#nova watson

[mehqgossipgirl]

eblast #1.

SPOTTED: One of my favorite times of the year -- Kiss on the Lips.

Apparently, the Ghost of Fiance's Past couldn't resist the party, either. While I'm certainly happy to see Elliott Jonsson's return to the land of the living, I know my sentiment isn't shared by all. As a true gentleman, his first stop post-JFK was to seek out Miss Left at the Altar 2022, Brie Barlow. Public humiliation seems to be a turn on for these two. Most would have expected a tight lipped reunion and a quiet threat of annihilation -- Brie's welcome home gift to Elliott was a red mark across her ex's cheek, curtesy of her palm. Romantic!

The night doesn't end there for our fallen prince just yet -- My sources confirmed that after being all but physically tossed out on his ass by security, Elliott was spotted trying to reconnect with yet another Park Ave Princess -- Vienna Miller. The latter has come quite a ways from who she was last time I wrote about her, but do I sense there's something more to this "reunion"? Meeting your best friend's ex in the dark isn't exactly Girl Code.

But then again, neither is taking home your best friend's brother, either. Now I, for one, hadn't expected Brie's next conquest to be Gabe Miller, front man of the Midnight Mystics -- After their brief fling over the holidays, I assumed this was merely a lapse in judgment. Regardless, the musician was spotted making his way into Brie's town car soon after her. It's good to know Gabe still has time for groupies. I suppose if you're going to choose which one of your ex's to go home with -- Go for the one who already has a hotel room.

Speaking of exes, Nova Watson made an appearance -- And as always, let us know just how small her bank account is. While I can commend her Faux Fendi Replica, a knock off is still a knock off. Unfortunately, with Colette Arsine choosing the Maldives over Dumbo, Nova was left without anyone to fight her battles for her. My sources report she held her own while verballing sparing against Celebutauntes and Instagram Girl Wannabes -- One would almost think she was born and raised on the Upper East Side. She keeps showing up there, after all, despite claiming to wear the Outsider badge with pride.

Thankfully, our Ivy League Empress traded Yacht Clubs for Galas at the MET -- Indiya Du Pont has returned to her roots, not missing a beat in verbally eviscerating any one who ends up in her line of fire. I suppose some things never change. I can't wait to see what devastation she causes next.

Perhaps the Psuedo-Kennedy, Nalin Renaud? She's played political peacemaker for far too long -- It's the only reason I can find for her not causing a scene after having a drink poured on her. Maybe Gabe is more like the rest of us than I anticipated. Maybe Nalin has lost her edge. Her family may want a her to be the next Hillary, everyone knows politics are rife with one thing: Scandal. It's only a matter of time before she follows in the foot steps of our Role Model -- And Nalin's former best friend, as reported by my sources -- Daisy Chakrii. She may be on her best behavior after this latest stint in rehab, but we all know it's only a matter of time before TMZ posts a video of her dancing on stage at Victrola. I'll be front row.

You know you love me.

XOXO, Gossip Girl.

[heckcareoxytwit]

The Hellfire Gala variant covers for July 2023 Marvel solicits

Black Cat (Felicia Hardy) and Mary Jane on Amazing Spider-Man #29 variant cover

Hellcat (Patsy Walker) on Amazing Spider-Man #30

Vision on Avengers #3

Black Panther (T'Challa) on Black Panther #2

Carol Danvers on Captain Marvel: Dark Tempest #1

Kingpin (Wilson Fisk) on Daredevil #13

Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff) on Doctor Strange #5

Deadpool (Wade Wilson) is oddly dressed as Fantomex on the variant cover of Deadpool #9

Iceman (Bobby Drake) on Fantastic Four #9

Nova (Richard Rider) on Guardians of the Galaxy #4

Ghost Rider (Johnny Blaze) on Ghost Rider #16

Hallow's Eve (Janine Godbe) on Hallow's Eve #5

The Five - Proteus (Kevin MacTaggert), Goldballs/Egg (Fabio Medina), Hope Summers, Tempus (Eva Bell) and Elixir (Josh Foley) on Immortal X-Men #13

Emma Frost on Invincible Iron Man #8

Miles Morales on Miles Morales: Spider-Man #8

Moon Knight (Marc Spector) on Moon Knight #25

Firestar (Angelica Jones) on Spider-Man 10

Jean Grey on Storm #3

Thor (Thor Odinson) on Thor Annual #1

Professor X (Charles Xavier) on Ultimate Invasion #2

Dylan Brock on Venom #22

Talon (the older Laura Kinney) on Wolverine 35

Bishop (Lucas Bishop) on X-Force #42

Psylocke (Kwannon) on X-Men: Days of Future Past: Doomsday #1

Exodus (Bennet Du Paris) on X-Men: Before the Fall - Sinister Four #1

Synch (Everett Thomas) on X-Men #24

[onewingedsparrow]

Six Sentence Sunday

Tagged by @novafire-is-thinking! Thank you! <3 I know this was a tag from a while ago, but here it is, finally, lol Rise of the Beasts has inspired me greatly, so I wanted to write something for it ✨ ~ Optimus stared intently at the projection Arcee’s visor was generating. Such a curious hologram it was—some sort of oblong, hunched-over being, with narrow but chunky appendages, and transparent protrusions on its back, boasting a fuzzy frame splashed with bold markings of black and yellow. “B,” said Optimus Prime, “what is this creature that you are showing me?” As the knobby horns of his helmet perked, the young bot straightened his back; his optics seemed to shine brighter as a soft, shy voice answered from his radio, “Bumblebee.” So this is what you spoke of, Optimus realized, as even this small piece of new knowledge transformed his entire perspective towards the name he had never before understood. He then touched a hand to his friend’s shoulder, fully aware of how his voice became huskier as he replied, “Your human friend chose aptly...’Bee.” ~ Tagging (only if you want!) @louwhose @maqiisan @afaroffsong @flutefemme @zelzenik and anybody else who wants to join ;) Also tagging @novafire-is-thinking in case you wanted to do this again! :D

