#not just summer but also spring and autumn until late november but especially summer ^^

[adore-gregor]

i like christmas time and the beginning of winter

But it's also challenging

[loveskitchen1]

The Hill Country Garden in Autumn

Residents of the Texas Hill Country are blessed with an abundance of beautiful natural landscape just outside their front door. However, gardeners and landscapers don't always just want to let Mother Nature have all the fun. And luckily, there are a number of varieties of grasses, trees, plants, vegetables and herbs that do wonderfully in our climate.

Additionally, with our temperate weather, unlike our northern neighbors, we are able to plant well into the fall. So in the autumn, what are our best bets for our garden and landscaping?

As the weather turns cooler, greens are the name of the game for vegetables. Right now is a great time to grow from seed greens like kale, chard, and spinach. You can also plant for garlic and radishes. And let's not forget that the holidays are just around the corner, which reminds us to start growing those yummy carrots and peas.

Herbs are also hardy fall growers. Unlike basil, which prefers the heat, oregano and cilantro actually thrive more in the fall than they do the summer. Rosemary is so hardy in this area, that it is in abundance when you need to flavor those savory winter meals to come.

But what about your landscaping? Lucky for you, you can practically retire that lawnmower for the next few months. As the days grow cooler, typical Hill Country lawns like Bermuda and St. Augustine will grow dormant. You do, however, need to fertilize your lawn before winter hits to keep it healthy until spring. Just be sure you use organic fertilizers that are safe for the local animals. Part of the beauty of living on a Hill Country property is the nature around us, so we want to protect it as much as possible.

This is also the best time of year to plant trees. Trees in this part of the country spread their roots mostly in October, November and December. While in northern climates these months are hard on the trees, our temperate climate is far less stressful on a tree's growth. Inside your yard and fence-line, try growing the hardy evergreen Live Oak. Other trees suitable for the area include Spanish oak and Bigtooth maple.

Honor Texas by planting the state Pecan tree. Not only does it grow large and majestic, but you'll be showered with free pecans just in time to make that pie for Thanksgiving. Sapling trees do best inside your fence as deer just love to nibble on fresh, young trees.

For around your home and in your flower beds, several shrubs and perennials are amazing fall accessories. Though too late to grow from seed, these can be found at your local nurseries for immediate planting. Around your foundation, plant shrubs like the evergreen silvery Mountain laurel and Yaupon. Both are deer resistant. A perennial which shines this time of year is the Fall aster.

Not only do its purple, white or pink blooms add a pretty touch, but its nectar attracts butterflies and birds. Another lovely and easy to grow perennial is the Salvia. This flowering plant has multiple species of all shapes and colors. However, one Salvia standout is the Mountain Sage, which is not only native to the Hill Country, but grows vivid reddish-orange blooms in the fall. Even better, it is especially attractive to hummingbirds.

Finally, don't forget about your wildflowers. Though you won't enjoy them for months, fall is the time to plant your wildflower seeds. It wouldn't be spring in the Hill Country without a blanket of Bluebonnets and Indian Paintbrush.

For More Info :-

Kew Gardens Hills Restaurant

[all-that-jazz-93]

American Dragon Timeline

I’ve been trying for a while now to figure out the timeline of this show, because it makes no sense in the order that Disney Channel originally aired the episodes. It also makes no sense in the episode list on Jeff Goode’s website, which he claims to be the proper chronology of events.

I had to come up with a few convoluted headcanons to make this work, but I think I’ve finally pieced together a coherent timeline (note that for a lot of the filler episodes, it doesn’t actually matter that much when they take place, I was just trying to stick as close to Jeff Goode’s chronology as possible.)

September 2004

Old School Training

It’s implied in this episode that Jake got his dragon powers very recently. They don’t say how recently, but given how new the whole thing is to him, I’d say it’s probably only been about a week or two.

Here’s where we come up against our first issue with canon. In The Legend of Dragon Tooth, Jake says he got his dragon powers when he turned 13, and in Shapeshifter, he says he’s a Pisces, which means his birthday would be in late February, or March. There’s no way the timeline makes sense if that’s the case, so my headcanon is that Jake is just like…really bad at astrology, and he somehow confused Pisces with another star sign.

We also have the issue of how far behind he seems to be in school (he’s 14 in early season 2, but still in 7th grade). So, two more headcanons to explain that. Number one, Jake’s birthday is actually sometime in early September, so he missed the cutoff to go to kindergarten when he was 5, and had to wait until he was 6, placing him a year behind (some places don’t allow kids to start kindergarten if they turn 5 after September 1st. I knew a boy in my old youth group who was almost a year older than everyone else in our grade, because he had an October birthday). Number two, at some point in elementary school, Jake was held back a grade. So the first episode takes place shortly after Jake’s 13th birthday, at the beginning of his sixth grade year.

Since Trixie and Spud are supposed to be the same age as him, that would mean they must’ve both been held back at some point as well (that especially makes sense for Spud—anyone who’s purposely failed as many tests as he has would almost definitely have to repeat a grade).

This would also make Rose younger than them. She’s very bright, and she seems like a good student, so it’s unlikely she was ever held back. But we don’t want her to be too much younger than them, so I’ll headcanon that she also has a birthday in early September, making her a year younger than Jake. If that’s the case, she’d be 12 in season one, and 13/14 in season 2.

Adventures in Trollsitting/Fu Dog Takes a Walk

The dogcatcher says that it’s September.

 September/October 2004

Shapeshifter Dragon Breath The Legend of Dragon Tooth The Talented Mr. Long Professor Rotwood’s Thesis Act 4, Scene 15 The Long Weekend Body Guard Duty Dragon Summit

This episode has to take place after Shapeshifter, Dragon Breath, and Professor Rotwood’s Thesis, since the Dragon Council makes references back to Jake’s actions in all of those episodes. It also has to take place before The Halloween Bash, which places it sometime in September or October.

 October 2004

The Halloween Bash

Jeff Goode’s website lists this episode as taking place between Ski Trip and The Hunted, but there’s no way that’s possible, because Ski Trip takes place close to Valentine’s Day, and The Hunted takes place during the Equinox (they don’t specify which Equinox, but it would have to be the one in September; it’s the only way the timeline makes any sense, even with the generous liberties I’m taking with these headcanons). So The Halloween Bash has to take place before Ski Trip. No one in this episode makes any reference to knowing Rose’s identity, so it works out just fine.

 February 2005

The Ski Trip

Valentine’s Day was actually on a Monday in 2005, so presumably this episode takes place the weekend of February 11-13.

 March 2005

The Egg/The Heist

Easter was on March 27 in 2005. This is how I know The Hunted takes place during the Autumnal Equinox; Rose was still in the city during Easter weekend, a week after the Vernal Equinox.

Eye of the Beholder Ring Around the Dragon Jake Takes the Cake

 May 2005

Fu and Tell/Flight of the Unicorn

Flight of the Unicorn takes place on Memorial Day, which was May 30th that year

 May/June (or September) 2005

Keeping Shop

Hong Kong Nights

I know Jeff Goode’s website says this is the last episode of season one, but I absolutely cannot accept any episode besides The Hunted as the season finale, so I’m just gonna recognize that the council has made a decision, but elect to ignore it.

 September 2005

The Hunted

The Autumnal Equinox in 2005 was on September 22

 Late November/Early December 2005

Half Baked

Jake says it’s been three months since Rose left. It couldn’t be exactly three months, because that would place this episode in late December, and school would be out for the holidays. So presumably it’s late November or early December, and Jake is rounding up when he says three months.

The Academy

This one would pretty much have to take place very soon after Half Baked, like within a week or two.

 Late December 2005

Breakout

This episode establishes that 88 and 89 are in the city working as apprentices to the Huntsman, so it has to take place before the Christmas episode, which they also appear in.

Hairy Christmas

January/February 2006

(Most of these don’t actually have to take place in January or February, aside from Dreamscape and Fool’s Gold. The rest could be pretty much any time during Jake’s 7th grade year. I’m just trying to stick to Jeff Goode’s chronology, and keep at least some of the episodes in the order he listed.)

Hero of the Hourglass Bring It On Family Business Something Fishy This Way Comes The Doppelganger Gang Dreamscape Fool's Gold

 February 2006

The Love Cruise

They never explicitly say it’s Valentine’s Day, but the whole concept of the Love Cruise seems like something a school would do for Valentine’s Day. Also adds an extra layer of heartbreak, because it means Jake and Rose’s breakup happened on the one-year anniversary of Jake finding out Rose was Huntsgirl. Ouch. February has not been kind to Jake.

On the other hand, I’d prefer to headcanon that Jake and Rose got to spend the whole summer together before their breakup, going on dream dates every night and not having to set their alarms for school in the morning (can we just let them be happy for a little while? PLEASE?!?!?!?), so maybe the Love Cruise wasn’t on Valentine’s Day, and instead was just some random school event at the beginning of their 8th grade year.

 May 2006

Feeding Frenzy

They spend three days visiting Jake’s family, so it’s either Memorial Day weekend, spring break, or summertime. Most likely Memorial Day or spring break, since Jake says in this episode that he’s been the American Dragon for a year and a half.

 May/June 2006

A Befuddled Mind The Rotwood Files Haley Gone Wild Switcheroo

This one takes place after The Love Cruise, because Jake and Rose’s recent breakup is a minor plot point, so it only takes place at this point if we headcanon Love Cruise taking place in February.

Young At Heart

I know this is supposed to be a later episode, but going by this timeline, Jake would be 15 for most of his 8th grade year, and in this episode Jake, Trixie, and Spud talk about being 14, so it has to take place during 7th grade

 Summer between 7th and 8th grade

A Ghost Story

 Late September/Early October 2006

Homecoming

I never went to public school (I was unfortunately homeschooled), but it’s my understanding that middle schools don’t do Homecoming. So my headcanon is that it was actually just a junior high prom or something, but a few students on the planning committee approached Sun Park and begged her to let them model it after the Homecoming dances at their older siblings’ high schools. Sun was delighted by their enthusiasm, so of course she agreed.

 Any time during their 8th grade year

Supernatural Tuesday Siren Says Shaggy Frog Nobody's Fu Game On Bite Father, Bite Son Magic Enemy #1

 February 2007

Year of the Jake

Chinese New Year was on February 18th in 2007

 March 2007

Furious Jealousy

Trixie and Spud put together a Daylight Savings themed school event, so this episode takes place either in October of 06 or March of 07. We’ll go with March because it’s closer to the end of the series.

 June 2007

Being Human

Haley and Gramps both say in this episode that Jake is 14, but he would actually be 15 by this point (even if my whole timeline is wrong and he actually is a Pisces, he still would’ve had his 15th birthday already). Presumably the writers just weren’t paying close enough attention to their established timeline, but the in-universe explanation is…sometimes family members forget your age; my best friend keeps saying her youngest sister is 15, when in fact her sister is turning 17 this year. Sometimes you lose track.

 Summer after 8th grade

The Hong Kong Longs

Presumably this episode takes place around July or August, which means Jake and his friends would be almost 16 by this point (and Rose would be almost 15, assuming my headcanon about her being a year younger than them is accurate).

[duggardata]

Jessa is Expecting Again!

She Also Suffered A Miscarriage Last Year.

On Thursday, February 18, 2021, Jessa (Duggar) + Ben Seewald shared (via E! Online) that they’re expecting a “rainbow baby”—thereby, announcing both an imminent arrival and a recent loss.  So far, they haven’t revealed much data, at all...  Read on for my attempt to analyze the few facts we do know!

When Did Jessa Miscarry?

According to the Seewalds, they suffered a miscarriage “last year”—i.e., 2020.  Obviously, that’s not very specific...

Already, I’ve received multiple Asks speculating that Jessa might’ve miscarried in September, because of that Instagram Post where Spurgeon, Henry, and Ivy were wearing “Brother / Sister Bee” shirts.  (At the time, many thought that the cutesy, matchy–match t–shirts would be used for a pregnancy announcement, especially after we discovered that the same company made a matching onsie saying “Baby Bee.”  But, an announcement never came...  Y’all’s theory is that the Seewalds planned to use the t–shirts for that announcement, but then lost the pregnancy.)  It’s possible that this is the case; however, there’s no concrete proof, at this point.  It’s just speculation.  And, even if we knew that the t–shirts were intended to be used for a pregnancy announcement, their appearance on Instagram in September doesn’t tell us much about the Date of Loss.  Was the photo from the day of the photo shoot, and Jessa posted it—not thinking we’d notice the matchy–match shirts?  Did she miscarry before, and decide to dress the children in the shirts one day afterwards, randomly?  Did she miscarry after, but before they publicly announced with photos featuring the shirts?  We don’t know, at this point.

It’s definitely an interesting theory, though!  Y’all have a good memory...  I had totally forgotten about the “Brother / Sister Bee” shirt episode.

When is Jessa’s Due Date?

So far, the Seewalds haven’t actually said...  They told E! Online (and TLC) they “can hardly wait to hold this little one in our arms this summer.”  On Instagram, Jessa also mentioned that the baby is due in the “summertime.”  Finally, and a bit more specifically, Jessa stated in a TLC–exclusive clip that she’s “out of the first trimester.”  The 2nd Trimester begins in Week 13...  So, from what Jessa + Ben have shared, we can confidently say that the Due Date is in Summer 2021 and Jessa is at least 13 Weeks Along.

Other than what they’ve said, we have one other clue, so far—the ultrasound / sonogram featured in the Pregnancy Announcement.  And then, of course, we can always turn to the data for clues!

Let’s analyze all the clues, one at a time, starting with...

