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doverstar · 2 years ago

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Hey there again! I'm the Say Anything (1989) Anon. I'm having a few thoughts which I'd be interested to hear your two cents on:

Chrissy and Eddie would not slot into each other's lives/interests easily. Chrissy especially is often shown getting into Eddie's pastimes and friendgroup too quickly (for me personally). The reverse (Eddie going around doing Chrissy things) is more rare, imo, because many fans relate more to Eddie, and there's very little canon about Chrissy's interests, goals, friends, etc. Both would be very supportive and willing to try things for each other, and would aquire their own tastes eventually, but there would be a lot of discomfort INITIALLY because they feel so alien to each other's worlds. So I think Eddie and Chrissy would keep any romance in a little two-person world for a bit, then open up to the wider opportunities and challenges of "opposites attract" (in quotes because they are not true opposites, both are sweet as can be).

(Content: references to subtances ahead) Yes, the forest scene happened because of a drug deal. However, I don't see getting stoned as an activity important to a HellCheer relationship.

I don't like it when some act like Steve and Eddie are interchangeable. Takes like "Eddie was created to keep Steve alive for another season" or "Steve should've died because that sacrifice would've been perfect and then we'd have more time with Eddie." They have distinct traits, relationships, and character arcs that cannot be replaced by the other. The one thing they have in common is looking after the younger ones and bonding with Dustin especially, and even THAT is approached very differently. I like both of these characters (Eddie is wonderful, Steve is my overall ST fave) and it diminishes the both of them to act like they could play the same role in the group.

Corroded Coffin probably wouldn't exist outside of Hawkins. It's fun to have them become really successful together, but unlikely. Each band member may have other goals/talents. Heck, we don't even know if pursuing music is EDDIE'S goal. If it is, he would be a session musician, join another band, or do the roadie thing maybe?

Cheers!

Hi again! 1. I agree! See here for my thoughts along this vein. 2. I agree with this, too. Chrissy is described more than once in a few different ways as someone who just would not do drugs recreationally. She wouldn't. Just because Eddie's her friend now or they're dating now (in an AU where both lived) does not mean she'd suddenly develop a taste for weed. I don't think she'd want to, I don't think it would appeal to her. And I don't think Eddie would try to make her into someone who does that with him. He does it, she doesn't mind, but they don't do it together. They don't need to to have fun or hang out. Ridiculous. 3. Yes! I don't think Eddie needed to die in S4. I think they could have found a way to show Hawkins he wasn't a murder in S5 and kept him on the run until then. I think his standing up to the bats and facing his fears by playing Master of Puppets and just generally returning to the Upside Down was quite enough of "not running away". His death was gruesome, unnecessary, and sort of cheap. Played up for tragedy, played up to evoke further sad reactions in the audience. Max was sad enough, even if she survived, albeit as a vegetable. We do not need to lose someone every season. A member of the Party did not have to die this season. They could've died in S5. And I doubt the writers sat and thought "Well, we know we're gonna 'kill' Max, but someone else needs to die. It can't be Steve, they love him too much. Let's make a new character and kill him instead, just so we reach the Realistic Death quota. Give Dustin some trauma. Good." No, I don't think that's why Eddie died. I think they wrote Eddie as a tragic character on purpose, planning to kill him off the whole time, because that sounds stronger emotionally, story-wise. And it had its big impact. The trouble was, the death did not make sense. So we're not only sad, we're furious. I'm trying to learn what to do and not to do when writing things, and the death of Eddie Munson is a big lesson, I feel. 4. I wrote some thoughts on this here, where I alluded to much the same thing! The only reason I assume that maybe Corroded Coffin would stay together outside of high school is because when Eddie is describing CC's gigs to Chrissy in canon, he jokes that The Hideout is "not exactly the Garden, but...gotta start somewhere" and while that might be referring to just his musical dreams, it's in the context of his own band. He's been with them since middle school (we don't know who's come and gone over the years in the band, but it's probably been much the same members for years) and they're actively trying to make a name for themselves by getting a standing gig at the same place every week. Maybe as they get older and each graduate, they would split up, that's realistic, but I think a handful of them would have a plan in place for really trying to make it big together. Otherwise, why are they spending so much time on the band? It doesn't seem like a fly-by-night thing for them, that's all I'm saying. I don't think they'd become super big later - I think Eddie clearly showed some real, serious talent. Able to play at least a little of Master of Puppets that soon after it was released, and that well? Come ON with it. So maybe Eddie would move on to brighter things, if the right people saw him play, and maybe he'd move on alone, but. Yeah, I dunno. Who knows what the future might've brought if the Duffers weren't lazy? They could write circles around me, what am I saying-

Thank you for sharing!

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annikasafternoonread · 3 years ago

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An Absolutely Remarkable Thing (by Hank Green) -- Part 2

Hello! Welcome to part 2 of the intro post for An Absolutely Remarkable Thing: Annika-has-feelings-about-Hank-Green-and-celebrity-culture edition. This post is less focused on the book itself and more just exploring general themes and ideas; you can find the post that looks more at the book specifically here.

So. An Absolutely Remarkable Thing is one of the coolest and most detailed explorations of celebrity that I’ve ever had the pleasure to experience. And it really is a pleasure. Not always fun, but so so good. It makes sense that Hank Green would have insights into that sphere of things, as someone who, well, started out as a normal (if comfortably wealthy) guy and then suddenly found himself accidentally skyrocketed into fame from making some fun videos. He was lucky, in that he was able to harness that attention and power and become stable and successful in his newfound role as an internet creator. But he was also lucky in that he had the right mindset or support systems or such to realize what he had, and the possibilities and drawbacks and responsibilities it came with.

Hank very much has a unique view into this, for several reasons. First of all, he was quite early to online fame -- VlogBrothers was started in 2007, and took off later that same year. For reference, YouTube itself was only two years old at that point; it started in 2005. So in the almost 15 years since, Hank has had the opportunity to see a lot of different stories play out among creators -- to see them explode in popularity and then fuck up spectacularly, or see them grow steadily and then burn out painfully, or see them take their fans for granted or even take advantage of them. Occasionally everything goes right, but it’s hard, and honestly it’s kind of rare. It’s hard to handle that kind of attention and numbers and power, hard to remain kind and humble and open, hard to listen to criticism without letting it break you and to not step too far out of line before you know better.

But another advantage he had was -- he was old. Not old-old, of course, but he was 27 when VlogBrothers exploded. When so many celebrities popping up these days (especially through social media) are teenagers, or early twenties at the oldest, 27 feels ancient. It meant that he had already lived in the world, already knew who he was and who he wanted to be, already had a strong self-image and strong values. And he had a strong support system around him through his family and friends -- including, of course, his co-VlogBrother, John Green. Having the responsibility and power of their work shared between them likely made a huge difference, as everything they did wasn’t just about one of them but about their shared brand, and they realized that and respected it and each other.

They recognized the power they wielded. They knew how easy it could be to misuse. They were very conscious of their status as role models. They cared about their community and their relationship with it. And there have been times where things were messy, where they made mistakes or said things they shouldn’t have or were mixed up in someone else’s mess. But they’ve always listened and apologized and learned and changed when they needed to. They’ve always encouraged kindness and compassion and hope and education, trying to provide it and nurture it in others around them. Hank has also talked about how he often reaches out to creators who he has heard rumours about or has concerns that they may be on the edge of abusing their power, to try to explain to them what that could mean and who they could hurt -- and hopefully to make them aware and cautious of those potential harms before things go too far.

Fame can be dangerous. That might or might not seem profound, but it’s very true, and it’s not talked about a lot. When I see famous people -- especially young people -- acting selfish or foolish or hubristic or uncaringly, yeah it makes me angry sometimes, but it also makes me sad. Because, think about it -- if you were 13 years old, and suddenly the world was laid in front of you... if you had more money than you could ever imagine, access to anything or anyone you wanted, if no one ever told you no and you had no one to keep you grounded... you’d probably get lost too. Think of how many child stars have flamed out, have lost themselves in subtances or had mental health crises or turned cruel and uncaring to the people around them or even their fans. It’s still a problem, to be sure, but the path from point A to point B is pretty clear. And I feel bad for those kids, who lost their way, who weren’t protected.

Social media has also had a huge impact on this stuff, of course. It’s so much easier for things to happen so much faster -- someone is nobody one day, and then the next day the world knows their name. It also means celebrities feel more accessible to their fans, and we often know a lot more about their personal or day-to-day lives. But sometimes fans can feel entitled to this information, or to the attention of the people they follow. It’s also easier for someone to say something offhand, without really thinking about it, and for that error to spread around the world in seconds. And you know as well as I do that internet culture is Not Great at accepting apologies or giving second chances. This also comes into play with how social media is almost a repository for all the dumb shit we said before we knew any better, and the internet loves digging up five year old mistakes that don’t represent someone now. I’m not excusing saying those kinds of things, and I don’t really have the patience to tease out the nuance of how “cancel culture” as a concept has been corrupted and twisted and used for a wild variety of things, but suffice to say there’s a lot of range between concepts like “I’m no longer buying work from an author because they turned out to be a ranging transphobe” and “anyone who likes this person’s music is terrible because the artist used a word they shouldn’t have five years ago when they were fourteen” and “this person got fired for discriminating against queer people” and “I’m not going to family Thanksgiving because none of my relatives are vaccinated and I have a heart condition.”

I’m starting to lose track of what I’m saying, so I’m going to wrap it up here. TL;DR is that Hank Green is super smart and has really unique insights into and experience with internet and celebrity culture, and I love seeing his takes on those concepts through this book. It’s a fantastic book, with complex and important ideas and themes but also a truly captivating story, and the story and the themes feed and nourish and grow each other so well. It’s just great.

I can’t wait to get started... but probably on Monday. I hope. Maybe Tuesday.

#annika reads #An Absolutely Remarkable Thing #Hank Green #book intro #bookshelf

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achtung-attitude · 5 years ago

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CHAPTER 31: Hotel California - Part 3

The pain of the effect gradually lessens, yet in spite of his best efforts, Kilo cannot find the strength to stand back up. Pins and needles prickle beneath his skin, crippling his left leg and right thigh, leaving both as useless pieces of flesh.

The cause of this effect, the bellboy named Marsellus, stands over him, a strange figure hovering next to him: a creaking, metallic creature, bizarrely garbed in faded blue jeans and dark glasses. With each jerky movement of its arms, sparks fly out its joints, flashing light across its metallic body. “CALIFORNICATION...” he mutters.

