#only simon manus left !

[currentlyonstandbi]

took down Laxasia on NG+2 first go lmao

[lopposting]

The “error” in the sand.

When Carlo’s body is found, his RIGHT ARM is buried. Not the left.

Because he’s facing up, you can see his feet.

Maybe it's just an error, (just like how Carlo still has freckles if you load the game in after credits without starting NG+, because they use the same model as Pino to make Carlo, "in reality", he doesn't seem to have them). but it seems like a strange error to make.

[Ergo, as Sophia explains, is the freezing of time. These memories cannot lie. Interpretably, Ergo is truth itself]

Remember, Simon speaks of some important relic being stolen by Geppetto. It’s likely the arm of god which is the LEFT ARM. 

Nameless puppet (Carlo's body?) is also missing the left arm.

Going back to the sand figure, it looks like the arm is buried and not missing. Only visually is it the left arm (Carlo’s right)

Perhaps this “error” is to tell us that Carlo was NOT missing his arm at the point of his death?

[Remember, Ergo can’t lie]

So Geppetto had to have taken it off.

Here’s another fun thing, Pino’s LEFT arm is “buried” here, under the water, like Carlo’s RIGHT arm is.

also: Nameless puppet.

In the NP cutscene, there's a shot with a particular focus on his legs.

When Carlo appears in the "bad ending", his legs appear into frame first.

But if his legs were seemingly restored, why wasn’t his left arm? It's the only thing that wasn’t visibly restored. 

Did Geppetto hack it off a second time for the mechanical arm?

Why the particular fixation on the left arm? One-winged angel? Arm of God? Simon Manus?

Left-handedness has a particular symbolism in society

(it appears Carlo's healthy hand that appears out of the suitcase is his right hand. Don't know if it means anything)

Again, could just be an error, or coincidence.

[i-28-29]

This painting always makes me so sad :(

Now looking at it again, the bride reminds me a lot of Sophia, and the old man obviously being Simon Manus.

(WARNING: this turns into a rant of sophia being compared to jesus lol)

I think in the game its not very obvious how Simon feels about Sophia but its definitely how he speaks about her that is interesting.

Hes not the only one who talks about Sophia like she's something greater than man either. Arlecchino does aswell like hes another disciple of her. (He literally calls her a goddess in one of the calls)

In my eyes they are just like Jesus and Judas. Judas was once Jesus's most trusted disciples, even to the point theres implications of love between them, however Judas didn't love like how Jesus loved.

This is also the reason i dont see sophia as the virgin Mary. Sophias mother and father both very well represent Mary and Joseph. Both have a child that was more or less blessed by god, or touched by the hand of god. (The same way Simon wanted to have the power of god)

Even Simons awakened forms hand looks very feminine

(Tho this could just be me being delusional and reaching)

Anyways, sorry about the rant i just cant get enough of Sophias story 😔 I hope shes still a big part in the DLC

ALSO, I talked about Sophia having disciples right, its kinda hard to say as there aren't a lot of characters in the game connected to Sophia, however there are some that think of her very highly, the same way Jesus's disciples did.

For example the journalist that was friends with Sophia could be seen as one of her disciples, the P himself could also be a disciple (possibly being john as he lived a long life) the journalist that was friends with sophia (maybe peter? Its kinda hard to say theres not a lot of info on the journalist sadly) I even think Carlo and Romeo could be "disciples" aswell, considering a loading screen says they have a brotherly bond, and James and John (brothers who left their father to follow jesus) could fit those two. (And also maybe P filled in the spot for Carlo since John lives the longest and james dies as a martyr)

[a-m-pyra]

Bodies of Water: CH1 Blood, Ink & Blue Butterflies (American McGee's Alice/Lies of P)

A blue butterfly flew through the open window of the lecture hall and sat on the windowsill, right next to Pinocchio, who was trying to listen to Professor Manus' lecture. He scribbled on the paper, covering his left ear and rubbing his shoulder with his right.

He looked around the hall. Everyone was either glued to their laptops or listening to the lecture. Only a few individuals who sat on the other side of the room whispered to each other. However, he heard a whisper and an unpleasant noise right next to him. Moreover, his head started to hurt terribly.

Eugénie, sitting next to him, looked at him questioningly, taking the earphone out of her ear and looking away from the show that was playing on her smartphone. After a moment, he saw the anxiety in her eyes. She wiped her nose as if she wanted Pinocchio to repeat the movement.

He looked at his hand, noticing a red streak. While he was watching it, Eugénie put the phone in her pocket and grabbed his hand and dragged him out of the room, leading him to the bathroom and holding toilet paper under his nose before sitting him down on one of the chairs that stood in the hall next to the room where they had classes.

“It's been happening to you more and more lately,” she said, leaning against the wall across from him.

He looked up at her, making no comment.

“You know what, P? Maybe you should go to the doctor or something.”

“I'm fine.”

“I see. It's not like this is the third time this week and the second time in Manus' class that your nose is Edward Cullen's wet dream.”

“Fortunately, the weekend is just around the corner.” He smiled slightly at her and moved the paper away from his nose to look at her.

“I'll bring more, and you sit and don't move.”

P nodded. Eugénie disappeared back into the bathroom and P looked towards the stairs. He blinked as he saw another blue butterfly fly across the hall. He followed it with his eyes, noticing a familiar-looking girl at the end of the corridor.

He got up to follow the butterfly towards the girl. He felt dizzy halfway there and, only thanks to Eugénie who had just come out of the bathroom, he didn't fall over.

“Idiot,” she muttered, setting him back in the chair. “You're bleeding even more.”

“I thought I saw someone I knew.”

“P, apart from me, Gemini and Romeo, you don't have many friends.”

“Nonsense.”

“Mhm. Of course.”

After a few minutes, Eugénie took the paper from him, watching his face for a moment.

“Okay, we got it.”

“My legs feel like jelly,” he grumbled, allowing Eugénie to help him up.

“It does not surprise me. I wasn't kidding when I talked about Cullen.”

She opened the door to the room and entered with him quietly. Manus raised an eyebrow at them, then went back to the lecture, glancing back at them sporadically as Pinocchio drank Eugénie's juice, and she pretended to take notes while going back to watching the show.

P felt Simon Manus' eyes on him all too well, hence his joy when class finally ended. He was going to wander around the city and then return home quietly, hoping that his father would be long asleep or sitting in his study and wouldn't poke his nose out of him when he opened the door.

“I would like you to stay for a while.”

Eugénie and P stopped and walked over to Manus' desk, sitting on the empty chairs.

“This is the second time you've come out in my class.”

“It's my fault,” said P. “I've been having nosebleeds more and more often lately, not just at your lectures, professor.”

“It's not good, you should go to the doctor.”

“I told him the same thing,” said Eugénie, “he doesn't want to listen to me.”

Manus smiled crookedly.

“See you at the next lectures, this time after consulting a doctor.”

They nodded and said goodbye as they left the room. They immediately felt arms on their shoulders and heard Gemini's voice.

“What are you planning for the weekend?”

“DnD playing,” Eugénie replied. “There hasn't been a session for a long time, and I have a spare room in the dormitory.”

“Be careful, or I'll come to you.” Gemini smiled and looked at P. “What about you, pal?”

“Be anywhere but home.”

“You can come to my place,” Eugénie suggested. “Beer, food and laughter on me.”

“I thought playing DnD was a serious activity for serious nerds.”

“Typical DnD play involves throwing a crossbow and trying to convince the bartender to give you a mead for free. We laugh more out of characters than we role-play, actually.”

P sighed and put his hands in his pockets.

“I'll see what I can do.”

They left the university building, and P, after walking Eugénie and Gemini to their cars, planned to stay a while longer, hoping to meet Sophia — the one person who wouldn't look at him strangely if he just told her about his condition. He also needed someone to whom he could just talk, and maybe Sophia could at least give him some advice.

He said goodbye to both Eugénie and Gemini and leaned against the fence. But when he tilted his head back and closed his eyes, he heard those soft, echoing whispers again.

He opened his eyes and looked ahead. A shiny blue butterfly flapped its wings as if suspended in space. He pushed himself off the fence and began to approach, holding out his hand. He felt like he was in a trance, and the closer he got, the louder the whispers became.

He almost managed to touch the butterfly when it vanished before his eyes with the sound of sharp braking. He looked to his left, his heart racing at the sight of a terrified but familiar face.

“P?!” she said, a small smile appearing on his face.

Only she could tell him and his brother apart at a glance. The rest, sometimes even their own father, weren’t able to tell who is who, even after thinking about it.

“Alice? What are you doing here?”

He saw that she was thinking. After a moment, she leaned out to open the passenger door.

“Get in.”

He sighed and got into the car without giving it a second thought.

He wouldn't have anything to do anyway, and meeting an old friend sounded like good business.

“And so?”

She tightened her grip on the steering wheel.

“I'm going to finish my studies.”

P looked her up and down. She changed her hair color, and the usually straightened and combed hair was now slightly wavy and unstyled, dyed black, with a slight navy blue glint - like an ink stain.

And the tattoos on her arms - full of motifs of butterflies, roses, chess, blades, cards and alchemy symbols.

“You've changed since the last time,” he muttered, lowering his head.

He felt her looking at him out of the corner of her eye.

“And you, not at all,” she replied with a sigh, changing gear. “Except that I almost knocked you down because you were chasing a butterfly.”

He looked at her, raising an eyebrow.

“Did you see it too?”

“It was fucking huge and blue. It was hard not to notice it, you know?” He saw the sarcastic smirk on her face. “Never mind. At least, we ran into each other again.”

They were silent for a moment, although P could see that Alice wanted to ask something. But they drove through the streets of Krat, not exchanging a word most of the way; only the soft music prevented the deathly silence in the car.

“I thought… I thought you were going to be with Carlo.”

P felt a pang in his heart when she mentioned him.

“Did you have a fight?”

“No” He turned his head towards the window. “He's probably dead.”

Silence again. They stopped at the traffic lights.

“What do you mean?”

He threw up his arms.

“He went missing half a year ago. If he's alive, he's probably started a new life somewhere else a long time ago, without me and our father. Or he got drunk and…”

“You know, if he got drunk and something happened to him, they would have found him a long time ago. Corpse…”

“Have this the thing about them, that they are able to find,” it barely passed both of their throats.

“Father is also delusional. Since half of the year. And there's been no sign from Carlo for half a year.”

“And how does he deal with it?”

P pursed his lips in a straight line.

“So bad that I don't feel like going back home. Don't get me wrong, I miss him and all, but apart from the fact that Carlo is missing, nothing else matters.”

They moved in the completely opposite direction to the Geppettos’ house.

“Do you still have the keys to uncle's place?”

“I have them with everything else…”

“Great; I'll buy some cigarettes on the way.”

They went to the store, where Alice went in for cigarettes, and after a while she returned to the car to go near the beach, where Venigni's summer house was located. He once gave Carlo and P the keys to it so they could use it.