“Summer.”   Seewald #4 is apparently due in “summertime,” “this summer”—i.e., Summer of 2021.  As for when that is...  It depends who you ask!  Most of us, and meteorologists, would argue that “summer” encompasses all of June, July, and August, and that’s all.  But astronomically–speaking, “summer” runs from the Summer Solstice (~June 21) to Autumnal Equinox (~September 22)—both of which are defined by the relative position of the Earth and Sun.

Which definition does Jessa use?  I’d be tempted to just assume that, like the vast majority of people, she just means ‘June, July, or August.’  But, actually...  Prior evidence suggests otherwise.  When Jessa + Ben announced Pregnancy #3 (Ivy), Jessa said she was due “late this spring.”  Eventually, they shared the exact Due Date—June 5, 2019.  Astronomically, June 5th is ‘late spring,’ since it’s before the Summer Solstice; however, by the leading definition, June 5th is considered ‘early summer,’ since it is in June...  So, maybe Jessa does use an astronomical definition, rather than just ‘June, July, and August.’

A Possible Due Date Range for ‘summer’ would be June 1—August 31, 2021, for most people; however, for astronomists, and maybe for Jessa, it would be June 21—September 22, 2021.  Either way, this doesn’t narrow things down much.

“Out of The 1st Trimester.”   On February 18, 2021, TLC released a video clip to accompany Jessa + Ben’s Pregnancy Announcement.  In the video, about 5 Seconds in, Jessa says she’s relieved to be “out of the first trimester.”  The 1st Trimester runs through Week 12.  So, apparently, Jessa was at least 13 Weeks Along, when the video was filmed.

Since we don’t know when the video was filmed, all we say for sure is that she was at least 13 Weeks Along on February 18, 2021, when the video came out.  Doing the math, Jessa’s Latest Possible Due Date is August 26, 2021.  Sadly, this doesn’t rule out much the ‘summer’!

The Ultrasound.   Jessa + Ben posed with a photo of a 3D ultrasound for this Pregnancy Announcement.  This gives us a small hint!

Thanks to Google, Duggar Data discovered that there aren’t a lot of options in Northwest Arkansas, when it comes to getting a 3D ultrasound...  Actually, it’s just two options—Babyface & More Ultrasound Studio in Rogers, AR; or Hello Baby! Ultrasound Studio in Fayetteville, AR.  Jessa + Ben went to Babyface & More; the words “Babyface & More” appear on the top of the their ultrasound photo.  (It’s fuzzy, but it’s there!  Here’s a much clearer photo of a Babyface & More ultrasound, which isn’t Jessa’s, for reference.)  (Note—Reference Photo was publicly posted on Instagram, with Babyface & More tagged.  Identifying information has been removed, and the baby’s face has been obscured.)  Per Babyface & More’s website, they offer 3D ultrasound starting in Week 14.  So, we know that Jessa was at least 14 Weeks Along on the Ultrasound Date.

Okay...  But, when was that?  Well...  Sleuthing regarding the Reference Photo reveals that the Ultrasound Date is listed in the top right of Babyface & More’s ultrasounds.  (It’s not the Due Date, it’s the Ultrasound Date.)  Looking back at Jessa’s...  Unfortunately, the date in the top right is really, really blurry.  Duggar Data thinks the middle number might be ‘25.’  That’s all I can say with any sort of confidence.  I can’t make out the other two numbers, at all.  Rats!

But, let’s just go with what we’ve got...  Let’s assume that the middle number is ‘25.’  That could be January 25, December 25, November 25, etc.  But, it’s almost certainly January 25, 2021.  December 25 was Christmas; Babyface & More probably wasn’t open.  As for November 25...  That’s getting to be a bit too long ago.  If Jessa was 14 Weeks Along on November 25, 2020, she’d be due by Late May, and that’s not “summer.”  So...  Let’s go with January 25th!  Jessa would’ve been at least 14 Weeks Along on that date, which means that her Latest Possible Due Date would be July 26, 2021.  We’re getting closer!

The Data.  Ah yes, the data...  My specialty!  Here’s how far along Jessa was for public Pregnancy Announcements 1–3—

#1 / Spurgeon   86 Days Along  (Due November 1, 2015.)

#2 / Henry   117 Days Along  (Due February 2, 2017.)

#3 / Ivy   133 Days Along  (Due June 5, 2019.)

Taking the average, it’s 112 Days Along.  If that’s how far along Jessa was this time, her Due Date would be August 5, 2021.  But you also may have noticed, she announces later and later, each time.  It’s 24 Days later, on average.  So...  Let’s assume that with Pregnancy #4 she waited 24 Days Longer than she did with Ivy...  That’d mean she announced at 157 Days Along and is due on June 21, 2021.  The Seewalds will beat their record for Earliest or Latest Pregnancy Reveal if Jessa is due after September 1, 2021, or before July 15, 2021.

Looking at the Overall Duggar Family Data...  If this Pregnancy Announcement was exactly–typically timed, then Jessa’s Due Date is August 23, 2021.  They would set a new, family–wide record for Earliest or Latest Pregnancy Reveal if the Due Date is after September 26, 2021, or before May 17, 2021.

TL;DR.   We really don’t know...  Sometime this summer.  Definitely by August 26.  We need an Approximate Due Date, but we really don’t have enough data yet...  I’m going to hold off on picking one, and on the rest of the data analysis, until we get more information. 

I’ll keep y’all updated.  Come on, Jessa!  Give us some details!

[dansnaturepictures]

28th February 2021-Spring walk at Magdalen Hill

Today we walked at Magdalen Hill a fantastic butterfly site we have enjoyed so many brilliant walks at especially in the last few years. Of course building on my ambitions held last week with the weather staying very sunny and pretty warm for the time of year I wanted to see a butterfly today my first of the year. With so many people having done so now my desire was very ripe. I was elated then when minutes into the walk a butterfly glided gently in front of us and landed a few times. My eyes were transfixed on it I just had to get a bit closer to make out its’ species of the few early/all season ones emerging and my desire paid off when I got to see it was one of my favourites the Red Admiral. I had done it, seen my all important first butterfly of 2021 to begin a new year list. My first butterfly seen since October I can’t remember the last time I didn’t see a November or December butterfly in a year which happened in 2020 so it felt like it had been ages since I saw one of these insects, but at the same time when I saw the one flying it was as though there had been no gap and butterfly days were here again. And I was so thrilled and happy.

It was a top species to open with too. A favourite of mine for around 10 years, it has four times been my first butterfly species of the year now which is the most for any species for me and is my fourth earliest ever sighting of the species in a year. It was a year tick at Magdalen Hill last year too on a daily exercise walk in April one of my best walks of the year with Green Hairstreak the one I took the picture of which I felt was one of my best ever butterfly shots and notably so many more butterflies starring and that’s four times it’s been a year tick here so it is a strong place for this beautiful red and black species my favourite colour scheme. I took the first picture in this photoset of this Red Admiral. I have only photographed my very first individual butterfly in a year twice as they usually fly very erratically early on in the season and high up etc. making it harder, the last time was a Red Admiral too recently three years ago at Blanford Forum, Dorset in February 2018 the last time this species was my first of the year. To indicate that point neither picture was with my usual for butterflies closeup macro lens the one before because I didn’t have it on a walk on a still winter’s day I didn’t expect to need it and today this one was too far away to get close to and was high up in a tree when I got the picture. It felt so brilliant to get off the mark with seeing and photographing butterflies this spring it brought me a lot of happiness.

In those opening minutes of the walk today spring had well and truly sprung and we had a phenomenal few moments. Firstly we saw a glorious looking Chiffchaff scuttling through branches shining as it went, and then heard its nice little short one note alternative call to saying its name. Moments later and it was another important first, my first Skylark singing this year one of the greatest and most beautiful sounds in nature. And always such a landmark. We couldn’t quite see one on our walk at this key site for them but I very much hope to soon. 

As we walked on I took the second, third and fourth pictures in this photoset of yet more catkins lately, one of many Long-tailed Tits it was fantastic to see today a star bird of the afternoon and another tree with buds about to blossom lately. I then took the fifth, sixth and seventh pictures in this photoset of beautiful views in excellent unbroken sunshine with bright blue skies. Today we really enjoyed on our walk in great weather taking in the scale of a place, being somewhere so open where you could see rolling scenery yes but also such a lot of sky too which was peaceful and brilliant. Wildlife wise we saw a lot else as we walked on too it became a red day with some special views of Redwings very possibly our last view of any this season you never know and I will miss them its been probably my best autumn/winter for Redwings and thrushes in general with so many of a few of the species seen and Redwings getting to enjoy them so much very locally at Lakeside where its so good for them going there more days than normal due to working from home.

I haven’t often seen Redwing the same day as butterflies or Chiffchaffs or hearing a Skylark so this meant it acted as a great unique meeting point between winter and spring summing up the vibes lately. 

The red hat trick today was complete as we saw three Red-legged Partridges quite mysteriously and entertainingly dashing across and then flying from a field it was quite a sight not knowing what they were until we got binoculars on them. Its been great to see these two weekends running. I also took the eighth picture in this photoset of another brilliant sun through trees scene after one on our walk yesterday this weekend lending itself to this so well, and ninth picture in this photoset of a lovely white flower in the garden when home which I photographed recently and tenth and final picture in this photoset of another stunning sunset tonight they are starting to look really nice and orange when its the right day for them and the sun is shifting right across the sky from my room so my window is looking a little bit more directly onto the sunset now where I so often take so many picture of it and see them in spring, summer and autumn after long winter months of only just being visible to the left out of my window. This winter being at home all the time I did make the most of these more though but its so exciting getting towards summer seeing them further right. 

Wildlife Sightings Summary on the Magdalen Hill walk: My first of one of my favourite butterflies the Red Admiral this year, Bees, Redwing, plenty of Robins, loads of Woodpigeons, Long-tailed Tit, Great Tit heard and seen, a delightful group of Meadow Pipits on power cables that in the light you could faintly see so if you didn’t know better it was as though they were floating in the air which was interesting, Red-legged Partridge, Carrion Crow and I heard my first Skylark of the year. 

Well that brings to an end a fantastic spring weekend with so much beauty and wonder to take in as we are delightfully thrust a little into my favourite time of year such an optimistic, busy, critical and fantastic time to love nature and what we all need right now. And it also ends a brilliant second month of the year for me. February has been a smashing month, snow and ice which was really stunning to see in probably the coldest part of the winter being replaced with a beautiful delve into spring with warmer and brighter weather towards the end of the month was so notable and quite defined the month. I very much enjoyed seeing spring gradually emerge, from birds at Lakeside I knew only came in the spring to breed and catkins that transformed that landscape to go green and others increasingly throughout leading up to the place we are in for exciting wildflowers and insects now. Its also been as I said in yesterday’s blog a month of smashing birds with five crucial year ticks with some rarer species being able to see them safely was great to keep my year list ticking over. Thank you so much for all your comments, interactions and support this month, I wish you all a great and safe March.

[dandelliongirl]

What a year

2020 was..

The last time I wrote anything it was April, and now it is the 23rd of December and I’m about to go spend Christmas with my family. My last failed attempt at christmas bread is in the oven (for some reason it didn’t proof at all, I guess I put too much flour in..) and I’m cooking up some Christmas porridge on the stove. Watch me burn that in a moment too.. For some reason this whole autumn has been a very stressful disaster. I am still working from home and just logged myself off of work until the 7th of January 2021. Maybe because I’ve been working from home it feels difficult to get into holiday mode. At least we got some snow today so it looks beautiful.

Spring and summer 2020 were an absolute dream! With no responsibilities and the possibility to work from anywhere I got to spend so much time with my family and at our summer house away from the stress of the real world. I could not have dreamt of a better summer, and apart from strawberry picking (at an actual farm, not just from my own strawberry plants) I got to finish off my summer’s to-do list. I even made a cute little summer video with my old Canon EOS 100D (yes - I have a new Canon EOS 90D now!). Endless days of exploration, swimming, biking, sauna, gardening, having lunch with the midsummer roses, baking rhubarb galettes with my own rhubarb from the garden, biking to the ice cream van, SUP-boarding with dad and spending so much time outdoors made me happier than I could ever be. I cannot believe how many beautiful things COVID has given me despite it’s awful impact on the world.

The start of the autumn semester was chaotic to say the least. Practically all of our system integrations are behind one developer, and he happened to be on vacation when everything went down, and study rights did not transfer correctly. This lead to an insane rush of support requests across the board, and lots of extra stress. I was exhausted and scared after last autumn’s disasters and definitely didn’t need another one to start the new semester. I’m starting to seriously fear August... Other universities have tens of people in their technical support, and we have TWO (sometimes 3). In more positive news I was given a permanent job contract starting August, which was amazing, and makes me so grateful especially during a year when many lose their jobs and get laid off. I guess that also contributes to my levels of stress as I cannot hide behind “I just work here for another few months”, but I have to actually take responsibility and ownership as a permanent team member.

Basically a lot of things escalated at work this autumn because our entire staff is way over burdened with COVID changes and the systems not working in an ideal fashion. Because our organisation does not have clear and defined process ownerships many changes come alongside the implementation of new systems, which puts me as a system admin (and not a process expert) in an awkward position. Hopefully our organisation will be able to develop and reconfigure responsibilities with some outside help, but for some reason my hopes aren’t very high.. All in all the anger and frustration of the organisation has been reflecting on the way people treat us and each other and as an empath it has been very exhausting. Luckily my new team is amazing and I’m having so much fun working with them - even though we aren’t physically working together at the office. I cannot imagine how it would be if my previous colleague hadn’t left. I hope she is happy and thriving as well!