After a moment, he seems to remember that Kilo is in the room. “Oh! I beg your pardon, sir! Perhaps I could fetch you some refreshments to help you relax? We have tea or juice, or something rather stronger? We have a lovely vintage 1896 white--”

Kilo’s answer is to summon SATURN BARZ, but the Stand immediately flickers away. Kilo grunts, trying to force it into being, but in vain. The same power paralyzing his legs affects his Stand, as something like white noise on an old TV set distorts its form and prevents it from manifesting. He grimaces, resorting to crawling towards the wall, pulling himself with his hands.

“Please, sir, try not to strain yourself too hard. You might pull a muscle! In that event, all staff are trained in first aid-”

“Enough with the “sir” shit,” Kilo hisses through clenched teeth. He reaches the wall and pulls himself onto his back to sit up against it. “Drop the act already! If the Congregation wants us dead that bad, just fucking get on with it!”

The bellboy pauses. “... The Congregation… You mean Brother Dust is…?”

“I guess you figured out you couldn’t take us in a straight fight, so you pull this crazy place out of your asses!” he says, smiling bitterly, “Did Dust and that other guy get that scared, they wouldn’t dare handle us themselves?!”

“... Perhaps this is fate, or merely coincidence…? So strange… ten years without hearing from the old preacher, and now, his schemes enter my life once again.”

“What… what do you mean?”

Marsellus shakes his head gently. “I am not with the Congregation, but I used to be. I called Dust my brother, but that was my old life. I left the gang over ten years ago, having found my true calling,” he gestures upwards, at the walls of the hotel.

“That was until… Three days ago, I received a call from him, requesting my aid. To hold one of his... ‘assets’ and keep him safe, until such time as his enemies may be dealt with. And now, it seems, that very enemy has stumbled into my midst as well.”

“One of Dust’s assets?” Kilo says, “... Mann. The big guy! He’s the Congregation’s guy in politics!”

“I suppose so. It really has little to do with me. I don’t know what he plans to do with him, and I don’t rightly care.”

“I thought this Dust asshole was supposed to be smart. What was he thinking hiding his guy in a murder hotel?”

“Oh, he has me to thank for that,” the bellboy says, raising CALIFORNICATION’s finger, allowing little arcs of energy to flash between them, “Regular shocks keep Mister Mann from fully embracing the Hotel, though it breaks my heart. I owe Brother Dust, you see. If not for him, I would never have found my purpose. I live now only to serve as the Hotel’s caretaker.”

“Caretaker?”

“Yes, sir. There have been many employees, most of them former guests, of whom I can be counted as one. But of all them, I was determined to be most worthy of being the Hotel’s protector.”

Kilo scoffs. “Yeah, sure… More like it figured out you was more good to it alive than dead!” The buzzing beneath his skin gradually recedes, and feeling starts to return to his body. He stays where he is, waiting for his moment. “A slave with a Stand, gotta be a useful thing! Did you never even think about leaving?”

“I don’t understand,” Marsellus says, cocking his head. He is genuinely confused, “Why would I want to leave? … Why would you? What’s waiting for you on the outside? The Hotel provides everything you could need: comfort, companionship, beauty. Happiness. Out there, there’s nothing but struggle.”

An edge enters his voice, grating against his throat, “My life is simple here! So unlike my days in the gang! Constantly at war! Struggling over territory, money, prestige, struggling to keep my reputation lest I lose face! And even then, it can all be taken away from you in the blink of an eye! The Hotel…! The Hotel is not a prison, it’s a paradise! A paradise where you can become truly free!”

“Sure,” Kilo spits, “as long as you’re willing to die for it…!”

“Everything dies, in time… The lucky ones among us are able to die for something greater than themselves. Luther understood that. And I’m sure in his final moments, he was grateful.”

“Grateful? You’re sick… I’m sure of that much…” he says, pulling himself to his feet, at last able to feel his legs again. “And if there’s one more thing I’m sure of…” SATURN BARZ appears, still somewhat distorted by white noise, and CALIFORNICATION moves to intercept it.

But rather than attack, Kilo’s Stand slams its clawed hand onto the floor beneath him. Instantly, it melts into slurry and he falls through, landing on a crouch in the room below. “NOOO!!” Marsellus shrieks, and in the same moment, a low groan is heard, seeming to come from all directions. The walls contort like muscles writhing beneath skin. Kilo looks up, and grins in satisfaction.

“Looks like the hotel really is alive, like you said! And if it’s alive, then all I gotta do is kill it! I’ll tear this place down brick by brick if I have to!”

Marsellus sends CALIFORNICATION down the hole, but SATURN BARZ stamps its foot and another hole is melted. Kilo smirks as the Stand’s mechanical fingers fly over his head. Tiny arcs of electricity graze his forehead, but otherwise it misses him completely. He descends through one more floor, leaving the bellboy to stare down at him in impotent hatred.

“DAMN YOU!!” he roars after him, “You WILL be an honored guest, EVEN IF I HAVE TO BREAK ALL OF YOUR BONES AND STRAP YOU TO YOUR BED!!!”

Kilo lands in with a crouch and a roll into a dark room. A fetid odor immediately assaults his senses, making his eyes water and his gag reflex act up. “What the hell…? ” he mutters, covering his mouth with his hand and squinting, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the dark.

When he takes a step forward, he kicks into something meaty, causing Kilo to fall and land on his hands. But instead of feeling the soft carpet, his hands squelch and drip into a wet and pus-y subtance. A visceral chill of disgust throws him back onto his feet with an “Ughh!!”, and his backstep hits against something as heavy and organic-feeling as the first. The goo on the floor squishes beneath his shoes. His eyes finally adjust to the low light, and he fights the urge to vomit.

Surrounding him are the rotting and bloated corpses of the recently deceased at the Hotel California. The bodies are in various stages of decay and rot, with some having their organs squeezed out of every orifice, with others merely skin draping off their bones. A shake comes over his hands, which he suppresses by balling them into fists and grinding his teeth.

Kilo dashes straight ahead until he finds a wall, then liquidates and dives out of the charnel room. He runs, wiping his filthy hands along the walls, soon reaching the room where he and his friends are staying at. He kicks down the door, and a wave of relief washes over him as he sees Shizuka and Jerome lounging languidly on the sofa, unharmed, unbothered.

“Whuhh…? Oh, hey Kilo… Did you find what you was lookin’ for…?” Jerome asks groggily as his friend shakes him awake.

“Yeah. I wish I didn’t. Get up, we’re leaving now. Shizuka…” Kilo replies, shaking Shizuka roughly.

“I’m so hungry…” she moans quietly, before being picked bodily up and carried under his arm. After a moment of difficulty, Kilo also lifts Jerome and slings him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

Holding his friends tightly, he kicks open the door to the emergency stairwell and runs down to the ground level, leaping over every three steps. Upon reaching the bottom, he kicks through that door as well, bursting into the lobby. The exit lies less than five meters away. A triumphant smirk crosses his lips.

Kilo makes for the door, glancing at the reception desk to see Martha still standing, waiting to receive guests this late into the night. “Good evening, sir,” she says, remaining behind the desk, “How may I help you?”

He ignores her, turning towards the revolving door. Escape is right in front of him. Kilo reaches for the handle and… his fingers close around thin air.

He blinks. Looking up the sight that greets him is Martha’s blank, smiling face. “How may I help you, sir?” she asks.

“What the fu--?!” Kilo exclaims, spinning around. The door is now behind him, and he is standing in front of the reception desk, as if without his noticing, he had been picked up, turned around, placed in a completely different position. Growling, makes for the door again, readjusting Jerome’s position over his shoulder.

He reaches, and once again grasps nothing. His foot kicks off the side of the decorative fountain in the lobby and he nearly tumbles into the water along with his friends.

“What the fuck is this?!” he yells, “Where did the door go?!” Indeed, though he was looking at the revolving door the entire time, it appeared to have simply disappeared in the time it takes to blink.

Martha says nothing, still staring at him blankly, oblivious to any concern. “Could the bellboy’s Stand still be affecting me?! I don’t understand this--!!” he thinks, desperately looking to see if Marsellus is around.

“Whoooa… trippy,” Shizuka says under his arm. She is looking up, and Kilo matches her view. The sight before him opens a cold pit in his gut.

The exit is now on the ceiling. The opening and the glass revolving door moves above him, the stone and plaster around it flowing around it like mucus.

While astonished and horrified at this, Kilo suddenly feels something pulling at him, in the opposite direction of the doorway. He stumbles, regains his balances and sees that it is not him being pulled, but the floor beneath him. The marble pattern beneath his feet is shifting beneath his very feet.

“What is this?!” he yells, ”Is… is this the hotel’s doing too?!”

“Why, of course. Were you not listening before?” says a voice from behind. Before he can turn, he is jabbed in the back by rough mechanical fingers and he screams in pain as electricity burrows through his body. His lungs falter and his fingers twitch. Shizuka and Jerome drop to the floor, and Kilo follows them soon after.

#jjba #jojo's bizarre adventure #jojo no kimyou na bouken #achtung attitude #kilo staples #marsellus quinlan #saturn barz #californication #ch31

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sharperthewriter · 6 years ago

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Stoppable Family Vacation - Chapter 1

Chapter 1 - The Beginning Of It All

(5:09pm, September 14, 2018)

Both Kim and Ron came to their humble home in Middleton. It was an almost 4,000 square ft. home with 5 bedroom and 6 bathrooms, complete with a wet bar and a swimming pool for relaxation. The extra guesthouse on the lot, rebuilt from a holiday food incident, had a bedroom and bathroom as well.

"We're home, everyone!" Kim exclaimed. Ron was in a button down shirt and jeans while Kim was in a red striped button-down blouse, a statement gold necklace, a purple heart long chain necklace, and dark denim Club Banana flare overalls with both straps hooked and three side buttons and cowboy boots. The overalls were tucked into the boots. It was casual Friday, so they were allowed to wear them as long as it was work appropriate. They had their GJ identification badges on their beltloops, should any missions arise. Luckily for the pair, there was only one mission all week long. For the most part, it was the dreaded amount of bureaucratic paperwork and red tape that usually came along with the exciting missions.

Their nanny,Tammy Smith, was taking care of them during the morning hours, excluding weekends.

"The two of them were good today!" Tammy replied, "No incidents to speak of and no moments of Justin drawing on the walls."

"That's a sigh of relief!" Kim replied, paying the nanny $60 for her job of watching the kids while the two were at work.

"I'll see you on Monday!" Tammy replied, taking her handbag and walked out the house.

"We're in for the weekend!" Ron added from the foyer of the house.

Rufus chirped, rubbing his stomach "Mmm...hungry!"

"Don't worry, little guy! I've saved a Naco for you in the fridge!" Ron replied to his pet, patting him on the head.

Justin exclaimed as the five-year old ran to his father. "Daddy! Mommy! You're home!" And young three-year old Alexa did the same as well.

"Daddy! Mommy! I love you so much!"

"And we both love you two back!" Kim replied. "Now, your father is going to make the dinner for tonight."