Three years ago, this was the main meeting place for him, Alice, Carlo, and Romeo. It was here that they celebrated Alice's and their own birthdays. This is where there were lots of beer bottles and cigarette butts lying around, there was music playing, they were playing cards, and Alice and Carlo said they were together.

Stopping his racing thoughts, P opened the gate and then the door to the cottage, letting Alice through and closing it behind them. There they left their things and went out to the veranda, where Alice lit a cigarette and sat down, staring at the seascape.

“Why did you change your university? And on Krat.”

She took a drag and hunched over.

“For two reasons.” His silence made her continue, “I had a dream. About you, me and Carlo in the parking. Just like today, I was driving and I almost hit you.”

“And the second reason?”

She sighed and brushed her hair away, showing off the newly healed Medusa tattoo on the back of her neck.

“By one lecturer. It turns out he had been having tea with us over ten years ago and was molesting Lizzie.”

He didn't ask if the same thing happened to her from him. The body language, the tattoo, and the tone of voice in which she said it made him think that was the case.

“I didn't think your parents would let you go to a completely different country by yourself,” he changed the topic a bit to something safer.

“Because they didn't let me go. I came with Alex and Lizzie.”

“Are they still together?”

“The second wedding anniversary is in two weeks, and it's the sixteenth in June that they've been together.”

“Half a lifetime together, huh?”

“I would like to be with someone as good a couple as they are someday. My parents asked Elizabeth to come with me, and Alex, instead of protesting that she had all the work and lectures and everything, immediately pointed out that they were looking for a cryptologist at your university. A few good luck spells and here we are. Lizzie takes care of the house and Alex teaches cryptology.”

“Yes, she knows singing, acting, magic and ciphers like no one else.”

“You better blame Dan Brown, because with her ADHD, she wouldn't have bothered with this if she hadn't read the series about Langdon and her hyper fixation on ciphers.”

“So it is?”

“Yeah, she was diagnosed on her thirtieth birthday. None of us were surprised, not even her.”

She stubbed out her cigarette in the ashtray and stretched her legs out in front of her.

“What's going on around you? Because we only talk about me.”

“Actually, it's about Alex.”

“P…” She looked at him pointedly.

He sighed and tucked his legs away from him.

“Romeo took a break; works in a café and plays concerts with Stalkers.”

“I knew he wouldn't last long on this philology. He always preferred his band.”

“They are even preparing a tour, but they need a singer, the last one had to leave them.”

“Give him a contact to Alex. She’s the only one able to do a fry and then enter the notes above the soprano as if it required no effort from her.”

P laughed softly.

“I'll tell him, he'll be delighted. Apart from that and Carlo’s missing, nothing interesting happened. My father even employed seers and nothing.”

“Seers for a pound.” She snorted. “If Alex didn't despise him so much for the way he treated you three years ago, maybe she would help him.”

“She overdid it.”

“Bullshit. You did everything to be the best son you could be, and he poured warm urine on it.”

“You're defending me and not Carlo?”

“Carlo knew perfectly well that he was his daddy's favorite son, and if I criticized him a little, he probably wouldn't hold it against me.”

He smiled slightly and looked down.

“Would you like to... meet me here tomorrow morning? We would hang out together and then… you could come with me to Eugénie for an RP session.”

“Aw…our lovely nerd. Sure I'll go, RP sessions are always fucking fun.”

“I just want to spend the whole day away from home and come back only after my father is asleep.”

“Have you tried talking to him about it?”

“I tried.”

“And?”

“Like talking to a brick wall.”

She raised her eyebrows and tossed the lighter she was holding in her hands.

“If you want, we can also hang out at my place. Alex and Lizzie won't mind.”

“Are you sure?”

“More than sure. Finally, you know, some decent person hangs out with me. Maybe you can still lead me to the right path.”

P snorted, feeling heat rise to his cheeks, and then Alice's arms wrapped around him. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him and melting into her warmth.

“I missed you, you know?”

“Me too… Would it be possible to continue where it all ended?”

“I’d love nothing more.”

[serafiel-jacobs]

Desperate (Fanfic)

Murder Mystery Au 💌

“Simon, can we talk?”

Simon looked at his sister, Isabelle, who had taken the last name of her husband. Now part of the Monad family.

“Isabelle I had nothing to do with this” He knows his sister suspects him because she knows his true nature.

The nature she ignores to live her happy life, Simon knows that he told Sophia to keep her powers hidden because his sister wants to ignore the past.

If only Simon had Sophia in his grasp, that girl is a goddess, she was born with powers no one could ever imagine. Isabelle has her trapped in a cage, wanting to ignore the power Sophia holds, just that she can play happy family.

Isabelle stares at him, anger filling her eyes.

Sophia was friends with María, her daughter wept when hearing the news of her death.

“For once in my life, I am telling you the truth”

Well, it’s only a half-truth, he did plan to have her killed, not just in this disastrous way.

Isabelle seems convinced by that statement but her anger doesn’t leave her.

“You are not seeing her ever again”

This time she isn’t afraid of her brother. Before she was desperate, desperate to please him, to not provoke his wrath, she isn’t desperate or scared anymore.

“As long as I live, I will not let you get close to my daughter”

With that said, Isabelle left.

His plans might be halted for now, but that threat won’t stop him.

He has already planned for her death.

——

“Simon Manus, we are here to ask a few questions”

The police, with that lousy detective, managed to finally get a way to speak with him.

“I have nothing to hide Harlan Silas, so I have nothing to fear”

Harlan Silas the “Great Detective” is known for his strange mannerism, which others ignore due to his “Genius Intellect”

Simon wants to laugh on his face but he contains himself.

“Laxasia, give us some privacy”

Laxasia leaves, she tends to be by his side, even if Simon holds way more power than others imagine, to the public she is supposed to be his bodyguard.

Simon doesn’t like others thinking he needs protection but at least he gets to parade his achievements, Laxasia becoming complete was all his doing after all.

Laxasia stays outside the room, feeling desperate, she is supposed to be complete, she is supposed to be perfect in this form. Yet her feelings for Simon did not leave, they should have left when she stopped being Adriana.

She desperately wishes to leave those feelings aside, maybe not being by his side might fix that.

“Now, Mr. Manus” Harlan began to speak, “I’m not saying that you did it, but I am saying that it’s strange that a young vibrant girl like María was murdered in cold blood when we have proof that she knew something that she probably shouldn’t have”

This man is really supposed to be a detective?

“Mr. Silas, I’m offended that you would think I would have anything to do with such a crude act” Crude indeed, the killer made a complete mess. “And María was known for her great writings, isn’t it possible that she was just furthering her creative endeavors?”

“Huh, I guess that could be true boss,” One of the other detectives said, “We found some strange writing prompts in her room that weren’t burned by the culprit”

Harlan looked at one of his partners, a stare to tell him to shut up. It had been a grueling task to finally be able to interview Simon and the rest of the high-ranking alchemists.

“The girl had a wild imagination,” Simon said with a smile, he spied on her, as he spies on all the other alchemists, some of her writings were...interesting. Never had he seen someone describe the act of cannibalism in such a loving matter.

“If that is the case, then why were we able to confirm some of the things that were written?”

Simon raised an eyebrow at that, “And what are these things that you were able to confirm?”

“We know that the petrification disease is not a disease found in nature, it’s something that was manufactured by mankind”

Simon was enraged but he kept his composure, that stupid girl. He should have never let her climb more and more the ranks, he got too greedy, her power over Ergo was something incredible, not comparable with the one Sophia holds obviously but that girl had incredible potential.

She did things with her power that would have taken any other alchemist years and years to accomplish and yet her power flowed so naturally, she also was the one to make the paralytic effect of the petrifaction disease, although at the time she wasn’t aware of its true use.

The same paralytic that was supposed to kill her.

She had drank the poison, she thought one of her blurters had just offered her a nice drink, she had a smile on her face, or so Simon was told.

While distracted, the fake suicide note had been left inside a drawer.

“Please I must ask for some privacy, do not disturb me, I’m writing something important” That was the last thing the man sent to kill her heard her say.

Simon killed that man himself, after hours of torture.

María found out the truth by accident, she had forgotten one of her notebooks in a room, and she got curious and read notes that weren’t hers. Just like a cat, her curiosity had her killed.

“That paralytic effect the disease has, one that makes you feel petrified, just like a stone, we know she is that one that made it,” Harlan said with a smug grin.

“Even if such a statement was true, what makes you believe it was us who began to spread it? As alchemists we must help others, what do we gain out of making the people sick?” There is no reason for anyone to believe they would want to harm others, there is nothing to gain.

Well, Simon has a lot to gain but that’s not the point. The average person shouldn’t doubt their motives.

“They say that the path to hell is paved with good intentions Mr. Manus” Harlan walked as he spoke, “Maybe your group had good intentions and things got, a little out of hand”

Simon let out a small laugh, that was ridiculous. He never had good intentions, this detective had no clue what he was talking about.

“Sure, believe what you want, but unless you can prove we had something to do with this I think we are done here” Simon stood up from his chair.

“Don’t worry about that Simon, we already have a search warrant”

“Excuse me?” That had to be a lie.

“We do, in fact, while we were having this conversation, my team was already gathering evidence” Harlan had played his cards correctly as usual.

Simon is a careful man, some might even say paranoid, but he never keeps any of his research in here. But he cannot say the same about other alchemists.

“Tell me Mr. Silas, do you truly believe that I have something to do with her death?” Simon wasn’t being sly anymore, he had to be direct.

“As I said, I’m saying it was you who did it, but it’s certainly a possibility that one of your men did it” Harlan lied.

Because he knows that this isn’t the work of an alchemist, this isn’t a crime of silencing.

This is a crime of passion.

María did not fight back, there was no sign of forced entry, she was stabbed in the front and not in the back, this was someone she knew, someone she trusted.

But Harlan couldn’t reveal that, because this was his chance, his chance to finally convict the alchemists, he had known for years that they were up to something, but it was not until now, until this excuse that they could investigate and Harlan is desperate, desperate to find the information he needs.

—-

“This is bad” that’s all Paracelsus could say.

“This is a disaster” All of Simon’s clever and meticulous plans were being ruined.

“At this point, it’s only a matter of time before the truth is found” Paracelsus knows that it is all about to be over soon.

“We need a scapegoat, anything! Anyone that we can blame this on!” Simon was shouting.

“Love, please calm down”

Simon threw a knife at Paracelsus, the knife landing the the wall just inches away from his head

“Don’t call me that” Simon hates the games Paracelsus tries to play with him.

“You know I don’t love you, I never have, I never will”

Simon is in denial again.

And that makes Paracelsus feel desperate.

Those nights spent together, those moments when the great Simon Manus is vulnerable with him, those moments when Paracelsus can be himself when he can drop the facade he always has.

Those nights were filled with intimacy.

Why can’t he accept his love? Why can’t Simon accept that they were meant for each other?

Deep down Paracelsus knows why.

