#like maybe it's just a nordic style of tv

[cuffs-crew]

The reason I liked Young Royals so much was because it set itself up to be another Netflix over-dramatic glorified teen sex show and at every single turn went out of its way to NOT be that

The moment I realized that it was going to be genuinely good was the first Felice/Wilhelm kiss. I expected there to be a big event around it, for simon to see it or someone else to talk about it but they didn’t. I was actually shocked but so happy because they were clearly trying to make the show as down to earth as they could with the plot they had to work with.  And when someone did see them in the 2nd season it was resolved almost immediately. Whatever misunderstandings there were got resolved quickly and the characters all talked about it and made sure it wasn’t going to be an issue. (also gave us the funniest moment in the show aka simon trying to beat wille w a dodgeball) At it’s core Young Royals is good because it has good characters and the plot, while important, relies more on the characters themselves being authentic people who you simply want to see more of. That is VERY unusual for a netflix show of this type but was so lovely that it turned out the way it did

[tuulikki]

https://www.tumblr.com/tuulikki/733369731375104000/my-fellow-americans-you-can-just-put-us-flags-its

I've been wondering about your Finnish url ever since learning that you're an English speaking American, and now that you don't have any roots in Finland, I'm super curious. Where does it come from?

Sorry about that time I just started to talk to you in Finnish :D

Haha, no worries! The short answer is: I’m a nerd.

The long answer…

When I was a kid, I was super into any mythology I could get my hands on. And I was a young Tolkien nerd who found out The Kalevala and its poetical style were hugely influential on Tolkien’s worldbuilding. So of course I had to read it. And, as a weird folk music kid, I also fell sideways into any music featuring kantele, which was a gateway drug into other Finnish folk and folk-y music (Värttinä, Pekko Käppi, Hedningarna’s “Karelia Visa” album, etc.).

I’d only lived in the USA and Asia at that age, and most of the “mythology” books I’d ever been exposed to were Greek, Roman, Egyptian, and some machismo-heavy Norse stuff. All very common and very easy to find in the kiddie section of my school library. Finnish mythology and folklore was the first time I had to work a little to learn. I started just with The Kalevala (and copious footnotes), then the internet, later a Finn on LiveJournal who would straight-up translate lyrics/verse, and then puttering around to the local Nordic museum.

I have a lot of nostalgia for that as my first foray into what was, for me, something that stands at the transition point between my being a Mythology Kid™️ and being a more adult-shaped-creature who had to consider mythology, not as an inert curiosity and kiddie hobby, but as one aspect of traditions that exist in relation to real things like nationalism, identity, Romanticism, ethnography, and all that.

So, with that history, when I set out to make a tumblr username, I picked a name I knew from The Kalevala, because literally every other name from stories or myth I knew or could think of was already taken.

A further little joy was that I also loved the Moomintroll books as a kid in the 90s. And some kids in my neighbourhood in Hong Kong had access to the TV show (I don’t remember how) so I got properly scared of the animated Groke. So now, knowing about Tuulikki Pietilä and Tove Jansson, I have a further pleasant coincidence from my already very coincidence- and happenstance-heavy username.

And I do have to agree with Tolkien, in the end: Finnish is a fucking cool language. People are always like “ohh French is so romantic!” and sure maybe but is French cool. I’m not a linguist, but I know the number of grammatical cases a European language has is directly proportional to how hard it fucks.

I… hope that’s an answer that makes sense 😅

[unnursvanablog]

The movies I watched in 2023

and what I thought of them....

See How They Run: It was a pretty solid movie to start the movie watching for the year. It had fun characters, a nice mystery and just had a really good style to it that I really enjoyed. Just charming overall.

Pinocchio (2022): I loved all those old-feeling special effects, all the props, scenery and costumes in this film. The film felt sincere and imaginative, which I would expect from an Italian film that was almost reclaiming its own fairytale from Hollywood.

The Menu: Some of the speculations and comments that the film presents might sometimes feel a bit stilted at times, but the film certainly offers a fun black comedy with interesting plot twists that you can't exactly foresee as you watch it, and the cast is wonderful.

Troll:  the action was fun, and I enjoyed the folktales and myths features of the story, but damn the plot was so predictable and the clichéd dialogue was so heavily styled from some heroic Hollywood movie that doesn't work in a Nordic film.

Banshee of Inisherin: An incredibly personal, quiet and interesting film that ends up being slightly lengthy at times.

Mr. Malcolm's List:  I adore being immersed in this kind of costume-drama and this movie kind of checked most of the boxes I want to be ticked when it comes to a romance costume drama of this kind. A very fun watch.

Good Luck to You, Leo Grande: A sincere, humorous, and interesting character story about an older woman experiencing her own body and such things for the first time in her life.

Wakanda Forever: I just thought it was nice, and it's certainly not as formulaic as most of those marvel movies that are coming out right now. But it didn't move me as much as I thought it would.

Viking Wolf: everything about this movie was pretty predictable and typical of such a monster movies. I was a bit bored.

Volaða Land: A rather slow, bitter and sad film, which is totally in the spirit of the subject matter and there are a few humorous scenes in between to break it up, but I still thought it was a bit too long.

Sisu: Incredibly fun action and bloodshed and although the scenarios often felt a bit unrealistic it does feel part of the fun and the film is very exciting and time flies by while you're watching it.

Coccaine Bear: The trailer for this film made it look a lot more fun than it turned out to be. I was tired of the humor present there after about half an hour.

Dungeons and Dragons – Honor Among Thiefs: funny and just the fine little adventure film. I didn't expect it to go super deep on the characters or anything. It is just such a fun popcorn movie, and I was happy with that.

The Last Kingdom – Seven Kings Must Die:  I watched this one with one eye open, not really caring about any of it, but I was just trying to finish it off so I could finally see how the tv show that preceded this movie was going to end.

Nimona: Followed the comic very well and expanded on it and just was one of the most entertaining animations I have seen in a while. There is good humor in it, and the characters are awesome. Loved the animation as well.

Indiana Jones 5: This is just a fun Indiana Jones movie. That’s pretty much it. Maybe the third best Indiana Jones movie in my opinion. You basically get everything you want from Indiana in this one, even though Ford is getting a little tired and it shows.

Hansan – Rising Dragon: It's a grand and spectacular visual film that puts a lot of effort into everything but ends up being a little too long in my opinion.

Dream: While the film certainly has heart and humor, it still felt like the story was in a bit of a hurry to get to the finish line before it's completely earned it.

Harry Potter 7 and 8:  I started watching the first movie with my little niece and then she got into the books (before Rowling went full on terf) and I have sort of just allowed her to enjoy the world that I once found solace in. Now my little aunt had finished the last book and I kept my promise to her to watch the movies it with her once she did.

Lord of the Rings 2: My little niece was once too afraid to watch Lord of the Rings but before the summer she had watched the first one – just not with me. But she wanted to hold on to this until I came over to her part of the country in the summer so we could watch it together. Also this is my favorite of the Lord of the Rings movies.

Polite Society: a strange mixture of Bollywood splendor and very dry British humor that works so fantastically well. A cool action-comedy with very charming characters and all sorts of fun shenanigans and wonderful female friendships.

Zom 100 - Bucket List of The Dead: Japan and Korea seem to be far better at making zombie movies than the Americans. This one was so much fun, before it lost its steam.

Barbie: The only movie of the year I watched twice because it was just excellent entertainment. Colorful and campy yet with a big heart and seemed to have something to say about the society we live in – although through a very narrow lens. Interesting and thoughtful, but sure was interesting that the one that got the most hype from the internet of such a female-centric film the main male character of the story. But that’s also telling of the society we live in.

Downton Abbey – New Age: Although I find the formula that these stories follow little tired now and you tell that from this film how some of the conversations and jabs and almost don’t come natural sometimes, I do think the characters are awesome and I've followed most of them for so long that they do have a dear place in my heart. Downton still makes me cry.

Ehrengard - The Art of Seduction: This film has its funny moments, and it is a fun little period piece. But Ehrengard, the title character, is more of a plot device than a character for most of the film, which I thought was a little silly.

The Last Voyage of the Demeter: A very good horror movie that made me cover my eyes and cry out as I sat alone in the movie theater watching it. Good horror, interesting characters, and thrilling storytelling. Great fun.

Sister Death:  It's has a really cool style to it, but that's kind of the only thing I thought the movie had going for it. There was something about it that made it difficult to follow the story, in my opinion.

The Marvels: It felt like another draft of a script that had been written with the same old story structure that Marvel still hasn't updated in a long time. It still somewhat works, but it's also really predictable and tired. I knew almost what each character would say before they said it, because Marvel has become a real cliché.

In Love and Deep Water: Just a really adorable Japanese romcom movie. Cute characters with a funny little murder mystery lurking around in the background. Just good fun.

We have a Ghost:  a fun idea and the cast was awesome, but wow this script felt stilted.

The Hunger Games – the Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes: Followed the book very well – I haven't read in years, so therefor I didn't do a proper review. There's a lot crammed in there in a rather short period of time, but I thought they were able to deliver Snow's character so the message of self-satisfaction and the promise of comfort and power trumps everything else for many people in this a position of privilege, even if other people suffer because of it. Did everything they needed to do.

This is Christmas: a cute little Christmas movie that, in a sense, is just a traditional romcom set around Christmas. But still it does manages to have a little more going for it than just two strangers falling in love around Christmas and I did enjoy the characters a lot.

1000 Miles from  Christmas: romcoms like this don't usually have the structure of pining and the buildup that I enjoy in a romcom. I thought things were happening a bit too fast here, but the story was adorable and the characters were fun though predictable. And although I thought all the little fact that one of the main characters 'hated Christmas' was a little overdone he didn't seem to be cured too swiftly of that ‘ailment’. But I would have liked more depth to it all, but there just wasn't time for that.

Monster: A heartwarming and heartfelt Japanese film where the three changing perspectives of the film keep surprising you until the very end without feeling too dramatic. Very attentive and compassionate.

[thewapolls]

this one's a smaller family tree but covers a surprising amount of ground...

CLAY PUPPET and EARTHEN FIGURE are both actually rather enduring figures in the franchise bestiary individually, but I'm bundling them together here because they're not just recolors they're synonyms. They don't have any apparent source material nor any obtuse meaning, they just both describe a humanoid made of clay or dirt/soil. On the one hand these are fairly generic, with maybe a certain archeological tone to them, but they're also pretty obviously some iteration on the Jewish Golem, whether directly or thru a chain of other influences. Also probably some parallel evocation of things like dogu and haniwa in Japanese archeology.

WENDIGO is a kind of evil spirit cited in the lore of several different Native American groups. It is attributed with the possession of human hosts that it drives to violence and cannibalism (among other typified behaviors) most often in the onset or depths of winter and/or far northern regions where and when food scarcity and starvation would threaten a community. There is a... fraught history, to say the least, of the Wendigo being grossly appropriated in western media that really ramped up since the 1980s, probably peaking with the extremely tacky and insensitive use of it in the 2013 Hannibal TV show.

