#march 9 1982

[gollancz]

Why I'm Not Allowed On Twitter Unsupervised Any More: A Photo Essay

Key Notes:

Since this was posted I discovered that the books had briefly been available in the UK under the name Peter Beagle rather than Peter S. Beagle in the mid-90s, which is why they didn't show up on the British Library search

The article by Tor.com @torbooks: Peter S. Beagle Has Finally Regained the Rights to His Body of Work

If you want our gorgeous limited edition, I believe there are still a handful left (except for the US and Canada, sorry lads), and you can get it here. I'm not kidding when I say I got a little teary-eyed when these showed up.

[Image Description: A tweet thread from the Gollancz twitter dated 20th July 2022, which goes as follows -

Tweet 1: You may have seen that we're printing a Brand New Edition of The Last Unicorn. We're very excited! I was asked to tweet about it. I wasn't asked to do it quite like this, but I also wasn't asked NOT to do it like this, and I have the twitter login so whose fault is that? (Thread emoji, and gif from the film Scream reading 'The Call is coming from inside the house!')

Tweet 2: Imagine, if you will, you are a small child in the UK during the late 80s/early 90s. You might look a bit like this, or you might have had parents who didn't choose suffering (ask my mum about The Saga of the Hat) (an image of a small girl approximately 3 years old wearing a blue dress and a big white hat)

Tweet 3: Imagine you have a cool older cousin, one who, as you get age, introduces you to fantasy films like Ladyhawk and The Princess Bride and has a post the whole family knows as 'the vampire and the naked lady'. She's extremely responsible for the way you turn out as an adult.

Tweet 4: One year, for your birthday, this cousin buys you a video. It's the first video that is yours, not to share. It has a bright yellow cover. The butterfly scares you. But you watch it on a loop. You don't realise how special it is, but it's a seed that burrows into your brain. (An image of a VHS of The Last Unicorn)

Tweet 5: A decade or so later, in your teens, you rediscover it. None of your friends have heard of it, despite also being fantasy-inclined. That's odd, you think. Is this an outlandishly weird title? Then you get older and you realise: no, it isn't. (Principal Skinner meme reading 'Am I out of touch? No, it's the people who don't know about The Last Unicorn who are wrong')

Tweet 6: Time and tech march on, you get a DVD of the film. You realise it's got Christopher Lee in it! And Angela Lansbury! Your mum tries to get you to listen to songs by America other than the soundtrack, but the only one that really sticks is the other one they did about a horse. (Gif of Walter White from Breaking Bad singing along to Horse With No Name)

Tweet 7: You realise that the film is based on a book. Like The Princess Bride, which you've also read (after spending longer than you're proud of trying to find an unabridged edition). 'Neat,' you think, 'I'll have to read that!'

Tweet 8: And then you can't find it. Because, as mentioned previously, you're in the UK. The Last Unicorn was published for the first time in 1968. But, if you look at the British Library's National Bibliography (super neat resource btw), that was, uh, about it. (screenshot of the search results from the National Bibliography showing four editions of The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle, one from Gollancz in 2022, one from IDW in 2019, one from Tachyon Publications in 2018, and one from Bodley Head in 1968)

Tweet 9: The Tachyon edition is the unfinished first draft of the story. The IDW edition is a gorgeous graphic novel. But in terms of the novel? I don't know how many reprints it had (if anyone knows, I'd love to find out), but there's a good chance it went out of print in the 70s.

Tweet 10: The film, however, was released in 1982. Although it didn't make it to the UK until 1986. Conservative estimates could put that between 10 and 15 years since the book was last available in the UK. This gives you a generation in the UK who only know the story through the film! (A screenshot of the IMDB page showing the different release dates for The Last Unicorn around the world)

Tweet 11: The screenplay was written by Peter S. Beagle, and made by the legendary animation directors Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass. That's right, the guys behind Thundercats and 2 out of the 3 films based on The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

Tweet 12: The Book has been in print in the USA (and possibly all of North America) constantly since its publication, so it seems baffling that people in the UK haven't heard of it. As the internet became more prominent, however, it became easier to just... import a copy of the book.

Tweet 13: But! This also isn't quite as simple as you think. You see, until last year the rights to The Last Unicorn were tied up in legal limbo. And the US edition of the book contained changes that Peter wasn't happy with. (Link to the Tor.com article about the rights)

Tweet 14: Back to you, the 80s/90s kid, who is now an adult, happy that unicorns are A Thing again and you're living your best life. You're very easy to buy presents for. Your partner despairs of unicorns. You get a job working in books about magic and space. (unicorn emoji and photograph of a collection of unicorn memorabilia, including three different versions of The Last Unicorn)

Tweet 15: You mention that one day you would like to publish The Last Unicorn. That if you did, you would like to do a really beautiful edition of it. And you would like it to be purple. Because since the film is what you know, you associate it with purple.

Tweet 16: And, after taking a very circuitous route, here we are! This is the original text, that was first published in 1968. Reading it after you have only seen the film is the strangest experience - like being introduced to a very dear friend that you have never met before.

Tweet 17: Peter's screenplay kept the voice of the story so well, you can hear the characters when you read the book. But now there's so much more depth, softness and warmth to it. The butterfly doesn't seem so scary any more. And, it's beautiful. And it's purple. (Image of a hardback edition of The Last Unicorn, with a black base, purple background, and a linocut image of the unicorn in her wood. On the black cover underneath is a foiled unicorn with the moon and butterfly, the page edges are sprayed purple, and the endpapers are black with silver butterflies)

Tweet 18: Anyway, I've taken you on a three day trip that could have been done in a single tweet, but that's what happens when you let me drive. This edition is the limited exclusive one only available through the Gollancz Emporium and you can preorder here: (link to Gollancz Emporium)

Tweet 19: But there is also a standard edition available through all booksellers! You'll be getting the author's preferred text, with an introduction from Patrick Rothfuss. There's also a brand new audiobook and it will be available in eBook for the first time ever.

Tweet 20: It's like going from famine to feast, and I wasn't able to talk about this for months so now I am able to talk about it, I'm going to make the social media team cry. UNICORNS. SPECIAL EDITION. PURPLE. The End.

Tweet 21: Additional behind the scenes bonus detail - I did take this cover to the art meaning while wearing a unicorn onesie.

Tweet 22: The comms team wrestling me away from the twitter account: (gif of Ross from Friends shouting 'Stop typing! Stop typing!')

End ID]

[metalloverr]

March 14 Metallica's first concert took place

Metallica's first concert was held on March 14, 1982 at Radio City Anaheim, San Francisco, California, USA. The composition of the team at that time was as follows: James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Dave Mustaine and Ron McGovney. Hetfield only sang during the concert, the guitar was in charge of Mustaine. About 200 people attended the concert. The following compositions were played:

1. Hit The Lights

2. Blitzkrieg (Blitzkrieg cover)

3. Helpless (Diamond Head Cover)

4. Jump In The Fire

5. Let It Loose (Savage cover)

6. Sucking My Love (Diamond Head Cover)

7. Am I Evil (Diamond Head Cover)

8. The Prince (Diamond Head Cover)

9. Killing Time (Diamond Head Cover)

[lonestarflight]

Atlantis (OV-104) rolled out ceremony from Building 150 at the Palmdale, California. The orbiter was delivered to Kennedy Space Center on April 9.

Atlantis was named after RV Atlantis, a two-masted sailing research vessel operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. From 1930 to 1966, she made 299 cruises and covered 700,000 miles while conducting oceanographic research.