Because Simon refuses to accept he is capable of love.

“Stop lying” This is the first time Paracelsus doesn’t brush off those comments.

Simon has a firm grasp on Paracelsus’s neck.

Because Simon is desperate, because all of his hard work is falling apart in front of him, and the man obsessed with control is powerless to do anything. His already paranoid mind becoming even more paranoid.

Paracelsus barely lets out a laugh.

“What’s so funny?” Simon’s words cut like daggers.

“I know something you don’t,” Paracelsus says in a playful tone.

Simon lets him go.

“I was looking at María’s correspondence, she got a letter from someone”

“And?” Simon rolled his eyes “She wrote letters to everyone and people wrote her back, she even wrote a letter for you”

“Oh yes her letter was quite lovely” She wrote about how she wanted to tie him up and slowly drain all the blood from his body, her letter having a smiley face at the end.

Simon raised his hand, but before he could begin to choke Paracelsus again, the man showed a piece of paper in his hand, a letter.

“This letter was even more lovely to read”

Simon stopped himself again, now intrigued.

“What did you find?”

“I found out that Geppetto likes mentality unstable young girls”

—-

Geppetto is looking at her dead body, he is dressed in black, he is at the wake with Carlo.

He desperately wants to hold her, he desperately wants to apologize to her, for what he did. He wants to hold her one last time.

But he can’t, he can’t anyone know how he feels, he is supposed to be here because he knows Gabriel and because his son was friends with her.

She looks so peaceful, so beautiful even death she is beautiful.

Geppetto loves her, he hates her for what she made him do.

She forced his hand.

María wasn’t the innocent girl his father thought her to be, her father’s eyes were red and sore from all the crying, that detective assigned to the case was next to him, looking at everyone in the room.

♡━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━♡

Want.

I want you Geppetto.

I want to hold you just for myself, I want you to be mine. I am desperate, desperate to see you again, we are in love, yet we have only kissed once, we are in love, yet I am not allowed to touch you if it’s not for a greeting handshake.

Why can’t you be mine? Why should we hide our love?

At night, I weep because you aren’t next to me because you love the true me, not the one I pretend to be.

You like my letters, despite how much they have changed, despite how much my letters would disturb anyone else.

But you like them, you love the horrible things I write about you.

The things I would do to you.

I love you because you don’t judge my love language, you don’t judge my twisted letters, each time I send a letter like that to others, I have to make an excuse, that I just wanted their opinion on a story.

No excuses are needed with you, you understand me, you understand my metaphors.

My disgusting metaphors.

Alas, our love must be hidden, a shadow in the moonlight. I am happy with that, happy because you to love me despite the fact we cannot share any intimacy. Anyone else would have given up by now, anyone else would demand physical affection, not you, you love me for who I am.

You love my writings, therefore you love me.

-Only Yours truly, María ♡

♡━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━♡

Her letters were like reading a horror story.

A horrible story that you cannot stop yourself from reading.

She wrote about murdering him and eating him, she wrote about holding him captive, she wrote about killing for him, she wrote about wearing his skin as a suit. How she would love to set him on fire or feed him to savage wolves.

And he loved those letters.

Not to say that her more whimsical letters were simple or stopped being sent, but she stopped hiding her true self.

Just like Geppetto stopped hiding his true self.

His letters were still short, but he stopped feeling ashamed of loving her, he wrote simple things about how he missed her, how he was fond of her letters, how her writings were beautiful.

Beautifully deranged.

He would anxiously and desperately wait each day for her letters, she wrote him daily, despite all her hard work as an alchemist and the public events she had to attend due to her father, María wrote a letter each day.

She was obsessed with him.

Like he is obsessed with his work.

His obsession with work has to stop, he has to be there for Carlo. He is doing his best, he knows that he can beat this obsession.

At the end of the day, Carlo is the most important person in his life.

He loves his son more than anyone or anything.

—-

“I’m going outside do you boys need anything?” Geppetto was leaving for groceries, Carlo was home and Romeo had been invited to come along.

They didn’t need anything, Geppetto left the house and it only took a few minutes for Romeo to say it.

“You want to take a peek inside his workshop?”

For a moment, Carlo wanted to say no, but his curiosity was killing him, he needed to know why his father was always there each time he came back from training. Sometimes Carlo could even hear some faint noises at night, yet he knew that his father was asleep, and that only made his intrigue grow.

Romeo used his lockpicking skills to open the door, they just needed to lock it again and shut the door when leaving, no one would suspect a thing.

A lot of tools were scattered around, Carlo knew that his father wasn’t this messy when it came to his work, this was odd.

They looked around, mostly blueprints and notes about his work at the union.

“Mmm, what’s this?” Romeo picked up a few papers that were staked on top of a large box with a lock.

Romeo began to read them, and he became quiet.

“What?” Carlo took away the paper from his hand.

The letter from his hand.

When Carlo finished reading them he grabbed more of them and read them, read all of the love letters meant for his father.

Carlo and Romeo couldn’t describe what they were feeling, this had to be some sort of sick twisted joke.

[flickermich]

Bayernblr group wedding because I feel like I have to add Liz with Berni Tagging @lukabby, @ballondnaur, @goretzkastits, @katropolis, @weirdothinking, @lewypool, @cichocicho. Anyone who wants a low-effort wedding picture can contact me, I'll find a bigger background and make you one!

[cadopan]

Arsenal’s player ratings for Tottenham vs Arsenal FAWSL Matchday 7 (1-1)

now that’s strike two that Jonas gets for mismanaging a game and to an extent, it’s even worse than the Barca game because we were comfortably dominant in the first half and should have 100% walked away with the three points. let us not forget that this is the same team we steamrolled 5-1 just about a month ago in the FA Cup. and this is the exact same lineup (with the exception of Lotte in for Jen) that fared so poorly against Barca and then again today, so it’s apparent that something’s not ticking with this particular set of players on together. dreading how many flaws i’m going to have to pick out but alas, let’s get on with it. 

Starting XI: Manu — 4.5/10. i was going to go with a 5 but that was too generous because i counted at least three attempts (including the one that went in) where she just didn’t do enough and would’ve conceded be it for tremendous luck on her side. Spurs would’ve been 2-0 up and ran away with it when she parried Simon’s shot straight into Neville’s path; should thank her really, for skying that tap-in and messing up at the vital moment when she otherwise had a super game.  Noelle — 5/10. sigh, looked to be the standout performer in that backline yet again ...until she completely lost track of Kit Graham at the back post and allowed her to send in a shot with acres of space and time, which eventually led to the goal. i still think she did fine in supporting the attack, what i like about her is that she picks the right moments to get up and offer herself as an extra passing outlet or overlapping option. this is one of the reasons why she’s the higher rated side-back imo compared to Steph but more on that below.  Leah — 5.5/10. after a string of shaky performances, she edged it as the best performer in the defence today. that being said, the defence overall was still appalling at times, but her individual showing was one of the better ones. her confidence to drive forward with the ball and pinpoint long ball distributions are probably among, if not, the best in the league.  Lotte — 4.5/10. was having a fairly good game, couple of cheeky heel turns and composure under pressure, but yup she’s probably the one most guilty for that goal getting scrambled in. fully had the opportunity to hoof that away to safety, and didn’t. we all know what happened next.  Steph Catley — 4.5/10. i’ve said it before and i’ll say it again: she is not reassuring in her defending. people skip past her too easily, and she doesn’t have the physicality/toughness of Katie to bully them off the ball. today, Katie was the winger in front of her but Katie was doing way more dispossessing and was practically doing the same things she does when she’s the LB instead. and the further frustrating thing is that Steph and Katie seem to have absolutely no chemistry or link-up on that entire left flank, so there goes anything Steph has to offer attacking-wise. her game just seems very one dimensional, if you get what i mean.  Lia — 5/10. i think it was apparent that the Arsenal midfield was getting overrun many a time, and it actually made Tottenham look very threatening on the counters. if they just had more quality on that final pass, Arsenal’s defence would have been scrambling even more than they already were. in terms of dictating the middle of the pitch, her presence wasn’t really felt and it was an outing to forget for Lia today. 

Frida — 6/10. not gonna lie, she was the only one in midfield i actually took notice of in the entire first half, creating key moments and really doing significant work in ball-winning and making sure she outmuscled everyone in her way. but then she disappeared in the second half (bar one shot), and eventually got subbed off. sadly, given the shocking standards of the entire team today, she was one of the standouts. 

Kim — 5/10. ah, the first time this season i’ve had to say that the masterful Kim Little did not have a great game. i’m not kidding when i say that during the first half i kept wondering “where’s Kim?” and actually had to take my eyes away from the ball to look for her on the pitch. bit better in the second half, but it was a recurring theme for her today that she took way too many touches on the ball and hardly played a part in penetrating the Spurs defence. 

Katie — 6.5/10. an unsurprising Katie performance filled with lots of vigour and shithousery (i mean the way she tangled Neville’s legs to intentionally bring her down is amusing if you’re an Arsenal fan, but you’d surely want to punch her if you aren’t). she played her part today i feel, nothing more she could’ve done with her strike that ricocheted off the crossbar and the sublime crosses she sent in for Beth’s first (best) chance plus Viv’s equaliser. 

Viv — 6.5/10. thank you, dear Viv. looked lethal the entire first half, and seemed to be enjoying herself toppling spurs defenders left and right with her sharp footwork. then went missing for almost the entire second half until she popped up to say “screw you Tottenham” and ended up snagging a point for us. can’t even say with conviction that we deserved it. on hindsight, it’s a shame how relieved and elated Arsenal fans had to feel with that late goal because this was a game we should’ve been winning comfortably. 

Beth — 5.5/10. mmm, she definitely created/got herself on the end of the most chances in this game, but also didn’t finish any of them off. if her first touch had been better with the very first opportunity in the opening minutes, Arsenal would’ve sailed into the lead and the texture of the entire game would’ve been different, guaranteed. she and the team will look back on a plethora of wasted chances and surely be kicking themselves tonight.

Subs:

Keets — 5/10. let me start off by saying that these two (Keets and Jordan) were the two worst substitution decisions by Jonas i’ve seen so far. not because of how they ended up playing (which was hardly impactful and all in all poor but that’s not the point), but because they were not the players the tone of the game needed. Arsenal were struggling to muster creativity to break down the defence, and you simply throw on like-for-like substitutes who offer the same things and aren’t going to unlock the game in any way... just why???

Jordan — 4.5/10. Jordan unfortunately gets an especially low one because it got more agonizing to watch after she came on. Jonas needed to recognise that the way she plays means that she is absolutely unsuitable to bring on as a sub when you’re chasing the game. Jordan’s playing style slows the game down a lot and she takes very long on the ball, which is far from ideal when what you want is to get the ball forward quickly and string passes together. She also commits a tons of unnecessary fouls (like the penalty given away vs Barca) which just breaks down any rhythm the team is trying to build in getting a goal back. 