WIGHT in a really neat kind of obtuse reference with a lot of history. So on the one hand the Wight is also a D&D monster, but as a fairly generic undead warrior, which isn't the reference being made in WA2. In lieu of that you might be tempted to look to J.R.R. Tolkein's use of the full word Barrow-Wight and undoubtedly the root of its pop culture presence. But there too they're just undead warriors. No the root of this reference (and a similar line of thought goes into the Wights of Game of Thrones) is that William Morris's 1869 English transaltion of the Nordic Grettis Saga invented the term "Barrow-Wight" as a translation of Haugbúi --haugr refering to a kind of burial cairn or mound +‎ bui meaning “dweller,” both being old norse. But because William Morris was something of a pioneer and eccentric he opted to try and retain the archaic sound of the old norse, and so instead of translating the term literally into contemporary English, he used "Barrow" a type of burial mound native to britain dating back to pre-christian eras, and "Wight" a term that was already archaic by Morris's time, used in the middle ages, to refer to a person but in a derogatory or vilifying manner, all together to give both the literal meaning and an archaic and ancient tone. So it is once again referring to the undead, and specifically characters who were warrior kings, but also this original use carries with it the connotation of Norsemen, and that is where the affiliation with the ice and cold comes from, hence the white furred yeti-like model in WA2, and the soldiers of the long winter in GoT/SoIaF.

WRAITH is another historical English term referring rather vaguely to ghosts or figures of the dead in the underworld. Dating back to the 1500s in a translation of Virgil's Aeneid.

GASNOID 1ST is a fun one as it kind of cleverly recontextualizes the shared model with WIGHT and WRAITH as gaseous rather than spectral. But it's also an obtuse reference to the Japanese 1960 horror/sci-fi movie, GAS Ningen Dai-ichigo[ガス人間第1号]: "Gas Human #No.1." (the English title is The Human Vapor) Although the name in Wild Arms gives the impression of THE FIRST... in a European style lineage of a ...GASNOID family. The actual Japanese used in the game is in fact, GASNOID1st[ガスノイド1st]. (I wasn't actually thinking about it when I compiled the image, but it's possible that the enemy EM BEING is actually a reference to Denso Ningen[電送人間]: "ElectricalTransmission Human" (aka The Secret of the Telegian) a rival movie that came out in the same year as Human Vapor.)

SHAITAN a super late addition to the franchise, but it shares its model with GASNOID in WA5. It's actually just the Arabic borrowing of the Hebrew Satan[שטן]. And as you'd guess it refers to any of a variety of evil spirits and tempters basically hitting all the marks of its Christian and Hebrew predecessors while also adding in a pretty robust array of unique Islamic lore in the Quran. That's a pretty severe over simplification of things but I'm not about to jump down that rabbit hole because there's just no room here, and stupid William Morris already took up so much...

[leham-n-daavocado]

2021 F1 Grid as Boy Bands

According to my sister and I who are millennials from Canada. I'll link to the band's most emblematic or iconic song/video. Because you know Lance and Nicky gotta be obscure Canadian boy bands lost to the annals of time lol. All the British bands we know from The Hit List lol. We also are quite encyclopedic when it comes to certain 2nd and 3rd generation K-pop groups so...

Mercedes

Lewis: Backstreet Boys

N'Sync may have won America, but the Backstreet Boys won the world. No other boy band is appropriate for Lewis other than the one that has sold the most records, has tons of bops from "Quit Playing Games with My Heart" to "The Call" and over 25 years of longevity. Most Famous Song/Video: I Want It That Way

Valtteri: a1

They have a few bops, but maybe not an enduring longevity. One of their members is Nordic and the video for "Caught in the Middle" has Finnish vibes. Besides "Take on Me" also originated from Scandinavia. Most Famous Song/Video: Take on Me

Red Bull

Max: One Direction

Started on X-Factor, an analogue for the Red Bull factory. Over the top devoted fanbase. Most Famous Song/Video: What Makes You Beautiful

Checo: Arashi

Enduring J-pop band. Crazy well known in Japan where they're literally part of everyone's lives daily in variety shows, TV shows, etc. Most Famous Song/Video: Arashi

Ferarri

Charles: N'Sync

Look at his fashion and the bandanas and tell me he doesn't give you late 90s/early 2000s N'Sync vibes. Most Famous Song/Video: Bye Bye Bye

Carlos: 98°

Forgotten 90s/2000s boy band. Just like Carlos is often forgotten. Gave us "Give Me Just One Night (Una Noche)" to capitalize on the Latin trend at the time. (Una Noche means one night guys! Like naan already means bread lol). Most Famous Song/Video: I'd say it's The Hardest Thing, but my sister only remembers Una Noche

McLaren

Daniel: O-Town

Created on Making the Band, an analogue for the Red Bull factory. We chose this because we absolutely believe Daniel would sing a song about nocturnal emissions while making reference to literally every famous female celebrity.

Now this hot girl (hot)

She's not your average girl

She's a morphorotic dream from a magazine

And she's so fine (damn), designed to blow your mind

She's a dominatrix supermodel beauty queen

Most Famous Song/Video: Liquid Dreams

Lando: BTS

Burst into the scene and is very popular among young fans. Great marketing. Lots of fan drama. Most Famous Song/Video: Dynamite (My sister says Save Me is a better song)

Alpine

Fernando: New Kids on the Block

It's part of el plan, "Step by Step." A classic OG boyband. Most Famous Song/Video: Step By Step

Esteban: SoulDecision

Under appreciated Canadian boyband that still gets plays now and again on the radio. Trevor goes on to get notoriety years later with singing Armin van Buuren's "This is What it Feels Like." Most Famous Song/Video: Faded

Alpha Tauri

Pierre: Super Junior

Created by SM Entertainment as an AKB48 style band with revolving members and constant graduates. If that isn't the Red Bull factory, I don't know what is. Super Junior members were constantly under threat of being taken off the band until the group as a whole became too popular to be replaced. Now they're 2nd generation kpop kings. Most Famous Song/Video: Sorry Sorry

Yuki: Five aka 5ive

They have the bad boy/brash vibes with J and Abs, but then the sweet ones with Scott, Rich and Sean. Kirby with a knife. Most Famous Song/Video: Everybody Get Up

Aston Martin

Sebastian: Take That

Classic British boy band. Remembered fondly. Red Bull Seb had Robbie Williams vibes at times. Most Famous Song/Video: Back for Good

Lance: b4-4

Obscure Canadian boyband. Just because. Have iconic, hilariously cringe song about oral sex that you sung out loud as a child unknowingly. It captures DTS Lance beautifully. Some of the members were opera singers, so their skill was hidden by circumstance. Most Famous Song/Video: Get Down

Williams

George: Westlife

Hugely successful boy band. People are critical of what they perceive to be lack of skill and ability in some areas. They have old man/adult contemporary vibes like George. Most Famous Song/Video: My Love

Nicky: id

Another obscure Canadian boy band. I think they only really got played on The Hit List because it fit their demographic and MuchMusic never bothered with them except to lampoon them on Ed the Sock's annual music video retrospective, Fromage. Unfortunately, Nicky also faces this level of obscurity in his home country. Sorry Nicky! Most Famous Song/Video: Busted

Alfa Romeo

Kimi: 2ge+her

Parody band with show on MTV. Played on the popular boy band tropes of an older member, member with initials for name, the cute one, the heartthrob and the bad boy. Has Kimi's dgaf vibe. Most FamousSong/Video: The Hardest Part of Breaking Up is Getting Back Your Stuff

Antonio: The Moffatts

Because Antonio gives us Scott and rock vibes with his long hair and him leaving F1 is misery. Most Famous Song/Video: Misery

Haas

Mick: SuperM

A super group made up of members of some of SM Entertainment's most famous/skilled members. There's a lot of expectation because of the legacy of the groups and a ton of hype. They get tons of opportunity others would not because of their reputation. Seeking longevity/recognition beyond their one hit song. Most Famous Song/Video: Jopping

Mazepin: My sister said it's Creed... but it's not a boyband and she picked them because they're annoying. I picked Seungri for the Burning Sun Scandal, but my sister said I couldn't pick a member from the most popular band in Korea for a decade lol. Other suggestions were Milli Vanilli (lip syncing scandal) and Lou Pearlman (shitty and creepy boyband manager). We won't subject any boy band to him I guess.

[lazypeachsoul]

who you really are.- Loki Laufeyson.

chapter one.

Warnings: this fic will include discussions of gender, pronouns, etc. This chapter does not include any warnings.

Word count: 1,6k.

A/N: This is the first chapter to a multi-part fic I created thanks to and idea by @insanitybyanothername. Thans for the inspiration! I hope you like it 🌼 This is more of an introduction to the story so not a lot of Loki x reader action.

Masterlist.

To be added to my taglist use this forms or write me an ask!

The first stages of a relationship can be challenging. A mix of excitement over the newness of the feelings and the awkwardness of trying to learn how to be around eachother created what many called the ‘honeymoon phase’. And everything they talked about seemed to grow exponentially when one of the parties was a god still trying to get used to Earth, or Midgard as he called it.

When you had first met Loki things had been rocky at best. You were another worker of Stark Industries who was tasked with leading the team creating the better and improved gear for the newest avenger, whose identity still hadn’t been disclosed.

It wasn’t until weeks into working with only notes about this mysterious person and their powers that the announcement was made. John Doe as your team had been calling him was none other than the nordic god Loki of Asgard. The uproar that the announcement caused shook the entire company. Tony Stark was offering shelter to the same man who had tried to destroy the world in 2012 and people were not happy.

Even within your team the situation was tense. Some members had quit because they had been personally affected by his actions and others remained just because they were curious about him. And that unfolded in the first try-on session for the gear.

He had appeared followed by Thor and your boss Tony Stark. Introductions were short and Loki didn’t seem to be in the mood for socializing. He remained silent, rolling his eyes and scoffing at the details you tried to explain about the new gear. And the tenth time he seemed to underrate your design you had to intervene.

“Anything wrong?” As much as you tried to keep your voice leveled the tension in it was not that well hidden.

“I am unable to comprehend why I can’t wear my asgardian attire. Thor does and nobody questions it.” He pointed to his blonde companion who seemed to be nervous about his brother's reaction. “I don’t trust midgardians to create something advanced enough for my capabilities.”

“I can assure you your ‘capabilities’ have been taken into account.” You responded through gritted teeth. “And as for the need of the new gear, since you are here on the intergalactic equivalent of parole you have to wear it so that you can be controlled in missions.”

The room grew quiet and the surprise was evident on everybody’s faces. Some of them were probably surprised you would unveil the real reason for the wardrobe change, others were surprised at your boldness when speaking to a god, and one person in the room was surprised at the sparkle he had seen in your eyes when you spoke.

Months after that interaction things seemed to have changed drastically. Loki was adapting as best as he could to his new home, although he would never call it that, and you had become a willing companion on that journey. So willing that it became something beyond platonic, leading you to your current situation.

Loki had arrived back from one of his missions hours ago and you still hadn’t seen him. Normally if he wasn’t too tired he would quickly clean up and visit your lab, spending the rest of the day sulking or complaining about the mission and avoiding the bureaucratic side of the job, reports apparently were too human for him to do.

