#nikki van de car

[deep-dive]

2023

albums/eps: a.s.o. - a.s.o. Amaarae - Fountain Baby Amnesia Scanner & Freeka Tet - STROBE.RIP André 3000 - New Blue Sun ANOHNI and the Johnsons - My Back Was a Bridge for You to Cross Anthony Naples - Orbs bar italia - Tracey Denim Beach Fossils - Bunny Ben Vida, Yarn/Wire & Nina Dante - The Beat My Head Hit Beverly Glenn-Copeland - The Ones Ahead Biosphere - N-Plants Blonde Redhead - Sit Down for Dinner Bored Lord - Name It Call Super - Eulo Cramps Carly Rae Jepsen - The Loveliest Time Caroline Polachek - Desire, I Want to Turn Into You Chuquimamani-Condori - DJ E Cole Police - If I Don’t See You in the Future, I’ll See You in the Pasture Dean Blunt - Give me a moment DJ Lostboi - Music for Landings DJ Sabrina the Teenage DJ - Destiny Double Virgo - hardrive heat seeking Eartheater - Powders The Embassy - E-Numbers Everything But the Girl - Fuse Fever Ray - Radical Romantics Freak Heat Waves - Mondo Tempo Headache - The Head Hurts but the Heart Knows the Truth Hiroyuki Onogawa - August in the Water: Music for Film 1995-2005 Jam City - Jam City Presents EFM James Ivy - Everything Perfect Jessy Lanza - Love Hallucination Jim Legxacy - homeless n****a pop music Joanne Robertson - Blue Car Jonnine - Maritz Kelela - Raven Khotin - Release Spirit Kota Hoshino, Shoi Miyazawa - Armored Core VI OST Laurel Halo - Atlas Loraine James - Gentle Confrontation Maria BC - Spike Field mark william lewis - Living Matmos - Return to Archive MIZU - Distant Intervals ML Buch - Suntub Noriko Tujiko - Crépuscule I & II Nourished by Time - Erotic Probiotic 2 Oneohtrix Point Never - Again Osmotic & Fennesz - Senzatetto Pierre Rousseau - Mémoire De Forme Purelink - Signs Ryuichi Sakamoto - 12 Sofia Courtesies - Madres ssaliva - sector6park/counterfeit Sufjan Stevens - Javelin Tim Hecker - No Highs Tirzah - trip9love…??? Wild Nothing - Hold Yves Tumor - Praise a Lord Who Chews but Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds) µ-Ziq - 1977 7038634357 - Neo Seven

songs: a.s.o. - Love in the Darkness Addison Rae - I got it bad Alex Kassian - Leave Your Life (Lonely Hearts Mix) Amaarae - Reckless & Sweet Amnesia Scanner & Freeka Tet - Clown André - Ants To You, Gods To Who ? ANOHNI and the Johnsons - Can’t ANOHNI and the Johnsons - It Must Change Anthony Naples - Silas Armin van Buuren & Punctual - On & On (ft. Alina) bambinodj - High as Ever Still Passin' Through (Remix) bar italia - Nocd Baths - Do I Make the World Worse Beach Fossils - Don’t Fade Away Beverly Glenn-Copeland - People of the Loon Bibio & Óskar Guðjónsson - Sunbursting Björk & Rosalía - Oral Blawan - Toast Bored Lord - Wait Wait Wait bvdub - Days on Heaven and Earth Call Super - Coppertone Elegy Carly Rae Jensen - Psychedelic Switch Caroline Polachek - Bunny Is a Rider (Doss Remix) Caroline Polachek - Crude Drawing of an Angel Chuquimamani-Condori - Eat My Cum Chuquimamani-Condori - Know Dean Blunt - Rinsed (ft. TYSON) Dj Lostboi - PUF 2 LAX DJ Sabrina the Teenage DJ - For Now and Forever Double Virgo - gainfully deployed EASYFUN - Long Long Time The Embassy - Amnesia ESP - North Fever Ray - Kandy Freak Heat Waves & Cindy Lee - In a Moment Divine Fwea-Go Hit - Back Wildin Headache - That Thing with the Rabbit Headache - Truism 4 Dummies Hemlocke Springs - sever the blight Hudson Mohawke & Nikki Nair - Demuro Ike - Rose Quartz Jam City - Magnetic James K & hoodie - Ether Jessy Lanza - Don’t Cry On My Pillow Jim Legxacy - amnesia111 Jim Legxacy - candy reign (!) Jonnine - Tea For Two (Boo) Kelela - Divorce Khotin - Computer Break (Late Mix) Kylie Minogue - Hold on to Now Laurel Halo, Bendik Giske, Lucy Railton & James Underwood - Earthbound Loraine James - Tired of Me Lorenzi - Lonely Cowboy Tales (Crayon Moon Remix) LSDXOXO - Devil’s Chariot Maria BC - Still Maria BC - Watcher mark william lewis - Living Mc LcKaiique, MC Celo BK & DJ Jeeh FDC - Quem Tá de Motão, Vou Sarrar Puta Na Marcone (ft. DJ Biel Divulga) ML Buch - High speed calm air tonight Nation & Ecco2k - Ça Va Nicole Dollanganger - Gold Satin Dreamer Nourished by Time - Rain Water Promise Oliver Coates - One Without Oneohtrix Point Never - Krumville Purelink - We Should Keep Going Shoi Miyazawa - Rough and Decent Slayyyter - Miss Belladonna Sufjan Stevens - Shit talk Tim Hecker - Total Garbage Tirzah - u all the time Troye Sivan - Got Me Started Wild Nothing - Suburban Solutions Yves Tumor - Echolalia Yves Tumor - Fear Evil Like Fire µ-Ziq - 4am

mixes: CFCF - CFCF for TERMINAL 27 Chuquimamani-Condori - Fact Mix 937 PC Music - 10 Physical Therapy - car culture remissions vol. 4 plush - LIVE AT SKSKSKSK S-candalo - Fact Mix 897 WHY BE - OdyXxey Radio Mix

movies: Afire (Christian Petzold) All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (Laura Poitras) E6-D7 (Eno Swinnen) Evil Dead Rise (Lee Cronin) Grown in Darkness (Devin Shears) How Do You Live? (Hayao Miyazaki) The Killer (David Fincher) Killers of the Flower Moon (Martin Scorsese) Knock at the Cabin (M. Night Shyamalan) Last Summer (Catherine Breillat) May December (Todd Haynes) Oppenheimer (Christopher Nolan) The Outwaters (Robbie Banfitch) Rotting in the Sun (Sebastián Silva) Showing Up (Kelly Reichardt) The Zone of Interest (Jonathan Glazer)

games: Alan Wake II Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon Baldur’s Gate III Blasphemous II Diablo IV Humanity Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Lies of P Metroid Prime Remastered Octopath Traveler II Pikmin 4 Star Ocean: The Second Story R Super Mario Bros. Wonder Theatrhythm Final Bar Line Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty

[babywchronicles]

Review: The Junior Witch’s Handbook

Here's a review of The Junior Witch’s Handbook: A Kid’s Guide to White Magic, Spells, and Rituals, By Nikki Van De Car and Illustrated by Uta Krogmann.

