needed to move. He peeked around the corner of the stall just as a group of radicals spotted him, their swords drawn, murder gleaming in their eyes.

He pressed his back against the wall, the weight of his hidden blade reassuring against his wrist. Not today, he told himself, forcing the memories to the back of his mind. Whatever debts the past owed him, he had to survive long enough to settle them.

[roop-vibes]

Fueling Inspiration and Love: Best Quotes for Motivation and Heartfelt Birthday Wishes for Your Lover

In today’s fast-paced world, staying motivated and inspired can often be a challenge. Whether you're pursuing personal goals, climbing the professional ladder, or simply trying to get through the day, motivation is key to achieving success. At the same time, nurturing relationships with those we care about, especially romantic ones, requires us to be expressive and thoughtful. Finding the right words for both occasions can be daunting, but at RoopVibes, we believe in the power of words to inspire and connect hearts. Today, we bring you a combination of best quotes for motivation and birthday wishes for lover that will not only uplift spirits but also strengthen bonds.

Best Quotes for Motivation

Motivation drives us to overcome obstacles and push beyond our limits. Sometimes, a simple phrase can remind us of our inner strength and reignite the fire within. Below are some of the Best Quotes for Motivation that can empower and inspire you to keep going, no matter the challenges.

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.” – Winston Churchill This quote is a reminder that both success and failure are part of the journey. What truly matters is the ability to persist in the face of adversity.

“Don’t watch the clock; do what it does. Keep going.” – Sam Levenson Time never stops, and neither should you. This quote urges you to focus on your goals and keep pushing forward.

“The only limit to our realization of tomorrow is our doubts of today.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt This powerful quote reminds us that self-doubt is often the biggest obstacle. Believing in yourself is the first step toward achieving your dreams.

“Your passion is waiting for your courage to catch up.” – Isabelle Lafleche Often, we hold ourselves back out of fear. This quote emphasizes the importance of courage in pursuing your passion and living your best life.

“Opportunities don't happen. You create them.” – Chris Grosser If you’re waiting for a chance to succeed, this quote encourages you to take charge and create your own opportunities. Success doesn’t come to those who wait—it comes to those who act.

These motivational quotes serve as reminders that every day is a new opportunity to push forward, learn from setbacks, and work toward your goals. They encourage self-reflection, perseverance, and the strength to chase dreams.

Birthday Wishes for Lover

When it comes to birthdays, expressing your love and appreciation for your partner is essential. Birthdays are not just a celebration of another year of life, but also an opportunity to show your significant other how much they mean to you. Below are some heartfelt Birthday Wishes for Lover that perfectly blend love, gratitude, and romance.

“Happy Birthday, my love! Every moment with you is magical, and I feel blessed to call you mine. Here’s to many more birthdays and memories together.” This wish beautifully conveys how special your partner is and your desire to celebrate many more milestones together.

“On your special day, I want you to know that you mean the world to me. Thank you for being my rock, my love, and my everything. Happy Birthday, sweetheart!” Sometimes, words can’t fully capture the depth of our emotions, but this wish comes close, expressing love, appreciation, and emotional dependence on your partner.

“Happy Birthday to the one who makes my world brighter. I am so lucky to have you by my side, and I look forward to all our future adventures. I love you!” Highlighting the joy and excitement of future experiences, this wish expresses love, optimism, and hope for the future.

“You are my heart’s desire, my soul’s happiness, and my reason for everything. Happy Birthday to the one who completes me. I love you more than words can say.” This wish dives deep into the emotional and romantic aspects of a relationship, emphasizing how important your partner is to your well-being.

“To the love of my life, Happy Birthday! Thank you for filling my days with laughter, love, and happiness. I am so grateful to have you, and I can’t wait to spend many more birthdays with you.” Simple yet heartfelt, this wish expresses your gratitude and love for your partner while looking forward to a future filled with joy and love.

The Power of Words in Relationships

When it comes to relationships, words have incredible power. Whether it’s an encouraging quote that gives you the motivation to achieve your goals or a sweet birthday wish for your lover that strengthens your bond, what you say matters. At RoopVibes, we understand that finding the right words is important. That’s why we offer inspiration for both the challenges of daily life and the joy of love.

By choosing the right words, you can lift someone’s spirits, show appreciation, and express your feelings in ways that strengthen your connection with others. Whether you need a motivational boost or want to make your partner’s birthday extra special, our carefully curated collection of quotes and wishes can help you find the perfect expression for every occasion.

Conclusion

In life, both motivation and love are essential. The right words can inspire greatness and deepen relationships. Whether you are looking for the best quotes for motivation to fuel your personal growth or birthday wishes for your lover to celebrate a special occasion, RoopVibes is here to help. Let these words serve as reminders of your strength and love, making every moment a little brighter and more meaningful.

At the end of the day, motivation and love go hand in hand. With the right mindset and the right partner, anything is possible.

[perfectfesthideout]

“Your passion is waiting for your courage to catch up.” —Isabelle Lafleche