#noms chief

[ekail]

me when i have to build up my sinners in order to progress in the story (im broke onredcrystals)

[foxyd101]

*slowly sides more doodles from kumas whiteboard* here's another dose of doodles for you all. These doodles show my bean Rosa in the mob au and doodles of all my mutuals/friends oc's. :3

Note:

-Whiskey and Beary belong to @kumakooo

-Basil and Collector wally belong to @cutepotatook

-Rainy belong to @koifsssh

[thewhimsyturtle]

Monday after the Super Bowl is for basking in the glory of successfully picking the winner for the third year in a row! MOM, hurry up and bring me more shellebratory noms!

[shacklda]

i love chief noms

[shackld]

the eepy is taking me but also dating-for-the-mission plots with chief would work so well

[why-animals-do-the-thing]

Very, very fresh bison calf.

Months and months ago I promised y'all photos of the bison birth I was lucky enough to observe at the Cleveland Zoo last spring. As requested, they'll be under a cut, because unlike this lovely photo from the zoo announcement post, my photos are... goopy.

His name is Tighee, a name which the zoo said is "the name of a Shoshone chief."

We walked up just as things started to get going, and the story is below the cut...

This is Blue, a female bison who arrived at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo in fall of 2022 already pregnant. When we got to the habitat, there were a ton of people gathered around, and it wasn't quite clear what was going on.

Then we noticed her full udder and the extra pair of feet.

She was dead-center in the (pretty large) habitat, which was nice - though there was a crowd, she had some good distance from everyone for most of it. The calf came pretty quickly, all things considered (something especially helpful when you're holding a heavy camera up on full manual zoom without a tripod). Because she was at a distance, my friend and I spent a bunch of time showing people near us photos on my camera screen so they could get a good view.

I was honestly really surprised at the number of people who asked why the zoo staff weren't in there with her, helping her give birth. So we explained to folk that zoo staff don't normally go in with bison on a normal day because they're so big and dangerous, and that during a birth (a time of potential stress for the whole herd, the rest of whom were off to the side of that habitat) it would be especially risky to do so. But you could see people in the zoo's uniform colors clustered around the fence, keeping a close eye on her.

And then there was a calf! For folk who haven't seen what a whole amniotic sac looks like, I'm including the next couple photos.

This one is still mid-birth, as you can see. The hooves come out first, with the calf's head laying parallel to them.

Blue immediately moves to break the amniotic sac and clear the calf's airways of mucus. Om nom nom.

We have open eyes and an awake baby! The amniotic sac is full of fluid that helps protect the baby while it's in the uterus, which means once it's broken, the baby is goopy. One of mom's first jobs is to lick all of it away to dry the calf off.

A first attempt at using legs!

Nope, being born was too hard and legs don't work yet. Time to rest and recover from the effort of thinking about standing up.

The first inquisitive member of the herd, another young female, comes to check out the newest addition.

More attempts at legs! Getting better but still not coordinated enough yet.

They're starting to help the baby stand up. In a non-captive setting it would be important for him to be able to walk pretty quickly after being born, and he has to stand up to be able to nurse!

Everyone comes to check him out, now.

We have legs! They work! He hadn't quite figured out where to nurse from yet, though.

And that's your bison birth for the day!

[fatuismooches]

More Neuvillette thoughts, as requested by people in my inbox.

He is a traditional man, and he wants to court you in the proper way that someone as lovely as you deserve. The only problem is that he isn't actually sure of the way humans do so. Sure, he's seen other people do so, but sometimes it ends up in failure and rejection. And he sure does not want to ever see a dissatisfied look from you directed towards him. So Monsieur Neuvillette will head to the library to borrow a book regarding the principles of courtship. (Everyone is sworn to secrecy if they happen to see. Though the Melusines already know who the lucky person is.) He will genuinely start to worry if you don't show signs of reciprocation or happiness so please indulge him, he's trying his best.

Taking him diving. This doesn't really seem like a Neuvillette thing to do but when he's in love with you I believe he will actually consider your suggestions just to please you even if they seem a bit ridiculous. Why diving specifically you ask? Because he looks like an otter and you also want to show him those cute otters in the ocean to prove it. Even before the romance stage, you are probably Neuvillette's first real friend. No one else has the courage to speak to him as openly as you do. And he does not find it disrespectful, no, he realizes that he quite enjoys it. He doesn't realize how lonely he is without you until a mere day passes without seeing you.