I thought to myself as I was browsing through my local library’s catalogue: “Why not start basic?” And to me, when I saw this book on witchcraft for children, that seemed about as basic as you could get. “Speak to me like a child,” I told this book. “Talk to me like I know nothing.”

The books isn’t long, about 100 pages, but it is Junior Fiction, so one shouldn’t expect anything grandiose. Though, there are some books for adults on witchcraft that don’t top that, so who am I to judge? More important than length is that this book packs a lot of information in it for the page count.

There are a range of ideas, spells, and rituals in this book—as one would expect—but it’s all kept simple. The language is age-appropriate, which means it is very concise and easy to understand. The book doesn’t complicate things the way some “adult” witch books do. That is a very good thing for kids, but I think I also got a lot out of it. There was the information I wanted to know, written in a way that was easy to understand, and was accessible to me as someone who is, though I started looking into it years ago, still very new. A “Baby Witch” as it were. Read on under the cut.

The book is separated into sections: An introduction, a list of things needed for witchcraft—so far, so standard—and then breaks the spells and rituals following into those of “Friends”, “Fulfillment”, and “Family”. A glossary sits at the end, which I love for all informational books, honestly, and feel as though I am rarely granted.

The “Things You’ll Need” section goes over tools and supplies: Altar, Crystals, Herbs, Essential Oils, all that good stuff. It also has a table of different things you can substitute in for other things. Like, this is the best thing ever. I’m sure some out there will insist that you have to have THE right ingredients every single time, but I have no money, so this sort of thing is a life saver. I don’t necessarily need permission to mix and match, but having a handy little table there for me to reference is amazing. Takes the pressure off.

Breaking the book down into the three main components—friends, fulfillment, and family—is so good. To kids, those things are very central to their lives (And non-kids too, let’s be real here).

In the friends section alone, the book goes through sending out energy to invite new friends, how to connect with friends through witchcraft, strengthening friendships, but also—and this is so cool to me—has a while subsection called “Healing�� that goes through meditations for anger, compassion, and letting go of hurt feelings. There is acknowledgment here that friends and life sometimes go wrong, people fight, feelings get hurt… And the book stresses this, and then gives methods of handling it positively. How cool is that!?

In the “Fulfilment” section, there is a good amount of self care talked about, and how to accomplish that through witchcraft. There is talk of luck, creativity, courage—but there is also a ritual for loving yourself when things go wrong; how to center yourself so you can try again. It also talks about making your own oracle deck, which sounds like the best idea for me, honestly. I just can’t get one to work for me. Thank you, witchcraft for children book. You the grace I needed right now.

The book further goes into things like cleansing, having a guardian for your home, celebrations (wheel of the year type stuff) in the “Family” section. All good stuff.

And you want to know WHAT ELSE is good about this book? The rituals, spells, and the like are often 1 or 2 pages of information. This is the sort of non-complicated, simple, PLEASE-talk-to-me-like-I’m-11 stuff I need in my life. It’s undaunting. It’s useful. It’s accessible. I want o hold this book to the moon and scream in relief and thanks.

This books teaches about magic, while also acknowledging key importances around making friends, being with your family, and loving yourself. And, as I have said before, it talks to you like you are new, like you don’t know the detailed concepts, big words, or complex ideas… And for someone who is so easily put off by complexity when I know nothing, this is so good for me.

Take note, Adult Witchcraft Books: Stop being so serious and complicated. A little care and gentleness for your friends, your family, yourself, and your readers is good for the soul. Well done.

Two thumbs up from me. How do rating systems go? I might buy this book.

[thevagabondexpress]

persona, shadow, and james herondale (aka i think i know what's going on with that guy in the midnight heir)

In Shadow Magic, Nikki Van De Car tells us that Carl Jung's persona archetype takes its name from the Latin word for mask. She explains that this is the face you present to the outside world: the initial outer shell of the matryoshka that is you. She writes, "From the time we were young children, we learned to embody our persona. [ . . . ] However, as with the shadow, if we aren't conscious of it, the persona can take over and cause us to lose sight of who we are beneath it."

For those unfamiliar with Jung's archetypes, the shadow is the regulating body of the unconscious, just as the ego is the steering wheel that drives our conscious, waking life, helps us decide what to prioritize and to eat for lunch and to wear to the gym, and when to call Kelsey (if you even should). Like our heart and lungs, our shadow operates mostly involuntarily on the things our ego doesn't register, or purposefully sets aside. Hence why "holding it in" when it comes to emotions is a bad idea. However, when the shadow isn't well integrated with the rest of yourself, one of two things happens: either the shadow takes over, or the persona does.

And this is exactly what happens to James Herondale.

Looking closely at silver bracelet enchantment and the way it acts upon James's mind, it doesn't actually make him fall in love with Grace. The actual purpose of the bracelet curse was twofold: it separated James's ego & persona from his shadow, and it placed Grace in control of all three. With his shadow, the part that wanted and felt and fought neatly out of the way, he was made vulnerable to brainwashing as he hadn't been before.

When people around James, like Matthew and Cordelia, speak of the Mask, when they're noticing is that James doesn't have a shadow any more. He barely has an ego. He's a papier-mâché of a polite, handsome young bookworm but there's nothing inside there. The shadow and to an extent the anima are particularly gutted. Grace then assumes for James the role of the other parts: she and her shadow regulate for James. No wonder he feels no desire for her, thinking it not in his nature, and they barely kiss: Grace feels no desire for him, and as her shadow regulated his, it kept him from acting on her and Tatiana's conscious command to want.