But you still hadn’t heard a peep from him, making you wonder how bad the mission could have gone. You received Loki’s gear merely an hour after the announcement of his arrival and when checking the damage you didn’t see anything that would show big wounds or injuries, so him being hurt was out of the question.

Maybe Loki just was in one of his moods and waiting would be better. You were wrapping up your work and exiting your lab when you saw a red cape turning the corner of your hallway. Thor. he could help you to understand how Loki might be, they were on the mission together.

Holding your jacket and bag closer to yourself you picked up the pace, trying to keep up with the big strides of the God of thunder. You caught him waiting for the elevator,a situation that even if you had been working for the Avengers for years still felt weirdly normal for a god.

“Hey Thor! How are you? How did the mission go?”

You were sure that his booming voice when greeting you could be heard all around the floor, but it never failed to make you smile. Although you were infinitely closer to Loki, sometimes too close according to the people around you, Thor had become a part of your life. He had told you multiple times how happy he was that you and Loki were ‘pursuing a courtship that he hopes will last eons’ and he had always tried to tell you how grateful he was for how you treated his brother.

“The mission went great, we managed to put the fear of justice in them. They will always remember the Avengers are here to stop their evil plans.” He explained, making the entire mission sound like a fantasy book. “Loki was incredible, he served justice and showed his potential. You should be proud.”

“I am, Thor. Always am.” You admitted with a smile on your face. “Speaking of Loki, have you seen him? He didn’t come to my lab when he arrived.”

Thor looked back to the metal doors of the elevator, fidgeting with his armour. He never usually shied away from conversation so his reaction put you off slightly. Was Loki angry? Or maybe he lashed out and Thor didn’t want to give you a bad impression of his brother?

The elevator finally dinged signaling the arrival of the cabin. He entered quickly before turning and looking at your defeated form.

“Loki was okay, just deep in thought over personal matters.” Seeing you frown at his words, the man quickly tried to mend the situation. “His own personal matters, not yours. Yours as in courtship matters. He’s very serious about the courtship, do not worry about that…”

Seeing Thor tripping over his words would have been really funny if the situation didn’t worry you. From what you had gathered, Loki seemed to be overthinking something personal but not about your relationship. Great, that didn’t make you relax one bit.

“Maybe you could visit him. He went out but he must be back by now, that way your worries could be forgotten.”

“Yeah, maybe i should do that. We both know how Loki gets when he thinks too hard.”

Thor smiled at the comment, making way for you to enter the elevator and finally allowing the doors to close.

The living quarters of the superheroes were strictly out of reach for everybody but them. Workers were only allowed if invited or were needed for whatever reason. You had only been there once, Loki having invited you to wait in the living room while he got ready for one of your dates, truly teenager style. Normally both you and Loki preferred to find comfort outside the limits of the compound, like your apartment. Out of hearing range of super soldiers and trained spies.

When the doors opened to the quarters everything seemed eerily silent. The only other time you had been there the living space had been as noisy as you would imagine a house inhabited by earth’s mightiest heroes might be.

“Almost everybody is resting or training. That’s why there’s so much calm. Loki’s chamber is at the end of that corridor. I think it would be best if you went alone, he has a tradition of pranking me when I get close to his property since we were children.”

“Thank you Thor. I look forward to hearing more about that tradition someday. Relax, you must be exhausted from saving the world.”

He was thanking you back but you had already started walking down the hallway in the direction you had been told. It wasn’t difficult to find his room, it seemed to be separated from the rest of doors and had a much more regal look to it, more than likely his way of making his room more apt for his rank.

You knocked on the solid wood and waited for a response. When you knocked again, with more strength this time, the door moved and opened letting you enter. You knew you probably should have waited for Loki’s answer but seeing as the door wasn’t locked you thought he wouldn’t mind.

Upon entering the room you were in awe of the decoration, the area looked closer to a palace room than the basic compound design. Stepping further into the room you found a big bed, sheets undone and clothes strewn on top. Looking closely you saw what seemed to be a short sleeved dress, but you quickly discarded the idea. It probably was an asgardian tunic of some kind.

You heard movement to your left, finding the door of what would most likely be the bathroom. Loki must have been cleaning up after a rough day. You took a step towards the door ready to knock on it when the door opened unexpectedly, making you and the person at the other side jump upon seeing each other.

Your heart seemed to drop when the figure emerging from the en suite was not your boyfriend but the most attractive woman you had seen in your life wrapped in a towel. After years of learning through movies and tv shows the first thought that came into your mind was that Loki was cheating, but a closer look to the woman and you saw that mischievous spark in her gaze.

“Loki?”

“W-what are you doing here?”

Taglist: @teenwonder @kyli314

[iggy-theeskimo]

Thanks for the tag sweetie @he4rtofsteel💖✨

1. What are you wearing? Jeans that look like grandpa's jeans, a colorful crop top with a lilac knit sweater.

2. Ever been in love? Of course, Grace Slick, Brian Jones, David Gilmour, Syd Barrett, Nick Mason, David Bowie.

3. Ever had a terrible breakup? Yup.

4. How tall are you? 1,60cm (I don't know how much it would be in feet and inches, sorry)

5. How much do you weigh? Around 56kg.

6. Any tattoos you want? I would like it but I would have to think of a tattoo that I want too much, because I am very indecisive and it may be that after a while that tattoo does not mean anything to me, but I would like to tattoo an octopus on my left arm (like John Frusciante's, don't ask why).

7. Any piercings you want? For now, nah. Not my favorite thing.

8. OTP? A what? I'm🤡

9. Favourite show(s)? I don't watch a lot TV but I like That 70's Show, Seindfeld, The Office, Game of Thrones and a lot of varied documentaries.

10. Favourite band? My favorite bands always vary actually, but the one that I consider my favorite forever is Pink Floyd (I think it was obvious)

11. Something you miss? I miss being able to go to the outskirts of the city for a while, being among the mountains and putting my feet in the river, I hope I can do it again soon.

12. Favourite song(s)? Well, there are many but the ones I have been listening to often for now are: Wild World by Cat Stevens, My Sweet Lord by George Harrison, Always See Your Face by Love, See-Saw by Pink Floyd and I'd Rather Go Blind by Etta James.

13. How old are you? I turn 16 in a few days :)

14. Zodiac Sign? Virgo like Freddy Mercury and Roger Waters.

15. Hair Colour? Dark blonde but not so dark

16. Favourite Quote? Many. “Solo en sueños, en la poesía, en el juego —encender una vela, andar con ella por el corredor— nos asomamos a veces a lo que fuimos antes de ser esto que vaya a saber si somos” by Julio Cortázar in his book Rayuela. ("Only in dreams, in poetry, in games - lighting a candle, walking with it down the corridor - do we sometimes peek into what we were before being this, who will know if we are").

17. Favourite singer? Janis Joplin, Freddy Mercury, David Gilmour, Robert Plant, Judy Garland, Florence Welch, Joan Baez and surely I forget many.

18. Favourite colour(s)? Brown, dark green, yellow, gold, purple and silver.

19. Loud music or soft music? Both actually, quiet music low and hard music louder.

20. Where do you go when you’re sad? I like to be in nature (same as the girl who nominated me)

21. How long does it take you to shower? 30 minutes/one hour lmao, I like to take a relaxing bath but it depends on how long I have.

22. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning? 20 or 30 minutes.

23. Ever been in a physical fight? Nope, I'm pretty calm. In 2018 a classmate wanted to hit me after school for being a weirdo but I was able to stop the fight in time, something bad would have happened to me because I can't hit anyone ;)

24. Turn on(s)? Effective communicator, being kind to others, helping others, respectful towards others, someone who doesn’t like conflict and prefers peace, compassion, good sense of humour, groovy sense of style, good taste in music, non-verbal communication, respecting my need for space and respecting that I value my personal freedom, open minded but has their own opinions, willing to enlighten me, being able to let go and be free with me, piercing eyes, nice smile, being able to understand me (same as the girl who nominated me again)

25. Turn off(s)? Manipulation or toxic actions, being disrespectful, inappropriate jokes, believing that you are better than everyone, not being grateful, not respecting my personal space and personal things, etc, etc.

26. The reason I joined Tumblr? I wanted to get into a place where I can share my nonsense and taste, share ideas and jokes in a non-toxic place like Twitter. Luckily the people I have talked here are nice and the pink floyd community and other bands are pretty good💖✨.

27. Fears? Many people are afraid of the death of oneself but I am more afraid of the death of my loved ones, the ocean gives me a lot of panic (although I would love to dive) and I am afraid of being standing next to a statue or something carved with shape that is bigger than me, like the cat litter statues in Egyptian.

28. Last thing that made you cry? The movie about Judy Garland, gosh💔.

29. Last time you cried? Last night.

30. Meaning behind your URL? Iggy the Eskimo is the nickname of the naked girl who is in some photos of Syd Barrett's The Madcap Laughs, and I love her so much (not much of a story behind my URL really).

31. Last book you read? Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, very good.

32. Last song you listened to? Green is the Colour by Pink Floyd.

33. Last show you watched? The Office.

34. Last person you talked to? My grandma or my boyfriend, I don't remember.

35. The relationship between you and the person you last texted? They are my grandmother and my boyfriend, I mean ?

36. Favorite food? Pasta :) if you want my heart just give me pasta. And I'm trying to start being a vegetarian.

37. Place you want to visit? I want to travel all the world really, but Greece, London, Scotland, India and Nordic countries are my fav.

38. Last place you were? The last place where I traveled? To Bariloche, south of Argentina in January of this year :)

39. Do you have a crush? Yup.

40. Last time you kissed someone? Some days ago i guess.

41. Last time you were insulted and what was it? It's weird that people insult me because I don't usually do bad things and mostly when I'm surrounded by people they rarely notice me, so I really don't remember when they last insulted me.

42. What color underwear are you wearing? Calm down honey

43. What colour shirt are you wearing? Multicolour, are these t-shirts that are dyed.

44. What colour bottoms are you wearing? Dark blue jeans.

45. Wearing any bracelets? Noup, although I usually wear some.

46. Last sport you played? Maybe volleyball in February at school (I probably played bad).

47. Last song you sang? I sing pieces of songs all day so I don't remember which one was the last one.

48. Last prank call you remember doing? Idk, maybe when I was younger and have friends.

49. Last time you hung out with someone? Loooooooooong time ago.

50. Favourite movie(s)? The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep, The Godfather (all), Judy, Rocketman, The Wall and many that I do not remember lol.

This took me a long time so if you read everything thank you💖I'm not sure if the people I'm nominating have already been nominated but

@artsyhippie @divine-and-decaying @whatdyoumean-interesting @herrmiu (only if you want to) and anyone who wants to ✨

[lovemesomesurveys]

What may I call you?  Stephanie or Steph.

Where are you right now, exactly?  In my room on my bed.

Over or under 18?  I’m well over 18.

Have you been watching the Stanley Cup play-offs? (GO BRUINS!)  No.