"Yes, not unlike what happened last time with the 'healthy food'." Ron groaned, using his fingers as air quotes.

(Two weeks ago)

Kim, for the first time in nearly two months, cooked up dinner. She presented four plates of what appeared to be grilled chicken legs on the left half of the plate. On the right half was a green-purple-like jelly substance with small tentacles coming out of it. She also had a small plate for Rufus.

The rest of the Stoppables, including Rufus, looked at the food in disgust.

"Uhm...KS? I don't think the FDA would even classify it as being edible." Ron said, pointing to the still-moving tentacles.

"Mommy? Is that food scary?" Alexa asked.

"No, Alexa...it's not scary! It's yummy, low in fats, gluten-free and rich in fiber for you!" Kim countered, "It's just my way for this family to eat a bit more healthy. We've gone to Bueno Nacho so many times that I worry for the family's health."

"But I don't wanna eat it!" Justin complained and made a gagging sound at the food.

Ron whispered in Justin's ear, "Knowing your mom, I wouldn't put her near an oven."

"You have no choice, Justin! My vegetable surprise has a lot of veggies in it that will make you big and strong!" Kim said to her son.

"What veggies were even made in there?!" Justin asked.

"The surprise is if we don't end up in the hospital." Ron complained.

"Look, I made the food!" Kim glared at her husband, "Now you four eat it!"

She presented the food to the other members of the family. Ron tried to pick at it with a spoon but the jelly substance absorbed the spoon and shot it straight into the garbage can.

"Okay...that tactic didn't work." Ron muttered before grabbing one of the grilled 'chicken' drums and began to eat it. The Stoppable kids and Rufus also ate the drums as well.

"Mmm...the chicken is good here, KS!" he said with satisfaction.

"Ron...um...about that. It isn't chicken." Kim admitted while taking a bite of the drum. She then took the box and read the ingredients "It's chicken mixed with bits of meat from racoon, possum..." Her face turned more green as she continued to read the ingredients list, "...squirrel, lovebugs, emus..."

Before she could get even further in the list, she began to vomit onto the floor. The other Stoppables and Rufus all did the same.

"Not since the Stoppable Christmas Flaming Fruitcake Incident of 2015 has food ever betrayed this family!" Ron recalled. "Had to call in sick from work from three days because of it."

"I am so never going to take cooking advice from Mrs. Tonitini ever again!" Kim replied.

"And need we even mention Father's Day?" Ron asked, "Loved the card and tools...not so much the breakfast."

He pulled out his smartphone to show a photo of his wife and kids wishing Ron a happy Fathers' Day. It showed a frightened-looking Ron as Kim was bringing him food...that consisted of burnt bacon and sausages, a white-like subtance in a glass to look like milk, plus his favorite cold cereal...on fire.

"I get the point, Ron..." Kim snarked, "Now let's not push this ish any further than it needs to."

She grinned at her husband and added, "Now, get in the kitchen, Chez Stoppable, and cook us something good!"

(6:49pm)

At the dinner table, the Stoppables were eating their dinner that Ron cooked with Justin picking at his vegetables and Alexa eating from her highchair. The dinner was steak, green beans and mashed potatoes made by Ron. Kim unhooked the left strap of her overalls, leaving the right strap up.

"KS, do you wonder when we're going to spend time together as a family?" Ron asked while eating his piece of steak.

"Ron..." Kim giggled, "...we're already are at the dinner table. What else do you think we are doing at this time of day?"

"I'm actually not talking about the casa grande abode that we live in where we have a bon-diggety pool and wet bar." Ron said while finishing the steak. "I'm talking about more of a trip."

Kim began to sweat a little bit.

"Trip...as in...work-work related trips?" she asked, trying to deflect what her husband was about to say. "We've done plenty of those. I mean, last week, we foiled Falsetto Jones’ plan from stealing the Hope Diamond!"

"No, KS, I'm talking about a..."

Ron said the two dreaded words.

"...family vacation!"

Kim emitted a loud gasp when he said those words.

"F-F-F-family v-v-v-vacation?" she asked, stuttering at the words.

Ron nodded his head excitedly.

Not wishing to cause a scene at the table, Kim slowly backed away and asked, "May I be excused from the table?"

"Sure thing, Kim!" Ron replied with a smile to his wife.

Kim slowly retreated from her family from the table and hurried into the den, her boots clopping against the floor.

PROLOGUE: https://sharperthewriter.tumblr.com/post/184793021098/stoppable-family-vacation-prologue

NEXT: https://sharperthewriter.tumblr.com/post/184862128753/stoppable-family-vacation-chapter-2

#kim possible #fanfiction #stoppable family vacation

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fluidsf · 6 years ago

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Resonant Visions 7 Follow Up

Various Artists: The Warmest Hum (2019)

Artwork by O.R

Reviewed format: Digital compilation on VAAGNER

Welcome to this follow up to Resonant Visions 7, in which I reviewed Crosspolar: 51.2763° N, 30.2219° E (2018) released on the VAAGNER label. This follow up is linked to the label itself in this case as they suggested me to check out this recent new 2019 release as well. Once again we can find some lovely monochrome artwork on this compilation, this one titled The Warmest Hum and this is a Various Artists compilation featuring 20 different tracks by 21 artists (Alethe being a featured artists on one of the tracks) which (as I was told via Facebook message) is focused and based on the hiss and tangibility of music, to which this is an ode. Indeed this element of hiss is also directly visible in the compilation cover artwork by O.R, in this case in the Digital version. Especially when you watch the image at a large size you can see the grainy "hissy" and dotted texture of the image, which even on the digital format has a very physical "printed" feel to it. Showing plants and small flowers, the image has a very calm, peaceful ambience to it which also directly references the music on this compilation which has a very organic feeling to it, with many of the 20 pieces using either subdued electronics or electro-acoustic approaches that are very human in both performance and composition. The image has a "faded", saturated, almost overexposed brightness to it in which the small flowers look like little starts dotted through the image, the bigger leaves are almost fading into eachother and the small striplike plants create a dynamic in the photo like a circular movement. All in all, the cover image is more of a close up photo then Crosspolar's cover, but the warm, subtle but also "faded" ambience of the image definitely introduces the sound of the music on this compilation rather well too.

The Warmest Hum starts with the piece Septembermorgon by Isorinne. The piece features warm synth melodies over subdued low melodic patterns and a subtly droning bass. The piece features a lot of vinyl crackles and a whiny mechanical sound in the background. The ambience feels a lot like the soundtrack to living on a houseboat. The vinyl crackles like soft rain on the windows, while the melodies describe the calm tranquil feeling of daily life and the mechanical whine and additional high frequency twinkling sounds point towards a creaky but cosy structure of the houseboat itself, very nice. On the next track we have Thet Liturgiske Owäsendet with Varsel. A more minimalist drone piece that features quite a lot of tape hiss and some great deep kalimba resonances. This piece really feels like a continuous stream, a boat trip out on the endless sea, a journey into the unknown with the meditative qualities of the filtered drone and the intriguing scattered melody of the kalimba. Additional crackles and mechanical artifacts add to the ambience and give it a very "out in the open" feeling. Then we have øjeRum who features on this compilation with the piece Grenen På Traeet, Traeet På Bjerget, it's a minimalist piece in which a looped and heavily filtered and saturated melody creates a warm soft clouded drone ambience. Subtle shifts in melody and accentuation of the resonances happen overtime, again in a streamlike flow the music let's us dive into a meditative state of mind , making the fragile fuzz and hissy edge of the music almost reachable to physically touch and the ever shifting balance between ambience and rhythm of the melodies adds an intriguing progressive evolution within the piece itself. Korea Undok Group bring us a piece called The Spur that nicely reminds me of the 80's underground tape scene. Fuzzed out warbly drones accompany a repeating melodic pattern on detuned piano creating an eerie midnight ambience in which anything can happen, but while the ambience is mysterious, it's not "dangerous" so to speak. Then we have SPRRW's piece Find Me In The Pona At Night. It's a melancholic ambient piece featuring soft warbled melodies that are accompanied by various sounds of water and crackling which create the sonic Pond background from the title, combined with a whispering voice it definitely is a sweet introspective nocturnal piece of music. The next piece is Untitled by Mor. It's a piece with a very strong forest ambience which is especially enhanced by the nature sounds accompanying the deep and warmly glowing droning melody, a gorgeous melodic soundscape that has evokes a good meditative state and is richly detailed as well, very nice. Then on his track Became, Machinefabriek moves the compilation's focus into a more abstract Electro-Acoustic direction with plenty of subtly but sometimes sharp crackling, resonances, artifacts. What I love about this piece is the way two tones create a leitmotif in the piece that add a really nice, midnight quiet street type of sonic image in my mind. I'd say that The Warmest Hum does have a very nocturnal ambience about it in general too, the many artifacts, crackles and other sounds within the pieces or affecting the sound of the pieces also adds both a feeling of comfort and a nostalgic feelings to the general ambience of the compilation. After Became, Fortunes Brine brings us an eerie Twin Peaks like ambience in the piece Grytviken which features a spooky piano melody accompanying sharp phased synth drones. The rising and falling dynamics of the piece create some excellent tension and the saturated and subtly warbling pitch of the melodies adds a convincing feeling of unease to the music but the piece also still feels quite calming too. I love the sitar sounding resonance of the synth drone too, it adds quite a lot of richness to the textures of the music. Afterwards Moss Harvest amps up the drones with a more distorted and at times bordering Noise type of ambience that's blended with lush field recordings of what sounds like a river. The repeating melody evolves gradually overtime in its sonic colours and textures, rising and falling into subtle, then harsher sharper overtones and resonances. A really lovely Noise Drone piece that is both deep and tense in its composition and performance and the field recordings add some sweet details to the soundscape of the piece. Then on Crisis Actor's piece Untitled we have a single synth melody that evolves overtime using the filter to create new variations of the texture of the melody. It's the fuzziest track on the compilation, with its heavily compressed and saturated sound recalling older Clark tracks, but with a much more intensely lo-fi sound and tension to it and the sharp dynamic bursts of sound that occur throughout this short piece are spectacular and gripping. Crosspolar amps up the tape hiss quite some more with his piece Intermission 4: Tundra (Ambient Mix), which sounds like it's taken from the same set of tracks as the tracklist of 51.2763° N, 30.2219° E was compiled with. It's quite a subtle piece in terms of ambience and melody (at least in the mid and high end of the sound spectrum) but the bass is droning quite sharp in an intense warbling kind of texture. The shifting noises in the background recall the Industrial soundscape of aforementioned album, sounding like distant traffic or machinery but the calm melodic drones do give a very nice sense of peace to the music, making it sound a bit brighter in general, though the intense hiss and warbled saturated sound of the track does hint again at degradation. An intriguing piece. Afterwards Sequences follows with the track Molten Magnetic Material, which does indeed sound quite like its title suggests. It's an eerie Dark Ambient piece full of Industrial metallic sound and fuzzy resonances that sounds like the distant ambiences of a huge steel oven melting the subtance and metallic scraping and ominous drones sounding like other machinery within the complex. The many varying elements within the piece create an excellent intriguing evolving soundscape that feels quite dark and gloomy but also very captivating, quality music here. And I will Not Tire You (Feat. Alethe) by Venetian Roses is partially a feedback driven Noise piece and in its second half fades into a calmer Drone ambience backed by the sounds of rain. Its curious juxtaposition of feedback and mellow calm meditative melodies works rather well over its relatively short length and the feedback / Noise elements do add a welcome contrast to the peace of the Drone melody that enriches the various layers of the piece with extra harmonics and sonic details, very nice. Then in Perfume by Burning Pyre we have a peaceful and calm, almost New Age like piece of music featuring simple but pleasant melodies on (what sounds like) a guitar and a sampled choir, backed by an organ. A classy shorter piece of music and the synth effect swirling around the sound space adds a sweet bit of extra sound design to it as well. First Recital by Autumn Pool follows then. It's a mostly guitar based droning Ambient piece that has some lovely layering work in the track with various guitar tones smoothly shifting, sometimes also subtly scattering over eachother creating rich and interestingly fluctuating resonances that form a very warm melodic haze of sound. Traces of piano are also audible in the mixture and the piece has a curious subtly warbling Drone in its intro and outro that's accompanied by soft shifting and crackling sounds that adds the cinematic feel of the beginning and ending of a dream to the piece, very nice. Next piece Replacing the Memories is a very lush Ambient piece by Anthéne, again featuring guitar within the mixture, combined with slow waves of subtle drones and hissy foam surrounding the mellow and calm tones. There's a sweet melody that's slowly stretched out over the length of the piece and the gradual evolution combined with the calming field recordings make this piece an excellent meditative journey of a listen. Next piece Badkamerlicht by Stijn Hüwels is more sparse in its sonic density, being focused around a repeating melody in which the various resonances constantly shift in different ways over time, creating a warm glowing drone. Interestingly besides the drone there also seems to be a crackly manipulated music recording playing along with the drone, hidden in the mix somewhat. It's a warm flowing piece and nicely subtle in its evolving texture which embodies the title Badkamerlicht quite well in its nocturnal sonics of peace and rest. Midwest by Theodore Cale Schafer is a gorgeous deep Drone track that is filled with rich details in its awesomely evolving and "moving" warm "cloud of waves", the music has got quite a lot of depth to it and sometimes feels distant, othertimes moves more to foreground. Love this piece, it feels very organic, very good music indeed. Then we have White Stains with the track Illusions of Safety which indeed does have quite some tension within its brooding deep saturated drone and eerie shifting and hollow sounds that accompany it. It's a sweet shorter piece that with its nice evolving ghostly ambience feels like a perfect start of late night soundtrack filled with mystery. Lovely composition and sound design in this piece. Vöttev by Vera Dvale is the final piece of The Warmest Hum and also the longest. It's a rather minimalist composition based around a muffled low droning sound and flanged mid frequency pulsations that are filtered as well. Quite an odd piece to end with but it's intriguing and like the previous piece does have quite a spooky sound to it. It feels very alien with its strong repetition of tones and pulses combined with the very artifacted, saturated and fuzzy sound of the track which makes it sound almost like coded radio transmissions being picked up or other types of coded or indicative sound signals. Its introspective alien sound does make a bit harder to get into perhaps, but with the constant subtly shifts in sonic texture it's definitely a great piece of out-there underground electronic music that ends this compilation quite wonderfully.