When the bracelet is taken from him or when, in Chain of Iron, it breaks, James's shadow comes flooding back. And, because James isn't used to having a shadow, because he has no experience of regulating such a thing, it takes over. And it goes after Cordelia. James's shadow remembers her when his persona does not and his shadow is, well, a shadow: it holds the reins of his emotions, of his subconscious, of his desires, of everything he's been forced to keep down for four, five years of his life. No wonder that when plunged into its grip all James can feel is want. Almost every "consuming shadow" moment we see in Chain of Gold and Chain of Iron are tinged with lust. But, with the Shadow still choking out all else, when faced with Grace at the end of Chain of Iron, all that's left of James is rage.

James's shadow talks a lot in Chain of Thorns and . . . it's not very nice, quite frankly. It's not nice in bed (he shoots a lock out, very nearly just takes Daisy on the stairs) and it's not nice in anger either. Shadows are rarely nice, but James's is particularly vicious. No wonder. He's never had a chance to sit with it, to hear it out, to integrate its beat and rhythm. His shadow has been neglected and that side of him isn't happy about it.

To be fair, "Chain of Shadows" would've made a too-apt alternate title for Chain of Thorns seeing as, well, that's what it is: from Matthew and Cordelia in Paris to Jesse on the rooftop and Anna in the catacombs, the book is full of everyone's shadows talking, and talking to each other. Arguably, however, Thomas's shadow talks most in Chain of Iron, on his midnight patrols.

Crucially, I think the persona/shadow theory of the bracelet could explain the phenomena known as "whatever the hell was going on with James in The Midnight Heir." Perhaps, when Grace attempts to call it off, she gives James's shadow back to him as well. What she means to do is give back his emotions, his ability to feel and love. There's no way Tatiana would've known how the bracelet actually works much less that she would have explained it to Grace, that's not Tatiana's way of being in the world. But if the function of the bracelet is to split the shadow from the ego & persona, it means he can only hold one or the other. James in TMH is Mr. Hyde. Unlike Chain of Thorns where he's trying and failing and learning to integrate all the parts of himself into a whole, James in The Midnight Heir is all shadow and absolutely none of the rest. His conscience, his ego, his values and morals are all taken away from him. He's vicious and feral and very nearly gets himself and several other people killed. Personally, it was a good thing Grace returns James's persona and takes his shadow back and chooses to wait for a time when she can take the bracelet off and end things completely: in removing his persona, she created a monster. I can only imagine her horror when she realized what she'd done.

Tl; dr: James Herondale plotline based in Jungian psychology. ChoG + ChoI James all persona and no shadow, TMH James all shadow and no persona, and ChoT is where he starts integrating them together. Can't confirm this is how Cassandra Clare's mind was working when she wrote it but the shoe sure as hell fits.

tiny tags: @emmalovesfitzloved @tleeaves @faithfromanewperspective @chaosandtwo @alastairstom and @quantummeep. also tagging @smartest-avenger because i happen to know you're a psychology enthusiast and i want your thoughts.

[jasper-pagan-witch]

The Four Agreements, The Te of Piglet, Practical Black Magic by Sophia diGregorio, Year of the Witch by Temperance Alden, Book of Crystal Healing by Liz Simpson, Shadow Magick Compendium by Raven Digitalis, Light Magic for Dark Times, Circle Round, Circle Cove and Grove, Cassandra Easons Illustrated Crystal whatever book, Spellcasting by Michael Furie, Basic Witches, Spiritual Alchemy by Jenny Tyson, A Witches Bible, Wicca a Year and a Day, Wiccapedia.

Anything by Cunningham, Judika Illes, Skye Alexander, Nikki van de car, Tess Whitehurst, Cerridwn Greenleaf, Harmony Nice, Raymond Buckland...

Same for these, I wish I had a little more information.

~Jasper

[mirajanefairytailmage]

Spirit Of Old Facebook

Practical Magic A Beginner's Guide by Nikki Van De Car

Litha (LIE-tha) also known as Midsummer Night's Eve. Usually celebrated on the Summer Solstice, on or around June 21st.

Colors: yellow, green, and gold.

Stones: emerald and gold.

Herbs: mugwort, vervain, chamomile, yarrow, lavender, and thyme.

Ways to Celebrate:

Light a bonfire and leap over it-the highest leap will determine the height of your crop this year.

Create a wreath of flowers to toss into the fire.

Harvest St. John's wort and decorate your home with it, along with rue, trefoil, roses, and vervain.

Sleep with any of the above under your pillow to encourage good dreams.

Hold an overnight vigil-or just get up early to watch the sun rise.

[mrknaogan]

Actually remembered to take a photo of a finished project. Baby cardy for blorbo from my work.

Unsure what the yarn is, it is sock yarn but from very deep stash.

Pattern is Maile by Nikki Van De Car.

[blessed-be11]

ˋˏ-༻Monthly Cinnamon Ritual༺-ˎˊ

Intent: To channel abundance and prosperity.

Source: https://www.wellandgood.com/cinnamon-abundance/ (shortened version below)

"Cinnamon is associated with energizing, stimulating the senses, and promoting a sense of vitality and productivity, all of which are necessary for abundance."

—Nikki Van De Car, mystic and author of Shadow Magic

According to Skye Alexander, author of The "Kitchen Witch", cinnamon can be particularly useful to “spark career success or attract financial gain, especially if you’ve been stuck in a rut for a while.”

Cinnamon’s antiseptic qualities can also help remove blockages and clear the path to abundance, says spiritual advisor and tarot reader-- Meghan Rose.

"When you’re doing any type of abundance ritual", Alexander says "it’s also important to be in the right mindset." A ritual’s power comes from your intention and your willpower,” she says. “The more enthusiasm, clarity, and energy you can bring to the ritual the better.” Van De Car adds that it’s important to think carefully about what you really want before embarking on any abundance ritual—and to stay true to that desire, not what you think you should want based on the desires of others.

"As with all spiritual practices, there is no guaranteed result from practicing a cinnamon ritual", says Rose. "But", she adds, "if you approach it with an open heart, the evidence of more abundance can quickly show up in your life. While it's possible that it could arrive in the form of literal money, you might also expect more abundant energy, gratitude, love, fun, or joy."

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

☆ What To Do ☆

1.) Do this ritual on the first of the month.