Commemorative stamp from Rockwell International

Construction milestones:

1979 January 29: Contract Award to Rockwell International's Space Transportation Systems Division

1980 March 30: Start structural assembly of crew module

1980 July 28: start fabrication of aft-fuselage

1980 October 1: start fabrication of mid-fuselage

1981 June 1: start fabrication of elevons

1981 June 1: start fabrication of wings

1981 July 13: start fabrication of crew module

1981 October 19: start fabrication of lower forward-fuselage

1981 November 23: start structural assembly of aft-fuselage

1981 December 9: start fabrication of upper forward-fuselage

1982 February 15: start structural assembly of crew module

1982 May 24: start fabrication of forward RCS module

1982 July 7: start structural assembly of payload bay doors

1982 October 4: start fabrication/assembly of vertical stabilizer

1982 November 12: start fabrication of OMS/RCS pods

1983 March 14: start fabrication/assembly of body flap

1983 May 6: Mid-fuselage on dock, Palmdale, arrived from General Dynamics

1983 June 13: Wings on dock, Palmdale, from Grumman

1983 June 17: elevons on dock, Palmdale

1983 November 7: lower forward-fuselage on dock, Palmdale

1983 December 2: payload bay doors on dock, Palmdale

1983 December 2: Start of final assembly

1984 January 6: upper forward-fuselage on dock, Palmdale

1984 January 20: body flap on dock, Palmdale

1984 February 17: left hand OMS/RCS pod on dock, Palmdale

1984 February 24: right hand OMS/RCS pod on dock, Palmdale

1984 March 16: aft-fuselage on dock, Palmdale

1984 April 9: crew module on dock, Palmdale

1984 April 24: upper forward-fuselage on dock, Palmdale

1984 April 27: forward RCS on dock, Palmdale

1984 May 25: Final assembly and closeout installation, Palmdale

1984 May 28: start initial subsystem test, power-on, Palmdale

1984 August 10: complete initial subsystem test, power-on, Delta F, Palmdale

1984 October 26: complete subsystem tests, Palmdale

1985 March 6: Rollout from Palmdale

Date: March 6, 1985

source, source, source, source

Boeing Images: link

SDASM Archives: 5349995, 75349983

[jaimemes]

oh before i forget. heres that timeline i compiled regarding cedric and adeline. keep in mind that THIS TIMELINE ASSUMES ALL DOCUMENTS ARE REAL AND CORRECT. which. tbh. i dont think they are.

Timeline

1979

March 27, 1979 — Adeline Hargrove was born in Spikemuth to Mavis and Arthur Hargrove

1981

January 5, 1981 — Cedric Smith was born in Wyndon to Emily and Abraham Smith.

1982

1983

1984

Fall 1984 — Adeline Hargrove enrolled at Ysgol Gymraeg Casnewydd as a Year 1 student

1985

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

Fall 1990 — Adeline Hargrove enrolled at Ysgol Gyfun Rhydfelen as a Year 7 student.

1991

1992

1993

Summer 1993 — Adeline Hargrove begins receiving paychecks from a local pub in Spikemuth.

1994

1995

May 25, 1995 — Adeline Hargrove finishes compulsory education and graduates from Ysgol Gyfun Rhydfelen.

1996

1997

Sometime in 1997 — Adeline Hargrove moved to Hulbury to live with Desmond Morris

1998

April 30, 1998 — Adeline Hargrove married to Desmond Morris

1999

2000

August 24, 2000 — William Hargrove was born in Hulbury to Adeline and Desmond Hargrove

2001

2002

2003

2004

February 11, 2004 — Kaitlyn Hargrove was born in Hulbury to Adeline and Desmond Hargrove

2005

2006

2007

January 5, 2007 — Flynn Hargrove was born in Wyndon to Adeline Hargrove and Cedric Smith

2008

May 4, 2008 — Adeline Hargrove filed for divorce from Desmond Hargrove

June 2008 — Adeline Hargrove moved to 534 Sanford Streets, Apt. 203, JM17 3RQ, Spikemuth, Galar

2009

October 11, 2009 — Cedric Smith married Adeline Hargrove

July 9, 2009 — Adeline Hargrove boarded one-way flight to Anistar City, Kalos.

2010

April 17, 2010 — Adeline Hargrove boarded one-way flight to Spikemuth, Galar.

November 23, 2010 — Esper Hargrove was born in Wyndon to Adeline and Cedric Hargrove.

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

Late 2017 — Cedric Hargrove was added to the lease agreement of 534 Sanford Streets, Apt. 203, JM17 3RQ, Spikemuth, Galar

2018

June 28, 2018 — Dental operation for Flynn Hargrove

Fall 2018 — Esper Hargrove enrolled in Milton Primary School as a Year 4 student

Fall 2018 — Flynn Hargrove enrolled in Spikemuth High School as a Year 7 student

2021

Fall 2021 — Esper Hargrove enrolled in Spikemuth High School as a Year 7 student

2022

November 15, 2022 — The Second Darkest Day occurs. Flynn Hargrove is missing, presumed dead. Juno Myers is confirmed dead.

[bearterritory]

WE'VE (still) GOT THE AXE!!!

THE BIG GAME … – Was first played on a field on the corner of Haight and Stanyan Streets in San Francisco on March 19, 1892, was played twice that year (also Dec. 17), and has been played every year since other than 1915-17 (World War I) and 1943-45 (World War II). – Was the first game played in both Stanford Stadium (Nov. 19, 1921) and California Memorial Stadium (Nov. 24, 1923) with the Golden Bears winning both contests (42-7, 9-0). – Is the sixth-longest active running series between two Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) teams and the second-longest in the West – The Golden Bears are going for their 4th win in a row over the Cardinal. Except for the pandemic season, Cal has held The Axe since 2019. – Has been decided on the final play five times including The Play - Cal's five-lateral, 57-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in 1982 to give the Bears a 25-20 victory that is arguably the most iconic moment in college football history.   SENIOR DAY – Cal is slated to honor 30 seniors in a pregame ceremony Saturday before their final game at California Memorial Stadium with the list including Mavin Anderson, Jake Arguello, Hunter Barth, Teddye Buchanan, Kadarius Calloway, Xavier Carlton, Ryan Coe, Ricky Correia, Collin Gamble, Trond Grizzell, Marcus Harris, Lu-Magia Hearns III, Dylan Jemtegaard, Liam Johnson, Jeffrey Johnson, Matthew Littlejohn, Will McDonald, David Reese, Rush Reimer, Chandler Rogers, Nate Rutchena, T.J. Session, Victor Stoffel, Josh Stovall, Derek Wilkins, Miles Williams, Myles Williams, Nohl Williams, Lachlan Wilson and Craig Woodson.   2004 TEAM 20-YEAR REUNION – Cal's 2004 team led by head coach Jeff Tedford will celebrate its 20-year reunion and be honored at the 2024 Big Game. The 2004 squad was one of the best in school history, finishing with a 10-2 record to equal a school record in victories and ranking ninth in the final national polls.     CAL … – Will become bowl eligible with its next victory in 2024 to mark the first time Cal has been bowl eligible in back-to-back seasons since 2018 and 2019. – Despite its .500 record Cal has outscored opponents 283-207, with its five wins coming by an average of 20.6 points per game and its five losses by an average of 3.4 points per contest. – Features the ACC's top scoring defense (20.7 ppg) that is allowing 12.1 points per game fewer than the 32.8 it allowed in 2023. – Shares the national lead with 17 interceptions and is among the country's top 15 in a total of five team categories related to turnovers, also including turnover margin (3rd, +14, +1.40 per game), turnovers gained (T6th, 22), fumbles lost (T7th, 2) and turnovers lost (T13th, 8). – Is ranked in the top 40 nationally in a total of 19 team categories, including rushing defense (15th, 105.2 ypg), completion percentage (15th, 67.6), team sacks (17th, 2.90 spg), defensive touchdowns (T17th, 2), net punting (20th, 41.77 avg), blocked kicks (T20th, 2), team passing efficiency defense (21st, 112.88), punt return defense (24th, 4.46 ypr), passing offense (25th, 273.8 ypg), passes had intercepted (T29th, 6), scoring defense (33rd, 20.7 ppg), third-down conversion percentage defense (T33rd, 34.5%) and kickoff returns (T36th, 22.00). – Is 7-1-2 in the turnover battle with its first loss of the season against Syracuse when the Bears threw two interceptions and did not force any takeaways for only the fourth time in their last 48 contests.

[l-1-z-a]

A reading list from The Sims (2000) game guide

Here are some titles that might enhance your understanding of some of the background and social issues entertained in The Sims.

Warning: all are filled with provocative ideas; Maxis disavows any responsibility for encouraging deep thought.