All in all The Warmest Hum is a very consistent and varied compilation of underground Ambient, Electro Acoustic, Drone and Noise music with all of 20 pieces connecting with eachother really well and through the use of the theme of "hiss" and degraded sound the compilation sounds truly like one whole. The various approaches the artists take on the compilation, from lush droning Ambient, to Electro Acoustic experimentation, to Noise bordering textures and obscure underground electronics make this compilation both a very enjoyable and captivating listening and also of course a great introduction to the music of all these artists featured. Combined with O.R nicely grainy cover Artwork this compilation is definitely recommended for listeners into the aforementioned genres and underground electronic music in general. A great compilation, go check this one out.

Digital compilation is available from the VAAGNER Bandcamp page here: https://vaagner.bandcamp.com/album/the-warmest-hum

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storiesaboutrachelcarolann · 3 years ago

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You are so capable..

Has anybody ever felt like they're totally alone and isolated from everything and everybody? I have.

Has anybody ever felt like they haven't been really understood their whole lives? I have.

Has anybody traveled down a path that's led to nothing but ruin, sadness and unhappiness only in the end learning it was to help us become something way better then we were before? I have.

Has anybody ever been torn between two or more options or opportunities and you just can't seem to choose one, maybe you were scared to even choose or pick one? I have.

Has anyone ever been in a situation where you were shown red flags, but choose to ignore them because you saw the good in a person standing infront of you even if time after time they kept showing you different? I have been there.

Has anybody been at the bottom before, rock bottom I should say and found their way out of that hole as you began to climb? I have.

One day just recently everything started to really click for me, it has taken a lot of wrong turns, a lot of bad choices and I had to pull a lot of strength from within myself for me to really see how special and gifted I truly am.

It has taken many days of reassessment and continuous times of replaying parts of my life where I had wanted to find the good in that particular situation or in that person, I had to really think about what did that or this show me and teach me? I had to dig up old buried memories from the past in order to begin the real healing process and to find the light that I carried within for so long that I just couldn't seem to find until now. Are you here presently?

I had to do some really big soul searching, I had to do some real work to fix what is and was broken. I feel I have come along way, but there's still work to be done, there's always work to be done.

In order for us to grow into what you were meant to be we must be able to look in the mirror at our reflection and we must be able to accept and believe that we hold so much power in our soul.

How many people have put you down lately?

How many people have just simply said you can't be fixed or you're to far gone?

How many people actually stood by your side because they saw the light that was in you?

How many broke people have been a part of your life up until this point?

How many people have you tried to help or fix, but failed because it wasn't your job?

What good came out of burnt bridges?

What good took place when you got up off your knees and stopped feeling sorry for yourself?

When was the turning point for you when you said to yourself that I deserve better and I only have one life so I need to start living it for me properly or I need to start becoming more alive and I need to stop using subtances to cover up my reality and stop using it for a place to hide?

When did you begin to take blame for your part that you played in a situation? It's never all one person's fault, it takes two to tango.

We aren't always in the right frame of mind and that's perfectly okay, but at some point we have to realize that this is what has been keeping us from experiencing such wonderful and amazing things in our life.

When we think negative all the time more comes, but if you turn it around, if you can just switch it to positive for just a second that's when more will start to come, that's when you'll see a glimpse of light and love.

We have been told we're no good, we have been told that we can't have that, we've been told there's something wrong with us, that maybe true, but why not start now and fix it, rewire yourself, rewire that brain of yours, you may think it can't be done, but it can if you put the work in. Are you ready yet?

We have all experienced pain on an emotional level, physical levels and mental levels, why not start letting that wrong or the bad that's been done to freely escape and let it be gone from your loving heart?

Why not give a person a chance to prove to you that they aren't like the others? Fear is always going to be there, but if you trust something good will come of anything in someway that's when doubt will be less and less.

Has the devil been telling you that you're no good lately?

Has the devil been keeping you in a cage?

Has the devil been tormenting the hell out of you?

Have you ever seen the phoenex rise from his or her ashes after the battle? I have.

Have you ever seen God repair what needed to be repaired? He always does, sometimes we just don't see it with our physical eyes.

Sometimes it stays hidden, for another time until you begin to rise above.

My message for you today is if you feel like giving up, don't!

As soon as you do you'll be hearing my voice loud in your ear, KEEP GOING!

You can do this!

You can do anything and everything is possible!

The Empress ✨

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auburnfamilynews · 4 years ago

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Political rookie goes to Washington.

As expected tonight, former Ole Miss, Texas Tech, and Cincinnati head football coach Tommy Tuberville, who lived off of a government paycheck in his previous positions, will continue to live off of a government paycheck as he wins the race for U.S. Senate in Alabama tonight over incumbent (who??) Doug Jones.

BREAKING: Republican Tommy Tuberville wins election to U.S. Senate from Alabama, beating incumbent Sen. Doug Jones. #APracecall at 9:10 p.m. CST. #Election2020 #ALelection https://t.co/lGfinjTqT4

— AP Politics (@AP_Politics) November 4, 2020

Oh, but there’s an Auburn connection here as well! In case you didn’t know, Tuberville happened to spend a decade in our little town coaching the intercollegiate football squad. I think we’ve got some grainy footage here —

Wow, who knew? Seems like a special time from a long gone era. Either way, he’s in a completely different role now in the state of Alabama, so let’s review some of the concerns we’ve got with the new Senator.

TOUGH OPPONENTS TO START: Tuberville wins the seat as a Republican, so he’ll have to deal with established Washington Democratic players like Senate Minority Leader Chuck Shumer, and his colleagues (and former Presidential candidates) Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and Amy Klobuchar. It remains to be seen how he’ll handle working hand in hand with the opposition instead of grinding things to a halt, like what happened in 1999 when his Auburn team was set to play Florida State.

CRONYISM: During his time at Auburn, Tuberville came under fire for his loyalty to a certain cadre of assistant coaches known colloquially as the BBQ Buddies (or Gang, or Crew, you get the idea). Those guys who’d been with him for years, but who may not have been the best performers for the job. It was such that his supremely-talented 2003 Auburn team, that would go on to an undefeated season the next year with essentially the same roster, fell flat in 2003. The reason? Tuberville didn’t search for a new offensive coordinator. He promoted one of his boys, who flubbed the season. He was more loyal to his friends than to Auburn. Will he be more loyal to his friends than to his state and country? 2003 was only mildly saved when an outside consultant was brought in (imagine that happening now) and then when Tuberville finally went outside of his comfort zone to hire Al Borges from Indiana. To tell you the truth, this may actually work in his favor in politics.

WILTING IN THE FACE OF A TRUE CHALLENGE: How can we know that Tubs won’t bolt when the going gets tough? In the offseason after 2006, Tommy Tuberville’s job got a good bit more difficult when Alabama fired Mike Shula and hired Nick Saban from the Miami Dolphins. Saban came in, worked hard, and dominated the in-state recruiting. Furthermore, he developed those players once they got to Tuscaloosa. Tuberville’s strength was always as a player developer, but he would look for the diamonds in the rough, so to speak, and coach them up. When you’re coaching up 3-star players, and your opponent is better at coaching up 5-star players, it’s not going to end well for you. Instead of hitting the recruiting trail when Alabama was down, Tuberville won the SEC once with a great team, but had the talent to win it from 2002-2006. He should have had Alabama in the grave when Saban was hired, but it took them one full year to get back to top strength.