All in all what got me through the autumn was the fact that I got to work from home. Being able to take a 10-15 minute nap when things got overwhelming pretty much saved me. Also the fact that I can wear whatever, make tea or snacks whenever I need to and don’t have to spend time moving from one location to the other. My guy got his own computer desk and a proper chair, and we’ve both been working from our very crammed but cozy livingroom. Even though our hobbies have been on and off I’ve gotten a few moments to myself and have also gotten used to doing my thing even though he is always here. No big relationship drama apart from the occasional little argument.

Ballet and body combat got to continue in person for most of the season. The last couple of weeks of ballet classes were on Teams, and the last body combat class was on Facebook with the season ending a couple of weeks early, but other than that having hobbies outside the house definitely helped. I have also loved having my ballet friend stay home instead of studying abroad. Obviously it sucks for her because it has meant a lot of changes to her plans, but I’ve needed her so much, and enjoyed our walks, hanging out together, going to ballet and the hours we spent outside talking on our way back. Ballet classes have been pretty easy as we only go to pointe and adult classes, but at least we are having fun together, and I like to somewhat maintain my skills even though I am not improving by miles. It’s also easier for the body as I’m definitely no longer a teenager. Starting next year we’ll have a fancy new studio!

After the relaxing summer it has definitely felt like I don’t have enough hours in a day or days in a week to do everything I need to. I cannot believe how I used to do all this and so much more pre-COVID but I guess it’s all because Animal Crossing didn’t take anywhere between 30 minutes to 5-8 hours a day. Oops. Needless to say I have been loving ACNH even though the Halloween and Turkey Day events were a bit too easy compared to New Leaf. I have high hopes for Toy Day tomorrow (YIKES! TOMORROW?) even though I haven’t had to go through the usual process of noting down all my villagers’ wishes, which I definitely miss. I am sad the diy recipe RNG has been so bad though. I’ve spent a couple of days spawning balloons on my beach, and never got the big Christmas tree diy in time. Maybe I’ll get it tonight but it’s definitely too late for this year.. Maybe next year then. I didn’t struggle this much with the maple and mush series diys..

So yeah, last summer me and my friend finished our old photography project and I edited the last sets of photos to give the finished book for her as a Christmas present. I love the project a lot because the learning curve is so apparent between photoshoots, and I found my “style” throughout the process. My EOS 100D started to get weird electronical bugs and definitely wasn’t running very well anymore, so after insane amounts of research I decided to get the EOS 90D from a Black Friday sale. I still need a memory card and a new camera bag for it since it’s so much bigger, but I’ve already planned out some future photoshoots and the theme of the new project, which can be described as ��Adventure”, “Expedition” or “Discovery”. I just hope my friend will have time to model for me because I’m yearning to go try my new camera out.

My boyfriend and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary with a friend couple who started dating a week after we did. We took an extended weekend trip to a national park, a spa and a rental cabin. It was so much fun and a very special way to celebrate 10 years together. Especially with an exceptional year like this one has been.

Yesterday me and mum went to granny and grandpa’s place to help with the last of their Christmas preparations, take over some food and sing Christmas songs. I took our old piano book with me and mum played the piano while we sang. Grandpa got teary eyed during a special song and it was so incredibly bittersweet. I don’t want to lose my grandparents but I know it won’t be long since they are both approaching 100 years. I am so thankful for them, and for the time I’ve gotten to spend with them. I just wish I could remember more of it. It seems so unfair that we never have enough time with all our loved ones, and there are so many childhood memories other people remember that I don’t. I wish I could go back in time and observe myself spending time with my grandparents to memorise everything. If I ever have children I’m going to take so many photos and videos to preserve as much as I can for them.

In my post from April I wrote that I had been looking at houses and vacant lots. Well, the house of a childhood friend of mine is listed and I’ve gotten to the point where I’ve arranged my mortgage and left an offer. The sellers didn’t accept my first offer so now I’m going to see the house again on the 30th to see if it’s wort raising my offer. I like the house but it’s definitely a bit inconvenient as it is a 3 storey house and way too big and expensive for our current needs. I just really like the area and it is one of the best houses in that neighborhood. I’m going to let things progress naturally though, and if I end up with the house then it was meant to be. If someone else makes a higher offer I won’t be upset either since we have no immediate need to move. It’s just a bit crammed in our current apartment and I would definitely like to have an actual office for my photography equipment, and a sewing machine/crafting space.

Looks like my christmas bread cracked pretty badly but at least it rose a little in the oven.. Hopefully it is edible. At least the one I made for granny and grandpa turned out better.. Time to go scarf down the last of my porridge (which I didn’t burn by the way!) and then try to get all my stuff over to mum and dad’s place. Christmas preparations this year have been crazy busy and I definitely regret not being able to enjoy the season enough but hopefully I’ll get more in the spirit tonight. I’m really happy with the gifts I got mum, dad and my guy this year (online and early in October/November to avoid the rush).

I’m hoping to make a new year’s post on here as well either before 2021 or during the first week. I just like writing things down so that I can look back on where I’ve been. :)

Happy holidays whether you’re spending them with your loved ones (in real life or through a video call) or alone.

[sciencenewsforstudents]

Australia’s fire season normally peaks in late January — but as of January 2020, wildfires have already been raging in the country for four months, especially in the east. So far, the fires have destroyed more than 1,300 homes, burned about 6 million hectares and killed at least 24 people.

Those wildfires are being fueled by a combination of record high temperatures, long-term drought, very low air and soil moisture going into the normal fire season, and human negligence. But climate change, scientists say, could make such extreme, deadly blazes three times as common by the end of the century.

It’s difficult to directly identify the fingerprints of climate change in the blazes. But for years, Australia’s fire managers have kept an eye on one culprit that’s behind particularly hot, dry years in eastern Australia and that may be affected by global warming: an oscillating El Niño–like ocean-atmosphere weather pattern that begins in the Indian Ocean.

Like El Niño, this “Indian Ocean dipole” pattern has positive, negative and neutral phases, depending on whether eastern or western Indian Ocean waters are warmer than average. The more extreme the temperature difference between the ocean’s eastern and western regions, the stronger the phase. When the Indian Ocean dipole is in a particularly strong positive phase — as it was in 2019 — it correlates to some of Australia’s worst fire seasons, says climate scientist Wenju Cai of CSIRO who is based in Melbourne, Australia.

Global warming is likely to make such extreme positive phases much more common, Cai says. In a 2014 study in Nature, he and colleagues simulated future sea-surface temperature changes in the Indian Ocean in a world where greenhouse gas emissions continue on a “business-as-usual” track (SN: 1/7/20). The team found that, under that scenario, the frequency of extreme positive-phase events could increase from about once every 17 years to about once every six years.

Science News talked with Cai about the historical link between the Indian Ocean dipole and Australian fires, and the outlook for the current fire season. His responses are edited for brevity and clarity.

SN: What exactly is a positive phase of the Indian Ocean dipole?

Cai: It’s when the eastern Indian Ocean is cooler than normal, and the west is warmer than normal. When you have [that], the rain moves toward the west. That’s why we’re seeing huge impacts in East African countries. This year, the rains, flooding and landslides have killed more than 300 people and affected hundreds of thousands.

On the eastern side, we tend to have drought and wildfires in Indonesia and Australia. In southeastern Australia, for example in Melbourne, the rainy season is normally June through November. That’s also when the Indian Ocean dipole normally develops.

So if there isn’t rain during those months, it will build up these dry conditions. Trees and vegetation die, and [wildfire] fuel builds up. The summer is the dry season anyway, and we often have bushfires. But [without spring rains], they become much more severe and damaging because it’s so much easier for vegetation to burn.

Bushfires (marked in red) continued to rage in the southeastern Australian states of New South Wales and Victoria on January 6.

CREDIT: NASA

SN: Meanwhile, one of the worst droughts on record is also occurring in southeastern Australia.

Cai: Yes, we are in a dry season that is already suffering from the impacts of two previous dry seasons. We have this kind of three-year drought regularly in Australia. It’s a very dry continent anyway, particularly in the south. It’s one of the driest regions in the world.

But you have a cumulative effect now, because the soil moisture is very low, and then this dipole comes about, and we also accumulate a lot of [wildfire] fuel.

SN: Is there a link between the positive-phase dipole and wildfires in eastern Australia?

Cai: There’s a very good correlation: All the major bushfires in southeastern Australia are preceded by [a positive] Indian Ocean dipole. For example, in 2009, [such a dipole preceded] a bushfire called Black Saturday that killed 173 people in Melbourne in just a few hours, and destroyed more than 2,000 houses.

There was also a [positive] dipole before the 1997 bushfire in Indonesia, which lasted many months and created haze affecting tens of millions of people and really hit the economy there. The 2019 dipole is second [in strength] only to 1997 in the historical record going back to 1870.

SN: So what’s the link to climate change?

Cai: The big message of our 2014 paper is that, under global warming, that kind of huge Indian Ocean dipole will increase threefold by 2100.

In a subsequent paper in Nature Communications, we also looked at how the frequency of the dipole would change if temperatures are stabilized [at] 1.5 to 2 degrees Celsius [above preindustrial times]. The good news is that really cutting greenhouse gas emissions is actually very effective! Once you cut them, it stabilizes [the dipole].

SN: The peak of Australia’s fire season is still ahead. What’s likely to happen?

Cai: The dipole has subsided — it doesn’t survive into December. But the dry season normally lasts until March. What could really stop the fire is substantial rain. If we are lucky, we may have some autumn rain. But autumn rain [in southeastern Australia] has been decreasing over the last 40 years as well. That’s due to a different mechanism that’s also linked to greenhouse warming.

SN: What mechanism is that?

Cai: Air over the tropics, the tropical Pacific for example, rises and carries a lot of moisture and heat that gets transported to the mid-latitudes. When it’s dry and cold, the air sinks down. So [during the summer heat], where Melbourne sits, the air is very dry.

[Historically, that dry zone shifts northward during cooler months, bringing rain to southeastern Australia.] But [cold season] rainfall has been decreasing in the region. The long-term trend is that the dry zone has been expanding, from north to south, due to greenhouse warming. Basically, I’m hoping for autumn rain, but predicting it is very difficult.

[luimnigh]

Remnant doesn’t use the Gregorian Calendar

No, seriously.

I believe that Remnant does not use the Gregorian Calendar, the calendar system that we use in the Western World today. I believe instead that it uses a modified version of the Julian Calendar, called the Gaelic Calendar.

I believe this is supported both by evidence in the text of the show, by evidence in support materials that have been confirmed to be canonical, and by the fact that it fits thematically into RWBY.

So let’s break this theory down into four parts.

Part 1: A Brief History of Time

The Calendar currently in use in the Western World is the Gregorian Calendar, named after Pope Gregory XIII, who instituted this reform across the Catholic world in 1582. The reason why the Pope changed the calendar is that the previous Calendar, the Julian Calendar, had made the assumption that the year was exactly 365.25 days long. In actuality, it’s 365.2422.

Now, this doesn’t seem like much a difference (especially since the Julian Calendar was introduced in 46 BCE), but by the time Gregory got around to changing things, the Julian Calendar was off by ten days. This was upsetting Gregory because Easter was now happening a week earlier than it should have been, and this was the sort of thing that weighed on the mind of God’s right-hand-man.

Now, this change didn’t really change much. The clocks jumped forward ten days in October 1582, and the rules around Leap Years were changed. The Julian Calendar prescribed that Leap Years happen every four years. Gregory changed that to “every four years, unless the year ends in 00 and is not divisible by 400”. So while the year 2000 was a Leap Year, the year 1900 wasn’t and neither will the year 2100.

This gave the Gregorian Calendar a year length of 365.2425, and it was declared “close enough”. We only lose one day every 3,030 years, rather than the Julian Calendar’s day-loss of one day every 128 years. That’s a major improvement by any measurement.

So what the hell does this have to do with RWBY?

Part 2: Happy BirthdayWeen!

Ruby’s birthday is October 31st, Halloween. In the RWBY Chibi episode “Happy BirthdayWeen”, the date is explicitly referred to as both October 31st and Halloween, and Miles Luna later confirmed that was canon, despite the events of RWBY Chibi being non-canonical.

However, three months after the airing of “Happy BirthdayWeen”, the episode “Nondescript Holiday Spectacular” aired, featuring the Chibi version of our heroes celebrating “Nondescript Winter Holiday”.

Now, while RWBY Chibi is non-canonical, it does make use of canonical information. For example, in the episode “Nefarious Dreams”, it reveals that Emerald sees Cinder as a mother figure, which Mercury confirmed four months later in Volume 6, Chapter 9.

So, the question I ask you is: Why can RWBY Chibi refer to Halloween as “Halloween”, but has to use “Nondescript Winter Holiday” instead of naming a December Holiday, real or imagined?

I believe that this is because Halloween is actually celebrated on Remnant, but a December Holiday is not. And Halloween is very important to the Gaelic Calendar.

Part 3: This Is Halloween

Halloween, despite taking it’s current name from the consecutive Western Christian Feast Day “All Hallow’s Day”, did not start as a Christian festival. Instead, it derives from the ancient Gaelic festival of Samhain, which included many of the same customs as modern Halloween. Bonfires, Apple Bobbing, going from house-to-house in costume and demanding food, Jack-o’-lanterns (made from turnips rather than pumpkins), the works.

It was believed that this was a liminal time, where the walls of the world of the living and the world of the dead where at their weakest. Food was placed out to invite the spirits of the family’s dead relatives in, while masks were worn to scare evil spirits off. There’s honestly some striking similarities to the Mexican custom of Dia De Muertos.

