#nicoletta liberti

[ohpollenpowder]

I don't have any Charr-sibs. And I didn't include the Konu-sibs because I already had the twins for Humans. Maybe we'll do a round with them for White Day!

[ohpollenpowder]

Did just my commanders for this! It was fun to try and think of their various playing styles and personalities. I think I might end up doing this again maybe based on classes??? Because we've got a mix right here; I've two Mesmers, three Revenants, and two Guardians and only two of the three Revenants are in the same "class" as a brawler. Vanora isn't in here because at the moment she's only a Valiant storywise. She's not even a glimmer of the Commander right now.

have fun

[ronniesims]

Mariela meets some of the guests.

[tarditardi]

Nastri Brizzolari: legàmi uniti da uno spirito Green and Glam

Questa è una bellissima storia nella quale la grande passione per i fiori unisce le protagoniste, Nicoletta Bucci, ideatrice di Green and Glame mente creativa, Ellen Hidding, nota conduttrice Tv, e Marina e Giovanna Brizzolari.

G&G è un contenitore di idee per la comunicazione, geniali e innovative e ha dato vita alla Linea di Nastri Decorativi Green and Glam per Brizzolari, progetto ambizioso che rende le protagoniste molto orgogliose.Green and Glam è una filosofia pensata e ben espressa da Nicoletta Bucci attraverso le sue numerose attività.

Ellen Hidding, con il suo lavoro e il suo stile di vita, è da sempre Ambasciatrice di una linea che "unisce" creatività e pensiero sostenibile. Diversi gli utilizzi dei nastri, da poter utilizzare in tanti modi come collana, braccialetto, cintura, per pacchi regali, fiori e non manca la linea Tuo Lace G&G che pensa ai nostri amici a 4 zampe con la collezione pets oltre ai motivi botanici e Flowers.

I "Lacci" sono simbolo di legame, unione, amicizia e passioni condivise come quella tra Brizzolari e G&G. Chi fa parte di Green and Glam è da sempre appassionato di composizioni floreali e arte del riciclo, il laboratorio G&G è pieno di idee e ama usare i nastri decorativi in molti modi anche per usi diversi rispetto al loro normale utilizzo.

Per questo si è pensato di creare una linea di nastri unica ed esclusiva che rappresenta la filosofia G&G, fresca, fiorita, versatile, green e molto glam. Grazie a TUO By Brizzolari il progetto si è concretizzato ed è nata, nell'aprile 2017, la linea di nastri Green and Glam, un desiderio diventato realtà.

Ellen Hidding è la Testimonial d'eccezione di questa Collezione, fotografata, per la nuova campagna, nella splendida location dell'albergo 5 Stelle dal cuore romantico Chateau Monfort, elegante dimora di inizio Novecento, gioiello liberty decorato dall'architetto Paolo Mezzanotte, un'atmosfera visionaria.

Château Monfort è parte della famiglia delle dimore di Relais & Châteaux a Milano. I lacci fermano, stringono e bloccano i nodi, e le emozioni che ci legano a qualcuno, o a qualcosa. La nuova Linea di lacci per scarpe Green and Glam è la novità di Francesco Brizzolari, tra fiori, erbe aromatiche e Pets, ma il mood della Collezione resta sempre la natura. Mille modi per stupire, emozionare e legare!

Sì, perché lacci e nastri si trasformano in accessori moda, come cinture, bracciali, fiocchi per ciabattine, nastri per capelli e non più esclusivamente per ornare pacchi e decorazioni. Le linee hanno nomi che fanno sognare, come Fiorato, Gioielli, Sorrento, Ortisei, Palermo, Milano, Peonia, Rosa, Campi Florentis, Lavandula, Eucalipthus, Medicinalis Herbarius, Aquifolium, St Moritz, Poinsettia; tutti hanno una marcia in più come grafica e moda, ispirata sempre al Green con un tocco di Glam. Per Natale il tema centrale sarà la botanica e il disegno Sauvage, con linee con QR code stampati su nastro con messaggi natalizi e una voce speciale, quella del doppiatore e attore Andrea Piovan, noto anche come speaker ufficiale e voce di Rete 4, voce narrante in Planet Earth 2.

[greektrgcdy]

Under the cut you’ll find 675 FEMININE NAMES all compiled by me !! I will most likely be updating this and my other lists at some point and would be more than willing to post more specific lists if anyone wants them !! Please like or reblog if this was helpful !!

Abilene, Acacia, Ada, Adalia, Adalind, Adelina, Adeline, Adela, Adele, Adriana, Agnes, Aimee, Aislinn, Aja, Alana, Alba, Alessia, Alexa, Alexandra, Alexandria, Alexandrine,  Aliyah, Allora,  Alma, Almira, Althea, Alva, Amber, Amabel, Amara, Amelie, Amethyst, Amina, Anastasia, Antoinette, Andromeda, Anika, Anissa, Annabel, Annabel-Lee, Anne, Annette, Annie, Anniston, Appoline, Apollinia, Apollonia, Ara, Arabella, Araminta, Ariadne, Ariana, Arianne, Ariella, Asena, Astra, Astrid, Athena, Audrey, Audrina, Autumn, Aurelia, Aurora, Austen, Ava, Avalee, Avalon, Averill, Aviana,  Ayla, Aylee, Azalea, Azaria.

Bambi, Bardot, Beatrice, Beatrix, Becky, Bee, Bellatrix, Belle, Benedette, Benilde, Bernadette, Bess, Beth, Betsey, Beverly, Bexley, Bijou, Bindie, Birdie, Blair, Blossom, Bluebell, Blythe, Bonnie, Brenna, Bria, Briar, Bridget, Briella, Brielle, Brinley, Bristol, Brooke, Bronwyn, Buffy.

Cadence, Calla, Callie, Callista, Camila, Camille, Cara, Cariad, Carmen, Carol, Carolina, Caroline, Carolyn, Carrie, Cassandra, Cassiopeia, Cecilia, Cecily, Celeste, Celestia, Celine, Chanel, Charity, Charlotte, Cher, Cherie, Cheryl, Cheyenne, Chloe, Claire, Clara, Clarity, Claudia, Claudine, Clea, Cleo, Clover, Colette, Colleen, Constance, Connie, Copeland, Cora, Coral, Coralia, Coraline, Cordelia, Coretta, Corinna, Corinne, Corisande, Corliss, Cornelia, Corvina, Cosette, Cressida, Cynthia, Cyra.