Ever believed your house was/is haunted? If yes, why; what happens? Nah.

The building you live inside; how long ago was it built? I think early 80s.

Ever travel internationally?  I’ve been to Mexico once.

If you could go anywhere RIGHT NOW, where would it be? And why? I don’t want to go anywhere RIGHT NOW. 

Do you fancy someone currently? Tell me about them!  No.

Ever have a big ol' crush on someone you've never met in person? If so, did you ever tell them you did? Well, on celebrities.

What makes you feel luxurious? I don’t feel luxurious.

Do you enjoy drinking scotch as much as I do?  I don’t enjoy drinking scotch at all. Or any alcohol.

What have you done that makes you proud of yourself? Meh.

What makes you envy someone? Someone who seems to have their life together. I know everyone has their struggles and hardships, but there’s people who manage to push through and handle things better. They’re able to function still and are doing something with their life. I envy people who despite their hardships have a strong, positive, can-do attitude. I envy people who are passionate about things and do what they love. I envy talented, creative, and intelligent people. 

For you, is jealousy something that makes you more sad or angry-feeling? Depends.

Do you get the munchies?  Natural munchies sometimes.

Every been to Germany? If so, what part? Nope.

Do you buy newspapers just for the puzzles? No, I don’t buy the newspaper for any reason.

Describe any tattoos or piercings you may have...? I just have my earlobes pierced. 

When's the last time you smacked someone's butt? (Or been smacked :P) I don’t do that.

Do you enjoy making art? If so, what's your style like?  I don’t make art, but I like to color.

Were you a shy child? Very. Now I’m a shy adult.

Ever wanna run away with the circus?  Uh, no.

What is the closest object to your feet right now?  My feet are near the edge of the bed and my bedside table is nearby.

Reach behind you- do you feel anything? What is it?  My pillow.

Is English your second language? No.

Have you ever designed and constructed your own clothing? No.

What's the very last digit in your phone number?  Nah.

Is your house an odd or even number? Odd.

Do you have a favorite superhero? Who? Iron Man, Spiderman, Star Lord, Ant-Man.

What power would you like to receive, if given the option?  >>I don’t know. The power of brain that work good. <<< Ha, yeah that would be nice.

Ever punch someone in the nose?  No. Or at all.

...will you write me a haiku? Nope.

What was the last thing that really delighted you? Hmm.

Do you wear skin-colored clothes?  I have a pair of pantyhose that are like the color of my skin.

Ever eat German cuisine? If so, what'd ya have? No.

Do you have conversations with any animals?  I always talk to my doggo.

Do you have a little sibling? If so, are you protective of her/him?  Yes.

Recommend me a good book? I don’t know what you like.

Can you sleep on your back? (I can't, I feel too vulnerable!)  I can, but I prefer to sleep more on my side.

What's the last special thing you did for someone? (Buy, cook, etc.) Hmm.

Did you cook something today? If so, what was it?  Ramen.

Ever baked ALL day? No.

Can you recognize the smell of death?  Gahhhh, I’ve smelt dead rodents.

Ever known a mortician or a coroner?? (Now you do!) No.

What makes you feel good about yourself? Nothing?

Could you ever be some type of counselor for kids/teens?  No. Funny how that’s actually what I wanted to do for a long time when I was younger.

Do you enjoy getting dressed up for no real reason? No.

What are you afraid of?  A lot of things.

Ever been to a maximum security prison? You, or just visiting?  No.

Do you think mint toothpaste is too minty?  I use a light minty one for sensitive teeth.

How is a raven like a writing desk? I still haven’t figured that one out.

Are you currently eating or drinking something? If so, what? I’m finishing up my Starbucks energy drink. 

Do you own striped socks? What colors are your favorite ones?  No.

Black Metal ist Krieg. Agree or Disagree? >>  I had to Google that and apparently that’s a name of an album of a metal band, but I’m guessing you’re asking if I think black metal “ist krieg”, which for me no it’s not my thing.

Are there any numbers that have significance to you?  The number 8.

Do you know how to read palms or tarot or anything else like that?  I don’t believe in those things.

Do you own any bones or other preserved organic ..things? Unfortunately not. Accepting all bone donations. <<< That made me chuckle for some reason lol. I’m lacking those things as well. Well, I do own the bones in my body...

What do you think about internet piracy?  I can’t say I’ve never partaken... I haven’t in several years, though. 

Do you know anything about Nordic runes?  No.

How do you feel about children?  They can be cute and they can be annoying, ha. 

Whatcha looking forward to right now? Summer being OVER. This triple digit heat wave needs to goooo. We’ve had power outages the past couple times and it will probably happen all this week, too. D:

How do you feel about clowns?  I like Pennywise.

Are any of your friends clown by profession? I’m a clown. I majored in clownery. 

Do you put grated cheese on popcorn?  I’ve never tried that.

Do you thing anyone ever actually gets in trouble for having milkcrates?  What? Why would they get in trouble for that?

Do you tip street performers? (YOU SHOULD.) Not usually. I didn’t ask them to be there, I have no obligation to them. I’ll do it if I feel moved to (and if I happen to have cash, which is the other important variable here). <<< “I didn’t ask them to be there” hahah I love your answers.

What are your virtues/morals?  Ya know, stuff like honesty, being loyal, taking responsibility for your actions, being tolerant of differences, treat others how you wish to be treated, forgiveness, no cheating, respect, don’t commit murder, don’t steal.... stuff like that.

What do you smoke, if anything? I don’t.

Does being an addict make someone a bad person, in your opinion?  No.

Have you ever experienced any type of detox? No.

Ever been institutionalized? ...was it because of just one pepsi?  No. And I don’t get the Pepsi thing?

Tie up, or be tied up?  Neither.

Ever shoot a gun that wasn't a handgun? Rifle, shotgun, etc? No.

Is your mother a really cool lady? Yes, she’s awesome. Everyone loves her.

Ever suddenly find a friend very attractive but had to keep it to yourself?  I’ve liked a few of my guy friends, but I told them.

What time is it right now? 7:35AM.

Last time it's rained? I think back in April. Feels like forever ago. 

Ever been through a deadly natural disaster? No.

What do you do when you lose power?  Ugh, we’ve had that happen the past 2 days during the hottest time of day. It’s been high triple digits and inside my house has been 90 degrees, 92 when the power goes out. D: It’s horrible. I go and get my little battery fan and a wet washcloth and mess around on my phone and/or talk to my family until it comes back on. And complain about how hot it is.

Do you have a boot fetish too?  No.

Have you ever done home-repair stuff? No.

Reason you last used a knife?  I eat my spaghetti with a fork and knife.

Ever tattoo or pierce yourself? What, and how did it turn out?  Nooo. I’d be terrified to get either one done, I certainly couldn’t do it to myself.

Have you ever assisted in a birth? No.

Have you ever had a bad trip?  I’ve had a bad weed trip before and an actual trip.

Do you ever yell at your TV/computer/video games? Ha, yeah. Maybe not yell, but definitely talk back to it or comment out of frustration.

How long do you take in the shower? 30-40ish minutes.

If you could ask someone ONE thing & get 100% honesty, what would you ask? I don’t know.

What's the best thing you've ever found in a thrift/second hand shop? I don’t go thrift shopping.

What's one skilled craft you like to learn? Uhhh.

How do you feel about magicians? It can be pretty cool to watch. Some are really clever.

What do you smell like right now?  I smell my laundry detergent on my clothes. 

Tell me about the last person that made you laugh. He’s intelligent, funny, and cool.

Who was the last person to really make you feel special? It was nice receiving birthday comments from family and various people on social media and the birthday gifts from my family.

[bereft-of-frogs]

If you are ever so inclined - I'd be very interested in your horror recommendations.

This got…probably more involved than you intended. :D It was a good procrastination tool/distraction from A Thing I didn’t want to do though, and I had fun revisiting some of these old trailers.

This ended up really long. I’m sorry. I don’t know why I’m like this.

“The New Golden Age”

[These are what I’m talking about when I talk about us entering in a new golden age - really genre bending, specifically out to subvert tropes, make social statements, and empower people who have been shut out by horror in the past.]

Jordan Peele - Get Out (2017) and Us (2019)

Ah, Jordan Peele. The master of the comedy to horror turn. Get Out was the most fun I’ve had watching a horror movie in a long time. I love how it really fits itself to classic tropes but subverts them by flipping the genre and race dynamics. (Daniel Kaluuya’s character embodies the ‘Final Girl’ trope.)

Us fucked me up. Like, woke up at 3am thinking about it, couldn’t really look at Lupita Nyong’o for a while. The remix of the song that plays over the trailer literally gives me goosebumps. It freaked me out, so much. That one is a genre bender - you think you’re watching one thing (a classic home-invasion type trope with some weird mystery to it) and then the final scene basically upends everything you thought you were watching. Fucked. Me. Up.

Ari Aster - Hereditary (2018) and Midsommar (2019)

I’ve been talking a bunch about how much I loved Midsommar. It’s gorgeous visually, Ari Aster is so great at just letting things hang and letting tension build and build - and it was the first horror movie I think I’ve ever felt weirdly empowered by. Like, similar to when I saw Captain Marvel, I walked out of the theater like “is this how men feel all the time?” Hereditary is probably a better movie overall, not counting the fact that it was practically made for me. At its core it’s a grief drama, a phenomenal portrait of mourning…and it’s also really fucking scary. Those slow-tension building scenes are really used effectively in Hereditary.

I also think it’s interesting because Ari Aster is keeping pace with Jordan Peele, but did it in the opposite order. Hereditary is the genre-bender - you kind of think it’s a family drama/psychological horror for most of it, and then it takes a hard turn and makes you question everything you were watching. Midsommar is more on-genre norms - it’s essentially the classic ‘bunch of terrible people getting picked off one by one’ trope (I don’t know if there’s a better name for that), but by applying folk horror and really centering female characters as both pro- and an- tagonist, it does a lot of unexpected things.

Robin Aubert - Les Affamés (”The Ravenous”) (2017)

It’s a zombie movie, but it’s more than that. This movie is so layered. I saw it at a festival when it first came out and then we watched it again this year on St. Jean-Baptiste (Québec national holiday) because we wanted to be #OnTheme. (And to celebrate St. Jean-Baptiste without having to interact with crowds) and it kind of clicked what it was doing. It’s really about the absorbing of difference into the dominant, hegemonic culture and the struggle for marginalized individuals to survive. Robin Aubert has a couple others I haven’t seen yet, but have heard good things about and are on my list. I saw a critic call his main brand ‘pastoral terror’ (terreur pastorale) which I absolutely love as a concept.

Alex Garland - Annihilation (2018)

Some people might argue with me if this is horror or not, if it’s sci-fi, but I think it’s body horror. And it’s beautiful body horror! See this is what I’m here for. Body horror is not just gore - there’s not a lot of blood in this movie. Body horror is about distortion and the grotesque. There’s this one scene that still gives me chills when I think about it and Tessa Thompson’s final scene is beautiful body horror at its finest. (There was also a really similar scene in Midsommar, so I clearly know what I like.) The soundtrack is also phenomenal.