POOR PLANNING: This ties in with the above, but Tuberville’s god-awful recruiting efforts after 2007 are what led Auburn to endure the lull toward the end of Gene Chizik’s tenure. Give Tubs credit for the offensive line class of 2007, which helped win a national title in 2010, but that’s it. Only a couple of those guys even saw practice squad time in the NFL, and nobody else that he recruited after that point got drafted. Cam Newton was throwing to three-star receivers and destroying the SEC. Imagine if he’d had a Julio Jones type. If Tuberville hadn’t been let go after 2008, then he would’ve led Auburn to a crumbling collapse in subsequent years. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that if Gus Malzahn had the benefit of an Alabama team as bad as Tuberville did, we’d have a couple national championships and far better talent.

RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE CURRENT BUYOUT STRUCTURE IN COLLEGE ATHLETICS: When Tuberville lost 36-0 to Alabama in 2008, and Auburn missed a bowl game for the first time since 1999, he “resigned”, but somehow received a $5.1M buyout, with $3M payable within 30 days of his departure and the rest due within a year. That was the start of what we see now. You know when folks talk about getting rid of Gus and we have to wonder where we’d get $21M? That started with Tommy Tuberville.

Those are some serious strikes against the man who will now help represent the state of Alabama in the U.S. Senate. What has Tommy Tuberville said that he wants to accomplish when he gets to Washington? His campaign issues page reads like a McNuggets box of conservative talking points, but there’s no subtance. No solutions, just complaining.

I’m shocked that we don’t see the following issues on the link above:

THE BCS: The got-dang system that screwed him and allowed the SEC to receive the benefit of the doubt years later never really paid off for Auburn. Tuberville got the short end of the stick with the BCS in 2004, but he never coached in a situation where he would’ve been in contention for the College Football Playoff.

ARKANSAS/HOUSTON NUTT: Dang Hawg Hex! Arkansas was the bugaboo for Tuberville for years during his early days. Fred Talley, Matt Jones, those guys usually ruined what was a promising season for Auburn. Arkansas cost Auburn at least two SEC West titles in 2002 and 2006. It’s not the first time that a folksy guy in Arkansas messed things up for Republicans...

BOBBY LOWDER: I wonder how much money Tubs has in FlightTracker’s current stock. It’s essentially what saved his job in 2003. After losing like he had in his first couple of seasons, especially to one of the worst Alabama teams in recent memory, nobody really blamed the Auburn powers for trying to replace him. If they hadn’t done it secretly, then it wouldn’t have been such a problem.

INSOLENT STUDENTS: See below —

CHUBBY MATT STAFFORD/REGGIE BALL: Why aren’t these criminals in jail for their crimes against Auburn? Somehow Tuberville had no idea how to plan against these two quarterbacks and Auburn went a combined 0-5 against them during Tubs’ tenure. Georgia Tech was awful with Reggie Ball, but we couldn’t seem to figure out a way to beat them. Matt Stafford is a little more excusable, but in 2006 when Auburn was still in the hunt for a national title in November, Stafford ran all over Auburn as a freshman for an unranked Georgia squad.

Seriously, don’t you wonder why Tuberville isn’t more beloved by people involved with Auburn? He’s got a dominant record against Alabama and the 2004 season under his belt, but he’s not the most cherished ex-coach we’ve got. Now he’s helping run the country.

from College and Magnolia - All Posts https://www.collegeandmagnolia.com/2020/11/3/21547388/former-ole-miss-coach-tommy-tuberville-wins-senate-seat-in-alabama

#IFTTT #Blogger #auburn #auburn fast #wareagle #AuburnFamilyNews #war eagle #sec #football news #aubu

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scolopendress-tag · 3 years ago

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@messy-messi OFC I've rambled about them a few times but here's a little messy list of quick facts

Centipedes, despite their name meaning "hundred feet" never actually have exactly 100 feet. They can have well under and well over 100, but never exactly 100 due to the fact that they always have an odd number of leg pairs.

The least number of legs a centipede can have is 30 (house centipede) and the most documented is 354 (a sp. of soil centipede)

They can range in size from a little over a FOOT to a mere 10.3 mm, or under half an inch, at adult size.

The biggest of centipede species predate on bats, one of their strategies for hunting such being dangling from the ceilings of caves where they live.

They're EVERYWHERE. There are centipedes well beyond the Arctic cricle, and even on islands off the Antarctic. Free friends in your local soil.

They come in virtually every color including fucking iridescent purple.

If you get bit by a centipede, namely a large scolopendrid species, don't even bother with pain medicine. Centipede venom attacks potassium ion channels, something pain medications are unable to effect at all. There's evidence certain seizure medications may help with the pain, but it's not been looked into extensively and is never given out for the treatment of bites. Just ride it out bud.

A snake known as Aparallactus capensis, or the cape centipede-eater, specializes in, well, eating centipedes! Stigmatomma pluto, an ant species from Africa, also specializes in a centipede-exclusive diet (geophilomorph centipedes, specifically). A second fun fact to branch of this one is that I will be making these species extinct.

Geophilomorphs are actually capable of secreting a sticky subtance that generates hydrogen cyanide and benzoic acid. While toxic, they release it in too small a quantity to harm humans beyond a small rash. It's very effective against ants and spiders, though.

House centipedes (scutigeromorpha) are the only centipedes with compound eyes.

Centipedes flat out don't have sex. Males just leave spermatophores on the ground for the ladies to schlorp up later.

Lithobiomorph and scutigeromorph centipedes lay their eggs individually in the soil, while geophilomorphs and scolopendromorphs guard and clean their eggs like good fierce little mommas. In some species they'll even continue to protect their brood after they have hatched, until they're ready to leave their mother or are disturbed.

Centipedes can be either anamorphic or epimorphic, which are different modes of development depending on when they grow their legs. Lithobiomorphs, scutigeromorphs, and craterostigmomorphs are anamorphic, and only reach their adult number of legs after multiple molts in which they grow new legs each time. Scolopendromorphs and geophilomorphs, however, are simply born with all of their legs.

According to science from scientists they're the best animals, objectively. Everyone else is wrong.

So little centipede merch out there despite the fact that they're the best animals on earth. Shame.

#ill probably add more later im hungry rn thats rhe only reason this isnt longer #tw bugs #does it count if text. whatever

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funeralcryptid · 4 years ago

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I must say, you're one of my favorite readers on here. I love how raw you are with your messages and can tell you do these readings from a giving space. I offer you all of my resistance and self-limiting beliefs that hinder me from following my purpose in this lifetime. My question: What's next for me on my Spiritual path as I leave fear behind and fully embrace my Spiritual calling? Thank you so much for your giving energy and time. You're amazing —B🌻🦋🍃

Welcome,

My, what an offering you've brough with you. My spirit does really want to consume it, it shows excitement. I see a sand clock. Time is but a construct, a sort of complex illusion-reality hybrid that makes us feel like nothing is enough. My spirit charges at the clock with its jaws and breaks it; sand and glass being scattered everywhere. As I stare at the shards of glass I sense fear, the one that comes from being scared of being cut. This lifetime is a limited amount of time, and during it you have encountered and will encounter many fears, impediments that are as real as you let them be. This is an insult to my spirit.

It starts to ooze a black subtance from its jaw and soon it covers the sand and glass. I see the a struggling person trying desperately to come out. You need to stay still and let what you fear come to you; then, when you realize they are but an illusion, when you see that they cannot harm you and accept yourself as the mighty being you are... then you will surface from the other side. This black substance represents the test of your shadow, and you shall not be dominated by it. Devour it if you may. My spirit is rooting for you, a rare sight indeed.

I ask about your calling. I see a flower, its head is down but it is blooming. I sense you are not the flower, but the power that's making it bloom. You are the one that might bring life and positivity into realization. Consider exploring your past lives, I sense this information will come very useful in time.

I ask what's next for you. I see a hand breaking through the ground, rising from beneath. What's next is you connecting with your emotions and intuition in a more daring, active way. I also see you falling into your insides just to be amused by what you find, your light. However you shall not let this get to your head, realize that there's work to be done. You will indeed grow a lot in your spiritual path, you might end up fitting into an already stablished spiritual paradigm or create your own. Choose what's best for you and follow it as you may, but remember that it's you who has the power and not a system.

I also asked for another challenge you might encounter. I see a desperate you who feels very hurt and drained. A marginalized version of you struggling to get by. You might feel vulnerable or even be attacked by spirits that are not in your best interest if you're not careful; however I sense this damage will most likely be caused by a community, not an entity. I hope I'm wrong on this part of the reading.

Be careful, and grow until your light cannot be contained.

Thank you for your kind words. I hope this reading was insightful.

#tarot readings

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cjostrander · 7 years ago

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Nickelback: Feed the Machine

Good morning everyone! I took a bit of a break from reviewing to prepare for a change of leadership at the martial arts school i teach at and are now back to toss a promo review at you. I know that i’ve tackled Nickelback’s Here and Now album recently but their new album actually attracted a nice bit of attention from me. This album is going to be a very nice change of pace with incorporation of a more metal oriented edge and a surprisingly more impressive set of guitar solos. While it’s going to feel fresh; it is also going to be very familiar at the same time which is an okay trait for them to balance out their experimental moments on the album. I’m going to assume that the next few reviews are going to be promos since i’ve gotten quite a bit on my ipod since i took my little break. Yesterday i got Stone Sour’s Hydrograd and have to check that out, Linkin Park’s pop album is still on my mind to do at some point, Mucc’s new album is rather solid, Angelo has a decent too, and Rise Against put out a really nice album as well this past month. I’d assume Rise Against will be up next since it really caught me off guard like this album sort of did. Hope you enjoy my view on this album and let’s get started!