1. Home: A Short History of an Idea by Witold Rybczynski (July 1987), Penguin USA; ISBN: 0140102310

2. Notes on the Synthesis of Form by Christopher W. Alexander (June 1970), Harvard University Press; ISBN: 0674627512

3. A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction by Christopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa, Murray Silverstein (1977), Oxford University Press (Trade); ISBN: 0195019199

4. Architecture: Form, Space, & Order by Frank D. K. Ching, Francis D. Ching (February 1996), John Wiley & Sons; ISBN: 0471286168

5. Housing by Lifestyle: The Component Method of Residential Design by James W. Wentling (November 1994), McGraw-Hill; ISBN: 0070692939

6. Time for Life: The Surprising Ways Americans Use Their Time by John P. Robinson, Geoffrey Godbey (Contributor), Robert Putnam (June 1997), Pennsylvania State University Press (Trade); ISBN: 0271016523

7. Maps of the Mind by C. Hampden-Turner (March 1982), MacMillan Publishing Company; ISBN: 0025477404

8. Hidden Order: The Economics of Everyday Life by David D. Friedman (September 1997), HarperCollins; ISBN: 0887308856

9. Making the Most of Your Llama by Linda C. Beattie (Editor), Araneen Witmer (Illustrator), Kathyrn Doll (Editor), Dr. Linda Beattie (September 1998), Kopacetic Ink; ISBN: 0961963417

10. Finding Your Perfect Love by Arthur Clark, Cassandra Skouras (January 1998), Rosebud Press; ISBN: 0965276902

11. The User Illusion: Cutting Consciousness Down to Size by Tor Norretranders, Jonathan Sydenham (Translator) (April 1998), Viking Press; ISBN: 0670875791

Was found here:

[flip-fop]

Caroline Daye

I said I was posting her I warned you.

I like to pick and choose what counts as canon especially in shows like FOP where a lot of things are repeatedly contradicted and retconned, so I am guilty of ignoring a lot of seasons 9-10 for the sake of being more faithful to the canon of the earlier seasons. However. Mr. Bitch Fartman You can NOT have Denzel Quincy Crocker say out loud "he's my estranged half-sister's kid" and never do anything with the estranged half sister I have been losing my mind.

Enter Caroline Daye, Legally Caroline Daye-Crocker until she could afford to change it. Born in 1973, had Kevin in 1993 at age 20. She was raising him in northern California and working as a librarian until their house burnt down, and she sent him to stay with her mother and half-brother as a last resort while she figured out how to rebuild their life. She has occupied my every waking thought for over a week now. Please be nice me.

Full info and timeline under the cut. Seriously it's a lot. There are footnotes

Like I said I pick and choose pretty liberally from the later seasons but I really, really wanted to find a way to make this mystery sister work. I LOVE this weird messed up family and their definite witch blood (I will talk about witch blood in a different post) and I think adding another player to the board could be So so so interesting.

Here's some things we know:

-Crocker Family genes are Insanely Prominent, all of these people look frighteningly alike. Given the fact that Kevin fits the standard mold to a T, it's likely that his mother is Dolores' daughter, as opposed to the daughter of whoever Denzel's father was. I'm giving that more credibility than last naming conventions.

-In The Secret Origins of Denzel Crocker the snippets of his life we see are separated by 10 year intervals, we do not see a lot of flashbacks outside of that¹. We only see a snapshot of the March 15ths of 1972, 1982, and 1992. If his sister were older than him but not out of the house, why would Vic be babysitting and not her? If she were old enough to be out of the house in 1972 And far enough away at college to never be around, Dolores would've had her as a teenager or very young adult, which Is plausible, but chronologically doesn't align with them being half-siblings². So it's likely that she was born after 1972.

-Dolores is most likely not single by choice. Denzel's father is never mentioned or in the picture, and is presumably already absent by 1972 considering she's working 3+ jobs. But we do see her pursue multiple men over the course of the series even as a woman in her 70s³. We see her get married at least twice on screen⁴, and the first time is to Ricky, who I am going to Generously assume is 18-19⁴, but even so that's pretty messed up.The point is, Dolores strikes me as a serial monogamist, at least by the time the law allows².

-Kevin, in Dimmsdale's Got Talent? does threaten to tell his mother that Denzel is making him dress up like a ventriloquist dummy and play the part, and in Hare Raiser, Denzel outright says she'll be upset if she finds out anything happened to Kevin, meaning that not only does she care about her son's well being, but she does have a say in his situation as well. Despite the "estrangement" she's on speaking terms with at least her half-brother if not their mother too, so it's not likely she just dropped Kevin off to avoid being a parent or is a negligent mother, and I'm guessing this arrangement was not her first choice.

-Denzel has noticeably gotten Worse over time. Not as in how he's written over the series, that's a different kind of worse and an issue for a different post, but worse between 1972 and 2002 as a functioning person. He made it through college and people were still willing to show up at his presentation before knowing what it was about. Geraldine was somehow Shocked that she was 'in love with a psychotic moron⁵', He has canonically opened a portal to fairy world multiple times, I think he has gotten his memory wiped even more than we see on screen, but I think even for awhile after 1972 he was capable of at least holding a reasonable conversation and had some semblance of impulse control unless there was a direct trigger.

-Back to picking and choosing in canon, as much as we see Denzel taking on the general role of Being A Dick To Children, he does consistently show favoritism. Originally towards AJ up until March 15th, when he's just being Like That to everyone, then later towards Peri in Bad Heir Day, to the point of passing up literally his entire life purpose? For Peri to be safe? God don't talk to me. And later still we see it towards Chloe and then Kevin. Combining this with the above point it's possible he actually had a somewhat decent relationship with his sister early on, which might be why she's willing to let him watch her kid at all.

About Caroline:

¹I'm ignoring Let Sleeper Dogs Lie because it basically throws Denzel's entire backstory out the window and I hate that.

²I don't see Dolores as someone who wouldn't pull her baby daddy, willing or not, into marriage, especially in 1950-1954. No-fault divorce was not legalized in the U.S until 1969, and by 1972 she is single. Unless she could prove both her first AND second husbands guilty of spousal wrongdoing, she would likely not have gone through 2 of them in that amount of time, it's possible one or both of them died, but it's my free real estate oc and I say she was born in 1973

³Later in the series they say Dolores is 80 but the series timeline also shifts around character ages and birth dates a LOT post like season 6 and a little before because the show ran for 16 years and couldn't commit to a year to be set in.

⁴The validity of both marriages is questionable at best, but supposing Ricky was of legal age to get married, as he did do so on paper, 18-19/70 is still a Very creepy relationship. Vicky was 16, so having an 18-19 year old boyfriend still makes sense.

⁵I do NOT think he was entirely stable up until this point I think Geraldine was in denial but my thoughts on their relationship are ALSO for a different post

After Denzel's initial breakdown, Dolores didn't feel safe leaving him at home alone or with a babysitter, but she also wasn't about to admit anything was wrong with her baby¹. Her solution was to get remarried and spend more time at home. In the summer of 1972 she married Carl Daye², and Caroline was born in the spring of 1973.

The family was never stable, given the circumstances, and after a bout of infidelity and a few rounds of failed marriage counseling, Carl and Dolores divorced in 1980 when Caroline was 7 and Denzel was about 17-18, they had a relatively ok sibling relationship until then, but that lead to the initial rift between them. The custody battle over Caroline was messy, and in the end Carl only retained visitation rights. Caroline didn't take this very well, becoming much more closed off, less energetic, and more negative towards her family as a whole.

Denzel, being himself, decided her self isolation meant one of two things, either his little sister had been replaced by a changeling, done by FAIRIES, or, she was miserable enough that she had probably been given FAIRIES. Neither of these things were true, unfortunately he learned this by pushing her off the roof in full confidence that she would not hit the ground. Not only did she hit the ground but she shattered her wrist to the point it still bends crooked to this day. He did drive her to the hospital afterwards, and agreed to do all of her chores for the rest of the time they lived together if she didn't tell Dolores³. Still, she was significantly less trusting of him after that.

All three of them were on shaky ground for the next 9 years, Dolores having flipped from her prior absentee parenting to being overbearing and micromanaging, as well as being just enough of a toxic boymom for Caroline to know she was the least favorite. There were moments that were ok⁴, but not nearly enough as time went on.