[lifetimemoviereview]

Nightmare in the Desert (2024 Lifetime)

Nightmare in the Desert (2024 Lifetime) Pretty Good, actually

Nightmare in the Desert (2024 Lifetime) 📺.  Stream/Watch the Movie (Ad): Subscribe to the Lifetime Movie Club Cast: Gia De Sauvage, Allen Williamson, Tristan J. Watson, Kyla Nova Director: Sam Irvin Writer(s): Richard Pierce ➡️    Check out our Youtube Channel: Lifetime Uncorked: Lifetime Movie Reviews 🎧   Listen to the Lifetime Uncorked Podcast: Listen Now 🍷  Support the show with a $5…

[sensationalnico]

here are some of the designs i've made for @/RealDestinyProd (Twitter)'s Spider-Man & Mary Jane

[absynthhh]

a guilty pleasure of mine in fics tbh. unfortunately pierce and nova do not make the cut as they both are extremely reckless and impulsive and have a habit of letting their anger get the best of them…but they’re in love so.

“I’d kill for you. Please ask me to kill for you.” “No.” Is a top tier ship dynamic no I do not take criticism

[beautyarchive]

Nova Pilbeam in Young and Innocent (1937).

Nova Pilbeam looks a bit like Emma Watson and her plummy voice is just wonderful.

[heretodefyfate]

don't you just love the bond between trainers and their pokemon~

1st pic: lucifer nash from @kiroons-hyperfixtations

2nd pic: Ace spadea from @jacobtheeevee

3rd pic: Adrian Watson from @axelrod45

4th pic: Pomeg from @ghostgirls (for some reason, tumblr don't let me tag you)

5th pic: Nova from Angelique

6th pic: Interceptor Rumi from @lemonade-juley

7th pic: Asfrith from @eclysia

8th pic: Sage from @lurker-extraordinaire-657645

9th pic: Bluebell from @sumipain-t

10th pic: Aevery Lumin from @ask-mysterious-muses

[orcinus-veterinarius]

Wait, what’s the deal with seashepard? I grew up w a family that supported them and literally bought their merch and stuff

I was the same way! I thought they were so cool after watching Whale Wars. But unfortuantely, despite agreeing with their mission to end commercial whaling, I think their dangerous methods (not to mention their extreme anti-zoo and anti-Indigenous rhetoric) ultimately cause a lot more harm than good. Assaulting and harrassing whalers and sealers, many of whom rely on hunting to feed their families, isn't going to inspire any change. I've been told by folks that have had interactions with Sea Shepherd members that they have a reputation for alienating the communities they enter and being rude and aggressive to both locals and other anti-whaling organizations.

Captain Paul Watson founded Sea Shepherd in 1977 after leaving Greenpeace for disapproving of his "direct action" approaches. In 1986, Watson lead an attack on unoccupied whaling vessels in Iceland that got his group branded as terrorists. The act ultimately had a counterintuative effect, "turn[ing] Icelandic public opinion against the cause of saving whales" (x). In 2013, they were even labeled as "pirates" by a U.S. court for their aggressive actions toward occupied Japanese whaling ships: "When you ram ships; hurl containers of acid; drag metal-reinforced ropes in the water to damage propellers and rudders; launch smoke bombs and flares with hooks; and point high-powered lasers at other ships, you are, without a doubt, a pirate, no matter how high-minded you believe your purpose to be" (x). Sea Shepherd actually removed Watson in 2022 in an attempt to separate itself from his more radical tactics (and outstanding arrest warrants) and go legitmate. PETA denounced this as a betrayal to the animal rights movement.

Watson started his own organization (yet again), and Sea Shepherd is now lead by real estate mogul Pritam Singh. But I still hesitate to support them. In their bid to gain custody of Wikie and Keijo, they make several alarming statements, claiming that Nova Scotia is too cold for them since all they know is warm Mediterranean water (neglecting the fact that their habitat is chilled, something that can't be done in a pen) and that relocating to a sea pen in France will somehow be less stressful than moving to another pool. Wikie and Keijo were both born in the Marineland tanks. Even if we believe that a pen will be more beneficial to their welfare in the long run, it's downright foolish to claim that a pen is the "least stressful option." No one on their team has remotely any experience in captive cetacean husbandry, so they plan to continue employing Marineland trainers. Maybe don't accuse a group of animal abuse and then ask them to come work for you?

[mehqgossipgirl]

eblast #2.

SPOTTED: The return of a true Upper East Side Titan, and the beginning of an unexpected romance.

I, for one, gave up hope long ago that Kami Kaplan would return to the states. I can only assumed her move back to the city was brought on by the arrival of yours truly, of course. Our once favorite Firestarter has exchanged her matches for political allies, truly turning a new leaf. You all saw the Instagram post -- Nalin Renaud and Kami Kaplan are in a relationship. Maybe it's love, maybe it's a large paycheck; Either way, Kami must have turned a new leaf to gain the trust of the Renaud family -- They don't give their Cash Cow to just anyone.

Not everyone has been bit by the relationship bug -- While he may have been seen leaving with Brie Barlow after the Kiss on the Lips party, my sources confirm that Gabe Miller was seen looking particularly disheveled leaving a dive bar bathroom with a random. I've always preferred members only clubs -- But I suppose that isn't quite everyone's scene. Spotted in the same evening was none other than Colette Arsine, as beautiful and blaise as ever. It seems she's wasted no time after her return from the Maldives, seen with Gabe Miller, Brie Barlow, and Nova Watson all within the same week. Getting your drama directly from the source does have it's benefits. She's got a bit of catching up to do, after all.

Speaking of directly going to the source, I received a tip from a certain Q Magazine receptionist that Elliott Jonsson was seen arriving at the office after hours. Something tells me this was all pleasure, not business. Careful, Brie -- You of all people know Elliott will happily make a run for it wherever you're involved. He didn't go far, though -- He was spotted in the midst of something of a power struggle with Gabe Miller while at brunch at the Aubrey. Noticeably, sans a certain blonde. My sources say the tension was palpable between the two, but I don't understand why -- They have so much in common these days! Social circles, stomping grounds, who they take to bed.