Cait — N/A. she should’ve been the first sub ahead of Keets imo, taking Katie’s place on LW after Katie dropped to LB. ideally, the sub would’ve been Tobin here but Cait is still more nifty on the ball and creative compared to Keets who relies more on just bombing down the line with her pace. in fact, the first two subs and the last two subs should’ve totally been reversed! Jonas letting me down time and again today. and i would’ve thought Cait deserved more playing time after the superb performance she put in midweek.

Mana — N/A. what in the world was she doing on the bench so long when she didn’t even step foot on the pitch last game?! literally everyone and their mothers knew that she’s the wild card that can shake up the game and pick her way through the deadlock. we all saw how effectively this worked during the Villa game where she came on at half-time and her coming on basically won Arsenal the game; guess Jonas conveniently forgot that time he was actually capable of making good tactical changes. 

Bonus:

Jonas Eidevall — 2/10. the first real disasterclass from Jonas since he’s arrived. if we are to let the Barca game slide because 1) we were facing an unfamiliar challenge for the first time and 2) they were clearly head and shoulders above Arsenal in almost every area, this game was neither of those two things. it’s like his decision-making acumen flew out the window and he was blind to the obvious changes needed that were staring at him in the face. it wasn’t even a tactical masterclass required today, just standard stuff he’s done before and he fudged it up supremely. 

Referee — 3/10. terrible. does she have some allergy to playing an advantage? (for both sides too, not just Arsenal losing out.) looked like she was losing control of the game as every minute went by, and tried to regain that by forcing rigid decisions that just made her look even more ridiculous.  Overall: i’ve yet to even take into consideration how enraging this performance was today because of the occasion, the fact that it’s a must-win derby, but the fact that it should’ve been an assured win against opponents we're familiar with and demolished before. 

however, i don’t want to take anything away from Spurs because boy, they looked like one of the best sides (aside from Barca ofc) we’ve played this season. from early on in the first half, i was already impressed with the way they were smoothly playing out of Arsenal’s press and making strides towards our defensive third. you could tell that it was something well-worked on and they set out with a good plan to actually try and hurt us when they got their chances. Bravo, Rehanne Skinner. also, it bolstered them tremendously that their keeper Korpela and entire defence were having a blinder. and i have no special affection towards Neville, but the way she was playing, i would take her over every single one of our defenders today. 

RIP Jonasball. our unbeaten streak in the WSL continues, but today honestly felt like a loss.

edit: forgot to pick out my MOTM = Korpela, and was so swept up in the negativity that I didn’t get to mention Viv’s cute new ponytail today. 

[umichenginabroad]

Bordeaux France

Last week was my last week at ENSEA. I finished my finals. Hopefully did well, said goodbye to my teachers for all their help throughout the semester, and began prep for my departure. This was last Wednesday. Thursday was a national holiday, I think it was a catholic one. Anyways, I was able to take advantage of my last weekend in France with a trip to Bordeaux.

I found this service that organizes trips throughout France called ErasmusPlace. It's run by this guy named Jeff, (super Jeff), and is open to anybody interested in a cheap and well-organized trip.

The trip to Bordeaux was 8 hours by bus on the way in. We took a few stops but it was more or less constant travel. Jeff kept people interested with quizzes and information about the activities to come.

We arrived later that day and did a city tour. There was a photo contest, so my photos for this blog are going to be kinda stacked. We were 85 people on the trip, and some of the travelers had super high-quality cameras.

Pics

So, we got to do a city tour and it I met a lot of people. 3 people from Greece: Signorita, Cleopatra, and Thanos. (Actually Thanos), 1 person from Germany: Simon, an aeronautical Engineer with top gun style ray bans and a scraggly beard. Rachel, a girl from the U.S who goes to Auburn University in Alabama and studies near where we do in Cergy (the 3rd person from the Alabama/Mississippi region I've met in France). Jesus, a student in Paris from Mexico, and Manu a student at Roma university who traveled to Paris from Rome just to make this Bordeaux trip.

For dinner, people were anxious about a decision because most places couldn't sit big groups and nobody wanted to pick a place. People were saying that they'd go anywhere, so we went into the first restaurant we saw. It happened to be a swiss restaurant, Savoyard style, with lots of cheese. Rachel wanted a burger because she thought that one of the tartiflette dishes (a potato lasagna) was a burger because it said, 'Berger'. The consensus after sitting down and reading the menu is that there's too much cheese. So we bail and our waiter recommends a place next door which sells savory crepes. We eat that up and afterward I head to the bar with Simon and Manu. Jeff picks the bar so the other travelers are there too. During this time, I'm speaking in Spanish with Manu a little bit because his English isn't so good and that's fun to do. At the bar, we get some beers and after talking with some people from Spain for a bit we go home.

The next day we go to the dunes of Pilat. A 3km long dune 110m tall.

Excuse my bad filming. We ran up the dunes the second we saw them and it's actually kind of difficult to sprint up 100 meters of sand, so I was out of breath taking it.

After a few hours at the dunes, we went to a beach 20 minutes north of the dunes in a town called Arcachoca. We swam in the Atlantic, and ate some seafood dinner, and headed back.

View of the Atlantic from the dunes

Not without incident, however, Our bus driver drove into a tree and broke a window on the bus. So we were stuck in Arcachoca a little longer than planned, trying to sort out how we'd continue to travel for the trip. Return to Paris, get back to Bordeaux, important things.

During this time we meet some Austrians, Natalie, and Lilith and we talk to them. Natalie just graduated high school in Austria and has left home to volunteer in Paris.

We get back and Jeff organizes a club for the travelers to go to. The music is a little much and Grace and I head home early.

The next day we prepare for the drive back, we try some Bordeaux delicacies the, caneles, which nobody seems to like but me, and we meet up with Victor, our friend from ENSEA who lives in Bordeaux. We see him for only 20 minutes or so on our walk back to the bus. It was cool to see him at home, he was really in his element. Bordeaux is exceptionally French.

The bus ride is long because of traffic. We stop briefly at a wine cellar to do a wine tasting.

The left photo is the oak used in the barrels for the aging of the red wine.

In the right photo, you see the roman architecture style arches which comprise the main cellar of the place. The tour guide told us that the building had papers from 500 years ago and could have dated back to the 12th century. The wine was good and I bought some for the family.

The rest of the journey was difficult. We didn't get back until 2am because of traffic. We were supposed to get back at 11PM. Overall, it was a really cool trip. I recommend the program to anybody going to France to study abroad.

Nick Peabody

Electrical Engineering

Fame 2022 Ensea

[richincolor]

We have six books on our release calendar this week! Are any of them on your TBR list?

More Than Just a Pretty Face by Syed M. Masood Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Danyal Jilani doesn’t lack confidence. He may not be the smartest guy in the room, but he’s funny, gorgeous, and going to make a great chef one day. His father doesn’t approve of his career choice, but that hardly matters. What does matter is the opinion of Danyal’s longtime crush, the perfect-in-all-ways Kaval, and her family, who consider him a less than ideal arranged marriage prospect.

When Danyal gets selected for Renaissance Man–a school-wide academic championship–it’s the perfect opportunity to show everyone he’s smarter than they think. He recruits the brilliant, totally-uninterested-in-him Bisma to help with the competition, but the more time Danyal spends with her…the more he learns from her…the more he cooks for her…the more he realizes that happiness may be staring him right in his pretty face.

Lobizona (Wolves of No World #1) by Romina Garber Wednesday Books

Some people ARE illegal.

Lobizonas do NOT exist.

Both of these statements are false.

Manuela Azul has been crammed into an existence that feels too small for her. As an undocumented immigrant who’s on the run from her father’s Argentine crime-family, Manu is confined to a small apartment and a small life in Miami, Florida.

Until Manu’s protective bubble is shattered.

Her surrogate grandmother is attacked, lifelong lies are exposed, and her mother is arrested by ICE. Without a home, without answers, and finally without shackles, Manu investigates the only clue she has about her past–a mysterious “Z” emblem—which leads her to a secret world buried within our own. A world connected to her dead father and his criminal past. A world straight out of Argentine folklore, where the seventh consecutive daughter is born a bruja and the seventh consecutive son is a lobizón, a werewolf. A world where her unusual eyes allow her to belong.

As Manu uncovers her own story and traces her real heritage all the way back to a cursed city in Argentina, she learns it’s not just her U.S. residency that’s illegal. . . .it’s her entire existence.

Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From by Jennifer De Leon Simon Schuster

Fifteen-year-old Liliana is fine, thank you very much. It’s fine that her best friend, Jade, is all caught up in her new boyfriend lately. It’s fine that her inner-city high school is disorganized and underfunded. It’s fine that her father took off again—okay, maybe that isn’t fine, but what is Liliana supposed to do? She’s fifteen! Being left with her increasingly crazy mom? Fine. Her heathen little brothers? Fine, fine, fine. But it turns out Dad did leave one thing behind besides her crazy family. Before he left, he signed Liliana up for a school desegregation program called METCO. And she’s been accepted.

Being accepted into METCO, however, isn’t the same as being accepted at her new school. In her old school, Liliana—half-Guatemalan and half-Salvadorian—was part of the majority where almost everyone was a person of color. But now at Westburg, where almost everyone is white, the struggles of being a minority are unavoidable. It becomes clear that the only way to survive is to lighten up—whiten up. And if Dad signed her up for this program, he wouldn’t have just wanted Liliana to survive, he would have wanted her to thrive. So what if Liliana is now going by Lili? So what if she’s acting like she thinks she’s better than her old friends? It’s not a big deal. It’s fine.

But then she discovers the gutting truth about her father: He’s not on one of his side trips. And it isn’t that he doesn’t want to come home…he can’t. He’s undocumented and he’s been deported back to Guatemala. Soon, nothing is fine, and Lili has to make a choice: She’s done trying to make her white classmates and teachers feel more comfortable. Done changing who she is, denying her culture and where she came from. They want to know where she’s from, what she’s about? Liliana is ready to tell them.

Illegal (Disappeared #2) by Francisco X. Stork Scholastic Press

What does it mean to be illegal in the United States? Life in Mexico is a death sentence for Emiliano and his sister Sara.

To escape the violent cartel that is after them, they flee across the border, seeking a better life in the United States and hoping that they can find a way to bring their pursuers to justice.

Sara turns herself over to the authorities to apply for asylum.

Emiliano enters the country illegally, planning to live with their father.

But now Sara is being held indefinitely in a detention facility, awaiting an asylum hearing that may never come, finding it harder every day to hold on to her faith and hope. Life for Emiliano is not easy either. Everywhere he goes, it’s clear that he doesn’t belong. And all the while, the cartel is closing in on them…

Emiliano sets off on a tense and dangerous race to find justice, but can he expose the web of crimes from his place in the shadows?

Court of Lions (Mirage #2) by Somaiya Daud Flatiron Books

Two identical girls, one a princess, the other a rebel. Who will rule the empire?