Dahlia, Dahliana, Daisy, Damara, Dara, Darcy, Darla, Darlene, Daphne, Davina, Dawn, Dee, Delia, Delilah, Delphi, Delphine, Denise, Desiree, Desdemona, Desi, Destiny, Diana, Diane, Dinah, Dixie, Dolly, Dorothea, Dorothy, Dot, Drusilla.

Eadlyn, Eartha, Eden, Edie, Edina, Edith, Effie, Eileen, Elara, Eleanor, Eleanora, Elena, Eliana, Elisabeth, Elise, Elizabeth, Ella, Elle, Elodie, Eloise, Elowen, Elora, Elsie, Emalyn, Embla, Emilia, Emma, Emmeline, Emmy, Enid, Eponine, Erica, Erin, Esme, Estelle, Esther, Ethel, Ettie, Everly, Eva, Evangeline, Evanora, Evelina, Evelyn, Everly, Evita, Eyre.

Fae, Faith, Fallon, Fancy, Fannie, Fantine, Farah, Fawn, Faye, Felicity, Fern, Francine, Fran, Finnea, Fleur, Flora, Florence, Francesca, Franny, Frankie, Frida, Freya, Fyodora.

Gabriella, Gaia, Gail, Garbo, Gardenia, Gemma, Geneva, Geneve, Genevieve, Gennifer, Georgeanne, Georgia, Gia, Giana, Gigi, Gillian, Gina, Ginevra, Ginger, Ginny, Giordana, Giovanna, Gisele, Guilieta, Guilia, Guiliana, Gladys, Glenda, Glinda, Gloriana, Glory, Goldie, Goldeheve, Grace, Gracelyn, Gracie, Greer, Greta, Gretchen, Griselda, Guinevere, Gwenora, Gwendolyn, Gwenny.

Hadley, Haddie, Hadiya, Halle, Hallie, Halston, Hanna, Hannah, Harmony, Harper, Harriet, Hattie, Hazel, Helen, Helena, Heloise, Henrietta, Henna, Hera, Hermia, Hermione, Hester, Hettie, Holly, Honey, Honora, Hope.

Ida, Ilana, Ilyana, Imogen, Indie, Inessa, Ingrid, Iphegenia, Iris, Irene, Isabeau, Isabella, Isabelle, Isla, Isobel, Isolde, Ivana, Ivory, Ivy.

Jacinta, Jackie, Jada, Jade, Jane, Janie, Jasey, Jasey-Rae, Jeana, Jeanie, Jedda, Jennifer, Jennie, Jenny, Jessa, Jessamine, Johanna, Jolene, Jolie, Joplin,  Josie, Josephine, Journey, Joy, Judith, Judy, Julia, Julie, Juliet, Juniper, Juno.

Kaia, Kalani, Kara, Karen, Karolina, Kate, Kathleen, Katherine, Kayla, Kaylee, Kedzie, Keely, Kelby, Kelsey, Kendra, Kenna, Kennedy, Kiara, Kimberly, Kinsley, Kitty, Kristina, Kyra.

Laela, Lara, Laura, Laurel, Lauren, Lavinia, Leah, Leia, Leila, Lena, Lenora, Leonora, Letitia, Liana, Liberty, Lila, Lilo, Lilia, Lilith, Lily, Lindsey, Livia, Lois, Lola, Loretta, Loral, Lorelei, Lorena, Lorraine, Lottie, Lovisa, Lucia, Lucille, Lucy, Ludovica, Luna, Lulu, Lumi, Lux, Lydia, Lynn, Lyra.

Macy, Madeleine, Maia, Mae, Maeve, Maggie, Magnolia, Malia, Marcella, Maren, Margaret, Margot, Martha, Maria, Marie, Marigold, Marilyn, Marina, Marissa, Marisol, Marlene, Marnie, Mary, Matilda, Maude, Maureen, Maxine, Meadow, Melody, Melinda, Mercy, Merritt, Mia, Michelle, Millicent, Minerva, Minnie, Mira, Miriam, Moira, Molly, Mona, Morrigan.

Nadia, Nadine, Nancy, Naomi, Narcissa, Naressa, Natalia, Natalie, Naya, Nellie, Nettie, Nia, Nicola, Nicole, Nicoletta, Nikita, Nina, Nikki, Noelle, Norah, Nova, Nyla.

Oara, Octavia, Odette, Odessa, Odyssesia, Odilia, Odina, Olita, Olive, Olivia, Olympia, Olwen, Opal, Ophelia, Oona, Orelia, Oriana, Orla, Orlena, Orpha, Ottoline, Ovalia.

Paige, Paisley, Pam, Pamela, Pandora, Patricia, Pearl, Peggy, Penelope, Petra, Persephone, Phoebe, Piper, Pippa, Pixie, Priscilla, Priya, Prudence, Polly, PollyAnna, Poppy, Posey.

Raina, Ravena, Regina, Rey, Rhea, Rhiannon, Romilly, Romy, Rosa, Rosalie, Rosemary, Rowena, Roxanne, Ruby, Ruth, Ruthie.

Sabrina, Sadie, Safiya, Sally, Samantha, Samara, Samira, Sara, Sarah, Savannah, Scarlett, Selene, Serafine, Seraphina, Serena, Sia, Sienna, Sierra, Siobhan, Skye, Sofia, Sophia, Sophie, Soleil, Solstice, Sonya, Sookie, Stella, Sylvia.

Talia, Tamara, Tana, Tamsin, Tatiana, Tessa, Thea, Theresa, Theodosia, Tiara, Tiffany, Tilda, Tina, Tinsley, Toria, Topanga, Trinity, Truly, Twyla.

Uma, Una, Ursula, Uta.

Vada, Vaia, Vara, Valentina, Valerie, Venus, Vera, Verity, Veronica, Victoria, Viola, Violet, Virginia, Vivette, Vivian.

Waverly, Weslyn, Wendy, Whitney, Winona, Winnie, Winnifred, Willa, Willow, Winter.

Xahlian, Xana, Xandra, Xelis, Xena, Ximena.

Yara, Yasmine, Yvette, Yvonne.

Zada, Zahara, Zara, Zariah, Zena, Zelda, Zelena, Zoe, Zola, Zophia, Zuri.

[ohpollenpowder]

Twin sisters, the younger being on the left. This is Laviii (Elementalist) and Deakkkk (Guardian)—they grew up with very vastly different surroundings. Deakkkk was raised with a wealthy relative that didn't want to deal with twins, so Laviii was left to an orphanage. This was done early enough in their lives that they only had the slightest connection and a little more remembrance of having a twin. They met later in life as the Priory and Vigil started doing missions together as the Pact. Laviii used to be my main character and the most spoiled before I found Reaper; she has Tempest and Weaver fully unlocked with Catalyst being a WIP. Deakkkk is a standard Guardian seeing as she's never really left Divinity's Reach/Queensdale as a Seraph guard.