Being besties with Furina. If you manage to catch the attention of the grand Chief Justice, you are sure to get the same treatment from the great Archon herself. You may be nervous at first but if you can deal with Neuvillette you can probably see her confidence isn't all that real and something she uses to hide her fears. Regardless just be her friend because Neuvillette is tired of dealing with her. She confides in and trusts the two of you very much. Furina will also let you in on some secrets of the Chief Justice, don't tell him though.

Expect to be spoiled with riches. I mean he is probably really wealthy and you are his lover so isn't it natural for him to treat you to expensive things? Though if you feel overwhelmed by the sheer amount of Mora that he's spending on you just tell him and he will dial it back a bit (just reassure him that you really do love his gifts because he'll probably be a bit nervous that they're not good enough.)

Taking the Melusines out on dates with you and Neuvillette. Both of you are like parental figures to them. It goes from a table for two or a table for a few. It's really cute to see how they eat with their tiny hands, and see how Neuvillette listens to their stories with the utmost seriousness. They will also ask you the questions Neuvillette wants to ask you so he doesn't have to. Also, gently biting and nomming on his pointy ears. Just do it. He's really confused at first (is this what humans do?) but he won't stop you. Moving onto his horns. They are very smooth but I don't think they're hard. You could move and bend them pretty easily which makes it super hard for the judge to keep a straight face. Give them a little kiss too.

Everyone knows this by now but he is an emotional man who keeps his sadness and solitude to himself. Neuvillette doesn't rely on anyone to cheer him up but as time goes on he realizes even the smallest things you do makes him feel better so nowadays you'll have a visitor outside your house in the pouring rain.

[shunin-gumis]

Spiked-Donation: Yes or No? (Part 1)

The Kungfu Bodyguard who's always Bruised

Another nagishuu card I thank eitori for this food 🙏

Thank you aca @/463ce6 and Niri @/Niri_riri for helping me with proofing!

Location: HAMA House 2F Corridor

Netaro: Hm………….

Nagi: …… 

Location: HAMA House Changing Room

Netaro: Hm………..

*Netaro circling Nagi*

Nagi: …… 

Location: HAMA House Dining Room

Momiji: The boiled eggs are ready! Anyone want one~?

Nagi: Ah, I’ll ha—

Netaro: Nom!

Momiji: Woah!

Netaro: Nyam nyam.

Netaro: Hm…………

Momiji: (What’s with the silent pressure he’s exerting while stuffing his face with boiled eggs…)

Momiji: Be careful not to choke on it.

Nagi: Netaro has been staring at me a lot lately… 

Netaro: Nyam… *gulp*

Nagi: If I did something wrong without realizing it, please let me know so I can apologize and compensate you promptly. 

Netaro: Gii… Has something changed for you, recently?

Nagi: What do you mean? 

Netaro: Have you fallen in love? 

Nagi: *cough* *HACK* *cough*

Netaro: So I was spot on! Doudou, looks like this fellow has changed after falling in love!

Nagi: N-No, that’s not– *cough cough* 

Momiji: Nagi-kun, are you okay!? Here, have some water!

Nagi: …*gulp gulp*

Netaro: Oh! Perhaps the object of your affections is— 

Nagi: Netaro, you look thirsty, have some water. Just, stop talking. 

Netaro: …*gulp gulp*

Nagi: It’s nothing like that. Nothing happened. I’m not in- It’s not like that, okay?

Momiji: O-Okay…… 

Netaro: Phew. 

Netaro: Mm, however, it’s been on my mind since last night. The fact that the flavor has changed.

Nagi: Huh… 

Momiji: Flavor? Of what?

Netaro: Gii’s.

Nagi: He means the flavor of my cooking has changed. Lately I’ve been really into Chouji’s Cook and Chill videos, and he just puts dashi powder into everything. Apparently that solves any problem you’d have.

Netaro: No, I was talking about that… 

Nagi: THAT orange juice over there? You should have some—

Nagi: Oh.