However, the two pale in comparison to the stand off seen at La Bernardin between Indiya Du Pont and Brie Barlow. I've missed the team up's between these two, but I think I like to watch them fight even more. One nosy patron let me know the two were feuding over yours truly, spilling a few secrets before their bestie even knew. It's always such a shame to see two Queen Bees in a cold war, but I certainly love being the cause of it. Want more to discuss, ladies? Indiya was seen with Nova Watson, notable Outsider and Ex of Gabe Miller, hoping to get the two to rekindle their love. Something tells me this will end as well as Stevie Nicks and Mick Fleetwood.

Vienna Miller, ever elusive and calculated, was seen arriving at the Plaza hotel this last week -- Acting as if she owns the place, of course. While most wouldn't bat an eye to see the brunette among the sea of hotel guests, I heard something quite interesting: Elliott has been staying at the Plaza, ever since he touched down at JFK. An interesting coincidence, no? These two just can't stop these secret rendezvous. I wonder what Brie has to say about that.

You know you love me.

XOXO, Gossip Girl.

[blairefrances]

So recently my friend online has seen Gnomeo and Juliet (Including Sherlock Gnomes) and I decided to do this!

Cast, Crew, and Credits:

Gnomeo: Iris (Pink Corruption)

Juliet: Pentellow (Pink Corruption)

Shroom: Proyhas Warrior (Mighty Magiswords)

Nannette: Suketoudara (Puyo Puyo)

Benny: Cube (Pink Corruption)

Paris: Black Pearl Cookie (Cookie Run Kingdom)

Featherstone: Nova (Here for Sweetheats)

Shakespeare: Angel Dust (Hazbin Hotel)

Lady Bluebury: Blaze the Cat (Sonic the Hedgehog)

Lord Redbrick: Sundrop (Five Nights at Freddy's Security Breach)

"Call Me" Doll: Girlfriend (Friday Night Funkin)

Race Announcing Gnome: Announcer (Battle for Dream Island)

Theatre Announcing Gnome: Announcer (Shovelware Brain Game)

Stone Fish: Max (Max Design Pro)

Tybalt: Ajaceare (Pink Corruption)

Fawn: Vasilis Deerlington (Blackout Hospital)

The Bulldog: Pochita (Chainsaw Man)

Mrs. Montague: Ethiw (The Gray Garden)

Mr. Capulet: Kcalb (The Gray Garden)

Sherlock Gnomes: Almond Cookie (Cookie Run)

Gnome Watson: Walnut Cookie (Cookie Run)

Irene: Teagan (Dandy's World)

Moriarity: Harry (Harry & Bunnie)

[onewingedsparrow]

“Depths” for the three-sentence fic game :D

Hiiiiii Nova :D Thanks for the prompts! ✨ You got me thinking about Knightverse today, so here you go 🐝💛🖤💛 Read on AO3 ~ The alien chill engulfed him anew, as suddenly and strangely as it had that terrible day that now felt eons ago; when grainy, rust-like particles shifted and scrunched beneath his aching feet, as he crashed to his knees to plunge his head into the lake, while his cracked battle helmet chirped warning after warning till his very consciousness collapsed. Darkness had overtaken him then; and darkness swanned over him now; but today, there remained above him, as he lay flat on his back and craned his neck to behold, a great, bright light dancing atop the distant surface—and from beyond this light, bursting through the darkness, a lonesome figure plunged; and the waters shook with shockwaves around him. A hand touched his face, timid and soft; and it was so, when Bumblebee moved his optics to look deep into Charlie's, the glow caught her smile; and he thought, in his spark, that the chill felt not so cold as before.

~

[allthecanadianpolitics]

The North American Indigenous Games (NAIG) in Halifax, Nova Scotia has come to an end with Team Yukon finishing with 39 medals — 20 gold, 10 silver and nine bronze.

Team Yukon had a contingent of more than 130 athletes, coaches and mission staff. Eight Yukon communities including Watson Lake, Dawson City, Mayo, Teslin, Carmacks, Haines Junction, Pelly Crossing, Ross River and Whitehorse represented the territory.

The multi-sport competition had representatives from 756 Indigenous nations in North America to celebrate, share and reconnect through sports and culture.

The Games ran from July 15 to 23 in the territories of Kjipuktuk Dartmouth and Millbrook First Nations. Team Yukon represented the territory in 11 sports.

A July 24 release from the Yukon government said a cultural contingent and Yukon First Nation elders shared their stories with more than 3,000 participants from across North America. [...]

Continue Reading.

Tagging: @politicsofcanada

[tellthemeerkatsitsfine]

Well, I’m back at home. Got home last night, slept. Go back to work tomorrow. Have today to unpack. Haven’t yet. Things are all over the place. Here are some things I'm writing down instead of sorting that out.

I’m not quite as sad as I’d expected to be today, though I’d expected to be very sad. I realize there were unhealthy sides to basing such a large percentage of my emotional energy for the past year around planning/anticipating/preparing for one two-week trip. It occurred to me in about April just how sad I was going to be once it was over, and then I started feeling anxious about how difficult the end of it would be, which is a particularly impressive feat of anxiety.

Makes me think of one of the more relatable bits from an old Nish Kumar show, I think Ruminations on the Nature of Subjectivity from 2014, when he described a vacation he took with his girlfriend where, while experiencing a particularly special and happy moment, he interrupted it with the thought, “This will be the memory I look back on sadly after we break up.” This is obviously not the same situation, but I always think of that Nish Kumar bit when I manage to find some wildly ridiculous way for my anxiety to get in the way of good things, like sitting around in April, feeling anxious about how sad I’ll be on August 11th when my trip that won’t happen for months is over (obviously, my brain’s feats of impressive anxiety do include having spent lots of nice moments with my now-ex-girlfriend thinking “this will be what I’m sad about when we break up”, which is why I initially connected with that routine, but I’ve since expanded to thinking of that routine during any convoluted mental gymnastics that snatch anxiety from the jaws of happiness).