Runa Wickel (left, Mesmer) and Lillian Page (right, Ranger) are the next two. Runa has had...quite a few changes to her appearance and given her secrecy about herself, one tends to think it's due to her occupation in the Order of Whispers. Deep-cover looks need to be drastic changes when shifting from one to the next. (She's also my Artificer so I didn't wanna just straight up delete her original character.) She's also my Mirage.

Lillian is a commoner who lived in Kessex and was born blind. However she ended up having an unusual connection to her eye-seeing dog, an old (even then) Drakehound named Deo. She could see through his eyes, not well when she was young, but as she got older it got easier/better. She and Deo left home to avoid the lot in life her mother had planned for her—being the perfect little house pet lady. Through their travels she also met Fern (the fern hound) and Wolf (the arctic wolf) who took over Deo's position, and with them she finally became a Soulbeast.

Gavin Caspari (left, Revenant) and Nadiyya Tahir (right, Warrior) both have interesting stories too. Gavin here is one of my (many) Commanders and started off life as a priest of Grenth, a Necromancer. But just as he really started off on his path to learning necromancy, he was attacked out in Kessex trying to rescue some orphans from being captured by Centaurs. (Not that he remembers that part, just the where.) He woke up as a Revenant, still bound to Grenth, and determined to continue saving orphans. He uses his good looks to his advantage to get donations and takes really great care of his kids. Reluctantly he took up the mantel of Commander but he's looking forward to retiring that title sooner rather than later.

Nadiyya is the daughter of a wealthy couple and horribly spoiled by them both, which is probably why when her mother told her that she was to have an arranged marriage... Nadiyya ran away. Honestly, she had her father's blessing with this, he left his wife about the same time, leaving her the wealth to be with his male partner. Those two men continued to raise this Balthazar blessed Warrior into the hellcat she is. She's found a home for herself in Elona and is in search for family in the area.

Priestess Kutay (left, Necromancer) and Nightlïght (right, Elementalist) come in next, both light classes. Priestess Kutay left Elona as an envoy once contact was made to visit and learn from their Krytan brothers and sisters of Dwayna. She's found the north to be a lot colder than she'd like and doesn't really care for the "uniform" that they've issued her. Her winged ear-cuffs being one of the acts of defiance she dares her hosting superiors to send her home for. Honestly, she probably wouldn't mind being sent home at this point, all the endless parties and events are draining and not at all what she came here to learn.

Nightlïght is essentially Jack Frost, based off the Rise of the Guardians version. And so his character is already formed for him within that, he's mostly here as a cosplay character. So not sure if he counts or not!

Veltan the Harrower (left, Guardian) and Nicoletta Liberti (right, Mesmer) are more recent. As soon as I saw Veltan in Labyrinth last year I was dying to make her, she was an absolute joy to figure out and kinda troll any squads I rolled around with. Her gaze was clouded by Joko's mysticism for the duration of the holiday, but now that it's over she once again proudly proclaims herself a follower of Mad King Thorn. (Like Nightlïght up there, mostly a cosplay character.) She's also my first Willbender, as that's the class she handles within Labyrinth.

Nicoletta is one part of five (six)—the Five Commanders guild is what she's a part of, her and her twin. They're the Human aspect of the group, with each race having "contributed" one of their own to take on the burden of being Commander and sharing the troubles. Nicoletta herself is blessed by Lyssa; when she was younger she had a small thing with Riot Alice, as well as Exemplar Mehid. Then had a very brief crush on Countess Anise but she'll beat you up should you even breathe that. She loves the other members of the Guild as if they were her own flesh and blood.

Lastly is one I can't include because stupid ten picture limit. But Ryon Konu is the newest of new. He's a Revenant that just won't stay dead. Mostly because Grenth is tired of his bullshit and keeps throwing him out of the Mists, keeps yelling something about it not being Ryon's time yet. His main Legend is ironically himself as he when he was living, a Necromancer. (Yes, again, I have a thing for Necromancers...sorry.) He's also a Commander, the return to Cantha has been...an eye-opening experience to say the least. But he's found some connection to his ancestral home, just like Marjory.

If you wanna know more about them, feel free to click the tags with their names. Some have more information than others, but feel free to ask as well!

Anyway, how about we get some positivity going here as well!

GW2 folks, show me your human OCs!! From human commanders to “just some guy”s, I wanna see what y’all have!

(GW1 OCs are absolutely welcome as well!!)

[blogexperiences]

Milano, Acquario Civico - Vanni Cuoghi. SUBMARINER

Milano, Acquario Civico – Vanni Cuoghi. SUBMARINER

Dal 14 luglio al 12 settembre 2021, l’Acquario civico di Milano, edificio Liberty situato all’entrata di Parco Sempione, tra il Castello Sforzesco e l’Arena, ospita il progetto espositivo di Vanni Cuoghi (Genova, 1966) dal titolo SUBMARINER. Curata da Nicoletta Castellaneta e Ivan Quaroni, la rassegna si sviluppa in due momenti, il primo dal 14 luglio 2021 con l’esposizione delle opere…

[lgbt-history-archive]

“I’M FROM WOODMERE N.Y.,” Anne Kronenberg drives Harvey Milk, who would turn eighty-seven today, Gay Freedom Day, San Francisco, June 1978. Picture from the new book, @lgbtsanfrancisco, by Milk’s friend and protégé, Dan Nicoletta. . “My name is Harvey Milk and I want to recruit you…for the fight to preserve your democracy from [those] who are trying to constitutionalize bigotry…I ask my gay brothers and sisters to make the commitment to fight for themselves…we will not win [our] rights by staying quietly in our closets…we are coming out! . We are coming out to fight the lies, the myths, the distortions! . You must come out. Come out to your parents. I know that is hard and will hurt them but think about how they will hurt you in the voting booth! . Come out to your relatives. I know that is hard and will upset them but think how they will upset you in the voting booth. Come out to your friends, if indeed they are your friends. Come out to your neighbors, to your fellow workers…Come out only to the people you know, and who know you…But once and for all, break down the myths, destroy the lies and distortions…For your sake. For their sake… . If [they] win [they] will not stop. They never do. Like all mad people, they are forced to go on, to prove they were right. . There will be no safe ‘closet’ for any gay person. . So break out of yours today—tear the damn thing down once and for all! . And to the bigots…let me remind you what America is… . On the Statue of Liberty it says: ‘Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free…’ In the Declaration of Independence it is written: ‘All men are created equal and they are endowed with certain inalienable rights…’ And in our National Anthem it says: ‘Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave o’er the land of the free.’ . For all the bigots out there: That’s what America is. No matter how hard you try, you cannot erase those words from the Declaration of Independence…, you cannot chip those words from off the base of the Statue of Liberty…, [and] you cannot sing the ‘Star Spangled Banner’ without those words. . That is what America is.” – Harvey Milk, June 25, 1978. #HarveyMilk (at San Francisco, California)

[for-peace-war]

Element - Saliha; DNA - Svetlana; Fear - Arval; Yah - Nicoleta; XXX - Remco ;)

SALIHA: What is your muse “made of”, what is their character like? Courageous, loving, scared, etc.