*Nagi faints*

Momiji: Nagi-kun!?

~~~

Location: HAMA House - Rat Room

Momiji: Are you sure you’ll just sleep it off? You fainted so suddenly… 

Nagi: I’m sorry for troubling you. It’s just my anemia, so please don’t worry about me.

Nagi: (......I can’t tell her it’s because of Netaro doing “that”…)

Momiji: Did you take the health check-up from the company?

Nagi: Don’t worry, I had one just the other day. Haven’t had to feel the cold stethoscope against my skin since middle school.

Momiji: That’s good then… 

Nagi: (The Chief’s kindness is really heartwarming… The employee benefits are really generous, I’m truly happy to have found such a great workplace.)

Nagi: (Due to reasons, I ended up needing to donate my blood to an alien, but I’m sure I still haven’t…paid enough… for this happiness…)

Momiji: Nagi-kun?

Nagi: *soft breathing* Momiji: He fell asleep…

Part 2

[crown-of-roses-thsc]

And now. The moment literally nobody has been waiting for.

Elsie throws an absolutely unnecessary amount of asks at her favorite stick people

For Reginald: What’s your favorite breed of cat? Favorite kind of cheese? What would it take for you to hurt someone? What’s the worst thing that someone could do to you? Do you like space? Do you have siblings?

For Ellie: What’s your favorite color? Favorite animal? Would you say you have a high cold tolerance? What was your mother like? If you accidentally created an opposite version of yourself who was a pacifist cinnamon roll, how would you react? How many people have died at your hands? How many more until you stop? Oh, and what’s your favorite pastry?

For Lefty: Are you from Texas? Would you ever own a dog? Why do you wield a axe? Who’s Calvin?

For Burt: Ya like jazz? Also do you need a hug and a stuffed animal and therapy like seriously are you okay we’re worried about you

For Sven: What’s your favorite season? Do you see any ghosts that aren’t Randy? Do you have any siblings? If you had the opportunity to make one wish but you had to fight monsters for the rest of your life, would you take it? If you did, what would you wish for?

For Carol: Opinions on crows? If you had a vacation, how would you spend it? If you actually got the chief’s approval, what would you do?

For Randy: FAVORITE SONG I NEED TO KNOW YOUR RAVE PLAYLIST- anyways why does your scarf float like that? What was the chief before you like? Do you have any family?

For Gold and Val: You’re the cutest thing ever, no notes. Do you like plants? Favorite flower? If you could live anywhere, where would you live? Do you like camping? Are you irrationally scared of anything that would never happen?

For Jessica: Do you like red velvet cake? What’s your favorite hair dye color? What do you think of your kids’ life decisions? Are you okay? Do you need help?

for Suave: No nice silly asks for you. How was getting shot through the head? How’d you feel if you ended up hated by everyone and feared by none, alone in the world? How would you feel if someone actually got the guts to put even more bullets in your skull?

and for EVERYONE (main characters and ghosts):

If you were in charge of the toppat clan, how would you run it?

Sheesh, I got carried away. Uhhh feel free to answer or not answer whatever of these that you want.

Though I never finished this ask, I know you folks are HUNGRY and as such I will feed you. Nom mom nom

[mysticsparklewings]

Karla Choupette, but make her Winx!

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It’s been so long since I posted art, I kinda forgot how to caption it 😅

So I’ll stick with facts: Exactly 1 year ago today, I brought home my very first Rainbow High doll, Karla Choupette. Shortly after, I wanted to draw her, and since I was on a roll with Winx-Club-Style art at the time, this is the result! 🤍

⭐️ Like My Art and Want to see more of it? Here's All My Links! ⭐️

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This won't be much of surprise to Sparklers that read my most recent Museletter, but to those that didn't: Hi! Longtime no art; How've you been? 👋 😅 If you're curious about how & where I've been, I'm going to direct you to that Museletter for the full details.

Also as you'll see in the Museletter, I had actually started on and mostly finished this piece right before my accidental half-year hiatus actually began (in December). There are many reasons (discussed at length in the Museletter) as to why I've held onto this piece for so long, but chief among them are 1. A lack of motivation to type this description and 2. Even months later, I was still not 100% sure about the background I originally picked out.

We'll talk more about the background in a bit. Firstly, especially for those that didn't read the Museletter, I should probably tell you who/what exactly this is and why you're staring at it. 😆

This lady, dear Sparklers, is one Karla Choupette of Shadow High, which is a...sub-line? I guess is the best way to put it? of the Rainbow High doll line. Except, per my usual art shenanigans, she's been drawn in the Winx Club art style. 😅