Her relationship with Dolores was never good, and while it didn't go the `creepy codependent simultaneously berating each other but with the undertones of really upsetting emotional inc3st` direction Denzel's did it felt more like living with a landlord that cultivated dependency while simultaneously chipping away at her self esteem than like living with a parent. In 1985 Dolores remarried again. To Victor Walsh. Yes that Vic, yes the babysitter, yes he was 26 at the time but yes it was still very unnerving.

The marriage only lasted 2 years, but by the end of it Caroline had gone through trying to convince her father to reposition for custody once, would convince him to again over the next two years, and would finally self emancipate and just move in with him, and away from Dimmsdale, at age 16, going no-contact with her mother and very low contact with her brother.

Carl worked at a publishing company, and was able to get Caroline a part time secretary position, which turned full time when she finished high-school. She had Kevin at age 20, he was not planned and she never married his father, but she does love her son very much. They both lived with Carl for another 2 years until she was able to get them their own place and take on a permanent position at the local library.

In 2003, their house caught fire, and while there was potential to rebuild, the choice was complicated by costs and the two of them were without a place to live. Carl having since moved to an assisted living facility, couldn't house them for more than a night. Not wanting Kevin to have to live out of her car or a cheap motel room, she very, very begrudgingly reached out to her brother.

I have a LOT more to say about her and this family tree and also their weird witch blood lore I made up believe it or not this was the short version. Anyway if you made it this far I love you here's her playlist

¹One of my most favoritest depictions of her trying to deal with them can be read here

²Yes this is where Dolores Day/e Crocker comes from yes I know they just parodied Doris Day but I don't care

³He did not anticipate never actually moving out

⁴Caroline is definitely the one who pierced Denzel's ears when she was a teenager, also I will make ANOTHER different post about how gender he is but for now I will leave it as having a little sister is actually a really convenient excuse to let her do your makeup and Fine, if his 6 year old sister HAS to have a princess party and he HAS to wear a dress because he HAS NO CHOICE- he is already in the dress. The dress is already on. It is not coming off.

[365filmsbyauroranocte]

Films watched in 2023.

Top 10 February & March.

1. Chronique d'une liaison passagère (Emmanuel Mouret, 2022) 2. Betty Tells Her Story (Liane Brandon, 1972)     3. So Is This (Michael Snow, 1982)     4. Terror in a Texas Town (Joseph H. Lewis, 1958)   5. The Killer (John Woo, 1989)  (gif vía: leofromthedark) 6. Walk Up (Hong Sang-soo, 2022)     7. Landscape Suicide (James Benning, 1987) 8. Los dinamiteros (Juan García Atienza, 1964) 9. Wings of Hope (Werner Herzog, 2000) 10. INU-OH (Masaaki Yuasa, 2021)  (gif vía: kakuusei)

(My list on Letterboxd -click here-)

[tothepointofinsanity]

Greener Grass Awaits Lore "Masterpost"

[This post contains major spoilers for the game, so please be careful while interacting.]

[I would call this a fancy piece, but really it's just me incoherently blabbering about something I like not being talked about enough again. Read it with a kilogram of salt and view it as a discussion piece instead of what it tries to be. Be warned that this is a very long post, and it is encouraged to play the game before scrolling this.]

The Fundamentals: Greener Grass Awaits is advertised as a sport and horror game. In the former, your main objective is to finish all 12 holes on the golf course. In the latter, your character is stalked by undead entities under the moonlight that distract you from your said casual golfing spree. Before all else, we should start by considering the environments presented to us within the game itself, as it contains history and lore relevant to the bigger picture.

The Setting: You break into a prestigious golfing course known as the Green Canyon Golf Club, a club that has appeared on a magazine issue before which crowns it as one of 'the most inconvenient' courses in the world, likely due to the fact that it was built on an island, also featuring courses that loop around bodies of water. A bit of history given to us was that the course was initially meant to be left as open space before it underwent renovations accordingly in 1982. Today, you will find a large bridge that looms in the skyline between hole 9 to 11 which serves as one of the alternate entry ways to the island, as well as long walkways that cut between winding grasslands and forests.

The Golf Course: The lush and verdant environments of Green Canyon's courses boast the transplant of distinctly non-native, European trees to sport its current iconic look, and this impressive landscape is maintained by an outsource lawn-care company known as Greener Grass, a team that specialises in 'large, remote areas' and is known for its apparently weird advertisements. It is also implied from the bizarre ad and posters that plays at the end of the game that Greener Grass Co. has capabilities in helping to 'revive' dead or dried up lawns, and use a special brand of either soil or fertilising materials that assist in this process. The latter is implied from what you find around the caddy shack.

The further you pick and go with your ball, however, the more oppressive the atmosphere becomes. At some places you will see the illusion shedding its scales - bald, exposed trees on yellowed patches of ground despite being surrounded by other lush trees.

The Caddyshack: At the end of the twelfth hole lies a building you were warned to stay away from because "it's bad", according to an actual Green Canyon club member you met previously. All the doors in the building are locked except for the employee's only room, which will reveal a bloody scene. Presumably, the person you encountered previously who gave you the warning was dead on a chair, while a charred body lies on the office table in the middle of the room. Strewn about are cans of gasoline and Greener Grass Awaits co. bags, possibly containing the fertiliser or soil speculated before. The caddyshack is an important place as it functions as the gateway between the human world and the realm of the residing deity.

More of this will be explained later on.

The Forest: Entering the darkness of the room in the caddyshack will magically transport you to a different space of existence. Here, temples are separated by deep forests, with sacrificial alters occasionally in between them. The forests are dark, and staying in the light is necessary for survival. There are two objectives in this section of the game: pop The Blister and then Kill the Tree. You will need to repeat this objective twice as you march further into the home of the eldritch deity. The Blisters are pulsing gobs of flesh, like a heart, that are stuck onto the orifice of a tree in the forests. However, the game developer interestingly refers to them not as blisters, but as wounds. More on this later. Popping the blisters with your ball will open up the temples' entrance to access the Trees in question, hence the latter objective. You Kill the Trees by swinging your ball into the hole beneath its trunk. There are two Trees (so two Blisters altogether) to kill. When both trees are killed, your action provokes the deity living in this space of existence so much that a boss fight is instigated.

With that being said, it's important to now discuss the enemies we encounter in question.

The Antagonists: Sneaking in for some midnight golfing has its consequences the longer you overstay your welcome on the field and continuously stare down the face of evil. Interestingly, this game presents a surprisingly thought-out mechanism and line-up of enemies as they do not operate on a singular basis, but rather as a triangular feedback between a cult, a forest of angels, and a God out of this world.

The Cult: Under the guise of a landscape company skillful in maintaining the surrounding flora, it is heavily speculated that the Greener Grass co. are an elusive cult that has been offering human sacrifices to a foreign deity that promises everlasting scenery (satisfaction, contentment) in exchange. It is implied from some sign boards that the Greener Grass cult have been spreading the deity's influence outside of its realm and into the human world through the transplant of the aforementioned 'saplings from Europe'. The flora of this game are symbolic of the presence of this God, and potentially serves as an anchor for it to assist in the maintenance of the landscape. Some clues eluding to us that it is indeed a cult were the bloodied altars in the forest sections, as well as a weird book lying on one of the chairs in the Caddyshack. The inscription on the front cover is hard to make out.

The three enemies that stalk you through the game are Greener Grass employees, and are the poster children for both the cult and company given they are one and the same. The 'bizarre ad' that plays at the end also features the same trio, and the song played in it has lyrics hinting towards the company's true intentions. Some of these notable lyrics are: "my life is not what I imagined", "what if you could find that green, and all you had to do was come with me?", "it's the answer to your problems if you come with me". Definitely ominous, and the cult's whole ordeal with 'greener grass awaits you' is a play on the proverb of "the grass is greener on the other side".

Essentially, it is a cult that capitalises off people's insecure dissatisfaction with their own lives (which is pretty much in character for most cults in the real world anyways), takes advantage of sentiments of envy stemmed similarly, all with the lure that you will be happy if you join them. However, the cult does not just follow the stereotypical 'what if happiness was evil' trope, but because their motif is directly tied to the deity they serve under.