I believe that it would be easiest to say that she is treacherous by nature, but that’d both kind of undervalue what she is and why she does what she does.  As a Follower of Set, treachery and corruption are definitely core aspects of her personality: she will betray people with little concern or care if it is advantageous and will certainly work to corrupt a system to free others from it, but at her center most concept she is someone that values family and camaraderie.  

Saliha never had a real home life worth mentioning.  It is rumored that even her adoptive father was a thrall of the Setites, so she’s been groomed and/or used for that agenda since she could first speak if such is true.  With that being said, she found herself oddly motivated to a position of nurturing when it came to the neonates and fledglings that have become her coterie.  It may well be that they are people... or were people, that treated her with not so much respect as a sense of belonging, and she rapidly accepted that to do what was necessary to protect them in some way.

Remember, Saliha truly does believe in the power and influence of Set.  Because of this, when she makes an action that some (most) would consider deceptive or cruel, it is because she values the system she is operating under.  Betraying the Sons of Liberty to protect the coterie was perhaps the most iconic sign of where her mind is.  She actually liked the Sons, and even advanced their cause for some time, but when it was no longer advantageous to be associated with them she immediately cut those ties and used what she knew to see herself and her friends advanced at their expense.  And she’d never feel remorse for that -- in fact, she probably feels she did them a favor.  They’ve learned that blind trust is stupid and that it is better to betray than to be betrayed.

Hopefully.

That said, she also has absolutely no pity for Setites that do not work together and if she is betrayed by one such person she either detaches them from her life or prepares to find a way to detach them from their own.

SVETLANA: What was your muses home life like?

If you are asking about her life as kine, then it was privileged but empty.  Her father was a part of many boards and spent little time around her and her mother was often engaged in either a social platform or some other affair.  She was never without something to do: she studied arts, literature, and the finer disciplines and as she aged she had a very active social life, but it was always without  much attachment until she met her sire, Gavrel.  Oddly, if not for the fall of the Russian Empire, it is possible he would never have embraced her but such did come to pass and within a year’s time, she was dead for it.

Which led her to her unlife.

After the Brujah killed off most anyone she knew, Svetlana retreated inward and became a recluse.  Her life was then a series of empty pursuits and distance from others, enabling her to survive in relative solitude but with little ambition for it.   After 1967, she’s gained a new family however and works hard to protect and provide for them.  As much as her operations as Nightfall dealt with hating Anarchs, she also gained valuable contacts and resources to apply toward those she cares about: the Camarilla, the coterie, and even the Vladinov family.

ARVAL:What are your muses biggest fears?

There’s really only one thing that Arval fears and that isn’t going to be a big surprise.  He’s afraid of not being good enough -- not riding, fighting, or leading well enough to be worthy the blood he was born with.  For all of his grandiose posturing and grandstanding, what makes Arval so very difficult as a person is that he isn’t an empty trope. He isn’t someone that has been born with everything and takes that for granted: he’s used his abilities naturally gained and his chances gained through money, influence, and legacy in order to become one of the greatest knights of his generation.

But it isn’t simply that he wants to be the best... he feels he has to in order to protect the people he truly cares for.  After all, the War of the Light saw so many people he knew die that he began to doubt himself to an extreme degree.  Kauthryn’s near death, Rolf’s death, the Dawnguard that fought with them, and the fact Dawnholde was assaulted all spoke to that he was not doing ‘well enough’ in his eyes, and thus he moved further away from being a kind of pompous do-gooder toward his present state of elitist prick.  He felt too much time was wasted in pursuit of empty desires: love, admiration, adulation, etc... when really it should have been centered on advancement.

He’s a count now and he has an heir (through adoption), which at the very least speaks to his legacy... but he will always be worried he hasn’t done enough or that he could do more.  He’ll need to get married properly and achieve something worthy of Ulrich Lichter before he’s willing to say he has done enough... and really, that may never happen.

NICOLETTA: Something your muse agrees on 100% of the time.

That all things are deserving of a chance.  I think that the Hunter group changed a lot in its philosophy after it missed Nicoletta/Nikolai’s story the first time, so when they went again there was much more opportunity to really delve into why that was.

Nicoletta is a tzimisce and I won’t say she’s a good person or even a great friend to have, but she’s very willing to consider the merits of something based on the appropriateness of it.  When it comes to “chances,” she will give almost anyone one: sometimes, you use it when you say your first words to her and other times it can be something so sentimental and out of the ordinary that it speaks to who and what she is.  

Kuai-Li expertly, albeit unwittingly, played upon that when she spoke in favor of Godwin/Thomas being saved, and the party did the same when they asked for Salvador to me embraced as well.  Even though she’s become much less ambitious with the demise of her brother, she still was willing to give Salvador the chance to see the world for himself before returning to her.

She lives a great deal by the belief that all things can become better than what they were because she sees herself as something so changed.  

REMCO: What’s the raunchiest thing your muse has ever done?

No good is going to come from this answer.  I mean, what we know: Remco is a germaphobe at the cutting edge of germ theory and that he seems to be passionate in a disturbingly logical way when it comes to completing his job.  That being said, it’s safe to assume that he is not “raunchy” in any fun way... because he’s a weirdo.

Remco dislikes things that are difficult to control and prefers peace and quiet.  Death, naturally, appeals to him.  He fell in love as a younger man with a woman that was dying and took comfort from her peaceful and reserved she was as her life slipped away.  As such, he has a fondness for things that mirror death but do not necessarily slip into it.  He isn’t a necrophiliac, probably, but he certainly has tendencies that mirror one that might.

He likes cleaning the bodies of those he finds himself with in the same way he took care of his dying love.  So, the ritual that is most disturbing is that he will buy a prostitute and with her consent, drug her with a barbituate.  Then, he carefully cleans her and dresses her in finery, before waiting for her to rouse from the comatose state.  In that semi-conscious world, he reenacts his love for his departed.