Karla is also known as: The Doll that Broke My (also unintentional) 5-6 year Doll Buying Hiatus. And in fact, that was the final key to me dusting off my typing fingers to finally bring this art to you Sparklers today.

I'll try and keep this story brief, but...Well, loyal Sparklers know how me and "brief" usually go, so I'll just apologize in advance for how very not-brief this actually will be...

In a way, this story starts in 2016 with the second generation of Monster High.

The first generation of Monster High was, pretty indisputably, my "true doll love" even though until it's beginning in 2010 I'd been raised on mostly Barbie and some Bratz. But the second generation was almost completely canned by the fan base, including me.

By 2018, most Monster High merchandise had disappeared from stores entirely. It all happened so fast for a franchise that had been such a lightning-in-a-bottle success before; It was depressing. (It's still depressing, to be completely honest, even with G3 now alive and well.)

And after that, for years the was really nothing for me in the doll space. With Monster High and Ever After High gone, Barbie's quality having taken a nosedive, Bratz's presence be wildly inconsistent...Whatever options were left either didn't appeal to me personally or didn't stick around long enough for that to matter.

So for the next few years, my attention in the toy aisle was pretty squarely on Shopkins, Num Noms, and the occassional other surprise toys that tempted me enough to try at least once. 🤷‍♀️

In 2020 (so I've been told by the internet—I couldn't have remembered the date if my life depended on it because that's how little attention I was paying to them at the time), Rainbow High dolls started appearing in store. And I do believe I remember seeing them in-store, possibly even an enclosed display. And I remember really not liking them at the time!

And I didn't like what I saw of Rainbow High for a considerably amount of time after that. But somehow, someway, I did very slowly start to come around to them. I think the biggest factor was when I started to understand that despite what sounded like a cutesy name to me, Rainbow High was not effectively a line of CareBears dressed as teenage girls.

Though, at this stage, when I say "come around to," I really mean I stopped viewing the line with active disdain. It would take a while longer of random images popping up on my Instagram and Pinterest feeds (mostly Instagram) before I started to think, "Oh well maybe I'd buy one if xyz..."

But I don't think it was too much longer after the "if xyz" phase that I was browsing around on Pinterest

And there, that was the moment—*Gasp*, Who is she? She looks like Ivy if Ivy were pink! She's so pretty!!

Karla Choupette had appeared.

And for the record, yes—I did and still do think Karla looks a lot like what I envision for my Winx OC Ivy aside from the pink coloring. So if in the future you see me draw Ivy and her outfit looks suspiciously familiar, now you'll know why!

But, to be fair, that's not the only thing about Karla's design that appeals to me. The stark contrast of colors is one for sure, as well as the slight contrast of the punk-ish boots with the more formal/business-like dress/top situation. And after I did (spoiler alert) bring Karla home, I realized she bears some resemblance to one of my favorite Monster High dolls of all-time, Zomby Gaga, so there was almost definitely some subconscious influence coming from that.

Anyway. It was a little bit of a slow burn, but eventually the desire to actually get a Karla doll was rattling around in my head so loudly it was was very nearly literally keeping me up at night.

I completely lucked out in the timeline that Karla had already been out for a while at that point and last year's Amazon Prime Day wasn't too far around the corner. Sure, I could have just bought her at any time, but considering I'd been out of the doll-buying game a while and my "first doll back" was going to be one completely unlike the rest of my collection [..and I use that term kind of loosely here], so I didn't want to put too much money on the line when it was fully possible I'd get her home and unboxed and decide I didn't actually like her all that much.

The funny thing is, the story could've even there. Or at least taken a significant detour. Because, sure enough, Amazon did mark Karla down for Prime Day at the time, but before I could go through with the purchase, she sold out. 🙃

On a whim though, I decided to check Walmart a little later in the day, and lo and behold—Apparently they really wanted to compete with Amazon for sales that week, so they'd dropped their price on Karla to match and actually still had her in stock!

I ordered her for local pickup to avoiding paying for shipping, and the next day—Exactly one year ago today!—Karla came home with me. [And you can see a picture of my exact Karla in that Museletter I mentioned before, for those curious!]

It would be another couple of days before I actually opened her; Both in the store when we picked her up and while I was opening her, I was honestly a little scared that physically being able to hold her would somehow break whatever magic hold this doll had had over me up until either point.