“Metaphorically, when we see the first of the month, it represents a new chapter or period of time, So, if we are hoping to start a new chapter with abundance, doing the ritual on the first of the month simply amplifies the intention of starting anew. As the moon’s light grows, so will your abundance.”

2.) Set an intention out loud.

“The intention sets the tone and lets the universe know exactly what you want”

Recite this intention:

"𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘴, 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳. 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘴, 𝘢𝘣𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘺. 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘴, 𝘢𝘣𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘰 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘦."

This amplifies the energy that you are ready to receive and confirms to the universe that you are unafraid of the abundance coming to you and your home. The most important thing is to do what is aligned for you, so if repeating it internally feels good, you can do that, too.

3.) Blow the cinnamon into your home.

Next comes the fun part: literally blowing cinnamon (and, in turn, abundant vibes) into your home. Place about a tablespoon of ground cinnamon into the palm of your non-dominant hand, open your front door so the door faces inside (if possible), stand outside the door, and blow three times to sprinkle the cinnamon in the threshold. You may also add salt, which has protective properties in rituals, to your cinnamon. Combining cinnamon with salt will help to protect you and your blessings from outside forces, so they do not get derailed as they make their way to you

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

☆ Other Ways To Embrace A cinnamon Ritual For Abundance ☆

1. Lightly dust cinnamon into your wallet

If you're wondering how to use cinnamon to attract money, specifically, cleaning out your wallet (to help clear any stagnant energy) and dusting a light coating of ground cinnamon inside it to amplify your earning potential. Bonus points if you sprinkle it on silver coins.

2. Cook And Bake With Cinnamon

One of the easiest ways to reap cinnamon’s abundance is to cook and bake with it. Bake some snickerdoodles and set a clear intention as you sprinkle in your teaspoon of ground cinnamon, and you'll have cast a spell and have a delicious snack.

If you’re more into drinking your cinnamon, try drinks like cinnamon water and cinnamon tea.

(Personal note: I like to add it to my morning coffee!)

You can also brew an herbal tisane that features cinnamon and other plants associated with abundance, including rosemary for focus, mint for clarity and positivity, and fresh ginger for energy.

Steep mint leaves, sliced fresh ginger, a cinnamon stick, and one rosemary sprig for at least 10 minutes in boiling water to make it.

Use the time spent waiting for your tea to brew to plot out actionable steps you can take toward an abundant goal in a journal

3. Use Cinnamon Essential Oil In Your Home

Another easy cinnamon ritual? Using cinnamon essential oil to infuse your home with abundant energy. To do so, put a few drops of cinnamon essential oil into your floor cleaner and clean the floors of your home once per month. You can also light cinnamon-scented candles in your home or rub taper candles with cinnamon essential oil before lighting them.

4. Make Cinnamon Potpourri Or Simmer Pots

An aromatic potpourri will help cinnamon’s powers emanate throughout your home. Gather cinnamon sticks, cloves, ginger, and orange peels in a bowl. Stir the ingredients with a cinnamon stick several times a day to stir up opportunities for success.

You could also put these ingredients into a pot on your stove and simmer them in hot water to tap into cinnamon’s abundance properties while spreading the pleasant aroma throughout your home.

[oppaihun]

Also I have two pretty good baby witch books and a set of rune cards if anyone would just like those. I’ll fr just give them to you.

Cards I got off Etsy from a seller called kissesfromibiza, the two books in question are The Witches Way by Leanna Greenaway and Shawn Robins, and Calming Magic by Nikki Van De Car.

[yarnreader]

April Wrap-Up (5/11/21)

https://youtu.be/Htscn7fVMLo

Thanks for watching!

Books mentioned:Small Spaces by Katherine ArdenThe Disaster Tourist by Yun Ko-eunHow to Read Tarot: A Practical Guide by Adams MediaSaga, Vol. 5-8 by Brian K. Vaughan Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-GarciaBlack Sun by Rebecca RohanhorseBronte by Manuela SantoniCheer Up: Love and Pompoms by Crystal FrasierRunaways: Marvel Age, Vol. 1: The Pride by Brian K. Vaughan Practical Magic: A Beginner's Guide to Crystals, Horoscopes, Psychics, and Spells by Nikki Van De Car

Blog: https://yarnreader.blogspot.com/Etsy store:https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheYarnReaderShop?ref=seller-platform-mcnav

Where to find me: Instagram: yarnreader Twitter: @yarnreader_Sam Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5832652-samantha-williams

[catdemontraphouse]

Tagged by @salieri27 !

Fave color: blue

Reading: Magical Places (Nikki Van De Car &Katie Vernon)

Last song: AIの逃避行 (KIRINJI)

Last movie: Shaolin Soccer lol

Last Series: Wednesday

Currently Craving: rocks (not to eat to look at😂)

Currently working on: trying to make a digital tarot deck… again

Tea vs coffee: def tea

@pretty-pastel-kitty @blackberry-venom @giogio-gucci-gangstar @javerticles @jackandthedevil @lesbian-kars

tagged by @notyouraveragejulie 

favorite color: pink 

reading: Big Nate comics 

last song:  poker face by lady Gaga 

last movie:  hamlet ( 1996) 

last series: that Les Mis 2000 miniseries with Gerard Depardeui .

currently craving: nothing 

currently working on: nothing 

tea or coffee: coffee 

tagging @catdemontraphouse @pilferingapples @until-another-one-comes @barb-animation-fan18 @brotherdusk

[jackalgirl]

Stubbornness

Me, yesterday: Today, I am going to get all caught up with my correspondence.  And I’m going to experiment with the sewing machine so I can finish the Hellvet Bag.  And I might even fell down some of the hems of the linen tunic I actually sewed, with only a single drop of blood to appease the demon sewing machine, and which actually fits the Next Generation (the tunic, not the sewing machine).  But first, I will knit the one part of Nikki Van De Car’s “Maile Sweater” that is actually hellaciously difficult for me, so that it is out of the way.

Me:  There!  Done with the sweater part and ready to move on!  Why do I feel exhausted?

Me, looking at the clock, seeing that it is eight-thirty in the evening, and having accomplished absolutely nothing else: Time for bed!

TL;DR: there’s an error in the pattern plus I made some mistakes, and it took me all day to figure it out, because dammit I’m not going to let a pattern beat me like that.

I have placed the fix to the pattern, followed by the full story*, under the cut, if you like gory knitting stories.