Feed the Machine (Single): We begin the album with the title track and lead single. It originally caught me off guard with its more Industrial like tone to it and at first made me question whether this album would be a complete blowout. It begins with some moody guitar melodies, a subtle bass rhythm and a very prominent drum presence in the background. The melodic and semi electronic approach of this song is very experimental at first glance and will be a very interesting piece for the listener to encounter at this stage of the album. Chad’s vocals are a bit processed but developed a nice degree of depth for the more politically charged lyrics than Nickelback is often given credit for. The chorus is more subtance driven rather than melody and the instrumentals are left with a decent degree of success to keep the listener engaged as the song progresses. It’s a pretty easygoing listen despite its clear aim at changing up their sound and the more gritty solo is a decent touch to push this five minute song towards it’s end. Like i said before, this one puts you a bit on guard since it is very unexpected from them but it is a nice piece to toss into a live show and diversify their music in general. 8/10

Coin for the Ferryman: This one begins with a electronic drum pattern and aggressive guitar melodies that bare hints of their standard rock grit; but with a surprising degree of catchy groove. Chad enters the scene with his standard style of a quick and coherent vocal delivery. The lyrics prove to give the song a decent flow till it reaches the chorus. The chorus lifts the catchy factor a bit with some stronger lyrics that you could imagine yourself singing along to a bit at times and maybe even dancing a bit during a live show. The instrumentals keep a good degree of energy going in the mix but Chad definitely has more of a dominant presence here than on the first song. Lyrically it’s him that wrote this song verses the last one; so that could very well explain why this one is very reminiscent of his usual style. There is however a surprising instrumental breakdown and solo that would be a perfect adrenaline booster for a live show. It helps to make this song one that i would not mind them doing when i see them live next Saturday. 8/10

Song on Fire (Single): This is currently the last single but i’m sure there will be at least one or two more before they done promoting this one. It begins as your typical pop rock centric ballad for them and established a bare basic piano/drum instrumental and Chad makes it work very strongly with just this set up. When the chorus arrives the guitars enter a with an offering of melodic beauty that Chad uses to give his voice and strong lyrics a high degree of bliss. It actually is a very calming piece that is smart for them to have picked as their ballad/radio single because it is very mainstream but not overbearing on their past songs of this caliber (Yeah they have done quite a few ballads like this on their Here and Now album). Lullaby and When We Stand Together would be the first songs that stand in my mind; but this song is tremendously stronger than those two. That’s why i label this as their strongest ballad since their Dark Horse album and is an easy highlight track for you to focus on during you listening experience. 9.5/10

Must Be Nice: Guitars begin this one with that cheery country rock groove that they dabble in from time to time. It is very catchy with the level of grit in it and Chad’s processed vocals give it a very catchy rhythm. His lyrics stick out rather well and the aggression in his voice helps the lyrics stick out with a nice degree of presence. It is going to be very hard not to want to dance and sing along to it because it a very catchy song lyrically and coming from Chad; that’s a nice surprise to see once in awhile. The guitars break up for a short little build up and then venture into a rather well crafted guitar solo that further develops this song as a stellar live pick that could have single potential despite its gritty guitar edge. I definitely want to see this one live next week! 9/10

After the Rain: Melodically echoed guitar riffs start this one off till a pounding drum beat hums along in the background. Chad pushes his vocals across with a nice degree of catchiness and when the chorus arrives it tackles an uplifting ballad focus. The lyrics are standard overall but provide steady substance to follow along to. The instrumentals keep a reserved structure but do not by any means fall flat in keeping Chad propped up with just enough support to be successful. This one is pretty straight forward for the most part since it is a very standard Chad ballad that will rather quickly conclude the first half of this album. Ironically this album hasn’t seemed to drag at all like their past albums have; but it’s usually the last three songs that do it; so we shall see lol. 7/10

For the River (featuring Nuno Bettencourt of Extreme): Guitars start this one up with a mid volume rock rhythm and its jam progresses till Chad enters to deliver some more of his fast paced vocals. His voice develops a rather catchy flow and the lyrics while basic as typically expected give the song a nice level of play room to capture a listener’s attention. The only drawback is that the chorus lacks and sense of catchiness and comes across as a regular verse than anything so this song is going to have more of a solid jam format than anything else. The little guitar solo is a good break up which i assume is where the guy from Extreme comes in but i know zip about that band other than an annoying ballad single; so don’t take my word on his work. This one is an okay piece that will contain just enough attention during a live show to be appreciated but could of used a more catchy chorus to make it more memorable. Other than that; the jam aspect will be a decent element to add to this album for them. 7/10

Home: Echoed guitar melodies and electronic drum patterns join with a soothing key segment to established a rather moody atmosphere for Chad to enter to. He takes a more emotionally somber tone than on the past songs and his lyrics manage to give the song a high degree of substance to quickly establishes this song as a likely single pick for them down the road. The instrumentals do rather well at keeping this song full of substance without having too much of a presence that would distract you from the more serious nature of Chad’s vocals. This one establishes itself as a stronger track on the album that i’m sure will be one of the more appreciated songs from their more casual listeners. 8/10

The Betrayal (Act III): Interesting acoustic guitars begin this one off with a very classically tinged sound that is going to be a very big shock to anybody that says that their sound is way too basic.The guitars and drums then enter with a nice degree of tension and Chad has a more furious yet contemplating tone similar to the first song on the album. At the chorus he goes into a shouting match at his audience and makes the most of his decently written lyrics to maintain his grip on the listener’s attention. This is another nice little metal song to give the album an extra dose of energy as it approaches the final tracks. It may not be enough to impress a seasoned metal head; but it will definitely catch their attention on the album and hopefully a little more respect as to their musical skill. 8.5/10

Silent Majority: Now this this a song that i really want to see live and as a single; since it is easily my favorite song on the album (Song on Fire is just the near perfect version of the type of song that they were aiming for). It begins immediately with a serious dose of motivational energy. The guitars and drums are very catchy and establish quite a strong foundation for Chad to enter to. He doesn’t disappoint and uses a casual but highly melodic delivery to build the song into the album’s strongest chorus. It is very empowering and uses simple lyrics to really make an impact on the listener. The instrumentals continue to maintain a suitable amount of energy during the softer segments but surely kills it during the chorus and will establish this track as quite possibly their strongest song since their Dark Horse album came out (That album turns ten next year i believe; so if i don’t do it sooner expect it out during 2018 for review). Two more songs and this album will quite likely take the top spot on my Nickelback section. 10/10

Every time We’re Together: This sort of finale piece begins with echoed acoustics and drum beats. Chad enters with a very familiar ballad style and his lyrics are rather catchy but easily relateable to past ballads. It progresses for a little while before the chorus enters and it manages to stick out slightly with a high degree of smooth melody and blissful emotion from Chad. I can’t knock the lyrics or instrumentals because the lyrics get the job done as expected and are pleasant to follow along to as well. The instrumentals are reserved yet melodic for the most part; but do have moments where they stick out nicely and help to make this a stronger track than the beginning led me to originally believe. The guitar melody at the end does very well at giving the listener a feeling of closure and fulfillment and will make this another potential pick for a single. 8.5/10

The Betrayal (Act I) (Instrumental): Now this nearly three minute instrumental is technically the closure and it begins with that blissful acoustic melody that the other Betrayal song began with (Yeah i know Act II is missing and really want to know why). The instrumentals prove to be very soothing in melody and actually develop a soundtrack like structure that i could easily picture being made part a fantasy flick. This is going to be another pleasant shock among listeners and hopefully is clear sign that their future albums are going to embark on more complex song structures. We shall see but until then this concludes what is very likely their strongest album in general. 9/10

Overall album rating: 8.4/10

Yep, as expected it beat Here and Now by a margin of .3 to take the top spot on my Nickelback reviews and actually get them a “B” score for their first time as well. Dark Horse will possibly get a B+ but we shall see when the time comes. I was actually very surprised by this album and have high hopes that they will build on this improved level of complexity on future releases. I hope you all check it out and give it a chance because it’s going to be a nice surprise for you. I’ll keep the promo reviews going for a bit before heading back into my anniversary reviews and odds are Rise Against will be next up on my list. Thanks everyone for all the recent likes because i have been flooded over the last month and really appreciate it. Check out my older reviews and repost them so everyone else can see the other albums i’ve scratched off of my list for you. Enjoy your day everyone!

*Reviewer’s Pick*

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wilwywaylan · 8 years ago

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So. 50 questions ask. Kensei and Sojun :D

Let’s do it.... THE PLOUC!AU WAY !! (where Sojun is alive, a rich man of leisure, and father of both Byakuya and Rukia, and Kensei is a grumpy mechanic who adopted Shuuhei when he was found in their little village)

Big steps in the relationship !

0. But, how did they meet ? When you live in a small town, almost a village, you know about every notorious person / personnality, and important people. Of course Kensei knew about Sojun. The Kuchiki family owns about a third of the land around the country. They live in the biggest house in town, almost a manor. On the other hand, Kensei may not be the only mechanic in town, but he’s certainly the best. He can fix any car, no matter how old or rusty or broken it is. Add to this he has a… personnality, and he made himself well known when he decided to adopt that weird kid who was found on the church’s porch, and of course Sojun has heard about him.So it’s no wonder Sojun called him one day and asked him if he could service his cars, for a good fee of course, because they are very precious and need genius’ fingers. Kensei accepted, it’s good money, and it meant going to that beautiful place and get well treated while working. So he packed Mashiro and went. The cars were beautiful, and his employer even more. Kensei started to go to the Kuchiki home each week, taking care of the car collection. And if he always noticed that Sojun was looking at him sometimes, and if Sojun started taking his tea on the terrace that overlooks the garage, and if Kensei washed the cars half-naked and kept asking Mashiro if Sojun was looking at him, well… Who could blame them ?

1. Who made the first move / who kissed who first ? Kensei, but not of his own free will. It took Mashiro a lot of cheering, which evolved into scolding, which in itself was succeded by threats to go and say it herself, for Kensei to finally gather all his courage and go and confess his feelings. He found some flowers, and went to his usual appointment at the Kuchiki manor. Of course, Sojun was here, waiting for him with his usual smile. The kind that gets Kensei all flustered. Instead of talking, he just offered the flowers (read : almost threw them at him) and stood there, not knowing what to do. Luckily, Sojun seemed to understand what it was all about. He brought Kensei inside, put the flowers in a vase, sat down next to him, and gently, very gently, kissed him. Kensei kinda wondered if he was dreaming, because only in dreams does the sexy object of your affections like you back. But then again, it felt very real for a dream, and he wasn’t sure dreams are that good at kissing…

2. Who tells their family/friends about their relationship first ? Probably Kensei. If Mashiro wasn’t there watching and cheering for him, then he’ll probably tell the Vizored and Shuuhei first, by bringing Sojun to them for a family meal. Sojun tries to keep it secret, at least until he’s able to tell it to his father and children without flinching under Ginrei’s killing glare.