But as you can probably guess by the way I'm telling this story and the fact that this art exists—Nope! And even a year and 20 (...soon to be 21...) more Rainbow/Shadow High dolls later, Karla is still my favorite. She is, in fact, the only one I currently have 2 of, as I found an incomplete-but-in-great-shape Karla for cheap on eBay about a month later.

To be fair, I should back up a bit and clarify: If you're familiar with the doll space, you may be wondering why/how Karla was the buying-hiatus-breaker for me even though Monster High G3 started releasing new dolls in 2022.

Technically I suppose she wasn't because I did get some of the MH G3 dolls and Howliday Draculaura for Christmas 2022, but for space/storage related reasons, it would be much longer before I actually opened any of my new MH dolls, and there were various aspects that made G3 still feel kind of rocky and uncertain at the time.

Karla was the one that really sparked my excitement for dolls in general again, though the excitement manifested as a rolling snowball instead of a roaring fire—I started out, as many doll fans across all brands have, insisting Karla would be the "only" Rainbow High doll I wanted/needed.

And if you'll remember I quoted a collection of 20 Rainbow High dolls a few paragraphs ago, then you'll already know exactly how that well-intended insistence turned out. 😆 [And this isn't even touching on the fact that, as also mentioned in the Museletter, that Karla and the Rainbow High girls also ignited a "make things for the dolls from scratch" spark in me that I have felt in...Mm, probably not since the earliest days of Monster High, sometime before 2013.]

Some of you are also now probably doing the math on how we arrived at the concept for this artwork—This is very much not the first (or even second or third) time that I've used the Winx Club art style as a vessel to express my love for some other thing.

It's been a while since the idea began by now, but I remember I had inklings of wanting to draw Karla for a while—I think in particular I wanted to play with Karla's white eyelashes in illustrated form since it's both something I've never seen on a doll before and also white eyelashes in general are just a unique and interesting concept to me—And since I was sorta on a roll with the Winx Club stuff/style, it wasn't too long or too far of a leap in logic to decide this is the way it would be done.

Likewise, if you've seen any of my most-recent Winx art, you'll already be fairly familiar with my process for how the art comes together in the most literal senses. So because of that and because it has been long enough that I don't remember finer details like areas that were particularly tricky so well, I'm going to skip over a lot of that here.

However, I do remember and can tell you a few things that make Karla here a little different from some of those other attempts of mine, so I will now start rambling about that in whatever order things come to mind.

Firstly and possibly the most obvious, Karla you could say Karla's wasn't "Winx-fied" as intensely as Helena or The Nanny, which was a very purposeful choice. I love Karla's original design so much that I really didn't want to touch it too much, and so while a fairy form like those other two artworks can often be more fun, I opted to keep Karla "casual."

To that end, I followed what patterns and "rules" I've observed for the Winx's Season 2-3 "casual outfits" as best I could without making any serious alterations. [The linked screenshot isn't the best example of said patterns/rules—You kinda have to take in multiple screenshots to get the best feel for that—but it's a decent enough point of reference for which outfits I'm talking about.]

So the main thing you'll notice are the things I took away or simplified because I think thy pushed Winx Club's style "limits" a bit too far—Karla has her fan but it's missing the word "Shadow" across the front, the zippers on her shoes aren't well-defined, the charm/pin from her tie is missing, you can't see the pinstripes on her dress (though if this were meant to be the Seasons 2-3 promo art style and not true-to-show style, I would've left those in)...things like that.

I did make small exceptions for things I felt would take away too much if I left them out like the details on her belt, the buckles on her boots, giving her eyeshadow, etc. But I tried to balance it all out. The belt is probably still pushing it, but I genuinely wasn't sure how else to handle it and I think everything else worked out well enough.

Now, I did make the decision to approach the line work more so how Season 4 would do it—There are more colored lines here than is really typical for Season 3, especially when you count Karla's hair. This was mostly done to try and preserve some of Karla's own "feel" when you look at her, but also a little for contrast of the different elements/textures at play. [For example, I thought lining her hair in black would look too harsh.]