It is not likely he has killed many people this way.But I will not say he has never killed someone thusly. 

[paoloxl]

L’Osservatorio Repressione propone la nascita di una ” rete Europea per il diritto di dissenso in difesa delle lotte sociali“. Una rete che sia capace di investigare sulle forme della repressione a partire dai singoli stati Europei verificando le similitudini legislative dei singoli paesi trovando i punti in comune. Un lavoro che deve andare oltre la sola testimonianza, il denunciare quanto la repressione sia crudele e quanto gli Stati Sovrani rispondendo al turbocapitalismo, finiscono nel non più garantire il minimo dei diritti democratici più propensi a esportare la Democrazia nel mondo producendo un’infinita lotta al terrorismo. Chiaramente analizzare le diverse questioni è necessario e doveroso, ma il fine deve indagare su come sia possibile formulare soluzioni che cominciano a fornire effettivi strumenti e garanzie per quanti e quante sono impegnati nelle lotte sociali. L’ordinamento giuridico nei vari paesi Europei, ha l’intendo di relegare le lotte sociali dentro i confini della semplice testimonianza. Azioni, denunce, lotte, contro informazione, non devono in alcun modo uscire dai confini di una “legalità”. Il dissenso espresso nelle forme più visibili, praticate da tante e tanti, viene sempre più affrontato e narrato come una minaccia, come un problema di “ordine pubblico” da criminalizzare e condannare. E’ sistematico, ormai, che dopo qualsiasi manifestazione di dissenso, scattano i procedimenti penali e si da fondo al repertorio delle misure cautelari, impiegate con lo scopo più che evidente di ridurre la libertà personale e di movimento. La repressione del dissenso, in qualsiasi modo esso si manifesti, è un punto cardine delle leggi antiterrorismo, dello stato di emergenza. Le legislazioni speciali sospendono alcune libertà individuali per rafforzare e facilitare l’intervento delle autorità in situazioni di emergenza, che si tratti di una guerra, di un attacco terroristico o di un disastro naturale, sono sempre rivolte non solo a colpire la minaccia esterna, ma anche quella interna che può mettere in discussione la legittimità dell’autorità. Le detenzioni, le sanzioni amministrative, le restrizioni delle libertà oggi, più di ieri, riguardano tutti i settori popolari e sociali. In Europa, stiamo assistendo a un progressivo stato di controllo sociale, dove la libera circolazione è garantita solo a merci e a quanti rispettano le regole. Lo stato di eccezione permanente è preso benevolmente dalla popolazione perché percepito a sua difesa per la sua sicurezza. Un lavoro fatto talmente bene che oggi è più complesso difendere i diritto a dire no a un potere economico sovranazionale che determina le politiche sociali ed economiche degli stati Sovrani. Si è costruito un nemico, denominandolo terrorista, producendo, sviluppando e mantenendo intere aree in un perenne stato di guerra. Questo avviene oggi,  in una fase storica, dove i sistemi cosiddetti “democratici” sono sempre meno titolari di consenso popolare, e in contesti simili la storia ci insegna che il potere si tutela restringendo gli spazi di diritto e libertà. Oggi l’emergenzialismo è norma fondamentale generale e ordinaria dei sistemi di governo. Lo stato di eccezione permanente si presenta cosi come il miglior paradigma di interpretazioni delle forze più avanzate della governance contemporanea. Quello che sta succedendo deve imporre i movimenti a non  limitarsi solo alla conoscenza degli strumenti e delle tecniche repressive messe in campo dagli apparati statali ma deve necessariamente portarci oltre, cercando le strade per contrastare i processi repressivi, il loro continuo aggiornamento. La sfera del giuridico non esprime solo tecnica ma uno degli aspetti più profondi del politico: la continua ridefinizione dei confini del lecito e dell’illecito, della legittimità e dell’illegittimità, quella sorta di pendolo che è la legalità. La sfera del giuridico è un terreno di conflitto dove però ad essere attrezzata è solo una delle parti. Non ci si può esimere dal costruire un intervento politico sulla giuridicità. Aprire una discussione è un tentativo di definire un orizzonte prim’ancora che una soluzione concreta: elaborare una strategia che individui il nodo centrale dello scontro che viene a costituirsi, ovvero l’attacco alla legittimità stessa di un dissenso fattivo, alla possibilità che i movimenti possano esistere e mettersi di traverso, inceppando un sistema sempre più oligarchico. La repressione rappresenta oramai una maniera di gestione del dissenso sempre più generalizzata sulla quale è necessaria una riflessione a livello Europeo. A Bruxelles il 28 e 29 giugno su iniziativa dell’Osservatorio Repressione si terrà una due giorni per la nascita di una rete Europea per il diritto di dissenso in difesa delle lotte sociali, alla quale parteciperanno giuristi, esperti, attivisti da tutta Europa. Il 28 giugno alle ore 17,30 presso la sala “L’horloge du sud” 141 rue Trone a Bruxelles si terrà per un primo confronto fra le realtà sociali di movimento europee Il 29 giugno presso la sede del Parlamento Europeo alle ore 15 ci sarà la proiezione del docufilm “Archiviato. L’obbligatorietà dell’azione penale in Valsusa” con l’intervento dell’Avv. Claudio Novaro, legale di attivisti No Tav a seguire il convegno europeo organizzato dal gruppo parlamentare del Gue/Ngl:   EUROPE, FROM THE RULE OF LAW TO A STATE OF EXCEPTION Social struggles and freedom of expression under attacks (European Parliament, Room ASP1G2. Languages: ES, EN, FR, IT, DE, PT, GR) 15h00: Welcoming: MEP Iosu Juaristi 15h15 – 16h30 Panel 1. Moderator: MEP Eleonora Forenza Paul Murphy (Irish MP charged with “false imprisonment” for anti-water charges protest)Nicoletta Dosio (No TAV)Cesare Antetomaso (lawyer, “Giuristi Democratici”)Jaione Carrera Ciriza (lawyer)Speaker CGT-France (tbc)Italo Di Sabato (Osservatorio Repressione) 16h30- 16h45 Coffee break 16h45 – 18h15: Panel 2. Moderator MEP Marina Albiol Casandra (twitter activist)Davide Falcioni (journalist)Strawberry (“Def Con Dos” singer, twitter activist)Hungarian Civil Liberties UnionAngel Cristobal Gázquez/ Gonzalo Alberto Martínez (lawyers, BGD) 18h15 -18h30 Conclusion remarks by MEP Iosu Juaristi Per info info@osservatoriorepressione.info

[rock-n-travel-blog]