3. What do their family/friends think of their relationship ? Mashiro is sooooo happy that they are finally together, because let’s serious, Kensei may be a strong, manly Male, but he’s as bitching and whiny as anyone when he’s pining. Even worse, because he’s whining like a grumpy man. So it means he’s pouting and growling and moping, and the kitchen has already been cleaned three times, and he’s running outside again, and she starts wanting to tie him in the backyard.Shuuhei is on the same boat as Mashiro. At least he will stop seeing his father sigh like a teenager and look wistfully at the horizon. Because let’s get real, he does love his father, but it’s quite scary to see.Byakuya is Suspicious. What does this oaf of a man want to his sweet, delicate father ? Is he going to break him ? Is he going to…. *insta-blush* seduce him and use him, and throw him aside when he’s done ? No ! That man isn’t going to take advantage of him ! Byakuya Watches. He’s the Gatekeeper, the Faithful Watcher, the Guardian ! All for nothing, because Kensei is perfectly courteous with his father, all doors held and chairs pulled. So he finally admits that, maybe, the mechanic could be a nice person, more or less fit for his father, but he doesn’t entierly abandon his suspicions yet. One may never know, especially with someone like his father. Rukia is glad for her father too. He needs someone to keep him company because, even with his family around, he’s kinda lonely. Now he has someone who loves and almost worships him, to take care of him in every way. It’s good, for his health and his mind. The other Vizards are happy for Kensei too. First, because he’s family, and when family is happy, you’re happy. Second, because he stops pouting. Third, because he’s nicer with Sojun around,d and it’s always good to have a happy Kensei. Besides, having Sojun at the sunday dinner makes always good conversations. The only person who’s not very happy with the situation is Ginrei. What, his precious, delicate son with a brute like this ? This will never do ! A Kuchiki won’t find himself in the hands of a mere mechanic ! Sadly, Sojun is a grown man and takes his own decisions, and doesn’t care about what his father wants him to do. It makes for… interesting sunday brunchs, with Ginrei glaring at Kensei the whole time.

4. Which couple/family are they closest to ? The Vizored are just one big, weird, complicated family. When Sojun came around, they just took him in and made him one of them. He's now part of the Sunday lunches (that request the conjointed efforts of at least ten people), celebrations, movie nights and way more. Shizuk even calls him his "pretty uncle".

5. When do they move together ? Where and how ? It took a while, because they both needed to find their marks in the relationship and know where they are going before taking that step. Once they were secure enough together, they discussed moving together. They could, of course, move into the Kuchiki estate. It's big, it's well situated, it's comfortable, and they would be catered too. But under Ginrei's supervisation. And it's too far from the garage. So they decide to move in Kensei's flat. It's moderately big, with lots of open space, and it's always perfectly clean. It took a while to get adjusted. Sojun brought some furniture with him, and a ton of books, and they needed to find some space for his things. After several weeks, everything was finally settled, sorted and found its place. Then, they had to get used to live with each other. Sojun never had to worry about space, about finding somewhere to sit wihtout having anyone around, and even in the rooms around. And Kensei didn't have to share his living space with someone since Shuuhei left. He had to remember how to live with someone who may not have the same cleaning habits than him, and not let it bother him too much. It takes a few discussions and putting things on the table, but they finally get it to work : Sojun cleans after him and always takes care of putting his tea cup away, and Kensei doesn't get aggravated if he forgets.

6. Who proposes and how ? Sojun. Two adults living together for a time don't really need to get married, especially when they don't have children together. At least, that's Ginrei's stance on the question, and he's very adamant about it. So, the next logical step is to do it, because let's be real, Sojun is old enough to stop following his father's orders. Besides, he doesn't know what he's talking about, really.He proposes to Kensei one evening, with a simple ring he can wear on the chain around his neck. Kensei is delighted to learn that Sojun wants to live his life with him. The practical aspects come later, like the fact that Kensei is now his next of kin and will take all decisions related to his medical care in the event of something happening, and all matters of insurance and the like. They talk about it calmly, in front of a nice dinner, then start talking about the wedding, how it will be, who's going to do what. They talk about it until late in the night, and when they finally go to bed, it's with the reassurance that they'll live the rest of their lives together.

7. Where do they go on their honeymoon ? Kensei wants to show Sojun the world ! At least, the world outside their quaint little village and the endless fields around it. Little does he know that Sojun already knows the world outside, and is well-traveled for someone who only sits on his terrace all day long and reads with a cup of tea at hand. They end up going on a trip around the country, choosing the nicest little towns to stop. Kensei drives, they stop at all the cute little inns and old rock'n'roll bars, go on walks through forests and landmarks, and come home very, very happy !

Let’s talk about sex~

8. Who has the biggest kink (and what is it) ? They aren’t very kinky persons, but their favourite kink is somewhat close. Sojun gets all hot and bothered each time he sees Kensei getting all dirty during his job, or all wet when cleaning his cars, or all sweaty when he cuts wood. And Kensei almost had a heart attack when Sojun accidentaly smeared grease on his face. Something about the rough, black subtance marring the delicate features. They don’t bring oil or other weird things in the bedroom, but sometimes, when Mashiro isn’t around, they kinda bring the bedroom to the weird things.

9. Who initiates sex more often ? It's a draw, really. They both find each other really, really sexy, and while they are adults and can keep their hands off each other on most times, they are very happy to enjoy each other's company the best they can when they are alone.

10. What kink/kinks turn(s) one (or both) of them off ? Pain play. Neither of them is into it at all.

11. What’s the craziest place they’d have sex ? On the hood of a car in Kensei’s garage. And strangely, it was Sojun’s doing. Kensei didn’t want at first, because dirt and oil and machineries and dirty and your health is bad !! But Sojun just had to sit on the hood all sexy and bare a little skin, and he was a goner.

12. Who is more aggressive in bed ? Kensei. Can you really blame anyone ? He has the muscles to manhandle his husband how he wants… and of course how the husband wants. Sojun’s word is law in the bedroom. And he likes it a lot too~

13. How does the other person react when their partner wears something special (boots, lingerie, etc.) ? Have you ever seen a grown man blush almost from head to toe ? Because that’s the way they both react. Kensei because he’s not used to see his prim and proper husband wear something… ract. Sojun because when you’re from his family, you don’t learn about those kinds of things, except in those books you have to smuggle into your room unless you want your father to learn about it and look at you in a disappointed way. So it’s way outside of his sphere of habit. And he loves it.

14. Lights on or off ? Depends where it happens, you can't really turn off the lights in the garage when you're having sex in plain day... Most of the time, they keep a light on to be able to watch each other.

Quirks and habits

15. What are their quirks while sleeping ? Kensei is The Log. You put him in bed, he doesn't move until morning. It's perfect for cuddles. But he's also a light sleeper, and the slightest noise makes him jump, ready to fight. It made things a bit complicated at first, because Sojun moves a little, and tended to wake him up. But they work around it. Kensei makes an effort not to jump out of bed. Besides, Sojun's meds make him a heavy sleeper, so it works out in the end.

16. Who is the morning person/night person ? Kensei is the morning person. Up at the crack of dawn, because there’s so much to do ! He starts with a bit of roadwork, then a shower, and then, a nice breakfast. He’s kinda a night person too, to the extent of staying up during the first movie of the evening. But after that, he crashed.Sojun is neither. He often gets up late, and goes to bed reasonably early. His sickness eats away a good part of his energy, and he needs a long night of sleep to recover.

17. Who wakes the other one up with kisses ? And breakfast. And a show of his wonderful body doing his exercizes. What do you want, Kensei just loves giving Sojun the best mornings ever.

18. Who is the romantic one (Valentine’s Day or other) ? Honestly, it’s a draw. You may not guess it when you look at him, but Kensei DOES have a romantic bone in his body. A small one and well hidden, but it’s there. And really, there’s nothing better than welcoming your partner home with a well-cooked meal. Sojun knows that, beside that, Kensei isn’t really romantic, so he doesn’t try too hard. But a few gestures like a walk on nice evenings do wonders.

19. Who would lead in ballroom dancing ? Sojun. As an Important Person of the Land, he had to take dancing lessons during his youth, especially ballroom dancing. That’s even how he seduced his first wife. And sometimes, he just feels like moving a bit. So sometimes, he just grabs Kensei and dance around the garage with him. The music doesn’t have anything to do with ballroom dancing, Kensei is greasy and sweaty, and the ground is covered in metal parts and whatnot. But it couldn’t be more perfect.

20. Who is the one to most likely pick the movie they watch ? Sojun, because he knows what Kensei REALLY likes to watch, and he always takes his tastes in consideration, even when his husband doesn’t want to say what he wants.

21. Who is the one who would pay for dates ? Kensei is manly ! Kensei is strong ! Kensei pays for dates ! Except that Sojun’s wallet is bottomless, and he has no problems paying for things, even insisting to it. Kensei has slowly learnt to let him from time to time. Sojun needs to feel able to treat his husband too. And it means better restaurants and things that Kensei could afford, honestly.

22. Who takes over the beauty/style department ? Okay, Kensei is NOT the kind of man that figures that a t-shirt and cargo pants are acceptable wear for a classy evening as long as they aren’t covered in oil and grim, but it’s not that far. So of course, Sojun decides to take over, especially when they go out, or when they are invited at the Kuchiki estate. But besides those occasions, he leaves Kensei at his beloved work / military clothes, because that’s how he’s the most comfortable. Sometimes, he even borrows them, just for fun (and for the way Kensei looks at him when he wears his clothes).

23. What would they get each other for gifts ? Sojun buys Kensei top-of-the-line tools, kitchen ustensiles and appliances, and workout equipment. Kensei buys Sojun as many books as he can carry in one go (which means, a lot), lots of refined teas, and beautiful kimonos, because his gorgeous husband deserves the best.

24. Who cusses more ? Kensei, of course. He says it’s part of the job, a mechanic HAS to swear, but to be honest, he kinda likes it, and loves coming with new cusses. Mashiro notes them in a notebook. On the opposite, Sojun never swears. Half his family is sure he doesn’t even know what a curse is.

25. Who remembers things ? And who forgets the birthdays and anniversaries (and has to be forgiven) ? They are both quite good at remembering things, be it dates and anniversaires, grocery lists, etc... The whiteboard in the kitchen and the small post-it notes scattered around the places are mainly covered in small messages.

26. Who is the bigger cuddler ? Sojun is the biggest cuddle Amateur in the house. But his way of asking for them is to walk up to Kensei and get closer and closer until he’s against him. Unless he’s busy cooking something that deserves all his attention, Kensei understands and delivers the bear hug. Not to say that he always needs to be prompted fr that. Sometimes, you just want to hug your small husband very tight.

27. Nicknames for each other ? WHY DO YOU WANT TO GIVE A NICKNAME WHEN SOMEONE HAS A NAME AS PRETTY AS SOJUN !! YOU ARE NO MAN OF TASTE !! (Sojun likes “my love”. Or “my man”. It’s very cliché. He loves it)

28. Who decorates the apartment ? To say that Kensei's apartment wasn't decorated is an understatement. Functionnal furniture and that's all. Mashiro bought him a few decorating things that he just... put on the tables and shelves, without arranging them. It took Sojun's move with crates full of pretty scrolls, paintings and knickknacks, that he put on the walls and furniture, for the flat to finally be decorated enough.