Possibly because I have been prepared for this for months, it’s not as bad as it could be. It was worse a couple of days ago. On Thursday, my last day in Edinburgh, I got very sad about all of this being over. I only had four shows booked and I’d been planning to fill in the gaps with at least one more, maybe two more, as during the rest of the week I was doing 6 or 7 events per day. I was deciding between adding Ray O’Leary or Melanie Bracewell (given that I ended up seeing zero Kiwis all week), looking at a few of the free ones to slot in earlier as well. And I didn’t end up doing that, because I didn’t really feel up to it. Instead, during the three-hour break between Mark Watson and David O’Doherty, I just walked down to the seaside and stared at the ocean for a while. Which was actually a pretty good use of my time and I got briefly overwhelmed by the idea that I’ve spent so many of the best hours of my life staring at the Atlantic Ocean from Nova Scotia on Canada’s East Coast and now I’m seeing the same ocean from the other side (I mean, not really because this was the East of Scotland so it doesn’t face the same way, the only time I could really accurately say that was when I took the trains to Mallaig the week before and saw the ocean from there, but it’s the same general idea), and that was pretty cool. I haven’t seen an ocean in a year, I’m glad I took the opportunity to see an ocean for a bit.

I was sad that day, it’s a good thing I had a couple of the shows I’d been most looking forward to – Mark Watson and DO’D – saved for last, as that picked my mood up. I probably wasn’t in the right mindset for Seymour Mace, might have enjoyed him more earlier in the week. And then I ended on Mat Ewins, which was great fun. I said beforehand that I’d probably enjoy it less than otherwise because I’d made it follow an amazing show like David O’Doherty. But actually, it probably worked the other way. After spending an afternoon sadly starting at an ocean, David O’Doherty put on a show so great that it lifted my mood enough for me to be able to enjoy the extremely silly things that Mat Ewins put in front of me.

And then Friday and Saturday I was slightly less sad because I got back to London and enjoyed spending time with the people I knew and liked there, and it’s harder to get locked in objectively ridiculous feats of anxiety when you’re doing that. Again, feel odd writing this as my friend in London reads this, which I rarely actually remember unless 1) I reference him in a post and realize he’ll probably see it, or 2) he messages me after I’ve posted something with a reference to it and I always have a split-second moment of thinking “How do you know about that?” before I remember. I’m usually surprised by how fast he can do this after a post goes up; I learned yesterday that this is because he has an alert on his phone that gives him a notification when I post, which makes me cringe as I think of all the incoherent posts I’ve made when overly emotional in the middle of the night, and then deleted them in the morning thinking “It’s fine, it wasn’t up for long, no one saw that.” I am, at this point in this specific post, not writing for any purpose besides saying… I guess it’s cool if you saw all that shit and still wanted to hang out with me, but sorry for all the overly personal stuff I post in the middle of night and thought I was getting away with deleting within a few hours.

All that to say, I’m not feeling as bad today as I’d expected. For the last year, thinking about preparing for my trip has been pretty much the only thing motivating me to get out of bed in the morning, and I was worried about losing that motivation for obvious reasons. But I also feel like I got a look at how life can actually be a good thing, and I still feel motivated to try to make my life better. Preferably with a view to go back to the UK next year, but I’m hoping to make some changes before starting on specific plans for that, because I do think it may have held me back this year that I was wrapping everything around that one trip. Namely that once I got the time off work granted from my current job, I couldn’t apply to anything else (besides school jobs that have summers off) in case they wouldn’t give me the same time off. Now that I don’t have anything like that in the way, I want to start seriously trying to look for better stuff.

But God, do I ever want to go back to the Edinburgh Festival next year. And trying the coaching thing to see if it goes any better now that my life is slightly more stable, and my mental health is… incredibly, I think it right now it might be the best it’s been in a very long time. Which seems odd because it’s definitely not good, but I’ve been working a fulltime job for a year that requires being around people all day, and while I’ve found it anxiety-inducing and exhausting, I haven’t actually collapsed at work and lost my job. And then I did a two-week trip with lots going on every day, and there were a couple of days where I got very overwhelmed by all the people in the small spaces and the heat in London tourist areas and did nearly have a panic attack on the sidewalk until I was able to go hide in a pub. But the point is that I only nearly did that. For me, I take it as a win if I’m able to get through something while seeing like a person who gets very anxious but is basically functional in society, as opposed to my brain just shutting down and I’m unable to do it at all. I think the fact that I’ve been able to do a year of fulltime work where I constantly interact with people, and the vacation I just did with so much going on, and be mostly the former and not the latter, means I am probably the most mentally healthy I’ve ever been. Possibly in a position to further get my life together.

I mean, my brain did shut down a couple of times during that trip. Before I left, I posted that video from ACMS in Edinburgh 2019, where Alice Fraser is compering and says, “If Daniel Kitson were here, I’d be trying a lot harder.” I joked that that line is always true, I should get it tattooed on my forearm. I’m afraid I have to take that back now. Having actually been in Daniel Kitson’s presence, on two separate nights, I can confirm that it turns out if Daniel Kitson were here, I’d be having a panic attack. So it’s probably good that he’s usually not.

But basically, I’d worried that the day I get home I’d feel like I’d lost the only thing I had to look forward to, and I don’t really feel like that. I feel like I got a look at how it feels to be happy, and I’m sort of functional enough to try to create a situation where I can have more things like that. Also, I have a lot of comedy admin to do now that I’m home. Which sounds like a joke but I quite enjoy that, so you know, there’s that to look forward to. Andy Zaltzman’s on Taskmaster soon. That’ll be good.