But it wasn’t just a celebration of the dead.

See, the Celtic (and thus Gaelic) day was recorded by Roman historians to be a little different than what we would consider a day to be. The day started at sunset rather than sunrise or midnight, with the “dark half” of the day occuring before the “light half”. Similarly, the Celtic year was divided into a “dark half” and a “light half”.

It is believed that Samhain was a celebration of the end of one year, and the beginning of the next. It was “Celtic New Years”, and additionally the end of the Autumn (Fall) Season and the beginning of the Winter Season. This carried over into the Gaelic Calendar, until the switch to the Gregorian Calendar.

(And yeah, the Gaelic Calendar specifically marks the seasons as sets of three months. February 1st to April 30th is Spring, May 1st to July 31st is Summer, August 1st to October 31st is Fall, and November 1st to January 31st is Winter. This is how the seasons are still taught in Irish schools. This is how I learned the seasons. Let me tell you, it was a culture shock to find out how Americans did it.)

Part Four: The Text and the Themes

So, great idea, but where’s the proof?

Well, I could point you towards the Tale of the Four Maidens. Just like the Gaelic Calendar, it begins with Winter, then Spring, the Summer, and ends with Fall. This is the order used in both the telling by Pyrrha, and the World of Remnant narrated by Ozpin. It’s even the order Pyrrha uses when listing off the seasons at the end of the tale.

Normally, when naming the seasons, you’d say “Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter”. It feels significant to me that RWBY changes the order like that.

I could also point you towards the thematic implications. It’s been said that the Beacon Arc is more a prologue to our heroes’ journey, that the story truly begins at the end of Volume 3 when Team RNJR sets off to Haven. This is symbolized in the story by the transition from Fall into Winter, the transition from one year into the next in the Gaelic Calendar. In fact, due to the fact that Taiyang is bringing Ruby breakfast in bed when he finds her letter, I personally believe that Ruby set off towards Haven on her birthday, October 31st.

Or the fact Fall symbolism is used throughout Volume 3 to symbolise an ending, the literal “fall” of our heroes and Beacon itself. Fall is the time when the leaves die, when animals hibernate, when the crop is reaped and the livestock slaughtered to prepare for the Winter months where nothing grows. Even both of our Fall Maidens, Amber and Cinder, have names that signify death in some way. Cinders are the last remnants of a fire, all that’s left after even the embers have died. Meanwhile, Amber is known as a substance that trapped, killed and preserved small creatures and insects. When Fall finally becomes Winter in the show, it’s a new beginning.

But instead of pointing you towards all that stuff, I’m just going to point you to Volume 2, Chapter 1. In which Ruby says that the Vytal Festival Tournament will be held, and I quote, “at the end of the year”.

The Vytal Tournament very clearly takes place in Fall, rather than the expected Winter (for the Gregorian Calendar year), Summer (for the Western Academic year) or Spring (for the Japanese Academic year, which I personally believe fits RWBY’s timeline best). So the end of the year clearly takes place in Fall. Late Fall, even, as it begins to snow not long after the Festival ends prematurely.

And after all, what better time to hold a festival dedicated to celebrating the end of a war than in the run-up to a celebration of the dead?

Conclusion

In conclusion, due to the evidence the show and supporting materials present, I believe that Remnant follows the Gaelic Calendar and that, as a result, Ruby’s birthday of Halloween is also Remnant’s New Year’s Eve.

Thank you for taking the time to read this, I hope I’ve come across as coherent and convincing.

[ladyknightleyisundercover]

Harry/Ginny: "We're cursed! We're doomed!"

AO3

The summer after Ginny finished atschool, but before she started with the Harpies for the new season, she andHarry booked their first holiday together. They were to visit southern Spain,touring the muggle and magical coastline and generally having a delightful twoweeks. It would be Harry’s first ever trip abroad (the Dursleys hadn’t exactlybeen big on taking him away with them) and Ginny’s first holiday since theWeasleys went to Egypt when she was twelve. And it proved a disaster from startto finish.

Various Portkeys were missed; onehotel lost their booking altogether, forcing them into a very dodgy hostel forthe night where they shared a dormitory with fourteen drunk men on a stag do;and between them, they ended up in hospital four times. First Ginny gotsunstroke, then Harry fell down the side of a cliff on a hiking trip and brokehis ankle, then Ginny got a severely infected bug bite, then Harry finished offtheir stay with a nasty bout of food poisoning. All these things were easily dealtwith by the Healers, but all in all, it wasn’t the most successful of holidays.

They recounted the farce overdinner to Ron and Hermione when they got back, who laughed in the appropriateplaces, and made the appropriate noises of sympathy when required. “You’recursed,” Ron said, once they got to the food poisoning bit. “That extendingcamping trip we took put a curse on your holidaymaking forever!” A few drinkslater, this ‘curse’ turned into a silly in-joke which gave them all a fewlaughs, and was promptly forgotten about the next day.

Until, that is, the two of thembooked a second holiday together. This was in late autumn: their busy workschedules meant that they rarely were able to see each other, so they made aconscious effort to get away, just the two of them, and booked a cottage forthe weekend in Upper Fladgley. Getting there was, clearly, a breeze: they onlyhad to apparate up to Yorkshire, and they met in the Wand and Cauldron,enjoying a delicious meal before walking the short distance to thebeautifully-appointed cottage rented to them for Friday to Monday via a friendof a friend of a friend for surprisingly little. The weather was glorious forlate November: cold and crisp, but dry—autumn at its best. It was all set to bea glorious holiday, and an excuse for some much needed time together.

And then they discovered the ghoulin the attic.

This ghoul made the ghoul at theBurrow look tame, and explained why the rent had been so low. It consistentlymade noise—howling, banging on the pipes, doing Merlin only knew what untilabout four in the morning, whereupon it stopped for a couple of hours only toregroup at breakfast time twice as loud. They tried all the silencing charmsthey knew, but for some reason, they did not work. The ghoul was so loud thatat times talking was impossible: Harry and Ginny found themselves bellowing ateach other to be heard, which rather took the edge off whatever kind ofromantic weekend they’d planned. Sleeping was challenging enough; anything elsewas out of the question, especially after Ginny purchased two sets of ProfessorSprout style earmuffs which they both wore to bed.

They did, it was true, enjoy somenice autumnal walks around the sleepy little magical village in the Dales andthe Wand and Cauldron severed the best food either of them had had in months. Likethe Spain trip, it wasn’t as though they’d hated every moment. But as aromantic getaway, the holiday was a disaster from start to finish.

“I told you: cursed!” Ron said,when they’d told him, later. And, again, they’d laughed at their misfortune,then promptly forgotten all about it.

But then. In the spring, they’dorganised a trip to the Amalfi Coast. Early May, they’d been told, was the besttime to go, and so they headed for the wizarding beaches, sparing no expense ontheir hotel. They’d booked for a week, and the first three days were glorious.You could not have asked, they both agreed later, for a better holiday. Thehotel was incredible, the food divine, and the scenery beyond anything theycould have imagined. More than that, though they were finally able to spendsome time alone, just the two of them. It was amazing.

Then, the morning of their fourthday there, they’d gone down to breakfast only for another guest to approachthem. “Are you Ginny Weasley?” he’d asked. Ginny, who had had a spectular firstseason with the Harpies, was used to this by now, confirmed that she was,expecting to sign an autograph then be on her way, like at home. But the blokehad derailed their breakfast, giving her a play-by-play of nearly every matchshe’d been in like she herself hadn’t been there—with critiques!—and it hadrather spoilt breakfast.

Still, they were set up for a nicemorning by the pool afterwards…until it turned out that word had gotten outthat the Harpies’ new star Chaser was staying there, and nearly every touristin the surrounding area wanted her autograph, or a conversation, or the chanceto throw a Quaffle around with her. Throw in the fact that a fair few wereequally starstruck with Harry, too, and it meant that yet again, they didn’tget the relaxing couple’s holiday they planned. The remaining seven days werespent dodging autograph seekers and then, less charmingly, Rita Skeeter, who’dgot word of where they were staying and started popping up to ask ridiculousquestions, hoping for an exclusive.

Of course, they’d regaled Ron andHermione with the story when they’d got back. It wasn’t that they had had atruly awful time—and the two of them, with their respective upbringings, werewell aware of how lucky they were to be able to afford holidays at all, letalone such expensive ones in such lovely places. Still. The idea of a nicebreak, just the two of them, and no interruptions seemed to be unobtainable,much to their chagrin.

“It’s because you’re cursed,” Ronhad said solemnly. Once again, it was clear he meant it as a joke. And yet…

Busy work schedules, for both of them,meant that they didn’t plan another holiday for a good while. It wasn’t untilthe following summer that they planned to go away again, and this time, theydid extensive research, read every single review going, and booked under fakenames. Anything they could possibly do to ensure that things would goswimmingly, they did. All was looking very positive: they had rented into anextremely exclusive villa on one of the Greek Islands, on the recommendation ofone of Ginny’s teammates. Tamsyn swore that it was genuinely the best holidayshe had ever had, so the two of them started to relax.

This, finally, would be the holiday. The one to make up for allthe other rubbish ones; the one where everything would be perfect, and the onewhere no one would recognise them, as they had booked under the name of Danieland Bonnie Grint.

Three weeks before they were due toleave, a letter arrived at the breakfast table. The villa had burned down.

“…full refund…assure you thatno one was injured…regret we are unable to offer alternative accommodation atthis stage…” Ginny read aloud. She looked at Harry.

“Insurance job,” they agreed inunison.

*

“I’m not being funny,” Ron said,“but I think that you genuinely are cursed. You just cannot have a goodholiday. It was when we were on the run, see. The camping cursed you.” The fourof them had met for dinner, and Harry and Ginny had filled them in on theirlatest holiday shenanigans.

“Don’t be silly, Ron,” Hermionesaid, rolling her eyes affectionately. “Of course it didn’t. Have you been ableto find anything else?” She addressed this last to Harry and Ginny, who bothshook their heads.

“Sadly not,” sighed Ginny. “Wewanted to go somewhere hot, and also somewhere private after last time, and theonly places we’ve found now look a bit dodgy, really. Everywhere’s booked up,as you’d expect in July. It’s a bummer.”

“There’s worse things that couldhappen for sure,” Harry added, “but it’s still annoying.”

“Oh, absolutely,” Hermione saidsympathetically. “Maybe you could get something later in the summer?”

“That’s the plan,” Ginny said. “Wewere thinking—”

“It won’t work,” Ron interrupted,“because you’re cursed!”

“Oh, Ron!”

“I’m starting to think you’reright,” Ginny said, laughing. “We just can’t catch a break—literally!”

“The camping cursed you,” Ron said,looking at Harry with a grave expression on his face. “And you by association,”he added, nodding at his sister.

“That clearly isn’t true,”said Hermione in her logical voice. “You and I spent the entire time withHarry, and none of our holidays have been cursed.”

“Well now they will be!” Ron exclaimed. He picked up his beer glass andhalf rose from his seat. “Quick, look, there’s an empty table over there! Let’srun now, before the curse catches up with us, too!”

“We’re doomed,” Harry agreed. “We’recursed! Save yourselves while you still can!”

“Honestly, you two, that is nothow curses work! You should know this by now. You have to be cursed by someone,and—” Just then, their food arrived, cutting Hermione off. Distributing thedishes took a few moments, but once everything was settled, Ginny regarded theother three thoughtfully.

“D’you know, I think you’re right,”she said. “I think we could be cursed.”

“I can feel it in my waters,”agreed Ron, taking a big bite of burger. “Cursed.”

Hermione huffed in exasperation. “Thatreally isn’t possible, and—”

“The more you say it, the more trueI can feel it becoming,” said Harry, nodding at Ron. “I fear we are doomed toawful holidays for the rest of our lives! Whatever will we do?!”

“I don’t know if I can survive it,”Ginny said, pretending to wipe away a tear.

“You’re all being absolutely ridiculous—”

“There’s only one thing you cando,” Ron said. They all looked at him. He assumed the air of one who as reachedtrue enlightenment. “Break the curse.And also chuck us the ketchup, ta.”

“Now you’re talking,” Ginnysaid, waving her fork in his direction. “Wait. How do we do that?” Harryshrugged.

“I think it’s obvious,” Ron said. “To break the curse, you have tothink like the curse. Act like the curse. Becomeone with the curse.”

“Oh, honestly! How many years of magical education between you, and youpersist in indulging in these wild conspiracy theories which have no basis inthe reality of how cursing actually works!” Hermione looked like she was on theverge of the apoplexy.

“What you need to do,” Roncontinued, ignoring this, “is go camping again. The two of you, a tent, aweekend in the wilderness. Or, I dunno, some campsite somewhere. I guess itdoesn’t matter. But the point is, if you go camping together, and have a goodtime, I am convinced the curse will be lifted and you’ll have no more holiday problems.Boom. Sorted. Am I a genius or am I a genius?”

“I think it could work,” Harrysaid, playing along. “Gin? How about we dig those tents out again and go?”

“I’m up for it,” she agreed. “But Ithink we should consult an expert.”

“Bill?” asked Ron, confused.

Ginny shook her head. “Hermione?You are clearly the expert on all things curses at this table. What say you?”

Hermione looked like she might explodewith frustration, but just then the waiter came to ask how they were getting onwith their food. They all assured him it was lovely, then attention turned backto Hermione. Who was now not looking frustrated at all. Indeed, she had anexpression on her face which might best be described as ‘dangerous’.