* I’ve Suffered For My Art and Now You Will, Too...but only if you wanna.  Because I absolutely hate the “shaggy dog” style of recipe or crafting instruction, where you have to endure a story before you get to the actual instruction.  So I put the correction first.

First, the pattern: https://beacon.by/nikki-van-de-car/maile - it is free and adorable and is one of my two go-to patterns when I’m making jackets for friends’ freshly-sprouted or soon-to-be-sprouting sprogs. 

In the Yoke section, the first part should read:

K yoke to 8 sts before marker, ssk, pm, k6, remove m.  K7 from the 1st sleeve, pm, k2tog. K to 3 sts before end of sleeve, ssk, pm, k to end of sleeve.  K1 stitch from back, k2tog, k to 3 sts before marker, ssk, k1, remove m, k1 st from second sleeve, pm, k2tog, k to 9 sts before end of sleeve, ssk, pm, k to end of sleeve.  K6 sts from left front, pm, k2tog, k to end.

The bolded part is what’s different from Nikki’s original pattern. 

When you are done with this row, you should have 203 stitches on your needles, separated into seven (7) sections:

The middle section (”center back”): 59 stitches. 

The two sections on either side of this (”shoulders”): 36 stitches each. 

Continuing outwards, the next two sections (”lace sections”): 13 stitches each. 

Finally, the last two sections (”jacket fronts”): 23 stitches each.

The pattern’s error is that is has you place the fourth marker two stitches too early, and you end up with 57 stitches in the center back and 38 stitches in the second shoulder section.

Note: from this point onward, you will be decreasing by 8 stitches in every odd-numbered row.  You will repeat lace pattern #2 a total of three times, losing 120 total stitches overall.  This means when you finish the lace pattern’s row 9 for the third time, you’ll have 83 stitches on your needle (8, 13, 6, and 29 sts in the jacket front, lace, shoulder, and center back sections respectively).

The pattern tells you to stop when you have 83 stitches, but go ahead and knit a “wrong-side” button hole row, so that your jacket ends up with four (4) button holes.  Then continue on as per the pattern until you are done.

The pattern doesn’t tell you you have to seam up the sleeves on the undersides, but you do.  Take care to close up the hole in the armpit that is a consequence of inserting all those sleeve stitches between two adjacent jacket stitches.

Oh, look!  A shaggy dog!  (Abandon all hope, etc.)

The original pattern has you knit the sleeves in the flat (from the cuffs upward).  Then, after you’ve knitted up the bottom part of the jacket, this first part of the Yoke section has you knit the sleeves directly into the jacket: after having knitted up the bottom part of the jacket, you knit some stitches, then knit across the first sleeves’ stitches (with some decreases thrown in), then return to the jacket stitches (so you’ve just inserted all those sleeve stitches between two adjacent stitches of the jacket, which is tough), knit across the back, add the second sleeve in the same manner, then the rest of the jacket. 

You’re adding stitch markers along the way -- those sections are to allow you both to knit a section of lace on either side of the jacket’s front, but also to shape the jacket around the shoulders and neck.  So the sections -- and the markers -- are really really important. 

But the pattern does not have any indication of how many stitches should end up in each section.  Nor does it give you an overall stitch count when you are done with that row.  You finish the first part of the jacket with 119 stitches, and then you do this (IMO) technically difficult** step of knitting the sleeves directly into the jacket, with some decreases thrown in for good measure, and end up with...???

** I make it more difficult, of course, by not knitting the sleeves in the flat, so I am attaching tubes (much tension -- many strain) to the jacket instead of relatively flexible flat pieces.  More on that later, if you have not given up on me by then.

I feel like this is one of those patterns by a very accomplished and exceptionally skilled knitter, who is perhaps not taking into account that lesser knitters (like myself) are bound to make mistakes, and for me (ymmv), having stitch counts are really important for keeping track of whether or not I’ve made a mistake.  The lack of stitch counts isn’t a big deal, as long as you don’t make any mistakes.  And this also assumes that the pattern doesn’t contain any mistakes in the first place.

The two previous times I’ve knitted this jacket, not knowing about that error in the pattern and not having a stitch count to compare, I ended up with a not-symmetrical number of stitches in the shoulders of the jacket after attaching the sleeves.  I had chalked it up to a) making mistakes, as I do, and b) always getting excited to continue The Next Part and forgetting to double-check before I do so.  I in each of my previous two jackets, I ended up hiding a decrease in the second shoulder section and forging onward.

This time was no different and, naturally, I only noticed this until about five rows after, because I didn’t remember to double-check until then.  Also, I’d made some mistakes, because the shaping -- although absolutely lovely when it’s done -- is arranged in such a way as to form a pattern that is not sticky for the way my brain is wired to see patterns.  But this time, I remembered that this had happened the previous two times.  Though I was willing to admit that I’d made mistakes again, I began to suspect that there was a problem with the pattern itself.  And I was going to figure it out, by George!

I ended up breaking out the iPad and doing some drawing/counting illustrations in order to figure out what you’re supposed to have after that row of attaching the sleeves.  That’s what helped me recognize the error in the pattern, and why I was ending up with unequal shoulders (in addition to my mistakes).

Rather than frog all the way back to the sleeve attachment (I did not want to go through that again), I simply frogged that little bit of the jacket between the back and the incorrectly-numbered shoulder back to the row where I attached the sleeves, and (I used double-pointed needles for this) knitted the dropped stitches back up with everything shifted over so that the dividing line ended up where it needed to be.  I did the same thing to the other parts where I’d made mistakes (by forgetting to decrease where I was supposed to).��  That finally got me to the correct stitch count for the row I was on, with the correct number of stitches in each section. 

This was much more difficult than I’m making it sound, and figuring it out took me all day (and made me cranky, for which I profusely apologized to the Better Half who, to give him credit, demonstrated the “Better” part of that moniker, for which I am very grateful).

Aunt Lorenza’s Modifications - or - Oh look! Another shaggy dog!  (if you’re still with me, blessings be upon you)

As mentioned, I didn’t knit the sleeves in the flat.  I knitted them using the magic loop method, on a circular needle, two-at-a-time.  I did cut the yarn (Nikki recommends you not do this) after they were done, but left a decently long tail (3-4 inches, or 7-10 cm) to take care of the underarm hole.