After being swept up into the brutal Vathek court, Amani, the ordinary girl forced to serve as the half-Vathek princess’s body double, has been forced into complete isolation. The cruel but complex princess, Maram, with whom Amani had cultivated a tenuous friendship, discovered Amani’s connection to the rebellion and has forced her into silence, and if Amani crosses Maram once more, her identity – and her betrayal – will be revealed to everyone in the court.

Amani is desperate to continue helping the rebellion, to fight for her people’s freedom. But she must make a devastating decision: will she step aside, and watch her people suffer, or continue to aid them, and put herself and her family in mortal danger? And whatever she chooses, can she bear to remain separated, forever, from Maram’s fiancé, Idris?

A Map to the Sun by Sloane Leong First Second

One summer day, Ren meets Luna at a beachside basketball court and a friendship is born. But when Luna moves to back to Oahu, Ren’s messages to her friend go unanswered.

Years go by. Then Luna returns, hoping to rekindle their friendship. Ren is hesitant. She’s dealing with a lot, including family troubles, dropping grades, and the newly formed women’s basketball team at their highschool. With Ren’s new friends and Luna all on the basketball team, the lines between their lives on and off the court begin to blur. During their first season, this diverse and endearing group of teens are challenged in ways that make them reevaluate just who and how they trust.

Sloane Leong’s evocative storytelling about the lives of these young women is an ode to the dynamic nature of friendship.

[studymusings]

YOUTUBERS TO WATCH - MASTERPOST

I made a list of youtubers i watch and would recommend. I’m sorting them into categories BUT just because i put them under a label doesn’t necessarily mean they limit to said types of videos only and they might make diverse content / belong to multiple categories. some categories may seem short at first but i will update it as i discover new channels. 

(ps : this is my 2nd tumblr for books, films and everything educational or lifestyle related. my main is themusings.tumblr.com if you’d like to follow)

LIFESTYLE / WELL-BEING / SELF-IMPROVEMENT

(the types of channels you should watch when you want to feel inspired to lead a better life daily or need to get your sh*t together)

Alex Miotto

Alivia D’Andrea

Jem (also vlogger / aesthetic / chatty)

Jenny Mustard (also fashion)

Jnay Daily (+ chatty / aesthetic and she’s super funny)

Lavendaire (her and muchelleb are literally my life coaches)

MuchelleB (life coach n° 2)

Simply By Christine (zero waste / simple living)

Michelle Choi (also vlogger / chatty / aesthetic)

VLOGGERS / CHATTY / AESTHETIC

(youtubers whose videos feel like a warm hug either because they have a cool personality, or because you love to hear them talk about anything and see their daily lives especially when you feel lonely, or because their videos are visually beautiful and calming)

A Little Bit Of Monika

Alex Gowon

Amy Lee (also lifestyle)

Arden Rose

Asia Jackson (also style & beauty)

B O B B ! E  (also music)

CatCreature

Coco Day

Colineblf (videos are in french)

Connor Franta

Cup Of Jasmien

Damon & Jo (also a travel channel)

Damon Dominique (from damon & jo)

Elena Taber (also fashion & lifestyle)

Elloitsangela

Emma Green

Hitomi Mochizuki (also lifestyle / well-being)

Jazzy Le (also fashion)

KoKoKourtney

LaMadelynn (very artsy + also style & beauty)

Leandra Yomo

Linh Truong

Manu Rios (also music)

Myles Manuel

Natacha Birds (artsy - videos are in french)

Nycbambi (also fashion)

oh no nina

Orion Vanessa (also fashion + beauty + arsty)

Savannah Brown (also artsy)

SimplyFreshdew (also style & beauty)

Stephanie Vega

Sunny Maria (this is my channel ! i’m a vlogger and try to make my videos aesthetically pleasing)

ur mom ashley

Wear I Live (also lifestyle / well-being / fashion)

STYLE / BEAUTY

(channels with great fashion sense, makeup or skincare advice - most style channels focus on sustainable fashion and/or thrifting)

Alexa Chung

Bestdressed (also vlogger / chatty / aesthetic)

Clara Victorya (videos are in french)

Diana Chamomile (also aesthetic / vlogger)

Emma Winder (also aesthetic / vlogger)

Eris The Planet (also vlogger)

Fashion Wizardry

Gemary (also lifestyle / vlogger / aesthetic)

Haley Kim

Ivan Lam (also funny + chatty)

Jessica Vu (aesthetic + occasionally vlogs / chatty vids)

Kailee Mckenzie

Karina Gomez (also aesthetic + she’s plus-size)

Katie Joslin

Kristen Leo (also educational / stimulating and chatty)

Lecoindelodie (videos are in french + vlogger)

Loïc Prigent (high fashion - videos are in french but subtitles available)

Mei Yan (also aesthetic + chatty)

Rosa B (videos are in french)

Steal The Spotlight

Studio86 (aesthetic)

The Golden Px (also educational about skincare)

TheLineUp

Timaloveslemons

ToThe9s (+ occasional vlogs / chatty vids)

EDUCATIONAL / HELPFUL / STIMULATING

(channels i watch when i feel like i’m loosing a few braincells and should watch something informative for once)

KingTutsPro (video editing tutorials)

Le Sora (video editing tutorials)

Mango Street (photography & videography advice + aesthetic)

Refinery29 (also entertaining)

TED (ted talks)

ARTSY

(short films, poetry, art, etc)

Amanda Margareth

Miles Carter

Millie Murfit

Will Darbyshire

BOOKTUBE

(the name of this category is pretty self-explanatory)

A Clockwork Reader

Aissata Amadou (+ vlogger)

Alyxandria Ang

Ariel Bisset

ashleyoutpaged (also vlogs + aesthetic)

Audrey Lunabookaddict (+ vlogs)

Books & Coffee With Romie

Books & Lala

Francina Simone

Hailey in Bookland

Left On Read

Mina Reads

mynameismarines

myonna reads

readbyzoe

readwithcindy

FUNNY / ENTERTAINING / RANDOM

(funny channels, things i watch when i’m bored and everything else that doesn’t fit into any of the previous categories)

AJayII (makes reaction videos to music + super funny)

Alex Meyers

FBE (elders react / teens react / etc)

Jay Versace

Jennelle Eliana (she lives in a van and makes video about it)

Josiah

Kennedy Walsh

Kurtis Conner

Rickey Thompson

Umi’s Baking (cooking asmr)

HANSE (cooking asmr)

WIRED (also educational)

please let me know if you discover any of these channels through my post <3 also don’t forget to support my youtube channel and follow my main tumblr . thanks a lot !

[musicollage]

Dominic Miller. Absinthe, 2019. ECM 2614. (  Manu Katché )    ~  [ Album Review |     1) ECM Reviews  +  2) All About Jazz  +   3) London Jazz News ]

1) The title of Absinthe, Dominic Miller’s follow-up to his 2017 ECM debut, Silent Light, harks to the early French Impressionists, whose all-in dedication to art is a philosophical touchpoint for the guitarist. To carry on that spirit, he could hardly have asked for a more eclectic yet integrated band. Bandoneon player Santiago Arias brings a sense of cross-continental shift that makes the world just a little smaller; keyboardist Mike Lindup adds a sometimes-surreal vibe that’s equal parts cry from the past and message from the future; bassist Nicolas Fiszman is the soil to Miller’s sunlight; and drummer Manu Katché, a remarkable impressionist in his own right, is time incarnate.

With such a massive scale to be reckoned with in theory, one might expect the results to be overpowering, when in practice the melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic content is so evenly distributed between pans that by the end of each tune we’re left on an even keel from where we began. This is nowhere so true as on the opening title track, which spins a steady downtempo groove from the filaments of Miller’s solo introduction. The way his bandmates shuttle through the greater loom of the album’s concept is as intuitive as the compositions yearning for consummation. A certain feeling of inward travel continues in all that follows.

The quiet locomotion of “Mixed Blessing” and is as progressive as the tender “Christiana” is regressive, the geometrically inflected “Étude” as inviting as the open-ended charm of “Ombu,” the melancholy “Ténèbres” as dark as the transparent “Saint Vincent” is bright. The latter bears dedication to the late Cameroonian guitarist Vincent Nguini, a longtime collaborator with Paul Simon and something of a mentor for Miller. Even without such biographical details, these stories write themselves, unhidden, in real time. Binding their pages are shorter pieces, including the piano-rich “Verveine” and the haunting “La Petite Reine.” Into these we are afforded only fleeting glimpses, personal tesseracts whose potential for transfiguration can only be expressed in song. 

All of which makes “Bicyle” quintessential in the present milieu. Its pedaling motion is more than a metaphor; it’s an actualization of life’s unstoppable flow. For there, woven between each spoke like a playing card, memories fade into new experiences, squinting into the glare of a setting sun as the world curls into slumber.

2) Guitarist Dominic Miller's 2017 ECM debut Silent Light was a low key affair that focused on his solo classical guitar (plus a bit of light percussion). The sequel features a full quintet with a rhythm section. A bigger sound, but with a similar impressionistic flavor. Miller's liner notes make that visual art reference explicit: as a resident of the south of France he has become fascinated with the French Impressionist painters, admiring their artistic daring.

The album opens with the title tune: Miller's acoustic guitar and drummer Manu Katche's swirling cymbals set the scene for the entry of Santiago Arias' bandoneon, the primary melodic instrument in the music. It is a significant new timbral color in the ensemble, as well as a nod to the avowed Argentinian influence in Miller's music. "Mixed Blessing" includes a synthesizer solo from keyboardist Mike Lindup, a contrasting sound that is favored throughout the set; although on "Étude" his piano playing is a foundational element.

The spare, low rumbling drums and guitar of "La Petite Reine" recall the sound of Silent Light. "Étude" and "Ombu" step up the tempo a bit, and the latter gives the drums a highlighted role as active rhythmic accompaniment for the whole band: no doubt very satisfying for Katché fans who have been waiting to hear him cut loose. Closer "Saint Vincent" is an upbeat tune that features the whole band, with solos from Miller and Lindup (on piano).

Miller has an expanded musical concept to go with the larger band. The tunes are still compact statements, but make use of the instrumental forces for greater timbral contrast. And he is a generous band leader as well: while his guitar is at the center of the arrangements, all of the players are given a chance to shine. It will be interesting to see where he goes next.

3) Absinthe is Argentinian-born guitarist Dominic Miller’s second release for ECM and his fourteenth solo album. The list of recordings with other people, however, is immense. Even if his name is unfamiliar you have probably already heard him. He has played with Sting since The Soul Cages in 1991 and masses of other musicians along the way, from The Chieftains to Youssou N’Dour, via Tina Turner, Lesley Garrett, Sarah Jane Morris and Manu Dibango. Some of the musicians with whom he has recorded make up the new quintet for this album.