The 'Angels': The forests between the temples and altars are occupied with a crowd of stone statues that have that trademark grin the employees had. The angels operate in a very unique mechanism. Unlike the trio employees that stalk closer when your back is turned on them, the statues littering the forest grounds follow another modified system of the weeping angel formula - the second you stay with them in the dark without a light source, it will prompt flashing visages of their faces to psychicly overwhelm your vision. They do not directly attack you, instead choosing to paralyse you in with their surrounding numbers if you're left to wander in the darkness. I call them 'angels' as they seem to be closer to the original weeping angel family in terms of how they work, but also due to the fact that they look much more friendly in the light. They are also enthusiastic statues who rotate between striking an unnecessarily cute abundance of poses. All these poses involve them expressing their joy, almost in ecstasy. Praising, worshipping...something. The ironic liveliness of their poses grants them an impression that they are dancing behind your back.

I also like the detail that when a light source is on them, their expressions are always shut-eyed, but with the visages that flash repeatedly in dark areas, even if you can't see them well, the game shows you that their eyes are open, and thus the impression their expressions give off is that they're mocking you.

On their own, the angels are not a difficult enemy given their psychic esque attacks are ceased with keeping the light close to you. But this game is sadistic, so it eventually throws in the Greener Grass employees into the forests as well. What occurs then is that you're forced to move away constantly - so you either get killed by the employee for trying to keep the light with you, or you're killed by the angels once the employee drives you out of the light's radius. Extremely evil. Once again, it is to enforce the idea that everything that wants to kill you in the game are in cahoots with each other. Another minor detail I noticed was that the trio employees from the Greener Grass commercial also broke into dances over something viewed as trivial as growing lawn grass, which is likely a parallel to the Angels' poses. The expression of 'dancing' and a carved, permanent grin, I think, is done to honour their God.

A God: The overseer of the Greener Grass cult, a deity not from our familiar world who is connected to trees, nature, and most importantly, joy. The final enemy of this game is Exuberance, an eldritch divinity who has nefarious intentions of fully crossing over to 'our' world once the Last Sacrifice is Broke Open. A face with a grin stretched wide by tree branches.

Exuberance is an interesting name as it is generally defined by 'the quality of being full of energy, excitement, and cheerfulness; ebullience.' It's not simply the emotion of happiness, but rather, referring to a state of high spirits, of ecstatic liveliness being. Furthermore, and perhaps this is merely a clever coincidence, but 'exuberance' can also be used to describe, 'the quality of growing profusely; luxuriance' particularly with plants, which would circle back to how it is related to trees and the Greener Grass cult. The entities associated with Exuberance are then constantly in a state of 'bliss' and carve their own faces to resemble their deity. After all, since when was the last time you felt so happy the only method of expressing it is through a dance? It's a primal trait, undoubtedly.

It is thus speculated that this God is quite ancient given the appearance of its realm, the forest, contains archaic architecture of temples. Yet, the bodies we find on the sacrificial altars are fresh, the blood more red than rust. Exuberance had been collecting human sacrifices through its cult, as evident by the large amount of bodies/souls that are released whenever the deity takes damage. It has that same air of confidence and arrogance towards humans that most eldritch Gods carry themselves with. Likes to speak a lot. Here are all of its lines:

Abandon this endeavor. You can't kill a God! You will join me eventually, everyone does!

Now I realise who I'm talking to! No matter. Your suit of flesh is fragile. I will break it open, and you will pour out. That body will be the last sacrifice I need.

You cannot keep that world! I will take your dinner from you.

Upon your first playthrough, though, Exuberance's dialogue sounds like complete gibberish or madness when the context is not made clear yet. This whole journey thus far has not made much sense on how it transitions from casual golfing to killing a God, how Green Canyon Golf Club has to do with a cult; but it will hopefully become clearer with the next introduction: The Protagonist.

The Protagonist: Our local golfer may not just be as local as we thought.

We've discussed the setting and the enemies. Now we must talk about the main character: yourself. In the game, you have no reflection to view your character's appearance, but if it helps in any way, you seem to be slightly shorter than the majority of the enemies and NPCs you encounter. This isn't important information, I just think it's funny. Your character is generally regarded as a weirdo, even speculated to be mentally unstable or inebriated by some people discussing this game. The signs seem to be there: vaulting fences into a premium golf course after dark to play golf in the dark, having a tendency to stare at other characters straight in the eyes, unsettling even the security guard, and appears to be obsessed with the sport of golf. Your character is played up to be an infatuated madman with the latter, with mental barriers scribbled about how they wouldn't miss golf for the world, and the leading theory as a result was that the entire game was a hallucination birthed from their obsession with golf, or rather, too bloody drunk and passed out with strange dreams near the canyon. This would have been the case until you consider two things: Firstly, despite claiming to be a hardcore golfer, your character carries around a beginner's guide on the sport, and has only a simple putter and driver in their sling bag. When you kill Exuberance and wake up in front of the club's front door, you also do not recall where you were, only recognising your car was parked, and that you should leave. Not recognising Green Canyon Golf Club indicates to us that something is off, given as discussed prior, it is an infamous place for golfing, and had the character really been a die-hard for the sport, they would have realised it without problem. Secondly, the character you play from the start to the end of the boss fight compared to when you wake up seem to have differing personalities. The character you have been stuck with seems to know what they're doing at all times, and gives instructions on their next move. They're stiff, rigid, and are not easily excitable even in the face of the stalking employees or a dead body. They don't seem to care much about anything at all except for an odd aversion to water, as well as wanting to kill Exuberance. What is even stranger is that the font for the character's monologue is completely different after the boss fight ends.

During the game:

After the game/ending:

The former is more messy, like it's written by hand. The latter is a plain font. This implies that something about your character has changed — the truth was that you were possessed all along, most likely by another eldritch God whom is not Exuberance, and came to the golf course to slay it. There are some allusions to you being a separate eldritch entity: Exuberance recognises you. Not the character you were playing as, but whatever that was occupying the human vessel temporarily. An eldritch God has no reason to remember or know a mere human, after all, hence explaining the second and third line of dialogue by it in the temples, as well as why when the original owner of the body wakes up, they have no recollection of what occured whatsoever, and, effectively as other players have thought - it's all chalked up to both the ordinary you and the players as 'just a dream'.

Your character also refers to themselves as "this body" whenever you enter the water as the vessel you are possessing has no swimming skills. At the very start of the game, you even get to 'choose body'. You're choosing a vessel suitable to your liking to possess. What is more evident as well is the ominous answers that you can use to respond to whatever the NPCs are saying, as well as frightening them due to the possibility even they knew you felt off. You would often hear screams drone louder and louder in the background whenever you got near to these NPCs, as they are actually dead. We 'hear' the truth from what is not directly told to us by these spirits that were trying to advise against proceeding deeper into the course.

Yet, we proceed. The enemies would have directly charged at you from the get-go instead of waiting for you to look away since the way you look at something (eyes are the windows to the soul, and I wonder what kind of thing they would see in the place of one when others look at you) since you clearly hold a certain influence over them by presence and stare alone. The undead should have nothing to fear, and yet even they practice caution against something that reminds them of their patron God. Another reason I believe you're being possessed is because the font you have always used in the game feels handwritten, the same way Exuberance's font is more cursive and messy. Clearly, you are a deity by some means, just a different kind with different intentions; some intentions that are left unanswered even after finishing the game.

Just what exactly does all of this writing amount to?

The Final Story: An expansive golf course known as the Green Canyon Golf Club opens up in 1982 after being renovated from its previously barren state. It was founded on a large island, featuring a diverse, challenging number of holes for people to enjoy while they traverse the canyon's scenery. In order to maintain the green and natural state of the course, Green Canyon managers hired a company known as Greener Grass to assist them. Greener Grass co. appeared to be a rather new company, having only few reviews, but an eye catching advertisement and specialises in the lawn keeping for large, remote areas, which seemed to fit the canyon's liking and geographic description. The hired company set to work, transplanting in gorgeous trees supposedly from Europe, as well as using their own brand of soil to allow the environment of the course to prosper. The environment was clearly well tended to, with the course even forbidding golf carts due to how sensitive and delicate the fields were, as well as advising golfers to not hit their balls into the trees as native birds nested there. Despite these rules, the course was fairly prestigious, its popularity captured in several sports magazines.