♬Swingly news: 22-29 marzo 2017♬

Mercoledì 22 marzo 2017

Swing in Corte alla Corte dei Miracoli. Dalle 20, ingresso 10 euro con tessera annuale e prima consumazione inclusi https://www.facebook.com/events/748552181965998/

Per la serie Jazz in the Corner della Santeria Social Club, tributo al polistrumentista americano Eric Dolphy. Dalle 22, ingresso gratuito https://www.facebook.com/events/1962666363961134/

Allo spazio Open, cena con concerto in libreria del quartetto jazz TANTRATRIO+1 a 28 euro a persona. Solo concerto con consumazione 15 euro. Dalle 21in poi https://www.facebook.com/events/405035676522425/

Live Blues al Ragoo con i Blues Ghetto. Inizio concerto alle 22, a seguire dj-set blues. Serata a cura di Blues River Notes https://www.facebook.com/events/1842045906069235/

Giovedì 23 marzo 2017

Seconda lezione di Big Apple Routine a cura di NonSoloCharleston. Dalle 20.45 alla Palestra Icos.  Costo: 60 euro (più tesseramento di 15 euro) https://www.facebook.com/events/498784693843302/

Concerto rockabilly di Storie di JODOK al Ristorante Jodok / Ex-Ospedale Psichiatrico Paolo Pini. Aperitivo dalle 19, live dalle 22 https://www.facebook.com/events/382903215425339/

Venerdì 24 marzo 2017

Torna a Milano il Twist&Shout al Fabrique dalle 22.30. In consolle Alessio Granata & Ale Leuci, live di The Nasty Beats e show dei ballerini del Team Larosa. Ingresso 10 euro https://www.facebook.com/events/1811883292361964/

“Lo Swing del Principe”: in console, dalle 22.30, DJ Mister Dip. Costo 10 euro con tessera associativa https://www.facebook.com/events/428680274149859/

Vintage Night al Centro Ambrosini di Monza: ore 20 aperitivo con buffet, ore 21 lezione First Steps, a seguire show coreografico con Quelli Di Via Oldrado e Dj-set a cura di Rutigliano Fabio. 1° Drink 12€ con buffet;  2° Optional Drink 5€. Per prenotazione tavoli 0392109008 oppure 334.9593649 

Nuova serata swing e boogie all’Orchidea Dancing Club di Saronno. Dalle 20 stage gratuito con Luca & Olga, dj set di Giusy Wild, live di Band Mauro L. Porro. Ingresso 10 euro con consumazione  https://www.facebook.com/events/1104466543014406/

Dalle 22.30 Hound Dog in concerto al Nord Est Caffe’ https://www.facebook.com/events/712251832286885/ 

Sabato 25 marzo 2017 

Treno Live all’Osteria del Treno & Sala Liberty con la Delirium Jazz Band. Cena dalle 20, ballo dalle 21.30. Prenotazioni: 026700479

https://www.facebook.com/events/1303336683085063/

Holy Swing Night dello Spirit de Milan con il concerto dei Milanoans e Dalila Del Giudice. Dalle 22, ingresso 15 euro con consumazione (10 euro per i soci) https://www.facebook.com/events/2253237898234999/

Musica anni ‘50-’60 con i Grace & the Sundays sul palco dell’Hosteria della Musica. Dalle 21 in poi https://www.facebook.com/events/208503012966362/

“Buona sera Signorina”, la serata dell’Arci Bellezza dedicata alla musica italiana degli anni ‘50 - ‘60. Dalle 22, ingresso 5 euro con tessera Arci https://www.facebook.com/events/474343272955612/ 

Saturday Swing Night con DJ Ivan. Dalle 22 al BAR F.lli Guido https://www.facebook.com/events/1852772595010165/

Domenica 26 marzo 2017

Dalle 8.30 alle 12  #JazzeDevianze del Bachelite Clab Milano con la musica carioca del trio "Choro da Madunina" https://www.facebook.com/events/778542578985780/

Workshop di Solo Charleston con Valeria Bonfanti. Dalle 16 alle 18 alla  Thunder Gym. Costo 25 euro https://www.facebook.com/events/1840323649569398/

Al Big Apple si balla Swing e si festeggia il compleanno di Filippo. Dalle 21, musica di DJ Mister Dip, ingresso 10 euro con consumazione  https://www.facebook.com/events/608533052678143/

Jazz’n’Spirit allo Spirit de Milan con il concerto di Nicoletta Filella, pianista classica, compositrice e cantautrice italiana. Dalle 22.30 https://www.facebook.com/events/111119866048428/

Jive me Tonight, la domenica del Rockabilly alla Salumeria della Musica. Concerto dei Mr Lou Cash & The Tyre Kickers e DJ set di Mr Rocketeer. Gara di ballo "Jack & Jill". Dalle 19.30, ingresso 10 euro con consumazione https://www.facebook.com/events/598949593627937/

Lunedì 27 marzo 2017

Al Teatro Strehler di Milano, la Civica Jazz Band riporodurra’ lo storico concerto che Benny Goodman tenne alla Carnegie Hall di New York il 16 gennaio 1938, aprendo per la prima volta il celeberrimo auditorium, tempio della musica classica, a un concerto jazz vero e proprio. Solista ospite: Paolo Tomelieri. Dalle 21, biglietti a partire da 16 euro  https://www.facebook.com/events/267196397041766/

*Vi segnalo che sabato 25 e domenica 26 marzo a Torino ci saranno workshop per più livelli con i campioni internazionali di Boogie Woogie Thorbjørn Urskog e Flora Bouchereau e due serate danzanti. Per info: https://www.facebook.com/events/134167237093649/*

[ohpollenpowder]

Here's the lone two year old!!! Nicoletta has a little bit of time shared with everyone else (Izar aside) with sharing age but her birthday is always a few more days away. I love how her shots are all kinda cinematic? 17 hours and 13 minutes for her birthday!

[annavolovodov]

Out of interest, how do you lose nine people on another continent?

Should be impossible, right? I mean, if I were taking pupils on a school trip to another continent I would be sure not to lose any. Alas the stupidity of man is infinite and not to be underestimated. 

Firstly, some background. 

The year: 2016, because when the fuck else would something like this occur?The location: New York, a city with a higher population than my entire country. The people: 36 pupils on a trip to NYC and DC with only four teachers accompanying. 

In retrospect it seems inevitable that some sort of chaos would occur but even so, I don’t think anyone expected this level of drama. And I want to highlight that this is only one of several incidents that occured over the course of this five-day trip.