Absinthe is an airy, atmospheric set of compositions inspired by Miller’s love of the works of the Impressionist artists, many of whom painted in the South of France where he now lives. The title came to him first, apparently – many of the impressionists drank absinthe, that potent anise-based spirit favoured by bohemians known as “la fée verte”. In a recent interview with German news site DW.com, Miller expands on the title:

“For me it’s about being out of it. And over the last few years I’ve really been into French paintings and thinking about this history of the early 19th century and how Lautrec and Van Gogh and a lot of these guys were tripping on absinthe but still coming up with amazing work. And because they were such highly skilled artists they could come up with these really outrageous trippy concepts with colour.”

Miller put together a quintet sympathetic to his ideas and wrote the music with the “sonic palettes” of his chosen musicians in mind. First up is young Argentinian Santiago Arias who studied under Dino Saluzzi at the Conservatoire in Buenos Aires. He plays the bandoneon, that concertina-like instrument associated with Argentinian tango. His sound is pure and extremely melodic. The combination of Miller’s lyrical guitar with Arias’ lovely lines is delightful – they are the perfect foil for each other. The other three musicians have all played with Miller for years.

On keyboards is Englishman Mike Lindup, best known for his work with Level 42, but a regular performer with Miller, who played with Level 42 himself back in the 80s. Lindup’s is a third melodic voice with the guitar and bandoneon – he also adds delicate ethereal tones, almost theremin-like in places.

On bass is Belgian Nicolas Fiszman. He studied guitar with Philip Catherine, then changed to bass. He’s played with Miller since 2005, but has accompanied Johnny Halliday, Angelique Kidjo, and Charles Aznavour in his time. Miller describes his playing and intonation as having “the nobility of a great whale”, which is a lovely description and also, I think, fair enough. His subtle and discreet bass underpins the whole endeavour.

Miller describes French percussionist Manu Katché as “an artist on the drums, especially with his cymbal work where he is like a great painter”. His presence is everywhere on this recording, and his contribution adds colour, as well as texture to the pieces. Katché is well-known as a session musician – having played with almost everybody. He’s also an ECM veteran. Miller has recorded with Katché as part of his band, and he’s another long-serving member of Sting’s band, so they know each other musically very well.

It’s an unconventional combo, but it works well – the range of timbres and harmonies is extremely agreeable. There’s an Argentinian tinge to much of the music, though think Gotan Project, rather than Astor Piazzolla, as there is a groove through many of the tunes, not just from Katché’s inventive percussion but the rhythmic qualities of the ensemble playing. On an initial hearing the CD appeared light and easy, bar some disjunct improv in the track Ombu, but this is misleading. I think that the limpid clarity of the production (by Manfred Eicher himself), the pleasant atmosphere, the sweetness of tone and the downright prettiness of the guitar and bandoneon sound just gives that impression. As is often the case with music which can be perceived as light or suave, like bossa nova, for example, on a closer listen, the complexity of the composition and the beauty of the ensemble playing comes through.

From the first track Absinthe, where the bandoneon, after a precise harmonious intro, starts sliding about into little patches of dissonance, and the spectral notes from the synthesiser twist around against a backdrop of precise strings and strangely colourful cymbal sounds, the listener is entranced. By the final track, Saint Vincent (presumably a reference to Van Gogh rather than the countless catholic saints, or indeed the American singer/songwriter of the same name) the sonic palette has been fully explored. Miller’s guitar playing is wonderful throughout, lyrical, deft and harmonious. Saint Vincent builds in layers of colour and light to a Pat Metheny-esque crescendo and then disappears as if blown away by the mistral.

This record will appeal to Miller fans, to Sting fans, to existing fans of any of the other members of the band, and to new listeners who are already aficionados of ECM’s fine output of chamber music. As usual, I now want to hear this live, and indeed a grand promotional tour for Absinthe of Central and South America, and Northern Europe was planned. Sadly it has had to be cancelled for health reasons. Wishing Dominic Miller a speedy recovery.

[lexiy-dreyar]

missing friends

{{little side story for you all ok?

{im too tried to say who’s OC's belong to who ima just do the tags imto sleepy

@auntiesakamaki

@animeislife54

@decoffinatedcoffee

@wee-devil-town

@thewhitelotusdemon

@chimmerly

@vantalizing

@nerieda

{{i think that's everyone?

((edit i redrew everything

The blonde layed there, bruised and broken, beaten to a pulp, watching the culprit getaway, holding her sister, and her child, both badly injured bleeding, the other blonde sister had taken a big blow to the head cracking it open, shattered bones in the arm's, with cut-up legs, she could only imagine her pain was less than hers, her dull eyes shifted to her child, being carried over the shoulder, blood dripping out of her mouth, shaking out of shock and pain.

 She couldn't take seeing them both hurt, she tried to get up but could barely move her arms to lift her body off the ground a bit, her arm covered in cuts shooting with pain, her legs shattered, slowly going numb. Lex blinked away the tears of pain, pushing herself to move her arms and legs, she refused to give up and lose,  the two she cared about the most, trying to ignore the pain, with a scratchy voice she called out to the captive, "put them down...and..come and fight me…" she growled still struggling to get on her feet "I may be buried but I'm not beaten!!"

 She shouts soon coughing her lungs out "tch d-dammit" she groaned in pain "you look like your done..I'm not wasting my power on you.." the said turning to look at her "heh...you scared that I'm gonna kick your ass!" She smirked, trying to egg them on so they drop her loved ones "hmmm how about I end this" they said letting star go raising his arm aiming his attack at the struggling blonde "and here I thought you were supposed to be strong, with the power of a guardian angel running through you, as well as the power of a dragon.. pathetic." They smile darkly as they launch their attack at her. 

She didn't have a chance to move, the attack hit her head on, 

amplifying the pain tenfold, causing her to scream out in pain, knocking her out as she hits a tree, "maybe if you tried harder you would have had a chance" was the last words she heard. 

As she slowly opened her eyes she was blinded by bright lights "huh...Where am I?" She mumbled trying to sit up, she felt a burst of pain from her arms, and they felt Heavy, she looked at her arms noticing there in casts, she looked at them confused before looking around the room " what the...where am I..a hospital??" She asked herself, there was a knocking on her door, she turned her head to the door as it slowly opened to see one of her friends peaking "hey she's up"

 Pandora said opening the door more as her friends enter the room "glad to see your up" Sayaka said bluntly "yeah you gave us a pretty bad scare" Tenshi said softly placing a plate on her nightstand,

 "Sorry about that…" lex mumbles, "how did I get here?" She asked looking at her friends "nkita managed to call me and the paramedics by the time we got there, you nkita and void were about to be picked up by them" Julianna answers her question

 "about that do you know where star and amaniz are? We tried calling the-" Pandora stopped halfway through her sentence when she noticed lex's shocked expression "they really got them.." lex mumbles trying not to cry "about that care to explain why you went to go fight when you were still recovering from you last job" azale asks her "I had to.. they were hurt...I had a bad feeling if I didn't" she sighed trying to move her legs, but felt they were in the cast too "what about nkita and void how are they?!" Lex asked panicked" were not sure yet we checked up on them yesterday but they were knocked out, " Devon said.

"Lex...I think you should tell us what happened" azale pointed out "or at least tell us what the attacker looked like" Constance chimed in "I….I" lex tried to tell them but her memory was hazy. All she got were little flashes of what happened.

 Her breath got shakey, as she remembers how much she messed up, using a big attack out of lack of judgment, trying to let amaniz and star run to safety. Letting herself go trying to learn the attackers' magic, and how they fight, but she failed to pay attention, worrying too much about her family, leaving herself wide open, letting them get a good shot near her chest. Slowly mumbling to herself about how stupid she is unable to protect her sister and child as her eyes slowly turned back to normal, losing their dullness as her eye’s filled with tears “they were right there...and I couldn't do anything...I'm pathetic"

she cried "...then let's go get em," Cole said walking to the blonde's bed "huh…" "let's go get them back..once your Heald up we'll go looking for them" Cole answered "what! No way if the guy managed to fuck up lex nkita and void that bad there's no way we could stand a chance" Cherry shouted, "Well your wrong if all of us go together we can get them back!!" Obara shouted at her "hey now let's not fight..we should be careful though it might have been the same person who tried to kidnap Azusa,..and-" Sayaka was interrupted by a knock at the door "Sorry for interrupting but I need to talk alone with lexiy" a doctor said ".....alright let's go check on the others"Lizzy patted Devon's shoulder "good idea get better soon lex" Tenshi waved as the left the room.

{Mini time skip}

You should be able to move your arms and legs a bit now but I have to advise you to not use your Maley attack's for a few months so that the tissue heals...and about your lacrima heart we replaced it with a stronger one it should last you 5 years or so." The doctor said wrapping up her leg 

 "also you need to take it easy..your body is still recovering from the shock your lucky your friend gem was able to recover the badly damaged parts..you can be disregarded in a few days...but if you lose feeling in your legs take one of these" he hands her a few bottles of pills "lose feeling in my legs??" She asked "yes your leg bones were shared to pieces with a lot of internal bleeding your Nevers weren't connected either I'm surprised you manage to push through the pain" the doctor said in shock standing up "you should rest we'll call in gem to come and heal you some more..who knows if your lucky you can be discharged in two days" he said leaving. Lex looked down swinging her legs a bit "there's that bad feeling again..I need to go make sure everything is o-" she couldn't finish her sentence after being whacked with a massive amount of pain-causing her to pass out...

____________

Everyone got home to a surprise that night. “Julianna looked around the mansion in shock “what happened here,” she said in shock the mansion was a mess there were blood patches everywhere. Shu sniffed around “that's Viktor and Elias blood I smell” he sai quitely “what!” devon shouted quickly rushing to his sister's room noticing the doors broken “Elisa?” he looked in her room seeing scratch marks and bloodstains, his breathing became uneven. It soon hit him she was taken. Julianna looked around noticing there was a big blood puddle “it isn't like Viktor to up and leave like that...unless he was taken too” she said in disbelief “where’s azusa..” ruki said “kanato’s missing too” laito added “was it the same person who took star and amaniz” reiji question as the front door slammed open “WHERES ANYA!!” Subaru shouted in a panicked state with Tenshi following right after him

 “huh, you couldn't find her either huh,” ayato said “not to mention valla and athenia are missing too,” Tenshi said trying to calm her breathing. “We should head out to the others and make sure their saf-” glasses didn't even get a chance to speak when pandora kicked the front door open “WHERES GREMLY AND TCUP!!” 

she screamed with furfur right behind her “them too huh?” cole said walking through the busted up doors with Elina right behind him "manu and soon-bok went missing too" Elina sighed "so someone's targeting all of us" Simon said causing most of them to jump from his random appearance "so who do we know who could be doing this?" Lys asked

"I say chara.. she's the only one of us that can beat any of us easy without dying.." Devon mumbled in a rotten mood "who the hell is Chara" Pandora asked "I'll explain on our way back to the hospital" Devon's said walking out the door, with the others slowly following behind him.