...I should also probably mention that while I still stand by Karla looking a lot like what I want for Ivy, I really was focused on trying to capture Karla as herself here—I can't say Ivy never entered my mind during the drawing process because that's kind of impossible given that she lives and dies entirely in my imagination, but I did not consciously at any point use Ivy as reason or justification for any changes made to Karla's design.

Oh, and if this pose feels a little familiar, much like with Fran, I opted to re-use a pose I'd already been working with around the time I started this project. It's hard to tell from my sketches in the linked image, but in this case I did decide to re-draw the arms to nearly the opposite position because it made figuring out what to do with her fan so much easier.

Ironically, this pose is not at all the best way to get a good look at her white eyelashes, but I worked with what I had to make something nice without it taking 2-3 (or more) times as long, so I'm not actually too upset about that.

You could say that's sorta what happened with the background—I can't say this is my most favorite background I've ever put together, but I really did not have any better ideas, so...🤷‍♀️

Maybe it's obvious, maybe it's not, but I decided to try combining a design formula that's been used in a lot of the Rainbow High boxes as a background (and sometimes in other promotional material) with some general ideas from promotional images/profiles you may have seen of the Winx before.

So if you thought you were seeing Alfea castle edited into a rainbow gradient back there, you would be absolutely right. 😉

This is also why Karla's name is just kinda randomly hanging out over there on a "true to show style"—It's a little more consistent with the Winx profiles/images and added a little extra something I felt was missing from the full package.

And while not my primary motivation, I did kind of like the idea that with a background situation like this, if I decide I ever want to draw more Winxify-ed Rainbow High girls, I can re-use it and have them all a little more visually united as a series.

I have no current plans to do that, but I like being able to leave the door open for it, y'know?

...I think those are all the main things I wanted to mention. This is the real trouble with not writing these descriptions as soon as I'm able—I forget too much! But there's not much to be done about it now, so oh well I guess.

In such case, the important thing really is that I'm still happy with how the art turned out. Or at least Karla and some of the other details. Even at this very moment I still have my quibbles and doubts with the image of Alfea hanging out back there, but at this point I really don't want to put off uploading this any longer solely because of that, of all things.

Since I did find it in me to scramble what was left of this description together though, coupled with things I mentioned in that last Museletter, I really hope this means I've finally turned some kind of internal corner and and that it won't be another block of months before you Sparklers see more art from me.

At the very least, I can now say I've tried this new submission portal from dA and...It's not my beloved Sta.sh, but...eh, it's okay I guess. I still miss my editing/formatting tools being more available like in a proper text editor, but in some ways I do think I like this better than the previous submission portal, if I'm going to be forced to type out my descriptions in here from now on.

I think at least knowing that—that I'm marginally more familiar with this new portal now—will be a step in the right direction.

One last thing before I leave you Sparklers for today—I plan to give this description a once-over before I submit, but I've written most of it late at night after a busy shopping day and may or may not have caught myself almost dozing off a couple of times, so on top of my faulty memory, if you notice any exceptionally weird mistakes, that's probably where those came from and I missed them on my second read-through. 😅

In any case, Sparklers, I thank you for still being here and being patient with me—Like I said before, I sincerely hope this is just the beginning of me finally being "back," at least for a while, but ultimately only time will tell if it is or not.

But if it is, then I expect to see you all again much sooner rather than later...😉

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Artwork © me, MysticSparkleWings

Karla Choupette/Rainbow High © MgA Entertainment

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⭐️ Like My Art and Want to see more of it? Here's All My Links! ⭐️

[legofanguy1999]

Nom Nom November day 23 needs salt

A SMG4 fanfiction for @thepromptfoundry event Nom Nom November day 23 needs salt.

The SMG4 crew come together for a dinner with Mario as the chief and he got out some spangetti and Fishy Boopkins start eating his spangetti which Mario cry out, "Got you!" Fishy then said to Mario, "This needs more salt." and the shocked Mario grab Fishy's spangetti and try it which he find that it still have the salt that he put on it and Fishy then said to the rest of the gang, "Guys, I live in sea water. That was nothing to me."