It was our first full day in New York. The itinerary (which I had memorised) had us visiting Liberty and Ellis Island, meaning we had to get the subway through Manhattan at rush hour. That was as fun as it sounds. We also had these travel cards allowing four people through the barriers per card so essentially the entire group HAD to stick together. The final point I want to emphasise about the underground is how fucking complicated it is compared to the one we have back home. Ours is literally a circle meaning you can’t fuck it up and get lost whereas New York has a labyrinth of tunnels all leading to different places so you have to have a clear idea of where you’re going.

These details become important later.

(Side-note: when we were waiting on the platform a large section of the group and two teachers actually got on the wrong train and didn’t realise until they spotted our horrified expressions as the carriage pulled away. But that isn’t our main story here. It was hella funny though and felt like a dark prelude to the chaos that would occur mere hours from that moment.)

Anyway, eventually we all get to Liberty Island. We take pictures, me and my nine friends go up the plinth and get great views of the city, all is well.

After having a look around Ellis Island, we all queued up at the ferry terminal. My friends and I were at the back of the queue because we’d been the only ones who’d decided to go up the Statue of Liberty, which resulted in most of the group getting the first ferry back to Manhattan while we had to wait for the next one. Now, I don’t know if you’ve ever been on one of these ferries but they are unbelievably crowded (and the toilets are disgusting - avoid at all costs). Like if this thing had sunk we would all be fucked. Clearly health and safety is not a Thing in America because there is no way the volume of people on those vessels is safe, no way. 

There is most definitely not enough seats for everyone on board but our feet are killing us at this point so me, my friends and one of the other girls on the trip all end up sitting on the stairs. I can still see our accompanying teacher, Miss G, from my step and she could clearly see us. Or so I thought.

The stairs are near the back of the boat which means when the ferry docks so naturally, Miss G gets off before we even have a chance to move. But I’m not worried. Most of the group were on the first ferry and only a handful of pupils disembarked with her. Nine of us are still on board and there’s no way she’d leave without noticing such a large group of people missing.

OR SO I THOUGHT.

Cause when we return to dry land it immediately becomes clear that instead of waiting by the terminus to make sure the entire group is together like any sensible person would do, Miss G and the others have fucked off into the sunset and left us behind. We check all the nearby paths but nope! They’ve gone and left nine teenage girls alone in a park in one of the busiest cities of the world. Great!

I’m gonna use a timeline to explain how events progressed and I’m also changing names because I don’t have direct permission from those involved to put this on the internet.

11:30am EST: Miss G has most definitely left us. The squad concludes they’ll probably realise they’ve lost a whole quarter of the group and return soon enough. No one is too stressed and honestly I’m grateful to get a seat on a bench because my feet are on fire from all the walking.

11:40am EST: ten minutes and still nothing. Surprisingly, I’m not worried: the one good thing about anxiety disorders is that you gotta plan the shit outta everything. This being my first time away from home, I’ve decided to be extra cautious. I have full details of the hotel including address, phone number and email memorised. I have several hundred dollars in a bag stuck up my skirt. Most importantly, I have the moral high ground. We have done nothing wrong. This is not our mistake, nor is it down to us to sort it out. Me and my friend Rosa decide to kick back in the shade and keep hydrated till we see Miss G doing the walk of shame back to us.

12:10pm EST: stress is kicking in for some members of the group. Jessica is starting to get super-anxious and we’re all way too warm in this 30°C heat. Some of the girls wonder if we should head to the next stop on the itinerary (the WTC memorial) - it isn’t far from Battery Park and it’s most likely where one others are, but we immediately decide against that. If we move from this spot and the teachers come back they’ll use that to spin the blame on us, and we ain’t gonna let that happen. We can’t return to the hotel except as a last resort because we don’t have enough subway cards and we don’t know which station we originated from, so we’d need to get a cab and no one is keen on spending that much money.

The good news is that I also have the number of the teacher’s mobile memorised. The bad news is that we aren’t entirely sure whether the number needs an international code or not because who phones from their mobile when their abroad??? No one! In the end Ella, Melanie and I try to find a sympathetic-looking American to target for help. We find an old lady from Staten Island who tells us her life story - it was actually very interesting if time-consuming - but alas! She doesn’t know how phones work either! We’re back at square one.

Ella decides to bite the bullet, international fees be damned, and offers up her mobile as sacrifice. We text and call the teachers but to no avail. After several attempts I suggest we try ringing the hotel and seeing if they have any method of contacting the teachers but the receptionist turns out to be as helpful as a chocolate teapot.

This is probably not a shock but me and my friends were not what you would consider “popular” in high school. Most of the other kids on the trip either looked down on us or outright hated us. But thankfully there was one girl in the other group who Melanie was kinda friends with and was willing to help us, bless her. Ella texted explaining the situation, she texted back confirming they were at the WTC, telling us she’d explain everything to the teachers and send them our way… as soon as she found them herself.

Yep, that’s right. The teachers had in fact ditched the pupils in the other group at the Twin Towers memorial and had disappeared off themselves. They weren’t answering their phone and we had no idea where they were. Essentially, we were stuck waiting in this park until they decided to come back.

12:30pm EST: an hour into the abandonment with no end in sight. We’re severely questioning whether the teachers have actually noticed we’d gone, because surely this would be the first place they’d return to, but I do enjoy imagining them running around the city in a panic looking for us.

Obviously everyone within the group is handling the situation in very different ways. Let me do a brief recap:

Jessica is having a straight-up panic attack at being left alone without adult supervision in one of the busiest cities in the world. Her anxiety is exacerbated by what we’d later learn was heatstroke when she collapses in the middle of a Broadway show that night.

Holly is unsuccessfully trying to calm Jessica down.

Ella is pissed af, especially since she’s just spent a fortune trying to call for help. Genuinely she’s one of the funniest people I know but she is NOT afraid of confrontation and is very much preparing a rant she will deliver to whichever teacher comes to pick us up. 

Melanie is equally pissed but is overall staying levelheaded and trying to maintain order. 

Nathalie is ready to throw hands - she straight up HATES Mrs M and has been going on about it the entire trip thus far. At first I thought she was blowing things out or proportion but by the time I boarded the plane back home I realised that nope, Nathalie’s hatred was justified. She also turns out to have heatstroke and spends that evening throwing up.

Nicoletta’s method of coping is through humour. “Wouldn’t it be funny,” she says, “if we pretend Elise nearly got mugged when the teachers return to try and make them feel bad?” “No it would not be funny,” I reply, “because I can’t lie for shit and besides, I don’t wanna be the victim.” (In a shocking twist of events I WAS a victim of a scam in a separate incident two days later, but that’s a different story).