If you want to do the sleeves this way, you will need extra equipment: five (5) US x double-pointed knitting needles, and an additional set of US x circular needles with a decently long cable (the longer, the better, but no fewer than 24″/61 cm).

Note: I say “x” because what size needle you use depends on your yarn and what size you’re shooting for.  I used fingering-weight yarn and US 4 (3.5mm) needles, but you might end up using something else.  Just make sure they’re all the same size.

First, knit the sleeves, using the magic loop method for circular knitting.  I modified the pattern by casting on using the Chinese Waitress cast-on for the sleeves, so that the cuff would be extra stretchy.

When you are done: transfer the first sleeve to DPNs as so:

from the start of the sleeve’s round, 11 sts on the first needle, 12 sts each on the second and third needles, 11 sts on the fourth needle. 

Note: This is going to help split up the strain on the tube as you’re knitting it into the jacket.  It’ll be easier on your hands, your needles, and also the fabric.

Leave the second sleeve on your original needles and set aside.

Take up your second set of cable needles and knit the jacket.  I used the crochet cast-on so that I would have a braided edge, taking the extra step of deliberately twisting the stitches so that it would be a twisted braid.  I also added a stitch to either side (I cast on 133 sts vice 133) and slipped the first stitch of each row purlwise, knitting it on the return, so that the edges would also have a twisted braid.

In the Yoke section, when you get to the first sleeve (on its DPNs), use the fifth DPN to knit the sleeves’ stitches off of the first DPN, when then becomes your right-hand needle.  Continue in this manner, knitting around the sleeve stitches, as per the pattern.

When you reach the end of the sleeve, pick up the next jacket stitch with your original (circular) needle.  This part takes patience, because all these needles want to be in the way of each other and the yarn, and of course the DPNs want to slide out of the loops.  So go slow for this part.

Follow the pattern until you have gotten 10 or so stitches across the back -- or until it feels relatively secure to you.

You’re now going to need to get the sleeve stitches onto your cable needle (pulling up a loop in the middle of the sleeve so that it lays flat) and free up the DPNs for the next sleeve.  As soon as you get two DPNs free, stop and get the second sleeve off of the other end of the holding cable (half of the sts on one needle, half on the other).  When all of the DPNs are free, set up the second sleeve as you did the first.

Continue with the yoke, adding the second sleeve as the pattern directs.  Leave these DPNs in the second sleeve stitches after you have finished attaching the sleeve so that they can take up the strain.

When you are done with this row and the sleeves are on, knit your wrong-side return -- the DPNs will help you manage the strain on the fabric when you reach the sleeves.  Eventually, as you keep adding rows, you’ll get far enough past the sleeves that you’ll be able to remove the DPNs and the extra cable needle.  And then you can just knit as the pattern is written and you should be fine.

Enjoy!

[dastardlybookdragon]

New Books!

Practical Magic: A Beginners Guide to Crystals, Horoscopes, Psychic, & Spells - Nikki Van De Car

💜 Covers a little of everything (Sabbats, Herbs, Crystals, Dream Interpretations, spells, etc) has super cute graphics.

Inner Witch: A Modern Guide to the Ancient Craft - Gabriela Herstik

💜 Also a little of everything (sabbats, chakras, herbs tarot, etc), no graphics.

Keeping Her Keys: An Introduction to Hekate’s Modern Witchcraft - Cyndi Brannen

💜 On the topic of Hekate, havent read just yet but was recommended to me for research on Hekate.

[traegorn]

Why is it every time I find a new book not claiming to be about Wicca, it always is 🙄 I am wiccan but its like this is why everyone hates us. I've been reading Practical Magic a Beginner's Guide to Crystals, Horoscopes, Psychics and Spells by Nikki Van De Car. The art in this thing is beautiful but it is full of closed practices, false info, and pretending that Wicca is the only pagan religion there is. And it claims to be an intro to the occult. Nothing in any of the descriptions says anything about Wicca but she's using wicca interchangeably with pagan. Idk. I needed to vent to someone who is also wiccan. I see this stuff and im like yeah I see why the internet hates wiccans and I wish people would stop doing it. Ugh ugh ugh

I haven't read any Nikki Van De Car, but yeah -- this shit happens constantly.

There's a reason why when I hear someone say Wiccans are the worst... I usually respond with "Yeah, I know..." and then add on ten more things to complain about.

But the first clue that it wasn't going to be historically significant was the inclusion of crystals in the title. That's very much a modern addition to witchcraft.

[luthienne]

hello there ,i love your blog it brings me great comfort , if it's not too much trouble could you make a compilation about unrequited love, my situation is the i'm in love with someone that just wants to take from me and give nothing back, i will break up with him today but i'm feelling very sad about this , i hope you are doing well and have good things in life bye bye and sorry to bother you

i’m so sorry for what you’re going through but so proud of you for walking away. you can check out this compilation that i made; here are a few more:

“My heart is full not of guilt, or shame, or remorse, but of grief… Everything has become too terribly mixed up.”

Boris Pasternak, from Letters Summer 1926: Pasternak, Tsvetaeva, Rilke

“But if it’s love, by God, what is this thing? If good, why then the bitter mortal sting?”

Petrarch, from the ‘Canzoniere’ (tr. Mark Musa)

“He filled her up, her whole world, a moon obliterating the light of any other star.”

Catherynne M. Valente, from Deathless

Anne Carson, from Plainwater: Essays and Poetry

“If I let him do this to me, what else will I allow? Anything, anything, anything.”

Catherynne M. Valente, from Deathless

“God, what are you doing to me? / What am I doing to myself?”

Adonis, from ‘Concerto for the Veiled Christ’, Selected Poems (tr. Khaled Mattawa)

David Mitchell, Slade House

Jeanette Winterson, Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit

“I want to give you everything. This is called a sickness.”

Camille Rankine, from Possession

“Love that incorporates, that devours the other person, that cuts the tendons of the will. Love as immolation of the self.”

Susan Sontag, from Reborn: “July, 1958”

“Love isn’t always magic. Sometimes it’s just melting. Where it’s black and blue. Where it hurts the most.”

Andrea Gibson, from The Madness Vase; “Maybe I Need You”

“Love? I wanted to go with him, to be on the strong side, for him to spare me, like one who seeks shelter in the arm of the enemy to stay far from his arrows. It was different than love, I was finding out: I wanted him as a thirsty person desires water, without feelings, without even wanting to be happy.”