[I had a whole rant about the book series, which I hated, here, but it was getting long and derailing so I cut it out. the tldr is I hated the book.]

“Classics I actually Enjoy”

[I don’t always love what appears at the top of the like ‘essential horror’ lists, but these are the ones I think are worth it.]

Dario Argento - Deep Red (1975)

I really, really wanted to like Suspiria more, because the concept and Goblin’s score for Suspiria both appeal to me a lot more. But I had a lot more fun watching Deep Red. So far it’s my favorite of the giallos.

Richard Donner - The Omen (1976)

Classic. It’s so good. “It’s all for you, Damian!” Plus, I love any movie that comes with rumors of a curse.

Alfred Hitchcock - Psycho (1960)

I would classify most of Hitchcock as ‘thriller’ rather than horror, but Psycho is firmly psychological horror, and The Classic.

Stuart Gordon - Re-animator (1985)

I couldn’t really decide if I wanted to put this one. Especially because on a long drive my friend and we basically covered how this was really ripe for a remake because it’s flaws…did not age particularly well, especially re: gender and race. (But it could be so, so good. It could be an amazing commentary about consent and the use of marginalized bodies…but the original …is…not.) But I’m putting this on here because of body horror. They clearly hired dancers or choreographers to do the reanimated movements because they really lean into it and it’s great. It gets…heavily derailed at the end by an absolutely ridiculous gore climax and missing the opportunity to actually have a coherent storyline or a message of any kind…but they got the grotesque movements down.

Honorable Mentions: The Amityville Horror, The Exorcist, Rosemary’s Baby, *sigh* Cannibal Holocaust (like…I don’t actually recommend anyone watch it. I’m glad I did, because it’s really important for how the ‘found footage’ genre developed, so it’s a piece of film history but like. Don’t actually watch it.), The House on Haunted Hill

“Random Others In Between”

Adrian Lyne - Jacob’s Ladder (1990)

You might recognize Jacob’s Ladder as the movie that more heavily inspired the first chapter of ‘dark underground//violent sky’ more than I had originally thought. I had originally been basing a lot of the tone and style on current trends in horror TV, but then I happened to watch Jacob’s Ladder while I was in the middle of writing the second half and was like…oh. Like, I knew I had been heavily influenced by Jacob’s Ladder and the ending, but I had forgotten about how the film differentiates between ‘reality’ and ‘dream’ - in that it doesn’t! And that was an effect I was specifically striving for when I was writing ‘dark underground’. It’s also just a really weird, trippy late-80s/early-90s movie set in New York when New York was still really dirty and that’s fun.

Hideo Nakata - Dark Water (2002)

This is my favorite Japanese horror film. I think it gets a little bit looked over in favor of some others (Ringu, Ju-on, Audition), but it’s my favorite. (Has a terrible American remake, so be sure to avoid that one. It comes up first when you google. -_-)

James Wan - The Conjuring (2013)

I did really like this first entry - the sequels are kind of aggressively meh.

Scott Derrickson - Sinister (2012)

THE DANGER IS IN THE VIEWING!

Honorable Mentions: Session 9, Se7en, The Ritual, It Follows, The Descent, The Hills Have Eyes (I just really like bright horror movies), The Exorcism of Emily Rose (for fun bonus pretension, you can also watch Requiem, and then when people ask you if you’ve seen The Exorcism of Emily Rose, you get to be like “Yeah, have you seen the German original?” though, technically, it’s that they’re both based off of the same true-story. it’s still fun to say), Hard Candy, Ils (Them), THE VVITCH (should only ever be pronounced ‘The Va-Vitch’ lol)

“The Parody Films”

[What is there to say? They’re great, so much fun.]

Joss Whedon - Cabin in the Woods (2012)

Remember back in 2012 when Avengers 1 came out, and then Cabin in the Woods came out, like, immediately afterwards, and we all loved Joss Whedon? We were so innocent back then.

Eli Craig - Tucker and Dale vs. Evil (2010)

This movie is so pure. I love how they both play into and subvert the rural hillbilly tropes with the two main characters. They just want a vacation home! These kids keep killing themselves on their property!

Honorable Mentions: Shaun of the Dead, I was googling to confirm the year of Tucker and Dale vs. Evil and I saw What We Do In The Shadows listed as horror paraody, but I would count that more as a Gothic mockumentary, but I listed it here because I love it so much.

“Documentaries”

Xavier Burgin - Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror (2019)

This movie was so interesting! Highly recommend. I think Shudder is planning on producing more of these documentaries, about marginalized groups in horror, and I am Here For It.

Honorable Mentions: Cropsey/Killer Legends, Best Worst Movie

I think I’ll stop here and maybe someday do a separate one for books. And maybe TV series, but I’m having a hard time teasing out the line between mystery and horror because of how popular and kind of unique Nordic Noir is right now. It’s just hard to draw the line for TV.

But I’ll end by summarizing reading thoughts (in a more disorganized manner):

-I have two separate ‘complete tales and poems’ editions of Edgar Allen Poe - one to look pretty and one to annotate.

-If you come for my girl Mary Shelley I will come @ you. Once a kind of asshole-y friend once was like ‘Frankenstein is terrible because it was written by a teenage girl’ and, I swear to God, I almost fought him right there in the bar. The Last Man is also great.

-I also almost forgot how much I loved Dracula. The Harkers especially. (I once tried to read League of Extraordinary Gentleman and gave up with a rage-headache 15 pages in because of what they did to Mina.) (Ah yes, let’s make her a “Strong Female Character ™” by having her divorce Jonathan and almost be raped in the first 15 pages.) (Couldn’t deal with it.) (I’m sure I would in general like that series but I just had too much attachment to Mina Harker to get over it.)

-I physically cannot get through Lovecraft. I can’t do it. I’ve tried so many times, I know how important it is but I just. Can’t. Don’t want to. Won’t. Sorry.

-A lot of adapted books I tend to prefer the books they were based on. Some are kind of obvious, like I Am Legend by Richard Matheson, which is a way, way better book than the movie. (They changed the ending which undercut the actual message.) But others are still decent movies, I just tend to prefer the book. Like, everyone always puts Let the Right One In on ‘essential horror’ lists, but I actually liked the book by John Ajvide Lindqvist a lot better.

-Similarly, you may have noticed I put no Stephen King movies on this list - there are a few I really like, but I think they work better as complements to the novels. Misery and the original Pet Sematary (haven’t seen the new one yet) are my two favorite movies-based-on-king. The Shining is visually stunning by character-wise, wildly disappointing, so point to the novel for this one. (King also hated the adaptation for what Kubrick did to Wendy.) My general King recommendations are: Carrie, Misery, The Shining, The Mist, Insomnia

I’m having a bit of an issue with how male-dominated this list is. It’s partially my problem that I’m working on correcting (I’m at the point where I’m actively trying not to read horror books by white men anymore) and partially a general problem in the industry. It’s hard to get into an industry that for a long time unquestioningly based itself on violence against women and other marginalized peoples’ bodies. -_-  But yeah, I have a list of contemporary horror novels by women that I’m working my way through, and I’m trying to catch up on some older staples like Shirley Jackson, Angela Carter, and Octavia Butler.

UPDATE: After I finished compiling this list, I googled ‘Horror movies directed by women’ and there are a couple that I would recommend, I think they’re just not as visible. (Did not realize they’d been directed by women until this Google.):

Mary Lambert - Pet Sematary (1989)

Karen Kusama - Jennifer’s Body (2009)

Mary Harron - American Psycho (2000)

Lynne Ramsay - We Need To Talk About Kevin (2011) (though I liked the book better)

This list was probably incomplete and I’ve probably forgotten a bunch of things I really like! It’s also only made up of things I’ve already seen/read (though it’s not comprehensive). If something’s not on here and you think it should be, lmk! It may be that I haven’t seen it yet and I’ll add it to my to-watch list. Always taking suggestions, especially for more horror (films or books) from underrepresented groups.

[milkywaywide]

About me

I was tagged by: @nimudashh​ thank you for tagging me! This was fun and really helped me procrastinate doing stuff I don’t wanna do, hooray!.

- how tall are you?

158cm, heh, I don’t usually feel particularly short, until I look around and see some people that tower over me, lolsob.

- what color and style is your hair?

It's black like my soul. Ideally, it's not unlike Touka's fluffy hair except with Zooey Deschanel-y bangs; irl it's always up and rocking that Rat's Nest Aesthetic (plus the bangs which, I have to say, are always neat).

- what color are your eyes?

Dark brown.

- do you wear glasses?

Yup. Very near-sighted, I actually really like them, though.

- do you wear braces?

No, but probably should as all my teeth got kinda crooked when my wisdom teeth grew in.

- What’s your fashion sense?

I actually like to cover up due to being fairly tattooed and disliking stares so usually my upper legs and back are fully covered; that being said, I'm also That Person who's constantly baring her midriff in the workplace. As a general rule, I usually go for as baggy as possible while still marking my waistline (aka midi skirts, mom jeans and either crop tops or oversized tees) and generally combining very "girly" and “masculine” stuff (whatever that means).

- Full name?

That...feels a little invasive, lol. Is my 1st name (Carolina/Carol) good enough?

- when were you born?

August 14th.

- where are you from and where do you live now?

São Paulo.

- what school do you go to?

Thanks to the universe, I'm past that.

- what kind of student were you?

The kind that just showed up so she wouldn't flunk out due to absence (my grades were good enough in like high school and I actually did pretty well in college even though I rarely showed up).

- do you like school?

Jesus, no, lol. Something about it just upset me, even though I very much love learning.

- favorite subject?

I actually really liked literature and Portuguese! (I just Cannot with math, though)

- favorite tv shows?

Probably B99, The Good Place and ODAAT, currently (Seinfeld's also pretty great and I used to love Friends). I am aware I only watch comedies, lol. And I've been dying to get into Good Omens, which I know I'll love to bits, thanks to my everlasting love of Neil Gaiman.

- favorite movie?

Not a huge movies person, but probably Scott Pilgrim and like, Marvel movies.

- favorite book?

I'm too much of a books person to answer this! lol Aaaah, probably the His Dark Materials series (fun fact! I literally have the subtle knife + Pan tattooed on me so that's a fair answer, imo). And Neil Gaiman. As previously stated, I love his books and just him in general.

- do you have regrets?

Oh dear.

- dream job?

Journalist; it's my big What If, career-wise.

- do you like shopping?

Way too much for my own good.

- what countries have you visited?

I'd say the US, England and the Nordic countries minus Finland and Iceland  and, well, my own, lol (these are places I spent a least the night in). Spent a few hours in France, Paraguay and Argentina too. Countries is a weird measure to me because seeing a (few) city(ies) is not the same as seeing The Country, if this makes sense? Maybe I feel that way because I'm from a huge-ass country and every new city I visit could fool me for different country? (even the way people speak is insanely different!!! It blows my mind!!!!) Anyway travelling is great, and it’s really fucked up one needs to be terribly privileged (which I very much know I am) to be able to do it.

- scariest nightmare you have ever had?