I’m pretty sure I did 35 live events in the two week trip, most concentrated in the five days I spent in Edinburgh. It wasn’t quite as many as I’d planned – I skipped the two podcast recordings I’d booked, because I found myself panicking that I’d seen Nish Kumar too much and I think when I saw him in Edinburgh he may have recognized me from his preview in London and I decided it wasn’t worth the anxiety of worrying whether I’m doing something wrong to see him two more times (I said I’m more mentally healthy right now than I’ve been in a very long time – but I cannot stress enough how low that bar is). And I didn’t end up filling in the gaps in my schedule on Thursday, even though I’d under-booked that day for the express purpose of having room to add stuff. But besides that, I got to pretty much everything I’d planned.

I used the awkwardly broad term “live events” so I can count the night in Edinburgh that I went to Ceilidh dancing, which I almost skipped out of nervousness but I’m really glad I went. I also saw two Scottish trad music shows, which were great. The rest was comedy. One mixed-bill night when I went to ACMS. I saw one thing that qualifies as a play, Natalie Palamides, though it was definitely also comedy. I saw Sheeps do a sketch show, Johnny & the Baptists were a musical comedy duo, other than that it was all solo hours. I meant to get out of my comfort zone, comedy-wise, with this trip, and I definitely did a little bit, but could certainly have done more of that.

I’d like to, next time. I’d like there to be a next time, for a start. But I love the idea of having more time in Edinburgh. Spend maybe six days seeing all the stuff I’d researched beforehand and I know that I like. Then spend a few days going to clown shows that are highly rated and supposed to be very good, but far outside my usual wheelhouse (I did one of those this year, Natalie Palamides, and had a great time). Then spend a few days going to shows that are free, that are debut hours, that have wild premises by unknown performers, that are described as improv, that have a audiences of five people. Just wander into things based on who hands me a flyer. I am about 90% joking, and 10% serious, when I say I keep hearing about how part of the experience with the Edinburgh Fringe Festival is you’ll see some things that are shit, and I feel like I missed out on getting the full experience because I didn’t see anything that was shit. I didn’t have time to see shit things, I had five days and needed to use them all to make sure I took my very rare opportunity to see great comedy live. But if I went back for more time, I’d go see some things that are shit. You know, for balance.

I don’t think I stuck entirely to really famous performers. I only saw two Taskmaster contestants (from any version of the show – I saw a bunch of Aussie comedians, none who’ve done Aussie Taskmaster, though I’d like to see all those people on Aussie Taskmaster), and by coincidence they happened to have been on a team together when they did that show. Team Wumar is truly the greatest in Taskmaster history. I saw a few people in big rooms – Natalie Palamides in the Traverse Theatre with a capacity of 270. David O’Doherty did the Gordon Aikman Theatre, with a capacity of 481, sold out the night I saw it. He’s doing a full run of about 25 shows, I’ve just checked and he’s sold out a few other upcoming nights too. Good for him. I saw Kiri Pritchard-McLean in Pleasance One, with a capacity of 299. And I saw Susie McCabe in Assembly George Square Studio Three, with a capacity of 250. I saw Jordan Brookes in the Queen Dome, with a capacity of 174. Sheeps were at the Pleasance Two with room for 158 people. I might start adding these capacity numbers to my spreadsheet, now that I’m looking them up. That’s fun.

But besides that, I think the rooms where I saw people were relatively small. Or they were in brick-walled basements, so they felt pretty small, whether they really were or not. Including the two Taskmaster contestants – Nish Kumar and Mark Watson were both doing works in progress, so they didn’t go big. Nish was in a Monkey Barrel basement with about 100 people. Mark was in a ludicrously small room – unbelievably small, I though I had the wrong spot at first – with, and I counted because I was able to count them all, 37 people. Every seat filled, there were 37 seats.

I only saw a few shows that went as small as that. Ones in the back rooms of pubs with a few rows of chairs thrown together. Aaron Simmonds, the guy with one show I liked on NextUp but few other credits to his name – he was in a bar with under 50. Caitriona Dowden, with even fewer credits and the closest thing I did to taking a “punt” on the unknown, it paid off great as I found her very enjoyable and hope I get to see more of her stuff – she had a similar setup, but in a gother, gayer bar. Jonny & the Baptists were in what seemed like a circus tent with room for a bunch more people but only about 20 people actually in. I saw Seymour Mace in the same room as Mark Watson, but the room wasn’t full for that one, so there were maybe 25 of us in the audience. Dan Rath played a room with a capacity of 115 but the vast majority of the room was empty the night I went and there couldn’t have been more than 40 people in there, I don’t know if I went on a particularly sparse night or he was overly optimistic in venue booking, I hope it’s the former because he was very good. Ed Night’s room was pretty small, but full the night I went. I hope he filled that room most nights because he’s good enough to deserve success and all, but also his material was perfectly suited to a cramped windowless basement with no more than 45 people in it, so I hope he doesn’t outgrow that too fast.

I now can’t quite remember why I started listing these, as the last couple of paragraphs have taken me a long time to write while I stop and Google venue capacities. I think I was trying to make the point that I didn’t take a lot of chances on unknown stuff, but properly famous people didn’t make up that high a percentage of what I saw either, a lot of it was in the middle. I guess it depends what your standards are. Nish Kumar was the only person I saw who’s name I could say to a non-comedy nerd in Canada and I’d think there was any chance they’d have heard of him. If I’m talking to someone whom I know is into that sort of thing, I’d expand that to Mark Watson, Kiri Pritchard-McLean, and maybe David O’Doherty. But by the standards of the Edinburgh “this is supposed to be about people who’ve not established any career at all playing to tiny audiences to try to break through” Fringe Festival, I went pretty mainstream. Would be fun if I went back with the time to do more.

Given the time constraints I had, though, I wouldn’t change anything. Some show I saw were better than others, but I don’t think a single was one was complete “miss” that I didn’t enjoy. I saw comedy every night I was in London, too. My top 2 favourite comedians in the world are Daniel Kitson and Nish Kumar, and I saw them twice each. Really can’t ask for more than that.