I think Isobel’s primary emotion at this point was “too warm to care” which was highkey relatable. 

Rosa is just plain hungry (we’ve missed lunch, after all). She can’t be arsed with the stress/arguing/ranting and the two of us decide to go over to a street vendor and purchase an overpriced Magnum each.

As for me, I was remarkably calm for someone with severe anxiety issues. The thought of confrontation was worrying me more than the actual sensation of being in my own personal recreation of Home Alone 2. I mean, none of this was our fault. We definitely had the moral high-ground here. I knew it, the teachers knew it, I knew the teachers knew and the teachers knew that I knew that they knew. The ball was very much in our court.

1pm EST: a whopping hour and a half after the arrival of our ferry, Miss G and Mrs M have finally thought to themselves “hmm, the group looks a bit small, maybe we’re missing a quarter of them?” and decided to have a gentle stroll back to Battery Park to test their hypothesis.

Not gonna lie, when I saw them coming my heart was in my fucking throat. Usually I love watching drama unfold but it’s less fun when you’re in the middle of it and you’re going to be spending all your time over the next few days with those involved. 

I braced myself for the worst but before any of us could utter a word, Mrs M shot right in there with “well that was a life lesson for you all, let’s move on!” It was the single worst thing she could’ve said because from that point we all knew that they knew they were in the wrong and were desperately trying to divert the blame. 

Some of the other girls made comments about the whole ordeal and conveyed that they were pissed off but I never spoke another word about it. I think that scared them, that I never really indicated my feelings, because Mrs M kept trying to make friends with me for the rest of the trip and it was kinda entertaining to watch her attempts to figure out whether I’d grass them in when I got home. 

In all honesty, I would’ve dropped the matter immediately if they had apologised straight away when they came back for us. But they never said sorry at any point, not even to Nathalie and Jessica when they ended up really ill as a result of being left in the park for so long. As the day went on it all got a big gaslight-y and they kept trying to spin the blame back on us, telling us we should’ve went and found them instead of waiting there, and that pissed me off even more because I had an abusive relative gaslight me a lot when I was a kid and I hate all that manipulative bullshit. But the real interesting thing is the fact they didn’t learn from their mistakes. I have so many entertaining stories from that trip due to the teachers leaving people behind or mismanaging things including four other occasions in the next three days where people got lost or left behind.

The best part is that although I’ve left, I still follow the school’s Facebook page that they use as their main mode of communication for parents. Apparently they’re doing another NYC/DC trip this year and I can’t help but wonder what would happen if I put a comment on the post announcing the trip’s departure wishing them a safe journey and hoping that they don’t lose anyone for two hours in middle of New York this time…

[bigfatqueen-blog]

#Repost @lgbt_history ・・・ “I’M FROM WOODMERE N.Y.,” Anne Kronenberg drives Harvey Milk, who would turn eighty-seven today, Gay Freedom Day, San Francisco, June 1978. Picture from the new book, @lgbtsanfrancisco, by Milk’s friend and protégé, Dan Nicoletta. . “My name is Harvey Milk and I want to recruit you…for the fight to preserve your democracy from [those] who are trying to constitutionalize bigotry…I ask my gay brothers and sisters to make the commitment to fight for themselves…we will not win [our] rights by staying quietly in our closets…we are coming out! . We are coming out to fight the lies, the myths, the distortions! . You must come out. Come out to your parents. I know that is hard and will hurt them but think about how they will hurt you in the voting booth! . Come out to your relatives. I know that is hard and will upset them but think how they will upset you in the voting booth. Come out to your friends, if indeed they are your friends. Come out to your neighbors, to your fellow workers…Come out only to the people you know, and who know you…But once and for all, break down the myths, destroy the lies and distortions…For your sake. For their sake… . If [they] win [they] will not stop. They never do. Like all mad people, they are forced to go on, to prove they were right. . There will be no safe ‘closet’ for any gay person. . So break out of yours today—tear the damn thing down once and for all! . And to the bigots…let me remind you what America is… . On the Statue of Liberty it says: ‘Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free…’ In the Declaration of Independence it is written: ‘All men are created equal and they are endowed with certain inalienable rights…’ And in our National Anthem it says: ‘Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave o’er the land of the free.’ . For all the bigots out there: That’s what America is. No matter how hard you try, you cannot erase those words from the Declaration of Independence…, you cannot chip those words from off the base of the Statue of Liberty…, [and] you cannot sing the ‘Star Spangled Banner’ without those words. . That is what America is.” – Harvey Milk, June 25, 1978

[earlsings]

@Regrann from @lgbt_history - “I’M FROM WOODMERE N.Y.,” Anne Kronenberg drives Harvey Milk, who would turn eighty-seven today, Gay Freedom Day, San Francisco, June 1978. Picture from the new book, @lgbtsanfrancisco, by Milk’s friend and protégé, Dan Nicoletta. . “My name is Harvey Milk and I want to recruit you…for the fight to preserve your democracy from [those] who are trying to constitutionalize bigotry…I ask my gay brothers and sisters to make the commitment to fight for themselves…we will not win [our] rights by staying quietly in our closets…we are coming out! . We are coming out to fight the lies, the myths, the distortions! . You must come out. Come out to your parents. I know that is hard and will hurt them but think about how they will hurt you in the voting booth! . Come out to your relatives. I know that is hard and will upset them but think how they will upset you in the voting booth. Come out to your friends, if indeed they are your friends. Come out to your neighbors, to your fellow workers…Come out only to the people you know, and who know you…But once and for all, break down the myths, destroy the lies and distortions…For your sake. For their sake… . If [they] win [they] will not stop. They never do. Like all mad people, they are forced to go on, to prove they were right. . There will be no safe ‘closet’ for any gay person. . So break out of yours today—tear the damn thing down once and for all! . And to the bigots…let me remind you what America is… . On the Statue of Liberty it says: ‘Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free…’ In the Declaration of Independence it is written: ‘All men are created equal and they are endowed with certain inalienable rights…’ And in our National Anthem it says: ‘Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave o’er the land of the free.’ . For all the bigots out there: That’s what America is. No matter how hard you try, you cannot erase those words from the Declaration of Independence…, you cannot chip those words from off the base of the Statue of Liberty…, [and] you cannot sing the ‘Star Spangled Banner’ without those words. . That is what America is.” – Harvey Milk, June 25, 1978

[ohpollenpowder]

I work...better with direction. Otherwise my thoughts end up staying locked up in the brain-pan because brain won't let me put it anywhere. I think I'm also going to start working on the Commander week prompts from a few years ago for them. A slow process to be sure.