[JFC YALL HAVE TO MANY OCS 

[domiandsascha]

Roland Garros diary - Day 1 - Monday the 28th of May 2018

Sorry guys, but I need to write and share everything that happened and will happen to me at the French Open this week, bare with me (and also it's 1:30am, I'm dead tired and emotional so this is going to be a mess full of English mistakes).

So my friend Jue and I arrived there super early so when the doors opened at 9:30, we had maybe just 50 people in front of us. Once inside, we ran to an information desk, asked about the practice schedule and found out Domi was gonna be on one of the side courts from 10:30. Let me tell you that I lost the ability to speak and process anything around me right away. We went straight to the court, secured a spot at the front and waited while watching Ernest Gulbis practice with Günter. Then Domi appeared wearing the most pretty of all tee-shirts, jumped the gate to come on the court like the stupid kid he is, took his place on the bench right under our noses and I died. Gosh, he looked so freaking good. The next 30 minutes were the most complicated yet satisfying 30 minutes I had gone through in a very long time. Seeing him so close, for real, do all the things I usually see though a TV screen, meant so much. I'm still overwhelmed. I don't think I'll recover anytime soon. He spoke a bit of French. I died again. Unfortunately, I failed at talking to him and giving him my present, because once he was done, he only took a couple of pics with some people on my left then escaped quickly (the next practice was starting), but I left the court in a state of pure happiness I can't even describe (and completely sunburned, thanks Domi). Also, Jue took 150 pictures of him practicing because she's the best, and they're so good !! I should post some pretty soon. Then we went to another side court to watch Karen K. play (and win !!!!!) his match. We got seats at the very front, that was awesome ! And we did such a great and loud job at cheering for him than we kind of became his "comforting spot to look at". So much eye-contact, I couldn't believe it. After the match, he signed my Roland-Garros ball, took pictures with us and thank us for the support. He's so sweet. My love for him has now tripled. On our way to the main stadium, we crossed path with Gilles Simon, then Kevin Anderson, randomly, just like that. We had tickets for the Chatrier today (the main court). At first I had considered trading my spot there for a spot on Court 1 to see Domi's match. But that would have been complicated. I would have tried if I hadn't seen him practice, but I felt like I had been extremely lucky already and let's be honest : I had a ticket for a court where Djokovic and Nadal were going to play. I mean, I love Domi to the moon and back, but. Djokovic and Nadal. So we went to the court we were meant to go. We watched Djokovic's great win and that was Jue's turn to die big time. I obviously followed Domi's score on the app the entire time. When we left the court (because we weren't really interested on the following women match), I was hoping to watch the end of Domi's match on a screen, but none of them were showing him. So I just followed the score and instead we watched, on a big screen, Andrea Queen destroy Kiki muahaha. Then I went to buy a coffee and while I was waiting for it, I spotted Günter in an alley. I ran after him without even thinking about it and… GUYS ! Günter is so nice !!!! Really, he was amazing ! He seemed really grateful about the present for Domi and promised to give it to him "right now". And I do trust Günter. I'm 100% percent sure Domi got our present. I'm freaking out a little bit, but I'm okay. We went back to the side courts, hoping to see the end of Borna's match, but the queue for his court was way too long, we didn't even join. Instead, we went to cheer for Malek Jaziri (coz' we love Malek !) and rest for a little while. Then we tried to go watch Diego, but again, there was a massive queue. So we just wandered around, made a discovery that might turn out really useful in the next few days and had a mini panic attack when we saw Manu Planque, Lucas Pouille's coach, but he was on his own. And then, it was Rafa's time, back on the main court ! And what an amazing match ! Simone Bolelli was playing so good and fighting so well, it was so entertaining to watch (considering I had been expecting a blood bath haha). Sadly, it started raining so they had to stop the match and as we're not on the main court tomorrow, we won't see the end. But I can't complain. They had forecasted a terrible weather from mid afternoon and in the end, it only started at 8pm. It did become terrible though… We left but couldn't get to the tube, because everybody had left at the same time, and found ourselves outside, in the middle of a thunderstorm. But we took shelter in a restaurant and had some great food, so all good ! And we found out tomorrow's order of play on the court we'll be on, and this is the best thing ever considering how "poor" was the remaining of the first round. I'm so looking forward to it ! I'll tell you all about it tomorrow night !

[sportsleague365]

Inter Milan have signed Alexis Sanchez from Manchester United on a three-year deal, reports say. Sanchez, 31, has spent the past season on loan at the San Siro since joining the Serie A side in August 2019. The 132-cap Chile international scored four goals for Antonio Conte’s side in all competitions. Man United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer confirmed he will move to Milan on a permanent deal. Speaking after United’s Europa League win over LASK, Solskjaer said the deal would be announced today. According to the BBC’s Simon Stone, Inter expect to be able to use him for the Europa League last eight. Goals from former Premier League players Romelu Lukaku and Christian Eriksen saw the Nerazzurri reach the quarter-finals on Wednesday night. “I can confirm that he’s agreed and we’ve agreed,” Solskjaer said. “Alexis enjoyed his time there. “They’ve liked him, so of course that’s a good move for him. Wish him all the best. He’s a top player, that we want to see play his best football. “For whatever reason we didn’t see the best of Alexis, but he’s a top professional and we just wish him all the best.” The Chilean will receive a payout from the Red Devils for cancelling his contract at Old Trafford, which still has two years left to run in theory. His departure will bring to an end the long-running saga which has plagued the club’s executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward for years. United beat Manchester City to his signature, signing him from Arsenal on a four-and-a-half year deal with wages worth £400,000-a-week. Sadly Sanchez failed to live up to expectations, having only scoredfive goals in 45 games for the Red Devils, and the board will be glad to get him off the books for good. The veteran was involved in a bust-up with academy graduate Mason Greenwood during pre-season training (The Sun). However, Sanchez has shown early signs of a revival under Conte, scoring in the 3-0 victory over Genoa last month. Regardless, finally ridding themselves of a player who has done more harm than good could pave the way for United to sign Solskjaer’s top target Jadon Sancho instead. United fans, are you happy to see Sanchez leave? Let us know down below! Click here to comment on this articleorGive us feedback on your Football Transfer Tavern experience #ManU #ManUtd #ManUnited

[cadopan]

Arsenal’s player ratings for HB Køge vs Arsenal UWCL Group Stage 1st Leg (1-5)

can’t say it was the most convincing overall performance from Arsenal, despite what the scoreline suggests; the backline were suspect on several occasions and there were periods of lull in which the creativity didn’t really come flowing. but the Arsenal quality found its way to the surface in the end, and there were some lovely moments of team play that we were treated to in yet another great CL night.

Starting XI:

Lydia — 6.5/10. argh, i really feel for her in this one. she finally got her start ahead of Manu in what’s been ages, and similar to the Tottenham game (in the FA cup semis), she gets betrayed by her defence and there goes her clean sheet. 

Noelle — 7.5/10. probably the only one in the backline whom i would say had a truly solid, near faultless game. really calm under pressure, dealt well with any counters on her side, and just looked like a total experienced pro today.

Leah — 6.5/10. her ball-playing ability (diagonally, over the top, everywhere really) was unquestionable but somehow was also part of the backline that looked shaky whenever under the slightest of pressure. did well as usual to venture forward (Ben White style), but you can’t be losing balls in the middle of the pitch when you’re the (second) last man in front of the keeper. 

Simone — 6.5/10. had a good first half, and i was honestly really impressed, but then the second half came and she just looked all over the place when defending (missed headers, bad positioning). she also doesn’t really contribute much to the build-up and only plays short side passes as compared to Leah, so i wonder if she might need more game time and confidence. 

Steph — 7/10. ayy, Steph. did so wonderfully to score the opening goal (her first for the Arsenal!) with an inch-perfect free kick ...and then nullified that with an equally shocking error to allow Køge through in on goal. i get that she’s a leftie, but should’ve just hacked that away with the right foot nice and easy. 

Lia — 7.5/10. yesss go Lia! loved her crisp passing and distribution into the forwards that break the lines. was playing as the holding midfielder but she probably made the most decisive passes in the first half. having her and Jordan in the midfield is a really good combination in terms of innovation because Jordan prefers longer, flighted balls while Lia complements that with direct, grounded passes. 

Frida — 7.5/10. was threatening and powerful, and looked the player most likely to break the deadlock in the first half, though she had less of a presence later on until she got subbed off. needless to say much more, she’s a force in that midfield. 

Jordan — 8/10. was working really hard throughout, but it didn’t seem like everything was ticking for her until Kim came on and suddenly she came alive too. the second half was really much better from her, and she finally got her first goal of the season (could’ve had two even) with a sublime shot into the corner. it was beautiful. 

Keets — 8/10. another one who feels like she finally got to have some joy after being a little frustrated in past matches. like i said before, it’s a fact that she works extremely hard every game, and today she was rewarded with her goal. did a good job too, not to let that earlier saved penalty get her down. although, i had a feeling that the moment it wasn’t Dr Little who placed the ball down on the penalty spot, it wasn’t going to go in. Arsenal defo need another clinical penalty-taker to be able to step up when she’s not on the pitch. 

Cait — 8.5/10. ah, another one who i am so happy to see make a deserved impact after underwhelming a bit so far. she constantly looked lively on that left wing, and she just looked like she had so much more room to be creative and get her mojo going as compared to when she’s in the central striker position. well-placed header to get her goal, and an even better mazy run to cut inside and provide the cross to Anna - might i say it was very Tobin Heath-esque. 

Viv — 7.5/10. didn’t have the sharpest game and looking back, she was actually the least memorable of all the attacking players today. i suppose it’s a mixture of coming back from a long rest and her tendency to drop deeper to pick up the ball today. was amused but impressed that she was back beyond the halfway line in her own half to do some solid defensive work too. and her diagonal ball to Beth that led to Jordan’s goal was class. 

Subs:

Kim — 7/10. she was sorely missed in the first half, it felt like there wasn’t enough spark and dynamic movement of the ball in her absence. sure enough, the attack kicked on after her entrance. 

Beth — 7/10. registered a nice assist, but would have to say she was quieter than expected on that right wing after she came on, though most of it was probably due to the period of time that Arsenal’s defence spent out of concentration and allowed Køge to have a good spell of foraying forward. 

Anna — 7.5/10. great first-time finish from Patsy to mark her first goal of the UWCL campaign, and hopefully it’s a great boost for her as she hasn’t been getting much playing time recently. it was heartwarming to see how happy everyone was for her <3 Katie — 6.5. came on to see out the game and did just that. nothing too flashy, though she did make one of her signature piercing runs into the penalty area. have to say, she’s still the unwavering first choice for the LB position imo. 

Bonus: Jonas Eidevall — 7/10. i was uh, slightly uncertain about the starting lineup that he picked and i was proven right because the first half display (with the exception of Steph’s worldie free kick) was quite lacklustre. didn’t help that the Køge goalie was having a super game. still, i fully support the call to rest the players that he did but it’s just that when you don’t have those catalyst-type players like Kim or Beth at the moment, the attack seemed to stagnate against a back five deep block.