Also, I haven’t had alcohol in three weeks. Mostly. I had one beer the night before I left, so technically it’s only been two weeks. But I haven’t actually drank since the weekend before. Which I think is the longest I’ve gone staying away from alcohol since the first six weeks of this year. When I did dry January, extended into mid-February, and since then, have succeeded in significantly reducing my drinking. I have drank much, much less in 2024 than in any previous year since I was 19. I’ve kept to never more than once a week, sometimes only every two weeks, and had less throughout the night than I would have previously. That was my compromise, in that I wanted to try to stop drinking, but giving it up completely early in the year made me incredibly anxious and miserable (yes I am aware that that is a sign of a problem, that’s why I want to stop), I’ve found a compromise that lets me not have nearly as bad a problem as I used to but also not want to jump off a cliff the way I did when I gave it up altogether for a bit. But I’ve still been drinking, so three weeks without doing so is a long time for me. And there were times when I really, really wanted a beer (one with alcohol in it – I had bunch of alcohol-free Guiness while I was in the UK so I could enjoy pubs), mainly when I was overwhelmed by the stress and crowds and wanted something to take the edge off that. But I didn’t miss drinking in general, if that makes sense. I had specific times when I thought something difficult would be easier with alcohol, but I didn’t wish I had alcohol because it would make me like things more. Because I just liked what I was doing, even sober. I’ve never drank at comedy or music shows and I’ve never understood people who do – I drink to escape reality, while if I’ve chosen to go see something I like live, I’m in a situation where I’m enjoying reality and want to experience it fully. I felt that way for most of my trip. Reality was fun, I didn’t want to escape it (most of the time). That’s pretty good.

Worst things about my trip:

- Covent Garden, never go there, too many people

- St. Paul’s Cathedral and Westminster Cathedral – too many people for a tourist attraction where the bit that attracted me to it is I thought it might feel like magic

- The number of people on the streets in London in general

- Working out confusing London transit systems, particularly at busy times when you’re very conscious that people will get angry if you do anything wrong or take even one moment too long to figure it out

- The tube when it’s very crowded

- The heat in London, which is weird because it was still slightly cooler than at home, but I’m not outside in the sun all day at home

- This is not the fault of the UK, but I got blisters all over the bottom of one foot about two days, and walking was painful for the whole first week, by my last day in London I was just about limping, it recovered a bit when I spent two days on the train and was less bad, but still painful, in Edinburgh

- The flyerers that were all over Edinburgh weren’t a big problem most of the time – I basically sympathized with them doing an annoying job, and could just avoid their gaze so they wouldn’t approach me, mumble an awkward “no thank you”, or take a flyer and throw it out when I’d got far enough away – but when I was tired or stressed or in a hurry, even that low level of social navigation because fairly stressful just in the way that it was ever-present, and it added up

- Both nights that I saw Daniel Kitson, I got in my head in ways that I cannot remember without cringing

- That show I saw at the Soho Theatre wasn’t great, though it was still fucking cool just to be at the Soho Theatre

- Buckingham Palace guard changing: just Mounties but with more people surrounding them

- I like trains. I do not like airplanes. Did not enjoy the commute there or back.

- Navigating some of the crowded plazas and stuff in Edinburgh, where all the tables were taken and I didn’t know where to stand when I was on my own and I felt weird that everyone seemed to be there with people they knew and started feeling like being at school

Best things about my trip, not counting individual Edinburgh shows because I’ve already rated those in a different post:

- Seeing Daniel Kitson twice in London, no matter how awkward I was afterward, it’s an amazing show and I so enjoyed seeing it live

- Seeing the venues in person where my favourite comedy has taken place – the Bill Murray, ABC Comedy, and the Soho Theatre

- Also in London, Nish Kumar did a WIP of the best stand-up show I’ve ever seen, Desiree Burch did a WIP that I mostly enjoyed, Romesh Ranganathan did an hour that was too loose to even really call a “WIP” but it was great fun and I got very overexcited about being in the room with him

- Jesus fucking Christ is Edinburgh ever an incredibly beautiful city

- Crystal Palace not a tourist attraction, but very very pretty and I bought a book from a cool store and it was pretty much tied with the Taskmaster house as my highlight of the London tourist stuff

- Taskmaster house, and the surrounding areas, including the bandstands – fucking amazing to see in person

- St. James’ Park was beautiful

- Highgate Cemetery, I went mainly for the Douglas Adams grave but the whole place was lovely

- Cool old buildings in London, which I’ve been asked to stop insulting by comparing them to children’s fantasy novels, but they sure were old and majestic

- Getting to meet my friend in London in person, as well as wife who’s really cool and their lovely cats, that was actually way near the top in terms of the best parts of my trip, again it’s weird to go into when he can read it (even though I have clearly put my entire life on the internet already), but, you know, pretty socially alienated these days, pretty cool to have an in-person social connection that did not feel alienating, also those are the coolest people I could have possibly asked for, when meeting people on the internet

- One time during his show in London, Nish Kumar looked at me because of the way I laughed at one of his jokes and told me “You and me would get along”, and that was fucking excellent

- The trains rides between Glasgow and Mallaig are some of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen. The only scenery I’ve ever seen at all compare to that would be the Rocky Mountains in Western Canada, the time I road tripped through the South Island of NZ, and the Cabot Trail in Cape Breton. But the Glasgow-Mallaig trains rank with the very best of those, and are the only thing on this list that I got to experience via a train, which immediately makes it better than those other things. Fucking incredible.

- On that note: I was joking before I left that when I got to the UK, I’ll be like that autism stereotype of an 8-year-old white boy who’s obsessed with trains and gets to go to a train museum, but British comedians are my trains. This was true and I was very much like that with the comedians, but I did forget until got there that trains are also my trains. I loved the trains. The majestic trains through Scottish mountains and the trains the connected bits of London and the trains through the English countryside. I even liked the tube, when it wasn’t busy, it was so cool when it went through the tunnels. The only bit of transit I did not like were the very crowded tube journeys. Otherwise, it was great. I liked the train stations. I liked the platforms. I liked looked at the trains and tracks from the outside. I liked the train interiors and the views from the windows and the way they work. I liked “mind the gap”. It was great.