Clarice Lispector, Complete Stories

“Isn't there / always something we want / more than our own happiness? / A pull toward the Fall. / Haven't we all loved too much?”

Danusha Laméris, from The Moons of August; “Apples”

Yves Olade, from When Rome Falls; Bloodsport, 2017

“You have done this a hundred times. Will always do it. Always. I’m so tired of your lack of everything thoughtful, wise about you. You act like a child, a child that just asks and asks and never thinks and sucks one to death, and I’m sitting here crying because it’s so hopeless to ever expect you to be otherwise.”

Anaïs Nin, in a letter to Henry Miller

“Why should anyone go through so much in order to be treated right?”

Alice Notley, Culture of One

“Another moment and I will tell you: it’s not joy but torture you give me.  I’m drawn to you as to a crime—”

Osip Mandelstam, from Selected Poems; “Feodosia”

“I felt a terrified pity for him, for this man who lived in such strange, secret places that, if I loved him enough to follow him, I should have to die.”

Angela Carter, from The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories; “The Bloody Chamber”

Ingeborg Bachmann, from The Book of Franza (tr. Jan van Heurck)

“Desolately we parted. Dear one. When we really parted later on, there were no tears, no comfort either. Something like anger on your side, resolution on mine; each of us understood the other. We were not yet through with each other. To separate that way is harder, easier.”

Christa Wolf, Cassandra: A Novel and Four Essays (tr. Jan van Heurck)

[ON LOSING LOVE]: This is the model I propose. You are arriving home and as you approach the garage you try to work your routine magic. Nothing happens; the doors remain closed. You do it again. Again nothing. At first puzzled, then anxious, then furious with disbelief, you sit in the driveway with the engine running; you sit there for weeks, months, for years, waiting for the doors to open. But you are in the wrong car, in front of the wrong garage, waiting outside the wrong house. One of the troubles is this: the heart isn't heart shaped.

Julian Barnes, A History of the World in 10 and 1/2 Chapters

Rainer Maria Rilke, The Book of Images

“It isn’t, our story isn’t—isn’t a story anyone would have chosen to live. But, I had to ask myself…would you change it if you could? Would you? And I had to realize that I wouldn’t. So—that’s all there is to that.”

James Baldwin, Tell Me How Long the Train’s Been Gone

Nikki Giovanni, from “[Untitled]”

...nothing remains of you but the memory of something painful, close to breaking or being lost, and somehow very near extinction.

...no me queda de ti más que esa reminiscencia de una cosa doliente, próxima a quebrarse o a perderse, cerca ya, de cualquier manera a su extinción.

Dulce María Loynaz, Absolute Solitude: Selected Poems; “Poema LVI” (tr. James O’Connor)

Sandra Cisneros, “Mariela”

[dragons-breathwitch]

Some Aural Color Correspondences for your Grimoire, taken from the book "Practical Magic" by Nikki Van de Car

[beautiful-and-terrible]

dazed ‘n’ confused (part 4)

A/N: just a quick chapter for you guys before i have to put this story on the back burner :( i have an annual essay coming up in school that i gotta focus on. anyway, hope you like the gangs drunk shennanigans

Ship: Rodrick Heffley / OFC

Warnings: underage drinking / drug use, inebriated driving (DONT DRIVE DRUNK KIDS THIS IS A FICTIONAL STORY DONT BE STUPID :) )

---

“If we get caught, my mom’ll kill me,” Rodrick groaned.

“Let’s bounce,” Nicole said, untangling herself from him and grabbing his hand as they ran further into the back yard, looking for an escape route.

“I’ll boost you,” Rodrick said, gesturing to the fence. Nicole nodded, not thinking of a better plan, and wanting to get out of there as fast as possible. She stepped into the make-shift step Rodrick made with his palms, and as she swung a leg over the fence, he pushed her the rest of the way. It wasn’t the most graceful execution, and she ended up landing on her ass with a grunt of pain.

Rodrick also clumsily made his way over the fence - both of them being drunk and high didn’t help their coordination much. “Sorry, are you good?” Rodrick said, clutching his shin, and Nicole waved him off.

“It’s fine, let's just get to the van.”

“Oh, fuck, the van!” Rodrick hissed, “The pigs are totally gonna know it’s mine.” With a big fucking stupid band name written on the side, Nicole reckoned he was right - it was pretty easy to identify, even without the plates.

“I can drive, don’t worry,” Nicole said, already starting toward the white van, creeping between other cars on the street.

“Nikky, you’re as trashed as I am, no way am I letting you drive.”

“Trust me, hot Rod,” Nicole said, slipping her hand into his front pocket and pulling out his keys before he could even blink. As they approached his van, Chris and Ben appeared in the shadows next to them, whispering excitedly as they spotted them.

“As soon as we saw the lights we bolted,” Ben snickered, but Chris looked concerned.

“Yo, I hope Caitlin doesn’t get arrested. There was a lotta booze in there,” he muttered, and Ben smacked his arm.

“You whipped, dude?”

Chris scoffed, “No, I would just feel bad for anyone in that sitch.”

“I agree,” Nicole said, feeling guilty that she couldn’t help Caitlin get out of trouble.

“C’mon, let’s fucking go,” Rodrick said, and all at once the four of them dashed to the van. Nicole jumped in the driver's seat, shoving the key in the ignition with some fumbling, and peeling out from their parking spot across the street from Caitlin’s house with enough force to make even Rodrick proud.

“We’ll make a NASCAR driver out of you yet, Nikky,” Rodrick laughed, whooping as he leaned his head out the window like a dog, the night air tangling through his hair. Ben scrambled up to the front seat from the back of the van, fiddling with the radio before he settled on a station playing “Where Is My Mind” by Pixies. Nicole turned up the volume to its top capacity, concentrating on the road lines in front of her. The adrenaline of avoiding the cops had sobered her up a little, but she was still feeling paranoid from the weed and drowsy from the beer. She drove as slowly as she dared so as not to seem suspicious. 

“Thanks for being our getaway driver, Nicole,” Chris said, his words slurring a little more than she had noticed previously. She looked back and saw him chugging a beer in the back.

“Dude, don’t fucking drink while I’m driving! We’re already in deep shit as it is,” Nicole said, turning on to the main street of downtown Plainview. Just a few more turns and they’d be home.

“You’re deep in something, alright,” Ben cackled, and he and Chris high-fived.