What was unknown to the club, however, was that this lawnscape company they hired was actually a cult, and the permission to freely introduce foreign flora to the land had been with the company's intention to bring in anchors tied to the God they made contact with, Exuberance. Through the golf course and perhaps other places not mentioned, Exuberance had been steadily increasing its influence over the human world as it received more and more sacrifices thanks to its formidable cult. The cult worked in a caddyshack on the golf course, and would lure in members of the golfing club with normal statements of refreshments available, only to offer them up as sacrifices to the altars of the temple. The sacrificed bodies were then burned and made into the materials the Greener Grass front used to maintain the lush landscapes. Countless rinse and repeat sessions of bloodshed later, Exuberance required just one more body still to cross over to the human world and, from there, become unstoppable with the fact that its associating flora were planted everywhere by the cult by then.

But the violent rituals of the Greener Grass cult had resulted in innocent souls trapped on the grounds of the course and realm in-between worlds. The souls screamed in their fate of immortalised anguish, and eventually this unbearable abundance of noise roused the deity of the human world from its previous state of inaction. Exuberance is a source of insolence, believing it could attempt to compete with Us for the world we looked after. Something must come out of this. The problem was that Exuberance's realm was closed off, difficult to penetrate without proper mobility. A plan was thus hatched: possess a suitable vessel to appear human in order to get closer to the home of the enemy. It risked vulnerability as the human body was fragile and had a mind occupying it already, but that doesn't matter when casting a heavy filter of obsession with the sport would properly motivate them to do the bidding. This different deity knows that Green Canyon Golf Club had been discreetly converted to a massive ritual ground at this point, and playing by the rules of the world of golf, even if tedious, was necessary to reaching the gateway and destroy the anchors tied to Exuberance.

You play the role of a victim as the undead start to stalk from behind, but something was off about this sacrifice, and the employees take turns reporting back to their God of this issue. Exuberance believed the disguise of a human, not being aware of what laid hidden under the layers of blood and bones. You finish the 12th hole, enter the caddyshack, and find yourself where you wanted to be: on the turf of the enemy's temples. Staying in the light was vital to survival here, and as fresh blood collects in the basin of the altar from a previous sacrifice, the innocence of a stolen life had purified to form a glowing orb. An orb that lights up like a star in the dreary landscape, taking the filth of flesh as it goes. By the time Exuberance had realised the scheme of a trojan horse, you had already successfully killed the trees, and all that was left was to kill Exuberance itself. With each swing, you take out pieces of the God, releasing the souls into the surroundings.

The fight ends with a clear victor, and you wake up outside of the golf club with no recollection of any of this. The deity possessing your vessel had relinquished control, allowing you to continue your life as normal. What occurs after then is unclear, as the advertisement sings its jingle, and we get to see the spine of a book inscribed with strange symbols on the right as the game ends with the sound of a closing door.

TLDR; Local grass cult goes overboard with human sacrifice rituals, acidentally summons worse eldritch being to kill their patron deity just so it would shut up. Happy golfing!

[starchaseriseverything]

Birthdays (bc I can)

I put my own fancasts and my headcannon b-day'

Euphemia Braithewaite-Potter - January 4, 1907

Walburga Irma-Black - April 17, 1907

Fleamont Potter - May 15, 1909

Charlus Potter (Monty' brother) - August 19, 1900

Lucretia Black (Orion' sister) - August 3, 1914

Orion Black - September 30, 1920

Druella Rosier (Axel' sister) - December 31, 1928

Axel Rosier (Rosier twins dad) - November 14, 1930

Cygnus Black (Black sisters dad) - July 30, 1938

Adele Jacob-Rosier (Rosier twins mom) - June 7, 1938

Alphard Black - June 26, 1925

Rodolphus Lestrange - October 19, 1952

Rabastan Lestrange- September 21, 1954

Lucius Malfoy - July 1, 1954

Enid Pettigrew (Peter' sister) - January 30, 1962

Mason McKinnon (Marlene' brother) - December 20, 1952

Mitchell McKinnon (Marlene' brother) - June 25, 1955

Matthew McKinnon (Marlene' brother) - November 7, 1958

Maxwell McKinnon (Marlene' brother) - February 29, 1962

Petunia Evans-Dursley - January 10, 1958

Mavan Rosier (Rosier twins brother) - March 14, 1965

Annabella Rosier (Rosier twins sister) - April 16, 1968

Elizabeth Meadows (Dorcas' sister) - May 1, 1965

Fabian Prewett - September 30, 1958

Gideon Prewett - September 30, 1958

Molly Prewett-Weasley - October 30, 1949

Billius Weasley (Arthur' brother) - May 26, 1952

Arthur Weasley - February 6, 1950

James Potter - March 27, 1960

Remus Lupin - March 10, 1960

Sirius Black - November 3, 1960

Peter Pettigrew - August 31, 1960

Lily Evans-Potter - January 30, 1960

Mary Macdonald - September 16, 1959

Marlene McKinnon - August 1, 1960

Dorcas Meadows - April 2, 1960

Bartemius Crouch Jr. - July 9, 1961

Evan Rosier - June 20, 1961

Pandora Rosier - June 20, 1961

Regulus Black - December 31, 1961

Alice Fortescue-Longbottom - August 14, 1960

Frank Longbottom - September 14, 1959

Ted Tonks - March 20, 1953

Emmeline Vance - July 18, 1957

Rita Skeeter - December 19, 1951

Ophelia Zabini - January 15, 1951

Emma Vanity - February 28, 1960

Andromeda Black - October 10, 1953

Narcissa Black - July 19, 1955

Bellatrix Black - May 2, 1991

Tom Riddle Jr. - February 19, 1979

Mattheo Riddle - January 20, 1980

Aliana Riddle - January 20, 1980

Mandy Lestrange - March 13, 1985

Cara Lestrange - May 23, 1986

Delphini Riddle - August 16, 1987

Lorenzo Berkshire - December 17, 1996

Nymphadora Tonks - October 8, 1973

Nina Tonks (Nymphadora' sister) - June 13, 1978

Lucas Rosier (Rosekiller child) - July 21, 1985

Nicholas Rosier (Rosekiller child) - July 1, 1987

Draco Malfoy - June 5, 1980

Lila Malfoy (Draco' sister) - June 5, 1980

Artemis McKinnon (Dorlene child) - September 13, 1981

Aries McKinnon (Dorlene child) - October 17, 1982

Jack McKinnon (Dorlene child) - January 23, 1987

Harry Potter - July 31, 1980

Lillian Potter (Harry' sister) - July 31, 1980

Rose Potter (Harry' sister) - May 24, 1981

Leo Potter (Harry' brother) - February 16, 1983

Pansy Parkinson - August 1, 1980

Blaise Zabini - November 1, 1980

Teddy Lupin - April 11, 1985

Neville Longbottom - July 30, 1980

Juliana Longbottom (Neville' sister) - October 15, 1986

Nicky Longbottom (Neville' brother) - October 15, 1986

Penelope Vance (Emmary child) - November 12, 1988

Hermione Granger - September 19, 1980

Violet Granger (Hermione' sister) - May 14, 1979

Bill Weasley - November 29, 1970

Charlie Weasley - December 12, 1972

Percy Weasley - August 22, 1976

Fred Weasley - April 1, 1978

George Weasley - April 1, 1978

Ron Weasley - March 1, 1980

Ginevra Weasley - August 11, 1981

Luna Lovegood - February 13, 1981

Eclipse Rosier (Pandalily child or Luna' sister) - January 11, 1985

[harrisonarchive]

George and Olivia at the Chelsea Flower Show, 1984; photo by M. McKeown/Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images.