“I think Ron’s idea could wellwork,” she said, taking a sip of wine to allow for a pointed pause. “If you doit properly.”

“…properly?” asked Ginny.

“You can’t just go camping andthink it’ll fix everything,” she said. “You have to go camping the muggle way.No magic.” She speared a carrot, looking satisfied.

“What’s muggle camping? How’s it different?”asked Ginny.

Hermione smiled. “Oh, you’ll see.”

to be continued…

[rivetra]

Australia Information :: facts

The most famous glaciers are the Franz-Josef, the Fox and the Tasman Glacier. The plains are intensively farmed, while in many other places extensive pasture farming prevails. East of the central plain, the landscape is steppe-like due to low precipitation. in the north and the fertile Heretaunga plain in the south. The Gisborne region, as described above, then follows in the north. In Sydney, the average daily temperature in the year is 22.5° Celsius. The average temperature at night is just under 14° Celsius. In the months of December, January, February and March the temperatures during the day are around 26-27° Celsius and at night an average of 18° Celsius.

When is the best time to travel to Australia?

Best travel times for the whole of Australia are, according to our recommendation, mid-April to mid-June and mid-August to mid-October.

On the North Island, an average of 1,000-1,300 mm per year falls. The thermometer then shows an average of 11°C in Auckland, 8°C in Wellington and 6°C in Dunedin. There, frost and snowfall can occasionally occur in winter. In the high mountains, however, the climate is alpine. This policy was successfully practised for decades, until changed conditions led to another radical change of course. Already in the late 1960s, the country's highly subsidised state and economic system weakened and largely collapsed when Great Britain joined the EC. The proven close economic ties with the former mother country suddenly no longer existed. The country suffered from high inflation rates, excessive bureaucracy and excessive government spending.

How far is it to New Zealand?

From April to November it is best for the South West and East. Especially in spring (April - June) and autumn (September - October) the US climate is pleasant and there are fewer travelers on the road. The East of the USA is especially beautiful in the fall, when the Indian Summer begins.

But here one finds the two sunniest cities of Australia, namely Brisbane and Perth. Brisbane is located in the east, where despite all the sunshine there are often surprising rainfalls that can even lead to road flooding. In northern New Zealand, around Auckland, there is a subtropical climate. Read more about campervan hire New Zealand here. Even in winter it gets fresh with about 7°C, but also not quite icy.

Sights & Destinations of Australia:

But the sea water has warmed up further, so that it reaches 20°C. The number of hours of sunshine is slowly decreasing.

[trips2easy]

The Most Affordable Times to travel to the World's Best Cities

Marveling at the Eiffel Tower in the dark . Cruising a car up Rio's otherworldly Sugarloaf Mountain. Tucking into the freshest and tastiest sashimi altogether of Tokyo. Believe it or not, such once-in-a-lifetime experiences needn't accompany once-in-a-lifetime price tags. After all, it's one among the elemental rules of savvy tourism: Whether you're dashing off to California or Thailand—South Africa or the Caribbean—when it involves traveling on a budget, timing is everything.

So if you're dying to go to a number of the world's best, priciest, and most unforgettable cities—but have always balked at the prices—read on, because here we've laid out the foremost budget-friendly times of the year to travel .

1-Paris, France

When to Go: November through February

Ah, Paris, the town of riches, what with its abundance of Michelin-starred bistros and stylish pieds-à-terre. But if you are looking to engorge yourself on Bordeaux and frites and tour the town within the warmer months, prepare to spend tons extra money. It's simply a fact: summer in Paris, when tourism is at its peak, is that the costliest time to go to.

If you'll postpone your vacation until winter, you'll save big, consistent with U.S. News & World Report. November through February are the foremost affordable months to go to. Roundtrip airfare from NY to Paris in February can even drop below $300. And, once you're there, entrance fees at many of the foremost popular museums and attractions are known to travel down. However, one caveat: make certain to avoid traveling during the last week of Paris Fashion Week (February 24 to March 3), when hotel rooms are going to be virtually impossible to seek out.

2-Cape Town, South Africa

When to Go: June through August

African safaris could seem unrealistic for budget travelers, but you'll experience jaw-dropping wildlife without forking out plenty of money on a luxury bush camp. Just outside the gorgeous coastal city of Cape Town, you will find several "self-drive" parks, including the De Hoop Nature Reserve, that is easy, accessible, and affordable.

U.S. News & World Report notes that Cape Town's winter (June to August) is when tourism is slowest and thus the foremost cost-friendly time to go to, especially if you are a foodie and you would like to experience the city's amazing restaurants when they're offering affordable specials. Pro tip: confirm to avoid the last fortnight of July, when the must-visit landmark Table Mountain closes to visitors.

3-San Juan, Puerto Rico

When to Go: July and August

Looking for a Caribbean getaway? Look no further than Puerto Rico!

If you are not scared of higher temperatures and therefore the occasional afternoon shower, know that the most cost-effective time to fly to San Juan is during July and August. Yes, it's when Puerto Rico is at its hottest and most humid, but it is also the foremost cost-effective time to travel. Expect sunny skies and cheap hotel suites for under $100 an evening in San Juan. If you are looking for an oceanfront room, you'll spend about $150.

4-London, England

When to Go: September, or All Saints' Day through December 12

According to the UK's budget airfare site Cheapflights, which is operated by Kayak, the foremost affordable month of the year during which to visit London is September. (The costliest flights are usually in June.) But if you economize on airfare, don't expect to also economize on lodging. consistent with USA Today, hotel prices typically don't drop until the low season between All Saints' Day and December 12.

When to Go: May through October

With crystalline lagoons, lush rainforests, and mountainous rock formations jutting out of the Andaman Sea, Phuket has everything you would like in an exotic Asian escape. Plus, Thailand is one among the foremost wallet-friendly countries to visit—we're talking private beachfront villas that cost $50 a night!

6-Los Angeles

When to Go: January

The City of Angels is sunny and warm all-year-round, therefore the prices remain largely static throughout the year. However, consistent with budget travel site Skyscanner, airfares can dip about 23 percent in January. (The site also notes that you're going to find the simplest deals if you book plane tickets three weeks beforehand .) January may be a great month to go to because the weather is cool and cozy and there are generally fewer tourists around, so you'll freely explore the town.

7-Santorini, Greece

When to Go: January

Like many of the opposite Cyclades Islands, Santorini may be a seasonal destination, which makes it difficult to go to during its off-season. However, tourism in December, January, and February have increased within a previous couple of years and more hotels and restaurants are staying open year-round to accommodate the influx of travelers. consistent with The Points Guy, hotels in Santorini are 51 percent cheaper in January than they're in August. If you are looking to ascertain Santorini for a steal, book a visit outside of their peak season, which runs from June to September.

8-Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

When to Go: October

Rio is bustling year-round, because of its sultry beaches and upbeat nightlife. But there are a couple of quieter months during which you'll visit that will not break the bank. October (the middle of the city's spring season) is that the quietest month for tourism. There also isn't an excessive amount of rain during that point of the year, and though it'll be cooler, you'll still enjoy outdoor activities like climbing up Sugarloaf Mountain. confine mind that Rio's winter (June through August) is not an off-season, because many American and European tourists tend to require vacations during their summer season.

9-Tokyo, Japan

When to Go: Mid-January through late March

According to USA Today, here are some peak holidays in Japan that you simply should avoid if you're trying to save lots of money: New Year's Day (late December to early January), Golden Week (late April to early May), and therefore the Obon festival (mid-August). the most cost-effective time to travel there's within the winter—after the autumn foliage crowds have left—between mid-January and late March.

10-Sydney, Australia

When to Go: June through August

Australia's capital is at its lowest during winter, which occurs between June and August. If you do not want to travel during the winter, you'll also go for "shoulder season," which is mid-February to late May, and September to November, when the weather is more temperate but hotel and flight rates are still reasonable. confine mind that, even during the low season, prices hike up a touch during the varsity holidays in mid-July.When to Go: June through AugustAustralia's capital is at its lowest during winter, which occurs between June and August. If you do not want to travel during the winter, you'll also go for "shoulder season," which is mid-February to late May, and September to November, when the weather is more temperate but hotel and flight rates are still reasonable. confine mind that, even during the low season, prices hike up a touch during the varsity holidays in mid-July.

[spanishskulduggery]

Spanish Vocabulary - el calendario / calendar

Notes: All months and days of the week are considered masculine, and are never written with capital letters except if the entire word is in capital letters or it’s a proper name like Santo Domingo [which is either “Santo Domingo” the city, or “Holy Sunday”] or Miércoles de Ceniza “Ash Wednesday”

Additionally, all days of the week stay in their singular form, except for sábado “Saturday” and domingo “Sunday” which do change... So for example... los lunes, los martes, los miércoles, los jueves, los viernes, los sábados, los domingos

Most days of the week already end in an -S, so they stay “singular” in form but plural in the definite article so that you don’t have to add an additional -es to them. The days that do change for plural end in -O.

Additionally, you NEVER say en + day of the week to mean “on”... For that you use just use el or los... or sometimes para (though this depends on the context).

Los lunes tengo clase. = On Mondays I have class. Tengo clase los lunes. = I have class on Mondays.

Para el lunes tengo que escribir un ensayo. = For Monday I have to write an essay. / On Monday an essay I have to write is due. Es para el lunes. = It’s on Monday. / It happens on Monday. / It’s due on Monday. La cita fue programada para el lunes. = The appointment was scheduled/planned for/on Monday.

Months can be singular or plural since they all end in -O, -E, or a consonant that isn’t -S... los eneros, los febreros, los marzos, los abriles etc.

enero = January

febrero = February

marzo = March

abril = April

mayo = May

junio = June

julio = July

agosto = August

septiembre = September

octubre = October

noviembre = November

diciembre = December

domingo = Sunday

lunes = Monday

martes = Tuesday

miércoles = Wednesday

jueves = Thursday

viernes = Friday

sábado = Saturday

el día = day

la semana = week

el fin de semana = weekend el finde = weekend [regional]

el mes = month

el año = year

el presente = the present presente = present, current

el futuro = the future futuro/a = future

el pasado = the past pasado/a = past / last la semana pasada = last week el lunes pasado = last Monday

próximo/a = next el próximo día = the next day el próximo jueves = next Thursday la proxima semana = next week el próximo mes = next month el próximo año = next year

que viene = the coming / next la semana que viene = next week el miércoles que viene = next Wednesday el mes que viene = next month

siguiente = following / next el día siguiente = (the) next day al día siguiente = (on) the next day, (on) the following day, (on) the day after la semana siguiente = the following week / the next week

venidero/a = is to come, coming

el siglo = century

la década = decade

la fecha = date la fecha de hoy = today’s date ¿Cuál es la fecha de hoy? = What’s today’s date?

la cita = meeting, appointment / date

el cumpleaños = birthday el cumple = birthday [slang]

¡Feliz cumpleaños! = Happy birthday! ¡Feliz cumple! = Happy birthday! (slang)

la reunión = meeting / reunion, gathering

el horario = schedule

la agenda = schedule, agenda, calendar el horario de trabajo = work schedule la agenda de trabajo = work schedule el calendario laboral = work schedule

el deber = duty, obligation / chore la tarea = chore, task / homework el quehacer = chore, task

el tiempo = time / weather [also means “tense” in grammar/linguistics]

semanal (adj) = weekly semanalmente (adv) = happening every week, weekly todas las semanas (adv) = every week cada semana (adv) = each week

mensual (adj) = monthly mensualmente (adv) = happening every month, monthly todos los meses (adv) = every month cada mes (adv) = each month

anual (adj) = yearly, annual anualmente (adv) = annually, every year todos los años (adv) = every year cada año (adv) = each year

la fiesta = party / holiday, feast, holy day

feriado/a = celebrated, observed, holiday el día feriado = public holiday, observed holiday el feriado = day off, holiday

las vacaciones = vacation, holiday (UK)

la primavera = spring

el verano = summer pasar el verano / pasar los veranos = to spend summer / to spend summers veranear = to spend summer, to summer / to spend summer vacation [it’s not a totally common verb since you can say pasar el verano / los veranos “to spend summer(s)”, but it does show up more in literature and especially with nobility and people with summer homes]

el otoño = autumn, fall

el invierno = winter

hoy = today el día de hoy = today a(l) día de hoy = as of today, up until now

hoy en día = nowadays, these days hoy día = nowadays, these days [regional]

de día = daytime, happening in the day

ayer = yesterday

esta noche = tonight

anoche = last night ayer noche = last night ayer por la noche = last night / yesterday night

mañana = tomorrow la mañana = morning todas las mañanas = every morning por la mañana = in the morning mañana por la mañana = tomorrow morning mañana por la tarde = tomorrow evening mañana por la noche = tomorrow night

anteayer = the day before yesterday

antenoche, anteanoche = the night before last

pasado mañana = the day after tomorrow mañana y pasado = tomorrow and the day after

antaño = yesteryear / former

la tarde = afternoon, evening tarde (adj) = late, tardy por la tarde = in the afternoon/evening buenas tardes = good afternoon

la noche = night por la noche = at night de noche = nighttime, happening at night buenas noches = good night, good (late) evening

la víspera = eve

el atardecer (n) = dusk atardecer (v) = for night to fall

el amanecer (n) = dawn amanecer (v) = to dawn, for day to break

ahora = now ahora mismo = right away

pronto = soon

luego = later

antes = before

enseguida, en seguida = right away, very soon, immediately

de inmediato, inmediatamente = immediately

actual = present, current actualmente = presently, now, currently

en realidad = actually, in reality

después = after

tras = after, following

día a día = day by day

día tras día = day after day

de la noche a la mañana = overnight, from one day to the next / suddenly, “overnight” [as in “overnight success”]