29. Who initiates duets ? Kensei does not sing. At all. Sometimes, he’ll hum along the music playing in his garage, but it’s more like a toneless noise than really singing. Sojun doesn’t insist.

30. What do they do to cheer each other up ? The Kensei Theory says that, if it’s sad and it has a mouth, you can put food in it until it’s feeling better. Works better when 1) you don’t try to overfeed the person / animal / other, and 2) you take care of cooking foods the person / animal / other likes. Sojun can always count on a cup of his favourite tea and little pastries when he’s feeling down, with a side of hug. When Kensei is feeling down, Sojun knows that talking is not a good idea, especially not trying to pull it out of him. It always ends in curses. The best way is to sit silently with him, and hug him, or take him on a walk and hold his hand. You’d never guess, but the hand-holding is the very important part.

Daily life

31. Who is more tech-savvy ? Kensei. Not only does he know everything about engines and the like, he’s more than skilled with other things : appliances, plumbing, machines, everything. You have something broken, you call Kensei. He can fix everything. Sojun sometimes calls him “the Machine Whisperer”.

32. Who drinks all of the coffee ? Kensei. Not to say that coffee is his raison d'être, but he drinks quite the quantity all day long. He even put a coffee maker in the garage. Sojun is more of a tea person.

33. Who does what chores ? Leave it to Kensei to take care of every cleaning chore under the sun. That man can get any stain out : blood, sweat, oil, gas… It’s magical. He’s a good cleaner too, and he likes dusting, moping and the like. It helps him relax and empty his mind. On the other hand, Sojun has grown up surrounded by maids and butlers who took care of every chore. He’s not totally inept, but he’s…. not very good at it, and gladly leaves them to Kensei. But he’s quite good as accounting, and balances the checkbooks for the garage and their home. They both go grocery shopping, because it’s fun to do it together. And Sojun can loudly marvel at Kensei’s strength when he carries all the bags and bottle packs, so everyone can hear how much his husband is awesome.

34. Who kills the bugs ? Kensei. It’s not that he’s a mean man who loves to squash innocent bugs. Most of the time, he waves them around and ends up swatting them. Sojun just ignores them, unless they try to eat his food.

35. Who makes the bed in the mornings ? Kensei. It comes with a past in the military, he’s used to make it as soon as he’s up and about. Now that there’s a Sojun in it, it’s harder. He tried to make it around him, but Sojun is not a cat that you can move around, and he always ended waking him up. Now he just waits until Sojun has left the bed, and makes it durung his lunch break.

36. Who starts getting into holidays way before they should ? Shinji. No, really. No one can get into holidays farther than that man. He’s like in perpetual holiday mood. You can’t help but follow him. But most of the time, Sojun is more into holidays than Kensei in every way but planning holiday feasts.

37. Who initiates the couple selfies ? what is that “selfies” thing you’re talking about ? (J/k. Kensei knows about selfies. For a man who counted on his appearance to woo his beloved, he’s very conscious of what he looks like and what he can do. And he wasn’t above using selfies and such to know about the effect he had !)Most of the time, Sojun is the one taking them, whenever they are in a nice place. Kensei sometimes does, too, especially when Sojun is looking very nice (and he does, too).

38. Who always ends up with too much junk food after grocery shopping ? Kensei. Surprisingly, it’s not even for him, but for Mashiro. He knows she has a gigantic sweet tooth, and can’t concentrate at all if she doesn’t have something to snack on. He already saw her leave work in search of something to eat, without (too much) concern for work. So now, he keeps a snack box under the desk.

39. Who asks to keep the abandoned kitten/puppy they find in the rain ? Everybody knows it : Kensei is weak for everything cute and tiny ~especially with green hair~. When surprised with his umbrella over a tiny puppy or putting some milk out for the kitten living under the shed, he growls and shuffles his feet, all embarrassed. Sojun knows very well his fondness for tiny animals, but that his Kenseiness doesn’t allow him to confess it. So he’s the one asking to keep the animals, to his husband’s greatest delight.

40. So how many pets, and who remembers to feed them ? Does Mashiro count as a pet ? Kensei sometimes half-jokes that he has to feed and walk her or she gets restless. But other than that, they don't keep pets. They take in all the puppies and kitties they can, but bring them to Soi-Fon's refuge, so they'll find a good, loving family.

41. Who gets babied when they’re sick ? Kensei NEVER gets sick ! Nonsense ! That’s for non-manly people ! (something he doesn’t claim when Sojun is around, because it could hurt his feelings, and he doesn’t want to hurt anything in Sojun). But when a sickness turns out to be manlier than him, he gets put to bed and fussed upon. He protests, of course, he doesn’t think that Sojun should exert himself while taking care of him. But he can’t tell he doesn’t like the attention.Sojun gets babied all the time. That’s the only advantage of having a chronic disease. It means that your overprotective husband will always make sure you’re warm enough, fed enough, comfortable enough, and won’t stop trying to make things better and more enjoyable for you. To the extent of wanting to carry you everywhere because you shouldn’t have to tire yourself by walking, but that’s where Sojun draws the line.

42. Who brings breakfast to bed ? Kensei, of course. Nothing better than waking your cute husband up with a whole assortiment of pastries, pancakes, tea, and a rose in a vase to complete. And nothing even better to see his smile when he sees you first thing in the morning (yes, Kensei is Very Much In Love).

43. Who has sole posession of the T.V. remote ? The one who finds it, gets to keep it.

44. Who comes home drunk at 3am ? No one. Sojun doesn't drink much, he's more of a social drinker, and he likes to take the time to taste his fine sake instead of gulping it down, like that oaf his son likes to be around. Kensei drinks more, and sometimes gets moderately drunk with the Vizored, but nothing more than that. And they both go home early enough after parties and evenings, to keep their rhythm intact. Besides, it's way better to have time to cuddle, rather than crash on the bed (and your husband).

45. What do they do when they’re away from each other ? Mop and pin for each other They mostly get themselves busy. Sojun reads a lot, and takes care of not exerting himself too much. Kensei fixes cars, does the cleaning and laundry, exercizes. Everything to keep busy. Sojun may send Kensei lots of cute messages and pics, and Kensei may check his phone every two minutes, but while the former will just smile, the latter will fiercly deny it with all his might.

46. What are they afraid of ? They are both afraid of Sojun's illness getting worse, and closely monitor it. Kensei tries not to be too mother-hen, but he can't help the knot in his gut when Sojun has an outbreak stronger than usual. Sojun tries to comfort him (Kensei insisting that he's the one in dire need of comfort), but he too is worried, and hopes that things won't get too bad. He doesn't want to saddle his husband with the burden of having to take care of someone too badly ill.Additionnaly, Kensei is scared of Sojun leaving him. Really, that man is beautiful, refined and clever, he could have anyone, and he still chose the grumpy mechanic. Sometimes, he thinks that his husband is going to get fed up with him and leave. He sometimes wonders about it at night, staying wide awake for hours. When he hears about it, Sojun tries to reassure him : he could have anyone he wants and that's exactly who he chose. So what if Kensei is grumpy ? He's protective and takes good care of him, and he loves him, and that's all that matters.

47. How often do they fight ? Almost never. Kensei knows he’s a brash man, and when he gets angry, he really gets angry. Like, scream-the-house-down angry. And he knows that Sojun, even if not a small, delicate flower, couldn’t handle that kind of behavior. He’s not used to it, you don’t scream anything down in the Kuchiki household. And Kensei doesn’t want him to get used to it. So what if he has to go out and run ten laps around the block ? At least he doesn’t lash at Sojun, and they can talk things out like normal persons, without fighting. But they don’t have lots of disagreements, really.

48. What would they do if the other one was hurt ? Let’s just hope that Sojun was hurt by falling down the stairs or something, because if someone dared to touch him, he would have to deal with Kensei’s intense rage, and would either join a monastary and never, ever set foot outside again, or end up as dog food. In either situation, Sojun would get the hell pampered out of him, with Kensei waiting on him hand and foot. Sojun wouldn’t seek vengeance if something was to happen to Kensei, but he would probably do his best to get him the best doctor of the region. Maybe a team of doctors. The best team, so his husband is well taken care of. And if someone DID wrong Kensei… let’s just say they’d need all the luck they can, because if they’re in the wrong, they’ll pay dearly for it. If not, then no problem.

And once they have kids…

49. How many kids ?

Three ! Except that they already had them. Shuuhei, Byakuya and Rukia are a bit weirded out at first, because unless the Vizards who were betting on the outcome, they didn’t see anything coming, or at least not much (Shinji has a FIELD DAY with that). The first family reunions and Sunday lunches are a bit uncomfortable, because no one knows what to talk about, and they watch with a hint of suspicion Kensei and Sojun interact (both are totally oblivious of the situation).It gets more comfortable, slowly. Talking with Sojun is relaxing, and Shuuhei likes that his stepfather can talk about lots of different subjects, and doesn’t communicate with grumps. Rukia is happy, because Kensei makes the best pastry puffs, and he’s more than happy to bake them for her. Byakuya takes more time to warm up to his stepfather. After all, a brute like him isn’t made for a Kuchiki, right ? And what if he can’t take care of him? What if he’s *gasp* bad for him ? But Sojun is the happiest he’s even been, and he doesn’t show signs of being mistreated. So he lets go… a little. But it doesn’t mean he’s not going to keep watch !

50. Who is the stricter parent ? Kensei. Shuuhei has been raised in a very stric way, and he’s always adamant about his instructions or advices being followed to the letter. It may be rooted in his military past. But he can be leniant on some points. On the opposite, Sojun had always taken the comprehensive and gentle way, trying to guide his children the best he could without hurts.

51. Who stays up late helping with homework ? No one because there's no homework to do anymore ! But that would be Sojun. Not that Kensei is stupid (people tend to dismiss him because he's a mechanic), but he lacks patience. He did his best to help Shuuhei with his homework when he did have some, but he was quite happy to leave the task to Tôsen, the nice neighbourg who used to babysit him. Sojun has the right amount of patience and firmness to get homework done quickly, and Byakuya's and Rukia's were always done to a T.

52. Who likes to take the family out and for what ? Depends of who the family consists of. They don’t often go out together. Most of the time, they meet at either of their houses. Sometimes, they go with their children in a nice restaurant where Kensei doesn’t have to cook and can be waited on hand and foot, but he doesn’t like it that much. When it’s just the two of them, Sojun drags Kensei outside, for a walk or visiting something. He always takes care of choosing quiet activities to enjoy together, without the hassle of a crazy family and group of friends around them.

#lumeha #bleach #kuchiki sojun #muguruma kensei #my OTP #that I'm the only one to ship #I don't care ♫#because they are cute #also #plouc!AU #!!!!!!!!

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