- I had some good full English breakfasts. Had some other good food. The day I got there we had a Sunday roast that was awesome. Had a few kebab things that I liked. In one pub in Fort William, I had some hake and seafood that was very good.

- Saw several old pubs that I enjoyed a lot, but have to particularly mention the Chesire Cheese in London, which is my favourite pub I’ve ever been to. A perfect place.

- Regent's Park

- Seriously, holy fucking hell, Edinburgh is the most beautiful city I’ve ever seen, and I mean that quite literally. Particularly at night, when it got less crowded and had lights on. It was like running around an… unnamed fantasy novel.

- Similarly fantasy novel experience – Cambridge University, which I found disappointing due to crowds until I paid 15 pounds to get to go into the St. John’s College grounds, where there were fewer people and it was so cool. I’m not even going to avoid saying it this time because that is the most Harry Potter building I have ever seen. Harry Potter lived in there, I’m pretty sure. And I got to walk around it and sit on the grass and feel like I was in a fantasy novel.

- It was cool as fuck just to have this type of stand-up comedy be a thing that people in real life around me are into, rather than it all existing on my phone and my laptop. I quite enjoyed just sitting in the Monkey Barrel bars and listening to the people talk about comedy. It’s a fine line, of course, because I enjoyed that when there was an empty table where I could easily sit. When the areas got so crowded that there were no free spots and I had to figure out where I’m supposed to stand, I immediately felt awkwardly like the kid at school with no friends again. I guess there’s a sweet spot in the middle.

- Actually the Monkey Barrel venues in general were cool, I just enjoyed being in those windowless brick-walled basements dedicated to comedy, the comedy show rooms and the bar areas.

- I hate crowds but the Royal Mile was pretty cool to look at, when I wasn’t trying to navigate it in a hurry. I also enjoyed seeing the comedian posters all over Edinburgh, even though I’m pretty sure those things are a colossal waste of money and I do find myself wondering if I can just ask about the environmental impact of all that printing. But it was funny when they wrote “fuckwit” over Matt Forde’s forehead every time. One time I saw that Matt Forde’s people had covered some “just stop oil” graffiti with a sticker bragging about 5 stars from the Daily Telegraph. That’ll show those people who hate him for being anti-leftist.

- I liked the pilgrimage to the Ruins of Cowgate.

Things that almost made me cry:

- Kiri Pritchard-McLean's show about the social care system, hitting all my soft spots about caring for at-risk youth despite not being their biological parent

- Nish Kumar nearly got me with a fairly emotional bit at the end of his show, though I'd heard that bit before and it doesn't usually make me feel like crying, so that was definitely influenced by me feeling so overwhelmed about being physically in a room with Nish Kumar

- Sarah Keyworth had some very emotional bits about family and acceptance

- Staring at the ocean and realizing this is the same ocean that I look at from Nova Scotia and it's just as beautiful from this side and we're all part of the same world and also I was very tired and sad about it being my last day in Edinburgh

- Very nearly cried from being overwhelmed with anxiety on the hot day in London streets being scared of getting in trouble for not knowing where I'm going on a crowded sidewalk, managed to escape into a pub and it was all right

- Eleanor Morton, in a show that started slowly, had some really powerful stuff near the end about fighting back against predators in a community she loves

Things that actually made me cry during my trip:

- Amazingly, the only thing that got literal tears out of me was the music show I want to, they played the song Caledonia, which used as the background music a few years ago to a video I made for my grandparents with pictures of their house by the ocean in rural Nova Scotia, where they'd lived my whole life and where I'd been visiting regularly my whole life and it's my favourite place to be, but my grandparents had to move to a care home a few years ago and we thought they'd have to sell the house, and before they moved I made this video to the song Caledonia so we could remember that place, but about a month ago my mother told me that they took the house off the market and have worked out how to keep it in the family for a few years at least, I was last there a year ago and made peace with never seeing it again but now I will, and anyway when they started playing Caledonia in that music show I did suddenly realize I was wiping away tears in a lecture theatre

All right, this post has gone for too long. Here are some pictures.

Of all the little Edinburgh post collections in Edinburgh, I think that last picture contained the most people I've heard of, though it's not hard to get a high rate of people I've heard of when three of them were Ivo Graham. I still think it's too bad that my time there didn't overlap with Angela Barnes.

[booklovershouse]

Oi oi, booklovers!

Um post "Noite Estrelada vibes" pq eu amo esse quadro e não tive nenhuma ideia melhor 🫠

Mas, para ser sincera, a primeira coisa que essa booktag me lembrou foi a abertura clássica de ICarly, quando o Freddie começa com "em 5, 4, 3, 2 e..." pam pam pampamparam I know, you see 💃🏻 kahskahajhsk minha infância todinha! 🥹❤️✨

Ok, vou deixar de enrolar e ir pra booktag kkkkkkk

🌙| 5 livros que amo

• A Menina que Roubava Livros (+14)

Vcs já devem estar achando que o Markus Zusak me paga pra fazer propaganda, mas A Menina que Roubava Livros é realmente um livro único, até agora não vi nenhum igual. Traz a Segunda Guerra Mundial com uma perspectiva diferente da maioria dos livros, que tem foco nos judeus - e com razão - enquanto esse daqui se passa num bairro pobre da Alemanha. Fora isso, qual leitor não gosta de um livro sobre livros?