siempre = always

normalmente = normally regularmente = regularly, normally generalmente = generally, normally

soler hacer algo = to often do something, to normally do something, to be in the habit of doing something

a menudo = often

a veces = sometimes

rara vez = rarely pocas veces = few times, rarely

nunca = never

cada = each, every cada día = each day, every day cada semana = each week, every week cada persona = each person, every person

un, una = one, a unos, unas = a few, some unos cuantos, unas cuantas = a few, “a handful of (times/days/etc)”

todo/a = whole, entire por toda la noche = all through the night, throughout the night por todo el día = all through the day, throughout the day todo el mundo = the whole world / everyone por todo el mundo = all over the world todos los días = every day / all the days todas las semanas = every week / all the weeks todos los años = every year / all the years todos los lunes = every Monday todos los sábados = every Saturday todos los domingos  = every Sunday

celebrar = to celebrate, to hold (a party)

pedir una cita = to request an appointment, to ask for an appointment / to ask for a date

programar = to program / to schedule, to set (up) programar una cita = to schedule an appointment

concertar = to agree, to agree upon / to set up, to arrange, to decide on concertar una cita = to schedule an appointment

asistir = to attend, to go to asisto a la universidad todos los días = I go to university/college every day asisto a mi clase los lunes = I attend class on Mondays / I go to my class every Monday

faltar = to be lacking, to lack  faltar a clase = to skip class, to not attend class, to miss class

ir = to go

reunirse = to meet up

conocer = to know (someone) / to meet (someone, usually for the first time)

encontrar = to find

buscar = to look for, to search for

esperar = to hope / to wait

llegar = to arrive

llevar = to carry, to take / to bring, to drive, to get a ride from

venir = to come

regresar = to return

volver = to return, to come back volver a hacer algo = to do something again

cumplir = to comply, to fulfill cumplir (los años) = to turn (an age)

tener = to have tener X años = to be X years old*

*tener años is used as “to have (a certain amount/number of years)” which means that the years are what’s known as “countable”. For the most part, you don’t need to worry about this because most of the numbers are the same. The difference being 1 year old, 21 years old, 31 years old... any age that ends in a 1 [that isn’t once “11″] because they’ll be counted as un or -ún ...because countable.

Similarly to un año being “a year”, the un here means “one” since you’re counting the years. That’s what it means to be “countable” in this case.

Tiene un año. = He/She is one (year old).

Tiene veintiún (21) años. = He/She is 21 (years old).

Tiene treinta y un (31) años. = He/She is 31 (years old).

Tiene ciento un (101) años. = He/She is 101 (years old).

(Note: When using dates, you use the number + the month. The number you use is almost always the cardinal number... el dos de octubre “October 2nd / 2 October”, el treinta de abril “April 30th”)

El día de San Valentín es el catorce (14) de febrero. = Valentine’s Day is February 14th [fourteenth].

La Nochebuena es el veinticuatro (24) de diciembre. = Christmas Eve is December 24th [twenty-fourth]. 

La Navidad es el veinticinco (25) de diciembre. = Christmas is December 25th [twenty-fifth].

La Nochevieja es el treinta y uno (31) de diciembre. = New Years Eve is December 31st [thirty-first].

El día de Año Nuevo es el primero de enero. = New Years Day is January 1st [first].

Mi cumpleaños es el (número) de (mes). = My birthday is (month) (number). Mi cumpleaños es el 18 (dieciocho) de agosto. = My birthday is August 18th [eighteenth].

[juleswolverton-hyde]

It’s November, but I still want you part 3

Genre: Drama, romance, smut (eventually), werewolf AU, art school AU

Pairing: Artist!Jimin / Werewolf!Jimin x Reader

Warning: Mention of mating and knotting, toxic relationships

Summary: A first love is always bittersweet, but this time it is perchance the hardest pill to swallow. Especially when the aftermath can still be felt years after.

In the month of November.

Author’s Note: I sincerely apologize for the long period of waiting for this fanfic to finally update or announce it is discontinued. However, as you can see, the latter does, fortunately, not apply. Henceforth, I would like to say this fic is still up and running with this chapter likely being the second-to-last one. It is time to wrap up some old projects.

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 (yet to be written)

Masterlist

Two autumns without sketching the falling dying leaves together, three winters without sharing warm beverages in the usual spot in the same coffee shop every day, three springs eyes beheld the fall of cherry blossom without him and three summers passed with so much as a word.

Ever since the young artist left, nobody closely connected to him has seen the lad. Classes went by unattended, fingers nervously and softly ticking a pencil against the table surface in the exact spot that would have formed the workspace of the one who walked away for the safety of the heart it hurt. However, what was not given a thought at the time, was that the flight inflicted more harm than when everything had been as of old and the night we first laid down as lovers remained cloaked in silence.

Stayed our forbidden fruit.

Even during graduation, the raven-haired creator was not there to celebrate the end of endless study hours stained with paint, charcoal and cramped digits. Not even the six guys with whom a group of brothers was formed had the knowledge concerning the whereabouts of the wolf boy. Nevertheless, something had tainted sincerity for the older ones’ attitude stirred up a deep-rooted sense of suspicion within, but it could also have meant nothing at all. Regardless of the truth, they tried to remain in contact and lighten the mood as much as possible, elevating the gloom left behind by the dear friend turned lover turned... away.

Limits were pushed too much, the warnings and pleads should have been heeded but the mind was too naive to notice the danger lurking beneath the mask of a familiar face, skin flushed with the anticipation to have fingertips grab it tightly and possessively by the small hands that had held even smaller ones throughout many sleepless nights. The animalistic behaviour that needed to be repressed was foolishly underestimated, leading us to ruin.

Jimin has never had to carry the blame for the situation because the mistake is entirely that of the individual who thought to be able to handle what clearly could not be. The mirror shows the reminder of devastating stubbornness daily, still adorning the neck in the form of two pieces of jewellery. The gift that has become the last physical memory of a beautiful moment in life. One thin bronze chain with a crescent moon pendant made of the same metal hanging from it and one chain that is a tad longer and made of a mixture between silver and gold with a handcrafted wolf pendant crafted from tiger's eye matrix.

Only once have they been forgotten, when it was the youngest among the broken band of comrades - Jungkook - who held a soul devoid of love and craving it so badly it gripped the first source of simulacrum tightly to have a taste of it again. The morning brought the shame of having used the sweet guy’s hidden sentiments portrayed by gentle kisses and careful movements between the thighs wrapped around a slim waist after coming undone twice before even starting in earnest. The whined and panted ‘I love you’s were already a vague memory when the sun rose over haphazard sheets partially concealing a thoroughly dishevelled dark bedhead and back engraved with scratches that likely caused more pain than pleasure. Nevertheless, perchance it is because of the guilt of having played a sick game with genuine emotions that the decision to stay by the youth’s side was made.

Eventually, the self-loathing blame turned to a non-sustainable yet believable form of affection reserved for lovers. Almost akin to what was only temporarily had with Jimin.

Until he, too, walked away for the same reasons.

Funny.

History repeats itself.

But not today after finding a pamphlet for an art exhibition near the marketing office where a fortunate job as a graphic designer was picked up soon after graduation, the grand opening of which is tonight. Normally, similar events would have been evaded since too many bodies occupy a space which cannot possibly handle them all at once and the gallery visited at a later date when the hype has died down enough to allow for calmly enjoying the art. However, the default course of action does not form an option in this case due to the artist presenting his piece of art.

Because it is the work of an old friend who gave two beautiful necklaces as a gift a long time ago.

A refugee lover who bound a reckless girl to him with the jewellery.

An onyx wolf to whom an apology is in order and the guilt more than justified.

Park Jimin.

The low heels of ballerinas click on the marble linoleum floor of the bare brick space after finding a sign outside pointing towards the entrance of the grand creative event, eyes wavering to the sides to observe the sketches of faceless women while also frantically searching for the grand master himself. Shreds of murmured conversation compose a rumbling radiating flood when entering the edifice, making the discovery of the wanted man that much more difficult since a familiar voice could not possibly be recognized in this chaotic mess of speakers.

The quest is halted when the gaze wanders to the side entirely, the attention of the panicked thoughts about coming in vain and being rejected from the beginning of the conversation suddenly focusing on a grand featureless portrait. To any other person, it might signify the blank canvas an individual essentially forms, smithing yet another temporary identity to go by until it loses its beauty like its predecessors and repeating the process each time. Withal, the shape of the face is undeniable and cannot be unseen as its familiarity is unavoidable.

Self-hatred, unintended hurt, past mistakes and various trips of guilt are depicted in the simple though meaningful drawing.

It is mine.

My face.

‘It’s the biggest piece of the collection. I wanted to give this person an expression yet couldn’t because I didn’t know what it should look like. Hence, I settled for this.’ The casual tone betrays not knowing who the listener is or the artist is beating around the bush because he, too, cannot handle the strangeness of the circumstances caused by a mayhaps unwelcome visitor in the way it perhaps should be.

‘Your lines are still off.’ A slim index finger points to the traced shape of the jaw, indicating inherently nothing although the turn to bad humour somehow seems a logical direction to take in the situation. Just as it has always been since it functions as a shield against overwhelming emotions. An old habit rooted in days gone by which dies hard, as those kinds of things tend to do. ‘I thought you’d gotten better at drawing by now, Park Jimin.’

‘Y/N.’ The manner of speech indicates having recognized the admirer far before the conversation even started, relieved delight mixed with agonized graveness.

The scars still hurt.

The fumbling digits reaching out brush against those of the individual who remains focused on the image in front. Eventually, they entwine with those that had to be let go after fully committing to the steadfast faith of being a wolf, but after more hesitation upon noticing the awkward gesture than had ever been the case in the past. ‘Can you look at me?’

‘I’m sorry, Chim. For everything. I push- pushed you too far.’ The burning tears slowly begin to create small brooks over the cheeks, the unoccupied hand wiping them away as the other tries to free itself in order to make an escape. A plan that already comes too late. ‘I shou- shouldn’t even be here. I have to go.’

But the fingers of the once intimately loved beloved remain strongly wrapped around the others, their counterparts coming to rest where frantic digits endeavoured to stop the water, thumb gently continuing the attempts with affectionate sweeps. Gazes meet by means of forceful albeit kind-hearted compelling, the palm on the face of an unworthy mistress turning the head to do so and fulfil the earlier disregarded request. ‘That’s not how you apologize to someone, Y/N. You’re raised knowing better.’

Jimin has changed, not only on the inside - if there has been no help in the form of therapy to drive the insane beast out - but on the outside as well. Onyx has made place for pale sandstone which resembles limestone if the light falls on it in a specific angle, paint-stained shirts and jeans are replaced by a stylish nightly black outfit of which the shirt lights up in the purplish lilac shades of twilight whenever it is illuminated directly. Of course, this style has merely been chosen to conform to the formality of the event, though there is a suspicion former characteristic clothes and their sentiments have been abandoned aside from the casual ones that were often worn during a happening like this back in college.

The past has clearly been endeavoured to be erased.

Good.

I was not the only one trying.

Nonetheless, the most obvious physical change makes eyes widen in astonishment due to the uncharacteristic feature.

Purple flowing over in sickly yellow on cheekbones, a scar marring the left side of a sympathetic expression as full lips speak so kindly in spite of the immense wrongdoing three years ago, the bottom split in the middle by a healing scarlet wound.

Hurt.

Actual clear signs of pain.

Afraid of the impact that may or may not still be felt, two small hands - the left one slipping easily from the grip weakened by oddly loving renewed feelings - languidly rise to remove those framing a face the artist idiotically seems to adore still and trace the trail of inflicted harm with a slightly opened mouth. ‘What happened?’

A spark lights up the warm dark brown gaze of the lad who was thought never to even kill a fly, moved by the concern and showing this by the tiniest hasty smile. ‘It’s alright, Y/N. Just...’ Lashes flutter shut as the gesture is leaned into, briefly forgetting whatever coverup is created to not ignite any type of worry akin to the sort that has been tainting living in general since the first and last bittersweet night together. ‘Just business... nothing... serious.’

A warm teardrop slides down the wrist enveloped by the fingers which were good-naturedly removed, the narrow surface of skin snuggled against regardless of the barely audible pained whines the motions evoke. Teeth lightly grazing over the surface, just tangible enough to send shivers down the spine in a paradoxical mixture of pleasure and worry about the wolfish behaviour that essentially drove us apart. Furthermore, what circumstances could have asked for bodily harm, form the root for obvious pain? ‘Jimin, what’s going on? Talk to me.’

You never fought, bodily nor verbally. Did you get beat up? What happened to you? On the other hand, we both changed and know nothing anymore. Notwithstanding, just tell me. Tell me what caused this, what took place and of which the visible aftermath is so damn painful to witness without knowing the background.

The soft kiss on the pulse evokes a hitched breath, astonished by the blatant display of wishing for intimacy once more even though it brought nothing but misfortune in the past. ‘I still want you. I wish... I wish you could stay.’ The last word is a mere whisper, only audible to the ears of the listener and the speaker in the ocean of murmurs. ‘Stay with me, be mine again.’

More tears roll down the smooth skin of the forearm before watery solemn dark irises quickly turn from the former point of focus to two staring in wonder when the wrist manages to slip from the novel fairly firm hold, having made use of the temporary weak spot caused by sadness. Fast as lightning hands pull the artist into a tight embrace at seeing a quivering pillowy bottom lip, determined to keep the sobs dimmed as much as possible and to not lose face to any potential buyers or investors.