“The gardens [of Friar Park] were a wilderness. They had been unattended for about 40 years. And you know what they say about gardens — for one year they are left it takes three to restore them.” - George Harrison, The Australian Women’s Weekly, April 28, 1982

“Each year we used to go to Chelsea and George would take copious notes and come home with a list of plants he wanted to buy. […] In terms of landscape design, he liked the idea of Capability Brown, so we started calling him Capability George. He thought that everyone, as a matter of course, should have themselves regularly overwhelmed by nature. He used to say that all unused buildings should be knocked down and gardens put in their place.” - Olivia Harrison, Evening Standard, May 12, 2008

Q: “How much time did he spend in his garden?” Olivia Harrison: “Hours and hours. I bought him one of those lights you put on your head. He wasn’t just out in the garden, he was IN the garden. He would walk out the door and come back in with the tiniest little thing and he’d go, ‘Look at that!’ — and he’d hand you the tiniest little flower. He’d notice things. We’d walk along in the grass and he’d bend over and go, ‘Oh, look at that little guy’ and it would be a bug. I’d say, ‘How did you see that?’ He was just really present.” - The Sun, June 12, 2009

“‘One of [George’s] favorite things to say was, “Be here now,”’ [Olivia] says. His song by that title, from his 1973 album ‘Living in the Material World,’ remains one of her favorites, and it’s one she plays any time she feels in need of a booster shot of moral support. ‘Sometimes he and Dhani would be talking and Dhani would ask, “Well what if this happens?” or “What if that happens?”’ she says. ‘George would say, “Be here now. Be here now.”’” - Los Angeles Times, March 9, 2005 (x)

[justforbooks]

Martina Navratilova (born October 18, 1956) is a Czech-American former professional tennis player. Widely considered among the greatest tennis players of all time, Navratilova won 18 major singles titles, 31 major women's doubles titles, and 10 major mixed doubles titles, for a combined total of 59 major titles, the most in the Open Era. Alongside Chris Evert, her greatest rival, Navratilova dominated women's tennis for the first two-thirds of the 1980s.

Navratilova was ranked as the world No. 1 in singles for a total of 332 weeks (second only to Steffi Graf), and for a record 237 weeks in doubles, making her the only player in history to have held the top spot in both disciplines for over 200 weeks. She won 167 top-level singles titles and 177 doubles titles, both the Open Era records. She won a record six consecutive singles majors across 1983 and 1984 while simultaneously winning the Grand Slam in doubles. Navratilova claims the best professional season winning percentage, 98.8% in 1983 (going 86–1 for the season), and the longest all-surface winning streak of 74 straight match wins. She reached the Wimbledon singles final 12 times, including for nine consecutive years from 1982 through 1990, and won the title a record nine times. Navratilova is one of the three tennis players, along with Margaret Court and Doris Hart, to have accomplished a career Grand Slam in singles, doubles, and mixed doubles, called the career "Boxed Set". She won her last major title, the mixed doubles crown at the 2006 US Open, shortly before her 50th birthday, and 32 years after her first major title in 1974.

Originally from Czechoslovakia, Navratilova was stripped of her citizenship when, in 1975 at age 18, she asked the United States for political asylum and was granted temporary residence. She became a US citizen in 1981. On January 9, 2008, Navratilova reacquired Czech citizenship, thus becoming a dual citizen. She stated she has not renounced her U.S. citizenship nor does she plan to do so, and that reclaiming Czech nationality was not politically motivated. Navratilova has been openly gay since 1981, and has been an activist on gay rights.

Navratilova is considered one of the best female tennis players of all time and in 2005, Tennis magazine selected her as the greatest female tennis player for the years 1965 through 2005, directly over Steffi Graf. Billie Jean King, a former World No. 1 player, said in 2006 that Navratilova is "the greatest singles, doubles and mixed doubles player who's ever lived." In 2008, tennis historian and journalist Bud Collins called Navratilova "arguably, the greatest player of all time."

In 2000, she became a member of the Laureus Sports Foundation's Academy.

In 2006, Martina Navratilova was named by Equality Forum as one of their 31 Icons of the LGBT History Month.

Tennis writer Steve Flink, in his book The Greatest Tennis Matches of the Twentieth Century (1999), named her as the second best female player of the 20th century, directly behind Steffi Graf.

In 2009, Navratilova was awarded the International Tennis Federation's (ITF) highest accolade, the Philippe Chatrier Award, for her contributions to tennis both on and off the court.

In June 2011, she was named one of the "30 Legends of Women's Tennis: Past, Present and Future" by Time.

In March 2012, The Tennis Channel named Navratilova as the second greatest female tennis player of all times, behind Steffi Graf, in their list of 100 greatest tennis players of all times.

On August 2, 2013, Navratilova was among the first class of inductees into the National Gay and Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame.

On May 12, 2016, Navratilova was made an honorary fellow of Lucy Cavendish College of the University of Cambridge.

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at Just for Books…?

[inkstainedheartbeats]

Okay @scarlet-bitch (hope you don’t mind the tag) this is the very basic like timeline of that thing I mentioned. It’s a super crossover xD

—//—//—//—

1917

James “Bucky” Barnes is born March 10

Howard Stark is born August 15

1918

Steve Rogers is born July 4

1921

Margaret “Peggy” Carter is born April 21

1930

Eric Lehnsherr is born May 25

1932

Charles Xavier is born July 13

1939

Howard Stark starts up Stark Industries

1950

Nick Fury is born July 4

1954

John Winchester is born April 22

Mary Winchester is born December 4

1956

David Rossi is born May 9

1958

Henry Winchester stumbles upon a mutant/human co-op trying to force mutations in humans. He is saved by an undercover CIA agent and forced into Witness Protection without his wife and child. The CIA agent has betrayed the CIA and is instead working with the co-op.

The CIA agent, calling herself Abbadon, starts to subtly threaten Millie.

1960

Harold Finch (Thomas) is born April 9

1962

Abbadon injects John with a prototype serum that is supposed to force a mutation out of him. It seems to fail.

Nathan Ingram is born June 6

Olivia Manx is born July 5

1964

Phil Coulson is born July 8

1965

Abbadon scares Millie, who believes that she has hidden John’s existence from Abbadon as the ex-CIA agent never threatens him, away. Millie leaves John with her sister Maisy. She takes on the name Maria.

Millie meets and falls in love with Howard Stark.

Nathan Ford is born August 16

Carl Elias is born August 18

1966

Robert Hersh is born May 7

Mark Snow is born May 22

1967

Anthony Marconi is born November 23

1968

Lionel Fusco is born March 17

James “Rhodey” Rhodes is born October 6

1969

Bruce Banner is born December 18

1970

Tony Stark is born May 29

Emily Prentiss is born October 12

1971

Clint Barton is born June 18

Aaron Hotchner is born November 2

1972

Joycelyn Carter is born March 7

Haley Hotchner is born July 16

1973

Derek Morgan is born June 6

1974

Pepper Potts is born February 12

1975

John Reese (Harris) is born May 4

1977

Elle Greenaway is born June 24

Penelope Garcia is born July 7

1978

Sam Wilson is born September 23

1979

Dean Winchester is born January 24

1981

Samantha Groves is born September 4

Sean Hotchner is born August 7

Spencer Reid is born October 28

1982

Maria Hill is born April 4

1983

Grant Ward is born January 7

Sam Winchester is born May 2

Nathan Ingram leaves MIT with an unfinished degree to start IFT May 29

Michael Cole is born July 10

Sameen Shaw is born October 25

Mary Winchester dies November 2

1984

Jessica Moore is born January 24

Will Ingram Finch is born August 31

Natasha Romanov is born November 20

1985

Devon Grice is born November 30

1986

Alec Hardison is born April 13

Dum E is created June 18

1987

Tony graduates from MIT June 5

Leo Fitz is born August 19

Jemma Simmons is born September 11

1988

Skye (Daisy Johnson) is born July 2

1989

This is the last year that Millie Winchester was seen alive. This is because she abandons the name and steps fully into her Maria Stark alias.

Pietro & Wanda Maximoff are born January 1

1990

Adam Milligan is born September 29

1991

Maria and Howard Stark die December 16

1992

Theresa Whitaker is born March 7

John Winchester drops his sons off with his half brother Tony Stark April 20

July 20 Tony manages to gain custody of his nephews.

1993

John Winchester suffers a mental break and kills Kate Milligan and kidnaps his son on October 3

October 11 Adam is dropped of with Tony which causes a scandal

1995

Caleb Phipps is born July 26

1997

Taylor Carter is born June 18

1999

Masha Ingram-Finch is born February 24

2000

Lee Fusco is born January 9

2001

Peter Parker is born August 10

2003

Genrika Zhirova is born December 13

2004

Lionel and his wife divorce

2005

Jack Hotchner is born October 7

“The Machine” goes online February and the next day sold.

2007

On February 5 Tobias Hankel kidnaps Spencer Reid.