[iruthomlogs]

Nom Nom November day 5 cook-offs and competition

A crossover story for @thepromptfoundry event Nom Nom November day 5 cook-offs and competition guest staring @legofanguy1999 oc Billy Blauter.

The dwarf Iruthom said to the crowd, "Greetings, everyone. I'm your temporary host, as Mr. James Ramesses tell me that he is away for the evening, Iruthom Battlebear. Let us meet us contestants in the Iron Cook!" Soon, the lights shine on the four pair standing before the cooking table and Iruthom begins to introduced them, "From a pineapple under the sea and absorbent and yellow and porous as he can be, Spongebob Squarepants from the Bikini Bottom and his best friend Patrick Star. Taking a break for exploring a dungeon, it's fellow dwarf Senshi and Laios Touden. Owner of a pizza restaurant that has seen better days, It's Peppino Spaghetti and his acquaintance Gustavo. From Swedish we think and a star in a famous TV show and become a movie star when the show was cancelled to make way for bigger projects, here is the Swedish Chief and his partner Beaker." As the crowd clap, Iruthom said to the chefs, "Now chef, you must make a meal for our three judges in under two hours. Now begin!" and the chefs start cooking.

After two hours, the chefs are finished with their meals and Iruthom said, "Let's meet our judges. This infamously harsh food critic has bring down the mighty Guesteau, Anton Ego." and the man got some boos from the crowd as Iruthom turn to the next judge which is a pink pony, "CEO of CanterLogic and infamous critic Phyllis Cloverleaf." and Iruthom turn to a minifigure with blond hair and wearing a blue shirt and black pants, "Standing in for Tommy Flayton whose text us that he was going to be sick, here is the hero of Brickville, Billy Blauter." Soon, the chefs bring their meals with Spongebob bring Krabby Patty, Senshi bring some kind of soap, Peppino bring pizza, and the Swedish Chief bring up some kind of meal with meatballs. After trying the meals, the judges pick Senshi to be the winner of the contest.

[thewhimsyturtle]

Basking in the glow of successfully predicting the Super Bowl for the second year in a row and GRUMPing about getting only one radicchio and endive snack to shellebrate.

[shacklda]

NOMS

[scotianostra]

November 13th 1850 saw the birth of Robert Louis Stevenson in Edinburgh.

As the author of such classics as Treasure Island, Kidnapped and The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Stevenson is known the world over, instead of reeling off the usual facts about the life of the man I thought I would dig up some facts that are not so well known.

When Stevenson first wrote Treasure Island, he submitted his stories under nom-de-plume of Captain George North to a children's periodical called Young Folks.

He may have invented the sleeping bag; according to the Stevenson House website: "R.L.S. has a good claim to be the inventor of the Sleeping Bag, taking a large fleece-lined sack with him to sleep in on the journey through France described in his book Travels with a Donkey in the Cevennes." For the record, his six-foot square sleeping sack was made of "green waterproof cart-cloth without and blue sheep's fur within".

Stevenson collected corselets (a sort of protective girdle) and was particularly proud of his ones from the Gilbert Island, which were designed to offer effective protection against sharks’ teeth weapons, throwing spears and European knives and bayonets. They were made of coconut fibre and decorated with human hair. They were given to him by King Tembinoka, the Tyrant of the Island of Apemama.

He had wooden teeth, when he was living in America in 1878 and pursuing the unhappily married Fanny Vandegrift Osbourne - a woman 11 years his senior - Stevenson lived in San Francisco's Chinatown. He was lonely and in poor health and while in Tubbs Hotel he had trouble with a bleeding mouth and rotten teeth. A local dentist removed all his teeth and fitted him with false wooden replacements. He married Fanny shortly afterwards.

As well as a writer, he was also a keen musician and composer, Stevenson played the piano and flageolet and wrote more than 100 original musical compositions and arrangements, including solos, duets, trios and quartet. His works include ten songs written to his own poetry.

He burnt the first draft of Jekyll & Hyde, the story was promoted by a dream he had while in Bournemouth of a "fine bogey tale", was written around the same time as Kidnapped and was partly based on Deacon Brodie, the 18th-century Edinburgh cabinetmaker. His wife Fanny complained that he had not made the allegory strong enough and he tossed the 30,000 word manuscript into the fire. Then in "a white heat", using a quill pen and ink pot, he stayed in bed for three days and wrote a new version. He would later claim that it was the worst thing he ever wrote but The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde sold 40,000 copies in its first six months on sale in 1886.