‘Don’t cry, Chim. You’re not at fault, never have been. You were right to walk away and I’m not even mad at you for doing it. If anyone’s to blame, it’s me.’ Kindly, bleak sandy locks are affectionately stroked while nuzzling the old lover’s warm neck, growing drowsy, no, getting hypnotized by the heat radiating from the body still built like a dancer’s and the musky alluring scent containing hints of turpentine and summer flowers. ‘As I said, I pushed you too much and should’ve listened. But I didn’t. I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.’

The hug tightens, star-crossed lovers holding on to one another as if the only way to stay afloat in the turbulent sea of life is by clinging to the buoy in the shape of the other beloved.

And just for a split second, all seems well. Exactly like the old days, filled with hope for a future together.

However, the girl who ruined everything might as well drown in spite of the lifeline because the blonde lad lets go too soon, arms untangling and keeping the adored soul at bay by creating a new distance with shaking hands, just enough not to touch directly. The voice has gained a ghastly tone, speaking as if this time the farewell is permanent. ‘Let’s agree to disagree.’

A foot sweeps uncertainly over the alabaster marbled linoleum, acting as if removing a stain on it as locked gazes are briefly broken up while a hand combs through the strands that were lovingly caressed a split second ago. Withal, like is the case with the entire body, they shortly find each other again afterwards. ‘I really wish we could have a second chance, Y/N.’

‘If- If you want, we can still-’

A solitary head shake cuts off the desperate argument that was about to be given, nullifying every spark of hope which had collected and started a grand bright foolish fire within. ‘We can’t. You’re better off without me. Vice versa it’s not the case, but even though I still long for you, I know that a part of loving you comes with sacrifice and the desire for you to be happy.’

‘I was with you! In fact, I was the most cheery whenever we went out to the park to draw the flowers in the flowerbed or to the coffee shop. The most restful nights were those when you were lying beside me. Now, all that remains of those beautiful moments are these.’ Fingers clearly display the thin bronze chain with a crescent moon pendant and one that is a tad longer and made of a mixture between silver and gold with a tiger's eye matrix wolf pendant. ‘A daily reminder of what we had. Of you.’

A melancholic grin carves itself onto full plush roseate lips, an almost invisible nod acknowledging the meaning behind the jewellery which clearly does not add any convincing nor credible reason to change a stubborn mind set on its own opinion. ‘You still have them. I’m glad because I thought you’d have thrown them away. Or, if not you... never mind, I don’t want to think about that.’

‘Think about what? Jimin, you’re not making any sense. The last time you spoke in riddles, there was clearly something going on.’ The old Self awakens, having pushed aside the pathetic contemporary ego out of the overwhelming determination to not let things remain unresolved upon being compelled to part ways like before. To leave behind loose ends. ‘At least honestly tell me if everything is alright this time. Or just the reason for why you look like you fought a war and lost. Anything. Don’t send me away without a proper goodbye, fill up the distance with making this fucking lingering concern about you I’ve been living with for the past three years a heavier burden than it already is. Yes, I understand you don’t want me by your side anymore. But, I beg of you, grant me this last favour.’

‘I never said that, that I don’t want you by my side anymore so don’t put words in my mouth. Besides, if I did I wouldn’t wish for you to be mine again, would I? I can’t tell you what happened when I was gone, merely that it has to do with what caused our goodbye in the first place. As for the wounds, it’s nothing to be worried about. I’m fine.’ Hands mould into trembling fists, the emitted heat turning to menacing rage.

The made point is justified because the used wording which is reacted to never had any valid worth, to begin with. Rashness can push one’s own opinion despite the nullifications which are or are not already present, making the individual solely focused on their hellbent desire to drive their own beliefs through.

The realization of this calms the raging storm within, knowing that more yelling and arguing will lead nowhere. Instead, a deep steadying breath is taken and a new attempt at making amends undertaken. ‘Chim...’

A careful step forward is rewarded with a petrifying glance, feet immediately stuck in the place of the last retraced track. Stare wavers for a moment to the spot which was nuzzled against and kissed longingly, imagining what could have happened had the gesture advanced. Memories of the first and last night as more than friends resurface.

Even the worst event is no longer regarded in a negative light, a hidden absurd persona craving for it to happen again.

Get knotted, feel him again.

He is not a senseless beast, but a caring young man. Why do I long for that side of him, thinking in such terms? Furthermore, how did I get so carried away by just hugging? That’s never happened.

Nevertheless, the contemplating train of thoughts inherently boils down to the same wanton wish.

To be his.

‘Go.’

Simply have him back.

Resume our tale.

‘Please-’

We can work this out. We can get you help. Therapy. You’re not an animal, Jimin. You don’t have to hold back because of it. Come back. Come back to me.

‘Go!’ The command is growled like a wolf grown sick with the obligation to wait for a dumb opposing party to leave and giving a warning shot that any further provocation has consequences. The sternness rapidly fades, softening into sweet stained nostalgia when realizing what the hurtful impact of the chosen attitude is. ‘Go, Y/N. Just go. It’s better for us. For you. I have nothing to offer, nothing to be better than the man you belong to.’

‘I belong to nobody. I’m my own person.’ It is weird to hear the statement of essentially being some individual’s property being said with so much certainty when the speaker initially was the one to say a person should never be subject to another. ‘That’s what we artists are, independent and stubbornly liberated.’

A weak bubbly chuckle, no extravagant motions that express amusement as per habit. Instead, composure portrays not wanting this outcome to the circumstances either and come closer to make resume making amends as intended by the graphic designer who was once a free-spirited artist like him, continue where the mutual story abruptly ended. Yet, behaviour obviously gives away that the alternate route is not possible if it ever has been. ‘Goodbye.’

End of the line.

Don’t. Don’t do this, you bastard!

But the tongue is rendered silent, paralyzed with grieving shock and the ability to speak abandons the mute girl with the leaving footsteps of a sandstone wolf clad in black like the starry night sky.

The same heaven above a lonely head wandering the street again after leaving the gallery, fighting to tune out the repeating material of the emotional conversation while low heels click against the concrete. Regardless, the words are resonating as if freshly spoken and fingers have the remnants of touches by other ones clearly engraved in muscle memory.

But they have to take a moment to remember the hand grabbing them now for, although more recent than Jimin’s, it seems a longer period of time has passed since it was held by this particular one. Even longer so for the voice accompanying it, containing a strange sort of confidence that would have been quite uncharacteristic up until last January. ‘He left you again, didn’t he?’

Raven locks partially shroud feverish yet trusted doe eyes above a cute nose, a paradoxical bunny-like smile playing on pale pink lips seemingly belonging to a predator. But the person in front after accidentally bumping into them after being pulled flush against a well-trained chest is known to be better than that, never having had the aura of cunning dominance. Henceforth, looking down is the kind gentle boy with the scratched back who disappeared because of the reasons another had already given three years prior.

But Time has the ability to evoke a transformation in every aspect of and being in existence and it forms the cause for this grown-up version of a shy comic artist whose creative persona is a pink muscly rabbit. Although all former anticipating illusions are forever erased by the reflection, it is still a grand comfort to see a familiar face which holds the credible promise of staying. Thus, there is a glad surrender to the intoxicating heat scented with a delicious potion of peppermint, blue ink, markers, lily and jasmine.

To the hands framing the face perfectly and body pressing against one drunk on the temporary happiness offered by the situation.

To Jungkook.

[onegirlatelier]

Scandinavian Spring, November 2018

I set my eyes on Laine issue #5 when I was visiting a yarn store in Copenhagen last summer, and this cardigan was so beautiful I knew I would make it someday. I was (and still am) always drawn to complex things, and whilst this piece wasn’t difficult, it certainly looked polished and delicate.

(The model’s smile and her pretty lace shirt might have helped, too—I should’ve known better, but who could resist?)

I had never knitted a garment with set-in sleeves before, and the design of this cardigan was sophisticated enough to present an exciting challenge as I learnt about how a knitted garment was supposed to fit on my body.

I have heard about the simplicity of Nordic knitting patterns on podcasts, and this certainly seemed to be reflected by the pattern instruction for this cardigan. At first I was confused by directions that told me to cast on or cast off, but not in which method. I knew enough to know that there were different methods, but not nearly enough to know which one was suitable, let alone which one I preferred. I am not complaining though—it was a research process as well as a joy to knit up this garment, which is exactly what I love both in work and in my hobbies.

The main pattern is lovely yet surprisingly simple. I could almost hear my maths teacher call it an elegant solution, and I fully agree. The cooperation of wool, alpaca, and mohair makes it light and fluffy like candy floss. A cardigan for a special occasion, certainly.

Pattern

Scandinavian Spring by Sus Gepard. A very relaxing pattern once I figured out the technical details concerning the edges. I spent about a month in late autumn last year knitting it. Every day I would do my BMAT practice questions in the afternoon, and then work on this cardigan for about two hours in the evening, before moving on to more science-related reading.

Yarn

Edge: Isager Alpaca 2 Eco #E0. 11g/55m.

Mohair lace: Rowan Kidsilk #634 Cream. 74g/618m.

Background colour: Isager Alpaca 2 #Sky. 60g/300m. This colour is so beautiful. It is a greyish purple, with red, blue, and yellow fibres. It has such depth that I feel I didn’t do it justice by placing it at the background.

The measurements include the amount of yarn used for a small piece of swatch.

The remaining yarns are weighed when I finished the cardigan last year. However, recently I cut off four pattern repeats of each sleeve respectively to shorten the sleeves (see modification), so the actual meterage of the mohair yarn and the background yarn should be a little bit less.

(Sky: see all those pretty colours?)

Modification

My gauge was different than what the pattern asked for stitch-wise. I got 24sts per 9cm, which was 1cm shorter than the standard. I casted on four more sts for the back and two more sts for each front piece. Row-wise I was fine.

I used 2.75mm and 3.5mm needles as suggested. The newly knitted cuffs were done with a 2.50mm needle, but 2.75mm should also be fine. I did have to knit very loosely, especially with the larger needle, to get close to the gauge. I used a 3.75mm needle for the purl row between ribbing and main body just so the edge wouldn’t curl up.

I knitted the body pieces flat, and sleeves in magic loop. In hindsight, I could’ve knitted the bodice in one piece up until the armseye, and worked separately from there.

Cast on and cast off: Italian 1*1 rib cast on and 1*1 rib cast off. Some instructions for Italian 1*1 rib cast off says to leave a tail that’s three times the length of the finished border. I think two and a half is sufficient.

For the bottom edge of the cardigan, since 1*1 rib cast on requires two additional stabilising rows, I used the second stabilising row as the first rib pattern row in the pattern. Then after this I worked 5 more so that the last row of ribbing would be worked on the right side.

When the pattern stated ‘every X row’, I interpreted it to be the last row of every group of X rows. It seem to be the right guess.

When casting off for armseye: I did it on the 1st row (RS) of the 14th pattern repeat. Cast off for shoulder from 5th row (RS) of the 25th pattern repeat. I knitted 26 pattern repeats in total for each piece.

When decreasing for neckline in the front, I began at 7th row of 15th repeat, and dec at every 3rd and 7th rows, 23 decs in total.

The pattern instructed to dec for armseye at the very start and end of the row. However, it was sometimes aesthetically pleasing to dec 1 st before the last stitch. I adjusted between ssk and k2tog for both start and end of row decs. In general, I decided which technique to use as I went, to make it more invisible in the weave pattern yet easy to pick up or sew.

I used bias cast off for the shoulder seams to be smoother. There are many tutorials online so you can easily find one if you search ‘bias bind off’ or ‘bias cast off’. I also learned to cast off at the end of a row by making a loop with the yarn and carrying the loop at the back of stitches. I used a combination of these two techniques.

For the back piece, I forgot that the stitch count included one knit stitch at every start and end of row, making it difficult to pick up stitches. It turned out alright, though.

Sleeve length adjustment: I think the sleeves are designed to be long, which certainly looks great, but not too practical. They add extra weight and pull the armseye seam down too. So several months after finishing the cardigan, I decided to cut off four pattern repeats on each sleeve. I counted four pattern repeats from the cuff, and used a needle to pick up the stitches on the 7th row of the 4th repeat as this row was clearer. After counting and making sure that I picked up the right number of stitches, I cut off the cuff from about the 3rd or 4th row of the 4th repeat. The texture of mohair and alpaca meant that the fabric wouldn’t unravel easily, but by leaving one or two extra rows it basically wouldn’t matter even if it were to unravel at some point. After this, I knitted one round and did seven rows in 1*1 rib before casting off.

 Finished Measurements

I didn’t measure accurately, so there are approximations.

Bust circumference (there is no bust or waist shaping): a bit more than 80cm

Body length: about 50cm, possibly shorter

Sleeve length doesn’t matter—I improvise every time anyway.

Wear & Tear

I have no idea since it has never been worn outside. It is very delicate, and not very practical against the wind judging considering the extremely loose gauge, so I suspect it is not meant to be worn like an everyday cardigan anyway. I’m looking forward to wearing it, even though I am really worried about cleaning it. (Which is okay, I am used to worrying about cleaning after a few years in couture sewing.)

 Further Considerations

The cut-off parts of the cuffs are not unraveling any time soon, and frogging mohair is a real pain, so I think I will incorporate them into a part of wrist warmers.

If I were to make it again, I would use the X size and do adjustments accordingly. I would make the bodice at least 5cm (so two to three pattern repeats) longer.

I would pick a background yarn that either is a solid colour or comes with strong colour contrast. Most of the background yarn is hidden behind mohair fibres, so it’s difficult to see any nuance.