Can't think of a single most scary but I have recurring dreams of being chased and/or people dying. :p

- any enemies?

Usually I just don’t give two shits, but probably my former boss and her minions, lol (sadly, we still work at the same company, I just moved to a different department).

- do you believe in miracles?

Yes and no? I'm not a spiritual person at all, but I'm also stupidly hopeful so I always want to believe good things can (and will) happen.

- how are you?

Both freaking out about not doing and procrastinating doing some freelancing work I offered myself to do like a dumbass because I like being helpful and also had no idea how troublesome it'd be, lolsob.

(skipping out on tagging again because I’m an asshole but if anyone sees this and feels like doing it, by all means, please consider yourself tagged and let me know! ✨ I actually love reading these and learning random stuff about people like the creep that I am, lol.)

[eurosong]

ESC 2018 vs 2019 - Semi-final 2

Good afternoon, folks! A few days ago, I took a look at the songs of Eurovision 2019’s first semi-final, comparing them with songs from the same countries in 2018 and sharing my verdict on which year was better and why. Now it’s the turn of semi-final 2! Again, I try to see as much good as possible in each song and I mean no offence to anyone who disagrees with these opinions. 

·        Albania – 2018 – Albania had always been a bit of a bête noire for me at this contest, because they would so often pick fabulous songs at their long-running Festival i këngës national final, only then to completely mutilate them musically and (with the help of Bing translator, lyrically) in the revamp. Last year, that trend hopefully came to an end in the most glorious fashion when Eugent Bushpepa didn’t make any major change to Mall, one of the songs that most impressed me in this era, a soaring, moving, poëtic cri de cœur of a song. This year, they have also opted to neither translate nor musically mutate. I like their 2019 song a lot, but it’s a Scafell Pike to last year’s mighty Everest.

·        Armenia – 2019 – as a glossophile who always advocates the use of national languages over English, I have some respect for Qami, the only song Armenia ever sent entirely in their language. Respect, but no love, because I found it merely ok and rather repetitive. I thought this would be a second year in a row that I’d be underwhelmed by Hayastan, but whilst this year’s offering cannot shape up to the majestic Fly with me, it’s become an earworm and I enjoy the fiery defiance of Srbuk’s lyrics and the incorporation of traditional instrumentation into something otherwise decidedly contemporary.

·        Austria – 2018 – I seem to be one of very few people rating this year’s gentle, stripped-back but impassioned Austrian entry. It more than tilts its cap in the direction of Kate Bush, but I am down with that. However, it would really take some doing to beat last year’s Austrian song, Nobody but you, in my estimations – a worthy winner of the jury vote and probably the ESC’s best ever gospel-infused song for my money.

·        Azerbaijan – 2019 – I’m not as won over by this Azeri effort as many people that I know. I was expected something rather different from their snippet (a word I wish I will never hear again given the amount of them this year). It’s not bad by usual standards though, and is certainly a class above Delete My Heart and its bizarre computer-generated lyrics last year.

·        Croatia – 2018 – Last year’s Croatian song was a rather lame reimagining of Sam Brown’s Stop. I didn’t like the original and I sure didn’t fancy the semi-skimmed version that much either. Having said that, Franka, all is forgiven. Your song is a delight compared to the demonic screeching of this young budding ego ironically wearing (fluffy) angel wings. I thought Jacques Houdek had unleashed enough hell with his Maa fwenn/Moy frennddd but it was nothing compared to this abomination. It’s so bad that it almost scares me how bad it is.

·        Denmark – 2019 – Another one where I go against the grain is Denmark. I never got the hype for Rasmussen, whose song sounded like a soundtrack for some 90s direct-to-video movie about Vikings. The only thing is that they managed to make even Vikings feel lame. It all seemed a little OTT and gimmicky to me, and the amount of repetition and the cliché pitch shift both annoyed me. On paper, this hyper-sweet Danish song should also grind my gears, but in a subpar year, I’ve actually grown a fondness for it. Maybe the Frenchness of it all was what won me over. I hope they’re not actually going to sway side to side on a big chair in the actual final, though.

·        Ireland – 2018 – Two decent songs in a row from Ireland and it’s difficult to choose between them, even though neither set my world alight. I still think the staging of last year was rather cynical – two enamoured lads who had little to with the song about heartbreak, but did seem to win over some folk who otherwise would have dismissed it as a boring ballad. Seeing it live, it was quite moving, and I was able to put this incongruousness out of mind. This year’s entry has rather less artifice and a low-key charm, but I have to go for ’18 as having more depth as a composition.      

·        Latvia – 2018 – Despite never having reached the heights of Aminata who pulled them up from the non-qualification doldrums, I’ve enjoyed every subsequent song from Latvia, even though the standards of Supernova have dropped since the Riga Beaver stopped delighting us in the ad breaks. This year’s Latvian song is delightfully low-key, the kind of thing I imagine hearing on the radio late at night, driving in the rain. At the minute, though, I have to say I still prefer the sultry, tempestuous Funny Girl – though Esam­iba would have topped both.

·        Macedonia – 2018 – Macedonia, perhaps the country at the contest who least has received their dues despite some excellent songs, is a perfect illustration of how difficult these 2018 vs 2019 choices can be. Their entry this year, “Proud”, is touching and impactful on first listen, but I’ve seldom sought out to listen to it much since then. On the other hand, I was absolutely obsessed with last year’s “Lost and found”, bewitched by its changes in style and tempo. Unfortunately, the live version of 2018 was an absolute clusterfuck; it felt as though someone had been deliberately tasked with ruining their qualification chances, and that casts a shadow over the song in retrospect. I wouldn’t be surprised if 2019 is a more effective song on the stage, but for the time being, I prefer 2018 musically.

·        Malta – 2019 – There is absolutely no contest here for me. This is the first song sent by Malta that manages to hold my interest since “Tomorrow” way back in 2013. It’s more daring and contemporary than I ever imagined would be their choice. In a different universe from the screechy “Taboo.” It’s also refreshing to have a Maltese song that doesn’t try to get brownie points from their message.

·        Moldova – 2018 – A truly plague vs cholera choice. 2018’s bizarre Kirkorov-spawned ode to the ménage-à-trois versus this year’s painfully, painfully dull ballad-by-numbers with rhyming-also-by-number (rhyming say with stay, never with forever. Troolee jeenyuss.) I have to go with 2018, which creeped me out, but at least was kind of interesting in its own weird way, and its staging showed ingenuity despite limited resources.

·        Netherlands – 2018 – I’m sure for a lot of people, this choice is a no-brainer, but for me, it is very much a difficult choice. I really loved “Outlaw in ‘em”, Waylon’s country style is up my street and, whilst I still think “Thanks or no thanks” would have been a cannier choice, I appreciated one of the few moments last year in which one could rock out. “Arcade” is a different beast entirely, so comparisons are odious. Both are stirring, but OIE is riotous and defiant, whilst Arcade is poignant. It’s hard to choose just one, but I have to go for the one I’m more likely to have on repeat, last year’s song.

·        Norway – 2019 – Oh, Norway. For a few glorious years, with Margaret Berger, Karl Espen and then especially Mørland, they were the coolest thing going out of the Nordics – but how the mighty have fallen. I haven’t really liked a single one of their entries since then and once again, I am faced with a choice between two unsavoury options. Their entry this year sounds like Aqua went into the woods for a spiritualistic retreat, came back, wrote a shitty b-side about the experience and then decided not to release it, only for some Norwegians to find it about 20 years later and pass the song off as their own. Everything about it makes me cringe on an almost existential level. It appals me that the “come on barbie, let’s go pardy”-style joiking is being compared to JHF who actually representing joik in a classier way. I say all this, and yet, this year’s offering is still not ás bad as 2018’s “That’s how you write a song”, a “children’s TV show theme” song whose cosmic irony would be funny were it not so tragic.

·        Romania – 2018 – I didn’t think this would be such a tough decision when I found out the results for Selecţia Naţionala, and was absolutely amazed that the public had only 1/7th of the result, and that the juries had catapulted a song that only picked up 3% of the televote (Laura Bretan, the televote winner, got a 42% share, in contrast) on the back of a rather dubious live performance. I’m still not sure why Ester puts on a vocal affectation that makes her sound like she’s having a tantrum, but somehow the song’s dark ambiance and the hilarious video won me over. It still can’t compare to last year’s emotional, underrated effort which brought to mind departed friends.

·        Russia – 2019 – Sergey’s return is a little pompous and will certainly be wrapped up with unnecessary staging frills; that being said, it’s a decent song, which is more than I can say about the truly ghoulish “I won’t break,” whose only virtue for me – being slightly better than the hideous and ungrammatical “Flame is burning” – was removed when I saw that impossibly bad staging, confining their singer almost embarrassedly into the background.

·        Sweden – 2019 – For the first time in a few years, Sweden have sent an artist and song that I don’t find completely objectionable. That isn’t to say that I don’t find any objection at all – soul is not really soul when it is so heavily manufactured, and I cannot help but feel that they’ve taken more than a fair amount of inspiration from both Austria of last year and Bulgaria of 2016. Nonetheless, I can bear it a lot better than Dance you off.

·        Switzerland – 2018 – For once, I actually had a little bit of hope for Switzerland, who have been going through the motions with some turgid fare for the last number of years, with the only exception for me being Hunter of Stars. Going internal made me feel they had something exceptional, and I guess they thought they did, but for me, instead they brought a thinly veiled male take on Fuego and little more. Last year’s effort also didn’t impress me much, a dirgey bit of trust fund faux-rock (frock?), but I’ll take it over the Chernobyl levels of radioäctive smugness exuded by this latter Swiss attempt.

And as for the automatic qualifiers:

·        Germany – 2018 – When I heard that Barbara Schöneberger, she of the eyes that are bigger than Lake Baikal and seems permanently traumatised, was coming back after a year’s absence as host, I joked that I was amazed she was given back the gig given that every year she’s been in charge, there’s been an abject failure and the one edition where she was absent, Germany managed to get a fantastic result. I feel they’re back to their losing ways with Sister, a song performed by a group called S!sters who have only known one another for a few months if that. It’s one of many songs this year with decent verses but a horrible chorus. It’s supposed to be a celebration of sisterhood, but it feels moreso like these two want to scratch the other’s eyes out whilst they stand there, wailing at one another. There were things that annoyed me about last year’s German entry too, particularly the large section in which he merely said “whoahaoaoaoa” as if he’d run out of ideas for lyrics, but it was otherwise a stellar, well-written effort. In another league to these imaginary sisters.  

·        Italy – 2019 – Italy is one of the very few countries where I prefer 2019 to 2018, 2018 to 2017, 2017 to 2016 and 2016 to 2015! They just get better year on year. I adored “Metamoro” and still consider their song a huge highlight, one of the best of last year and of recent years. It’s incredibly difficult to choose between them and Mahmood’s Soldi, but he somehow managed to win me over even more with his anthemic, autobiographical song which has a contemporary edge but also the timelessness and quality of San Remo orchestral compositions. My number one this year so far.