2008

Henry LaMontagne is born November 12

2009

Tony is kidnapped by 10 Rings February 13

2010

The Ferry bombing happens killing Nathan Ingram September 26

Sometime during October or November Rick Dillinger is hired by Finch

Dillinger dies December 5ish

2012

May 4; Battle of New York happens.

[fromthedust]

Chavis Mármol (Mexican, b.1982)

[consanguinitatum]

A new DT thing for me to pursue...i.e., I Love it When My Brain Does a Weird!

So back in 2021, a book called Royal Conservatoire of Scotland: Raising the Curtain was published by Luath Press Ltd. It was researched and written by my friend Stuart Harris-Logan, the Keeper of the Archives at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland/RCS (previously the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama/RSAMD). I was honored to work alongside Stuart in the RCS archives for a time in 2019 during my tenure as a student archivist at the University of Glasgow.

I recommend this book wholeheartedly if you're interested in the history of the RCS. It's a great read! It contains spotlights on many former RCS students who've gone on to become successful in their fields (including Sam Heughan, Ncuti Gatwa, Richard Madden, James McAvoy, etc.) and - of course! - has a small spotlight on David Tennant as well. It's only a few pages long, but it contains quotes from a sit-down interview David did called 'Conversations at the RCS with Andy Dougan' on 4 July 2016, when David was there to receive his honorary Doctorate. This interview was recorded and is housed at the RCS Archives. It was intended for RCS acting students and therefore spent a lot of time focusing on David's years at the school (a particular thrill of mine!) so of course I've seen it; alongside David's brilliant and engrossing 2016 SAG-AFTRA interview - which I was in the audience for! - this RCS interview remains one of my favorite interviews with David.

Raising The Curtain also contains this fabulous matriculation photo of a very young David (around age 11), taken in 1982 upon his entrance into the RCS (then RSAMD) Junior School. He's said before he hated his glasses when he was a kid, and by the looks of his expression in his picture, it definitely seems like he didn't want his picture taken! (For those of you who don't know what the Junior School did, I've included this little explanation from the 9 March 1988 edition of the Glasgow Herald.)

During the course of the RCS interview I mentioned previously, David speaks about how important getting involved with the Junior School program was to him. Quoting the interview from Raising The Curtain, David says the following:

"I came from a background where nobody really knew how you go about becoming an actor. I mean, we were aware that there was the Athenaeum as it was then, so we sniffed around and found out there was a Saturday morning class called the Junior School which you could come to and do classes. I later found out that it was run by the students and it was part of the BA Acting course. At the time, I just thought I was going to a Saturday morning drama club, and I did that every year until I left school and came here as a full time student."

Upon reading this, my brain did a Weird (a phenomena I affectionately call my "DT Spidey Sense") and it began to prickle. Given my extensive research into David's early career - which heavily focuses on his time at drama school - I know during his years as a BA Acting student, it was part of his last year's coursework requirement to help teach and direct Junior School participants in at least one production (so yes, if you've ever wondered if DT directed anything, well -- you heard it here first!)

Now here's what I noticed. In 1984 and 1985, there was a 3rd Yr. BA Acting student who was attending the RSAMD/RCS. He would've been required to teach Junior School students as part of his coursework, and direct the Junior School students in a few plays. That student was Alan Cumming. 

As previously noted, David began Junior School in 1982 and continued until he enrolled as a full-time student in 1988, so David would've been in the program at the time. So...is it possible to confirm Alan taught a very young David Tennant? I'm in the process of pursuing an answer!

[oldguardleatherdog]

For Father's Day:

"The One Decent Thing I Ever Did"

This is a monograph from 2015, previously posted here some time ago, a tale of my maternal grandmother, a below-zero winter night, the New York City subway West Side express during post-9/11, that mentions my father only in passing... and it's about my father.

THE ONE DECENT THING I EVER DID.

I.

A long time ago, during a time of struggle, I did one decent thing:

I'd just gotten on the subway in Midtown Manhattan on a brutal winter night, the No. 2 uptown express, when a couple with a small child boarded the car I was riding.

They were having a very loud conversation with their child (about four years old, I think) who was crying or somehow behaving in a way that was "bad". The mother took the belt from her jeans and raised her arm to strike her child with it.

Don’t ask me why I did this, but I rose from my seat, grabbed the mother’s arm mid-swing, and said, “As long as I am on this train, you will not hit that child with that belt.” She and the child’s father were stunned into silence for a moment as I made my way back to my seat.

Immediately after I sat down, the mother and father began leveling all kinds of vitriol my way, calling me every name in the book, including all the variations of “faggot” in use at the time. I just sat there, smiled wide, laughed loud, and shined ‘em on:

“You can call me ‘faggot.’ You can call me anything you like. Because every minute you focus on me, you are not beating that child with that belt.”

The crowded train car fell silent.

II.

Yuletide, 1982. I was in the service in Germany and took leave to see my grandmother in Florida. My grandfather had passed away the previous March, and something told me to seize the chance to see Grandma while she was still with us. I was only 20, born late in life to my parents, and never got to know my grandparents in the way my older brothers did.

We were in my Grandma's airy, air-conditioned Fort Lauderdale kitchen having coffee one morning when the rest of the family had gone out for breakfast. “Would you like a little pick-me-up in your cup, dear?” I laughed. “No thanks, Gramma, it's a little early for me.” The joys of Florida.

I'd had a rough upbringing by any measure - my father was first-gen shanty Irish born in the early 1920's with a mean spirit and a violent edge, mother not Irish but still violent - but at age 20 I hadn't yet realized just how rough it had been.

“You know,” I said to Grandma, “Harold and Evelyn did the best they could. I mean, I turned out all right, right?”

Grandma leaned back in her chair, took a nice drag off one of her unfiltered Camels, and said in her declarative New England way the words that always meant Listen up, you're about to hear gospel truth:

“Well, I'll tell ya, Joe.” I was all ears.

She took another hit off of her cigarette. “I held my tongue. More than once, I held my tongue.

“But one day, your mother and father were in the front yard with your grandfather and me, and I walked up to your father and said, “Harold, I just want to tell you something. It takes a real man to beat a child with a belt.”

...Wow.

I only wish she hadn’t held her tongue!

I sipped my coffee, looked for palmetto bugs on the lanai. “Grandma,” I said, “I'm all right.”

She looked away, and I saw the colors of the rainbow in the prism of her pendant.

III.

What was I doing on the 2 train heading uptown in the bitter blistering freezing cold New York winter?

Heading “home” – that is, to one of the many rundown firetrap SRO hotels paid by the City of New York to house homeless people with HIV. The City's AIDS regulations set the policy: if you showed up at the HIV center at 30th and 8th before 7 PM on a given day, New York City was obliged to find you housing for the same night and for the next 30 days in a row at the very least.

Strange - in those days, New York would house you but not feed you, and San Francisco would feed you but not house you. Come to think of it, that's the way it is these days.

My dank, filthy, crawling with roaches and vermin crack-house "shelter" was way uptown, near 96th and Broadway. (I had always dreamed about making it to Broadway, ha ha.)

96th Street and Broadway stop was next. The train car was still silent as the parents sat sullenly and the child - Jesus, he can't be older than 3 or 4 years old, I thought - was staring at me, no expression on his little face, but eyes wide as saucers.

The train screeched to a stop. I got up and headed to the door, passing the couple with the small child and the loose belt. They were silent and did not regard me as I passed; the child, I think, might have glanced at me, but I’m not sure. I knew that after I got off the train, or after they got off the train, that poor kid was probably going to get beaten. Severely.

Out the door and onto the bone-chilling platform at 96th Street. A young woman who had witnessed the mother wield that belt came up to me and said, “I’m so glad you did that, I wanted to say something, but I was too…” Her voice trailed off as the pained look on her face finished her thought.

“I understand,” I said to her as our eyes met in that New York way of speaking the unspeakable, then made my way up the stairs into the below-zero winter breezes of the Upper West Side of Manhattan.

What the hell, I thought as I made my way out of the station, I had nothing to lose. Those were dark times, desperate days. I'm no angel. But just once, on that long-ago Number 2 train, I was granted the grace to do one decent thing.

Animal J. Smith San Francisco, California July 22, 2015 and June 18, 2023 v2.0

My maternal grandparents, Ed and Ethel (Schirmer) Olson, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, c. 1980