[amieravenson]

Magickal Month- October

Magickal Month- October October is the 10th month of the year, though it’s named after ‘octo’ meaning 8 in the old Roman calendar. Another one of those, right? It was moved into the 10th place with the establishment of January and February as the first and second months in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It was also known as Wynterfylleth to the Anglo Saxons, because it was thought that Winter begins at the full moon in October. Don’t we all just love October? I don’t know many people who don’t get a little thrill when the weather starts getting chillier, when the wind starts blowing the leaves off trees, and when the pumpkin spice starts flowing. There’s just something in the air that makes you simultaneously want to be outside to see the beautiful leaves, and also go inside and prepare your nest for the long hibernation of the winter. The weather is finally breaking a little here in Georgia, we’re seeing low 80s instead of the 90s that just didn’t want to give up the ghost. I’m seeing a lot of house wrens lately, particularly a pair that have set up a nest just below the window in front of my sink where I wash dishes. We also saw a big Eastern Kingsnake a few weeks ago, and it was lovely. I hope it stays away from the hawks and owls in the neighborhood and continues to eat any poisonous snakes or obnoxious rodents that are around. I also saw a committee of black-headed vultures hanging out on a cell tower yesterday. The leaves aren’t really changing yet, but they ARE falling from trees that don’t really carry a lot of color, like the 3 trunked ash tree in my back yard that I call The Three Sisters. Lunations: New Moon in Libra October 8th at 11:46pm EDT Full Moon in Taurus October 24th at 12:45pm EDT Astronomy: October 5- Venus goes retrograde at 3:07pm in Scorpio Orionids meteor shower peaks October 21st-22nd. Southern Taurids meteor shower peaks October 28th-29th. Celtic Tree Month: Ivy (Sept 30- October 27): End of the harvest, looking back at our successes and losses, strengthening our resolve to face the future, taking the long-term view, fidelity and fertility, protection, healing, good luck for women and brides, guards against negativity and disaster, reaches around and through obstacles to find light and nourishment, reaching out, expansion. Reed (October 28- November 24): Introverting, withdrawing, connecting with the past and with spirit, ancestors, messages from the spirit world, culling that which doesn’t serve us, dreaming- but not planning. Seeking basic truth, finding direction, giving meaning and purpose to your journey, skill and direction, secret strength and secret motivations, seeing beneath the surface. Holidays (non-Pagan): October 1- Shmini Atzeret (Jewish) October 2- Simchat Torah (Jewish) October 4- Feast of St Francis of Assisi (Christian) October 8- Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples’ Day (I prefer the latter) October 9- Navaratri (Hindu) October 9- Leif Erikson Day October 16- Boss’s Day October 18- Dussehra (Hindu) Holidays (Pagan): October 6- Greek festival honoring Gaia and the Nymphs October 8- Old European feast of the Triple Goddess, as mother transforms into crone October 8- Festival of Greek Hekate, who guides followers through crises and transitions October 9- Pyanepsion Noumenia- Greek festival honoring all Gods and Goddesses October 11- Feast of the Charities to honor Goddesses of beneficence October 12- Feast of Aphrodite, honoring peace and compassion October 14- Proerosia- Greek festival where fruits of the harvest were offered to Demeter October 14- October 28- Old Norse Winter Nights Feast, honoring ancestors and deities with toasts and offerings October 19- Thesmophoria- Greek festival honoring Kore’s transition into Persephone (Goddess of the Underworld) October 27- Apatura- Festival welcoming new children and newcomers into the community October 28- November 2- Roman/Egyptian festival remembering Set’s murder of Osiris and Isis’s healing him October 31- Day of mourning witches persecuted for their religion or women who were persecuted as witches October 31- November 2- Samhain- Celtic/Welsh New Year and feast of Cerridwen October 31- November 7- Hallowmas/Day of the Dead/Mid-Autumn- marks the end of the agricultural year and last harvest as well as the transition from focusing on life and growth to death and rest, also a day to honor ancestors Themes for the month: The last harvest- bringing in the things you can use over the Winter and culling the things that you don’t intend to take forward with you. Sacrifice- giving up your crutches. The Ancestors, Spirit Guides, deepening your relationship to Deity. Speaking with spirits and the fae while the veil is thin. Introverting. Pumpkin spice and anything warm and cozy. General activities for the month: Apple picking, cider-making, making and dressing in costumes, carving pumpkins, making and eating candy, trick-or-treating, watching horror movies, visiting haunted houses, knitting for the upcoming Winter, communicating with spirits and ancestors (carefully!), divination, cutting away anything you don’t want to take into the long winter. Herbs I’m using: Pumpkin spice- come on, it’s everywhere. Coffee beans- this is when I start to up my coffee game because it’s cool enough that I can drink it without sweating. The scent just brings me into Autumn and Winter. Sandalwood- I burn incense a lot around this time of year too. It seems too overpowering in the Summer, but it feels cozy and warm as the temps start dropping. Stones I’m using: Petrified Wood- not only is it a tie to the past, and hence the ancestors, but I had a particular piece kind of jump at me recently and say it wanted to be used. Who am I to argue? Lepidolite- I got a really beautiful piece at a rock show recently, and I can’t leave it alone. As much as I love Autumn, it does bring some darker moods as the sun spends less and less time in the sky. Lepidolite is really good for depression, and will help see me through, emotionally speaking, until next Spring. Chrysanthemum Stone- good for cutting away all that doesn’t serve you. This is a great theme for this time of year. Goddess of the Month: The Norns and The Fates. These are similar groups of 3 deities who rule over the destiny and fate of each of us. I feel really drawn to fate this time of year, and they’re great to connect with for tarot readings, which I feel especially drawn to right now. I’ll be working on deepening my connection with them, and asking them to help me in my tarot/divination practices for the coming year.

October 3 card reading Our reading this month is interesting, and I feel like it has to do with a lot of what's going on in the news right now. First, we see the Three of Bats, which corresponds to the Three of Swords. So this signifies that we’re going into this month with some suffering. We’re feeling grief and really struggling with our emotions. This could be due to several things. This could be because of things that have happened to us personally, but I think it has something to do with the Kavanaugh hearings and the pain that this has dredged up for a lot of women lately. I’ve been having trouble engaging in social media because of all the #metoo stories, and though I think it’s really important to witness the pain, it can be difficult to feel inundated by it. Next, we have the Five of Pumpkins reversed. The upshot of what’s been happening in the news is that we’re realizing that we’re not alone in sharing our stories. We’re realizing that we have a lot of similiarities, and that the only way to make any sort of change is for us all to stick together and stay strong together. I think that’s a really important lesson. If one of us can help pull someone who’s struggling out of the cold, and show them they’re not alone, then we all can, and we can begin to heal collectively. Lastly, we see The Lovers reversed. I don’t see this as trouble in our relationships on a personal level, but rather a call to re-examine how we deal with each other as men and women. If we’re going to come to a place of mutual respect and healthy relationships, we need to take all the rules we learned about what it means to be a man or a woman and turn them on their heads. It’s time to stop going with the harmful status quo and envision a new way of relating. For our special guidance card, we see Skull of Stars, Infinite Possibilities. This card represents letting go of the daily BS we all deal with and thinking much, much bigger. We’re all a part of this same universe together, and when we realize that, we can find our highest selves in our highest future. It’s time to cast off old beliefs and old ways of thinking and create this universe together. ******************************** Haunting Haunting By Emmanuel George Cefai Haunting haunting down the glooms haunting haunting graves and tombs cemeteries that light in the middle of a night torches that go round cemeteries held and bound by ghosts and shrouds So verse speaks but ah! in dreaming The Sub-Conscious further speaks. My personal tides: A lot of things are still up in the air for me. They’ve been decided, but I just have to wait to hear back about decisions that have been made and determinations for my future. So I’m just trying to be patient and wait it out. In the meantime, I’m working hard on creating tarot classes, which I’ve been wanting to create for over a year. I keep getting the sense that I’m meant to teach in some way, and that feeds into my mission statement, which is to bring magick into the lives of others. My personal goals: Write, record, edit, release all my Tarot 101 classes before Yule. Begin to take steps to ‘find home’. Figure out where we’re wanting to move and start looking at prices for land. Create magick for Samhain! Read the full article

[wheelyfine]

How to Save Money on Buying used Luxury Car — Wheelyfine

When is it worth buying a car? The question is not trivial. Buying a car requires a substantial investment dedicated to a product that will be used for years. This is why motorists, before proceeding with the purchase, always devote a rather long period to reflection. It is, therefore, reasonable to learn to move within the dynamics of the market.

If you wish to buy a pre-owned luxury car, there is not much difference between one year and another. Still, the purchase of new vehicles needs to consider various criteria linked to car manufacturers and dealers.

The 10 holidays most favorable for buying a pre-owned luxury car

Buying a used luxury car is like buying a new car — just the other way around. That may sound absurd at first; it simply means that you can save a lot of money even when buying a used car with an anti-cyclical approach.

The prices for second-hand luxury cars in the cold season are significantly higher than in summer. The reason for this is that many motorists are looking for a vehicle for the winter where, for example, any accident damage would mean a significantly lower loss of value and would be less annoying than a new vehicle.

Winter season

In particular, used small and micro cars, which are winter road-friendly thanks to front-wheel drive, are in great demand. Motorcyclists or convertible owners are now looking for a cheap car that is easy on their health and the vehicle.

Early spring

It is best to start looking for second-hand premium cars as early as spring. The best time, however, is the summer vacation time. Many potential customers are now on vacation. The few customers who come to the dealers can therefore negotiate high discounts.

June to August

The opportunity to buy a car is particularly favorable from June to August. What is good for car buyers, on the other hand, is less pleasing to car sellers. Because if you want to sell your vehicle, you should limit yourself to the winter months. October is a good time to sell. In autumn, car prices rise significantly, as experience shows that the demand for used cars is increasing. It is mainly because many drivers want to buy a winter car before the cold season.

By the end of each quarter:

At the end of a quarter, and specifically at the end of June (Q2) and the end of December (Q4), car dealers often have to make the most of their sales goals. They also always look at the stock of used cars for sale during this period. At these moments, you have a better chance of an excellent deal.

The popular month of September:

In general, September is a popular month to buy a car. This month, many new cars are coming onto the market, so the sale of second-hand cars will also increase.

When new models come onto the market:

Will there be a new model of your favorite car on the market? Then it is smart to wait for that. Car dealers often want to stock the new model and slowly phase out the old model. Another chance for a great offer!

Depending on the type of car:

The car model is also a determining factor. Are you buying a convertible? Then it will be cheaper in the winter than in the summer.

When a model is being phased out

Finally, look out for models BMW 3 series second-hand that are being phased out. Sometimes, you can make a good deal. It is useful to check in advance why the model is going out of the market. Google is your friend.

Incidentally, it has analyzed more than 12 million transactions between 2011 and 2019 and found that the vehicle type also makes a difference. Are you looking for a mid-size SUV? Then buy it in May. A large truck is often best bought in October, medium and compact cars in November, and for small and premium SUVs, it is best to go in December.

The top 10 worst holiday times to purchase a used luxury car

While vacations aren’t commonly thought of as essential retail days, sellers generally tend to make a huge push to enhance income within the late fall and early wintry weather by imparting more significant offers. Those vacations are a great purpose for them to pump up their promotions — especially as of the 3 are constantly found on a Monday, which means buyers have an extended weekend to discover the 2nd hand luxury cars they need to purchase.

Between September and October

September is without a doubt the worst time to buy a used car. The manufacturers, in fact, usually release the new models (or the so-called facelift, the partial restyling that are now carried out annually, or almost) between September and October.

Early autumn

Going to the dealership in early autumn, therefore, it won’t be easy to get a discount, even minimal, on the purchase price, so if you are planning for a Mercedes C class second hand, it would be wise that you wait for the right season. Getting the timing wrong is probably one of the worst mistakes people make when buying a car.

Avoid these holidays

Along with the seasons, you should avoid Easter, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Good Friday, and Memorial Day. All these holidays fall in the late spring and summer months, and many people choose to go car shopping on these days, and the dealers know it well. These are the days when the sales are at the highest, and there is no such need for them to push the sale by lowering the prices and offering discounts.

Top best favorable months to buy pre-owned luxury cars

Beginning of the year

The beginning of the year is a good time to buy a used car, especially in January and February. In these months, many model vehicles from the previous year are left in stock and need to be sold, and even you can get an Audi second hand at the best price. Besides, there is also a market slowdown — these being the main reasons for the period to be favorable for this type of business.

As at this time (after parties), large expenses arise, such as enrolling children in school, buying books and school supplies, IPTU, IPVA, and vacations, a smaller number of people are looking to buy cars. Therefore, to attract more consumers, stores, and dealerships launch promotions.

End of year

One of the times when the purchase of cars is also very favorable to the consumer is at the end of the year. During this period, those who want to buy a used car, for e.g., a used Porsche, can benefit from promotions, which start in late October and generally extend until December — when Christmas occurs.

So, if you intend to make this type of investment, take advantage. It is in this period that the biggest discounts appear.

The explanation for this is that at this time of year, the automakers begin to put their launches on sale for the year that begins. Thus, for resellers and concessionaires not to run the risk of having their stocks accumulated, they resort to promotions. The objective is to sell new as well second-hand luxury cars and, therefore, excellent promotions appear, offering great discounts to consumers.

Also read best and worst days in the week to buy a used luxury car.

Thank You for spending your time reading this article.

Originally published at https://wheelyfine.com on March 29, 2021.