·        UK – 2019 – Eurovision: You Decide got even drearier than usual this year. Whilst other countries like France increased the number of songs from which their viewers could choose, BBC cut their choices down to three, got two sets of people to perform each song in a different style pastiche and then didn’t even allow the viewers to choose which rendition they preferred. We ended up with a bog-standard “X factor winners’ single”-style song that SVT told John Lundvik not to perform for them. It has the edge because it at least “hey muvva, bruvva” lyrics or random Casio noises in the background like Surie’s song. She really deserved more.

[xtattlecrimex-blog]

Why Are The Fannibals So Obnoxiously Obsessive?

I’m actually getting more at the fact that they are mentally ill. Basically all of them. Once again, I am referencing the specific group of hardcore fans who throw thousands of dollars at their obsession, or still run multiple Hannigram blogs day in and day out despite the show being cancelled years ago. The 200 or so women who hang around on Tumblr and Twitter and devote their lives to worshiping Bryan Fuller and their precious pairing. Those women. People have asked me why they are so obsessive and why the vast majority of them seem to have considerable problems with mental illness. The answer is pretty simple and quite obvious. The show glamorizes mental illness.

Look at Hannibal Lecter, for example. He’s a murderer and a cannibal. Now, in the past (such as the books and then later the original movies) This was framed as a bad thing. Though Hannibal Lecter in both of those materials had some level of style and good manners, he was also portrayed as monster. Described as one too. From Red Dragon all the way through Hannibal (the third novel). I don’t include Hannibal Rising for reasons I’m not going to get into here. The point is, that in the original source material and the movies based off of the original source material, Hannibal was portrayed as creepy more so than stylized, sexualized, and handsome.

However, when you take a look at the show, how is Hannibal portrayed? Well, by a very handsome Danish man. Someone who actually won the award of “Sexist Man In Denmark” at least once that I know of but actually may have won it more than that. A very tall, chiseled, Nordic looking dude. I get that he’s not to everyone’s specific standards of handsome, or sexy, and some people find him downright ugly, but let’s all just admit he has far more appeal to the ladies than Anthony Hopkins. At least, far more appeal to Tumblr aged teenage girls. They were already in love with the likes of Matt Smith, Bill Skarsgard, and Benedict Cumberatch, so Mads really fit right in there along with that. Oh Alex Skarsgard too. The thing is that as much as he may have a very specific look that only appeals to a very specific number of people, well it doesn’t mean he’s not handsome or meant to be played as such. I personally think Mads is very attractive even if I can recognize that his very severe face may not be for everyone.

They take Mads and they turn him into Hannibal Lecter. They give him amazing suits and lots of money. He’s high society, he’s a chef, he’s smart, and he’s a psychiatrist. They show him well before his incarceration as well, and at first they shy away from making him seem too evil so you can empathize with him to some extent. They also really excuse and gloss over his behavior, justify it as him taking care of Will or getting rid of rude people. Cannibalism is bad, yes, and they do show that, but they do it in such a way that it seems fancy and delicious not in the horrific way that it actually is. It’s portrayed at nice dinner parties not in some captive and horrid situation. As much as he is a “bad guy” they put very little emphasis on this. They also have him “taking care” of others, so it seems like that makes it kind of “okay” for him to do the things he does because he’s somehow benefiting society by doing these things, not destroying it. That’s why you will see so many of these over zealous fannibal family fangirls repeating the phrase “eat the rude”.

Next, we have Will Graham. They shy away from ever actually saying he’s autistic in the show but it is heavily implied. He slowly goes insane (thanks to severe mental abuse from Hannibal) until he becomes a murderer as well. Since Hannibal is portrayed in such a “good” light, with minimal focus on the murdering and cannibalism, then this also isn’t seen as a bad thing…not really. It’s justified. Will is doing it because he’s either out of control or he’s so in love with Hannibal he wants to become Hannibal. Or some third thing. There’s ways to justify Will’s violent behavior as much as Hannibal’s. Not to mention Hugh Dancy is attractive and was known in certain circles as a heart throb well before this show aired. He already had a fanbase of fangirls who were in love with him. This allows these people to justify the horrid behavior as well as identify with it. Will is weird, socially awkward, mentally ill, but it’s also completely fine because he’s totally “in love” with Hannibal. I mean by their point of view, not what actually happened in the show.

Then you couple all of this with the fact that the show portrays death as beautiful and artsy. Edgy too. You never really see a gross corpse or the reality of death, what it does to a person, how they’d actually look, the fall out of losing someone in such a way. What you see is a beautiful sculpture of the corpses left over. Very few of them were legitimately gross dead bodies. Everything was stylized to look as pretty as possible while also being as dark as possible. In the actual world if you took someone and skinned their back open to make it look like wings, or used someone’s body to grow mushrooms on, the actual reality of the horror that would create is far worse than what the show did show on screen. Perhaps it was a style choice, and perhaps it had to do with censorship, maybe both, but the reality of death and destruction of all of these things was put through a filter. Rose colored glasses.

The fandom is so full of mentally ill people because it attracted them in this manner. It excused horrible behavior because of mental illness and made them pretty, beautiful even. It went out of its way to justify the behavior of a cannibal and the horrid abuse he put another man through in order to force a bond with him. That’s what it did. It attracted people with substantial problems because it dismissed all of these problems within the main characters and wrapped it up in a very pretty bow then threw it into high society like being mentally ill was some kind of status symbol. If you add that to the fact that the first season of the show was primarily advertised through Tumblr, and we all know what types of people are on tumblr, then one can’t really be surprised that what we have left of the most hardcore and devoted fans, is a mentally ill cesspool of special snowflakes.

One must wonder what the show might have been like had it gotten a normal PR campaign. Had it been advertised like a TV show should be or usually was. What kind of audience it may have attracted (and ratings) if a different creator had been at the helm and how well the should could have done if it hadn’t catered to mentally ill and overly obsessive Tumblr fangirls. There is a longing to know what could have been and a disappointment in knowing what never can be.

[bllover4lif]

About Me Tag

Special thanks to @chiefofpigs​ for tagging me!!

The rules are:

1. Tag the person who tagged you

2. Answer the questions

3. Tag 10 people

• How tall are you?

Last time I checked, 5′5 or 5′6. 

And yet, I haven’t grown an inch. 😭😭😭😭😭

• What color and style is your hair?

My hair is a very very VERY dark brown hair, to the point where it looks completely black. For almost a year my hair has been in comb curls but now it’s in 2 stranded twists. Also when my hair is twisted, like it is now, if you look real close, you can see my natural brown highlights.

• What color are your eyes?

My eyes are the same color as my hair, brown but almost black looking.

• Do you wear glasses?

Yes. I’ve had cataracts since I was young, but was never confirmed until the 9th and 10th grade. I had the surgery done on the left one last year in February. And the other one will be done this summer!! Yes, that still means I need glasses.

• Do you wear braces?

No, and thank god I don’t. I don’t want to.

• What’s your fashion sense?

Um... (Laughs shyly) believe it or not, I’m not really sure. I have no real style.

It used to be matching colors. Now it’s more of a dark color scheme, with the few light colored clothes. I almost always wear shorts, pants, or capris. Also, I always wear tennis shoes. I never wear skirts, dresses or anything fancy unless its a special occasion (i.e. dresses for church or a wedding). I hate open-toed shoes, with the exception of wedges and gladiator sandals. And don’t even get me started on makeup. Mainly because I don’t know how to put it on. Also with my eyes, I’d be afraid of making it worse. I do have purses and cute bags though.

(Also, if you were to ask my mom, she would say I’m from ‘Grannyville’ due to not wanting to dress like how most other black girls my age I’ve seen walking around. LMFAO 😂😂😂😂😂)

• Full name?

Jude Asia Morgan

• When were you born?

December 23rd, 1999

And yet, I still feel so old. I wonder why?

• Where are you from and where do you live now?

I was born in Kenner, Louisiana. However, the majority of my family was born in New Orleans, LA. Currently, I live in Baton Rouge, LA. 

• What school do you go to?

I am a freshman (about to be sophomore) at LSU (Louisiana State University), 

• What kind of student are you?

I am a very quiet student who keeps to herself but warms up over time. For some reason, I fear people think I always look angry. I’m also the biggest procrastinator I know. And my mom always tells me not to do that. I stay up until 3 am or even later, even though 3 is my limit. And I always study for tests at the last minute (and for some reason, don’t always fail).

• Do you like school?

Yes. Especially college. I’ve never enjoyed it so much. With more freedom, why not?

• Favorite subject?

Mathematics, but I also love computer and technology subjects as well. I also love reading and writing classes (although my reading comprehension is horrible)

• Favorite TV show?

Don’t really have one. I rarely watch TV much nowadays. I do watch anime though if you count that. Some of my favorites is Cute High Earth Defense Club,  Cute High Earth Defense Club Happy Kiss, Yuri on Ice, and Yona of the Dawn. But ultimately it depends on the genres. I love male sports, male idols, BL, reverse harems, adventure, action, comedy, and supernatural. They also need males leads and not many girls.

• Favorite Movie?

None really. I always fall asleep during a movie, except for a good few. My favorite maybe... Hidden Figures? And maybe The Martian?

• Favorite books?

Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle (currently reading)

Micheal Vey series by Richard Paul Evans

Maximum Ride series by James Patterson

Any book by John Green

The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton (#1 best book in the world, IMO)

*All in all, I am a huge bookworm. I love tons of books. I may start reading Harry Potter soon.

• Favorite pastime?

Well, let’s see. Naps, sleeping, cooking, naps, writing (recently), reading, naps,  playing otomes, drawing 3d cubes (and sucking at it) and more naps!! 

* Yes, I really love naps. 😂😂😂😂😂

•  Do you have any regrets? 

Not really. Maybe I wish I could have worked harder in middle and high school and then maybe I wouldn’t have gone through so much stress and depression at that time.

• Dream Job?

Something with math, like a teacher or an actuary. My ultimate goal is to have a masters or a doctorate in math so I can become a mathematician. Maybe something with computers and technology, like robotics or engineering. I also always wanted to be a chef. So at the moment, who knows?

• Would you ever like to be married?

Of course!! I have my whole future planned out.

• Would you like to have kids?

Yes.

• How many?

I want 5-6 boys and 1 girl.

• Do you like shopping?

Yes and no. It depends on what I’m shopping for. Books, yes. Food, yes (especially at Sam’s and Cosco due to the free samples). Clothes and shoes, I would if my mom wasn’t always complaining about what I choose there.

• What countries have you visited?

None. I have been to other states, such as Tennessee, Texas, Virginia (Washington DC) and a few other southern states. I do wish to travel to Japan, North and South Korea, Nordic countries, and Canada.

• Scariest nightmare you have ever had?

I would say either:

1. One where Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton visited my house and threw a party and wouldn’t leave nor let me leave (LMFAO)

2. One where I rode a bike holding a pillow and after waving to 2 of my older brothers, the bike went out of control and started falling and screaming to my death into this deep prison looking ravine (which caused me to fall out of bed)

3. One where I was inside Call of Duty: Black Ops and I was in this area overlooking another one filled with Nova 6. My head is very fuzzy about it, but someone drove a big truck and crashed causing Nova 6 to spread everywhere. Everyone started dying (I blame my brother for this dream). and I woke up crying.