• Minha Vida Fora de Série 1 (+12)

Eu sou muuuuuito apegada a MVFS1. Foi o primeiro romance teen q li e tbm é o lar do meu maior crush literário (eu CASARIA com ele sem pensar duas vezes). Além disso, é nacional e tem uma prota apaixonada por séries. Vcs podem encontrar a resenha aqui :)

• O Cão dos Baskerville (+10)

Ora, ora, se não é o caro Sherlock Holmes? Kkkkkkk

O Cão dos Baskerville é minha história preferida, talvez pelo cenário diferente e uma participação maior do Watson na investigação, porém amo a saga inteira.

• Pollyanna Moça (+12)

Meu romance de época preferido e um dos meus livrinhos de conforto. Essa é a sequência de Pollyanna, que mostra a juventude da nossa querida garotinha loira otimista. O começo é meio chatinho, mas as migalhas de romance são uma graça.

• Sem Coração (+14)

O País das Maravilhas é um universo bem conhecido, mas já imaginou como foi que a Rainha de Copas chegou ao poder? Como ela era antes? Por que ficou desse jeito? Aqui, você tem as respostas - e, pra quem assistiu Descendentes 4, eles tiveram uma ideia bem parecida pra personagem.

Mas já aviso: quem termina sem coração é você, pq ele se parte em 1000 pedaços depois da leitura 🫠

💙| 4 livros que quero ler

• Assassinatos e Cookies de Chocolate (+??)

Eu estou super animada pra ler, pq assisti todos os filmes da Hannah Swensen e só depois de séculos descobri que existem os ✨livros✨

Porém, a edição era super antiga (o nome é O Mistério do Chocolate) e só se vendiam usados na Amazon, então desanimei. Até que, num belo dia no Insta, eu vi uma resenha desse livro e fiquei tipo "não creio q fizeram uma edição nova aaaaaa 🥹"

Em resumo, Hannah é uma confeiteira que, de vez em quando, dá uma de detetive. Parece ter uma pegada bem "cozy mistery", exatamente do jeitinho que eu gosto. Deveriam aproveitar e traduzir os livros da Aurora Teagarden também!!!

• Caída por Você (+14)

Comédia romântica dos anos 2000 é um dos meus gêneros preferidos, então eu espero amar esse livro, pq disseram q parece com "De Repente 30" - fora q tbm li a amostra e gostei bastante. E, é claro, tem enemies to lovers 🥹❤️✨

O plano de Charlotte Wu é organizar a festa de formatura perfeita e as coisas estavam correndo como o planejado, até que ela cai de uma escada e aterrissa em J. T. Renner, seu arqui-inimigo. Entretanto, quando acorda, Charlotte se vê numa cama desconhecida com seu noivo que, pasmem, é Renner. Agora os dois estão presos nos 30 anos e precisam fazer de tudo para descobrir como voltar ao normal.

• Cidades Pequenas não Guardam Segredos (+12?)

Tbm é um livro que eu já "conheço", então estou muuuuuito ansiosa pra ler! Essa é a nova versão de Cecília Vargas (que eu só consegui ler o primeiro volume, para minha infelicidade), ent conheço boa parte dos personagens e um pedaço do enredo :)

Enquanto os amigos de Cecília estudavam para o vestibular, ela fez um curso de investigação profissional para, enfim, realizar seu sonho de se tornar detetive particular. Mesmo com medo de não ser levada a sério por sua pouca idade, Cecília põe um anúncio e é chamada para seu primeiro caso: um incêndio suspeito em Itaipaema, onde crimes nunca acontecem...será mesmo?

• Se não Fosse por Você (+14)

Mais um nacional, pra equilibrar. Esse livro tá na minha lista há séculos, mas tá sempre caro kkkkkkk Não julgo já que é nacional e nem tem editora, mas cara, quase 50 reais em um livro de 300 e poucas páginas que consigo terminar em uns 2/3 dias 🤡 Eu sou leitora, mas tbm sou ✨pobre✨

Melissa está dando duro pra realizar seu sonho de ser delegada. Como qualquer concurseiro, ela está sempre estudando e vendo dicas, principalmente em seu blog preferido, Sr. Concursado. Então ela conhece Leonardo e a relação deles passa de briga por uma limonada roubada a namorados por uma noite.

(amo fake dating e o ENEM tá me tirando do sério. Esse seria o momento perfeito pra ler esse livro.)

🌙| 3 livros que sempre recomendo

Meu momento de brilhar chegou kkkkkkk

O primeiro é A Menina que Roubava Livros, que já panfletei nesse post. Os outros dois podem ser qualquer um da Marissa Meyer, principalmente Cinder e Renegados (meus preferidos dessas sagas são Scarlet e Supernova, mas não posso recomendar eles se a pessoa não leu o primeiro).

💙| 2 leituras recentes

O último livro q li foi Nos Vemos em Vênus. Não botei muita fé, mas gostei bastante, embora a protagonista tenha me estressado muito em alguns momentos. No geral, ele é uma mistura de Amor & Gelato com Como eu era Antes de Você.

Antes dele, terminei O Assassinato no Trem, o primeiro da série "As Irmãs Mitford Investigam".

E pasmem: as irmãs Mitford não investigaram nada.

O livro tem foco na nova babá dos Mitford e em um policial decidido a solucionar o assassinato que ocorreu no trem. Em resumo, senti que foi muito enrolado e teve pouca ação. Seria melhor se tivesse menos páginas.

🌙| 1 Leitura atual

No momento estou lendo A Bicicleta das Dálias Vermelhas (comecei ontem). Uma amiga virtual da época do meu Ig (2020-2022) me recomendou esse livro (e tbm Peripécias de uma Estudante de Moda). Demorei um tempão pra ler, mas ela acertou em cheio! Até agora estou achando bem a minha cara.

Finalmente acabei de escrever esse post kahskahajhsk ficou quilométrico, mas gostei 🤡🫶🏻

Bjs e boas leiturassss <333

[beautyarchive]

Nova Pilbeam and Derrick de Marney in Young and Innocent (1937).

She looks a bit like Emma Watson, don’t you think?

This is a really fun movie that’s basically a very early action movie. Hitchcock was such a pioneer and his movies don't feel dated like others of the same era.