Long John Silver stayed at the Royal Infirmary. Treasure Island character Long John Silver was based on poet WE Henley, who RLS frequently visited at the Royal Infirmary. Henley suffered from tuberculosis of the bone and acquired a wooden leg after having his left leg amputated in 1868.

He left a number of books unfinished before his untimely death in Samoa on December 3rd 1894. Reports at the time said he had died of "apoplexy" due to the heat. It was also described as a stroke and a cerebral haemorrhage brought on by straining to opening a jar of mayonnaise. Or a bottle of wine. No one is sure. He was only 44.

Stevenson was buried in a grand ceremony on Mount Vaea, Upolu and his tomb is inscribed with the words: “Home is the sailor, home from the sea,/And the hunter home from the hill.” On the day he died he had been dictating words for his unfinished novel The Chief Justice's Clerk. He also left behind an uncompleted novel called St Ives (the story of a French prisoner who made his escape from Edinburgh Castle), The Young Chevalier, Heathercat and Weir of Hermiston.

Stevenson wrote his own inscription on his grave, the full verse reads...

Under the wide and starry sky,

Dig the grave and let me lie.

Glad did I live and gladly die

,And I laid me down with a will.

This be the verse you grave for me:

Here he lies where he longed to be;

Home is the sailor, home from sea,

And the hunter home from the hill.

[mcnultyocorcoran]

The text of "Rop tú mo Baile"/"Be Thou My Vision" reflects aspects of life in Early Christian Ireland (c.400-800 AD). The prayer belongs to a type known as a lorica, a prayer for protection.[8] The symbolic use of a battle-shield and a sword to invoke the power and protection of God draws on Saint Paul's Epistle to the Ephesians (Ephesians 6:16–17), which refers to "the shield of faith" and "the sword of the Spirit". Such military symbolism was common in the poetry and hymnnology of Christian monasteries of the period due to the prevalence of clan warfare across Ireland.[9] The poem makes reference to God as "King of the Seven Heavens" and the "High King of Heaven".[9] This depiction of the Lord God of heaven and earth as a chieftain or High King (Irish: Ard Rí) is a traditional representation in Irish literature; medieval Irish poetry typically used heroic imagery to cast God as a clan protector.

Irish:

Rop tú mo baile, a Choimdiu cride:

ní ní nech aile acht Rí secht nime.

Rop tú mo scrútain i l-ló 's i n-aidche;

rop tú ad-chëar im chotlud caidche.

Rop tú mo labra, rop tú mo thuicsiu;

rop tussu dam-sa, rob misse duit-siu.

Rop tussu m'athair, rob mé do mac-su;

rop tussu lem-sa, rob misse lat-su.

Rop tú mo chathscíath, rop tú mo chlaideb;

rop tussu m'ordan, rop tussu m'airer.

Rop tú mo dítiu, rop tú mo daingen;

rop tú nom-thocba i n-áentaid n-aingel.

Rop tú cech maithius dom churp, dom anmain;

rop tú mo flaithius i n-nim 's i talmain.

Rop tussu t' áenur sainserc mo chride;

ní rop nech aile acht Airdrí nime.

Co talla forum, ré n-dul it láma,

mo chuit, mo chotlud, ar méit do gráda.

Rop tussu t' áenur m' urrann úais amra:

ní chuinngim daíne ná maíne marba.

Rop amlaid dínsiur cech sel, cech sáegul,

mar marb oc brénad, ar t' fégad t' áenur.

Do serc im anmain, do grád im chride,

tabair dam amlaid, a Rí secht nime.

Tabair dam amlaid, a Rí secht nime,

do serc im anmain, do grád im chride.

Go Ríg na n-uile rís íar m-búaid léire;

ro béo i flaith nime i n-gile gréine

A Athair inmain, cluinte mo núall-sa:

mithig (mo-núarán!) lasin trúagán trúag-sa.

A Chríst[note 1] mo chride, cip ed dom-aire,

a Flaith na n-uile, rop tú mo baile.

English :

Be thou my vision O Lord of my heart

None other is aught but the King of the seven heavens.

Be thou my meditation by day and night.

May it be thou that I behold ever in my sleep.

Be thou my speech, be thou my understanding.

Be thou with me, be I with thee

Be thou my father, be I thy son.

Mayst thou be mine, may I be thine.

Be thou my battle-shield, be thou my sword.

Be thou my dignity, be thou my delight.

Be thou my shelter, be thou my stronghold.

Mayst thou raise me up to the company of the angels.

Be thou every good to my body and soul.

Be thou my kingdom in heaven and on earth.

Be thou solely chief love of my heart.

Let there be none other, O high King of Heaven.

Till I am able to pass into thy hands,

My treasure, my beloved through the greatness of thy love

Be thou alone my noble and wondrous estate.

I seek not men nor lifeless wealth.

Be thou the constant guardian of every possession and every life.

For our corrupt desires are dead at the mere sight of thee.

Thy love in my soul and in my heart --

Grant this to me, O King of the seven heavens.

O King of the seven heavens grant me this --

Thy love to be in my heart and in my soul.

With the King of all, with him after victory won by piety,

May I be in the kingdom of heaven, O brightness of the sun.

Beloved Father, hear, hear my lamentations.

Timely is the cry of woe of this miserable wretch.

O heart of my heart, whatever befall me,

O ruler of all, be thou my vision.