* For those who’ve never played, Nova 6 is a deadly gas that kills anyone within 20 seconds of exposure. You have to have a special suit to walk around in, but if you took too much damage, your suit would crack and you would be exposed. Don’t worry. I don’t think it’s real. 

Now that I’m looking, I would say most likely number 3. I can and l NEVER will forget such horror. 😭😭😭😭😭

• Any enemies?

No. Not that I know of. Maybe my older sister's cat?

• Any significant other?

Not at the moment. I did fall in love with my crush in my senior year of high school. We knew each other since 10th grade. He went to a different school run by the same principal as mine, and he would come over for certain classes. We met on a field trip through a friend, and we confessed on the last day for seniors to be at school. But we broke up days before my graduation, so not even 2 weeks. (Don’t worry. It was just because we didn’t know how to have a long-distance relationship while we were at different colleges and we didn’t want so much stress on us. I’m not upset at all. A little lonely, but not upset.) 

We still talk though. I’m sure he still loves me and after college, we may get back together. Our families accepted us almost immediately, even though they never met us until our graduations. So to answer, yes and no. And currently, my friend from middle school and her family are trying to get me and my crush together. We both love each other so much, but it’s hard to confess our true feelings as we are both very shy. But they already know we are the perfect match.

• Do you believe in miracles?

No, not really. Things just happen.

• How are you?

Very very tired, and very very stressed. I’m going through my last 3 of 8 finals this week and I have to pack and move everything out the dorm by this Saturday. Being a college freshman (a sophomore in August) is a lot of work. But I feel pretty positive that my grades this semester will be much better than last semester.

Not to mention, now that it’s summer, I plan to post my very first Ikerev fanfiction!! Please look forward to it!! 🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️

Also, I get to write more (Yay!!) and get more routes to play (Yay!!). I can take as many naps as I want. And I’ll be stress-free!! ... Until next semester when I move into my apartment and start school again. So honestly... I feel really chill. I love my life!! 😍😍😍😍😍😭😭😭😭😭

Tagging: @incorrectikerevquotes, @alloveroliver. @edgarbright, @alloveroliver-ash, @ikemenfics, @ikemensengokufandom, @ikemenrevolution, and whoever else wishes to do this. See you soon!! Bye bye!!

[vastarakkiheiluhanta]

Tag Game

Tagged by @runolea ,Thank you! C :

Rules: answer these questions then tag 20 blogs you’d like to know better!

Nickname: I kinda don’t have any. They usually are longer than my name, so there’s no point to make them. Some of my classmates in different schools have tried to come up with one, but usually they get tired of them since it’s easier just use my real name.

Zodiac: Aries.

Height: I’m short..

Time: It’s 14:36 right now.

Favourite band/artist: P!nk, Ed Sheeran, Adele, Mumford & Sons, Fall Out Boy, Imagine Dragons, Maroon 5, Monsters of Men, PMMP, Happoradio, ect. There are many of them. I like all kinds of music and sometimes just random songs.

Song stuck in my head: Treat You Better by Shawn Mendes. Currently watched a beautiful comic music video with this song and it stucked in my head.

Last movie I saw: Gotham by Gaslight. It was great! I love steampunk and Victorian era.

Last thing I googled: ”Nightwing”

Other blogs: Nope, just this one.

Do I get asks: Almost never. I have three of them, latest is one year ago. :  DD

Why did I choose this username: This is funny to explain. I will just tell what it means in Finnish. Västäräkki = Wagtail, Heiluhäntä = tail that is wagging. (Heiluhäntä can also mean, depends of context, wolf, dog, squirrel or pets in Finnish.)

Following: Things that I like, example tv-series, movies, book series, art blogs, other tumblr blogs, etc.

Average amount of sleep: I hope it would be 7-8 hours but, thanks to school, it’s usually 4-6 hours.

Lucky number: 8

What am I wearing: Pyjama pants and old worn out t-shirt at home. If it’s cold I can have pilling sweater or hoodie to crown it all. Otherwise just some nerdy print t-shirt and jeans. Hair is usually tied up. I would like to put an effort for what I wear but I never have time or money and I’m not so intrested about how I look either. I rarely use any makeup. I can just dream of vintage or 50s style fashion.

Dream job: Do something that I love and have passion for, example something to do with visual arts.

Dream trip: I would like to go London again and British or Scottish country side. Nordic countries (Norway, Iceland and Denmark) would be fun to visit also.

Fave food: Pea soup! I like all kinds of food, except lasagna and sausage baked in the oven.

Play any instruments: No. In first grade we have to play fipple flute but I never learn it and same thing in ninth grade with guitar.

Eye colour: I like to say blue. Actually they are bluish-grey! Some people have said to me that they look green.. depends on a lighting I guess.

Hair colour: Brown.

Describe yourself as aesthetic things: Drawing paper and watercolours, light blue - navy blue - white - beige colour combination and pastels, teacup and chocolate, mint leaves and cinnamon, rainy days and chilly winter evenings, reading light and book piles, blankets and sauna, paw prints in heart and teardrops, headphones and iPod classic.

Languages you speak: Finnish as my native language. I studied Finland’s other native language Swedish six years in school but never learn it. Just couple of easy sentences. I’m really unhappy about it. English is good but it’s a bit passive since I have no one to talk with. I understand well but making my own sentences is a little hard. As you have already noticed, I have difficulties with articles and prepositions.

Most iconic song: There are many of them. Maybe Lohikäärme Puff (Puff, the Magic Dragon). Translated in Finnish by Sauvo Puhtila. Finnish version is a more optimistic and not so sad than the original.

Favorite books: Hard to say. There are so many of them.. example The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, Moominpappa at Sea by Tove Jansson, Les Misérables by Victor Hugo, The Help by Kathryn Stockett, The Three Musketeers -series by Alexandre Dumas or Féval Paul & Lassez M., Harry Potter by J. K. Rowling, Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini, Under the North Star by Väinö Linna, Dog Nail Clipper by Veikko Huovinen, etc.

Random fact: I’m going to make an apple-cinnamon tea now and maybe watch Smallville.

I tag @profdrlachfinger and @221bangtanstreet, feel free to ignore! : )

[callahanfreet]

The Lake Placid Olympics is the very first one I can ever remember in Thibodaux, Louisiana. It was 1980, I was eight years old. That’s the year the collegiate US hockey team defied all odds and won the gold medal against professionals the Russians sent to the games, not that I realized the significance then. That fall I was busy doing duck-and-cover drills in fourth grade just in case the Soviets nuked us. . It was also the first time I remember seeing someone ski on snow. I didn’t understand it then, but the guys in skin-tight suits carried rifles, and during the race they stopped to shoot targets — the announcers didn’t seem surprised, so I assumed it wasn’t really the James Bond movie plot I imagined. . I remember thinking, “what in the WORLD are these guys doing, flailing around with really long poles, looking like some version of human scissors?” They seemed to be struggling pretty hard compared to the downhill skiers or the ski jumpers literally flying down the mountain, so obviously they weren’t as good at it. Maybe that’s why they carried rifles? I didn’t know. . Eight years later, and the Olympics were in Calgary. By then on TV I’d probably seen someone in the act of skiing three times, but I’d never actually seen real snow. Or even a mountain. I’m not even sure I understood the word “Nordic” referred to European countries, and I definitely didn’t know it was a style of skiing. That tidbit didn’t lodge into my cerebellum until the commercials started for those funny looking home-skiing machines with the ropes and long wooden slats — man those things looked complicated! . Although that year it did snow where we lived in Baton Rouge, twenty more passed before I was even in the vicinity of an actual mountain — and also the Internet became a thing — so eventually I got educated. I didn’t know what I was getting into when I decided cross-country skiing was something I would like to do, but I carried the goal forward, and proceeded to do nothing meaningful with it. Until this month when the boy gave us lessons. And we fell. A. Lot. [Continued in comments] (at Chugiak, Alaska) https://www.instagram.com/p/CIlpTIej_yc/?igshid=1n1xl69d7v7be

[minor-hetalia-imagines]

Give me some headcanons bout YOUR favorite characters! I wanna see what you have to say bout your faves. (I love seeing people write and draw and express their love for their faves, it makes me so happy)

*sits aph Switzerland on my lap* this is my boy and I love him.

Switzerland/Vash Zwingli:

The reason Switzerland loves the pink pajamas Liechtenstein gave him is because that’s his favorite color.  If you ask him about his favorite color, he’ll say it’s green, but it isn’t.  It’s pink.  He didn’t even tell Liechtenstein.  She still doesn’t know. Nobody knows. He’s taking it to his grave.

One of Vash’s favorite hobbies is cooking.  He just finds it so soothing, and not to mention, he’s actually pretty damn good at it!  He can’t bake though.  He always burns it.  That’s Liechtenstein’s and Austria’s job.

The poor boy is afraid of spiders.  Another secret he’d like to take to his grave.  Unfortunately, Liechtenstein knows.  She’s always known. She told the other ladies.

Some things don’t need an explanation.  Switzerland loves those “History of Japan” “History of the Entire World I Guess” videos. Educational, yet filled with horridly dry humor.  Just Vash’s type of entertainment.

Vash has a black belt in Krav Maga.  He can kick your ass.  Don’t let his height fool you.

Austria/Roderich Edelstein:

I have repeatedly stated in my headcanons that Roderich has issues with his legs.  It is canonically stated he spent some time in a wheelchair.  So you will have to rip this canonically disabled character from my cold, chronically pained hands.

While many people don’t see it, Roderich loves more styles of art than just music!  He also likes to paint, and he loves photography!  Just don’t try to put him in the photograph, he’s painfully camera shy!

Roderich has his reasons for being scared of sea creatures.  He doesn’t ever tell anyone the reasons, but he had a very scary call once and now they scare the daylights out of him.  He wants to overcome his fear, though.

Contrary to what people might say, Roderich does actually like the outdoors!  He just cannot handle heat for the life of him.  His favorite season is the fall.  The leaves give him such artistic inspiration!

Sweden/Berwald Oxenstierna:

Berwald isn’t a movie guy.  They put him to sleep, and he always wakes up right at the end when everything he missed is spoiled. No fun!  He’s more of a TV show kind of guy.

Maybe this violates canon, but Berwald is the Tallest Guy.  He’s the tallest of the nations.  He stands at a solid 6′4″ (193 cm).  It definitely has its perks, and its cons.  Like being able to reach everything and always being able to see over the crowd - perks.  Pants always being highwaters and always smacking his head into the tops of doorframes - cons.

Most people think it’s Finland, but Sweden is actually the Mom of the Nordics.  He always makes sure everyone has their sweaters, everyone has something good to eat for dinner.  He knows where every one of the Nordics is at, who they’re with.  He’s a total mom.

Berwald has depression.  He doesn’t talk about it much.  The only people who know are the Nordics and Estonia.  He hates pity, and he hates being babied.  He’s working past his problems; he’s been on and off anti-depressants for years.