“Yeah, six inches deep in your mom,” Nicole shot back, and Rodrick let out an “ooooooo”, pointing at Ben, “Gotcha, bitch.”

Eventually, by some miracle, they made it to Nicole’s street. She hit the curb as she pulled up in front of her and Rodrick’s house, causing all three boys to shriek in unison. Nicole dissolved into giggles, both in relief of finally being out of danger and in reaction to the boys high-pitched screams of indignation.

“She’s an antique, Nikky!” Rodrick said, jumping out of the van to stumble to the front and assess the damage.

“Oh, I’m fine, by the way,” Nicole snarked, and Rodrick suddenly looked at her intensely, giving her a slightly blurry-eyed up-and-down look. 

“Fine as hell,” he muttered, loud enough for her to hear, and she blushed, biting her lip to keep from smiling too widely.

“Rodrick, can we crash at your place,” Ben asked, Chris making puppy dog eyes at him.

“Me too - I don’t wanna wake my parents up. Our front door is creaky as shit,” Nicole said.

Rodrick sighed loudly, as if he were being asked to do something terribly inconvenient. 

“Yeah, fine. Y’all want mac and cheese?”

The four of them, all drunk and high as kites, looked at each other and nodded in perfect synchronicity. 

As quietly as they could for four fucked up teenagers, they snuck their way into Rodricks kitchen. He pulled out a four pack of Kraft Mac and Cheese microwave cups from the pantry, filling them all with way too much water and sticking all four of them, at the same time, in the microwave.

“Dude, can I eat this beef jerky?” Chris asked, rummaging through the pantry.

“They’re my dads,” Rodrick said, as if that offered an explanation. “If you wanna explain to him why they’re gone, knock yourself out.”

Chris slowly put the bag back, looking put out.

Nicole stood next to Ben, both of them leaning on the kitchen counter. Nicole looked over at him, and he looked back, giving her a little smile. He wasn’t bad looking, but where as Rodrick was endearing because he tried to seem cool and really wasn’t, Ben had an effortless coolness about him.

“Thanks for coming with us tonight, Ben,” Nicole said. The alcohol must be making her feel emotional. After all, they had only just met today.

“Aww, Nikky, of course! I never pass up an opportunity for debauchery,” Ben said, giving her shoulder a squeeze. He pronounced debauchery like “de-booch-ery”, but Nicole was too drunk to catch the mistake. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Rodrick glaring at Ben. Dumbass, he has no reason to be jealous, Nicole thought to herself, and gave him a little reassuring wave by wiggling her fingers in his direction.

“Yo, be careful on this mac, its fucking hot,” Rodrick said, pulling the cups out of the microwave. They still had water in them, and the cheese powder wasn’t fully mixed in, but in the moment it was the most delicious thing Nicole had ever tasted.

“Should we watch a movie?” Ben suggested, and Chris bounced on his toes excitedly.

“Killer Clowns from Space!! Pleeeaaaase! You’ve been promising me for weeks now that we’d watch it.”

Ben sighed, Rodrick rolled his eyes, but Nicole had no opinion on the subject, so she made the executive decision to say, “I’m down.”

Ben and Rodrick both groaned, and Chris gave her a fist bump from across the kitchen island.

“Nikky has taste, sorry guys,” Chris said, looking very smug as he slurped his luke-warm mac and cheese.

They all somehow stumbled up to Rodrick’s room - Nicole belatedly realized she had been dreaming about being in his room for weeks, and now that she was here took the time to really appreciate what was in front of her.

A person’s room can tell you everything you need to know about them. For one, Rodrick was messy, but no more messy than any other average teenage boy. Clothes on the floor and the back of his desk chair, thrown haphazardly over a bean-bag in the corner of the room. There were christmas lights strung from the ceiling, both white and rainbow, that gave the room a cozy vibe that Nicole would’ve never expected from Rodrick.

His walls were mostly covered in band posters, and above his desk there was a cork board littered with tickets of concerts he had been to. Nicole almost seethed with jealousy at the sheer amount and quality of concerts he had been to - Leftover Crack, Pleasure Venom, Less than Jake, and one of Nicole’s personal favorites, Mannequin Pussy.

“You like Mannequin Pussy?” Nicole said, whipping her head around to look at Rodrick. 

“That's not the only kind of pussy he likes,” Ben hollered, causing Chris to smack him upside the head.

“There's a lady present, dumbass,” Chris said, and Ben raised his hands in surrender.

“I think you mean that’s the only kind of pussy he gets,” Nicole said, throwing a teasing wink toward Rodrick, who blushed bright red.

“Yeah, they’re good. Romantic is my favorite album,” Rodrick said, scratching the back of his neck self consciously. Ben and Chris started making kissing noises in his direction, and Rodrick threw a pillow at them.

As Chris and Ben fought over who would set up the projector, Nicole let her snooping instincts take over, looking at the other miscellaneous things Rodrick had around his room - empty liquor bottles filled with more lights, a surprising amount of books (mostly graphic novels), a lava lamp filled with miniature rubber ducks, and mushroom paraphernalia. Everywhere. His pillowcases, the tapestry above his bed, and the stickers on his water bottle all had holographic or brightly colored mushrooms on them. She was so absorbed in her investigation she didn’t even notice Rodrick next to her until he spoke.

“Committing it to memory? You might never be in here again,” Rodrick said with a small smirk. Nicole gave him a look out of the corner of her eye.

“I wouldn’t count on it, babe,” Nicole said boldly. She felt the warmth of Rodrick’s hand on her hip, and looked up at him. And his lips. She wanted to kiss him again so badly it was like a drug, her body telling her to get her next fix as quickly and as often as possible. Being in his space, the place he let himself be his most authentic self, was very intimate, even with Chris and Ben still arguing in the corner.

Rodrick looked away shyly, squeezing her hip once before turning back to the boys. Chris had evidently lost the rock-paper-scissors match to set up the movie on the projector, and was adjusting the screen on the far wall of Rodrick’s room, trying to find a website to pirate the movie from.

“If we’re gonna watch this shit let’s do it,” he said, settling himself in the beat up reclining chair he had, arms above his head. He should be illegal, Nicole thought to herself, making herself comfortable on the bed.

Which ended up being a mistake, because 20 minutes into the movie, Nicole was asleep. She felt a blanket being gently placed over her before she was dead to the world.