Referee — 7/10. unproblematic; awarded the penalty and fouls accordingly. the entire game felt rather clean and had a spirit of good gamesmanship, don’t recall that many nasty challenges or tackles.  Overall: i think it’s apparent that Arsenal’s attack (midfield to forwards) have an abundance of quality and one way or another, will supplement the goals and results. but like it was evident against Barca (and i pointed out in my review then), it’s the defensive line that is going to make or break the game especially against higher level opponents. as with any football team, the defence has to be solid to keep the goals out (duh) but also error-free in playing out of their own third. or else the ball won’t even make it to the front line where the goals can be scored (re: Barca game). i guess one thing about Arsenal being such a dominant force this season is that the defenders spend more time “attacking”/being part of the build-up play rather than actually defending, so that is why they’ve looked susceptible to straightforward counters and gave up silly, unnecessary mistakes, etc. 

lastly, i think i mentioned her somewhere above, but Kaylan Jenna Marckese (the Køge goalie) was crazy good in her goal today. Arsenal could’ve hit double figures if not for her, she takes MOTM for me even though they ultimately conceded five. 

onto the NLD!!!

p.s. feel free to send in any questions or opinions you might’ve had on the game, or even opinions on the player ratings haha. all in good fun.

[imran16829]

No Friend But the Mountains Writer Released: Behrouz Boochani Biography, Wiki, Age, Family, Net Worth, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Fast Facts You Need to Know

Behrouz Boochani Biography, Wiki

Behrouz Boochani is an Iranian Kurd journalist who arrived in New Zealand on Thursday. He vowing never to return to Papua New Guinea (PNG) where he was detained. Behrouz was sent to PNG's Manus Island in 2013, after arriving in Australian territory by boat. Boochani is the co-director, along with Iranian filmmaker Arash Kamali Sarvestani, of the documentary Chauka, Please Tell Us the Time, has published numerous articles in leading media internationally about the plight of refugees held by the Australian government on Manus Island and has won several awards. His memoir, No Friend But the Mountains: Writing from Manus Prison, won the Victorian Prize for Literature and the Victorian Premier's Prize for Nonfiction in January 2019. The book was tapped out on a mobile phone in a series of single messages over time and translated from Persian into English by Omid Tofighian. Behrouz Boochani wrote a book via Whatsapp from inside a detention centre has finally left the island where he was held for six years by Australia. Behrouz Boochani Quick Bio Born 23 July 1983 (age 36) Ilam, Iran Occupation Journalist, writer, filmmaker, refugee advocate Residence Manus Island Education Political science, political geography and geopolitics Alma mater Tarbiat Modares University Tarbiat Moallem (Kharazmi) University Notable works No Friend But the Mountains: Writing from Manus Prison; Chauka, Please Tell Us the Time (film) Notable awards Victorian Prize for Literature Victorian Premier's Prize for Nonfiction

Behrouz Boochani Detention

Mr Boochani arrived on Australia's Christmas Island in July 2013. In the same month, the country's then-prime minister vowed no asylum seeker arriving by boat would ever be resettled in Australia, even if found to be genuine refugees. Australia says its policies are necessary to deter dangerous attempts to reach the country by sea. Boochani began contacting journalists and human rights defenders outside the camp. He collected information on human rights abuses in the field and sent them via a hidden mobile phone to news organizations and advocacy groups such as The Guardian, The Sydney Morning Herald, Refugee Action Collective and the United Nations. In September 2015, PEN International (the Melbourne and Norwegian branches of which Boochani is now an honorary member and a coalition of human rights groups launched an international campaign on behalf of Boochani, urging the Australian government to fulfill its obligations at the beginning of non-refoulement, as defined in article 33 of the United Nations Convention on the Status of Refugees Several campaigns have urged people to write to Peter Dutton, Minister of Immigration and Border Protection, the Prime Minister Australian and high commissioners. Journalists without borders warned that dissent was not tolerated by Iran's theocratic regime, and that "Boochani's freedom would be in great danger if he were forced to return to Iran." Boochani has repeatedly asked for I handed it to the UN. He also became a spokesman for the men in his complex, Foxtrot, meeting with PNG immigration officials and other officials, as well as Amnesty International and UNHCR representatives. He has been moved twice to Chauka, the solitary confinement block built with shipping containers, for three days. He was also imprisoned during the 2015 hunger strike that was stifled by force, spending eight days inside Lorengau prison and released without charges after being asked to stop reporting. He said in a 12-minute radio interview on Autonomous Action Radio before the release of his Chauka movie, Please Tell Us the Time in 2016, that he intended to show the Australian public what the government was doing with the detainees on the island , and spoke of the mental torture caused by the deprivation of hope. In March 2017, Boochani's plight was raised in the Australian House of Representatives by Australian MP Adam Bandt. Although he was forcibly moved to an accommodation outside the detention center a few weeks after it was officially closed on October 31, 2017, Boochani cannot leave the island without travel documents, and the only way to reach the nearby town Lorengau is on an official bus, and refugees are routinely searched in the body when they leave and return. He wrote about what was happening and his fear during the siege that followed the closure, as well as the articles he wrote for The Guardian at that time, among other things, in WhatsApp messages to translator and friend Omid Tofighian, which were later published in its totality . On November 28, 2017, Boochani sent a message to the Australian public through the Asylum Seekers Resource Center (ASRC) and posted it on his website, thanking them for their humanity, and describing the recent peaceful protest of refugees in the island after the closure of the detention center, which was met with force. He said Peter Dutton was not right in saying that his only wish was to come to Australia; They just want freedom and security in any safe country, and they were not free or safe in Manus. In a speech given to the guests at a dinner of the Center for Human Rights Law in 2018, he expressed the opinion that the Australian Government was manipulating its people, using propaganda focused on national security. In a radio interview with SBS Radio, he thanked "the many brave people in Australia who have been fighting this system," saying that Australians are not cruel and if they were fully aware of exactly what is happening, they would not have let Your government does this. Boochani was presented as the subject of the Australian history of ABC TV. He said he would not continue with resettlement in Papua New Guinea, and now regrets his decision to target Australia.

Works from Manus Island

Mientras vivía en el centro de detención de Manus Island, Boochani ha publicado muchos de sus artículos en las noticias en línea y otros medios, como "The Day My Friend Hamid Kehazaei Died" en The Guardian y "Life on Manus: Island of the Damned" en The Saturday Paper y otros de HuffPost, Financial Times y New Matilda. El periodista guardián Ben Doherty, al aceptar el premio Amnistía Internacional Australia en nombre de Behrouz en 2017, dijo que Boochani "... con razón, se ve a sí mismo como un periodista que trabaja en Manus Island, cuyo trabajo es ser testigo de las injusticias y la violencia y privación de la detención en alta mar ". Algunos de sus artículos han sido publicados en sitios web kurdos en Irán. También ha publicado poemas en línea y narra su historia en el galardonado documental animado Nowhere Lines: Voices of Manus Island, realizado por el cineasta británico Lucas Schrank en 2015). La película Chauka, Please Tell Us the Time fue filmada dentro del centro de detención de Manus Island por Boochani, completamente en un teléfono móvil, y estrenada el 11 de junio de 2017 en el Festival de Cine de Sydney. Una crítica de la película fue escrita por el galardonado escritor Arnold Zable. En febrero de 2018, escribió un artículo sobre el asesinato de su amigo Reza Barati durante los disturbios en el campamento en 2014 y la injusticia de los eventos que siguieron. Se incluye un poema sobre su "gigante gentil y mejor amigo", llamado Our Mothers, un poema para Reza. En marzo de 2018, el documental de larga duración, Stop the Boats! (el título que refleja un eslogan del gobierno), dirigido por Simon V. Kurian, fue lanzado, con Boochani y otros. No Friend But the Mountains In July 2018, Picador published his memoirs No Friend But the Mountains: Writing from Manus Prison. Written in prose and poetry, he narrates his boat trip from Indonesia, his detention on Manus Island and the lives (and deaths) of other prisoners, as well as observations on the Australian guards and the local people of Papua. The book was laboriously used in a mobile phone in Persian in fragments through WhatsApp and translated from Persian into English by his friend Omid Tofighian. He postulates that prison is a kiriarchal system (a term taken from feminist theory), one where different forms of oppression intersect; Oppression is not random but intentional, designed to isolate and create friction among prisoners, leading to despair and broken spirits. In his preface to the work, Australian writer Richard Flanagan refers to Boochani as "a great Australian writer." No Friend But the Mountains won the Victorian Prize for Literature and the Victorian Premier Non-Fiction Award on January 31, 2019. There were questions about Boochani's eligibility for both awards because participants had previously limited themselves to Australian citizens or permanent residents, but he was given a waiver by the prize managers and the judges was unanimous in recognizing his literary excellence. The director of the Wheeler Center, Michael Williams, said the judges thought that the story of what is happening on Manus Island is essentially an Australian story, and that "he made it completely consistent with the intent of the awards." In an interview with writer Arnold Zable after the award, Boochani said he has many conflicting thoughts about it, but sees it as a "political statement of the literary and creative arts community in Australia, and all those who disagree with government thinking. " In April 2019, the book received a Special Prize at the Premier Literary Awards of New South Wales, whose judges described it as "an outstanding literary work in its own right", in addition to being "... notable for the circumstances of its production". .... compelling and shocking content. " On May 2, it was announced that the work had won the Australian Book Industry Award (ABIA) for the general nonfiction book of the year.

Behrouz Boochani Twitter

"I just arrived in New Zealand," he tweeted on Thursday. "So exciting to get freedom after more than six years. I just arrived in New Zealand. So exciting to get freedom after more than six years. I have been invited by Word Festival in Christchurch and will participate in an event here. Thank you to all the friends who made this happen. — Behrouz Boochani (@BehrouzBoochani) November 14, 2019  

Awards

Diaspora Symposium Social Justice Award in October 2016. On the shortlist of four for the Index on Censorship's Freedom of Expression Award in the category of Journalism in 2017. Tampa Award, April 2018, presented by Rural Australians for Refugees, for "selfless and substantial contribution to the welfare of refugees". Amnesty International Australia 2017 Media Award, for his work on The Guardian and The Saturday Paper. STARTTS Humanitarian Award (Media), for "Media outlets, journalists or media officers supporting, prioritising and/or raising awareness of refugee issues". Voltaire Award, Empty Chair Award, awarded July 2018 by Liberty Australia. Anna Politkovskaya Award for Journalism, October 2018.] Sir Ronald Wilson Human Rights Award, October 2018. Victorian Prize for Literature and the Victorian Premier's Prize for Nonfiction, January 2019, for No Friend But the Mountains: Writing from Manus Prison. Special Award, New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards, April 2019, for No Friend But the Mountains. General Non-Fiction Book of the Year, Australian Book Industry Awards, April 2019, for No Friend But the Mountains. National Biography Award, August 2019, for No Friend But the Mountains. Read the full article